Schoolyard Geology as a Bridge between Urban Thinkers and the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

d'Alessio, Matthew A.

2012-01-01

Students who have a strong urban place-identity may perceive the natural world differently from many geoscience instructors. These urban thinkers have less experience in the natural world and are more comfortable in built environments. They may have subtle differences in cognitive and spatial skill development, interest level in the natural…

Hybridizing Cultural Understandings of the Natural World to Foster Critical Science Literacy

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tang, Kok Sing

Adolescents are constantly exposed to multiple cultural views of the natural world in juxtaposition with the dominant view of science taught in school. This dissertation explores the interaction of these multiple views, and how they shape students' understanding of and attitudes toward science. Situated in a high school physics classroom, a curricular approach was designed and enacted to open a space in the classroom for the convergence of multiple discourses (or systems of cultural knowledge), and subsequently study how students navigate around them. Ethnographic and critical inquiry revealed that when two or more discourses about similar natural events or objects (e.g., toss of a colorguard flag, human body) were directly juxtaposed in the classroom space, conceptual, affective, and ideological conflicts were generated for certain students. This was particularly so for students whose embedded experiences and social affiliations within certain discourse communities (e.g., sport clubs, church) led to their preferred ways of looking at the natural world from one particular discourse, and consequently a negative stance toward alternative ways in other discourses. However, through appropriate pedagogical design and support, such juxtaposition also created opportunities for some students to hybridize different cultural understandings of the natural world as they navigated around multiple discourses. Informed by Bakhtin's notions of heteroglossia and voice appropriation, the characteristics of such hybridization were found to include: (a) being aware of heteroglossic differences in the use of language, (b) a dynamic shift in identification toward the dialogic other, (c) a juxtaposition of the other's voices in one's utterances, and (d) a momentary suppression of one's preferences, for strategic motives. Not only did hybridization provide a means for some students to construct conceptual knowledge across discourses, but it also helped them develop critical literacy in

Conception of the Natural World.

PubMed

Bruno, Andy

2016-09-01

Thoroughly a product of imperial Russia’s aristocratic culture, the mineralogist and geochemist Aleksandr Fersman rose to the top of the country’s scientific establishment after the Bolsheviks took control. He then remained a staunch supporter of various industrial projects through much of the Stalinist period. This essay puts Fersman’s thinking about the natural world in conversation with a quite distinctive mode of intellectual inquiry that developed contemporaneously. Eurasianism was a philosophical doctrine of a group of Russian émigrés who emphasized Russia’s unique status straddling Europe and Asia. While Fersman did not belong to this group of thinkers, a number of his ideas drew on specific experiences in the environments of the Eurasian landmass. Indeed, the article argues that Fersman’s dualistic understanding of nature, his advocacy for the field of geochemistry, his definition of deserts, and a scheme he proposed for industrial operations owed much to the Eurasian settings of the science he practiced. Furthermore, this case of a Eurasian mineralogist illuminates novel aspects of the interplay between national and global sciences.

The Natural World as Understood by Selected College Students: A World View Methodological Exploration.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cobern, William W.

World view variations potentially interfere with science education, particularly when instruction proceeds unaware of the importance of fundamental epistemological structure of learning. The research reported here specifically addresses the cognitive culture of women college students with respect to conceptualizations of nature, a delimitation of…

Bonding with the Natural World: The Roots of Environmental Awareness

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chawla, Louise

2013-01-01

With delicate literary style and allusions, Louise Chawla combines her ecological research and Montessori background to portray the unfolding of childhood in natural places. Starting with "enchantment with the world" as the basis for nature education for the child under six, the article suggests that the "loose parts" in the…

Vision in the natural world.

PubMed

Hayhoe, Mary M; Rothkopf, Constantin A

2011-03-01

Historically, the study of visual perception has followed a reductionist strategy, with the goal of understanding complex visually guided behavior by separate analysis of its elemental components. Recent developments in monitoring behavior, such as measurement of eye movements in unconstrained observers, have allowed investigation of the use of vision in the natural world. This has led to a variety of insights that would be difficult to achieve in more constrained experimental contexts. In general, it shifts the focus of vision away from the properties of the stimulus toward a consideration of the behavioral goals of the observer. It appears that behavioral goals are a critical factor in controlling the acquisition of visual information from the world. This insight has been accompanied by a growing understanding of the importance of reward in modulating the underlying neural mechanisms and by theoretical developments using reinforcement learning models of complex behavior. These developments provide us with the tools to understanding how tasks are represented in the brain, and how they control acquisition of information through use of gaze. WIREs Cogni Sci 2011 2 158-166 DOI: 10.1002/wcs.113 For further resources related to this article, please visit the WIREs website. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Father Nature: Fathers as Guides to the Natural World. American Land & Life Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Piper, Paul S., Ed.; Tag, Stan, Ed.

This book contains 19 personal essays on the role that fathers play in fostering connections between their children and the natural world. Written from the perspective of adult children or of fathers themselves, most essays show how outdoor activities, particularly hunting and fishing, are replicated across the generations and serve to foster…

The Elementary Child's Place in the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Allen, Phoebe

2013-01-01

Phoebe Allen's article speaks for the early bonding of children to the natural world prior to the elementary class. She also suggests the continuing exploration of children at elementary age in the outdoors in order to build the necessary sense of wonder and love of the environment to overcome anxiety over the negative realities of the planet's…

World views: Their nature and function in the biology classroom

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Armstrong, Kerri Lynn

There has been sufficient research in the area of conceptual change that indicates that students' conceptions or alternative theories are much more resistant to change than was previously thought. The work of cultural anthropologists and, more recently science educators, points to the role of individual world views in the learning of science concepts. A world view is one's fundamental assumptions and presuppositions concerning perceptions of reality. The purpose of this ethnographic investigation was to shed light on the dynamic interaction of individual world views within the college biology classroom in relation to understanding key biological concepts in genetics, evolution and natural selection, and ecology and ecological relationships. The subjects for this study were 22 students enrolled in an introductory level non-majors biology class at the Community College of Philadelphia. Ten of these students participated in the interviews reported here. The outcomes of this investigation revealed that students do not view themselves as part of science or nature. The investigation also uncovered students' views of the self, nonself, relationship and causality that affect their learning and apprehension of key biological concepts. This investigation provides further demonstration of the influence of world views and the interplay of those views with the notion of scientific literacy.

World Energy Projection System Plus Model Documentation: Natural Gas Module

EIA Publications

2011-01-01

This report documents the objectives, analytical approach and development of the World Energy Projection System Plus (WEPS ) Natural Gas Model. It also catalogues and describes critical assumptions, computational methodology, parameter estimation techniques, and model source code.

No evidence for natural selection on endogenous borna-like nucleoprotein elements after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys.

PubMed

Kobayashi, Yuki; Horie, Masayuki; Tomonaga, Keizo; Suzuki, Yoshiyuki

2011-01-01

Endogenous Borna-like nucleoprotein (EBLNs) elements were recently discovered as non-retroviral RNA virus elements derived from bornavirus in the genomes of various animals. Most of EBLNs appeared to be defective, but some of primate EBLN-1 to -4, which appeared to be originated from four independent integrations of bornavirus nucleoprotein (N) gene, have retained an open reading frame (ORF) for more than 40 million years. It was therefore possible that primate EBLNs have encoded functional proteins during evolution. To examine this possibility, natural selection operating on all ORFs of primate EBLN-1 to -4 was examined by comparing the rates of synonymous and nonsynonymous substitutions. The expected number of premature termination codons in EBLN-1 generated after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys under the selective neutrality was also examined by the Monte Carlo simulation. As a result, natural selection was not identified for the entire region as well as parts of ORFs in the pairwise analysis of primate EBLN-1 to -4 and for any branch of the phylogenetic trees for EBLN-1 to -4 after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys. Computer simulation also indicated that the absence of premature termination codon in the present-day EBLN-1 does not necessarily support the maintenance of function after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys. These results suggest that EBLNs have not generally encoded functional proteins after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys.

Exploring the Natural World with Infants and Toddlers in an Urban Setting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Alyson E.

2008-01-01

In the real world, helping infants explore the earth is not always practical. The logistics of enjoying nature with a group of infants and toddlers in a city can be daunting; however, with a few smart policies and wise decisions about health and safety, sharing nature with young children brings rewards that more than make up for the…

No Evidence for Natural Selection on Endogenous Borna-Like Nucleoprotein Elements after the Divergence of Old World and New World Monkeys

PubMed Central

Kobayashi, Yuki; Horie, Masayuki; Tomonaga, Keizo; Suzuki, Yoshiyuki

2011-01-01

Endogenous Borna-like nucleoprotein (EBLNs) elements were recently discovered as non-retroviral RNA virus elements derived from bornavirus in the genomes of various animals. Most of EBLNs appeared to be defective, but some of primate EBLN-1 to -4, which appeared to be originated from four independent integrations of bornavirus nucleoprotein (N) gene, have retained an open reading frame (ORF) for more than 40 million years. It was therefore possible that primate EBLNs have encoded functional proteins during evolution. To examine this possibility, natural selection operating on all ORFs of primate EBLN-1 to -4 was examined by comparing the rates of synonymous and nonsynonymous substitutions. The expected number of premature termination codons in EBLN-1 generated after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys under the selective neutrality was also examined by the Monte Carlo simulation. As a result, natural selection was not identified for the entire region as well as parts of ORFs in the pairwise analysis of primate EBLN-1 to -4 and for any branch of the phylogenetic trees for EBLN-1 to -4 after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys. Computer simulation also indicated that the absence of premature termination codon in the present-day EBLN-1 does not necessarily support the maintenance of function after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys. These results suggest that EBLNs have not generally encoded functional proteins after the divergence of Old World and New World monkeys. PMID:21912690

Archetypes, Causal Description and Creativity in Natural World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Chiatti, Leonardo

The idea, formulated for the first time by Pauli, of a "creativity" of natural processes on a quantum scale is briefly investigated, with particular reference to the phenomena, common throughout the biological world, involved in the amplification of microscopic "creative" events at oscopic level. The involvement of non-locality is also discussed with reference to the synordering of events, a concept introduced for the first time by Bohm. Some convergences are proposed between the metamorphic process envisaged by Bohm and that envisaged by Goethe, and some possible applications concerning known biological phenomena are briefly discussed.

Of Animals, Nature and People. Teacher's Guide. Preparing for Tomorrow's World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iozzi, Louis A.; And Others

"Of Animals, Nature and People" is one of the "Preparing for Tomorrow's World" (PTW) program modules. PTW is an interdisciplinary, future-oriented program incorporating information from the sciences and social sciences and addressing societal concerns which interface science/technology/society. The program promotes responsible…

Dear World: How Children around the World Feel about Our Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Temple, Lannis, Ed.

This book is a collection of letters and drawings created by children, that illustrate what they like to do with nature, their fears about the future of nature, and how they would like to treat nature. The book's author traveled the world and visited schools from a variety of areas, including large, medium, and small cities, country towns, and…

Asa Wright Nature Center, Like Another World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trimm, Wayne

1983-01-01

The Asa Wright Nature Center, on the Caribbean island of Trinidad, offers a diversity of wildlife species: 108 mammals, 400 birds, 55 reptiles, 25 amphibians, and over 600 butterflies. Learning opportunities include art and photography instruction, lectures, interpretive nature walks, annual resident seminars, and a two-day trip to Tobago. (MH)

Family learning with mobile devices in the outdoors: Designing an e-Trailguide to facilitate families' joint engagement with the natural world

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

McClain, Lucy R.

This study describes the implementation of a self-guiding mobile learning tool designed to support families' engagements with the natural world as they explored the flora and fauna along one nature trail at an environmental center. Thirty-one family groups (n = 105 individuals) participated in this study during the summer season and used an iPad-based e-Trailguide during their nature walk. Design-based research methods guided this study's design, which focused on the third iteration of the e-Trailguide. Data included evaluation of families' content knowledge gains related to the local biodiversity as revealed through post-hike interviews, while videorecords of each family's nature walk experience were also collected. Qualitative analyses focused on the design features within the e-Trailguide that supported the families' technology-mediated engagements with nature and their interactions with each other at one Discovery Spot along the nature trail. Findings include: (a) open-ended interviews after the e-Trailguide experience provided a descriptive understanding of the families' conceptual knowledge gains; (b) four place-based design features within the e-Trailguide enabled and supported families' observational, pointing, and tactile investigation engagements with the natural world; (c) parents took on teacher-like roles for their children by connecting information from the e-Trailguide to the natural objects nearby as evidenced through their frequency of pointing gestures; and (d) the development of an analytical framework related to joint observation strategies used between family members to support science-related sense making. Design recommendations for the future implementation of e-Trailguides in outdoor settings include the incorporation of place-based observational questions, place-based textual prompts for focusing observations, drawing activities to record observations, and place-based images to support identification of wildlife. Key words: family learning

Bioregions and World Order.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Breakthrough, 1985

1985-01-01

What bioregions can do to contribute to world order and security is discussed in this newsletter. A bioregion is defined as an identifiable geographical area of interacting life-systems that is relatively self-sustaining in the ever-renewing processes of nature. Articles included are: "Bioregionalism and World Order" (Gerald Mische);…

77 FR 60984 - World Digital Innovations; Supplemental Notice That Initial Market-Based Rate Filing Includes...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2012-10-05

... DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY Federal Energy Regulatory Commission [Docket No. ER12-2654-001] World Digital Innovations; Supplemental Notice That Initial Market-Based Rate Filing Includes Request for Blanket Section 204 Authorization This is a supplemental notice in the above-referenced proceeding, of World Digital...

Implementation plans included in World Health Organisation guidelines.

PubMed

Wang, Zhicheng; Norris, Susan L; Bero, Lisa

2016-05-20

The implementation of high-quality guidelines is essential to improve clinical practice and public health. The World Health Organisation (WHO) develops evidence-based public health and other guidelines that are used or adapted by countries around the world. Detailed implementation plans are often necessary for local policymakers to properly use the guidelines developed by WHO. This paper describes the plans for guideline implementation reported in WHO guidelines and indicates which of these plans are evidence-based. We conducted a content analysis of the implementation sections of WHO guidelines approved by the WHO guideline review committee between December 2007 and May 2015. The implementation techniques reported in each guideline were coded according to the Cochrane Collaboration's Effective Practice and Organisation of Care (EPOC) taxonomy and classified as passive, active or policy strategies. The frequencies of implementation techniques are reported. The WHO guidelines (n = 123) analysed mentioned implementation techniques 800 times, although most mentioned implementation techniques very briefly, if at all. Passive strategies (21 %, 167/800) and general policy strategies (62 %, 496/800) occurred most often. Evidence-based active implementation methods were generally neglected with no guideline mentioning reminders (computerised or paper) and only one mentioning a multifaceted approach. Many guidelines contained implementation sections that were identical to those used in older guidelines produced by the same WHO technical unit. The prevalence of passive and policy-based implementation techniques as opposed to evidence-based active techniques suggests that WHO guidelines should contain stronger guidance for implementation. This could include structured and increased detail on implementation considerations, accompanying or linked documents that provide information on what is needed to contextualise or adapt a guideline and specific options from among

Using the computer-driven VR environment to promote experiences of natural world immersion

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Frank, Lisa A.

2013-03-01

In December, 2011, over 800 people experienced the exhibit, <1>:"der"//pattern for a virtual environment, created for the fully immersive CAVETM at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This exhibition took my nature-based photographic work and reinterpreted it for virtual reality (VR).Varied responses such as: "It's like a moment of joy," or "I had to see it twice," or "I'm still thinking about it weeks later" were common. Although an implied goal of my 2D artwork is to create a connection that makes viewers more aware of what it means to be a part of the natural world, these six VR environments opened up an unexpected area of inquiry that my 2D work has not. Even as the experience was mediated by machines, there was a softening at the interface between technology and human sensibility. Somehow, for some people, through the unlikely auspices of a computer-driven environment, the project spoke to a human essence that they connected with in a way that went beyond all expectations and felt completely out of my hands. Other interesting behaviors were noted: in some scenarios some spoke of intense anxiety, acrophobia, claustrophobia-even fear of death when the scene took them underground. These environments were believable enough to cause extreme responses and disorientation for some people; were fun, pleasant and wonder-filled for most; and were liberating, poetic and meditative for many others. The exhibition seemed to promote imaginative skills, creativity, emotional insight, and environmental sensitivity. It also revealed the CAVETM to be a powerful tool that can encourage uniquely productive experiences. Quite by accident, I watched as these nature-based environments revealed and articulated an essential relationship between the human spirit and the physical world. The CAVETM is certainly not a natural space, but there is clear potential to explore virtual environments as a path to better and deeper connections between people and nature. We've long associated

How do older people describe their sensory experiences of the natural world? A systematic review of the qualitative evidence.

PubMed

Orr, Noreen; Wagstaffe, Alexandra; Briscoe, Simon; Garside, Ruth

2016-06-01

Despite the increased scholarly interest in the senses and sensory experiences, the topic of older people's sensory engagement with nature is currently under researched. This paper reviews and synthesises qualitative research evidence about how older people, including those living with dementia, describe their sensory engagement with the natural world. Ten databases were searched from 1990 to September 2014: MEDLINE (Ovid), MEDLINE-in-Process (Ovid), PsycINFO (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCO), GreenFILE (EBSCO), ProQuest Sociology, ASSIA (ProQuest), International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (ProQuest); HMIC (Ovid); Social Policy and Practice (Ovid). Forward and backward citation chasing of included articles was conducted; 20 organizations were contacted to identify unpublished reports. Screening was undertaken independently by two reviewers. Twenty seven studies were included. Thematic analysis revealed that descriptions of sensory experiences are encompassed within six themes: descriptions from 'the window'; sensory descriptions that emphasise vision; descriptions of 'being in nature'; descriptions of 'doing in nature'; barriers to sensory engagement; and meanings of being and doing in nature. Older people derive considerable pleasure and enjoyment from viewing nature, being and doing in nature which, in turn has a positive impact on their wellbeing and quality of life. Future research could usefully explore how sensory engagement with nature could be used to stimulate reminiscences of places and people, and evoke past sensory experiences to enrich everyday life and maintain a sense of self. The protocol was registered with PROSPERO ( CRD42015020736 ).

Connecting Kids and Nature: Lessons to Ignite Learning and Appreciation of the World around Us

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Campbell, Ashley; Williams, Judy

2015-01-01

This article describes a semester-long project developed by the authors to create a positive connection between children and nature. The project integrated reading instruction with science activities to emphasize the natural world in the lives of children. This intervention involved the authors visiting an elementary classroom five times over the…

Cyclone tolerance in new world arecaceae: biogeographic variation and abiotic natural selection.

PubMed

Griffith, M Patrick; Noblick, Larry R; Dowe, John L; Husby, Chad E; Calonje, Michael A

2008-10-01

Consistent abiotic factors can affect directional selection; cyclones are abiotic phenomena with near-discrete geographic limits. The current study investigates selective pressure of cyclones on plants at the species level, testing for possible natural selection. New World Arecaceae (palms) are used as a model system, as plants with monopodial, unbranched arborescent form are most directly affected by the selective pressure of wind load. Living specimens of known provenance grown at a common site were affected by the same cyclone. Data on percentage mortality were compiled and analysed in biogeographic and phylogenetic contexts. Palms of cyclone-prone provenance exhibited a much lower (one order of magnitude) range in cyclone tolerance, and significantly lower (P < 0.001) mean percentage mortality than collections from cyclone-free areas. Palms of cyclone-free provenance had much greater variation in tolerance, and significantly greater mean percentage mortality. A test for serial independence recovered no significant phylogenetic autocorrelation of percentage mortality. Variation in cyclone tolerance in New World Arecaceae correlates with biogeography, and is not confounded with phylogeny. These results suggest natural selection of cyclone tolerance in cyclone-prone areas.

A new world natural vegetation map for global change studies.

PubMed

Lapola, David M; Oyama, Marcos D; Nobre, Carlos A; Sampaio, Gilvan

2008-06-01

We developed a new world natural vegetation map at 1 degree horizontal resolution for use in global climate models. We used the Dorman and Sellers vegetation classification with inclusion of a new biome: tropical seasonal forest, which refers to both deciduous and semi-deciduous tropical forests. SSiB biogeophysical parameters values for this new biome type are presented. Under this new vegetation classification we obtained a consensus map between two global natural vegetation maps widely used in climate studies. We found that these two maps assign different biomes in ca. 1/3 of the continental grid points. To obtain a new global natural vegetation map, non-consensus areas were filled according to regional consensus based on more than 100 regional maps available on the internet. To minimize the risk of using poor quality information, the regional maps were obtained from reliable internet sources, and the filling procedure was based on the consensus among several regional maps obtained from independent sources. The new map was designed to reproduce accurately both the large-scale distribution of the main vegetation types (as it builds on two reliable global natural vegetation maps) and the regional details (as it is based on the consensus of regional maps).

Natural gas monthly, March 1991. [Glossary included

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1991-03-01

The Natural Gas Monthly (NGM) is prepared in the Data Operations Branch of the Reserves and Natural Gas Division, Office of Oil and Gas, Energy Information Administration (EIA), US Department of Energy (DOE). The NGM highlights activities, events and analyses of interest to public and private sector organizations associated with the natural gas industry. Volume and price data are presented each month for natural gas production, distribution, consumption, and interstate pipeline activities. Producer-related activities and underground storage data are also reported. From time to time, the NGM features articles designed to assist readers in using and interpreting natural gas information.more » This month's article is an update on natural gas distribution services. Explanatory Notes supplement the information found in tables of the report. A description of the data collection surveys that support the NGM is provided in the Data Sources section. A glossary of the terms used in this report is also provided to assist readers in understanding the data presented in this publication. 9 figs., 39 tabs.« less

Too much to tell: Narrative styles of the first descriptions of the natural world of the Indies.

PubMed

Leitão, Henrique; Sánchez, Antonio

2017-06-01

Describing a Mundus Novus was a very singular task in the sixteenth century. It was an effort shaped by a permanent inherent tension between novelty and normality, between the immense variety of new facts (some extraordinary) and the demand of credibility. How did these inner strains affect the narrative style of the first descriptions of the natural world of 'the Indies'? How were the first European observers of the nature of America able to simultaneously transmit the idea of immensity and regularity ( mundus), and that of novelty ( novus)? How did they attempt to describe new worlds knowing that there was a lot - perhaps too much - to tell? This paper focuses not on the much-discussed epistemological issues related to those questions, but on their narrative and stylistic consequences. We argue that the first Europeans meeting the new realities of the Americas or India had to meet new challenges, and these translated into texts with specific characteristics. Thus, their first descriptions are essentially different from the texts about the natural world that were written before or after the 'discovery'. We show that they adopted very specific discursive approaches, and were deeply influenced by the credibility strategies of the medical profession in which they had been trained.

78 FR 49292 - Northshore Mining Company, a Subsidiary of Cliffs Natural Resources, Including On-Site Leased...

Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

2013-08-13

... Mining Company, a Subsidiary of Cliffs Natural Resources, Including On-Site Leased Workers From Vanhouse... Cliffs Natural Resources, Including On- Site Leased Workers From Vanhouse, Express Employment and Our... Natural Resources, including on-site leased workers from VanHouse and Express Employment, Silver Bay...

Analyzing complex gaze behavior in the natural world

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pelz, Jeff B.; Kinsman, Thomas B.; Evans, Karen M.

2011-03-01

The history of eye-movement research extends back at least to 1794, when Erasmus Darwin (Charles' grandfather) published Zoonomia, including descriptions of eye movements due to self-motion. But research on eye movements was restricted to the laboratory for 200 years, until Michael Land built the first wearable eyetracker at the University of Sussex and published the seminal paper "Where we look when we steer" [1]. In the intervening centuries, we learned a tremendous amount about the mechanics of the oculomotor system and how it responds to isolated stimuli, but virtually nothing about how we actually use our eyes to explore, gather information, navigate, and communicate in the real world. Inspired by Land's work, we have been working to extend knowledge in these areas by developing hardware, algorithms, and software that have allowed researchers to ask questions about how we actually use vision in the real world. Central to that effort are new methods for analyzing the volumes of data that come from the experiments made possible by the new systems. We describe a number of recent experiments and SemantiCode, a new program that supports assisted coding of eye-movement data collected in unrestricted environments.

Analysis on the threats and spatiotemporal distribution pattern of security in World Natural Heritage Sites.

PubMed

Wang, Zhaoguo; Yang, Zhaoping; Du, Xishihui

2015-01-01

World Natural Heritage Sites (WNHS) are treasures that need human protection and invite appreciation, which makes conservation of WNHS an urgent task. This paper assesses where in the world threats are most pressing and which WNHS require emergency assistance. Using an analysis of "hot spots" and inverse distance weighting, it finds that Africa is the region where WNHS are least secure. Reports of the state of the conservation of WNHS describe the many threats that exist. Of these, management activities and institutional factors are the primary threats. The paper suggests relevant measures to improve the WNHS security.

Natural history of incidental World Health Organization grade II gliomas.

PubMed

Pallud, Johan; Fontaine, Denys; Duffau, Hugues; Mandonnet, Emmanuel; Sanai, Nader; Taillandier, Luc; Peruzzi, Philippe; Guillevin, Rémy; Bauchet, Luc; Bernier, Valérie; Baron, Marie-Hélène; Guyotat, Jacques; Capelle, Laurent

2010-11-01

Seizure is the presenting symptom in most of World Health Organization grade II gliomas (GIIGs). Rarely, a GIIG is discovered incidentally on imaging. Little is known about the natural course and prognosis of incidental GIIGs. The aim of the present study is to characterize their natural history and to investigate whether their clinical and radiological behaviors differ from those of symptomatic GIIGs. The clinical and radiological findings, treatments, and outcomes of 47 histologically-proven incidental GIIGs were compared with those of 1249 symptomatic GIIGs. Incidental GIIGs differ significantly from symptomatic GIIGs: they have a female predominance (p = 0.05), smaller initial tumor volumes (p < 0.001), lower incidence of contrast enhancement (p = 0.009), and are more likely to undergo gross total surgical removal (p < 0.001). Proliferation rates were similar to that observed among symptomatic GIIGs. Younger age at the time of discovery, frontal lobes, and noneloquent brain regions were associated with incidental GIIGs, as compared to their symptomatic counterparts. When not treated, incidental GIIGs demonstrated radiological growth (median velocity of diametric expansion at 3.5 mm/year), and became symptomatic at a median interval of 48 months after radiological discovery. Overall, incidental discovery was associated with a significant survival benefit (p = 0.04). Incidental GIIGs are progressive tumors leading to clinical transformation toward symptomatic GIIGs. They may represent an earlier step in the natural history of a glioma than the symptomatic GIIGs.

The impact of an outdoor wilderness program on the participants' sense of connectedness to the natural world

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nodurft, Susan Jennings Johnson

The main objective of this study was to determine the impact of an innovative, outdoor wilderness program on the participants' sense of connectedness with the natural world. Ancillary objectives looked at the impact of epistemological and pedagogical program elements, participants' people and place background experiences, and worldviews on this connectedness sense. The weekend program, based upon a philosophy of deep ecology, draws upon the Native American wisdom tradition and employs a pedagogy of myth, modeling and experiential learning. The researcher and fourteen volunteers primarily drawn from biology classes at a community college participated in the study. Snyder's (1988) four themes of connectedness and a heuristic qualitative design described by Moustakas (1990) were employed in determining the essence of impact. Data collection methods included pre- and post-questionnaires, audio and video tapes of the weekend, field notes, journals, and follow-up interviews. Upon completion of data gathering, three co-researchers were selected for focus study. Results of analysis are described in the form of in-depth profiles of the three co-researchers' experiences containing verbatim narration and common themes explicated from those profiles. Findings revealed that (1) the co-researchers experienced a deep and transforming sense of connectedness with the natural world, (2) a number of key program elements could be identified that facilitated connectedness, (3) childhood experiences played a significant role, and (4) pre-existing biocentric worldviews deepened as a result of the wilderness experience. Several important implications resulted from this study: (1) Transformative programs such as the outdoor program in this study, virtually nonexistent in mainstream environmental education, need to be taken seriously and efforts made to incorporate these types of programs in our public schools, (2) science educators need to examine and amend a belief structure which, in

World energy projection system: Model documentation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

1992-06-01

The World Energy Project System (WEPS) is an accounting framework that incorporates projects from independently documented models and assumptions about the future energy intensity of economic activity (ratios of total energy consumption divided by gross domestic product) and about the rate of incremental energy requirements met by hydropower, geothermal, coal, and natural gas to produce projections of world energy consumption published annually by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) in the International Energy Outlook (IEO). Two independently documented models presented in Figure 1, the Oil Market Simulation (OMS) model and the World Integrated Nuclear Evaluation System (WINES), provide projections of oil and nuclear power consumption published in the IEO. Output from a third independently documented model, and the International Coal Trade Model (ICTM), is not published in the IEO but is used in WEPS as a supply check on projections of world coal consumption produced by WEPS and published in the IEO. A WEPS model of natural gas production documented in this report provides the same type of implicit supply check on the WEPS projections of world natural gas consumption published in the IEO. Two additional models are included in Figure 1, the OPEC Capacity model and the Non-OPEC Oil Production model. These WEPS models provide inputs to the OMS model and are documented in this report.

Heavy Oil and Natural Bitumen Resources in Geological Basins of the World

USGS Publications Warehouse

Meyer, Richard F.; Attanasi, E.D.; Freeman, P.A.

2007-01-01

Heavy oil and natural bitumen are oils set apart by their high viscosity (resistance to flow) and high density (low API gravity). These attributes reflect the invariable presence of up to 50 weight percent asphaltenes, very high molecular weight hydrocarbon molecules incorporating many heteroatoms in their lattices. Almost all heavy oil and natural bitumen are alteration products of conventional oil. Total resources of heavy oil in known accumulations are 3,396 billion barrels of original oil in place, of which 30 billion barrels are included as prospective additional oil. The total natural bitumen resource in known accumulations amounts to 5,505 billion barrels of oil originally in place, which includes 993 billion barrels as prospective additional oil. This resource is distributed in 192 basins containing heavy oil and 89 basins with natural bitumen. Of the nine basic Klemme basin types, some with subdivisions, the most prolific by far for known heavy oil and natural bitumen volumes are continental multicyclic basins, either basins on the craton margin or closed basins along convergent plate margins. The former includes 47 percent of the natural bitumen, the latter 47 percent of the heavy oil and 46 percent of the natural bitumen. Little if any heavy oil occurs in fore-arc basins, and natural bitumen does not occur in either fore-arc or delta basins.

Accelerating progress in Artificial General Intelligence: Choosing a benchmark for natural world interaction

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rohrer, Brandon

2010-12-01

Measuring progress in the field of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) can be difficult without commonly accepted methods of evaluation. An AGI benchmark would allow evaluation and comparison of the many computational intelligence algorithms that have been developed. In this paper I propose that a benchmark for natural world interaction would possess seven key characteristics: fitness, breadth, specificity, low cost, simplicity, range, and task focus. I also outline two benchmark examples that meet most of these criteria. In the first, the direction task, a human coach directs a machine to perform a novel task in an unfamiliar environment. The direction task is extremely broad, but may be idealistic. In the second, the AGI battery, AGI candidates are evaluated based on their performance on a collection of more specific tasks. The AGI battery is designed to be appropriate to the capabilities of currently existing systems. Both the direction task and the AGI battery would require further definition before implementing. The paper concludes with a description of a task that might be included in the AGI battery: the search and retrieve task.

Natural selection in the colloid world: active chiral spirals.

PubMed

Zhang, Jie; Granick, Steve

2016-10-06

We present a model system in which to study natural selection in the colloid world. In the assembly of active Janus particles into rotating pinwheels when mixed with trace amounts of homogeneous colloids in the presence of an AC electric field, broken symmetry in the rotation direction produces spiral, chiral shapes. Locked into a central rotation point by the centre particle, the spiral arms are found to trail rotation of the overall cluster. To achieve a steady state, the spiral arms undergo an evolutionary process to coordinate their motion. Because all the particles as segments of the pinwheel arms are self-propelled, asymmetric arm lengths are tolerated. Reconfiguration of these structures can happen in various ways and various mechanisms of this directed structural change are analyzed in detail. We introduce the concept of VIP (very important particles) to express that sustainability of active structures is most sensitive to only a few particles at strategic locations in the moving self-assembled structures.

[Natural or synthetic vitamin C? A new substance's precarious status behind the scenes of World War II].

PubMed

Bächi, Beat

2008-01-01

Today, thousands of tons of vitamin C (l-ascorbic acid) is synthesized every year by the pharmaceutical industry. Synthetically produced vitamin C is widely accepted as having the same physiological effects as vitamin C isolated from natural sources. This is an important difference compared to the 1930s when vitamin C was synthesized for the first time. The identity of synthetic vitamin C with natural vitamin C had to be established. First of all, the scientific community had to accept that artificial I-ascorbic acid and natural vitamin C were chemically identical and had the same physiological effects. Second, other communities like food manufacturers, military health officials, and the broader public also had to be persuaded that these substances were equal. This article demonstrates how Hoffmann-La Roche, a Swiss pharmaceutical company and world-leading producer of synthetic vitamins in the 20th century, tried to coax its adversaries into supporting artificial vitamin C. In doing so, synthetic vitamin C was naturalized in different ways. In the case of Switzerland during the Second World War era, the mentality of national defense and the quest for products supporting autarchy helped to convince perspective consumers. Thus in order to sell a new chemical substance, cultural meaning had to be attached to it.

Outdoor Explorations with Preschoolers: An Observational Study of Young Children's Developing Relationship with the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McClain, Cara; Vandermaas-Peeler, Maureen

2016-01-01

In a longitudinal investigation of young children's developing relationship with and understanding of the natural world, eleven preschoolers and their teacher were filmed for 50 hours during weekly explorations at a local state park. Findings indicated that while outdoors children showed self-awareness with regard to environmental features,…

Picturing the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Salia, Hannah

2011-01-01

How is the natural environment in the neighborhood representative of the larger biosphere in which people live? Studying the local birds and flora of the Pacific Northwest in the context of the local parks and ponds provided a rich opportunity for third-grade students at St. Thomas School in Medina, Washington, to explore and learn about…

Future petroleum energy resources of the world

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ahlbrandt, T.S.

2002-01-01

Is the world running out of oil? Where will future oil and gas supplies come from? To help answer these questions, in 2000 the U.S. Geological Survey completed a new world assessment, exclusive of the United States, of the undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources and potential additions to reserves from field growth.2 One hundred and twenty-eight provinces were assessed in a 100 man-year effort from 1995-2000. The assessed provinces included 76 priority provinces containing 95% of the world's discovered oil and gas and an additional 52 "boutique" provinces, many of which may be highly prospective. Total Petroleum Systems (TPS) were identified and described for each of these provinces along with associated Assessment Units (AU) that are the basic units for assessing undiscovered petroleum. The assessment process coupled geologic analysis with a probabilistic methodology to estimate remaining potential. Within the 128 assessed provinces were 159 TPS and 274 AU. For these provinces, the endowment of recoverable oil-which includes cumulative production, remaining reserves, reserve growth, and undiscovered resources-is estimated at about 3 trillion barrels of oil (TBO). The natural gas endowment is estimated at 2.6 trillion barrels of oil equivalent (TBOE). Oil reserves are currently 1.1 TBO; world consumption is about .028 TBO per year. Natural gas reserves are about 0.8 TBOE; world consumption is about 0.014 TBOE per year. Thus, without any additional discoveries of oil, gas or natural gas liquids, we have about 2 TBOE of proved petroleum reserves. Of the oil and gas endowment of about 5.6 TBOE, we estimate that the world has consumed about 1 TBOE, or 18%, leaving about 82% of the endowment to be utilized or found. Half of the world's undiscovered potential is offshore. Arctic basins with about 25% of undiscovered petroleum resources make up the next great frontier. An additional 279 provinces contain some oil and gas and, if considered, would increase the oil

The nature and dynamics of world religions: a life-history approach.

PubMed

Baumard, Nicolas; Chevallier, Coralie

2015-11-07

In contrast with tribal and archaic religions, world religions are characterized by a unique emphasis on extended prosociality, restricted sociosexuality, delayed gratification and the belief that these specific behaviours are sanctioned by some kind of supernatural justice. Here, we draw on recent advances in life history theory to explain this pattern of seemingly unrelated features. Life history theory examines how organisms adaptively allocate resources in the face of trade-offs between different life-goals (e.g. growth versus reproduction, exploitation versus exploration). In particular, recent studies have shown that individuals, including humans, adjust their life strategy to the environment through phenotypic plasticity: in a harsh environment, organisms tend to adopt a 'fast' strategy, pursuing smaller but more certain benefits, while in more affluent environments, organisms tend to develop a 'slow' strategy, aiming for larger but less certain benefits. Reviewing a range of recent research, we show that world religions are associated with a form of 'slow' strategy. This framework explains both the promotion of 'slow' behaviours such as altruism, self-regulation and monogamy in modern world religions, and the condemnation of 'fast' behaviours such as selfishness, conspicuous sexuality and materialism. This ecological approach also explains the diffusion pattern of world religions: why they emerged late in human history (500-300 BCE), why they are currently in decline in the most affluent societies and why they persist in some places despite this overall decline. © 2015 The Author(s).

The nature and dynamics of world religions: a life-history approach

PubMed Central

Baumard, Nicolas; Chevallier, Coralie

2015-01-01

In contrast with tribal and archaic religions, world religions are characterized by a unique emphasis on extended prosociality, restricted sociosexuality, delayed gratification and the belief that these specific behaviours are sanctioned by some kind of supernatural justice. Here, we draw on recent advances in life history theory to explain this pattern of seemingly unrelated features. Life history theory examines how organisms adaptively allocate resources in the face of trade-offs between different life-goals (e.g. growth versus reproduction, exploitation versus exploration). In particular, recent studies have shown that individuals, including humans, adjust their life strategy to the environment through phenotypic plasticity: in a harsh environment, organisms tend to adopt a ‘fast' strategy, pursuing smaller but more certain benefits, while in more affluent environments, organisms tend to develop a ‘slow' strategy, aiming for larger but less certain benefits. Reviewing a range of recent research, we show that world religions are associated with a form of ‘slow' strategy. This framework explains both the promotion of ‘slow' behaviours such as altruism, self-regulation and monogamy in modern world religions, and the condemnation of ‘fast' behaviours such as selfishness, conspicuous sexuality and materialism. This ecological approach also explains the diffusion pattern of world religions: why they emerged late in human history (500–300 BCE), why they are currently in decline in the most affluent societies and why they persist in some places despite this overall decline. PMID:26511055

Shut-Up and Listen: Implications and Possibilities of Albert Memmi's Characteristics of Colonization upon the "Natural World"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blenkinsop, Sean; Affifi, Ramsey; Piersol, Laura; De Danann Sitka-Sage, Michael

2017-01-01

This paper begins by exploring the anti-colonial work of Tunisian scholar Albert Memmi in his classic book "The Colonizer and the Colonized" and determining whether the characteristics of colonization that he names can be successfully applied to the current relationship between modern humans and the "natural world". After…

Data Structures in Natural Computing: Databases as Weak or Strong Anticipatory Systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rossiter, B. N.; Heather, M. A.

2004-08-01

Information systems anticipate the real world. Classical databases store, organise and search collections of data of that real world but only as weak anticipatory information systems. This is because of the reductionism and normalisation needed to map the structuralism of natural data on to idealised machines with von Neumann architectures consisting of fixed instructions. Category theory developed as a formalism to explore the theoretical concept of naturality shows that methods like sketches arising from graph theory as only non-natural models of naturality cannot capture real-world structures for strong anticipatory information systems. Databases need a schema of the natural world. Natural computing databases need the schema itself to be also natural. Natural computing methods including neural computers, evolutionary automata, molecular and nanocomputing and quantum computation have the potential to be strong. At present they are mainly at the stage of weak anticipatory systems.

Wonderful secrets of nature. Natural knowledge and religious piety in Reformation Germany.

PubMed

Crowther-Heyck, Kathleen

2003-06-01

Sixteenth-century Germany witnessed a tremendous flourishing of vernacular literature. An unprecedented number and variety of texts were produced for new groups of readers. This essay analyzes one underexplored genre of this vernacular literature: texts on the natural world. Numerous books on animals, plants, minerals, and natural marvels rolled off the German presses in this period, indicating a widespread curiosity about the natural world. These texts give valuable insight into the views of nature available to a broad lay audience, literate in German but not necessarily in Latin. They reveal a pervasive sense of nature as divinely created and a deep conviction that contemplation of the natural world would lead to greater piety. The divine and the mundane were thoroughly intertwined in vernacular natural histories. While other historians of science have seen the sixteenth century as a period of increasingly secular ways of thinking about nature, I argue for the persistence, and even the intensification, of profoundly religious attitudes toward the natural world.

Ash'arite's atomistic conception of the physical world: A restatement

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Pozi, Firdaus; Othman, Mohd Yusof; Mohamed, Faizal

2013-11-27

Atomism plays an important role in the history of human thought. It can be traced back from Democritus atomos in the 500 BC to particle physics and quantum theory in the 21{sup st} century. However, as it being rejected and developed in the course of history of science, it still brings the fundamental question that perplexes physicists. It gives the views that the world is eternal; that the laws of nature is immutable and eternal therefore all phenomena can be determined through the laws and that there is no reality behind the quantum world. In this paper, we shall brieflymore » describe all these three views on the nature of the physical world or universe and this include on the nature of matter. Then, we shall explain our stand on those conceptions based on the Ash'arites atomistic conception of the physical world. We hope this paper can shed a light on several fundamental issues in the conception of the universe and gives the proper response to them.« less

Czech Children's Drawing of Nature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yilmaz, Zuhal; Kubiatko, Milan; Topal, Hatice

2012-01-01

Do world children draw nature pictures in a certain way? Range of mountains in the background, a sun, couple clouds, a river rising from mountains. Is this type of drawing universal in the way these nature items are organized on a drawing paper? The sample size from Czech Republic included 33 participants from two kindergartens. They were 5 and 6…

World assumptions, posttraumatic stress and quality of life after a natural disaster: a longitudinal study.

PubMed

Nygaard, Egil; Heir, Trond

2012-06-28

Changes in world assumptions are a fundamental concept within theories that explain posttraumatic stress disorder. The objective of the present study was to gain a greater understanding of how changes in world assumptions are related to quality of life and posttraumatic stress symptoms after a natural disaster. A longitudinal study of 574 Norwegian adults who survived the Southeast Asian tsunami in 2004 was undertaken. Multilevel analyses were used to identify which factors at six months post-tsunami predicted quality of life and posttraumatic stress symptoms two years post-tsunami. Good quality of life and posttraumatic stress symptoms were negatively related. However, major differences in the predictors of these outcomes were found. Females reported significantly higher quality of life and more posttraumatic stress than men. The association between level of exposure to the tsunami and quality of life seemed to be mediated by posttraumatic stress. Negative perceived changes in the assumption "the world is just" were related to adverse outcome in both quality of life and posttraumatic stress. Positive perceived changes in the assumptions "life is meaningful" and "feeling that I am a valuable human" were associated with higher levels of quality of life but not with posttraumatic stress. Quality of life and posttraumatic stress symptoms demonstrate differences in their etiology. World assumptions may be less specifically related to posttraumatic stress than has been postulated in some cognitive theories.

Serotonin, behavior, and natural selection in New World monkeys.

PubMed

Reales, Guillermo; Paixão-Côrtes, Vanessa R; Cybis, Gabriela B; Gonçalves, Gislene L; Pissinatti, Alcides; Salzano, Francisco M; Bortolini, Maria CÁtira

2018-06-26

Traits that undergo massive natural selection pressure, with multiple events of positive selection, are hard to find. Social behaviour, in social animals, is crucial for survival, and genetic networks involved in behaviour, such as those of serotonin (5-HT) and other neurotransmitters, must be the target of natural selection. Here, we used molecular analyses to search for signals of positive selection in the 5-HT system and found such signals in the M3-M4 intracellular domain of the 5-HT3A serotonin receptor subunit (HTR3A) in primates. We detected four amino acid sites with signs of putatively positive selection (398, 403, 432 and 416); the first three showed indications of being selected in New World monkeys (NWM, Platyrrhini), specifically in the Callitrichinae branch. Additionally, we searched for associations of these amino acid variants with social behavioural traits (i.e. sex-biased dispersal, dominance and social monogamy) using classical and Bayesian methods, and found statistically significant associations for unbiased sex dispersal (398L and 416S), unbiased sex dominance (416S) and social monogamy (416S), as well as significant positive correlation between female dispersal and 403G. Furthermore, we found putatively functional protein motifs determined by three selected sites, of which we highlight a ligand motif to GSK3 in the 416S variant, appearing only in Platyrrhini. 5-HT, 5-HT3A receptor and GSK3 are part of a network that participates in neurodevelopment and regulates behaviour, among other functions. We suggest that these genetic variations, together with those found in other neurotransmitter systems, must contribute to adaptive behaviours and consequently to fitness in NWMs. © 2018 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2018 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Infants and Toddlers Meet the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McHenry, Jolie D.; Buerk, Kathy J.

