Recent ucsb_postprints items

Combination of ATLAS and CMS Searches for Higgs Boson Pair Production at s=13 TeV

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This Letter presents a combination of searches for Higgs boson pair ( ) production performed by the ATLAS and CMS Collaborations using proton-proton collision datasets recorded at during the Large Hadron Collider Run 2, corresponding to integrated luminosities ranging between 126 and . The upper limit at the 95% confidence level on the total signal strength, defined as the ratio of the measured cross section to the standard model (SM) prediction, corresponds to 2.5, with an expected value of 1.7 (2.8) assuming the absence (presence) of the SM signal. The strength of the signal is measured to be relative to the SM prediction. The observed significance is found to be 1.1 standard deviations whereas 1.3 are expected for the SM signal. Constraints are set on the Higgs boson trilinear self-coupling and on the couplings of two Higgs bosons to two vector bosons, both normalized to the SM predictions and denoted as and , respectively. The observed individual constraints at the...

Autonomous quantification of kelp biomass on offshore aquaculture installations using side scan sonar

Fri, 9 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

In recent years, global demand for macroalgae has grown as a sustainable food resource, potential tool for marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR), and various pharmaceutical and cosmetic applications. Traditional commercial macroalgae monitoring is time-, labor-, and cost-intensive, with manual inspection limited to surveying small areas and shallow depth ranges. While advanced acoustic technologies such as side scan sonar (SSS) have long been established as a tool within the fishing industry, sonar use in commercial macroalgae aquaculture has been limited. Sonar allows for broad scales of qualitative and quantitative measurement and thus will be an important component in autonomous monitoring of offshore aquaculture installations to assess infrastructure integrity and crop growth. Here, we present a method for the analysis of side scan sonar observations on a commercial macroalgae installation. We utilize geometric principles to estimate kelp height on each farm line and approximate...

A Swinging Pendulum and Future Possibilities

Fri, 9 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This essay is the author’s response to a forum focused on The Secular Paradox: On the Religiosity of the Not Religious (Blankholm 2022), which was published in Secular Studies in December 2024. The essay has three parts. The first part summarizes The Secular Paradox as the author sees it today. It emphasizes the importance of taking the titular “paradox” seriously, as an ostensible contradiction rather than mere confusion. It also considers the persistent challenges we face when trying to study something paradoxical. Our language and concepts fail us, and The Secular Paradox diagnoses that failure. The second part summarizes the essays in the forum and engages with each of them to highlight their insights and draw attention to the important projects from which they’re drawn. The final part describes several future directions in the study of secularism, secularity, and secular people.

Secularism and Nonreligion: Making Sense of Confusing Concepts

Fri, 9 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

ABSTRACT: Secularism and nonreligion are confusing concepts. Over time, with strategic redefinition, they have accreted several, sometimes contradictory meanings. Today, their semantic excess creates confusion, both among scholars and between scholars and the public. This confusion undermines their analytic value and makes the rich conversations they generate unnecessarily obscure. By building on scholarship from several subfields, this essay observes key moments in these concepts' redefinition and describes the strategies their new meanings have supported. Understanding how different subfields approach secularism and nonreligion—and how those approaches relate to one another—helps us rethink our basic assumptions and overcome our field‐specific path‐dependency. Making sense of secularism and nonreligion is important because doing so helps describe enormous changes as disparate as declining rates of religion and the crisis of political liberalism. We cannot...

Catalyst Control of Alkylbenzene Molecular Architecture in Tandem Catalytic Hydrogenolysis-Aromatization of Polyethylene

Thu, 8 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Abstract Upcycling of polyethylene (PE) can transform waste material into chemically valuable building blocks such as linear alkylbenzenes, with potential use in anionic surfactants. Alkylbenzenes can be formed by tandem hydrogenolysis-aromatization of PE, catalyzed by Pt nanoparticles supported on an acidic oxide. In the complex mixture of hydrocarbon products, the difficulty in identifying precise structures makes it hard to predict how the choice of catalyst and variations in PE feedstock will influence molecular architectures. Here, we report a detailed characterization of the alkylbenzenes, with insight into the catalytic mechanism that controls their formation. Acid-catalyzed skeletal isomerization is the key factor that determines branching, initiates cyclization, and dictates aromatic substitution patterns. Highly acidic Pt/F-Al2O3 catalyst yields predominantly 3,4-dialkyl-substituted toluenes, in which the lightly branched alkyl substituents have a very small number of...

