1. |
- Lappalainen, H. K., et al.
(author)
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Overview: Recent advances in the understanding of the northern Eurasian environments and of the urban air quality in China - a Pan-Eurasian Experiment (PEEX) programme perspective
- 2022
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In: Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1680-7316 .- 1680-7324. ; 22:7, s. 4413-4469
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The Pan-Eurasian Experiment (PEEX) Science Plan, released in 2015, addressed a need for a holistic system understanding and outlined the most urgent research needs for the rapidly changing Arctic-boreal region. Air quality in China, together with the long-range transport of atmospheric pollutants, was also indicated as one of the most crucial topics of the research agenda. These two geographical regions, the northern Eurasian Arctic-boreal region and China, especially the megacities in China, were identified as a "PEEX region". It is also important to recognize that the PEEX geographical region is an area where science-based policy actions would have significant impacts on the global climate. This paper summarizes results obtained during the last 5 years in the northern Eurasian region, together with recent observations of the air quality in the urban environments in China, in the context of the PEEX programme. The main regions of interest are the Russian Arctic, northern Eurasian boreal forests (Siberia) and peatlands, and the megacities in China. We frame our analysis against research themes introduced in the PEEX Science Plan in 2015. We summarize recent progress towards an enhanced holistic understanding of the land-atmosphere-ocean systems feedbacks. We conclude that although the scientific knowledge in these regions has increased, the new results are in many cases insufficient, and there are still gaps in our understanding of large-scale climate-Earth surface interactions and feedbacks. This arises from limitations in research infrastructures, especially the lack of coordinated, continuous and comprehensive in situ observations of the study region as well as integrative data analyses, hindering a comprehensive system analysis. The fast-changing environment and ecosystem changes driven by climate change, socio-economic activities like the China Silk Road Initiative, and the global trends like urbanization further complicate such analyses. We recognize new topics with an increasing importance in the near future, especially "the enhancing biological sequestration capacity of greenhouse gases into forests and soils to mitigate climate change" and the "socio-economic development to tackle air quality issues".
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2. |
- Kyro, E. -M, et al.
(author)
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Trends in new particle formation in eastern Lapland, Finland : effect of decreasing sulfur emissions from Kola Peninsula
- 2014
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In: Atmospheric Chemistry And Physics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1680-7316 .- 1680-7324. ; 14:9, s. 4383-4396
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The smelter industry in Kola Peninsula is the largest source of anthropogenic SO2 in the Arctic part of Europe and one of the largest within the Arctic domain. Due to socio-economic changes in Russia, the emissions have been decreasing especially since the late 1990s resulting in decreased SO2 concentrations close to Kola in eastern Lapland, Finland. At the same time, the frequency of new particle formation days has been decreasing distinctively at SMEAR I station in eastern Lapland, especially during spring and autumn. We show that sulfur species, namely sulfur dioxide and sulfuric acid, have an important role in both new particle formation and subsequent growth and that the decrease in new particle formation days is a result of the reduction of sulfur emissions originating from Kola Peninsula. In addition to sulfur species, there are many other quantities, such as formation rate of aerosol particles, condensation sink and nucleation mode particle number concentration, which are related to the number of observed new particle formation (NPF) days and need to be addressed when linking sulfur emissions and NPF. We show that while most of these quantities exhibit statistically significant trends, the reduction in Kola sulfur emissions is the most obvious reason for the rapid decline in NPF days. Sulfuric acid explains approximately 20-50% of the aerosol condensational growth observed at SMEAR I, and there is a large seasonal variation with highest values obtained during spring and autumn. We found that (i) particles form earlier after sunrise during late winter and early spring due to high concentrations of SO2 and H2SO4; (ii) several events occurred during the absence of light, and they were connected to higher than average concentrations of SO2; and (iii) high SO2 concentrations could advance the onset of nucleation by several hours. Moreover, air masses coming over Kola Peninsula seemed to favour new particle formation.
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3. |
- Juhola, M, et al.
