bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Determination of silage face surface area on commercial California dairy farms
Authors: Meyer D. M. , Robinson P. H. , Price P. L. , Heguy J. M.
Published: February 2015

Analysis of exposed silage face surface area was conducted to better understand and provide feed management recommendations as well as evaluate potential compliance needs related to volatile organic compound emissions. Policy was developed by the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District (District) to restrict exposed surface area of silage piles to 199·7 m2 per farm if only one pile was exposed or 399·5 m2 per farm if more than one pile was exposed. Exposed surface area on piles of silages at 20 dairies was quantified to determine impacts of these surface area restrictions. Herd size ranged from 490 to 7,200 milking cows, and the number of exposed piles ranged from one to four per farm as maize and/or wheat silage. Surface area of piles was quantified based on pile measurements and geometric shapes. The measured value was compared to the estimated value using the District ‘online calculator’. The District calculator used inputs for base length and height with assumed constant relationships between base and top lengths. Five of 43 piles had >199·7 m2 of exposed surface area. Sixteen of 20 dairies with more than one exposed surface complied with the exposed surface area restriction. On average, the District calculator overestimated surface areas by 11·6% ± 14·8 (range −57·7 to 38·4%). Pile measurements and use of geometric shapes provide a more precise method to quantify exposed surface area. This will be of particular use for those operators who utilize the District calculator and find their exposed areas out of compliance.
International trends in health science librarianship part 13: Southern Africa (South Africa, Tanzania and Zimbabwe)
Authors: Tshuma Ndumiso , Haruna Hussein , Muziringa Masimba C. , Chikonzo Agnes C.
Published: February 2015

This is the 13th in a series of articles exploring international trends in health science librarianship in the 21st century. It is the first devoted to four different regions in the African continent. The present issue focuses on countries in Southern Africa – South Africa and Zimbabwe. The next issue will examine East Africa.
Bombesin staining in neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia of infancy (NEHI) and other childhood interstitial lung diseases (chILD)
Authors: Yancheva Slaveya G , Velani Asha , Rice Alexandra , Montero Angeles , Hansell David M , Koo Sergio , Thia Lina , Bush Andrew , Nicholson Andrew G
Published: February 2015

Aims

We have analysed levels of bombesin‐positive neuroendocrine cells (NECs) in neuroendocrine cell hyperplasia of infancy (NEHI) and other childhood interstitial lung diseases (chILDs) in order to validate proposed histological criteria for NEHI and investigate its aetiology.

Methods and results

The extent of bombesin‐positive cells within airway epithelium was analysed in lung biopsies from seven patients diagnosed with NEHI, including two classified previously as non‐diagnostic, and other chILDs (n = 64) with age ranges of 1 month–18 years. NECs were counted and calculated as a percentage of airways containing NECs, average percentage of NECs per airway, percentage of airways with >10% NECs and number of neuroendocrine bodies (NEBs). Correlation with age and gender was also undertaken. Patients with NEHI had the highest average percentage of bombesin‐positive NECs per airway compared to other chILDs. However, NEH was also seen in many other chILDs, and appears to be most prominent in disorders associated with lung immaturity such as histological patterns associated with surfactant protein‐related disorders and pulmonary interstitial glycogenosis.

Conclusions

NEH may, to a degree, be a marker of airway immaturity rather than the direct cause of NEHI. This possibility is supported by the fact that the number of bombesin‐positive NECs decreased with age in this cohort, independent of disease type. The average percentage of bombesin‐positive NECs per airway appears to be the best histological criterion for assessing the extent of NECs in the context of NEHI.
Whole of Life Tariffs in the Shadow of Europe: Penological Foundations and Political Popularity
Authors: PETTIGREW MARK
Published: February 2015

This article explores the escalating conflict between European judges and domestic politicians over the issue of whole of life tariffs. After the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in Vinter and Others v. the United Kingdom and the subsequent decision of the Court of Appeal in R v. McLoughlin, there has been a very public tension between the two sides over reviewing prisoner sentences. When bids for release have previously been made by whole life prisoners, most infamously Myra Hindley, the political mood has been defiant. Now Europe has decreed that such prisoners are entitled to an enhanced review of their sentence beyond the possibility of executive release owing to terminal illness, the political stance has further hardened. Instead of enhanced sentence review, the response to Europe has been the announcement of widening the applicability of the tariff to those who kill police or prison officers.
Home‐range size and habitat use of European Nightjars Caprimulgus europaeus nesting in a complex plantation‐forest landscape
Authors: Sharps Katrina , Henderson Ian , Conway Greg , Armour‐Chelu Neal , Dolman Paul M.
Published: February 2015

