Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
The dynamics of star dunes: an example from the Gran Desierto

A golf tee including horizontal arms for locating the ball receiving portion thereof at a selected level with respect to the ground when the tee is inserted into the ground; such horizontal arms being further adapted to maintain the tee in a true vertical position and to provide visual indicators for directing the proper location of the player's stance or driving position.
Wildfire effects on soil erodibility of woodlands in NW Spain

Knowledge of soil erodibility following wildfire is of crucial importance for prioritisation of post‐fire restoration practices for soil erosion mitigation. The present work therefore aims to determine the effect of wildfire on soil erodibility for common woodlands in Galicia, NW Spain. This is done by comparing selected topsoil properties of 28 pairs of recently wildfire‐burned and neighbouring unburned sites on different geologic substrates. The soil properties were selected for their supposed importance in erodibility, and include aggregate size distribution and water aggregate stability. Comparison of the burned and unburned sites suggested that wildfire had a noticeable negative effect on aggregate size distribution but not on particle size distribution. The effect on aggregate stability was highly variable. Aggregate stability was clearly lower at the burned than unburned site in about a third of the cases and in the remaining cases either basically the same at both sites or higher at the unburned site. The differences in aggregate stability, like those in aggregate size distribution, appear to be associated with changes in organic carbon content. The impact of wildfire on soil erodibility is supposed to operate through its effect on soil organic matter and, thus, to depend strongly on fire severity. Soil erodibility is then little affected by low‐severity wildfires but markedly diminished following high‐severity wildfires. All burned topsoils were strongly to very strongly water repellent. Fire‐enhaced repellency is therefore viewed as a key factor in the post‐fire runoff and erosion processes repeatedly observed in recently burned areas in NW Spain. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Paleomagnetism and secular variation of Easter Island basalts

Sixty-five Brunhes age lava flows from Easter Island are analyzed for secular variation statistics and mean geomagnetic field parameters. The present rotation axis is enclosed within the 95% confidence limits of the mean virtual geomagnetic pole (θ = 87.4°, ϕ = 204.2°; dm = 4.13°, dp = 2.57°). The angular standard deviation of a subset of 51 poles is 12.8° with upper and lower confidence limits of 14.8° and 11.3°. The secular variation of the young Easter Island basalts lies above a pure dipole wobble component of secular variation but below the lower limit for all proposed models. Thus it appears that the Pacific secular variation low extends into the southeast Pacific but is not as pronounced as it is around Hawaii.
FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF DICLOFENAC POTASSIUM ETHOSOMES Dissertation submitted to THE TAMILNADU Dr. M.G.R. MEDICAL UNIVERSITY, CHENNAI

This is to certify that the Dissertation entitled “FORMULATION AND EVALUATION OF DICLOFENAC POTASSIUM ETHOSOMES” submitted by Mr. M.R. VIJAYAKUMAR in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Pharmacy in Pharmaceutics is a bonafide work carried out by him, under my guidance and supervision during the academic year 2009 – 2010 in the Department of Pharmaceutics, Madurai Medical College, Madurai-20.
Physical interventions to interrupt or reduce the spread of respiratory viruses. Part 1 - Face masks, eye protection and person distancing: systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract OBJECTIVE: To examine the effectiveness of eye protection, face masks, or person distancing on interrupting or reducing the spread of respiratory viruses. DESIGN: Update of a Cochrane review that included a meta-analysis of observational studies during the SARS outbreak of 2003. DATA SOURCES: Eligible trials from the previous review; search of Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, PubMed, Embase and CINAHL from October 2010 up to 1 April 2020; and forward and backward citation analysis. DATA SELECTION: Randomised and cluster-randomised trials of people of any age, testing the use of eye protection, face masks, or person distancing against standard practice, or a similar physical barrier. Outcomes included any acute respiratory illness and its related consequences. DATA EXTRACTION AND ANALYSIS: Six authors independently assessed risk of bias using the Cochrane tool and extracted data. We used a generalised inverse variance method for pooling using a random-effects model and reported results with risk ratios and 95% Confidence Intervals (CI). RESULTS: We included 15 randomised trials investigating the effect of masks (14 trials) in healthcare workers and the general population and of quarantine (1 trial). We found no trials testing eye protection. Compared to no masks there was no reduction of influenza-like illness (ILI) cases (Risk Ratio 0.93, 95%CI 0.83 to 1.05) or influenza (Risk Ratio 0.84, 95%CI 0.61-1.17) for masks in the general population, nor in healthcare workers (Risk Ratio 0.37, 95%CI 0.05 to 2.50). There was no difference between surgical masks and N95 respirators: for ILI (Risk Ratio 0.83, 95%CI 0.63 to 1.08), for influenza (Risk Ratio 1.02, 95%CI 0.73 to 1.43). Harms were poorly reported and limited to discomfort with lower compliance. The only trial testing quarantining workers with household ILI contacts found a reduction in ILI cases, but increased risk of quarantined workers contracting influenza. All trials were conducted during seasonal ILI activity. CONCLUSIONS: Most included trials had poor design, reporting and sparse events. There was insufficient evidence to provide a recommendation on the use of facial barriers without other measures. We found insufficient evidence for a difference between surgical masks and N95 respirators and limited evidence to support effectiveness of quarantine. Based on observational evidence from the previous SARS epidemic included in the previous version of our Cochrane review we recommend the use of masks combined with other measures.
A seismic refraction investigation of the Namaqualand Metamorphic Complex, South Africa

