scholarly journals Overview of the impact of forest habitats quality and landscape disturbances on the ecology and conservation of dormice species

Author(s):  
Izabela Fedyń ◽  
Tomasz Figarski ◽  
Łukasz Kajtoch

AbstractArboreal mammals are a group of special concern. We reviewed the available literature to summarize the overall potential effects of forest habitat disturbances on dormice ecology and population parameters. We took into consideration the influence of forest structure, area size and fragmentation, vegetation biodiversity, forestry treatments, and the development of road networks. The vast majority of studies have only examined two species, hazel and edible dormouse, while the ecological requirements and conservation priorities of forest, garden, and Japanese dormice have rarely been studied. There has been a substantial increase in the number of dormice studies; however, many aspects of their ecology are still unknown. The current state of knowledge points to the essential role of the complex vertical structure of forest vegetation in providing arboreal movement corridors and safe nesting places for dormice species. Moreover, dormice species are cavity dwellers that depend on the presence of old trees and nest boxes, which could have ambiguous effects.

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 1775
Author(s):  
Savvas Iezekiel ◽  
Reuven Yosef ◽  
Constantinos Themistokleus ◽  
Dimitrios E. Bakaloudis ◽  
Christos G. Vlachos ◽  
...  

As is well-known, endemic island bird species are especially vulnerable to extinction from anthropogenic environmental change and reduced fitness compared with mainland taxa. The Cyprus Scops Owl, Otus cyprius, is a recently recognized island endemic species whose ecology and breeding biology have not been studied. It nests mainly in holes in trees and buildings, so the felling of old trees, modern architectural practices, and the renovation of old houses in villages may reduce nest site availability. Its population trend is also unknown. Therefore, to better determine its ecological requirements and habitat preferences we placed nest boxes in rural areas adjacent to the forest, in the forest, and in the ecotone between them, and used breeding success as our indicator of habitat suitability. We found that breeding parameters like laying date, clutch size, length of the incubation period, hatching day, hatching success, and number of nestlings did not differ between the three habitats. Despite the low level of nest box occupancy rate (5–11%) the endemic Cyprus Scops Owl readily breeds in artificial nests. Therefore, although we are unaware of any current threats to the Cyprus Scops Owl, we recommend that its conservation be prioritized, including studies, monitoring, habitat conservation, and the provision of nest boxes.


2021 ◽  
pp. 082585972110522
Author(s):  
Neerjah Skantharajah ◽  
Carol Barrie ◽  
Sharon Baxter ◽  
M. Carolina Borja ◽  
Anica Butters ◽  
...  

Background Informal caregivers are a significant part of the hospice and palliative care landscape as members of the interdisciplinary care team. Despite this, little is known about the impact this responsibility has on informal caregivers’ experiences of grief and bereavement. To address this, a scoping review of the literature was conducted to explore the current state of knowledge toward grief and bereavement of informal caregivers of adult/geriatric patients in the hospice and palliative/end-of-life care realm within North America. Methods Using Arksey and O’Malley's 5-step framework, key electronic health care and social sciences databases (eg, CINAHL, MEDLINE, ProQuest Sociological Abstracts, PsycINFO) alongside gray literature sources were searched and screened against inclusion and exclusion criteria. A thematic content analysis was used to identify key themes. Results 29 articles met the final inclusion criteria with 3 central themes emerging: (1) mediators of grief, (2) grief experiences, and (3) types of grief. Discussion Informal caregivers encounter unique grief and bereavement experiences: The range of psychosocial outcomes, both negative and positive, can be affected by various mediators such as caregiver burden, demographics, disease type of the patient being cared for, etc. Bereavement interventions must be designed with the mediators of grief in mind. Conclusions Understanding the nuances of informal caregivers’ experiences with grief and bereavement will inform and advance practice, policy, and research. Practitioners/clinicians should be further educated on how to properly acknowledge the complexity of grief and bereavement for informal caregivers, specifically paying attention to mediators. Further research needs to consider the role of culture.


