Yes / The human- and animal-adapted lineages of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC) are thought to have expanded from a common progenitor in Africa. However, the molecular events that accompanied this emergence remain largely unknown. Here, we describe two MTBC strains isolated from patients with multidrug resistant tuberculosis, representing an as-yet-unknown lineage, named Lineage 8 (L8), seemingly restricted to the African Great Lakes region. Using genome-based phylogenetic reconstruction, we show that L8 is a sister clade to the known MTBC lineages. Comparison with other complete mycobacterial genomes indicate that the divergence of L8 preceded the loss of the cobF genome region - involved in the cobalamin/vitamin B12 synthesis - and gene interruptions in a subsequent common ancestor shared by all other known MTBC lineages. This discovery further supports an East African origin for the MTBC and provides additional molecular clues on the ancestral genome reduction associated with adaptation to a pathogenic lifestyle. / This work was supported by EDCTP2 grant DRIA2014-326—DIAMA of the European Union, the Belgian General Directorate for Development Cooperation (PhD fellowship to J.C.S.N.), Grant ANR-16-CE35-0009 from Agence Nationale de la Recherche, the Swiss National Science Foundation (Grants 310030_188888, IZRJZ3_164171, IZLSZ3_170834 and CRSII5_177163), and the European Research Council (309540-EVODRTB). The views and opinions of authors expressed herein do not necessarily state or reflect those of EDCTP. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish or preparation of the manuscript.

Practical theology has society as its horizon and should not be limited to a clerical paradigm because Christianity is not limited to a church but its horizon is the whole of society. In line with this understanding of practical theology, this study is a contribution to Christian education for a culture of peace in the Great Lakes region (the DRC, Rwanda and Burundi). Millions of people have been slaughtered in this region where Christianity is the main religion. The Church in this region has lost its credibility and is seen as contributing to a culture of violence through its church leaders and parishioners. This study focuses on the research question: Can teaching twofold love contribute to a culture of peace in the Great Lakes region? The thesis has empirically argued that the cause of turmoil in the Great Lakes region is the lack of twofold love, which has disguised itself in all evils known in the region, such as corruption, hegemony, predation, indirect rule, divide and rule, tribalism, fetishism, mass killings, prostitution, over-trust in modernism and breaking God's Ten Commandments, more than anything else. Humankind finds it difficult to love the neighbour like oneself and this lack of neighbourly love causes unrest in this region. The discussion in chapter three has empirically demonstrated through educational psychology that teaching is love of the learner. Therefore, an effective teacher should be able to give loving care to the learner's spiritual, physical and social needs, in a specific context. This is what Jesus did through verbal and behavioural media (Byrskog, 1994: 321). Such a liberationist teaching that should avoid pouring socially irrelevant knowledge on the learner is still an urgent need in the Great Lakes region. Christian education in this region has been learnt in a rote manner without educating Christians to be problem solvers. The fourth chapter makes practical suggestions on how to deal with the dilemmas of teaching Christian education in the region. Thus the study has empirically confirmed the research hypothesis that an effective teaching of twofold love can contribute to a culture of peace in the Great Lakes region. / Practical Theology / D. Th. (Practical Theology)

