From Midden to Sieve: The Impact of Differential Recovery and Quantification Techniques on Interpretations of Shellfish Remains in Australian Coastal Archaeology

Experimental mechanical sieving methods are applied to samples of shellfish remains from three sites in southeast Queensland, Seven Mile Creek Mound, Sandstone Point and One-Tree, to test the efficacy of various recovery and quantification procedures commonly applied to shellfish assemblages in Australia. There has been considerable debate regarding the most appropriate sieve sizes and quantification methods that should be applied in the recovery of vertebrate faunal remains. Few studies, however, have addressed the impact of recovery and quantification methods on the interpretation of invertebrates, specifically shellfish remains. In this study, five shellfish taxa representing four bivalves (Anadara trapezia, Trichomya hirsutus, Saccostrea glomerata, Donax deltoides) and one gastropod (Pyrazus ebeninus) common in eastern Australian midden assemblages are sieved through 10mm, 6.3mm and 3.15mm mesh. Results are quantified using MNI, NISP and weight. Analyses indicate that different structural properties and pre- and postdepositional factors affect recovery rates. Fragile taxa (T. hirsutus) or those with foliated structure (S. glomerata) tend to be overrepresented by NISP measures in smaller sieve fractions, while more robust taxa (A. trapezia and P. ebeninus) tend to be overrepresented by weight measures. Results demonstrate that for all quantification methods tested a 3mm sieve should be used on all sites to allow for regional comparability and to effectively collect all available information about the shellfish remains.

Osmoregulation of the Australian freshwater crocodile, Crocodylus johnstoni, in fresh and saline waters

An unusual saltwater population of the "freshwater" crocodilian, Crocodylus johnstoni, was studied in the estuary of the Limmen Bight River in Australia's Northern Territory and compared with populations in permanently freshwater habitats. Crocodiles in the river were found across a large salinity gradient, from fresh water to a salinity of 24 mg.ml-1, more than twice the body fluid concentration. Plasma osmolarity, concentrations of plasma Na+, Cl-, and K+, and exchangeable Na+ pools were all remarkably constant across the salinity spectrum and were not substantially higher or more variable than those in crocodiles from permanently freshwater habitats. Body fluid volumes did not vary; condition factor and hydration status of crocodiles were not correlated with salinity and were not different from those of crocodiles from permanently fresh water. C. johnstoni clearly has considerable powers of osmoregulation in waters of low to medium salinity. Whether this osmoregulatory competence, extends to continuously hyperosmotic environments is not known, but distributional data suggest that C. johnstoni in hyperosmotic conditions may require periodic access to hypoosmotic water. The study demonstrates a physiological capacity for colonisation of at least some estuarine waters by this normally stenohaline freshwater crocodilian.

Respiratory and cardiovascular responses to hypoxia in the Australian lungfish

Simultaneous measurements of pulmonary blood flow (qPA), coeliacomesenteric blood flow (qCoA), dorsal aortic blood pressure (PDA), heart rate (fH) and branchial ventilation frequency (fv) were made in the Australian lungfish, /Neoceratodus forsteri, /during air breathing and aquatic hypoxia. The cho­linergic and adrenergic influences on the cardiovascular system were investigated during normoxia using pharmacological agents, and the presence of catecholamines and serotonin in different tissues was investi­gated using histochemistry. Air breathing rarely occurred during normoxia but when it did, it was always associated with increased pulmonary blood flow. The pulmonary vasculature is influenced by both a cho­linergic and adrenergic tonus whereas the coeliacomesenteric vasculature is influenced by a β-adrenergic vasodilator mechanism. No adrenergic nerve fibers could be demonstrated in /Neoceratodus /but catecholamine-containing endothelial cells were found in the atrium of the heart. In addition, serotonin-­immunoreactive cells were demonstrated in the pulmonary epithelium. The most prominent response to aquatic hypoxia was an increase in gill breathing frequency followed by an increased number of air breaths together with increased pulmonary blood flow. It is clear from the present investigation that /Neoceratodus /is able to match cardiovascular performance to meet the changes in respiration during hypoxia.

