Local,regional and global markets: what drives the tuna fisheries?

Tuna products are amongst the most popular seafoods in the world and widely traded across the globe. Their global trade developed at a very early stage in the growth and development of tuna fisheries. In this article, recent evolutions of tuna markets in terms of products (for both sashimi and cannery-grade tuna products), market structures, and trade are introduced followed by a comprehensive study of global integration through price linkages. Most studies show a high degree of market integration and competition through prices at the world-wide level. Finally, we introduce some original results about the relationship between catches and prices (estimated coefficients of demand elasticity and flexibility), and provide answers to a few key questions for tuna fisheries and markets, including: How do consumers respond to price changes? Are fish price changes fully transmitted to consumers? Is there any economic incentive for fishers to comply with reduced catch quotas? Do fishers target particular tuna species according to the relative price of tuna species?     

Managing genetic variation in tropical trees: linking knowledge with action in agroforestry ecosystems for improved conservation and enhanced livelihoods

Tree species in agroforestry ecosystems contribute to the livelihoods of rural communities and play an important role in the conservation of biodiversity. Unless agroforestry landscapes are productive, however, farmers will not maintain or enhance the range and quality of tree species in them, and both income opportunities and biodiversity will be lost. Productivity depends on both tree species diversity and genetic (intra-specific) variation, but research on the latter has until recently not received the recognition it deserves. Worse, when knowledge on tree genetic variation in agroforestry systems has become available, it has not generally been linked in any systematic way with management, indicating a disjunction between research and field-level practice. In this essay, we attempt to bridge this gap by considering three questions: why is genetic diversity important in tree species? What is our current state of knowledge about intra-specific variation in trees in agroforestry systems? And, finally, what practical interventions are possible to support the conservation of this diversity in agricultural landscapes, while enhancing farmers’ livelihoods? A wide genetic base in agroforestry trees is essential to prevent inbreeding depression and allow adaptation to changing environmental conditions and to altering markets for tree products. Recent evidence shows, however, that many species are subject to poor germplasm collection practice, occur at low densities in farmland, and are found in highly aggregated distributions, all of which observations raise concerns about productivity and sustainability. A range of germplasm-access based interventions is necessary to improve current management, including the enhancement of community seed- and seedling-exchange networks, and the development of locally based tree domestication activities. Equally necessary, but more difficult to address, is the development of markets that support genetic diversity in tropical tree species; we discuss approaches by which this may be undertaken.     

Observations on the present and future of mass customization

A demanding task for many companies today is that of learning to regard customers as individuals, of proactively developing products and services according to the individual customer preferences, and of subsequently producing and distributing these offerings. Over the last decade, mass customization has emerged as an effective approach for tackling precisely this task. In this paper, I discuss the background of mass customization and the elements of this strategy. I will then comment on the implementation of mass customization in practice. I will end with a brief discussion of alternative strategies in this domain, namely personalization and matching services.     

Mass Customization in Videotape Duplication and Conversion: Challenges of Flexible Duplication Systems,Fast Delivery,and Electronic Service

With the emergence of electronic commerce technology, marketers gained new methods for personalizing electronic advertisements, automating marketing research, and customizing product designs. These developments suggest that production operations also must be redesigned to support contemporary marketing objectives via mass customization. Yet, operations management research historically has focused on mass production systems buffering the customer from production operations. As such, the literature provides relatively few insights about managing mass customization operations. Thus, in this paper, we consider a previously unexamined type of mass customization production operations. The paper presents a case study of a manufacturer's videotape duplication and conversion system, consisting of a flexible network of heterogeneous, parallel machines used to duplicate and convert videotapes and other multimedia. We describe the characteristics of this flexible duplication system, discuss parallels between these systems and mass customization, and identify issues regarding flexibility, speed of delivery, and electronic service.     

From mass customization to mass personalization: a strategic transformation

Business and operations strategists have long sought to formulate strategies that would serve profitably for a market of one. Two decades after its conception, there is growing evidence that mass customization strategy is transforming into a mass personalization strategy, making the market of one a reality, at least in select industries. The degree of transformation of a company depends on the extent to which its product is soft, i.e., can be produced electronically. Thus, at the lower end of the personalization spectrum are manufacturing companies engaged in producing hard, configurable products, while on the high end of the spectrum are service companies whose product can be totally configured and delivered electronically. The underlying factors that are enabling this transformation, in our view, are: (1) development of information technologies such as peer to peer (P2P), business to consumer (B2C), and Web 2.0, (2) near-universal availability of the Internet, (3) customer willingness and preparedness to be integrated into the process of product co-design and co-creation, (4) modern manufacturing systems, such as flexible manufacturing and, of course, (5) mass customization tools such as modularity and delayed differentiation, which help reduce manufacturing cost and cycle times and (6) deployment of customer-satisfaction-specific software called customer relationship management (CRM) to engender customer retention. Due to the importance and strategic success of affordable personalization, this issue is dedicated to that theme. The articles included in this issue would, I believe, serve as significant decision support mechanisms for companies pursuing a mass customization and personalization strategy. In addition to providing a brief perspective on articles included in this issue, we also summarize the state of the art of mass customization research.     

