Sustainable wetland resource utilization of Sango Bay through Eco-tourism development

Defining and achieving sustainable development is a major issue for policy debates both in the developed and developing countries. Eco-tourism as an important niche market in the world tourism industry has been embraced by developing countries like Uganda, which are trying to use tourism as an engine of national development. It embraces environmental conservation, maintenance of biodiversity, a satisfying experience for the visitors, study and appreciation of nature and sustainable community development. Eco-tourism development is expected to achieve three major goals (3P) namely: Profits (economic), People (Social cultural benefits to communities and tourists) and Place (biodiversity conservation). Based on a research conducted in Sango Bay wetland of Rakai district in Uganda, this paper evaluates the socio-economic benefits of consumptive utilization practices of wetland resources, the recreation and Eco-tourism potential of the wetland, its sustainability and contribution to poverty reduction among the surrounding communities. Secondary data from diverse sources was used to complement primary data collected through Focus Group Discussions (FGD) questionnaires and Participatory Rural Appraisal techniques. The results indicate dominance of consumptive resource utilization practices and the failure to reduce poverty levels. The eco-system is rich in flora and fauna which are important for eco-tourism development. Potential eco-tourism projects, which can be introduced in the wetland for sustainable resource utilization and poverty reduction, are proposed.Key words: Ecotourism, sustainable tourism development, poverty reduction

Design and Validation of a Synchronous Reluctance Motor With Single Tooth Windings

This paper presents for the first time the analysis and experimental validation of a six-slot four-pole synchronous reluctance motor with nonoverlapping fractional slot-concentrated windings. The machine exhibits high torque density and efficiency due to its high fill factor coils with very short end windings, facilitated by a segmented stator and bobbin winding of the coils. These advantages are coupled with its inherent robustness and low cost. The topology is presented as a logical step forward in advancing synchronous reluctance machines that have been universally wound with a sinusoidally distributed winding. The paper presents the motor design, performance evaluation through finite element studies and validation of the electromagnetic model, and thermal specification through empirical testing. It is shown that high performance synchronous reluctance motors can be constructed with single tooth wound coils, but considerations must be given regarding torque quality and the d-q axis inductances

Topological Andr\'e-Quillen homology for cellular commutative SS-algebras

Topological Andr\'e-Quillen homology for commutative $S$-algebras was introduced by Basterra following work of Kriz, and has been intensively studied by several authors. In this paper we discuss it as a homology theory on CW $S$-algebras and apply it to obtain results on minimal atomic $p$-local $S$-algebras which generalise those of Baker and May for $p$-local spectra and simply connected spaces. We exhibit some new examples of minimal atomic $S$-algebras.Comment: Final revision, a version will appear in Abhandlungen aus dem Mathematischen Seminar der Universitaet Hambur

Review of UK microgeneration. Part 1 : policy and behavioural aspects

A critical review of the literature relating to government policy and behavioural aspects relevant to the uptake and application of microgeneration in the UK is presented. Given the current policy context aspiring to zero-carbon new homes by 2016 and a variety of minimum standards and financial policy instruments supporting microgeneration in existing dwellings, it appears that this class of technologies could make a significant contribution to UK energy supply and low-carbon buildings in the future. Indeed, achievement of a reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 80% (the UK government's 2050 target) for the residential sector may entail substantial deployment of microgeneration. Realisation of the large potential market for microgeneration relies on a variety of inter-related factors such as microeconomics, behavioural aspects, the structure of supporting policy instruments and well-informed technology development. This article explores these issues in terms of current and proposed policy instruments in the UK. Behavioural aspects associated with both initial uptake of the technology and after purchase are also considered

Data Analysis Challenges for the Einstein Telescope

The Einstein Telescope is a proposed third generation gravitational wave detector that will operate in the region of 1 Hz to a few kHz. As well as the inspiral of compact binaries composed of neutron stars or black holes, the lower frequency cut-off of the detector will open the window to a number of new sources. These will include the end stage of inspirals, plus merger and ringdown of intermediate mass black holes, where the masses of the component bodies are on the order of a few hundred solar masses. There is also the possibility of observing intermediate mass ratio inspirals, where a stellar mass compact object inspirals into a black hole which is a few hundred to a few thousand times more massive. In this article, we investigate some of the data analysis challenges for the Einstein Telescope such as the effects of increased source number, the need for more accurate waveform models and the some of the computational issues that a data analysis strategy might face.Comment: 18 pages, Invited review for Einstein Telescope special edition of GR

