Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Dissimilar
Kinds of Dissimilar Terms modified by Dissimilar Selected AbstractsCPA assessment , the regional assessors' experienceCYTOPATHOLOGY, Issue 2007E. Welsh Many individuals within Laboratory Medicine will be unaware that CPA conducts assessments to two different sets of CPA Standards. There are the Standards for the Medical Laboratory and the Standards for EQA Schemes in Laboratory Medicine. The style and format of both sets of standards is very similar with each being presented in eight sections A , H. The EQA standards are almost identical to the laboratory standards with the exception of the E.F and G standards which are specific to EQA schemes. There are approximately 40 EQA Schemes registered with CPA compared with almost 2 500 laboratories. These EQA schemes vary from very large national/international schemes with numerous analytes to small interpretive schemes run by one individual with a personal interest in that specific subject. The large schemes usually come under the UKNEQAS consortia banner and due to their size and configuration do not present undue problems in the assessment process. Smaller interpretive EQA schemes present a challenge both for the scheme and CPA in gaining accreditation. These schemes are usually within the discipline of Histopathology and are regarded as educational rather than proficiency testing schemes. Very frequently, the scheme is organized by a single individual with a collection of microscope slides, storage facilities for the slides and a computer. This presents the Scheme Organizer with great difficulty in complying with the Quality Management System requirements of the CPA Standards. There are a number of models which can be applied in order to satisfy the requirement of the Quality Management System, but ultimately it must be recognized that in some circumstances it is not possible to accredit these small schemes. The NHSCSP Gynae Cytology EQA Scheme is probably the largest EQA scheme within the UK, in respect of the number of participants and the number of staff supporting the scheme. Scheme Management decided that all nine regions of England would apply for accreditation under one CPA Reference Number. This process meant that the scheme would be assessed as a Managed Pathology Network. This is unique in terms of EQA schemes and presented a number of problems not previously encountered in EQA scheme accreditation. This decision meant that all nine regions must comply with a single Quality Management System and other CPA standards whilst allowing flexibility within the system for each region to facilitate the assessment process specific to their user's requirements. The process worked in a satisfactory manner and the overall outcome was not dissimilar to that of other large EQA schemes. The assessment to the current EQA Standards only commenced in April 2006 whilst the Standards for Medical Laboratories commenced in 2003, and it is perhaps not surprising to find that the principal non-conformities are related to the Quality Management System. This parallels the findings encountered in laboratory accreditation. There is an ongoing educational process for Scheme Management and the Facilitators in each region in how to comply fully with the standards and a commitment to quality improvement which ultimately is beneficial to the participant's of the scheme and to patient safety. [source] EXPLORING DISPARITIES BETWEEN GLOBAL HIV/AIDS FUNDING AND RECENT TSUNAMI RELIEF EFFORTS: AN ETHICAL ANALYSISDEVELOPING WORLD BIOETHICS, Issue 1 2007TIMOTHY CHRISTIE ABSTRACT Objective:, To contrast relief efforts for the 26 December 2004 tsunami with current global HIV/AIDS relief efforts and analyse possible reasons for the disparity. Methods:, Literature review and ethical analysis. Results:, Just over 273,000 people died in the tsunami, resulting in relief efforts of more than US$10 bn, which is sufficient to achieve the United Nation's long-term recovery plan for South East Asia. In contrast, 14 times more people died from HIV/AIDS in 2004, with UNAIDS predicting a US$8 bn funding gap for HIV/AIDS in developing nations between now and 2007. This disparity raises two important ethical questions. First, what is it that motivates a more empathic response to the victims of the tsunami than to those affected by HIV/AIDS? Second, is there a morally relevant difference between the two tragedies that justifies the difference in the international response? The principle of justice requires that two cases similarly situated be treated similarly. For the difference in the international response to the tsunami and HIV/AIDS to be justified, the tragedies have to be shown to be dissimilar in some relevant respect. Are the tragedies of the tsunami disaster and the HIV/AIDS pandemic sufficiently different, in relevant respects, to justify the difference in scope of the response by the international community? Conclusion:, We detected no morally relevant distinction between the tsunami and the HIV/AIDS pandemic that justifies the disparity. Therefore, we must conclude that the international response to HIV/AIDS violates the fundamental principles of justice and fairness. [source] Development of individually distinct recognition cuesDEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOBIOLOGY, Issue 7 2006Jill M. Mateo Abstract Despite extensive research on the functions of kin recognition, little is known about ontogenetic changes in the cues mediating such recognition. In Belding's ground squirrels, Spermophilus beldingi, secretions from oral glands are both individually distinct and kin distinct, and function in social recognition across many contexts. Behavioral studies of recognition and kin preferences suggest that these cues may change across development, particularly around the time of weaning and emergence from natal burrows (around 25 days of age). I used an habituation-discrimination task with captive S. beldingi, presenting subjects with odors collected from a pair of pups at several ages across early development. I found that at 21 days of age, but not at 7 or 14, young produce detectable odors. Odors are not individually distinct, however, until 28 days of age, after young have emerged from their burrows and begun foraging. In addition, an individual's odor continues to develop after emergence: odors produced by an individual at 20 and 40 days of age are perceived as dissimilar, yet odors produced at 28 and 40 days are treated as similar. Developmental changes in odors provide a proximate explanation for why S. beldingi littermate preferences are not consolidated until after natal emergence, and demonstrate that conspecifics must update their recognition templates as young develop. