Even ice Covered Arctic Sea Absorbs Carbon dioxide

Due to global warming, larger and larger areas of sea ice melt in the summer and when sea ice freezes over in the winter it is thinner and more reduced. As the Arctic summers are getting warmer we may see an acceleration of global warming, because reduced sea ice in the Arctic will remove less CO2 from the atmosphere, Danish scientists report.

"If our results are representative, then sea ice plays a greater role than expected, and we should take this into account in future global CO2 budgets", says Dorte Haubjerg Søgaard, PhD Fellow, Nordic Center for Earth Evolution, University of Southern Denmark and the Greenland Institute of Natural Resources, Nuuk.

Only recently scientists have realized that sea ice has an impact on the planet's CO2 balance.

"We have long known that the Earth's oceans are able to absorb huge amounts of CO2. But we also thought that this did not apply to ocean areas covered by ice, because the ice was considered impenetrable. However, this is not true: New research shows that sea ice in the Arctic draws large amounts of CO2 from the atmosphere into the ocean", says Dorte Haubjerg Søgaard.

link.

Russia Orders Seven More Su-30SM Strike Fighters

The Russian defense ministry has ordered seven more Su-30SM two-seat fighters worth 13 billion roubles ($331 million), boosting the total to be acquired to 72. Of these, the Russian air force is getting 60 and naval aviation 12. An initial contract for 30 was placed in 2012. Some have reportedly been deployed to the disputed region of Crimea.

Signing the latest order at the Girdoaviasalon 2014 show, deputy defense minister Yuri Borisov said, “The Su-30SM is a modern multirole aircraft that can be used against aerial, ground and sea-going targets. It can considerably boost the potential of naval aviation.”

The latest contract comes with an option for 10 more aircraft and is timed to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the founding of IAZ, the Russian acronym for Irkutsk Aviation Plant. To date, the enterprise has shipped 29 Su-30SMs to the Russian defense ministry. This year Irkut is to deliver 15 Su-30SMs, according to IAZ plant general manager Alexander Veprev.

link.

China's Economic Slow Down

WHEN Li Keqiang, China’s prime minister, spoke at a big business meeting earlier this month, he trumpeted two achievements. Not only had the government overseen steady economic growth, he said, but it had done so without resorting to a big stimulus. Both assertions are now looking rather doubtful.

A barrage of data for August pointed to a sudden weakening in growth, catching many analysts and investors by surprise. Although it is unwise to read too much into one month’s numbers, the figures had a distressingly uniform downward tilt. Investment, retail sales and credit issuance all slowed. Industrial output, which is closely correlated with GDP given the size of China’s manufacturing sector, grew at its weakest pace since late 2008, when the global financial crisis was battering the economy. Housing sales, already struggling, contracted further; they have fallen 8% so far this year. That has started to eat into the revenues of local governments, since property developers are holding back on land purchases. Yao Wei of Société Générale, a French bank, called it a “shockingly sharp” deceleration.

link.

The Myths and Realities of Synthetic BioWeapons

The dominant narrative permeating scientific and policy discussions on the security threat posed by synthetic biology can be summarized in five ways:

1. Synthetic biology is making it easier for non-experts to manipulate dangerous pathogens and, therefore, making it easier for terrorists to concoct bioweapons.
2. Synthetic biology has led to the growth of a do-it-yourself biology community that could offer dual-use knowledge and equipment to bioterrorists seeking to do harm.
3. DNA synthesis has become cheaper and can be out-sourced, making it easier for terrorists to obtain the basic materials to create biological threat agents.
4. Non-experts could use synthetic biology to design radically new pathogens.
5. Terrorists want to pursue biological weapons for high-consequence, mass- casualty attacks.

This narrative rests on misleading assumptions about both synthetic biology and bioterrorism, and these five myths are challenged by more realistic understandings of the scientific research currently being conducted in both professional and do-it-yourself laboratories, and by an analysis of historical cases of bioterrorism.

link.

Grabbing the Robopocalypse: Fingertip Sensor Allows Robots to Pick up, Plug in USB Cables

Researchers at MIT and Northeastern University have equipped a robot with a novel tactile sensor that lets it grasp a USB cable draped freely over a hook and insert it into a USB port.

The sensor is an adaptation of a technology called GelSight, which was developed by the lab of Edward Adelson, the John and Dorothy Wilson Professor of Vision Science at MIT, and first described in 2009. The new sensor isn't as sensitive as the original GelSight sensor, which could resolve details on the micrometer scale. But it's smaller — small enough to fit on a robot's gripper — and its processing algorithm is faster, so it can give the robot feedback in real time.

Industrial robots are capable of remarkable precision when the objects they're manipulating are perfectly positioned in advance. But according to Robert Platt, an assistant professor of computer science at Northeastern and the research team's robotics expert, for a robot taking its bearings as it goes, this type of fine-grained manipulation is unprecedented.

"People have been trying to do this for a long time," Platt says, "and they haven't succeeded because the sensors they're using aren't accurate enough and don't have enough information to localize the pose of the object that they're holding."

link.

Russia Tested new Nuclear Cruise Missile

NPO Mashinostroyeniya (NPOMash), as the Chelomey Design Bureau is known, reported that in September 2014 it completed tests of a new cruise missile - "In September we completed state acceptance trials of a new cruise missile and two missile systems, ground-based and sea-based, that include the missile."

This seems to be something different from the R-500 Iskander and the entire 3M14 and 3M54 line of cruise missiles that are being developed by the Novator Design Bureau (although I probably should not rule out a joint project of some sort). I'm wondering if the NPOMash cruise missile is the culprit in the INF Treaty compliance controversy.

link.

F-22As Used for FIrst Time in Combat

While we don’t yet have much detail on how many were used, what munitions were used or what targets they hit, F-22s were used in last night’s air strikes in Syria against ISIL and al Qaeda.

F-22s flew in the second of three waves of attacks launched against ISIL targets in Syria, Lt. Gen. William C. Mayville, the Joint director of operations, told reporters during a briefing on last night’s air strikes.

The F-22 Raptors were mostly present to protect other aircraft from both surface-to-air missiles and from the fighter jets of Syria and Iran, said Robbin Laird, a defense consultant here known for his in-depth knowledge of the F-22.

For the Air Force, this is a talismanic moment. The F-22 is considered the world’s ultimate fighter with its supercruise capability, stealth and superior maneuverability. But it has, until last night, not been used in combat operations, leading to mocking comments directed at the expensive aircraft which former Defense Secretary Robert Gates capped at 187 planes. That drought has ended, and with good reason say two of America’s most highly regarded experts on air warfare.

“Effective planning requires the use of the right force at the right place at the right time,” Dave Deptula, the man who ran the air war in Afghanistan, says in an email. “The F-22 is the world’s most advanced combat aircraft and has the ability to negate the effectiveness of threat air defense systems. That’s why it was used in this case. There was no ‘dry spell;’ rather the previous operations in the permissive airspace of Iraq and Afghanistan did not require their capabilities.”

link.

2nd link.

East African Evidence for Pliocene Neogene Millenial-scale Climate Variability

East African lake evidence for Pliocene millennial-scale climate variability

Authors:

Wilson et al

Abstract:

Late Cenozoic climate history in Africa was punctuated by episodes of variability, characterized by the appearance and disappearance of large freshwater lakes within the East African Rift Valley. In the Baringo-Bogoria basin, a well-dated sequence of diatomites and fluviolacustrine sediments documents the precessionally forced cycling of an extensive lake system between 2.70 Ma and 2.55 Ma. One diatomite unit was studied, using the oxygen isotope composition of diatom silica combined with X-ray fluorescence spectrometry and taxonomic assemblage changes, to explore the nature of climate variability during this interval. Data reveal a rapid onset and gradual decline of deepwater lake conditions, which exhibit millennial-scale cyclicity of ∼1400–1700 yr, similar to late Quaternary Dansgaard-Oeschger events. These cycles are thought to reflect enhanced precipitation coincident with increased monsoonal strength, suggesting the existence of a teleconnection between the high latitudes and East Africa during this period. Such climatic variability could have affected faunal and floral evolution at the time.

