Tablet Weaving in Myanmar

Tablet weaving is one of the oldest techniques of expressing patterns, including script, with a warp thread. It is practiced in an extremely limited area and was considered a rare weaving technology. However, in the past it was developed to a level of highly skilled production among the people of Burma (now Myanmar). The scripts reveal the patronage of specific Buddhist believers and sometimes the provenance of the textile. The script on the belt that secures the covering on the sacred book of the palm leaf manuscript of Myanmar includes dates that establish that this type of weaving was practiced from 1892 through 1928. The belt uses a tablet weaving type called “Sar Htoke Kyo.” It was reported that this weaving technology became extinct, but fortunately, the technique has been preserved by Saunders Weaving Institute near Mandalay. In this paper, I discuss tablet weaving techniques handed down among the Burmese people and investigate their culture, historical significance, and new movements. (All photos are taken by Tomoko Torimaru, and all illustrations are created by Tomoko Torimaru.

The Social and Ecological Dimensions of Vertebrate Management: Reintroductions and Invasions

Conflicts between wildlife and humans continue to be a persistent problem across a wide spectrum of landscapes. In the body of work below, I focus on two classes of vertebrates in particular, invasive pest species and reintroduced species. Invasive species and reintroduced species are both species with which humans can conflict, which has profound consequences for the persistence of species across the landscape and long term human livelihoods. Populations of both invasive and native species typically exist at low densities at first, then establish, grow, and spread across the landscape. Both invasions and reintroductions can be strongly influenced by the human landscape and tolerance for the presence of particular species and their associated impacts to nature and their livelihoods. For invasive and pest species, opposition to eradication programs has the ability to stop or stall management, which has implications for the successful establishment and spread of an invasive species. Conversely, public support or opposition for reintroduction programs can dictate whether they happen at all. Understanding the human landscape of tolerance is important in understanding the success or failure of conservation programs more generally.The body of work below focuses on both of these classes of species and examines different problems associated with each, using techniques from both natural and social sciences. The first three chapters of this dissertation focus on the ecological and social dynamics of vertebrate pest species. I begin by exploring the utility of barn owls to reduce and control populations of vertebrate pests in agricultural landscapes. Next, I examined case of the wild pig, first comparing the population demographic characteristics of wild pigs and second, understanding what kinds of message frames can increase support for invasive wild pig management. Finally, I used social science techniques to understand attitudes toward grizzly bear reintroduction in California

Why Do Young People’s Life Courses Diverge From the “Ideal”? -Using the Position of “Marriage”as a Clue-

2023年4月1日に「こども家庭庁」が発足した。そこでは「こどもまんなか社会の実現」を最重要コンセプトとして掲げ、誰もが希望のライフコースを選ぶことのできる社会となることを謳う。にもかかわらず、わが国の少子化の進行に歯止めがかからない。若者はなぜ自分の人生は「理想」のライフコースにはならないと判断するのか。「結婚」の位置づけをキーワードに、背景にある要因を探り、今後に向けて何ができるかを探った。departmental bulletin pape

【Reports】The Significance of Passing Down Japanese Folktales: An Attempt at Introducing Pre-Class Assignments

日本昔話の原作は、絵本やアニメ、映画などの多様な形態に加工されたものも含めると、一般の家庭のみでなく保育の現場などでもさまざまに活用されている。しかしそれらの現場活用の頻度は徐々に減少しており、保育者を目指す学生でも日本昔話の具体的な題名を挙げることが難しくなってきている。本論は『子どもと言葉』の授業前課題として「日本昔話を読み聞かせる」という実践を通し、学生に生じた意識変化について報告する。repor

Forest disturbance and regeneration: a mosaic of discrete gap dynamics and open matrix regimes?

