Energy input and dissipation in a temperate lake during the spring transition

ADCP and temperature chain measurements have been used to estimate the rate of energy input by wind stress to the water surface in the south basin of Windermere. The energy input from the atmosphere was found to increase markedly as the lake stratified in spring. The efficiency of energy transfer (Eff), defined as the ratio of the rate of working in near-surface waters (RW) to that above the lake surface (P10), increased from ∼0.0013 in vertically homogenous conditions to ∼0.0064 in the first 40 days of the stratified regime. A maximum value of Eff∼0.01 was observed when, with increasing stratification, the first mode internal seiche period decreased to match the diurnal wind period of 24 h. The increase in energy input, following the onset of stratification was reflected in enhancement of the mean depth-varying kinetic energy without a corresponding increase in wind forcing. Parallel estimates of energy dissipation in the bottom boundary layer, based on determination of the structure function show that it accounts for ∼15% of RW in stratified conditions. The evolution of stratification in the lake conforms to a heating stirring model which indicates that mixing accounts for ∼21% of RW. Taken together, these estimates of key energetic parameters point the way to the development of full energy budgets for lakes and shallow seas

Diktyokaulose in einem Milchviehbetrieb

An outbreak of clinical dictyocauliasis in a dairy herd comprising twenty-six cows and five heifers is described. The index was a purchased animal which began coughing several days after introduction to the herd in March. A few weeks later several other cows started to cough, and by July the clinical signs became more severe; milk production decreased and affected animals lost weight. Clinical examination revealed moderate to severe bronchopneumonia. Fecal ecamination revealed Dictyocaulus viviparus larvae in eight animals resulting in a diagnosis of verminous pneumonia. Factors which could have favoured the development and survival of D. viviparus and were therefore assumed to contribute to the occurrence of the disease included pasture management, as the cattle grazed one of two pastures of only one and two hectares for 78 days from April to July, rainy weather and mild temperatures

Coral obligate filefish masquerades as branching coral

[Extract] Masquerade occurs when an organism uses its coloration or shape to resemble an inedible object, causing it to be misidentified by potential predators, rather than simply remaining undetected (crypsis) (Skelhorn et al. 2010). The harlequin filefish, Oxymonacanthus longirostris (Bloch & Schneider, 1801), is a highly specialised species, which almost exclusively uses Acropora corals for food and as habitat (Kokita and Nakazono 2001). This species' behaviour during crepuscular and nocturnal periods, along with body form and colour pattern, suggests it masquerades as the branching Acropora species with which it associates

Lake Dianchi Kunming, Project Clear Lake. Summary Phases 1, 2 and 3. Schlussbericht und Zusammenfassung.

Das Projekt "Klarer See" wurde durch Kunming und die SWISSWATER GmbH im April 2009 gestartet. Bis Januar 2012 wurden bereits 3 Projektphasen erfolgreich abgeschlossen, präsentiert und in mehr als 10 Berichten ausführlich dokumentiert. In allen Phasen wurde intensiv und eng mit den Fachkräften von Kunming zusammen gearbeitet. Dazu haben auch Schweizer Experten über mehrere Monate direkt vor Ort gearbeitet. Alle Schweizer Experte haben gute internationale Erfahrung über den Gewässerschutz und Seesanierungen und intensiv für die Dianseesanierung gearbeitet undf ihr Wissen eingebracht. Wir bitten Kunming, unsere Massnahmenvorschläge und Empfehlungen genau zu prüfen und anzunehmen. Die wichtigsten Erkenntnisse der Phasen 1, 2 und 3 sowie auch Ideen für die weitere Zusammenarbeit sind in den nachfolgenden Kapiteln beschrieben. Die Resultate der Phase 1 wurden am 15. September 2010 an der Expo Shanghai gemeinsam mit Kunming einem breiten Publikum präsentiert, das grosses Interesse an den Ergebnissen zeigte

Gyre formation in open and deep lacustrine embayments: the example of Lake Geneva, Switzerland

Numerical simulations were carried out to investigate gyres within open lacustrine embayments subjected to parallel-to-shore currents. In such embayments, gyre formation occurs due to flow separation at the embayment’s upstream edge. High momentum fluid from the mixing layer between the embayment and offshore flows into the embayment and produces recirculating flow. Systematic numerical experiments using different synthetic embayment configurations were used to examine the impact of embayment geometry. Geometries included embayments with different aspect ratios, depths and embayment corner angles. The magnitudes of the recirculation and turbulent kinetic energy (TKE) in the embayment vary significantly for angles in the range 40°–55°. Embayments with corner angles less than 50° have much stronger recirculation and TKE, other parameters remaining the same. The numerical findings are consistent with gyre formation observed in two embayments located in Lake Geneva, Switzerland, and thus help explain flow patterns recorded in lacustrine shoreline regions

FlexiSketch: a lightweight sketching and metamodeling approach for end-users

Engineers commonly use paper and whiteboards to sketch and discuss ideas in early phases of requirements elicitation and software modeling. These physical media foster creativity because they are quick to use and do not restrict in any way the form in which content can be drawn. If the sketched information needs to be reused later on, however, engineers have to spend extra effort for preserving the information in a form that can be processed by a software modeling tool. While saving information in a machine-readable way comes for free with formal software modeling tools, they typically anticipate the use of specific, predefined modeling languages and therefore hamper creativity. To combine the advantages of informal and formal tools, we have developed a flexible tool-supported modeling approach that augments a sketching environment with lightweight metamodeling capabilities. Users can create their own modeling languages by defining sketched constructs on demand and export model sketches as semiformal models. In this article, we first give an overview of FlexiSketch and then focus on an evaluation of our approach with two studies conducted with both novice modelers and experienced practitioners. Our goal was to find out how well modelers manage to use our lightweight metamodeling mechanisms, and how they build notations collaboratively. Results show that experienced modelers adopt our approach quickly, while novices have difficulties to distinguish between the model and metamodel levels and would benefit from additional guidance and user awareness features. The lessons learned from our studies can serve as advice for similar flexible modeling approaches

Towards Super User-Centred Continuous Delivery: A Case Study

To develop well designed socio-technical systems for a particular context user involvement is essential. Emerging software development approaches that enable continuous delivery of software functionalities provide new opportunities as to how users can be involved in shaping the design. We present a case study of a software project at a Norwegian engineering and construction company in their effort to move towards a user-centred development approach that leverages on continuous delivery principles. We investigate how user representatives in form of super users have been involved in the process and their role in forming and implementing new digital technology in practice. We conclude that utilising super users have been instrumental to design a system that meet users’ needs. Providing opportunities to test the system in a production environment gave rise to new ideas on how to further refine the design. Involving super users also facilitated system adoption among workers