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This paper examines issues concerning mothering and childcare, with an emphasis on two crucial aspects which are based on the fact that mothers’ individual behaviours are undoubtedly time-space dependent. First, unlike the majority of studies which have investigated mothers’ isolation by applying qualitative methods, this exploratory study using data from the Czech Republic is based on a time-geographical approach using time-space diaries, a questionnaire survey, and statistical analyses of quantitative data. Second, the paper examines the interrelationship between real time-space activity patterns and perceived senses of loneliness and isolation. The model of socio-spatial isolation developed here suggests that such isolation is significantly affected by the place of residence, work activity, household income, and frequency of performing leisure activities, particularly making trips into the countryside, attending cultural events, meeting friends, and taking time for self-care. Mothers’ clubs, which are significantly more often visited by urban mothers, serve as places for sharing common problems, but they do not reduce perceptions of isolation. Isolation is more likely to be perceived by rural mothers, and mothers from lower income households who do not have any parttime work during parental leave. One-third of Czech mothers, however, still hold the traditional view that responsible mothers primarily care for children and do not work during parental leave. The absence of any part-time work negatively affects not only women's professional and personal lives but also their economic status, which further limits their possibilities for leisure-time activities and increases their socio-spatial isolation. In this respect, policy interventions should seek to improve the possibilities of flexible working for mothers as well as to develop programmes and options for leisure-time activities, particularly for mothers from low-income families living in rural areas.

In this note, we use a consistently defined set of metropolitan areas to study patterns and trends in black hypersegregation from 1970 to 2010. Over this 40-year period, 52 metropolitan areas were characterized by hypersegregation at one point or another, although not all at the same time. Over the period, the number of hypersegregated metropolitan areas declined by about one-half, but the degree of segregation within those areas characterized by hypersegregation changed very little. As of 2010, roughly one-third of all black metropolitan residents lived in a hypersegregated area.

Aim Isolation is a key factor in island biology. It is usually defined as the distance to the geographically nearest mainland, but many other definitions exist. We explored how testing different isolation indices affects the inference of impacts of isolation on faunal characteristics. We focused on land bridge islands and compared the relationships of many spatial and temporal (i.e., through time) isolation indices with community‐, population‐ and individual‐level characteristics (species richness, population density and body size, respectively). Location Aegean Sea islands, Greece. Time period Current. Taxon Many animal taxa. Methods We estimated 21 isolation indices for 205 islands and recorded species richness data for 15 taxa (invertebrates and vertebrates). We obtained body size data for seven lizard species and population density data for three. We explored how well indices predict each characteristic, in each taxon, by conducting a series of ordinary least squares regressions (controlling for island area when needed) and a meta‐analysis. Results Isolation was significantly (and negatively) associated with species richness in 10 of 15 taxa. It was significantly (and positively) associated with body size in only one of seven species and was not associated with population density. The effect of isolation on species richness was much weaker than that of island area, regardless of the index tested. Spatial indices generally out‐performed temporal indices, and indices directly related to the mainland out‐performed those related mainly to neighbouring islands. No index was universally superior to others, including the distance to the geographically nearest mainland. Main conclusions The choice of index can alter our perception of the impacts of isolation on biological patterns. The nearly automatic, ubiquitous use of distance to the geographically nearest mainland misrepresents the complexity of the effects of isolation. We recommend the simultaneous testing of several indices that represent different aspects of isolation, in order to produce more constructive and thorough investigations and avoid imprecise inference.

ContextAmazonian white-sand ecosystems (campinas) are open vegetation patches which form a natural island-like system in a matrix of tropical rainforest. Due to a clear distinction from the surrounding matrix, the spatial characteristics of campina patches may affect the genetic diversity and composition of their specialized organisms, such as the small and endemic passerine Elaenia ruficeps.ObjectivesTo estimate the relative contribution of the current extension, configuration and geographical context of campina patches to the patterns of genetic diversity and population structure of E. ruficeps.MethodsWe sampled individuals of E. ruficeps from three landscapes in central Amazonia with contrasting campina spatial distribution, from landscapes with large and connected patches to landscapes with small and isolated patches. We estimated population structure, genetic diversity, and contemporary and historical migration within and among the three landscapes and used landscape metrics as predictor variables. Furthermore, we estimated genetic isolation by distance and resistance within landscapes.ResultsWe identified three genetically distinct populations with asymmetrical gene flow among landscapes and a decreasing migration rate with distance. Within each landscape, we found low differentiation without genetic isolation by distance nor by resistance. In contrast, we found differentiation and spatial correlation between landscapes.ConclusionsTogether with previous studies, the population dynamics of E. ruficeps suggests that both regional context and landscape structure shape the connectivity among populations of campina specialist birds. Also, the spatial distribution of Amazonian landscapes, together with their associated biota, has changed in response to climatic changes in the Late Pleistocene.

