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Drawing on the cases of the US & Germany, it is argued that considerable change has indeed occurred in national governance systems. These changes cannot be understood, however, as the outcome of a market-driven, efficiency-enhancing process. Rather, realignments in corporate governance reflect the growing economic & political power of those who have accumulated financial assets, a trend that is highly dependent on the extent of population aging & the social arrangements for pension provision in domestic economies. 33 References. Adapted from the source document.

How can we explain the persistent worsening of the income distribution in the United States in the 1980s and 1990s? What are the prospects for the re-emergence of sustainable prosperity in the US economy over the next generation? Situating these questions within a wider context through historical analysis and comparisons with Germany and Japan, this book focuses on the microeconomics of corporate investment behaviour, and the macroeconomics of household saving behaviour. Specifically, the contributors analyze how the combined pressures of excessive corporate growth, international competition, and intergenerational dependence have influenced corporate investment over the past two decades. They also offer a perspective on how corporate investment in skill bases can support sustainable prosperity, with studies drawn from the machine tool, aircraft engine, and medical equipment industries.

This is the final version. Available on open access from IOP Publishing via the DOI in this record ; Data availability statement: The data that support the findings of this study are openly available at the following URL/DOI:10.5281/zenodo.5658676 ; Current estimates of the global land carbon sink contain substantial uncertainties on interannual timescales which contribute to a non-closure in the global carbon budget (GCB) in any given year. This budget imbalance (BIM) partly arises due to the use of imperfect models which are missing or misrepresenting processes. One such omission is the separate treatment of downward direct and diffuse solar radiation on photosynthesis. Here we evaluate and use an improved high-resolution (6-hourly), gridded dataset of surface solar diffuse and direct fluxes, over 1901-2017, constrained by satellite and ground-level observations, to drive two global land models. Results show that tropospheric aerosol-light interactions have the potential for substantial land carbon impacts (up to 0.4 PgCyr-1 enhanced sink) at decadal timescales, however large uncertainties remain, with models disagreeing on the direction of change in carbon uptake. On interannual timescales, results also show an enhancement of the land carbon sink (up to 0.9 PgCyr-1) and subsequent reduction in BIM by 55% in years following volcanic eruptions. We therefore suggest GCB assessments include this dataset in order to improve land carbon sink estimates. ; European Union Horizon 2020 ; Newton Fund

This is the final version. Available on open access from AGU via the DOI in this record ; The dataset associated with this article is located in ORE at: https://doi.org/10.24378/exe.2883 ; Variability in climate exerts a strong influence on vegetation productivity (gross primary productivity; GPP), and therefore has a large impact on the land carbon sink. However, no direct observations of global GPP exist, and estimates rely on models that are constrained by observations at various spatial and temporal scales. Here, we assess the consistency in GPP from global products which extend for more than three decades; two observation-based approaches, the upscaling of FLUXNET site observations (FLUXCOM) and a remote sensing derived light-use efficiency model (RS-LUE), and from a suite of terrestrial biosphere models (TRENDYv6). At local scales, we find high correlations in annual GPP amongst the products, with exceptions in tropical and high northern latitudes. On longer timescales, the products agree on the direction of trends over 58% of the land, with large increases across northern latitudes driven by warming trends. Further, tropical regions exhibit the largest interannual variability in GPP, with both rainforests and savannas contributing substantially. Variability in savanna GPP is likely predominantly driven by water availability, although temperature could play a role via soil moisture – atmosphere feedbacks. There is, however, no consensus on the magnitude and driver of variability of tropical forests, which suggest uncertainties in process representations and underlying observations remain. These results emphasise the need for more direct long-term observations of GPP along with an extension of in-situ networks in underrepresented regions (e.g. tropical forests). Such capabilities would support efforts to better validate relevant processes in models, to more accurately estimate GPP. ; European Union ; European Space Agency ; Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) ; NASA

This is the final version. Available on open access from Frontiers media via the DOI in this record ; Data Availability Statement; The datasets presented in this study can be found in online repositories. The names of the repository/repositories and accession number(s) can be found below: The TRENDY-v8 ensemble of simulation outputs is available upon request at https://sites.exeter.ac.uk/trendy. The PML-v2 product script is available online from https://github.com/gee-hydro/gee_PML. The SMOS-IC V2 L-VOD product was provided by Jean-Pierre Wigneron. Processing code is available at https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.5511724. Google Earth Engine Repository is available at: https://earthengine.googlesource.com/users/dfawcett/DRIVING_C_RS_publication (requires Google account to access). ; Drylands cover ca. 40% of the land surface and are hypothesised to play a major role in the global carbon cycle, controlling both long-term trends and interannual variation. These insights originate from land surface models (LSMs) that have not been extensively calibrated and evaluated for water-limited ecosystems. We need to learn more about dryland carbon dynamics, particularly as the transitory response and rapid turnover rates of semi-arid systems may limit their function as a carbon sink over multi-decadal scales. We quantified aboveground biomass carbon (AGC; inferred from SMOS L-band vegetation optical depth) and gross primary productivity (GPP; from PML-v2 inferred from MODIS observations) and tested their spatial and temporal correspondence with estimates from the TRENDY ensemble of LSMs. We found strong correspondence in GPP between LSMs and PML-v2 both in spatial patterns (Pearson's r = 0.9 for TRENDY-mean) and in inter-annual variability, but not in trends. Conversely, for AGC we found lesser correspondence in space (Pearson's r = 0.75 for TRENDY-mean, strong biases for individual models) and in the magnitude of inter-annual variability compared to satellite retrievals. These disagreements likely arise from limited representation of ecosystem responses to plant water availability, fire, and photodegradation that drive dryland carbon dynamics. We assessed inter-model agreement and drivers of long-term change in carbon stocks over centennial timescales. This analysis suggested that the simulated trend of increasing carbon stocks in drylands is in soils and primarily driven by increased productivity due to CO2 enrichment. However, there is limited empirical evidence of this 50-year sink in dryland soils. Our findings highlight important uncertainties in simulations of dryland ecosystems by current LSMs, suggesting a need for continued model refinements and for greater caution when interpreting LSM estimates with regards to current and future carbon dynamics in drylands and by extension the global carbon cycle. ; Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) ; ESA ; ANR CLAND Convergence Institute ; European Union Horizon 2020

