A study to explore the use of remote sensing to determine native arid plant distribution

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

A study to explore the use of remote sensing to determine native arid plant distribution

There are no author-identified significant results in this report

A study to explore the use of orbital remote sensing to determine native arid plant distribution

The author has identified the following significant results. It is possible to determine, from ERTS imagery, native arid plant distribution. Using techniques of multispectral masking and extensive fieldwork, three native vegetation communities were defined and mapped in the Avra Valley study area. A map was made of the Yuma area with the aid of ground truth correlations between areas of desert pavement visible on ERTS images and unique vegetation types. With the exception of the Yuma soil-vegetation correlation phenomena, only very gross differentiations of desert vegetation communities can be made from ERTS data. Vegetation communities with obvious vegetation density differences such as saguaro-paloverde, creosote bush, and riparian vegetation can be separated on the Avra Valley imagery while more similar communities such as creosote bush and saltbush could not be differentiated. It is suggested that large differences in vegetation density are needed before the signatures of two different vegetation types can be differentiated on ERTS imagery. This is due to the relatively insignificant contribution of vegetation to the total radiometric signature of a given desert scene. Where more detailed information concerning the vegetation of arid regions is required, large scale imagery is appropriate

Clinical credibility and trustworthiness are key characteristics used to identify colleagues from whom to seek information

Aims and objectives To explore the use of information by nurses making decisions in clinically uncertain situations in one aspect of critical care nursing practice (enteral feeding). In this paper, we report the characteristics, which participants identified as important, of the people from whom they sought information for the purpose of making clinical decisions. Background Registered nurses have a plethora of information sources available to assist them in making clinical decisions. Identifying and selecting the best information to support these decisions can be difficult and is influenced by factors such as accessibility, usefulness and variations in quality of the information. Design An instrumental case study design using multiple case study analysis. Method Twenty-two critical care nurses from two intensive care units contributed to the data through multiple methods of data collection including concurrent verbal protocols (think aloud), retrospective probing and focus group interviews. Results Nurses preferentially used colleagues as a source of information when faced with uncertainty about their clinical practice. Most participants placed greater emphasis on evaluating the individual providing the information rather than on evaluating the information itself. Key features used for identifying an individual as a source of information included experience, clinical role, trust and approachability. Conclusion Establishing clearly what clinical credibility means, and to what extent trustworthiness and expertise play a role in the establishment of credibility, is an important debate for nursing. We need to carefully consider what defines the construct of clinical credibility and how this aligns with the concept of clinical currency, to allow clinicians to determine in others the characteristics associated with clinical credibility to access quality information through social interaction. Relevance to clinical practice Processes to focus on determining the quality of information obtained from colleagues should be emphasised. What these processes are and how they could be implemented into clinical practice remains unknown and is highlighted as an area for future research

Beyond aridification: multiple explanations for the elevated diversification of cacti in the New World Succulent Biome

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/106989/1/nph12752.pd

A Chromosome Study of Blue Grama (\u3ci\u3eBouteloua gracilis\u3c/i\u3e) in Northern Colorado

Chromosomes were studied in somatic cells of 60 plants of blue grama, Bouteloua gracilis (Willd. ex Kunth) Lag ex Griffiths, collected from a 7-hectare field of native range at the Central Plains Experiment Range (CPER), Nunn, Colorado, to determine chromosome constitution in relation to the plant characteristics. Somatic chromosomes were studied in root tips collected from vigorously growing plants in the greenhouse. Acetocarmine squash method was used to make slide preparation. The majority of the plants were 2n =40. However, three plants were 2n=50 and two were 2n=60. The pentaploid plants (2n =50) were recorded for the first time in this report. Additional 94 plants collected from entire CPER were all 2n =40. The basic chromosome number of blue grama was determined to be x=10. There was no significant relation between chromosome number and morphological traits: culm height and number, basal diameter, and plant dry weight