Influence of Spoil Type on Afforestation Success and Hydrochemical Function on a Surface Coal Mine in Eastern Kentucky

Surface coal mining in Appalachia has contributed to a suite of ecological impacts, both terrestrial and aquatic. Conventional reclamation in Appalachia leads to the development of hay/pasture systems dominated by nonnative grasses and legumes, with soils that are chemically and physically unfavorable to native tree growth. Several studies have shown that more weathered minespoils provide a better growth medium than unweathered spoils in Appalachia. Spoil segregation plots were constructed on Bent Mountain in Pike County, KY, to compare the suitability of three mine spoil types (BROWN weathered sandstone, GRAY unweathered sandstone, and MIXED sandstones and shales). In 2013 (after nine growing seasons) volume of planted trees was 50x higher on BROWN than on GRAY. In addition, natural colonization of unplanted groundcover and tree species was much more extensive on BROWN than GRAY or MIXED. Most water chemical parameters were similar across spoil types; however, water chemistry on all plots appears to have stabilized after nine growing seasons. Finally, rapidly developing forest on BROWN appears to be influencing water budgeting on the site, leading to lower discharge during summer months. These results indicate that BROWN weathered spoils provide a better growth medium than GRAY unweathered spoils for native trees

TRACKING A TREE-KILLER: IMPROVING DETECTION AND CHARACTERIZING SPECIES DISTRIBUTION OF \u3cem\u3ePHYTOPHTHORA CINNAMOMI\u3c/em\u3e IN APPALACHIAN FORESTS

Phytophthora cinnamomi is a soil-borne oomycete pathogen causing root rot in susceptible host species. P. cinnamomi is thought to have originated in Southeast Asia, but has since been introduced to many regions around the world, where it causes dramatic declines in many forest tree species. In the eastern US, the primary susceptible tree species of concern are American chestnut (Castanea dentata), white oak (Quercus alba), and shortleaf pine (Pinus echinata). American chestnut, functionally eliminated in the early 1900s by the rapidly acting chestnut blight (Cryphonectria parasitica), has been the subject of decades-long breeding efforts aimed at improving chestnut resistance to chestnut blight. To improve chestnut restoration success, and restoration of other susceptible species, the distribution patterns of P. cinnamomi on a landscape scale must be better understood. This project was initiated to develop an improved method for detecting P. cinnamomi to permit high-throughput screening of forest soils, and to implement the improved detection approach in characterizing the distribution patterns of P. cinnamomi in developing soils on reclaimed surface mines in eastern Kentucky, as well as mature forest soils within an undisturbed watershed in a reference-quality eastern Kentucky forest. We developed an improved detection method using a molecular DNA-amplification approach (PCR), which demonstrated similar sensitivity to traditional culture-based methods, but required less time and space than traditional methods. We used this detection approach to screen soils from a chronosequence of reclaimed surface mines (reclaimed at different points in time) to evaluate whether reclaimed surface mined sites become favorable for P. cinnamomi colonization over time. Our analysis detected P. cinnamomi at the two older sites (reclaimed in 1997 and 2003), but we did not detect P. cinnamomi at the two newer sites sampled (reclaimed in 2005 and 2007). These results suggest that surface mined sites become favorable for P. cinnamomi colonization over time, and should not be considered permanently “Phytophthora-free.” We also collected ~200 samples from a watershed in UK’s Robinson Forest, from plots representing a gradient of topographic position, slope, and aspect. This survey indicated that P. cinnamomi distribution in forests is complex and can be difficult to predict; however, P. cinnamomi was detected in both drier upslope sites and in moister drainage sites

Educação ambiental e o trabalho com valores nas reflexões de professores participantes de um curso de formação continuada

A educação ambiental tem sido considerada de fundamental importância para superação da crise ambiental contemporânea, esta resultante de um complexo de relações envolvendo o atual modelo econômico, a ciência e a tecnologia. Nessa proposta destaca-se sua dimensão valorativa, essencial para um trabalho mais abrangente. A pesquisa apresentada, desenvolvida a partir de uma abordagem qualitativa, analisa neste trabalho as reflexões de um grupo de professores da rede pública de ensino de um estado brasileiro, participantes de um curso de formação continuada sobre a educação ambiental e o trabalho com valores. A análise dos dados coletados através da filmagem dos encontros indica algumas das dificuldades encontradas pelos professores ao lidar com o tema, aspectos que devem ser considerados nos programas de formação docente relativos a essa temática

Correlation of climate variability and malaria: A retrospective comparative study, Southwest Ethiopia

