Miracle-dz/UniFAR-FTUs huggingface dataset:
A Comment: Functional Feeding Groups as a Taxonomic Surrogate for a Grassland Arthropod Assemblage

M. Mlambo (2011) raises very valid points in his commentary on our paper (Buschke & Seaman 2011). Although much can be said about the merits (or lack thereof) of our study, we limit our rebuttal to the four points specifically raised by Mlambo. The first point, that assigning functional feeding groups (FFG) is simpler than assigning family level, is rightfully contested by Mlambo and our paper did not provide quantitative evidence of this. Certain FFG cannot be assigned without traditional taxonomic efforts but many others can. For example, although large families such as Scarabaeidae and Muscidae cannot easily be assigned to FFG without further identification, many orders, such as adult Odonata, Neuroptera and Orthoptera, and superfamilies, such as parasitoid Ichneumonoidea and the piercing/sucking Pentatomoidea, share broad feeding styles. Based on our experience, we believe that on average it is simpler to assign FFG than other taxonomic levels. Mlambo's assertion that Kaiser et al. (2009) provide empirical evidence against the use of FFG is unfounded: their study also lacked quantitative evidence of taxonomic difficulties and their judgements were as subjective as ours.
Movement patterns of Sanderling (Calidris alba) in the East Asian-Australasian Flyway and a comparison of methods for identification of crucial areas for conservation

Abstract Worldwide, most populations of migratory shorebirds are in jeopardy, none more so than those of the East Asian—Australasian Flyway (EAAF). In order to preserve these highly mobile species a detailed understanding of their use of feeding and resting sites along the flyway is required. In this study we used light-level geolocators and new analytical tools to reveal individual breeding locations and migration routes of 13 Sanderlings (Calidris alba) that spend their non-breeding season in South Australia. We then used these individual migration routes to identify the timing and location of important stopping areas and compared this with assessments based on resightings of leg-flagged birds and count data. During both northward and southward migration, Sanderlings were found to make extensive use of five main areas of the Chinese coastline, the Yellow Sea and the northern end of the Sakhalin Peninsula. Insights gained from the individual migration routes highlight inherent biases in using only count and resighting data to identify important feeding and resting sites along the Flyway. These findings suggest that data on individual movements may be crucial to effective conservation planning of shorebirds in the EAAF and elsewhere in the world.
Mesotrione, Acetochlor, and Atrazine for Weed Management in Corn (Zea mays)1

Field studies were conducted in 1999, 2000, and 2001 to investigate weed control and crop safety with preemergence (PRE) and postemergence (POST) applications of mesotrione alone and in tank mixtures with acetochlor and atrazine. Corn injury was less than 4% with all mesotrione treatments in 1999 and 2001, but it was 8 to 20% in 2000, when rainfall was 3.1 cm 7 d after PRE applications. Mesotrione PRE at 0.16 and 0.24 kg ai/ha did not adequately control most broadleaf weeds or giant foxtail. Tank mixtures of mesotrione plus acetochlor controlled smooth pigweed and giant foxtail but did not adequately control common ragweed, common lambsquarters, or morningglory species. Control by tank mixtures of mesotrione plus atrazine at 0.56 kg ai/ha was frequently low and varied with rainfall after PRE applications. All weed species were controlled 80% or more by mesotrione plus acetochlor PRE or atrazine plus acetochlor PRE followed by mesotrione POST at 0.11 kg/ha. Nomenclature: Acetochlor; atrazine; mesotrione; common lambsquarters, Chenopodium album L. #3 CHEAL; common ragweed, Ambrosia artemisiifolia L. # AMBEL; giant foxtail, Setaria faberi Herrm. # SETFA; morningglory species, Ipomoea spp. # IPOSS; smooth pigweed, Amaranthus hybridus L. # AMACH; corn, Zea mays L. Additional index words: HPPD-inhibiting herbicides, triketone herbicides. Abbreviations: COC, crop oil concentrate; DAT, days after treatment; fb, followed by; POST, postemergence; PRE, preemergence; UAN, urea ammonium nitrate; WAT, weeks after treatment.
CHARACTERIZATION AND ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF STREPTOMYCES STRAINS FROM THAI MANGROVE SOILS

