62880 research outputs found
Sort by
A ‘little Neddy’ for agriculture? ‘Sit on the hornet’s nest but don’t stir it up’
No full textWhen the National Economic Development Council (NEDC) and its administrative office (NEDO) were established, farmers were concerned that agriculture was not directly represented. NEDO needed policy information and data on the sector. Initially this came from government (the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food: MAFF), a meeting with agricultural economists, and a so-called joint committee, orchestrated by the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), into which farm workers’ unions and landowners had some input. This was not the tripartite body envisaged for other sectors, bringing together employers, workers and the sector’s sponsoring department, which NEDO could attend. Neither MAFF nor the NFU favoured the formation of an Economic Development Committee (EDC) for the agricultural industry for fear that this would weaken in the annual review of agriculture: i) the NFU’s privileged access to government, and ii) MAFF’s negotiating stance. With the change of government in 1964, MAFF’s position began to shift, but it was not until November 1965 that the NFU could be persuaded. It then took a further year before a chairperson could be appointed. When the EDC met for the first time it decided that one of its first tasks would be to study ‘the role of agriculture, with particular reference to import saving.’ Its report published in June 1968 (Agriculture’s import saving role) raised expectations in the farming community, and some concern internationally and within MAFF. Despite the NFU’s earlier reservations, it had secured support for its protectionist policies. Moreover, the minister said it was ‘one of the most important reports ever produced on British agriculture.
‘A liberal education’ Stanley Unwin’s publishing values and a cognitive approach to critical thinking
Get PDFThis thesis is an interdisciplinary study that considers the career and output of Stanley Unwin
(1884 – 1968), founder of the publishing firm, George Allen and Unwin (1914 – 1990). Using
the archives of Allen and Unwin in the Archive of British Printing and Publishing at the
University of Reading, the thesis traces his career and the selected output of five of the authors
his firm published, observing in Unwin’s principles and in the arguments made in these
publications the foundations for a new and more ‘holistic’ approach to critical thinking. Unwin
felt that it was important to nurture cooperation among peers, to promote international and
opposing voices, and to ‘maintain an open forum’ by publishing ‘both sides’ of contentious
issues. These values together promote tolerance and respectful debate. The works of the chosen
authors identify problems in interpersonal interactions and engagement with information
among populations.
By identifying in these works understanding later garnered by the social sciences
(1950s onwards), the thesis proposes a framework of concepts and metacognitive practice as
the basis for an approach to the study and improvement of critical thinking more appropriate
to and adapted for the modern world. The thesis’s contribution to knowledge is therefore
multiple: the archival work contributes to historical knowledge, and in particular, publishing
and book historical knowledge. The thesis’s interdisciplinary discourse surrounding the
concepts associated with the cognitive and social sciences demonstrates their ubiquity in
human interactions and contributes to an understanding of both the authors’ observations and
human behaviour. Finally, the proposed use of these ideas – and their application in projects
over the course of the past several years – will hopefully provide new insight into ways of
approaching the informational crisis humanity currently faces
Global latitudinal gradients and the evolution of body size in dinosaurs and mammals
Get PDFGlobal climate patterns fundamentally shape the distribution of species and ecosystems. For example, Bergmann’s rule predicts that homeothermic animals, including birds and mammals, inhabiting cooler climates are generally larger than close relatives from warmer climates. The modern world, however, lacks the comparative data needed to evaluate such macroecological rules rigorously. Here, we test for Bergmann’s rule in Mesozoic dinosaurs and mammaliaforms that radiated within relatively temperate global climate regimes. We develop a phylogenetic model that accounts for biases in the fossil record and allows for variable evolutionary dispersal rates. Our analysis also includes new fossil data from the extreme high-latitude Late Cretaceous Arctic Prince Creek Formation. We find no evidence for Bergmann’s rule in Mesozoic dinosaurs or mammaliaforms, the ancestors of extant homeothermic birds and mammals. When our model is applied to thousands of extant dinosaur (bird) and mammal species, we find that body size evolution remains independent of latitude. A modest temperature effect is found in extant, but not in Mesozoic, birds, suggesting that body size evolution in modern birds was influenced by Bergmann’s rule during Cenozoic climatic change. Our study provides a general approach for studying macroecological rules, highlighting the fossil record’s power to address longstanding ecological principles
Investigating the structure / function relationship of PLCγ2 downstream of GPVI and CLEC-2
Get PDFBackground: Several platelet signalling pathways result in the activation of
phospholipase C gamma 2 (PLCγ2), making it an important signalling hub. Both the
ITAM-linked collagen receptor GPVI, and the hemITAM-containing podoplanin
receptor CLEC-2, activate PLCγ2 via a similar mechanism. PLCγ2 is a large protein
consisting of multiple domains. PLCγ2’s molecular interaction with other proteins
regulates its function, however the exact mechanism is still not fully understood.
