Estudio del potencial ecoturístico de la Reserva Natural Isla Juan Venado, León, Nicaragua

El estudio fue realizado en la Reserva Natural Isla Juan Venado, León, con el fin de evaluar potencialidades para desarrollar el ecoturismo en la zona, con base en los atractivos escénicos, socioculturales y científicos, infraestructura y servicios que pueden ofertar las comunidades de la zona de amortiguamiento. El proceso metodológico se desarrolló en cuatro etapas: (1) se visitó el sitio, se contactaron líderes comunales, representantes del MARENA y se recopiló información secundaria; (2) se realizó un Diagnóstico Rural Participativo (evaluación del grado de conocimiento de los pobladores sobre la Reserva, elaboración de mapa de sitios de interés ecoturistico, desarrollo de matriz de priorización de problemas y del análisis FODA), la visita y georeferenciación de sitios determinados anteriormente y aplicación de encuestas a pobladores y visitantes para conocer percepción sobre los potenciales de la Reserva y las capacidades locales para el desarrollo ecoturistico; (3) se procesó y analizó la información obtenida, se diseñó un mapa de ubicación georeferenciada de los sitios de interés y se analizaron las encuestas; y (4) se elaboraron dos propuestas de paquetes ecoturísticos para la Reserva y se presentaron a través de un taller a las comunidades. Como resultados tenemos: ocho sitios de interés: Estero Juan Venado, El Corcovado, Las Navajas, La Flor, El Mango, El Icaco, Casa Las Peñas y Viveros de Tortugas, resaltando la gran diversidad de flora y fauna que poseen, anidamientos de diferentes especies de fauna, ecosistemas representativos de manglares y humedales, transición de manglares a bosques secos y sitios de protección y conservación de huevos de la tortuga paslama. Se pudo determinar, que aunque no haya las condiciones óptimas de servicios e infraestructura, podrían mejorarse y los recursos de la Reserva pueden ser utilizados en beneficio de las comunidades, considerando que sus miembros presentan disposición para desarrollar el ecoturismo en la zona. Las dos propuestas de paquetes ecoturísticos presentadas, fueron aceptadas y mejoradas por los beneficiarios.

La ciencia económica después de la crisis mundial

I am delighted to be here this evening. This is my first visit to Argentina and I am honored to be invited by the Catholic University of Argentina. I will talk about the world crisis from a Keynesian point of view, and my lecture will be divided into three parts: why did it start?; what should we be doing about it?; and what steps can we take to prevent something like this from happening again. So I will deal with “origin”, “recovery” and “reform”. Because of the speed of the recovery in this part of the world my diagnosis and prescriptions might at first glance seem less relevant to Argentina and Latin America than to Europe and the United States. But Latin America’s recovery is mainly based on rising commodity prices and commodity prices are, partly determined by what happens to the rest of the world. In a globalized world each country fate is bound up with the fate of its neighbors. Bringing about a global recovery, therefore, is in the interest of all, whether in South America or Southern Europe.

La eficacia de la publicidad on-line en el contexto de los blogs

[ES] El objetivo del presente trabajo se ha centrado en medir la eficacia publicitaria de dos formatos de anuncios on-line, concretamente el robapáginas frente al contextual, así como los factores que sobre la base de la literatura revisada influyen en dicha eficacia publicitaria. Su contexto de aplicación son las páginas web de tipo blog o bitácora que, a pesar del auge que han experimentado en su utilización, no han recibido atención en el ámbito de la investigación publicitaria.

走近钱老——对钱学森先生一次难得的拜望

在力学所建所50周年及钱学森归国50周年之际，2005年12月7日下午3时，参与力学所筹建工作的老科学家朱兆祥先生、力学所第二任所长郑哲敏院士和现任所长洪友士、党委书记何林一行4人，拜望了他们的老所长、“国家杰出贡献科学家”钱学森先生．

STREAM Journal, Vol. 2, No. 4, pp 1-18. October-December 2003

CONTENTS: An experience with group formation in Jabarrah, West Bengal, by Amar Prasad, Virendra Singh, Binay Sahay and Gautum Dutta. Aquaculture self-help groups in rural West Bengal, by Satyendra Tripathi, Graham Haylor and William Savage in consultation with Jagdish Gangwar, Virendra Singh, Gautam Dutta and Prabhat Pathak. Lessons learned for Fulwar Toli from an exposure visit to Jabarrah Bhim Nayak and Rubu Mukherjee. Livelihood intervention by Fish Farmers Development Agency: a success story from Mayurbhanj, Orissa, by G.B. Parida. Understanding of assets-based livelihoods through participatory rural appraisal to eliminate hunger, by Binay Sahay. Poverty ranking tools in PRA: experiences of EIRFP in addressing vulnerability, by Binay Sahay.

