Cloud tomography applied to sky images: a virtual testbed

Two tomographic techniques are applied to two simulated sets of sky images with different cloud fraction. The Algebraic Reconstruction Technique (ART) is applied to optical depth maps from sky images to reconstruct 3-D cloud extinction coefficients without considering multiple scattering effects. Reconstruction accuracy is explored for different products, including surface irradiance and extinction coefficients, and as a function of the number of available sky imagers and setup distance. Increasing the number of imagers improves the accuracy of the 3-D reconstruction: for surface irradiance, the error decreases significantly up to four imagers at which point the improvements become marginal. But using nine imagers gives more robust results in practical situations in which the circumsolar region of images has to be excluded due to poor cloud detection. The ideal distance between imagers was also explored: for a cloud height of 1 km, increasing distance up to 3 km (the domain length) improved the 3-D reconstruction. An iterative reconstruction technique that iteratively updated the source function improved the results of the ART by minimizing the error between input red radiance images and reconstructed red radiance simulations. For the best case of a nine-imager deployment, the ART and iterative method resulted in 53.4% and 33.6% relative mean absolute error for the extinction coefficients, respectively.The authors acknowledge funding from the California Energy Commission EPIC program. Felipe Mejia was supported by the National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship under Grant No. (DGE-1144086). In addition, Íñigo de la Parra has been partially supported by the Spanish State Research Agency (AEI) and FEDER-UE under grants DPI2016-80641-R and DPI2016-80642-R

Desarrollo De Habilidades Comunicativas Y Artísticas: Observando Mi Historia, Construyendo Mi Futuro

En el marco del Programa de Acceso y Acompañamiento a la Educación Superior (PACE), implementado por la Universidad de Santiago de Chile, un equipo de profesionales presenta una propuesta que busca generar cruces interdisciplinarios para desarrollar habilidades comunicativas y habilidades socioemocionales en estudiantes escolares de establecimientos educacionales de alta vulnerabilidad social. Diversos estudios han evidenciado que con el desarrollo de estas habilidades se mejoran los procesos de aprendizaje, las tazas de retención en educación y la asistencia regular a clases. Por lo tanto, el fin de este trabajo es, en primer lugar, poder aumentar las expectativas de escolares en situación de alta vulnerabilidad por ingresar a la educación superior y que puedan darle un valor significativo a esta. De esta manera, se espera, finalmente, que puedan permanecer en la educación superior y ejercer así un derecho fundamental.Es necesario mencionar que el PACE nace debido al problema de acceso a la educación superior en Chile, puesto que existe en nuestro país una baja capacidad de inclusión por parte de las instituciones universitarias. Esto no se debe solamente a las elevadas matrículas y aranceles anuales, sino también a la forma de acceso, puesto que para ello se necesita rendir una prueba estandarizada (P.S.U.), la cual mide los contenidos mínimos que deben aprender los estudiantes en su paso por los doce años de enseñanza básica y media. Finalmente, quienes acceden a estos estudios, en su mayoría, son estudiantes de niveles socioeconómicos medios y altos, quienes recibieron una educación de mejor calidad

Social emotional learning and values education in the Musical Language classroom

El presente estudio se centra en dos beneficios potenciales de la educación musical: el aprendizaje socioemocional y la educación en valores, en el contexto de la formación impartida en conservatorios profesionales de Música en la asignatura de Lenguaje Musical. La metodología cualitativa utilizada, a través de la técnica de grupos focales, ha permitido analizar las percepciones del profesorado, el alumnado y las familias en torno a estos beneficios. Como resultado del análisis, se ha evidenciado una coincidencia entre interlocutores acerca de la importancia que se le debe otorgar a la educación en valores y el aprendizaje socioemocional en los conservatorios profesionales de Música, y, en especial, con el alumnado que presenta necesidades específicas. A pesar de la ausencia de evidencias de planificación consciente de contenidos socioemocionales o relacionados con la educación en valores en la asignatura de Lenguaje Musical, los/as participantes perciben que la asignatura sí contribuye al desarrollo de estos aspectos. Como futuras mejoras se señalan el fomento del trabajo grupal, la interacción y la cohesión intragrupalThe present study focuses on two potential benefits of music education: social-emotional learning and education in values, in the context of training given in professional music conservatories in the subject of Musical Language. The qualitative methodology used, through the focus group technique, has made it possible to analyze the perceptions of teachers, students and families regarding these benefits. As a result of the analysis, a coincidence has been evidenced between the interlocutors about the importance that should be given to education in values and social-emotional learning in professional music conservatories, and, especially, with students who present specific needs. Despite the absence of evidence of conscious planning of social-emotional contents or those related to education in values in the subject of Musical Language, the participants perceive that the subject does contribute to their development. It is also pointed out as future improvements: the promotion of group work, interaction and intragroup cohesionEl trabajo ha sido financiado por la Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha (ayudas a Grupos de Investigación de la UCLM-2022

PROVENANCE AND SEQUENCE ANALYSES IN FINE-GRAINED SEDIMENTARY SUCCESSIONS: A CASE STUDY OF THE UMIR FORMATION AND BASE OF THE LISAMA FORMATION IN THE SIMACOTA AREA (SANTANDER, COLOMBIA)

