The Network of Tropical Aquaculture Scientists (NTAS) : past, present and future

This article reviews the past, present and future activities of the Network of Tropical Aquaculture Scientists (NTAS), an information network for individual scientists working on tropical aquaculture, especially on genetics, integrated agriculture-aquaculture farming systems and coastal aquaculture of tropical molluscs.

The future for fish in the food and livelihoods of the poor in Asia

This article is based on the study, Strategies and Options for Increasing and Sustaining Benefits from Fisheries and Aquaculture Production to Benefit Poor Households in Asia carried out under ADB-RETA 5945, and implemented by the WorldFish Center in partnership with nine participating Asian countries.

Demand for fish in Sub-Saharan Africa: the past and the future

The Sub-Saharan region of Africa accounted for only 5.5% of the world's demand for fish from 1989 to 1991, inspite of comprising 9% of the global population. This study was carried out to determine the future demand for fish in the Sub-Saharan region. Fish accounts for approximately 10% of animal protein consumed. It is prominent in the diet of the poor since cured and smoked fish is a cheaper source of protein than meat or eggs. The average per capita consumption in 1992 was about 8 kg compared to 30 kg globally. Fish is prominent in the diets of people near coastal areas and large inland water bodies and a total of 40% of fish consumed is freshwater fish. Consumption is rising in the coastal areas but falling inland, probably due to drought and overexploitation resulting in an inadequate supply. Aquaculture has not been widely adopted and does not contribute substantially to the region's supply. To determine future demand and trends, a regression analysis was carried out at the country level with FAO data on fish consumption from 1960 to 1992, using several proxies for disposable income, cost of fishery products, changes in tastes and national differences in the tradition of fish consumption. An aggregate increase in fish consumption of nearly 2.7% annually over the next few years was predicted with a strong correlation between increases in income, prices and population. Real income was a significant and positive determinant of fish consumption, even though consumption increaed more slowly than income. Given the high projected rate of population increase, the growth rate in overall fish consumption actually implies a reduction in per capita fish consumption of 0.31% annually. If technological progress can improve production and supply, aquaculture could have a significant impact on fish consumption in the region.

ICLARM software projects: back to the future

The different computer softwares developed by the International Center for Living Aquatic Resources (ICLARM) and its functions and uses in fisheries science are presented.

PGPRs and nitrogen-fixing legumes: a perfect team for efficient Cd phytoremediation?

Cadmium (Cd) is a toxic, biologically non-essential and highly mobile metal that has become an increasingly important environmental hazard to both wildlife and humans. In contrast to conventional remediation technologies, phytoremediation based on legume rhizobia symbiosis has emerged as an inexpensive decontamination alternative which also revitalize contaminated soils due to the role of legumes in nitrogen cycling. In recent years, there is a growing interest in understanding symbiotic legume rhizobia relationship and its interactions with Cd. The aim of the present review is to provide a comprehensive picture of the main effects of Cd in N-2-fixing leguminous plants and the benefits of exploiting this symbiosis together with plant growth promoting rhizobacteria to boost an efficient reclamation of Cd-contaminated soils.

Lanternfish heaven: the future of world fisheries?

The differences between fishes in their size, behavior and food make them more or less vulnerable to fishing pressure. Large predators, long-lived fish, most trawl species and pelagic schooling fishes will possibly become extinct, to be replaced by small nonschooling unpalatable species such as lanternfish.

Management of wetland resources in the lower Mekong Basin: issues and future directions

The Lower Mekong Basin has extensive wetlands and these are being threatened by numerous problems. Most of these problems are interdependent and interact with one another. The lack of an appropriate definition of wetlands applicable to the region, pervasive inefficiencies and chronic lack of funds among riparian governments, and the poor appreciation of the true economic importance of wetlands and its resources are among the most prominent. The current definition, based on the Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971), is too broad when compared to the understanding of wetlands as being swamps, marshes and the like, and was developed specifically for wetlands with international importance as waterfowl habitats. Furthermore, wetlands are composed of different types of resources, which require different modes of management. Often, institutional competition, overlapping mandates and sometimes jealousies occur between government departments when they try to assert their authority on a particular wetland resource and use, and put forward their development plans without considering how these may conflict with other wetlands uses. Finally, effective wetland management requires reliable statistics or information on rate of harvest of natural resources such as fish and others, fishing/harvesting methods over time in order to determine the level of exploitation, and the status of the natural resources. This information is needed to identify opportunities for expansion, to establish historical trends, and to determine when management interventions are necessary to protect the resources from being overused by other developments. In order to address these issues, ICLARM - The World Fish Center has launched a project, the aim of objectives of which are described in this paper.

Signos incógnitos: marcas da poética de João Cabral na obra de Ana Cristina Cesar

O trabalho tem por objetivo identificar eventuais marcas da poética de João Cabral de Melo Neto na obra de Ana Cristina Cesar. Pertencente ao grupo de poetas que ficou conhecido, em meados da década de 1970, como geração mimeógrafo ou grupo da poesia marginal, a autora de A teus pés, assim como seus demais companheiros, afirmava, publicamente, que fazia uma poesia anticabralina por excelência. No entanto, sua obra parece desmentir essas afirmações, por meio de um diálogo tenso e desviante embora de incorporação e recusa simultâneas com a poesia cabralina, o que motivou a poeta carioca a, inclusive, reescrever, à sua maneira, diversos poemas de João Cabral. A presente dissertação investiga e analisa essas questões, revisa parte da fortuna crítica dos dois autores e realiza um histórico do panorama cultural carioca da época. No plano teórico, são utilizados, principalmente, conceitos da teoria da influência e do mapa da desleitura, formulados por Harold Bloom, bem como as ideias da verneinung freudiana e do movimento de absorção/destruição textual, descrito por Julia Kristeva. Adotou-se como metodologia a análise comparativa de determinados textos dos poetas estudados