试论土壤物理在土壤肥力研究中的重要性

土壤学作为自然科学的一个分支，它是生产进步到一定历史阶段的必然产物．随着近代数学和物理学向土壤学的渗透，充实了土壤学的研究内容，并形成了一门新型的土壤学分支——土壤物理学．土壤之所以成为绿色植物生长的基地，是因为它具有肥力．人们对于土壤的认识和研究是与土壤的研究紧密相联的     

生物样本库是生物医学研究的重要基础

在生物医学研究飞速发展的今天,随着对健康和疾病认识的不断深入,传统的单病因、单基因研究模式已难以胜任复杂疾病的研究.医学科学的发展需要一种能提供疾病相关的、具有普遍意义的、全局式的分子信息数据库.生物样本库在其中所能发挥的关键作用得到了越来越多的重视.它从最初的小作坊模式经过100多年,尤其是近30年的快速发展已经演化成为科研院所和政府支持的生物样本库、商业化生物样本库及以人口为基础的生物银行等多种模式.伴随存储样本数据信息的复杂度不断快速增加,生物样本库除了收集样本相关的基本数据和诊断信息外,还延伸到配套信息,包括参加人和病人的多种表型,到目前已经迅速扩展到基因组学、蛋白质组学及其他的组学信息.如何科学地建设和管理这种大型复杂模式的生物样本库成为医学科学领域亟待规范、解决的问题.本文将从生物样本库的发展入手重点讨论其建设、管理和应用.     

Examining the Gap between Science and Public Opinion about Genetically Modified Food and Global Warming

There is great uncertainty due to challenges of escalating population growth and climate change. Public perception that diverges from the scientific community may decrease the effectiveness of scientific inquiry and innovation as tools to solve these challenges. The objective of this study was to identify the factors associated with the divergence of public opinion from scientific consensus regarding the safety of genetically modified (GM) foods and human involvement in global warming (GW). Results indicate that the effects of knowledge on public opinion are complex and non-uniform across types of knowledge (i.e., perceived and actual) or issues. Political affiliation affects agreement with science; Democrats were more likely to agree that GM food is safe and human actions cause GW. Respondents who had relatively higher cognitive function or held illusionary correlations about GM food or GW were more likely to have an opinion that differed from the scientific community.     

Reply to Domhoff (2004): Dream Research in the Court of Public Opinion.

The author responds to Domhoff's critique (see record 2004-11640-001). He argues that the REM = dreaming equation was widely accepted at the time of his research. Misgivings about this equation by specialists in the dream research community were not shared by the wider public. The impression that the REM = dreaming equation disproves Freudian dream theory was actively propagated to this wider public between the 1970s and 1990s. The author's aim in the nonspecialist book criticized by Domhoff was to correct that specific misimpression, not to review the world literature. The author concludes with a brief statement of his views on Freudian dream theory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Public Opinion, Political Communication and the Internet

In contemporary society public opinion is generally mediated by the mass media, which has come to encompass the Habermasian 'public sphere'. This arena is now characterised by the conflict between market and democratic principles, by competing interests of politicians and the media. The presentation of information for debate becomes distorted. The opinion of the 'public' is no longer created through deliberation, but is constructed through systems of communication, in conflict with political actors, who seek to retain control of the dissemination of information. The expansion of the internet as a new method of communication provides a potential challenge to the primacy of the traditional media and political parties as formers of public opinion.     

Public Opinion About Laws to Prohibit Weight Discrimination in the United States

Weight discrimination is pervasive in American society and impairs quality of life for obese persons. With approximately two‐thirds of Americans now overweight or obese, vast numbers of people are vulnerable to weight prejudice and its consequences. Currently, no laws exist to prohibit weight discrimination. This study conducted an online survey with a national sample of 1,001 adults (representing demographics of the United States) to examine public support for six potential legislative measures to prohibit weight discrimination in the United States. Results indicated substantial support (65% of men, 81% of women) for laws to prohibit weight discrimination in the workplace, especially for legal measures that would prohibit employers from refusing to hire, terminate, or deny promotion based on a person's body weight. Laws that proposed extending the same protections to obese persons as people with physical disabilities received the least support, suggesting that Americans may not be in favor of considering obesity as a disability. Findings also highlight specific predictors of support (related to sex, age, education, income, body weight, and political ideology). These findings can be used to inform policy makers in efforts to develop antidiscrimination laws. Such measures will rectify health disparities for overweight Americans and facilitate public health efforts to address obesity.     

A Biobank for Long-term and Sustainable Research in the Field of Congenital Heart Disease in Germany

Congenital heart disease(CHD) is the most frequent birth defect(0.8%–1% of all live births). Due to the advance in prenatal and postnatal early diagnosis and treatment, more than90% of these patients survive into adulthood today. However, several mid- and long-term morbidities are dominating the follow-up of these patients. Due to the rarity and heterogeneity of the phenotypes of CHD, multicenter registry-based studies are required. The CHD-Biobank was established in 2009 with the aim to collect DNA from patients and their parents(trios) or from affected families, as well as cardiovascular tissues from patients undergoing corrective heart surgery for cardiovascular malformations. Clinical/phenotype data are matched to the International Paediatric and Congenital Cardiac Code(IPCCC) and the International Statistical Classi?cation of Diseases and Related Health Problems 10 th Revision(ICD-10). The DNA collection currently comprises samples from approximately 4200 participants with a wide range of CHD phenotypes.The collection covers about 430 trios and 120 families with more than one affected member. The cardiac tissue collection comprises 1143 tissue samples from 556 patients after open heart surgery.     

Expert Opinion on the Perceived Effectiveness and Importance of On-Farm Biosecurity Measures for Cattle and Swine Farms in Switzerland

Biosecurity is crucial for safeguarding livestock from infectious diseases. Despite the plethora of biosecurity recommendations, published scientific evidence on the effectiveness of individual biosecurity measures is limited. The objective of this study was to assess the perception of Swiss experts about the effectiveness and importance of individual on-farm biosecurity measures for cattle and swine farms (31 and 30 measures, respectively). Using a modified Delphi method, 16 Swiss livestock disease specialists (8 for each species) were interviewed. The experts were asked to rank biosecurity measures that were written on cards, by allocating a score from 0 (lowest) to 5 (highest). Experts ranked biosecurity measures based on their importance related to Swiss legislation, feasibility, as well as the effort required for implementation and the benefit of each biosecurity measure. The experts also ranked biosecurity measures based on their effectiveness in preventing an infectious agent from entering and spreading on a farm, solely based on transmission characteristics of specific pathogens. The pathogens considered by cattle experts were those causing Bluetongue (BT), Bovine Viral Diarrhea (BVD), Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) and Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR). Swine experts expressed their opinion on the pathogens causing African Swine Fever (ASF), Enzootic Pneumonia (EP), Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS), as well as FMD. For cattle farms, biosecurity measures that improve disease awareness of farmers were ranked as both most important and most effective. For swine farms, the most important and effective measures identified were those related to animal movements. Among all single measures evaluated, education of farmers was perceived by the experts to be the most important and effective for protecting both Swiss cattle and swine farms from disease. The findings of this study provide an important basis for recommendation to farmers and policy makers.