Riverine macrosystems are described here as watershed‐scale networks of connected and interacting riverine and upland habitat patches. Such systems are driven by variable responses of nutrients and organisms to a suite of global and regional factors (eg climate, human social systems) interacting with finer‐scale variations in geology, topography, and human modifications. We hypothesize that spatial heterogeneity, connectivity, and asynchrony among these patches regulate ecological dynamics of whole networks, altering system sensitivity, resistance, and resilience. Long‐distance connections between patches may be particularly important in riverine macrosystems, shaping fundamental system properties. Furthermore, the type, extent, intensity, and spatial configuration of human activities (eg land‐use change, dam construction) influence watershed‐wide ecological properties through effects on habitat heterogeneity and connectivity at multiple scales. Thus, riverine macrosystems are coupled social–ecological systems with feedbacks that influence system responses to environmental change and the sustainable delivery of ecosystem services.

Summary Several studies have shown that land use has a strong influence on river chemistry and its biotic components. Most of these studies focused on nitrogen in temperate American and European catchments. Much less is known about the relationship between stream conditions and land use in tropical areas of developing countries. Besides climate, there are three important differences between attributes of temperate and tropical catchments: non‐point sources are the dominant contributor of pollution in USA, whereas point source pollution is the most important in our study; use of fertilizer is much smaller in developing countries, and the type of agriculture and management practices are distinct. We test whether the chemical composition of streams and their macroinvertebrate communities can be related to land use. Accordingly, we compared the variability of chemical composition and macroinvertebrate communities in the streams of two catchments (Pisca and Cabras) belonging to the same ecoregion, but having different types of land use. The main land use in the Pisca catchment in 1993 was sugar cane (62%), followed by pasture (22%) and urban centres (10%). In contrast, the main land use in the Cabras catchment was pasture (60%), followed by annual crops (13%) and forest (10%); urban centres occupied only 2% of the catchment. In the Cabras catchment, most of the parameters correlated with a land use index (LUI) ( Fig. 2). However, only conductivity, major cations and major anions (with exception of sulfate) had a statistically significant correlation coefficient. More than 90% of the variance was explained for these parameters. DIC, NO3 and richness of invertebrates (RI) also strongly correlated with LUI (R2 = 0.75), although these correlation coefficients were not significant. Total suspended solids (TSS) had a significant correlation with LUI (R2 = 0.98), but, the correlation was inverse. In the Pisca catchment, conductivity, major cations (with exception of potassium), major anions, and DIC, DO, and DOC had a strong and statistically significant correlation with LUI. Correlation coefficients were also high for respiration rate, although the correlation was not statistically significant. 2 Relationships between variables and LUI (land use index) for the Cabras (closed circle) and Pisca (open circle) catchments. Both catchment were pooled together in this figure, however, statistical tests were performed separately for each catchment.

Chesapeake Bay supports a diverse assemblage of marine and freshwater species of submersed aquatic vegetation (SAV) whose broad distributions are generally constrained by salinity. An annual aerial SAV monitoring program and a bi-monthly to monthly water quality monitoring program have been conducted throughout Chesapeake Bay since 1984. We performed an analysis of SAV abundance and up to 22 environmental variables potentially influencing SAV growth and abundance . Historically, SAV abundance has changed dramatically in Chesapeake Bay, and since 1984, when SAV abundance was at historic low levels, SAV has exhibited complex changes including long-term (decadal) increases and decreases, as well as some large, single-year changes. Chesapeake Bay SAV was grouped into three broad-scale community-types based on salinity regime, each with their own distinct group of species, and detailed analyses were conducted on these three community-types as well as on seven distinct case-study areas spanning the three salinity regimes. Different trends in SAV abundance were evident in the different salinity regimes. SAV abundance has (a) continually increased in the low-salinity region; (b) increased initially in the medium-salinity region, followed by fluctuating abundances; and (c) increased initially in the high-salinity region, followed by a subsequent decline. In all areas, consistent negative correlations between measures of SAV abundance and nitrogen loads or concentrations suggest that meadows are responsive to changes in inputs of nitrogen. For smaller case-study areas, different trends in SAV abundance were also noted including correlations to water clarity in high-salinity case-study areas, but nitrogen was highly correlated in all areas. Current maximum SAV coverage for almost all areas remain below restoration targets, indicating that SAV abundance and associated ecosystem services are currently limited by continued poor water quality, and specifically high nutrient concentrations, within Chesapeake Bay. The nutrient reductions noted in some tributaries, which were highly correlated to increases in SAV abundance, suggest management activities have already contributed to SAV increases in some areas, but the strong negative correlation throughout the Chesapeake Bay between nitrogen and SAV abundance also suggests that further nutrient reductions will be necessary for SAV to attain or exceed restoration targets throughout the bay.

This study reports the findings of a National Science Foundation‐funded study* focused on providing solutions to the identified needs for curricular change in Advanced Technological Education programs. The purpose of this study was to explore the extent of competency gaps in science, mathematics, engineering, and technology (SMET) education graduates as perceived by business and industry leaders. Due to the nature of the research questions investigated in this study, the methodology was divided into three phases. Phase one employed a widely accepted multi‐step, scale development procedure to determine the domain of the subject matter. Phase two validated survey items. Phase three comprised two parts; part one prioritized SMET competency gaps. Part two utilized Hoshin quality analysis techniques to group, identify, and sequence thematic content areas for curricular development. This study found that SMET programs must extend the boundaries of their traditional curricula to include competencies such as: customer expectations and satisfaction, commitment to doing one's best, listening skills, sharing information and cooperating with co‐workers, team working skills, adapting to changing work environments, customer orientation and focus, and ethical decision making and behavior.

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