MORPHOLOGICAL ABNORMALITIES IN NATURAL POPULATIONS OF AMPHIBIANS: WHAT DO WE STUDY AND HOW DO WE MEASURE?

Some problems of studies of morphological deformities innatural populations of amphibians are discussed. The frequencyof malformed animals equal to 5 % of a sample is suggested forthe separation between the background and mass occurrence.The distribution of deformity records across species and highertaxonomic groups of amphibians as well as across geographicalregions is surveyed. The frequency of malformed animals is higherin aquatic rather than in semiaquatic or terrestrial species. Sharedoccurrence of deformities in some syntopic species is mentioned.Sampling, statistical methods, unification of terminology, andidentification of deformities in cases of so called syndromes are alsoconsidered.Обсуждаются проблемы изучения морфологических аномалий в природных популяциях амфибий. Для разделения фоновых и массовых аномалий предлагается 5 % уровень встречаемости аномальных особей в выборке для условного разделения на фоновые и массовые. Анализируется информация о распространении аномалий у разных видов амфибий и более крупных таксономических категорий, а также в различных географических областях. Частота аномалий у водных видов выше в сравнении полуводными и наземными. Сравнивается встречаемость аномалий у синтопических видов. Также обсуждаются отбор проб, статистические методы, унификация терминологии и идентификация аномалий в случаях так называемых синдромах

The Marital Communication Rating Schedule: An instrument for clinical assessment

The Marital Communication Rating Schedule (MCRaS) is presented as an observationally based clinical rating system for assessing verbal behavior in marital communication. Data from 35 response display discussions lasting from 20 to 30 min each, which took place between 11 married couples, were used to examine aspects of the reliability and validity of the instrument. Three raters made independent ratings of 37 MCRaS categories for each husband and wife for each discussion period. Reliability among the raters was shown to be high when calculated within one scale point. Concurrent validity was assessed by comparing MCRaS ratings for four categories with observationally based validation criteria independently coded and measured. Results indicated that for three categories — negative statements, overgeneralizations, and amount of talk — ratings produced results that were similar to those yielded by laborious coding of audiotapes. For one category, opinions requested, a relationship between the ratings and coded data was not found. The validation results were discussed in terms of possible differences in the basis of ratings for the categories subjected to validation. Although further research is needed, it was concluded that MCRaS has many of the desirable qualities needed in a clinically useful, observationally based rating system.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44792/1/10862_2005_Article_BF01666787.pd

The COMPLETE Survey of Star-Forming Regions: Phase I Data

We present an overview of data available for the Ophiuchus and Perseus molecular clouds from ``Phase I'' of the COMPLETE Survey of Star-Forming Regions. This survey provides a range of data complementary to the Spitzer Legacy Program ``From Molecular Cores to Planet Forming Disks.'' Phase I includes: Extinction maps derived from 2MASS near-infrared data using the NICER algorithm; extinction and temperature maps derived from IRAS 60 and 100um emission; HI maps of atomic gas; 12CO and 13CO maps of molecular gas; and submillimetre continuum images of emission from dust in dense cores. Not unexpectedly, the morphology of the regions appears quite different depending on the column-density tracer which is used, with IRAS tracing mainly warmer dust and CO being biased by chemical, excitation and optical depth effects. Histograms of column-density distribution are presented, showing that extinction as derived from 2MASS/NICER gives the closest match to a log-normal distribution as is predicted by numerical simulations. All the data presented in this paper, and links to more detailed publications on their implications are publically available at the COMPLETE website.Comment: Accepted by AJ. Full resolution version available from: http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/COMPLETE/papers/complete_phase1.pd

Revisited experimental comparison of node-link and matrix representations

Visualizing network data is applicable in domains such as biology, engineering, and social sciences. We report the results of a study comparing the effectiveness of the two primary techniques for showing network data: node-link diagrams and adjacency matrices. Specifically, an evaluation with a large number of online participants revealed statistically significant differences between the two visualizations. Our work adds to existing research in several ways. First, we explore a broad spectrum of network tasks, many of which had not been previously evaluated. Second, our study uses a large dataset, typical of many real-life networks not explored by previous studies. Third, we leverage crowdsourcing to evaluate many tasks with many participants

