Rural Low-income Families Speak: Living in Rural Louisiana (Research Information Sheet # 109)

After the passage of federal welfare reform legislation in 1996, faculty from land-grant universities organized to conduct a study of the legislation’s impact on rural families. The project began in 1998 and runs through 2008. The intent was to provide policymakers and program directors with up-to-date information about the ability of rural, low-income families to be economically self sufficient. The objectives of this project are included in this publication.https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/agcenter_researchinfosheets/1000/thumbnail.jp

Pollen contamination trends in a maturing Douglas-fir seed orchard

Pollen contamination was investigated in one block (block 4) of a 10-block Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) seed orchard complex in western Oregon. Blocks (25 clones each) represent different breeding zones; thus, contaminant pollen sources not only included the adjacent natural stand of Douglas-fir, but also other blocks within the orchard complex. Stored seed lots from five crop years (i.e., 1982, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1990) were sampled (200 seeds each) and assayed at 11 allozyme loci. One seed lot (1982) was found to have a high proportion of seed contaminants and was discarded, leaving five crop years for comparison (including 1980 from a previous study). Despite large increases (up to 6-fold) in pollen production from the first commercial crop in 1980, levels of pollen contamination (m) in block 4 remained high and did not differ significantly among years (mean m ^ = 0.489, range 0.421 0.606). On average, 79% of the contaminants since 1985 came from the natural stand; 21% from other orchard blocks. Without spatial isolation from nonorchard pollen sources or intensive pollen management to limit contamination (e.g., bloom delay and supplemental mass pollination), levels of pollen contamination can be quite high, even in mature Douglas-fir seed orchards.Keywords: pollen, Douglas-firKeywords: pollen, Douglas-fi

Pollen contamination trends in a maturing Douglas-fir seed orchard

Pollen contamination was investigated in one block (block 4) of a 10-block Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii (Mirb.) Franco) seed orchard complex in western Oregon. Blocks (25 clones each) represent different breeding zones; thus, contaminant pollen sources not only included the adjacent natural stand of Douglas-fir, but also other blocks within the orchard complex. Stored seed lots from five crop years (i.e., 1982, 1985, 1987, 1989, 1990) were sampled (200 seeds each) and assayed at 11 allozyme loci. One seed lot (1982) was found to have a high proportion of seed contaminants and was discarded, leaving five crop years for comparison (including 1980 from a previous study). Despite large increases (up to 6-fold) in pollen production from the first commercial crop in 1980, levels of pollen contamination (m) in block 4 remained high and did not differ significantly among years (mean m^ = 0.489, range 0.421-0.606). On average, 79% of the contaminants since 1985 came from the natural stand; 21% from other orchard blocks. Without spatial isolation from nonorchard pollen sources or intensive pollen management to limit contamination (e.g., bloom delay and supplemental mass pollination), levels of pollen contamination can be quite high, even in mature Douglas-fir seed orchards

Ground test accelerator control system software

The GTA control system provides an environment in which the automation of a state-of-the-art accelerator can be developed. It makes use of commercially available computers, workstations, computer networks, industrial I/O equipment, and software. This system has built-in supervisory control (like most accelerator control systems), tools to support continuous control (like the process control industry), and sequential control for automatic startup and fault recovery (like few other accelerator control systems). Several software tools support these levels of control: a real-time operating system (VxWorks) with a real-time kernel (VRTX), a configuration database, a sequencer, and a graphics editor. VxWorks supports multitasking, fast context-switching, and preemptive scheduling. VxWorks/VRTX is a network-based development environment specifically designed to work in partnership with the UNIX operating system. A database provides the interface to the accelerator components. It consists of a run time library and a database configuration and editing tool. A sequencer initiates and controls the operation of all sequence programs (expressed as state programs). A graphics editor gives the user the ability to create color graphic displays showing the state of the machine in either text or graphics form. 11 refs., 2 figs

Paternity analysis of pollen-mediated gene flow for Fraxinus excelsior L. in a chronically fragmented landscape

