Water resources: Defusing conflict, promoting cooperation

ETH ZURICH

Research News

IMAGE: MEGA-?DAM ON THE OMO RIVER: GIBE III (2016). view more 

CREDIT: MIMI ABEBAYEHU/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Rivers are lifelines for many countries. They create valuable ecosystems, provide drinking water for people and raw water for agriculture and industry. In the Global South in particular, there is strong competition for access to freshwater resources. The increasing use of hydropower has recently intensified this competition further.

Take Ethiopia, for example: when the country began filling the mega-?dam Gibe III on the Omo River in 2015, downstream users saw a drop in water volumes. Natural flooding declined, reducing the volume of fertile mud washed onto the floodplain. The level of Kenya's Lake Turkana, into which the Omo flows, fell temporarily by two metres, resulting in significant consequences for people and agriculture.

Addressing the nexus

The network of interactions between water, energy, food and ecosystems - referred to by experts as the "water-energy-food (WEF) nexus" - often leads to wide-ranging disputes in the catchment areas of transboundary rivers. Large-scale infrastructure construction projects such as dams and irrigation schemes have caused political tensions between neighbouring states at various points in the past.

An international research team led by ETH Zurich has now developed a strategic toolkit that can help to defuse such conflicts over water use, through an objective analysis of stakeholder's interests. In the EU's Horizon 2020 project DAFNE, 14 research partners from Europe and Africa worked together to find approaches to a more equitable management of water resources.

"We wanted to show how it is possible to sustainably manage the nexus between water, energy, food and ecosystems, even in large and transboundary river basins with a wide range of users," says Paolo Burlando, Professor of Hydrology and Water Resources Management at ETH Zurich.

Integrating and balancing different interests

While it is now recognised that watershed planning should take a holistic approach that respects the needs of all stakeholders, multidimensional decision-making problems with significant numbers of stakeholders make it difficult to negotiate generally accepted solutions.

"Conventional planning tools are usually overwhelmed with challenges such as these," explains Burlando, who has led the DAFNE consortium for the past four years. This is why the project team developed a novel method to map and quantify trade-offs in the WEF nexus.

The approach is based on the principles of the participatory and integrated planning and management of water resources, which focuses on the role and interests of stakeholders. The DAFNE methodology is designed to engage stakeholders and find compromises and synergies in a joint approach. "The key is to find solutions that benefit everyone, take the environment into account and also make economic sense," explains Burlando.

Enabling dialogue through models

DAFNE uses state-of-the-art modelling techniques and digital solutions to enable participatory planning. A strategic decision tool allows the social, economic and environmental consequences of interventions to be assessed in a quantitative approach, enabling users to identify viable development pathways. Stakeholder selected pathways are simulated in detail using a hydrological model driven by high-resolution climate scenarios, in order to accurately analyse the impact on the respective water resources. Additional sub-models can be used to model other aspects of the nexus. Finally, a visualisation tool helps to illustrate interrelationships and assess problems from various user perspectives.

"The models aim to facilitate continuous negotiation between stakeholders - which is a key element of the DAFNE approach," says Senior Scientist Scott Sinclair, who co-developed the modelling approach.

Case studies with local stakeholders

The DAFNE project focused on two large river basins in East, and Southern Africa - the Omo-Turkana and Zambezi - where the researchers tested their methodology in two case studies. In both case studies, real stakeholders were involved in the development of the DAFNE approaches, working with them to test alternative operating modes for the power plants and irrigation schemes, to design more sustainable use scenarios for their catchment areas. They exchanged their different perspectives in simulated negotiations to illustrate the process.

In the Omo-Turkana basin, the scientists also used their methodology in a retrospective analysis of the controversial two-year filling phase of the Gibe III mega-dam in Ethiopia. "We observed that the negative impact on downstream neighbours was exacerbated by a prolonged drought," reports Burlando. The DAFNE consortium partner from Politecnico di Milano were able to show in a study published in Nature Communications together with Burlando and Sinclair, that such problems can be reduced by combining DAFNE tools with seasonal drought forecasts and flexibly adapting the filling regime to hydroclimatic conditions.

