Hand pollination to increase seed-set of red helleborine Cephalanthera rubra in the Chiltern Hills, Buckinghamshire, England

In 2007 and in previous years, as part of ongoing attempts to improve red helleborine Cephalanthera rubra seed-set, hand pollination of florets has been undertaken at a small colony of this species in Buckinghamshire, southern England. Natural pollination rarely occurs (one mature pod recorded in 10 years) at this site. In 2007, hand pollination resulted in the production of four seed pods, of which one withered and died. Upon ripening, the three remaining pods were removed for attempted micropropagation of the seeds. Ongoing conservation management has probably benefited the solitary bee Chelostoma campanularum which now appears fairly plentiful at the site, but despite the presence of this red helleborine flower visitor, natural pollination remains virtually unrecorded at this locality; field observations suggest that C.campanularum is in fact probably not large enough to act as an effective red helleborine pollinator as it can slip in and out of the flowers without removing the pollinia, unlike it larger relative C.fuliginosum, absent from the UK but which is a known pollinator of red helleborine in continental Europe

Post-Foreclosure Community Stabilization Strategies: Case Studies and Early Lessons 2008

In the midst of all the foreclosures sweeping the country, and the turmoil on Wall Street, nonprofit housing organizations are quietly going about the work of stabilizing communities hard hit by the crisis. Most have had frontline responsibility for counseling families threatened with foreclosure. With their assistance tens of thousands of families have restructured their budgets, negotiated with servicers to modify their loans, and saved their homes. Other families, too far along in the foreclosure process to stop it from happening, have received help transitioning to new housing arrangements.While the work with distressed homeowners must continue, nonprofits are feeling increased pressure to deal with the growing foreclosed housing stock. These units are causing incalculable harm to neighborhoods, and any hope of housing recovery must ensure that these units are swiftly put back into productive use or demolished. This collection of 14 case studies outlines strategies that nonprofit organizations across the country are using to begin the process of repairing damaged communities.The stakes are enormous. Vacant housing invites vandalism, and becomes a hub for gangs and crime. Virtually all case study subjects reported that, within weeks of housing becoming vacant, thieves break into the units and strip them of their valuable copper plumbing and wiring, heedless of any destruction they leave in their wake. In Phoenix a half-finished, abandoned subdivision was used as an informal "Home Depot" as other homeowners broke in and helped themselves to fixtures and appliances. In Cleveland, vandals remove not just the copper but the aluminum siding from vacant houses. In photos these houses have a desolate, post-disaster look, like the aftermath of a hurricane. When units get demolished the vacant lots soon sprout grass and trash, adding to the community's forlorn appearance.Vacant, deteriorated units place a downward pressure on housing values that puts nearby neighbors in a bind. In order to sell their units they will have to reduce the price, as no one will pay top dollar to live in a blighted neighborhood. Yet their ability to refinance into a more affordable mortgage may be compromised by the drop in property values; in some cases this leads to additional foreclosures and the downward cycle continues.Intervening in these troubled neighborhoods is challenging. In some markets housing prices are still falling, making it hard to determine the value of the units. Bank asset managers and servicers often lack detailed knowledge of the markets, or even of the units they have in their own inventory. This leads them to overvalue their properties and hold out for more than they are worth, delaying the process of acquiring and renovating them for resale to new homebuyers. Finally, the complex ownership structure of mortgages which were rolled into collateralized debt obligations and other investment vehicles makes it very difficult to establish who owns properties and who has authority to negotiate their sale.0

A new genus of Prioninae (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae)

Neoma, a new genus of Cerambycidae (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Prioninae: Macrotomini) is described for Mallodonopsis corrosus Bates, 1879, compared to related genera (Aplagiognathus Thomson, 1861; Archodontes Lameere, 1903; and Mallodonopsis Thomson, 1861), and its tribal position discussed. A lectotype for Mallodonopsis corrosus is here designated with the species redescribed and figured

Development of primary invasive pneumococcal disease caused by serotype 1 pneumococci is driven by early increased type I interferon response in the lung

The pneumococcus is the world's foremost respiratory pathogen, but the mechanisms allowing this pathogen to proceed from initial asymptomatic colonization to invasive disease are poorly understood. We have examined the early stages of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) by comparing host transcriptional responses to an invasive strain and a noninvasive strain of serotype 1 Streptococcus pneumoniae in the mouse lung. While the two strains were present in equal numbers in the lung 6 h after intranasal challenge, only the invasive strain (strain 1861) had invaded the pleural cavity at that time point; this correlated with subsequent development of bacteremia in mice challenged with strain 1861 but not the noninvasive strain (strain 1). Progression beyond the lung was associated with stronger induction of the type I interferon (IFN-I) response in the lung at 6 h. Suppression of the IFN-I response through administration of neutralizing antibody to IFNAR1 (the receptor for type I interferons) led to significantly reduced invasion of the pleural cavity by strain 1861 at 6 h postchallenge. Our data suggest that strong induction of the IFN-I response is a key factor in early progression of invasive serotype 1 strain 1861 beyond the lung during development of IPD

Role of film conformality in charging damage during plasma-assisted interlevel dielectric deposition

While observations of charging damage during plasma-assisted deposition have been erratic thus far, concern abounds that it may worsen as aspect ratios increase and high-density plasmas are used more frequently. Simulations of pattern-dependent charging during interlevel dielectric deposition reveal that the initial conformality of the dielectric film plays a crucial role in metal line charge up and the subsequent degradation to the buried gate oxide, to which the metal line is connected. For moderate aspect ratios, significant charging damage occurs for nonconformal step coverage

Safety management practices in the Malaysia Technical And Vocational Education Training (TVET)

For many years, the value of safety management practice has been the subject of research attention in many sectors in Malaysia in order to achieve a positive workplace safety climate. The practice of safety management among accredited centers in the education sector, however, has hardly been examined. This study was therefore conducted in Johor, Malaysia, to investigate the elements of the safety management practices in the Technical and Vocational Education Training (TVET). This research included seven participants consisting of safety and health (SH) coordinators from each accredited TVET center in Johor, Malaysia. Via interview data collection, this study used the full qualitative approach. The outcome of the thematic analysis showed that there are ten key elements of safety management practices that have become factors among accredited TVET centers in Johor, namely management commitment, safety policy, safety committee, instructor involvement, safety rules and procedure, safety training, safety audit, risk management, communication and feedback and also safety promotion. The accredited center is advised to pay attention to these ten elements in order to improve safety management practices in the TVET sector

National Nanomanufacturing Network Events 2011

Nanoinformatics 2011 brought together informatics experts, nanotechnology researchers, and other stakeholders and potential contributors to advance Nanoinformatics 2020 Roadmap goals. The workshop will set a clear path for Nanoinformatics participants through the presentation of projects and research, open discussions, and strategic planning sessions. The Nanomanufacturing Summit 2011 – showcased emerging areas of nanomanufacturing and commercialization of nanotechnology-enabled products by leaders in the field of nanomanufacturing

Biology of the Genus \u3ci\u3eHemileuca\u3c/i\u3e (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) in Michigan

The habitats and host plants of buckmoths (Hemileuca: Saturniidae: Hernileucinae) in Michigan are described and compared to those of the three species known from eastern North America, H. maia, H. nevadensls, and H. lucina. Michigan populations show variation in host plant and habitat use spanning the entire range of all three species. The presence of transitional phenotypes and the host plant and habitat data suggest that Michigan populations are a single, variable species. These things combined with the intermediate geographical location of Michigan\u27s populations call into question the taxonomic distinctness of the three eastern buckmoth species