Cyto-nuclear discordance in the phylogeny of Ficus section Galoglychia and host shifts in plant-pollinator associations

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Hybridization events are relatively common in vascular plants. However, the frequency of these events is unevenly distributed across the plant phylogeny. Plant families in which individual species are pollinated by specific pollinator species are predicted to be less prone to hybridization than other families. However, exceptions may occur within these families, when pollinators shift host-plant species. Indeed, host shifts are expected to increase the rate of hybridization events. Pollinators of <it>Ficus </it>section <it>Galoglychia </it>are suspected to have changed host repeatedly, based on several cases of incongruence between plant phylogeny and taxonomy, and insect phylogeny and taxonomy. We tracked cyto-nuclear discordance across section <it>Galoglychia </it>as evidence for hybridization. To achieve a proper global view, we first clarified the monophyly of section <it>Galoglychia </it>as it had been questioned by recent phylogenetic studies. Moreover, we investigated if fig size could be a factor facilitating host shifts.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Phylogenetic chloroplast and nuclear results demonstrated the monophyly of section <it>Galoglychia</it>. Within section <it>Galoglychia</it>, we detected several cases of statistically significant cyto-nuclear discordance. Discordances concern both terminal nodes of the phylogenetic trees and one deep node defining relationships between subsections. Because nuclear phylogeny is congruent with morphological taxonomy, discordances were caused by the chloroplast phylogeny. Introgressive hybridization was the most likely explanation for these discordances. We also detected that subsections pollinated by several wasp genera had smaller figs and were pollinated by smaller wasps than subsections pollinated by a single wasp genus.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>As hypothesized, we discovered evidences of past hybridization in <it>Ficus </it>section <it>Galoglychia</it>. Further, introgression was only detected in subsections presenting incongruence between plant and pollinator phylogenies and taxonomy. This supports the hypothesis that host shift is the cause for plant-pollinator incongruence. Moreover, small fig size could facilitate host shifts. Eventually, this study demonstrates that non-coding chloroplast markers are valuable to resolve deep nodes in <it>Ficus </it>phylogeny.</p

emiT: an apparatus to test time reversal invariance in polarized neutron decay

We describe an apparatus used to measure the triple-correlation term (\D \hat{\sigma}_n\cdot p_e\times p_\nu) in the beta-decay of polarized neutrons. The \D-coefficient is sensitive to possible violations of time reversal invariance. The detector has an octagonal symmetry that optimizes electron-proton coincidence rates and reduces systematic effects. A beam of longitudinally polarized cold neutrons passes through the detector chamber, where a small fraction beta-decay. The final-state protons are accelerated and focused onto arrays of cooled semiconductor diodes, while the coincident electrons are detected using panels of plastic scintillator. Details regarding the design and performance of the proton detectors, beta detectors and the electronics used in the data collection system are presented. The neutron beam characteristics, the spin-transport magnetic fields, and polarization measurements are also described.Comment: 15 pages, 13 figure

Hidrogenionic potential (pH) of the attractant, trap density and control threshold for Ceratitis capitata (Diptera: tephritidae) on Hamlin oranges in São Paulo central region, Brazil

This study evaluated the effect of initial pH values of 4.5, 6.5 and 8.5 of the attractant (protein bait) Milhocina® and borax (sodium borate) in the feld, on the capture of fruit flies in McPhail traps, using 1, 2, 4 and 8 traps per hectare, in order to estimate control thresholds in a Hamlin orange grove in the central region of the state of São Paulo. The most abundant fruit fly species was Ceratitis capitata, comprising almost 99% of the fruit flies captured, of which 80% were females. The largest captures of C. capitata were found in traps baited with Milhocina® and borax at pH 8.5. Captures per trap for the four densities were similar, indicating that the population can be estimated with one trap per hectare in areas with high populations. It was found positive relationships between captures of C. capitata and the number of Hamlin oranges damaged, 2 and 3 weeks after capture. It was obtained equations that correlate captures and damage levels which can be used to estimate control thresholds. The average loss caused in Hamlin orange fruits by C. capitata was 2.5 tons per hectare or 7.5% of production.Esta pesquisa teve como objetivos: avaliar o efeito do pH inicial, 4.5; 6.5 e 8.5, do atrativo proteico Milhocina® e bórax (tetraborato de sódio) na captura de moscas-das-frutas em armadilhas McPhail; estudar densidades de armadilhas, 1; 2; 4 e 8 por hectare, para estimar níveis de controle em laranja cv. Hamlin, na região central de São Paulo. A espécie predominante, com 99% das moscas-das-frutas capturadas, foi Ceratitis capitata, sendo 80% de fêmeas. As maiores capturas de C. capitata ocorreram nas armadilhas com Milhocina® e bórax em pH 8.5. As capturas, nas 4 densidades, foram semelhantes, indicando que a população pode ser estimada com uma armadilha por hectare em áreas de altas populações. Houve relações positivas entre capturas de C. capitata e o número de frutos danificados, 2 e 3 semanas após a captura. Assim, foram obtidas equações que relacionam a captura e o dano, possibilitando estimar níveis de controle desse inseto. As perdas médias causadas por C. capitata em laranja cv. Hamlin chegaram a 2,5 toneladas de frutos por hectare ou 7,5% da produção.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio

Detection, Quantification and Classification of Ripened Tomatoes: A Comparative Analysis of Image Processing and Machine Learning

