Acostabishop5903

Monophasic calls have lower frequencies, are delivered faster, and have higher call effort and duty cycle than diphasic calls. We discuss our results in relation to sexual selection and formulate hypotheses about the evolution, function, and mechanisms of acoustic communication in Pacific tree frogs.In the wake of controversy over human embryonic gene-editing with CRISPR/Cas9 technology, scientists and commentators have looked repeatedly to the 1975 Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA (rDNA) as a model for adjudicating gene-editing today. STS scholars, however, have long critiqued Asilomar as a case of insular scientific self-regulation. Looking beyond Asilomar, other histories from the early biotech years offer fresh insights for those working to create a socially responsible biotechnological practice today. learn more Some of the first scientists to approach genetic engineering with a deep understanding of power and social equity were the biologists in the radical movement Science for the People (SftP). In 1976, SftP learned that Harvard University was planning to build a high-containment facility for rDNA research on its Cambridge campus, and fostered a unique moment of democratic technoscientific governance in their community. The organization's radical framework for understanding and regulating rDNA differed from Asilomar's liberal approach in important ways. While their colleagues at Asilomar ignored the social consequences of rDNA, SftP biologists produced incisive analyses of genetic reductionism, the commercialization of biotechnology, and the public regulation of science-and shared their ideas widely. Along the way, they fostered intellectual connections with an early community of radical and feminist science studies scholars who were investigating emerging issues around genetic engineering. As such, SftP's history offers a sharper understanding of how radical scientists engaged with early STS scholars, as well as profound insights for those who are pursuing an equitable gene-editing landscape in the CRISPR era.Using a unique longitudinal dataset collected from primary school students in Pakistan, we document four new facts about learning in low-income countries. First, children's test scores increase by 1.19 SD between Grades 3 and 6. Second, going to school is associated with greater learning. Children who dropout have the same test score gains prior to dropping out as those who do not but experience no improvements after dropping out. Third, there is significant variation in test score gains across students, but test scores converge over the primary schooling years. Students with initially low test scores gain more than those with initially high scores, even after accounting for mean reversion. Fourth, conditional on past test scores, household characteristics explain little of the variation in learning. In order to reconcile our findings with the literature, we introduce the concept of "fragile learning," where progression may be followed by stagnation or reversals. We discuss the implications of these results for several ongoing debates in the literature on education from Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs).This paper uses measurements of learning inequality to explore whether learning interventions that are aimed at improving means also reduce inequality, and if so, under what conditions. There is abundant evidence that learning levels are generally low in low- and middle-income countries (LMIC), but there is less knowledge about how learning achievement is distributed within these contexts, and especially about how these distributions change as mean levels increase. We use child-level data on foundational literacy outcomes to quantitatively explore whether and how learning inequality using metrics borrowed from the economics and inequality literature can help us understand the impact of learning interventions. The paper deepens recent work in several ways. First, it extends the analysis to six LMIC, displaying which measures are computable and coherent across contexts and baseline levels. This extension can add valuable information to program evaluation, without being redundant with other metrics. Second, we sal learning levels are as low as they currently are the developing world.Data on learning outcomes is essential for tracking progress in achieving education goals, understanding what education policies work (and don't work), and holding public officials accountable. We assess the accuracy and reliability of India's two nationally representative surveys on learning outcomes, ASER and NAS, so that users of these datasets may better understand when, and for what purposes, these two datasets can reasonably be used. After restricting our sample to maximize comparability between the two datasets, we find that NAS state averages are significantly higher than ASER state averages and averages from an independently conducted and nationally representative survey (IHDS). In addition, state rankings based on NAS data display almost no correlation with state rankings based on ASER, IHDS, or net state domestic product per capita. We conclude that NAS state averages are likely artificially high and contain little information about states' relative performance. The presence of severe bias in the NAS data suggests that this data should be used carefully or not at all for comparisons between states, constructing learning profiles, or any other purpose. We then analyze the internal reliability of ASER data using variance decomposition methods. We find that while ASER data is mostly reliable for comparing state averages, it is less reliable for looking at district averages, or changes in district and state averages over time. We conclude that analysts may use ASER data with confidence for comparisons between states in a single year, constructing learning profiles, and assessing learning inequality but should exercise caution when comparing changes in state scores and avoid using ASER district-level data.Milk is an important food item in the diet of Kenyans, especially infants. During the last two decades, the dairy sector in Kenya has witnessed important growth in production and improvements in milk quality. The informal marketing channel still prevails, and the Kenya Dairy Board, the regulator of the dairy sector, is currently introducing new regulations to increase registration and licensing of smallholder producers and dairy business operators, improve product hygiene and quality, and safeguard the health of consumers. These new regulations encompass, among others, the requirement to pasteurize milk before it is sold and adopt traceability processes and quality tests; most of these will probably result in higher milk prices at retail level. Using the best-worst scaling approach in this study, we analyzed the potential effects of milk price increase on household milk purchase and allocation to infants (6-48 months of age). The results indicate that an increase in milk price will decrease milk allocation to and intake by children.