PROMOTING CONSERVATION INNOVATION IN AGRICULTURE THROUGH CROP INSURANCE

Risk and Uncertainty,

A Proposed Program For Program For Preservation And Conservation Of Pine Forest In Sabine Parish , Louisiana

With the increasing demand for pulpwood, lumber, poles, piling, and fence posts, fast-growing Southern pine is fast becoming one of Louisiana\u27s chief farm cash crops. Thousands of small landowners, as well as large ones, can cash in on this crop by planting idle acres in pine. With the demand for wood increasing every year, the landowner is assured a market for this crop. According to the Forest Survey of Louisiana in 1955, there were 84.5 percent of Sabine Parish in commercial forest. With this high percentage of commercial forest, the writer feels that steps of preventive measures should be considered in the preservation and conservation of pine trees in Sabine Parish. Ready markets for pine logs and other pine items exist almost everywhere In the South. From one to a dozen sawmills can be found in nearly every parish. Pulpwood buyers are located in the most-timbered areas. Railroad companies buy ties and a large number of treating plants furnish markets for fence posts, poles, and heavy timbers

Human papillomavirus: pathogenesis and immunity

The involvement of human papilloma virus (HPV) in the aetiology and progression of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) is still unresolved. This study was designed to assess the immunological responses to HPV types in patients presenting with varying degrees of CIN and in control groups, using in vitro measures of cellular and humoral responses.Lymphocyte proliferation assays (LPA) were performed using peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBM) and various papillomavirus (PV) antigens. Twenty -five per cent (23/92) of patients with CIN responded to antigens derived from purified BPV, HPV -1 or HPV -2 with or without detergent disruption. The responses correlated with a past history of skin warts rather than cervical abnormalities, and the percentage of responders was similar to that in laboratory personnel (30 %) and lower than that in a group with recalcitrant common warts (50 %). Antigens specific to HPV -16 and HPV -18, in the form of bacterially expressed fusion proteins derived by the transcription and translation of the E6 and E4 open reading frames (ORF), occasionally produced specific positive responses, provided contaminating E.coli B galactosidase sequences had been removed during purification. Responses were low and suggested that the numbers of memory T cells specific to PV antigens were low and at the lower limit of detection of LPA. An indirect ELISA was developed to detect circulating IgG to PV antigens in colposcopy patients. Fifty per cent of patients had antibodies to disrupted HPV -1, HPV -2 or both, suggesting that a predominantly type- specific response was being detected. No correlation of immune responses with a degree of dysplasia or the presence of koilocytes in cervical biopsies was noted, but a high incidence of forgotten or inapparent past infection with cutaneous HPV types was found.In situ hybridisation (ISH) methods using non -radioactively labelled, cloned probes and synthetic oligonucleotide probes were developed for use on paraffin sections. Synthetic probes allowed a quicker, less destructive hybridisation protocol, with the sensitivity of detection being (y) improved by an anti -biotin -immunogold conjugated immunoglobulins -silver enhancement (IGSS) detection system. Double staining of PV antigen and nucleic acid on the same section was achieved. Synthetic oligonucleotides offer an exciting new tool for diagnostic virology, worthy of exploitation in many systems.Implantation of human foreskin infected with HPV -11 was shown to provide an animal model, albeit technically difficult, in which HPV could be produced, but a more practical technique of productive HPV infection in vitro is still required if the biology and pathogenesis of HPV infections is to be clarified further

Natural Disasters

This paper traces the key developments and themes for the topic of human rights and 'natural disasters' over the past three decades. It starts by outline the debates on the existence and content of a ‘(human) right to humanitarian assistance’ in disasters. It then proceeds to discusses the contribution of the ILC Draft Articles on the protection of persons in disasters to the protection of human rights. Finally, it unpacks the existence of state obligations for human rights protection throughout the entire so-called ‘disaster cycle’, i.e. from preparedness, to response, to recovery. The paper also more genrally additionally how new threats and issues are arising in the domain of human rights and natural disasters, e.g. as posed by climate change, or encroachment on damage to wildlife and biodiversity (e.g. pandemic risk)

The use of augmented reality apps to make laboratories more accessible to people with colour vision deficiencies

Colour is an important part of how we understand the world around us, from choosing fresh fruit and vegetables to reading traffic lights. Learning and research in science also has a large focus on colour, using colour and colour-based observations to inform experiments and interpret results. For people with a colour blindness, better described as colour vision deficiency (CVD), the colour focus of science can be an implicit barrier to learning or science-based careers. This study first explores the ways in which chemistry experiments can be inaccessible to people with CVD and next assesses tools that could be used to improve the accessibility of laboratories in STEM. Recognising components of experiments that may prove challenging to CVD participants is a proactive approach to improving CVD accessibility, but they can be difficult to identify. There are several augmented reality (AR) apps available for mobile devices which can simulate CVD vision but no scientific evidence has been shown on their accuracy. During this study, four of these AR CVD simulating apps were evaluated using the Farnsworth D15 hue-based colour vision test results from eleven participants. The best performing CVD simulating app, based on scientific evidence, was then used to evaluate current undergraduate chemistry experiments at The University of Sydney. Of the 24 experiments identified as being potentially challenging for students with CVD, we applied CVD simulation to five chemistry experiments experienced by First Year students. In the final part of this study, we evaluated the potential of AR apps assisting CVD participants in a laboratory environment. Farnsworth D15 colour test were used again to evaluate colour naming, colour filtering and colour shifting functions of AR CVD assistive apps. These CVD assistive apps were then applied during a live chemistry experiment to evaluate their real-life laboratory applicability. The results of this study will be presented along with recommendations of which apps and practices are best applied to improve the accessibility of STEM laboratories to CVD students

Can legal frameworks for disaster response be improved?

We are all familiar with images of search and rescue teams, medics, and engineers arriving to help after a disaster, such as following the March 2011 Japanese earthquake and tsunami or the massive floods in Pakistan in July 2010. In recognition of the devastating impact natural or human-made disasters can have on individuals and communities, an estimated US $7billion was spent globally in 2008 on emergency assistance including food, shelter and medical care. The mere words “Pompeii”, “Krakatoa” or “Chernobyl” conjure up scenes of death and destruction. So how can lawyers assist in disaster responses? Can legal frameworks for disaster response be improved? Cynics may say that things always get more complicated when lawyers become involved. Rules, regulations and red tape — surely all of these legal tools only delay vital life saving assistance? Yet legal practitioners at a national and international level are increasingly aware that we have a lot to contribute to ensure that humanitarian assistance is delivered efficiently and effectively to people severely affected by natural or human-made disasters. My research examines the evolving international legal mechanisms to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian assistance following disasters. Drawing on international humanitarian, refugee and human rights law, there is increasing discussion of a “right to humanitarian assistance”. Yet rights that are not enforceable are at best aspirational, so my research will determine whether such a right actually exists and what it might mean in practice