PERENNIAL CROPS FOR BIO-FUELS AND CONSERVATION

Perennial woody crops have the potential to contribute significantly to the production of bio-fuels while simultaneously helping to provide a wide range of conservation benefits. Among these benefits are increased biological diversity in the landscape, conservation of soil and water resources, maintenance of forest ecosystem productivity and health, contribution to the global carbon cycle, and provision of socioeconomic benefits. Short rotation woody crops, like hybrid poplar and willow, grow rapidly and can reach 15-25 feet in height after only three years. Currently, non-irrigated yields can be sustained at about 5 dry tons/acre/year and are increasing as plant breeding, nutrient management, and weed control advances are made. The high hemi-cellulose and cellulose content of woody biomass result in favorable net energy conversion ratios of 1:11 when co-fired with coal and 1:16 when undergoing gasification. Directing this wood fiber into bio-fuels would benefit both the energy sector and forest and farm landowners, while providing an array of conservation benefits and ecological services. The amount of biofuel that can be sustainably produced each year from perennial crops is potentially very large. The next Farm Bill affords an opportunity to insure that this potential can be more fully realized

PERENNIAL CROPS FOR BIO-FUELS AND CONSERVATION

Perennial woody crops have the potential to contribute significantly to the production of bio-fuels while simultaneously helping to provide a wide range of conservation benefits. Among these benefits are increased biological diversity in the landscape, conservation of soil and water resources, maintenance of forest ecosystem productivity and health, contribution to the global carbon cycle, and provision of socioeconomic benefits. Short rotation woody crops, like hybrid poplar and willow, grow rapidly and can reach 15-25 feet in height after only three years. Currently, non-irrigated yields can be sustained at about 5 dry tons/acre/year and are increasing as plant breeding, nutrient management, and weed control advances are made. The high hemi-cellulose and cellulose content of woody biomass result in favorable net energy conversion ratios of 1:11 when co-fired with coal and 1:16 when undergoing gasification. Directing this wood fiber into bio-fuels would benefit both the energy sector and forest and farm landowners, while providing an array of conservation benefits and ecological services. The amount of biofuel that can be sustainably produced each year from perennial crops is potentially very large. The next Farm Bill affords an opportunity to insure that this potential can be more fully realized

PERENNIAL CROPS FOR BIO-FUELS AND CONSERVATION

Perennial woody crops have the potential to contribute significantly to the production of bio-fuels while simultaneously helping to provide a wide range of conservation benefits. Among these benefits are increased biological diversity in the landscape, conservation of soil and water resources, maintenance of forest ecosystem productivity and health, contribution to the global carbon cycle, and provision of socioeconomic benefits. Short rotation woody crops, like hybrid poplar and willow, grow rapidly and can reach 15-25 feet in height after only three years. Currently, non-irrigated yields can be sustained at about 5 dry tons/acre/year and are increasing as plant breeding, nutrient management, and weed control advances are made. The high hemi-cellulose and cellulose content of woody biomass result in favorable net energy conversion ratios of 1:11 when co-fired with coal and 1:16 when undergoing gasification. Directing this wood fiber into bio-fuels would benefit both the energy sector and forest and farm landowners, while providing an array of conservation benefits and ecological services. The amount of biofuel that can be sustainably produced each year from perennial crops is potentially very large. The next Farm Bill affords an opportunity to insure that this potential can be more fully realized

Large-scale fluctuations and dynamics of the Bullard-von Karman dynamo

International audienceA synthetic fluid dynamo built in the spirit of the Bullard device (Bullard, The stability of a homopolar dynamo, Proc. Camb. Phil. Soc. 1955, 51, 744) is investigated. It is a two-step dynamo in which one process stems from the fluid turbulence, while the other part is achieved by a linear amplification of currents in external coils (Bourgoin et al., A bullard-von Karman dynamo, New J. Phys., 2006, 8, 329). Modifications in the forcing are introduced in order to change the dynamics of the flow, and hence the dynamo behavior. Some features, such as on-off intermittency at onset of dynamo action, are very robust. Large-scale fluctuations have a significant impact on the resulting dynamo, in particular in the observation of magnetic field reversals

Bilingual poetry: expanding the cognitive and cultural dimensions of children’s learning

Stories and poetry have long been considered a resource for the language and literacy development of bilingual children, particularly if they can work with texts in both mother tongue and English. This paper demonstrates that bilingual learning is also beneficial for second and third generation children whose English is often stronger than their mother tongue. Presenting data from an action research project in East London primary schools, we show how children investigated metaphor and cultural content in a Bengali lullaby, clarifying concepts through dialogue with their parents. Comparison with a lullaby in English from North America generated additional ideas concerning different cultural values. The learning process enabled children to use their bilingual skills and draw on different aspects of their bicultural identities. Finally, we explain how bilingual poetry can be used to stimulate learning in a multilingual classroom context, through the example of a whole-class lesson based around Bengali and English lullabies

