• Title/Summary/Keyword: ecological context

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Developing Woody Crops for the Enhancement of Ecosystem Services under Changing Climates in the North Central United States

  • Zalesny, Ronald S. Jr.;Headlee, William L.
    • Journal of Forest and Environmental Science
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    • v.31 no.2
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    • pp.78-90
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    • 2015
  • Short rotation woody crops belonging to the genera Populus L., Salix L., Pinus L., and Eucalyptus L'Her. have provided broad economic and ecological benefits throughout the world, including afforestation and reforestation along urban to rural gradients. Within the genus Populus, cottonwoods, poplars, aspens, and their hybrids (hereafter referred to as poplars) have been shown to exhibit favorable genotype ${\times}$ environment interactions, especially in the face of changing climates. Similar growth responses have been reported for Pinus, especially with white pine (Pinus strobus L.) in the North Central United States. This has led to current research priorities focused on ecosystem services for both genera. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) defines cultural, supporting, provisioning, and regulating ecosystem services. The overarching objective of this paper was to synthesize information about the potential of poplars to provide multiple ecosystem services when grown at sites with varying soil and climate conditions across landscape gradients from urban to rural areas. Specific objectives included: 1) providing background of the United States Forest Service and its Research and Development branch, 2) integrating knowledge of current poplar breeding and development with biomass provisioning and carbon regulating ecosystem services as they relate to changing climates in the North Central United States, and 3) providing a case study illustrating this integration through comparisons of poplar with white pine. Our results were evaluated in the context of climate change mitigation, with specific focus on selection of favorable genotypes for sequestering atmospheric carbon and reducing fossil fuel carbon emissions.

Responses of different phytoelements to habitat light level and their dynamic convergence towards crown development of Aucuba japonica Thunb. var. japonica

  • Ali, Md. Sohrab;Kikuzawa, Kihachiro
    • Journal of Ecology and Environment
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    • v.35 no.3
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    • pp.177-188
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    • 2012
  • We analyzed crown development in Aucuba japonica Thunb. var. japonica resulting from the responses of phytoelements to habitat light conditions over a long period of time. Over the years, the degree of extension unit (EU) dimorphism and the degree of anisophylly were higher under shaded conditions than in brighter conditions. An overall temporally increasing pattern in the degree of EU dimorphism was found while no clear-cut trend was found in the case of anisophylly. EU length and number of leaves per EU co-varied in a spatio-temporal context. The number of terminal buds and their sizes acted as the key initiators of morphological differences of phytoelements which were further amplified following bud break. Leaf area density was displayed mostly in the apex peripheral layer of the crown and the apex layer received most of the incident light. There was a tradeoff between annual leaf production and mean leaf size. Depending on the heterogeneity of irradiance level within a crown, correlative growth inhibition caused higher EU mortality at brighter sites. Due to high mortality, shorter EUs had a mere role in the construction of structural framework of the crown except for the formation of some gaps. There was a strong convergence of EU dimorphism, anisophylly, EU extension growth and variations in leaf size towards formation of functional crown to reduce potential self-shading. Depending on the irradiance level, Aucuba japonica Thunb. var. japonica showed two different modes of crown expansion. At the brighter sites, individual crown expansion was progressive while at the darker sites, individual crown expanded in a diminishing manner and maintained a stable size. A plant's "growth diminishing phase" appeared earlier at shaded sites than brighter sites.

Male Mating Strategies through Manipulation of Female-perceived Predation Risk: A Minireview and a Hypothesis

  • Han, Chang-S.;Jablonski, Piotr G.
    • Journal of Ecology and Environment
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    • v.31 no.1
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    • pp.1-7
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    • 2008
  • In this minireview we focus on how males may exploit female's sensitivity to predation risk in the context of mating. It has been shown in studies on guppies and jumping spiders that in response to altered female behaviors, which are adaptations to the unfavorable environment and a consequence of females' higher sensitivity to predator's presence as well as females' higher predation risk, males can adopt condition-dependent mating tactics. It appears that in such cases males do not modify their reproductive behavior directly in response to their own perception of predation risk, but indirectly in response to changes in female behavior induced by predator presence. It has also been recently shown in crabs that males can exploit female behavior by creating safer habitat spots, which increases the male mating success. Hence all the evidence suggests that males not only respond to female sensitivity to the natural variation in predation risk, but that males can also exploit female behavior by altering the environment. As a logical extension of these findings, we present a hypothesis that in certain conditions males can manipulate the environment in order to increase the predation risk and to induce female behaviors that enhance the male's mating success with the increased predation risk. We propose that such a manipulation to increase predation risk is expected to evolve in males of species with a strong sexual conflict and female-biased predation risk. Although empirical evidence has not been yet shown, initial observations in a water strider species in Korea, Gerris gracilicornis, seem to support this hypothesis.

