Effects of vegetation removal on native soil quality in eastern Arkansas

Aboveground vegetation removal practices, such as cutting and baling and burning, can both positively and negatively affect a prairie ecosystem. Burning can stimulate growth and species diversity, but removing vegetation and the nutrients it contains without equal replenishment of those nutrients could cause a steady decline in available soil nutrients. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of vegetation removal techniques in a native tallgrass prairie in eastcentral Arkansas. Soil samples were collected from the top 10 cm in each soil mapping unit that existed in each of three prairie areas that differed by the amount of time since aboveground vegetation had been removed by cutting and baling (i.e., 0, 6, and 24 years). Soil samples were analyzed for bulk density, particle-size distribution, organic matter, pH, electrical conductivity (EC), and extractable nutrients. Bulk density and EC were highest in the prairie area in which vegetation removal by cutting and baling still occurs at the present, but organic matter was highest in the prairie area in which cutting and baling ceased in 1998 (i.e., 6 years prior). Soil pH was highest in the prairie area in which cutting and baling ceased in 1980 (i.e., 24 years prior). No consistent trends among the three prairie treatments existed for extractable soil nutrients. The results of this study indicate that common prairie management practices in the Grand Prairie region of east-central Arkansas significantly affect soil physical and chemical properties. Prairie management practices need to be considered carefully to insure long-term sustainability and proper ecosystem functionin

Las terapias no convencionales en los programas políticos y en los tuits publicados por los cabezas de lista de Ciudadanos, Podemos, PP, PSOE y Unidad Popular, durante la campaña de las Elecciones Generales de 2015

La presente investigación tiene como objetivo valorar y estudiar el tratamiento de las terapias no convencionales, complementarias, alternativas o integrativas a través de los programas electorales de las Elecciones Generales de 2015 de cinco partidos políticos: Ciudadanos, Podemos, PP, PSOE y Unidad Popular. Asimismo, se analizan los tuits publicados por sus cabezas de lista, durante la campaña electoral. Para abordar la investigación, hemos recurrido a dos métodos de recogida de datos y su posterior evaluación. Para estudiar los programas electorales, hemos utilizado una ficha de vaciado de análisis de contenido. Para analizar los tuits, hemos empleado el software T-LAB 9.1. de análisis de corpus lingüístico. Los principales resultados de la investigación muestran que se hacen muy pocas referencias a este tipo de terapias. En Unidad Popular y Ciudadanos proponen que no formen parte de la cartera de servicios del SNS, mientras que el PSOE propone regularlas para aquellas personas que deseen utilizarlas

Exploration during turbulent times an analysis of the effects of R&D cooperation on radical innovation performance during the economic crisis

During the recent economic recession, firms have been less willing to invest in innovation, which often is an uncertain and long-term process. This reduction did not occur equally for all firms, and recent literature has analysed the characteristics of those firms which maintain or even raise their innovative efforts during the crisis. Technological collaboration has been recognised as one of the most important external sources that affects innovation performance. However, how economic recession has changed the impact of R and D collaboration on innovation performance has received few attention. This paper investigates the effect of different external cooperation patterns of firms before and during the last economic recession. We highlight the role of geographical and organizational diversity of knowledge sources, as well as the effect of past experience. We find that R and D cooperation has a stronger effect on radical innovation performance during the economic recession than before, this being true irrespectively of the geographical location of the partners. This benefit from cooperation during the economic turmoil is higher in the case of firms having a diverse portfolio of partners. In addition, we also find that past experience in R and D cooperation positively affects innovation performance during the crisis

Exploration during turbulent times: an analysis of the relation between cooperation in innovation activities and radical innovation performance during the economic crisis

This article investigates the relation between cooperation in innovation activities and innovation before and during the last economic recession. We find that cooperation in innovation activities has a stronger relation with radical innovation performance during the economic recession than before, this being true irrespectively of whether the partners are national or international. This benefit from cooperation during the economic turmoil is higher in the case of firms having different types of partners simultaneously. We also find that past cooperation in innovation activities is positively associated to innovation performance during the crisis

