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Appreciating spatial scale is crucial for our understanding of the sociospatial context. Multiscale measures of population have been developed in the segregation and neighborhood effects literatures, which have acknowledged the role of a variety of spatial contexts for individual outcomes and intergroup contacts. Although existing studies dealing with sociospatial inequalities increasingly explore the effects of spatial scale, there has been little systematic evidence on how exposure to sociospatial contexts changes across urban space, both within and between cities. This article presents a multiscale approach to measuring potential exposure to others. Using individual-level register data for the full population of The Netherlands and an exceptionally detailed multiscalar framework of bespoke neighborhoods at 101 spatial scales, we measured the share of non-Western ethnic minorities for three Dutch cities with different urban forms. We created individual and cumulative distance profiles of ethnic exposure, mapped ethnic exposure surfaces, and applied entropy as a measure of scalar variation to compare potential exposure to others in different locations both within and between cities. The multiscale approach can be implemented for examining a variety of social processes, notably segregation and neighborhood effects.

Much has been written in recent years about the claimed polarization of the U.S. electorate, with substantial differences as to whether there has been greater spatial polarization, at several geographical scales, over recent decades. To assess the veracity of those alternative views, a bespoke data set showing percentage support for the Democratic Party's presidential candidates at the county, state, and divisional scales has been analyzed using a robust, statistically based measure of polarization and segregation. The ecological results provide clear and compelling evidence of a trend toward greater polarization across the nine census divisions, across the forty-nine states within those divisions, and across the 3,077 counties within the states-with strong evidence that the differences over time at the last of those scales are highly statistically significant. Within those general trends, polarization has been greater in some states than others and also within some states more than others-identifying additional geographies calling for further research.

Traditional means of assessing representativeness of conservation value in protected areas depend on measures of structural biodiversity. The effectiveness of priority conservation areas at representing critical natural capital (CNC) (i.e., an essential and renewable subset of natural capital) remains largely unknown. We analyzed the representativeness of CNC-conservationpriority areas in national nature reserves (i.e., nature reserves under jurisdiction of the central government with large spatial distribution across the provinces) in China with a new biophysical-based composite indicator approach. With this approach, we integrated the net primary production of vegetation, topography, soil, and climate variables to map and rank terrestrial ecosystems capacities to generate CNC. National nature reserves accounted for 6.7% of CNC-conservation priority areas across China. Considerable gaps (35.2%) existed between overall (or potential) CNC representativeness nationally and CNC representation in national reserves, and there was significant spatial heterogeneity of representativeness in CNC-conservation priority areas at the regional and provincial levels. For example, the best and worst representations were, respectively, 13.0% and 1.6% regionally and 28.9% and 0.0% provincially. Policy in China is transitioning toward the goal of an ecologically sustainable civilization. We identified CNC-conservation priority areas and conservation gaps and thus contribute to the policy goals of optimization of the national nature reserve network and the demarcation of areas critical to improving the representativeness and conservation of highly functioning areas of natural capital. Moreover, our method for assessing representation of CNC can be easily adapted to other large-scale networks of conservation areas because few data are needed, and our model is relatively simple. Los medtos tradicionales para evaluar la representatividad de los valores de conservación en las áreas protegidas dependen de las medidas de la biodiversidad estructural. La efectividad de las áreas de conservación prioritarias por representar al capital natural crítico (CNC) (es decir, un subconjunto esencial y renovable de capital natural) todavía permanece desconocida en su mayoría. Analizamos la representatividad de las áreas de conservación prioritarias de CNC en las reservas naturales nacionales (es decir, reservas naturales bajo jurisdicción del gobierno central con una gran distribución espacial a lo largo de las provincias) de China con una nueva estrategia indicadora basada en componentes biofísicos. Con esta estrategia, integramos la producción primaria neta de vegetación, la topografía, el suelo y las variables climáticas al mapa y clasificamos las capacidades de los ecosistemas terrestres para generar CNC. Las reservas naturales nacionales representaron el 6.7 % de las áreas de conservación prioritarias de CNC en toda China. Existieron vacíos considerables (35.2 %) entre la representatividad general (o potencial) de CNC a nivel nacional y la representación de CNC en las reservas nacionales, y hubo una heterogeneidad espacial significativa de la representatividad en las áreas de conservación prioritarias de CNC en los niveles regionales y provinciales. Por ejemplo, la mejor y la peor representación fueron, respectivamente, 13.0 % y 1.6% regionalmente y 28.9 % y 0.0 % provincialmente. La política en China está en transición hacia la meta de una civilización sustentable ecológicamente. Identificamos las áreas de conservación prioritarias de CNC y los vacíos de conservación y con esto contribuimos a las metas políticas de optimizar la red de reservas naturales nacionales y la demarcación de las áreas cruciales para mejorar la representatividad y conservación de las áreas de capital natural altamente funcionales. Además, nuestro método para evaluar la representación del CNC puede adaptarse fácilmente a otras redes a gran escala de áreas de conservación porque se requieren pocos datos y nuestro modelo es relativamente simple.

