Proper Scaling Research Articles

STUDY ON THE INVESTMENT APPROACHES OF RURAL REGIONAL ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT IN CHINA

In the modern conditions of globalization and economic development, the management of investments in agricultural production has become an important issue in the development of China's national economy. Understanding the relevant concepts of agricultural investment, analyzing its environment, building a scientific and sound structure, determining the proper scale and implementing an effective agrarian economic investment strategy scheme are very important to promote the modernization of agricultural production processes, increase the productivity of agriculture as a sector of social production in which people use the natural conditions of the environment, rely on the physiological functions of animals, plants and microorganisms, and strengthen and control the life of organisms through labor to obtain the material products needed society and farmers' incomes. Research and improvement of the theory of management of agricultural investments can help in making management decisions, increase the efficiency of commodity producers and strengthen the stability of rural areas. This article examines in detail the theoretical foundations and practical application of agricultural investment management, with the aim of providing useful recommendations and reference materials for decision-makers in the agricultural sector by defining basic concepts, analyzing the foundations of theory and research methods. Thus, relevant concepts and main problems of agricultural investment management and theories of economic growth of rural areas by investing in the agricultural sphere were presented. Various views of the classical theory of economic growth and development of rural areas were collected; the main obstacles to the development of agricultural investment are identified, including state macro-control at various stages of regional development.

Small effect sizes are achievable in offshore wind monitoring surveys

Abstract Understanding the prospective environmental impacts of offshore wind energy development requires monitoring that allows for adequate testing of conditions for comparison of unimpacted vs. impacted states. A critical component when designing impact studies is determining the required sampling needed to statistically measure a difference between before and after states in the system, which is often challenging because there are little observational data available for the system of interest at the proper spatiotemporal scales. Here, we present the survey design with power and effect size analyses that were used to design a before-after gradient survey to assess American lobster impacts from an offshore wind submarine cable installation in coastal United States waters. By leveraging long-term monitoring data collected from a random-stratified sampling design survey, a gradient survey testing for effects on lobster at distance intervals from the cable using similar sampling methods was developed. Generalized linear mixed models were employed to determine the needed sampling frequency to assess varied catch-per-unit-effort impacts. We present the survey design and our findings from the power analyses to serve as an example of methodology for designing before and after impact surveys for offshore wind energy, and how preexisting data may be used to do so.

CHEX-MATE: Constraining the origin of the scatter in galaxy cluster radial X-ray surface brightness profiles

We investigate the statistical properties and the origin of the scatter within the spatially resolved surface brightness profiles of the CHEX–MATE sample, formed by 118 galaxy clusters selected via the SZ effect. These objects have been drawn from the Planck SZ catalogue and cover a wide range of masses, M500 = [2 − 15]×1014 M⊙, and redshift, z = [0.05, 0.6]. We derived the surface brightness and emission measure profiles and determined the statistical properties of the full sample and sub-samples according to their morphology, mass, and redshift. We found that there is a critical scale, R ∼ 0.4R500, within which morphologically relaxed and disturbed object profiles diverge. The median of each sub-sample differs by a factor of ∼10 at 0.05R500. There are no significant differences between mass- and redshift-selected sub-samples once proper scaling is applied. We compare CHEX–MATE with a sample of 115 clusters drawn from the THE THREE HUNDRED suite of cosmological simulations. We found that simulated emission measure profiles are systematically steeper than those of observations. For the first time, the simulations were used to break down the components causing the scatter between the profiles. We investigated the behaviour of the scatter due to object-by-object variation. We found that the high scatter, approximately 110%, at R < 0.4R500YSZ is due to a genuine difference between the distribution of the gas in the core of the clusters. The intermediate scale, R500YSZ = [0.4−0.8], is characterised by the minimum value of the scatter on the order of 0.56, indicating a region where cluster profiles are the closest to the self-similar regime. Larger scales are characterised by increasing scatter due to the complex spatial distribution of the gas. Also for the first time, we verify that the scatter due to projection effects is smaller than the scatter due to genuine object-by-object variation in all the considered scales.