2008-01-01

Children observe, listen, feel, taste, and take apart while exploring everything in their environment. Teachers can cultivate nature investigations with very young children by offering infants natural objects they can explore and investigate. When adults introduce nature in the earliest stages of development, children will be open to new ideas and…

African great apes are natural hosts of multiple related malaria species, including Plasmodium falciparum

PubMed Central

Prugnolle, Franck; Durand, Patrick; Neel, Cécile; Ollomo, Benjamin; Ayala, Francisco J.; Arnathau, Céline; Etienne, Lucie; Mpoudi-Ngole, Eitel; Nkoghe, Dieudonné; Leroy, Eric; Delaporte, Eric; Peeters, Martine; Renaud, François

2010-01-01

Plasmodium reichenowi, a chimpanzee parasite, was until very recently the only known close relative of Plasmodium falciparum, the most virulent agent of human malaria. Recently, Plasmodium gaboni, another closely related chimpanzee parasite, was discovered, suggesting that the diversity of Plasmodium circulating in great apes in Africa might have been underestimated. It was also recently shown that P. reichenowi is a geographically widespread and genetically diverse chimpanzee parasite and that the world diversity of P. falciparum is fully included within the much broader genetic diversity of P. reichenowi. The evidence indicates that all extant populations of P. falciparum originated from P. reichenowi, likely by a single transfer from chimpanzees. In this work, we have studied the diversity of Plasmodium species infecting chimpanzees and gorillas in Central Africa (Cameroon and Gabon) from both wild-living and captive animals. The studies in wild apes used noninvasive sampling methods. We confirm the presence of P. reichenowi and P. gaboni in wild chimpanzees. Moreover, our results reveal the existence of an unexpected genetic diversity of Plasmodium lineages circulating in gorillas. We show that gorillas are naturally infected by two related lineages of parasites that have not been described previously, herein referred to as Plasmodium GorA and P. GorB, but also by P. falciparum, a species previously considered as strictly human specific. The continuously increasing contacts between humans and primate populations raise concerns about further reciprocal host transfers of these pathogens. PMID:20133889

Yoruba world view and the nature of psychotic illness.

PubMed

Olugbile, O; Zachariah, M P; Kuyinu, A; Coker, A; Ojo, O; Isichei, B

2009-05-01

The Yoruba are an ethnic group in southern Nigeria. It is said that their world view centers around a continuous battle between forces of good and evil. Adverse events such as illness are due to the malevolence of enemies, using metaphysical means. Remedy often involves corrective metaphysical intervention, either exclusively or in addition to other methods, such as 'western Medicine'. This 'rule' is said to fit mental illness more than any other type of illness, although there is a lack of empirical data on the subject. This study is aimed at identifying elements of a Yoruba world view, and factors relevant to the perception and treatment of psychotic illness. 500 Yorubas in Lagos were randomly sampled (with a questionnaire), and 100 'home video' films were analyzed. Data were analyzed for: elements of world view; elements that pertain to illness in general; elements that pertain to psychotic illness; how such illness is to be treated. The world view has a significant influence on perception of psychotic illness. It is necessary to understand a people's world view in order to understand (and influence) attitudes towards psychotic illness in themselves and other people.

Natural gas projects in the developing world: An empirical evaluation of merits, obstacles, and risks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mor, Amit

Significant amounts of natural gas have been discovered in developing countries throughout the years during the course of oil exploration. The vast majority of these resources have not been utilized. Some developing countries may benefit from a carefully planned utilization of their indigenous resources, which can either be exported or used domestically to substitute imported or exportable fuels or feedstock. Governments, potential private sector investors, and financiers have been searching for strategies to promote natural gas schemes, some of which have been in the pipeline for more than two decades. The purpose of this thesis is to identify the crucial factors determining the success or failure of launching natural gas projects in the developing world. The methodology used to evaluate these questions included: (1) establishing a representative sample of natural gas projects in developing countries that were either implemented or failed to materialize during the 1980-1995 period, (2) utilizing a Probit limited dependent variable econometric model in which the explained variable is project success or failure, and (3) choosing representing indicators to reflect the assumed factors affecting project success. The study identified two conditions for project success: (1) the economic viability of the project and (2) securing financing for the investment. The factors that explain the ability or inability of the sponsors to secure financing were: (1) the volume of investment that represented the large capital costs of gas transportation, distribution, and storage, (2) the level of foreign exchange constraint in the host country, and (3) the level of development of the country. The conditions for private sector participation in natural gas projects in developing countries were identified in the study by a Probit model in which the explained variable was private sector participation. The results showed that a critical condition for private sector participation is the

Greening healthcare: practicing as if the natural environment really mattered.

PubMed

Irvine, Katherine N; Warber, Sara L

2002-01-01

The natural world's role in human well-being is an essential, yet often forgotten, aspect of healthcare. Of particular importance are the benefits one can derive through interaction with natural environments. While health is an obvious goal of allopathic medicine, many healthcare settings are neither nurturing nor healing. Reincorporating the natural world into the design of settings in which medicine is practiced is one way to complement conventional healing modalities and move healthcare toward being more "green." This article discusses the breadth of existing knowledge available on the positive aspects of interaction with nature and provides a comprehensive theoretical perspective for future research. Computerized searches were conducted using MEDLINE, PsycINFO, the Social and Scientific Science Indices, Dissertation Abstracts, Lexus-Nexus, the University of Michigan library, and the Internet. Searches were conducted from June 2001 through March 2002. Keywords used included health, well-being stress, attention, nature, garden, landscape, restorative, and healing. The literature, published between 1960 and 2001, came from various disciplines, including medicine, public health, nursing psychology, natural resources, history, and landscape architecture. Four components of well-being were used as a framework for literature selection: physical psychological-emotional social, and spiritual. Articles were qualitatively reviewed to extract theories, hypotheses, and experimental evidence. Interaction with nature positively affects multiple dimensions of human health. Physiological effects of stress on the autonomic nervous system are lessened. Psychologically, deficits in attention can be restored or minimized, and people report feeling greater satisfaction with a variety of aspects of life. The presence of the natural world promotes social health by encouraging positive social interaction and lessening the frequency of aggressive behavior. Spiritual well-being is

Cognitive integration of asynchronous natural or non-natural auditory and visual information in videos of real-world events: an event-related potential study.

PubMed

Liu, B; Wang, Z; Wu, G; Meng, X

2011-04-28

In this paper, we aim to study the cognitive integration of asynchronous natural or non-natural auditory and visual information in videos of real-world events. Videos with asynchronous semantically consistent or inconsistent natural sound or speech were used as stimuli in order to compare the difference and similarity between multisensory integrations of videos with asynchronous natural sound and speech. The event-related potential (ERP) results showed that N1 and P250 components were elicited irrespective of whether natural sounds were consistent or inconsistent with critical actions in videos. Videos with inconsistent natural sound could elicit N400-P600 effects compared to videos with consistent natural sound, which was similar to the results from unisensory visual studies. Videos with semantically consistent or inconsistent speech could both elicit N1 components. Meanwhile, videos with inconsistent speech would elicit N400-LPN effects in comparison with videos with consistent speech, which showed that this semantic processing was probably related to recognition memory. Moreover, the N400 effect elicited by videos with semantically inconsistent speech was larger and later than that elicited by videos with semantically inconsistent natural sound. Overall, multisensory integration of videos with natural sound or speech could be roughly divided into two stages. For the videos with natural sound, the first stage might reflect the connection between the received information and the stored information in memory; and the second one might stand for the evaluation process of inconsistent semantic information. For the videos with speech, the first stage was similar to the first stage of videos with natural sound; while the second one might be related to recognition memory process. Copyright © 2011 IBRO. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Colour of Velvet. A Transdisciplinary Approach to Connecting Students from a Refugee Background to the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Leni; O'Keefe, Lise; Paige, Kathryn

2017-01-01

What pedagogical strategies support students from a refugee background connecting to the natural world? What would these strategies look like for fifteen students participating in a language intensive New Arrivals Program (NAP)? These questions were the focus of a small collaborative project set up to investigate the impact of pedagogical…

Interaction of pollution abatement with world dynamics

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Smith, G. L.

1973-01-01

The world dynamics model of Jay W. Forrester was modified to account for pollution abatement. In the modified model, it is assumed that as pollution increases, efforts are made to control pollution. There is a competition between food supply, material standard of living, and pollution abatement for capital, and time is required for diversion of capital toward pollution abatement. Inclusion of pollution abatement in the model drastically alters the response of the world system for the case in which depletion of natural resources is not considered. Instead of undergoing a pollution catastrophe, all system levels move more or less smoothly toward an equilibrium. A FORTRAN program listing of the modified world dynamics model is included.

Hard and Soft Selection Revisited: How Evolution by Natural Selection Works in the Real World.

PubMed

Reznick, David

2016-01-01

The modern synthesis of evolutionary biology unified Darwin's natural selection with Mendelian genetics, but at the same time it created the dilemma of genetic load. Lewontin and Hubby's (1966) and Harris's (1966) characterization of genetic variation in natural populations increased the apparent burden of this load. Neutrality or near neutrality of genetic variation was one mechanism proposed for the revealed excessive genetic variation. Bruce Wallace coined the term "soft selection" to describe an alternative way for natural selection to operate that was consistent with observed variation. He envisioned nature as presenting ecological vacancies that could be filled by diverse genotypes. Survival and successful reproduction was a combined function of population density, genotype, and genotype frequencies, rather than a fixed value of the relative fitness of each genotype. My goal in this review is to explore the importance of soft selection in the real world. My motive and that of my colleagues as described here is not to explain what maintains genetic variation in natural populations, but rather to understand the factors that shape how organisms adapt to natural environments. We characterize how feedbacks between ecology and evolution shape both evolution and ecology. These feedbacks are mediated by density- and frequency-dependent selection, the mechanisms that underlie soft selection. Here, I report on our progress in characterizing these types of selection with a combination of a consideration of the published literature and the results from my collaborators' and my research on natural populations of guppies. © The American Genetic Association. 2015. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Quantifying Preferences for the Natural World Using Monetary and Nonmonetary Assessments of Value

PubMed Central

DALLIMER, MARTIN; TINCH, DUGALD; HANLEY, NICK; IRVINE, KATHERINE N; ROUQUETTE, JAMES R; WARREN, PHILIP H; MALTBY, LORRAINE; GASTON, KEVIN J; ARMSWORTH, PAUL R

2014-01-01

Given that funds for biodiversity conservation are limited, there is a need to understand people’s preferences for its different components. To date, such preferences have largely been measured in monetary terms. However, how people value biodiversity may differ from economic theory, and there is little consensus over whether monetary metrics are always appropriate or the degree to which other methods offer alternative and complementary perspectives on value. We used a choice experiment to compare monetary amounts recreational visitors to urban green spaces were willing to pay for biodiversity enhancement (increases in species richness for birds, plants, and aquatic macroinvertebrates) with self-reported psychological gains in well-being derived from visiting the same sites. Willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates were significant and positive, and respondents reported high gains in well-being across 3 axes derived from environmental psychology theories (reflection, attachment, continuity with past). The 2 metrics were broadly congruent. Participants with above-median self-reported well-being scores were willing to pay significantly higher amounts for enhancing species richness than those with below-median scores, regardless of taxon. The socio-economic and demographic background of participants played little role in determining either their well-being or the probability of choosing a paying option within the choice experiment. Site-level environmental characteristics were only somewhat related to WTP, but showed strong associations with self-reported well-being. Both approaches are likely to reflect a combination of the environmental properties of a site and unobserved individual preference heterogeneity for the natural world. Our results suggest that either metric will deliver mutually consistent results in an assessment of environmental preferences, although which approach is preferable depends on why one wishes to measure values for the natural world. PMID

Quantifying preferences for the natural world using monetary and nonmonetary assessments of value.

PubMed

Dallimer, Martin; Tinch, Dugald; Hanley, Nick; Irvine, Katherine N; Rouquette, James R; Warren, Philip H; Maltby, Lorraine; Gaston, Kevin J; Armsworth, Paul R

2014-04-01

Given that funds for biodiversity conservation are limited, there is a need to understand people's preferences for its different components. To date, such preferences have largely been measured in monetary terms. However, how people value biodiversity may differ from economic theory, and there is little consensus over whether monetary metrics are always appropriate or the degree to which other methods offer alternative and complementary perspectives on value. We used a choice experiment to compare monetary amounts recreational visitors to urban green spaces were willing to pay for biodiversity enhancement (increases in species richness for birds, plants, and aquatic macroinvertebrates) with self-reported psychological gains in well-being derived from visiting the same sites. Willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates were significant and positive, and respondents reported high gains in well-being across 3 axes derived from environmental psychology theories (reflection, attachment, continuity with past). The 2 metrics were broadly congruent. Participants with above-median self-reported well-being scores were willing to pay significantly higher amounts for enhancing species richness than those with below-median scores, regardless of taxon. The socio-economic and demographic background of participants played little role in determining either their well-being or the probability of choosing a paying option within the choice experiment. Site-level environmental characteristics were only somewhat related to WTP, but showed strong associations with self-reported well-being. Both approaches are likely to reflect a combination of the environmental properties of a site and unobserved individual preference heterogeneity for the natural world. Our results suggest that either metric will deliver mutually consistent results in an assessment of environmental preferences, although which approach is preferable depends on why one wishes to measure values for the natural world. © 2013 The

Connecting Latinos with nature

Treesearch

Deborah J. Chavez

2008-01-01

Experts around the world have identified ecosystem services that benefit humans. Ecosystem services provided by natural areas include cultural (such as providing outdoor recreation locations) and regulating (such as protecting water quality) services. It is important to understand both public perceptions about the importance of particular ecosystem services and the...

Exploring the Wild World of Wiggly Worms

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dominguez, Lynn; McDonald, James; Kalajian, Katie; Stafford, Kristine

2013-01-01

Young children are naturally curious and constantly exploring the world around them. Combining this curiosity with the outdoors and nature for science skill development has many advantages for young learners. As children develop an enhanced understanding of the natural world, they are also developing explanations of how things work. Allowing…

Hepatoprotective natural triterpenoids.

PubMed

Xu, Guo-Bo; Xiao, Yao-Hua; Zhang, Qing-Yan; Zhou, Meng; Liao, Shang-Gao

2018-02-10

Liver diseases are one of the leading causes of death in the world. In spite of tremendous advances in modern drug research, effective and safe hepatoprotective agents are still in urgent demand. Natural products are undoubtedly valuable sources for drug leads. A number of natural triterpenoids were reported to possess pronounced hepatoprotective effects, and triterpenoids have become one of the most important classes of natural products for hepatoprotective agents. However, the significance of natural triterpenoids has been underestimated in the hepatoprotective drug discovery, with only very limited triterpenoids being covered in the reviews of hepatoprotective natural products. In this paper, ca 350 natural triterpenoids with reported hepatoprotective effects in ca 120 references between 1975 and 2016 will be reviewed, and the structure-activity relationships of certain types of natural triterpenoids, if available, will be discussed. Patents are not included. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Gas may be answer to world`s fuel needs

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Nakicenovic, N.; Nolan, L.

1995-08-01

Natural gas could become the major energy source of the 21st century, serving as a {open_quotes}bridge{close_quotes} fuel from the use of fossil fuels today to renewable energy sources tomorrow, say Nebojsa Nakicenovic and Lucy Nolan. Nakicenovic is a project leader and Nolan is a former research assistant for the Environmentally Compatible Energy Strategies Project at an Austrian research institute. The use of nuclear energy will by stymied by public opposition, costs, and waste-storage problems; renewable energy technology, on the other hand, must still overcome many technological barriers. Natural gas, then, is likely to become our next dominant energy source. {open_quotes}Themore » development of a methane economy, led by increased use of natural gas, could provide another important step in the world`s century-old stride toward a carbon-free economy,{close_quotes} the authors conclude.« less

Differentiating the evolution of female song and male-female duets in the New World blackbirds: can tropical natural history traits explain duet evolution?

PubMed

Odom, Karan J; Omland, Kevin E; Price, J Jordan

2015-03-01

Female bird song and combined vocal duets of mated pairs are both frequently associated with tropical, monogamous, sedentary natural histories. Little is known, however, about what selects for duetting behavior versus female song. Female song likely preceded duet evolution and could drive apparent relationships between duets and these natural histories. We compared the evolution of female song and male-female duets in the New World blackbirds (Icteridae) by investigating patterns of gains and losses of both traits and their relationships with breeding latitude, mating system, nesting pattern, and migratory behavior. We found that duets evolved only in lineages in which female song was likely ancestral. Both female song and duets were correlated with tropical breeding, social monogamy, territorial nesting, and sedentary behavior when all taxa were included; however, correlations between duets and these natural history traits disappeared when comparisons were limited to taxa with female song. Also, likelihood values supported stronger relationships between the natural history traits and female song than between these traits and duets. Our results suggest that the natural histories thought to favor the evolution of duetting may in fact be associated with female song and that additional selection pressures are responsible for the evolution of duets. © 2015 The Author(s).

Parallel evolution of the glycogen synthase 1 (muscle) gene Gys1 between Old World and New World fruit bats (Order: Chiroptera).

PubMed

Fang, Lu; Shen, Bin; Irwin, David M; Zhang, Shuyi

2014-10-01

Glycogen synthase, which catalyzes the synthesis of glycogen, is especially important for Old World (Pteropodidae) and New World (Phyllostomidae) fruit bats that ingest high-carbohydrate diets. Glycogen synthase 1, encoded by the Gys1 gene, is the glycogen synthase isozyme that functions in muscles. To determine whether Gys1 has undergone adaptive evolution in bats with carbohydrate-rich diets, in comparison to insect-eating sister bat taxa, we sequenced the coding region of the Gys1 gene from 10 species of bats, including two Old World fruit bats (Pteropodidae) and a New World fruit bat (Phyllostomidae). Our results show no evidence for positive selection in the Gys1 coding sequence on the ancestral Old World and the New World Artibeus lituratus branches. Tests for convergent evolution indicated convergence of the sequences and one parallel amino acid substitution (T395A) was detected on these branches, which was likely driven by natural selection.

Documented historical landslide dams from around the world

USGS Publications Warehouse

Costa, John E.; Schuster, Robert L.

1991-01-01

This data compilation consists of dBase IV1 data files of the location, date, triggering mechanism, kind, size, failure time and mechanism, breach dimensions, subsequent controls, materials, and references for 463 historical landslide dams and associated natural reservoirs that have been recorded throughout the World. The data base presented in this report is a compilation of information on the characteristics of 463 landslide dams from around the World. It forms a basis on which to assess potential threats from existing landslide dams, or newly-formed landslide dams. The data base includes only landslide dams that have formed in historical times - that is, those formed during times when humans were able to record their occurrence, and the information transferred through various means of written and/or oral documentation. There have been far more prehistoric landslide dams about which relatively little is known. None of these is included in this data base. The focus on historical landslide dams allows insights into this natural process that will aid in understanding their role as a significant geologic process in recent Earth history.

Homophyly/kinship hypothesis: Natural communities, and predicting in networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Li, Angsheng; Li, Jiankou; Pan, Yicheng

2015-02-01

It has been a longstanding challenge to understand natural communities in real world networks. We proposed a community finding algorithm based on fitness of networks, two algorithms for prediction, accurate prediction and confirmation of keywords for papers in the citation network Arxiv HEP-TH (high energy physics theory), and the measures of internal centrality, external de-centrality, internal and external slopes to characterize the structures of communities. We implemented our algorithms on 2 citation and 5 cooperation graphs. Our experiments explored and validated a homophyly/kinship principle of real world networks. The homophyly/kinship principle includes: (1) homophyly is the natural selection in real world networks, similar to Darwin's kinship selection in nature, (2) real world networks consist of natural communities generated by the natural selection of homophyly, (3) most individuals in a natural community share a short list of common attributes, (4) natural communities have an internal centrality (or internal heterogeneity) that a natural community has a few nodes dominating most of the individuals in the community, (5) natural communities have an external de-centrality (or external homogeneity) that external links of a natural community homogeneously distributed in different communities, and (6) natural communities of a given network have typical structures determined by the internal slopes, and have typical patterns of outgoing links determined by external slopes, etc. Our homophyly/kinship principle perfectly matches Darwin's observation that animals from ants to people form social groups in which most individuals work for the common good, and that kinship could encourage altruistic behavior. Our homophyly/kinship principle is the network version of Darwinian theory, and builds a bridge between Darwinian evolution and network science.

Remote Sensing of The Carbon Stocks of the UNESCO World Heritage Site: Mt. Apo Natural Park, Philippines

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Washington-Allen, R. A.; Rubas, L. C.; Conner, J. R.; Delgado, A.; Popescu, S. C.

2013-12-01

Tropical forest cover has reduced to 20% of the Philippines (6.1 M ha) by 1996 from 90% or 27 M ha in the 16th century. Land use is a major cause of deforestation including shifting cultivation, permanent agriculture, ranching, logging, fuel-wood gathering and charcoal-making. The UN's Reduction of Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation Program's (REDD) Tier 1 evaluation of the Philippines estimates that between 0.8 to 2.5 Pg C are emitted per year with high uncertainty levels. The purpose of this study was to reduce this uncertainty by implementing a Tier 3 high resolution field and satellite remote sensing approach to assess above-ground forest carbon stocks over time in the 54,975 ha UNESCO World Heritage site: Mt. Apo Natural Park (MANP) in Mindanao Island, Philippines. We established approximately 25 30-m X 30-m pixel resolution tree stands in MANP measuring species diversity, composition, height, crown area, and diameter-at-breast height (dbh) both manually and with a terrestrial laser scanner (TLS). Both these data were used to calibrate the tree heights of 2000 Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) 90-m C-band and 2004 Intermap 5-m X-band IFSAR, and 2009 30-m ASTER Global digital elevation model (GDEM) digital surface models (DSM). The 5-m IFSAR also includes a 5-m last return DEM, where DSM - DEM = Tree Height. A tree density map was derived using a minima-maxima convolution filter in conjunction with a land cover map developed by the Philippines Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). A 'universal allometric equation' for tropical forests that inputs crown diameter and tree height was then used to generate both Tropical forest biomass and forest carbon maps of MANP.

Nature's Advice Book

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Mahlin, Kathryn; Robertson, Amy

2005-01-01

What do can people learn from the world around them? Can a tree really teach something about life? Many times teachers provide students with facts about nature but fail to consider what one can learn from the natural world around them. After many months of exploring various ecosystems such as the prairie, rain forest, and desert, one of the…

Naturally Occurring Fish Poisons from Plants

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cannon, Jonathan G.; Burton, Robert A.; Wood, Steven G.; Owen, Noel L.

2004-01-01

The fish poisons derived from plants used throughout the world, not only as piscicides but also for a range of other uses, including insecticident and in folk medicines, is presented. The aim of this review is to provide a useful background for students interested in natural products.

Constraints on brane-world inflation from the CMB power spectrum: revisited

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gangopadhyay, Mayukh R.; Mathews, Grant J.

2018-03-01

We analyze the Randal Sundrum brane-world inflation scenario in the context of the latest CMB constraints from Planck. We summarize constraints on the most popular classes of models and explore some more realistic inflaton effective potentials. The constraint on standard inflationary parameters changes in the brane-world scenario. We confirm that in general the brane-world scenario increases the tensor-to-scalar ratio, thus making this paradigm less consistent with the Planck constraints. Indeed, when BICEP2/Keck constraints are included, all monomial potentials in the brane-world scenario become disfavored compared to the standard scenario. However, for natural inflation the brane-world scenario could fit the constraints better due to larger allowed values of e-foldings N before the end of inflation in the brane-world.

Distinct Neural Activities in Premotor Cortex during Natural Vocal Behaviors in a New World Primate, the Common Marmoset (Callithrix jacchus).

PubMed

Roy, Sabyasachi; Zhao, Lingyun; Wang, Xiaoqin

2016-11-30

Although evidence from human studies has long indicated the crucial role of the frontal cortex in speech production, it has remained uncertain whether the frontal cortex in nonhuman primates plays a similar role in vocal communication. Previous studies of prefrontal and premotor cortices of macaque monkeys have found neural signals associated with cue- and reward-conditioned vocal production, but not with self-initiated or spontaneous vocalizations (Coudé et al., 2011; Hage and Nieder, 2013), which casts doubt on the role of the frontal cortex of the Old World monkeys in vocal communication. A recent study of marmoset frontal cortex observed modulated neural activities associated with self-initiated vocal production (Miller et al., 2015), but it did not delineate whether these neural activities were specifically attributed to vocal production or if they may result from other nonvocal motor activity such as orofacial motor movement. In the present study, we attempted to resolve these issues and examined single neuron activities in premotor cortex during natural vocal exchanges in the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus), a highly vocal New World primate. Neural activation and suppression were observed both before and during self-initiated vocal production. Furthermore, by comparing neural activities between self-initiated vocal production and nonvocal orofacial motor movement, we identified a subpopulation of neurons in marmoset premotor cortex that was activated or suppressed by vocal production, but not by orofacial movement. These findings provide clear evidence of the premotor cortex's involvement in self-initiated vocal production in natural vocal behaviors of a New World primate. Human frontal cortex plays a crucial role in speech production. However, it has remained unclear whether the frontal cortex of nonhuman primates is involved in the production of self-initiated vocalizations during natural vocal communication. Using a wireless multichannel neural

Natural photonics for industrial inspiration.

PubMed

Parker, Andrew R

2009-05-13

There are two considerations for optical biomimetics: the diversity of submicrometre architectures found in the natural world, and the industrial manufacture of these. A review exists on the latter subject, where current engineering methods are considered along with those of the natural cells. Here, on the other hand, I will provide a modern review of the different categories of reflectors and antireflectors found in animals, including their optical characterization. The purpose of this is to inspire designers within the $2 billion annual optics industry.

Soap. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Distillation. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Housing. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Salt. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Fermentation. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Eating behavior: lessons from the real world of humans.

PubMed

de Castro, J M

2000-10-01

Food intake by normal humans has been investigated both in the laboratory and under free-living conditions in the natural environment. For measurement of real-world intake, the diet-diary technique is imperfect and tends to underestimate actual intakes but it appears to be sensitive, can detect subtle influences on eating behavior, and produces reliable and valid measures. Research studies in the real world show the multivariate richness of the natural environment, which allows investigation of the complexities of intake regulation, and even causation can be investigated. Real-world research can overcome some of the weaknesses of laboratory studies, where constraints on eating are often removed or missing, facilitatory influences on eating are often controlled or eliminated, the importance of variables can be overestimated, and important influences can be missed because of the short durations of the studies. Real-world studies have shown a wide array of physiologic, psychological, and social variables that can have potent and immediate effects on intake. Compensatory mechanisms, including some that operate with a 2- to 3-d delay, adjust for prior excesses. Heredity affects all aspect of food-intake regulation, from the determination of body size to the subtleties of the individual preferences and social proclivities and the extent to which environmental factors affect the individual. Hence, real-world research teaches valuable lessons, and much more is needed to complement laboratory studies.

A review on natural background radiation

PubMed Central

Shahbazi-Gahrouei, Daryoush; Gholami, Mehrdad; Setayandeh, Samaneh

2013-01-01

The world is naturally radioactive and approximately 82% of human-absorbed radiation doses, which are out of control, arise from natural sources such as cosmic, terrestrial, and exposure from inhalation or intake radiation sources. In recent years, several international studies have been carried out, which have reported different values regarding the effect of background radiation on human health. Gamma radiation emitted from natural sources (background radiation) is largely due to primordial radionuclides, mainly 232Th and 238U series, and their decay products, as well as 40K, which exist at trace levels in the earth's crust. Their concentrations in soil, sands, and rocks depend on the local geology of each region in the world. Naturally occurring radioactive materials generally contain terrestrial-origin radionuclides, left over since the creation of the earth. In addition, the existence of some springs and quarries increases the dose rate of background radiation in some regions that are known as high level background radiation regions. The type of building materials used in houses can also affect the dose rate of background radiations. The present review article was carried out to consider all of the natural radiations, including cosmic, terrestrial, and food radiation. PMID:24223380

The first DNA 1-like alpha satellites in association with New World begomoviruses in natural infections.

PubMed

Paprotka, T; Metzler, V; Jeske, H

2010-09-01

From Brazilian weeds with typical symptoms of a geminivirus infection, the DNAs of two new virus species, two new strains with two variants of already known bipartite begomoviruses were sequenced. Moreover, the first two DNA 1-like satellites (alpha satellites) occurring naturally in the New World were identified. They are related to nanoviral DNA components and show a typical genome organization with one open reading frame coding potentially for a replication-associated protein (Rep), a conserved hairpin structure, and an A-rich region. After coinoculation with their helper begomoviruses (Euphorbia mosaic virus, EuMV or Cleome leaf crumple virus, ClLCrV) the satellite DNAs were transmitted to experimental and natural host plants. Three of the begomovirus isolates (EuMV and ClLCrV) infected Arabidopsis thaliana plants, induced mild symptoms, and one of these (ClLCrV) transreplicated the satellite efficiently. As a result, several novel tools for molecular analyses of this important model plant are provided. 2010 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Naturally Occurring Culturable Aerobic Gut Flora of Adult Phlebotomus papatasi, Vector of Leishmania major in the Old World

PubMed Central

Mukhopadhyay, Jaba; Braig, Henk R.; Rowton, Edgar D.; Ghosh, Kashinath

2012-01-01

Background Cutaneous leishmaniasis is a neglected, vector-borne parasitic disease and is responsible for persistent, often disfiguring lesions and other associated complications. Leishmania, causing zoonotic cutaneous leishmaniasis (ZCL) in the Old World are mainly transmitted by the predominant sand fly vector, Phlebotomus papatasi. To date, there is no efficient control measure or vaccine available for this widespread insect-borne infectious disease. Methodology/Principal Findings A survey was carried out to study the abundance of different natural gut flora in P. papatasi, with the long-term goal of generating a paratransgenic sand fly that can potentially block the development of Leishmania in the sand fly gut, thereby preventing transmission of leishmania in endemic disease foci. Sand flies, in particular, P. papatasi were captured from different habitats of various parts of the world. Gut microbes were cultured and identified using 16S ribosomal DNA analysis and a phylogenetic tree was constructed. We found variation in the species and abundance of gut flora in flies collected from different habitats. However, a few Gram-positive, nonpathogenic bacteria including Bacillus flexus and B. pumilus were common in most of the sites examined. Conclusion/Significance Our results indicate that there is a wide range of variation of aerobic gut flora inhabiting sand fly guts, which possibly reflect the ecological condition of the habitat where the fly breeds. Also, some species of bacteria (B. pumilus, and B. flexus) were found from most of the habitats. Important from an applied perspective of dissemination, our results support a link between oviposition induction and adult gut flora. PMID:22629302

36 CFR 73.7 - World Heritage nomination process.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-07-01

... on the World Heritage List; (ii) The balance between cultural and natural properties already on the... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2013-07-01 2013-07-01 false World Heritage nomination... INTERIOR WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION § 73.7 World Heritage nomination process. (a) What is the U.S. World...

36 CFR 73.7 - World Heritage nomination process.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-07-01

... on the World Heritage List; (ii) The balance between cultural and natural properties already on the... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2012-07-01 2012-07-01 false World Heritage nomination... INTERIOR WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION § 73.7 World Heritage nomination process. (a) What is the U.S. World...

36 CFR 73.7 - World Heritage nomination process.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-07-01

... on the World Heritage List; (ii) The balance between cultural and natural properties already on the... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2011-07-01 2011-07-01 false World Heritage nomination... INTERIOR WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION § 73.7 World Heritage nomination process. (a) What is the U.S. World...

36 CFR 73.7 - World Heritage nomination process.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-07-01

... on the World Heritage List; (ii) The balance between cultural and natural properties already on the... 36 Parks, Forests, and Public Property 1 2014-07-01 2014-07-01 false World Heritage nomination... INTERIOR WORLD HERITAGE CONVENTION § 73.7 World Heritage nomination process. (a) What is the U.S. World...

The Royal Society, natural history and the peoples of the 'New World(s)', 1660-1800.

PubMed

Gascoigne, John

2009-12-01

This paper focuses on the response of the Royal Society to the increasing contact with parts of the globe beyond Europe. Such contact was in accord with the programme of Baconian natural history that the early Royal Society espoused, but it also raised basic questions about the extent and nature of the pursuit of natural history. In particular, the paper is concerned with the attention paid to one particular branch of natural history, the study of other peoples and their customs. Such scrutiny of other peoples in distant lands raised basic questions about what methods natural history should employ and the extent to which it could serve as a foundation for more general and theoretical claims. By taking a wide sweep from the beginnings of the Royal Society until the end of the eighteenth century it is hoped light will be shed on the changing understanding of natural history over this period.

Teaching science in light of world view: The effect of contextualized instruction on the scientific compatibility of religious college students' world views

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gossard, Paula Rae

Authors of recent science reform documents promote the goal of scientific literacy for all Americans (American Association for the Advancement of Science, 1989, 1993). Some students, however, feel apprehensive about learning science due to perceptions that science is antagonistic to their world views (Alters, 2005; Esbenshade, 1993). This study investigated the effect of an introductory science course taught in the context of a Christian, theistic world view on the scientific compatibility of religious college students' world views. For the purposes of this study, students' understanding of the nature of science, affective attitudes toward science, and beliefs regarding creation were used as indicators of the scientific compatibility of their world views. One hundred and seventy-one students enrolled in a core curriculum, introductory science course at a Christian university participated in this study by completing pre-instruction and post-instruction survey packets that included demographic information, the Student Understanding of Science and Scientific Inquiry questionnaire (Liang et al., 2006), the Affective Attitude toward Science Scale (Francis & Greer, 1999), and the Origins Survey (Tenneson & Badger, personal communication, June, 2008). Two-tailed paired samples t tests were used to test for significant mean differences in the indicator variables at a .05 level before and after instruction. Pearson correlation coefficients were calculated to determine if relationships were present among the indicator variables at a .05 level before and after instruction. Students' self-identified positions regarding creation were analyzed using a chi-square contingency table. Results indicated that there were statistically significant changes in all indicator variables after instruction of the contextualized course. The direction of these changes and shifts in students' self-identified positions regarding creation supported the conclusion that students developed a more

Teaching and nature: Middle school science teachers' relationship with nature in personal and classroom contexts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ball, Nadine Butcher

2000-10-01

This qualitative study describes three middle-school science teachers' relationship-with-nature in personal and classroom contexts. Participating teachers had more than 7 years experience and were deemed exemplary practitioners by others. Interview data about personal context focused on photographs the teacher took representing her/his relationship-with-nature in daily life. Interview data for classroom context explored classroom events during three or more researcher observations. Transcripts were analyzed using a multiple-readings approach to data reduction (Gilligan, Brown & Rogers, 1990; Miles & Huberman, 1994, p. 14, 141). Readings generated categorical information focused on portrayals of: nature; self; and relationship-with-nature. Categorical data were synthesized into personal and teaching case portraits for each teacher, and cross case themes identified. Participants indicated the portraits accurately represented who they saw themselves to be. Additional readings identified sub-stories by plot and theme. Narrative data were clustered to highlight elements of practice with implications for the relationship-with-nature lived in the classroom. These individual-scale moments were compared with cultural-scale distinctions between anthropocentric and ecological world views. Cross case themes included dimensions of exemplary middle-school science teaching important to teacher education and development, including an expanded conception of knowing and skillful use of student experience. Categorical analysis revealed each teacher had a unique organizing theme influencing their interpretation of personal and classroom events, and that nature is experienced differently in personal as opposed to teaching contexts. Narrative analysis highlights teachers' stories of classroom pets, dissection, and student dissent, illustrating an interplay between conceptual distinctions and personal dimensions during moments of teacher decision making. Results suggest teachers

Permeability of Granite Including Macro-Fracture Naturally Filled with Fine-Grained Minerals

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nara, Yoshitaka; Kato, Masaji; Niri, Ryuhei; Kohno, Masanori; Sato, Toshinori; Fukuda, Daisuke; Sato, Tsutomu; Takahashi, Manabu

2018-03-01

Information on the permeability of rock is essential for various geoengineering projects, such as geological disposal of radioactive wastes, hydrocarbon extraction, and natural hazard risk mitigation. It is especially important to investigate how fractures and pores influence the physical and transport properties of rock. Infiltration of groundwater through the damage zone fills fractures in granite with fine-grained minerals. However, the permeability of rock possessing a fracture naturally filled with fine-grained mineral grains has yet to be investigated. In this study, the permeabilities of granite samples, including a macro-fracture filled with clay and a mineral vein, are investigated. The permeability of granite with a fine-grained mineral vein agrees well with that of the intact sample, whereas the permeability of granite possessing a macro-fracture filled with clay is lower than that of the macro-fractured sample. The decrease in the permeability is due to the filling of fine-grained minerals and clay in the macro-fracture. It is concluded that the permeability of granite increases due to the existence of the fractures, but decreases upon filling them with fine-grained minerals.

Future Oil and Gas Resources of the World: A Coming Supply Crisis?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Ahlbrandt, T. S.

2002-05-01

Is the world running out of oil? Where will future oil and gas supplies come from? To help answer these questions, the U.S. Geological Survey completed in 2000 a new assessment of the undiscovered conventional oil and gas resources and potential additions to reserves from field growth. One hundred and twenty-eight provinces were assessed in a 100 man-year effort from 1995-2000. The assessed provinces included 76 priority provinces containing 95 percent of the world's discovered oil and gas and an additional 52 "boutique" provinces, many of which may be highly prospective. Total Petroleum Systems (TPS) were identified and described for each of these provinces along with associated Assessment Units (AU) that are the basic units for assessing undiscovered petroleum. The assessment process coupled geologic analysis with a probabilistic methodology to estimate remaining potential. Within the 128 assessed provinces, were 159 TPS and 274 AU. For these provinces, the endowment of recoverable oil, which includes cumulative production, remaining reserves, reserve growth, and undiscovered resources is estimated at about 3 trillion barrels of oil (TBO). The natural gas endowment is estimated at 2.6 trillion barrels of oil equivalent (TBOE). Oil reserves are currently 1.1 TBO; world consumption is about .028 TBO per year. Natural gas reserves are about .8 TBOE; world consumption is about .014 TBOE. Thus, without any additional discoveries of oil, gas or natural gas liquids, we have about 2 TBOE of proved petroleum reserves. Of the oil and gas endowment of about 5.6 TBOE, we estimate that the world has consumed about 1 TBOE, or 18 percent leaving about 82 percent of endowment to be utilized or found. Half of the world's undiscovered potential is offshore. Arctic basins with about 25 percent of undiscovered petroleum resources make up the next great frontier. An additional 279 provinces contain some oil and gas and, if considered, would increase the oil and gas endowment

Sustainable Development of Natural Resources in the Third World: Technological and Institutional Challenges. An International Symposium (Columbus, OH, September 3-6, 1985).

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ohio State Univ., Columbus. School of Natural Resources.

This booket contains abstracts of papers presented at a symposium which focused on sustainable development of natural resources in third world countries. The abstracts are organized under these headings: (1) factors affecting individual's resource use decisions; (2) resource conservation and economic development; (3) research on alternative…

Electricity for a Developing World: New Directions. Worldwatch Paper 70.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flavin, Christopher

The nature, scope, and problems of electrical programs are examined in this report on developing nations. Electric power is recognized as a crucial component of the economy in most Third World countries with the potential to affect some of the most basic issues facing these countries today. Topic areas covered include: (1) electric power…

Human factors involved in perception and action in a natural stereoscopic world: an up-to-date review with guidelines for stereoscopic displays and stereoscopic virtual reality (VR)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Perez-Bayas, Luis

2001-06-01

In stereoscopic perception of a three-dimensional world, binocular disparity might be thought of as the most important cue to 3D depth perception. Nevertheless, in reality there are many other factors involved before the 'final' conscious and subconscious stereoscopic perception, such as luminance, contrast, orientation, color, motion, and figure-ground extraction (pop-out phenomenon). In addition, more complex perceptual factors exist, such as attention and its duration (an equivalent of 'brain zooming') in relation to physiological central vision, In opposition to attention to peripheral vision and the brain 'top-down' information in relation to psychological factors like memory of previous experiences and present emotions. The brain's internal mapping of a pure perceptual world might be different from the internal mapping of a visual-motor space, which represents an 'action-directed perceptual world.' In addition, psychological factors (emotions and fine adjustments) are much more involved in a stereoscopic world than in a flat 2D-world, as well as in a world using peripheral vision (like VR, using a curved perspective representation, and displays, as natural vision does) as opposed to presenting only central vision (bi-macular stereoscopic vision) as in the majority of typical stereoscopic displays. Here is presented the most recent and precise information available about the psycho-neuro- physiological factors involved in the perception of stereoscopic three-dimensional world, with an attempt to give practical, functional, and pertinent guidelines for building more 'natural' stereoscopic displays.

Natural family planning in today's world.

PubMed

1990-07-01

Diminished involvement on the part of the major pharmaceutical firms in contraceptive research calls for renewed attention to the potential of natural methods of family planning. At present, these methods can demand a period of sexual abstinence as long as 17 days/month to be effective; however, Carl Djerassi has asserted that this period can be reduced by more than 50% with improved measurement of biochemical changes. Rising levels of estrogens and saliva or urine might be used in place of luteinizing hormone to predict ovulation. Similarly, increasing levels of progesterone early postovulation and the second rise in estrogens could serve as markers that there is no longer a risk of conception. Progesterone levels could be assayed in urine through use of monoclonal antibodies. Also needed are nonhormonal biochemical indicators of ovarian function. Ultimately, increases in knowledge of ovarian follicular physiology is likely to lead to more reliable markers of ovulation that estradiol. The need will remain, however, to monitor several days during each menstrual cycle given fluctuations from cycle to cycle in the same individual. The phenomenon of vast numbers of women in developing countries who are postponing childbearing until their latest late 30s is a further impetus for more serious consideration of natural alternatives to be hormonal fertility control.

Natural product mode of action (MOA) studies: a link between natural and synthetic worlds.

PubMed

La Clair, James J

2010-07-01

In our understanding of matter, natural products deliver plots that would stun even the best productions of the legendary filmmaker, Sergio Leone. While every decade heralds a new genre of film (as well as avenues of small-molecule discovery), natural products and their "untamed prehistoric" plots continue to dazzle the fields of biotechnology, drug discovery, fragrances, food additives and agrochemistry. This review provides an abridged synopsis of the modes of natural product action discovered within the last decade and the tools and methods used in their discovery. Their stories are united in a common theme that unveils one of the more vital aspects of chemical biological research:understanding the global activity of Nature's arsenal of secondary metabolites.

Resource Optimization and World Peace. Occasional Paper 30.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Purcell, Arthur H.

A comprehensive, international program is proposed to help nations optimize and conserve natural resources. The aim of the program is to increase the overall supply of natural resources available to improve the chances for world peace. The energy and material resources of the world are finite. We must live with and adapt to the concept of finite…

Dental Care. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Energy Convertors. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Methane Digestors. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Clay Pots. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Iron Smelting. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Undertaking qualitative health research in social virtual worlds.

