bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
An Observational Analysis of Agricultural Education Faculty During On-Site Supervisory Visits with Pre-service Teachers
Authors: Rubenstein Eric D. , Thorn Andrew C.
Published: January 2014

Historically, university supervisors have struggled balancing their role as a supervisor and evaluator of preservice teachers. A university supervisor’s role has transformed to include a greater focus on collab- oration between themself and the preservice teacher. This observational case study utilized the Supervi- sory Options for Instructional Leaders (SOIL) model to identify and classify the level of supervision that was utilized during the on-site visits of four faculty members who each served as university supervisors of preservice teachers at the University of Florida. Results indicated that the university supervisors utilized structured supervision practices. University supervisors conducted supervisory visits that included both pre- and post-observation conferences, as well as an observation of the preservice teacher instructing in a classroom. In addition, university supervisors utilized questioning strategies to guide preservice teach- ers through reflective practices. The researchers recommend that planning meetings are held to review the supervision techniques used during supervisory visits, to achieve consistency.
Exploring the Technical Expression of Academic Knowledge: The Science-in-CTE Pilot Study
Authors: Pearson Donna , Young R. Brent , Richardson George B.
Published: January 2014

The Science-in-CTE pilot study tested a curriculum integration model that enhanced the science that oc- curs in CTE curricula. The study replicated the National Research Center for Career and Technical Ed- ucation’s (NRCCTE) Math-in-CTE experimental research design (Stone, Alfeld, & Pearson, 2008) with applied science in secondary agricultural education. The semester-length study was conducted in North Dakota with secondary agricultural educators who were randomly selected to participate in the experi- mental and control groups. The experimental treatment mirrored the Math-in-CTE model of extended professional development, partnering experimental CTE group teachers with science educators, and use of a 7-element pedagogic framework. Standardized measures of science achievement were administered to students to determine the impact of the treatment on their science knowledge and skills. The results of hierarchical linear modeling (HLM) analysis indicated that the intervention had a statistically significant positive impact on posttest science achievement for students in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quartiles on pretest science achievement. We interpreted the intervention’s effects as small for participants in the 2nd quartile and as moderate for those in the 3rd and 4th quartiles. Relative to the control group, the intervention ap- peared to have no impact on students in the 1st quartile on pretest science achievement.
The Impact of Learning Styles on Learning Outcomes at FFA Camp: What Campers Retain Over Time
Authors: Brown Nicholas R. , Terry Jr. Robert , Kelsey Kathleen D.
Published: January 2014

Twenty-four states host FFA summer camps to support adolescent maturation along with indoctrination into the culture and values of the FFA. Camps typically include a variety of activities designed to engage members in social activities and non-formal academic content. More than 1500 campers attend the Ok- lahoma FFA Alumni Leadership Camp annually and are taught leadership curriculum. Using a split-plot factorial repeated measures quasi-experimental design, we established learning styles of campers and the relationship between learning style and learning outcomes. Preferred learning style had no effect on the amount of information learned or retained by campers when comparing mean scores of pretests, post- tests, and delayed posttests. However, extroverts had more positive attitudes toward camp than intro- verts. Camp planners are advised to developmentally evaluate academic curriculum used during camp in an effort to attend to the unique psychosocial needs of introverts to improve their attitudes toward camp.
Observed small spatial scale and seasonal variability of the CO2 system in the Southern Ocean
Authors: Resplandy L. , Boutin J. , Merlivat L.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The considerable uncertainties in the carbon budget of the Southern Ocean are largely attributed to unresolved variability, in particular at a seasonal timescale and small spatial scale (~ 100 km). In this study, the variability of surface pCO2 and dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) at seasonal and small spatial scales is examined using a data set of surface drifters including ~ 80 000 measurements at high spatiotemporal resolution. On spatial scales of 100 km, we find gradients ranging from 5 to 50 μatm for pCO2 and 2 to 30 μmol kg−1 for DIC, with highest values in energetic and frontal regions. This result is supported by a second estimate obtained with sea surface temperature (SST) satellite images and local DIC–SST relationships derived from drifter observations. We find that dynamical processes drive the variability of DIC at small spatial scale in most regions of the Southern Ocean and the cascade of large-scale gradients down to small spatial scales, leading to gradients up to 15 μmol kg−1 over 100 km. Although the role of biological activity is more localized, it enhances the variability up to 30 μmol kg−1 over 100 km. The seasonal cycle of surface DIC is reconstructed following Mahadevan et al. (2011), using an annual climatology of DIC and a monthly climatology of mixed layer depth. This method is evaluated using drifter observations and proves to be a reasonable first-order estimate of the seasonality in the Southern Ocean that could be used to validate model simulations. We find that small spatial-scale structures are a non-negligible source of variability for DIC, with amplitudes of about a third of the variations associated with the seasonality and up to 10 times the magnitude of large-scale gradients. The amplitude of small-scale variability reported here should be kept in mind when inferring temporal changes (seasonality, interannual variability, decadal trends) of the carbon budget from low-resolution observations and models.
