Scholarly publishing depends on peer reviewers

The peer-review crisis is posing a risk to the scholarly peer-reviewed journal system. Journals have to ask many potential peer reviewers to obtain a minimum acceptable number of peers accepting reviewing a manuscript. Several solutions have been suggested to overcome this shortage. From reimbursing for the job, to eliminating pre-publication reviews, one cannot predict which is more dangerous for the future of scholarly publishing. And, why not acknowledging their contribution to the final version of the article published? PubMed created two categories of contributors: authors [AU] and collaborators [IR]. Why not a third category for the peer-reviewer?Scopu

Some Roman Elements in Roman Egypt

published or submitted for publicatio

Data from: Colonization and demographic expansion of freshwater fauna across the Hawaiian Archipelago

It is widely accepted that insular terrestrial biodiversity progresses with island age because colonization and diversification proceed over time. Here we assess whether this principle extends to oceanic island streams. We examined range-wide mtDNA sequence variation in four stream-dwelling species across the Hawaiian archipelago to characterize the relationship between colonization and demographic expansion, and to determine whether either factor reflects island age. We found that colonization and demographic expansion are not related and that neither correspond to island age. The snail Neritina granosa exhibited the oldest colonization time (~2.713 mya) and time since demographic expansion (~282 kya), likely reflecting a preference for lotic habitats most prevalent on young islands. Conversely, gobioid fishes (Awaous stamineus, Eleotris sandwicensis and Sicyopterus stimpsoni) colonized the archipelago only ~0.411-0.935 mya, suggesting ecological opportunities for colonization in this group were temporally constrained. These findings indicate that stream communities form across colonization windows, underscoring the importance of ecological opportunities in shaping island freshwater diversity

Propagação de pteridófitas in vitro e in vivo através de esporos Fern propagation in vitro and in vivo from spores

Sujeitas ao processo de extinção, em decorrência do extrativismo, as samambaias arbóreas Dicksonia sellowana (Presl.) Hook e Cyathea schanschin Mart, das quais se obtémo xaxim, são espécies ainda pouco estudadas quanto à propagação. Com o objetivo de desenvolver um método adequado à propagação destas espécies, através de esporos, realizaram-se experimentos in vitro e in vivo. Para a desinfecção dos esporos, utilizaram-se soluções de hipoclorito de cálcio, em diferentes concentrações, ou de sódio, comparando-se sua eficiência. Para o cultivo in vitro, empregaram-se os meios nutritivos de Murashige e Skoog modificado e de Jones e a solução de Knop modificada. Na cultura in vivo utilizaram-se xaxim, estagno, terriço ou tijolo fragmentado. Como condições de cultivo, manteve-se a temperatura a 25 &plusmn;1&deg;C e o fotoperíodo de 16 horas. Apesar da elevada contaminação durante o processo de germinação in vitro e in vivo, a desinfecção com hipoclorito de cálcio a 2% foi mais eficiente. Os esporos germinaram em 4 a 8 semanas e os prótalos formaram-se após 30 a 40 dias. Obteve-se maior percentagem de germinação e formação de prótalos com os meios de Jones e Knop, bem como xaxim e esfagno, e a germinação de esporos ocorreu mais rapidamente na ausência de esporângios.<br>The objective of this experiment was to study the fern propagation from spores of Cyathea schanschin Mart and Dicksonia sellowiana (Presl.) Hook. The spores were decontaminated in calcium or sodium hypochlorite solutions. The in vitro experiments were performed with the media: MS modified, Jones or Knop's solution modified. Tree-fern fibre, sphagnum moss, loam soil or brick peaces were, used for the in vivo experiments. The temperature was mantained at 25 &plusmn; 1&deg;C and 16 hours of photoperiod for both treatments (In vivo and in vitro cultures). Besides the high percentage of contamination during the germination process, in vitro and in vivo, the best results were obtained with decontamination made in a 2% sodium hypochlorite solution. The spores germination occurred after a period of 4 to 8 weeks and the prothalli were formed 30 to 40 days latter. There was a high percentage of germination and prothalli formation in Jones and Knop media, and tree-fern fibre and sphagnum moss substrates

Do instream habitat variables and the abundance of brown trout Salmo trutta (L.) affect the distribution and growth of stone loach, Barbatula barbatula (L.)?

Along a stream, we investigated whether the abundance of stone loach (Barbatula barbatula, L.) was related to the presence of brown trout (Salmo trutta, L.) and instream habitat variables. First, a field survey was carried out where different habitat variables and the densities of both species were quantified and subjected to principal components analysis. Then the abundance of stone loach was related to the scores of the retained axes (eigenvalues >1). The abundance of stone loach was positively correlated to substrate particle size, amount of shade, temperature, discharge and current velocity, but negatively correlated to brown trout abundance. Secondly, a month-long field enclosure experiment in a stream was performed to test for any negative effects of brown trout on stone loach growth. Four treatments were used: intraspecific competition (stone loach at double density), interspecific competition (stone loach + small trout), predation (stone loach + large trout) and a control (stone loach alone). The results showed that large trout tended to have negative effects on final stone loach biomass. The absence of a negative effect of large trout on resource density suggests that nonlethal effects rather than resource competition caused this trend