Allelic Variation Investigation of the Estrogen Receptor Within an Australian Multiple Sclerosis Population

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a central nervous system (CNS) chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease leading to various neurological disabilities. The disorder is more prevalent for women with a ratio of 3:2 female to male. Objectives: To investigate variation within the estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) polymorphism gene in an Australian MS case-control population using two intragenic restriction fragment length polymorphisms; the G594A located in exon 8 detected with the BtgI restriction enzyme and T938C located in intron 1, detected with PvuII. One hundred and ten Australian MS patients were studied, with patients classified clinically as Relapsing Remitting MS (RR-MS), Secondary Progressive MS (SP-MS) or Primary Progressive MS (PP-MS). Also, 110 age, sex and ethnicity matched controls were investigated as a comparative group. No significant difference in the allelic distribution frequency was found between the case and control groups for the ESR1 PvuII (P = 0.50) and Btg1 (P = 0.45) marker. Our results do not support a role for these two ESR1 markers in multiple sclerosis susceptibility, however other markers within ESR1 should not be excluded for potential involvement in the disorder.

No Association Between MTHFR A1298C and MTRR A66G Polymorphisms, and MS in an Australian Cohort

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a complex neurological disease that affects the central nervous system (CNS) resulting in debilitating neuropathology. Pathogenesis is primarily defined by CNS inflammation and demyelination of nerve axons. Methionine synthase reductase (MTRR) is an enzyme that catalyzes the remethylation of homocysteine (Hcy) to methionine via cobalamin and folate dependant reactions. Cobalamin acts as an intermediate methyl carrier between methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) and Hcy. MTRR plays a critical role in maintaining cobalamin in an active form and is consequently an important determinant of total plasma Hcy (pHcy) concentrations. Elevated intracellular pHcy levels have been suggested to play a role in CNS dysfunction, neurodegenerative, and cerebrovascular diseases. Our investigation entailed the genotyping of a cohort of 140 cases and matched controls for MTRR and MTHFR, by restriction length polymorphism (RFLP) techniques. Two polymorphisms: MTRR A66G and MTHFR A1298C were investigated in an Australian age and gender matched case-control study. No significant allelic frequency difference was observed between cases and controls at the α = 0.05 level (MTRR χ^2 = 0.005, P = 0.95, MTHFR χ^2 = 1.15, P = 0.28). Our preliminary findings suggest no association between the MTRR A66G and MTHFR A1298C polymorphisms and MS.

Can and may: Monosemy or polysemy?

This paper argues, on the basis of a corpus-based study of the meanings of can and may in contemporary British, American and Australian English, that a polysemy-based analysis is applicable to both modals. With may, epistemic possibility is the dominant meaning, but the dynamic and deontic possibility meanings still account for over 16.5% of tokens. By contrast the meanings of can, apart from a small percentage (1.1%) of epistemic cases, are united through the concept of potentiality. Nevertheless there are signs that the epistemic possibility meaning is becoming established, as it sheds its syntactic/semantic restriction to non-affirmative contexts.

Moratorium march September 18 1970 in Brisbane

Protestors with banner during the Moratorium march in Brisbane Australia, September 18 1970.

Ky visit

Group of people during visit of former South Vietnamese vice president Nguyen Cao Ky to Brisbane, Australia in January 1967.

Hughie Hamilton, Alex McDonald during Ky visit demonstration

Group of people including Hughie Hamilton, Alex McDonald and Vilma Ward during visit of former South Vietnamese vice president Nguyen Cao Ky to Brisbane, Australia in January 1967.

Group outside the Sub Inspector Office during Ky visit

Group of people outside the Sub Inspector Office during visit of former South Vietnamese vice president Nguyen Cao Ky to Brisbane, Australia in January 1967.

Worker cleaning up after demonstration during Ky visit to Brisbane

Worker cleaning up leaflets after demonstration during visit to Brisbane of Former South Vietnamese vice president Nguyen Cao Ky in January 1967.

Leaflets left in gutter after Ky demonstration Brisbane, Australia

Leaflets in gutter after demonstration of former South Vietnamese vice president Nguyen Cao Ky to Brisbane, Australia in January 1967.

Australian Glow-worms in Caves

Glow-worms are the larvae of a fly from the family Keroplatidae. Their closest relatives are the “fungus flies” that seek out mushrooms for their larvae to consume. Glow-worms have gone out on an evolutionary limb, albeit a successful one. They have lost their association with fungi and have instead become carnivorous. The unique feature of glow-worms is their ability to bioluminesce—to produce light.

Group of marchers during Mayday procession 1966 Brisbane, Australia

Group of marchers during Mayday procession 1966 Brisbane, Australia including children and dog. The group is passing Pearl Assurance House in Queen Street, Brisbane. Marchers have flags and banners relating to anti war and anti nuclear tests.