321 research outputs found

    Ecoturismo marino en el golfo de California y península de Baja California: tendencias de investigación y vacíos de información

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    Achieving equitable and sustainable ecotourism requires a wide range of multidisciplinary and cross-scale information, particularly given the growing scale of ecotourism operations and continuing governance and climate challenges. Ecosystems in Mexico’s Gulf of California and Baja California Peninsula support a thriving ecotourism industry that has quickly expanded over the last few decades, potentially outpacing research into current performance and future sustainable development opportunities. We develop and apply a formal literature review approach to characterize academic marine ecotourism literature, highlight key insights and identify research strengths and gaps, and thus analyse almost 50 publications for the region from 1994 to 2014. There has been a significant increase in the number of various types of publications; most (68%) focus on ecological themes, 25% on economics, and 7% on social aspects of human wellbeing. There are also trends towards research on specific species (e.g. mammals, fish and sharks) and in specific areas. A common theme in publication conclusions is the need for collaboration from all stakeholder groups. We discuss these findings, and address potential limitations of our method, with a view to informing sound policies to ensure that ecotourism can provide equitable benefits to local communities while incentivizing sustainable practices and nature conservation.El desarrollo equitativo y sostenible del ecoturismo debe considerar una amplia gama de información multidisciplinaria y a varias escalas, particularmente dada la creciente magnitud de las operaciones de ecoturismo y los retos de gobernanza y climáticos. Los ecosistemas en el golfo de California y península de Baja California en México mantienen a una próspera industria de ecoturismo que se ha expandido rápidamente a lo largo de las últimas décadas, posiblemente dejando atrás a la investigación respecto a sus operaciones actuales y las oportunidades para el desarrollo sostenible a futuro. Desarrollamos y aplicamos una revisión formal de literatura para caracterizar a las publicaciones académicas respecto al ecoturismo, señalar tendencias clave e identificar fortalezas y vacíos de investigación, analizando casi 50 publicaciones para la región desde 1994 al 2014. Ha habido un incremento significativo en la cantidad de publicaciones de varios tipos; la mayoría (68%) se enfocan en temas ecológicos, 25% en economía y 7% en aspectos sociales del bienestar humano. También existe una tendencia hacia investigación de ciertas especies (e.g. mamíferos, peces, tiburones) y en regiones específicas. Un tema común en las conclusiones de las publicaciones analizadas es la necesidad de colaboración por todos los grupos de actores. Discutimos estos resultados, y las posibles limitaciones de nuestro método, en el contexto de informar políticas adecuadas para asegurar que el ecoturismo pueda proveer beneficios equitativos a comunidades locales al mismo tiempo que se incentivan las prácticas sostenibles y la conservación de la naturaleza

    Differences in reporting somatic complaints in elderly by education level

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    Aim: To evaluate the association between somatic complaints and education level among elders in selected European countries. Methods: Cross-sectional study among randomly selected community dwelling persons aged 60–84 years from seven cities in Europe: Ancona (Italy), Athens (Greece), Granada (Spain), Kaunas (Lithuania), Stuttgart (Germany), Porto (Portugal) and Stockholm (Sweden). Somatic complaints were measured with the 24-item version of the Giessen Complaint List (GBB-24). A regression analysis was done to investigate the association between education and somatic complaints. Results. The mean GBB-24 scale was 16.3±14.9. The most common complaints were pain in joints and limbs (29.6%), back-pain (24.1%), heaviness or tiredness in the legs (19.1%) and general tiredness (15.7%). Respondents with less than primary education reported higher levels of somatic symptoms compared to those with university degree. A regression analysis showed that higher education (OR=0.69) and being male (OR=0.48) were associated with a decreased risk for high levels of somatic complaints, and the opposite for older age (OR=1.03) and being single/divorced/window (OR=1.28). Conclusions: The results indicate that less educated elders are more likely to expressed somatic complaints

    The pathways to psychiatric care: a cross-cultural study

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    This paper describes the referral pathways taken by 1554 patients newly referred to the mental health services in 11 countries, and documents factors associated with delays in referral. The pathways in centres relatively well provided with psychiatric staff were dominated by general practitioners and to a lesser extent hospital doctors: the relatively less well resourced centres showed a variety of pathways with native healers often playing an important part. Delays were remarkably short in all centres regardless of psychiatric resources, but in some centres we found longer delays on pathways involving native healers. Somatic problems were a common presentation in all centres, and in some centres there was a tendency for patients presenting with somatic problems to have longer delays than those with symptoms of depression or anxiety. The implications of these findings are discussed in the context of an ongoing programme of WHO research activities aimed at improving the quality of mental illness care available in community setting

