How can ten fingers shape a pot? Evidence for equivalent function in culturally distinct motor skills

Behavioural variability is likely to emerge when a particular task is performed in different cultural settings, assuming that part of human motor behaviour is influenced by culture. In analysing motor behaviour it is useful to distinguish how the action is performed from the result achieved. Does cultural environment lead to specific cultural motor skills? Are there differences between cultures both in the skills themselves and in the corresponding outcomes? Here we analyse the skill of pottery wheel-throwing in French and Indian cultural environments. Our specific goal was to examine the ability of expert potters from distinct cultural settings to reproduce a common model shape (a sphere). The operational aspects of motor performance were captured through the analysis of the hand positions used by the potters during the fashioning process. In parallel, the outcomes were captured by the geometrical characteristics of the vessels produced. As expected, results revealed a cultural influence on the operational aspects of the potters' motor skill. Yet, the marked cultural differences in hand positions used did not give rise to noticeable differences in the shapes of the vessels produced. Hence, for the simple model form studied, the culturally-specific motor traditions of the French and Indian potters gave rise to an equivalent outcome, that is shape uniformity. Further work is needed to test whether such equivalence is also observed in more complex ceramic shapes

Assessing Doha's Street Network from the Perspective of 'Complete Streets' Concept

Streets are considered dynamic spaces in cities, and their design should be safe, comfortable and efficient for all users. Well-functioning streets can create a healthy lifestyle for a city and its users. Many cities are suffering from transportation issues because of their poorly designed street networks that do not integrate the different modes of transportation, or establish safe environments in which pedestrian and cyclists are treated as kings. In this manner, Doha as a city is experiencing the same kind of problem, creating corridors that do not take into consideration different travel modes, which causes severe congestion, delay and shortage in street capacity and, most importantly, users’ dissatisfaction. Therefore, there is a need to investigate and explore some methods that aim to improve cities’ street networks. “Complete Streets” is a roadway design concept initiated with the intention of integrating numerous modes of transportation and their variety of users. Complete Streets are also envisioned to provide traffic, safety and public health benefits, and integrate a healthy lifestyle into built environments worldwide. The newly-emerging concept can be adapted in contexts that fail to combine the different street elements that a street should have. Considering the low quality of the current street network, this thesis aims to evaluate the current streets in Doha city based on the degree of users’ satisfaction, and provide approaches to enhance them from the perspective of the ‘Complete Streets’ concept. The study analyzes two international case studies that have successfully implemented the concept and improved their current street network and enhanced users’ built environment. The analysis will help in extracting criteria that are used to assess the current performance of the street network and recommending ways to improve them. The methodological approach of this research will focus on the selection of two neighborhoods in Doha based on their contextual location and types of land use: a downtown area or urban center exemplified in Fereej bin Mahmoud, and a suburban area or residential district of Al Waab. Three nominated streets of the existing network within the two areas will be selected based on an evaluation matrix, and assessed according to the users’ perspectives and future preferences and aspirations. This approach is supported by two major data collection tools: a visual questionnaire survey and semi-structured interviews with local authorities. A total of 100 questionnaires were collected for the two selected areas from different types of users. Results showed that users are completely unsatisfied with the current conditions of the selected streets in the two areas, which lack the major components of Complete Street variables: pedestrian, bicycle, green and transit improvements, which has resulted in the absence of safety. The produced results along with the evaluation criteria have helped in improving the current streets’ designs and have created a new enhanced cross-section that meets the concept of Complete Streets

Whole-Body CT after Motor Vehicle Crash: No Benefit after High-Energy Impact and with Normal Physical Examination