Practical theology has society as its horizon and should not be limited to a clerical paradigm because Christianity is not limited to a church but its horizon is the whole of society. In line with this understanding of practical theology, this study is a contribution to Christian education for a culture of peace in the Great Lakes region (the DRC, Rwanda and Burundi). Millions of people have been slaughtered in this region where Christianity is the main religion. The Church in this region has lost its credibility and is seen as contributing to a culture of violence through its church leaders and parishioners. This study focuses on the research question: Can teaching twofold love contribute to a culture of peace in the Great Lakes region? The thesis has empirically argued that the cause of turmoil in the Great Lakes region is the lack of twofold love, which has disguised itself in all evils known in the region, such as corruption, hegemony, predation, indirect rule, divide and rule, tribalism, fetishism, mass killings, prostitution, over-trust in modernism and breaking God's Ten Commandments, more than anything else. Humankind finds it difficult to love the neighbour like oneself and this lack of neighbourly love causes unrest in this region. The discussion in chapter three has empirically demonstrated through educational psychology that teaching is love of the learner. Therefore, an effective teacher should be able to give loving care to the learner's spiritual, physical and social needs, in a specific context. This is what Jesus did through verbal and behavioural media (Byrskog, 1994: 321). Such a liberationist teaching that should avoid pouring socially irrelevant knowledge on the learner is still an urgent need in the Great Lakes region. Christian education in this region has been learnt in a rote manner without educating Christians to be problem solvers. The fourth chapter makes practical suggestions on how to deal with the dilemmas of teaching Christian education in the region. Thus the study has empirically confirmed the research hypothesis that an effective teaching of twofold love can contribute to a culture of peace in the Great Lakes region. / Philosophy, Practical and Systematic Theology / D. Th. (Practical Theology)

No description available.

One tool of the economic planner is Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA). This model's accuracy in describing human behavior has been criticized, particularly for uncertain and intertemporal choices. To the extent this holds, the model will be inaccurate in assessing benefits of shoreline protection measures and will provide reduced insight into policy choices. From a review of economic, psychology and geography literature, three points of criticism are: - when faced with losses, individuals tend not to be averse to risk, - when faced with low probability hazards, individuals tend to ignore the hazard altogether (truncate low probability), - when faced with choices over time, individuals have different rates at which they trade off benefits now versus later. Typically, applications of BCA do not account for these observations. The main objective of the study was to determine whether these criticisms are supported, and to draw conclusions regarding government policy for the flooding and erosion hazards on the Lakes. A Benefit Cost model was formulated to describe the individual shoreline property owner's behavior with respect to undertaking structural measures to mitigate flooding and/or erosion. To test the model, property owners on Lakes Erie, Ontario and Michigan were surveyed by mail. Experimental questions, focussing on the intertemporal and uncertain nature of the hazard protection choice were developed. The econometric analysis suggested that: - individuals varied in their time preference rate, - the probability of low chance events was truncated by many respondents, - on average respondents were not risk averse, and - the above phenomena helped explain the choice to take protective action. Using a market rate for discounting in the BCA can provide inaccurate benefit estimates. Observed time preference rates may provide a better measure. Subsidized hazard insurance has been suggested to encourage self protection. Disregard for low probabilities, coupled with a lack of risk aversion, suggest such a program would not be successful. Subsidized loans for shore protection may be unsuccessful. Many people displayed a time preference rate above the market loan rate, yet they did not borrow. Information programs may be useful in promoting a better understanding of the hazards which may be faced by residents. / Ph. D.

<p>Currently, one of the most dramatic threats to human security is constituted by internal armed conflicts. In 1998, violent conflicts took place in at least 25 countries. Of these armed conflicts, 23 were internal, engaging one or more non-State armed groups. A crucial feature of internal conflicts is the widespread violation of humanitarian law and human rights by armed groups, from rebel groups to private militias. This thesis aimed at identifying various ways of promoting a better implementation of the Geneva Conventions and its Protocols by NSAGs in the Great Lakes Region.</p>

