Strong vertical wind shear can prevent the formation of tropical cyclones, even when ocean temperatures are otherwise warm enough to brew them up. Amato Evan et al. now show that increased emissions of black carbon, sulphates and other aerosols have altered the atmospheric circulation in the pre-monsoon season over the Arabian Sea, leading to decreased vertical wind shear. As a result, these anthropogenic emissions seem to have caused an increase in the intensity of tropical cyclones in the pre-monsoon season.
Throughout the year, average sea surface temperatures in the Arabian Sea are warm enough to support the development of tropical cyclones, but the atmospheric monsoon circulation and associated strong vertical wind shear limits cyclone development and intensification, only permitting a pre-monsoon and post-monsoon period for cyclogenesis. Thus a recent increase in the intensity of tropical cyclones over the northern Indian Ocean is thought to be related to the weakening of the climatological vertical wind shear. At the same time, anthropogenic emissions of aerosols have increased sixfold since the 1930s, leading to a weakening of the southwesterly lower-level and easterly upper-level winds that define the monsoonal circulation over the Arabian Sea. In principle, this aerosol-driven circulation modification could affect tropical cyclone intensity over the Arabian Sea, but so far no such linkage has been shown. Here we report an increase in the intensity of pre-monsoon Arabian Sea tropical cyclones during the period 1979-2010, and show that this change in storm strength is a consequence of a simultaneous upward trend in anthropogenic black carbon and sulphate emissions. We use a combination of observational, reanalysis and model data to demonstrate that the anomalous circulation, which is radiatively forced by these anthropogenic aerosols, reduces the basin-wide vertical wind shear, creating an environment more favourable for tropical cyclone intensification. Because most Arabian Sea tropical cyclones make landfall, our results suggest an additional impact on human health from regional air pollution.
Black Arabial
Download Zip: https://gohhs.com/2vDDhN
Twenty-two black rats (Rattus rattus) were captured in houses where parasitologically confirmed cases of human visceral leishmaniasis had been recorded in Al-Arda Emara, Gizan province, south-west Saudi Arabia. Four of the rats were found to be infected with Leishmania; isoenzyme characterization showed that 3 were infected with L. donovani sensu lato zymodeme LON42 and the fourth with L. infantum zymodeme LON49. L. donovani s.l. LON42 has also been isolated from human visceral leishmaniasis patients living in this area, while dogs, but not humans, have been found to be infected with L. infantum LON49 in this part of Saudi Arabia.
With that in mind, you've got to give it to Saudi Arabia's only black metal band, Al-Namrood, whose lyrics include all sorts of things that could get them executed. I got in touch with guitarist and bassist Mephisto for a chat.
VICE: How did Al-Namrood first come into being and what's the meaning behind your name?Mephisto: Three men decided to put their aggression into music, specifically black metal. Needless to say, the concepts that are involved in black metal describe what we are experiencing. The band started with the creative idea of combining the Arabic scale with black metal and Arabic lyrics. The main goal was to create something catchy and harsh that fulfils the needs of extreme metal.
How did you first become interested in metal? I can't imagine black metal CDs are particularly easy to get hold of in Saudi Arabia.It happened gradually, of course. When we were exposed to metal, we started basic, then we elevated to the extreme. We liked the concept of black metal, as it describes the irrationality of religion. Of course, this context exists in other genres, like death metal, but we lent more towards black metal because it has many elements of punk metal, which has awesome music and concepts. We purchased CDs from neighboring countries and smuggled them in discreetly. We educated ourselves about the outside world by also purchasing smuggled books, thanks to some amazing crazy friends, and then the internet came to extend our knowledge massively.
Read Cole's track-by-track commentary for the new Black Lips album here: -titledmag.com/home/2011/06/08/free-association-stream-black-lips-arabia-mountain-album-and-read-cole-alexanders-track-by-track-commentary/
Black widow spiders are easily recognizable. They have plump, shiny black abdomens that bear an hourglass-shaped red, red-orange or yellow mark. Black widows weave erratic sticky webs that lack any shape or form
Clark and others reported, during their study of 163 black widow spider bites, that the most common initial manifestations included generalized abdominal, back, and leg pain.[6] Black widow spider bites usually cause burning pain at the bite site, although some victims are not aware of being bitten. The extremities were found to be the most common sites for the spider bites in most of the studies, and this was also noticed in this study. The bite site can usually be located, but the local inflammatory reaction is mild and often unimpressive. In our study, the bite marks were localized in all the cases, although the bite mark can be absent in as high as 30% of the cases even in the presence of severe systemic symptoms and signs of envenomation.
