The ecology of the mountain hare (Lepus timidus L.) in managed boreal forests: habitat associations at different forest scales

Aims of this thesis This study is part of a larger hare project in Finland, which provides answers to basic ecological questions regarding the mountain hare. This study of the ecology of the mountain hare focuses in particular on different levels of managed boreal forest. The feeding habits and intensity of mountain hares in winter are explored, and the connections between mountain hares versus the forest structure are also studied (e.g. habitat use and the importance of different forest layers for hares). The use of the environment by hares at the landscape level was examined (forest patch structures), and the home ranges of mountain hares were studied. Finally, the productivity and survival rate of mountain hare populations were also studied (discussion e.g. predator effects on hare populations). Conclusions Feeding intensity seemed to be highest in the spring-winter, when home ranges were also largest. Favourable food species are covered by snow in winter and the mobility of hares is highest during late winter. A shortage of suitable food species may be problematic for hares, especially during the winter period. In this study mountain hares preferred a dense shrub layer at local level and deciduous and mixed tree forest over coniferous forest at the landscape level. Food and shelter are vital for hares and the preference for particular habitats may also affect the population dynamics of the mountain hare. It would be possible to improve the quality of food and shelter or at least prevent the most negative habitat changes through forest management. At a local level it is also possible to add supplementary food for hares through the winter period. The intensive clearing of young sapling stands and especially the removal of deciduous shrubs and trees reduces the quality of habitats for the mountain hare. Mountain hares primarily live in forest habitat and it is possible that changes in the forest structure play a crucial role in mountain hare habitat preference. Ecological knowledge of the mountain hare is vital to create habitat structure more suitable for the species. More deciduous trees should be saved in managing forests and the mechanical clearing of the shrub layer should be done carefully.

Expected Performance of the ATLAS Experiment - Detector, Trigger and Physics

A detailed study is presented of the expected performance of the ATLAS detector. The reconstruction of tracks, leptons, photons, missing energy and jets is investigated, together with the performance of b-tagging and the trigger. The physics potential for a variety of interesting physics processes, within the Standard Model and beyond, is examined. The study comprises a series of notes based on simulations of the detector and physics processes, with particular emphasis given to the data expected from the first years of operation of the LHC at CERN.

Francis Watsonin teologinen hermeneutiikka

Tämän tutkimuksen tehtävänä on selvittää Francis Watsonin käsitys teologisesta hermeneutiikasta. Tutkielmassa käytetään kolmea tarkentavaa tutkimuskysymystä: Miten Watson hahmottaa tieteellisen raamatuntutkimuksen ja Raamatun teologisen tulkinnan suhteen? Miten Watson näkee raamatuntutkimuksessa historiallisen ja kirjallisen lähestymistavan suhteen toisiinsa? Miten Watson suhtautuu postmodernismiin teologisessa hermeneutiikassaan? Tutkimusmetodina on systemaattinen analyysi. Watsonin teologista hermeneutiikkaa ei ole tutkittu suomeksi ennen tätä työtä ja kansainvälistäkin tutkimusta aiheesta on hyvin vähän. Sen vuoksi tutkimuksessa on pyritty käsittelemään Watsonin teologista hermeneutiikkaa mahdollisimman kattavasti, mutta samalla on jouduttu rajaamaan työn ulkopuolelle osa Watsonin käsittelemistä teemoista, kuten Raamatun feministinen kritiikki ja VT:n ja UT:n suhde. Tutkimuksen päälähteinä ovat Watsonin kirjat Text, Church and World ja Text and Truth, joissa hän analysoi modernia historiallis-kriittistä raamatuntutkimusta, postmodernismia ja kirjallista lähestymistapaa Raamattuun. Watson kritisoi niissä näkemiään ongelmia ja kritiikkinsä pohjalta rakentaa omaa teologista hermeneutiikkaansa. Toissijaisina lähteinä tutkimuksessa on useita Watsonin artikkeleja, jotka tuovat lisävalaistusta Watsonin hermeneuttiseen ajatteluun. Päälähteiksi valitut teokset ja toissijaisiksi lähteiksi valitut artikkelit kattavat laajasti Watsonin hermeneutiikkaa käsittelevät kirjoitukset. Johdannon ja loppukatsauksen lisäksi tutkimus on jaettu neljään päälukuun. Tutkielman toisessa luvussa selvitetään Watsonin näkemys tieteellisen raamatuntutkimuksen ja Raamatun teologisen tulkinnan suhteesta ja havaitaan, että Watsonin mukaan raamatuntutkimuksen tulisi palvella teologista tulkintaa. Watson näkee ongelmallisena modernin raamatuntutkimuksen taipumuksen pitää erillään raamatuntutkimus ja -tulkinta ja luoda vastakkainasetteluja yliopiston ja kirkon, eksegetiikan ja systemaattisen teologian sekä neutraalin ja teologisen tulkinnan välille. Kolmannessa luvussa tarkastellaan Watsonin kritiikkiä historiallis-kriittistä tutkimusta kohtaan ja hänen perustelujaan päätökselle käyttää raamatuntulkinnassa ensisijaisesti tekstien lopullista, kanonista muotoa. Watson tukeutuu perusteluissaan Brevard Childsin kanoniseen lukutapaan ja tekstien yhteisölliseen käyttöön. Havaitaan, että Watson kuitenkin kritisoi kanonista lukutapaa sekä formalismista että sen teologisista sidonnaisuuksista. Watson hakee tukea myös Hans Frein narratiivisesta lähestymistavasta, jota Watson samalla kritisoi totuuskysymyksen ohittamisesta. Lopuksi käsitellään Watsonin yritystä liittää tekstin maailma ja sen taustalla oleva sosio-poliittinen todellisuus toisiinsa. Neljännessä luvussa käsitellään Watsonin yritystä yhdistää historiallinen ja kirjallisuustieteellinen lähestymistapa Raamatun teksteihin. Havaitaan, että Watsonin mielestä historiallis-kriittinen tutkimus polkee paikallaan ja siksi tarvitaan kirjallinen lähestymistapa, joka painottaa tekstin lopullista muotoa. Luvussa osoitetaan, ettei Watson kuitenkaan halua korvata puhtaasti historiallista lähestymistapaa puhtaasti kirjallisuustieteellisellä lähestymistavalla, sillä hän näkee ongelmallisena myös narratiivisen kritiikin taipumuksen käsitellä raamatunkertomuksia fiktiivisinä narratiiveina. Watson pyrkii ratkaisemaan ongelman yhdistämällä historiallisen ja kirjallisuustieteellisen lähestymistavan toisiinsa käsittelemällä evankeliumeja kerrottuna historiana. Viidennessä luvussa selvitetään miten Watson suhtautuu postmodernismiin teologisessa hermeneutiikassaan. Siinä havaitaan, että Watson näkee postmodernismin tarjoavan hyödyllisiä näkökulmia useissa hermeneuttisissa kysymyksissä. Samalla Watson vastustaa postmodernismin näkemystä, ettei teksteillä ole yhtä määrättyä merkitystä ja postmodernin teologian taipumusta viedä Raamatun kertomukselta sen universaali merkitys. Luvussa kuitenkin osoitetaan, että Watsonin antama kuva George Lindbeckin ja Stanley Hauerwasin postmodernista teologiasta on yksipuolinen ja osittain virheellinen.