In Europe, the consequences of commercial plantation management for birds of conservation concern are poorly understood. The European Nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus is a species of conservation concern across Europe due to population depletion through habitat loss. Pine plantation‐forest is now a key Nightjar nesting habitat, particularly in northwestern Europe, and increased understanding of foraging habitat selection is required. We radiotracked 31 Nightjars in an extensive (185‐km2) complex conifer plantation landscape in 2009 and 2010. Home‐range 95% kernels for females, paired males and unpaired males were an order of magnitude larger than song territories of paired males, emphasizing the importance of habitats beyond the song territory. Nightjars travelled a mean maximum distance of 747 m from the territory centre each night. Home‐range placement relative to landscape composition was examined by compositional analysis. Pre‐closure canopy forest (aged 5–10 years) was selected at all scales (MCP, 95% and 50% kernels), with newly planted forest (aged 0–4 years) also selected within 50% kernels. For telemetry fixes relative to habitat composition within 2 km of their territory centre, individuals again selected pre‐closure and newly planted forest, and also grazed grass heath. Open ungrazed habitat was not selected, with implications for open habitat planning for biodiversity conservation within public‐owned forests. Despite the Nightjars’ selection for younger growth, moth biomass was greater in older forest stands, suggesting that foraging site selection reflects ease of prey capture rather than prey abundance. Within large plantation‐forest landscapes, a variety of growth stages is important for this species and our results suggest that grazing of open habitats within and adjacent to forest will additionally benefit the European Nightjar.
Effects of decreased anthropogenic food availability on an opportunistic gull: evidence for a size‐mediated response in breeding females
Authors: Steigerwald Emma C. , Igual José‐Manuel , Payo‐Payo Ana , Tavecchia Giacomo
Published: February 2015

Some opportunistic vertebrates exploit, and may largely rely upon, food generated by human activities. Better understanding the influence of this additional anthropogenic food on species' ecology would inform sustainable waste management. In the Balearic Archipelago of Spain, closure of an open‐air landfill site provided an experimental setting to measure the effect of removing anthropogenic food on the average body mass, breeding parameters and body condition of opportunistic Yellow‐legged Gulls Larus michahellis. After landfill closure there was a significant decline in the average body mass of breeding females and males (−10.4 and −7.8%, respectively), in average egg volume (−4.8%), and a shift in the modal clutch size from three to two eggs. Body condition decreased after landfill closure in both sexes. In breeding females, the drop in body weight was greater for birds with a low body size index. The differential response to a reduction of anthropogenic food between small and large birds suggests that food of anthropogenic origin contributes to tempering the effects of natural selection, making the long‐term demographic effects of changes in food supply difficult to predict.
Systemic glucocorticoids: important issues and practical guidelines for the dermatologist
Authors: Dodiuk‐Gad Roni P. , Ish‐Shalom Sophia , Shear Neil H.
Published: February 2015

Background

The potent anti‐inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects of systemic glucocorticoids have led to their wide use in the treatment of dermatologic diseases. However, glucocorticoids have been designated the “archetypal double‐edged sword of medicine” as a result of their various potential adverse side effects. Dermatologists face major challenges in their usage and require knowledge of both the risks related to their usage and strategies with which to manage them.

Objectives

This brief review includes an evidence‐based, strategic approach to the general risk management of systemic glucocorticoids with a focus on preventing glucocorticoid‐induced osteoporosis (GIOP).

Methods

We assess which classes of corticosteroid are most likely to provoke allergic cross‐reactions and outline the mechanism for glucocorticoid resistance. We examine how glucocorticoids both help and impair normal physiology.

Results

Five reactivity groups are defined, based on the structural and clinical characteristics of glucocorticoids. Tests for allergy reactions and mechanisms for glucocorticoid resistance are described. Guidelines for the prevention and treatment of GIOP are introduced.

Conclusion

Glucocorticoids play an important teleologic role in maintaining blood glucose levels adequate for brain function by inducing a catabolic state through the production of carbohydrates at the expense of proteins and fat stores. It is hoped that the various recommendations for the protection of patients treated with systemic glucocorticoids will provide physicians with practical guidelines for prescribing.
On maximin value and policy functions in an exhaustible resource model
Authors: Mitra Tapan
Published: February 2015

This paper studies maximin paths in the context of a standard exhaustible resource model. Under the assumption that the resource is important in production, it establishes the efficiency and uniqueness of non‐trivial maximin paths. It uses these results to study the nature of the maximin value and policy functions. The value function is shown to be differentiable with respect to the initial resource stock, and the derivative of the value function is related to the shadow prices associated with the maximin path starting from that resource stock. We show how maximin policy functions can be derived, using the maximin value function, and the fact that the maximin path always follows Hartwick's investment rule.
Ruin probabilities in models of resource management and insurance: A synthesis
Authors: Bhattacharya Rabi , Majumdar Mukul
Published: February 2015

This paper synthesizes and contributes to the literature on ruin probabilities in two different contexts. First it explores a Markov (Lindley–Spitzer) process arising in a model of sustainable consumption of a renewable resource under uncertainty. The focus is on the rate of convergence of the stock process, particularly in the heavy‐tailed case. Next, it turns to the characterization of the ruin probability in the Sparre Andersen model of insurance. Both the heavy‐ and light‐tailed cases are investigated. Finally, some remarks on the mathematical connections between the two models are made.
Basic auction theory revisited
Authors: Dastidar Krishnendu Ghosh
Published: February 2015

