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Early Morning (early + morning)
Selected AbstractsTwo-hourly surface change on supra-tidal rock (Marengo, Victoria, Australia)EARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 1 2007Lluís Gómez-Pujol Abstract A traversing micro-erosion meter was used to measure rock surface micro-topography over 40 cm2 on a supra-tidal cliff face from early morning to late evening in late spring. From 06:00 hours to 22:00 hours the relative heights of 188 coordinates were obtained using the meter at 2-hour intervals, resulting in a data set of 1607 readings. Monitoring shows that rock surfaces are dynamic entities, with significant rise and fall relative to the first measurement at shorter timescales than previously reported. The maximum positive rise between readings was 0·261 mm and lowering was 0·126 mm. The pattern of change did not relate as expected to environmental variables such as temperature or insolation. Rather, the surface showed greater surface change in the early morning and late afternoon. It is hypothesized that this pattern relates to the expansion and contraction of lichen thalli as moisture is absorbed during higher humidity in the morning and late afternoon. The implications of these results for weathering studies are considered. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Thrips see red , flower colour and the host relationships of a polyphagous anthophilic thripsECOLOGICAL ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 5 2007A. YAKU Abstract 1.,The common blossom thrips, Frankliniella schultzei, is a polyphagous anthophilic species that colonises a wide range of host-plant species across different plant taxa. The environmental cues used by these polyphagous insects to recognise and locate host plants are not known. We therefore determined if colour is an important environmental signal used by F. schultzei to recognise flowers of eight of its more significant host-plant species. 2.,The effect of flower colour on the colonisation of different host plant species by F. schultzei was investigated by collecting and analysing the following: (a) numbers of thrips from different heights and aspects of the primary host plant Malvaviscus arboreus, (b) thrips distribution within flowers of Hibiscus rosasinensis, (c) colour reflectance from flowers of eight different host-plant species, and (d) reflectance from different coloured sticky traps and the number of thrips trapped on them at different times of the day and on different dates. 3.,The results indicate that: (a) the thrips (both sexes) concentrate towards the top of the primary host plant M. arboreus and are not distributed differentially according to sunny or shady aspect of the plant, (b) the number of female thrips on H. rosasinensis was higher in anthers compared to petals (corolla) and the basal parts of the flower, and males were as numerous on the petals as were females, and (c) there is a common floral reflectance pattern (but with different intensities) across the eight host plant species, mainly in the red part of the spectrum (600,700 nm). 4.,Results of colour sticky trapping show that red attracts more female thrips compared to any other colour and that most were caught between 09.00 and 11.00 hours. By contrast, more male thrips were trapped between 07.00 and 09.00 hours. Males were more evenly distributed across the different colours but the highest numbers were associated with the yellow traps. 5.,The higher densities of thrips at the top of their host plant may be related to the early morning (07.00,11.00 hours) activity of the thrips, when the top portions of the plant are more exposed to sunlight. The sex-related distributions of F. schultzei thrips across time, coloured sticky traps, and various parts of the flowers seem to be related to mating swarm formation by the males, on the one hand, and the relative frequency and intensity of the use of M. arboreus by the females, on the other, as a feeding and oviposition site. Frankliniella schultzei females respond more strongly to red than to any other colours, so it is predicted that the spectral properties of colour recognition by this species will correlate with the predominant red reflectance of its primary host, M. arboreus, and that there may well be a sex-related difference in colour recognition within this species. [source] Dung beetles in a Central Amazonian rainforest and their ecological role as secondary seed dispersersECOLOGICAL ENTOMOLOGY, Issue 3 2002Ellen Andresen Abstract 1. The role of several factors that affect the composition of the dung beetle assemblages in an Amazonian rainforest was quantified, together with the effect of these factors on the role that dung beetles play as secondary seed dispersers. 