bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
LBP-1.02 Acceptability and appeal of internet-based STI and HIV testing among a sample of gay men and clients attending STI clinics in British Columbia
Authors: Hottes T S , Gilbert M , Bondyra M , Haag D , Shoveller J 
Published: July 2011

BackgroundSeveral jurisdictions globally have implemented internet-based STI and HIV testing with good uptake and reach into untested populations. In British Columbia, a similar program is under development to offer online access to chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, and HIV testing. This program aims to increase the frequency of testing in individuals at risk of infection and ease demand on clinic-based services by providing an accessible option for screening asymptomatic persons. We conducted a series of focus groups in spring 2011 to determine the acceptability of various aspects of the internet testing model and of the service overall.MethodsTwo types of prospective internet testing clients living in the Vancouver area were recruited for focus groups: self-identified gay/bisexual/two-spirit men (hereafter “gay men”) and STI clinic clients. Participants were presented with a brief description of the internet testing model, after which a structured interview guide was used to address the following domains: willingness to provide personal information online, ways to engender trust in the service, comfort with different ways of delivering results, interest in specific features, appeal of the service, and willingness to use the service.ResultsMost of the 31 participants to-date (ages 21–70 years) were gay men (81%) and reported post-secondary education (74%). All were self-described active internet users and had been tested previously for HIV or other STI. Overall, the concept of internet testing was thought to be acceptable and most participants expressed interest in using the service when it becomes available. Participants indicated that internet testing would be convenient and could enhance the accessibility of STI testing, particularly for people living outside of urban centres. Some noted that an internet approach would also have the potential to allay embarrassment that can arise when seeking STI testing in a face-to-face clinical setting. There was strong interest in assuring anonymity for those using the proposed internet testing service. Participants also emphasised the importance of providing information related to HIV diagnosis and referrals to peer support and counselling for those waiting for and receiving test results.ConclusionsInternet testing was deemed to be acceptable and desirable and appears to hold promise as a means to complement to existing clinic-based STI testing services in Vancouver, Canada.
LBP-1.03 “No one was there to care for us” Ashraya's response to its members' needs in terms of care and support
Authors: Chevrier C 
Published: July 2011

BackgroundSex workers (SWs) have been identified as a “high-risk group” and considerable effort has been invested in promoting “safer sex” among this group. However, their specific concerns and identities vanish in broader public health policy discussions related to treatment and particularly care. Ashodaya Samithi, a SWs organisation based in Mysore, Karnataka, has been providing extensive care and support (C&S) services to SWs and “non-SWs” living with HIV through their sub-wing organisation, Ashraya, since 2008. Considering the enduring stigma attached to SWs, what motivates individuals to seek health services from Ashraya?Methods40 in-depth interviews (including 10 with non-SWs) were conducted with Ashraya members in 2011 to explore how Ashraya responds to the needs of its members in terms of C&S. Content analysis of the transcripts was completed to sort out themes.ResultsAnalysis shows that in spite of scarce resources, the accessibility, effective outreach efforts, and commitment and reliability of Ashraya's volunteers are major components of its growing popularity.ConclusionsIn the near-absence of non-discriminatory, affordable C&S for people living with HIV/AIDS, Ashraya offers much needed relief to its members. The potential role of SWs community-based organisations in providing C&S, which goes beyond safer sex promotion, needs to be accounted for within national-level policy planning and in evaluating existing programs.
