Minority ethnic students and science participation: a qualitative mapping of achievement, aspiration, interest and capital

In the UK, the ‘leaky pipeline’ metaphor has been used to describe the relationship between ethnicity and science participation. Fewer minority ethnic students continue with science in post-compulsory education, and little is known about the ways in which they participate and identify with science, particularly in the secondary school context. Drawing on an exploratory study of 46 interviews and 22 h of classroom observations with British students (aged 11–14) from Black Caribbean, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Indian and Chinese ethnic backgrounds, this paper identified five ‘types’ of science participation among minority ethnic students. The five types of science participation emerged from an analysis of students’ science achievement, science aspiration, science interest and science capital. The characteristics of the five types are as follows: Science adverse students have no aspirations towards science and lacked interest, achievement and capital in science. Science intrinsic students have high science aspirations, interest and capital but low science attainment. Students who are science intermediate have some aspirations, interest and capital in science, with average science grades. Science extrinsic students achieve highly in science, have some science capital but lacked science aspirations and/or interest. Science prominent students are high science achievers with science aspirations, high levels of interest and capital in science. The findings highlight that minority ethnic students participate in science in diverse ways. Policy implications are suggested for each type as this paper provides empirical evidence to counter against public (and even some academic) discourses of minority ethnic students as a homogeneous group

Presence of the four-spined pygmy devil, Arulenus validispinus (Orthoptera: Tetrigidae), confirmed in Bukidnon region on the island of Mindanao, Philippines

The four-spined pygmy devil (Arulenus validispinus Stål, 1877) is an endemic species to the Philippines. It was described more than 140 years ago from a single female specimen. Since its description, only a single new record was known, reported by Skejo from the Lanao region in 2017 and based on a specimen from eBay. Here, we record the species from the Bukidnon Mountains. We present measurements of a male and a female we collected, with the description of the species morphology and habitat. This species differs from its congeneric Mia’s pygmy devil (A. miae Skejo & Caballero, 2016) by the sharp dorsal and lateral spines

Improvement of local cassava germ plasm in Uganda

No Abstrac

Maize seed selection by East African smallholder farmers and resistance to Maize streak virus

Interviews identified that most small-scale maize farmers in central Uganda and in the Southern Highlands of Tanzania plant home-saved seed of landraces or seed derived from various open-pollinated and hybrid varieties. Some farmers also bought a portion of their seed, either certified seed, locally traded seed or even maize sold for consumption. Selection for home-saved seed was generally among harvested cobs. Big cobs with many, regularly arranged, large, white, flint kernels were preferred. A maize cob may bear several hundred seeds, so a farmer needs to save <1% of cobs for seed. A form of resistance in which plants show only moderate symptoms and suffer only a small reduction in yield when infected has been incorporated in some released varieties. Because not all plants in most crops are infected and because plants uninfected with Maize streak virus (MSV) tend to produce bigger cobs than infected resistant plants, the few cobs selected by a farmer for seed may all be from the uninfected ‘escapes’, with no preferential selection of resistant types. On-station simulation of the farmers’ selection process in a crop of the MSV-resistant maize variety, Longe 1, confirmed this. An alternative very strong form of MSV resistance was identified

