Improvement of association between confidence and accuracy after integration of discrete evidence over time

When making decisions in real-life, we may receive discrete pieces of evidence during a time period. Although subjects are able to integrate information from separate cues to improve their accuracy, confidence formation is controversial. Due to a strong positive relation between accuracy and confidence, we predicted that confidence followed the same characteristics as accuracy and would improve following the integration of information collected from separate cues. We applied a Random-dot-motion discrimination task in which participants had to indicate the predominant direction of dot motions by saccadic eye movement after receiving one or two brief stimuli (i.e., pulse(s)). The interval of two pulses (up to 1s) was selected randomly. Color-coded targets facilitated indicating confidence simultaneously. Using behavioral data, computational models, pupillometry and EEG methodology we show that in double-pulse trials: (i) participants improve their confidence resolution rather than reporting higher confidence comparing with single-pulse trials, (ii) the observed confidence follow neural and pupillometry markers of confidence, unlike in weak and brief single-pulse trials. Overall, our study showed improvement of associations between confidence and accuracy in decision results from the integration of stimulus separated by different temporal gaps.

Identification of the Airspace Affected by the Presence of Volcanic Ash by Processing Satellite Images, Case Study: Popocatepétl Volcano Area

A volcanic eruption can affect large areas of the atmosphere around the volcano. Commercial aviation uses these zones the airspace as a navigation zone. Encountering these ash clouds can cause severe damage to different parts of the aircraft, mainly the engines. This work aims to generate a predictive tool based on the frequency of affectation of the airspace areas around a volcano with eruptive activity, taking the Popocatépetl volcano as a case study. Was carried temporal wind analysis at different atmosphere levels to identifying direction towards which wind disperses ash in year months. This information shown two representative seasons in the direction of dispersion: the first from November to May and the second from July to September, taking into account that June and October are transitional months and therefore do not present a predominant direction. To identify the ash cloud and estimate its area, a set of MODIS images was compiled that recorded the activity in the period 2000-2014. These satellite images were subjected to a semi-automatic digital pre-processing of binarization by thresholds according to the level of the Brightness Temperature Difference between band 31 and band 32, followed by manual evaluation of each binarized image. The result of those above pre-processing was a set of pixels with spatial (longitude and latitude) and temporal (date) description, from which the history of the areas affected by ash permanence was obtained. Additionally, a set of pixels evaluated and labeled in table form could be used as training data for future artificial intelligence applications to automatically detect and discriminate ash clouds.

Anomalous propagation of medium scale GWs along neutral winds

<p>Azimuth of medium scale gravity waves (GWs) propagation in the thermosphere/ionosphere fundamentally depends on the daytime and day of year. Previous studies show that the GWs mostly propagate against the predominant direction of neutral winds in the ionosphere. However, several cases of propagation along the wind direction have also been identified, specifically around the equinoxes. The analysis is based on remote observation of the ionosphere using multi–frequency and multipoint continuous Doppler sounding. The network consists of at least three spatially separated sounding paths (transmitter-receiver pairs) at three frequencies, situated in the western part of the Czech Republic. The apparent horizontal velocity and azimuth of GWs are derived from the time shifts observed for different measuring paths. The HWM14 neutral wind model is used for comparison of neutral winds with the observed phase speeds of GWs. Cases of anomalous propagation of GWs along the direction of neutral winds are analyzed. It is shown that the observed GW periods can be substantially shorter than the intrinsic periods in the wind-rest frame owing to Doppler shift.</p>

Characteristics of visible autumn migrations of the Dunnock prunella modularis (Linnaeus, 1758) in National Park “Prypiat-Stokhid” in 2012-2017

The aim. The main purpose of the study was to find out the peculiarities of autumn migrations of birds, in particular such little-studied species as the Dunnock. This is necessary for the development and implementation of a management plan in the National Park for a whole complexes of migratory birds and separate species, first of all rare or small in number quantity.Materials and methods. Our research was conducted at the Prypiat River near Svalovychi village in Liubeshiv district, Volyn region of Ukraine in September and October 2012–2017. Observations were performed visually, starting in the morning half an hour before sunrise and ending in the evening half an hour after sunset (all hours of the light part of a day, without interruption). The light part of a day was divided into hour of observations, taking into the daily changes of sunrise and sunset. Flight altitude was determined visually, and flight directions – by 8 rhumbs.Results. There were 2124 individuals of the Dunnock counted during the study of visible autumn migration birds at one observation point in 2012–2017. The most bird migrated in flocks, but a significant part of them flew alone. The most numerous migrants this species were in small flocks – 2–5 individuals (89.9 % of all counted birds in flocks). There are from 2 to 38 individuals in one flock, on average – 3.2±0.15 individuals. The main passage lasted from the 2nd decade of September to the middle of the 2nd decade of October. The majority of them flew in the morning, in the first 3 hours of observations (75.5–83.5 % of all counted birds in different years, in average 79.6 %). The majority birds of this species were observed in flight within altitudes between 30 and 40 m (59.4 %) and the predominant direction of flight was W (52.4 %) and some less – SW (45.4 %).Conclusions. According to the results of 6-years research, the peculiarities of visible autumn migrations of the Dunnock have been clarified (the main passage – the 2nd decade of September – middle of the 2nd decade of October, majority of birds flew in the first 3 hours of observations, used altitudes between 30 and 40 m and the W and SW directions of passage). The results of our research are the basis for the further study of this species, planning and implementation of conservation measures for birds in the National Park “Prypiat-Stokhid”. The obtained data are also a supplement to the state of study of this species in Ukraine

