47,028 research outputs found
Improving the Quality of Women’s Gold in Mali, West Africa: The Case of Shea
No full textThe collection, primary processing, and subsequent sale of shea-based products make an important contribution to rural women’s cash income in many of Mali’s shea producing areas. Internationally, shea has recently become popular in high-valued cosmetics thanks to its therapeutic properties— a deviation away from its historic use as a cheap cocoa-butter substitute. For these reasons, international development actors have targeted the Malian shea value chain as part of their private-sector-development and rural-poverty-alleviation programs and strategies. Information asymmetry in the production and marketing of shea has led to a “Market for Lemons” scenario much like that described by Akerlof (1970), thereby compromising the subsector’s potential to serve as a powerful source of rural income growth and poverty alleviation. A combination of tools is used to describe the Malian shea value chain, including the “Structure, Conduct, Performance” framework borrowed from the industrial organization literature and the “Subsector Studies” approach popular in current export-led international development strategies. Analogies from subsectors historically plagued by adverse selection and moral hazard are used to identify potential leverage points and intervention strategies for stakeholders to help improve shea quality and returns to primary producers. The analysis suggests the Malian government has the potential to play an important role in this process as a coordinating body and channel captain, with donors and private enterprises playing complementary roles.Information asymmetry, karité, Mali, rural development, shea, women’s income, Agribusiness, Institutional and Behavioral Economics, International Development, Marketing, Q13, Q23, L15, L24, 013, O17,
Tree Tenure in Agroforestry Parklands: Implications for the Management, Utilisation and Ecology of Shea and Locust Bean Trees in Northern Ghana
No full textThe management and utilisation of resources in agroforestry systems are influenced by both land and tree tenure systems, especially where land and tree tenure are distinct, and rights to one do not necessarily lead to rights over the other. Most academic research has examined the impact of land tenure on management and productivity in these landscapes. This thesis investigates the impact of tree tenure alongside other socioeconomic factors through the research question: 'how do local institutional arrangements affect the management, utilisation and ecology of indigenous economic trees in agroforestry parklands?' Shea and locust bean trees, two of the most economically, culturally and ecologically important indigenous agroforestry species in Northern Ghana, are chosen for the case study. This multidisciplinary study utilises several methodologies of data collection and analysis to assess individual and household behaviour in the management of shea and locust bean trees, and the impact on the ecology of these species. The analysis of incentives (and constraints) stemming from differing tenure arrangements reveals differing attitudes among the households to the preservation and planting of these trees on their farmlands. Women, who are primary gatherers of non-timber products from these trees and hence the main beneficiaries, have differing access to these trees, depending both upon the status of their household within the community and the tenure rules in place. Econometric modelling of shea and locust bean tree densities reveals the socioeconomic and institutional determinants of these tree densities on the farmland, highlighting the importance of economic and institutional incentives and constraints in shaping the management practices, and subsequently the ecology of these indigenous economic species. The findings demonstrate that the vagaries of the resource-use dynamics should be taken into consideration by any policy targeted towards promoting sustainable management and utilisation of these valuable parkland species
Evidence for the decay B0→J/ψω and measurement of the relative branching fractions of meson decays to J/ψη and J/ψη′
No full textFirst evidence of the B 0 → J / ψ ω decay is found and the B s 0 → J / ψ η and B s 0 → J / ψ η ′ decays are studied using a dataset corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb -1 collected by the LHCb experiment in proton-proton collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of sqrt(s) = 7 TeV. The branching fractions of these decays are measured relative to that of the B 0 → J / ψ ρ 0 decay:frac(B (B 0 → J / ψ ω), B (B 0 → J / ψ ρ 0)) = 0.89 ± 0.19 (stat) - 0.13 + 0.07 (syst),frac(B (B s 0 → J / ψ η), B (B 0 → J / ψ ρ 0)) = 14.0 ± 1.2 (stat) - 1.5 + 1.1 (syst) - 1.0 + 1.1 (frac(f d, f s)),frac(B (B s 0 → J / ψ η ′), B (B 0 → J / ψ ρ 0)) = 12.7 ± 1.1 (stat) - 1.3 + 0.5 (syst) - 0.9 + 1.0 (frac(f d, f s)), where the last uncertainty is due to the knowledge of f d / f s, the ratio of b-quark hadronization factors that accounts for the different production rate of B 0 and B s 0 mesons. The ratio of the branching fractions of B s 0 → J / ψ η ′ and B s 0 → J / ψ η decays is measured to befrac(B (B s 0 → J / ψ η ′), B (B s 0 → J / ψ η)) = 0.90 ± 0.09 (stat) - 0.02 + 0.06 (syst)
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
No full textThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Measurement of the B0–B0 oscillation frequency Δmd with the decays B0→D−π+ and B0→ J/ψK∗0
No full textThe B
0
–B
0
oscillation frequency Δmd is measured by the LHCb experiment using a dataset corresponding
to an integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb−1
of proton–proton collisions at √
s = 7 TeV, and is found to be
Δmd
=0.5156±0.0051 (stat.)±0.0033 (syst.) ps−1
. The measurement is based on results from analyses
of the decays B
0
→ D
−π
+ (D
−
→ K
+π
−π
−) and B
0
→ J/ψK
∗0
(J/ψ →μ
+μ
−,K
∗0
→ K
+π
−) and
their charge conjugated modes
Measurement of the ratio of branching fractions B(B0→K∗0γ )/B(B0s→φγ ) and the directCP asymmetry inB 0→K∗0γ
No full textThe ratio of branching fractions of the radiative B decays B0→K⁎0γ and B0s→ϕγ has been measured using an integrated luminosity of 1.0 fb−1 of pp collision data collected by the LHCb experiment at a centre-of-mass energy of s√=7TeV. The value obtained is
B(B0→K⁎0γ)B(B0s→ϕγ)=1.23±0.06(stat.)±0.04(syst.)±0.10(fs/fd),
where the first uncertainty is statistical, the second is the experimental systematic uncertainty and the third is associated with the ratio of fragmentation fractions fs/fd. Using the world average value for B(B0→K⁎0γ), the branching fraction B(B0s→ϕγ) is measured to be (3.5±0.4)×10−5.
