Personal desires of patients and social obligations of geneticists: applying preimplantation genetic diagnosis for non-medical sex selection

The arguments against the use of preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) for non-medical sex selection are analysed. It is concluded that the distinction between medical and non-medical reasons is difficult to maintain, that the disproportionality of means and end is not a decisive counterargument and that the fear of damage to the reputation of PGD does not justify the refusal of controversial applications. Moreover, since non-medical sex selection does not belong to basic health care, it should not be equally accessible to all. The position defended in this article is founded on two basic principles: (1) medical reasons have priority on non-medical reasons, and (2) personal reasons do not qualify for public funding. In order to respect both principles, it is proposed that restrictions should be installed to control the number of requests for social sexing and that a tax should be imposed on these elective services. The tax should compensate the society for the investment it made in the training and education of the physician. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

关于计划生育法制建设的思考

社会主义市场经济体制的建立和完善，给计划生育工作带来了一系列的新情况、新问题。因此，把计划生育工作纳入法制的轨道显得尤为重要。本文分析了我国计划生育工作靠行政约束的局限性；总结了市场经济体制下，计划生育工作面临的新特点；阐述了加强计划生育法制建设的紧迫性和可行性；并提出了计划生育立法的基本思路     

中国乡村发展面临的挑战与长期性管理策略

分析研究了当前我国乡村发展所面临的严峻的挑战性问题，如乡村非农化进程停滞，城乡差异扩大带来的问题等；尤其是乡村生态破坏和环境污染危及到农业生产环境的安全和城乡居民的生存基础的情况，指出21世纪中国乡村发展相当迫切而艰巨；在可持续发展思想的框架下，提出了长期性管理策略，即类型管理、目标管理、乡村制度性投入的管理模式，并考虑了实现乡村可持续发展的制度创新与保障问题；随后针对乡村发展管理，构想了实施对策：即，1）积极推进城市化，缩减乡村人口总量；2）开展农业行业标准的制定和修订工作；3）推进乡村产业的科技创新步伐；4）强化生态环境观念，实行空间开发管制、尤其是生态脆弱地区。此外还需强调环境教育机制和广泛的公众参与机制。     

中国城乡劳动力就业中的互动机制研究

本文分析了我国城乡劳动力就业过程中相互作用及影响机制 ,阐释两种不同劳动力群体的“竞争—互补关系” ,区分了两类劳动力群体之间的特征差异 ,通过对他们之间相互作用机制的研究 ,全面展示了二者的竞争—互补关系 ,并进一步分析了当前制约劳动力充分流动的因素。在此基础上 ,提出今后增进城乡劳动力良性互动的政策思路     

农村水环境保护与经济可持续发展

我国的生态环境问题 ,如水土流失、草场退化、沙漠化、盐渍化等问题 ,归根到底还是农村水环境问题。本文分析了农村水环境保护、高效利用水资源的紧迫性 ,以及影响农村生态系统可持续性的因素和保护、改善农村水环境的主要措施 ;认为加强农村水环境保护及其持续发展能力的建设是我国整个社会特别是农村经济可持续发展的基本保障     

Rethinking the contribution of indigenous management in small-scale water provision among selected rural communities in Cameroon

This paper describes the pro-active role of rural communities in negotiating livelihood and sustenance through the improvement of some of their local water sources. It discusses the strategies put in place to ensure the availability of water, one of the worlds scarcest natural resources. Despite some external assistance, local communities are increasingly shouldering the responsibility of ensuring the availability of water through self-reliant efforts. These attempts are being undermined by a high incidence of waterborne and water-related diseases, which are impacting on health, and hygiene and other health care delivery systems. The management of potable water is proving to be a herculean task for most communities after the departure of funding partners. To guarantee the proper maintenance of pipe borne water schemes, communities are rethinking their strategies as they grapple with difficulties to put in place viable techniques for sustainability of water supply schemes.Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Public Participation and Effective Water Governance at the Local Level: A Case Study from a Small Under-Developed Area in Chile

The concept of participation in rural development has been evolutionary for the past two decades with those involved, such as development agencies and governments, particularly in rural water supply, re-evaluating their active role. The move towards effective community participation has encouraged a shift from the traditional top-down to a bottom-up approach whereby there is a decentralisation of unevenly distributed resources and power to empower a community and allow mobility of ‘people participation’. The Molinos water project is the first large-scale development project of its kind introduced into the village of Molinos in an under-developed area of Chile, where there has been no tradition of people participation. The project objective was to implement a low technology, low budget water treatment plant to the village of Molinos. Various aspects have hindered the continued development of the project including both technical and financial. In terms of people participation, the initial approach used was the top-down approach. There was a failure to fully integrate the community or inform the community in a formal manner about the project and consult them regarding key project issues. This case study illustrates that the lack of comprehensive consultation and the low level of participation of the community on the participatory scale does not achieve much in terms of people-centred benefits. For governance at the local level to be effective, participation should be inclusive and communicative so as to enhance transparency throughout the project lifetime. Readers should send their comments on this paper to: BhaskarNath@aol.com within 3 months of publication of this issue.     

