Multi-satellite observed responses of precipitation and its extremes to interannual climate variability

The consistency of precipitation variability estimated from the multiple satellite-based observing systems is assessed. There is generally good agreement between TRMM TMI, SSM/I, GPCP and AMSRE datasets for the inter-annual variability of precipitation since 1997 but the HOAPS dataset appears to overestimate the magnitude of variability. Over the tropical ocean the TRMM 3B42 dataset produces unrealistic variabilitys. Based upon deseasonalised GPCP data for the period 1998-2008, the sensitivity of global mean precipitation (P) to surface temperature (T) changes (dP/dT) is about 6%/K, although a smaller sensitivity of 3.6%/K is found using monthly GPCP data over the longer period 1989-2008. Over the tropical oceans dP/dT ranges from 10-30%/K depending upon time-period and dataset while over tropical land dP/dT is -8 to -11%/K for the 1998-2008 period. Analyzing the response of the tropical ocean precipitation intensity distribution to changes in T we find the wetter area P shows a strong positive response to T of around 20%/K. The response over the drier tropical regimes is less coherent and varies with datasets, but responses over the tropical land show significant negative relationships over an interannual time-scale. The spatial and temporal resolutions of the datasets strongly influence the precipitation responses over the tropical oceans and help explain some of the discrepancy between different datasets. Consistency between datasets is found to increase on averaging from daily to 5-day time-scales and considering a 1o (or coarser) spatial resolution. Defining the wet and dry tropical ocean regime by the 60th percentile of P intensity, the 5-day average, 1o TMI data exhibits a coherent drying of the dry regime at the rate of -20%/K and the wet regime becomes wetter at a similar rate with warming.

Resilient responses to climate change: exploring organisational learning in networked development organisations

Drawing from the organisational learning and governance literature, this paper assesses four internationally networked governmental and non‐governmental organisations in the UK addressing climate change. We analyse how those concerned understand the climate change crisis, what mechanisms are put in place to address information flows, and what evidence there is of learning through sharing information between the organisational headquarters and their regional offices. The most striking finding is the evidence of learning that largely depends on ad‐hoc informal processes and shadow networks.

The effect of cleft lip on adults' responses to faces: cross-species findings

Cleft lip and palate is the most common of the congenital conditions affecting the face and cranial bones and is associated with a raised risk of difficulties in infant-caregiver interaction; the reasons for such difficulties are not fully understood. Here, we report two experiments designed to explore how adults respond to infant faces with and without cleft lip, using behavioural measures of attractiveness appraisal (‘liking’) and willingness to work to view or remove the images (‘wanting’). We found that infants with cleft lip were rated as less attractive and were viewed for shorter durations than healthy infants, an effect that was particularly apparent where the cleft lip was severe. Women rated the infant faces as more attractive than men did, but there were no differences in men and women's viewing times of these faces. In a second experiment, we found that the presence of a cleft lip in domestic animals affected adults' ‘liking’ and ‘wanting’ responses in a comparable way to that seen for human infants. Adults' responses were also remarkably similar for images of infants and animals with cleft lip, although no gender difference in attractiveness ratings or viewing times emerged for animals. We suggest that the presence of a cleft lip can substantially change the way in which adults respond to human and animal faces. Furthermore, women may respond in different ways to men when asked to appraise infant attractiveness, despite the fact that men and women ‘want’ to view images of infants for similar durations.

Walled in: ordinary East Germans' responses to 13 August 1961

The building of the Berlin Wall on 13 August 1961 had repercussions not only on the international scene, but also for the power relationship between state and society in the German Democratic Republic. This article considers the short-, medium- and long-term reactions of the East German population to the border closure from a personal and political perspective, examining key groups such as educated elites, workers, and young people. The closed society elicited a new deference in the short term, but the author argues for considerable continuities of low-level disruptive behavior before and after 13 August. In the longer term, there was a generation born behind the Wall which by simple habituation rather than a conscious decision was forced to accept the new contours of the geopolitical landscape created by the Wall.

Evidence for involvement of both IKCa and SKCa channels in hyperpolarizing responses of the rat middle cerebral artery

Endothelium-derived hyperpolarizing factor responses in the rat middle cerebral artery are blocked by inhibiting IKCa channels alone, contrasting with peripheral vessels where block of both IKCa and SKCa is required. As the contribution of IKCa and SKCa to endothelium-dependent hyperpolarization differs in peripheral arteries, depending on the level of arterial constriction, we investigated the possibility that SKCa might contribute to equivalent hyperpolarization in cerebral arteries under certain conditions. METHODS: Rat middle cerebral arteries (approximately 175 microm) were mounted in a wire myograph. The effect of KCa channel blockers on endothelium-dependent responses to the protease-activated receptor 2 agonist, SLIGRL (20 micromol/L), were then assessed as simultaneous changes in tension and membrane potential. These data were correlated with the distribution of arterial KCa channels revealed with immunohistochemistry. RESULTS: SLIGRL hyperpolarized and relaxed cerebral arteries undergoing variable levels of stretch-induced tone. The relaxation was unaffected by specific inhibitors of IKCa (TRAM-34, 1 micromol/L) or SKCa (apamin, 50 nmol/L) alone or in combination. In contrast, the associated smooth-muscle hyperpolarization was inhibited, but only with these blockers in combination. Blocking nitric oxide synthase (NOS) or guanylyl cyclase evoked smooth-muscle depolarization and constriction, with both hyperpolarization and relaxation to SLIGRL being abolished by TRAM-34 alone, whereas apamin had no effect. Immunolabeling showed SKCa and IKCa within the endothelium. CONCLUSIONS: In the absence of NO, IKCa underpins endothelium-dependent hyperpolarization and relaxation in cerebral arteries. However, when NOS is active SKCa contributes to hyperpolarization, whatever the extent of background contraction. These changes may have relevance in vascular disease states where NO release is compromised and when the levels of SKCa expression may be altered.