Physical characteristics of the coastal waters off the south-west coast of india with an attempt to study the possible relationship with sardine mackerel and anchovy fisheries

The present study is aimed at observing the variations, in space and time, of see of the important hydrographic parameters such as sea water temperature, salinity and Resolved oxygen within the coastal waters along the south-west coast of Indiametween Ratnagiri (17°OO*N,73°20'E) and cape comorin ( 8°10'N,77°30*E). Specific data relating to the process of upwelling and sinking was collected mainly to evaluate the extent and intensity of the vertical mixing processes active in the area under study. The study also attempted possible correlations between the observed parameters and the occurrence and migrations of some of the major pelagic fishery resources such as sardine,mackerel and anchovy in the area under study

Application of ocean colour data to study the oceanographic and atmospheric features off the southwest coast of India with special reference to upwelling

Satellite remote sensing is being effectively used in monitoring the ocean surface and its overlying atmosphere. Technical growth in the field of satellite sensors has made satellite measurement an inevitable part of oceanographic and atmospheric research. Among the ocean observing sensors, ocean colour sensors make use of visible band of electromagnetic spectrum (shorter wavelength). The use of shorter wavelength ensures fine spatial resolution of these parameters to depict oceanographic and atmospheric characteristics of any region having significant spaio-temporal variability. Off the southwest coast of India is such an area showing very significant spatio-temporal oceanographic and atmospheric variability due to the seasonally reversing surface winds and currents. Consequently, the region is enriched with features like upwelling, sinking, eddies, fronts, etc. Among them, upwelling brings nutrient-rich waters from subsurface layers to surface layers. During this process primary production enhances, which is measured in ocean colour sensors as high values of Chl a. Vertical attenuation depth of incident solar radiation (Kd) and Aerosol Optical Depth (AOD) are another two parameters provided by ocean colour sensors. Kd is also susceptible to undergo significant seasonal variability due to the changes in the content of Chl a in the water column. Moreover, Kd is affected by sediment transport in the upper layers as the region experiences land drainage resulting from copious rainfall. The wide range of variability of wind speed and direction may also influence the aerosol source / transport and consequently AOD. The present doctoral thesis concentrates on the utility of Chl a, Kd and AODprovided by satellite ocean colour sensors to understand oceanographic and atmospheric variability off the southwest coast of India. The thesis is divided into six Chapters with further subdivisions

Diferencias individuales y desarrollo de habilidades de liderazgo : el rol del locus de control

El presente proyecto se ha elaborado con la finalidad de encontrar la relación existente entre el liderazgo y el locus de control, por medio de una revisión documental que permita dar una visión más amplia de estos dos fenómenos. De acuerdo con investigaciones realizadas, existen características individuales que afectan el desarrollo de liderazgo, lo cual a su vez tiene un impacto sobre el comportamiento de los individuos dentro de una sociedad. Uno de estos factores es el locus de control, el cual sesta determinado por características del individuo, y por el ambiente en el cual se desenvuelven las personas. Existen diferentes evidencias que soportan ésta relación entre locus de control y liderazgo. En éste estudio documental se describirán estos hallazgos, identificando las características del individuo y del contexto que influyen sobre ellos. Asimismo se pondrá en contexto a través del trabajo las características principales de los líderes y como se presentan las interacciones entre los lideres y seguidores, teniendo en cuenta que no todas las veces los seguidores desarrollan este papel al seguir a su líder, sino que por otro lado y estos pueden tomar parte fundamental en la interacción, influyendo de manera directa sobre el líder. Se recuerda que a los lideres los hacen sus seguidores y que sin estos no podrían desarrollar el papel de líder.