2. A total of 61 dung beetle species was captured during 3360 h of trapping. During nocturnal trapping periods, more dung beetles, of larger mean size, and more species were captured per trap than during diurnal trapping periods. 3. During the rainy season, more dung beetle species were captured per trap than during the dry season, but the number of individuals and their mean size did not vary between seasons. 4. Bait size had a significant effect on the mean number of beetles and mean number of species but not on mean beetle size. As bait size increased from 5, 10, 25, to 50 g, more beetles and more species were captured per trap. 5. Between 6 and 73% of plastic beads, used as seed mimics, were buried by dung beetles at depths that ranged from 0.5 to 7 cm. Both the proportion of beads buried and burial depth decreased with increasing bead size, and increased with increasing amounts of dung surrounding each bead (5, 10, and 25 g). 6. The proportion of buried seeds for three species varying in size between 5 and 27 mm, increased with increasing dung beetle size, using beetles of seven sizes, varying between 10 and 25 mm. 7. Seeds surrounded by dung were buried more often and more deeply when placed on the forest floor during the late afternoon than when placed during the early morning. Seeds were also buried more often when placed on the forest floor during the rainy season than when placed during the dry season, but season had no effect on burial depth. 8. Forests in Central Amazonia hold a rich dung beetle community that plays an active role in secondary seed dispersal, and consequently in plant regeneration. The interaction between seeds and beetles is complex because it is affected by many factors. [source] Segregation of temporal and spatial distribution between kleptoparasites and parasitoids of the eusocial sweat bee, Lasioglossum malachurum (Hymenoptera: Halictidae, Mutillidae)ENTOMOLOGICAL SCIENCE, Issue 2 2009Carlo POLIDORI Abstract Cuckoo bees and velvet ants use different resources of their shared host bees, the former laying eggs on the host pollen stores and the latter on immature stages. We studied the activity patterns of the cuckoo bee Sphecodes monilicornis and the velvet ant Myrmilla capitata at two nesting sites of their host, the social digger bee Lasioglossum malachurum, over a 3 year period. Due to the difference in host exploitation, we expected different temporal patterns of the two natural enemies as well as a positive spatial association with host nest density for both species. At a daily level, S. monilicornis was more abundant between 10.00 and 15.00 h, while M. capitata was most active in the early morning and late afternoon; both species activities were independent from host provisioning activity. The activity of cuckoo bees was in general positively correlated with the density of open host nests (but not with the total number of nests), while that of velvet ants was rarely correlated with this factor. Sphecodes monilicornis was seen both attacking the guard bees and directly entering into the host nests or digging close to nest entrances, while M. capitata only gained access to host nests through digging. We conclude that the temporal and spatial segregation between the two species may be, at least partially, explained both by the different resources exploited and by the different dynamics of host interactions. [source] Temporal Variation in Cleanerfish and Client Behaviour: Does It Reflect Ectoparasite Availability?ETHOLOGY, Issue 6 2003Isabelle M. Côté We tested the importance of ectoparasites as the proximate cause of cleaning interactions by comparing the activity of Caribbean cleaning gobies (Elacatinus evelynae) and of their clients during three daily periods (early morning, midday, and late afternoon) in which ectoparasite availability varied naturally. Emergence from the benthos of gnathiid isopod larvae, the main target of cleaning goby predation, was higher at night, when cleaners were inactive, than during the day. As a result, overall ectoparasite loads on client fish tended to be higher in the morning. Inspection bouts by cleaning gobies were longest in the morning, but also at midday when ectoparasite availability on clients was lower. Client fish were observed at cleaning stations most often in the afternoon, when they harboured few ectoparasites, but they were more likely to adopt incitation poses, which increase the likelihood of being cleaned, in the morning than later in the day. Most cleaner and client behaviours therefore did not change predictably in response to natural diurnal variation in ectoparasite availability. Our study suggests that the ultimate and proximate causes of cleaning behaviour need not necessarily coincide. [source] Relative importance of microhabitat, plant form and photosynthetic physiology to carbon gain in two alpine herbsFUNCTIONAL ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2001M. J. Germino Abstract 1.,The effects of microhabitat and plant form on sunlight interception, leaf temperatures, frost occurrence and photosynthesis were evaluated for Caltha leptosepala DC and Erythronium grandiflorum Pursh. Both plants are perennials that commonly emerge from alpine snowbanks where the combination of cool temperatures and strong sunlight is among the most extreme for vascular plants. 