Schizaea erecta Amoroso & Coritico 2023, sp. nov

&lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; Amoroso &amp; Coritico, &lt;i&gt;sp. nov&lt;/i&gt; (Figs. 2&ndash;4) &lt;p&gt; Type:&mdash; PHILIPPINES. Dinagat Island: Municipality of Tubajon, Paragua Forest, 10.29355&deg;N, 125.58594&deg;E, 65 m, 30 January 2023, &lt;i&gt;V. B&lt;/i&gt; &lt;i&gt;. Amoroso with F. P. Coritico &amp; M. M.&lt;/i&gt; &lt;i&gt;Guiang. 3003&lt;/i&gt; (holotype PNH!, isotypes CMUH!, BRIT!).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Diagnosis:&lt;/b&gt; &mdash; &lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; resembles &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; in having hairy rhizomes, dimorphic fronds, stipes with a t-shaped xylem strand, laminae fan-shaped and branching dichotomously, stomata hypocytic, sorophores pinnately arranged in 2 rows, and sporangia with long non-glandular hairs, but differs by having a rhizome with short-appressed brown hairs (vs. long, coarse brown hairs), the stipe longer and up to 26.6 cm long with a narrow groove (vs. up to 20 cm long and deeply grooved), fronds 3&ndash;5 times branching dichotomously (vs. 6&ndash;8 times branching), narrower (8&ndash;14 cm long by 2.0&ndash; 4.5 cm wide), and consistently erect fronds (vs. 15 cm long by 17 cm wide, not erect), sorophores up to 39 per stipe with 12&ndash;16 lobes alternately arranged (vs. up to 34 with 5&ndash;10 lobes oppositely arranged), and sporangia oblong with long white hairs (vs. reniform with brown hairs).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Description&lt;/b&gt;:&mdash;Terrestrial, 30&ndash;50 cm long. &lt;i&gt;Rhizomes&lt;/i&gt; short creeping, 1.5&ndash;5.0 cm below ground, 0.3 mm thick, covered with persistent shiny brown appressed hairs 1&ndash;2 mm long. &lt;i&gt;Fronds&lt;/i&gt; dimorphic, crowded, irregularly branched; &lt;i&gt;sterile fronds:&lt;/i&gt; erect, stipes distinct, 18.5&ndash;26.6 cm long, base partly buried in ground, blackish and becoming light green in upper portion, slightly winged at middle to distinctly winged at apex, with shallow groove and scattered short hairs; laminae fan-shaped, 9&ndash;15 cm long and each axis 1 mm wide, whole laminae 2&ndash;4 cm wide, costae distinct, branching dichotomously 3&ndash;5 times; &lt;i&gt;fertile fronds&lt;/i&gt; erect, stipes 11&ndash;27 cm long, tetragonal in transection and distinctly winged in upper portion; lamina fan-shaped, 8&ndash;14 &times; 2.0&ndash; 4.5 cm, branching dichotomously 3&ndash;5 times, basal branch slightly flattened, 1&ndash;2 mm wide, distal branch up to 0.5 mm wide with scattered small projections (bases of glandular hairs). &lt;i&gt;Sorophores&lt;/i&gt; born distally of each branch of frond, 5&ndash;12 mm long, 24&ndash;39 per stipe, bearing 12&ndash;16 pairs of lobes, pinnately arranged in 2 rows and opposite in arrangement. &lt;i&gt;Sporangia&lt;/i&gt; in two rows associated with long white non-glandular hairs, with opposite to alternate arrangement, loosely arranged at base and tightly packed in upper part, oblong with short stout stalk, brown, annulus apical, opening by a vertical slit. &lt;i&gt;Spores&lt;/i&gt; monolete and reniform, 37 &micro;m in diameter.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Etymology&lt;/b&gt;:&mdash;The specific epithet refers to the erect fronds of the species.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Suggested common name:&mdash;&lt;/b&gt; Dinagat grass fern.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Distribution and habitat:&lt;/b&gt; &mdash; &lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; is known only from open habitat at 65 m elevation. It grows as a terrestrial plant in colonies with rhizomes growing below the ground in ultramafic soil associated with plants such as &lt;i&gt;Dicranopteris linearis&lt;/i&gt; (Burman 1768: 235) Underwood (1907: 250), &lt;i&gt;Imperata cylindrica&lt;/i&gt; (Linnaeus 1759: 878) Palisot de Beauvois (1812: 165), &lt;i&gt;Piper&lt;/i&gt; sp., &lt;i&gt;Pteridium aquilinum&lt;/i&gt; (Linnaeus 1753: 1075) Kuhn in Decken (1879: 11), &lt;i&gt;Pteris cretica&lt;/i&gt; Linnaeus (1767: 130), and &lt;i&gt;Smilax&lt;/i&gt; sp. (Figure 5).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Conservation Status:&mdash;&lt;/b&gt; Dinagat Island was identified as a critical terrestrial conservation priority in the Philippines (Ong &lt;i&gt;et al&lt;/i&gt;., 2002). Logging, mining, and land conversion threaten the entire island (Haribon, 2004). &lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; is known only within the Paragua forest, Municipality of Tubajon, with an estimated number of 30 individuals growing in just one open area near agricultural land. The habitat is prone to land conversion because of nearby residential areas. Thus, we recommend listing the species as critically endangered based on its restricted population with &le; 50 mature individuals and the extent of occurrence estimated to be &le; 10 km 2 (IUCN Standards and Petition Committee 2019).