Despite protection urban hawks still face an array of threats

RAPTOR RESEARCH FOUNDATION

 

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TAGGED JUVENILE FEMALE COOPER’S HAWK FROM OUR STUDY THAT DIED FROM A VEHICLE COLLISION ON INTERSTATE 25 IN BELEN, NEW MEXICO DURING HER INITIAL DISPERSAL FROM HER NATAL SITE. THIS WAS A PARTICULARLY RISKY TIME FOR JUVENILE COOPER’S HAWKS.

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CREDIT: BRIAN MILLSAP

Life can be hard for a raptor. If you’re a teenager from the city, it’s even harder. That’s according to a new study published in the Journal of Raptor Research titled “Causes of Death of Female Cooper’s Hawks (Accipiter cooperii) from an Urban Setting in New Mexico, USA,” conducted by Brian A. Millsap and his colleagues at the US Fish and Wildlife Service. Over the course of 11 years, his research team affixed GPS transmitters to 158 female Cooper’s hawks in the Albuquerque area. Of those, 88 died and were found, allowing the researchers to investigate cause of death. The results were sobering — collisions with windows and other human-made objects accounted for a high percentage of deaths. Even more disturbing was the discovery that humans purposefully killed 8 tagged birds, some of which were bludgeoned to death. Although raptors are protected in the U.S with legislation such as the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, this is the third recent study verifying that human persecution is a recurring issue for these important top predators.

 

Most information on causes of death for raptors comes from opportunistic band recoveries, rehabilitation centers and wildlife health labs. These sources, while helpful, are biased because they only provide details on cause of death for raptors that are found and reported or delivered. An intentionally shot hawk is less likely to be brought to a center than a hawk that is accidently hit by a car. Transmitter-tagged birds, however, do provide an unbiased source of information because cause of death does not impact discovery of death.

 

Using transmitters, Millsap and his colleagues assessed causes of death for two age classes of Cooper’s hawk: first-year birds, and after-first-year birds. They also assessed whether hawks were more vulnerable during certain times of year. Mortality rates were high for first-year hawks during their first four months of independence, likely because it takes time to hunt successfully, avoid anthropogenic threats, and stand up to same-species challengers. This was evidenced by the fact that during the study, survival rates for birds that made it through their first year went up by 55%.

 

During the pre-breeding season, disputes over territory or mates was the leading cause of death for both age classes. Of the anthropogenic causes of death, collisions ranked first — 52 hawks died either from collision with a fence, electrical distribution line, window, vehicle, electrocution, or entrapment in the ductwork of buildings. The second most prevalent cause of death was direct killing by humans. “The amount of human persecution that we observed was surprising,” says Millsap. “I, like many others, had been falsely thinking that the days of rampant hawk shooting the U.S were behind us, but we are learning that is not the case.”

 

Of note, many recovered hawks showed high levels of rodenticides, illustrating the importance of education surrounding use of these poisons in urban settings. Rodenticides don’t only affect targeted rodents; they bioaccumulate, moving up the food chain and concentrating at high levels in the bodies of top predators like Cooper’s hawks.

 

On a more optimistic note, Millsap says this study received ample support from locals. “Almost everyone we interact with, from homeowners, police, city employees, and birdwatchers, have been extremely interested in our work and anxious to learn more about the Cooper’s hawks that make their home in Albuquerque. The nearly universal access and support we have received has been crucial to the success of our study.”

 

Future work will include a similar tracking study for male Cooper’s hawks, to investigate potential differences in mortality factors between sexes. 

 

Raptors are bioindicators, meaning they serve as proxies for habitat health. As top predators, they also play a key part in supporting healthy ecosystem functioning. Understanding factors that impact their survival is crucial to tracking population growth and proactively supporting raptor populations. The continuation of this study and the associated interest of the public will hopefully help ensure that healthy Cooper’s hawks build nests in backyards across Albuquerque for years to come.