The Black Sea biogeochemistry: focus on temporal and spatial variability of oxygen
Authors: Stanev E. V. , He Y. , Staneva J. , Yakushev E.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The temporal and spatial variability of the upper ocean hydrochemistry in the Black Sea down to its suboxic zone was analyzed using data originating from historical observations, profiling floats with oxygen sensors and numerical simulations carried out with a coupled three-dimensional circulation-biogeochemical model including 24 biochemical state variables. The validation of the numerical model against observations demonstrated that it replicated in a realistic way the statistics seen in the observations. The suboxic zone shoaled in the central area and deepened in the coastal area, which was very well pronounced in winter. Its depth varied with time in concert with the variability of the physical system. Two different regimes of ventilation of the pycnocline were clearly identified: gyre-dominated regime in winter and eddy dominated regime in summer. These contrasting regimes were characterized by very different pathways of oxygen intrusions along the isopycnals. The contribution of the three-dimensional modeling to the understanding of the Black Sea hydro-chemistry, and in particular the coast-to-open-sea diapycnal mixing was also demonstrated.
Microbial food web dynamics in response to a Saharan dust event: results from a mesocosm study in the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea
Authors: Pulido-Villena E. , Baudoux A.-C. , Obernosterer I. , Landa M. , Caparros J. , Catala P. , Georges C. , Harmand J. , Guieu C.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The significant impact of dust deposition on heterotrophic bacterial dynamics in the surface oligotrophic ocean has recently been evidenced. Considering the central role of bacteria in the microbial loop, it is likely that dust deposition also affects the structure and the functioning of the whole microbial food web. In the frame of the DUNE project, aiming to estimate the impact of dust deposition on the oligotrophic Mediterranean Sea through mesocosm experiments, the main goal of the present paper was to assess how two successive dust deposition events affect the dynamics of the microbial food web. The first dust seeding delivered new P and N to the amended mesocosms and resulted in a pronounced stimulation of bacterial respiration. It also induced pronounced, but transient, changes in the bacterial community composition. No significant effects were observed on the abundances of viruses and heterotrophic nanoflagellates. The second dust seeding also delivered new P and N to the amended mesocosms but the effect on the microbial food web was very different. Bacterial respiration remained constant and bacterial abundance decreased. Compositional changes following the second seeding were minor compared to the first one. The decrease in bacterial abundance coincided with an increase in virus abundance, resulting in higher virus: bacteria ratios throughout the second seeding period. Our study shows that dust deposition to the surface oligotrophic ocean may involve important modifications of the trophic links among the components of the microbial food web with presumed consequences on C and nutrient cycling.
Comparing microbial and chemical approaches for modelling soil organic carbon decomposition using the DecoChem v1.0 and DecoBio v1.0 models
Authors: Xenakis G. , Williams M.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Soil organic matter is a vast store of carbon, with a critical role in the global carbon cycle. Despite its importance the dynamics of soil organic carbon decomposition, under the impact of climate change or changing litter inputs, are poorly understood. Current biogeochemical models usually lack microbial processes and thus miss an important feedback when considering the fate of carbon. Here we use a series of modelling experiments to evaluate two different model structures, one with a standard first order kinetic representation of soil decomposition (DecoChem v1.0, hearafter chemical model) and one with control of soil decomposition through microbial activity (DecoBio v1.0, hereafter biological model). We tested two hypotheses. First, that increased litter inputs and glucose addition prime microbial activity and reduce soil carbon stocks in the biological model, but increase C stocks in the chemical model. Experiments provided some support for this hypothesis, with soil C stocks increasing in the chemical model in response to litter increases. In the biological model, responses to changed litter quantity were more rapid, but with the residence time of soil C altering such that soil C stocks were buffered. However, in the biological model there was a strong response to increased glucose additions (i.e., changes in litter quality), with significant losses to soil C stocks over time, driven by priming. Secondly, we hypothesised that warming will stimulate decomposition in the chemical model, and loss of C, but in the biological model soil C will be less sensitive to warming, due to complex microbial feedbacks. The experiments supported this hypothesis, with the chemical model soil C residence times and steady state C stocks adjusting strongly with temperature changes, extending over decades. On the other hand, the biological model showed a rapid response to temperature that subsided after a few years, with total soil C stocks largely unchanged. The microbial model shows qualitative agreement with experimental warming studies, that found transient increases in soil respiration that decline within a few years. In conclusion, the biological model is largely buffered against bulk changes in litter inputs and climate, unlike the chemical model, while the biological model displays a strong priming response to additions of labile litter. Our result have therefore highlighted significantly different sensitivities between chemical and biological modelling approaches for soil decomposition.
