Conflict-Laden Issues: A Learning Opportunity

Extension faculty has opportunities to bring people together to solve problems. A simple process finds solutions to a problem with herbicide drift. The process provided five key findings: 1) Finding balance between reason and emotion is crucial; 2) Having a participatory process facilitates buy-in; 3) Learning to solve conflicts provides long term benefit(s); 4) Facilitating is a role Extension is uniquely suited to fill; and 5) Extension staff should be trained in facilitation. The authors argue that Extension faculty should play a role in developing this capacity to resolve conflicts

Sarpa salpa herbivory on shallow reaches of Posidonia oceanica beds

El herbivorismo de Sarpa salpa en los tramos someros de los lechos de Posidonia oceanica En el presente artículo analizamos la variabilidad temporal y espacial en pequeña escala de la actividad de alimentación del pez herbívoro Sarpa salpa en los lechos someros de la pradera submarina de clima templado Posidonia oceanica. La intensidad del herbivorismo expresada como el porcentaje de superficie foliar mordida por el pez fue superior en septiembre de 2006 que en febrero de 2007, y a una profundidad de 0,5 m que de 1,5 m durante los dos períodos de muestreo. Todos los individuos de S. salpa que se alimentaban en las zonas someras estudiadas eran juveniles y el tamaño de mordedura se situaba entre 0,03 y 0,62 cm2. Los juveniles que se alimentaban a 1,5 m de profundidad fueron más grandes en febrero de 2007 que en septiembre de 2006, tal como ponen de relieve las diferencias significativas existentes en el tamaño medio de mordedura por haz. No obstante, los juveniles más grandes que se alimentaban a 1,5 m de profundidad en febrero de 2007 no parecían alimentarse con tanta frecuencia como los juveniles comparativamente más pequeños, que lo hacían a la misma profundidad en septiembre de 2006, tal como sugieren las diferencias significativas halladas en el número de mordeduras por haz. Asimismo, el número de mordeduras por haz fue inferior a 1,5 m de profundidad que a 0,5 m en febrero de 2007, si bien el tamaño medio de las mordeduras no difería en medida significativa entre las dos profundidades en aquel período de muestreo. En general, los juveniles de S. salpa no elegían un intervalo de edad concreto de las hojas a la hora de alimentarse en los lugares del estudio, a pesar de que los juveniles que se alimentaban a 1,5 m de profundidad en septiembre de 2006 parecían elegir hojas de edad mediana. Los peces no mostraron preferencia por las hojas con mayor cobertura de epífitos. Estos resultados muestran que la actividad de alimentación de los juveniles de S. salpa en los tramos someros de las praderas de P. oceanica puede variar con el tiempo y con pequeños cambios de profundidad, lo que a su vez puede afectar a la intensidad general del herbivorismo sobre las praderas submarinas.Here, we examined the temporal and small–scale spatial variability of grazing by the herbivorous fish Sarpa salpa on shallow beds of the temperate seagrass Posidonia oceanica. Herbivory intensity expressed as the percent of leaf area taken by fish bites was higher in September 2006 than in February 2007, and at 0.5 m than at 1.5 m during both sampling times. All S. salpa feeding at the shallow locations studied were juveniles, with bite sizes ranging from 0.03 to 0.62 cm2. Juveniles feeding at 1.5 m were larger in February 2007 than in September 2006, as evidenced by significant differences in mean bite size per shoot. However, the larger juveniles feeding at 1.5 m in February 2007 did not appear to feed as frequently as the comparatively smaller juveniles feeding at the same depth in September 2006, as suggested by significant differences in number of bites per shoot. The number of bites per shoot was also lower at 1.5 m than at 0.5 m in February 2007, although mean bite size did not differ significantly between the two depths at that sampling time. In general S. salpa juveniles did not select a particular range of leaf ages when feeding in the study locations, although the juveniles feeding at 1.5 m in September 2006 appeared to select mid–aged leaves. Fish did not show a preference for more epiphytized leaves. These results show that grazing activity by S. salpa juveniles in shallow reaches of P. oceanica meadows may vary temporally and across small changes in depth, which in turn may affect the overall intensity of herbivory on the seagrass.El herbivorismo de Sarpa salpa en los tramos someros de los lechos de Posidonia oceanica En el presente artículo analizamos la variabilidad temporal y espacial en pequeña escala de la actividad de alimentación del pez herbívoro Sarpa salpa en los lechos someros de la pradera submarina de clima templado Posidonia oceanica. La intensidad del herbivorismo expresada como el porcentaje de superficie foliar mordida por el pez fue superior en septiembre de 2006 que en febrero de 2007, y a una profundidad de 0,5 m que de 1,5 m durante los dos períodos de muestreo. Todos los individuos de S. salpa que se alimentaban en las zonas someras estudiadas eran juveniles y el tamaño de mordedura se situaba entre 0,03 y 0,62 cm2. Los juveniles que se alimentaban a 1,5 m de profundidad fueron más grandes en febrero de 2007 que en septiembre de 2006, tal como ponen de relieve las diferencias significativas existentes en el tamaño medio de mordedura por haz. No obstante, los juveniles más grandes que se alimentaban a 1,5 m de profundidad en febrero de 2007 no parecían alimentarse con tanta frecuencia como los juveniles comparativamente más pequeños, que lo hacían a la misma profundidad en septiembre de 2006, tal como sugieren las diferencias significativas halladas en el número de mordeduras por haz. Asimismo, el número de mordeduras por haz fue inferior a 1,5 m de profundidad que a 0,5 m en febrero de 2007, si bien el tamaño medio de las mordeduras no difería en medida significativa entre las dos profundidades en aquel período de muestreo. En general, los juveniles de S. salpa no elegían un intervalo de edad concreto de las hojas a la hora de alimentarse en los lugares del estudio, a pesar de que los juveniles que se alimentaban a 1,5 m de profundidad en septiembre de 2006 parecían elegir hojas de edad mediana. Los peces no mostraron preferencia por las hojas con mayor cobertura de epífitos. Estos resultados muestran que la actividad de alimentación de los juveniles de S. salpa en los tramos someros de las praderas de P. oceanica puede variar con el tiempo y con pequeños cambios de profundidad, lo que a su vez puede afectar a la intensidad general del herbivorismo sobre las praderas submarinas