The representation of the West-African Monsoon vertical cloud structure in the Met Office Unified Model: an evaluation with CloudSat

Weather and climate model simulations of the West African Monsoon (WAM) have generally poor representation of the rainfall distribution and monsoon circulation because key processes, such as clouds and convection, are poorly characterized. The vertical distribution of cloud and precipitation during the WAM are evaluated in Met Office Unified Model simulations against CloudSat observations. Simulations were run at 40-km and 12-km horizontal grid length using a convection parameterization scheme and at 12-km, 4-km, and 1.5-km grid length with the convection scheme effectively switched off, to study the impact of model resolution and convection parameterization scheme on the organisation of tropical convection. Radar reflectivity is forward-modelled from the model cloud fields using the CloudSat simulator to present a like-with-like comparison with the CloudSat radar observations. The representation of cloud and precipitation at 12-km horizontal grid length improves dramatically when the convection parameterization is switched off, primarily because of a reduction in daytime (moist) convection. Further improvement is obtained when reducing model grid length to 4 km or 1.5 km, especially in the representation of thin anvil and mid-level cloud, but three issues remain in all model configurations. Firstly, all simulations underestimate the fraction of anvils with cloud top height above 12 km, which can be attributed to too low ice water contents in the model compared to satellite retrievals. Secondly, the model consistently detrains mid-level cloud too close to the freezing level, compared to higher altitudes in CloudSat observations. Finally, there is too much low-level cloud cover in all simulations and this bias was not improved when adjusting the rainfall parameters in the microphysics scheme. To improve model simulations of the WAM, more detailed and in-situ observations of the dynamics and microphysics targeting these non-precipitating cloud types are required.

The horizontal spread of a vertical malady: cosmopolitanism and history in Pernambuco’s recent cinematic sensation

Brazil’s recent cinematic sensation, O som ao redor/Neighboring Sounds (Kleber Mendonça Filho, 2012), displays an effective integration of form and content, as exemplified by its vertical figuration that crystallizes the devastating effects of property development and global capitalism. This chapter will attempt to unravel a two-way drive within this vertical motif: a movement off the ground, resulting in global cosmopolitanism; and another into the ground, in search of the social history and film history at its base. As I hope to demonstrate, despite the characters’ late postmodernist disconnect from local context and history, O som ao redor offers a perspicacious insight into regional and national history that contributes an original and exciting addition to Brazilian and world cinema.

Methane cross-validation between three Fourier Transform Spectrometers: SCISAT ACE-FTS, GOSAT TANSO-FTS, and ground-based FTS measurements in the Canadian high Arctic

