UN FORUM SERIES – where does human rights fit within business?

This post was contributed by Adam Smith-Anthony, senior Associate and co-lead of the Business & Human Rights team at Omnia Strategy LLP, and Laura Edwards, Associate at Omnia Strategy LLP. Measuring performance: a win/win “What can be reported can be measured and what can be measured can be improved.” It is with this in mind that measuring and reporting on progress to implement the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs) will form the focus of this year’s UN Forum on Business and Human Rights

Soil Modification as a Restoration Tool to Reduce Old World Bluestems in Texas Coastal Prairies

Nonnative Old World bluestem (OWB) grasses (e.g., Bothriochloas, Dichanthium spp.) have become dominant throughout the southern and central Great Plains, altering native plant communities and habitat quality for wildlife. Although conventional management strategies have not resulted in elimination or reduction of these grasses, modifying soil conditions to favor native plants may be an alternative restoration tool. We examined efficacy of 10 soil modification treatments (soil disturbance alone, pH increase, pH reduction, carbon addition, addition of soil mycorrhizae, and each combined with seeding of native vegetation) on 60 research plots at the Welder Wildlife Foundation Refuge in southern Texas in summer 2011. We sampled soil chemistry, vegetation density, cover, and height, and abundance of soil, terrestrial, and flying arthropods four and eight weeks after initial treatments. Severe drought prevented plant growth on treated plots and may have decreased the efficacy of soil treatments, especially pH reduction. As such, we compared vegetation and arthropod communities only between undisturbed plots dominated by native vegetation and dominated by OWBs. Species richness of vegetation was higher on plots dominated by native vegetation (4.4 species/m2, SE = 0.6) compared to plots dominated by OWBs (2 species/m2, SE = 0.5). Arthropods were more abundant in native vegetation (175 individuals/m2, SE = 4.1) relative to OWB-dominated plant communities (41, 1.3). Isopods and ants were the most abundant groups overall, although some of these taxa are nonnative. We will continue to collect data over the next two years to explore further soil modification as a restoration tool in grasslands impacted by OWBs

Decreased Plant and Arthropod Richness in Landscapes Dominated by Old World Bluestem Grasses: Implications for Wildlife

Old World bluestem grasses (OWBs, e.g., Bothriochloa, Dichanthium spp.) have become dominant throughout the southern and central Great Plains, altering native plant communities with concomitant effects for native wildlife. We examined plant and arthropod communities in areas dominated by native plants and areas dominated by OWBs at the Welder Wildlife Refuge in southern Texas. We sampled vegetation and arthropods on research plots (6 x 9-m, 5 each) every 4 weeks during summer 2011 and 2012. We found, on average, 2 (SE=0.2) more plant species, and 12-13 (SE=1.0) more arthropod species on native plant-dominated plots compared to OWB-dominated plots. Native plant-dominated plots also had 273 (SE=18.8) more individual arthropods in 2011, but 75 (SE=16.6) fewer than OWB-dominant plots in 2012, resulting from a population explosion and crash of woodlice in native plant-dominated plots. We recorded only 1 species of herbivorous arthropod from OWB-dominated plots in 2012; native plant-dominated plots had 5-6 (SE=0.68) additional herbivore species, suggesting that increased dominance by OWBs may create cascading effects on trophic dynamics. Because many species of wildlife depend on plants and arthropods for food, these changes in species richness and abundance suggest that restoration tools are required to reduce the competitive ability of OWBs. Traditional management strategies have not successfully reduced OWBs; as part of our research, we are modifying soil properties to attempt to provide novel management strategies for landowners to increase diversity of native species and habitat quality in grasslands impacted by OWBs

The undervalued set piece: Analysis of Soccer Throw-ins during the English Premier League 2018-2019 Season

Set pieces in soccer (i.e., free kicks and corners) have been examined in detail and are a common focus for coaches during training and performance preparation. However, limited evidence is available on the impact of throw-ins on soccer performance and if coaches should dedicate time in training towards this specific set piece. Therefore, this research aimed to firstly examine if throw-in performance is linked with soccer performance, and secondly the effect throw-in direction and length has on first contact success rate, possession retention, mean time in possession and shot creation. 16,154 throw-ins from 380 English Premier League matches during the 2018-2019 season were analysed. Higher final league position was correlated to increased throw-in first contact success and possession retention. 83% of throw-in’s resulted in a successful first contact, 54% resulted in possession being retained and 8.8% of throw-ins led to a shot at goal from the possession achieved after a successful first contact. Throw-in’s which went backwards or laterally in direction resulted in increased first contact success, retaining of possession, and shot creation. The least efficient throw-in was forwards and long, which resulted in both reduced first contact success and possession retention. Findings highlight, that throwing the ball laterally or backwards should be a focus for coaches and players during attacking training. In contrast, a team’s defensive strategy should reduce the opportunities to throw backwards or laterally with a higher press and look to force a long forward throw-in, therefore, increasing the likelihood of winning possession and counter attacking