Hubble Observations of Titan's Atmosphere

HST observations of the limb polarization of Titan

Authors:

Bazzon et al

Abstract:

Titan is an excellent test case for detailed studies of the scattering polarization from thick hazy atmospheres. We present the first limb polarization measurements of Titan, which are compared as a test to our limb polarization models. Previously unpublished imaging polarimetry from the HST archive is presented which resolves the disk of Titan. We determine flux-weighted averages of the limb polarization and radial limb polarization profiles, and investigate the degradation and cancelation effects in the polarization signal due to the limited spatial resolution of our observations. Taking this into account we derive corrected values for the limb polarization in Titan. The results are compared with limb polarization models, using atmosphere and haze scattering parameters from the literature.

In the wavelength bands between 250 nm and 2000 nm a strong limb polarization of about 2-7 % is detected with a position angle perpendicular to the limb. The fractional polarization is highest around 1 micron. As a first approximation, the polarization seems to be equally strong along the entire limb. The detected polarization is compatible with expectations from previous polarimetric observations taken with Voyager 2, Pioneer 11, and the Huygens probe.

Our results indicate that ground-based monitoring measurements of the limb-polarization of Titan could be useful for investigating local haze properties and the impact of short-term and seasonal variations of the hazy atmosphere of Titan. Planets with hazy atmospheres similar to Titan are particularly good candidates for detection with the polarimetric mode of the upcoming planet finder instrument at the VLT. Therefore, a good knowledge of the polarization properties of Titan is also important for the search and investigation of extra-solar planets.

Dating the End of the Greek Bronze Age

Dating the End of the Greek Bronze Age: A Robust Radiocarbon-Based Chronology from Assiros Toumba

Authors:

Wardle et al

Abstract:

Over 60 recent analyses of animal bones, plant remains, and building timbers from Assiros in northern Greece form an unique series from the 14th to the 10th century BC. With the exception of Thera, the number of 14C determinations from other Late Bronze Age sites in Greece has been small and their contribution to chronologies minimal. The absolute dates determined for Assiros through Bayesian modelling are both consistent and unexpected, since they are systematically earlier than the conventional chronologies of southern Greece by between 70 and 100 years. They have not been skewed by reference to assumed historical dates used as priors. They support high rather than low Iron Age chronologies from Spain to Israel where the merits of each are fiercely debated but remain unresolved.

Paleogene Procreodid Arctocyon mumak's Paleoecological Implications

Gnathic and postcranial skeleton of the largest known arctocyonid ‘condylarth’ Arctocyon mumak (Mammalia, Procreodi) and ecomorphological diversity in Procreodi

Authors:

Gould et al

Abstract:

Procreodi is an order of Paleocene and Eocene mammals thought to lie at the base of the radiation of the paraphyletic ‘condylarths.’ Taxa within the order have been linked to the origins of other condylarth groups, and of some living orders. Within the order, there are specializations indicative of a range of behaviors, and a considerable size range including some of the largest Paleocene mammals. Arctocyon mumak is the largest known arctocyonid. Several craniodental specimens from the Tiffanian of western North America and one partial skeleton, preserving parts of the fore- and hind limbs, pelvic and pectoral girdles, and some vertebrae, with associated teeth and other bony elements, are described here for the first time. Skeletal elements of A. mumak are larger than those of other species of Arctocyon and Anacodon, but are otherwise similar in overall morphology. Certain features of the tarsus, such as the large plantar tubercle on the navicular and the well-developed groove below the sustentaculum tali, are shared between A. mumak and Anacodon to the exclusion of Artcocyon and are suggestive of plantigrady and a degree of fossoriality. Univariate and multivariate statistical analyses of six ecomorphological ratios successfully distinguishes a taxonomically diverse group of 47 extant taxa with differing locomotor specializations. When calculated for Arctocyon mumak, these ratios support the view that this taxon was a terrestrial, possibly semi-fossorial taxon. Other taxa within Procreodi are recovered as more arboreal or more terrestrial. Significant ecological and morphological variation exists within this understudied group.

Caseid Tracks in Lower Permian Oklahoma?

Dimetropus osageorum n. isp. from the Early Permian of Oklahoma (USA): A Trace and its Trackmaker

Authors:

Sacchi et al

Abstract:

A new ichnospecies is named as Dimetropus osageorum n. isp. within the ichnogenus Dimetropus Romer and Price, 1940. The new ichnotaxon comes from the Lower Permian Midco Member of the Wellington Formation, cropping out near Perry, Noble Co. (Oklahoma, USA), and differs from congeneric ichnospecies in the apparent heteropody and in the proportionally shorter digits. The characters of the new ichnotaxon, together with comparative analysis of footprints and of known skeletal remains, suggest referral of the trackmaker to the Caseidae, although edaphosaurid affinities cannot be excluded. Tracks referred to Dimetropus exhibit wide variation, and their respective trackmakers may be ascribed to an accordingly wide range of different zoological taxa among non-therapsid Synapsida and not only to Sphenacodontidae as has been generally believed. At the same time, the process of attributing ichnotaxa, on the basis of well preserved tracks and by comparison with known skeletal remains, is validated.

West African Sedimentation From the Orosirian PaleoProterozoic From an Enigmatic Source

New insights on Proterozoic tectonics and sedimentation along the peri-Gondwanan West African margin based on zircon U-Pb SHRIMP geochronology

Authors:

De Waele et al

Abstract:

New mapping and age data from rocks of the West African Craton and its western margin, as well as a review of published age data for the region indicate that the southwestern margin of the craton is composed of an Archaean basement of TTG gneisses and granitoid rocks that formed over a long period of time between 3.54 and 2.64 Ga. The age data refute the previously held notion of two craton-forming events, the ∼3.0 Ga Leonian and ∼2.7 Ga Liberian cycles, but instead indicate a pulse at ∼3.4 Ga, followed by near-continuous crustal growth between ∼3.05 and 2.64 Ga. Age data for the Kenema Assemblage, a strip of Archaean rocks separated from the main Archaean exposure further east by Neoproterozoic cover, suggest that this represents a tectonic window.

To the west of the Archaean craton, the Rokel-Kasila Belt occurs, which incorporates two tectonic terranes: the Palaeoproterozoic Kasila terrane, accreted to the Archaean craton and comprised of granulite-facies paragneiss units of the Kasila Group, and the Meso- to Neoproterozoic Marampa terrane, thrust on top of the Archaean basement, and comprised of greenschist-facies schists and metabasites of the Marampa Group. A metavolcanic unit in the Kasila Group provides an age of 1941 ± 4 Ma interpreted to date the emplacement of the Kasila succession. Xenocrystic zircon in the sample suggest the presence of cryptic older crust with components of 2.7-2.6 Ga and 2.2 Ga, and the Kasila Terrane is interpreted to represent a Ganderian-type peri-Gondwanan terrane left attached to the West African Craton. Detrital age data on two schist units of the Marampa Group suggest a maximum age of deposition of between 1076-1030 Ma. The detrital age peaks indicate source terranes in part consistent with a West African affinity, but also comprising significant sources of between 2.0 and 1.0 Ga for which no suitable source terranes are known in West Africa. We suggest that at the time the Marampa Group was deposited along the West African margin at ∼1.05 Ga, a source terrane with significant matching components of Palaeoproterozoic and Mesoproterozoic source rocks, was present to provide the sedimentary input, possibly the Amazonian Craton.

An Update of the Global Carbon Project is NOT Heart Warming

CO2 emissions from burning fossil fuel are projected to rise by 2.5 per cent in 2014 - 65 per cent above 1990 levels, the reference year for the Kyoto Protocol

China, the USA, the EU and India are the largest emitters – together accounting for 58 per cent of emissions.