La identificación de eventos de inundación marinos/lacustres es el fundamento de la estratigrafía de secuencias, sin embargo, en las sucesiones continentales con dominio de litologías finas y uniformes se dificulta su identificación con análisis litofaciales. El análisis integrado de litofaciales, palinología y procedencia permite la identificación de cinco superficies de inundación (SI) en la Formación Umir (Campaniano superior a Maastrichtiano) y una SI a la base de la Formación Lisama. La asociación de litofacies que infrayacen las cinco SI en la Formación Umir incluyen areniscas o sucesiones heterolíticas con limolitas, con alto contenido de materia orgánica o capas de carbones, mientras suprayaciendo estas superficies se reportan arcillolitas con alto contenido de materia orgánica amorfa, presencia de palinomorfos de afinidad marina y salobre. Los ambientes sedimentarios de la Formación Umir varían de pantanos con leves ingresiones marinas, secuencias de borde de pantano y depósitos de la interface de los sistemas pantano y fluvial. El patrón de apilamiento del segmento superior de la Formación Umir es agradacional a progradacional, registrando un límite de secuencia y un evento máximo de inundación marina. La base de la Formación Lisama registra el desarrollo de paleosuelos y sucesiones de relleno de canal interrumpido por un intervalo de inundación marina, cuyo origen es más por eventos catastróficos que por cambios graduales eustáticos. Las areniscas de la Formación Umir son cuarzoarenitas con líticos sedimentarios, mientras en la Formación Lisama varían entre sublitoarenitas a cuarzoarenitas con líticos sedimentarios y metamórficos, sugiriendo el suministro de detritos de orógenos reciclados al sistema de acumulación. La presencia de flujos de escombros con fragmentos de cobertera cretácica, la progradación de los sistemas fluviales sobre pantanos, el cambio en la granulometría y composición de las areniscas entre las unidades estudiadas se relaciona a la actividad tectónica coetánea en la Cordillera Central y el flanco occidental de la Cordillera Oriental desde el Maastrichtiano tardío-Paleoceno temprano.  Marine and lacustrine flooding events are key surfaces in sequence stratigraphy. However, the identification of flooding events in homogeneous, fine-grained continental successions using only lithofacies analysis may be a challenge. Integrated lithofacies, biostratigraphic and provenance analysis of the upper Campanian to Maastrichtian Umir Formation allowed the identification of 5 flooding surfaces (FS), and one FS at the base of the Lisama Formation. The lithofacies association below the FS includes heterolithic sandstones with organic matter bearing siltstones and coal seams, whereas above the FS there are claystones with amorphous  organic matter, marine and brackish-water pollen. The Umir Formation depositional system includes swamps with weak marine ingression, swamp-marginal deposits and the interface of swamp-fluvial systems. The upper segment of the Umir Formation has an aggradational to progradational stacking pattern, recording a sequence boundary and a maximum flooding surface. The base of the Lisama Formation contains oxidized floodplain and channel-fill deposits interrupted by a marine flooding event, whose origin is more catastrophic than being the product of gradual eustatic changes. The sandstone composition of the Umir Formation is quartzarenite with sedimentary lithic fragments, while for the Lisama Formation varies from sublithoarenite to quartzarenite, with sedimentary and metamorphic lithic fragments. This change suggests that the depositional system was bordered by a recycled orogen. The record of debris flows with fragments of cretaceous sedimentary cover, the progradation of the swamp-fluvial system, and the change in composition and grain size of terrigenous detritus are related to the contemporaneous tectonic activity in the Central Cordillera and the western flank of the Eastern Cordillera since latest Maastrichtian to early Paleocene time&nbsp

Response to comment on 'Amphibian fungal panzootic causes catastrophic and ongoing loss of biodiversity'

Lambert et al. question our retrospective and holistic epidemiological assessment of the role of chytridiomycosis in amphibian declines. Their alternative assessment is narrow and provides an incomplete evaluation of evidence. Adopting this approach limits understanding of infectious disease impacts and hampers conservation efforts. We reaffirm that our study provides unambiguous evidence that chytridiomycosis has affected at least 501 amphibian species

Annual Conference on Formative Research on EFL. Current trends in language teaching and teacher training.

The conference papers of the Annual Conference on Formative Research on EFL. Current trends in language teaching and teacher training collect pedagogical experiences and research reports on language teaching, teaching practices and communication. Each paper invites the community of the language teaching field to reflect on the development of life skills, didactic competences, critical incidents and practice and the use of English in the communication of organizations. We expect to make visible those innovative experiences and enrich the practice and knowledge of the ELT community

Global collision-risk hotspots of marine traffic and the world’s largest fish, the whale shark

