Years Of Diversity Research Articles

Climate change alters the future of natural floristic regions of deep evolutionary origins

Biogeographic regions reflect the organization of biotas over long evolutionary timescales but face alterations from recent anthropogenic climate change. Here, we model species distributions for 189,269 vascular plant species of the world under present and future climates and use this data to generate biogeographic regions based on phylogenetic dissimilarity. Our analysis reveals declines in phylogenetic beta diversity for years 2040 to 2100, leading to a future homogenization of biogeographic regions. While some biogeographic boundaries will persist, climate change will alter boundaries separating biogeographic realms. Such boundary alterations will be determined by altitude variation, heterogeneity of temperature seasonality, and past climate velocity. Our findings suggest that human activities may now surpass the geological forces that shaped floristic regions over millions of years, calling for the mitigation of climate impacts to meet international biodiversity targets.

Gender and Racial Representation of Invited Speakers From The Aesthetic Society Annual Meetings Over a 5-Year Period.

Increased representation from both women and non-White ethnicities remains a topic of discussion in plastic surgery. Speakers at academic conferences are a form of visual representation of diversity within the field. This study determined the current demographic landscape of aesthetic plastic surgery and evaluated whether underrepresented populations receive equal opportunities to be invited speakers at The Aesthetic Society meetings. Invited speaker's names, roles, and allotted time for presentation were extracted from the 2017 to 2021 meeting programs. Perceived gender and ethnicity were determined by visual analysis of photographs, whereas parameters of academic productivity and professorship were collected from Doximity, LinkedIn, Scopus, and institutional profiles. Differences in opportunities to present and academic credentials were compared between groups. Of the 1447 invited speakers between 2017 and 2021, 20% (n = 294) were women and 23% (n = 316) belonged to a non-White ethnicity. Representation from women significantly increased between 2017 and 2021 (14% vs 30%, P < 0.001), whereas the proportion of non-White speakers did not (25% vs 25%, P > 0.050) despite comparable h-indexes (15.3 vs 17.2) and publications (54.9 vs 75.9) to White speakers. Non-White speakers oftentimes had more academic titles, significant in 2019 ( P < 0.020). The proportion of female invited speakers has increased, with room for further improvement. Representation from non-White speakers has not changed. However, significantly more non-White speakers holding assistant professor titles may indicate increased ethnicity diversity in years to come. Future efforts should focus on improving diversity in positions of leadership while promoting functions that target young minority career individuals.

Liberated work: Responding to the unshackling of ‘work’ from ‘place’

The largest health crisis of our time has convincingly unshackled ‘work’ from ‘place’, but we have only seen the beginning of hybrid work solutions. In fact, our existing concept of hybrid work is simply a rudimentary stepping-stone towards a version of flexibility that is yet to be widely seen: truly liberated work. This paper seeks to explore how companies will transform their work practices to enable a liberated work environment. Knowledge workers, who are in very high demand and have suddenly become a critical customer segment for organisations, will experience no limits to their freedom of thought, behaviour or location in this new landscape. In addition, we explore how businesses can deliver a fluid workplace ecosystem, which includes a broad network of workspaces that go well beyond the binary options of working from ‘home’ or the ‘office’, and outline how every business department must contribute to creating and implementing a solution. The ramifications of this ongoing shift for corporate real estate and the broader commercial office market, which is experiencing a continuing state of flux globally, is a crucial consideration in discussions on the future of work. Delivering liberated work should be on the agenda for all organisations, large, small and government, as planning for the democratisation of work practices can ensure productivity, employee retention and improved diversity in years to come.

Phylogenetics, Genomic Recombination, and NSP2 Polymorphic Patterns of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome Virus in China and the United States in 2014-2018.

Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV), an important pathogen that affects the pig industry, is a highly genetically diverse RNA virus. However, the phylogenetic and genomic recombination properties of this virus have not been completely elucidated. In this study, comparative analyses of all available genomic sequences of North American (NA)-type PRRSVs (n = 355, including 138 PRRSV genomes sequenced in this study) in China and the United States during 2014-2018 revealed a high frequency of interlineage recombination hot spots in nonstructural protein 9 (NSP9) and the GP2 to GP3 regions. Lineage 1 (L1) PRRSV was found to be susceptible to recombination among PRRSVs both in China and the United States. The recombinant major parent between the 1991-2013 data and the 2014-2018 data showed a trend from complex to simple. The major recombination pattern changed from an L8 to L1 backbone during 2014-2018 for Chinese PRRSVs, whereas L1 was always the major backbone for US PRRSVs. Intralineage recombination hot spots were not as concentrated as interlineage recombination hot spots. In the two main clades with differential diversity in L1, NADC30-like PRRSVs are undergoing a decrease in population genetic diversity, NADC34-like PRRSVs have been relatively stable in population genetic diversity for years. Systematic analyses of insertion and deletion (indel) polymorphisms of NSP2 divided PRRSVs into 25 patterns, which could generate novel references for the classification of PRRSVs. The results of this study contribute to a deeper understanding of the recombination of PRRSVs and indicate the need for coordinated epidemiological investigations among countries.IMPORTANCE Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome (PRRS) is one of the most significant swine diseases. However, the phylogenetic and genomic recombination properties of the PRRS virus (PRRSV) have not been completely elucidated. In this study, we systematically compared differences in the lineage distribution, recombination, NSP2 polymorphisms, and evolutionary dynamics between North American (NA)-type PRRSVs in China and in the United States. Strikingly, we found high frequency of interlineage recombination hot spots in nonstructural protein 9 (NSP9) and in the GP2 to GP3 region. Also, intralineage recombination hot spots were scattered across the genome between Chinese and US strains. Furthermore, we proposed novel methods based on NSP2 indel patterns for the classification of PRRSVs. Evolutionary dynamics analysis revealed that NADC30-like PRRSVs are undergoing a decrease in population genetic diversity, suggesting that a dominant population may occur and cause an outbreak. Our findings offer important insights into the recombination of PRRSVs and suggest the need for coordinated international epidemiological investigations.

Implication of Human Induced Activities on Ecotourism in Ikogosi Warm Spring Centre, Ekiti State, Southern western, Nigeria

&lt;p&gt;The magnitude effect of human activities on the environment is of great concern. In this study investigation on the pattern of land use land cover change in the Ikogosi Ekiti, South Western and Nigeria was carried out. A 30 meter Landsat image of TM 1991, ETM+ 2002 and OLI 2015 were used for the study. The satellite images were digitally processed using Arcgis10.3 and Idrisi Selva 17.0 while Markov Chain Modeler was employed for prediction. Supervised Classification was performed through Maximum Likelihood Classification resulting into identification of five LULC classes which were built-up, rock outcrop, dense vegetation, light vegetation and water body; fragmentation analysis was done using Fragstat 4.0.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The results showed that anthropogenic activities resulted in 25.93% increase in built-up between the periods of 1991 and 2015 with a substantial loss (29.97%) of dense vegetation within the study area were detected. Fragmentation metric showed that the Number of Patches (NP) increased by 257, 268 and 281 while Shannon Diversity Index (SHIDI) correspondingly showed a decreased of 0.54, 0.47 and 0.21 for species diversity in year 1991, 2002 and 2015 respectively; indigenous respondents (70.1%) affirmed the extinction of biodiversity. Furthermore, the Markov Chain Modeler revealed that built-up was expected to increase by 36.7, 39.1 and 69.6% while dense vegetation will correspondingly decrease by 25.4, 22.9 and 18.7% in year 2030, 2050 and 2065 respectively. The result revealed that anthropogenic activities in the study area had contributed to massive removal of vegetation and this pattern had negatively affected the biomass condition of the study area indicting the region to experience an ecosystem imbalance and incidence of global warming. The changing spatial pattern was attributed to the tourism developmental phases in-around Ikogosi community which had increased deforestation, exotic plants and poaching by Ikogosi inhabitants and tourist visits to the study area.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;The study concluded that various tourism development activities had adversely affected the nature of biodiversity, threatened land-use management and vegetation in the study area.&lt;/p&gt;

Resistance and resilience: ten years of monitoring shrub and prairie communities in Orange County, CA, USA

