Comparison of the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic values of gill and white muscle tissue of fish

The potential use of stable carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios (d13C, d15N) of fish gills for studies on fish feeding ecology was evaluated by comparing the d13C and d15N of gill tissue with the more commonly used white muscle tissue. To account for the effect of lipid content on the d13C signatures, a study-specific lipid correction model based on C:N ratios was developed and applied to the bulk d13C data. For the majority of species in the study, we found no significant difference in d13C values between gill and muscle tissue after correction, but several species showed a small (0.3-1.4 per mil) depletion in 13C in white muscle compared to gill tissue. The average species difference in d15N between muscle and gill tissue ranged from -0.2 to 1.6 per mil for the different fish species with muscle tissue generally more enriched in 15N. The d13C values of muscle and gill were strongly linearly correlated (R**2 = 0.85) over a large isotopic range (13 per mil), suggesting that both tissues can be used to determine long-term feeding or migratory habits of fish. Muscle and gill tissue bulk d15N values were also strongly positively correlated (R**2= 0.76) but with a small difference between muscle and gill tissue. This difference indicates that the bulk d15N of the two tissue types may be influenced by different isotopic turnover rates or a different composition of amino acids.

(Table 1) Individual codes, haplotype codes, GenBank accession numbers for DNA sequences and sample locality of the analysed Betamorpha fusiformis specimens from the ANDEEP III expedition

Based on our current knowledge about population genetics, phylogeography and speciation, we begin to understand that the deep sea harbours more species than suggested in the past. Deep-sea soft-sediment environment in particular hosts a diverse and highly endemic invertebrate fauna. Very little is known about evolutionary processes that generate this remarkable species richness, the genetic variability and spatial distribution of deep-sea animals. In this study, phylogeographic patterns and the genetic variability among eight populations of the abundant and widespread deep-sea isopod morphospecies Betamorpha fusiformis [Barnard, K.H., 1920. Contributions to the crustacean fauna of South Africa. 6. Further additions to the list of marine isopods. Annals of the South African Museum 17, 319-438] were examined. A fragment of the mitochondrial 16S rRNA gene of 50 specimens and the complete nuclear 18S rRNA gene of 7 specimens were sequenced. The molecular data reveal high levels of genetic variability of both genes between populations, giving evidence for distinct monophyletic groups of haplotypes with average p-distances ranging from 0.0470 to 0.1440 (d-distances: 0.0592-0.2850) of the 16S rDNA, and 18S rDNA p-distances ranging between 0.0032 and 0.0174 (d-distances: 0.0033-0.0195). Intermediate values are absent. Our results show that widely distributed benthic deep-sea organisms of a homogeneous phenotype can be differentiated into genetically highly divergent populations. Sympatry of some genotypes indicates the existence of cryptic speciation. Flocks of closely related but genetically distinct species probably exist in other widespread benthic deep-sea asellotes and other Peracarida. Based on existing data we hypothesize that many widespread morphospecies are complexes of cryptic biological species (patchwork hypothesis).

Behavioural profiles of captive capuchin monkeys (Sapajus spp.): analyses at group and individual levels

The use of behavioural indicators of suffering and welfare in captive animals has produced ambiguous results. In comparisons between groups, those in worse condition tend to exhibit increased overall rate of Behaviours Potentially Indicative of Stress (BPIS), but when comparing within groups, individuals differ in their stress coping strategies. This dissertation presents analyses to unravel the Behavioural Profile of a sample of 26 captive capuchin monkeys, of three different species (Sapajus libidinosus, S. flavius and S. xanthosternos), kept in different enclosure types. In total, 147,17 hours of data were collected. We explored four type of analysis: Activity Budgets, Diversity indexes, Markov chains and Sequence analyses, and Social Network Analyses, resulting in nine indexes of behavioural occurrence and organization. In chapter One we explore group differences. Results support predictions of minor sex and species differences and major differences in behavioural profile due to enclosure type: i. individuals in less enriched enclosures exhibited a more diverse BPIS repertoire and a decreased probability of a sequence with six Genus Normative Behaviour; ii. number of most probable behavioural transitions including at least one BPIS was higher in less enriched enclosures; iii. proeminence indexes indicate that BPIS function as dead ends of behavioural sequences, and proeminence of three BPIS (pacing, self-direct, active I) were higher in less enriched enclosures. Overall, these data are not supportive of BPIS as a repetitive pattern, with a mantra-like calming effect. Rather, the picture that emerges is more supportive of BPIS as activities that disrupt organization of behaviours, introducing “noise” that compromises optimal activity budget. In chapter Two we explored individual differences in stress coping strategies. We classified individuals along six axes of exploratory behaviour. These were only weakly correlated indicating low correlation among behavioural indicators of syndromes. Nevertheless, the results are suggestive of two broad stress coping strategies, similar to the bold/proactive and shy/reactive pattern: more exploratory capuchin monkeys exhibited increased values of proeminence in Pacing, aberrant sexual display and Active 1 BPIS, while less active animals exhibited increased probability in significant sequences involving at least one BPIS, and increased prominence in own stereotypy. Capuchin monkeys are known for their cognitive capacities and behavioural flexibility, therefore, the search for a consistent set of behavioural indictors of welfare and individual differences requires further studies and larger data sets. With this work we aim contributing to design scientifically grounded and statistically correct protocols for collection of behavioural data that permits comparability of results and meta-analyses, from whatever theoretical perspective interpretation it may receive.

Treeline dynamics in Siberia under changing climates as inferred from an individual-based model for Larix, supplementary material

Siberian boreal forests are expected to expand northwards in the course of global warming. However, processes of the treeline ecotone transition, as well astiming and related climate feedbacks are still not understood. Here, we present 'Larix Vegetation Simulator' LAVESI, an individual-based spatially-explicit model that can simulate Larix gmelinii (RUPR.) RUPR. stand dynamics in an attempt to improve our understanding about past and future treeline movements under changing climates. The relevant processes (growth, seed production and dispersal, establishment and mortality) are incorporated and adjusted to observation data mainly gained from the literature. Results of a local sensitivity analysis support the robustness of the model's parameterization by giving relatively small sensitivity values. We tested the model by simulating tree stands under modern climate across the whole Taymyr Peninsula, north-central Siberia (c. 64-80° N; 92-119° E). We find tree densities similar to observed forests in the northern to mid-treeline areas, but densities are overestimated in the southern parts of the simulated region. Finally, from a temperature-forcing experiment, we detect that the responses of tree stands lag the hypothetical warming by several decades, until the end of 21st century. With our simulation experiments we demonstrate that the newly-developed model captures the dynamics of the Siberian latitudinal treeline.

Virtuous or vicious cycle? Inscribing diverse professional values in lecture capture systems

This paper examines how the introduction and use of a new information system affects and is affected by the values of a diverse professional workforce. It uses the example of lecture capture systems in a university. Its contribution is to combine two concepts taken from actor-network theory, namely accumulation and inscription, and combine them with an integrated framework of diversity management. A model is developed of accumulation cycles in lecture capture usage, involving multiple interacting actants, including the broader environment, management commitment to diversity, work group characteristics, individual practices and the affordances of technology. Using this model, alternative future inscriptions can be identified - an optimal one, which enhances professional values, as a result of a virtuous accumulation cycle, or a sub-optimal one, as a result of a vicious cycle. It identifies diversity management as an important influence on how professional values are enhanced, modified or destroyed.

Table 1: Densities and snow loads for individual levels in 1967 and 1978

The deformation of a 20 m deep firn pit in the accumulation area of Kesselwandferner was surveyed over aperiod of 11 years. Six or seven surveying markers had been installed at each of 14 levels. The survey shows tImt the shear strain rate is independent of depth and the originally circular pit cross section was changed into an ellipse. In the direction of the glacier flow, the diameter was increased, the strain rate being approximately independent of depth. Transverse to the flow, however, the diameter decreased, the strain rate becoming higher as the depth increased. The vertical strain rates responsible for thinning of firn layers decrease with depth.

(Table DR1) Argon isotope data and dating for individual >63 µm amphibole grains from Labrador Sea sediments, ODP Hole 105-647A

Variations of global and regional silicate weathering rates and paleo-ocean circulation patterns are estimated by using radiogenic isotope records, but the effects of changes in provenance are generally ignored. Here sediment provenance has been constrained through the use of Ar-Ar ages for individual detrital minerals from the Labrador Sea, which can be compared directly to the radiogenic isotope compositions from the same core material. Dramatic changes in the radiogenic isotope composition of North Atlantic Deep Water through the Quaternary Period are shown to reflect discrete changes in both sources and weathering processes accompanying Northern Hemisphere glaciation. Changes in the different radiogenic isotope systems reflect the influence of source, physical weathering, and chemical weathering, and not simply changes in the underlying weathering rate or ocean circulation patterns that are typically inferred.

