Biopsychosocial Outcomes for Adopted Adolescents Essay

Biopsychosocial Outcomes for Adopted Adolescents - Essay Example This research will help to extend knowledge of adopted adolescent social interactions, and factors that may predict their relationship style. This will benefit adopted adolescent interventions to enhance their social functioning before adulthood. This study proposes to identify a set of biopsychosocial outcomes for North American adolescents who were adopted out as children, with regards to their socio-emotional functioning. Studies show that many orphaned children raised for a time within an institutional environment often experience hardships, such as neglect or maltreatment (van Ijzendoorn, Juffer, Klein Poelhius, 2005). The children tend also to have less opportunity to acquire and practice new skills which negatively impacts on their social and cognitive abilities in later life (van Ijzendoorn, Juffer, Klein Poelhius, 2005). Research supports the conclusion that as adults, adopted individuals are more likely to experience psychopathology, and or to have dysfunctional interpersonal relationships, both of which negate their ability to develop supportive networks, feelings of belongingness and positive self-concepts that allow them to be fully contributing members of a democratic society (Nicoloson, 2004; van Ijzendoorn, J uffer, Klein Poelhius, 2005), . Rutter (1990 as cited in van Ijzendoorn, Juffer, Klein Poelhius, 2005) suggested ... Juffer, Klein Poelhius, 2005) suggested that the orphaned child may accumulate risk factors within the institution that have negative developmental affects. Adoption may buffer these risk factors if the environment is a positive one. Many studies indicate that a number of adopted children may later exhibit a greater degree of socio-emotional problems (Hoksberger, ter Laak, van Dijkum, Rijk, Rijk, Stoutjesdijk, 2003). Literature exists that investigates biological, cognitive or social differences between adopted children or adults and their peers (Hoksberger et al., 2003; Nicoloson, 2004; Zilbertstein, 2006). However, there appears to be no studies that have explicitly explored the inter-relationship of these systems and their impact on the socio-emotional functioning of the adolescent. Adolescence is a period of change in which most adolescents choose to value as intimates and companions, selecting peers over parents (Freeman & Brown, 2001). Close relationships with peers throughout the teenage years have been associated with positive personal inter-relationships with social others in later life (Sommerville, 2003). Studies show that meaningful and balanced interpersonal social relationships contribute to high self-esteem, high levels of perceived well-being, greater satisfaction with occupational choices, and lowered risk of experiencing a psychopathology (Freeman & Brown, 2001; Sommerville, 2003).The proposed study will compare adopted adolescents with their peers on biological, cognitive and social measures, as defined by levels of cortisol, demonstrated language ability and attachment style. It is hypothesised that adopted adolescents who have high levels of cortisol will also exhibit restricted emotional language ability, an insecure or avoidant

Literature Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words - 8

Literature - Essay Example However, reader’s expectations are not confirmed. Chaucer merely uses the features of the genres to communicate the messages of his own, to establish the themes and motives he is going to elaborate in his tales. The general prologue introduces the range of the thematic and stylistic elements developed in the collection. The reader can misunderstand the author’s message, misled by the generic forms represented in the prologue. At first, a reader is likely to concentrate on the gallery of portraits, perceiving them as a satirical representation of different social classes contemporary to Chaucer. Ian Johnston (1998) suggests that it is necessary to distinguish between character and thematic analysis. As a rule, critics focused on the character analysis of the prologue, ignoring the thematic approach, which is the consideration of ideas and leitmotivs and the way how they are ‘presented, modified, challenged and resolved by the end of the work’. From thematic perspective characterization plays a primary role in the presentation of coordinating ideas. However, one is to bear in mind, that, unlike philosophical works, works of fiction do not offer rational arguments (though may contain them to some degree). Thus, it is not right to reduce a work of fiction to some simple ‘moral ’. By this Johnston must mean that interpreting the general prologue as purely a work of satire we are likely to miss an opportunity to understand the real message of the author. First of all, it is necessary to focus on the famous opening lines (1-18). These lines imitate the opening of the thirteenth-century French Romance of the Rose, an allegorical dream vision and love romance which was the ‘best-seller’ of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. All the educated readers were familiar with that work, partially translated into English by Chaucer himself. Imitating the opening of the Romance, Chaucer plays with the reader’s expectations, suggests Debora B. Schwartz

Investigation of Single Chain Sugar-based Glycolipid

