From 'land grabbing' to sustainable investments in land: potential contributions by land change science

This paper assesses possible contributions of land change science to the growing body of knowledge about large-scale land acquisition. Despite obvious commonalities, such as a problem-oriented and interdisciplinary approach to land change, there seems to be little overlap between the two fields thus far. We adopt a sustainability research perspective — an important feature of land change science — to review research questions about large-scale land acquisition that are currently being addressed, and to define questions for further inquiry. Possible contributions of land change science toward more sustainable land investments are based on understanding land use change not only as a consequence, but also as a cause of large-scale land acquisition and as a solution to the problems land acquisition can create.

Use of audiovisual messages from land user to land user for sharing knowledge about SLM: experiences from a pilot project in Kenya and Tajikistan

The global World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT) initiative has developed standardised tools and methods to compile and evaluate knowledge available about SLM. This knowledge is now combined and enriched with audiovisual information in order to give a voice to land users, reach a broad range of stakeholders, and assist in scaling up SLM to reverse trends of degradation, desertification, and drought. Five video products, adapted to the needs of different target groups, are created and embedded in already existing platforms for knowledge sharing of SLM such as the WOCAT database and Google Earth application. A pilot project was carried out in Kenya and Tajikistan to verify ideas and tools while at the same time assessing the usefulness of the suggested products on the ground. Video has the potential to bridge the gap between different actor groups and enable communication and sharing on different levels and scales: locally, regionally, and globally. Furthermore, it is an innovative tool to link local and scientific knowledge, raise awareness, and support advocacy for SLM. Keywords: Sustainable Land Management (SLM), knowledge sharing, audiovisual messages, video, World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT)

Past and future carbon fluxes from land use change, shifting cultivation and wood harvest

Carbon emissions from anthropogenic land use (LU) and land use change (LUC) are quantified with a Dynamic Global Vegetation Model for the past and the 21st century following Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs). Wood harvesting and parallel abandonment and expansion of agricultural land in areas of shifting cultivation are explicitly simulated (gross LUC) based on the Land Use Harmonization (LUH) dataset and a proposed alternative method that relies on minimum input data and generically accounts for gross LUC. Cumulative global LUC emissions are 72 GtC by 1850 and 243 GtC by 2004 and 27–151 GtC for the next 95 yr following the different RCP scenarios. The alternative method reproduces results based on LUH data with full transition information within <0.1 GtC/yr over the last decades and bears potential for applications in combination with other LU scenarios. In the last decade, shifting cultivation and wood harvest within remaining forests including slash each contributed 19% to the mean annual emissions of 1.2 GtC/yr. These factors, in combination with amplification effects under elevated CO2, contribute substantially to future emissions from LUC in all RCPs.

Anthropogenic perturbation of the carbon fluxes from land to ocean

A substantial amount of the atmospheric carbon taken up on land through photosynthesis and chemical weathering is transported laterally along the aquatic continuum from upland terrestrial ecosystems to the ocean. So far, global carbon budget estimates have implicitly assumed that the transformation and lateral transport of carbon along this aquatic continuum has remained unchanged since pre-industrial times. A synthesis of published work reveals the magnitude of present-day lateral carbon fluxes from land to ocean, and the extent to which human activities have altered these fluxes. We show that anthropogenic perturbation may have increased the flux of carbon to inland waters by as much as 1.0 Pg C yr(-1) since pre-industrial times, mainly owing to enhanced carbon export from soils. Most of this additional carbon input to upstream rivers is either emitted back to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide (similar to 0.4 Pg C yr(-1)) or sequestered in sediments (similar to 0.5 Pg C yr(-1)) along the continuum of freshwater bodies, estuaries and coastal waters, leaving only a perturbation carbon input of similar to 0.1 Pg C yr(-1) to the open ocean. According to our analysis, terrestrial ecosystems store similar to 0.9 Pg C yr(-1) at present, which is in agreement with results from forest inventories but significantly differs from the figure of 1.5 Pg C yr(-1) previously estimated when ignoring changes in lateral carbon fluxes. We suggest that carbon fluxes along the land-ocean aquatic continuum need to be included in global carbon dioxide budgets.

