"With the Richness of Their Resources”: Honors Alumni Reflect on the Impact of a Service-Learning and Mentoring Program

Scholars have encouraged universities to more effectively engage with surrounding communities. One example of community engagement is the service-learning partnership between the Plan II Honors Program and the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) public charter school in Austin, through which college students enroll in a class to mentor local middle school students. In this article, we examine qualitative survey responses from Plan II alumni over a seven-year period reflecting on their experiences. Alumni described the service-learning experience as influencing their academic careers, postgraduate plans, and personal views. Findings imply that structured service-learning experiences can significantly influence the behaviors and life decisions of alumni both at the time of their experience and well beyond.Educatio

Hierarchical genetic structure shaped by topography in a narrow-endemic montane grasshopper

[Background]: Understanding the underlying processes shaping spatial patterns of genetic structure in free-ranging organisms is a central topic in evolutionary biology. Here, we aim to disentangle the relative importance of neutral (i.e. genetic drift) and local adaptation (i.e. ecological divergence) processes in the evolution of spatial genetic structure of the Morales grasshopper (Chorthippus saulcyi moralesi), a narrow-endemic taxon restricted to the Central Pyrenees. More specifically, we analysed range-wide patterns of genetic structure and tested whether they were shaped by geography (isolation-by-distance, IBD), topographic complexity and present and past habitat suitability models (isolation-byresistance, IBR), and environmental dissimilarity (isolation-by-environment, IBE).[Results]: Different clustering analyses revealed a deep genetic structure that was best explained by IBR based on topographic complexity. Our analyses did not reveal a significant role of IBE, a fact that may be due to low environmental variation among populations and/or consequence of other ecological factors not considered in this study are involved in local adaptation processes. IBR scenarios informed by current and past climate distribution models did not show either a significant impact on genetic differentiation after controlling for the effects of topographic complexity, which may indicate that they are not capturing well microhabitat structure in the present or the genetic signal left by dispersal routes defined by habitat corridors in the past.[Conclusions]: Overall, these results indicate that spatial patterns of genetic variation in our study system are primarily explained by neutral divergence and migration-drift equilibrium due to limited dispersal across abrupt reliefs, whereas environmental variation or spatial heterogeneity in habitat suitability associated with the complex topography of the region had no significant effect on genetic discontinuities after controlling for geography. Our study highlights the importance of considering a comprehensive suite of potential isolating mechanisms and analytical approaches in order to get robust inferences on the processes promoting genetic divergence of natural populations.VN was supported by a FPI pre-doctoral scholarship (BES-2012-053741) from Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. JO was supported by Severo Ochoa (SEV-2012-0262) and Ramón y Cajal (RYC-2013-12501) research fellowships. This work received financial support from research grants CGL2011-25053 (Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación and European Social Fund), POII10-0197-0167, PEII-2014-023-P (Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha and European Social Fund) and UNCM08-1E-018 (European Regional Development Fund).We acknowledge support of the publication fee by the CSIC Open Access Publication Support Initiative through its Unit of Information Resources for Research (URICI).Peer reviewe

Suitability assessment of NOx emissions measurements with PTI equipment

The measurement of NOx emissions in vehicles has so far been exclusively carried out during the type-approval process. For this purpose, high-precision gas measurement laboratory equipment and Portable Emission Measurement Systems (PEMS) are used. Both types of equipment are costly in terms of price, maintenance, complexity, and time of use (calibration and maintenance requirements). Currently, NOx emissions measurements in Periodic Technical Inspections (PTIs) are being considered, but PEMS or laboratory equipment is unsuitable for this function, and PTI-grade equipment has to be used. Although CO and O2 are currently being reliably measured with this equipment, there is not enough information about its accuracy for NOx measurements. Accordingly, in this paper, simultaneous measures have been performed over the same engine in a test cell, with a laboratory and a PTI gas analyser to assess the accuracy of the latter. When performing the test with the most similar conditions found in PTI, our results show that the PTI gas analyser shows an average deviation of 2.6 ppm and 9% rel. with respect to high-precision laboratory equipment for concentrations below 700 ppm NOx, which can be considered acceptable for periodic technical inspections

Discordant patterns of genetic and phenotypic differentiation in five grasshopper species codistributed across a microreserve network

