Browsing Isolated Population Data

BACKGROUND: In our studies of genetically isolated populations in a remote mountain area in the center of Sardinia (Italy), we found that 80–85% of the inhabitants of each village belong to a single huge pedigree with families strictly connected to each other through hundreds of loops. Moreover, intermarriages between villages join pedigrees of different villages through links that make family trees even more complicated. Unfortunately, none of the commonly used pedigree drawing tools are able to draw the complete pedigree, whereas it is commonly accepted that the visual representation of families is very important as it helps researchers in identifying clusters of inherited traits and genotypes. We had a representation issue that compels researchers to work with subsets extracted from the overall genealogy, causing a serious loss of information on familiar relationships. To visually explore such complex pedigrees, we developed PedNavigator, a browser for genealogical databases properly suited for genetic studies. RESULTS: The PedNavigator is useful for genealogical research due to its capacity to represent family relations between persons and to make a visual verification of the links during family history reconstruction. As for genetic studies, it is helpful to follow propagation of a specific set of genetic markers (haplotype), or to select people for linkage analysis, showing relations between various branch of a family tree of affected subjects. AVAILABILITY: PedNavigator is an application integrated into a Framework designed to handle data for human genetic studies based on the Oracle platform. To allow the use of PedNavigator also to people not owning the same required informatics infrastructure or systems, we developed PedNavigator Lite with mainly the same features of the integrated one, based on MySQL database server. This version is free for academic users, and it is available for download from our sit

Evaluating potential drivers of four different types of moose browsing damage in a cross-border context

Moose (Alces alces) in Scandinavia rely on commercially valuable Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris) as a winter food source. Browsing impacts to forest resources are labeled as “damage” and have become especially important along the border between Norway and Sweden, where a semi-migratory moose population moves seasonally between two management regimes. As part of the EU-funded GRENSEVILT project, we studied multiple factors thought to drive browsing damages within a single sub-population in a cross-border context. We combined elements of two national methods of assessing browsing damage: Solbraa (Norwegian) and Äbin (Swedish). We analyzed four damage indicators (stem breakage, bark browsing, browsing pressure, and number of winter-browsed top shoots) by grouping over 20 predictor variables into three categories, using data collected on 3,033 individual pine trees. GLMM model variable selection was completed using AIC. Covariates that measured severity of prior damage (such as cumulative impacts on plant architecture) were included in the top models for all four indicators. Notably, the covariates for pine density and snow depth, factors previously found to be important in predicting browsing damage, were not present in any of the top models. GAM landscape models revealed that distributions of the four damage types are quite different – with bark browsing illustrating an isolated “hotspot” and browsing pressure showing more widespread prevalence. There is some evidence to suggest that different damage types represent a natural progression of moose foraging, with stem breakage and bark browsing signaling more severe damage and potential over-use with time

Pathways to Fragmentation:User Flows and Web Distribution Infrastructures

This study analyzes how web audiences flow across online digital features. We construct a directed network of user flows based on sequential user clickstreams for all popular websites (n=1761), using traffic data obtained from a panel of a million web users in the United States. We analyze these data to identify constellations of websites that are frequently browsed together in temporal sequences, both by similar user groups in different browsing sessions as well as by disparate users. Our analyses thus render visible previously hidden online collectives and generate insight into the varied roles that curatorial infrastructures may play in shaping audience fragmentation on the web

Content Reuse and Interest Sharing in Tagging Communities

Tagging communities represent a subclass of a broader class of user-generated content-sharing online communities. In such communities users introduce and tag content for later use. Although recent studies advocate and attempt to harness social knowledge in this context by exploiting collaboration among users, little research has been done to quantify the current level of user collaboration in these communities. This paper introduces two metrics to quantify the level of collaboration: content reuse and shared interest. Using these two metrics, this paper shows that the current level of collaboration in CiteULike and Connotea is consistently low, which significantly limits the potential of harnessing the social knowledge in communities. This study also discusses implications of these findings in the context of recommendation and reputation systems.Comment: 6 pages, 6 figures, AAAI Spring Symposium on Social Information Processin

OPTIMAL MANAGEMENT OF A FOREST/WILDLIFE SYSTEM WITH BILATERAL EXTERNALITIES

Browsing by large ungulate wildlife species damages valuable trees, but increases the productivity of the wildlife stock. The optimal management of trees and wildlife involves a tradeoff between these two impacts, as well as correct timing of tree harvests from each forest stand. For a model of moose and pine in Norway, it is found that harvest of adjacent forest stands should be adjusted over time to bring the stands into synch. Doing so maximizes the moose productivity boost that occurs immediately following harvest of mature trees, and protects the young trees from overbrowsing by spreading out the browsing pressure among more young trees. This result is, however, sensitive to the specification of the relationship between forage availability and moose productivity.Resource /Energy Economics and Policy,

