The Levant vole, Microtus guentheri, is a pest of most of the field crops in Israel. It lives in gallery systems, the openings of which are clearly visible, and is active above ground mainly at night. Its activity was assessed by plugging the burrow openings (holes) and, after three nights, counting the number of reopened holes. The efficacy of control by whole wheat toxic baits was determined by counting the number of reopened holes before and after the treatment in random squares. Three chemicals were tested: sodium fluoroacetate, zinc phosphide and brodifacoum. The bait was applied either by hand, airplane, or centrifugal spreader. The period between treatment and post-treatment count was one week for the two acute rodenticides, and at least two weeks for the anticoagulant baits. Satisfactory results were obtained: 1) by a 2% zinc phosphide bait, with 0.7 g inserted manually into the voles' holes, or distributed at rates between 4.2 to 12.2 kg/ha; 2) by a 0.05% sodium fluoroacetate bait, with 0.2 g being inserted manually into the holes, or distributed at rates of 1.6 to 4.0 kg/ha; and 3) by 0.005 % brodifacoum bait, with 3 g being inserted manually into the burrows, or broadcast at rates of 5.8 and 8.7 kg/ha.

Let H be an arbitrary family of hyper-planes in d-dimensions. We show that the point-location problem for H can be solved by a linear decision tree that only uses a special type of queries called generalized comparison queries. These queries correspond to hyperplanes that can be written as a linear combination of two hyperplanes from H; in particular, if all hyperplanes in H are k-sparse then generalized comparisons are 2k-sparse. The depth of the obtained linear decision tree is polynomial in d and logarithmic in |H|, which is comparable to previous results in the literature that use general linear queries. This extends the study of comparison trees from a previous work by the authors [Kane et al., FOCS 2017]. The main benefit is that using generalized comparison queries allows to overcome limitations that apply for the more restricted type of comparison queries. Our analysis combines a seminal result of Forster regarding sets in isotropic position [Forster, JCSS 2002], the margin-based inference dimension analysis for comparison queries from [Kane et al., FOCS 2017], and compactness arguments.

Deep inelastic scattering from nuclear targets probes the parton distribution functions (PDFs) in nuclei. Comparisons of the PDFs from heavy nuclei and the deuteron show deviations that demonstrate a nontrivial nuclear dependence to these distributions, referred to as the EMC effect. A global analysis of the world's data on the EMC effect reveals tensions between different extractions. Precise measurements at Jefferson Lab, studying the dependence on both the quark momentum fraction, x, and nuclear mass, show systematic discrepancies among experiments, making the extraction of the A dependence of the EMC effect sensitive to the selection of datasets. By comparing various methods and assumptions used to calculate radiative corrections, we have identified differences that, while not large, significantly impact the EMC ratios and show that using a consistent radiative correction procedure resolves this discrepancy, leading to a more coherent global picture and allowing for a more robust extraction of the EMC effect for infinite nuclear matter.

Cataracts is a misfolding protein disease in which one of the major components is the γD-crystallin protein. The conformational structure of the aggregated γD-crystallin and the interactions that cause aggregation are largely unknown. A recent experimental two-dimensional infrared (2DIR) spectroscopy study determined that the C-terminal domain has a high propensity to form β-sheets whereas the N-terminal domain forms a disordered structure in the fiber state. We present a combined computational molecular dynamics and infrared spectroscopy study of the local dynamics of these domains. The computed 2DIR signals agree remarkably well with experiment. We show that the two domains, both of which have a Greek key structural fold, experience different electrostatic environments, which may be related to the fact that the C-terminal domain is more structurally stable than the N-terminal domain. We correlate the vibrational couplings to known energy dissipation mechanisms and reveal their origin.

The objective of this paper is to present an overview of preliminary results obtained during the SemiArid Land-Surface-Atmosphere (SALSA) programme. It highlights some of the findings in the fields of remote sensing and surface-atmosphere interaction.

The Semi-Arid Land-Surface-Atmosphere Program (SALSA) is a multi-agency, multi-national research effort that seeks to evaluate the consequences of natural and human-induced environmental change in semi-arid regions. The ultimate goal of SALSA is to advance scientific understanding of the semi-arid portion of the hydrosphere-biosphere interface in order to provide reliable information for environmental decision making. SALSA approaches this goal through a program of long-term, integrated observations, process research, modeling, assessment, and information management that is sustained by cooperation among scientists and information users. In this preface to the SALSA special issue, general program background information and the critical nature of semi-arid regions is presented. A brief description of the Upper San Pedro River Basin, the initial location for focused SALSA research follows. Several overarching research objectives under which much of the interdisciplinary research contained in the special issue was undertaken are discussed. Principal methods, primary research sites and data collection used by numerous investigators during 1997-1999 are then presented. Scientists from about 20 US, five European (four French and one Dutch), and three Mexican agencies and institutions have collaborated closely to make the research leading to this special issue a reality. The SALSA Program has served as a model of interagency cooperation by breaking new ground in the approach to large scale interdisciplinary science with relatively limited resources.