AN ANALYSIS OF THE USE OF GRADES AND HOUSEBRAND LABELS IN THE RETAIL BEEF MARKET

The congruence of beef consumersÂ’ purchases with their stated preferences regarding internal fat content are examined. The role of U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) grades and housebrand labeling of beef in providing information to consumers is studied in the theoretical framework of search theory. The empirical results indicate that the current system of USDA grades and housebrand labels is not disseminating information regarding internal fat content effectively to consumers. Suggestions are made for providing consumers with better information and education necessary to increase congruence of expressed preferences regarding internal fat content and actual beef purchases.Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Livestock Production/Industries,

Star formation in Chamaeleon I and III: a molecular line study of the starless core population

The Chamaeleon clouds are excellent targets for low-mass star formation studies. Cha I and II are actively forming stars while Cha III shows no sign of ongoing star formation. We aim to determine the driving factors that have led to the very different levels of star formation activity in Cha I and III and examine the dynamical state and possible evolution of the starless cores within them. Observations were performed in various molecular transitions with APEX and Mopra. Five cores are gravitationally bound in Cha I and one in Cha III. The infall signature is seen toward 8-17 cores in Cha I and 2-5 cores in Cha III, which leads to a range of 13-28% of the cores in Cha I and 10-25% of the cores in Cha III that are contracting and may become prestellar. Future dynamical interactions between the cores will not be dynamically significant in either Cha I or III, but the subregion Cha I North may experience collisions between cores within ~0.7 Myr. Turbulence dissipation in the cores of both clouds is seen in the high-density tracers N2H+ 1-0 and HC3N 10-9. Evidence of depletion in the Cha I core interiors is seen in the abundance distributions of C17O, C18O, and C34S. Both contraction and static chemical models indicate that the HC3N to N2H+ abundance ratio is a good evolutionary indicator in the prestellar phase for both gravitationally bound and unbound cores. In the framework of these models, we find that the cores in Cha III and the southern part of Cha I are in a similar evolutionary stage and are less chemically evolved than the central region of Cha I. The measured HC3N/N2H+ abundance ratio and the evidence for contraction motions seen towards the Cha III starless cores suggest that Cha III is younger than Cha I Centre and that some of its cores may form stars in the future. The cores in Cha I South may on the other hand be transient structures. (abridged)Comment: Accepted for publication in A&A. The resolution of Figure 2 has been degraded and the abstract in the metadata has been shortened to fit within the limits set by arXi

OVERLAP IN MOLT AND BREEDING PHENOLOGY IN THE HISPANIOLAN WOODPECKER (MELANERPES STRIATUS)

Abstract ∙ Molt patterns, often useful for determining age of individuals and, hence, demographic structure of a population, are generally poorly known for resident Neotropical birds. Neotropical woodpeckers are no exception to this latitudinal bias. We focused on the Hispaniolan Woodpecker (Melanerpes striatus) to study molt in regards to age and phenology. The objectives of this study were: (1) to provide the first description of the Hispaniolan Woodpecker’s molt pattern, and (2) to describe the relationship of molt within the breeding phenology. For six consecutive breeding seasons (March–July) from 2012 to 2017, we monitored a color‐banded population of the Hispaniolan Woodpeckers in a mid‐elevation (~ 600 m a.s.l.) landscape of wet forest fragments and cattle pastures in the Dominican Republic. We analyzed standardized photos taken during banding sessions to characterize patterns of retained and replaced feathers, resulting in an accurate method for aging. We found similarities in primary covert replacement and differences in secondary replacement patterns to those of congeners. Breeding birds, regardless of sex, were just as likely to be molting as non‐breeding birds showing breeding‐molt overlap. We suggest possible reasons for this pattern occurring in primarily tropical avian taxa including ample availability of resources and parasitism defense. This is one of the only studies to document this on an individual rather than population level.Resumen ∙ Sobreposición de la fenología de muda y la reproducción del carpintero de la española (Melanerpes striatus)   Los patrones de muda, comúnmente utilizados para determinar la edad de los individuos y, por lo tanto, la estructura demográfica de una población, son poco conocidos para las aves residentes Neotropicales. Los pájaros carpinteros tropicales no son una excepción a este sesgo latitudinal. Nos centramos en el Carpintero de La Española (Melanerpes striatus) para estudiar la muda tanto en lo que respecta a la edad y la fenología. Los objetivos de este estudio fueron: (1) presentar la primera descripción del patrón de muda del Carpintero de la Española y (2) describir su relación con la fenología reproductiva. Durante seis temporadas reproductivas consecutivas, de marzo a julio, desde el 2012 a 2017, monitoreamos una población de Carpinteros de la Española marcados con anillos de color, en un paisaje de elevación media (~ 600 m s.n.m) compuesto por fragmentos de bosque húmedo y pasturas en la República Dominicana. Analizamos las fotos tomadas de manera estandarizada durante el anillamiento para identificar patrones retención y reemplazo de plumas viejas y nuevas. En base a estos resultados desarrollamos un método exacto para determinar la edad. Encontramos similitudes en los patrones del reemplazo de las cubiertas primarias y diferencias en patrones de reemplazo de secundarias con patrones descriptos para otras especies del género. No hubo diferencia en la probabilidad de encontrar muda en de pájaros carpinteros reproductores y los no reproductores, demostrando la superposición de muda y reproducción. Sugerimos causas por las cuales éste patrón ocurre principalmente aves tropicales, incluyendo un incremento en la disponibilidad de recursos y mecanismos de defensa de parásitos. Este es uno de los pocos estudios que documentan este patrón en un nivel individual en vez de población

