A taxonomic revision of the subfamily Tillinae Leach sensu lato (Coleoptera, Cleridae) in the New World

Citation: Burke A, Zolnerowich G (2017) Taxonomic revision of the New World Tillinae Leach sensu lato (Coleoptera: Cleridae). ZooKeys 719: 75-157. https://doi.org/10.3897/zookeys.179.21253The subfamily Tillinae Leach is represented by 12 genera in the New World. In this study, eight of these genera are revised. A diagnosis and redescription of the species of Araeodontia Barr, Barrotillus Rifkind, Bogcia Barr, Cylidrus Latreille, Cymatoderella Barr, Lecontella Wolcott & Chapin, Monophylla Spinola, and Onychotillus Chapin are presented. Bogcia oaxacae Barr is designated as a junior synonym of Bogcia disjuncta Barr. One species, Cymatodera striatopunctata Chevrolat, is transferred to Lecontella. The following species are redescribed: Araeodontia isabellae (Wolcott), A. marginalis Barr, A. peninsularis (Schaeffer), Barrotillus kropotkini Rifkind, Bogcia disjuncta Barr, Cylidrus abdominalis Klug, Cymatoderella collaris (Spinola), C. morula Rifkind, C. patagoniae (Knull), Lecontella brunnea (Spinola), L. gnara Wolcott, L. striatopunctata (Chevrolat), Monophylla californica (Fall), M. pallipes Schaeffer, M. terminata (Say), Onychotillus vittatus Chapin, and O. cubana De Zayas. Transcriptions of the original descriptions of Araeodontia picipennis Barr, Bostrichoclerus bicornis Van Dyke and Monophylla cinctipennis (Chevrolat) are given. Cymatodera Gray, with approximately 130 described species, is excluded from this study due to the number of species involved. The genera Neocallotillus Burke and Callotillus Wolcott are also excluded here since these groups have been recently revised elsewhere. Collection data are provided for all species revised. Updated distribution maps are presented. Keys to New World genera and species are given and taxonomic characters of relevant importance are provided and discussed

Four new species of Cymatodera Gray from Mexico (Coleoptera, Cleridae, Tillinae)

Four new species of Cymatodera from Mexico: Cymatodera bogcioides sp. n.; Cymatodera pueblae sp. n.; Cymatodera mitae sp. n.; and Cymatodera lineata sp. n. are described based on adult male and female specimens. Male genitalia and other characters of taxonomic value are presented

Judicial Disqualification on Appeal

Adjudication by an impartial decision maker is one of the cornerstones of due process. The interest is so fundamental that constitutional due process guards against even the appearance of partiality, and federal judges are statutorily required to disqualify themselves in any proceeding in which their impartiality “might reasonably be questioned.” Courts and scholars alike have struggled with what it means to “reasonably question” a judge’s impartiality. That question has taken on greater salience in recent years, as deepening partisan divisions have increasingly led parties to express skepticism of judicial neutrality. When a party files a motion to disqualify a judge based on the appearance of partiality, that motion is commonly ruled upon by the very judge whose impartiality is being questioned. The ability to appeal the denial of a disqualification motion plays therefore plays a key role in maintaining public confidence in the judiciary. Appellate review offers a third-party evaluation of the judge’s appearance of impartiality (often the first third-party review), and it brings in the benefit of a larger panel to evaluate the underlying ruling. In spite of the importance of appellate review, the procedures by which judicial disqualification will be reviewed are far from clear. This Article explores the procedural aspects of appellate review of judicial disqualification orders and works to reconcile the current inconsistencies in federal practice. Ultimately, the article recommends that the federal courts standardize appellate review of disqualification orders to minimize confusion and promote confidence in an impartial judiciary

Supporting Early-childhood Teachers with Integrating a Humanoid Robot to Enhance Learning

Anthropomorphic robots are increasingly being used as a technology in early childhood settings, and they have been found to enhance social interaction (Tanaka, Cicourel & Movellan, 2007), support foreign language development (Mazzoni & Benvenuti, 2015), and gain student attention and interest (Ioannou, Andreou & Christofi, 2015). Furthermore, integrating a humanoid robot can provide affordances across all domains of the Head Start Learning Outcomes Framework: approaches to learning; social and emotional development; language and communication; cognition; and perceptual, motor and physical development

