Influence of the spatial extent and resolution of input data on soil carbon models in Florida, USA.

Understanding the causes of spatial variation of soil carbon (C) has important implications for regional and global C dynamics studies. Soil C predictive models can identify sources of C variation, but may be influenced by scale parameters, including the spatial extent and resolution of input data. Our objective was to investigate the influence of these scale parameters on soil C spatial predictive models in Florida, USA. We used data from three nested spatial extents (Florida, 150,000 km2; Santa Fe River watershed, 3,585 km2; and University of Florida Beef Cattle Station, 5.58 km2) to derive stepwise linear models of soil C as a function of 24 environmental properties. Models were derived within the three extents and for seven resolutions (30?1920 m) of input environmental data in Florida and in the watershed, then cross-evaluated among extents and resolutions, respectively. The quality of soil C models increased with an increase in the spatial extent (R2 from 0.10 in the cattle station to 0.61 in Florida) and with a decrease in the resolution of input data (R2 from 0.33 at 1920-m resolution to 0.61 at 30-m resolution in Florida). Soil and hydrologic variables were the most important across the seven resolutions both in Florida and in the watershed. The spatial extent and resolution of environmental covariates modulate soil C variation and soil-landscape correlations influencing soil C predictive models. Our results provide scale boundaries to observe environmental data and assess soil C spatial patterns, supporting C sequestration, budgeting and monitoring programs

Identifying and correcting oblique striping in the topodata digital elevation model.

The Topodata digital elevation model (DEM) is the best DEM available for digital soil mapping (DSM) in Brazil. However, it is not ready to use. We show that the kriging interpolator used to downscale the SRTM DEM from 3 arc-seconds to 1 arc-second spatial resolution increased the double oblique striping (15º and 60º) so common to SRTM DEMs. This is because kriging is quite sensitive to outliers. Besides, the Gaussian model of spatial covariance used in the downscaling enhanced the sensitivity of kriging to outliers, thus enhancing the striping. 2D Fast Fourier Transform can be used to identify whether a destriping procedure need to be employed. The bilinear or cubic resampling methods should be used to warp Topodata DEMs because they are insensitive to the double oblique striping

Spatially-explicit and spectral soil carbon modeling in Florida.

Profound shifts have occurred over the last three centuries in which human actions have become the main driver to global environmental change. In this new epoch, the Anthropocene, human-driven changes such as population growth, climate and land use change, are pushing the Earth system well outside its normal operating range causing severe and abrupt environmental change. In this context, we present research highlights from Florida (150,000 km2) showing how anthropogenic-induced changes have had major impacts on carbon dynamics in soils, including (i) modeling of carbon and nutrient dynamics and soil carbon sequestration impacted by climate and land use change; (ii) geospatial assessment of soil carbon stocks and pools, and (iii) spectral-based soil carbon modeling. Our research is embedded in the STEP-AWBH modeling concept which explicitly incorporates Human forcings and time-dependent evolution of Atmospheric, Water, and Biotic factors into the modeling process. Spatially-explicit soil carbon observations were fused with ancillary environmental data and various statistical and geostatistical methods were used to upscale soil carbon across the region. Our results suggest that soil hydrologic and taxonomic, biotic (vegetation and land use), and climatic properties show complex interactions explaining the variation of soil carbon within this heterogeneous subtropical landscape

Solos do quadrilátero ferrífero sob diferentes coberturas vegetais e materiais de origem.

