Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
Structure of an anuran community in a montane meadow in southeastern Brazil: effects of seasonality, habitat, and predation

In order to assess the main factors influencing its structure, an anuran community was studied from August 1996 to July 1997, in a 1200 m high rocky meadow site at the Serra do Cipo, Minas Gerais, Brasil, a region with markedly seasonal climate. The study site included three temporary habitats: a stream, a puddle, and a swamp. Thirteen anuran species were recorded at the study site. Species of tadpoles differed in microhabitat as to their position in water column, annual occurrence period, and water flow in the occupied sites. Aquatic vegetation, depth and occupied habitat (stream, swamp, or puddle) were of secondary importance in telling species apart. Calling sites of males were distinguished based on occupied habitat and annual activity period. Most species started their reproductive activities at the onset of the rains, in an opportunistic way. Water availability in the habitat seems to be the most important factor affecting temporal distribution of reproductive activities in the anuran community. Competitive interactions could not be detected in the community. The most important tadpole predators recorded at the study site were belostomatid water bugs and dragonfly nymphs. Their abundance peaks occurred after those of tadpoles, as predicted for predator-prey populations with interconnected cycles. Mortality rates were high for tadpoles, and predation is the most likely cause. Differences recorded among species, considering time of occurrence, tadpole microhabitats, and male calling sites, may reflect distinct specific adaptations and preferences.
DEVELOPING CURRICULUM, TEACHER AND INSTRUCTION FOR QUALITY ENGLISH LINGUISTICS, LITERATURE AND EDUCATION

Indonesia as a multicultural country has special characteristics compared to other countries in the world. Besides as a multicultural country, Indonesia also known as a country which actively used more or less 300 local languages by its community which are stretched since the western part to the easiest part of Indonesia. English as one of a foreign language which is compulsory taught in national curriculums. The need for English textbooks governed by the government through a special board, namely National Board of Educational Standard (BSNP) or now is well-known ̳Pusat Perbukuan Nasional. ‘ This board has a specific task that is to arrange since preparation for writing up to mandating the textbooks of which are regarded or recommended to be used in the schools based on its levels. The contents of the textbooks were also assessed and evaluated accurately by the National Board of Educational Standard (BSNP) in order to ensure that those textbooks have met the standard made. The objectives of this research were to investigate and describe clearly about the identity issues which contained in the English textbook used in the Junior High School and Islamic School ̳Madrasah Tsanawiah (MTs). ‘ The data source of this research obtained from an English textbook ̳English in Focus‘ which is published by the Department of National Education of Republic of Indonesia. Meanwhile research method applied was content analysis viewed from socio-cultural perspective. This method chosen based on the characteristics of the research which elucidated some issues related to culture and identity issues which occurring within the textbook investigated. Research findings show that cultural representation which are depicted through using names, pictures, symbols, expressions/sentences, and social identities are characterized with some traits, cover: gender, race, and profession which are used unequally and inconstancy among the reading texts and picture illustration. Based on the results, it can be drawn conclusion that identity issues become one of the prominent aspects in writing English textbooks, especially English as a foreign language, in this respect is English textbooks for junior high and high school students. Paying close attention to this respect is meant to enhance the students‘ awareness of multiculturalism and cross-cultural understanding in order to remain and develop awareness of the sense of equality within the framework of the unitary Republic of Indonesia.
Dawyck Botanic Garden: the Heron Wood cryptogamic project