Conservation plans can be greatly improved when information on the evolutionary and demographic consequences of habitat fragmentation is available for several codistributed species. Here, we study spatial patterns of phenotypic and genetic variation among five grasshopper species that are codistributed across a network of microreserves but show remarkable differences in dispersal-related morphology (body size and wing length), degree of habitat specialization and extent of fragmentation of their respective habitats in the study region. In particular, we tested the hypothesis that species with preferences for highly fragmented microhabitats show stronger genetic and phenotypic structure than codistributed generalist taxa inhabiting a continuous matrix of suitable habitat. We also hypothesized a higher resemblance of spatial patterns of genetic and phenotypic variability among species that have experienced a higher degree of habitat fragmentation due to their more similar responses to the parallel large-scale destruction of their natural habitats. In partial agreement with our first hypothesis, we found that genetic structure, but not phenotypic differentiation, was higher in species linked to highly fragmented habitats. We did not find support for congruent patterns of phenotypic and genetic variability among any studied species, indicating that they show idiosyncratic evolutionary trajectories and distinctive demographic responses to habitat fragmentation across a common landscape. This suggests that conservation practices in networks of protected areas require detailed ecological and evolutionary information on target species to focus management efforts on those taxa that are more sensitive to the effects of habitat fragmentation.JO was supported by a Ramón y Cajal Fellowship (RYC-2013-12501) and a research contract funded by Severo Ochoa Program (SEV-2012-0262). VGN is supported by a Forschungskredit of the University of Zurich (FK-14-103). VN is supported by a FPI predoctoral fellowship from Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. This work received financial support from grants CGL2011-25053 (Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad), PCI08-0130-3954 and POII10-0197-0167 (Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha and European Social Fund) and UNCM08-1E-018 (European Regional Development Fund).Peer reviewe

The effect of scale in daily precipitation hazard assessment

Daily precipitation is recorded as the total amount of water collected by a rain-gauge in 24 h. Events are modelled as a Poisson process and the 24 h precipitation by a Generalised Pareto Distribution (GPD) of excesses. Hazard assessment is complete when estimates of the Poisson rate and the distribution parameters, together with a measure of their uncertainty, are obtained. The shape parameter of the GPD determines the support of the variable: Weibull domain of attraction (DA) corresponds to finite support variables as should be for natural phenomena. However, Fréchet DA has been reported for daily precipitation, which implies an infinite support and a heavy-tailed distribution. Bayesian techniques are used to estimate the parameters. The approach is illustrated with precipitation data from the Eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula affected by severe convective precipitation. The estimated GPD is mainly in the Fréchet DA, something incompatible with the common sense assumption of that precipitation is a bounded phenomenon. The bounded character of precipitation is then taken as a priori hypothesis. Consistency of this hypothesis with the data is checked in two cases: using the raw-data (in mm) and using log-transformed data. As expected, a Bayesian model checking clearly rejects the model in the raw-data case. However, log-transformed data seem to be consistent with the model. This fact may be due to the adequacy of the log-scale to represent positive measurements for which differences are better relative than absolute

Bifosfonatos y fracturas femorales de baja energía: la experiencia en nuestro centro

Los bifosfonatos son fármacos de uso común para la prevención de fracturas osteoporóticas. En los últimos años ha sido relacionado su consumo prolongado con la aparición de fracturas de baja energía en fémur con un trazo característico transverso. Para evaluar esta relación hemos analizado las fracturas de fémur de baja energía atendidas en nuestro centro durante 2 años y relacionándolas con el consumo previo de bisfosfonatos. En fracturas subtrocantéras no se observan diferencias significativas; en diafisarias, las fracturas trazo transverso típico se presentan en pacientes de menor edad y significativamente asociados al consumo previo de bifosfonatos (6 de las 8 fracturas de este tipo pensaban historia de consumo prolongado de estos fármacos). Como conclusión, aunque se han publicado numerosos artículos en los últimos años con series de casos que relacionan este tipo de fracturas con el consumo previo de bifosfonatos, el tamaño muestral de los estudios y las dificultades de evaluar el consumo de un fármaco retrospectivamente hacen necesarios estudios aleatorizados y prospectivos para dejar evidencia de la posible relaciónBisphosphonates are commonly used drugs for the prevention of osteoporotic fractures. In recent years, consumption has long been linked with the emergence of low-energy fractures of the femur with a characteristic transverse line. To evaluate this relationship we have analyzed the femur fractures treated low energy in our center for 2 years and related to the prior use of bisphosphonates. In subtrochanteric fractures, no significant differences were found; in diaphyseal fractures are typically transverse line is present in younger patients and significantly associated with prior use of bisphosphonates (6 of 8 thought this type fractures history of prolonged use of these drugs). In conclusion, although there have been numerous articles in the last years series of cases this type of fracture associated with prior use of bisphosphonates, the sample size of studies and the difficulties of assessing a drug consumption retrospective studies are needed prospective randomized to leave evidence of the possible association

First American records of Aphis Intybi (Hemiptera: Aphididae) with notes on two other related adventive species in Argentina

P.1154-1162Aphis intybi Koch is recorded for the first time in North and South America. Measurements for the identification of this species in comparison with Aphis craccivora Koch are given. Aphis cytisorum Hartig is recorded for the third time in Argentina. Data on morphological variation, geographical distribution, and host plants of these species in Argentina are provided. Their morphological identification is supported by comparison of DNA sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 (DNA barcode) and subunit 2.S