2., Caltha leptosepala occurred in microsites where colder air accumulates, and has larger, less inclined and more densely clustered leaves compared to E. grandiflorum (which has two steeply inclined leaves). 3.,These differences in microsite and plant form led to leaf temperatures below 0 °C on 70% of nights during the summer growth season in C. leptosepala, compared to only 38% in E. grandiflorum. Leaves of C. leptosepala warmed more slowly on mornings following frosts compared to E. grandiflorum, due to less aerodynamic coupling between leaf and air temperature, and also a 45% smaller ratio of sunlit to total leaf area due to mutual shading among leaves. 4.,As a result, night frost did not affect subsequent CO2 assimilation (A) in E. grandiflorum, while frostless nights and warmer mornings led to 35% greater A in C. leptosepala in the early morning. 5.,There were no appreciable differences in the temperature and light response of photosynthesis between the two species. The apparent quantum yield of A declined only ,8% in both species following frost and exposure to strong sunlight, indicating little adjustment of photosynthetic physiology. 6.,Greater daily carbon gain probably occurs for E. grandiflorum because of its plant form and microclimate, rather than differences in photosynthetic physiology. [source] Ritter Island Volcano,lateral collapse and the tsunami of 1888GEOPHYSICAL JOURNAL INTERNATIONAL, Issue 3 2003Steven N. Ward SUMMARY In the early morning of 1888 March 13, roughly 5 km3 of Ritter Island Volcano fell violently into the sea northeast of New Guinea. This event, the largest lateral collapse of an island volcano to be recorded in historical time, flung devastating tsunami tens of metres high on to adjacent shores. Several hundred kilometres away, observers on New Guinea chronicled 3 min period waves up to 8 m high, that lasted for as long as 3 h. These accounts represent the best available first-hand information on tsunami generated by a major volcano lateral collapse. In this article, we simulate the Ritter Island landslide as constrained by a 1985 sonar survey of its debris field and compare predicted tsunami with historical observations. The best agreement occurs for landslides travelling at 40 m s,1, but velocities up to 80 m s,1 cannot be excluded. The Ritter Island debris dropped little more than 800 m vertically and moved slowly compared with landslides that descend into deeper water. Basal friction block models predict that slides with shorter falls should attain lower peak velocities and that 40+ m s,1 is perfectly compatible with the geometry and runout extent of the Ritter Island landslide. The consensus between theory and observation for the Ritter Island waves increases our confidence in the existence of mega-tsunami produced by oceanic volcano collapses two to three orders of magnitude larger in scale. [source] Inferring nocturnal surface fluxes from vertical profiles of scalars in an Amazon pastureGLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY, Issue 5 2004Otávio C. Acevedo Abstract Ecosystem carbon budgets depend on there being good representative surface flux observations for all land use types during the entire diurnal cycle. In calm conditions that often occur at night, especially in areas of small roughness (such as pastures), ecosystem respiration rate is poorly measured using the eddy covariance (EC) technique. Nocturnal vertical profiles of temperature, humidity and winds were observed using tethered balloon soundings in a pasture in the eastern Amazon during two campaigns in 2001. The site is characterized by very weak winds at night, so that there is insufficient turbulence for the EC technique to determine fluxes accurately. To compensate, the time evolution of the profiles is used to determine surface fluxes at early morning and these are compared with those observed by EC at a nearby micrometeorological tower. The nocturnal boundary layer thickness h is determined as the height to which the surface fluxes must converge so that energy budget closure is achieved. The estimated values range from 30 m, around 22:00 hours LST, to more than 100 m just before dawn. These are in good agreement with the observed thickness of a frequently observed fog layer during the middle of the night. During the early portion of the night, when the accumulation layer is shallow, there is appreciable decrease of dCO2/dt with height. On calm nights, CO2 accumulation rate is larger near the surface than at higher levels. On windier nights, this accumulation rate is vertically uniform. Hence, extrapolation of tower profiles for estimating fluxes must be done carefully. Although uncertainties remain large, an alternate approach to the EC method is described for measuring nighttime surface CO2 fluxes under stable atmospheric conditions. [source] Summer rain fall duration and its diurnal cycle over the US Great PlainsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 10 2009Haoming Chen Abstract By diagnosing the hourly station rain gauge data set for the 1981,1999 periods, it is found that the rainfall diurnal cycle is closely related to its duration during summer (June,August) over the Great Plains [(GP), 100,90°W, 35,45°N]. Short-duration rainfall events (an event of 1 h in duration) occur more frequently in summer, and they tend to have two diurnal maxima over the GP, with one in the early morning [0400,0600 local solar time, (LST)] and the other in the afternoon (1500,1700 LST). Long-duration rainfall events (an event that lasts longer than 3 h) contribute more to the precipitation amount, and they tend to peak from the midnight to early morning (000,0600 LST). This contrast in the diurnal cycle of different classifications of precipitation events over the GP reflects the differences in the convective processes at night and during late afternoon. Copyright © 2008 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Weather regimes and sea surge variations over the Gulf of Lions (French Mediterranean coast) during the 20th centuryINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CLIMATOLOGY, Issue 2 2008A. Ullmann Abstract Hourly sea surge variations observed at three tide-gauge stations (Grau-de-la-Dent(GD) located in the Rhône Delta, Sète(SE), and Port-Vendres(PV)) around the Gulf of Lions are strongly correlated during the wintertime period (October to March) of 1986-1995. Relationships between the early morning (6 a.m. UTC) sea surge observed at Grau-de-la-Dent station and five weather regimes,Zonal (ZO), East-Atlantic (EA), Greenland Above (GA), Blocking (BL), and Atlantic Ridge (AR),over the northeast Atlantic and Europe (40°W,40°E, 30 ,70°N) are analysed during the wintertime period of 1905-2002. More than 75% of sea surges , 40 cm occur during both of the weather regimes associated with a negative North Atlantic Oscillation(NAO) phase (41.2 and 34% during BL and GA weather regimes, respectively), ahead of low pressure travelling usually southeastward, on a stormtrack shifted south of 55°N. The relationships between monthly/seasonal frequency of weather regime and 75th percentile of sea surge at GD tend to strengthen during the 20th century: for example, correlation between seasonal frequencies of GA and 75th percentile of sea surge increases from 0.07 (not significant) in 1905,40 to 0.83 (signifiicant at the one-sided 99% level) in 1974,2002. Copyright © 2007 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Prevention of Ventricular Fibrillation by Cilostazol, an Oral Phosphodiesterase Inhibitor, in a Patient with Brugada SyndromeJOURNAL OF CARDIOVASCULAR ELECTROPHYSIOLOGY, Issue 7 2002TAKESHI TSUCHIYA M.D. Cilostazol and Brugada Syndrome. We report the case of 67-year-old man with Brugada syndrome, in whom daily episodes of ventricular fibrillation (VF) occurred every early morning for 4 days. The episodes of VF were completely prevented by an oral administration of cilostazol, a phosphodiesterase inhibitor. This effect was confirmed by the on-and-off challenge test, in which discontinuation of the drug resulted in recurrence of VF and resumption of the drug again prevented VF. This effect may be related to the suppression of Ito secondary to the increase in heart rate and/or to an increase in Ca2+ current (ICa) due to an elevation of intracellular cyclic AMP concentration via inhibition of phosphodiesterase activity. This drug might have an anti-VF potential in patients with Brugada syndrome. [source] Ectoparasites: are they the proximate cause of cleaning interactions?JOURNAL OF FISH BIOLOGY, Issue 2003I. M. Côté We tested the importance of ectoparasites in cleaning symbioses by comparing the activity of Caribbean cleaning gobies (Elacatinus evelynae) and of their clients during three daily periods (early morning, midday and late afternoon) in which ectoparasite availability varied naturally. Emergence