Does Semantic Context Benefit Speech Understanding through “Top–Down” Processes? Evidence from Time-resolved Sparse fMRI
Authors: Davis Matthew H. , Ford Michael A. , Kherif Ferath , Johnsrude Ingrid S. 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
When speech is degraded, word report is higher for semantically coherent sentences (e.g., her new skirt was made of denim) than for anomalous sentences (e.g., her good slope was done in carrot). Such increased intelligibility is often described as resulting from “top–down” processes, reflecting an assumption that higher-level (semantic) neural processes support lower-level (perceptual) mechanisms. We used time-resolved sparse fMRI to test for top–down neural mechanisms, measuring activity while participants heard coherent and anomalous sentences presented in speech envelope/spectrum noise at varying signal-to-noise ratios (SNR). The timing of BOLD responses to more intelligible speech provides evidence of hierarchical organization, with earlier responses in peri-auditory regions of the posterior superior temporal gyrus than in more distant temporal and frontal regions. Despite Sentence content × SNR interactions in the superior temporal gyrus, prefrontal regions respond after auditory/perceptual regions. Although we cannot rule out top–down effects, this pattern is more compatible with a purely feedforward or bottom–up account, in which the results of lower-level perceptual processing are passed to inferior frontal regions. Behavioral and neural evidence that sentence content influences perception of degraded speech does not necessarily imply “top–down” neural processes.
Diagnosis of the Warm Rain Process in Cloud-Resolving Models Using Joint CloudSat and MODIS Observations
Authors: Suzuki Kentaroh , Stephens Graeme L. , van den Heever Susan C. , Nakajima Takashi Y. 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
This study examines the warm rain formation process in global and regional cloud-resolving models. Methodologies developed to analyze CloudSat and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite observations are employed to investigate the cloud-to-precipitation processes and are applied to model results for comparisons with corresponding statistics from the observations. Three precipitation categories of no precipitation, drizzle, and rain are defined according to nonattenuated near-surface radar reflectivity, and their fractional occurrences and the probability of precipitation are investigated as a function of cloud properties such as droplet size, optical thickness, droplet number concentration, and liquid water path. The comparisons reveal how the models are qualitatively similar to, but quantitatively different from, observations in terms of cloud-to-rainwater conversion processes. Statistics from one model reveal a much faster formation of rain than observed, with drizzle occurrence being much less frequent, whereas statistics from the other model illustrate rain formation closer to satellite observations but still faster formation of drizzle water. Vertical profiles of radar reflectivity that are rescaled as a function of in-cloud optical depth and classified according to particle size are also compared. The results show that each model indicates systematically faster formation of rain and drizzle, respectively, than observed in vertical profiles although they indicate that the cloud-to-rain transitions are qualitatively similar to observations. These results characterize the model behavior in terms of warm cloud microphysics and then point to a possible area of model improvement for more realistic representation of warm rain formation processes.
Eddy Diffusivities for Momentum and Heat in the Upper Troposphere and Lower Stratosphere Measured by MU Radar and RASS, and a Comparison of Turbulence Model Predictions
Authors: Ueda Hiromasa , Fukui Tetsuo , Kajino Mizuo , Horiguchi Mitsuaki , Hashiguchi Hiroyuki , Fukao Shoichiro 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
Recently, middle- and upper-atmosphere Doppler radar (MU radar) has enabled the measurement of middle-atmosphere turbulence from radar backscatter Doppler spectra. In this work, eddy diffusivities for momentum Km in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere during clear-air conditions were derived from direct measurements of the Reynolds stress and vertical gradient of mean wind velocity measured by MU radar. Eddy diffusivity for heat Kh below 8 km was determined from measurements of temperature fluctuations by the Radio Acoustic Sounding System (RASS) attached to the MU radar. The eddy diffusivity for momentum was on the order of 10 m2 s−1 in the upper troposphere and decreased gradually in the stratosphere by an order of magnitude or more. The eddy diffusivity for heat was almost of the same order of magnitude as Km.
Estimates of eddy diffusivity from the radar echo power spectral width give fairly good values compared with the direct measurement of Km. Applicability of three turbulence models—the spectral width method, the k–ɛ model modified for stratified flows, and the algebraic stress model—were also examined, using radar observation values of turbulent kinetic energy k and turbulent energy dissipation rate ɛ together with atmospheric stability observations from rawinsonde data. It is concluded that the algebraic stress model shows the best fit with the direct measurement of Km, even in the free atmosphere above the atmospheric boundary layer once k and ɛ values are obtained from observations or a model.
