Northward Looking - A Strategy and a Science Policy for Northern Development: Science Council of Canada Report No. 26 [review]

... The Council approached its study ... by (1) undertaking a review of past resource developments there and their related government policies and (2) commissioning five case studies, all dealing with large, recent projects involving non-renewable resources. It analyzes later the subject of Canadian control over the technologies used in northern development and the special problem of marine transportation of natural gas from the Arctic. ... the Science Council has produced an enormously interesting report which should serve to stimulate further analysis and discussion. ... the report's main conclusions come close to providing a reasonable and attainable northern development strategy for the forseeable future. ..

The Icefield Ranges Research Project, 1974

Researchers are braving the Yukon ever earlier in the season for the Icefield Ranges Research Project (IRRP). The first group arrived at the IRRP Kluane Lake base camp (61 N, 138 W) on 15 April 1974 and the last group did not leave until 15 October. The winters of 1974 and 1975 mark the first occasion of the base camp being open year-round for two consecutive years. This innovation made possible as a result of the appointment of Mr. and Mrs. A. Williams as a resident camp-management team, is necessary scientifically because certain meteorological projects have to be conducted on a twelve-month basis, as discussed below. One hundred and four researchers and their assistants, representing nearly twenty universities, government agencies and institutions, made use of the IRRP facilities, and approximately 3,300 man-days of accommodation and subsistence were recorded. A number of improvements were made to the physical facilities; a new 24 ft x 12 ft (7.3 m x 3.7 m) utility building is now under construction, and two small trailer units have been installed by the group from the University of British Columbia as additional laboratory space for animal behavioural studies. The two ski-wheel-equipped Helio Courier aircraft of the Arctic Institute of North America performed a total of 173 hours of project-support flying, and in addition twenty hours of time of a Jet Ranger and a Hughes 400 helicopter was chartered. One of the Institute's aircraft, which was on lease to Trans North Turbo Air Limited and was engaged in commercial and tourist operations, suffered a minor accident during the field season. The largest aircraft ever to land at the base camp, a Canadian Forces Hercules transport, was used in support of the High Altitude Physiology Studies programme. ... Glacier survey project: In 1972 the Institute was awarded funds by the Glaciology Division, Department of the Environment, Ottawa, to undertake an inventory of glaciers in the St. Elias Mountains. This work was continued during 1974 by Messrs, S.G. Collins and R. Ragle. Work on the glacier basins of the Donjek River, Alsek River and Tatshenshini River was completed. To date more than 2,000 glacial features have been mapped and recorded. They concern glacier size, location and description. The Project is scheduled for completion in 1976. An extensive bibliography of the St. Elias Mountains is in preparation also and now contains more than 1,100 entries. Climatological projects: Under the direction of the Camp Manager, Mr. A. Williams, and Mr. R. Lenton of AINA, Montreal, and as part of a proposed long-range plan, two pilot climatological projects were initiated in 1974 on behalf of Environment Canada and Parks Canada. Standard and automatic stations were established in the Kluane National Park adjacent to the Slims River and at the 9,000 ft (2,700 m) Divide Station. The year-round meteorological project at Kluane Lake Base was continued in association with the Atmospheric Environment Service, Whitehorse, Y.T. ..

Glittering in the dark: Memory, culture, and critique in light of the history of information

An ethical and human-centered approach to Information Science requires rigorous, historically-informed analysis of both the resources that inform this discipline and the cultural role it inhabits. This session will present and discuss significant recent developments in the history and foundations of the field. ASIST has formally established a new volunteer administrative position of ASIST Curator. Kathryn La Barre, the newly-appointed Curator, will describe the role and responsibilities of this position and assess the state of Information Science history in relation to the conference themes. In two complementary reports: Michael Buckland will examine theoretical accounts of the materials made use of in Information Science; and Sachi Arafat will explain why Information Retrieval and Information Science should be integrated and rethought as a science of technology-mediated experience, and how this new kind of science relates to the pre-modern memory arts tradition

