Home About us Contact
|
Home About us Contact | ||
|
|
||
Reed
Kinds of Reed Terms modified by Reed Selected AbstractsIncreased prevalence of M694V in patients with ankylosing spondylitis: Additional evidence for a link with familial mediterranean feverARTHRITIS & RHEUMATISM, Issue 10 2010Nurullah Akkoc Objective To assess whether there is a statistically significant difference in the frequency of common MEFV allele variants in patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) as compared with control patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and with healthy control subjects. Methods Sixty-two patients with AS, 50 healthy control subjects, and 46 patients with RA were assessed for the presence of MEFV variants. Exon 10 was analyzed by direct sequencing. E148Q was analyzed by restriction endonuclease enzyme digestion (REED) or by direct sequencing when REED analysis failed. Results The allele frequency of all MEFV variants in the AS group was significantly higher than that in the pooled control group of healthy subjects plus RA patients (15.3% versus 6.8%; P = 0.021). M694V was the only variant that was significantly more common in the AS group than in the combined or individual control groups (P = 0.026 for AS patients versus healthy controls, P = 0.046 for AS patients versus RA patient controls, and P = 0.008 for AS patients versus healthy and RA patient control groups). The carriage rate of M694V was also significantly higher in the AS patient group than in the combined control group (odds ratio 7.0, P = 0.014). Neither M694V nor any other MEFV variant showed a correlation with most of the disease-related measures examined. Conclusion We found an increased frequency of MEFV variants in AS patients as compared with healthy controls and with RA patient controls. This was primarily due to the presence of M694V. The roles of other exon 10 variants, as well as the relationship between the variant status and the severity and clinical course of the disease, need to be explored in further studies that include sufficiently large sample sizes. [source] Word and Reed as Sword and Shield: A Laudation for Edward SaidDEVELOPMENT AND CHANGE, Issue 5 2004Ashwani Saith First page of article [source] A compound Poisson model for the annual area burned by forest fires in the province of OntarioENVIRONMETRICS, Issue 5 2010Justin J. Podur Abstract We use the compound Poisson probability distribution to model the annual area burned by forest fires in the Canadian province of Ontario. Models for sums-of-random variables, relevant for modeling aggregate insurance claims and assessing insurance risk are also relevant in modeling aggregate area burned based on sums of sizes of individual fires. Researchers have fit the distribution of fire sizes to the truncated power-law (or Pareto) distribution (Ward et al., 2001) and a four-parameter Weibull distribution (Reed and McKelvey, 2002). Armstrong (1999) fitted a lognormal distribution to annual proportion of area burned by forest fires in a region of Alberta. We derive expressions and moments for aggregate area burned in Ontario using fire data from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR). We derive expressions for the distribution of area burned for "severe" and "mild" fire weather scenarios and for "intensive suppression" and "no suppression" scenarios (represented by the intensive and extensive fire protection zones of the province). These distributions can be used to perform risk analysis of annual area burned. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Clonally related splenic marginal zone lymphoma and Hodgkin lymphoma with unmutated V gene rearrangements and a 15-yr time gap between diagnosesEUROPEAN JOURNAL OF HAEMATOLOGY, Issue 3 2004Richard Rosenquist Abstract:, Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) can rarely occur during the course of B-cell non-Hodgkin lymphoma (B-NHL), where both the HL and NHL tumours have been reported to be clonally related in most of the few combination lymphomas so far investigated. We here investigated a case that developed HL 15 yr after being diagnosed with an indolent B-cell lymphoma, classified as a splenic marginal zone lymphoma (SMZL). Analysis of rearranged immunoglobulin genes in the SMZL clone and in single Hodgkin Reed,Sternberg cells revealed presence of identical V gene rearrangements, thus demonstrating a clonal relationship. In contrast to previously described B-NHL/HL combinations, in this case both types of tumour cells carried unmutated V gene rearrangements. We conclude that the HL evolved from an unmutated tumour precursor, either the SMZL clone itself or a common earlier precursor. [source] CGU-frame-based representations and their connection with Reed,Solomon and DCT/DST coding schemesEUROPEAN TRANSACTIONS ON TELECOMMUNICATIONS, Issue 1 2009Fatma Abdelkefi We investigate the use of overcomplete frame representations to correct errors occurring over burst-based