A Ceratopsian Dinosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of Western North America, and the Biogeography of Neoceratopsia

Competing interests: Andrew A. Farke has read the journal's policy and the authors of this manuscript have the following competing interests: Andrew A. Farke is a volunteer section editor and academic editor for PLOS ONE. This does not alter the authors' adherence to PLOS ONE policies on sharing data and materials.Acknowledgments It is a pleasure to offer our most heartfelt thanks to Scott K. Madsen, who found OMNH 34557 and prepared it with consummate skill. We are grateful to James Taylor, Jack Owen, the Keebler family, and the Montana Bureau of Land Management for access to outcrops of the Cloverly Formation. We thank Xu Xing (IVPP) and Hai-Lu You (formerly CAGS-IG) for facilitating access to specimens, Mark Loewen, Joseph Frederickson, Darren Naish, and Leonardo Maiorino for productive discussion and comments, and Roger Burkhalter for assistance in photography. Gary Wisser, from the scientific visualization center at Western University of Health Sciences, is gratefully acknowledged for the high resolution scan of the cranium. Reviews by Peter Makovicky, Hai-Lu You, and editor Peter Wilf improved the manuscript.Author Contributions Conceived and designed the experiments: AAF WDM RLC. Performed the experiments: AAF WDM RLC. Analyzed the data: AAF WDM RLC MJW. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: AAF WDM RLC MJW. Wrote the paper: AAF WDM RLC MJW.The fossil record for neoceratopsian (horned) dinosaurs in the Lower Cretaceous of North America primarily comprises isolated teeth and postcrania of limited taxonomic resolution, hampering previous efforts to reconstruct the early evolution of this group in North America. An associated cranium and lower jaw from the Cloverly Formation (?middle–late Albian, between 104 and 109 million years old) of southern Montana is designated as the holotype for Aquilops americanus gen. et sp. nov. Aquilops americanus is distinguished by several autapomorphies, including a strongly hooked rostral bone with a midline boss and an elongate and sharply pointed antorbital fossa. The skull in the only known specimen is comparatively small, measuring 84 mm between the tips of the rostral and jugal. The taxon is interpreted as a basal neoceratopsian closely related to Early Cretaceous Asian taxa, such as Liaoceratops and Auroraceratops. Biogeographically, A. americanus probably originated via a dispersal from Asia into North America; the exact route of this dispersal is ambiguous, although a Beringian rather than European route seems more likely in light of the absence of ceratopsians in the Early Cretaceous of Europe. Other amniote clades show similar biogeographic patterns, supporting an intercontinental migratory event between Asia and North America during the late Early Cretaceous. The temporal and geographic distribution of Upper Cretaceous neoceratopsians (leptoceratopsids and ceratopsoids) suggests at least intermittent connections between North America and Asia through the early Late Cretaceous, likely followed by an interval of isolation and finally reconnection during the latest Cretaceous.Funding was received from the National Science Foundation (DEB 9401094, 9870173, http://www.nsf.gov); National Geographic Society (5918-97, http://www.nationalgeographic.com/); and American Chemical Society (PRF #38572-AC8, http://www.acs.org). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.Yeshttp://www.plosone.org/static/editorial#pee

Understanding Pathophysiological Concepts Leading to Obstructive Apnea.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) results from a combination of several factors leading to the obstruction of the upper respiratory tract (URT). OSA represents a systemic pathophysiological entity and leads to many comorbidities such as hypertension, coronary ischemia, and stroke. Patients with this pathophysiological entity experience also an increased risk of postoperative complications. Obesity is certainly the main cause of developing OSA. However, many other predisposing factors influence the genesis of obstructive apnea. It is important to understand the complexity of the interactions between predisposing factors to understand the relationship between weight loss following obesity surgery and the improvement in the severity of OSA. In this narrative review, we expose the seven major categories of predisposing factors that interact to generate obstructive apneas in patients, namely the anatomic abnormalities of the URT, the mechanical and the metabolic responses of the upper airway musculature, the loop gain, the arousal threshold, and the hormonal abnormalities. The genesis of apnea is the result of a complex dynamic interaction between the anatomical risk factors and the compensatory neuromuscular reflexes. All of these points are integrally part of the perioperative care of the obese patients. Finally, we will discuss different options for weight reduction

(Blue) Growth accounting in small-scale European Union fleets

Fisheries account for one-third of the total jobs in the global ocean economies. Small scale fleets (SSF) fisheries are the main segment from the number of jobs point of view, and in the EU, SSF account for over 40% of employment in the fisheries sector. Given this marine employment source, it is important to analyse SSF's productivity growth. This was done using Total Factor Productivity (TFP), which is dened as the portion of output not explained by the traditionally measured inputs of labour, energy and capital used in production. TFP calculation is relevant to understand the technology evolution in fisheries and as a reference for management assessment. TFP was calculated for SSF in two EU main sea areas, the Mediterranean (FAO area 37) and the North-East Atlantic (FAO area 27). Constant elasticity production functions were used to analyse the intensity of the use of production factors and how these are substituted or complemented when producing. Additionally, TFP was corrected by stock evolution indexes to evaluate the EU conservation policy. Results showed how the TFP presented signs of stagnation when stocks status were considered. This implies a low technological evolution and that the use of production factors is to be reduced in the following years. It was concluded that in the North-East Atlantic the EU conservation policy is obtaining the objective of restoring fish stocks and contributing to maintaining the productivity. In the Mediterranean, the stocks are not being restored, therefore not contributing to growth as a production factor. Finally, it is concluded that in neither areas the conservation policy is enough to provide positive productivity trends.JRC.D.2-Water and Marine Resource