Effectiveness of tooth wipes in removing babies' dental biofilm

PURPOSE To assess the effectiveness of tooth wipes in removing dental biofilm from babies' anterior teeth, as well as to evaluate the babies' behaviour and the guardians' preference concerning hygiene methods. MATERIALS AND METHODS In this random blind cross-over study, 50 high caries risk babies, from 8 to 15 months old, were divided into two groups: babies with oral hygiene performed by caregivers (n = 25) or by their mothers (n = 25). The caregivers and mothers removed biofilm using three methods of oral hygiene (tooth wipes, toothbrushes and gauze), one in each experimental phase. Professional cleaning was done before each phase, which had 2 days of biofilm accumulation and 1 experimental day, when caregivers and mothers used one method to remove biofilm. Examiners blinded to the study design assessed the biofilm index at baseline, prior to and following biofilm removal using each method. The babies' behaviour and the mothers'/caregivers' preference were assessed. RESULTS The tooth wipes, toothbrushes and gauze significantly reduced the amount of biofilm (P < 0.001). The mothers' group removed more biofilm than the caregivers' group, using toothbrushes or tooth wipes (P < 0.05). Babies in the mothers' group had better behaviour using tooth wipes than toothbrushes (P < 0.05). Mothers and caregivers preferred to use tooth wipes. CONCLUSIONS Tooth wipes are effective in removing biofilm from babies' anterior teeth and are the method best accepted by mothers, caregivers and babies.

Understanding the chemistry of dental erosion

The mineral in our teeth is composed of a calcium-deficient carbonated hydroxyapatite (Ca10-xNax(PO4)6-y(CO3)z(OH)2-uFu). These substitutions in the mineral crystal lattice, especially carbonate, renders tooth mineral more acid soluble than hydroxyapatite. During erosion by acid and/or chelators, these agents interact with the surface of the mineral crystals, but only after they diffuse through the plaque, the pellicle, and the protein/lipid coating of the individual crystals themselves. The effect of direct attack by the hydrogen ion is to combine with the carbonate and/or phosphate releasing all of the ions from that region of the crystal surface leading to direct surface etching. Acids such as citric acid have a more complex interaction. In water they exist as a mixture of hydrogen ions, acid anions (e.g. citrate) and undissociated acid molecules, with the amounts of each determined by the acid dissociation constant (pKa) and the pH of the solution. Above the effect of the hydrogen ion, the citrate ion can complex with calcium also removing it from the crystal surface and/or from saliva. Values of the strength of acid (pKa) and for the anion-calcium interaction and the mechanisms of interaction with the tooth mineral on the surface and underneath are described in detail.

Prosthetic considerations

Implants have changed prosthodontics more than any other innovation in dentistry. Replacement of lost teeth by a fixed or removable prosthesis is considered to be a restitutio ad similem, while implants may provide a feeling of restitutio ad integrum. Implant prosthodontics means restoring function, aesthetics, and providing technology; biology and technology are combined. Placement of implants is a reconstructive, preprosthetic surgical intervention and is therefore different from most goals in oral surgery that consist of tooth extraction, treating infection and removing pathology from soft or hard tissues. Thus, implants are part of the final prosthetic treatment which encompasses functional, aesthetic and social rehabilitation. The patient's needs and functional status determine the goal of prosthetic treatment. Treatment outcomes in implant prosthodontics are survival of implants and prostheses, impact on physiological and psychological status, oral health-related impact on quality of life, and initial and maintenance costs. A variety of prosthetic solutions are available to restore the partially and completely edentulous jaw and more recently specific methods have been developed such as computer guided planning and CAD-CAM technologies. These should allow more uniform quality and passive fit of prostheses, and simultaneously enables processing of biologically well-accepted materials.

