770 research outputs found
Comparing Conventional and New Policy Approaches for Carnivore Conservation â Theoretical Results and Application to Tiger Conservation
New policy approaches to facilitate the co-existence of wildlife and livestock are increasingly being sought-after as human sprawl increases and carnivore populations decrease. In this paper, models are developed to assess how alternative policy approaches can provide a livestock herder with incentives to sustain the socially optimal carnivore population. The wellestablished policy ex-post compensation is analyzed and compared to the innovative conservation performance payment approach. An empirical analysis of the model with data from tiger-livestock conflicts in India is presented.
challenges to multi-level capacity building
Communities facing the effects of climate change are actively trying to boost
their resilience. At the same time, governments are mainstreaming climate
change into their development frameworks. Close examination of current
practice, however, points at a disconnect between government policy and
community initiatives. This study explores how strengthening specific
capabilities at various levels can ensure synchronization of policy and
practice and further community resilience in face of climate change. Choosing
an approach that appreciates the interplay of top-Ââdown and bottom-Ââup
logics towards performance under stress, it illust rates that understanding
resilience in terms of capacity opens the door to practical thinking on
policies as well as practices. Evidence is taken from case studies in Chile
and Vietnam to show how governments can play an enabling role when connecting
their efforts to initiatives taken by communities. At the same time,
top-Ââdown structures, such as the United Nations Framework Convention on
Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), can help
to break silos between different (inter)national political agendas and
underscore the need to link top-Ââdown and bottom-Ââup approaches to ensure
resilience. This paper contends that improving communities' adaptive capacity
demands bridging the disconnect between multiple levels of policy and
practice. In doing so, different, and too often conflicting, values,
interests, and political agendas need to be aligned. Moreconcretely, we found
that resilience, as an emergent property of human systems, can be enhanced
when government and local stakeholders work together in a number of specific
areas. For instance, combining multi-Ââstakeholder platforms in which diverse
actors â ranging from policy-Ââmakers to researchers to community
representatives â translate lessons learned at the community level intolocal
and national policy, with initiatives aimed at strengthening capacitiesand
ensuring access to relevant assets at the community level
Comparing Conventional and New Policy Approaches for Carnivore Conservation: Theoretical Results and Application to Tiger Conservation
New policy approaches to facilitate the co-existence of wildlife and livestock are needed for situations where predation incidents greatly impact households' income and retaliatory killing threatens endangered carnivore species' survival. In this paper, models are developed to assess how two alternative policy approaches impact a herder's decisions on carnivore hunting and livestock protection. We find that while the well-established ex-post compensation policy induces suboptimal livestock protection it can generate sufficient incentives for the herder to refrain from hunting so that the carnivore population reaches its socially optimal level. Performance payments are proposed as alternative policy. They are found not to distort livestock protection incentives and can also help achieve a socially optimal carnivore population level. Which of the two scheme types gives rise to less cost is ambiguous. An empirical analysis of the model with data from tiger-livestock conflicts in India is presente
Reading Comprehension Instruction for Young Students with High Functioning Autism: Forming Contextual Connections
Central coherence is the ability to perceive and connect salient information in a context such as a narrative text. Weak central coherence theory describes a detail-focused cognitive style of processing information that overlooks connections. This style of processing is a shortcoming of individuals with autism compared to typically developing individuals (Frith, 2003). A six-session instructional intervention to foster coherence processing and reinforce thinking strategies was administered to first and second graders while a control group received an irrelevant treatment. There were 10 students with high functioning autism in each condition, mean age 7.06 years, 18 males and 2 females. It was expected that remediating this detail-focused style of processing would benefit childrenâs comprehension of narrative text. Results showed that the intervention group significantly outperformed controls in the quality of their retell of a narrative text (d = 1.15). Also the intervention improved first gradersâ use of sequence words to retell a story (d = 1.21). However, other measures of reading comprehension did not show a benefit from the intervention. Findings carry implications for designing reading instruction for this special population
