History and Epistemology of Science in the Classroom: The Synthesis of Quinine as a Proposal

The history of the quinine synthesis can be used as a case study to emphasize that science is influenced by social and historical processes. The first efforts toward the synthesis of this substance, which until recently was the only treatment for malaria, were by Perkin in 1856 when, trying to obtain quinine,,. he synthesized mauveine. Since then, the quest for the total synthesis of quinine involved several characters in a web of controversies. A major step in this process was made in 1918 by Rabe and Kindler, who proposed the synthesis of quinine from quinotoxine. Twenty-six years later, after obtaining the total synthesis of quinotoxine, Woodward and Doering announced the total synthesis of quinine. However, the lack of experimental details about Rabe and Kindler's process, associated with Woodward and Doering's failure to reproduce it, raised a series of doubts about the synthesis. Stork and colleagues questioned the veracity of the experimental data and even the scientific reputation of the involved researchers. Doubts remained alive until 2008, when Williams and Smith reported, not without reservations, the reproducibility of Rabe and Kindler's protocol. The scientific knowledge as a social and historical development, its legitimating process, and the absence of neutrality in science constitute aspects that can be discussed from this case study, providing significant contributions to science education, in particular, to the initial or continued training of chemistry teachers.

Biological and Physical Factors Affecting the Natural History and Evolution of Encapsulated Development

The evolution of reproductive strategies involves a complex calculus of costs and benefits to both parents and offspring. Many marine animals produce embryos packaged in tough egg capsules or gelatinous egg masses attached to benthic surfaces. While these egg structures can protect against environmental stresses, the packaging is energetically costly for parents to produce. In this series of studies, I examined a variety of ecological factors affecting the evolution of benthic development as a life history strategy. I used marine gastropods as my model system because they are incredibly diverse and abundant worldwide, and they exhibit a variety of reproductive and developmental strategies.

The first study examines predation on benthic egg masses. I investigated: 1) behavioral mechanisms of predation when embryos are targeted (rather than the whole egg mass); 2) the specific role of gelatinous matrix in predation. I hypothesized that gelatinous matrix does not facilitate predation. One study system was the sea slug Olea hansineensis, an obligate egg mass predator, feeding on the sea slug Haminoea vesicula. Olea fed intensely and efficiently on individual Haminoea embryos inside egg masses but showed no response to live embryos removed from gel, suggesting that gelatinous matrix enables predation. This may be due to mechanical support of the feeding predator by the matrix. However, Haminoea egg masses outnumber Olea by two orders of magnitude in the field, and each egg mass can contain many tens of thousands of embryos, so predation pressure on individuals is likely not strong. The second system involved the snail Nassarius vibex, a non-obligate egg mass predator, feeding on the polychaete worm Clymenella mucosa. Gel neither inhibits nor promotes embryo predation for Nassarius, but because it cannot target individual embryos inside an egg mass, its feeding is slow and inefficient, and feeding rates in the field are quite low. However, snails that compete with Nassarius for scavenged food have not been seen to eat egg masses in the field, leaving Nassarius free to exploit the resource. Overall, egg mass predation in these two systems likely benefits the predators much more than it negatively affects the prey. Thus, selection for environmentally protective aspects of egg mass production may be much stronger than selection for defense against predation.

In the second study, I examined desiccation resistance in intertidal egg masses made by Haminoea vesicula, which preferentially attaches its flat, ribbon-shaped egg masses to submerged substrata. Egg masses occasionally detach and become stranded on exposed sand at low tide. Unlike adults, the encased embryos cannot avoid desiccation by selectively moving about the habitat, and the egg mass shape has high surface-area-to-volume ratio that should make it prone to drying out. Thus, I hypothesized that the embryos would not survive stranding. I tested this by deploying individual egg masses of two age classes on exposed sand bars for the duration of low tide. After rehydration, embryos midway through development showed higher rates of survival than newly-laid embryos, though for both stages survival rates over 25% were frequently observed. Laboratory desiccation trials showed that >75% survival is possible in an egg mass that has lost 65% of its water weight, and some survival (<25%) was observed even after 83% water weight lost. Although many surviving embryos in both experiments showed damage, these data demonstrate that egg mass stranding is not necessarily fatal to embryos. They may be able to survive a far greater range of conditions than they normally encounter, compensating for their lack of ability to move. Also, desiccation tolerance of embryos may reduce pressure on parents to find optimal laying substrata.

