Heat transfer and flow behind a step in high enthalpy superorbital flow

Heat transfer levels have been investigated behind a rearward-facing step in a superorbital expansion tube. The heat transfer was measured along a flat plate and behind 2 and 3mm steps with the same length to step height ratio. Results were obtained with air as the test gas at speeds of 6.76kms(-1) and 9-60kms(-1) corresponding to stagnation enthalpies of 26MJ/kg and 48MJ/kg respectively. A laminar boundary layer was established on the flat plate and measured heat transfer levels were consistent with classical empirical correlations. In the case of flow behind a step, the measurements showed a gradual rise in heat transfer from the rear of the step to a plateau several step heights downstream for both flow conditions. Reattachment distance was estimated to be approximately 1.6 step heights downstream of the 2mm step at the low enthalpy condition through the use of flow visualisation.

Gene flow in great bustard populations across the Strait of Gibraltar as elucidated from excremental PCR and mtDNA sequencing

Recent advances in molecular biology have made it possible to use the trace amounts of DNA in faeces to non-invasively sample endangered species for genetic studies. Here we use faeces as a source of DNA and mtDNA sequence data to elucidate the relationship among Spanish and Moroccan populations of great bustards. 834 bp of combined control region and cytochrome-b mtDNA fragments revealed four variable sites that defined seven closely related haplotypes in 54 individuals. Morocco was fixed for a single mtDNA haplotype that occurs at moderate frequency (28%) in Spain. We could not differentiate among the sampled Spanish populations of Caceres and Andalucia but these combined populations were differentiated from the Moroccan population. Estimates of gene flow (Nm = 0.82) are consistent with extensive observations on the southern Iberian peninsular indicating that few individuals fly across the Strait of Gibraltar. We demonstrate that both this sea barrier and mountain barriers in Spain limit dispersal among adjacent great bustard populations to a similar extent. The Moroccan population is of high ornithological significance as it holds the only population of great bustards in Africa. This population is critically small and genetic and observational data indicate that it is unlikely to be recolonised via immigration from Spain should it be extirpated. In light of the evidence presented here it deserves the maximum level of protection.

The relationship of adult attachment dimensions to depression and agoraphobia

We examined the unique relations between the five dimensions of the Attachment Style Questionnaire (ASQ; Feeney, Noller, & Hanrahan, 1994) and depression and agoraphobic behavior (i.e., avoidance of situations where high anxiety is experienced). In addition, we examined mediation models in an attempt to clarify the link between adult attachment and these two dimensions of psychopathology. In testing these models, we administered the ASQ, General Self-Efficacy Scale, Agoraphobic Catastrophic Cognitions Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory, and the Mobility Inventory for Agoraphobia (a measure of the degree to which situations are avoided that are typically anxiety provoking for people with agoraphobia) to 122 participants (44 with agoraphobia, 25 with a current major depressive disorder, and 53 with no current psychopathology). The results showed that the insecure attachment dimensions of need for approval, preoccupation with relationships, and relationships as secondary were uniquely associated with depression and that general self-efficacy partly mediated the relationship between need for approval and depression. In contrast, only preoccupation with relationships was uniquely associated with agoraphobic behavior, and catastrophic cognitions about bodily sensations partly mediated this association.