PubMed

McElhinney, Evelyn; Cheater, Francine M; Kidd, Lisa

2014-06-01

This paper discusses the methodological challenges of using the 3D social virtual world Second Life for research and offers some solutions on a range of research issues including research ethics committee approval, gaining consent, recruitment of sample, data collection and engagement with 'in - world culture'. The attraction of social virtual worlds to researchers is their ability to mimic the physical world, as they, are seen as 'places' where people have a feeling of presence (being there) and social presence (being there with others) through the use of a 'customisable' avatar (digital self-representation). Emerging research demonstrating the persuasive nature of avatars on health behaviours through virtual worlds, online games and the 3D web has increased the use of and interest in these areas for delivering health information, advice and support. However, conducting research can be challenging in a 3D world where people are represented as anonymous avatars in an environment unlike any other online media. 25 semi-structured interviews were conducted in Second Life from September 2011-June 2012. Nurses wishing to undertake research in social virtual worlds should spend time in-world to acquire technical skills and gain an understanding of the culture of the world. Our experience of an interview-based study in virtual worlds indicates that researchers require several virtual world technical skills to create innovative tools to recruit, gain consent and collect data and an understanding of in-world culture, language and social norms to increase the chances of successful research. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Temporal naturalism

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Smolin, Lee

2015-11-01

Two people may claim both to be naturalists, but have divergent conceptions of basic elements of the natural world which lead them to mean different things when they talk about laws of nature, or states, or the role of mathematics in physics. These disagreements do not much affect the ordinary practice of science which is about small subsystems of the universe, described or explained against a background, idealized to be fixed. But these issues become crucial when we consider including the whole universe within our system, for then there is no fixed background to reference observables to. I argue here that the key issue responsible for divergent versions of naturalism and divergent approaches to cosmology is the conception of time. One version, which I call temporal naturalism, holds that time, in the sense of the succession of present moments, is real, and that laws of nature evolve in that time. This is contrasted with timeless naturalism, which holds that laws are immutable and the present moment and its passage are illusions. I argue that temporal naturalism is empirically more adequate than the alternatives, because it offers testable explanations for puzzles its rivals cannot address, and is likely a better basis for solving major puzzles that presently face cosmology and physics. This essay also addresses the problem of qualia and experience within naturalism and argues that only temporal naturalism can make a place for qualia as intrinsic qualities of matter.

Everyday Thoughts about Nature: An Interpretive Study of 16 Ninth Graders' Conceptualizations of Nature.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cobern, William W.; And Others

This study investigates student world views in an effort to provide information that will improve the learning environment of the science classroom. The research focuses on furthering knowledge of students as people in the context of investigating what students think about nature or the natural world. The objective of the descriptive case study is…

Alice in the Real World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Parker, Tom

2012-01-01

As a fifth-grade mathematics teacher, the author tries to create authentic problem-solving activities that connect to the world in which his students live. He discovered a natural connection to his students' real world at a computer camp. A friend introduced him to Alice, a computer application developed at Carnegie Mellon, under the leadership of…

World`s first SPB LNG carrier ``POLAR EAGLE``

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Aoki, Eiji; Nakajima, Yoshiyuki; Yamada, Koichiro

1994-12-31

The world`s first Self-supporting Prismatic-shape IMO type B (SPB) LNG Carrier named ``POLAR EAGLE`` has been delivered to Phillips 66 Natural Gas Company and Marathon Oil Company in June, 1993. The cargo containment system installed onboard the vessel, SPB cargo containment system, was developed by Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries Co., Ltd. (IHI) and fully complies with IMO Gas Carrier Code for a type B independent tank. ``POLAR EAGLE`` was constructed in the authors` Aichi works and delivered 34 months after the contract of the vessel. Its performance was confirmed through various kinds of tests and inspections during construction of the vessel.more » Results of typical tests and inspections are introduced.« less

World Wind: NASA's Virtual Globe

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hogan, P.

2007-12-01

Virtual globes have set the standard for information exchange. Once you've experienced the visually rich and highly compelling nature of data delivered via virtual globes with their highly engaging context of 3D, it's hard to go back to a flat 2D world. Just as the sawbones of not-too-long-ago have given way to sophisticated surgical operating theater, today's medium for information exchange is just beginning to leap from the staid chalkboards and remote libraries to fingertip navigable 3D worlds. How we harness this technology to serve a world inundated with information will describe the quality of our future. Our instincts for discovery and entertainment urge us on. There's so much we could know if the world's knowledge was presented to us in its natural context. Virtual globes are almost magical in their ability to reveal natural wonders. Anyone flying along a chain of volcanoes, a mid-ocean ridge or deep ocean trench, while simultaneously seeing the different depths to the history of earthquakes in those areas, will be delighted to sense Earth's dynamic nature in a way that would otherwise take several paragraphs of "boring" text. The sophisticated concepts related to global climate change would be far more comprehensible when experienced via a virtual globe. There is a large universe of public and private geospatial data sets that virtual globes can bring to light. The benefit derived from access to this data within virtual globes represents a significant return on investment for government, industry, the general public, and especially in the realm of education. Data access remains a key issue. Just as the highway infrastructure allows unimpeded access from point A to point B, an open standards-based infrastructure for data access allows virtual globes to exchange data in the most efficient manner possible. This data can be either free or proprietary. The Open Geospatial Consortium is providing the leadership necessary for this open standards-based data access

Humans, Nature, Places, and Things: An ECO/SOCIAL Studies View of the World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Peters, Richard

This document contains information and instruction for teachers who want to include an ECO/SOCIAL Studies approach in their teaching of social studies. ECO/SOCIAL Studies is defined as an instructional/investigative strategy that focuses and individual's attention on the continuous inter-relationships and interdependence between natural and social…

World knowledge affects prediction as quickly as selectional restrictions: Evidence from the visual world paradigm.

PubMed

Milburn, Evelyn; Warren, Tessa; Dickey, Michael Walsh

There has been considerable debate regarding the question of whether linguistic knowledge and world knowledge are separable and used differently during processing or not (Hagoort, Hald, Bastiaansen, & Petersson, 2004; Matsuki et al., 2011; Paczynski & Kuperberg, 2012; Warren & McConnell, 2007; Warren, McConnell, & Rayner, 2008). Previous investigations into this question have provided mixed evidence as to whether violations of selectional restrictions are detected earlier than violations of world knowledge. We report a visual-world eye-tracking study comparing the timing of facilitation contributed by selectional restrictions versus world knowledge. College-aged adults (n=36) viewed photographs of natural scenes while listening to sentences. Participants anticipated upcoming direct objects similarly regardless of whether facilitation was provided by only world knowledge or a combination of selectional restrictions and world knowledge. These results suggest that selectional restrictions are not available earlier in comprehension than world knowledge.

Estimating COCOM Natural Background Dormancy

DTIC Science & Technology

2015-04-01

Goode and Espenshade 1953). Maps from Goode’s World Atlas included natural vegetation, agricultural regions, and soils . Clark University provided...and shallow, high mountain soils (Chambers 1967). The vertical stripes indi- cate a probability of more than two weeks of snow cover during the month...needle-leaf evergreen and deciduous trees during dormant or dry season, and desert alluvial deposits, sand, and thin mountain soils 6 Needle-leaf

The Reality of the Quantum World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shimony, Abner

1988-01-01

Describes experiments used during recent history to explain the nature of the quantum world. Explains the essential elements of experiments using polarized light and magnetic flux. Illustrates differences between classical theories in physics and quantum theory. Shows how experiments in the microscopic and macroscopic world appear to support…

A World View Sampler.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Willard, Timothy; And Others

1984-01-01

An overview of topics discussed at the World View '84 conference, sponsored by the World Future Society, is provided. Topics include technology, the economy, the Third World, the environment, world order, and outer space. (RM)

Healing relationships with nature.

PubMed

Burkhardt, M A

2000-02-01

Our health is intimately connected to the health of our environment. The contemporary world view which sees a radical distinction between humans as subjects and world as object can obscure our recognition of how much we rely on nature for health and survival. Indigenous traditions and contemporary scholars remind us that we live in a universe in which all things are connected, and in which nature continues to offer its gifts in co-creative partnership for the health and wellbeing of all. Living in awareness of our relationship with nature enables us to open more to the experience of nature's nurturing. Many complementary therapies derive from ancient practices that involve nature in healing partnership. As nurses and midwives we must learn to expand our boundaries to encompass the many ways that nature partners with us for healing.

The Natural History of Class I Primate Alcohol Dehydrogenases Includes Gene Duplication, Gene Loss, and Gene Conversion

PubMed Central

Carrigan, Matthew A.; Uryasev, Oleg; Davis, Ross P.; Zhai, LanMin; Hurley, Thomas D.; Benner, Steven A.

2012-01-01

Background Gene duplication is a source of molecular innovation throughout evolution. However, even with massive amounts of genome sequence data, correlating gene duplication with speciation and other events in natural history can be difficult. This is especially true in its most interesting cases, where rapid and multiple duplications are likely to reflect adaptation to rapidly changing environments and life styles. This may be so for Class I of alcohol dehydrogenases (ADH1s), where multiple duplications occurred in primate lineages in Old and New World monkeys (OWMs and NWMs) and hominoids. Methodology/Principal Findings To build a preferred model for the natural history of ADH1s, we determined the sequences of nine new ADH1 genes, finding for the first time multiple paralogs in various prosimians (lemurs, strepsirhines). Database mining then identified novel ADH1 paralogs in both macaque (an OWM) and marmoset (a NWM). These were used with the previously identified human paralogs to resolve controversies relating to dates of duplication and gene conversion in the ADH1 family. Central to these controversies are differences in the topologies of trees generated from exonic (coding) sequences and intronic sequences. Conclusions/Significance We provide evidence that gene conversions are the primary source of difference, using molecular clock dating of duplications and analyses of microinsertions and deletions (micro-indels). The tree topology inferred from intron sequences appear to more correctly represent the natural history of ADH1s, with the ADH1 paralogs in platyrrhines (NWMs) and catarrhines (OWMs and hominoids) having arisen by duplications shortly predating the divergence of OWMs and NWMs. We also conclude that paralogs in lemurs arose independently. Finally, we identify errors in database interpretation as the source of controversies concerning gene conversion. These analyses provide a model for the natural history of ADH1s that posits four ADH1 paralogs in

World Oil: Coping With the Dangers of Success. Worldwatch Paper 66.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Flavin, Christopher

This publication examines various topics and issues related to the world oil situation. Major areas considered are: (1) the nature and consequences of the current oil glut; (2) a historical overview of the petroleum era (with analyses of the three time periods of 1900-1973, 1973-1979, and 1979-1981); (3) the geopolitics of oil (including data on…

Nature and Education: Learning from the World around Us.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Donckers, Cathy

Our elementary secondary schools have hidden curricula which teach passivity, resistance to change, inflexibility, and submissive behavior in a world which is moving toward faster changes and heightened personal individuality. Class control with the teacher feeding information to the students like data to a computer can no longer be accepted as…

Why is combinatorial communication rare in the natural world, and why is language an exception to this trend?

PubMed

Scott-Phillips, Thomas C; Blythe, Richard A

2013-11-06

In a combinatorial communication system, some signals consist of the combinations of other signals. Such systems are more efficient than equivalent, non-combinatorial systems, yet despite this they are rare in nature. Why? Previous explanations have focused on the adaptive limits of combinatorial communication, or on its purported cognitive difficulties, but neither of these explains the full distribution of combinatorial communication in the natural world. Here, we present a nonlinear dynamical model of the emergence of combinatorial communication that, unlike previous models, considers how initially non-communicative behaviour evolves to take on a communicative function. We derive three basic principles about the emergence of combinatorial communication. We hence show that the interdependence of signals and responses places significant constraints on the historical pathways by which combinatorial signals might emerge, to the extent that anything other than the most simple form of combinatorial communication is extremely unlikely. We also argue that these constraints can be bypassed if individuals have the socio-cognitive capacity to engage in ostensive communication. Humans, but probably no other species, have this ability. This may explain why language, which is massively combinatorial, is such an extreme exception to nature's general trend for non-combinatorial communication.

Women and Nature: Using Memory-Work to Rethink Our Relationship to the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kaufman, Judith S.; Ewing, Margaret S.; Hyle, Adrienne E.; Montgomery, Diane; Self, Patricia A.

2006-01-01

Memory-work is a feminist research methodology that is used by research collectives to study socialization within the dominant values that make up a particular culture. The power of memory-work lies with its potential to interrupt hegemonic ways of seeing and knowing the world. Consequently, it can open up possibilities for individual and social…

Philippines: Environment and natural resource management study. World Bank country study

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1989-01-01

This study addresses the most significant issues of natural-resource management in the Philippines. These include the disappearence or degradation of forests; erosion and changes in hydrological regimes; the conversion of mangrove swamps to fishponds; degradation of coral reefs; and depletion of nearshore fisheries through overfishing and destructive techniques. The issues addressed concern the extent and rate of degradation of these resource stocks, the impact thereof on the national economy, and the scope for ameliorative measures through policy responses, management changes, and investments. The Government is responsible for management of public resources, which include over half of the land area ofmore » the Philippines as well as the coastal waters. Historically, public management has been less than optimal, as evidenced by an unsustainable rate of deforestation and the recent stagnation or decline in extractive fisheries.« less

Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 gene (Pck1) displays parallel evolution between Old World and New World fruit bats.

PubMed

Zhu, Lei; Yin, Qiuyuan; Irwin, David M; Zhang, Shuyi

2015-01-01

Bats are an ideal mammalian group for exploring adaptations to fasting due to their large variety of diets and because fasting is a regular part of their life cycle. Mammals fed on a carbohydrate-rich diet experience a rapid decrease in blood glucose levels during a fast, thus, the development of mechanisms to resist the consequences of regular fasts, experienced on a daily basis, must have been crucial in the evolution of frugivorous bats. Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PEPCK1, encoded by the Pck1 gene) is the rate-limiting enzyme in gluconeogenesis and is largely responsible for the maintenance of glucose homeostasis during fasting in fruit-eating bats. To test whether Pck1 has experienced adaptive evolution in frugivorous bats, we obtained Pck1 coding sequence from 20 species of bats, including five Old World fruit bats (OWFBs) (Pteropodidae) and two New World fruit bats (NWFBs) (Phyllostomidae). Our molecular evolutionary analyses of these sequences revealed that Pck1 was under purifying selection in both Old World and New World fruit bats with no evidence of positive selection detected in either ancestral branch leading to fruit bats. Interestingly, however, six specific amino acid substitutions were detected on the ancestral lineage of OWFBs. In addition, we found considerable evidence for parallel evolution, at the amino acid level, between the PEPCK1 sequences of Old World fruit bats and New World fruit bats. Test for parallel evolution showed that four parallel substitutions (Q276R, R503H, I558V and Q593R) were driven by natural selection. Our study provides evidence that Pck1 underwent parallel evolution between Old World and New World fruit bats, two lineages of mammals that feed on a carbohydrate-rich diet and experience regular periods of fasting as part of their life cycle.

Phosphoenolpyruvate Carboxykinase 1 Gene (Pck1) Displays Parallel Evolution between Old World and New World Fruit Bats

PubMed Central

Irwin, David M.; Zhang, Shuyi

2015-01-01

Bats are an ideal mammalian group for exploring adaptations to fasting due to their large variety of diets and because fasting is a regular part of their life cycle. Mammals fed on a carbohydrate-rich diet experience a rapid decrease in blood glucose levels during a fast, thus, the development of mechanisms to resist the consequences of regular fasts, experienced on a daily basis, must have been crucial in the evolution of frugivorous bats. Phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase 1 (PEPCK1, encoded by the Pck1 gene) is the rate-limiting enzyme in gluconeogenesis and is largely responsible for the maintenance of glucose homeostasis during fasting in fruit-eating bats. To test whether Pck1 has experienced adaptive evolution in frugivorous bats, we obtained Pck1 coding sequence from 20 species of bats, including five Old World fruit bats (OWFBs) (Pteropodidae) and two New World fruit bats (NWFBs) (Phyllostomidae). Our molecular evolutionary analyses of these sequences revealed that Pck1 was under purifying selection in both Old World and New World fruit bats with no evidence of positive selection detected in either ancestral branch leading to fruit bats. Interestingly, however, six specific amino acid substitutions were detected on the ancestral lineage of OWFBs. In addition, we found considerable evidence for parallel evolution, at the amino acid level, between the PEPCK1 sequences of Old World fruit bats and New World fruit bats. Test for parallel evolution showed that four parallel substitutions (Q276R, R503H, I558V and Q593R) were driven by natural selection. Our study provides evidence that Pck1 underwent parallel evolution between Old World and New World fruit bats, two lineages of mammals that feed on a carbohydrate-rich diet and experience regular periods of fasting as part of their life cycle. PMID:25807515

[Enter the World of the Naturalist.] Nature. Teacher's Guide.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taragan, Barbara

This curriculum guide was developed for use with public television's Nature series. The materials in the guide are designed to help students actively participate in the study and experience of nature. Students are encouraged to view the programs as naturalists would, observing animals in their environment, noting their behavior, and drawing…

Carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus transport by world rivers

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Meybeck, M.

1982-04-01

The various forms (dissolved and particulate, organic and inorganic) of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus in world rivers are reviewed from literature data. Natural levels are based mainly on major rivers for the subarctic and tropical zones which are still unpolluted and on smaller streams for the temperate zone. Atmospheric fallout is also reviewed. Natural contents of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) are mainly dependent on environmental conditions: DOC varies from 1 mg 1/sup -1/ in the mountainous alpine environments to 20 mg 1/sup -1/ in some taiga rivers. The world DOC average is 5.75 mg l/sup -1/. Nitrogen forms include dissolvedmore » organic nitrogen (DON), dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN = N - NH/sub 4//sup +/ + N - NO/sub 3//sup -/ + N - NO/sub 2//sup -/), and particulate organic nitrogen (PON). Natural levels are very low: DIN = 120 ..mu..g 1/sup -1/ of which only 15 percent is present as ammonia, and 1 percent as nitrite. Phosphorus is naturally present in very low amounts: around 10 ..mu..g 1/sup -1/ for P-PO/sub 4//sup 3/ and 25 ..mu..g 1/sup -1/ for total dissolved phosphorus (TDP which includes the organic form). The average nutrient content of rains has been estimated with a set of unpolluted stations: P - PO/sub 4/ = 5 ..mu..g 1/sup -1/, TDP = 10, N - NO/sub 2/ = 5, N - NH/sub 4/ = 225, DON = 225, and N - NO/sub 3/ = 175 ..mu..g 1/sup -1/. TOC levels are probably around several mg 1/sup -1/. These contents are very similar to those found in unpolluted rivers. Man's influence on surface waters has now greatly increased natural nutrient levels. Total dissolved P and N have globally increased by a factor of two and locally (Western Europe, North America) by factors of 10 to 50. These increases were found to be directly proportional to the watershed population and to its energy consumption.« less

How Much War Should Be Included in a Course on World War II?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Schilling, Donald G.

1993-01-01

Contends that end of Cold War increases need for students to understand causes and aftermath of World War II. Recommends spending less time on military aspects of the war and more time on the economic, social, and cultural impact of total war. Provides a selected list of resources to be used in a college level course on the war. (CFR)

Inequality in nature and society

PubMed Central

Scheffer, Marten; van Bavel, Bas; van de Leemput, Ingrid A.; van Nes, Egbert H.

2017-01-01

Most societies are economically dominated by a small elite, and similarly, natural communities are typically dominated by a small fraction of the species. Here we reveal a strong similarity between patterns of inequality in nature and society, hinting at fundamental unifying mechanisms. We show that chance alone will drive 1% or less of the community to dominate 50% of all resources in situations where gains and losses are multiplicative, as in returns on assets or growth rates of populations. Key mechanisms that counteract such hyperdominance include natural enemies in nature and wealth-equalizing institutions in society. However, historical research of European developments over the past millennium suggests that such institutions become ineffective in times of societal upscaling. A corollary is that in a globalizing world, wealth will inevitably be appropriated by a very small fraction of the population unless effective wealth-equalizing institutions emerge at the global level. PMID:29183971

Plants and Medicines. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Firsthand Nature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Gostev, Moses; Weiss, Francesca Michaelides

2007-01-01

It's no secret that many school programs don't give children enough opportunity to explore the natural world--i.e., to "mess about" and to have firsthand experience with nature and animals. Not so at the Muscota New School in New York City! This innovative public elementary school actively promotes inquiry-based learning and encourages…

Global Systems Science: A New World View

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Sneider, Cary; Golden, Richard; Barrett, Katharine

1999-01-01

Global systems science is a new field of study about the interactions between Earth's natural systems and human activities. The people who study global systems science draw on methods and theories of many different fields from chemistry and biology to economics and politics-in order to predict how today's actions are likely to affect the world of tomorrow - our world and our children's world.

Seeing and Supporting Children's Kinship with the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Curtis, Deb

2010-01-01

It is true that many child care centers are lacking in natural environments. The emphasis in programs is more often about rules and regulations for children's health and safety, and concerns about allergies, the weather, and getting dirty. It is also difficult to take groups of children into natural environments with inadequate ratios of adults to…

The concept of nature in Islamic science teaching

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Zarman, Wendi

2016-02-01

Science teaching is basically value laden activities. One of the values tells that science is not related to any religion. This secular value is reflected to science teaching in many places, including religious country like Indonesia. However, we argue that in Indonesia science teaching should not be secular as in the Western country since one of the basic aim of National Education according to the Indonesian constitution Undang-Undang Dasar 1945, is to inculcate faith and god-fearing to One God Almighty. As we know, Indonesia is a Moslem country and has many Islamic schools in it too. Thus, it is important to design a science teaching framework base on Islamic teaching to fulfill the basic aim of National Education This paper discusses concept of nature, the key term in science, based on Islamic view that may used as a framework to develop Islamic science teaching. In Islam, science has a strong relation to religion since nature reflects the existence of the Creator. This concept is derived from the analysis of several verses from Qur'an as the main source of Islamic teaching. There are several principle can be derived from this analysis. Firstly, visible world is not the only world, but there is also the unseen world. Secondly, the nature is not merely matter that doesn't have any sacred value, but it is the indication or symbol of God existence and His Nature. Thirdly, The Qur'an and the nature are both Books of Allah that contain messages of Him, so they are complementary to each other

World Motor Vehicle Demand

DOT National Transportation Integrated Search

1982-08-01

This report discusses the level and nature of world motor vehicle demand for the period 1980-1990. A general understanding of the structure of motor vehicle demand is developed. Published demand forecasts, varying widely, are gathered and their discr...

Drug-coated balloon angioplasty for de novo small vessel disease including chronic total occlusion and bifurcation in real-world clinical practice.

PubMed

Onishi, Takayuki; Onishi, Yuko; Kobayashi, Isshi; Umezawa, Shigeo; Niwa, Akihiro

2018-06-18

The aim of this study is to validate the efficacy of drug-coated balloons (DCBs) for real-world de novo small vessel diseases including chronic total occlusion and bifurcation. DCB angioplasty has been reported to be effective in the treatment of de novo small vessel disease. However, the number of reports that have focused on complex lesions is limited. This observational study comprised consecutive patients who underwent DCB angioplasty for de novo small vessel disease with a reference diameter of less than 2.5 mm by visual estimation. Outcome parameters included late lumen loss, restenosis rate, and major adverse cardiac events, such as cardiac death, non-fatal myocardial infarction, and target lesion revascularization (TLR). Fifty-two patients underwent DCB angioplasty for 59 lesions with a reference vessel diameter of 1.93 ± 0.63 mm. Thirty-eight of the lesions (69%) were classified as type B2/C, including chronic total occlusions (20%) and bifurcations (33%). At the 8-month follow-up, late lumen loss was - 0.01 ± 0.44 mm with a restenosis rate of 20%. No cardiac deaths or myocardial infarctions were reported and only 5 (9%) angiographically driven TLRs were reported. DCB angioplasty offered an acceptable 8-month lumen patency and a stable clinical outcome for real-world complex de novo coronary diseases.

The Teaching of Asia in World History Curriculum

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Shin, Kyunghee

2009-01-01

This dissertation research examines Asian history covered within a world history course in American high schools. I pose fundamental questions regarding the nature of what world history teachers classify under the category of Asian history. I research on what teachers teach as part of world history and how they instruct the Asian section of their…

Food and My World: My Health My World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tharp, Barbara; Dresden, Judith; Denk, James; Moreno, Nancy

This curriculum guide for students in grades K-4 is part of the My Health My World Series. It explores environmental issues, focusing on food and the environment. The unit includes (1) an activities guide for teachers entitled, "Food and My World," which presents activity-based lessons that entice students to discover concepts in…

The Natural World as Colonized Other(s): Educational Implications

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Blenkinsop, Sean; Piersol, Laura; Sitka-Sage, Michael D.; Ho, Yi Chien Jade

2016-01-01

This paper begins with two parallel, although not identical, images. The first is of Ota Benga, a Congolese "pygmy" brought to the St. Louis World Fair in 1904 and displayed in a cage for the entertainment of the visiting public. The second is of a Red Maple tree in a large concrete pot on the campus of Simon Fraser University on the…

Nutrition: the new world disorder.

PubMed

Cannon, Geoffrey

2002-01-01

Scale up 'we are what we eat' and nutrition is revealed as an aspect of world governance. The quality and nature of food systems has always tended to determine not only the health and welfare but also the fate of nations. The independence of nations depends on their development of their own human and natural resources, including food systems, which, if resilient, are indigenous, traditional, or evolved over time to climate, terrain and culture. Rapid adoption of untested or foreign food systems is hazardous not only to health, but also to security and sovereignty. Immediate gain may cause permanent loss. Dietary guidelines that recommend strange foods are liable to disrupt previous established food cultures. Since the 1960s the 'green revolution' has increased crop yield, and has also accelerated the exodus of hundreds of millions of farmers and their families from the land into lives of misery in mega-cities. This is a root cause of increased global inequity, instability and violence. 'Free trade' of food, in which value is determined by price, is imposed by dominant governments in alliance with industry when they believe they can thereby control the markets. The World Trade Organization and other agencies coordinate the work of transnational corporations that are the modern equivalents of the East India companies. Scientists should consider the wider dimensions of their work, nutrition scientists not least, because of the key place of food systems in all societies.

Natural chemical shielding analysis of nuclear magnetic resonance shielding tensors from gauge-including atomic orbital calculations

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bohmann, Jonathan A.; Weinhold, Frank; Farrar, Thomas C.

1997-07-01

Nuclear magnetic shielding tensors computed by the gauge including atomic orbital (GIAO) method in the Hartree-Fock self-consistent-field (HF-SCF) framework are partitioned into magnetic contributions from chemical bonds and lone pairs by means of natural chemical shielding (NCS) analysis, an extension of natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis. NCS analysis complements the description provided by alternative localized orbital methods by directly calculating chemical shieldings due to delocalized features in the electronic structure, such as bond conjugation and hyperconjugation. Examples of NCS tensor decomposition are reported for CH4, CO, and H2CO, for which a graphical mnemonic due to Cornwell is used to illustrate the effect of hyperconjugative delocalization on the carbon shielding.

Right-side-stretched multifractal spectra indicate small-worldness in networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oświȩcimka, Paweł; Livi, Lorenzo; Drożdż, Stanisław

2018-04-01

Complex network formalism allows to explain the behavior of systems composed by interacting units. Several prototypical network models have been proposed thus far. The small-world model has been introduced to mimic two important features observed in real-world systems: i) local clustering and ii) the possibility to move across a network by means of long-range links that significantly reduce the characteristic path length. A natural question would be whether there exist several ;types; of small-world architectures, giving rise to a continuum of models with properties (partially) shared with other models belonging to different network families. Here, we take advantage of the interplay between network theory and time series analysis and propose to investigate small-world signatures in complex networks by analyzing multifractal characteristics of time series generated from such networks. In particular, we suggest that the degree of right-sided asymmetry of multifractal spectra is linked with the degree of small-worldness present in networks. This claim is supported by numerical simulations performed on several parametric models, including prototypical small-world networks, scale-free, fractal and also real-world networks describing protein molecules. Our results also indicate that right-sided asymmetry emerges with the presence of the following topological properties: low edge density, low average shortest path, and high clustering coefficient.

NOAA Photo Library - It's A Small World Collection

Science.gov Websites

words Geodesy For children the world can seem like a huge place. For those lucky enough to have a back larger neighborhood and discover the outside world. Until a few short centuries ago, mankind was locked in a figurative backyard, mired in superstition and ignorance of the nature of the world about us

Balancing benefits and costs in a 4°C world: the need for and challenges of natural-social science dialogue

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kopp, R. E.

2012-12-01

Making wise policy decisions regarding mitigation, adaptation and geoengineering requires fair assessments of the risks of both action and inaction. Such assessments necessitate dialogue between natural and social scientists. Recent attempts by the U.S. government to estimate the social cost of carbon (SCC) for use in balancing the benefits and costs of proposed mitigatory regulations highlight some of the challenges involved. Among them: (1) Scale: The costs and benefits of adaptation decisions generally take place locally, while the benefits of mitigation accrue globally. Most studies to inform adaptation decision have, quite reasonably, taken place at the local scale, but this has left globally aggregate estimates of climate risk in a fairly tenuous state, engaging only a handful of economists. More accurate assessments, needed for making critical policy decisions as we approach a 4°C world, will require both better top-down analyses and a better framework for integrating bottom-up analyses. (2) Historical validation: Integrated assessment models have not been subject to validation studies, such as the historical runs used to test physical climate models. Conducting such studies for impact analyses will require the integration and further development of statistical analyses of the human impact of past and ongoing climate change. If models don't work for a 0.8°C world, there's no reason to think they'll work for a 4°C world. (3) Looking beyond a 4°C world: A world that reaches 4°C in this century may exceed it in the next century; and even if temperature is stabilized, understanding the economic impacts of 4°C warming will require more than the current approach of extrapolating from 2°C impacts. Natural scientists and social scientists need to work together to estimate damage calibration points for considerably warmer conditions. Recent work on the loss of physiologically habitable regions in a >8°C warmer world is a rare step in this direction (Sherwood

Transforming conservation science and practice for a postnormal world.

PubMed

Colloff, Matthew J; Lavorel, Sandra; van Kerkhoff, Lorrae E; Wyborn, Carina A; Fazey, Ioan; Gorddard, Russell; Mace, Georgina M; Foden, Wendy B; Dunlop, Michael; Prentice, I Colin; Crowley, John; Leadley, Paul; Degeorges, Patrick

2017-10-01

We examine issues to consider when reframing conservation science and practice in the context of global change. New framings of the links between ecosystems and society are emerging that are changing peoples' values and expectations of nature, resulting in plural perspectives on conservation. Reframing conservation for global change can thus be regarded as a stage in the evolving relationship between people and nature rather than some recent trend. New models of how conservation links with transformative adaptation include how decision contexts for conservation can be reframed and integrated with an adaptation pathways approach to create new options for global-change-ready conservation. New relationships for conservation science and governance include coproduction of knowledge that supports social learning. New processes for implementing adaptation for conservation outcomes include deliberate practices used to develop new strategies, shift world views, work with conflict, address power and intergenerational equity in decisions, and build consciousness and creativity that empower agents to act. We argue that reframing conservation for global change requires scientists and practitioners to implement approaches unconstrained by discipline and sectoral boundaries, geopolitical polarities, or technical problematization. We consider a stronger focus on inclusive creation of knowledge and the interaction of this knowledge with societal values and rules is likely to result in conservation science and practice that meets the challenges of a postnormal world. © 2017 The Authors. Conservation Biology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of Society for Conservation Biology.

Middle Years Students' Experiences in Nature: A Case Study on Nature-Play

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Francis, Marj; Paige, Kathy; Lloyd, David

2013-01-01

Increasingly, children today are becoming disconnected from the natural environments resulting in a diminished sense of self, place and community. In an attempt to find out their perceptions, attitudes and values about the natural world, twenty-five Year 6 and 7 students from a northern Adelaide primary school participated in a nature-play case…

World Study Action.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bolam, David W., Ed.; Seymour, Roland P., Ed.

Focusing upon training teachers for a world perspective, the report presents papers by educators from Hong Kong, Nigeria, England, and the University of Indiana. The first part of the paper describes the Trans-Cultural Teacher Education Project. The basic objectives of the project are to enable people to understand human nature in greater depth,…

Including natural systems into the system engineering process: benefits to spaceflight and beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Studor, George

2014-03-01

How did we get to the point where we don't have time to be inspired by the wonders of Nature? Our office walls, homes and city streets are so plain that even when we do escape to a retreat with nature all around us, we may be blind to its magnificence. Yet there are many who have applied what can be known of natural systems (NS) to create practical solutions, but often definite applications for them are lacking. Mimicry of natural systems is not only more possible than ever before, but the education and research programs in many major universities are churning out graduates with a real appreciation for Nature's complex integrated systems. What if these skills and perspectives were employed in the teams of systems engineers and the technology developers that support them to help the teams think "outside-the-box" of manmade inventions? If systems engineers (SE) and technology developers regularly asked the question, "what can we learn from Nature that will help us?" as a part of their processes, they would discover another set of potential solutions. Biomimicry and knowledge of natural systems is exploding. What does this mean for systems engineering and technology? Some disciplines such as robotics and medical devices must consider nature constantly. Perhaps it's time for all technology developers and systems engineers to perceive natural systems experts as potential providers of the technologies they need.

Learning to Attend and Observe: Parent-Child Meaning Making in the Natural World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Marin, Ananda Maria

Observation is a traditional form of learning and a scientific practice, and as such it plays a significant role in teaching and learning both inside and outside of schools. Recently, educational researchers and philosophers have called attention to the role of observation in scientific knowledge building (Brayboy & Castagno, 2008; Cajete, 2000; Datson & Lunbeck, 2011; Eberbach, 2009; Eberbach & Crowley, 2009; Kawagley, 2006; Norris, 1985; Smith & Reiser, 2005). These scholars have foregrounded the complexity of observation, particularly as it applies to inquiry practices in those domains which are heavily reliant on observation (Eberbach & Crowley, 2009; Maltese, Balliet, & Riggs, 2013; Smith & Reiser, 2005). My dissertation research examines how families with young children engage in the coordinated activity of observation during forest walks. I focus on the ways in which attentional practices support observational inquiry among parents and children between the ages of 5 to 7. Specifically, I examine how families coordinate attention and highlight features of the environment in order to make them observable. I use a mixed methods approach to investigate the range of interactional resources parents and children use as they engage in observation and learning about the natural world. Building on Indigenous scholarship (Cajete, 2000; Deloria & Wildcat, 2010; Kawagley, 2006), sociocultural theories and ecological approaches to development (Cole, 1996; Goodwin, 1994; Ingold, 2000; Rogoff, 2003) and conversation analysis (Heritage, 2008; Pomerantz & Fehr, 1997), I develop a taxonomy of forms of coordination and discuss how spatial arrangements and language work together to link attention, observations and explanations. This work further contributes to our understanding of the situated and cultural nature of learning and serves as a resource for the design of place-based learning environments that are based on the intellectual strengths and resources of diverse families.

Determination by HPLC fluorescence analysis of the natural enantiomers of sex pheromones in the New World screwworm fly, Cochliomyia hominivorax.

PubMed

Akasaka, K; Carlson, D A; Ohtaka, T; Ohrui, H; Mori, K; Berkebile, D R

2009-06-01

Bioassays of six racemic synthesized candidate sex pheromone compounds against male New World screwworm Cochliomyia hominivorax (Coquerel) flies showed that the most potent bioactivity was found with 6-acetoxy-19-methylnonacosane and 7-acetoxy-15-methylnonacosane compared with four other isomeric acetoxy nonacosanes and a larger aliphatic ketone. As all these methyl-branched compounds have two asymmetric carbons and four possible enantiomers, characterization of the natural enantiomers was essential. All four enantiomers for the two most bioactive isomers of the natural sex pheromone were synthesized for bioassay. Hydrolysis and derivatization of these enantiomers with different fluorescent reagents was followed by column-switched high-performance liquid chromatography. The use of two linked, reversed-phase columns of different polarity held at sub-ambient temperatures allowed good separation of each enantiomer. This analysis applied to natural material was successful, as (6R,19R)-6-acetoxy-19-methylnonanocosane, and (7R,15R)- and (7R,15S)-7-acetoxy-15-methylnonanocosane were detected in extracts of recently colonized female flies.

Making a world of difference; recent USGS contributions to the Nation

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

1998-01-01

Public service is about making a difference. As the Federal government's principal natural science and information agency, the USGS is committed to providing excellence in public service and to making a difference to the world we live in. Our motto conveys an enduring message: science for a changing world. The changing nature of the natural and physical world is the primary driving force and motivation behind all of the work USGS does in biology, geology, mapping, and water. We live our motto each day in fulfilling our mission to provide reliable, impartial information to the citizen of this country and to the global community.

An Answer to Fermi's Paradox in the Prevalence of Ocean Worlds?

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stern, S. A.

2017-11-01

We suggest that the great majority of worlds with biology and civilizations are interior ocean worlds, cut off from communication by their nature inside of their host world, therefore not easily revealing themselves.

Nature's palette: the search for natural blue colorants.

PubMed

Newsome, Andrew G; Culver, Catherine A; van Breemen, Richard B

2014-07-16

The food and beverage industry is seeking to broaden the palette of naturally derived colorants. Although considerable effort has been devoted to the search for new blue colorants in fruits and vegetables, less attention has been directed toward blue compounds from other sources such as bacteria and fungi. The current work reviews known organic blue compounds from natural plant, animal, fungal, and microbial sources. The scarcity of blue-colored metabolites in the natural world relative to metabolites of other colors is discussed, and structural trends common among natural blue compounds are identified. These compounds are grouped into seven structural classes and evaluated for their potential as new color additives.

Cognitive Authority in Everyday Life: From Small Worlds to Virtual Worlds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Meyers, Eric M.

2010-01-01

The very nature of information seeking in today's world suggests that credibility is an important factor in how one goes about seeking and using information. The proliferation of Web-based resources and the ability for nearly anyone to publish on the Web force individuals to make judgments of quality and authority as they flow on- and offline in…

Colour Perception in Ancient World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nesterov, D. I.; Fedorova, M. Yu

2017-11-01

How did the human thought form the surrounding color information into the persistent semantic images of a mythological, pseudoscientific and religious nature? The concepts associated with colour perception are suggested. The existence of colour environment does not depend on the human consciousness. The colour culture formation is directly related to the level of the human consciousness development and the possibility to influence the worldview and culture. The colour perception of a person goes through the stages similar to the development of colour vision in a child. Like any development, the colour consciousness has undergone stages of growth and decline, evolution and stagnation. The way of life and difficult conditions for existence made their own adjustments to the development of the human perception of the surrounding world. Wars have been both a powerful engine of progress in all spheres of life and a great destructive force demolishing the already created and preserved heritage. The surrounding world has always been interesting for humans, evoked images and fantasies in the consciousness of ancient people. Unusual and inexplicable natural phenomena spawned numerous legends and myths which was reflected in the ancient art and architecture and, accordingly, in a certain manifestation of colour in the human society. The colour perception of the ancient man, his pragmatic, utilitarian attitude to colour is considered as well as the influence of dependence on external conditions of existence and their reflection in the colour culture of antiquity. “Natural Science” conducts research in the field of the colour nature and their authorial interpretation of the Hellenic period. Several authorial concepts of the ancient world have been considered.

NCI Program for Natural Product Discovery: A Publicly-Accessible Library of Natural Product Fractions for High-Throughput Screening.

PubMed

Thornburg, Christopher C; Britt, John R; Evans, Jason R; Akee, Rhone K; Whitt, James A; Trinh, Spencer K; Harris, Matthew J; Thompson, Jerell R; Ewing, Teresa L; Shipley, Suzanne M; Grothaus, Paul G; Newman, David J; Schneider, Joel P; Grkovic, Tanja; O'Keefe, Barry R

2018-06-13

The US National Cancer Institute's (NCI) Natural Product Repository is one of the world's largest, most diverse collections of natural products containing over 230,000 unique extracts derived from plant, marine, and microbial organisms that have been collected from biodiverse regions throughout the world. Importantly, this national resource is available to the research community for the screening of extracts and the isolation of bioactive natural products. However, despite the success of natural products in drug discovery, compatibility issues that make extracts challenging for liquid handling systems, extended timelines that complicate natural product-based drug discovery efforts and the presence of pan-assay interfering compounds have reduced enthusiasm for the high-throughput screening (HTS) of crude natural product extract libraries in targeted assay systems. To address these limitations, the NCI Program for Natural Product Discovery (NPNPD), a newly launched, national program to advance natural product discovery technologies and facilitate the discovery of structurally defined, validated lead molecules ready for translation will create a prefractionated library from over 125,000 natural product extracts with the aim of producing a publicly-accessible, HTS-amenable library of >1,000,000 fractions. This library, representing perhaps the largest accumulation of natural-product based fractions in the world, will be made available free of charge in 384-well plates for screening against all disease states in an effort to reinvigorate natural product-based drug discovery.

World commercial aircraft accidents

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kimura, C.Y.

1993-01-01

This report is a compilation of all accidents world-wide involving aircraft in commercial service which resulted in the loss of the airframe or one or more fatality, or both. This information has been gathered in order to present a complete inventory of commercial aircraft accidents. Events involving military action, sabotage, terrorist bombings, hijackings, suicides, and industrial ground accidents are included within this list. Included are: accidents involving world commercial jet aircraft, world commercial turboprop aircraft, world commercial pistonprop aircraft with four or more engines and world commercial pistonprop aircraft with two or three engines from 1946 to 1992. Each accidentmore » is presented with information in the following categories: date of the accident, airline and its flight numbers, type of flight, type of aircraft, aircraft registration number, construction number/manufacturers serial number, aircraft damage, accident flight phase, accident location, number of fatalities, number of occupants, cause, remarks, or description (brief) of the accident, and finally references used. The sixth chapter presents a summary of the world commercial aircraft accidents by major aircraft class (e.g. jet, turboprop, and pistonprop) and by flight phase. The seventh chapter presents several special studies including a list of world commercial aircraft accidents for all aircraft types with 100 or more fatalities in order of decreasing number of fatalities, a list of collision accidents involving commercial aircrafts, and a list of world commercial aircraft accidents for all aircraft types involving military action, sabotage, terrorist bombings, and hijackings.« less

World Population: Facts in Focus. World Population Data Sheet Workbook. Population Learning Series.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crews, Kimberly A.

This workbook teaches population analysis using world population statistics. To complete the four student activity sheets, the students refer to the included "1988 World Population Data Sheet" which lists nations' statistical data that includes population totals, projected population, birth and death rates, fertility levels, and the…

Carrying Loads on Heads. Third World Science.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jones, Natalie; Hughes, Wyn

This unit, developed by the Third World Science Project, is designed to add a multicultural element to existing science syllabi (for students aged 11-16) in the United Kingdom. The project seeks to develop an appreciation of the: boundless fascination of the natural world; knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by men/women everywhere;…

Modeling Natural Selection

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bogiages, Christopher A.; Lotter, Christine

2011-01-01

In their research, scientists generate, test, and modify scientific models. These models can be shared with others and demonstrate a scientist's understanding of how the natural world works. Similarly, students can generate and modify models to gain a better understanding of the content, process, and nature of science (Kenyon, Schwarz, and Hug…

World population, world health and security: 20th century trends.

PubMed

Bashford, A

2008-03-01

The connection between infectious disease control and national security is now firmly entrenched. This article takes a historical look at another security issue once prominent in debate on foreign policy and international relations, but now more or less absent: overpopulation. It explores the nature of the debate on population as a security question, and its complicated historical relation to the development of world health.

The Ecology of Hope: Natural Guides to Building a Children and Nature Movement

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Charles, Cheryl

2009-01-01

Cheryl Charles, Ph.D gave the 2009 Paul F-Brandwein Lecture. The lecture addresses the impact of children's disconnect from the natural world in their everyday lives. Co-founder of the Children & Nature Network (C&NN) with Richard Louv, author of "Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder" (2005/2008), the author…

Understanding Minds in Real-World Environments: Toward a Mobile Cognition Approach.

PubMed

Ladouce, Simon; Donaldson, David I; Dudchenko, Paul A; Ietswaart, Magdalena

2016-01-01

There is a growing body of evidence that important aspects of human cognition have been marginalized, or overlooked, by traditional cognitive science. In particular, the use of laboratory-based experiments in which stimuli are artificial, and response options are fixed, inevitably results in findings that are less ecologically valid in relation to real-world behavior. In the present review we highlight the opportunities provided by a range of new mobile technologies that allow traditionally lab-bound measurements to now be collected during natural interactions with the world. We begin by outlining the theoretical support that mobile approaches receive from the development of embodied accounts of cognition, and we review the widening evidence that illustrates the importance of examining cognitive processes in their context. As we acknowledge, in practice, the development of mobile approaches brings with it fresh challenges, and will undoubtedly require innovation in paradigm design and analysis. If successful, however, the mobile cognition approach will offer novel insights in a range of areas, including understanding the cognitive processes underlying navigation through space and the role of attention during natural behavior. We argue that the development of real-world mobile cognition offers both increased ecological validity, and the opportunity to examine the interactions between perception, cognition and action-rather than examining each in isolation.

Enhanced learning of natural visual sequences in newborn chicks.

