The annual cycle of oxygen and nitrogen flux, denitrification and microphytobenthic variables (primary production, biomass, composition and calculated N demand) were studied for 2 shallow-water microtidal sediment sites in NE Kattegat, 1 sandy and 1 silty, by incubating undisturbed sediment in the laboratory in light and darkness. Both sites (2 stations within each) were characterised by low concentrations of inorganic nitrogen (IN), in the overlying water during summer (NO3 generally < l pM), with winter concentrations of 5 and 30 pM for the sandy and silty site, respectively. Through the activity of microphytobenthos, the sediment systems appeared to be net autotrophic during most of the year. Net oxygen production varied between -400 and 6600 pm01 m-? h-', being highest during the warmest season. Although the composition of the microphytobenthos depended on the sediment type, it did not have a crucial effect on the magnitude of the microphytobenthic biomass or function. The .temporal pattern of the function of the microalgal community, on the other hand, was significantly influenced by the sediment type; sandy sediment exhibited a smooth seasonality, controlled mainly by temperature and light, while the silty microtidal sediment was also controlled by stochastic events, such as sediment resuspension. Microphytobenthos had a significant effect on the IN flux, the clearest effect being found for NH4. Total denitrification (isotope-pairing technique) generally varied between < l and 40 pm01 m-2 h-', being dominated by nitrification-coupled denitrification (D,,), and being 1 order of magnitude higher at the silty site. Microphytobenthic activity generally inhibited denitrification in the low-N areas in this study. The results suggest that the microphytobenthos functions as a major control throughout the annual cycle, by forming communities that are net photoautotrophic throughout the year, and by significantly influencing both the IN flux and denitrification rates. Sandy sediment appeared to function as an IN sink during winter and early spring, while no clear seasonal pattern was found for silty sediment. Calculated N demand of the microphytobenthos far exceeded the measured sediment net uptake of N, supporting the idea that sandy systems in low-nitrogen areas can be highly productive through a closed recycling of N. The ratio between calculated microphytobenthic N demand and measured denitrification rates suggests that denitrification has a minor role as a N sink, particularly in sandy, cold-climate microtidal sediments. MARINE ECOLOGY PROGRESS SERIES Mar Ecol Prog Ser

No abstract

HighlightsParents did not see themselves as role models for children regarding use of quad bikes.Parents seemed to misjudge their children’s maturity and capabilities.Risk acceptance was a common issue, due to risk normalization.There is a need for an age limit for drivers of adult-size quad bikes.Abstract.When seeking to explain the many accidents involving children on quad bikes, it is critical to understand the norms and risk perceptions of their parents, because parents are responsible for their children’s safety. This study explored attitudes and behavior among parents of rural children using quad bikes and their experiences of incidents and injuries. Information obtained from two focus group discussions, one with young adults and one with parents, and an in-depth interview with a quad bike distributor was used to develop an interview guide. The guide was used in telephone interviews with Swedish parents (n = 41) and some children ages 5 to 14 (n = 9) between autumn 2015 and spring 2016. Analysis of the results revealed eight themes: (1) how quad bikes are used, (2) risk awareness, (3) safety information could help other parents, (4) parents’ perception of children’s abilities, (5) children’s learning, (6) children`s perspective, (7) rules and responsibilities, and (8) risk acceptance. Major findings were that parents were aware of the risks and had a strong commitment to children’s safety, but also showed risk acceptance. To increase the safety of quad bike use, recommendations to organizations and authorities are presented, such as an age limit for drivers of all adult-size quad bikes and safety labeling of quad bikes, with information clarifying the rules for specific vehicles. Keywords: Acceptance, Accident, Agriculture, All-terrain vehicle, ATV, Awareness, Farm, Child, Incident, Parent, Quad bike, Risk, Rural, Sweden, Youth.

In this article, we investigate the nature of fear among farmers working with animal production with particular focus on the impact of harassment and crimes linked to animal rights activism. The study is based on responses from 3815 animal farmers to a national survey in 2020 in Sweden. Cross-table analysis and logistic regression models underlie the methodology of the study. Findings show that three out of ten of those farmers feel afraid of being victimized by the actions of animal rights activists; the proportion is two-thirds among farmers with previous experience of victimization, and fear of victimization varies across Sweden and by type of activity. Perceived lack of support from the police, exacerbated by geographical isolation, are common determinants of farmers’ declared fear, particularly those whose families live on the farms and who have employees. While understanding the factors that affect farmers’ safety perceptions is important, the article ends by calling for further research on the ways by which fear of animal activism impacts farmers’ personal lives, those of their family and employees, and not least their livelihood.

No abstract

The series "Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing" contains publications on theory, applications, and design methods of Intelligent Systems and Intelligent Computing. Virtually all disciplines such as engineering, natural sciences, computer and information science, ICT, economics, business, e-commerce, environment, healthcare, life science are covered. The list of topics spans all the areas of modern intelligent systems and computing such as: computational intelligence, soft computing including neural networks, fuzzy systems, evolutionary computing and the fusion of these paradigms, social intelligence, ambient intelligence, computational neuroscience, artificial life, virtual worlds and society, cognitive science and systems, Perception and Vision, DNA and immune based systems, self-organizing and adaptive systems, e-Learning and teaching, human-centered and human-centric computing, recommender systems, intelligent control, robotics and mechatronics including human-machine teaming, knowledge-based paradigms, learning paradigms, machine ethics, intelligent data analysis, knowledge management, intelligent agents, intelligent decision making and support, intelligent network security, trust management, interactive entertainment, Web intelligence and multimedia.The publications within "Advances in Intelligent Systems and Computing" are primarily proceedings of important conferences, symposia and congresses. They cover significant recent developments in the field, both of a foundational and applicable character. An important characteristic feature of the series is the short publication time and world-wide distribution. This permits a rapid and broad dissemination of research results.

No abstract

Results Out of the 342 children from the rural area and 325 children from the urban area, 89 and 56 children were injured respectively in the last one year. The injuries resulted in a temporary impairment of 12.4% and 1.8% of children in rural and urban area respectively. Similarly, 11.2% of them in rural and 1.8% in the urban area suffered from some form of permanent disability. The children also missed their school ranging from 1 to 90 days due to injury. In 22.2% of injury cases in rural and 14.3% in the urban area, either of the parents had lost their workdays to take care of the injured child. Conclusion The impacts of unintentional injuries were higher in rural areas, probably because of delays in seeking health care for the injury and lack of better health care facilities in the rural area. Learning Outcomes There is a need of contextual and cost effective childhood injury prevention program to reduce premature mortality and morbidity (SDG 3.4).