Despite the importance of seed dispersal for survival of plant species in fragmented landscapes, data on seed dispersal at landscape scales remain sparse. Effective seed dispersal among fragments determines recolonization and plant species persistence in such landscapes. We present the first large-scale (216-km2) direct estimates of realized seed dispersal of a high-value timber tree (Dysoxylum malabaricum) across an agro-forest landscape in the Western Ghats, India. Based upon an exhaustive inventory of adult trees and a sample of 488 seedlings all genotyped at 10 microsatellite loci, we estimated realized seed dispersal using parentage analysis and the neighbourhood model. Our estimates found that most realized seed dispersal was within 200 m, which is insufficient to effectively bridge the distances between forest patches. We conclude that using mobility of putative animal dispersers can be misleading when estimating tropical tree species vulnerability to habitat fragmentation. This raises serious concerns about the potential of many tropical trees to recolonize isolated forest patches where high-value tree species have already been removed.

Abstract The snapdragon Antirrhinum majus has been a model species for genetics, plant development, and evolution since the 19th century. Recent studies have expanded the focus to the entire Antirrhinum genus as a model system for rapid evolution (26 species in < 5 million years). However, in-depth studies to reconstruct microevolution in additional snapdragon species are lacking. This study aimed to explore to what extent potential pollinators, flower colour morphs, spatial and environmental factors contribute to differentiation in a small population of the Mediterranean A. charidemi (south-eastern Spain). We studied a population of approximately 200 A. charidemi individuals with either pink or white corollas, characterized by strong topographic heterogeneity (horizontal extension of 120 × 80 meters; 40-meter altitude difference) and diversity in environmental factors (substrate, vegetation). The study analysed pollinator preference for either white or pink corollas, genetic diversity using 13 nuclear SSR loci and three plastid haplotypes, and the spatial population structure. Flower visitors displayed some indication of preference for pink corollas (five of ten bee species) and flower colour morphs were genetically differentiated. However, the strongest pattern of genetic differentiation was associated with a fine-scale spatio-topographic isolation in the population, with five topo-genetic subpopulations and a pollen-to-seed dispersal distance ratio of 4.32. Our results agree with similar patterns of strong spatial genetic isolation found in A. charidemi at larger scales: phylogeographic differentiation of populations and phylogenetic relationships within a south-eastern Iberian Antirrhinum clade. Despite the extreme corolla specialization for bee pollination, spatial isolation appears to be the predominant factor driving short- and long-term differentiation in A. charidemi. We argue that a comprehensive understanding of early stages of rapid evolution requires detailed investigation of fine-scale evolutionary drivers, including both spatial isolation (topography) and ecological factors (e.g. pollination fauna). This study explores the factors contributing to genetic differentiation in a small population of the Mediterranean snapdragon Antirrhinum charidemi, an endemic of the Cabo de Gata region in Southern Spain. The population, characterized by topographic heterogeneity and environmental diversity, includes individuals with either pink or white corollas. While insect flower visitors showed a slight preference for pink corollas, and flower colour morphs were genetically differentiated, the most significant genetic differentiation was driven by fine-scale spatial and topographic isolation. The study discusses the importance of spatial isolation in both short- and long-term differentiation in the genus Antirrhinum, despite its specialised bee-pollination. The findings suggest that a detailed investigation of fine-scale evolutionary drivers, including topography and ecological factors, is crucial for understanding the early stages of rapid evolution in A. charidemi and similar species.