MASS HINDLIMB DEFORMITIES OF GREEN FROGS (PELOPHYLAX ESCULENTUS COMPLEX) IN PRIDNESTROVIE: CAUSES AND BIOINDICATION

Mass hindlimb abnormalities (above 60 %) were found in twolocalities with syntopic Pelophylax ridibundus and hybridogenous P. esculentus in Pridnestrovie. Individually, frogs can have 1–7 anomalies in P. ridibundus and 2–4 in P. esculentus. Some diffe-rences in variety of deformities and their frequencies were observed between both species and both localities. Importantly, water bodies inhabited by green frogs with mass abnormalities were characterizedby absence of chemical pollution and any significant human impact.Массовые аномалии задних конечностей (свыше 60 %)были отмечены у синтопических Pelophylax ridibundus и гибридных P. esculentus в двух локалитетах в Приднестровье. Особь P. ridibundus может нести 1-7 аномалий, а P. esculentus – 2-4. Для обоих видов и локалитетов отмечены различия в вариантах аномалий и их частотах. Важно отметить, что водоемы, населенные лягушками с массовыми аномалиями, характеризовались отсутствием химического загрязнения и какого-либо существенного антропогенного воздействия

The Feeling of Numbers: emotions in everyday engagements with data and their visualisation

This paper highlights the role that emotions play in engagements with data and their visualisation. To date, the relationship between data and emotions has rarely been noted, in part because data studies have not attended to everyday engagements with data. We draw on an empirical study to show a wide range of emotional engagements with diverse aspects of data and their visualisation, and so demonstrate the importance of emotions as vital components of making sense of data. We nuance the argument that regimes of datafication, in which numbers, metrics and statistics dominate, are characterised by a renewed faith in objectivity and rationality, arguing that in datafied times, it is not only numbers but also the feeling of numbers that is important. We build on the sociology of a) emotions and b) the everyday to do this, and in so doing, we contribute to the development of a sociology of data

Measures in Visualization Space

Postponed access: the file will be available after 2021-08-12Measurement is an integral part of modern science, providing the fundamental means for evaluation, comparison, and prediction. In the context of visualization, several different types of measures have been proposed, ranging from approaches that evaluate particular aspects of visualization techniques, their perceptual characteristics, and even economic factors. Furthermore, there are approaches that attempt to provide means for measuring general properties of the visualization process as a whole. Measures can be quantitative or qualitative, and one of the primary goals is to provide objective means for reasoning about visualizations and their effectiveness. As such, they play a central role in the development of scientific theories for visualization. In this chapter, we provide an overview of the current state of the art, survey and classify different types of visualization measures, characterize their strengths and drawbacks, and provide an outline of open challenges for future research.acceptedVersio

NetMets: software for quantifying and visualizing errors in biological network segmentation

One of the major goals in biomedical image processing is accurate segmentation of networks embedded in volumetric data sets. Biological networks are composed of a meshwork of thin filaments that span large volumes of tissue. Examples of these structures include neurons and microvasculature, which can take the form of both hierarchical trees and fully connected networks, depending on the imaging modality and resolution. Network function depends on both the geometric structure and connectivity. Therefore, there is considerable demand for algorithms that segment biological networks embedded in three-dimensional data. While a large number of tracking and segmentation algorithms have been published, most of these do not generalize well across data sets. One of the major reasons for the lack of general-purpose algorithms is the limited availability of metrics that can be used to quantitatively compare their effectiveness against a pre-constructed ground-truth. In this paper, we propose a robust metric for measuring and visualizing the differences between network models. Our algorithm takes into account both geometry and connectivity to measure network similarity. These metrics are then mapped back onto an explicit model for visualization

Demersal Fish Assemblages and Spatial Diversity Patterns in the Arctic-Atlantic Transition Zone in the Barents Sea

Direct and indirect effects of global warming are expected to be pronounced and fast in the Arctic, impacting terrestrial, freshwater and marine ecosystems. The Barents Sea is a high latitude shelf Sea and a boundary area between arctic and boreal faunas. These faunas are likely to respond differently to changes in climate. In addition, the Barents Sea is highly impacted by fisheries and other human activities. This strong human presence places great demands on scientific investigation and advisory capacity. In order to identify basic community structures against which future climate related or other human induced changes could be evaluated, we analyzed species composition and diversity of demersal fish in the Barents Sea. We found six main assemblages that were separated along depth and temperature gradients. There are indications that climate driven changes have already taken place, since boreal species were found in large parts of the Barents Sea shelf, including also the northern Arctic area. When modelling diversity as a function of depth and temperature, we found that two of the assemblages in the eastern Barents Sea showed lower diversity than expected from their depth and temperature. This is probably caused by low habitat complexity and the distance to the pool of boreal species in the western Barents Sea. In contrast coastal assemblages in south western Barents Sea and along Novaya Zemlya archipelago in the Eastern Barents Sea can be described as diversity “hotspots”; the South-western area had high density of species, abundance and biomass, and here some species have their northern distribution limit, whereas the Novaya Zemlya area has unique fauna of Arctic, coastal demersal fish. (see Information S1 for abstract in Russian)