(author)
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An identification technique for the spike artefact of saccadic eye movements
- 1987
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In: Biological Cybernetics. - 0340-1200. ; 57:6, s. 20-415
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Many subjects have a negative spike in the beginning of a saccade in electro-oculographic signals. The amplitude of the spike depends on the location of the electrodes. The spike distorts the saccades and causes errors in the parameters. The saccade spike can assist in the identification of small saccades. A syntactic technique based on formal languages and parsing is presented which looks for spikes from the electro-oculographic signal. For calculation of the algorithm, saccades from the photoelectric signal have been concurrently recorded and compared with the electro-oculographic signal.
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4. |
- Juhola, M, et al.
(author)
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Detection of saccadic eye movements using a non-recursive adaptive digital filter
- 1985
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In: Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine. - 0169-2607. ; 21:2, s. 8-81
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Saccadic eye movements provide important information about the neuron system at several levels. In recent years computer analysis of saccades has been adapted for use in clinical work. The most common detection methods do not always function without the user's control and aid. In the present paper a digital filter is described for the detection of saccades. This non-recursive filter unscrambles saccade data which has been collected during the execution of an algorithm. The method is suitable for use with microcomputers. The filter is adaptive. Two concise experiments using the method are described.
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5. |
- Kaukonen, M, et al.
(author)
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A missense variant in IFT122 associated with a canine model of retinitis pigmentosa
- 2021
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In: Human genetics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1432-1203 .- 0340-6717. ; 140:11, s. 1569-1579
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a blinding eye disease affecting nearly two million people worldwide. Dogs are affected with a similar illness termed progressive retinal atrophy (PRA). Lapponian herders (LHs) are affected with several types of inherited retinal dystrophies, and variants in PRCD and BEST1 genes have been associated with generalized PRA and canine multifocal retinopathy 3 (cmr3), respectively. However, all retinal dystrophy cases in LHs are not explained by these variants, indicating additional genetic causes of disease in the breed. We collected DNA samples from 10 PRA affected LHs, with known PRCD and BEST1 variants excluded, and 34 unaffected LHs. A genome-wide association study identified a locus on CFA20 (praw = 2.4 × 10–7, pBonf = 0.035), and subsequent whole-genome sequencing of an affected LH revealed a missense variant, c.3176G>A, in the intraflagellar transport 122 (IFT122) gene. The variant was also found in Finnish Lapphunds, in which its clinical relevancy needs to be studied further. The variant interrupts a highly conserved residue, p.(R1059H), in IFT122 and likely impairs its function. Variants in IFT122 have not been associated with retinal degeneration in mammals, but the loss of ift122 in zebrafish larvae impaired opsin transport and resulted in progressive photoreceptor degeneration. Our study establishes a new spontaneous dog model to study the role of IFT122 in RP biology, while the affected breed will benefit from a genetic test for a recessive condition.
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6. |
- Niburg, M., et al.
(author)
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A complete sub-system of parallel optical interconnects for telecom applications
- 1996
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In: 1996 Proceedings 46th Electronic Components and Technology Conference. ; , s. 259-263
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Conference paper (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Increased throughput and flexibility requirements in large-scale electronic equipment create needs for increased interconnection density capacity and re-configurability. The growing demand for new broadband interactive telecom and computer services is expected to enforce this development, which presents a challenge to traditional electronic interconnection techniques and an opportunity for new optical solutions, provided that the cost of introduction of the optical technology is affordable for both system operators and service users. The authors describe a complete sub-system of parallel optical interconnects (i.e., a total solution including the link itself and the equipment practice supporting the link) which exhibits both cost and performance benefits compared to a pure electrical or a serial optical solution.
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7. |
- Bustamante, Mercedes, et al.
