Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Micro-level analysis of farmers' adaptation to climate change in Southern Africa

"Adaptation to climate change involves changes in agricultural management practices in response to changes in climate conditions. It often involves a combination of various individual responses at the farm-level and assumes that farmers have access to alternative practices and technologies available in the region. This study examines farmer adaptation strategies to climate change in Southern Africa based on a cross-section database of three countries (South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe) collected as part of the Global Environment Facility/World Bank (GEF/WB) Climate Change and African Agriculture Project. The study describes farmer perceptions to changes in long-term temperature and precipitation as well as various farm-level adaptation measures and barriers to adaptation at the farm household level. A multivariate discrete choice model is used to identify the determinants of farm-level adaptation strategies. Results confirm that access to credit and extension and awareness of climate change are some of the important determinants of farm-level adaptation. An important policy message from these results is that enhanced access to credit, information (climatic and agronomic) as well as to markets (input and output) can significantly increase farm-level adaptation. Government policies should support research and development on appropriate technologies to help farmers adapt to changes in climatic conditions. Examples of such policy measures include crop development, improving climate information forecasting, and promoting appropriate farm-level adaptation measures such as use of irrigation technologies. " from Authors' Abstract
Design and Performance of an Osmotic Tensiometer for Measuring Capillary Potential1

An osmotic tensiometer makes use of a confined aqueous solution, instead of pure free water, as the reference state in measuring soil-water potentials. The membrane separating the confined solution from soil water is highly impermeable to the confined solute (polyethylene glycol, molecular weight 20,000), but exchange of much smaller molecules and ions occurs. Thus the capillary potential of soil-water is measured unless soil solutes are excluded from the instrument by a vapour gap. The advantage of this instrument over conventional tensiometers is that measurements of capillary potential can be made throughout the range 0- to −15-bar. Tests and observations show that osmotic tensiometers can be useful for measurements of capillary potential at depths greater than about 10 cm during the redistribution of soil water, and its uptake by plants. For accurate data, zero checks should be made when possible, and instrument temperature should be recorded to enable correction for its effect on each reading.
Geo-space urban design

The authors explain how geospace design and construction will enable urban planners to cope with the most difficult challenges posed by the continued expansion of metropolitan areas. Topics covered include land preservation, urban land prices, urban scale and the response to a stressful climate. There are plans for developing underground spaces for transportation; delivery systems; infrastructure; residences; shopping and commercial spaces; and social and cultural activities. The focus is on integrating geospace with existing aboveground structures, with illustrated examples of specific design theories and methods.
Sorting of heavy minerals in sediments deposited at a high accumulation rate, with examples from sandurs and an ice-marginal valley in NW Poland

Density differences among the various heavy-mineral species appear to be the main factor responsible for their sorting in glaciofluvial and fluvial environments. Sediments from two sandurs (stretching perpendicular to the Weichselian ice-sheet front) and a terrace of the Toruń-Eberswalde ice-marginal valley (extending parallel to the Weichselian ice-sheet front) in NW Poland support this idea clearly. The deposits investigated were formed during the Pomeranian phase of the Weichselian glaciation. Heavy-mineral and sedimentological analyses of these sediments indicate that most changes in the proportion of the various heavy-mineral species in gravelly and sandy sediments can be ascribed to changes in the flow regime, which is, in turn, related to the density of the various heavy-mineral species. In addition, the turbulence of the current and the bedform played a role in the sorting. The sedimentation rate also affected the heavy-mineral composition of the sandur and ice-marginal valley sediments. Furthermore, the proportions of some heavy minerals depend on the transport distance, which is well expressed by differences that occur over the investigated distance of 90 km of the ice-marginal valley. It appears that some heavy-mineral species are good tools for reconstructing sorting processes. Heavy minerals deposited by streams with a fast-changing discharge and a high accumulation rate (which is common for glaciofluvial streams) can, by combining data about the composition of the assemblages with data about the characteristics (size, rounding, colour, etc.), help in reconstructing palaeo-flow regimes and in estimating the turbulence, transport distance and mode of sediment transport in the streams.
The Ancient Celts