<em>Cladophora glomerata</em> is a filamentous green alga that currently forms extensive blooms in nearshore areas of Lake Ontario, eastern Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, and isolated locations in Lake Huron. The biomass, areal coverage, algal bed characteristics, and tissue phosphorus concentrations of <em>Cladophora glomerata</em> were measured at 24 nearshore rocky sites along the northern shoreline of Lake Erie?s eastern basin between 1995-2002. Midsummer areal coverage at shallow depths (&le;5m) ranged from 4-100 %, with a median value of 96%. Peak seasonal biomass ranged from <1 to 940 g m^-2 dry mass (DM), with a median value of 171 g m^-2 DM. Tissue phosphorus varied seasonally, with initial high values in early May (0. 15 to 0. 27 % DM; median 0. 23 % DM) to midsummer seasonal low values during peak biomass (0. 03 to 0. 23 % DM; median 0. 06 % DM). A numerical <em>Cladophora</em> growth model (CGM) was revised and field-tested at 5 sites in eastern Lake Erie during 2002. The CGM is useful for: 1) Predicting <em>Cladophora</em> growth, biomass, and tissue phosphorus concentrations under non-point source P loading with no depth restrictions; 2) providing estimates of the timing and magnitude of the midsummer sloughing phenomenon; 3) determining the contribution of <em>Dreissena</em> invasion to the resurgence of <em>Cladophora</em> in eastern Lake Erie; and 4) developing management strategies for <em>Cladophora</em> abatement. The CGM was applied to investigate how the spatial and temporal patterns of <em>Cladophora</em> growth were influenced by the natural variability in environmental parameters in eastern Lake Erie. Seasonal patterns in <em>Cladophora</em> growth were strongly influenced by temperature, and peak depth-integrated biomass was strongly influenced by both available light and phosphorus. The photosynthetic capacity of field collected <em>Cladophora</em> was a poor predictor of the mid-summer sloughing phenomenon. The CGM, however, predicted that self-shading within the dense <em>Cladophora</em> mats would have caused negative growth rates at the base of the dense mats for 14 days prior to the sloughing event. The metabolic imbalances at the base of the <em>Cladophora</em> mats were driven primarily by the availability of light and were exacerbated by intermediate water temperatures (~23??C). The excellent agreement between model simulations and field data illustrates the ability of the CGM to predict tissue P and growth over a range of sites and depths in eastern Lake Erie and suggests potential for the model to be successfully applied in other systems.

Lake Superior is a forcing factor for local weather systems, causing substantial amounts of lake effect snow in the winter (particularly on the south shore). This study assesses decreasing ice cover of Lake Superior and its effects upon synoptic weather factors. Data were collected from eleven National Weather Service (NWS) stations located on the south shore of the lake. Rainfall and snowfall amounts from December to May were regressed on percent ice coverage and average monthly temperatures from 1972-2002. Ice coverage and average monthly temperature had a negative relationship with snowfall and rainfall.

Waves are a primary factor in beach health, sediment transport, safety, internal nutrient loading, and coastal erosion, the latter of which has increased along Lake Michigan's western coastline since 2014. While high water levels are undoubtedly the primary cause of this erosion, the recent losses may also be indicative of changes in the lake's wind-driven waves. This study seeks to examine long-term trends in the magnitude and direction of Lake Michigan waves, including extreme waves and storm events using buoy measurements (National Data Buoy Center Buoys 45002 and 45007) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers Wave Information Study (USACE WIS) wave hindcast.<br><br>Tests show significant long-term decreases in annual mean wave height in the lake's southern basin (up to -1.5mm/yr). When wave-approach direction was removed by testing directional bins for trends independently, an increase in the extent of the affected coast and rate of the shrinking waves was found (up to -4mm/yr). A previously unseen increasing trend in wave size in the northern basin (up to 2mm/yr) was also revealed.<br><br>Data from the WIS model indicated that storm duration and peak wave height in the southern basin has decreased at an averaged rate of -0.085hr/yr and -5mm/yr, respectively, from 1979 to 2017. An analysis of the extreme value distribution's shape in the southern basin found a similar pattern in the WIS hindcast model, with the probability of observing a wave larger than 5 meters decreasing by about -0.0125yr^-1. In the northern basin, the probability of observing a wave of the same size increased at a rate of 0.0075yr^-1.<br><br>The results for trends in the annual means revealed the importance of removing temporal- and spatial-within-series dependencies, in wave-height data. The strong dependence of lake waves on approach direction, as compared to ocean waves, may result from the relatively large differences in fetch length in the enclosed body of water. Without removal or isolation of these dependencies trends may be lost. Additionally, removal of the seasonal component in lake water level and mean wave-height series revealed that there was no significant correlation between these series.