Two soil hydrology formulations of ORCHIDEE (version Trunk.rev1311) tested for the Amazon basin
Authors: Guimberteau M. , Ciais P. , Ducharne A. , Boisier J. P. , Peng S. , De Weirdt M. , Verbeeck H.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. This study analyzes the impact of the two soil model parameterizations of the Land Surface Model ORCHIDEE on their estimates of Amazonian hydrology and phenology for five major sub-basins (Xingu, Tapajós, Madeira, Solimões and Negro), during the 29 yr period 1980–2008. The two soil models are a simple 2 layer soil scheme with a bucket topped by an evaporative layer vs. an 11 layer soil diffusion scheme. The soil models were coupled with a river routing module and a process model of plant physiology, phenology and carbon dynamics. The simulated water budget and vegetation functioning components were compared with several datasets at sub-basin scale. The use of the 11 layer soil diffusion scheme did not significantly change the Amazonian water budget simulation when compared to the 2 layer soil scheme (+3.1 and −3.0% in evapotranspiration and river discharge, respectively). However, the higher water holding capacity of the soil and the physically based representation of runoff and drainage in the 11 layer soil diffusion, resulted in higher dynamics of soil water storage variation and improved simulation of the total terrestrial water storage when compared to GRACE satellite estimates. The greater soil water storage within the 11 layer soil diffusion scheme resulted in increased dry-season evapotranspiration (+0.5 mm d−1, +17%) and river discharge in the southeastern sub-basins such as the Xingu. Evapotranspiration over this sub-basin was sustained during the whole dry season with the 11 layer soil diffusion model, whereas the 2 layer soil scheme limited it at the end of the dry season. Lower plant water stress simulated by the 11 layer soil diffusion scheme, led to better simulation of the seasonal cycle of photosynthesis (GPP) when compared to a GPP data-driven model based upon eddy-covariance and satellite greenness measurements. Simulated LAI was consequently higher with the 11LAY (up to +0.4) but exhibited too low a variation when compared to a satellite-based dataset. The dry-season length between 4 and 7 months over the entire Amazon basin was found to be critical in distinguishing differences in hydrological feedbacks between the soil and the vegetation cover simulated by the two soil models. Overall, the 11 layer soil diffusion scheme provided little improvement in simulated hydrology on average over the wet tropical Amazonian sub-basins but a more significant improvement over the drier sub-basins. However, the use of the 11 layer soil diffusion scheme might become critical for assessments of future hydrological changes, especially in southern regions of the Amazon basin where longer dry season and more severe droughts are expected in the next century.
A large-scale, high-resolution hydrological model parameter data set for climate change impact assessment for the conterminous US
Authors: Oubeidillah A. A. , Kao S.-C. , Ashfaq M. , Naz B. S. , Tootle G.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. To extend geographical coverage, refine spatial resolution, and improve modeling efficiency, a computation- and data-intensive effort was conducted to organize a comprehensive hydrologic data set with post-calibrated model parameters for hydro-climate impact assessment. Several key inputs for hydrologic simulation – including meteorologic forcings, soil, land class, vegetation, and elevation – were collected from multiple best-available data sources and organized for 2107 hydrologic subbasins (8-digit hydrologic units, HUC8s) in the conterminous US at refined 1/24° (~4 km) spatial resolution. Using high-performance computing for intensive model calibration, a high-resolution parameter data set was prepared for the macro-scale variable infiltration capacity (VIC) hydrologic model. The VIC simulation was driven by Daymet daily meteorological forcing and was calibrated against US Geological Survey (USGS) WaterWatch monthly runoff observations for each HUC8. The results showed that this new parameter data set may help reasonably simulate runoff at most US HUC8 subbasins. Based on this exhaustive calibration effort, it is now possible to accurately estimate the resources required for further model improvement across the entire conterminous US. We anticipate that through this hydrologic parameter data set, the repeated effort of fundamental data processing can be lessened, so that research efforts can emphasize the more challenging task of assessing climate change impacts. The pre-organized model parameter data set will be provided to interested parties to support further hydro-climate impact assessment.
Sensitivity and uncertainty in crop water footprint accounting: a case study for the Yellow River Basin
Authors: Zhuo L. , Mekonnen M. M. , Hoekstra A. Y.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Water Footprint Assessment is a quickly growing field of research, but as yet little attention has been paid to the uncertainties involved. This study investigates the sensitivity of water footprint estimates to changes in important input variables and quantifies the size of uncertainty in water footprint estimates. The study focuses on the green (from rainfall) and blue (from irrigation) water footprint of producing maize, soybean, rice, and wheat in the Yellow River Basin in the period 1996–2005. A grid-based daily water balance model at a 5 by 5 arcmin resolution was applied to compute green and blue water footprints of the four crops in the Yellow River Basin in the period considered. The sensitivity and uncertainty analysis focused on the effects on water footprint estimates at basin level (in m3 t−1) of four key input variables: precipitation (PR), reference evapotranspiration (ET0), crop coefficient (Kc), and crop calendar. The one-at-a-time method was carried out to analyse the sensitivity of the water footprint of crops to fractional changes of individual input variables. Uncertainties in crop water footprint estimates were quantified through Monte Carlo simulations. The results show that the water footprint of crops is most sensitive to ET0 and Kc, followed by crop calendar and PR. Blue water footprints were more sensitive to input variability than green water footprints. The smaller the annual blue water footprint, the higher its sensitivity to changes in PR, ET0, and Kc. The uncertainties in the total water footprint of a crop due to combined uncertainties in climatic inputs (PR and ET0) were about ±20% (at 95% confidence interval). The effect of uncertainties in ET0 was dominant compared to that of precipitation. The uncertainties in the total water footprint of a crop as a result of combined key input uncertainties were on average ±26% (at 95% confidence level). The sensitivities and uncertainties differ across crop types, with highest sensitivities and uncertainties for soybean.
