bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A critical assessment of two species distribution models: a case study of the vervet monkey (Cercopithecus aethiops)
Authors: Willems Erik P. , Hill Russell A. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractAim  Species distribution models are invaluable tools in biogeographical, ecological and applied biological research, but specific concerns have been raised in relation to different modelling techniques in terms of their validity. Here we compare two fundamentally different approaches to species distribution modelling, one based on simple occurrence data where the lack of an ecological framework has been criticized, and the other firmly based in socio‐ecological theory but requiring highly detailed behavioural information that is often limited in availability.Location  (Sub‐Saharan) Africa.Methods  We used two distinct techniques to predict the realized distribution of a model species, the vervet monkey (Cercopithecus aethiops Linnaeus, 1758). A maximum entropy model was produced taking 13 environmental variables and presence‐only data from 174 sites throughout Africa as input, with an additional 58 sites retained to test the model. A time‐budget model considering the same environmental variables was constructed from detailed behavioural data on 20 groups representing 14 populations, with presence‐only data from the remaining 218 sites reserved to test model predictions on vervet monkey occurrence. Both models were further validated against a reference species distribution map as drawn up by the African Mammals Databank.Results  Both models performed well, with the time budget and maximum entropy algorithms correctly predicting vervet monkey presence at 78.4% and 91.4% of their respective test sites. Similarly, the time‐budget model correctly predicted presence and absence at 87.4% of map pixels against the reference distribution map, and the maximum entropy model achieved a success rate of 81.8%. Finally, there was a high level of agreement (81.6%) between the presence–absence maps produced by the two models, and the environmental variables identified as most strongly driving vervet monkey distribution were the same in both models.Main conclusions  The time‐budget and maximum entropy models produced accurate and remarkably similar species distribution maps, despite fundamental differences in their conceptual and methodological approaches. Such strong convergence not only provides support for the credibility of current results, but also relieves concerns about the validity of the two modelling approaches.
Rapid evolution of great kiskadees on Bermuda: an assessment of the ability of the island rule to predict the direction of contemporary evolution in exotic vertebrates
Authors: Mathys Blake A. , Lockwood Julie L. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractAim  To determine whether an exotic bird species, the great kiskadee (Pitangus sulphuratus), has diverged in morphology from its native source population, and, if so, has done so in a manner predicted by the island rule. The island rule predicts that insular vertebrates will tend towards dwarfism or gigantism when isolated on islands, depending on their body size. For birds, the island rule predicts that species with body sizes below 70–120 g should increase in size. The great kiskadee has a mean mass of c. 60 g in its native range, therefore we predicted that it would increase in size within the exotic, and more insular, Bermudan range.Location  The islands of Bermuda (exotic population) and Trinidad (native source population).Methods  We took eight morphological measurements on 84 individuals captured in the exotic (Bermudan) population and 62 individuals captured in the native source (Trinidadian) population. We compared morphological metrics between populations using univariate and principal components analyses. We assessed whether the effects of genetic drift could explain observed differences in morphology. We calculated divergence rates in haldanes and darwins for comparison with published examples of contemporary evolution. Finally, we used mark–recapture analysis to determine the effects of the measured morphological characters on survivorship within the exotic Bermudan population.Results  Individuals in the exotic Bermudan population have larger morphological dimensions than individuals in the native source population on Trinidad. The degree of divergence in body mass (g) and bill width (mm) is probably not due to genetic drift. This rate of divergence is nearly equal to that observed amongst well‐documented examples of contemporary bird evolution, and is within the mid‐range of rates reported across taxa. There is no clear effect of body size on survivorship as only one character (bill width) was found to have an influence on individual survivorship.Main conclusions  Exotic species provide useful systems for examining evolutionary predictions over contemporary time‐scales. We found that divergence between the exotic and native populations of this bird species occurred over c. 17 generations, and was in the direction predicted by the island rule, a principle based on the study of native species.
An ethnographic study of forensic nursing culture in an Australian prison hospital
Authors: CASHIN A. , NEWMAN C. , EASON M. , THORPE A. , O'DISCOLL C. 
Published: July 2009