transmission channels or channels leading to isolated errors. We show that when the overcomplete signal representation is based on a class of frames, called cyclic geometrically uniform (CGU) finite frames, the family of frames containing finite harmonic frames (both in and ), this representation becomes equivalent to a Reed--Solomon (RS) coding scheme. Hence, introducing an RS decoding procedure at the receiver, leads to remove the errors introduced by the transmission channel and consequently results in a quasi-perfect reconstructed signal. The advantage of this approach is to exploit the RS coding scheme without using it explicitly at the transmitter, which would lead to a robust and low complexity transmission. Furthermore, we prove that the discrete cosine transform (DCT) coding is a special case of CGU-frame-based representations and this property holds also true for the discrete sine transform (DST) coding scheme. Simulation results are presented to confirm our claims. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] High expression of B-cell receptor inducible gene BIC in all subtypes of Hodgkin lymphomaGENES, CHROMOSOMES AND CANCER, Issue 1 2003Anke van den Berg In a search for genes specifically expressed in Reed,Sternberg (RS) cells of Hodgkin lymphoma (HL), we applied the serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE) technique on the HL-derived cell line DEV. Genes highly expressed in DEV were subjected to an RT-PCR analysis to confirm the SAGE results. For one of the genes, a high expression was observed in DEV and other HL-derived cell lines but not in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL),derived cell lines and normal controls, suggesting an HL-specific expression. This gene corresponds to the human BIC gene, a member of the noncoding mRNA-like molecules. RNA in situ hybridization (ISH) indicated an exclusive nucleolar localization of BIC transcripts in all RS cells in 91% of HL cases, including nodular lymphocyte predominance (NLP) HL and classical HL. Analyses of normal human tissues revealed BIC transcripts in only a small number of CD20-positive B-cells in lymph node and tonsil tissue, albeit at a much lower level compared to that of RS cells. BIC RT-PCR in the Burkitt lymphoma,derived cell line Ramos demonstrated a significant up-regulation upon cross-linking of the B-cell receptor (BcR). I,B,-mediated blocking of NF-,B translocation in Ramos did not effect the up-regulation of BIC expression upon BcR triggering, suggesting that activation of NF-,B is not involved in regulation of BIC expression. In summary, our data show that expression of BIC is specific for RS cells of HL. In normal tissue, BIC is expressed weakly in a minority of germinal center B cells. Expression of BIC can be modified/influenced by BcR triggering, indicating that BIC might play a role in the selection of B cells. © 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] Error resilient data transport in sensor network applications: A generic perspective,INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CIRCUIT THEORY AND APPLICATIONS, Issue 2 2009Rachit Agarwal Abstract The error recovery problem in wireless sensor networks is studied from a generic resource-constrained energy-optimization perspective. To characterize the features of error recovery schemes that suit the majority of applications, an energy model is developed and inferences are drawn based on a suitable performance metric. For applications that require error control coding, an efficient scheme is proposed based on an interesting observation related to shortened Reed,Solomon (RS) codes for packet reliability. It is shown that multiple instances (,) of RS codes defined on a smaller alphabet combined with interleaving results in smaller resource usage, while the performance exceeds the benefits of a shortened RS code defined over a larger alphabet. In particular, the proposed scheme can have an error correction capability of up to , times larger than that of the conventional RS scheme without changing the rate of the code with much lower power, timing and memory requirements. Implementation results show that such a scheme is 43% more power efficient compared with the RS scheme with the same code rate. Besides, such an approach results in 46% faster computations and 53% reduction in memory requirements. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Space-time ring-TCM codes with CPM based on the decomposed model for transmission over Rayleigh fading channelsINTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION SYSTEMS, Issue 5 2006A. Pereira Abstract Space,time (ST) coding is a proved technique for achieving high data rates in 3G mobile systems that combines coding, modulation and multiple transmitters and receivers. A novel algorithm is proposed for ST ring trellis-coded modulation (ST-RTCM) systems with continuous-phase modulation (CPM) when the channel coefficients are known to the receiver. This algorithm is based on the CPM decomposed model, which exploits the memory properties of this modulation method, resulting in a straightforward implementation of joint ST coding and CPM, which is particularly suitable for ring codes. This new scheme is used to investigate the performance of the delay diversity code with CPM over slow Rayleigh fading channels, in particular with MSK which is one of the most widely used modulation methods of continuous phase. Furthermore, a feedback version of delay diversity allowed by the decomposition is tested in 1REC and 1RC systems. This feedback configuration is seen to provide good results for low signal-to-noise ratios. Simulations results are also provided for multilevel ST-RTCM codes that achieve a higher throughput than MSK-coded systems. Additionally the serial concatenation of an outer Reed,Solomon code with an ST-RTCM code is shown, this combination further reduces the error probability and achieves even more reliable communications. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Biotechnology, Volume 8B, Biotransformations II, 2nd edn Edited by DR Kelly, Series Editors H-J Rehm, G Reed, A Pühler and P Stadler, John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester, UK, 2000, 533 pp, Price UK £175.00, ISBN 3527 283242JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY & BIOTECHNOLOGY, Issue 10 2001C Bucke © 2001 Society of Chemical Industry [source] Commentary on Ruxton, C. H. S., Reed, S. C., Simpson, M. J. A. & Millington, K. J. (2004) The health benefits of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids: a review of the evidence.JOURNAL OF HUMAN NUTRITION & DIETETICS, Issue 3 2007Dietetics; 1, Journal of Human Nutrition [source] DEVONIAN TRILOBITES FROM THE FALKLAND ISLANDSPALAEONTOLOGY, Issue 1 2006MARIA DA GLORIA PIRES DE CARVALHO Abstract:, New trilobite material is described from the Fox Bay Formation (Lower Devonian; Pragian) of the Falkland Islands (South Atlantic). The fossils were collected from many localities in both East and West Falkland and represent the first significant collection of trilobites from East Falkland. The trilobites belong to three higher taxa: Proetida (the first proetid record in these islands); Homalonotidae, Burmeisteria Salter, 1865; and Calmoniidae, including Bainella Rennie, 1930 and Metacryphaeus Reed, 1907. All of the forms except proetids have now been found in both East and West Falkland. [source] Age-related EBV-associated B-cell lymphoproliferative disorders: Diagnostic approach to a newly recognized clinicopathological entityPATHOLOGY INTERNATIONAL, Issue 12 2009Yoshie Shimoyama EBV is prevalent among healthy individuals, and is implicated in numerous reactive and neoplastic processes in the immune system. The authors originally identified a series of senile or age-related EBV-associated B-cell lymphoproliferative disorders (LPD) bearing a resemblance to immunodeficiency-associated ones, which may be associated with immune senescence in the elderly and which are now incorporated into the 2008 World Health Organization lymphoma classification as EBV-positive diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) of the elderly. This newly described disease is pathologically characterized by a proliferation of atypical large B cells including Reed,Sternberg-like cells with reactive components, which pose a diagnostic problem for pathologists. Clinically, this disease may present with lymphadenopathy, and is often extranodal, frequently involving the skin, gastrointestinal tract, or lung. Onset is usually after the age of 50; the median patient age is 70,79 years, and incidence continues to increase with age, providing additional support to the nosological term of EBV+ DLBCL of the elderly. These patients have a worse prognosis than those with EBV-negative DLBCL or EBV+ classical Hodgkin lymphoma (CHL). The aim of the present review was to summarize the clinicopathological profile of age-related EBV+ LPD and EBV+ Hodgkin lymphoma to facilitate diagnostic approach. [source] Differentiating germinal center-derived lymphomas through their cellular microenvironment,AMERICAN JOURNAL OF HEMATOLOGY, Issue 7 2009Antonino Carbone Recent studies on normal and malignant B-cells have provided evidence that the germinal center (GC) of lymphoid follicles exerts a role in B-cell physiology and malignancy. GC-derived lymphomas include both B-cell and T-cell lymphomas. Remarkably, tumor cells of GC-derived lymphomas proliferate in close association with cellular environment that retains key features of normal GC cellular microenvironment. Neoplastic follicles in follicular lymphoma contain, in addition to follicular dendritic cells (FDC) other non-neoplastic cells including macrophages and GC T-cells. In addition to aggregates of FDCs, the background infiltrate of nodular lymphocyte predominant Hodgkin lymphoma includes small B-cells, T-cells, and histiocytes. Typically, most of the lymphocyte predominant (LP) cells are