How US cities dropped climate protection commitments inresponse to mainstream political opposition and programmaticstagnation

In 2005, after Congress failed to ratify the Kyoto Protocol, many American cities stepped up their efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. However, by 2012, these efforts had fallen off, only two years after their peak. In new research, Rachel Krause writes that many cities decided to abandon their climate protection commitments because of the influence of mainstream political conservatism, and that this effect was more likely for cities which had achieved fewer environmental milestones

Cities are sustainability leaders in the U.S. but there is little understanding about how to best administer these local efforts

Despite the often loud rhetoric of those who are opposed to measures to mitigate climate change and sustainability in general, almost 65 percent of America’s large cities have put in place explicit sustainability initiatives. How and where sustainability is administered within a city’s bureaucracy is important as it can affect its functioning and performance. In new research which analyzes data from over 400 cities, Rachel M. Krause finds that sustainability administration and coordination is most often headquartered in public works or environmental services departments. The location of a city’s sustainability administration is not influenced by a city’s form of government or the support of local interest groups, but how city council members are elected can be important

Combined effects of parasitism and pollution on the antipredator behaviour of Etheostoma nigrum (Percidae: Etheostomatinae)

Pollution can have significant effects on the parasite communities and behaviour of freshwater fish. This study compares the helminth communities and predator avoidance behaviour of johnny darters ( Etheostoma nigrum ) collected from two reference localities and three polluted localities in the St. Lawrence River in southwestern Quebec, Canada. Both reference localities and one locality impacted with industrial and agricultural contaminants were located upstream of Montreal; two sites impacted with municipal sewage and urban effluent were located downstream of the city. Overall, darters were infected with 24 species of helminths, 16 of which were larval stages. Fish from the upstream polluted locality (industrial and agricultural) had a higher mean species richness than the two reference localities, which had higher richness than the two downstream localities (sewage). Fish from the upstream and reference localities had higher total parasite numbers than the two downstream localities. A non-parametric, permutational multivariate ANOVA (PERMANOVA) using Bray-Curtis dissimilarities between communities of individual fish revealed that the parasite communities differed by locality, pollution status of locality and type of pollution (upstream versus downstream). A capture time experiment and a flight distance experiment were performed, to test the effects of parasitism and pollution on susceptibility to predation. A PERMANOVA demonstrated that abundance of a brain-encysting parasite, Ornithodiplostomum sp. and locality explained capture time, but failed to detect a relationship between pollution status and antipredator behaviour. Fish with high intensity infections of the brain encysting parasite, Ornithodiplostomum sp., were more difficult to capture, reflecting increased activity of infected individuals. Abundances of Ornithodiplsotomum sp. metacercariae were greater at reference localities than at impacted ones, possibly reflecting sensitivity to pollution of transmission stages or snail hosts of this parasite. Pollution may have an indirect effect on johnny darter antipredator behaviour, by decreasing abundance of a behaviour-modifying parasite at polluted localities

Dealing with Missing Data: A Comparative Exploration of Approaches Using the Integrated City Sustainability Database

Studies of governments and local organizations using survey data have played a critical role in the development of urban studies and related disciplines. However, missing data pose a daunting challenge for this research. This article seeks to raise awareness about the treatment of missing data in urban studies research by comparing and evaluating three commonly used approaches to deal with missing data—listwise deletion, single imputation, and multiple imputation. Comparative analyses illustrate the relative performance of these approaches using the second-generation Integrated City Sustainability Database (ICSD). The results demonstrate the benefit of using an approach to missing data based on multiple imputation, using a theoretically informed and statistically supported set of predictor variables to develop a more complete sample that is free of issues raised by nonresponse in survey data. The results confirm the usefulness of the ICSD in the study of environmental and sustainability and other policy in U.S. cities. We conclude with a discussion of results and provide a set of recommendations for urban researcher scholars

Babesiosis Acquired through Blood Transfusion, California, USA

Babesiosis was reported in a California resident who received a transfusion of blood products collected in the disease-endemic northeastern region of the United States. Babesiosis should be considered year-round in the diagnosis of febrile and afebrile patients with abnormal blood cell counts who have received blood products from disease-endemic areas

Plasma tryptophan tolerance curves in drug free normal controls, schizophrenic patients and prisoner volunteers