Most world cities can now be characterized as multiethnic and multicultural in their population composition, and the residential patterning of their major component ethnic groups remains a topic of substantial research interest. Many studies of the degree of residential segregation of ethnic groups recognize that this is multiscalar in its composition, but few have incorporated this major feature into their analyses: Those that do mostly conclude that segregation is greater at the microscale than at the macroscale. This article uses a recently developed alternative procedure for assessing the degree of segregation that differs from all others in that it analyzes the geography of all groups simultaneously, providing a single, synoptic view of their relative segregation; can incorporate data for more than one date and therefore evaluate the statistical significance of the extent of any change over time; operates at several geographical scales, allowing appreciation of the extent of clustering and congregation for the various ethnic groups at different levels of spatial resolution; and-most important-is based on a firm statistical foundation that allows for robust assessments of differences in the levels of segregation for different groups between each other at different scales over time. This modeling procedure is illustrated by a three-scale analysis of ethnic residential segregation in Auckland, New Zealand, as depicted by the country's 2001, 2006, and 2013 censuses.

Assessments of risk to biodiversity often rely on spatial distributions of species and ecosystems. Range-size metrics used extensively in these assessments, such as area of occupancy (AOO), are sensitive to measurement scale, prompting proposals to measure them at finer scales or at different scales based on the shape of the distribution or ecological characteristics of the biota. Despite its dominant role in redlist assessments for decades, appropriate spatial scales of AOO for predicting risks of species' extinction or ecosystem collapse remain untested and contentious. There are no quantitative evaluations of the scalesensitivity of AOO as a predictor of risks, the relationship between optimal AOO scale and threat scale, or the effect of grid uncertainty. We used stochastic simulation models to explore risks to ecosystems and species with clustered, dispersed, and linear distribution patterns subject to regimes of threat events with different frequency and spatial extent. Area of occupancy was an accurate predictor of risk (0.81<|r|<0.98) and performed optimally when measured with grid cells 0.1-1.0 times the largest plausible area threatened by an event. Contrary to previous assertions, estimates of AOO at these relatively coarse scales were better predictors of risk than finer-scale estimates of AOO (e.g., when measurement cells are <1% of the area of the largest threat). The optimal scale depended on the spatial scales of threats more than the shape or size of biotic distributions. Although we found appreciable potential for grid-measurement errors, current IUCN guidelines for estimating AOO neutralize geometric uncertainty and incorporate effective scalingprocedures for assessing risks posed by landscape-scale threats to species and ecosystems. La evaluación de los riesgos para la biodiversidad generalmente depende de la distribución espacial de las especies y los ecosistemas. Las medidas del rango de extensión, como el área de ocupación (ADO), que se utilizan ampliamente en estas valoraciones son sensibles a la escala de medición, lo que genera propuestas para medirlas a escalas más finas o a diferentes escalas con base en la forma de distribución o en las características ecológicas de la biota. A pesar de su papel dominante en las valoraciones de listas rojas durante décadas, las escalas espaciales apropiadas del ADO para predecir el riesgo de extinción de las especies o el colapso de un ecosistema sigue siendo polémico y sin ser probado. No hay evaluaciones cuantitativas de la