bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Socio-ecological Vulnerability of Smallholders due to Climate Change in Mountains: Agroforestry as an Adaptation Measure
Authors: Pandey Rajiv , Meena Dhanraj , Aretano Roberta , Satpathy Sachidananda , Semeraro Teodoro , Kumar Gupta Ajay , Rawat Sushma , Zurlini Giovanni 
Published: January 2016

AbstractThe present study aims to assess the socioecological vulnerability of smallholders through an index of Tehri Garhwal Himalaya. The index provides a realistic approach to recognize the contributions of social and ecological factors for household welfare vulnerability to climate change. The approach puts forward various indices for each component of vulnerability to climate change - exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity including two more indices: one for overall impact under the exposure of climate change and another for overall vulnerability. The five indices were proposed to assess the vulnerability status of with and without agroforestry practicing households in Himalayan region. These indices are based on 35 indicators (8 for exposure; 12 for sensitivity, 15 for adaptive capacity), selected through inductive approaches. A questionnaire for households was designed for the above aim and was administered to 121 heads of households through face-toface interviews with 77 households practicing agroforestry and 44 without agroforestry. The questionnaire dealt the general household information, and indicators of the vulnerability including the issues related to agroforestry. The results highlight slightly higher adaptive capacity of agroforestry practicing households due to specific contribution of agroforestry. The low contribution of agroforestry among smallholders was due to small land holding. The study also results that remoteness, specific issues of smallholders’ such as poverty, education and employment are responsible for the present condition. In particular this study clearly shows that poverty is the key driver for vulnerability. All of these issues can be addressed if future programs and policies, include and implement regulations to remedy attributive factors. This paper may be applicable to other mountainous regions providing insights for effective adaptation strategies to climate change.
Governing the Nexus for Sustainability
Authors: Marx Sina 
Published: January 2016

AbstractThis report summarizes the challenges of and requirements for effective governance of the water, energy and food nexus. With global dynamics such as climate change, urbanization and changing consumption patterns, governing resources in a coherent manner becomes both more complex and more relevant for sustainable development. Governance challenges include nexus economics (costs and benefits of different approaches to resource management), institutional design (like questions of how decision-making should be best distributed) and good governance (how to make sure that nexus governance adheres to certain agreed upon principles and values). In terms of economics, a balance between sector specific actions and nexus governance is required. For effective decision-making it is important that power among different institutions is both distributed and coordinated. Good nexus governance requires targets that can be monitored to make sure that basic principles are followed and to examine whether progress toward sustainable development is being made.
The Need for Policy Coordination in Governing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus
Authors: Halbe Johannes , Knüppe Kathrin 
Published: January 2016

AbstractCoordination of policies in different sectors and at multiple levels is a major task for governing the water-energy-food nexus. Nexus governance has to deal with plurality of policies that are in place (e.g., interaction of policies across levels). Based on an overview of governance challenges, this report provides insights into policy instruments and experiences in their application at the global, national, regional and local levels. Institutional innovation is needed to develop democratic and participatory approaches that address the water-energy-food nexus. Another requirement is the development and implementation of binding environmental targets (e.g. water quality standards, land use distribution) which should be set at national or supranational levels. However, context-specific pathways should be established for different regions to achieve those targets. Various examples are provided to illustrate challenges and solutions to the implementation of a nexus governance approach.
Implementing the Water-Energy-Food Nexus at Various Scales: Trans-Boundary Challenges and Solutions
Authors: Scott McLachlan Nikolaus 
Published: January 2016

AbstractWatersheds, climate regimes and nature in general do not abide to boundaries created by human institutions, increasing the difficulty for these institutions to manage them. Human activity is, on the other hand, capable of linking geographically separate regions through trade and supply chains. Implementing the water-energyfood nexus therefore often requires science and policy to work on a trans-boundary level. This article looks at two examples of quantitative trans-boundary approaches in science. Johansson explored the effects of foreign land acquisition on regional water scarcity through virtual water flows. The virtual water flows were based on the water used to produce the exported food and energy crops. The flows were aggregated on a national basis to compare countries. Van der Krogt presented a water simulation model for the Eastern Nile Basin, developed through joint cooperation between the four Eastern Nile countries. The model incorporates information on all current, planned and potential water infrastructure and irrigation projects into different scenarios. These are compared with a long term hydrological baseline to assess the impact development has on downstream water supply. This new tool allows Eastern Nile countries to better understand how their actions can affect downstream neighbours.
Implementing the nexus at various scales: Local and regional perspectives
Authors: Aarnoudse Eefje , Leentvaar Jan 
Published: January 2016

