Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Western Europe is warming much faster than expected

Abstract. The warming trend of the last decades is now so strong that it is discernible in local temperature observations. This opens the possibility to compare the trend to the warming predicted by comprehensive climate models (GCMs), which up to now could not be verified directly to observations on a local scale, because the signal-to-noise ratio was too low. The observed temperature trend in western Europe over the last decades appears much stronger than simulated by state-of-the-art GCMs. The difference is very unlikely due to random fluctuations, either in fast weather processes or in decadal climate fluctuations. In winter and spring, changes in atmospheric circulation are important; in spring and summer changes in soil moisture and cloud cover. A misrepresentation of the North Atlantic Current affects trends along the coast. Many of these processes ontinue to affect trends in projections for the 21st century. This implies that climate predictions for western Europe probably underestimate the effects of anthropogenic climate change.
Etude expérimentale de la propagation de flammes dans un mélange stratifié

Pour mieux comprendre la combustion en mode stratifie, la propagation de flammes au sein de stratifications de richesse laminaire ou turbulente a ete etudiee par des mesures simultanees de richesse et de vitesse effectuees par couplage de la PIV et de la PLIF. L’accent a ete mis sur le developpement de methodes permettant d’ameliorer la qualite des mesures locales. En particulier, un nouvel algorithme de PIV permettant la mesure locale de la vitesse des gaz frais veritablement a l’entree de la zone de prechauffage a ete developpe. Pour ameliorer la resolution,les mailles de calcul s’adaptent localement a la topologie de la flamme, pour tenir compte de la forme du front de flamme et de l’expansion des gaz. L’analyse statistique des mesures conditionnee sur la richesse locale a permis de caracteriser les proprietes de la flamme soumise a une stratification de richesse dans un ecoulement laminaire et turbulent, en particulier en mettant en evidence un effet memoire.
Rice Domestication by Reducing Shattering

clicking here. colleagues, clients, or customers by , you can order high-quality copies for your If you wish to distribute this article to others here. following the guidelines can be obtained by Permission to republish or repurpose articles or portions of articles ): December 1, 2010 www.sciencemag. org (this infomation is current as of The following resources related to this article are available online at
The Effects of Earnings Disclosure on College Enrollment Decisions

We use a large-scale survey and field experiment to evaluate a policy that provided information about college- and major-specific earnings and cost outcomes to college applicants in Chile. The intervention was administered by the Chilean government and reached 30% of student loan applicants. We show that the low-income and low-achieving students who apply to low-earning college degree programs overestimate earnings for past graduates by over 100%, while beliefs for high-achieving students are correctly centered. Treatment causes low-income students to reduce their demand for low-return degrees by 4.6%, and increases the likelihood they remain in college for at least four years. To understand the mechanisms driving the effect of disclosure policies we estimate a model of college demand. We find that disclosure changes college choice by reducing uncertainty about earnings outcomes, but that its impact is limited by strong student preferences for non-pecuniary degree attributes.
ÇEKİM MODELİ: TÜRKİYE’NİN İHRACATI ÜZERİNE BİR UYGULAMA

Ozet: Cekim modeli, adini, Newton’un “yercekimi kanunu”ndan almaktadir. Buna gore iki madde arasindaki cekim kuvveti, maddelerin kutleleriyle dogru orantili, aralarindaki mesafenin karesiyle ters orantilidir. Model dis ticarete uyarlandiginda iki ulke arasindaki ticaret hacmi, ulkelerin milli gelirleriyle dogru orantili, aralarindaki mesafeyle ters orantili olarak degisir. Bu calismada, cekim modeli, Turkiye’nin ihracati uzerine uygulanmistir. Modelde 46 ulke ve 1994–2007 arasini kapsayan 14 yillik panel veri yer almistir. Kullanilan bagimsiz degiskenler, Turkiye’nin ve diger ulkelerin GDP’leri, nufuslari, ulkelerin baskentlerinin Ankara’ya uzakliklari, Gumruk Birligi ve ortak sinir kukla degiskenleridir. Bagimli degisken ise Turkiye’nin ihracatidir. Model tahmin edildiginde, Turkiye ve diger ulkelerin GDP’leri beklendigi gibi pozitif isaretli ve anlamli cikmistir. Turkiye’nin ve diger ulkelerin nufus degiskenlerinin katsayilarinin anlamsiz oldugu bulunmustur. Mesafe degiskeninin katsayisi ise beklenen negatif isarete sahiptir ve anlamlidir. Gumruk Birligi’nin ve ortak sinirin, Turkiye’nin ihracati uzerinde anlamli etkileri bulunamamistir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Cekim modeli, panel veri, Turkiye Abstract: The gravity model takes its name from Newton’s “The Gravity Theory”. According to this theory, the attraction force between two objects is proportional to their masses and inversely proportional to squared distance between them. As the model adopted to international trade, the trade volumes between two countries are proportional to their GDP and inversely proportional to distance between them.In this study, the gravity model was applied to Turkey’s export. The model includes panel data covering time series data from 1994 to 2007 for 46 countries. The explanatory variables are Turkey’s and its partner countries’ GDP, their populations, partner countries capitals distance to Ankara and Custom Union and common border dummies. The dependent variable is Turkey’s export. According to estimation of the model, Turkey’s and partner countries GDP’s coefficients had positive sign and were significant as expected. Both of Turkey’s and partner countries populations coefficients were insignificant. The coefficient of distance variable was significant and had negative sign as expected. Costum Union and common border have not significant effect on the Turkey’s export. Keywords: Gravity model, panel data, Turkey
Design for experience: a new rationale

