Conflicting Treasures: contrasting resource use governance in two artisanal gemstone mining sites in Madagascar

Conflict over property and resource rights is a common product of the convergence of biodiversity conservation and natural resource extraction and is especially pronounced in resource rich developing countries. Madagascar, a country well known for its unique and threatened biodiversity as well as its wealth of mineral resources is under great pressure to reconcile the conflict between these two treasures. This article, utilizing research conducted from 2004-2008, explores how resource claims are exercised, by whom, and by what means in two artisanal gemstone mining sites in Madagascar. It argues that the practices and discourses associated with conservation intervention have influenced both the way in which people understand as well as act upon their property rights. The alienation and dispossession accompanying a fortress modeled state-managed protected area is contrasted with a decentralized self-governing communitymanaged model and are posited as key drivers of observed differences in people's claims to resources in two gemstone mining sites. The research shows that community-managed conservation had an unexpected influence on a community's assertion of greater authority over gem resources. Key words: Community management, conservation, mining, Madagascar, governanc

Western Pacific atmospheric nutrient deposition fluxes, their impact on surface ocean productivity

The atmospheric deposition of both macronutrients and micronutrients plays an important role in driving primary productivity, particularly in the low-latitude ocean. We report aerosol major ion measurements for five ship-based sampling campaigns in the western Pacific from similar to 25 degrees N to 20 degrees S and compare the results with those from Atlantic meridional transects (similar to 50 degrees N to 50 degrees S) with aerosols collected and analyzed in the same laboratory, allowing full incomparability. We discuss sources of the main nutrient species (nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and iron (Fe)) in the aerosols and their stoichiometry. Striking north-south gradients are evident over both basins with the Northern Hemisphere more impacted by terrestrial dust sources and anthropogenic emissions and the North Atlantic apparently more impacted than the North Pacific. We estimate the atmospheric supply rates of these nutrients and the potential impact of the atmospheric deposition on the tropical western Pacific. Our results suggest that the atmospheric deposition is P deficient relative to the needs of the resident phytoplankton. These findings suggest that atmospheric supply of N, Fe, and P increases primary productivity utilizing some of the residual excess phosphorus (P*) in the surface waters to compensate for aerosol P deficiency. Regional primary productivity is further enhanced via the stimulation of nitrogen fixation fuelled by the residual atmospheric iron and P*. Our stoichiometric calculations reveal that a P* of 0.1 mu mol L-1 can offset the P deficiency in atmospheric supply for many months. This study suggests that atmospheric deposition may sustain similar to 10% of primary production in both the western tropical Pacific

Chorus song of the indri (Indri indri: Primates, Lemuridae): Group differences and analysis of within-group vocal interactions

Open access article. Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0) applies.The loud chorus songs of the group-living lemur Indri indri are a striking feature of rainforest areas of eastern Madagascar. Despite some research on the conspicuous vocal display of the indri, two hypotheses have not been addressed: do groups differ in the acoustic properties of their songs, and is there evidence of coordinated singing between individuals within groups. We recorded and analyzed the songs of three indri groups to examine these two questions. To answer the first question, we made quantitative spectral measures on songs of the three groups and performed multivariate analyses of the acoustic features of the notes constituting the songs. Our results showed songs of the three groups differed significantly, although there was overlap between groups. To answer the second question, we classified note types and quantified their occurrence as overlapping and abutting pairs. We found non-random associations between sequential note types in all three indri groups. These associations were consistent among groups, suggesting that individuals follow consistent answering rules when contributing to choruses. Whether indris use acoustic group identifiers in management of behavioral strategies and how within-group coordinated note production might function remain unknown. We compare our results to a number of taxonomically diverse species that live in groups and broadcast chorus and duet vocal signals.Ye