ringed by CD3+/CD4+ T-cells expressing CD57, PD1, BCL6, and MUM1/IRF4. By contrast, Reed,Sternberg cells of classic Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) are surrounded by CD3+/CD4+ T-cells expressing CD40L. Unlike cHL and other peripheral T-cell lymphomas, the AITL microenvironment characteristically contain a prominent proliferation of high endothelial venules and FDC. Thus, these findings shed new light on the characterization of GC-derived lymphomas and may help in the differential diagnosis and acknowledge several novel pathogenetic mechanisms on these lymphomas. Am. J. Hematol., 2009. © 2009 Wiley-Liss, Inc. [source] The Price of Peace: Just War in the Twenty-First Century , Edited by Charles Reed and David RyallRELIGIOUS STUDIES REVIEW, Issue 3 2007Myles Werntz No abstract is available for this article. [source] Down-regulation of ATM protein in HRS cells of nodular sclerosis Hodgkin's lymphoma in children occurs in the absence of ATM gene inactivation,THE JOURNAL OF PATHOLOGY, Issue 3 2007S Bose Abstract The tumour component of classical Hodgkin's lymphoma (cHL), Hodgkin Reed,Sternberg (HRS) cells, are believed to be derived from germinal centre (GC) B cells but intriguingly display a characteristic loss of B cell receptor (BCR) expression. The precise mechanisms by which BCR-negative HRS cell progenitors survive negative selection during the GC reaction remain obscure. Individuals with ataxia telangiectasia, caused by biallelic inactivation of the DNA damage response gene, ataxia telangiectasia mutated (ATM), have a higher risk of cHL development. Here we show that, in contrast to normal GC B cells that expressed low but detectable ATM protein, ATM protein was not detected in HRS cells of 17/18 cases of paediatric cHL, all but one with nodular sclerosis (NS) subtype. A comprehensive analysis of the ATM gene in microdissected HRS cells of nine representative tumours showed no evidence of either loss of heterozygosity or consistent pathogenic mutations. Furthermore, bisulphite sequencing of the ATM promoter from HRS cells of five tumours also revealed the absence of hypermethylation. Since our microarray data suggested significantly reduced ATM transcription in HRS cells compared to GC B cells, we conclude that loss of ATM expression could be the result of alterations in upstream regulators of ATM transcription. Importantly, ATM loss in paediatric cHLs has clinical implications and could be potentially exploited to guide future, less toxic, tumour-specific treatments. Copyright © 2007 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Apoptosis of Hodgkin,Reed,Sternberg cells in classical Hodgkin lymphoma revisitedAPMIS, Issue 5 2010DANIEL BENHARROCH Benharroch D, Einav I, Feldman A, Levy A, Ariad S, Gopas J. Apoptosis of Hodgkin,Reed,Sternberg cells in classical Hodgkin lymphoma revisited. APMIS 2010; 118: 339,45. We scrutinized the role of apoptosis of the Hodgkin,Reed,Sternberg (HRS) cells in classical Hodgkin lymphoma (cHL) and critically reviewed its features in the light of conflicting evidence. In this study, we found that tumor cells in this neoplasm showed inhibition of apoptosis in 55% of the 217 cHL cases only. It is also suggested that the two factors considered responsible for apoptosis inhibition in HRS cells, nuclear factor-,B and the latent membrane protein-1 of the Epstein,Barr virus, do not correlate with apoptosis inhibition, in contrast with the findings in the consensual pathogenetic scheme. The most significant association of HRS cell apoptosis was with p53, the negative expression of which related with a high apoptotic index (p = 0.001). These findings support our contention that the role of apoptosis in the HRS cells of Hodgkin lymphoma has not been completely elucidated and is at variance with that in the consensus. [source] MAKING CHINA VISIBLE by Marcia Reed, Paola Demattè, Larissa M. Heinrich and Xiaobing TangART HISTORY, Issue 3 2009Craig Clunas First page of article [source] Safety of allogeneic Epstein,Barr virus (EBV)-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes for patients with refractory EBV-related lymphomaBRITISH JOURNAL OF HAEMATOLOGY, Issue 3 2002Qi Sun Summary. Epstein,Barr virus (EBV) causes lymphomas in immunocompromised individuals such as recipients of stem cell or organ transplants and patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). EBV has also been detected in the Reed,Sternberg cells of approximately 50% of all cases of Hodgkin's disease (HD). The purpose of this study was to examine the safety, and the clinical and immunological effects of infusing allogeneic EBV-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) for patients with refractory EBV-positive malignancies. In this pilot study, we have treated four patients with EBV-related lymphoma using allogeneic EBV-specific CTL. Two patients received EBV-specific CTL derived from partially human leucocyte antigen (HLA)-matched donors and the other two from HLA-matched