from the benthos of gnathiid isopod larvae, the main target of cleaning goby predation, was higher at night, when cleaners are inactive, than during the day. Overall ectoparasite loads also tended to be higher on clients in the morning. This coincided with higher rates of visits to cleaning stations by client fish in the morning than at midday, but high rates of client visits were also recorded in the late afternoon. Clients were more likely to adopt stereotypical incitation poses, which increase the likelihood of being cleaned, in the morning than later in the day. Inspection bouts by cleaning gobies were longest in the morning. Cleaner and client behaviours therefore change predictably in response to natural diurnal variation in ectoparasite availability. These results add to a growing number of studies supporting the idea that cleaning symbioses are mutualisms dependent on ectoparasite removal. [source] Leaflet Movement of Robinia pseudoacacia in Response to a Changing Light EnvironmentJOURNAL OF INTEGRATIVE PLANT BIOLOGY, Issue 4 2007Cheng-Cheng Liu Abstract Diurnal and nocturnal leaflet movement of black locust (Robinia pseudoacacia L.) was investigated under three light schemes: 100% natural irradiance, 50% shading, and 90% shading. Changes in leaf mid-vein angle were described by measurements of two planes: (i) ,, the angle formed by the bottom of the petiolule and its relation to the horizontal plane; and (ii) ,, the angle between the petiolule and the main leaflet vein. The two highest light regimens had a significant effect on ,. Variation in , tends to make the leaflet more erect, thereby minimizing any negative impact of high irradiance on leaf lamina. Light-dark rhythms induced variation in , (termed nyctinastic movement). Nyctinastic movement is important during the low light levels experienced by leaflets in early morning and late afternoon. At low light levels, the leaflet stopped nyctinastic movement and , was fixed at an angle that may have enabled the leaf lamina to maximize light interception. After the light-dark cycle was reestablished, nyctinastic movement was restored. Taken together, our results suggest that irradiance induces variation in , leading to diurnal leaflet movement (diaheliotropism), whereas the light-dark cycle influences ,, which results in nocturnal leaflet movement. Both angles are important for describing patterns of leaf movement in R. pseudocacia. [source] Robust circadian rhythm in heart rate and its variability: influence of exogenous melatonin and photoperiodJOURNAL OF SLEEP RESEARCH, Issue 2 2007GILLES VANDEWALLE Summary Heart rate (HR) and heart rate variability (HRV) undergo marked fluctuations over the 24-h day. Although controversial, this 24-h rhythm is thought to be driven by the sleep,wake/rest,activity cycle as well as by endogenous circadian rhythmicity. We quantified the endogenous circadian rhythm of HR and HRV and investigated whether this rhythm can be shifted by repeated melatonin administration while exposed to an altered photoperiod. Eight healthy males (age 24.4 ± 4.4 years) participated in a double-blind cross-over design study. In both conditions, volunteers were scheduled to 16 h,8 h rest : wake and dark : light cycles for nine consecutive days preceded and followed by 29-h constant routines (CR) for assessment of endogenous circadian rhythmicity. Melatonin (1.5 mg) or placebo was administered at the beginning of the extended sleep opportunities. For all polysomnographically verified wakefulness periods of the CR, we calculated the high- (HF) and low- (LF) frequency bands of the power spectrum of the R,R interval, the standard deviation of the normal-to-normal (NN) intervals (SDNN) and the square root of the mean-squared difference of successive NN intervals (rMSSD). HR and HRV variables revealed robust endogenous circadian rhythms with fitted maxima, respectively, in the afternoon (16:36 hours) and in the early morning (between 05:00 and 06:59 hours). Melatonin treatment phase-advanced HR, HF, SDNN and rMSSD, and these shifts were significantly greater than after placebo treatment. We conclude that endogenous circadian rhythmicity influences autonomic control of HR and that the timing of these endogenous rhythms can be altered by extended sleep/rest episodes and associated changes in photoperiod as well as by melatonin treatment. [source] Temporal Variability of Ventricular Arrhythmias in Boxer Dogs with Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular CardiomyopathyJOURNAL OF VETERINARY INTERNAL MEDICINE, Issue 5 2009B.A. Scansen Background: Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) is prevalent in the Boxer. There is little information on the temporal variability of ventricular arrhythmias within