Hippocampal BDNF regulates a shift from flexible, goal-directed to habit memory system function following cocaine abstinence.

The transition from recreational drug use to addiction involves pathological learning processes that support a persistent shift from flexible, goal-directed to habit behavioral control. Here, we examined the molecular mechanisms supporting altered function in hippocampal (HPC) and dorsolateral striatum (DLS) memory systems following abstinence from repeated cocaine. After 3 weeks of cocaine abstinence (experimenter- or self-administered), we tested new behavioral learning in male rats using a dual-solution maze task, which provides an unbiased approach to assess HPC- versus DLS-dependent learning strategies. Dorsal hippocampus (dHPC) and DLS brain tissues were collected after memory testing to identify transcriptional adaptations associated with cocaine-induced shifts in behavioral learning. Our results demonstrate that following prolonged cocaine abstinence rats show a bias toward the use of an inflexible, habit memory system (DLS) in lieu of a more flexible, easily updated memory system involving the HPC. This memory system bias was associated with upregulation and downregulation of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene expression and transcriptionally permissive histone acetylation (acetylated histone H3, AcH3) in the DLS and dHPC, respectively. Using viral-mediated gene transfer, we overexpressed BDNF in the dHPC during cocaine abstinence and new maze learning. This manipulation restored HPC-dependent behavioral control. These findings provide a system-level understanding of altered plasticity and behavioral learning following cocaine abstinence and inform mechanisms mediating the organization of learning and memory more broadly

Gendered Paths to Formal and Informal Resources in Post-Disaster Development in the Ecuadorian Andes

The devastating eruptions of Mount Tungurahua in the Ecuadorian highlands in 1999 and 2006 left many communities struggling to rebuild their homes and others permanently displaced to settlements built by state and nongovernmental organizations. For several years afterward, households diversified their economic strategies to compensate for losses, communities organized to promote local development, and the state and nongovernmental organizations sponsored many economic recovery programs in the affected communities. Our study examined the ways in which gender and gender roles were associated with different levels and paths of access to scarce resources in these communities. Specifically, this article contrasts the experiences of men and women in accessing household necessities and project assistance through formal institutions and informal networks. We found that women and men used different types of informal social support networks, with men receiving significantly more material, emotional, and informational support than women. We also found that men and women experienced different challenges and advantages when pursuing support through local and extralocal institutions and that these institutions often coordinated in ways that reified their biases. We present a methodology that is replicable in a wide variety of disaster, resettlement, and development settings, and we advocate an inductive, evidence-based approach to policy, built upon an understanding of local gender, class, and ethnic dynamics affecting access to formal and informal resources. This evidence should be used to build more robust local institutions that can resist wider social and cultural pressures for male dominance and gendered exclusion

How much more can sunspots tell us about the solar dynamo?

Sunspot observations inspired solar dynamo theory and continue to do so. Simply counting them established the sunspot cycle and its period. Latitudinal distributions introduced the tough constraint that the source of sunspots moves equator-ward as the cycle progresses. Observations of Hale's polarity law mandated hemispheric asymmetry. How much more can sunspots tell us about the solar dynamo? We draw attention to a few outstanding questions raised by inherent sunspot properties. Namely, how to explain sunspot rotation rates, the incoherence of follower spots, the longitudinal spacing of sunspot groups, and brightness trends within a given sunspot cycle. After reviewing the first several topics, we then present new results on the brightness of sunspots in Cycle 24 as observed with the Helioseismic Magnetic Imager (HMI). We compare these results to the sunspot brightness observed in Cycle 23 with the Michelson Doppler Imager (MDI). Next, we compare the minimum intensities of five sunspots simultaneously observed by the Hinode Solar Optical Telescope Spectropolarimeter (SOT-SP) and HMI to verify that the minimum brightness of sunspot umbrae correlates well to the maximum field strength. We then examine 90 and 52 sunspots in the north and south hemisphere, respectively, from 2010 - 2012. Finally, we conclude that the average maximum field strengths of umbra 40 Carrington Rotations into Cycle 24 are 2690 Gauss, virtually indistinguishable from the 2660 Gauss value observed at a similar time in Cycle 23 with MDI