siblings. No complications were observed as a result of the CTL infusions and all patients showed increased levels of EBV-specific CTL precursors (CTLp) post infusion. Of the two organ transplant patients, one had refractory disease and has sustained a complete remission following the T-cell infusions. The second has also been disease free since T-cell infusions, although the efficacy cannot be definitively attributed to CTL therapy because this patient received local radiation therapy prior to immunotherapy. A patient with AIDS-related, EBV-positive lymphoma had disease progression following CTL infusions. One HD patient received HLA 4/6 matched T cells from an unrelated donor and showed a decrease in the size of affected lymph nodes and resolution of B-symptoms post infusion. In conclusion, adoptive immunotherapy with allogeneic EBV-specific CTL is safe and mayhave efficacy in patients with high-risk or refractory EBV-related tumours. [source] Progress, spread and natural transmission of Bahia bark scaling of citrus in BrazilANNALS OF APPLIED BIOLOGY, Issue 3 2006F.F. Laranjeira Abstract Progress, spread and natural transmission of Bahia bark scaling of citrus were evaluated in a trial where 240 screenhouse-nursed nucellar grapefruit plants ,,Clason', ,Little River Seedless', ,Red Blush', ,Reed' and ,Howell Seedless' cvs , were planted alongside and 5 m apart from a 10-year-old symptomatic ,Marsh Seedless' grapefruit orchard. Plants were distributed in 16 rows of 15 trees, with three plants of each cultivar per row. Eight trial plants were kept in screen cages. Incidence of symptomatic plants was assessed at 3-months intervals, for 5 years, and for further 2 years at irregular intervals. Cumulative maps of disease incidence were produced for each assessment date and used in all analyses. Temporal progress was analysed by nonlinear fitting of three disease progress models. Spread was characterised in three levels of spatial hierarchy by the following analyses: ordinary runs, binomial dispersion index, binary power law fitting, isopath mapping and nonlinear fitting of disease gradient models. The first symptomatic plant was detected 2 years after planting. In the last disease assessment, 5 years after the first, 98% of the unprotected plants were symptomatic. None of the screen-caged trees showed any symptoms. Bahia bark scaling progress was polyetic and best described by the logistic model. Ordinary runs analysis showed little if any evidence of transmission between adjacent trees. Diseased plants showed a very aggregated pattern inside quadrats (D > 5 and b > 1.53). Isopath mapping showed that main spread was only because of the primary inoculum source. Secondary foci were also observed, but they were never dissociated from main initial disease focus. Disease gradient followed wind direction, starting near the original inoculum source and was best described by exponential model. These results support a hypothesis of Bahia bark scaling transmission by air-borne vectors with limited dispersion ability. [source] Algebra and Geometry in the Old Babylonian Period: Matters Concerning ReedsCENTAURUS, Issue 4 2005Piedad Yuste One of the mathematical topics examined in the Old Babylonian period consisted of calculating the size of a reed which was used to measure either a longitude or the perimeter of a rectangle or trapezium. These subjects were solved, probably, applying the geometric construction called completing the square. In this paper, we analyse the problem texts on the tablets AO 6770 (5), Str 368, VAT 7532, and VAT 7535. [source] Remarks on the morphology and biology of Cleigastra apicalis (Meigen, 1826) (Diptera, Scathophagidae)ACTA ZOOLOGICA, Issue 4 2006Maria Grochowska Abstract The egg, second- and third-instar larvae and puparium of Cleigastra apicalis are described for the first time. All pre-imaginal stages are found on stems of the common reed affected by flies of the genera Lipara and Platycephala and the butterfly Arenostola phragmitidis. The larvae feed on dead plant and animal tissue and the excreta of other insects that live inside the stems of the common reed. Exceptionally they will scrape living plant tissue. The pupa is the overwintering stage. [source] Influence of reed stem density on foredune developmentEARTH SURFACE PROCESSES AND LANDFORMS, Issue 11 2001S. M. Arens Abstract Vegetation density on foredunes exerts an important control on aeolian sediment transport and deposition, and therefore on profile development. In a long-term monitoring field experiment, three plots were planted with regular grids of reed bundles in three different densities: 4, 2 and 1 bundles per m2. This study reports on the differences in profile development under the range of vegetation densities. Topographic profiles were measured between May 1996 and April 1997. Results indicate important differences in profile development for the three reed bundle densities: in the highest density plot a distinct, steep