Skills Obsolescence: Causes and Cures

Until now there has been surprisingly little research on the causes of and the remedies for skills obsolescence. This study tries to fill that gap to some extent by analysing the relation between risk factors and skills obsolescence. Moreover, the role remedies play to counter skills obsolescence is analysed. Four empirical analyses that relate skills obsolescence to risk factors and remedies are presented. We find that most risk factors identified in the literature can be validated empirically. The remedies for skills obsolescence are not effective in all situations: the results show that there is considerable variation in the effectiveness of the remedies across different types of skills obsolescence. Although current available data does not allow a comprehensive analysis, which also takes account of relations between the various types of skills obsolescence, the results obtained are plausible and offer a starting point for further research.education, training and the labour market;

Plant-based dietary patterns and the risk of dementia:a population-based study

Background: Plant-based dietary patterns are increasingly popular in western countries and are supported by many governments and health organisations for their potential beneficial role in the prevention of chronic diseases. Yet, the potential role of plant-based dietary patterns in the development of dementia remains unclear. Objective: To evaluate the association between plant-based dietary patterns and the risk of dementia. Methods: Dietary intake was measured at baseline in 9,543 dementia-free participants (mean age 64 years, birth years 1897–1960, 58% women) of the prospective population-based Rotterdam Study, using food frequency questionnaires. Based on these questionnaires, we calculated an overall plant-based dietary index (PDI), healthy PDI (hPDI) and unhealthy PDI (uPDI), with higher scores reflecting higher consumption of (any, healthy and unhealthy, respectively) plant-based foods and lower consumption of animal-based foods. We analysed the association of the PDIs with incident dementia using Cox proportional hazard models. Results: During a mean follow-up of 14.5 years, 1,472 participants developed dementia. Overall, the PDIs were not associated with the risk of dementia (hazard ratio [95% confidence interval] per 10-point increase: 0.99 [0.91–1.08] for PDI, 0.93 [0.86–1.01] for hPDI, 1.02 [0.94–1.10] for uPDI). However, among men and APOE ε4 carriers, a higher hPDI was linearly associated with a lower risk of dementia (0.86 [0.75–0.99] and 0.83 [0.73–0.95], respectively), while this association was U-shaped among APOE ε4 non-carriers (P value for non-linearity = 0.01). Conclusions:We found no strong evidence for an overall association between plant-based eating and the risk of dementia. Our findings in stratified analyses warranted further investigation.</p

Market intelligence for guiding crop improvement: A systematic review of stakeholder preference studies in the rice sector in the Global South and beyond

Improvement of crop varieties can be a powerful strategy for addressing food, nutrition, and climate challenges in the Global South if it is guided by market intelligence. We conducted a systematic literature review of stakeholder preference studies that aim at guiding crop improvement in rice, the Global South's most important staple food. We review behavioral indicators such as purchase intention, willingness to pay, acceptance, probability of adoption, and preference. Results from 106 studies reveal important gaps in terms of geographical and stakeholder representation: (1) Southcentral Asia is underrepresented and (2) studies focused either on upstream (farmers) or downstream (consumers) stakeholders along the value chain, while missing out on midstream actors (processors, traders). From the consumer studies, urban consumption zones are adequately represented as sources of end-market opportunities for farmers to tap into demand. Evidence suggests that consumer preferences for intrinsic attributes revolve around eating and cooking quality attributes (i.e., aroma, texture, swelling capacity, taste) and physical traits (i.e., whiteness, size and shape, proportion of broken grains). Evidence from farmer studies reveals that (1) preferences for agronomic attributes dominate and focus on yield, maturity, plant height, lodging tolerance, and tillering ability; (2) yield and early maturity were generally considered priority attributes and were often jointly considered as such; and (3) preferences for abiotic stress tolerance revolve around drought, submergence, and salinity. These insights can help refocus market intelligence research to aid crop improvement in addressing food, nutrition, and climate challenges in the Global South, which may be expanded globally