1. Visions of the Celts 2. The Reality of the Celts 3. Barbarian Europe and the Mediterranean: 1300-500 BC 4. The Migrations: 400-200 BC 5. Warfare and Society 6. The Arts of the Migration Period 7. Iberia and the Celtiberians 8. The Communities of the Atlantic Fringe 9. The Communities of the Eastern Fringe 10. Religious Systems 11. The Developed Celtic World 12. The Celts in Retreat 13. Celtic Survival 14. Retrospect
WATER QUALITY MODELING OF ALTERNATIVE AGRICULTURAL SCENARIOS IN THE U.S. CORN BELT 1

ABSTRACT: Simulated water quality resulting from three alternative future land‐use scenarios for two agricultural watersheds in central Iowa was compared to water quality under current and historic land use/land cover to explore both the potential water quality impact of perpetuating current trends and potential benefits of major changes in agricultural practices in the U.S. Corn Belt. The Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) was applied to evaluate the effect of management practices on surface water discharge and annual loads of sediment and nitrate in these watersheds. The agricultural practices comprising Scenario 1, which assumes perpetuation of current trends (conversion to conservation tillage, increase in farm size and land in production, use of currently‐employed Best Management Practices (BMPs)) result in simulated increased export of nitrate and decreased export of sediment relative to the present. However, simulations indicate that the substantial changes in agricultural practices envisioned in Scenarios 2 and 3 (conversion to conservation tillage, strip intercropping, rotational grazing, conservation set‐asides and greatly extended use of best management practices (BMPs) such as riparian buffers, engineered wetlands, grassed waterways, filter strips and field borders) could potentially reduce current loadings of sediment by 37 to 67 percent and nutrients by 54 to 75 percent. Results from the study indicate that major improvements in water quality in these agricultural watersheds could be achieved if such environmentally‐targeted agricultural practices were employed. Traditional approaches to water quality improvement through application of traditional BMPs will result in little or no change in nutrient export and minor decreases in sediment export from Corn Belt watersheds.
Depositional architecture of a rimmed carbonate platform (Albian, Gorbea, western Pyrenees)

A Lower Cretaceous carbonate platform depositional system with a rimmed margin and an adjacent oversteepened slope was analysed in order to determine its depositional architecture and major depositional controls. The platform is made up of coral, rudist, orbitolinid and algal limestones and, in a 12‐km dip transect, there is a gradation from lagoon to platform margin, slope and basin environments, each characterized by distinctive sedimentological features and facies associations. The rimmed platform is an aggradational system developed during approximately 4·2 million years of fluctuating relative sea‐level rise, and it is bounded by unconformities at its base and top. Internal cyclicity in the construction of the system is evident, mainly in platform interior and slope settings. The seven recognized sequences average 0·6 million years in duration and are related to minor relative sea‐level changes. Carbonate deposition occurred in shallow‐ and deep‐water settings during periods of high relative sea level. Reduced rates of sea‐level rise led to the development of shallowing upward sequences and, eventually, to the exposure of the shallowest parts of the platform during relative sea‐level falls. During low relative sea level, erosion surfaces developed on the slope, and gravitational resedimentation occurred at the toe of slope. Basinwards, resedimented units pinch out over distances of a few hundred metres. Active faults controlled sedimentation at the platform margin, promoting the development of steep slopes (up to 35°) and preventing progradation of the shallow‐water platform, despite high sediment production rates. The development of sequences is interpreted to be related to tectonic activity.
Ultrahigh-Pressure Metamorphism in the Śnieżnik Mountains (Sudetes, Poland): P-T Constraints and Geological Implications

