Physical drivers of the summer 2019 North Pacific marine heatwave.

Summer 2019 observations show a rapid resurgence of the Blob-like warm sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies that produced devastating marine impacts in the Northeast Pacific during winter 2013/2014. Unlike the original Blob, Blob 2.0 peaked in the summer, a season when little is known about the physical drivers of such events. We show that Blob 2.0 primarily results from a prolonged weakening of the North Pacific High-Pressure System. This reduces surface winds and decreases evaporative cooling and wind-driven upper ocean mixing. Warmer ocean conditions then reduce low-cloud fraction, reinforcing the marine heatwave through a positive low-cloud feedback. Using an atmospheric model forced with observed SSTs, we also find that remote SST forcing from the central equatorial and, surprisingly, the subtropical North Pacific Ocean contribute to the weakened North Pacific High. Our multi-faceted analysis sheds light on the physical drivers governing the intensity and longevity of summertime North Pacific marine heatwaves

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Lecture recording in higher education: Risky business or evolving open practice

Reports on a survey into the copyright and intellectual property (IPR) policies of UK higher education institutions with regards to lecture recording. The practice of using institutional semi-automated lecture recording systems is becoming mainstream with 71% of institutions reporting using it in 2016 (UCISA, 2016). However, these systems raise a number of issues related to copyright and IPR that in some cases are documented in specific policy documents. Issues that arise include the consent that is obtained from academic staff, the ownership of the resulting outputs and responsibility and advice given for the use of third party content in the lectures. These issues are also often linked to, or conflated with wider ethical issues such as identity, privacy and academic freedom. The findings from the survey are presented alongside a policy analysis of IPR documents and policies from 11 institutions. These are compared to the guidance provided by Jisc (2015). The findings from the survey reveal that most institutions are still developing their IPR policy with regards to lecture recording, that many institutions seek consent from lecturers, but there is an increasing move towards making lecture recording opt-out as opposed to opt-in. The survey revealed in 94% of cases the lecturers or presenter is responsible for any third party content contained within their lecture and while institutions do offer advice about dealing with third party content, much of it is delivered in a relatively passive way, through agreeing to use the system or by information made available online in guides. The findings from the policy analysis suggest that those institutions with a high level of institutional control tend to have a higher level of comprehensiveness of approach towards lecture recording. Additionally the institutions that provide a higher level of support for copyright advice, have a tendency towards open practice and higher levels of appetite for risk. Good practice advice for institutions and recommendations for further research are presented as part of this study

A Molecular Counterpart to the Herbig-Haro 1-2 Flow

We present high angular resolution (12"-24") and high sensitivity 12CO and 13CO J=2-1 and J=1-0 observations of the HH 1-2 outflow. The observations show the molecular counterpart, moving with a velocity of approx. 30 km/s, of the optical bipolar system driven by the VLA 1 embedded source. Along the optical jet there are certain regions where the molecular gas reaches deprojected velocities of 100-200 km/s, and that we interpret as the molecular jet. The bipolar CO outflow has a length of approx. 260" with a curved morphology towards the North where it extends beyond the HH 1 object (approx. 120") . Two new molecular outflows have been detected, one arising from IRAS 05339-0647 which excites the HH 147 optical flow and another powered by VLA 2 which drives the HH 144 optical outflow. The molecular outflow driven by the VLA 3 source is also clearly detected and spatially resolved from the VLA 1 main outflow.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures, accepted ApJLet

Preventive chemotherapy for schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis by cotreatment with praziquantel and albendazole

In disease-endemic areas, preventive chemotherapy with two orally administered anthelminthic drugs, praziquantel and albendazole, forms the foundation of control of schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis. Where diseases overlap, these two drugs are typically co-administered simultaneously, although albendazole is often interchangeable with mebendazole. With a supportive pharmaceutical industry that donates drugs and a strong international partnership that mobilizes donor funds for drug delivery, scale-up of treatment in school-aged children has expanded significantly in line with the WHO 2012–2020 strategic plan. Other high-risk groups, such as pre-school-aged children, are now benefiting from deworming campaigns conducted alongside other childhood interventions,such as vaccination, less so, however, for schistosomiasis as infections in this age class are not being treated. Looking to the future, maintaining an effective drug distribution and reporting system that regularly checks anthelminthic performance alongside documenting improvements in child health are essential for the long-term success of preventive chemotherapy with praziquantel and albendazole

