Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2008
Abstract
Rural communities in Norway have been under great economic stress in recent years. There has been an increasing debate about how to utilize the large potential in a growing tourism industry to promote rural employment and income. This study is based on the institutional view of innovation with a focus on institutions that are important for stimulating innovations. The objectives are: 1) to determine if networking is positively related to innovativeness and if innovativeness is positively related to performance in the nature-based tourism industry in Norway and 2) to develop an in-depth understanding of how different actors trigger a member of the industry to change, create, or otherwise innovate. An e-mail survey was conducted of companies across the country followed by a qualitative study in one Norwegian municipality. Results indicate that there is a positive connection between networking and innovativeness, and between innovativeness and performance. A qualitative case example illustrates the interaction among actors and the resulting impacts on the innovation process.
Abstract
Rural communities in Norway have been under great economic stress in recent years. There has been an increasing debate about how to utilize the large potential in a growing tourism industry to promote rural employment and income. This study is based on the institutional view of innovation with a focus on institutions that are important for stimulating innovations. The objectives are: 1) to determine if networking is positively related to innovativeness and if innovativeness is positively related to performance in the nature-based tourism industry in Norway and 2) to develop an in-depth understanding of how different actors trigger a member of the industry to change, create, or otherwise innovate. An email survey was conducted of companies across the country followed by a qualitative study in one Norwegian municipality. Results indicate that there is a positive connection between networking and innovativeness, and between innovativeness and performance. A qualitative case example illustrates the interaction among actors and the resulting impacts on the innovation process.
Abstract
Studies regarding the environmental impact of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) are hampered by the lack of tools to localize and quantify ENPs in water, sediments, soils, and organisms. Neutron activation of mineral ENPs offers the possibility of labeling ENPs in a way that avoids surface modification and permits both localization and quantification within a matrix or an organism. Time-course experiments in vivo also may be conducted with small organisms to study metabolism and exposure, two aspects currently lacking in ecotoxicological knowledge about ENPs. The present report explains some of the prerequisites and advantages of neutron activation as a tool for studying ENPs in environmental samples and ecologically relevant organisms, and it demonstrates the suitability of neutron activation for Ag, Co/Co3O4, and CeO2 nanoparticles. In a preliminary experiment with the earthworm Eisenia fetida, the dietary uptake and excretion of a Co nanopowder (average particle size, 4 nm; surface area, 59 m(2)/g) were studied. Cobalt ENPs were taken up to a high extent during 7 d of exposure (concentration ratios of 0.16-0.20 relative to the ENP concentration in horse manure) and were largely retained within the worms for a period of eight weeks, with less than 20% of absorbed ENPs being excreted. Following dissection of the worms, Co-60 was detected in spermatogenic cells, cocoons, and blood using scintillation counting and autoradiography. The experimental opportunities that neutron activation of ENPs offer are discussed.
Abstract
The European pine sawfly Neodiprion sertifer is a widely distributed defoliator of pines that can cause substantial growth losses over extensive areas. It attacks most species of twoneedle pines in its distribution area, and have occasional short-lived outbreaks that may cover up to 200.000 ha. In Norway we have had outbreak populations in the eastern part of the country since 2004, and in an ongoing research project we are evaluating aerial application of the Neodiprion sertifer nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NsNPV) to control Neodiprion sertifer....
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
Chemical methods to assess bioavailability in soil and sediment often use synthetic polymers that mimic uptake of organic compounds in organisms or microbial degradation. In this paper we have assessed a biomimetic extraction method using hydroxyl-beta-cyclodextrin (HP-beta-CD) to estimate uptake of the two insecticides alpha-cypermethrin (alpha-CYP) and chlorfen-vinphos (CFVP) in the earthworm Eisenia fetida. Additionally, a novel approach was developed to estimate the efficiency of biomimetic extractions. The study revealed that HP-beta-CD is a suitable surrogate for estimating the bioaccessibility of hydrophobic chemicals in soil. If one uses a 3.5 times higher amount of HP-beta-CD than soil, effective and reproducible extractions can be achieved within 48h. At these conditions, inclusion of dissolved chemicals by HP-beta-CD mimics uptake of a given compound into earthworms and takes into account sorption-related aspects that control biological uptake. The data indicate that, with increasing hydrophobicity, the affinity of organic chemicals to HP-beta-CD does not increase to the same degree as to soil organic matter. Therefore, a high surplus of HP-beta-CD is necessary to provide a sufficient extraction capacity in biomimetic extractions.
Abstract
No abstract has been registered
Authors
B. D. Jensen L. Munk Anne-Marte Tronsmo Leif Sundheim M. Pirhonen A-L. Laine H. Sverrison A. Djurle H. Friberg J. YuenAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered