Catering for the needs of fauna in fire management: science or just wishful thinking?

2008 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
pp. 385 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael F. Clarke
Keyword(s):  
Fire Management ◽  
Monitoring And Evaluation ◽  
Learning By Doing ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Community Diversity ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Ecological Data ◽  
Management Regime ◽  
Negative Effect

Ecological fire management in Australia is often built on an assumption that meeting the needs of plant species will automatically meet the needs of animal species. However, the scarcity of ecological data on the needs of fauna in relation to fire undermines the confidence managers should place in current popular frameworks for planning ecological burning. Such frameworks are built almost entirely around the goal of maintaining plant community diversity. They provide little guidance to managers regarding the characteristics of desirable ‘mosaics’ (e.g. patch size, connectivity or composition of age-since-burnt classes) or the timing of fires in relation to faunal population trends linked to other cycles (e.g. El Niño events). Claims by agencies of adopting an adaptive management approach (‘learning by doing’) to cope with a dearth of knowledge are credible only if monitoring and evaluation are carried out and future actions are modified in light of new evidence. Much monitoring of fauna is of such a small scale and short duration that the statistical likelihood of detecting a positive or negative effect of the management regime is minute. Such shortcomings will only be overcome through broad-scale and/or long-term studies of fauna. The funding for such research is unlikely to be forthcoming if fire ecologists and land managers convey the impression that the current data are adequate for the implementation of the current planning frameworks.

National Data for Monitoring and Evaluating Racial and Ethnic Health Inequities: Where Do We Go From Here?

2006 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 470-487 ◽  
Author(s):  
Derek M. Griffith ◽  
Ernest Moy ◽  
Thomas M. Reischl ◽  
Elizabeth Dayton
Keyword(s):  
Health Education ◽  
Monitoring And Evaluation ◽  
Public Health Education ◽  
Health Inequities ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Effective Strategies ◽  
Key Aspects ◽  
Health Agenda

The elimination of racial and ethnic health inequities has become a central focus of health education and the national health agenda. The documentation of an increasing gap in life expectancy and other health outcomes suggests the need for more effective strategies to eliminate health inequities, which can be informed by better monitoring and evaluation data. Although the sophistication and volume of health data available have increased dramatically in recent years, this article examines the quality of the current data collected to achieve the goal of eliminating racial and ethnic health inequities. This article explores several key aspects of data to inform addressing inequities including terminology, the role of data, and explanations of the problem. The authors conclude with recommendations for refining data collection to facilitate the elimination of racial and ethnic health inequities and suggest how the Society for Public Health Education can become a more central figure in our national efforts

scholarly journals Long-term investigation of phosphorus removal by iron electrocoagulation in small-scale wastewater treatment plants

2018 ◽  
Vol 78 (6) ◽  
pp. 1304-1311 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. Mishima ◽  
M. Hama ◽  
Y. Tabata ◽  
J. Nakajima
Keyword(s):  
Wastewater Treatment ◽  
Phosphorus Removal ◽  
Wastewater Treatment Plants ◽  
Phosphorus Release ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Operational Conditions ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
Iron Electrolysis

Abstract Small-scale wastewater treatment plants (SWTPs), called Johkasou, are widely used as decentralized and individual wastewater treatment systems in sparsely populated areas in Japan. Even in SWTPs, nutrients should be removed to control eutrophication. An iron electrolysis method is effective to remove phosphorus chemically in SWTPs. However, it is necessary to determine the precise conditions under which phosphorus can be effectively and stably removed in full scale SWTPs for a long period. Therefore, long-term phosphorus removal from SWTPs was investigated and optimum operational conditions for phosphorus removal by iron electrolysis were analyzed in this study. Efficient phosphorus removal can be achieved for a long time by adjusting the amount of iron against the actual population equivalent. The change of the recirculation ratio had no negative effect on overall phosphorus removal. Phosphorus release to the bulk phase was prevented by the accumulated iron, which was supplied by iron electrolysis, resulting in stable phosphorus removal. The effect of environmental load reduction due to phosphorus removal by iron electrolysis was greater than the cost of power consumption for iron electrolysis.

scholarly journals Evaluating the influence of anxiety and depression on academic performance in high school students

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Waleed Ahmed Shahzad
Keyword(s):  
High School ◽  
Academic Performance ◽  
High School Students ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
School Students ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Grade Point ◽  
Negative Effect ◽  
The Mean

The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether anxiety and depression have a negative effect on academic performance. This small-scale study assessed the relationship between these factors. A cross-sectional questionnaire survey was carried out. A randomized sample of 52 high school students based in various schools across Lahore participated in the survey. Of the participants, 32 were males and 20 were females. As a measure of anxiety and depression 14 questions from the DASS-21 were utilized (The 7 questions pertaining to the measure of stress were not included in this study). Based on the DASS-21 score obtained by the respondents they were classified under categories of normal, mild, moderate, severe and extremely severe levels of anxiety and depression. As a measure of academic performance, the Grade Point Average (GPA) of the students was obtained via the survey. The mean average GPA was calculated for all the students falling under the aforementioned categories pertaining to anxiety and depression separately and these averages were compared. It was found that the mean average GPA was highest in students falling under the categories of normal and mild levels of anxiety and depression. Whereas, mean average GPA was lower in students suffering from severe levels of anxiety and depression. These findings suggest the need to come up with methods to combat anxiety and depression in high school students as these factors impede academic performance.