 

Ready to release fledged juvenile female Cooper’s Hawk equipped with a 10 g backpack-mounted solar-powered transmitter.

Adult female Cooper’s Hawk on our Albuquerque study area launching off her perch to attack researchers conducting a brood count at her nest.

CREDIT

Brian Millsap

 

Paper

Brian A. Millsap, Kristin K. Madden, and Robert K. Murphy "Causes of Death of Female Cooper's Hawks from an Urban Setting in New Mexico, USA," Journal of Raptor Research 58(1), 1-14, (19 February 2024). https://doi.org/10.3356/JRR-23-00022

 

Notes to Editor:

1. The Journal of Raptor Research (JRR) is an international scientific journal dedicated entirely

to the dissemination of information about birds of prey. Established in 1967, JRR has published

peer-reviewed research on raptor ecology, behavior, life history, conservation, and techniques.

JRR is available quarterly to members in electronic and paper format.

 

2. The Raptor Research Foundation (RRF) is the world’s largest professional society for raptor

researchers and conservationists. Founded in 1966 as a non-profit organization, our primary

goal is the accumulation and dissemination of scientific information about raptors. The

Foundation organizes annual scientific conferences and provides competitive grants & awards

for student researchers & conservationists. The Foundation also provides support & networking

opportunities for students & early career raptor researchers.

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JOURNAL

Journal of Raptor Research

DOI

10.3356/JRR-23-00022 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Data/statistical analysis

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

Animals

ARTICLE TITLE

Despite Protection Urban Hawks Still Face an Array of Threats

 

Fish species that move rapidly toward the poles due to global warming decline in abundance

International study led by researchers from TAU found:

TEL-AVIV UNIVERSITY

 

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PROF. JONATHAN BELMAKER & SHAHAR CHAIKIN.

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CREDIT: TEL AVIV UNIVERSITY

An extensive international study led by researchers from Tel Aviv University found a decline in the abundance of marine fish species that move rapidly toward the poles to escape rising sea temperatures. The researchers explain that many animal species are currently moving toward cooler regions as a result of global warming, but the velocity of such range shifts varies greatly for different species. Examining thousands of populations from almost 150 fish species, the researchers show that contrary to the prevailing view, rapid range shifts coincide with widescale population declines. According to the study, on average, a poleward shift of 17km per year may result in a decline of 50% in the abundance of populations.

 

The international study was led by PhD student Shahar Chaikin and Prof. Jonathan Belmaker from the School of Zoology in the Wise Faculty of Life Sciences and the Steinhardt Museum of Natural History at Tel Aviv University. The paper was published in the leading scientific journal Nature Ecology & Evolution.

 

For the first time, the new study correlated two global databases: (1) a database that tracks fish population size over time, and (2) a database that compiles range shift velocities among marine fishes. Altogether, 2,572 fish populations belonging to 146 species were studied, mostly from the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans in the Northern Hemisphere.

 

Prof. Belmaker explains: "We know that climate change causes animal species to move – northward, southward, upwards, or downwards – according to their location relative to cooler regions. In the mountains they climb upwards, in the oceans they dive deeper, in the Southern Hemisphere they move south toward Antarctica, and in the Northern Hemisphere they move north toward the North Pole. In the present study we wanted to see what happens to species that move from one place to another: do they benefit by increased survivability, or are they in fact harmed by the shift – which was initially caused by greater vulnerability to climate change? We found that the faster fish shift toward the poles, the faster their abundance declines. Apparently, it is difficult for these populations to adapt to their new surroundings."

 

PhD student Chaikin: "We found that species shifting their geographical range more rapidly towards the poles, are in fact more likely to lose their abundance (e.g. European seabass). Additional findings show differences between populations that are closer to or further from the poles - within the geographical range of a particular species. While it might have been assumed that populations closer to the cooler polar margins of the species range would be less affected by climate change, we found that the opposite is true: fast poleward range shifts of populations from higher latitudes resulted in a more rapid decline in abundance compared to equatorial populations of the same species."