PubMed

Wood, Justin N; Prasad, Aditya; Goldman, Jason G; Wood, Samantha M W

2016-07-01

To what extent are newborn brains designed to operate over natural visual input? To address this question, we used a high-throughput controlled-rearing method to examine whether newborn chicks (Gallus gallus) show enhanced learning of natural visual sequences at the onset of vision. We took the same set of images and grouped them into either natural sequences (i.e., sequences showing different viewpoints of the same real-world object) or unnatural sequences (i.e., sequences showing different images of different real-world objects). When raised in virtual worlds containing natural sequences, newborn chicks developed the ability to recognize familiar images of objects. Conversely, when raised in virtual worlds containing unnatural sequences, newborn chicks' object recognition abilities were severely impaired. In fact, the majority of the chicks raised with the unnatural sequences failed to recognize familiar images of objects despite acquiring over 100 h of visual experience with those images. Thus, newborn chicks show enhanced learning of natural visual sequences at the onset of vision. These results indicate that newborn brains are designed to operate over natural visual input.

The World Summit for Social Development.

PubMed

1995-01-01

The three goals of the UN World Summit for Social Development are to attack poverty, build solidarity, and create jobs. Unprecedented population growth has led to recognition of the need for a new, people-centered vision of development to counter the mutually reinforcing threats posed to world stability by poverty, unemployment, and social disintegration. This population growth may result in an inability of humanity to adapt and create unrelenting pressure on the world's natural resources. It has become increasingly recognized that improvements in the status of women will be vital to ensuring the future of humanity. Giving women the ability to decide their family size will eliminate hundreds of thousands of maternal deaths each year and will slow population growth while it increases women's productivity and control over resources. As the industrialized nations engage in unsustainable patterns of production and consumption, the lowest-income countries are caught in a "poverty-population-environment spiral." Although population growth is gradually slowing, the population of the world could double by 2050, with 95% of the growth occurring in developing countries. Concern is also mounting over the increasing urbanization of the world as well as the fact that while the populations of poor countries are becoming larger and younger, the population of industrialized countries are becoming older and smaller. The new vision of sustainable development involves generating economic growth, distributing benefits equitably, and allowing the regeneration of the environment. Without such security, the world can not achieve peace. The symptoms of social discrimination include social exclusion, which affects 90% of the world's population; sex and racial discrimination, which lowers the quality of life and increases life-threatening risks for women, indigenous people, and Blacks; violence and abuse, reflected in fact that the US has the highest incidence of murder in the world, in the

Learning Spaces Framework: Learning in an Online World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (NJ1), 2008

2008-01-01

"Contemporary learning--learning in an online world" describes the integrated nature of the highly technological world in which young people live and learn. A key priority is to design learning spaces that integrate technologies: engaging students in ways not previously possible; creating new learning and teaching possibilities;…

Nature at Your Doorstep: Real World Investigation for Primary Students.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Basile, Carole G.; And Others

"Nature at Your Doorstep" is an outgrowth of a successful environmental education program offered as a school field trip at a Nature Discovery Center. It was developed and used with thousands of students throughout Bellaire, Texas and the surrounding Houston metroplex. The purpose of this program is to kindle students' curiosity and…

"Human Nature": Chemical Engineering Students' Ideas about Human Relationships with the Natural World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Goldman, Daphne; Assaraf, Orit Ben-Zvi; Shemesh, Julia

2014-01-01

While importance of environmental ethics, as a component of sustainable development, in preparing engineers is widely acknowledged, little research has addressed chemical engineers' environmental concerns. This study aimed to address this void by exploring chemical engineering students' values regarding human-nature relationships. The study was…

Raising Children Who Care for Our World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Brien, Leigh M.

2007-01-01

If global warming has an upside, it may be the development of an enhanced awareness of the environment and the dangers faced due to profligate and destructive habits. The ways in which most people live in the industrialized world separate those from the natural world and hence make it difficult for them to understand and care about the planet that…

`Human nature': Chemical engineering students' ideas about human relationships with the natural world

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Goldman, Daphne; Ben-Zvi Assaraf, Orit; Shemesh, Julia

2014-05-01

While importance of environmental ethics, as a component of sustainable development, in preparing engineers is widely acknowledged, little research has addressed chemical engineers' environmental concerns. This study aimed to address this void by exploring chemical engineering students' values regarding human-nature relationships. The study was conducted with 247 3rd-4th year chemical engineering students in Israeli Universities. It employed the New Ecological Paradigm (NEP)-questionnaire to which students added written explanations. Quantitative analysis of NEP-scale results shows that the students demonstrated moderately ecocentric orientation. Explanations to the NEP-items reveal diverse, ambivalent ideas regarding the notions embodied in the NEP, strong scientific orientation and reliance on technology for addressing environmental challenges. Endorsing sustainability implies that today's engineers be equipped with an ecological perspective. The capacity of Higher Education to enable engineers to develop dispositions about human-nature interrelationships requires adaptation of curricula towards multidisciplinary, integrative learning addressing social-political-economic-ethical perspectives, and implementing critical-thinking within the socio-scientific issues pedagogical approach.

Epidemiology of concussion in men's elite Rugby-7s (Sevens World Series) and Rugby-15s (Rugby World Cup, Junior World Championship and Rugby Trophy, Pacific Nations Cup and English Premiership).

PubMed

Fuller, Colin W; Taylor, Aileen; Raftery, Martin

2015-04-01

To determine the incidence, nature and causes of concussions sustained during men's elite professional Rugby-7s and Rugby-15s. A prospective cohort study recording injuries classified as a time-loss concussion. Players competing in the following tournaments: Rugby 15s-English Premiership (2007/2008 to 2010/2011), Rugby World Cup (2007, 2011), Pacific Nations Cup (2012, 2013), Junior World Championship (2008, 2010-2013), Junior World Rugby Trophy (2008, 2010-2013); Rugby 7s-Sevens World Series (2008/2009, 2010/2011 to 2012/2013). The study was implemented according to the international consensus statement for epidemiological studies in rugby union; the main outcome measures included the number, incidence (number of concussions/1000 player-match-hours), mean and median severity (days absence) and cause of concussion. The incidence of concussion in Rugby-7s was significantly higher than that in Rugby-15s (risk ratio=1.84; p<0.001). The severity of concussions were significantly higher in Rugby-7s than Rugby-15s (mean-Rugby-7s: 19.2, Rugby-15s: 10.1; median-Rugby 7s: 20, Rugby-15s: 7; p<0.001). The main causes of concussion were tackling (44.1%) in Rugby-7s and collisions (43.6%) in Rugby-15s. Significantly more (risk ratio=1.49; p=0.004) concussed players were removed immediately from the game in Rugby-7s (69.7%) compared to Rugby-15s (46.7%). Six actions were identified to improve the management of concussion in rugby: implement a pitch-side concussion assessment protocol; improve compliance with return-to-play protocols; work with referees to review the nature and consequences of collisions; improve players' tackle technique; investigate the forces involved in tackles and collisions; and evaluate reasons for the higher incidence of concussions in Rugby-7s. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions.

Third World Science: Development Education through Science Teaching.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Williams, Iolo Wyn

Third World Science (TWS) materials were developed to add a multicultural element to the existing science curriculum of 11-16-year-old students. TWS attempts to develop an appreciation of the: (1) boundless fascination of the natural world; (2) knowledge, skills, and expertise possessed by ordinary men and women everywhere; (3) application of…

World Oil Prices and Production Trends in AEO2010 (released in AEO2010)

EIA Publications

2010-01-01

In Annual Energy Outlook 2010, the price of light, low-sulfur (or "sweet") crude oil delivered at Cushing, Oklahoma, is tracked to represent movements in world oil prices. The Energy Information Administration makes projections of future supply and demand for "total liquids,"" which includes conventional petroleum liquids -- such as conventional crude oil, natural gas plant liquids, and refinery gain -- in addition to unconventional liquids, which include biofuels, bitumen, coal-to-liquids (CTL), gas-to-liquids (GTL), extra-heavy oils, and shale oil.

Small-world human brain networks: Perspectives and challenges.

PubMed

Liao, Xuhong; Vasilakos, Athanasios V; He, Yong

2017-06-01

Modelling the human brain as a complex network has provided a powerful mathematical framework to characterize the structural and functional architectures of the brain. In the past decade, the combination of non-invasive neuroimaging techniques and graph theoretical approaches enable us to map human structural and functional connectivity patterns (i.e., connectome) at the macroscopic level. One of the most influential findings is that human brain networks exhibit prominent small-world organization. Such a network architecture in the human brain facilitates efficient information segregation and integration at low wiring and energy costs, which presumably results from natural selection under the pressure of a cost-efficiency balance. Moreover, the small-world organization undergoes continuous changes during normal development and ageing and exhibits dramatic alterations in neurological and psychiatric disorders. In this review, we survey recent advances regarding the small-world architecture in human brain networks and highlight the potential implications and applications in multidisciplinary fields, including cognitive neuroscience, medicine and engineering. Finally, we highlight several challenging issues and areas for future research in this rapidly growing field. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Mathematics in the Real World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Borenstein, Matt

1997-01-01

The abstract nature of algebra causes difficulties for many students. Describes "Real-World Data," an algebra course designed for students with low grades in algebra and provides multidisciplinary experiments (linear functions and variations; quadratic, square-root, and inverse relations; and exponential and periodic variation)…

Education in the imbalance of Nature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Shlafman, L. M.; Kontar, V. A.

2013-12-01

. The Concept imbalance of Nature is more suitable to solve problems of global change. Many thousands of scientists and practical from around the world are working already in the field of imbalance of Nature. Now is a time when the concept imbalance of Nature should be included into the training programs at universities, colleges and schools. We have experts who can teach students in imbalance of Nature. We have a list of topics for Ph.D. dissertations in field of imbalance of Nature. Now we are preparing the fundamental scientific book on all major issues imbalance of Nature. On the basis of this fundamental scientific work will be prepared the textbooks for students of different levels, non-fiction books, will organized promotion of the imbalance of Nature in the media, social networks, etc. People need to understand the real Nature as it is. This new knowledge will help humanity make the right and safer decisions in the era of global change. We invite the universities, colleges, schools, community organizations, sponsors and just responsible people of any country in the world to take part in this noble and vital issue. Humanity has no choice. Or mankind will have time to learn how to live in the era of global change or perish. The concept imbalance of Nature gives humanity the chance to survive.

Shirakatsi Astronomical and Natural Philosophical Views

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Mkrtchyan, Lilit

2016-12-01

Our work is aimed at presenting Shirakatsi astronomical and natural philosophical views. Karl Anania Shirakatsi is classified as one of the world-class intellectual geniuses. He was endowed with exceptional talent and analyzing scientific understanding of natural phenomena. He refers his philosophical works to almost all fields of science, cosmography, mathematics, calendarology, historiography, etc. Shirakatsy's earnings of natural science and natural philosophy in medieval is too big He was the first prominent scholar and thinker of his time, creating a unique, comprehensive gitapilisopayakan system that still feeds the human mind. The scientific value of Shirakatsi has great importance not only for Armenians but also for the whole world of science, history, culture and philosophy. Shirakatsi can be considered not only national but also universal greatness.

Film, Philosophy, and Terrence Malick's "The New World"

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sterritt, David

2006-01-01

Director Terence Malick's movies contain his distinctive trademarks, namely sumptuous images of the natural world, a great deal of voice-over monologue, and an exploration of philosophical issues such as the purpose of life and the meaning of death. Malick's film "The New World" affords him a prefect opportunity to examine contrasts between the…

The World Water Vision: From Developing a Vision to Action

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Gangopadhyay, S.; Cosgrove, W.; Rijsberman, F.; Strzepek, K.; Strzepek, K.

2001-05-01

The World Water Vision exercise was initiated by the World Water Commission under the auspices of the World Water Council. The goal of the World Water Vision project was to develop a widely shared vision on the actions required to achieve a common set of water-related goals and the necessary commitment to carry out these actions. The Vision should be participatory in nature, including input from both developed and developing regions, with a special focus on the needs of the poor, women, youth, children and the environment. Three overall objectives were to: (i)raise awareness of water issues among both the general population and decision-makers so as to foster the necessary political will and leadership to tackle the problems seriously and systematically; (ii) develop a vision of water management for 2025 that is shared by water sector specialists as well as international, national and regional decision-makers in government, the private sector and civil society; and (iii) provide input to a Framework for Action to be elaborated by the Global Water Partnership, with steps to go from vision to action, including recommendations to funding agencies for investment priorities. This exercise was characterized by the principles of: (i) a participatory approach with extensive consultation; (ii) Innovative thinking; (iii) central analysis to assure integration and co-ordination; and (iv) emphasis on communication with groups outside the water sector. The primary activities included, developing global water scenarios that fed into regional consultations and sectoral consultations as water for food, water for people - water supply and sanitation, and water and environment. These consultations formulated the regional and sectoral visions that were synthesized to form the World Water Vision. The findings from this exercise were reported and debated at the Second World Water Forum and the Ministerial Conference held in The Hague, The Netherlands during April 2000. This paper

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) market and Australia

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alam, Firoz; Alam, Quamrul; Reza, Suman; Khurshid-ul-Alam, S. M.; Saleque, Khondkar; Ahsan, Saifuddin

2017-06-01

As low carbon-emitting fossil fuel, the natural gas is mainly used for power generation and industrial applications. It is also used for heating and cooling in commercial and residential buildings as well as in transport industry. Although the natural gas reaches the end-user mainly through pipelines (if gas is available locally), the liquefied form is the most viable alternative to transport natural gas from far away location to the end user. The economic progress in Asia and other parts of the world creates huge demand for energy (oil, gas and coal). As low carbon-emitting fuel, the demand for gas especially in liquefied form is progressively rising. Having 7th largest shale gas reserve (437 trillion cubic feet recoverable), Australia has become one of the world's major natural gas producers and exporters and is expected to continue a dominating role in the world gas market in foreseeable future. This paper reviews Australia's current gas reserve, industries, markets and LNG production capabilities.

On the meanings of "nature"

Treesearch

Calvin W. Stillman

1977-01-01

All peoples known to science have a concept of "nature" which forms part of the world-view of the culture. The relative importance of "nature" differs among cultures. In our own Western culture, ideas of "nature" are mentioned from the earliest written records, and are related to concepts of the autonomous individual and of hierarachy and...

Commentary: Biochemistry Re-Natured

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, Harold B.

2010-01-01

In his last commentary on "Biochemistry Denatured," this author dealt with his perception that college students today have spent too little of their childhood years playing outside in nature and as a consequence have not learned basic things about the world from personal experience. This "nature-deficit disorder" removes many opportunities for…

Nature Experience and Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Rathunde, Kevin

2013-01-01

Kevin Rathunde turns his research lens to the task of finding out the relevance of the natural world, its impact on adolescent motivation, and its positive sustaining of concentration and focus. He cites "disembodiment and denaturing" as needing to be countered by contact with nature, leading to higher creativity, less drudgery, and more…

Understanding Minds in Real-World Environments: Toward a Mobile Cognition Approach

PubMed Central

Ladouce, Simon; Donaldson, David I.; Dudchenko, Paul A.; Ietswaart, Magdalena

2017-01-01

There is a growing body of evidence that important aspects of human cognition have been marginalized, or overlooked, by traditional cognitive science. In particular, the use of laboratory-based experiments in which stimuli are artificial, and response options are fixed, inevitably results in findings that are less ecologically valid in relation to real-world behavior. In the present review we highlight the opportunities provided by a range of new mobile technologies that allow traditionally lab-bound measurements to now be collected during natural interactions with the world. We begin by outlining the theoretical support that mobile approaches receive from the development of embodied accounts of cognition, and we review the widening evidence that illustrates the importance of examining cognitive processes in their context. As we acknowledge, in practice, the development of mobile approaches brings with it fresh challenges, and will undoubtedly require innovation in paradigm design and analysis. If successful, however, the mobile cognition approach will offer novel insights in a range of areas, including understanding the cognitive processes underlying navigation through space and the role of attention during natural behavior. We argue that the development of real-world mobile cognition offers both increased ecological validity, and the opportunity to examine the interactions between perception, cognition and action—rather than examining each in isolation. PMID:28127283

World heritage site - Bien du Patrimoine Mondial - Kluane/Wrangell-St. Elias/Glacier Bay/Tatshenshini-Alsek

USGS Publications Warehouse

Labay, Keith A.; Wilson, Frederic H.

2004-01-01

The four parks depicted on this map make up a single World Heritage Site that covers 24.3 million acres. Together, they comprise the largest internationally protected land-based ecosystem on the planet. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) established the World Heritage Program in 1972 for the identification and protection of the world?s irreplaceable natural and cultural resources. World Heritage Sites are important as storehouses of memory and evolution, as anchors for sustainable tourism and community, and as laboratories for the study and understanding of the earth and culture. This World Heritage Site protects the prominent mountain ranges of Kluane, Wrangell, Saint Elias, and Chugach. It includes many of the tallest peaks on the continent, the world's largest non-polar icefield, extensive glaciers, vital watersheds, and expanses of dramatic wilderness. [Les quatre parcs figurant sur cette carte ne constituent qu?un seul site du patrimoine mondial recouvrant plus de 99 millions de km2, ce qui en fait le plus grand ecosysteme terrestre protege par loi internationale. En 1972, L?UNESCO (l?organisation des Nations Unies pour les sciences, l'education et la culture) a etabli le programme du patrimoine mondial afin d?identifier et de proteger les ressources naturelles et culturelles irremplacables de notre plan?te. Si les sites du patrimoine mondial sont si importants c'est parce qu'ils representent a la fois des livres ouverts sur l?histoire de la Terre, le point de depart du tourisme durable et du developpement des collectivites, des laboratoires pour etudier et comprendre la nature et la culture. Ce site du patrimoine mondial assure la protection des chaines de montagnes de Kluane, Wrangell, Saint Elias, et Chugach. On y trouve plusieurs des plus hauts sommets du continent, le plus grand champ de glace non-polaire du monde, d?immenses glaciers, des bassins hydrologiques essentiels, et de la nature sauvage a perte de vue.

An evolutionary cosmology for scientists--and the modern world in general.

PubMed

Charlton, Bruce G

2007-01-01

I believe that people will not feel comfortable and positive about the contemporary world until we can endorse and believe an evolutionary cosmology which is appropriate to modern conditions. A cosmology is a mythical account of the universe as it presents itself to the human mind; it needs to be poetic, symbolic, inspiring of a sense of awe and mystery. Furthermore, a complete cosmology should include the three levels of macro-, meso- and micro-cosm, in order to understand the nature of the universe, human society, and the individual's relation to them. Traditional cosmologies described an eternal underlying structure to ultimate reality--a static ideal state towards which the world ought to gravitate. However, modern life is characterized by rapid growth, novelty, destruction and fluidity of all kinds of structures, a feature which traditional static cosmologies interpret negatively and pessimistically. A modern cosmology therefore needs to be focused on underlying dynamic process instead of structure and stasis. Biologists are better placed than many to appreciate a cosmology based on evolutionary change; because this is the mainstream understanding of adaptation and diversity in the natural world. The same dynamic, neophiliac and open-ended process of 'creative destruction' can be seen at work in science, economics, and modern spirituality. But a modern cosmology will only be experienced as both deep and spontaneous when it takes the form of a mythic account that is first encountered and assimilated during childhood. Since myths arise as a consequence of human creativity; there is a vital future mythogenic role for artists in the realm of ideas, images and stories: people such as mystics, poets and philosophers--including, I hope and expect, creatively inspired scientists.

For the Birds!: Seeing, Being, and Creating the Bird World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Russo, Michele

2008-01-01

Nature studies are an often overlooked part of healthy child development. Living in urban or suburban areas can present a big obstacle to studying the natural world with any authenticity or depth. Quite often, the only sense of nature children have is from picture books, stuffed animals, play sets, and nature programs on television and in…

Introduction to Exploring Nature

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Early Childhood Today, 2006

2006-01-01

Children are fascinated with the world of nature. From the tiniest of seeds to the highest of birds, they wonder "Why?" "How?" and "What can I do with it?" This paper provides intriguing nature activities that provide a solid starting point for expanding children's thinking and learning. Through these activities, children will be building skills…

Cities in the developing world: agenda for action following Habitat II.

PubMed

Annez, P; Friendly, A

1996-12-01

This article discusses the issue of priorities in development in urban centers of developing countries. Urbanization is advancing rapidly in the developing world. There are needs for adequate infrastructure, environmental protection, and fiscal reform. Development can result in a reduction in poverty, if properly conducted. By the turn of the century, 8 of the world's 10 megacities will be located in developing countries. There are already the megacities of Mexico City, Sao Paulo, Bombay, Calcutta, and Shanghai. By 2015 there will be 27 megacities, and urban population in developing countries will amount to over 4 billion. By 2020, 50% of total population in developing countries and 80% of total population in Latin America will be urban, of which 25% will live in poverty. Economic progress is at risk if cities cannot develop effective roads and transportation systems, public transportation, communications, sanitation services, and adequate shelters. The City Summit was held in June 1996 in Istanbul. The World Bank announced priorities for funding of urban health initiatives for reducing lead and particulate emissions, for providing sanitation and clean water to slum areas, and for securing sustainable, business-like city finances. The World Bank, the City Summit's Global Plan of Action, and Parliamentarians for Global Action support the reduction of lead emissions from gasoline and air. Cost-effective approaches include refitting public transportation vehicles with cleaner-burning engines or engines relying on natural gas, reducing emissions from industrial and power plants, and shifting domestic fuel sources from coal to natural gas. The World Bank in Slovenia and Beijing is financially supporting this household conversion. Reductions in soot and dust levels reduce public health costs, lost work time due to illness, and mortality. The cost to the poor for basic services is too high. Decentralization, community involvement, and cost sharing are viable options.

World Views, a Story about How the World Works: Their Significance in the Australian Curriculum: Geography

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hutchinson, Nick

2013-01-01

The Australian Curriculum Cross-curriculum priorities and the Australian Curriculum: Geography both include the term "world views." The meaning of world views, the development of world views as part of the history of geographic thought, and the adoption world of views by teachers and students, affect the ways in which geography is taught…

Common world model for unmanned systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dean, Robert Michael S.

2013-05-01

The Robotic Collaborative Technology Alliance (RCTA) seeks to provide adaptive robot capabilities which move beyond traditional metric algorithms to include cognitive capabilities. Key to this effort is the Common World Model, which moves beyond the state-of-the-art by representing the world using metric, semantic, and symbolic information. It joins these layers of information to define objects in the world. These objects may be reasoned upon jointly using traditional geometric, symbolic cognitive algorithms and new computational nodes formed by the combination of these disciplines. The Common World Model must understand how these objects relate to each other. Our world model includes the concept of Self-Information about the robot. By encoding current capability, component status, task execution state, and histories we track information which enables the robot to reason and adapt its performance using Meta-Cognition and Machine Learning principles. The world model includes models of how aspects of the environment behave, which enable prediction of future world states. To manage complexity, we adopted a phased implementation approach to the world model. We discuss the design of "Phase 1" of this world model, and interfaces by tracing perception data through the system from the source to the meta-cognitive layers provided by ACT-R and SS-RICS. We close with lessons learned from implementation and how the design relates to Open Architecture.

World Population: Fundamentals of Growth. Student Chartbook. Third Edition.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Kent, Mary Mederios

This booklet is designed for K-12 students and educators to learn about world population growth factors. Data are shown through charts and graphs with brief explanations. The booklet contains: (1) "World Population Growth and Regional Distribution through History"; (2) "Population Growth through Natural Increase"; (3) "Effect of Migration on…

Use of Natural and Nature-Based Features for Coastal Resilience

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Piercy, C.; Bridges, T. S.

2017-12-01

Natural and Nature-Based Features (NNBF) have been used for decades to support a variety of objectives in coastal systems. Beach and dune projects have been a longstanding part of flood risk reduction strategies in Europe, the United States and elsewhere. Coastal restoration projects supporting wetlands, seagrass, oysters and other habitats and communities have been undertaken around the world to restore ecosystem functions. In more recent years there has been a growing interest in developing a technically sound engineering approach for integrating NNBF, in combination with conventional flood defense systems (e.g., levees, seawalls, etc.), for more comprehensive and sustainable flood defense systems. This interest was further stimulated by the outcomes of recent storm events, including Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy in the United States, which have given rise to a range of studies and projects focused on the role of coastal landscape features in flood risk management. The global dialogue that has been underway for several years—including within the Engineering with Nature program in the United States—has revealed the demand for an authoritative guidance on the use of NNBF in shoreline management. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has initiated a collaborative project involving participants from several countries and organizations representing government, academia, and the private sector to develop international guidelines to inform the planning, design, construction, and operation or NNBF projects to support coastal resilience. This paper will describe the key issues and objectives informing the work of the international team that is developing the guidelines.

Environmental Education: A Natural Way to Nurture Children's Development and Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Torquati, Julia

2010-01-01

Experiences in the natural world help children understand life cycles and seasons, make prediction and become aware of the interdependence between plants, animals, and elements like rain and sun. Early childhood is a critical time to support children's connections to the natural world because young children are naturally curious and there is so…

Science Professionals: Master's Education for a Competitive World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

National Academies Press, 2008

2008-01-01

What are employer needs for staff trained in the natural sciences at the master's degree level? How do master's level professionals in the natural sciences contribute in the workplace? How do master's programs meet or support educational and career goals? "Science Professionals: Master's Education for a Competitive World" examines the answers to…

Publishing on the WWW. Part 5 - A brief history of the Internet and the World Wide Web

PubMed Central

Grech, V

2001-01-01

This article focuses on the history of the Internet and the World Wide Web, the media that in recent years have created the concept of objects existing ‘on-line’ in a virtual computer environment. These objects naturally include on-line journals such as Images in Paediatric Cardiology. PMID:22368602

Mathematical Model of Two Phase Flow in Natural Draft Wet-Cooling Tower Including Flue Gas Injection

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hyhlík, Tomáš

2016-03-01

The previously developed model of natural draft wet-cooling tower flow, heat and mass transfer is extended to be able to take into account the flow of supersaturated moist air. The two phase flow model is based on void fraction of gas phase which is included in the governing equations. Homogeneous equilibrium model, where the two phases are well mixed and have the same velocity, is used. The effect of flue gas injection is included into the developed mathematical model by using source terms in governing equations and by using momentum flux coefficient and kinetic energy flux coefficient. Heat and mass transfer in the fill zone is described by the system of ordinary differential equations, where the mass transfer is represented by measured fill Merkel number and heat transfer is calculated using prescribed Lewis factor.

Are We Ready for Real-world Neuroscience?

PubMed

Matusz, Pawel J; Dikker, Suzanne; Huth, Alexander G; Perrodin, Catherine

2018-06-19

Real-world environments are typically dynamic, complex, and multisensory in nature and require the support of top-down attention and memory mechanisms for us to be able to drive a car, make a shopping list, or pour a cup of coffee. Fundamental principles of perception and functional brain organization have been established by research utilizing well-controlled but simplified paradigms with basic stimuli. The last 30 years ushered a revolution in computational power, brain mapping, and signal processing techniques. Drawing on those theoretical and methodological advances, over the years, research has departed more and more from traditional, rigorous, and well-understood paradigms to directly investigate cognitive functions and their underlying brain mechanisms in real-world environments. These investigations typically address the role of one or, more recently, multiple attributes of real-world environments. Fundamental assumptions about perception, attention, or brain functional organization have been challenged-by studies adapting the traditional paradigms to emulate, for example, the multisensory nature or varying relevance of stimulation or dynamically changing task demands. Here, we present the state of the field within the emerging heterogeneous domain of real-world neuroscience. To be precise, the aim of this Special Focus is to bring together a variety of the emerging "real-world neuroscientific" approaches. These approaches differ in their principal aims, assumptions, or even definitions of "real-world neuroscience" research. Here, we showcase the commonalities and distinctive features of the different "real-world neuroscience" approaches. To do so, four early-career researchers and the speakers of the Cognitive Neuroscience Society 2017 Meeting symposium under the same title answer questions pertaining to the added value of such approaches in bringing us closer to accurate models of functional brain organization and cognitive functions.

Energy Carriers Use in the World: Natural Gas - Conventional and Unconventional Gas Resources / Wykorzystanie Nośników Energii w Świecie: Zasoby Gazu Ziemnego w Złożach Konwencjonalnych i Niekonwencjonalnych

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Siemek, Jakub; Nagy, Stanisław

2012-11-01

This paper discusses forecasts of energy carrier use with particular emphasis on the changing position of natural gas due to global climatic conditions and the increasing role of unconventional natural gas reservoirs. Allocation of natural gas resources in the world are discussed as well as global gas consumption and conditions for development of transport infrastructure and storage. The most important indicators of the energy security of countries are presented. The basic properties of unconventional deposits, and differences in the production/extraction of gas from the conventional and unconventional fields are given. In the paper are also discussed natural gas reserves in Poland, including possible non-conventional resources in the fields and issues of increasing the role of gas as an energy carrier in Poland in the background of the energy changes in Europe and the world. W pracy omówiono prognozy energetyczne wykorzystania energii ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem zmieniającej się pozycji gazu ziemnego z uwagi na uwarunkowania klimatyczne oraz wzrastającą role niekonwencjonalnych złóż gazu ziemnego. Omówiono alokację zasobów gazu ziemnego w świecie, zużycie gazu w regionach oraz warunki rozbudowy infrastruktury transportu i magazynowania. Przedstawiono najważniejsze wskaźniki dotyczące bezpieczeństwa energetycznego krajów. Omówiono podstawowe własności złóż niekonwencjonalnych oraz różnice w charakterze wydobycia gazu ze złóż konwencjonalnych i niekonwencjonalnych. Omówiono zasoby gazu w Polsce, w tym możliwe zasoby w złożach niekonwencjonalnych oraz zagadnienia zwiększenia roli gazu jako nośnika energii w Polsce w tle energetycznych zmian Europy i świata.

Risk and responsibility in a manufactured world.

PubMed

Pellizzoni, Luigi

2010-09-01

Recent criticisms of traditional understandings of risk, responsibility and the division of labour between science and politics build on the idea of the co-produced character of the natural and social orders, making a case for less ambitious and more inclusive policy processes, where questions of values and goals may be addressed together with questions of facts and means, causal liabilities and principled responsibilities. Within the neo-liberal political economy, however, the contingency of the world is depicted as a source of unprecedented opportunities for human craftsmanship, rather than of possibly unmanageable surprises. Gene technologies offer a vantage point for reflecting on the consequences of the drift from discovery to invention as a master frame in the appraisal of human intermingling with the world. Biotech patenting regulations carve out a sovereign agency which, by crafting nature, also crafts the distinction between the manufactured and non-manufactured world. Difficulties in ascribing responsibility stem as a consequence. It is likely that politics and economy can be democratized and responsibilities rearranged not by 'democratizing' knowledge production, but rather the reverse.

Framework for city planning including nature-based solutions (NBS)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Alkan Olsson, Johanna; Sörensen, Johanna; Persson, Anna

2017-04-01

A common strategy to lower the demand for intense land use and energy consumption is the densification of urban areas. While this might be a fruitful strategy for its main objectives, one concern is that space for green areas and surface water will be decreased. Therefore, densification increases the need of strategies to develop and increase the quality of nature-based solutions (NBS) in urban areas. Smarter city planning strategies are needed, both for maintenance of existing NBS and for implementation of NBS in new developments. City planning must be based on well-evaluated solutions, which in turn must be based on a decent data material for each city. Today there is however several type of difficulties related to adequate provision of data to ensure a better implementation of NBS. The challenges arise from issues such as lack of information about for example costs of maintenance of existing NBS, citizens' perceptions and preferred use of NBS to difficulties of a more technical character such as the format of available GIS information. This study focuses on this information gap regarding NBS that persists in most cities today. The project aims to develop a framework that can help city planners to overcome the gaps and facilitate the inclusion of high quality nature-based solutions where developed or maintained. The framework, which is detailed by identifying information gaps through a literature review and selected interviews with urban planners and experts in the area of NBS, is based on the idea that well-structured and user-friendly data supporting city-planning strategies are essential to facilitate the implementation of NBS. What can be understood as well structured and user-friendly data depends on the goals and needs expressed in the strategic plans, which mean that there is a need for a close interaction between the development data and the strategic political goals expressed in the plans.

World petroleum supplies

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bell, Peter M.

A number of conclusions by political conservatives about the fate of world petroleum supplies have been emerging lately. Among the most recent of them arose from discussions, held at the 1983 spring meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), which focused on the environment and resource study entitled “The Global 2000 Report” (New Scientist, June 9, 1983). Fred Singer, representing the Heritage Foundation of Washington, D.C., criticized the report, which predicted shortages in the near future, saying that the current world-wide oil glut will continue beyond the year 2000. Alternatives to the use of petroleum are a part of the cause. Singer argued that conservation, nuclear energy, and other petroleum substitutes will continue to suppress the demand for petroleum. In addition, according to other evaluations, exploration for petroleum and natural gas has not really begun.

Science for Humanity: Giving Generously to Our World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sparks, R. Stephen J.

2010-09-01

Hardly a week goes by without some reminder that we live in an age of anxiety and a world in environmental crisis. As I write this message, unusual stratospheric wind patterns in the Northern Hemisphere seem to be implicated in tragic floods in Pakistan, landslides in China, and wildfires near Moscow. The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico reminds us of our dependence on oil, the increasing scarcity of natural resources, and the adverse environmental impact of our appetite for these resources. The Haiti earthquake earlier this year demonstrates the vulnerability of human society to the natural world. So does the small volcanic eruption in Iceland that disrupted the travel plans of millions of people and cost the aviation industry billions of dollars. Our vulnerability seems to be increasing as the world's population continues to grow, as globalization and interdependencies advance at a giddy pace, and as human societies strive for economic growth.

Geometric Assortative Growth Model for Small-World Networks

PubMed Central

2014-01-01

It has been shown that both humanly constructed and natural networks are often characterized by small-world phenomenon and assortative mixing. In this paper, we propose a geometrically growing model for small-world networks. The model displays both tunable small-world phenomenon and tunable assortativity. We obtain analytical solutions of relevant topological properties such as order, size, degree distribution, degree correlation, clustering, transitivity, and diameter. It is also worth noting that the model can be viewed as a generalization for an iterative construction of Farey graphs. PMID:24578661

World Wide Web Homepage Design.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Tillman, Michael L.

This paper examines hypermedia design and draws conclusions about how educational research and theory applies to various aspects of World Wide Web (WWW) homepage design. "Hypermedia" is defined as any collection of information which may be textual, graphical, visual, or auditory in nature and which may be accessed via a nonlinear route.…

Peculiarities of Natural Technology Application in Architecture

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Umorina, Z.

2017-11-01

Technical advancement of the modern world has made it possible to create unique artificial objects based on the natural technology principle. New engineering and design types, such as computational design, additive manufacturing, materials engineering, synthetic biology, etc. allow us to enter a new level of interaction between a human being and nature. This influences the formation of a new world view in the sphere of architecture and leads to the development of new methods and styles [1,2].

Safeguarding the World's Water. UNEP Environment Brief No. 6.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

United Nations Environment Programme, Nairobi (Kenya).

Two things make water a unique natural resource: (1) water is essential for human survival; and (2) the total amount of water in the world is constant. This document focuses on the increasingly difficult task of satisfying the collective thirst of people, industry, and agriculture without damaging the world's limited resources of fresh water. It…

The Scientist's World

PubMed Central

Davis, Bernard D.

2000-01-01

This paper describes the features of the world of science, and it compares that world briefly with that of politics and the law. It also discusses some “postmodern” trends in philosophy and sociology that have been undermining confidence in the objectivity of science and thus have contributed indirectly to public mistrust. The paper includes broader implications of interactions of government and science. PMID:10704471

The Limits of Natural Selection in a Nonequilibrium World.

PubMed

Brandvain, Yaniv; Wright, Stephen I

2016-04-01

Evolutionary theory predicts that factors such as a small population size or low recombination rate can limit the action of natural selection. The emerging field of comparative population genomics offers an opportunity to evaluate these hypotheses. However, classical theoretical predictions assume that populations are at demographic equilibrium. This assumption is likely to be violated in the very populations researchers use to evaluate selection's limits: populations that have experienced a recent shift in population size and/or effective recombination rates. Here we highlight theory and data analyses concerning limitations on the action of natural selection in nonequilibrial populations and argue that substantial care is needed to appropriately test whether species and populations show meaningful differences in selection efficacy. A move toward model-based inferences that explicitly incorporate nonequilibrium dynamics provides a promising approach to more accurately contrast selection efficacy across populations and interpret its significance. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

"Piedra Dorada": a natural stone as an intrinsic part of two World Heritage Cities in Andalusia (Spain)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Navarro, Rafael; Sánchez-Valverde, Josefina; Baltuille, José Manuel

2013-04-01

"Piedra Dorada" was used to construct some of the most important heritage buildings in the cities of Úbeda and Baeza, in Jaén (Spain). UNESCO declared these cities World Heritage Cities in 2003. Although there are some Iberian or Roman ruins in which is already possible to see the use of this stone, it is from the XVI century when "Piedra Dorada" is extensively used in the construction of the main historical buildings. Some of well-known monuments are Vázquez de Molina Palace or chain Palace (XVI), San Salvador Church (Sacred Chapel of El Salvador) (XVI) o the Royal Colegiata of Santa María la Mayor de los Reales Alcázares (XVI) in Úbeda or the Justice House-The House of the Corregidor (XVI), the Saint Cathedral of the Natividad de Nuestra Señora (XVI) or Jabalquinto Palace (XV), in Baeza, among many others. "Piedra Dorada" includes several varieties with similar mineralogical and chemical characteristics, called "Piedra Viva" or "Jabaluna", more cemented and used mainly with structural purposes (ashlars, columns, etc) and "Piedra Franca", less cemented and used mainly with decorative purposes (façades, statues, etc). From a geological point of view, "Piedra Dorada" is a medium to fine grain size bioclastic calcarenite, part of the upper Miocene-Pliocene deposits of the Guadalquivir Basin (Post Orogenic Neogene Basins of the Betic Chains). It is made up of quartz (8% to 29%), calcite and/or dolomite (34% to 80%), and some feldspar. The intergranular calcite cement proportion varies between 7% and 33%. Physical and mechanical properties are highly variable depending on the variety. "Piedra Viva" has an open porosity of 5,2%, bulk density of 2,63 g/cm3, water absorption at atmospheric pressure between 1,5-2,7 %, compressive strength (dry) between 20,1-18,0 MPa, flexural resistance (dry) between 87,3-77,0 MPa and salt crystallization loss of mass of 2,5%. "Piedra Franca" has an open porosity of 24,3%, bulk density of 2,00 g/cm3, water absorption at atmospheric

Recently Investigated Natural Gums and Mucilages as Pharmaceutical Excipients: An Overview

PubMed Central

Choudhary, Pritam Dinesh; Pawar, Harshal Ashok

2014-01-01

Due to advances in drug delivery technology, currently, excipients are included in novel dosage forms to fulfil specific functions and in some cases they directly or indirectly influence the extent and/or rate of drug release and drug absorption. Recent trends towards use of plant based and natural products demand the replacement of synthetic additives with natural ones. Today, the whole world is increasingly interested in natural drugs and excipients. These natural materials have many advantages over synthetic ones as they are chemically inert, nontoxic, less expensive, biodegradable, and widely available. This review discusses majority of the plant-derived polymeric compounds (gums and mucilage's), their sources, chemical constituents, uses, and some recent investigations as excipients in novel drug delivery systems. PMID:26556189

Anticancer agents derived from natural cinnamic acids.

PubMed

Su, Ping; Shi, Yaling; Wang, Jinfeng; Shen, Xiuxiu; Zhang, Jie

2015-01-01

Cancer is the most dangerous disease that causes deaths all over the world. Natural products have afforded a rich source of drugs in a number of therapeutic fields including anticancer agents. Many significant drugs have been derived from natural sources by structural optimization of natural products. Cinnamic acid has gained great interest due to its antiproliferative, antioxidant, antiangiogenic and antitumorigenic potency. Currently it has been observed that cinnamic acid and its analogs such as caffeic acid, sinapic acid, ferulic acid, and isoferulic acid display various pharmacological activities, such as immunomodulation, anti-inflammation, anticancer and antioxidant. They have served to be the major sources of potential leading anticancer compounds. In this review, we focus on the anticancer potency of cinnamic acid derivatives and novel strategies to design these derivatives. We hope this review will be useful for researchers who are interested in developing anticancer agents.

Cofactors in the RNA World

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ditzler, Mark A.

2014-01-01

RNA world theories figure prominently in many scenarios for the origin and early evolution of life. These theories posit that RNA molecules played a much larger role in ancient biology than they do now, acting both as the dominant biocatalysts and as the repository of genetic information. Many features of modern RNA biology are potential examples of molecular fossils from an RNA world, such as the pervasive involvement of nucleotides in coenzymes, the existence of natural aptamers that bind these coenzymes, the existence of natural ribozymes, a biosynthetic pathway in which deoxynucleotides are produced from ribonucleotides, and the central role of ribosomal RNA in protein synthesis in the peptidyl transferase center of the ribosome. Here, we uses both a top-down approach that evaluates RNA function in modern biology and a bottom-up approach that examines the capacities of RNA independent of modern biology. These complementary approaches exploit multiple in vitro evolution techniques coupled with high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics analysis. Together these complementary approaches advance our understanding of the most primitive organisms, their early evolution, and their eventual transition to modern biochemistry.

Nature's Trust: A Paradigm for Natural Resources Stewardship

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wood, M. C.; Whitelaw, E.; Doppelt, B.; Burchell, A.

2007-12-01

Climate change uncertainty puts a premium on all remaining natural resources. Farmland, air, water, wetlands, wildlife, soils, mineral resources and forests must be protected to ensure that Americans - present citizens and future generations - have the fundamental survival resources they need in a future that holds many unknowns. Moreover, in light of the need to manage resources given climate and particle forcing, government must mitigate dangerous carbon loading of the atmosphere. Confronting climate change and protecting natural resources requires a clear sense of government obligation that is inherent to sovereignty, not a matter of political choice. Our government representatives can and must reframe government's discretion into a trustee obligation to protect Nature and ensure natural resource stewardship. Drawing upon enduring legal principles and court decisions, government can be characterized as a trustee of the natural resources essential to human survival. A trust is a fundamental type of ownership whereby one manages property for the benefit of another. Viewed as a trust, the environment consists of a portfolio of quantified natural assets that government manages. As beneficiaries, citizens hold a common property interest in defined, bounded assets that make up Nature's Trust. Such trust principles form the bedrock of statutory law. Trustees have a fiduciary obligation to protect trust assets and may not allow destruction of property they manage. This session will provide a policy frame for current scientific efforts to address climate change and natural resources loss. Under the Nature's Trust frame, U.S. government leaders and agencies at every level inherit a strict fiduciary obligation to protect our collective natural resources, including our water and the atmosphere, as assets in the trust. Their fiduciary standard of care consists of a proportionate responsibility, which ties directly to "Nature's Mandate" as defined by current climate

Best of both worlds : clear exterior finishes : in search of finishes that protect wood without hiding its natural beauty

Treesearch

Tom Daniels; Marc Hirsch; Ken McClelland; Alan Ross; Sam Williams

2000-01-01

In recent years, a number of clear wood finishes have been developed that protect wood while accentuating its natural beauty. The focus of this publication is on those finishes having little visible pigment. In some cases, the pigments are included but are finely ground to create a coating that is transparent to visible light. Most natural clear wood finishes are...

On Observing World English.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Urdang, Lawrence

1990-01-01

Reviews the current state of World English. Subjects addressed include standard accents and dialects, prejudicial attitudes toward nonstandard "local" usages, the use of English as the language of diplomacy, American influences on the language, and the fracturing of English in non-English-speaking countries around the world. (17 references) (JL)

Natural selection: it's a many-small world after all.

PubMed

Roesti, Marius; Salzburger, Walter

2014-10-06

Understanding adaptive phenotypic change and its genetic underpinnings is a major challenge in biology. Threespine stickleback fish, experimentally exposed to divergent semi-natural environments, reveal that adaptive diversification can happen readily, affects many traits and involves numerous genetic loci across the genome. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sebastian Kneipp and the Natural Cure Movement of Germany: Between Naturalism and Modern Medicine.

