Adrian C. Newton

Bio: Adrian C. Newton is an academic researcher from James Hutton Institute. The author has contributed to research in topics: Hordeum vulgare & Biodiversity. The author has an hindex of 74, co-authored 453 publications receiving 21814 citations. Previous affiliations of Adrian C. Newton include Seattle Children's Research Institute & University of Peradeniya.

Assessing Effects of Crop History and Soil Amendments on Yields of Subsequent Crops

Abstract: Three field trials were set up to measure the effect of previous crops or soil amendments on the yields of subsequent crops of cereals under a cool temperate maritime climate in arable crop land in the east of Scotland. Winter wheat and winter barley direct drilled into legume and cereal + legume stubble (pre-crop) gave substantial yield boost compared with other pre-crop cereals, but pre-crop effects of oats were similarly great. Restored rotation after continuous barley gave expected yield enhancement to subsequent winter and spring barley but not to subsequent wheat. Some diseases were reduced on restored rotation crops. Slurry effects on yield were generally small but beneficial and compost effects were greater. However, compost had effects on plant developmental speed and was difficult to compare directly with other treatments. NDRE measurements in the restored rotation and soil amendment trials indicated that yield gains were associated with improved crop health as indicated by leaf chlorophyll content. There were no clear cultivar interactions within crop type with treatments effects in any of these trials.

Researching factors that influence successful commercialisation of non timber forest products (NTFPs)

