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This chapter sets out to analyze ethnicity and identity issues in autobiographic writing on politics in Nevada, resorting to a comparative approach between three Basque American authors (all of them are members of one of the most prominent Nevada families: the Laxalts) and a Latina writer (Emma Sepúlveda, born in Argentina and raised in Chile, and the author of From Border Crossings to Campaign Trail: Chronicle of a Latina in Politics, 1998). It is not only an inter-ethnic study of self-writing on politics in Nevada, but also an intra-ethnic and intra-familial approach because Paul Laxalt's political career as senator and governor of Nevada is treated from three different perspectives in his autobiography, Nevada's Paul Laxalt: A Memoir (2000), and in two semiautobiographical novels, Monique (Laxalt) Urza'sThe Deep Blue Memory (1993) and Robert Laxalt's The Governor's Mansion (1994). These texts speak in different generational and gendered voices, offering multilayered and sometimes contradictory portraits of their authors' contact with politics. Particular attention will be paid to the way in which Sepulveda and the Laxalts address issues such as self-representation, identity formation, the tensions between "descent relations" (represented by the immigrant heritage and the family bonds) and "consent relations" (illustrated by the authors' immersion into the American way of life and, specifically, into American politics), and the conflict between public and private spaces, as exemplified by the impact of politics on their private lives.
Contributors are: Zbigniew Białas, Manuela Borzone, Flavia Brizio-Skov, Alex Calder, Neil Campbell, Christopher Conway, Samir Dayal, Joel Deshaye, Johannes Fehrle, MaryEllen Higgins, Emily Hind, Shelly Jarenski, Rachel Leket-Mor, Warren Motte, Andrew Nette, Marek Paryż, David Rio, Steffen Wöll, and Sergei Zhuk
Contributors are: Zbigniew Białas, Manuela Borzone, Flavia Brizio-Skov, Alex Calder, Neil Campbell, Christopher Conway, Samir Dayal, Joel Deshaye, Johannes Fehrle, MaryEllen Higgins, Emily Hind, Shelly Jarenski, Rachel Leket-Mor, Warren Motte, Andrew Nette, Marek Paryż, David Rio, Steffen Wöll, and Sergei Zhuk
Abstract
Amphibians are subjected to an assortment of environmental stressors responsible for their population declines and malformations. Deciphering the underlying causes of amphibian deformities is challenging due to the complex nature and interplay among factors. We evaluated morphological deformities in 9 urban and 9 woodland populations of terrestrial-breeding fire salamanders. We report several types of malformations and higher incidences among urban populations. This model system allowed us to tease apart some of the common factors responsible for amphibian deformations, suggesting airborne/terrestrial pollutants, predation, and/or inbreeding as potential environmental stressors. Yet, the putative underlying factors of fire salamander deformities need to be properly addressed in thorough studies linking habitat quality and the prevalence of morphological abnormalities, as well as predator-prey interactions. Reporting deformation rates among amphibians is key to identify warning signals of population declines and preventing local extinctions.
Ontario has suffered widespread epidemics ofFusarium Head Blight orGibberella Ear Rot roughly every five years since the late 1970s. We undertook a study of the chemotype and genotype ofFusarium graminearum isolated from 1,800 samples of wheat and maize collected across the cereal growing areas over three years. 468 isolates obtained were genotyped and 60 were selected for chemotyping. The dominant genotype has remained the native 15-acetyldeoxynivalenol (15-ADON) population. Approximately 20% of the strains tested were of the native chemotype producing only 15-ADON and one strain producing solely 7α-hydroxy,15-deacetylcalonectrin (3ANX) was observed. The majority of the 15-ADON strains were also capable of producing 3ANX. There was consistent mismatch between chemotype and genotype. This reflects the considerable plasticity in the genes associated with trichothecene biosynthesis documented in severalFusarium species. Although there is a large gradient in climate from southern to eastern Ontario, we did not detect differences in the distribution of the chemotypes. Grain from which strains were isolated for chemotyping were analysed. Approximately half of the 53 samples had >2 mg/kg deoxynivalenol with a maximum of 400 mg/kg and median of 14 mg/kg. 7α-hydroxy,3,15-dideacetylcalonectrin (NX toxin) was detected in three of these samples at an average of 4.5 mg/kg. The stability of theF. graminearum genotype in Ontario can be explained by several factors. Since 1980, the area planted to maize has remained stable, however, the area given to wheat has about doubled. Minimum tillage was rare in 1980 but it is now the norm. Increased crop residue on the soil has greatly increased the biomass of ascocarps that overwinter. Overall, these data demonstrate the need to monitor the mycotoxins inFusarium populations and for the need to consider the potential toxicity of NX in the feed supply.