Four not six: revealing culturally common facial expressions of emotion

As a highly social species, humans generate complex facial expressions to communicate a diverse range of emotions. Since Darwin’s work, identifying amongst these complex patterns which are common across cultures and which are culture-specific has remained a central question in psychology, anthropology, philosophy, and more recently machine vision and social robotics. Classic approaches to addressing this question typically tested the cross-cultural recognition of theoretically motivated facial expressions representing six emotions, and reported universality. Yet, variable recognition accuracy across cultures suggests a narrower cross-cultural communication, supported by sets of simpler expressive patterns embedded in more complex facial expressions. We explore this hypothesis by modelling the facial expressions of over 60 emotions across two cultures, and segregating out the latent expressive patterns. Using a multi-disciplinary approach, we first map the conceptual organization of a broad spectrum of emotion words by building semantic networks in two cultures. For each emotion word in each culture, we then model and validate its corresponding dynamic facial expression, producing over 60 culturally valid facial expression models. We then apply to the pooled models a multivariate data reduction technique, revealing four latent and culturally common facial expression patterns that each communicates specific combinations of valence, arousal and dominance. We then reveal the face movements that accentuate each latent expressive pattern to create complex facial expressions. Our data questions the widely held view that six facial expression patterns are universal, instead suggesting four latent expressive patterns with direct implications for emotion communication, social psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and social robotics

A hybrid moment equation approach to gas-grain chemical modeling

[Context] The stochasticity of grain chemistry requires special care in modeling. Previously methods based on the modified rate equation, the master equation, the moment equation, and Monte Carlo simulations have been used. [Aims] We attempt to develop a systematic and efficient way to model the gas-grain chemistry with a large reaction network as accurately as possible. [Methods] We present a hybrid moment equation approach which is a general and automatic method where the generating function is used to generate the moment equations. For large reaction networks, the moment equation is cut off at the second order, and a switch scheme is used when the average population of certain species reaches 1. For small networks, the third order moments can also be utilized to achieve a higher accuracy. [Results] For physical conditions in which the surface reactions are important, our method provides a major improvement over the rate equation approach, when benchmarked against the rigorous Monte Carlo results. For either very low or very high temperatures, or large grain radii, results from the rate equation are similar to those from our new approach. Our method is faster than the Monte Carlo approach, but slower than the rate equation approach. [Conclusions] The hybrid moment equation approach with a cutoff and switch scheme is applicable to large gas-grain networks, and is accurate enough to be used for astrochemistry studies. The layered structure of the grain mantle could also be incorporated into this approach, although a full implementation of the grain micro-physics appears to be difficult.Comment: 11 pages, 4 figures. Accepted for publication in Astronomy and Astrophysic

Primates of the Caribbean: using historical-era introduction of monkeys in the Lesser Antilles to understand patterns of island evolution