Abstract: The commercialisation of NTFPs is not consistently successful in alleviating poverty by providing benefits to producers, processors and traders. In order to determine the characteristics associated with success in terms of NTFP commercialisation, this project will evaluate the opportunities and constraints to commercialisation of NTFPs at the community and household level, though comparative analysis of case studies. In addition, market structure will be analysed for selected NTFPs, to identify interventions necessary for successful commercialisation. Gender issues and community perceptions of success will receive particular attention. The selection of two countries, Bolivia and Mexico, that differ in social and cultural structures will enable comparative analysis of the factors influencing NTFP commercialisation, thereby permitting implications for other countries in the region to be drawn. Resumen La comercicalizacion de PFNMs no siempre contribuye efectivamente a aliviar la pobreza atravez de los benficios que brinda a los productores, comercialzadores y procesadores. Para determinar las caracteristicas asociadas con el exito en la comercializacion de estos productos, este proyecto evalua las oportunidades y restricciones a nivel de las comunidades recolectoras y de los hogares involucrados mediante estudios de caso. Adicionalmente se analizan las estrucuturas de mercado de productos selecccionados, y se identifica los tipos de intervenciones que se requieren para hacer proyectos exitosos. Aspectos de genero y las percepciones de las comunidades son debidamente analizadas. El hecho de haber seleccionado a Bolivia y a Mexico permitira analizar estos factores bajo condiciones socio-culturales diferentes, y por lo tanto se deribaran las implicaciones para otros paises o regiones con condicones relacionadas. Bussmann, R.W. & Lange, S. Conservacion de Biodiversidad en los Andes y la Amazonia 566 Marshall, E., K.. Schreckenberg, A.C. Newton & A. Bojanic Research project objectives and collaborators This 3 year research project (November 2000 October 2003), funded by the Forestry Research Programme of the UK Department for International Development, will explore the relationship between poverty, gender and successful commercialisation of NTFPs. It will provide an important understanding of how domestic markets function and identify the type of information necessary to provide the basis for designing market interventions, which result in increasing benefits to rural communities. NTFPs differ in a number of characteristics including yield, perishability, value, and seasonality of availability etc. In addition, the local communities harvesting these resources differ in social structures (including gender influence), culture, degree of marginalisation, as does access to capital resources. A comparative analysis of different NTFPs, considering such variables can therefore enable key criteria for successful commercialisation to be identified. The main collaborators on this project are the LTNEP World Conservation Monitoring Centre and the Overseas Development Institute in the UK: Grupo de Estudios Ambientales, Grupo Mesofilo, Methodus Consultora, SEMARNAP and PROCYMAF in Mexico; Universidad Nur, Care-Bolivia and the Super Intendencia Forestal in Bolivia; and Fauna & Flora International in Nicaragua. The role of NTFPs in promoting forest resource conservation and poverty alleviation Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are biological resources derived from both natural and managed forests and other wooded areas (Peters, 1996). NTFPs are an important tool in addressing poverty issues for marginalised, forest dependant communities, by contributing to livelihood outcomes, including food security, health and well being, and income (FAO, 1995; Falconer, 1997). In many parts of the world these resources are critical, especially for the rural poor and women, and may provide them with the only source of personal income (Rodda, 1993; Falconer, 1997). It is the socially most marginalised people who are the main actors in NTFP extraction (Ros-Tonen, 1999). Despite this, the contribution of women, especially from indigenous populations, to rural development in Latin America, remains largely undervalued and understudied. Interest in NTFPs has grown with increasing awareness of tropical forest deforestation and increasing recognition of the need to add value to forest resources, in order to compete with other land uses. Through the holistic management of NTFPs, an attempt is made to maintain and sustain the resource and its users; contribute to sustainable development; conserve forests and biodiversity, and to promote non-traditional enterprises to improve local economies and diversify the economic base of the rural poor (Falconer, 1997). There are at least five distinctive features of forest product conservation and development initiatives which were identified as needing further research to promote successful NTFP commercialisation, from a CIFOR meeting sponsored by the NTFP network (adapted from Wollenberg and Ingles, 1998): Forest products are often managed under sensitive and complex social arrangements, or with multiple management objectives. Bussmann, R.W. & Lange, S. Conservation of Biodiversity in the Andes and the Amazon Researching factors that influence successful commercialisation of Non timber forest products 567 Forest products usually involve strategies based on multiple products, therefore the costs of collecting the information can be high relative to the benefits gained Forest products are often collected in remote areas requiring high transport costs, and production and collection can be irregular. There is often a lack of formal skills in business, ecological and impact social assessment. The ecology, management and demand for many forest products is poorly understood, and many forest products have not been well studied or documented. Constraints to successful commercialisation Within the scope of this research project, we have chosen to define commercialisation as an exchange of money resulting from the sale of a product outside the community of origin. Although NTFP commercialisation has been widely promoted by development organisations, success of such initiatives has been highly variable. Existing research suggests that the main constraints to successful NTFP development are related to limited access to the following types of capital asset by small-scale poor farmers and landless poor families (especially women): natural: secure tenure or usufruct rights over land and resources (Clay, 1992; Richards, 1993; Ruiz-Perez and Byron, 1999); human: labour constraints (especially time spent away from home by women), awareness of the commercialisation potential of some products, knowledge about processing and storage, and market information and marketing know-how (Southeimer, 1991; Falconer, 1997; Tommich, 1998; Banana, 1998); financial: to invest in improved physical capital (FAO, 1991; ILO, 1995; Verheij and Reindeers, 1998); physical: market access (especially transport), inputs for new processing/ storage techniques (Dixon, 1991; Clay, 1992; Paddock, 1992, Falconer, 1997; Fontana, 1998; van Dick, 1998; Tommich, 1998); social: negotiating power (especially for female producers with respect to male market intermediaries), and willingness to collaborate in order to secure improved marketing outcomes (Arnold and Ruiz Perez, 1999; Marshall and Newton, 2000); Available evidence indicates that information pertaining to marketing processes and structures is one of the most significant constraints to successful development of NTFP activities as part of livelihood strategies (Tommich, 1998; Ruiz-Perez and Byron, 1999). Research project case studies We are collaboratively undertaking research with the following partners in Bolivia and Mexico, in case study communities where NTFPs are already commercialised to some extent, and with varying degrees of success, and as an activity, represent one of the most important income generating options available. MEXICO Grupo de Estudios Ambientales, State of Guerrero Brahea dulcis (Palma soyote) & Agave cupreata Maguey); Bussmann, R.W. & Lange, S. Conservacion de Biodiversidad en los Andes y la Amazonia 568 Marshall, E., K. Schreckenberg, A.C. Newton & A. Bojanic Grupo Mesofilo, State of Oaxaca Chamaedorea tepejilote & Chamaedorea elegans, C. concolor, C. Oblongata; Methodus consultora, State of Oaxaca Thcholoma magnivelare (White mushroom, Boletus edulis (Boletus) and Amonita coesarea (Yellow mushroom), & Aechaemia magdalaneae, Pita.