Academic book reviews of literature in English and Spanish: writers’ visibility and invisibility strategies for expressing critical comments

345 p.One important academic writing skill is the ability of writers to construe an appropriate representation of themselves and their work through their textual voice. One way in which writers achieve this is by intruding into their text in order to explicitly signal or conceal their personal responsibility for the ideas referenced in it. However, writers’ decisions in this respect have shown to be highly problematic in English for Academic Purposes (EAP), especially for non-native English speakers. Our paper hypothesizes that a part of this problem might be related to differing crosscultural notions of good face, partly reflected in the ways and the extent to which writers typically intrude into their texts by means of writers’ visibility and invisibility strategies. We explore this hypothesis by comparing the actual practices followed by writers from two different writing cultures to express one specific type of claim (a critical comment on a book under review) in one specific genre (an academic book review) and one disciplinary field (literature). Our comparison is based on two corpora consisting of 20 texts in British & American English and 20 in Castilian Spanish. The results show that reviewers from these two writing cultures differ greatly in their preferences for reaffirming or suppressing their personal identity when expressing critical comments on a book under review. This indicates that the notion of good face is culturally determined in this respect. We discuss our results in the light of information obtained through a pilot e-mail interview with relevant informants

Evidence of a causal relationship between high serum adiponectin levels and increased cardiovascular mortality rate in patients with type 2 diabetes

Background: Despite its beneficial role on insulin resistance and atherosclerosis, adiponectin has been repeatedly reported as an independent positive predictor of cardiovascular mortality. Methods: A Mendelian randomization approach was used, in order to evaluate whether such counterintuitive association recognizes a cause-effect relationship. To this purpose, single nucleotide polymorphism rs822354 in the ADIPOQ locus which has been previously associated with serum adiponectin at genome-wide level, was used as an instrument variable. Our investigation was carried out in the Gargano Heart Study-prospective design, comprising 356 patients with type 2 diabetes, in whom both total and high molecular weight (HMW) adiponectin were measured and cardiovascular mortality was recorded (mean follow-up = 5.4 ± 2.5 years; 58 events/1922 person-year). Results: The A allele of rs822354 was associated with both total and HMW adiponectin [β (SE) = 0.10 (0.042), p = 0.014 and 0.17 (0.06), p = 0.003; respectively]. In a Poisson model comprising age, sex, smoking habits, BMI, HbA1c, total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin therapy and hypertension, both rs822354 (IRR = 1.94, 95 % CI 1.23-3.07; p = 0.005), as well as the genetic equivalent of total adiponectin change (IRR = 1.07, 95 % CI 1.02-1.12; p = 0.003) were significantly associated with cardiovascular mortality. The observed genetic effect was significantly greater than that exerted by the genetic equivalent change of serum adiponectin (p for IRR heterogeneity = 0.012). In the above-mentioned adjusted model, very similar results were obtained when HMW, rather than total, adiponectin was used as the exposure variable of interest. Conclusions: Our data suggest that the paradoxical association between high serum adiponectin levels and increased cardiovascular mortality rate is based on a cause-effect relationship, thus pointing to an unexpected deleterious role of adiponectin action/metabolism on atherosclerotic processes

Hablemos del Xolotlán caracterización del Lago antes del Huracán Mitch

Se presenta una recopilación de los resultados de los estudios limnológicos llevados a cabo en el Lago Xolotlán durante la década de los ochenta y principios de los 90. Además se habla de los posibles efectos que pudo ocasionar el huracán Mitch a la ecología del lago

Influencias de los parámetros físico-químicos sobre el zooplancton de la parte sur de Lago Cocibolca, Rio San Juan y sus tributarios

