3,367 research outputs found
Seasonal Variation in Terrestrial Invertebrate Subsidies to Tropical Streams and Implications for the Feeding Ecology of Hart’s Rivulus (Anablepsoides hartii)
Terrestrial invertebrates are important subsidies to fish diets, though their seasonal dynamics and importance to tropical stream consumers are particularly understudied. In this year-round study of terrestrial invertebrate input to two Trinidadian headwater streams with different forest canopy densities, we sought to (a) measure the mass and composition of terrestrial inputs with fall-in traps to evaluate the influences of seasonality, canopy cover, and rainfall intensity, and; (b) compare terrestrial and benthic prey importance to Anablepsoides hartii(Hart’s Rivulus), the dominant invertivorous fish in these streams, by concurrently measuring benthic and drifting invertebrate standing stocks and the volume and composition of invertebrates in Rivulus guts throughout the year. The biomass of terrestrial invertebrate fall-in was 53% higher in the wet versus dry season; in particular, ant input was 320% higher. Ant biomass fall-in also increased with the density of canopy cover among sampling locations within both streams. Greater precipitation correlated with increased ant inputs to the more open-canopied stream and increased inputs of winged insects in the more closed canopy stream. Concurrently, the biomass of benthic invertebrates was reduced by more than half in the wet season in both streams. We detected no differences in the total volume of terrestrial prey in Rivulus diets between seasons, though ants were a greater proportion of their diet in the wet season. In contrast, benthic prey were nearly absent from Rivulus diets in the wet season in both streams. We conclude that terrestrial invertebrates are a substantial year-round prey subsidy for invertivores in tropical stream ecosystems like those we studied, which may contrast to most temperate streams where such terrestrial inputs are significantly reduced in the cold season. Interestingly, the strongest seasonal pattern in these tropical streams was observed in benthic invertebrate biomass which was greatly reduced and almost absent from Rivulus diets during the wet season. This pattern is essentially the inverse of the pattern observed in many temperate streams and highlights the need for additional studies in tropical ecosystems to better understand how spatial and temporal variation in terrestrial subsidies and benthic prey populations combine to influence consumer diets and the structure of tropical stream food webs
Adhesion of surfaces via particle adsorption: Exact results for a lattice of fluid columns
We present here exact results for a one-dimensional gas, or fluid, of
hard-sphere particles with attractive boundaries. The particles, which can
exchange with a bulk reservoir, mediate an interaction between the boundaries.
A two-dimensional lattice of such one-dimensional gas `columns' represents a
discrete approximation of a three-dimensional gas of particles between two
surfaces. The effective particle-mediated interaction potential of the
boundaries, or surfaces, is calculated from the grand-canonical partition
function of the one-dimensional gas of particles, which is an extension of the
well-studied Tonks gas. The effective interaction potential exhibits two
minima. The first minimum at boundary contact reflects depletion interactions,
while the second minimum at separations close to the particle diameter results
from a single adsorbed particle that crosslinks the two boundaries. The second
minimum is the global minimum for sufficiently large binding energies of the
particles. Interestingly, the effective adhesion energy corresponding to this
minimum is maximal at intermediate concentrations of the particles.Comment: to appear in Journal of Statistical Mechanics: Theory and Experimen
A Determination of Interface Free Energies
We determine the interface free energy between disordered and
ordered phases in the q=10 and q=20 2-d Potts models using the results of
multicanonical Monte Carlo simulations on lattices, and suitable finite
volume estimators. Our results, when extrapolated to the infinite volume limit,
agree to high precision with recent analytical calculations. At the transition
point the probability distribution function of the energy exhibits
two maxima. Their locations have corrections, in contradiction with
claims of behavior made in the literature. Our data show a flat region
inbetween the two maxima which characterizes two domain configurations.Comment: Submited to Nuclear Physics B (FS) Latex file, 24 pages, 11
PostScript figures. Saclay preprint SPhT-93/6
Measurements of the Complex Conductivity of NbxSi1-x Alloys on the Insulating Side of the Metal-Insulator Transition
We have conducted temperature and frequency dependent transport measurements
in amorphous Nb_x Si_{1-x} samples in the insulating regime. We find a
temperature dependent dc conductivity consistent with variable range hopping in
a Coulomb glass. The frequency dependent response in the millimeter-wave
frequency range can be described by the expression with the exponent somewhat smaller than one. Our ac
results are not consistent with extant theories for the hopping transport.Comment: 4 pages with 3 figures; published version has a different title from
original (was: "Electrodynamics in a Coulomb glass"
Lenvatinib and its use in the treatment of unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma
Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary malignancy of the liver accounting for approximately 90% of cases. Patients often present at an advanced stage when treatment options are limited. Sorafenib, a multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor, has been the first-line treatment in this setting for almost a decade. Several subsequent targeted therapies have failed to demonstrate significant improvement in survival. The results of the REFLECT study suggest that lenvatinib, a multikinase inhibitor, may have promised as a first-line treatment in patients with advanced HCC. This article will review the development of lenvatinib and the evidence behind its potential use in patients with advanced HCC
Entanglement and boundary critical phenomena
We investigate boundary critical phenomena from a quantum information
perspective. Bipartite entanglement in the ground state of one-dimensional
quantum systems is quantified using the Renyi entropy S_alpha, which includes
the von Neumann entropy (alpha=1) and the single-copy entanglement
(alpha=infinity) as special cases. We identify the contribution from the
boundary entropy to the Renyi entropy, and show that there is an entanglement
loss along boundary renormalization group (RG) flows. This property, which is
intimately related to the Affleck-Ludwig g-theorem, can be regarded as a
consequence of majorization relations between the spectra of the reduced
density matrix along the boundary RG flows. We also point out that the bulk
contribution to the single-copy entanglement is half of that to the von Neumann
entropy, whereas the boundary contribution is the same.Comment: 4 pages, 2 figure
A Randomised, Cross-Over, Placebo-Controlled Study of Aloe vera in Patients with Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Effects on Patient Quality of Life
Background. Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a
chronic, difficult to treat condition. The efficacy of
Aloe vera in treating IBS symptoms is not yet
proven. The purpose of this study was to determine if Aloe
vera is effective in improving quality of life.
Methods. A multicentre, randomised, double-blind,
cross-over placebo controlled study design. Patients were
randomised to Aloe vera, wash-out, placebo or
placebo, washout, Aloe vera. Each preparation
(60 mL) was taken orally twice a day. Patient quality of
life was measured using the Gastrointestinal Symptoms Rating
Score, Irritable Bowel Syndrome Quality of Life, EuroQol and the
Short-Form-12 at baseline and treatment periods 1 and 2.
Results. A total of 110 patients were randomised,
but only 47 completed all questionnaires and both study arms.
Statistical analysis showed no difference between the placebo and
Aloe vera treatment in quality of life.
Discussion. This study was unable to show that Aloe
vera was superior to placebo in improving quality of
life. Drop outs and other confounding factors may have impacted on
the power of the study to detect a clinically important
difference. Conclusion. This study failed to find
Aloe vera superior to placebo in improving
quality of life proven Irritable Bowel Syndrome patients
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