In this paper, specifically for detection of ripe/unripe tomatoes with/without defects in the crop field, two distinct methods are described and compared. One is a machine learning approach, known as ‘Cascaded Object Detector’ and the other is a composition of traditional customized methods, individually known as ‘Colour Transformation’, ‘Colour Segmentation’ and ‘Circular Hough Transformation’. The (Viola Jones) Cascaded Object Detector generates ‘histogram of oriented gradient’ (HOG) features to detect tomatoes. For ripeness checking, the RGB mean is calculated with a set of rules. However, for traditional methods, color thresholding is applied to detect tomatoes either from a natural or solid background and RGB colour is adjusted to identify ripened tomatoes. In this work, Colour Segmentation is applied in the detection of tomatoes with defects, which has not previously been applied under machine learning techniques. The function modules of this algorithm are fed formatted images, captured by a camera mounted on a mobile robot. This robot was designed, built and operated in a tomato field to identify and quantify both green and ripened tomatoes as well as to detect damaged/blemished ones. This algorithm is shown to be optimally feasible for any micro-controller based miniature electronic devices in terms of its run time complexity of O(n3) for traditional method in best and average cases. Comparisons show that the accuracy of the machine learning method is 95%, better than that of the Colour Segmentation Method using MATLAB. This result is potentially significant for farmers in crop fields to identify the condition of tomatoes quickly

The UK market for energy service contracts in 2014–2015

This paper provides an overview of the UK market for energy service contracts in 2014 and highlights the growing role of intermediaries. Using information from secondary literature and interviews, it identifies the businesses offering energy service contracts, the sectors and organisations that are purchasing those contracts, the types of contract that are available, the areas of market growth and the reasons for that growth. The paper finds that the UK market is relatively large, highly diverse, concentrated in particular sectors and types of site and overwhelmingly focused upon established technologies with high rates of return. A major driver is the emergence of procurement frameworks for energy service contracts in the public sector. These act as intermediaries between clients and contractors, thereby lowering transaction costs and facilitating learning. The market is struggling to become established in commercial offices, largely as a result of split incentives, and is unlikely to develop further in this sector without different business models, tenancy arrangements and policy initiatives. Overall, the paper concludes that energy service contracts can play an important role in the transition to a low-carbon economy, especially when supported by intermediaries, but their potential is still limited by high transaction costs

Deployment of mating disruption dispensers before and after first seasonal male flights for the control of Aonidiella aurantii in citrus

The rejection of citrus fruit caused by infestations of the California red scale (CRS), Aonidiella aurantii (Maskell) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), raises concerns about its management. This fact has led to the introduction of new integrated control methods in citrus orchards, including the implementation of techniques based on pheromones. Previous works described efficient mating disruption pheromone dispensers to control A. aurantii in the Mediterranean region. The main aims of the present study were to adjust the timing of dispenser applications and study the importance of controlling the early first generation of A. aurantii by testing two different application dates: before and after the first CRS male flight. The efficacy of the different mating disruption strategies was tested during 2010 in an experimental orchard and these results were confirmed during 2011 in a commercial citrus farm. Results showed that every mating disruption strategy achieved significantly lower male captures in monitoring pheromone traps compared with untreated plots, as well as mean fruit infestation reductions of about 80 %. The control of the first CRS generation is not essential for achieving a good efficacy as demonstrated in two locations with different pest pressure. The late application of MD dispensers before the second CRS male flight has proven to be effective, suggesting a new advantageous way to apply mating disruption.The authors want to thank Fernando Alfaro from Denia, Antonio Caballero, and Javier Macias from Rio Tinto Fruit S.A. (Huelva, Spain) for field support. We also thank Ecologia y Proteccion Agricola SL for the pheromone supply. This work has been funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (project AGL2009-10725) and Agroalimed Foundation. 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Benefit or Burden? On the Intergenerational Inequity of Teacher Pension Plans

Most teachers are enrolled in defined benefit (DB) pension plans, which facilitate various types of resource transfers between workers. Using administrative micro data from four states, combined with national pension funding data, we examine a specific type of resource transfer permitted by educator pension plans: intergenerational transfers. We show that for new cohorts of teachers, DB pension plans are driving a transfer of compensation to previous cohorts of teachers. Across state plans in the United States, current teachers pay an average of approximately 10 percent of their earnings to cover previously-accrued pension liabilities. This amounts to a significant reduction in real operating spending per student. If current teachers were not required to cover these liabilities, their salaries could be increased substantially without increasing the total budget for teacher compensation. Affiliations and Acknowledgment

Search for squarks and gluinos in events with isolated leptons, jets and missing transverse momentum at s√=8 TeV with the ATLAS detector

The results of a search for supersymmetry in final states containing at least one isolated lepton (electron or muon), jets and large missing transverse momentum with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider are reported. The search is based on proton-proton collision data at a centre-of-mass energy s√=8 TeV collected in 2012, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 20 fb−1. No significant excess above the Standard Model expectation is observed. Limits are set on supersymmetric particle masses for various supersymmetric models. Depending on the model, the search excludes gluino masses up to 1.32 TeV and squark masses up to 840 GeV. Limits are also set on the parameters of a minimal universal extra dimension model, excluding a compactification radius of 1/R c = 950 GeV for a cut-off scale times radius (ΛR c) of approximately 30