Se determinó la composición cualitativa y cuantitativa del zooplancton así como los parámetros físico – químicos. Las muestras se tomaron en Mayo del 1993 y Septiembre de 1994. La composición de especies y los parámetros físico – químicos fueron analizados por medio del Análisis de Agrupamiento K-medias para establecer la similitud entre puntos. Se empleó el método de Análisis Multivariado de Correspondencia Canónica (programa CANOCO) para conocer el grado de incidencia de los factores físico – químico en la variabilidad de las especies. Se encontró que las concentraciones de zooplancton fueron mayores en 1994, siendo los puntos del lago Cocibolca los que mostraron mayor abundancia. Los valores de los parámetros físico – químicos se mantuvieron estables. Se identificaron tres grupos de puntos con características similares. El primero constituido por los puntos del lago Cocibolca, el segundo por los puntos ubicados en los tributarios costarricenses del río san Juan y un tercer grupo formado por los puntos ubicados en los tributarios nicaragüenses. Las variables que explicaron la varianza de especies con respecto a los valores físico – químicos para el año 1994 fueron: el Silicio, la Turbidez y el Potasio. Se encontró que la distribución del zooplancton tanto en el Lago Cocibolca como en el Río San Juan estuvo influenciada más por el tipo de hábitat, ciclos de vida y las corrientes que por los parámetros físico –químicos

El zooplancton del Lago de Nicaragua y la influencia de los parámetros físico-químicos

Durante el mes de Junio de 1997 se llevo a cabo una campaña de tres días (de 12 al 14) de muestreo en el Lago Nicaragua o Cocibolca. Durante ese período se colectaron un total de 46 muestras. En estas se encontraron representantes de los tres principales grupos que componen el zooplancton (copépodos, cladóceros y rotíferos). De estos grupos se identificaron tres especies de copépodos (un calanoida y dos cyclopoidas), cinco especies de cladóceros y 12 especies de rotíferos. Se encontró en las muestras al menos una especie del género Daphnia. Este quizás sea uno de los hallazgos más interesantes desde el punto de vista taxonómico, ya que según la literatura las especies de este género prefieren aguas menos cálidas. Desde el punto de vista cuantitativo se observó que el punto que presenta mayor abundancia de especies fue punto N97-11, esto en gran parte debido al aporte de los nauplios de cyclopida (> 100,000 ind.L-1.) y copepoditos de cyclopida (alrededor de 40,000 ind.L-1). Se observaron diferencias en la distribución espacial del zooplancton tanto en el plano horizontal (entre puntos), como en el plano vertical (dentro de un mismo punto a diferentes profundidades). La variable ambiental que explicó el 100% de la varianza del zooplancton con respecto a los factores físico químicos resultó ser el pH

Metacognitive confidence can increase but also decrease performance in academic settings

The present research examined the role of metacognitive confidence in understanding to what extent people’s valenced thoughts guide their performance in academic settings. First, students were asked to engage in positive or negative thinking about exams in their major area of study (Study 1) or about themselves (Studies 2 and 3). The valence of these primary cognitions was manipulated to be positive or negative. Furthermore, a metacognitive variable, the perceived validity of the primary cognitions, was measured or varied to be relatively high or low. Finally, performance was assessed using a knowledge test (Study 1), a geometric shapes task (Study 2) or a selection of questions from the Graduate Record Examination (Study 3). In accordance with self-validation theory, we predicted and found that metacognitive confidence (relative to doubt) increased the impact of primary cognitions on performance. When thoughts were positive, increased confidence in the primary cognitions improved performance. However, when thoughts were negative, the same confidence validated the negative primary cognitions and reduced performance. Thus, metacognitive confidence can lead to opposite findings on performance depending on whether it validates performance-relevant positive thoughts or negative thoughts. Variations in the perceived validity of thoughts mediated the obtained effects. Therefore, we conclude that understanding the process of thought validation can help in specifying why and when metacognitive confidence is likely to work or to backfire in producing the desired performance effectsResearch was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación y Universidades, Gobierno de España (ES) [PSI2017-83303-C2-1-P] Grant to Pablo Briño