Climate Change in Canadian Environmental Assessment Legislation: Review and Recommendations for Further Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Climate change is the most urgent crisis of our time, as reflected in international agreements like the recent Paris Agreement. State members must now integrate climate change considerations into domestic legislation to honour their commitments. Environmental assessment (EA) is considered a strong tool to address climate change, but Canadian federal and provincial legislation remain unclear on how climate change and greenhouse gas (GHG) considerations must be integrated into the EA process. The Energy East pipeline project case study illustrates the need for a better integration of these considerations for more consistent assessments. European Union and American EA legislation, as well as recognized best practices, provide inspiration for recommendations on how to incorporate climate change and GHG considerations in the Canadian EA process. Recommendations include the integration of specific GHG considerations in all Canadian EA legislation, as well as a federally established threshold approach that would trigger a climate EA process

Endo-microscopie du cerveau combinant microscopie confocale en fluorescence et tomographie par cohérence optique Doppler

L’épilepsie affecte près de 50 millions de personnes à travers le monde, parmi lesquelles 30% ne répondent pas aux traitements. Lorsqu’un patient ne répond pas au traitement, la résection de la zone irritée devient nécessaire dans les cas difficiles. Le défi pour l’épileptologue devient donc l’identification de cette zone. Les techniques classiques utilisées pour la localiser sont : le test clinique neurologique, les électroencéphalogrammes (EEG), l’implantation d’électrodes intracrâniennes et l’imagerie par résonance magnétique (IRM) anatomique pour identifier les lésions. Parallèlement, les chercheurs explorent les techniques fonctionnelles, et utilisent de plus en plus des techniques d’imagerie hémodynamique. Pour mieux comprendre ces signaux, il est essentiel de connaitre le lien entre l’hyperactivité des neurones et les signaux hémodynamiques qui en résultent. Malheureusement, ce lien reste indéterminé en raison de la complexité des changements d’oxygénation du sang et des tissus lors d’évènements épileptiques. Afin d’élucider ce lien, les techniques actuelles ne permettent pas d’imager simultanément l’activité neuronale avec une résolution cellulaire et le flux sanguin dans le cortex du cerveau murin. La microscopie confocale en fluorescence (MCF), combinée à des marqueurs du calcium, est un outil potentiel pour imager directement l’activité neuronale avec une résolution sous cellulaire. Le suivi du flux sanguin dans des vaisseaux individuels et avec une profondeur de pénétration acceptable peut quant à lui être réalisé avec la tomographie par cohérence optique Doppler (DOCT). Cette technique basée sur l’interférométrie permet d’imager à une profondeur de 2 à 3 mm avec une résolution d’une dizaine de microns. Lorsqu’ils sont combinés à un endomicroscope,chacun de ces systèmes pourrait permettre d’imager en profondeur dans le cerveau. Cependant, la MCF et le DOCT n’ont pas encore été combinés à travers un endo-microscope adapté à ces deux modalités. L’objectif de ce projet est de développer un système d’imagerie microscopique pouvant mesurer l’activité neuronale et hémodynamique, puis d’évaluer la performance de ce système. Nous proposons donc de concevoir un endo-microscope multimodal combinant la MCF et le DOCT dans un bras d’imagerie commun pour les deux modalités. Ce bras peut être facilement manipulé ou installé sur un stage stéréotaxique puisqu’il est relié par fibre optique au reste du système. Le bras comporte un système 2D de galvanomètres pour l’imagerie 2D en MCF et l’imagerie 3D en DOCT.----------ABSTRACT Epilepsy affects about 50 million people worldwide; 30% of which are unresponsive to treatment. Resection of the affected brain area needs to be performed for patients with severe epilepsy who remain unresponsive to treatment. The identification of the affected area is challenging. Techniques routinely used to localize this area include neurological examination, electroencephalography (EEG), stereoencephalography (SEEG), and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Researchers use functional imaging in to study epilepsy. With the increasing use of hemodynamic imaging techniques to characterize the epileptic brain, a clear link between the hyperactivity of neurons and ensuing hemodynamic signals is required to better understand these signals. Unfortunately, hemodynamic signals are confounded due to complex behavior of oxygenation in blood and tissue. Current techniques cannot image simultaneously neuronal activity at cell resolution and blood flow in the cortex in order to propose their relation to epilepsy. Confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM) has proven to be a great tool to image directly neuronal activity with micron level resolution, using calcium indicators. The monitoring of blood flow in single vessels with a high penetration depth has been successfully achieved with Doppler optical coherence tomography (DOCT). This technique based on interferometry allows to image at a depth of 2-3 mm with a resolution of about 10 μm. When combined to an endo microscope, each of these systems can image deeply into the brain. However, CFM and DOCT have not been combined yet through an endo-microscope adapted to both modalities. The goal of this work is to develop a microscopic imaging system that can measure both neuronal activity and hemodynamics and then investigate its performance. We propose to design a multimodal endo-microscope combining confocal fluorescence microscopy (CFM) and Doppler optical coherence tomography (DOCT). A common imaging arm for both modalities includes a 2D galvanometer system for 2D imaging in CFM and 3D imaging in DOCT, and is terminated by a GRIN triplet. The triplet was designed to relay light deeply into the brain and maximize resolution. The common imaging arm can be manipulated or installed on a stereotaxic holder during the imaging session, as light collection is performed through optical fibers

