Environmental Concern and Environmental Action in Western Europe: Concepts, Measurements, and Implications

In modeling mass public attitudes towards the environment in Western Europe three hypotheses were tested: (i) Does problem pressure, i.e., the extent of exposure to pollution, or (ii) the emergence of postmaterialist values in advanced industrial societies, or (iii) social class explain the degree of environmental concern and environmental action in Western Europe? The author employed a Linear Structural Relations (or LISREL) model to test the hypotheses with data drawn from Eurobarometer 18. The findings show that, if we want to explain environmental concern, exposure to pollutants is the dominant explanatory variable. They also show, that if we wish to explain environmental action, the impacts of postmaterialism and social class are likely to prevail. Further research comparing results from Eurobarometer 18 data with Eurobarometer 25 data will investigate the intertemporal reliability of the research findings

International Environment Threats through Transboundary Acidification: Nation-Level Positions within the International Environmental Structure

Cross-national environmental pollution can be understood as a limitation to national welfare caused by actors beyond the jurisdiction of a state. Both, the international environmental structure as well as domestic variables may account for the variation found across states with respect to international environmental regulation. The author wishes to explain why the European member states of the United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) subscribe to or refrain from the international regulation of the Long Range Transport of Air Pollutants (LRTAP), which is commonly called "acid rain." This study focuses on the question: Is there an international environmental structure (like international emission/deposition patterns) for sulfuric acidification in Europe which might influence the extent of international environmental regulation? Three perspectives on the international environmental structure are presented: 1. The deposition perspective: Each country is treated as a unit which receives pollutants from other countries. 2. The international trade perspective: Each country is analyzed as a participant in unwanted international "trade" of environmental pollutants. 3. The emission perspective: Each country is viewed as a unit which threatens other nations via exported emissions. The author used the results generated by the Regional Acidification and INformation Simulation model (RAINS) of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) to test hypotheses related to each of these perspectives. The analyses demonstrate that Central Europe is in a disadvantageous position from a deposition perspective. Furthermore, some East European countries are strongly externalizing their environmental problems because they are net exporters of pollutants; from an emission perspective it can be show that some East European countries are likely to be exposed to diplomatic pressure since their exported emissions pose substantial threats abroad. In conclusion, states find themselves in grossly unequal positions with respect to internationally caused sulfuric acidification. The paper concludes with a theoretical interpretation of the findings and points to options for future research

Switching to second-line antiretroviral therapy in resource-limited settings: comparison of programmes with and without viral load monitoring.

In high-income countries, viral load is routinely measured to detect failure of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and guide switching to second-line ART. Viral load monitoring is not generally available in resource-limited settings. We examined switching from nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)-based first-line regimens to protease inhibitor-based regimens in Africa, South America and Asia

Host-microbe interaction in the gastrointestinal tract

The gastrointestinal tract is a highly complex organ in which multiple dynamic physiological processes are tightly coordinated while interacting with a dense and extremely diverse microbial population. From establishment in early life, through to host-microbe symbiosis in adulthood, the gut microbiota plays a vital role in our development and health. The effect of the microbiota on gut development and physiology is highlighted by anatomical and functional changes in germ-free mice, affecting the gut epithelium, immune system, and enteric nervous system. Microbial colonisation promotes competent innate and acquired mucosal immune systems, epithelial renewal, barrier integrity, and mucosal vascularisation and innervation. Interacting or shared signalling pathways across different physiological systems of the gut could explain how all these changes are coordinated during postnatal colonisation, or after the introduction of microbiota into germ-free models. The application of cell-based in vitro experimental systems and mathematical modelling can shed light on the molecular and signalling pathways which regulate the development and maintenance of homeostasis in the gut and beyond. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

Crowdsourced User-Testing

The presented thesis investigates facilitating software quality assurance in open source communities through a human computation platform. Inexperienced community members can contribute formalized user testing data, which is then aggregated and presented to the developers. The implemented prototype, named open crowdsourced user-testing suite (OPEN-CUTS), was evaluated in a usability study in the UBports Community. The viability of this approach has been demonstrated, and further goals for research and development are proposed