We revisit the benchmark model of auctions and consider a more general class of utility functions that allow for income effects. We assume that all individuals have the same utility function but have different incomes. Incomes are private information. We analyze first‐price, second‐price, and all‐pay auctions and show that non‐quasilinearity changes many basic results of the benchmark model. While Vickrey's () result on second‐price auctions is very robust, revenue equivalence breaks down even with risk‐neutral bidders, high enough incomes and identically and independently distributed types. In most cases, we find that all‐pay auctions fetch the highest expected revenue.
Formation and long‐run stability of cooperative groups in a social dilemma situation
Authors: Maruta Toshimasa , Okada Akira
Published: February 2015

We consider the formation and long‐run stability of cooperative groups in a social dilemma situation where the pursuit of individual interests conflicts with the maximization of social welfare. The adaptive play model of Young () is applied to a group formation game where voluntary participants negotiate to create an institution that enforces cooperation. For the class of group formation games with two types, the stochastically stable equilibrium can be characterized in terms of the Nash products of the associated hawk–dove games, which summarize the strategic interaction among the individuals in the game.
Alternative Approaches to the Governance of Transnational Labor Recruitment
Authors: Pittman Patricia
Published: February 2015

As globalization advances, the governance challenges relating to cross-border labor recruitment have also grown. Transnational companies that manage the employment-based migration process often take advantage of individuals seeking work abroad. While some states have implemented recruitment regulations, a combination of jurisdictional constraints and economic interests have limited states’ capacity and political will to take action. Supplemental strategies are emerging led by international organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), labor unions, and corporate trade groups. This paper reviews the strengths and weaknesses of strategies led by each of these different types of actors and explores potential synergies among them.
Crack Healing in Ti2Al0.5Sn0.5C–Al2O3 Composites
Authors: Bei Guo Ping , Pedimonte Birgit Joana , Pezoldt Marc , Ast Johannes , Fey Tobias , Goeken Mathias , Greil Peter
Published: February 2015

Oxidation induced crack healing of Al2O3 composites loaded with a MAX phase based repair filler (Ti2Al0.5Sn0.5C) was examined. The fracture strength of 20 vol% repair filler loaded composites containing artificial indent cracks recovered fully to the level of the virgin material upon isothermal annealing in air atmosphere after 48 h at 700°C and 0.5 h at 900°C. SEM‐EBSD analysis of crack microstructure indicates two different oxidation reaction regimes to govern the crack filling: near the surface SnO2, TiO2, and Al2O3 were formed whereas deeply inside the cracks Al2O3 and TiO2 and metallic Sn were detected. The presence of elemental Sn was attributed to partial oxidation of aluminum and titanium which lowered the local oxygen concentration below a threshold value required for Sn oxidation to SnO2. Thus, Ti2Al0.5Sn0.5C may represent an efficient repair filler system to trigger oxidation induced crack healing in ceramic composites at temperatures below 1000°C.
A mixed‐method study of effects of a therapeutic play intervention for children on parental anxiety and parents' perceptions of the intervention
Authors: He Hong‐Gu , Zhu Li‐Xia , Chan Wai‐Chi Sally , Liam Joanne Li Wee , Ko Saw Sandar , Li Ho Cheung William , Wang Wenru , Yobas Piyanee
Published: February 2015

Aim

To examine the effects of a therapeutic play intervention for children on parents' perioperative anxiety, the relationship between parents' and their children's anxiety and to explore parents' perceptions of the intervention.

Background

Therapeutic play intervention was found to reduce children's perioperative anxiety. Little is known about how such an intervention for children affects their parents' anxiety.

Design

A mixed method of randomized controlled trial with qualitative process evaluation was used.

Methods

Ninety‐five pairs of parents and children were recruited between November 2011–August 2013 and randomized into a control or an intervention group. The State Anxiety Scale for Children and the State Anxiety Scale for Adults were used to measure children's and parents' anxiety, respectively, at baseline, on surgery day and around 24 hours after surgery. Parents were interviewed about their perceptions of the intervention. Data were analysed using SPSS version 22·0 and thematic analysis.

Results

There was no difference in parents' anxiety after participating with their child in the intervention compared with usual care. There were significantly positive relationships between parents' and their children's baseline anxiety and parents' postoperative anxiety and their children's pre‐operative anxiety. Four themes were identified: reducing anxiety, increasing knowledge and understanding about anaesthetic procedure, the worthiness of attending the intervention and suggestions for improvement of the intervention.