100kW Energy Transfer Multiplexer Power Converter Prototype Development Project

Project Final Report for "100kW Energy Transfer Multiplexer Power Converter Prototype Development Project" prepared under DOE grant number DE-FG36-03GO13138. This project relates to the further development and prototype construction/evaluation for the Energy Transfer Multiplexer (ETM) power converter topology concept. The ETM uses a series resonant link to transfer energy from any phase of a multiphase input to any phase of a multiphase output, converting any input voltage and frequency to any output voltage and frequency. The basic form of the ETM converter consists of an eight (8)-switch matrix (six phase power switches and two ground power switches) and a series L-C resonant circuit. Electronic control of the switches allows energy to be transferred in the proper amount from any phase to any other phase. Depending upon the final circuit application, the switches may be either SCRs or IGBTs. The inherent characteristics of the ETM converter include the following: Power processing in either direction (bidirectional); Large voltage gain without the need of low frequency magnetics; High efficiency independent of output load and frequency; Wide bandwidth with fast transient response and; Operation as a current source. The ETM is able to synthesize true sinusoidal waveforms with low harmonic distortions. For a low power PM wind generation system, the ETM has the following characteristics and advantages: It provides voltage gain without the need of low frequency magnetics (DC inductors) and; It has constant high efficiency independent of the load. The ETM converter can be implemented into a PM wind power system with smaller size, reduced weight and lower cost. As a result of our analyses, the ETM offers wind power generation technology for the reduction of the cost and size as well as the increase in performance of low power, low wind speed power generation. This project is the further theoretical/analytical exploration of the ETM converter concept in relationship to PM wind power generator applications in the 100kW and under power range. The theoretical/analytical and bench scale work focuses on simplifying the basic ETM converter topology (in terms of parts count and complexity) for the specific application of the low power PM system. The project goals and objectives were for Spellman HV will develop a 100kW prototype ETM power converter based on paralleled lower ratings converters. The proposed configuration of this prototype is a 100kW rated converter comprised of four (4) 34kW rated modules connected in parallel (the fourth converter is included to demonstrate N+1 fault tolerance). This approach is more viable as there is lower technological risk involved in developing a 34kW-rated converter than a single 100kW unit. The modular system approach should have a lower deployment and service cost over a single unit system, because of the economics of scale (smaller units at a higher volume means lower manufacturing cost) and because of improved serviceability (a non-redundant power system with one failed module will still operate at a lower power level). There is also the added benefit that greater commercial application and acceptance should be achieved by having a modular system available in which fault tolerance (N+1 or 2N) is a feature. This modular approach would allow the output power to be increased by adding more paralleled converters. Thus, the maximum output power of the overall power system is a function of the interconnection medium (the hot swap connection subsystem), rather than the ratings of a single module. The project was implemented with Spellman HV acting as the program management and production assembly and test facility; The Baker Company acting as a technical consultant and resource when required; and dtm Associates acting as the design/development resource for the hardware development of the 100kW ETM converter prototype

Stage-specific cancer incidence: An artificially mixed multinomial logit model

Early detection of prostate cancer using the prostate-specific antigen test led to a sharp spike in the incidence of the disease accompanied by an equally sharp improvement in patient prognoses as evaluated at the point of advanced diagnosis. Observed outcomes represent age at diagnosis and stage, a categorical prognostic variable combining the actual stage and the grade of tumor. The picture is summarized by the stage-specific cancer incidence that represents a joint survival-multinomial response regressed on factors affecting the unobserved history of the disease before diagnosis (mixture). Fitting the complex joint mixed model to large population data is a challenge. We develop a stable and structured MLE approach to the problem allowing for the estimates to be obtained iteratively. Factorization of the likelihood achieved by our method allows us to work with only a fraction of the model dimension at a time. The approach is based on generalized self-consistency and the quasi-EM algorithm used to handle the mixed multinomial part of the response through Poisson likelihood. The model provides a causal link between the screening policy in the population and the stage-specific incidence. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/63068/1/3615_ftp.pd

A rolling stone gathers no moss? The case of mature students in higher education and their plurilingual repertoires

This study diagnoses how the plurilingual repertoires of mature students (MS) in higher education (HE) are constructed throughout their lives. It addresses the main characteristics of MS; the contexts in which they move throughout their lives, and the situations they contact with languages. Data were collected by means of a questionnaire, mostly comprising open-ended questions. The questionnaire was emailed to 485 MS and was filled in by 195 (40.2%). The results highlight the intrinsic relationship between the MS’ life histories and the construction of their plurilingual repertoires. The findings reinforce the relevance of considering the MS’ plurilingual repertoires and life histories in the development of educational linguistic policies in HE.publishe

The Influence of Secondhand Smoke Exposure on Birth Outcomes in Jordan

This study investigates how secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure influences neonatal birth weight in Jordan, a country with high smoking prevalence. The findings revealed that as the average number of SHS exposure hours per week increased in the second trimester, the neonatal birth weight decreased while holding all covariates constant. Women who reported a higher average number of SHS exposure hours per week from work in the second trimester, home in the third trimester, and outside in the third trimester were at greater risk for having a low birth weight neonate than women who reported a lower average number of SHS exposure hours

Neurology

Contains reports on nineteen research projects.United States Public Health Service (B-3055-3, B-3090-3, 38101-22)United States Navy, Office of Naval Research (Contract Nonr-1841(70))Unites States Air Force (AF33(616)-7588, AFAOSR 155-63)United States Army Chemical Corps (DA-18-108-405-Cml-942)National Institutes of Health (Grant MH-04734-03)National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Grant NsG-496