Scale-Dependent Assessment of Relative Disease Resistance to Plant Pathogens

Abstract: Phenotyping trials may not take into account sufficient spatial context to infer quantitative disease resistance of recommended varieties in commercial production settings. Recent ecological theory—the dispersal scaling hypothesis—provides evidence that host heterogeneity and scale of host heterogeneity interact in a predictable and straightforward manner to produce a unimodal (“humpbacked”) distribution of epidemic outcomes. This suggests that the intrinsic artificiality (scale and design) of experimental set-ups may lead to spurious conclusions regarding the resistance of selected elite cultivars, due to the failure of experimental efforts to accurately represent disease pressure in real agricultural situations. In this model-based study we investigate the interaction of host heterogeneity and scale as a confounding factor in the inference from ex-situ assessment of quantitative disease resistance to commercial production settings. We use standard modelling approaches in plant disease epidemiology and a number of different agronomic scenarios. Model results revealed that the interaction of heterogeneity and scale is a determinant of relative varietal performance under epidemic conditions. This is a previously unreported phenomenon that could provide a new basis for informing the design of future phenotyping platforms, and optimising the scale at which quantitative disease resistance is assessed.

The Theory of Island Biogeography

Abstract: Preface to the Princeton Landmarks in Biology Edition vii Preface xi Symbols Used xiii 1. The Importance of Islands 3 2. Area and Number of Speicies 8 3. Further Explanations of the Area-Diversity Pattern 19 4. The Strategy of Colonization 68 5. Invasibility and the Variable Niche 94 6. Stepping Stones and Biotic Exchange 123 7. Evolutionary Changes Following Colonization 145 8. Prospect 181 Glossary 185 References 193 Index 201

The Design and Analysis of Experiments

Abstract: THE DESIGN AND ANALYSIS OF EXPERIMENTS. By Oscar Kempthorne. New York, John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 1952. 631 pp. $8.50. This book by a teacher of statistics (as well as a consultant for \"experimenters\") is a comprehensive study of the philosophical background for the statistical design of experiment. It is necessary to have some facility with algebraic notation and manipulation to be able to use the volume intelligently. The problems are presented from the theoretical point of view, without such practical examples as would be helpful for those not acquainted with mathematics. The mathematical justification for the techniques is given. As a somewhat advanced treatment of the design and analysis of experiments, this volume will be interesting and helpful for many who approach statistics theoretically as well as practically. With emphasis on the \"why,\" and with description given broadly, the author relates the subject matter to the general theory of statistics and to the general problem of experimental inference. MARGARET J. ROBERTSON

Ecosystems and human well-being: a framework for assessment

Abstract: This first report of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment describes the conceptual framework that is being used in the MA. It is not a formal assessment of the literature, but rather a scientifically informed presentation of the choices made by the assessment team in structuring the analysis and framing the issues. The conceptual framework elaborated in this report describes the approach and assumptions that will underlie the analysis conducted in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. The framework was developed through interactions among the experts involved in the MA as well as stakeholders who will use its findings. It represents one means of examining the linkages between ecosystems and human well-being that is both scientifically credible and relevant to decision-makers. This framework for analysis and decision-making should be of use to a wide array of individuals and institutions in government, the private sector, and civil society that seek to incorporate considerations of ecosystem services in their assessments, plans, and actions.