Investigation of Single Chain Sugar-based Glycolipid Review on Investigation of Single Chain Sugar-based Glycolipid Self-Assembly in Lyotropic Phase Using Fluorescence Spectroscopy M.Faisal Khyasudeen* KEYWORDS (Word Style â€Å"BG_Keywords†). If you are submitting your paper to a journal that requires keywords, provide significant keywords to aid the reader in literature retrieval. ABSTRACT: Glycolipid in lyotropic phase has been widely study due to its nature similar to those in biological membrane. This uncharged amphiphilic molecules has been used in cosmeceutical industry as an emulsifier and as nano-carrier in pharmaceutical industry. Some of the reason on its application is because of its features such as low toxicity on environment, biodegradable, specific sugar-cell recognition as well as relatively cheap in production. Vesicle formation by the single chain glycolipid allow high efficiencies of drug delivery by the effective encapsulation of the active material until it reached the specific target cells. In this report, fluorescence studies using different probe were discussed to understand the stability and degree of flexibility of the lipid for its self-assembly. Tryptophan (Trp) with its ester derivatives (Trp-C4 and Trp-C8) are examples of probes to study the glycolipid hydrophilic head while pyrene molecules to gain insight of the hydrophobic group . Steady-state fluorescence indicate a reduction in polarity gradient from polar domain to the non-polar domain resulted from sugar head group and hydrocarbon tail respectively. While fluorescence lifetime measurement for the probes uncover an extra information such as ability to form two different rotamer or any heterogeneity arises due to flexibility of lipid self-assembly. Specifically, this review will be emphasized on characterization of glycolipid with probes component and how in turn these are related to the nature of self-assembly for the glycolipid. INTRODUCTION Amphiphiles are molecules that have a hydrophilic head and a hydrophobic tail. Because of this, amphiphiles when mixed with water is capable of self-assembly into a wide range of different structures with a variety of properties. Shown in Figure 1 are some examples of such structures [1, 2]. They include the lamellar structure, where the amphiphiles self-assemble to give a sheet like structure; the micellar phase where the amphiphiles form a spherical structure with a hydrophilic exterior and a hydrophobic interior; the hexagonal structure where amphiphiles form micellar cylinders that are stacked in a hexagonal lattice; and a whole family of cubic structures, which resembles pipe joints linking cylindrical micellar units. This lyotropic mesomorphism is exhibited by many amphiphiles [3]. The amphiphile systems can transform between these mesophases depending on the relative amphiphiles/water concentrations, salt concentrations, pH, temperature and pressure. Apart from the aesthetics of the various structures, the versatility of some of these amphiphiles structures has also been of great scientific importance and utility. For example, our body is made of 10^13 cells that are constructed from complex membranes self-assembled from amphiphilic phospholipids [4]. Lipids such as monoolein in its cubic phase has been used to crystallize membrane proteins, thus making possible their x-ray diffraction structure determination [5]. Similar lipids have also been used for drug delivery purposes [2]. Another example is the glycolipids [1], which form minor but integral components in the cell membranes of prokaryotes and eukaryotes, and are responsible in maintaining structure integrity in cells. Figure 1. Phase change in the Glycolipid self-assembly by changing the temperature of the system Glycolipids are one of the examples in large family of glycoconjugates in which the sugar head group is bonded to hydrocarbon chain. It is an amphiphilic molecule derived from the carbohydrate headgroup whereas the hydrocarbon tail builds up the hydrophobic part of the molecule. The glycolipids can exhibit liquid crystals properties and have mesophase behaviour. The advantages of using sugar-based non-ionic surfactants compared to the usual surfactants because they are highly biodegradable, environmentally friendly, and less toxic [2,3]. Besides that, they are also much cheaper, and have diverse biological activity. Figure 2. Example of probe used Alkyl glycoside has been used for numerous surfactant application. Microemulsion form by these nonionic surfactant will help in dispersing the water and oil in continuos phase. Direct application such as detergent and cleaner has been use including alkylpolyglucoside (APGs) where it is reported that APGs improves the foam properties of the product according to IPP quality standard. In addition, one development of alkyl glycoside which is still in its infancy is on its application as vesicles for drug delivery carrier as reported by Kiwada and co-workers. It is reported that high entrapment efficiencies of the anticancer drug with prolonged in vitro drug released particularly in spleen and liver were shown using alkyl glycoside as nano-carrier. Furthermore, it reported by Rauzah.H and coworker, the use of similar vesicle to enhance the drug skin penetration using maltosylated and lactosylated alkyl glycoside. Understanding the various factors that contribute to the stability of these different lipid phase structures will be important in further applications of these fascinating objects. One important factor that determines the stability of the various phases in different conditions are the hydrogen bonding networks of the water environment surrounding the amphiphile’s hydrophilic headgroup. In this report, fluorescence studies using steady state and time-resolved measurement were discussed in guiding to correlate the behavior of the probes with the local environment of the glycolipid. Columnar phase of an aqueous formulation