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 48: 508,519, 2006. [source] The effects of fire, local environment and time on ant assemblages in fens and forestsDIVERSITY AND DISTRIBUTIONS, Issue 6 2005Jaime S. Ratchford ABSTRACT We investigated the effects of the abiotic environment, plant community composition and disturbance by fire on ant assemblages in two distinct habitat types in the Siskiyou Mountains in northern California and southern Oregon, USA. Sampling over 2 years in burned and unburned Darlingtonia fens and their adjacent upland forests, we found that the effects of disturbance by fire depended on habitat type. In forests, fire intensity predicted richness in ant assemblages in both years after the fire, and plant community composition predicted richness 2 years after the fire. No factors were associated with richness in the species-poor fen ant assemblages. Species-specific responses to both habitat type and disturbance by fire were idiosyncratic. Assemblage composition depended on habitat type, but not disturbance by fire, and the composition of each assemblage between years was more dissimilar in burned than unburned sites. [source] Effect of abiotic factors on reproduction in the centre and periphery of breeding ranges: a comparative analysis in sympatric harriersECOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2001J. T. García Variables such as weather or other abiotic factors should have a higher influence on demographic rates in border areas than in central areas, given that climatic adaptation might be important in determining range borders. Similarly, for a given area, the relationship between weather and reproduction should be dissimilar for species which are in the centre of their breeding range and those that are near the edge. We tested this hypothesis on two sympatric ground-nesting raptors, the hen harrier Circus cyaneus and the Montagu's harrier Circus pygargus in Madrid, central Spain, where the hen harrier is at the southern edge of its breeding range in the western Palearctic and the Montagu's harrier is central in its distribution. We examined the reproductive success of both species during an 8-yr period, and looked at the influence of the most stressful abiotic factors in the study area (between-year variation in rainfall and within-year variation in temperature) on reproductive parameters. In the hen harrier, low levels of rainfall during the breeding season had a negative influence on annual fledging success and thus on population fledgling production. The relationship between rainfall and reproduction was probably mediated through food abundance, which in Mediterranean habitat depends directly on rainfall levels. In the Montagu's harrier, no negative effect of dry seasons on productivity was found. Additionally, in the hen harrier, the proportion of eggs that did not hatch in each clutch increased with higher temperatures during the incubation period. No such relationship was found in the Montagu's harrier. We interpret these between-species differences in terms of differences of breeding range and adaptations to the average conditions existing there. Hen harriers, commonest at northern latitudes, are probably best adapted to the most typical conditions at those latitudes, and have probably not developed thermoregulatory or behavioural mechanisms to cope with drought and high temperatures in Mediterranean habitats, in contrast to Montagu's harrier. Thus hen harrier distribution might be constrained by these variables, due to lower reproductive success or higher reproductive costs. Accordingly, a logistic regression analysis of the presence or absence of both species in 289 random points throughout the western Palearctic showed that the distribution of both species was related to temperature, but the relationship was in opposite directions for the two species: hen harriers had lower probability of breeding in areas with higher temperature (as expected in a species with a more northerly distribution). [source] Genet age in marginal populations of two clonal Carex species in the Siberian ArcticECOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2000Ingibjörg S. Jónsdóttir During a Swedish-Russian expedition to northern Siberia 1994, we sampled two marginal populations of two Carex species at two high arctic sites (C, stans Drej. on Faddeyevsky Island and C. ensifolia V. Krecz ssp. arctisibirica Jurtz. at north-eastern Taymyr Peninsula), both north of previously documented localities in that areas for the two species. These populations were composed of a few distinct patches of ramet colonies, some of them shaped like fairy rings with dead centres. We measured the size of all colonies and collected samples for detailed morphometric analyses of rhizome growth. By using RAPD (random amplified polymorphic DNA) analysis we established that the largest colony at each site consisted of a single genet, based on 41 polymorphic bands amplified with three primers. Pooled samples from each of two additional colonies of C. stans on Faddeyevsky Island were analysed and showed that clones of the same species at the same site were relatively dissimilar (Dice's similarity index 0.26 0,43), We then assumed that each ramet colony represented a single genet. Based on the morphometric data, we developed a deterministic growth model that simulates the clonal growth of these species and enabled estimates of the time since establishment of the genets. The estimated age of the five C. Stans clones varied from 17 to 154 yr and the age of the two C. ensifolia ssp, arctisibirica clones was well over 3000 yr. [source] Regulation, productivity and growth: OECD evidenceECONOMIC POLICY, Issue 36 2003Giuseppe Nicoletti SUMMARY Liberalization and privatization have made the regulatory environment more market-friendly throughout the OECD. However using a large new dataset on product market regulation, we show that regulatory policies in OECD nations have become more dissimilar in relative terms, even as all nations have liberalized. This seemingly contradictory finding is explained by different starting points and different reform speeds. Our data also show that this divergence in the regulatory settings lines up with the divergent growth performance of OECD nations, in particular the poor performance of large Continental economies relative to that of the US. The data, which tracks various types of product market regulation in manufacturing and service industries for 18 OECD economies over the past two decades, allows us to explore this link in detail. We find that productivity growth is boosted by reforms that promote private corporate governance and competition (where these are viable). Moreover, our detailed findings suggest how product market regulation and productivity growth are linked. In manufacturing, the productivity gains from liberalization are greater the further a given country is from the technology leader. This indicates