Assessment and management of the geomorphological heritage of Monte Pindo (NW Spain): a landscape as a symbol of identity

This study focuses on the granite mountain known as Monte Pindo (627 m above sea level) in the Autonomous Community of Galicia (NW Spain). This territory is included in the area classified as “Costa da Morte” in the “Politica de Ordenación Litoral” (POL) (Coastal Planning Policy) for the region of Galicia. This coastal unit, located between “Rías Baixas” and “Cape Fisterra” has great potential for demonstrating geological processes and its geomorphological heritage is characterized by a high degree of geodiversity of granite landforms. The main objective of our work is to assess the geomorphological heritage of the site, thus revealing its wide geodiversity. We shall analyze and highlight: its scientific value, developing an inventory of granite landforms; its educational valuel and its geotouristic potential. It must be ensured that the Administration understands that natural diversity is composed of both geodiversity and biodiversity. Only then will the sustainable management of Monte Pindo become possible by integrating natural and cultural heritage values. The goal is to ensure that Monte Pindo and its immediate surroundings become a geopark with the aim of promoting local development projects based on the conservation and valorization of its geological heritage.This research was conducted under the research projects CPC2014/009 and R2014/001 funded by the Xunta de Galicia

José Agustín Goytisolo : La poésie du mal de vivre et de la tendresse

Publicat a Le Monde

Coastal retreat and sedimentation during the Last 3000 years. Atlantic coast of NW Spain

During the last glaciation, thick nival and periglacial sediments buried large sectors of the NW coast of Spain. The sediments were mostly eroded by the rising sea level during the Holocene, but in several places they remain, forming sedimentary cliffs. Radiocarbon dates obtained at the topmost layers of these cliffs prove that continental sedimentation was active until very recent times, followed by a retreat of the cliffs. During the first stages of the transgression, the erosion of the cliffs and the changes in the coastal system were controlled by the rising sea-level. Once the sea-level stabilized, the exhumation of inherited landforms, the supply of sediments, and a continuous continental sedimentation became the main factors. The last stages of cliff retreat were almost synchronous with the sedimentation of the upper layers of the deposits.S

Sea-level change and human occupation over 6000 years on Areoso Island (Ría de Arousa, NW Iberian Peninsula)

Coastal areas are extremely sensitive to variations in environmental conditions. The interaction of marine and continental processes causes a high degree of dynamism, generating depositional formations of great value for palaeoenvironmental reconstruction. This paper focuses on two pedostratigraphic deposits located under the current beach, in close proximity to archaeological tumuli located on Areoso Island (Ría de Arousa, NW Iberian Peninsula). Employing a geoarchaeological approach, sea-level rise, environmental conditions and human occupation over a 6000-year period are interpreted. The results of granulometric and mineralogical data, elemental composition and stratigraphic features, help to identify three successive environments: continental (rock weathering, soil formation and erosion); a transition to a coastal environment; and the establishment of full coastal conditions. The geomorphological evolution of the last 6.0 kyr BP has been controlled by climate, sea-level rise and human activity. The continental facies shows evidence of low sea-level up to 4.8 kyr BP and the first evidence of coastal processes after 3.2 kyr BP. These pedostratigraphic deposits located in an open coastal system improve the Holocene sea-level rise curve in the NW Iberian Peninsula and help to understand the context in which the most important archaeological structures on the island (the tumuli) began to be erodedOpen Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Springer NatureS

Formas litorales en la costa noroccidental gallega: los sectores acantilados entre Cabo Prioriño (Ferrol) y Punta Frouxeira (Valdoviño)

This paper analyzes litoral landforms in Galician northwestern coast, particularly cliffs, shore platforms and related forms. According to the balance between marine and continental processes working on cliffs, we studie their different profiles and ways of evolution, strongly related with the presence of shore platforms and their geometry. The result shows the high structural control in coastal dinamics of the sector, and the importance of the poligenic character of the coastal forms, on account of the succesion of periods of stability and inestability.En el presente trabajo se analizan las formas litorales de la  costa noroccidental gallega, en concreto acantilados, plataformas y formas asociadas. En función del balance existente entre los procesos marinos y continentales que operan sobre los acantilados, se estudian sus diferentes tipos de perfil y modos de evolución, relacionándolo estrechamente con la presencia de plataformas litoralesy su geometría. El resultado del estudio pone de manifiesto el elevado control estructural existente en la dinámica de la costa atlántica gallega, y la importancia del carácter poligenético de las formas a causa de la sucesión de períodos de estabilidad e inestabilidad

Phosphorylation of Shox2 Is Required for Its Function to Control Sinoatrial Node Formation

