A primer for use of genetic tools in selecting and testing the suitability of set-aside sites protected from deep-sea seafloor massive sulfide mining activities

Seafloor massive sulfide (SMS) mining will likely occur at hydrothermal systems in the near future. Alongside their mineral wealth, SMS deposits also have considerable biological value. Active SMS deposits host endemic hydrothermal vent communities, whilst inactive deposits support communities of deep water corals and other suspension feeders. Mining activities are expected to remove all large organisms and suitable habitat in the immediate area, making vent endemic organisms particularly at risk from habitat loss and localised extinction. As part of environmental management strategies designed to mitigate the effects of mining, areas of seabed need to be protected to preserve biodiversity that is lost at the mine site and to preserve communities that support connectivity among populations of vent animals in the surrounding region. These "set-aside" areas need to be biologically similar to the mine site and be suitably connected, mostly by transport of larvae, to neighbouring sites to ensure exchange of genetic material among remaining populations. Establishing suitable set-asides can be a formidable task for environmental managers, however the application of genetic approaches can aid set-aside identification, suitability assessment and monitoring. There are many genetic tools available, including analysis of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences (e.g. COI or other suitable mtDNA genes) and appropriate nuclear DNA markers (e.g. microsatellites, single nucleotide polymorphisms), environmental DNA (eDNA) techniques and microbial metagenomics. When used in concert with traditional biological survey techniques, these tools can help to identify species, assess the genetic connectivity among populations and assess the diversity of communities. How these techniques can be applied to set-aside decision making is discussed and recommendations are made for the genetic characteristics of set-aside sites. A checklist for environmental regulators forms a guide to aid decision making on the suitability of set-aside design and assessment using genetic tools. This non-technical primer document represents the views of participants in the VentBase 2014 workshop.

Systematically retrieving research in the digital age: Case study on the topic of social networking sites and young people’s mental health

Online information seeking has become normative practice among both academics and the general population. This study appraised the performance of eight databases to retrieve research pertaining to the influence of social networking sites on the mental health of young people. A total of 43 empirical studies on young people’s use of social networking sites and the mental health implications were retrieved. Scopus and SSCI had the highest sensitivity with PsycINFO having the highest precision. Effective searching requires large
generic databases, supplemented by subject-specific catalogues. The methodology developed here may provide inexperienced searchers, such as undergraduate students, with a framework to define a realistic scale of searching to undertake for a particular literature review or similar project.

Extension of electrochemically active sites in SOFCs and SOECs

Solid oxide fuel (SOFCs) and electrolyzer (SOECs) cells have been promoted as promising technologies for the stabilization of fuel supply and usage in future green energy systems. SOFCs are devices that produce electricity by the oxidation of hydrogen or hydrocarbon fuels with high efficiency. Conversely, SOECs can offer the reverse reaction, where synthetic fuels can be generated by the input of renewable electricity. Due to this similar but inverse nature of SOFCs and SOECs, these devices have traditionally been constructed from comparable materials. Nonetheless, several limitations have hindered the entry of SOFCs and SOECs into the marketplace. One of the most debilitating is associated with chemical interreactions between cell components that can lead to poor longevities at high working temperatures and/or depleted electrochemcial performance. Normally such interreactions are countered by the introduction of thin, purely ionic conducting, buffer layers between the electrode and electrolyte interface. The objective of this thesis is to assess if possible improvements in electrode kinetics can also be obtained by modifying the transport properties of these buffer layers by the introduction of multivalent cations. The introduction of minor electronic conductivity in the surface of the electrolyte material has previously been shown to radically enhance the electrochemically active area for oxygen exchange, reducing polarization resistance losses. Hence, the current thesis aims to extend this knowledge to tailor a bi-functional buffer layer that can prevent chemical interreaction while also enhancing electrode kinetics.The thesis selects a typical scenario of an yttria stabilized zirconia electrolyte combined with a lanthanide containing oxygen electrode. Gadolinium, terbium and praseodymium doped cerium oxide materials have been investigated as potential buffer layers. The mixed ionic electronic conducting (MIEC) properties of the doped-cerium materials have been analyzed and collated. A detailed analysis is further presented of the impact of the buffer layers on the kinetics of the oxygen electrode in SOFC and SOEC devices. Special focus is made to assess for potential links between the transport properties of the buffer layer and subsequent electrode performance. The work also evaluates the electrochemical performance of different K2NiF4 structure cathodes deposited onto a peak performing Pr doped-cerium buffer layer, the influence of buffer layer thickness and the Pr content of the ceria buffer layer. It is shown that dramatic increases in electrode performance can be obtained by the introduction of MIEC buffer layers, where the best performances are shown to be offered by buffer layers of highest ambipolar conductivity. These buffer layers are also shown to continue to offer the bifunctional role to protect from unwanted chemical interactions at the electrode/electrolyte interface.

