Book review of Mark McGillivray and Gary Smith's (eds.) "Australia and Asia", Melbourne: Oxford University Press, 1997. vii + 248 pp

The political capital invested in Australia's engagement with Asia over the past decade has sparked a lively discussion in the Australian academic community. The back cover of the book under review suggests that there are 'few bigger contemporary issues facing Australia than its relationship with Asia'. If the volume of scholarly material being produced on this issue is any indication, they are right. Like a number of similar works covering the shift in Australian foreign, defence, and trade policies towards Asia over the last decade, this book acknowledges a particular debt of gratitude to the Keating government for establishing regional engagement at the forefront of our national consciousness. Unlike some others however, this book seeks to place Australia's more recent 'discovery' of Asia into a broader historical framework.

Nitrogen relations of natural and disturbed plant communities in tropical Australia

Nitrogen relations of natural and disturbed tropical plant communities in northern Australia (Kakadu National Park) were studied. Plant and soil N characteristics suggested that differences in N source utilisation occur at community and species level. Leaf and xylem sap N concentrations of plants in different communities were correlated with the availability of inorganic soil N (NH4+ and NO3-). In general, rates of leaf NO3- assimilation were low. Even in communities with a higher N status, including deciduous monsoon forest, disturbed wetland, and a revegetated mine waste rock dump, levels of leaf nitrate reductase, xylem and leaf NO3 levels were considerably lower than those that have been reported for eutrophic communities. Although NO3- assimilation in escarpment and eucalypt woodlands, and wetland, was generally low, within these communities there was a suite of species that exhibited a greater capacity for NO3- assimilation. These high-NO3- species were mainly annuals, resprouting herbs or deciduous trees that had leaves with high N contents. Ficus, a high-NO3- species, was associated with soil exhibiting higher rates of net mineralisation and net nitrification. Low-NO3- species were evergreen perennials with low leaf N concentrations. A third group of plants, which assimilated NO3- (albeit at lower rates than the high-NO3- species), and had high-N leaves, were leguminous species. Acacia species, common in woodlands, had the highest leaf N contents of all woody species. Acacia species appeared to have the greatest potential to utilise the entire spectrum of available N sources. This versatility in N source utilisation may be important in relation to their high tissue N status and comparatively short life cycle. Differences in N utilisation are discussed in the context of species life strategies and mycorrhizal associations.

Subgroup relations: A comparison of mutual intergroup differentiation and common ingroup identity models of prejudice reduction

Two studies examined relations between groups (humanities and math-science students) that implicitly or explicitly share a common superordinate category (university student). In Experiment 1, 178 participants performed a noninteractive decision-making task during which category salience was manipulated in a 2 (superordinate category salience) x 2 (subordinate category salience) between-groups design. Consistent with the mutual intergroup differentiation model, participants for whom both categories were salient exhibited the lowest levels of bias, whereas bias was strongest when the superordinate category alone was made salient. This pattern of results was replicated in Experiment 2 (N = 135). In addition, Experiment 2 demonstrated that members of subgroups that are nested within a superordinate category are more sensitive to how the superordinate category is represented than are members of subgroups that extend beyond the boundaries of the superordinate category.

Exploratory research: Citizen participation, local government and sustainable development in Australia

Exploratory research reported in this paper was undertaken in Adelaide, Australia during 1998/99. The purpose of the research is to explore local development practice as evidenced through the experiences and actions of local citizens, community based groups and local government (Neuman, 1994). Results from this first stage research suggest that sustainability initiatives in Australia might best be implemented through a collaborative approach at the local community level involving local citizens working in partnership with local government. Copyright (C) 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and ERP Environment.

Corruption and the size of government: causality tests for OECD and Latin American countries

The purpose of this article is to examine the causality between government size and corruption, and to verify if there is a different pattern of causality between developed Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries (excluding Mexico) and developing countries (Latin American countries) during the period 1996 to 2003. Applying Granger and Huang`s (1997) methodology we find evidence that size of government Granger causes corruption in both samples. Since a larger government involvement in private markets today will be followed in future by a higher level of corruption a policy advice would be to enhance governance. The promotion of good governance helps to combat corruption given that it complements efforts to reduce corruption more directly, and it is strongly recommended by the International Monetary Fund, other multilateral institutions, and all worried with the negative impacts of corruption on economic activity.