Modeling Individual Differences among Writers Using ReaderBench

The current study builds upon a previous study, which examined the degree to which the lexical properties of students’ essays could predict their vocabulary scores. We expand on this previous research by incorporating new natural language processing indices related to both the surface- and discourse-levels of students’ essays. Additionally, we investigate the degree to which these NLP indices can be used to account for variance in students’ reading comprehension skills. We calculated linguistic essay features using our framework, ReaderBench, which is an automated text analysis tools that calculates indices related to linguistic and rhetorical features of text. University students (n = 108) produced timed (25 minutes), argumentative essays, which were then analyzed by ReaderBench. Additionally, they completed the Gates-MacGinitie Vocabulary and Reading comprehension tests. The results of this study indicated that two indices were able to account for 32.4% of the variance in vocabulary scores and 31.6% of the variance in reading comprehension scores. Follow-up analyses revealed that these models further improved when only considering essays that contained multiple paragraph (R2 values = .61 and .49, respectively). Overall, the results of the current study suggest that natural language processing techniques can help to inform models of individual differences among student writers.

“I know, therefore I adapt?” Complexities of individual adaptation to climate-induced forest dieback in Alaska

Individual actions to avoid, benefit from, or cope with climate change impacts partly shape adaptation; much research on adaptation has focused at the systems level, overlooking drivers of individual responses. Theoretical frameworks and empirical studies of environmental behavior identify a complex web of cognitive, affective, and evaluative factors that motivate stewardship. We explore the relationship between knowledge of, and adaptation to, widespread, climate-induced tree mortality to understand the cognitive (i.e., knowledge and learning), affective (i.e., attitudes and place attachment), and evaluative (i.e., use values) factors that influence how individuals respond to climate-change impacts. From 43 semistructured interviews with forest managers and users in a temperate forest, we identified distinct responses to local, climate-induced environmental changes that we then categorized as either behavioral or psychological adaptations. Interviewees developed a depth of knowledge about the dieback through a combination of direct, place-based experiences and indirect, mediated learning through social interactions. Knowing that the dieback was associated with climate change led to different adaptive responses among the interviewees, although knowledge alone did not explain this variation. Forest users reported psychological adaptations to process negative attitudes; these adaptations were spurred by knowledge of the causes, losses of intangible values, and impacts to a species to which they held attachment. Behavioral adaptations exclusive to a high level of knowledge included actions such as using the forests to educate others or changing transportation behaviors to reduce personal energy consumption. Managers integrated awareness of the dieback and its dynamics across spatial scales into current management objectives. Our findings suggest that adaptive management may occur from the bottom up, as individual managers implement new practices in advance of policies. As knowledge of climate-change impacts in local environments increases, resource users may benefit from programs and educational interventions that facilitate coping strategies.

Outcome of the Public Consultation on the Draft Opinion of the Scientific Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition, and Allergies (NDA) on Dietary Reference Values for Fats, Including Saturated Fatty Acids, Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids, Monounsaturated Fatty Acids, Trans Fatty Acids, and Cholesterol

On 2 July 2009, the EFSA Panel on Dietetic products, Nutrition and Allergies (NDA) endorsed a draft Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for fats to be released for public consultation. This Scientific Report summarises the comments received through the public consultation and outlines how these were taken into account in the final opinion. EFSA had received contributions from 40 interested parties (individuals, non-governmental organisations, industry organisations, academia and national assessment bodies). The main comments which were received during the public consultation related to: the availability of more recent data, the nomenclature used, the use of a non-European food composition data base, the impact of genetic factors in modulating the absorption, metabolism and health effects of different fatty acids, the definition of “nutritionally adequate diet”, the use of Dietary Reference Values in the labelling of foods, the translation of advice into food-based dietary guidelines, nutrient goals and recommendations, certain risk management issues, and to Dietary Reference Values of fats, individual fatty acids, and cholesterol. All the public comments received that related to the remit of EFSA were assessed and the Opinion on Dietary Reference Values for fats has been revised taking relevant comments into consideration.

Mapping social values of ecosystem services: What is behind the map?