Accessible summary

Forensic nurses are faced with unique challenges in their attempt to deliver nursing care in a custodial environment.
The impact of such challenges on the cultural dynamic of forensic nursing and consequently on healthcare delivery is largely unknown.
The aim of this ethnographic study was to explore the nursing culture within an Australian prison hospital and the migration of the culture over a 12‐month period.
At the end of the study, the nursing culture was found to be one of hope, although with no clearly articulated vision of nurse‐hood or patient‐hood and model within which to practice nursing.
The ability to articulate practice is central to the development of mental health nursing in any context.

AbstractForensic nurses are faced with unique challenges in their attempt to deliver nursing care in a custodial environment. The impact of such challenges on the cultural dynamic of forensic nursing and consequently on healthcare delivery is largely unknown. The aim of this ethnographic study was to explore the nursing culture within an Australian prison hospital and the migration of the culture over a 12‐month period. At the end of the study the nursing culture was found to be one of hope, although with no clearly articulated vision of nurse‐hood or patient‐hood and model within which to practice nursing.
Immunity and symbiosis
Authors: Gross Roy , Vavre Fabrice , Heddi Abdelaziz , Hurst Gregory D. D. , Zchori‐Fein Einat , Bourtzis Kostas 
Published: July 2009

SummaryThe invertebrate immune system, which has become a major research focus, shares basic features of innate immunity with vertebrates and men. A special feature apparently found only in invertebrates is their close association with vertically heritable symbiotic microorganisms. The validity of the simple view of symbiosis as a mutually beneficial interaction between two uneven partners mainly improving the nutritional state of the two companions has been challenged, however, as symbiotic interactions might involve more partners, and symbiotic functions of the microorganisms are much more diverse than previously assumed. Likewise, microorganisms considered to be mostly harmful to their hosts have been shown to enhance host fitness under some circumstances. The role of a symbiont itself might change between environments or life stages of the host and symbionts might have features previously thought to be specific for pathogens. Understanding symbiotic interactions requires the comprehension of the cross‐talk between the symbiotic companions, and the dissection of how long‐lasting infections are established without eliminating the symbiont by host immune responses. Fascinating new findings in this field revealed that symbiosis might contribute to defence against pathogens or natural enemies. New symbiont‐based approaches to defeat agricultural pests or pathogen transmission by arthropod vectors are becoming conceivable.
In vitro comparison of the complement‐scavenging capacity of different intravenous immunoglobulin preparations
Authors: Spycher M. , Matozan K. , Minnig K. , Zehnder R. , Miescher S. , Hoefferer L. , Rieben R. 
Published: July 2009

Background and Objectives  Complement inhibition is considered important in the mechanism of action of intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) in a number of inflammatory and autoimmune disorders. The capacity of different IVIG preparations to ‘scavenge’ activated C3 and thereby inhibit complement activation was assessed by a new in vitro assay.Materials and Methods  Diluted human serum as a complement source, with or without addition of different concentrations of IVIG, was incubated in microtitre plates coated with heat‐aggregated human IgG. Complement scavenging was measured by detecting reduced C3 binding and determining fluid phase C3b–IgG complex formation. Complement activation induced by the IVIG preparations was measured as C5a formation.Results  All IVIG preparations exhibited a dose‐dependent inhibition of C3b deposition, correlating strongly with binding of C3b to fluid‐phase IgG, but the extent of complement scavenging varied considerably between different IVIG preparations. At an IVIG concentration of 0·9 mg/ml, the inhibition of C3b deposition ranged from 72 ± 16% to 22 ± 4·1%. The reduction of C3b deposition on the complement‐activating surface was not due to IVIG‐induced complement activation in the fluid phase, as shown by the low C5a formation in the presence of serum.Conclusion  In vitro analysis allows comparison of the complement‐inhibitory properties of IVIG preparations. The extent of complement scavenging varies between the products.
Structure of the Oesophagus and Morphometric, Histochemical–Immunohistochemical Profiles of the Oesophageal Gland During the Post‐hatching Period of Japanese Quails (Coturnix coturnix japonica)
Authors: Sağsöz H. , Lıman N. 
Published: July 2009

