Ice dynamics and mass balance in the grounding zone of outlet glaciers in the Transantarctic Mountains

The Antarctic grounding zone has a disproportionately large effect on glacier dynamics and ice sheet stability relative to its size but remains poorly characterised across much of the continent. Accurate ice velocity and thickness information is needed in the grounding zone to determine glacier outflow and establish to what extent changing ocean and atmospheric conditions are affecting the mass balance of individual glacier catchments. This thesis describes new satellite remote sensing techniques for measuring ice velocity and ice thickness, validated using ground measurements collected on the Beardmore, Skelton and Darwin Glaciers and applied to other Transantarctic Mountain outlet glaciers to determine ice discharge. Outlet glaciers in the Transantarctic Mountains provide an important link between the East and West Antarctic Ice Sheets but remain inadequately studied. While long-term velocities in this region are shown here to be stable, instantaneous velocities are sensitive to stresses induced by ocean tides, with fluctuations of up to 50% of the mean observed in GPS measurements. The potential error induced in averaged satellite velocity measurements due to these effects is shown to be resolvable above background noise in the grounding zone but to decrease rapidly upstream. Using a new inverse finite-element modelling approach based on regularization of the elastic-plate bending equations, tidal flexure information from differential InSAR is used to calculate ice stiffness and infer thickness in the grounding zone. This technique is shown to be successful at reproducing the thickness distribution for the Beardmore Glacier, eliminating current issues in the calculation of thickness from freeboard close to the grounding line where ice is not in hydrostatic equilibrium. Modelled thickness agrees to within 10% of ground penetrating radar measurements. Calibrated freeboard measurements and tide-free velocities in the grounding zones of glaciers in the western Ross Sea are used to calculate grounding zone basal melt rates, with values between 1.4 and 11.8 m/a⁻¹ in this region. While strongly dependent on grounding line ice thickness and velocity, melt rates show no latitudinal trend between glaciers, although detailed error analysis highlights the need for much improved estimates of firn density distribution in regions of variable accumulation such as the Transantarctic Mountains

Speaking of That: Terms to Avoid or Reconsider in the Eating Disorders Field

Inspired by an article on 50 terms that, in the interest of clarity in scientific reasoning and communication in psychology, psychiatry, and allied fields, “should be avoided or at most be used sparingly and only with explicit caveats,”1 we propose a list of terms to avoid or think twice about before using when writing for the International Journal of Eating Disorders (IJED). Drawing upon our experience as reviewers or editors for the IJED, we generated an abridged list of such terms. For each term, we explain why it made our list and what alternatives we recommend. We hope that our list will contribute to improved clarity in scientific thinking about eating disorders, and that it will stimulate discussion of terms that may need to be reconsidered in our field's vocabulary to ensure the use of language that is respectful and sensitive to individuals who experience an eating disorder

Does the Tripartite Influence Model of Body Image and Eating Pathology Function Similarly Across Racial/Ethnic Groups of White, Black, Latina, and Asian Women?

The tripartite influence model suggests that appearance pressures from family, peers, and the media contribute to thin-ideal internalization, which leads to increased body dissatisfaction and subsequent eating disorder pathology. The tripartite influence model was initially developed and tested among primarily White samples, and emerging research suggests racial/ethnic differences in mean levels of particular model constructs. Consequently, the model\u27s appropriateness for understanding eating disorder risk in racial/ethnic minorities warrants investigation to determine its usefulness in explicating eating disorder risk in diverse populations. Participants in the current study were White (n = 1167), Black (n = 212), Latina (n = 203), and Asian (n = 176) women from five geographically disparate college campuses in the United States. Participants completed the Sociocultural Attitudes Towards Appearance Questionnaire-4, the Multidimensional Body-Self Relations Questionnaire - Appearance Evaluation Subscale, and the Eating Disorder Examination-Questionnaire. Analysis of variance was used to compare mean levels of each construct across racial/ethnic groups. Multigroup structural equation modeling was used to assess the appropriateness of the tripartite influence model for each racial/ethnic group, and to examine differences in the strength of the model pathways across groups. There were significant mean level differences across groups for most model constructs. However, results indicated similar model fit across racial/ethnic groups, with few differences in the strength of model pathways. Findings suggest that although some groups report lower levels of proposed risk factors, the sociocultural risk processes for eating pathology identified through the tripartite influence model are similar across racial/ethnic groups of young adult women. Such information can be used to inform culturally-sensitive interventions

