Message to the “Journal of Disaster Research”

2006 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 4-4
Author(s):  
Christopher Arnold ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Disasters ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
The United States ◽  
International Terrorism ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Disaster Research ◽  
Traditional Role ◽  
Joint Research ◽  
Wide Range

Publication of the new “Journal of Disaster Research” is most timely. The last two years have wreaked death and destruction around the world with a savagery that has caused widespread discussion, recrimination and concern for the future. It is clear that, in spite of the great progress in knowledge in the last few decades, much remains to be discovered about the characteristics of nature’s forces and how we can design, construct and retrofit to combat them. This work is the traditional role of scientist and engineers. It is also clear that much of the new found knowledge is not being implemented and our social and economic institutions are ineffective at ensuring that the best information is put to use. Preparing for and responding to nature’s extreme events is a social, economic and political problem and research in these areas must parallel the traditional areas of scientific and engineering research. The expressed viewpoint of the Journal of Disaster Research as multidisciplinary for both technology and social systems is right on target. Neither system can solve the problems on its own: we need true multidisciplinary approaches in which both research and practice are conducted by integrated teams that encompass the whole range of technological, social, economic and political issues. We need to improve communication between the public, the experts, the response officials and workers, the scientists and the politicians. Japan is located in a key position within the Pacific Rim. This region is both a critical area for a wide range of natural disasters, including earthquake, tsunamis, floods and high winds. As such, it is world laboratory for studying the effects of these events and our attempts to respond to them to reduce casualties and economic losses. Japanese researchers and response officials have gathered invaluable information over the last few decades in both the technological and social fields which they have shared at many international conferences, seminars and private discussions. In the United States we have instituted a number of joint research programs with our Japanese colleagues and visited each other’s cities to share information on preparing for and recovering from these inevitable events. The Journal of Disaster Research, with its distinguished board of editors, will be an invaluable resource in sharing our knowledge. The advent of international terrorism has added a new and unwelcome dimension to the disaster scene. The field is still in its infancy and much research is needed. Some of the lessons from combating natural disasters can be used in the terrorism situation, but also many new problems are introduced. We must come to terms with the difference between the deliberate attempts to provoke a disaster compared to nature’s random initiation of disastrous events. Christopher Arnold, Palo Alto, California, USA, June 7, 2006

Climate change and adaptive capacity in the Western Australian rangelands: a review of current institutional responses

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (4) ◽  
pp. 331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ellena Shaw ◽  
G. Bradd Witt
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Adaptive Capacity ◽  
Social Economic ◽  
Social Systems ◽  
Institutional Support ◽  
Sufficient Evidence ◽  
Agricultural Systems ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Agricultural Industries ◽  
Western Australian

This research analysed contemporary publications concerning climate change adaptation in the agricultural systems of the Western Australian rangelands. The term ‘systems’ refers to the supportive economic and social systems as well as agricultural industries. The aim of the study was to evaluate how the adaptive capacity of agricultural systems is supported given the anticipated challenges of climatic changes. The conceptual framework of adaptive capacity was employed to evaluate progress towards improving adaptation and resilience. Eight key indicators of adaptive capacity formed the evaluative criteria, and were applied to a wide range of publicly available documents relevant to the Western Australian rangelands. Progress towards building adaptive capacity was also evaluated by classifying the documents as ‘aspirational’, ‘in action’ or ‘assessed’. The institutional support for adaptive capacity was found to be adequate, as there was sufficient evidence that relevant institutions were providing mechanisms for social, economic and environmental adaptation in the face of climate change. The viability of the agricultural systems of the Western Australian rangelands has been in decline for some time and, therefore, the degree to which efforts to improve adaptive capacity have been successful was difficult to assess. There were methodological limitations of this research due to the limited breadth of available data and subjectivity within the data analysis process, which may have inhibited the accuracy of the findings and recommendations. Also difficulties inherent in quantifying social, economic and environmental processes at differing geographic and temporal scales, were apparent. This raises important questions regarding the extent to which the literature is able to appropriately reflect actual adaptation within the rangelands, and the extent to which stakeholders (community, pastoralists and regional organisations) perceive that adequate institutional support is being provided.