    A Spectroscopic Study of a Large Sample of Wolf-Rayet Galaxies

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    We analyze long-slit spectral observations of 39 Wolf-Rayet (WR) galaxies with heavy element mass fraction ranging over 2 orders of magnitude, from Zsun/50 to 2Zsun. Nearly all galaxies in our sample show broad WR emission in the blue region of the spectrum (the blue bump) consisting of an unresolved blend of N III 4640, C III 4650, C IV 4658 and He II 4686 emission lines. Broad C IV 5808 emission (the red bump) is detected in 30 galaxies. Additionally, weaker WR emission lines are identified, most often the N III 4512 and Si III 4565 lines, which have very rarely or never been seen and discussed before in WR galaxies. These emission features are characteristic of WN7-WN8 and WN9-WN11 stars respectively. We derive the numbers of early WC (WCE) and late WN (WNL) stars from the luminosities of the red and blue bumps, and the number of O stars from the luminosity of the Hbeta emission line. Additionally, we propose a new technique for deriving the numbers of WNL stars from the N III 4512 and Si III 4565 emission lines. This technique is potentially more precise than the blue bump method because it does not suffer from contamination of WCE and early WN (WNE) stars and nebular gaseous emission. The N(WR)/N(O+WR) ratio decreases with decreasing metallicity, in agreement with predictions of evolutionary synthesis models. The N(WC)/N(WN) ratios and the equivalent widths of the blue bump EW(4650) and of the red bump EW(5808) derived from observations are also in satisfactory agreement with theoretical predictions.Comment: 49 pages, 9 figures, to appear in Astrophys.

    Globules and pillars seen in the [CII] 158 micron line with SOFIA

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    Molecular globules and pillars are spectacular features, found only in the interface region between a molecular cloud and an HII-region. Impacting Far-ultraviolet (FUV) radiation creates photon dominated regions (PDRs) on their surfaces that can be traced by typical cooling lines. With the GREAT receiver onboard SOFIA we mapped and spectrally resolved the [CII] 158 micron atomic fine-structure line and the highly excited 12CO J=11-10 molecular line from three objects in Cygnus X (a pillar, a globule, and a strong IRAS source). We focus here on the globule and compare our data with existing Spitzer data and recent Herschel Open-Time PACS data. Extended [CII] emission and more compact CO-emission was found in the globule. We ascribe this emission mainly to an internal PDR, created by a possibly embedded star-cluster with at least one early B-star. However, external PDR emission caused by the excitation by the Cyg OB2 association cannot be fully excluded. The velocity-resolved [CII] emission traces the emission of PDR surfaces, possible rotation of the globule, and high-velocity outflowing gas. The globule shows a velocity shift of ~2 km/s with respect to the expanding HII-region, which can be understood as the residual turbulence of the molecular cloud from which the globule arose. This scenario is compatible with recent numerical simulations that emphazise the effect of turbulence. It is remarkable that an isolated globule shows these strong dynamical features traced by the [CII]-line, but it demands more observational studies to verify if there is indeed an embedded cluster of B-stars.Comment: Letter accepted by A&A (SOFIA special issue

    Stability and maturity of biowaste composts derived by small municipalities : correlation among physical, chemical and biological indices

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    Stability and maturity are important criteria to guarantee the quality of a compost that is applied to agriculture or used as amendment in degraded soils. Although different techniques exist to evaluate stability and maturity, the application of laboratory tests in municipalities in developing countries can be limited due to cost and application complexities. In the composting facilities of such places, some classical low cost on-site tests to monitor the composting process are usually implemented; however, such tests do not necessarily clearly identify conditions of stability and maturity. In this article, we have applied and compared results of stability and maturity tests that can be easily employed on site (i.e. temperature, pH, moisture, electrical conductivity [EC], odor and color), and of tests that require more complex laboratory techniques (volatile solids, C/N ratio, self-heating, respirometric index, germination index [GI]). The evaluation of the above was performed in the field scale using 2 piles of biowaste applied compost. The monitoring period was from day 70 to day 190 of the process. Results showed that the low-cost tests traditionally employed to monitor the composting process on-site, such as temperature, color and moisture, do not provide consistent determinations with the more complex laboratory tests used to assess stability (e.g. respiration index, self-heating, volatile solids). In the case of maturity tests (GI, pH, EC), both the on-site tests (pH, EC) and the laboratory test (GI) provided consistent results. Although, stability was indicated for most of the samples, the maturity tests indicated that products were consistently immature. Thus, a stable product is not necessarily mature. Conclusively, the decision on the quality of the compost in the installations located in developing countries requires the simultaneous use of a combination of tests that are performed both in the laboratory and on-site

    Two super-Earths at the edge of the habitable zone of the nearby M dwarf TOI-2095

