Short- and long-term population and project implicacions of high-speed rail for served cities: analysis of all served Spanish cities and re-evaluation of Ciudad Real and Puertollano

[EN] Economic growth theories indicate that infrastructures are necessary but not enough for economic growth, providing the cities they serve with new comparative advantages. Today, 25 years after the first high-speed rail (HSR) services opened in Spain and after a complete economic cycle with the longest-running European HSR network, this network can be treated as a territorial laboratory for testing the relationship between new transport infrastructures and population growth. This article compares the population evolution of each HSR city with those of Spain overall, non-HSR municipalities, a random sample of non-HSR cities and similar non-HSR cities. This article also re-evaluates the implications for two small cities served by the first HSR line by means of analyses similar to those undertaken 10¿15 years ago to evaluate both the long-term implications and those that are less permanent and have either changed or disappeared. These analyses show that population growth depends on each city¿s degree of transportation changes, the time elapsed, and the location and size of the city. This article concludes that in the longer term, projects and strategies will be more or less successful depending on their relation to transport.Coronado, J.; De Ureña, J.; Miralles García, JL. (2019). Short- and long-term population and project implicacions of high-speed rail for served cities: analysis of all served Spanish cities and re-evaluation of Ciudad Real and Puertollano. European Planning Studies. 27(3):434-460. https://doi.org/10.1080/09654313.2018.1562652S434460273Bazin, S., Beckerich, C., & Delaplace, M. (2010). Ligne à Grande Vitesse et marchés immobiliers résidentiels à Reims : entre attractivité, aménités et anticipations. Revue d’Économie Régionale & Urbaine, mai(2), 313. doi:10.3917/reru.102.0313Blanquart, C., & Koning, M. (2017). The local economic impacts of high-speed railways: theories and facts. European Transport Research Review, 9(2). doi:10.1007/s12544-017-0233-0Bonatti, L., & Campiglio, E. (2013). How can transportation policies affect growth? A theoretical analysis of the long-term effects of alternative mobility systems. Economic Modelling, 31, 528-540. doi:10.1016/j.econmod.2012.12.014Chen, C.-L., & Vickerman, R. (2016). Can transport infrastructure change regions’ economic fortunes? Some evidence from Europe and China. Regional Studies, 51(1), 144-160. doi:10.1080/00343404.2016.1262017Feliu, J. (2012). High-Speed Rail in European Medium-Sized Cities: Stakeholders and Urban Development. Journal of Urban Planning and Development, 138(4), 293-302. doi:10.1061/(asce)up.1943-5444.0000123Garmendia, M., Ureña, J. M., & Coronado, J. M. (2011). Long-distance trips in a sparsely populated region: The impact of high-speed infrastructures. Journal of Transport Geography, 19(4), 537-551. doi:10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2010.06.002Garmendia, M., Ribalaygua, C., & Ureña, J. M. (2012). High speed rail: implication for cities. Cities, 29, S26-S31. doi:10.1016/j.cities.2012.06.005Garmendia, M., Romero, V., Ureña, J. M. de, Coronado, J. M., & Vickerman, R. (2012). High-Speed Rail Opportunities around Metropolitan Regions: Madrid and London. Journal of Infrastructure Systems, 18(4), 305-313. doi:10.1061/(asce)is.1943-555x.0000104Garmendia, M., de Ureña, J. M., Ribalaygua, C., Leal, J., & Coronado, J. M. (2008). Urban Residential Development in Isolated Small Cities That Are Partially Integrated in Metropolitan Areas By High Speed Train. European Urban and Regional Studies, 15(3), 249-264. doi:10.1177/0969776408090415Givoni, M. (2006). Development and Impact of the Modern High‐speed Train: A Review. Transport Reviews, 26(5), 593-611. doi:10.1080/01441640600589319Goodenough, R. A., & Page, S. J. (1994). Evaluating the environmental impact of a major transport infrastructure project: the Channel Tunnel high-speed rail link. Applied Geography, 14(1), 26-50. doi:10.1016/0143-6228(94)90004-3Hall, P. (2009). Magic Carpets and Seamless Webs: Opportunities and Constraints for High-Speed Trains in Europe. Built Environment, 35(1), 59-69. doi:10.2148/benv.35.1.59Haynes, K. E. (1997). Labor markets and regional transportation improvements: the case of high-speed trains. The Annals of Regional Science, 31(1), 57-76. doi:10.1007/s001680050039Martí-Henneberg, J. (2017). The influence of the railway network on territorial integration in Europe (1870–1950). Journal of Transport Geography, 62, 160-171. doi:10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2017.05.015Mohíno, I., Delaplace, M., & de Ureña, J. M. (2018). The influence of metropolitan integration and type of HSR connections on developments around stations. The case of cities within one hour from Madrid and Paris. International Planning Studies, 24(2), 156-179. doi:10.1080/13563475.2018.1524289Mohino, I., Loukaitou-Sideris, A., & Urena, J. M. (2014). Impacts of High-Speed Rail on Metropolitan Integration: An Examination of London, Madrid and Paris. International Planning Studies, 19(3-4), 306-334. doi:10.1080/13563475.2014.950638Ureña, J. M., Menerault, P., & Garmendia, M. (2009). The high-speed rail challenge for big intermediate cities: A national, regional and local perspective. Cities, 26(5), 266-279. doi:10.1016/j.cities.2009.07.001Vickerman, R. W. (1994). The Channel Tunnel and regional development in Europe: an overview. Applied Geography, 14(1), 9-25. doi:10.1016/0143-6228(94)90003-5Vickerman, R. (2015). High-speed rail and regional development: the case of intermediate stations. Journal of Transport Geography, 42, 157-165. doi:10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2014.06.008Vickerman, R. (2018). Can high-speed rail have a transformative effect on the economy? Transport Policy, 62, 31-37. doi:10.1016/j.tranpol.2017.03.00

