This study provides new knowledge on the mobility, behavior, and partitioning of 17 perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in the water-sediment-plant system along the Dongzhulong and Xiaoqing Rivers. The fate of PFASs in these rivers is also discussed. The study area is affected by the industrial production of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA). The ∑PFASs in water and sediments close to the industrial discharge were 84,000 ± 2000 ng/L and 2300 ± 200 ng/g dw, respectively, with the concentrations decreasing along the river due to dilution. PFOA was the dominant compound (74–97% of the ∑PFASs), although other PFASs were identified close to urban areas. Principal component analysis and solid-liquid distribution coefficients revealed that long-chain PFASs accumulated in the sediment whereas short-chain PFASs remained in the water all along the river. PFASs were taken up by plants and remobilized to different plant compartments according to shoot concentration factors (SCFs), root concentration factors (RCF), and transfer factors (TFs). Among the four plant species studied, floating plants absorbed high levels of PFASs, while rooted species translocated short-chain PFASs from the roots to the shoots. Therefore, floating species, due to their high uptake capacity and large proliferation rate, could eventually be used for phytoremediation. ; Pere Colomer Vidal acknowledges the funding from the European Union Europe Aid 'SEW-REAP' project [ECRIP ICI+/2014/348–010]. The Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation under the grant PID2019–105732GB-C21 and the Local Innovative and Research Teams Project of the Guangdong Pearl River Talents Program (2017BT01Z134) provided financial support. Dr. Chunling Luo would like to thank the support from the Ten Thousand Talent Program of the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the CPC. This work was carried out at the facilities of the Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry. ; Peer reviewed
Funding Information: This work was supported as part of the Strategic Research Programme of the Scottish Government Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services (RESAS) division, Theme 3: Food and Health (Work packages 3.2 and 3.3). ; Peer reviewed ; Publisher PDF
This paper aims to investigate the concept, context and socio-economic consequences of fiscal competition in the integrated economic space of EMU in completion, to pinpoint the positive and negative factors at work via a case study of the Benelux countries – both founder members of the EU and pioneers of EMU – and to examine the impact on European and international regulations in the field. In particular, it will endeavour to provide a comprehensive interpretation of fiscal policy in the Benelux countries via a comparative approach and from a historical perspective. It will look at the development of respective domestic fiscal policies, driven by national interests and by membership of a Community that is subject to requirements in terms of harmonisation and taxation, but also by constant contact (and frequent clashes) with the multilateral international environment.
In its 2009 decision in Infopaq (C-5/08), the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) achieved a landmark result: the de facto, horizontal harmonization of the originality requirement. After that, nothing could stay the same. After providing an overview of the harmonization process in the copyright field over the past 30 years or so and, with that, the environment in which Infopaq came to be, this chapter considers Infopaq and the expansive effect of subsequent case law on other copyright subsistence requirements. The analysis also notes how the eventual outcome of Cofemel (C-683/17), insofar as works of applied art are concerned, is perfectly in line with such a jurisprudence. The chapter further considers the legal and institutional difficulties that such a string of CJEU decisions has given rise to and is yet to resolve before concluding that further questions are likely to be posed to the CJEU in the not too distant future. In other words: the construction of EU copyright is far from over.
ABSTRACT Context: in recent years, studies have sought to analyze how intelligence and knowledge management processes are understood and applied in the context of public management, environments in which processes appear as a point to be explored to enhance decision-making quality. Objective: to analyze how public managers apply intelligence and knowledge management aiming at a higher decision quality. Method: based on a defined and validated research protocol, interviews were conducted with seventeen public managers in southern Brazil. For the analysis, the qualitative comparative analysis technique using fuzzy sets was applied. Results: the results suggest the importance of effective data, information, and knowledge management for the decision-making quality of public managers, demonstrating that the absence of decision-making quality is directly related to the absence or little use of knowledge management and intelligence elements in the public management. Conclusion: in addition to analyzing conditions and proposing ways to lead to greater quality in decision making by public managers, it was possible to contribute to the theme of knowledge management and intelligence in public management, as well as to benefit the government with paths to be consolidated and better explored.
