Springtime zooplankton size structure over the continental shelf of the Bay of BiscaY

Linking lower and higher trophic levels requires special focus on the essential role played by mid-trophic levels, i.e., the zooplankton. One of the most relevant pieces of information regarding zooplankton in terms of flux of energy lies in its size structure. In this study, an extensive data set of size measurements is presented, covering parts of the western European continental shelf and slope, from the Galician coast to the Ushant front, during the springs from 2005 to 2012. Zooplankton size spectra were estimated using measurements carried out in situ with the Laser Optical Plankton Counter (LOPC) and with an image analysis of WP2 net samples (200 μm mesh size) performed following the ZooScan methodology. The LOPC counts and sizes particles within 100–2000 μm of spherical equivalent diameter (ESD), whereas the WP2/ZooScan allows for counting, sizing and identification of zooplankton from ~ 400 μm ESD. The difference between the LOPC (all particles) and the WP2/ZooScan (zooplankton only) was assumed to provide the size distribution of non-living particles, whose descriptors were related to a set of explanatory variables (including physical, biological and geographic descriptors). A statistical correction based on these explanatory variables was further applied to the LOPC size distribution in order to remove the non-living particles part, and therefore estimate the size distribution of zooplankton. This extensive data set provides relevant information about the zooplankton size distribution variability, productivity and trophic transfer efficiency in the pelagic ecosystem of the Bay of Biscay at a regional and interannual scale

ECORS - Truc Vert 2008 : Qualification des modèles de houle et de morphodynamique

Cet article présente une campagne expérimentale internationale de grande envergure qui s’est déroulée en Mars-Avril 2008 sur la côte aquitaine. Cette campagne a permis de mettre en oeuvre des instrumentations et méthodes innovantes afin de mesurer une vaste gamme de processus hydrodynamiques, sédimentaires et morphologiques en zone de surf et de jet de rive tout en couvrant des échelles temporelles de la milli secondes à plusieurs semaines et des échelles spatiales subcentimétriques à décamétriques. Cette campagne apportera un jeu de données unique avec des conditions énergétiques très fortes (Hs> 5m) pour comprendre les processus mais également pour améliorer et valider les modèles numériques.The aim of this paper is to present a large international field experiment that took place in March-April 2008 on the French Aquitanian coast. During this field experiment, both very small and large spatial and temporal scales have been explored concerning hydrodynamic, sedimentary and morphodynamic processes in the surf and swash zones using innovative methods. This field experiment, one of the largest to take place in Europe (with the COAST 3D project), will provide a unique data set to explore surf zone and swash processes and improve numerical models in presence of very energetic events (5 storms with Hs > 5m) on macrotidal multi-barred sandy beaches

Vampires in the village Žrnovo on the island of Korčula: following an archival document from the 18th century

Središnja tema rada usmjerena je na raščlambu spisa pohranjenog u Državnom arhivu u Mlecima (fond: Capi del Consiglio de’ Dieci: Lettere di Rettori e di altre cariche) koji se odnosi na događaj iz 1748. godine u korčulanskom selu Žrnovo, kada su mještani – vjerujući da su se pojavili vampiri – oskvrnuli nekoliko mjesnih grobova. U radu se podrobno iznose osnovni podaci iz spisa te rečeni događaj analizira u širem društvenom kontekstu i prate se lokalna vjerovanja.The main interest of this essay is the analysis of the document from the State Archive in Venice (file: Capi del Consiglio de’ Dieci: Lettere di Rettori e di altre cariche) which is connected with the episode from 1748 when the inhabitants of the village Žrnove on the island of Korčula in Croatia opened tombs on the local cemetery in the fear of the vampires treating. This essay try to show some social circumstances connected with this event as well as a local vernacular tradition concerning superstitions

Modeling of an argon plasma in a boundary-layer flow

International audienc

Robust design of tuned mass dampers attached to host structures containing uncertainties in the form of fuzzy parameters

A robust design of tuned mass dampers (TMDs) must consider the influence of uncertainties associated withstructural parameters to avoid detuning and malfunctioning. The existing robust equal-peak approach [1]accounts for uncertainties in stiffness and damping of single degree-of-freedom (SDOF) host structures butmay lead to a high computational cost and sub-optimal design in practical cases where host structures arerepresented by a large number of degrees-of-freedom and also exhibit some damping. To overcome theselimitations, a numerical optimisation technique is proposed which has the advantage of a low computationalcost and generalization to any type of model of the host structure, including damping. Additionally, toaccount for the fact that the bounds of the uncertainty intervals are never known exactly for real-life conditions,this study employs fuzzy numbers to represent the structural uncertainties. The proposed approach isillustrated in case of an existing footbridge located in Durbuy (Belgium).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe