Significant Regional Differentiation Research Articles

Impact of cultivated land fragmentation on spatial heterogeneity of agricultural agglomeration in China

Systematically revealing the impact of cultivated land fragmentation (CLF) on the geographical agglomeration pattern of agricultural specialization (AS) has positive significance for national agricultural production management. Based on the data of the second national land survey and agricultural production’ this study has explored the impact of CLF on spatial heterogeneity of agricultural agglomeration in China by comprehensively using the Theil indeX, ordinary least square model and geographically weighted regression. Results showed that: (1) the regional differentiation of the CLF in China is obvious, and the cultivated land fragmentation index is generally characterized by increasing pattern from northwest to southeast. (2) Spatially, the development level of AS in China has formed three high-value clusters in the Northeast China Plain the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the middle of the Middle-lower Yangtze Plain; and the low-value contiguous areas centered on the Yun-nan-Guizhou Plateau and the Sichuan Basin and surrounding regions,with significant spatial differences. The contribution of grain crops, economic crops, and vegetables and melon to the level of AS was 74.63%, 9.09%, and 16.28%, respectively, and the pattern of agricultural geographical aggregation dominated by grain crops has primarily taken in shape. (3) CLF is significantly negatively correlated with AS, and every 1% increase in the degree of CLF will result in a decrease of about 0.2% in AS. However, the impact of CLF on the geographic agglomeration of different crop categories or groups varies significantly. Among them, CLF has a prominent impact on the specialization level of grain crops and vegetables and melon. Each 1% increase in the CLF will reduce the specialization level of grain crops by 0.38%, and increase the level of vegetables and melon by about 0.22%. (4) According to the landscape characteristics of cultivated land, the degree of spatial division and agglomeration of cultivated land patches have a significant impact on the formation of geographical agglomeration pattern of AS, and the intensity and direction of influence show significant regional differentiation, while the patch size has no significant impact.

The importance of quantitative trait differentiation in restoration: landscape heterogeneity and functional traits inform seed transfer guidelines.

For widely distributed species, understanding the scale over which genetic variation correlates to landscape structure and composition is critical. Particularly within the context of restoration, the evolution of genetic differences may impact success if seeds are maladapted to the restoration environment. In this study, we used Geum triflorum to quantify the scale over which genetic differences for quantitative traits important to adaptation have evolved, comparing the proportion of variance attributed to broad regional- and local population-level effects. Geum triflorum is a widely distributed species spanning a range of environments, including alvar and prairie habitats, which have extreme regional differences in soil-moisture availability. Alvar habitats are regions of thin soil over limestone that experience substantial seasonal variation in water availability, from flooding to desiccation annually. This contrasts with prairie habitats, whose deeper soils mitigate irregular flood–desiccation cycles. Using a common garden experiment, we evaluated 15 traits broadly grouped into three trait classes: resource allocation, stomatal characteristics, and leaf morphological traits for individuals sourced from prairie and alvar environments. We quantified the proportion of trait variance explained by regional- and population-scale effects and compared the proportion of regional- and population-trait variances explained across trait classes. Significant regional differentiation was observed for the majority of quantitative traits; however, population-scale effects were equal or greater than regional effects, suggesting that important genetic differences may have evolved across the finer population scale. Stomatal and resource allocation trait classes exhibited substantial regional differentiation relative to morphological traits, which may indicate increased strength of selection for stomatal and resource allocation traits relative to morphological traits. These patterns point towards the value in considering the scale over which genetic differences may have evolved for widely distributed species and identify different functional trait classes that may be valuable in establishing seed transfer guidelines.

Dynamic analysis of agricultural carbon emissions efficiency in Chinese provinces along the Belt and Road.

To better understand the agricultural resources and environmental problems of the provinces along The Belt and Road in China, it is critical to investigate their agricultural carbon emission efficiency and evolutionary trends. Based on the panel data of 18 key provinces and cities between 2006 and 2015, this paper evaluated the agricultural carbon emission efficiency with the data envelopment analysis–Malmquist model and further explored their dynamic evolutionary trends. There were several main findings. First, the efficiency levels of agricultural carbon emissions showed significant regional differentiation among the areas, with that along the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road being much higher than that along the Silk Road Economic Belt. Second, technical efficiency was the key factor that restricted the improvement of the comprehensive efficiency of agricultural carbon. Third, most provinces invested in too many redundant and unreasonably allocated resources, showing a trend of diminishing returns to scale. Last, According to dynamic evolution analysis, the total productivity still demonstrated a diminishing trend. This paper provides some suggestions for effectively improve the efficiency of agricultural carbon emissions in China, such as optimize the agricultural industrial structure, increasing the investment of carbon emission reduction technology, and implementing a carbon emission quota clearing system. This paper contributes to the improvement of the environment in China.

ИНФРАСТРУКТУРНЫЙ ПОТЕНЦИАЛ ТЕРРИТОРИИ КАК ФАКТОР УСТОЙЧИВОГО РЕГИОНАЛЬНОГО РАЗВИТИЯ

The purpose of the study is to develop a methodological approach to assess the infrastructure potential of the territory as a tool for monitoring the effectiveness of the implementation of the state regional policy in the field of infrastructure development. The algorithm for comparative assessment of the infrastructure potential of regions is substantiated in the article. The authors believe that a regular assessment of the level of infrastructure development (infrastructure capacity) of macro-regions and regions – subjects of the Russian Federation, along with the monitoring of the achievement of the targets established, should be provided within the framework of implementation approved at the Federal and regional levels, of programmes and plans for infrastructure development. The proposed method of cost estimation of the region’s infrastructure potential is based on the use of an integral indicator of the territory’s fund saturation, taking into account the qualitative characteristics of the state of fixed assets. The study revealed a significant spatial differentiation of Russian regions in terms of infrastructure potential that helped to group them by the level of its development. The difference between the maximum and minimum values of the infrastructure potential assessment (even without taking into account the federal cities) exceeds 730 times. The cities of federal significance – Moscow, St. Petersburg, Sevastopol, as well as the republics of Crimea and Tatarstan, Krasnodar, Moscow and Kaliningrad regions have the maximum infrastructure potential. The infrastructure potential is evenly decreasing to the East and North of the country. The republics of Tyva, Sakha (Yakutia), Magadan region, and the Chukotka Autonomous Region have the lowest indicators of territory’s fund saturation and correspondingly low level of infrastructure potential development. More than a quarter of all Russian regions have a lower level of infrastructure development than the national average. Based on the correlation analysis, it was found that the size of the territory’s infrastructure potential has a direct positive impact on the inflow of investments to the regions and the growth of GRP, and therefore is one of the important factors of economic growth and increasing the competitiveness of the regional economy. The results obtained within the study can be applied in the practice of managing the development of territories when forecasting and developing strategies of the socioeconomic development of new macro-regions of Russia, and also used for monitoring the state policy of infrastructure development.

Evaluation of the development unevenness of the Russian Federation regions by socio-economic resource components

In the state strategy of the economic security of the Russian Federation the increased differentiation of regions and municipalities on the level and pace of socio-economic develop-ment is indicated as the main challenges, as well as the insufficient funding of industrial production, a weak innovation activity, lagging behind in the development and implementation of new and emerging technologies, increasing differentiation of the population by the income level, lack of labour resources, reduced quality and accessibility of education, health care and, as a result, the decline in the quality of the human capital.The purpose of this paper is to develop a system of integral indicators of resource components of socio-economic potential of the regions of the Russian Federation based on a legitimate, credible and accessible statistical data for the evaluation of their development unevenness. Materials and methods. Resource potential of the region is being considered as a collection of six groups of socio-economic indicators: fixed funds, financial and investment resource, labour resource, science and innovation resources, information resource and social resource. Each group includes indicators that are directly related to the possibilities of production of goods and services. In accordance with the methodological approaches of the resource capabilities evaluation of the region on the basis of integral indicators the principles of completeness, adequacy, accessibility, universality and formalization of the indicators are used. Evaluation of a group of indicators and all indicators of groups as a whole is made according to the values of integral indicators of reduction or exaggeration in comparison with the reference values of the resource components. Various indicators in the group have a different level of im-pact on the gross regional product that is taken into account in assessing their weight indicators. Time series values of the resource components in each group correlate with the time series values of the gross regional product, the coefficients values of pair correlation are used to recalculate them into weighting coefficients. Formulas for evaluating the individual indicators in the group are developed, integral indicators of the group of resource components and integral indicators of the resource potential of the region as a whole.Results. Given the significant differentiation of regions of Russia according to various objective factors, it is considered appropriate to compare regions within Federal Districts. For the Central Federal District, the Moscow region is taken as the benchmark for comparison, and relative levels of reduction in the resource components of other regions are calculated relative to the level of indicators of its resource potential. Analysis of the data shows that the highest level of resource reduction components of the Ivanovo region is observed in the resource group of science and innovation – 77.1 %, resources of the fixed funds, financial-investment and labour resources are equal the value of this indicator – from 42.3% to 45.4 %. The integrated indicator of relative resource reduction components in the Ivanovo area totaled 41.9 %.Conclusion. Using statistical data for the Ivanovo and Yaroslavl regions as examples, calculations of integral indicators are carried out, which demonstrate the possibility of assessing the regional development unevenness by their resource component of socio-economic development.

Market of the residential real estate: trends and prospects

Purpose of the study . The purpose of this research is modeling of the current trends for changing the cost of the residential real estate. The price on the housing market is one of the most difficult indicators for the analysis, as it reflects trends in the commodity and financial markets, labor market, reacts to political, social and economic changes. On the housing market, it is possible to determine the level of income of the population and their ability to accumulate by the price if we consider the regional level, then it is possible to define degree of attractiveness of this or that region, etc. Development of the housing market promotes improvement of a demographic situation and development of social stability of the society. Materials and methods . In the analysis of dynamics of changing the cost of the residential real estate, the methodological base is important. In this research, the methods of descriptive statistics for the description of the existing trends to change the average cost of housing and development of mortgage lending were presented and assessment of structure of price differentiation in regions is carried out. With the methods of identification and the analysis of the top trend, the adequate model, describing a trend functionally was constructed. For the evident representation of results of the research, tabular and graphic methods of visualization of data were used. For the purpose of the solution of objectives the package of the IBM SPSS Statistics application programs was used. Results . Results of the research allowed to define the main trends of changing the cost of the residential real estate in the Russian Federation on primary and secondary markets and to analyze dynamics of granting mortgage loans. The reasons for significant regional price differentiation of housing are considered. Creation of model for changing the average cost of housing on primary and secondary markets is carried out and forecast estimates to change the price for 2019 are received. С onclusion . The conducted research showed that there is a steady trend of growth of cost for housing both on primary and secondary markets. It should be noted that in the nearest future the increase in rates of gain of the price in connection with the legislation change since July 2019 is possible, first, it would concern primary market, but in a consequence, it will be reflected also on the secondary market.

An assessment of regional innovation system efficiency in Russia: the application of the DEA approach

The main aim of this study is to compare Russian regions according to their ability to create new technologies efficiently and to identify factors that determine these differences over a long period of time. We apply data envelopment analysis (DEA) to assess the relationship between the results of patenting and resources of a regional innovation system (RIS). Unlike previous studies, we apply the DEA method over a long period, comparing regions to one another and over time. In general, RIS efficiency in Russia increased during the period, especially in the least developed territories. There was significant regional differentiation. The most efficient RIS were formed in the largest agglomerations with leading universities and research centers: the cities Moscow and Saint Petersburg and the Novosibirsk, Voronezh, and Tomsk regions. Econometric calculations show that RIS efficiency was higher in technologically more developed regions with the oldest universities and larger patent stock. Time is a crucial factor for knowledge accumulation and creating links between innovative agents within RIS. Entrepreneurial activity was also a significant factor because it helps to convert ideas and research into inventions and new technologies and it enhances the interaction between innovative agents. It is advantageous to be located near major innovation centres because of more intensive interregional knowledge spillovers. Public support of more efficient regions can lead to a more productive regional innovation policy.