PubMed

Ko, Youkyung

2016-12-01

This study discusses the historical significance of the Natural Cure Movement of Germany, centering on the Kneipp Cure, a form of hydrotherapy practiced by Father Sebastian Kneipp (1821-1897). The Kneipp Cure rested on five main tenets: hydrotherapy, exercise, nutrition, herbalism, and the balance of mind and body. This study illuminates the reception of the Kneipp Cure in the context of the trilateral relationship among the Kneipp Cure, the Natural Cure Movement in general, and modern medicine. The Natural Cure Movement was ideologically based on naturalism, criticizing industrialization and urbanization. There existed various theories and methods in it, yet they shared holism and vitalism as common factors. The Natural Cure Movement of Germany began in the early 19th century. During the late 19th century and the early 20th century, it became merged in the Lebensreformbewegung (life reform movement) which campaigned for temperance, anti-tobacco, and anti-vaccination. The core of the Natural Cure Movement was to advocate the world view that nature should be respected and to recognize the natural healing powers of sunlight, air, water, etc. Among varied natural therapies, hydrotherapy spread out through the activities of some medical doctors and amateur healers such as Johann Siegmund Hahn and Vincenz Prie βnitz. Later, the supporters of hydrotherapy gathered together under the German Society of Naturopathy. Sebastian Kneipp, one of the forefathers of hydrotherapy, is distinguished from other proponents of natural therapies in two aspects. First, he did not refuse to employ vaccination and medication. Second, he sought to be recognized by the medical world through cooperating with medical doctors who supported his treatment. As a result, the Kneipp cure was able to be gradually accepted into the medical world despite the "quackery" controversy between modern medicine and the Natural Cure Movement. Nowadays, the name of Sebastian Kneipp remains deeply engraved on

Hubbert's Peak: the Impending World oil Shortage

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Deffeyes, K. S.

2004-12-01

Global oil production will probably reach a peak sometime during this decade. After the peak, the world's production of crude oil will fall, never to rise again. The world will not run out of energy, but developing alternative energy sources on a large scale will take at least 10 years. The slowdown in oil production may already be beginning; the current price fluctuations for crude oil and natural gas may be the preamble to a major crisis. In 1956, the geologist M. King Hubbert predicted that U.S. oil production would peak in the early 1970s.1 Almost everyone, inside and outside the oil industry, rejected Hubbert's analysis. The controversy raged until 1970, when the U.S. production of crude oil started to fall. Hubbert was right. Around 1995, several analysts began applying Hubbert's method to world oil production, and most of them estimate that the peak year for world oil will be between 2004 and 2008. These analyses were reported in some of the most widely circulated sources: Nature, Science, and Scientific American.2 None of our political leaders seem to be paying attention. If the predictions are correct, there will be enormous effects on the world economy. Even the poorest nations need fuel to run irrigation pumps. The industrialized nations will be bidding against one another for the dwindling oil supply. The good news is that we will put less carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. The bad news is that my pickup truck has a 25-gallon tank.

Discovering Nature with Young Children.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chalufour, Ingrid; Worth, Karen

Young children's curiosity about nature and their need to make sense of the world presents an opportunity to incorporate science as a natural and critical part of children's early learning. This guide, part of a preschool science curriculum, uses an inquiry approach to encourage young naturalists to observe life more closely, build an…

As the HRD World Churns.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McLagan, Patricia L.

1999-01-01

The following trends facing the world of work have implications for human resource development: (1) the nature of work is changing, (2) the pace of change is accelerating, (3) the Web is a structural model of team rather than pyramid organization, (4) the bargaining power of the work force is rising, and (5) value exchanges are direct. (JOW)

U.S. Geological Survey World Wide Web Information

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

2000-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) invites you to explore an earth science virtual library of digital information, publications, and data. The USGS World Wide Web sites offer an array of information that reflects scientific research and monitoring programs conducted in the areas of natural hazards, environmental resources, and cartog-raphy. This list provides gateways to access a cross section of the digital information on the USGS World Wide Web sites.

U.S. Geological Survey World Wide Web Information

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

2003-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) invites you to explore an earth science virtual library of digital information, publications, and data. The USGS World Wide Web sites offer an array of information that reflects scientific research and monitoring programs conducted in the areas of natural hazards, environmental resources, and cartography. This list provides gateways to access a cross section of the digital information on the USGS World Wide Web sites.

U.S. Geological Survey World Wide Web Information

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

1999-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) invites you to explore an earth science virtual library of digital information, publications, and data. The USGS Internet World Wide Web sites offer an array of information that reflects scientific research and monitoring programs conducted in the areas of natural hazards, environmental resources, and cartography. This list provides gateways to access a cross section of the digital information on the USGS World Wide Web sites.

U.S. Geological Survey World Wide Web information

USGS Publications Warehouse

,

1997-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) invites you to explore an earth science virtual library of digital information, publications, and data. The USGS Internet World Wide Web sites offer an array of information that reflects scientific research and monitoring programs conducted in the areas of natural hazards, environmental resources, and cartography. This list provides gateways to access a cross section of the digital information on the USGS World Wide Web sites.

Sustainability Adult Education: Learning to Re-Create the World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griswold, Wendy

2016-01-01

No crisis is as great as the environmental predicament we face. Globally, humans everywhere now confront problems of extreme weather, waste disposal, pollution, overpopulation, massive forest depletion, access to clean water, the depletion of natural resources, the destruction of natural habitats, and changes in the chemistry of the world's…

Including the Other: Regulation of the Human Rights of Mobile Students in a Nation-Bound World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marginson, Simon

2012-01-01

The world's three million cross-border international students are located in a "gray zone" of regulation with incomplete human rights, security and capabilities. Like other mobile persons such as short-term business and labour entrants, and refugees, students located on foreign soil do not enjoy the same protections and entitlements as…

Thermal modeling of phase change solidification in thermal control devices including natural convection effects

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Ukanwa, A. O.; Stermole, F. J.; Golden, J. O.

1972-01-01

Natural convection effects in phase change thermal control devices were studied. A mathematical model was developed to evaluate natural convection effects in a phase change test cell undergoing solidification. Although natural convection effects are minimized in flight spacecraft, all phase change devices are ground tested. The mathematical approach to the problem was to first develop a transient two-dimensional conduction heat transfer model for the solidification of a normal paraffin of finite geometry. Next, a transient two-dimensional model was developed for the solidification of the same paraffin by a combined conduction-natural-convection heat transfer model. Throughout the study, n-hexadecane (n-C16H34) was used as the phase-change material in both the theoretical and the experimental work. The models were based on the transient two-dimensional finite difference solutions of the energy, continuity, and momentum equations.

Inspiration from Nature: Creative Outdoor Writing Activities.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cardno, Anthony R.

1998-01-01

When campers notice the natural world around them, they can identify with nature and build an emotional connection with the environment. Creative-writing activities tied to nature are presented that can help campers enhance their descriptive and communication skills, and also learn something about themselves in the process. (TD)

Counseling and Nature: A Greening of Psychotherapy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Cohen, Michael J.

This study promotes the natural world as a resource for personal growth. It stresses how nature may help individuals build responsible and fulfilling relationships and offers sensory activities which show how nature can lead people to emotional health by teaching them its "non-language communication." Once participants identify and…

Learning, Teaching and Ambiguity in Virtual Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Carr, Diane; Oliver, Martin; Burn, Andrew

What might online communities and informal learning practices teach us about virtual world pedagogy? In this chapter we describe a research project in which learning practices in online worlds such as World of Warcraft and Second LifeTM (SL) were investigated. Working within an action research framework, we employed a range of methods to investigate how members of online communities define the worlds they encounter, negotiate the terms of participation, and manage the incremental complexity of game worlds. The implications of such practices for online pedagogy were then explored through teaching in SL. SL eludes simple definitions. Users, or "residents", of SL partake of a range of pleasures and activities - socialising, building, creating and exhibiting art, playing games, exploring, shopping, or running a business, for instance. We argue that the variable nature of SL gives rise to degrees of ambiguity. This ambiguity impacts on inworld social practices, and has significant implications for online teaching and learning.

Russia in the World Water Management

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bibikova, Tatiana; Koronkevich, Nikolay; Barabanova, Elena; Zaytseva, Irina

2014-05-01

The comparison of Russia and the countries of the former USSR with other countries of the world on various natural and anthropogenic characteristics, including those for water sector, has become more popular in recent years. At the same time, after the break-up of the Soviet Union there were significant changes in political, social and economic spheres on the territory of new formed countries, that influenced their water resources state. Such changes as well as other environmental changes may become even more significant in the future that predetermines the necessity of the profound study of the question, as all the conditions and changes still have not been fully explored. First of all, it concerns the economic crisis including water sector in the early 90's which has not been fully overcome until present time despite economic recovery in the last years of the twentieth century. Together with the changes in climatic conditions it caused perceptible changes in the river runoff on the territory of Russia, Ukraine and Belarus, countries which have much in common. As the result, peculiar conditions for the formation and usage of water resources on the territory of the former Soviet Union have been formed. The laboratory of hydrology of the Institute of Geography of Russian Academy of Sciences analysed the situation with water resources in the countries of the former Soviet Union, and the position of Russia in the global water industry. The comparison of changes in various water consumption characteristics of the states was made; the evaluation of influence of changing economic activity on the river flow and quality of waters was analysed; comparison by the availability of water resources, anthropogenic influence, efficiency of water use, with world characteristics was made. There were 19 countries selected, including the Post-Soviet states, which occupy 54% of land and form 56% of the world population. Among the compared parameters there were: availability of water

EIA model documentation: World oil refining logistics demand model,``WORLD`` reference manual. Version 1.1

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1994-04-11

This manual is intended primarily for use as a reference by analysts applying the WORLD model to regional studies. It also provides overview information on WORLD features of potential interest to managers and analysts. Broadly, the manual covers WORLD model features in progressively increasing detail. Section 2 provides an overview of the WORLD model, how it has evolved, what its design goals are, what it produces, and where it can be taken with further enhancements. Section 3 reviews model management covering data sources, managing over-optimization, calibration and seasonality, check-points for case construction and common errors. Section 4 describes in detailmore » the WORLD system, including: data and program systems in overview; details of mainframe and PC program control and files;model generation, size management, debugging and error analysis; use with different optimizers; and reporting and results analysis. Section 5 provides a detailed description of every WORLD model data table, covering model controls, case and technology data. Section 6 goes into the details of WORLD matrix structure. It provides an overview, describes how regional definitions are controlled and defines the naming conventions for-all model rows, columns, right-hand sides, and bounds. It also includes a discussion of the formulation of product blending and specifications in WORLD. Several Appendices supplement the main sections.« less

A World of Babies: Imagined Childcare Guides for Seven Societies.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

DeLoache, Judy S., Ed.; Gottlieb, Alma, Ed.

People living in different parts of the world hold diverse beliefs about the nature and the nurturing of infants. Celebrating that diversity and based on the research of anthropologists, psychologists, and historians, this book presents information on child care from seven societies around the world, past and present, illustrating how the…

Dancing with Nature: Rhythm and Harmony in Extreme Sport Participation

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brymer, Eric; Gray, Tonia

2009-01-01

Research on extreme sports has downplayed the importance of the athletes' connection to the natural world. This neglect stems, in part, from the assumption that these activities derive their meaning primarily from risk. The authors' long-term research reveals that the interplay between adventure athletes and the natural world is, in fact, crucial…

The Case for Natural History

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

King, Heather; Achiam, Marianne

2017-01-01

Fundamental knowledge of natural history is lacking in many western societies, as demonstrated by its absence in school science curricula. And yet, to meet local and global challenges such as environmental degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change, we need to better understand the living and non-living parts of the natural world. Many have…

Visualization of N-body Simulations in Virtual Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Knop, Robert A.; Ames, J.; Djorgovski, G.; Farr, W.; Hut, P.; Johnson, A.; McMillan, S.; Nakasone, A.; Vesperini, E.

2010-01-01

We report on work to use virtual worlds for visualizing the results of N-body calculations, on three levels. First, we have written a demonstration 3-body solver entirely in the scripting language of the popularly used virtual world Second Life. Second, we have written a physics module for the open source virtual world OpenSim that performs N-body calculations as the physics engine for the server, allowing natural 3-d visualization of the solution as the solution is being performed. Finally, we give an initial report on the potential use of virtual worlds to visualize calculations which have previously been performed, or which are being performed in other processes and reported to the virtual world server. This work has been performed as part of the Meta-Institute of Computational Astrophysics (MICA). http://www.mica-vw.org

Fostering Connectedness to Nature in Higher Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lankenau, Greg R.

2018-01-01

Environmental thinkers and educators have argued for the importance of celebrating our connectedness to nature, or the perception of being part of, rather than separate from, the natural world. Using pre-and post-test measurements of Nature Relatedness and supplemental interviews, this study addresses the question of whether a particular…

Re-Framing the World Wide Web

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Black, August

2011-01-01

The research presented in this dissertation studies and describes how technical standards, protocols, and application programming interfaces (APIs) shape the aesthetic, functional, and affective nature of our most dominant mode of online communication, the World Wide Web (WWW). I examine the politically charged and contentious battle over browser…

SALMON: A WORLD AND HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

EPA Science Inventory

The four nations of Salmon World have existed for 10,000 years. Since the end of the last Ice Age, salmon established naturally substantial populations and prospered in four large regions of the earth: (1) the European side of the North Atlantic; (2) the North American side of...

THE FOUR NATIONS OF SALMON WORLD

EPA Science Inventory

The four nations of Salmon World have existed for 10,000 years. Since the end of the last Ice Age, salmon established naturally substantial populations and prospered in four large regions of the earth: (1) the European side of the North Atlantic; (2) the North American side of...

Future World of Work. Long Range Planning Assistance for Local United Ways.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Wilkinson, George

A review of technological, political, social, and economic forces affecting the world of work indicates that in the eighties significant changes can be expected in the following areas: the nature of organizations, the relationship between individuals and organizations, the nature of the work force, the nature of the workplace, and the nature of…

Nature Watch

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Sterling, Donna R.

2010-01-01

Children are naturally curious about the world in which they live. To focus this sense of wonder, have your students investigate their local habitat as it changes over the year. This multiseason study will build connections and add relevance to the habitats that children learn about. This series of activities for grades 4-6 explores the changing…

8 CFR 327.2 - Procedure for naturalization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-01-01

... ARMED FORCES OF FOREIGN COUNTRY DURING WORLD WAR II § 327.2 Procedure for naturalization. (a) Application. An applicant who is eligible for naturalization pursuant to section 327 of the Act and § 327.1... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Procedure for naturalization. 327.2 Section...

8 CFR 327.2 - Procedure for naturalization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-01-01

... ARMED FORCES OF FOREIGN COUNTRY DURING WORLD WAR II § 327.2 Procedure for naturalization. (a) Application. An applicant who is eligible for naturalization pursuant to section 327 of the Act and § 327.1... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Procedure for naturalization. 327.2 Section...

8 CFR 327.2 - Procedure for naturalization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-01-01

... ARMED FORCES OF FOREIGN COUNTRY DURING WORLD WAR II § 327.2 Procedure for naturalization. (a) Application. An applicant who is eligible for naturalization pursuant to section 327 of the Act and § 327.1... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Procedure for naturalization. 327.2 Section...

8 CFR 327.2 - Procedure for naturalization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-01-01

... ARMED FORCES OF FOREIGN COUNTRY DURING WORLD WAR II § 327.2 Procedure for naturalization. (a) Application. An applicant who is eligible for naturalization pursuant to section 327 of the Act and § 327.1... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Procedure for naturalization. 327.2 Section...

Decline of the world's saline lakes

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Wurtsbaugh, Wayne A.; Miller, Craig; Null, Sarah E.; Derose, R. Justin; Wilcock, Peter; Hahnenberger, Maura; Howe, Frank; Moore, Johnnie

2017-11-01

Many of the world's saline lakes are shrinking at alarming rates, reducing waterbird habitat and economic benefits while threatening human health. Saline lakes are long-term basin-wide integrators of climatic conditions that shrink and grow with natural climatic variation. In contrast, water withdrawals for human use exert a sustained reduction in lake inflows and levels. Quantifying the relative contributions of natural variability and human impacts to lake inflows is needed to preserve these lakes. With a credible water balance, causes of lake decline from water diversions or climate variability can be identified and the inflow needed to maintain lake health can be defined. Without a water balance, natural variability can be an excuse for inaction. Here we describe the decline of several of the world's large saline lakes and use a water balance for Great Salt Lake (USA) to demonstrate that consumptive water use rather than long-term climate change has greatly reduced its size. The inflow needed to maintain bird habitat, support lake-related industries and prevent dust storms that threaten human health and agriculture can be identified and provides the information to evaluate the difficult tradeoffs between direct benefits of consumptive water use and ecosystem services provided by saline lakes.

China's Intellectuals in the World Community.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hayhoe, Ruth

1988-01-01

A theory of communicative action is suggested as a framework for examining the quality and nature of the intellectual interaction between Chinese scholars and their counterparts in the universities of the capitalist world. Recent Chinese political events are linked to a fundamental change in the knowledge orientation of Chinese universities. (MSE)

The natural history of violence.

PubMed Central

Russell, C; Russell, W M

1979-01-01

In the past, human violence was associated with food shortage, but recently it has increased even in relatively well-fed societies. The reason appears from studies of monkeys under relaxed, spacious conditions and under crowding stress. Uncrowded monkeys have unaggressive leaders, rarely quarrel, and protect females and young. Crowded monkeys (even well-fed) have brutal bosses, often quarrel, and wound and kill each other, including females and young. Crowding has similar behaviour effects on other mammals, with physiological disturbances including greater susceptibility to infections. All this appears to be a regular response to overpopulation, reducing the population before it has depleted its natural resources. Human beings, like monkeys and other mammals, need ample space, and become more violent when crowded. Human history is marked by population cycles: population outgrows resources, the resulting violence, stress and disease mortality cuts down the population, leading to a relief period of social and cultural progress, till renewed population growth produces the next crisis. The modern population crisis is world-wide, and explains the increase of violence even in well-fed societies. The solution to the problem of violence is to substitute voluntary birth control for involuntary death control, and bring about relaxed conditions for a reduced world population. PMID:114662

8 CFR 327.2 - Procedure for naturalization.

Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

2010-01-01

... ARMED FORCES OF FOREIGN COUNTRY DURlNG WORLD WAR II § 327.2 Procedure for naturalization. (a) Application. An applicant who is eligible for naturalization pursuant to section 327 of the Act and § 327.1... 8 Aliens and Nationality 1 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Procedure for naturalization. 327.2 Section...

Naturally selecting solutions: the use of genetic algorithms in bioinformatics.

PubMed

Manning, Timmy; Sleator, Roy D; Walsh, Paul

2013-01-01

For decades, computer scientists have looked to nature for biologically inspired solutions to computational problems; ranging from robotic control to scheduling optimization. Paradoxically, as we move deeper into the post-genomics era, the reverse is occurring, as biologists and bioinformaticians look to computational techniques, to solve a variety of biological problems. One of the most common biologically inspired techniques are genetic algorithms (GAs), which take the Darwinian concept of natural selection as the driving force behind systems for solving real world problems, including those in the bioinformatics domain. Herein, we provide an overview of genetic algorithms and survey some of the most recent applications of this approach to bioinformatics based problems.

The World without Us

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Duchesne, Ricardo

2009-01-01

In this article, the author reviews several books on world history from the 1920s to the 1940s. These include books authored by a diverse group: H.G. Wells, "Outline of History" (Macmillan, 1920); James Henry Breasted, "Ancient Times, A History of the Early World" (published in 1916 by Ginn and Company and largely rewritten in 1935); M.…

Imagined Worlds in Theatre and Drama.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

O'Neill, Cecily

1985-01-01

The essential nature of drama is a liberating act of imagination, of self-transcendence. A session is described in which the class maintained the delicate balance of dual consciousness and focused its attention and empathy on an illusory but possible world, creating and being responsible for the meaning of its construction. (MT)

Research and Consciousness of World Views.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Trumbull, Deborah

Two issues of concern in education are addressed: (1) how should educational research be carried out and (2) why do practitioners so often fail to heed the findings from educational research? The author uses the conceptualization of Stephen Pepper which distinguished four different hypotheses about the nature of the world (formism, mechanism,…

Progress on Establishing a World Education Research Association Continues at Third International Meeting

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Educational Researcher, 2008

2008-01-01

Representatives of 28 education research associations from around the world convened in New York on March 29-30, 2008 at a third meeting to advance the goal of establishing a world education research association (informally called "WERA"). The agenda centered on the nature and form of a world education research association, with discussions…

Overcoming World Hunger: The Challenge Ahead. Report of the Presidential Commission on World Hunger. An Abridged Version.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Presidential Commission on World Hunger, Washington, DC.

This U.S. presidential commission report outlines specific recommendations for eliminating world hunger in the 1980's. Following a summarization of world hunger problems, the report addresses specific ways to deal with world hunger. Short-term goals include taking immediate action to ensure that poor people are not hungry, assuring that infants…

Simulating Electrochemistry of Hydrothermal Vents on Enceladus and Other Ocean Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Barge, L. M.; Krause, F. C.; Jones, J. P.; Billings, K.; Sobron, P.

2017-12-01

Gradients generated in hydrothermal systems provide a significant source of free energy for chemosynthetic life, and may play a role in present-day habitability on ocean worlds such as Enceladus that are thought to host hydrothermal activity. Hydrothermal vents are similar in some ways to typical fuel cell devices: redox/pH gradients between seawater and hydrothermal fluid are analogous to the oxidant and fuel reservoirs; conductive natural mineral deposits are analogous to electrodes; and, in hydrothermal chimneys, the porous chimney wall can function as a separator or ion-exchange membrane. Electrochemistry, founded on quantitative study of redox and other chemical disequilibria as well as the chemistry of interfaces, is uniquely suited to studying these systems. We have performed electrochemical studies to better understand the catalytic potential of seafloor minerals and vent chimneys, using samples from a black smoker vent chimney as an initial demonstration. Fuel cell experiments with electrodes made from black smoker chimney material accurately simulated the redox reactions that occur in a geological setting with this particular catalyst. Similar methods with other geo-catalysts (natural or synthetic) could be utilized to test which redox reactions or metabolisms could be driven in other hydrothermal systems, including putative vent systems on other worlds.

Strategies for transgenic nematode control in developed and developing world crops.

PubMed

Atkinson, Howard J; Lilley, Catherine J; Urwin, Peter E

2012-04-01

Nematodes cause an estimated $118b annual losses to world crops and they are not readily controlled by pesticides or other control options. For many crops natural resistance genes are unavailable to plant breeders or progress by this approach is slow. Transgenic plants can provide nematode resistance for such crops. Two approaches have been field trialled that control a wide range of nematodes by either limiting use of their dietary protein uptake from the crop or by preventing root invasion without a direct lethality. In addition, RNA interference increasingly in tandem with genomic studies is providing a range of potential resistance traits that involve no novel protein production. Transgenic resistance can be delivered by tissue specific promoters to just root tissues where most economic nematodes invade and feed rather than the harvested yield. High efficacy and durability can be provided by stacking nematode resistance traits including any that natural resistance provides. The constraints to uptake centre on market acceptance and not the availability of appropriate biotechnology. The need to deploy nematode resistance is intensifying with loss of pesticides, an increased need to protect crop profit margins and in many developing world countries where nematodes severely damage both commodity and staple crops. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Rugby World Cup 2015: World Rugby injury surveillance study.

PubMed

Fuller, Colin W; Taylor, Aileen; Kemp, Simon P T; Raftery, Martin

2017-01-01

To determine the incidence, severity and nature of injuries sustained during the Rugby World Cup (RWC) 2015 together with the inciting events leading to the injuries. A prospective, whole population study. 639 international rugby players representing 20 countries. The study protocol followed the definitions and procedures recommended in the consensus statement for epidemiological studies in rugby union; output measures included players' age (years), stature (cm), body mass (kg) and playing position, and the group-level incidence (injuries/1000 player-hours), mean and median severity (days-absence), location (%), type (%) and inciting event (%) for match and training injuries. Incidence of injury was 90.1 match injuries/1000 player-match-hours (backs: 100.4; forwards: 81.1) and 1.0 training injuries/1000 player-training-hours (backs: 0.9; forwards: 1.2). The mean severity of injuries was 29.8 days-absence (backs: 30.4; forwards: 29.1) during matches and 14.4 days-absence (backs: 6.3; forwards: 19.8) during training. During matches, head/face (22.0%), knee (16.2%), muscle-strain (23.1%) and ligament-sprain (23.1%) and, during training, lower limb (80.0%) and muscle-strain (60.0%) injuries were the most common locations and types of injury. Being-tackled (24.7%) was the most common inciting event for injury during matches and rugby-skills-contact activities (70.0%) the most common during training. While the incidence, nature and inciting events associated with match injuries at RWC 2015 were similar to those reported previously for RWCs 2007 and 2011, there were increasing trends in the mean severity and total days-absence through injury. Published by the BMJ Publishing Group Limited. For permission to use (where not already granted under a licence) please go to http://www.bmj.com/company/products-services/rights-and-licensing/.

Why Disturb the World Outside?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Horwood, Bert

There is an urgent need for young people to learn to know the natural world of which they are a part. Outdoor education is the only means by which people can recover their stone-age identity and discover that they are wildlife, no different in the basics of life than any other species. For most of their story, human beings lived in harmony with…

Eventedness and Disjuncture in Virtual Worlds

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

White, David; Le Cornu, Alison

2010-01-01

Background: Many of the potential benefits of using virtual worlds for teaching and learning are difficult to define and often become overly focused on the functionality of the technology or on its ability to support informal or "social" forms of learning. Purpose: The aim of the paper is to highlight the experiential nature of virtual…

"It's like a different world": Natural places, post-secondary students, and mental health.

PubMed

Windhorst, Eric; Williams, Allison

2015-07-01

There is a need to better understand the types of natural environments that different individuals and groups find mental health promoting. In this exploratory qualitative study, twelve university students were invited to photographically document a natural place that they considered beneficial to their mental health. Thematic analysis of photographs and follow-up in-depth interviews revealed that students prefer natural places that are familiar, contain a variety of natural elements (especially mature trees and some form of water), and are separate from the context of everyday campus life (distanced from both the built and social campus environment). Overall, study findings demonstrate the importance of acknowledging symbolic and social factors when assessing the potential mental health benefits of natural places for different groups and individuals. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The asymmetric impact of natural disasters on China's bilateral trade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meng, Y.; Yang, S.; Shi, P.; Jeager, C. C.

2015-10-01

Globalization and technological revolutions are making the world more interconnected. International trade is an important approach linking the world. Since the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan shocked the global supply chain, more attention has been paid to the global impact of large-scale disasters. China is the second largest trader in the world and faces frequent natural disasters. Therefore, this study proposes a gravity model for China's bilateral trade tailored to national circumstances and estimates the impact of natural disasters in China and trading partner countries on Chinese imports and exports. We analyzed Chinese and trading partner statistical data from 1980 to 2012. Study results show the following: (1) China's natural disasters have a positive impact on exports but have no significant impact on imports; (2) trading partner countries' natural disasters reduce Chinese imports and exports; (3) both development level and land area of the partners are important in determining the intensity of natural disaster impacts on China's bilateral trade. The above findings suggest that the impact of natural disasters on trade is asymmetric and significantly affected by other factors, which demand further study.

The asymmetric impact of natural disasters on China's bilateral trade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Meng, Y.; Shi, P.; Yang, S.; Jeager, C. C.

2015-03-01

Globalization and technological revolutions are making the world more interconnected. International trade is one of the major approaches linking the world. Since the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami in Japan shocked the global supply chain, more attention has been paid to the global impact of large-scale disasters. China is the second largest trader in the world and faces the most frequent natural disasters. Therefore, this study proposes a gravity model for China's bilateral trade tailored to national circumstances, and estimates the impact of natural disasters in China and trading partner countries on Chinese imports and exports. We analyzed Chinese and trading partner statistical data from 1980 to 2012. Study results show that: (1) China's natural disasters have a positive impact on imports, but have no significant impact on exports, (2) trading partner countries' natural disasters reduce Chinese imports and exports, (3) both development level and land area of the partners are important in determining the intensity of natural disaster impacts on China's bilateral trade. The above findings suggest that the impact of natural disasters on trade is asymmetric and significantly affected by other factors, which demand further study.

Bioactive natural products in cancer prevention and therapy: Progress and promise.

PubMed

Bishayee, Anupam; Sethi, Gautam

2016-10-01

Natural products represent a rich source for the discovery and development of cancer preventive and anticancer drugs. Nearly, 80% of all drugs approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration during the last three decades for cancer therapy are either natural products per se or are based thereon, or mimicked natural products in one form or another. With the advent and refinement of new technologies, such as genetic techniques for production of secondary plant metabolites, combinatorial synthesis and high-throughput screening, it is expected that novel compounds from natural sources, including medicinal plants, would be identified and developed as safe and effective chemopreventive and anticancer drugs. Numerous bioactive natural compounds have been shown to be useful in prevention and therapy of cancer by targeting various signaling molecules and pathways. Extensive literature underscores the anticancer and chemopreventive activity of a plethora of naturally occurring agents, including phytochemicals. Several of these molecules have been tested in clinical trials and some of them have shown promise in combination therapy when administered along with standard chemotherapeutic agents. Thus, accelerated chemopreventive and chemotherapeutic drug development from natural sources is of great importance. In this special theme issue, contributions from eminent scientists and scholars around the world presented critical analysis of the current progress and promise of natural bioactive constituents in cancer prevention and therapy. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Bulletin, New Series Vol. 7, No. 12.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources, Morges, (Switzerland).

Described is the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) marine program which centers around the world wildlife fund marine program. The program has been divided into three phases - launch, main, and follow-up; the launch phase is described. Action plans are described for each sub-program. Each action plan…

World Culture in the Capitalist World-System in Transition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Griffiths, Tom G.; Arnove, Robert F.

2015-01-01

World culture theory (WCT) offers an explanatory framework for macro-level comparative analyses of systems of mass education, including their structures, accompanying policies and their curricular and pedagogical practices. WCT has contributed to broader efforts to overcome methodological nationalism in comparative research. In this paper, we…

How Nature Keeps its Balance

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Chalfant, Arnold R.

1972-01-01

The importance of feedback - self-controlling regulatory mechanisms - in the natural world are explained for a better understanding of the science of ecology. Various population controls are discussed accompanied by basic charts. (BL)

Decline of the world's saline lakes

Treesearch

Wayne A. Wurtsbaugh; Craig Miller; Sarah E. Null; R. Justin DeRose; Peter Wilcock; Maura Hahnenberger; Frank Howe; Johnnie Moore

2017-01-01

Many of the world’s saline lakes are shrinking at alarming rates, reducing waterbird habitat and economic benefits while threatening human health. Saline lakes are long-term basin-wide integrators of climatic conditions that shrink and grow with natural climatic variation. In contrast, water withdrawals for human use exert a sustained reduction in lake inflows and...

Sonatrach prepares for greater exports of natural gas

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Taleb, M.

1993-12-06

Algeria is increasing its capacity to export natural gas in order to reinforce its strong position in the growing international market. The country's reserves are estimated at more than 3.6 trillion cu m. Algerian energy and development policy is based on a rational exploitation of this resource. A liquefield natural gas (LNG) pioneer, Algeria has one of the world's most important LNG production capacities. With a location encouraging export to nearby countries, Algeria has an important place in the world natural gas market and an exclusive role within its trading region. The effort will especially focus on southern Europe. Themore » paper discusses Algeria's growing role in international markets, as well as local markets.« less

Improving Science Communication and Engaging the Public in Astronomy and Nature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Arion, Douglas N.

2016-01-01

A partnershipship between Carthage College and the Appalachian Mountain Club has delivered a successful public education and outreach program that merges natural environment topics and astronomy. Over the four years of activity, over 25,000 people have received programming. The effort has trained nature educators, permanent and seasonal AMC staff, and undergraduate physics and astronomy students to integrate diverse topical material and deliver high quality programming to the lay public. Unique to the program is the holistic nature of the material delivered - an 'atypical' astronomy program. Linking observable characteristics of the natural world with astronomical history and phenomena, and emphasizing the unique sequence of events that have led to human life on Earth, the program has changed attitudes and behaviors among the public participants. Successful interventions have included hands-on observing programs (day and night) that link nature content to the observed objects; table-talk presentations on nature/astronomy topics; dark skies preservation workshops; and hands-on activities developed for younger audiences, including schools, camps, and family groups. An extensive evaluation and assessment effort managed by a leading sociologist has demonstrated the effectiveness of the approach, and contributed to continuous improvement in the program content and methods. This work was supported in part by NSF Grant 1432662.

Memoirs Useful for the Natural History of Petrifactions in the Four Quarters of the World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schneer, Cecil J.

Louis Bourguet, the ‘Pliny of Neuchâtel,’ is described in the thoughtful introduction to this translation as a second-echelon member of the early 18th century scientific community. When he was 7 years old, his Huguenot family was driven from France by the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. They established a precarious manufacturing and mercantile life in Lausanne and Zurich, with Louis eventually settling in Neuchâtel, an existence that included years of work in Northern Italy and the study of archaeology, the Hebrew Talmud, and the geology of the Jura. His major work published in 1729, On the Nature of Salts and Crystals, included a memoir theory of the earth. Although these works were reviewed at length on appearance and went through several editions, and although Bourguet corresponded with 70 significant scientists enjoying the esteem of such men as Leibniz, Vallisnieri, de Jussieu, Scheuchzer, etc., he seems even in his own time to have been neglected. He does not appear in the historical section with which Charles Lyell opened his Principles, nor is he mentioned in Giekie's Founders of Geology or by Adams. This translation of Bourguet's Memoirs is part of a reappraisal that has generated a stream of papers over the last decade. The earlier neglect of Bourguet was probably due to his strict diluvialist theory of the earth, an approach in sharp contradiction to the main thrust of the emergent natural science of the Age of Reason.

Program options to explore ocean worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sherwood, B.; Lunine, J.; Sotin, C.; Cwik, T.; Naderi, F.

2018-02-01

Including Earth, roughly a dozen water ocean worlds exist in the solar system: the relict worlds Ceres and Mars, vast oceans inside most of the large Jovian and Saturnian icy moons, and Kuiper Belt Objects like Triton, Charon, and Pluto whose geologies are dominated by water and ammonia. Key pieces of the ocean-world science puzzle - which when completed may reveal whether life is widespread in the cosmos, why it exists where it does, and how it originates - are distributed among them. The eventual exploration of all these worlds will yield humanity's total tangible knowledge about life in the universe, essentially forever. Thus, their exploration has existential significance for humanity's self-regard, and indeed perhaps of our place in the natural scheme. The matter of planning how to pursue such a difficult and unprecedented exploration opportunity is therefore historic. The technical challenges are formidable, far harder than at Mars: missions to the Jovian and Saturnian ocean worlds are severely power-limited; trip times can be as much as a half decade and decade, respectively. And the science targets are global-scale oceans beneath kilometers of cryogenic ice. Reaching and exploring them would be a multi-generational undertaking, so again it is essential to plan and prepare. Today, we lack the instrumentation, subsystems, and remote operational-intelligence technologies needed to build and use exploration avatars as good as what we can envision needing. Each ocean world holds a piece of the puzzle, but the three priority targets are Europa at Jupiter, and Enceladus and Titan at Saturn. As with the systematic exploration of Mars, exploring these diverse worlds poses a complex technical and programmatic challenge - a strategic challenge - that needs to be designed and managed if each generation is to see its work bear fruit, and if the space science community is to make most effective use of the public money devoted to the quest. Strategic programs benefit from

RELATIVE THEORY OF GOOD IN "BRAVE NEW WORLD" AND "1984."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

PARTRIDGE, ALICE

ONE METHOD OF INTERESTING THE AVERAGE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT IN QUESTIONING INTELLIGENTLY THE NATURE OF GOOD IS THROUGH THE STUDY OF HUXLEY'S "BRAVE NEW WORLD" AND ORWELL'S "1984." IN BOTH OF THESE NEGATIVE UTOPIAS THE LOSS OF MAN'S HUMANITY, INDIVIDUALITY, AND RIGHT TO REASON THE NATURE OF GOOD ARE THE VERY QUALITIES WHICH MAKE…

Anthropometry for WorldSID, a World-Harmonized Midsize Male Side Impact Crash Dummy

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

S. Moss; Z. Wang; M. Salloum

2000-06-19

The WorldSID project is a global effort to design a new generation side impact crash test dummy under the direction of the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). The first WorldSID crash dummy will represent a world-harmonized mid-size adult male. This paper discusses the research and rationale undertaken to define the anthropometry of a world standard midsize male in the typical automotive seated posture. Various anthropometry databases are compared region by region and in terms of the key dimensions needed for crash dummy design. The Anthropometry for Motor Vehicle Occupants (AMVO) dataset, as established by the University of Michigan Transportation Researchmore » Institute (UMTRI), is selected as the basis for the WorldSID mid-size male, updated to include revisions to the pelvis bone location. The proposed mass of the dummy is 77.3kg with full arms. The rationale for the selected mass is discussed. The joint location and surface landmark database is appended to this paper.« less

The World Conservation Strategy and Environmental Education.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nature Conservation Education Committee, Rijswijk (Netherlands).

On March 5, 1980, the "World Conservation Strategy: Living Resource Conservation for Sustainable Development" (WCS) report was submitted to the Dutch government. The Nature Conservation Education Committee (CNBE) was then asked to prepare another report based on its initial reactions to the WCS, particularly to section 13, which deals…

Approaches to Education about a World Economy.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, Jack L.

A rationale for skeptical and controversial teaching about world economics is presented by maintaining that the nature of economics is controversial and that ideology and nationalism are dominant obstacles in economics education. Following an introduction, the first of six sections discusses major stereotypes and perceptions in economics. The next…

Marine natural products: a new wave of drugs?

PubMed Central

Montaser, Rana; Luesch, Hendrik

2011-01-01

The largely unexplored marine world that presumably harbors the most biodiversity may be the vastest resource to discover novel ‘validated’ structures with novel modes of action that cover biologically relevant chemical space. Several challenges, including the supply problem and target identification, need to be met for successful drug development of these often complex molecules; however, approaches are available to overcome the hurdles. Advances in technologies such as sampling strategies, nanoscale NMR for structure determination, total chemical synthesis, fermentation and biotechnology are all crucial to the success of marine natural products as drug leads. We illustrate the high degree of innovation in the field of marine natural products, which in our view will lead to a new wave of drugs that flow into the market and pharmacies in the future. PMID:21882941

Applied Climate Education and Training for Agricultural and Natural Resource Management in India, Indonesia, Zimbabwe and Australia

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

George, D. A.; Clewett, J. F.; Selvaraju, R.; Birch, C.

2006-01-01

In parts of the world, including many developing countries, climate variability impacts negatively on agricultural production and natural resource management. Workshops in applied climatology were held in Australia, India, Indonesia and Zimbabwe between 1999 and 2002 to provide farmers and agricultural and meteorological staff a better…

Eugenic World Building and Disability: The Strange World of Kazuo Ishiguro's Never Let Me Go.

PubMed

Garland-Thomson, Rosemarie

2017-06-01

A crucial challenge for critical disability studies is developing an argument for why disabled people should inhabit our democratic, shared public sphere. The ideological and material separation of citizens into worthy and unworthy based on physiological variations imagined as immutable differences is what I call eugenic world building. It is justified by the idea that social improvement and freedom of choice require eliminating devalued human traits in the interest of reducing human suffering, increasing life quality, and building a more desirable citizenry. In this essay, I outline the logic of inclusive and eugenic world building, define and explain the role of the "normate" in eugenic logic, and provide a critical disability studies reading of the 2005 novel Never Let Me Go by Kazuo Ishiguro and its 2010 film adaptation. I argue that the ways of being in the world we think of as disabilities must be understood as the natural variations, abilities, and limitations inherent in human embodiment. When this happens, disability will be understood not as a problem to be eliminated but, rather, as a valid way of being in the world that must be accommodated through a sustaining and sustainable environment designed to afford access for a wide range of human variations.

Global climate changes, natural disasters, and travel health risks.

PubMed

Diaz, James H

2006-01-01

Whether the result of cyclical atmospheric changes, anthropogenic activities, or combinations of both, authorities now agree that the earth is warming from a variety of climatic effects, including the cascading effects of greenhouse gas emissions to support human activities. To date, most reports of the public health outcomes of global warming have been anecdotal and retrospective in design and have focused on heat stroke deaths following heat waves, drowning deaths in floods and tsunamis, and mosquito-borne infectious disease outbreaks following tropical storms and cyclones. Accurate predictions of the true public health outcomes of global climate change are confounded by several effect modifiers including human acclimatization and adaptation, the contributions of natural climatic changes, and many conflicting atmospheric models of climate change. Nevertheless, temporal relationships between environmental factors and human health outcomes have been identified and may be used as criteria to judge the causality of associations between the human health outcomes of climate changes and climate-driven natural disasters. Travel medicine physicians are obligated to educate their patients about the known public health outcomes of climate changes, about the disease and injury risk factors their patients may face from climate-spawned natural disasters, and about the best preventive measures to reduce infectious diseases and injuries following natural disasters throughout the world.

Young Children's Literacy Practices in a Virtual World: Establishing an Online Interaction Order

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Marsh, Jackie

2011-01-01

This study examined the literacy practices of children ages 5-11 as they engaged in out-of-school use of virtual worlds. The purpose of the study was to explore the nature, purpose, and role of literacy in children's use of a virtual world. In this article, I reflect on how children's use of literacy practices in the virtual world constructed and…

Natural and Anthropogenic Aerosols in the World's Megacities and Climate Impacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kafatos, M.; Singh, R.; El-Askary, H.; Qu, J.

2005-12-01

The world's megacities are the sites of production of a variety of aerosols and are themselves affected by natural and human-induced aerosols. In particular, sources of aerosols impacting cities include: industrial and automobile emission; sand and dust storms from, e.g., the Sahara and Gobi Deserts; as well as fire-induced aerosols. Improving the ability of various stakeholder organizations to respond effectively to high concentrations of aerosols, with special emphasis on mineral dust from dust storms; smoke from controlled burns, wild fires and agricultural burning; and anthropogenic aerosols, would be an important goal not just to understand climate forcings but also to be able to better respond to the increasing amounts of aerosols at global and regional levels. Cities and surrounding areas are affected without good estimates of the current and future conditions of the aerosols and their impact on regional and global climate. Remotely sensed (RS) NASA, NOAA and international platform data can be used to characterize the properties of aerosol clouds and special hazard events such as sand and dust storms (SDS). Aerosol analysis and prediction-model capabilities from which stakeholders can choose the tools that best match their needs and technological expertise are important. Scientists validating mesoscale and aerosol-transport models, aerosol retrievals from satellite measurements are indispensable for robust climate predictions. Here we give two examples of generic SDS cases and urban pollution and their possible impact on climate: The Sahara desert is a major source of dust aerosols dust transport is an important climatic process. The aerosols in the form of dust particles reflect the incoming solar radiation to space, thereby reducing the amount of radiation available to the ground, known as `direct' radiative forcing of aerosols. The aerosols also change the cloud albedo and microphysical properties of clouds, known as `indirect' radiative forcing of

Education for Sustainable Development, Nature and Vernacular Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Selby, David

2017-01-01

Mainstream education for sustainable development conceives of nature as a resource or commodity. The natural world is, for the most part, accorded only instrumental or utilitarian value. As a field it thus aligns itself with a longstanding paradigm in western thinking that sees humans as separate from and dominant over nature. The de-natured…

Seismic‐hazard forecast for 2016 including induced and natural earthquakes in the central and eastern United States

USGS Publications Warehouse

Petersen, Mark D.; Mueller, Charles; Moschetti, Morgan P.; Hoover, Susan M.; Llenos, Andrea L.; Ellsworth, William L.; Michael, Andrew J.; Rubinstein, Justin L.; McGarr, Arthur F.; Rukstales, Kenneth S.

