The long and short of it: branch lengths and the problem of placing the New Zealand short-tailed bat.

The taxonomic position of the endemic New Zealand bat genus Mystacina has vexed systematists ever since its erection in 1843. Over the years the genus has been linked with many microchiropteran families and superfamilies. Most recent classifications place it in the Vespertilionoidea, although some immunological evidence links it with the Noctilionoidea (=Phyllostomoidea). We have sequenced 402 bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene for M. tuberculata (Gray in Dieffenbach, 1843), and using both our own and published DNA sequences for taxa in both superfamilies, we applied different tree reconstruction methods to find the appropriate phylogeny and different methods of estimating confidence in the parts of the tree. All methods strongly support the classification of Mystacina in the Noctilionoidea. Spectral analysis suggests that parsimony analysis may be misleading for Mystacina's precise placement within the Noctilionoidea because of its long terminal branch. Analyses not susceptible to long-branch attraction suggest that the Mystacinidae is a sister family to the Phyllostomidae. Dating the divergence times between the different taxa suggests that the extant chiropteran families radiated around and shortly after the Cretaceous–Tertiary boundary. We discuss the biogeographical implications of classifying Mystacina within the Noctilionoidea and contrast our result with those classifications placing Mystacina in the Vespertilionoidea, concluding that evidence for the latter is weak.

Compensation for higher order mode coupling between inclined coupling slots and radiating slots in planar slotted waveguide arrays

Summary form only given. Geometric simplicity, efficiency and polarization purity make slot antenna arrays ideal solutions for many radar, communications and navigation applications, especially when high power, light weight and limited scan volume are priorities. Resonant arrays of longitudinal slots have a slot spacing of one-half guide wavelength at the design frequency, so that the slots are located at the standing wave peaks. Planar arrays are implemented using a number of rectangular waveguides (branch line guides), arranged side-by-side, while waveguides main lines located behind and at right angles to the branch lines excite the radiating waveguides via centered-inclined coupling slots. Planar slotted waveguide arrays radiate broadside beams and all radiators are designed to be in phase.

Spectrophotometric analysis of phenols, which involves a hemin-graphene hybrid nanoparticles with peroxidase-like activity

Phenols are well known noxious compounds, which are often found in various water sources. A novel analytical method has been researched and developed based on the properties of hemin–graphene hybrid nanosheets (H–GNs). These nanosheets were synthesized using a wet-chemical method, and they have peroxidase-like activity. Also, in the presence of H2O2, the nanosheets are efficient catalysts for the oxidation of the substrate, 4-aminoantipine (4-AP), and the phenols. The products of such an oxidation reaction are the colored quinone-imines (benzodiazepines). Importantly, these products enabled the differentiation of the three common phenols – pyrocatechol, resorcin and hydroquinone, with the use of a novel, spectroscopic method, which was developed for the simultaneous determination of the above three analytes. This spectroscopic method produced linear calibrations for the pyrocatechol (0.4–4.0 mg L−1), resorcin (0.2–2.0 mg L−1) and hydroquinone (0.8–8.0 mg L−1) analytes. In addition, kinetic and spectral data, obtained from the formation of the colored benzodiazepines, were used to establish multi-variate calibrations for the prediction of the three phenol analytes found in various kinds of water; partial least squares (PLS), principal component regression (PCR) and artificial neural network (ANN) models were used and the PLS model performed best.

The Long and Short of It: Branch Lengths and the Problem of Placing the New Zealand Short-Tailed Bat, Mystacina

The taxonomic position of the endemic New Zealand bat genus Mystacina has vexed systematists ever since its erection in 1843. Over the years the genus has been linked with many microchiropteran families and superfamilies. Most recent classifications place it in the Vespertilionoidea, although some immunological evidence links it with the Noctilionoidea (=Phyllostomoidea). We have sequenced 402 bp of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene for M. tuberculata (Gray in Dieffenbach, 1843), and using both our own and published DNA sequences for taxa in both superfamilies, we applied different tree reconstruction methods to find the appropriate phylogeny and different methods of estimating confidence in the parts of the tree. All methods strongly support the classification of Mystacina in the Noctilionoidea. Spectral analysis suggests that parsimony analysis may be misleading for Mystacina's precise placement within the Noctilionoidea because of its long terminal branch. Analyses not susceptible to long-branch attraction suggest that the Mystacinidae is a sister family to the Phyllostomidae. Dating the divergence times between the different taxa suggests that the extant chiropteran families radiated around and shortly after the Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary. We discuss the biogeographical implications of classifying Mystacina within the Noctilionoidea and contrast our result with those classifications placing Mystacina in the Vespertilionoidea, concluding that evidence for the latter is weak.

