bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Women and music technology: pioneers, precedents and issues in the United States
Authors: Hinkle-Turner Elizabeth
Published: January 2004

The origins of women's pioneering contributions to the repertoire and history of electroacoustic music can often be
linked to the growth of academic and commercial electronic and computer music studios in North America. A signific
ant number of early female composers in the medium received their initial training and experience in the United States
and their accomplishments begin in the earliest decades of the twentieth century. Women's achievements in the
educational and entertainment sectors have laid the foundation for subsequent generations who have influenced the
aesthetic and technical path of electroacoustic music.

Excerpted from several chapters of the author's historical series on women composers and music technology, the article outlines the contributions of several of the earliest women in the United States to the utilisation of music technology in creative work. Also discussed are research precedents in this area and issues regarding women and music technology in the United States today. With the creation of her book series outlining the achievements of women working with music technology, the author hopes to offer a valuable contribution to research on the history of electroacoustic music in general and women's representation in the genre in particular.
Daphne Oram: innovator, writer and composer
Authors: Hutton Jo
Published: January 2004

The main focus of this article is the work of Daphne Oram, composer of electronic music, who founded the BBC Radiophonic Workshop in 1958 and went on to run her own independent studio from where she composed several significant pieces of electronic music, designed and built a new audio recording machine, and lectured and wrote extensively on electronic and concrète music. The paper will endeavour to show that Ms Oram is deserving of recognition as an innovative composer of electronic and concrète music, as well as possessing interesting and valuable insight into the practice and theory of this medium. It will critically examine her work, and methods for achieving completed pieces, and compare and contrast her compositional work and the thinking behind it, to the work of other significant composers of the time.
Project Lovelace: unprecedented opportunities for music education
Authors: Simoni Mary
Published: January 2004

Project Lovelace is a school-based programme for students aged twelve to eighteen years interested in learning about making music by using technology. The programme is designed to encourage equal and equitable participation by male and female students through instruction in technology-enhanced music performance, improvisation, composition, analysis and notation. Project Lovelace is named in honour of the contributions of the female mathematician Ada Augusta, Countess of Lovelace, who in 1842 predicted that computers could be used for musical composition (Roads 1996).

The goals of Project Lovelace are to develop collaborative-based methods for gender-balanced school music technology programmes, amass a gender-balanced repertoire suitable for school music technology programmes, nurture creativity and analytical skills in music technology, and conduct a longitudinal study that documents the changing attitudes and perceived competencies of participating students and teachers.

The motivation to initiate Project Lovelace was the timely convergence of two vexing issues perennially facing music technology programmes in higher education, specifically at the University of Michigan: the proportionally small number of female applicants to university music technology programmes and the need to continually upgrade or replace laboratory equipment. Why not allocate second-generation university laboratory equipment to the schools with the intent of building school-based music technology curricula that lead to a gender-balanced university applicant pool?
Wounds like flowers opening: a discussion of Hysteria for trombone
and four-channel tape
Authors: Cox Cindy
Published: January 2004

In this paper I discuss Hysteria, a work for trombone and four-channel tape. Abbie Conant, an internationally reco
gnised trombonist, commissioned and performed Hysteria as part of her ‘Wired Goddess’ project. I chose five lines of
poetry from John Campion's Tongue Stones: ‘matter/mater/meter/muthos’, ‘bowl of regeneration/quickener of wombs’, ‘follow the mysteries of your feet’, ‘Let dark ages be crucibles’ and ‘wounds like flowers opening’. With this text I created an implex of sonic images relating the body, fertility, menses and violence. The first line is particularly important and shapes the first two-thirds of the piece. The musical material complements the text and uses periodicity to suggest the body's heartbeat and breath. The heartbeat serves as a cantus firmus, occurring every five seconds, and pedal tones form the primary material for the trombone part and connect to the idea of breath. The punctuating gunshots occurring in the first half imply violence, and the dark red lighting suggests blood. The tape and trombone intertwine in a sonic world evoking the womb and regeneration. The four-channel tape heightens the sense of immersion that connected to the piece's resonance and dream-like atmosphere. The web of these associations constitutes an artistic reflection on the sensibility and experience of the feminine in a patriarchal society.
In and out of the sound studio
Authors: McCartney Andra
Published: January 2004

This article reports on the first phase of a four-year, multi-university
Canadian research project called ‘In and Out of the Studio’.
The intention of this project is to study the experiences and working practices
of women sound producers in Canada, and to produce a multimedia computer installation and set of articles about their ideas, approaches and philosophies. We are studying gender issues that affect the work of these women in areas as diverse as film sound recording and post-production, sound engineering, radio art, performance art, experimental music, audio documentary production, and web sound. This is a wide range of disciplines, with their associated professional formations. What links the experiences of these diverse cultural workers is their focus on organising sound, and their gender. The first phase of the research focuses on formations: the following phase will concentrate on working practices through a discussion and analysis of specific recent works produced by the participants. The second part of this article explores the working processes of Hildegard Westerkamp in her composition of Gently Penetrating Beneath the Sounding Surfaces of Another Place (1997), through an interview with Westerkamp conducted in 1997. This interview will be used as a model for the in-depth studio interviews in the present study.
Homoeroticism and electroacoustic music: absence and personal voice
Authors: Truax Barry
Published: January 2004