Dams on the advance worldwide

The results of the study are highly topical: Ethiopia is currently building another mega-dam in the Omo-Turkana catchment area, and filling the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile. Worldwide, around 500 dam projects are being planned in regions affected by climate feedbacks through teleconnections. Growing populations and increasing prosperity will continue to boost demand for energy, food and water. The researchers hope that the DAFNE methodology will one day become a reference.

"We designed the modelling tools to be transferable to other regions with competing water needs," says Burlando. Follow-up projects are already under way to apply and further develop the technology in several river basins worldwide.

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Reference

Zaniolo M, Giuliani M, Sinclair S, Burlando P, Castelletti A. When timing matters - misdesigned dam filling impacts hydropower sustainability. Nat Commun 12, 3056 (2021), doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-23323-5

 

China's carbon-monitoring satellite reports global carbon net of six gigatons

INSTITUTE OF ATMOSPHERIC PHYSICS, CHINESE ACADEMY OF SCIENCES

Research News

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IMAGE: THE FIRST GLOBAL CARBON FLUX MAP DERIVED BY TANSAT OBSERVATION. view more 

CREDIT: DONGXU YANG

About six gigatons -- roughly 12 times the mass of all living humans -- of carbon appears to be emitted over land every year, according to data from the Chinese Global Carbon Dioxide Monitoring Scientific Experimental Satellite (TanSat).

Using data on how carbon mixes with dry air collected from May 2017 to April 2018, researchers developed the first global carbon flux dataset and map. They published their results in Advances in Atmospheric Sciences.

The map was developed by applying TanSat's satellite observations to models of how greenhouse gasses are exchanged among Earth's atmosphere, land, water and living organisms. During this process, more than a hundred of gigatons of carbon are exchanged, but the increase in carbon emissions has resulted in net carbon added to the atmosphere -- now at about six gigatons a year -- which is a serious issue that contributes to climate change, according to Dongxu Yang, first author and a researcher in the Institute of Atmospheric Physics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IAP CAS).

"In this paper, we introduce the first implementation of TanSat carbon dioxide data on carbon flux estimations," Yang said. "We also demonstrate that China's first carbon-monitoring satellite can investigate the distribution of carbon flux across the globe."

While satellite measurements are not as accurate as ground-based measurements, said co-author Jing Wang, a researcher in IAP CAS, satellite measurements provide continuous global observation coverage that provides additional information not available from limited or varied surface monitoring stations. For example, a monitoring station in a city may report very different observations compared to a station in a remote village, especially if they are in drastically different climates.

"The sparseness and spatial inhomogeneity of the existing ground-based network limits our ability to infer consistent global- and regional-scale carbon sources and sinks," said co-author Liang Feng, researcher with the National Centre for Earth Observation at the University of Edinburgh. "To improve observation coverage, tailor-made satellites, for example TanSat, have been developed to provide accurate atmospheric greenhouse gas measurements."

The data from these satellites, which includes TanSat, Japan's GOSAT and the United States' OCO-2, and future missions, will be used to independently verify national emission inventories across the globe. According to the Yang, this process will be overseen by the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and begin in 2023, in support of the Paris Agreement. TanSat's measurements generally match with data from the other satellites.

"This verification method will be helpful to better understand carbon emissions in real time, and to help ensure transparency across the inventories," said co-author Yi Liu, researcher in IAP CAS.

The process will be bolstered by the next generation of satellites, known as TanSat-2, which is currently in the design phase. The goal, Yang said, will be to obtain measurements that help elucidate the carbon budget from the global scale down to individual cities.

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TanSat, funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China and the China Meteorological Administration, was launched in December 2016.

The impact of climate change on Kenya's Tana river basin

UNIVERSITY OF EAST ANGLIA

Research News

Many species within Kenya's Tana River Basin will be unable to survive if global temperatures continue to rise as they are on track to do - according to new research from the University of East Anglia.

A new study published in the journal PLOS ONE today outlines how remaining within the goals of the Paris Agreement would save many species.

The research also identifies places that could be restored to better protect biodiversity and contribute towards global ecosystem restoration targets.

Researcher Rhosanna Jenkins carried out the study as part of her PhD at UEA's School of Environmental Sciences.

She said: "This research shows how many species within Kenya's Tana River Basin will be unable to survive if global temperatures continue to rise as they are on track to do.