The Namaqualand Metamorphic Complex forms part of the Precambrian shield of southern Africa, and hosts several major base metal deposits. A long line seismic refraction experiment traversing the Complex was conducted in order to complement geological and geophysical studies of the structure and evolution of this region. Seismograms were obtained at approximately 10 km intervals along the 290 km profile. Seismic ray-tracing techniques were used to model the travel-time and amplitude data. It was found that the Namaqualand lower crust is comprised of a substantial proportion of intermediate velocity (6.2 to 6.9 km/s) rocks. These intermediate velocity rocks approach the surface near the midpoint of the profile. Moho was found to be at a depth of 42 km. No correlation was found between the seismic and electrical resistivity models of the crust. When the seismic velocity structure of the Middle Proterozoic Namaqualand Metamorphic Complex is compared with that of adjacent geological provinces, it is found to differ significantly from the Archaean Kaapvaal Province, but resemble the Late Proterozoic Damara Province. These differences might be attributed to variations in the principal mechanisms of crustal growth between Archaean and Proterozoic times.
Sea breezes and coastal jets in southeastern Spain

Sea breezes and low-level jet (LLJ) streams are studied in the region between the Eastern Castilla-La Mancha and the Mediterranean coast of southeastern Spain. The simplified concept of two-dimensional terrain and meteorological conditions explains the spatially and diurnally varying wind system consistently. The changes, as a function of time, height and distance to the coast, of temperature, pressure and wind as well as of certain observed phenomena, such as LLJs and strongly baroclinic zones, result from the response of the mesoscale flow to differential heating. Wind changes are generally found to be consistent with mesoscale changes in geostrophic winds as estimated from station pressure measurements. The LLJs mark the penetration depth of the sea breeze during daytime, where a baroclinic zone develops at the transition between continental air masses and marine air masses, typically at a distance of 150 km from the coast. The analysis is based on aerological data and ground-based measurements from the European Field Experiment in a Desertification Threatened Area (EFEDA) experiments in 1991 and 1994 as well as on 3-hourly data from three synoptic stations of the Spanish meteorological network for April–October in 1991 and 1994. After corrections were made for instrument errors and atmospheric tides, diurnal pressure variations document vertically integrated mass fluxes perpendicular to the coast. Amplitudes of diurnal pressure and temperature changes scatter significantly and are largest in midsummer. They are weakly correlated and pressure amplitudes remain large in spring and autumn when diurnal temperature changes are reduced. With about 6 h delay to the regular development of onshore winds at the coast during daytime, pronounced wind peaks are observed over the eastern plateau at Albacete and Barrax in the late afternoon. Case studies show that they are accompanied by development of baroclinically driven LLJs, whereas winds at Tomelloso, 220-km inland, show less pronounced diurnal changes and are beyond the normal penetration distance of sea breezes. Copyright © 2000 Royal Meteorological Society
Present‐day stress field changes along the Baikal rift and tectonic implications

Intraplate extension, in a frame of a global compressional stress field, seems linked to local lithospheric perturbations (lithospheric thinning or thickening) able to modify the resulting state of stress [Zoback, 1992]. The Baikal Rift Zone (BRZ), Siberia, is located north of the India-Asia collision zone and exhibits no direct communication with any oceanic domain. It can thus be fully considered as an area of continental extension, dominated by the “global compressional intraplate stress field” resulting from plate driving forces. In order to address the problem of its dynamics and kinematics and their links with the India-Asia collision, a comprehensive stress tensor analysis is presented, based on 319 focal mechanisms of earthquakes located along the whole Baikal rift. The stress field is varying at different scales of observation: when looking at central Asia (several thousands kilometers), the maximum horizontal stress SHmax directions remain rather constant (with a fan-shape geometry) when the tectonic regime goes from compressional (Himalayas) to extensional (Baikal). When observing the Baikal rift (about 1000 km long), clear variations of the stress regime are observed, from an extensional regime in the central part of the rift to wrench ones in its northern and southern ends. Finally, at the scale of 100 km, systematic SHmax reorientations occur close to major rift faults. We thus infer that the interaction between collisional processes and inherited structures may have a strong influence on rift dynamics. We then use computed stress tensors to predict slip vectors on major rift faults. Deformation patterns show two distinct parts of the rift: the South Baikal Rift (SBR) is characterized by a constant trending (around N100°E) slip vector, meanwhile the North Baikal Rift (NBR) exhibits a complex block rotation behavior involving at least three crustal blocks. We propose to interpret these surficial structures and motions as the result of an interaction between the regional compression coming from the India-Asia collision and the geometry of the hardly deformable Siberian platform. This particular setting can explain most of the surficial deformation patterns, which suggest a large-scale cracking of the lithosphere in the Baikal region. Other possible sources of stress could also be considered, like deep mantellic upwelling, or trench suction linked to the Pacific subduction.
Formation and evolution of Archaean cratons: insights from southern Africa