Reply to the editor

We appreciate the comments and concerns expressed by Arakawa and colleagues regarding our article, titled “Pulsatile control of rotary blood pumps: Does the modulation waveform matter?”1 Unfortunately, we have to disagree with Arakawa and colleagues. As is obvious from the title of our article, it investigates the effect of different waveforms on the heart–device interaction. In contrast to the authors' claim, this is the first article in the literature that uses basic waveforms (sine, triangle, saw tooth, and rectangular) with different phase shifts to examines their impact on left ventricular unloading. The previous publications2, 3 and 4 just varied the pump speed during systole and diastole, which was first reported by Bearnson and associates5 in 1996, and studied its effect on aortic pressure, coronary flow, and end-diastolic volume. We should mention that dp/dtmax is a load-sensitive parameter of contractility and not representative for the degree of unloading. Moreover, none of the aforementioned reports has studied mechanical unloading and in particular the stroke work of the left ventricle. Our method is unique because we do not just alternate between high and low speed but have accurate control of the waveform because of the direct drive system of Levitronix Technologies LLC (Waltham, Mass) and a custom-developed pump controller. Without referring, Arakawa and associates state “several previous studies have already reported the coronary flow diminishes as the left ventricular assist device support increases.” It should be noted that all the waveforms used in our study have 2000 rpm average value with 1000 rpm amplitude, which is not an excessive speed for the CentriMag rotary pump (Levitronix) to collapse the ventricle and diminish the coronary flow. We agree with Arakawa and coworkers that there is a need for a heart failure model to come to more relevant results with respect to clinical expectations. However, we have explored many existing models, including species and breeds that have a native proneness to cardiomyopathy, but all of them differ from the genetic presentation in humans. We certainly do not believe that the use of microembolization, in which the coronary circulation is impaired by the injection of microspheres, would form a good model from which to draw conclusions about coronary flow change under different loading conditions. A model would be needed in which either an infarct is created to mimic ischemic heart failure or the coronary circulation remains untouched to simulate, for instance, dilated cardiomyopathy. Furthermore, in discussion we clearly mention that “lack of heart failure is a major limitation of our study.” We also believe that unloading is not the only factor of the cardiac functional recovery, and an excessive unloading of the left ventricle might lead to cardiac tissue atrophy. Therefore, in our article we mention that control of the level of cardiac unloading by assist devices has been suggested as a mechanical tool to promote recovery, and more studies are required to find better strategies for the speed modulation of rotary pumps and to achieve an optimal heart load control to enhance myocardial recovery. Finally, there are many publications about pulsing rotary blood pumps and it was impossible to include them all. We preferred to reference some of the earlier basic works such as an original research by Bearnson and coworkers5 and another article published by our group,6 which is more relevant.

The global carbon budget 1959–2011

Accurate assessments of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and their redistribution among the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere is important to better understand the global carbon cycle, support the climate policy process, and project future climate change. Present-day analysis requires the combination of a range of data, algorithms, statistics and model estimates and their interpretation by a broad scientific community. Here we describe datasets and a methodology developed by the global carbon cycle science community to quantify all major components of the global carbon budget, including their uncertainties. We discuss changes compared to previous estimates, consistency within and among components, and methodology and data limitations. CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion and cement production (EFF) are based on energy statistics, while emissions from Land-Use Change (ELUC), including deforestation, are based on combined evidence from land cover change data, fire activity in regions undergoing deforestation, and models. The global atmospheric CO2 concentration is measured directly and its rate of growth (GATM) is computed from the concentration. The mean ocean CO2 sink (SOCEAN) is based on observations from the 1990s, while the annual anomalies and trends are estimated with ocean models. Finally, the global residual terrestrial CO2 sink (SLAND) is estimated by the difference of the other terms. For the last decade available (2002–2011), EFF was 8.3 ± 0.4 PgC yr−1, ELUC 1.0 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1, GATM 4.3 ± 0.1 PgC yr−1, SOCEAN 2.5 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1, and SLAND 2.6 ± 0.8 PgC yr−1. For year 2011 alone, EFF was 9.5 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1, 3.0 percent above 2010, reflecting a continued trend in these emissions; ELUC was 0.9 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1, approximately constant throughout the decade; GATM was 3.6 ± 0.2 PgC yr−1, SOCEAN was 2.7 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1, and SLAND was 4.1 ± 0.9 PgC yr−1. GATM was low in 2011 compared to the 2002–2011 average because of a high uptake by the land probably in response to natural climate variability associated to La Niña conditions in the Pacific Ocean. The global atmospheric CO2 concentration reached 391.31 ± 0.13 ppm at the end of year 2011. We estimate that EFF will have increased by 2.6% (1.9–3.5%) in 2012 based on projections of gross world product and recent changes in the carbon intensity of the economy. All uncertainties are reported as ±1 sigma (68% confidence assuming Gaussian error distributions that the real value lies within the given interval), reflecting the current capacity to characterise the annual estimates of each component of the global carbon budget. This paper is intended to provide a baseline to keep track of annual carbon budgets in the future.