"But remaining within the goals of the Paris Agreement, which aims to keep global warming well below 2°C, ideally at 1.5°C, would save many species. This is because large areas of the basin act as refugia from climate change."

"With higher warming levels, not only are the refuges lost but also the potential for restoration becomes more limited.

"The United Nations declared the 2020s as the 'Decade on Ecosystem Restoration'. Our results show the importance of considering climate change within these restoration efforts.

"With higher levels of warming, many of the species you are trying to restore will no longer be able to survive in the places they were originally found.

"Strong commitments from global leaders ahead of the COP climate change summit in Glasgow are needed to stand any chance of avoiding the loss of species - which for the Tana River Basin is clearly indicated by this work."

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'Addressing risks to biodiversity arising from a changing climate: the need 2 for ecosystem restoration in the Tana River Basin, Kenya' is published in the journal PLOS ONE on July 21, 2021.

What's riskier for young soccer players, practice or game time?

On average, impacts are more frequent during drills, more severe during games

AMERICAN ACADEMY OF NEUROLOGY

Research News

For young soccer players, participating in repetitive technical training activities involving heading during practice may result in more total head impacts but playing in scrimmages or actual soccer games may result in greater magnitude head impacts. That's according to a small, preliminary study released today that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology's Sports Concussion Conference, July 30-31, 2021.

"Headers are a fundamental component to the sport of soccer. Therefore, it is important to understand differences in header frequency and magnitude across practice and game settings," said study author Jillian Urban, PhD, MPH, of Wake Forest School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, N.C. "Practices are more amenable to change than games. Therefore, understanding how we can restructure practice to reduce head impact exposure while teaching fundamental skills needed to safely play the sport is critical to improving head impact safety in the sport."

The study followed eight soccer players who were ages 14 and 15 for two seasons. Players wore a custom-fitted mouthpiece sensor during all practices and games. Researchers recorded all activities on the field with a time-synchronized camera, and identified each time head contact was made.

Head impact exposure was quantified in terms of peak head motion and impacts per player per hour, or impact rate. The amount of time an athlete was exposed to an activity was also evaluated. Researchers then compared impact rates across activity types which ranged from 0.5 head impacts per player hour to 13.7 head impacts per player hour.

Researchers saw a similar number of player-to-player contacts happening during technical drills, team interaction and game play. Technical training activities like heading the ball and practicing ball-control and dribbling were associated with an average impact rate of 13.7 head impacts per player hour. Team interaction activities such as small-sided games in practice were associated with an average impact rate of 0.5 head impacts per player per hour, which was slightly lower than the 1.3 head impacts per player hour observed during games.

Researchers also looked at average rotational head motion, which ranged from 500 radians per second squared (rad/s2) to 1,560 rad/s2, with higher numbers signifying greater magnitude head impacts. Technical training was associated with an average magnitude of 550 rad/s2, while team interaction and games were associated with an average rotational head motion of 910 rad/s2 and 1,490 rad/s2, respectively.

"If the goal is to reduce the number of head impacts a young soccer player may get on the field, our findings suggest the best way may be to target technical training drills and how they are distributed within a season," said Urban. "However, if the goal is to reduce the likelihood of players sustaining head impacts of greater magnitude, then the best bet may be to look at factors associated with high-magnitude head impacts that can occur during scrimmages and games."

A limitation of the study is the small number of players involved.

###

The study was supported in part by the Childress Institute for Pediatric Trauma.

Learn more about concussion at BrainandLife.org, home of the American Academy of Neurology's free patient and caregiver magazine focused on the intersection of neurologic disease and brain health. Follow Brain & Life® on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

When posting to social media channels about this research, we encourage you to use the hashtags #AANSCC and #AANscience.

The American Academy of Neurology is the world's largest association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals, with over 36,000 members. The AAN is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer's disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, concussion, Parkinson's disease and epilepsy.

For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit AAN.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube.