Methodiek arbeidsmarktprognoses en -indicatoren 1999-2004

In dit werkdocument wordt een overzicht gegeven van de methodiek die is gehanteerd bij het opstellen van de arbeidsmarktprognoses naar opleiding en beroep tot 2004 en de bijbehorende arbeidsmarktindicatoren ten behoeve van het rapport De arbeidsmarkt naar opleiding en beroep tot 2004 en de bijbehorende Statistische Bijlage. Het ROA brengt deze arbeidsmarktinformatie uit in het kader van het Project Onderwijs - Arbeidsmarkt (POA). De gegevens – die een beeld geven van de arbeidsmarktpositie van opleidingen en beroepen – zijn ook gebruikt door het LDC Expertisecentrum voor loopbaanvraagstukken, onder andere in de publicatie Kansen op werk 2004 en de op CD-ROM verkrijgbare Traject-reeks.education, training and the labour market;

Deep convection in the Irminger Sea observed with a dense mooring array

Deep convection is a key process in the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation, but because it acts at small scales, it remains poorly resolved by climate models. The occurrence of deep convection depends on weak initial stratification and strong surface buoyancy forcing, conditions that are satisfied in only a few ocean basins. In 2014, one of the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) global arrays was installed close to the Central Irminger Sea (CIS) and the Long-term Ocean Circulation Observations (LOCO) moorings in the central Irminger Sea. These programs’ six moorings are located in the center of an area of deep convection and are distributed within a 50 km radius, thus offering detailed insight into spatial differences during the strong convection events that occurred during the winters of 2014/2015 and 2015/2016. Deep mixed layers, down to approximately 1,600 m, formed during both winters. The properties of the convectively renewed water mass at each mooring converge to a common temperature and salinity before restratification sets in at the end of winter. The largest differences in onset (or timing) of convection and restratification are seen between the northernmost and southernmost moorings. High-resolution atmospheric reanalysis data show there is higher atmospheric forcing at the northernmost mooring due to a more favorable position with respect to the Greenland tip jet. Nevertheless, earlier onset, and more continuous cooling and deepening of mixed layers, occurs at the southernmost mooring, while convection at the northern mooring is frequently interrupted by warm events. We propose that these warm events are associated with eddies and filaments originating from the Irminger Current off the coast of Greenland and that convection further south benefits from cold inflow from the southwest

Measuring food and nutritional losses through value stream mapping along the dairy value chain in Uganda

The growing burden of food losses has intensified the need for reliable and comparable data. This study extends the application of lean manufacturing practices and uses Value Stream Mapping (VSM) analysis with the Food Loss and Waste (FLW) Accounting and Reporting Standard to identify hotspots and analyze the magnitude of both food and nutritional losses in the food value chain. A case study on the dairy value chain in Uganda is utilized to understand the production configuration (primary production, processing and distribution). Through linking hotspots where food loss in milk production takes place to specific salient reasons, this case provides an estimation of the magnitude of losses occurring in yogurt and UHT milk production lines. Findings reaffirm the processing stage as a principle hotspot for discarding yogurt as well as UHT milk products. Throughout processing, from start to finish, food losses at chain level are estimated to be in the magnitude of up to 14%. This also translates to a substantial nutritional value disappearing from the food system, which compromises the ability of people to meet their nutrient recommendations. The case study represents a pragmatic assessment that combines the mapping advantages of VSM with accounting and reporting guidelines of FLW Accounting and Reporting Standard to contribute to a detailed assessment of food and nutritional losses. Thereby, reinforcing initiation of evidence-based and targeted reduction strategies along food supply chains

The Weddelll Sea and Dronning Maud Land (WSDML) Regional Working Group Virtual Science Workshop, 20-23 October, 2020.

Workshop report from the Weddell Sea and Dronning Maud Land (WSDML) Regional Working Group virtual science workshop, held 20-23 October 2020

Comparison of anthropometric body features of highclass volleyball players

One of the factors determining skills of athletes in certain sport is body build features. Sport result depends a lot on morphologic features of the sportsman, that is one of the selective factors determining the sportsman's perspective. Purpose of research is studying of peculiarities anthropomentric and somatometric indices of super league, premier league and first league teams