Four actinomycete isolates, SAM2-1, SMP3-1, and J8-1 and J17-2 were isolated from mangrove soils collected in Samut Prakarn and Samut Songkram provinces, the inner gulf of Thailand. These isolates were identified as Streptomyces based on their phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics. They contained L–diaminopimelic acid in cell wall. Their major menaquinone components were MK-9 (H6) and MK-9 (H8). On the screening of antimicrobial activity, they could inhibit Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 6538P and Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633 but showed weak inhibitory activity against Kocuria rhizophila ATCC 9341, Escherichia coli ATCC 25922, Pseudomonas aeruginosa ATCC 27853 and no activity against Candida albicans ATCC 10231. Only isolate J8-1 showed strong inhibitory activity against Bacillus subtilis ATCC 6633. The isolates SAM2-1, SMP3-1, J8-1 and J17-2 were closely related to S. sundarbansensis DSM 42019T (98.4%), S. diastaticus subsp. ardesiacus JCM 5815T (97.1%), S. iranensis JCM 17327T (96.4%) and S. seoulensis NBRC 16668T (95.3%), respectively based on 16S rRNA gene analyses.
Phytoremediation of Chromium contaminated soil using Sorghum plant

Industrial waste is one of the most important sources of contamination in the surface environment. The impact of heavy metals in soils, plants, animals and humans is due to the unabated expansion of toxic effects. The toxic wastes generated are treated by physicochemical processes in which "Bioremediation" is the microbial clean up approach. P1antbased remediation (Phytoremediation) is an emerging biotechnological tool, for cleaning metal polluted or contaminated soil. The present study deals with phytoremediation of Chromium metal polluted soil of Ranipet Tanneries utilizing Sorghum plant, which is one of the best "Hyper-accumulators" for the phytoremediation of metal polluted sites. The impact of chromium on the biomass and chlorophyll content and also the effect of addition of biosolids like vermicompost on the bioaccumu1ation efficiency of the plant were investigated. The results indicated that there is significant reduction of biomass of the plant with increased dosage of chromium. It is also observed that addition of vermicompost to the contaminated soil improves the biomass of the plants thus making room for more bioaccumu1ation. Pytoremediation is found to be cost-effective and highly efficient in remediating the heavy metal polluted sites.
GENETICS AND CELL BIOLOGY Association Between the STin2 VNTR Polymorphism of the Serotonin Transporter Gene and Treatment Outcome in Alcohol-Dependent Patients

Aims: The aim of this study was to investigate the potential association between functional polymorphisms of dopaminergic (dopamine receptor D2 (DRD2), dopamine receptor D3 (DRD3) and dopamine transporter (SLC6A3)) and serotonergic (serotonin 2A receptor (HTR2A) and serotonin transporter (SLC6A4)) genes and treatment outcome in alcohol-dependent patients. Methods: A total of 90 Spanish Caucasian alcohol-dependent outpatients (ICD-10 criteria) were enrolled in the study. The association between genotypes and drinking outcomes was measured over 6 months of treatment. Biomarkers of alcohol consumption, as well as alcohol consumption and its consequences, craving, disability and quality of life, were assessed. Based on those measures, we created a composite secondary measure to globally assess treatment outcome in alcoholism. Results: No association was found between DRD2, DRD3, SLC6A3 or HTR2A gene variants and treatment outcome. However, SLC6A4 STin2 12/12 carriers showed poor 6-month time point treatment outcome (32.8% in the good outcome group versus 64.0% in the poor outcome group, χ 2 (df) = 7.20 (1), corrected P = 0.042, OR (95% CI) = 0.27 (0.10-0.72)). Nevertheless, independent analysis of each treatment group reveals that the excess of 12/12 carriers in the poor outcome group was only found in the naltrexone-treated group (24.1% versus 64.7% χ 2 (df) = 7.41 (1), corrected P = 0.042, OR (95% CI) = 0.17 (0.05-0.64)). In the whole sample, the L-10 repeats haplotype (5-HTTLPR-STin2 VNTR) is associated with good outcome (LRT = 3.88, df = 1, P = 0.049). Conclusions: Our findings suggest that functional polymorphism of the SLC6A4 gene may have an influence on treatment outcome in alcohol-dependent patients.
Observations on the growth of postlarvae of Macrohrachium rosenhergii in polythene sheet covered earthen nursery ponds during winter