 

The researchers highlight that the new findings can and should guide environmental decisionmakers, by enabling a reevaluation of the conservation status of various species and populations. The study's results suggest that populations exhibiting rapid poleward range shifts require close monitoring and careful management. Thus, for example, pressures that threaten their survival can be mitigated through measures like fishing limits.

 

Prof. Belmaker: "The common belief is that rapid range shifts safeguard a species against local population decline. But in this study, we found that the opposite is true. Apparently, species rapidly shifting their range in search of cooler temperatures do so because they are more vulnerable to climate change, and consequently require special attention. Last year we published another study that focused on local fish species along Israel's coastline, which resulted in similar findings: species that move towards deeper and cooler habitats in the face of rising water temperatures exhibit declining populations. In the next stage of our research, we intend to investigate this causal relationship in additional marine species, other than fish."

 

Link to the article:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41559-024-02350-7

 

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DOI

10.1038/s41559-024-02350-7 

 The Architectural Legacy of Lithuanians in the United States during the Post-World War II Era: A Monument to the Cold War

Resilience in architecture: the diaspora’s response to the Second World War

The Second World War had a profound impact not only on the fate of countries and people but also on the development of architecture.

Peer-Reviewed Publication

KAUNAS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

 

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KTU RESEARCHER VAIDAS PETRULIS

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CREDIT: KAUNAS UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

The Second World War had a profound impact not only on the fate of countries and people but also on the development of architecture. In occupied territories across the globe, architecture reflected the prevailing trends of the time. Meanwhile, war refugees continued their attempts to shape the architectural landscape in their new homes to preserve their cultural identity. According to Vaidas Petrulis, an expert in architecture at Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania, this phenomenon is an important part of architectural history, worthy of both greater interest and international recognition.

Vaidas Petrulis, the Head of the Research Centre of Architecture and Urbanism at KTU argues that the works of emigrant architects can significantly contribute to the understanding of the architectural traditions of a country and give a broader context for the reasoning behind various processes.

Researching the history of architecture for more than 20 years, he believes that the architectural heritage of emigrants should be studied as a form of globally shared heritage.

A reminder of past mistakes

As the concept of heritage has expanded in recent decades, it is no longer just a collection of the most beautiful or technologically impressive buildings but also an evidence of past processes.

“Some testimonies reveal the creativity and progress of mankind, while others warn of mistakes,” explains Petrulis.

Wars and their aftermath are one of humanity’s biggest catastrophes, marked not only by destroyed cities, concentration camps, or mass graves but also by people’s attempts to survive.

“Being in exile and using creativity to send a message about a nation’s right to statehood is another significant story,” says Petrulis.

Although the original political purpose of the buildings designed in the diaspora after World War Two is gradually fading, KTU researcher believes that in the current situation, the recognition of such heritage is even more significant.

“Today, when the world is facing threats again, such phenomenon takes on a new meaning. It is not only a reflection of the past but also a reminder for the present and future generations,” says Petrulis a senior researcher at Institute of Architecture and Construction.

In his opinion, the heritage of the refugees should not only be appreciated by society but also included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The researcher believes that not only the community that created these buildings but also the state that hosted the refugees should consider them valuable.

“For example, the reception of refugees from Europe should be interpreted as an integral and significant part of American and Canadian history. In this way, the heritage would become a shared one,” the expert argues.

Inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List would not only honour the memory of those who have survived the challenges of the diaspora but also remind the rest of us about the mistakes made in the past.

“Unfortunately, war refugees and their fate in exile continue to be a pressing issue in the 21st century,” says Petrulis.

Architecture with a political agenda

KTU researcher and his team explored the Lithuanian architectural legacy in the United States of America (USA) after World War Two.