Question: Recent research in boreal forest suggests that an ‘open matrix’ model may be more appropriate than the traditional model of spatially discrete gap dynamics for describing forest disturbance and regeneration, but what is the evidence from temperate broad-leaved deciduous forests concerning the prevalence of these alternative models? Location: Semi-natural temperate broad-leaved deciduous forest in southern England. Methods: Multi-temporal LiDAR data were used to monitor the changes in tree canopy height and canopy gaps over a 10-yr period for a 130-ha area of forest. Gap dynamics were characterized by quantifying gap creation, expansion, contraction and closure. By identifying the types and rates of canopy height transitions, areas of gap contraction and closure were attributed to the processes of lateral crown growth or vertical regeneration. Results: Across the study site there was a zonation in canopy and gap properties and their dynamics. Many areas of the forest had the characteristics of open wood-pasture dominated by large, complex gaps being maintained under a regime of chronic disturbance. In these areas, several characteristics of the gap dynamics indicated that regeneration was restricted and this may be attributable to spatially-focused overgrazing by large herbivores. In contrast, other areas were characterized by high, closed canopy forest with small, discrete gaps where gap creation and infill were balanced. Conclusions: At the landscape-scale broad-leaved deciduous forests contain a spatial mosaic of zones, which conform to different models of disturbance and regeneration dynamics; discrete gap dynamics and open matrix regimes are juxtaposed. It is now important to elucidate the abiotic factors and biotic interactions that determine the spatio-temporal distribution of the different regimes and to examine whether such a ‘regime mosaic’ model is applicable in other forest types

Effects of the order of exposure to antimicrobials on the incidence of multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Multidrug-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MDRP) is one of the most important pathogens in clinical practice. To clarify the mechanisms contributing to its emergence, we isolated MDRPs using the P. aeruginosa PAO1, the whole genome sequence of which has already been elucidated. Mutant strains resistant to carbapenems, aminoglycosides, and new quinolones, which are used to treat P. aeruginosa infections, were isolated; however, none met the criteria for MDRPs. Then, PAO1 strains were exposed to these antimicrobial agents in various orders and the appearance rate of MDRP varied depending on the order of exposure; MDRPs more frequently appeared when gentamicin was applied before ciprofloxacin, but were rarely isolated when ciprofloxacin was applied first. Exposure to ciprofloxacin followed by gentamicin increased the expression of MexCD-OprJ, an RND-type multidrug efflux pump, due to the NfxB mutation. In contrast, exposure to gentamicin followed by ciprofloxacin resulted in more mutations in DNA gyrase. These results suggest that the type of quinolone resistance mechanism is related to the frequency of MDRP and that the risk of MDRP incidence is highly dependent on the order of exposure to gentamicin and ciprofloxacin

クヌギとマテバシイの堅果の形質や状態が散布後種子食昆虫の堅果利用に及ぼす影響

堅果の形質，状態及び播種位置が，散布後種子食昆虫の侵入に与える影響を解明するために，孔なし堅果と人工孔堅果を用いた播種実験を行った。ミズナラ林冠下の内外に播種したクヌギとマテバシイの堅果を1ヶ月後に回収し，昆虫の侵入を確認した。クリノミキクイムシの侵入に対して，クヌギでは，発根が負の影響を，ミズナラの林冠下への播種が正の影響を及ぼしていた。一方，マテバシイでは，果皮の厚さが負の影響を，遅い播種が正の影響を及ぼしていた。キクイムシ以外の昆虫の侵入に対しては，両樹種ともに有意な要因はみられなかった。journal articl

白山国立公園刈込池におけるブナ天然林の群集構造

白山国立公園南西部のブナ天然林において成木を対象に毎木調査及び林床と林冠の環境状態の調査を実施した。その結果，25種が出現し，幹密度は421本/ha,胸高断面積合計は37.0m2/haであり，ブナ，トチノキ，イタヤカエデが優占していた。礫や凹凸などの土壌や地形の状態がシダやササなどの林床の植生に影響を及ぼしていた。下層木では傾斜の急な場所や林冠が閉鎖した場所で幹本数が減少したが，上層木では地形や土壌の影響は認められなかった。以上から，調査した森林の群集構造は空間的に不均ーに広がる林床植生と光環境，地形や土壌の状態によって規定され，それらの影響は階層ごとに異なることが明らかとなった。journal articl