ARGOS - Modelling the Economic, Environmental, and Social Implications for New Zealand from Different Scenarios Relating to the Demand and Supply of Organic Products

This paper reports on some of the initial findings of the ARGOS (Agricultural Research Group on (Sustainability) programme, a 6 year quasi-experimental research project with the aim to model the economic, environmental, and social differences between organic, environmentally friendly and conventional systems of production. In the first section the paper reviews the development of organic markets, details the production costs and reports some preliminary results from ARGOS. The information is then used to develop potential future scenarios relating to the organic sector, which are assessed using the Lincoln Trade and Environment Model (LTEM), a partial equilibrium trade model that differentiates between organic and conventional production methods. This paper concentrates upon the difference between organic and conventional production, consumption and trade.sustainability, New Zealand, organic markets, ARGOS, Demand and Price Analysis, F18, Q17,

Alternatives in the treatment of abdominal rectus muscle diastasis : an evaluation

Introduction Abdominal rectus diastasis (ARD) is defined as a widening of the distance between the two rectus muscles located on either side of the Linea Alba (LA). A width of more than 3 cm is, in this thesis, considered as pathological. There are several reasons why ARD occurs, where pregnancy is one of the most common. Genetic variations in collagen composition, massive weight loss, and previous abdominal surgery are others. Patients with ARD usually perceive no pain at rest whereas discomfort, pain, corset instability and bulging of the abdominal wall are symptoms appearing during physical activity. Conclusive data regarding the most appropriate treatment of ARD are sparse, and studies with focus on abdominal wall function and quality of life after repair are lacking. Furthermore, no reliable data exist regarding evaluation of patients with ARD prior to surgery and the relevance of specific symptoms, width of ARD and abdominal wall strength. The overall aim of the present thesis was to evaluate the outcome of two surgical methods with regard to relapse of ARD; repair with a retromuscular mesh or double row self-retaining suture. Quality-of-life, pain and abdominal muscle strength were important secondary endpoints in the outcome of repair. Secondary aims were to evaluate: the effects of a dedicated training programme on symptoms and complaints from ARD; imaging and measurements of the ARD width prior to surgery; and to develop a reliable method for evaluation of abdominal wall strength. Material and methods Study I The validity and reliability of the Biodex System-4, was tested in ten healthy volunteers and ten patients with ARD ≥3 cm. The reliability of isokinetic and isometric muscle strength was assessed by test-retest with one week in between. Validity was tested by IPAQ (International Physical Activity Questionnaire) and VAS-assessment of patient-perceived muscle strength. Study II The width of ARD was evaluated clinically, with CT-scan and intra-operatively in 55 patients. Agreement between these modalities was evaluated to determine the most relevant measurement. Study III Early complications during the initial three postoperative months were monitored in 56 patients of whom 29 were randomised to repair with a retromuscular mesh and 27 to the Quill™ suture technique. All patients presented with an ARD wider than 3 cm. Study IV The same 56 patients randomised to surgery as in Study III were compared to 30 patients assigned to a training programme. Follow-up for the operated patients was at 1 year while training outcome was studied after the stated period of 3 months. Results The reliability of the Biodex System-4 was excellent as shown by ICC (Intra Class Correlation) statistics. The internal validity was excellent when compared to VAS using Spearman’s test. The external validity showed no correlation between IPAQ and isometric muscle strength using the Kendall-Tau test (Study I). Evaluation of the three methods to assess ARD showed a strong agreement (high CCC; Concordance Correlation Coefficient) between the clinical and intraoperative measurements whereas CT-scan and intraoperative measurements did not show agreement (low CCC). CT measurements underestimated the width of the ARD (Study II). Minor complications were observed three months after surgery. No significant difference between the two surgical groups in terms of early complication and perceived pain was observed. Patients in the mesh group experienced greater improvement in abdominal muscle strength (Study III). One year after surgery one recurrence was documented in the Quill group and five encapsulated seromas were distributed with no difference between the two surgical groups. Biodex System-4 showed significant improvement in all muscle strength modalities with the three methods. Quality-of-life (SF-36) domains were all significantly improved one year after surgery (p<0.001) with the exception of bodily pain (BP) in the physiotherapy group after three months of training (Study IV). Conclusions The prospective randomised trial has shown that patients with an ARD wider than 3 cm have physical symptoms and poorer quality of life than an age-matched Swedish population. Surgical intervention improves patient comfort and improves quality of life. There is no difference between the Quill technique and retromuscular mesh in the effect on abdominal wall stability, with a similar complication rate one year after surgery. Dedicated training strengthens abdominal muscles objectively but does not improve perceived muscle strength or pain in the abdominal wal

Does symbolic recognition matter? - Secession-inducing features of symbolic recognition in two autonomous sub-state entities within Spain

This essay is a hypothesis-generating study that theorizes on secession-inducing features of symbolic recognition in places divided by national, ethnic, linguistic or cultural diversity, something that has generally been overlooked in the research field of constitutional design, secessionism and power sharing systems. The hypothesis is partially tested using a most-similar research design for two autonomous sub-state entities in Spain (Galicia and Catalonia) to show indications of the hypothesized relationship. It suggests that rejection of symbolic recognition could work as a secession-inducing mechanism in the short-term with effects on citizens’ preferences on independence in sub-state entities. Rejection of symbolic affirmations can give leeway to secessionist agendas and was certainly a trigger mechanism in the growth of secessionism in Catalonia from 2010