dune developed, while in the lowest density a more gradual and smooth sand ramp was deposited. When the stems had been completely buried, differences in profile evolution vanished. After a second planting of reed stems in January 1997 the process was repeated. In May 1997, all plots had gained a sand volume ranging from 11·5 to 12·3 m3 m,1, indicating that the sediment budget is relatively constant, regardless of the particular profile evolution. The field evidence is compared with simulations of profile development, generated by the foredune development model SAFE. The model successfully reproduces the overall profile development, but in general, the equations used for vegetation,transport interaction overestimate the effect of vegetation. This causes some deviations between field and model results. Several reasons for this are discussed. Based on the experiments reported here, recommendations are given for further research. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Can late summer Landsat data be used for locating Asian migratory locust, Locusta migratoria migratoria, oviposition sites in the Amudarya River delta, Uzbekistan?ENTOMOLOGIA EXPERIMENTALIS ET APPLICATA, Issue 2 2008Ramesh Sivanpillai Abstract Existing survey methods for assessing the Asian migratory locust, Locusta migratoria migratoria L. (Orthoptera: Acrididae), infestation risk in the Amudarya River delta, Uzbekistan, are largely constrained by economic resources and site accessibility. The surveys are restricted to a few easily accessible areas, which leads to a misinterpretation of the threat of locust infestation. This often results in indiscriminate blanket treatments of vast areas of wetlands with broad-spectrum insecticides, which may adversely impact non-target fauna and flora. In order to minimize the bias during surveys, one approach would be to allocate the sampling locations based on the distribution of the primary food and shelter plant of the locusts, the common reed, Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud (Poaceae). In this study, we evaluated the utility of satellite-based remotely sensed data (Landsat TM) acquired in August 2006 to characterize reed distribution in the delta and identify potential locust oviposition sites. The overall accuracy of the Landsat data to map land cover classes in the delta was 84%. The Landsat TM data identified 90% of the reeds, but it was less useful in identifying areas where other vegetations (shrubs and grasses) were mixed with reeds. During the following summer field survey in June 2007, we identified 37 sites that were infested with early-instar locusts. The low migration capacity of young nymphs in dense reed vegetation allowed us to presume that these sites were used for oviposition in the previous summer. Twenty-eight (74%) of these 37 sites had reeds in the previous year. Results from these studies demonstrate that reed distribution maps derived from satellite data could be used for targeting locust egg-pod survey locations, in order to minimize sampling bias while predicting locust infestation risks for the following season. [source] Seasonal population changes of five parasitoids attacking the scale insect Nipponaclerda biwakoensis on the common reed, with special reference to predation by wintering birdsENTOMOLOGICAL SCIENCE, Issue 4 2005Shuji KANEKO Abstract Seasonal changes in the abundance of five species of hymenopterous parasitoids (four species of Encyrtidae and one species of Eulophidae) attacking the scale insect Nipponaclerda biwakoensis on the common reed were investigated for 2 years in Lake Biwa, with special reference to predation by the reed bunting, Emberiza schoeniclus, during winter. The scales settled on reed shoot stems under sheath leaves, passing through three discrete generations per year. The abundance of adult female scales increased exponentially from July (first generation) to December (third generation). Adult female scales of the third generation overwintered on reed shoots. During winter, female scale abundance dramatically declined, whereas the number of predation marks made by reed buntings using their bills on reed sheath leaves increased. The generations of all five parasitoids were synchronized with the host scale generations, and the five parasitoids overwintered as larvae inside the scale bodies. The abundance of parasitized scales and parasitoid adults emerging from the scales also increased from July to December, but greatly decreased during winter. The overall parasitism rate of the female scales remained at relatively low levels (less than 40%) throughout the year, including before and after winter. A bird exclusion experiment revealed that the dramatic winter decrease of the abundance of the scale and its five parasitoids was due to intensive and non-selective predation by the buntings on unparasitized and parasitized scales. Additionally, the proportion of immature parasitoids removed by birds varied between the five