Changes in intrahousehold labor allocation to environmental goods collection

This study explores the impact of changes in environmental conditions on intrahousehold labor allocation to the collection of environmental goods such as fuelwood and leaf fodder for a sample of rural Nepali households. Using household-level panel data collected in 1982 and 1997, the study finds that household collection time significantly increases with measures of environmental resource scarcity, and that the increase appears to come almost equally from men and women. Additionally, the results of this study indicate that household collection burdens are significantly lower in 1997 than in 1982, and that women have seen the largest decrease in their time spent collecting. The picture is not an entirely rosy one, however, as consumption of environmental goods is also significantly lower in 1997 compared to 1982. The results taken together indicate that one should not hastily attribute decreases in collection labor burdens to successful forest rehabilitation in areas managed by forest user groups. In this case it appears that lower collection times are principally due to reduced consumption and increased collection from private land.Division of labor Nepal. ,Forest management Nepal. ,Environmental impact analysis. ,

A study of factors related to over-achievers and under-achievers of average ability at the elementary level.

Thesis (Ed.M.)--Boston Universit

Sex- and season-dependent behaviour in a flightless insect, the Auckland tree weta (Hemideina thoracica)

In a polygynous mating system, males frequently compete by locating and defending sites with resources essential to female survival and reproduction. We investigated seasonal changes in site occupancy in a sexually dimorphic, harem-forming insect, the Auckland tree weta (Hemideina thoracica). First we established artificial cavities as diurnal refuge cavities and potential harem guarding sites. We then examined cavity occupancy changes, and, based on our knowledge of prior occupants, determined sex-specific patterns of arrival, departure, and aggregation at a population level throughout the year. Both season and the sex of prior occupants influenced weta occupancy patterns. Most observations were of single females. However, both males and females moved into cavities previously occupied by a weta of the opposite sex more often than expected by chance alone. Females avoided cavities where other females were present, except during summer when most harems formed. In early summer, male and female tree weta previously living apart began co-habiting. Generally there was little relationship between the number and sex of the weta inside cavities and female departure rates from cavities. Males who were sharing with other males departed cavities more frequently than single males, as might be expected in a polygynous species with male-male combat. Males were less likely to depart if they were sharing a cavity with a harem of more than two females during the summer-autumn period. Analysis of departure rates from artificial cavities indicates males are more mobile than females only in winter and spring. Based on our arrival and departure data, and high occupancy of artificial cavities, we suggest that female weta at this site are mobile and may search for mates during the summer. The data are consistent with a polygynandrous mating system as inferred for other tree weta species (Hemideina spp.)

Toxic Algae Contamination and Demand for Shellfish: A Case Study of Demand for Mussels in Montreal

Toxic algae blooms are a worldwide phenomena, which appear to be increasing in frequency and severity. These natural events cause product contaminations that often have significant economic consequences, including supply interruptions due to closed fishing grounds, losses from human illness, and losses due to a decline in demand for the affected products. This paper evaluates the impacts of a toxic algae bloom contamination event on demand for unaffected shellfish. As an empirical example of the economic losses the shellfish industry experiences for these events, demand for mussels in Montreal is estimated using firm-level data and proxies for consumer information, during and after domoic acid contamination of Prince Edward Island mussels. Sales losses due to decreased demand are calculated. Implications of this issue for seafood safety and management policies are discussed.demand, shellfish, toxic algae, contamination, Demand and Price Analysis, Environmental Economics and Policy, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Breastfeeding and infant and child mortality, in Amagoro Division of Busia District, Kenya

This study examined the impact of breastfeeding duration and age at supplementation on infant and child mortality. Data was collected for both open and closed intervals from women aged 15-49 years and resident in Amagoro Division, Busia District, western Kenya. The study found that breastfeeding initiation is quite high, with an average of 99% of the women initiating breastfeeding. The duration of breastfeeding is long, with the majority of the women breastfeeding for 19-24 months. The major problem noted in the study is early supplementation. By the age of 3-4 months about 70% of children in the open and closed intervals were already being fed on other diets in addition to breast milk. The study also found that, for both the open and closed intervals, breastfeeding duration, age at supplementation, work status of the mother, type of toilet facility used by the household, and immunizations received by the child were significant in child survival. The major conclusion derived from the results of the study is that breastfeeding practices, environmental factors, and socio-economic factors are very significant in influencing infant and child deaths. However, the impact of breastfeeding and age at supplementation are greatly modified by environmental and socio-economic factors. The study therefore recommends the re-education of health personnel, especially those in the Maternal and Child Health clinics (MCH), on the importance of breastfeeding and proper age at supplementation for the children. The paper also recommends that female employment opportunities and female education be increased, since maternal education highly determines the work status of the mother and the nutritional, health care and sanitary conditions of the household