Channel Islands marine protected areas first 5 years of monitoring: 2003-2008 [Report produced by the California Department of Fish and Game in collaboration with the Partnership for Interdisciplinary Studies of Coastal Oceans (PISCO), Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary, and Channel Islands National Park]

The Channel Islands—sometimes called the Galapagos of North America—are known for their great beauty, rich biodiversity, cultural heritage, and recreational opportunities. In 1980, in recognition of the islands’ importance, the United States Congress established a national park encompassing 5 of California’s Channel Islands (Santa Barbara, Anacapa, Santa Cruz, Santa Rosa, and San Miguel Islands) and waters within 1 nautical mile of the islands. In the same year, Congress declared a national marine sanctuary around each of these islands, including waters up to 6 nautical miles offshore. Approximately 60,000 people visit the Channel Islands each year for aquatic recreation such as fishing, sailing, kayaking, wildlife watching, surfing, and diving. Another 30,000 people visit the islands for hiking, camping, and sightseeing. Dozens of commercial fishing boats based in Santa Barbara, Ventura, Oxnard, and other ports go to the Channel Islands to catch squid, spiny lobster, sea urchin, rockfish, crab, sheephead, flatfish, and sea cucumber, among other species. In the past few decades, advances in fishing technology and the rising number of fishermen, in conjunction with changing ocean conditions and diseases, have contributed to declines in some marine fishes and invertebrates at the Channel Islands. In 1998, citizens from Santa Barbara and Ventura proposed establishment of no-take marine reserves at the Channel Islands, beginning a 4-year process of public meetings, discussions, and scientific analyses. In 2003, the California Fish and Game Commission designated a network of marine protected areas (MPAs) in state waters around the northern Channel Islands. In 2006 and 2007, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) extended the MPAs into the national marine sanctuary’s deeper, federal waters. To determine if the MPAs are protecting marine species and habitats, scientists are monitoring ecological changes. They are studying changes in habitats; abundance and size of species of interest; the ocean food web and ecosystem; and movement of fish and invertebrates from MPAs to surrounding waters. Additionally, scientists are monitoring human activities such as commercial and recreational fisheries, and compliance with MPA regulations. This booklet describes some results from the first 5 years of monitoring the Channel Islands MPAs. Although 5 years is not long enough to determine if the MPAs will accomplish all of their goals, this booklet offers a glimpse of the changes that are beginning to take place and illustrates the types of information that will eventually be used to assess the MPAs’ effectiveness. (PDF contains 24 pages.)

Aquaculture Asia, Vol.13, No.3, pp.1-60, July-September 2008

Comments on possible improvements to carp culture in Andhra Pradesh. Aquaculture and environmental issues in the region of Nai Lagoon, Ninh Hai district,Ninh Thuan province, Viet Nam. Climate change impacts on fi sheries and aquaculture. New initiatives in fisheries extension. Selection potential for feed efficiency in farmed salmonids. Freshwater prawn hatcheries in Bangladesh: Concern of broodstock. Production of Cirrhinus molitorella and Labeo chrysophekadion for culture based fisheries development in Lao PDR 2: Nursery culture and grow-out. Mussel farming: alternate water monitoring practice. Benefit-cost analysis for fi ngerling production of kutum Rutilus frisii kutum (Kamensky, 1901)in 2005 in Iran. The effects of feeding frequency on FCR and SGR factors of the fry of rainbow trout,Oncorhynchus mykiss. Asia-Pacific Marine Finfish Aquaculture Network Magazine: The use of poultry by-product meals in pelleted feed for humpback grouper. Production update – marine finfish aquaculture in the Asia-Pacific region. Crustacean parasites and their management in brackishwater finfish culture. NACA Newsletter

Back to Office Report: Pakistan 30.5 - 3.6.04

This is a report of Mr. Haylor's visit to Pakistan to negotiate a Partnership Agreement, agree a National Co-ordinator for STREAM in Pakistan and begin the process of recruiting a Communications Hub Manager. An agreement was also obtained by him for funds from FAO for supporting the establishment of the Communications Hub and to conduct an Aquatic Resources and Poverty Review and a Country Strategy Paper.(PDF contains 22 pages)

PICES Press, Vol. 17, No. 2, July 2009

Major Outcomes from the 2009 PICES Annual Meeting: A Note from the Chairman (pdf, 0.1 Mb) The FUTURE is Here (pdf, 0.1 Mb) PICES Harmful Algal Bloom International Seafood Safety Project (pdf, 0.3 Mb) PICES at the 2009 GLOBEC Open Science Meeting (pdf, 0.4 Mb) Modeling Ecosystems and Ocean Processes Workshop (pdf, 0.1 Mb) Krill Biology and Ecology Workshop (pdf, 0.1 Mb) Polar and Sub-Polar Marine Ecosystems Workshop (pdf, 0.4 Mb) Biogeochemistry of the Oceans in a Changing Climate Workshop (pdf, 0.1 Mb) Continuous Plankton Recorder Surveys of the Global Oceans (pdf, 0.4 Mb) Plankton Phenology Workshop (pdf, 0.2 Mb) Workshop on “Climate Impact on Ecosystem Dynamics of Marginal Seas” (pdf, 0.1 Mb) Erratum (pdf, 0.4 Mb) The State of the Western North Pacific in the Second Half of 2008 (pdf, 0.2 Mb) State of the Northeast Pacific into early 2009 (pdf, 0.1 Mb) Current Status of the Bering Sea Ecosystem (pdf, 0.1 Mb) 2009 Salmon Forecasting Forum (pdf, 0.3 Mb) The Third Argo Science Workshop: “The Future of Argo” (pdf, 0.1 Mb) 2009 ESSAS Annual Science Meeting (pdf, 0.1 Mb) A Visit Fit for an Emperor and Empress of Japan (pdf, 0.9 Mb)