Evaluation of drought regimes and impacts in the Limpopo basin
Authors: Alemaw B. F. , Kileshye-Onema J.-M.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Drought is a common phenomenon in the Limpopo River basin. In essence, droughts are long–term hydro-meteorological events affecting vast regions and causing significant non-structural damages. In the interest of riparian states' joint integrated water resources development and management of the Limpopo basin, inter regional drought severity and its impacts should be understood. The study focussed on case studies in the basin which is subdivided into four homogeneous regions owing to topographic and climate variations based on the previous work of the same authors. Using the medium range time series of the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) as an indicator of drought, for each homogeneous region monthly and annual Severity-Area-Frequency (SAF) curves and maps of probability of drought occurrence were constructed. The results indicated localized severe droughts in higher frequencies, while only moderate to severe low frequency droughts may spread over wider areas in the basin. The region-level Drought-Severity Indices can be used as indicators for planning localized interventions and drought mitigation efforts in the basin. The approach can also be used to develop improved drought indicators, to assess the relationship between drought hazard and vulnerability and to enhance the performance of methods currently used for drought forecasting. Results on the meteorological drought linkage with hydrological and vegetation or agricultural drought indices are presented as means of validation of the specific drought regimes and their localized impact in each homogeneous region. In general, this preliminary investigation reveals that the western part of the basin will face a higher risk of drought when compared to other regions of the Limpopo basin in terms of the medium-term drought. The Limpopo basin is water stressed and livelihood challenges remain at large, thus impacts of droughts and related resilience options should be taken into account in the formulation of regional sustainable water resources development strategies. This study is exciting in the manner that the variations in the sub-basin drought severities are revealed and are used to suggest the corresponding drought monitoring and management strategies. This will have an overall effect in developing a basin-wide framework for integrated drought management as well as water resources development and management, which requires cooperative efforts among the riparian countries of the Limpopo basin.
Modelled sensitivity of the snow regime to topography, shrub fraction and shrub height
Authors: Ménard C. B. , Essery R. , Pomeroy J.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Recent studies show that shrubs are colonizing higher latitudes and altitudes in the Arctic. Shrubs affect the wind transport, accumulation and melt of snow, but there have been few sensitivity studies of how shrub expansion might affect snowmelt rates and timing. Here, a blowing snow transport and sublimation model is used to simulate premelt snow distributions and a 3-source energy balance model, which calculates vertical and horizontal energy fluxes between the atmosphere, snow, snow-free ground and vegetation, is used to simulate melt. Vegetation is parametrized as shrub cover and the parametrization includes shrub bending and burial in winter and emergence in spring. The models are used to investigate the sensitivity of the snow regime in an upland tundra valley to varying shrub cover and topography. Results show that topography dominates the spatial variability of snow accumulation, which in turn dominates the pre and early melt energy budget. With topography removed from the simulations, modelled snow cover is uniform when there is no vegetation but increasing vegetation introduces spatial variability in snow accumulation which is then decreased as further increases in shrub cover suppress wind-induced redistribution of snow. The domain-averaged simulations of premelt snow accumulation also increases with increasing shrub cover because suppression of blowing snow by shrubs decreases sublimation. In simulations with topography, the increase in snow accumulation and its spatial variability with increasing vegetation is less marked because snow is also held in topography-driven drifts. With topography, the existence of wind-scoured snow-free patches at the onset of snowmelt causes exposed ground to contribute to the energy balance such that sensible, advective and radiative heat fluxes are higher than in the flat domain during this period. However, as snowmelt evolves, differences in the energy budget between runs with and without topography dramatically diminish. These results suggest that, to avoid overestimating the effect of shrub expansion on the energy budget of the Arctic, future large scale investigations should consider wind redistribution of snow, shrub bending and emergence, and sub-grid topography as they affect the variability of snowcover.