Hosting an asylum seeker in Australia: A nationwide exploratory study

In recent years, there has been a rise in the number of people seeking asylum in Australia, resulting in over-crowded detention centres in various parts of the country. Appropriate management and assistance of asylum seekers has been an issue of major socio-political concern. In mid-2012, the Australian ruling government introduced a ‘first of its kind’ community placement initiative, which involved relocating low-risk asylum seekers from detention centres to homes of those Australian families who volunteered for this program. The present study investigated host families’ motivations for volunteering into this scheme and their resulting experiences. Twenty-four men and women from all over Australia were interviewed in person or over the telephone. Consistent with theoretical frameworks of altruism, acculturation, and intergroup contact, thematic analysis indicated participants’ interest in diversity/humanitarian issues were major factors that motivated them to host asylum seekers. Language and cultural barriers were reported as challenges, but generally, participants found the experience positive and rewarding. The initiative was regarded as an excellent avenue of learning about new cultures. The hosts played a strong role in promoting the English language proficiency and intercultural settlement of the asylum seekers. The scheme was considered as one way of diffusing fear/biases against asylum seekers prevalent amongst the Australian community at-large. Participants also provided suggestions to improve the scheme.

Options for rehabilitation in interlock programs

This report examines the effectiveness of national and international programs that treat and rehabilitate drivers with alcohol dependence and the criteria used to approve the removal of interlocks. The project recommends a stepped care model which requires all participants to attend education and screening and then requires participants who fail to change their behaviour to attend increasingly intensive rehabilitation programs. Failure to complete an interlock program could result in participants having their licence revoked. This project was designed to inform action 36(d) of the National Road Safety Strategy 2011-2020: Investigate the option of requiring demonstrated rehabilitation from alcohol dependence before removal of interlock conditions.

Process visualization techniques for multi-perspective process comparisons

Organizations executing similar business processes need to understand the differences and similarities in activities performed across work environments. Presently, research interest is directed towards the potential of visualization for the display of process models, to support users in their analysis tasks. Although recent literature in process mining and comparison provide several methods and algorithms to perform process and log comparison, few contributions explore novel visualization approaches. This paper analyses process comparison from a design perspective, providing some practical visualization techniques as anal- ysis solutions (/to support process analysis). The design of the visual comparison has been tackled through three different points of view: the general model, the projected model and the side-by-side comparison in order to support the needs of business analysts. A case study is presented showing the application of process mining and visualization techniques to patient treatment across two Australian hospitals.

Differential interaction between the C2B domain of synaptotagmin-I and the Drosophila stonedA and stonedB proteins

The stoned locus in Drosophila encodes two proteins StonedA (STNA) and StonedB (STNB), both of which have been suggested to act as adaptins in mediating synaptic vesicle recycling. A combination of immunological, genetic and biochemical studies have shown an interaction of STNA and STNB with the C2B domain of Synaptotagmin-I (SYT-1), an integral synaptic vesicle protein that mediates Ca2+-dependent exocytosis, as well as endocytosis. The C2B domain of SYT-1 contains an AP-2 binding site that controls the size of recycled vesicles, and a C-terminal tryptophan-containing motif that acts as an internalization signal. Investigation of SYT-1 mutations in Drosophila has shown that altering the Ca2+ binding region of the C2B domain, results in a reduction in the rate of vesicle recycling, implicating this region in SYT-I endocytosis. In this poster, we report the molecular dissection of the interactions between the STNA and STNB proteins and the C2B domain of SYT-1. Deletion of the AP-2 binding site decreased the binding of both STNA and STNB. However, C-terminal deletions of the C2B domain significantly increased STNB binding. In contrast, the same C-terminal deletions reduced the affinity of the C2B domain for STNA. The possible interactions of both STNB and STNA with the Ca2+ binding region of SYT-1 will be also investigated.

How useful are x-rays in severe paediatric cervical spinal injuries?

INTRODUCTION Radiological evaluation of the paediatric cervical spine can be a challenge due to the normal anatomic variants and injuries that are unique to children. We aimed to identify the usefulness of plain X-rays in comparison with CT and MRI in diagnosing Paediatric cervical spinal injuries. METHODS Retrospective review of imaging studies of children diagnosed with paediatric cervical spine injuries who had presented to two tertiary hospitals in Queensland. RESULTS There were 38 patients with 18 male and 20 female .The mean age was 8.6 years. Plain Cervical Spine X-rays (3views, AP lateral and open mouth views) were done in 34 patients. The remaining 8 children had a suspected head injury and hence had CT scans of their neck done at the time of CT head scan. Of these images taken, X-rays were diagnostic in 28 (82%) patients. CONCLUSION X- Rays still have a role to play in the diagnosis of pediatric cervical spinal injuries and should be considered as the first line in fully conscious patients and their usefulness should not be overlooked in light of the newer imaging modalities.