Relativistic Propulsion Using Directed Energy

Mon, 5 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Relativistic Propulsion Using Directed Energy

Quantitative X‐ray scattering and reflectivity measurements of polymer thin films with 2D detectors

Thu, 1 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Abstract We describe a fully open‐sourced Python package to process raw X‐ray scattering data using a GANESHA SAXSLAB facility, and review in this manuscript the connection of X‐ray scattering theories with the open‐sourced package. This package affords researchers more flexibility in analyzing and visualizing X‐ray scattering and reflectivity data from what is now a commonplace facility at many universities and research laboratories engaged in polymer research. We briefly review the applications of X‐ray scattering and diffraction, followed by the scattering theories. A pedagogical introduction to processing X‐ray scattering data is provided using the modules in the Python package. We compare conventions to visualize and interpret transmission and grazing‐incidence scattering data using self‐assembled lamellar morphology of bottlebrush copolymers as an example, then describe how area detectors measure specular and off‐specular reflectivity. Examples of in‐house reflectivity and...

Combination of inclusive top-quark pair production cross-section measurements using ATLAS and CMS data at s = 7 and 8 TeV

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

A combination of measurements of the inclusive top-quark pair production cross-section performed by ATLAS and CMS in proton–proton collisions at centre-of-mass energies of 7 and 8 TeV at the LHC is presented. The cross-sections are obtained using top-quark pair decays with an opposite-charge electron–muon pair in the final state and with data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of about 5 fb−1 at s$$ \sqrt{s} $$ = 7 TeV and about 20 fb−1 at s$$ \sqrt{s} $$ = 8 TeV for each experiment. The combined cross-sections are determined to be 178.5 ± 4.7 pb at s$$ \sqrt{s} $$ = 7 TeV and 243.3−5.9+6.0$$ {243.3}_{-5.9}^{+6.0} $$ pb at s$$ \sqrt{s} $$ = 8 TeV with a correlation of 0.41, using a reference top-quark mass value of 172.5 GeV. The ratio of the combined cross-sections is determined to be R8/7 = 1.363 ± 0.032. The combined measured cross-sections and their ratio agree well with theory calculations using several parton distribution function (PDF) sets. The values of the top-quark...

Generating Metrically Accurate Homeric Poetry withRecurrent Neural Networks

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

We investigate the generation of metrically accurate Homeric poetry using recurrent neural networks (RNN). We assess two models: a basic encoder-decoder RNN and the hierarchical recurrent encoderdecoder model (HRED). We assess the quality of the generated lines of poetry using quantitative metrical analysis and expert evaluation. This evaluation reveals that while the basic encoder-decoder is able to capture complex poetic meter, it under performs in terms of semantic coherence. The HRED model, however, produces more semantically coherent lines of poetry but is unable to capture the meter. Our research highlights the importance of expert evaluation and suggests that future research should focus on encoder-decoder models that balance various types of input – both immediate and long-range.

The history of classics in California Community Colleges: a study of curricular shifts, 1992–2024

Wed, 30 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Abstract: We present the first long-term analysis of Classics instruction in California’s community colleges, drawing on a dataset of nearly 47,000 course sections offered between 1993 and 2024. While the field of Classics has been the subject of ongoing discussion and restructuring in four-year institutions, its presence in two-year colleges, where nearly 40% of US undergraduates are enrolled, has received far less attention. We identify three distinct phases in the curricular history of Classics in the California Community Colleges (CCC) system: growth through the 1990s and early 2000s; a sharp contraction in 2007–2008; and a prolonged period of reduced offerings from 2008 to 2024. The data reveal a 38% overall decline in annual Classics-related course sections since 2008, with steep reductions in Latin, which fell by 86%. Our analysis shows that specialised areas with limited general education alignment were disproportionately affected. We argue that institutional...