that entry-limiting regulation may hinder the adoption of existing technologies, possibly by reducing competitive pressures, technology spillovers, or the entry of new high-tech firms. These results offer an interpretation of poor Continental performance. Strict product market regulations , and lack of regulatory reforms , appear to underlie the meagre productivity performance of some European countries, especially in those industries where Europe has accumulated a technology gap (e.g. industries producing or using information and communication technologies). , Giuseppe Nicoletti and Stefano Scarpetta [source] Randomized controlled trial of the effects of completing the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test questionnaire on self-reported hazardous drinkingADDICTION, Issue 2 2008Jim McCambridge ABSTRACT Aims The direct effects of screening on drinking behaviour have not previously been evaluated experimentally. We tested whether screening reduces self-reported hazardous drinking in comparison with a non-screened control group. Design Two-arm randomized controlled trial (RCT), with both groups blinded to the true nature of the study. Setting and participants A total of 421 university students aged 18,24 years, recruited in five London student unions. Interventions Both groups completed a brief pen-and-paper general health and socio-demographic questionnaire, which for the experimental group also included the 10-item Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) screening questionnaire. Measurements The primary outcome was the between-group difference in AUDIT score at 2,3-month follow-up. Eight secondary outcomes comprised other aspects of hazardous drinking, including dedicated measures of alcohol consumption, problems and dependence. Findings A statistically significant effect size of 0.23 (0.01,0.45) was detected on the designated primary outcome. The marginal nature of the statistical significance of this effect was apparent in additional analyses with covariates. Statistically significant differences were also obtained in three of eight secondary outcomes, and the observed effect sizes were not dissimilar to the known effects of brief interventions. Conclusions It is unclear to what extent these findings represent the effects of screening alone, a Hawthorne effect in which drinking behaviour has changed in response to monitoring, or whether they indicate reporting bias. These possibilities have important implications both for the dissemination of screening as an intervention in its own right and for behavioural intervention trials methodology. [source] Size really doesn't matterEUROPEAN EATING DISORDERS REVIEW, Issue 5 2003Bethan Lawrence Abstract Objective: The judgement of what constitutes a large amount of food is one part of determining a binge and is therefore crucial for the diagnosis of BN. This study aimed to determine whether eating disorder professionals agree on what constitutes a large amount of food and the criterion they use to make the decision. Method: 147 eating disorder professionals completed a short questionnaire, that involved rating five food vignettes according to whether they believed them to consist of a large amount of food. Results: There was general consensus among eating disorder professionals as to what constituted a large amount of food. The results also suggested that many participants based their judgement on how dissimilar the vignette was to a normal meal. Discussion: The finding that the judgement of whether an amount of food is large can be made with high reliability but low validity should be the subject of further research due to its importance in the diagnosis of bulimia nervosa. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association. [source] Effects of variability in anatomical reconstruction techniques on models of synaptic integration by dendrites: a comparison of three internet archivesEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE, Issue 5 2004Tibor Szilágyi Abstract The first step in building a realistic computational neuron model is to produce a passive electrical skeleton on to which active conductances can be grafted. For this, anatomically accurate morphological reconstructions of the desired cell type are required. In this study compartmental models were used to compare from a functional perspective three on-line archives of rat hippocampal CA1 pyramidal cell morphologies. The topological organization of cells was found to be similar for all archives, but several morphometric differences were observed. The three-dimensional size of the cells, the diameter and tortuosity of dendrites, and the electrotonic length of the main apical dendrite and of the branches in stratum lacunosum moleculare were dissimilar. The experimentally measured kinetics of somatically recorded inhibitory postsynaptic currents evoked in the stratum lacunosum moleculare (data from the literature) could be reproduced only using the archives that contained cells with an electrotonically short main apical dendrite. In the amplitude attenuation of the simulated postsynaptic currents and the voltage escape from the command potential under voltage clamp conditions, a two- to three-fold difference was observed among archives. Upon activation of a single model synapse on distal branches, cells with low dendritic diameter showed a voltage escape larger than 15 mV. The diameter of the dendrites influenced greatly the results, emphasizing the importance of methods that allow an accurate measurement of this parameter. Our results indicate that there are functionally significant differences in the morphometric data available in different archives even if the cell type, brain region and species are the same. [source] 'Everything is relative': Comparison processes in social judgment The 2002 Jaspars LectureEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 6 2003Thomas Mussweiler Any judgment involves a comparison of the evaluated target to a pertinent norm or standard, so that comparison processes lie at the core of human judgment. Despite this prominent role, however, little is known about the psychological mechanisms that underlie comparisons and produce their variable consequences. To understand these consequences, one has to examine what target knowledge is sought and activated during the comparison process. Two alternative comparison mechanisms are distinguished. Similarity testing involves a selective search for evidence indicating that the target is similar to the standard and leads to assimilation. Dissimilarity testing involves a selective search for evidence indicating that the target is dissimilar from the standard and leads to contrast. Distinguishing between these alternative mechanisms provides an integrative perspective on comparison consequences in the realm of social comparison and beyond. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] The similarity,attraction relationship revisited: divergence between the affective and behavioral facets of attractionEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 4 2002Estelle Michinov In contemporary attitudes-and-attraction research, attraction has been viewed as a multidimensional construct. Moreover, the effects of dissimilar and similar attitudes have been shown to vary with the facets of attraction measured. The hypotheses tested are that (1) only the proportion of similar attitudes relevant to the social context or interaction goals affects behavioral attraction (i.e. interpersonal distance between the participant and targets), and (2) the proportion of similar attitudes influences affective attraction (i.e. Byrne's attraction measure), regardless of attitude relevance. Two experiments were conducted with classroom activities (Experiment 1) and a writing workshop (Experiment 2) as the social contexts. The results of both experiments supported the hypotheses. Clearly, a solely affective measure of attraction seems inadequate for understanding the similarity,attraction relationship. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] ,Seek and ye shall find': antecedents of assimilation and contrast in social comparisonEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY, Issue 5 2001Thomas Mussweiler Based on a Selective Accessibility (SA) model of comparison consequences, it is suggested that the self-evaluative effects of social comparisons depend on the nature of the hypothesis that is tested as a starting-point of the comparison process. If judges test the hypothesis that they are similar to the standard, then standard-consistent self-knowledge is rendered accessible so that self-evaluations are assimilated towards the standard. If judges test the hypothesis that they are dissimilar from the standard, however, standard-inconsistent self-knowledge is made accessible so that self-evaluations are contrasted away from the standard. These predictions are tested by inducing participants to test for similarity versus dissimilarity to the standard via a procedural priming manipulation. Consistent with the SA model, assimilation occurs if participants are procedurally primed to focus on similarities to the standard, whereas contrast results if they are primed to focus on dissimilarities. These findings suggest that similarity versus dissimilarity testing is a crucial determinant of assimilation versus contrast. It is proposed that distinguishing between these two alternative hypotheses may provide an integrative framework for an understanding of the self-evaluative consequences of social comparisons. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] EVOLUTION OF CHARACTER DISPLACEMENT IN SPADEFOOT TOADS: DIFFERENT PROXIMATE MECHANISMS IN DIFFERENT SPECIESEVOLUTION, Issue 8 2010David W. Pfennig Character displacement occurs when two species compete, and those individuals most dissimilar from the average resource-use phenotypes of the other species are selectively favored. Few studies have explored the sequence of events by which such divergence comes about. We addressed this issue by studying two species of spadefoot toads that have undergone ecological character displacement with each other. Previous research revealed that phenotypic shifts between sympatric and allopatric populations of one species, Spea multiplicata, reflect a condition-dependent maternal effect. Here, we show that analogous shifts in the other species, S. bombifrons, cannot similarly be explained by such a maternal effect, and that these shifts instead appear to be underlain by allelic differences. We hypothesize that these two species have evolved different mechanisms of character displacement because they differ in duration in sympatry. Specifically, because they occur at the edge of a range expansion, populations of S. bombifrons have been exposed to S. multiplicata for a longer period. Consequently, S. bombifrons have likely had more time to accumulate genetic changes that promote character displacement. Generally, character displacement may often progress through an initial phase in which trait differences are environmentally induced to one in which they are constitutively expressed. [source] FIELD AND EXPERIMENTAL EVIDENCE FOR COMPETITION'S ROLE IN PHENOTYPIC DIVERGENCEEVOLUTION, Issue 2 2007David W. Pfennig Resource competition has long been viewed as a major cause of phenotypic divergence within and between species. Theory predicts that divergence arises because natural selection favors individuals that are phenotypically dissimilar from their competitors. Yet, there are few conclusive tests of this key prediction. Drawing on data from both natural populations and a controlled experiment, this paper presents such a test in tadpoles of two species of spadefoot toads (Spea bombifrons and S. multiplicata). These two species show exaggerated divergence in trophic morphology where they are found together (mixed-species ponds) but not where each is found alone (pure-species ponds), suggesting that they have undergone ecological character displacement. Moreover, in pure-species ponds, both species exhibit resource polymorphism. Using body size as a proxy for fitness, we found that in pure-species ponds disruptive selection favors extreme trophic phenotypes in both species, suggesting that intraspecific competition for food promotes resource polymorphism. In mixed-species ponds, by contrast, we found that trophic morphology was subject to stabilizing selection in S. multiplicata and directional selection in S. bombifrons. A controlled experiment revealed that the more similar an S. multiplicata was to its S. bombifrons tankmate in resource use, the worse was its performance. These results indicate that S. multiplicata individuals that differ from S. bombifrons would be selectively favored in competition. Our data therefore demonstrate how resource competition between phenotypically similar individuals can drive divergence between them. Moreover, our results indicate that how competition contributes to such divergence may be influenced not only by the degree to which competitors overlap in resource use, but also by the abundance and quality of resources. Finally, our finding that competitively mediated disruptive selection may promote resource polymorphism has potentially important implications for understanding how populations evolve in response to heterospecific competitors. In particular, once a population evolves resource polymorphism, it may be more prone to undergo ecological character displacement. [source] CHARACTER DISPLACEMENT IN POLYPHENIC TADPOLESEVOLUTION, Issue 5 2000David W. Pfennig Abstract Biologists have long known that closely related species are often phenotypically different where they