The third study takes a big-picture approach to investigating the evolution of different developmental strategies in cone snails, the largest genus of marine invertebrates. Cone snail species hatch out of their capsules as either swimming larvae or non-dispersing forms, and their developmental mode has direct consequences for biogeographic patterns. Variability in life history strategies among taxa may be influenced by biological, environmental, or phylogenetic factors, or a combination of these. While most prior research has examined these factors singularly, my aim was to investigate the effects of a host of intrinsic, extrinsic, and historical factors on two fundamental aspects of life history: egg size and egg number. I used phylogenetic generalized least-squares regression models to examine relationships between these two egg traits and a variety of hypothesized intrinsic and extrinsic variables. Adult shell morphology and spatial variability in productivity and salinity across a species geographic range had the strongest effects on egg diameter and number of eggs per capsule. Phylogeny had no significant influence. Developmental mode in Conus appears to be influenced mostly by species-level adaptations and niche specificity rather than phylogenetic conservatism. Patterns of egg size and egg number appear to reflect energetic tradeoffs with body size and specific morphologies as well as adaptations to variable environments. Overall, this series of studies highlights the importance of organism-scale biotic and abiotic interactions in evolutionary patterns.

My media studies : the history and future of ideas

In the context of a multi-paper special issue of TVNM on the future of media studies, this paper traces the tradition of ‘active audience’ theory in TV scholarship, arguing that it has much to offer in the study of new digital media, especially an approach to user-created content and dynamics of change. The paper argues for a ‘cultural science’ approach to ‘active audiences’ in order to analyse and understand how non-professionals and consumers contribute to the growth of knowledge in complex open media systems.

The life-history and relationships of ‘Orthocladius’ pictipennis Freeman (Diptera: Chironomidae)

The previously unknown larva and pupa of ‘Orthocladius’ pictipennis Freeman have been found, and associated by molecular means. Pharate pupae (males within pupae) allow the link to the described adult. We describe the larva and pupa, and provide short notes on the adult. The taxon is unrelated to Orthocladius – no members of this Holarctic genus are present in New Zealand – and therefore we provide a new generic name, Paulfreemania Cranston and Krosch gen. n. as well as a short discussion of relationships amongst austral Orthocladiinae.

History and development of public health

- briefly describe the importance of public health history to contemporary public health - briefly describe the ancient history of public health - outline the key periods and activities in the modern history of Western public health - describe and understand the important roles of political, social, environmental and economic factors as they impact on health - consider the major factors that have influenced an understanding of contemporary public health in the past 40 years.

History and development of public health

This chapter and the others that follow have the study of population health as their focus, as opposed to a focus on individual care and treatment. Clearly, however, we are concerned with the way in which population health is influenced by biomedical theories and practices, and the way population health is funded, and is influenced by the importance placed on therapeutic medicine. The discussions that follow include a brief overview of the ancient history of public health, and the modern history of Western public health dating from 1850. This date signifies the beginnings of a more organised, collective effort to protect the public’s health. These discussions will help you further expand your definition of public health. You will have an entertaining journey through public health achievements, and less successful outcomes, by examining the historical developments that have led us to a modern understanding of public health. The ancient Greeks and Romans, for example, had public health measures to ensure the safety and health of their populations, for a range of social and economic reasons. Convicts arrived in Australia with many health problems, and were put to work to satisfy the needs of a fledgling colony. It is important to understand the historical journey of public health and the way it is critically analysed, as it provides a looking-glass onto the present and the future.

Natural history and behaviour of the primitively eusocial wasp Ropalidia marginata (Hymenoptera: Vespidae): a comparison of the two sexes

We report the natural history and behaviour of the primitively eusocial wasp Ropalidia marginata with a special reference to the males. We found that just as nests of this species are found throughout the year, so are the males. Females spend all their life in their nests but males stay in their natal nests only for 1-12 days and leave to lead a nomadic life. Males maintained in the laboratory can live for up to 140 days. Like all eusocial hymenopteran males, R. marginata males also do not perform any colony maintenance activities. We found that males did not forage or feed larvae. Compared with females, males showed fewer dominance and subordinate behaviours and being solicited behaviour and more feeding self and soliciting behaviours. By comparing males with young females, we found similar differences, except that the males showed similar rates of feeding self and higher rates of subordinate behaviour.