The petrology and P-T conditions of eclogites and associated gneisses from the Śnieżnik Mountains (Sudetes, SW-Poland) were investigated to establish an exhumation path for these ultrahigh-pressure rocks. Peak-pressure conditions are represented by the assemblage garnet-omphacite-phengite-kyanite-coesite-rutile. Post-dating this assemblage, but still in the eclogite-facies, garnet with lower grossular-content and a first generation of amphibole are formed under lower pressure conditions, giving rise to the assemblage garnet-omphacite-phengite-kyanite-quartz-rutile-calcic amphibole(I). Continuing depressurization caused the successive destabilization of omphacite, garnet, kyanite, and phengite. In some places the primary eclogite assemblage was completely transformed into amphibolite-facies mineral assemblages. Estimated peak pressures in the Śnieżnik and Międzygórze units lie in the coesite stability field (P > 27 kbar at temperatures of about 700-800°C) and are not significantly different to the Złote unit. Although isofacial high-P metamorphism of eclogites and associated Gierałtów gneisses has been previously suggested, we show for the first time geobarometric evidence that the country rock gneisses experienced pressures >27 kbar, indicated by the mineral assemblage garnet($$grossular_{30-50}$$)-zoisite-titanite(rutile)-quartz. The post-eclogite stage P-T path of the three tectonic units is different. The isothermal, rapid decompression during exhumation of the Śnieżnik and Międzygórze units may be related to ductile pure shear processes, whereas the cooling and decompression of the Złote unit may be related to lithospheric simple shear involving isostatic compensation.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder and its related disorders: a reappraisal of obsessive-compulsive spectrum concepts

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a clinical syndrome whose hallmarks are excessive, anxiety-evoking thoughts and compulsive behaviors that are generally recognized as unreasonable, but which cause significant distress and impairment. When these are the exclusive symptoms, they constitute uncomplicated OCD. OCD may also occur in the context of other neuropsychiatric disorders, most commonly other anxiety and mood disorders. The question remains as to whether these combinations of disorders should be regarded as independent, cooccurring disorders or as different manifestations of an incompletely understood constellation of OCD spectrum disorders with a common etiology. Additional considerations are given here to two potential etiology-based subgroups: (i) an environmentally based group in which OCD occurs following apparent causal events such as streptococcal infections, brain injury, or atypical neuroleptic treatment; and (ii) a genomically based group in which OCD is related to chromosomal anomalies or specific genes. Considering the status of current research, the concept of OCD and OCD-related spectrum conditions seems fluid in 2010, and in need of ongoing reappraisal.
An Investigation on Cd and Pb Concentrations of Soils around the Kurdistan Cement Factory in Western Iran

Heavy metals, e.g. Cd and Pb emit and release into the environment during cement production and are deposited into soils. This research was carried out to determine the concentration and spatial distribution of trace elements in top soils around the Kurdistan Cement Factory, west of Iran in order to evaluate the effect of cement factory on the environment. Twenty- four soil samples were collected from surface soils around the factory. Cadmium and lead concentrations in soil samples were determined using acid extraction procedure and atomic absorption spectrophotometric methods. Soils were sampled in four directions of north, south, west and east of cement factory and at intervals of 400 m to 800 m distance from the factory. Ordinary kriging technique in ArcGIS was performed to map the spatial patterns of heavy metals. The results showed that concentrations of Pb and Cd were weakly correlated with each other indicating these metals in soils may be from the different pollution source. No distinct spatial trends of Pb with its low accumulation in the soils demonstrate that Pb content was mainly influenced by soil factors. The spatial pattern of the cadmium showed that the cement factory emission has an impact on the soil's cadmium content, since the highest level in area close to the cement factory. Estimated Pollution Load Index (PLI) showed that the soils around the factory were practically uncontaminated by metals.
Environmental Assessment of Estuarine Ecosystems : A Case Study