Mass Customization: Metrics and Modularity

Mass customization as a competitive strategy is getting progressively increasing attention in business and academic arenas due to its high potential to provide sustained strategic advantage in a unique fashion. It is well documented that a manufacturing company competes with others in its industry on five dimensions: Price, quality, flexibility, delivery, and service. According to the existing literature, mass customization provides significant strategic advantage in two of these dimensions—price and customization. We, however, argue that when properly implemented, the cellular manufacturing structure associated with the appropriate implementation of mass customization strategy, provides additional competitive value in quality and delivery. Furthermore by virtue of the customer co-design as an integral aspect of mass customization, customer satisfaction also improves under this strategy. Mass customization strategy, therefore, provides competitive advantage in all five competitive dimensions simultaneously—a truly unique strategic accomplishment. We also propose, in this paper, new metrics for mass customization strategy that measure the “mass” as well as the “customization” aspects of this strategy. Finally, we describe in the clearest terms the modus operandi of modularity in product design and the role it plays in bringing about high levels of customization on one hand and economies of scale at component level, on the other. We conclude with remarks that underscore the need for conducting research in the areas at the interface of mass customization and supply chain management.     

A dynamic heuristic-based algorithm to part input sequencing in flexible manufacturing systems for mass customization capability

In the increasingly competitive global markets, enterprises face challenges in responding to customer orders quickly, as well as producing customized products cost-effectively. This paper proposes a dynamic heuristic-based algorithm for the part input sequencing problem of flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs) in a mass customization (MC) environment. The FMS manufactures a variety of parts, and customer orders arrive dynamically with order size as small as one. Segmental set functions are established in the proposed algorithm to apply the strategy of dynamic workload balancing, and the shortest processing time (SPT) scheduling rule. Theoretical analysis is performed and the effectiveness of the algorithm in dynamic workload balancing under the complex and dynamic environment is proven. The application of the algorithm is illustrated by an example. The potential of its practical applications to the FMSs in make-to-order (MTO) supply chains is also discussed. Further research is provided.     

Mass customization: manufacturing issues and taxonomic analyses

As the field of mass customization (MC) attains the status of a mature discipline, two significant research deficits stand out. First, a through metareview of the entire body of MC research that looks at the application value and rigorousness of research is overdue. Second, manufacturing issues, especially those pertaining to quality and the supply chain have been largely ignored. This issue is dedicated to both of these important areas of research. The conclusion with regards to the status of the MC field is that it is currently vibrant, with growing research volume and applications. The manufacturing issues dealt with in this issue are strategically important, dealing with quality and customization issues. The work on quality is the first of its kind: it seeks to generate a defect-tracking matrix consistent with product configurations, enabling agile identification of defects in a mass customization environment. The use of discrete event simulation to deal with the dynamically evolving customized demand so as to minimize cost and schedule disruption is innovative, timely, and profound.     

Neural information and the problem of objectivity

A fascinating research program in neurophysiology attempts to quantify the amount of information transmitted by single neurons. The claims that emerge from this research raise new philosophical questions about the nature of information. What kind of information is being quantified? Do the resulting quantities describe empirical magnitudes like those found elsewhere in the natural sciences? In this article, it is argued that neural information quantities have a relativisitic character that makes them distinct from the kinds of information typically discussed in the philosophical literature. It is also argued that despite this relativistic character, there are cases in which neural information quantities can be viewed as robustly objective empirical properties.     

What are DNA sequence motifs?

Sequence motifs are becoming increasingly important in the analysis of gene regulation. How do we define sequence motifs, and why should we use sequence logos instead of consensus sequences to represent them? Do they have any relation with binding affinity? How do we search for new instances of a motif in this sea of DNA?     

What’s a Weed? Knowledge,Attitude and Behaviour of Park Visitors about Weeds

Weeds are a major threat to biodiversity globally degrading natural areas of high conservation value. But what are our attitudes about weeds and their management including weeds in national parks? Do we know what a weed is? Do we consider weeds a problem? Do we support their management? Are we unintentionally spreading weeds in parks? To answer these questions, we surveyed visitors entering a large popular national park near the city of Brisbane, Australia. Park visitors were knowledgeable about weeds; with >75% correctly defining weeds as ‘plants that grow where they are not wanted’. About 10% of the visitors, however, provided their own sophisticated definitions. This capacity to define weeds did not vary with people’s age, sex or level of education. We constructed a scale measuring visitors’ overall concern about weeds in parks using the responses to ten Likert scale statements. Over 85% of visitors were concerned about weeds with older visitors, hikers, and those who could correctly define weeds more concerned than their counterparts. The majority think visitors unintentionally introduce seeds into parks, with many (63%) having found seeds on their own clothing. However, over a third disposed of these seeds in ways that could facilitate weed spread. Therefore, although most visitors were knowledgeable and concerned about weeds, and support their control, there is a clear need for more effective communication regarding the risk of visitors unintentionally dispersing weed seeds in parks.     