of the single chain alkyl glycoside such in the example depict in figure 3 were reviewed due to the ability of it to form in wide range of concentration and temperature (cite the phase diagram). Since lipid membrane usually do not possess any intrinsic fluorescence, it is common to used extrinsic associating probe which strongly sensitive to its surrounding environment. One of the most common membrane probe is tryptophan and pyrene. Trp is used as a local reporter for hydrophilic head and pyrene which is non-polar molecule to probe in hydrophobic region. Figure 3. Example of chemical structure of single chain glycolipid. DISCUSSION One of valuable property of fluorescence probe is in their sensitivity towards different polarity gradient. Fluorophore such as trp shows a shift spectrum in steady state measurement correspond to change in dielectric constant of solvent. Spectrum shift as in Figure 3 reported by (Idayu paper) for both glycolipid, shows that the trp peak maxima shift towards the blue side by decreasing the solvent polarity. This is due to the solvent effect which cause the stabilization of excited state by the higher dielectric constant of solvent molecules. As explained in (prof Lakowicz), normally, fluorophore possess a higher dipole moment in the excited state compared to in the ground state. Thus the solvent dipole can relax to lower the energy of the excited state after the absorption process. The reported unstructured fluorescence is due to the 1La state while the structured fluorescence is reported to be in 1Lb state. The state in 1La is a solvent sensitive state towards the polar nitrogen ato m indole group in tryptophan. (1a) Steady-state and lifetime measurement for hydrophilic head using tryptophan with its derivatives Steady state spectrum of tryptophan and its ester derivative (Trp, Trp-C4, and Trp-C8) together with the lipid embedded were reported by (idayu paper) in n-dodecyl ÃŽ ²-D-maltoside(ÃŽ ²MaltoOC12) and octyl ÃŽ ²-D-glucoside(ÃŽ ²GlcOC8). From the fluorescence spectrum, it is clear that when the tryptophan and its derivative embedded in lipid shows almost a similar pattern as depict in figure 3. The spectra observed shift to the blue side relative to that in buffer. This indication explain the different local environment senses by tryptophan and its derivatives in the lipid system. By comparing the two spectra, tryptophan molecule shows less polar environment as compared to bulk water. This can be seen across the increasing chain length of the tryptophan ester. Due to increasing hydrophobic nature of the tryptophan moiety (trp C-4 and Trp C-8), it is pronounced that the tendency of the tryptophan penetration across the membrane will be also increase. Consequently, indole group in trypto phan will be attracted closer to the amphiphilic head of the glycolipid. Correlation between the fluorescence peak of tryptophan in lipid and in solvent predict the different in water profile across the aqueous nanochannel. The observation complement to the result that are reported by Dongping zhong and coworker, showing confined water in aqueous nanochannel can be divided into three distinct time scale;(1) ~100-150 ps correspond to two layers of well-ordered interfacial water which dynamically is a rigid water molecule. In this region, the solvent network which allow for water molecule to form intermolecular interaction with more than one water molecule were perturbed. This reduced the local polarity senses by the tryptophan ester similar to the peak maximum in 1,4-dioxane which is highly non-polar solvent. (2) 10-15 ps, correspond to quasi-bound water motion. This can be observed similar to the previous case where the tryptophan moiety resembles to those in methanol and ethanol. ( 3) 1 ps and lower, showing the bulklike near the channel centre where the environment shows the highest polarity similar to that in buffer. Basically the (1) and (2) is important in maintaining the global structure stability of the glycolipid and the flexibility to adapt different structure such in phase diagram. On lifetime of Trp in 10-9 magnitude (1 ns or higher), two different lifetime component is usually correspond to the exhibition of different rotamer (rotational isomer) by the Trp moiety. These result point to a degree of flexibility of the lipid self-assembly that allow the Trp side chain to adapt two different rotamer (1b) Steady State and lifetime measurement for hydrophobic tail using pyrene as probe. Investigation of tail region using pyrene as a probe were reported to be sensible in less polar environment due to the non-polar characteristic of the pyrene. The favour of pyrene can be explained by observing the spectrum shift in different dielectric constant of solvent as reported by (idayu) in figure 6. Solvent such as cyclohexane shows a blue shift as compared to that in buffer. The peak between 360nm-450nm indicate formation of monomer by the pyrene while the peak maxima around 465nm is due to the formation of excited dimer (or excimer) (cited Lakowich ngan paper lain) even at a very low concentration (0.05mM of pyrene). In a polar condition, it tend to form dimer because of the hydrophobic nature of pyrene which disliked polar solvent and thus forming a cluster to reduce the surface contact with the molecule of the solvent. The spectrum as shown in figure 7 in (idayu paper) shows a complete absent of dimer in the lipid. Pyrene molecule was said to be dispersed in the tail regi on as monomer and tend to isolate from each other. Additional information from the fluorescence spectrum of pyrene is the (I1/I3) ratio which correspond to the vibronic transition of 0-0 band. The