Impact of Credit and Investment Resources on the Productivity of Agricultural Sector

The current state of financial provision of agriculture in Ukraine is generally unsatisfactory; therefore, the problem of financing the agrarian sector of the economy in the form of lending and investing appears. The purpose of the article is to assess the impact of external financial support of enterprises in the form of lending and investing on agricultural productivity, as well as an assessment of the risk of overdue loans in the regional section of the agrarian sector of the Ukrainian economy. It is investigated the dependence of income (proceeds) on sales of products, proceeding from the needs of agricultural lending in ensuring the efficiency of its economic activity. Thus, lending and investing in agriculture contributes to increasing sales volumes and revenue (sales) growth from sales, as well as stimulating the development of agrarian enterprises, but the correlation between the analyzed indicators is insignificant. The evaluation results indicate a significant risk of overdue loans to agrarian enterprises for all regions of Ukraine, due to low technical efficiency and high level of delinquency. Significant differentiation of regions according to the level of technical efficiency has been revealed, which may indicate significant reserves of its increase. At the same time, it was found that the interest rates on agricultural loans are not a decisive factor for delays in loans granted to enterprises. In order to improve the situation, it is necessary to increase the volume of external financing and the link density between the parameters: lending – investment – the growth of production and sales, which will allow the formation of a functioning environment, taking into account the possibilities of optimizing costs in each region of the state. Key words: risks, lending, investment, agriculture, risk assessment, agrarian enterprises.

Spatial Pattern and Heterogeneity of Port & Shipping Service Enterprises in the Yangtze River Delta, 2002–2016

Using the ‘theoretical hypothesis—empirical study—case verification’ method, this paper studies the spatial distribution and differentiation of port & shipping service enterprises (PSSE), as well as the variation process and underlying mechanism in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD). First, through inductive and deductive reasoning, we propose the following hypothesis: the regional distribution of different types of PSSE would show different spatial agglomeration-decentralization tendency; and there would be distinct regional differentiation in the industrial structure of the enterprises. Second, based on data obtained from enterprises, empirical research is conducted using Gini coefficient and spatial interpolation simulation methods. Results show that: 1) The overall enterprise distribution is decentralized within a city. 2) Different types of enterprises show different spatial agglomeration-decentralization tendencies. At 3000 m × 3000 m grid scale, there is an agglomeration tendency along seas and rivers in the spatial distribution of enterprises. Shanghai has been identified consistently as a hot spot. 3) There is significant regional differentiation in 12 port cities with respect to the industrial structures of enterprises. Finally, the transportization and the increase of shipping service demand, the globalization and the expansion of multinational corporate activities, the hierarchization and the cooperation among port cities as well as the decentralization and the behavioral difference between the central and local states can be seen as main driving mechanism of the spatial phenomenon.

Calculation of the index of prerequisites for the functioning of the European insurance space in the context of integration directions of Ukraine

The object of research is the European insurance environment, which unites the national insurance markets of European countries, including Ukraine, and has significant regional development differentiation. One of the most problematic places for the development of the European insurance environment is the reduction of the influence of countries on their financial system and the non-permanent nature of development, where the law of uneven economic development manifests itself through various prerequisites for the functioning of national insurance markets. The current state of the Ukrainian insurance market are analyzed through quantitative indicators (the number of insurance companies, the dynamics of insurance premiums, the structure of net insurance premiums by type of insurance) and also because of the quality indicators (political, economic, social and technological components of the external environment). With the help of classical general scientific research methods, statistical processing methods, PEST analysis, the index method and the Pareto principle, it is found that the functioning of the insurance market of Ukraine at the present stage does not have a stable growth dynamics. This is due to a number of political, economic, social and technological factors affecting the external environment. Thanks to the selected indicators, an index of prerequisites for the functioning of the European insurance environment is calculated with the aim of further developing a mechanism for attracting Ukraine to the global insurance environment. The ranking of the countries of the European Union and Ukraine according to the state of development of the insurance environment is carried out and its differentiation is revealed. This is due to the fact that all components of the insurance environment are in close relationship. The increase in the volume of monetary savings of the population and free funds of enterprises contributes to the expansion and revitalization of the credit market and the securities market. And the issue of securities reduces the need for financing the economy through loans and accumulates temporarily free funds of investors.

Migration of the Elderly Population in Russia (According to the 2010 Population Census)

This paper analyzes regional features of migration of the elderly population in Russia. Data compiled from the 2010 All-Russia Population Census have revealed the share of people aged 60 years and older in the structure of interregional and intraregional migration flows and the intensity of this type of migration. Assessment of the migration intensity of the elderly in Russia demonstrates significant regional differentiation. Compared to Russia as a whole, the Far East and northern territories are distinguished by a high level of elderly migration intensity. At the same time, the beginning of “retirement” departures from these regions usually occurs earlier than is set by the retirement age limit for men and women in Russia. And in general, migration of the elderly from northern regions involves the relocation of the “young elderly.” The overwhelming majority of republics and autonomous entities are among the regions with a low intensity of migration of the elderly. This paper also identifies the main centers of attraction and outflow of elderly migrants within the Russian Federation and general features of elderly migration in Russia.

