中国孢粉学发展的契机与抉择(兼论文集后记)

回顾中国孢粉学的发展历程,认为孢粉学在中国的兴起和发展是与国家的经济建设,以及改革开放政策和知识创新工程的先后实施所带来的契机紧密相联系.呼吁中国孢粉工作者能正面抉择,不断创新,共同促成学科的理论发展和学科间的联合.简要介绍论文集内容,除本文外,含回顾性文章2篇、地层孢粉论文8篇、表土花粉的陆地植被覆盖度模拟和孢粉通量论文各1篇、现代花粉形态论文3篇.     

Chronological change of resource metabolism and decarbonization patterns in Pakistan: Perspectives from a typical developing country

With economic growth in many developing countries, not all are making similar progress with regard to material and environmental efficiencies. This study examines material use and CO₂ emission patterns and intensities from 1971 to 2015 in a typical developing country, Pakistan, and investigates national‐level and multi‐country‐level efficiency improvements using data envelopment analysis. The results are used to derive key policy insights for a sustainable economic transition with higher resource and carbon efficiencies. Results show that material intensity has reduced by 39.1% while CO₂ intensity has risen by 21.5% in the country. Pakistan, when compared with its top 10 export countries, was relatively more material and CO₂ intensive. National‐level efficiency was found to be low in most of the periods due to material/energy intensive agriculture and industries, low value‐added exports, etc. Insights from the national‐level efficiency analysis indicate that surging CO₂ intensities have started to decline since 2010 and the economy has greatly stabilized. Multi‐country analysis revealed that the efficiency gap between Pakistan and its developed export countries (such as the United Kingdom and France) has widened during the study period. Insights from the multi‐country analysis suggest that the economic growth and industrialization improves material and environmental efficiencies to some extent, yet these improvements are not equally distributed among all countries. As a way forward, integrated policies on sustainable resource consumption, carbon mitigation, and economic growth are necessary for accruing higher benefits from rising global trade and resource connectedness.     

东亚新兴经济体的医院改革

随着社会经济的迅速发展,东亚新兴经济体国家和地区的社会福利状况逐渐引起国际社会的重视。东亚新兴经济体在医院改革中,从整合社会化医疗保险项目、控制行业机构、所有制管制、约束专业权力等多个方面入手,调整医疗服务供给体系与政府、患者、医疗保险支付方之间的关系,以及医疗服务供给体系的内部结构和内部关系,为中国的医疗服务改革提供了很多借鉴。     

Developments in stem cell research and therapeutic cloning: Islamic ethical positions, a review

Stem cell research is very promising. The use of human embryos has been confronted with objections based on ethical and religious positions. The recent production of reprogrammed adult (induced pluripotent) cells does not - in the opinion of scientists - reduce the need to continue human embryonic stem cell research. So the debate continues. Islam always encouraged scientific research, particularly research directed toward finding cures for human disease. Based on the expectation of potential benefits, Islamic teachings permit and support human embryonic stem cell research. The majority of Muslim scholars also support therapeutic cloning. This permissibility is conditional on the use of supernumerary early pre-embryos which are obtained during infertility treatment in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinics. The early pre-embryos are considered in Islamic jurisprudence as worthy of respect but do not have the full sanctity offered to the embryo after implantation in the uterus and especially after ensoulment. In this paper the Islamic positions regarding human embryonic stem cell research and therapeutic cloning are reviewed in some detail, whereas positions in other religious traditions are mentioned only briefly. The status of human embryonic stem cell research and therapeutic cloning in different countries, including the USA and especially in Muslim countries, is discussed.     

A Comparison of Two Methods to Conduct Material Flow Analysis on Waste Tires in a Small Island Developing State

The disposal of scrap tires is one of the biggest solid waste issues facing some small island developing states (SIDS) in the Caribbean. Dominica is a small Caribbean island nation that seeks to maintain its well‐founded image as the “Nature Island of the Caribbean.” The economy has seen a steadily increasing import of both tires and cars, with no mechanism for exportation of spent tires. This study used data gathered from both government and international sources to estimate the quantity of tires currently on the island and projected each year up to 2020 to determine potential reuse options. We performed a material flow analysis (MFA) using tire import, vehicle registration records, and projected per capita income to determine the expected accumulation of waste tires. Vehicle registration is expected to rise with the island's wealth, which will affect the annual flow of tires. Two methods were used to predict vehicle growth over time. Our analysis showed an average waste tire output from the economy of 47,000 to 50,000 passenger tire equivalents (PTEs) per year, or approximately 470 to 500 short tons per year of mass. Such an output does not justify large expenditures of tire shredding and processing equipment, but whole tire applications may be feasible as potential disposition options. The methods can be easily replicated to give low‐range and high‐range estimates of waste tires disposed in the environment.     

