195 research outputs found
A study on participatory management and conservation of mangrove ecosystem in Matang and Carey Island, Malaysia / Mehdi Almasi
No full textManagement of mangrove forests is vital, especially for the conservation and revival of mangrove resources. Community-based mangrove forest management with involvement of various stakeholders could be an effective way for the conservation of the rich ecosystem of mangrove forests. The present research aims to formulate a participatory management strategy to conserve mangrove forests in the Matang Mangrove Forest and Carey Island in Malaysia as the participatory approach in management has not been well addressed in the literature on mangrove forest management in this country. The major management tool is a SWOT matrix analysis. For this purpose, the analysis of the data collected from in-depth interviews (31 for the Carey Island and 35 for Matang) with local people living in both areas of research as well as the information from the researchers’ observation resulted in identification of a series of internal and external factors in the targeted areas in terms of conservation of the mangrove forest. The factors were then scored using a SWOT questionnaire filled by respondents (312 for the Carey Island and 377 for Matang). Resulting in sixteen strategies (for both research areas) were considered using SWOT matrix and pairwise matching for the conservation of the mangrove forests. Later, the Quantitative Strategic Planning Matrix (QSPM) was used and prioritized strategies were determined. As a conclusion, the prioritized strategies in the Carey Island were all related to capacity building, involvement and participation of stakeholders in the process of the mangrove forest conservation. Therefore, mangrove forest management requires a participatory approach in a way that not only the mangrove harvesting would be sustainably controlled, but stakeholders, especially villagers, will be simultaneously empowered and take responsibility of the sustainable conservation of their habitat and its biodiversity. In the Matang Mangrove Forest, it was concluded that participation of local communities in the management of the Mangrove forest is the key element of the priority strategies
An investigation of gamma background radiation in Hamadan province, Iran
No full textThe general population, everywhere in the world is exposed to a small dose of ionising radiation from natural sources. Stochastic effects such as cancer and genetic disorders are caused when living creatures are exposed to low doses. In Iran, it is measured in some cities, especially in high-background areas such as Ramsar, but so far there is no measurement in the Hamadan province. Hamadan is located in the west of Iran. Measurements were performed using a RDS-110 survey meter, CaSO(4):Dy thermoluminecense dosimetries (TLDs) and a Harshaw 4000 TLD reader. To estimate the dose rate outdoors, four stations along the main directions (north, south, west and east) and one in the town centre were selected. Mean annual X and gamma equivalent dose in Hamadan province are 1.12±0.22 and 1.66±0.07 mSv, which related to RDS-110 survey meter and TLDs measurements, respectively. The TLDs and RDS-110 results are representative of the external photon radiation doses for the selected monitoring locations and for those locations for the hours during which the measurements were taken, respectively. Maximum and minimum of external photon radiation doses are related to Hamadan and Kaboudar-Ahang towns, respectively. According to the results of the study, it seems that the annual X and gamma equivalent dose in Hamadan province exceeded the global mean external exposure amounts by the UNSCEAR, and further studies are needed to measure internal exposures to determine the total environmental radiation level in Hamadan province.Nima Rostampour, Tinoosh Almasi, Masoumeh Rostampour, Mohammad Mohammadi, Karim Ghazikhanlou Sani, Hamid R. Khosravi, S. Mehdi Hosseini Pooya, Bahman Golzar, and Naghi Jabari Vesa
Student Publications in the Carlisle Indian Boarding Schools: A Cultural Assimilation Tool for Founder Richard Henry Pratt
No full textThis qualitative content analysis seeks to explore three Carlisle Indian Boarding School newspapers for signs of founder Richard Henry Pratt’s assimilation ideology in the articles written by the students. The author first identified themes of Pratt's assimilation ideology by analyzing his famous speech, “The Advantage of Mingling Indians with Whites." The author found three major assimilation ideology themes in Pratt's speech, including civilizing, individualizing and preparing the American Indian for the white society. After the themes were identified, the author located Pratt's assimilation ideology themes in many articles throughout the three student newspaper publications. The author used a flexible qualitative coding method to identify common rhetoric, topics and content between Pratt's themes and the students' articles. The findings in this study explore how Pratt's ideology and his heavy-handed role in the control of the articles influenced the students to mimic his dominant culture rhetoric in the articles to navigate the harsh assimilation expectations placed on the students in the boarding school. Although there have been numerous books and journals published about the school and Richard Henry Pratt, the findings are significant because this research proposes and analyzes the link between Pratt's assimilation ideology and the content of the student newspapers