China's CO2 emissions grew by 4.2 per cent in 2013, the USA's grew by 2.9 per cent, and India's emissions grew by 5.1 per cent.

The EU has decreased its emissions by 1.8 per cent, though it continues to export a third of its emissions to China and other producers through imported goods and services.

China's CO2 emissions per person overtook emissions in the EU for the first time in 2013. China's emissions are now larger than the US and EU combined. 16 per cent of China's emissions are for goods and services which are exported elsewhere.

Emissions in the UK decreased by 2.6 per cent in 2013 caused by a decline in the use of coal and gas. However the UK exports a third of its emissions by consuming goods and services which are produced elsewhere.

CO2 emissions are caused primarily by burning fossil fuels, as well as by cement production and deforestation. Deforestation accounts for 8 per cent of CO2 emissions.

Historical and future CO2 emissions must remain below a total 3,200 billion tonnes to be in with a 66 per cent chance of keeping climate change below 2°C. But two thirds (2,000 billion tonnes) of this quota have already been used.

If global emissions continue at their current rate, the remaining 1,200 billion tonnes will be used up in around 30 years – one generation.

Global emissions must reduce by more than 5 per cent each year over several decades to keep climate change below 2°C.

This emission quota implies that over half of proven fossil reserves might have to remain unused in the ground, unless new technologies to store carbon in the ground are developed and deployed in large quantities.

link.

South Korea Wants to be the 3rd Most Advanced Nation for UAVs by 2023

South Korea aims to become the third most technologically advanced producer of drones in the world in 2023 by utilizing its edge in the information technology field, the country's state-run aerospace research institute said Thursday.

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute announced at an aerospace industry forum in Seoul that the country is poised to become a leader in the global unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) market, which is expected to grow 10 percent annually up till the target year.

"By 2023, South Korean should only trail behind the United States and Israel in terms of technological prowess while ranking as the fourth largest supplier of drones as measured in sales," Choi Seong-wook, the director of the institute's future aircraft system said.

At present, South Korea currently ranks 7th among the "Tier 1" leading countries, which include the United States, France, Britain, Germany, Israel, Australia, Japan and Singapore, that possess the highest technological handling capabilities and quick new-technology absorption abilities.

link.

Next Ariane Development Will Dominate ESA Ministerial Meeting

The space ministers of France, Germany and Italy are scheduled to meet Sept. 23 in Zurich to assess how far they are from agreement on strategy and funding for Europe’s next-generation Ariane rocket, upgrades to the light-lift Vega vehicle and — as a lower priority — their continued participation in the international space station.

The meeting should give these governments a better sense of whether a formal conference of European Space Agency ministers scheduled for Dec. 2 in Luxembourg will be able to make firm decisions, or will be limited to expressions of goodwill.

France, Germany and Italy account for most European space spending, and they are the three biggest backers of Europe’s launch vehicle and space station programs.

After working through the summer, officials from the three governments and from the 20-nation ESA — pushed by an emerging consensus among industrial contractors and Ariane rocket customers — appear to have settled on an Ariane 6 design that meets the strategic and financial requirements.

Ariane 6, like the Ariane 4 rocket retired in the late 1990s and replaced by the heavy-lift Ariane 5, will start with one version — a common core with a first stage powered by the Vulcain 2 cryogenic engine, an upper cryogenic stage powered by the Vinci engine, and flanked by as many as four solid-rocket boosters, depending on mission requirements.

It is not an entirely new rocket. The Vulcain 2 engine was developed for Ariane 5. The Vinci upper-stage engine was developed for an upgraded Ariane 5, called Ariane 5 Mid-life Evolution, that now appears less likely to win final funding approval at December’s ministerial conference.

The Ariane 6 solid-rocket stages, each carrying 120,000 kilograms of propellant, will share development costs with the Vega rocket. The new stages, called P120, will power the first stage of the Vega Consolidated (Vega C) vehicle awaiting government approval.

With so many elements borrowed from other programs, the Ariane 6 could be operational as soon as 2019 or 2020 — just a year or two later than the Ariane 5 ME — at a cost that government officials said would be around 3 billion euros ($3.9 billion).

Ariane 5 ME’s development cost has been estimated at 1.2 billion euros. With self-imposed spending limit on rockets of 8 billion euros over 10 years, ESA likely cannot afford to build both Ariane 5 ME and Ariane 6 at the same time. The 8-billion-euro ceiling includes all launcher spending at ESA, including ESA’s share of Ariane 5 and Vega operations.

Ariane 6’s operating cost, once production reaches its cruise-phase, would be some 90 million euros with four strap-on boosters, and be able to lift 11,000 kilograms of payload into geostationary orbit, the destination of most telecommunications satellites.

The lighter Ariane 6, with per-vehicle production costs estimated at 80 million euros, would be used for European government missions, ultimately replacing the Europeanized Russian Soyuz rocket that is operated from Europe’s Guiana Space Center on the northeast coast of South America.

The differences of opinion about Ariane 6, whose design configuration has changed at least twice in the past year, have so preoccupied French, German and Italian government discussions that they have had little time to think about the international space station.

link.

Ukraine: The Frog and the Microwave About to Explode?

A peace deal has been worked out in Minsk.  At the moment, we are going to get a frozen conflict.  There must be a buffer zone between the Ukrainian army and the Russians of 50 km.  The intent is to keep either side from shelling the other with artillery.

OTOH, the ceasefire has been called one in name only by NATO.

OTGH, the separatists have been shelling around Mariupol and in Donetsk at the airport.

The really important questions though are what is happening in Avdviika (a chance there is a large tank attack underway), if the reported attack in Debaltseve and if reports the rebels are turning on one another in Krasny Luch and Antratsyt are true.  Any of these are a big deal.

The rebels/Russians are now starting to wave a flag of the Kharkov People's Republic.  Its just the former heads of the DNR and LNR doing so, but...

Flipside is there is a nontrivial number of Americans ex military personnel going over to train the Ukrainians.  It might be possible for the Ukrainians at least to be able to resist further encroachment with the proper training and...

Poland is willing to sell their old Soviet equipment (as suspected here) to the Ukrainians.  Interesting timing and I am probably reading waaaay too much into this is that the US agreed to sell missiles and other weapons to Poland at the same time.

Time might be on Ukraine's side.  That is if they can lobby Congress well, get their army trained and accept and fix the equipment they are now getting from Poland, etc.  They just have to keep the microwave from being turned on.  Ribbit.

Watch for provocations, folks.  There are likely several coming, real and maskirovka-style. 

Warriors' Mission Bay Arena Gets Flushed, ahem, Fleshed out

link.

Scientists Successfully 'Hack' Rubisco, "Improve" Photosynthesis

It is difficult to find fault with a process that can create food from sunlight, water and air, but for many plants, there is room for improvement. Researchers have taken an important step towards enhancing photosynthesis by engineering plants with enzymes from blue-green algae that speed up the process of converting carbon dioxide into sugars.

The results, published today in Nature, surmount a daunting hurdle on the path to boosting plant yields — a goal that is taking on increasing importance as the world’s population grows.

“With the limited ability to increase land use for agriculture, there’s a huge interest in trying to improve yield across all the major crops,” says Steven Gutteridge, a research fellow at chemical firm DuPont’s crop-protection division in Newark, Delaware.

Researchers have long wanted to increase yields by targeting Rubisco, the enzyme responsible for converting carbon dioxide into sugar. Rubisco is possibly the most abundant protein on Earth, and can account for up to half of all the soluble protein found in a leaf.

But one reason for its abundance is its inefficiency: plants produce so much Rubisco in part to compensate for its slow catalysis. Some have estimated that tinkering with Rubisco and ways to boost the concentration of carbon dioxide around it could generate up to a 60% increase in the yields of crops such as rice and wheat.

link.