AbstractMediterranean‐climate natural systems have high ecological value, yet the extent of their cover has diminished greatly due to changes in land use. Other stressors, ranging from intense short‐term disturbances such as wildfire to more gradual events such as extended drought and continuous pressures including competition with invasive species, test the resistance and resilience of community composition and structure. Data from long‐term monitoring provided an opportunity to evaluate the responses of three Southern California plant communities (chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and grassland) to disturbances. We analyzed ten years of point intercept and quadrat data from Orange County to describe trends through time and assess community resistance and resilience. We found that grassland communities, which were more degraded from the start of our study, were generally resistant to change. Chaparral was also fairly resistant to disturbance, while coastal sage scrub exhibited more variation, with some transects exhibiting more resilience than others. Transects with fewer native shrubs experienced less of a decline in shrub cover during drought than those with dense shrubs. Grasslands had the lowest native diversity. There were increases in native diversity in years with more precipitation that were preceded by dry years. There was a decline in native perennial bunchgrasses during our monitoring. Our analyses demonstrated the resilience of native shrub cover to fire and the susceptibility (low resistance) of dense native shrubs and native grasses to drought and increases in non‐native species. We encourage academic ecologists to embrace diverse data sources available for hypothesis testing, especially monitoring efforts associated with regulatory purposes, to advance the goal of understanding long‐term dynamics.

Studies on the Flora of Tarai Region of Kumaun

The tarai region of Kumaun which represents sub tropical vegetation was explored for the floristic diversity in year 2008-2011. A total of 429 species under 317 genera of vascular plants i.e., Angiosperm belonging to 95 families were recorded. These are listed in present communication.

Board diversity and firm performance: an empirical investigation in the Brazilian market

This article investigates the diversity of the boards of directors of Brazilian companies listed on the BM&FBovespa with respect to gender, age, educational attainment and independence, to ascertain whether there is a relationship between any of these diversity measures and firm performance. The study covers all companies without majority control, a type of corporate structure that first appeared in Brazil in 2005. The results indicate that greater diversity in the educational disciplines and the presence or absence of independent board members negatively affect performance, while diversity in years of schooling has a positive effect. The presence of women board members is small, but firms that have at least one female director outperform those that do not.

Bumposaurus

Liz Rhodes discusses ways in which you can address diversity in year 1 with a sensitive and humorous approach. Bumposaurus needs glasses and when he finally gets them, it makes such a difference

AN INVESTIGATION ON THE BUD-BREAK AND GROWTH OF CUTTINGS OF 420 A AND 5 BB AMERICAN VINE ROOTSTOCKS IRRADIATED WITH DIFFERENT GAMMA DOSES

Viticulture is an important and intensive agricultural branch in Canakkale province and also in Turkey. Different American vine rootstocks are widely used against phylloxera in our country. Plant breeders have been using gamma radiation for creating new varieties of crops and for obtaining broad genetic diversity for years. In this study, four different doses of gamma rays were applied to 420 A and 5 BB American vine rootstocks when the buds on the cuttings were at the dormant stage. Then, effects of different gamma radiation doses on the cuttings of 420 A and 5 BB American vine rootstocks were investigated. The aim of the research was to study the effect of different gamma radiation doses on some growth parameters of cuttings of 420 A and 5 BB, and to determine the GR50 dose. The results obtained were statistically elaborated by TARIST.

School Size and Diversity in the Senior Secondary Curriculum: A Generalisable Relationship?

UNDERPINNING the debate on the desirable size of secondary schools is the assumption that larger schools are able to offer a more diverse curriculum and thereby provide greater equality of educational opportunity and outcomes. A detailed study of curriculum provision at Year 12 in Victoria showed that the positive relationship between school size and the number of distinct subjects offered was generalisable across ‘mainstream’ schools and all curriculum fields. But many small schools were able to offer a broad range of subjects, and the increase in diversity with school size was uneven across fields. Furthermore, evidence that students actually enrolled in the additional subjects offered in the larger schools was equivocal. It remains problematic whether the apparent diversity in Year 12 subject offerings achieved in the new, larger, secondary colleges in Victoria has led to a more equitable curriculum.