Explore the vast range of titles available.

Early last year I stumbled across ChatGPT and was absolutely blown away by the possibilities and opportunities that this technology offers teachers. Since then I have explored and integrated a range of generative AI tools into my teaching practice with remarkable results, specifically in regard to reducing my workload demands.

Deep closed-loop geothermal systems are a potential technology to provide heating and power generation. Although these systems are not new, they have recently regained interest because the design avoids reservoir stimulation (and potential fluid injection induced seismicity) and thermal short-circuiting of the working fluid. However, the poromechanical response to long-term heat depletion of closed-loop wells at large depths is largely unexplored. This paper investigates the response of rock around closed-loop geothermal system over 30-years of heat depletion through numerical simulation. The numerical solution is based on the theory of thermo-poroelastoplasticity and is solved through the Fenicsx finite element computing platform. The formulation takes effective poroelastoplastic properties of the bulk rock mass to indirectly account for strength and permeability of a rock mass with pre-existing fractures. Results for a normal faulting scenario show that the reservoir response to heat depletion causes vertical and horizontal stress redistribution far around the wellbores. Moreover, the rock mass may respond with partially undrained behavior in deep locations with a sparse fracture network. Shear failure may occur within a fraction -up to 30%- of the geothermal reservoir volume (limited by the thermal diffusion length) mostly driven by increase of effective stress anisotropy between vertical and horizontal stresses. The potential of induced microseismicity in deep closed-loop geothermal systems depends on the shear reactivated reservoir volume and effective rock stiffness. Energy dissipation depends case by case and can extend over the entire operation period, likely a consequence of the elastic perfectly-plastic model. Heat-drainage induced microseismicity is most likely expected to occur for closed-loop wells in geothermal reservoirs under normal faulting regime where small changes of horizontal effective stress may reactivate pre-existing fractures. Furthermore, heat depletion may increase stress intensities around the wellbore and facilitate tensile fracturing.HighlightsHeat depletion around wells changes effective stressesEffective rock stiffness has a first-order impact on mechanical response to coolingShear reactivated reservoir volume due to heat depletion can be up to 30% in our simulation caseLikelihood of thermally induced tensile fracturing of the wellbore increases with operation time

Understanding how and why coral reefs have changed over the last twenty to thirty years is crucial for sustaining coral-reef resilience. We used a historical baseline from Kosrae, a typical small island in Micronesia, to examine changes in fish and coral assemblages since 1986. We found that natural gradients in the spatial distribution of fish and coral assemblages have become amplified, as island geography is now a stronger determinant of species abundance patterns, and habitat forming Acropora corals and large-bodied fishes that were once common on the leeward side of the island have become scarce. A proxy for fishing access best predicted the relative change in fish assemblage condition over time, and in turn, declining fish condition was the only factor correlated with declining coral condition, suggesting overfishing may have reduced ecosystem resilience. Additionally, a proxy for watershed pollution predicted modern coral assemblage condition, suggesting pollution is also reducing resilience in densely populated areas. Altogether, it appears that unsustainable fishing reduced ecosystem resilience, as fish composition has shifted to smaller species in lower trophic levels, driven by losses of large predators and herbivores. While prior literature and anecdotal reports indicate that major disturbance events have been rare in Kosrae, small localized disturbances coupled with reduced resilience may have slowly degraded reef condition through time. Improving coral-reef resilience in the face of climate change will therefore require improved understanding and management of growing artisanal fishing pressure and watershed pollution.

Microplastic pollution is ubiquitous in the oceans. However, little is known about the physiological impact of microplastics on corals, particularly under predicted future ocean conditions. This study investigated the individual impacts of microplastic exposure (MP) and predicted future ocean conditions [ocean acidification and warming (OAW)] as well as the combination of these stressors (OAW+MP) on the growth and physiology of Acropora cervicornis , a threatened Caribbean coral and its associated symbiont, Symbiodiniaceae. After 22 days, the OAW+MP treatment resulted in more pronounced physiological changes than either stressor individually or the control. OAW conditions alone had minimal impacts, despite A. cervicornis generally being sensitive to thermal stress. The OAW+MP treatment and the MP treatment also disrupted the host-symbiont relationship evidenced by the higher symbiont densities relative to the control and the OAW treatments. Additionally, the OAW+MP treatment resulted in lower chlorophyll a per symbiont cell. Microplastic handling is energetically costly, possibly leading to changes in host-symbiont signaling. Photosynthetic efficiency was only marginally lower in the OAW+MP treatment, and values did not indicate photosystem damage. Negative host health impacts were found with the OAW+MP treatment exhibiting lower skeletal growth compared to the control and lower host protein concentrations compared to the OAW treatment. These results indicate that although short term microplastic exposure alone may not pose a significant threat to coral health, when adding additional stressors, it can further threaten the health and recovery of this already vulnerable species.