Study of compressible turbulent plane Couette flows via direct numerical simulation

Compressible turbulent plane Couette flows are studied via direct numerical simulation for wall Reynolds numbers up to $Re_w=10\ 000$ and wall Mach numbers up to $M_w=5$ . Various turbulence statistics are compared with their incompressible counterparts at comparable semilocal Reynolds numbers $Re^*_{\tau,c}$ . The skin friction coefficient $C_f$ , which decreases with $Re_w$ , only weakly depends on $M_w$ . On the other hand, the thermodynamic properties (mean temperature, density and others) strongly vary with $M_w$ . Under proper scaling transformations, the mean velocity profiles for the compressible and incompressible cases collapse well and show a logarithmic region with the Kárman constant $\kappa =0.41$ . Compared with wall units, the semilocal units yield a better collapse for the profiles of the Reynolds stresses. While the wall-normal and spanwise Reynolds stress components slightly decrease in the near-wall region, the inner peak of the streamwise component notably increases with increasing $M_w$ – indicating that flow becomes more anisotropic when compressible. In addition, the near-wall turbulence production decreases as $M_w$ increases – due to rapid wall-normal changes of viscosity caused by viscous heating. The streamwise and spanwise energy spectra show that the length scale of near-wall coherent structures does not vary with $M_w$ in semilocal units. Consistent with those in incompressible flows, the superstructures (the large-scale streamwise rollers) with a typical spanwise scale of $\lambda _z/h\approx 1.5{\rm \pi}$ become stronger with increasing $Re_w$ . For the highest $Re_w$ studied, they contribute about $40\,\%$ of the Reynolds shear stress at the channel centre. Interestingly, flow visualization and correlation analysis show that the streamwise coherence of these structures degrades with increasing $M_w$ . In addition, at comparable $Re^*_{\tau,c}$ , the amplitude modulation of these structures on the near-wall small scales is quite similar between incompressible and compressible cases – but much stronger than that in plane Poiseuille flows.

Development of magnitude correlation equations for the tsunamigenic zones of the Indian Ocean

There is a pressing need for a homogonous tsunami catalogue for the Indian Ocean as nearly 20% of tsunami events worldwide affect the region. Any study on tsunami hazard assessment necessitates a homogenous tsunamigenic earthquake catalogue. The existing records of strong tsunamigenic earthquakes have the magnitudes expressed in moment magnitude (MW), body wave magnitude (mb), local magnitude (ML), and surface wave magnitude (MS). This study deals with developing regional magnitude correlation equations for tsunamigenic earthquakes of the Indian Ocean. The present investigation estimates the threshold magnitude and focal depth for an earthquake to turn tsunamigenic. It is found that earthquakes above MW ≥ 5.9 and focal depth ≤ 80 km have the potential to generate a tsunami in the region. The moment magnitude is the most proper scale to characterize the size of large tsunamigenic earthquakes as it is more directly related to the released energy and does not suffer saturation. Hence, equations have been developed to convert surface wave magnitude (MS) to moment magnitude (MW) using three types of regression models viz. standard regression (SR), inverse standard regression (ISR), and orthogonal standard regression (OSR). The efficacy of these models has been compared in terms of R-squared and residual analysis. This study indicates that OSR is the best-suited regression model for developing magnitude correlation equations for the three zones of the Indian Ocean region under study. Also, a single unified conversion equation for the whole of the Indian Ocean has been derived with rational accuracy.

Hydrodynamics of cholinium chloride-based aqueous biphasic systems (ABS): A key study for their industrial implementation

Aqueous biphasic systems (ABS) have been widely studied for extraction and purification processes. Although they are considered biocompatible, amenable, and sustainable separation platforms, their application on an industrial scale remains impractical without proper scaling and integration into existing processes. To better understand the hydrodynamics of ABS formation, three cholinium chloride ([Ch]Cl)-based ABS composed of polypropylene glycol with a molecular weight of 400 g.mol−1 (PPG-400), tripotassium phosphate (K3PO4), and dipotassium hydrogen-phosphate (K2HPO4) were studied. The hydrodynamics of phase separation of ABS composed of PPG-400/[Ch]Cl, [Ch]Cl/K3PO4 and [Ch]Cl/K2HPO4 was studied by analysing the relationship between the mixing time (Tm) and the phase settling time (Ts), at 25 °C and 50 °C. The results showed that Ts is independent of Tm, which is very long for the polymer/salt systems (Ts > 6 h), while for salt/salt ABS, a very fast phase settling was observed (Ts < 150 s). The hydrodynamics of each salt/salt system was then correlated with the physicochemical properties of the coexisting phases and the nature of the phase-forming compounds. The increase in the salting-out effect of the inorganic salts, and the consequent larger differences between the compositions of the coexisting phases, improved the hydrodynamics of the [Ch]Cl-based ABS. With the increase of the tie-line lengths, the composition of the phases stabilized, resulting also in more stable physicochemical properties in each phase and constant Ts. The correlations obtained in this work allow the definition of the best operating region within the biphasic (liquid-liquid) region of [Ch]Cl/salt-based ABS as being the largest TLLs within the LLE region. The definition of these criteria and region of operation is crucial for the design and industrial implementation of these types of LLE processes using conventional mixer-settler units.