BACKGROUND: Climatic variables can determine malaria transmission dynamics. To see the correlation between malaria occurrence and climatic variables, records of malaria episodes over eight years period were analyzed incorporating climatic variables around Gilgel-Gibe Hydroelectric Dam and control sites.METHODS: Records of 99,206 confirmed malaria episodes registered between 2003 and 2011 were analyzed along with local meteorological data of the same duration. Data were analyzed with SPSS statistical software version 20 for Windows. Spearman correlation coefficient was estimated as a measure of the correlation.RESULTS: The major peaks of malaria prevalence were observed following the peaks of rainfall in the Gilgel-Gibe Hydroelectric Dam site. In the control site, the peaks of malaria in some years coincided with the peaks of rainfall, and the pattern of rainfall was relatively less fluctuating. Mean rainfall was negatively correlated with number of malaria cases at lags of 0 and 1 month, but positively correlated at lags of 2 to 4 months. Mean relative humidity showed significant positive correlations at lags of 3 to 4 months. Monthly mean maximum and minimum temperatures weakly correlated at lags of 0 to 4 months.CONCLUSIONS: Correlations of malaria and climate variables were different for the two sites; in Gilgel-Gibe, rainfall and relative humidity showed positive correlations. However, in the control site, the correlation of weather variables and malaria episodes were insignificant. Exploration of additional factors such as vegetation index and physico-chemical nature of mosquito breeding site may improve understanding of determinants of malaria dynamics in the area.KEYWORDS: climatic variables, correlations, Ethiopia, Gilgel-Gibe, malari

Peril and Possibility: Wilderness as a Space of Becoming in Tolkien\u27s The Children of Húrin and Whedon\u27s Firefly and Serenity

A tension between wilderness as place of peril and as a place of purity has existed throughout the history of Western civilization. While the Puritan minister Cotton Mather described the wilderness as a habitation of “Dragons,” “Droves of Devils,” and “Fiery Flying Serpents,” Henry David Thoreau maintained that in order to draw near to God, one must draw near to nature. A spectrum of perspectives about wilderness exists within the tension between these two opposing ideas. As a refugee from civilization who makes his home in the wilderness on the borders of society, the Wild Man archetype, famously expressed in the monster Grendel and the noble outlaw Robin Hood, inhabits this spectrum. Both Tolkien’s The Children of Húrin and Whedon’s Firefly and Serenity unfold in settings characterized by being on the border. Furthermore, their heroes are noble outlaws, who choose to live outside of the boundaries of civilization. With these settings and heroes, Tolkien and Whedon make similar contributions to the nuances found in Western traditions of wilderness by emphasizing wilderness as a place of becoming, rich with possibility yet fraught with peril

Probing the two-scale-factor universality hypothesis by exact rotation symmetry-breaking mechanism

We probe the two-scale factor universality hypothesis by evaluating, firstly explicitly and analytically at the one-loop order, the loop quantum corrections to the amplitude ratios for O($N$) $\lambda\phi^{4}$ scalar field theories with rotation symmetry-breaking in three distinct and independent methods in which the rotation symmetry-breaking mechanism is treated exactly. We show that the rotation symmetry-breaking amplitude ratios turn out to be identical in the three methods and equal to their respective rotation symmetry-breaking ones, although the amplitudes themselves, in general, depend on the method employed and on the rotation symmetry-breaking parameter. At the end, we show that all these results can be generalized, through an inductive process based on a general theorem emerging from the exact calculation, to any loop level and physically interpreted based on symmetry ideas.Comment: 17 pages, 3 figure

Wizards and Woods: The Environmental Ethics of Tolkien’s Istari

Tolkien’s wizards are some of the most interesting and impactful characters in The Lord of the Rings, sent to Middle-earth to inspire the free peoples to resist Sauron. Principal among the Istari are Gandalf and Saruman, both of whom feature prominently in the events of The Lord of the Rings. A much more minor role, however, is played by Radagast the Brown, who appears only in passing mentions in The Hobbit and serves almost as a messenger in The Lord of the Rings. These three Istari enable an interesting discussion of environmental relationships, with Radagast and Saruman portrayed as failures and Gandalf alone successful. Radagast is said to have forsaken Men and Elves for the birds and beasts and thus fails in his mission. Saruman also fails, but because of his lust for power and consequent subjugation of people and landscapes, especially Isengard, the Shire, and Fangorn. Gandalf alone succeeds, caring both for the landscapes of Middle-earth and for its peoples. In an environmental ethical framework, Saruman aligns in an extreme anthropocentric position, prioritizing his own preferences over the health of others and their ecosystems. Conversely, Radagast seems to align more with the ecocentric side of the spectrum, considering the Free Peoples relatively unimportant and giving himself instead to the birds and the beasts. In contrast to both, Gandalf understands himself as accountable to the Valar for the accomplishment of his mission to stir up the Free Peoples in opposition to Sauron, alongside care of nonhuman organisms and their environment. Tolkien’s framing of Gandalf as the only successful wizard underscores this theocentric approach as his preferred resolution of the tension between humans and the nonhuman—rightly relating all of them to one another in the service of their Creator

