Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
MOTHER-OFFSPRING DISCRIMINATION IN THE RED-BACKED SALAMANDER MAY BE CONTEXT DEPENDENT

Kin discrimination, or the differential treatment of kin, is evident in a wide variety of taxa. The benefits and costs of kin discrimination may vary according to social and ecological conditions, causing discrimination to be context specific. We tested for context-dependent kin discrimination in the red-backed salamander (Plethodon cinereus), a terrestrial species in which adults of both sexes defend feeding territories in which juveniles are often found. If individuals demonstrate the ability to discriminate kin from non-kin, this action would indicate that a mechanism for long-term parental care is present. Mother salamanders may provide protection for juveniles by defending territories from cannibalistic intruders or by feeding on large invertebrates that are predators of juveniles. However, mother salamanders did not significantly discriminate their offspring from unrelated neonates when simple interactions between the two were monitored or when conspecific intruders were added to chambers. Neonates did not behave significantly differently toward mothers than they did toward unrelated females during simple interactions. They also failed to discriminate between substrates that had been scented by their mothers and those that had been scented by unrelated females. When given a choice between related and unrelated neonates, however, females cannibalized unrelated neonates significantly more than their own offspring. This study suggests that kin discrimination between mothers and offspring may occur only in particular contexts, but that mothers possess the mechanism by which they are able to discriminate their offspring from unrelated neonates.
Influence of Lantana aculeata Stem extract on Haematological Parameters in Rats

Lantana aculeata is a weed that grows up in pastures along fences and in cultivated fields. Different parts of the plant are used in Indian system of Medicine especially in Ayurveda to treat various diseases. The objective of the present study is to investigate the ethanolic extract of Lantana aculeata stem on haematological parameters in normal rats. Test animals were administered with the extract orally according to their body weight in doses of 50 and 100 mg/kg body weight for 30 days. Blood samples were evaluated for haematological parameters like erythrocyte count, leukocyte count, haemoglobin count and haematocrit value. A dose-dependant increase in haematological parameters suggests that the plant extract might possess haematopoietic activity.
Seasonal and Diurnal Variation of Formaldehyde and its Meteorological Drivers at the GAW Site Zugspitze

ABSTRACTContinuous formaldehyde measurements were performed at the high-altitude GAW site Environmental Research Station Schneefernerhaus for more than one year. This unique dataset was analyzed for daily and seasonal variation and for the influence of large-scale synoptic conditions and air-mass origin on the observed concentrations. The average daily course exhibited maxima in the afternoon and minima at night, however differing between seasons. The general strong seasonal variation with average values for winter, spring, summer, and fall of 0.350, 0.529, 0.986, 0.429 ppbv, respectively, could be well explained by secondary production following photochemical activity. The large variability of formaldehyde mixing ratios within the seasons was shown to be influenced by different factors in this complex topography such as mixing of air masses from the planetary boundary layer and the free troposphere, advection of differently aged air from various source regions, and local meteorological conditions. An analysis of the impact of large-scale weather types, cyclonality, and flow directions revealed that the cleanest air masses were advected from westerly directions in particular under cyclonic conditions while southerly cyclonic and northerly/northwesterly anticyclonic conditions led to the highest formaldehyde levels.
Comparison of the Quality of the Chicken Breasts from Organically and Conventionally Reared Chickens

Abstract In this study, the quality of chicken breasts from organically reared chickens was compared with that of chicken breastsfrom conventionally reared chickens. Broilers were raised in an indoor pen with conventional and organic production sys-tem, respectively. The diet formulation for the organically reared chickens and the production density were in accordancewith the guidelines for organic chicken products. Twenty birds from each group were slaughtered and their breasts wereobtained for analysis. The organic chicken breasts had a higher cooking loss, and waterholding capacity, and a lower shearforce ( p <0.05) compared to the conventional chicken breasts. The organic chicken breasts also showed higher a* and b*values and myoglobin contents compared with the conventional chicken breasts ( p <0.05). In the fatty-acid analysis, theorganic chicken breasts resulted in higher polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) and unsaturated fatty acid contents, and ahigher PUFA-saturated fatty acid ratio.
Effects of gap-based silviculture on thermal biology of a terrestrial reptile

