Protecting Biodiversity on National Forests: The Evolution and Implementation of Forest Planning Regulations

In 2012, the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) promulgated new forest planning regulations that significantly altered national forest management. One of the most controversial and important advancements was the inclusion of what were meant to be stronger biodiversity protections. An analysis of USFS’s rationale in revising the biodiversity regulations provides insights into how to interpret the substantively and procedurally new ecosystem and species protections. Examining this regulatory history reveals three key changes to the manner in which national forests are required to manage and monitor biodiversity: 1) a greater reliance on science to inform planning, 2) a new emphasis on ecological integrity, and 3) more comprehensive protections for at-risk species. The specific substantive and procedural provisions that establish this revised conservation framework are summarized in Section III, Part G. Overall, the new “ecosystem-species” approach seeks to ensure the persistence of most native species through “coarse-filter” measures that maintain or restore ecological integrity and diversity, accompanied by “fine-filter” measures that provide the additional specific ecological conditions needed by imperiled populations of at-risk species. However, the 2012 rule allows the responsible official to determine whether such species-specific plan components are necessary. This discretion results in a set of protections for at-risk species that are likely to be applied inconsistently across the National Forest System. While the language in the rule itself can be vague, the administrative record contains additional context that provides useful guidance in interpreting these biodiversity provisions. More specifically, evidence from the administrative record suggests that the fine-filter provision should apply to species facing discrete threats or with unique needs. The recently revised Rio Grande National Forest Land Management Plan provides a case study of how one national forest is implementing the new conservation framework poorly. By applying the aforementioned regulatory analysis to a case study, this paper highlights the potential avenues for strengthening or challenging forest plans that fail to adequately protect biodiversity. Ultimately, by exploring the evolution and implementation of the biodiversity provisions in forest planning regulations, this analysis serves to inform efforts to more effectively apply and uphold USFS’s new approach to conserving biodiversity on our national forests

Inclusive design: making packaging easier to open for all

Social equality demands a shift in attitude, away from treating older people and people with disabilities as special cases requiring special design solutions, and towards enabling them to have equal access to any product or service through a more inclusive approach to the design of buildings, public spaces and, more recently, products and services. This is not just important for social equality but also for business growth through new products and services and through creating wider potential markets. Consumer packaging is a field in which many people, including young able bodied people, often struggle in relation to openability. Until now, the main thrust of inclusive design in the consumer packaging field has been driven by art and design disciplines, focusing on the shape and ergonomics of the packaging or cognitive solutions in order to make them easier to open. This approach does not always work first time and a time consuming, materially expensive trial and error process often ensues. This paper outlines all the arguments for inclusive design, stressing the importance for both consumers and business. This paper also outlines an engineering design approach for inclusive design that uses real human factors as design limits, resulting in packaging that will be easily opened by all it’s end users without the expensive trial and error approach that has been used up to this point in time. The example of the Roll-On-Pilfer-Proof (ROPP) closure system is used in this paper

The 'inclusive engineering' approach: an optimum diameter for ease of opening

Social equality demands a shift in attitude, away from treating older people and people with disabilities as special cases requiring special design solutions, and towards enabling them to have equal access to any product or service through a more inclusive approach to the design of buildings, public spaces and, more recently, products and services. This is not just important for social equality but also for business growth through new products and services and through creating wider potential markets. It is a sad fact of life that as people get older there is a massive decline in their strength and dexterity. Due to the fact that we handle and manipulate so many things throughout our life time, from the tiniest and most dexterous of tasks to heavy manual labour, this decline is very noticeable in our hands. In nearly all the actions that we use our hands for there is some form of grip used in order to hold onto an object before manipulating it. The natural decrease in strength combined with debilitating illness such as arthritis, means that hand grip strength or finger grip strength are very seriously affected. This has a knock on affect of making it much harder to twist things or pinch and pull things. Therefore there is often a measured decrease in torque strength with age caused not so much by a decrease in wrist strength but more often than not by a decrease in grip strength. Consumer packaging is a field in which many people, including young able bodied people, often struggle in relation to openability. Yet it is present in even the most mundane and neccessary of every day tasks such as eating, cleaning teeth, even drinking. Human interation with consumer packaging requires a wide range of hand dexterity and strength and a variety of differing hand actions. This paper looks at just one such set of actions; that used to open bottles and jars. It outlines all the arguments for inclusive design, stressing the importance for both consumers and business. This paper also outlines an engineering design approach for inclusive design that uses real human factors as design limits, resulting in packaging that will be easily opened by all it’s end users without the expensive trial and error approach that has been used up to this point in time. This paper examines the affect of grip strength on the required trorque to open closures and concludes that there is an optimum diameter for ease of opening that will decrease the required strength to open such closures