The absence of gay themes and homoeroticism in electroacoustic music is discussed within the context of issues of gender and music that have been raised in the last decade. The author's emerging body of work that deals with these issues suggests possible uses of voice, text, video and music theatre within an electroacoustic language to portray sexuality and desire.
The Effect of Retest Practice on the Speed-Ability Relationship
Authors: Rockstroh Sybille , Schweizer Karl
Published: January 2004

Effects of four retest-practice sessions separated by 2 h intervals on the relationship between general intelligence and four reaction time tasks (two memory tests: Sternberg's memory scanning, Posner's letter comparison; and two attention tests: continuous attention, attention switching) were examined in a sample of 83 male participants. Reaction times on all tasks were shortened significantly. The effects were most pronounced with respect to the Posner paradigm and smallest with respect to the Sternberg paradigm. The relationship to general intelligence changed after practice for two reaction time tasks. It increased to significance for continuous attention and decreased for the Posner paradigm. These results indicate that the relationship between psychometric intelligence and elementary cognitive tasks depends on the ability of skill acquisition. In the search for the cognitive roots of intelligence the concept of learning seems to be of importance.
Working Memory in Writing: Empirical Evidence From the Dual-Task Technique
Authors: Olive Thierry
Published: January 2004

The dual-task paradigm recently played a major role in understanding the role of working memory in writing. By reviewing recent findings in this field of research, this article highlights how the use of the dual-task technique allowed studying the processing and short-term storage functions of working memory involved in writing. With respect to processing functions of working memory (namely, attentional and executive functions), studies investigated resource allocation, step-by-step management, and parallel coordination of the writing processes. With respect to short-term storage in working memory, experiments mainly attempted to test Kellogg's (1996) proposals on the relationship between the writing processes and the slave systems of working memory. The dual-task technique proved fruitful in understanding the relationship between writing and working memory because researchers exploited its major advantage, namely, its flexibility.
Attachment and Field Dependence: Individual Differences in Information Processing
Authors: Vermigli Patrizia , Toni Alessandro
Published: January 2004

The present research analyzes the relationship between attachment styles at an adult age and field dependence in order to identify possible individual differences in information processing. The “Experience in Close Relationships” test of Brennan et al. was administered to a sample of 380 individuals (160 males, 220 females), while a subsample of 122 subjects was given the Embedded Figure Test to measure field dependence. Confirming the starting hypothesis, the results have shown that individuals with different attachment styles have a different way of perceiving the figure against the background. Ambivalent and avoidant individuals lie at the two extremes of the same dimension while secure individuals occupy the central part. Significant differences also emerged between males and females.
Pickup ions at Dione and Enceladus: Cassini Plasma Spectrometer simulations
Authors: Sittler Ed C. , Johnson R. E. , Jurac S. , Richardson J. D. , McGrath M. , Crary F. , Young D. T. , Nordholt J. E.
Published: January 2004

Voyager images of the icy satellites of Saturn, Dione and Enceladus, suggest that they may have been geologically active and are not only composed of ice. Recent observations by the Hubble Space Telescope have shown the presence of ozone at both Dione and Rhea, which also implies the presence of molecular oxygen at these bodies. Observations of Ariel, Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto indicate the presence of CO2, so its presence on the Saturnian satellites is also expected. The Cassini Plasma Spectrometer (CAPS) will provide the capability to determine the global composition of these bodies by measuring the pickup ions produced by the ionization of their sputter‐produced atmospheres. We will present a model of these atmospheres and associated pickup ions and demonstrate CAPS ability to distinguish the freshly produced picked up ions from the ambient plasma. Such ions are expected to form a ring distribution that will have a uniquely different energy‐angle dependence than the ambient plasma ions. In the case of Dione we expect the potential for a moderate strength interaction for which both Voyager 1 and Pioneer 11 spacecraft measured ion cyclotron waves centered on the Dione L shell and near the equatorial plane. SKR radio emissions also displayed emissions occurring at the orbital period of Dione which could indicate some intrinsic activity due to Dione. So again, something interesting may be going on at Dione. Since Enceladus, or material in orbit near Enceladus, may be the source of the E‐ring, some surprises may be encountered during its close encounter with the Cassini spacecraft. In the case of Dione we will show that a wake pass at 500 km altitude is more than an order of magnitude better than an upstream pass at 500 km altitude. Pickup ion detection for minor ion species such as NH3+ is possible for 500 km altitude wake pass but not for ≈500 km altitude upstream pass at closest approach. For navigation reasons a 100 km pass is not allowed. Therefore it is essential to have a wake pass to maximize the science return for a targeted flyby with Dione. The CAPS observations when combined with magnetometer, plasma wave and energetic particle observations will allow us to estimate the source of ions into Saturn's magnetosphere due to these two bodies and to characterize the nature of the interaction with Saturn's magnetosphere.
Microfracturing, damage, and failure of brittle granites
Authors: Katz Oded , Reches Ze'ev
Published: January 2004

