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- Cowan, Tim, et al.
(author)
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Present-day greenhouse gases could cause more frequent and longer Dust Bowl heatwaves
- 2020
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In: Nature Climate Change. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1758-678X .- 1758-6798. ; 10:6, s. 505-510
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Substantial warming occurred across North America, Europe and the Arctic over the early twentieth century(1), including an increase in global drought(2), that was partially forced by rising greenhouse gases (GHGs)(3). The period included the 1930s Dust Bowl drought(4-7) across North America's Great Plains that caused widespread crop failures(4,8), large dust storms(9) and considerable out-migration(10). This coincided with the central United States experiencing its hottest summers of the twentieth century(11,12) in 1934 and 1936, with over 40 heatwave days and maximum temperatures surpassing 44 degrees C at some locations(13,14). Here we use a large-ensemble regional modelling framework to show that GHG increases caused slightly enhanced heatwave activity over the eastern United States during 1934 and 1936. Instead of asking how a present-day heatwave would behave in a world without climate warming, we ask how these 1930s heatwaves would behave with present-day GHGs. Heatwave activity in similarly rare events would be much larger under today's atmospheric GHG forcing and the return period of a 1-in-100-year heatwave summer (as observed in 1936) would be reduced to about 1-in-40 years. A key driver of the increasing heatwave activity and intensity is reduced evaporative cooling and increased sensible heating during dry springs and summers. The United States experienced two of its hottest recorded summers in 1934 and 1936, amplified by drier soils associated with the Dust Bowl drought. A large regional climate model ensemble estimates present-day GHGs would cause similarly extreme, 1-in-100-year heatwaves to occur about every 40 years.
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- Karamyshev, Andrey L., et al.
(author)
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Inefficient SRP Interaction with a Nascent Chain Triggers a mRNA Quality Control Pathway
- 2014
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In: Cell. - : Elsevier BV. - 0092-8674 .- 1097-4172. ; 156:1-2, s. 146-157
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Misfolded proteins are often cytotoxic, unless cellular systems prevent their accumulation. Data presented here uncover a mechanism by which defects in secretory proteins lead to a dramatic reduction in their mRNAs and protein expression. When mutant signal sequences fail to bind to the signal recognition particle (SRP) at the ribosome exit site, the nascent chain instead contacts Argonaute2 (Ago2), and the mutant mRNAs are specifically degraded. Severity of signal sequence mutations correlated with increased proximity of Ago2 to nascent chain and mRNA degradation. Ago2 knockdown inhibited degradation of the mutant mRNA, while overexpression of Ago2 or knockdown of SRP54 promoted degradation of secretory protein mRNA. The results reveal a previously unappreciated general mechanismof translational quality control, in which specific mRNA degradation preemptively regulates aberrant protein production (RAPP).
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4. |
- Kattge, Jens, et al.
(author)
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TRY plant trait database - enhanced coverage and open access
- 2020
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In: Global Change Biology. - : Wiley-Blackwell. - 1354-1013 .- 1365-2486. ; 26:1, s. 119-188
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Journal article (peer-reviewed)abstract
- Plant traits-the morphological, anatomical, physiological, biochemical and phenological characteristics of plants-determine how plants respond to environmental factors, affect other trophic levels, and influence ecosystem properties and their benefits and detriments to people. Plant trait data thus represent the basis for a vast area of research spanning from evolutionary biology, community and functional ecology, to biodiversity conservation, ecosystem and landscape management, restoration, biogeography and earth system modelling. Since its foundation in 2007, the TRY database of plant traits has grown continuously. It now provides unprecedented data coverage under an open access data policy and is the main plant trait database used by the research community worldwide. Increasingly, the TRY database also supports new frontiers of trait-based plant research, including the identification of data gaps and the subsequent mobilization or measurement of new data. To support this development, in this article we evaluate the extent of the trait data compiled in TRY and analyse emerging patterns of data coverage and representativeness. Best species coverage is achieved for categorical traits-almost complete coverage for 'plant growth form'. However, most traits relevant for ecology and vegetation modelling are characterized by continuous intraspecific variation and trait-environmental relationships. These traits have to be measured on individual plants in their respective environment. Despite unprecedented data coverage, we observe a humbling lack of completeness and representativeness of these continuous traits in many aspects. We, therefore, conclude that reducing data gaps and biases in the TRY database remains a key challenge and requires a coordinated approach to data mobilization and trait measurements. This can only be achieved in collaboration with other initiatives.
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5. |
- Kehoe, Laura, et al.
(author)
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Make EU trade with Brazil sustainable
- 2019
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In: Science. - : American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). - 0036-8075 .- 1095-9203. ; 364:6438, s. 341-
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Journal article (other academic/artistic)
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6. |
- Margaryan, Ashot, et al.