Persistent Circulation Regimes and Preferred Regime Transitions in the North Atlantic
Authors: Franzke Christian , Woollings Tim , Martius Olivia 
Published: July 2011

AbstractThe persistent regime behavior of the eddy-driven jet stream over the North Atlantic is investigated. The North Atlantic jet stream variability is characterized by the latitude of the maximum lower tropospheric wind speed of the 40-yr ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-40) data for the period 1 December 1957–28 February 2002. A hidden Markov model (HMM) analysis reveals that the jet stream exhibits three persistent regimes that correspond to northern, southern, and central jet states. The regime states are closely related to the North Atlantic Oscillation and the eastern Atlantic teleconnection pattern. The regime states are associated with distinct changes in the storm tracks and the frequency of occurrence of cyclonic and anticyclonic Rossby wave breaking. Three preferred regime transitions are identified, namely, southern to central jet, northern to southern jet, and central to northern jet. The preferred transitions can be interpreted as a preference for poleward propagation of the jet, but with the southern jet state entered via a dramatic shift from the northern state. Evidence is found that wave breaking is involved in two of the three preferred transitions (northern to southern jet and central to northern jet transitions). The predictability characteristics and the interannual variability in the frequency of occurrence of regimes are also discussed.
Impact of SSTA in the East Indian Ocean on the Frequency of Northwest Pacific Tropical Cyclones: A Regional Atmospheric Model Study
Authors: Zhan Ruifen , Wang Yuqing , Wu Chun-Chieh 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
The impact of the sea surface temperature anomaly (SSTA) in the East Indian Ocean (EIO) on the tropical cyclone (TC) frequency over the western North Pacific (WNP) and the involved physical mechanisms are examined using the International Pacific Research Center (IPRC) Regional Atmospheric Model (iRAM) driven by the reanalysis and the observed SSTs. The model reproduces generally quite realistic climatic features of the WNP TC activity, including the interannual variability of the WNP TC genesis frequency, the geographical distributions of TC genesis and frequency of occurrence. In particular, the model reproduces the observed statistical (negatively correlated) relationship between the WNP TC frequency and the EIO SSTA, as recently studied by Zhan et al.
The experiments with artificially imposed SSTA in the EIO in the year 2004 with normal EIO SST and WNP TC activity confirm that the EIO SSTA does affect the TC genesis frequency in the entire genesis region over the WNP by significantly modulating both the western Pacific summer monsoon and the equatorial Kelvin wave activity over the western Pacific, two major large-scale dynamical controls of TC genesis over the WNP. Additional sensitivity experiments are performed for two extreme years: one (1994) with the highest and one (1998) with the lowest TC annual frequencies in the studied period. The results reveal that after the EIO SSTAs in the two extreme years are removed, the TC frequency in 1998 is close to the climatological mean, while the excessive TCs in 1994 are still simulated. The model results suggest that the warm EIO might be a major factor contributing to the unusually few TCs formed over the WNP in 1998, but the cold EIO seemed to contribute little to the excessive WNP TCs in 1994.
On the Relationship between Uncertainties in Tropical Divergence and the Hydrological Cycle in Global Models
Authors: Hagos Samson , Leung L. Ruby 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
A survey of tropical divergence from three GCMs, three global reanalyses, and four in situ soundings from field campaigns shows the existence of large uncertainties in the ubiquity of shallow divergent circulation as well as the depth and strength of the deep divergent circulation. More specifically, only two out of the three GCMs and three global reanalyses show significant shallow divergent circulation, which is present in all in situ soundings, and of the three GCMs and three global reanalyses, only two global reanalyses have deep divergence profiles that lie within the range of uncertainty of the soundings. The relationships of uncertainties in the shallow and deep divergent circulation to uncertainties in present-day and projected strength of the hydrological cycle from the GCMs are assessed. In the tropics and subtropics, deep divergent circulation is the largest contributor to moisture convergence that balances the net precipitation (precipitation minus evaporation), and intermodel differences in the present-day simulations carry over onto the future projections. In comparison to the soundings and reanalyses, the GCMs are found to have deeper and stronger divergent circulation. While these two characteristics of GCM divergence affect the strength of the hydrological cycle, they tend to compensate for each other so that their combined effect is relatively modest.