Petrulis says that emigrants from Lithuania have been choosing the USA as a destination for emigration for a long time. After the Second World War, around 40 thousand Lithuanians came to North America to escape the repressions of the Soviet Union. Unlike previous emigrants, they were considered war refugees.

“Along with this wave of emigration, several architects who had already started their careers in Lithuania came to North America. Their education did not guarantee professional practice opportunities, so they had to overcome not only the language barrier but also obtain local certificates allowing them to practise as architects. The younger generation, who enrolled in higher education institutions in the USA or Canada, found it easier to integrate,” says the researcher, architectural historian.

According to him, the difficult professional adaptation significantly contributed to the fact that the new arrivers tended to seek commissions from the Lithuanian community. This created a political task for architecture: the newly constructed buildings had to contribute to the promotion of national identity.

“Architecture was serving the purpose of not only creating a recognisable and attractive place for the community to gather but also for presenting the name of Lithuania to the world. It was expected that the buildings, designed by Lithuanians, would once again remind the world about Lithuania, its culture, language, and history,” says Petrulis.

Architects continued local architectural tradition in diaspora

After the Second World War, other emigrants also tried to promote their architecture in the US: the Polish built churches with Baroque towers, and in Chicago’s Ukrainian town, churches were decorated with their characteristic domes. However, as Petrulis points out, Lithuanians were the leaders in the search for a distinctive architectural character.

The architects who remained in Lithuania had to adapt to the realities of occupation. Immediately after the Second World War, modern architecture, for which, as Petrulis reminds us, Kaunas was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023, was replaced by the Stalinist regime and its architecture.

“Later on, modernism returned to Soviet Union, but the economic version of it was created under the political slogan: cheaper, more, and faster. Most of the time, that also meant poorer. It is not surprising that the architects who left Lithuania felt obliged to continue the native architectural tradition, which was restricted in conditions of occupation,” adds the associate professor of KTU.

Sharing the results of his research, Petrulis reveals that the architectural style of the Lithuanian diaspora was influenced by faith: “The majority of the Lithuanian diaspora in the USA were Catholics, so it is not surprising that this generation of war refugees built churches, monasteries, and – in their neighbourhoods – schools and cultural centres.”

One of the most striking examples of this architecture was the construction of the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Chicago, which reflects elements of neo-Baroque and ethnic architecture.

“Perhaps the most original solution is the interpretation of Lithuanian wooden chapels in brick construction. The monumental, wood-carving inspired crowns on the towers are a unique sign of Lithuanian identity in the USA, which cannot be found neither in Lithuania’s nor other countries’ architecture,” says the KTU researcher.

The architect adds that the complex of the Jesuit monastery and the Youth Centre in Chicago also reflects the Lithuanian identity. According to him, the visual accent – a coloured brick wall with the silhouette of Vytis (Lithuanian coat of arms) – does not allow to question the purpose of the building.

The article The Architectural Legacy of Lithuanians in the United States during the Post-World War II Era: A Monument to the Cold War was published in Buildings 2023, issue 12, and can be accessed here.

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JOURNAL

Buildings

DOI

10.3390/buildings13123138 

ARTICLE TITLE

The Architectural Legacy of Lithuanians in the United States during the Post-World War II Era: A Monument to the Cold War

The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Chicago, designed by architect Mulokas and artist Jonynas, 1957, from the Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture

CREDIT

Original content from the Balzekas Museum of Lithuanian Culture

The complex of the Jesuit Monastery and Youth Centre in Chicago, architect Mulokas, 1974, from the Mulokas family personal archive

CREDIT

From the Mulokas family personal archive

SCI-FI-TEK

Structural transition project strives to bring laser fusion closer to application

European Union funds CASUS research project with 700,000 euros

Grant and Award Announcement

HELMHOLTZ-ZENTRUM DRESDEN-ROSSENDORF

 

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HIBEF PROVIDES INSIGHTS INTO THE STRUCTURE OF MATERIALS AND INTO VERY FAST NATURAL PROCESSES, SUCH AS THOSE THAT TAKE PLACE IN SAMPLES OF WARM DENSE MATTER.