(author)
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Ten new insights in climate science 2023
- 2023
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In: Global Sustainability. - : CAMBRIDGE UNIV PRESS. - 2059-4798. ; 7
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Research review (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Non-technical summary We identify a set of essential recent advances in climate change research with high policy relevance, across natural and social sciences: (1) looming inevitability and implications of overshooting the 1.5 degrees C warming limit, (2) urgent need for a rapid and managed fossil fuel phase-out, (3) challenges for scaling carbon dioxide removal, (4) uncertainties regarding the future contribution of natural carbon sinks, (5) intertwinedness of the crises of biodiversity loss and climate change, (6) compound events, (7) mountain glacier loss, (8) human immobility in the face of climate risks, (9) adaptation justice, and (10) just transitions in food systems.Technical summary The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Assessment Reports provides the scientific foundation for international climate negotiations and constitutes an unmatched resource for researchers. However, the assessment cycles take multiple years. As a contribution to cross- and interdisciplinary understanding of climate change across diverse research communities, we have streamlined an annual process to identify and synthesize significant research advances. We collected input from experts on various fields using an online questionnaire and prioritized a set of 10 key research insights with high policy relevance. This year, we focus on: (1) the looming overshoot of the 1.5 degrees C warming limit, (2) the urgency of fossil fuel phase-out, (3) challenges to scale-up carbon dioxide removal, (4) uncertainties regarding future natural carbon sinks, (5) the need for joint governance of biodiversity loss and climate change, (6) advances in understanding compound events, (7) accelerated mountain glacier loss, (8) human immobility amidst climate risks, (9) adaptation justice, and (10) just transitions in food systems. We present a succinct account of these insights, reflect on their policy implications, and offer an integrated set of policy-relevant messages. This science synthesis and science communication effort is also the basis for a policy report contributing to elevate climate science every year in time for the United Nations Climate Change Conference.Social media summary We highlight recent and policy-relevant advances in climate change research - with input from more than 200 experts.
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8. |
- Juhola, Sirkku, et al.
(author)
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Adaptation decision-making in the Nordic countries: assessing the potential for joint action
- 2014
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In: Environment Systems and Decisions. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2194-5403 .- 2194-5411. ; 34:4, s. 600-611
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- In a global context, the outlook for the Nordic region is relatively favourable, given its relatively stronger resiliency to climate change impacts in comparison to many other geo-political regions of the world. Overall, the projected climatic changes include increases in mean temperatures and in precipitation, although regional variations can be significant. The countries’ robust institutions and economies give them a strong capacity to adapt to these changes. Still, the need for adaptation to the changing climate has been and still is substantial, and in most of the region, there has been progress on the issue. This paper explores the potential for Nordic cooperation on adaptation; specifically, for the development of a regional adaptation strategy. In particular, it addresses two questions (1) What is the current state of adaptation in the Nordic countries? and (2) What are the potential benefits and weaknesses of a Nordic strategy for adaptation? In order to answer these two questions, this paper examines reviews the current national adaptation policies of each Nordic country and discusses the challenges facing a Nordic strategy and finally assesses the potential for common Nordic adaptation policy and further cooperation.
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9. |
- Lappalainen, Hanna K., et al.
(author)
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Pan-Eurasian Experiment (PEEX) : towards a holistic understanding of the feedbacks and interactions in the land-atmosphere-ocean-society continuum in the northern Eurasian region
- 2016
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In: Atmospheric Chemistry And Physics. - : Copernicus GmbH. - 1680-7316 .- 1680-7324. ; 16:22, s. 14421-14461
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- The northern Eurasian regions and Arctic Ocean will very likely undergo substantial changes during the next decades. The Arctic-boreal natural environments play a crucial role in the global climate via albedo change, carbon sources and sinks as well as atmospheric aerosol production from biogenic volatile organic compounds. Furthermore, it is expected that global trade activities, demographic movement, and use of natural resources will be increasing in the Arctic regions. There is a need for a novel research approach, which not only identifies and tackles the relevant multi-disciplinary research questions, but also is able to make a holistic system analysis of the expected feedbacks. In this paper, we introduce the research agenda of the Pan-Eurasian Experiment (PEEX), a multi-scale, multi-disciplinary and international program started in 2012 (https://www.atm.helsinki.fi/peex/). PEEX sets a research approach by which large-scale research topics are investigated from a system perspective and which aims to fill the key gaps in our understanding of the feedbacks and interactions between the land-atmosphereaquatic-society continuum in the northern Eurasian region. We introduce here the state of the art for the key topics in the PEEX research agenda and present the future prospects of the research, which we see relevant in this context.
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