Intermittent Turbulent Exchanges and Their Role in Vineyard Evapotranspiration

Vineyards are often grown in semi-arid climates, such as California’s central valley, where water resources can be limited. Summer weather conditions result in high water use by these plants. For wine grapes, a high-value commodity, there are known benefits to fruit quality in irrigating grapevines with slightly below optimum for the plant. Growers would like to be able to precisely irrigate without overusing water or overstressing the vines. This calls for improving ways to monitor vineyard water use by estimating the combined soil evaporation and plant transpiration known as evapotranspiration (ET). A computer model developed by the USDA called the Two-Source Energy Balance model (TSEB) can estimate ET through satellite or aircraft measurements of land surface temperature. The model has been successful for simple, uniform vegetation such as maize, soybeans, and grasslands. The ability of TSEB to estimate vineyard ET has been tested through a field experiment called the Grape Remote sensing, Atmospheric Profile,& Evapotranspiration eXperiment or GRAPEX. Water is primarily transported away from the ground and plants by turbulent swirls in the wind. Models such as TSEB assume these swirls occur in a consistent manner over a few minutes to hours. Yet, interactions between the wind, the complex vineyard canopy, and heating near the ground can cause them to be episodic or intermittent. There are questions of if and how intermittent water vapor transport might happen in vineyards, and whether the TSEB model will still estimate ET well in such cases. In this study wind, humidity, air temperature, and surface temperatures are used to examine when intermittent behavior occurs, how it affects ET from the vineyard canopy, and how TSEB performs for intermittent versus more steady conditions. Results show that intermittent turbulence significantly alters the microclimate in the vineyard canopy compared to more ideal, steady behavior. The TSEB model was successful but showed reduced ability to estimate ET during times of intermittent behavior. The knowledge gained is an important step toward using TSEB as a powerful tool for sustainable water management, not only in vineyards, but other cash crops with complicated canopies such as orchards, as well as natural ecosystems

Differential Regulation and ATP Requirement for Caspase-8 and Caspase-3 Activation during CD95- and Anticancer Drug–induced Apoptosis

Apoptosis is induced by different stimuli, among them triggering of the death receptor CD95, staurosporine, and chemotherapeutic drugs. In all cases, apoptosis is mediated by caspases, although it is unclear how these diverse apoptotic stimuli cause protease activation. Two regulatory pathways have been recently identified, but it remains unknown whether they are functionally independent or linked to each other. One is mediated by recruitment of the proximal regulator caspase-8 to the death receptor complex. The other pathway is controlled by the release of cytochrome c from mitochondria and the subsequent ATP-dependent activation of the death regulator apoptotic protease-activating factor 1 (Apaf-1). Here, we report that both pathways can be dissected by depletion of intracellular ATP. Prevention of ATP production completely inhibited caspase activation and apoptosis in response to chemotherapeutic drugs and staurosporine. Interestingly, caspase-8, whose function appeared to be restricted to death receptors, was also activated by these drugs under normal conditions, but not after ATP depletion. In contrast, inhibition of ATP production did not affect caspase activation after triggering of CD95. These results suggest that chemotherapeutic drug–induced caspase activation is entirely controlled by a receptor-independent mitochondrial pathway, whereas CD95-induced apoptosis can be regulated by a separate pathway not requiring Apaf-1 function

Diagnostic of Habitability of Emergency Temporary Housing in Peru:Diagnóstico de la habitabilidad en las viviendas temporales de emergencia en Perú

In Peru, emergency temporary housing (ETH) is currently facing environmental, social, and economic problems. From an environmental perspective, no studies have explored the habitability and internal comfort of these units or the impacts of the materials used. From a social perspective, this type of housing does not generally consider the population's characteristics and socio-cultural relationships in its settlement patterns or interior design. Finally, ETHs are expensive for the government owing to the lack of planning or the difficulty in adapting the units. This enables us to assert that the current response is insufficient. By conducting a field analysis of three types of ETH units in the three major geographic regions of Peru, a diagnostic methodology is used to identify problems and possible solutions in response to each region's habitability condition. The resulting conclusion contributes to organizing a comprehensive response plan to natural phenomena

Potentialities of a Laser-Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Technique in the Study of Polymer Composites

A laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) technique was used to evaluate the filler content in particulate epoxy–copper composites. A potential application for a direct and fast measurement of the filler in composites through the LIBS results is suggested using calibrated samples. The methodology used in this work makes possible the incorporation of LIBS as a quantitative technique for the study of particle metal-filled epoxy composites, providing a method to obtain a direct estimation of the filler volume fraction.Fil: Tognana, Sebastian Alberto. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Física de Materiales; ArgentinaFil: D'angelo, Cristian Adrián. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Salgueiro, Walter Alberto. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Física de Materiales; ArgentinaFil: Montecinos Espinoza, Susana de Los Angeles. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Física de Materiales; Argentin

Biopolymers to mitigate the environmental impact

The aim of this work was to show some possible solutions to the environmental pollution due to the plastic problem. The strategy was to presentsome alternatives that, to our understanding, are more likely to be appliedin a near future. The use of biodegradable polymers coming from natural sources or agricultural waste was developed by means of three examples: starch, PLA and PHA. On the other hand,the possibility of fabricate green polymers was briefly developed. PLA exhibits the greatest current development, while starch has the advantage of its low cost. PHA, mainly PHB, has good chances of replacing some synthetic polymers if its mechanical properties are improved.Fil: Montecinos Espinoza, Susana de Los Angeles. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Física de Materiales; ArgentinaFil: Ascazuri, Milagros. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas; ArgentinaFil: Achaga, Julieta. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas; ArgentinaFil: Viduzzi, Gabriel. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas; ArgentinaFil: Tognana, Sebastian Alberto. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tandil. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. - Provincia de Buenos Aires. Gobernación. Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas. Centro de Investigaciones en Física e Ingeniería del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas. Instituto de Física de Materiales; Argentin

Diagnostic of habitability of emergency temporary housing in Peru

In Peru, emergency temporary housing (ETH) is currently facing environmental, social, and economic problems. From an environmental perspective, no studies have explored the habitability and internal comfort of these units or the impacts of the materials used. From a social perspective, this type of housing does not generally consider the population's characteristics and socio-cultural relationships in its settlement patterns or interior design. Finally, ETHs are expensive for the government owing to the lack of planning or the difficulty in adapting the units. This enables us to assert that the current response is insufficient. By conducting a field analysis of three types of ETH units in the three major geographic regions of Peru, a diagnostic methodology is used to identify problems and possible solutions in response to each region's habitability condition. The resulting conclusion contributes to organizing a comprehensive response plan to natural phenomena

Influence of wind direction on the surface roughness of vineyards

Remote sensing-based models are the most viable means of collecting the high-resolution spatially distributed estimates of evaporative water loss needed to manage irrigation and ensure the effective use of limited water resources. However, due to the unique canopy structure and configuration of vineyards, these models may not be able to adequately describe the physical processes driving evapotranspiration from vineyards. Using data collected from 2014 to 2016 as a part of the Grape Remote sensing Atmospheric Profile and Evapotranspiration Experiment (GRAPEX), the twofold objective of this study was to (1) identify the relationship between the roughness parameters, zero-plane displacement height (do) and roughness length for momentum (zo), and local environmental conditions, specifically wind direction and vegetation density and (2) determine the effect of using these relationships on the ability of the remote sensing-based Two-Source Energy Balance (TSEB) model to estimate the sensible (H) and latent (λE) heat fluxes. Although little variation in do was identified during the growing season, a well-defined sigmoidal relationship was observed between zo and wind direction. When the output from a version of the TSEB model incorporating these relationships (TSEBVIN) was compared to output from the standard model (TSEBSTD), there were large changes to the roughness parameters, particularly zo, but only modest changes in the turbulent fluxes. When the output from TSEBVIN was compared to that of a version using a parameterization scheme representing open canopies (TSEBOPN), the mean absolute difference between the estimates of do and zo were 0.44 m and 0.25 m, respectively. While these values represent differences in excess of 45%, the turbulent fluxes differed by just 13 W m−2 or 10%, on average. The results suggest that the TSEB model is largely insensitive to changes in the roughness parameters for the range in roughness values evaluated in this study. This also suggests that the requirement for highly accurate roughness values has limited utility in the application of the TSEB model in vineyard systems. Since there is no significant advantage to using the more complex TSEBOPN and TSEBVIN models, it is recommended that the standard model be used.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

Climatology and Change of Extreme Precipitation Events in Taiwan Based on Weather Types