A growing interest in mapping the social value of ecosystem services (ES) is not yet methodologically aligned with what is actually being mapped. We critically examine aspects of the social value mapping process that might influence map outcomes and limit their practical use in decision making. We rely on an empirical case of participatory mapping, for a single ES (recreation opportunities), which involves diverse stakeholders such as planners, researchers, and community representatives. Value elicitation relied on an individual open-ended interview and a mapping exercise. Interpretation of the narratives and GIS calculations of proximity, centrality, and dispersion helped in exploring the factors driving participants’ answers. Narratives reveal diverse value types. Whereas planners highlighted utilitarian and aesthetic values, the answers from researchers revealed naturalistic values as well. In turn community representatives acknowledged symbolic values. When remitted to the map, these values were constrained to statements toward a much narrower set of features of the physical (e.g., volcanoes) and built landscape (e.g., roads). The results suggest that mapping, as an instrumental approach toward social valuation, may capture only a subset of relevant assigned values. This outcome is the interplay between participants’ characteristics, including their acquaintance with the territory and their ability with maps, and the mapping procedure itself, including the proxies used to represent the ES and the value typology chosen, the elicitation question, the cartographic features displayed on the base map, and the spatial scale.

Friendships of High-Achieving African American Adolescents: Relation to Ethnic Identity and Achievement Values

The academic achievement of African American adolescents is a national concern for educators and researchers especially since current reports depict the underachievement of African American students as continuing to lag behind their European American peers. Determining what factors within the school environment that contributes to the achievement gap and how it can be reduced remains an important issue in alleviating disparities seen in educational achievement and attainment. This study examined the relation between characteristics of the close friendships of high-achieving African American adolescents and students’ identity development and motivation in school. Data were collected from 217 high-achieving African American students within 10th to 12th grade from 5 public and private high schools. Each student self-reported on their ethnicity, gender, parents’ education level, grade, FARMs, GPA, perceived teacher support (emotional, academic, and instrumental support), their perception of their ethnic identity, and their perception of their achievement values. Through the use of nomination procedures, students also identified their close friends and responded to questions concerning how supportive (emotional, academic, and instrumental support) they each were. Results from multiple regression analyses showed that the provision of instrumental support from close friends related to the exploration process of the high-achieving students’ ethnic identity. In addition, there was a strong relation between the ethnic identity of close friends and that of the individual. Furthermore, although friend support was not a significant predictor of achievement values, demographic (mother’s education level, grade, and FARMS) and control (teacher support) variables predicted students’ importance and utility of school respectively. These findings add to the literature on age and socioeconomic status as they relate to student’s motivation to achieve. Overall, this study provides some evidence highlighting ways in which close friendships might relate to the self-development of high-achieving African American adolescents. This study provides a starting point for additional ways in which to explore how peer processes relate to the academic behaviors of high-achieving African American adolescents.

Threshold values of sagittal abdominal diameter for the detection of cardio-metabolic risk factors in Northeastern Mexico: a cross-sectional study

Background: The use of sagittal abdominal diameter (SAD) has been proposed for screening cardio-metabolic risk factors; however, its accuracy can be influenced by the choice of thresholds values. Aim: To determine the SAD threshold values for cardio-metabolic risk factors in Mexican adults; to assess whether parallel and serial SAD testing can improve waist circumference (WC) sensitivity and specificity; and to analyze the effect of considering SAD along with WC and body mass index (BMI) in detecting cardio-metabolic risk. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted during 2012-2014 in Northeast Mexico (n = 269). Data on anthropometric, clinical, and biochemical measurements were collected. Sex-adjusted receiver-operating characteristic curves (ROC) were obtained using hypertension, dysglycemia, dyslipidemia and insulin resistance as individual outcomes and metabolic syndrome as a composite outcome. Age-adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using logistic regression. Results: The threshold value for SAD with acceptable combination of sensitivity and specificity was 24.6 cm in men and 22.5 cm in women. Parallel SAD testing improved WC sensitivity and serial testing improved WC specificity. The co-occurrence of high WC/high SAD increased the risk for insulin resistance by 2.4-fold (95% CI: 1.1-5.3), high BMI/high SAD by 4.3-fold (95% CI: 1.7-11.9) and SAD alone by 2.2-fold (95% CI: 1.2.-4.2). Conclusions: The use of SAD together with traditional obesity indices such as WC and BMI has advantages over using either of these indices alone. SAD may be a powerful screening tool for interventions for high-risk individuals.