India Growth of postlarvae of Macrohrachium rosenhergii reared in polythene covered earthen nursery ponds (polyhouse) was evaluated during winter. The polyhouse ponds along with two control ponds (60 m^ each) were stocked with postlarvae (0.013±0.004 g) at 40,000/ha stocking density. The prawns were fed with a formulated feed (35 % crude protein) at the rate of 10 % of the biomass and were reared for 100 days. The percentage survival varied widely (24-82) in different ponds. Average daily growth in polyhouse nursery ponds was found to be 83.72 % higher than the control ponds.
On the Significance of the Neuromeres and Similar Structures in Vertebrate Embryos

About the time of closure of the neural folds, transverse bulges—so-called proneuromeres (Kallen & Lindskog, 1953)—appear in the wall of the central nervous system of vertebrate embryos. They are very similar to the well-known neuromeres, but are relatively larger and therefore fewer in number. The first proneuromeres to develop are the rostralmost ones and the others develop in a rostro-caudal sequence. They start to disappear simultaneously at two places: the caudal end of the spinal cord and a short-distance caudal to the otic vesicle. When the proneuromeres have disappeared in the spinal cord and the caudal part of the brain but are still left most rostrally, the neuromeric bulges develop. The neuromeres have been described many times in the previous literature (see Bergquist's survey, 1952 b ). They develop and disappear in a similar way to the proneuromeres (Bergquist, 1952 a ; Kallen & Lindskog, 1953). While the neuromeres are disappearing a third system develops: the migration areas.
Topology of Female Sex Offenders: A Test of Vandiver and Kercher

Using all 390 female sex offenders registered in New York State, this study attempted to test the analyses and findings of Vandiver and Kercher (2004). Although the current sample varied geographically from Vandiver and Kercher's sample, they were remarkably similar on key demographic variables (e.g., offender age and race, victim age), allowing for close comparison of the findings. Results of the hierarchical loglinear modeling analysis reinforced the importance of variables such as victim and offender ages to categorizing offenders. The present cluster analysis indicated the existence of six distinct types of female sex offender (with the clusters themselves differing substantially from those found by Vandiver and Kercher), supporting the view that female sex offenders are a heterogeneous group.
Community Assembly in Marine Phytoplankton: Application of Recent Models to Harmful Dinoflagellate Blooms

AMBLESIDE, CUMBRIA LA  LP, UK The habitat preferences of dinoflagellate bloom species along an onshore‐offshore, mixing-nutrient gradient, their associated life-form (morphotype) characteristics and adaptive strategies were evaluated from the perspective of Margalef ’s Mandala and Reynolds Intaglio. Nine different mixingnutrient habitats and associated dinoflagellate life-form types having distinctive morphotype features and habitat preferences are distinguishable. Reynolds Intaglio provided greater fidelity to actual in situ dinoflagellate community assembly than the Mandala. We suggest that the correlation between degree of mixing and nutrient levels presumed in the Mandala is not the essential interaction in the selection of life forms and their succession. A more significant aspect of the turbulence axis is the degree of vertical, micro-habitat structural differentiation that it permits. Three primary adaptive strategies consistent with C-S-R strategies recognized among freshwater phytoplankton species characterize the component dinoflagellate species: invasive, small- to intermediate-sized colonist species (C) which often predominate in chemically-disturbed water bodies; acquisitive, larger-celled, nutrient stresstolerant species (S); and disturbance-tolerant ruderal species (R) tolerant of shear/stress forces in physically-disturbed water masses (fronts, upwelling relaxations, current entrainment). It is suggested that harmful algal bloom community assembly and dynamics reflect two basic selection features— life-form and species-specific selection, that commonly held life-form properties override phylogenetic properties in bloom-species selection, and that the latter is often stochastic, rather than singular. The high degree of unpredictability of individual species blooms is consistent with stochastic selection, e.g. bloom species are often selected as a result of being in the right place at the right time at suitable inoculum levels. A focus on the life-form properties, habitat preference and stochastic selection of bloom species would appear to be more viable and realistic than current ecological investigative approaches.
Nitrate and nitrite reduction in wheat leaves as affected by different types of water stress