The direct CP asymmetry in B0→K⁎0γ decays has also been measured with the same data and found to be
ACP(B0→K⁎0γ)=(0.8±1.7(stat.)±0.9(syst.))%.
Both measurements are the most precise to date and are in agreement with the previous experimental results and theoretical expectations
Measurement of CP observables in B-+/- -> D(*)K-+/- and B-+/- -> D(*)pi(+/-) decays
No full textMeasurements of CP observables in B-+/- -> D(*)K-+/- and B-+/- -> D(*)pi(+/-) decays are presented, where D(*) indicates a neutral Dor D* meson that is an admixture of D(*)(0) and (D) over bar(*)(0) states. Decays of the D* meson to the D pi(0)and D gamma final states are partially reconstructed without inclusion of the neutral pion or photon, resulting in distinctive shapes in the Bcandidate invariant mass distribution. Decays of the D meson are fully reconstructed in the K-+/-pi(-/+), K+K- and pi(+)pi(-) final states. The analysis uses a sample of charged Bmesons produced in ppcollisions collected by the LHCb experiment, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 2.0, 1.0 and 2.0fb- 1taken at centre- of- mass energies of root s = 7, 8 and 13 TeV, respectively. The study of B-perpendicular to -> D*K-perpendicular to and B-perpendicular to -> D*pi(perpendicular to) decays using a partial reconstruction method is the first of its kind, while the measurement of B-+/- -> DK +/- and B-+/- -> D pi(+/-) decays is an update of previous LHCb measurements. The B-+/- -> DK +/- results are the most precise to date. (c) 2017 The Author. Published by Elsevier B. V
Austrochloritis speculoris Shea & Griffiths 2010
No full text<i>Austrochloritis speculoris</i> Shea & Griffiths, 2010 <p> <i>Austrochloritis speculoris</i> Shea & Griffiths, 2010 (in Stanisic <i>et al</i>. 2010): 384, 536.</p> <p> <b>Material examined</b></p> <p> <i>Type material.</i> Holotype QM MO27314 (from NE New South Wales, New England NP, Point Lookout region, 31°22'50"S 152°15'25"E [leg. D. & N. Potter, 8 Mar 1990, under logs]). Paratypes AM C.378010 (Gladstone SF, Reids Ck Rd at Moodys Ck crossing, 3.3 km from Kalang Rd, 30°28'52"S 152°50'21"E), AM C.339822 (Forest Way, 14.5 km SW Pt Lookout Rd, 30°34'23"S 152°14'24"E), AM C.339819 (Styx River, ca. 79 km E Armidale, nr Pt Lookout, 30°30'36"S 152°22'E).</p> <p> <i>Non-type material</i>. NEW SOUTH WALES: New England NP, Point Lookout, 30°29'23"S 152°24'28"E (AM C.108470); Point Lookout, Platypus Valley Lookout track, 30°29'20"S 152°24'35"E (AM C.575464); New England NP, near Point Lookout, 30°29'36"S 152°24'23"E (AM C.108368); Oakes SF, Robinsons Knob Trail, nr Spring Ck, 30°33'S 152°28'23"E (AM C.337911); E of Armidale, W of Ebor, 6.6 km NW of Guy Fawkes intersection, Sandy Ck, 500m W of sand pit turnoff, 30°23'48"S 152°17'30"E (AM C.108452); E of Armidale, 750 m S of Lightning Knob, 30°30'55"S 152°10'44"E (AM C.108381); Cathedral Rock NP, northern boundary, 1 km W of Sandy Creek crossing, W of Ebor, Ebor-Guyra Rd, 30°23'35"S 152°16'33"E (AM C.575456); E of Armidale, E of Jeogla, 800m N of Forest Way on Jacks Fire Rd, 30°34'51"S 152°14'46"E (AM C.108365); Waterfall Way, 1 km S of junction with Guyra Road,W of Ebor, 30°26'31"S 152°18'58"E (AM C.561044); Oxley Wild Rivers NP, Youdales, 31°4'19"S 152°15'17"E (AM C.506320); Styx SF, Raspberry Rd, Halls Peak Rd crossing, 30°45'18"S 152°2'35"E (AM C.506286); 63 km ESE of Armidale, N of Raspberry Mt, 800m down Raspberry Rd, 30°37'17"S 152°10'30"E (AM C.339820); 63 km ESE Armidale, 15.2 km down Raspberry Rd, 30°40'47"S 152°08'E (AM C.339821).</p> <p> <b>Description</b></p> <p> <i>Shell</i> (Fig 1 D–E, Fig. 5). Medium sized (D = 12–16.5 (average 14.3) mm, H = 8.5–12 (average 10.0) mm, for n = 18 lots), turbinate in shape with moderately raised spire, with on average 4.25 rounded whorls that weakly increase in diameter, sutures moderately impressed, protoconch sculpture of scattered pustules and rugose pustulose radial ridges, teleoconch sculpture of irregular growth lines with microsculpture of crowded pustules, periostracal sculpture of crowded curved setae, microsculpture of wavy periostracal ridgelets; end of last whorl descending below whorl plane, aperture moderately tilted from axis of coiling, with moderately thickened and reflected white to dark red-brown outer lip, columella slope about 45°; umbilicus narrow, partially covered by reflected columella, V-shaped in profile; shell colour from pale yellowish brown to dark reddish brown, with or without a narrow reddish brown spiral band around the whorl periphery.