A Look Beneath the Surface : Developing a Transboundary Groundwater Governance Framework and Agreement for the Memphis Sand Aquifer

Groundwater is often misunderstood because of its subsurface nature. Consequently, policies intended to govern the resource are fragmented as is evident in the Supreme Court case between Mississippi and Tennessee. Here, disagreements over ownership and the scientific-hydrogeological scope of groundwater in the Memphis Sand Aquifer have led to an 11-year battle. The Supreme Court has found itself in the midst of a potential regime shift in terms of its decision over transboundary aquifer and groundwater governance. Moving forward, implications of this decision will act as a catalyst for transboundary aquifer and groundwater governance, both nationally and internationally. Using the Memphis Sand Aquifer as a case study, the ultimate objective of this analysis is to create a governance framework that will allow for the development of agreement(s) over the groundwater in transboundary aquifers. This research systematically reviews existing aquifer sharing agreements (2 model agreements, 2 legally-binding agreements, and 3 informal agreements) using elements of political sociology. In doing so specific tools, such as data sharing mechanisms and conflict resolution strategies, embedded within each agreement are illuminated and can be used to determine the necessary components of an effective transboundary aquifer agreement. Additionally, the Internationally Shared Aquifer Resources Management (ISARM) program is evaluated as a framework for key considerations when attempting to manage a transboundary aquifer

Microbial biofilm community structure and composition on the lithic substrates of Herculaneum Suburban Baths

In this work, we want to investigate the impact of different substrates and different environmental condition on the biofilm communities growing on plaster, marble, and mortar substrates inside the Herculaneum Suburban Baths. To do so, we measured environmental conditions and sampled biofilm communities along the walls of the baths and used culture-dependent and -independent molecular techniques (DGGE) to identify the species at each sampling sites. We used the species pool to infer structure and richness of communities within each site in each substrate, and confocal light scanning microscopy to assess the three-dimensional structure of the sampled biofilms. To gather further insights, we built a meta-community network and used its local realizations to analyze co-occurrence patterns of species. We found that light is a limiting factor in the baths environment, that moving along sites equals moving along an irradiation gradient, and that such gradient shapes the community structure, de facto separating a dark community, rich in Bacteria, Fungi and cyanobacteria, from two dim communities, rich in Chlorophyta. Almost all sites are dominated by photoautotrophs, with Fungi and Bacteria relegated to the role of rare species., and structural properties of biofilms are not consistent within the same substrate. We conclude that the Herculaneum suburban baths are an environment-shaped community, where one dark community (plaster) and one dim community (mortar) provides species to a “midway” community (marble)

Phylogenomic analyses of non-Dikarya fungi supports horizontal gene transfer driving diversification of secondary metabolism in the amphibian gastrointestinal symbiont, Basidiobolus

Research into secondary metabolism (SM) production by fungi has resulted in the discovery of diverse, biologically active compounds with significant medicinal applications. However, the fungi rich in SM production are taxonomically restricted to Dikarya, two phyla of Kingdom Fungi, Ascomycota and Basidiomycota. Here, we explore the potential for SM production in Mucoromycota and Zoopagomycota, two phyla of nonflagellated fungi that are not members of Dikarya, by predicting and identifying core genes and gene clusters involved in SM. The majority of non-Dikarya have few genes and gene clusters involved in SM production except for the amphibian gut symbionts in the genus Basidiobolus . Basidiobolus genomes exhibit an enrichment of SM genes involved in siderophore, surfactin-like, and terpene cyclase production, all these with evidence of constitutive gene expression. Gene expression and chemical assays confirm that Basidiobolus has significant siderophore activity. The expansion of SMs in Basidiobolus are partially due to horizontal gene transfer from bacteria, likely as a consequence of its ecology as an amphibian gut endosymbiont

Proactive, boundaryless, and confident graduates entering the labour market: does need for cognitive closure play a role as a moderator?