The evolution of stress‐induced damage and the eventual brittle failure are experimentally analyzed for Mount Scott granite of Oklahoma. We quantify the damage intensity in two methods and directly compare model predictions and actual damage. The 14 samples of the medium‐grain‐size granite were loaded triaxially at dry conditions, room temperature, and under 41 MPa confining pressure. Microfractures were mapped in five samples, and the majority of them (80%) belong to two groups: tensile microfractures trending subparallel to the loading axis and shear microfractures trending 11°–40° off the loading axis. The tensile microfractures dominate the low‐stress stage, and they remain intragranular with a stress increase. The relative density of shear microfractures increases with increasing stresses, and they formed elongated, intergranular zones of coalescing microfractures. We compared two independent values of damage intensity: (1) the macroscopic, experimentally measured reduction of the deformation modulus and (2) the expected reduction of this modulus calculated with several damage models for the density of the mapped microfractures. Our fracture density data best fit the model of noninteracting cracks of Kachanov [1992].
Vertical mixing schemes in the coastal ocean: Comparison of the level 2.5 Mellor‐Yamada scheme with an enhanced version of the K profile parameterization
Authors: Durski Scott M. , Glenn Scott M. , Haidvogel Dale B.
Published: January 2004

The performance of two vertical mixing parameterizations in idealized continental shelf settings is analyzed to assess in what aspects and under what conditions they differ. The level 2.5 Mellor‐Yamada turbulence closure (M‐Y) is compared with an enhanced version of the K profile parameterization (KPP), which has been appended to include a representation of the bottom boundary layer. The two schemes are compared in wind‐driven one‐ and two‐dimensional shallow ocean settings to examine differences in (1) the surface boundary layer response, (2) the response when surface and bottom boundary layers are in close proximity, and (3) the response when the horizontal advective effects of a coastal upwelling circulation compete with the vertical mixing processes. The surface boundary layer experiments reveal that M‐Y mixes deeper and entrains more than KPP when the pycnocline beneath the wind‐mixed layer is highly stratified and mixes less when it is weaker. This is related to the role of vertical diffusion of turbulent kinetic energy in M‐Y and the nature of the interior shear mixing parameterization of KPP. In shallow water when surface and bottom boundary layers impinge on each other, the stronger mixing at the interface produced by KPP can lead to much more rapid disintegration of the pycnocline. The two‐dimensional upwelling circulation experiments show that the two schemes can produce quite similar or significantly different solutions in the nearshore region dependent on the initial stratification. The differences relate to the stronger suppression of turbulence by M‐Y under the restratifying influence of horizontal advection of denser water in the bottom boundary layer.
Generation of extremely low frequency radiation by ionospheric electrojet modulation using powerful high‐frequency heating waves
Authors: Kuo S. P. , Lee S. H.
Published: January 2004

Using amplitude‐modulated high‐frequency (HF) heating waves for electron heating, the conductivity of plasma and thus the embedded electrojet currents in high‐latitude ionosphere can be modulated accordingly to set up the ionospheric antenna current for extremely low frequency (ELF) wave generation. Electron heating is hampered by inelastic collisions of electrons with neutral particles (mainly due to vibration excitation of N2), which cause the induced modulation current to remain at a low level. However, this inelastic collision loss rate drops rapidly to a low value in the energy regime from 3.5 to 6 eV. Thus, as the heating power exceeds a critical level, electron heating suddenly reaches an unexpected high level, resulting to a near step increase (of about 5 to 8 dB depending on the modulation waveform and frequency) in the spectral intensity of ELF radiation. The dependency of this critical HF heating‐wave power on the modulation frequency is determined for three heating wave modulation forms: (1) rectangular wave, (2) sine wave, and (3) half‐wave rectified wave.
High Arctic observations of mesospheric inversion layers
Authors: Duck Thomas J. , Greene Michael D.
Published: January 2004

Rayleigh lidar measurements of middle atmospheric temperatures obtained in the High Arctic at Eureka (80°N, 86°W) are examined for evidence of mesospheric inversion layers with overlying nearly‐adiabatic lapse rates. Inversion layers are identified in 5.4 ± 0.5% of the measurements, a rate considerably lower than is observed at midlatitudes. The altitude distribution for the Arctic inversions is similar to that found at midlatitudes. No phase progression or relationship with stratospheric gravity wave activity was found. The observations have important consequences for theories of the mesospheric inversion layer.
Does the recent freshening trend in the North Atlantic indicate a weakening thermohaline circulation?
Authors: Wu Peili , Wood Richard , Stott Peter
Published: January 2004

It is widely expected that the thermohaline circulation of the ocean will slow down as greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere increases. This is partly due to an intensified hydrological cycle in a warmer climate. Is the recent observed freshening trend in the North Atlantic an indication of what has been expected? We report a similar freshening trend reproduced in an ensemble of four coupled model simulations with all major historical external (natural and anthropogenic) forcings. The modelled freshening trend originates from the Arctic Ocean where sea ice decrease and river runoffs increase with the same trend. Instead of weakening, we find an upward trend in the North Atlantic meridional overturning circulation.
A microscopic and nanoscopic view of storm‐time chorus on 31 March 2001
Authors: Santolík O. , Gurnett D. A. , Pickett J. S. , Parrot M. , Cornilleau‐Wehrlin N.
Published: January 2004