Importance of Circulation Changes to Atlantic Heat Storage Rates on Seasonal and Interannual Time Scales
Authors: Piecuch Christopher G. , Ponte Rui M. 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
Ocean heat budgets and transports are diagnosed to elucidate the importance of general circulation changes to Atlantic Ocean heat storage rates. The focus is on low- and midlatitude regions and on seasonal and interannual time scales. An estimate of the ocean state over 1993–2004, produced by a coarse-resolution general circulation model fit to observations via the method of Lagrange multipliers, is used. Meridional heat transports are first decomposed into contributions from time-mean and time-variable velocity and temperature and second from zonally symmetric baroclinic (overturning, including Ekman) and zonally asymmetric (gyre and other spatially correlated) circulations. Heat storage rates are then ascribed to ocean–atmosphere heat exchanges, diffusive mixing, and advective processes related to the various components of the meridional heat transport. Results show that seasonal heat storage changes generally represent a local response to surface heat inputs, but seasonal advective changes are also important near the equator. Interannual heat storage rate anomalies are mostly due to advection in tropical regions, whereas both surface heat fluxes and advection contribute at higher latitudes. Low-latitude advection can be primarily attributed to zonally symmetric baroclinic circulations, but temperature variations and zonally asymmetric flows can contribute elsewhere. A relationship between interannual heat storage rates in the equatorial Atlantic’s top 100 m and meridional heat transport associated with the zonally symmetric baroclinic flow is observed; however, due in part to the role of shallow advective processes at these latitudes, any direct relationship between sea surface temperature variability and heat transport changes associated with intermediate or deep meridional overturning circulations is not clear.
Systematic Comparison of ENSO Teleconnection Patterns between Models and Observations
Authors: Yang Xiaosong , DelSole Timothy 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
This paper applies a new field significance test to establish the existence and consistency of ENSO teleconnection patterns across models and observations. An ENSO teleconnection pattern is defined as a field of regression coefficients between an index of the tropical Pacific sea surface temperature and a field of variables such as surface air temperature or precipitation. The test is applied to boreal winter and summer in six continents using observations and hindcasts from the Development of a European Multimodel Ensemble System for Seasonal-to-Interannual Prediction (DEMETER) and the ENSEMBLE-based predictions of climate changes and their impacts (ENSEMBLES) projects. This comparison represents one of the most comprehensive and up-to-date assessments of the extent to which ENSO teleconnection patterns exist and can be reproduced by coupled models.
Statistically significant ENSO teleconnection patterns are detected in both observations and models and in all continents and in both winter and summer seasons, except in two cases: 1) Europe (both seasons and variables), and 2) North America (both variables in boreal summer). Despite many ENSO teleconnection patterns being significant, however, the patterns do not necessarily agree between observations and models. The degree of agreement between models and observations is characterized as “robust,” “moderate,” or “low.” Only Australia and South America are found to have robust agreement between ENSO teleconnection patterns, and then only for limited seasons and variables. Although many of our conclusions regarding teleconnection patterns conform to previous studies, there are exceptions, including the fact that the teleconnection for boreal winter precipitation is generally accepted to exist in Africa but in fact has only low agreement with model simulations, while that in Asia is not widely recognized to exist but is found to be significant and in moderate agreement with model teleconnections.
Do Climate Models Capture the Tropical Influences on North Pacific Sea Surface Temperature Variability?
Authors: Lienert Fabian , Fyfe John C. , Merryfield William J. 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
This study evaluates the ability of global climate models to reproduce observed tropical influences on North Pacific Ocean sea surface temperature variability. In an ensemble of climate models, the study finds that the simulated North Pacific response to El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) forcing is systematically delayed relative to the observed response because of winter and spring mixed layers in the North Pacific that are too deep and air–sea feedbacks that are too weak. Model biases in mixed layer depth and air–sea feedbacks are also associated with a model mean ENSO-related signal in the North Pacific whose amplitude is overestimated by about 30%. The study also shows that simulated North Pacific variability has more power at lower frequencies than is observed because of model errors originating in the tropics and extratropics. Implications of these results for predictions on seasonal, decadal, and longer time scales are discussed.
