Maroc Présaharien ; bois de feu et désertification

International audienc

Le genévrier thurifère Juniperus thurifera L. Géant de l'Atlas

Cet article décrit le genévrier thurifère (Juniperus thurifera), espèce caractéristique de la haute montagne marocaine. Il aborde les aspects botanique et écologique de cet arbre peu connu avant d'insister sur son rôle social et économique au sein des sociétés berbères du Haut-Atlas central. Quelques fiches décrivent ensuite brièvement les Cupressinées de l'Atlas : cyprès de l'Atlas, genévrier de Phénicie ou genévrier rouge, genévrier oxycèdre ou cade, thuya de Berberie

The Power of Invitation: Teacher Leaders as Agents of Change

Programs offered by universities and other entities outside the organizational boundaries of schools are an important source of ideas and support for educational improvement. Such organizations can focus on important needs—such as improving teaching of science—that schools perhaps cannot address on their own due to resource constraints. In such cases, teacher leaders can play key roles in bringing the knowledge and insights from external organizations into schools, sharing them with colleagues, and gaining administrative support. This kind of teacher leadership, responding to external initiatives rather than just to administrative priorities, is understudied, but programs in Maine that connect schools to universities and nonprofit organizations provide insight into the nature of such teacher leadership. We draw upon cases from two of these programs to offer suggestions to other organizations that might wish to develop programs for teacher leaders in support of educational improvement

Evolution des recouvrements forestiers et de l'Occupation des sols entre 1964 et 2002 dans la haute vallée des Ait Bouguemez (Haut Atlas Central, Maroc). Impact des modes de gestion.

Les espaces forestiers montagnards méditerranéens sont souvent fortement dégradés. La cause principale est la surexploitation des ressources. Au cours de l'histoire, la rareté des ressources a probablement incité les hommes à mettre en place des formes de contrôle coutumières (ou « traditionnelles ») des espaces forestiers et pastoraux. Ces régimes perdurent dans le Haut Atlas marocain sous le nom d'agdal, terme qui désigne un territoire sylvopastoral collectif soumis à des mises en défens temporaires. Ce travail vise à évaluer l'impact de cette gestion coutumière sur les dynamiques des formations boisées dans une zone de montagne, la vallée des Ait Bouguemez, à travers une analyse diachronique basée sur la comparaison de documents anciens (photographies aériennes de 1964) avec des documents récents (image satellitaire Spot 5 à très haute résolution). La méthodologie adoptée repose sur la photointerprétation visuelle des documents précités en se basant sur une charte commune d'estimation du recouvrement arboré. Deux cartes de recouvrement ont été produites pour 1964 et 2002, dont le croisement a permis d'obtenir une carte de la dynamique des peuplements. Les résultats obtenus soulignent de fortes disparités dans les dynamiques forestières selon le statut agdal ou non-agdal de la forêt. La surface forestière a diminué de 21 % en 38 ans, et le recouvrement arboré moyen sur la zone forestière chute globalement de 20 % à 18 % pendant cette période. On observe un maintien du couvert boisé en zone agdal et sa forte dégradation hors agdal dans un contexte de forte croissance démographique

Charbonnage en Tunisie

Après une introduction qui présente la situation forestière tunisienne et son évolution récente avec l'émergence des approches participatives, nous évaluons l'importance du secteur informel dans la production nationale de bois de feu et charbon de bois. La distinction entre filières légales et filières informelles ou clandestines constitue le fil conducteur de la présentation. La mise en perspective de la production légale de charbon de bois avec les chiffres de consommation établis par une enquête nationale récente révèle l'importance des filières informelles de charbonnage. Les implications écologiques et sociales de cette situation sont examinées à partir de plusieurs études de cas. Nous mettons en évidence l'impact destructeur du charbonnage sur la végétation arborée, en particulier dans les régions arides. Nous montrons les relations étroites entre l'activité clandestine de charbonnage et la situation de précarité, sociale et économique, de nombreuses familles rurales

Introduction de l'ouvrage : "Le retour des paysans ?"

Cet article est le texte introductif de l'ouvrage « Le retour des paysans ? », lui-même issu d'un colloque tenu à Marseille les 11 et 12 décembre 2003. Cette manifestation avait permis de réunir de nombreux chercheurs et doctorants représentant la plupart des disciplines en sciences sociales et analysant des situations très diverses, au Nord et au Sud. Cet ouvrage collectif est en partie le fruit de cette rencontre interdisciplinaire sur un terrain chargé de passions : les paysans et l'environnement

Did atmospheric thermal tides cause a daylength locking in the Precambrian? A review on recent results