Chimpanzees steal less from their friends and expect them to do the same

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Are chimpanzees able to inhibit anti-social behavior towards their friends? And how do they react when a friend acts anti-socially towards them? Past work has demonstrated that chimpanzees are selectively prosocial towards their friends: they groom them more, help them more, and share more food with them. However, the influence of friendship on anti-social behavior remains underexplored. Here, we use food theft as a test case to examine (1) the influence of friendship on anti-social behavior and (2) emotional responses to anti-social behavior. We assigned 26 chimpanzees to pairs of friends (friend condition) and non-friends (non-friend condition) based on 800 h of observations of naturally occurring interactions. The pairs then participated in a stealing task, in which one chimpanzee (the “thief”) could pull a tray with pieces of pineapple, on which the other was feeding (the “victim”). Friends and non-friends were matched on sex and dominance rank. We found that chimpanzees...

Degradation Mechanisms of Fluorinated Disordered Rocksalt Cathodes: Effects of Electrolyte Chemistry and Discharge Voltage

Fri, 25 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Cation-disordered rock-salt (DRX) oxides have emerged as a promising class of high energy density cathodes for next-generation lithium-ion batteries. Fluorination has been widely employed to tune the redox chemistry and structural stability of these materials, leading to enhanced electrochemical performance. However, the degradation mechanisms of fluorinated DRX (F-DRX) cathodes during electrochemical cycling remain poorly understood. Here, we investigate the degradation behavior of an F-DRX cathode cycled in a conventional carbonate-based electrolyte and a localized high-concentration electrolyte (LHCE). By correlating electrochemical performance with interfacial and bulk structural evolution, we elucidate the role of electrolyte chemistry and deep discharge voltage in governing structural transformation and degradation. The results reveal more pronounced surface and bulk structural changes in the conventional LiPF6-carbonate electrolyte relative to LiFSI-LHCE, indicating accelerated...

Spread of invasive ginger Zingiber spectabile (Zingiberaceae) in successional and old-growth tropical forest

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Introduction: Zingiber spectabile, a shade-tolerant ornamental ginger native to Southeast Asia, is invading tropical wet forest understories in Central America. This shade-tolerant species is of concern, yet no ecological impact or management assessment exists. Objective: To examine the invasion patterns of Z. spectabile in primary and secondary forests, reproductive capacity, effects on understory vegetation, and the effectiveness of control efforts. Methods: Field trials were conducted in 30-year-old secondary forest and in primary forest remnants in southern Costa Rica that were invaded by Z. spectabile, which was introduced to the region in the early 1990s. Control efforts consisted of aboveground biomass removal and herbicide application to rhizomes. Results: Both primary and secondary forests showed substantial invasion, but stem and inflorescence densities and aboveground biomass were three-fold higher in secondary forests, suggesting that secondary forests are more susceptible...

The worst energy policy in the world

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Iran war could serve as a turning point in accelerating the global transition away from fossil fuels: Every additional day that oil and gas prices are high and future supplies are uncertain, wind and solar power-cheaper and more scalable than ever before-grow all the more appealing. But nearly half of the world's countries have adopted emergency subsidies that research shows will make this transition slower, more expensive, and less equitable.

Aboveground Biomass Accumulation Over Two Decades Across a Gradient of Tropical Forest Restoration Interventions

Thu, 24 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Tropical forest restoration is an important nature-based solution that can sequester carbon as a means to mitigate climate change. Restoration approaches range from natural regeneration to intensive tree planting, but few studies have compared aboveground biomass (AGB) stocks over decadal time scales across multiple restoration treatments implemented at the same sites. Here we leverage data from a two-decade restoration experiment in southern Costa Rica; in 2004-2006, we established restoration plots representing a gradient of intervention intensity: natural regeneration (no planting), applied nucleation (planting tree clusters), and plantation (full planting). We compare 18-20 years of AGB across treatments of the four planted tree species and naturally recruited trees. We also examine the relationships between AGB pools and structural metrics derived from UAV-borne LiDAR data collected after 16-18 years. Because most AGB was in planted trees, AGB was about 6.5 times greater...