Formative versus reflective attitude measures: Extending the hybrid choice model

The inclusion of attitudinal indicator variables within discrete choice models is now largely common practice. Typically, this involves the estimation of multiple indicator multiple cause (MIMIC) type models which are used to construct latent attitudinal variables that are then employed as independent variables within standard discrete choice models. Such models, collectively termed hybrid choice models (HCM) assume a particular causal relationship between the indicator variables, latent construct, and choice. In effect, the underlying assumption of such a model system is that latent variables of interest exist independent of the indicator variables used to measure them, and that the survey items used are reflective in nature insofar as responses to such questions reflect the underlying constructs. In this paper, we describe an alternative form of attitude measure, known as formative measures, where the items themselves are used to create the latent variable rather than the other way around. In addition to making a distinction between formative and reflective attitudinal measures, the paper seeks to describe how the HCM can be adapted to model different types of attitude question formats. Further the paper seeks to act as a catalyst for choice modellers to think more about the quality and validity of attitudinal items capture in survey questionnaires, by placing more emphasis on proper scale development techniques.

A Multi-Pixel Split-Window Approach to Sea Surface Temperature Retrieval from Thermal Imagers with Relatively High Radiometric Noise: Preliminary Studies

In the following decade(s), a set of satellite missions carrying thermal infrared (TIR) imagers with a relatively high noise equivalent differential temperature (NEdT) are expected, e.g., the high resolution TIR imagers flying on the future Thermal infraRed Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural resource Assessment (TRISHNA), Land Surface Temperature Monitoring (LSTM) and NASA-JPL/ASI Surface Biology and Geology Thermal (SBG) missions or the secondary payload on board the ESA Earth Explorer 10 Harmony. The instruments on board these missions are expected to be characterized by an NEdT of ⪆0.1 K. In order to reduce the impact of radiometric noise on the retrieved sea surface temperature (SST), this study investigates the possibility of applying a multi-pixel atmospheric correction based on the hypotheses that (i) the spatial variability scales of radiatively active atmospheric variables are, on average, larger than those of the SST and (ii) the effect of atmosphere is accounted for via the split window (SW) difference. Based on 32 Sentinel 3 SLSTR case studies selected in oceanic regions where SST features are mainly driven by meso to sub-mesoscale turbulence (e.g., corresponding to major western boundary currents), this study documents that the local spatial variability of the SW difference term on the scale of ≃3 × 3 km2 is comparable with the noise associated with the SW difference. Similarly, the power spectra of the SW term are shown to have, for small scales, the behavior of white noise spectra. On this basis, we suggest to average the SW term and to use it for the atmospheric correction procedure to reduce the impact of radiometric noise. In principle, this methodology can be applied on proper scales that can be dynamically defined for each pixel. The applicability of our findings to high-resolution TIR missions is discussed and an example of an application to ECOSTRESS data is reported.

Ocean data compression based on block SVD

Fast development of ocean observations and numerical modeling increases the need for data transmission, storage and extraction. This paper presented a new data compression method based on Singular Value Decomposition (SVD) with data matrix divided into different sub-matrices with consideration of odevity and remnant. An automatic matrix-dividing method is applied to divide smartly the data matrix into sub-matrices. These sub-matrices are then compressed based on an improved SVD, which enhances the compression performance by utilizing the orthogonal property of vectors generated by SVD. A dynamic optimization method which is capable of determining the proper scale of retained data under the accuracy requirement of ocean data is also established. Two indices are derived mathematically to search the best block pattern quickly. The performance and reliability of the block-based SVD compression is verified with the successful compression and recovery of the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean Model data.