Background: Inactivation of Shox2, a member of the short‐stature homeobox gene family, leads to defective development of multiple organs and embryonic lethality as a result of cardiovascular defects, including bradycardia and severe hypoplastic sinoatrial node (SAN) and sinus valves, in mice. It has been demonstrated that Shox2 regulates a genetic network through the repression of Nkx2.5 to maintain the fate of the SAN cells. However, the functional mechanism of Shox2 protein as a transcriptional repressor on Nkx2.5 expression remains completely unknown. Methods and Results: A specific interaction between the B56δ regulatory subunit of PP2A and Shox2a, the isoform that is expressed in the developing heart, was demonstrated by yeast 2‐hybrid screen and coimmunoprecipitation. Western blotting and immunohistochemical assays further confirmed the presence of phosphorylated Shox2a (p‐Shox2a) in cell culture as well as in the developing mouse and human SAN. Site‐directed mutagenesis and in vitro kinase assays identified Ser92 and Ser110 as true phosphorylation sites and substrates of extracellular signal‐regulated kinase 1 and 2. Despite that Shox2a and its phosphorylation mutants possessed similar transcriptional repressive activities in cell cultures when fused with Gal4 protein, the mutant forms exhibited a compromised repressive effect on the activity of the mouse Nkx2.5 promoter in cell cultures, indicating that phosphorylation is required for Shox2a to repress Nkx2.5 expression specifically. Transgenic expression of Shox2a, but not Shox2a‐S92AS110A, mutant in the developing heart resulted in down‐regulation of Nkx2.5 in wild‐type mice and rescued the SAN defects in the Shox2 mutant background. Last, we demonstrated that elimination of both phosphorylation sites on Shox2a did not alter its nuclear location and dimerization, but depleted its capability to bind to the consensus sequences within the Nkx2.5 promoter region. Conclusions: Our studies reveal that phosphorylation is essential for Shox2a to repress Nkx2.5 expression during SAN development and differentiation

Sea level rise and coastal environmental changes during the Late Holocece. Areoso Island, Ría de Arousa

X Jornadas de Geomorfología Litoral, celebradas del 4 al 6 de septiembre de 2019 en Castelldefels y organizadas por el Institut de Ciències del Mar (CSIC), la Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), la Universitat de Barcelona (UB) y la Universitat de Girona (UdG).-- 292 pagesEl islote Areoso, localizado en la Ría de Arousa (Galicia) alberga yacimientos arqueológicos y depósitos edafo-sedimentarios desde la zona intermareal hasta las dunas actuales. Entre 2015 y 2017 se obtuvieron muestras en la zona intermareal, en un sondeo bajo la playa actual y en una columna sedimentaria durante la excavación de un túmulo. Los análisis y dataciones han permitido identificar una secuencia evolutiva con tres etapas. La primera entre 4070-3865 cal. BP y 3407-3249 cal. BP, se caracteriza por el desarrollo de un sistema intermareal. La segunda comenzaría alrededor del 3610-3458 cal. BP y se corresponde con la formación de la playa-duna, identificada en los depósitos bajo la playa actual y en el túmulo. Sobre estos niveles, la fecha de 2277-2153 cal. BP indica la acumulación de facies eólicas, verificada por la identificación malacológica. Estas secuencias permiten definir la evolución morfosedimentaria y contribuyen a ajustar la curva de ascenso del nivel del mar para el NO Península Ibérica desde el Holoceno Medio. Los resultados concuerdan con otras investigaciones sobre el litoral gallego, siendo esta la primera secuencia completa en un ambiente no lagunar.The Areoso islet, located in the RÌa de Arousa (Galicia), contains archaeological and edapho-sedimentary deposits from the intertidal zone to the recent dunes. Between 2015 and 2017, samples were taken in the intertidal zone, in a sounding under the actual beach and in a sedimentary column during the excavation of a tumulus. The C14 analyzes and dates have allowed us to identify an evolutionary sequence with three stages. The first between 4070-3865 cal. BP is characterized by the development of an intertidal system. The second one would start around 3610-3458 cal. BP and corresponds to the formation of the beach-dune, identified in the deposits under the current beach and in the tumulus. On these levels, the date of 2277-2153 cal. BP indicates the accumulation of aeolian facies, verified by the malacological identification. These sequences allow us to define the morphosedimentary evolution and contribute to adjust the sea level rise curve for the NO of the Iberian Peninsula from the Middle Holocene. The results agree with other researchs on the Galician coast, this being the first complete sequence in a non-lagoon environmentS

Caracterización morfométrica de formas glaciares en cuña en las Sierras de Xistral, Teleno y Cabrera

En el presente trabajo se cita la presencia en distintos macizos del NW de la Península Ibérica de formas de erosión glaciar descritas como «formas glaciares en cuña». Este tipo de formas se describen en la bibliografía como vinculada a glaciares activos, y se consideran indicadoras de la presencia de glaciarismo de base fría. Estas condiciones indican en último término la presencia de permafrost continuo. Otros indicios, como la presencia en el área de estudio de campos de bloques refuerzan esta interpretació

The Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer Book 2018

(Abridged) This is the Maunakea Spectroscopic Explorer 2018 book. It is intended as a concise reference guide to all aspects of the scientific and technical design of MSE, for the international astronomy and engineering communities, and related agencies. The current version is a status report of MSE's science goals and their practical implementation, following the System Conceptual Design Review, held in January 2018. MSE is a planned 10-m class, wide-field, optical and near-infrared facility, designed to enable transformative science, while filling a critical missing gap in the emerging international network of large-scale astronomical facilities. MSE is completely dedicated to multi-object spectroscopy of samples of between thousands and millions of astrophysical objects. It will lead the world in this arena, due to its unique design capabilities: it will boast a large (11.25 m) aperture and wide (1.52 sq. degree) field of view; it will have the capabilities to observe at a wide range of spectral resolutions, from R2500 to R40,000, with massive multiplexing (4332 spectra per exposure, with all spectral resolutions available at all times), and an on-target observing efficiency of more than 80%. MSE will unveil the composition and dynamics of the faint Universe and is designed to excel at precision studies of faint astrophysical phenomena. It will also provide critical follow-up for multi-wavelength imaging surveys, such as those of the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, Gaia, Euclid, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope, the Square Kilometre Array, and the Next Generation Very Large Array.Comment: 5 chapters, 160 pages, 107 figure