Understanding cold bias: Variable response of skeletal Sr/Ca to seawater pCO2 in acclimated massive Porites corals.

Coral skeletal Sr/Ca is a palaeothermometer commonly used to produce high resolution seasonal sea surface temperature (SST) records and to investigate the amplitude and frequency of ENSO and interdecadal climate events. The proxy relationship is typically calibrated by matching seasonal SST and skeletal Sr/Ca maxima and minima in modern corals. Applying these calibrations to fossil corals assumes that the temperature sensitivity of skeletal Sr/Ca is conserved, despite substantial changes in seawater carbonate chemistry between the modern and glacial ocean. We present Sr/Ca analyses of 3 genotypes of massive Porites spp. corals (the genus most commonly used for palaeoclimate reconstruction), cultured under seawater pCO2 reflecting modern, future (year 2100) and last glacial maximum (LGM) conditions. Skeletal Sr/Ca is indistinguishable between duplicate colonies of the same genotype cultured under the same conditions, but varies significantly in response to seawater pCO2 in two genotypes of Porites lutea, whilst Porites murrayensis is unaffected. Within P. lutea, the response is not systematic: skeletal Sr/Ca increases significantly (by 2-4%) at high seawater pCO2 relative to modern in both genotypes, and also increases significantly (by 4%) at low seawater pCO2 in one genotype. This magnitude of variation equates to errors in reconstructed SST of up to -5 °C.

Can specific biological signals be digitized?

At the request of the United States Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, we attempted to replicate the data of Professor Jacques Benveniste that digital signals recorded on a computer disc produce specific biological effects. The hypothesis was that a digitized thrombin inhibitor signal would inhibit the fibrinogen-thrombin coagulation pathway. Because of the controversies associated with previous research of Prof. Benveniste, we developed a system for the management of social controversy in science that incorporated an expert in social communication and conflict management. The social management approach was an adaptation of interactional communication theory, for management of areas that interfere with the conduct of good science. This process allowed us to successfully complete a coordinated effort by a multidisciplinary team, including Prof. Benveniste, a hematologist, engineer, skeptic, statistician, neuroscientist and conflict management expert. Our team found no replicable effects from digital signals.

Bioenergy definitions and research guidelines.

A model for the functional and observable interrelation among the various components in a physical bioenergy system is presented. The analogy is made between electric circuits and electromagnetic interactions, and contact and noncontact bioenergy transfer. It is postulated that there exists some form of bioenergy that has the capacity to do work and that this energy behaves in a manner similar to electricity in that the physical concepts of electromotive force, current, and impedance have their equivalents in bioenergy. It is further postulated that these analogous components are related by an equivalent to Ohm's and other physical laws of electricity. This is extended to a conjecture that bioenergy healing is the transfer of information from a practitioner to a healee. Research guidelines for bioenergy measurements are presented, including basic measurement practices for electrical and electromagnetic systems through direct measurements and the use of indirect measurement experiments for detecting these or other forms of bioenergy transfer. The research guidelines are divided into 2 sections: those involving direct measurement of the physical electrical properties of a practitioner, in particular the difficulties associated with electrical measurements of extremely low-level signals outside of a Faraday shield or electromagnetic measurements outside of a radio frequency anechoic chamber; and those for conducting experiments in which the effects of bioenergy are being investigated on the healee or other target system without direct measurements of the means for bioenergy transfer.