The authors report on ancient DNA data from two human skeletons buried within the chancel of the 1608–1616 church at the North American colonial settlement of Jamestown, Virginia. Available archaeological, osteological and documentary evidence suggest that these individuals are Sir Ferdinando Wenman and Captain William West, kinsmen of the colony's first Governor, Thomas West, Third Baron De La Warr. Genomic analyses of the skeletons identify unexpected maternal relatedness as both carried the mitochondrial haplogroup H10e. In this unusual case, aDNA prompted further historical research that led to the discovery of illegitimacy in the West family, an aspect of identity omitted, likely intentionally, from genealogical records.

Study of the transformation of smectite to illite, chlorite or vermiculite via interstratified clay minerals needs precise qualitative and quantitative determinations of the different layers in the mixed-layer clays and is generally based on X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns after specific treatments of the clay samples. Saturation with K or Mg followed by ethylene glycol (EG) solvation are classical methods used to identify high-charge smectite and vermiculite. These procedures have been applied to two experimental clays, one composed of smectite layers and the second, a mixture of vermiculite and smectite layers. Different methods of glycolation (EG vapor or liquid EG) produce significant differences in the XRD patterns. Comparison with literature data indicates that K-saturated, high-charge smectite (≈0.8 < total charge <1/unit-cell) and Mg-vermiculite (whatever its charge) do not expand in ethylene glycol vapor (d values ≈14–15 Å). Expansion to 17 Å in liquid ethylene glycol occurs for Mg-vermiculite with a total charge of <~1.2/unit-cell and for K-saturated, high-charge smectite, when the tetrahedral charge is <≈0.7/unit-cell. This study shows that: (1) glycolation procedures need to be standardized; (2) the use of saturation protocols using both liquid ethylene glycol and ethylene glycol vapor yields useful additional information about the distribution of charges in clay minerals.

Recent impactful hydrometeorological events, on both the extreme wet and dry side of the spectrum, remind policymakers and citizens that climate change is a reality and that a shift in water management solutions is required. A selection of policy-shaping events in the Netherlands shows that both floods and droughts have occurred historically and continue to occur, causing significant impacts and challenges for water resources management. For decades, water management in the Netherlands has focused on implementing flood prevention policies, mostly prompted by specific events. The occurrence of droughts did not lead to comparable significant transitions in water management. The bias toward adaptation measures on the wet part of the spectrum (i.e., floods), increases vulnerability to dry extremes (i.e., droughts) as experienced in 2018–2020 and 2022. A required long-term, integral vision to rethink the existing water management system is challenging as droughts and floods act on different time scales. Furthermore, there is a fierce competition for land use and water use functions. ‘Transformation pathways’, applied across the full flood–drought spectrum, could provide a valuable framework in the development toward a sustainable management of water resources, involving stakeholders for just and equitable transitions and translating long-term visions into pathways for action.

We describe a novel dietary assessment strategy to estimate usual food intake in the ongoing large-scale multi-center German National Cohort (GNC). The dietary assessment is based on three 24 h food lists (24h-FL) and a food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) enriched by information from the representative German National Nutrition Survey II (NVS II). The novelty of this dietary assessment strategy is based on separating the probability of food intake from daily consumption amounts. The probability of consumption is estimated from 24h-FLs used in the GNC. To estimate daily consumption amounts, the already collected data of the NVS II are used. The 24h-FL simplifies the question on food consumption for all foods asked to consumption or not and so the questionnaire can be completed in about 10 minutes, reducing the burden on study participants. As proof of concept, we applied the assessment strategy to pretest data collected in 2012 to 2013 to assess the feasibility of the instruments. In brief, the novel dietary assessment strategy comprises three steps. First, the individuals’ consumption probability is estimated by three 24h-FLs and one FFQ applying a logistic linear mixed model adjusted for characteristics of the participants. Second, person-specific daily consumption amounts are estimated from the NVS II applying a linear mixed model taking the characteristics of the participants into account. Third, usual food intake is estimated by the consumption probability multiplied by person-specific daily amounts. Usual intake of 41 food groups in 318 men and 377 women were estimated. Of those participants who completed the first 24h-FL, 84.4, and 68.5% completed the second and third 24h-FL, respectively. No associations were observed between probability to participate and lifestyle factors. The estimated usual food intake distributions were in a plausible range as shown by comparing the estimated energy intake to the energy needs approximated by estimated total energy expenditure. Total energy was estimated to be 2,707 kcal/day for men and 2,103 kcal/day for women. With a few exceptions, the estimated food-based consumption probabilities did not differ considerably between men and women. The differences in energy intake between men and women were mainly due to their differences in the estimated person-specific daily amounts. As a conclusion, plausible but not validated values for usual food intake were derived in the pretest study, so that the combination of three repeated 24h-FLs, an FFQ and person-specific daily amounts from an external source is a feasible strategy for dietary assessment.