Regional Trends in the Changing Value of Human Capital Assets

The present paper was based on materials of the Federal State Statistics Service of Russia on the website. The research subject consisted of regional features in the changing value of human capital assets. The research object includes regions of the Central Federal District. The study was carried out using statistical methods including the index method, dispersion and correlation-regression analysis. The valuation of human capital assets was carried out on the basis of a profitable approach. It was found that the statistically significant differentiation of regions in terms of wages was the main factor affecting the dynamics and structure of human capital assets in the Central Federal District. The low wages, which triggered migration outflow in the region, should be considered as an indicator of an unsatisfactory socio-economic policy. It is necessary to improve the policy of social and economic development of regions; and the criterion for the success of which should be the sustainability of regional economies.

Transregional Coordination of Modernization Processes in Implementation of Import-substituting Policy in Russia

The article presents results of the research on modernization strategies implemented in Russian economy. Authors have identified three dominating approaches: institutional, innovation-technological and import-substituting modernization. They have stated that import-substituting modernization in Russia is ongoing in terms of sanctions, a shortage of investment resources, insufficient home demand and significant regional differentiation. This necessitates strict coordination in modernization processes. To achieve this, authors have proposed a toolkit for transregional coordination in modernization processes to implement import-substituting policies based on integral indicators. Findings confirm that regions, in their efforts to achieve modernization targets, use their potential in a inefficient and counterproductive manner. One might use the developed toolkit as a classifier of regions and sectors of economy by criterion of dynamics in modernization processes, as well as a basis for indicative planning.

Genetic structure and diversity in relation to the recently reduced population size of the rare conifer, Pseudotsuga japonica, endemic to Japan

Rare species consisting of small populations are subject to random genetic drift, which reduces genetic diversity. Thus, determining the relationship between population size and genetic diversity would provide key information for planning a conservation strategy for rare species. We used six microsatellite markers to investigate seven extant populations of the rare conifer Pseudotsuga japonica, which is endemic to the Kii Peninsula and Shikoku Island regions that are geographically separated by the Kii Channel in southwest Japan. The population differentiation of P. japonica was relatively high (FST = 0.101) for a coniferous species, suggesting limited gene flow among populations. As expected, significant regional differentiation (AMOVA; p < 0.05) indicated genetic divergence across the Kii Channel. A strong positive correlation between census population size and the number of rare alleles (r = 0.862, p < 0.05) was found, but correlations with major indices of genetic diversity were not significant (allelic richness: r = 0.649, p = 0.104, expected heterozygosity: r = 0.361, p = 0.426). The observed order of magnitude of correlation with three genetic diversity indices corresponded with the theoretically expected order of each index’ sensitivity (i.e., the rate of decline per generation) to the bottleneck event. Thus, features that exhibit a faster response, i.e., the number of rare alleles, would have been subject to deleterious effects of the recent decline in population size, which is presumably caused by the development of extensive artificial plantations of other tree species over the last several decades. Finally, we propose a conservation plan for P. japonica based on our findings.

Analysis of the regional differentiation of the world financial market

The object of research is the global financial market, which unites national financial systems and has significant regional development differentiation. One of the most problematic places for the development of the world market is the reduction of the internal regulatory influence of countries on their financial system as well as the growth of world debt of countries on foreign borrowing, the volatile nature of market development, where the law of uneven economic development manifests itself. The analysis of the dynamics of the global market is used for such indicators as: foreign direct investment and its net outflow (% of GDP); foreign direct investment and its net inflow (% of GDP); the number of national companies listed on the stock exchange and their market capitalization. With the help of classical general scientific research methods, regression analysis, statistical data processing methods, it is obtained that the lowest indicators of capital outflow are inherent in the countries of rapid development (Latin America and the Caribbean, South Asia). The highest rates of capital inflows are inherent in highly developed countries within the European Union or the Eurozone. Most of the companies with quotes on the stock exchange and the largest market capitalization, located in the OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development), including in the European Union. This is due to the fact that all components of the market are in close relationship. The increase in the volume of monetary savings of the population and free funds of enterprises contributes to the expansion and revitalization of the credit market and the securities market. And the issue of securities reduces the need for financing the economy through loans and accumulates temporarily free funds of investors. This ensures the conditional nature of the separation of financial markets into the money and capital markets.

