Development of a framework for the evaluation of the environmental benefits of controlled traffic farming

Although controlled traffic farming (CTF) is an environmentally friendly soil management system, no quantitative evaluation of environmental benefits is available. This paper aims at establishing a framework for quantitative evaluation of the environmental benefits of CTF, considering a list of environmental benefits, namely, reducing soil compaction, runoff/erosion, energy requirement and greenhouse gas emission (GHG), conserving organic matter, enhancing soil biodiversity and fertiliser use efficiency. Based on a comprehensive literature review and the European Commission Soil Framework Directive, the choice of and the weighting of the impact of each of the environmental benefits were made. The framework was validated using data from three selected farms. For Colworth farm (Unilever, UK), the framework predicted the largest overall environmental benefit of 59.3% of the theoretically maximum achievable benefits (100%), as compared to the other two farms in Scotland (52%) and Australia (47.3%). This overall benefit could be broken down into: reducing soil compaction (24%), tillage energy requirement (10%) and GHG emissions (3%), enhancing soil biodiversity (7%) and erosion control (6%), conserving organic matter (6%), and improving fertiliser use efficiency (3%). Similar evaluation can be performed for any farm worldwide, providing that data on soil properties, topography, machinery, and weather are available

Testing near-rationality using detailed survey data

This paper considers the evidence of “near-rationality,” as described by Akerlof, Dickens, and Perry (2000). Using detailed surveys of household inflation expectations for the United States and Sweden, we find that the data are generally unsupportive of the near-rationality hypothesis. However, we document that household inflation expectations tend to settle around discrete and largely fixed “focal points,” suggesting that both U.S. and Swedish households gauge inflation prospects in rather broad, qualitative terms. Moreover, the combination of a low-inflation environment and an inflation target in Sweden has been accompanied by a disproportionately high proportion of Swedish households expecting no inflation. However, a similar low inflation trend in the United States, which does not have an explicit inflation target, reveals no such rise in the proportion of households expecting no inflation. This observation suggests that the way the central bank communicates its inflation objective may influence inflation expectations independently of the inflation trend it actually pursues.Inflation (Finance) ; Rational expectations (Economic theory)

Testing near-rationality using detailed survey data

This paper considers the evidence of “near-rationality,†as described by Akerlof, Dickens, and Perry (2000). Using detailed surveys of household inflation expectations for the United States and Sweden, we find that the data are generally unsupportive of the near-rationality hypothesis. However, we document that household inflation expectations tend to settle around discrete and largely fixed “focal points,†suggesting that both U.S. and Swedish households gauge inflation prospects in rather broad, qualitative terms. Moreover, the combination of a low-inflation environment and an inflation target in Sweden has been accompanied by a disproportionately high proportion of Swedish households expecting no inflation. However, a similar low-inflation trend in the United States, which does not have an explicit inflation target, reveals no such rise in the proportion of households expecting no inflation. This observation suggests that the way the central bank communicates its inflation objective may influence inflation expectations independently of the inflation trend it actually pursues.inflation expectations, rationality, inflation targeting, Phillips curve, Bryan, Palmqvist

Los antecedentes del libro "La evolución": La Masterometría de Crusafont y Truyols, los "Cursillos Internacionales de Paleontología de Sabadell"(1952-1958) y el desarrollo de la paleontología evolutiva en España

Con una edad estimada en ~1,4 Ma, los yacimientos del Pleistoceno inferior de Barranco León-D y Fuente Nueva-3 (cuenca de Baza, sureste de España) suministran las evidencias más tempranas de presencia humana en Europa occidental. En este trabajo usamos un enfoque matemático basado en matrices de Leslie para cuantificar, en las tafocenosis de grandes mamíferos conservadas en los yacimientos, la biomasa de consumidores primarios disponible, su distribución entre los consumidores secundarios y la intensidad de la competencia en la asociación de carnívoros. Los resultados obtenidos muestran una paleocomunidad con una alta diversidad de consumidores secundarios, los cuales satisfarían algo menos de sus requerimientos bajo condiciones ecológicas óptimas. En lo relativo a Homo sp., y considerando que esta especie obtendría los recursos cárnicos del carroñeo de cadáveres de ungulados, el modelo indica que los ecosistemas de la cuenca podrían soportar entre 10 y 14 individuos cada 100 km2 durante un año, valores que resultan próximos a la densidad poblacional media de los cazadores-recolectores modernos.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