Source levels of social sounds in migrating humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae)

The source level of an animal sound is important in communication, since it affects the distance over which the sound is audible. Several measurements of source levels of whale sounds have been reported, but the accuracy of many is limited because the distance to the source and the acoustic transmission loss were estimated rather than measured. This paper presents measurements of source levels of social sounds (surface-generated and vocal sounds) of humpback whales from a sample of 998 sounds recorded from 49 migrating humpback whale groups. Sources were localized using a wide baseline five hydrophone array and transmission loss was measured for the site. Social vocalization source levels were found to range from 123 to 183 dB re 1 mu Pa @ 1 m with a median of 158 dB re 1 mu Pa @ 1 m. Source levels of surface-generated social sounds ("breaches" and "slaps") were narrower in range (133 to 171 dB re 1 mu Pa @ 1 m) but slightly higher in level (median of 162 dB re 1 mu Pa @ 1 m) compared to vocalizations. The data suggest that group composition has an effect on group vocalization source levels in that singletons and mother-calf-singing escort groups tend to vocalize at higher levels compared to other group compositions. VC 2013 Acoustical Society of America

Oxaliplatin, fluorouracil and leucovorin for advanced biliary system adenocarcinomas: a prospective phase II trial

We studied the activity of combined oxaliplatin and fluorouracil-leucovorin in 16 consecutive patients with advanced biliary tract adenocarcinomas. The disease control rate (responses and stable disease) was 56% (95% confidence interval, 29–84%) and the median overall survival time was 9.5 months (range 0.9–26.8+). Therefore, this regimen might be active in biliary adenocarcinomas with further evaluation necessary

Evidence for the role of EPHX2 gene variants in anorexia nervosa.

Anorexia nervosa (AN) and related eating disorders are complex, multifactorial neuropsychiatric conditions with likely rare and common genetic and environmental determinants. To identify genetic variants associated with AN, we pursued a series of sequencing and genotyping studies focusing on the coding regions and upstream sequence of 152 candidate genes in a total of 1205 AN cases and 1948 controls. We identified individual variant associations in the Estrogen Receptor-ß (ESR2) gene, as well as a set of rare and common variants in the Epoxide Hydrolase 2 (EPHX2) gene, in an initial sequencing study of 261 early-onset severe AN cases and 73 controls (P=0.0004). The association of EPHX2 variants was further delineated in: (1) a pooling-based replication study involving an additional 500 AN patients and 500 controls (replication set P=0.00000016); (2) single-locus studies in a cohort of 386 previously genotyped broadly defined AN cases and 295 female population controls from the Bogalusa Heart Study (BHS) and a cohort of 58 individuals with self-reported eating disturbances and 851 controls (combined smallest single locus P<0.01). As EPHX2 is known to influence cholesterol metabolism, and AN is often associated with elevated cholesterol levels, we also investigated the association of EPHX2 variants and longitudinal body mass index (BMI) and cholesterol in BHS female and male subjects (N=229) and found evidence for a modifying effect of a subset of variants on the relationship between cholesterol and BMI (P<0.01). These findings suggest a novel association of gene variants within EPHX2 to susceptibility to AN and provide a foundation for future study of this important yet poorly understood condition

The Legacy of Hope Summit: A Consensus-Based Initiative and Report on Eating Disorders in the U.S. and Recommendations for the Path Forward

