Regional Imprints of Changes in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation in the Eddy-rich Ocean Model VIKING20X

A hierarchy of global 1/4° (ORCA025) and Atlantic Ocean 1/20° nested (VIKING20X) ocean/sea-ice models is described. It is shown that the eddy-rich configurations performed in hindcasts of the past 50–60 years under CORE and JRA55-do atmospheric forcings realistically simulate the large-scale horizontal circulation, the distribution of the mesoscale, overflow and convective processes, and the representation of regional current systems in the North and South Atlantic. The representation, and in particular the long-term temporal evolution, of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) strongly depends on numerical choices for the application of freshwater fluxes. The interannual variability of the AMOC instead is highly correlated among the model experiments and also with observations, including the 2010 minimum observed by RAPID at 26.5° N pointing at a dominant role of the forcing. Regional observations in western boundary current systems at 53° N, 26.5° N and 11° S are explored in respect to their ability to represent the AMOC and to monitor the temporal evolution of the AMOC. Apart from the basin-scale measurements at 26.5° N, it is shown that in particular the outflow of North Atlantic Deepwater at 53° N is a good indicator of the subpolar AMOC trend during the recent decades, if the latter is provided in density coordinates. The good reproduction of observed AMOC and WBC trends in the most reasonable simulations indicate that the eddy-rich VIKING20X is capable in representing realistic forcing-related and ocean-intrinsic trends

Incidence of acute myocardial infarction after implementation of a public smoking ban in Graubünden, Switzerland: two year follow-up

Compared with the two years preceding the implementation of a smoking ban, the incidence of AMI remained significantly reduced in the second year of the ban in Graubünden, whereas no similar reduction was seen in a comparable area without smoke-free legislation. Changes in outdoor air pollution or the use of lipid-lowering drugs did not substantially contribute to the decrease in the incidence of AMI that occurred after adoption of the ban in Graubünden

Low-Frequency Blood Group Antigens in Switzerland.

High-frequency blood group antigens (HFA) are present in >90% of the human population, according to some reports even in >99% of individuals. Therefore, patients lacking HFA may become challenging for transfusion support because compatible blood is hardly found, and if the patient carries alloantibodies, the cross-match will be positive with virtual every red cell unit tested. In this study, we applied high-throughput blood group SNP genotyping on >37,000 Swiss blood donors, intending to identify homozygous carriers of low-frequency blood group antigens (LFA). 326 such individuals were identified and made available to transfusion specialists for future support of patients in need of rare blood products. Thorough comparison of minor allele frequencies using population genetics revealed heterogeneity of allele distributions among Swiss blood donors which may be explained by the topographical and cultural peculiarities of Switzerland. Moreover, geographically localized donor subpopulations are described which contain above-average numbers of individuals carrying rare blood group genotypes

Bereichernd oder belanglos? Der Nachrichtenwert der partizipativen Pressefotografie im Boulevardjournalismus

Partizipative Pressefotografie existiert zwar bereits seit Jahrzehnten, doch ihre Institutionalisierung durch den Boulevardjournalismus ist relativ neu. Bekanntestes Beispiel in Deutschland sind die Leserreporter der Bild-Zeitung. Anhänger versprechen sich von ihnen eine Bereicherung der Berichterstattung, Kritiker werfen ihnen Belanglosigkeit vor. Diese Streitfrage versucht der vorliegende Beitrag auf Basis der Nachrichtenwerttheorie zu klären. Dazu ermittelt er anhand einer Vollerhebung der Leserreporter-Fotos und der dazugehörigen Beiträge, ob sich deren Selektion und Beachtung durch die Journalisten eher an gesellschaftlichen oder an individuellen Relevanzkriterien orientiert. Es stellt sich heraus, dass bei der Selektion „weiche“ Nachrichtenfaktoren dominieren und im Zeitverlauf zunehmen. Die journalistische Beachtung jedoch wird in erster Linie von „harten“ Nachrichtenfaktoren bestimmt. Diese werden den Fotos auch über den Beitragstext zugeschrieben. Die gewonnenen Erkenntnisse lassen sich mit Vorsicht auf andere Formen des partizipativen Journalismus übertragen. Sie stützen die Annahme, dass dieser sich eher komplementär zum professionellen Journalismus verhält und entwickelt

Supplementary Material for: Low-Frequency Blood Group Antigens in Switzerland

Background: High-frequency blood group antigens (HFA) are present in >90% of the human population, according to some reports even in >99% of individuals. Therefore, patients lacking HFA may become challenging for transfusion support because compatible blood is hardly found, and if the patient carries alloantibodies, the crossmatch will be positive with virtual every red cell unit tested. Methods: In this study, we applied high-throughput blood group SNP genotyping on >37,000 Swiss blood donors, intending to identify homozygous carriers of low-frequency blood group antigens (LFA). Results: 326 such individuals were identified and made available to transfusion specialists for future support of patients in need of rare blood products. Conclusion: Thorough comparison of minor allele frequencies using population genetics revealed heterogeneity of allele distributions among Swiss blood donors which may be explained by the topographical and cultural peculiarities of Switzerland. Moreover, geographically localized donor subpopulations are described which contain above-average numbers of individuals carrying rare blood group genotypes