Non-Spatial Government Policies and Regional Income Inequality in Brazil

Silveira Neto R. Da M. and Azzoni C. R. Non-spatial government policies and regional income inequality in Brazil, Regional Studies. This paper uses both macro- and micro-data to analyse the role of social programmes in the recent reduction in Brazilian regional income inequality. Convergence indicators are presented for different sources of regional income in the period 1995-2006. A decomposition of the Gini indicator allows the identification of the role of each of these income sources with respect to the reduction of regional inequality during the period. The results point out that both labour productivity and government non-spatial policies - mainly minimum wage changes and income transference programmes - do have a role in explaining regional inequality reduction during the period. [image omitted] Silveira Neto R. Da M. et Azzoni C. R. Les politiques gouvernementales non-spatiales et l`ecart des revenus regionaux au Bresil, Regional Studies. Cet article emploie des donnees a la fois macroeconomiques et microeconomiques afin d`analyser le role des programmes d`actions sociales quant a la baisse recente de l`ecart des revenus regionaux au Bresil. On presente des indicateurs de convergence pour diverses sources des revenus regionaux pour la periode allant de 1995 a 2006. Une decomposition du coefficient de Gini permet d`identifier le role de chacune de ces sources des revenus par rapport a la baisse de l`ecart des revenus pendant cette periode. Les resultats indiquent que la productivite du travail et les politiques gouvernementales non-spatiales - notamment la modification du salaire minimum et les programmes visant le transfert des revenus - ont un role a jouer pour expliquer la baisse de l`ecart des revenus regionaux pendant la periode en question. Convergence Productivite du travail Transfert des revenus Salaire minimum Effets spatiaux des politiques non-spatiales Silveira Neto R. Da M. und Azzoni C. R. Nicht raumliche Regierungspolitiken und das regionale Einkommensungleichgewicht in Brasilien, Regional Studies. In diesem Beitrag analysieren wir mit Hilfe von Makro- und Mikrodaten die Rolle von sozialen Programmen bei der unlangst erzielten Verringerung des regionalen Einkommensungleichgewichts in Brasilien. Wir stellen Konvergenz-Indikatoren fur verschiedene regionale Einkommensquellen im Zeitraum von 1995 bis 2006 vor. Eine Dekomposition des Gini-Indikators ermoglicht die Identifizierung der jeweiligen Rolle dieser Einkommensquellen fur die Verringerung des regionalen Ungleichgewichts im betreffenden Zeitraum. Die Ergebnisse weisen darauf hin, dass sowohl die Produktivitat der Arbeitskrafte als auch die nicht raumlichen Regierungspolitiken - in erster Linie Veranderungen beim Mindestlohn und Programme fur Einkommenstransfers - als Grunde fur die Verringerung des regionalen Ungleichgewichts in dieser Periode durchaus eine Rolle spielen. Konvergenz Arbeitsproduktivitat Einkommenstransfer Mindestlohn Raumliche Auswirkungen nicht raumlicher Politiken Silveira Neto R. Da M. y Azzoni C. R. Politicas gubernamentales no espaciales y desigualdades de ingresos regionales en Brasil, Regional Studies. En este articulo utilizamos datos macro y micro para analizar el papel de los programas sociales en la reciente reduccion en las desigualdades de ingresos regionales de Brasil. Presentamos los indicadores de convergencia para diferentes fuentes de ingresos regionales en el periodo de 1995 a 2006. Una descomposicion del indice Gini permite identificar el papel de cada una de estas fuentes de ingresos con respecto a la reduccion de las desiguadades regionales durante este periodo. Los resultados destacan que tanto la productividad laboral como las politicas no espaciales del gobierno - principalmente los cambios de salario minimo y los programas de transferencias de ingresos - desempenan una funcion a la hora de explicar la reduccion de las desigualdades regionales durante este periodo. Convergencia Productividad laboral Transferencias de ingresos Salario minimo Efectos espaciales de politicas no espaciales.

Salinity tolerance in Schinopsis quebracho colorado: Seed germination, growth, ion relations and metabolic responses

Soil salinity is a major abiotic stress influencing plant productivity worldwide. Schinopsis quebracho colorado is one of the most important woody species in the Gran Chaco, an and and salt-prone subtropical biome of South America. To gain a better understanding of the physiological mechanisms that allow plant establishment under salt conditions, germination and seedling growth of S. quebracho colorado were examined under treatment with a range of NaCl solutions (germination: 0-300 mmol l(-1) NaCl; seedling growth: 0-200 mmol l(-1) NaCl). The aim was to test the hypothesis that S. quebracho colorado is a glycophite that shows different salt tolerance responses with development stage. Proline content, total soluble carbohydrates and Na+, K+ and Cl- concentrations in leaves and roots of seedlings, and the chlorophyll concentration and relative water content of leaves were measured. Germination was not affected by 100 mmol l(-1) NaCl, but decreased at a concentration of 200 mmol l(-1). At 300 mmol l(-1) NaCl, germination did not occur. Seedling growth decreased drastically with increasing salinity. An increase in NaCl from 0 to 100 mmol l(-1) also significantly reduced the leaf relative water content by 22% and increased the proline concentration by 60% in roots. In contrast, total soluble carbohydrates were not significantly affected by salinity. Seedlings showed a sodium exclusion capacity, and there was an inverse correlation between Cl- concentration and the total chlorophyll concentration. S. quebracho colorado was more tolerant to salinity during germination than in the seedling phase. The results suggest that this increased tolerance during germination might, in part, be the result of lower sensitivity to high tissue Na+ concentrations. The significant increment of proline in the roots suggests the positive role of this amino acid as a compatible solute in balancing the accumulation of Na+ and Cl- as a result of salinity. These results help clarify the physiological mechanisms that allow establishment of S. quebracho colorado on salt-affected soils in arid and semi-arid Gran Chaco. (c) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.