SummaryIn the oesophagus, mucins, which originate from oesophageal submucosal glands, play an important role in the mucosal protection as a pre‐epithelial barrier. In this study, the structure of cervical and thoracic parts of oesophagus of Japanese quail during the post‐hatching period was compared, and the contents of carbohydrate and gastric mucin MUC5AC of the oesophageal glands in these parts were analysed at the light microscope levels by applying conventional histochemical and immunohistochemical methods. The oesophageal glands were present at hatching, located in the laminae propria. The numbers of glands were different in the cervical and thoracic parts, but the differences were found to be insignificant. The thoracic part has the oesophageal tonsils which are associated with the glands. Oesophageal tonsil was formed from day 5 after hatching. In quail of all ages, the secretory epithelium of glands contained neutral sialomucins and weakly sulphomucins. The cells in the neck region of secretory units contained sialomucins, while the cells of excretory ducts had strongly sulphomucins. Sialomucin containing cells in the secretory units increased with the advance of age and glandular development. But, in the secretory units, the sulphomucin content of glands was more in the thoracic part. The secretory epithelium of tonsil‐associated glands contained mostly sulphomucins and a little sialomucin. From the hatching, MUC5AC mucin was detected in the cells of excretory ducts. Although the lymphoepithelium of the tonsil units exhibited negative reactions to all histochemical methods, it showed positive reaction to MUC5AC mucin antibody. In conclusion, the cervical and thoracic parts may be functionally different and the thoracic part of oesophagus was transformed into an immunological organ following day 5 after hatching.
Bioactivity of fenchone and Plectranthus glandulosus oil against Prostephanus truncatus and two strains of Sitophilus zeamais
Authors: Nukenine E. N. , Adler C. , Reichmuth Ch. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThe toxic, repellent and reproduction inhibitory effects of Plectranthus glandulosus essential oil and one of its major compounds, fenchone, were evaluated against adult Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) and for two strains of Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky from Cameroon and Germany. Maize grains were coated with the oil at 0, 10, 20, 40 and 80 μl/40 g grain and fenchone at 0, 20, 40, 80 and 120 μl/40 g grain. Mortality was assessed over a 7‐day period, followed by the determination of F1 progeny production. The repellence of the two products was evaluated at five rates (0.5, 1, 3, 5, 10 μl/half disc) in a choice bioassay on filter paper. The oil and fenchone caused significant dose‐dependent mortality to the three insects, with the oil achieving 100% and 90% mortality for the two S. zeamais strains and P. truncatus, respectively, within 1 day of exposure at the dosage of 80 μl/40 g grain. The insects were less susceptible to fenchone compared with the crude oil. The German strain of S. zeamais was susceptible to the oil than the Cameroonian strain. At the dosage of 20 μl/40 g grain, S. zeamais F1 progeny emergency was completely inhibited by the oil, while 80 μl/40 g grain treatment with fenchone prevented also insect emergence. Plectranthus glandulosus oil generally evoked a maximum per cent repellency of 100% for the three insects, but fenchone caused 55–60% to S. zeamais and 80% to P. truncatus. These results suggest that fenchone, though a major constituent of P. glandulosus oil, may only be a minor component of its bioactivity.
Study of the macrophyte assemblages and application of phytobenthic indices to assess the Ecological Status of the Marano‐Grado Lagoon (Italy)
Authors: Falace Annalisa , Curiel Daniele , Sfriso Adriano 
Published: July 2009

