Sustainable food procurement in British and Irish zoos

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to assess the sustainable food procurement (SFP) of members of the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA). It also considered the inconsistencies between their animal and human food supply chains, as well as between their procurement priorities and practices. Design/methodology/approach – A quantitative, cross-sectional approach was employed, involving the use of a web-based questionnaire to gather data from 41 BIAZA members across 21 indicators of food sustainability. The results were considered within a sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) framework. Findings – There was considerable variation amongst the issues considered by zoos during the SFP process for their animal and human food operations. For both, local expenditure, nutritional content and packaging reduction were some of the highest scoring indicators in practice and as priorities. The overall levels of SFP were found to be equal between the human and animal food supply chains. Significantly low levels of inconsistency were found between the two, practically and in terms of procurement aspirations. Within both supply chains, there was also very few significant gaps between procurement priorities and actions. Originality/value – The originality of this study lies in its comparison of procurement practices and priorities for two contemporaneous but distinct food supply chains. It demonstrates that it is possible to have a high overall degree of consistency between two parallel, but contrasting, supply chains, as well as between procurement priorities and priorities. It will be of use in SSCM, particularly within values-led organisations. </jats:sec

A PROFITABILITY ANALYSIS OF DAIRY FEEDING SYSTEMS IN THE NORTHEAST

This study analyzes the use and profitability of three distinct feeding systems; confinement feeding, traditional grazing, and management-intensive grazing from a randomly selected sample of northeastern dairy farms. The confinement feeding farms were significantly larger and produced more milk per cow, while the farms using management-intensive grazing incurred the lowest production costs. Both confinement feeding and management-intensive grazing generated significantly higher rates of return to farm assets relative to farms using a mixed system. Multiple regression analysis confirms the critical importance of herd size, milk production per cow, debt level and veterinary expenses to farm profitability in all production systems.Livestock Production/Industries,

A Thermodynamic Investigation of the Redox Properties of Ceria-Titania Mixed Oxides

Ceria-titania solutions with compositions of Ce0.9Ti0.1O2 and Ce0.8Ti0.2O2 were prepared by the citric-acid (Pechini) method and characterized using x-ray diffraction (XRD) for structure, coulometric titration for redox thermodynamics, and water-gas-shift (WGS) reaction rates. Following calcination at 973 K, XRD suggests that the mixed oxides exist as single-phase, fluorite structures, although there was no significant change in the lattice parameter compared to pure ceria. The mixed oxides are shown to be significantly more reducible than bulk ceria, with enthalpies for reoxidation being approximately -500 kJ/mol O2, compared to -760 kJ/mol O2 for bulk ceria. However, WGS rates over 1-wt% Pd supported on ceria, Ce0.8Ti0.2O2, and Ce0.8Zr0.2O2 were nearly the same. For calcination at 1323 K, the mixed oxides separated into ceria and titania phases, as indicated by both the XRD and thermodynamic results

Building Peace: The Impact of Aid on the Labor Market for Insurgents

Employment growth could reduce violence during civil conflicts. To determine if increased employment affects violence we analyzed varying employment in development programs run by different US military divisions in Iraqi districts. Employment levels vary with funding periods and the military division in charge. Controlling for variability between districts, we find that a 10% increase in labor-related spending generates a 15-20% decline in labor-intensive insurgent violence. Overall the 10% spending increase is associated with a nearly 10% violence reduction, due to reduction in attacks which kill civilians, but increased attacks against the military. These findings indicate that labor-intensive development programs can reduce violence during insurgencies.

Snow leopards and sustainability: livelihoods, governance and coexistence in the Nepal Himalayas

This thesis seeks to understand the coexistence that occurs between people and snow leopards on the roof of the world. Within a political ecology framework, it aims to show how various social and economic factors can influence this coexistence and promote the conservation of Himalayan species and ecosystems. In particular, the thesis addresses the twin assumptions that access to assets, via more diverse livelihoods, and access to influence, via decentralised conservation governance, will improve coexistence. The study opens with an assessment of household livelihoods and then compares them between two iconic but contrasting Protected Areas. The thesis then assesses: (i) knowledge of and attitudes to snow leopards; (ii) attitudes to their conservation; (iii) household livestock losses to snow leopards; and (iv) conflicts between people and snow leopard conservation. Additionally, perceptions of several proposed mitigation methods are also examined. The political ecology framework employs access theory, the Sustainable Livelihoods model and a mixed-methods approach. Using systematic sampling, a quantitative questionnaire was administered to 705 households at two sites in the Nepal Himalayas: Sagarmatha National Park, with a centralised governance model, and Annapurna Conservation Area, with a decentralised one. Seventy qualitative interviews were also collected for cross-methods triangulation. Multiple and logistic regression models were the main form of statistical analyses. Access to tourism income, and larger household size, best explained livelihoods scores. Attitudes to snow leopards were best explained by attitudes to their conservation and numbers of livestock owned per household. Attitudes to snow leopard conservation depended on perceptions of snow leopards and household livelihoods. Perceptions of conflict with snow leopards and their conservation was related to the number of livestock lost by any source of mortality. A number of variables explained attitudes to the proposed mitigation measures, including gender, livelihood strategies, livestock numbers and support for snow leopard conservation. In conclusion, access to assets and access to influence do shape human coexistence with snow leopards and their conservation, albeit in more nuanced ways than anticipated

Endurance Training Intensity Does Not Mediate Interference to Maximal Lower-Body Strength Gain during Short-Term Concurrent Training