Scale model study of basic functions of the cross-stream active mooring for marine current power systems

The Cross-stream Active Mooring (CSAM) is a recently proposed concept for ocean current power generation featuring serial mooring of multiple submerged floating generator turbines on a long mooring tether with a set of hydro sails to stabilize and adjust the positions of the generator turbines in the sea. This research studies feasibility of deployment, stability under general sea conditions and capability of storm resistance and avoidance of the system through scale model tests and observations in conditions corresponding to the Kuroshio southeast of Taiwan. First, small scale models were designed, made and tested to achieve proper scaling of forces involved, including buoyancy, lifts, drags and thrusts resulted from the models in the flow. Next, single stage CSAM models were experimented to study the deployment angle in relation to sail pitch angle. Finally, multiple stages of models were connected into a CSAM linear array model and tested in a pool with a flow under different wave conditions. Tests and observations show that the model linear array was successfully deployed as designed, was basically not affected by waves in regular sea conditions and kept its formation in its storm avoidance mode under influences of waves of a 10-year recurrence typhoon.

Homoeopathic medicine in different scales of potencies in the management of osteoarthritis – a systematic review

To assess the evidence for homoeopathic medication taken orally in variouspotencies in the treatment for osteoarthritis. Randomized clinical trials as well as animal experiments comparing homoeopathic medicine to placebo or alternative therapies for osteoarthritis (OA) were considered for inclusion. Systematic database searches and manual backtracking through reference list were used to find them. Information on the result, statistical significance, comparison to the placebo or alternative treatment, and side effects were retrieved. The primary studies methodological caliber was assessed until January 2023. In this review, four trials were chosen, and three of them found evidence that the centesimal scale of potency was successful in treating OA. One study had potency on a decimalscale. The majority of the research design substances investigated lacked significant negative effects. The so-called most recent and fresh form of potencies, 50 millesimal (LM scale) has notyet been researched.As conclusion, we were unable to reach any conclusions regarding the proper scale of potency because the data from the published articles was so limited due to the dearth of randomized controlled trials in the field. It is expected that research would increase and focus in particular on the practical applicability of homoeopathic medicine in various potencies

Ultrascaled Contacts to Monolayer MoS2 Field Effect Transistors

Two-dimensional (2D) semiconductors possess promise for the development of field-effect transistors (FETs) at the ultimate scaling limit due to their strong gate electrostatics. However, proper FET scaling requires reduction of both channel length (LCH) and contact length (LC), the latter of which has remained a challenge due to increased current crowding at the nanoscale. Here, we investigate Au contacts to monolayer MoS2 FETs with LCH down to 100 nm and LC down to 20 nm to evaluate the impact of contact scaling on FET performance. Au contacts are found to display a ∼2.5× reduction in the ON-current, from 519 to 206 μA/μm, when LC is scaled from 300 to 20 nm. It is our belief that this study is warranted to ensure an accurate representation of contact effects at and beyond the technology nodes currently occupied by silicon.

A new attempt for modeling erosion risks using remote sensing-based mapping and the index of land susceptibility to wind erosion

Digital soil maps at proper scales can support sustainable land-use planning over large areas; however, applying this approach in erosion studies is still limited. Therefore, in this work, we adopted remote sensing-based mapping and fuzzy logic techniques to develop wind erosion risk maps with a spatial resolution of 30 m. These procedures were then conducted in a newly-reclaimed area in Matruh Governorate, the Egyptian western desert. Sixty surface soil samples (0–30 cm) were collected and analyzed for soil erodibility-related properties (sand, silt, clay, organic matter, and CaCO3). The relationships of these properties with the reflectance data of Landsat 8 multispectral bands were explored. Then, the spatial predictions were performed using the stepwise multiple linear regression models. The results showed that band reflectance in the shortwave infrared spectrum had higher correlations with soil properties than in the visible and near-infrared regions. The regression models achieved reliable precision and acceptable prediction abilities for all soil properties, except for the silt content. For validation datasets (30 % of the total data), the best-fitted models had coeffect of determination (R2) and residual prediction deviation of 0.61–0.92 and 1.42–2.67, respectively. The fuzzy memberships revealed various contributions of the five drivers (climate erosivity, soil erodibility, soil crust, vegetation, and terrain roughness) to potential soil loss. The success rate curves indicated the different performances of the applied fuzzy overlay operators (AND, OR, Sum, Product, and Gamma 0.9). The best-predictive model with an overall success rate of 85.7 % was obtained by overlaying the five fuzzified layers under the fuzzy algebraic Sum operator. This model delineated five hazard classes over the study area, including severe (79.5 %), high (12.6 %), moderate (5.7 %), slight (1.8 %), and very slight (0.4 %). The developed approach would improve the insight into large-scale monitoring of wind erosion status in desert ecosystems.