Observations on the life history and identity of intraspecific groups of the anchoveta, Cetengraulis mysticetus, in Montijo Bay and Chiriquí Province, Panama

ENGLISH: Howard and Landa (1958) and Barrett and Howard (1961) have studied the life history of the anchoveta in most of the areas where this species occurs in important quantities. The Gulf of Panama was the only area of Panama included in these studies, as this was the only one from which sufficient samples were available. Berdegue (1958) compared certain meristic and morphometric characters of anchovetas from Montijo Bay and nine other areas of the eastern tropical Pacific Ocean. He found statistically significant differences, and concluded that the fish of the different areas belonged to separate "populations." Fish from Chiriquí province were not included in his study. Since the, completion of the above-mentioned studies, a number of collections of anchovetas from Montijo Bay and Chiriquí province have been obtained. In the present report use is made of this material to determine the salient facts regarding the life history of the anchoveta from these areas and to supplement the available knowledge of the identity of the intraspecific groups. Acknowledgment is extended to Dr. Milner B. Schaefer, formerly Director of Investigations, Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (now Director, Institute of Marble Resources, University of California), Mr. Clifford L. Peterson, Assistant Director of Investigations, and Mr. Edward F. Klima (now with the U. S. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries) for advice and assistance rendered to the project. The shrimp-boat samples were collected by Captains Robert Barrett, Stephen Barrett, and Chester McLean. SPANISH: Howard y Landa (1958) y Barrett y Howard (1961) han estudiado la historia natural de la anchoveta en la mayoría de las áreas en donde esta especie aparece en cantidades importantes. El Golfo de Panamá es la única area de Panamá incluida en estos estudios, ya que es la única de la cual hubo suficientes muestras disponibles. Berdegué (1958) camparó ciertos caracteres merístieos y morfométricos de la anehoveta del Golfo de Montijo y otras nueve áreas del Océano Pacífico Oriental Tropical. Encontró diferencias estadísticamente significativas e hizo la conclusión de que los peces de las diferentes áreas pertenecían a "poblaciones" separadas. Los peces de la Provincia de Chiriquí no fueron incluidos en su estudio. Desde la terminación de los estudios antes meneionados se obtuvieron varias recolecciones de anchovetas del Golfo de Montijo y de la Provincia de Chiriquí. En el presente informe se usó este material para determinar los hechos sobresalientes referentes a la historia natural de la anchoveta de estas áreas y suplir el conocimiento disponible de la identidadde los grupos intraespecíficos. Se hace extensivo un reconocimiento al Dr. Milner B. Schaefer, antiguo director de investigaciones de la Comisión Interamericana del Atún Tropical (ahora director del Institute of Marine Resources, University of California), al Sr. Clifford L. Peterson, asistente del director de investigaciones, y al Sr. Edward F. Klima (ahora can el U. S. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries) por su consejo y ayuda prestados en este proyecto. Las muestras de los barcos camaroneros fueron reeolectadas por los capitanes Robert Barrett, Stephen Barrett y Chester McLean

The significance of scale patterns and scale readings in the life history and habits of the salmon

This brief reports highlights the significance of scale readings of salmon. The reasons for colour change of scales and scale rings are briefly explained. Scale readings of salmon fry from the River Lune in the north west of England are presented. The salmon was captured in 1957/58.

Centennial Lecture I: History and Contributions of the Woods Hole Fisheries Laboratory

The genesis and the early history of the Woods Hole Laboratory (WHL), to a lesser extent the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL), and to some degree the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), were elegantly covered by Paul S. Galtsoff (1962) in his BCF Circular "The Story of the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, Massachusetts." It covers the period from the beginning in 1871 to 1958. Galtsoffs more than 35-year career in the fishery service was spent almost entirely in Woods Hole. I will only briefly touch on that portion of the Laboratory's history covered by Galtsoff. Woods Hole, as a center of marine science, was conceived and implemented largely by one man, Spencer Fullerton Baird, at that time Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian and who was also instrumental in the establishment of the National Museum and Permanent Secretary of the newly established American Association for the Advancement of Science. He was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant in 1871 as the first U.S. Commissioner of Fisheries. Fisheries research began here as early as 1871, but a permanent station did not exist until 1885.