Conclusions

Therapeutic play intervention had no significant effect on parents' perioperative anxiety. Parents' and their children's perioperative anxiety are correlated. Parents perceived the intervention as helpful preparation for themselves and for their children undergoing elective surgery.
Government Ownership and Dividend Policy: Evidence from Newly Privatised Firms
Authors: Ben‐Nasr Hamdi
Published: February 2015

In this paper we examine the relationship between government ownership and dividend policy. Using a multinational sample of newly privatised firms from 43 countries, we find strong and robust evidence indicating that dividend payout is negatively related to government ownership, consistent with the predictions of agency theory. We also find that country‐level corporate governance affects the relationship between government ownership and dividend policy. Specifically, the adverse effects of government ownership on dividend policy are more pronounced in countries with weak law and order and a lower level of checks and balances. Our results are important, as they show that government ownership, as well as the institutional environment, does in fact affect the critical corporate policies, such as dividend policy, of newly privatised firms.
Towards a balanced view of pike in Ireland: a reply to Ensing
Authors: Pedreschi Debbi , Mariani Stefano
Published: February 2015

In our recent study of the population genetics of pike (Esox lucius) in Ireland (Pedreschiet al.,,Journal of Biogeography,41, 548–560), we reported the existence of two main demographic units and showed that these may correspond to two independent and temporally staggered colonization events, the first of which may have been too old to be caused or assisted by human translocations. Ensing (2015,Journal of Biogeography, doi:10.1111/jbi.12410) first used our genotypic data to explore alternative historical scenarios, then attempted to reconcile the ‘two‐wave’ colonization process of Ireland by pike with translocation activities by humans in Neolithic/Bronze age times. Here we illustrate why the evidence base for Ensing's reconstruction is weak and we outline a realistic strategy to better understand the role of pike in Irish freshwater ecosystems.
Enhancing Dyadic Performance Through Boundary Spanners and Innovation: An Assessment of Service Provider–Customer Relationships
Authors: Grawe Scott J. , Daugherty Patricia J. , Ralston Peter M.
Published: February 2015

Firms recognize that working together through collaborative relationships offers potential benefits such as improving cooperation, information sharing, and overall performance. An additional and extremely valuable benefit of working together is the potential for creating innovative business approaches and solutions. Thus, developing external linkages has become a higher priority within many organizations. Boundary spanning employees offer one means of achieving closer cross‐firm relationships. We investigate the roles of boundary spanners by examining service providers and their relationships with customers. More specifically, we examine boundary spanning employees that are physically on‐site at customer facilities. Results provide strong support that boundary spanners perceiving higher levels of external organizational support from a client subsequently develop affective commitment to the customer. This, in turn, drives knowledge exchange and logistics innovation. A relationship between logistics innovation and performance (of service providers and of customers) was also found. Managerial implications of the research findings are discussed and suggestions presented covering future research.
Treatment of oral malodour. Medium‐term efficacy of mechanical and/or chemical agents: a systematic review
Authors: Slot Dagmar E. , De Geest Sophie , van der Weijden Fridus A. , Quirynen Marc
Published: February 2015

Focused question

What is the effect of a dentifrice (DF), a mouthwash (MW), tongue cleaning (TC), or any combination of these as adjunct to toothbrushing on intra‐oral malodour and tongue coating as compared to toothbrushing alone in systemically healthy patients, when used for a minimum follow‐up period of 2 weeks?

Material and Methods

The MEDLINE‐PubMed, Cochrane‐CENTRAL and EMBASE databases were searched up to August 2014. Measurements of Volatile Sulphur Compounds and organoleptic scores of oral malodour were selected as outcome variables. Data were extracted and a descriptive analysis was performed.

Results

Independent screening of 1054 unique papers resulted in 12 eligible clinical trials with a medium‐term (≥2 weeks) duration. The majority of studies provided a significant reduction in oral malodour when evaluating products with an active ingredient (incorporated into a DF or a MW) used adjunctively to toothbrushing. The added value of tongue cleaning over a MW was evaluated in one study.

Conclusion

Due to very limited evidence, the potential effect of a specifically formulated dentifrice, a mouthwash or a tongue scraper for treating oral malodour is, in general, unclear. For mouthwashes containing the active ingredients chlorhexidine + cetylpyridinium chloride + zinc (CHX + CPC + Zn) and zinc chloride + cetylpyridinium chloride (ZnCl + CPC) most evidence was available. The strength of a recommendation to use these products was graded to be ‘weak’.
Java project on periodontal diseases: periodontal bone loss in relation to environmental and systemic conditions
Authors: Amaliya A. , Laine Marja L. , Delanghe Joris R. , Loos Bruno G. , Van Wijk Arjen J. , Van der Velden Ubele
Published: February 2015

Objective

To assess in a population deprived from regular dental care the relationship between alveolar bone loss (ABL) and environmental/systemic conditions.

Material & Methods

The study population consisted of subjects from the Purbasari tea estate on West Java, Indonesia. A full set of dental radiographs was obtained of each subject and amount of ABL was assessed. In addition, the following parameters were evaluated: plasma vitamin C, vitamin D3, HbA1c and CRP, the haptoglobin phenotype, presence of putative periodontopathic bacteria and viruses, dietary habits, smoking and anthropometrics.

Results

In this population 45% showed vitamin C depletion/deficiency, 82% had vitamin D3 insufficiency/deficiency, 70% were in a pre‐diabetic state, 6% had untreated diabetes, 21% had elevated CRP values ranging from 3.1 to 16.1 mg/l. Results of the regression analysis, including all above mentioned parameters, showed four significant predictors, explaining 19.8% of the variance of ABL. Number of Porphyromonas gingivalis cells and CRP values showed a positive relationship with ABL, whereas BMI and number of guava fruit servings were negatively related.

