Meta-research: the growth of acronyms in the scientific literature

Some acronyms are useful and are widely understood, but many of the acronyms used in scientific papers hinder understanding and contribute to the increasing fragmentation of science. Here we report the results of an analysis of more than 24 million article titles and 18 million article abstracts published between 1950 and 2019. There was at least one acronym in 19% of the titles and 73% of the abstracts. Acronym use has also increased over time, but the re-use of acronyms has declined. We found that from more than one million unique acronyms in our data, just over 2,000 (0.2%) were used regularly, and most acronyms (79%) appeared fewer than 10 times. Acronyms are not the biggest current problem in science communication, but reducing their use is a simple change that would help readers and potentially increase the value of science.Adrian Barnett and Zoe Doubleda

Better writing in scientific publications builds reader confidence and understanding

Scientific publications are the building blocks of discovery and collaboration, but their impact is limited by the style in which they are traditionally written. Recently, many authors have called for a switch to an engaging, accessible writing style. Here, we experimentally test how readers respond to such a style. We hypothesized that scientific abstracts written in a more accessible style would improve readers’ reported readability and confidence as well as their understanding, assessed using multiple-choice questions on the content. We created a series of scientific abstracts, corresponding to real publications on three scientific topics at four levels of difficulty – varying from the difficult, traditional style to an engaging, accessible style. We gave these abstracts to a team of readers consisting of 170 third-year undergraduate students. Then, we posed questions to measure the readers’ readability, confidence, and understanding with the content. The scientific abstracts written in a more accessible style resulted in higher readability, understanding, and confidence. These findings demonstrate that rethinking the way we communicate our science may empower a more collaborative and diverse industry.Benjamin S. Freeling, Zoë A. Doubleday, Matthew J. Dry, Carolyn Semmler and Sean D. Connel

Eight habitats, 38 threats and 55 experts: Assessing ecological risk in a multi-use marine region

Published: May 10, 2017Identifying the relative risk human activities pose to a habitat, and the ecosystem services they provide, can guide management prioritisation and resource allocation. Using a combination of expert elicitation to assess the probable effect of a threat and existing data to assess the level of threat exposure, we conducted a risk assessment for 38 human-mediated threats to eight marine habitats (totalling 304 threat-habitat combinations) in Spencer Gulf, Australia. We developed a score-based survey to collate expert opinion and assess the relative effect of each threat to each habitat, as well as a novel and independent measure of knowledge-based uncertainty. Fifty-five experts representing multiple sectors and institutions participated in the study, with 6 to 15 survey responses per habitat (n = 81 surveys). We identified key threats specific to each habitat; overall, climate change threats received the highest risk rankings, with nutrient discharge identified as a key local-scale stressor. Invasive species and most fishing-related threats, which are commonly identified as major threats to the marine environment, were ranked as low-tier threats to Spencer Gulf, emphasising the importance of regionally-relevant assessments. Further, we identified critical knowledge gaps and quantified uncertainty scores for each risk. Our approach will facilitate prioritisation of resource allocation in a region of increasing social, economic and environmental importance, and can be applied to marine regions where empirical data are lacking.Zoë A. Doubleday, Alice R. Jones, Marty R. Deveney, Tim M. Ward, Bronwyn M. Gillander

The duality of ocean acidification as a resource and a stressor

Ecologically dominant species often define ecosystem states, but as human disturbances intensify, their subordinate counterparts increasingly displace them. We consider the duality of disturbance by examining how environmental drivers can simultaneously act as a stressor to dominant species and as a resource to subordinates. Using a model ecosystem, we demonstrate that CO2-driven interactions between species can account for such reversals in dominance; i.e., the displacement of dominants (kelp forests) by subordinates (turf algae). We established that CO2 enrichment had a direct positive effect on productivity of turfs, but a negligible effect on kelp. CO2 enrichment further suppressed the abundance and feeding rate of the primary grazer of turfs (sea urchins), but had an opposite effect on the minor grazer (gastropods). Thus, boosted production of subordinate producers, exacerbated by a net reduction in its consumption by primary grazers, accounts for community change (i.e., turf displacing kelp). Ecosystem collapse, therefore, is more likely when resource enrichment alters competitive dominance of producers, and consumers fail to compensate. By recognizing such duality in the responses of interacting species to disturbance, which may stabilize or exacerbate change, we can begin to understand how intensifying human disturbances determine whether or not ecosystems undergo phase shifts

The Usability of E-learning Platforms in Higher Education: A Systematic Mapping Study

The use of e-learning in higher education has increased significantly in recent years, which has led to several studies being conducted to investigate the usability of the platforms that support it. A variety of different usability evaluation methods and attributes have been used, and it has therefore become important to start reviewing this work in a systematic way to determine how the field has developed in the last 15 years. This paper describes a systematic mapping study that performed searches on five electronic libraries to identify usability issues and methods that have been used to evaluate e-learning platforms. Sixty-one papers were selected and analysed, with the majority of studies using a simple research design reliant on questionnaires. The usability attributes measured were mostly related to effectiveness, satisfaction, efficiency, and perceived ease of use. Furthermore, several research gaps have been identified and recommendations have been made for further work in the area of the usability of online learning

Quantification of the age-pigment lipofuscin in known-age octopus (Octopus pallidus): a potential tool for age determination