1998 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 507-524 ◽  
Author(s):  
MARK DRAKEFORD

This article considers the current state of help with funeral expenses in Britain. It argues that assistance has been progressively and deliberately eroded to the point where the famous ‘from the cradle to the grave’ protection of the welfare state has been removed from increasing numbers of poor people. The article sets these developments within the context of the contemporary British funeral industry, with emphasis upon its treatment of less-well-off consumers. The changing nature of social security provision for funeral expenses is traced in detail, including the actions of the incoming 1997 Labour government. This article investigates the public health role of local authorities in the case of burials, concluding that such services are insufficiently robust to meet the new weight placed upon them. The article ends with a consideration of the impact which these different changes produce in the lives of individuals upon whom they have an effect.


2021 ◽  
Vol 92 ◽  
pp. 08007
Author(s):  
Victor Dengov ◽  
Irina Tulyakova ◽  
Elena Gregova

Research background: The products of the arms and military equipment market create the material basis for the country’s military security. The most important segment of this market is the market of naval equipment. The acquired competencies have naturally led Russia to the role of the most important exporter in this market. The authors have repeatedly addressed the topic of Russian shipbuilding and the role of Russia in the world market of naval equipment and military ships. Purpose of the article: The main goal of the research is to analyze the current state of the market of naval equipment, the positions of its main participants and, especially, Russia. To determine the future prospects of Russia’s presence in this market, it was necessary to identify the main problems of Russian shipbuilding and consider the impact of external factors on the state of the industry. Methods: Generalizations of the research are based on processing and systematization of data obtained from available information sources. Analyzing the statistics, the authors were able to deduce the trends of the current moment and determine the prospects. Findings & Value added: The analysis of key market indicators, as well as the problems of Russian shipbuilding, allowed the authors to build possible scenarios for its future development, from optimistic under favorable external factors to pessimistic, in which the loss of not only military security, but also the position of the largest exporter in the world market of naval equipment and military ships is inevitable.


2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (4) ◽  
pp. 453-466
Author(s):  
Jos Akkermans ◽  
Ricardo Rodrigues ◽  
Stefan T. Mol ◽  
Scott E. Seibert ◽  
Svetlana N. Khapova

PurposeThis article aims to introduce the special issue entitled “the role of career shocks in contemporary career development,” synthesize key contributions and formulate a future research agenda.Design/methodology/approachThe authors provide an introduction of the current state-of-the-art in career shocks research, offer an overview of the key lessons learned from the special issue and present several important avenues for future research.FindingsThe authors discuss how the special issue articles contribute to a better understanding of career shocks' role in contemporary career development, focusing on (1) conceptual clarity of the notion of career shocks, (2) career outcomes of career shocks, (3) mechanisms that can explain the impact of career shocks and (4) interdisciplinary connectivity.Originality/valueThis article offers a synthesis of the critical contributions made within this special issue, thereby formulating key ways to bring the field of career shocks research forward. It also provides new avenues for research.


Author(s):  
Kevin Albertson ◽  
Chris Fox ◽  
Chris O’leary ◽  
Gary Painter ◽  
Kimberly Bailey ◽  
...  

This chapter reviews the current state of evidence on what works in outcomes-based commissioning using published evaluations of Payment by Results (PbR) and Social Impact Bonds (SIBs) in the UK and SIBs in the US. Findings from these evaluations are arranged under the following broad headings: designing and commissioning, development of markets, performance management, innovation, the role of incentives, and overall outcomes. The evaluations address issues such as the complexity of PbR commissioning models compared to other commissioning exercises, the impact of PbR on the market for social goods, and the development of new or enhanced performance management systems as a result of outcomes-based commissioning. Two areas of innovation are also highlighted: innovation in service design and delivery, and innovation in financing.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 282-297
Author(s):  
Niccolò Dal Santo ◽  
Simone Deparis ◽  
Andrea Manzoni