Humanoid Robots Supporting Children’s Learning in an Early Childhood Setting

This qualitative study explored the affordances provided by the integration of the NAO humanoid robot in three preschool classrooms. Using the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework as a lens, the researchers qualitatively analyzed data from focus groups, observations, field notes and student artifacts, using grounded coding to uncover language and communication, physical, cognitive and social–emotional learning experiences for children. The researchers also examined interactions between the robot, children and teachers to identify successes and challenges experienced during the integration. Findings indicate the robot provided opportunities for student development in all learning domains. Students were intellectually curious about the robot; data showed their eagerness to “talk with,” generate questions about, make eye contact with and learn more about the robot. Students viewed these interactions as two-way. The presence of the robot created much enthusiasm and excitement, resulting in the opportunity for students to practice waiting their turn and cooperation. Challenges uncovered show that teachers lacked experience and knowledge in the integration and operation of the robot. Despite these challenges, findings show that teachers welcomed the robot as a tool in the classroom to align with curriculum requirements and meet the developmental needs of children

Four new species of Cymatodera Gray from central and southern Mexico (Coleoptera, Cleridae, Tillinae)

Citation: Burke, A. F., Rifkind, J., & Zolnerowich, G. (2015). Four new species of Cymatodera Gray from central and southern Mexico (Coleoptera, Cleridae, Tillinae). Zookeys(513), 105-121. doi:10.3897/zookeys.513.9935Four new species of Cymatodera are described from Mexico: C. tortuosa Burke & Rifkind, sp. n. from Hidalgo and Tamaulipas; C. ortegae Burke, sp. n. from Colima, Jalisco and Michoacan; C. gerstmeieri Burke & Rifkind, sp. n. from Chiapas; and C. mixteca Burke & Rifkind, sp. n. from Puebla and Guerrero. Male genitalia and other characters of taxonomic value are illustrated

Investigation of Fiber Optics Based Phased Locked Diode Lasers

Optical power beaming requires a high intensity source and a system to address beam phase and location. A synthetic aperture array of phased locked sources can provide the necessary power levels as well as a means to correct for phase errors. A fiber optic phase modulator with a master oscillator and power amplifier (MOPA) using an injection-locking semiconductor optical amplifier has proven to be effective in correcting phase errors as large as 4pi in an interferometer system. Phase corrections with the piezoelectric fiber stretcher were made from 0 - 10 kHz, with most application oriented corrections requiring only 1 kHz. The amplifier did not lose locked power output while the phase was changed, however its performance was below expectation. Results of this investigation indicate fiber stretchers and amplifiers can be incorporated into a MOPA system to achieve successful earth based power beaming

A VLBI Proper Motion Analysis of the Recoiling Supermassive Black Hole Candidate Mrk 1018

Mrk 1018 is a nearby changing-look AGN that has oscillated between spectral Type 1.9 and Type 1 over a period of 40 years. Recently, a recoiling supermassive black hole (rSMBH) scenario has been proposed to explain the spectral and flux variability observed in this AGN. Detections of rSMBHs are important for understanding the processes by which SMBH binaries merge and how rSMBHs influence their galactic environment through feedback mechanisms. However, conclusive identification of any rSMBHs has remained elusive to date. In this paper, we present an analysis of 6.5 years of multi-frequency Very Long Baseline Array (VLBA) monitoring of Mrk 1018. We find that the radio emission is compact down to 2.4 pc, and displays flux density and spectral variability over the length of our campaign, typical of a flat spectrum radio core. We observe proper motion in RA of the radio core at -36.4 $\pm$ 8.6 $\mu$as yr$^{-1}$ (4.2$\sigma$), or $0.10c \pm 0.02c$ at the redshift of Mrk 1018. No significant proper motion is found in DEC (31.3 $\pm$ 25.1 $\mu$as yr$^{-1}$). We discuss possible physical mechanisms driving the proper motion, including a rSMBH. We conclude that the apparent velocity we observe of the VLBI radio core is too high to reconcile with theoretical predictions of rSMBH velocities and that the proper motion is most likely dominated by an unresolved, outflowing jet component. Future observations may yet reveal the true nature of Mrk 1018. However, our observations are not able to confirm it as a true rSMBH.Comment: 17 pages, 7 figures, 3 tables; accepted for publication in Ap