Historical background Sir William Wright Smith gained his early botanical expertise via a lectureship at Edinburgh University and four years in India where he was Curator of the Government Herbarium at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Calcutta, Acting Director of the Botanical Survey of India and Director of the Lloyd Botanic Garden, Darjeeling, the Sikkim cinchona plantations and the quinine factory in Mungpoo. Whilst in India he gained invaluable botanical knowledge in expeditions to littleknown areas of the Himalayas, especially in Sikkim and the borders of India with Nepal, Tibet and with Bhutan. On his return to Edinburgh in 1911 he became Deputy Keeper of the Botanic Garden and in 1922 became Professor of Botany and Regius Keeper at the Botanic Garden (Matthews, 1957). Through his interests especially in the genus Rhododendron, one of his chosen genera of study in his later years, he was well acquainted with the best horticultural collections in Scotland, indeed in many cases it was after discussion with him that many of these plantings were instigated. One of these prize collections was on an estate in the Scottish Borders, which boasted specimens collected by David Douglas in North America, some of the first plantings of exotic European trees and many, then recently introduced, Chinese woody plants. This same estate possessed an extraordinary wood where you could find flesh, fish and fruit all on the same tree, a mythical wood commented on in several histories of the Borders, including 1715 papers belonging to Dr Alexander Penicuik. The myth was enhanced by the fact that Merlin, King Arthur's magician, is reputed to be buried quite close at Drumelzier. The story of the extraordinary wood results from the fact that nearly 300 years ago there was a heronry in the pear orchard and these birds fished for eels and trout in the nearby Tweed and took them back to their nests; some eels escaped and so were seen in the wood trying to return to the river. These, with the pears and the herons, which have been eaten in historic times, provided the myth and the wood became known as Heron Wood! The wood is on the slopes of a stream issuing from heathland and hill-pasture known as The Scrape Burn and is now an integral part of the Dawyck Botanic Garden, an out station of the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh, situated less than 60 km from Edinburgh in the Borders, approximately equidistant from Glasgow and Edinburgh. Dawyck Botanic Garden is situated in a track of agricultural policies near
BIO-RESPONSE TO WHITE NOISE EXCITATION

Pink (1/f-) noise is one of the most common behaviors of biosystems. This paper is devoted to clarifying the stochastic answer given to white-noise excitation of bio-systems. It is assumed that a living system in general is a bifurcative self-organizing system, and has cyclic symmetry with infinite degrees of freedom, and stationary random stochastic processes characterize their dynamism. We show that this bifurcation characterizes all levels of bioactivity, and the white-noise excited biosystem has a filter function, and generates a pink-noise spectrum. Environmental white-noise electromagnetic excitation (like ‘electrosmog’ in general) is filtered by the biosystem, and it gives a characteristic pink-noise answer-signal to this excitation.
Comparative Phytochemical Evaluation and Antioxidant Assay of Piper longum L. and Piper chaba Hunter Used in Indian Traditional Systems of Medicine

Fruits of Piper longum (Indian tipali) and Piper chaba (Bangla tipali) are widely used in traditional Indian systems of medicine, and the latter is considered as a substitute for the former. Phytochemical evaluations of these two species were carried out with reference to the volatile chemical profiles of the leaves and fruits, and piperine content of the fruits and their antioxidant potential were compared to determine the propriety of using P. chaba as a substitute for P. longum. The leaf oil of P. longum was rich with the phenyl propanoids apiole (50.0%) and myristicin (26.9%), whereas sesquiterpene hydrocarbons β-caryophyllene (28.6%), α-humulene (22.8%), and germacrene D (14.6%) were the major constituents in P. chaba leaf oil. In the fruit oil of P. longum, aliphatic compounds predominated with n-pentadecane (15.8%), whereas P. chaba fruit oil mainly had sesquiterpene hydrocarbons such as germacrene D (21.5%), β-caryophyllene (18.5%), and α-humulene (11.4%). In P. longum fruits, piperine content was lower (0.03%) compared to P. chaba fruits (1.32%). In P. chaba, the piperamides were mainly piperine, whereas other piperamides were predominant in P. longum. Antioxidant activity was higher for P. longum fruits as compared to P. chaba fruits.
Microorganisms associated with feeding and from various organs of Nezara viridula

The internal microflora transferred by feeding southern green stink bugs varied among insects which were field collected from soybean at defined stages of plant development. Thirty-five microorganisms transferred by feeding stink bugs were identified at least to genus. Two transferred fungi were identified as the causative agent of yeast spot disease of soybean, Nematospora coryli Peglion, but were transmitted by only 2 of 118 insects. Five of the 31 bacteria isolated (3- Corynebacterium and 2- Pseudomonas ) produced leaf spots and vein necrosis when sprayed on seedling soybean. Over 90% of the isolated microorganisms produced an extracellular lipase which could contribute to the reduced oil content reported in stink bug damaged soybean. This study indicated that no more than a casual relationship exists between microbes and stink bugs. However, Nezara viridula (L.) has the potential to be a significant vector of both fungal and bacterial diseases of soybean.
Ictiofauna associada às macrófitas aquáticas Eichhornia azurea (SW.) Kunth. e Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms. no lago Camaleão, Amazônia Central, Brasil - DOI: 10.4025/actascibiolsci.v25i2.2026