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CREDIT: HZDR / SCIENCE COMMUNICATION LAB

A promising option for creating a productive and sustainable energy source on Earth is the fusion of hydrogen nuclei. The problem? Extremely high pressures and temperatures are required to set the nuclear fusion process off. Technologically, this could be achieved using laser flashes (“laser fusion” or “inertial confinement fusion”). By drafting the “X-ray laser optimization of laser fusion” (Röntgenlaser-Optimierung der Laserfusion, ROLF) project) Dr. Tobias Dornheim from the Center for Advanced Systems Understanding (CASUS) at the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden Rossendorf (HZDR) now intends to improve the theoretical understanding of hydrogen compression. Instead of the “trial and error” method, laser fusion experiments could be designed and carried out in a more targeted manner in the future – an essential prerequisite for a commercial fusion power plant. In addition to the EU via the “Just Transition Fund”, the Free State of Saxony also contributes directly to the funding of the project.

The extraordinarily high pressures and temperatures required for fusion processes are achieved by compressing an initially very cold capsule filled with the hydrogen isotopes deuterium and tritium. During the fusion reaction, the hydrogen enters a particular state for a certain time – that of warm dense matter (WDM). This realm, located roughly between condensed matter and hot plasma in terms of pressure and temperature, is Dornheim's field of expertise. At the end of 2022, the young researcher received a “Starting Grant” from the European Research Council worth almost 1.5 million euros through a competitive procedure. Work on the project is currently underway: Dornheim and his team are developing machine learning methods that should enable a reliable theoretical description of WDM. The structural transition project is now focusing on a more practical challenge.

“One major issue of laser fusion is achieving stable compression with the laser blast,” explains Dornheim, leader of the Young Investigator Group „Frontiers of Computational Quantum Many-Body Theory” at CASUS and responsible for the ROLF project. “It is imperative that the fuel capsule implodes as evenly as possible, i.e., without any instabilities, to ensure that as much fuel as possible is fused and a corresponding amount of usable energy is released. To achieve this, we must first improve our understanding of how WDM behaves.”

Warm dense matter, as can be found, for example, in the cores of planets and stars, is researched experimentally at large-scale research facilities such as the Helmholtz International Beamline for Extreme Fields (HIBEF) at the European XFEL and the National Ignition Facility (NIF) at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the USA. At these facilities, WDM can be generated for fractions of a second using powerful laser flashes. Dornheim's team is cooperating with both institutions. An important experimental method for analyzing laser fusion is X-ray Thomson scattering (XRTS), and this is where the new ROLF project comes in.

Making X-ray diagnostics accessible to everyone

For diagnostics using X-ray scattering, an X-ray source is directed at a sample. The energy changes of the photons deflected in the sample are measured and used to draw conclusions about the material's properties. Until now, the evaluation of the measured data was primarily based on a series of uncontrolled approximations. A year ago, however, the CASUS team demonstrated that precise data evaluation is possible without using any simulations or models with all their approximations and assumptions.

Dornheim and his team are resorting to a fundamental mathematical method, namely the Laplace transform. Within ROLF, the researchers plan to create an open-source software package to make this evaluation method accessible to all laser fusion experts. Additionally, they intend to develop the method further to facilitate applications beyond model-free, high-precision temperature determination using XRTS measurements. In the future, it should also be possible to determine other relevant variables, such as the density or the degree of ionization of WDM.

The team in Görlitz then intends to use the newly designed software to analyze existing XRTS data, for example, from the European XFEL, to develop and experimentally test new measurement methods for X-ray scattering. Once the XRTS diagnostics have a solid foundation, the findings derived from X-ray scattering will be incorporated into laser fusion simulations. “We assume that the parameters derived from these simulations will enable significantly better compression of the capsule and usher in a whole new generation of fusion experiments,” says Dornheim, giving a brief outlook.