occur together, but are indistinguishable where they occur alone. The causes of such character displacement are controversial, however. We used polyphenic spadefoot toad tadpoles (Spea bombifrons and S. multiplicata) to test the hypothesis that character displacement evolves to minimize competition for food. We also sought to evaluate the role of phenotypic plasticity in the mediation of competitive interactions between these species. Depending on their diet, individuals of both species develop into either a small-headed omnivore morph, which feeds mostly on detritus, or a large-headed carnivore morph, which specializes on shrimp. Laboratory experiments and surveys of natural ponds revealed that the two species were more dissimilar in their tendency to produce carnivores when they occurred together than when they occurred alone. This divergence in carnivore production was expressed as both character displacement (where S. multiplicata's propensity to produce carnivores was lower in sympatry than in allopatry) and as phenotypic plasticity (where S. multiplicata facultatively enhanced carnivore production in S. bombifrons, and S. bombifrons facultatively suppressed carnivore production in S. multiplicata). In separate experiments, we established that S. bombifrons (the species for which carnivore production was enhanced) was the superior competitor for shrimp. Conversely, S. multiplicata (the species for which carnivore production was suppressed and omnivore production enhanced) was the superior competitor for detritus. These results therefore demonstrate that selection to minimize competition for food can cause character displacement. They also suggest that both character displacement and phenotypic plasticity may mediate competitive interactions between species. [source] Reproducibility of a microbial river water community to self-organize upon perturbation with the natural chemical enantiomers, R - and S -carvoneFEMS MICROBIOLOGY ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2008Katja Lehmann Abstract A river water microbial community was studied in response to perturbation with the monoterpene enantiomers R - and S -carvone. The microbial community structure and function was also evaluated after enantiomers exposure was switched. Microbial communities were evaluated by length heterogeneity PCR. The addition of R - and S -carvone enriched for a range of functionally different communities: enantiomer-selective, racemic and ones that contain both. After 5 days incubation, the R - and S -carvone treatments developed a range of dominant microbial communities, which were increasingly dissimilar from the ones in which no carvone degradation had taken place (R -values: R -carvone 0.743, S -carvone 0.5007). There was an increase in the evenness of the microbial community structure upon carvone depletion. After the cross-over, the rate of carvone utilization was significantly faster than after the first carvone addition (P=0.008) as demonstrated by concomitant carvone and oxygen depletion. The main R -degrading community (450,456 bp) appeared enantioselective and largely unable to degrade S -carvone, whereas the S -carvone-degrading community (502,508 bp) appeared to have racemic catabolic capacity. In conclusion, chemical perturbations, such as enantiomers, might generate a significant shift in the river microbial ecology that can have implications for the function of a river in both a spatial and temporal context. [source] Larval fish assemblages along the south-eastern Australian shelf: linking mesoscale non-depth-discriminate structure and water massesFISHERIES OCEANOGRAPHY, Issue 4 2008JOHN P. KEANE Abstract We present findings of the first mesoscale study linking larval fish assemblages and water masses along shelf waters off south-eastern Australia (southern Queensland-New South Wales), based on vertical, non-depth discriminate data from surveys in October 2002 and 2003 (spring) and July 2004 (winter). Clustering and ordination were employed to discriminate between larval assemblages and, for the first time, to define water masses from water column temperature frequencies. Surveys yielded 18 128 larval fishes comprising 143 taxa from 96 identifiable families, with small pelagics accounting for 53% of the total. Three major recurrent larval assemblages were identified during the study, each of which matched one of three water masses, namely East Australian Current to the north (EAC; 20.5,23.4°C), Tasman Sea to the south (TAS; 14.8,17.5°C), and mixed EAC,TAS water in between (MIX; 18.3,19.9°C). All three assemblages were present in spring, whereas only EAC and MIX occurred in the more northerly constrained winter survey. Furthermore, boundaries between the EAC, MIX and TAS assemblages were found to be dynamic, with locations shifting temporally and spatially depending on EAC extent. Assemblage composition differed significantly between water masses across surveys, with EAC,TAS being most dissimilar. Such contrast was due to the presence of tropical/temperate taxa in EAC, primarily temperate-associated taxa in TAS, and a combination of EAC,TAS taxa within MIX consistent with the convergence of both waters. Results highlight the strength of employing larval assemblages as indicators of water masses, particularly in view of the potential effect of climate change on spawning habitats of shelf fishes. [source] An exploration of nutrition and eating disabilities in relation to quality of life at 6 months post-strokeHEALTH & SOCIAL CARE IN THE COMMUNITY, Issue 4 2004Lin Perry PhD MSc RGN RNT Abstract Quality of life (QoL) is increasingly recognised as an important healthcare outcome, especially for those living with enduring disability. Stroke is a major source of long-term disablement and many aspects of life after stroke have been explored. Little attention has been paid to nutritional issues despite the cultural and hedonistic importance of food and eating, and the deleterious effects of malnutrition. The present study employed an epidemiological survey to investigate the contribution of dietary and nutritional factors in relation to QoL after stroke. The participants were 206 survivors of a cohort of acute stroke patients consecutively admitted to a National Health Service trust hospital in South London, UK, between March 1998 and April 1999. They were interviewed in their homes at 6 months post-stroke. Cognitively or communication-impaired patients were precluded from interview except where a live-in carer participated as a proxy (n = 10). The participation rate for those who were eligible and could be contacted was 206 out of 218 (94%). Participants were assessed using standardised, validated tools for functional abilities in activities of daily living and eating, cognition and mood state, social support and economic indices, nutritional status, dietary