Maternal pregravid body mass index and child hospital admissions in the first 5 years of life: results from an Australian birth cohort

Objectives: To examine the association of maternal pregravid body mass index (BMI) and child offspring, all-cause hospitalisations in the first 5 years of life. Methods: Prospective birth cohort study. From 2006 to 2011, 2779 pregnant women (2807 children) were enrolled in the Environments for Healthy Living: Griffith birth cohort study in South-East Queensland, Australia. Hospital delivery record and self-report baseline survey of maternal, household and demographic factors during pregnancy were linked to the Queensland Hospital Admitted Patients Data Collection from 1 November 2006 to 30 June 2012, for child admissions. Maternal pregravid BMI was classified as underweight (<18.5 kg m−2), normal weight (18.5–24.9 kg m−2), overweight (25.0–29.9 kg m−2) or obese (30 kg m−2). Main outcomes were the total number of child hospital admissions and ICD-10-AM diagnostic groupings in the first 5 years of life. Negative binomial regression models were calculated, adjusting for follow-up duration, demographic and health factors. The cohort comprised 8397.9 person years (PYs) follow-up. Results: Children of mothers who were classified as obese had an increased risk of all-cause hospital admissions in the first 5 years of life than the children of mothers with a normal BMI (adjusted rate ratio (RR) =1.48, 95% confidence interval 1.10–1.98). Conditions of the nervous system, infections, metabolic conditions, perinatal conditions, injuries and respiratory conditions were excessive, in both absolute and relative terms, for children of obese mothers, with RRs ranging from 1.3–4.0 (PYs adjusted). Children of mothers who were underweight were 1.8 times more likely to sustain an injury or poisoning than children of normal-weight mothers (PYs adjusted). Conclusion: Results suggest that if the intergenerational impact of maternal obesity (and similarly issues related to underweight) could be addressed, a significant reduction in child health care use, costs and public health burden would be likely.

Fractional diffusion models of cardiac electrical propagation: Role of structural heterogeneity in dispersion of repolarization

Impulse propagation in biological tissues is known to be modulated by structural heterogeneity. In cardiac muscle, improved understanding on how this heterogeneity influences electrical spread is key to advancing our interpretation of dispersion of repolarization. We propose fractional diffusion models as a novel mathematical description of structurally heterogeneous excitable media, as a means of representing the modulation of the total electric field by the secondary electrical sources associated with tissue inhomogeneities. Our results, analysed against in vivo human recordings and experimental data of different animal species, indicate that structural heterogeneity underlies relevant characteristics of cardiac electrical propagation at tissue level. These include conduction effects on action potential (AP) morphology, the shortening of AP duration along the activation pathway and the progressive modulation by premature beats of spatial patterns of dispersion of repolarization. The proposed approach may also have important implications in other research fields involving excitable complex media.

Experiences of countertransference: Reports of clinical psychology students

While historically linked with psychoanalysis, countertransference is recognised as an important component of the experience of therapists, regardless of the therapeutic modality. This study considers the implications of this for the training of psychologists. Fifty-five clinical psychology trainees from four university training programmes completed an anonymous questionnaire that collected written reports of countertransference experiences, ratings of confidence in managing these responses, and supervision in this regard. The reports were analysed using a process of thematic analysis. Several themes emerged including a desire to protect or rescue clients, feeling criticised or controlled by clients, feeling helpless, and feeling disengaged. Trainees varied in their reports of awareness of countertransference and the regularity of supervision in this regard. The majority reported a lack of confidence in managing their responses, and all reported interest in learning about countertransference. The implications for reflective practice in postgraduate psychology training are discussed.

Underlying scaling relationships between solar activity and geomagnetic activity revealed by multifractal analyses

his paper identifies some scaling relationships between solar activity and geomagnetic activity. We examine the scaling properties of hourly data for two geomagnetic indices (ap and AE), two solar indices (solar X-rays Xl and solar flux F10.7), and two inner heliospheric indices (ion density Ni and flow speed Vs) over the period 1995–2001 by the universal multifractal approach and the traditional multifractal analysis. We found that the universal multifractal model (UMM) provides a good fit to the empirical K(q) and τ(q) curves of these time series. The estimated values of the Lévy index α in the UMM indicate that multifractality exists in the time series for ap, AE, Xl, and Ni, while those for F10.7 and Vs are monofractal. The estimated values of the nonconservation parameter H of this model confirm that these time series are conservative which indicate that the mean value of the process is constant for varying resolution. Additionally, the multifractal K(q) and τ(q) curves, and the estimated values of the sparseness parameter C1 of the UMM indicate that there are three pairs of indices displaying similar scaling properties, namely ap and Xl, AE and Ni, and F10.7 and Vs. The similarity in the scaling properties of pairs (ap,Xl) and (AE,Ni) suggests that ap and Xl, AE and Ni are better correlated—in terms of scaling—than previous thought, respectively. But our results still cannot be used to advance forecasting of ap and AE by Xl and Ni, respectively, due to some reasons