Musical Life of the Santa Clara Mission, Hymns from 1777-1836

The following seventeen hymns or himnos are to be found in Santa Clara Choral Book, as indicated by the page number given in parentheses. For instance, (CB, 65) means that the hymn transcribed can be found on page 65 of the Choral Book. The text is in Spanish, and the original notation appears in square notes on afa or ut clef, as in the rest of the Choral Book. I have transcribed all of these himnos into modem notation , in as many as four voice parts, as indicated in the Choral Book. Only the first strophe of each hymn is directly written in with the music; any additional strophes appear separately, beneath the musical staves. My transcription of the full Spanish lyrics of each hymn follows the musical transcriptions. A complete set of English translations, guided by the thoughtful and expert assistance of Margarita Delgado, is included

'So wide and varied': The origins and character of British information science

This paper examines some characteristics of the ‘British School’ of information science. Three main forces driving the development of the new subject in Britain are identified: the documentation movement; special libraries; and the need for better treatment of scientific and technical information. Five characteristics which, taken together, distinguish the early British approach to information science from those adopted elsewhere are identified: its subject-based nature; its broad approach to information and information science; its status as an academic subject with a strong professional remit; its involvement with, but distinction from, information technology; and its involvement with memory institutions. Lessons are drawn for the future development of the information sciences

Reproductive Strategy of the Giant Electric Ray in the Southern Gulf of California

The objective of the present study was to describe and characterize macroscopic and microscopic aspects of the reproductive biology of the Giant Electric Ray Narcine entemedor, a viviparous elasmobranch targeted by commercial fishers in Mexico. A total of 305 individual rays were captured (260 females, 45 males); all males were sexually mature. The median size at maturity for females was estimated to be 58.5 cm TL, the median size at pregnancy was 63.7 cm TL, and the median size at maternity was 66.2 cm TL. The range of ovarian follicles recorded per female was 1–69; the maximum ovarian fecundity of fully grown vitellogenic oocytes was 17, and uterine fecundity ranged from 1 to 24 embryos per female. The lengths of the oblong ovarian follicles varied significantly among months, and the largest ovarian follicles were found in July, August, and September. Median embryo size was largest in August, and the size at birth was between 12.4 and 14.5 cm TL. Histological evidence of secretions from the glandular tissue of the uterine villi indicate that this species probably has limited histotrophy as a reproductive mode. Vitellogenesis in the ovary occurred synchronously with gestation in the uterus. The Giant Electric Ray has a continuous annual reproductive cycle; a period of ovulation occurs between May and September and two peaks of parturition, one in January and one in August, occur, suggesting that embryonic diapause occurs in some individuals. These results provide useful information for the management of this important commercial species in Bahía de La Paz, Mexico, and will allow possible modification of the current Mexican regulations to enable better protection of this species

Comparative Analysis of Gene Content Evolution in Phytoplasmas and Mycoplasmas

Phytoplasmas and mycoplasmas are two groups of important pathogens in the bacterial class Mollicutes. Because of their economical and clinical importance, these obligate pathogens have attracted much research attention. However, difficulties involved in the empirical study of these bacteria, particularly the fact that phytoplasmas have not yet been successfully cultivated outside of their hosts despite decades of attempts, have greatly hampered research progress. With the rapid advancements in genome sequencing, comparative genome analysis provides a new approach to facilitate our understanding of these bacteria. In this study, our main focus is to investigate the evolution of gene content in phytoplasmas, mycoplasmas, and their common ancestor. By using a phylogenetic framework for comparative analysis of 12 complete genome sequences, we characterized the putative gains and losses of genes in these obligate parasites. Our results demonstrated that the degradation of metabolic capacities in these bacteria has occurred predominantly in the common ancestor of Mollicutes, prior to the evolutionary split of phytoplasmas and mycoplasmas. Furthermore, we identified a list of genes that are acquired by the common ancestor of phytoplasmas and are conserved across all strains with complete genome sequences available. These genes include several putative effectors for the interactions with hosts and may be good candidates for future functional characterization