This article examines how artists have engaged with the issue of air pollution in Beijing, where poor air quality has become a serious public health matter. Artists have utilized various mediums including performance art, photography, and painting to represent smog. Through generating media and online attention this work has contributed to a relatively vibrant "green public sphere" (Yang and Calhoun, 2007) of air pollution discourse. In contrast to much resistance in China that relies upon making specific claims to government officials, artistic expression bypasses the authorities and appeals instead to public opinion. Artists utilize ambiguity to portray air pollution in novel ways that subtly question the structures that produce and sustain it. In this way, artists can challenge popular perceptions of smog and raise public awareness, thus intensifying support for policies that tackle smog. Yet art can also embody deep frustration at the powerlessness that artists, and the public more widely, experience when confronted by severe air pollution. Art therefore serves both as a form of activism and as an expression of curtailed agency in a politically restrictive environment.
Poverty is a problem that concerns many aspects as it relates to low income, illiteracy, low health status and inequality between sexes and poor environment (World Bank, 2004). The problem of East Java Province is not much different from the central government (national problem) that is, the high number of poverty and the increasing number of unemployment. This study examines the effect of GRDP, unemployment, and inflation on poverty level in East Java in 2005-2014. The purpose of this study is expected to analyze how and how big the influence of variables PDRB, unemployment and inflation to the level of poverty in East Java so that later it is expected to be used as one of the basic in termination of policy in overcoming poverty problem in East Java. The data used in this study is sekuder data obtained from the Central Bureau of Statistics (BPS) as well as browsing from the internet as a supporter. While the method of analysis used in this study is multiple linear regression analysis method with the help of SPSS. The results of this study indicate that the GRDP variable has positive and insignificant effect on poverty level, unemployment variable has positive and significant effect to poverty level, inflation variable has negative and insignificant effect to poverty level in east java.
Abstract The presence of urban green spaces (UGS) increases the human's contact with nature and provides numerous benefits to the society and the local environment. In this way, analyzing, planning and stimulating the implementation of UGS in cities is a fundamental action to improve the life quality of urban society. In this context, the aim was to analyze the situation and distribution of the green spaces of the universities cities of Lavras, Minas Gerais State (Brazil) and Newark, Delaware (USA). For data collection, researches performed field visits and used aerial photography to survey and analysis before calculating indicators including green area index (GAI) and green space ratio (GSR). The city of Lavras has a GAI of 0.54 m2 inh-1. The GSR value was 0.29%, not meeting the minimum of 5% required by local municipal law. Furthermore, there is a bad distribution of UGSs in the urban framework. However, in Newark, the distribution of UGSs is homogeneous and covers all regions of the city. The calculated GAI was 50.2 m² inh-1 and the GSR has met the 7% minimum required by its Newark Municipal Law. When comparing the two cities, in different countries and conditions it is concluded that Newark (DE) presents UGS indicators, GAI (m² inh-1) and GSR (%), higher than the values obtained in Lavras (MG), indicating the need for Government actions to increase these values.
Glyphosate is the active ingredient of some of the most highly produced and used herbicides worldwide. The intensive applications of glyphosate-based herbicides and its half-life in water lead to its presence in many aquatic ecosystems. Whereas recent studies have reported neurotoxic effects of glyphosate including autism-related effects, most of them used extremely high (mg/L to g/L) concentrations, so it is still unclear if chronic, low environmentally relevant concentrations of this compound (ng/L to μg/L) can induce neurotoxicity. In this study we analyzed the neurotoxicity of glyphosate in adult zebrafish after waterborne exposure to environmentally relevant concentrations (0.3 and 3 μg/L) for two weeks. Our data showed that exposed fish presented a significant impairment of exploratory and social behaviors consistent with increased anxiety. The anterior brain of the exposed fish presented a significant increase in dopamine and serotonin levels, as well as in the DOPAC/dopamine and homovanillic acid/dopamine turnover ratios. Moreover, the expression of genes involved in the dopaminergic system, as th1, th2, comtb, and scl6a3 was downregulated. Finally, the brain of exposed fish presented a significant increase in the catalase and superoxide dismutase activities, with a concomitant decrease of glutathione stores. These changes in the antioxidant defense system are consistent with the observed increase in oxidative stress, reflected by the increase in the levels of lipid peroxidation in the brain. The presented results show that current glyphosate concentrations commonly found in many aquatic ecosystems may have detrimental consequences on fish survival by decreasing exploration of the environment or altering social interactions. Furthermore, as zebrafish is also a vertebrate model widely used in human neurobehavioral studies, these results are relevant not only for environmental risk assessment, but also for understanding the risk of chronic low-dose exposures on human health. ; This work was supported by the Spanish Government with FEDER Funds (CTM2017-83242-R; D.R.) and the network of recognized research groups by the Catalan Government (2017 SGR_902). J.B. was supported by a Spanish fellowship PRE2018-083513. Mention of specific products or trade names does not indicate endorsement by the US federal government. ; Peer reviewed