Effects of Carbohydrates on Landing Mechanics and Postural Stability During Intermittent High-Intensity Exercise to Fatigue

Please refer to the pdf version of the abstract located adjacent to the title

The Effects of Loaded Fatigue on Loaded Postural Stability

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Accelerated evolution of 3'avian FOXE1 genes, and thyroid and feather specific expression of chicken FoxE1

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The forkhead transcription factor gene E1 (FOXE1) plays an important role in regulation of thyroid development, palate formation and hair morphogenesis in mammals. However, avian <it>FOXE1 </it>genes have not been characterized and as such, codon evolution of FOXE1 orthologs in a broader evolutionary context of mammals and birds is not known.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>In this study we identified the avian <it>FOXE1 </it>gene in chicken, turkey and zebra finch, all of which consist of a single exon. Chicken and zebra finch <it>FOXE1 </it>are uniquely located on the sex-determining Z chromosome. In situ hybridization shows that chicken <it>FOXE1 </it>is specifically expressed in the developing thyroid. Its expression is initiated at the placode stage and is maintained during the stages of vesicle formation and follicle primordia. Based on this expression pattern, we propose that avian <it>FOXE1 </it>may be involved in regulating the evagination and morphogenesis of thyroid. Chicken <it>FOXE1 </it>is also expressed in growing feathers. Sequence analysis identified two microdeletions in the avian <it>FOXE1 </it>genes, corresponding to the loss of a transferable repression domain and an engrailed homology motif 1 (Eh1) C-terminal to the forkhead domain. The avian <it>FOXE1 </it>proteins exhibit a significant sequence divergence of the C-terminus compared to those of amphibian and mammalian <it>FOXE1</it>. The codon evolution analysis (dN/dS) of <it>FOXE1 </it>shows a significantly increased dN/dS ratio in the avian lineages, consistent with either a relaxed purifying selection or positive selection on a few residues in avian FOXE1 evolution. Further site specific analysis indicates that while relaxed purifying selection is likely to be a predominant cause of accelerated evolution at the 3'-region of avian FOXE1, a few residues might have evolved under positive selection.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>We have identified three avian <it>FOXE1 </it>genes based on synteny and sequence similarity as well as characterized the expression pattern of the chicken <it>FOXE1 </it>gene during development. Our evolutionary analyses suggest that while a relaxed purifying selection is likely to be the dominant force driving accelerated evolution of avian <it>FOXE1 </it>genes, a few residues may have evolved adaptively. This study provides a basis for future genetic and comparative biochemical studies of FOXE1.</p