Sobre las tentaciones cronométricas en bioestratigrafía y la ortogénesis subyacente

La edad de los eventos geológicos se puede estimar mediante dos aproximaciones diferentes: las técnicas de datación absoluta, donde se mide el tiempo transcurrido desde que sucedió el evento, y las de datación relativa, en las que el evento se sitúa cronológicamente en relación a otros, por lo que no se usa unidades temporales homogéneas. En las primeras se precisa un proceso físico regulado por alguna expresión matemática en la que el tiempo intervenga como variable (como ocurre en las técnicas basadas en la desintegración radioactiva, la luminiscencia o la racemización de aminoácidos) y que se inicie de forma coincidente con el evento que se pretende datar. En las segundas se usan otras unidades (vg., biozonas, crones y estadios isotópicos), a menudo combinadas entre sí. A los profanos la datación relativa les suele parecer como de menor valor y precisión que la absoluta, induciéndoles a pensar que se trata de un tipo de ordenación temporal muy particular de la geología. No es éste el caso, pues esta datación es la que se usa en la narración de los sucesos históricos y, más importante aún, al combinar unidades bioestratigráficas y magnetoestratigráficas, de distinta naturaleza, se alcanza una gran precisión cronostratigráfica, por lo que ambas se usan para establecer los límites de pisos y edades (véase la redefinición del límite Plio-Pleistoceno en 2,588 Ma, coincidente con el tránsito entre los crones Gauss y Matuyama). Pese a ello, y quizás por su amplia tradición de uso en paleontología, algunos colegas caen recurrentemente en la tentación de elaborar enfoques cronométricos a partir de los grupos fósiles que les son más familiares, mediante ajustes de cambio rectilineal en linajes de organismos pretéritos donde se asume, a menudo inadvertidamente, una lógica ortogeneticista para las tendencias evolutivas que se pretende describir, lo que constituye una variante del razonamiento de “si hoy es martes, esto es Bélgica”.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

VENTA MICENA (CUENCA DE BAZA, GRANADA): UN FOSSIL-LAGERSTÄTTE EXCEPCIONAL PARA EL CONOCIMIENTO DE LOS GRANDES MAMÍFEROS CONTINENTALES DEL PLEISTOCENO INFERIOR

Comunicación oral al congresoEl yacimiento de Venta Micena se sitúa en el borde nororiental de la cuenca de Baza (depresión de Guadix-Baza, Granada) y conserva una de las tafocenosis de grandes mamíferos más importantes del Pleistoceno inferior en la región circum-mediterránea. Los restos exhumados afloran con alta densidad en un estrato plano-horizontal de potencia variable, entre 80 y 120 cm, que se puede seguir longitudinalmente a lo largo de más de 2,5 km. Durante las tres últimas décadas se ha intervenido en diversos puntos del mismo, en particular los cortes III y IV, que representan unos 320 m2 de superficie de excavación, recuperándose en ellos más de 25.000 restos esqueléticos y elementos de la dentición de grandes mamíferos en excelente estado de conservación, de los cuales aproximadamente la mitad son determinables anatómica y/o taxonómicamente. Es precisamente esta riqueza del registro lo que ha permitido realizar un estudio detallado de los atributos tafonómicos del yacimiento, poniendo de manifiesto los sesgos experimentados por la tafocenosis y efectuando numerosas inferencias paleobiológicas sobre los componentes de esta fauna del Pleistoceno inferior, como las relativas a las relaciones depredador-presa en el seno de la paleocomunidad o el importante papel desempeñado por la hiena gigante Pachycrocuta brevirostris en la génesis de la asociación ósea.Sociedad Española de Paleontologí

En busca de los primeros europeos: el excepcional registro fósil de Orce (cuenca de Guadix-Baza, Granada) como ventana al estudio de los ecosistemas de inicios del pleistoceno en la Europa meridional

