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The Mediterranean Sea is among the most vulnerable semi-enclosed seas to climate change. Multiple oceanic changes occur besides warming that can generate numerous ecological, social, and economic risks, challenging fisheries management at various spatial scales—from local to international. In this study, we applied a semi-quantitative climate risk assessment (CRA) to the Mediterranean small pelagic and demersal fisheries in relation to a diversity of climate-related drivers and impacts. We assessed the risks of climate change effects on demersal and small pelagic fisheries resources, fishing operations, livelihoods, and wider social and economic implications in seven sub-regions of the Mediterranean Sea. Ocean warming, an increase in extreme weather events, and changes in vertical stratification resulted in the most important climate drivers. Overall, climate drivers present higher risks to fishing resources and livelihoods than to fishing operations and wider social and economic impacts. The study puts into evidence geographic differences in terms of the drivers and impacts, with the south-eastern Mediterranean being the sub-region with higher risk levels for both fisheries, while the north-central Mediterranean also showed important risk levels for the demersal fisheries. The study furthermore discusses the most plausible adaptive measures in management, policy, research, and livelihoods to be potentially applied to address high priority risks, as well as various implementation concerns and technical effectiveness issues. Enhancing adaptive fisheries management needs to be the primary strategy for this region to reverse the high number of overfished stocks and build resilience to climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Economic threat has far-reaching emotional and social consequences, yet the impact of economic threat on neurocognitive processes has received little empirical scrutiny. Here, we examined the causal relationship between economic threat and conflict detection, a critical process in cognitive control associated with the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC). Participants (N  = 103) were first randomly assigned to read about a gloomy economic forecast (Economic Threat condition) or a stable economic forecast (No-Threat Control condition). Notably, these forecasts were based on real, publicly available economic predictions. Participants then completed a passive auditory oddball task composed of frequent standard tones and infrequent, aversive white-noise bursts, a task that elicits the N2, an event-related potential component linked to conflict detection. Results revealed that participants in the Economic Threat condition evidenced increased activation source localized to the ACC during the N2 to white-noise stimuli. Further, ACC activation to conflict mediated an effect of Economic Threat on increased justification for personal wealth. Economic threat thus has implications for basic neurocognitive function. Discussion centers on how effects on conflict detection could shed light on the broader emotional and social consequences of economic threat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cultured meat grown in vitro from animal cells has the potential to address many of the ethical, environmental, and public health issues associated with conventional meat production. However, as well as overcoming technical challenges to producing cultured meat, producers and advocates of the technology must consider a range of social issues, including consumer appeal and acceptance, media coverage, religious status, regulation, and potential economic impacts. Whilst much has been written on the prospects for consumer appeal and acceptance of cultured meat, less consideration has been given to the other aspects of the social world that will interact with this new technology. Here, each of these issues is considered in turn, forming a view of cultured meat as a technology with a diverse set of societal considerations and far-reaching social implications. It is argued that the potential gains from a transition to cultured meat are vast, but that cultural phenomena and institutions must be navigated carefully for this nascent industry to meet its potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Since 2011, the war in Syria has resulted in the displacement of 12.2 million people. Over 5.6 million have fled Syria to seek asylum in neighbouring countries, while 6.6 million have been internally displaced. Family separation, with significant psychological, social and economic implications, is a key concern for those who flee violence and cross international borders. This qualitative study sought to understand the causes of separation among Syrian families in Jordan and the obstacles to family reunification. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 85 Syrian refugee families identified as having separated family members. We present critical moments during migration when family separation occurs: (1) while fleeing Syria, (2) while residing in Jordan and (3) pre-existing separation due to work or travel that was exacerbated by the conflict. We also highlight the factors that perpetuate separation among families, preventing or delaying them from reuniting. These findings may help to inform more humane family reunification practices as well as identify future research and learning needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article sets out a methodology for the measurement of the different aspects of national biotechnology programs as social and political constructions intended to encourage the research and applications of these technologies and their impact on social development. Our purpose is to analyze the evolution and specific characteristics of the processes of development and spreading of national biotechnology programs in society. The document has three parts: the first exposes a general conceptual framework about biotechnology as an important transversal (cross-topic) technology connector between social and economic development in health, agriculture, environment and industry; the second is an approach to measure the impact with a specific framework, which develops a multi-criteria matrix and methodological steps. Finally, we present an application of the methodology about the case of the potato in Colombia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Information about the topics discussed at the 29th meeting of the Standing Committee of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) held on February 18, 2004 in Geneva, Switzerland is presented. The event focused on the economic and social impact of massive refugees on host developing countries and other countries. It looked at the efforts of the UNHCR to quantify host country contributions.

The article discusses the social and economic impact of massive refugee populations on host developing countries. It focuses on field-based partnership activities of United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the organization's advocacy in policy fora. The article outlines further proactive steps to complement and strengthen activities that are already underway.

Although sociologists have made advances in understanding the community-level impacts of technological and environmental change, attention to date has focused almost exclusively on the relatively brief development stage of construction and rapid expansion. Significant social changes can also take place both before and after the phases of the most intense physical activities (construction, production, expansion), and pathways of influence can be social as well as physical. At the outset, during the "opportunity- threat" stage, most social and economic impacts are associated with opportunities and/or threats to biophysical, economic, social, cultural, and psychological systems of the human environment. If development proceeds, the opportunities and threats are joined by the impacts of visible, physical perturbations that have received most of the attention to date. Over time, both of these sets of impacts air increasingly joined by the accumulation of experience. While human systems do adapt to changes or impacts, even apparently functional short-term responses can lead over the longer term to overadaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]