The global carbon budget 1959–2011

Accurate assessment of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and their redistribution among the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere is important to better understand the global carbon cycle, support the climate policy process, and project future climate change. Present-day analysis requires the combination of a range of data, algorithms, statistics and model estimates and their interpretation by a broad scientific community. Here we describe datasets and a methodology developed by the global carbon cycle science community to quantify all major components of the global carbon budget, including their uncertainties. We discuss changes compared to previous estimates, consistency within and among components, and methodology and data limitations. Based on energy statistics, we estimate that the global emissions of CO2 from fossil fuel combustion and cement production were 9.5 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1 in 2011, 3.0 percent above 2010 levels. We project these emissions will increase by 2.6% (1.9–3.5%) in 2012 based on projections of Gross World Product and recent changes in the carbon intensity of the economy. Global net CO2 emissions from Land-Use Change, including deforestation, are more difficult to update annually because of data availability, but combined evidence from land cover change data, fire activity in regions undergoing deforestation and models suggests those net emissions were 0.9 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1 in 2011. The global atmospheric CO2 concentration is measured directly and reached 391.38 ± 0.13 ppm at the end of year 2011, increasing 1.70 ± 0.09 ppm yr−1 or 3.6 ± 0.2 PgC yr−1 in 2011. Estimates from four ocean models suggest that the ocean CO2 sink was 2.6 ± 0.5 PgC yr−1 in 2011, implying a global residual terrestrial CO2 sink of 4.1 ± 0.9 PgC yr−1. All uncertainties are reported as ±1 sigma (68% confidence assuming Gaussian error distributions that the real value lies within the given interval), reflecting the current capacity to characterise the annual estimates of each component of the global carbon budget. This paper is intended to provide a baseline to keep track of annual carbon budgets in the future.

Global carbon budget 2013

Accurate assessment of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and their redistribution among the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere is important to better understand the global carbon cycle, support the development of climate policies, and project future climate change. Here we describe data sets and a methodology to quantify all major components of the global carbon budget, including their uncertainties, based on the combination of a range of data, algorithms, statistics and model estimates and their interpretation by a broad scientific community. We discuss changes compared to previous estimates, consistency within and among components, alongside methodology and data limitations. CO2 emissions from fossil-fuel combustion and cement production (EFF) are based on energy statistics, while emissions from land-use change (ELUC), mainly deforestation, are based on combined evidence from land-cover change data, fire activity associated with deforestation, and models. The global atmospheric CO2 concentration is measured directly and its rate of growth (GATM) is computed from the annual changes in concentration. The mean ocean CO2 sink (SOCEAN) is based on observations from the 1990s, while the annual anomalies and trends are estimated with ocean models. The variability in SOCEAN is evaluated for the first time in this budget with data products based on surveys of ocean CO2 measurements. The global residual terrestrial CO2 sink (SLAND) is estimated by the difference of the other terms of the global carbon budget and compared to results of independent dynamic global vegetation models forced by observed climate, CO2 and land cover change (some including nitrogen–carbon interactions). All uncertainties are reported as ± 1 σ, reflecting the current capacity to characterise the annual estimates of each component of the global carbon budget. For the last decade available (2003–2012), EFF was 8.6 ± 0.4 GtC yr − 1, ELUC 0.9 ± 0.5 GtC yr − 1, GATM 4.3 ± 0.1 GtC yr − 1, S OCEAN 2.5 ± 0.5 GtC yr − 1, and S LAND 2.8 ± 0.8 GtC yr − 1. For year 2012 alone, EFF grew to 9.7 ± 0.5 GtC yr − 1, 2.2 % above 2011, reflecting a continued growing trend in these emissions, GATM was 5.1 ± 0.2 GtC yr − 1, SOCEANwas 2.9 ± 0.5 GtC yr −1, and assuming an ELU Cof 1.0 ± 0.5 GtC yr − 1 (based on the 2001–2010 average), SLAND was 2.7 ± 0.9 GtC yr − 1. GATM was high in 2012 compared to the 2003–2012 average, almost entirely reflecting the high EFF. The global atmospheric CO2 con- centration reached 392.52 ± 0.10 ppm averaged over 2012. We estimate that EFF will increase by 2.1 % (1.1–3.1 %) to 9.9 ± 0.5 GtC in 2013, 61 % above emissions in 1990, based on projections of world gross domestic product and recent changes in the carbon intensity of the economy. With this projection, cumulative emissions of CO2 will reach about 535 ± 55 GtC for 1870–2013, about 70 % from EFF (390 ± 20 GtC) and 30 % from ELUC (145 ± 50 GtC). This paper also documents any changes in the methods and data sets used in this new carbon budget from previous budgets (Le Quéré et al., 2013). All observations presented here can be downloaded from the Carbon Dioxide Information Analysis Center.

