Longevity Insurance Annuities

Recent U.S. Treasury Department proposals have focused attention on longevity insurance annuities. These are deferred annuities that begin payment at advanced older ages, such as the age of 82. While the United Kingdom has by far the world’s largest annuity market, and some insurance companies used to provide longevity insurance annuities, currently no companies provide these annuities. The main reason for the change is that proposed European Union regulations will require insurance companies to increase their reserves for these annuities in recognition that there is no asset available to effectively hedge the risk of unexpectedly large improvements in life expectancy

Ecology of the white lion: conservation management of the white lion (Panthera leo melanochaita Hamilton Smith 1842) in the Greater Kruger Park Region, South Africa

This is the first study to investigate the ecology and conservation management of the white lion (Panthera leo melanochaita). The white lion is a natural colour variant, or leucistic form, of the southern subspecies of the African lion (Panthera leo melanochaita) that has only ever been recorded in the wild in the Timbavati, Klaserie and Umbabat Private Nature Reserves (Greater Timbavati Region) and the Central Kruger National Park (KNP) – the Greater Kruger Park Region – in South Africa. The frequency of occurrence of white lions in the region was increasing in the 1980s, with 12 recorded sightings in nine different prides in the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve and Central Kruger National Park. From 1994 to 2006, there was an absence of white lions in the wild, the perception being that white lions cannot survive in the wild due to a lack of camouflage preventing them from hunting successfully. In 2006 a non-profit conservation organisation, the Global White Lion Protection Trust, therefore initiated the first reintroduction of white lions to free-roaming conditions within a small fenced wildlife area in the Greater Kruger Park Region. The results of this doctoral study suggest that the reintroduced white lions show natural behaviour, similar to wild tawny lions, in terms of their social interactions, home range and movement patterns, and their hunting success. These findings are supported by historical observations at the Timbavati Private Nature Reserve, and recent observations at Sanbona and Pumba Private Game Reserves. these observations suggest that white lions are capable of surviving in the wild as part of wild tawny prides. Based on these findings it is concluded that the reason for the low survival rate of white lion cubs in the Greater Kruger Park Region was due to anthropogenic activities And not due to lack of competitive capacity of white lions. Between 2006 and 2022 white lion cubs (17) were born in the Greater Kruger Park Region, confirming that the recessive gene is still present in the wild lion population. Although white lions occur within the wild lion population in this region, due to the rarity of white lions (only 13 wild managed lions and 3 wild adult white lions), the anthropogenic activities that affect the wild tawny lion population may have had a more significant impact on wild and managed white lions in that region. Human-lion conflict and trade in lion body parts for traditional and cultural use are two of the anthropogenic activities that have been identified as a major threat to wild lions in South Africa. The long-standing cultural significance of white lions amongst the local Tsonga and Sepedi communities in the Greater Kruger Park Region led white lions to be referred to as a ‘living cultural heritage’. According to the Global White Lion Protection Trust, this cultural belief may help to mitigate human-lion conflict and prevent lion poaching for body parts. The low incidence of lion poaching and human-lion conflict over the past 20 years at the wildlife areas managed by the Global White Lion Protection Trust suggests that a positive attitude of local Tsonga and Sepedi communities towards the conservation of white lions has contributed to the conservation of white lions in the bordering wildlife areas. The present study had a number of limitations, namely: the small size of the prides and small number of prides studied, the restricted size of the fenced wildlife area included in the study and the captive-origin of the white lions studied. The findings of the study are therefore preliminary, but they do indicate that white lions display natural behaviour similar to wild tawny lions, and they can therefore survive in the wild. This finding is supported by historical observations. The implications of the study are therefore expected to advance the existing knowledge of the ecology of the white lion, may contribute to reintroduction techniques and translocation success for white lions. The results of this study may also contribute to the conservation management of white lions in relation to the metapopulation approach for lions in South Africa. The findings suggest the potential role of the white lion in lion conservation in the Greater Kruger Park Region, in terms of their economic, eco-touristic and cultural significance.Global Challenges (FSW

Assessing the social cohesion of a translocated pride of white lions integrated with wild tawny lions in South Africa, using social network analysis

In South Africa, lions are protected in national parks and smaller fenced reserves. Translocating lions between fenced reserves, whilst necessary to maintain genetic diversity, is disruptive and can impact survivorship and pride cohesion. Critical to translocation success is pride cohesion. White lions are a natural colour variant occurring in the Greater Kruger Park Region, where anthropogenic threats eliminated this population until reintroduction in 2006. Through social network analysis (SNA), the sociality of a released pride of captive-origin white and wild tawny lions was compared to two captive-origin and wild prides of tawny lions. Social interactions and pride dynamics were recorded for each pride. For all prides, cubs and subadults were central to the play network, while adults received the most social interactions. White and wild tawny adult males initiated more social interactions than captive-origin tawny males, whilst a keystone adult female was identified in each pride. For the constructed pride, social interactions were more evenly distributed, suggesting a high level of connectedness and cohesion. This is the first study to demonstrate that captive-origin white and wild tawny lions can form a socially functional pride, suggesting that white lions would survive in the wild in the absence of anthropogenic threats

