P-T condition fo deformation from fluid inclusions in mylonites

Structural petrology of fluid inclusions in deformed rocks can be used to identify inclusions entrapped during various stages of deformation. Standard thermobarometry on these inclusions can then provide estimates of the P-T (pressure-temperature) conditions of deformation. The application of this technique is illustrated using fluid inclusions in mylonites from the Quetico Fault Zone, Canada. The inferred P-T conditions fall with the P-T field of mylonitisation derived from isotopic, microstructural and phase equilibrium studies

Age and Structural Relations of Granites, Stony Creek Area, Connecticut

Guidebook for field trips in Connecticut and adjacent areas of New York and Rhode Island: New England Intercollegiate Geological Conference 77th annual meeting, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, October 4-6, 1985: Trip A

Policy options to streamline the carbon market for agricultural nitrous oxide emissions

The majority of emissions of nitrous oxide – a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) – are from agricultural sources, particularly nitrogen fertilizer applications. A growing focus on these emission sources has led to the development in the United States of GHG offset protocols that could enable payment to farmers for reducing fertilizer use or implementing other nitrogen management strategies. Despite the development of several protocols, the current regional scope is narrow, adoption by farmers is low, and policy implementation of protocols has a significant time lag. Here we utilize existing research and policy structures to propose an ‘umbrella’ approach for nitrogen management GHG emissions protocols that has the potential to streamline the policy implementation and acceptance of such protocols. We suggest that the umbrella protocol could set forth standard definitions common across multiple protocol options, and then modules could be further developed as scientific evidence advances. Modules could be developed for specific crops, regions, and practices. We identify a policy process that could facilitate this development in concert with emerging scientific research and conclude by acknowledging potential benefits and limitations of the approach. Key policy insights Agricultural greenhouse gas market options are growing, but are still underutilized Streamlining protocol development through an umbrella process could enable quicker development of protocols across new crops, regions, and practices Effective protocol development must not compromise best available science and should follow a rigorous pathway to ensure appropriate implementation

What Resilience (Strength) Means for Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Professionals and Practitioners: An Exploratory Study

This article explores the concept of resilience from the perspective of Australian Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals and practitioners, with the aim of describing what it is and how it is practiced in the workplace. Interviews in the form of Yarns were conducted with ten Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals in regional North Queensland. We found that for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals and practitioners, resilience encompasses cultural identity and an ability to manage both Indigenous and western cultures and structures. Resilience, understood as ‘Strength’, draws on strong relationships to family and Country, often nurtured through strong women, who have overcome intergenerational trauma. For Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health professionals and practitioners, resilience is practiced through challenging the existing structural barriers experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander clients who must deal with racism and a system not organised to meet their needs. Further research on the relationship between culture and resilience/strength is required

Benchmarking impact of nitrogen inputs on grain yield and environmental performance of producer fields in the western US Corn Belt

Benchmarking crop yields against nitrogen (N) input levels can help provide opportunities to improve N ferti-lizer efficiency and reduce N losses on maize in the US Corn Belt by identifying fields most likely to benefit from improved N management practices. Here, we evaluated a large producer database that includes field-level data on yield and applied N inputs from 9280 irrigated and rainfed fields over a 7-year period (2009–2015) in Nebraska (USA). A spatial framework, based on technology extrapolation domains, was used to cluster each field into spatial units with similar climate and soil type that represent 1.3 million ha of US farm land sown annually with maize. Three metrics were employed to evaluate agronomic and environmental performance: partial factor productivity for N inputs (PFPN, ratio between yield and N inputs), N balance (difference between N inputs and grain N removal), and yield-scaled N balance (ratio between N balance and yield). Nitrogen inputs included N from fertilizer and N contained in applied irrigation water. Average yield and N inputs were 40 and 44% higher in irrigated versus rainfed fields. The N balance was ca. 2-fold greater in irrigated versus rainfed fields (81 versus 41 kg N ha−1). Of the total number of field-years, 58% (irrigated) and 15% (rainfed) had N balance ≥ 75 kg N ha−1, which was considered a threshold to identify fields with potentially large N losses. Very large (\u3e 150 kg N ha−1) and negative N balance estimates were not apparent when analysis was based on field averages using a minimum of three years\u27 data instead of individual field-years. Nitrogen balance was smaller for maize crops following soybean compared to continuous maize. Despite the larger N balance (on an area basis), irrigated fields exhibited smaller yield-scaled N balance relative to rainfed fields. The approach proposed here can readily be adopted to benchmark current use of N fertilizer for other cereal-based crop systems, inform policy, and identify opportunities for improvement in N management

Benchmarking impact of nitrogen inputs on grain yield and environmental performance of producer fields in the western US Corn Belt