Una transcripción de la entonación del dialecto jerezano de Andalucía, España

Dialect variation in intonation is a widely attested phenomenon in the crosslinguistic literature (see Warren 2005a) and also in the literature on Spanish (Prieto & Roseano 2010, Sosa 1999). Prieto and Roseano (2010) provide an edited volume on the transcription of Spanish intonation for ten different dialects of the language. Two of these chapters characterize the intonation of Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, but no information is offered on varieties spoken in the southern Andalusia area. This paper is designed to fill this gap in the literature as it investigates the acoustic properties of a series of F0 contours produced in an intonation survey by nine speakers from Jerez de la Frontera, a coastal city located in the southwest province of Cádiz, Spain. Speech data were analyzed in Praat (Boersma & Weenink 2011) following the original Sp_ToBI transcription system (Beckman, Díaz-Campos, McGory, & Morgan 2002) and the revised system put forth in Estebas-Vilaplana and Prieto (2008). Results show that neutral and biased statements were communicated by the L* L% vs. L+H* L% contrast, respectively. Confirmation questions show a variety of patterns based on the speaker’s belief of the proposition in question. Two configurations are possible for informationseeking wh-questions, H+L* L% and L+¡H* L%. Commands are the only pragmatic intent for which the M% boundary tone is used, and vocatives are characterized by L+H* HL% in neutral and marked intents. Although Jerezano Andalusian speakers share intonational characteristics with other varieties of European and American Spanish, there are important differences that motivate a thorough investigation of this language variety. Finally, dialect comparisons are provided to achieve a more comprehensive account of intonational variation in Spanish.La variación dialectal de la entonación es un fenómeno ampliamente corroborado en la literatura especializada en el análisis lingüístico de las lenguas (ver Warren 2005a) así como en múltiples publicaciones sobre el español (Prieto & Roseano 2010, Sosa 1999). Prieto y Roseano (2010) ofrecen un volumen editado sobre la transcripción de la entonación española de diez dialectos diferentes. Aunque dos de estos capítulos especifican la entonación del español peninsular en las zonas norte y central, no se aporta ninguna información sobre las variedades habladas en el sur de Andalucía. Este proyecto está diseñado para suplir esta carencia y de este modo, ofrecer una investigación sobre las propiedades acústicas de una serie de contornos F0 producidos en una encuesta entonativa realizada por 9 hablantes de Jerez de la Frontera, ciudad localizada al suroeste de la provincia de Cádiz, España. Los datos de producción oral fueron analizados con Praat (Boersma & Weenink 2011) siguiendo tanto el sistema de transcripción para Sp_ToBI (Beckman, Díaz- Campos, McGory, & Morgan 2002), como el sistema revisado de Estebas- Vilaplana y Prieto (2008). Los resultados muestran que las afirmaciones neutrales y no neutrales se produjeron mediante el contraste L* L% vs. L+H* L% respectivamente. En cuanto a las preguntas de confirmación, éstas muestran una variedad de patrones basados en la creencia que el hablante tiene de la pregunta en cuestión. Sobre las preguntas QU (o pronominales), dos configuraciones resultaron posibles: H+L* L% y L+¡H* L%. Las órdenes resultaron ser la única intención pragmática para las que se usa la frontera tonal M%, y por último, los vocativos se produjeron mediante L+H* HL% en intenciones de habla neutrales y marcadas. Aunque los hablantes del acento jerezano del andaluz comparten características entonativas con otras variedades del español europeo y americano, hay diferencias importantes que motivan una investigación profunda de esta variedad. Por último, se proporcionan comparaciones dialectales con la intención de conseguir una explicación más completa de la variación entonativa del español

Characterizations of the sphere by means of visual cones: an alternative proof of Matsuura's theorem

In this work we prove that if there exists a smooth convex body $M$ in the Euclidean space $\mathbb{R}^n$, $n\geq 3$, contained in the interior of the unit ball $\mathbb{S}^{n-1}$ of $\mathbb{R}^n$, and point $p\in \mathbb{R}^n$ such that, for each point of $\mathbb{S}^{n-1}$, $M$ looks centrally symmetric and $p$ appears as the centre, then $M$ is an sphere

Occupational exposure to Organophosphate Pesticides and its Effects on Human Sperm Parameters: A systematic Review

Background Previous research has indicated there is a decrease in sperm quality in the last 40 years. There have been a few reports that have associated occupational exposure to Organophosphate pesticides with a decrease in sperm count, abnormalities in the head or tail, and motility leading to infertility over time. Organophosphates are the most common pesticides used in the United States and have been classified as toxic to bees, wildlife, and humans by the EPA even at low exposures. Furthermore, Organophosphates are considered endocrine disrupting chemicals altering the normal function of the endocrine system. This occurs by interfering with the natural hormones the body produces due to their strong bind to estrogen and androgen receptors. Objective This systematic review sought to identify relevant studies evaluating the relationship of occupational exposure to Organophosphate pesticides and the decrease of sperm parameters in agriculture workers, pesticide sprayers, and farm workers worldwide. Methods PubMed, Scopus, Himmelfarb, and Agriculture Environmental Science databases were searched for all studies in English. Peer-reviewed articles were selected between the years of 2008 and 2016. Risk of bias was assessed according to the Navigation Guide a Systematic Review Methodology. The Grading of Recommendations Assessment, Development, and Evaluation (GRADE) was utilized to rate the quality of evidence of each study. Results Five studies were identified, reviewed, and analyzed according to inclusion criteria. Selected studies were rated “low, probably low, not applicable, probably high risk, and high risk” for risk of bias. Studies were assigned a “low quality” rating for strength of evidence. Grey literature was excluded. Conclusion There is sufficient evidence that supports a positive association between occupational Organophosphate exposure and a decrease of sperm parameters in agriculture workers, pesticide sprayers, and farm workers worldwide. Sperm analysis demonstrated a decrease in sperm volume, motility, quality of sperm, and DNA damage, however, future studies are needed to explore this association further