The needs of the Milk Producers' Organization are achieved by strengthening the scattered and poorly organized Indian milk producers, who lack access to resources and services. In fact, the Milk Producers' Organization has emerged as an interface between the business environment and individual milk producers through forward and backward linkages, while facilitating the strength of collective action, bargaining power and economies of scale. It has thus responded appropriately to the economic and socio-cultural needs of producer members and surrounding entities. The National Accounts Statistics (2020) of India estimates that the contribution of livestock in total agriculture and allied sectors Gross Value Added (at Constant Prices) has reached to 28.63 per cent (2018-19) which again shows the importance of the Milk Producers' Organization in a populous country such as India. The Organization extends its assistance in the form of financial support, technical inputs, milk productivity, quality produce, managing value chains, access to market actors and handling environmental and business regulation. This review paper outlines the key viewpoints and aims to explore how the Milk Producers' Organization has built capabilities and optimized capacities in the existing scope and challenges of the Indian dairy sector. The livestock sector supports the livelihood of approximately 20.5 million people in India. India's milk production is at 4.8% CAGR as opposed to 1.8% CAGR of global milk production. However, the Organization faces conflicting areas of interest, such as social concern and business demands and this ambivalence necessitates enabling policy and professionalism to steer organizational growth and sustainability. In view of the globalized business environment, the Milk Producers' Organization has taken on the responsibility to compete both on the domestic and global markets. In view of emerging international trade practices, further study is required to establish mechanisms to deal with Sanitary and Phytosanitary measures. A co-operative business model can be further explored with additional utilization of bovine manure and unproductive bovines to re-establish a more cost efficient model to deal with global price levels of milk and dairy products. ; Potreba za osnivanjem Organizacije proizvođača mlijeka temeljena je na nužnosti za ojačanjem raštrkanih i neorganiziranih, siromašnih indijskih proizvođača mlijeka koji nemaju pristup resursima i uslugama. Organizacija proizvođača mlijeka nastala je na sučeljavanju poslovnog okruženja i pojedinačnih proizvođača mlijeka kroz veze unaprijed i unatrag (forward i backward linkages), istovremeno omogućujući osnaživanje kolektivnog djelovanja, pregovaračke moći i ekonomskih razmjera. Time je prikladno odgovoreno na ekonomske i socijalno-kulturalne potrebe članova proizvođača i subjekata koji ih okružuju. Prema procjeni Statistike nacionalnih računa (2020.) Indije, doprinos stočarstva ukupnoj bruto dodanoj vrijednosti (pri stalnim cijenama) poljoprivrede i srodnog sektora dosegnuo je 28,63 % (2018.- 2019.) što ukazuje na važnost Organizacije proizvođača mlijeka u mnogoljudnoj zemlji poput Indije. Organizacija proizvođača mlijeka pruža svoju pomoć s aranžmanima financijskog kredita, tehničkim ulaznim informacijama, produktivnošću mlijeka, kvalitetnim proizvodima, upravljanjem vrijednosnim lancima, pristupom dionicima na tržištu i bavljenjem ekološkim i poslovnim regulativama. U ovom preglednom članku opisana su ključna gledišta i pokušalo se istražiti kako je Organizacija proizvođača mlijeka izgradila sposobnost i optimizirala kapacitet u postojećem opsegu i izazovima indijskog mljekarskog sektora. Stočarski sektor pomaže izdržavati oko 20,5 milijuna stanovnika Indije. Složena godišnja stopa rasta (CAGR) proizvodnje mlijeka u Indiji iznosi 4,8 % u odnosu na 1,8 % CAGR globalne proizvodnje mlijeka. Međutim, Organizacija proizvođača mlijeka suočava se sa sukobljenim područjima interesa: poput socijalnih pitanja, kao i poslovnih zahtjeva i ta ambivalentnost iziskuje poticajne politike i profesionalizam za upravljanje rastom i održivošću Organizacije. S obzirom na globalizirano poslovno okruženje, Organizacija proizvođača mlijeka preuzela je odgovornost natjecanja na domaćem i globalnom tržištu. S obzirom na nove prakse međunarodnog trgovanja, potrebna je dodatna studija za uspostavljanje mehanizma koji će se baviti sanitarnim i fitosanitarnim (SPS) mjerama. Suradnički se poslovni model može dalje istražiti dodatnom uporabom gnojiva goveda i neproduktivnih goveda za ponovnu uspostavu ekonomičnijeg modela kako bi se moglo nositi s globalnim razinama cijene mlijeka i mliječnih proizvoda.
Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are ubiquitous in the environment and involve diverse chemical-receptor interactions that can perturb hormone signaling. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development has validated several EDC-receptor bioassays to detect endocrine active chemicals and has established guidelines for regulatory testing of EDCs. Focus on testing over the past decade has been initially directed to EATS modalities (estrogen, androgen, thyroid, and steroidogenesis) and validated tests for chemicals that exert effects through non-EATS modalities are less established. Due to recognition that EDCs are vast in their mechanisms of action, novel bioassays are needed to capture the full scope of activity. Here, we highlight the need for validated assays that detect non-EATS modalities and discuss major international efforts underway to develop such tools for regulatory purposes, focusing on non-EATS modalities of high concern (i.e., retinoic acid, aryl hydrocarbon receptor, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor, and glucocorticoid signaling). Two case studies are presented with strong evidence amongst animals and human studies for non-EATS disruption and associations with wildlife and human disease. This includes metabolic syndrome and insulin signaling (case study 1) and chemicals that impact the cardiovascular system (case study 2). This is relevant as obesity and cardiovascular disease represent two of the most significant health-related crises of our time. Lastly, emerging topics related to EDCs are discussed, including recognition of crosstalk between the EATS and non-EATS axis, complex mixtures containing a variety of EDCs, adverse outcome pathways for chemicals acting through non-EATS mechanisms, and novel models for testing chemicals. Recommendations and considerations for evaluating non-EATS modalities are proposed. Moving forward, improved understanding of the non-EATS modalities will lead to integrated testing strategies that can be used in regulatory bodies to protect environmental, animal, and human health from harmful environmental chemicals. ; LNM was supported by a H2020-Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action MSCA-IF-RI- 2017 awarded by the European Commission (ref. 797725-EpiSTOX). JK was funded by the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation program under grant agreement GOLIATH No. 825489. AS and LEC were supported by a Grant-in-Aid from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. ; Peer reviewed
Reliable tree height-diameter (H-D) allometric equations are a key tool for the estimation of forest productivity and Above Ground Biomass (AGB). Most existing H-D allometric equations developed for the tropical region are based on large-scale multi-species datasets, and their use to derive information on productivity and AGB at the species level is prone to uncertainties. The single-species H-D allometric equations available are mainly focused on monocultures or stands with simple tree species mixtures and did not account for the site effects. Here we measured the height and diameter of 2,288 trees of the emergent tree species Pericopsis elata (Harms) Meeuwen in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and in Cameroon. We first examined how accurate multispecies H-D allometric equations are in predicting the total height of P. elata. We then tested whether single-species H-D allometric equations vary between sites. We developed the first H-D allometric equation of P. elata and tested whether and how stand-level and environmental variables induce changes in H-D allometric relationship of P. elata at the regional level. We additionally evaluated whether tree-level variables are important at the local level where climate and stand development stage are expected to be less variable. We found that pantropical, regional and local H-D allometric equations significantly underestimate the total height of P. elata. The local multi-species H-D allometric equation developed for Yangambi showed the highest underestimation in all the studied sites. This result supports the need for an H-D allometric equation specific for P. elata. The species-level H-D allometric equation developed showed significant underestimations for trees from the disturbed and undisturbed forests in DRC, while overestimations were observed for similar sites in Cameroon. Using a mixed-effect H-D allometric equation, we showed that even within a single species, a substantial variation exists between sites. This variation showed to be driven by the differences in the maximum asymptotic height (Hmax) between sites. We found that P. elata trees are taller and attain higher Hmax in DRC than in Cameroon. The basal area showed to be a significant covariate accounting for the site effects at the regional-scale where climate variables showed minor effects. However, at the local-scale, none of climate or stand variables showed to be significant. Local-scale variation showed to be associated with differences in light availability, highlighting the potential of management options that shape the local environment in driving species productivity. ; Peer reviewed