We investigate intense whistler‐mode chorus emissions which occurred during the geomagnetic storm on 31 March 2001. We use multipoint measurements obtained by the Cluster spacecraft in the premidnight equatorial region outside the plasmasphere at a radial distance of 4 Earth radii (L = 4.0 − 4.2). Observed spatio‐temporal variations of the direction of the Poynting flux manifest a consistent pattern: the central position of the chorus source fluctuates at time scales of minutes within 1000–2000 km of the geomagnetic equator. We demonstrate that estimates of the electromagnetic planarity can be used to characterize the extent of the source, obtaining a range of 3000–5000 km. Discrete wave packets of chorus are observed to rise in frequency between 0.13 and 0.5 of the local electron cyclotron frequency, at a rate up to 20 kHz/s, having the maximum peak amplitudes of ∼20 mV/m. We observe a fine structure of subpackets with large amplitudes embedded in the interior of the wave packets. This fine structure has a typical delay of a few milliseconds between the two neighboring maxima of the wave amplitude. Longer delays occur with a decreasing probability density.
Statistics of Antarctic mesospheric echoes observed with the SuperDARN Syowa Radar
Authors: Hosokawa K. , Ogawa T. , Yukimatu A. S. , Sato N. , Iyemori T.
Published: January 2004

An oblique‐sounding coherent HF radar of the SuperDARN (Super Dual Auroral Radar Network) at about 11 MHz sometimes receives peculiar backscatter returns, which are suspected as Polar Mesosphere Summer Echoes (PMSE), from ranges very close to the radar site. To disclose their statistical features, we looked for such echoes that were observed, under quiet geomagnetic conditions, during 46 months from 1997 until 2000 with the SuperDARN radar at Syowa Station, Antarctica (69.0°S, 38.6°E). With some strict criteria for echo selection, we identified 22 events in summer months and 2 events in August and September. Their distinct seasonal variation evidences that these near range echoes in summer months are indeed the Antarctic PMSE. Origin of the two spring echoes is not clear at the moment. The occurrence probability of the summer echoes seems to increase with year. We, however, need more data accumulation to confirm this trend. These results indicate that the SuperDARN radars can be used to routinely monitor the activity of PMSE in a wide area of the polar mesosphere in both hemispheres.
Depth of faulting on Mercury: Implications for heat flux and crustal and effective elastic thickness
Authors: Nimmo F. , Watters T. R.
Published: January 2004

Topographic profiles across a lobate fault scarp on Mercury have been used to constrain the depth of faulting to 30–40 km. Here we use this depth to place constraints on the crustal thickness and heat flow into the base of the crust. With no crustal heat production, the mantle heat flux on Mercury at the time of scarp formation was 30–50 mWm−2. However, higher crustal heat production rates allow significantly lower mantle heat fluxes. In all cases the mantle heat flux exceeds the likely radiogenic heat flux 4 Gyr ago; it is likely that secular cooling accounted for the remainder. Irrespective of crustal heat generation, a crustal thickness of ≤140 km is required to satisfy both the faulting observations and the requirement that the base of the crust does not melt. The effective elastic thickness of the lithosphere at the time of faulting is predicted to be 25–30 km.
Evidence of the control of summer atmospheric transport of African dust over the Atlantic by Sahel sources from TOMS satellites (1979–2000)
Authors: Moulin C. , Chiapello I.
Published: January 2004

We used 18 years (1979–1992 and 1997–2000) of aerosol observations from TOMS satellites to monitor the inter‐annual variability of summertime atmospheric dust optical thickness over both Atlantic and Africa. A comparison of TOMS dust optical thicknesses with ground‐based Sun‐photometer measurements shows that our long‐term data set is consistent in time and space and is thus suitable for studying the interannual and decadal variability of African dust transport. Our results show that dust emissions in North western Sahel are so variable from one year to the other that they control most of the variability of summer dust transport to the tropical Atlantic. Our satellite data also demonstrate that there is a large scale correlation between Atlantic dust export and Sahel drought during the previous year, which suggests that dust emissions in this semi‐arid region are likely controlled by the position of the vegetated southern boundary of the Sahara.
Martian floods at Cerberus Fossae can be produced by groundwater discharge
Authors: Manga Michael
Published: January 2004

Young flood channels emanate from Cerberus Fossae, Mars. In order to determine whether subsurface aquifers can discharge water sufficiently fast to explain these flood features, I develop a model that couples groundwater flow in a sub‐cryosphere aquifer with flow through a fissure that penetrates from the surface to the aquifer. The model is constrained by estimates of peak discharge, and the distance water flowed uphill from the fissure. Aquifer permeabilities similar to those of young basalt aquifers on the Earth, ∼10−9 m2, can produce inferred discharges of 106 m3/s [Burr et al., 2002a] but probably require multiple floods to create the channels.
Albedo reduction by absorbing aerosols over China
Authors: Krüger Olaf , Graßl Hartmut
Published: January 2004