Two-magnon bound state causes ultrafast thermally induced magnetisation switching

There has been much interest recently in the discovery of thermally induced magnetisation switching using femtosecond laser excitation, where a ferrimagnetic system can be switched deterministically without an applied magnetic field. Experimental results suggest that the reversal occurs due to intrinsic material properties, but so far the microscopic mechanism responsible for reversal has not been identified. Using computational and analytic methods we show that the switching is caused by the excitation of two-magnon bound states, the properties of which are dependent on material factors. This discovery allows us to accurately predict the onset of switching and the identification of this mechanism will allow new classes of materials to be identified or designed for memory devices in the THz regime.

Efficient Gate-tunable light-emitting device made of defective boron nitride nanotubes: from ultraviolet to the visible

Boron nitride is a promising material for nanotechnology applications due to its two-dimensional graphene-like, insulating, and highly-resistant structure. Recently it has received a lot of attention as a substrate to grow and isolate graphene as well as for its intrinsic UV lasing response. Similar to carbon, one-dimensional boron nitride nanotubes (BNNTs) have been theoretically predicted and later synthesised. Here we use first principles simulations to unambiguously demonstrate that i) BN nanotubes inherit the highly efficient UV luminescence of hexagonal BN; ii) the application of an external perpendicular field closes the electronic gap keeping the UV lasing with lower yield; iii) defects in BNNTS are responsible for tunable light emission from the UV to the visible controlled by a transverse electric field (TEF). Our present findings pave the road towards optoelectronic applications of BN-nanotube-based devices that are simple to implement because they do not require any special doping or complex growth

A quantitative witness for Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger entanglement

Along with the vast progress in experimental quantum technologies there is an increasing demand for the quantification of entanglement between three or more quantum systems. Theory still does not provide adequate tools for this purpose. The objective is, besides the quest for exact results, to develop operational methods that allow for efficient entanglement quantification. Here we put forward an analytical approach that serves both these goals. We provide a simple procedure to quantify Greenberger-Horne-Zeilinger-type multipartite entanglement in arbitrary three-qubit states. For two qubits this method is equivalent to Wootters' seminal result for the concurrence. It establishes a close link between entanglement quantification and entanglement detection by witnesses, and can be generalised both to higher dimensions and to more than three parties.

Potential for poverty focused integration of aquaculture into irrigation systems in Batticaloa District

The visit highlighted the vital contribution of the inland fisheries sector to provision of basic food security within the uncleared area (farmers report very low consumption frequencies for all other fish or meat protein substitutes). A 30-mile system of Brackish water lagoons which demarcates the cleared and uncleared areas is the main source of retailed fish in the uncleared area. Second in importance is the inland tank fishery, where the bulk of production emanates from 17 major irrigation reservoirs. [PDF contains 29 pages]

1-42 beta-Amyloid peptide requires PDK1/nPKC/Rac 1 pathway to induce neuronal death

1-42 beta-Amyloid (A beta(1-42)) peptide is a key molecule involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease. Some of its effects are manifested at the neuronal morphological level. These morphological changes involve loss of neurites due to cytoskeleton alterations. However, the mechanism of A beta(1-42) peptide activation of the neurodegenerative program is still poorly understood. Here, A beta(1-42) peptide-induced transduction of cellular death signals through the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K)/phosphoinositol- dependent kinase (PDK)/novel protein kinase C (nPKC)/Rac 1 axis is described. Furthermore, pharmacological inhibition of PDK1 and nPKC activities blocks Rac 1 activation and neuronal cell death. Our results provide insights into an unsuspected connection between PDK1, nPKCs and Rac 1 in the same signal-transduction pathway and points out nPKCs and Rac 1 as potential therapeutic targets to block the toxic effects of A beta(1-42) peptide in neurons.

Behavioral, neurochemical and morphological changes induced by the overexpression of munc18-1a in brain of mice: relevance to schizophrenia

Overexpression of the mammalian homolog of the unc-18 gene (munc18-1) has been described in the brain of subjects with schizophrenia. Munc18-1 protein is involved in membrane fusion processes, exocytosis and neurotransmitter release. A transgenic mouse strain that overexpresses the protein isoform munc18-1a in the brain was characterized. This animal displays several schizophrenia-related behaviors, supersensitivity to hallucinogenic drugs and deficits in prepulse inhibition that reverse after antipsychotic treatment. Relevant brain areas (that is, cortex and striatum) exhibit reduced expression of dopamine D-1 receptors and dopamine transporters together with enhanced amphetamine-induced in vivo dopamine release. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrates decreased gray matter volume in the transgenic animal. In conclusion, the mouse overexpressing brain munc18-1a represents a new valid animal model that resembles functional and structural abnormalities in patients with schizophrenia.