Seasonal and diet comparisons of the diets of four dominant fish species within the main channel and flood-zone of a small intermittently open estuary in south-eastern Australia

The diets of four highly-abundant, dominant fish species within the Surrey River, a small intermittently open estuary in south-east Australia, were examined from specimens collected between July 2004 and June 2005. These four, similar-sized species (Atherinosoma microstoma, Galaxias maculatus, Philypnodon grandiceps and Pseudogobius olorum) have limited ability to spatially segregate along the length of the estuary owing to its small size relative to other estuarine habitats. All four species fed on a variety of prey items including crustaceans, insects and detritus. Despite this parity, the four species were demonstrated to occupy differing dietary niches that were concluded to be responsible for reducing interspecific feeding competition. Seasonal variations in the diets were observed for A. microstoma and Philypnodon grandiceps, with these species also exhibiting contrasting diel feeding behaviours. The closure of the estuary mouth led to the flooding of its margins, resulting in an increase in the size of the estuary and providing alternative food resources for the fish to exploit. It appears the inundation of the flood-zone facilitated further significant divergence in the diets of the fish and is likely to be of high ecological value to the estuary.

The evidence that exercise during growth or adulthood reduces the risk of fragility fractures is weak

There has never been, and will never be, a randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial demonstrating that exercise in youth, adulthood or old age reduces fragility or osteoporosis-related fractures in old age. The next level of evidence, a randomized, controlled but unblinded study with fractures as an end-point is feasible but has never been done. The basis for the belief that exercise reduces fractures is derived from lower levels of ‘evidence’, namely, retrospective and prospective observation cohort studies and case–control studies. These studies are at best hypothesis generating, never hypothesis testing. They are all subject to many systematic biases and should be interpreted with extreme scepticism. Surrogate measures of anti-fracture efficacy are the next level of evidence, such as the demonstration of a reduction in risk factors for falls, a reduction in falls, a reduction in fractures due to falls, an increase in peak bone size and mass, prevention of bone loss in midlife and restoration of bone mass and structure in old age.

A Wuchiapingian (Late Permian) brachiopod fauna from an exotic block in the Indus–Tsangpo suture zone, southern Tibet, and its palaeobiogeographical and tectonic implications

A brachiopod fauna including 19 species of 17 genera from an exotic block in the Indus–Tsangpo suture zone in southern Tibet is described and illustrated. The brachiopod fauna is dominated by Martinia elegans and two new taxa: Jinomarginifera lhazeensis gen. et sp. nov. and Zhejiangospirifer giganteus sp. nov. The fauna is closely comparable with those from the middle and upper parts of the Wargal Formation and the Chhidru Formation in the Salt Range of Pakistan, the Chitichun Limestone in southern Tibet, and the Basleo area of West Timor, and these correlations suggest a Wuchiapingian age. The fauna exhibits substantial links with both peri–Gondwanan and Cathaysian faunas, which may imply that it is a seamount biota originally located in the southern margin of the Neotethys during the Late Permian, and was later (in the early Cenozoic) displaced and became sandwiched into younger marine deposits in the collision process between India and Eurasia.

Fusulinoideans from the early Midian (late Middle Permian) Metadoliolina dutkevitchi-Monodiexodina sutchanica Zone of the Senkina Shapka section, South Primorye, Far East Russia.

Fusulinoideans from the Metadoliolina dutkevitchi-Monodiexodina sutchanica Zone of the lower part of the Chandalaz Formation in the Senkina Shapka section in South Primorye, Far East Russia, are described. The fusulinoidean zone is assigned to the early Midian (=Capitanian: late Middle Permian) based mainly on the morphologie and biostratigraphic characteristics of Metadoliolina dutkevitchi. Previously, a Midian age has been established for the Metadoliolina dutkevitchi-Monodiexodina sutchanica Zone by the coexistence of Lepidolina species. However, the occurrence of Lepidolina with the two zonal species in this area has not been verified by the illustration of Lepidolina specimens. We examined a fusulinoidean-bearing sample from the Metadoliolina dutkevitchi-Monodiexodina sutchanica Zone, and three fusulinoidean species, Monodiexodina sutchanica, Pseudofusulina sp. and Metadoliolina dutkevitchi, are de-scribed and illustrated.