TERRESTRIAL LASER SCANNER DATA TO SUPPORT COASTAL EROSION ANALYSIS: THE CONERO CASE STUDY
Authors: Calligaro S. , Sofia G. , Prosdocimi M. , Dalla Fontana G. , Tarolli P.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. In this work a detailed TLS survey was carried out in summer 2012, in the Conero Regional Park (Marche, province of Ancona), along the "spiaggia San Michele" and "spiaggia Sassi Neri". These areas present several sections affected by erosion, rock falls and slope failures. They also belong to a very prestigious place for tourism during the summer season; therefore, deriving a risk map for these areas is really useful. Thanks to the TLS survey, it was possible to obtain a centimetre resolution DTM covering a reach of about 1.5 km of the coast. This high resolution DTM was used to derive some primary topographic attributes that allowed to arrange a preliminary discussion about the likely unstable areas. These topographic information and results will also serve as the reference point for future yearly TLS surveys, which will absolutely help in recognizing any micro changes and slope failures, improving the risk maps.
MONITORING OF LANDSLIDES WITH MASS MARKET GPS: AN ALTERNATIVE LOW COST SOLUTION
Authors: Cina A. , Piras M. , Bendea H. I.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The territory of Italy is seriously afflicted by hydrological risk, with 82% of its area affected by this phenomenon. In recent years, technologies and advanced research have played an important role in realizing complex automatic systems devoted to landslide monitoring and to alerting the population. Sometimes, the cost of these systems (communications network, sensors, software, technologies) prevents their use, and in particular the cost of sensors has a large impact on the final investment. For example, geodetic GNSS receivers are usually employed to conduct landslide monitoring, but they are costly. Nowadays, new technologies make it possible to use small and efficient low cost single frequency GPS receivers, which are able to achieve a centimetric or better level of accuracy, in static positioning. The rapid development and diffusion of the GNSS network to provide a positioning service has made it possible to use single frequency receivers, thanks to the use of virtual RINEX. This product is generated by a network of permanent stations. In this research, the actual performance of a mass market GPS receiver was tested, with the purpose of verifying if these sensors can be used for landslide monitoring. A special slide was realized, in order to conduct a dedicated test of the detection of displacements. Tests were carried out considering two factors: acquisition time and distance from the Virtual Station. The accuracy and precision of movement determination were evaluated and compared, for each test, considering the different factors. The tests and results are described in this contribution.
REAL TIME INTEGRATION OF FIELD DATA INTO A GIS PLATFORM FOR THE MANAGEMENT OF HYDROLOGICAL EMERGENCIES
Authors: Mangiameli M. , Mussumeci G.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. A wide series of events requires immediate availability of information and field data to be provided to decision-makers. An example is the necessity of quickly transferring the information acquired from monitoring and alerting sensors or the data of the reconnaissance of damage after a disastrous event to an Emergency Operations Center. To this purpose, we developed an integrated GIS and WebGIS system to dynamically create and populate via Web a database with spatial features. In particular, this work concerns the gathering and transmission of spatial data and related information to the desktop GIS so that they can be displayed and analyzed in real time to characterize the operational scenario and to decide the rescue interventions. As basic software, we used only free and open source: QuantumGIS and Grass as Desktop GIS, Map Server with PMapper application for the Web-Gis functionality and PostGreSQL/PostGIS as Data Base Management System (DBMS). The approach has been designed, developed and successfully tested in the management of GIS-based navigation of an autonomous robot, both to map its trajectories and to assign optimal paths. This paper presents the application of our system to a simulated hydrological event that could interest the province of Catania, in Sicily. In particular, assuming that more teams draw up an inventory of the damage, we highlight the benefits of real-time transmission of the information collected from the field to headquarters.
RIO SOLIETTE (HAITI): AN INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVE FOR FLOOD-HAZARD ASSESSMENT AND MITIGATION
Authors: Gandolfi S. , Castellarin A. , Barbarella M. , Brath A. , Domeneghetti A. , Brandimarte L. , Di Baldassarre G.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Natural catastrophic events are one of most critical aspects for health and economy all around the world. However, the impact in a poor region can impact more dramatically than in others countries. Isla Hispaniola (Haiti and the Dominican Republic), one of the poorest regions of the planet, has repeatedly been hit by catastrophic natural disasters that caused incalculable human and economic losses. After the catastrophic flood event occurred in the basin of River Soliette on May 24th, 2004, the General Direction for Development and Cooperation of the Italian Department of Foreign Affairs funded an international cooperation initiative (ICI) coordinated by the University of Bologna, that involved Haitian and Dominican institutions.Main purpose of the ICI was hydrological and hydraulic analysis of the May 2004 flood event aimed at formulating a suitable and affordable flood risk mitigation plan, consisting of structural and non-structural measures. In this contest, a topographic survey was necessary to realize the hydrological model and to improve the knowledge in some areas candidates to be site for mitigation measures.To overcome the difficulties arising from the narrowness of funds, surveyors and limited time available for the survey, only GPS technique have been used, both for framing aspects (using PPP approach), and for geometrical survey of the river by means of river cross-sections and detailed surveys in two areas (RTK technique). This allowed us to reconstruct both the river geometry and the DTM’s of two expansion areas (useful for design hydraulic solutions for mitigate flood-hazard risk).