Optical properties of dust

http://arxiv.org/abs/0808.4123Except in a few cases cosmic dust can be studied in situ or in terrestrial laboratories, essentially all of our information concerning the nature of cosmic dust depends upon its interaction with electromagnetic radiation. This chapter presents the theoretical basis for describing the optical properties of dust -- how it absorbs and scatters starlight and reradiates the absorbed energy at longer wavelengths.Partial support by a Chandra Theory program and HST Theory Programs is gratefully acknowledged

Desenvolvimento de um roteiro conceitual para a gestão da biodiversidade e dos serviços ecossistêmicos no Caribe mexicano

Coral reefs and mangroves support rich biodiversity and provide ecosystem services that range from food, recreational benefits and coastal protection services, among others. They are one of the most threatened ecosystems by urbanization processes. In this context, we developed a conceptual framework for the management of biodiversity and ecosystem services for these coastal environments. We based our workflow on two sections: “Information base” and “Governance” and use the Puerto Morelos Coastal region as a case study for coastal protection. Puerto Morelos is between two of the most touristic destinations of Mexico (Playa del Carmen and Cancun) that has experienced an increase of population in the past four decades resulting in an intensification of multiple threats to its ecosystems. We characterized the two ecosystems with a “Management Units” strategy. An expert-based ecosystem services matrix was also described in order to connect mangroves and coral reef ecosystems with the multiple beneficiaries. Then an ecosystem model (conceptual model and Global Biodiversity model) was developed. The conceptual model was useful in understanding the interplay processes between systems regarding the ecosystem service of “Coastal Protection”. The Global Biodiversity model evidenced the human-induced shifts in the biodiversity for mangrove and coral reefs ecosystems. Also, a projection for 2035 of “best” and “worst” scenarios was applied using GLOBIO3. A DPSIR conceptual framework was used to analyze environmental problems regarding ecosystem services maintenance. Finally, we evaluated a set of policies associated with these ecosystems that favor coastal protection integrity. This framework facilitates the identification of the most relevant processes and controls about the provision of coastal protection service. It can also be useful to better target management actions and as a tool to identify future management needs to tackle the challenges preventing more effective conservation of coastal environments.Recifes de coral e manguezais possuem rica biodiversidade e fornecem serviços ecossistêmicos, tais como, alimento, recreação, proteção costeira, entre outros. Esses ecossistemas encontram-se entre os mais ameaçados pelos processos de urbanização. Nesse contexto, desenvolvemos um roteiro conceitual para a gestão da biodiversidade e dos serviços ecossistêmicos desses ambientes costeiros. Organizamos nossa sequência de passos de trabalho em duas seções: “Base de informações” e “Governança” e usamos a região costeira da cidade de Puerto Morelos (México) como um estudo de caso para analisar o serviço de proteção de costa. Puerto Morelos encontra-se entre dois dos destinos mais turísticos do México (Playa del Carmen e Cancún), e portanto sua população vem aumentando nas últimas quatro décadas, resultando na intensificação de múltiplas ameaças para os ecossistemas. Primeiramente, caracterizamos os dois ecossistemas identificando-os como “Unidades de Gestão”, detalhando seus principais componentes e processos. Através de uma “Matriz de serviços ecossistêmicos”, construída com base na opinião de especialistas, foram sistematizados os principais serviços ecossistêmicos prestados pelos manguezais e recifes de corais aos