Stylet increment analysis (SIA) is the key method to age octopus, however, currently it is not reliable for all species. The suitability of the age-pigment lipofuscin as an alternative ageing method for octopus was examined. To determine the relationship between age and lipofuscin known-age octopus (Octopus pallidus) were reared in the laboratory from hatching to eight months old. Twenty-eight individuals at three different ages (3, 6 and 8 months old) were collected for lipofuscin analysis. The first two age groups (n = 5 each) were reared under ambient temperatures, while the oldest group (n = 18) was reared under three different controlled temperature regimes (n = 6 per treatment). For comparison, five wild O. pallidus were also collected for lipofuscin analysis and aged using SIA. Lipofuscin was analysed in the brain tissue and quantified at a commercial ageing centre using standard histological methods. Lipofuscin granules were clearly discernable in the brain tissue, and there was a strong exponential relationship between age and lipofuscin (R2 = 0.86). Lipofuscin concentration was not related to sex, temperature or body weight in same-age individuals. Except for one individual, the predicted age of the wild animals, based on the relationship between lipofuscin and age, was close to the age determined using SIA. This study is the first to report lipofuscin in an octopus species and shows that lipofuscin has excellent potential as an alternative ageing method for octopus. This research will have important applications for species which cannot be reliably aged using current ageing methods.Zoë A. Doubleday, Jayson M. Semmen

The effects of temperature and salinity on otolith chemistry of King George whiting

Otolith chemistry is used widely to reconstruct the environmental histories of fish. Examining the relationships between environmental conditions and otolith chemistry is an essential first step towards accurately reconstructing environmental histories, with lack of information potentially resulting in the erroneous interpretation of fish movement and the environments they have inhabited. We evaluated the influence of seawater temperature and salinity on the otolith chemistry of juvenile King George whiting (Sillaginodes punctatus) (Cuvier 1829), a commercially and recreationally important fish species in southern Australia. Juveniles were reared under controlled laboratory conditions at four temperatures (16, 19, 22 and 25 °C) and two levels of salinity (30 and 40) for 90 days. Otoliths were analysed for barium (138Ba), strontium (88Sr), magnesium (24Mg) and manganese (55Mn) using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA ICP-MS), and ratioed to calcium (43Ca). Otolith chemistry data were analysed using generalized linear mixed models (GLMM). Analyses showed that Mg:Ca and Mn:Ca in the otolith of the fish increased with increasing salinity, whereas Sr:Ca and Ba:Ca decreased with increasing salinity. Temperature only had a minor influence on elemental concentration. The influence of salinity on otolith chemistry suggests that otolith chemistry could be used as a potential tool for reconstructing the salinity and movement history of King George whiting from estuaries to open coast regions.N. Mazloum, Z. A. Doubleday, M. Gillander

Testing hypoxia: physiological effects of long-term exposure in two freshwater fishes

Hypoxic or oxygen-free zones are linked to large-scale mortalities of fauna in aquatic environments. Studies investigating the hypoxia tolerance of fish are limited and focused on marine species and short-term exposure. However, there has been minimal effort to understand the implications of long-term exposure on fish and their ability to acclimate. To test the effects of long-term exposure (months) of fish to hypoxia we devised a novel method to control the level of available oxygen. Juvenile golden perch (Macquaria ambigua ambigua), and silver perch (Bidyanus bidyanus), two key native species found within the Murray Darling Basin, Australia, were exposed to different temperatures (20, 24 and 28 °C) combined with normoxic (6-8 mgO₂ L⁻¹ or 12-14 kPa) and hypoxic (3-4 mgO₂ L⁻¹ or 7-9 kPa) conditions. After 10 months, fish were placed in individual respirometry chambers to measure standard and maximum metabolic rate (SMR and MMR), absolute aerobic scope (AAS) and hypoxia tolerance. Golden perch had a much higher tolerance to hypoxia exposure than silver perch, as most silver perch died after only 1 month exposure. Golden perch acclimated to hypoxia had reduced MMR at 20 and 28 °C, but there was no change to SMR. Long-term exposure to hypoxia improved the tolerance of golden perch to hypoxia, compared to individuals held under normoxic conditions suggesting that golden perch can acclimate to levels around 3 mgO₂ L⁻¹ (kPa ~ 7) and lower. The contrasting tolerance of two sympatric fish species to hypoxia highlights our lack of understanding of how hypoxia effects fish after long-term exposure.Kayla L. Gilmore, Zoe A. Doubleday, Bronwyn M. Gillander

Ocean life breaking rules by building shells in acidic extremes

Abstract not availableZoë A. Doubleday, Ivan Nagelkerken and Sean D. Connel

Metabolic effects on carbon isotope biomarkers in fish

Carbon stable isotopes (δ¹³C) in animal tissues are a powerful tool for tracking biological and environmental change. However, carbon isotope signatures can be altered by both physiological and environmental factors which can cloud interpretation in their use as biomarkers. We investigated metabolic effects (by varying temperatures) on δ¹³C of three fish tissues (otolith, muscle and liver) and the proportional contributions of environmental water (dissolved inorganic carbon; DIC) and diet (metabolic sources). Juvenile Australasian snapper (Chrysophrys auratus) were laboratory-reared at four temperatures for up to two months and then δ¹³C in otolith, liver and muscle were measured using isotope-ratio mass spectrometry (IRMS). Temperature significantly altered δ¹³C signatures in all tissues. δ¹³C in otoliths reflected carbon signatures from diet and water DIC, with values and variation of proportional contributions influenced by temperature. In muscle and liver, we found differences in δ¹³C between tissues and across temperature treatments with concurrent high diet-to-tissue fractionation. We conclude that metabolic effects influenced carbon incorporation for all tissues, with otolith carbon providing valuable insights into field metabolic rates. However, metabolic effects complicated the use of soft-tissue to track diet. This study deepens our understanding of internal and external drivers of carbon isotopic signatures in fish tissues and enhances their utility as a biomarker in the field. Improved insight into biomarkers facilitates more accurate predictions of ecological and environmental change for better understanding and management of wild populations.Jasmin C. Martino, Zoë A. Doubleday, Bronwyn M. Gillander