New Jersey Subpoenas Source Code, Documentation, Evidence of Criminal Activity for Nonfunctional Tidbit Bitcoin Mining Software

Four MIT students behind an award-winning Bitcoin mining tool will face off against New Jersey state authorities in court today when they attempt to fight back against a subpoena demanding their source code.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation is representing 19-year-old MIT student Jeremy Rubin and three classmates in a remarkable case that stands out for the measure of aggression the state is using to obtain the code and identify anyone who might have tested the mining tool.

The case is reminiscent of a federal one that targeted Aaron Swartz after he was arrested by MIT police in 2011 for downloading more than 4 million scholarly journal articles from the JSTOR digital library, offered to MIT students, to make them more widely available. Swartz faced multiple charges for his activity and killed himself as he was preparing for trial. Although there is currently no indictment or pending criminal charges against Rubin and his friends, state authorities have indicated that they believe the researchers may have violated state laws. The case marks a disturbing trend among authorities to go after researchers, innovators, tinkerers and others who try to do cutting-edge projects to help the tech community, says EFF staff attorney Hanni Fakhoury.

“It’s a very broad subpoena that hints at criminal liability and civil liability,” he says. “For a bunch of college kids who put something together for a hackathon—they didn’t make any money, the project never got off the ground and now is completely disbanded—there are some very serious implications.”

The mining tool, known as Tidbit, was developed in late 2013 by Rubin and his classmates for the Node Knockout hackathon—only Rubin is identified on the subpoena but his three classmates are identified on the hackathon web site as Oliver Song, Kevin King and Carolyn Zhang. The now defunct tool was designed to offer web site visitors an alternative way to support the sites they visited by using their computers to mine Bitcoins for them in exchange for having online ads removed.

“We believe our utility for the end user comes in freeing up real estate on web pages,” King wrote about their program on the Node Knockout site. “Imagine a web where your amazon shopping cart doesn’t follow you around to every website you visit. We believe there should be more options than advertising for monetizing a website, and we believe we have a novel and non-intrusive solution. In this way, we provide utility to developers who can now include higher quality content on their websites, and utility to end users who are spared the wasted time in looking at ads.”

The clever design won the award for innovation in the programming competition.

“This is a very intriguing idea that could really transform online economics if it works,” one supporter wrote on the hackathon site. “There is a much broader discussion to have about mining bitcoins vs doing other useful tasks (e.g. a friendly form of mechanical turk).”

But the program never got beyond the proof-of-concept stage before Rubin and Tidbit, as an entity, were hit with subpoenas from the New Jersey

link.

UPS Stores to Offer 3D Printing Services: What can Brown Print for you?

UPS (UPS) announced plans Monday to bring in-store 3-D-printing services to nearly 100 stores across the country, billing itself as the first national retailer to do so.

With the UPS system, customers can submit their own designs for objects like product prototypes, engineering parts and architectural models that are then printed on a professional-quality 3-D printer made by Stratasys.

Prices vary depending on the complexity of the object; an iPhone case would be about $60, while a replica femur bone would be around $325. UPS can also connect customers with outside professionals who charge an hourly rate to help produce a design file for the printer.

It generally takes about four or five hours to print a simple object, with more complex items taking a day or more.

link.

Boeing may Concede Fighter Market to Lockheed

As funding dries up for Boeing fighter planes, the company is targeting other aircraft — such as military versions of its commercial jets — to keep annual sales in its St. Louis-based defense unit above $30 billion.

The U.S. and other countries have been focusing spending on the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter made by Boeing rival Lockheed Martin Corp. The Wall Street Journal reports that Chris Chadwick, head of Boeing Defense, Space and Security, is preparing a blueprint for the future that concedes the fighter market to Lockheed and focuses on opportunities with other aircraft.

The defense and space unit, which is headquartered in Hazelwood, reported $33.2 billion in sales last year, up 2 percent from the prior year. The St. Louis manufacturing line that makes F/A-18 and F-15 fighter jets could be shut down within five years unless the company can land new orders, either domestically or internationally.

Chadwick told the Wall Street Journal that he believes the F/A-18 can be sustained through the end of the decade.

Chadwick plans to move responsibilities and products around within the defense units' three divisions — Military Aircraft, Networks and Space, and Services and Support — with a focus on higher services revenues, the newspaper reports.

link.

A Technology for US Special Forces TALOS Powered Armour? DARPA/ASU's Jet Pack for Running Faster

Jetpack helps soldiers run faster from ASU Research on Vimeo.

Did the Pliocene Neogene Have a Permanent El Nino?

Simulating Pliocene warmth and a permanent El Niño-like state: the role of cloud albedo

Authors:

Burls et al

Abstract:

Available evidence suggests that during the early Pliocene (4-5 Ma) the mean east–west sea surface temperature (SST) gradient in the equatorial Pacific Ocean was significantly smaller than today, possibly reaching only 1-2°C. The meridional SST gradients were also substantially weaker, implying an expanded ocean warm pool in low latitudes. Subsequent global cooling led to the establishment of the stronger, modern temperature gradients. Given our understanding of the physical processes that maintain the present-day cold tongue in the east, warm pool in the west and hence sharp temperature contrasts, determining the key factors that maintained early Pliocene climate still presents a challenge for climate theories and models. This study demonstrates how different cloud properties could provide a solution. We show that a reduction in the meridional gradient in cloud albedo can sustain reduced meridional and zonal SST gradients, an expanded warm pool and warmer thermal stratification in the ocean, weaker Hadley and Walker circulations in the atmosphere. Having conducted a range of hypothetical modified cloud albedo experiments, we arrive at our Pliocene simulation, which shows good agreement with proxy SST data from major equatorial and coastal upwelling regions, the tropical warm pool, mid and high latitudes, and available subsurface temperature data. As suggested by the observations, the simulated Pliocene-like climate sustains a robust ENSO despite the reduced mean east–west SST gradient. Our results demonstrate that cloud albedo changes may be a critical element of Pliocene climate and that simulating the meridional SST gradient correctly is central to replicating the geographical patterns of Pliocene warmth.

Simulating Titan’s Aerosols

Simulating Titan’s Aerosols in a Three Dimensional General Circulation Model

Authors:

Larson et al

Abstract:

We present results from a new three dimensional GCM with a complete microphysics treatment of the aerosols. We used the Titan Community Atmospheres Model (CAM), to which we have coupled the Community Aerosol and Radiation Model for Atmospheres (CARMA). This model was unable to reproduce superrotating winds without an ad hoc forcing of the zonal winds. Our model was validated by comparing the extinction, optical depth, phase functions, and number densities with data from Cassini and Huygens, as well as other space based and ground based observations. These comparisons allowed us to constrain the microphysical properties of Titan’s haze in the tropics at the time of the Huygens descent. Our best fit of the free aerosol parameters include a haze production rate of 1 x 10-14 g cm-2 s-1 and a charge to radius ratio on the particles of 7.5 e-/μm. Despite recent evidence of equatorial precipitation on Titan, we find the aerosols are only slowly removed by rainfall, less than once in 50 Earth years. One way to fit the wavelength dependence of the optical depth is to model the haze as fractal particles with a changing fractal dimension of 2 above 80 km that increases to 2.8 below 30 km. We investigate the spatial and seasonal variability of Titan’s haze in our model. We find that the haze particle size and number density responds to the dynamics and creates a seasonal cycle in Titan’s albedo.

Using LIDAR to Investigate a Middle Woodland PreColmbian Site in Iowa

Using LiDAR data to locate a Middle Woodland enclosure and associated mounds, Louisa County, Iowa

Authors:

Riley et al

Abstract:

LiDAR data is used to locate an enclosure reported at the McKinney site (13LA1) as well as destroyed mounds associated with the Toolesboro mound group National Historic Landmark (13LA29). Using various geo-visualization and interpolation techniques, one of us (Riley) located the earthwork enclosure, eight mounds, and possibly a ninth or an excavation spoil pile. An anomaly north of 13LA1 and within the detected enclosure area were also identified. There is no modern survey relating to these two anomalies. Our results support historic accounts regarding the location and shape of the McKinney enclosure and its relationship to the Toolesboro mound group. All features found by LiDAR will be ground truthed in the future.

