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Severe Pressure (severe + pressure)
Selected AbstractsUnderstanding the Causes of Disease in European Freshwater CrayfishCONSERVATION BIOLOGY, Issue 6 2004BRETT F. EDGERTON Aphanomyces astaci; bioseguridad; epizootia; langostinos de agua dulce; patología de langostinos; peste de langostinos Abstract:,Native European freshwater crayfish (Astacida, Decapoda) are under severe pressure from habitat alteration, the introduction of nonindigenous species, and epizootic disease. Crayfish plague, an acute disease of freshwater crayfish caused by the fungus-like agent Aphanomyces astaci, was introduced into Europe in the mid-nineteenth century and is responsible for ongoing widespread epizootic mortality in native European populations. We reviewed recent developments and current practices in the field of crayfish pathology. The severity of crayfish plague has resulted in an overemphasis on it. Diagnostic methods for detecting fungi and fungal-like agents, and sometimes culturing them, are frequently the sole techniques used to investigate disease outbreaks in European freshwater crayfish. Consequently, the causes of a significant proportion of outbreaks are undetermined. Pathogen groups well known for causing disease in other crustaceans, such as viruses and rickettsia-like organisms, are poorly understood or unknown in European freshwater crayfish. Moreover, the pathogenic significance of some long-known pathogens of European freshwater crayfish remains obscure. For effective management of this culturally significant and threatened resource, there is an urgent need for researchers, diagnosticians, and resource managers to address the issue of disease in European freshwater crayfish from a broader perspective than has been applied previously. Resumen:,Los langostinos nativos de Europa (Astacida, Decapada) están bajo severa presión por alteración del hábitat, la introducción de especies no nativas y una enfermedad epizoótica. La peste de langostinos, una enfermedad aguda de langostinos de agua dulce producida por el agente micoide Aphanomyces astaci, fue introducida a Europa a mediados del siglo diecinueve y es responsable de la actual mortalidad epizoótica de poblaciones Europeas nativas. Revisamos acontecimientos recientes y prácticas actuales en el campo de la patología de langostinos. La severidad de la peste de langostinos ha resultado en un excesivo énfasis en ella. Los métodos para diagnosticar, y algunas veces cultivar, hongos y agentes micoides frecuentemente son la única técnica empleada al investigar brotes de la enfermedad en langostinos de agua dulce en Europa. Consecuentemente, no están determinadas las causas de una proporción significativa de los brotes. Grupos patógenos, como virus y organismos similares a rickettsias, bien conocidos por producir enfermedades en otros crustáceos son poco o nada conocidos en langostinos de agua dulce de Europa. Más aún, el significado patogénico de algunos patógenos de langostinos de agua dulce de Europa largamente conocidos es oscuro. Para el manejo efectivo de este recurso culturalmente significativo y amenazado es urgente la necesidad de investigadores, diagnosticadores y gestores de recursos para atender el asunto de la enfermedad en langostinos de agua dulce europeos desde una perspectiva más amplia que la previamente aplicada. [source] Shared Services Transformation: Conceptualization and Valuation from the Perspective of Real OptionsDECISION SCIENCES, Issue 3 2009Ning Su ABSTRACT In today's volatile global economy, where many organizations face severe pressure to downsize, the "shared services" model, in which a firm merges common functions performed by multiple units into a single service delivery organization, provides an innovative approach to make business more efficient and effective. To successfully implement shared services, firms need to strategically decide whether and how to pursue various service transformation alternatives such as simplification, standardization, consolidation, insourcing, or outsourcing. In this study, we develop the notion of real options into a unique theoretical lens for conceptualizing service organizations and their transformation in an uncertain business environment. Specifically, we view service organization as a set of strategic options that give the firm preferential access to future transformation opportunities. We create a taxonomy of these options, and introduce a decision methodology for valuing alternative shared services transformation approaches. We illustrate this methodology by applying it in a real business case to justify a global firm's decision regarding the transformation of its finance organization. [source] Teaching and learning in the clinical setting: a qualitative study of the perceptions of students and teachersMEDICAL EDUCATION, Issue 11 2003Patsy Stark Objective, To describe the perceptions of medical students and clinical teachers of teaching and learning in the clinical setting. Design, Qualitative study of focus groups with undergraduate medical students and semistructured interviews with hospital consultant clinical teachers. Setting, The School of Medicine, University of Leeds and the Leeds Teaching Hospitals Trust, UK. Participants, Fourth year medical students and consultant clinical teachers. Main outcome measures, Analysis of narratives to identify students' perceptions of clinical teaching and consultants' views of their delivery of undergraduate clinical teaching. Results, Students believed in the importance of consultant teaching and saw consultants as role models. However, they perceived variability in the quality and reliability of teaching between physicians and surgeons. Some traditional teaching venues, especially theatre, are believed to be of little clinical importance. Generally, consultants enjoyed teaching but felt under severe pressure from other commitments. They taught in a range of settings and used various teaching strategies, not all of which were perceived to be ,teaching' by students. Conclusions, While students and teachers are educational partners, they are not always in agreement about the quality, quantity, style or appropriate setting of clinical teaching. To enable teachers to provide more high quality teaching, there needs to be support, opportunities and incentives to understand curricular developments and acquire teaching skills. [source] The Overvaluation of Sterling Since 1996: How the Policy makers Responded and Why,THE ECONOMIC JOURNAL, Issue 512 2006David Cobham A large and sustained nominal appreciation in 1996-8 led to a serious and continuing overvaluation of sterling which has been associated with severe pressure on the manufacturing sector. The policy makers had difficulty in understanding past and forecasting future movements of sterling. They considered, but rejected, suggestions for foreign exchange market intervention and suggestions that interest rates should be set differently to reduce the overvaluation and relieve pressure on the tradable goods sector. One reason was that the exchange rate might react to such decisions in an erratic way. But if that is so the monetary framework needs to be revisited. [source] Hitting Below the Bible Belt: The Development of the Gay Rights Movement in AtlantaJOURNAL OF URBAN AFFAIRS, Issue 4 2004Arnold Fleischmann Gays and lesbians benefited from a changing political opportunity structure as they overcame severe pressures to develop their own neighborhoods, build a wide range of organizations, and become an important electoral bloc. The movement built upon the city's civil rights legacy and benefited from the dissipation of it opponents, but it has not posed a major threat to what has been labeled Atlanta's regime. [source] | ||||||||||