PLCγ2 also plays a similar role downstream of ITAM-linked receptors in other cells,
such as B- and T-cells. In 80% of leukaemia patients who acquire resistance to
ibrutinib therapy, PLCγ2 mutations have been detected. Although these mutations
have been shown to lead to a gain function, it’s still unknown whether these
mutations might arise in platelets and what their functional effect on platelet activity
might be.
Aims: Characterise the structure/function relationship of PLCγ2 downstream of
(hem)ITAM receptors.
Methods: A PLC pharmacological inhibitor, U73122, was used in platelet function
assays including aggregation, calcium release, and platelet adhesion and spreading
to characterise the impact of PLCγ2 inhibition on platelet function mediated by GPVI
and CLEC-2. To understand the structure/function relationship of PLCγ2
downstream of the (hem)ITAM receptors, construct with PLCγ2 mutations were
transiently transfected in PLCγ2 knockout cells and U73122 was used to assess the
calcium signalling in the cells. A CRISPR/Cas9 approach was also used to generate
PLCγ2 mutation knock-in in WT DT40 cells. Using a laser injury model, zebrafish
were used as an in vivo model to demonstrate the effect of U73122 on PLCγ2 in
thrombus formation and vascular/lymphatic development.
Results: GPVI mediated platelet aggregation and platelet spreading is more
significantly affected by PLCγ2 inhibition than CLEC-2 mediated activation. U73122
inhibits calcium release in a similar manner downstream of both receptors. Using an
overexpression system in PLCγ2 KO cells, PLCγ2 mutations lead to a gain of
function as shown by increased signalling. However, this increased signalling was
still susceptible to inhibition by U73122. Additionally, using the CRISPR/Cas9
approach, a PLCγ2 point mutation was successfully introduced in WT DT40 cells.
Finally, U73122 leads to an extended time to occlusion and lack of thrombus
formation in zebrafish.
Conclusion: These results confirm the essential role for PLCγ2 downstream of
platelet (hem)ITAM receptor signalling. U73122 significantly decreases GPVI and
CLEC-2 mediated platelet activation. Downstream of CLEC-2, U73122 decreases
signalling more significantly in cells bearing mutations in the catalytic domain
suggesting that the CLEC-2 signalling pathway is more reliant on the activity of the
catalytic domain of PLCγ2 than GPVI. Finally, PLCγ2 has shown to play an essential
role in thrombus formation in zebrafish
Microbial species richness under spontaneous plant colonisation in copper mine tailings
Get PDFWe aimed to assess the species richness of the microbial communities in copper mine tailings that have been spontaneously colonised by plants. We characterised the bacterial (16S rRNA, or 16S) and fungal (ITS) sequences from samples taken from a single bench of an undisturbed mature tailings storage facility (TSF1) and samples from a reference site (Ref Site) located 1 km away. In all sampling sites, the dominant plant was a single species of grass (Saccharum spontaneum); a few other species were sometimes found with the grass in TSF1. Amplicon sequence variants (ASVs) were deduced using DADA2 from 16S rRNA gene (bacteria) and ITS2 (fungi) amplicons. Rarefaction curves suggested that the TSF1 had more ASVs on average than the Ref Site; furthermore, the TSF1 appeared to have more ASVs than were sampled. The Chao1 and Faith indices for both bacteria and fungi were higher for the TSF1 tailings. Similar bacterial orders were found in both sites, including common groups, although Rhizobiales were more common in TSF1 and Chloroflexi in the Ref Site. The most abundant bacteria found belonged to the phyla Proteobacteria, Chloroflexota, Acidobacteriota and Actinomycetota. Overall fungal diversity began to increase with plant diversity.PICRUSt2 analysis of predicted metabolic pathways showed more potential pathways at the TSF1. These results suggest a relation between microbial species richness and plant colonisation, and that succession towards greater species richness is taking place. This study may provide a baseline against which the effect of any rehabilitation intervention on the soil can be measured
Four-day week: results from the Portuguese trial
No full textIn this document, we describe and evaluate the four-day week pilot project in Portugal. The report is divided into four parts that can be read independently. The first part describes the origin, definition, and development of the project. The second part details how companies implement the four-day week and how they appraise it. The third part evaluates the effects of the reduced working hours on workers. The fourth part proposes three stages to be followed in the future