parasitoid species. Thus, seasonal population changes of the five scale parasitoids are considerably affected by bird predation on overwintering immature parasitoids. [source] Enemy Recognition of Reed Warblers (Acrocephalus scirpaceus): Threats and Reproductive Value Act Independently in Nest Defence ModulationETHOLOGY, Issue 6 2010Daniela Campobello Organisms should respond more aggressively towards species perceived as a danger to their offspring, but intensity of defence may be gauged by the value of current offspring weighed against the value of future reproductive opportunities. We tested whether defensive responses of nesting reed warblers (Acrocephalus scirpaceus) are the result of an interaction effect between the type of stimulus confronted and the value of the warbler's nesting attempt. We quantified the ability of reed warblers to discriminate among brood parasites, nestling predators and non-threatening species at different stages of the breeding cycle. We also determined whether variables that influence the value of offspring, such as time of season, size and age of clutch or brood, and time of day and number of visits to the nest, explain variation in the intensity of defence recorded during the egg and nestling stages. Responses to the three stimuli differed significantly, as reed warblers consistently directed their mobbing calls and attacks towards parasites, whereas they were less conspicuous when confronted with models of predators. Reed warblers modulated their responses towards each stimulus in accordance with the threat each posed at a specific nesting stage, whereas they were not affected by other variables relative to their reproductive potential. The churr call, however, was uttered independently of the stimulus, as it was triggered by the mere presence of nestlings in the nest. [source] Project Appraisal and Capital Investment Decision Making in the Scottish Water IndustryFINANCIAL ACCOUNTABILITY & MANAGEMENT, Issue 1 2000Paul Coleshill Restructuring the Scottish water industry has changed the way in which both project appraisal and capital investment decisions are performed. This article examines the project appraisal and subsequent capital investment decision in the case of a reed bed sewage treatment scheme which is compared with a more traditional scheme. Although the capital profiles of the schemes are similar there are major differences in the revenue costs. In addition, there are potential public benefits to the reed bed scheme. A comparison is made of management mechanisms in the pre-1996 water industry with that of restructured water authorities. In the pre-1996 water industry, local authorities had a broad remit which encouraged them to value these factors, in effect an implicit social account. The creation of water authorities with narrow remits and specific performance measures, constructed a framework that does not support the integration of social accounts into the decision making process. The paper demonstrates that investment appraisal is a product of the institutional framework in which the decisions are made. As that framework changes, mechanisms and measures of accountability shift in parallel. [source] Kurt Tucholsky as Prophet of European UnityGERMAN LIFE AND LETTERS, Issue 2 2001Ian King Whilst Kurt Tucholsky has long been recognised as the leading left-wing intellectual, polemicist and satirist of the Weimar Republic, his enthusiasm for the cause of a united Europe has only recently come to light. In the late 1920s he wrote frequently of the need to abandon absolute state sovereignty in favour of a Federal United States of Europe, and even anticipated Mikhail Gorbachev's concept of a common European house. His reasoning was to be followed by subsequent German leaders from Adenauer to Kohl: after the disastrous Treaty of Versailles and with the League of Nations proving a broken reed, a united Europe would be the only way to prevent another still more bloody war. However, Tucholsky had no clear idea of how Europe could be brought together, remained somewhat sceptical about the Pan-Europe model of Count Coudenhove-Kalergi, and did not even comment on the European Federal Union proposed in 1930 by the French Foreign Minister, Briand. Three years later, all the plans for European unity were frustrated by the triumph of Nazism and Tucholsky lapsed into despairing silence and suicide. [source] Bird species numbers in an archipelago of reeds at Lake Velence, HungaryGLOBAL ECOLOGY, Issue 6 2000András Báldi Abstract 1,Bird species numbers were studied on 109 reed islands at Lake Velence, Hungary, in the 1993 and 1994 breeding seasons. The aim was to describe and account for the abundance and distribution patterns of the bird species. 