INCUBATION AND HATCHING PERFORMANCE OF OSTRICH EGGS DEPENDING ON THEIR STORAGE TIME

The study was done in the ostrich farm in Patos -Albania. One egg setting was monitored, through dividing the eggs into three groups according to their age, as following: 20-30 days old, 10-20 days old and 1-10 days old. All the 197 eggs were marked according to their age of storage. During the hatching process, the respective parameters, such as: the total eggs set, fecundity, embryonic mortality, weight loss, were followed, recorded and monitored. Related to all these parameters, the appropriate incubation regime was selected. The average weight loss of all the eggs, no matter of their age, resulted to be 5.3%, or 0.5% more than the standard. The reason of the high embryonic mortality (40.7%) relates mainly with the very long time and improper storage condition of the eggs before setting. While, on the other hand, the very high level of egg sterility (42.6%), relates with several factors, where the main two ones are the transport stress of the breeders, because they have just arrived from the Netherlands, the adoption stress and the temperatures stress in the new environment. The oldest eggs (20-30 days old) had the highest sterility level, which might have been embryonic mortalities as well (53%), but at this stage it is impossible to make the difference between an early embryonic loss and a sterile egg. The hatching rate (29.9%), compared to the total number of the set eggs is comparable with the same parameter realized in England (from 24.1 to 27.8% up to 34.9-50% according to Key words: Ostrich; incubation parameters; egg weight loss; fertility; embryonic mortality ИНКУБАЦИЈА И ВЕДЕЊЕ НА ПИЛИЊА ОД ПРИПЛОДНИ ЈАЈЦА ОД НОЈ ВО ЗАВИСНОСТ ОД ВРЕМЕТО НА НИВНОТО ЧУВАЊЕ Истражувањето беше извршено на една фарма за ноеви во местото Патос, Албанија. Беше набљудувано едно квачење на јајцата поделени во три групи во зависност од нивната старост: јајца стари 20-30 дена, стари 10-20 дена и стари 1-10 дена. Сите 197 јајца беа означени според должината на времето на чување. За време на ведењето на пилињата беа следени, евидентирани и контролирани соодветни параметри: вкупниот број на поставените јајца, оплоденоста на јајцата, смртноста на ембрионите, губењето на маса. Во релација со овие параметри беше утврден и соодветен режим на инкубација. Просечното губење на тежината кај сите јајца, без разлика на нивната старост, беше со вредност од 5,3%, односно 0,5% поголемо од стандардот. Причината за високата смртност на ембрионите (40,7%) се должи главно на многу долгото време и несоодветните услови на чување на испитуваните приплодни јајца. Од друга страна, пак, многу високото ниво на стерилитет на јајцата (42,6%) е предизвикано од неколку фактори, од кои главни се транспортниот стрес на приплодното јато, кое беше тукушто пристигнато од Холандија, стресот при адаптација и температурниот стрес во новата средина. Најстарите јајца (20-30 дена) имаа највисоко ниво на стерилитет, што може да биде причина и за смртност на ембрионите (53%), но во оваа фаза не е можно да се направи разлика помеѓу раната загуба на ембрионите и стерилитетот на јајцата. Стапката на ведење (29,9%) во споредба со вкупниот број на поставените јајца е споредлива со истиот параметар добиен во Англија (од 24,1-27,8% до 34,9-50% според Deeming, 1995). Од резултатите од ова истражување се заклучува дека приплодните јајца чувани пократко време пред поставувањето даваат подобри резултати во ведењето. Клучни зборови: ној; параметри на инкубација; загуба во маса на јајца; фертилност; ембрионална смртнос

Resposta da aceroleira aos nutrientes N, P, K, em um latossolo amarelo de castanhal, Pará.

Publicado também: FRAZÃO, D. A. C.; HOMMA, A. K. O; VIÉGAS, I. de J. M. (Ed.). Contribuição ao desenvolvimento da fruticultura na Amazônia. Belém, PA: Embrapa Amazônia Oriental, 2006. p. 121-125

Quality and validity of large animal experiments in stroke : a systematic review

An important factor for successful translational stroke research is study quality. Low-quality studies are at risk of biased results and effect overestimation, as has been intensely discussed for small animal stroke research. However, little is known about the methodological rigor and quality in large animal stroke models, which are becoming more frequently used in the field. Based on research in two databases, this systematic review surveys and analyses the methodological quality in large animal stroke research. Quality analysis was based on the Stroke Therapy Academic Industry Roundtable and the Animals in Research: Reporting In Vivo Experiments guidelines. Our analysis revealed that large animal models are utilized with similar shortcomings as small animal models. Moreover, translational benefits of large animal models may be limited due to lacking implementation of important quality criteria such as randomization, allocation concealment, and blinded assessment of outcome. On the other hand, an increase of study quality over time and a positive correlation between study quality and journal impact factor were identified. Based on the obtained findings, we derive recommendations for optimal study planning, conducting, and data analysis/reporting when using large animal stroke models to fully benefit from the translational advantages offered by these models