Radinskya is a Sister Taxon to Perissodactyls

On the skull of Radinskya (Mammalia) and its phylogenetic position

Author:

Holbrook

Abstract:

The skull of the Paleocene mammal Radinskya is redescribed here, based on direct study of the type and only specimen. A number of inaccuracies from previous studies are corrected. Radinskya possesses two potential synapomorphies with perissodactyls, namely, posteriorly broad nasals and a small, laterally facing exposure of the mastoid process of the periotic. The phylogenetic position of Radinskya is examined using matrices from three studies, two that originally included Radinskya and for which the scores for Radinskya are corrected, and another recent study of archaic ungulates that did not originally include Radinskya. In addition, a new analysis is performed combining data from all three previous studies, including modifications based on the present study. Reanalyses of the three previous studies give conflicting results regarding the issue of perissodactyl ancestry, placing Radinskya as sister taxon to perissodactyls, as sister taxon to a perissodactyl-phenacodontid clade, or as part of a polytomy with perissodactyls and paenugulates. The results of the new analysis (1) place perissodactyls closer to Radinskya than to phenacodontids; (2) place Hyracoidea and Proboscidea (i.e., Paenungulata) as sister taxa to Perissodactyla; (3) do not support inclusion of Radinskya in Phenacolophidae; and (4) are equivocal in placing Lophocion as the phenacodontid closest to perissodactyls. These results thus support neither an Asian nor a North American origin for perissodactyls. Future studies should examine the origins of perissodactyls and other ‘ungulates’ in a broader taxonomic context, in order to more directly address discrepancies between results supported by morphological data and those derived from molecular data.

Evidence of Euxinia During the Frasnian–Famennian Devonian Mass Extinction

Geochemical evidence for euxinia during the Late Devonian extinction events in the Michigan Basin (U.S.A.)

Authors:

Formolo et al

Abstract:

Several mass extinction events occurred in the Late Devonian, but the trigger for these events remains elusive. In this study, geochemical evidence in the Late Devonian Antrim Shale, Michigan Basin, U.S.A., records episodic euxinia contemporaneous with these extinction events. Diagnostic changes in iron proxy data and elevated trace metal enrichments correspond to the Kellwasser Crisis. In this study, carbon, sulfur, iron and trace metal geochemistry preserved in the Antrim Formation validates the establishment and expansion of euxinic conditions associated with the Kellwasser Crisis and the Frasnian–Famennian boundary. The strength of the sequential extraction iron mineral data presented here, in concert with trace metal and sulfur isotope proxies, provides definitive signatures of euxinia when other data may be more ambiguous in regard to paleoredox conditions. During the time of the Frasnian–Famennian boundary extensive sulfide oxidation at the chemocline, the result of Fe-limiting conditions within the basin, provides an alternative explanation for the oceanic decline in δ34SSO4 during, and following, the Frasnian–Famennian event. Our geochemical evidence, indicating the presence of anoxia in the Michigan Basin, is consistent with data from other globally distributed locations. Euxinia should be considered a key driver for these global extinction events, and possibly others such as the Hangenberg Event in the Late Devonian.

Evidence of Ridge Subduction From Ediacaran NeoProterozoic Namibia

Fingerprints of late Neoproterozoic ridge subduction in the Pan–African Damara belt, Namibia

Authors:

Meneghnini et al

Abstract:

Subduction of mid-ocean ridges is a common feature in recent convergent margins, but is rarely documented in Proterozoic to Paleozoic orogenic belts. Here we describe evidence for ridge-trench interaction in the deeply eroded late Neoproterozoic Damara orogenic belt, central Namibia. The earliest interaction is indicated by primary intrusive contacts between amphibolite facies mid-ocean ridge metabasalts and trench metasediments. U-Pb zircon ages of 550–540 Ma from syntectonic granites in the forearc indicate the timing of partial melting and mafic underplating of the prism in response to ridge subduction. The thermal peak in the Damara belt, associated widespread granitic and alkalic plutonism, and hydrothermal activity coincide with the waning stages of tectonism at 530–520 Ma and are interpreted to indicate slab window widening and slab delamination. We suggest that the proposed two-stage thermal evolution of the Damara belt, comprising latest Neoproterozoic ridge subduction and early Cambrian slab delamination, represents a fingerprint of ridge subduction in ancient orogens.

The Dark Snow of Greenland

link.

Compare the Size of China's J-31 to the J-11!

damn, that's small!

link.

Despite Independence's Defeat in Scotland, Catalonia is Undetered

Despite Scotland's decision to reject independence, lawmakers in Spain's Catalonia region voted overwhelmingly Friday to give their leader the power to call a secession referendum that the central government in Madrid has denounced as illegal.

The prospect of an independent Scotland had captivated European separatists. Besides the Catalans, their ranks include pro-independence Basques in northern Spain; Corsicans who want to break away from France; Italians from several northern regions; and Flemish speakers in Belgium demanding more autonomy, independence or union with the Netherlands.

Catalonia's regional president, Artur Mas, supported a Yes vote in Scotland, but stressed Catalans simply wanted the same chance as the Scots. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has said he will block a planned Nov. 9 vote in the wealthy northeastern region of 7.5 million people.

"What happened in Scotland and the United Kingdom is not a setback for us because what we really want in Catalonia is to have the chance to vote, the same possibility," Mas said.

Later Friday, the Catalan parliament voted 106-28 to give him the power to call a referendum. Mas didn't say when he would sign the decree to set the vote date.

link.

Ukraine: It Ain't Over - Ribbit - Til the Fat Babushka Sings

I have not posted about Ukraine in a bit.  There have been multiple reasons for this, but the public one is that things are complicated.  :)

The ceasefire stopped the major clash between the Ukrainians and the Russians.  However, the fighting as a whole has not stopped.  Its still ongoing in various places, but in lower levels.  One is outside of Donetsk, near Gorlovka and the Donetsk airport.  Another is at Debaltseve.  And largest of all is near Mariupol where artillery duels are taking place.  The Ukrainians report they have lost control of Krynychna, Krasnaya Polyana, Lutuhyno, Slavyanoserbsk, Schastye and Pervomaisk.

There are actors on both sides of the conflict who  do not want the ceasefire.  Based on what I've heard and read, they are going to try to trigger a collapse in the next two to four weeks.

Truthfully, right now, it is in Ukraine's best interest to keep the ceasefire.  It needs time to recover from the Russian army attack.  Its units need to be upgraded with equipment.  They had, barely, what they needed to fight the rebels.  They were woefully under-equipped to fight the Russians.  The volunteer battlions, frex, being upgraded from light infantry battalions to regiments with at least some armour.  Tanks and APCs are being built (or repaired or even potentially checked out after delivery from other sources) and delivered to the regular army as well.

Interestingly, the Poles, Lithuanians and Ukrainians have made a joint army brigade.  I have to wonder what its mandate is and chain of command.  I also wonder how many more might be 'cloned.'  The very least this makes for an interesting source of constant training for Ukrainian troops to NATO standards on the sly.  Even more so if the brigade will be formally based in Ukrainian territory.  Can the Ukrainian president request it go fight in, say, the Donbass?  Or to protect Kiev?  or...?  

In other news, Poroshenko signed a law stating the Donbass is an autonomous region.  Novorussiya will run and take care of itself for the next three years, including appointing their own police.  There is a lot of controversy over the law.  There are also a lot of rumors swirling around it.  The most frightening of which is Putin has threatened to open the land corridor between Crimea and the Donbass by force if the laws were not passed and enforced.  The second most frightening is Putin bribed everyone.  However, given the Russian soldiers have been moved to the 'border' between Crimea and the Ukrainian mainland and then reinforced across the Kerch straight, I give more credence to the former rather than the latter.