AbstractBenthic macrophytes from 19 sites within the Marano‐Grado Lagoon were sampled in July 2007 in order to update the available information on the flora and vegetation and to assess the Ecological Status (ES) within the European Water Framework Directive (WFD). Data on macrophytes were analysed using two phytobenthic indices (EEI and R‐MaQI) recently set up to evaluate the ecological status of transitional environments in the Mediterranean eco‐region. Notwithstanding the extension (c. 160 km2) that places this lagoon as the second largest Italian transitional environment, ecological studies are relatively few. The present research revealed a relatively poor flora, mainly characterized by the dominance of low‐diversity settlements of Ulvaceae. Moreover, the absence of intensive aquaculture activities and commercial big harbours, which account for the new species introductions recorded in other lagoons, limits the presence of non‐autochthonous species. The comparison with previous data (Curiel et al. 1998) highlighted the reduction of macrophyte coverage and biomass, especially Ulvaceae stands, and an increase in species richness. In particular, there was evidence of a worsening of the area north of the Grado bridge. This area, which in the past was colonized by widespread angiosperm coverage, at present is almost lacking in vegetation. According to these observations, by applying both the phytobenthic indices available in the literature for the transitional environments, the Marano‐Grado Lagoon showed a ‘Good–High’ quality in the central part of the basin and near the lagoon inlets and a ‘Poor–Bad’ quality in the northern and southern areas. The evaluation of some physico‐chemical parameters, coupled with the distribution of the angiosperms, also allowed a first delineation of the main lagoon water bodies.
Consent issues and pediatric regional anesthesia
Authors: LÖNNQVIST PER‐ARNE , MORTON NEIL S. , ROSS ALLISON K. 
Published: July 2009

SummaryThe need for consent to regional anesthetic procedures varies considerably between countries. It is likely that legislation and professional guidance will tighten consent procedures, and in several countries detailed written consent is required for regional blockade. This article discusses aspects of consent to regional anesthesia in children.
Negotiating ‘Difference’: Representing Disabled Employees in the British Workplace
Authors: Foster Deborah , Fosh Patricia 
Published: July 2009

AbstractDrawing on qualitative interviews with disabled employees, union officers and disability‐related organizations, this article examines employee attempts to negotiate workplace adjustments and associated issues of workplace representation. UK employment law utilizes an individual medical model of disability, which conflicts with traditional collective approaches favoured by trade unions, which has implications for disabled employees and union representation. We explore the different strategies available to unions and conclude that, despite the role played by disability‐related organizations in supporting employees, unions are the only workplace actors who are capable of reconfiguring the ‘personal as political’ and integrating disability concerns into wider organizational agendas.
Visualization of vessel movements
Authors: Willems Niels , Van De Wetering Huub , Van Wijk Jarke J. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractWe propose a geographical visualization to support operators of coastal surveillance systems and decision making analysts to get insights in vessel movements. For a possibly unknown area, they want to know where significant maritime areas, like highways and anchoring zones, are located. We show these features as an overlay on a map. As source data we use AIS data: Many vessels are currently equipped with advanced GPS devices that frequently sample the state of the vessels and broadcast them. Our visualization is based on density fields that are derived from convolution of the dynamic vessel positions with a kernel. The density fields are shown as illuminated height maps. Combination of two fields, with a large and small kernel provides overview and detail. A large kernel provides an overview of area usage revealing vessel highways. Details of speed variations of individual vessels are shown with a small kernel, highlighting anchoring zones where multiple vessels stop. Besides for maritime applications we expect that this approach is useful for the visualization of moving object data in general.
Visualization Techniques for Schedule Comparison
Authors: Huang Dandan , Tory Melanie , Staub‐French Sheryl , Pottinger Rachel 
Published: July 2009

