The potential for lifelong learning in dementia: a post-humanist exploration

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A regional benthic fauna assessment method for the Southern North Sea using Margalef diversity and reference value modelling

The aims of this study are to develop an optimized method for regional benthic fauna assessment of the Southern North Sea which (a) is sensitive and precise (quantified as the slope and the R2 value of the pressure-impact relationships, respectively) for the anthropogenic pressures bottom fishing and organic enrichment, (b) is suitable for estimating and modelling reference values, (c) is transparent, (d) can be efficiently applied using dedicated software; and to apply this method to benthic data from the Southern North Sea. Margalef diversity appeared to be the best performing benthic index regarding these criteria, even better than several Multi-Metric Indices (MMIs) containing e.g. AMBI (AZTI Marine Biotic Index) and ITI (Infaunal Trophic Index). Therefore, this relatively simple and very practical index, including a new reference value estimation and modelling method, and BENMMI software were selected as a common OSPAR (Oslo Paris convention) method for the benthic fauna assessment of the Southern North Sea. This method was applied to benthic fauna data from the Southern North Sea collected during the period 2010–2015. The results in general show lower normalized Margalef values in coastal areas, and higher normalized Margalef values in deeper offshore areas. The following benthic indices were compared in this study: species richness, Margalef diversity, SNA index, Shannon index, PIE index, AMBI, ITI. For each assessment area, the least disturbed benthic dataset was selected as an adjacent 6 year period with, on average, the highest Margalef diversity values. For these datasets, the reference values were primarily set as the 99th percentile values of the respective indices. This procedure results in the highest stable reference values that are not outliers. In addition, a variable percentile method was developed, in which the percentile value is adjusted to the average bottom fishing pressure (according to data from the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, ICES) in the period 2009–2013. The adjusted percentile values were set by expert judgement, at 75th (low fishing pressure), 95th (medium fishing pressure) and 99th (high fishing pressure) percentile. The estimated reference values for Margalef diversity correlate quite well with the median depth of the assessment areas using a sigmoid model (pseudo-R2 = 0.86). This relationship between depth and Margalef diversity was used to estimate reference values in case an assessment area had insufficient benthic data .For testing the effects of bottom fishing pressure, normalized index values (NIV; index value divided by reference value) were used. The rationale for using NIVs is the assumption that, although a certain level of bottom fishing pressure will have a larger absolute effect on more biodiverse benthic communities in deeper waters than on more robust and less biodiverse coastal benthic communities, the relative effects (tested using NIVs) are comparable. A clear exponentially decreasing relationship (R2 = 0.26–0.27, p 2 cm, respectively) and normalized Margalef diversity values, with an asymptotic normalized Margalef value of 0.45 at a subsurface fishing activity >2.3 sweeps/year. This asymptotic value is predominantly found in coastal waters, and probably shows that the naturally more robust coastal benthic communities have been transformed into resilient benthic communities, which rapidly recover from increasing fishing pressure

CV15015

This report provides the main results of the 2015 underwater television survey on the ‘Labadie, Jones and Cockburn Banks’ ICES assessment area; Functional Unit 20-21. This was the second survey to achieve full coverage of the full area. The 2015 survey was multidisciplinary in nature collecting UWTV, CTD and other ecosystem data. A total of 96 UWTV stations were completed at 6 nmi intervals over a randomised isometric grid design. The mean burrow density was 0.20 burrows/m2 compared with 0.19 burrows/m2 in 2014. The 2015 geostatistical abundance estimate was 2.0±0.02 billion a 2% decrease on the abundance for 2014 with a CV of 3% which is well below the upper limit of 20% recommended by SGNEPS 2012. Highest densities were general observed towards the north and southwest of the ground, and there were also high densities observed close to boundaries. Using the 2015 abundance estimate and updated stock data implies catch of 3045 tonnes and landings of 2225 tonnes. Only one species of sea pen Virgilaria mirabilis was recorded as present at the stations surveyed. Trawl marks were observed at 30% of the stations surveyed

Seagrass and submerged aquatic vegetation (VAS) habitats off the Coast of Brazil: state of knowledge, conservation and main threats

Seagrass meadows are among the most threatened ecosystems on earth, raising concerns about the equilibrium of coastal ecosystems and the sustainability of local fisheries. The present review evaluated the current status of the research on seagrasses and submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) habitats off the coast of Brazil in terms of plant responses to environmental conditions, changes in distribution and abundance, and the possible role of climate change and variability. Despite an increase in the number of studies, the communication of the results is still relatively limited and is mainly addressed to a national or regional public; thus, South American seagrasses are rarely included or cited in global reviews and models. The scarcity of large-scale and long-term studies allowing the detection of changes in the structure, abundance and composition of seagrass habitats and associated species still hinders the investigation of such communities with respect to the potential effects of climate change. Seagrass meadows and SAV occur all along the Brazilian coast, with species distribution and abundance being strongly influenced by regional oceanography, coastal water masses, river runoff and coastal geomorphology. Based on these geomorphological, hydrological and ecological features, we characterised the distribution of seagrass habitats and abundances within the major coastal compartments. The current conservation status of Brazilian seagrasses and SAV is critical. The unsustainable exploitation and occupation of coastal areas and the multifold anthropogenic footprints left during the last 100 years led to the loss and degradation of shoreline habitats potentially suitable for seagrass occupation. Knowledge of the prevailing patterns and processes governing seagrass structure and functioning along the Brazilian coast is necessary for the global discussion on climate change. Our review is a first and much-needed step toward a more integrated and inclusive approach to understanding the diversity of coastal plant formations along the Southwestern Atlantic coast as well as a regional alert the projected or predicted effects of global changes on the goods and services provided by regional seagrasses and SAV

Developmental differences in children’s interpersonal emotion regulation

Previous research on interpersonal emotion regulation (ER) in childhood has been rather unsystematic, focusing mainly on children’s prosocial behaviour, and has been conducted in the absence of an integrative emotion theoretical framework. The present research relied on the interpersonal affect classification proposed by Niven, Totterdell, and Holman (2009) to investigate children’s use of different interpersonal ER strategies. The study drew on two samples: 180 parents of children aged between 3 and 8 years reported about a situation where their child was able to change what another person was feeling in order to make them feel better. In addition, 126 children between 3- and 8-years old answered two questions about how they could improve others’ mood. Results from both samples showed age differences in children’s use of interpersonal ER strategies. As expected, ‘affective engagement’ (i.e., focusing on the person or the problem) and ‘cognitive engagement’ (i.e., appraising the situation from a different perspective) were mainly used by 7-8 years-old, whereas ‘attention’ (i.e., distracting and valuing) was most used by 3-4 and 5-6 years-old. ‘Humor’ (i.e., laughing with the target) remained stable across the different age groups. The present research provides more information about the developmental patterns for each specific interpersonal emotion regulation strategy

Female Audit Partners and Extended Audit Reporting: UK Evidence

This study investigates whether audit partner gender is associated with the extent of auditor disclosure and the communication style regarding risks of material misstatements that are classified as key audit matters (KAMs). Using a sample of UK firms during the 2013–2017 period, our results suggest that female audit partners are more likely than male audit partners to disclose more KAMs with more details after controlling for both client and audit firm attributes. Furthermore, female audit partners are found to use a less optimistic tone and provide less readable audit reports, compared to their male counterparts, suggesting that behavioural variances between female and male audit partners may have significant implications on their writing style. Therefore, this study offers new insights on the role of audit partner gender in extended audit reporting. Our findings have important implications for audit firms, investors, policymakers and governments in relation to the development, implementation and enforcement of gender diversity