The university to work transition is a crucial and delicate stage for graduates, as it involves an essential change of role. Previous studies have shown that proactive personality, boundaryless mind-set and career self-efficacy are critical variables for a successful labour market integration/entry. This study analyzes the involvement of the need for cognitive closure as an individual variable that can both favor and hinder this process. Specifically, this work examines the moderating role of need for cognitive closure in the indirect association between proactive personality and career self-efficacy through boundaryless mind-set in a sample of 762 adults enrolled at the university or recently graduated therein. Results showed that career self-efficacy was positively predicted by proactive personality and boundaryless mind-set. Although a significant indirect effect was present thus confirming our first hypothesis, it did not vary depending on the need for cognitive closure proving that need for cognitive closure did not act as a moderator of this indirect association, hence not supporting our second hypothesis. These findings were discussed concerning the complexity of students’ choices in transition and the nature of the information processing process needed for those choices

Adubação a lanço sem incorporação na produtividade do feijão-comum.

O objetivo desse trabalho de pesquisa foi de determinar o efeito de doses de fertilizantes, distribuídos na superfície do solo sem incorporação, nos componentes de produção e produtividade de grãos da cultura do feijão-comum.CONAF

Lipid levels are inversely associated with infectious and all-cause mortality: international MONDO study results.

Cardiovascular (CV) events are increased 36-fold in patients with end-stage renal disease. However, randomized controlled trials to lower LDL cholesterol (LDL-C) and serum total cholesterol (TC) have not shown significant mortality improvements. An inverse association of TC and LDL-C with all-cause and CV mortality has been observed in patients on chronic dialysis. Lipoproteins also may protect against infectious diseases. We used data from 37,250 patients in the international Monitoring Dialysis Outcomes (MONDO) database to evaluate the association between lipids and infection-related or CV mortality. The study began on the first day of lipid measurement and continued for up to 4 years. We applied Cox proportional models with time-varying covariates to study associations of LDL-C, HDL cholesterol (HDL-C), and triglycerides (TGs) with all-cause, CV, infectious, and other causes of death. Overall, 6,147 patients died (19.2% from CV, 13.2% from infection, and 67.6% from other causes). After multivariable adjustment, higher LDL-C, HDL-C, and TGs were independently associated with lower all-cause death risk. Neither LDL-C nor TGs were associated with CV death, and HDL-C was associated with lower CV risk. Higher LDL-C and HDL-C were associated with a lower risk of death from infection or other non-CV causes. LDL-C was associated with reduced all-cause and infectious, but not CV mortality, which resulted in the inverse association with all-cause mortality

Upland rice development under a no-tillage system as a function of gypsum and phosphorus.

the objective of this work was to determine the effect of the combination of gypsum applied to the soil surface without tillage and P applied in the sowing furrow on soil attributes and the plant height, number of panicles m-1 and grain yield of upland rice cultivated in an no-tillage system

Efeito residual do herbicida imazapir + imazapique sobre as culturas de arroz, feijão, milho, soja e sorgo.

Objetivou-se com esse trabalho determinar os efeitos da mistura dos herbicidas imazapir + imazapique (IMZ+IMQ) no desenvolvimento das culturas de arroz de terras altas, feijoeiro comum, milho, soja e sorgo e correlacionar o desenvolvimento dessas plantas com a persistência desse produto no solo

Produtividade de grãos do feijoeiro comum em função da aplicação de N via foliar.

O objetivo do trabalho foi de determinar o efeito de doses e épocas de aplicação de nitrogênio via foliar na produtividade de grãos de duas cultivares de feijoeiro comum.CONAF

Produtividade do feijão-comum afetado por população de plantas.

A população de plantas afeta diretamente a incidência de luz e fotossíntese, doenças e plantas daninhas, colheita, acamamento, aproveitamento de água e fertilizantes e gastos com sementes da maioria das culturas agrícolas. Além disso, é importante se determinar a população ideal de plantas por área das novas cultivares de feijão-comum visando obter o máximo potencial produtivo de cada material genético. O objetivo desse trabalho foi de determinar o efeito de população de plantas nos componentes de produção e produtividade de grãos da cultivar de feijão-comum BRS Estilo. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos ao acaso com cinco tratamentos e seis repetições. Os tratamentos foram compostos pelo número de sementes por metro de BRS Estilo (4, 8, 12, 16 e 20 sementes m-1). O aumento da população de plantas proporcionou redução na massa de matéria seca, número de vagens por planta, número de grãos por vagem, massa de 100 grãos e produtividade de grãos do feijão-comum cultivar BRS Estilo. Com base em nossos resultados a densidade ideal foi de quatro plantas por metro, ou 22.222 plantas por hectare.Comunicação