Taiwan\u27s most significant natural hazards are caused by hydrological extremes resulting from excessive precipitation. The threat of extreme precipitation is posed by several different types of weather patterns that affect Taiwan. This study examined the bi‐decadal changes in rainfall by defining an extreme precipitation occurrence (EPO) for a range of event durations from 1 to 24 hr. Three major weather types affecting EPO in Taiwan were identified from 1993 to 2015: the front type consisting of either a frontal zone or convective systems developing with an apparent Meiyu cloudband, diurnal rainfall events when no apparent synoptic features are present, and a tropical cyclone (TC) type according to the maximum sustained wind radius of a TC. Results show that TC‐type events have the greatest overall contribution to EPO at longer (\u3e6 hr) durations. Diurnal/afternoon convection events contribute most to the shorter (\u3c3 hr) duration EPO, while frontal/Meiyu systems prevail in the medium (3–6 hr) duration. EPO of almost all durations have experienced an increase, with the 3‐ and 12‐hr EPO having increased by 4.6 days each over the 23 years. However, apparent decadal‐scale variability exists in these EPO associated with the decreasing tendency of EPO after the mid‐2000s, particularly the longer duration (\u3e6 hr) EPO associated with the TC‐type events in summer. The distinction between EPO trends for the entire island of Taiwan and for the Taipei metropolitan area alone (northern Taiwan, population of 7 million) were compared, and an intriguing interannual variation is reported in the TC‐type EPO associated with the TC season 1 year to a year and half just before an El Niño–Southern Oscillation event. The analysis here provides refined statistical distributions of extreme rainfall, and these can contribute to the revision of governmental definitions for weather disasters that are used in mitigation and response strategies

Phantom epistasis in genomic selection: on the predictive ability of epistatic models

Genomic selection uses whole-genome marker models to predict phenotypes or genetic values for complex traits. Some of these models fit interaction terms between markers, and are therefore called epistatic. The biological interpretation of the corresponding fitted effects is not straightforward and there is the threat of overinterpreting their functional meaning. Here we show that the predictive ability of epistatic models relative to additive models can change with the density of the marker panel. In more detail, we show that for publicly available Arabidopsis and rice datasets, an initial superiority of epistatic models over additive models, which can be observed at a lower marker density, vanishes when the number of markers increases. We relate these observations to earlier results reported in the context of association studies which showed that detecting statistical epistatic effects may not only be related to interactions in the underlying genetic architecture, but also to incomplete linkage disequilibrium at low marker density (“Phantom Epistasis”). Finally, we illustrate in a simulation study that due to phantom epistasis, epistatic models may also predict the genetic value of an underlying purely additive genetic architecture better than additive models, when the marker density is low. Our observations can encourage the use of genomic epistatic models with low density panels, and discourage their biological over-interpretation.Fil: Schrauf, Matías Florián. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Producción Animal. Cátedra de Mejoramiento Genético Animal; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; ArgentinaFil: Martini, Johannes W.R.. Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo; MéxicoFil: Simianer, Henner. Universität Göttingen; AlemaniaFil: de los Campos, Gustavo. Michigan State University; Estados UnidosFil: Cantet, Rodolfo Juan Carlos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Parque Centenario. Unidad Ejecutora de Investigaciones en Producción Animal. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias. Unidad Ejecutora de Investigaciones en Producción Animal; ArgentinaFil: Freudenthal, Jan. Universität Würzburg; AlemaniaFil: Korte, Arthur. Universität Würzburg; AlemaniaFil: Munilla Leguizamon, Sebastian. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Agronomía. Departamento de Producción Animal. Cátedra de Mejoramiento Genético Animal; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentin

Association of Diurnal Rainfall in Northeastern Tibetan Plateau with the Retreat of the South Asian High

The characteristics of intense diurnal precipitation occurring beneath the South Asian High (SAH) are diagnosed in the summer monsoon season from 2010 to 2015 using observational data. The diagnostics indicate that summer nighttime rainfall events in the northeastern Tibetan Plateau can intensify towards the end of the monsoon period. By defining a transition index to identify the transition day during which the episodes of diurnal convection start to decline, daily thermodynamic properties and precipitation from each year were composited before and after the transition date. The analysis reveals that warmer air, increased moisture, and stronger upward velocity are present in the atmosphere before the transition day, potentially elevating nighttime convective precipitation. Enhanced upward velocity that is present through the two months prior to transition date coincides with the timing of the peak SAH, while weakened upward velocity afterwards coincides with its subsequent retreat. The large-scale lift due to terrain-ambient air interaction underneath the SAH and the increased moisture content can enhance the potential for diurnal convection, which lends support to the nighttime peak of rainfall. This feature persists until the transition date, after which the SAH starts to retreat