Caves demonstrate decrease in rainfall recharge of southwest Australian groundwater is unprecedented for the last 800 years

Billions of people worldwide rely on groundwater. As rainfall in many regions in the future is projected to decrease, it is critical to understand the impacts of climate change on groundwater recharge. The groundwater recharge response to a sustained decrease in rainfall across southwest Australia that began in the late 1960s was examined in seven modern speleothems and drip waters from four caves. These show a pronounced increase or uptick in regional drip water and speleothem oxygen isotopic composition (δ¹⁸O) that is not driven by a change in rainfall δ¹⁸O values, but is in response to the shallow karst aquifers becoming disconnected from rainfall recharge due to regional drying. Our findings imply that rainfall recharge to groundwater may no longer be reliably occurring in this region, which is highly dependent on groundwater resources. Examination of the longer speleothem record shows that this situation is unprecedented over the last 800 years.Stacey C. Priestley, Pauline C. Treble, Alan D. Griffiths, Andy Baker, Nerilie J. Abram, Karina T. Meredit

Three sites and you are out: Ternary synergistic allostery controls aromatic amino acid biosynthesis in Mycobacterium tuberculosis.

3-Deoxy-D-arabino-heptulosonate 7-phosphate synthase (DAH7PS) catalyzes the first step in the shikimate pathway, the pathway responsible for the biosynthesis of the aromatic amino acids Trp, Phe, and Tyr. Unlike many other organisms that produce up to three isozymes, each feedback-regulated by one of the aromatic amino acid pathway end products, Mycobacterium tuberculosis expresses a single DAH7PS enzyme that can be controlled by combinations of aromatic amino acids. This study shows that the synergistic inhibition of this enzyme by a combination of Trp and Phe can be significantly augmented by the addition of Tyr.We used X-ray crystallography, mutagenesis, and isothermal titration calorimetry studies to show that DAH7PS from M. tuberculosis possesses a Tyr-selective site in addition to the Trp and Phe sites, revealing an unusual and highly sophisticated network of three synergistic allosteric sites on one enzyme. This ternary inhibitory response, by a combination of all three aromatic amino acids, allows a tunable response of the protein to changing metabolic demands

Methods to Determine Neutrino Flux at Low Energies:Investigation of the Low ν\nu Method

We investigate the "low-$\nu$" method (developed by the CCFR/NUTEV collaborations) to determine the neutrino flux in a wide band neutrino beam at very low energies, a region of interest to neutrino oscillations experiments. Events with low hadronic final state energy $\nu<\nu_{cut}$ (of 1, 2 and 5 GeV) were used by the MINOS collaboration to determine the neutrino flux in their measurements of neutrino ($\nu_\mu$) and antineutrino (\nub_\mu) total cross sections. The lowest $\nu_\mu$ energy for which the method was used in MINOS is 3.5 GeV, and the lowest \nub_\mu energy is 6 GeV. At these energies, the cross sections are dominated by inelastic processes. We investigate the application of the method to determine the neutrino flux for $\nu_\mu$, \nub_\mu energies as low as 0.7 GeV where the cross sections are dominated by quasielastic scattering and $\Delta$(1232) resonance production. We find that the method can be extended to low energies by using $\nu_{cut}$ values of 0.25 and 0.50 GeV, which is feasible in fully active neutrino detectors such as MINERvA.Comment: 25 pages, 32 figures, to be published in European Physics Journal

Prospects for asteroseismology

The observational basis for asteroseismology is being dramatically strengthened, through more than two years of data from the CoRoT satellite, the flood of data coming from the Kepler mission and, in the slightly longer term, from dedicated ground-based facilities. Our ability to utilize these data depends on further development of techniques for basic data analysis, as well as on an improved understanding of the relation between the observed frequencies and the underlying properties of the stars. Also, stellar modelling must be further developed, to match the increasing diagnostic potential of the data. Here we discuss some aspects of data interpretation and modelling, focussing on the important case of stars with solar-like oscillations.Comment: Proc. HELAS Workshop on 'Synergies between solar and stellar modelling', eds M. Marconi, D. Cardini & M. P. Di Mauro, Astrophys. Space Sci., in the press Revision: correcting abscissa labels on Figs 1 and