The Status of Loggerhead, Caretta caretta; Kemp's Ridley, Lepidochelys kempi; and Green, Chelonia mydas, Sea Turtles in U.S. Waters: A Reconsideration

Assessing the status of widely distributed marine species can prove difficult because virtually every sampling technique has assumptions, limitations, and biases that affect the results of the study. These biases often are overlooked when the biological and nonbiological implications of the results are discussed. In a recent review, Thompson (1988) used mostly unpublished population census data derived from studies conducted by the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) to draw conclusions about the status of Kemp's ridley, Lepidochelys kempi; Atlantic coast green turtles, Chelonia mydas; and the loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta

Socio-demographic differences of disability prevalence among the population aged 60 years and over in Bangladesh

This study aims to delineate the sociodemographic differences in disability prevalence across the population aged 60 years and over in Bangladesh, and to investigate the association of factors with reporting disability in later life. A microdata sample for those aged 60 years or over from the Census of Bangladesh 2011 was used where disability was assessed with a self-reported single response question. Logistic regression models were performed separately for men and women. Results reveal that the disability prevalence rate increased sharply with age, and it was higher among older women (5.2%) compared to men (4.8%). Physical and vision disabilities were the two categories with the highest prevalence of reported disabilities, with a higher prevalence of physical disability among men and vision disability among women. Being older, female, currently not in marital partnership, and having a lower educational attainment, not being employed, living alone, and residing in the rural areas were significantly associated with reporting disability in later life. The higher prevalence of disability among older women, those who are illiterate, and those residing in rural areas highlights the need for policies prioritising these groups. Special attention should also be given to those who are currently not in marital partnership, particularly women who are living alone

Developing Farmer Focus Groups as a Knowledge Transfer Mechanism: A Practical Experience

The use of farmer focus groups is discussed as a mechanism for effective knowledge transfer activity, and the functionality of the focus farm contrasted with that of the demonstration farm. Key qualities of focus farmers and the essential characteristics of focus groups are summarised, as portrayed by four different stakeholder groups. Benchmarking, as a means of identifying and sharing good practice within the groups is also highlighted within the knowledge transfer mechanism.Farmer Focus Group, Demonstration Farm, Benchmarking, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, Teaching/Communication/Extension/Profession,

Technology rich learning spaces - opportunities and risks

In this workshop participants explore the potential of the technology rich group learning spaces such as those in Bournemouth University’s SCONUL Library Design Award winning The Sir Michael Cobham Library. The development of these spaces was informed by the research undertaken by Educause1 and the outcomes of Bournemouth’s eRes2,3, which focussed on the pedagogies influencing e-learning with e-resources. Participants will be assigned to groups and each group will be presented with different profiles such as netgen4 and digital immigrant 5. The concept of technology rich learning space will be introduced before the groups engage in a “learning activity” to consider the relationships between technology, space and learning outcomes. The group will then identify and share opportunities and challenges from the student and staff perspective. This workshop was successfully used in November 2008 with Bournemouth University’s PGCert students, who have already begun to incorporate the opportunities presented by technology rich learning spaces into their teaching

TAVERTET: LOCUS CRUCIALIS

MARY BYLES nasqué als Estats Units. Passà uns dies a Tavertet visitant el seu amic Raimon Panikkar i es quedà impressionada no sols per la beutat del païssatge com de la força espiritual que emanava. Ningú li va demanar que escrigués sobre Tavertet. Ho va fer espontàniament

Automated shark detection using computer vision

With the technological advancements of UAVs, researchers are finding more ways to harness their capabilities to reduce expenses in everyday society. Machine vision is at the forefront of this research and in particular image recognition. Training a machine to identify objects and di↵erentiate them from others plays an integral role in the advancement of artificial intelligence. This project aims to design an algorithm capable of automatically detecting sharks from a UAV. Testing is performed by post-processing aerial footage of sharks taken from helicopters and drones, and analysing the reliability of the algorithm. Initially this research project involved analysing aerial photography of sharks, dissecting the images into the individual colour channels that made up the RGB and HSV colour spaces and identifying methods to detect the shark blobs. Once an adaptive threshold of the brightness channel was designed, filters were curated specific to the environments presented in the obtained aerial footage to reject false positives. These methods were considerably successful in both rejecting false positives and consistently detecting the sharks in the video feed. The methods produced in this dissertation leave room for future work in the shark detection field. By acquiring more reliable data, improvements such as using a kalman filter to detect and track moving blobs could be implemented to produce a robust shark detection and tracking system

The role of mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) in macrophage polarization

Macrophages are key orchestrators of the innate immune response with a dynamic role in the promotion and resolution of inflammation. Macrophage polarization to a pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory phenotype must be tightly controlled to maintain appropriate responses to stimuli as well as to maintain tissue homeostasis. The nutrient and energy sensor Mammalian Target of Rapamycin (mTOR) integrates upstream signals from the PI3K/Akt pathway to orchestrate cellular protein, lipid, and glucose metabolism. This key metabolic pathway has been implicated in T-helper cell skewing and in the innate immune regulation. The mechanisms of innate immune regulation by mTOR are currently unclear as most studies use pharmacological inhibitors with potential off target effects. In this study, we use a novel model of TSC1 deficiency in myeloid lineage cells to elucidate a role for mTOR in macrophage polarization. We show, for the first time, that Tsc1-deficiency and constitutive mTORC1 activity in macrophages leads to a marked defect in M2 polarization when stimulated with the Th2 cytokine IL-4. Tsc1-deficient macrophages display attenuated Akt signaling in response to IL-4 consistent with negative feedback of mTORC1 on upstream IRS2/PI3K signaling, and we demonstrate that this parallel signaling pathway is critical for induction of a subset of M2 markers. Tsc1-deficient macrophages fail to upregulate the M2 genes Pgc-1!, Arg-1, Fizz-1, and Mgl1 in addition to other M2 markers despite normal STAT6 signaling in response to IL-4. Consistent with downregulation of Pgc-1!, Tsc1-deficient macrophages also display defects in fatty acid metabolism and mitchochondrial biogenesis. Furthermore, LPS stimulation in Tsc-1 deficient macrophages leads to an enhanced inflammatory response with increased production of pro-inflammatory cytokines. We believe that Tsc1-deficient macrophages are a model of constitutive mTORC1 activity akin to obesity, where chronic nutrient excess leads to increases in mTORC1 activity, attenuation of IRS/PI3K/Akt signaling, and defective M2 polarization of macrophages in metabolic tissues