Population dynamics of \u3cem\u3eLudwigia leptocarpa\u3c/em\u3e (Onagraceae) and some factors affecting size hierarchies in a natural population

Germination cohorts of Ludwigia leptocarpa, a semi-aquatic annual plant were marked in the field at time of establishment and followed through the 1981 and 1982 growing seasons at a site in southern South Carolina. Data from each cohort were pooled to determine demographic characteristics of the population as a whole, then analyzed separately to determine the effect of time on germination on survivorship, relative growth rate, and adult size. Changes in numbers of L. leptocarpa fit a Deevey Type II survivorship curve. This and other characteristics of the species classify it as ‘r-selected’. Aspects of the life history may reflect a ‘bet-hedging’ stratagem that ensures establishment. Differences in the time of germination are not responsible for differences in adult size, even when early-germinating plants have as many as 35 days more for growth than late germinators. This, and the fact that differences occur even within single cohorts, implies that factors other than time of germination must influence plant size

Degrees of Freedom: Expanding College Opportunities - for Currently and Formerly Incarcerated Californians

This report begins with a background on the higher education and criminal justice systems in California. This background section highlights the vocabulary and common pathways for each system, and provides a primer on California community colleges. Part II explains why California needs this initiative. Part III presents the landscape of existing college programs dedicated to criminal justice-involved populations in the community and in jails and prisons. This landscape identifies promising strategies and sites of innovation across the state, as well as current challenges to sustaining and expanding these programs. Part IV lays out concrete recommendations California should take to realize the vision of expanding high-quality college opportunities for currently and formerly incarcerated individuals. It includes guidelines for developing high-quality, sustainable programs, building and strengthening partnerships, and shaping the policy landscape, both by using existing opportunities and by advocating for specific legislative and policy changes. Profiles of current college students and graduates with criminal records divide the sections and offer first-hand accounts of the joys and challenges of a college experience

ILR Impact Brief - Collective Bargaining Remains the Linchpin of Worker Representation

[Excerpt] The decline in union density and collective bargaining coverage has created a representation gap that civil society organizations only partially bridge. Their offer of mutual insurance and political and legal advocacy on issues of concern to workers is no substitute for collective bargaining, a function that resides entirely within the union portfolio. Growing wage inequality is the clearest indication that representation without bargaining provides workers little protection against the power of employers and “the state.” Alliances between unions and civil society organizations may help labor reach potential members and advance workers’ non-bargaining interests

On Farm Feeding;Replacing Bought in Pig Feed with Home-Grown Straights at Sheepdrove Organic Farm

Organic systems aim to operate in an ecological and economical way, importing cereals grown thousands of miles away, processed at a mill and then transported again to our farms is costly in oil and therefore money. It is neither ecologically nor economically sustainable. British farms are capable of producing a large amount of high quality cereal, the majority of which is usually sold. Transportation and processing of the grain uses oil and leaves farms vulnerable to market prices. If farmers could formulate diets and feeding programmes for their poultry and pig systems using home-grown cereals, market variables, oil emissions and costs could be cut dramatically

Expertise and Service: A Call to Action

Although theological librarianship occurs most often at seminaries or graduate level theology programs, there are also librarians working with theology on an undergraduate level. In many cases, these librarians are responsible for additional subject areas and may or may not have any theological expertise or training. While the two groups do the same types of work, they are doing so in different ways. To explore these commonalities and differences, a study was conducted among undergraduate theology liaisons and those results were compared with the literature and data regarding graduate level theological librarianship. One hundred ten undergraduate librarians responded to a survey regarding theological liaison activities, and the results indicate both the need for more research and the need for further emphasis on undergraduate subject-area liaison duties in theology and adjacent areas

Terrorism Risk Insurance: Is it really working?

This paper investigates terrorism risk insurance in the United States as well as those programs offered in other countries throughout the world. In the United States, particular attention is devoted to the interaction of government with private insurers to maintain an effective insurance program. An analysis is performed comparing terrorism insurance before and after the attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001. The paper looks into actual terrorist events that have occurred focusing on 56 world-wide events that are associated with property losses greater than $10 million. This paper not only investigates the losses that were incurred but also the way the event was insured, and how the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) program could help the insurer in the event of catastrophic loss. Based on the 56 major events, a simulation is run in order to examine the losses and timing of potential future catastrophic events. Both property losses and the timing between events are simulated based on various distributions. For a variety of simulated events, the paper investigates how TRIA would pay out losses for the event as well as the effects that the event would have on the insurance industry. Rather than looking at the industry as a whole, particular attention will also be given to some of the top insurers for terrorism coverage. Using the findings from the data, the paper finally proposes changes to TRIA in order to create a better system of reinsurance for events with large losses