scholarly journals Investigation and Development of Post-Season Modelling of Arrow Squid in the Snares and Auckland Islands

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Vidette Louise McGregor
Keyword(s):  
Automatic Differentiation ◽  
Integrated Model ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Frequency Data ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
Length Frequency ◽  
Model Builder ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Length Frequency Data

<p>Squid fisheries require a different management approach to most fish species which are much longer living. Most squid live for around one year, spawn and then die. The result of this is an entirely new stock each year with little or no relationship of stock sizes between the years. Hence, it is difficult to set appropriate catch limits prior to the season. Currently, there is nothing set up for modelling the New Zealand squid fishery in-season or post-season. In-season management would allow for adjustments of catch limits during a season. Post-season management would provide information on how much the stock was exploited during a season (described as the escapement). I have produced an integrated model using ADMB (Automatic Differentiation Model Builder) (Fournier et al., 2011) which models length frequency data, CPUE (Catch Per Unit Effort) indices and catch weights from a season. It calculates escapement which indicates how much the fishery is currently being exploited. In running the model against data from four area and year combinations, I found the escapement calculation to be stable. The results suggest this modelling approach could be used with the current data collected for post-season modelling of the fishery. I am less confident about in-season modelling with the current data collected. The integrated model fits quite poorly to the CPUE data, suggesting some discrepancy either between the data or the assumptions made of them. Sampling from a greater number of tows is recommended to improve the length frequency data and this may also improve the ability of the model to fit both to these and the CPUE.</p>

scholarly journals Investigation and Development of Post-Season Modelling of Arrow Squid in the Snares and Auckland Islands

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
◽  
Vidette Louise McGregor
Keyword(s):  
Automatic Differentiation ◽  
Integrated Model ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Frequency Data ◽  
Catch Per Unit Effort ◽  
Length Frequency ◽  
Model Builder ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Length Frequency Data

<p>Squid fisheries require a different management approach to most fish species which are much longer living. Most squid live for around one year, spawn and then die. The result of this is an entirely new stock each year with little or no relationship of stock sizes between the years. Hence, it is difficult to set appropriate catch limits prior to the season. Currently, there is nothing set up for modelling the New Zealand squid fishery in-season or post-season. In-season management would allow for adjustments of catch limits during a season. Post-season management would provide information on how much the stock was exploited during a season (described as the escapement). I have produced an integrated model using ADMB (Automatic Differentiation Model Builder) (Fournier et al., 2011) which models length frequency data, CPUE (Catch Per Unit Effort) indices and catch weights from a season. It calculates escapement which indicates how much the fishery is currently being exploited. In running the model against data from four area and year combinations, I found the escapement calculation to be stable. The results suggest this modelling approach could be used with the current data collected for post-season modelling of the fishery. I am less confident about in-season modelling with the current data collected. The integrated model fits quite poorly to the CPUE data, suggesting some discrepancy either between the data or the assumptions made of them. Sampling from a greater number of tows is recommended to improve the length frequency data and this may also improve the ability of the model to fit both to these and the CPUE.</p>

scholarly journals Sea-ice dynamics in the Weddell Sea in winter

1991 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 9-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heinrich Hoeber
Keyword(s):  
Sea Ice ◽  
Bulk Viscosity ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Weddell Sea ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Ice Dynamics ◽  
Sea Ice Dynamics ◽  
Momentum Budget ◽  
Ice Drift

Observations of ice drift received from an array of ARGOS buoys drifting in the Weddell Sea in winter 1986 are described. Wind and current data are also available, permitting derivation of the complete momentum budget including the internal ice stress computed as residuum. It is shown that the variability of forcing both of the atmosphere and of the ocean is large, and that internal ice stress is not negligible; monthly vector averages amount to about half of the wind and water stresses. Coefficients of shear and bulk viscosity are derived according to Hibler's model of ice rheology; they turn out to be negative occasionally, in particular when small-scale forcing of the atmosphere is large.

Madawaska Rebellion

2021 ◽  
pp. 117-139
Author(s):  
Michael G. Hillard
Keyword(s):  
Civil Disobedience ◽  
Chief Executive ◽  
Shop Floor ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Community Members ◽  
Management Regime ◽  
Union Leaders ◽  
Speed Up ◽  
Paper Company ◽  
State And Local

This chapter discusses the workers at Fraser Paper Company that revolted against an English management regime that forced speed-up, retracted employment promises, and belittled both union leaders and shop-floor workers. It details how workers, their families, and community members fought back Fraser Paper, using civil disobedience that spiraled into a violent confrontation with mill leaders and state and local police. It also recounts how Fraser Paper was initially run by founders and their sons, along with a stable cadre of professional executives who joined the paper company beginning in 1932. The chapter refers to John “Pete” Heuer, who was the president and chief executive at Fraser Paper who introduced a harsh management approach and battled the mill's unions. It mentions the workers' militant response against Fraser Paper that was shaped through the norms of workplace contractualism and a remarkable local Francophone culture.