Solving problems is a dominant rationale for technology education students engaging in design. This is evident throughout various technology education curricula; and subsequently influences teaching and learning. An alternative design paradigm supported by prominent examples within commercial design theory and practice examines the notion of ‘design’ as facilitating human experiences rather than predominantly solving technological problems. It argues that this ‘new’ paradigm has, through social and commercial imperatives, become the dominant rationale for most contemporary design contexts. Applied within an educational context, both paradigms have implications for teaching and learning. The design as problem solving paradigm of technology education has been elaborated for a number of years through curriculum documentation and teacher support material. The design as experience paradigm of some commercial designers is developing, and may represent a new and progressive dimension of student designing.
Generation of wave motions in the middle atmosphere induced by variations of the solar ultraviolet radiation flux (based on the UARS satellite data)

A study of the middle atmosphere structure and the amplitude of its response to periodic heating of the middle atmosphere caused by ozone and having strong longitudinal variations is carried out on the basis of the numerical two-dimensional model of planetary waves and analysis of the data on the global ozone distribution (the TOMS data) and variations of the solar ultraviolet radiation (the data of the SUSIM instrument on board the UARS satellite). The analysis of the total ozone content shows that in some years the longitudinal irregularity amplitude may be as high as 100 Dobson units (DU). The corresponding variations of the stratosphere heating may reach 1 K per day. The calculations show that the solar ultraviolet radiation variations (according to the SUSIM instrument data they are about 1% with the period of 25-27 days corresponding to the solar rotation) lead to an selective (resonant) response of the middle atmosphere with the period of 25-27 days in the form of a propagating planetary wave. The amplitudes of such waves are a few geopotential meters for a geopotential disturbance and up to 1 K for temperature variations in the upper stratosphere.
Unsteady flow simulation using the curvilinear multiple-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann method: Danube River case study

In order to introduce the lattice Boltzmann method as a competitive approach compared to traditionally based mathematical models when river and coastal hydraulics are considered, the innovative curvilinear multi-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann method for solving 2D flow equations transformed in curvilinear coordinate system is utilized. The curvilinear approach implemented in the multi-relaxation-time lattice Boltzmann method is tested on a geometrically simple non-prismatic channel and on a section of the Danube River. Steady flow tangential velocity measurements are used in case of the channel model verification, while in case of the Danube unsteady flow is examined. Corresponding velocity and water level measurements acquired during a period of five days are used for calibration and verification of the Danube model, while an alternative mathematical model based on the traditional fractional-step approach has been exploited for comparison. The presented results confirm the aptness of the proposed model to simulate flow in natural water bodies effectively and accurately, therefore it is fully competitive with the classic computational fluid dynamics models.
Liquid Sensor/Detector Using an EBG Structure

This paper describes a novel procedure for detecting liquids with various permittivities using an electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) structure. The concept can also be used as a method for achieving antenna frequency tunability. The main sensor consists of an array of square patches on a square unit cell with a series of cuts and grooves in the dielectric material between the patches. These trenches allow for the deposition of the liquids to be detected. The variation in the dielectric characteristics of the liquids inserted produces a change in the reflected phase of the EBG. This change in the phase could be detected in various ways. In this paper, a planar antenna has been placed at a short distance from the EBG structure. The changes in the phase in the surface waves produce a change in the reflection coefficient of the antenna. Butan-1-ol, propan-2-ol, ethanol, and methanol have been inserted to demonstrate the tuning technique. In order to complete the experiments, the reflection coefficients and the radiation patterns were measured. Good agreement has been found between the simulated and measured results. The envisaged detector could be used in a laboratory or clean room where liquids may fall into the channels.
How fast is fast enough?: a study of the effects of latency in direct-touch pointing tasks