scholarly journals Congratulatory Message

1970 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 579-579 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pierre Y. Julien ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Natural Disasters ◽  
Hurricane Katrina ◽  
Engineering Design ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
Tohoku Earthquake ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Engineering Practice ◽  
Disaster Research ◽  
Climatic Environment

Disasters impact the lives and property of millions of people around the globe. Every month, and sometimes every week, newspapers describe the latest disaster on our planet. We all remember the 2004 Banda Aceh tsunami (~185,000 deaths), the 2005 Hurricane Katrina (the costliest disaster in US history at $108 billions USD), and the magnitude 9.0 Tohoku Earthquake leading to the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster. On an international scale, the economic losses due to disasters are comparable to the annual budget of all countries except perhaps the 30 richest nations. There still is too little scientific knowledge available on disaster prevention and management. The Journal of Disaster Research should be praised for offering an international platform for the dissemination of scientific knowledge and technological expertise on natural disasters at the global scale. The journal welcomes articles on geological, meteorological, hydrological and viral disasters. The journal publishes papers, reviews, survey reports, letters, notes, news, discussions materials and tutorials, and is devoid of political and religious opinions. Many people nurture the attitude that nothing can be done when confronted with an “act of God.” I do not share this view and the scientific and engineering communities have already made tremendous progress towards the mitigation of natural disasters. For instance, Tropical Storm Sandy hit the US Atlantic Coast in 2012 and left $68 billions in damage. This caused tremendous hardship to resilient communities in New York and New Jersey. But clearly, the damages would have been so much worse without the technology to track and predict the hurricane path far ahead of time. Timely warnings and advanced preparation work significantly reduced casualties and damages. Major scientific questions remain unanswered and without any doubt, we still have a long way to go. It is almost impossible to think that major disasters will ever be completely contained. Earthly forces are so large that engineers have to design structures understanding that there will always be a risk of failure. Living communities have to become resilient to the fact that hardship will be expected once in a while. However, the standards of engineering practice improved tremendously since the Stone Age. It is through adaptation to a nonstationary climatic environment that better engineering design secures lower risks of failure. For instance, better understanding of the new concepts like paleo-hydrology and recent advances in the analysis of probable maximum floods can lead to reduced hazards through adaptive engineering design. A lot more research and developments await us, but our joint efforts and ability to share our experience is the prescribed path to a better future. The international scientific and engineering community can only be better prepared to mitigate the devastating consequences of natural disasters by sharing information in scientific journals like the Journal of Disaster Research.

scholarly journals Rapid identification of the invasive fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera, Noctuidae) using species-specific primers in multiplex PCR

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Cheng-Lung Tsai ◽  
I.-Hsuan Chu ◽  
Ming-Hsun Chou ◽  
Theeraphap Chareonviriyaphap ◽  
Ming-Yao Chiang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Spodoptera Frugiperda ◽  
Egg Production ◽  
Mainland China ◽  
Fall Armyworm ◽  
The United States ◽  
Rapid Identification ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Specific Primers ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Species Specific

Abstract The fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda (Smith), is a major pest native to the Americas. A recent invasion of FAWs from Africa eastward to South Asia, the Indochina Peninsula, and mainland China has received much attention due to the considerable economic losses in agriculture. FAWs can rapidly colonise a new area, likely due to the wide range of host plants, good flying capability, and high egg production. Therefore, a convenient, quick, and accurate tool for FAW identification is urgently required to establish a FAW invasion management strategy. In this study, FAW-specific primers were designed to recognise FAWs on the basis of internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS1). The results revealed the accurate FAW recognition of the three congeneric species and eight common corn lepidopteran pests, especially at their larval stage. Furthermore, species-specific primers have confirmed their efficacy by using 69 FAW specimens from Taiwan, Thailand, and the United States, with a 96% success rate, excluding 3 decayed specimens. By using the simple, reliable, and convenient FAW-specific primers, a pest management programme can be developed not only to reduce sequencing costs and experimental time from 2 days to 4 h, but eradicate the FAW as soon as it enters a new area.