Privacy Preserving Internet Browsers: Forensic Analysis of Browzar

With the advance of technology, Criminal Justice agencies are being confronted with an increased need to investigate crimes perpetuated partially or entirely over the Internet. These types of crime are known as cybercrimes. In order to conceal illegal online activity, criminals often use private browsing features or browsers designed to provide total browsing privacy. The use of private browsing is a common challenge faced in for example child exploitation investigations, which usually originate on the Internet. Although private browsing features are not designed specifically for criminal activity, they have become a valuable tool for criminals looking to conceal their online activity. As such, Technological Crime units often focus their forensic analysis on thoroughly examining the web history on a computer. Private browsing features and browsers often require a more in-depth, post mortem analysis. This often requires the use of multiple tools, as well as different forensic approaches to uncover incriminating evidence. This evidence may be required in a court of law, where analysts are often challenged both on their findings and on the tools and approaches used to recover evidence. However, there are very few research on evaluating of private browsing in terms of privacy preserving as well as forensic acquisition and analysis of privacy preserving internet browsers. Therefore in this chapter, we firstly review the private mode of popular internet browsers. Next, we describe the forensic acquisition and analysis of Browzar, a privacy preserving internet browser and compare it with other popular internet browser

Web Tracking: Mechanisms, Implications, and Defenses

This articles surveys the existing literature on the methods currently used by web services to track the user online as well as their purposes, implications, and possible user's defenses. A significant majority of reviewed articles and web resources are from years 2012-2014. Privacy seems to be the Achilles' heel of today's web. Web services make continuous efforts to obtain as much information as they can about the things we search, the sites we visit, the people with who we contact, and the products we buy. Tracking is usually performed for commercial purposes. We present 5 main groups of methods used for user tracking, which are based on sessions, client storage, client cache, fingerprinting, or yet other approaches. A special focus is placed on mechanisms that use web caches, operational caches, and fingerprinting, as they are usually very rich in terms of using various creative methodologies. We also show how the users can be identified on the web and associated with their real names, e-mail addresses, phone numbers, or even street addresses. We show why tracking is being used and its possible implications for the users (price discrimination, assessing financial credibility, determining insurance coverage, government surveillance, and identity theft). For each of the tracking methods, we present possible defenses. Apart from describing the methods and tools used for keeping the personal data away from being tracked, we also present several tools that were used for research purposes - their main goal is to discover how and by which entity the users are being tracked on their desktop computers or smartphones, provide this information to the users, and visualize it in an accessible and easy to follow way. Finally, we present the currently proposed future approaches to track the user and show that they can potentially pose significant threats to the users' privacy.Comment: 29 pages, 212 reference

Biology, Ecology, and Management of Deer in the Chicago Metropolitan Area W-87-R-8, Annual Job Progress Report

Annual Job Progress Report July 1, 1986 - June 30, 1987 issued September 28, 1987. Includes Appendix A: Helminthic and protozoan parasites of white-tailed deer in urban areas of northeastern Illinois, Jose G. Cisneros; Appendix B: Recommendations for a cooperative new initiative on urban deer management for Cook County, Illinois; Appendix C: Recommendations for deer removal on O'Hare International Airport.Report issued on: 28 September 1987INHS Technical Report prepared for Illinois Department of Conservation Division of Wildlife Resource

Ecology and conservation of Alseuosmia quercifolia (Alseuosmiaceae) in the Waikato region, New Zealand

The ecology of Alseuosmia quercifolia, a small endemic shrub, was investigated, focussing on its habitat requirements, population dynamics, phenology and reproductive biology, and conservation status. This species occurs most commonly in lowland native forests of the Waikato region of the North Island (north of latitude 38°05'S), but is also found in scattered populations to North Cape. In the Waikato region it typically occupies shady, well-drained, south or south-east facing lower slopes of hills and ranges at altitudes below 400 m. Population structures show considerable variation amongst seven study sites in the Waikato region, with disjunct size classes a reflection of the presence and abundance of introduced browsing mammals. It is a relatively short-lived (less than 50 years), slow-growing species with a fleshy fruit adapted to bird dispersal, but seed dispersal now appears to be primarily by gravity. Flowering occurs early in spring and is synchronous at both individual and population levels, occurring over a 5-week period, with peak flowering during the second and third weeks. While all populations set seed, reproductive output can be negatively affected by persistent browse and by rain during peak flowering. This species is vulnerable because it is highly palatable to introduced mammals and all plants in a population are within browse height. It has relatively narrow habitat specificity, localised distribution, and limited potential to extend its range. We suggest it fulfils the requirements of the category "declining", using the most recent classification of threatened and uncommon plants of New Zealand