2016-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has produced a one‐year (2016) probabilistic seismic‐hazard assessment for the central and eastern United States (CEUS) that includes contributions from both induced and natural earthquakes that are constructed with probabilistic methods using alternative data and inputs. This hazard assessment builds on our 2016 final model (Petersen et al., 2016) by adding sensitivity studies, illustrating hazard in new ways, incorporating new population data, and discussing potential improvements. The model considers short‐term seismic activity rates (primarily 2014–2015) and assumes that the activity rates will remain stationary over short time intervals. The final model considers different ways of categorizing induced and natural earthquakes by incorporating two equally weighted earthquake rate submodels that are composed of alternative earthquake inputs for catalog duration, smoothing parameters, maximum magnitudes, and ground‐motion models. These alternatives represent uncertainties on how we calculate earthquake occurrence and the diversity of opinion within the science community. In this article, we also test sensitivity to the minimum moment magnitude between M 4 and M 4.7 and the choice of applying a declustered catalog with b=1.0 rather than the full catalog with b=1.3. We incorporate two earthquake rate submodels: in the informed submodel we classify earthquakes as induced or natural, and in the adaptive submodel we do not differentiate. The alternative submodel hazard maps both depict high hazard and these are combined in the final model. Results depict several ground‐shaking measures as well as intensity and include maps showing a high‐hazard level (1% probability of exceedance in 1 year or greater). Ground motions reach 0.6g horizontal peak ground acceleration (PGA) in north‐central Oklahoma and southern Kansas, and about 0.2g PGA in the Raton basin of Colorado and New Mexico, in central Arkansas, and in

Connecting Children to Nature: A Multiple Case Study of Nature Center Preschools

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Bailie, Patti Ensel

2012-01-01

Environmental degradation, childhood obesity, and aggression of youth are societal problems that appear unconnected. However, their cause (and possible solution) may be linked to a common experience--the amount and quality of time spent in the natural world. Environment based education, significant life experience research, and studies involving…

Individual differences in face-looking behavior generalize from the lab to the world.

PubMed

Peterson, Matthew F; Lin, Jing; Zaun, Ian; Kanwisher, Nancy

2016-05-01

Recent laboratory studies have found large, stable individual differences in the location people first fixate when identifying faces, ranging from the brows to the mouth. Importantly, this variation is strongly associated with differences in fixation-specific identification performance such that individuals' recognition ability is maximized when looking at their preferred location (Mehoudar, Arizpe, Baker, & Yovel, 2014; Peterson & Eckstein, 2013). This finding suggests that face representations are retinotopic and individuals enact gaze strategies that optimize identification, yet the extent to which this behavior reflects real-world gaze behavior is unknown. Here, we used mobile eye trackers to test whether individual differences in face gaze generalize from lab to real-world vision. In-lab fixations were measured with a speeded face identification task, while real-world behavior was measured as subjects freely walked around the Massachusetts Institute of Technology campus. We found a strong correlation between the patterns of individual differences in face gaze in the lab and real-world settings. Our findings support the hypothesis that individuals optimize real-world face identification by consistently fixating the same location and thus strongly constraining the space of retinotopic input. The methods developed for this study entailed collecting a large set of high-definition, wide field-of-view natural videos from head-mounted cameras and the viewer's fixation position, allowing us to characterize subjects' actually experienced real-world retinotopic images. These images enable us to ask how vision is optimized not just for the statistics of the "natural images" found in web databases, but of the truly natural, retinotopic images that have landed on actual human retinae during real-world experience.

A Study of Planet Three: A World Geography/Social Studies Course.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Graham, Duncan

This 12th grade course in world geography is based on the philosophical assumption that human beings on earth make up a global village of interdependent people. It is world geography with a planetary perspective--an inquiry into the nature of the planet and its dominant species, Homo Sapiens. Seven units cover the following topics on physical and…

The real-world navigator

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Balabanovic, Marko; Becker, Craig; Morse, Sarah K.; Nourbakhsh, Illah R.

1994-01-01

The success of every mobile robot application hinges on the ability to navigate robustly in the real world. The problem of robust navigation is separable from the challenges faced by any particular robot application. We offer the Real-World Navigator as a solution architecture that includes a path planner, a map-based localizer, and a motion control loop that combines reactive avoidance modules with deliberate goal-based motion. Our architecture achieves a high degree of reliability by maintaining and reasoning about an explicit description of positional uncertainty. We provide two implementations of real-world robot systems that incorporate the Real-World Navigator. The Vagabond Project culminated in a robot that successfully navigated a portion of the Stanford University campus. The Scimmer project developed successful entries for the AIAA 1993 Robotics Competition, placing first in one of the two contests entered.

Montessori and Nature Study: Preserving Wonder through School Gardens

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnson, Kelly

2013-01-01

Current research suggests that nature experience and the cultivation of environmental literacy among students contributes to creative thinking, improved academic performance, and positive relationships with the natural world (Children and Nature Network, retrieved June 2013). Author Kelley Johnson saw this in her own childhood, which was blessed…

Climate Change, Risks and Natural Resources didactic issues of educational content geography of Bulgaria and the world in 9th and 10th grade

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dermendzhieva, Stela; Nejdet, Semra

2017-03-01

The purpose of this paper is to follow "Climate change, risks and Natural Resources" in the curriculum of Geography of Bulgaria and the world in 9th and 10th grade and to interpret some didactic aspects. Analysis of key themes, concepts and categories related to the environment, events and approaches to environmental protection and the environmentally sound development of sectors of the economy is didikticheski targeted. Considering the emergence and development of geo-ecological issues, their scope and their importance to the environment, systematize some species and some approaches to solving them. Geography education in grade 9 and 10 involves acquiring knowledge, developing skills and composing behaviors of objective perception and assessment of the reality of globed, regional and local aspect. The emerging consumer and individualistic culture snowballing globalization, are increasingly occurring global warming, declining biodiversity form new realities which education must respond appropriately. The objective, consistency, accessibility and relevance in real terms are meaningful, logical accents. Whether and how reproduced in the study of Geography of Bulgaria and the world is the subject of research study in this report. Geoecological structuring of topics, concepts and categories can be done in different signs. In terms of their scope are local, national or regional, and global. Matter and interdisciplinary approach, which is to reveal the unity of the "man-society-nature" to clarify the complexity of their character with a view to forming a harmonious personality with high Geoecological consciousness and culture, and the activities carried out in their study.

Natural hazards in a changing world: a case for ecosystem-based management.

PubMed

Nel, Jeanne L; Le Maitre, David C; Nel, Deon C; Reyers, Belinda; Archibald, Sally; van Wilgen, Brian W; Forsyth, Greg G; Theron, Andre K; O'Farrell, Patrick J; Kahinda, Jean-Marc Mwenge; Engelbrecht, Francois A; Kapangaziwiri, Evison; van Niekerk, Lara; Barwell, Laurie

2014-01-01

Communities worldwide are increasingly affected by natural hazards such as floods, droughts, wildfires and storm-waves. However, the causes of these increases remain underexplored, often attributed to climate changes or changes in the patterns of human exposure. This paper aims to quantify the effect of climate change, as well as land cover change, on a suite of natural hazards. Changes to four natural hazards (floods, droughts, wildfires and storm-waves) were investigated through scenario-based models using land cover and climate change drivers as inputs. Findings showed that human-induced land cover changes are likely to increase natural hazards, in some cases quite substantially. Of the drivers explored, the uncontrolled spread of invasive alien trees was estimated to halve the monthly flows experienced during extremely dry periods, and also to double fire intensities. Changes to plantation forestry management shifted the 1:100 year flood event to a 1:80 year return period in the most extreme scenario. Severe 1:100 year storm-waves were estimated to occur on an annual basis with only modest human-induced coastal hardening, predominantly from removal of coastal foredunes and infrastructure development. This study suggests that through appropriate land use management (e.g. clearing invasive alien trees, re-vegetating clear-felled forests, and restoring coastal foredunes), it would be possible to reduce the impacts of natural hazards to a large degree. It also highlights the value of intact and well-managed landscapes and their role in reducing the probabilities and impacts of extreme climate events.

Natural Hazards in a Changing World: A Case for Ecosystem-Based Management

PubMed Central

Nel, Jeanne L.; Le Maitre, David C.; Nel, Deon C.; Reyers, Belinda; Archibald, Sally; van Wilgen, Brian W.; Forsyth, Greg G.; Theron, Andre K.; O’Farrell, Patrick J.; Kahinda, Jean-Marc Mwenge; Engelbrecht, Francois A.; Kapangaziwiri, Evison; van Niekerk, Lara; Barwell, Laurie

2014-01-01

Communities worldwide are increasingly affected by natural hazards such as floods, droughts, wildfires and storm-waves. However, the causes of these increases remain underexplored, often attributed to climate changes or changes in the patterns of human exposure. This paper aims to quantify the effect of climate change, as well as land cover change, on a suite of natural hazards. Changes to four natural hazards (floods, droughts, wildfires and storm-waves) were investigated through scenario-based models using land cover and climate change drivers as inputs. Findings showed that human-induced land cover changes are likely to increase natural hazards, in some cases quite substantially. Of the drivers explored, the uncontrolled spread of invasive alien trees was estimated to halve the monthly flows experienced during extremely dry periods, and also to double fire intensities. Changes to plantation forestry management shifted the 1∶100 year flood event to a 1∶80 year return period in the most extreme scenario. Severe 1∶100 year storm-waves were estimated to occur on an annual basis with only modest human-induced coastal hardening, predominantly from removal of coastal foredunes and infrastructure development. This study suggests that through appropriate land use management (e.g. clearing invasive alien trees, re-vegetating clear-felled forests, and restoring coastal foredunes), it would be possible to reduce the impacts of natural hazards to a large degree. It also highlights the value of intact and well-managed landscapes and their role in reducing the probabilities and impacts of extreme climate events. PMID:24806527

Teaching as a Trans-world Activity

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hull, John M.

2004-01-01

John Hull lost his sight more than 20 years ago. He has written extensively about the nature of blindness. In the course of this, he has developed a philosophy of disability or impairment which emphasises the many different worlds of human experience. This leads him to the thought that the teacher of special children, many of whom will be living…

Components and Public Health Impact of Population Growth in the Arab World

PubMed Central

Abdul Salam, Asharaf; Elsegaey, Ibrahim; Khraif, Rshood; AlMutairi, Abdullah; Aldosari, Ali

2015-01-01

The Arab world, which consists of the 22 member states of the Arab League, is undergoing a rapid transition in demographics, including fertility, mortality, and migration. Comprising a distinctive geographic region spread across West Asia and North East Africa and unified by the Arabic language, these states share common values and characteristics despite having diverse economic and political conditions. The demographic lag (high fertility and low mortality) that characterizes the Arab world is unique, but the present trend of declining fertility, combined with the relatively low mortality, brings about significant changes in its population size. This research aimed to: (i) assess the population growth in the Arab world over 3 time periods, (ii) explore its components, and (iii) understand its public health impact. Data from the International Data Base (IDB) of the U.S. Census Bureau for 3 time periods (1992, 2002, and 2012) in 21 countries of the Arab world were analyzed by dividing them into four geographic sectors, namely, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), West Asia, Maghreb, and the Nile Valley African Horn. The population of the Arab world has grown considerably due to both natural growth and migration. The immigration is pronounced, especially into resource-intensive GCC nations, not only from East Asian and Central African countries but also from resource-thrifty (limited-resource) Arab nations. The migrations within, as well as outside, the Arab world reveal an interesting demographic phenomenon that requires further research: migration flows and trends. However, the transformations in public health statistics related to mortality—the impact of demographic changes—depict a new era in the Arab world. PMID:25993053

Components and public health impact of population growth in the Arab world.

PubMed

Abdul Salam, Asharaf; Elsegaey, Ibrahim; Khraif, Rshood; AlMutairi, Abdullah; Aldosari, Ali

2015-01-01

The Arab world, which consists of the 22 member states of the Arab League, is undergoing a rapid transition in demographics, including fertility, mortality, and migration. Comprising a distinctive geographic region spread across West Asia and North East Africa and unified by the Arabic language, these states share common values and characteristics despite having diverse economic and political conditions. The demographic lag (high fertility and low mortality) that characterizes the Arab world is unique, but the present trend of declining fertility, combined with the relatively low mortality, brings about significant changes in its population size. This research aimed to: (i) assess the population growth in the Arab world over 3 time periods, (ii) explore its components, and (iii) understand its public health impact. Data from the International Data Base (IDB) of the U.S. Census Bureau for 3 time periods (1992, 2002, and 2012) in 21 countries of the Arab world were analyzed by dividing them into four geographic sectors, namely, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), West Asia, Maghreb, and the Nile Valley African Horn. The population of the Arab world has grown considerably due to both natural growth and migration. The immigration is pronounced, especially into resource-intensive GCC nations, not only from East Asian and Central African countries but also from resource-thrifty (limited-resource) Arab nations. The migrations within, as well as outside, the Arab world reveal an interesting demographic phenomenon that requires further research: migration flows and trends. However, the transformations in public health statistics related to mortality-the impact of demographic changes-depict a new era in the Arab world.

Common Worlds: Reconceptualising Inclusion in Early Childhood Communities

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Taylor, Affrica; Giugni, Miriam

2012-01-01

"Common worlds" is a conceptual framework developed to reconceptualise inclusion in early childhood communities. Common worlds take account of children's relations with all the others in their worlds--including the more-than-human others. The ethics and politics of living together in these common worlds is the central concern of this article. The…

A Natural Integration

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Coskie, Tracy; Hornof, Michelle; Trudel, Heidi

2007-01-01

A five-week study taught students how to write a field guide that identified the plants in a small wooded area they passed through on their way to their school playground. By creating this authentic genre of science writing, students came to understand and care for the natural world in their immediate environment. They also developed important…

Soil Erosion: Quiet Crisis in the World Economy. Worldwatch Paper 60.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Lester R.; Wolf, Edward C.

Although soil erosion is a natural process, it has increased to the point where it far exceeds the natural formation of new soil. However, with only occasional exceptions, national agricultural and population policies have failed to take soil depletion into account. Projections of world food production always incorporate estimates of future…

Designating Earth's Moon as a United Nations World Heritage Site - Permanently Protected from Commercial or Military Uses

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Steiner, R. G.

2002-01-01

paradigm that has characterized 19th and 20th century western civilization on Earth. The World Heritage process, and how Earth's Moon clearly satisfies necessary criteria, is described, as are the political challenges this proposal presents, including the 'national sovereignty' issue. The 1972 United Nations World Heritage Convention (signed by 167 countries), provides for the protection of cultural and natural properties deemed to be of "outstanding universal value", including value "from the point of view of science, conservation, or natural beauty" and places them under "a collective responsibility." The Moon clearly meets several criteria for WHS designation, as follow: a. "be outstanding examples representing major stages of Earth's history...significant on-going geological processes in the development of landforms, or significant geomorphic or physiographic features"; b. "contain superlative natural phenomena or areas of exceptional natural beauty and aesthetic importance"; and c. the Moon qualifies within the Convention as an "associative cultural landscape" which designates areas "by virtue of their powerful religious, artistic or cultural associations of the natural element." To facilitate WHS site designation for the Moon, it is proposed that the 1979 "Moon Treaty" (Agreement Governing the Activities of States on the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, entered into force 7/11/84) be amended and broadly ratified internationally. Specifically, Article 11 - which presently provides for 'the establishment of an international regime to govern the exploitation of the natural resources of the moon, encourage the development of the natural resources of the moon, the management and expansion of opportunities in the use of those resources' - should be amended to provide a clear and unequivocal declaration of the extraordinary, irreplaceable cultural and natural value of the Moon, and designation of the Moon in its entirety as an inviolate World Heritage Site reserved

Coercive Narratives, Motivation and Role Playing in Virtual Worlds

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-01-01

resource for making immersive virtual environments highly engaging. Interaction also appeals to our natural desire to discover. Reading a book contains...participation in an open-ended Virtual Environment (VE). I intend to take advantage of a participants’ natural tendency to prefer interaction when possible...I hope this work will expand the potential of experience within virtual worlds. K e y w o r d s : Immersive Environments , Virtual Environments

Do we live in the best of all possible worlds? The fine-tuning of the constants of nature

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Naumann, Thomas

2017-12-01

Our existence depends on a variety of constants which appear to be extremely fine-tuned to allow for the existence of life. These include the number of spatial dimensions, the strengths of the forces, the masses of the particles, the composition of the Universe and others. On the occasion of the 300th anniversary of the death of G.W. Leibniz we discuss the question of whether we live in the "Best of all Worlds". The hypothesis of a multiverse could explain the mysterious fine tuning of so many fundamental quantities. Anthropic arguments are critically reviewed.

Research on Social Work Practice in Egypt and the Arab World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Megahead, Hamido A.

2017-01-01

This article aims at introducing the research on social work practice in Egypt and the Arab World as a thematic topic. It has started with the essence of the current Arab World and its definition. Social work practice and models of social work intervention in this specific region have been described in terms of its specific and topographic nature.…

UNESCO Thematic Initiative ``Astronomy and World Heritage'': studies and research on technological heritage connected with space exploration

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sidorenko, Anna

The Convention concerning the protection of the World Cultural and Natural Heritage (1972) provides a unique opportunity to preserve exceptional properties world-wide and to raise awareness about the Outstanding Universal Value of these properties. The mission of UNESCO regarding World Heritage consists of assisting the States Parties to this Convention to safeguard properties inscribed on the World Heritage List, to support activities led by States Parties in the preservation of World Heritage, and to encourage international cooperation in heritage conservation. Considering that sites related to science and technology are among the most under-represented on the World Heritage List and recognizing the absence of an integrated thematic approach for such sites, the World Heritage Committee launched the Thematic Initiative “Astronomy and World Heritage”. Developed in close collaboration between the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) and the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), and implemented by the National Focal Points world-wide, the Thematic Initiative on Astronomy and World Heritage aims to establish a link between Science and Culture towards the recognition of scientific values of sites linked to astronomy. It provides an opportunity not only to identify the properties but also to keep their memory alive and preserve them from progressive deterioration. The implementation of this initiative has revealed numerous issues that need to be addressed, and in particular in the domain of technological heritage connected with space exploration. For this reason, the World Heritage Committee during its 36th session (Saint Petersburg, 2012) encouraged cooperation between the UNESCO World Heritage Centre, specialized agencies and relevant interdisciplinary scientific initiatives towards the elaboration of a Global Thematic Study on Heritage of Science and Technology, including studies and research on technological

Comparative analysis of disease pathogenesis and molecular mechanisms of New World and Old World arenavirus infections

PubMed Central

McLay, Lisa; Liang, Yuying

2014-01-01

Arenaviruses can cause fatal human haemorrhagic fever (HF) diseases for which vaccines and therapies are extremely limited. Both the New World (NW) and Old World (OW) groups of arenaviruses contain HF-causing pathogens. Although these two groups share many similarities, important differences with regard to pathogenicity and molecular mechanisms of virus infection exist. These closely related pathogens share many characteristics, including genome structure, viral assembly, natural host selection and the ability to interfere with innate immune signalling. However, members of the NW and OW viruses appear to use different receptors for cellular entry, as well as different mechanisms of virus internalization. General differences in disease signs and symptoms and pathological lesions in patients infected with either NW or OW arenaviruses are also noted and discussed herein. Whilst both the OW Lassa virus (LASV) and the NW Junin virus (JUNV) can cause disruption of the vascular endothelium, which is an important pathological feature of HF, the immune responses to these related pathogens seem to be quite distinct. Whereas LASV infection results in an overall generalized immune suppression, patients infected with JUNV seem to develop a cytokine storm. Additionally, the type of immune response required for recovery and clearance of the virus is different between NW and OW infections. These differences may be important to allow the viruses to evade host immune detection. Understanding these differences will aid the development of new vaccines and treatment strategies against deadly HF viral infections. PMID:24068704

Comparative analysis of disease pathogenesis and molecular mechanisms of New World and Old World arenavirus infections.

PubMed

McLay, Lisa; Liang, Yuying; Ly, Hinh

2014-01-01

Arenaviruses can cause fatal human haemorrhagic fever (HF) diseases for which vaccines and therapies are extremely limited. Both the New World (NW) and Old World (OW) groups of arenaviruses contain HF-causing pathogens. Although these two groups share many similarities, important differences with regard to pathogenicity and molecular mechanisms of virus infection exist. These closely related pathogens share many characteristics, including genome structure, viral assembly, natural host selection and the ability to interfere with innate immune signalling. However, members of the NW and OW viruses appear to use different receptors for cellular entry, as well as different mechanisms of virus internalization. General differences in disease signs and symptoms and pathological lesions in patients infected with either NW or OW arenaviruses are also noted and discussed herein. Whilst both the OW Lassa virus (LASV) and the NW Junin virus (JUNV) can cause disruption of the vascular endothelium, which is an important pathological feature of HF, the immune responses to these related pathogens seem to be quite distinct. Whereas LASV infection results in an overall generalized immune suppression, patients infected with JUNV seem to develop a cytokine storm. Additionally, the type of immune response required for recovery and clearance of the virus is different between NW and OW infections. These differences may be important to allow the viruses to evade host immune detection. Understanding these differences will aid the development of new vaccines and treatment strategies against deadly HF viral infections.

Language of the Earth: Exploring Natural Hazards through a Literary Anthology

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Malamud, B. D.; Rhodes, F. H. T.

2009-04-01

This paper explores natural hazards teaching and communications through the use of a literary anthology of writings about the earth aimed at non-experts. Teaching natural hazards in high-school and university introductory Earth Science and Geography courses revolves mostly around lectures, examinations, and laboratory demonstrations/activities. Often the results of such a course are that a student 'memorizes' the answers, and is penalized when they miss a given fact [e.g., "You lost one point because you were off by 50 km/hr on the wind speed of an F5 tornado."] Although facts and general methodologies are certainly important when teaching natural hazards, it is a strong motivation to a student's assimilation of, and enthusiasm for, this knowledge, if supplemented by writings about the Earth. In this paper, we discuss a literary anthology which we developed [Language of the Earth, Rhodes, Stone, Malamud, Wiley-Blackwell, 2008] which includes many descriptions about natural hazards. Using first- and second-hand accounts of landslides, earthquakes, tsunamis, floods and volcanic eruptions, through the writings of McPhee, Gaskill, Voltaire, Austin, Cloos, and many others, hazards become 'alive', and more than 'just' a compilation of facts and processes. Using short excerpts such as these, or other similar anthologies, of remarkably written accounts and discussions about natural hazards results in 'dry' facts becoming more than just facts. These often highly personal viewpoints of our catostrophic world, provide a useful supplement to a student's understanding of the turbulent world in which we live.

Natural Resource Economics. Teacher's Guide to World Resources. Comprehensive Coursework on the Global Environment.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Snyder, Sarah A.

This teacher's guide presents teaching suggestions and presentation materials about natural resources as economic assets contributing to national economic productivity. The term "natural resource accounting" or "green accounting" is introduced for valuing natural resources as capital in economic systems. The lesson is divided…

Space exploration and world peace

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Mercieca, C.

1972-01-01

The possibility of using space exploration as an instrument in procuring world peace is studied. Suggestions for obtaining such a peace, utilizing space programs, include removal of worldwide educational and communication barriers, building of an emotionally and socially stable society, creation of a unit or whole world rather than the mine and yours concept, and reevaluation and reorientation of human relations and values.

The Nature of Natural Hazards Communication (Invited)

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Kontar, Y. Y.

2013-12-01

Some of the many issues of interest to natural hazards professionals include the analysis of proactive approaches to the governance of risk from natural hazards and approaches to broaden the scope of public policies related to the management of risks from natural hazards, as well as including emergency and environmental management, community development and spatial planning related to natural hazards. During the talk we will present results of scientific review, analysis and synthesis, which emphasize same new trends in communication of the natural hazards theories and practices within an up-to-the-minute context of new environmental and climate change issues, new technologies, and a new focus on resiliency. The presentation is divided into five sections that focus on natural hazards communication in terms of education, risk management, public discourse, engaging the public, theoretical perspectives, and new media. It includes results of case studies and best practices. It delves into natural hazards communication theories, including diffusion, argumentation, and constructivism, to name a few. The presentation will provide information about: (1) A manual of natural hazards communication for scientists, policymakers, and media; (2) An up-to-the-minute context of environmental hazards, new technologies & political landscape; (3) A work by natural hazards scientists for geoscientists working with social scientists and communication principles; (4) A work underpinned by key natural hazards communication theories and interspersed with pragmatic solutions; (5) A work that crosses traditional natural hazards boundaries: international, interdisciplinary, theoretical/applied. We will further explore how spatial planning can contribute to risk governance by influencing the occupation of natural hazard-prone areas, and review the central role of emergency management in risk policy. The goal of this presentation is to contribute to the augmentation of the conceptual framework

Extracting knowledge from the World Wide Web

PubMed Central

Henzinger, Monika; Lawrence, Steve

2004-01-01

The World Wide Web provides a unprecedented opportunity to automatically analyze a large sample of interests and activity in the world. We discuss methods for extracting knowledge from the web by randomly sampling and analyzing hosts and pages, and by analyzing the link structure of the web and how links accumulate over time. A variety of interesting and valuable information can be extracted, such as the distribution of web pages over domains, the distribution of interest in different areas, communities related to different topics, the nature of competition in different categories of sites, and the degree of communication between different communities or countries. PMID:14745041

Characterization and control of small-world networks.

PubMed

Pandit, S A; Amritkar, R E

1999-08-01

Recently, Watts and Strogatz [Nature (London) 393, 440 (1998)] offered an interesting model of small-world networks. Here we concretize the concept of a "faraway" connection in a network by defining a far edge. Our definition is algorithmic and independent of any external parameters such as topology of the underlying space of the network. We show that it is possible to control the spread of an epidemic by using the knowledge of far edges. We also suggest a model for better product advertisement using the far edges. Our findings indicate that the number of far edges can be a good intrinsic parameter to characterize small-world phenomena.

Characterization and control of small-world networks

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Pandit, S. A.; Amritkar, R. E.

1999-08-01

Recently, Watts and Strogatz [Nature (London) 393, 440 (1998)] offered an interesting model of small-world networks. Here we concretize the concept of a ``faraway'' connection in a network by defining a far edge. Our definition is algorithmic and independent of any external parameters such as topology of the underlying space of the network. We show that it is possible to control the spread of an epidemic by using the knowledge of far edges. We also suggest a model for better product advertisement using the far edges. Our findings indicate that the number of far edges can be a good intrinsic parameter to characterize small-world phenomena.

Given time: biology, nature and photographic vision.

PubMed

Garlick, Steve

2009-12-01

The invention of photography in the early 19th century changed the way that we see the world, and has played an important role in the development of western science. Notably, photographic vision is implicated in the definition of a new temporal relation to the natural world at the same time as modern biological science emerges as a disciplinary formation. It is this coincidence in birth that is central to this study. I suggest that by examining the relationship of early photography to nature, we can gain some insight into the technological and epistemological underpinnings of biological vision. To this end, this article is primarily concerned with the role of photographic technology in the genealogy of biological vision. I argue that photography has always been ambiguously located between art and science, between nature and culture, and between life and death. Hence, while it may be a technological expression of the scientific desire to know and to control nature, photographic vision has continually disrupted and frustrated the ambitions of biological technoscience. The technovision of early biological science illustrates that the elusive temporality of nature has always been central to the production of knowledge of life.

State of the World 1984

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Singer, S. Fred

Long before Ronald Reagan asked voters whether they were better off today than they were 4 years ago, many thoughtful people were asking whether the world as a whole was becoming a better place to live. The Malthusian point of view, restated by the Club of Rome's Limits to Growth, made an enormous impact on the world when it appeared in 1972. Its simplistic message, disguised in computer models, was that exponential growth cannot be maintained forever. Specifically, it predicted imminent exhaustion of food and natural resources and death from evergrowing pollution. Its successor volume, Global 2000, published with the encouragement of the Carter White House in 1980, was more restrained but also predicted general doom. It was responded to by The Resourceful Earth (sponsored by the Heritage Foundation), which views the future as rosy and contradicts Global 2000 on almost every point.

USGS World Petroleum Assessment 2000: New Conventional Provinces

USGS Publications Warehouse

Ahlbrandt, T.S.; Klett, T.R.

2000-01-01

The USGS has completed a new assessment of the undiscovered oil and gas resources of the world. One hundred and five geologic provinces were analyzed for assessment. Assessment units (AU) that comprise Total Petroleum Systems (TPS) were identified and described for each of these provinces. The AU served as the basis for assessing undiscovered petroleum within these provinces, 157 TPS and 270 AU were assessed. Some of data included in the assessment include the cumulative percent of world known petroleum volume by ranked oil and gas provinces; undiscovered NGL; reserve growth of the worlds largest oil and gas fields; and world potential reserve growth for oil/gas/NGL.

The Ecology of Hope: Natural Guides to Building a Children and Nature Movement

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Charles, Cheryl

2009-12-01

Cheryl Charles, Ph.D gave the 2009 Paul F-Brandwein Lecture. The lecture addresses the impact of children's disconnect from the natural world in their everyday lives. Co-founder of the Children & Nature Network (C&NN) with Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder (2005/2008), the author describes C&NN's approach to building a movement to reconnect children and nature for their health and well-being. She puts the growth of the movement in recent historical perspective, chronicling relevant contributing factors. Drawing on research as well as common sense, she summarizes evidence that indicates some of the negative impacts on children's health from their lack of contact with nature and other characteristics of contemporary lifestyles, as well as positive benefits to children's cognitive, emotional, social and physical development from direct learning and play in nature-based settings. She describes what she calls "natural guides" to building the children and nature movement as a part of the process of achieving sufficient critical mass to facilitate positive social change. Finally, she offers recommendations for actions.

Classes of real-world 'small-world' networks: From the neural network of C. Elegans to the web of human sexual contacts

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Nunes Amaral, Luis A.

2002-03-01

We study the statistical properties of a variety of diverse real-world networks including the neural network of C. Elegans, food webs for seven distinct environments, transportation and technological networks, and a number of distinct social networks [1-5]. We present evidence of the occurrence of three classes of small-world networks [2]: (a) scale-free networks, characterized by a vertex connectivity distribution that decays as a power law; (b) broad-scale networks, characterized by a connectivity distribution that has a power-law regime followed by a sharp cut-off; (c) single-scale networks, characterized by a connectivity distribution with a fast decaying tail. Moreover, we note for the classes of broad-scale and single-scale networks that there are constraints limiting the addition of new links. Our results suggest that the nature of such constraints may be the controlling factor for the emergence of different classes of networks. [See http://polymer.bu.edu/ amaral/Networks.html for details and htpp://polymer.bu.edu/ amaral/Professional.html for access to PDF files of articles.] 1. M. Barthélémy, L. A. N. Amaral, Phys. Rev. Lett. 82, 3180-3183 (1999). 2. L. A. N. Amaral, A. Scala, M. Barthélémy, H. E. Stanley, Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 97, 11149-11152 (2000). 3. F. Liljeros, C. R. Edling, L. A. N. Amaral, H. E. Stanley, and Y. Åberg, Nature 411, 907-908 (2001). 4. J. Camacho, R. Guimera, L.A.N. Amaral, Phys. Rev. E RC (to appear). 5. S. Mossa, M. Barthelemy, H.E. Stanley, L.A.N. Amaral (submitted).

Supercritical Fluid Chromatography in Natural Product Analysis - An Update.

PubMed

Gibitz Eisath, Nora; Sturm, Sonja; Stuppner, Hermann

2018-04-01

The wide chemical diversity of natural products has challenged analysts all over the world and has been a driving force for the development of innovative technologies since decades. In the last years, supercritical fluid chromatography (SFC) has finally emerged from the shadow of liquid chromatography (LC) and gas chromatography (GC) and has become a powerful tool in modern natural product analysis. Whereas in the past the technique had mainly been restricted to a small group of nonpolar compounds, it has largely expanded its suitability in the last years and has demonstrated possibilities without boundaries. This mini-review, focused on the latest applications, provides a brief update on the current status of SFC in natural product analysis with the aim to demonstrate its applicability for both polar and nonpolar plant constituents. The approaches cover the whole range of polarity, including carotenoids, flavonoids, water-unstable ginkgolides, and even highly polar triterpene saponins with several sugar residues. Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York.

Hepburn's Natural Aesthetic and Its Implications for Aesthetic Education

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Yang, Chung-Ping

2013-01-01

The world is rich in natural beauty, and learning how to appreciate the beauty of nature is an important part of aesthetic education. Unfortunately, the teaching of aesthetics is usually restricted to art education, especially in Taiwan. Students' perceptual awareness of and sensitivity to the aesthetics of nature should be cultivated so that…

World Studies 8-13: A UK Curriculum Project.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hicks, David; Fisher, Simon

1982-01-01

Describes "World Studies 8-13," a curriculum project of the United Kingdom concerned with four themes relating to the global village, spaceship earth, or world society. Themes include getting on with others, learning about other peoples, understanding the news, and the world tomorrow. (RH)

Exploring the biophysical option space for feeding the world without deforestation.

PubMed

Erb, Karl-Heinz; Lauk, Christian; Kastner, Thomas; Mayer, Andreas; Theurl, Michaela C; Haberl, Helmut

2016-04-19

Safeguarding the world's remaining forests is a high-priority goal. We assess the biophysical option space for feeding the world in 2050 in a hypothetical zero-deforestation world. We systematically combine realistic assumptions on future yields, agricultural areas, livestock feed and human diets. For each scenario, we determine whether the supply of crop products meets the demand and whether the grazing intensity stays within plausible limits. We find that many options exist to meet the global food supply in 2050 without deforestation, even at low crop-yield levels. Within the option space, individual scenarios differ greatly in terms of biomass harvest, cropland demand and grazing intensity, depending primarily on the quantitative and qualitative aspects of human diets. Grazing constraints strongly limit the option space. Without the option to encroach into natural or semi-natural land, trade volumes will rise in scenarios with globally converging diets, thereby decreasing the food self-sufficiency of many developing regions.

World commercial aircraft accidents. Second edition, 1946--1992

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kimura, C.Y.

1993-01-01

This report is a compilation of all accidents world-wide involving aircraft in commercial service which resulted in the loss of the airframe or one or more fatality, or both. This information has been gathered in order to present a complete inventory of commercial aircraft accidents. Events involving military action, sabotage, terrorist bombings, hijackings, suicides, and industrial ground accidents are included within this list. Included are: accidents involving world commercial jet aircraft, world commercial turboprop aircraft, world commercial pistonprop aircraft with four or more engines and world commercial pistonprop aircraft with two or three engines from 1946 to 1992. Each accidentmore » is presented with information in the following categories: date of the accident, airline and its flight numbers, type of flight, type of aircraft, aircraft registration number, construction number/manufacturers serial number, aircraft damage, accident flight phase, accident location, number of fatalities, number of occupants, cause, remarks, or description (brief) of the accident, and finally references used. The sixth chapter presents a summary of the world commercial aircraft accidents by major aircraft class (e.g. jet, turboprop, and pistonprop) and by flight phase. The seventh chapter presents several special studies including a list of world commercial aircraft accidents for all aircraft types with 100 or more fatalities in order of decreasing number of fatalities, a list of collision accidents involving commercial aircrafts, and a list of world commercial aircraft accidents for all aircraft types involving military action, sabotage, terrorist bombings, and hijackings.« less

Common world model for unmanned systems: Phase 2

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Dean, Robert M. S.; Oh, Jean; Vinokurov, Jerry

2014-06-01

The Robotics Collaborative Technology Alliance (RCTA) seeks to provide adaptive robot capabilities which move beyond traditional metric algorithms to include cognitive capabilities. Key to this effort is the Common World Model, which moves beyond the state-of-the-art by representing the world using semantic and symbolic as well as metric information. It joins these layers of information to define objects in the world. These objects may be reasoned upon jointly using traditional geometric, symbolic cognitive algorithms and new computational nodes formed by the combination of these disciplines to address Symbol Grounding and Uncertainty. The Common World Model must understand how these objects relate to each other. It includes the concept of Self-Information about the robot. By encoding current capability, component status, task execution state, and their histories we track information which enables the robot to reason and adapt its performance using Meta-Cognition and Machine Learning principles. The world model also includes models of how entities in the environment behave which enable prediction of future world states. To manage complexity, we have adopted a phased implementation approach. Phase 1, published in these proceedings in 2013 [1], presented the approach for linking metric with symbolic information and interfaces for traditional planners and cognitive reasoning. Here we discuss the design of "Phase 2" of this world model, which extends the Phase 1 design API, data structures, and reviews the use of the Common World Model as part of a semantic navigation use case.

Emerging Leaders: AED's Open World Program.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

McDonald, Sandra

2003-01-01

Describes the Open World Program, funded and administered by the Library of Congress, with support from private organizations such as the Academy for Educational Development (AED). Open World Program allows community colleges to participate by hosting delegations from other countries. Some themes include: environment, women as leaders, economic…

Nightscape Photography Reclaims the Natural Sky

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Tafreshi, Babak

2015-08-01

Nightscape photos and timelapse videos, where the Earth & sky are framed together with an astronomical purpose, support the dark skies activities by improving public awareness. TWAN or The World at Night program (www.twanight.org) presents the world's best collection of such landscape astrophotos and aims to introduce the night sky as a part of nature, an essential element of our living environment besides being the astronomers lab. The nightscape images also present views of our civilizations landmarks, both natural and historic sites, against the night-time backdrop of stars, planets, and celestial events. In this context TWAN is a bridge between art, science and culture.TWAN images contribute to programs such as the Dark Sky Parks by the International Dark Sky Association or Starlight reserves by assisting local efforts in better illustrating their dark skies and by producing stunning images that not only educate the local people on their night sky heritage also communicate with the governments that are responsible to support the dark sky area.Since 2009 TWAN organizes the world's largest annual photo contest on nightscape imaging, in collaboration with the Dark Skies Awareness, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, and Astronomers Without Borders. The International Earth & Sky Photo Contest promotes the photography that documents the beauty of natural skies against the problem of light pollution. In 2014 the entries received from about 50 countries and the contest result news was widely published in the most popular sources internationally.*Babak A. Tafreshi is a photographer and science communicator. He is the creator of The World At Night program, and a contributing photographer to the National Geographic, Sky&Telescope magazine, and the European Southern Observatory. http://twanight.org/tafreshi

Observational physics of mirror world

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Khlopov, M. YA.; Beskin, G. M.; Bochkarev, N. E.; Pustilnik, L. A.; Pustilnik, S. A.

1989-01-01

The existence of the whole world of shadow particles, interacting with each other and having no mutual interactions with ordinary particles except gravity is a specific feature of modern superstring models, being considered as models of the theory of everything. The presence of shadow particles is the necessary condition in the superstring models, providing compensation of the asymmetry of left and right chirality states of ordinary particles. If compactification of additional dimensions retains the symmetry of left and right states, shadow world turns to be the mirror one, with particles and fields having properties strictly symmetrical to the ones of corresponding ordinary particles and fields. Owing to the strict symmetry of physical laws for ordinary and mirror particles, the analysis of cosmological evolution of mirror matter provides rather definite conclusions on possible effects of mirror particles in the universe. A general qualitative discussion of possible astronomical impact of mirror matter is given, in order to make as wide as possible astronomical observational searches for the effects of mirror world, being the unique way to test the existence of mirror partners of ordinary particles in the Nature.

Characterizing Mobility and Contact Networks in Virtual Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Machado, Felipe; Santos, Matheus; Almeida, Virgílio; Guedes, Dorgival

Virtual worlds have recently gained wide recognition as an important field of study in Computer Science. In this work we present an analysis of the mobility and interactions among characters in World of Warcraft (WoW) and Second Life based on the contact opportunities extracted from actual user data in each of those domains. We analyze character contacts in terms of their spatial and temporal characteristics, as well as the social network derived from such contacts. Our results show that the contacts observed may be more influenced by the nature of the interactions and goals of the users in each situation than by the intrinsic structure of such worlds. In particular, observations from a city in WoW are closer to those of Second Life than to other areas in WoW itself.

The Amelia Bedelia effect: world knowledge and the goal bias in language acquisition.

PubMed

Srinivasan, Mahesh; Barner, David

2013-09-01

How does world knowledge interact with syntax to constrain linguistic interpretation? We explored this question by testing children's acquisition of verbs like weed and water, which have opposite meanings despite occurring in the same syntactic frames. Whereas "weed the garden" treats "the garden" as a source, "water the garden" treats it as a goal. In five experiments, we asked how children learn these verbs. Previous theories predict that verbs which describe the transfer of an object with respect to its natural origin (e.g., "weed the garden") should receive source interpretations, whereas verbs that describe the transfer of an object with respect to something it is functionally related to (e.g., "water the garden") should receive goal interpretations. Therefore, acquiring world knowledge - about the natural origins and functional uses of objects - should be sufficient for differentiating between source and goal meanings. Experiments 1 and 2 casted doubt on this hypothesis, as 4- and 5-year-olds failed to use their world knowledge when interpreting these verbs and instead overextended goal interpretations. For example, children interpreted "weed the garden" to mean "put weeds onto a garden", even when they knew the natural origin of weeds. Experiment 3 tested children's interpretation of novel verbs and directly manipulated their access to relevant world knowledge. While younger children continued to exhibit a goal bias and failed to use world knowledge, older children generalized goal and source interpretations to novel verbs according to world knowledge. In Experiments 4 and 5, we confirmed that adults use world knowledge to guide their interpretation of novel verbs, but also showed that even adults prefer goal interpretations when they are made contextually plausible. We argue that children ultimately overcome a goal bias by learning to use their world knowledge to weigh the plausibility of events (e.g., of putting weeds into a garden). Copyright © 2013

Are fixations in static natural scenes a useful predictor of attention in the real world?

PubMed

Foulsham, Tom; Kingstone, Alan

2017-06-01

Research investigating scene perception normally involves laboratory experiments using static images. Much has been learned about how observers look at pictures of the real world and the attentional mechanisms underlying this behaviour. However, the use of static, isolated pictures as a proxy for studying everyday attention in real environments has led to the criticism that such experiments are artificial. We report a new study that tests the extent to which the real world can be reduced to simpler laboratory stimuli. We recorded the gaze of participants walking on a university campus with a mobile eye tracker, and then showed static frames from this walk to new participants, in either a random or sequential order. The aim was to compare the gaze of participants walking in the real environment with fixations on pictures of the same scene. The data show that picture order affects interobserver fixation consistency and changes looking patterns. Critically, while fixations on the static images overlapped significantly with the actual real-world eye movements, they did so no more than a model that assumed a general bias to the centre. Remarkably, a model that simply takes into account where the eyes are normally positioned in the head-independent of what is actually in the scene-does far better than any other model. These data reveal that viewing patterns to static scenes are a relatively poor proxy for predicting real world eye movement behaviour, while raising intriguing possibilities for how to best measure attention in everyday life. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2017 APA, all rights reserved).

Neural processing, perception, and behavioral responses to natural chemical stimuli by fish and crustaceans.

PubMed

Derby, Charles D; Sorensen, Peter W

2008-07-01

This manuscript reviews the chemical ecology of two of the major aquatic animal models, fish and crustaceans, in the study of chemoreception. By necessity, it is restricted in scope, with most emphasis placed on teleost fish and decapod crustaceans. First, we describe the nature of the chemical world perceived by fish and crustaceans, giving examples of the abilities of these animals to analyze complex natural odors. Fish and crustaceans share the same environments and have evolved some similar chemosensory features: the ability to detect and discern mixtures of small metabolites in highly variable backgrounds and to use this information to identify food, mates, predators, and habitat. Next, we give examples of the molecular nature of some of these natural products, including a description of methodologies used to identify them. Both fish and crustaceans use their olfactory and gustatory systems to detect amino acids, amines, and nucleotides, among many other compounds, while fish olfactory systems also detect mixtures of sex steroids and prostaglandins with high specificity and sensitivity. Third, we discuss the importance of plasticity in chemical sensing by fish and crustaceans. Finally, we conclude with a description of how natural chemical stimuli are processed by chemosensory systems. In both fishes and crustaceans, the olfactory system is especially adept at mixture discrimination, while gustation is well suited to facilitate precise localization and ingestion of food. The behaviors of both fish and crustaceans can be defined by the chemical worlds in which they live and the abilities of their nervous systems to detect and identify specific features in their domains. An understanding of these worlds and the sensory systems that provide the animals with information about them provides insight into the chemical ecology of these species.

A chemical status predictor. A methodology based on World-Wide sediment samples.

PubMed

Gredilla, A; Fdez-Ortiz de Vallejuelo, S; de Diego, A; Arana, G; Stoichev, T; Amigo, J M; Wasserman, J C; Botello, A V; Sarkar, S K; Schäfer, J; Moreno, C; Guardia, M de la; Madariaga, J M

2015-09-15

As a consequence of the limited resources of underdeveloped countries and the limited interest of the developed ones, the assessment of the chemical quality of entire water bodies around the world is a utopia in the near future. The methodology described here may serve as a first approach for the fast identification of water bodies that do not meet the good chemical status demanded by the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). It also allows estimating the natural background (or reference values of concentration) of the areas under study using a simple criterion. The starting point is the calculation the World-Wide Natural Background Levels (WWNBLs) and World-Wide Threshold Values (WWTVs), two indexes that depend on the concentration of seven elements present in sediments. These elements, As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn, have been selected taking into account the recommendations of the UNEP (United Nations Environment Programme) and USEPA (United States Environmental Protection Agency), that describe them as elements of concern with respect to environmental toxicity. The methodology has been exemplified in a case study that includes 134 sediment samples collected in 11 transitional water bodies from 7 different countries and 4 different continents. Six of the water bodies considered met the good chemical status demanded by the WFD. The rest of them exceeded the reference WWTVs, at least for one of the elements. The estuaries of the Nerbioi-Ibaizabal (Basque Country) and Cavado (Portugal), the sea inlet of Río San Pedro (Spain), the Sepetiba Bay (Brazil) and the Yucateco lagoon (Mexico) belong to that group. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The real world and lunar base activation scenarios

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Schmitt, Harrison H.