HZDR can make a contribution to laser fusion

Recently, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) presented a new funding program for fusion research. The aim is to play a decisive role in the international challenge to achieve the economical operation of a fusion power plant. A recently published BMBF position paper emphasizes the need for “refined diagnostics to validate codes and models.” Prof. Sebastian M. Schmidt, Scientific Director at the HZDR, is extremely pleased about the funding approval for the CASUS project: “With HIBEF, CASUS, and our high-power lasers DRACO and PENELOPE, the HZDR is in an excellent position to make significant contributions to laser fusion research. We can decipher the fundamental processes that pave the way for application.”

The Just Transition Fund (JTF) is a funding instrument of the European Union that primarily benefits regions dependent on hard coal and lignite. A total of 375 million euros is available for the Saxon part of the Lusatian lignite mining region. Although most funding is reserved to support the economy in areas most affected by structural change, academic institutions can also apply for research and development project funding. CASUS was thus able to secure 100% funding of more than 700,000 euros for ROLF via the “Research InfraProNet 2021 - 2027” funding directive.

 

One million adults smoke menthol-flavoured cigarettes in Britain despite ban

FU, MATE

UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON

One in seven adults who smoke in Great Britain report using menthol-flavoured cigarettes despite UK legislation that aimed to curb their use, according to a new study by UCL (University College London) researchers.

The study, published in the journal Tobacco Control and part-funded by Cancer Research UK, looked at survey responses from 66,868 adults in England, Wales and Scotland between October 2020, five months after the ban was introduced, and March 2023.

The researchers found that 16% of adult smokers reported using menthol-flavoured cigarettes at the start of the study period, with the figure remaining fairly stable at 14% by the end of the study – equivalent to one in seven adult smokers or nearly one million people still using menthol-flavoured cigarettes.

Only about 15% of survey respondents who smoked menthol-flavoured cigarettes reported purchasing from any illicit sources in the previous six months such as ‘under the counter’ or ‘cheap from friends’ - a similar proportion to those who smoked non-flavoured cigarettes.

Researchers said this indicated that most people are likely using legal accessories including menthol-flavoured drops, filter balls or cards, or purchasing cigarettes perceived to contain menthol flavouring without being labelled as such.

Lead author Dr Vera Buss (UCL Institute of Epidemiology & Health Care) said: “Our results suggest the tobacco industry may have used various loopholes in the law to continue to enable people to smoke menthol-flavoured cigarettes.

“To effectively reduce the prevalence of menthol cigarette smoking to near zero, policymakers in the UK should consider closing current loopholes in the legislation. This would mean strictly banning all menthol and similar ingredients in all tobacco-related products, including accessories.”

The legislation introduced in May 2020 banned cigarettes with a “characterising flavour” but did not ban menthol or its derivatives as ingredients in cigarettes and accessories.

Menthol cigarettes are popular among young people as they are perceived to have a taste that is less harsh and easier to inhale. They have also been viewed wrongly as less harmful than non-flavoured cigarettes. The ban that came into force in 2020 aimed to reduce youth uptake of smoking.

The research team used data from the Smoking Toolkit Study, in which a different sample of 2,450 adults in Great Britain (who are representative of the general population) are interviewed each month.

The proportion of people who reported smoking menthol-flavoured cigarettes remained relatively stable in Scotland and England (where prevalence was highest), but fell by two thirds in Wales (from 23% to 8%). However, researchers cautioned that a smaller number of survey respondents in Wales meant estimates of prevalence were less certain.

Among young people the prevalence of menthol cigarette smoking also fell by a quarter, from 26% to 19%. This suggests that about one in five 18- to 24-year-olds still smoked menthol-flavoured cigarettes towards the end of the study period in early 2023.  