value for the ratio of peak 1 and 3 indicate local polarity of the environment that the pyrene experienced. In principle, high value of (I1/I3) indicate more polar environment. Some examples for the values of (I1/I3) in different solvent and lipid composition were shown in the table 1, Table 1. Value of ratio (I The result of pyrene in lipid shows an intermediate between the value as in buffer and cyclohexane. However, the ratio shows a closer number towards the buffer solution which further indicate the favorable of pyrene to locate near the lipid head group. This was proved by the simulation worked done by (Prof rauzah. Embedding the tryptophan and pyrene together result in reduction of polarity based on the value dropped by 0.02 as compared with only single component of trp-C8 in lipid. The reduction of polarity in presence of trp-C8 is because of the result in increasing hydrophobicity around the pyrene molecule by the C8 chain in tryptophan. Lifetime measurement were conducted for both ÃŽ ²MaltoOC12 and ÃŽ ²GlcOC8 in hexagonal phase and reported in (paper idayu). In both case, pyrene shows two distinct lifetime correspond to short component (0.87 – 0.97ns) and long component (11 – 51 ns) as an indication for the heterogeneity that the pyrene adopt in the system . Furthermo re, lifetime of ÃŽ ²MaltoOC12 which is 51 ns shows a higher isolation (caging effect) of pyrene in tail region as compared to ÃŽ ²GlcOC8 which has decay component of 11 ns. Comparison between the two type of lipid shows the effect of adding Trp-C8 with pyrene in ÃŽ ²MaltoOC12 (27 ns) is more prominent than in ÃŽ ²GlcOC8 (11.3 ns) system. In both cases implied the presence of C8 chain in Trp to cause a reduction in the local viscosity of tail region. However, in table 1, it is further observed that, the value for ÃŽ ²GlcOC8 is actually smaller than ÃŽ ²MaltoOC12. Since the smaller value of this ratio correspond towards more non-polar environment, it leads to a certain assumption that ÃŽ ²GlcOC8 were actually interact more with the pyrene due to shorter alkyl chain compared to ÃŽ ²MaltoOC12 which has more random and wobbling motion in the longer chain.(C8 vs C12). This increased the diffusion of oxygen and hence reduced the lifetime of pyrene CONCLUSION While it is tempting to cover all the other information about the unique nature of glycolipid self-assembly, this review provide a valuable insight on using fluorescence probes to investigate the local environment around two distinct group which is the hydrophilic head and hydrophobic tail of glycolipid. By comparing the fluorescence behavior of probes in solvent and in lipid, we will able to correlate those two in order to discover the local polarity in the lipid. While lifetime measurement in fluorescence uncover the hidden information that the steady-state measurement would not be able to obtain such as heterogeneity, flexibility and etc. These properties are crucial for biological processes such as ability of lipid in allowing different size of molecule to accommodate in the lipid. Understanding molecular self-assembly in microscopic scale and its behavior in different structure and phases will allow us to construct and produce efficient product for industrial application such as emulsifier and nano-carrier for drug delivery. ASSOCIATED CONTENT (Word Style â€Å"TE_Supporting_Information†). Supporting Information. A brief statement in nonsentence format listing the contents of material supplied as Supporting Information should be included, ending with â€Å"This material is available free of charge via the Internet at http://pubs.acs.org.† For instructions on what should be included in the Supporting Information as well as how to prepare this material for publication, refer to the journal’s Instructions for Authors. AUTHOR INFORMATION Corresponding Author * (Word Style â€Å"FA_Corresponding_Author_Footnote†). Give contact information for the author(s) to whom correspondence should be addressed. Present Addresses † If an author’s address is different than the one given in the affiliation line, this information may be included here. Author Contributions The manuscript was written through contributions of all authors. / All authors have given approval to the final version of the manuscript. / †¡These authors contributed equally. (match statement to author names with a symbol) . ABBREVIATIONS CCR2, CC chemokine receptor 2; CCL2, CC chemokine ligand 2; CCR5, CC chemokine receptor 5; TLC, thin layer chromatography. REFERENCES

Horror of War Exposed in Dulce et Decorum Est Essay examples -- Dulce

Horror of War Exposed in Dulce et Decorum Est We have all heard war stories that seemed exciting and adventurous. Some stories are of men who gladly laid down their lives in the glory of battle and would do so again if given the chance. These stories tickle our sentiment and ease the pain of real war, but they do little to help us understand war's brutality. In his poem "Dulce et Decorum Est," Wilfred Owen does not attempt to pull the blood stained wool over our eyes. Instead of a novel quip, Owen gives us a look into the real horror of war. Using images of pain and sorrow, Owen gives us a taste of the front line that crushes any romantic ideas about war. Most of us envision soldiers marching into battle as upright, steady young men proudly bearing their ruck sacks and singing as they march. Owen paints us a picture of a different hue. Owen describes the men as, "Bent double, like old beggars under sacks." We see figures that are contrary to our preconceived notions ( 1). Owen's men of war are tired from the stress of battle and the weight of the inevitable doom that lies ahe...