Conclusion

Results confirm previous findings that elevated levels of P. gingivalis may be indicative for periodontitis progression. A new finding is that guava fruit consumption may play a protective role in periodontitis in a malnourished population.
Primary and secondary prevention of periodontal and peri‐implant diseases
Authors: Tonetti Maurizio S. , Chapple Iain L. C. , Jepsen Søren , Sanz Mariano
Published: February 2015

Background

Periodontitis prevalence remains high. Peri‐implantitis is an emerging public health issue. Such a high burden of disease and its social, oral and systemic consequences are compelling reasons for increased attention towards prevention for individuals, professionals and public health officials.

Methods

Sixteen systematic reviews and meta‐reviews formed the basis for workshop discussions. Deliberations resulted in four consensus reports.

Results

This workshop calls for renewed emphasis on the prevention of periodontitis and peri‐implantitis. A critical element is the recognition that prevention needs to be tailored to the individual's needs through diagnosis and risk profiling. Discussions identified critical aspects that may help in the large‐scale implementation of preventive programs: (i) a need to communicate to the public the critical importance of gingival bleeding as an early sign of disease, (ii) the need for universal implementation of periodontal screening by the oral health care team, (iii) the role of the oral health team in health promotion and primary and secondary prevention, (iv) understanding the limitations of self‐medication with oral health care products without a diagnosis of the underlying condition, and (v) access to appropriate and effective professional preventive care.

Conclusions

The workshop provided specific recommendations for individuals, the oral health team and public health officials. Their implementation in different countries requires adaptation to respective specific national oral health care models.
Self‐injurious implicit attitudes among adolescent suicide attempters versus those engaged in nonsuicidal self‐injury
Authors: Dickstein Daniel P. , Puzia Megan E. , Cushman Grace K. , Weissman Alexandra B. , Wegbreit Ezra , Kim Kerri L. , Nock Matthew K. , Spirito Anthony
Published: February 2015

Background

Suicide is among the most important mental health issues affecting adolescents today despite much research on its detection and prevention. Beyond suicide attempts (SAs), clinicians are increasingly confronted with another, potentially related problem: non‐suicidal self‐injury (NSSI)—defined as the deliberate destruction of body tissue without intent to die. NSSI may increase risk for making an SA by sevenfold, but many studies examining this link have involved youths engaging in both NSSI and SAs. Thus, there is a need to compare homogeneous groups of adolescents engaged in NSSI‐only or SA‐only, but not both, to advance what is known about each form of self‐harm. The self‐injurious implicit association task (SI‐IAT) is a particularly important computerized behavioral task to study such adolescents because the SI‐IAT provides objective behavioral data about problems for which people may lack insight or be motivated to conceal, such as SAs and NSSI.

Methods

We evaluated implicit associations with cutting and death/suicide using the computerized SI‐IAT in three mutually exclusive groups: (1) adolescents who made an SA but had never engaged in NSSI (n = 47); (2) adolescents who engaged in NSSI but had never made an SA (n = 46); and (3) typically developing control (TDC) adolescents without history of psychiatric problems (n = 43).

Results

Nonsuicidal self‐injury participants had stronger identification with cutting versus no cutting than either SA or TDC participants. Contrary to our hypothesis, NSSI participants had stronger identification with suicide/death versus life than either SA or TDC participants.

Conclusions

Strong implicit attitudes towards suicide/death among adolescents with NSSI without a prior SA suggest that clinicians should not dismiss NSSI as not serious. Further work is required to elucidate the mechanism by which youths engaged in NSSI acquire these stronger identifications and make a first‐time SA to develop novel treatment and prevention strategies blocking this transformation, ultimately reducing youth suicide.
Diversity and the maintenance of sex by parasites
Authors: Ashby B. , King K. C.
Published: February 2015

The Red Queen hypothesis (RQH) predicts that parasite‐mediated selection will maintain sexual individuals in the face of competition from asexual lineages. The prediction is that sexual individuals will be difficult targets for coevolving parasites if they give rise to more genetically diverse offspring than asexual lineages. However, increasing host genetic diversity is known to suppress parasite spread, which could provide a short‐term advantage to clonal lineages and lead to the extinction of sex. We test these ideas using a stochastic individual‐based model. We find that if parasites are readily transmissible, then sex is most likely to be maintained when host diversity is high, in agreement with the RQH. If transmission rates are lower, however, we find that sexual populations are most likely to persist for intermediate levels of diversity. Our findings thus highlight the importance of genetic diversity and its impact on epidemiological dynamics for the maintenance of sex by parasites.
Contemporary evolution of plant reproductive strategies under global change is revealed by stored seeds
Authors: Thomann M. , Imbert E. , Engstrand R. C. , Cheptou P.‐O.
Published: February 2015