scholarly journals Revitalizing cultivation and strengthening the seed systems of fonio and Bambara groundnut in Mali through a community biodiversity management approach

2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 31-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amadou Sidibé ◽  
Gennifer Meldrum ◽  
Harouna Coulibaly ◽  
Stefano Padulosi ◽  
Issa Traore ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Seed Banks ◽  
Bambara Groundnut ◽  
Intraspecific Diversity ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Management Approach ◽  
Seed Systems ◽  
Biodiversity Management ◽  
Community Institutions ◽  
Crop Cycle ◽  
Study Sites

AbstractFonio (Digitaria exilis (Kippist) Stapf) and Bambara groundnut (Vigna subterranea (L.) Verdc.) are native crops grown at a small scale in Mali that have potential to support agricultural productivity under climate change. A community biodiversity management approach was explored in this study as a means to reinforce the cultivation of these crops by increasing farmers' access to intraspecific diversity and developing capacities of community institutions for their management. The research involved six communities in Ségou and Sikasso regions. Multiple varieties of fonio (10–12) and Bambara groundnut (8–12) were established in diversity fields in each site over 2 years where farmers engaged in experiential learning over the crop cycle. Significant adoption of fonio and Bambara groundnut was detected in several study sites. The precise drivers of adoption cannot be definitively determined but likely include increased seed access and awareness gained through the diversity field fora, seed fairs and community seed banks. No significant yield advantage was detected for any of the varieties in the diversity fields, which showed variable performance by site and year. The number of varieties registered and managed by community seed banks in each site increased from 1–5 varieties of each crop to 11–12 varieties following the interventions. The number of Bambara groundnut varieties cultivated in farmers' fields also increased, while there was evidence of a slight decline in fonio diversity in some communities. The results of this study can inform efforts to strengthen seed systems and cultivation of neglected and underutilized species in Africa.

Assimilation of Mode-S EHS Aircraft Observations in COSMO-KENDA

2016 ◽  
Vol 144 (5) ◽  
pp. 1697-1711 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heiner Lange ◽  
Tijana Janjić
Keyword(s):  
Data Assimilation ◽  
Forecast Error ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Observation Error ◽  
Observation Systems ◽  
Aircraft Observations ◽  
Error Standard Deviation ◽  
Flight Level ◽  
Random Thinning

Aircraft observations of wind and temperature collected by airport surveillance radars [Mode-S Enhanced Surveillance (Mode-S EHS)] were assimilated in the Consortium for Small-Scale Modeling Kilometre-scale Ensemble Data Assimilation (COSMO-KENDA), which couples an ensemble Kalman filter to a 40-member ensemble of the convection permitting COSMO-DE model. The number of observing aircrafts in Mode-S EHS was about 15 times larger than in the AMDAR system. In the comparison of both aircraft observation systems, a similar observation error standard deviation was diagnosed for wind. For temperature, a larger error was diagnosed for Mode-S EHS. With the high density of Mode-S EHS observations, a reduction of temperature and wind error in forecasts of 1 and 3 hours was found mainly in the flight level and less near the surface. The amount of Mode-S EHS data was reduced by random thinning to test the effect of a varying observation density. With the current data assimilation setup, a saturation of the forecast error reduction was apparent when more than 50% of the Mode-S EHS data were assimilated. Forecast kinetic energy spectra indicated that the reduction in error is related to analysis updates on all scales resolved by COSMO-DE.

scholarly journals Gloxinia—An Open-Source Sensing Platform to Monitor the Dynamic Responses of Plants

Sensors ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (11) ◽  
pp. 3055
Author(s):  
Olivier Pieters ◽  
Tom De Swaef ◽  
Peter Lootens ◽  
Michiel Stock ◽  
Isabel Roldán-Ruiz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Open Source ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Environmental Changes ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
Current Data ◽  
Dynamic Responses ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Data Logging ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Sensing Platforms

The study of the dynamic responses of plants to short-term environmental changes is becoming increasingly important in basic plant science, phenotyping, breeding, crop management, and modelling. These short-term variations are crucial in plant adaptation to new environments and, consequently, in plant fitness and productivity. Scalable, versatile, accurate, and low-cost data-logging solutions are necessary to advance these fields and complement existing sensing platforms such as high-throughput phenotyping. However, current data logging and sensing platforms do not meet the requirements to monitor these responses. Therefore, a new modular data logging platform was designed, named Gloxinia. Different sensor boards are interconnected depending upon the needs, with the potential to scale to hundreds of sensors in a distributed sensor system. To demonstrate the architecture, two sensor boards were designed—one for single-ended measurements and one for lock-in amplifier based measurements, named Sylvatica and Planalta, respectively. To evaluate the performance of the system in small setups, a small-scale trial was conducted in a growth chamber. Expected plant dynamics were successfully captured, indicating proper operation of the system. Though a large scale trial was not performed, we expect the system to scale very well to larger setups. Additionally, the platform is open-source, enabling other users to easily build upon our work and perform application-specific optimisations.

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