Harmful Algal Blooms in South Carolina Residential and Golf Course Ponds

The South Carolina coastal zone is among the fastest growing areas in the U.S., and population epicenters are marked by dense brackish water pond (lagoon) coverage associated with housing complexes and golf courses. Surveillance efforts in 2001–2002 documented the widespread occurrence of several types of potentially or measurably toxic harmful algal blooms (HABs) in these ponds. These man-made retention ponds were constructed in order to serve as a buffer between developed areas and open estuaries or for aesthetic reasons. However, the combination of restricted tidal flow and nutrient and/or contaminant deposition creates a stimulatory environment for potential HAB formation. These discoveries introduce the need to consider mitigation measures to existing ponds and HAB preventive strategies for future pond construction.     

Population growth, development and the environment

When Population Studies was founded in 1946 a main preoccupation of demographers and of the public was the prospective decline of the British population, and the falling off of its quality because on the average a poor family had more children than a better-off one. Over the course of the 50 years interests have shifted to the aging of populations as births decline and mortality improves; immigration, immigrants being welcomed for the decades after the war, and subsequently facing hostile political pressures; environmental degradation and the spread of new diseases. The fall in the birth rate, required both for development and for protection of the environment, is spreading from the original industrialized countries of Europe and America to Asia, somewhat more slowly to Latin America, slowest of all to Africa.     

Values and fertility change in Japan

This paper analyses how value change and economic and social change have jointly affected fertility in Japan since 1950, and especially since 1973 when fertility resumed declining after some 15 years at near-replacement level. The resumption of fertility decline since 1973 has been driven primarily by underlying economic and social changes. Value change has tended to lag behind fertility change, and this lag has tended to be larger in Japan than in other advanced nations, primarily because underlying economic and social conditions have evolved more rapidly in Japan, and because it takes time for values to adjust to changes in underlying conditions. Because of Japan's high degree of cultural homogeneity, values tend to be widely and quickly shared, so that under certain conditions value change tends to occur in spurts. In Japan, many of the more important value changes affecting fertility in recent decades are bound up with major educational and job gains by women, which have led to greater economic independence and more emphasis on values of individualism and equality between the sexes.     

Why people feel crowded: An examination of objective and subjective crowding

Prior studies have found only a modest relationship between objective and subjective crowding, defying logic and commonsensical notions of why people feel crowded. Using data from a representative sample of Bangkok, Thailand, where the level of household crowding is four times that in western societies, we explore several possibilities of why this is the case. Examining seven different indicators of objective crowding, our analyses suggest that the modest relationship is not an artifact of measurement. Contrary to the assumption of prior investigations, the findings indicate that the objective-subjective crowding relationship is nonlinear and that there is a ceiling effect muting the impact of increased objective crowding. The analyses further suggest that the strength of the relationship is mitigated somewhat, with part of the feeling of being crowded accounted for by household circumstances, such as the degree of control an individual has over the use of household space.     

Effects of the one-child family policy on second and third births in Hebei,Shaanxi and Shanghai

This paper uses the proportional hazards model to assess the effect of the Chinese one-child policy on second and third births. The differential effects of the policy between the urban and rural areas and by the sex of previous children are highlighted. First, the urban-rural differentials have increased much after the policy, suggesting a more rapid increase in the costs of children and stricter government controls in the urban areas. Second, the sex of children has become a more important factor after the policy. The considerably higher risks to a subsequent birth among sonless families indicate the persistent strong son preferences among Chinese parents, especially in less developed areas. Although son preferences seem suppressed in Shanghai, the higher risks to a second birth after the death of a son compared to a daughter are indicative of the son preferences even in Shanghai. Relaxation of the one-child policy may increase the Chinese fertility.     