Fish fauna associated to aquatic macrophytes Eichhornia azurea (SW.) Kunth. and Eichhornia crassipes (Mart.) Solms. at Camaleao lake, Central Amazonia, Brazil. This research describes the influence of biotic and abiotic characteristics on fish fauna structure that inhabits the stands of aquatic macrophytes Eichhornia azurea and Eichhornia crassipes. 182 individuals were sampled belonging to 27 fish species in Camaleao lake, Central Amazonia. Values of dissolved oxygen and water temperature varied from 2.11 to 4.02mgL-1 and 29.17 to 30.93 o C for the stands of E. crassipes, and from 1.29 to 2.59mgL-1 and 28.32 and 29.95 o C for E. azurea. The highest number of fish species (24), individuals (134), biomass of roots (1572gm -2 ) belonged to E. azurea. Significantly differences among the stands were obtained to emerged portions (p<0.018; F=8.891) and to the number of individuals that do not support hypoxia (p<0.035; F=6.383). Diversity, evenness and similarity indexes show that fish assemblages associated to banks of E. azurea and E. crassipes have different structure and select the Eichhornia spp stand.
Earlier Breeding Shortens Life in Female Greater Horseshoe Bats

Life history theory predicts that an individual may gain in fitness by postponing reproduction if, by doing so, future reproductive capacity or longevity is enhanced. To test this theory I studied the survival and fecundity of earlier (start age 2 years) and later (start age 3 years or later) breeding female bats. Mature females produce one young annually, may miss breeding in some years and can still breed at age 29 years. Earlier breeders (EB) have similar mean skeletal size and birth date to later breeders (LB), but they have higher fat reserves late in their first winter and in their second autumn, when follicular development starts, and are probably superior foragers. EB averaged 5.6 and LB 8.1 years at death. Higher mortality in the former group was associated with parturition later in July during early breeding attempts. Lifetime reproductive success (LRS) of both groups was highly variable and strongly correlated with lifespan, which explained 99 and 96% of observed variation respectively. Differences in mean lifespan had no significant effect upon the mean LRS of EB and LB (4.4 and 5.1 births per female respectively). Although earlier breeding reduces lifespan, because it starts a year earlier and breeding rates are higher in EB than in LB (96% cf. 85% per year), overall there appear to be equal fitness benefits. During rapid population recovery after a climate-induced crash, earlier breeding was enhanced and may be advantageous until the population stabilizes. Hence studies testing life history theory should take account of population trends and climate. These seem to be crucially interconnected via food availability, the growth of individuals, and fat storage.
Seeds of doubt: Re‐assessing the impact of grain P concentrations on seedling vigor

Interest in developing crop varieties with low grain phosphorus (P) in order to minimize the removal of P from fields in harvested grain has been limited due to the view that a low-P grain trait may impair subsequent seedling vigor. This perception is based on relatively few studies, which typically investigated seedling growth on infertile soils, and used seed that may have differed in attributes other than P concentration. To investigate whether these anomalies cast sufficient doubt to warrant renewed research in this field, we compared the growth of rice seedlings from seed low in P obtained from P-starved plants (P-starved seed) vs. high-P seeds (obtained from P-fertilized plants) in P-deficient and P-replete soils. While plants from high-P seed were superior in the P-deficient soil, plants grown from P-starved seed overcame an initial lull in early vigor to obtain similar biomass at maturity as plants grown from high-P seed. Subsequent experiments were undertaken using high-P seed vs. seed low in P from a range of rice genotypes that was not obtained from P-stressed plants (low-P seed): There was no reduction in seedling vigor or biomass and grain yields at maturity of plants from low-P seeds in low-P soil compared to plants from high-P seed, though responses were genotype-specific. The results suggest that multiple factors can confound the results of seed P × seedling vigor studies, and that a renewed research effort to define the minimum P levels in seeds required for adequate seedling growth across a range of environments is warranted.
Formalizing Allee's Ideas on Dominance Hierarchies: An Intrademic Selection Model