Energy Flux and Dissipation in Luzon Strait: Two Tales of Two Ridges
Authors: Alford Matthew H. , MacKinnon Jennifer A. , Nash Jonathan D. , Simmons Harper , Pickering Andy , Klymak Jody M. , Pinkel Robert , Sun Oliver , Rainville Luc , Musgrave Ruth , Beitzel Tamara , Fu Ke-Hsien , Lu Chung-Wei 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
Internal tide generation, propagation, and dissipation are investigated in Luzon Strait, a system of two quasi-parallel ridges situated between Taiwan and the Philippines. Two profiling moorings deployed for about 20 days and a set of nineteen 36-h lowered ADCP–CTD time series stations allowed separate measurement of diurnal and semidiurnal internal tide signals. Measurements were concentrated on a northern line, where the ridge spacing was approximately equal to the mode-1 wavelength for semidiurnal motions, and a southern line, where the spacing was approximately two-thirds that. The authors contrast the two sites to emphasize the potential importance of resonance between generation sites. Throughout Luzon Strait, baroclinic energy, energy fluxes, and turbulent dissipation were some of the strongest ever measured. Peak-to-peak baroclinic velocity and vertical displacements often exceeded 2 m s−1 and 300 m, respectively. Energy fluxes exceeding 60 kW m−1 were measured at spring tide at the western end of the southern line. On the northern line, where the western ridge generates appreciable eastward-moving signals, net energy flux between the ridges was much smaller, exhibiting a nearly standing wave pattern. Overturns tens to hundreds of meters high were observed at almost all stations. Associated dissipation was elevated in the bottom 500–1000 m but was strongest by far atop the western ridge on the northern line, where &gt;500-m overturns resulted in dissipation exceeding 2 × 10−6 W kg−1 (implying diapycnal diffusivity Kρ &gt; 0.2 m2 s−1). Integrated dissipation at this location is comparable to conversion and flux divergence terms in the energy budget. The authors speculate that resonance between the two ridges may partly explain the energetic motions and heightened dissipation.
Verification of a Multimodel Storm Surge Ensemble around New York City and Long Island for the Cool Season
Authors: Di Liberto Tom , Colle Brian A. , Georgas Nickitas , Blumberg Alan F. , Taylor Arthur A. 
Published: July 2011

Abstract
Three real-time storm surge forecasting systems [the eight-member Stony Brook ensemble (SBSS), the Stevens Institute of Technology’s New York Harbor Observing and Prediction System (SIT-NYHOPS), and the NOAA Extratropical Storm Surge (NOAA-ET) model] are verified for 74 available days during the 2007–08 and 2008–09 cool seasons for five stations around the New York City–Long Island region. For the raw storm surge forecasts, the SIT-NYHOPS model has the lowest root-mean-square errors (RMSEs) on average, while the NOAA-ET has the largest RMSEs after hour 24 as a result of a relatively large negative surge bias. The SIT-NYHOPS and SBSS also have a slight negative surge bias after hour 24. Many of the underpredicted surges in the SBSS ensemble are associated with large waves at an offshore buoy, thus illustrating the potential importance of nearshore wave breaking (radiation stresses) on the surge predictions. A bias correction using the last 5 days of predictions (BC) removes most of the surge bias in the NOAA-ET model, with the NOAA-ET-BC having a similar level of accuracy as the SIT-NYHOPS-BC for positive surges. A multimodel surge ensemble (ENS-3) comprising the SBSS control member, SIT-NYHOPS, and NOAA-ET models has a better degree of deterministic accuracy than any individual member. Probabilistically, the ALL ensemble (eight SBSS members, SIT-NYHOPS, and NOAA-ET) is underdispersed and does not improve after applying a bias correction. The ENS-3 improves the Brier skill score (BSS) relative to the best deterministic member (SIT-NYHOPS), and the ENS-3 has a larger BSS and better reliability than the SBSS and ALL ensembles, thus illustrating the benefits of a multimodel storm surge ensemble.