Spatiotemporal variability of precipitation during 1961–2014 across the Mongolian Plateau

Precipitation is the dominant factor that controls vegetation growth and land-use practices in the arid and semiarid Mongolian Plateau (MP), so the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of precipitation change has been an important scientific question in the region. This study investigated the spatiotemporal characteristics of annual and seasonal precipitation across the entire MP based on monthly precipitation data from 136 meteorological stations during 1961–2014 by using a modified Mann–Kendall test, Sen’s slope, Morlet Wavelet Transform, and geostatistical methods. Results show the following: 1) Annual precipitation decreased slightly from 1961 to 2014. Stations with positive and negative trends were 41.9% and 58.1%, respectively. Significant positive trends were mainly in the southwestern and northeastern regions of the plateau, whereas significant negative trends were in the northern and southeastern regions. 2) Precipitation decreased at rates of −5.65 and −0.41 mm/decade in summer and autumn, respectively, but increased at 1.91 and 0.51 mm/decade in spring and winter. The contribution of spring and winter precipitation to the annual amount increased significantly, but that of summer precipitation decreased significantly. 3) A large majority of stations (80.2%) showed decreasing trends in summer, whereas 89.7% and 83.1% of stations showed increasing trends in spring and winter. The spatial distribution of trend magnitude in seasonal precipitation amount was strongly heterogeneous. 4) By climatic zones, precipitation increased in humid and arid zones, but decreased in a semiarid zone. On the whole, the MP experienced a drying trend, with significant regional differentiation and seasonal variations.

(Mortality and Life Expectancy of the Population of Russia)

Russian Abstract: За последние 16 лет в России наблюдались следующие тенденции в процессе смертности населения. Ожидаемая продолжительность жизни населения России растет, но темпы роста низкие. За 2000-2016 года ожидаемая продолжительность жизни населения выросла на 6,6 лет (на 4,8 лет у женщин, 7,5 лет – у мужчин) и составила 71,9 лет (мужчины - 66,5 лет, женщины – 77 лет), это все еще на 6 лет ниже, чем средний показатель в развитых странах. Разрыв ОПЖ мужчин и женщин России по-прежнему остается одним из самых высоких в мире, и к 2016 году составляет 10,5 лет (в 2000 году –13 лет). Сохраняется высокая региональная дифференциация ОПЖ: 16 лет – между самым высоким и самым низким региональным показателем ОПЖ в 2016 году. За 2000-2016 года показатель младенческой смертности снизился на 60% (с 15,3 промилле до 6). Однако, при абсолютном уменьшении показателя младенческой смертности сохраняется относительное отставание России от других развитых стран. Так же младенческая смертность в России характеризуется большим разрывом в показателях сельской и городской местности и значительной региональной дифференциацией (между самым высоким и самым низким региональным показателем почти 13 промилле в 2016 году). Смертность населения в трудоспособном возрасте снижается медленно и по-прежнему остается очень высокой по сравнению с западными странами. На сегодняшний день актуален вопрос поиска путей выравнивания уровней демографического и социально-экономического развития регионов и создания предпосылок для стабилизации демографической ситуации в России в целом и в регионах, где сегодня наблюдается устойчивая убыль населения. Для выявления региональных особенностей смертности населения были выбраны регионы Дальневосточного федерального округа (ДФО), Сибирского федерльного округа (СФО). Если ДФО был выбран, с связи с выходом «Концепции демографической политики Дальнего Востока на период до 2030 года», то СФО отличается регионами с самой низкой ожидаемой продолжительностью жизни в России. English Abstract: Over the past 16 years, Russia has experienced the following trends in the process of mortality. The life expectancy of the Russian population is growing, but the growth rate is low. For 2000-2016 the life expectancy of the population increased by 6.6 years (by 4.8 years for women, 7.5 years for men) and was 71.9 years (men - 66.5 years, women - 77 years ), it is still 6 years lower than the average in developed countries. The gap in life expectancy between men and women in Russia still remains one of the highest in the world, and by 2016 is 10.5 years (in 2000 - 13 years). There is still a high regional differentiation of life expectancy: 16 years - between the highest and the lowest regional level of life expectancy in 2016. For 2000-2016, the infant mortality rate decreased by 60% (from 15.3 per mille to 6), but the relative lag of Russia from other developed countries remains. Similarly, infant mortality in Russia is characterized by a large gap in the indicators of rural and urban areas and significant regional differentiation. Mortality of the working-age population declines slowly and remains very high in comparison with Western countries. Today the question of finding ways to equalize the levels of demographic and socio-economic development of regions and create prerequisites for stabilizing the demographic situation in Russia as a whole and in regions where a steady decline in population is observed today is urgent.