Functional and structural characterization of dendritic spine pathology in a mouse model of tauopathy

Mon, 21 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Abnormal deposition of the microtubule-associated protein tau has long been associated with spine loss and neuronal death in neurodegenerative diseases. Elucidating how pathological tau affects synaptic activity in vivo and whether individual synaptic properties dictate the survival fate of dendritic spines is central to understanding disease progression. Here we examined the visual response properties of layer 2/3 primary visual cortical dendrites and spines, using longitudinal two-photon calcium imaging in the P301S mouse model of tauopathy. Neuronal outputs in tau mutant mice were hyperactive and poorly tuned whereas dendritic spine responses were also poorly tuned but hypoactive. Moreover, in controls, stable spines were larger in size and more sharply tuned but less active compared to those that turned over. Such a function-to-structure relationship was absent in mutants. Our findings illustrate how tauopathy disrupts the preferential maintenance of well-tuned inputs...

The Linguistic Marginalization of Low-Resource Languages: Confronting AI's Limits in Digital Cultural Heritage

Wed, 16 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

ABSTRACT: Cultural-heritage institutions are increasingly digitizing vast collections to preserve and make accessible the histories of diverse communities, including those forcibly displaced. However, a significant and often overlooked challenge in this endeavor lies in the inherent limitations of current artificial intelligence (AI) models, particularly for non-English and low-resource linguistic communities. This article examines how the scarcity and inadequacy of AI tools for languages such as Palestinian Arabic impede deep scholarly and public engagement with crucial historical narratives. Drawing on a detailed case study of the Palestinian Oral History Archive, this article illustrates how a community-governed, linguistically attentive digital archive exposes the limitations of English-centric, high-resource natural language processing pipelines. This article also addresses broader structural inequities shaped by market incentives, data colonialism, institutional capacity...

Charge readout electronics for the DUNE horizontal drift far detector: design and performance in ProtoDUNE-HD

Tue, 15 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

DUNE (Deep Underground Neutrino Experiment) is a long-baseline neutrino oscillation experiment currently under construction, whose far detectors will be the largest liquid argon time projection chambers ever built. This detector design calls for custom-built cryogenic front-end electronics to meet its performance requirements. This paper describes the charge readout electronics that will be used in the DUNE horizontal drift (HD) far detector and presents performance results using data from the ProtoDUNE-HD detector, a 770 ton liquid argon time projection chamber operated at the CERN Neutrino Platform in 2024 that served as the final prototype of the DUNE HD design.

Beyond the Autistic Strengths Narrative: How Autonomy, Anxiety, and Attention Constrain Participation and Recognition in Neurodiverse Teams

Tue, 15 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Background: Strengths-based narratives of autism often presume that autistic individuals’ expertise will naturally translate into better outcomes for the teams they work with. However, such perspectives overlook the fundamentally relational nature of collaborative work, in which teams infer, evaluate, and recognize members’ knowledge and abilities through social interaction. When autistic communication and cognitive styles diverge from neurotypical teamwork norms, autistic individuals’ expertise may remain unrecognized in team contexts. Methods: Our data consist of semi-structured interviews with 35 autistic adults from a larger study and two newly collected serial focus groups with five additional autistic adults, all of whom had experience with team-based collaboration in academic or workplace settings. Using phronetic iterative qualitative data analysis, we identified recurring patterns in participants’ lived experiences of teamwork. Results: We identified three predominant...

Subordinated integration and political waves in the 21st century Latin America

Mon, 14 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

In the 2000s and early 2010s, Brazil, Peru, and Chile experienced leftist electoral victories, reflecting the regional trend known as the Pink Tide. However, in the mid-2010s, the erosion of the popular support for left-wing governments interrupted this process, marking the start of a period of instability. On the one hand, in different countries, conservative forces managed to regain power, renewing the impulse to marketization; on the other hand, left-wing parties kept their electoral strength, obtaining new victories after the late 2010s and even opening the debate about a second left turn in the region. Although these electoral cycles in Brazil, Peru, and Chile reflected domestic political conditions, they cannot be detached from Latin America’s position in the hierarchy of global capitalism. This paper argues that the region’s integration into international trade and global finance has also shaped and subordinated political cycles, introducing varied constraints and opportunities...

Synapse-Specific Control of Experience-Dependent Plasticity by Presynaptic NMDA Receptors

Sun, 13 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Synapse-Specific Control of Experience-Dependent Plasticity by Presynaptic NMDA Receptors

Remapping California's wildland urban interface: A property-level time-space framework, 2000–2020

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Wildland fire poses a significant risk to property and people, and these risks tend to be highest in places where flammable, wildland vegetation abuts urban development. Traditionally, efforts to map these areas of intersection, known as the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI), have relied on satellite-derived land cover and census data. While these types of data are valuable for broadly delineating WUI areas, they are constrained in their ability to specifically identify at-risk residential properties and their characteristics over time. This article addresses these challenges through a multi-time-step, property-level framework that enhances current approaches based on moving window mapping, the Time Step Moving Window (TSMW) framework. We implement this framework on approximately 10 million geo-located property records from Zillow's Transaction and Assessment Database for California. Using this framework, we generate estimates of California's WUI from 2000 to 2020 and find that our...

Does demolition improve biodiversity? Linking urban green space and socioeconomic characteristics to avian richness in a shrinking city

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Anthropogenic change, specifically urbanization, has lasting impacts on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Past work has linked green space variables and socioeconomic characteristics with biodiversity in urban areas. Shrinking cities present an interesting case for studying biodiversity because many of these places have implemented demolition policies to remove vacant buildings from the landscape, which returns previously urbanized land back into a “natural” state. The objective of this study is to investigate the multifaceted relationship among urban green space, socioeconomic characteristics, demolition activities, and avian species richness in the shrinking city of Buffalo, NY. We first establish a baseline understanding of how social and ecological factors are related to avian species richness through generalized linear models (GLM) and then incorporate a variable characterizing demolition to understand how the process of demolition may be impacting species richness relative...

Scope and its role in advancing a science of scaling in landscape ecology

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

ContextThe scope of a measurement is the ratio of the range (or extent) to the resolution. Scope can also be defined as the number of steps in a measurement instrument given the step size or the distance between two points on a space-time diagram. Scope differs from scale in that it is dimensionless and thus provides a means for comparability across studies.ObjectivesThis perspective argues that advancing a science of scaling in landscape ecology can benefit from acknowledging and embracing the concept of scope to facilitate replications and provide linkages to scaling laws.MethodsScope is defined and linked to existing focii on scale in landscape ecology. A simple case study demonstrates how landscape metrics computed for several extent-to-grain ratios are more similar according to scope than either grain or extent.ResultsMetric distributions naturally group according to scope, with same/similar scopes displaying more similar means and distributions. Distribution shapes also...

Systematic review and best practices for drone remote sensing of invasive plants

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Abstract Drones have emerged as a cost‐effective solution to detect and map plant invasions, offering researchers and land managers flexibility in flight design, sensors and data collection schedules. A systematic review of trends in drone‐based image collection, data processing and analytical approaches is needed to advance the science of invasive species monitoring and management and improve scalability and replicability. We systematically reviewed studies using drones for plant invasion research to identify knowledge gaps, best practices and a path toward advancing the science of invasive plant monitoring and management. We devised a database of 33 standardized reporting parameters, coded each study to those parameters, calculated descriptive statistics and synthesized how these technologies are being implemented and used. Trends show a general increase in studies since 2009 with a bias toward temperate regions in North America and Europe. Most studies have focused on...

Historical and recent fire ecology on national wildlife refuges: a case study on Aransas National Wildlife Refuge

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

BackgroundThe southeastern United States consists of diverse ecosystems, many of which are fire-dependent. Fires were common during pre-European times, and many were anthropogenic in origin. Understanding how prescribed burning practices in use today compare to historic fire regimes can provide perspective and context on the role of fire in critical ecosystems. On the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), prescribed burning is conducted to prevent live oak (Quercus fusiformis) encroachment and preserve the openness of the herbaceous wetlands and grasslands for endangered whooping cranes (Grus americana) and Aplomado falcons (Falco femoralis). This field note builds a digital fire atlas of recent prescribed burning on the refuge and compares it to the historical fire ecology of ANWR.ResultsFindings indicate that the refuge is maintaining fire-dependent ecosystems with an extensive burn program that includes a fire return interval between 2 and 10 years on a majority of the refuge,...