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New research outlines how those admitted on Sunday and Tuesday are more likely to develop delirium, a hospital complicationCITY UNIVERSITY LONDONResearch NewsElderly patients with neurological conditions are significantly more likely to develop delirium shortly after they are hospitalised.A new study has discovered that a delayed transfer to a hospital floor is associated with greater short-term risk of delirium among patients aged 65 and over, and for those who arrive to the Emergency Department (ED) on days with higher risk of prolonged lengths of stay - found to be Sunday and Tuesday.Delirium is an acute cognitive disorder characterised by altered awareness, attentional deficits, confusion, and disorientation. Current estimates of new-onset delirium highlight the fact that delirium overwhelmingly develops in medical settings (as high as 82 per cent in intensive care settings) compared to the community at large (between one per cent and two per cent). Research has shown that between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of all delirium cases are preventable.Authored by Valdery Moura Junior, an Executive PhD Research student at the Business School (formerly Cass), the study explores whether a combination of the care experienced at the ED and the delayed implementation of delirium prevention measures contribute to an increased risk of the disorder. For example, it is possible that the bright lights and high ambient noise level of the ED for 24 hours a day will contribute to increased short-term risk.The findings showed that of the 858 patients who presented to the ED with a neurological emergency, delirium was documented in 234 (30 per cent) patients within the first 72 hours from ED arrival.This study also found that there was a connection between the onset of delirium and the day in which the patient arrived in the ED. Those arriving on Sundays and Tuesdays were more likely to demonstrate symptoms in a shorter time. Casual factors suggested include fewer hospital beds, delayed floor admission - a waiting time greater than 13 hours - and a greater proportion of elective pre-surgical admissions.Mr. Moura has outlined several measures which can be taken to help prevent the likelihood of the onset of delirium in these settings, as well as reduce spending. These include an earlier initiation of delirium prevention measures; a quicker transfer from the ED to the hospital bed; and improving communication across healthcare managers in primary care, emergency rooms, operating rooms, and post-acute services.Valdery Moura Junior, who is also computer scientist and technical leader at the Mass General Brigham, a Boston-based non-profit hospital and physicians network that includes Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), two of the Harvard Medical School's most prestigious teaching hospitals, said:"New-onset delirium in older patients alone will mean a high price for the health care system and poses a global challenge for healthcare managers, providers, and payors. Managing hospital capacity has been an enormous challenge throughout the pandemic, with many admission processes reviewed as a result with the goal of improving patient outcomes. Our study may help to identify feasible targets to improve processes between ED and the rest of the hospital."Professor Feng Li, Chair of Information Management at the Business School, said: "This is an excellent example where routine operational data in a hospital can be used to identify anomaly and improve patient outcomes. Valdery's research demonstrated that more systematic use of such data can lead to significant improvement in the management of hospital capacity and operational processes, and most of all, quality of patient care."###‘Hospital complications among older adults: Better processes could reduce the risk of delirium’ by Valdery Moura Junior, M Brandon Westover, Feng Li, Eyal Kimchi, Maura Kennedy, Nicole M Benson, Lidia Maria Moura, John Hsu, is published in Health Services Management Research journal.Notes to Editors1. Although delirium reverberates through all age populations, adults over 65 are at greater risk of developing delirium during an acute illness, as are individuals with an underlying neurocognitive disorder (mild cognitive impairment and dementia)2. ED arrival on Sundays was associated with delayed floor admission and with the lowest proportion of hospital to skilled nursing facility discharges. Similarly, ED arrival on Tuesdays was associated with delayed floor admission and with greater proportion of elective pre-surgical admissions on Wednesday morning3. The research examined the time to delirium onset among 858 patients: 2/3 were admitted for stroke, with the remaining admitted for another acute neurologic event. Among all patients, 81.2 per cent had at least one delirium risk factor in addition to age. All eligible patients received delirium prevention protocols upon admission to the floor and received at least one delirium screening event4. Of the 858 patients aged 65+, 697 (81 per cent) had at least one delirium risk factor (e.g., stroke, visual impairment, fall, dementia)

Better healthcare management can reduce the risk of delirium among older adults

New research outlines how those admitted on Sunday and Tuesday are more likely to develop delirium, a hospital complication

CITY UNIVERSITY LONDON

Research News

Elderly patients with neurological conditions are significantly more likely to develop delirium shortly after they are hospitalised.