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; &lt;b&gt;Discussion&lt;/b&gt;: &lt;i&gt;&mdash; Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; is most similar to &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt;, based upon descriptions of Holttum (1959) and Sofiyanti &lt;i&gt;et al.&lt;/i&gt; (2019), and examination of JSTOR type images and Co&rsquo;s Digital Flora of the Philippines (Table 1). The species share nearly the same height and the presence of hairs on their rhizomes. Their fronds are dimorphic with fan-shaped lamina which branch dichotomously, they both have hypocytic stomata, and they both possess two rows of sorophores. However, the new species differs from &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; in having rhizome hairs 1.0&ndash; 2.3 mm long (vs. 2&ndash;3 mm) (Figure 2B); sterile fronds branching dichotomously 4&ndash;5 times (vs. 6&ndash;8 times) (Figure 2C). Further, the frond is consistently erect whereas that of &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; is not erect (Figure 2A). The sorophore of &lt;i&gt;S. erecta&lt;/i&gt; has 12&ndash;16 pairs of lobes whereas &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; has 5&ndash;10 pairs. The sporangia of &lt;i&gt;S. erecta&lt;/i&gt; are oblong whereas &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; has reniform sporangia (Figure 2G, H).&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; Ke &lt;i&gt;et al&lt;/i&gt;. (2022) and Brownsey &amp; Perrie (2014) stated that the &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; complex exhibits wide morphological and cytological variation. However, most members of this complex are poorly characterized and have been collectively lumped into &ldquo; &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; &rdquo;, which was found to be polyphyletic in the phylogeny of Ke &lt;i&gt;et al.&lt;/i&gt; (2022). Although our new species was not included in this phylogeny, we reckon that it is morphologically so distinct that it merits treatment as a separate species, especially in anticipation of further splitting in this group. With the recognition of this new species, there are now 21 species of &lt;i&gt;Schizaea&lt;/i&gt; worldwide (PPG I, 2016) and three in the Philippines.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; The salient anatomical features of &lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; include the following: the rhizome is almost circular with appressed hairs as outgrowths of the epidermal cells. The cortex is mainly composed of parenchyma cells. The stele is a haplostele with the phloem surrounding the xylem tissue (Figure 3B). The stipe shape changes from tetragonous at the base with indistinct costa and concave with narrow groove at the middle and somewhat flattened in the upper stipe with two distinct grooves and wings. The cortex becomes complex, being composed of the outer cortical sclerenchyma and the inner cortical parenchyma cells with the stele becoming actinostele and with a T-shaped xylem strand (Figure 3C&ndash;E). The lamina is flattened at the lower axis with distinct costa and incurved at the apical axis. The outer wall of the smaller epidermal cells is thickened and inwardly with large hypodermal cells. The vascular bundle is surrounded by a layer of large endodermis and a single layer of pericycle as also reported by Sofiyanti &lt;i&gt;et al.&lt;/i&gt; (2019). Moreover, both surfaces of the costa have large sclerenchyma cells to protect the inner undifferentiated mesophyll from drying as the plants are found in open area. The guard cells protrude on the abaxial surface of the epidermis and connect to the large intercellular spaces.&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; The anatomy of &lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt; differs from that of &lt;i&gt;S. dichotoma&lt;/i&gt; in the rhizomes for having larger outer cortical cells and smaller inner cortical cells (vs. smaller outer cortical cells and larger inner cortical cells), vascular bundles surrounded by ring-like sclerenchymatous cell layers (vs. star-shaped sclerenchymatous cell layers), numerous metaxylem (vs. 4 metaxylem); stipe tetragonous at the base and flattened in the upper stipe with narrow groove (vs. M-shaped and deeply grooved); lamina narrowly grooved (vs. deeply grooved), and guard cells protruding from the abaxial surface (vs. guard cells sunken).&lt;/p&gt;Published as part of &lt;i&gt;Amoroso, Victor B., Acola, Mescel S., Guiang, Maria Melanie M., Acma, Florfe M., Fritsch, Peter W. &amp; Coritico, Fulgent P., 2023, A new species of grass fern, Schizaea erecta (Schizaeaceae), from Dinagat Island, Mindanao, Philippines, pp. 265-273 in Phytotaxa 618 (3)&lt;/i&gt; on pages 267-272, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.618.3.4, &lt;a href="http://zenodo.org/record/8406837"&gt;http://zenodo.org/record/8406837&lt;/a&gt