O Quadrilátero Ferrífero é uma região de grande diversidade ambiental, com forte aptidão à exploração mineral que impera desde os tempos coloniais e se mantém até hoje. Em consequência, os estudos direcionados para esse fim foram protagonizados, sendo menos comuns aqueles direcionados aos solos. O presente trabalho objetiva caracterizar os solos, avaliar as suas causas de variação na paisagem e sua relação com os principais componentes ambientais (relevo, geologia e vegetação) de três locais representativos dessa região. Os locais de estudo estão situados nos municípios mineiros de Sabará, Novo Lima e Brumadinho em minas de minério de ferro ativas (Mina Miguelão em Nova Lima e Córrego do Feijão em Brumadinho) ou desativadas (Mina Córrego do Meio, Sabará). É parte integrante do projeto intitulado "Diversidade de plantas e de organismos dos solos com potencial biotecnológico e indicadores de impacto ambiental em Minas Gerais". Assim, os locais de abertura dos 28 perfis descritos e amostrados neste estudo, a maioria dispostos em topossequências, seguiram o desenho amostral do referido projeto, de tal forma que se buscou abarcar todas as variações fisiográficas locais. Dentre os resultados alcançados, destacam-se: os Cambissolos Háplicos, relacionados a rochas metassedimentares e a relevo acidentado, foram os solos dominantes em Sabará, independentemente da vegetação nativa, composta de floresta estacional semidecidual e campo cerrado que ocorrem lado a lado. São solos de baixa fertilidade natural, geralmente álicos, epipedregosos quando sob campo cerrado, com elevados conteúdos de silte, muitas vezes superiores aos de argila, de textura média (campo cerrado) ou argilosa (floresta). Solos sob vegetação de eucalipto e campo rupestre ferruginoso também foram descritos em Sabará. Enquanto nos primeiros também predominam os Cambissolos Háplicos, nos campos rupestres são os Neossolos Regolíticos Perférricos (classificação proposta) exclusivos, ocorrendo em relevo ondulado e suave ondulado. Latossolos também estão presentes em Sabará, quer sob vegetação de floresta, campo cerrado ou eucalipto. É nesse uso que se observou o solo não ferruginoso mais peculiar e evoluído dentre os estudados em Sabará: o Latossolo Vermelho Distrófico húmico. Trata-se do solo com maior conteúdo de Al3+ dentre todos os perfis estudados. Em Brumadinho, no entanto, sob floresta estacional semidecidual e relacionados ao intemperismo do granito, é que estão os solos não ferruginosos mais evoluídos: Latossolos Vermelhos e Vermelho-Amarelos localizam-se no terço superior da única vertente estudada na região. Cambissolos Háplicos e Húmicos também foram descritos em Brumadinho, cujas variações de classes e atributos estão intimamente relacionados ao relevo local. Em Nova Lima, os Plintossolos Pétricos originados do intemperismo das cangas lateríticas são exclusivos, com grande quantidade de cascalhos e calhaus de petroplintita no perfil. No entanto, seus atributos variaram significativamente na paisagem, mesmo a curtas distâncias, o que, associado às variações do relevo local, revelaram diferentes fitofisionomias e microhabitats para a fauna e flora locais. Por fim, três perfis (tipos de terreno) foram descritos e coletados em pilhas de estéril de mineração de ferro: dois em Brumadinho e um em Sabará. Em comum, apresentam elevados conteúdos de ferro (oxídicos) e textura média em todas as camadas, nulos de Al3+ e de valores m% nas camadas superficiais. Espera-se que este estudo muna as demais pesquisas do projeto supracitado, dedicadas à flora local e organismos do solo, com informações ambientais detalhadas das áreas de estudo, essenciais à comparação e extrapolação dos resultados das pesquisas entre áreas ambientalmente similares.bitstream/item/172437/1/CNPS-BPD-264-2017.pd

Staphylococcus aureus colonization and infection in New York State Prisons

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/55479/1/Staphylococcus aureus Colonization and Infection in New York Prisons - Larson et al 2007pdf.pd

Bringing together Brazilian soil scientists to share soil data.

Brazilian soil scientists have recently created a soil data repository using community-built standards and following open data policies in an attempt to address the issues mentioned above. The Free Brazilian Repository for Open Soil Data - febr -, accessible through www.ufsm.br/febr, is a centralized repository targeted at storing open soil data and serving it in a standardized and harmonized format, for various applications. This paper describes the features of febr and the opportunities that it creates for soil science.Na publicação: Wenceslau Teixeira

Effect of shunted piezoelectric control for tuning piezoelectric power harvesting system responses – Analytical techniques

This paper presents new analytical modelling of shunt circuit control responses for tuning electromechanical piezoelectric vibration power harvesting structures with proof mass offset. For this combination, the dynamic closed-form boundary value equations reduced from strong form variational principles were developed using the extended Hamiltonian principle to formulate the new coupled orthonormalised electromechanical power harvesting equations showing combinations of the mechanical system (dynamical behaviour of piezoelectric structure), electromechanical system (electrical piezoelectric response) and electrical system (tuning and harvesting circuits). The reduced equations can be further formulated to give the complete forms of new electromechanical multi-mode FRFs and time waveform of the standard AC-DC circuit interface. The proposed technique can demonstrate self-adaptive harvesting response capabilities for tuning the frequency band and the power amplitude of the harvesting devices. The self-adaptive tuning strategies are demonstrated by modelling the shunt circuit behaviour of the piezoelectric control layer in order to optimise the harvesting piezoelectric layer during operation under input base excitation. In such situations, with proper tuning parameters the system performance can be substantially improved. Moreover, the validation of the closed-form technique is also provided by developing the Ritz method-based weak form analytical approach giving similar results. Finally, the parametric analytical studies have been explored to identify direct and relevant contributions for vibration power harvesting behaviours