A Study on the Site analysis of Jongmyo area -With Feng-shui theory and Geomagnetic Field

  • Han, Jong-Koo;Park, Tong-So
    • KIEAE Journal
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    • v.2 no.4
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    • pp.41-47
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    • 2002
  • East Asian explain the changes of substance happened on earth and those of human life with the conceptual frame of "Gi-ki"(地氣; earth vital energy) and organize them by the system of "Feng-shui(風水) theory. The core of Feng-shui theory is reading the expression of the nature and feeling the Gi-ki from the expression. One of the properties of the earth is that the earth has a magnetic field associated with it- the Geomagnetic field. The geomagnetic field is produced by a combination of the effects of electric currents in the earth's liquid core, the magnetization of crustal rocks, external electric current systems that surround the earth and currents induced in the outer layers of the earth by magnetic field variations. The sameness of logic between Feng-shui and geopathic zones is that both are concerned with the discrimination of site and the energy of places, in other words both disciplines are concerned with how the environment can influence people. In this context the operation of Gj-ki can be related with the effect caused by geomagnetic field on site. In this study Jongmyo(宗廟), one of the representative traditional architecture in Korea is selected because the site selection and building layout follows Feng-shui faithfully according to Taejo silok (太祖實錄, Annals of King Taejo). Observing the landforms surrounding Jongmyo, Jongmyo is apparently located in auspicious places named Gumge Poranhyoeng(金鷄抱卵形, a Feng-shui landscape of golden hen sitting on eggs). The geomagnetic investigation of Jongmyo shows that the geomagnetic values of Toekan(the space near Hyeol) are relatively high and uniform and those of Sangweoldae and Haweoldae are decreased in accordance with the distance. The result shows that there is possibility that Feng-shui has scientific basis related with geomagnetic field. Feng-shui theory can suggest a direction for designing the sustainable building for living with nature.

A Relational Geography of Consumption and Ethical Geography Education (소비의 관계적 지리와 윤리적 지리교육)

  • Kim, Byungyeon
    • Journal of the Korean Geographical Society
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    • v.50 no.2
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    • pp.239-254
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    • 2015
  • The purpose of this study is to explore the possibility of ethical geography education, based on the 'relational turn' of understanding of human/non-humans and place in the context of the student's daily consumption. To do this, first and foremost, due to the de-localization of product networks that students consume, it has been discussed the situation that the ethics of responsibility and care is reduced. Then, this paper suggests an understanding of place and human/non-humans in a relational view, as a basis for the student's ability to look at matters of consumption and ethics through the viewpoint of relational ethics of responsibility and care. Finally, this research examined relation of commodity consumption, relational geographies and ethics of responsibility and care through 'mobile phone connection'. It is argued in the paper that the role of ethical geography education lies also in allowing students to feel connected to various humans/non-humans as a absent presence in his own life and to acquire cognitive and practical skills to provide more responsibility and care for their socio-ecological environment, thus making a better world.

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Seasonal and Spatial Diversity of Picocyanobacteria Community in the Great Mazurian Lakes Derived from DGGE Analyses of 16S rDNA and cpcBA-IGS Markers

  • Jasser, Iwona;Krolicka, Adriana;Jakubiec, Katarzyna;Chrost, Ryszard J.
    • Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology
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    • v.23 no.6
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    • pp.739-749
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    • 2013
  • The seasonal and spatial diversity of picocyanobacteria (Pcy) in lakes of the Great Mazurian Lakes (GLM) system was examined by DGGE analysis of molecular markers derived from the 16S-23S internal transcribed spacer (ITS) of the ribosomal operon and the phycocyanin operon (cpcBA-IGS). The study of nine lakes, ranging from mesotrophy to hypereutrophy, demonstrated seasonal variance of Pcy. The richness and Shannon diversity index calculated on the basis of both markers were higher in spring and lower in early and late summer. No statistically significant relationships were found between the markers and trophic status of the studied lakes or Pcy abundance. There were, however, statistically significant relationships between the diversity indices and sampling time. The analysis pointed to a different distribution of the two markers. The ITS marker exhibited more unique sequences in time and space, whereas a greater role for common and ubiquitous sequences was indicated by the cpcBA-IGS data. Examination of the Pcy community structure demonstrated that communities were grouped in highly similar clusters according to sampling season/time rather than to the trophic status of the lake. Our results suggest that time is more important than trophic status in shaping the diversity and structure of Pcy communities. The seasonal changes in picocyanobacteria and differences in diversity and community structures are discussed in the context of well-established ecological hypotheses: the PEG model, intermediate disturbance hypothesis (IDH), and horizontal gene transfer (HGT).