Atomic Resolution Structure of the Oncolytic Parvovirus LuIII by Electron Microscopy and 3D Image Reconstruction.

LuIII, a protoparvovirus pathogenic to rodents, replicates in human mitotic cells, making it applicable for use to kill cancer cells. This virus group includes H-1 parvovirus (H-1PV) and minute virus of mice (MVM). However, LuIII displays enhanced oncolysis compared to H-1PV and MVM, a phenotype mapped to the major capsid viral protein 2 (VP2). This suggests that within LuIII VP2 are determinants for improved tumor lysis. To investigate this, the structure of the LuIII virus-like-particle was determined using single particle cryo-electron microscopy and image reconstruction to 3.17 Å resolution, and compared to the H-1PV and MVM structures. The LuIII VP2 structure, ordered from residue 37 to 587 (C-terminal), had the conserved VP topology and capsid morphology previously reported for other protoparvoviruses. This includes a core β-barrel and α-helix A, a depression at the icosahedral 2-fold and surrounding the 5-fold axes, and a single protrusion at the 3-fold axes. Comparative analysis identified surface loop differences among LuIII, H-1PV, and MVM at or close to the capsid 2- and 5-fold symmetry axes, and the shoulder of the 3-fold protrusions. The 2-fold differences cluster near the previously identified MVM sialic acid receptor binding pocket, and revealed potential determinants of protoparvovirus tumor tropism

Influence of forest-to-silvopasture conversion and drought on components of evapotranspiration

The northeastern U.S. is projected to experience more frequent short-term (1-2 month) droughts interspersed among larger precipitation events. Agroforestry practices such as silvopasture may mitigate these impacts of climate change while maintaining economic benefits of both agricultural and forestry practices. This study evaluated the effects of forest-to-silvopasture (i.e., 50% thinning) conversion on the components of evapotranspiration (transpiration, rainfall interception, and soil evaporation) during the growing season of 2016. The study coincided with a late-summer drought throughout the northeastern U.S., which allowed us to also evaluate the effects of forest-to-silvopasture conversion on drought responses of multiple tree species, including Pinus strobus, Tsuga canadensis, and Quercus rubra. In the reference forest and silvopasture, we observed declining soil moisture and tree water use during the drought for all three tree species. However, the decline in P. strobus water use in response to declining soil moisture in the silvopasture was not as steep as compared with the reference forest, resulting in greater water use in the silvopasture for this species. In contrast, we did not detect different water-use responses between forest and silvopasture in T. canadensis or Q. rubra. This suggests that forest-to-silvopasture conversion via thinning can alleviate drought stress for P. strobus and that this species may be more sensitive to moisture stress when competition for water is high in denser stands. Evapotranspiration was 35% lower in the silvopasture compared with the reference forest, primarily a result of lower transpiration and rainfall interception. While soil evaporation was greater in the silvopasture, this was not enough to offset the considerably lower transpiration and interception. We observed greater radial tree growth 1-3 years following conversion in the silvopasture as compared with the reference forest for T. canadensis and Q. rubra, but not for P. strobus. Overall, our results suggest that forest conversion to silvopasture (in lieu of clearcutting for new pasture) may mitigate the impacts of agricultural land use intensification and climate change on ecosystem services, especially in terms of sustaining hydrologic regulation functions. Further study is required to determine the generality of these results and whether these benefits extend beyond the first few years post-conversion

Self-interest And Public Interest: The Motivations Of Political Actors

Self-Interest and Public Interest in Western Politics showed that the public, politicians, and bureaucrats are often public spirited. But this does not invalidate public-choice theory. Public-choice theory is an ideal type, not a claim that self-interest explains all political behavior. Instead, public-choice theory is useful in creating rules and institutions that guard against the worst case, which would be universal self-interestedness in politics. In contrast, the public-interest hypothesis is neither a comprehensive explanation of political behavior nor a sound basis for institutional design