Benthic community metabolism in a coastal lagoon ecosystem

Measurements of benthic oxygen production and consumption at 3 stations over an annual cycle in a shallow (mean depth = 0.7 m) coastal lagoon on the Rhode Island (USA) coast provide evidence that shallow benthic communities may consume more organic matter than can be provided by impressive rates of in situ epifloral production. While sandy sediment areas in Potter Pond lagoon showed a net daytime production of about 140 g C m-2 yr-l, the more extensive areas of fine-grained sediment did not show any significant amount of net benthic daytime production annually. Moreover when nighttime respiratory costs were included, the lagoon benthos as a whole showed a net organic consumption of 30 g C m-2 yr-l in spite of a net annual daytime production rate of 50 g C m-2 yr-l. Rates of in situ oxygen uptake by fine-grained lagoon sediments in the dark were not separable from those of similar sediments in much deeper (mean = 8.6 m) Narragansett Bay. For the lagoon as a whole, the benthos consumed about 40 to 50% of the combined primary production by phytoplankton, macrophytes and benthic epiflora. This partitioning is similar to that found in deeper, plankton-based systems with completely heterotrophic bottom communities

Biobased economy : state-of-the-art assessment

The interest in the biobased economy stems from the possibility to substitute biologically derived materials and processes for the production of goods that will, therefore, result in a reduced use of petroleum and petro-chemistry. Other reasons are the reduction in the energy required in production processes or the more environmentally benign waste treatment channels for the production residues or discarded products at the end of their life cycle. The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality of The Netherlands has asked Wageningen UR (AFSG and LEI) to examine the contemporary market for biobased products and the potential growth of the biobased economy. This report is based on an analysis of the bio-based composition, actual and possible, as well as the market value of 780 non-food, non-feed products within the PRODCOM listing, which represent the potential for biobased production in NL and the EU25

Afternoon concurrent track 3: Green curricula at UNLV

AFTERNOON CONCURRENT TRACK 3: GREEN CURRICULA AT UNLV Moderator Carolyn Yucha Student Union Room 213 Tom Jones, Ken Teeters – Incorporating Sustainability into a Hospitality Management Curriculum Abstract: For the past 15 years, faculty members in the Harrah College of Hotel Administration who teach Facilities Management (HMD 395) have incorporated a sustainability management component in this required course. The concepts of sustainability and global climate change are introduced through readings and multi-media. The concept of Triple Bottom Line is presented and is applied to almost every component in the course. Students are assigned a variety of semester-long service-learning projects that incorporate these concerns. This session will feature slides from past activities and will show how to establish similar sustainability components in other hospitality management programs. There will also be a short discussion on how the Harrah Hotel College is currently expanding and coordinating sustainability throughout its curricular and extracurricular activities. Barbara St. Pierre Schneider, Nancy Menzel, Lori Candela, Yu Xu, Sally Miller – Integrating Urban Sustainability into a Doctoral Nursing Program Abstract: According to the World Commission on Environment and Development (1987), people “are the ultimate resource” of sustainability, but to be effective people must be physically and mentally healthy. However, threats to health are of a major concern with global urban population growth and natural and man-made environmental hazards. The most economical and successful approach to counteract these threats is to promote and protect the health of people residing in the urban environment. Nurses have a rich history of working with groups and individuals in diverse urban environments on a wide range of health issues and are well positioned to play a critical role by discovering actions that promote health, minimizing the risk for and consequences of disease and illness, and communicating these efforts to citizens, employers, and policy makers. To accomplish this end, urban sustainability needs to be integrated into nursing education at the doctoral level. This presentation will consist of four parts: an overview of the evidence supporting nursing as a key discipline in urban sustainability; a description of the initial steps to integrate sustainability into the doctoral nursing curriculum; a presentation of the curriculum; and a discussion of the barriers encountered in developing this curriculum along with solutions to overcoming the barriers. Scott Nowicki – Commuting to UNLV: The Daily Lesson and Action in Sustainability Abstract: There are a number of programs operating in Las Vegas that have the look and feel of community efforts aimed at making life and business more sustainable, such as recycling, alternative energy, and trip reduction programs, but a serious effort is needed to gauge their effectiveness and plan for further development of these programs. The transportation system is an example of a potential significant decrease in greenhouse gas emissions, decrease in overall system costs, and increase in quality of life for residents. The Regional Transportation Commission’s plans for development of a comprehensive bike network, transit, and alternative mode integration are only likely to be successful if travel habits are viewed against the backdrop of the complex social/physical layout of the city. Participants in UNLV’s 400/600 GIS course are taking a systematic look at the way we use the transportation system in Las Vegas, as well as the physical layout and limitations of the bike and pedestrian network. Sociology students are focusing on the economic and social characteristics of the bike and public transportation system, while Geoscience students are mapping discrepancies between the publicly available map and the streets network. Using student researchers, these components are being brought together to discern what factors are limiting the Las Vegas metropolitan area from providing a sustainable way for people to get around

A multi-purpose, multi-rotor drone system for long-range and high-altitude volcanic gas plume measurements