scholarly journals Advances in Research on Phytophthora capsici on Vegetable Crops in The United States

Plant Disease ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 96 (11) ◽  
pp. 1588-1600 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leah L. Granke ◽  
Lina Quesada-Ocampo ◽  
Kurt Lamour ◽  
Mary K. Hausbeck
Keyword(s):  
Host Range ◽  
Phytophthora Capsici ◽  
The United States ◽  
Fruit Rot ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Vegetable Crops ◽  
Long Distance ◽  
Term Survival ◽  
Wide Range

Since L. H. Leonian's first description of Phytophthora capsici as a pathogen of chile pepper in 1922, we have made many advances in our understanding of this pathogen's biology, host range, dissemination, and management. P. capsici causes foliar blighting, damping-off, wilting, and root, stem, and fruit rot of susceptible hosts, and economic losses are experienced annually in vegetable crops including cucurbits and peppers. Symptoms of P. capsici infection may manifest as stunting, girdling, or cankers for some cultivars or crops that are less susceptible. P. capsici continues to be a constraint on production, and implementation of an aggressive integrated management scheme can still result in insufficient control when weather is favorable for disease. Management of diseases caused by P. capsici is currently limited by the long-term survival of the pathogen as oospores in the soil, a wide host range, long-distance movement of the pathogen in surface water used for irrigation, the presence of fungicide-resistant pathogen populations, and a lack of commercially acceptable resistant host varieties. P. capsici can infect a wide range of hosts under laboratory and greenhouse conditions including cultivated crops, ornamentals, and native plants belonging to diverse plant families. As our understanding of P. capsici continues to grow, future research should focus on developing novel and effective solutions to manage this pathogen and prevent economic losses due to the diseases it causes.

scholarly journals First Report of Dimethachlon Resistance in Field Isolates of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum on Oilseed Rape in Shaanxi Province of Northwestern China

Plant Disease ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 98 (4) ◽  
pp. 568-568 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Zhou ◽  
F. X. Zhu ◽  
X. L. Zhang ◽  
A. S. Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Oilseed Rape ◽  
Sclerotinia Sclerotiorum ◽  
The United States ◽  
Northwestern China ◽  
Shaanxi Province ◽  
Resistant Isolate ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
First Report ◽  
Field Isolates ◽  
Wide Range