affected dogs. Objective: To evaluate ambulatory electrocardiograms (AECG) from Boxers with ARVC for hourly variation in premature ventricular complexes (PVC) and heart rate (HR). Animals: One hundred and sixty-two Boxer dogs with ARVC. Methods: Retrospective, observational study of 1,181 AECGs collected from Boxer dogs at The Ohio State University from 1997 to 2004 was evaluated. The proportion of depolarizations that were PVCs was compared across each hour of the day, during six 4-hour periods of day, to the time after AECG application, and to the maximum and minimum HR. Results: A lower proportion of PVCs was noted during early morning (midnight to 0400 hours) as compared with the morning (0800,1200 hours) and late (1600,2000 hours) afternoon (P= .012). There was no increase in PVC proportion in the 1st hour after AECG application as compared with all other hours of the day (P= .06). There was poor correlation between maximum (,= 0.19) and minimum (,= 0.12) HR and PVC proportion. Conclusions and Clinical Importance: The likelihood of PVC occurrence in Boxer dogs with ARVC was relatively constant throughout the day, although slightly greater during the hours of 0800,1200 and 1600,2000. A biologically important correlation with HR was not apparent. The role of autonomic activity in the modulation of electrical instability in the Boxer with ARVC requires further study. [source] The influence of synoptic-mesoscale winds and sea surface temperature distribution on fog formation near the Korean western peninsulaMETEOROLOGICAL APPLICATIONS, Issue 4 2006Hyo Choi Abstract When high pressure is located near the Korean peninsula, a diffluent wind regime generally occurs over the Yellow Sea. At night or early morning, diffluent westerly winds occur on the western side of the Korean peninsula near Inchon city and encounter a combined land breeze and katabatic easterly offshore wind, resulting in conditions ranging from calm to a moderate westerly wind near the coast. Nocturnal radiational cooling of the land surface and the moisture laden westerly winds can cause air near the coast to become saturated, resulting in coastal advection fog. During the day, on the other hand, the synoptic-scale westerly wind is reinforced by a westerly sea breeze and is further reinforced by a westerly valley wind directed upslope towards the mountain top. Even if the resulting intensified onshore wind could transport a large amount of moisture from the sea over the land, it would be very difficult for fog to form because the daytime heat flux from the ground would develop the convective boundary layer inland from Inchon city sufficiently to reduce significantly the moisture content of the air. Therefore, fog does not generally form in situ over the inland coastal basin. When an area of cold sea water (10°C average) exists approximately 25,50 km offshore and the sea surface temperature increases towards the coast, air parcels over the cool sea surface are cooled sufficiently to saturation, resulting in the formation of advection sea fog. However, at the coast, nocturnal cooling of the ground further cools the advected moist air driven by the westerly wind and causes coastal advection fog to form. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Sub-optimal morning temperature induces photoinhibition in dense outdoor cultures of the alga Monodus subterraneus (Eustigmatophyta)PLANT CELL & ENVIRONMENT, Issue 10 2001A. Vonshak Abstract Diel changes in photosynthetic oxygen evolution and several photochemical parameters measured by chlorophyll fluorescence quenching and induction were measured in outdoor dense cultures of the alga Monodus subterraneus (Eustigmatophyta). Cultures were maintained under two temperature regimes. In one, a rise in temperature was initiated in the morning by the increase in solar radiation up to the optimal temperature of 28 °C; in the other, a heating device was used to increase the rate of warming up in early morning. Although the two cultures were maintained at the same temperature and light intensity for most of the day, cultures exposed for only a short time to suboptimal morning temperature showed a larger decrease in almost all the photosynthetic parameters. By comparing the diel changes in maximal photochemistry efficiency of photosystem II, the electron transport rate and the photochemical and non-photochemical chlorophyll fluorescence quenching of the cultures, we concluded that even a relatively short exposure to suboptimal morning temperatures induced photoinhibitory damage. The higher photochemical activity of the heated culture was also reflected in a significant increase in productivity, which was 60% higher in the morning heated cultures than in the non-heated