AbstractProject schedules are effectively represented by Gantt charts, but comparing multiple versions of a schedule is difficult. To compare versions with current methods, users must search and navigate through multiple large documents, making it difficult to identify differences. We present two novel visualization techniques to support the comparison of Gantt charts. First, we encode two Gantt charts in one view by overlapping them to show differences. Second, we designed an interactive visual technique, the ‘TbarView’, that allows users to compare multiple schedules within one single view. We evaluated the overlap and TbarView techniques via a user study. The study results showed that our design provided a quick overview of the variances among two or more schedules, and the techniques also improved efficiency by minimizing view switching. Our visual techniques for schedule comparison could be combined with other resource analysis tools to help project teams identify and resolve errors and problems in project schedules.
The Chinese Room: Visualization and Interaction to Understand and Correct Ambiguous Machine Translation
Authors: Albrecht Joshua , Hwa Rebecca , Marai G. Elisabeta 
Published: July 2009

AbstractWe present The Chinese Room, a visualization interface that allows users to explore and interact with a multitude of linguistic resources in order to decode and correct poor machine translations. The target users of The Chinese Room are not bilingual and are not familiar with machine translation technologies. We investigate the ability of our system to assist such users in decoding and correcting faulty machine translations. We found that by collaborating with our application, end‐users can overcome many difficult translation errors and disambiguate translated passages that were otherwise baffling. We also examine the utility of our system to machine translation researchers. Anecdotal evidence suggests that The Chinese Room can help such researchers develop better machine translation systems.
Collaborative Brushing and Linking for Co‐located Visual Analytics of Document Collections
Authors: Isenberg Petra , Fisher Danyel 
Published: July 2009

AbstractMany real‐world analysis tasks can benefit from the combined efforts of a group of people. Past research has shown that to design visualizations for collaborative visual analytics tasks, we need to support both individual as well as joint analysis activities. We present Cambiera, a tabletop visual analytics tool that supports individual and collaborative information foraging activities in large text document collections. We define collaborative brushing and linking as an awareness mechanism that enables analysts to follow their own hypotheses during collaborative sessions while still remaining aware of the group's activities. With Cambiera, users are able to collaboratively search through documents, maintaining awareness of each others' work and building on each others' findings.
High‐Quality Volumetric Reconstruction on Optimal Lattices for Computed Tomography
Authors: Finkbeiner Bernhard , Alim Usman R. , Van De Ville Dimitri , Möller Torsten 
Published: July 2009

AbstractWithin the context of emission tomography, we study volumetric reconstruction methods based on the Expectation Maximization (EM) algorithm. We show, for the first time, the equivalence of the standard implementation of the EM‐based reconstruction with an implementation based on hardware‐accelerated volume rendering for nearest‐neighbor (NN) interpolation. This equivalence suggests that higher‐order kernels should be used with caution and do not necessarily lead to better performance. We also show that the EM algorithm can easily be adapted for different lattices, the body‐centered cubic (BCC) one in particular. For validation purposes, we use the 3D version of the Shepp‐Logan synthetic phantom, for which we derive closed‐form analytical expressions of the projection data. The experimental results show the theoretically‐predicted optimality of NN interpolation in combination with the EM algorithm, for both the noiseless and the noisy case. Moreover, reconstruction on the BCC lattice leads to superior accuracy, more compact data representation, and better noise reduction compared to the Cartesian one. Finally, we show the usefulness of the proposed method for optical projection tomography of a mouse embryo.
Quasi‐interpolation on the Body Centered Cubic Lattice
Authors: Entezari A. , Mirzargar M. , Kalantari L. 
Published: July 2009

AbstractThis paper introduces a quasi‐interpolation method for reconstruction of data sampled on the Body Centered Cubic (BCC) lattice. The reconstructions based on this quasi‐interpolation achieve the optimal approximation order offered by the shifts of the quintic box spline on the BCC lattice. We also present a local FIR filter that is used to filter the data for quasi‐interpolation. We document the improved quality and fidelity of reconstructions after employing the introduced quasi‐interpolation method. Finally the resulting quasi‐interpolation on the BCC sampled data are compared to the corresponding quasi‐interpolation method on the Cartesian sampled data.