Insomnia and daytime cognitive performance : a meta-analysis

Objectives : Individuals with insomnia consistently report difficulties pertaining to their cognitive functioning (e.g., memory, concentration). However, objective measurements of their performance on neuropsychological tests have produced inconsistent findings. This meta-analysis was conducted to provide a quantitative summary of evidence regarding the magnitude of differences between individuals with primary insomnia and normal sleepers on a broad range of neuropsychological measures. Methods : Reference databases (PubMed, PsycInfo, Dissertation Abstracts International) were searched for studies comparing adults with primary insomnia to normal sleepers on neuropsychological measures. Dependent variables related to cognitive and psychomotor performance were extracted from each study. Variables were classified independently by two licensed neuropsychologists according to the main cognitive function being measured. Individual effect sizes (Cohen's d) were weighted by variability and combined for each cognitive function using a fixed effects model. Average effect sizes and their 95% confidence intervals were computed for each cognitive function. Results : Twenty-four studies met inclusion criteria, for a total of 639 individuals with insomnia and 558 normal sleepers. Significant impairments (p < 0.05) of small to moderate magnitude were found in individuals with insomnia for tasks assessing episodic memory (ES = −0.51), problem solving (ES = −0.42), manipulation in working memory (ES = −0.42), and retention in working memory (ES = −0.22). No significant group differences were observed for tasks assessing general cognitive function, perceptual and psychomotor processes, procedural learning, verbal functions, different dimensions of attention (alertness, complex reaction time, speed of information processing, selective attention, sustained attention/vigilance) and some aspects of executive functioning (verbal fluency, cognitive flexibility). Conclusion : Individuals with insomnia exhibit performance impairments for several cognitive functions, including working memory, episodic memory and some aspects of executive functioning. While the data suggests that these impairments are of small to moderate magnitude, further research using more ecologically valid measures and normative data are warranted to establish their clinical significance

Climate Change in Canadian Environmental Assessment Legislation: Review and Recommendations for Further Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Climate change is the most urgent crisis of our time, as reflected in international agreements like the recent Paris Agreement. State members must now integrate climate change considerations into domestic legislation to honour their commitments. Environmental assessment (EA) is considered a strong tool to address climate change, but Canadian federal and provincial legislation remain unclear on how climate change and greenhouse gas (GHG) considerations must be integrated into the EA process. The Energy East pipeline project case study illustrates the need for a better integration of these considerations for more consistent assessments. European Union and American EA legislation, as well as recognized best practices, provide inspiration for recommendations on how to incorporate climate change and GHG considerations in the Canadian EA process. Recommendations include the integration of specific GHG considerations in all Canadian EA legislation, as well as a federally established threshold approach that would trigger a climate EA process

30. Comment les eaux acquièrent-elles leur composition chimique ?

L’eau de pluie interagit avec les roches qu’elle rencontre par l’intermédiaire de réactions chimiques qui libèrent en solution les éléments les plus solubles et recombinent sur place les éléments insolubles pour former de nouveaux minéraux. Il s’agit du processus d’altération chimique des roches. À l’échelle des temps géologiques, ces interactions à petite échelle entre les molécules d’eau et les éléments chimiques contenus dans les roches s’opposent à la tectonique des plaques en détruisant ..