We determined the effect of concurrent training incorporating either high-intensity interval training (HIT) or moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT) on maximal strength, counter-movement jump (CMJ) performance, and body composition adaptations, compared with single-mode resistance training (RT). Twenty-three recreationally-active males (mean &plusmn; SD: age, 29.6 &plusmn; 5.5 y; [Formula: see text], 44 &plusmn; 11 mL kg(-1)&middot;min(-1)) underwent 8 weeks (3 sessions&middot;wk(-1)) of either: (1) HIT combined with RT (HIT+RT group, n = 8), (2) work-matched MICT combined with RT (MICT+RT group, n = 7), or (3) RT performed alone (RT group, n = 8). Measures of aerobic capacity, maximal (1-RM) strength, CMJ performance and body composition (DXA) were obtained before (PRE), mid-way (MID), and after (POST) training. Maximal (one-repetition maximum [1-RM]) leg press strength was improved from PRE to POST for RT (mean change &plusmn; 90% confidence interval; 38.5 &plusmn; 8.5%; effect size [ES] &plusmn; 90% confidence interval; 1.26 &plusmn; 0.24; P &lt; 0.001), HIT+RT (28.7 &plusmn; 5.3%; ES, 1.17 &plusmn; 0.19; P &lt; 0.001), and MICT+RT (27.5 &plusmn; 4.6%, ES, 0.81 &plusmn; 0.12; P &lt; 0.001); however, the magnitude of this change was greater for RT vs. both HIT+RT (7.4 &plusmn; 8.7%; ES, 0.40 &plusmn; 0.40) and MICT+RT (8.2 &plusmn; 9.9%; ES, 0.60 &plusmn; 0.45). There were no substantial between-group differences in 1-RM bench press strength gain. RT induced greater changes in peak CMJ force vs. HIT+RT (6.8 &plusmn; 4.5%; ES, 0.41 &plusmn; 0.28) and MICT+RT (9.9 &plusmn; 11.2%; ES, 0.54 &plusmn; 0.65), and greater improvements in maximal CMJ rate of force development (RFD) vs. HIT+RT (24.1 &plusmn; 26.1%; ES, 0.72 &plusmn; 0.88). Lower-body lean mass was similarly increased for RT (4.1 &plusmn; 2.0%; ES; 0.33 &plusmn; 0.16; P = 0.023) and MICT+RT (3.6 &plusmn; 2.4%; ES; 0.45 &plusmn; 0.30; P = 0.052); however, this change was attenuated for HIT+RT (1.8 &plusmn; 1.6%; ES; 0.13 &plusmn; 0.12; P = 0.069). We conclude that concurrent training incorporating either HIT or work-matched MICT similarly attenuates improvements in maximal lower-body strength and indices of CMJ performance compared with RT performed alone. This suggests endurance training intensity is not a critical mediator of interference to maximal strength gain during short-term concurrent training

Consideration of Technology Transfer in Tenure and Promotion

Universities face increasing expectations from both the public and elected officials to contribute to the economic development of their respective states, geographical regions, and the country. Technology transfer activities have proven to be a key way to meet these new imperatives. Despite the university’s expanded mission and the growing role of tech transfer, the academic community has yet to produce a consistent framework for evaluating faculty activities in technology transfer and their societal benefits. In response to this situation, the authors, working as the APLU Task Force on Tenure, Promotion, and Technology Transfer, surveyed US and Canadian universities to ascertain current approaches for defining technology transfer activities and recognizing them in assessing faculty performance. Building on the results of that survey, the authors offered the following five recommendations: 1) university policy statements should acknowledge the merit of technology transfer as part of the university’s work, while including safeguards against conflicts of interest or commitment; 2) technology transfer activities should be explicitly included among the criteria relevant for promotion and tenure at the university, college, and department levels, as appropriate to the respective disciplines; 3) technology transfer activities should be an optional component of the review process, one that will be rewarded when present but not seen as a requirement for everyone; 4) recognizing the unique character of technology transfer, the criteria should be flexible enough to encompass high-quality work in many forms of creative expression; and 5) technology transfer activities should be evaluated for intellectual contribution and expected social benefit consistent with the accepted process of peer review and without reliance on artificial metrics

Whey protein does not enhance the adaptations to elbow flexor resistance training

Purpose: It is unclear whether protein supplementation augments the gains in muscle strength and size observed after resistance training (RT) because limitations to previous studies include small cohorts, imprecise measures of muscle size and strength, and no control of prior exercise or habitual protein intake. We aimed to determine whether whey protein supplementation affected RT-induced changes in elbow flexor muscle strength and size. Methods: We pair-matched 33 previously untrained, healthy young men for their habitual protein intake and strength response to 3-wk RT without nutritional supplementation (followed by 6 wk of no training) and then randomly assigned them to protein (PRO, n = 17) or placebo (PLA, n = 16) groups. Participants subsequently performed elbow flexor RT 3 d/wk for 12 wk and consumed PRO or PLA immediately before and after each training session. We assessed elbow flexor muscle strength (unilateral 1-repetition maximum and isometric maximum voluntary force) and size (total volume and maximum anatomical cross-sectional area determined with magnetic resonance imaging) before and after the 12-wk RT. Results: PRO and PLA demonstrated similar increases in muscle volume (PRO 17.0% ± 7.1% vs PLA 14.9% ± 4.6%, P = 0.32), anatomical cross-sectional area (PRO 16.2% ± 7.1% vs PLA 15.6% ± 4.4%, P = 0.80), 1-repetition maximum (PRO 41.8% ± 21.2% vs PLA 41.4% ± 19.9%, P = 0.97), and maximum voluntary force (PRO 12.0% ± 9.9% vs PLA 14.5% ± 8.3%, P = 0.43). Conclusions: In the context of this study, protein supplementation did not augment elbow flexor muscle strength and size changes that occurred after 12 wk of RT. © 2012 by the American College of Sports Medicine