Determinants of Physical Activity in Arab American Children

Physical activity is an integral part of preventing and managing childhood and adolescent obesity. Lack of regular physical activity has negative impact on physical and psychosocial health. Arab Americans (AAs), one of the most rapidly growing minorities in United States, tend to have a high prevalence of obesity and low participation in physical activity. The purpose of this study was to describe determinants of physical activity, including self-efficacy, social support, physical environment, and selected demographics among AA children in Southern California. A descriptive correlational study using a cross sectional design was conducted. Self-administered questionnaires were completed by children (N=206) recruited from mosques, churches, and family social gathering events located in Southern California. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the data. Multiple linear regression was performed to examine the variance of physical activity in AA children. The majority of participants were girls (53%). The sample mean age was 12.1 (SD = 1.49) years. The mean of the final Physical Activity Questionnaire for Children (PAQ-C) summary score was 2.39 (SD = 0.648). The study participants exhibited a moderate level of physical activity. In the regression model the data explained 51.6% of the variance (F [11,194] = 18.782; P \u3c 0.000). Participants with higher self-efficacy overcome barriers (β = .071; p = .020) and higher self-efficacy positive alternatives (β = .063; p = .025) are expected to have higher level of physical activity. Participants with greater social support from parents (β = .145; p = .017) and friends (β = .321; p = .000) are expected to have higher level of physical activity. The level of physical activity decreased as participant age increased (β = -.076; p = .001). Finally, physical environment was not a predictor of physical activity. AA children, and older AA children in particular, may need close monitoring of their physical activity. Future interventions to improve physical activity should be designed that include considerations of promoting self-efficacy and social support

The Length of Life of Transfused Erythrocytes in Patients With Primary and Secondary Anemia

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Avoidance of P.I. Releases for Mutual Mistake: Recent Cases

The purpose of this article is to determine the factors which currently persuade courts to set aside releases under the doctrine of mutual mistake. Therefore, cases involving fraud, misrepresentation, overreaching, or unilateral mistake are outside the scope, except as they shed light on the doctrine\u27s application. We shall consider first those cases where there is thought to be no personal injury at the time of releasing, and then those where some personal injury is known, but where it could be said that there exists a material unknown injury. Let it be noted that, as will be shown, if the releasor knowingly intended to release unknown injuries, and the court is convinced of this, the application of the doctrine of mutual mistake becomes irrelevant

Genome-wide DNA hypomethylation and RNA:DNA hybrid accumulation in Aicardi-Goutières syndrome.

Aicardi-Goutières syndrome (AGS) is a severe childhood inflammatory disorder that shows clinical and genetic overlap with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). AGS is thought to arise from the accumulation of incompletely metabolized endogenous nucleic acid species owing to mutations in nucleic acid-degrading enzymes TREX1 (AGS1), RNase H2 (AGS2, 3 and 4), and SAMHD1 (AGS5). However, the identity and source of such immunogenic nucleic acid species remain undefined. Using genome-wide approaches, we show that fibroblasts from AGS patients with AGS1-5 mutations are burdened by excessive loads of RNA:DNA hybrids. Using MethylC-seq, we show that AGS fibroblasts display pronounced and global loss of DNA methylation and demonstrate that AGS-specific RNA:DNA hybrids often occur within DNA hypomethylated regions. Altogether, our data suggest that RNA:DNA hybrids may represent a common immunogenic form of nucleic acids in AGS and provide the first evidence of epigenetic perturbations in AGS, furthering the links between AGS and SLE

Avoidance of P.I. Releases for Mutual Mistake: Recent Cases

The purpose of this article is to determine the factors which currently persuade courts to set aside releases under the doctrine of mutual mistake. Therefore, cases involving fraud, misrepresentation, overreaching, or unilateral mistake are outside the scope, except as they shed light on the doctrine\u27s application. We shall consider first those cases where there is thought to be no personal injury at the time of releasing, and then those where some personal injury is known, but where it could be said that there exists a material unknown injury. Let it be noted that, as will be shown, if the releasor knowingly intended to release unknown injuries, and the court is convinced of this, the application of the doctrine of mutual mistake becomes irrelevant