intake, and QoL. Overall group scores demonstrated relatively minor degrees of physical disablement; exclusion of those with limited cognition and communication precluded assessment of a small subgroup with greater disablement at hospital discharge. Nonetheless, the overall assessment results were not dissimilar to other reported groups. Indices of poor nutritional status and substantial dietary inadequacy were revealed, linked with reduced appetite and depression. Multiple regression analyses revealed the dominant impact of mood state in relation to QoL scores; additional significant effects were identified for social support, eating-related disabilities and age. The effects of mood and social support are well-recognised, whilst nutrition-related effects have previously received little attention. Intervention in these areas might achieve improvements in survivors' perceived QoL. [source] Plane SH-waves at a corrugated interface between two dissimilar perfectly conducting self-reinforced elastic half-spacesINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL FOR NUMERICAL AND ANALYTICAL METHODS IN GEOMECHANICS, Issue 6 2006S. K. Tomar Abstract In this paper, we have attempted a problem of reflection and refraction of plane harmonic SH-wave at a corrugated interface between two different perfectly conducting self-reinforced elastic half-spaces. Rayleigh's method is employed to find out the expressions of reflection and refraction coefficients for first- and second-order approximation of the corrugation. The expressions of these coefficients show that they depend on the properties of half-spaces, angle of incidence, frequency of the incident wave and are strongly influenced by the corrugation of the interface. Numerical computations are performed for a particular model having special type of interface and the variation of these coefficients are depicted graphically against the angles of incidence, frequency parameter, corrugation parameter at different values of reinforcement parameters. Results of some earlier works are reduced as a particular case of this formulation. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Temporal and Spatial Distributions of Rotifers in Xiangxi Bay of the Three Gorges Reservoir, ChinaINTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF HYDROBIOLOGY, Issue 5 2009Shuchan Zhou Abstract From July 2003 to June 2005, investigations of rotifer temporal and spatial distributions were car-ried out in a bay of the Three Gorges Reservoir, Xiangxi Bay, which is the downstream segment of the Xiangxi River and the nearest bay to the Three Gorges Reservoir dam in Hubei Province, China. Thirteen sampling sites were selected. The results revealed a high species diversity, with 76 species, and 14 dominant species; i.e., Polyarthra vulgaris, Keratella cochlearis, Keratella valga, Synchaeta tremula, Synchaeta stylata, Trichocerca lophoessa, Trichocerca pusilla, Brachionus angularis, Brachionus calyciflorus, Brachionus forficula forficula, Ascomorpha ovalis, Conochilus unicornis, Ploesoma truncatum and Anuraeopsis fissa. After the first year of the reservoir impoundment, the rotifer community was dominated by ten species; one year later it was dominated by eight species. The community in 2003/2004 was dissimilar to that in 2004/2005, which resulted from the succes-sion of the dominant species. The rotifer community exhibited a patchy distribution, with significant heterogeneity observed along the longitudinal axis. All rotifer communities could be divided into three groups, corresponding to the riverine, the transition and the lacustrine zone, respectively. (© 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) [source] Intra- and intermuscular variation in human quadriceps femoris architecture assessed in vivoJOURNAL OF ANATOMY, Issue 3 2006Anthony J. Blazevich Abstract Despite the functional importance of the human quadriceps femoris in movements such as running, jumping, lifting and climbing, and the known effects of muscle architecture on muscle function, no research has fully described the complex architecture of this muscle group. We used ultrasound imaging techniques to measure muscle thickness, fascicle angle and fascicle length at multiple regions of the four quadriceps muscles in vivo in 31 recreationally active, but non-strength-trained adult men and women. Our analyses revealed a reasonable similarity in the superficial quadriceps muscles, which is suggestive of functional similarity (at least during the uni-joint knee extension task) given that they act via a common tendon. The deep vastus intermedius (VI) is architecturally dissimilar and therefore probably serves a different function(s). Architecture varies significantly along the length of the superficial muscles, which has implications for the accuracy of models that assume a constant intramuscular architecture. It might also have consequences for the efficiency of intra- and intermuscular force transmission. Our results provide some evidence that subjects with a given architecture of one superficial muscle, relative to the rest of the subject sample, also have a similar architecture in other superficial muscles. However, this is not necessarily true for vastus lateralis (VL), and was not the case for VI. Therefore, the relative architecture of one muscle cannot confidently be used to estimate the relative architecture of another. To confirm this, we calculated a value of whole quadriceps architecture by four different methods. Regardless of the method used, we found that the absolute or relative architecture of one muscle could not be used as an indicator of whole quadriceps architecture, although vastus medialis, possibly in concert with VL and the anterior portion of VI, could be used to provide a useful snapshot. Importantly, our estimates of whole quadriceps architecture show a gender difference in whole quadriceps muscle thickness, and that muscle thickness is positively correlated with fascicle angle whereas fascicle length is negatively, although weakly, correlated with fascicle angle. These results are supportive of the validity of estimates of whole quadriceps architecture. These data are interpreted with respect to their implications for neural control strategies, region-specific adaptations in muscle size in response to training, and gender-dependent differences in the response to exercise training. [source] Short-term development of ambrosia and bark beetle assemblages following a windstorm in French broadleaved temperate forestsJOURNAL OF APPLIED ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 6 2005C. Bouget Abstract:, In most temperate deciduous forests, windstorm is the main source of dead wood. However, the effects of this natural disturbance on ambrosia and bark beetle communities are poorly known. In managed oak-hornbeam forests storm-damaged in France