The question surrounding the existence of stable hierarchies was one that played a significant role in the work of W. C. Allee and his students in the 1930s and 1940s. Although Allee had serious political and philosophical reservations about group dynamics being governed by dominance hierarchies, he could not deny the role they played in animal social systems (Allee 1931, 1951). Allee, however, had difficulty when trying to combine his extensive work on cooperative behavior with his studies on dominance hierarchies. In the end, Allee believed that rather than being antithetical to cooperative behavior, dominance hierarchies created cooperative groups that were better able to compete with other groups. For example, Guhl and Allee (1945) found that groups of chickens with stable hierarchies had individuals that ate more and laid more eggs than groups whose hierarchies were disrupted. While Allee often quoted Wright's (1945) interdemic selection model as support for his group-selectionist view of stable hierarchies, he often quoted the wrong Wright papers (Mitman 1992), and even Wright's actual interdemic model is not appropriate for the question of interest to Allee (Mitman 1992). Here, I employ the "trait group" or intrademic selection approach developed by Wilson (1980) to formalize Allee's ideas on dominance hierarchies. Specifically, I will examine how group size, resource allocation rules, and group formation patterns, operating via both withinand between-group selection, produce behavioral strategies that either promote or inhibit stability in hierarchies. Consider hierarchy formation in groups containing N individuals per group, embedded in a metapopulation composed of a very large number of groups. As with most trait group models, behavioral interactions occur within a group (Wilson 1980). Groups then disband during a reproduction phase, in which all individuals exist in a "global mixing pool. " After the reproductive phase, new groups are formed, and the process begins again. To examine the idea of stability in hierarchies, two strategies, "malcontent" (M) and "happy with their lot" (H), are pitted against one another. I will consider the fate of these two strategies at the point in time after an initial hierarchy has been formed with a group. That is, I assume that initial hierarchy formation is short, relative to the time that groups are together, and that any interactions
The dammed river dolphins of Brazil: impacts and conservation

Abstract A major threat to river dolphins in Brazil is habitat loss and fragmentation as a result of the construction of hydroelectric dams. We examine the degree of overlap between the distributions of two river dolphin species (boto Inia geoffrensis and tucuxi Sotalia fluviatilis) and hydroelectric projects and provide an initial quantification of impacts. The locations of dams were overlaid onto a map of the known distributions of the dolphins. Two types of impacts were evaluated: population fragmentation and effects on prey. For each of these a binary score (for absence or presence) was assigned for each dam. The sum of all impact scores for each dam, in each of the three watersheds in which dolphins are found, including realized and potential impacts, was calculated as the impact index. Thirteen dams affect the distribution of I. geoffrensis (as could a further three dams under construction and seven planned), and three dams affect S. fluviatilis (as could three under construction and two planned). Overall, the impact index was higher for I. geoffrensis than for S. fluviatilis. The Araguaia–Tocantins and North Atlantic watersheds have higher impact index values than the Amazon watershed. Although some impacts of damming could not be considered in this study, our approach was a rapid initial risk assessment that provided an overall understanding of how river dolphins are and may be affected by hydroelectric projects in Brazil. Our method may be applicable to other freshwater cetaceans and species facing similar threats when information about impacts is incomplete.
Preharvest and storage quality of ‘Braeburn’ apple fruit grown under water deficit conditions