múltiplos beneficiários. Em seguida, foi desenvolvida uma modelagem do sistema (e ecossistemas) através de sua representação na forma de um modelo conceitual e um modelo numérico de Biodiversidade Global. O modelo conceitual facilitou a compreensão dos processos de interação entre sistemas em relação ao serviço “Proteção Costeira”. O modelo numérico evidenciou as mudanças induzidas pelo homem na biodiversidade dos ecossistemas de manguezal e recifes de coral. Além disso, uma projeção dos cenários “melhor” e “pior” foi desenvolvida para 2035 usando GLOBIO3. A Estrutura conceitual DPSIR foi aplicada para analisar problemas ambientais relacionados à manutenção dos serviços ecossistêmicos. Finalmente, avaliamos um conjunto de políticas públicas associadas a esses ecossistemas e que favorecem a integridade da proteção costeira. Portanto, o roteiro facilitou a identificação dos principais processos e controles para a provisão de um serviço ecossistêmico. Além disso, pode ser útil para direcionar melhor as ações de gerenciamento, bem como, uma ferramenta para identificar necessidades futuras de planejamento e gestão para enfrentar desafios que permitam uma conservação mais eficaz dos ambientes costeiros.Fil: Sánchez Quinto, Andrés. Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; MéxicoFil: Costa, Julliet Correa da. Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina; BrasilFil: Zamboni, Nadia Selene. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte; BrasilFil: Sanches, Fábio H. C.. Universidade Federal de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: Principe, Silas C.. Universidade de Sao Paulo; BrasilFil: Viotto, Evangelina del Valle. Provincia de Entre Ríos. Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia de Tecnología a la Producción. Universidad Autónoma de Entre Ríos. Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia de Tecnología a la Producción. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Santa Fe. Centro de Investigaciones Científicas y Transferencia de Tecnología a la Producción; ArgentinaFil: Casagranda, Maria Elvira. Universidad Nacional de Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Tucumán. Instituto de Ecología Regional; ArgentinaFil: Lima, Francisco A. da Veiga. Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina; BrasilFil: Possamai, Bianca. Universidade Federal Do Rio Grande.; BrasilFil: Faroni Perez, Larisse. Universidade Federal de Juiz de Fora; Brasi

Integrated global assessment of the natural forest carbon potential

Forests are a substantial terrestrial carbon sink, but anthropogenic changes in land use and climate have considerably reduced the scale of this system1. Remote-sensing estimates to quantify carbon losses from global forests2,3,4,5 are characterized by considerable uncertainty and we lack a comprehensive ground-sourced evaluation to benchmark these estimates. Here we combine several ground-sourced6 and satellite-derived approaches2,7,8 to evaluate the scale of the global forest carbon potential outside agricultural and urban lands. Despite regional variation, the predictions demonstrated remarkable consistency at a global scale, with only a 12% difference between the ground-sourced and satellite-derived estimates. At present, global forest carbon storage is markedly under the natural potential, with a total deficit of 226 Gt (model range = 151–363 Gt) in areas with low human footprint. Most (61%, 139 Gt C) of this potential is in areas with existing forests, in which ecosystem protection can allow forests to recover to maturity. The remaining 39% (87 Gt C) of potential lies in regions in which forests have been removed or fragmented. Although forests cannot be a substitute for emissions reductions, our results support the idea2,3,9 that the conservation, restoration and sustainable management of diverse forests offer valuable contributions to meeting global climate and biodiversity targets

