Baby Boomers: Will They Be Moving to Rural Nebraska?

Baby boomers are doing it again... breaking all the molds and playing havoc with trends. This time it is with migration. Baby boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, are entering a stage of life when it is predicted that a significant number of them will be moving to rural areas; especially those areas with scenic amenities and low housing costs.

"IF YOU BUILD THEM UP, THEY WILL STAY": THE ROLE OF RECOGNITION AND FEEDBACK ON STUDENT RETENTION

While such stratagems are certainly well founded, and have achieved varying degrees of success, it may be that a more fundamentally vital area of examination is being largely overlooked, namely the impact of the high school experience.

Will a DNA barcoding approach be useful to identify Porphyra species (Bangiales, Rhodophyta)?

This paper is part of an extensive study on the biodiversity of the macroalgal flora of So Paulo state, SE Brazil. Previous assessments were based only on morphological descriptions. Here, we tested the effectiveness of DNA barcoding, in comparison with morphological observations for the recognition and cataloging of species. The focus of this study is the genus Porphyra, which is a conspicuous component of the upper intertidal on rocky shores of this region. With five currently accepted species, we have sequenced three short markers: cox1, cox2-3 spacer and UPA to establish the first DNA barcode database for the Porphyra species from the Brazilian coast. The three markers, although with different evolution rates, recovered a cryptic species (Porphyra sp. 77), grouped two different species (Porphyra drewiana and Porphyra spiralis) that are being synonymized, and finally indicated that varieties within P. acanthophora and P. spiralis are merely morphological, with no sequence divergence in the studied molecular markers.

Can we predict which patients will evolve to chronic kidney disease after nephrectomy for cortical renal tumors?

Introduction: While some studies show that patients submitted to radical nephrectomy have a higher risk of developing chronic kidney disease (CKD), some studies report that carefully selected living kidney donors do not present a higher risk for CKD. Here, we aim to study predictive factors of CKD after radical nephrectomy. Materials and Methods: Between January 2006 to January 2010, 107 patients submitted to radical nephrectomy for cortical renal tumors at our institution were enrolled in this study. Demographic data were recorded, modified Charlson-Romano Index was calculated, and creatinine clearance was estimated using abbreviated Modification of Diet in Renal Disease (MDRD) study equation. Pathological characteristics, surgical access and surgical complications were also reviewed. The end-point of the current study was new onset estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) less than 60 and less than 45 mL/minute/1.73 m(2). Results: Age, preoperative eGFR, Charlson-Romano Index and hypertension were predictive factors of renal function loss, when the end-point considered was eGFR lower than 60 mL/minute/1.73 m(2). Age and preoperative eGFR were predictive factors of renal function loss, when the end-point considered was eGFR lower than 45 mL/minute/1.73 m2. Moreover, each year older increased 1.1 times the risk of eGFR lower than 60 and 45 mL/minute/1.73 m(2). After multivariate logistic regression, only age remained as an independent predictive factor of eGFR loss. Conclusion: Age is an independent predictive factor of GFR loss for patients submitted to radical nephrectomy for cortical renal tumors.

Pollination services at risk: Bee habitats will decrease owing to climate change in Brazil

Native bees are important providers of pollination services, but there are cumulative evidences of their decline. Global changes such as habitat losses, invasions of exotic species and climate change have been suggested as the main causes of the decline of pollinators. In this study, the influence of climate change on the distribution of 10 species of Brazilian bees was estimated with species distribution modelling. We used Maxent algorithm (maximum entropy) and two different scenarios, an optimistic and a pessimistic, to the years 2050 and 2080. We also evaluated the percentage reduction of species habitat based on the future scenarios of climate change through Geographic Information System (GIS). Results showed that the total area of suitable habitats decreased for all species but one under the different future scenarios. The greatest reductions in habitat area were found for Melipona bicolor bicolor and Melipona scutellaris, which occur predominantly in areas related originally to Atlantic Moist Forest. The species analysed have been reported to be pollinators of some regional crops and the consequence of their decrease for these crops needs further clarification. (C) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Will invasive macroalgae benefit from climate change?