Survey respondents were asked which sources they purchased their cigarettes from. These were categorised as licit (petrol station shops, supermarkets, newsagents), illicit (under the counter at newsagents or from a friend or someone else who sells cheap cigarettes in the pub or on the street) and cross-border (buying them from abroad or from friends or family who get them outside the UK).

The researchers found that the proportion of cigarettes bought illicitly or cross-border was similar for respondents who smoked menthol-flavoured cigarettes as for those who used non-flavoured cigarettes.

The researchers said this showed there had been no increase in purchasing from illicit sources following the menthol ban. This, they said, was “another example of how the [tobacco] industry’s oft-predicted surge in illicit cigarette purchases as a result of tobacco control measures did not materialise”.

Senior author Professor Jamie Brown (UCL Institute of Epidemiology & Health Care) said: “The UK’s menthol ban does not appear to have been effective – we have found that there are still around one million people who report smoking menthol-flavoured cigarettes in Britain, three years after the ‘ban’ came into force. Nor has there been much sign of progress during that period. For an effective ban, menthol and all its analogues and derivatives should be completely prohibited in all tobacco-related products and accessories.”

Dr Ian Walker, Cancer Research UK’s executive director of policy, said: “Smoking is still the leading cause of cancer, causing around 150 cancer cases across the UK every single day, so the number of people continuing to smoke menthol-flavoured cigarettes is deeply concerning. These findings show why it’s vital that measures to tackle smoking don’t contain legal loopholes which can be exploited by the tobacco industry. 

“We support the government's plans to include all tobacco products in proposed legislation to raise the age of sale of tobacco, which will help prevent the next generation from ever taking up smoking in the first place.”

The research was supported by Cancer Research UK and the UK Prevention Research Partnership, which itself is funded by the British Heart Foundation, Cancer Research UK, Chief Scientist Office of the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, Economic and Social Research Council, Health and Social Care Research and Development Division (Welsh Government), Medical Research Council, National Institute for Health Research, Natural Environment Research Council, Public Health Agency (Northern Ireland), The Health Foundation and Wellcome.

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JOURNAL

Tobacco Control

DOI

10.1136/tc-2023-058390 

METHOD OF RESEARCH

Survey

SUBJECT OF RESEARCH

People

ARTICLE TITLE

Smoking prevalence and purchasing of menthol cigarettes since the menthol flavour ban in Great Britain: a population-based survey between 2020 and 2023

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

18-Mar-2024

 

Half of Dutch people of Chinese background experience discrimination

UNIVERSITEIT VAN AMSTERDAM

More than one in three people (36 percent) with a background from (South) East Asia have experienced discrimination in the past year. People with a Chinese background experience discrimination most often, namely one in two. But the proportion is lower among people with an Indonesian background, namely one in six (16%).

This was shown by research from the University of Amsterdam (UvA), Fontys University of Applied Sciences (Pedagogy) and two independent researchers. The research was carried out on behalf of the Dutch Ministry of Social Affairs and Employment. The researchers looked at the scope, nature and extent of the perceived discrimination against Dutch people with a (South) East Asian migration background: people of Chinese origin (81,735 in the Netherlands), of Indonesian origin (352,266), and with other origins from (South) East Asia (130,279).

Discrimination based on origin and skin colour

Researcher Allard Feddes (UvA): 'Large-scale research has regularly been conducted in the Netherlands into discrimination against people with a Moroccan, Turkish or Surinamese background. This is the first representative study into the experiences of people in the Netherlands with a (South) East Asian origin.' Of the people who indicated that they had experienced discrimination in the 12 months prior this study, the most frequently mentioned grounds for the discrimination were 'origin' (75%) and 'skin colour' (43%).

In particular, people who are believed by others to have a Chinese background (even though there is often misrecognition here: in many cases these people have no Chinese background at all) experience being shouted at or verbally abused on the street – things they often heard included: “Ni Hao”, “Spring roll”, “Sambal bij”, “Ching Chang Chong” or variations thereof.

