scholarly journals A metapopulation model of the spread of the Devil Facial Tumour Disease predicts the long term collapse of its host but not its extinction

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Veronika Siska ◽  
Anders Eriksson ◽  
Bernhard Mehlig ◽  
Andrea Manica
Keyword(s):  
Dynamic Equilibrium ◽  
Tasmanian Devil ◽  
Metapopulation Model ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Devil Facial Tumour Disease ◽  
Transmissible Cancer ◽  
The Devil ◽  
Different Levels

AbstractThe Devil Facial Tumour Disease (DFTD), a unique case of a transmissible cancer, had a devastating effect on its host, the Tasmanian Devil. Current estimates of its density are at roughly 20% of the pre-disease state, and single-population epidemiological models have predicted the likely extinction of the host. Here we take advantage of extensive surveys across Tasmania providing data on the spatial and temporal spread of DFTD, and investigate the dynamics of this host-pathogen system using a spatial metapopulation model. We first confirm a most likely origin of DFTD in the north-east corner of the island, and then use the inferred dynamics to predict the fate of the species. We find that our medium-term predictions match additional data not used for fitting, and that on the longterm, Tasmanian Devils are predicted to coexist with the tumour. The key process allowing persistence is the repeated reinvasion of extinct patches from neighbouring areas where the disease has flared up and died out, resulting in a dynamic equilibrium with different levels of spatial heterogeneity. However, this dynamic equilibrium is predicted to keep this apex predator at about 9 % of its original density, with possible dramatic effects on the Tasmanian ecosystem.

scholarly journals SMEs Sustainability in Times of Crisis

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Otilia-Maria Bordeianu ◽  
◽  
Claudia-Elena Grigoras-Ichim ◽  
Lucia Morosan-Danila ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Correlation Coefficients ◽  
State Institutions ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
East Region ◽  
Sustainability Strategies ◽  
Local Companies ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Different Levels

The global crisis generated by the COVID-19 pandemic among the population and at the level of companies, state institutions, etc., underlined the importance of analysing its impact at different levels (intern, national and international level). The concepts of sustainability, development and growth must be aware, adapted and implemented more and more frequently, even constantly, in order to cope with the current evolution of the economy (and not only). The paper is an empirical research conducted in the North-East Region of Romania, aiming to analyse the impact of COVID-19 on local companies (especially SME’s), in the context of existing correlation between the COVID-19 impact on resizing, restricting, changing the number of active employees, changing revenue, changing turnover and changing profit, based on the Spearman correlation coefficients. In this sense, it was important to implement sustainability strategies and ensure the activity and resources of companies in the long term, because the effects of an economic crisis (natural resources, human resources, not only financial) are felt in 2021 and will be felt in the future 10 years. The paper concludes with two practical solutions to ensure the sustainability of the companies involved in the study, solutions that can be applied by all companies that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In memory of Vera Antonovna Martynenko (1936-2018)

2018 ◽  
pp. 149-154
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Plants ◽  
Ussr Academy ◽  
Vascular Plant ◽  
Plant Cover ◽  
Komi Republic ◽  
Great Contribution ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Natural Flora

Vera Antonovna Martynenko (17.02.1936–06.01.2018) — famous specialist in the field of studying vascular plant flora and vegetation of the Far North, the Honored worker of the Komi Republic (2006), The Komi Republic State Scientific Award winner (2000). She was born in the town Likhoslavl of the Kali­nin (Tver) region. In 1959, Vera Antonovna graduated from the faculty of soil and biology of the Leningrad State University and then moved to the Komi Branch of USSR Academy of Science (Syktyvkar). From 1969 to 1973 she passed correspondence postgraduate courses of the Komi Branch of USSR Academy of ­Science. In 1974, she received the degree of candidate of biology (PhD) by the theme «Comparative analysis of the boreal flora at the Northeast European USSR» in the Botanical Institute (St. Petersburg). In 1996, Vera Antonovna received the degree of doctor of biology in the Institute of plant and animal ecology (Ekaterinburg) «Flora of the northern and mid subzones of the taiga of the European North-East». The study and conservation of species and coenotical diversity of the plant world, namely the vascular plants flora of the Komi Republic and revealing its transformation under the anthropogenic influence, was in the field of V. A. Martynenko’ scientific interests. She made great contribution to the study of the Komi Republic meadow flora and the pool of medi­cinal plants. She performed inventorying and mapping the meadows of several agricultural enterprises of the Republic, revealed the species composition and places for harvesting medicinal plants and studied their productivity in the natural flora of the boreal zone. The results of her long-term studies were used for making the NPA system and the Red Book of the Komi Republic (1998 and 2009). Vera Antonovna participated in the research of the influence of placer gold mining and oil development on the natural ecosystems of the North, and developed the method of long-term monitoring of plant cover. Results of these works are of high practical value. V. A. Martynenko is an author and coauthor of more than 130 scientific publications. The most important jnes are «Flora of Northeast European USSR» (1974, 1976, and 1977), «Floristic composition of fodder lands of the Northeast Europe» (1989), «The forests of the Komi Republic» (1999), «Forestry of forest resources of the Komi Republic» (2000), «The list of flora of the Yugyd va national park» (2003), «The guide for vascular plants of the Syktyvkar and its vicinities» (2005), «Vascular plants of the Komi Republic» (2008), and «Resources of the natural flora of the Komi Republic» (2014). She also was an author of «Encyclopedia of the Komi Republic» (1997, 1999, and 2000), «Historical and cultural atlas of the Komi Republic» (1997), «Atlas of the Komi Republic» (2001, 2011). V. A. Martynenko made a great contribution to the development of the botanical investigations in the North. Since 1982, during more than 10 years, she was the head of the Department of the Institute of Biology. Three Ph. D. theses have been completed under her leadership. Many years, she worked actively in the Dissertation Council of the Institute of biology Komi Scientific Centre UrB RAS.  The death of Vera Antonovna Martynenko is a heavy and irretrievable loss for the staff of the Institute of Biology. The memory of Vera Antonovna will live in her numerous scientific works, the hearts of students and colleagues.