Wertigkeit von CT-Abdomen und Koloskopie im prÀoperativen Staging des Ovarialkarzinoms: eine retrospektive Analyse an der UniversitÀtsfrauenklinik Rostock 2010 - 2014
Beim fortgeschrittenen Ovarialkarzinom stellt die optimale Tumorreduktion (Tumorrest </= 10 mm) den wichtigsten Prognosefaktor dar, bestenfalls eine R0-Resektion. Kann dies nicht erreicht werden, ist eine neoadjuvante Chemotherapie zu erwÀgen. PrimÀres Studienziel war es herauszufinden, ob es radiologische Merkmale im Rahmen des prÀoperativen CT-Stagings gibt, die die Wahrscheinlichkeit einer suboptimalen Tumorreduktion vorhersagen können. Weiterhin wurde untersucht, wie zuverlÀssig die prÀoperative Koloskopie in der PrÀdiktion der Notwendigkeit einer Darmteilresektion ist
Dysphagia limit in children with cerebral palsy aged 4 to 12Â years
AIM: To assess the dysphagia limit in children with cerebral palsy (CP) according to Eating and Drinking Ability Classification System (EDACS) level, sex, and age compared to typically developing children. METHOD: Seventyâseven children with CP (54 males, 23 females; mean age 7y 6mo, SD 2y 2mo, age range 4â12y) were assessed with the Maximum Volume Water Swallow Test. Median dysphagia limit in the CP group was compared with data of typically developing children. RESULTS: The dysphagia limit of children with CP differed significantly (p<0.001) from typically developing children. The latter showed a threefold higher median dysphagia limit (22mL) compared to children with CP in EDACS level I (7mL). The higher the EDACS level, the lower the dysphagia limit in children with CP. EDACS level explained 55% of the variance in the dysphagia limit of the CP group. INTERPRETATION: Where children with CP in EDACS levels IV and V showed that their capacity met the level of their performance, children in EDACS level I had the ability to perform a maximum capacity task, but still had a threefold lower median dysphagia limit than typically developing children. Establishment of the dysphagia limit should be part of general swallowing assessment in children with CP
N-acetylcysteine for non-paracetamol drug-induced liver injury: a systematic review protocol
BACKGROUND: Drug-induced liver injury (DILI) refers to acute or chronic liver injury that may occur as a consequence of using drugs and herbal or dietary supplements. Specific therapies for DILI are limited. There is considerable evidence for efficacy and safety of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) in management of paracetamol-induced liver injury. More recently, research has explored the use of NAC in non-paracetamol drug-induced liver injury. It is important to summarise the evidence of NAC for non-paracetamol DILI to determine if NAC may be considered a therapeutic option in this condition.METHODS/DESIGN:We will conduct a systematic review of the benefit and harm of NAC in non-paracetamol drug-induced liver injury. Primary and secondary outcomes of interest are pre-specified. Primary outcomes include all-cause mortality, mortality due to DILI, time to normalisation of liver biochemistry (e.g. return of alanine transaminase to <100 U/l and/or international normalized ratio (INR) <1.5) and adverse events. Secondary outcomes include transplantation rate, time to transplantation, transplant-free survival and duration of hospitalisation. We will include randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and prospective cohort studies. RCTs will contribute to the evaluation of safety and efficacy of NAC, whereas, the cohort studies will contribute exclusively to the evaluation of safety. We will search several bibliographic databases (including PubMed, Scopus, CINAHL, CENTRAL), grey literature sources, conference proceedings and ongoing trials. Following data extraction and assessment of the risk of bias, we will conduct a meta-analysis if feasible, as well as subgroup analyses. We will assess and explore clinical and statistical heterogeneity.DISCUSSION:The aim of this review is to provide evidence on the effectiveness and safety of NAC in non-paracetamol DILI. We anticipate that the results could aid health care practitioners, researchers and policymakers in the decision-making regarding the use of NAC in patients with non-paracetamol DILI.SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION:PROSPERO CRD4201400877
Standard operating procedures (SOP) in experimental stroke research: SOP for middle cerebral artery occlusion in the mouse
Systematic reviews have found quantitative evidence that low study quality may have introduced a bias into preclinical stroke research. Monitoring, auditing, and standard operating procedures (SOPs) are already key elements of quality control in randomized clinical trials and will hopefully be widely adopted by preclinical stroke research in the near future. Increasingly, funding bodies and review boards overseeing animal experiments are taking a proactive stance, and demand auditable quality control measures in preclinical research. Every good quality control system is based on its SOPs. This article introduces the concept of quality control and presents a SOP in experimental stroke research
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