This paper uses the survival strategies of food shelf clients to explore how food access, chronic disease, and spatial isolation shape the lives of low- and no- income urban citizens. The abundant availability of unhealthy food intersects with the presence of long-term health conditions to create a marginalized urban space where low quality commodity food is available, but exacerbates existing health conditions, is difficult to access, and does little to create food security. To survive, clients have normalized a sustenance strategy of going to multiple food serving sites, carrying food long-distances and using SNAP benefits to make ends meet. However, this nourishment strategy is time-consuming and unsafe, demanding that people put themselves in precarious positions and push their bodies farther physically than is healthy. These food procurement strategies exacerbate their marginalization. Qualitative data from food shelf users is used to develop a theory of wherein the struggle for food access is unhealthy and time-consuming, making it difficult to improve their standard of living.

The geography of ageing is addressed in this article by providing new empirical evidence about the significant role of daily activities on the perceptions of isolation and loneliness. The developed model of socio-spatial isolation is based on data from time-space diaries and questionnaires completed by older adults living in three cities in the Czech Republic. The study suggests that socio-spatial isolation is a multicomponent (consisting of passivity, isolation and loneliness components), place-dependent and gendered issue. The passivity is significantly associated with the income and leisure sport activities. The isolation can be well predicted by the age, gender and education, and the frequency of work and specific leisure activities, which are constrained by health conditions, financial opportunities and spatial mobility. Particularly trips to nature, sport activities, cultural events, get together with friends, and visits to restaurants have a positive effect on reducing isolation. Women, particularly those who raised more children, more likely feel lonely in old age when family contacts are reduced. Visits to restaurants, shopping malls and cultural events have a positive effect on reducing loneliness. A constrained mobility and higher time consumption for necessary activities also proved to be an age-related and gendered problem. In this respect, policy interventions should seek to improve flexible work opportunities, the digital skills of older people, and the accessibility and safety of public transport with regard to perceived constraints, which is gaining in importance in the Covid-19 era.

Currently, various types of myoglobins and hemoglobins are widely used in the fields of food additives and biocatalytic applications. However, the limited availability of heme constrains the biosynthesis of these high-activity hemoproteins in microbial chassis cells. In this work, a new heme synthetic pathway was reconstructed in the mitochondria by eliminating the spatial barrier during heme synthesis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, resulting in a significant enhancement in intracellular heme supply. To further enhance the supply of the essential precursor for heme synthesis (5-aminolevulinate, ALA), the special ALA exporter in the mitochondrial membrane (Ort1p) was identified and knocked out. Moreover, the mitochondrial heme exporter (Ygr127wp) was overexpressed to promote the transport of heme to the cytoplasm to participate in the synthesis of various myoglobins and hemoglobins. Based on these strategies in the engineered strain, the binding ratios of heme in porcine myoglobin (52.4 ± 4.9%) and soybean hemoglobin (75.5 ± 2.8%) were, respectively, increased by 2.4-fold and 3.6-fold, and the titers of porcine myoglobin (130.5 ± 2.8 mg·L−1) and soybean hemoglobin (152.8 ± 2.6 mg·L−1), respectively, increased by 31.1% and 42.1%. Furthermore, the engineered strain presents great potential in the efficient synthesis of other heme-binding proteins and enzymes in S. cerevisiae.

Premise of the study: Although spatial distance is considered the primary factor in determining plant mating patterns, flowering time and synchrony are also likely to be important. Methods: We quantified the relationships of both distance and flowering phenology to the probability of mating between individual plants. In an experimental plot, we followed daily flowering phenology in Echinacea angustifolia, a self-incompatible perennial pollinated by solitary bees. We assigned paternity to 832 of 927 seedlings from 37 maternal plants using 11 microsatellite loci. Potential pollen donors included the experiment plot's 202 flowering plants and a nearby plot's 19 flowering plants. For each maternal plant sampled, we examined the pollen pool by quantifying correlated paternity and the effective number of pollen donors. Key results: Significantly more pollinations occurred between neighboring and synchronous plants than expected under random mating, with distance being more important than flowering synchrony. The distance pollen moved varied over the course of the season, with late flowering plants mating with more distant plants compared to early or peak flowering plants. All maternal plants had a diverse set of mates (mean number of effective pollen donors = 23.7), and the composition of the pollen pools overlapped little between maternal plants. Conclusion: Both distance and flowering synchrony influenced pollination patterns in E. angustifolia. Our results suggest that pollen movement between incompatible mates and flowering asynchrony could be contributing to the reduced seed set observed in small E. angustifolia remnants. However, we also found that individual plants receive pollen from a diverse group of pollen donors.