2,153 research outputs found
Art and tradition of Sri Lanka - Volume 01: Music of Sri Lanka
No full textMusic Singing and playing musical instruments
have been developed and spread according to their unique
traditions all over the world. Therefore this book titled
‘Art and Tradition of Sri Lanka: Music of Sri Lanka’ can be
considered as a timely necessary task.
The author Dr. Gayathri Madubhani Ranathunga,
Senior Lecturer at the Fashion Design and Product
Development of the Department of Textile and Clothing
Technology, University of Moratuwa has made a noteworthy
effort in exploring the socio-cultural aspects of the history
of music of Sri Lanka. The book consists of four chapters.
The first chapter is about an unsighted overview of the
tradition in Sri Lanka. The second is about the chronological
development of the music tradition of Sri Lanka. The third
is about the history of musical instruments of Sri Lanka.
The forth is about musical instruments of today.Explorations
are based on archaeological evidences of Sri Lanka and it is
important that the author was able to build a sound dialogue
between Sri Lankan music tradition and its interaction with
society.
This scholarly work is very much vital for researchers
and students of the respective subject areas. Besides, anyone
who studies the practical side of aesthetic subjects can be
guided with insight into the music of Sri Lanka through a different perspective. Also, any who seeks subject matter
related to music of Sri Lanka can understand the content
easily.
One of the responsibilities of a university lecturer is to
contribute to the research culture and generously share and
publish earned knowledge. Therefore, I would like to wish
the author all success and may she involve in such service
and publish more research work in the future as well
Economics of spatial coexistence of genetically modified and conventional crops: Oilseed rape in Central France
No full textEurope is currently struggling to implement coherent coexistence regulations on genetically modified (GM) and non-GM crops in all EU Member States. We conduct simulations with the software ArcView® on a GIS dataset of a hypothetical case of GM herbicide tolerant oilseed rape cultivation in Central France. Our findings show that rigid coexistence rules, such as large distance requirements, may impose a severe burden on GM crop production in Europe. These rules are not proportional to the farmers’ basic incentives for coexistence and hence not consistent with the objectives of the European Commission. More alarming, we show that in densely planted areas a domino-effect may occur. This effect raises coexistence costs and even adds to the non-proportionality of rigid coexistence regulations. Instead, we show that flexible measures would be preferable since they are proportional to the incentives for coexistence and, hence, less counterproductive for European agriculture.regulation, GIS modelling, domino-effect, Crop Production/Industries,
Are EU spatial ex ante coexistence regulations proportional?
No full textThe EU is currently struggling to implement coherent coexistence regulations on genetically modified (GM) and non-GM crops in all member states. While it stresses that any approach needs to be “proportionate to the aim of achieving coexistence”, very few studies have actually attempted to assess whether the proposed spatial ex ante coexistence regulations (SEACERs) satisfy this proportionality condition. In this article, we define proportionality as a functional relationship which is weakly increasing in the incentives for coexistence. We propose a spatial framework based on an existing landscape and introduce the new concept of shadow factor as a measure for the opportunity costs induced by SEACERs. This enables comparing the proportionality of (i) rigid SEACERs which are based on large isolation distances imposed on GM farmers versus (ii) flexible SEACERs based on pollen barrier agreements between neighboring farmers. Our theoretical and empirical findings argue for flexibility as rigid SEACERs violate the proportionality condition and, hence, are not consistent with the objectives of the EU.policy analysis, GIS, shadow factor, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries,
Consumer choice: Linking consumer intentions to actual purchase of GM labeled food products
No full textWith a mandatory labeling scheme for GM food in Europe since 2004 measuring actual consumer choice in practice has become possible. Anticipating Europeans negative attitude toward GM food, the labeling was enforced to allow consumers to make an informed choice. We studied consumers actual purchase behavior of GM food products and compared this with their attitude and behavioral intention for buying GM food. We found that despite a majority of consumers voicing a negative attitude toward GM food over 50% of our European respondents stated that they did not actively avoid the purchase of GM food and 6% actually purchased one of the few available GM labeled food products in the period between September 2006 and October 2007. Our results imply that a voiced negative attitude of consumers in responses to questionnaires about their intentions is not a reliable guide for what they actually do in supermarkets. We conclude that the assumption of a negative attitude with regard to GM food is at least in part construed.BT/BiotechnologyApplied Science
A Survey of Literature on Genetically Modified Crops: Economics, Ethics and Society
