Super-resolution microscopy allowed major improvements in our capacity to describe and explain biological organization at the nanoscale. Single-molecule localization microscopy (SMLM) uses the positions of molecules to create super-resolved images, but it can also provide new insights into the organization of molecules through appropriate pointillistic analyses that fully exploit the sparse nature of SMLM data. However, the main drawback of SMLM is the lack of analytical tools easily applicable to the diverse types of data that can arise from biological samples. Typically, a cloud of detections may be a cluster of molecules or not depending on the local density of detections, but also on the size of molecules themselves, the labeling technique, the photo-physics of the fluorophore, and the imaging conditions. We aimed to set an easy-to-use clustering analysis protocol adaptable to different types of data. Here, we introduce Diinamic, which combines different density-based analyses and optional thresholding to facilitate the detection of clusters. On simulated or real SMLM data, Diinamic correctly identified clusters of different sizes and densities, being performant even in noisy datasets with multiple detections per fluorophore. It also detected subdomains (“nanodomains”) in clusters with non-homogeneous distribution of detections.

For over a decade fluorescence microscopy has demonstrated the capacity to achieve single-molecule localization accuracies of a few nanometers, well below the ∼200 nm lateral and ∼500 nm axial resolution limit of conventional microscopy. Yet, only the recent development of new fluorescence labeling modalities, the increase in sensitivity of imaging hardware, and the creation of novel image analysis tools allow for the emergence of single-molecule-based super-resolution imaging techniques. Novel methods such as photoactivated localization microscopy and stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy can typically reach a tenfold increase in resolution compared to standard microscopy methods. Their implementation is relatively easy only requiring minimal changes to a conventional wide-field or total internal reflection fluorescence microscope. The recent translation of these two methods into commercial imaging systems has made them further accessible to researchers in biology. However, these methods are still evolving rapidly toward imaging live samples with high temporal resolution and depth. In this review, we recall the roots of single-molecule localization microscopy, summarize major recent developments, and offer perspective on potential applications.

The Châteaupanne Unit belongs to the South Armorican domain of the Armorican Massif (France), which is part of the Variscan belt. This unit includes two Lower Devonian plant levels and one of them corresponds to the Basal Member of the Chalonnes Formation. A sedimentological and palaeontological analysis of these fossiliferous deposits from the Châteaupanne quarry (Montjean/Loire, Maine et Loire, France) is presented here for the first time. The age determination based on palynology indicates that the locality records the earliest occurrence of plant megafossils in the Armorican Massif. Their presence suggests an emergence event that has never been described before. Our study highlights the promising potential of the Basal Member of the Chalonnes Formation to aid in understanding these occurrences, and provides new insights into the history of the Variscan belt.

In April 2006 a heavy storm caused large quantities of ocean quahogs to be transported from their natural habitat, the soft bottom, where they live buried in the sediment, up onto a hard substratum at a lower depth. There, unable to burrow down again and escape, the clams were easy prey for predators. A year later, the diver revisited the site and observed empty shells and shell fragments, but no living clams.

Most operational hail detection algorithms for single-polarisation radars are based on the analysis of the vertical profiles of radar reflectivity. At KNMI (Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute) and RMI (Royal Meteorological Institute of Belgium) the probability of hail is derived from the height of the freezing level and the 45-dBZ radar echo top height (maximum height of the 45-dBZ echo). Echo tops are affected by errors in the measured reflectivity itself and by errors in the height assigned to these reflectivities. This study investigates the quality of radar echo top heights as a function of range and explores the implications for hail detection.

The method is based on the comparison between reflectivity measurements from two radars on the vertical cross-section extending between these radars. In a first step, sampling errors related to the radar Volume Coverage Patterns are analysed using idealised storm profiles. Subsequently, real reflectivity data for 25 thunderstorm episodes are compared. It is found that the quality of the maximum reflectivity measurements strongly deteriorates with range and that about half of this degradation can be attributed to overshooting effects. Height assignment differences between the two radars are limited to about 0.5 km. Errors on the reflectivity measurements strongly affect the frequency of 45-dBZ threshold exceedances. However, once the threshold is exceeded, errors in measuring the 45-dBZ echo top heights generally affect the derived probability of hail by less than 20%.

Tropical cyclonic storms with sustained winds above 120 km h−1 are called hurricanes, typhoons or cyclones depending on their geographic location. They can cause considerable damage to forests. This damage may be in the form of pruned and fallen trees from intense winds (Boucher et al. 1990, Walker et al. 1992), defoliation from a combination of winds and torrential rains (Vandermeer et al. 1997), or mortality from marine inundation of low-lying land (Gardner et al. 1991). Occasionally, extensive defoliation of forests can also occur from wind-driven saltwater when winds are onshore and precipitation is insufficient to dilute the seaspray (Chen & Horng 1993). Below I report the dramatic consequences of an unusual seaspray-laden typhoon on the vegetation of the western Micronesian island of Guam.

The three annual 2¼% interest coupons of the Winterthur Insurance convertible bond (face value Chf 4 700) will only be paid out if during their corresponding observation periods no major storm or hail storm on one single day damages at least 6 000 motor vehicles insured with Winterthur Insurance. Data for events, where storm or hail damaged more than 1 000 insured vehicles, are available for the last ten years. Using a constant-parameter model, the estimated discounted value of the three Wincat coupons together is Chf 263.29. A conservative evaluation, which accounts for the standard deviation of the estimate, gives a coupon value of Chf 238.25. However, fitting models which admit a trend or a change-point, leads to substantially higher knock-out probabilities of the coupons. The estimated discounted values of the coupons can drop below the above conservative value; a conservative evaluation as above leads to substantially lower values. Hence, already the model uncertainty is higher than the standard deviations of the used estimators. This shows the dominance of the model risk. Consistency, dispersion, robustness and sensitivity of the models are analysed by a simulation study.