Impact of single parameter changes on Ceph cloud storage performance

In a general purpose cloud system efficiencies are yet to be had from supporting diverse applications and their requirements within a storage system used for a private cloud. Supporting such diverse requirements poses a significant challenge in a storage system that supports fine grained configuration on a variety of parameters. This paper uses the Ceph distributed file system, and in particular its global parameters, to show how a single changed parameter can effect the performance for a range of access patterns when tested with an OpenStack cloud system.

Variability and trends of downward surface global solar radiation over the Iberian Peninsula based on ERA-40 reanalysis

A climate study of the incidence of downward surface global solar radiation (SSRD) in the Iberian Peninsula (IP) based primarily on ERA-40 reanalysis is presented. NCEP/NCAR reanalysis and ground-based records from several Portuguese and Spanish stations have been also considered. The results showthat reanalysis can capture a similar inter-annual variability as compared to ground-based observations, especially on a monthly basis, even though annual ERA-40 (NCEP/NCAR) values tend to underestimate (overestimate) the observations with a mean relative difference of around 20Wm–2 (40Wm–2). On the other hand, ground-based measurements in Portuguese stations during the period 1964–1989 show a tendency to decrease until the mid-1970s followed by an increase up to the end of the study period, in line with the dimming/brightening phenomenon reported in the literature. Nevertheless, there are different temporal behaviours as a greater increase since the 1970s is observed in the south and less industrialized regions. Similarly, the ERA-40 reanalysis shows a noticeable decrease until the early 1970s followed by a slight increase up to the end of the 1990s, suggesting a dimming/brightening transition around the early 1970s, earlier in the south and centre and later in the north of the IP. Although there are slight differences in the magnitude of the trends as well as the turning year of the dimming/brightening periods, the decadal changes of ERA-40 fairly agree with the ground-based observations in Portugal and Spain, in contrast to most of the literature for other regions of the world, and is used in the climatology of the SSRD in the study area. NCEP/NCAR reanalysis does not capture the decadal variations of SSRD in the IP. The results show that part of the decadal variability of the global radiation in the IP is related to changes in cloud cover (represented in ERA-40).

Global transcriptional response to salt shock of the plant microsymbiont Mesorhizobium loti MAFF303099

Soil salinity affects rhizobia both as free-living bacteria and in symbiosis with the host. The aim of this study was to examine the transcriptional response of the Lotus microsymbiont Mesorhizobium loti MAFF303099 to salt shock. Changes in the transcriptome of bacterial cells subjected to a salt shock of 10% NaCl for 30 min were analyzed. From a total of 7231 protein-coding genes, 385 were found to be differentially expressed upon salt shock, among which 272 were overexpressed. Although a large number of overexpressed genes encode hypothetical proteins, the two most frequently represented COG categories are "defense mechanisms" and "nucleotide transport and metabolism". A significant number of transcriptional regulators and ABC transporters genes were upregulated. Chemotaxis and motility genes were not differentially expressed. Moreover, most genes previously reported to be involved in salt tolerance were not differentially expressed. The transcriptional response to salt shock of a rhizobium with low ability to grow under salinity conditions, but enduring a salinity shock, may enlighten us concerning salinity stress response mechanisms.

Raising Awareness on Teacher Training Changes: Perspectives and Challenges

One of the numerous challenges in the educational processes is teacher training, particularly in the framework of neo-liberal global societies ruled by the competitiveness of regular and continuous education programs in teacher training. It is a matter of concern and, therefore, a matter of analysis, if we consider the deep impact in all contexts. Accordingly, this paper discusses the situation from a descriptive perspective as a basic requirement to go beyond the analysis on the urgency of having clear educational policies related to the variety and quality of curricular programs; and, above all, a strong awareness from teacher trainers to see themselves as the critical creative mass from which change can be made, based on socially human proposals.  

