Early maturing Kipsigis women have higher reproductive success than late maturing women and cost more to marry

Summary Demographic analyses from 3 cohorts of Kenyan Kipsigis women married between 1940 and 1973 demonstrate that early maturing women have higher reproductive success than do late maturing women, due to longer reproductive lifespans and higher fertility. This result is independent of confounding effects of husband's wealth, but not of the wealth of a woman's parents which affects both menarcheal age and subsequent reproductive success. Data on bridewealth payments at 194 marriages occurring after 1959 show that men make higher marriage payments for early maturing women than for late maturing women. Together these results suggest that Kipsigis men vary their marriage payments in accordance with the reproductive value of their brides. The question of why men use age at menarche rather than bride's parents' wealth as a cue to their bride's subsequent reproductive performance is discussed in the light of changing social and economic conditions experienced by Kipsigis since the late 1920s.     

New methodological strategies for detecting bacterial indicators

The development of monitoring strategies for the early warning of seawater pollution, with particular reference to faecal and hydrocarbon contamination, has been the specific goal of research carried out within the Cluster 10-SAM (Advanced Systems for Coastal Marine Monitoring) Project, funded by the Italian Ministry for University and Scientific Research. Advanced analytical approaches have been designed and applied to detect bacterial species that have been selected as potential indicators of pollution in seawater samples. We report the results obtained using the fluorescent antibody and enzymatic assays for the detection of Escherichia coli, and a real-time PCR protocol for monitoring marine areas for hydrocarbon pollution. Immunofluorescence and enzymatic methods revealed the occurrence of different faecal pollution levels, reaching 10⁵ E. coli cells 100 ml^?1 in the Straits of Messina. Real-time PCR results corresponded to the different degree of oil pollution of the analysed samples. The specificity and speed make these methods promising for the detection and evaluation of marine pollution.     

Beyond the desertification narrative: a framework for agricultural drought in semi-arid East Africa

In the 20th century, much research was done on desertification. Desertification developed into a complex and vague construct that means land degradation under specific conditions. Projects focusing on land degradation in semiarid East Africa have met with limited success because farmers prioritize drought as the major productivity-reducing problem. Yet studies on long-term rainfall trends have not confirmed that droughts are more frequent. In this article, we combine drought and land degradation effects into an Agricultural Drought Framework, which departs from the farmers' prioritization of drought and accommodates scientists' concern for land degradation. It includes meteorological drought, soil water drought, and soil nutrient drought. The framework increases insight into how different land degradation processes influence the vulnerability of land and farmers to drought. A focus on increased rainwater use efficiency will address both problems of land degradation and drought, thereby improving productivity and food security in semiarid East Africa.     

Environmental Conditions Leading to Shellfish Contamination and Related Outbreaks

Human fecal wastes contain a large variety of viruses that can enter the environment through discharge of waste materials from infected individuals. Despite the high diversity of viruses that are introduced into the environment by human fecal pollution, only a few have been recognized to cause disease in association with consumption of contaminated shellfish. To explain bivalve mollusks contamination, several factors including human epidemiology, virus persistence through sewage treatment plant, and shellfish uptake may be suggested. Considering different outbreaks described in the literature, the most common route for transmission is accidental contamination after heavy rainfall, when extra loads cause an overflow, and release of untreated sewage into the aquatic environment. Outbreak analysis also demonstrates the impact on shellfish consumption of some viral strain transmission and thus their impact on molecular epidemiology, especially for norovirus. To limit shellfish contamination and thus to protect the consumer, the most desirable and effective option is to reduce the viral input.     