A new study has discovered that a delayed transfer to a hospital floor is associated with greater short-term risk of delirium among patients aged 65 and over, and for those who arrive to the Emergency Department (ED) on days with higher risk of prolonged lengths of stay - found to be Sunday and Tuesday.

Delirium is an acute cognitive disorder characterised by altered awareness, attentional deficits, confusion, and disorientation. Current estimates of new-onset delirium highlight the fact that delirium overwhelmingly develops in medical settings (as high as 82 per cent in intensive care settings) compared to the community at large (between one per cent and two per cent). Research has shown that between 30 per cent and 40 per cent of all delirium cases are preventable.

Authored by Valdery Moura Junior, an Executive PhD Research student at the Business School (formerly Cass), the study explores whether a combination of the care experienced at the ED and the delayed implementation of delirium prevention measures contribute to an increased risk of the disorder. For example, it is possible that the bright lights and high ambient noise level of the ED for 24 hours a day will contribute to increased short-term risk.

The findings showed that of the 858 patients who presented to the ED with a neurological emergency, delirium was documented in 234 (30 per cent) patients within the first 72 hours from ED arrival.

This study also found that there was a connection between the onset of delirium and the day in which the patient arrived in the ED. Those arriving on Sundays and Tuesdays were more likely to demonstrate symptoms in a shorter time. Casual factors suggested include fewer hospital beds, delayed floor admission - a waiting time greater than 13 hours - and a greater proportion of elective pre-surgical admissions.

Mr. Moura has outlined several measures which can be taken to help prevent the likelihood of the onset of delirium in these settings, as well as reduce spending. These include an earlier initiation of delirium prevention measures; a quicker transfer from the ED to the hospital bed; and improving communication across healthcare managers in primary care, emergency rooms, operating rooms, and post-acute services.

Valdery Moura Junior, who is also computer scientist and technical leader at the Mass General Brigham, a Boston-based non-profit hospital and physicians network that includes Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), two of the Harvard Medical School's most prestigious teaching hospitals, said:

"New-onset delirium in older patients alone will mean a high price for the health care system and poses a global challenge for healthcare managers, providers, and payors. Managing hospital capacity has been an enormous challenge throughout the pandemic, with many admission processes reviewed as a result with the goal of improving patient outcomes. Our study may help to identify feasible targets to improve processes between ED and the rest of the hospital."

Professor Feng Li, Chair of Information Management at the Business School, said: "This is an excellent example where routine operational data in a hospital can be used to identify anomaly and improve patient outcomes. Valdery's research demonstrated that more systematic use of such data can lead to significant improvement in the management of hospital capacity and operational processes, and most of all, quality of patient care."

###

‘Hospital complications among older adults: Better processes could reduce the risk of delirium’ by Valdery Moura Junior, M Brandon Westover, Feng Li, Eyal Kimchi, Maura Kennedy, Nicole M Benson, Lidia Maria Moura, John Hsu, is published in Health Services Management Research journal.

Notes to Editors

1. Although delirium reverberates through all age populations, adults over 65 are at greater risk of developing delirium during an acute illness, as are individuals with an underlying neurocognitive disorder (mild cognitive impairment and dementia)

2. ED arrival on Sundays was associated with delayed floor admission and with the lowest proportion of hospital to skilled nursing facility discharges. Similarly, ED arrival on Tuesdays was associated with delayed floor admission and with greater proportion of elective pre-surgical admissions on Wednesday morning

3. The research examined the time to delirium onset among 858 patients: 2/3 were admitted for stroke, with the remaining admitted for another acute neurologic event. Among all patients, 81.2 per cent had at least one delirium risk factor in addition to age. All eligible patients received delirium prevention protocols upon admission to the floor and received at least one delirium screening event

4. Of the 858 patients aged 65+, 697 (81 per cent) had at least one delirium risk factor (e.g., stroke, visual impairment, fall, dementia)

Policing the digital divide: How racial bias can limit Internet access for people of color

New research shows that the policing of nonviolent offenses, like loitering, restricts access to free Wi-Fi, particularly for people of color

UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA

Research News

Coffee shops and casual restaurants are an important part of American life. Even beyond the food and drinks they sell, they offer us a place to use the restroom or rest our feet while we're out and about, and they provide internet access to those on the go, those in need of a temporary office, or those who don't have an internet connection at home. Many of us take for granted that a nearby Starbucks or McDonald's can offer us a little respite, even if we don't always make a purchase.