After the initial suggestion by Zahnle and Walker (1987) that the torque accelerating the spin rate of the Earth and produced by the heating of the atmosphere by the Sun could counteract the braking lunir-solar gravitational torque in the Precambrian, several authors have recently revisited this hypothesis. In these studies, it is argued that the geological evidences of the past spin state of the Earth play in favor of this atmospheric tidal locking of the length of the day (LOD). In the present review of the recent literature, we show that the drawn conclusions depend crucially on the consideration of the stromatolite geological LOD estimates obtained by Pannella at 1.88 and 2.0 Ga, which are subject to large uncertainties. When only the most robust cyclostatigraphic estimates of the LOD are retained, the LOD locking hypothesis is not supported. Moreover, the consideration of the published General Circulation Model numerical simulations and of new analytical models for the thermal atmospheric tides suggest that the atmospheric tidal resonance, which is the crucial ingredient for the LOD locking in the Precambrian, was never of sufficiently large amplitude to allow for this tidal LOD lock.Comment: 16 pages, 9 figure

Quaternary coastal uplift along the Talara Arc (Ecuador, Northern Peru) from new marine terrace data

Marine Geology, v. 228, n. 1-4, p. 73-91, 2006. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.margeo.2006.01.004International audienceMarine terrace sequences have been investigated along the Talara Arc, a 1000-km-long stretch of the coast of Ecuador and northern Peru, characterized by subduction with a concave plan-view. Seven areas were investigated, evidencing flights of up to seven marine terraces with elevations reaching up to 360 m above mean sea level (amsl). Dating of the terraces was made using the Infra Red Stimulated Luminescence (IRSL) technique on sands as old as MIS 9 (∼330 ka). 14 C and U-series dates were obtained from fossil shells for geochronological cross control. Mean uplift rates along the Talara Arc range from about 0.10 up to 0.50 mm/ yr. The strongest uplift is observed in the Manta Peninsula of Ecuador in front of the subduction of the Carnegie Ridge. The uplift rate tends to slow down towards the northern and southern ends of the Talara Arc and then the transition toward the stable or subsiding coasts of central Peru and northern Ecuador and Colombia is sharp. The uplift appears to be homogeneous and related to 1) the map view curvature of the Arc, 2) the concave subduction pattern and 3) the Carnegie Ridge subduction

The Multifunctional Sorting Protein PACS-2 Regulates SIRT1-Mediated Deacetylation of p53 to Modulate p21-Dependent Cell-Cycle Arrest

SIRT1 regulates the DNA damage response by deacetylating p53, thereby repressing p53 transcriptional output. Here, we demonstrate that the sortingprotein PACS-2 regulates SIRT1-mediated deacetylation of p53 to modulate the DNA damage response. PACS-2 knockdown cells failed to efficiently undergo p53-induced cell-cycle arrest in response to DNA damage. Accordingly, p53 acetylation was reduced both in PACS-2 knockdown cells and thymocytes from Pacs-2-/- mice, thereby blunting induction of the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor p21 (CDKN1A). The SIRT1 inhibitor EX-527 or SIRT1 knockdown restored p53 acetylation and p21 induction as well as p21-dependent cell-cycle arrest in PACS-2 knockdown cells. Traffickingstudies revealed that cytoplasmic PACS-2 shuttled to the nucleus, where it interacted with SIRT1 andrepressed SIRT1-mediated p53 deacetylation. Correspondingly, invitro assays demonstrated that PACS-2 directly inhibited SIRT1-catalyzed p53 deacetylation. Together, these findings identify PACS-2 as an invivo mediator of the SIRT1-p53-p21 axis that modulates the DNA damage response

Preferences and priorities for relapsed multiple myeloma treatments among patients and caregivers in the United States

Introduction/Background: This study aimed to describe patient and caregiver preferences for treatments of relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma (MM). Materials and Methods: A survey including discrete-choice experiment (DCE) and best-worst scaling (BWS) exercises was conducted among US patients with relapsed or refractory MM and their caregivers. The DCE included six attributes with varying levels including progression-free survival (PFS), toxicity, and mode and frequency of administration. In addition, the impact of treatment cost was assessed using a fixed-choice question. The BWS exercise included 18 items (modes and frequency of administration, additional treatment convenience, and toxicity items). The survey was administered online to patients recruited from the Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation CoMMpass study (NCT01454297). Results: The final samples consisted of 94 patients and 32 caregivers. Avoiding severe nerve damage was most important to patients, followed by longer PFS. Caregivers considered PFS to be the most important attribute. We estimate that a third or more of patients were cost-sensitive, meaning their treatment preference was altered based on cost implications. Caregivers were not cost-sensitive. The three most bothersome treatment features in the BWS exercise were risk of kidney failure, lowering white blood cell counts, and weakening the immune system. Conclusion: Patients with relapsed or refractory MM and their caregivers consider many factors including efficacy, toxicity, mode/frequency of administration, and cost in their decisions regarding treatment options. The study provides a basis for future Research on patient and caregiver treatment preferences, which could be incorporated into shared decision-making with physicians