Global change is expected to impose new selection pressures on natural populations. Phenotypic responses, such as earlier phenology in response to climate warming, have been repeatedly observed in the field. The recent pollinator decline is also expected to change selection on reproductive traits in flowering plants. However, it remains unclear whether short‐term adaptation of plant reproductive strategies occurs in response to global change. In this study, we report the evolution of some important reproductive traits of the annual self‐incompatible weed Centaurea cyanus. In a common garden experiment, we germinated stored seeds, sampled 18 years apart from the same location, in a region where warmer springs and indices of pollinator decline have been reported. Compared to the ancestral population (1992), our results showed that plants of the descendant population (2010) flowered earlier and also produced larger capitula with longer receptivity and a larger floral display. QST–FST comparisons indicated that natural selection has likely contributed to the evolution of some of the traits investigated. Lower FST within temporal samples than among spatial samples further suggests a limited role of gene flow from neighbouring populations. We therefore propose that trait shifts could partly be due to adaptation to global change.
The Credibility of Performance Feedback in Tournaments
Authors: Marinovic Iván
Published: February 2015

This paper studies the effect of performance feedback on tournament outcomes, when a possibly dishonest principal may manipulate the agents' expectations to stimulate their effort. Under plausible circumstances, an increase in the principal's propensity to tell the truth (i.e., integrity) induces a mean preserving spread in the distribution of effort and leads to a decrease in expected profits and welfare. More generally, I identify conditions under which a lower integrity can improve the effectiveness of financial incentives in inducing the agents' effort, thus leading to higher expected profits for the principal.
Dynamics in a Mature Industry: Entry, Exit, and Growth of Big‐Box Grocery Retailers
Authors: Hanner Daniel , Hosken Daniel , Olson Luke M. , Smith Loren K.
Published: February 2015

This paper measures market dynamics within the U.S. grocery industry (defined as supermarket, supercenter, and club retailers). We find that despite being a mature industry, the grocery industry is remarkably dynamic. Each year retailers open or close roughly 7% of U.S. stores. We also find significant changes in the size of firms’ operations within markets over time. These changes in relative size are largely the result of expansion or contraction by incumbents rather than the result of firm entry or exit. In fact, entry and exit are quite rare, except by small firms. Moreover, only in small markets do new entrants gain substantial market share.
A new anglerfish from eastern Australia and New Caledonia (Lophiiformes: Chaunacidae: Chaunacops), with new data and submersible observation of Chaunacops melanostomus
Authors: Ho H.‐C. , McGrouther M.
Published: February 2015

A new deep‐sea anglerfish of the genus Chaunacops is described based on three specimens collected from eastern Australia and New Caledonia. It differs from its congeners in having fine dermal spinules, mixed with simple and bifurcate ones, densely covering the body, four neuromasts on the pectoral series of the lateral line and a combination of other characteristics. Data for Chaunacops melanostomus based on 31 specimens newly collected from Western Australia are provided. An underwater observation of C. melanostomus made by a remotely operated vehicle is also provided.
Dietary variations within a family of ambush predators (Platycephalidae) occupying different habitats and environments in the same geographical region
Authors: Coulson P. G. , Platell M. E. , Clarke K. R. , Potter I. C.
Published: February 2015

This study has determined the extents and basis for variations in the composition of the prey ingested by the abundant species of a family highly adapted for ambush predation, i.e. Platycephalidae, in a region (south‐western Australia) where that family is found in different habitats and environments. Dietary data were thus collected for Leviprora inops and Platycephalus laevigatus from seagrass in marine embayments and for Platycephalus westraliae from over sand in an estuary. These were then collated with those recorded previously for Platycephalus speculator from over sand and in seagrass in an estuary and for Platycephalus longispinis from over sand in coastal marine waters. While crustaceans and teleosts together dominated the diet of all five species, their percentage volumetric dietary contributions varied greatly, with those of crustaceans ranging from 7% for L. inops to 65% for P. speculator and those of teleosts ranging from 29% for P. longispinis to 91% for L. inops. For analyses, the data were separated into two sets. The first comprised the 17 dietary categories of invertebrates and all identified and unidentified teleosts collectively, while the second consisted of the 23 identified teleost families, both of which were subjected to permutational analysis of variance (PERMANOVA), analysis of similarities (ANOSIM) and a new (two‐way) version of the RELATE procedure. The diets of three species changed seasonally, when using invertebrate dietary categories and teleosts collectively, but with only one species, when employing identified teleost families, probably reflecting a greater tendency for invertebrate than teleost prey abundance to change during the year. On the basis of dietary data for invertebrate taxa + teleosts collectively, the diets of three of the five species changed serially with body size, with a fourth species feeding, throughout life, predominantly on the carid Palaemonetes australis. Based on identified teleost families, the diets of the three species that fed predominantly on teleosts underwent serial size‐related changes. Although L. inops and the co‐occurring P. laevigatus both consume large volumes of teleosts, the former ingests larger, less demersal and more mobile prey, e.g. the labrids Haletta semifasciata and Neoodax balteatus, than the latter, e.g. the scorpaenid Gymnapistes marmoratus, reflecting the possession by L. inops of a far longer head and larger buccal cavity. Circumstantial evidence suggests that the large differences in the volumes of crustaceans and teleosts consumed by each platycephalid species are related to differences in the relative availability of these prey in the different habitats or environments of each species.
Exogenous 17β‐oestradiol (E2) modifies thymus growth and regionalization in European sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax
Authors: Seemann F. , Knigge T. , Olivier S. , Monsinjon T.
Published: February 2015