No full textThis paper reports on a review of literature in the form of academic papers and published research on ethical and consumer issues for GM crops in North America, with particular emphasis on GM wheat. The issues raised in these papers and the findings and arguments posed by the authors are outlined. A general conclusion that can be drawn from this overview is that public attitudes toward GM foods are diverse and sometimes quite strongly held. The strong negative views of GM food held by some appear to be mainly grounded in individuals’ ethical or moral values. Ethical and risk assessment issues have not been fully explored in the existing literature. There is a general consensus in the applied economics literature that GM crops result in economic benefits, although benefits to individual consumers may not be great enough to overcome perceived risk. Carefully planned provision of credible information informing members of the public of benefits and related issues of concern or costs associated with agricultural biotechnology may have benefits for farm and industry groups, but maintenance of trust in information sources and content is vital to credibility. The discovery and use of genomic techniques that express explicit consumer benefits may lead to more favourable attitudes by many consumers.Crop Production/Industries, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, I00, Q16, Q18,
The Verreville pottery Glasgow: Ceramic Resource Disk 4
No full textThe ceramic material listed, described, and photographed, on the enclosed ceramic resource disk, comes from an archaeological excavation funded by FM Developments Ltd., and carried out in 2005 on the site of the Verreville glass and pottery manufactury in Glasgow by Headland Archaeology Ltd. The ceramic material recovered dates mostly from the Kidston and Cochran periods (see below), and has been sorted by fabric type, decoration, and form, into (18 Folders and 152 Word Files). The excavation material has been assigned to Glasgow Museums and the shards were catalogued using there accession numbers beginning (GM 2006. 05. 1 to 1194). The ceramic assemblage is significant in that it was produced mainly for the North American export market, and therefore many of its products are extremely rare in Britain. The transfer printed patterns illustrated on (Word Files 102 to 129) have been given temporary names by the author, who would be happy to be contacted by ceramic researchers who could fill in the detail
The Global Welfare Effects of GM Sugar Beet under Changing Sugar Policies
No full textSince most of the recent agricultural biotechnology innovations have been developed by private companies, the central focus of societal interest is on the distribution of the gains from these technologies among all stakeholders. In a partial equilibrium model, assuming perfect corporate pricing strategies given the heterogeneous population of potential adopters, we model the worldwide introduction of GM sugar beet. The introduction is modelled under both the old and new CMO for sugar in the EU. We see GM sugar beet could bring great benefits to both consumers in the world and sugar beet producers even when the innovation is protected by intellectual property rights and the innovator uses his restricted monopoly to the full extend.GM, sugar beet, partial equilibrium, Agricultural and Food Policy, Crop Production/Industries,
Loss of GM-CSF-dependent instruction of alveolar macrophages in COVID-19 provides a rationale for inhaled GM-CSF treatment
No full textGM-CSF promotes myelopoiesis and inflammation, and GM-CSF blockade is being evaluated as a treatment for COVID-19-associated hyperinflammation. Alveolar GM-CSF is, however, required for monocytes to differentiate into alveolar macrophages (AMs) that control alveolar homeostasis. By mapping cross-species AM development to clinical lung samples, we discovered that COVID-19 is marked by defective GM-CSF-dependent AM instruction and accumulation of pro-inflammatory macrophages. In a multi-center, open-label RCT in 81 non-ventilated COVID-19 patients with respiratory failure, we found that inhalation of rhu-GM-CSF did not improve mean oxygenation parameters compared with standard treatment. However, more patients on GM-CSF had a clinical response, and GM-CSF inhalation induced higher numbers of virus-specific CD8 effector lymphocytes and class-switched B cells, without exacerbating systemic hyperinflammation. This translational proof-of-concept study provides a rationale for further testing of inhaled GM-CSF as a non-invasive treatment to improve alveolar gas exchange and simultaneously boost antiviral immunity in COVID-19. This study is registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT04326920) and EudraCT (2020-001254-22)
Americans and GM food: Knowledge, opinion and interest in 2004
No full textThis report presents the results from the third in a series of studies examining public perception of genetically modified (GM) food in the United States. All three studies were based on survey results of separate, nationally representative samples of approximately 1,200 Americans taken in 2001, 2003, and 2004. While the survey instrument on which the current report is based maintained many of the same measures of awareness and attitude as its two predecessors, it also included several new queries that assess the ability of respondents to recall specific news stories related to GM food, their interest in the topic, and where they would go to look for new information.
