A Comparative Study of Scholastic Achievement between Day and Dormitory High School Students in Ankara, Turkey

The primary purpose of this study was to compare the scholastic achievement of dormitory students and day students after both groups entered Ankara American High School

Correlation between prescribing quality and pharmaceutical costs in English primary care: national cross-sectional analysis

Background Both pharmaceutical costs and quality-indicator performance vary substantially between general practices, but little is known about the relationship between prescribing costs and quality Aim To measure the association between prescribing quality and pharmaceutical costs among English general practices Design and setting Cross-sectional observational study using data from the Quality and Outcomes Framework and the Prescribing Analysis and Cost database from all 8409 general practices in England in 2005-2006 Method Correlation between practice achievement of 26 prescribing quality indicators in eight prescribing areas and related pharmaceutical costs was examined. Results There was no significant association between the overall achievement of quality indicators and related pharmaceutical costs (P= 0.399). Mean achievement of quality indicators across all eight prescribing areas was 79.0% (standard deviation 4.4%). There were small positive correlations in five prescribing areas: influenza vaccination, beta blockers, angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors, lipid lowering, and antiplatelet treatment (all

Integration of plastids with their hosts: Lessons learned from dinoflagellates.

After their endosymbiotic acquisition, plastids become intimately connected with the biology of their host. For example, genes essential for plastid function may be relocated from the genomes of plastids to the host nucleus, and pathways may evolve within the host to support the plastid. In this review, we consider the different degrees of integration observed in dinoflagellates and their associated plastids, which have been acquired through multiple different endosymbiotic events. Most dinoflagellate species possess plastids that contain the pigment peridinin and show extreme reduction and integration with the host biology. In some species, these plastids have been replaced through serial endosymbiosis with plastids derived from a different phylogenetic derivation, of which some have become intimately connected with the biology of the host whereas others have not. We discuss in particular the evolution of the fucoxanthin-containing dinoflagellates, which have adapted pathways retained from the ancestral peridinin plastid symbiosis for transcript processing in their current, serially acquired plastids. Finally, we consider why such a diversity of different degrees of integration between host and plastid is observed in different dinoflagellates and how dinoflagellates may thus inform our broader understanding of plastid evolution and function.This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from PNAS via http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.142138011

Use of Airport Noise Complaint Files to Improve Understanding of Community Response to Aircraft Noise

This study assessed the feasibility of using complaint information archived by modem airport monitoring systems to conduct quantitative analyses of the causes of aircraft noise complaints and their relationship to noise- induced annoyance. It was found that all computer-based airport monitoring systems provide at least rudimentary tools for performing data base searches by complainant name, address, date, time of day, and types of aircraft and complaints. Analyses of such information can provide useful information about longstanding concerns, such as the extent to which complaint rates are driven by objectively measurable aspects of aircraft operations; the degree to which changes in complaint rates can be predicted prior to implementation of noise mitigation measures; and the degree to which aircraft complaint information can be used to simplify and otherwise improve prediction of the prevalence of noise-induced annoyance in communities

Relative Abundance of Postlarval and Juvenile Penaeid Shrimps in Submerged Aquatic Vegetation and Emergent Marsh Habitats

Postlarval and juvenile densities of Farfantepenaeus aztecus, Farfantepenaeus duorarum, and Litopenaeus setiferus were compared among emergent marsh (Spartina alterniflora), submerged aquatic vegetation (Ruppia maritima), and adjacent unvegetated areas at the east end of Fowl River along Mobile Bay, AL. A total of 108 samples were collected between July 1994 and Nov. 1995, of which 76 samples contained at least one of the three penaeid species. Of the 507 penaeid shrimp collected, 303 (60%) were collected in the R. maritima beds, 152 (30%) in the S. alterniflora, and 52 (10%) in the sand/mud habitat. The mean densities of F. aztecus, F. duorarum, and all three penaeid species combined were significantly greater in the R. maritima beds compared with those in both the S. alterniflora and sand/mud habitats. Presence of vegetation appeared to have little effect on shrimp size because no significant difference in size of shrimp between habitats was recorded. Generally, there was little correlation between shrimp density and abiotic factors within the three habitats, but a significant negative correlation was found between F. aztecus density and S. alterniflora density. Results suggest that habitats with submerged aquatic vegetation, R. maritima, are utilized more by both F. aztecus and F. duorarum over those characterized by the emergent vegetation, S. alterniflora. Because shrimp densities did not exhibit any patterns in relation to a variety of hydrographic factors, additional field studies should focus on biotic parameters (i.e., predation, competition, food availability, habitat structure) to better determine the factors that affect penaeid shrimp abundance within estuarine habitats

Book Reviews

Books reviewed: Manly Hardy (1832-1910): The Life and Writing of a Maine Fur-Buyer, Hunter, and Naturalist. Compiled and Introduced by William B. Krohn; The Grand Old Man of Maine: Selected Letters of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, 1865-1914, edited by Jeremiah E. Goulka; Israel Washburn Jr.: Maine’s Little-Known Giant of the Civil War, by Kerck Kelsey; Longfellow: A Rediscovered Life, by Charles C. Calhou

Book Reviews

Books reviewed: Manly Hardy (1832-1910): The Life and Writing of a Maine Fur-Buyer, Hunter, and Naturalist. Compiled and Introduced by William B. Krohn; The Grand Old Man of Maine: Selected Letters of Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain, 1865-1914, edited by Jeremiah E. Goulka; Israel Washburn Jr.: Maine’s Little-Known Giant of the Civil War, by Kerck Kelsey; Longfellow: A Rediscovered Life, by Charles C. Calhou