Consistent patterns of common species across tropical tree communities

Trees structure the Earth’s most biodiverse ecosystem, tropical forests. The vast number of tree species presents a formidable challenge to understanding these forests, including their response to environmental change, as very little is known about most tropical tree species. A focus on the common species may circumvent this challenge. Here we investigate abundance patterns of common tree species using inventory data on 1,003,805 trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm across 1,568 locations1,2,3,4,5,6 in closed-canopy, structurally intact old-growth tropical forests in Africa, Amazonia and Southeast Asia. We estimate that 2.2%, 2.2% and 2.3% of species comprise 50% of the tropical trees in these regions, respectively. Extrapolating across all closed-canopy tropical forests, we estimate that just 1,053 species comprise half of Earth’s 800 billion tropical trees with trunk diameters of at least 10 cm. Despite differing biogeographic, climatic and anthropogenic histories7, we find notably consistent patterns of common species and species abundance distributions across the continents. This suggests that fundamental mechanisms of tree community assembly may apply to all tropical forests. Resampling analyses show that the most common species are likely to belong to a manageable list of known species, enabling targeted efforts to understand their ecology. Although they do not detract from the importance of rare species, our results open new opportunities to understand the world’s most diverse forests, including modelling their response to environmental change, by focusing on the common species that constitute the majority of their trees

Global Retinoblastoma Presentation and Analysis by National Income Level

Importance: Early diagnosis of retinoblastoma, the most common intraocular cancer, can save both a child's life and vision. However, anecdotal evidence suggests that many children across the world are diagnosed late. To our knowledge, the clinical presentation of retinoblastoma has never been assessed on a global scale. Objectives: To report the retinoblastoma stage at diagnosis in patients across the world during a single year, to investigate associations between clinical variables and national income level, and to investigate risk factors for advanced disease at diagnosis. Design, Setting, and Participants: A total of 278 retinoblastoma treatment centers were recruited from June 2017 through December 2018 to participate in a cross-sectional analysis of treatment-naive patients with retinoblastoma who were diagnosed in 2017. Main Outcomes and Measures: Age at presentation, proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, and tumor stage and metastasis. Results: The cohort included 4351 new patients from 153 countries; the median age at diagnosis was 30.5 (interquartile range, 18.3-45.9) months, and 1976 patients (45.4) were female. Most patients (n = 3685 84.7%) were from low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). Globally, the most common indication for referral was leukocoria (n = 2638 62.8%), followed by strabismus (n = 429 10.2%) and proptosis (n = 309 7.4%). Patients from high-income countries (HICs) were diagnosed at a median age of 14.1 months, with 656 of 666 (98.5%) patients having intraocular retinoblastoma and 2 (0.3%) having metastasis. Patients from low-income countries were diagnosed at a median age of 30.5 months, with 256 of 521 (49.1%) having extraocular retinoblastoma and 94 of 498 (18.9%) having metastasis. Lower national income level was associated with older presentation age, higher proportion of locally advanced disease and distant metastasis, and smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma. Advanced disease at diagnosis was more common in LMICs even after adjusting for age (odds ratio for low-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 17.92 95% CI, 12.94-24.80, and for lower-middle-income countries vs upper-middle-income countries and HICs, 5.74 95% CI, 4.30-7.68). Conclusions and Relevance: This study is estimated to have included more than half of all new retinoblastoma cases worldwide in 2017. Children from LMICs, where the main global retinoblastoma burden lies, presented at an older age with more advanced disease and demonstrated a smaller proportion of familial history of retinoblastoma, likely because many do not reach a childbearing age. Given that retinoblastoma is curable, these data are concerning and mandate intervention at national and international levels. Further studies are needed to investigate factors, other than age at presentation, that may be associated with advanced disease in LMICs. © 2020 American Medical Association. All rights reserved

A checklist of ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) of the state of Tlaxcala, Mexico

The first checklist of ants of the Mexican state of Tlaxcala, which includes information about 25  species of ants, is given. Twenty two ants species are recorded for the first time for the state of Tlaxcala. Lasius latipes (Walsh, 1863) at the first is reliably indicated for the fauna of Mexic