Peptidergic pathways in the central nervous system

Before detailed studies of the physiology and pharmacology of central peptidergic neurons can be undertaken, the location of these neurons must be determined and the mechanism(s) by which they synthesize their peptide products must be explored. In the previous paper, Dr H?kfelt described his elegant immunohistochemical studies, which are designed to answer the questions: Where are peptidergic perikarya?; Where do these perikarya send their processes?; Do these processes branch extensively and innervate several structures?; and Do peptidergic cells contain more than one active product? By studying the effects of lesions on peptide levels in microdissected tissue samples, immunocytochemical data can be confirmed and extended. The microanalytical approach also allows one to determine the nature of the immunologically active substances in a tissue extract, and in vivo or in vitro pulse--chase studies provide the ultimate validation of immunohistological localization of peptidergic perikarya and new information about the biosynthesis of peptides and regulation of this biosynthetic process. Our recent studies of central proopiocortin- and neurophysin/vasopressin-producing neurons will illustrate the above points.     

Adaptation in the age of ecological genomics: insights from parallelism and convergence

Parallel phenotypic diversification in closely related species is a rigorous framework for testing the role of natural selection in evolution. Do parallel phenotypes always diversify by parallel genetic bases or does selection pave many alternative genomic routes to the same phenotypic ends? In this review, we show that the advent of next-generation sequencing technologies and the growing use of genomic approaches make it increasingly feasible to answer these fundamental questions using ecological and evolutionary 'non-model' populations of vertebrates in nature. While it is generally expected, and often observed, that closely related populations or species have parallel genetic bases to parallel phenotypes, exceptions are not rare and show that alternative genetic routes can result in similar phenotypes. Ultimately, this framework may illuminate the ecological conditions, evolutionary histories and genetic architectures that result in recurrent phenotypes and rapid adaptation.     

Themes from variation: probing the commonalities of symbiotic associations

Research on symbiosis (including antagonistic and mutualistic associations) wrestles, directly or indirectly, with the paradox: why are symbiotic associations so prevalent in the biosphere in the face of ubiquitous immune or antibiotic defenses among organisms? The symposium "Living Together: the Dynamics of Symbiotic Interactions" considered several questions: 1. How do symbiotic species partners come together? Do symbioses share similar patterns of signal recognition and response? 2. What roles do nutrients and metabolites play in symbiotic interactions, and how are metabolic exchanges affected by environmental changes? 3. In what ways do the dynamics of multispecies symbioses differ from two-species associations? 4. How do antagonistic (parasitic, pathogenic) symbioses differ from mutualistic ones? In what ways do changes in the biotic and physical environment affect the evolutionary balance of symbiotic associations? 5. What are the coevolutionary patterns of symbiotic associations? 6. Which research techniques, and strategies of experimental design, might be useful across a broad range of symbiotic associations?Two themes emerged from the symposium. First, all the participants have incorporated multiple techniques and perspectives into their work, approaches which facilitate the understanding of symbiotic dynamics at several levels of biological organization. Secondly, many of the papers addressed genetic and environmental variation in symbiotic interactions. Such approaches are useful tools for analysis of the mechanics of interspecies interactions and for characterization of the most important factors which influence them. They provide us with the tools to evaluate symbioses in a world of complexity, variation and change.     

Convergence of community composition during secondary succession on Zokor rodent mounds on the Tibetan Plateau

Aims The community succession theory is much debated in ecology. We studied succession on Zokor rodent mounds on the Tibetan Plateau to address several fundamental questions, among them: (i) During secondary succession, does the community composition converge towards one community state or multiple states depending on the initial colonization? (ii) Do mound communities located in different background communities exhibit different assembly trajectories?Methods In a sub-alpine meadow, we investigated a total of 80 mound communities at several successional stages in three different background communities resulting from different management histories and compared their changes in species composition. The distribution of plant communities over time was analyzed with quantitative classification and ordination methods. The co-occurrence patterns of species were evaluated at each successional stage, and the degree of convergence/divergence among communities was obtained by calculating two beta-diversity indices.Important findings During secondary succession, species richness of mound communities changed over time, and this change was dependent on the background community. Five life-form groups exhibited different dynamic patterns in species richness and plant cover. Community composition and the degree of species co-occurrence between communities increased over time since disturbance. There was much variation in species composition at earlier stages of succession, but communities on older mounds became more similar to each other and to their surrounding vegetation over the course of secondary succession. Post-disturbance succession of Zokor mound communities transitioned from 'multiple alternative states' to 'background-based deterministic community assembly' over time. Tradeoffs between competition and colonization, as well as the characteristics of different life-forms and mass effects within a limited species pool are the mechanisms responsible for convergence of mound communities.     