In frustration, Ukrainains have started doing the Trash Bucket Challenge: mobs hunt down a member of the Rada from the East or they think is corrupt and throw him into a trash dumpster.  This has happened twice so far and probably will happen again.  Or worse.

The formal reason for the move of the Russian troops was the start of the NATO-Ukrainian exercises - Rapid Trident - which around a brigade's worth of NATO troops are training with the Ukrainians.  That's a nontrivial number of very well equipped Western Troops.  They are a real threat...if they were to be used.  The difference in quality between even the Russian troops and NATO is significant.  Keep in mind the Russians lost hundreds, if not up to a thousand routing the Ukrainians and the Ukrainians were not well equipped or up to even the Russian army standards.  Even so.  The Russian troops might get slaughtered, but there are significantly more of them and the NATO countries are not looking for any sort of fight.  At least officially.

Poroshenko went to Canada and Washington, DC looking for support.  He got some, but not much.  Ironically, he might be getting more support from Congress than from Obama.  A bitpartisan bill was introduced to the Senate declaring Ukraine a major, nonNATO ally, to fund weapons up to and including antitank missiles for the Ukrainian army to the tune of $350 million and for American troops to train the Ukrainian army.  There are some powerful folks in support of it.  We'll see if it makes any headway given Obama is probably opposed.  Obama has pledged $50 worth of vehicles and nonarmaments.  

The Russians are not being shy about equipping Novorussiya though!  There are multiple fighter and other aircraft now baring the Novorussiya logos in their tails!  They have begun flying.  This is inspite of the fact there is supposed to be a ban on all aircraft over the region by all sides.

The Ukrainians passed the Association Treaty with Europe.  However, Europe and Ukraine agreed to a 15 month postponement in implementation to 'allay Russian fears.'  The Russians have since lodged a protest stating Russian requires the treaty be changed.  No small part of it is because the treaty has requirements on Ukraine bring into line the items being imported match EU standards.  Russia sells a lot of 'goods' which do not meet those requirements to the Ukrainians.  This will hurt the Russian economy.  The Russians are getting threatening over it.  May 2015 and on though, Ukrainians get visa free travel into Europe. 

The Russian economy was already in a recession or at least a stagnation when the war in Ukraine started.  In part due to the sanctions and the counter sanctions the Russians have imposed, Russia is definitely in recession and possibly headed into a depression.  Ironically, one of the biggest clubs the Russians have over Europe is the gas and oil it produces: no more.  Or at least not in the future.  Western companies are barred from helping, working with, doing business with or financing the Russian energy companies.  They need American and European knowledge and money to do deep sea drilling or fracking or financing.  This is a medium term impact, but Russia will see its gas and oil output begin to stagnate, drop and eventually halt unless either they can find alternate methods or money.  Russia has stated it will support those companies hit by sanctions, but there are limits there as for how much and how long.  There has been talk of the sanctions being good for Russia in the long run because it will force Russia to be self sufficient: even Medvedev has come out and said that is nonsense.

NATO has come out to state they see the same playbook as in Georgia and Ukraine starting to play out in Moldova.  I hope its hyperbole, but somehow doubt it.

Russia has decided its a prick in general and violated Swedish and Ukrainian airspace. British and American fighters intercepted Russian bombers and fighters as well. 

Oh, and Russia claimed the Scotland Decides Referendum was rigged.  just for S&Gs. 

Again, there is no good outcome for this tale.  This is a Ukrainian story, not an American one.  Its going to go bad again soon.  The best possible hope is for a Croatian Comeback.  However, to do so requires a delay, probably until spring, or even longer.  Perhaps as long as the three years of autonomy in the law passed by the Rada and signed by Poroshenko.

Intel has Developed RealSense: a 3d Scanner Built Into a Tablet

Intel has been working on a 3D scanner small enough to fit in the bezel of even the thinnest tablets. The company aims to have the technology in tablets from 2015, with CEO Brian Krzanich telling the crowd at MakerCon in New York on Thursday that he hopes to put the technology in phones as well.

"Our goal is to just have a tablet that you can go out and buy that has this capability," Krzanich said. "Eventually within two or three years I want to be able to put it on a phone."

Krzanich and a few of his colleagues demonstrated the technology, which goes by the name "RealSense," on stage using a human model and an assistant who simply circled the model a few times while pointing a tablet at the subject. A full 3D rendering of the model slowly appeared on the screen behind the stage in just a few minutes. The resulting 3D models can be manipulated with software or sent to a 3D printer.

"The idea is you go out, you see something you like and you just capture it," Krzanich explained. He said consumer tablets with built in 3D scanners will hit the market in the third or fourth quarter of 2015, with Intel also working on putting the 3D scanning cameras on drones.

link.

heh.  Betcha this or a version after gets banned from art galleries.  

Popular online: Chinese Killing Bitcoin's Price (really, guys? really?)

AntiChinese Theory #1: Alibaba IPO Sucked Them Away!

The price of bitcoin has plummeted in the past few days, and some are blaming the Alibaba IPO for the virtual currency's fall.

Touching as low as $381.17 earlier Friday, bitcoin is trading at a far cry from its position around $513 less than a month ago or nearly $650 in July. And while the cryptocurrency has been languishing for several weeks, it's seen an increasing slide from Monday's open around $470.

link.

AntiChinese Theory #2: Too Many Chinese Miners!

Bitcoin is getting hammered, marking the culmination of a rather gloomy summer in the market for the digital currency. After a 7.35% fall on Thursday, it is now down another 6% since that overnight close and has traded Friday at its lowest level since April, according to Coindesk’s Bitcoin Price Index.

The clearest explanation for this latest collapse is more technical than fundamental: essentially, there’s been an absence of big new buyers over the past three months, which has given sellers an excessive impact on the price. It is now down more than 30% since June 19 and while the decline has been more gradual, it is now running into automated triggers that are exacerbating the slide. Other fundamental explanations are offered up as well, the most interesting theory being that Chinese bitcoin miners are dumping the digital currency for dollars.

 link.

Return of the Cobbler: 3D Printing Revolution Begun for Shoes

What makes 3D printed shoes so enticing for consumers is that the shoes are tailored for each person’s unique feet. Few people have feet that are identical. In other words, your left foot might be slightly wider or smaller than your right foot. Because of this, finding shoes that fit both feet perfectly is rare. Additionally, because the current shoe sizing system is limited to half-integer measurements (6, 6.5, 7, 7.5, etc.), it’s only taking into account how long someone’s feet are. Finding shoes for wide or thick feet is difficult. 3D Printing solves all this.

With 3D Printing of shoes, rather than try on box after box of pre-made shoes in standard sizes, customers get photographs taken of their feet from various angles. This allows the computer to create an accurate 3D model of the person’s feet. This information is then combined with details about the customer’s height, weight, and activities they engage in. After inputting all the data, customers receive a personalized pair of shoes tailored exactly for them.

In some cases, such as with Feetz, the shoes are printed and then shipped to the customer. In other cases, like with United Nude, the shoes are printed in the store, right before the customers’ eyes.

link.

Long-Range Stand-Off Cruise Missile is as Important for Nuclear Deterence as new Bombers, Boomers

In the dog-eat-dog, admiral-eat-general world of budget warfare in the age of sequestration, it’s easy to pit programs against each other. The Navy’s new nuclear missile submarine and the Air Force’s Long-Range Strike Bomber, for example, are both huge strategic-weapons programs with enormous bills coming due in the next decade and much debate over who should pay. Strategic Command chief Adm. Cecil Haney emphasized here this afternoon that he needs both of them — and more.

“Strategic deterrence is more than the triad platforms,” the bombers, submarines, and ICBMs, Haney said. Other aspects — from EMP-proof communications to early warning satellites are equally important — and potentially as expensive. In particular, Haney said today, “moving forward with the replacement for the Air-Launched Cruise Missile [ALCM] is just as important as having a future bomber.”