1992-01-01

A lunar base or a network of lunar bases may have highly desirable support functions in a national or international program to explore and settle Mars. In addition, He-3 exported from the Moon could be the basis for providing much of the energy needs of humankind in the twenty-first century. Both technical and managerial issues must be addressed when considering the establishment of a lunar base that can serve the needs of human civilization in space. Many of the technical issues become evident in the consideration of hypothetical scenarios for the activation of a network of lunar bases. Specific and realistic assumptions must be made about the conduct of various types of activities in addition to the general assumptions given above. These activities include landings, crew consumables, power production, crew selection, risk management, habitation, science station placement, base planning, science, agriculture, resource evaluation, readaptation, plant activation and test, storage module landings, resource transport module landings, integrated operations, maintenance, Base 2 activation, and management. The development of scenarios for the activation of a lunar base or network of bases will require close attention to the 'real world' of space operations. That world is defined by the natural environment, available technology, realistic objectives, and common sense.

World Cup Hopes

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2002-01-01

From May 31 to June 30 the biggest single-sport event in the world, the 2002 FIFA World Cup (tm), will be taking place in Asia. South Korea and Japan are acting as hosts for the event which is being held in Asia for the first time. This true-color image of the southern Korean peninsula and southern Japan was acquired on May 25, 2002, by the Moderate-resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), flying aboard NASA's Terra satellite. Thirty-two nations are represented at this year's Finals including the 1998 champion France, European powers England and Italy, tournament favorite Argentina, and the United States. The finals are the culmination of a 2-year qualifying process which started with 132 nations competing in regional qualification tournaments. In the round-robin first round of the World Cup, the U.S. team will be competing against teams from Portugal, Poland, and South Korea. Image courtesy Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Land Rapid Response Team at NASA GSFC

The web of life: Natural science information on the Internet

USGS Publications Warehouse

Clement, Gail

2000-01-01

As society has come to equate economic prosperity with the health of our living resources, national science policy has called for the development of a comprehensive digital knowledge base to support informed decision making and wise resource management. The Internet and World Wide Web demonstrate the earliest stages of this evolving virtual library of the natural world, offering an increasing array of high-quality, innovative resources and services in the natural science arena. This article discusses the leading providers of natural science information on the Internet and highlights some of the exemplary resources they are delivering online. The discussion concludes with a brief discussion of the role of the librarian in developing the Web of natural science knowledge online and provides a short Webliography of starting points for further exploration of this subject area. PDF

Applying telehealth in natural and anthropogenic disasters.

PubMed

Simmons, Scott; Alverson, Dale; Poropatich, Ronald; D'Iorio, Joe; DeVany, Mary; Doarn, Charles R

2008-11-01

There are myriad telehealth applications for natural or anthropogenic disaster response. Telehealth technologies and methods have been demonstrated in a variety of real and simulated disasters. Telehealth is a force multiplier, providing medical and public health expertise at a distance, minimizing the logistic and safety issues associated with on-site care provision. Telehealth provides a virtual surge capacity, enabling physicians and other health professionals from around the world to assist overwhelmed local health and medical personnel with the increased demand for services postdisaster. There are several categories of telehealth applications in disaster response, including ambulatory/primary care, specialty consultation, remote monitoring, and triage, medical logistics, and transportation coordination. External expertise would be connected via existing telehealth networks in the disaster area or specially deployed telehealth systems in shelters or on-scene. This paper addresses the role of telehealth in disaster response and recommends a roadmap for its widespread use in preparing for and responding to natural and anthropogenic disasters.

Preservice Elementary Students Meet Sagan's "Demon-Haunted World."

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nelson, Mike

This paper describes a course in which preservice elementary teachers read and discussed "The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark" by Carl Sagan. Students discussed their beliefs about the nature of science, teaching, and learning. The paper concludes that preservice teachers appeared to develop reflective and critical…

Littoral and Coastal Management in Supporting Maritime Security for Realizing Indonesia as World Maritime Axis

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Brotosusilo, Agus; Wayan Agus Apriana, I.; Agung Satria, Afrizal; Jokopitoyo, Trisasono

2016-02-01

The Indonesian under President Joko Widodo has new goal to make Indonesia as the world maritime axis. This is supported by the geographic of Indonesia as the largest archipelagic country where the sea is two-thirds wide among the whole spacious. Indonesia is the world largest archipelagic state. More than two-third of its territory consist of seas. The ecosystem of littoral and coastal has correlative relationship with country development. There is no doubt of physically facts that Indonesian littoral and coastal with total wide of 5.8 million km2 is rich with various natural resources. Therefore, the condition of Indonesia with its world second longest coastline has several comparative advantages. Not only the country has an abundant natural resources, but it also blessed by demographic bonus advantage. The population of Indonesian is the fifth largest in the world which approximately 220 million people and approximately 60 percent among them live at coastal areas. The people in coastal area relies their live from its surrounding natural resource. Hence, most of their life and daily activity is related with the presence of natural resources. The dealing of conflict potential and attention to maritime security are important to be studied as a reference in preparing and facing the government policies that will lead to the development of maritime.

Addressing "Nature-Deficit Disorder": A Mixed Methods Pilot Study of Young Adults Attending a Wilderness Camp.

PubMed

Warber, Sara L; DeHudy, Ashley A; Bialko, Matthew F; Marselle, Melissa R; Irvine, Katherine N

2015-01-01

Background and Objectives. Rapid urbanization raises concern about chronic human health issues along with less frequent interaction with the natural world. "Nature-deficit disorder," a nonclinical term, describes this potential impact on the well-being of youth. We conducted a mixed methods pilot study of young adults attending a four-week wilderness camp to investigate whether nature-based camp experiences would increase connection to nature and promote multiple dimensions of well-being. Methods. Participants completed precamp (n = 46) and postcamp (n = 36) online questionnaires including nature-related and holistic well-being measures. Differences were investigated using paired t-tests. Interviews (n = 16) explored camp experiences and social relations. Results. All nature-related measures-exposure, knowledge, skills, willingness to lead, perceived safety, sense of place, and nature connection-significantly increased. Well-being outcomes also significantly improved, including perceived stress, relaxation, positive and negative emotions, sense of wholeness, and transcendence. Physical activity and psychological measures showed no change. Interviews described how the wilderness environment facilitated social connections. Conclusion. Findings illustrate the change in nature relations and well-being that wilderness camp experiences can provide. Results can guide future research agendas and suggest that nature immersion experiences could address the risk of "nature-deficit disorder," improve health, and prepare future environmental leaders.

The global tobacco disease pandemic: nature, causes, and cures.

PubMed

Warner, K E; Mackay, J

2006-01-01

Tobacco use kills 5 million citizens globally every year. The World Health Organization (WHO) projects that the number of deaths will double just 15 years from now. Tobacco will then constitute the leading cause of death in the developing world, as it already is in developed countries today. This paper describes the nature and extent of the tobacco pandemic, characteristics of the global tobacco industry, and national and international efforts to diminish the toll of tobacco. The review includes examination of the economic and political strategies employed by the multinational tobacco industry to increase cigarette consumption, as well as the policies that governments have adopted to combat smoking. The most promising development is the new Framework Convention on Tobacco Control, WHO's first-ever international health treaty. While aggressive tobacco control policies can and will diminish the toll of tobacco, the prospects for the foreseeable future appear grim.

Hazard function theory for nonstationary natural hazards

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Read, L.; Vogel, R. M.

2015-12-01

Studies from the natural hazards literature indicate that many natural processes, including wind speeds, landslides, wildfires, precipitation, streamflow and earthquakes, show evidence of nonstationary behavior such as trends in magnitudes through time. Traditional probabilistic analysis of natural hazards based on partial duration series (PDS) generally assumes stationarity in the magnitudes and arrivals of events, i.e. that the probability of exceedance is constant through time. Given evidence of trends and the consequent expected growth in devastating impacts from natural hazards across the world, new methods are needed to characterize their probabilistic behavior. The field of hazard function analysis (HFA) is ideally suited to this problem because its primary goal is to describe changes in the exceedance probability of an event over time. HFA is widely used in medicine, manufacturing, actuarial statistics, reliability engineering, economics, and elsewhere. HFA provides a rich theory to relate the natural hazard event series (x) with its failure time series (t), enabling computation of corresponding average return periods and reliabilities associated with nonstationary event series. This work investigates the suitability of HFA to characterize nonstationary natural hazards whose PDS magnitudes are assumed to follow the widely applied Poisson-GP model. We derive a 2-parameter Generalized Pareto hazard model and demonstrate how metrics such as reliability and average return period are impacted by nonstationarity and discuss the implications for planning and design. Our theoretical analysis linking hazard event series x, with corresponding failure time series t, should have application to a wide class of natural hazards.

On the relation between the small world structure and scientific activities.

PubMed

Ebadi, Ashkan; Schiffauerova, Andrea

2015-01-01

The modern science has become more complex and interdisciplinary in its nature which might encourage researchers to be more collaborative and get engaged in larger collaboration networks. Various aspects of collaboration networks have been examined so far to detect the most determinant factors in knowledge creation and scientific production. One of the network structures that recently attracted much theoretical attention is called small world. It has been suggested that small world can improve the information transmission among the network actors. In this paper, using the data on 12 periods of journal publications of Canadian researchers in natural sciences and engineering, the co-authorship networks of the researchers are created. Through measuring small world indicators, the small worldiness of the mentioned network and its relation with researchers' productivity, quality of their publications, and scientific team size are assessed. Our results show that the examined co-authorship network strictly exhibits the small world properties. In addition, it is suggested that in a small world network researchers expand their team size through getting connected to other experts of the field. This team size expansion may result in higher productivity of the whole team as a result of getting access to new resources, benefitting from the internal referring, and exchanging ideas among the team members. Moreover, although small world network is positively correlated with the quality of the articles in terms of both citation count and journal impact factor, it is negatively related with the average productivity of researchers in terms of the number of their publications.

On the Relation between the Small World Structure and Scientific Activities

PubMed Central

Ebadi, Ashkan; Schiffauerova, Andrea

2015-01-01

The modern science has become more complex and interdisciplinary in its nature which might encourage researchers to be more collaborative and get engaged in larger collaboration networks. Various aspects of collaboration networks have been examined so far to detect the most determinant factors in knowledge creation and scientific production. One of the network structures that recently attracted much theoretical attention is called small world. It has been suggested that small world can improve the information transmission among the network actors. In this paper, using the data on 12 periods of journal publications of Canadian researchers in natural sciences and engineering, the co-authorship networks of the researchers are created. Through measuring small world indicators, the small worldiness of the mentioned network and its relation with researchers’ productivity, quality of their publications, and scientific team size are assessed. Our results show that the examined co-authorship network strictly exhibits the small world properties. In addition, it is suggested that in a small world network researchers expand their team size through getting connected to other experts of the field. This team size expansion may result in higher productivity of the whole team as a result of getting access to new resources, benefitting from the internal referring, and exchanging ideas among the team members. Moreover, although small world network is positively correlated with the quality of the articles in terms of both citation count and journal impact factor, it is negatively related with the average productivity of researchers in terms of the number of their publications. PMID:25780922

The Case for Natural History

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

King, Heather; Achiam, Marianne

2017-03-01

Fundamental knowledge of natural history is lacking in many western societies, as demonstrated by its absence in school science curricula. And yet, to meet local and global challenges such as environmental degradation, biodiversity loss and climate change, we need to better understand the living and non-living parts of the natural world. Many have argued passionately for an increased understanding of natural history; others have developed successful pedagogical programmes for applying knowledge of natural history in environmental initiatives. In joining wider calls, we choose here to focus on the educational value afforded by understanding the epistemological bases of natural history and its particular forms of reasoning. We also briefly discuss the ways in which an education in natural history provides the foundation for environmental and social justice efforts that directly affect the lives of young people and their communities. We end by highlighting the ease by which natural history may be incorporated in learning opportunities both in and outside of the classroom.

Mathematics & Science in the Real World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Thorson, Annette, Ed.

2000-01-01

This issue of ENC Focus is organized around the theme of mathematics and science in the real world. It intends to provide teachers with practical resources and suggestions for science and mathematics education. Featured articles include: (1) "Real-World Learning: A Necessity for the Success of Current Reform Efforts" (Robert E. Yager); (2)…

Science versus (?) Art: Human Perception of Other Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hartmann, William K.

1998-09-01

At the time of the Renaissance, science and art were mixed together as a way to understand the human relation to the larger cosmos. Leonardo da Vinci exemplifies this approach. In modern times, the two have become separate, and even antagonistic, ``two cultures." Scientists have increasingly been satisfied to present quantitative measures of phenomena, without ever asking what the measures mean in human terms. Examples include the nature of the lunar surface, asteroid colors and brightness of the Io aurora, as will be discussed. However, in presenting the "big picture" to the public, and even to other working scientists, it is useful to revisit the Renaissance paradigm. Artists are increasingly working with scientists to translate the understanding of other worlds to the public, and this creates many opportunities for education projects in schools, and for careers in public outreach and science journalism.

Reading the World through Very Large Numbers

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Greer, Brian; Mukhopadhyay, Swapna

2010-01-01

One original, and continuing, source of interest in large numbers is observation of the natural world, such as trying to count the stars on a clear night or contemplation of the number of grains of sand on the seashore. Indeed, a search of the internet quickly reveals many discussions of the relative numbers of stars and grains of sand. Big…

The world bank and the environment, exercise 1992. Annual report. Banco mundial y el medio ambiente, ejercicio de 1992

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Not Available

1992-01-01

The report describes the Bank's activities in assisting countries with environmental management, such as programs to reduce poverty without exhausting natural resources. Included are assessments of the environmental impacts of projects supported by World Bank loans, and accounts of efforts to meet global environmental challenges with coordinated international action through the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Among the events in the period covered by the report are the affirmation of the World Bank's participation with United Nations organizations in the GEF and the Bank's administration of pilot programs aimed at finding solutions to such global environmental problems as pollution of internationalmore » waters, global warming, depletion of the Earth's ozone layer, and dwindling biological diversity; the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development; and the publication of the World Development Report 1992, with its theme of development and the environment.« less

The New National Core Arts Standards and World Music

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Beegle, Amy Christine

2017-01-01

Following an overview of the organization of the new National Core Arts Standards, this column provides a listing of the new standards that include terminology related to "world music": "world music," "culture," "cultural," "context," and "authentic." The term "world music" is…

Bringing Nature to Schools to Promote Children's Physical Activity.

PubMed

Sharma-Brymer, Vinathe; Bland, Derek

2016-07-01

Physical activity (PA) is essential for human health and wellbeing across all age, socioeconomic, and ethnic groups. Engagement with the natural world is a new defining criterion for enhancing the benefits of PA, particularly for children and young people. Interacting with nature benefits children's social and emotional wellbeing, develops resilience, and reduces the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes mellitus across all population groups. Governments around the world are now recognizing the importance of children spending more active time outdoors. However, children's outdoor activities, free play, and nature-related exploration are often structured and supervised by adults due to safety concerns and risks. In this context, schools become more accessible and safe options for children to engage in PA outdoors with the presence of nature features. Research on school designs involving young children has revealed that children prefer nature-related features in school environments. Affordances in nature may increase children's interest in physically active behaviors. Given that present school campuses are designed for operational efficiency and economic reasons, there is a need to re-design schools responding to the positive role of nature on human health. If schools were re-designed to incorporate diverse natural features, children's PA and consequent health and wellbeing would likely improve markedly.

Natural Hazards, Second Edition

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rouhban, Badaoui

Natural disaster loss is on the rise, and the vulnerability of the human and physical environment to the violent forces of nature is increasing. In many parts of the world, disasters caused by natural hazards such as earthquakes, floods, landslides, drought, wildfires, intense windstorms, tsunami, and volcanic eruptions have caused the loss of human lives, injury, homelessness, and the destruction of economic and social infrastructure. Over the last few years, there has been an increase in the occurrence, severity, and intensity of disasters, culminating with the devastating tsunami of 26 December 2004 in South East Asia.Natural hazards are often unexpected or uncontrollable natural events of varying magnitude. Understanding their mechanisms and assessing their distribution in time and space are necessary for refining risk mitigation measures. This second edition of Natural Hazards, (following a first edition published in 1991 by Cambridge University Press), written by Edward Bryant, associate dean of science at Wollongong University, Australia, grapples with this crucial issue, aspects of hazard prediction, and other issues. The book presents a comprehensive analysis of different categories of hazards of climatic and geological origin.

The Sundarbans: a unique wilderness of the world

Treesearch

Laskar Muqsudur Rahman

2000-01-01

The Sundarbans, natural mangrove forests of Bangladesh covers an area of 577,000 ha. It is the largest single tract of mangrove forest in the world. The members of the family Rhizophoracae do not dominate the tree vegetation of the Sundarbans. Heritiera fomes and Excoecaria agallocha are the two most extensively occurring tree...

Teaching about a Growing World with a Good Book and a Geographic Perspective

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Hinde, Elizabeth R.

2012-01-01

Despite wars, natural disasters, fears of epidemics and pandemics, and other catastrophic events that are vividly featured in media outlets, the world's population continues to rise. In fact, the world recently passed another demographic milestone: a human population of 7 billion people. The number of people on Earth has tripled since around 1930,…

Teaching about Women in World History

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Crocco, Margaret Smith

2011-01-01

This article addresses the subject of teaching about women in world history in K-12 schools and in programs of social studies teacher education. It includes a review of the place of gender in teaching about world history to current and future teachers at Teachers College, Columbia University. This informal research serves as the platform for a set…

Is There a Second Life for Virtual Worlds?

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Ramaswami, Rama

2011-01-01

Just a few years ago, virtual worlds were credited with the power to transform the universe. Used since the late 1990s in military and medical applications, virtual worlds first gained mainstream media attention when Linden Lab released Second Life in 2003. While other worlds, including open source environments, have launched since then (examples…

Outdoor Education and Environmental (Make that Nature) Learning

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Johnston, Julie

2007-01-01

Outdoor education cannot "not" be about nature learning. Just as David Orr (1992) says that all education is environmental education, so too all outdoor education teaches something about the natural world--either that it matters or that it doesn't. According to the Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario (COEO), "outdoor education…

Emergence of Habitable Environments in Icy World Interiors

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Neveu, Marc

2016-07-01

Finding habitable worlds is a key driver of solar system exploration. Many solar system missions seek environments providing liquid water, energy, and nutrients, the three ingredients necessary to sustain life [1]. Such environments include hydrothermal systems, spatially confined systems where hot aqueous fluid circulates through rock by convection. Hydrothermal activity may be widespread in the solar system. Most solar system worlds larger than 200 km in radius are icy moons and dwarf planets, likely composed of an icy, cometary mantle surrounding a rocky, chondritic core [2]. By improving an icy world evolution code [3] to include the effects of core fracturing and hydrothermal circulation, I show that several icy moons and dwarf planets likely have undergone extensive water-rock interaction [4,5]. This supports observations of aqueous products on their surfaces [6,7]. I simulated the alteration of chondritic rock [8] by pure water or fluid of cometary composition [9] to show that aqueous alteration feeds back on geophysical evolution: it modifies the fluid antifreeze content, affecting its persistence over geological timescales; and the distribution of radionuclides, whose decay is a chief heat source on dwarf planets [10]. Hydrothermal circulation also efficiently transports heat from the core into the ocean, thereby increasing ocean persistence [4]. Thus, these coupled geophysical-geochemical models provide a comprehensive picture of icy world evolution and the emergence of liquid environments in chemical disequilibrium with underlying rock in their interiors. Habitable settings also require a suitable supply of bioessential elements; but what constitutes "suitable"? I sought to quantify the bulk elemental composition of hydrothermal microbial communities, collected in hot spring sediments and mats at Yellowstone National Park, USA. To do so, one must minimize the contribution of non-biological material to the samples analyzed. This was achieved using a

Meeting report: Workshop on reduction and predictability of natural disasters

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Rundle, J.; Klein, W.; Turcotte, D.

1997-04-21

Natural hazards such as earthquakes and severe floods are a continual menace to large segments of the population worldwide. Recently the United Nations has focused attention on this global problem by declaring the 90`s the Decade of Natural Hazard Reduction. In addition to the obvious threat to human life natural hazards can cause severe economic hardship locally and, in an ever more complex and interactive world economy, dislocations that are felt in areas far beyond the region of a specific event. To address these concerns a workshop on Reduction and Predictability of Natural Disasters was held at the Santa Femore » Institute on January 5--9, 1994. The Santa Fe Institute was originally founded in 1985 to study the emergent properties of complex nonlinear systems seen in a diversity of fields, from physical science to economics to biology. During the workshop, which brought together 25 geologists, geophysicists, hydrologists, physicists, and mathematicians, a wide variety of natural disasters and hazards were considered. These include earthquakes, landslides, floods, tsunamis, hurricanes, and tornadoes. The general them of the meeting was the application of the techniques of statistical mechanics to problems in the earth sciences.« less

Our World Their World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brisco, Nicole

2011-01-01

Build, create, make, blog, develop, organize, structure, perform. These are just a few verbs that illustrate the visual world. These words create images that allow students to respond to their environment. Visual culture studies recognize the predominance of visual forms of media, communication, and information in the postmodern world. This…

Epidemiology of criniviruses: an emerging problem in world agriculture

PubMed Central

Tzanetakis, Ioannis E.; Martin, Robert R.; Wintermantel, William M.

2013-01-01

The genus Crinivirus includes the whitefly-transmitted members of the family Closteroviridae. Whitefly-transmitted viruses have emerged as a major problem for world agriculture and are responsible for diseases that lead to losses measured in the billions of dollars annually. Criniviruses emerged as a major agricultural threat at the end of the twentieth century with the establishment and naturalization of their whitefly vectors, members of the genera Trialeurodes and Bemisia, in temperate climates around the globe. Several criniviruses cause significant diseases in single infections whereas others remain asymptomatic and only cause disease when found in mixed infections with other viruses. Characterization of the majority of criniviruses has been done in the last 20 years and this article provides a detailed review on the epidemiology of this important group of viruses. PMID:23730300

World citizenship and the emergence of the social psychiatry project of the World Health Organization, 1948-c.1965.

PubMed

Wu, Harry Yi-Jui

2015-06-01

This paper examines the relationship between 'world citizenship' and the new psychiatric research paradigm established by the World Health Organization in the early post-World War II period. Endorsing the humanitarian ideological concept of 'world citizenship', health professionals called for global rehabilitation initiatives to address the devastation after the war. The charm of world citizenship had not only provided theoretical grounds of international collaborative research into the psychopathology of psychiatric diseases, but also gave birth to the international psychiatric epidemiologic studies conducted by the World Health Organization. Themes explored in this paper include the global awareness of mental rehabilitation, the application of public health methods in psychiatry to improve mental health globally, the attempt by the WHO to conduct large-scale, cross-cultural studies relevant to mental health and the initial problems it faced. © The Author(s) 2015.

The Role of Semantics in Next-Generation Online Virtual World-Based Retail Store

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sharma, Geetika; Anantaram, C.; Ghosh, Hiranmay

Online virtual environments are increasingly becoming popular for entrepreneurship. While interactions are primarily between avatars, some interactions could occur through intelligent chatbots. Such interactions require connecting to backend business applications to obtain information, carry out real-world transactions etc. In this paper, we focus on integrating business application systems with virtual worlds. We discuss the probable features of a next-generation online virtual world-based retail store and the technologies involved in realizing the features of such a store. In particular, we examine the role of semantics in integrating popular virtual worlds with business applications to provide natural language based interactions.

Urbanisation, poverty and employment: the large metropolis in the third world.

PubMed

Singh, A

1992-01-01

"The main purpose of this paper is to provide an overall review of the chief analytical as well as economic policy issues in relation to Third World cities in the light of the available theoretical and empirical studies on urbanisation, poverty and employment in the developing countries.... Part I...provides basic information on urbanisation in the Third World...[and] outlines the nature and extent of urban poverty in these large cities and considers the impact of the world economic crisis on the urban poor. Part II of the paper discusses the most important structural features of urbanisation in relation to economic development....Finally, Part III briefly examines policy issues in relation to urbanisation and poverty in the Third World's large cities." excerpt

Natural Disasters and Man-Made Catastrophes

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lonergan, David

2011-01-01

This article categorizes and discusses the kinds of cataclysmic events that threaten the human race and the natural world. A useful set of definitions is provided, and an annotated bibliography of a representative assortment of reference books and monographs.

Monitoring Natural World Heritage Sites: optimization of the monitoring system in Bogda with GIS-based multi-criteria decision analysis.

PubMed

Wang, Zhaoguo; Du, Xishihui

2016-07-01

Natural World Heritage Sites (NWHSs) are invaluable treasure due to the uniqueness of each site. Proper monitoring and management can guarantee their protection from multiple threats. In this study, geographic information system (GIS)-based multi-criteria decision analysis (GIS-MCDA) was used to assess criteria layers acquired from the data available in the literature. A conceptual model for determining the priority area for monitoring in Bogda, China, was created based on outstanding universal values (OUV) and expert knowledge. Weights were assigned to each layer using the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) based on group decisions, encompassing three experts: one being a heritage site expert, another a forest ranger, and the other a heritage site manager. Subsequently, evaluation layers and constraint layers were used to generate a priority map and to determine the feasibility of monitoring in Bogda. Finally, a monitoring suitability map of Bogda was obtained by referencing priority and feasibility maps.The high-priority monitoring area is located in the montane forest belt, which exhibits high biodiversity and is the main tourist area of Bogda. The northern buffer zone of Bogda comprises the concentrated feasible monitoring areas, and the area closest to roads and monitoring facilities is highly feasible for NWHS monitoring. The suitability of an area in terms of monitoring is largely determined by the monitoring priority in that particular area. The majority of planned monitoring facilities are well distributed in both suitable and less suitable areas. Analysis results indicate that the protection of Bogda will be more scientifically based due to its effective and all-around planned monitoring system proposed by the declaration text of Xinjiang Tianshan, which is the essential file submitted to World Heritage Centre to inscribe as a NWHS.

Including information about comorbidity in estimates of disease burden: Results from the WHO World Mental Health Surveys

PubMed Central

Alonso, Jordi; Vilagut, Gemma; Chatterji, Somnath; Heeringa, Steven; Schoenbaum, Michael; Üstün, T. Bedirhan; Rojas-Farreras, Sonia; Angermeyer, Matthias; Bromet, Evelyn; Bruffaerts, Ronny; de Girolamo, Giovanni; Gureje, Oye; Haro, Josep Maria; Karam, Aimee N.; Kovess, Viviane; Levinson, Daphna; Liu, Zhaorui; Mora, Maria Elena Medina; Ormel, J.; Posada-Villa, Jose; Uda, Hidenori; Kessler, Ronald C.

2010-01-01

Background The methodology commonly used to estimate disease burden, featuring ratings of severity of individual conditions, has been criticized for ignoring comorbidity. A methodology that addresses this problem is proposed and illustrated here with data from the WHO World Mental Health Surveys. Although the analysis is based on self-reports about one’s own conditions in a community survey, the logic applies equally well to analysis of hypothetical vignettes describing comorbid condition profiles. Methods Face-to-face interviews in 13 countries (six developing, nine developed; n = 31,067; response rate = 69.6%) assessed 10 classes of chronic physical and 9 of mental conditions. A visual analog scale (VAS) was used to assess overall perceived health. Multiple regression analysis with interactions for comorbidity was used to estimate associations of conditions with VAS. Simulation was used to estimate condition-specific effects. Results The best-fitting model included condition main effects and interactions of types by numbers of conditions. Neurological conditions, insomnia, and major depression were rated most severe. Adjustment for comorbidity reduced condition-specific estimates with substantial between-condition variation (.24–.70 ratios of condition-specific estimates with and without adjustment for comorbidity). The societal-level burden rankings were quite different from the individual-level rankings, with the highest societal-level rankings associated with conditions having high prevalence rather than high individual-level severity. Conclusions Plausible estimates of disorder-specific effects on VAS can be obtained using methods that adjust for comorbidity. These adjustments substantially influence condition-specific ratings. PMID:20553636

The glycogen synthase 2 gene (Gys2) displays parallel evolution between Old World and New World fruit bats.

PubMed

Qian, Yamin; Fang, Tao; Shen, Bin; Zhang, Shuyi

2014-01-01

Frugivorous and nectarivorous bats rely largely on hepatic glycogenesis and glycogenolysis for postprandial blood glucose disposal and maintenance of glucose homeostasis during short time starvation, respectively. The glycogen synthase 2 encoded by the Gys2 gene plays a critical role in liver glycogen synthesis. To test whether the Gys2 gene has undergone adaptive evolution in bats with carbohydrate-rich diets in relation to their insect-eating sister taxa, we sequenced the coding region of the Gys2 gene in a number of bat species, including three Old World fruit bats (OWFBs) (Pteropodidae) and two New World fruit bats (NWFBs) (Phyllostomidae). Our results showed that the Gys2 coding sequences are highly conserved across all bat species we examined, and no evidence of positive selection was detected in the ancestral branches leading to OWFBs and NWFBs. Our explicit convergence test showed that posterior probabilities of convergence between several branches of OWFBs, and the NWFBs were markedly higher than that of divergence. Three parallel amino acid substitutions (Q72H, K371Q, and E666D) were detected among branches of OWFBs and NWFBs. Tests for parallel evolution showed that two parallel substitutions (Q72H and E666D) were driven by natural selection, while the K371Q was more likely to be fixed randomly. Thus, our results suggested that the Gys2 gene has undergone parallel evolution on amino acid level between OWFBs and NWFBs in relation to their carbohydrate metabolism.

Sounds of silence: How to animate virtual worlds with sound

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Astheimer, Peter

1993-01-01

Sounds are an integral and sometimes annoying part of our daily life. Virtual worlds which imitate natural environments gain a lot of authenticity from fast, high quality visualization combined with sound effects. Sounds help to increase the degree of immersion for human dwellers in imaginary worlds significantly. The virtual reality toolkit of IGD (Institute for Computer Graphics) features a broad range of standard visual and advanced real-time audio components which interpret an object-oriented definition of the scene. The virtual reality system 'Virtual Design' realized with the toolkit enables the designer of virtual worlds to create a true audiovisual environment. Several examples on video demonstrate the usage of the audio features in Virtual Design.

Inselect: Automating the Digitization of Natural History Collections.

PubMed

Hudson, Lawrence N; Blagoderov, Vladimir; Heaton, Alice; Holtzhausen, Pieter; Livermore, Laurence; Price, Benjamin W; van der Walt, Stéfan; Smith, Vincent S

2015-01-01

The world's natural history collections constitute an enormous evidence base for scientific research on the natural world. To facilitate these studies and improve access to collections, many organisations are embarking on major programmes of digitization. This requires automated approaches to mass-digitization that support rapid imaging of specimens and associated data capture, in order to process the tens of millions of specimens common to most natural history collections. In this paper we present Inselect-a modular, easy-to-use, cross-platform suite of open-source software tools that supports the semi-automated processing of specimen images generated by natural history digitization programmes. The software is made up of a Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux desktop application, together with command-line tools that are designed for unattended operation on batches of images. Blending image visualisation algorithms that automatically recognise specimens together with workflows to support post-processing tasks such as barcode reading, label transcription and metadata capture, Inselect fills a critical gap to increase the rate of specimen digitization.

Integrating human and natural systems in community psychology: an ecological model of stewardship behavior.

PubMed

Moskell, Christine; Allred, Shorna Broussard

2013-03-01

Community psychology (CP) research on the natural environment lacks a theoretical framework for analyzing the complex relationship between human systems and the natural world. We introduce other academic fields concerned with the interactions between humans and the natural environment, including environmental sociology and coupled human and natural systems. To demonstrate how the natural environment can be included within CP's ecological framework, we propose an ecological model of urban forest stewardship action. Although ecological models of behavior in CP have previously modeled health behaviors, we argue that these frameworks are also applicable to actions that positively influence the natural environment. We chose the environmental action of urban forest stewardship because cities across the United States are planting millions of trees and increased citizen participation in urban tree planting and stewardship will be needed to sustain the benefits provided by urban trees. We used the framework of an ecological model of behavior to illustrate multiple levels of factors that may promote or hinder involvement in urban forest stewardship actions. The implications of our model for the development of multi-level ecological interventions to foster stewardship actions are discussed, as well as directions for future research to further test and refine the model.

Addressing “Nature-Deficit Disorder”: A Mixed Methods Pilot Study of Young Adults Attending a Wilderness Camp

PubMed Central

Warber, Sara L.; DeHudy, Ashley A.; Bialko, Matthew F.; Marselle, Melissa R.; Irvine, Katherine N.

2015-01-01

Background and Objectives. Rapid urbanization raises concern about chronic human health issues along with less frequent interaction with the natural world. “Nature-deficit disorder,” a nonclinical term, describes this potential impact on the well-being of youth. We conducted a mixed methods pilot study of young adults attending a four-week wilderness camp to investigate whether nature-based camp experiences would increase connection to nature and promote multiple dimensions of well-being. Methods. Participants completed precamp (n = 46) and postcamp (n = 36) online questionnaires including nature-related and holistic well-being measures. Differences were investigated using paired t-tests. Interviews (n = 16) explored camp experiences and social relations. Results. All nature-related measures—exposure, knowledge, skills, willingness to lead, perceived safety, sense of place, and nature connection—significantly increased. Well-being outcomes also significantly improved, including perceived stress, relaxation, positive and negative emotions, sense of wholeness, and transcendence. Physical activity and psychological measures showed no change. Interviews described how the wilderness environment facilitated social connections. Conclusion. Findings illustrate the change in nature relations and well-being that wilderness camp experiences can provide. Results can guide future research agendas and suggest that nature immersion experiences could address the risk of “nature-deficit disorder,” improve health, and prepare future environmental leaders. PMID:26788110

Agriculture and natural resources in a changing world - the role of irrigation

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Sauer, T.; Havlík, P.; Schneider, U. A.; Kindermann, G.; Obersteiner, M.

2009-04-01

Fertile land and fresh water constitute two of the most fundamental resources for food production. These resources are affected by environmental, political, economic, and technical developments. Regional impacts may transmit to the world through increased trade. With a global forest and agricultural sector model, we quantify the impacts of increased demand for food due to population growth and economic development on potential land and water use. In particular, we investigate producer adaptation regarding crop and irrigation choice, agricultural market adjustments, and changes in the values of land and water. Against the background of resource sustainability and food security topics, this study integrates the spatial and operational heterogeneity of irrigation management into a global land use model. It represents a first large scale assessment of agricultural water use under explicit consideration of alternative irrigation options in their particular biophysical, economic, and technical context, accounting for international trade, motivation-based farming, and quantified aggregated impacts on land scarcity, water scarcity, and food supply. The inclusion of technical and economic aspects of irrigation choice into an integrated land use modeling framework provides new insights into the interdisciplinary trade-offs between determinants of global land use change. Agricultural responses to population and economic growth include considerable increases in irrigated area and agricultural water use, but reductions in the average water intensity. Different irrigation systems are preferred under different exogenous biophysical and socioeconomic conditions. Negligence of these adaptations would bias the burden of development on land and water scarcity. Without technical progress in agriculture, predicted population and income levels for 2030 would require substantial price adjustments for land, water, and food to equilibrate supply and demand.

HEx: A heterologous expression platform for the discovery of fungal natural products

PubMed Central

Schlecht, Ulrich; Horecka, Joe; Lin, Hsiao-Ching; Naughton, Brian; Miranda, Molly; Li, Yong Fuga; Hennessy, James R.; Vandova, Gergana A.; Steinmetz, Lars M.; Sattely, Elizabeth; Khosla, Chaitan; Hillenmeyer, Maureen E.

2018-01-01

For decades, fungi have been a source of U.S. Food and Drug Administration–approved natural products such as penicillin, cyclosporine, and the statins. Recent breakthroughs in DNA sequencing suggest that millions of fungal species exist on Earth, with each genome encoding pathways capable of generating as many as dozens of natural products. However, the majority of encoded molecules are difficult or impossible to access because the organisms are uncultivable or the genes are transcriptionally silent. To overcome this bottleneck in natural product discovery, we developed the HEx (Heterologous EXpression) synthetic biology platform for rapid, scalable expression of fungal biosynthetic genes and their encoded metabolites in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. We applied this platform to 41 fungal biosynthetic gene clusters from diverse fungal species from around the world, 22 of which produced detectable compounds. These included novel compounds with unexpected biosynthetic origins, particularly from poorly studied species. This result establishes the HEx platform for rapid discovery of natural products from any fungal species, even those that are uncultivable, and opens the door to discovery of the next generation of natural products. PMID:29651464

[World deliberations in Rio].

PubMed

Annis, B

1991-01-01

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) was held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 and dealt with world trade, environmental education, environmental emergencies, the transfer of technology and financial resources, and the restructuring of international systems for tackling environmental problems. Other issues on the agenda were the protection of the atmosphere, the ozone shield, deforestation, the conservation of biological diversity, sustainable urban and rural development, and the safeguarding of human health and quality of life. The preparation for the conference took place through a series of meetings, which also featured the problems of rural areas in the Americas. Some environmental organizations based in Washington, D.C. had become impassive over the years and promoted bipartisan and apolitical issues in order to obtain funds. Nonetheless, some groups criticized the projects of the World Bank. In 1990 the World Bank established the World Environmental Program for developing countries, which envisioned the execution of 15 projects and 11 technical assistance proposals. Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) were also active in this effort. The Interamerican Development Bank also launched a forest policy for preserving forest resources. This was the consequence of the 1982 scheme that aimed at protecting forest populations and promoting sustainable forest industries. At another conference of development specialists the discrimination against women was cited as a major factor in the deleterious use of natural resources. A new development concept was urged that would incorporate the rights and participation of women as a central strategy in solving the global environmental crisis. The global population is growing at a rate of 95 million people per year, which underlines the need for better representation of women, poor people, and rural areas in state agencies and multilateral and environmental organizations for promoting sustainable

The Reception of Dewey in the Hispanic World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Nubiola, Jaime

2005-01-01

The aim of this paper is to describe Dewey's reception in the Spanish-speaking countries that constitute the Hispanic world. Without any doubt, it can be said that in the past century Spain and the countries of South America have been a world apart, lagging far behind the mainstream Western world. It includes a number of names and facts about the…

The World Wide Web and the Television Generation.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Maddux, Cleborne D.

1996-01-01

The hypermedia nature of the World Wide Web may represent a true paradigm shift in telecommunications, but barriers exist to the Web having similar impact on education. Some of today's college students compare the Web with "bad TV"--lengthy pauses, links that result in error messages, and animation and sound clips that are too brief.…

Determination of picomolar concentrations of carbonyl compounds in natural waters, including seawater, by liquid chromatography

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Kieber, R.; Mopper, K.

1990-10-01

Low molecular weight carbonyl compounds in natural waters were determined at picomolar to nanomolar levels by derivatization with 2,4-dinitrophenylhydrazine followed by liquid chromatography. The uniqueness of the method is attributed to the extremely low blanks obtained and the minimal sample preparation involved. The detection limit for direct injection of derivatized natural water samples is 0.5 nM for aldehydes and 5 nM for ketones with a precision of {approximately}7% RSD at the 30 nM level for aldehydes. The detection limit can be further lowered by using off-line cartridge enrichment in which derivatized natural water is passed through a C18 extraction cartridge.more » Recoveries for the enrichment method were 95-105% for a sample volume of 20 mL and for concentrations of carbonyl compounds in the 1-30 nM range. A field procedure for storage of derivatized sample extracts for extended periods is also presented. Applications of enrichment and sample storage techniques to marine and estuarine waters are presented.« less

Of Animals, Nature and People. [Student's Guide.] Preparing for Tomorrow's World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Iozzi, Louis A.; And Others

Developing an awareness of the need to evolve an environmental ethic is the intent of this module, designed for the senior high school level (grades 10-11). The module is divided into two sections. Section 1 contains a series of dilemma/discussion activities raising issues regarding human behavior toward animals and the natural environment.…

Workshop held on natural disasters

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rundle, John; Klein, W.; Turcotte, D.

Natural hazards such as earthquakes and floods are a menace to the population worldwide. The United Nations focused attention on this global problem by declaring the 1990s the Decade of Natural Hazard Reduction. In addition to threatening human life, natural hazards can cause severe economic hardship locally and, in an ever more complex and interactive world economy, dislocations that are felt in areas far beyond the site of a disaster.Recent catastrophic earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, and fires have called into question the ability of private insurers to cover economic losses. Unlimited liability is a necessity for confidence in insurance coverage, but these events have stretched the resources of even the largest insurers.

The Ice Worlds Partnership Takes Planetarium Audiences to our Polar Regions and Beyond

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Schloss, A.; Sumners, C.; Reiff, P.

2008-12-01

The modern planetarium is an immersive full-dome theater that can take audiences to Polar Regions in the past, present, and future and can simulate dynamic polar events. The Ice Worlds show was produced for the International Polar Year by a collaborative effort led by the University of New Hampshire in partnership with the Houston Museum of Natural Science and Evans & Sutherland, and funded by the National Science Foundation. Ice Worlds uses an innovative mix of data, satellite imagery, actual footage in the field and animated scenes to tell the story of ice on Earth. Planetariums are extending their traditional space science content with Earth science topics: a move facilitated by the revolution in full-dome immersive video and techniques for capturing high-resolution still and video images. Ice Worlds appeals to planetarium audiences by also comparing Earth to other icy planets in our solar system. Ice Worlds presented several challenges: how to make a show about ice interesting and informative, how to include new research findings in the show without dating it, how to make the show appropriate for planetariums and suitable for use in school programs, and most critical - how to produce the entire show from initial concept to final cut in nine months. This paper describes the steps in producing Ice Worlds from concept to final product, and describes supporting materials designed to support education and outreach in the fast-growing portable dome (Discovery Dome) arena. We will show clips from the show. If space permits, we will show the show in fulldome in a portable dome system.

Connected Worlds: Connecting the public with complex environmental systems

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Uzzo, S. M.; Chen, R. S.; Downs, R. R.

2016-12-01

Among the most important concepts in environmental science learning is the structure and dynamics of coupled human and natural systems (CHANS). But the fundamental epistemology for understanding CHANS requires systems thinking, interdisciplinarity, and complexity. Although the Next Generation Science Standards mandate connecting ideas across disciplines and systems, traditional approaches to education do not provide more than superficial understanding of this concept. Informal science learning institutions have a key role in bridging gaps between the reductive nature of classroom learning and contemporary data-driven science. The New York Hall of Science, in partnership with Design I/O and Columbia University's Center for International Earth Science Information Network, has developed an approach to immerse visitors in complex human nature interactions and provide opportunities for those of all ages to elicit and notice environmental consequences of their actions. Connected Worlds is a nearly 1,000 m2 immersive, playful environment in which students learn about complexity and interconnectedness in ecosystems and how ecosystems might respond to human intervention. It engages students through direct interactions with fanciful flora and fauna within and among six biomes: desert, rainforest, grassland, mountain valley, reservoir, and wetlands, which are interconnected through stocks and flows of water. Through gestures and the manipulation of a dynamic water system, Connected Worlds enables students, teachers, and parents to experience how the ecosystems of planet Earth are connected and to observe relationships between the behavior of Earth's inhabitants and our shared world. It is also a cyberlearning platform to study how visitors notice and scaffold their understanding of complex environmental processes and the responses of these processes to human intervention, to help inform the improvement of education practices in complex environmental science.

Using biodiversity stewardship as a means to secure the natural wild values on communal land in South Africa

Treesearch

Kevin McCann; Roelie Kloppers; Andrew Venter

2015-01-01

South Africa is one of the most biodiversity-rich countries in the world, with much valuable biodiversity situated on a range of different land tenure types, including state, private and communal land. Despite this, these wild lands are being lost at an unprecedented rate, with the resultant loss of natural areas and associated ecosystem services. The challenge lies in...