The Movement of the Gastrop Littorina Littorea in the Intertidal Zone during the Onset of Winter

The movement of the snail Littorina littoreaon the North Atlantic coast is poorly understood. Most research has concentrated on the vertical distribution of the snail, and suggests that it prefers the low intertidal zone where its food source is most plentiful. In the winter, this distribution is reinforced by a documented seaward migration of snails from the high intertidal zone in response to falling temperatures. From October 14, 2006 to January 22, 2007, I examined the individual movements and recovery of snails in response to the onset of winter. I proposed that falling water and air temperatures drive the majority of snail movement within the intertidal zone, and that water temperature had the greater effect. I also examined the possibility that, in addition to a seaward migration, winter weather patterns in the Gulf of Maine and their effect on the ocean may encourage the wintertime vertical distribution of snails. Finally, I examined the possibility that populations of snails in the comparatively inhospitable high intertidal zone may endure the winter if given access to proper resources.

Self-representations of international women postgraduate students in the global university 'Contact Zone'

This article explores some aspects of the role of race and gender in shaping women postgraduate students' experience of intercultural study. It focuses on various social and cultural aspects of their sojourn. These were suggested by data from two small pilot research projects investigating the experiences of two cohorts of international women postgraduate students, the one studying in an Australian university and the other, a Canadian. The authors focus particularly on the intersections between the students' representation of themselves as women and the way they see themselves represented by their host cultures. In other words, they are interested in the students' understandings of themselves as 'other', and how this impacts on their representations of 'self'. The authors suggest that these representations reflect a process of negotiation of identity that occurs in what they call the globalising university 'contact zone'. The concept of contact zones derives from post-colonial theory. A further goal of this article, then, is to examine how such data appear when viewed from a post-colonial perspective.

The three delays as a framework for examining safe motherhood in Kafa zone, SNNPR, Ethiopia

The study examines delay as a crucial factor contributing to maternal mortality, using the conceptual framework of the Three Phases of Delay to explore factors that hinder the provision and utilisation of high quality, timely obstetric care in Kafa Zone, SNNPR, in Ethiopia. The Three Delays constitute the delay in deciding to seek medical care during an obstetric emergency, in reaching a medical facility, and in receiving suitable treatment in a health facility. Various aspects of the Three Delays are evaluated to examine problems of delay, transportation, and the referral system that is considered a vital element of the Ethiopian 'National Reproductive Health Strategy'.

Mother and toddler activity in the zone of proximal development for pretend play as a predictor of higher child IQ

This study investigated the pretend play of mother—toddler dyads in relation to later child IQ. Twenty-one toddlers were videotaped in monthly play sessions with their mothers, from age 8 to 17 months, and later assessed at 5 years of age on the Stanford-Binet IV. Children's and mothers' pretend play levels and frequencies were measured using Brown's (1997) Pretend Play Observation Scale. Dyadic play activity was analyzed using the conceptual frameworks of scaffolding and Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD). Toddlers later assessed as having higher IQ demonstrated more rapid learning in the ZPD for pretend play and experienced earlier maternal transfer of responsibility for play. These findings support other evidence on the differential early development of high ability or gifted children and the role of caregiver interactions in that development.

Putting the Research to Use: This study provides evidence that gifted children show differential development, in this case more rapid learning, from the first year of life. It also demonstrates how responsive parental interactions can support this advanced development. For family and professional caregivers, the findings imply that optimum caregiving for the young gifted child involves interactions that are both responsive to individual potential and appropriately challenging. In regard to the methodological challenges of researching early giftedness, the study demonstrated that the constructs of the ZPD and scaffolding were useful frameworks for investigating early gifted development and caregiver influences on that development. Pretend play activity was also shown to be an effective measure and a useful context for the study of gifted development in infants and toddlers. It would be valuable for future researchers in this area to utilize similar approaches that are grounded in the unique developmental characteristics of young children, and that aim to account for the interactive contexts that are so important in children's lives. The field of gifted education, in general, would also benefit from an increased awareness and exploration of the role of play in the development of intellect, imagination and creativity.

Mathematical power of special-needs pupils : an ICT-based dynamic assessment format to reveal weak pupils' learning potential

This paper reports a study aimed at revealing special-educational-needs pupils' learning potential by means of an ICT-based assessment including a dynamic visual tool that might help pupils when solving mathematics problems. The study focused on subtraction problems up to 100, which require 'borrowing'. These problems, in which the value of the ones-digit of the subtrahend is larger than the ones-digit of the minuend, are known as a serious difficulty for weak pupils in mathematics. Seven of such problems from a standardised test were placed in the ICT environment. Data were collected from two test conditions: the standardised written test format and the ICT version of the test items including the tool that provided pupils with a set of virtual manipulatives. The 37 pupils involved in the study were 8–12 years old and from two special-education schools in the Netherlands. Comparison of the performance scores in the two formats showed that an ICT-based assessment format, including a dynamic visual tool, can reveal weak pupils' learning potential and strategy use. The study also pointed out that 'partial-tool use', ie, not carrying out the complete subtraction operation with the tool, can provide sufficient support to find the correct answer.