Home range and movement patterns of reintroduced white lions (Panthera leo melanochaita) in the Kruger to Canyons Biosphere Reserve, South Africa

White lions are a colour variant of the African lion Panthera leo melanochaita and disappeared from the wild due to anthropogenic factors until their reintroduction to the Greater Kruger Park Region of South Africa in 2006. Natural home range behaviour is an index of reintroduction success. Therefore, the home range and movement of a pride of reintroduced white lions and a constructed pride consisting of reintroduced white lions and translocated wild tawny lionesses in small, fenced reserves was assessed. GPS data from collared adults were collected for the white lion pride between 2010–2011 and 2018–2020 for the constructed pride. Home ranges were estimated using kernel density estimation and minimum convex polygon, with minimum daily distance tested for differences between sex, season, and pride. Home ranges were small and average daily movements restricted for both prides (white lion pride: 5.41 km2 and 10.44 ± 4.82 km; constructed pride: 5.50 km2, 11.37 ± 4.72 km) due to the small reserve size of 7 km2. There was no difference between prides for annual and seasonal home range size, male and female home ranges, minimum daily distance travelled, or habitat selection. White lions from both prides established territories and displayed natural home ranging behaviour, suggesting that their reintroduction was successful, in the absence of anthropogenic threats

Management based on exhaled nitric oxidelevels adjusted for atopy reduces asthma exacerbations in children : A dual centre randomised controlled trial

While several randomised control trials (RCTs) have evaluated the use of fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) to improve asthma outcomes, none used FeNO cut-offs adjusted for atopy, a determinant of FeNO levels. In a dual centre RCT, we assessed whether a treatment strategy based on FeNO levels, adjusted for atopy, reduces asthma exacerbations compared with the symptoms-based management (controls). Children with asthma from hospital clinics of two hospitals were randomly allocated to receive an a-priori determined treatment hierarchy based on symptoms or FeNO levels. There was a 2-week run-in period and they were then reviewed ten times over 12-months. The primary outcome was the number of children with exacerbations over 12-months. Sixty-three children were randomised (FeNO=31, controls=32); 55 (86%) completed the study. Although we did achieve our planned sample size, significantly fewer children in the FeNO group (6 of 27) had an asthma exacerbation compared to controls (15 of 28), p=0.021; number to treat for benefit=4 (95%CI 3-24). There was no difference between groups for any secondary outcomes (quality of life, symptoms, FEV1). The final daily inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) dose was significantly (p=0.037) higher in the FeNO group (median 400µg, IQR 250-600) compared to the controls (200, IQR100-400). Taking atopy into account when using FeNO to tailor asthma medications is likely beneficial in reducing the number of children with severe exacerbations at the expense of increased ICS use. However, the strategy is unlikely beneficial for improving asthma control. A larger study is required to confirm or refute our findings

JTpack90: A parallel, object-based, Fortran 90 linear algebra package

The authors have developed an object-based linear algebra package, currently with emphasis on sparse Krylov methods, driven primarily by needs of the Los Alamos National Laboratory parallel unstructured-mesh casting simulation tool Telluride. Support for a number of sparse storage formats, methods, and preconditioners have been implemented, driven primarily by application needs. They describe the object-based Fortran 90 approach, which enhances maintainability, performance, and extensibility, the parallelization approach using a new portable gather/scatter library (PGSLib), current capabilities and future plans, and present preliminary performance results on a variety of platforms

Arable crop disease control, climate change and food security

Copyright Association of Applied BiologistsGlobal food security is threatened by crop diseases that account for average yield losses of 16%. Climate change is exacerbating threats to food security in much of the world, emphasising the need to increase food production in northern European countries such as the UK. However, to mitigate climate change, crops must be grown so as to minimise greenhouse gas emissions (GHG); results with UK oilseed rape demonstrate how disease control in arable crops can contribute to climate change mitigation. However, work examining impacts of climate change on UK epidemics of winter oilseed rape diseases illustrates unexpected, contrasting impacts of climate change on complex plant-disease interactions. In England, phoma stem canker is expected to become more severe whilst light leaf spot is expected to become less severe. Such work can provide guidance for government and industry planning for adaptation to impacts of climate change on crops to ensure future food securityFinal Accepted Versio

Host-parasite biology in the real world: the field voles of Kielder

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

The New Generation of Computer Literacy

A tremendous mismatch is developing between two of the most critical components of any computer literacy course: the textbooks and the students. We are encountering a new generation of students (literally as well as figuratively!) who are much better acquainted with computer usage than their earlier counterparts. Yet many textbooks with increasing emphasis in those same computer tools continue to appear. There are signs of a coming change in that a few authors and publishers apparently are becoming aware of the need for innovations in texts for non-scientists. These textbooks open the door for a new orientation to principles in the teaching of computer literacy