The chronology of the first dispersal of the genus Homo in Europe has been subjected to intense debate and controversy during the last two decades. Until the mid-nineties most paleoanthropologists believed that there was no conclusive evidence of permanent human settlements before 0.6-0.4 Ma (Mauer, Boxgrove), with most localities concentrating at 0.3-0.2 Ma (Arago, Petralona, Swanscombe, Steinheim, Atapuerca Sima de los Huesos). However, a number of new fi ndings and the re-evaluation of the evidence available pointed to an earlier dispersal, suggesting that the fi rst arrival of hominids in the Levantine Corridor and Southern Asia took place during late Pliocene times. In addition, there is growing evidence of an early colonization of Western Eurasia, including the fossil remains and lithic tools from Atapuerca TD-6 and Sima del Elefante in NW Spain (both placed below the Bruhnes- Matuyama magnetic reversal, with an age tentatively estimated in 0.8 and 1.2-1.1 Ma, respectively), the archaeological evidence from Fuente Nueva and Barranco León in the Orce area, SE Spain (1.4-1.3 Ma) and, specially, the impressive paleoanthropological record from Dmanisi in the Caucasus (1.77 Ma). The use of combined biogeochemical and ecomorphological approaches has provided an emerging view of the early Pleistocene fauna from Western Europe, making possible to derive inferences on the dietary regimes, habitat preferences and ecological interactions of the large mammals that composed the community inhabited by the hominids. These studies, developed in the Lower Pleistocene assemblage from Venta Micena (Guadix-Baza basin, Granada), have allowed reconstructing the paleoecological and environmental scenario of the first human dispersal from Africa.La cronología de la primera dispersión del género Homo en Europa se ha visto sometida a un debate intenso durante las dos úlimas décadas. Así, hasta mediados los noventa la mayoría de los paleoantropólogos pensaba que no existían evidencias concluyentes sobre asentamientos humanos permanentes antes de 0,6-0,4 Ma (Mauer, Boxgrove), con la mayoría de las localidades concentrándose en torno a 0,3-0,2 Ma (Arago, Petralona, Swanscombe, Steinheim, Sima de los Huesos de Atapuerca). Sin embargo, una serie de hallazgos y la reevaluación de las evidencias disponibles han venido a indicar una dispersión anterior, al sugerir que la llegada de los homínidos al corredor levantino y el sur de Asia tuvo lugar a fi nales del Plioceno. Además, no deja de crecer el número de evidencias que apuntan a una colonización temprana del margen occidental de Eurasia, entre ellas los restos fósiles y asociaciones líticas del nivel TD-6 de Gran Dolina y el yacimiento de Sima del Elefante, ambos en Atapuerca (situados bajo la inversión magnética Bruhnes-Matuyama, con una edad estimada en 0,8 y 1,2-1,1 Ma, respectivamente), las evidencias arqueológicas recuperadas en dos localidades de Orce, Fuente Nueva y Barranco León, en el sureste de España (1,4-1,3 Ma) y, especialmente, el impresionante registro paleoantropológico de Dmanisi en el Caúcaso (1,77 Ma). El uso combinado de métodos biogeoquímicos y ecomorfológicos ha proporcionado una imagen emergente sobre la fauna del Pleistoceno inferior de Europa occidental, posibilitando deducir inferencias sobre el régimen trófico, las preferencias de hábitat y las interacciones ecológicas entre las especies de grandes mamíferos que conformaban la comunidad en la que se asentaron estas primeras poblaciones humanas. Tales estudios, desarrollados en la asociación fósil de Venta Micena (cuenca de Guadix-Baza, Granada), han permitido reconstruir el escenario paleoecológico y ambiental en el que tuvo lugar la primera dispersión humana desde África