Long‐term observations with satellites show that absorbing aerosols have reduced the local planetary albedo (LPA) over China during the recent decade. While the reduction of air pollution was leading to an LPA decrease in Europe, an increase of pollution in China also lowered the LPA. The strong absorption in clouds is accompanied by a cloud lifetime effect over the Red Basin and surrounding areas in southern China.
Decay of hydrothermal output following the 1998 seafloor eruption at Axial Volcano: Observations and models
Authors: Baker Edward T. , Lowell Robert P. , Resing Joseph A. , Feely Richard A. , Embley Robert W. , Massoth Gary J. , Walker Sharon L.
Published: January 2004

Observations of the decay of heat and particle discharge following the reinvigoration of a hydrothermal field by a dike intrusion and eruption can provide insights about subsurface hydrothermal circulation. In January 1998, a lava eruption at the summit of Axial Volcano, Juan de Fuca Ridge, created numerous new vents along a 5‐km length of the caldera boundary. Five cruises over the next 3.5 years found the inventory of hydrothermal heat and particles (determined by optical backscattering) in the overlying plume decaying as time t−0.9. These results are consistent with the 1993 CoAxial eruption, where the heat flux decayed as ∼t−1.2 and ∼t−0.7 at the Flow and Floc sites, respectively. All three eruption sites decayed significantly faster than t−0.5, the rate attributable to cooling only by simple conduction through the impermeable layer separating magma from hydrothermal circulation. We present a more realistic model of hydrothermal cooling that adds conductive heat loss by ascending fluid to the surrounding rock walls, increasing the theoretical loss rate to t−0.75. We suggest that variability in the observed decay rates are not sampling variations but reflect real differences in the local heat supply and cooling processes. The decay rate was slowest, and matched our model result, where no seafloor eruption occurred and a long‐lasting heat source was likely present (Floc). The rate was fastest where a shallow source erupted a thick lava pavement (Flow). The Axial eruption, where a substantial magma chamber emplaced only a thin sheet flow, may be intermediate between these extremes.
Regional evaluation of an advanced very high resolution radiometer (AVHRR) two‐channel aerosol retrieval algorithm
Authors: Zhao Tom X.‐P. , Dubovik Oleg , Smirnov Alexander , Holben Brent N. , Sapper John , Pietras Christophe , Voss Kenneth J. , Frouin Robert
Published: January 2004

Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) aerosol optical thickness retrieval over the ocean is one of the two existing sources of long‐term global satellite aerosol measurements (Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer aerosol data set is the other). To make this 20‐year historical data more useful for climate studies, the quality of the data (or the performance of the retrieval algorithm) has to be systematically evaluated. In this paper, as a continuation of our previous global validation effort, we present regional validation results for an AVHRR independent two‐channel aerosol retrieval algorithm by comparing the retrievals with observations from the Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET). The bias and the random errors of the retrieval algorithm applied to NOAA‐14/AVHRR observations were determined and documented for key aerosol types (including biomass‐burning, urban/industrial, desert dust, and marine). As a by‐product of the validation, effective refractive indexes of the key aerosol types were also statistically determined through sensitivity analysis. The global and regional validations indicate that the new independent two‐channel algorithm (with a globally unified aerosol model) performs well in the sense of the global mean. However, improvements are necessary to make the retrieval sensitive to aerosol types and to capture aerosol regional variations. The results will facilitate the utilization of long‐term AVHRR aerosol products in climate studies and will provide guidance for improving aerosol retrievals from future NOAA satellite instruments.
Luminescence dating of the Wabar meteorite craters, Saudi Arabia
Authors: Prescott J. R. , Robertson G. B. , Shoemaker C. , Shoemaker E. M. , Wynn J.
Published: January 2004

Luminescence dating has been used to find the age of meteorite impact craters at Wabar (Al Hadida) in Saudi Arabia. The luminescence characteristics of the shocked material were determined. Using a variety of luminescence dating techniques applied to impactite formed by the meteorite, and to the underlying sand, the age is found to be 290 ± 38 years. A comparison is made with two possible historically recorded ages. An impact as young as this has implications for the assessment of hazards from the impact on Earth of small meteorites.
The Evolving Vulnerability of Electric Power Grids
Authors: Kappenman John G.
Published: January 2004

A perspective is provided on design decisions in the electric power grid infrastructure and the formative role this has had in greatly increasing the vulnerability of this critical infrastructure to space weather disturbances.
Combined effect of heterogeneity, anisotropy and saturation on steady state flow and transport: Structure recognition and numerical simulation
Authors: Ursino N. , Gimmi T.
Published: January 2004

Natural soil profiles may be interpreted as an arrangement of parts which are characterized by properties like hydraulic conductivity and water retention function. These parts form a complicated structure. Characterizing the soil structure is fundamental in subsurface hydrology because it has a crucial influence on flow and transport and defines the patterns of many ecological processes. We applied an image analysis method for recognition and classification of visual soil attributes in order to model flow and transport through a man‐made soil profile. Modeled and measured saturation‐dependent effective parameters were compared. We found that characterizing and describing conductivity patterns in soils with sharp conductivity contrasts is feasible. Differently, solving flow and transport on the basis of these conductivity maps is difficult and, in general, requires special care for representation of small‐scale processes.
Mapping near‐surface soil moisture with RADARSAT‐1 synthetic aperture radar data
Authors: Leconte Robert , Brissette François , Galarneau Martine , Rousselle Jean
Published: January 2004