AbstractMany issues in the water, energy and agricultural sector are in fact crosscutting issues, which can only be solved by a nexus approach. A nexus approach means that management solutions account for synergies and tradeoffs between the sectors. Critical issues emerging across the three sectors ask for different policies at different governance levels. However, at each level of policy making the impact at local level should be an important point of reference. In line with this, the case of the Aral Sea Basin in Central Asia exemplifies how international energy politics affect local farmers’ access to irrigation water. Moreover, a comparative study of three states in India shows that local differences in the implementation of the nexus approach can lead to different outcomes in terms of groundwater and electricity use for agriculture. These two examples underline that to implement a nexus approach; the local perspective should not be overlooked, even when policies are designed at higher governance levels.
Ecosystem Services in the Water-Energy-Food Nexus
Authors: Bekchanov Maksud , Ringler Claudia , Mueller Marc 
Published: January 2016

AbstractGiven their substantial societal benefits, such as supporting economic activities and providing better livelihoods in rural areas, ecosystem services should gain higher importance in water-food-energy nexus debates. Yet, not all values from ecosystems are quantifiable, data is often not adequate and methods of measuring these values are not sound. This situation challenges researchers and water managers to improve research tools and give adequate attention to ecosystem services by implementing interdisciplinary approaches and integrated management of ecosystems and their services.
Connecting cities and their environments: Harnessing the water-energy-food nexus for sustainable urban development
Authors: Chan Arthur 
Published: January 2016

AbstractThousands of years of development have made the production and consumption of water, energy, and food for urban environments more complex. While the rise of cities has fostered social and economic progress, the accompanying environmental pressures threaten to undermine these benefits. The compounding effects of climate change, habitat loss, pollution, overexploitation (in addition to financial constraints) make the individual management of these three vital resources incompatible with rapidly growing populations and resource-intensive lifestyles. Nexus thinking is a critical tool to capture opportunities for urban sustainability in both industrialised and developing cities. A nexus approach to water, energy, and food security recognises that conventional decisionmaking, strictly confined within distinct sectors, limits the sustainability of urban development. Important nexus considerations include the need to collaborate with a wide spectrum of stakeholders, and to “re-integrate” urban systems. This means recognising the opportunities coming from the interconnected nature of cities and metropolitan regions, including links with rural environments and wider biophysical dynamics.
Earth Observations and Education for the Sustainable Implementation of the Nexus Approach
Authors: Voigt Holm 
Published: January 2016

AbstractWater, energy and food are closely connected sectors which interact in a complex manner. Complex problems which need to be addressed in these sectors require informed decisions. The key to this information are data which need to be easily available to the decision maker. In the context of the Sustainability in the W-E-F Nexus conference May 19-20, 2014, the session on ‘Earth Observations, Monitoring and Modelling for the Sustainable Implementation of the Nexus Approach’ revealed institutional shortcomings and general problems in data provisioning for the water-energy- food (WEF) nexus. Key Findings of the session were that (1) integrative thinking of collaborating institutions is required to address problems in the water-energy-food nexus, (2) comprehensive and coherent data need to be made readily available, potentially through the Global Earth Observation System of Systems (GEOSS) and (3) that nexus education needs to be promoted in basic and higher education in order to ensure efficient use of coherent and comprehensive datasets.
The Water – Energy – Food Nexus and Climate Change Adaptation
Authors: Holtermann Talin , Nandalal K.D.W. 
Published: January 2016

AbstractThis report explores the exposure and vulnerability of Korea and the Southern African region to climate-driven impacts in the Water-Energy-Food (WEF) nexus. It presents the building of ecological networks as a mean to address climate change - induced alterations of ecosystems and the consequences for humans and nature. Reducing the asymmetry between price and value of water resources is identified as an essential aspect to enable sound resource management use decisions. The report highlights the need for comprehensive tools which assist decision makers in dealing with the complexity of WEF nexus interrelations and facilitate sustainable resource management.
The Roles of Customary Institutions in Adaptation and Coping to Climate Change and Variability among the Issa, Ittu and Afar Pastoralists of eastern Ethiopia
Authors: Tadesse Bamlaku , Beyene Fekadu , Kassa Workneh , Wentzell Richard 
Published: January 2016

Abstract(Agro) pastoral communities who reside in the arid and semi-arid environments of Ethiopia are vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and variability specifically to the recurrent drought, floods and conflicts. From their long years of rich experiences of how to survive on such environmental pressures, (agro) pastoralists have also developed various forms of adaptation as well as coping strategies to the impacts of climate change and variability. Such strategies are closely guided and supervised by their customary institutions which have rich experiences in addressing the socio-economic/ cultural, political and environmental/ecological aspects. To mention some of the adaptation mechanisms in the study area are pastoral mobility; relying on traditional early warning mechanisms; area enclosures and preparing of hays/forage; diversifying livestock and selection of their species; the shift from pure form of pastoral to agropastoral production systems; and among others. Some of the coping strategies employed by the (agro) pastoralists are also their engagement in charcoal production and fire wood collections; the sell of their livestock, government support in the form of safety net and MERET project and their indigenous social support mechanisms; petty trading especially by women; brokering on livestock trade; engagement in contraband trade; searching for daily labor, and among others. The paper also tried to assess the roles of customary institutions in social support mechanisms to the problems posed by the impacts of climate change and variability to their age old traditional ways of livelihood mechanisms.
Approximation forte en famille
Authors: Colliot-Thélène Jean-Louis , Harari David 
Published: January 2016