A Study of Heat Transfer and Heat Flow Asymmetry through Water in the presence of the Density Maximum

This thesis is concerned with heat flow asymmetry through composites of water and aqueous solutions. Central to this exploration are the behaviour of heat transfer in the vicinity of the density maximum and the behaviour of the temperature of maximum density of aqueous solutions. Both of these topics are investigated by cooling a rectangular enclosure of the test fluid in a quasi-steady state manner. During cooling, the temperature at select points within the liquid is monitored and the flow of heat at both isothermal walls is measured. As the liquid cools through its density maximum the normal single-cell convection that occurs in the presence of a horizontal temperature gradient changes to a double cell configuration in the vicinity of the density maximum. This transition manifests itself in changes in the horizontal temperature profile across the cavity and in the rate of cooling of the fluid. A measurement technique to study the behaviour of the temperature of maximum density of aqueous solutions is described in this thesis that relies on these changes. These changes are investigated experimentally and numerically. The study of the behaviour of heat transfer and the temperature of maximum density of aqueous solutions revealed that heat transfer is reduced in the vicinity of the density maximum and that the temperature of maximum density of aqueous solutions depends on the nature and concentration of the solute. Both of these results are exploited in the study of heat flow asymmetry through a device that consists of two cubic enclosures side by side; one enclosure contains water with a density maximum at 4oC and the other enclosure contains a saline solution with a density maximum at 2oC. A temperature gradient, which spans both of these temperatures of maximum density, is applied horizontally across the composite system, resulting in different rates of heat transfer through the device depending on the gradient direction. Experiments performed with a 12cm x 6cm x 6cm container yield heat transfer rates of 0.55W and 0.19W depending on the direction of the temperature gradient, resulting in a rectification factor of 65.4%. Asymmetrical heat transfer rates are also found in composite systems of water and solids when the temperature gradient spans the temperature of maximum density of the water. Results from computational fluid dynamics confirm the experimental results, and are used to investigate the influence of such parameters as temperature gradient and container aspect ratio on the rectification factor

The legal adoption of unrelated children: a grounded theory approach to the decision-making processes of black South Africans

Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Social Work , Faculty of Humanities, University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, 2017In South Africa, there are thousands of children who cannot be raised by their parents or relatives and consequently unrelated, legal adoption is usually considered to be in their best interests. South Africa has ratified international agreements, which emphasise that adoptable children have a right to grow up in their country of origin and intercountry adoption should be considered ‘a last resort’. The Children’s Act (No. 38 of 2005) legally entrenches several innovations to facilitate adoptable children being raised in South Africa. Accredited adoption agencies have made ongoing efforts to make adoption more accessible to South Africans, but the number of South Africans legally adopting unrelated children adoption is small and continues to decline. To help address this pressing child welfare problem, the main aim of this research was to develop a grounded theory explaining what factors affect the decision-making processes of urban black South Africans regarding legally adopting unrelated child. This population group was focused on because they presented as a promising pool of prospective adopters. It was reasoned that to facilitate domestic adoption, policy makers and practitioners need to gain a clearer understanding of what factors dissuade black South Africans from legally adopting unrelated children. A qualitative inquiry was conducted using the Corbin and Strauss approach to the grounded theory method. Personal interviews were conducted with 39 purposively selected black participants that were divided into five cohorts, namely i) adopters ii) adoption applicants in the process of being assessed as prospective adopters iii) adoption applicants who did not to enter the assessment process iv) social workers specialising in the field of adoption and v) South African citizens who have some knowledge of legal adoption practice. The grounded theory emerging was ‘Tensions surrounding adoption policy and practice and perceptions and experiences of adoption.’ Essentially this grounded theory is based on five categories: Meanings of Kinship; Information and Support; Cultural and Material Mobility; Parenthood, Gender and Identity and Perceptions of Parenting and Childhood. It is recommended that adoption policy and practice be shaped to reflect a balanced child-centred and adult-centred approach. Furthermore, recruitment strategies should be based on findings at a grassroots level. Key words: legal adoption; adoptable children; Africanisation; decision-making processes, adoption assessment process and grounded theory.GR201