Multiwavelength observations of the black hole candidate 1E 1740.7-2942

Observations of the Galactic center region black hole candidate 1E 1740.7-2942 have been carried out using the Caltech Gamma-Ray Imaging Payload (GRIP), the Röntgensatellit (ROSAT) and the Very Large Array (VLA). These multiwavelength observations have helped to establish the association between a bright emitter of hard X-rays and soft γ-rays, the compact core of a double radio jet source, and the X-ray source, 1E 1740.7-2942. They have also provided information on the X-ray and hard X-ray spectrum.

The Galactic center region was observed by GRIP during balloon flights from Alice Springs, NT, Australia on 1988 April 12 and 1989 April 3. These observations revealed that 1E 1740.7-2942 was the strongest source of hard X-rays within ~10° of the Galactic center. The source spectrum from each flight is well fit by a single power law in the energy range 35-200 keV. The best-fit photon indices and 100 keV normalizations are: γ = (2.05 ± 0.15) and K_(100) = (8.5 ± 0.5) x 10^(-5) cm^(-2) s^(-1) keV^(-1) and γ = (2.2 ± 0.3) and K_(100) = (7.0 ± 0.7) x 10^(-5) cm^(-2) s^(-1) keV^(-1) for the 1988 and 1989 observations respectively. No flux above 200 keV was detected during either observation. These values are consistent with a constant spectrum and indicate that 1E 1740.7-2942 was in its normal hard X-ray emission state. A search on one hour time scales showed no evidence for variability.

The ROSAT HRI observed 1E 1740.7-2942 during the period 1991 March 20-24. An improved source location has been derived from this observation. The best fit coordinates (J2000) are: Right Ascension = 17^h43^m54^s.9, Declination = -29°44'45".3, with a 90% confidence error circle of radius 8".5. The PSPC observation was split between periods from 1992 September 28- October 4 and 1993 March 23-28. A thermal bremsstrahlung model fit to the data yields a column density of N_H = 1.12^(+1.51)_(0.18) x cm^(-2) , consistent with earlier X- ray measurements.

We observed the region of the Einstein IPC error circle for 1E 1740.7-2942 with the VLA at 1.5 and 4.9 GHz on 1989 March 2. The 4.9 GHz observation revealed two sources. Source 'A', which is the core of a double aligned radio jet source (Mirabel et al. 1992), lies within our ROSAT error circle, further strengthening its identification with 1E 1740.7-2942.