Abstract

Soient k un corps de nombres et X une k-variété affine lisse intègre
fibrée au-dessus de la droite affine

𝔸
k
1

$\mathbb {A}^1_{k}$

. Supposons que toutes les fibres sont géométriquement intègres, et que la fibre générique est un espace homogène sous un
groupe semisimple simplement connexe presque simple

G
/
k
(
t
)

$G/k(t)$

, les stabilisateurs géométriques étant réductifs connexes.
Soit v une place de k telle que la fibration

X
→

𝔸
k
1

$X \rightarrow \mathbb {A}^1_{k}$

admette une section rationnelle sur le complété
kv
. Supposons en outre que pour presque tout point

x
∈

𝔸
1

(

k
v

)

$x \in \mathbb {A}^1(k_{v})$

le kv
-groupe Gx
est isotrope. Supposons enfin le groupe de Brauer de X réduit à celui de k. Alors l'approximation forte vaut pour X
en dehors de la place v.
Let k be a number field and X a smooth integral affine variety equipped with a surjective morphism

f
:
X
→

𝔸
k
1

$f: X \rightarrow \mathbb {A}^1_{k}$

to the affine line. Assume that all fibres of f are split, for instance that they are geometrically integral. Assume that the generic fibre of f is a homogeneous space of a simply connected, almost simple, semisimple group

G
/
k
(
t
)

$G/k(t)$

, and that the geometric stabilizers are connected reductive groups. Let v be a place of k such that the fibration f acquires a rational section over the completion kv
at v. Assume moreover that at almost all points in

x
∈

𝔸
1

(

k
v

)

$x \in \mathbb {A}^1(k_{v})$

the specialized group Gx
is isotropic over kv
. If the Brauer group of X is reduced to the Brauer group of k, then strong approximation holds for X away from the place v.
Directions in hyperbolic lattices
Authors: Marklof Jens , Vinogradov Ilya 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
It is well known that the orbit of a lattice in hyperbolic n-space is uniformly distributed when projected radially onto the unit sphere. In the present work, we consider the fine-scale statistics of the projected lattice points, and express the limit distributions in terms of random hyperbolic lattices. This provides in particular a new perspective on recent results by Boca, Popa, and Zaharescu on 2-point correlations for the modular group, and by Kelmer and Kontorovich for general lattices in dimension n = 2.
Non-minimal modularity lifting in weight one
Authors: Calegari Frank 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
We prove an integral

R
=
𝐓

{R=\mathbf{T}}

theorem for odd two-dimensional p-adic representations of

G
𝐐

{G_{\mathbf{Q}}}

which are unramified at p,
extending results of [5]
to the non-minimal case. We prove, for any p, the existence
of Katz modular forms modulo p of weight one which do not lift to
characteristic zero.
Cuspidality and the growth of Fourier coefficients of modular forms
Authors: Böcherer Siegfried , Das Soumya 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
We characterize Siegel cusp forms in the space of Siegel modular forms of large weight