Élaboration d'une grille d'analyse des conceptions de l'apprentissage sous-jacentes à des sites Internet destinés à l'enseignement des sciences au secondaire

Les progrès récents dans le domaine des technologies de l'information et de la communication (TIC) ouvrent de nouvelles possibilités pour l'enseignement en général et pour celui des sciences en particulier. Les efforts gouvernementaux en cette matière indiquent le caractère pour le moins irréversible de la percée des TIC en éducation et de la nécessite de se pencher sur le matériel qui est offert. Plus particulièrement, nous nous sommes intéressés à la question des conceptions de l'apprentissage qui peuvent sous-tendre l'élaboration d'un site Internet pour l'enseignement des sciences au secondaire. Cette recherche est de type développement. Elle s'intéresse à l'enseignement des sciences au secondaire et au matériel disponible dans Internet. Elle se limite aux premières étapes particulières à ce type de recherche, soit celles de l'exploration de la littérature, de la validation des énoncés par un comité d'experts et de l'élaboration d'une grille d'analyse des conceptions de l'apprentissage sous-jacentes aux sites Internet. Le but de cette recherche est de construire un outil d'analyse des conceptions de l'apprentissage sous-jacentes à des sites Internet pour l'enseignement des sciences au secondaire."--Résumé abrégé par UMI.

Generation of acid sites by incorporation of cobalt in the AFR structure

Pure CoAPO4-40 and CoAPSO-40 samples have been synthesized. The CoII <=> CoIII framework transformation, and hence the number of potential acid sites has been evaluated by spectroscopic techniques and using m-xylene isomerization as model reaction.

Temporal and Georaphical Variations in Grass Pollen Seasons in Areas of Western Europe: an Analysis of Season dates at Sites of the European Pollen Information System.

Geographical and temporal variations in the start dates of grass pollen seasons are described for selected sites of the European Pollen Information Service. Daily average grass pollen counts are derived from Network sites in Finland, the Netherlands, Denmark, United Kingdom, Austria, Italy and Spain, giving a broad longitudinal transect over Western Europe. The study is part of a larger project that also examines annual and regional variations in the severity, timing of the peak and duration of the grass pollen seasons. For several sites, data are available for over twenty years enabling long term trends to be discerned. The analyses show notable contrasts in the progression of the seasons annually with differing lag times occurring between southern and northern sites in various years depending on the weather conditions. The patterns identified provide some insight into geographical differences and temporal trends in the incidence of pollinosis. The paper discusses the main difficulties involved in this type of analysis and notes possibilities for using data from the European Pollen Information service to construct pan European predictive models for pollen seasons.

Comparison of Poaceae Pollen Counts Recorded at Sites in Portugal, Spain and the UK

The main aim of this study was to analyse the temporal and spatial variations in grass (Poaceae) pollen counts (2005–2011) recorded in Évora (Portugal), Badajoz (Spain) and Worcester (UK). Weekly average data were examined using nonparametric statistics to compare differences between places. On average, Évora recorded the earliest start dates of the Poaceae pollen seasons and Worcester the latest. The intensity of the Poaceae pollen season varied between sites, with Worcester usually recording the least and Évora the most grass pollen in a season. Mean durations of grass pollen seasons were 77 days in Évora, 78 days in Badajoz and 59 days in Worcester. Overall, longer Poaceae pollen seasons coincided with earlier pollen season start dates. Weekly pollen data, from March to September, from the three pollen-monitoring stations studied were compared. The best fit and most statistically significant correlations were obtained by moving Worcester data backward by 4 weeks (Évora, r = 0.810, p < 0.001) and 5 weeks (Badajoz,r = 0.849, p < 0.001). Weekly data from Worcester therefore followed a similar pattern to that of Badajoz and Évora but at a distance of more than 1,500 km and 4–5 weeks later. The sum of pollen recorded in a season was compared with monthly rainfall between January and May. The strongest positive relationship between season intensity and rainfall was between the annual sum of Poaceae pollen recorded in the season at Badajoz and Évora and total rainfall during January and February. Winter rainfall noticeably affects the intensity of Poaceae pollen seasons in Mediterranean areas, but this was not as important in Worcester.