Abstract Archaean cratons are the stable remnants of Earth’s early continental lithosphere, and their structure, composition and survival over geological time make them unique features of the Earth’s surface. The Kaapvaal Project of southern Africa was organized around a broadly diverse scientific collaboration to investigate fundamental questions of craton formation and mantle differentiation in the early Earth. The principal aim of the project was to characterize the physical and chemical nature of the crust and mantle of the cratons of southern Africa in geological detail, and to use the 3D seismic and geochemical images of crustal and mantle heterogeneity to reconstruct the assembly history of the cratons. Seismic results confirm that the structure of crust and tectospheric mantle of the cratons differs significantly from that of post-Archaean terranes. Three-dimensional body-wave tomographic images reveal that high-velocity mantle roots extend to depths of at least 200 km, and locally to depths of 250–300 km beneath cratonic terranes. No low-velocity channel has been identified beneath the cratonic root. The Kaapvaal Craton was modified approximately 2.05 Ga by the Bushveld magmatic event, and the mantle beneath the Bushveld Province is characterized by relatively low seismic velocities. The crust beneath undisturbed Archaean craton is relatively thin (c. 35–40 km), unlayered and characterized by a strong velocity contrast across a sharp Moho, whereas post-Archaean terranes and Archaean regions disrupted by large-scale Proterozoic magmatic or tectonic events are characterized by thicker crust, complex Moho structure and higher seismic velocities in the lower crust. A review of Re-Os depletion model age determinations confirms that the mantle root beneath the cratons is Archaean in age. The data show also that there is no apparent age progression with depth in the mantle keel, indicating that its thickness has not increased over geological time. Both laboratory experiments and geochemical results from eclogite xenoliths suggest that subduction processes played a central role in the formation of Archaean crust, the melt depletion of Archaean mantle and the assembly of early continental lithosphere. Co-ordinated geochronological studies of crustal and mantle xenoliths have revealed that both crust and mantle have experienced a multi-stage history. The lower crust in particular retains a comprehensive record of the tectonothermal evolution of the lithosphere. Analysis of lower-crustal xenoliths has shown that much of the deep craton experienced a dynamic and proteracted history of tectonothermal activity that is temporally associated with events seen in the surface record. Cratonization thus occurred not as a discrete event, but in stages, with final stabilization postdating crustal formation.
Resolution enhancement of ASTER shortwave and thermal infrared bands based on spectral similarity

The Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer (ASTER) consists of three subsystems divided by the wavelength region: Visible and Near-Infrared (VNIR), Shortwave Infrared (SWIR), and Thermal Infrared (TIR) subsystems. The VNIR, SWIR and TIR subsystems have 3, 6, and 5 spectral bands with the spatial resolution of 15, 30, and 90m, respectively. The purpose of this study is to propose an algorithm for generating SWIR and TIR imagery with a 15m resolution based on spectral similarity. In the algorithm, SWIR images are first super-resolved using VNIR images, and TIR images are then super-resolved using VNIR and super-resolved SWIR images. The first step is as follows: 1) degrade the resolution of the VNIR images to 30m by pixel aggregation with the point spread function (PSF) of SWIR, 2) generate a homogeneous pixel map with a 30m resolution from the original VNIR images, 3) generate a multi-way tree for VNIR and SWIR spectra by stepwise clustering for the 30m-resolution VNIR and SWIR images, 4) generate super-resolved SWIR images by allocating the most likely SWIR spectrum to each 15m-resolution pixel based on spectral similarity in VNIR using the 30m-resolution VNIR and SWIR images, and the multi-way tree, and 5) modify the super-resolved SWIR images using the PSF as to be fully restorable to the original images. The second step is similar, except that super-resolved TIR images are derived from both the VNIR and the super-resolved SWIR images. In the latter part of the study, the algorithm is validated using ASTER data.
An Estimate of Low-Cloud Feedbacks from Variations of Cloud Radiative and Physical Properties with Sea Surface Temperature on Interannual Time Scales