Increase after COVID-19

Many participants in the study said they felt more discriminated against after COVID-19. This mainly concerned people of Chinese origin. Some respondents meant that COVID-19 provided an additional reason to set apart people who look Chinese. They felt like they were being blamed for the pandemic. A number actually felt less discriminated against, because they believed there was less opportunity to be discriminated against (for example, because there was less contact between people during the lockdowns).

Under-exposed but important theme

'Because there is currently little knowledge about the perceived discrimination against Dutch people of (South) East Asian origin, little is known about causes and consequences,' says researcher Yong-Qi Cong (UvA). 'Our research does show that people who experience a lot of discrimination feel less healthy mentally and physically.'

Researcher Iris Andriessen (Fontys) states: 'People with an Asian background are often seen as a 'model minority'. The common idea was that these people are doing well and prospering in the Netherlands. The current research therefore offers reason to adjust this image of a 'model minority', especially when it comes to the idea that they do not experience discrimination in the Netherlands.'

Research method

For their research, the researchers conducted a literature study, a survey study among a representative sample of people in the Netherlands with (South) East Asian origins (2,505 participants in total), an interview study (36 interviews) and a focus group.

Publication details

Allard R. Feddes, Yong-Qi Cong, Bertjan Doosje, Liesbeth Mann, Anneloes van Schaik, Johnny Chan, Tabitha Kinanthik, Helay Jelia & Iris Andriessen. ‘Onderzoek naar ervaren discriminatie en racisme bij mensen met een (Zuid-)Oost-Aziatische herkomst in Nederland.’

Genetic basis for the evolution of hair discovered in the clawed frog

Important components of hair and their genetic control have already evolved in amphibians

 WE DIDN'T JUST EVOLVE FROM PRIMATES

MEDICAL UNIVERSITY OF VIENNA

Xenopus tropicalis    WIKIPEDIA

The development of hair was of central importance for the evolution of mammals and thus also of humans. However, the evolutionary origin of the genetic programme of hair was previously unknown. An international research team led by Leopold Eckhart from MedUni Vienna has now been able to show that important hair components and their genetic control have already evolved in amphibians. Human hair therefore shows unexpected similarities to the claws of clawed frogs. The results were recently published in the scientific journal Nature Communications.

In order to investigate the evolution of skin appendages, which include human hair and nails, the MedUni Vienna research team, in collaboration with the University of Ghent (Belgium), used the tropical clawed frog (Xenopus tropicalis) as an experimental model. The study revealed that the cornified claws of Xenopus frogs consist of special proteins (keratins) that are very similar to the main components of mammalian hair and nails. The formation of these keratins was found to be controlled by a specific gene, Hoxc13, in both humans and frogs.

"It is known that patients with mutations in the Hoxc13 gene have defects in the growth of hair and nails. In our study, we were able to block the formation of claws in the clawed frog by switching off this gene," reports Leopold Eckhart from MedUni Vienna's Department of Dermatology. These results indicate that the genetic programme for the development of keratinized claws originated in a common ancestor of humans and frogs. "During the evolution of mammals, the programme of claw formation was modified for the development of hair," says Eckhart.

Important research question clarified
The evolution of terrestrial vertebrates is characterized by the appearance of an effective skin barrier against water loss in a dry environment and by the development of hard, keratinized skin appendages such as claws, scales, feathers and hair, which are crucial for catching prey, protection, supporting special types of locomotion and thermal insulation. The evolution of skin appendages is therefore an important research question. The findings from the project, which is funded by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), contribute to clarifying the evolutionary origin of keratinized skin appendages and also help to better understand the regulation of hair in humans. "Our publication will stimulate further exciting studies in basic and preclinical research," concludes Leopold Eckhart.

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JOURNAL

Nature Communications

DOI

10.1038/s41467-024-46373-x 

ARTICLE TITLE

Evolutionary origin of Hoxc13-dependent skin appendages in amphibians

ARTICLE PUBLICATION DATE

18-Mar-2024