Abstract Six‐year‐old ‘Braeburn’ apple trees (Mains domestica Borkh.) on MM 106 rootstock were studied to determine the influence of withholding irrigation on fruit composition both before harvest and during storage. Trees were either fully irrigated (I) according to commercial practice, or not irrigated (NI). Rainfall was excluded from the rootzone of all NI trees and three of the six I trees from 105 days after full bloom (DAFB). The NI trees had lower leaf water potential (? ) than I trees from 110 DAFB. Fruit were sampled at 2‐week intervals from 130 DAFB until 192 DAFB. Some fruit picked at 192 DAFB were placed in cold storage lor 12 weeks at 0°C. Fruit were analysed at 3‐week intervals until 84 days in storage. No difference in fruit weight or crop load was observed between treatments. Before the final harvest, NI fruit had higher concentrations of total soluble solids (TSS), titratable acidity (TA), sucrose, sorbitol, and total soluble sugars, and a lesser concentration of nitrogen than I fruit. Sol.
Redd-site selection by brook trout and brown trout in southwestern Ontario streams

Abstract Redd-substrate composition, water velocity, depth, and other environmental variables associated with redd-site selection and spawning by brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis and brown trout Salmo trutta in southwestern Ontario streams were examined. Sympatric and allopatric populations spawned in similar ranges of specific conductance (225–810 μmhos/cm), pH (7.0–8.2), dissolved oxygen (>83% saturation), and stream gradient (0.2–2.3%). Brook trout spawned exclusively in areas of groundwater seepage, typically near headwaters where streamflow did not exceed 177 litres/second. Brown trout spawned in a wider range of flows (21–600 liters/second), and utilized locations with and without groundwater seepage. Spawning by brook trout usually began by the second week of October, by brown trout a week later. Brook trout spawning periods lasted 3–5 weeks, those of brown trout, 2–4 weeks. In sympatric populations, an overlap in spawning time occurred for up to 3 weeks. Reuse of redds was mostly intraspecific, a.
Production and characterization of the polysaccharide from Propionibacterium acidi‐propionici on whey‐based media

M. RACINE, J. DUMONT, C.P. CHAMPAGNE AND A. MORIN. 1991. The effects of lactose, ammonium and phosphate on the production of extracellular polysaccharide from Propionibacterium acidi-propionici VM-25 were studied in whey-based media. The polysaccharide was composed of a water-soluble fraction (15% w/w), a water-insoluble fraction (27% w/w) and ca 65% (w/w) of ash. Up to 15 g/l of polysaccharide was produced during growth on partially deproteinated whey, supplemented with lactose, NH4 Cl and KH2 PO4, after incubation at pH 7.0 and 25.C for 90 h. The final viscosity of the medium remained under 20 centipoises at the end of the fermentation (100–140 h). The fermentation of whey enabled a reduction of the lactose content up to 50%. The polysaccharide-containing fractions were composed of glucose, galactose, mannose, rhamnose and fucose and had M, < 5800. The polysaccharide may have applications as a low viscosity stabilizing agent.
The Presence of Tissue Inhibitor of Matrix Metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) During Meiosis Improves Porcine 'Oocyte Competence' as Determined by Early Embryonic Development After In-vitro Fertilization

The present studies were designed to determine the effect of tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) during meiosis or after in vitro fertilization on early embryonic development of porcine embryos. The presence of purified ovine TIMP-1 in culture medium after in vitro fertilization did not affect the incidence of embryo cleavage or development to the blastocyst stage at 48 h or 6 days after insemination, respectively. In contrast, when various concentrations (1.25, 2.50 and 5.00 μg/ml) of purified ovine TIMP-1 were added to the culture medium during the second half (24 h) of oocyte maturation, normal cleavage rates (64 ± 3% at 1.25 μg/ml, 57 ± 5% at 2.50 μg/ml and 56 ± 1% at 5.00 μg/ml) were higher (p<0.05) as compared to controls (43 ± 2%). In addition, the incidence of embryos that developed to the blastocyst stage was increased (p<0.05) when TIMP-1 was added (34 ± 3% at 1.25 μg/ml, 32 ± 1% at 2.50 μg/ml and 28 ± 1% at 5.00 μg/ml) as compared to controls (22 ± 3%). There was no difference in the incidence (53 ± 1%) of oocytes fertilized normally. These results indicate that the presence of TIMP-1 during the second half of in vitro maturation enhanced the competence of porcine oocytes to develop to the 2- to 4-cell stages after in vitro fertilization, consequently increasing the incidence of blastocysts.