WHEN GLOBAL CONSERVATION MEETS LOCAL LIVELIHOODS: PEOPLE AND PARKS IN CENTRAL AMERICA

SummaryNational park and related forest conservation efforts tend to emanate from core areas of the world and are often imposed on rural people living on forest fringes in the least developed regions of lesser developed countries. We address the social and cultural processes that ensue when center-originatingconservation meets local people with their resource-dependent livelihoods, and how these vary under different circumstances. We examine and compare local people’s environmental andforest-related values and behaviors, using cultural models, after the establishment of national parks in two countries with very different social and environmental histories—Costa Rica and Honduras. We find that external cultural models were widely adopted by local people—hegemonic to the extent of structuring even discourse opposing conservation. Local people often expressed environmental values, but used formulaic language that suggested that these values were not well integrated with other aspects of their life and often not motivating. We pay particular attention to relationships between environmental values and livelihood values, and the varying ways that new, local environmental discourses and values emerge that mediate between these often conflicting value spheres.The recent international increase in national parks is a phenomenon of globalization, and often imposes new conservation practices and environmental values onto local people. While these new national parks have some broad public benefits that can be thought of as global, e.g. their role in preventing biodiversity loss and climate change, it is also true that few concrete benefits accrue to local people and that parks often impose great costs on local people in the form of lost land, diminished access to resources, and diminished autonomy as national governments and internationalorganizations extend into local life in new ways.These changes have serious repercussions for local people, often threatening their livelihoods and well-being in significant ways. Yet our results suggest that local people may be willing to work with park managers to co-inhabit landscapes when park managers are able to accommodate local livelihood needs.Keywords: National parks, Central America, Costa Rica, Honduras, forest conservationResumenLos parques nacionales y otros esfuerzos de conservación forestal tienden a surgir en las principales áreas núcleo del mundo, y por lo general son impuestos a los pobladores de espacios rurales que habitan franjas forestales de los países en vías de desarrollo.Este artículo se enfoca en los procesos sociales y culturales que se originan a partir de la imposición de estas áreas de conservación y sobre cómo se ve afectada la subsistencia de los pobladores que dependen de los recursos naturales de dichas áreas. También se evalúan y comparan los valores y comportamientos relacionados con el ambiente, percibidos por los pobladores con el establecimiento de parques nacionales, en dos países con historias sociales y ambientales muy diferentes como lo son Costa Rica y Honduras; para lo cual se utilizaron modelos culturales. Al respecto, se encontró que varios modelos culturales externos, que fueron ampliamente adoptados por los pobladores locales, han llegado a ser hegemónicos, afectando la conservación. Los habitantes del lugar estaban disconformes con respecto a los nuevos valores ambientales, porque estos, por un lado, no estaban adecuadamente integrados con otros aspectos de su vida, y por la escasa motivación en materia de conservación ambiental.De esta forma, se resalta la relación entre los valores ambientales y los valores de sus forma de vida;entre las nuevas formas de ruptura y los valores emergentes que median entre la esfera de valores conflictivos.El reciente aumento internacional de parques naciones es un fenómeno de globalización, y en consecuencia, impone nuevas prácticas de conservación y valores ambientales a los habitantes de estas localidades. Mientras estos nuevos parques nacionales generan algunas ventaja públicas, que pueden ser pensadas como globales (p.ej. su papel en la prevención de la pérdida de diversidad biológica y el cambio de clima), también ocasionan escasos beneficios para las comunidades, al imponer elevados costos para los pobladores locales como lo son: la pérdida de tierras, la disminución en el acceso a los recursos y la reducción de la autonomía, ya sea ante el gobierno nacional u organizaciones internaciones que extienden sus acciones políticas a la vida local en todas sus nuevas formas. Estos cambios repercuten drásticamente en los habitantes del lugar, lo cual a menudo amenaza, en general, el sustento y el bienestar, de modo significativo.Los resultados sugieren que los habitantes del lugar podrían estar dispuestos a trabajar con los gerentes del parque para co-habitar paisajes cuando éstos sean capaces de priorizar las necesidades de sobrevivencia de las formas de vida de los habitantes.Palabras clave: parques nacionales, América Central, Costa Rica, conservación forestal

Calibration of the maximum carboxylation velocity (Vcmax) using data mining techniques and ecophysiological data from the Brazilian Semiarid region, for use in Dynamic Global Vegetation Models.

The semiarid region of northeastern Brazil, the Caatinga, is extremely important due to its biodiversity and endemism. Measurements of plant physiology are crucial to the calibration of Dynamic Global Vegetation Models (DGVMs) that are currently used to simulate the responses of vegetation in face of global changes. In a field work realized in an area of preserved Caatinga forest located in Petrolina, Pernambuco, measurements of carbon assimilation (in response to light and CO2) were performed on 11 individuals of Poincianella microphylla, a native species that is abundant in this region. These data were used to calibrate the maximum carboxylation velocity (Vcmax) used in the INLAND model. The calibration techniques used were Multiple Linear Regression (MLR), and data mining techniques as the Classification And Regression Tree (CART) and K-MEANS. The results were compared to the UNCALIBRATED model. It was found that simulated Gross Primary Productivity (GPP) reached 72% of observed GPP when using the calibrated Vcmax values, whereas the UNCALIBRATED approach accounted for 42% of observed GPP. Thus, this work shows the benefits of calibrating DGVMs using field ecophysiological measurements, especially in areas where field data is scarce or non-existent, such as in the Caatinga

Evolution and challenges of dynamic global vegetation models for some aspects of plant physiology and elevated atmospheric CO2.