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary is a necrotrophic fungal pathogen causing diseases in a wide range of plants, including oilseed rape (3). Substantial economic losses caused by S. sclerotiorum have been reported in the United States, Canada, Brazil, South Africa, Hungary, India, Nepal, and Japan (1). Application of fungicides is the principal tool for controlling S. sclerotiorum because of lack of high level of host resistance. Dicarboximide fungicides such as dimethachlon have been widely used to control S. sclerotiorum in recent years in China and field isolates with reduced sensitivity to dimethachlon have been reported in Jiangsu Province of eastern China (2). In order to understand the current status of dimethachlon resistance in S. sclerotiorum isolates of northwestern China, 196 and 344 isolates of S. sclerotiorum collected from oilseed rape fields in 10 counties throughout Shaanxi Province in 2011 and 2012, respectively, were assayed for sensitivity to dimethachlon using 5 μg ml–1 dimethachlon as a discriminatory dose. Mycelial plugs (6 mm in diameter) cut from the margin of a 48-h-old colony were placed in the center of petri dishes containing potato dextrose agar (PDA) amended with 5 μg ml–1 dimethachlon; PDA without fungicide served as the control. Cultures were incubated at 26°C and colony growth was measured after 72 h of incubation. Isolates that showed growth on PDA amended with fungicide were tentatively considered resistant to dimethachlon, whereas the completely inhibited isolates were considered sensitive. Results showed that 1.02% or 2 isolates of the 196 isolates collected in 2011 and 3.78% or 13 isolates of the 344 isolates collected in 2012 were resistant to dimethachlon. For all the isolates considered resistant and 42 randomly selected sensitive isolates, 50% effective concentrations (EC50) were determined on PDA amended with a series of dimethachlon concentrations. The average EC50 value of dimethachlon for sensitive isolates was 0.29 ± 0.02 μg ml–1 Resistance ratios (EC50 of resistant isolate / average EC50 of sensitive isolates) for the two resistant isolates detected in 2011 were 10.28 and 23.83, respectively, whereas resistance ratios for the 13 resistant isolates detected in 2012 ranged from 24.90 to 101.97. The average EC50 value of dimethachlon for the 13 resistant isolates detected in 2012 was 19.05 μg ml–1, and EC50 values for the two resistant isolates detected in 2011 were 2.98 and 6.91 μg ml–1, respectively. These results indicated that both resistance frequency and resistance level increased from 2011 to 2012. Bioassay results of three resistant isolates indicated that there was positive cross-resistance between dimethachlon and other dicarboximide fungicides such as iprodione and procymidone. To our knowledge, this is the first report of dimethachlon resistance in S. sclerotiorum in Shaanxi Province of northwestern China. The molecular mechanism of dimethachlon resistance in field isolates of S. sclerotiorum remains to be studied. Although resistance frequency is low at present, dimethachlon resistance should be kept in mind and fungicide resistance management tactics such as use of biological control agents, fungicide tank-mixing, or alternating dimethachlon with other fungicides having different modes of action is recommended in controlling S. sclerotiorum. References: (1) M. D. Bolton et al. Mol Plant Pathol. 7:1, 2006. (2) H. X. Ma et al. Plant Dis. 93:36, 2009. (3) L. H. Prudy. Phytopathology 69:875, 1979.

scholarly journals Comparative Susceptibilities of Legume Species to Infection by Phakopsora pachyrhizi

Plant Disease ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 92 (1) ◽  
pp. 30-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. R. Bonde ◽  
S. E. Nester ◽  
D. K. Berner ◽  
R. D. Frederick ◽  
W. F. Moore ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lima Bean ◽  
The United States ◽  
Soybean Rust ◽  
Economic Losses ◽  
Phakopsora Pachyrhizi ◽  
Snap Bean ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Soybean Plants ◽  
Partridge Pea ◽  
Hyacinth Bean

Knowledge of the host range of Phakopsora pachyrhizi is important to agriculture in the United States because of the distinct possibility that economic losses could occur to crops other than soybean. Furthermore, it is possible that alternative hosts could provide a means of overwintering of the pathogen, providing inoculum to initiate epidemics in future years. To clarify the potential importance of soybean rust on nonsoybean legumes and their role in overwintering of the disease, multiple accessions of clover, cowpea, pea, kudzu, lima bean, snap bean, and single accessions of coffee senna, Florida beggarweed, hemp sesbania, hyacinth bean, partridge pea, and showy crotalaria were inoculated under greenhouse conditions with urediniospores of P. pachyrhizi; infected soybean plants served as a control. The four criteria used to assess susceptibility were lesion density, proportion of lesions with sporulating uredinia, average number of uredinia per lesion, and average uredinia diameter, each determined 2 weeks following inoculation. Based on lesion densities, percentage of lesions with sporulation, and average numbers of uredinia per lesion, soybean, kudzu, and pea were the most susceptible species, followed by snap bean. However, because infected pea plants defoliated rapidly, urediniospore production presumably was limited, lessening the potential for epidemics on pea. Cultivars of snap bean produced numerous brown to reddish-brown lesions, many of which sporulated, but numbers of uredinia per lesion were lower than on soybean, kudzu, or pea. The presence of both tan (susceptible) and reddish-brown (resistant) lesions on kudzu demonstrated physiological differentiation on that host. Some kudzu plants appeared to be potentially excellent hosts for overwintering of the disease. The average number of uredinia per lesion appeared to be a valid measurement with which to compare host susceptibilities, and may have epidemiological significance. High susceptibility of a host was characterized by numerous uredinia with a wide range of sizes within individual lesions. In contrast, low susceptibility to rust was characterized by no or a few small uredinia.