Readjusting our Sporting Sites/Sight: Sportification and the Theatricality of Social Life

This paper points out the potential of using sport for the analysis of society. Cultivated human movement is a specific social and cultural subsystem (involving sport, movement culture and physical culture), yet it becomes a part of wider social discourses by extending some of its characteristics into various other spheres. This process, theorised as sportification, provides as useful concept to examine the permeation of certain phenomena from the area of sport into the social reality outside of sport. In this paper, we investigate the phenomena of sportification which we parallel with visual culture and spectatorship practices in the Renaissance era. The emphasis in our investigation is on theatricality and performativity; particularly, the superficial spectator engagement with modern sport and sporting spectacles. Unlike the significance afforded to visualisation and deeper symbolic interpretation in Renaissance art, contemporary cultural shifts have changed and challenged the ways in which the active and interacting body is positioned, politicised, symbolised and ultimately understood. We suggest here that the ways in which we view sport and sporting bodies within a (post)modern context (particularly with the confounding amalgamations of signs and symbols and emphasis on hyper-realities) has invariably become detached from sports’ profound metaphysical meanings and resonance. Subsequently, by emphasising the associations between social theatrics and the sporting complex, this paper aims to remind readers of ways that sport—as a nuanced phenomenon—can be operationalised to help us to contemplate questions about nature, society, ourselves and the complex worlds in which we live.

Estratégias de tradução em sites das regiões de turismo de Portugal: estudo baseado em corpus

Em Portugal, o turismo é uma actividade económica que gera ganhos significativos e a promoção turística do país no mercado externo assenta cada vez mais na criação de sites multilingues. Este artigo examina um corpus constituído por textos provenientes de sites de Regiões de Turismo de Portugal, em português, e as respectivas traduções para inglês, com o objectivo de demonstrar o modo como os tradutores adicionam informação inexistente no texto original. Através da análise desta característica específica dos sites oficiais traduzidos para promover o destino ―Portugal‖ no mercado externo pretende salientar-se a importância que as estratégias de tradução assumem no marketing do destino turístico, uma vez que a informação adicionada cria uma determinada imagem de uma região. Em termos teóricos e metodológicos, este artigo enquadra-se no âmbito da Linguística de Corpus.

Contribution à l’étude du nannoplacton du leg 12, «sites» 118-119 (Ocean Atlantique)

This paper reports a Scanning Electron Microscopy study of some samples from the leg 12, Deep Sea Drilling Project, sites 118 and 119. The chronostratigraphic distribution, the frequency of the species identified and the datation of the samples studied are presented. In accordance with the calcareous nannofossil zonation proposed by E. MARTINI (1971) the samples from site 118 are ascribed to the Upper Miocene while the samples from site 119 are located between the Lower (NN1) and the Upper Miocene (NN10).

Estratégias de tradução em sites das regiões de turismo de Portugal: estudo baseado em corpus

Em Portugal, o turismo é uma actividade económica que gera ganhos significativos e a promoção turística do país no mercado externo assenta cada vez mais na criação de sites multilingues. Este artigo examina um corpus constituído por textos provenientes de sites de Regiões de Turismo de Portugal, em português, e as respectivas traduções para inglês, com o objectivo de demonstrar o modo como os tradutores adicionam informação inexistente no texto original. Através da análise desta característica específica dos sites oficiais traduzidos para promover o destino ―Portugal‖ no mercado externo pretende salientar-se a importância que as estratégias de tradução assumem no marketing do destino turístico, uma vez que a informação adicionada cria uma determinada imagem de uma região. Em termos teóricos e metodológicos, este artigo enquadra-se no âmbito da Linguística de Corpus.

As televisões generalistas portuguesas online: estudo sobre a presença de conteúdos Informativos nos sites da RTP, SIC e TVI

Dissertação apresentada à Escola Superior de Comunicação Social como parte dos requisitos para obtenção de grau de mestre em Audiovisual e Multimédia.