Abstract Context. Terrestrial reptiles require varied thermal environments to promote optimal physiological performance, growth, reproduction, and survival. Aims. Our study was designed to determine whether gap-based silvicultural practices offer suitable thermal environments for eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina) by examining environmental temperature variation and body temperature of eastern box turtles in, and adjacent to, canopy gaps. Methods. We recorded box turtle body temperature from 20 radio-tracked turtles and environmental temperatures (canopy gaps and undisturbed habitat) using temperature loggers from June to September 2014 in a managed forest after canopy gaps (0.28–1.13 ha gap–1) were created via gap-based silviculture. Key results. Over the four-month study period, gap temperatures were generally higher than adjacent undisturbed microhabitats. Box turtle body temperatures were closely correlated with environmental temperatures in undisturbed habitat in June and July. Turtle body temperatures were, however, closely correlated with environmental temperatures in canopy gaps in August and September. In addition, box turtles in our study had activity areas that overlapped canopy gaps from 0 to 65%, depending on the individual. As percentage overlap of canopy gaps increased, turtle body temperatures were increasingly correlated with canopy gap temperatures. Furthermore, as percentage overlap of canopy gaps increased, daily mean body temperature records consistently stayed within the preferred box turtle body temperature range (20.2–26.2°C). Conclusions. Our study suggests that gap-based silviculture can create thermally compatible environments for box turtles depending on the time of day and year, and that box turtles use these microhabitats to thermoregulate. Implications. The application of relatively small-scale silvicultural practices (≤1 ha gap–1) that provide heterogeneity in forest structure, composition, and function may be a useful alternative to clearcutting and other intensive harvesting methods that are associated with declines in terrestrial reptile populations.
Topographic heterogeneity, hydrodynamics, and benthic community structure: a scale-dependent cascade

The influence of boulder size on flow velocity and rocky shore intertidal macrobenthic diversity and biomass was examined. A 3.6 m radius area around boulders of ddferent size categories (50-75,75-100, and 200-250 cm) and control sites [no boulders) was divided into six 60" sectors and 4 distanceclasses away from boulders (0-30,30-90, 90-180, and 180-360 cm), forming 24 sampling cells tor each boulder and control site. Flow velocity patterns near boulders were examined with MarshMci3irney current meters and plaster cylinders immersed in the center of each sampling cell. Sessile organisms in 4 randomly positioned 10 x 10 cm quadrats from each sampling cell were sampled. The blotted mass of each species collected was determined for each quadrat (n = 1440). Downstream of a large boulder, mean flow velocity was half that upstream. This was also the only orientation where flow velocity never reached > 15 cm S-'. Similarly, velocity indices obtalned from theerosion of plaster cylinders were significantly lower downstream compared to upstream of boulders, and differences were greater for large boulders. Invertebrate biomass decreased significantly downstream of boulders. This effect increased with boulder size, and was significant for the large boulder category (200-250 cm]. Algal biomass was not significantly influenced by boulders, though distribution patterns were analogous to invertebrate biomass. D~versity (H') peaked along the distance gradient around larger boulders, and generally increased with boulder size. The positive correlation between biomass and the velocity index was stronger with increasing boulder size. The correlation between invertebrate biomass and the flow velocity index was not significant at control sites, but 27.4 % of the varialion in invertebrate biomass around large boulders could be explained by the velocity index. These results support the hypotheses that (1) hydrodynamics is a vector linking topographic heterogeneity and community structure, and (21 this cascade (topographic heterogeneity + hydrodynamics + community structure) is scale-dependent
Interpretation of hydrologic trends from a water balance perspective: The role of groundwater storage in the Budyko hypothesis

We investigate the observed positive trends in annual runoff in several basins in central Nebraska using the Budyko hypothesis as a diagnostic tool. In basins where runoff is dominated by base flow we found that the estimated annual evapotranspiration (ETa) to precipitation (P) ratio (ETa/P) from data is negatively related to the aridity index (ETp/P, where ETp is potential annual evapotranspiration). This observation is inconsistent with the Budyko hypothesis. We hypothesized that the observed negative trend results from significant interannual changes in basin water storage. This hypothesis is tested using data from groundwater monitoring wells in the Sand Hills region of Nebraska. Plots of the yearly changes in groundwater storage versus the annual aridity index revealed the mean annual aridity index as a critical climatological variable that controls basin storage gain‐loss dynamics. For the same absolute deviation from the mean climate, we found that a wetter year leads to a larger gain in groundwater storage than the net loss in a drier year. We argue that this storage gain‐loss behavior builds a climate memory in the hydrologic system, causing persistence and statistically significant trends in annual runoff. A parsimonious model was developed that couples the Budyko hypothesis with a linear reservoir equation for base flow and was used to examine the possible causes of observed positive trends of annual runoff. We found that subtle, statistically insignificant, increases in annual P have led to positive and statistically insignificant trends in annual ETa and P − ETa. Annual runoff, on the other hand, was predicted to have high persistence and statistical significance, consistent with observations. Further model sensitivity analyses showed that increasing the size of the groundwater reservoir is associated with increased long‐term (multidecadal) persistence in annual runoff and translates high‐frequency, high‐amplitude variation in climate to low‐frequency, low‐amplitude runoff response. Our results underscore the importance of evaluating apparent trends in any system variable in a complete water budget context.
Physiological Consequences of Habitat Selection