Paternity analysis based on microsatellite marker genotyping was used to infer contemporary genetic connectivity by pollen of three population remnants of the wind-pollinated, wind-dispersed tree Fraxinus excelsior, in a deforested Scottish landscape. By deterministically accounting for genotyping error and comparing a range of assignment methods, individual-based paternity assignments were used to derive population-level estimates of gene flow. Pollen immigration into a 300ha landscape represents between 43% and 68% of effective pollination, mostly depending on assignment method. Individual male reproductive success is unequal, with 31 of 48 trees fertilising one seed or more, but only three trees fertilising more than ten seeds. Spatial analysis suggests a fat-tailed pollen dispersal curve with 85% of detected pollination occurring within 100m, and 15% spreading between 300m and 1900m from the source. Identification of immigrating pollen sourced from two neighbouring remnants indicates further effective dispersal at 2900m. Pollen exchange among remnants is driven by population size rather than geographic distance, with larger remnants acting predominantly as pollen donors, and smaller remnants as pollen recipients. Enhanced wind dispersal of pollen in a barren landscape ensures that the seed produced within the catchment includes genetic material from a wide geographic area. However, gene flow estimates based on analysis of non-dispersed seeds were shown to underestimate realised gene immigration into the remnants by a factor of two suggesting that predictive landscape conservation requires integrated estimates of post-recruitment gene flow occurring via both pollen and seed

Padrão geográfico de diversidade genética em populações naturais de Pau-rosa (Aniba rosaeodora), na Amazônia Central

Rosewood (Aniba rosaeodora Ducke, Lauraceae) is an Amazonian evergreen tree and a source of the purest linalool, the main component of its essential oil, which is very valuable in the international perfumery market. After decades of over-exploitation it is currently considered as threatened. We evaluated the genetic diversity and its distribution in four populations in Central Amazonia. Thirty-five reliable RAPD markers were generated, of which 32 were polymorphic (91.4%). Variation was higher within the populations (76.5%; p < 0.0001) and geographic distribution contributed to population differentiation (23.4%; p < 0.0001). The Amazon River had a small influence on gene flow (3.3%; p < 0.0001), but we identified evidence of gene flow across the river. There were significant differences in marker frequencies (p < 0.05), in agreement with the low gene flow (Nm = 2.02). The correlation between genetic distance and gene flow was - 0.95 (p = 0.06) and between geographic distance and gene flow was -0.78 (p = 0.12). There was a geographic cline of variability across an East-West axis, influenced as well by the Amazon River, suggesting the river could be a barrier to gene flow. Although threatened, these Rosewood populations retain high diversity, with the highest levels in the Manaus population, which has been protected for over 42 years in a Reserve.O Pau-rosa (Aniba rosaeodora Ducke, Lauraceae) é uma árvore amazônica fonte do mais puro linalol, o qual é o principal componente do seu óleo essencial e muito valioso no mercado internacional de perfumaria. Após várias décadas de intensa exploração, a espécie foi levada à categoria de ameaçada de extinção. Quatro populações naturais distribuídas na bacia Amazônia Central foram avaliadas quanto ao nível e a distribuição da diversidade genética. Trinta e cinco marcadores RAPD reprodutíveis foram gerados, dos quais 32 foram polimórficos (91,4%). A diversidade foi maior dentro das populações (76,5%; p < 0,0001) e a distribuição geográfica contribuiu para a diferenciação entre as populações (23,4%; p < 0,0001). A AMOVA indicou que pode haver uma influência parcial do Rio Amazonas no fluxo gênico (3,3%; p < 0,0001), mas foram identificadas evidências de fluxo gênico atravessando o rio. Houve diferenças significativas nas freqüências dos marcadores (p < 0,05) e o fluxo gênico estimado foi relativamente baixo (Nm = 2,02). A correlação entre a distância genética e o fluxo gênico foi de - 0,95 (p = 0,06) e para a distância geográfica e o fluxo gênico foi de - 0,78 (p = 0,12). Houve um padrão geográfico de variabilidade ao longo do eixo Leste - Oeste, influenciado também pelo Rio Amazonas, o que sugere que o rio poderia funcionar como uma barreira para o fluxo gênico. Apesar de ameaçadas, estas populações de Pau-rosa possuem alta diversidade, com o maior valor na população de Manaus, que vem sendo protegida por 42 anos em uma reserva