Teachers Perception Of Gender Bias In The Classroom Education Essay

One of the first things that we do when a kid is born is to happen out its sexual class. This announcement at birth, male child or miss, is the most important statement that governs one ‘s development as a individual throughout one ‘s life. Harmonizing to Weiss ( 2001 ) , a individual ‘s gender marks his/her full life from within and without. How our gender structures the manner we learn has been studied extensively by societal scientists, psychologists, educationalists, and women's rightists. They all agree that non merely 1 ‘s ain sense of gender individuality affects the acquisition procedure really significantly, but others besides play a definite portion in this position. Teachers play a cardinal function in act uponing larning patterned advance from when the kids begin school. Harmonizing to David and Myra Sadker â€Å" sitting in the same schoolroom, reading the same text edition, and listening to the same instructor, male childs and misss receive really different instructions † ( Weiss, 2001, p. 44 ) . Their research illustrates that male pupils non merely have more of the instructors ‘ attending in mention with the figure ( and quality ) of the inquiries asked in the schoolrooms, but the same is besides true in instance of the follow-up inquiries. Harmonizing to them, male pupils besides receive more precise and helpful feedback ; while female pupils bear the consequence of their instructors ‘ asymmetrical distribution of energy, endowment, and attending ( Weiss, 2001 ) . Frequently, elusive gender prejudice is at that place in the schoolrooms but is barely noticed by the instructors. It remains elusive and is difficult to trap down. Teachers, being wedged between several determinations every twenty-four hours refering the course of study and schoolroom direction, happen small room to contemplate and analyze their interactions with male and female pupils in their schoolrooms. While a the survey done by Marshall & A ; Reinhartz ( 1997 ) showed that the instructors ‘ communicating with their pupils has a cardinal influence on the current and prospective accomplishment and achievement of both male and female pupils, another survey by Crawford and Macleod ( 1990 ) ( as cited in Lundeburg, 1997 ) , discovered that colored schoolroom interaction leads to decrease assurance in their rational abilities by female pupils. A big figure of surveies exhibit that instructor behaviours institute the foremost contributing factor for a higher grade of student-pa rticipation in the schoolroom by male pupils than the female pupils. ( Kosmerl, 2000 ) . Male pupils are likely to acquire a greater portion of instructors ‘ attending and have more specific feedback. However, female pupils are less likely to have congratulations or redress for the rational content of their replies than male pupils ; conversely, the female pupils are more likely to have an acknowledgement response from their instructors ( Sadker and Sadker, 1994 ) . It is non common to happen instructors waiting for more than 5 seconds for a response from their pupils ; it is even more uncommon to see instructors naming on non-volunteering pupils to arouse their responses. Teachers ‘ behaviours such as these tend to breed schoolroom unfairnesss by promoting aggressive male pupils ( Lundeburg, 1997 ) . Another survey by Sadker and Sadker ( 1986 ) ( as cited in McGee Bailey, 1996 ) provides grounds that instructors ‘ discriminatory behaviors in the schoolroom are non chronic but modifiable. However, instructors are mostly non witting of their ain unjust behaviors in the schoolrooms, and are frequently found to be gender-blind, unless their attending is drawn to the affair. This can hold many detrimental effects, because it is about impossible to work out a job that is difficult to acknowledge in the first case. Nonetheless, preparation in gender equity is barely of all time an ingredient of instructor instruction ( Lundeberg, 1997 ) , particularly so in Pakistan. STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM While a important sum of research exists in context of pupils ‘ perceptual experiences of gender prejudice in the schoolroom, there is small research on manus sing instructors ‘ perceptual experiences of the same capable affair. This survey is intended to concentrate on the modern-day perceptual experiences of instructors sing gender prejudice. Since pupils continue to have different instructions, it is of import to place how instructors may continue to detect, respond, lessening, and avoid gender prejudice. PUROSE OF STUDY The intent of this survey is to exemplify the perceptual experiences of instructors on the topic of gender prejudice as measured by a questionnaire. The aims of the survey are: I ) To measure instructors ‘ perceptual experiences about gender prejudice. two ) To measure instructors ‘ educational preparation sing gender prejudice. three ) To measure instructors ‘ experiences with gender prejudice. Research HPYOTHESES Hypothesis I: Even if instructors do non province that they have been involved in gender prejudice in their ain schoolrooms, they will describe they have witnessed or heard of gender prejudice issues in their schools and/or others. Hypothesis II: Teachers will describe they wish that they had received some or more educational preparation sing gender prejudice. Hypothesis Three: Teachers will describe they have received small or no educational preparation sing gender prejudice. adapted from ; Teachers ‘ perceptual experiences of gender prejudice in schoolroom, Katherine M. Kosmerl, Research Paper, The Graduate School, University of Wisconsin-Stout, May, 2000. hypertext transfer protocol: //www.uwstout.edu/static/lib/thesis/2003/2003kosmerlk.pdf REFRENCES Kosmerl, K. M. ( 2000 ) . Teachers ‘ perceptual experiences of gender prejudice in schoolroom, Research Paper, The Graduate School, University of Wisconsin-Stout, May, 2000. hypertext transfer protocol: //www.uwstout.edu/static/lib/thesis/2003/2003kosmerlk.pdf Lundeberg, M. ( January-February, 1997 ) . You Guys Are Overreacting: Teaching Prospective Teachers About Subtle Gender Bias, Journal of Teacher Education, 48 ( 1 ) , 55-61. Marshall, C. , Reinhartz, J. ( July/August, 1997 ) . Gender Issues in the Classroom. hypertext transfer protocol: //www.jstor.org/pss/30185879 McGee Bailey, S. ( May, 1996 ) . Shortchanging Girls and Boys. Educational Leadership, 53 ( 8 ) , 75-79. Cited in: Teachers ‘ perceptual experiences of gender prejudice in schoolroom, Katherine M. Kosmerl, Research Paper, The Graduate School, University of Wisconsin-Stout, May, 2000. hypertext transfer protocol: //www.uwstout.edu/static/lib/thesis/2003/2003kosmerlk.pdf Sadker, D. , Sadker, M. ( 1994 ) . Failing at Fairness: How Our Schools Cheat Girls. New York: Simon & A ; Schuester. Weiss, R. ( 2001 ) . Gender-Biased Learning. Training & A ; Development, 55 ( 1 ) , 42-48. Cited in: Teachers ‘ perceptual experiences of gender prejudice in schoolroom, Katherine M. Kosmerl, Research Paper, The Graduate School, University of Wisconsin-Stout, May, 2000. hypertext transfer protocol: //www.uwstout.edu/static/lib/thesis/2003/2003kosmerlk.pdf

The convention governing the International Whaling Commission (IWC)

President Clinton, when announcing his decision last October to delay the implementation of sanctions on Norway following that country's recommencement of commercial whaling, stated the United States' strong commitment to science- based international solutions to global conservation problems. The convention governing the International Whaling Commission (IWC) states similarly that its â€Å"regulations with respect to the conservation and utilization of whale resources †¦ shall be based on scientific findings†. But the practice differs greatly from the principle. The IWC took a decision in 1982 to impose a global moratorium on all commercial whaling at a time of growing scientific evidence that the Antarctic minke whale population, at least, could certainly sustain a limited harvest. Whaling countries, angered by this decision which they considered to be without scientific justification, hit back later in the 80's by making use of a provision in the IWC Convention which allowed them to issue permits to their nationals to catch some whales for the purpose of scientific research – research is conducted as a part of these â€Å"scientific† whaling operations, but is that their primary purpose? Most recently there is the proposal for a whale sanctuary throughout the Southern Ocean – a transparent attempt to prevent the resumption of whaling on the 3/4 million strong Antarctic minke population for reasons which have nothing to do with science. This has been accompanied by the unedifying spectacle of Western nations and â€Å"conservation† (or, more accurately, â€Å"preservationist†) groups desperately searching for some plausible surrogate scientific rationale with which to attempt to justify the proposal. These other reasons are discussed elsewhere in this volume. My brief is to address aspects of President Clinton's expressed concern at â€Å"the absence of a credible, agreed management and monitoring regime that would ensure that commercial whaling is kept within a science-based limit†. SUSTAINABLE UTILISATION Obviously such limits should be consistent with â€Å"sustainable utilisation† – but exactly what does that mean? The most ready analogy is that of a pensioner whose sole asset is a capital sum invested in a bank. Sustainable utilisation for him means living off the annual interest without dipping into the capital. In other words, harvesting only the natural annual growth of a population, without depleting it to a low level where this growth is greatly reduced. THE IWC'S NEW MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE In the 1970's, in response to mounting public criticism following the substantial depletion of many whale populations by whaling conducted under its aegis, the IWC introduced the so-called â€Å"New Management Procedure† (NMP). The underlying principles were fine – essentially to get whale populations to and keep them at reasonably high proportions of their size before exploitation started, by ensuring that catch limits set did not exceed sustainable levels. But the NMP proved unworkable in practice. Why? Not because there was anything wrong with the concept, but because the NMP didn't go far enough. It failed to specify how the â€Å"annual interest† (i.e. the sustainable catch level from a whale stock) was to be calculated, what data needed to be collected to do this, and how to take account of uncertainties. CALCULATING SUSTAINABLE YIELD LEVELS So how can sustainable yield levels be calculated? For the pensioner, the process is simple: to evaluate how much interest will become available annually, ask the bank teller how much capital is in his account and what the interest rate is, and then just multiply the two together. So why isn't fisheries management equally easy? – because the teller is unco- operative. All he will tell you, and only once a year, is how much you have in your account, which he can get wrong by typically 20%. And he certainly won't tell you directly what the interest rate is. How do we then get the information needed to be able to perform this key multiplication to calculate the sustainable yield for whale populations? For the capital component, sighting surveys are conducted from research vessels to