Enhancement of guided electromagnetic wave by pre-plasma formation in laser–plasma interaction

Previous studies have shown that adding a section of critical density plasma on the front surface of solid target can effectively improve the laser energy absorption efficiency. Here, we have investigated laser–plasma interactions with different scale lengths of plasma in front of the target created by a pre-ablation laser pulse. A variety of experimental diagnostics employed together with particle-in-cell simulations give us deep insight into these processes. We found that the laser-induced electromagnetic pulse (EMP) intensity inside the target chamber and the target normal sheath acceleration sheath field accelerated protons were promoted using pre-plasma. The transient current due to hot electron emissions is considered to be one of the main radiation sources of EMP emissions within our measurement bandwidth. In our experiment, this current was guided to a grounded conductive wire attached to the rear surface of the target and measured by proton dynamic imaging technique. The discharging currents together with the guided fields were enhanced more than twice. The reflection spectra of experiments and simulations are compared, which reveal that the energy absorption efficiency was increased with proper plasma scale length, resulting in all the measured signals promoted.

A Combined Experimental and Theoretical DFT (B3LYP and CAMB3LYP) Study on Spectral Features (FT-IR, NMR, and UV-Visible), First-order Hyperpolarizability, NBO and HOMO-LUMO Analysis of 4-(dimethylamino)-1,5-dimethyl-2-phenyl-1H-pyrazol-3(2H)-one

Abstract: The pyrazolone subordinate, aminopyrine, has been broken down tentatively and hypothetically for its vibrational frequencies. The chemical shift values and symphonious vibrational frequencies as obtained at B3LYP/CAM-B3LYP/6-31G after employing proper scaling techniques appear to match acceptably with the test perceptions. The hypothetical spectrograms for NMR, FT-IR and UV spectra of aminopyrine have been likewise developed and contrasted with the trial spectra. Determined hyperpolarizability (4.531 ×10-30 esu) showed that the particle might have a nonlinear optical (NLO) component with non-zero qualities. An investigation of hydrogen bonding, utilizing mathematical and topological boundaries, has additionally been conducted.

Semi-continuum modeling of unsaturated porous media flow to explain Bauters' paradox

Abstract. In the gravity-driven free infiltration of a wetting liquid into a homogeneous unsaturated porous medium, the flow pattern is known to depend significantly on the initial saturation. Point source infiltration of a liquid into an initially dry porous medium produces a single finger with an oversaturated tip and an undersaturated tail. In an initially wet medium, a diffusion-like plume is produced with a monotonic saturation profile. We present a semi-continuum model, based on a proper scaling of the retention curve, which is discrete in space and continuous in time. We show that the semi-continuum model is able to describe this transition and to capture the experimentally observed dependence of the saturation overshoot and the finger velocity on the initial saturation.

From the Vlasov-Poisson-Boltzmann System to the Vlasov-Poisson-Landau System with Coulomb Potential

In the celebrated work [Y. Guo., J. Amer. Math. Soc., 25 (2012), pp. 759–812], Guo proved global well-posedness of the Vlasov–Poisson–Landau (VPL) system with Coulomb potential in algebraically weighted Sobolev spaces. Thanks to this breakthrough, there are rich developments on the VPL system and also on the Vlasov–Poisson–Boltzmann (VPB) system with cutoff or noncutoff Boltzmann kernels. In this work, we are interested in the connection between the two important physical systems where particles interact through the Coulomb force and are influenced by their self-consistent electrostatic field. The Coulomb potential yields the famous Rutherford scattering cross section which is too singular in the angular variable for the Boltzmann equation to be meaningful. With an angular cutoff and a proper scaling as in [R. Alexandre and C. Villani, Ann. Inst. H. Poincaré Anal. Non Linéaire, 21 (2004), pp. 61–95], we prove global well-posedness of VPB in algebraically weighted Sobolev spaces. To this end, we develop a new two-stage energy method and merely rely on the -norm (from the dissipation of the linearized Boltzmann operator) to control the nonlinear terms containing the electrostatic field. Consequently, the same well-posedness result also holds for the VPB system with all the other soft potentials, which removes the technical constraint in [R. Duan and S. Liu, Comm. Math. Phys., 324 (2013), pp. 1–45]. Moreover, when the cutoff parameter tends to zero, convergence of VPB to VPL is established with an explicit rate.