Reinterpreting Responsiveness for Health Systems Research in Low and Middle‐Income Countries

The ethical concept of responsiveness has largely been interpreted in the context of international clinical research. In light of the increasing conduct of externally funded health systems research (HSR) in low‐ and middle‐income countries (LMICs), this article examines how responsiveness might be understood for such research and how it can be applied. It contends that four features (amongst others) set HSR in LMICs apart from international clinical research: a focus on systems; being context‐driven; being policy‐driven; and being closely linked to development objectives. These features support reinterpreting responsiveness for HSR in LMICs as responsiveness to systems needs, where health system performance assessments can be relied upon to identify systems needs, and/or responsiveness to systems priorities, which entails aligning research with HSR priorities set through country‐owned processes involving national and sub‐national policymakers from host countries. Both concepts may be difficult to achieve in practice. Country ownership is not an established fact for many countries and alignment to their priorities may be meaningless without it. It is argued that more work is, therefore, needed to identify strategies for how the responsiveness requirement can be ethically fulfilled for HSR in LMICs under non‐ideal conditions such as where host countries have not set HSR priorities via country‐owned processes. Embeddedness is proposed as one approach that could be the focus of further development.     

Biogas technology in sub-Saharan Africa: status, prospects and constraints

Africa is a continent with abundant, diverse and un-exploited renewable energy resources that are yet to be used for improving the livelihood of the vast majority of the population. The production of biogas via anaerobic digestion of large quantities of agricultural residues, municipal wastes and industrial waste(water) would benefit African society by providing a clean fuel in the form of biogas from renewable feedstocks and help end energy poverty. Biogas technology can serve as a means to overcome energy poverty, which poses a constant barrier to economic development in Africa. Anaerobic digestion of the large quantities of municipal, industrial and agricultural solid waste in developing countries present environmental conditions that make use of anaerobic biotechnology extremely favourable under perspective of sustainable development. However, the use of biogas is not widespread in Africa. There are many reasons of economic, technical and non-technical nature for the marginal use of biogas in Africa. The key issue for biogas technology in Africa is to understand why large scale-up has not occurred despite demonstration by several programmes of the viability and effectiveness of biogas plants. This article provides knowledge-based review of biogas technology status, constraints and prospects in Africa. In addition, recommendations to overcome the technological and non-technological challenges to commercialise biogas are discussed. Recommendations for large scale adoption for biogas technology include establishing national institutional framework, increasing research and development, education and training and providing loans and subsidies and major policy shift in the energy sector. The conclusion is that biogas technology must be encouraged, promoted, invested, researched, demonstrated and implemented in Africa.     

Asbestos in Developing Countries: Magnitude of Risk and Its Practical Implications

In developing countries, aggressive marketing of chrysotile asbestos continues as a result of restrictions on its use being imposed by the developed countries. In the Asian continent, China and India are emerging as the major users of asbestos. There is enough evidence to link chrysotile with pulmonary fibrosis and lung cancer in humans, even at low levels of exposure, hence the need to apply the Precautionary Principle for phasing out its use globally. Due to poor occupational health and safety systems in developing countries and difficulties in early detection of pulmonary malignancy related to asbestos, the statistics remain sketchy. This is hampering efforts to create pressure on policy makers and to counter the propaganda of the asbestos industry. The International Labour Office believes that more than 100,000 deaths a year occur from asbestos-related disease. In the view of studies published in Europe and Australia, the number of deaths due to such malignancies will peak around the year 2020 and could be anywhere between half a million to a million. That means more than a million deaths will occur in developing countries. At about the same time when asbestos-related deaths start to decrease in developed countries, their number will begin to rise in developing countries. This presents a major challenge to the international scientific community.     

Primary coronary intervention for ST-elevation myocardial infarction in Indonesia and the Netherlands: a comparison

Background. Although the beneficial effects of primary percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) for ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) have been demonstrated in a number of trials, most studies were conducted in Western countries. Experience, logistics and patient characteristics may differ in other parts of the world. Methods. Consecutive patients treated with primary PCI in Cinere Hospital, Jakarta, Indonesia, between January 2008 and October 2008 were compared with those treated in the Isala Clinics, Zwolle, the Netherlands. Results. During the study period, a total of 596 patients were treated by primary PCI, 568 in Zwolle and 28 in Jakarta. Patients in Indonesia were younger (54 vs 63 years), more often had diabetes (36 vs. 12%) and high lipids and were more often smokers (68 vs. 31%). Time delay between symptom onset and admission was longer in Indonesia. Patients from Indonesia more often had signs of heart failure at admission. The time between admission and balloon inflation was longer in Indonesia. At angiography, patients from Indonesia more often had multivessel disease. There was no difference in the percentage of restoration of TIMI 3 flow by primary PCI between the two hospitals. Conclusion. Patients with STEMI in Indonesia have a higher risk profile compared with those in the Netherlands, according to prevalence of coronary risk factors, signs of heart failure, multivessel disease and patient delay. Time delay between admission and balloon inflation was much longer in Indonesia, because of both logistic and financial reasons. (Neth Heart J 2009;17:418–21.)