Laboratory of Coastal Biodiversity, CIMAR-Centro Interdisciplinar de Investigação Marinha e Ambiental, Porto, Portugal

James Bond will return: der serielle Charakter der James Bond-Filme

Die James Bond-Filme: seit über 40 Jahren sind sie ein unübersehbarer Bestandteil der Populärkultur. Anfang der 60er Jahre unter völlig anderen historischen, sozialen und nicht zuletzt filmtechnischen Voraussetzungen aus der Taufe gehoben, gelingt es ihnen auch heute noch, ein Massenpublikum für sich zu gewinnen. Inwiefern kann man bei einer so langen Laufzeit überhaupt noch von einer homogenen Serie sprechen? Und was für Gemeinsamkeiten, Unterschiede und auch Weiterentwicklungen von der ursprünglichen Machart sind hier zu beobachten? Dies sind die Grundfragen der vorliegenden Dissertation. Bei der Benennung der seriellen Eigenschaften werden sowohl inhaltliche als auch dramaturgische und filmtechnisch-formale Aspekte betrachtet. Die Figurenkonstellation von Held, Gegenspieler und der weiblichen Hauptfigur, die zwischen den beiden steht und häufig die Seiten wechselt, ist ein Schema das - kaum variiert - schon in den Romanvorlagen Ian Flemings zum Einsatz kam und auch das Rückgrat der Film-Plots bildet. Dennoch ließ dieses Gerüst den mittlerweile fünf verschiedenen Darstellern, die James Bond nacheinander verkörperten, genügend Freiraum für das Ausarbeiten eines eigenen Rollenkonzepts, das auf ihren speziellen Schauspielstil ausgerichtet war. Dadurch erhielt die James Bond-Figur jeweils eine Neuinterpretation, die sich insbesondere in ihrem sozialen Habitus bemerkbar macht, der je nach Darsteller zwischen provokantem Aufsteigertyp und aristokratischem Gentleman changierte. Zum unverwechselbaren Erkennungsmerkmal der Bond-Serie avancierte die so genannte 'gun-barrel'-Sequenz, die in den ersten Sekunden jedes Films abläuft. Auch die sich anschließende Vortitelsequenz, eine auf Spannung oder Action angelegte Szene, die einen Vorgeschmack auf den folgenden Film liefern soll, ist ein Element, das der Machart von Fernsehserien entnommen ist. Neben diesen bewusst eingesetzten Markenzeichen lässt sich auch in der Gestaltungsweise der Filme - in Kameraführung, Schnitt, Musik und Set Design - eine stilistische Kontinuität feststellen, die insbesondere dadurch bedingt ist, dass die Serie seit jeher von den Produzenten ähnlich wie ein Familienunternehmen geführt wurde und - zumindest bis Ende der 80er Jahre - auch die kreativen Köpfe der Filme konsequent im eigenen Team ausgebildet wurden.

Like will to like: abundances of closely related species can predict susceptibility to intestinal colonization by pathogenic and commensal bacteria

The intestinal ecosystem is formed by a complex, yet highly characteristic microbial community. The parameters defining whether this community permits invasion of a new bacterial species are unclear. In particular, inhibition of enteropathogen infection by the gut microbiota ( = colonization resistance) is poorly understood. To analyze the mechanisms of microbiota-mediated protection from Salmonella enterica induced enterocolitis, we used a mouse infection model and large scale high-throughput pyrosequencing. In contrast to conventional mice (CON), mice with a gut microbiota of low complexity (LCM) were highly susceptible to S. enterica induced colonization and enterocolitis. Colonization resistance was partially restored in LCM-animals by co-housing with conventional mice for 21 days (LCM(con21)). 16S rRNA sequence analysis comparing LCM, LCM(con21) and CON gut microbiota revealed that gut microbiota complexity increased upon conventionalization and correlated with increased resistance to S. enterica infection. Comparative microbiota analysis of mice with varying degrees of colonization resistance allowed us to identify intestinal ecosystem characteristics associated with susceptibility to S. enterica infection. Moreover, this system enabled us to gain further insights into the general principles of gut ecosystem invasion by non-pathogenic, commensal bacteria. Mice harboring high commensal E. coli densities were more susceptible to S. enterica induced gut inflammation. Similarly, mice with high titers of Lactobacilli were more efficiently colonized by a commensal Lactobacillus reuteri(RR) strain after oral inoculation. Upon examination of 16S rRNA sequence data from 9 CON mice we found that closely related phylotypes generally display significantly correlated abundances (co-occurrence), more so than distantly related phylotypes. Thus, in essence, the presence of closely related species can increase the chance of invasion of newly incoming species into the gut ecosystem. We provide evidence that this principle might be of general validity for invasion of bacteria in preformed gut ecosystems. This might be of relevance for human enteropathogen infections as well as therapeutic use of probiotic commensal bacteria.