A multi-rotor drone has been adapted for studies of volcanic gas plumes. This adaptation includes improved capacity for high-altitude and long-range, real-time SO2 concentration monitoring, long-range manual control, remotely activated bag sampling and plume speed measurement capability. The drone is capable of acting as a stable platform for various instrument configurations, including multi-component gas analysis system (MultiGAS) instruments for in situ measurements of SO2, H2S, and CO2 concentrations in the gas plume and portable differential optical absorption spectrometer (MobileDOAS) instruments for spectroscopic measurement of total SO2 emission rate, remotely controlled gas sampling in bags and sampling with gas denuders for posterior analysis on the ground of isotopic composition and halogens. The platform we present was field-tested during three campaigns in Papua New Guinea: in 2016 at Tavurvur, Bagana and Ulawun volcanoes, in 2018 at Tavurvur and Langila volcanoes and in 2019 at Tavurvur and Manam volcanoes, as well as in Mt. Etna in Italy in 2017. This paper describes the drone platform and the multiple payloads, the various measurement strategies and an algorithm to correct for different response times of MultiGAS sensors. Specifically, we emphasize the need for an adaptive flight path, together with live data transmission of a plume tracer (such as SO2 concentration) to the ground station, to ensure optimal plume interception when operating beyond the visual line of sight. We present results from a comprehensive plume characterization obtained during a field deployment at Manam volcano in May 2019. The Papua New Guinea region, and particularly Manam volcano, has not been extensively studied for volcanic gases due to its remote location, inaccessible summit region and high level of volcanic activity. We demonstrate that the combination of a multi-rotor drone with modular payloads is a versatile solution to obtain the flux and composition of volcanic plumes, even for the case of a highly active volcano with a high-altitude plume such as Manam. Drone-based measurements offer a valuable solution to volcano research and monitoring applications and provide an alternativespan idCombining double low line"page4256"/> and complementary method to ground-based and direct sampling of volcanic gases

Interventions for promoting smoking cessation during pregnancy.

BACKGROUND: Smoking remains one of the few potentially preventable factors associated with low birthweight, preterm birth and perinatal death. OBJECTIVES: To assess the effects of smoking cessation programs implemented during pregnancy on the health of the fetus, infant, mother, and family. SEARCH STRATEGY: We searched the Cochrane Pregnancy and Childbirth Group trials register and the Cochrane Tobacco Addiction Group trials register (July 2003), MEDLINE (January 2002 to July 2003), EMBASE (January 2002 to July 2003), PsychLIT (January 2002 to July 2003), CINAHL (January 2002 to July 2003), and AUSTHEALTH (January 2002 to 2003). We contacted trial authors to locate additional unpublished data. We handsearched references of identified trials and recent obstetric journals. SELECTION CRITERIA: Randomised and quasi-randomised trials of smoking cessation programs implemented during pregnancy. DATA COLLECTION AND ANALYSIS: Four reviewers assessed trial quality and extracted data independently. MAIN RESULTS: This review included 64 trials. Fifty-one randomised controlled trials (20,931 women) and six cluster-randomised trials (over 7500 women) provided data on smoking cessation and/or perinatal outcomes. Despite substantial variation in the intensity of the intervention and the extent of reminders and reinforcement through pregnancy, there was an increase in the median intensity of both 'usual care' and interventions over time. There was a significant reduction in smoking in the intervention groups of the 48 trials included: (relative risk (RR) 0.94, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.93 to 0.95), an absolute difference of six in 100 women continuing to smoke. The 36 trials with validated smoking cessation had a similar reduction (RR 0.94, 95% CI 0.92 to 0.95). Smoking cessation interventions reduced low birthweight (RR 0.81, 95% CI 0.70 to 0.94) and preterm birth (RR 0.84, 95% CI 0.72 to 0.98), and there was a 33 g (95% CI 11 g to 55 g) increase in mean birthweight. There were no statistically significant differences in very low birthweight, stillbirths, perinatal or neonatal mortality but these analyses had very limited power. One intervention strategy, rewards plus social support (two trials), resulted in a significantly greater smoking reduction than other strategies (RR 0.77, 95% CI 0.72 to 0.82). Five trials of smoking relapse prevention (over 800 women) showed no statistically significant reduction in relapse. REVIEWERS' CONCLUSIONS: Smoking cessation programs in pregnancy reduce the proportion of women who continue to smoke, and reduce low birthweight and preterm birth. The pooled trials have inadequate power to detect reductions in perinatal mortality or very low birthweight

Effects of Milling and Cooking Processes on the Deoxynivalenol Content in Wheat

Deoxynivalenol (DON, vomitoxin) is a natural-occuring mycotoxin mainly produced by Fusarium graminearum, a food-borne fungi widely distributed in crops and it is one of the most important mycotoxins in wheat and wheat-based foods and feeds. DON affects animal and human health causing diarrhea, vomiting, gastro-intestinal inflammation, and immunomodulation. Since the rate of the occurrence of DON in wheat is high, effective procedures to remove or eliminate DON from food products is essential to minimize exposures in those who consume large amounts of wheat. Cleaning prior to milling reduced to some extent the concentration of DON in final products. Since DON is distributed throughout the kernels, with higher content in the outer skin, milling is also effective in reducing the DON levels of wheat-based foods if bran and shorts are removed before thermal cooking. DON is water-soluble and cooking with larger amounts of water lowers DON content in products such as spaghetti and noodles. During baking or heating, DON is partially degraded to DON-related chemicals, whose toxicological effects are not studied well. This paper reviews the researches on the effects of milling and cooking on the DON level and discusses the perspectives of further studies

COMP-Angiopoietin-1 Recovers Molecular Biomarkers of Neuropathy and Improves Vascularisation in Sciatic Nerve of ob/ob Mice

mice. mice displayed regeneration of small-diameter endoneural microvessels. Effects of COMP-Ang-1 corresponded to increased phosphorylation of Akt and p38 MAPK upon Tie-2 receptor. mice suggesting COMP-Ang-1 as novel treatment option to improve morphologic and protein expression changes associated with diabetic neuropathy