Kinetic properties of glutamate metabolism in the nematode parasite Haemonchus contortus (L3)

The key steps in cell metabolism of all organisms are the synthesis of both glutamate and glutamine because they denote the only means of incorporating inorganic nitrogen into carbon backbones. In this study, an assay for the activity of two key enzymes in nitrogen metabolisms such as glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) and glutamine synthase (GOGAT) was conducted using homogenates of L3 larvae of Haemonchus contortus. GDH was assayed both in the direction of glutamate utilisation and glutamate formation. GOGAT activity was monitored in the direction of glutamine utilisation. The present result showed that H.contortus had a high Km for ammonia (27.22mM) and glutamine (15.04 mM). The high Km for ammonia suggests a very low affinity for ammonia, meaning that in the reversible amination of 2-oxoglutarate to glutamate, the predominant direction is likely to be glutamate deamination and not the incorporation of ammonia. The activity of GOGAT was also demonstrated but with a high Km, which indicates a low binding affinity of glutamine to the enzyme. Nevertheless, the presence of the two key enzymes of nitrogen metabolism, i.e. GDH and GOGAT, may provide a potential target for anthelmintic action.

Análise espacial da precipitação e possíveis fatores que contribuem para sua espacialização em Recife-PE

A distribuição espaço-temporal da precipitação está relacionada a uma interação complexa entre os fatores geográficos. Dentre esses fatores, podem-se destacar o relevo, direção predominante dos ventos, declividade, orientação das encostas, vegetação, urbanização, dentre outras condicionantes que podem atuar de acordo com a escala de análise e o sistema atmosférico atuante. Partindo desse pressuposto, o município de Recife possui particularidades que favorece uma distribuição espacial das chuvas de maneira desigual, levantando alguns questionamentos acerca dos fatores geográficos que interferem nessa variabilidade espacial. Levando em consideração essas afirmações, o objetivo do presente trabalho foi avaliar quais os fatores geográficos podem interferir na distribuição espacial das chuvas em Recife, de acordo com médias anuais de precipitação. Os dados utilizados foram do Centro de Centro Nacional de Monitoramento e Alertas de Desastres Naturais (CEMANDEN) e as ferramentas utilizadas foram softwares de geoprocessamento, assim como programas de modelagem de fluxo dos ventos. Os resultados apresentaram que condicionantes como o relevo, direção predominante dos ventos, orientação das encostas, tipos de chuvas são alguns dos condicionantes, dentre os apresentados nessa pesquisa, que apresentaram correlações espaciais com a variabilidade da precipitação. Além disso, a modelagem do fluxo de ar, permitiu identificar as áreas de maior advecção e a pressão do ar sobre as encostas, possibilitando a correlação dessas variáveis com a distribuição espacial das chuvas. alavras-chave: conforto térmico, ciclovia, temperatura efetiva. Spatial analysis of precipitation and possible factors that contribute to its spatialization in Recife-PEA B S T R A C TThe spatial and temporal distribution of precipitation is related to complex interaction between geographic factors. Among these factors, we can highlight the relief, winds direction, slope, aspect, vegetation, urbanization and other conditions that it can act according to the scale of analysis and the atmospheric system. The municipality of Recife has particularities that it enable a high spatial and temporal rainfall variability, raising some questions about the geographic factors that interfere in this variability. Thus, this study aims to evaluate which geographic factors can to interfere in the spatial distribution of rainfall in Recife, according to annual average precipitation. The precipitation data used were from the National Center for Natural Disaster Monitoring and Alerting (CEMANDEN) and the tools used were geoprocessing softwares, as well as wind flow modeling programs. The results showed that conditions such as relief, predominant direction of the winds, aspect, rainfall types are some of the factors that it was analyzed in this present study that presented spatial correlations with variability of rainfall . In addition, the airflow modeling it allowed to identify areas of higher advection and air pressure on the slopes, it allowing the correlation of these variables with the spatial distribution of rainfall.Keywords: rain, modelling, relief, wind.