We present cross-validation of remote sensing measurements of methane profiles in the Canadian high Arctic. Accurate and precise measurements of methane are essential to understand quantitatively its role in the climate system and in global change. Here, we show a cross-validation between three datasets: two from spaceborne instruments and one from a ground-based instrument. All are Fourier Transform Spectrometers (FTSs). We consider the Canadian SCISAT Atmospheric Chemistry Experiment (ACE)-FTS, a solar occultation infrared spectrometer operating since 2004, and the thermal infrared band of the Japanese Greenhouse Gases Observing Satellite (GOSAT) Thermal And Near infrared Sensor for carbon Observation (TANSO)-FTS, a nadir/off-nadir scanning FTS instrument operating at solar and terrestrial infrared wavelengths, since 2009. The ground-based instrument is a Bruker 125HR Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectrometer, measuring mid-infrared solar absorption spectra at the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory (PEARL) Ridge Lab at Eureka, Nunavut (80° N, 86° W) since 2006. For each pair of instruments, measurements are collocated within 500 km and 24 h. An additional criterion based on potential vorticity values was found not to significantly affect differences between measurements. Profiles are regridded to a common vertical grid for each comparison set. To account for differing vertical resolutions, ACE-FTS measurements are smoothed to the resolution of either PEARL-FTS or TANSO-FTS, and PEARL-FTS measurements are smoothed to the TANSO-FTS resolution. Differences for each pair are examined in terms of profile and partial columns. During the period considered, the number of collocations for each pair is large enough to obtain a good sample size (from several hundred to tens of thousands depending on pair and configuration). Considering full profiles, the degrees of freedom for signal (DOFS) are between 0.2 and 0.7 for TANSO-FTS and between 1.5 and 3 for PEARL-FTS, while ACE-FTS has considerably more information (roughly 1° of freedom per altitude level). We take partial columns between roughly 5 and 30 km for the ACE-FTS–PEARL-FTS comparison, and between 5 and 10 km for the other pairs. The DOFS for the partial columns are between 1.2 and 2 for PEARL-FTS collocated with ACE-FTS, between 0.1 and 0.5 for PEARL-FTS collocated with TANSO-FTS or for TANSO-FTS collocated with either other instrument, while ACE-FTS has much higher information content. For all pairs, the partial column differences are within ± 3 × 1022 molecules cm−2. Expressed as median ± median absolute deviation (expressed in absolute or relative terms), these differences are 0.11 ± 9.60 × 10^20 molecules cm−2 (0.012 ± 1.018 %) for TANSO-FTS–PEARL-FTS, −2.6 ± 2.6 × 10^21 molecules cm−2 (−1.6 ± 1.6 %) for ACE-FTS–PEARL-FTS, and 7.4 ± 6.0 × 10^20 molecules cm−2 (0.78 ± 0.64 %) for TANSO-FTS–ACE-FTS. The differences for ACE-FTS–PEARL-FTS and TANSO-FTS–PEARL-FTS partial columns decrease significantly as a function of PEARL partial columns, whereas the range of partial column values for TANSO-FTS–ACE-FTS collocations is too small to draw any conclusion on its dependence on ACE-FTS partial columns.

Is the meander growth in the Brazil Current system off Southeast Brazil due to baroclinic instability?

Temporally-growing frontal meandering and occasional eddy-shedding is observed in the Brazil Current (BC) as it flows adjacent to the Brazilian Coast. No study of the dynamics of this phenomenon has been conducted to date in the region between 22 degrees S and 25 degrees S. Within this latitude range, the flow over the intermediate continental slope is marked by a current inversion at a depth that is associated with the Intermediate Western Boundary Current (IWBC). A time series analysis of 10-current-meter mooring data was used to describe a mean vertical profile for the BC-IWBC jet and a typical meander vertical structure. The latter was obtained by an empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis that showed a single mode explaining 82% of the total variance. This mode structure decayed sharply with depth, revealing that the meandering is much more vigorous within the BC domain than it is in the IWBC region. As the spectral analysis of the mode amplitude time series revealed no significant periods, we searched for dominant wavelengths. This search was done via a spatial EOF analysis on 51 thermal front patterns derived from digitized AVHRR images. Four modes were statistically significant at the 95% confidence level. Modes 3 and 4, which together explained 18% of the total variance, are associated with 266 and 338-km vorticity waves, respectively. With this new information derived from the data, the [Johns, W.E., 1988. One-dimensional baroclinically unstable waves on the Gulf Stream potential vorticity gradient near Cape Hatteras. Dyn. Atmos. Oceans 11, 323-350] one-dimensional quasi-geostrophic model was applied to the interpolated mean BC-IWBC jet. The results indicated that the BC system is indeed baroclinically unstable and that the wavelengths depicted in the thermal front analysis are associated with the most unstable waves produced by the model. Growth rates were about 0.06 (0.05) days(-1) for the 266-km (338-km) wave. Moreover, phase speeds for these waves were low compared to the surface BC velocity and may account for remarks in the literature about growing standing or stationary meanders off southeast Brazil. The theoretical vertical structure modes associated with these waves resembled very closely to the one obtained for the current-meter mooring EOF analysis. We interpret this agreement as a confirmation that baroclinic instability is an important mechanism in meander growth in the BC system. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Feeding habits of the blue shark (Prionace glauca) off the coast of Brazil

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

A bio-economic appraisal of pair trawl fisheries off southeastern Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