Built in the 1980s but upgraded since, the nuclear-tipped ALCM gives Air Force bombers the ability to reach out and touch a target from hundreds of miles away, instead of having to fight or sneak through enemy air defenses to drop bombs. A single B-52H can carry 20 ALCMs, arguably the sole reason that the subsonic, non-stealth bomber remains relevant to nuclear warfare half a century after it entered service. Indeed, as stealth-defeating radars and long-range anti-aircraft missiles improve further — as part of the Pentagon’s efforts to defeat what it calls “Anti-Access/Area Denial” (AD/2AD) — even the stealthy B-2 and the future Long-Range Strike Bomber may well need cruise missiles to strike the hardest targets.

“As we look at the world and as it gets more and more complicated,” with the proliferation of A2/AD, Haney said, “it’s very important to be able to have standoff capability.”

But the ALCM is getting old. Its successor would be something called the Long-Range Stand-Off (LRSO) weapon, but work on the LRSO has slowed. Though the Air Force is invested in extending the ALCM’s lifespan, but a replacement would need to be ready ca. 2030.

link.

US Navy's UCLASS Delayed due to Budget, Direction Clashes

The US Department of Defense (DoD) is carefully considering how much funding it will allocate to the US Navy's (USN's) Unmanned Carrier-Launched Surveillance and Strike (UCLASS) system before it publicly opens a competition for the new programme, the department's acquisition chief said in early September.

Asked why the department has delayed release of a UCLASS Request for Proposal (RfP), Frank Kendall, the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, said cost concerns are responsible for the planning slowdown.

"It's driven by the uncertainty about our future budget and about affordability concerns," Kendall said at a defence conference in Washington. "We're looking at all the things the [navy] may not have made provisions for. Affordability is a major concern for us right now, and any new start is going to be done very carefully, the UCLASS is a new start."

Kendall added that officials: "want to be reasonably confident that we are going to be able to actually do that programme, and afford it" before soliciting bids from industry.

NAVAIR did release a series of RfPs directly to the four competitors for the programme: Boeing, General Atomics, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman. The details of those documents are not publicly known.

The USN has reportedly been studying two UCLASS plans - a lightly armed surveillance aircraft and a larger, stealthy and well-armed vehicle capable of navigating through contested environments.

link.

Ichthyosaur Falls Filled a Similar Role as Whale Falls Today

Ecological succession of a Jurassic shallow-water ichthyosaur fall

Authors:

Danise et al

Abstract:

After the discovery of whale fall communities in modern oceans, it has been hypothesized that during the Mesozoic the carcasses of marine reptiles created similar habitats supporting long-lived and specialized animal communities. Here, we report a fully documented ichthyosaur fall community, from a Late Jurassic shelf setting, and reconstruct the ecological succession of its micro- and macrofauna. The early ‘mobile-scavenger’ and ‘enrichment-opportunist’ stages were not succeeded by a ‘sulphophilic stage’ characterized by chemosynthetic molluscs, but instead the bones were colonized by microbial mats that attracted echinoids and other mat-grazing invertebrates. Abundant cemented suspension feeders indicate a well-developed ‘reef stage’ with prolonged exposure and colonization of the bones prior to final burial, unlike in modern whale falls where organisms such as the ubiquitous bone-eating worm Osedax rapidly destroy the skeleton. Shallow-water ichthyosaur falls thus fulfilled similar ecological roles to shallow whale falls, and did not support specialized chemosynthetic communities.

Seasonal Changes in the North Polar Martian Ice Cap

Interannual and seasonal changes in the north polar ice deposits of Mars: Observations from MY 29-31 using MARCI

Authors:

Calvin et al

Abstract:

The MARCI camera on the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter provides daily synoptic coverage that allows monitoring of seasonal cap retreat and interannual changes that occur between Mars Year (MY) and over the northern summer. The northern seasonal cap evolution was observed in MY 29, 30 and 31 (12/2007 to 04/2012). Observation over multiple Mars years allows us to compare changes between years as well as longer-term evolution of the high albedo deposits at the poles. Significant variability in the early season is noted in all years and the retreating seasonal cap edge is extremely dynamic. Detailed coverage of the entire seasonal and residual ice caps allows a broader view of variations in the high albedo coverage and identifies numerous regions where high albedo areas are changing with time. Large areas of disappearance and reappearance of high albedo features (Gemini Scopuli) are seasonally cyclical, while smaller areas are variable on multi-year time scales (Abalso Mensae and Olympia Planitia). These seasonal and interannual changes directly bear on the surface-atmosphere exchange of dust and volatiles and understanding the current net processes of deposition and erosion of the residual ice deposits. Local and regional variation in high albedo areas reflects an interplay between frost deposition, evolution, and sublimation along with deposition and removal of dust.

Identifying the Source Quarry of the Clovis Points From the Gault Site

LA-ICP-MS analysis of Clovis period projectile points from the Gault Site

Author:

Speer

Abstract:

A key tenet of Clovis period hunter–gatherer mobility is the utilization of large ranges based on the appearance of exotic raw materials, particularly chert, in Clovis assemblages. The identification of the sources of chert in Clovis period assemblages is problematic as it has relied on macroscopic properties.

Macroscopic characteristics of chert can be highly variable in a single outcrop, occur across very large areas, and have correlates in unrelated and far removed contexts. An instrumental geochemical approach was utilized that potentially offers advances in the capacity to link chert artifacts to their sources. Trace element data was recovered from 33 Clovis period projectile points from the Gault Site (41BL323) using Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). This data was compared to trace element data recovered from 224 primary geologic samples of chert from multiple primary sources across the Edwards Plateau in Texas. The Clovis points were compared to the geologic sources using canonical discriminant analysis to establish group membership at three spatial scales: macro-regional (greater than 500 km), regional (between 30 and 500 km), and local (between 1 and 30 km). It was found at the macro-regional scale that 21 of the 33 Clovis points were to be geochemically similar to Edwards Plateau sources. At the regional scale, 15 of the 21 identified Edwards Plateau Clovis points could be attributed to a particular source. Lastly, only two Clovis points could be identified to particular sources at the local scale.

The Tussle Over the Croc-like Spinosaurus Goes on

link.

Geochronology of East Australian Gondwana Mapped From Middle Permian Through Lower Triassic

High-precision U-Pb CA-TIMS calibration of Middle Permian to Lower Triassic sequences, mass extinction and extreme climate-change in eastern Australian Gondwana

Authors:

Metcalfe et al

Abstract:

Twenty-eight new high-precision Chemical Abrasion Isotope Dilution Thermal Ionisation Mass Spectrometry U-Pb zircon dates for tuffs in the Sydney and Bowen Basins are reported. Based on these new dates, the Guadalupian-Lopingian/Capitanian-Wuchiapingian boundary is tentatively placed at the level of the Thirroul Sandstone in the lower part of the Illawarra Coal Measures in the Sydney Basin. The Wuchiapingian-Changhsingian boundary is at or close to the Kembla Sandstone horizon in the Illawarra Coal Measures, southern Sydney Basin, in the middle part of the Newcastle Coal Measures in the northern Sydney Basin, and in the middle of the Black Alley Shale in the southern Bowen Basin. The end-Permian mass extinction is recognised at the base of the Coal Cliff Sandstone in the southern Sydney Basin, at the top of the Newcastle Coal Measures in the northern Sydney Basin, and close to the base of the Rewan Group in the Bowen Basin and is dated at c. 252.2 Ma. The end-Permian mass extinction is interpreted to be synchronous globally in both marine and terrestrial environments, and in high and low latitudes (resolution < 0.5 my). The GSSP-defined Permian-Triassic boundary is interpreted to be approximately at the level of the Scarborough Sandstone in the lower Narrabeen Group, Sydney Basin, and in the lower Rewan Group, Bowen Basin. New dates presented here suggest that the P3 and P4 glacial episodes in the Permian of eastern Australia are early Roadian to early Capitanian, and late Capitanian to mid Wuchiapingian in age respectively. The greenhouse crisis in the uppermost Pebbly Beach and Rowan Formations of the Sydney Basin is interpreted as early mid Roadian, a mid-Capitanian age for the crisis at the base of the Illawarra/Whittingham Coal Measures is confirmed. Greenhouse crises in the upper Illawarra/Newcastle Coal Measures and lower Narrabeen Group of the Sydney Basin are dated as upper Changhsingian-Induan, and in the upper Narrabeen Group/lower Hawksbury Sandstone as upper Olenekian.