The effect of different types of water stress on nitrate and nitrite reductases of wheat (Triticum vulgare L. cv. Mivhor) leaves was investigated. Water stress was applied either to leaf tissue by its incubation in mannitol or various salt solutions, or to intact plants by exposure of the root system to low temperatures or to salinity. Nitrite reductase was much less sensitive to water stress than nitrate reductase, and was not sensitive to salinity up to osmotic potentials of about — 13 bars. The decrease in nitrite reductase activity by water stress was attributed to a direct inhibition of the enzyme rather than to a repression of enzyme synthesis. This was based on the fast response of the enzyme after exposure of leaf tissue to reduced osmotic potential, on the lack of a continuous decrease in enzyme activity during a prolonged stress, and on the fact that light activation of reductase was unaffected by water stress. The inhibition of nitrate reductase under water stress was attributed to both a direct inhibition and a reduced rate in enzyme synthesis. This is concluded from the fact that a decrease in its activity was obtained already within 1 h after stress application and from the fact that light induction of the enzyme was inhibited by stress.
Contrasting responses of migration strategies in two European thrushes to climate change

Migration is a widespread strategy that enables animals to escape harsh winter conditions. It has been well documented that migration phenology in birds is changing in response to recent climate warming in the northern hemisphere. Despite the existence of large temporal and geographical scale ringing data on birds in Europe, changes in migration strategies in relation to climate warming have not been well studied, mainly because of a lack of appropriate statistical methods. In this paper, we develop a method that enables us to investigate temporal changes in migration strategies from recoveries of dead ringed birds. We estimated migration probability as the ratio between recovery probabilities of conspecific birds originating from different countries but potentially wintering in the same country. We applied this method to two European thrushes: the entirely migrant redwing Turdus iliacus, and the partially migrant blackbird T. merula. We tested for an immediate and a 1‐year lagged relationship between our migration probability and climatic covariates (i.e. mean winter temperature in France and the North Atlantic Oscillation). Using ringing‐recovery data collected in Finland, Germany, Switzerland and France from 1970 to 1999, we detected contrasting responses in these two species, likely related to their different migratory behaviours. Both species showed a decline in the probability for northern and eastern birds to winter in France. The entirely migratory redwing exhibited a year‐to‐year plastic response to climate, whereas the decline in the partially migrant blackbird was smooth, suggesting underlying genetic processes. The proposed method, thus, allows us to identify useful indicators of climatic impacts on migration strategies, as well as highlighting differences between closely related species.
Effect of weather conditions on somatic cell score in Sicilian Valle del Belice ewe

Abstract Mastitis susceptibility of Valle del Belice ewes from the south of Sicily to temperature, humidity, precipitation, solar radiation, sun hours, air pressure, wind-speed and wind-direction measured by a public weather station was investigated using 65,848 test-day somatic cell score (SCS) records of 5,237 ewes. All weather parameters had an effect on SCS in a regression approach. Extreme values of maximum and minimum temperature-humidity indices resulted in increased SCS. Higher precipitation, solar radiation and sun hours resulted in increased SCS, whereas higher air pressure and wind speed resulted in reduced SCS.
Integrating Implicit and Explicit Social Cognitions for Enhanced Personality Assessment: A General Framework for Choosing Measurement and Statistical Methods