But access to these sorts of quasi-public spaces isn't always equal in America, particularly for Black people and other people of color. One such example of this is the infamous 2018 incident in Philadelphia when two Black men waiting at Starbucks for an acquaintance were arrested for loitering. The national outcry over their biased and unjust treatment led to a change in Starbucks' corporate policy. It also begs the question: how often does this kind of incident happen around the country and what implications does it have?

A new study published in the Journal of Communication from researchers at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania investigated the ways that institutions control who has access to Wi-Fi. The findings indicate that powerful institutions and privileged people use quality-of-life policing -- the report and/or arrest of individuals engaged in nonviolent offenses such as loitering, noise violations, and public intoxication -- to keep those with less privilege, including people of color, from accessing resources like the internet.

The inspiration for the study came from a story Professor Julia Ticona heard while interviewing gig workers for her forthcoming book, Left to Our Own Devices: Coping with Insecure Work in a Digital Age (Oxford University Press). One of her interviewees, a 20-year-old Black man named Alex, had a Starbucks manager threaten to call the police on him because he was using an outlet and the internet.

"I was so frustrated for him personally," says Ticona. "And I was also frustrated that we so often talk about the digital divide as a matter of people not being able to afford access, entirely omitting from the discussion that people are actively being threatened for using the internet."

Ticona shared her frustration with Professor Yphtach Lelkes and doctoral candidate Tian Yang, and the three scholars joined forces to develop a method for investigating whether and how institutions are policing access to the internet.

"This paper is a great example of disciplinary cross-fertilization" says Lelkes. "Julia and I have offices across the hall from one another, and Tian was working with me as a research fellow and taking Julia's class at the time. This project came about because Annenberg is such a big tent when it comes to methods and ways of thinking, and the school encourages collaborations between its various scholars."

The researchers analyzed publicly available data to determine whether quality-of-life policing increased, decreased, or remained the same once free Wi-Fi was introduced to restaurants -- namely Burger King, McDonald's, Panera, Starbucks, and Wendy's -- in various neighborhoods in Chicago between 2008 and 2016. They compiled their own dataset for the study, combining crime data from the police department, neighborhood information from the U.S. Census Bureau, and the locations of stores listed on business licenses.

"We were excited to be able to establish a causal relationship between institutional dynamics and their outcomes in perpetuating social inequalities," says Yang. "To do this, we applied methods used in economics and other fields to develop a way to analyze the data for answers to our questions."

The researchers found that wealthier, whiter neighborhoods had a 5% increase in quality-of-life complaints to the police after restaurants began offering internet access, while other neighborhoods did not. They also found that those same wealthy, white neighborhoods did not have an increase in the report of other kinds of crime, like assault or burglary. The researchers believe their findings suggest that economic hurdles aren't the only factor shaping people's internet access, but that active exclusion from public spaces -- where some people are allowed to enjoy Wi-Fi and others aren't -- also contributes to the digital divide.

"This paper connects ongoing conversations about the role of institutions in perpetuating white supremacy and privilege in the digital age to long-standing questions about digital access," says Ticona. "We hope this study can contribute to the efforts to have a different kind of conversation in the field of Communication about the role of policing, race, and class in reinforcing digital inequalities."

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The study, entitled "Policing the Digital Divide: Institutional Gate-Keeping and Criminalizing Digital Inclusion," was published in the Journal of Communication. Authors include Tian Yang, Julia Ticona, and Yphtach Lelkes.

Thoreau's Lumberjack

An overzealous commitment of humanism leads to a sharp man/nature duality, or to a polarity of the higher human spirit versus the lower natural body. 

In some parts of Thoreau's Walden, such a duality is evident. In a language that echoes the sharp dualism of the Christian faith, Thoreau speaks of the transcendental mind "descending" into the natural body to "redeem" it (349). He even finds an inverse ratio between the body and the soul. "The animal in us," says he, "awakens in proportion as our higher nature slumbers." He quotes Mencius to the effect that the difference between man and the brute is very slim. In the raging battle within man, where the human side is pitted against the animal side, ordinary people very soon lose the distinctly human, while "superior men preserve it carefully" (346).