Lithological characteristic of the channel facies of alluvium of Early Pleistocene terrace of the pra-Stryi river in the Bolekhiv section

The article highlighted main lithologic characteristics of channel facies alluvium, which is the most ancient within Morshynska hill of pra-Stryi terrace. Upper and central layers of alluvium section are found to have lenticular structure fixing lines of shallow (up to 1.0–1.2 m) palaeochannels 4–5 wide. Granulometric composition of alluvium of channel facies varies little up the incision. Its main component is the pebble and its content except the first one exceeds 50%. The content of other less spread components of the alluvial layer remains almost unchanged. The fact that there are no vivid changes in the granulometric composition of alluvium testifies the stability of conditions of accumulation of sediments in the bed course of palaeoflow. Petrographic composition of coarse fraction appeared to be immensely homogeneous due to the dominance of Carpathian sandstones. In particular, all boulders are composed of light-to-dark, fine-to-medium grained sandstones. Siltstones and silicites appear in the composition of pebble and gravel only, their content is insignificant and ranges from 1 to 6 %. Siltstones are yellowish-white and yellowish-brown, and silicites are dark grey and almost black. Analysis of roundness of coarse fraction alluvium has shown the predominance of fine-to-medium rounded grains in its content that, in its turn, testifies to long-distance transportation of fragmental matter. Besides, better roundness of clast is traced up the section. In particular, the number of poorly rounded clast in the boulders is decreasing and even well-rounded grains are appearing; the content of pebbles shows the decrease of poorly rounded clast and gradual increase of well-rounded pebbles. The samples of disc-like shape prevail in sampling material. Only boulders of sample 3 do not contain them at all. Samples of other shapes are less spread; first of all, it is spheroid and roller fragments. The lower part of the alluvium thickness contains the smallest amount of them. The content of blade fragments is the most consistent. Measurements of the imbrication of fragments testified them to have moved in the lower part of the alluvium thickness from northwest to the southeast that coincides with hypothetic flow of palaeo-Stryi during the formation of the terrace under investigation. The predominant direction of the palaeoflow in the upper part of alluvium accumulations has changed; there dominates the direction from southwest to northeast, which is closer to the direction of palaeo-Sukil flow. Taking into account relatively coarse content of alluvium, particularly, significant content of boulders and big pebbles and predominance of well-rounded fragments practically in all samples, it can be assumed that alluvium deposited in the bed of the pra-Stryi river, that flowed along the Carpathian escarpment to the southeast to the Svicha river during the formation of the terrace. Change in the direction of palaeoflow in the upper part of alluvium stratum may point out a local change in the direction of this river flow. Key words: terrace, pra-Stryi, alluvium, granulometric composition, petrographic composition, roundness, shape of fragments, Carpathian material.

Processos estruturais condicionantes de um exemplar de Patrimônio Espeleológico da Serra do Lenheiro em São João del-Rei - MG / Structural process conditions of an example of Speleological Heritage at the Lenheiro Ridge in São João del-Rei - MG

Este artigo tem por objetivo apresentar os processos estruturais condicionantes na formação, da Gruta do Caititu, desenvolvida em quartzito de matriz psamítico-psefítica, na Serra do Lenheiro em São João del-Rei, Minas Gerais. Os procedimentos metodológicos foram: a) revisão bibliográfica; b) elaboração da espeleotopografia; c) medição de sentido e mergulho de planos de acamamento e de fratura, dentro e fora da gruta utilizando bússolas Brunton. De acordo com os resultados obtidos a Gruta do Caititu possui desenvolvimento linear de 159,7 metros, desenvolvida predominantemente entre blocos quartzíticos. Com as medidas de sentido e mergulho, concluiu-se que há uma relação entre o desenvolvimento da gruta e os planos de acamamento e de fratura, visto que possuem sentido predominante NW-SE e NE-SW, respectivamente. Além da relação entre os planos e o desenvolvimento da gruta, observou-se que a drenagem é condicionada pelos planos de fratura, que se desenvolveram a partir da história geotectônica local e regional, evidenciada a partir dos mergulhos dos planos de acamamento, falhas, veios de quartzo deformados, e por reorganização dos seixos que compõem a matriz litológica local.Palavras-chave: Serra do Lenheiro, Gruta do Caititu, Caverna em Quartzito.AbstractThis article aims to present the conditioning processes in the formation of the Caititu Cave, developed in quartzite of the psamytic-psephitic matrix, in Ridge of the Lenheiro in São João del-Rei, in Minas Gerais. The methodological procedures were a) bibliographic review; b) elaboration of speleotopography; c) measurements of direction and dip of the layer and fracture planes, inside and outside the cave with Brunton compass. According to the results obtained, Caititu Cave has a linear development of 159.7 meters, developed predominantly between quartzitic blocks. With the direction and dip measurements, it was concluded that there is a relationship between the development of the cave and the planes of layer and fracture because they have a predominant direction NW-SE and NE-SW, respectively. Besides verification of the relation between the plans and the development of the cave, we observed the drainage is conditioned by the fracture planes, which have developed from the local and regional geotectonic history, evidenced from the dip of layer plans, faults, veins deformed, and by reorganization of the gravel that constitutes a local lithologic matrix.Keywords: Serra do Lenheiro, Cave of Caititu, Cave in Quartzite.