The effect of environmental performance on sustainability reporting: A case of Indonesia

Sustainability reporting reflects business contribution to sustainable development. Indonesia seeks to engage in sustainable development by assessing the companies using the PROPER scale. The study aims to determine whether environmental performance (assessed by the PROPER scale) affect sustainability reporting of companies in Indonesia. The research population includes companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange that have published annual and sustainability reports within five consecutive years. This study employs WarpPLS to analyze data from 85 observations. The results show an increase in the disclosure of sustainability reports when the audit committee and the board of directors hold regular meetings. Companies without governance committees focus more on improving governance rather than disclosing sustainability reports. Environmental performance, when associated with the type of industry and governance committee, will increase sustainability reporting. However, a company with good environmental performance will make the audit committee and directors focus on other responsibilities because the community already understands that a company with a good PROPER rating properly manages its environmental impact and is aware of the importance of sustainable development. This study concludes that environmental performance measured by the PROPER scale positively affects sustainability reporting considering the type of industry, governance committee, audit committee, and board of directors of companies in Indonesia. The Indonesian government must support, facilitate, and encourage companies to achieve the gold category in the PROPER scale and promote higher disclosure of sustainability reports to contribute to sustainable development.

Outer scaling of the mean momentum equation for turbulent boundary layers under adverse pressure gradient

A new scaling of the mean momentum equation is developed for the outer region of turbulent boundary layers (TBLs) under adverse pressure gradient (APG). The maximum Reynolds shear stress location, denoted as $y_{m}$ , is employed to determine the proper scales for the outer region of an APG TBL. An outer length scale is proposed as $\delta _e - y_{m}$ , where $\delta _e$ is the boundary layer thickness. An outer velocity scale for the mean streamwise velocity deficit is proposed as $U_e - U_{m}$ , where $U_e$ and $U_m$ are the mean streamwise velocities at the boundary layer edge and $y_{m}$ , respectively. An outer velocity scale for the mean wall-normal velocity deficit is proposed as $V_e - V_{m}$ , where $V_e$ and $V_{m}$ are the wall-normal velocities at $\delta _e$ and $y_{m}$ , respectively. The maximum Reynolds shear stress is found to scale as $(\delta _e - y_{m}) U_e \,{\rm d}U_e/{{\rm d}x}$ . The new outer scaling collapses well the experimental and numerical data on APG TBLs over a wide range of Reynolds numbers and strengths of pressure gradient. Approximations of the new scaling are developed for TBLs under strong APG and at high Reynolds numbers. The relationships between the new scales and previously proposed scales are discussed.

Habitats and parasitoid abundance influence spatial density dependence patterns, rendering an asilid fly as a potential biological controller of white grubs

The behavioral response of a parasitoid shows the effect on host parasitism patterns at a given host distribution. As a result, an increase or decrease in parasitism intensity according to local host densities is found. This relationship could be proportional, positive, or negative, as a consequence of host foraging.Mallophora ruficaudais a parasitoid fly that parasitizesCyclocephala signaticollisscarab beetle larvae. Females search and place egg clusters overground in open grasslands. Larvae actively search hosts underground following chemical cues arising from the host itself. The parasitism patterns are a result of this complex host-searching strategy that is shared between both stages of the fly. In this work, we carried out a study at four spatial scales in apiaries located in the Pampas region of Argentina. We aimed to assess the potential ofM. ruficaudaas a control agent of white grubs. We found that parasitism has an inverse density-dependent in relation to low female activity and a direct density-dependent in relation to high female activity at the larger spatial scale. We found an inverse density-dependent pattern at the intermediate spatial scale. Parasitism is inversely density-dependent at both smaller spatial scales, associated with oviposition substrate availability and distance. Additionally,M. ruficaudadoes not select the oviposition substrates according to the abundance ofC. signaticollisinhabiting underground. We determined thatM. ruficaudacould act as a natural biological controller ofC. signaticollis. This work shows the importance of a proper scale for the analysis of factors that influence population dynamics of entomophagous insects and for evaluating their potential as biological control agents, and how environmental characteristics mold the parasitism patterns of this dipteran parasitoid.