Is there still something to eat for trees in the soils of the Strengbach catchment?

The global demand for wood is growing and the sustainability of forests has become an increasingly important issue. The first metre of soil represents the reserve of nutrients cations (K, Ca, Mg) for trees. The depletion of these elements in the soil gradually leads to a decrease in soil fertility, which can have a strong impact on the development and health of forests.The aim of this study was to better understand the source and dynamics of nutrients in forested soils from a base poor environment by combining mineralogic, chemical, isotopic and numerical tools through an experimental approach. We designed batch experiments to follow the leaching of soils from two experimental plots (under spruce and under beech from the Strengbach catchment, Vosges Mountain, NE France). The studied elements show highly contrasting behaviours. Mg release results from a mixing between cationic exchange, mineral dissolution (mainly smectite) and organic matter mineralization. The dynamics of K are underestimated by modelling, which may be attributed either to an unknown source of K or to an overestimation of the secondaryphase precipitation. The Sr isotopic approach, used as a proxy to identify the sources of Ca, shows that the exchangeable complex supplies nutrients first and rapidly to the solution, followed by the clay compartment and at the very end, the bulk soils. Na is mainly controlled by albite dissolution.The release of Ca is significantly lower than that of other cations as Mg or K. Our results suggest that the exchangeable Ca, estimated through classical extractions, is only partly available for plants, due to strong chemical binding with organic matter and/or the occurrence of Ca-chemical bridges between clay and organic matter. Sustainable management should thus consider that exchangeable Ca, conventionally determined, does not necessarily provide an accurate picture of the real availability of Ca and therefore of the fertility of soils, with a risk of overestimation of nutrient reservoir for trees. Calcium tree nutrition at these sites has to rely on the long term on atmospheric deposition and an efficient recycling through biological cycling. This is also true for th other nutrient cations, but to a lesser extent since soil intrinsic fluxes (i.e., weathering, mineralisation of OM…) are not null and may thus supply the exchangeable pools and participate substantially to tree nutrition. Harvesting and biomass exportation could rapidly impact the biological cycle and threaten the sustainability of these ecosystems, similar to changing tree species that may influence the nature of the litter, its turnover and the input of nutrients to the soil

Attention following traumatic brain injury : neuropsychological and driving simulator data, and association with sleep, sleepiness, and fatigue

The objectives of this study were to compare individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and healthy controls on neuropsychological tests of attention and driving simulation performance, and explore their relationships with participants’ characteristics, sleep, sleepiness, and fatigue. Participants were 22 adults with moderate or severe TBI (time since injury ≥ one year) and 22 matched controls. They completed three neuropsychological tests of attention, a driving simulator task, night-time polysomnographic recordings, and subjective ratings of sleepiness and fatigue. Results showed that participants with TBI exhibited poorer performance compared to controls on measures tapping speed of information processing and sustained attention, but not on selective attention measures. On the driving simulator task, a greater variability of the vehicle lateral position was observed in the TBI group. Poorer performance on specific subsets of neuropsychological variables was associated with poorer sleep continuity in the TBI group, and with a greater increase in subjective sleepiness in both groups. No significant relationship was found between cognitive performance and fatigue. These findings add to the existing evidence that speed of information processing is still impaired several years after moderate to severe TBI. Sustained attention could also be compromised. Attention seems to be associated with sleep continuity and daytime sleepiness; this interaction needs to be explored further

Chapitre 9 : Pharmacologie cardiaque

ISBN 978276062092

Telephone outreach by volunteer navigators: a theory-based evaluation of an intervention to improve access to appropriate primary care