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965): a Preeminent Fishery Biologist of the Early and Mid Twentieth Century

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965) was a preeminent fishery scientist of the early to mid twentieth century. Educated at Stanford University in California (B.A. 1911, Ph.D. 1930), Thompson conducted pioneering research on the Pacific halibut, Hippoglossus stenolepis, from 1914 to 1917 for the British Columbia Provincial Fisheries Department. He then directed marine fisheries research for the State of California from 1917 to 1924, was Director of Investigations for the International Fisheries Commission from 1924 to 1939, and Director of the International Pacific Salmon Fisheries Commission from 1937 to 1942. He was also Director of the School of Fisheries, University of Washing-ton, Seattle, from 1930 to 1947. Thompson was the founding director in 1947 of the Fisheries Research Institute at the University of Washington and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1958. He was a dominant figure in fisheries research of the Pacific Northwest and influenced a succession of fishery scientists with his yield-based analysis of fishery stocks, as opposed to studying the fishes’environment. Will Thompson was also a major figure in education, and many of his former students attained leadership positions in fisheries research and administration.

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965) and His Pioneering Studies of the Pacific Halibut, Hippoglossus stenolepis

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965), as a temporary employee of the British Columbia Provincial Fisheries Department, was assigned in 1914 to under-take full-time studies of the Pacific halibut, Hippoglossus stenolepis. The fishery was showing signs of depletion, so Thompson undertook the inquiry into this resource, the first intensive study on the Pacific halibut. Three years later, Thompson, working alone, had provided a basic foundation of knowledge for the subsequent management of this resource. He published seven land-mark papers on this species, and this work marked the first phase of a career in fisheries science that was to last nearly 50 years.

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965) and the Dawn of Marine Fisheries Research in Californ

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965), an early fishery biologist, joined the California Fish and Game Commission in 1917 with a mandate to investigate the marine fisheries of the state. He initiated studies on the albacore tuna, Thunnus alalunga, and the Pacific sardine, Sardinops sagax, as well as studies on other economically important marine organisms. Thompson built up a staff of fishery scientists, many of whom later attained considerable renown in their field, and he helped develop, and then direct, the commission’s first marine fisheries laboratory. During his tenure in California, he developed a personal philosophy of research that he outlined in several publications. Thompson based his approach on the yield-based analysis of the fisheries as opposed to large-scale environmental studies. He left the state agency in 1925 to direct the newly formed International Fisheries Commission (now the International Pacific Halibut Commission). William Thompson became a major figure in fisheries research in the United States, and particularly in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska, during the first half of the 20th cent

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965) and His Pioneering Studies of the Pacific Halibut, Hippoglossus stenolepis

William Francis Thompson (1888–1965), as a temporary employee of the British Columbia Provincial Fisheries Department, was assigned in 1914 to under-take full-time studies of the Pacific halibut, Hippoglossus stenolepis. The fishery was showing signs of depletion, so Thompson undertook the inquiry into this resource, the first intensive study on the Pacific halibut. Three years later, Thompson, working alone, had provided a basic foundation of knowledge for the subsequent management of this resource. He published seven land-mark papers on this species, and this work marked the first phase of a career in fisheries science that was to last nearly 50 years.

Effects of interdecadal climate variability on the oceanic ecosystems of the northeast Pacific Ocean [abstract]

EXTRACT (SEE PDF FOR FULL ABSTRACT): It is increasingly apparent that a major reorganization of the Northeast Pacific biota transpired following a climatic "regime shift" in the mid-1970s. In this paper, we characterize the effects of interdecadal climate forcing on the oceanic ecosystems of the northeastern Pacific Ocean.

Mitochondrial cytochrome b gene sequence diversity in the Korean hare, Lepus coreanus Thomas (Mammalia, Lagomorpha)

Partial sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene of the Korean hare (Lepus coreanus) were analyzed to determine the degree of genetic diversity. Nine haPlotyes were observed, and the maximum Tamura-Nei nucleotide distance among them was 2.8%, indicating that genetic diversity of L. coreanus is moderate. In order to clarify the Korean hare's taxonomic status and relationship with the Manchurian hare (L. mandshuricus) and the Chinese hare (L. sinensis), these nine haplotypes of the Korean hare were compared with 13 haplotypes from five other species of eastern Asian Lepus including L. mandshwicus and L. sinensis. The Korean hare was distinct in its cytochrome b gene, and it is confirmed that L. coreanus is a valid species, as noted by Jones and Johnson (1965, Univ. Kansas Publ. (Mus. Nat. Hist.) 16:357). Further analyses of mtDNA cytochrome b gene with additional specimens of L. coreanus from North Korea and other species of Lepus from eastern Asia are needed to clarify the taxonomic status of the divergent mtDNA clades of L. mandshuricus and L. sinensis.

Poems by Matthew Francis

Matthew, Francis, 'Poems By Matthew Francis', Poetry Wales (2007) 42.4 RAE2008