Antivenom administration is one of the modalities of therapy for black widow spider bite which was produced since 1936 in the United States, especially in severe envenomation, which can decrease the duration and intensity of the pain.[6,12]
According to the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)'s World Factbook, "Afro-Asians" constitute 10 percent of the population of Saudi Arabia, while the remaining 90 percent are Arab (4 Dec. 2013). Similarly, the Frontier Post, an English daily newspaper based in Peshawar, Pakistan, indicates that 10 percent of Saudi citizens are non-Arab (The Frontier Post 10 Dec. 2013). The same source notes that 30 percent of the residents in Saudi Arabia are expatriates from countries around the world (ibid.). In correspondence with the Research Directorate, the Director of the Institute for Gulf Affairs (IGA), a Washington-based NGO that conducts research and investigations into Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries, estimated that at least 10 percent of the Saudi Arabian population is of black African descent, but also indicated that there are no official statistics available (14 Jan. 2014).
Several sources indicate that Saudi nationals of African descent are subject to racial discrimination (Professor 13 Jan. 2014; CDHR 9 Jan. 2014; IGA 10 Jan. 2014). According to the IGA Director, they experience discrimination in all areas and are viewed as "inferior" (10 Jan. 2014). In a telephone interview with the Research Directorate, the Executive Director of the Center for Democracy and Human Rights in Saudi Arabia (CDHR), a Washington-based NGO advocating for democratic reforms in Saudi Arabia (n.d.), stated that black Saudis experience discrimination in employment and education (9 Jan. 2014). Likewise, the IGA Director said that black Saudis have fewer employment and education opportunities (10 Jan. 2014). Several sources indicate that there are few black Saudis in leadership positions (CDHR 9 Jan. 2014; IGA 10 Jan. 2014; Professor 13 Jan. 2014). According to the IGA Director, there are no black Saudi TV presenters, university deans, judges, senior government officials or diplomats (10 Jan. 2014). The CDHR Executive Director noted that there are "few, if any, black Saudis in high ranking positions in the government, school administration, universities or judiciary" (9 Jan. 2014). According to the IGA Director, "most black Saudi citizens have marginalized positions in society" (10 Jan. 2014). The UVM Professor similarly said that black Saudi nationals "generally fall into a lower socio-economic group" (13 Jan. 2014).
According to the CDHR Director, many black people in Saudi Arabia, both citizens and non-citizens, scavenge through garbage or become prostitutes in order to survive (9 Jan. 2014). While this information could not be corroborated by sources consulted by the Research Directorate, an article in the London-based Sunday Times, which was written by a man who taught in Saudi Arabia, noted that African women scavenged through garbage in Jeddah in "undignified and unhygienic conditions" (21 Apr. 2007).
The CDHR Director also said that Saudis of African descent are subject to "stigmatization and social segregation" (CDHR 9 Jan. 2014). For example, he said that in social situations, black people are expected to "sit in the back when in the living rooms of non-blacks" (ibid.). Corroborating information on social segregation could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response. According to the IGA Director, mixed marriages between races exist in Saudi Arabia, but he noted that if a black man is married to a non-black woman and the woman's brother is against the marriage, the judge will grant a divorce (10 Jan. 2014). Corroborating information could not be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate within the time constraints of this Response.
The US Department of State's Country Reports on Human Rights Practices for 2012 states that racial discrimination is officially "illegal" (19 Apr. 2013, 34). The Professor said that Saudi nationals of African descent formally have the same legal rights as other Saudi nationals (Professor 13 Jan. 2014). He explained that there are no legal prohibitions against black Saudi nationals or formal discrimination against them in health care or education (ibid.).
Sources indicate that many black African Saudi nationals are the descendents of slaves (CDHR 9 Jan. 2014; Professor 13 Jan. 2014). Sources note that slavery was not abolished in Saudi Arabia until 1964 (CDHR 9 Jan. 2014; IGA 10 Jan. 2014) [or 1962 (Professor 13 Jan. 2014; The New York Times 10 Apr. 2009)]. The UVM Professor expressed the opinion that racial discrimination generally stems from the history of slavery (13 Jan. 2013). Several sources indicate that the term abeed, meaning "slaves" [or abda "slave" (The Guardian 28 Sept. 2012)], is still being used to describe black Saudi citizens (IGA 10 Jan. 2014; CDHR 9 Jan. 2014a; The Guardian 28 Sept. 2012). 2ff7e9595c
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