EXPERIMENTAL EVALUATION OF CALCIUM CHLORIDE POWDER EFFECT ON THE REDUCTION OF THE PAVEMENT SURFACE LAYER PERFORMANCE
No full textSome roads have a gravel layer and most asphaltic roads have gravel shoulder and part of that sand is fine grained soil. Road dust increases in heavy traffic and affects safety, economy, quality and environment. Different stabilizers are used to control the dust in gravel topping roads. One of them is calcium chloride. One of its common uses is the dust control in gravel topping roads. In this research, in order to achieve the optimal mixture procedure after grading the gravel material of pavement surface layer, the effect of calcium chloride salt on the physical properties of the fine grained part was investigated in different percent of calcium chloride samples and different percent of moisture in two dry cases. Results show that increasing the calcium chloride percent in the dry case, the moisture absorption amount of the fine grained part of the gravel topping materials is increased, by contrast, uniaxial tensile and compressive strengths decrease with the increase of calcium chloride more than certain percent. The amount of calcium chloride has a reverse effect on liquid limit, plasticity limit and plastic index, conversely, uniaxial tensile and compressive strengths such that increasing the calcium chloride salt by 6% will increase the plastic limit by 6% and the liquid limit by 12% and plastic index by 25% and also the uniaxial tensile strength is increased by 11% and the uniaxial compressive strength is decreased by 36%
Understandings and social practices of medications for Zimbabwean households in New Zealand
No full textMedications are a central part of health care. How medications are understood and used by people in everyday life remains unclear. This study looks at understanding and social practices of medications in everyday life for Zimbabwean households in New Zealand. This project investigates understandings of medications and their use, taking account of all forms of medications, medical drugs, alternative medicines, traditional medicines and dietary supplements. Four Zimbabwean migrant families who all reside in Hamilton took part in this study. Data were collected using a variety of methods which included individual interviews with the families, household discussions, photographs, diaries, material objects, and media content to capture the complex and fluid nature of popular understandings and use of medications. This research provides insight into the cultural values and practices of these four families pertaining to how they acquired, used, shared, and stored indigenous and biomedical medications. Four key themes were identified: the preference of biomedical over traditional medications, storage, sharing and safety of medications; availability and affordability of medications; and the influence of the media in making decisions to purchase medications. Knowledge of how meanings are linked to the things people do with medications will inform strategies for ensuring that medication use is safe and effective
Effect of mitomycin-C on corneal endothelial cell parameters after refractive surface ablation procedures
No full textBackground: The effect of mitomycin-C (MMC) on the reduction of endothelial cell count in the cornea remains controversial. We aimed to evaluate the effect of MMC on corneal endothelial cell parameters after refractive surface ablation procedures, including photorefractive keratectomy (PRK) and laser epithelial keratomileusis (LASEK).
Methods: In this interventional, comparative, follow-up study, 342 eyes of 171 patients were followed up for 6 months. Patients undergoing PRK or LASEK were included and were divided into two groups: group one (188 eyes of 94 patients) with an ablation depth of ? 65 µm and who received intraoperative 0.02% MMC for 30 s, and group two (154 eyes of 77 patients) with an ablation depth of < 65 µm and who received balanced salt solution for 30 s. Changes in endothelial cell density (ECD), central corneal thickness (CCT), coefficient of variation (CV), and hexagonality values were compared between the groups at 3 and 6 months after surgery.