AbstractWe analyze the numerical performance of a preconditioning technique recently proposed in [1] for the efficient solution of parametrized linear systems arising from the finite element (FE) discretization of parameterdependent elliptic partial differential equations (PDEs). In order to exploit the parametric dependence of the PDE, the proposed preconditioner takes advantage of the reduced basis (RB) method within the preconditioned iterative solver employed to solve the linear system, and combines a RB solver, playing the role of coarse component, with a traditional fine grid (such as Additive Schwarz or block Jacobi) preconditioner. A sequence of RB spaces is required to handle the approximation of the error-residual equation at each step of the iterative method at hand, whence the name of Multi Space Reduced Basis (MSRB) method. In this paper, a numerical investigation of the proposed technique is carried on in the case of a Richardson iterative method, and then extended to the flexible GMRES method, in order to solve parameterized advection-diffusion problems. Particular attention is payed to the impact of anisotropic diffusion coefficients and (possibly dominant) transport terms on the proposed preconditioner, by carrying out detailed comparisons with the current state of the art algebraic multigrid preconditioners.


Author(s):  
Elena Gushchina ◽  
Valeria Vinogradova

The role of insurance in a person’s life is undoubtedly great because it serves as the most effective tool in case of loss of property, health problems, business protection, etc. The purpose of the article is to assess the current state of the insurance market in Russia and identify problems that arise during its functioning. The research methodology consists in summarizing and comparing data characterizing various components of the insurance market. The article analyzes the current state of the insurance market in Russia with a falling number of insurers by more than 20 % over the past 3 years, the share of top insurers continues to grow every year, over the past 3 years the growth has amounted to 12 %. Calculations that indicate a change in the level of concentration in the insurance market of the Russian Federation have been made. Based on the results of the analysis, it was concluded that there is monopolistic competition in the market. The main factors influencing the level of competition in the market under consideration, namely, barriers to entry into the industry and their impact, were studied Due to the relevance of the research, the analysis of the impact the pandemic has on the Russian insurance market was carried out and the prospects for the development of the market were considered. Identifying the weaknesses of insurers made it possible to determine the priority areas for further development: intensive digital transformation of business, marketing, advertising.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 3985-3993
Author(s):  
Dugalova Gulnar ◽  
Tuzubekova Madina ◽  
Belgibaeva Kuralay ◽  
Sarybayeva Inara ◽  
Yesturliyeva Aigul ◽  
...  

In this article, the authors conducted a study and analysis of the impact of innovations on the economies of countries, the current state and development of innovative activities, the introduction of new technologies, characterized by an increase in the role of their results in the life of mankind. The mechanisms of support from the state and business of research work, the creation of special educational programs for young scientists and innovators, and spaces where they could develop innovative technologies are considered. At a certain stage of innovation, the role of innovation, the introduction and widespread distribution of new products, is a key driver of growth.


Nutrients ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 1468 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mills ◽  
Lane ◽  
Smith ◽  
Grimaldi ◽  
Ross ◽  
...  

Modulation of the human gut microbiota through probiotics, prebiotics and dietary fibre are recognised strategies to improve health and prevent disease. Yet we are only beginning to understand the impact of these interventions on the gut microbiota and the physiological consequences for the human host, thus forging the way towards evidence-based scientific validation. However, in many studies a percentage of participants can be defined as ‘non-responders’ and scientists are beginning to unravel what differentiates these from ‘responders;’ and it is now clear that an individual’s baseline microbiota can influence an individual’s response. Thus, microbiome composition can potentially serve as a biomarker to predict responsiveness to interventions, diets and dietary components enabling greater opportunities for its use towards disease prevention and health promotion. In Part I of this two-part review, we reviewed the current state of the science in terms of the gut microbiota and the role of diet and dietary components in shaping it and subsequent consequences for human health. In Part II, we examine the efficacy of gut-microbiota modulating therapies at different life stages and their potential to aid in the management of undernutrition and overnutrition. Given the significance of an individual’s gut microbiota, we investigate the feasibility of microbiome testing and we discuss guidelines for evaluating the scientific validity of evidence for providing personalised microbiome-based dietary advice. Overall, this review highlights the potential value of the microbiome to prevent disease and maintain or promote health and in doing so, paves the pathway towards commercialisation.


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