determine the numbers of whales. By the standards normally attainable in fisheries research, the results obtained are good (error margins of typically 20%). The difficult component is the interest rate. Basically some (careful) exploitation is needed before this can be evaluated, because the calculation requires the information from a series of sighting surveys on how the size of the population changes in response to this harvesting. THE FUNDAMENTAL RISK-REWARD TRADE-OFF The bottom line then is that some trade-off is inevitable. If such initial harvests are kept too low, the potential productivity of the resource remains undiscovered. But if these catches are set too large, there is a high risk that unintended heavy depletion may occur before this is realised and corrective action can be taken. The goal of a risk-free harvesting strategy is unattainable, for exactly the same reason that no car or aircraft can ever be made completely â€Å"safe†. Risk can be reduced (though never eliminated), but only at the expense of higher costs – or correspondingly, lesser rewards in the form of smaller catches in resource utilisation terms. WHERE DOES THE COMPUTER COME IN? The role of the computer is to calculate the sizes of the anticipated trade-offs between risk and reward when harvesting whale populations. This is the basic function of the computer simulation trials used to test the IWC Scientific Committee's proposed â€Å"Revised Management Procedure† (RMP). Quantitative information about these trade-offs allows a sensible choice to be made between the extremes of rapid extinction of the resource under unsustainable catch levels, and complete protection which forbids any harvesting ever. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A â€Å"MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE† AND THE TRADITIONAL APPROACH TO FISHERIES MANAGEMENT? How does such a â€Å"Management Procedure† approach differ from the usual methods used to regulate fisheries? There catch limits are calculated according to the current â€Å"best perceptions† of the status and productivity of the resource. But it is then not entirely clear how the answer obtained should be adjusted to take the inevitable uncertainties in these perceptions into account – in other words, how to make proper allowance for risk. In contrast, the â€Å"Management Procedure† approach puts such uncertainties up front, by insisting that if these current â€Å"best perceptions† are in error, the trend in catches set over the longer term must be such that the Procedure self-corrects before there is any substantial risk that the resource could be damaged. For example, it has been suggested that global climatic change could result in a change in the environment which is deleterious for whale stocks. The RMP has already been tested to ensure that catch limits for whales would be adjusted downwards appropriately should this occur. Why are such Procedures needed for whales in particular? Whales are long-lived animals and their populations can at best grow at only a few percent per annum. Thus even relatively low levels of catch, if continued, can lead to problems unless there is adequate monitoring and an option for adjusting catch limits. In other words, the risk involved in harvesting whale populations can be evaluated sensibly only for a Procedure which is to be consistently applied for a number of decades. Thus, as in sport, a Management Procedure involves all the parties concerned agreeing the rules before the game is played (and sticking to them during it!). IS THIS APPROACH BEING USED SUCCESSFULLY ELSEWHERE? This approach is not entirely new in fisheries. Iceland has been applying it in the management of its capelin fishery. Arising out of the IWC's initiative for whales, South Africa has now come to base catch limit decisions for its major fisheries for hake, sardine and anchovy on the approach. WHAT SORT OF CATCH REGIME FOR WHALES WOULD RESULT UNDER THE RMP? As far as catch limits for whales under the IWC Scientific Committee's proposed RMP are concerned, these would initially be set at annual levels of about 0.5% of current population sizes. That would apply to stocks of species not greatly depleted by past whaling activities, such as many of the world's minke whale populations. For stocks still markedly depleted such as the blue and fin whales of the Antarctic, this percentage would be considerably less – indeed zero for those and many other stocks for a number of decades yet. In addition, there would be provisions to ensure that catches are widely spread, rather than concentrated in a few small regions. This is necessary to provide safeguards against uncertainties in knowledge about the positions of the boundaries between stocks. The annual percentage take could be increased over time, but this would be permitted only provided the results from the monitoring population trends over time by sightings surveys suggest that such larger levels of catch are sustainable. However, if the survey series stops, catches are phased out quite rapidly. TO WHAT LEVEL OF RISK DOES THE RMP CORRESPOND? What risks would be involved in the application of the RMP to whale stocks? Broadly speaking, there would be no more than a 5% chance, even under the worst set of circumstances or misconceptions likely, that catches (other than perhaps ones of a negligible size) would be taken from a population reduced to more than 10% below its most productive level. (This is the so-called 54% â€Å"protection level† – an abundance 54% of that before any harvesting took place.) And populations would need to be reduced to well below that level before any real concerns about possible extinction might arise. HOW DOES THIS LEVEL OF RISK COMPARE TO THAT