The effect of 17β‐oestradiol (E2) on the growth of the thymus and its regionalization into cortex and medulla was investigated in juvenile European sea bass Dicentrarchus labrax as they find themselves close to sources of oestrogenic pollution whilst residing in their estuarine nursery areas. While the exposure to 2, 20 and 200 ng l−1 in 60 days post‐hatch (dph) fish tended to cause a non‐monotonous dose–response curve with a significant difference of the cortex size between lowest and highest exposures, the exposure to 20 ng l−1 E2 from 90 dph onwards resulted in a distinct enlargement of the cortex. It is probable that the alteration of the cortex size also affects the T‐cell differentiation and proliferation.
Ontogenetic metamorphosis and extreme sexual dimorphism in lumpsuckers: Eumicrotremus asperrimus, Cyclopteropsis bergi and Cyclopteropsis lindbergi, may be synonymous
Authors: Hatano M. , Abe T. , Wada T. , Munehara H.
Published: February 2015

Cyclopterids were hatched from egg batches that were laid in two empty buccinid snail shells collected from a depth of 340 m in the Sea of Japan. Larvae were reared to identify species and to describe the morphological changes associated with metamorphosis. The fin rays of all fins were mostly complete and the pelvic fins were modified to form suckers, or adhesive discs, at the time of hatching. Juveniles immediately attached themselves to the bottom and there was no planktonic stage. The body surface was smooth with no spines or bony tubercles. At 4 months after hatching, the fine spines present on the head and trunk of juveniles transformed into bony tubercles. At 7 months after hatching, fishes became sexually dimorphic including the position and development patterns of bony tubercles. Importantly, these sexually dimorphic changes in morphology corresponded closely with descriptions of different species. Specifically, females could be classified as Eumicrotremus asperrimus, and young and fully developed males as Cyclopteropsis bergi and Cyclopteropsis lindbergi, respectively. These observations resolved a previously ambiguous hypothesis regarding the taxonomy of these cyclopterid taxa. Cyclopteropsis bergi and C. lindbergi may be synonyms of E. asperrimus. © 2015 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles
Isolation and characterization of 20 polymorphic microsatellite loci in the migratory freshwater fish Leporinus obtusidens (Characiformes: Anostomidae) using 454 shotgun pyrosequencing
Authors: Villanova G. V. , Vera M. , Díaz J. , Martinez P. , Calcaterra N. B. , Arranz S. E.
Published: February 2015

Twenty polymorphic microsatellite markers were developed for the Neotropical fish Leporinus obtusidens using a next generation sequencing approach and tested in two other characifomes species, Schizodon platae and Prochilodus lineatus. Microsatellite loci alleles in L. obtusidens ranged between 2 and 20 alleles per locus (mean = 5·7), with expected heterozygosity values ranging from 0·097 to 0·956 (mean = 0·578) and observed heterozygosity values ranging from 0·000 to 0·800 (mean = 0·400) in a sample of 20 specimens from the lower Paraná River (Argentina). Most of these markers will be a valuable tool for captive breeding and stocking programmes, as well as for analyses of population connectivity and genetic structure in this broadly distributed Neotropical migratory fish.
Genetic analysis for main length ratio associated with morphological traits in Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus
Authors: Liu Y. X. , Sun Z. H. , Wang Y. F. , Yang R. Q.
Published: February 2015

The objective of this study was to estimate genetic parameters of main length ratios associated with morphological traits in Paralichthys olivaceus. At 180, 240 and 360 days of age, body length (L1), head length (L2), body depth (L3), caudal peduncle depth (L4) and caudal‐peduncle length (L5) were observed in 4757–5224 individuals from 52 full‐sib families. Based on these observed traits, the main length‐ratio traits including L3:L1, L2:L1, L5:L1 and L4:L3 were constructed. Three single‐trait animal models were used to examine the phenotypic variation of length‐ratio traits and were compared using the likelihood ratio test. As a result, the optimal model for all the analysed traits was determined as the model with the fixed, additive genetic and full‐sib family effects. Using the optimal model, animal model analysis for single trait showed that heritabilities were estimated to be low, ranging from 0·122 to 0·276. The estimates for all length‐ratio traits decreased while the days of age increased except for L3:L1. Multivariate animal model analysis indicated that within and among days of age, genetic correlations between length‐ratio traits were different in the direction and magnitude. Genetic parameter estimation of main length ratios would be helpful for genetic improvement of body shape in P. olivaceus.
Testing and validating a modified CTAB DNA extraction method to enable molecular parentage analysis of fertilized eggs and larvae of an emerging South African aquaculture species, the dusky kob Argyrosomus japonicus
Authors: Mirimin L. , Roodt‐Wilding R.
Published: February 2015

