Cross-cultural dimensions of meaning in the evaluation of events in world history? Perceptions of historical calamities and progress in cross-cultural data from 30 societies

The universality versus culture specificity of quantitative evaluations (negative-positive) of 40 events in world history was addressed using World History Survey data collected from 5,800 university students in 30 countries/societies. Multidimensional scaling using generalized procrustean analysis indicated poor fit of data from the 30 countries to an overall mean configuration, indicating lack of universal agreement as to the associational meaning of events in world history. Hierarchical cluster analysis identified one Western and two non-Western country clusters for which adequate multidimensional fit was obtained after item deletions. A two-dimensional solution for the three country clusters was identified, where the primary dimension was historical calamities versus progress and a weak second dimension was modernity versus resistance to modernity. Factor analysis further reduced the item inventory to identify a single concept with structural equivalence across cultures, Historical Calamities, which included man-made and natural, intentional and unintentional, predominantly violent but also nonviolent calamities. Less robust factors were tentatively named as Historical Progress and Historical Resistance to Oppression. Historical Calamities and Historical Progress were at the individual level both significant and independent predictors of willingness to fight for one’s country in a hierarchical linear model that also identified significant country-level variation in these relationships. Consensus around calamity but disagreement as to what constitutes historical progress is discussed in relation to the political culture of nations and lay perceptions of history as catastrophe.

Significant reproductive skew in the facultatively polygynous ant Pheidole pallidula

Reproductive skew - the extent to which reproduction is unevenly shared between individuals in a social group - varies greatly between and within animal species. In this study, we investigated how queens share parentage in polygynous (multiple queen) colonies of the Mediterranean ant Pheidole pallidula. We used highly polymorphic microsatellites markers to determine parentage of gynes (new queens), males and workers in P. pallidula field colonies. The comparison of the genotypes of young and adult workers revealed a very low queen turnover (less than 2%). The first main finding of the study of reproductive skew in these colonies was that there was a significant departure from equal contribution of queens to gyne, male and worker production. Reproductive skew was greater for male production than for queen and worker production. There was no relationship between the magnitude of the reproductive skew and the number of reproductive queens per colony, their relatedness and the overall colony productivity, some of the factors predicted to influence the extent of reproductive skew. Finally, our study revealed for the first time a trade-off in the relative contribution of nestmate queens to gyne and worker production. The queens contributing more to gyne production contributed significantly less to worker production.

Significant variations of Anti-Müllerian hormone serum levels during pregnancy and during oral contraception

info:eu-repo/semantics/nonPublished

15N NMR relaxation data reveal significant chemical exchange broadening in the alpha-domain of human α-lactalbumin

Human alpha-lactalbumin (alpha-LA), a 123-residue calcium-binding protein, has been studied using (15)N NMR relaxation methods in order to characterize backbone dynamics of the native state at the level of individual residues. Relaxation data were collected at three magnetic field strengths and analyzed using the model-free formalism of Lipari and Szabo. The order parameters derived from this analysis are generally high, indicating a rigid backbone. A total of 46 residues required an exchange contribution to T(2); 43 of these residues are located in the alpha-domain of the protein. The largest exchange contributions are observed in the A-, B-, D-, and C-terminal 3(10)-helices of the alpha-domain; these residues have been shown previously to form a highly stable core in the alpha-LA molten globule. The observed exchange broadening, along with previous hydrogen/deuterium amide exchange data, suggests that this part of the alpha-domain may undergo a local structural transition between the well-ordered native structure and a less-ordered molten-globule-like structure.