Results: The mean ± standard deviaiton (SD) age of the patients was 28.11 ± 6.56 years. The mean ± SD ECD did not change significantly in either group between the baseline and at 3 and 6 months postoperatively. The baseline mean ECD was significantly higher in group one than that in group two (P < 0.001) and remained so at 3 (P = 0.002) and 6 months (P = 0.022) postoperatively. The baseline hexagonality value was lower in group one (P = 0.173), with a gradual decrease during the postoperative follow-up as compared with that in group two (P = 0.016 and 0.001 at 3 and 6 months postoperatively, respectively). Group one had a significantly lower CCT at 3 and 6 months postoperatively (both P < 0.001) and a higher mean CV (3 months: P = 0.028; 6 months: P = 0.328).
Conclusions: A single intraoperative application of MMC for 30 s as prophylaxis for corneal haze development during refractive surface ablation procedures had no significant effect on ECD up to 6 months postoperatively. Future studies with a contralateral-eye design (to neutralize factors specific to the individual patient), a larger sample size, and longer follow-up are necessary to confirm or disprove our observations
Side effects of thiacloprid+deltamethrin, pirimicarb and pymetrozine on the black bean aphid parasitoid, Lysiphlebus fabarum Marshall (Hymenoptera: Aphidiidae)
No full textLysiphlebus fabarum Marshall is the main parasitoid of the black bean aphid, Aphis fabae Scopoli. Lethal and sublethal effects of thiacloprid+deltamethrin, pirimicarb and pymetrozine were evaluated on the parasitoid under laboratory conditions. Newly emerged females were exposed to dry insecticide residues that were applied on glass plates. Thiacloprid+deltamethrin caused 100% mortality. Pirimicarb produced significant mortality and adverse effects on fecundity, while pymetrozin did not. According to the IOBC (International Organization of Biological Control) standards, thiacloprid+deltamethrin (E = 100%), pirimicarb (E = 62.70%) and pymetrozine (E = 11.86%) were classified as harmful, slightly harmful and harmless, respectively. Life table assays revealed that intrinsic rate of natural increase (rm) inthiacloprid+deltamethrin (50%) and pirimicarb (12%) were significantly reduced compared to the control group, while pymetrozine had no such effects. Our results showed that pymetrozine was safe for L. fabarum, but pirimicarb and thiacloprid+deltamethrin had deleterious effects on this parasitoid. In sum, the present study suggests a relative compatibility between pymetrozine and L. fabarum
Immunoinformatic analysis of glycoprotein from bovine ephemeral fever virus
No full textBackground: Bovine ephemeral fever virus (BEFV) is an arthropod-borne virus that is highly infective for cattle and water buffalo. The infection has important economic losses and is common in tropical and subtropical regions. Surface glycoprotein (G protein) of BEFV is an immunogenic transmembrane G protein and responsible for attachment and entrance to host cells. The aim of this study was to determine immune dominant epitopes of the protein through immunoinformatics approaches. Methods: A reference sequence and some other related sequences of the G protein were retrieved. Three-dimensional structure of the protein was modeled and refined. Variation analysis of the protein sequences was done, and signal peptide and transmembrane topology were predicted. Finally, linear and conformational (discontinues) epitopes of the protein were predicted. Consensus linear and conformational epitopes were selected and reported as immunodominant epitopes. Results: Five regions were characterized as hyper variable regions (HVRs). Selected consensus epitopes included amino acids 46–60 (AA46–60), AA67–74, AA132–149, AA156–188, AA196–225, AA260–282, AA315–456, and AA487–503 were selected as consensus epitopes. Conclusion: Four determined epitopes including AA67–74, AA132–149, AA196–225, and AA315–456 were determined for the first time in this study. Other predicted epitopes in the current study, has been previously identified, however, new start and end regions for them were suggested here. The predicted epitopes may be experimentally tested to confirm as novel immunogenic candidates applicable in preventive and diagnostic tasks
Estimation of Inbreeding Coefficient and Its Effects on Lamb Survival in Sheep
No full textIntroduction The mating of related individuals produces an inbred offspring and leads to an increased homozygosity in the progeny, genetic variance decrease within families and increase between families. The ration of homozygosity for individuals was calculated by inbreeding coefficient. Inbred individuals may carry two alleles at a locus that are replicated from one gene in the previous generations, called identical by descent. The inbreeding coefficient should be monitored in a breeding program, since it plays an important role at decreasing of homeostasis, performance, reproduction and viability. The trend of inbreeding is an indicator for determining of inbreeding level in the herd. Inbreeding affects both phenotypic means of traits and genetic variances within population, thus it is an important factor for delimitations of genetic progress in a population. Reports showed an inbreeding increase led to decrease of phenotypic value in some of the productive and reproductive traits.