Naturally Speaking: The Naturalness Criterion and Physics at the LHC

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Giudice, Gian Francesco

The following sections are included: * Naturalness in Scientific Thought * Drowning by Numbers * A Quantum Complication * The Naturalness Criterion as a Principle * An Account of Events * The Paths Chosen by Nature * Measuring Naturalness * Anthropic Reasoning * Naturalness versus Criticality * Conclusions * References

World Presidents Organization

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

2010-01-01

Members of the World Presidents' Organization enjoy exhibits at StenniSphere, the museum and visitor center at NASA's John C. Stennis Space Center during a tour of the space facility Jan. 26. WPO members from several states toured Stennis facilities during a daylong visit that included a presentation by Apollo 13 astronaut Fred Haise of Biloxi.

Effects of Human-Nature Interactions on Wildlife Habitat Dynamics: The Case of Wolong Nature Reserve for Giant Pandas

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Vina, A.; Tuanmu, M.; Yang, W.; Liu, J.

2012-12-01

Human activities continue to induce the degradation of natural ecosystems, thus threatening not only the long-term survival of many wildlife species around the world, but also the resilience of natural ecosystems to global environmental changes. In response, many conservation efforts are emerging as adaptive strategies for coping with the degradation of natural ecosystems. Among them, the establishment of nature reserves is considered to be the most effective. However the effectiveness of nature reserves depends on the type and intensity of human activities occurring within their boundaries. But many of these activities constitute important livelihood systems for local human populations. Therefore, to enhance the effectiveness of conservation actions without significantly affecting local livelihood systems, it is essential to understand the complexity of human-nature interactions and their effects on the spatio-temporal dynamics of natural ecosystems. In this study, we evaluated the relation between giant panda habitat dynamics, conservation efforts and human activities in Wolong Nature Reserve for Giant Pandas, Sichuan Province, China. This reserve supports ca. 10% of the entire wild giant panda population but is also home to ca. 4,900 local residents. The spatio-temporal dynamics of giant panda habitat over the last four decades were analyzed using a time series of remotely sensed imagery acquired by different satellite sensor systems, including the Landsat Multi-Spectral Scanner, the Landsat Thematic Mapper and the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS). Our assessment suggests that when local residents were actively involved in conservation efforts (through a payment for ecosystem services scheme established since around 2000) panda habitat started to recover, thus enhancing the resilience capacity of natural ecosystems in the Reserve. This reversed a long-term (> 30 years) trend of panda habitat degradation. The study not only has direct

"You Can't Go on the Other Side of the Fence": Preservice Teachers and Real-World Problems

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Simic-Muller, Ksenija; Fernandes, Anthony; Felton-Koestler, Mathew D.

2016-01-01

Our study investigates preservice teachers' perceptions of real-world problems; their beliefs about teaching real-world contexts, especially ones sociopolitical in nature; and their ability to pose meaningful real-world problems. In this paper we present cases of three preservice teachers who participated in interviews that probed their thinking…

Working Group Reports and Presentations: Virtual Worlds and Virtual Exploration

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

LAmoreaux, Claudia

2006-01-01

Scientists and engineers are continually developing innovative methods to capitalize on recent developments in computational power. Virtual worlds and virtual exploration present a new toolset for project design, implementation, and resolution. Replication of the physical world in the virtual domain provides stimulating displays to augment current data analysis techniques and to encourage public participation. In addition, the virtual domain provides stakeholders with a low cost, low risk design and test environment. The following document defines a virtual world and virtual exploration, categorizes the chief motivations for virtual exploration, elaborates upon specific objectives, identifies roadblocks and enablers for realizing the benefits, and highlights the more immediate areas of implementation (i.e. the action items). While the document attempts a comprehensive evaluation of virtual worlds and virtual exploration, the innovative nature of the opportunities presented precludes completeness. The authors strongly encourage readers to derive additional means of utilizing the virtual exploration toolset.

Life Finder Detectors: An Overview of Detector Technologies for Detecting Life on Other Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Rauscher, Bernard J.; Domagal-Goldman, Shawn; Greenhouse, Matthew A.; Hsieh, Wen-Ting; McElwain, Michael W.; Moseley, Samuel H.; Noroozian, Omid; Norton, Tim; Kutyrev, Alexander; Rinehart, Stephen; stock, Joseph

2015-01-01

Future large space telescopes will seek evidence for life on other worlds by searching for spectroscopic biosignatures. Atmospheric biosignature gases include oxygen, ozone, water vapor, and methane. Non-biological gases, including carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide, are important for discriminating false positives. All of these gases imprint spectroscopic features in the UV through mid-IR that are potentially detectable using future space based coronagraphs or star shades for starlight suppression.Direct spectroscopic biosignature detection requires sensors capable of robustly measuring photon arrival rates on the order of 10 per resolution element per hour. Photon counting is required for some wavefront sensing and control approaches to achieve the requisite high contrast ratios. We review life finder detector technologies that either exist today, or are under development, that have the potential to meet these challenging requirements. We specifically highlight areas where more work or development is needed.Life finder detectors will be invaluable for a wide variety of other major science programs. Because of its cross cutting nature; UV, optical, and infrared (UVOIR) detector development features prominently in the 2010 National Research Council Decadal Survey, 'New Worlds, New Horizons in Astronomy and Astrophysics', and the NASA Cosmic Origins Program Technology Roadmap.

Naturalization of European plants on other continents: The role of donor habitats.

PubMed

Kalusová, Veronika; Chytrý, Milan; van Kleunen, Mark; Mucina, Ladislav; Dawson, Wayne; Essl, Franz; Kreft, Holger; Pergl, Jan; Weigelt, Patrick; Winter, Marten; Pyšek, Petr

2017-12-26

The success of European plant species as aliens worldwide is thought to reflect their association with human-disturbed environments. However, an explicit test including all human-made, seminatural and natural habitat types of Europe, and their contributions as donor habitats of naturalized species to the rest of the globe, has been missing. Here we combine two databases, the European Vegetation Checklist and the Global Naturalized Alien Flora, to assess how human influence in European habitats affects the probability of naturalization of their plant species on other continents. A total of 9,875 native European vascular plant species were assigned to 39 European habitat types; of these, 2,550 species have become naturalized somewhere in the world. Species that occur in both human-made habitats and seminatural or natural habitats in Europe have the highest probability of naturalization (64.7% and 64.5% of them have naturalized). Species associated only with human-made or seminatural habitats still have a significantly higher probability of becoming naturalized (41.7% and 28.6%, respectively) than species confined to natural habitats (19.4%). Species associated with arable land and human settlements were recorded as naturalized in the largest number of regions worldwide. Our findings highlight that plant species' association with native-range habitats disturbed by human activities, combined with broad habitat range, play an important role in shaping global patterns of plant invasions.

Transforming Our World: Implementing the 2030 Agenda Through Sustainable Development Goal Indicators.

PubMed

Lee, Bandy X; Kjaerulf, Finn; Turner, Shannon; Cohen, Larry; Donnelly, Peter D; Muggah, Robert; Davis, Rachel; Realini, Anna; Kieselbach, Berit; MacGregor, Lori Snyder; Waller, Irvin; Gordon, Rebecca; Moloney-Kitts, Michele; Lee, Grace; Gilligan, James

2016-09-01

The United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development recognizes violence as a threat to sustainability. To serve as a context, we provide an overview of the Sustainable Development Goals as they relate to violence prevention by including a summary of key documents informing violence prevention efforts by the World Health Organization (WHO) and Violence Prevention Alliance (VPA) partners. After consultation with the United Nations (UN) Inter-Agency Expert Group on Sustainable Development Goal Indicators (IAEG-SDG), we select specific targets and indicators, featuring them in a summary table. Using the diverse expertise of the authors, we assign attributes that characterize the focus and nature of these indicators. We hope that this will serve as a preliminary framework for understanding these accountability metrics. We include a brief analysis of the target indicators and how they relate to promising practices in violence prevention.

Natural hazards science strategy

USGS Publications Warehouse

Holmes, Robert R.; Jones, Lucile M.; Eidenshink, Jeffery C.; Godt, Jonathan W.; Kirby, Stephen H.; Love, Jeffrey J.; Neal, Christina A.; Plant, Nathaniel G.; Plunkett, Michael L.; Weaver, Craig S.; Wein, Anne; Perry, Suzanne C.

2012-01-01

The mission of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) in natural hazards is to develop and apply hazard science to help protect the safety, security, and economic well-being of the Nation. The costs and consequences of natural hazards can be enormous, and each year more people and infrastructure are at risk. USGS scientific research—founded on detailed observations and improved understanding of the responsible physical processes—can help to understand and reduce natural hazard risks and to make and effectively communicate reliable statements about hazard characteristics, such as frequency, magnitude, extent, onset, consequences, and where possible, the time of future events.To accomplish its broad hazard mission, the USGS maintains an expert workforce of scientists and technicians in the earth sciences, hydrology, biology, geography, social and behavioral sciences, and other fields, and engages cooperatively with numerous agencies, research institutions, and organizations in the public and private sectors, across the Nation and around the world. The scientific expertise required to accomplish the USGS mission in natural hazards includes a wide range of disciplines that this report refers to, in aggregate, as hazard science.In October 2010, the Natural Hazards Science Strategy Planning Team (H–SSPT) was charged with developing a long-term (10-year) Science Strategy for the USGS mission in natural hazards. This report fulfills that charge, with a document hereinafter referred to as the Strategy, to provide scientific observations, analyses, and research that are critical for the Nation to become more resilient to natural hazards. Science provides the information that decisionmakers need to determine whether risk management activities are worthwhile. Moreover, as the agency with the perspective of geologic time, the USGS is uniquely positioned to extend the collective experience of society to prepare for events outside current memory. The USGS has critical statutory

Third World Cinema. Factfile No. 10.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Elsas, Diana, Ed.; And Others

The nations included in this guide are countries in Africa (non-Arab), Latin America (including Cuba, Mexico, and Puerto Rico), India, and Southeast Asia (including the Philippines). The organizations listed with descriptive information are either actively involved in Third World cinema, international cinema as a whole, or will serve as resource…

Discussion of solutions to ethical issues in real-world study.

PubMed

Wang, Sicheng; Liu, Baoyan; Xiong, Ningning; Xie, Qi; Zhang, Runshun; Zhou, Xuezhong; Qiao, Jie

2014-09-01

In recent years, the paradigm of real-world study (RWS) has been at the forefront of clinical research worldwide, particularly in the field of traditional Chinese medicine. In this paper, basic features and nature of real-world clinical studies are discussed, and ethical issues in different stages of RWS are raised and reviewed. Moreover, some preliminary solutions to these issues, such as protecting subjects during the process of RWS and performing ethical review, are presented based on recent practices and basic ethical rules to improve the scientific validity and ethical level of RWS.

Animals in a bacterial world, a new imperative for the life sciences

PubMed Central

McFall-Ngai, Margaret; Hadfield, Michael G.; Bosch, Thomas C. G.; Carey, Hannah V.; Domazet-Lošo, Tomislav; Douglas, Angela E.; Dubilier, Nicole; Eberl, Gerard; Fukami, Tadashi; Gilbert, Scott F.; Hentschel, Ute; King, Nicole; Kjelleberg, Staffan; Knoll, Andrew H.; Kremer, Natacha; Mazmanian, Sarkis K.; Metcalf, Jessica L.; Nealson, Kenneth; Pierce, Naomi E.; Rawls, John F.; Reid, Ann; Ruby, Edward G.; Rumpho, Mary; Sanders, Jon G.; Tautz, Diethard; Wernegreen, Jennifer J.

2013-01-01

In the last two decades, the widespread application of genetic and genomic approaches has revealed a bacterial world astonishing in its ubiquity and diversity. This review examines how a growing knowledge of the vast range of animal–bacterial interactions, whether in shared ecosystems or intimate symbioses, is fundamentally altering our understanding of animal biology. Specifically, we highlight recent technological and intellectual advances that have changed our thinking about five questions: how have bacteria facilitated the origin and evolution of animals; how do animals and bacteria affect each other’s genomes; how does normal animal development depend on bacterial partners; how is homeostasis maintained between animals and their symbionts; and how can ecological approaches deepen our understanding of the multiple levels of animal–bacterial interaction. As answers to these fundamental questions emerge, all biologists will be challenged to broaden their appreciation of these interactions and to include investigations of the relationships between and among bacteria and their animal partners as we seek a better understanding of the natural world. PMID:23391737

The wisdom of nature in integrating science, ethics and the arts.

PubMed

Moser, A

2000-07-01

This paper deals with an approach to the integration of science (with technology and economics), ethics (with religion and mysticism), the arts (aesthetics) and Nature, in order to establish a world-view based on holistic, evolutionary ethics that could help with problem solving. The author suggests that this integration is possible with the aid of "Nature's wisdom" which is mirrored in the macroscopic pattern of the ecosphere. The corresponding eco-principles represent the basis for unifying soft and hard sciences resulting in "deep sciences". Deduction and induction will remain the methodology for deep sciences and will include conventional experiments and aesthetic and sentient experiences. Perception becomes the decisive factor with the senses as operators for the building of consciousness through the subconscious. In this paper, an attempt at integrating the concepts of the "true", the "right" and the "beautiful" with the aid of Nature's wisdom is explained in more detail along with consequences.

20 CFR 408.710 - What must your report include?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

2011-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false What must your report include? 408.710 Section 408.710 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS Reporting Requirements § 408.710 What must your report include? When you make a report...

20 CFR 408.710 - What must your report include?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

2014-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false What must your report include? 408.710 Section 408.710 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS Reporting Requirements § 408.710 What must your report include? When you make a report...

20 CFR 408.710 - What must your report include?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

2013-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false What must your report include? 408.710 Section 408.710 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS Reporting Requirements § 408.710 What must your report include? When you make a report...

20 CFR 408.710 - What must your report include?

Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

2012-04-01

... 20 Employees' Benefits 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false What must your report include? 408.710 Section 408.710 Employees' Benefits SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION SPECIAL BENEFITS FOR CERTAIN WORLD WAR II VETERANS Reporting Requirements § 408.710 What must your report include? When you make a report...

Natural setting as cultural landscapes: the power of place and tradition

Treesearch

Roger Anyon; T. J. Ferguson; Chip Colwell-Chanthaphonh

2005-01-01

The natural environment of the Madrean Archipelago comprises a mosaic of cultural landscapes. Throughout human history, people have imbued the natural environment with meaning by layering cultural values and historic contexts onto the natural world, allowing them to situate themselves in time and space. Cultural landscapes contain special places that have power...

The Future of Virtual Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Bainbridge, William Sims; Lutters, Wayne; Rhoten, Diana; Lowood, Henry

This book, like the May 2008 conference in World of Warcraft, ends with projections toward what the future might hold for virtual worlds. Every chapter thus far has included speculations about future directions, even while standing on data from the past. This last chapter, like the final session of the conference on which it is based, incorporates comments from dozens of participants into a stream of ideas. We have edited selected comments together with the panel's contributions. Our intention is to provide a portal from this book into a wider virtual community comprising researchers and residents in virtual worlds. The discussion surveys many recent lines of development, some of which have already been surveyed in scientific and historical literature, or by journalists (Au 2008; Castronova 2007; Guest 2007; Ludlow and Wallace 2007). Yet, many of the topics here have not received such attention. Considered as a set of socio-technical innovations, virtual worlds are not just about technical possibilities; they also inspired the participants to consider the economic bases for investing in those possibilities and the novel cultural, social, and artistic forms virtual worlds might offer.

Mass Communications in the Third World: Some Ethical Considerations.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lent, John A.

In the past five years, unprecedented discussion and analysis have been focused on mass media in the third world. Common topics include development journalism, the New Information Order, cultural invasion and exchange, and ruralization of media. Ethical considerations for first world involvement in third world media have arisen in several areas.…

Power generation method including membrane separation

DOEpatents

Lokhandwala, Kaaeid A.

2000-01-01

A method for generating electric power, such as at, or close to, natural gas fields. The method includes conditioning natural gas containing C.sub.3+ hydrocarbons and/or acid gas by means of a membrane separation step. This step creates a leaner, sweeter, drier gas, which is then used as combustion fuel to run a turbine, which is in turn used for power generation.

Natural Resource Extraction, Armed Violence, and Environmental Degradation

PubMed Central

Downey, Liam; Bonds, Eric; Clark, Katherine

2011-01-01

The goal of this article is to demonstrate that environmental sociologists cannot fully explain the relationship between humans and the natural world without theorizing a link between natural resource extraction, armed violence, and environmental degradation. The authors begin by arguing that armed violence is one of several overlapping mechanisms that provide powerful actors with the means to (a) prevail over others in conflicts over natural resources and (b) ensure that natural resources critical to industrial production and state power continue to be extracted and sold in sufficient quantities to promote capital accumulation, state power, and ecological unequal exchange. The authors then identify 10 minerals that are critical to the functioning of the U.S. economy and/or military and demonstrate that the extraction of these minerals often involves the use of armed violence. They further demonstrate that armed violence is associated with the activities of the world’s three largest mining companies, with African mines that receive World Bank funding, and with petroleum and rainforest timber extraction. The authors conclude that the natural resource base on which industrial societies stand is constructed in large part through the use and threatened use of armed violence. As a result, armed violence plays a critical role in fostering environmental degradation and ecological unequal exchange. PMID:21909231

Sublingual immunotherapy: World Allergy Organization position paper 2013 update.

PubMed

Canonica, Giorgio Walter; Cox, Linda; Pawankar, Ruby; Baena-Cagnani, Carlos E; Blaiss, Michael; Bonini, Sergio; Bousquet, Jean; Calderón, Moises; Compalati, Enrico; Durham, Stephen R; van Wijk, Roy Gerth; Larenas-Linnemann, Désirée; Nelson, Harold; Passalacqua, Giovanni; Pfaar, Oliver; Rosário, Nelson; Ryan, Dermot; Rosenwasser, Lanny; Schmid-Grendelmeier, Peter; Senna, Gianenrico; Valovirta, Erkka; Van Bever, Hugo; Vichyanond, Pakit; Wahn, Ulrich; Yusuf, Osman

2014-03-28

We have prepared this document, "Sublingual Immunotherapy: World Allergy Organization Position Paper 2013 Update", according to the evidence-based criteria, revising and updating chapters of the originally published paper, "Sublingual Immunotherapy: World Allergy Organization Position Paper 2009", available at http://www.waojournal.org. Namely, these comprise: "Mechanisms of sublingual immunotherapy;" "Clinical efficacy of sublingual immunotherapy" - reporting all the data of all controlled trials published after 2009; "Safety of sublingual immunotherapy" - with the recently published Grading System for adverse reactions; "Impact of sublingual immunotherapy on the natural history of respiratory allergy" - with the relevant evidences published since 2009; "Efficacy of SLIT in children" - with detailed analysis of all the studies; "Definition of SLIT patient selection" - reporting the criteria for eligibility to sublingual immunotherapy; "The future of immunotherapy in the community care setting"; "Methodology of clinical trials according to the current scientific and regulatory standards"; and "Guideline development: from evidence-based medicine to patients' views" - including the evolution of the methods to make clinical recommendations.Additionally, we have added new chapters to cover a few emerging crucial topics: "Practical aspects of schedules and dosages and counseling for adherence" - which is crucial in clinical practice for all treatments; "Perspectives and new approaches" - including recombinant allergens, adjuvants, modified allergens, and the concept of validity of the single products. Furthermore, "Raising public awareness about sublingual immunotherapy", as a need for our patients, and strategies to increase awareness of allergen immunotherapy (AIT) among patients, the medical community, all healthcare stakeholders, and public opinion, are also reported in detail.

Control of gaze in natural environments: effects of rewards and costs, uncertainty and memory in target selection.

PubMed

Hayhoe, Mary M; Matthis, Jonathan Samir

2018-08-06

The development of better eye and body tracking systems, and more flexible virtual environments have allowed more systematic exploration of natural vision and contributed a number of insights. In natural visually guided behaviour, humans make continuous sequences of sensory-motor decisions to satisfy current goals, and the role of vision is to provide the relevant information in order to achieve those goals. This paper reviews the factors that control gaze in natural visually guided actions such as locomotion, including the rewards and costs associated with the immediate behavioural goals, uncertainty about the state of the world and prior knowledge of the environment. These general features of human gaze control may inform the development of artificial systems.

Detection of changes in semi-natural grasslands by cross correlation analysis with WorldView-2 images and new Landsat 8 data.

PubMed

Tarantino, Cristina; Adamo, Maria; Lucas, Richard; Blonda, Palma

2016-03-15

Focusing on a Mediterranean Natura 2000 site in Italy, the effectiveness of the cross correlation analysis (CCA) technique for quantifying change in the area of semi-natural grasslands at different spatial resolutions (grain) was evaluated. In a fine scale analysis (2 m), inputs to the CCA were a) a semi-natural grasslands layer extracted from an existing validated land cover/land use (LC/LU) map (1:5000, time T 1 ) and b) a more recent single date very high resolution (VHR) WorldView-2 image (time T 2 ), with T 2  > T 1 . The changes identified through the CCA were compared against those detected by applying a traditional post-classification comparison (PCC) technique to the same reference T 1 map and an updated T 2 map obtained by a knowledge driven classification of four multi-seasonal Worldview-2 input images. Specific changes observed were those associated with agricultural intensification and fires. The study concluded that prior knowledge (spectral class signatures, awareness of local agricultural practices and pressures) was needed for the selection of the most appropriate image (in terms of seasonality) to be acquired at T 2 . CCA was also applied to the comparison of the existing T 1 map with recent high resolution (HR) Landsat 8 OLS images. The areas of change detected at VHR and HR were broadly similar with larger error values in HR change images.

Classification of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in Algeria according to the World Health Organization classification.

PubMed

Boudjerra, Nadia; Perry, Anamarija M; Audouin, Josée; Diebold, Jacques; Nathwani, Bharat N; MacLennan, Kenneth A; Müller-Hermelink, Hans K; Bast, Martin; Boilesen, Eugene; Armitage, James O; Weisenburger, Dennis D

2015-04-01

The relative distribution of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) subtypes differs markedly around the world. The aim of this study was to report this distribution in Algeria. A panel of four hematopathologists classified 197 consecutive cases according to the World Health Organization classification, including 87.3% B-cell and 12.7% T- or natural killer (NK)-cell NHLs. This series was compared with similar cohorts from Western Europe (WEU) and North America (NA). Algeria had a significantly higher frequency of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL: 52.8%) and a lower frequency of follicular lymphoma (FL: 13.2%) compared with WEU (DLBCL: 32.2%; FL: 20.0%) and NA (DLBCL: 29.3%; FL: 33.6%). The frequency of mantle cell lymphoma was lower in Algeria (2.5%) compared with WEU (8.3%). Smaller differences were also found among the NK/T-cell lymphomas. In conclusion, we found important differences between Algeria and Western countries, and further epidemiologic studies are needed to explain these differences.

NASA World Wind: A New Mission

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Hogan, P.; Gaskins, T.; Bailey, J. E.

2008-12-01

Virtual Globes are well into their first generation, providing increasingly rich and beautiful visualization of more types and quantities of information. However, they are still mostly single and proprietary programs, akin to a web browser whose content and functionality are controlled and constrained largely by the browser's manufacturer. Today Google and Microsoft determine what we can and cannot see and do in these programs. NASA World Wind started out in nearly the same mode, a single program with limited functionality and information content. But as the possibilities of virtual globes became more apparent, we found that while enabling a new class of information visualization, we were also getting in the way. Many users want to provide World Wind functionality and information in their programs, not ours. They want it in their web pages. They want to include their own features. They told us that only with this kind of flexibility, could their objectives and the potential of the technology be truly realized. World Wind therefore changed its mission: from providing a single information browser to enabling a whole class of 3D geographic applications. Instead of creating one program, we create components to be used in any number of programs. World Wind is NASA open source software. With the source code being fully visible, anyone can readily use it and freely extend it to serve any use. Imagery and other information provided by the World Wind servers is also free and unencumbered, including the server technology to deliver geospatial data. World Wind developers can therefore provide exclusive and custom solutions based on user needs.

Combating Terrorism in a Globalized World

DTIC Science & Technology

2002-05-01

warhead is detonated in London or a smallpox outbreak in Tokyo or a nerve agent is introduced into the Washington, DC, subway system. An initiative...and convey a more positive image of the Western world. Furthermore, the civilized world should work together to provide disen- franchised youth...59 Economic growth in developing countries leads to reduced poverty, increased food security, and higher standards of living, including better health

Intense natural selection preceded the invasion of new adaptive zones during the radiation of New World leaf-nosed bats.

PubMed

Rossoni, Daniela M; Assis, Ana Paula A; Giannini, Norberto P; Marroig, Gabriel

2017-09-11

The family Phyllostomidae, which evolved in the New World during the last 30 million years, represents one of the largest and most morphologically diverse mammal families. Due to its uniquely diverse functional morphology, the phyllostomid skull is presumed to have evolved under strong directional selection; however, quantitative estimation of the strength of selection in this extraordinary lineage has not been reported. Here, we used comparative quantitative genetics approaches to elucidate the processes that drove cranial evolution in phyllostomids. We also quantified the strength of selection and explored its association with dietary transitions and specialization along the phyllostomid phylogeny. Our results suggest that natural selection was the evolutionary process responsible for cranial diversification in phyllostomid bats. Remarkably, the strongest selection in the phyllostomid phylogeny was associated with dietary specialization and the origination of novel feeding habits, suggesting that the adaptive diversification of phyllostomid bats was triggered by ecological opportunities. These findings are consistent with Simpson's quantum evolutionary model of transitions between adaptive zones. The multivariate analyses used in this study provides a powerful tool for understanding the role of evolutionary processes in shaping phenotypic diversity in any group on both micro- and macroevolutionary scales.

On the Changing Nature of Learning Context: Anticipating the Virtual Extensions of the World

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Westera, Wim

2011-01-01

Contextual learning starts from the premise that learning cannot take place in a vacuum, but should somehow be connected with real world attributes to make sense to learners. Today, digital media tend to bring about new dimensions of context: internet connections and mobile devices enable learners to overcome restrictions of time and location, and…

Natural history museums and cyberspace

USGS Publications Warehouse

Wemmer, C.; Erixon-Stanford, M.; Gardner, A.L.

1996-01-01

Natural history museums are entering the electronic age as they increasingly use computers to build accessible and shareable databases that support research and education on a world-wide basis. Museums are exploring the Internet and other shared uses of electronic media to enhance their traditional roles in education, training, identifications, technical assistance, and collections management.

Integrating the Nature of Science

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Weiland, Ingrid; Blieden, Katherine; Akerson, Valarie

2014-01-01

The nature of science (NOS) describes what science is and how knowledge in science is developed (NSTA 2013). To develop elementary students' understandings of how scientists explore the world, the authors--an education professor and a third-grade teacher--endeavored to integrate NOS into a third-grade life science unit. Throughout the lesson,…

Enhanced functional connectivity properties of human brains during in-situ nature experience

PubMed Central

2016-01-01

In this study, we investigated the impacts of in-situ nature and urban exposure on human brain activities and their dynamics. We randomly assigned 32 healthy right-handed college students (mean age = 20.6 years, SD = 1.6; 16 males) to a 20 min in-situ sitting exposure in either a nature (n = 16) or urban environment (n = 16) and measured their Electroencephalography (EEG) signals. Analyses revealed that a brief in-situ restorative nature experience may induce more efficient and stronger brain connectivity with enhanced small-world properties compared with a stressful urban experience. The enhanced small-world properties were found to be correlated with “coherent” experience measured by Perceived Restorativeness Scale (PRS). Exposure to nature also induces stronger long-term correlated activity across different brain regions with a right lateralization. These findings may advance our understanding of the functional activities during in-situ environmental exposures and imply that a nature or nature-like environment may potentially benefit cognitive processes and mental well-being. PMID:27547533

Readers Building Fictional Worlds: Visual Representations, Poetry and Cognition

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Giovanelli, Marcello

2017-01-01

This article explores the complex nature of the literature classroom by drawing on the cognitive linguistic framework "Text World Theory" to examine the teacher's role as facilitator and mediator of reading. Specifically, the article looks at how one teacher used visual representations as a way of allowing students to engage in a more…

The scientific research potential of virtual worlds.

PubMed

Bainbridge, William Sims

2007-07-27

Online virtual worlds, electronic environments where people can work and interact in a somewhat realistic manner, have great potential as sites for research in the social, behavioral, and economic sciences, as well as in human-centered computer science. This article uses Second Life and World of Warcraft as two very different examples of current virtual worlds that foreshadow future developments, introducing a number of research methodologies that scientists are now exploring, including formal experimentation, observational ethnography, and quantitative analysis of economic markets or social networks.

A parallel world in the dark

DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

Higaki, Tetsutaro; Jeong, Kwang Sik; Takahashi, Fuminobu, E-mail: tetsutaro.higaki@riken.jp, E-mail: ksjeong@tuhep.phys.tohoku.ac.jp, E-mail: fumi@tuhep.phys.tohoku.ac.jp

The baryon-dark matter coincidence is a long-standing issue. Interestingly, the recent observations suggest the presence of dark radiation, which, if confirmed, would pose another coincidence problem of why the density of dark radiation is comparable to that of photons. These striking coincidences may be traced back to the dark sector with particle contents and interactions that are quite similar, if not identical, to the standard model: a dark parallel world. It naturally solves the coincidence problems of dark matter and dark radiation, and predicts a sterile neutrino(s) with mass of O(0.1−1) eV, as well as self-interacting dark matter made ofmore » the counterpart of ordinary baryons. We find a robust prediction for the relation between the abundance of dark radiation and the sterile neutrino, which can serve as the smoking-gun evidence of the dark parallel world.« less

World weather program

NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

1980-01-01

A brief description of the Global Weather Experiment is presented. The world weather watch program plan is described and includes a global observing system, a global data processing system, a global telecommunication system, and a voluntary cooperation program. A summary of Federal Agency plans and programs to meet the challenges of international meteorology for the two year period, FY 1980-1981, is presented.

Investigating Variation, Teacher's Edition. Probing the Natural World/3.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Florida State Univ., Tallahassee. Dept. of Science Education.

The teacher's edition for the unit entitled "Investigating Variation" in Intermediate Science Curriculum Study Level III, provides numerous suggestions for teaching specific activities included in the unit. The unit is aimed at selected aspects of measurement and analysis. The chapters included are "The Road…

Connectedness to Nature and Life Satisfaction among College Outdoor Program Staff

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Frauman, Eric; Shaffer, Francesca

2017-01-01

Ecologists have long theorized about humans' psychological relationship to the natural world. The importance of feeling connected to nature is a theme in the writing of ecologists (Leopold, 1949; Orr, 1994; Roszak, 1995). They have argued that this connection to nature is a key component of fostering ecological behavior. In a meta-analysis of the…

Mummification in the Ancient and New World.

PubMed

Rosso, Ana Maria

2014-01-01

In the Ancient and New World there was a custom to preserve the corpse in a natural and artificial way. Since Paleolithic man believed in an afterlife and even in Mesoamerica and the Andes cultures, care and ceremony were practiced to the burial of the dead in an ancestral cult. Mortuary rituals were developed in Pre-dynastic Egypt (4500-3100 BC) but apparently they had begun before in America, c. 5000 BC. Mummies served for assisting the soul to survive and for preventing the dead from frightening the livings. Incas arrived at a point of perfection in these practices after other Andean cultures but we should not forget their older predecessors, the Chinchorro culture on the arid coast of the Atacama Desert. Different steps in the technique can be distinguished in both worlds: natural desiccation covered by animal skins, methods to protect the body skin and flesh removal, replacement with clay; black, red or mud-coated corpses, evisceration, body cavity treatment, cleansing and anointing the interior, brain removal, mummified bodies, corpses covered with natron, before being washed and bandaged or wrapped. It will be necessary to carefully check dates, techniques and periods in the two zones to establish exactly the evolution of the methods applied.

Nonsequential Computation and Laws of Nature.

DTIC Science & Technology

1986-05-01

computing engines arose as a byproduct of the Manhattan Project in World War II. Broadly speaking, their purpose was to compute numerical solutions to...nature, and to representing algorithms in structures of space and time. After the Manhattan Project had been fulfilled, computer designers quickly pro

The Third Place in Second Life: Real Life Community in a Virtual World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Peachey, Anna

In June 2006 The Open University (OU) purchased its first land in Second LifeTM (SL). Over a two and a half year period, the OU presence evolved and grew to a point where an average of between 150 and 250 unique users in any 7-day period are active in an OU area. This chapter charts the history of the development of the OU Second Life social community and considers the nature of that activity at a point of critical change, in January 2009, shortly before a new island is developed to provide a permanent home for the community. In order for the community to continue evolving it is necessary to understand the nature of the core activities of these users, and to consider this in a context of sustainable development. Through reference to aspects of socialisation and physical community, the author proposes that a virtual world environment can be described using the physical world concept of a Third Place in the information age, and considers the value of virtual space to a learning community. From a perspective of ethnography, this chapter captures a community development within SL and proposes that physical world concepts of community and Third Place are exhibited in a virtual world, and that there are equivalent benefits in the sense of support and belonging to a virtual world community.

Giordano Bruno and the heresy of many worlds.

PubMed

Martinez, Alberto A

2016-10-01

This paper analyses the importance of Giordano Bruno's belief in many worlds, including the Moon, the planets and the stars, in the context of his trial by the Inquisitions in Venice and Rome. Historians have claimed that this belief was not heretical and therefore was not a major factor in Bruno's trial or execution. On the contrary, by examining neglected treatises on theology, heresies and Catholic canon law, I show that the belief in many worlds was formally heretical. Multiple Christian authorities denounced it. A systematic analysis of the extant primary sources shows that Bruno's belief in many worlds was, surprisingly, of primary importance in his trial and execution. The evidence includes recent and newly discovered primary sources.

World Space Week: Linking Space and Humanity

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Stone, D.

2002-01-01

World Space Week, October 4-10 annually, is an international celebration of the contribution that space science and technology makes to the betterment of the human condition. Since its official declaration in 1999 by the United Nation, World Space Week has rapidly grown to include over 40 nations. The dates of World Space Week commemorate key milestones in space. October 4, 1957 was the launch date of Sputnik I, the first artificial Earth satellite. The Outer Space Treaty took effect on October 10, 1967. During World Space Week, participants such as government agencies, companies, science museums, teachers, and individuals organize public events, school activities, and Web-based programs related to space. So many synchronized events attract media coverage which reaches a global audience about space. In this way, World Space Week truly links space and humanity. The global organization of World Space Week is discussed as well as the results to date. The benefits of participation and opportunities to do so also identified.

Social Studies. Language Arts: Comparative World Religions.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Moore, John A.

The elective (7-9) course in world religions outlined in this guide is designed to fit the quinmester organization of schools. The course is described as a study of world religions, focusing on religion as an institution in society. It includes effects of religion on people, governments, and internal relations. The guide is divided according to:…

Teaching World History and Global Issues with the Internet

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Risinger, C. Frederick

2011-01-01

In this article, the author recommends websites that include both traditional world history content and sites that focus on contemporary world issues and problems. The first two sites provide an intellectual stage for both world history and global studies. While they don't have lesson plans or links to other sites, they provide an understanding of…

Technology Transfer: A Third World Perspective.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Akubue, Anthony I.

2002-01-01

Technology transfer models are based on assumptions that do not reflect Third-World realities. Obstacles to building indigenous technology capacity include multinational corporations' control of innovations, strings attached to foreign aid, and indigenous reluctance to undertake research. Four areas of development include foreign direct…

World Environmental Quality, A Challenge to the International Community.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Department of State, Washington, DC.

The quality of the world environment cannot be dependent upon the efforts of a single nation. This fact is now recognized by most nations. Only through cooperative international actions can effective pollution control and natural resource conservation be realized. The purpose of this booklet is to publicize the work that the United States and…

Human Rights and Private Ordering in Virtual Worlds

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Oosterbaan, Olivier

This paper explores the application of human rights in (persistent) virtual world environments. The paper begins with describing a number of elements that most virtual environments share and that are relevant for the application of human rights in such a setting; and by describing in a general nature the application of human rights between private individuals. The paper then continues by discussing the application in virtual environments of two universally recognized human rights, namely freedom of expression, and freedom from discrimination. As these specific rights are discussed, a number of more general conclusions on the application of human rights in virtual environments are drawn. The first general conclusion being that, because virtual worlds are private environments, participants are subject to private ordering. The second general conclusion being that participants and non-participants alike have to accept at times that in-world expressions are to an extent private speech. The third general conclusion is that, where participants represent themselves in-world, other participants cannot assume that such in-world representation share the characteristics of the human player; and that where virtual environments contain game elements, participants and non-participants alike should not take everything that happens in the virtual environment at face value or literally, which does however not amount to having to accept a higher level of infringement on their rights for things that happen in such an environment.

"A Woman's World": The University of California, Berkeley, during the Second World War

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Dorn, Charles

2008-01-01

During World War II, female students at the University of California, Berkeley--then the most populous undergraduate campus in American higher education--made significant advances in collegiate life. In growing numbers, women enrolled in male-dominated academic programs, including mathematics, chemistry, and engineering, as they prepared for…

Assessment of geomorphic risks and attractiveness to recreational systems: a case of Nalychevo Nature Park (Kamchatka, Russia).

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Blinova, I.; Bredikhin, A.

2012-04-01

. "Volcanoes of Kamchatka" are included on UNESCO's World Heritage List. In spite of general fame of Far East recreational resources there are still areas which are not affected by human activities (including recreation and tourism) in immediate proximity to the regional center. This is usually caused by poor infrastructure and lack of information about natural objects. Natural Park Nalychevo, located 50 km NE from Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, represents an example of wild area not involved in human activities. The diversity of natural conditions and relief forms creates the necessary prerequisites for assignment a wide range of recreation specialization: balneal, hillwalking, sports (skiing, hiking etc.), environmental education. Hierarchical polycentric structure of Nature Park hampers its management and further development. Moreover, poor infrastructure aggravates the situation. Speaking of prospects for further elaboration of Nature Park, along with high geomorphic attractiveness we should take into account enormous risks induced by active relief dynamics. Sober assessment and analysis of these peculiarities allows to manage it effectively.

The Gender Analysis Tools Applied in Natural Disasters Management: A Systematic Literature Review

PubMed Central

Sohrabizadeh, Sanaz; Tourani, Sogand; Khankeh, Hamid Reza

2014-01-01

Background: Although natural disasters have caused considerable damages around the world, and gender analysis can improve community disaster preparedness or mitigation, there is little research about the gendered analytical tools and methods in communities exposed to natural disasters and hazards. These tools evaluate gender vulnerability and capacity in pre-disaster and post-disaster phases of the disaster management cycle. Objectives: Identifying the analytical gender tools and the strengths and limitations of them as well as determining gender analysis studies which had emphasized on the importance of using gender analysis in disasters. Methods: The literature search was conducted in June 2013 using PubMed, Web of Sciences, ProQuest Research Library, World Health Organization Library, Gender and Disaster Network (GDN) archive. All articles, guidelines, fact sheets and other materials that provided an analytical framework for a gender analysis approach in disasters were included and the non-English documents as well as gender studies of non-disasters area were excluded. Analysis of the included studies was done separately by descriptive and thematic analyses. Results: A total of 207 documents were retrieved, of which only nine references were included. Of these, 45% were in form of checklist, 33% case study report, and the remaining 22% were article. All selected papers were published within the period 1994-2012. Conclusions: A focus on women’s vulnerability in the related research and the lack of valid and reliable gender analysis tools were considerable issues identified by the literature review. Although non-English literatures with English abstract were included in the study, the possible exclusion of non-English ones was found as the limitation of this study. PMID:24678441

Natural disasters and the lung.

PubMed

Robinson, Bruce; Alatas, Mohammad Fahmi; Robertson, Andrew; Steer, Henry

2011-04-01

As the world population expands, an increasing number of people are living in areas which may be threatened by natural disasters. Most of these major natural disasters occur in the Asian region. Pulmonary complications are common following natural disasters and can result from direct insults to the lung or may be indirect, secondary to overcrowding and the collapse in infrastructure and health-care systems which often occur in the aftermath of a disaster. Delivery of health care in disaster situations is challenging and anticipation of the types of clinical and public health problems faced in disaster situations is crucial when preparing disaster responses. In this article we review the pulmonary effects of natural disasters in the immediate setting and in the post-disaster aftermath and we discuss how this could inform planning for future disasters. © 2011 The Authors. Respirology © 2011 Asian Pacific Society of Respirology.

State of the World 1986. A Worldwatch Institute Report on Progress toward a Sustainable Society.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Brown, Lester R.; And Others

The third of three annual assessments concentrating on the relationship between the world economy and its environmental support systems, this edition expands earlier themes on how economic demands of a world population approaching 5 billion affects the earth's natural systems and resources to embrace threats to security as well. The first of 11…

Global Science: Brave New World

NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

Turner, Michael

2005-04-01

Scientists have always viewed their activity as one without borders, and they can be rightfully called first adapters of globalization. Be careful what you wish for! While there are great benefits to working together - e.g., tackling bigger problems, traveling to exotic places, and bringing the world closer together - there are challenges too - e.g., more approvals and longer timescales; larger, more diverse collaborations with different customs; meshing not only currencies but accounting systems. It is too late to go back - and I for one would not want to - and the rules have changed forever. In a small world with three similarly economically powerful regions, dominance is impossible - what's important in the Americas will soon become important to Europe and Asia; what's no longer important to Europe and Asia will soon no longer be important to the Americas. Cooperation is encouraged, competition is bad, and duplication cannot be afforded. The biggest challenge of all is coordination/formation of world projects without a ``World Science Foundation." I will use NSF examples to illustrate, including Gemini, IceCube, LHC, and ALMA.

Science on a salad plate?: Thinking about the representation of natural history in the Canadian Historic Dinner Service project.

PubMed

Cronin, Keri

2008-01-01

The Women's Art Association of Canada marked the 400th anniversary of John Cabot's "discovery" of Canada (celebrated in 1897) through the production of the "Canadian Historic Dinner Service." The high-profile project, which resulted in a set of hand-painted porcelain dinnerware, was a celebration not only of nation-building, but also of the natural history of the country. Visual reference material provided to the women selected to create the individual pieces included photographs, natural history texts, and illustrations that W.H. Bartlett produced for Canadian Scenery earlier in the century. This article explores this visual reinterpretation of Canada's natural history in order to raise questions about how a recontextualization of scientific material shapes narratives of nation and nature in the 'New World'.

Evaluation of Process Science Skills: From the Real World to the Ideal World.

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Lipowich, Shelley A.

State legislatures and others are recommending and, in some cases, mandating reforms in education including evaluating students' ability to meet stated objectives. This "ideal" situation poses a major problem concerning instruments needed to assess process skills. In the real world, educators do not yet have nationally recognized, valid,…

Analysis of Nature of Science Included in Recent Popular Writing Using Text Mining Techniques

ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

Jiang, Feng; McComas, William F.

2014-01-01

This study examined the inclusion of nature of science (NOS) in popular science writing to determine whether it could serve supplementary resource for teaching NOS and to evaluate the accuracy of text mining and classification as a viable research tool in science education research. Four groups of documents published from 2001 to 2010 were…

Predicting Virtual World User Population Fluctuations with Deep Learning

PubMed Central

Park, Nuri; Zhang, Qimeng; Kim, Jun Gi; Kang, Shin Jin; Kim, Chang Hun

2016-01-01

This paper proposes a system for predicting increases in virtual world user actions. The virtual world user population is a very important aspect of these worlds; however, methods for predicting fluctuations in these populations have not been well documented. Therefore, we attempt to predict changes in virtual world user populations with deep learning, using easily accessible online data, including formal datasets from Google Trends, Wikipedia, and online communities, as well as informal datasets collected from online forums. We use the proposed system to analyze the user population of EVE Online, one of the largest virtual worlds. PMID:27936009

Predicting Virtual World User Population Fluctuations with Deep Learning.

PubMed

Kim, Young Bin; Park, Nuri; Zhang, Qimeng; Kim, Jun Gi; Kang, Shin Jin; Kim, Chang Hun

2016-01-01

This paper proposes a system for predicting increases in virtual world user actions. The virtual world user population is a very important aspect of these worlds; however, methods for predicting fluctuations in these populations have not been well documented. Therefore, we attempt to predict changes in virtual world user populations with deep learning, using easily accessible online data, including formal datasets from Google Trends, Wikipedia, and online communities, as well as informal datasets collected from online forums. We use the proposed system to analyze the user population of EVE Online, one of the largest virtual worlds.