Dynamic global vegetation models (DGVMs) simulate surface processes such as the transfer of energy, water, CO2, and momentum between the terrestrial surface and the atmosphere, biogeochemical cycles, carbon assimilation by vegetation, phenology, and land use change in scenarios of varying atmospheric CO2 concentrations. DGVMs increase the complexity and the Earth system representation when they are coupled with atmospheric global circulation models (AGCMs) or climate models. However, plant physiological processes are still a major source of uncertainty in DGVMs. The maximum velocity of carboxylation (Vcmax), for example, has a direct impact over productivity in the models. This parameter is often underestimated or imprecisely defined for the various plant functional types (PFTs) and ecosystems. Vcmax is directly related to photosynthesis acclimation (loss of response to elevated CO2), a widely known phenomenon that usually occurs when plants are subjected to elevated atmospheric CO2 and might affect productivity estimation in DGVMs. Despite this, current models have improved substantially, compared to earlier models which had a rudimentary and very simple representation of vegetation?atmosphere interactions. In this paper, we describe this evolution through generations of models and the main events that contributed to their improvements until the current state-of-the-art class of models. Also, we describe some main challenges for further improvements to DGVMs.

The Scored Patient-Generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) and its Association with Quality of Life in Ambulatory Patients Receiving Radiotherapy

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the scored Patient-generated Subjective Global Assessment (PG-SGA) tool as an outcome measure in clinical nutrition practice and determine its association with quality of life (QoL). DESIGN: A prospective 4 week study assessing the nutritional status and QoL of ambulatory patients receiving radiation therapy to the head, neck, rectal or abdominal area. SETTING: Australian radiation oncology facilities. SUBJECTS: Sixty cancer patients aged 24-85 y. INTERVENTION: Scored PG-SGA questionnaire, subjective global assessment (SGA), QoL (EORTC QLQ-C30 version 3). RESULTS: According to SGA, 65.0% (39) of subjects were well-nourished, 28.3% (17) moderately or suspected of being malnourished and 6.7% (4) severely malnourished. PG-SGA score and global QoL were correlated (r=-0.66, P<0.001) at baseline. There was a decrease in nutritional status according to PG-SGA score (P<0.001) and SGA (P<0.001); and a decrease in global QoL (P<0.001) after 4 weeks of radiotherapy. There was a linear trend for change in PG-SGA score (P<0.001) and change in global QoL (P=0.003) between those patients who improved (5%) maintained (56.7%) or deteriorated (33.3%) in nutritional status according to SGA. There was a correlation between change in PG-SGA score and change in QoL after 4 weeks of radiotherapy (r=-0.55, P<0.001). Regression analysis determined that 26% of the variation of change in QoL was explained by change in PG-SGA (P=0.001). CONCLUSION: The scored PG-SGA is a nutrition assessment tool that identifies malnutrition in ambulatory oncology patients receiving radiotherapy and can be used to predict the magnitude of change in QoL.

Reducing the global burden of depression : population level analysis of intervention cost-effectiveness in 14 world regions

International evidence on the cost and effects of interventions for reducing the global burden of depression remain scarce. Aims: To estimate the population-level cost-effectiveness of evidence-based depression interventions and their contribution towards reducing current burden. Method: Primary-care-based depression interventions were modelled at the level of whole populations in 14 epidemiological subregions of the world. Total population-level costs (in international dollars or I$) and effectiveness (disability adjusted life years (DALYs) averted) were combined to form average and incremental cost-effectiveness ratios. Results: Evaluated interventions have the potential to reduce the current burden of depression by 10–30%. Pharmacotherapy with older antidepressant drugs, with or without proactive collaborative care, are currently more cost-effective strategies than those using newer antidepressants, particularly in lower-income subregions. Conclusions: Even in resource-poor regions, each DALYaverted by efficient depression treatments in primary care costs less than 1 year of average per capita income, making such interventions a cost-effective use of health resources. However, current levels of burden can only be reduced significantlyif there is a substantialincrease substantial increase intreatment coverage.