(author)
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Population genomics of the Viking world
- 2020
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In: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1476-4687 .- 0028-0836. ; 585:7825, s. 390-396
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Journal article (refereegranskat)abstract
- The maritime expansion of Scandinavian populations during the Viking Age (about ad750–1050) was a far-flung transformation in world history1,2. Here we sequenced the genomes of 442humans from archaeological sites across Europe and Greenland (to a median depth of about 1×) to understand the global influence of this expansion. We find the Viking period involved gene flow into Scandinavia from the south and east. We observe genetic structure within Scandinavia, with diversity hotspots in the south and restricted gene flow within Scandinavia. We find evidence for a major influx of Danish ancestry into England; a Swedish influx into the Baltic; and Norwegian influx into Ireland, Iceland and Greenland. Additionally, we see substantial ancestry from elsewhere in Europe entering Scandinavia during the Viking Age. Our ancient DNA analysis also revealed that a Viking expedition included close family members. By comparing with modern populations, we find that pigmentation-associated loci have undergone strong population differentiation during the past millennium, and trace positively selected loci—including the lactase-persistence allele of LCT and alleles of ANKA that are associated with the immune response—in detail. We conclude that the Viking diaspora was characterized by substantial transregional engagement: distinct populations influenced the genomic makeup of different regions of Europe, and Scandinavia experienced increased contact with the rest of the continent.
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7. |
- Otto, Sabine, et al.
(författare)
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Capturing group alignments : Introducing the Government and Armed Actors Relations Dataset (GAARD)
- 2020
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Ingår i: Research & Politics. - : SAGE Publications. - 2053-1680. ; 7:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent research has generated important new insights into the existence, behavior, and violent consequences of armedactors in civil wars. However, the lack of suitable information on actor relationships with the state means that studieshave been forced to assume that armed groups are either pro-government or anti-government and remain that wayfor the duration of their existence. Both assumptions severely limit our understanding of the armed actors themselves,as well as the violent dynamics they produce. This article introduces the Government and Armed Actors RelationsDataset (GAARD), which provides detailed information on all major armed groups and their fluctuating alignment withthe state between 1989 and 2007. GAARD identifies when armed groups fight with or against the government, andwhen they lack relationships with the government altogether. It further provides information on all changes in groupalignments and documents when and how these occurred. We demonstrate that more than 25% of armed groupschanged their alignments and showcase how this allows researchers to pursue original research on the drivers, dynamics,and outcomes of civil conflicts.
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8. |
- Otto, Sabine
(författare)
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Coding One-sided Violence from Media Reports
- 2013
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Ingår i: Cooperation and Conflict. - : SAGE Publications. - 0010-8367 .- 1460-3691. ; 48:4, s. 556-566
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Event datasets on political violence, which are comprised of coded collected news reports, have enjoyed a renaissance within the academic community. The inclusion of civilian fatalities within these datasets is a promising and welcomed advancement regarding the availability of data on one-sided violence. However, these datasets are often criticised due to their heavy reliance on media records, which may be tainted by biases. So far, little attention has been paid to the specific problems that arise in the coding procedure with respect to one-sided violence. This article addresses such difficulties by discussing particular challenges presented by media biases and by providing empirical evidence from coding one-sided violence. Furthermore, solutions and strategies are offered to the issues that could affect the coding process, including increased transparency, definition-adaptation, and the use of appropriate statistical models.
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9. |
- Otto, Sabine
(författare)
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Herausforderungen und Möglichkeiten medienbasierter Bürgerkriegsdatensätze
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Ingår i: Zeitschrift für Internationale Beziehungen. - 0946-7165.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In jüngster Zeit wurden zahlreiche neue globale Datensätze zu politischer Gewalt erhoben, die häufig auf Medienberichten basieren. Datensätze, die ausschließlich oder überwiegend auf Zeitungsartikeln aufbauen, werden häufig kritisch bewertet, denn Medienberichte können aufgrund unvollständiger und/oder selektiver Berichterstattung verzerrt sein, so dass bestimmte Informationen gar nicht oder falsch dargestellt werden. In diesem Aufsatz gehe ich auf die unterschiedlichen Arten der medialen Verzerrungen ein und diskutiere die damit einhergehenden Herausforderungen für die Anwendung medienbasierter Konfliktdatensätze. Es gibt sicherlich keine Patentlösung für die skizzierten Herausforderungen. Jedoch tragen Transparenz in der Datenerhebung und ein reflektierter Umgang mit den Daten dazu bei, die aus der selektiven Berichterstattung resultierenden Probleme für statistische Analysen abzufedern.
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10. |
- Otto, Sabine
(författare)
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The Civilian Side of Peacekeeping : New Research Avenues
- 2019
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Ingår i: Peace Economics, Peace Science and Public Policy. - : Walter de Gruyter GmbH. - 1079-2457 .- 1554-8597. ; 25:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Almost three decades ago the United Nations (UN) entered an era of multi-dimensional peacekeeping operations, in which civilian and uniformed personnel work together. At the same time, human rights promotion became an integral part of such missions. Due to data limitations, there is little systematic knowledge about how civilian staff impacts human rights standards in the countries UN peacekeeping operations are deployed. I address this lacuna in two ways. First, I briefly outline the importance of civilian staff in UN peacekeeping operations and their roles in promoting human rights. Second, I provide explorative descriptive statistics on the number of civilian personnel in UN peacekeeping operations and the occurrence of violence against civilians committed by state forces.
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