An approach for mapping near‐surface soil moisture at the watershed scale from RADARSAT‐1 synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data was developed and tested on seven RADARSAT‐1 SAR images acquired over the northern portion of the Châteauguay River Basin in southwestern Quebec, Canada, dominated by agricultural and herbaceous fields. A soil surface roughness map was first retrieved from a SAR image by inverting an empirical backscatter model with known (or assumed) soil moisture. The resulting map was then used with the backscatter model to recover near‐surface soil moisture for the remaining SAR images. Field campaigns were conducted concurrent to SAR image acquisitions to measure soil moisture and surface roughness in 24 fields. Good agreement was observed between watershed‐scale soil moisture values and measurements averaged for all sampled fields, with a correlation coefficient of 0.96 and an RMS error of 2.2%. However, considerable scatter was found between observed and SAR‐derived soil moisture estimates at the field scale. Although the generated maps reveal reasonable small‐scale soil moisture variability, no definitive conclusions could be drawn as to whether or not the proposed approach can quantify soil moisture at the field or within field scale due to insufficient ground measurements. Furrows and herbaceous and crop vegetation, which are known to affect the radar signal, appeared to have little influence on the ability to retrieve soil moisture at the watershed scale for the images analyzed in this study.
Diffusion as the main process for mass transport in very low water content argillites: 1. Chloride as a natural tracer for mass transport—Diffusion coefficient and concentration measurements in interstitial water
Authors: Patriarche Delphine , Michelot Jean‐Luc , Ledoux Emmanuel , Savoye Sébastien
Published: January 2004

Argillites are one of the rock types studied by French authorities for their confining properties for the isolation of radioactive wastes. One of the main objectives of such study is the better understanding of water transport through rocks with very low water content and hydraulic conductivity, using modeling of tracer profiles. This article presents the protocol developed and applied for acquiring data on chloride in interstitial water of the Toarcian argillites in Tournemire (southern France). This protocol is based on laboratory experiments involving diffusion process and on modeling. Experimental data obtained during transient and steady parts of diffusion allow for the assessment of the diffusion coefficient and initial concentration in pore water, respectively. Profiles for both have been acquired along the geological sequence; they are used in part 2 of this article for proposing a hydrogeological model where diffusion appears to be the main process for mass transport through the argillites and for comparing deuterium and chloride transport.
Acute columnaris infection in channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus (Rafinesque): efficacy of practical treatments for warmwater aquaculture ponds
Authors: Thomas‐Jinu S , Goodwin A E
Published: January 2004

Columnaris disease was induced in channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus (Rafinesque), by bath exposure to four highly virulent isolates of Flavobacterium columnare. In untreated controls, mortality began 20 h after exposure and reached 100% by 48 h. Mortality in channel catfish given antibiotic treatments with oxytetracycline or a combination of sulphadimethoxine and ormetoprim in feed prior to bacterial challenge was zero with all four strains of F. columnare. Diquat® (Zeneca Agricultural Products, Wilmington, DE, USA) was the most effective bath treatment; mortality with all four strains was zero. With potassium permanganate, chloramine‐T, hydrogen peroxide and copper sulphate, bath treatment efficacy varied significantly among strains (P = 0.0346) and among treatments (P = 0.0033). Bath treatments with chloramine‐T and potassium permanganate significantly reduced (P < 0.05) mortality from 100 to 75 and 69%, respectively, but copper sulphate and hydrogen peroxide treatments were not effective. Based on our results, oral antibiotics prevented columnaris disease but, of the bath treatments, only Diquat® produced a dramatic reduction in the mortality of acutely infected fish. Diquat® is labelled for aquatic use as an herbicide in the USA but in large ponds it is prohibitively expensive.
Morphological and genetic characteristics of Flavobacterium columnare isolates: correlations with virulence in fish
Authors: Thomas‐Jinu S , Goodwin A E
Published: January 2004

Variability in pathogenicity of Flavobacterium columnare makes disease treatment difficult because there is currently no way to easily recognize those strains that warrant aggressive treatments. In order to identify suitable virulence markers, 17 isolates of F. columnare were cultured from six different fish species. The DNA from all isolates was analysed using random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD). Bootstrap analysis of the RAPD data produced a tree with three major groups supported by bootstrap scores of 80–100%. Virulence of the isolates was determined by bath exposure of channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus (Rafinesque), and golden shiners, Notemigonus crysoleucas (Mitchill), to broth cultures of F. columnare. In channel catfish, 13 of 17 isolates produced 100% mortality within 48 h post‐exposure. All isolates of cyprinid fish origin clustered in a single RAPD group. At least two of the four isolates that were not virulent in channel catfish were of cyprinid fish origin. There was a wide variation in cell morphology between isolates with lengths of cells or cell chains ranging from 3 to 11 μm, even under identical culture conditions. Most of the shorter or single cell isolates fell into a single RAPD group. No clear association was identified between virulence and any other characteristic, including RAPD group.
A synthetic antibacterial peptide from Mytilus galloprovincialis reduces mortality due to white spot syndrome virus in palaemonid shrimp
Authors: Dupuy J‐W , Bonami J‐R , Roch Ph
Published: January 2004

