Morphological identification of animal hairs: Myths and misconceptions, possibilities and pitfalls

The examination of hair collected from crime scenes is an important and highly informative discipline relevant to many forensic investigations. However, the forensic identification of animal (non-human) hairs requires different skill sets and competencies to those required for human hair comparisons. The aim of this is paper is not only to highlight the intrinsic differences between forensic human hair comparison and forensic animal hair identification, but also discuss the utility and reliability of the two in the context of possibilities and pitfalls. It also addresses and dispels some of the more popular myths and misconceptions surrounding the microscopical examination of animal hairs. Furthermore, future directions of this discipline are explored through the proposal of recommendations for minimum standards for the morphological identification of animal hairs and the significance of the newly developed guidelines by SWGWILD is discussed

Associação de agenesia sacrococcígea e atresia anal em gato sem raça definida Sacrococcygeal agenesis association and anal atresia in mixed breed cats

O presente trabalho teve como objetivo descrever o caso de um felino, que desde o nascimento apresentou atresia anal, ausência de cauda e malformação dos membros pélvicos. Ao exame radiográfico, pôde-se observar presença de agenesia da sétima vértebra lombar, sacro e vértebras coccígeas, espinha bífida, meningocele, hiperflexão dos joelhos e desvio valgo dos tarsos, diagnosticando-se agenesia sacrococcígea associada à atresia anal.<br>This paper has the objective to report a case of a cat that since birth had anal atresia, absence of tail and malformation of the pelvic member. The radiographic examination revealed agenesis of the seventh lumbar vertebra, sacral and coccygeal vertebrae, spina bifida, meningocele, hyperflexion of the knees and tarsal valgus deviation, diagnosing sacrococcygeal agenesis associated with anal atresia

Quasi-periodic Pulsations in Solar and Stellar Flares: An Overview of Recent Results (Invited Review)

Quasi-periodic pulsations (or QPPs) are periodic intensity variations in the flare emission that occur across all wavelength bands. In this article, we review the observational and modelling achievements since the previous review on this topic by Nakariakov and Melnikov (Space Sci. Rev.149, 119, 2009). In recent years, it has become clear that QPPs are an inherent feature of solar flares because almost all flares exhibit QPPs. Moreover, it is now firmly established that QPPs often show multiple periods. We also review possible mechanisms for generating QPPs. Up to now, it has not been possible to conclusively identify the triggering mechanism or cause of QPPs. The lack of this identification currently hampers possible seismological inferences of flare plasma parameters. QPPs in stellar flares have been detected for a long time, and the high-quality data of the Kepler mission allows studying the QPP more systematically. However, it has not been conclusively shown whether the timescales of stellar QPPs are different or the same as those in solar flares