Intensive Cultural Resources Survey of the Proposed 407 McKinney No. 1 to Princeton No. 1 72-Inch and 24-Inch Pipeline, Collin County, Texas

On behalf of Lockwood, Andrews, and Newnam, Inc. (LAN), SWCA Environmental Consultants (SWCA) conducted an intensive archaeological survey of the proposed 407 McKinney No. 1 to Princeton No. 1 72-inch and 24-inch Pipeline in Collin County, Texas. The proposed 7.6-mile water pipeline will consist of 4,357-feet of new 72-inch-diameter pipeline and 35,843-feet of new 24-inch-diamater pipeline in order to connect an existing 60-inch-diameter pipeline in McKinney, Texas, to an existing connection to the pump station Princeton, Texas. The investigation included an archaeological background literature and records review and an intensive pedestrian survey augmented by shovel tests. As the undertaking will be funded by the City of McKinney and portions of the project are located on city owned property, cultural resources investigations were conducted to satisfy the requirements of the Antiquities Code of Texas under Texas Antiquities Permit 7561. The background literature review revealed that portions of the project area have been previously surveyed for cultural resources. Within one mile of the project area a total of 11 previous surveys have been conducted, four of which intersect the current proposed project area. Additionally, a total of five previously recorded archaeological sites, 10 properties listed in the NRHP, four cemeteries, two abandoned railroad grades, two historic districts, five historic markers, and approximately 576 potential historic structures were identified within one mile of the proposed project area. Investigations of the project area involved surface and subsurface investigations of a single transect along the proposed centerline with shovel tests excavated at 100-m intervals in accordance with the Texas Historical Commission’s (THC) standards. Out of 141 proposed shovel test locations, 99 shovel tests were excavated, and 42 proposed shovel test locations were not excavated due to disturbances within the proposed project alignment. In addition to shovel testing, trenching of the Trinity River floodplain was also conducted to test for the presence of buried soil horizons which might contain archaeological sites. Seven negative trenches were excavated north of the Trinity River as part of the survey of the initial proposed right-of-way. An additional six backhoe trenches were excavated in March 2017 because of a reroute across the Trinity River floodplain in this area. The results of these geomorphological investigations are reported in Appendix A. The work conducted was completed across the full length (7.6 miles) of the proposed project area (Appendix B). Shovel test data are presented in Appendix C. During SWCA’s investigation two archaeological sites, 41COL269 and 41COL270, were identified. Both sites were identified as the remains of historic homesteads. These sites are characterized by surficial deposits that are heavily disturbed, contain sparse assemblages, represent ubiquitous site types, and/or are lacking in formal and temporally diagnostic artifacts. The investigated portions of these resources are recommended NOT ELIGIBLE for the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). The NRHP eligibility of the portion of archaeological site 41COL269 that is located outside of the proposed right-of-way remains UNDETERMINED. One previously recorded site (41COL168) was revisiting during SWCA’s investigation. The site has been completely destroyed by the construction of Airport Road, and SWCA recommends the remaining portion within the project corridor as NOT ELIGIBLE for inclusion in the NRHP. Based on the results of the investigation, and determined lack of eligibility for sites 41COL269, 41COL270, and 41COL168 within the current project area, it is SWCA’s opinion that the proposed project would result in NO EFFECT ON HISTORIC PROPERTIES. SWCA recommends no further investigations of the investigated project area and that the project be allowed to proceed. No artifacts were collected, thus nothing will be curated except project paperwork and photographs, as per the requirements of the Texas Antiquities Permit 7561

Promoting Fertilizer Use in Africa: Current Issues and Empirical Evidence from Malawi, Zambia, and Kenya

It is generally agreed that increasing agricultural productivity is critical to stimulating the rate of economic growth in Africa. There are many important and often complementary determinants of agricultural productivity. In this brief and the full paper it draws from, the focus is on fertilizer and improved seed, without intending to imply that they are the only or most significant productivity determinants.fertilizer, Africa, Malawi, Zambia, Kenya, Crop Production/Industries, Food Security and Poverty, Q18,