Many questions that were repeated from previous years have changed considerably in the current survey. Some of the classic measures of awareness and opinion now incorporate an "unsure" response as choice supplied by the interviewer. While respondents were allowed to volunteer this response in the past, explicitly providing this option to respondents reduced guessing on knowledge-based questions and encouraged a more accurate representation of opinion than in the past.
The report begins with an investigation of Americans' awareness and knowledge about the topic in general, their ability to recall related news stories, familiarity with laws and regulations as well as other questions designed to get at highly specific knowledge about agricultural biotechnology. Next, it details the effect of the new survey methodology on reported opinions about plant-based and animal-based GM food. Finally, it delves into a number of novel findings about interest in hypothetical television shows about GM food, desire for information on food labels, and reported behavior with regards to information seeking.
Consistent with results from our previous studies and others, these findings suggest that the American public is generally unaware of GM food. Most Americans have heard or read little about it, are not aware of its prevalence in their lives, and are confused as to which type of GM products are available. Respondents struggled with factual questions related to GM food and the science behind it, could not recall news stories related to the topic, and were not very knowledgeable about laws regarding the labeling and testing of GM food.
Americans are also unsure of their opinions about GM food and split in their assessments of the technology when forced to take a position.
Americans say they are interested in the topic of GM food, specifically those topics related to human health. Respondents say they desire more information on food labels and report that they would like to see GM foods labeled as such. The majority of Americans admit they have never looked for information about GM food and most say they will search the Internet should the need arise.(Publication number RR-1104-007). New Brunswick, New Jersey: Food Policy Institute, Cook College, Rutgers, The State University of New Jerse
cultural amalgamation: headgears of the kings and elite of the kingdom of kandy of sri lanka
No full textMany foreign cultural influences shaped the tradition of Sri Lanka throughout the history. Traditional customs,
norms, values, believes were mixed with different foreign cultural values and norms and came to practice then made our
own tradition, original agent of influence is hardly evident. Sri Lankan tradition is a hybrid form of multicultural values
which have been experienced and learned throughout the history of Sri Lanka. The Kandyan era(1464-1815 AD) during
which most foreign influences came to Sri Lanka within a short period of time, namely South Indian, Western (Portuguese,
Dutch, British), Siamese. These influences have caused a huge impact on Sri Lankan society in every aspect. The changes
that occurred in Sri Lankan dress from these influences were considerable. The foreign influences reflected in the royal
and elite headgear was a result of association and adaptation of foreign sources. The objective of the paper is to discuss
how foreign cultural influences affected and showcase a unique identity in headgears of the Kings and elite of the Kingdom
of Kandy of Sri Lanka. The research was carried out by studying wall paintings, sculptures, inscriptions of the period and
reviewing ancient literature. Reliability of the data was confirmed by cross-checking data
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