</p> <p> <i>External anatomy</i>. Animal head-foot dark grey-brown; with retractable head at inner bases of ocular tentacles.</p> <p> <i>Reproductive anatomy</i> (Fig. 6). Penis cylindrical, about as long as vagina, no penial sheath, inner penial wall with corrugated interlocking short longitudinal pilasters, distally giving rise to longitudinal rows of elongate strap-like pilasters; epiphallus cylindrical, about 3 times as long as penis, distal part with short epiphallic flagellum, epiphallus opening into penial lumen through narrow, pointed and finger-like, longitudinally grooved, penial verge, about half as long as penis, opening laterally; penial retractor attached to proximal third of epiphallus; vas deferens entering head of epiphallus through a single pore just below base of epiphallic flagellum; vagina cylindrical, as long as penis, inner wall with very prominent longitudinal anastomising pilasters, usually thickened around vaginal entrance; free oviduct short; bursa copulatrix long and thin and looped or folded several times, twice as long or more than oviduct length, with inflated bulb-like head, aligning with base of albumen gland; hermaphroditic duct inserting into head of talon.</p> <p> <b>Comparative remarks</b></p> <p> Both species cannot be confidently distinguished by their shell, which is on average smaller in <i>A. speculoris</i>, but exhibits very similar characteristics otherwise. However, both species differ in some reproductive characters, such as length of the bursa copulatrix relative to length of spermoviduct (longer in <i>A. speculoris</i>), relative length of penis (about equal to vagina in <i>A. porteri</i>, but longer in <i>A. speculoris</i>), length of epiphallus relative to penis (longer in <i>A. porteri</i>), position of the penial retractor muscle (at proximal third of epiphallus in <i>A. porteri</i>, mid-epiphallus in <i>A. speculoris</i>), and relative length of the penial verge (half as long as penis in <i>A. porteri</i>), and the length of the epiphallic flagellum (much longer in <i>A. porteri</i>).</p> <p> <b>Distribution and ecology</b></p> <p>Lives in dry to moist sclerophyll forests on the eastern edge of the New England Plateau and escarpment from Gladstone State Forest in the east to the upper Guy Fawkes River drainage north of Ebor and Point Lookout areas in the north to Youdales, Oxley Wild Rivers NP in the south (Fig. 2). Mainly found at altitudes over 900 meters on granitic or basaltic bedrock. Generally found under logs, rocks and shed bark around base of trees.</p>Published as part of <i>Shea, Michael & Köhler, Frank, 2019, Towards a Systematic Revision of the Eastern Australian Land Snail Austrochloritis Pilsbry, 1891 (Eupulmonata, Camaenidae): Re-description of its Type Species, A. porteri (Cox, 1866), pp. 111-120 in Records of the Australian Museum 71 (4)</i> on pages 118-119, DOI: 10.3853/j.2201-4349.71.2019.1699, <a href="http://zenodo.org/record/4653272">http://zenodo.org/record/4653272</a>
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
No full textWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
New Definitive Host Record For Chordodes Morgani (Nematomorpha) In Nebraska With Notes On Ecology
No full textFigueira, T., Owen, D., Hanelt, B., Shea, J. F. (2021): New Definitive Host Record For Chordodes Morgani (Nematomorpha) In Nebraska With Notes On Ecology. Journal of Parasitology 107 (5): 669-675, DOI: 10.1645/20-144, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1645/20-14
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