Convergence and Substitutability between IPTV and Digital Cable TV on Subscribers (IPTV와 디지털 케이블 TV 간의 융합과 대체성 강화에 따른 가입자 변동)

  • Hwang, In Young;Park, J. Hun
    • Informatization Policy
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    • v.22 no.2
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    • pp.19-34
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    • 2015
  • Due to rapid convergence trends in the digital pay TV market, differentiation among the competing medias decreases and substitutability is increasing. The current study aims to explain the effect of service substitutability among competing media on the size of domestic digital pay TV subscribers. For the analysis, the Lotka-Volterra model, an ecological competitive diffusion model, was used to obtain the basic model for a simulation study. A simulation was performed by adjusting independent variables of substitutability to estimate the size of subscriber for particular media. The relationship between the digital cable TV and the IPTV is identified as a predator-prey relationship and the digital cable TV is found to be superior to the IPTV. The simulation results showed that the increase of convergence and substitutability result in the decrease of the entire media market. Especially, the IPTV is estimated to face the greatest loss in this context.

A Study on Characteristics of Modern Planned City's Form and Space in the 1950s -Focused on two planned cities realized: Chandigarh and Brasilia- (1950년대 근대계획도시의 도시형태 및 공간적 특성에 관한 연구 - 찬디가르와 브라질리아 계획도시를 중심으로 -)

  • Kim, Jin-Mo;Park, Yeol
    • KIEAE Journal
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    • v.16 no.4
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    • pp.55-62
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    • 2016
  • Purpose: Since the 19th century many concrete models and theories for the ideal city had been proposed and in some way had affected on the ideal urban plans in the 20th century. Modern cities in the 20th century faced a total chaos, due to the world war and new social paradigm came from the development of technology. These social context leads us to be interested in ideal city. And two planned cities; Chandigarh, India and Brasilia, Brasil, are meaningful as the result of the modern ideal city in the early 20th century even though they completed just in part. Method: This study is focused on the characteristics of the modern ideal city in the early 20th century based on comparison with two realized cities. There are similarities and differences in their background, concept, and the characteristics of form and space. Result: First, both cities are required to make monumental and symbolic images by political issues. For this, Le Corbusier proposed the grid system for a metaphorical city and L. Costa defined the urban form with abstract axis for a mythological city. Second, the administrative districts in both cities are planned as symbolic places by formative buildings and their hierarchical arrangement. For neighbourhood unit 'Sector' in Chandigarh and 'Superquadras' in Brasilia are used for the neighbourhood unit respectively. Third, the car-oriented road system and urban environment by population overcrowding in tow cities are criticized in common. Consequently, as we can see, the modern ideal city in the early 20th century succeeds in making symbolic urban image, but exposes the limitation of sustainability.

Potential of Children's Museum as a Base for Donation Network - Focused on Chicago Children's Museum - (기부네트워크 구축 거점으로서 어린이박물관의 잠재성 분석 연구 - 시카고 어린이박물관 사례를 중심으로 -)

  • Lee, Yeunsook;Lim, Yeaji;Kim, Kwangmi
    • KIEAE Journal
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    • v.12 no.3
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    • pp.3-10
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    • 2012
  • The purpose of this study is to seek a planning approach for children's museum within Korean context that promotes community participation. A literature review method and a field survey method were used. Literature reviews on community participation paradigm, residents' participation and donation networks in community regeneration processes, and finally on case studies on children's museum in Korea were carried out. Through the field survey on Chicago Children's Museum(CCM) located in downtown Chicago, its role was identified as networking systems of community participation and donation and was verified as a socio-physical base for vitalizing donation culture that is an active and a leading community participation method. As a result, CCM has engaged many partnerships with city organizations and local schools to provide diverse and unique programs that are not only targeted to children but also parents, teachers and visitors. Also, an evolution of CCM through various types of donations and community participation was delineated. CCM was found successfully in restoring community spirit and vitalizing economical growth where it once was a decayed city area. Rather than focusing on descriptive technique of typical children's museum, this study explored how community fabric is made and acted out, through rethinking community participation's value, and how it can influence a physical space. CCM, as a good example of community participatory museum, the results can be used as a reference in planning and directing community participation based children's museums in Korea. It is significant to shed light on children's museum as an opportunity of social space which can empower community.

The Study on the formal durability of consumer products - focused on the cases of long-selling products (제품조형의 내구적 속성에 관한 연구 -장기간 판매 제품의 사례를 중심으로)

  • 조영식;조민정
    • Archives of design research
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    • v.12 no.2
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    • pp.97-106
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    • 1999
  • The whole crisis of human being derived from environmental pollution has changed the human -centered paradigm into the ecological paradigm based on the harmony of human and nature, which have made it inevitable for designers to participate in the environmental problem-solving. In the line of this sense, it is necessary for designers to recognize the social and ethical responsibility for environmental pollution and to change into the designing for environment, not for sale itself. In accord with the context above, the purpose of this study is to suggest some clues for resolving environmental problems with the analysis of design for long-selling product, as we call, product durability analysis. That is, this study is under some assumptions that designing durable product and durable product itself are able to extend a product life cycle, delay a product disusing, reduce a rash development competition for new product among companies, mitigate consumption-oriented attitude of consumers, eliminate a waste of resources, and go far toward the environmental problem solving.

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