PURE CLASSISM
The duality at times turns into a sharp polarity where nature inspires Thoreau's deepest fears, if not his contempt. The Canadian woodchopper, "a simple natural man," (227) was so absorbed in nature that Thoreau painted him as being unable to absorb "the spiritual view of things." To Thoreau, "the highest that he appeared to conceive of was a simple expediency, such as you might except an animal to appreciate" (279).

It is this disdain for nature that led Thoreau in "Higher Laws" to speak with some remorse about the inability to expel "the reptile and sensual" aspects of human nature, drawing analogies from physical nature to communicate his disgust. "It is like the worms, says he, "which, even in life and health, occupy our bodies (346). Hostility and disdain create the desire for radical transcendence which becomes quite pronounced when Thoreau asserts that "nature is hard to overcome but she must be overcome" (348).

Karl Marx and Swami Vivekananda: It is unknown in India, but Karl Marx and Swami Vivekananda had similar views on the historical cycle of the world. According to Marx the world history has four cycles starting with primitive communism of tribal societies, then feudalism, capitalism and ultimately socialism followed by advanced communism. For Marx the history is deterministic, these cycles are bound to happen due to the contradictions or dialectics in the existing system. In Karl Marx, ”Changes occur in society because of contradictions in prevailing ideology, in its social, economic and political order. These contradictions arise from hostilities between the social classes” (in A Contribution to the Critique of Political Economy, Progress Publishers, Moscow). 

 Swami Vivekananda similarly divided the world history into four cycles, starting with the Age of the Priests, Age of the Warriors, Age of the Merchants as we are now in and ultimately the Age of the Worker, which is coming. With each cycle, society rises to higher and still higher stages and is perfected. The contradiction in the society according to Vivekananda is as follows, “.. At a certain time every society attains its manhood, when a strong conflict ensues between the ruling power and the common people” (Vivekananda, Collected Works, vol.iv, p.399). 

In the new Age of the Workers, “just distribution of material values will be achieved, equality of the rights of all members of society to ownership of property established and caste differences obliterated” (in Vivekananda, Collected Works, vol.vi, p.343). Sri Aurobindo also has expressed similar views on history.

Blushing plants reveal when fungi are growing in their roots

UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE

Research News

IMAGE: BETALAIN COLOURED ROOTS view more 

CREDIT: TEMUR YUNUSOV AND ALFONSO TIMONEDA

Almost all crop plants form associations with a particular type of fungi - called arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi - in the soil, which greatly expand their root surface area. This mutually beneficial interaction boosts the plant's ability to take up nutrients that are vital for growth.

The more nutrients plants obtain naturally, the less artificial fertilisers are needed. Understanding this natural process, as the first step towards potentially enhancing it, is an ongoing research challenge. Progress is likely to pay huge dividends for agricultural productivity.

In a study published in the journal PLOS Biology, researchers used the bright red pigments of beetroot - called betalains - to visually track soil fungi as they colonised plant roots in a living plant.

"We can now follow how the relationship between the fungi and plant root develops, in real-time, from the moment they come into contact. We previously had no idea about what happened because there was no way to visualise it in a living plant without the use of elaborate microscopy," said Dr Sebastian Schornack, a researcher at the University of Cambridge's Sainsbury Laboratory and joint senior author of the paper.

To achieve their results, the researchers engineered two model plant species - a legume and a tobacco plant - so that they would produce the highly visible betalain pigments when arbuscular mycorrhiza fungi were present in their roots. This involved combining the control regions of two genes activated by mycorrhizal fungi with genes that synthesise red-coloured betalain pigments.

The plants were then grown in a transparent structure so that the root system was visible, and images of the roots could be taken with a flatbed scanner without disturbing the plants.

Using their technique, the researchers could select red pigmented parts of the root system to observe the fungus more closely as it entered individual plant cells and formed elaborate tree-like structures - called arbuscules - which grow inside the plant's roots. Arbuscules take up nutrients from the soil that would otherwise be beyond the reach of the plant.