k
>

2
⁢
n

{k>2n}

on any Siegel congruence subgroup Γ of any degree n and any level N, by a suitable growth of their Fourier coefficients (e.g., by the well-known Hecke bound) at any one of the cusps. For this, we use a ‘local’ approach as compared to our previous results on this topic. We also touch upon the question in the context of vector-valued modular forms.
Are Biopharmaceutical Budget Caps Good Public Policy?
Authors: Goldman Dana P. , Lakdawalla Darius N. , Baumgardner James R. , Linthicum Mark T. 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
Medical innovation has generated significant gains in health over the past decades, but these advances have been accompanied by rapid growth in healthcare spending. Faced with a growing number of high-cost but high-impact innovations, some have argued to constrain prices for new therapies – especially through global caps on pharmaceutical spending and limits on prices for individual drugs. We show that applying this threshold to past innovations would have limited access to many highly valuable drugs such as statins and anti-retrovirals. We also argue that budget caps violate several important principles of health policy. First, budget caps treat healthcare spending as a consumption good, like going to a movie or buying a meal. However, healthcare spending should be viewed as an investment, whose benefits accrue over many years – much like spending on education. Second, budgetary cost is a poor indicator of value, thereby distorting coverage decisions. Third, affordability arguments often use a short-term horizon, thereby missing that long-term health is society’s ultimate goal. Fourth, assessments of benefit should incorporate not just the immediate clinical benefit to patients, but also long-term health improvements, cost savings, and increased productivity. Fifth, global budget caps arbitrarily anchor spending on the status quo, thereby setting too stringent a threshold for socially-desirable innovation. In sum, a solitary focus on short-term costs can be detrimental to population health in the long-run. When medical treatment decisions are properly viewed as investments, budget caps are not the answer; rather, we need to find mechanisms to encourage spending decisions based on long-term value. Only then can we generate health returns to societal investments, while also encouraging the new research and development necessary to extend the gains of recent decades.
An efficient, one-pot three-component synthesis of 4H-thiazolo[3,2-a][1,3,5]triazin-6-one derivatives
Authors: Ubeid Mustafa T. , Thabet Hamdy K. , El-Feky Said A. 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
A simple and efficient protocol was established to synthesize thiazolo[3,2-a][1,3,5]triazin-6-ones via three-component one-pot condensation reaction of readily available thioglycolic acid or ethyl thioglycolate, aldehydes or ketones and dicyandiamide in the presence of ammonium acetate. All of the newly synthesized compounds were characterized by spectroscopic analyses.
Activation of corticotropin releasing factor receptors up regulates collagen production by hepatic stellate cells via promoting p300 expression
Authors: Wang Changzhen , Yang Shan , Huang Jingjing , Chen Songlin , Li Yuan , Li Quanqiang 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
Liver fibrosis is characterized with the over expression and excessive accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins, including collagens. The causative factors in the over production of collagens are not fully understood. This study aims to test a hypothesis that activation of corticotropin releasing factor receptors up regulates the expression of collagen in hepatic stellate cells. In this study, human hepatic stellate cell line, LX-2 cells were cultured. Expression of collagens by LX-2 cells was assessed by real time RT-PCR, Western blotting. The results showed that, upon exposure to urocortin in the culture, LX-2 cells (a human hepatic stellate cell line) increased the expression of collagen IV (Col4) markedly. The exposure to urocortin also enhanced the levels of pTip60, H3K9, RNA polymerase II and forkhead box protein 3 at the collagen promoter locus as well as increase in the expression of Col4 mRNA and protein in the cells. Blocking p300 efficiently suppressed the urocortin-induced Col4 expression in LX-2 cells and unveiled an apoptosis-inducing effect of urocortin. In conclusion, activation of CRF receptors is capable of enforcing the production of Col4 by LX-2 cells via up regulating the p300 pathway, which may contribute to the development of liver fibrosis.
Heart-Like Micro-Flow Mixer
Authors: Wang Chin-Tsan , Chen Yan-Ming , Chen Shih-Syun 
Published: January 2016

AbstractMicromixers are the microfluidic devices able to rapidly mix more than two liquids, with low pressure drop and high mixing efficiency (εmixing). In this study, the effect of Reynolds number ratio (Rer) and aspect ratio (AR) of heart-like biometric micromixer applied would be investigated by a numerical simulation and experimental confirmation. Results show that the heart-like biometric micromixer resulting from the coupling effect of the split and recombination (SAR) and biometric design can produce a high mixing efficiency, low pressure drop and short mixing path under a case of low Reynolds number. Two dimensional results also find that a flow mixing efficiency of εmixing=0.89 and an optimal mixing index of Midx=115 could be achieved at a flow condition of Rer=0.75 and Re2=0.1 of the middle-inlet channel I2. In additional, the three dimensional results indicate that a high flow mixing efficiency of εmixing=0.84 and the lowest pressure drop of 164.2 Pa was obtained at the flow conditions of Rer=0.9 and AR=10 when the middle-inlet channel I2was Re2=0.1. These findings will be useful to improvement the efficiency for micromixcers of biometric design in the future.
Effect of Biomass Compositions on Combustion Kinetic Parameters using Response Surface Methodology
Authors: Thanatawee Phattharanid , Rukthong Wanwisa , Sunphorka Sasithorn , Piumsomboon Pornpote , Chalermsinsuwan Benjapon 
Published: January 2016

Abstract
The aim of this research is to find the correlation between chemical compositions of biomass, including cellulose, hemicelluloses and lignin, and kinetic rates of biomass combustion. The combustion behavior of biomass constituent was studied by thermogravimetric analyzer. The correlations were generated by means of using Response Surface Methodology based on Simplex-Lattice experimental design. The results obtained from statistical analysis can be used to generate mathematical models and also contour plots which exhibited the relationship between biomass composition and its combustion kinetic. From the observation, the models and contour plots indicated the complexity of combustion mechanism. The correlations proposed by this research were expected to be potentially used to predict combustion behavior in case of real biomass.