Integrated Modelling

Vegetation and soil properties and their associated changes through time and space affect the various stages of soil erosion. The island of Ishigaki in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan is of particular concern because of the propensity of the red-soil-dominated watersheds in the area to contribute substantial sediment discharge to adjacent coastal areas. This paper discusses the application of remote sensing techniques in the retrieval of vegetation and soil parameters necessary for the distributed soil-loss modelling in small agricultural catchments and analyses the variation in erosional patterns and sediment distribution during rainfall events using numerical solutions of overland flow simulations and sediment continuity equations. To account for the spatial as well as temporal variability of selected parameters of the soil-loss equations, a method is proposed to account for the variability of associated vegetation cover based on their spectral characteristics as captured by remotely se...

The complicated structural and rheologic properties of Western Carpathian lithosphere reflect the complex geodynamic history of the Carpathian orogen. Based on critical analysis of earlier models, new interpolation of existing geophysical data and results of integrated modelling, a new map of the lithosphere thickness for the Carpathian–Pannonian region has been constructed. The map allows for the distinction of a frontal orogen collision zone in the NE (from increased lithosphere thickness) as well as a zone of oblique collision with the Bohemian Massif in the West, where lithosphere is not significantly thickened. The MOHO discontinuity beneath the Western Carpathian hinterland (Danube and East Slovak Basins), as defined by deep reflection seismic profiling, is relatively shallow. This probably reflects recent crustal extension related to oblique collision between the European plate and the ALCAPA block and an increase of the asthenospheric updoming from the Middle Miocene onward....

At present, the development of a Master Plan for the sewer system in Ljubljana, Slovenia, has been initiated. One of the objectives of the Master Plan is to improve the water quality in the Ljubljanica River which flows through the city of Ljubljana. The pollution in the Ljubljanica mainly originates from industries upstream of the city and from numerous combined

Catastrophic events periodically occur in the area of Messina (Sicily, Italy). Both in October 2007 and in October 2009 debris/mud flows triggered by heavy rainfall affected various towns and villages located along the jonian coast of the town, highlighting the destructive potential of these events. The two events gave rise to severe property damage and in the latter more than

Background The cardiomyocyte is a prime example of inherently complex biological system with inter- and cross-connected feedback loops in signalling, forming the basic properties of intracellular homeostasis. Functional properties of cells and tissues have been studied e.g. with powerful tools of genetic engineering, combined with extensive experimentation. While this approach provides accurate information about the physiology at the endpoint, complementary methods, such as mathematical modelling, can provide more detailed information about the processes that have lead to the endpoint phenotype. Results In order to gain novel mechanistic information of the excitation-contraction coupling in normal myocytes and to analyze sophisticated genetically engineered heart models, we have built a mathematical model of a mouse ventricular myocyte. In addition to the fundamental components of membrane excitation, calcium signalling and contraction, our integrated model includes the calcium-calmodulin-dependent enzyme cascade and the regulation it imposes on the proteins involved in excitation-contraction coupling. With the model, we investigate the effects of three genetic modifications that interfere with calcium signalling: 1) ablation of phospholamban, 2) disruption of the regulation of L-type calcium channels by calcium-calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMK) and 3) overexpression of CaMK. We show that the key features of the experimental phenotypes involve physiological compensatory and autoregulatory mechanisms that bring the system to a state closer to the original wild-type phenotype in all transgenic models. A drastic phenotype was found when the genetic modification disrupts the regulatory signalling system itself, i.e. the CaMK overexpression model. Conclusion The novel features of the presented cardiomyocyte model enable accurate description of excitation-contraction coupling. The model is thus an applicable tool for further studies of both normal and defective cellular physiology. We propose that integrative modelling as in the present work is a valuable complement to experiments in understanding the causality within complex biological systems such as cardiac myocytes.

Literature shows a significant development of organic farming in Europe but with considerable differences between countries. These depend on general agricultural policy (the set of regulations and laws), specific policy incentives, and also on differences in consumer behaviour. This paper reviews scientific literature on the evaluation of the technical, economic and environmental aspects of conversion from conventional towards organic production.

Solid waste management (SWM) in developing countries has traditionally focused on organisational and technical concerns. However, this approach neglects the many activities and actors that waste management comprises. We propose a new paradigm of SWM which extends the technical model to tackle a range of problems associated with waste management in order to achieve socially and environmentally responsible waste management. This includes a range of activities, issues and processes such as the types of waste generated, the number of stakeholders and economic activities involved, and the various economic, social and environmental effects of SWM and may include legitimisation of the informal system, public participation and possibly partial privatisation.