Harnessing the full potential of drones for fieldwork

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Abstract Field-based research in the biological sciences encounters several challenges, including cost, accessibility, safety, and spatial coverage. Drones have emerged as a transformative technology to address these challenges while providing a less intrusive alternative to field surveys. Although drones have mainly been used for high-resolution image collection, their capabilities extend beyond mapping and image production. They can be tailored to track wildlife, measure environmental parameters, and collect physical samples, and their versatility enables researchers to tackle a variety of biodiversity and conservation challenges. In this article, we advocate for drones to be integrated more comprehensively into field-based research, from site reconnaissance to sampling, interventions, and monitoring. We discuss the future innovations needed to harness their full potential, including customized instrumentation, fit-for-purpose software and apps, and better integration with existing...

A research agenda for GIScience in a time of disruptions

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Social issues, AI, and climate change are just a few of the disruptive focuses impacting science. The field of GIScience is well positioned to respond to accelerating disruptions due to the interdisciplinary nature of the field and the ability of GIScience approaches to be used in support of decision-making. This manuscript aims to start a conversation that will establish a research agenda for GIScience in an age of disruptions. We outline three guiding principles: (1) focusing on the relevance and real-world impact of research, (2) adopting systems-based thinking and contextual approaches and (3) emphasizing inclusive practices. We then outline prioritized research areas organized by what topics are important focal areas (Data and Infrastructure, Artificial Intelligence, and Causality and Generalizability), and what approaches to science we should be attentive to (Impactful Open Science, Collaborative and Convergent Science, and through Diverse Participation and Partnerships)....

Improved prediction of tree species richness and interpretability of environmental drivers using a machine learning approach

Sat, 12 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Biodiversity is in decline globally and predicting species diversity is critically important if current trends are to be reversed. Tree species richness (TSR) has long been a key measure of biodiversity, but considerable uncertainties exist in current models, particularly given the classic statistical assumptions and poor ecological interpretability of machine learning outcomes. Here, we test several ecologically interpretable machine learning approaches to predict TSR and interpret the driving environmental factors in the continental United States. We develop two artificial neural networks (ANN) and one random forest (RF) model to predict TSR using Forest Inventory and Analysis data and 20 environmental covariates and compare them to a classic generalized linear model (GLM). Models were evaluated on an independent, unseen testing dataset using R2 and Mean Absolute Error (MAE) and residual spatial autocorrelation analysis. An Interpretable Machine Learning approach, SHapley Additive...

Parental responses to human infants (and puppy dogs): Evidence that the perception of eyes is especially influential, but eye contact is not.

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The present investigation tests: (i) whether the perception of an human infants eyes, relative to other facial features, especially strongly elicits parental responses (e.g., appraisals of cuteness and vulnerability); (ii) if, so, whether effects of the visual perception of eyes may be partially attributable to eye contact; (iii) whether the perception of non-human animals (puppy dogs) eyes also especially strongly influence appraisals of their cuteness and vulnerability; and (iv) whether individual differences in caregiving motives moderate effects. Results from 5 experiments (total N = 1458 parents and non-parents) provided empirical evidence to evaluate these hypotheses: Appraisals of human infants were influenced especially strongly by the visual perception of human infants eyes (compared to other facial features); these effects do not appear to be attributable to eye contact; the visual perception of eyes influenced appraisals of puppy dogs, but not exactly in the same way...

Climate-Change Based Analysis of the Water-Food-Energy Nexus with System-Dynamics

Fri, 11 Sep 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Numerous countries face water crises due to population growth, shifting climatic patterns, limited water resources, rapid industrialization, societal changes, and poor resource governance, which pose challenges to the supply of water, food, and energy. This study develops a Water–Food–Energy Nexus (WFE) model using the System Dynamics (SD) approach to capture the complex interactions among domestic, industrial, and agricultural sectors while incorporating environmental protection policies. The proposed model is developed and applied to assess the water crisis in the Zayandeh-Roud River basin, which plays a strategic role in ensuring water, energy, and food security in central Iran. Climate change alters hydroclimatic patterns and directly and indirectly affects the subsystems of the water–food–energy nexus. Precipitation and temperature outputs from three Atmosphere–Ocean General Circulation Models (AOGCMs), obtained from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Sixth Assessment...

The Study of Early Social Evaluation: Contextualizing Failures to Replicate and Looking Forward