scholarly journals “The way things get done around here…” Exploring spatial biographies, social policy and governance in the North East of England

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 655-666 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Warren
Keyword(s):  
Social Policy ◽  
Empirical Work ◽  
Social Progress ◽  
Local Conditions ◽  
Content Type ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Policy Interventions ◽  
Health Related

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to argue that the application of social policy in the North East of England is often characterised by tension and conflict. The agencies and professionals charged with implementation of Westminster driven policies constantly seek to deploy their knowledge of local conditions in order to make them both practical and palatable. Design/methodology/approach This paper examines the region via established literature from history, geography, sociology and social policy. The paper gives illustrations via empirical work which has evaluated initiatives to improve the health of long term health-related benefit recipients and to sustain individuals in employment in the region. Findings Central to the paper’s argument is the notion of “biographies of place”. The core of this idea is that places have biographies in the same way as individuals and possess specific identities. These biographies have been shaped by the intersections between environment, history, culture and economic and social policy. The paper identifies the region’s economic development, subsequent decline and the alliance of labour politics and industrial employers around a common consensus that sought economic prosperity and social progress via a vision of “modernisation” as a key component of this biography. Originality/value The paper argues that an appreciation of these spatial biographies can result in innovative and more effective social policy interventions with the potential to address issues that affect entire localities.

Northeast India

2019 ◽  
pp. 156-167
Author(s):  
Kaholi Zhimomi
Keyword(s):  
Identity Politics ◽  
Regional Identity ◽  
Northeast India ◽  
Way Of Life ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Indigenous Groups ◽  
The Social ◽  
Military Violence

The north-east has a distinct regional identity, as the land of seven sisters, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim; and yet, has been absorbed into the social, cultural and political scheme of the secular nation since independence. The identity politics resulted in dissatisfaction on the part of the indigenous people, which generated long-term military violence in Northeast India. Today, disempowerment among indigenous groups is enormous. For early missionaries, conversion to Christianity also entailed adoption of the Western way of life. Most of the missionaries in Northeast India were American or Welsh among the Protestants and German, Spanish or Italian among the Catholics. Despite exploitation by colonialists that attempted to replace indigenous customs, revivals paved the way for renaissance for those customs. Today, Christianity is the major religion in the states of Nagaland, Mizoram and Meghalaya, with significant growth of indigenous leaders, both secular and religious. Furthermore, there is a rapid growth of educated young tribals who are qualified administrators, educators, academicians, politicians and theologians. With the effects of globalization and modernisation, Christianity must not be assumed to be an agent of acculturation but an agent that helped in the metamorphosis of indigenous norms into authentic tradition.