Background Debate continues about the risks and benefits of systematic whole-body CT when no injury is clinically suspected. Risks of whole-body CT include high radiation exposure and iodine contrast agent, but its effectiveness in reducing mortality in low-risk motor vehicle crashes is unclear. Purpose To assess unsuspected injuries revealed at whole-body CT in patients following motor vehicle crash (MVC) meeting only kinetic elements of the Vittel criteria for the severity of trauma, with no evidence of trunk injury and a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 15. Materials and Methods This retrospective study included all consecutive adult patients who consulted an emergency department of a level 1 trauma center between August 2016 and July 2017 if they underwent whole-body CT for one or more kinetic elements of the Vittel criteria, had a normal examination of the trunk, and had a Glasgow Coma Scale score of 15. Data of the MVC mechanism and physical and biologic examinations were collected, as well as patient treatment data after whole-body CT. Whole-body CT examinations were read by two double-blinded readers to help detect unsuspected injuries. Results Ninety-three patients were included; 72 were men with a mean age of 30.8 years ± 12.0 (standard deviation). Sixty-nine patients were occupants of a car. Seventeen patients were hit by a car while on motorbikes, three while on bicycles, and four as pedestrians. Unsuspected injuries were depicted at 11 whole-body CT examinations: eight lung contusions, one acetabular fracture, one sternal fracture, and one adrenal hematoma. None of these injuries required a specific treatment. One patient with lung contusion of more than 30% of lung volume was followed without requiring further treatment. Conclusion In this population, whole-body CT did not lead to any change in patient treatment. These results suggest whole-body CT should not be systematically performed when no evidence of trunk injury is observed in patients following motor vehicle crash meeting only kinetic elements of Vittel criteria. © RSNA, 2019 See also the editorial by Munera and Durso in this issue

Conservation et introduction de lémuriens sur l'îlot Mbouzy (Mayotte)

À Mayotte, l'îlot Mbouzi est un lieu remarquable par son milieu naturel en grande partie préservé, alors qu'il se situe à proximité de la ville principale, Mamoudzou. Il fait l'objet d'une demande de classement en réserve naturelle. Nous pensons utile d'apporter quelques éléments pouvant servir à la réflexion sur l'avenir de cet îlot, et d'établir une sorte d'état des lieux concernant son intérêt biologique. Quelles sont les possibilités d'équilibre à long terme entre les populations animales et végétales, sachant qu'une association (loi de 1901) consacr

Conservation et introduction de lémuriens sur l'îlot Mbouzy (Mayotte)

À Mayotte, l'îlot Mbouzi est un lieu remarquable par son milieu naturel en grande partie préservé, alors qu'il se situe à proximité de la ville principale, Mamoudzou. Il fait l'objet d'une demande de classement en réserve naturelle. Nous pensons utile d'apporter quelques éléments pouvant servir à la réflexion sur l'avenir de cet îlot, et d'établir une sorte d'état des lieux concernant son intérêt biologique. Quelles sont les possibilités d'équilibre à long terme entre les populations animales et végétales, sachant qu'une association (loi de 1901) consacr

Does Medicine without Evolution Make Sense?

Should evolutionary biology contribute to the education of medical students

doi:10.1016/j.vaccine.2008.04.012

a b s t r a c t One theory of why some pathogens are virulent (i.e., they damage their host) is that they need to extract resources from their host in order to compete for transmission to new hosts, and this resource extraction can damage the host. Here we describe our studies in malaria that test and support this idea. We go on to show that host immunity can exacerbate selection for virulence and therefore that vaccines that reduce pathogen replication may select for more virulent pathogens, eroding the benefits of vaccination and putting the unvaccinated at greater risk. We suggest that in disease contexts where wild-type parasites can be transmitted through vaccinated hosts, evolutionary outcomes need to be considered. © 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. An evolutionary hypothesis for pathogen virulence Why are pathogens virulent? 1 Why would they run the risk of killing their host when, in doing so, they lose their ongoing source of transmission to new hosts? Some evolutionary biologists believe that the answer to this question will make it possible to design vaccines and other control measures that, in the event of eradication being impossible, drive the pathogen towards lower virulence One answer to this question is that virulence is a mistake by the pathogen-an ultimately maladaptative outcome that occasionally happens when a pathogen accidentally ends up in an abnormal host environment, or when a virulent mutant has a transient competitive advantage within a host ('short-sighted, or dead-end evolution') E-mail address: [email protected] (M.J. Mackinnon). 1 Throughout this paper, we strictly define virulence as the fitness cost that the parasite causes the host. This may be through mortality, or morbidity-related reduction in fertility or fecundity. We sometimes use morbidity as a surrogate measure of virulence. Of all the explanations for virulence, the trade-off hypothesis has received most attention and a large body of theory has been derived from it. Yet it is poorly supported by data. Here we describe our studies in malaria parasites, the causative agents of a disease of global importance, in which we have comprehensively explored the trade-off hypothesis. We begin by summarising our experimental tests in a laboratory mouse-malaria system of the assumptions underlying the trade-off theory. We then ask whether the rodent data are relevant to malaria parasites in their human setting. Next, we use the trade-off theory to predict what the impact might be on the evolution of the pathogen's virulence if malaria vaccines went into widespread use. Finally, we summarise an experimental evolution study to test our prediction that enhanced immunity would select for more virulent parasites. Together, this work has led us to a deeper understanding of why malaria still kills its host despite millenia of coevolution, and what might happen when disease control campaigns change the level of population immunity, e.g., enhance it using vaccines, or reduce it using bednets and vector control. The trade-off hypothesis and its assumptions Under the trade-off hypothesis, it is assumed that there are both fitness benefits and costs associated with virulence. The cost is assumed to be host death because, for most pathogens, transmission stops when the host dies. The benefits associated with virulence are assumed to be production of more transmission forms per unit time, and/or increased persistence in a live host. However, the benefits of higher transmissibility and persistence only accrue 0264-410X/$ -see front matte