Look out and look in : a design proposal for Torsburgens new nature path

Sveriges naturvårdslag säger att vi har en skyldighet att skydda natur och att göra den tillgänglig för alla. Naturområden skyddas av flera anledningar, dels för bevarandet av biologisk mångfald, dels för att ge människor plats för friluftsliv. Examensarbetet syftar till att föreslå en gestaltning för ett naturområde som bidrar till ökad tillgänglighet och orienterbarhet, och som samtidigt förhåller sig till befintliga naturvärden. Torsburgens naturreservat på östra Gotland är ett naturområde där det idag inte har gjorts några större satsningar för att öka tillgängligheten, liksom de flesta andra i länet och är därmed lämpligt som projektplats för att kunna besvara frågeställningar. Genom en gestaltning har jag arbetat med tillgänglighet utifrån två aspekter, genom att öka den fysiska tillgängligheten och den kognitiva. Förslagets utformning är inspirerad av den platsspecifika karaktären och ämnar att bibehålla områdets känsla av orörd natur. Ett introducerande platsbesök inledde gestaltningsprocessen. Inledningsvis gjordes en landskapskaraktärsanalys inspirerad av Trafikverkets Integrerad Landskapskaraktärsanalys (ILKA). Analysen och platsbesök identifierade naturreservatets naturvärden, målpunkter, samt vilka gestaltningsåtgärder som var lämpliga. Parallellt med analysarbetet gjordes en studie av referensplatser. Syftet var att undersöka och inspireras av samtida gestaltning i områden med liknande funktion eller förutsättningar som projektplatsen. För att kunna svara på arbetets frågeställningar utvecklades ett förslag, metoden var gestaltning. Gestaltningen utgår från programpunkter och en bärande idé som bygger på arbetets kunskapsöversikt, analys och platsbesök. Den bärande idén utgår från ett förhållningssätt som bygger på att gestaltningen sker på naturmiljöns villkor. Genom en gestaltningsprocess utvecklades förslaget Blicka ut och blicka in: Ett gestaltningsförslag för Torsburgens nya naturstig. Förslaget innefattar tillägg vars syfte är att öka tillgängligheten, samt synliggöra områdets natur och målpunkter. Ett längre och ett kortare stråk tar besökaren runt naturreservatet, i det svårframkomliga brandområdet har en spång adderats som ett komplement för att minska åverkan på miljön och samtidigt bibehålla karaktären. Runt om i reservatet har det tillkommit sociala ytor som tar fasta på områdets utsikter. En utveckling av områdets skyltprogram ökar orienterbarheten och förståelsen för naturreservatet, samtidigt som det är en metod för naturskydd. Gestaltningen ger möjligheten för fler att besöka och ta del av Torsburgens naturreservats speciella natur och historia.Sweden's Nature Conservation Act says that we have an obligation to protect nature and to make it accessible to everyone. Natural areas are protected for several reasons, partly for the preservation of biological diversity, partly to give people space for outdoor life. The degree project aims to propose a design for a natural area that contributes to increased accessibility and orientation, and which at the same time relates to existing natural and cultural values. The Torsburgen nature reserve in eastern Gotland is today an outdoor area that does not meet the requirements for accessibility, like most others in the county. Through a design, I have worked with accessibility based on two aspects, partly by making the area physically accessible, partly by making it cognitively accessible. In the proposal, there is a focus on designing based on the site-specific character in order to maintain the feeling of untouched nature. A site visit introduced the place and started the design process. Initially, a landscape character analysis inspired by the Swedish Transport Administration's Integrated Landscape Character Analysis (ILKA) was carried out. The analysis and site visit identified the nature reserve's natural values, target points, and which design measures were appropriate. In parallel with the analysis work, a study of reference sites was carried out. The aim was to investigate and be inspired by contemporary design in areas with similar function or conditions as the project site. In order to be able to answer the work's questions, a proposal was developed. The method was embodiment. The design was based on program points and a supporting idea based on the work's knowledge overview, analysis and site visits. The main idea is based on an approach that is based on the creation taking place on the conditions of the natural environment. Through a design process, the proposal Look out and look in was developed: A design proposal for Torsburgen's new nature trail. The proposal includes additions whose purpose is to increase accessibility, as well as make the nature of the area and target points visible. A longer and a shorter path takes the visitor around the nature reserve, in the difficult-to-access fire area, a span has been added as a supplement to reduce the impact on the environment and maintain the character. Around the reserve, social spaces have been added that take advantage of the area's outlook. A development of the area's sign program increases orientation and understanding of the nature reserve, while at the same time it contributes to protecting the natural environment. The design provides the opportunity for more people to visit and take part in Torsburgen nature reserve's special nature and history