Prey switching by killer whales in the north-east Atlantic: observational evidence and experimental insights

2013 ◽  
Vol 94 (6) ◽  
pp. 1357-1365 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dag Vongraven ◽  
Anna Bisther
Keyword(s):  
Killer Whale ◽  
Large Population ◽  
Tooth Wear ◽  
Killer Whales ◽  
Prey Switching ◽  
Photo Identification ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
Spawning Stock

Studies in the Pacific have identified distinct killer whale ecotypes that are either specialized mammal- or fish-eaters. The different types have developed hunting strategies that would suggest specialization could be more advantageous than generalism. However, it has been suggested, based on long-term dietary markers of tooth wear and stable isotope values, that lineages in the North Atlantic are generalist, but with individual variation in the proportion of prey types consumed. Here, we present the results of ten years of observational and photo-identification data of a population of killer whales that follows the Norwegian spring-spawning stock of Atlantic herring. Although the whales were predominantly observed while feeding upon herring, one pod of herring-eating whales was also observed interacting with seals. This supports the hypothesis based on the long-term markers, of a degree of specialization, with a small number of groups persistently feeding upon mammals, but switching between herring and seals. We further investigated this prey switching by conducting playbacks of herring-eating killer whale sounds to harbour seals at haul-out sites on the herring spawning grounds. We recorded changes in behaviour consistent with an anti-predator response, suggesting the seals perceived the herring-eating killer whales as a potential predatory threat and had not habituated to their calls. This could be due to the risk of herring-eating killer whales switching to mammalian prey, or the difficulty of discriminating between killer whale pods due to the large population size and number of killer whale call dialects in this population, or a combination of both.

Long-Term Costs of Stroke Using 10-Year Longitudinal Data From the North East Melbourne Stroke Incidence Study

Stroke ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 45 (11) ◽  
pp. 3389-3394 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tristan D. Gloede ◽  
Sarah M. Halbach ◽  
Amanda G. Thrift ◽  
Helen M. Dewey ◽  
Holger Pfaff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Data ◽  
Incidence Study ◽  
Stroke Incidence ◽  
North East ◽  
The North

scholarly journals Relict or reintroduction? Genetic population assignment of three Tasmanian devils ( Sarcophilus harrisii ) recovered on mainland Australia

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 170053 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lauren C. White ◽  
Jeremy J. Austin
Keyword(s):  
Tasmanian Devil ◽  
Nucleotide Polymorphisms ◽  
Genetic Population ◽  
Single Nucleotide ◽  
Mainland Population ◽  
Devil Facial Tumour Disease ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
The Devil ◽  
Disease Free ◽  
Sarcophilus Harrisii

Today, the Tasmanian devil ( Sarcophilus harrisii ) is found only on the island of Tasmania, despite once being widespread across mainland Australia. While the devil is thought to have become extinct on the mainland approximately 3000 years ago, three specimens were collected in Victoria (south-eastern Australia) between 1912 and 1991, raising the possibility that a relict mainland population survived in the area. Alternatively, these devils may have escaped captivity or were deliberately released after being transported from Tasmania, a practice that has been strictly controlled since the onset of devil facial tumour disease in the early 1990s. Such quarantine regimes are important to protect disease-free, ‘insurance populations’ in zoos on the mainland. To test whether the three Victorian devils were members of a relict mainland population or had been recently transported from Tasmania we identified seven single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the mitochondrial genome that can distinguish between Tasmanian and ancient mainland populations. The three Victorian devil specimens have the same seven SNPs diagnostic of modern Tasmanian devils, confirming that they were most likely transported from Tasmania and do not represent a remnant population of mainland devils.

scholarly journals Shifting the Goalposts: A Longitudinal Mixed-Methods Study of the Health of Long-Term Incapacity Benefit Recipients during a Period of Substantial Change to the UK Social Security System

2014 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 311-330 ◽  
Author(s):  
KAYLEIGH GARTHWAITE ◽  
CLARE BAMBRA ◽  
JONATHAN WARREN ◽  
ADETAYO KASIM ◽  
GRAEME GREIG
Keyword(s):  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Social Security ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Health State ◽  
Disabled People ◽  
Welfare Benefits ◽  
North East ◽  
The North ◽  
The Uk

AbstractThe UK social security safety net for those who are out of work due to ill health or disability has experienced significant change, most notably the abolition of Incapacity Benefit (IB) and the introduction of Employment and Support Allowance (ESA). These changes have been underpinned by the assumption that many recipients are not sufficiently sick or disabled to ‘deserve’ welfare benefits – claims that have been made in the absence of empirical data on the health of recipients. Employing a unique longitudinal and mixed-methods approach, this paper explores the health of a cohort of 229 long-term IB recipients in the North East of England over an eighteen-month period, during a time of significant changes to the UK welfare state. In-depth interviews with twenty-five of the survey cohort are also presented to illustrate the lived experiences of recipients. Contributing to debates surrounding the conceptualisation of work-readiness for sick and disabled people, findings indicate IB recipients had significantly worse health than the general population, with little change in their health state over the eighteen-month study period. Qualitative data reinforced the constancy of ill health for IB recipients. Finally, the paper discusses the implications for social policy, noting how the changing nature of administrative definitions and redefinitions of illness and capacity to work can impact upon the lives of sick and disabled people.

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