© The Author(s), 2022. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. The definitive version was published in Womersley, F. C., Humphries, N. E., Queiroz, N., Vedor, M., da Costa, I., Furtado, M., Tyminski, J. P., Abrantes, K., Araujo, G., Bach, S. S., Barnett, A., Berumen, M. L., Bessudo Lion, S., Braun, C. D., Clingham, E., Cochran, J. E. M., de la Parra, R., Diamant, S., Dove, A. D. M., Dudgeon, C. L., Erdmann, M. V., Espinoza, E., Fitzpatrick, R., González Cano, J., Green, J. R., Guzman, H. M., Hardenstine, R., Hasan, A., Hazin, F. H. V., Hearn, A. R., Hueter, R. E., Jaidah, M. Y., Labaja, J., Ladinol, F., Macena, B. C. L., Morris Jr., J. J., Norman, B. M., Peñaherrera-Palmav, C., Pierce, S. J., Quintero, L. M., Ramırez-Macías, D., Reynolds, S. D., Richardson, A. J., Robinson, D. P., Rohner, C. A., Rowat, D. R. L., Sheaves, M., Shivji, M. S., Sianipar, A. B., Skomal, G. B., Soler, G., Syakurachman, I., Thorrold, S. R., Webb, D. H., Wetherbee, B. M., White, T. D., Clavelle, T., Kroodsma, D. A., Thums, M., Ferreira, L. C., Meekan, M. G., Arrowsmith, L. M., Lester, E. K., Meyers, M. M., Peel, L. R., Sequeira, A. M. M., Eguıluz, V. M., Duarte, C. M., & Sims, D. W. Global collision-risk hotspots of marine traffic and the world’s largest fish, the whale shark. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 119(20), (2022): e2117440119, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2117440119.Marine traffic is increasing globally yet collisions with endangered megafauna such as whales, sea turtles, and planktivorous sharks go largely undetected or unreported. Collisions leading to mortality can have population-level consequences for endangered species. Hence, identifying simultaneous space use of megafauna and shipping throughout ranges may reveal as-yet-unknown spatial targets requiring conservation. However, global studies tracking megafauna and shipping occurrences are lacking. Here we combine satellite-tracked movements of the whale shark, Rhincodon typus, and vessel activity to show that 92% of sharks’ horizontal space use and nearly 50% of vertical space use overlap with persistent large vessel (>300 gross tons) traffic. Collision-risk estimates correlated with reported whale shark mortality from ship strikes, indicating higher mortality in areas with greatest overlap. Hotspots of potential collision risk were evident in all major oceans, predominantly from overlap with cargo and tanker vessels, and were concentrated in gulf regions, where dense traffic co-occurred with seasonal shark movements. Nearly a third of whale shark hotspots overlapped with the highest collision-risk areas, with the last known locations of tracked sharks coinciding with busier shipping routes more often than expected. Depth-recording tags provided evidence for sinking, likely dead, whale sharks, suggesting substantial “cryptic” lethal ship strikes are possible, which could explain why whale shark population declines continue despite international protection and low fishing-induced mortality. Mitigation measures to reduce ship-strike risk should be considered to conserve this species and other ocean giants that are likely experiencing similar impacts from growing global vessel traffic.Funding for data analysis was provided by the UK Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) through a University of Southampton INSPIRE DTP PhD Studentship to F.C.W. Additional funding for data analysis was provided by NERC Discovery Science (NE/R00997/X/1) and the European Research Council (ERC-AdG-2019 883583 OCEAN DEOXYFISH) to D.W.S., Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) under PTDC/BIA/28855/2017 and COMPETE POCI-01–0145-FEDER-028855, and MARINFO–NORTE-01–0145-FEDER-000031 (funded by Norte Portugal Regional Operational Program [NORTE2020] under the PORTUGAL 2020 Partnership Agreement, through the European Regional Development Fund–ERDF) to N.Q. FCT also supported N.Q. (CEECIND/02857/2018) and M.V. (PTDC/BIA-COM/28855/2017). D.W.S. was supported by a Marine Biological Association Senior Research Fellowship. All tagging procedures were approved by institutional ethical review bodies and complied with all relevant ethical regulations in the jurisdictions in which they were performed. Details for individual research teams are given in SI Appendix, section 8. Full acknowledgments for tagging and field research are given in SI Appendix, section 7. This research is part of the Global Shark Movement Project (https://www.globalsharkmovement.org)

Leer en comunidad: creación y desarrollo de clubes de lectura de literatura escrita por mujeres dentro y fuera de la universidad

Depto. de Lengua Española y Teoría de la LiteraturaFac. de FilologíaFALSEsubmitte

Use of micro CHP plants to support the local operation of electric heat pumps

Fig. 1. Global distribution of chytridiomycosis-associated amphibian species declines. Bar plots indicate the number (N) of declined species, grouped by continental area and classified by decline severity. Brazilian species are plotted separately from all other South American species (South America W); Mesoamerica includes Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean Islands; and Oceania includes Australia and New Zealand. No declines have been reported in Asia. n, total number of declines by region. [Photo credits (clockwise from top left): Anaxyrus boreas, C. Brown, U.S. Geological Survey; Atelopus varius, B.G.; Salamandra salamandra, D. Descouens, Wikimedia Commons; Telmatobius sanborni, I.D.l.R; Cycloramphus boraceiensis, L.F.T.; Cardioglossa melanogaster, M.H.; and Pseudophryne corroboree, C. Doughty