The Sao Vicente earthquake of 2008 April and seismicity in the continental shelf off SE Brazil: further evidence for flexural stresses

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Dimensional versus cut-off renormalization and the nucleon-nucleon interaction

The role of dimensional regularization is discussed and compared with that of cut-off regularization in some quantum mechanical problems with ultraviolet divergence in two and three dimensions with special emphasis on the nucleon-nucleon interaction. Both types of renormalizations are performed for attractive divergent one- and two-term separable potentials, a divergent tensor potential, and the sum of a delta function and its derivatives. We allow energy-dependent couplings, and determine the form that these couplings should take if equivalence between the two regularization schemes is to be enforced. We also perform renormalization of an attractive separable potential superposed on an analytic divergent potential.

Benthic responses to organic matter variation in a subtropical coastal area off SE Brazil

Organic matter quality, expressed as the proportion of chlorophyll a (Chl a) to degraded organic material (i.e. phaeopigments), is known to influence the structure of benthic associations and plays an important role in the functioning of the ecosystem. This study investigates the vertical distribution of microbial biomass, meiofauna and macrofauna with respect to organic matter variation in Ubatuba, Brazil, a southeastern, subtropical coastal area. On three occasions, samples were collected in exposed and sheltered stations, at high and low hydrodynamic conditions. We hypothesize that benthic assemblages will have high meio- and macrofaunal densities and high microbial biomass at the sediment surface at the sheltered site, and lower and vertically homogeneous microbial biomass and densities of meio- and macrofauna are expected at the exposed site. The accumulation of fresh organic matter at the sediment surface was observed at both stations over the three sampling dates, which contributed to the higher densities of meiofauna in the first layers of the sediment column. Macrofauna followed the same trend only at the exposed station, but changes in the number of species, biodiversity and feeding groups were registered for both stations. Microbial biomass increased at the sheltered station over the three sampling dates, whereas at the exposed station, microbial biomass was nearly constant. Physical exposure did not influence organic matter loading at the sites and therefore did not affect overall structure of benthic assemblages, which negates our original hypothesis. Most of the benthic system components reacted to organic matter quality and quantity, but relationships between different-sized organisms (i.e. competition and/or predation) may explain the unchanged microbial profiles at the exposed site and homogeneous vertical distribution of macrofauna at the sheltered site. In conclusion, the high quality of organic matter was a crucial factor in sustaining and regulating the benthic system, but coupled results showed that interactions between micro-, meio- and macrofauna can be highly complex.

Larvacean (Chordata, Tunicata) abundance and inferred secondary production off southeastern Brazil

We studied the temporal and vertical variability in larvacean abundance and secondary production on a fixed station off southeast Brazil, from January 2007 to December 2008. Larvacean biomass was derived from length weight regressions, and growth rates were estimated from an empirical model. We identified eleven larvacean species. Oikopleura longicauda occurred throughout the studied period and was the most abundant species, followed by Oikopleura fusiformis. Fritillaria haplostoma, O. fusiformis and O. longicauda were found mainly above the thermocline, whereas Oikopleura dioica and Fritillaria pellucida preferred bottom layers. Higher abundance and biomass were observed in warmer months, when the water column was stratified as a result of the bottom intrusions of the cold and nutrient-rich South Atlantic Central Water. Secondary production mirrored the biomass seasonal pattern. Larvacean biomass equaled to less than 10% of copepod biomass during the same period, but larvacean production comprised on average 77% that of copepods, whereas the production of discarded houses and fecal pellets comprised up to 2800% of larvaceans secondary production. This confirms the potential significance of larvaceans in the carbon flux in tropical and subtropical coastal regions. (C) 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Is the meander growth in the Brazil Current system off Southeast Brazil due to baroclinic instability?