Mosaicos raster de cartografía vectorial: procedimiento automatizado de creación

En este documento se presenta una metodología, formada por un conjunto de tareas susceptibles de ser automatizadas, para producir un mosaico raster a partir de cartografía vectorial teselada. Como banco de prueba de la metodología se ha utilizado el Mapa Topográfico Nacional a escala 1:25.000 (MTN-25). La metodología propuesta implica: la eliminación de los elementos ajenos a la cartografía (cartela, etc.), la conversión de coordenadas proyectadas a geográficas, la creación de un mapa índice con la tesela para gestionar el mapa en modo continuo, la representación gráfica de la cartografía en forma de imagen en el sistema de referencia espacial deseado y, finalmente, la fusión de dichas imágenes. La característica que diferencia ésta metodología de otras, es el uso de un servicio de mapas en Web (WMS), implementado con MapServer, como herramienta que gestiona la tesela de archivos, realiza la representación gráfica y aplica las transformaciones necesarias entre sistemas de referencia espaciales. El producto generado con ésta metodología es un mosaico raster multi-resolución, de cartografía vectorial teselada, en formato de alta compresión (ECW). Este producto puede ser usados para, publicar de un modo más eficiente cartografía vectorial mediante servicios WMS, o como una capa raster en un sistema de información geográfica de escritorio

Six alien aphid species (Hemiptera: Aphididae) recorded for the first time from South America

P. 111-116Se citan por vez primera para Sudamérica seis especies de pulgones: Saltusaphis scirpus Theobald, Myzocallis boerneri Stroyan, Macrocrosiphoniella abrotani (Walker), Macrosiphoniella absinthii (Linnaeus), Macrosiphoniella pseudoartemisiae Shinji y Macrosiphoniella tapuskae (Hottes & Frison). Todas ellas recogidas en la Argentina. Se presentan comentarios de cada especie y claves de identificación para las especies de Myzocallidina y de Macrosiphoniella conocidas en SudaméricaS

Ghrelin as a novel locally produced relaxing peptide of the iris sphincter and dilator muscles

Ghrelin is a recently described acylated peptide, which works as a somatosecretagogue and has described effects on the smooth, skeletal and cardiac muscle. We examined the production and effects of ghrelin on relaxation of the iris muscles. Contractile effects of 1-5 human ghrelin (frGhr, 10(-9)-6 x 10(-5)M) and 1-5 human des-octanoyl-ghrelin (d-frGhr; 10(-9)-6 x 10(-5)M) were tested on iris rabbit sphincter (n=11 frGhr; n=7 d-frGhr), dilator (n=6 frGhr; n=6 d-frGhr) and rat sphincter (n=6 frGhr; n=8 d-frGhr) precontracted muscles. On rabbit sphincter the effect of frGhr was also tested in presence of: i) L-NA (10(-5)M; n=7); ii) indomethacin (10(-5)M; n=7); iii) DLys(3)GHRP6 (10(-4)M; n=6); and iv) apamin+carybdotoxin (10(-6)M; n=6). Furthermore, on rabbit dilator the effect of frGhr was tested in presence of DLys(3)GHRP6 (10(-4)M; n=7). Finally, ghrelin mRNA production was assessed by "in situ" hybridization in Wistar rat eyes (n=8). In all muscles, frGhr promoted a concentration-dependent relaxation, maximal at 6 x 10(-5)M, 1.5-3 min after its addition, decreasing tension by 34.1+/-12.1%, 25.8+/-4.8% and 52.1+/-10.3% in the rabbit sphincter, dilator and rat sphincter, respectively. In the rabbit sphincter the relaxing effects of frGhr were: (i) enhanced in presence of DLys(3)GHRP6 (118.1+/-21.1%); (ii) blunted by indomethacin; and (iii) not altered by apamin+carybdotoxin (36.4+/-14.4%) or L-NA (52.4+/-11.4%). Relaxing effects of d-frGhr in rabbit (43.3+/-5.2%) and rat (77.1+/-15.3%) sphincter muscles were similar to those of frGhr. In rabbit dilator muscle, d-frGhr did not significantly alter active tension and the relaxing effect of frGhr was blunted by GHSR-1a blockage. Ghrelin mRNA was identified in iris posterior epithelium. In conclusion, ghrelin is a novel, locally produced, relaxing agent of iris dilator and sphincter muscles, an effect that is mediated by GHSR-1a in the former, but not in the latter. Furthermore, in the sphincter it seems to be mediated by prostaglandins, but not by NO or K(Ca) channels.Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology (nr. POCI/SAU-FCF/60803/2004) through Cardiovascular R&D Unit (FCT nr. 51/94). Authors are sincerely grateful to RS. Moura (SFRH/BPD/15408/2005), Development Unit, Health and Life Sciences Institute, School of Health Sciences, University of Minho, Braga, Portugal for her excellent contribution in the in-situ hybridization techniques