in 1999, we sampled ambrosia (and second bark beetles) by ethanol-baited window-flight traps in 2001. By comparing uncleared gaps, undisturbed closed-canopy controls and seedling-sapling stands, we investigated the short-term effects of gap formation, gap size and surrounding landscape to provide a snapshot of scolytid response. Contrary to expectations, neither the abundance nor the richness of ambrosia beetle species was significantly higher in gaps than in undisturbed stands. Few responses in abundance at the species level and only a slight difference in assemblage composition were detected between gaps and closed-canopy controls. Gaps were more dissimilar from seedling-sapling stands, than from closed-canopy controls. More scolytid individuals and species were caught in gaps than in seedling-sapling stands. Mean local and cumulative richness peaked in mid-size gaps. Only mid-size gaps differed from closed-canopy controls in terms of species composition. We identified generalist gap species (Xyleborus saxesenii, X. cryptographus), but also species significantly more abundant in mid-size gaps (Platypus cylindrus, Xyloterus signatus). The faunistic peculiarity of mid-size gaps seemed to be partly related to a bias in oak density among gap size classes. Few landscape effects were observed. Only the scolytids on the whole and X. dispar were slightly favoured by an increasing density in fellings at the 78 ha scale. We did not find any correlation between scolytid abundance and the surrounding closed-forest percentage area. We confirmed that temperate, deciduous, managed stands did not come under threat by ambrosia and bark beetle pests after the 1999 windstorm. Nonetheless, our data stressed the current expansion in Western Europe of two invasive species, X. peregrinus and especially X. germanus, now the predominant scolytid in the three oak forests studied. [source] Global distribution of the European species of the lichen genus Melanelia Essl.JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 7 2005Volker Otte Abstract Aim, The global distribution of the European species of Melanelia Essl. (Lichenes: Parmeliaceae) was investigated in order to understand their distribution patterns against the background of ecogeographical and historical factors. Location, The location of the study is global, with a local emphasis on Europe. Methods, Geographical distribution and ecology of the species were investigated on the basis of herbarium studies and data from the literature as well as field observations. Distribution maps were created with ArcView GIS. The distribution patterns are expressed as three-dimensional ,areal formulas', regarding zonal distribution, altitudinal range and oceanicity, using a previously described method. The observed distribution patterns are discussed on the basis of their analogies with vascular plants and with respect to the ecogeographical vs. historical factors reflected by them. Results, With the exception of one species that is endemic to Europe, all species studied occur in both northern continents. A number of species have tropical-alpine outposts, and two species occur also in extratropical zones of the southern hemisphere. Arctic and boreal distributions are circumpolar, while in the southern holarctic zones an affinity to the western sides of both northern continents is frequent. Main conclusions, The distribution patterns appear to be mainly determined by contemporary ecogeographical factors. Most species probably have largely filled their potential distribution, at least within the Holarctic. Thus, the geographical origin and dispersal history of a species cannot reliably be reconstructed; they can be dissimilar in different species with similar distributions. [source] Biogeography of Plagiochila (Hepaticae): natural species groups span several floristic kingdomsJOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 7 2003Henk Groth Abstract Aim This paper presents a synthesis of our recent results regarding the biogeography of Plagiochila using a molecular approach, and documents intercontinental ranges within this largest genus of the hepatics. Methods A maximum likelihood analysis of sixty-one nrITS sequences of Plagiochila was performed and the molecular topology obtained was compared with morphological, phytochemical and geographical data. Results Our molecular data set allowed the identification of eleven Plagiochila sections, the majority of which cover at least two floristic kingdoms. Seven sections have species in Europe (sect. Arrectae, Carringtoniae, Fuscoluteae, Glaucescentes, Plagiochila, Rutilantes, Vagae). Plagiochila species from Atlantic Europe are usually close to or conspecific with neotropical taxa, whereas species widespread in Europe are closely related to Asian ones and not to those in the Neotropics. Plagiochila sect. Arrectae represents a neotropical , Atlantic European clade. The section is not closely related , as has often been suggested , to the morphologically similar sect. Zonatae from Asia and western North America. Sequence data show that the African P. integerrima and the neotropical P. subplana are members of the Asian sect. Cucullatae (sect. Ciliatae, syn. nov.), which becomes pantropical in distribution. An ITS sequence of P. boryana from Uganda confirms the Afro-American range of the primarily neotropical sect. Hylacoetes. Similarities in sporophyte morphology between the sect. Cucullatae and sect. Hylacoetes are the result of parallel evolution. Main conclusions Our results indicate that intercontinental ranges at section and species level are common in Plagiochila. Carl's (1931) subdivision of Plagiochila into sections restricted to one floristic kingdom is outdated. Biogeographical patterns in Plagiochila are not dissimilar to those of other groups of bryophytes but elucidation of the geographical ranges of the taxa requires a molecular approach. Contrary to earlier belief, most Plagiochila species from Atlantic Europe do not have close relatives in Asia but are conspecific with or closely related to species from tropical America. [source] Habitat islands in fire-prone vegetation: do landscape features influence community composition?JOURNAL OF BIOGEOGRAPHY, Issue 5-6 2002Peter J. Clarke Aim, Location Landscape features, such as rock outcrops and ravines, can act as habitat islands in fire-prone vegetation by influencing the fire regime. In coastal and sub-coastal areas of Australia, rock outcrops and pavements form potential habitat islands in a matrix of fire-prone eucalypt forests. The aim of this study was to compare floristic composition and fire response traits of plants occurring on rocky areas and contrast them with the surrounding matrix. Methods Patterns of plant community composition and fire response were compared between rocky areas and surrounding sclerophyll forests in