Iskanje po repozitoriju

Opis: In this study, we examined the effects of information and communications technology (ICT) and financial development on mitigating gender inequality in Brazil, using autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approaches, between 1991 and 2022. The ARDL bounds test was employed to find the presence of co-integration within the series of data. Both in the short run and the long run, financial development has a significant negative impact on gender disparity; this means that policies aimed at enhancing women’s financial and consumption services should be promoted in the short run. In the long run, we can conclude that ICT developments lead to a decreasein gender inequalities, which may imply the need for strategic, long-term planning to increase ICT infrastructure, especially in deprived areas. This includes subsidising affordable internet, skills training for women in the ICT field, and promoting women’s participation in the technology industry. In addition, the impact of optimal financial development varies over time; hence, there is a need for flexibility and sustainability in financial development. Policy makers should therefore continue to strengthen and enhance financial inclusion initiatives, as well as regularly follow up on the impact of these initiatives on gender equality.
Ključne besede: gender inequality, information and communications technology, financial development, human capital index, agriculture
Objavljeno v RUP: 16.01.2026; Ogledov: 56; Prenosov: 0
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Opis: The purpose of the paper is to examine the impact of the agricultural sector on agricultural emissions in South Africa. To this end, we estimate an agricultural-induced environmental Kuznets curve (EKC) for South Africa between 1990 and 2022 using conventional and threshold regression frameworks. Our regression estimates reveal a ‘humped-shaped’ relationship between agricultural production and agricultural emissions, whereby agricultural production produces lower agricultural emissions above threshold estimates of 4,876 and 6,100 metric tons of CO2 emissions. Further investigations show that the South African economy has consistently remained above these thresholds since 2010. Moreover, a forecast analysis of the time series using ARIMA models shows that agricultural productionis (emissions are) on an upward (a downward) trajectory. However, the forecasting analysis also shows that the South African agricultural sector is not scheduled to reach the net-zero emissions target by 2050. Altogether, these findings imply that whilst South Africa had followed a trajectory of sustainable development prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the current trajectory may not be sufficient to attain the 2050 Sustainable Development Goals.
Ključne besede: agricultural sector, agricultural emissions, environmental Kuznets curve (EKC), threshold regression model, ARIMA forecasting, South Africa
Objavljeno v RUP: 16.01.2026; Ogledov: 60; Prenosov: 0
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Opis: Biodiversity resilience relies on genetic diversity, which sustains the evolutionary potential of organisms in dynamic ecosystems. Genomics is a powerful tool for accurately estimating genetic diversity across genomes of species and populations. However, integration of genomic data into conservation efforts faces challenges due to the heterogeneity of approaches employed. Establishing common sets of standards for genomic data production and analysis is essential to consistently interpret results and clearly communicate outcomes to stakeholders. While the European Reference Genome Atlas (ERGA) community has contributed significantly to the standardisation of reference genome methodologies in synergy with other initiatives, there is now an urgent need to extend these principles to downstream analyses. ERGA aims to build on its experience to help establish harmonised approaches in applied biodiversity genomics research, aligned with ongoing efforts to define standardised metrics for measuring and reporting genetic diversity. Establishing consensus on best practices for genome-wide data generation methods and applications will substantially increase accuracy, interpretability, and comparability, together with enhanced stakeholder capacities. By identifying key opportunities and challenges, as well as conducting preliminary stakeholder mapping and examining case studies, the goal is to build an inclusive framework that ensures the relevance and widespread adoption of these best practices: fostering trust and confidence in genomics research practices to meet stakeholder needs in biodiversity conservation. We call upon the broader research community to join efforts in establishing these approaches, recognising the importance of participation of end-users, to foster the integration of genomic data into the toolkit for measuring and reporting genetic diversity.
Ključne besede: best practices, biodiversity genomics, genome-wide genetic diversity, stakeholder engagement, standardisation, whole genome resequencing data
Objavljeno v RUP: 16.01.2026; Ogledov: 53; Prenosov: 2
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Opis: The distylous plant Primula veris has long served as a model species for studying heterostyly, that is the occurrence of multiple floral morphs within a population to ensure outcrossing. Habitat loss, reduced plant population sizes, and climate change have raised concerns about the impact of these factors on morph ratios and the related consequences on fitness of heterostylous species. We studied the deviation of floral morphs of P. veris from isoplethy (i.e. equal frequency) in response to plant population size, landscape context and climatic factors, based on a pan-European citizen science campaign involving observations from 28 countries. In addition, we examined the relative frequency of morphs to determine whether landscape and climatic factors disrupt morph frequencies or whether a specific morph has an advantage over the other. Theory predicts equal frequencies of short-styled S-morphs and long-styled L-morphs in populations at equilibrium. However, data from >3000 populations showed a substantial morph deviation from isoplethy and a significant excess of S-morphs (9% higher compared to L-morphs). Deviation of morph frequency from equilibrium was substantially stronger in smaller populations and was not affected by morph identity. Higher summer precipitation and land use intensity were associated with an increased prevalence of S-morphs. Five populations containing individuals exhibiting short homostyle phenotypes (with the style and anthers in low positions) were found. Genotyping of the individuals at CYP734A50 gene of the S locus, which determines the length of the style and the position of anthers of P. veris, revealed no mutations in this region. Our results based on an unprecedented geographic sampling suggest that changes in land use and climate may be responsible for non-equilibrium morph frequencies. This large-scale citizen science initiative sets foundations for future studies to clarify whether the unexpected excess of S-morphs is due to partial intra-morph compatibility, disruption of heterostyly or survival advantage of S-morphs. Synthesis. Human-induced environmental change may affect biodiversity indirectly through altering reproductive traits, which can also lead to reduced fitness and genetic diversity. Further research should consider the possible role of pollinators in mediating the ecological and evolutionary consequences of recent landscape and climatic shifts on plant reproductive traits.
Ključne besede: citizen science, flower, heterostily
Objavljeno v RUP: 16.01.2026; Ogledov: 52; Prenosov: 2
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Opis: Heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) have a significant impact on road and bridge infrastructure, with overloaded vehicles accelerating structural deterioration and increasing safety risks. Bridge weigh-in-motion (B-WIM) systems estimate gross vehicle weight (GVW) using strain measurements, but inaccuracies in axle configuration recognition can reduce reliability. This study presents a low-cost computer vision (CV) extension for existing B-WIM installations that verifies strain-inferred axle configurations using traffic camera images and flags GVW estimates as reliable or unreliable. Experiments on a data set of over 30,000 HGV records show that by combining convolutional neural networks with strain-based heuristics, GVW reliability can improve from 96.7% to 99.89%, effectively excluding nearly all erroneous measurements. The approach operates without interrupting ongoing B-WIM operations and can be applied retrospectively to historical data. Limitations include the inability to detect raised axles (RAs), which the method excludes as unreliable. This method provides a practical, high-precision enhancement for structural health monitoring of bridges.
Ključne besede: B-WIM, computer vision, deep learning
Objavljeno v RUP: 16.01.2026; Ogledov: 51; Prenosov: 3
Celotno besedilo (2,01 MB)
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