Economic Principles of Mining Region Sustainable Development

The concept of sustainable development in comparison with other paradigms was the most acceptable, from the point of view of determining the development strategy of society, in the medium and long term. Due to that, such important trends in science and practice as the restructuring and modernization of the economy, energy efficiency, environmental security, "green economy", etc. have been developed. One of the most important areas of research, important both for science and practice, is the measurement sustainability of development using the system of indicators. The quantitative measurement of sustainability makes it possible to shape strategies for the development of countries and regions, taking into account the ecological, social factors that previously could not even compete with economic factors. For Russia, this is important from different perspectives. Among the main reasons there is a significant differentiation of regions in terms of development level and the predominance of "raw materials" in the structure of the economy of many regions. Rational use of natural resources is a necessary condition for the sustainable development of any state or region.

ABO blood group phenotype frequency estimation using molecular phenotyping in rhesus and cynomolgus macaques.

A much larger sample (N = 2369) was used to evaluate a previously reported distribution of the A, AB and B blood group phenotypes in rhesus and cynomolgus macaques from six different regional populations. These samples, acquired from 15 different breeding and research facilities in the United States, were analyzed using a real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) assay that targets single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) responsible for the macaque A, B and AB phenotypes. The frequency distributions of blood group phenotypes of the two species differ significantly from each other and significant regional differentiation within the geographic ranges of each species was also observed. The B blood group phenotype was prevalent in rhesus macaques, especially those from India, while the frequencies of the A, B and AB phenotypes varied significantly among cynomolgus macaques from different geographic regions. The Mauritian cynomolgus macaques, despite having originated in Indonesia, showed significant (P ≪ .01) divergence from the Indonesian animals at the ABO blood group locus. Most Mauritian animals belonged to the B blood group while the Indonesian animals were mostly A. The close similarity in blood group frequency distributions between the Chinese rhesus and Indochinese cynomolgus macaques demonstrates that the introgression between these two species extends beyond the zone of intergradation in Indochina. This study underscores the importance of ABO blood group phenotyping of the domestic supply of macaques and their biospecimens.

Geographical and temporal changes of anthropometric traits in historical Yemen

This study investigates secular changes of anthropometric variables among four geographic groups in historical Yemen, to evaluate possible regional differences in the evolution of living standards. Nineteen somatic and cephalic measures collected by Coon in 1939, and 8 anthropometric indices in 1244 Yemenite adult males were analyzed. The individuals were divided into 10-year age groups. Within-group variations were tested by One-way ANCOVA (age as covariate). ANCOVA (controlling for age), and Forward stepwise discriminant analysis were used to evaluate and represent regional differences. ANCOVA and discriminant analysis confirmed and enhanced previous findings. At the time, the Yemenite population presented high intergroup heterogeneity. The highest mean values of height at all ages were found in the “mountain” region, which is characterized by very fertile soils and where, nowadays, most of the cereals and pulses are grown and where most livestock is raised. Within-group variations were limited and generally inconsistent in all geographic regions and concern vertical dimensions, but mean values of height never differed. The prolonged internal isolation of these groups resulted in significant regional morphometric differentiation. The main evidence comes from height which suggests that socioeconomic factors have played a role. Nevertheless, the possible better living conditions experienced by the “mountain” group, with the highest mean values of stature in all periods, did not allow the secular trend to take place in that region, too.