A lot but not yet enough - a call for more action on sustainability

The Urban Sustainability Support Alliance (USSA) was a large and multi-faceted NSW wide programme, which was delivered between late 2007 and late 2011, to support NSW Councils in integrating environmental sustainability into their policies, procedures, operations and programs. To support cultural change in 152 government instrumentalities, of different sizes, shapes and demographics, required innovation, connection and credibility. A diverse range of support and development mechanisms was required. The USSA coined the tag line: Supporting Councils on their journey towards sustainability, and was evaluated in 2011. This paper charts the journey and reports on that evaluation. It describes the USSA program: provides judgments about the value of the programme against its intended outcomes; and identifies formative findings for the future so that the necessary support might continue. The USSA was a highly successful program, with more than 85% of respondents from almost 80% of Councils in NSW indicating that the USSA had raised the profile of sustainability ‘a lot’/’a reasonable amount/some’. Of these, 48% indicated that the effect had been substantial. The evaluation report concluded that the USSA has provided ‘a lot, but not yet enough’ support to NSW Councils on the journey towards sustainability, and that there is still more to do

Climate change and insurance

This special collection examines insurance as an increasingly central mechanism in shaping how the effects of climate change are transforming local economies and ways of life. The papers study a range of exemplary cases, ranging from agricultural micro-insurance in development policy and regional sovereign risk facilities in the Caribbean to public and private insurance in the United States. This framing essay situates these papers in a longer tradition of scholarship on the government of risk and security. It also describes three themes that run through the papers: the economization of climate change; the moral economy of risk and responsibility; and the plasticity of insurance as an abstract technology that may be taken up in various governmental assemblages, in the name of various political projects

Apparatus and method for the evaluation of asphalt mixes

This invention describes an apparatus and method for analyzing the rutting and stripping characteristics of hot mix asphalt concrete samples. The apparatus measures the vertical penetration of a wheel rolling in a reciprocating motion across the surface of a compacted asphalt mix specimen. It incorporates precise environmental control and includes features for testing two or more samples simultaneously under wet or dry conditions or a combination of wet and dry conditions

Muscle dysmorphia among current and former steroid users

This study examined the presence and experience of muscle dysmorphia among current and former steroid-using recreational bodybuilders. The Muscle Dysmorphia Inventory was given to 60 male participants, with 9 of these being interviewed to examine the predisposing factors, characteristics, and negative consequences of muscle dysmorphia comprising Lantz, Rhea, and Mayhew’s (2001) conceptual model. Quantitative results from the MDI data showed no significant differences between current and former steroid users in their experiences of muscle dysmorphia. In contrast, interviews suggested that former users appeared to be more susceptible to some of the characteristics of muscle dysmorphia, including physique protec­tion and body distortion/dissatisfaction, which suggests perhaps a limitation in the amount of information that can be extracted from a questionnaire. These preliminary findings also raise concerns about the lack of a diagnostic tool available for the condition and are discussed in relation to Lantz et al.’s (2001) conceptual model

Computerized Adaptive Assessment of Infant-Toddler Language Development: Demonstration and Validation of an App for Screening

We have developed a computerized adaptive test (an app), based on the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (CDI), that can rapidly gauge infant and toddler language development based on parent report. The app can be very useful in screening for developmental disabilities in IDEA Part C or Section 619. We will demonstrate the app and present validation data for toddlers.https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/ccids_posters/1005/thumbnail.jp

The Effects of a Multiflavonoid Supplement on Vascular and Hemodynamic Parameters following Acute Exercise

Antioxidants can decrease oxidative stress and combined with acute exercise they may lead to further decreases in blood pressure. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of 2 weeks of antioxidant supplementation on vascular distensibility and cardiovascular hemodynamics during postexercise hypotension. Methods. Twenty young subjects were randomized to placebo (n = 10) or antioxidant supplementation (n = 10) for two weeks. Antioxidant status, vascular distensibility, and hemodynamics were obtained before, immediately, and 30 minutes after an acute bout of aerobic exercise both before and after supplementation. Results. Two weeks of antioxidant supplementation resulted in a greater systolic blood pressure (SBP) decrease during postexercise hypotension (PEH) and significant decreases in augmentation index versus placebo (12.5% versus 3.5%, resp.). Also ferric-reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) increased significantly (interaction P = 0.024) after supplementation. Conclusion. Supplementation showed an additive effect on PEH associated with increased FRAP values and decreases in systolic blood pressure and augmentation index

A future workforce of food-system analysts

A programme developed across five UK universities aims to equip graduate professionals with the skills, tools and capabilities to better understand and manage food-system complexity for food security, for the environment and for enterprise.<br/

Loss of VGLUT3 Produces Circadian-Dependent Hyperdopaminergia and Ameliorates Motor Dysfunction and l-Dopa-Mediated Dyskinesias in a Model of Parkinson\u27s Disease.

UNLABELLED: The striatum is essential for many aspects of mammalian behavior, including motivation and movement, and is dysfunctional in motor disorders such as Parkinson\u27s disease. The vesicular glutamate transporter 3 (VGLUT3) is expressed by striatal cholinergic interneurons (CINs) and is thus well positioned to regulate dopamine (DA) signaling and locomotor activity, a canonical measure of basal ganglia output. We now report that VGLUT3 knock-out (KO) mice show circadian-dependent hyperlocomotor activity that is restricted to the waking cycle and is due to an increase in striatal DA synthesis, packaging, and release. Using a conditional VGLUT3 KO mouse, we show that deletion of the transporter from CINs, surprisingly, does not alter evoked DA release in the dorsal striatum or baseline locomotor activity. The mice do, however, display changes in rearing behavior and sensorimotor gating. Elevation of DA release in the global KO raised the possibility that motor deficits in a Parkinson\u27s disease model would be reduced. Remarkably, after a partial 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA)-mediated DA depletion (∼70% in dorsal striatum), KO mice, in contrast to WT mice, showed normal motor behavior across the entire circadian cycle. l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine-mediated dyskinesias were also significantly attenuated. These findings thus point to new mechanisms to regulate basal ganglia function and potentially treat Parkinson\u27s disease and related disorders. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Dopaminergic signaling is critical for both motor and cognitive functions in the mammalian nervous system. Impairments, such as those found in Parkinson\u27s disease patients, can lead to severe motor deficits. Vesicular glutamate transporter 3 (VGLUT3) loads glutamate into secretory vesicles for neurotransmission and is expressed by discrete neuron populations throughout the nervous system. Here, we report that the absence of VGLUT3 in mice leads to an upregulation of the midbrain dopamine system. Remarkably, in a Parkinson\u27s disease model, the mice show normal motor behavior. They also show fewer abnormal motor behaviors (dyskinesias) in response to l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine, the principal treatment for Parkinson\u27s disease. The work thus suggests new avenues for the development of novel treatment strategies for Parkinson\u27s disease and potentially other basal-ganglia-related disorders