Is the Tarim Craton Composed of Multiple Terranes?

Is the Precambrian basement of the Tarim Craton in NW China composed of discrete terranes?

Authors:

Zhang et al

Abstract:

The Precambrian evolution of the Tarim Craton in NE China, in particular during the early Precambrian stage, remains enigmatic. In this contribution, we report field observation, petrology, geochemistry, zircon Lu-Hf isotopes and U-Pb ages of the major rock formations of the Aketage area in the southeastern section of the Tarim Craton. The Milan Group in Aketage is dominantly composed of 2.7-2.5 Ga gneissic amphibolite–TTG complex with minor paragneiss. Both the mafic and silicic rocks exhibit geochemical features consistent with an arc affinity. The arc-signature of the 2.01-2.03 Ga gneissic granites and gabbros which intrude the Archean basement, as well as the major 2.0 Ga metamorphic event revealed by zircon U-Pb dating, suggest an important subduction-collision event possibly related to the assembly of the Paleoproterozoic Columbia supercontinent. The ca.1848-1856 Ma massive potassic granites, 1867 Ma mafic dyke swarm and 1844 Ma massive leucogranite dykes reveal magmatism in a post-collisional extensional setting.

A comprehensive synthesis of the major orogenic events and continental crust growth process from the different Precambrian terranes in Tarim Craton show significant discrepancy in time related to the late Neoarchean crust formation ages and the Paleoproterozoic orogenic events. For example, the major orogenic event took place at ∼1.85 Ga in Quruqtagh-Dunhuang terrane, at ∼1.90 Ga in the southwest Tarim Craton and at ∼2.0 Ga in the Aketage-Qaidam terrane. These different terranes exhibit distinct periods of continental crust growth in the early Precambrian. Continental growth in the Aketage area took place during 2.7 Ga to 4.3 Ga. The 3.6 Ga xenocrystic zircons as well as the peak of 4.2 Ga zircon Hf model ages, indicate the possible existence of Paleoarchean and even Hadean crust in the Aketage area. In the Quruqtagh-Dunhuang terrane, the growth of early Precambrian continental crust took place at 2.6-3.3 Ga with peaks at ca. 2.6-2.7 Ga and 3.0 Ga. The diachronous late Paleoproterozoic orogenic events and the significant difference in continental growth process suggest that the Precambrian basement of the Tarim Craton is composed by independent continental terranes possibly detached from the cores of discrete ancient cratonic nuclei, which were not unified until the early Neoproterozoic during assembly of the Rodinia supercontinent.

2014 may be Hottest Year on Record

You wouldn't know it in San Francisco, where summer temperatures have been characteristically moderate, but last month was the hottest August on record worldwide, according to federal climate data released Thursday.

Last month's heat adds to a historic year, with two of the prior three months also posting their warmest average temperatures since record-keeping began in 1880. July marked the exception - it went down as the fourth-hottest on record.

At the current pace, 2014 could very well end up the globe's hottest year.

link.

China Unveils Model of Fixed Wing VTOL UCAV "Harrier II"/Haiyao

China has recently unveiled drones capable of taking off from ships to conduct patrol and possibly combat or attack missions at recent trade shows, according to the British military armaments journal Jane’s Defense Weekly.

The VD200, China’s first drone to take-off and land vertically, showed off its capabilities for the first time at an international trade fair in Chengdu. The flying-wing drone can remain airborne for up to eight hours and lands on pods attached to its four vertical fins instead of wheels like conventional drones. It was built by Chengdu Aircraft Industry Group (CAIG) to be deployed by the coast guard from patrol vessels.

The VD2000 has capabilities similar to small tactical helicopter drones but not their vulnerabilities, according to the report.

A recent Guizhou trade fair also unveiled the Harrier II unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV) which can carry bombs and missiles on its four wing pylons. It was built jointly by CAIG and Guizhou Aircraft Corporation (GAC), but its capabilities are so similar to those of the US MQ-9 that Washington Free Beacon alleged that it was developed using technology stolen from US defense contractors. The allegation may be based on more than the similarities between the two drones. A 2012 NY Times report on the successes of a PLA hacking unit in accessing the computer systems of numerous US defense contractors over a period of several years.

link.

Pax Sinica: China's Efforts to Build a new, America-less World Order

THE clue is in the name. The Shanghai Co-operation Organisation (SCO) groups six countries—China, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan—and aims to be the dominant security institution in its region; but its origin and purposes are largely Chinese. So it looks rather worrying from a Western point of view that the group has agreed to expand and that India, Pakistan and Iran are all keen to join: the rise of a kind of China-led NATO to which even America’s friends, such as India and Pakistan, seem drawn. Yet that is to misunderstand the sort of organisation the SCO aspires to be. It does indeed pose a challenge to the American-led world order, but a much more subtle one.

link.

Obviously the Song for Scotland's Vote Tonight is...

Scotland: The Results are...?

Barring a radical change, I'd say the UK survives intact: right now its about 55/45.  Edinburgh and Glasgow have not reported in though.  From the sounds of things, some SNP strongholds - or supposedly strongholds - voted to stay.  This may be as big a setback from Scottish Independence as 1995 was for Quebec.

Best quote I saw for tonight:

"Not so fast--according to Karl Rove there are still a few precincts in Glasgow yet to report."

San Francisco Open Exchange Intends to be Kayak for Bitcoin Exchanges

One of the remarkable – and perhaps most confusing – aspects of bitcoin is the fact that every bitcoin exchange seems to have a different price for the cryptocurrency.

Of course, no two exchanges are ever alike because they all serve different markets. When it comes to how much it costs to buy or sell bitcoin, this is especially true.

The reasoning for this has to do with bitcoin being a global and largely unregulated market. Because it is bought and sold all over the world, there are numerous prices for it – with no centralization dictating any one.

A new startup called San Francisco Open Exchange aims to fix that. Or, at the very least, its platform will allow users an opportunity to potentially capitalize on the spread across different bitcoin exchange markets.

link.

Robopocalypse Good for the Environment? Self Driving Cars Could Reduce Oil Use by 2 to 4%

Excitement around connected and autonomous vehicles has been building for years with consumers interested in the convenience of never having to touch the steering wheel and governments anticipating significant improvements in road safety. It's presumed that these technologies will also have energy efficiency and emissions reductions benefits, but only recently have experts been able to quantify them.

A recent report by the Intelligent Transportation Society of America projects that so-called intelligent transportation systems (ITS) could achieve a 2 to 4 percent reduction in oil consumption and related greenhouse gas emissions each year over the next 10 years as these technologies percolate into the market.

link.

Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121 on Track for F-35B IOC in 2015

Pilots at Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121, the US Marine Corps' (USMC's) first operational squadron of Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II Joint Strike Fighters began training in early September to the standards required for the jump-jet version of the aircraft's initial operational capability (IOC) declaration, according to the squadron's pilots and leaders.

"We shifted into IOC training last week," Lieutenant Colonel Steve Gillette, the squadron's commanding officer, told IHS Jane's on 12 September. He explained that the skills checklist the pilots are training to now features more specific and rigorous standards than it did when they first began flying the F-35 in 2012.

After taking over command of the squadron in 2013, Lieut. Col. Gillette began overseeing the move to the more detailed IOC-specific training and readiness standards. "The big difference between what we were doing then and what we're doing now is the rigidity of the standards we're holding people to in order to call a [training] event complete," he explained. Eight pilots in the squadron must master the entire training package in time for the planned July 2015 IOC declaration, he added.

link.