Temporally-growing frontal meandering and occasional eddy-shedding is observed in the Brazil Current (BC) as it flows adjacent to the Brazilian Coast. No study of the dynamics of this phenomenon has been conducted to date in the region between 22 degrees S and 25 degrees S. Within this latitude range, the flow over the intermediate continental slope is marked by a current inversion at a depth that is associated with the Intermediate Western Boundary Current (IWBC). A time series analysis of 10-current-meter mooring data was used to describe a mean vertical profile for the BC-IWBC jet and a typical meander vertical structure. The latter was obtained by an empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis that showed a single mode explaining 82% of the total variance. This mode structure decayed sharply with depth, revealing that the meandering is much more vigorous within the BC domain than it is in the IWBC region. As the spectral analysis of the mode amplitude time series revealed no significant periods, we searched for dominant wavelengths. This search was done via a spatial EOF analysis on 51 thermal front patterns derived from digitized AVHRR images. Four modes were statistically significant at the 95% confidence level. Modes 3 and 4, which together explained 18% of the total variance, are associated with 266 and 338-km vorticity waves, respectively. With this new information derived from the data, the [Johns, W.E., 1988. One-dimensional baroclinically unstable waves on the Gulf Stream potential vorticity gradient near Cape Hatteras. Dyn. Atmos. Oceans 11, 323-350] one-dimensional quasi-geostrophic model was applied to the interpolated mean BC-IWBC jet. The results indicated that the BC system is indeed baroclinically unstable and that the wavelengths depicted in the thermal front analysis are associated with the most unstable waves produced by the model. Growth rates were about 0.06 (0.05) days(-1) for the 266-km (338-km) wave. Moreover, phase speeds for these waves were low compared to the surface BC velocity and may account for remarks in the literature about growing standing or stationary meanders off southeast Brazil. The theoretical vertical structure modes associated with these waves resembled very closely to the one obtained for the current-meter mooring EOF analysis. We interpret this agreement as a confirmation that baroclinic instability is an important mechanism in meander growth in the BC system. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Variability of the subtropical shelf front off eastern South America: Winter 2003 and summer 2004

Hydrographic data collected during surveys carried out in austral winter 2003 and summer 2004 are used to analyze the distributions of temperature (T) and salinity (S) over the continental shelf and slope of eastern South America between 27 degrees S and 39 degrees S. The water mass structure and the characteristics of the transition between subantarctic and subtropical shelf water (STSW), referred to as the subtropical shelf front (STSF), as revealed by the vertical structure of temperature and salinity are discussed. During both surveys, the front intensifies downward and extends southwestward from the near coastal zone at 33 degrees S to the shelf break at 36 degrees S. In austral winter subantarctic shelf water (SASW), derived from the northern Patagonia shelf, forms a vertically coherent cold wedge of low salinity waters that locally separate the outer shelf STSW from the fresher inner shelf Plata Plume Water (PPW) derived from the Rio de la Plata. Winter T-S diagrams and cross-shelf T and S distributions indicate that mixtures of PPW and tropical water only occur beyond the northernmost extent of pure SASW, and form STSW and an inverted thermocline characteristic of this region. In summer 2004, dilution of Tropical water (TW) occurs at two distinct levels: a warm near surface layer, associated to PPW-TW mixtures, similar to but significantly warmer than winter STSW, and a colder (T similar to 16 degrees C) salinity minimum layer at 40-50 m depth, created by SASW-STSW mixtures across the STSF. In winter, the salinity distribution controls the density structure creating a cross-shore density gradient, which prevents isopycnal mixing across the STSF. Temperature stratification in summer induces a sharp pycnocline providing cross-shelf isopycnal connections across the STSF. Cooling and freshening of the upper layer observed at stations collected along the western edge of the Brazil Current suggest offshore export of shelf waters. Low T and S filaments, evident along the shelf break in the winter data, suggest that submesoscale eddies may enhance the property exchange across the shelf break. These observations suggest that as the subsurface shelf waters converge at the STSF, they flow southward along the front and are expelled offshore, primarily along the front axis. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.