Amphibian metamorphosis: an immunologic opportunity!

Anuran amphibian metamorphosis is an immunologically interesting period. For the investigator, it provides an unusual opportunity for analyzing both humoral regulation of the immune response and the development and maintenance of self-tolerance. Some of the questions one can ask are: Why don't immunocompetent larvae destroy antigenically disparate adult cells as they differentiate within them during metamorphosis? Do the dramatic hormonal changes occurring during this period regulate immunological function? How do animals in metamophorsis protect themselves from their immunologically hostile environment?     

Aligning demand and supply flexibility in custom product co-design

Flexibility of supply and demand is essential for successful implementation of a mass customization strategy that delivers sustained competitive advantage. Supply flexibility, i.e., a choice of alternative products designed to perform the same basic function, is made possible by the range of capabilities available in flexible and agile manufacturing systems and in supply chains. Demand flexibility is derived from the degree to which a customer is willing to compromise on product features or performance levels in order to meet budgetary (reflected in price) or schedule (reflected in delivery) constraints. Flexibility of both supply and demand can have significant strategic and financial value if they are properly aligned. However, customers are mostly unaware of mapping of demand flexibility on to supply flexibility and its impact on production cost and time. Recent advances in information technology have made it possible to co-design a product that involves customer on one end and the manufacturer on the other. This creates an aura and an opportunity where a middle ground between the supply and demand flexibility can be explored and a “deal” can be struck where both parties settle for a product that is beneficial to both through a negotiated settlement. In this paper, we develop a framework for such negotiations. The customer requirements are treated as a range of negotiable options instead of a set of fixed inputs. Demand and supply for customization is then matched by aligning the flexibility of manufacturing systems with customers’ requirement options. Based on this framework, a negotiation scheme is developed to assist customers and manufacturers in exploring and utilizing demand and supply flexibility information in co-design. The negotiation scheme is formulated using goal programming. Finally, an interactive problem-solving procedure is developed and implemented with an illustrative example.     

What Are Imprinted Genes Doing in the Brain?

As evidence for the existence of brain?expressed imprinted genes accumulates, we need to address exactly what they are doing in this tissue, especially in terms of organizational themes and the major challenges posed by reconciling imprinted gene action in brain with current evolutionary theories attempting to explain the origin and maintenance of genomic imprinting. We are at the beginning of this endeavor and much work remains to be done but already it is clear that imprinted genes have the potential to influence diverse behavioral processes via multiple brain mechanisms. There are also grounds to believe that imprinting may contribute to risk of mental and neurological disease. As well as being a source of basic information about imprinted genes in the brain (e.g., via the newly established website, www.bgg.cardiff.ac.uk/imprinted_tables/index.html), we have used this chapter to identify and focus on a number of key questions. How are brain?expressed imprinted genes organized at the molecular and cellular levels? To what extent does imprinted action depend on neurodevelopmental mechanisms? Do imprinted gene effects interact with other epigenetic influences, especially early on in life? Are imprinted effects on adult behaviors adaptive or just epiphenomena? If they are adaptive, what areas of brain function and behavior might be sensitive to imprinted effects? These are big questions and, as shall become apparent, we need much more data, arising from interactions between behavioral neuroscientists, molecular biologists and evolutionary theorists, if we are to begin to answer them.     

Implementing environmental labelling of food products in France

Consumers increasingly demand information about the environmental impacts of their food. The French government is in the process of introducing environmental labelling for all food products. A scientific council was set up, and its main conclusions are presented in this article, through six questions: What environmental issues should be considered? What objective should be targeted? What data are needed, and for whom? What methods for assessing environmental impacts? Which environmental scores should be chosen? What label format should be proposed? By answering these questions and considering the context, the available data, the proposed methods and adjustments, and the knowledge of consumer perception of formats, the scientific council considers that a labelling scheme is feasible and relevant.

     

Beyond the role of glutamate as a neurotransmitter

Glutamate is the principal excitatory neurotransmitter of the central nervous system, but many studies have expanded its functional repertoire by showing that glutamate receptors are present in a variety of non-excitable cells. How does glutamate receptor activation modulate their activity? Do non-excitable cells release glutamate, and, if so, how? These questions remain enigmatic. Here, we review the current knowledge on glutamatergic signalling in non-neuronal cells, with a special emphasis on astrocytes.