Across the world, islands were and still are inhabited by unique species, often restricted to their own island and found nowhere else. After their ancestors managed to reach an island from a mainland population and become isolated from this mainland and its ecological restrictions, they often evolved spectacular adaptations. The more extrinsic barriers to gene flow there are and the more distant the populations, the greater the probability of a profound genetic and morphological change. Whereas many other insular mammalian taxa such as proboscideans, rodents and cervids react in readily identifiable trends, primates respond in varied and unpredictable ways. In order to better understand the underlying evolutionary principles behind island speciation, this thesis focuses on the small cercopithecine monkeys taken from western Africa to the Caribbean during the transatlantic slave trade. These Chlorocebus monkeys inhabit Nevis, St Kitts and Barbados but have long been assumed to originate solely from the Senegambia region. This thesis investigates the very early phase associated with island separation, using mitochondrial analysis and 3D geometric morphometric techniques to thoroughly assess whether any changes are present in these populations. An additional assessment is made of the three western African species of Chlorocebus, which is still largely subject to taxonomic discord. The results here show that the existing taxonomic status of African Chlorocebus does not fully describe the whole situation and that changes should be made to resolve this. The molecular results from this thesis show that rather than originating from one Senegambian location, Caribbean Chlorocebus monkeys instead originate from three different African species, across the entire western African coast, meaning their current designation as ‘African green monkeys’ is inaccurate. Additionally, morphological adaptations within these three insular populations are also already apparent, both across the three island groups and between Caribbean and African Chlorocebus

Towards precision medicine for hypertension: a review of genomic, epigenomic, and microbiomic effects on blood pressure in experimental rat models and humans

Compelling evidence for the inherited nature of essential hypertension has led to extensive research in rats and humans. Rats have served as the primary model for research on the genetics of hypertension resulting in identification of genomic regions that are causally associated with hypertension. In more recent times, genome-wide studies in humans have also begun to improve our understanding of the inheritance of polygenic forms of hypertension. Based on the chronological progression of research into the genetics of hypertension as the "structural backbone," this review catalogs and discusses the rat and human genetic elements mapped and implicated in blood pressure regulation. Furthermore, the knowledge gained from these genetic studies that provide evidence to suggest that much of the genetic influence on hypertension residing within noncoding elements of our DNA and operating through pervasive epistasis or gene-gene interactions is highlighted. Lastly, perspectives on current thinking that the more complex "triad" of the genome, epigenome, and the microbiome operating to influence the inheritance of hypertension, is documented. Overall, the collective knowledge gained from rats and humans is disappointing in the sense that major hypertension-causing genes as targets for clinical management of essential hypertension may not be a clinical reality. On the other hand, the realization that the polygenic nature of hypertension prevents any single locus from being a relevant clinical target for all humans directs future studies on the genetics of hypertension towards an individualized genomic approach

Finite temperature bosonization

Finite temperature properties of a non-Fermi liquid system is one of the most challenging probelms in current understanding of strongly correlated electron systems. The paradigmatic arena for studying non-Fermi liquids is in one dimension, where the concept of a Luttinger liquid has arisen. The existence of a critical point at zero temperature in one dimensional systems, and the fact that experiments are all undertaken at finite temperature, implies a need for these one dimensional systems to be examined at finite temperature. Accordingly, we extended the well-known bosonization method of one dimensional electron systems to finite temperatures. We have used this new bosonization method to calculate finite temperature asymptotic correlation functions for linear fermions, the Tomonaga-Luttinger model, and the Hubbard model.Comment: REVTex, 48 page

Parameterizing the interstellar dust temperature

The temperature of interstellar dust particles is of great importance to astronomers. It plays a crucial role in the thermodynamics of interstellar clouds, because of the gas-dust collisional coupling. It is also a key parameter in astrochemical studies that governs the rate at which molecules form on dust. In 3D (magneto)hydrodynamic simulations often a simple expression for the dust temperature is adopted, because of computational constraints, while astrochemical modelers tend to keep the dust temperature constant over a large range of parameter space. Our aim is to provide an easy-to-use parametric expression for the dust temperature as a function of visual extinction ($A_{\rm V}$) and to shed light on the critical dependencies of the dust temperature on the grain composition. We obtain an expression for the dust temperature by semi-analytically solving the dust thermal balance for different types of grains and compare to a collection of recent observational measurements. We also explore the effect of ices on the dust temperature. Our results show that a mixed carbonaceous-silicate type dust with a high carbon volume fraction matches the observations best. We find that ice formation allows the dust to be warmer by up to 15% at high optical depths ($A_{\rm V}> 20$ mag) in the interstellar medium. Our parametric expression for the dust temperature is presented as $T_{\rm d} = \left[ 11 + 5.7\times \tanh\bigl( 0.61 - \log_{10}(A_{\rm V})\bigr) \right] \, \chi_{\rm uv}^{1/5.9}$, where $\chi_{\rm uv}$ is in units of the Draine (1978) UV fieldComment: 16 pages, 17 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in A&A. Version 2: the omission of factor 0.921 in equation 4 is correcte