The current article advocates integrating implicit and explicit social cognitions for enhanced personality assessment in organizational contexts (e.g., personnel selection settings). Several methods for measuring implicit cognitions are reviewed, and their strengths and limitations are discussed. The most widely used method for measuring explicit cognitions, the self-report questionnaire, also is described along with its strengths and limitations. Implicit and explicit cognitions then are integrated to form a general model of personality prototypes. The authors describe several mechanisms by which implicit and explicit cognitions may operate (e.g., coact, interact) to predict criteria, depending on the nature of the personality construct assessed and the outcome of interest. These different operations implicate different statistical methodologies. The authors then present specific examples of this integrative procedure for enhancing personality assessment using the construct of achievement motivation. They conclude by discussing how future research could extend and apply this general framework for use with other personality constructs.
Lamb survival in relation to lambing and neonatal behaviour in medium wool Merino lines divergently selected for multiple rearing ability

Summary. Two lines of Merino sheep were divergently selected from the same base population since 1986 on maternal ranking values for multiple rearing ability. In the high (H) line, ewe and ram progeny were preferably descended from ewes that reared >1 lamb per joining. In the low (L) line, replacements were the progeny of ewes that reared 10 s, but H line lambs were quicker (P<0.01) to progress from standing to suckling than L line contemporaries (28 v. 38 min respectively). This line difference remained after adjustment for better co-operation of H line ewes with the first suckling attempts of their progeny. Ewes in the H line tended (P = 0.18) to remain longer on or near their birth sites than L line contemporaries (403 v. 362 min respectively). They also tended to be less ( P = 0.07) likely to desert their lambs than L line ewes (12/424 = 0.028 v. 14/230 = 0.061 respectively). After least-squares adjustment for their heavier ( P<0.01) litter weight, H line ewes experienced shorter ( P<0.05) births than their L line contemporaries (46 v. 57 min respectively). Fewer (P<0.05) H line lambs died during or shortly after parturition (respective proportions of 22/890 = 0.025 and 25/441 = 0.057), while maiden H line ewes were less (P<0.05) likely to be assisted at lambing than L line contemporaries (4/107 = 0.037 v. 8/61 = 0.131 respectively). With regard to overall lamb production, it was found that the number of lambs weaned per ewe present at lambing in the H line was improved (P<0.05) in all years relative to that observed in the L line, the differences ranging from 25% in 1993 to 47% in 1997. Lamb weaning weight was correspondingly improved (P<0.05) in H line lambs, the differences ranging from 8% in 1994 to 22% in 1996. Fairly high levels of production could thus be attained with predominantly pasture-fed ewes selected for multiple rearing ability.
Low Temperature-induced Accumulation of Protein is Sustained both in Root Meristems and in Callus in Winter Wheat but not in Spring Wheat

Plant growth was assessed and cellular protein per nuclear DNA amount measured in root meristems and in callus derived from embryos of a spring (‘Katepwa’) and a winter variety (‘Beaver’) of allohexaploid wheat exposed to low temperature treatment. The data obtained were used to test whether these genetically distinct varieties of wheat responded diAerentially to cold treatment. Seedlings were grown for 14 d at 208C and then transferred to 48C for 14 d before returning them to 208C, or else were maintained continuously at 208C. In winter wheat, root growth at 48 Cw as significantly greater over the first 7 d following transfer to 48C compared with plants retained at 208C, whereas in spring wheat it was reduced at 48C. The pattern of accumulation of cellular protein for both root meristem cells and in callus cells was also generally enhanced at 48C compared with 208C in winter wheat but not in spring wheat. Thus, clear inter-varietal diAerences were established both for dry weight accumulation and cellular protein, and the callus data clearly show that the low-temperature-induced accumulation of protein is a cellular phenomenon not necessarily linked to development. The extent to which cold-shock proteins are a component of this low temperature-induced increase in cellular protein is discussed. # 2000 Annals of Botany Company