sensibilidad de escala del ADO como pronóstico de los riesgos, la relación entre la escala óptima del ADO y la escala de la amenaza, o el efecto de incertidumbre de cuadrícula. Utilizamos modelos de simulación estocástica para explorar los riesgos para los ecosistemas y las especies con patrones de distribución agrupada, dispersa y linear sujetos a regímenes de eventos amenazantes con frecuencias y extensiones espaciales diferentes. El área de ocupación fue un pronosticador preciso del riesgo (0.81<|r|<0.98) y actuó óptimamente cuando se midió con celdas de cuadrícula de 0.1 -1.0 veces la mayor área plausible amenazada por un evento. Contrario a aseveraciones previas, los estimados del ADO a estas escalas relativamente burdasfueron mejore pronosticadores del riesgo que los estimados del ADO a escalas más finas (p. ej. cuando las celdas de medición son <1% del área de la mayor amenaza). La escala óptima dependió de las escalas espaciales de las amenazas más que de la forma o el tamaño de las distribuciones bióticas. Aunque encontramos un potencial apreciable para los errores de medida de celda, las pautas actuales de la UICNpara la estimación del ADO neutralizan la incertidumbre geométrica e incorporan procedimientos efectivos de modificación de escala para la valoración de los riesgos presentados por las amenazas a escala de paisaje para las especies y los ecosistemas. 对生物多祥性面临风险的评估通常依赖于物种和生态系统的空间分布。在这类评估中广泛使用的分布范围大 小的度量，例如占有面积 (AOO), 对测量尺度很敏感，这提示我们应基于分布区形状或生物区生态特性在更精细 的尺度或不同尺度上进行测量。尽管几十年来 AOO 在红色名录评估中占有关键地位，然而用于预测物种灭绝 风险或生态系统崩溃的AOO合适的空间尺度还未得到检验且尚存在争议。AOO 作为风险预测指标的尺度敏 感性、最适 AOO 尺度和胁迫尺度的关系，以及网格不确定性的影响，目前都没有进行定量评估。我们用随机模 拟模型来探究生态系统和聚群分布、分散分布和线性分布的物种面临的风险，同时考虑它们受到的不同频率和 空间尺度的胁迫事件。占有面积是准确的风险预测指标（0.81<|r|<0.98)，当在测量的网格单元大小为受胁迫 影响的最大可能面积的 0.1-1.0 倍时，预测效果最好。与之前的认识相反，AOO 估计值在相对粗糙的尺度上比在 精细尺度上(如测量单元大小<1%最大胁迫面积时) 可以更好地预测风险。最优尺度更多地依赖于胁迫的空间尺 度，而不是生物分布区的形状或大小。尽管我们发现网格测量有很大潜在的误差，但当前 IUCN 估计 AOO 的指 导原则抵消了几何不确定性，且整合了确定尺度的有效程序，来评估景观尺度的胁迫对物种和生态系统产生的风 险

Species distributions and the mechanisms that produce patterns in the occupation space are recurrent themes in community ecology. Here, we examine beta diversity among assemblages of small mammals in the Cerrado domain of Brazil to partition the effects of turnover and nestedness on species distributions. Our objective was to evaluate whether balanced spatial variation in abundance (βbal) and abundance gradients (βgra) are congruent within and among habitats and localities of the Brazilian Cerrado. In addition, we wanted to understand whether ecological mechanisms, such as dispersal limitation, habitat filtering, and species sorting, drive the distribution patterns of the Cerrado small mammals. We analyzed the occurrence and abundances of small mammals from 16 localities widely distributed across the Cerrado biome, and grouped our data with respect to two distinct spatial scales. Baselga's Bray–Curtis index of dissimilarity and its respective partitions, i.e., balanced variation in abundance (βbal) and abundance gradients (βgra), were estimated between sampling units at the two spatial scales. Thus, we used exponential models to search for distance decay in species similarity between pairs of localities and between similar habitats. Our results show that differences between small mammal assemblages in the Cerrado are driven mainly by species replacement rather than independent gain or loss of species, both at small and large scales. The spatial turnover patterns of small mammals in the Cerrado biome are determined by a combination of large scale (biogeographic, spatial) and local mechanisms (low dispersal and habitat specificity). However, processes occurring at small scales seem to be more important in species sorting than processes occurring at large scales. The spatial configuration of the landscape and the extent and quality of habitats strongly influence the rate of species turnover in Cerrado. Thus, protecting the different types of habitats should be of prime importance to conserving the diversity of Cerrado small mammals.