Glacier surface mass-balance measurements on Greenland started more than a century ago, but no compilation exists of the observations from the ablation area of the ice sheet and local glaciers. Such data could be used in the evaluation of modelled surface mass balance, or to document changes in glacier melt independently from model output. Here, we present a comprehensive database of Greenland glacier surface mass-balance observations from the ablation area of the ice sheet and local glaciers. The database spans the 123 a from 1892 to 2015, contains a total of ~3000 measurements from 46 sites, and is openly accessible through the PROMICE web portal (http://www.promice.dk). For each measurement we provide X, Y and Z coordinates, starting and ending dates as well as quality flags. We give sources for each entry and for all metadata. Two thirds of the data were collected from grey literature and unpublished archive documents. Roughly 60% of the measurements were performed by the Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS, previously GGU). The data cover all regions of Greenland except for the southernmost part of the east coast, but also emphasize the importance of long-term time series of which there are only two exceeding 20 a. We use the data to analyse uncertainties in point measurements of surface mass balance, as well as to estimate surface mass-balance profiles for most regions of Greenland.

Research indicates that fundraising is not an impediment to women candidates because women raise just as much money as men after accounting for seat status. However, previous research focuses solely on general election candidates. By examining both primary and general election candidates, we find both gender and partisan differences in fundraising. While incumbency, competitiveness, and candidate quality predict fundraising in the general election, we show that Democratic women raise more money than their male counterparts in the primary election. However, Republican women do not enjoy greater fundraising success compared with their male counterparts, and in limited cases, being a Republican woman can be an obstacle to fundraising in the primary election.

The present paper will use fat mass percentage (FM%) obtained via BOD POD® air-displacement plethysmography (FMADP%) to examine the relative validity of (1) anthropometric measurements/indices and (2) of FM% assessed with equations (FMeq%) based on skinfold thickness and bioelectrical impedance (BIA). In 480 Belgian children (aged 5–11 years) weight, height, skinfold thickness (triceps and subscapular), body circumferences (mid-upper arm, waist and hip), foot-to-foot BIA (Tanita®) and FMADP% were measured. Anthropometric measurements and calculated indices were compared with FMADP%. Next, published equations were used to calculate FMeq% using impedance (equations of Tanita®, Tyrrell, Shaefer and Deurenberg) or skinfold thickness (equations of Slaughter, Goran, Dezenberg and Deurenberg). Both indices and equations performed better in girls than in boys. For both sexes, the sum of skinfold thicknesses resulted in the highest correlation with FMADP%, followed by triceps skinfold, arm fat area and subscapular skinfold. In general, comparing FMeq% with FMADP% indicated mostly an age and sex effect, and an increasing underestimation but less dispersion with increasing FM%. The Tanita® impedance equation and the Deurenberg skinfold equation performed the best, although none of the used equations were interchangeable with FMADP%. In conclusion, the sum of triceps and subscapular skinfold thickness is recommended as marker of FM% in the absence of specialised technologies. Nevertheless, the higher workload, cost and survey management of an immobile device like the BOD POD® remains justified.