Certain types of cyanobacteria have the potential to produce toxins including microcystin, a hepatotoxin. Toxic cyanobacterial blooms are becoming increasingly common worldwide. They are a concern in the Great Lakes and surrounding waters. In this study, Lake Ontario’s Bay of Quinte, Lake Erie’s Maumee Bay, and three reservoirs along the Grand River were studied. Environmental variables, cyanobacterial biomass inferred from the Fluoroprobe, and microcystin concentrations were measured. In 2005 the three reservoirs, Belwood Lake, Conestogo Lake, and Guelph Lake were sampled every two weeks from July to September. Belwood Lake was also sampled in October when a cyanobacterial bloom occurred. In 2006 the Bay of Quinte was sampled twice, in July and September, and Maumee Bay was sampled twice, in June and August. Physical variables measured included water transparency and temperature. All species of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) were measured, along with extracted chlorophyll a and particulate carbon (C), N, and P. The distribution of chlorophyll and major algal groups throughout the water column was profiled in situ using a spectral fluorometer (Fluoroprobe).Variable fluorescence of phytoplankton was assessed using Pulse Amplitude Modulated (PAM) fluorometry to measure photosynthetic parameters. Phytoplankton counts were performed on selected samples from the Bay of Quinte and Maumee Bay. Total and dissolved microcystin were measured using the protein phosphatase inhibition assay (PPIA). PPIA was chosen over alternative detection methods because it is a functional assay that measures the level of microcystin in a sample via the amount of protein phosphatase inhibition that it exerts. This yields ecologically relevant data as protein phosphatase inhibition is the main mode of microcystin toxicity. The PPIA formulation used in our lab was based on variations in the literature that use unconcentrated water samples directly in the assay. The assay was optimized to employ both a higher and lower standard curve through the use of two enzyme concentrations. The lower enzyme concentration allowed the method detection limit to be decreased to 0.05 µg/L to accommodate our low-microcystin samples. In the Bay of Quinte, microcystin levels were higher in July 2006 (total mean=2.25 μg/L ) than in September 2006 (total mean=0.58 μg/L). In July a cyanobacterial bloom consisting of 97% Microcystis spp. was present. In September 83% of the cyanobacterial biomass was composed of Anabaena spiroides and only 8% was Microcystis spp. In the Bay of Quinte elevated microcystin concentrations were associated with higher soluble reactive P levels, lower seston C:P molar ratios, and lower total N. In Maumee Bay microcystin levels were higher in August 2006 (total mean= 4.45 μg/L) than they were in June 2006 (<0.05 μg/L). In August a cyanobacterial bloom consisting of 22% Microcystis spp. and 48% Aphanizomenon flos-aquae was observed. Higher microcystin concentrations in Maumee Bay were associated with decreased total N: total P molar ratios, increased total P, and decreased water transparency as measured by Secchi depth. Belwood Lake had the highest microcystin levels of the three reservoirs but only once exceeded the recommended World Health Organization concentration of 1.0 μg/L. Belwood Lake’s largest cyanobacterial bloom in October 2005 was accompanied by relatively low microcystin levels (<0.2 μg/L). Conestogo and Guelph lakes always had microcystin levels below 0.2 μg/L and 0.6 μg/L, respectively. In the Grand River reservoirs, increased microcystin concentrations were associated with higher chlorophyll a, higher light attenuation coefficients, lower total N, lower total N: total P molar ratios, higher C:P molar ratios, lower nitrate, higher cyanobacterial biomass, and higher total P. When data from the Bay of Quinte, Maumee Bay, and Grand River reservoirs were pooled, total microcystin had the most significant positive correlation with total P. Total microcystin and water temperature also had a significant positive correlation.