Introduction, Claude Amiard-Triquet and Jean-Claude Dauvin Sedimentary Processes on Estuarine Mudflats: Examples of the Seine and Authie Estuaries, Julien Deloffre and Robert Lafite Quantification of Contaminants, Jean-Claude Amiard, Laurent Bodineau, Virginie Bragigand, Christophe Minier, and Helene Budzinski Biomarkers Based upon Biochemical Responses, Michele Romeo, Laurence Poirier, and Brigitte Berthet Biogeochemistry of Metals in Sediments: Development of Microscale Analytical Tools and Use of Indicators of Biological Activities, Baghdad Ouddane, Laurent Quillet, Olivier Clarisse, Gabriel Billon, Jean-Claude Fischer, and Fabienne Petit Organic Contaminants in Coastal and Estuarine Food Webs, Alain Abarnou Tolerance in Organisms Chronically Exposed to Estuarine Pollution, Claude Amiard-Triquet, Thierry Berthe, Anne Creach, Francoise Denis, Cyril Durou, Francois Gevaert, Catherine Mouneyrac, Jean-Baptiste Ramond, and Fabienne Petit Linking Energy Metabolism, Reproduction, Abundance, and Structure of Nereis diversicolor Populations, Catherine Mouneyrac, Cyril Durou, Patrick Gillet, Herman Hummel, and Claude Amiard-Triquet Historical Records of the Nereis diversicolor Population in the Seine Estuary, Christophe Bessineton Ecological Status and Health of the Planktonic Copepod Eurytemora affinis in the Seine Estuary, Joelle Forget-Leray, Sami Souissi, David Devreker, Kevin Cailleaud, and Helene Budzinski From Pollution to Altered Physiological Performance: The Case of Flatfish in the Seine Estuary, Christophe Minier and Rachid Amara Diatoms: Modern Diatom Distribution in the Seine and Authie Estuaries, Florence Sylvestre Foraminifera, Jean-Pierre Debenay Patterns of Abundance, Diversity, and Genus Assemblage Structure of Meiofaunal Nematodes in the Seine (Pont de Normandie) and Authie (Authie Port) Estuaries, Timothy J. Ferrero Dynamic Diagenetic Modelling and Impacts of Biota, Lionel Denis, Dominique Boust, Benedicte Thouvenin, Pierre Le Hir, Julien Deloffre, Jean-Louis Gonzalez, and Patrick Gillet Conclusions, Claude Amiard-Triquet and Philip S. Rainbow Index
Martian soil simulant available for scientific, educational study

Just as the world is entering an intensive and exciting phase in the exploration of Mars, a Martian soil simulant has been developed for use in scientific research, engineering studies, and education. Called JSC Mars-1, it is a natural material obtained from volcanic ash. It approximates, within the limits of current understanding, the reflectance spectrum, mineralogy, chemical composition, grain size, density, porosity, and magnetic properties of the oxidized soil of Mars. This material is offered in limited quantities to qualified investigators and educators, without charge except for shipping.
Localized versus distributed shear in transform plate boundary zones: The case of the Dead Sea Transform in the Jericho Valley

Continental transform plate boundaries are typically either localized along a single, usually segmented, major fault or distributed over a broad deformation zone. In the latter, shear is partitioned between major strike slip faults and intervening, often rotating, fault systems. Analog and numerical simulations suggest that such internal fault systems evolve and may be localized or delocalized depending on strain and fault zone strength. This paper examines the degree and evolution of shear localization in the Jericho Valley section of the Dead Sea Transform (DST), which is part of the Africa/Arabia plate boundary. In this section, the current breadth of the transform valley and its penetrative strain field are difficult to reconcile with localized shear. We integrate newly acquired high‐resolution reflection data, reprocessed exploration reflection data (both focused to 2.5–3.5 km depth), relatively relocated earthquake epicenters, and fault plane solutions based on P wave first arrivals and suggest reinterpretations for previously published structural and seismic data in the Jericho Valley and the northern Dead Sea basin. It is found that shear in this section of the DST evolved from an early, probably Miocene‐Pliocene, stage of localized strike slip motion primarily along the Jericho fault to a late stage (Pliocene‐Recent) when shear has been distributed over internal fault sets that apparently lean against a major eastern DST segment. In the early stage the Jericho fault formed the western boundary of a deep, narrow, probably pull‐apart basin filled by fluvial clastics and evaporites. This is overlain by the late stage broad basin, characterized by low‐energy deposition of lacustrine and fluvial sediments. Pliocene rock salt has apparently utilized the Jericho fault zone as a conduit for diapirism, causing the uplift, normal faulting, and surface deformation of Late Pleistocene and Holocene sediments currently observed along the ∼15 km long Jericho Lineament. On the basis of the currently observed dextral‐normal motion across the internal NNE‐NE trending fault system, counterclockwise rotation is expected to have occurred within the transform zone. These tectonic and depositional changes were probably associated with onset of transtension across the DST, related to the previously postulated shift of the Africa/Arabia Euler pole of rotation in the Pliocene.
The 2007 ESPAD report : substance use among students in 35 European countries