White spot syndrome virus (WSSV) isolated from Penaeus monodon was found to be highly infective for the western Mediterranean shrimp, Palaemon sp. Using polymerase chain reaction (PCR), it was demonstrated that such shrimp are not naturally carriers of WSSV. Following challenge with virus, mortality reached 100% 3.5–4 days after injection at 22 °C. Incubation of infected shrimp at 10 °C totally suppressed the mortality which rapidly developed when shrimp were returned to 18 or 22 °C. Preincubation of WSSV with mature synthetic mytilin significantly reduced shrimp mortality with a 50% efficient dose of about 5 μm. Survival of shrimp was not due to the development of an active mechanism of defence as re‐injection of WSSV produced the same mortality pattern. Mortality was probably due to WSSV replication as dot blot failed to detect viral DNA in the injection sample but was positive 1 day post‐injection. Protection by mytilin was by interaction at the virus level, preventing replication as no WSSV nucleic acid was detected by PCR even after 7 days in shrimp injected with WSSV preincubated with 10 or 50 μm mytilin.
Ecdysone agonist‐inducible expression of a coat protein gene from tobacco mosaic virus confers viral resistance in transgenic Arabidopsis
Authors: Koo Ja Choon , Asurmendi Sebastian , Bick Jennifer , Woodford‐Thomas Terry , Beachy Roger N.
Published: January 2004

Constitutive expression of a gene encoding tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) coat protein (CP) in transgenic plants confers resistance to infection by TMV and related tobamoviruses. Here, we examined resistance to TMV by temporal and quantitative control of TMV Cg CP (CgCP) gene expression using a simple, methoxyfenozide‐inducible system in Arabidopsis plants. By soil drenching with a commercial ecdysone agonist (Intrepid‐2F/methoxyfenozide), most transgenic lines were induced from undetectable levels of gene expression to protein levels from 0.05 to 0.8% (w/w) of CgCP. This corresponds to up to four times the amount of CP produced by the constitutive cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) double 35S promoter. CgCP transcripts were induced by 700‐fold, without changing the expression patterns of pathogenesis‐related (PR) genes. The high level of accumulation of CgCP was sufficient to produce large amounts of virus‐like particles that accumulate in large aggregates throughout the cells. In virus challenge assays, treatment with Intrepid‐2F prior to TMV infection resulted in high levels of viral resistance, while no treatment or treatment with the inducer following infection did not confer resistance. This report demonstrates chemically controlled disease resistance and confirms the utility of the ecdysone agonist‐inducible system under greenhouse conditions.
HvDRF1 is involved in abscisic acid‐mediated gene regulation in barley and produces two forms of AP2 transcriptional activators, interacting preferably with a CT‐rich element
Authors: Xue Gang‐Ping , Loveridge Carl W.
Published: January 2004

Apetala2/ethylene‐responsive factor (AP2/ERF) proteins are AP2 domain‐containing transcription factors and form the second largest transcription factor family in plants. Biological functions of many of these AP2 proteins are still unknown. Here, we report the characterisation of a novel member of the AP2/ERF superfamily, dehydration‐responsive factor 1 (HvDRF1) from barley, and its role in abscisic acid (ABA)‐mediated gene regulation. The expression of HvDRF1 was upregulated in barley leaves and roots under drought, salt or ABA treatment, and in embryos during seed maturation. Three forms of HvDRF1 transcripts were produced through alternative splicing, two of which encoded AP2 proteins. This alternative splicing pattern was also observed in a wheat homologue gene, TaDRF1. Both of HvDRF1 AP2 proteins acted as transcriptional activators, capable of activating the promoter activity of an ABA‐inducible HVA1s in barley. In vitro DNA‐binding analysis using synthetic oligonucleotides revealed that HvDRF1 AP2 protein bound preferably to a CT‐rich element (T(T/A)ACCGCCTT). HvDRF1 activity on the activation of HVA1s expression in barley leaves was markedly enhanced by HvABI5 (a bZIP transcription factor), ABA or drought treatment. These results indicate that the HvDRF1 transcriptional activator co‐operates with other ABA‐responsive factors in the upregulation of stress gene expression through an ABA‐dependent pathway.
Arabidopsis ALF4 encodes a nuclear‐localized protein required for lateral root formation
Authors: DiDonato Raymond J. , Arbuckle Erin , Buker Shane , Sheets Jill , Tobar José , Totong Ronald , Grisafi Paula , Fink Gerald R. , Celenza John L.
Published: January 2004