MULTI-TEMPORAL LAND USE ANALYSIS OF AN EPHEMERAL RIVER AREA USING AN ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORK APPROACH ON LANDSAT IMAGERY
Authors: Aquilino M. , Tarantino E. , Fratino U.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. This paper proposes a change detection analysis method based on multitemporal LANDSAT satellite data, presenting a study performed on the Lama San Giorgio (Bari, Italy) river basin area. Based on its geological and hydrological characteristics, as well as on the number of recent and remote flooding events already occurred, this area seems to be naturally prone to flooding. The historical archive of LANDSAT imagery dating back to the launch of ERTS in 1972 provides a comprehensive and permanent data source for tracking change on the planet‟s land surface. In this study case the imagery acquisition dates of 1987, 2002 and 2011 were selected to cover a time trend of 24 years. Land cover categories were based on classes outlined by the Curve Number method with the aim of characterizing land use according to the level of surface imperviousness. After comparing two land use classification methods, i.e. Maximum Likelihood Classifier (MLC) and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) neural network, the Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) approach was found the best reliable and efficient method in the absence of ground reference data. The ANN approach has a distinct advantage over statistical classification methods in that it is non-parametric and requires little or no a priori knowledge on the distribution model of input data. The results quantify land cover change patterns in the river basin area under study and demonstrate the potential of multitemporal LANDSAT data to provide an accurate and cost-effective means to map and analyse land cover changes over time that can be used as input in land management and policy decision-making.
THE CONTRIBUTION OF GIS IN FLOOD MAPPING: TWO APPROACHES USING OPEN SOURCE GRASS GIS SOFTWARE
Authors: Marzocchi R. , Federici B. , Cannata M. , Cosso T. , Syriou A.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The first step of a risk assessment analysis is the evaluation of flood-prone areas. Its importance is considered for both managing and planning emergency activities, such as hydraulic risk reduction management, and also town planning. Nowadays, using GIS technology for risk assessment analysis is very common. However, it is not widely used for defining inundated areas. LiDAR data, such as Digital Elevation Models (DEM), makes GIS numerical models attractive methods for obtaining a flooded area automatically. Using GIS tools, is beneficial for effective processing and accuracy assessment in comparison to the traditional methods which are based on topographic maps and field surveys. A first approach (Federici and Sguerso, 2007; Marzocchi et al. 2009) is the use of a GIS module in order to create perifluvial flood maps, having as prerequisites (i) the conformation of the river floodplain by a high resolution DEM and (ii) a water surface profile along the river axis calculated for a given water discharge through a generic one-dimensional (1D) hydraulic model (HEC-RAS, Basement, MIKE 11, etc). On the other hand, a second approach is the use of a 2D model GIS embedded in order to create flooded areas due to a dam break (Cannata & Marzocchi, 2012). This module solves the conservative form of the 2D Shallow Water Equations (SWE) using a Finite Volume Method (FVM). The intercell flux is computed by a one-side upwind conservative scheme extended to a 2D problem (Ying et al., 2004). The new developed GIS module gives as an output maximum intensity maps which can be directly used during the risk assessment process. Both models implemented in GRASS GIS software (GRASS, 2013) and two new commands (r.inund.fluv and r.damflood) have been created. They are all available on the official GRASS website and they are distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL). In this work we present a comparison between the two models mentioned above. We analyse the possibility of integrating these two approaches. We intend to use the 1D model, GIS embedded if possible, to calculate the water surface profile along the river axis and the 2D numerical one to analyse inundation beside the river levees.
STRUCTURAL MONITORING WITH GEODETIC SURVEY OF QUADRIFOGLIO CONDOMINIUM (LECCE)
Authors: Costantino D. , Angelini M. G.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Monitoring buildings for moving elements has been always a problem of great importance for their conservation and preservation, as well as for risk mitigation. In particular, topographic surveying allows, through the use of the principles and instruments of the geodetic survey, to control moving points which have been identified and measured. In this study case, twelve survey campaigns were done for monitoring a building located in the city of Lecce. The condominium was built five years ago on an old quarry filled with debris to allow construction. Later in time, obviously, cracks started to appear on walls within the property, and for this legal actions were taken. The survey schema adopted has been that of triangulation/trilateration, from two vertices with known coordinates. With this methodologies four cornerstones have been identified, established with forced centering on pillars with anchor plates, connected to same number of framework points, considered stable. From these, 23 control points located on the structure with rotating prisms anchored at the same manner have been surveyed. The elaboration has been carried out by generating redundancy of the measures and compensating the values with least mean squares. The results obtained by the activity of survey and elaboration have confirmed the existence of ongoing phenomena. The causes that have generated the phenomenon have been, subsequently, investigated and have been considered attributable to the existence of a sewer pipeline and a water pipeline not properly put in place and consequently broke down due to the geological characteristics of the site.