Care and career: A family identity‐based typology of dual‐earner couples

The rise of dual‐earner couples challenges traditional gender stereotypes of women as “caregivers” and men as “breadwinners” and significantly impacts the ways in which partners define their roles as family members. The way in which individuals construe their family identities has implications not only for the decisions they make at home but also decisions in the workplace. In this paper, we propose an updated understanding of the different ways in which men and women can construe their family identity—specifically, in terms of care and/or career. Based upon this nuanced understanding of family identity, we outline five dual‐earner couple types—traditional, non‐traditional, family first, outsourced, and egalitarian—that stem from distinct combinations of partners' family identities. We also outline an agenda for theory and research that challenges scholars to further explore our proposed construals of family identity, work–family decisions at the couple level of analysis, and the interplay between family identity and social context. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

石林风景名胜区对乡村经济发展的影响

石林风景名胜区始建于20世纪30年代,旅游开发经历了居民游览、服务中心城市的接待观光型到区域支柱产业的转型。经济体制深刻地影响了石林旅游业,旅游产品延续了计划经济体制下形成接待观光游览型,形成以门票收入为主体的旅游经济收入格局,对不同层次的经济发展带来不同的影响。石林旅游业对县级经济收入、产业结构、财政、税收有积极影响,近5年石林旅游业占当地GDP的9%～11%,占第三产业产值的27.9% ～33%、财政收入的10.8%～0.1%,但对农业生产、农村居民就业和家庭收入的带动力弱,有明显的“距离衰减效应”。获得旅游效益的居民限于风景区旅游中心的村寨,约占风景区人口的15%,中心旅游区的第三产业就业人员比例比其它地区高7%～35%。中心区农民参与旅游业方式的调查表明,居民参与旅游业的方式被动：耕地被征用后,或被风景名胜区管理部门雇佣、或成个体工商户、或被外来企业雇佣,就业领域局限于餐饮服务、环卫和绿化、民族工艺品制作与销售、照相、旅游交通、导游等。风景区农村的基础建设、产业结构、就业领域与风景区功能和旅游业目标的协调存在距离。促进风景名胜区旅游业对所在地的“三农”发展的协调值得思考和解决。     

村镇生活垃圾重金属含量及其来源分析

对全国12个省份72个典型村镇的生活垃圾进行采样调查,系统分析我国村镇生活垃圾中重金属污染特征及其可能来源.结果表明,我国北方典型村镇生活垃圾中重金属As、Hg、Pb、Cd、Cr、Cu、Zn和Ni的含量分别为(7.51±8.89)、(0.64±0.42)、(21.91±12.29)、(4.82±8.37)、(86.36±59.99)、(36.43±15.98)、(62.19±36.61)和(46.07±25.22)mg·kg-1,南方典型村镇生活垃圾中重金属As、Hg、Pb、Cd、Cr、Cu、Zn和Ni的含量分别为(7.43±8.82)、(0.83±0.74)、(21.62±13.76)、(1.84±4.55)、(131.06±74.96)、(37.20±16.80)、(98.04±63.71)和(46.75±25.75)mg·kg-1.与《城镇垃圾农用控制标准》(GB 8172-87)和《土壤环境质量标准》(GB 15618-1995)二级标准相比,重金属Cd和Hg超标较严重.通过聚类分析、Pearson相关分析和主成分分析解析垃圾中重金属污染物的来源,结果表明我国典型村镇生活垃圾中Pb和Cd主要来源于厨余、灰土、橡塑类和纸质等印刷品,Hg主要来源于厨余和灰土,Zn和Cr主要来源于灰土,Cu主要来源于电子、电池类废弃物和尘土、橡塑、纸质等印刷品,Ni主要来源于废弃的电子、电池类产品,As主要来源于杀虫剂等农药和肥料.