Offset schemes help avoid or revert habitat loss through protection of existing habitat (avoided deforestation), through the restoration of degraded areas (natural regrowth), or both. The spatial scale of an offset scheme may influence which of these 2 outcomes is favored and is an important aspect of the scheme’s design. However, how spatial scale influences the trade-offs between the preservation of existing habitat and restoration of degraded areas is poorly understood. We used the largest forest offset scheme in the world, which is part of the Brazilian Forest Code, to explore how implementation at different spatial scales may affect the outcome in terms of the area of avoided deforestation and area of regrowth. We employed a numerical simulation of trade between buyers (i.e., those who need to offset past deforestation) and sellers (i.e., landowners with exceeding native vegetation) in the Brazilian Amazon to estimate potential avoided deforestation and regrowth at different spatial scales of implementation. Allowing offsets over large spatial scales led to an area of avoided deforestation 12 times greater than regrowth, whereas restricting offsets to small spatial scales led to an area of regrowth twice as large as avoided deforestation. The greatest total area (avoided deforestation and regrowth combined) was conserved when the spatial scale of the scheme was small, especially in locations that were highly deforested. To maximize conservation gains from avoided deforestation and regrowth, the design of the Brazilian forest-offset scheme should focus on restricting the spatial scale in which offsets occur. Such a strategy could help ensure conservation benefits are localized and promote the recovery of degraded areas in the most threatened forest landscapes. Los esquemas de compensación ayudan a evitar o revertir la pérdida de hábitat mediante la protección del hábitat existente (deforestación evitada), mediante la restauración de áreas degradadas (recrecimiento natural) o ambos. La escala espacial de una mitigación puede influir en cuál de ellos es seleccionado y es un aspecto importante del diseño de esquema. Sin embargo, no se entiende bien cómo influye la escala espacial en las compensaciones entre la preservación del hábitat existente y la restauración de áreas degradadas. Utilizamos el esquema de compensación forestal más grande del mundo, que forma parte del Código Forestal Brasileño, para explorar cómo la implementación a diferentes escalas espaciales puede afectar el resultado en términos de la superficie de deforestación evitada y el área de recrecimiento. Empleamos una simulación numérica del comercio entre compradores (i.e., aquellos que necesitan compensar la deforestación pasada) y vendedores (i.e., propietarios con exceso de vegetación nativa) en la Amazonía brasileña para estimar deforestación evitada y el recrecimiento a diferentes escalas espaciales de implementación. Permitir compensaciones en grandes escalas espaciales dio lugar a una superficie de deforestación evitada 12 veces mayor que de recrecimiento, mientras que restringir compensaciones a pequeñas escalas espaciales dio lugar a una superficie de recrecimiento dos veces mayor que la deforestación evitada. La mayor superficie total (deforestación evitada y recrecimiento combinados) se conservó cuando la escala espacial del esquema era pequeña, especialmente en localidades muy deforestadas. Para maximizar los beneficios de conservación derivados de la deforestación evitada y el recrecimiento, el diseño del esquema brasileño de compensaciones debe centrarse en restringir la escala espacial en la que se producen las compensaciones. Esta estrategia ayudaría a garantizar que los beneficios de la conservación sean localizados y promuevan la recuperación de zonas degradadas en los paisajes forestales más amenazados. 生态补偿计划通过保护现有生境 (避免森林砍伐) 、恢复退化生境 (自然再生) 或双管齐下的方式, 来帮助 避免和逆转生境丧失。补偿计划实施的空间尺度可能会影响以上两个方面的侧重性, 因此, 其在补偿计划的设 计中十分重要。然而, 有关空间尺度如何影响现有生境保护和退化生境恢复之间的利弊权衡却研究甚少。本研 究中, 我们用世界上最大的森林补偿计划 (来 自 《 巴西森林法典》 来探索在不同尺度下实施补偿计划对于森林 免遭砍伐的面积和森林再生面积的保护成效的影响。我们在巴西亚马逊地区采用买家 (即需要补偿已经砍伐的 森林的人) 和卖家 (即拥有大量原生植被的土地所有者) 之间进行贸易的数值模拟方法, 评估了不同空间尺度下 实施补偿计划可能带来的森林免伐和森林再生的成效。结果显示, 如果允许在较大空间尺度上进行补偿, 则森 林免伐面积可能比森林再生面积大十二倍; 而在小尺度上进行补偿, 可能导致森林再生面积比避免砍伐的面积大 一倍。当补偿计划的空间尺度很小, 特別是实施地点在森林砍伐十分严重的地区时, 则得到保护的森林总面积 (森林免伐和森林再生面积之和) 最大。为了从森林免伐和森林再生中获得最大保护收益, 巴西森林补偿计划的 设计应该着重于限制进行补偿的空间尺度。这ー策略有助于保障当地的保护效益, 并促进受到严重威胁的森林 景观中的退化生境的恢复。