The International Surface Pressure Databank version 2

The International Surface Pressure Databank (ISPD) is the world's largest collection of global surface and sea-level pressure observations. It was developed by extracting observations from established international archives, through international cooperation with data recovery facilitated by the Atmospheric Circulation Reconstructions over the Earth (ACRE) initiative, and directly by contributing universities, organizations, and countries. The dataset period is currently 1768–2012 and consists of three data components: observations from land stations, marine observing systems, and tropical cyclone best track pressure reports. Version 2 of the ISPD (ISPDv2) was created to be observational input for the Twentieth Century Reanalysis Project (20CR) and contains the quality control and assimilation feedback metadata from the 20CR. Since then, it has been used for various general climate and weather studies, and an updated version 3 (ISPDv3) has been used in the ERA-20C reanalysis in connection with the European Reanalysis of Global Climate Observations project (ERA-CLIM). The focus of this paper is on the ISPDv2 and the inclusion of the 20CR feedback metadata. The Research Data Archive at the National Center for Atmospheric Research provides data collection and access for the ISPDv2, and will provide access to future versions.

A minimally destructive technique for removing the smear layer from dentine surfaces

OBJECTIVES: To develop a minimally destructive technique for removing the smear layer produced by cutting and polishing specimens of dentine prepared for use in experimental studies, e.g. on occlusion of dentinal tubules by oral health products. The aim was to avoid the damage caused by conventional techniques utilising short exposures to solutions with very low pH. METHODS: Two acetate buffers, pH 5.5, containing different concentrations of calcium and phosphate, with -log(ion activity product with respect to hydroxyapatite) (pI(HA)) of 55 or 56, were tested on slices of dentine using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). RESULTS: A solution which, from previous work, was slightly undersaturated with respect to dentine mineral, with a pI(HA) of 56, was found to remove smear layers produced by cutting and/or polishing after 15 min. However, to reliably remove debris occluding the tubules an exposure time of 2h, followed by brief ultrasonication, was necessary. After 2h treatment with this buffer, only a small amount of demineralization of the surface was detectable by SEM, while calcium and phosphorus were detectable by X-ray dispersive spectroscopy. CONCLUSION: It is possible to remove smear layers, and to open dentinal tubules, by a reasonably short exposure to an acidic buffer which is undersaturated with respect to dentine mineral.

Perennial Snow and Ice Variations (2000-2008) in the Arctic Circumpolar Land Area from Satellite Observations

Perennial snow and ice (PSI) extent is an important parameter of mountain environments with regard to its involvement in the hydrological cycle and the surface energy budget. We investigated interannual variations of PSI in nine mountain regions of interest (ROI) between 2000 and 2008. For that purpose, a novel MODIS data set processed at the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing at 250 m spatial resolution was utilized. The extent of PSI exhibited significant interannual variations, with coefficients of variation ranging from 5% to 81% depending on the ROI. A strong negative relationship was found between PSI and positive degree-days (threshold 0°C) during the summer months in most ROIs, with linear correlation coefficients (r) being as low as r = −0.90. In the European Alps and Scandinavia, PSI extent was significantly correlated with annual net glacier mass balances, with r = 0.91 and r = 0.85, respectively, suggesting that MODIS-derived PSI extent may be used as an indicator of net glacier mass balances. Validation of PSI extent in two land surface classifications for the years 2000 and 2005, GLC-2000 and Globcover, revealed significant discrepancies of up to 129% for both classifications. With regard to the importance of such classifications for land surface parameterizations in climate and land surface process models, this is a potential source of error to be investigated in future studies. The results presented here provide an interesting insight into variations of PSI in several ROIs and are instrumental for our understanding of sensitive mountain regions in the context of global climate change assessment.