This study describes the successful implementation of a modified cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide (CTAB) protocol to isolate genomic DNA and amplify 14 microsatellite markers from fertilized eggs and larvae of an emerging South African farmed marine fish species, the dusky kob Argyrosomus japonicus. To test and validate the efficiency of this method, genetic data were utilized to resolve parentage and kinship of first‐generation (F1) offspring produced in mass‐spawning events of wild broodstock fish in a commercial hatchery.
Development of a Hyperspectral Imaging System for the Early Detection of Apple Rottenness Caused by Penicillium
Authors: Zhang Bao‐Hua , Li Jiang‐Bo , Zheng Ling , Huang Wen‐Qian , Fan Shu‐Xiang , Zhao Chun‐Jiang , Meng Qing‐da
Published: February 2015

Automatic detection of early rottenness caused by Penicillium is still a challenge due to the high similarity between the rotten region and sound tissue, and the large variations in surface background color of apples. A hyperspectral reflectance imaging system and a systematic approach were developed to detect the early rottenness caused by Penicillium on Fuji apples. The principal component analysis of the hyperspectral reflectance images in the full region (400–1,000 nm) of spectra was used to develop hyperspectral image analytical algorithm and select the efficient wavelengths. Independent component analysis (ICA) based on the selected efficient wavelengths (810 and 970 nm, respectively) and simple thresholding methods were used to segment and classify the rottenness from the sound tissue. Finally, ICA‐based image processing and classification algorithm was developed based on the images at 810 and 970 nm to realize the fast inspection of early rottenness. The detection result with 97% overall accuracy indicated that the proposed system and algorithm were efficient and suitable for the detection of the early rottenness caused by Penicillium on Fuji apples. This study was the first attempt to use hyperspectral imaging system to detect the early rottenness caused by Penicillium on Fuji apples and would lay a foundation for the development of multispectral imaging system for fast inspection of rottenness. The limitation of our research is the limited inspection view of the samples. Future work will be focused on simultaneous whole surface inspection using multispectral imaging system.

Practical Applications

The algorithm and results in our paper can provide a foundational basis to develop a real‐time inspection system to detect rottenness on apples in the postharvest processing line, or develop a monitoring system to monitor the quality changes in storage shelf.
Predictive validity of the HCR‐20 for inpatient aggression: the effect of intellectual disability on accuracy
Authors: O'Shea L. E. , Picchioni M. M. , McCarthy J. , Mason F. L. , Dickens G. L.
Published: February 2015

Background

People with intellectual disability (ID) account for a large proportion of aggressive incidents in secure and forensic psychiatric services. Although the Historical, Clinical, Risk Management 20 (HCR‐20) has good predictive validity in inpatient settings, it does not perform equally in all groups and there is little evidence for its efficacy in those with ID.

Method

A pseudo‐prospective cohort study of the predictive efficacy of the HCR‐20 for those with ID (n = 109) was conducted in a UK secure mental health setting using routinely collected risk data. Performance of the HCR‐20 in the ID group was compared with a comparison group of adult inpatients without an ID (n = 504). Analysis controlled for potential covariates including security level, length of stay, gender and diagnosis.

Results

The HCR‐20 total score was a significant predictor of any aggression and of physical aggression for both groups, although the area under the curve values did not reach the threshold for a large effect size. The clinical subscale performed significantly better in those without an ID compared with those with. The ID group had a greater number of relevant historical and risk management items. The clinicians' summary judgment significantly predicted both types of aggressive outcomes in the ID group, but did not predict either in those without an ID.

Conclusions

This study demonstrates that, after controlling for a range of potential covariates, the HCR‐20 is a significant predictor of inpatient aggression in people with an ID and performs as well as for a comparison group of mentally disordered individuals without ID. The potency of HCR‐20 subscales and items varied between the ID and comparison groups suggesting important target areas for improved prediction and risk management interventions in those with ID.
A study examining the relationship between alexithymia and challenging behaviour in adults with intellectual disability
Authors: Davies B. E. , Frude N. , Jenkins R. , Hill C. , Harding C.
Published: February 2015

Background

Research suggesting that people with intellectual disabilities (ID) have difficulties in recognising emotions provides a rationale for studying alexithymia in this population. A number of studies have found a relationship between alexithymia and challenging behaviours in various populations and this study aims to discover if this is the case for people with ID.

Method

Cross‐sectional data were collected from 96 participants with ID and 95 of their carers. The service user participants completed an alexithymia questionnaire for children while carers completed the checklist for challenging behaviour and the observer alexithymia scale. Correlational analyses were employed to explore relationships between the variables.

Results

The relationship between service user and carer‐rated alexithymia was very weak. The analysis did show significant associations between observer‐rated alexithymia and challenging behaviour frequency, management difficulty and severity, but there was no significant relationship between challenging behaviour and alexithymia as rated by service users themselves.

Conclusions

This study suggests that observer‐rated alexithymia is important in understanding challenging behaviour presented by people with ID. Service user‐rated alexithymia had no association with challenging behaviour, in contrast to the results from similar research with other challenging populations.