2,It was expected that an exponential model would fit the calculated species,area curves. However, for the 1993 data, both the power function (LogS ~ LogArea) and the exponential (S ~ LogArea) models did so, while the power function, exponential and linear (S ~ A) models fitted the curves for the 1994 data. 3,The results showed that the pattern was not random: a collection of small islands held more species than a few large islands with the same total area. 4,The relative species richness of small islands is a result of the preference of most common passerine bird species for the edges of reed islands. Most individuals were found in the first 5 m of the reedbed, and no edge avoidance was detected on a local spatial scale. Large, rarer species (e.g. Great White Egret), however, were found to be dependent on large reed islands. 5,Comparison of results with two other studies on bird communities of reed islands revealed that the type of landscape matrix (e.g. deep water, shallow water or agricultural lands) among reed patches significantly influences bird communities. Deep water was dominated by grebes and coot, shallow water by reed-nesting passerines, and farmed areas by reed- and bush-nesting passerines. [source] Assessment of vegetation effects on hydraulics and of feedbacks on plant survival and zonation in ephemeral channelsHYDROLOGICAL PROCESSES, Issue 6 2010P. J. Sandercock Abstract The interaction of vegetation and flow in channels is important for understanding the influences of forces in channels and effects on erosion, sediment flux and deposition; it has implications for channel habitats, channel instability and restoration schemes. Methods are needed for calculating forces on plants and data are required on thresholds for plant destruction and survival. A simple method of calculating the effect of hydraulics on vegetation and its zonation within ephemeral channels is described. Detailed cross section surveys of channel morphology, vegetation and estimates of Manning's n are input into the software program WinXSPRO to calculate the hydraulics of flows across the channel for a given event or flow level, incorporating subdivision into zones of differing morphology and vegetation across the section. This was applied to a number of cross sections on ephemeral channels in SE Spain and typical roughness values for Mediterranean vegetation types in channels were assessed. The method is demonstrated with reference to two well-documented floods in SE Spain, in September 1997 on the Torrealvilla and in October 2003 along the Salada. These flows led to the mortality of herbs, reed and smaller shrub species. Some damage to larger shrubs and trees occurred, but trees such as Tamarisk (Tamarix canariensis) were shown to withstand high forces. Some grasses were highly resistant to removal and induced sedimentation. Significant erosion was limited to areas with little vegetation covering the channel floor. Further quantification of resistance of vegetation to flows and upper threshold values for removal is continuing by relating calculated hydraulic conditions using the methods outlined to measurements of vegetation responses in events at monitoring sites. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [source] Rain forest promotes trophic interactions and diversity of trap-nesting Hymenoptera in adjacent agroforestryJOURNAL OF ANIMAL ECOLOGY, Issue 2 2006ALEXANDRA-MARIA KLEIN Summary 1Human alteration of natural ecosystems to agroecosystems continues to accelerate in tropical countries. The resulting world-wide decline of rain forest causes a mosaic landscape, comprising simple and complex agroecosystems and patchily distributed rain forest fragments of different quality. Landscape context and agricultural management can be expected to affect both species diversity and ecosystem services by trophic interactions. 2In Central Sulawesi, Indonesia, 24 agroforestry systems, differing in the distance to the nearest natural forest (0,1415 m), light intensity (37·5,899·6 W/m,2) and number of vascular plant species (7,40 species) were studied. Ten standardized trap nests for bees and wasps, made from reed and knotweed internodes, were exposed in each study site. Occupied nests were collected every month, over a period totalling 15 months. 3A total of 13 617 brood cells were reared to produce adults of 14 trap-nesting species and 25 natural enemy species, which were mostly parasitoids. The total number of species was affected negatively by increasing distance from forest and increased with light intensity of agroforestry systems. The parasitoids in particular appeared to benefit from nearby forests. Over a 500-m distance, the number of parasitoid species decreased from eight to five, and parasitism rates from 12% to 4%. 4The results show that diversity and parasitism, as a higher trophic interaction and ecosystem service, are enhanced by (i) improved connectivity of agroecosystems with natural habitats such as agroforestry adjacent to rain forest and (ii) management practices to increase light availability in agroforestry, which also enhances richness of flowering plants in the understorey. [source] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||