By determining the microclimates that an animal experiences, habitats influence an animal's physiological capacities and ultimately its demographic and ecological performance. As a result, the ecology of organisms-especially of ectotherms-can be profoundly affected by the physiological consequences of habitat selection. Early ecologists such as Shelford and Chapman appreciated these issues, but most later ones tended to ignore physiology and instead focused on biotic interactions (e.g., competition). Recent technical and conceptual developments are now fostering a reintroduction of physiology into ecology. For issues relevant to thermal physiology, three steps are involved. First, the microclimates available in a habitat must be mapped. For ectotherms, this involves determining the operative environmental temperatures (Te)-that is, the potential body temperatures available in a habitat. Biophysical techniques can now generate Te maps with considerable accuracy. Second, the physiological effects of body temperature must be quantified. This requires laboratory studies of the effect of temperature on key performance traits. Third, the physiological suitability of habitats can be predicted by integrating the above environmental and physiological data. Analyses of the physiological consequences of habitat selection are exemplified in several case studies, and the importance of considering food and other factors in the analyses is stressed. An extension to endotherms is briefly discussed.
Infrared investigation of barite and gypsum crystallization: Evidence for an amorphous to crystalline transition

Infrared was used to monitor the progression of barite (BaSO4) and gypsum (CaSO4·2H2O) crystallization. It was found that barite crystallized with broad infrared peaks that narrowed over time. This was accentuated when an inhibitor was added. The infrared of gypsum in the early stages showed a phase that was clearly different to either bassinite or gypsum. It is hypothesised that in the absence of inhibitors, the rate-determining step for barite crystallization is the transformation from a disordered solid to a crystalline solid as little water was observed to be present during this process when inhibitors are not present. All of these findings are consistent with a non-classical model of crystallization where disordered solids eventually rearrange to a crystalline solid if not inhibited. It also suggests that water may be key to determining the “lifetime” of the disordered clusters.
Bevacizumab : A Review of Use in High Grade Gliomas

Malignant gliomas are the most common type of primary malignant brain tumors in adults. They have a grave prognosis that is attributed to their high proliferative index and increased vascular proliferation. The latter is primarily mediated by the secretion of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) by tumor cells, which leads to the development of an increased number of abnormal blood vessels in and around the tumor. There has been evidence of radiographic response with clinical improvement by targeting this signaling pathway using VEGF/VEGF receptor inhibitors, primarily bevacizumab (BEV), a monoclonal antibody against VEGF, which has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment of recurrent gliomas. Though it extends progression-free survival (PFS) and decreases the reliance on steroids, BEV has not been shown to confer a survival benefit in patients with malignant glioma. We have reviewed the available literature to demonstrate the effectiveness and drawbacks of BEV therapy reinforcing the need for research into newer, better-tolerated and more effective modalities.
Morphological and genetic variability of assemblages of Cyclotella ocellata Pantocsek/C. comensis Grunow complex (Bacillariophyta, Thalassiosirales)

Centric diatom taxa in the Cyclotella ocellata and C. comensis complexes show high morphological variability and often apparently continuous morphological transitions. In this study, we investigated natural assemblages of the C. ocellata/C. comensis complex from Hungarian and Croatian lakes and from Turkish streams using morphological and molecular methods. The studied assemblages contained cells with morphologies resembling C. ocellata as well as other, closely related, species: C. comensis, C. pseudocomensis, C. costei, and C. trichnoidea. The goal of our paper was to assess whether the observed morphological differences were due to intraspecific variability or suggest the existence of several, putatively distinct species. Ten morphometric characters were measured, which, either individually, or in pairs, did not differentiate the nominal taxa in our assemblages. However, multivariate discriminant analysis has revealed a group including C. ocellata and C. trichonidea morphologies could be separated from another containing C. comensis, C. pseudocomensis and C. costei. A nuclear (18S rDNA) and a chloroplast (rbcL) gene were amplified and partially sequenced from environmental DNA or from isolated cells. The sequences showed little variability among the assemblages and nominal species. Although general congruence of molecular and morphometric separation supports the species level separation of C. ocellata/trichonidea from the probably conspecific C. comensis/pseudocomensis/costei, sequence divergences between the groups are in the same range as within them, so that a conspecificity of all four taxa cannot be unequivocally excluded.
LEI0258 microsatellite variability and its relationship to B-F haplotypes in Brazilian (blue-egg Caipira) chickens

A total of 149 chickens from two different sources (one non-commercial, the other commercial) was tested for variability of the LEI0258 microsatellite. Fifty- three genotypes, explainable by 15 alleles, were found. There are clear allele and heterozygosity differences between the two samples. One of them was simultaneously studied for the MHC B-F haplotypes. Strong genetic disequilibrium was observed between the variants of the two systems, therefore providing a cheap alternative for MHC genotyping.
Environmental change during the Quaternary in East Asia and its consequences for mammals