Background: Several unsuccessful attempts have been made to reach a cross-disciplinary consensus on issues fundamental to the field of eating disorders in the United States (U.S.). In January 2020, 25 prominent clinicians, academicians, researchers, persons with lived experience, and thought leaders in the U.S. eating disorders community gathered at the Legacy of Hope Summit to try again. This paper articulates the points on which they reached a consensus. It also: (1) outlines strategies for implementing those recommendations; (2) identifies likely obstacles to their implementation; and (3) charts a course for successfully navigating and overcoming those challenges. Methods: Iterative and consensual processes were employed throughout the Summit and the development of this manuscript. Results: The conclusion of the Summit culminated in several consensus points, including: (1) Eating disorder outcomes and prevention efforts can be improved by implementing creative health education initiatives that focus on societal perceptions, early detection, and timely, effective intervention; (2) Such initiatives should be geared toward parents/guardians, families, other caretakers, and frontline healthcare providers in order to maximize impact; (3) Those afflicted with eating disorders, their loved ones, and the eating disorders community as a whole would benefit from greater accessibility to affordable, quality care, as well as greater transparency and accountability on the part of in-hospital, residential, and outpatient health care providers with respect to their qualifications, methodologies, and standardized outcomes; (4) Those with lived experience with eating disorders, their loved ones, health care providers, and the eating disorders community as a whole, also would benefit from the establishment and maintenance of treatment program accreditation, professional credentialing, and treatment type and levels of care guidelines; and (5) The establishment and implementation of effective, empirically/evidence-based standards of care requires research across a diverse range of populations, adequate private and government funding, and the free exchange of ideas and information among all who share a commitment to understanding, treating, and, ultimately, markedly diminishing the negative impact of eating disorders. Conclusions: Widespread uptake and implementation of these recommendations has the potential to unify and advance the eating disorders field and ultimately improve the lives of those affected. A cross-disciplinary group of eating disorder professionals, thought leaders, and persons with lived experience have come together and reached a consensus on issues that are fundamental to the battle against the life-threatening and life-altering illnesses that are eating spectrum disorders. Those issues include: (1) the need for early detection, intervention, prevention, and evidenced-based standards of care; (2) the critical need to make specialized care more accessible and affordable to all those in need; (3) the importance of developing uniform, evidenced-based standards of care; (4) the need for funding and conducting eating spectrum disorder research; and (5) the indispensability of advocacy, education, and legislation where these illnesses are concerned. During the consensus process, the authors also arrived at strategies for implementing their recommendations, identified likely obstacles to their implementation, and charted a course for successfully navigating and overcoming those challenges. Above all else, the authors demonstrated that consensus in the field of eating spectrum disorders is possible and achievable and, in doing so, lit a torch of hope that is certain to light the path forward for years to come

How is female mate choice affected by male competition?

Author Posting. © Cambridge Philosophical Society, 2005. This article is posted here by permission of Cambridge Philosophical Society for personal use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Biological Reviews 80: (2005) 559-571, doi:10.1017/S1464793105006809.The plethora of studies devoted to the topics of male competition and female mate choice belie the fact that their interaction remains poorly understood. Indeed, on the question of whether competition should help or hinder the choice process, opinions scattered throughout the sexual selection literature seem unnecessarily polarised. We argue, in the light of recent theoretical and empirical advances, that the effect of competition on mate choice depends on whether it results in the choosy sex attaining high breeding value for total fitness, considering both direct and indirect fitness benefits. Specifically, trade-offs may occur between different fitness benefits if some are correlated with male competitive ability whilst others are not. Moreover, the costs and benefits of mating with competitive males may vary in time and/or space. These considerations highlight the importance of injecting a life-history perspective into sexual selection studies. Within this context, we turn to the sexual selection literature to try to offer insights into the circumstances when competition might be expected to have positive or negative implications for pre-copulatory female choice. In this regard, we elaborate on three stages where competition might impact upon the choice process: (i) during mate detection, (ii) mate evaluation, and (iii) in dictating actual mating outcomes. We conclude by offering researchers several potentially rewarding avenues for future research.This study was supported by an Australian Postgraduate Award, a Sir Keith Murdoch Fellowship, and a Centre for International Mobility Fellowship (to B.B.M.W) and the Academy of Finland (to U.C.)