1,810 research outputs found
The Origins, Operation and Future of Farmersâ Markets in Scotland
There have been a number of supply chain adjustments in food and farming in Scotland in recent years, one of which has been the growth in the number of âfarmersâ marketsâ (FMs). These are markets in which agricultural produce from a defined local area is sold by stallholders involved in the production process. The first markets in Scotland started in 1999, and the sector now has an estimated annual turnover of around ÂŁ7m. While their origins can be traced to the crisis in farm incomes in the late 1990âs, they have come to be seen as a way of providing a range of market and non-market benefits to producers, consumers and wider society. The findings of a recent SAC project indicate that farmersâ markets are complex and display considerable variation, e.g. in terms of their: origins; size; turnover; location; product range; management; strengths and weaknesses; perceived threats. They face a range of challenges, including: retaining critical mass; maintaining their brand; managing costs; improving co-ordination. Despite these, it is argued that farmersâ markets can continue to put the âspring back in the stepâ of Scottish farming, while providing a range of benefits for town centres, communities and consumers.Marketing, Farm Management,
Exploring the meaning of disproportionate costs for the practical implementation of the Water Framework Directive
The Water Framework Directive (WFD) is perhaps the most ambitious piece of environmental legislation in the history of the European Union. The Directive consolidates existing water-related legislation and has the stated objective of delivering good status (GS) for Europeâs surface waters and groundwaters. But meeting GS is cost dependent, and in some water bodies pollution abatements costs may be high or judged as disproportionate. The exact definition and assessment of disproportionate costs is central for the justification of time-frame derogations and/or lowering the environmental objectives (standards) for compliance at a water body. Official guidance is somewhat discretionary about the interpretation of disproportionate costs. Building on basic cost-benefit theory, this paper attempts to clarify the meaning of disproportionate cost to non-economists, and to convey a consistent interpretation that should underlie the development of a practical derogation decision making across all member statesDerogations, Cost-Effectiveness Analysis (CEA), Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA), Marginal Abatement Costs (MAC), Marginal Social Costs (MSC), Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,
Bayesian Asteroseismology of 23 Solar-Like Kepler Targets
We study 23 previously published Kepler targets to perform a consistent
grid-based Bayesian asteroseismic analysis and compare our results to those
obtained via the Asteroseismic Modelling Portal (AMP). We find differences in
the derived stellar parameters of many targets and their uncertainties. While
some of these differences can be attributed to systematic effects between
stellar evolutionary models, we show that the different methodologies deliver
incompatible uncertainties for some parameters. Using non-adiabatic models and
our capability to measure surface effects, we also investigate the dependency
of these surface effects on the stellar parameters. Our results suggest a
dependence of the magnitude of the surface effect on the mixing length
parameter which also, but only minimally, affects the determination of stellar
parameters. While some stars in our sample show no surface effect at all, the
most significant surface effects are found for stars that are close to the
Sun's position in the HR diagram.Comment: 14 pages, 9 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
In vitro Study of the Microsporidian Parasite Loma morhua, Using Cod-derived Cells and Novel Culture Techniques
The cod populations of the Canadian Atlantic were once highly productive, generating enormous annual harvests and attracting fishing fleets from many nations. However, through the late 1980s improved fishing technology, unprecedented capture rates, and poor fishery management brought wild stocks beyond the point of collapse. Dwindling harvests in the early 1990s resulted in cod fishing moratoriums, and an end to the productivity for which the fishery was once renowned. Atlantic cod remains a popular food worldwide and the collapse of cod fisheries has done little to abate market demands. Consequently, the cod is considered a prime candidate for aquaculture production, providing the impetus for commercial-scale farming operations. As aquaculture efforts continue to grow, disease management challenges have become a prominent concern. Many parasites are prevalent on cod farms, including intracellular pathogens such as viruses and microsporidians. Detailed research into diseases affecting farming operations is imperative if commercial-scale cod aquaculture is to develop.
Piscine cell culture techniques represent a valuable tool for studying the intracellular pathogens currently impeding cod aquaculture. To date however, few cell culture models have been made available for the Atlantic cod. This research details the establishment of a larval cod cell line, GML-5, investigations of infective processes in microsporidian parasites, and development of in vitro culture methods for a microsporidian parasite of the Atlantic cod.
GML-5 cells have been cultured for two years and survived more than 26 passages in L-15 media supplemented with 10% fetal bovine serum and incubated at 18°C. The cells have tested positive for a marker of stem cell-like characteristics, had their origin identified as Gadus morhua by DNA barcoding, and been cryopreserved for long-term storage. The cells have been successfully used to support the growth of two microsporidian parasites. Infection-mediating effects of Mg2+ and EDTA have been confirmed in a previously-untested microsporidian species and novel pH treatments were successfully used to stimulate infection and development of Loma morhua in GML-5 cells.
The results of this research represent the foundations of an in vitro infection model for Loma morhua, and demonstrate shared responses to specific chemical conditions by microsporidian parasites with highly dissimilar host species
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Chemoprevention of electrophilic damage by mercaptopurine analogs
Analogs of 6-mercaptopurine have been found to enhance the detoxification of various electrophilic toxicants in vivo, while having minimal cytotoxicity themselves. This property allows such compounds to act as scavengers for electrophilic toxicants, thereby preventing the cellular damage caused by such toxic agents.Board of Regents, University of Texas Syste
Stroke recovery and lesion reduction following acute isolated bilateral ischaemic pontine infarction : a case report
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly credited. The Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/) applies to the data made available in this article, unless otherwise stated. Acknowledgements The initial scan was offered as part of the standard clinical service provided by NHS Grampian and the follow-up scan was funded by a grant from the NHS Grampian Endowments Trust (grant number 12/35). We thank Dr Olive Robb, Dr Arnab Rana, Professor Alison Murray for reporting the imaging scans, Lisa Marshall for providing information regarding the patientâs on-going community physiotherapy input following discharge from Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Gordon Buchan for his technical support during scanning, the research radiographers (Baljit Jagpal, Beverly Maclennan, Nichola Crouch and Katrina Klaasen), the Aberdeen Biomedical Imaging Centre staff especially Teresa Morris and Dawn Younie for coordinating the scanning appointments, the stroke research nurses (Anu Joyson, Heather Gow and Janice Irvine) and above all the patient for agreeing to take part in this case study.Peer reviewedPublisher PD
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