Microbiology survey shows authors have most to gain from peer review

In the week that an international team of publishers, science communicators and other scholarly organisations launch the second international Peer Review Week, the preliminary findings from our new survey reveal that authors gain more from peer review than the people who do the actual review

Paleogene larger benthic foraminifera of Tanzania and the Eocene - Oligocene Transition

Mass extinctions are important events for the evolution of life on Earth but often the mechanisms behind them are poorly understood. The Eocene - Oligocene Transition (EOT) had a profound and lasting influence on global climate and, though not one of the “big 5” mass extinction events, widespread extinctions in many fossil groups have been recognised. Larger benthic foraminifera (LBF), one of the most conspicuous and widespread fossil groups during the Eocene, are known to have experienced a rapid global overturning during the EOT, including the extinction of long-ranging families such as the Discocyclinidae, Orbitoclypeidae, Pellatispiridae and a number of species in the Nummulitidae. However, detailed records through the transition are rare, and few complete sections are known; the timing and causes of extinctions therefore remain uncertain. Extensive field samples from the southern Tanzanian coastal region along with Tanzania Drilling Project (TDP) samples are used to give an overview of Eocene to Miocene LBF and to produce high resolution stratigraphic records of LBF events across the EOT. Two further important EOT sites, Fuente Caldera, Spain and Melinau Gorge, Sarawak, both with unresolved questions relating to LBF at the EOT were studied for comparison. The field samples combined with the TDP data cover an area of approximately 200 km from Kilwa to the Mozambique border. Initial comparisons with Tethyan and Indo-Pacific faunas show perhaps an intermediate assemblage in the Eocene and some similarities with the Indo-Pacific in the Miocene. However in both epochs there are features distinctive of an East African or western Indo-Pacific fauna. Additionally, this work identifies many previously unreported localities and provides a solid basis for future work. Three of the TDP sites span the EOT and contain abundant LBF. Extensive calcareous micro-, nannofossil and stable isotope studies of these cores allow the LBF stratigraphy to be tied to global stratigraphy. These records show that the LBF extinction event occurs close to the Eocene/Oligocene boundary (EOB), as defined by the extinction of the planktonic foraminiferal Family Hantkeninidae, rather than at the prominent oxygen isotope excursion in the early Oligocene that signifies maximum ice growth and global sea-level fall. New bulk isotope data from the Melinau Limestone of Sarawak further support this conclusion. In Fuente Caldera, where the extinction level was previously reported to be within the Oligocene, extensive reworking means that an EOB extinction is also likely at this site. This correlation raises new questions about the cause of the extinctions and has important implications for global larger benthic foraminiferal stratigraphy

A critical analysis of gender-based violence reporting and evidence building applications (GBVxTech) for capturing memory reports

Introduction: Gender-based violence (GBV) is under-reported to the authorities owing to the stigma, shame, and fear of reprisal that surrounds these crimes. To address this, there has been an influx of technologies, including mobile phone and online applications that allow victim-survivors (hereafter, victims) to document and report GBV (hereafter referred to as GBVxTech). We critically analysed the extent to which GBVxTech applications align with the scientific knowledge base on gathering accounts of crimes from victims and witnesses.Methods: We identified 41 reporting and evidence building applications from around the world but found many (n = 19) were no longer accessible. A total of 13 applications met the study criteria and were available for download. We evaluated each application on how well its design and features align with established minimum best practice standards for gathering complete and accurate accounts from witnesses and victims, such as the pre-interview instructions (e.g., setting ground rules), questioning approach (e.g., using open-ended questions), and the adequacy of security features (e.g., password protection).Results and Discussion: We found most applications employ open questions, encourage victims to report information in an independent voice, and seek to elicit information pertinent to a criminal investigation. None of the applications use leading questions. However, most applications do not establish ground rules, and many use forced-choice questions, do not time stamp the information gathered, or document when users change their answers. Many applications have limited security features, potentially compromising users’ safety. Further, some applications do not provide information about how to use the app, an informed consent procedure, or data usage information. We discuss the findings and offer recommendations for future GBVxTech development

Larger foraminifera of the Devil's Den and Blue Hole sinkholes, Florida

Abstract. Shallow-water carbonate deposits are well-known from the Eocene of the US Gulf Coast and Caribbean. These deposits frequently contain abundant larger benthic foraminifera (LBF). However, whilst integrated stratigraphic studies have helped to refine the timing of LBF overturning events within the Tethys and Indo-Pacific regions with respect to global bio- and chemo-stratigraphic records, little recent work has been carried out in the Americas. The American LBF assemblages are distinctly different from those of Europe and the Indo-Pacific. It is therefore essential that the American bio-province is included in studies of LBF evolution, biodiversity and climate events to understand these processes on a global scale. Here we present the LBF ranges from two previously unpublished sections spanning 35 and 29 m of the upper Eocene Ocala limestone, as the early stages of a larger project addressing the taxonomy and biostratigraphy of the LBF of Florida. The study indicates that the lower member of the Ocala limestone may be Bartonian rather than Priabonian in age, with implications for the biostratigraphy of the region. In addition, the study highlights the need for multiple sites to assess the LBF assemblages and fully constrain ranges across Florida and the US Gulf and suggests potential LBF events for future integrated stratigraphic study.</jats:p

Remarkable preservation of brain tissues in an Early Cretaceous iguanodontian dinosaur

It has become accepted in recent years that the fossil record can preserve labile tissues. Here we report highly detailed mineralisation of soft tissues associated with a naturally occurring brain endocast of an iguanodontian dinosaur, found in ~133 Ma fluvial sediments of the Wealden at Bexhill, Sussex, U.K. Moulding of the braincase wall, and mineral replacement of adjacent brain tissues by phosphates and carbonates, permits direct examination of petrified brain tissues. SEM imaging and CT-scanning reveal preservation of the tough membranes (meninges) that enveloped and supported the brain proper. Collagen strands of the meningeal layers are preserved in collophane. Blood vessels, also preserved in collophane, are either lined by, or infilled with, microcrystalline siderite. Meninges are preserved in the hindbrain region, and exhibit structural similarities with those of living archosaurs. Greater definition of the forebrain (cerebrum) compared to the hindbrain (cerebellar and medullary regions) is consistent with the anatomical and implied behavioural complexity previously described in iguanodontian-grade ornithopods. However, we caution that the observed proximity of probable cortical layers to the braincase walls likely results from settling of brain tissues against the roof of the braincase following inversion of the skull during decay and burial