Benchmarking crop yields against nitrogen (N) input levels can help provide opportunities to improve N ferti-lizer efficiency and reduce N losses on maize in the US Corn Belt by identifying fields most likely to benefit from improved N management practices. Here, we evaluated a large producer database that includes field-level data on yield and applied N inputs from 9280 irrigated and rainfed fields over a 7-year period (2009–2015) in Nebraska (USA). A spatial framework, based on technology extrapolation domains, was used to cluster each field into spatial units with similar climate and soil type that represent 1.3 million ha of US farm land sown annually with maize. Three metrics were employed to evaluate agronomic and environmental performance: partial factor productivity for N inputs (PFPN, ratio between yield and N inputs), N balance (difference between N inputs and grain N removal), and yield-scaled N balance (ratio between N balance and yield). Nitrogen inputs included N from fertilizer and N contained in applied irrigation water. Average yield and N inputs were 40 and 44% higher in irrigated versus rainfed fields. The N balance was ca. 2-fold greater in irrigated versus rainfed fields (81 versus 41 kg N ha−1). Of the total number of field-years, 58% (irrigated) and 15% (rainfed) had N balance ≥ 75 kg N ha−1, which was considered a threshold to identify fields with potentially large N losses. Very large (\u3e 150 kg N ha−1) and negative N balance estimates were not apparent when analysis was based on field averages using a minimum of three years\u27 data instead of individual field-years. Nitrogen balance was smaller for maize crops following soybean compared to continuous maize. Despite the larger N balance (on an area basis), irrigated fields exhibited smaller yield-scaled N balance relative to rainfed fields. The approach proposed here can readily be adopted to benchmark current use of N fertilizer for other cereal-based crop systems, inform policy, and identify opportunities for improvement in N management

Assessing variation in maize grain nitrogen concentration and its implications for estimating nitrogen balance in the US North Central region

Accurate estimation of nitrogen (N) balance (a measure of potential N losses) in producer fields requires information on grain N concentration (GNC) to estimate grain-N removal, which is rarely measured by producers. The objectives of this study were to (i) examine the degree to which variation in GNC can affect estimation of grain-N removal, (ii) identify major factors influencing GNC, and (iii) develop a predictive model to estimate GNC, analyzing the uncertainty in predicted grain-N removal at field and regional levels. We compiled GNC data from published literature and unpublished databases using explicit criteria to only include experiments that portray the environments and dominant management practices where maize is grown in the US North Central region, which accounts for one-third of global maize production. We assessed GNC variation using regression tree analysis and evaluated the ability of the resulting model to estimate grain-N removal relative to the current approach using a fixed GNC. Across all site-year-treatment cases, GNC averaged 1.15%, ranging from 0.76 to 1.66%. At any given grain yield, GNC varied substantially and resulted in large variation in estimated grain-N removal and N balance. However, compared with GNC, yield differences explained much more variability in grain-N removal. Our regression tree model accounted for 35% of the variation in GNC, and returned physiologically meaningful associations with mean air temperature and water balance in July (i.e., silking) and August (i.e., grain filling), and with N fertilizer rate. The predictive model has a slight advantage over the typical approach based on a fixed GNC for estimating grain-N removal for individual site-years (root mean square error: 17 versus 21 kg N ha−1, respectively). Estimates of grain-N removal with both approaches were more reliable when aggregated at climate-soil domain level relative to estimates for individual site-years

Improving ecosystem health in highly altered river basins: a generalized framework and its application to the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin

Continued large-scale public investment in declining ecosystems depends on demonstrations of “success”. While the public conception of “success” often focuses on restoration to a pre-disturbance condition, the scientific community is more likely to measure success in terms of improved ecosystem health. Using a combination of literature review, workshops and expert solicitation we propose a generalized framework to improve ecosystem health in highly altered river basins by reducing ecosystem stressors, enhancing ecosystem processes and increasing ecosystem resilience. We illustrate the use of this framework in the Mississippi-Atchafalaya River Basin (MARB) of the central United States (U.S.), by (i) identifying key stressors related to human activities, and (ii) creating a conceptual ecosystem model relating those stressors to effects on ecosystem structure and processes. As a result of our analysis, we identify a set of landscape-level indicators of ecosystem health, emphasizing leading indicators of stressor removal (e.g., reduced anthropogenic nutrient inputs), increased ecosystem function (e.g., increased water storage in the landscape) and increased resilience (e.g., changes in the percentage of perennial vegetative cover). We suggest that by including these indicators, along with lagging indicators such as direct measurements of water quality, stakeholders will be better able to assess the effectiveness of management actions. For example, if both leading and lagging indicators show improvement over time, then management actions are on track to attain desired ecosystem condition. If, however, leading indicators are not improving or even declining, then fundamental challenges to ecosystem health remain to be addressed and failure to address these will ultimately lead to declines in lagging indicators such as water quality. Although our model and indicators are specific to the MARB, we believe that the generalized framework and the process of model and indicator development will be valuable in an array of altered river basins

Alcohol screening and brief interventions for adults and young people in health and community-based settings: a qualitative systematic literature review

Abstract Background Systematic reviews of alcohol screening and brief interventions (ASBI) highlight the challenges of implementation in healthcare and community-based settings. Fewer reviews have explored this through examination of qualitative literature and fewer still focus on interventions with younger people. Methods This review aims to examine qualitative literature on the facilitators and barriers to implementation of ASBI both for adults and young people in healthcare and community-based settings. Searches using electronic data bases (Medline on Ovid SP, PsychInfo, CINAHL, Web of Science, and EMBASE), Google Scholar and citation searching were conducted, before analysis. Results From a total of 239 papers searched and screened, 15 were included in the final review; these were selected based on richness of content and relevance to the review question. Implementation of ASBI is facilitated by increasing knowledge and skills with ongoing follow-up support, and clarity of the intervention. Barriers to implementation include attitudes towards alcohol use, lack of structural and organisational support, unclear role definition as to responsibility in addressing alcohol use, fears of damaging professional/ patient relationships, and competition with other pressing healthcare needs. Conclusions There remain significant barriers to implementation of ASBI among health and community-based professionals. Improving the way health service institutions respond to and co-ordinate alcohol services, including who is most appropriate to address alcohol use, would assist in better implementation of ASBI. Finally, a dearth of qualitative studies looking at alcohol intervention and implementation among young people was noted and suggests a need for further qualitative research