cultures. [source] Effects of food availability on serum insulin and lipid concentrations in free-ranging baboonsAMERICAN JOURNAL OF PRIMATOLOGY, Issue 1 2002Joseph W. Kemnitz Abstract The relationship between food availability and metabolic physiology was studied in groups of free-ranging baboons (Papio spp.) living in the Amboseli National Park and the Masai Mara National Reserve of Kenya. Three groups subsisted entirely on natural forage, while two other groups lived near tourist facilities and often consumed food wastes from these lodges. The refuse provided a very accessible food source with relatively high caloric density. Consumption of the refuse was associated with reduced locomotion. Sexually mature individuals from all five groups were sedated surreptitiously in the early morning and blood samples were collected. Compared to animals foraging exclusively in the wild, animals that supplemented their diet with the refuse items had two- to threefold elevations in serum insulin concentrations, as well as increased total cholesterol (C), HDL-C, and VLDL+LDL-C levels. No sex differences in physiological measures were observed except in body mass. Elevated serum insulin, and cholesterol and lipoprotein concentrations influence the development of cardiovascular disease and have been shown to be subject to dietary manipulation and exercise under controlled conditions. The present results suggest potentially deleterious effects of a highly accessible, calorically dense food source, and associated reduction of physical activity for baboons living in an otherwise natural environment. Am. J. Primatol. 57:13,19, 2002. © 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] On the onset of bora and the formation of rotors and jumps near a mountain gapTHE QUARTERLY JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL METEOROLOGICAL SOCIETY, Issue 630 2008Alexander Gohm Abstract This study investigates the onset phase of a strong Adriatic bora windstorm that occurred on 4 April 2002. The target area is a gap about 20 km wide embedded in the coastal mountain barrier of the Dinaric Alps that favours strong jet-like winds. Airborne-aerosol back-scatter lidar measurements on board the DLR Falcon research aircraft, together with surface and upper-air observations, are used to verify high-resolution numerical experiments conducted with the mesoscale atmospheric model RAMS and a single-layer shallow-water model (SWM). Especially during the breakthrough phase of the bora, the flow at the gap exit exhibits a complex spatial structure and temporal evolution. On a transect through the centre of the gap, a hydraulic jump forms; this is located close to the coast throughout the night, and starts to propagate downstream in the early morning. On a transect through the edge of the gap, a lee-wave-induced rotor becomes established, due to boundary-layer separation. It starts to propagate downstream about two hours after the jump. This flow evolution implies that the onset of strong winds at the coast occurs several hours earlier downstream of the centre of the gap than downwind of the edge of the gap. Consequently, the wind field in the vicinity of Rijeka airport, located downwind of the gap, is strongly inhomogeneous and transient, and represents a potential hazard to aviation. Measured bora winds at the surface exceed 20 ms,1, and the simulated wind speed in the gap wind layer exceeds 30 ms,1. The simulated turbulent kinetic energy exceeds 10 m2 s,2. RAMS indicates that wave-breaking near a critical level is the dominant mechanism for the generation of the windstorm. Gap jets can be identified downstream of several mountain passes. The simulated wave pattern above the Dinaric Alps, the wave decay with height due to directional wind shear and the strong flow descent on the leeward side of the barrier are supported by measured back-scatter intensities. Basic bora flow features, including gap jets and jumps, are remarkably well reproduced by SWM simulations. The RAMS reference run captures observed flow phenomena and the temporal flow evolution qualitatively well. A cold low-level bias, an overestimated bora inversion strength, and a slightly too-early bora onset are probably related to insufficient turbulent mixing in the boundary layer. The amplitude of trapped gravity waves, the time of the bora breakthrough and the inversion strength are found to be quite sensitive to the turbulence parametrization. Copyright © 2008 Royal Meteorological Society [source] Circadian Distribution of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation in Patients with and without Structural Heart Disease in Untreated StateANNALS OF NONINVASIVE ELECTROCARDIOLOGY, Issue 3 2009Yoshiaki Deguchi M.D. Background: This study aimed to