Will the Euro create a bonanza for Africa?

In considering how the euro will affect Sub-Saharan Africa, the authors examine the transmission channels through which the euro could affect economies in the region. They examine the risks and opportunities the euro presents for Sub-Saharan African countries. They especially examine the effects from the trade channel, through changes in European economic activity and the real exchange rate. Because of the relatively low income elasticity for primary commodities - which is what Sub-Saharan Africa mainly exports - an increase in activity in Europe is considered to have a marginal impact on Africa. Exchange rate regimes and geographical trade patterns point to large differences in exposure to changes in the real exchange rate. Capital flows to Sub-Saharan Africa can be affected through portfolio shifts or through changes in foreign direct investment. Changes in competitiveness in Europe are not expected to influence foreign direct investment, so the euro is not expected to affect foreign direct investment significantly. Portfolio diversification could increase greatly. But Sub-Saharan Africa is not expected to realize the increased potential from portfolio diversification because of its severely underdeveloped domestic capital markets. It is vitally important that Sub-Saharan African countries strengthen their financial integration into global markets. How the euro will affect such parts of the financial system as banks and debt and reserve management varies across countries. Generally the effect is expected to be limited.Fiscal&Monetary Policy,Payment Systems&Infrastructure,Banks&Banking Reform,Economic Theory&Research,Environmental Economics&Policies,Environmental Economics&Policies,Banks&Banking Reform,Fiscal&Monetary Policy,Macroeconomic Management,Economic Theory&Research

An integrative description of Mesobiotus ethiopicus sp. nov. (Tardigrada : Eutardigrada : Parachela : Macrobiotidae : harmsworthi group) from the northern Afrotropic region

A new species of the Mesobiotus harmsworthi group is described from Ethiopia. An integrative taxonomy approach was applied by combining morphological and morphometric analyses-imaging under phase contrast and scanning electron microscopy with molecular analysis (18S rRNA, 28S rRNA and COI markers)-to cross-verify the status of the population as a new species. The specimens of esobiotus ethiopicus sp. nov. are most similar to two taxa of the harmsworthi complex: M. harmsworthi obscurus (Dastych, 1985) and M. peterseni (Maucci, 1991). Nevertheless, the new species can be easily distinguished from the first of these taxa by the absence of additional teeth in the oral cavity and by a different accessory point morphology on the claws, and it can be distinguished from the second species mostly by a completely different egg process anatomy. Mesobiotus ethiopicus sp. nov. is only the second tardigrade species formally described as new for science from Ethiopia so far

On the Application of Zone Flooding in a Traffic Warning System

The LIWAS Traffic Warning System aims at providing early warning to vehicles about slippery conditions on the road. The LIWAS system is currently under development and consists of two main parts: sensors for measuring and classifying the state of the road, and a communication infrastructure for distributing road-state information to vehicles. This paper concentrates on the communication infrastructure, and considers the application of zone flooding for implementing the distribution of road-state information. Zone flooding combines flooding and geocasting to distribute road-state information in a geographically bounded area. To evaluate the applicability of zone flooding in the LIWAS system, a simulation model has been created using the Network Simulator 2. The simulation model captures a representative road-scenario and has been used to evaluate several flooding protocols when used to implement zone flooding. The primary evaluationcriteria are the load on the network and the capability to warn other vehicles in time

An integrative description of Minibiotus ioculator sp. nov. from the Republic of South Africa with notes on Minibiotus pentannulatus Londoño et al., 2017 (Tardigrada: Macrobiotidae)

The genusMinibiotusis morphologically diverse, which may suggest its polyphyletic character. However,scarce genetic data and often also the lack of detailed morphological data currently do not allow for theverification of the relationships within this genus. Here, for the veryfirst time, we provide an integrativedescription of a newMinibiotusspecies.Minibiotus ioculatorsp. nov.from the Republic of South Africadiffers from other congeners mainly by egg ornamentation with processes on the egg shell that resemblethe hat of a royal jester. We also provide new taxonomic data onMinibiotus pentannulatusbased on apopulation newly found in Tanzania, which constitutes thefirst African record of this species originallydescribed from South America. Our study involved both classical taxonomic methods, which includemorphological and morphometric analyses conducted with the use of light and scanning electron mi-croscopy, and genetic data in the form of DNA sequences of four markers (three nuclear: 18S rRNA, 28SrRNA, ITS-2, and one mitochondrial: COI). The results of this study allow a discussion of speciescomposition withinMinibiotusand question the validity of the current diagnosis of the genus

Integrative taxonomy identifies two new tardigrade species (Eutardigrada: Macrobiotidae) from Greenland

In this paper we describe Macrobiotus engbergi sp. nov. and Tenuibiotus zandrae sp. nov. from Greenland. Our study has involved both classical taxonomic methods, which include morphological and morphometric analyses conducted with the use of light and scanning electron microscopy, and genetic analysis based on four molecular markers (three nuclear: 18S rRNA, 28S rRNA, ITS-2, and one mitochondrial: COI). Moreover, we re-examined the type series of Tenuibiotus voronkovi (Tumanov, 2007) as well as the original sample where the species was found and we provide new morphological data from light and scanning electron microscopy which enabled us to amend its description. Finally, we also analysed slides with animals and egg of two populations from Nordaustlandet and Edgeøya (archipelago of Svalbard, Norway) designated as T. voronkovi within its recent redescription. The results and comparisons presented in our study question the validity of this designation.

Sustained positive consequences of genetic rescue of fitness and behavioural traits in inbred populations of <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i>

One solution to alleviate the detrimental genetic effects associated with reductions in population size and fragmentation is to introduce immigrants from other populations. While the effects of this genetic rescue on fitness traits are fairly well known, it is less clear to what extent inbreeding depression and subsequent genetic rescue affect behavioural traits. In this study, replicated crosses between inbred lines of Drosophila melanogaster were performed in order to investigate the effects of inbreeding and genetic rescue on egg‐to‐adult viability and negative geotaxis behaviour—a locomotor response used to measure, e.g. the effects of physiological ageing. Transgenerational effects of outcrossing were investigated by examining the fitness consequences in both the F(1) and F(4) generation. The majority of inbred lines showed evidence for inbreeding depression for both egg‐to‐adult viability and behavioural performance (95% and 66% of lines, respectively), with inbreeding depression being more pronounced for viability compared with the locomotor response. Subsequent outcrossing with immigrants led to an alleviation of the negative effects for both viability and geotaxis response resulting in inbred lines being similar to the outbred controls, with beneficial effects persisting from F(1) to F(4). Overall, the results clearly show that genetic rescue can provide transgenerational rescue of small, inbred populations by rapidly improving population fitness components. Thus, we show that even the negative effects of inbreeding on behaviour, similar to that of neurodegeneration associated with physiological ageing, can be reversed by genetic rescue

Educación para la participación. Una experiencia de voluntariado universitario : La conservación de los recursos naturales renovables en el SE bonaerense. ¿Utopía, desafío, compromiso ciudadano?

Fil: Kristensen, María Julia. Instituto de Geomorfología y Suelos (IGS). Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo. Universidad Nacional de La Plata; ArgentinaFil: Ulberich, Ana Cristina. Universidad Nacional del Centro de la provincia de Buenos Aires. Tandil; ArgentinaFil: Bravo, Daniel Javier