Perceptions towards solar mini‐grid systems in India: A multi‐stakeholder analysis

This study identifies and assesses the perspectives of four key stakeholder groups towards solar minigrids in rural India. The stakeholders considered are policymakers, minigrid developers and operators, development organizations, and national grid representatives. Recent state and national policies in India have increased the focus on minigrids and their services. In this study, stakeholder interviews were employed to identify the attitudes towards the recent electricity policy, the underlying context for minigrid development, the role of minigrids in rural electrification, and the inclusion of minigrid systems within the larger framework of electricity sector policies by the recent government minigrid policies. Results indicate that stakeholders agree that minigrids, as a rural electricity service, are currently viable to complement the national grid due to their high reliability, performance in remote regions, and diminishing cost per unit. However, stakeholders disagree on the future outcomes, with diverging views on the priority of minigrids as an electrification tool in the face of the expanding central grid, the ideal implementation strategy for minigrids, and the potential for grid‐minigrid interaction. Based on stakeholder feedback, the growth of minigrids in India is likely to be constrained by the confidence in recent policies, necessitating more frequent dialogue among decision makers and a solidified relationship to the national electricity grid.     

In situ chemical oxidation: Lessons learned at multiple sites

This paper compiles a detailed set of in situ chemical oxidation (ISCO) lessons learned pertaining to design, execution, and safety based on global experiences over the last 20 years. While the benefits of a “correct” application are known (e.g., cost effectiveness, speed, permanence of treatment), history also provides examples of a variety of “incorrect” applications. These provide an opportunity to highlight recurring themes that resulted in failures. ISCO is, and will continue to provide, an important remedial tool for site remediation, particularly as a component of a multifaceted approach for addressing large and complex sites. Future success, however, requires an objective understanding of both the benefits and the limitations of the technology. The ability to learn from the mistakes of the past provides an opportunity to eliminate, or at least minimize, them in the future. Over the last 25 years of ISCO application, process understanding and knowledge have improved and evolved. This paper combines a thorough discussion of lessons learned through decades of ISCO implementation throughout all aspects of ISCO projects with an analysis of changes to the ISCO remediation market. By discussing the interplay of these two themes and providing recommendations from collective lessons learned, we hope to improve the future of safe, cost‐effective, and successful applications of ISCO.     

Trisomy 2 due to a 3:1 segregation in an abortion studied by QF-PCR and CGH

Balanced reciprocal translocation is one of the known causes of recurrent spontaneous abortions. Cytogenetic studies of unbalanced miscarriages are difficult due to the growth failure of early loss and usually macerated abortions. We present a molecular study of an abortion in which the father carries a balanced reciprocal translocation t(2;17)(q32.1;q24.3) using QF-PCR and CGH techniques. DNA analysis showed the presence of a trisomy 2 due to a 3:1 interchange segregation. Recombinant events could also be investigated by comparing DNA samples from the family. We propose QF-PCR in addition to CGH as an efficient diagnostic method to improve our knowledge of unbalanced offspring in balanced translocation carriers. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Effects of gene flow from IMI resistant sunflower crop to wild Helianthus annuus populations

Wild sunflower, H. annuus ssp. annuus, is an invasive species widely distributed in several regions of the world, including central Argentina where it shares a large area with domesticated sunflower. The discovery of imidazolinone resistance in a wild sunflower population allowed the development of Clearfield^® technology in cultivated sunflower. This technology was rapidly adopted in Argentina but the trait could possibly be transferred to the naturalized wild populations through natural hybridization. The aim of this study was to evaluate the transfer of IMI resistance to wild sunflower populations and its effect on wild plants’ fitness. Plants of five wild populations and their progenies of crosses with an IMI-resistant hybrid were evaluated through a dormancy, herbicide resistance, and SSR markers study. Relative fitness was compared in the five populations, F1s and backcrosses with wild and crop parental plants. Hybridization with an IMI-resistant hybrid did not alter seed dormancy. F1 individuals were more resistant to imazapyr than their wild ancestors but less tolerant than the commercial variety. SSR markers confirmed the transfer of resistance and identified resistant plants within the wild populations. Fitness was reduced in the first generation after crossing but was recovered in the following generations. Thus, to ensure durability and efficiency of Clearfield^® technology, management practices like crop rotation and herbicide usage with different modes of action should be considered.     

莫桑比克的海洋生物学研究:过去、现在及未来

本文概述了莫桑比克包括渔业在内的海洋生物学研究的发展情况.莫桑比克的海岸线约为3000km,海洋的生物资源在莫桑比克的社会中起着重要的作用,主要是作为人们的蛋白质来源以及收入和出口创汇的来源.     

Representativity and univocity of traffic signs and their effect on trajectory movement in a driving simulation task: Warning signs

Objective: The effect of traffic signs on the behavior of drivers is not completely understood. Knowing about how humans process the meaning of signs (not just by learning but instinctively) will improve reaction time and decision making when traveling. The economic, social, and psychological consequences of car accidents are well known.

Methods: This study sounds out which traffic signs are more ergonomic for participants, from a cognitive point of view, and determines, at the same time, their effect in participants' movement trajectories in a driving simulation task.

Results: Results point out that the signs least representative of their meaning produce a greater deviation from the center of the road than the most representative ones.

Conclusions: This study encourages both an in-depth analysis of the effect on movement of roadside signs and the study of how this effect can be modified by the context in which these signs are presented (with the aim to move the research closer to and analyze the data in real contexts). The goal is to achieve clarity of meaning and lack of counterproductive effects on the trajectory of representative signs (those that provoke fewer mistakes in the decision task).