Promoting Fertilizer Use in Africa: Current Issues and Empirical Evidence from Malawi, Zambia, and Kenya

This study was funded jointly by the Regional Strategic Agricultural Knowledge Support System (Re-SAKSS) for Southern Africa, based at International Water Management Institute, Pretoria, South Africa, and by the United States Agency for International Development's Africa Bureau. Much of the data and analysis reported in this study was carried out under the Tegemeo Agricultural Monitoring and Policy Analysis Project, funded by USAID/Kenya; the Food Security Research Project/Markets, Trade and Enabling Environment (MATEP) Program, funded by USAID/Zambia and the Swedish International Development Agency; and by the DFID and USAID offices in Lilongwe, Malawi.fertilizer, Africa, Malawi, Zambia, Kenya, Crop Production/Industries, Q18,

Nontimber Forest Products in the United States

A quiet revolution is taking place in America\u27s forests. Once seen primarily as stands of timber, our woodlands are now prized as a rich source of a wide range of commodities, from wild mushrooms and maple sugar to hundreds of medicinal plants whose uses have only begun to be fully realized. Now as timber harvesting becomes more mechanized and requires less labor, the image of the lumberjack is being replaced by that of the forager. This book provides the first comprehensive examination of nontimber forest products (NTFPs) in the United States, illustrating their diverse importance, describing the people who harvest them, and outlining the steps that are being taken to ensure access to them. As the first extensive national overview of NTFP policy and management specific to the United States, it brings together research from numerous disciplines and analytical perspectives-such as economics, mycology, history, ecology, law, entomology, forestry, geography, and anthropology—in order to provide a cohesive picture of the current and potential role of NTFPs. The contributors review the state of scientific knowledge of NTFPs by offering a survey of commercial and noncommercial products, an overview of uses and users, and discussions of sustainable management issues associated with ecology, cultural traditions, forest policy, and commerce. They examine some of the major social, economic, and biological benefits of NTFPs, while also addressing the potential negative consequences of NTFP harvesting on forest ecosystems and on NTFP species populations. Within this wealth of information are rich accounts of NTFP use drawn from all parts of the American landscape—from the Pacific Northwest to the Caribbean. From honey production to a review of nontimber forest economies still active in the United States—such as the Ojibway harvest of plants recounted here—the book takes in the whole breadth of recent NTFP issues, including ecological concerns associated with the expansion of NTFP markets and NTFP tenure issues on federally managed lands. No other volume offers such a comprehensive overview of NTFPs in North America. By examining all aspects of these products, it contributes to the development of more sophisticated policy and management frameworks for not only ensuring their ongoing use but also protecting the future of our forests. Description Eric T. Jones is an instructor and research professor in the Department of Forest Ecosystems and Society at Oregon State University. Rebecca J. McLain is director of research at the National Policy Consensus Center at Portland State University. Susan Charnley is a research social scientist at the Pacific Northwest Research Station of the USDA Forest Service. James Weigand is an ecologist at the US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. With a New Preface by Eric T. Jones, Rebecca J. McLain, Susan Charnley, and James Weigand. This Kansas Open Books title is funded by a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Humanities Open Book Program.https://digitalcommons.pittstate.edu/kansas_open_books/1035/thumbnail.jp

Archaeological Investigations of Areas Slated for Expansion at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery, San Antonio, Texas

During April 1982, archaeologists from the Center for Archaeological Research I at The University of Texas at San Antonio conducted a cultural resource survey and evaluation of 31.68 acres slated as an expansion area for the Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio, Texas. This was accomplished through two research methods: (1) a literature and archival search supplemented by interviews of knowledgeable persons; followed by (2) a planned subsurface archaeological testing program. One badly disturbed prehistoric site (41 BX 346) of unknown function and unknown chronological association was discovered as a result of these activities. Because the site is so severely mixed and displaced, it is not considered a significant cultural resource, and no further work is recommended. The legal basis for this cultural resource survey and evaluation is described in the federal legislation of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, the Archeological and Historical Preservation Act of 1974 and Executive Order 11593