In Situ Oxygen Dynamics in Coral-Algal Interactions

Background: Coral reefs degrade globally at an alarming rate, with benthic algae often replacing corals. However, the extent to which benthic algae contribute to coral mortality, and the potential mechanisms involved, remain disputed. Recent laboratory studies suggested that algae kill corals by inducing hypoxia on the coral surface, through stimulated microbial respiration. Methods/Findings: We examined the main premise of this hypothesis by measuring in situ oxygen microenvironments at the contact interface between the massive coral Porites spp. and turf algae, and between Porites spp. and crustose coralline algae (CCA). Oxygen levels at the interface were similar to healthy coral tissue and ranged between 300-400 μM during the day. At night, the interface was hypoxic (~70 μM) in coral-turf interactions and close to anoxic (~2 μM) in coral-CCA interactions, but these values were not significantly different from healthy tissue. The diffusive boundary layer (DBL) was about three times thicker at the interface than above healthy tissue, due to a depression in the local topography. A numerical model, developed to analyze the oxygen profiles above the irregular interface, revealed strongly reduced net photosynthesis and dark respiration rates at the coral-algal interface compared to unaffected tissue during the day and at night, respectively. Conclusions/Significance: Our results showed that hypoxia was not a consistent feature in the microenvironment of the coral-algal interface under in situ conditions. Therefore, hypoxia alone is unlikely to be the cause of coral mortality. Due to the modified topography, the interaction zone is distinguished by a thicker diffusive boundary layer, which limits the local metabolic activity and likely promotes accumulation of potentially harmful metabolic products (e.g., allelochemicals and protons). Our study highlights the importance of mass transfer phenomena and the need for direct in situ measurements of microenvironmental conditions in studies on coral stress. © 2012 Wangpraseurt et al

Taste evaluation of potato glycoalkaloids by the Aymara: A case study in human chemical ecology

A chemical ecological model can be the basis for defining testable hypotheses concerning human interactions with plants. Selection by Aymara subsistence cultivators against toxic glycoalkaloids in the ongoing domestication of the Bolivian potato cultigen Solanum X ajanhuiri was used as a specific case study of human interactions with phytochemicals. In taste perception tests, Aymara subjects were able to discriminate between concentrations of pure glycoalkaloids in solution only above 20 mg/100 ml. Taste panel tests of potato clones indicated that glycoalkaloid levels are important to the Aymara in determining quality only as part of a decision-making process involving two character states: too high or acceptable. Glycoalkaloids in potatoes are regarded as toxic to humans above 20 mg/100 g fresh weight. Among the Aymara, a breakpoint in the curve for glycoalkaloid preference appears to occur between 20–38 mg/100 g. This distinction is evident in the Aymara potato taxonomy which distinguishes bitter (luq'i ch'oke) from nonbitter (ch'oke) potatoes .Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44480/1/10745_2004_Article_BF00888308.pd

Toward a Comprehensive Approach to the Collection and Analysis of Pica Substances, with Emphasis on Geophagic Materials

Pica, the craving and subsequent consumption of non-food substances such as earth, charcoal, and raw starch, has been an enigma for more than 2000 years. Currently, there are little available data for testing major hypotheses about pica because of methodological limitations and lack of attention to the problem.In this paper we critically review procedures and guidelines for interviews and sample collection that are appropriate for a wide variety of pica substances. In addition, we outline methodologies for the physical, mineralogical, and chemical characterization of these substances, with particular focus on geophagic soils and clays. Many of these methods are standard procedures in anthropological, soil, or nutritional sciences, but have rarely or never been applied to the study of pica.Physical properties of geophagic materials including color, particle size distribution, consistency and dispersion/flocculation (coagulation) should be assessed by appropriate methods. Quantitative mineralogical analyses by X-ray diffraction should be made on bulk material as well as on separated clay fractions, and the various clay minerals should be characterized by a variety of supplementary tests. Concentrations of minerals should be determined using X-ray fluorescence for non-food substances and inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectroscopy for food-like substances. pH, salt content, cation exchange capacity, organic carbon content and labile forms of iron oxide should also be determined. Finally, analyses relating to biological interactions are recommended, including determination of the bioavailability of nutrients and other bioactive components from pica substances, as well as their detoxification capacities and parasitological profiles.This is the first review of appropriate methodologies for the study of human pica. The comprehensive and multi-disciplinary approach to the collection and analysis of pica substances detailed here is a necessary preliminary step to understanding the nutritional enigma of non-food consumption