Schizaeaceae

Key to the genera and species of grass ferns (Schizaeaceae) in the Philippines &lt;p&gt; 1. Sorophores pinnately arranged or comb-like (&lt;i&gt;Schizaea&lt;/i&gt;)....................................................................................................................2&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; -. Sorophores digitate (&lt;i&gt;Actinostachys&lt;/i&gt;)...................................................................................................................................................4&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; 2. Fronds unbranched.............................................................................................................................................. &lt;i&gt;Schizaea malaccana&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;-. Fronds repeatedly dichotomously branched.......................................................................................................................................3&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; 3. Laminae arching; segments &ge; 2 mm wide............................................................................................................ &lt;i&gt;Schizaea dichotoma&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; -. Laminae consistently erect; segments &lt;2 mm wide................................................................................................... &lt;i&gt;Schizaea erecta&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;4. Laminae &ge; 2 mm wide; stipes indistinct.............................................................................................................................................5&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt;-. Laminae &lt;2 mm wide; stipes distinct................................................................................................................................................6&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; 5. Laminae (sterile portion) &le; 5 mm wide; stomata in one row on each side of costa; sporangia in four rows on the sorophores................................................................................................................................................................................... &lt;i&gt;Actinostachys digitata&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; -. Laminae (sterile portion) &le; 2.5 mm wide; stomata in two rows on each side of costa; sporangia in two rows on the sorophores............................................................................................................................................................................ &lt;i&gt;Actinostachys inopinata&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; 6. Epiphytic; sorophores &lt;6 mm long, 1 to 4....................................................................................................... &lt;i&gt;Actinostachys minuta&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt; &lt;p&gt; -. Terrestrial; sorophores &ge; 6 mm long, 1............................................................................................................. &lt;i&gt;Actinostachys simplex&lt;/i&gt;&lt;/p&gt;Published as part of &lt;i&gt;Amoroso, Victor B., Acola, Mescel S., Guiang, Maria Melanie M., Acma, Florfe M., Fritsch, Peter W. &amp; Coritico, Fulgent P., 2023, A new species of grass fern, Schizaea erecta (Schizaeaceae), from Dinagat Island, Mindanao, Philippines, pp. 265-273 in Phytotaxa 618 (3)&lt;/i&gt; on page 272, DOI: 10.11646/phytotaxa.618.3.4, &lt;a href="http://zenodo.org/record/8406837"&gt;http://zenodo.org/record/8406837&lt;/a&gt

The economic impact of investments in cassava research in Uganda

Cassava plays a major role in both household and national food security in Uganda. However, cassava production in Uganda has been threatened by cassava mosaic disease. The government has made concerted efforts to evaluate, multiply and distribute new cassava planting materials in most districts. The new varieties outperformed the local varieties and quickly replaced them. An economic assessment of this programme using the benefit-cost approach revealed that the internal rate of return for this investment was 167%. This high rate of return can be partially explained by lack of data on some costs incurred by other development partners. The success of this investment was due to the joint contribution of complementary organizations. The biggest lesson learned is that it is important to strengthen the linkages between the research programme and other government institutions especially training, marketing, infrastructure development and political institutions