a range of climate types to test for differences. Classification and ordination were used to compare floristic composition and univariate analyses were used to compare fire response traits. Results The rock outcrops and pavements were dissimilar in species composition from the forest matrix but shared genera and families with the matrix. Outcrops and pavements were dominated by scleromorphic shrubs that were mainly killed by fire and had post-fire seedling recruitment (obligate seeders). In contrast, the most abundant species in the adjacent forest matrix were species that sprout after fire (sprouters). Main conclusions Fire frequency and intensity are likely to be less on outcrops than in the forest matrix because the physical barrier of rock edges disrupts fires. Under the regime of more frequent fires, obligate seeders have been removed or reduced in abundance from the forest matrix. This process may have also operated over evolutionary time-scales and resulted in convergence towards obligate seeding traits on outcrop fire shadows. In contrast, there may have been convergence towards sprouting in the forest matrix as a result of selection for persistence under a regime of frequent fire. [source] Modelling near-infrared signals for on-line monitoring in cheese manufactureJOURNAL OF CHEMOMETRICS, Issue 2 2002B. J. A. Mertens Abstract This paper considers the analysis of a continuously monitored near-infrared reflectance signal at a single wavelength for the calibration of a process parameter in an application to food engineering for quality control. We describe how we may summarize the information in the observed signals by postulating an explicit statistical model on the signal. An exploratory data analysis may then be carried out on the profile summaries to evaluate whether and how the functional data provide information on the parameter which we would like to calibrate. From a conceptual point of view, such an approach is not dissimilar to principal component regression methods which use an intermediate decomposition through which information is summarised for calibration of a response. The paper demonstrates how the approach leads to important insights into the manner in which the functional data provide the required information on the desired outcome variable, in the context of the practical application in quality control which is discussed and by using a designed experiment. Calculations are implemented through the Gibbs sampler. Calibration of the prediction equation takes place through meta-analysis of the summarized profile data in order to take the uncertainty inherent in the summaries into account. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Pharmacologic and Therapeutic Considerations in Hypertension Therapy With Calcium Channel Blockers: Focus on VerapamilJOURNAL OF CLINICAL HYPERTENSION, Issue 2 2007Domenic A. Sica MD In the past 2 decades, calcium channel blockers have emerged as important and useful agents for treating hypertension. The safety of this drug class has been vigorously debated for some time, and it has only been in the past few years that such debate has been quieted by favorable outcomes data with these compounds. Calcium channel blockers are a heterogeneous group of compounds as alike as they are dissimilar. Calcium channel blockers can be separated into dihydropyridine and nondihydropyridine subclasses, with representatives of the latter being verapamil and diltiazem. A lengthy treatment experience exists for verapamil, a compound that has progressed from an immediate-release to a sustained-release and, more recently, a delayed/sustained-release formulation designated for administration at bedtime. This latter formulation synchronizes drug delivery with the early morning rise in blood pressure, which is a particularly attractive feature when viewed in the context of the distinctive pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic features of verapamil. [source] A systematic review of counselling for HIV testing of pregnant womenJOURNAL OF CLINICAL NURSING, Issue 13 2009Karin S Minnie Background., Evidence-based strategies have made it possible to limit mother-to-child transmission of the HI-virus to a large extent and enable HIV-positive women to stay healthy for longer, provided their HIV status is known. Although voluntary counselling and testing for HIV is part of routine antenatal care in South Africa, the uptake of testing varies and a large number of pregnant women's HIV status is not known at the time of birth. Aim., The aim of the study was to establish research evidence regarding factors influencing counselling for HIV testing during pregnancy by means of systematic review, forming part of a larger study using a variety of evidence to develop best practice guidelines. Design., Systematic review. Methods., The question steering the review was: ,What factors influence counselling for HIV testing during pregnancy?'. A multi-stage search of relevant research studies was undertaken using a variety of sources. A total of 33 studies were retrieved and critically appraised. Data were extracted from the studies and assessed according to its applicability in the South African context. Results., The results are presented according to the following themes: effects of counselling, quality of counselling, group vs. individual counselling, ways of offering HIV testing, rapid testing, counselling and testing during labour, couple counselling and testing, counsellor and organisational factors. Conclusions., According to research evidence, factors such as whether counselling is presented in a group or individually, different ways to present HIV testing as well as counsellor and organisational factors can influence counselling for HIV testing during pregnancy. When developing best practice guidelines for settings very dissimilar from where the research was done, research evidence must be contextualised. Relevance to clinical practice., Implementation of the best practice guidelines may lead to the increased uptake of HIV testing in pregnancy in developing countries like South Africa and thus to an increase in the number of women whose status is known when their babies are born. [source] Image Segmentation and Bruise Identification on Potatoes Using a Kohonen's Self-Organizing MapJOURNAL OF FOOD SCIENCE, Issue 7 2005Thierry Marique ABSTRACT: Potato quality includes a low incidence of colored bruises resulting from bad storage or manipulation practices. We developed a procedure to process and segment potato images by using Kohonen's self-organizing map. Anomalous regions could be distinguished on 3 potato varieties. Bruises that were very dissimilar in appearance were correctly identified, and some particular defects such as green spots could be located as well. [source] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||