Kozreműkodő szerzők: Airi-Alina Allaste, Barbro Andersson, Sharon Arpa, Karl Bohrn, Anina Chileva, Marie Choquet, Ladislav Csemy, Zsuzsanna Elekes, Fernanda Feijao, Silvia Florescu, Anastasios Fotiou, Gerhard Gmel, Eugenia Koshkina, Marina Kuzman, Patrick Lambrecht, Stephane Legleye, Patrick Miller, Sabrina Molinaro, Karin Monshouwer, Mark Morgan, Artak Musheghyan, Alojz Nociar, Alexander Pabst, Daniela Piontek, Martin Plant, Svend Sabroe, Janusz Sierolawski, Astrid Skretting, Stanislas Spilka, Eva Stergar, Andrea Steriu, Tadas Tamosiunas, Marcis Trapencieris, Alfred Uhl, Kyriakos Veresies, Pal Weihe
An appraisal of NCEP/NCAR reanalysis MSLP data viability for climate studies in the South Pacific

Fifty years of monthly mean sea level pressure (MSLP) data from the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis (hereinafter NNR) are validated against station observations in the extratropical South Pacific and West Antarctica. The period for which the NNR may be considered reliable differs markedly between regions. It is only realistic from ∼1970 across West Antarctica. A lack of surface observations entering the model causes the NNR to be poorly constrained prior to the availability of GTS‐based data in 1967: the latter coincides with a significant improvement in the NNR MSLP across the eastern South Pacific. Substantial spurious negative trends occur within the NNR MSLP at high latitudes; although the decrease is greatest prior to the advent of satellite sounder data it continues into the 1990s south of 60°S. In addition, widely used tropical and extra‐tropical circulation indices are poorly represented in the NNR data prior to the 1960s.
Older People in Rural Communities: Exploring Attachment, Contribution and Diversity in Rural Ireland and Northern Ireland

This research project, funded under Call 1 of CARDI Grants Programme, examines the experiences of older people living in three rural areas: the Ards Peninsula in Down; the cross-border area of Blacklion / Belcoo in Cavan / Fermanagh; and Letterfrack in Galway. The research was conducted by the Healthy Ageing in Rural Communities (HARC) research network, led by Dr Kieran Walsh Research Officer at the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology (ICSG).
Hydraulic Properties in a Silt Loam Soil under Natural Prairie, Conventional Till, and No‐Till

Tillage in the Palouse region of Washington State over the past 100 yr has influenced the soil physical and biological properties. In particular, hydraulic properties are significantly affected by soil cultivation. The objectives of this study were to assess the temporal patterns of soil hydraulic properties under three management systems, natural prairie (NP), conventional till (CT), and no-till (NT), and to compare hydraulic properties between these three systems. Saturated and near-saturated hydraulic conductivities (up to -15 cm-H 2 O hydraulic head), and soil water retention curves were determined using intact soil cores taken from the top 10 cm of soil. Soils were sampled at six different times during a period of 1.5 yr from a NP, a long-term (>100 yr) CT, and a 27-yr-old NT system. The NP represented the original soil and natural vegetation of the area. Significant temporal variation in hydraulic conductivity was found. Temporal variation was most evident in the NP soil, where organic matter content was twice as large as under the CT and NT soils. Hydraulic conductivities in the NP were about one order of magnitude larger than in the cultivated soils. In NT, saturated hydraulic conductivities in the top 5 cm of soils were significantly larger than in CT. No-till and CT soils had similar near-saturated hydraulic conductivities, indicating that even 27 yr of continuous NT could not restore the original hydraulic properties of the soil. Restoration of original hydraulic properties in cultivated former prairie soils may take considerably longer.