Capital accumulation,inertia of consumption and norms of reproduction

A model of capital accumulation is built in relation with fertility and consumption. Avoiding to impose a direct analytical relationship between these three variables, the author studies the set of possible evolutions under the constraints imposed by the inertia of habit change.The conflict between the necessity to avoid impoverishment, the desire to increase consumption when possible and the reproduction intensity delineate the set of viable solutions and the set of attitudes leading to capital extinction. This qualitative view of change of behaviors provides an alternative explanation to historical fertility fluctuations outside the usual Easterlin framework.I am grateful to the three anonymous referees, who helped to improve this article.     

A double epidemic: crystal methamphetamine drug use in relation to HIV transmission among gay men

Emerging research on methamphetamine use among gay men suggests that growth in the use of this drug could present serious problems for HIV/AIDS prevention within the gay community. This article summarizes current studies on the extent, role, and context of methamphetamine use among gay men and its relationship to high risk sexual behaviors related to HIV transmission. Methamphetamine is often used by gay men to initiate, enhance, and prolong sexual encounters. Use of the drug is, therefore, associated with particular environments where sexual contact among gay men is promoted, such as sex clubs and large "circuit" parties. Research with gay and bisexual men indicates that methamphetamine use is strongly associated with risky sexual behaviors that may transmit HIV. This relationship, coupled with emerging evidence that methamphetamine use is on the rise among gay men, suggests that the drug could exacerbate the HIV/AIDS epidemic among this community. The article offers recommendations for further research and suggestions for prevention programs regarding methamphetamine use by gay men.     

A feminist model of family care: practice and policy directions

Using a feminist perspective, this article examines women's experiences in caring for older family members with chronic illnesses or disabilities. Central to this analysis are the concepts of the social construction of gender-based inequities in caring, the interconnections between generations of women as givers and receivers of care, and variations in family care by gender, race, ethnicity, social class and sexual orientation. The authors critique current practice interventions and policies and purpose models for the elimination of gender-based inequities in caregiving and the provision of caregiver choice and empowerment for women and men, including feminist models of practice with women caregivers and economic and long-term care supports.     

Management sampling for larvae of the colorado potato beetle

Summary Untreated plot of ‘Kennebec’ and ‘Superior’ potatoes were sampled for Colorado potato beetle (CPB) at L'Assomption, Quebec, in 1982, 1986 and 1987. Numbers of CPB larvae per stalk were counted on 74 occasions for sample sizes ranging from 50 to 200 stalks. Regression techniques were used to estimate the relationship between mean and cumulative proportion of stalks infected. These were used to set up binomial sequential probability ratio test (SPRT) sampling plans for pest management decision making with tally numbers (or tally thresholds, cutoff numbers) equal to 0,1,...10. A binomial scheme defined by tally number equal to 4 is proposed for general use, and corresponding plans are given, with estimated operating characteristic and average sample number curves.     

Dynamics and distribution patterns of acarine populations in stored-oat ecosystems

Summary Population dynamics and aggregation patterns of nine kinds of stored-grain mites were studied in two 7.5 tonne lots of hulled (cv. Random) and hulless (cv. Terra) oat cultivars with 12–14% moisture content stored in two wooden bins in Manitoba, Canada during 1978–84. Random oats harbored more mites than Terra oats.Lepidoglyphus destructor Schrank was the most common granivorous mite andCheyletus eruditus Shrank the most common predatory mite. Ecological data on a tydeid mite,Paratriophtydeus coineaui André, are presented for the first time. Because they were more abundant in Terra oats with higher fat acidity values (FAV) than Random oats with lower FAVs,L. destructor andTarsonemus granarius Lindquist could be used as bioindicators of spoilage of stored oats. All species analyzed showed some significant difference in their abundance at different depths in the grain bulk; some species showed depthxtime interaction. Aggregation patterns indicated most mite species had overdispersed (clumped) distribution.T. granarius, andBlattisocius keegani Fox-Androlaelaps casalis Berlese had a distinct aggregation pattern in each oat cultivar. Contribution No. 1373 from Agriculture Canada Research Station, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada R3T 2M9