Abstract Simulations of climate change have yet to reach a consensus on the sign and magnitude of the changes in physical properties of marine boundary layer clouds. In this study, the authors analyze how cloud and radiative properties vary with SST anomaly in low-cloud regions, based on five years (March 2000–February 2005) of Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES)–Terra monthly gridded data and matched European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) meteorological reanalaysis data. In particular, this study focuses on the changes in cloud radiative effect, cloud fraction, and cloud optical depth with SST anomaly. The major findings are as follows. First, the low-cloud amount (−1.9% to −3.4% K−1) and the logarithm of low-cloud optical depth (−0.085 to −0.100 K−1) tend to decrease while the net cloud radiative effect (3.86 W m−2 K−1) becomes less negative as SST anomalies increase. These results are broadly consistent with previous observational studies. Second, after the changes .
Application of lidar digital terrain modelling to predict intertidal habitat development at a managed retreat site: Abbotts Hall, Essex, UK

A key question in designing any managed retreat site concerns the nature of the habitats which will be created, and their likely long‐term sustainability and development. Studies of historical sea wall failures in Essex have shown that former reclaimed areas may respond to renewed tidal ﬂooding in different ways depending on a number of factors, most importantly the elevation of the land at the time of breach, which governs the frequency and duration of tidal ﬂooding. This paper demonstrates how digital terrain modelling using airborne lidar data can be used to calculate the elevation of the land behind a breach and to predict the likely habitats which will be created. When combined with data from sites of historical sea wall failure, predictions can also be made about the likely geomorphological and biological evolution of the created habitats in the longer term. At Abbotts Hall on the northern side of Salcott Creek, Essex, where a managed retreat scheme was activated in October 2002, the highest areas above 2·35 m OD were predicted to develop stable saltmarsh, intermediate areas between 2·1 and 2·34 m OD to develop potentially unstable saltmarsh which is likely undergo internal dissection, and the lowest areas below 2·1 m OD to remain as mudﬂat or lagoon. Approximately 38 per cent of the site was predicted to develop stable saltmarsh, and nearly 50 per cent to remain as lagoon or mudﬂat. Monitoring is now being undertaken but it will be several years before the accuracy of the predictions can be assessed. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Magneto‐photophoresis and mesospheric particles

[1] So far, levitation of solid particles in the atmosphere by photophoretic forces has been attributed exclusively to gravito-photophoresis. In this paper attention is drawn to magneto-photophoresis, a motion of ferromagnetic particles related to a magnetic field during their irradiation by light. In regions showing an approximately vertically directed magnetic field, magneto-photophoretic levitation is likewise possible. Laboratory experiments with particles produced by an arc discharge in air between iron electrodes have quantitatively shown magneto-photophoretic levitation. Using these results, we show that magneto-photophoresis can be an essential factor for the formation and persistence of particle layers. Under conditions of illumination by the sun, magneto-photophoretic levitation takes place with particles having sizes around and below 0.1 μm whereas gravito-photophoresis occurs for particle sizes around 1 μm.
Evidence for a link between climate and northern wetland methane emissions

Wetlands are an important source of atmospheric methane (CH 4 ), but the strength of this source and its sensitivity to potential changes in climate are still uncertain. In this study, continuous measurements from 1990 to 1998 of atmospheric CH 4 from the Canadian observational sites at Fraserdale (49°53'N 81°34'W) and Alert (82°27'N 62°31'W) are used to estimate CH 4 emissions from the Hudson Bay Lowland (HBL), a 320,000 km 2 semicontinuous wetland region in central Canada. The HBL comprises ∼ 10% of the total area of northern wetlands. A conceptually simple approach was used to calculate the methane emission flux using the CH 4 concentration difference between Alert and Fraserdale, the residence time of the air mass over the HBL, and the mixing height of the convective boundary layer. Emission rates estimated using this approach for 1990 compare well with empirical aircraft and tower flux measurements made within the HBL during the same time period, thus indicating that the methodology used is reasonable. Annual CH 4 emission rates range from 0.23 to 0.50 Tg CH 4 yr -1 and are much lower than many empirical flux measurements observed at other northern wetland sites. A seasonal temperature sensitivity with a Q 10 of about 4 was found. Moreover, the observed interannual variations in emissions are well correlated to variations in annual air temperatures corresponding to a sensitivity of Q 10 7. That is, a 10°C change in annual temperature would result in a sevenfold change in wetland emissions which is much larger than Q 10 values used in current global CH 4 models (typically Q 10 1.5). Our findings suggest that northern wetland emissions are probably overestimated to date but may increase significantly due to predicted global warming.