Abstract Background A pilot intervention in a participatory research programme in Québec, Canada, used telephone outreach by volunteer patient navigators to help unattached persons from deprived neighbourhoods attach successfully to a family doctor newly-assigned to them from a centralized waiting list. According to our theory-based program logic model we evaluated the extent to which the volunteer navigator outreach helped patients reach and engage with their newly-assigned primary care team, have a positive healthcare experience, develop an enduring doctor-patient relationship, and reduce forgone care and emergency room use. Method For the mixed-method evaluation, indicators were developed for all domains in the logic model and measured in a telephone-administered patient survey at baseline and three months later to determine if there was a significant difference. Interviews with a subsample of 13 survey respondents explored the mechanisms and nuances of intended effects. Results Five active volunteers provided the service to 108 persons, of whom 60 agreed to participate in the evaluation. All surveyed participants attended the first visit, where 90% attached successfully to the new doctor. Indicators of abilities to access healthcare increased statistically significantly as did ability to explain health needs to professionals. The telephone outreach predisposed patients to have a positive first visit and have trust in their new care team, establishing a basis for an enduring relationship. Patient-reported access difficulties, forgone care and use of hospital emergency rooms decreased dramatically after patients attached to their new doctors. Conclusions As per the logic model, telephone outreach by volunteer navigators significantly increased patients’ abilities to seek, reach and engage with care and helped them attach successfully to newly-assigned family doctors. This light-touch intervention may have promise to achieve of the intended policy goals for the centralized waiting list to increase population access to appropriate primary care and reduce forgone care

Approche agriculturelle de la souveraineté alimentaire à Opitciwan

Obedjiwan (Opitciwan), une communauté Atikamekw de la Haute-Mauricie, travaille à poser les bases d’un système alimentaire territorialisé grâce à l’agriculture. Une collaboration entre la communauté d’Obedjiwan et le CISA a été mise en place afin de développer un modèle de souveraineté alimentaire reposant sur les traits culturels des Atikamekw. Sept espaces d’expérimentation en jardinage ont été cocréés avec la communauté et une recherche sur les besoins en agroalimentaire a été réalisée. La collaboration entre la communauté et le CISA a permis la consolidation des projets malgré la crise mondiale de la COVID-19. Le savoir-faire s’est développé au fil des mois. Nos constats sont que la saisonnalité, la relation au territoire et le sentiment de bien-être influencent considérablement la participation aux projets. Du même coup, le succès du projet a été favorisé par un ensemble de relations sociales positives entre les participants eux-mêmes et les chercheurs du CISA.Obedjiwan (Opitciwan), an Atikamekw community in Upper Mauricie, is working to lay the foundations for a territorialized food system through agriculture. A collaboration between the Obedjiwan community and CISA has been established to develop a model of food sovereignty based on the cultural traits of the Atikamekw. Seven gardening experimentation spaces were co-created with the community and research on agri-food needs was carried out. The collaboration between the community and CISA has enabled the consolidation of projects despite the global crisis of COVID-19. The expertise has grown over the months. Our findings are that seasonality, the relationship to the territory and the sense of well-being greatly influence participation in projects. At the same time, the success of the project was fostered by a set of positive relationships between the participants themselves and the CISA researchers.Obedjiwan (Opitciwan), una comunidad Atikamekw de la región de Haute-Mauricie, trabaja para sentar las bases de un sistema alimentario territorializado a través de la agricultura. Se ha establecido una colaboración entre la comunidad de Obedjiwan y el CISA para desarrollar un modelo de soberanía alimentaria basado en los rasgos culturales Atikamekw. Se crearon siete espacios experimentales de jardinería junto con la comunidad y se realizaron investigaciones sobre las necesidades agroalimentarias. La colaboración entre la comunidad y el CISA ha permitido consolidar los proyectos a pesar de la crisis global del COVID-19. El saber-hacer se desarrolló a lo largo de los meses. Nuestras conclusiones son que la estacionalidad, la relación con el territorio y el sentimiento de bienestar influyen considerablemente en la participación en los proyectos. Al mismo tiempo, el éxito del proyecto se vio favorecido por un conjunto de relaciones sociales positivas entre los propios participantes y los investigadores del CISA