Modeling of Escherichia coli Fluxes on a Catchment and the Impact on Coastal Water and Shellfish Quality1

Bougeard, Morgane, Jean‐Claude Le Saux, Nicolas Pérenne, Claire Baffaut, Marc Robin, and Monique Pommepuy, 2011. Modeling of Escherichia coli Fluxes on a Catchment and the Impact on Coastal Water and Shellfish Quality. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 1‐17. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2011.00520.x Abstract: The simulation of the impact of Escherichia coli loads from watersheds is of great interest for assessing estuarine water quality, especially in areas with shellfish aquaculture or bathing activities. For this purpose, this study investigates a model association based on the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) coupled with a hydrodynamic model (MARS 2D; IFREMER). Application was performed on the catchment and estuary of Daoulas area (France). The daily E. coli fluxes simulated by SWAT are taken as an input in the MARS 2D model to calculate E. coli concentrations in estuarine water and shellfish. Model validation is based on comparison of frequencies: a strong relationship was found between calculated and measured E. coli concentrations for river quality (r² = 0.99) and shellfish quality (r² = 0.89). The important influence of agricultural practices and rainfall events on the rapid and large fluctuations in E. coli fluxes from the watershed (reaching three orders of magnitude in <24 hours) is one main result of the study. Response time in terms of seawater quality degradation ranges from one to two days after any important rainfall event (greater than 10 mm/day) and the time for estuary to recover good water quality also mainly depends on the duration of the rainfall. In the estuary, three effects (rainfall, tidal dilution, and manure spreading) have been identified as important influences.     

Eco-friendly polyurethane foams based on castor polyol reinforced with açaí residues for building insulation

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - The search for environmental sustainability has stimulated the construction sector to look for natural materials with an ecological footprint, high...     

Government liabilities for disaster risk in industrialized countries: a case study of Australia

This paper explores sovereign risk preferences against direct and indirect natural disasters losses in industrialized countries. Using Australia as a case study, the analysis compares expected disaster losses and government capacity to finance losses. Utilizing a national disaster loss dataset, extreme value theory is applied to estimate an all-hazard annual loss distribution. Unusually but critically, the dataset includes direct as well as indirect losses, allowing for the analysis to consider the oft-ignored issue of indirect losses. Expected annual losses (direct, and direct plus indirect) are overlaid with a risk-layer approach, to distinguish low, medium and extreme loss events. Each risk layer is compared to available fiscal resources for financing losses, grounded in the political reality of Australian disaster financing. When considering direct losses only, we find support for a risk-neutral preference on the part of the Australian government for low and medium loss levels, and a risk-averse preference in regard to extreme losses. When indirect losses are also estimated, we find that even medium loss levels are expected to overwhelm available fiscal resources, thereby violating the available resources assumption underlying arguments for sovereign risk neutrality. Our analysis provides empirical support for the assertion that indirect losses are a major, under-recognised concern for industrialized countries. A risk-averse preference in regard to medium and extreme loss events recommends enhanced investment in both corrective and prospective risk reduction in relation to these risks level, in particular to reduce indirect losses.     

Kipsigis women's preferences for wealthy men: evidence for female choice in mammals?

Summary In contrast to studies of birds, in mammals there is no clear evidence that polygyny evolved through female choice for males with high quality resources. Among the Kipsigis people of Kenya, polygyny may be a consequence of women's preferences for wealthy men, because strong correlations exist between land ownership and the number of a man's wives (Borgerhoff Mulder 1987 a), and the resources men hold are primary determinants of women's reproductive success (Borgerhoff Mulder 1987b). This paper has two aims: first, to test whether Kipsigis women prefer wealthy men by examining the sequence of marriages among a group of pioneers (Table 1) who established a settlement in the territory of their enemies (1930–1949); second, to determine whether women suffer reproductively as a result of polygynous marriage. Data show that Kipsigis women, or their parents on their behalf, preferentially chose men offering high quality breeding opportunities, with respect to the number of acres available on which to settle (Fig. 2) ; controlling for quality of breeding opportunity there is a preference for bachelors over monogamists over polygynists. Analyses of the full demographic sample show that there are reproductive costs associated with having a large number of cowives (Table 2), costs which women attempt to minimize through judicous marital choices. These results are discussed in relation to resource defence polgyny, female choice and, specifically, the polygyny threshold model.