Imperfect vaccines and the evolution of pathogen virulence

Vaccines rarely provide full protection from disease. Nevertheless, partially effective (imperfect) vaccines may be used to protect both individuals and whole populations.We studied the potential impact of different types of imperfect vaccines on the evolution of pathogen virulence (induced host mortality) and the consequences for public health. Here we show that vaccines designed to reduce pathogen growth rate and/or toxicity diminish selection against virulent pathogens. The subsequent evolution leads to higher levels of intrinsic virulence and hence to more severe disease in unvaccinated individuals. This evolution can erode any population-wide benefits such that overall mortality rates are unaffected, or even increase, with the level of vaccination coverage. In contrast, infection-blocking vaccines induce no such effects, and can even select for lower virulence. These findings have policy implications for the development and use of vaccines that are not expected to provide full immunity, such as candidate vaccines for malaria

Darwin’s wind hypothesis: does it work for plant dispersal in fragmented habitats?

Using the wind-dispersed plant Mycelis muralis, we examined how landscape fragmentation affects variation in seed traits contributing to dispersal. Inverse terminal velocity (Vt−1) of field-collected achenes was used as a proxy for individual seed dispersal ability. We related this measure to different metrics of landscape connectivity, at two spatial scales: in a detailed analysis of eight landscapes in Spain and along a latitudinal gradient using 29 landscapes across three European regions. In the highly patchy Spanish landscapes, seed Vt−1 increased significantly with increasing connectivity. A common garden experiment suggested that differences in Vt−1 may be in part genetically based. The Vt−1 was also found to increase with landscape occupancy, a coarser measure of connectivity, on a much broader (European) scale. Finally, Vt−1 was found to increase along a south–north latitudinal gradient. Our results for M. muralis are consistent with ‘Darwin’s wind dispersal hypothesis’ that high cost of dispersal may select for lower dispersal ability in fragmented landscapes, as well as with the ‘leading edge hypothesis’ that most recently colonized populations harbour more dispersive phenotypes.

Phylogenetic Codivergence Supports Coevolution of Mimetic Heliconius Butterflies

The unpalatable and warning-patterned butterflies _Heliconius erato_ and _Heliconius melpomene_ provide the best studied example of mutualistic Müllerian mimicry, thought – but rarely demonstrated – to promote coevolution. Some of the strongest available evidence for coevolution comes from phylogenetic codivergence, the parallel divergence of ecologically associated lineages. Early evolutionary reconstructions suggested codivergence between mimetic populations of _H. erato_ and _H. melpomene_, and this was initially hailed as the most striking known case of coevolution. However, subsequent molecular phylogenetic analyses found discrepancies in phylogenetic branching patterns and timing (topological and temporal incongruence) that argued against codivergence. We present the first explicit cophylogenetic test of codivergence between mimetic populations of _H. erato_ and _H. melpomene_, and re-examine the timing of these radiations. We find statistically significant topological congruence between multilocus coalescent population phylogenies of _H. erato_ and _H. melpomene_, supporting repeated codivergence of mimetic populations. Divergence time estimates, based on a Bayesian coalescent model, suggest that the evolutionary radiations of _H. erato_ and _H. melpomene_ occurred over the same time period, and are compatible with a series of temporally congruent codivergence events. This evidence supports a history of reciprocal coevolution between Müllerian co-mimics characterised by phylogenetic codivergence and parallel phenotypic change