Exact solution of a linear molecular motor model driven by two-step fluctuations and subject to protein friction

We investigate by analytical means the stochastic equations of motion of a linear molecular motor model based on the concept of protein friction. Solving the coupled Langevin equations originally proposed by Mogilner et al. (A. Mogilner et al., Phys. Lett. {\bf 237}, 297 (1998)), and averaging over both the two-step internal conformational fluctuations and the thermal noise, we present explicit, analytical expressions for the average motion and the velocity-force relationship. Our results allow for a direct interpretation of details of this motor model which are not readily accessible from numerical solutions. In particular, we find that the model is able to predict physiologically reasonable values for the load-free motor velocity and the motor mobility.Comment: 12 pages revtex, 6 eps-figure

On Shape Transformations and Shape Fluctuations of Cellular Compartments and Vesicles

We discuss the shape formation and shape transitions of simple bilayer vesicles in context with their role in biology. In the first part several classes of shape changes of vesicles of one lipid component are described and it is shown that these can be explained in terms of the bending energy concept in particular augmented by the bilayer coupling hypothesis. In the second part shape changes and vesicle fission of vesicles composed of membranes of lipid mixtures are reported. These are explained in terms of coupling between local curvature and phase separation

The Origin of Carbon-bearing Volatiles in Surprise Valley Hot Springs in the Great Basin: Carbon Isotope and Water Chemistry Characterizations

There are numerous hydrothermal fields within the Great Basin of North America, some of which have been exploited for geothermal resources. With methane and other carbon-bearing compounds being observed, in some cases with high concentrations, however, their origins and formation conditions remain unknown. Thus, studying hydrothermal springs in this area provides us an opportunity to expand our knowledge of subsurface (bio)chemical processes that generate organic compounds in hydrothermal systems, and aid in future development and exploration of potential energy resources as well. While isotope measurement has long been used for recognition of their origins, there are several secondary processes that may generate variations in isotopic compositions: oxidation, re-equilibration of methane and other alkanes with CO2, mixing with compounds of other sources, etc. Therefore, in addition to isotopic analysis, other evidence, including water chemistry and rock compositions, are necessary to identify volatile compounds of different sources. Surprise Valley Hot Springs (SVHS, 41 deg 32'N, 120 deg 5'W), located in a typical basin and range province valley in northeastern California, is a terrestrial hydrothermal spring system of the Great Basin. Previous geophysical studies indicated the presence of clay-rich volcanic and sedimentary rocks of Tertiary age beneath the lava flows in late Tertiary and Quaternary. Water and gas samples were collected for a variety of chemical and isotope composition analyses, including in-situ pH, alkalinity, conductivity, oxidation reduction potential (ORP), major and trace elements, and C and H isotope measurements. Fluids issuing from SVHS can be classified as Na-(Cl)-SO4 type, with the major cation and anion being Na+ and SO4(2-), respectively. Thermodynamic calculation using ORP and major element data indicated that sulfate is the most dominant sulfur species, which is consistent with anion analysis results. Aquifer temperatures at depth estimated by both dissolved SiO2 and Na-K-Ca geothermometers are in the range of 125.0 to 135.4 C, and higher than the values measured at orifices (77.3 to 90.0 C). CO2 and homologs of straight chain alkanes (C1-C5) were identified in gas samples. Carbon isotope values of alkanes increase with carbon numbers. The C-13 fractionation between CO2 and dissolved inorganic carbon suggests they are out of carbon isotope equilibrium. The hypothesis regarding the formation of carbon-bearing compounds in SVHS may involve two processes: 1) Under high heat flow conditions which are caused by regional faulting and crustal extension, original high molecular weight organic compounds (kerogens) in clay-rich rocks decomposed to generate methane and other alkane homologs. 2) The SVHS area is associated with outflow structures, and distant from the heat source. Anaerobic oxidation of methane (AOM) with sulfate at shallow depth (< 90 C) is suggested as being responsible for the generation of CO2 in SVHS