Although advances in touchscreen technology have provided us with more precise devices, touchscreens are still laden with latency issues. Common commercial devices present with latency up to 125ms. Although these levels have been shown to impact users' perception of the responsiveness of the system [16], relatively little is known about the impact of latency on the performance of tasks common to direct-touch interfaces, such as direct physical manipulation. In this paper, we study the effect of latency of a direct-touch pointing device on dragging tasks. Our tests show that user performance decreases as latency increases. We also find that user performance is more severely affected by latency when targets are smaller or farther away. We present a detailed analysis of users' coping mechanisms for latency, and present the results of a follow-up study demonstrating user perception of latency in the land-on phase of the dragging task.
Novel optimisation of bicoherence estimation for fatigue monitoring

The higher order spectra of order 3, ie the bispectrum and the normalised bispectrum, the bicoherence, are widely used for many engineering applications for nonlinearity and non-Gaussianity monitoring[1-9]. In particular, the bicoherence method has been applied for detection of nonlinearity and the quadratic phase coupling in waves[1], speech signals[2], control loops[3], fluids[4] and for condition monitoring of different types of machinery and structures[5-9] including damage monitoring in many aerospace applications, for example fatigue monitoring in aircraft structures and gear teeth analysis in helicopter transmissions[10, 11]. The most important advantages of the bicoherence are high sensitivity to the presence of system nonlinearity and nonGaussianity and capability to suppress the Gaussian noise. One of the main disadvantages of bicoherence is a relatively high variance of bicoherence estimate; it is much higher than the variance of estimate of the power spectral density[12]. A common way to reduce the variance of bicoherence estimate is splitting signal duration into the segments, followed by averaging of the bicoherence over segments. For finite signal duration segment size defines the bias and the variance of bicoherence estimate. Following the literature[13], the usual practice for defining the optimal segment size is the square root of signal length. Usually, this rule is used for bicoherence estimation in damage monitoring tasks but some authors use rather empiric approaches to segment size selection[1, 6, 8, 9]. However, this rule is based on the optimal trade-off between the bias and the variance of bicoherence estimate and has been developed for the linearity test[13], which involves only one class of signals. For damage monitoring, optimisation of segment size should be performed for two or multi-class diagnostics and should be based on optimisation criterion for monitoring effectiveness rather than on a trade-off between the bias and the variance of bicoherence estimate. Optimisation of the main bicoherence parameters for damage monitoring involving two or multi-class signals has been investigated in literature only to a limited extent. In particular, it is believed that no-one has optimised the segment size of bicoherence estimate for fatigue monitoring. In addition, no-one has investigated the influence of damage level on optimal segment size for fatigue monitoring. The purpose of this paper is to investigate optimisation of segment size for bicoherence estimation for fatigue monitoring. It is important to investigate this problem for fatigue monitoring for many engineering applications including aerospace applications.
The Effect of the Subglacial Water Pressure on the Sliding Velocity of a Glacier in an Idealized Numerical Model

Abstract In order to interpret observed short-term variations of the sliding velocity of a glacier the effect of a variable subglacial water pressure on the sliding velocity has been studied using an idealized numerical model. In particular the transient stages of growing or shrinking water-filled cavities at the ice-bedrock interface were analysed. It was found that the sliding velocity was larger when cavities were growing than when they had reached the steady-state size for a given water pressure. The smallest sliding velocities occurred while cavities were shrinking. When cavitation is substantial a small drop of water pressure below the steady-state value (e.g. by 0.5 bar) can temporarily cause backward sliding. A limiting water pressure at which sliding becomes unstable is derived. The consequences of more realistic assumptions than those of the model are discussed.
Vegetation-atmosphere interactions in the early Eocene climate

During the early Eocene (about 54 to 52 Million years ago), climate was much warmer than today. This thesis reveals that vegetation affected the early Eocene climate differently than the pre-industrial climate. Using the Max Planck Institute for Meteorology Earth System Model, the same two simulations are performed for the early Eocene climate and the pre-industrial climate. All continents are either covered with a dense forest or with bare soil. The assumed soil albedo is similar to vegetation albedo. The comparison of the forest world with the desert world provides the radiative forcing by forest and the strength of the resulting climate feedbacks. In both climates, forest induces a negative radiative forcing of a similar strength by increasing the cloud cover. The resulting cooling, however, differs for both climates because climate feedbacks differ. In the pre-industrial climate, the lapse-rate/water-vapour feedback intensifies the cooling by forest on a global scale. The ice-albedo feedback amplifies the cooling in the high latitudes. In the early Eocene climate, the lapse-rate/water-vapour feedback is stronger than in the pre-industrial climate and the ice-albedo feedback is weak. Hence, forest cools the global early Eocene climate stronger but polar amplification less pronounced. The same study was performed with soils that have a much higher albedo than vegetation. In this case, the radiative forcing by forest is positive because forest reduces surface albedo. Like for the dark soil case, the radiative forcing is of similar strength in both climates. The resulting warming, however, differs in both climates because climate feedbacks are specific in each climate. Starting from the forest world and from the desert world, the simulations continue and the vegetation cover establishes together with climate. For the two initial vegetation covers, two different vegetation-atmosphere states evolve. In the pre-industrial climate, the positive feedback between vegetation and precipitation leads to a smaller Sahara desert when the simulation starts from the forest world instead of the desert world. In the early Eocene climate, the same feedback causes a smaller desert in Central Asia when the simulation starts from a forest world. Moreover, vegetation in Central Asia enhances the Asian Monsoon in the early Eocene climate. Hence, two global circulation patterns establish with a small Asian desert and with a large Asian desert. With two global circulation patterns, two globally different states of the early Eocene climate coexist. The results imply that vegetation affects the early Eocene climate differently than the pre-industrial climate because the atmospheric state, the vegetation cover, and the distribution of continents are specific for both climates. Besides for the early Eocene climate, this finding is likely valid for other past and future climates. Hence, the influence of vegetation on climate and the stability of the vegetation-atmosphere system are presumably unique in each geological period.
Investigating the Effect of Ocean Waves on GNSS-R Microwave Remote Sensing Measurements