compare the circadian distribution of the onset, maintenance and termination of paroxysmal atrial fibrillation (PAF) between structural and non-structural heart diseases (SHD and NSHD, respectively) in the untreated state. Subjects and Methods: We included 217 patients with 338 PAF (79 SHD patients with 131 episodes; 138 NSHD patients with 207 episodes). The probabilities for the onset, maintenance and termination of PAF for each hour were analyzed using Holter monitoring data and harmonic models being fitted into a cosinusoidal function. Results: The SHD group had a triphasic circadian pattern at the onset with higher peaks at midnight, in the early morning and in the late afternoon (p < 0.05), whereas the NSHD group showed a single peak at midnight (p < 0.01). The probability of maintenance revealed a single peak during midnight (SHD, p < 0.0001; NHD, p < 0.01). The termination showed a peak at noon in the SHD group (p < 0.05), whereas there was a double peak at 10:00 am and 8:00 pm in the NSHD group (p = 0.06). RR intervals just after the PAF onset showed marked shortening in the daytime initiation PAF as compared to the nighttime initiation PAF in both SHD and NSHD groups (p < 0.01). Conclusion: These observations suggest that the SHD group has very complex onset hours, whereas the NSHD group shows complex termination hours. Reflexly accelerated sympathetic tone just after the PAF onset is suggested in the daytime initiation PAF. [source] Age-dependent basal insulin patterns in children with type 1 diabetes treated with continuous subcutaneous insulin infusionACTA PAEDIATRICA, Issue 3 2009Agnieszka Szypowska Aims: Identifying age-dependent basal rates in type 1 diabetic children treated with continuous subcutaneous insulin infusion (CSII). Methods: CSII-treated children with type 1 diabetes exhibiting insulin requirement > 0.5U/kg and glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) < 8%. The study population was composed of 198 Caucasian children (111 girls) with mean age of 9.8 ± 3.8 years, mean duration of diabetes of 4.3 ± 3.1 years and mean HbA1c value of 6.7 ± 0.7%. Data were evaluated for four age groups (0,6; 6,9; 9,12, 12,18 years). Basal rates records were downloaded from pump memory. HbA1c, weight, height were measured at scheduled visits. Results: Significant differences in the average hourly basal rate between groups were observed: I gr. 0.14 versus II gr. 0.24 versus III gr. 0.39 versus IV gr. 0.72 units/h; p < 0.0001. The average hourly basal rate correlated with age, body weight, BMI, diabetes duration and total insulin daily dose. Insulin peaks were observed for: I gr. , before midnight, II gr. , before midnight and in the early morning, gr. III and IV , in the early morning. Conclusion: Basal insulin infusion rate profiles in well-controlled paediatric patients on CSII reflect the age-dependent amount of basal insulin (20,40%) and affect circadian distribution of insulin needs. [source] Epidemiology of unarmed threats in the emergency departmentEMERGENCY MEDICINE AUSTRALASIA, Issue 4 2005Jonathan C Knott Abstract Objective:, To evaluate the precipitants, subject characteristics, nature and outcomes of unarmed threats in the ED. Methods:, A 12 month prospective survey of security codes precipitated by an unarmed threat (Code Grey). Results:, Data were collected on 151 subjects. The Code Grey rate was 3.2/1000 ED presentations. They were most frequent on Saturday and in the late evening/early morning. There were verbal or physical threats of violence made to staff on 104 occasions (69%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 61,76) and a perceived threat of patient self-harm on 114 occasions (76%, 95% CI 68,82). Median time to be seen by a doctor was 8 min (interquartile range [IQR]: 2,21 min) and median time from presentation to Code was 59 min (IQR: 5,222 min). Sixteen subjects (11%, 95% CI 6,17) had a history of violence, 45 (30%, 95% CI 23,38) were affected by alcohol, 25 (17%, 95% CI 11,24) had used illicit drugs and 79 (52%, 95% CI 44,60) had a significant mental illness contributing to the Code Grey. Seventy-one patients (47%, 95% CI 39,55) required psychiatric admission, 49 (79%, 95% CI 66,88) involuntarily. Conclusion:, Acutely agitated subjects pose a threat to themselves and the staff caring for them. The reason for the agitation is multifactorial and the majority arrive in a behaviourally disturbed state requiring early intervention. The times most likely to result in a Code Grey coincide with least available resources: ED and hospital risk management policies must account for this. A coherent approach by ED to this population is required to optimize patient and staff outcomes. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||