Symptoms and aspects on eosinophil activity in allergic rhinitis

Allergic rhinitis is a major atopic disease. Even if much is known about the pathophysiology of this condition, and despite the fact that good treatments are available, there is a need for new treatment options, particularly for such aiming at new targets and reduced side effects. Recruitment and activation of eosinophils is a key feature of allergic rhinitis. Eosinophils have different activation modes with subsequent mediator release. Before and during a natural birch pollen season we take nasal biopsies and utilize electron microscopy to assess eosinophil activity. We show that allergen exposure produces a marked increase in piecemeal degranulation and release of mediators (indicated by ECP). Variations in onset, intensity, and duration of natural pollen exposure make it difficult to compare treatments in allergic rhinitis. To overcome this, we demonstrate that repeated individualized allergen challenges can produce symptoms and signs that mimic seasonal disease. We indicate the usefulness of the model by demonstrating dose-dependent symptom-reducing effects of a topical corticosteroid. Preceding observations suggest that ß2-agonists may be treatment candidates for allergic inflammation. Utilizing the above-mentioned allergen challenge model, we examine whether or not a topical ß2-agonist (formoterol) affect eosinophilic inflammation in allergic rhinitis. We demonstrate that the ß2-agonist neither affects symptoms and eosinophilic inflammation in allergic rhinitis nor the efficacy of a topical corticosteroid. Employing the allergen challenge model, and a topical corticosteroid as experimental tool, we demonstrate that production of the eosinophil chemokine CCL5 is particularly corticosteroid sensitive, suggesting that it may be a valid treatment target

Impact of Coastal Erosion and Sedimentation along the Northern Coast of Sinai Peninsula

Coastal engineering activities during the past five decades have resulted in considerable shoreline change along the northern coast of Sinai Peninsula. In the west of El Arish Power Plant, sediment accretion has reached the tip of the breakwater of the cooling water intake basin necessitating extensive dredging inside the basin. In the east of El Arish Harbor, the shoreline is continuously retreating. Previous activities to mitigate the erosion have not succeeded. For example, the groin field in the east of the El Arish Harbor has transferred the problem to the neighboring beaches farther downcoast. In this study predominant coastal processes affecting the erosion of the Sinai northern coastline were investigated. Wave-induced longshore currents were found to be responsible for transporting the littoral drift along the coastline. Longshore sediment transport, from Port Said to Ashqelon, was quantified and the general patterns of erosion-accretion were determined by looking upon the gradients between transport rates along the coast. Particular emphasis was placed on shoreline change due to perturbations introduced by infrastructure sited at the coastline near El Arish. The shoreline change at El Arish Power Plant and Harbor were modeled using the coastal evolution model GENESIS. Having understood the coastal processes driving the shoreline change at these two locations, appropriate remedial measures were proposed to mitigate the problem. In this regard, a combination of hard and soft coastal engineering methods are presented to alleviate the dredging problem at the power plant while sand-bypassing/beach-nourishment is suggested as an effective sustainable solution to the erosion problem in the east of El Arish Harbor

BECCS and DACCS as Negative Emission Providers in an Intermittent Electricity System: Why Levelized Cost of Carbon May Be a Misleading Measure for Policy Decisions

Carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from the atmosphere is likely to be needed to limit global warming to 1.5 or 2\ub0C and thereby for meeting the Paris Agreement. There is a debate which methods are most suitable and cost-effective for this goal and thus deeper understanding of system effects related to CDR are needed for effective governance of these technologies. Bio-Energy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS) and Direct Air Carbon Capture and Storage (DACCS) are two CDR methods, that have a direct relation to the electricity system—BECCS via producing it and DACCS via consuming. In this work, we investigate how BECCS and DACCS interact with an intermittent electricity system to achieve net negative emissions in the sector using an energy system model and two regions with different wind and solar resource conditions. The analysis shows that DACCS has a higher levelized cost of carbon (LCOC) than BECCS, implying that it is less costly to capture CO2 using BECCS under the assumptions made in this study. However, due to a high levelized cost of electricity (LCOE) produced by BECCS, the total system cost is lower using DACCS as negative emission provider as it is more flexible and enables cheaper electricity production from wind and solar PV. We also find that the replacement effect outweighs the flexibility effect. Since variations in solar-based systems are more regular and shorter (daily cycles), one could assume that DACCS is better suited for such systems, whereas our results point in the opposite direction showing that DACCS is more competitive in the wind-based systems. The result is sensitive to the price of biomass and to the amount of negative emissions required from the electricity sector. Our results show that the use of the LCOC as often presented in the literature as a main indicator for choosing between different CDR options might be misleading and that broader system effects need to be considered for well-grounded decisions

Comparative whole-genome analysis of Streptococcus mutans isolates within and among individuals of different caries status

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/74592/1/j.1399-302X.2008.00495.x.pd

Research rationale for the economic objective, ARGOS

The primary interest of an economist is the allocation of scarce resources to satisfy infinite“wants”, and several theories on how this can be done has been developed. The mostprominent and well known of these theories are Marxism and the neo-classical approach.The dominating theme in the post war economics has been financial growth and until the1960’s, environmental concerns were of secondary importance. From then and onwards, agrowing awareness of the social and environmental costs of financial growth has fuelled anongoing debate and contributed to approaches in economics that explicitly recognises socialand environmental aspects of the economic context.Also these “new” theories differ in the way they propose society should go about allocatingour scarce resources to different uses. However, in our opinion, they share a commonobjective, i.e. to maximize societies welfare, with welfare very broadly defined, definitelyincluding such things as clean air and nice views as well as financial aspects