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    The main scientific goal of TESS is to find planets smaller than Neptune around stars bright enough to allow further characterization studies. Given our current instrumentation and detection biases, M dwarfs are prime targets to search for small planets that are in (or nearby) the habitable zone of their host star. Here we use photometric observations and CARMENES radial velocity measurements to validate a pair of transiting planet candidates found by TESS. The data was fitted simultaneously using a Bayesian MCMC procedure taking into account the stellar variability present in the photometric and spectroscopic time series. We confirm the planetary origin of the two transiting candidates orbiting around TOI-2095 (TIC 235678745). The star is a nearby M dwarf (d=41.90±0.03d = 41.90 \pm 0.03 pc, Teff=3759±87T_{\rm eff} = 3759 \pm 87 K, V=12.6V = 12.6 mag) with a stellar mass and radius of M=0.44±0.02  MM_\star = 0.44 \pm 0.02 \; M_\odot and R=0.44±0.02  RR_\star = 0.44 \pm 0.02 \; R_\odot, respectively. The planetary system is composed of two transiting planets: TOI-2095b with an orbital period of Pb=17.66484±(7×105)P_b = 17.66484 \pm (7\times 10^{-5}) days and TOI-2095c with Pc=28.17232±(14×105)P_c = 28.17232 \pm (14\times 10^{-5}) days. Both planets have similar sizes with Rb=1.25±0.07  RR_b = 1.25 \pm 0.07 \; R_\oplus and Rc=1.33±0.08  RR_c = 1.33 \pm 0.08 \; R_\oplus for planet b and c, respectively. We put upper limits on the masses of these objects with Mb<4.1  MM_b < 4.1 \; M_\oplus for the inner and Mc<7.4  MM_c < 7.4 \; M_\oplus for the outer planet (95\% confidence level). These two planets present equilibrium temperatures in the range of 300 - 350 K and are close to the inner edge of the habitable zone of their star.Comment: Submitted to Astronomy & Astrophysic

    Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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    BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London

    Investigating the origin of optical and X-ray pulsations of the transitional millisecond pulsar PSR J1023+0038

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    Context. PSR J1023+0038 is the first millisecond pulsar that was ever observed as an optical and UV pulsar. So far, it is the only optical transitional millisecond pulsar. The rotation- and accretion-powered emission mechanisms hardly individually explain the observed characteristics of optical pulsations. A synergistic model, combining these standard emission processes, was proposed to explain the origin of the X-ray/UV/optical pulsations. Aims: We study the phase lag between the pulses in the optical and X-ray bands to gain insight into the physical mechanisms that cause it. Methods: We performed a detailed timing analysis of simultaneous or quasi-simultaneous observations in the X-ray band, acquired with the XMM-Newton and NICER satellites, and in the optical band, with the fast photometers SiFAP2 (mounted at the 3.6 m Telescopio Nazionale Galileo) and Aqueye+ (mounted at the 1.8 m Copernicus Telescope). We estimated the time lag of the optical pulsation with respect to that in the X-rays by modeling the folded pulse profiles with two harmonic components. Results: Optical pulses lag the X-ray pulses by ∼150 μs in observations acquired with instruments (NICER and Aqueye+) whose absolute timing uncertainty is much smaller than the measured lag. We also show that the phase lag between optical and X-ray pulsations lies in a limited range of values, δϕ ∈ (0 − 0.15), which is maintained over timescales of about five years. This indicates that both pulsations originate from the same region, and it supports the hypothesis of a common emission mechanism. Our results are interpreted in the shock-driven mini pulsar nebula scenario. This scenario suggests that optical and X-ray pulses are produced by synchrotron emission from the shock that formed within a few light cylinder radii away (∼100 km) from the pulsar, where its striped wind encounters the accretion disk inflow

    TESS Spots A Hot Jupiter With An Inner Transiting Neptune

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    Hot Jupiters are rarely accompanied by other planets within a factor of a few in orbital distance. Previously, only two such systems have been found. Here, we report the discovery of a third system using data from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The host star, TOI-1130, is an eleventh magnitude K-dwarf in Gaia G-band. It has two transiting planets: a Neptune-sized planet (3.65 ± 0.10 R{R}_{\oplus }) with a 4.1 days period, and a hot Jupiter (1.500.22+0.27{1.50}_{-0.22}^{+0.27} RJ{R}_{{\rm{J}}}) with an 8.4 days period. Precise radial-velocity observations show that the mass of the hot Jupiter is 0.9740.044+0.043{0.974}_{-0.044}^{+0.043} MJ{M}_{{\rm{J}}}. For the inner Neptune, the data provide only an upper limit on the mass of 0.17 MJ{M}_{{\rm{J}}} (3σ). Nevertheless, we are confident that the inner planet is real, based on follow-up ground-based photometry and adaptive-optics imaging that rule out other plausible sources of the TESS transit signal. The unusual planetary architecture of and the brightness of the host star make TOI-1130 a good test case for planet formation theories, and an attractive target for future spectroscopic observations
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