Environmental changes during the Quaternary in eastern Asia had profound impacts on the distributions of mammals. Critical for many taxa were the southward latitudinal shifts of the tropical and subtropical zones, and decreases in the areal extents of these zones. In this study, a geographic information system (GIS) has been used to examine the spatial responses of mammalian genera to environmental changes of the Pleistocene of China. Conditions of increasing seasonality during the Pleistocene favoured the evolution of large and well-insulated morphs in several mammalian families (e.g., Rhinocerotidae, Tapindae, Elephantidae), but this strategy was not successful (in terms of long-term survival) in many cases. The spatial responses of members of a single clade, the Catarrhini or Old World higher primates, are of particular interest. The main catarrhine genera of eastern Asia responded individually to conditions of increasing seasonality during the Pleistocene, and these responses reflected the life history parameters of the genera involved. Apes were found to be the most sensitive to conditions of increased seasonality, with large apes (Fongo, Gigantopithecus) retreating in advance of gibbons (Hylobates). Monkeys retreated southward more slowly and to a lesser extent than apes because of their abilities to survive in more highly seasonal environments and to produce offspring on relatively abbreviated reproductive schedules. These results provide a new basis for predicting the responses of primates and other mammals to future environmental change.
brasses as a Reservoir of Barley Yellow Dwarf Virus in Indiana

Fargette, D. , Lister, R. M. , and Hood, E. L. 1982. Grasses as a reservoir of barley yellow dwarf virus in Indiana. Plant Disease 66: 1041-1045. About 50% of the grass samples collected in lndiana during the summer of 1980 were infected with barley yellow dwarf virus (BY DV) according to enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The isolates distinguished by the tests resembled PAV (nonspecifically transmitted by Rltopalosipkuinpadiand Macrosiykitnt avenue), MAV (specifically transmitted by M. avenue), or RPV (specifically transmitted by R. padi). Results indicated that there is a large reservoir of BYDV in perennial grasses in lndiana but that this may not be the most important source of inoculum for spread to cereals. For example, RPV-like isolates were the most prevalent type in grasses at the Purdue University Agronomy Farm, but samples from winter wheat and spring oats collected there were infected mostly with PAV-like isolates. In addition, grasses around a plot where wheat artificially infected with a PAV-like isolate had been grown for several seasons showed very few PAV-like infections. Other possible sources of BYDV, including corn (Zea mays), need investigation in relation to epidemiology in cereals.
Testing Many Moment Inequalities

This paper considers the problem of testing many moment inequalities where the number of moment inequalities, denoted by p, is possibly much larger than the sample size n. There are a variety of economic applications where the problem of testing many moment inequalities appears; a notable example is a market structure model of Ciliberto and Tamer (2009) where p = 2m+1 with m being the number of firms. We consider the test statistic given by the maximum of p Studentized (or t-type) statistics, and analyze various ways to compute critical values for the test statistic. Specifically, we consider critical values based upon (i) the union bound combined with a moderate deviation inequality for self-normalized sums, (ii) the multiplier and empirical bootstraps, and (iii) two-step and three-step variants of (i) and (ii) by incorporating selection of uninformative inequalities that are far from being binding and novel selection of weakly informative inequalities that are potentially binding but do not provide first order information. We prove validity of these methods, showing that under mild conditions, they lead to tests with error in size decreasing polynomially in n while allowing for p being much larger than n; indeed p can be of order exp(nc) for some c > 0. Importantly, all these results hold without any restriction on correlation structure between p Studentized statistics, and also hold uniformly with respect to suitably large classes of underlying distributions. Moreover, when p grows with n, we show that all of our tests are (minimax) optimal in the sense that they are uniformly consistent against alternatives whose "distance" from the null is larger than the threshold (2(log p)/n)1/2, while any test can only have trivial power in the worst case when the distance is smaller than the threshold. Finally, we show validity of a test based on block multiplier bootstrap in the case of dependent data under some general mixing conditions.
The effect of moving on union dissolution

This paper examines the effect of migration and residential mobility on union dissolution among married and cohabiting couples. While there is a large, multidisciplinary literature looking at the determinants of union dissolution in Europe and North America, the possible impact of geographical mobility has received little attention. This is despite the fact that moving is a stressful life event and that numerous studies suggest that women’s economic well-being and employment suffer from family moves which are usually stimulated by the man’s career. We base our longitudinal analysis on retrospective event-history data from Austria and apply hazard regression. Our results show that couples who move frequently have a significantly higher risk of union dissolution. We argue that frequent moving increases couple stress and union instability through a variety of mechanisms.