Medical artificial intelligence (AI) systems have been remarkably successful, even outperforming human performance at certain tasks. There is no doubt that AI is important to improve human health in many ways and will disrupt various medical workflows in the future. Using AI to solve problems in medicine beyond the lab, in routine environments, we need to do more than to just improve the performance of existing AI methods. Robust AI solutions must be able to cope with imprecision, missing and incorrect information, and explain both the result and the process of how it was obtained to a medical expert. Using conceptual knowledge as a guiding model of reality can help to develop more robust, explainable, and less biased machine learning models that can ideally learn from less data. Achieving these goals will require an orchestrated effort that combines three complementary Frontier Research Areas: (1) Complex Networks and their Inference, (2) Graph causal models and counterfactuals, and (3) Verification and Explainability methods. The goal of this paper is to describe these three areas from a unified view and to motivate how information fusion in a comprehensive and integrative manner can not only help bring these three areas together, but also have a transformative role by bridging the gap between research and practical applications in the context of future trustworthy medical AI. This makes it imperative to include ethical and legal aspects as a cross-cutting discipline, because all future solutions must not only be ethically responsible, but also legally compliant. ; Andreas Holzinger acknowledges funding support from the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), Project: P-32554 explainable Artificial Intelligenceand from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovationprogram under grant agreement 826078 (Feature Cloud). This publi-cation reflects only the authors' view and the European Commissionis not responsible for any use that may be made of the informationit contains; Natalia Díaz-Rodríguez is supported by the Spanish Gov-ernment Juan de la Cierva Incorporación contract (IJC2019-039152-I); Isabelle Augenstein's research is partially funded by a DFF Sapere Auderesearch leader grant; Javier Del Ser acknowledges funding supportfrom the Basque Government through the ELKARTEK program (3KIAproject, KK-2020/00049) and the consolidated research group MATH-MODE (ref. T1294-19); Wojciech Samek acknowledges funding Support from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovationprogram under grant agreement No. 965221 (iToBoS), and the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (ref. 01IS18025 A, ref. 01IS18037I and ref. 0310L0207C); Igor Jurisica acknowledges funding support from Ontario Research Fund (RDI 34876), Natural Sciences Research Council (NSERC 203475), CIHR Research Grant (93579),Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI 29272, 225404, 33536), IBM, Ian Lawson van Toch Fund, the Schroeder Arthritis Institute via theToronto General and Western Hospital Foundation.
Over the past few decades, management models have become important in the organizational field. Well implemented models provide benefits in all areas of organization and strengthening the company in the market. The present paper performs an analysis of the ACADEMIA DE BELLEZA YVONNE, therefore a management model is proposed according to the need of the organization to be a certifier of biosafety. The characteristics of the creation of the model for the company correspond to the case study and the use of descriptive research. The research is organized systemic with the aim of understanding the variables on the general, legal and stakeholder environment. In addition, headquarters managers are interviewed to learn about the organization's current problems. The findings allow the ACADEMIA to have the basis for solving some of the problems. These problems are related to the goal of becoming a certifier of biosafety, among which the need to implement and evaluate a series of proposed indicators stands out. These indicators belong to a management model that relates knowledge management and the balanced scorecard. In addition to the above, the proposed model has the necessary elements so that other types of organizations in the sector can replicate it ; Desde hace unas décadas los modelos de gestión han tomado importancia en el campo organizacional. Los modelos bien implementados proporcionan beneficios en todas las áreas de la organización y el fortalecimiento de la compañía en el mercado. Este trabajo presenta un modelo de gestión para que la ACADEMIA DE BELLEZA YVONNE se convierta en certificadora de bioseguridad. Las características de la creación del modelo para la empresa corresponden al estudio de caso y al uso de la investigación descriptiva. La investigación se ordena de manera sistémica con el objetivo de comprender las variables sobre el entorno general, legal y de los grupos de interés. Además, se entrevista a los administradores de la sede para conocer los problemas coyunturales de la organización. Los hallazgos permiten que la ACADEMIA tenga las bases para la solución de algunos de los problemas. Estos problemas se encuentran relacionados con el objetivo de convertirse en una certificadora de bioseguridad, entre los que destacan la necesidad de implementar y evaluar una serie de indicadores propuestos. Estos indicadores pertenecen a un modelo de gestión que relaciona la gestión del conocimiento y el cuadro de mando integral. Aunado a lo anterior, el modelo propuesto cuenta con los elementos necesarios para que otros tipos de organizaciones del sector puedan replicarlo. ; Maestría