Water delivered by dental unit water systems (DUWS) in general dental practices can harbor high numbers of bacteria, including opportunistic pathogens. Biofilms on tubing within DUWS provide a reservoir for microorganisms and should be controlled. This study compared disinfection products for their ability to meet the American Dental Association's guideline of <200 CFU · ml−1 for DUWS water. Alpron, BioBlue, Dentosept, Oxygenal, Sanosil, Sterilex Ultra, and Ster4Spray were tested in DUWS (n = 134) in Denmark, Germany, Greece, Ireland, The Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Weekly water samples were tested for total viable counts (TVCs) on yeast extract agar, and, where possible, the effects of products on established biofilm (TVCs) were measured. A 4- to 5-week baseline measurement period was followed by 6 to 8 weeks of disinfection (intermittent or continuous product application). DUWS water TVCs before disinfection ranged from 0 to 5.41 log CFU · ml−1. Disinfectants achieved reductions in the median water TVC ranging from 0.69 (Ster4Spray) to 3.11 (Dentosept) log CFU · ml−1, although occasional high values (up to 4.88 log CFU · ml−1) occurred with all products. Before treatment, 64% of all baseline samples exceeded American Dental Association guidelines, compared to only 17% following commencement of treatment; where tested, biofilm TVCs were reduced to below detectable levels. The antimicrobial efficacies of products varied (e.g., 91% of water samples from DUWS treated with Dentosept or Oxygenal met American Dental Association guidelines, compared to 60% of those treated with Ster4Spray). Overall, the continuously applied products performed better than those applied intermittently. The most effective products were Dentosept and Oxygenal, although Dentosept gave the most consistent and sustained antimicrobial effect over time.

Accurate assessment of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and their redistribution among the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere - the "global carbon budget" - is important to better understand the global carbon cycle, support the development of climate policies, and project future climate change. Here we describe data sets and methodology to quantify the five major components of the global carbon budget and their uncertainties. Fossil CO2 emissions (E-FF) are based on energy statistics and cement production data, while emissions from land use change (E-LUC), mainly deforestation, are based on land use and land use change data and bookkeeping models. Atmospheric CO2 concentration is measured directly and its growth rate (G(ATM)) is computed from the annual changes in concentration. The ocean CO2 sink (S-OCEAN) and terrestrial CO2 sink (S-LAND) are estimated with global process models constrained by observations. The resulting carbon budget imbalance (B-IM), the difference between the estimated total emissions and the estimated changes in the atmosphere, ocean, and terrestrial biosphere, is a measure of imperfect data and understanding of the contemporary carbon cycle. All uncertainties are reported as +/- 1 sigma. For the last decade available (2009-2018), E-FF was 9.5 +/- 0.5 GtC yr 1, E-LUC 1.5 +/- 0.7 GtC yr 1, G(ATM) 4.9 +/- 0.02 GtC yr(-1) (2.3 +/- 0.01 ppm yr(-1)), S-OCEAN 2.5 +/- 0.6 GtC yr(-1), and S-LAND 3.2 +/- 0.6 GtC yr(-1), with a budget imbalance B-IM of 0.4 GtC yr(-1) indicating overestimated emissions and/or underestimated sinks. For the year 2018 alone, the growth in E-FF was about 2.1% and fossil emissions increased to 10.0 +/- 0.5 GtC yr 1, reaching 10 GtC yr(-1) for the first time in history, E-LUC was 1.5 +/- 0.7 GtC yr(-1), for total anthropogenic CO2 emissions of 11.5 +/- 0.9 GtC yr(-1) (42.5 +/- 3.3 GtCO(2)). Also for 2018, G(ATM) was 5.1 +/- 0.2 GtC yr(-1) (2.4 +/- 0.1 ppm yr(-1)), S-OCEAN was 2.6 +/- 0.6 GtC yr(-1), and S-LAND was 3.5 +/- 0.7 GtC yr(-1), with a B-IM of 0.3 GtC. The global atmospheric CO2 concentration reached 407.38 +/- 0.1 ppm averaged over 2018. For 2019, preliminary data for the first 6-10 months indicate a reduced growth in E-FF of +0.6% (range of -0.2% to 1.5 %) based on national emissions projections for China, the USA, the EU, and India and projections of gross domestic product corrected for recent changes in the carbon intensity of the economy for the rest of the world. Overall, the mean and trend in the five components of the global carbon budget are consistently estimated over the period 1959-2018, but discrepancies of up to 1 GtC yr(-1) persist for the representation of semi-decadal variability in CO2 fluxes. A detailed comparison among individual estimates and the introduction of a broad range of observations shows (1) no consensus in the mean and trend in land use change emissions over the last decade, (2) a persistent low agreement between the different methods on the magnitude of the land CO2 flux in the northern extra-tropics, and (3) an apparent underestimation of the CO2 variability by ocean models outside the tropics. This living data update documents changes in the methods and data sets used in this new global carbon budget and the progress in understanding of the global carbon cycle compared with previous publications of this data set (Le Quere et al., 2018a, b, 2016, 2015a, b, 2014, 2013).