Materials and Methods In the current study, the pedigree data of 14030 and 6215 records of Baluchi and Iranblack lambs that collected from 1984 to 2011 at the Abbasabad Sheep Breeding Station in Mashhad, Iran, 3588 records of Makoei lambs that collected from 1994 to 2011 at the Makoei sheep breeding station and 6140, records of Zandi lambs that collected from 1991 to 2011 at the Khejir Sheep Breeding Station in Tehran, Iran were used to estimating the inbreeding coefficient and its effects on lamb survival in these breeds. Lamb survival trait was scored as 1 and 0 for lamb surviving and not surviving at weaning weight, respectively. Inbreeding coefficient was estimated by relationship matrix algorithm (A=TDT') methodology using the CFC software program. Effects of inbreeding coefficient on lamb survival were estimated by restricted maximum likelihood (REML) method under 12 different animal models using ASReml 3.0 computer programme. Coefficient of inbreeding for each lamb added to models as a covariate. The most appropriate model for this trait was determined by Akaike’s Information Criterion (AIC) test.
Results and Discussion The number of survival records for Baluchi, Iranblack, Makoei and Zandi sheep breeds were 10793, 4826, 3588 and 6140, respectively. The inbred individuals were 17.63, 58.25, 4.88 and 36.32 per cent for Baluchi, Iranblack, Makoei and Zandi sheep, respectively, (2473, 3620, 175 and 2230 head respectively). The mean of inbreeding coefficient for whole and inbred populations for Baluchi lambs were 0.66 and 3.73 per cent, respectively, for Iranblack lambs were 4.59 and 7.90 per cent, respectively, for Makoei lambs were 0.25 and 4.86 per cent, respectively and for Zandi lambs were 1.22 and 3.61 per cent, respectively. Maximum of inbreeding coefficient for Baluchi, Iranblack, Makoei and Zandi lambs was 31.25, 34.70, 25.00 and 31.35 per cent, respectively. The mean of lamb survival in Whole and inbred population for Baluchi lambs were 89.11 and 88.30 per cent, respectively, for Iranblack lambs were 84.44 and 83.84 per cent, respectively, for Makoei lambs were 90.40 and 86.95 per cent, respectively and for Zandi lambs were 87.37 and 86.90 per cent, respectively. The average of inbreeding coefficient for 4 breeds was increased. The estimation of positive inbreeding coefficient trend for Baluchi, Iranblack, Makoei and Zandi were 0.035±0.012, 0.31±0.03, 0.010±0.012 and 0.020±0.012 per cent on each year, respectively. The most suitable model for survival in Baluchi, Iranblack, Makoei and Zandi breeds was 7, 12, 2 and 1, respectively. The regression coefficient of inbreeding on lamb survival were -0.26±0.11, -0.35±0.11, -0.25±1.83 and -0.04±0.20 per cent for Baluchi, Iranblack, Makoei and Zandi sheep, respectively.
Conclusion The levels of inbreeding below 5% in whole population, or annual rates of inbreeding under 1% unlikely result in substantial reduction of performance and economic income in sheep production and serious genetic variation in the population. Inbreeding depression was observed for survival trait although the levels of inbreeding coefficient were acceptable in all of the breeds investigated in this study. Therefore, the general policy in the flocks should be continued to avoid mating between close relative parents and use of enough sires and dams selected per annum. Estimated inbreeding coefficients for Baluchi and Iranblack breeds showed high degree of close mating in these herd and due to the significant effect of inbreeding on survival, it is suggested that this breeding stations should use a breeding plan to avoid mating of close relative animals
Optimal Route Determination to provide Relief Following an Earthquake using the Traffic Density Ratio (Case Study: Isfahan's Fire Stations)
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