Avalanche climatology is defined as the study of the relationships between climate and snow avalanches, and it contributes in aiding avalanche hazard mitigation efforts. The field has evolved over the past six decades concerning methodology, data monitoring and field collection, and interdisciplinary linkages. Avalanche climate research directions are also expanding concerning treatment in both spatial scale and temporal timescales. This article provides an overview of the main themes of avalanche climate research in issues of scale from local to global, its expanding interdisciplinary nature, as well as its future challenges and directions. The growth of avalanche climatology includes themes such as its transformation from being mostly descriptive to innovative statistical methods and modeling techniques, new challenges in microscale efforts that include depth hoar aspects and increased field studies, expanding synoptic climatology applications on studying avalanche variations, efforts to reconstruct past avalanches and relate them to climatic change, and research on potential avalanche responses to recent twentieth-century and future global warming. Some suggestions on future avalanche climatology research directions include the expansion of data networks and studies that include lesser developed countries, stronger linkages of avalanche climate studies with GIScience and remote sensing applications, more innovative linkages of avalanches with climate and societal applications, and increased emphases on modeling and process-oriented approaches.

A rich history of research documents the effects of neighborhood-level socioeconomic status (SES) conditions on health outcomes. Recent criticism of the neighborhoods and health literature, however, has stressed several conceptual and methodological challenges not adequately addressed in previous research. Critics suggest that early work on neighborhoods and health gave little thought to the spatial scale at which SES factors influence a specific health outcome. This article discusses the concept of neighborhoods and health, reviews recent criticisms of existing work, and provides a case study that exemplifies how geographic methods can address one such criticism. Using data on birth defects in North Carolina, the case study examines the relation of SES to orofacial clefts (cleft lip and cleft palate) at different spatial scales. The Brown-Forsythe test is used to select optimal neighborhood size. Results are evaluated using logistic regression models to examine the relationship between SES measures and orofacial clefts, controlling for individual-level risk factors. Results indicate modest associations between neighborhood-level measures of poverty and cleft palate but no associations with cleft lip with or without cleft palate.

Habitat fragmentation is a major cause of functional disruption in plant-animal interactions. The net effect on plant regeneration is, however, controversial because a given landscape change can simultaneously hamper mutualism and attenuate antagonism. Furthermore, fragmentation effects may emerge at different spatial scales, depending on the size of the foraging range of the different interacting animals. We studied pollination by insects, frugivory by birds acting as seed dispersers, and postdispersal seed predation by rodents in 60 individual hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna Jacq.) trees in relation to structural fragmentation in the surrounding habitat. We evaluated fragmentation at three spatial scales by measuring the percentage of forest cover in three concentric areas around each tree of, respectively, 10-m, 20- to 50-m, and 50- to 100-m radius. The number of developing pollen tubes per flower style and fruit set decreased in proportion to the decrease of forest cover. Similarly, the magnitude of frugivory in focal trees was negatively affected by habitat loss. In contrast, seed predation was higher under plants in highly fragmented contexts. The effect of fragmentation was additive in terms of reducing the potential of plant regeneration. Moreover, the functional scale of response to habitat loss differed among interactions. Fragmentation effects on pollination emerged at the largest scale, whereas seed predation was mostly affected at the intermediate scale. In contrast to expectations from the larger foraging range of birds, fragmentation effects on frugivory mainly operated at the finest scale, favored by the ability of birds to cope hierarchically with spatial heterogeneity at different scales. Given that two opposing demographic forces (frugivory and seed predation) would be potentially affected by fine-scale features, we propose structural scale as the primary spatial dimension of fragmentation effects on the process of plant regeneration.