Effectiveness of Community Forest Management at reducing deforestation in Madagascar

AbstractCommunity Forest Management (CFM) is a widespread conservation approach in the tropics. It is also promoted as a means by which payment for ecosystem services schemes can be implemented. However, evidence on its performance is weak. We investigated the effectiveness of CFM at reducing deforestation from 2000 to 2010 in Madagascar. To control for factors confounding impact estimates, we used statistical matching. We also contrasted the effects of CFM by whether commercial use of forest resources is allowed or not. We cannot detect an effect, on average, of CFM compared to no CFM, even when we restricted the sample to only where information suggests effective CFM implementation on the ground. Likewise, we cannot detect an effect of CFM where commercial use of natural resources is allowed. However, we can detect a reduction in deforestation in CFM that does not permit commercial uses, compared to no CFM or CFM allowing commercial uses. Our findings suggest that CFM and commercial use of forest resources are not guarantees of forest conservation and that differentiating among types of CFM is important

Attractor Solutions in f(T) Cosmology

In this paper, we explore the cosmological implications of interacting dark energy model in a torsion based gravity namely $f(T)$. Assuming dark energy interacts with dark matter and radiation components, we examine the stability of this model by choosing different forms of interaction terms. We consider three different forms of dark energy: cosmological constant, quintessence and phantom energy. We then obtain several attractor solutions for each dark energy model interacting with other components. This model successfully explains the coincidence problem via the interacting dark energy scenario.Comment: 10 pages, 23 figures, version accepted for publication in European Physical Journal C (2012

75th Anniversary of ‘Existence of Electromagnetic-Hydrodynamic Waves’

We have recently passed the 75th anniversary of one of the most important results in solar and space physics: Hannes Alfv\'en's discovery of Alfv\'en waves and the Alfv\'en speed. To celebrate the anniversary, this article recounts some major episodes in the history of MHD waves. Following an initially cool reception, Alfv\'en's ideas were propelled into the spotlight by Fermi's work on cosmic rays, the new mystery of coronal heating and, as scientific perception of interplanetary space shifted dramatically and the space race started, detection of Alfv\'en waves in the solar wind. From then on, interest in MHD waves boomed, laying the foundations for modern remote observations of MHD waves in the Sun, coronal seismology and some of today's leading theories of coronal heating and solar wind acceleration. In 1970, Alfv\'en received the Nobel Prize for his work in MHD, including these discoveries. The article concludes with some reflection about what the history implies about the way we do science, especially the advantages and pitfalls of idealised mathematical models.Comment: 10 pages, accepted by Solar Physic

Constitutive Relations for Concrete Properties Under Acid Environment

Abstract The relationships between concrete properties (strength, porosity, and carbonation) and time attacked by acid environment were studied. Current environmental condition with acid rain caused air, soil, and water is acidic. It threats the degradation building with concrete construction. Two groups were organized in this research. One of them which was defined as control specimen was immersed in water curing. The other one was immersed in a solution of 5% sulfuric acid (PH3) for the purpose of simulating the acidic environment in the laboratory. Different from other reports, the cubes were not previously immersed in water for 28 days but directly immersed in acid solution after being demoulded for one day. Furthermore, the constitutional equations from laboratory experiment were validated by embedding the specimens in acid soil (real acid condition) with similar PH. The results showed that due to immersion in sulphuric acid 5%, concrete had a decreased strength, increased porosity and the occurrence of carbonation at the age of 3–90 days. The result from laboratory experiment for compressive strength was similar with that of a field experiment. Furthermore the relationship between the age of concrete and its porosity considered valid for the age of under 14 days. However, the relationship between the age of concrete and carbonation event judged invalid with that from a field experiment. The results established that the constitutive relations of the properties of concrete in the acid environment were considerably divided by the type of the acid environment

Fitting the integrated Spectral Energy Distributions of Galaxies

Fitting the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) of galaxies is an almost universally used technique that has matured significantly in the last decade. Model predictions and fitting procedures have improved significantly over this time, attempting to keep up with the vastly increased volume and quality of available data. We review here the field of SED fitting, describing the modelling of ultraviolet to infrared galaxy SEDs, the creation of multiwavelength data sets, and the methods used to fit model SEDs to observed galaxy data sets. We touch upon the achievements and challenges in the major ingredients of SED fitting, with a special emphasis on describing the interplay between the quality of the available data, the quality of the available models, and the best fitting technique to use in order to obtain a realistic measurement as well as realistic uncertainties. We conclude that SED fitting can be used effectively to derive a range of physical properties of galaxies, such as redshift, stellar masses, star formation rates, dust masses, and metallicities, with care taken not to over-interpret the available data. Yet there still exist many issues such as estimating the age of the oldest stars in a galaxy, finer details ofdust properties and dust-star geometry, and the influences of poorly understood, luminous stellar types and phases. The challenge for the coming years will be to improve both the models and the observational data sets to resolve these uncertainties. The present review will be made available on an interactive, moderated web page (sedfitting.org), where the community can access and change the text. The intention is to expand the text and keep it up to date over the coming years.Comment: 54 pages, 26 figures, Accepted for publication in Astrophysics & Space Scienc

Quantifying salinity-induced changes on estuarine benthic fauna: the potential implications of climate change

Coastal and estuarine systems worldwide are under threat from global climate change, with potential consequences including an increase in salinities and incursion of saltwater into areas currently subject to tidal and non- tidal freshwater regimes. It is commonly assumed that climate-driven increases in estuarine salinities and saline incursion will be directly reflected in an upstream shift in species distributions and patterns of community composition based on salinity tolerance. This study examined the responses of benthos to medium-term salinity changes in two macrotidal river-estuary systems in SE England to test whether these responses may be representative of climate-induced salinity changes over the long-term. The study reinforced the effect of salinity, related to tidal incursion, as the primary environmental driver of benthic species distribution and community composition. Salinity, however, acted within a hierarchy of factors followed by substratum type, with biotic competition and predator-prey relationships superimposed on these. The assumption that increasing salinities will be directly reflected in a shift in species distributions and patterns of community composition upstream over the long-term was shown to be over simplistic and not representative of a complex and highly variable system. Relative Sea Level Rise (RSLR) projections were predicted to increase estuarine salinities and saline incursion in the study estuaries, which together with projected reductions in river flow will have important consequences for estuarine structure and function, particularly in tidal limnetic zones, despite estuarine communities being pre-adapted to cope with fluctuating salinities. The study identified, however, that limnic-derived fauna in habiting these zones may demonstrate greater tolerance to salinity change than is currently recognised, and may persist where salinity increases are gradual and zones unbounded

Prevalence of Age-Related Macular Degeneration in Europe: The Past and the Future

Purpose Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is a frequent, complex disorder in elderly of European ancestry. Risk profiles and treatment options have changed considerably over the years, which may have affected disease prevalence and outcome. We determined the prevalence of early and late AMD in Europe from 1990 to 2013 using the European Eye Epidemiology (E3) consortium, and made projections for the future. Design Meta-analysis of prevalence data. Participants A total of 42 080 individuals 40 years of age and older participating in 14 population-based cohorts from 10 countries in Europe. Methods AMD was diagnosed based on fundus photographs using the Rotterdam Classification. Prevalence of early and late AMD was calculated using random-effects meta-analysis stratified for age, birth cohort, gender, geographic region, and time period of the study. Best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) was compared between late AMD subtypes; geographic atrophy (GA) and choroidal neovascularization (CNV). Main Outcome Measures Prevalence of early and late AMD, BCVA, and number of AMD cases. Results Prevalence of early AMD increased from 3.5% (95% confidence interval [CI] 2.1%–5.0%) in those aged 55–59 years to 17.6% (95%

Conditional cash transfers to alleviate poverty also reduced deforestation in Indonesia

10.1126/sciadv.aaz1298Science Advances624EAAZ129

Show me the money: do payments supply environmental services in developing countries?

Many of the services supplied by nature are externalities. Economic theory suggests that some form of subsidy or contracting between the beneficiaries and the providers could result in an optimal supply of environmental services. Moreover, if the poor own resources that give them a comparative advantage in the supply of environmental services, then payments for environmental services (PES) can improve environmental and poverty outcomes. While the theory is relatively straightforward, the practice is not, particularly in developing countries where institutions are weak. This article reviews the empirical literature on PES additionality by asking, "Do payments deliver environmental services, everything else being equal, or, at least, the land-use changes believed to generate environmental services?" We examine both qualitative case studies and rigorous econometric quasi-experimental analyses. We find that government-coordinated PES have caused modest or no reversal of deforestation. Case studies of smaller-scale, user-financed PES schemes claim more substantial impacts, but few of these studies eliminate rival explanations for the positive effects. We conclude by discussing how the dearth of evidence about PES impacts, and unanswered questions about institutional preconditions and motivational "crowding out," limit the prospects for using international carbon payments to reduce emissions from deforestation and degradation