ANTHROPIC RISK ASSESSMENT ON BIODIVERSITY
Authors: Piragnolo M. , Pirotti F. , Vettore A. , Salogni G.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. This paper presents a methodology for risk assessment of anthropic activities on habitats and species. The method has been developed for Veneto Region, in order to simplify and improve the quality of EIA procedure (VINCA). Habitats and species, animals and plants, are protected by European Directive 92/43/EEC and 2009/147/EC but they are subject at hazard due to pollution produced by human activities. Biodiversity risks may conduct to deterioration and disturbance in ecological niches, with consequence of loss of biodiversity. Ecological risk assessment applied on Natura 2000 network, is needed to best practice of management and monitoring of environment and natural resources. Threats, pressure and activities, stress and indicators may be managed by geodatabase and analysed using GIS technology. The method used is the classic risk assessment in ecological context, and it defines the natural hazard as influence, element of risk as interference and vulnerability. Also it defines a new parameter called pressure. It uses risk matrix for the risk analysis on spatial and temporal scale. The methodology is qualitative and applies the precautionary principle in environmental assessment. The final product is a matrix which excludes the risk and could find application in the development of a territorial information system.
HIGH-RESOLUTION MONITORING OF CURRENT RAPID TRANSFORMATIONS ON GLACIAL AND PERIGLACIAL ENVIRONMENTS
Authors: Carturan L. , Blasone G. , Calligaro S. , Carton A. , Cazorzi F. , Dalla Fontana G. , Moro D.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. Glacial and periglacial environments are highly sensitive to climatic changes. Processes of cryosphere degradation may strongly impact human activities and infrastructures, and need to be monitored for improved understanding and for mitigation/adaptation. Studying glacial and periglacial environments using traditional techniques may be difficult or not feasible, but new remote sensing techniques like terrestrial and aerial laser scanner opened new possibilities for cryospheric studies. This work presents an application of the terrestrial laser scanner (TLS) for monitoring the current rapid changes occurring on the Montasio Occidentale glacier (Eastern Italian alps), which is representative of low-altitude, avalanche-fed and debris-cover glaciers. These glaciers are quite common in the Alps but their reaction to climate changes is still poorly known. The mass balance, surface velocity fields, debris cover dynamics and effects of meteorological extremes were investigated by repeat high-resolution TLS scanning from September 2010 to October 2012. The results were encouraging and shed light on the peculiar response of this glacier to climatic changes, on its current dynamics and on the feedback played by the debris cover, which is critical for its preservation. The rapid transformations in act, combined with the unstable ice mass, large amount of loose debris and channeled runoff during intense rainfalls, constitute a potential area for the formation of large debris flows, as shown by field evidences and documented by the recent literature.
CREATION OF A MULTIRESOLUTION AND MULTIACCURACY DTM: PROBLEMS AND SOLUTIONS FOR HELI-DEM CASE STUDY
Authors: Biagi L. , Carcano L. , Lucchese A. , Negretti M.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The work is part of "HELI-DEM" (HELvetia-Italy Digital Elevation Model) project, funded by the European Regional Development Fund within the Italy-Switzerland cooperation program. The aim of the project is the creation of a unique DTM for the alpine and subalpine area between Italy (Piedmont, Lombardy) and Switzerland (Ticino and Grisons Cantons); at present, different DTMs, that are in different reference frames and have been obtained with different technologies, accuracies, and resolutions, have been acquired. The final DTM should be correctly georeferenced and produced validating and integrating the data that are available for the project. DTMs are fundamental in hydrogeological studies, especially in alpine areas where hydrogeological risks may exist. Moreover, when an event, like for example a landslide, happens at the border between countries, a unique and integrated DTM which covers the interest area is useful to analyze the scenario. In this sense, HELI-DEM project is helpful. To perform analyses along the borders between countries, transnational geographic information is needed: a transnational DTM can be obtained by merging regional low resolution DTMs. Moreover high resolution local DTMs should be used where they are available. To be merged, low and high resolution DTMs should be in the same three dimensional reference frame, should not present biases and should be consistent in the overlapping areas. Cross-validation between the different DTMs is therefore needed. Two different problems should be solved: the merging of regional, partly overlapping low and medium resolution DTMs into a unique low/medium resolution DTM and the merging with other local high resolution/high accuracy height data. This paper discusses the preliminary processing of the data for the fusion of low and high resolution DTMs in a study-case area within the Lombardy region: Valtellina valley. In this region the Lombardy regional low resolution DTM is available, with a horizontal resolution of 20 meters; in addition a LiDAR DTM with a horizontal resolution of 1 meter, which covers only the main hydrographic basins, is also available. The two DTMs have been transformed into the same reference frame. The cross-validation of the two datasets has been performed comparing the low resolution DTM with the local high resolution DTM. Then, where significant differences are present, GPS survey have been used as external validation. The results are presented. Moreover, a possible strategy for the future fusion of the data, is shortly summarized at the end of the paper.