Other methods exist to visualise this process, but these involve digging up and killing the plant and the use of chemicals or expensive microscopy. This work makes it possible for the first time to watch by eye and with simple imaging how symbiotic fungi start colonising living plant roots, and inhabit parts of the plant root system over time.

"This is an exciting new tool to visualise this, and other, important plant processes. Beetroot pigments are a distinctive colour, so they're very easy to see. They also have the advantage of being natural plant pigments, so they are well tolerated by plants," said Dr Sam Brockington, a researcher in the University of Cambridge's Department of Plant Sciences, and joint senior author of the paper.

Mycorrhiza fungi are attracting growing interest in agriculture. This new technique provides the ability to 'track and trace' the presence of symbiotic fungi in soils from different sources and locations. The researchers say this will enable the selection of fungi that colonise plants fastest and provide the biggest benefits in agricultural scenarios.

Understanding and exploiting the dynamics of plant root system colonisation by fungi has potential to enhance future crop production in an environmentally sustainable way. If plants can take up more nutrients naturally, this will reduce the need for artificial fertilisers - saving money and reducing associated water pollution.

CAPTION

Betalain coloured roots

CREDIT

Temur Yunusov and Alfonso Timoneda

CAPTION

Betalain coloured roots

CREDIT

Temur Yunusov and Alfonso Timoneda

New tracking system monitors danger to rainforests

Scientists develop novel new indicator for monitoring danger to the world's rainforests, which are losing capacity to cycle carbon and water

UNIVERSITY OF DELAWARE

Research News

Rainforests are a powerful, natural solution to combat climate change -- providing water filtration, capturing carbon and regulating global temperatures. But major threats like large-scale land use changes, including agricultural expansion and clearcutting, have turned these biodiversity havens into one of the most endangered habitats on our planet.

In 2019, select scientists, including the University of Delaware's Rodrigo Vargas, met at the National Geographic headquarters in Washington, D.C., to discuss the threats to rainforests. The researchers pinpointed a need to develop a worldwide tracking system, which would find trends to help fight land degradation and promote conservation.

In the paper published on Friday, July 22 in the scientific journal One Earth, these researchers introduce the unique tropical rainforest index (TFVI), a baseline for rainforests across the entire globe. The scientist's goal is to detect and evaluate the vulnerability of rainforests to increasing threats. National Geographic and the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative funded the endeavor.

TFVI provides a snapshot of long-term observations, which began in 1982.

"Through this new index, we now have not only global coverage, but uniformity. We can summarize critical information about the health of rainforests," said Vargas, professor of ecosystem ecology and environmental change. "It gives us a benchmark and provides information about looming, future changes."

Using advanced satellite measurements, the research team systematically analyzed the climate and vegetation of each tropical region on Earth. The study's findings suggest that rainforests are losing their capacity to cycle carbon and water.

"We are losing major hotspots for biodiversity and carbon pools," Vargas said. "These are not small patches of land across the world; these are large sections of the Earth's surface."

The study's findings also indicate different regions of tropics have different responses to climate threats. Some regions, like Africa's Congo basin, are more resilient than other parts of the world. The Amazon Basin shows large-scale vulnerability to drying conditions of atmosphere, frequent droughts and large-scale land-use changes. In Southeast Asia, rainforests are stressed more from land use and species fragmentation than they are from climate, except for areas of peatlands that are, during El Nino years, now more vulnerable to fire.

"There is no single solution, no silver bullet that will work in every tropical rainforest. This highlights the needs for localized solutions," Vargas said. "But a general, global index also illuminates the need to design unified strategies to maximize the natural solutions that rainforests provide."

The unique tropical rainforest index methodically illustrates that the susceptibility of rainforests is actually much greater than previous predictions. Disturbed and fragmented areas have lost resilience to climate warming and droughts. Perhaps even more distressing were study findings suggesting that rainforests are losing their capacity to cycle carbon and water.

Tropical forests provide critical environmental services and benefits to society. These rainforests are changing from their historically, highly-diverse status to heavily transformed areas and managed land -- one that lacks the ability to, for example, sequester carbon from the atmosphere and support biodiversity.

"In addition to our moral responsibility to preserve our planet's biodiversity, because human's actions are influencing the global climate, we must be prepared to manage the consequences of these changes," Vargas said.

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