Lateral root formation, the primary way plants increase their root mass, displays developmental plasticity in response to environmental changes. The aberrant lateral root formation (alf)4‐1 mutation blocks the initiation of lateral roots, thus greatly altering root system architecture. We have positionally cloned the ALF4 gene and have further characterized its phenotype. The encoded ALF4 protein is conserved among plants and has no similarities to proteins from other kingdoms. The gene is present in a single copy in Arabidopsis. Using translational reporters for ALF4 gene expression, we have determined that the ALF4 protein is nuclear localized and that the gene is expressed in most plant tissues; however, ALF4 expression and ALF4's subcellular location are not regulated by auxin. These findings taken together with further genetic and phenotypic characterization of the alf4‐1 mutant suggest that ALF4 functions independent from auxin signaling and instead functions in maintaining the pericycle in the mitotically competent state needed for lateral root formation. Our results provide genetic evidence that the pericycle shares properties with meristems and that this tissue plays a central role in creating the developmental plasticity needed for root system development.
Development of a luciferase reporter gene, luxCt, for Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast
Authors: Mayfield Stephen P. , Schultz Jason
Published: January 2004

Luciferase reporter genes have been successfully used in a variety of organisms to examine gene expression in living cells, but are yet to be successfully developed for use in chloroplast. Green fluorescent protein (gfp) has been used as a reporter of chloroplast gene expression, but because of high auto‐fluorescence, very high levels of GFP accumulation are required for visualization in vivo. We have developed a luciferase reporter for chloroplast by synthesizing the two‐subunit bacterial luciferase (lux)AB, as a single fusion protein in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii chloroplast codon bias. We expressed a chloroplast luciferase gene, luxCt, in C. reinhardtii chloroplasts under the control of the ATPase alpha subunit (atpA) or psbA promoter and 5′ untranslated regions (UTRs) and the rubisco large subunit (rbcL) 3′ UTR. We show that luxCt is a sensitive reporter of chloroplast gene expression, and that luciferase activity can be measured in vivo using a charge coupled device (CCD) camera or in vitro using a luminometer. We further demonstrate that luxCt protein accumulation, as measured by Western blot analysis, is proportional to luminescence, as determined both in vivo and in vitro, and that luxCt is capable of reporting changes in chloroplast gene expression during a dark to light shift. These data demonstrate the utility of the luxCt gene as a versatile and sensitive reporter of chloroplast gene expression in living cells.
Organelle inheritance in plant cell division: the actin cytoskeleton is required for unbiased inheritance of chloroplasts, mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum in dividing protoplasts
Authors: Sheahan Michael B. , Rose Ray J. , McCurdy David W.
Published: January 2004

Nuclear inheritance is highly ordered, ensuring stringent, unbiased partitioning of chromosomes before cell division. In plants, however, little is known about the analogous cellular processes that might ensure unbiased inheritance of non‐nuclear organelles, either in meristematic cell divisions or those induced during the acquisition of totipotency. We have investigated organelle redistribution and inheritance mechanisms during cell division in cultured tobacco mesophyll protoplasts. Quantitative analysis of organelle repositioning observed by autofluorescence of chloroplasts or green fluorescent protein (GFP), targeted to mitochondria or endoplasmic reticulum (ER), demonstrated that these organelles redistribute in an ordered manner before division. Treating protoplasts with cytoskeleton‐disrupting drugs showed that redistribution depended on actin filaments (AFs), but not on microtubules (MTs), and furthermore, that an intact actin cytoskeleton was required to achieve unbiased organelle inheritance. Labelling the actin cytoskeleton with a novel GFP‐fusion protein revealed a highly dynamic actin network, with local reorganisation of this network itself, appearing to contribute substantially to repositioning of chloroplasts and mitochondria. Our observations show that each organelle exploits a different strategy of redistribution to ensure unbiased partitioning. We conclude that inheritance of chloroplasts, mitochondria and ER in totipotent plant cells is an ordered process, requiring complex interactions with the actin cytoskeleton.
Papain protects papaya trees from herbivorous insects: role of cysteine proteases in latex
Authors: Konno Kotaro , Hirayama Chikara , Nakamura Masatoshi , Tateishi Ken , Tamura Yasumori , Hattori Makoto , Kohno Katsuyuki
Published: January 2004

Many plants contain latex that exudes when leaves are damaged, and a number of proteins and enzymes have been found in it. The roles of those latex proteins and enzymes are as yet poorly understood. We found that papain, a cysteine protease in latex of the Papaya tree (Carica papaya, Caricaceae), is a crucial factor in the defense of the papaya tree against lepidopteran larvae such as oligophagous Samia ricini (Saturniidae) and two notorious polyphagous pests, Mamestra brassicae (Noctuidae) and Spodoptera litura (Noctuidae). Leaves of a number of laticiferous plants, including papaya and a wild fig, Ficus virgata (Moraceae), showed strong toxicity and growth inhibition against lepidopteran larvae, though no apparent toxic factors from these species have been reported. When the latex was washed off, the leaves of these lactiferous plants lost toxicity. Latexes of both papaya and the wild fig were rich in cysteine‐protease activity. E‐64, a cysteine protease‐specific inhibitor, completely deprived the leaves of toxicity when painted on the surface of papaya and fig leaves. Cysteine proteases, such as papain, ficin, and bromelain, all showed toxicity. The results suggest that plant latex and the proteins in it, cysteine proteases in particular, provide plants with a general defense mechanism against herbivorous insects.