Hygiene at CT and MRI

Background: Preventing the spread of infections is a constant battle against microorganisms. Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) with multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria are a global problem today and causes suffering for patients and have high costs for society. In a hospital environment, patients with various illnesses and injuries meet, a large proportion of these people will also pass the radiology department, which places high demands on good hygienic standards to avoid HAIs. Although much research has been conducted on hygiene routines and the spread of infection in healthcare, most of the research has not focused on the radiology department. Aims: The overall goal of this thesis was to study hygiene in public and private radiology departments’ CT and MRI facilities with a focus on bacterial growth and the attitude of staff and managers to hygiene guidelines. The purpose of Study I was to identify selected hand-touched surfaces inside and outside the CT and MRI examination rooms that are prone to contamination and might represent a risk for transmission of HAI pathogens. We also aimed to examine if there were differences in bacterial contamination between public and private radiology departments. The purpose of Study II was to investigate the compliance with basic hygiene guidelines among the staff working with CT and MRI and the managers' approaches to basic hygiene routines. Finally, we aimed to examine differences in adherence to hygiene guidelines among staff employees within public and private radiology departments. Material and Methods: The same radiology departments participated in Study I and II (six public and four private radiology departments). For Study I, bacterial samples were taken from selected hand-touched surfaces inside and outside CT and MRI examination rooms. Sampling was carried out between patients after standard cleaning procedure, using flocked nylon swabs. The swab was applied over a 100 cm2 surface, and after cultivation the number of, bacterial colony forming units (CFU) per cm2 was calculated, with values >2.5 CFU/cm2 being indicative of contamination. Study II was based on a survey data. One questionnaire was distributed to the staff working with CT and MRI with questions about basic hygiene guidelines. The second questionnaire was distributed to managers, also with questions about basic hygiene guidelines. A total of 250 surveys (210 for CT- and MRI staff and 40 for managers) were distributed in paper format at the radiology departments during the autumn of 2016. Closed questions were summarised in frequency tables, and comparisons between groups regarding categorical data were analysed using Fisher ́s exact test, and t-test was carried out to compare continuous variables. The open questions were analysed with inspiration from manifest qualitative and quantitative content analysis. Results: The results of Study I did not show any growth of MDR bacteria, however surfaces were found where the number of CFU exceeded the limit value of 2.5 2 CFU/cm . Keyboards, chairs in the patient changing rooms, headphones, and the alarm control/buzzer were found to be the most contaminated surfaces. The least contaminated surfaces were the medicine trolley and the sides of the MRI tunnel. There was no significant difference between public and private radiology departments. The results of Study II showed that the main reasons why staff working with CT and MRI did not follow basic hygiene guidelines were stress, lack of time, and the occurrence of emergency situations. The managers also believed that stress and lack of time were strong reasons for why staff did not follow the basic hygiene guidelines. Most staff working with CT and MRI in both public and private radiology departments reported adequate hygiene knowledge. Among the variances that emerged between staff working in public and private radiology departments, there, was a significant difference (p = 0.007) regarding the compliance with not wearing rings, bracelets or nail polish while performing patient- related work. There was also a significant difference (p < 0.001) regarding the use of plastic aprons when there was a risk of contaminating the work clothes. There was also a significant difference (p = 0.003) between how the staff of public and private CT and MRI facilities cleaned the examination tables between each patient. Conclusion: Identified areas within CT and MRI in both public and private radiology departments, that need more disinfection are keyboards, chairs in the patient changing rooms, headphones, and the alarm control/buzzer. No MDR indicator microorganisms were found in the study, and there were no significant differences between public and private radiology departments. The main reasons why the staff both in public and private CT and MRI did not follow the hygiene guidelines were stress, lack of time, and emergency situations. Among the significant differences that emerged between staff working in public and private radiology departments were wearing bracelets, rings and nail polish in patient- related work, and the use of plastic aprons, and disinfection of the examination table between patients