Andes Basin Focal Project

The CPWF Basin Focal Project for the Andes system of basins worked with a range of local stakeholders to develop a better understanding of the mechanisms for improving the productivity of water in the Andes. We considered productivity in broad terms as the productivity of energy (HEP), food and fiber (agriculture) and livelihoods (industry, transport and benefit sharing such as Payments for Environmental Services schemes (PES)). In addition to the compiled data bases and analyses on poverty and institutions, one of the key deliverables of the project was the development and deployment of the AguAAndes policy support system (PSS). This integrates analyses of water availability and productivity within the local environmental and policy context. It is a web-based policy support system combining an extensive spatial database with process-based models for hydrology, crop production and socio-economic processes. It is intended to allow analysts and decision makers to test the potential onsite and offsite impacts of land and water management decisions in terms of their ability to sustain environmental services and human wellbeing. Interventions and recommendations for future actions on water and food in the region are presented

Physics Opportunities with the 12 GeV Upgrade at Jefferson Lab

This white paper summarizes the scientific opportunities for utilization of the upgraded 12 GeV Continuous Electron Beam Accelerator Facility (CEBAF) and associated experimental equipment at Jefferson Lab. It is based on the 52 proposals recommended for approval by the Jefferson Lab Program Advisory Committee.The upgraded facility will enable a new experimental program with substantial discovery potential to address important topics in nuclear, hadronic, and electroweak physics.Comment: 64 page

Centrality Dependence of the High p_T Charged Hadron Suppression in Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN) = 130 GeV

PHENIX has measured the centrality dependence of charged hadron p_T spectra from central Au+Au collisions at sqrt(s_NN)=130 GeV. The truncated mean p_T decreases with centrality for p_T > 2 GeV/c, indicating an apparent reduction of the contribution from hard scattering to high p_T hadron production. For central collisions the yield at high p_T is shown to be suppressed compared to binary nucleon-nucleon collision scaling of p+p data. This suppression is monotonically increasing with centrality, but most of the change occurs below 30% centrality, i.e. for collisions with less than about 140 participating nucleons. The observed p_T and centrality dependence is consistent with the particle production predicted by models including hard scattering and subsequent energy loss of the scattered partons in the dense matter created in the collisions.Comment: 7 pages text, LaTeX, 6 figures, 2 tables, 307 authors, resubmitted to Phys. Lett. B. Revised to address referee concerns. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are publicly available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/phenix/WWW/run/phenix/papers.htm

Formation of dense partonic matter in relativistic nucleus-nucleus collisions at RHIC: Experimental evaluation by the PHENIX collaboration

Extensive experimental data from high-energy nucleus-nucleus collisions were recorded using the PHENIX detector at the Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC). The comprehensive set of measurements from the first three years of RHIC operation includes charged particle multiplicities, transverse energy, yield ratios and spectra of identified hadrons in a wide range of transverse momenta (p_T), elliptic flow, two-particle correlations, non-statistical fluctuations, and suppression of particle production at high p_T. The results are examined with an emphasis on implications for the formation of a new state of dense matter. We find that the state of matter created at RHIC cannot be described in terms of ordinary color neutral hadrons.Comment: 510 authors, 127 pages text, 56 figures, 1 tables, LaTeX. Submitted to Nuclear Physics A as a regular article; v3 has minor changes in response to referee comments. Plain text data tables for the points plotted in figures for this and previous PHENIX publications are (or will be) publicly available at http://www.phenix.bnl.gov/papers.htm

The Andes basins: biophysical and developmental diversity in a climate of change

To understand how agriculture and poverty interact, we analysed water availability, productivity and institutions for the Andes basins. Water limits agricultural productivity in the southern basins but is plentiful in the northern basins where steep slopes or poor land and water management limit productivity. The dominance of small, steep basins results in important upstream–downstream linkages. The greatest challenge to improving the productivity of water in the Andes basins is to regulate water quality better for multiple uses and to negotiate fair and transparent compensation for upstream providers of water-based ecosystem services for the benefits that they provide to downstream users

Gender Expression Differences in Same-Sex Intimate Partner Violence Victimization, Perpetration, and Attitudes among LGBTQ College Students

Intimate partnerviolence (IPV) occurs in same-sex relationships at greater rates compared to heterosexual relationships. Despite these elevated same-sex IPV, limited research exists on risk and protective factors (e.g., gender expression) related to victimization, perpetration, and attitudes about violence. Due to scarce research on characteristics of same-sex IPV, the study measured differences between feminine and masculine lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ) college students (N = 266) in their self-reported victimization, perpetration, and acceptance of IPV. Results identified that masculine LGBTQ-identifying students reported higher levels of victimization, perpetration, and acceptance of violence, providing implications when assessing for risk and protective factors of same-sex IPV

COMPOSIÇÃO FLORÍSTICA DE UMA PASTAGEM NATURAL SUBMETIDA A QUEIMA E MANEJOS ALTERNATIVOS BURNING AND MANAGEMENT ALTERNATIVES ON FLORISTIC COMPOSITION OF NATIVE PASTURE

Foram estudadas, durante um ano, alternativas de manejo da pastagem natural em relação às queimadas. Os tratamentos constaram de: queima bienal durante mais de 100 anos; sem queima há 32 anos, com e sem roçada; e melhorado com correção e adubação do solo, e introdução de espécies há 7 e 24 anos. A pastagem acumulada, dentro de gaiolas de exclusão ao pastejo, foi coletada e separada manualmente em grupos de espécies. A composição florística foi estimada pelo método BOTANAL, através da freqüência e cobertura das espécies presentes ao longo de transectas. O delineamento experimental foi o completamente casualizado, com três repetições. O melhoramento da pastagem favoreceu boas espécies forrageiras do grupo das gramíneas nativas estivais, ciperáceas e leguminosas. A queima promoveu o desenvolvimento de Piptochaetium montevidense em detrimento das gramíneas estivais, leguminosas e material morto. Paspalum notatum, P. paniculatum e Desmodium incanum se sobressaíram nas áreas melhoradas e roçadas. Na área queimada, houve melhor desenvolvimento de espécies dos gêneros Andropogon e Schizachyrium e também de espécies oportunistas. As alternativas de manejo sem queima, com pastejo rotativo e diferimento promovem o desenvolvimento de uma riqueza florística maior e de espécies com melhor valor forrageiro.<br>The botanical and floristic composition of native pasture, submitted to burning and alternative management practices, was evaluated during one year. The treatments were: biennial burning for more than 100 years; no burning - with or without mowing; and improved with lime, annual fertilization and sod-seeding of cool season species for 7 and 24 years. Forage accumulation within grazing exclusion cage was collected and sorted into species groups. The floristic composition was estimated with BOTANAL method based on the frequency and coverage of species along a transect. The experimental design was completely randomized, with three replications. Improvement of pasture promotes good native warm season grass species, sedges and legumes. Burning stimulates the development in Piptochaetium montevidense, to detriment of warm season grasses, legumes and senescent material. The species Paspalum notatum, P. paniculatum and Desmodium incanum has greater contribution under improved and mowed treatments. The biennial burning stimulates species of Andropogon and Schizachyrium genera and also opportunistic species. The alternative management with no burning, rotational grazing and deferment, promotes greater floristic richness, and species with better nutritive value