University lectures are increasingly recorded or reproduced and made available to students online. This paper aggregates and critically reviews the associated literature, thematically organised in response to four questions. In response to the first question - does student attendance decrease when online content is made available - research indicates that students primarily use digital content for review and revision rather than as a substitute for on-campus attendance. Analysis of the research in response to the second question - is achievement affected when attendance is face-to-face versus online - revealed no empirically supported significant difference. The third question was whether online content is better suited to some pedagogical tasks than others. A predominant theme in the literature is that digital content has potential as a disruptive pedagogy, accelerating an overall shift from didactic lecture to constructivist learning. Analysis revealed a research gap around the fourth question - is there evidence that some online formats are particularly suited to advancing learning. The few published comparative studies revealed contradictory results. Overall conclusions from the combined questions are that online digital content is a worthwhile learning and teaching pursuit and discipline and context must be considered in designing the particular approach.

Sebastian Münster's Cosmographia was an immensely influential book that attempted to describe the entire world across all of human history and analyse its constituent elements of geography, history, ethnography, zoology and botany. First published in 1544 it went through thirty-five editions and was published in five languages, making it one of the most important books of the Reformation period. Beginning with a biographical study of Sebastian Münster, his life and the range of his scholarly work, this book then moves on to discuss the genre of cosmography. The bulk of the book, however, deals with the Cosmographia itself, offering a close reading of the 1550 Latin edition (the last and definitive edition worked upon by Münster). By analysing the contents of the Cosmographia it attempts to recreate how the world of the sixteenth century appeared to a scholar living in Basel, and understand what he saw and heard. Through this examination of Münster, his publications and scholarly networks, the conflicts and continuities between medieval scholarly traditions and the widening horizons of the sixteenth century are explored and revealed. Of interest to scholars of humanist culture, the Reformation and book history, this ambitious work throws into relief previously overlooked aspects of the intellectual and religious culture of the time.

Fishing and pollution are chronic stressors that can prolong recovery of coral reefs and contribute to ecosystem decline. While this premise is generally accepted, management interventions are complicated because the contributions from individual stressors are difficult to distinguish. The present study examined the extent to which fishing pressure and pollution predicted progress towards the Micronesia Challenge, an international conservation strategy initiated by the political leaders of 6 nations to conserve at least 30% of marine resources by 2020. The analyses were rooted in a defined measure of coral-reef-ecosystem condition, comprised of biological metrics that described functional processes on coral reefs. We report that only 42% of the major reef habitats exceeded the ecosystem-condition threshold established by the Micronesia Challenge. Fishing pressure acting alone on outer reefs, or in combination with pollution in some lagoons, best predicted both the decline and variance in ecosystem condition. High variances among ecosystem-condition scores reflected the large gaps between the best and worst reefs, and suggested that the current scores were unlikely to remain stable through time because of low redundancy. Accounting for the presence of marine protected area (MPA) networks in statistical models did little to improve the models' predictive capabilities, suggesting limited efficacy of MPAs when grouped together across the region. Yet, localized benefits of MPAs existed and are expected to increase over time. Sensitivity analyses suggested that (i) grazing by large herbivores, (ii) high functional diversity of herbivores, and (iii) high predator biomass were most sensitive to fishing pressure, and were required for high ecosystem-condition scores. Linking comprehensive fisheries management policies with these sensitive metrics, and targeting the management of pollution, will strengthen the Micronesia Challenge and preserve ecosystem services that coral reefs provide to societies in the face of climate change.

Maumee Bay of western Lake Erie is at high risk for invasion by aquatic invasive species due to large urban and suburban populations, commercial shipping traffic, recreational boating, and aquaculture ponds. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Early Detection and Monitoring (EDM) program has been monitoring for new invasive species since 2013 and is continually looking to adapt sampling methods to improve efficiency to increase the chance of detecting new aquatic invasive species at low abundances. From 2013–2016, the program used a random sampling design in Maumee Bay with three gear types: boat electrofishing, paired fyke nets, and bottom trawling. Capture data from the initial three years was used to spatially explore fish species richness with the hot spot analysis (Getis-Ord Gi*) in ArcGIS. In 2017, targeted sites in areas with high species richness (hot spots) were added to the randomly sampled sites to determine if the addition of targeted sampling would increase fish species detection rates and detection of rare species. Results suggest that this hybrid sampling design improved sampling efficiency as species not detected or were rare in previous survey years were captured and species were detected at a faster rate (i.e., in less sampling effort), particularly for shallow-water gear types. Through exploring past data and experimenting with targeted sampling, the EDM program will continue to refine and adapt sampling efforts to improve efficiency and provide valuable knowledge for the early detection of aquatic invasive species. The use of geospatial techniques such as hot spot analysis is one approach fisheries researchers and managers can use to incorporate targeted sampling in a non-subjective way to improve species detection.

This volume collects significant new scholarship on the late mediaeval and early modern Bible, engaging with the work of theologians, the devotional needs of the laity and the shape their concerns gave to the most important book of the age.

Combining pantropical fish community surveys with bioenergetic models has revealed the global distribution of reef-fish ecosystem functions, and that trade-offs linked to demographic and trophic structure prevent any community from maximizing all functions simultaneously.