ACCEPTED IN HARVESTING OTHER OF THE WORLD'S MARINE RESOURCES? If this criterion (no more than a 5% chance that the population is below 54% of its pre-exploitation size for harvesting to be allowed) were applied to the rest of the world's fisheries, nearly all would have to be closed immediately. Off the northeast coast of the US and off western Europe, for example, harvesting continues from cod stocks which are below not just 50% of their pristine levels, but arguably less than as little as 10%. Even when allowing for biological differences between whales and fish, the low levels of risk some nations demand be met for harvesting the former, are totally inconsistent with the much higher levels which they are prepared to accept for exploiting their own stocks of the latter. ABORIGINAL WHALING ON THE BOWHEAD WHALE OFF ALASKA President Clinton's statement made reference to the aboriginal whaling on bowheads in which native Alaskans engage. Some years ago, there was justifiable concern that these activities were putting this population at risk. However, the US has commendably invested considerable research effort towards addressing this problem, with results which show that there can now be no serious scientific reservations that current levels of catch place the population under any real threat. Yet, were the RMP to be applied in this case, it is so risk averse that an immediate cessation of these whaling activities would be required. THE NMFS REVIEW OF THE RMP Recently, the US National Marine Fisheries Service commissioned an independent review of the RMP by a panel of seven North American scientists. Their brief to assimilate and comment upon seven years of work by the IWC Scientific Committee (without having had any prior involvement therein) in the short space of five days was a daunting one. The panel concluded that the RMP as it stood could be used safely for a period of at most 20 years, but also recommended that some further computer simulation trials be carried out. However, it seems to me that all the specific extra trials which they recommend have effectively already been carried out and considered by the IWC's Scientific Committee. It is unclear from the panel's written report whether they were unaware of this, or did actually have some reservations about what had been done, which their report fails to elaborate. Obviously the panel should clarify this ambiguity expeditiously to the IWC's Scientific Committee. NORWAY'S RESUMPTION OF COMMERCIAL WHALING Norway has, of course, resumed commercial whaling on minke whales. This it is legally entitled to do, since it lodged an objection to the IWC's 1982 moratorium decision. I understand that the annual catch limit set by the Norwegians for their overall operation is within the limit which the RMP would specify, so that there are no scientific grounds to query that decision. However, I understand also that the areal distribution of the catches permitted by Norway is not in accord with the provisions of the RMP, and I believe that legitimate questions can be directed at Norway on this point. Of course, such a deviation from the RMP does not necessarily mean that any real danger to the resource will eventuate. But if Norway does wish to depart from the RMP's provisions, I believe that it has some scientific obligation to present the results of computer simulation trials to the IWC's Scientific Committee to demonstrate that such deviations as they might plan do indeed not involve undue long term risk. THE POTENTIAL EFFECT OF INCREASED CONSUMPTION BY GROWING MARINE MAMMAL POPULATIONS ON COMMERCIAL FISH RESOURCES What of the concerns often expressed that increasing marine mammal populations will consume more fish and thus put fishing industries at risk? The counter argument often made is that there is no scientific proof that this is so. But equally, there is no scientific proof that it isn't. The scientific methods which have been used in the past to address this question have been crude, and there has been a justifiable argument that basing management decisions (such as a marine mammal cull, for example) upon their results would be premature. Marine science can never, by its nature, prove something without some residual doubt. But methods are being improved, and cases may soon arise where the preponderance of indications that growing numbers of marine mammals will impact fisheries is so strong, that hard decisions will have to be faced to avoid the chance that important industries are put at risk. For example, growing fur seal herds off southern Africa are now more than 2 million strong. Their consumption of commercial species equates to the total catch by all the fishing industries in the area, and their continued growth may constitute a threat to the region's most valuable fishery for hake. IN CONCLUSION To conclude, let me return to President Clinton's concern for science-based limits, and credible management and monitoring for potential commercial whaling. From the scientific side, the RMP has been more thoroughly researched and tested than any comparable marine resource management system worldwide. Its own requirement for regular sighting surveys, as well as the regular review process associated with its implementation for any species and region, ensures adequate monitoring. It is so risk averse that the only real scientific basis for questioning its immediate implementation is that it is so conservative that it will waste much of a potential harvest. If the United States fails to endorse the RMP, is there any way that the US could then avoid the judgement of complete hypocrisy, unless it immediately suspended not only the aboriginal whaling by Alaskans, but indeed closed every one of the country's fisheries?