Leveraging Human Computation for Quality Assurance in Open Source Communities

Software developed under the open source development model (OSSD) has risen to significant importance over the recent decades. With more and more critical components being developed under the OSSD, the need for extensive quality assurance (QA) increases. This thesis investigates any potential for conducting formalized user testing through inexperienced volunteer community members under the OSSD. A human computation platform to aggregate such test results was designed and named open crowdsourced user-testing suite (OPEN-CUTS). A usability study of a prototype of OPEN-CUTS confirms the viability of this approach and points to potential future research questions.Software, die unter dem quelloffenen Entwicklungsmodell (Open Source Development Model, OSSD) entwickelt wird, hat in den letzten Jahrzehnten massiv an Bedeutung gewonnen. Immer mehr kritische Komponenten werden im Rahmen des OSSD entwickelt und der Bedarf für tiefgehende Qualitätssicherung (Quality Assurance, QA) steigt. Diese Arbeit untersucht, ob das OSSD Potenzial für formalisierte Nutzertests durch unerfahrene freiwillige Community-Mitglieder bietet. Eine Human Computation Plattform zur Sammlung solcher Testergebnisse wurde entworfen und trägt den Namen open crowdsourced user-testing suite (OPEN-CUTS). Eine mit einem Prototyp von OPEN-CUTS durchgeführte Benutzbarkeitsstudie bestätigt diesen Ansatz und zeigt mögliche zukünftige Forschungsfragen auf

Gentleman, Scholar, Visionary- A Living Tribute to Harold K. Jacobson

Tribute to Harold Jacobson

Gentleman, Scholar, Visionary- A Living Tribute to Harold K. Jacobson

Tribute to Harold Jacobson

Prioritising prevention strategies for patients in antiretroviral treatment programmes in resource-limited settings

Expanded access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) offers opportunities to strengthen HIV prevention in resource-limited settings. We invited 27 ART programmes from urban settings in Africa, Asia and South America to participate in a survey, with the aim to examine what preventive services had been integrated in ART programmes. Twenty-two programmes participated; eight (36%) from South Africa, two from Brazil, two from Zambia and one each from Argentina, India, Thailand, Botswana, Ivory Coast, Malawi, Morocco, Uganda and Zimbabwe and one occupational programme of a brewery company included five countries (Nigeria, Republic of Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Burundi). Twenty-one sites (96%) provided health education and social support, and 18 (82%) provided HIV testing and counselling. All sites encouraged disclosure of HIV infection to spouses and partners, but only 11 (50%) had a protocol for partner notification. Twenty-one sites (96%) supplied male condoms, seven (32%) female condoms and 20 (91%) provided prophylactic ART for the prevention of mother-to child transmission. Seven sites (33%) regularly screened for sexually transmitted infections (STI). Twelve sites (55%) were involved in activities aimed at women or adolescents, and 10 sites (46%) in activities aimed at serodiscordant couples. Stigma and discrimination, gender roles and funding constraints were perceived as the main obstacles to effective prevention in ART programmes. We conclude that preventive services in ART programmes in lower income countries focus on health education and the provision of social support and male condoms. Strategies that might be equally or more important in this setting, including partner notification, prompt diagnosis and treatment of STI and reduction of stigma in the community, have not been implemented widely

State Capacity and the Environmental Investment Gap in Authoritarian States

We construct an n-period, constrained optimization model where the authoritarian ruler maximizes expected rents subject to budget constraint of available surplus. We show that the larger state capacity is in the previous period, the worse environmental quality will be in the next period: while infrastructural investment and environmental protection increase with state capacity, the former increases at a faster rate which enlarges the gap between the two?the environmental investment gap. Given infrastructural public goods typically damage the environment, the larger this gap is the worse the environmental quality would be. This follows from rulers? optimizing logic of equating marginal returns once we assume the declining marginal productivity of factors of production of surplus. We model three types of air and water pollutants in autocracies as a function of state capacity and other relevant variables. State capacity is associated with higher levels of all three types of pollutants