Gross anatomy of the muscle systems and associated innervation of Apatemon cobitidis proterorhini metacercaria (Trematoda: Strigeidea), as visualized by confocal microscopy.:Strigeidea), as visualized by confocal microscopy

The major muscle systems of the metacercaria of the strigeid trematode, Apatemon cobitidis proterorhini have been examined using phalloidin as a site-specific probe for filamentous actin. Regional differences were evident in the organization of the body wall musculature of the forebody and hindbody, the former comprising outer circular, intermediate longitudinal and inner diagonal fibres, the latter having the inner diagonal fibres replaced with an extra layer of more widely spaced circular muscle. Three orientations of muscle fibres (equatorial, meridional, radial) were discernible in the oral sucker, acetabulum and paired lappets. Large longitudinal extensor and flexor muscles project into the hindbody where they connect to the body wall or end blindly. Innervation to the muscle systems of Apatemon was examined by immunocytochemistry, using antibodies to known myoactive substances: the flatworm FMRFamide-related neuropeptide (FaRP), GYIRFamide, and the biogenic amine, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT). Strong immunostaining for both peptidergic and serotoninergic components was found in the central nervous system and confocal microscopic mapping of the distribution of these neuroactive substances revealed they occupied separate neuronal pathways. In the peripheral nervous system, GYIRFamide-immunoreactivity was extensive and, in particular, associated with the innervation of all attachment structures; serotoninergic fibres, on the other hand, were localized to the oral sucker and pharynx and to regions along the anterior margins of the forebody.

A taxonomy for wavelet neural networks applied to nonlinear modelling

This article presents a novel classification of wavelet neural networks based on the orthogonality/non-orthogonality of neurons and the type of nonlinearity employed. On the basis of this classification different network types are studied and their characteristics illustrated by means of simple one-dimensional nonlinear examples. For multidimensional problems, which are affected by the curse of dimensionality, the idea of spherical wavelet functions is considered. The behaviour of these networks is also studied for modelling of a low-dimension map.

Order without law? An anatomy of Hamas security: The Executive Force (Tanfithya)

In the struggle to assert and consolidate its power, the Hamas movement of the Palestinian territories has devised several strategies for control. In recognition that control of security remains a key goal for any power-seeker, following its election victory in January 2006, Hamas entered into a fierce and ultimately successful conflict with Fatah for control of the Palestinian Authority Ministry of Interior and Palestinian Security Forces (PSF) in the Gaza Strip. One way in which Hamas was able to achieve this objective was through the creation of its own internal ‘police’ force called the Tanfithya (Executive Force or EF). This article details an anatomy of the EF and the implications of this force in terms of Hamas' confrontation with opponents and its attempts at governance. It also examines the extent to which the EF can be considered to be a model of Islamic policing and its impact on secular rivals in the Gaza Strip.

Anatomy and facies association of a drumlin in Co. Down, Northern Ireland, from seismic and electrical resistivity surveys

Seismic refraction and electrical resistivity geophysical techniques were used to reconstruct the internal architecture of a drumlin in Co. Down, Northern Ireland. Geophysical results were both validated and complemented by borehole drilling, ground water flow modelling, and geologic mapping. The geophysical anatomy of the drumlin consists of five successive layers with depth including; topsoil, partially saturated and saturated glacial tills, and weathered and more competent greywacke bedrock. There are numerous, often extensive inclusions of clay, sand, gravel, cobbles, and boulders within the topsoil and the till units. Together geophysical and geotechnical findings imply that the drumlin is part of the subglacial lodgement, melt-out, debris flow, sheet flow facies described by previous authors, and formed by re-sedimentation and streamlining of pre-existing sediments during deglaciation of the Late Devensian ice sheet. Seismic refraction imaging is particularly well suited to delineating layering within the drumlin, and is able to reconstruct depths to interfaces to within ± 0.5 m accuracy. Refraction imaging ascertained that the weathered bedrock layer is continuous and of substantial thickness, so that it acts as a basal aquifer which underdrains the bulk of the drumlin. Electrical resistivity imaging was found to be capable of delineating relative spatial changes in the moisture content of the till units, as well as mapping sedimentary inclusions within the till. The moisture content appeared to be elevated near the margins of the drumlin, which may infer a weakening of the drumlin slopes. Our findings advocate the use of seismic refraction and electrical resistivity methods in future sedimentological and geotechnical studies of internal drumlin architecture and drumlin formation, owing particularly to the superior, 3- D spatial coverage of these methods.

GERMAN WORKS COUNCILS AND THE ANATOMY OF WAGES

Using matched employer-employee data from the German LIAB for 2001, the authors found that German works councils are in general associated with higher earnings, even after accounting for establishment- and worker heterogeneity. Works Council wage premia exceed those of collective bargaining and are higher, in fact, where both institutions are present in the workplace. The authors also found evidence indicating that works councils benefit women relative to men and appear to favor foreign, east-German, and service-sector workers as well. Separate evidence from quantile regressions suggests that the conjunction of works council presence and collective bargaining is important to the narrowing process. In smaller plants even the presence of a works council markup depends on the coexistence of the works council entity With the machinery of collective bargaining.

The deep-sea chiton Nierstraszella (Mollusca: Polyplacophora: Lepidopleurida) in the Indo-West Pacific: taxonomy, morphology and a bizarre ectosymbiont

This study investigated the taxonomy and distribution of the deep-sea polyplacophoran mollusc Nierstraszella Sirenko, 1992 in the Indo-West Pacific, based on a collection of 516 specimens collected in the Philippines and Solomon Islands. Although seven species names have historically been proposed in this group of chitons, all have been considered as synonyms of the monotypic N. lineata (Nierstrasz, 1905). Morphological examination of this new material reveals the presence of two species. N. lineata is distinct from N. andamanica (Smith, 1906), based on morphological characters given in the original species description and very distinctly different morphology of aesthete pores in the shell surface. Furthermore, populations of N. andamanica in the Philippines and Solomon Islands are locally colonized with the epibiotic (ectoparasitic) bryozoan Pseudobathyalozoon profundum d'Hondt, 2006. These bryozoans attach ventrally to the girdle of the host chiton and the erect zooids feed within the pallial cavity, among the chiton's gills.

Gross anatomy and positional homology of gills, gonopores, and nephridiopores in “basal” living chitons (Polyplacophora: Lepidopleurina)

Traditional shell characters are insufficient to differentiate taxa within the polyplacophoran order Lepidopleurida. Additional morphological character sets from soft anatomy (e.g., gamete morphology, gill arrangement, and locations of gonopores and nephidiopores) have previously been described from only a small number of taxa. This study reports for the first time, positions of the gonopores and nephridiopores for 17 species in the Lepidopleurina. The position of both types of pores on the longitudinal body axis varies within a generalized range of the posterior third of the body; however, the separation between the pores as a proportion of the specimen’s foot length varies from 3.7% to 17% in different species. Positions of pores relative to the serial gills are also variable within species, and future studies may require a new descriptive basis in order to resolve positional homology. The order Lepidopleurida occupies a critical position with respect to understanding larger-scale patterns in polyplacophoran (and molluscan) evolution.