China’s rising hydropower demand challenges water sector

Demand for hydropower is increasing, yet the water footprints (WFs) of reservoirs and hydropower, and their contributions to water scarcity, are poorly understood. Here, we calculate reservoir WFs (freshwater that evaporates from reservoirs) and hydropower WFs (the WF of hydroelectricity) in China based on data from 875 representative reservoirs (209 with power plants). In 2010, the reservoir WF totaled 27.9 × 109 m3 (Gm3), or 22% of China’s total water consumption. Ignoring the reservoir WF seriously underestimates human water appropriation. The reservoir WF associated with industrial, domestic and agricultural WFs caused water scarcity in 6 of the 10 major Chinese river basins from 2 to 12 months annually. The hydropower WF was 6.6 Gm3 yr−1 or 3.6 m3 of water to produce a GJ (109 J) of electricity. Hydropower is a water intensive energy carrier. As a response to global climate change, the Chinese government has promoted a further increase in hydropower energy by 70% by 2020 compared to 2012. This energy policy imposes pressure on available freshwater resources and increases water scarcity. The water-energy nexus requires strategic and coordinated implementations of hydropower development among geographical regions, as well as trade-off analysis between rising energy demand and water use sustainability

A supermatrix analysis of genomic, morphological, and paleontological data from crown Cetacea

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Cetacea (dolphins, porpoises, and whales) is a clade of aquatic species that includes the most massive, deepest diving, and largest brained mammals. Understanding the temporal pattern of diversification in the group as well as the evolution of cetacean anatomy and behavior requires a robust and well-resolved phylogenetic hypothesis. Although a large body of molecular data has accumulated over the past 20 years, DNA sequences of cetaceans have not been directly integrated with the rich, cetacean fossil record to reconcile discrepancies among molecular and morphological characters.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We combined new nuclear DNA sequences, including segments of six genes (~2800 basepairs) from the functionally extinct Yangtze River dolphin, with an expanded morphological matrix and published genomic data. Diverse analyses of these data resolved the relationships of 74 taxa that represent all extant families and 11 extinct families of Cetacea. The resulting supermatrix (61,155 characters) and its sub-partitions were analyzed using parsimony methods. Bayesian and maximum likelihood (ML) searches were conducted on the molecular partition, and a molecular scaffold obtained from these searches was used to constrain a parsimony search of the morphological partition. Based on analysis of the supermatrix and model-based analyses of the molecular partition, we found overwhelming support for 15 extant clades. When extinct taxa are included, we recovered trees that are significantly correlated with the fossil record. These trees were used to reconstruct the timing of cetacean diversification and the evolution of characters shared by "river dolphins," a non-monophyletic set of species according to all of our phylogenetic analyses.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>The parsimony analysis of the supermatrix and the analysis of morphology constrained to fit the ML/Bayesian molecular tree yielded broadly congruent phylogenetic hypotheses. In trees from both analyses, all Oligocene taxa included in our study fell outside crown Mysticeti and crown Odontoceti, suggesting that these two clades radiated in the late Oligocene or later, contra some recent molecular clock studies. Our trees also imply that many character states shared by river dolphins evolved in their oceanic ancestors, contradicting the hypothesis that these characters are convergent adaptations to fluvial habitats.</p

Work-to-family enrichment and voice behavior in China: the role of modernity

There is a lack of knowledge in the literature regarding the effects of the work-family interface on employees’ behaviors while taking into consideration of cultural values in developing countries. This study investigates the impact of work-to-family enrichment on employees’ voice behavior by focusing on the moderating role of modernity in a Chinese setting. Results from a survey of 230 Chinese married managers indicate that work-to-family enrichment positively influences voice behavior. In addition, the enrichment-voice relationship is weaker when modernity is high rather than low. The findings are discussed in terms of their theoretical and practical implications for human resource management

Retaining the learning professional: A survival study on workplace learning in professional service firms

Lowering professional turnover is of paramount importance for professional service firms, as with each professional, crucial proprietary knowledge leaves the firm. Based on the need to retain this crucial knowledge in the firm, this study explores whether factors that drive learning at work also mitigate professionals’ turnover behavior. Building on insights from both workplace learning and turnover research, this study follows 96 professional auditors across a period of five years to determine how drivers for workplace learning at the organizational, the social interaction, and the individual level relate to turnover behavior. Through survival analysis, we find that those auditors who experience a supportive learning climate at the organizational level were less likely to leave their firm and profession, while those who score high on individual-level reflection were more likely to leave their firm and profession. We also found that professionals scoring high on reflection leave more quickly when they perceive to work in an unsupportive learning climate – when they experience low synergy across workplace learning levels. Especially observable behaviors, such as providing help and feedback, discussing errors and building trust, made a significant difference. This study adds to extant research in three principal ways: exploring actual turnover behavior, approaching turnover behavior through a lens of workplace learning, and analyzing interactions between individual-, social- and organizational-level learning. The findings of this study lead to specific insights for HRD practice