Global Navigation Satellite System-Reflectometry (GNSS-R) is an innovative technique for ocean remote sensing. It exploits signals of opportunity from navigation constellations, to look primarily at the ocean surface roughness. This dissertation investigates the capabilities of GNSS-Reflectometry to convey information about sea state, and the response of GPS reflected signals to different wind and wave conditions. This is done through the use of real GPS-R data, as well as through simulations of the scattering of GPS signals from realistic ocean surfaces. A retrieval of ocean roughness parameters is carried out on four GNSS-R datasets, collected onboard the UK-DMC Satellite. Measured Delay-Doppler Maps (DDMs) from GPS-R data are least-square fitted to DDMs simulated using a theoretical (Zavorotny-Voronovich, or Z-V) model. The retrieved parameters are compared and validated against measurements from co-located NDBC buoys, and theoretical calculations, and a reasonable agreement is observed. A GPS scattering simulator is then presented, that uses explicit 3D ocean surface representations, and an innovative facet-based polarimetric scattering model, called the Facet Approach (FA). The results of the GPS scattering simulator are first analysed in the spatial domain, as 2D maps of normalized radar cross section and polarization ratio. These maps exhibit clear features related to the explicit waves of the underlying sea surface. A detailed analysis of noise-free idealized DDMs of both scattered GPS power and polarization ratio is then carried out for a variety of different ocean surfaces, both linear and non-linear. This analysis stresses in particular the importance of wave directionality as a crucial parameter that influences the DDM sensitivity to sea surface roughness ii and wave direction, and the polarization effects on the scattered signal. It is revealed that polarization is another important parameter, as it can convey information on wave direction and directionality, and potentially be used to identify nonlinearities on the sea surface. Finally, an investigation of subsets of noise-free idealized DDMs, computed at a high DD resolution, is presented, and its potentials as a tool for detecting the explicit waves on the sea surface are highlighted. The research and analyses of this PhD dissertation represent novel contributions to the field of GPR-Reflectometry. In particular, the analysis of satellite GPS-R data is the first one that makes use of the whole DDM, and of data collected onboard a satellite. The results from the GPS scattering simulator provide a comprehensive description of how and to what extent different parameters of the ocean surface, linked to wind and waves, influence the scattering of GPS signals. Furthermore, they identify polarization as a new crucial parameter for future GNSS-R missions, since it provides additional information about sea-state, and might be used as a potential indicator of sea surface nonlinearities.
Geographical variability of spruce bark beetle development under climate change in the Czech Republic.

Climate change is expected to influence the distribution and population dynamics of many insect pests, with potential severe impacts on forests. Spruce bark beetle Ips typographus (L.) (Col.: Curculionidae, Scolytinae) is the most important forest insect pest in Europe whose development is strictly regulated by air temperature. Therefore, climate change is anticipated to induce changes in the pest's distribution and development. We used the PHENIPS model to evaluate climate change impacts on the distribution and voltinism of spruce bark beetle in the Czech Repub - lic. Two future time periods - 2025-2050 (near future) and 2075-2100 (distant future) - are addressed. The period 1961-1990 is used as the reference. We found that while a two-generation regime dominated in the Czech Republic in the reference period, significant three-generation regime regions are projected to appear in the near future. In the distant future, the three-generation regime can be expected to occur over all existing coniferous stands in the Czech Republic. The analysis of altitudinal shift of n-generation regime regions indicates noticeable expansion of Ips typogra- phus development to higher elevations, leading for example to disappearance of one-generation regime regions in the distant future. Uncertainties and limitations of the presented findings are discussed as well.