Plasma TP was determined fluorometrically in four group of males: (1) normal controls (2) chronic schizophrenics (3) acute schizophrenics and (4) prison volunteers with personality disorders with and without symptoms of depression. To control for circadian rhythm all subjects were fasted overnight or in the afternoon and evening prior to withdrawal of venous blood. Fasting a.m. or p.m. plasma TP was within the range of normal for all groups. However, the acute schizophrenics and prison volunteers had lower plasma TP than the normal controls and chronic schizophrenics (p<middot;01. Plasma TP was determined before an 8:00 a.m. TP load and at , 1, 2, 4, and 7 hr after ingestion. A plasma tolerance curve was obtained with a peak at 1-2 hr which returned almost to normal at 7 hr. Various TP parameters were measured including fasting peak, maximal change in TP, time of peak, slope 2-4 and 4-7 hr, measured and normalized areas under the plasma tolerance curve, and plasma half-life. Almost no significant differences were found between normal controls and the chronic schizophrenics. Although all prison volunteers showed a markedly different TP tolerance curve from either the normal controls or chronic schizophrenics, depressed prisoners has a significantly lower and flatter curve. It appears that TP is well absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract and its plasma half-life is normal in chronic schizophrenics. Further studies in acute schizophrenics and depressed patients are indicated.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/22263/1/0000700.pd

The networked micro-decision context: A new lens on transformative urban governance

Recent large-scale societal disruptions, from the COVID-19 pandemic to intensifying wildfires and weather events, reveal the importance of transforming governance systems so they can address complex, transboundary, and rapidly evolving crises. Yet current knowledge of the decision-making dynamics that yield transformative governance remains scant. Studies typically focus on the aggregate outputs of government decisions, while overlooking their micro-level underpinnings. This is a key oversight because drivers of policy change, such as learning or competition, are prosecuted by people rather than organizations. We respond to this knowledge gap by introducing a new analytical lens for understanding policymaking, aimed at uncovering how characteristics of decision-makers and the structure of their relationships affect their likelihood of effectuating transformative policy responses. This perspective emphasizes the need for a more dynamic and relational view on urban governance in the context of transformation

InGaN as a Substrate for AC Photoelectrochemical Imaging.

AC photoelectrochemical imaging at electrolyte-semiconductor interfaces provides spatially resolved information such as surface potentials, ion concentrations and electrical impedance. In this work, thin films of InGaN/GaN were used successfully for AC photoelectrochemical imaging, and experimentally shown to generate a considerable photocurrent under illumination with a 405 nm modulated diode laser at comparatively high frequencies and low applied DC potentials, making this a promising substrate for bioimaging applications. Linear sweep voltammetry showed negligible dark currents. The imaging capabilities of the sensor substrate were demonstrated with a model system and showed a lateral resolution of 7 microns

Biological studies in childhood schizophrenia: Plasma and RBC cholinesterase activity

Most investigations of possible metabolic aberrations in childhood schizophrenia failed to demonstrate differences between schizophrenic patients and control groups. Cholinesterase activity has not been previously reported in schizophrenic children. Similar studies with adult schizophrenics have not been consistent, despite some reports of abnormal cholinesterase activity. The present study reports the results of plasma (pseudo) cholinesterase and erythrocyte (true) cholinesterase activity in 16 male childhood schizophrenic patients and 16 male nonpsychotic hospitalized control patients. No significant differences were found between the two groups. An unexpected finding of high significance was the inverse correlation between acetylcholinesterase activity of erythrocytes and serotonin uptake by platelets in both the nonschizophrenic patients and the combined groups. This negative correlation was less significant in the schizophrenic patients.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44597/1/10803_2005_Article_BF01537744.pd

On the Importance of Strengthening Moderate Beliefs in Climate Science to Foster Support for Immediate Action

This is the publisher's version, also available electronically from "http://www.mdpi.com".Whereas many studies focus on climate skeptics to explain the lack of support for immediate action on climate change, this research examines the effect of moderate believers in climate science. Using data from a representative survey of 832 Indiana residents, we find that agreement with basic scientific conclusions about climate change is the strongest predictor of support for immediate action, and the strength of that agreement is an important characteristic of this association. Responses indicate widespread acceptance of climate change, moderate levels of risk perception, and limited support for immediate action. Half of the respondents (50%) preferred “more research” over “immediate action” (38%) and “no action” (12%) as a response to climate change. The probability of preferring immediate action is close to zero for those who strongly or somewhat disbelieve in climate change, but as belief in climate change grows from moderate to strong, the probability of preferring immediate action increases substantially; the strongest believers have a predicted probability of preferring immediate action of 71%. These findings suggest that, instead of simply engaging skeptics, increasing public support for immediate action might entail motivating those with moderate beliefs in climate change to hold their views with greater conviction