Neonatal SSRI Exposure Programs a Hypermetabolic State in Adult Mice

Background. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) therapy complicates up to 10% of pregnancies. During therapy, SSRIs exert pleiotropic antidepressant, anorexigenic, and neurotrophic effects. Intrauterine SSRI exposure has been modeled by neonatal administration to developmentally immature rodents, and it has paradoxically elicited features of adult depression. We hypothesized neonatal SSRI exposure likewise programs a rebound hypermetabolic state in adult mice. Methods. C57BL/6 pups were randomized to saline or sertraline (5 mg/kg/d) from P1–P14. Because estrogen increases tryptophan hydroxylase 2 (TPH2) expression, a subset of female mice underwent sham surgery or bilateral ovariectomy (OVX). Metabolic rate was determined by indirect calorimetry. Results. In both male and female mice, neonatal SSRI exposure increased adult caloric intake and metabolic rate. SSRI-exposed female mice had significantly decreased adult weight with a relative increase in brain weight and melatonin excretion, independent of ovarian status. Cerebral cortex TPH2 expression was increased in SSRI-exposed male mice but decreased in OVX SSRI-exposed female mice. Conclusions. SSRI exposure during a critical neurodevelopmental window increases adult caloric intake and metabolic rate. Ovarian status modulated central TPH2 expression, but not adult energy balance, suggesting programmed neural connectivity or enhanced melatonin production may play a more important role in the post-SSRI hypermetabolic syndrome

Facial nerve electrodiagnostics for patients with facial palsy : a clinical practice guideline

Purpose Facial nerve electrodiagnostics is a well-established and important tool for decision making in patients with facial nerve diseases. Nevertheless, many otorhinolaryngologist-head and neck surgeons do not routinely use facial nerve electrodiagnostics. This may be due to a current lack of agreement on methodology, interpretation, validity, and clinical application. Electrophysiological analyses of the facial nerve and the mimic muscles can assist in diagnosis, assess the lesion severity, and aid in decision making. With acute facial palsy, it is a valuable tool for predicting recovery. Methods This paper presents a guideline prepared by members of the International Head and Neck Scientific Group and of the Multidisciplinary Salivary Gland Society for use in cases of peripheral facial nerve disorders based on a systematic literature search. Results Required equipment, practical implementation, and interpretation of the results of facial nerve electrodiagnostics are presented. Conclusion The aim of this guideline is to inform all involved parties (i.e. otorhinolaryngologist-head and neck surgeons and other medical specialists, therapeutic professionals and the affected persons) and to provide practical recommendations for the diagnostic use of facial nerve electrodiagnostics.Peer reviewe

Development of a Benchmark Eddy Flux Evapotranspiration Dataset for Evaluation of Satellite-Driven Evapotranspiration Models Over the CONUS

A large sample of ground-based evapotranspiration (ET) measurements made in the United States, primarily from eddy covariance systems, were post-processed to produce a benchmark ET dataset. The dataset was produced primarily to support the intercomparison and evaluation of the OpenET satellite-based remote sensing ET (RSET) models and could also be used to evaluate ET data from other models and approaches. OpenET is a web-based service that makes field-delineated and pixel-level ET estimates from well-established RSET models readily available to water managers, agricultural producers, and the public. The benchmark dataset is composed of flux and meteorological data from a variety of providers covering native vegetation and agricultural settings. Flux footprint predictions were developed for each station and included static flux footprints developed based on average wind direction and speed, as well as dynamic hourly footprints that were generated with a physically based model of upwind source area. The two footprint prediction methods were rigorously compared to evaluate their relative spatial coverage. Data from all sources were post-processed in a consistent and reproducible manner including data handling, gap-filling, temporal aggregation, and energy balance closure correction. The resulting dataset included 243,048 daily and 5,284 monthly ET values from 194 stations, with all data falling between 1995 and 2021. We assessed average daily energy imbalance using 172 flux sites with a total of 193,021 days of data, finding that overall turbulent fluxes were understated by about 12% on average relative to available energy. Multiple linear regression analyses indicated that daily average latent energy flux may be typically understated slightly more than sensible heat flux. This dataset was developed to provide a consistent reference to support evaluation of RSET data being developed for a wide range of applications related to water accounting and water resources management at field to watershed scales