Music after the Fall

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tim Rutherford-Johnson
Keyword(s):  
New Media ◽  
Contemporary Music ◽  
The United States ◽  
Art Music ◽  
Sound Art ◽  
Musical Composition ◽  
Western Art ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The Cold War

By the start of the 21st century many of the foundations of postwar culture had disappeared: Europe had been rebuilt and, as the EU, had become one of the world’s largest economies; the United States’ claim to global dominance was threatened; and the postwar social democratic consensus was being replaced by market-led neoliberalism. Most importantly of all, the Cold War was over, and the World Wide Web had been born. Music After The Fall considers contemporary musical composition against this changed backdrop, placing it in the context of globalization, digitization, and new media. Drawing on theories from the other arts, in particular art and architecture, it expands the definition of Western art music to include forms of composition, experimental music, sound art, and crossover work from across the spectrum, inside and beyond the concert hall. Each chapter considers a wide range of composers, performers, works, and institutions are considered critically to build up a broad and rich picture of the new music ecosystem, from North American string quartets to Lebanese improvisers, from South American electroacoustic studios to pianos in the Australian outback. A new approach to the study of contemporary music is developed that relies less on taxonomies of style and technique, and more on the comparison of different responses to common themes, among them permission, fluidity, excess, and loss.

Death in the City

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathryn A. Sloan
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Inquiry ◽  
The United States ◽  
Violent Death ◽  
Special Relationship ◽  
Intimate Friend ◽  
Counter Narrative ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
European Heritage ◽  
The City ◽  
The Temple

Popular culture has long conflated Mexico with the macabre. Some persuasive intellectuals argue that Mexicans have a special relationship with death, formed in the crucible of their hybrid Aztec-European heritage. Death is their intimate friend; death is mocked and accepted with irony and fatalistic abandon. The commonplace nature of death desensitizes Mexicans to suffering. Death, simply put, defines Mexico. There must have been historical actors who looked away from human misery, but to essentialize a diverse group of people as possessing a unique death cult delights those who want to see the exotic in Mexico or distinguish that society from its peers. Examining tragic and untimely death—namely self-annihilation—reveals a counter narrative. What could be more chilling than suicide, especially the violent death of the young? What desperation or madness pushed the victim to raise the gun to the temple or slip the noose around the neck? A close examination of a wide range of twentieth-century historical documents proves that Mexicans did not accept death with a cavalier chuckle nor develop a unique death cult, for that matter. Quite the reverse, Mexicans behaved just as their contemporaries did in Austria, France, England, and the United States. They devoted scientific inquiry to the malady and mourned the loss of each life to suicide.

The Politics of Precaution

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Vogel
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Animal Feed ◽  
The United States ◽  
Hazardous Substances ◽  
Risk Regulation ◽  
Scientific Certainty ◽  
European Public ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Regulatory Controls ◽  
Milk Hormones

This book examines the politics of consumer and environmental risk regulation in the United States and Europe over the last five decades, explaining why America and Europe have often regulated a wide range of similar risks differently. It finds that between 1960 and 1990, American health, safety, and environmental regulations were more stringent, risk averse, comprehensive, and innovative than those adopted in Europe. But since around 1990 global regulatory leadership has shifted to Europe. What explains this striking reversal? This book takes an in-depth, comparative look at European and American policies toward a range of consumer and environmental risks, including vehicle air pollution, ozone depletion, climate change, beef and milk hormones, genetically modified agriculture, antibiotics in animal feed, pesticides, cosmetic safety, and hazardous substances in electronic products. The book traces how concerns over such risks—and pressure on political leaders to do something about them—have risen among the European public but declined among Americans. The book explores how policymakers in Europe have grown supportive of more stringent regulations while those in the United States have become sharply polarized along partisan lines. And as European policymakers have grown more willing to regulate risks on precautionary grounds, increasingly skeptical American policymakers have called for higher levels of scientific certainty before imposing additional regulatory controls on business.

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