GIS APPROACH FOR PREVENTIVE EVALUATION OF ROADS LOSS OF EFFICIENCY IN HYDROGEOLOGICAL EMERGENCIES
Authors: Mangiameli M. , Mussumeci G.
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The theme of the simulation of hydrogeological risk with GIS technology is analyzed with focus on the modeling of the architecture of a Spatial Data Base to support risk analysis and on the construction of a specialized frame with free and open source software. For this purpose a model of analysis of the vulnerability of roads developed by (Cafiso et al., 2002) has been adopted. The case of study is represented by a seismic land characterized by steep slopes and frequent instability phenomena. In detail, the area of interest is a mountainous land in Sicily with a city, Enna (about 30 000 people), that lies on the top. The access to the city is assured by few and very winding roads which are also highly vulnerable to seismic and hydrogeological hazards. The loss of efficiency of these roads for exceptional rainfall events should compromise timeliness and effectiveness of rescue operations. The data of the sample area have been implemented in the specialized GIS appositely constructed in order to forecast the possible damage to roads and the results of some simulations have been related to the effects registered after some extreme events, obtaining useful indications for the validation of the approach.
IODP Expedition 338: NanTroSEIZE Stage 3: NanTroSEIZE plate boundary deep riser 2
Authors: Moore G. F. , Kanagawa K. , Strasser M. , Dugan B. , Maeda L. , Toczko S. ,   the IODP Expedition 338 Scientific Party
Published: January 2014

Abstract. The Nankai Trough Seismogenic Zone Experiment (NanTroSEIZE) is designed to investigate fault mechanics and seismogenesis along a subduction megathrust, with objectives that include characterizing fault slip, strain accumulation, fault and wall rock composition, fault architecture, and state variables throughout an active plate boundary system. Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 338 was planned to extend and case riser Hole C0002F from 856 to 3600 meters below the seafloor (m b.s.f.). Riser operations extended the hole to 2005.5 m b.s.f., collecting logging-while-drilling (LWD) and measurement-while-drilling, mud gas, and cuttings data. Results reveal two lithologic units within the inner wedge of the accretionary prism that are separated by a prominent fault zone at ~ 1640 m b.s.f. Due to damage to the riser during unfavorable winds and strong currents, riser operations were suspended, and Hole C0002F left for re-entry during future riser drilling operations. Contingency riserless operations included coring at the forearc basin site (C0002) and at two slope basin sites (C0021 and C0022), and LWD at one input site (C0012) and at three slope basin sites (C0018, C0021 and C0022). Cores and logs from these sites comprehensively characterize the alteration stage of the oceanic basement input to the subduction zone, the early stage of Kumano Basin evolution, gas hydrates in the forearc basin, and recent activity of the shallow megasplay fault zone system and associated submarine landslides.
Understanding the role of social media in online health: A global perspective on online social support
Authors: Lee Roderick Lamar , Kvasny Lynette M.
Published: January 2014

Around the globe, people are increasingly using social media for the provision of online social support. Online social support may be especially relevant for parents who have children that are afflicted with rare chronic diseases such as MECP2 Duplication Syndrome. Despite increasing evidence that online social support enhances a person’s psychological well-being, there is little research that seeks to understand how and why various forms of social media facilitate social support. This study develops a theoretical framework from the existing psychosocial and media theories that describes the relationship between social media and social support. This paper concludes with implications for health information systems design.
Understanding the evolution of bona fide mixed-mode groups: An example of Meetup groups
Authors: Lai Chih-Hui
Published: January 2014

This study examines the evolution of an emerging form of social organization: mixed–mode groups. These are Internet–established but operate as in–person voluntary associations. Through longitudinal observations and interviews with 34 group organizers of Meetup.com, a good example of mixed–mode groups, findings of this study revealed the iterative and simultaneous variation–selection–retention (V–S–R) mechanisms enacted by groups as they evolved. Building on permeable boundaries and multiple memberships, these bona fide groups also exhibited different forms of interaction with other groups as well as the local community.
#NBCFail: A qualitative review of the shared experience as a social movement
Authors: O'Hallarn Brendan , Shapiro Stephen
Published: January 2014

The XXX Olympic Games in London, England was the most-watched event in U.S. television history, with more than 219 million viewers tuning in during the Games. However, the National Broadcasting Corporation (NBC) elected to show a number of events to U.S. audiences in prime time via tape delay, rather than broadcasting them live. As a result NBC encountered a great deal of criticism about its coverage, particularly on the online microblogging site Twitter. This research surveyed a sample of Twitter users who participated in the Twitter protest via the #NBCFail hashtag, to understand how being part of a shared protest affected their feelings about the Olympics, and NBC, both during, and several months after, the Olympic Games. The results suggest the feelings of #NBCFail participants were amplified significantly by being part of a movement, and that the protest network, while dormant outside of the Games, could be reactivated very quickly, with more participants, in future Olympics.