Arctic fox (Alopex lagopus) from the North Sea

The first record of arctic fox Alopex lagopus (Linnaeus, 1758) from the Eurogeul area (North Sea) is reported based on a distal humerus fragment collected by private collectors from dredged sediments on ‘De Zandmotor’. It was radiocarbon dated to 29,900 + 550/- 490 BP (GrA-69520), which is younger than most Late Pleistocene fossils from this area. Besides adding a new species to the faunal list of the Eurogeul area, this specimen also demonstrates the value of beaches nourished with dredged sediments and highlights the importance of close cooperation between all parties interested in palaeontology: from collector to researcher. The discovery prompted re-examination of the other arctic fox specimen from the North Sea, a femur of which the identification is here confirmed and measurements are provided

Role of focused assessment with sonography for trauma as a screening tool for blunt abdominal trauma in young children after high energy trauma

Background: The objective of the study was to review the utility of focused assessement with sonography for trauma (FAST) as a screening tool for blunt abdominal trauma (BAT) in children involved in high energy trauma (HET), and to determine whether a FAST could replace computed tomography (CT) in clinical decision-making regarding paediatric BAT. Method: Children presented at the Trauma Unit of the Red Cross War Memorial Children's Hospital, Cape Town, after HET, and underwent both a physical examination and a FAST. The presence of free fluid in the abdomen and pelvis was assessed using a FAST. Sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative predictive values (PPV and NPV) for identifying intraabdominal injury were calculated for the physical examination and the FAST, both individually and when combined. Results: Seventy-five patients were included as per the criteria for HET as follows: pedestrian motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) (n = 46), assault (n = 14), fall from a height (n = 9), MVC passenger (n = 4) and other (n = 2). The ages of the patients ranged from 3 months to 13 years. The sensitivity of the physical examination was 0.80, specificity 0.83, PPV 0.42 and NPV 0.96. The sensitivity of the FAST was 0.50, specificity 1.00, PPV 1.00 and NPV 0.93. Sensitivity increased to 0.90 when the physical examination was combined with the FAST. Nonoperative management was used in 73 patients. Two underwent an operation. Conclusion: A FAST should be performed in combination with a physical examination on every paediatric patient involved in HET to detect BAT. When both are negative, nonoperative management can be implemented without fear of missing a clinically significant injury. FAST is a safe, effective and easily accessible alternative to CT, which avoids ionising radiation and aids in clinical decision-making

The beta-transformation with a hole at 0

Analysis and Stochastic

Detection of Type 1 Prion Protein in Variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease

Molecular typing of the abnormal form of the prion protein (PrP(Sc)) has come to be regarded as a powerful tool in the investigation of the prion diseases. All evidence thus far presented indicates a single PrP(Sc) molecular type in variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (termed type 2B), presumably resulting from infection with a single strain of the agent (bovine spongiform encephalopathy). Here we show for the first time that the PrP(Sc) that accumulates in the brain in variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease also contains a minority type 1 component. This minority type 1 PrP(Sc) was found in all 21 cases of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease tested, irrespective of brain region examined, and was also present in the variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease tonsil. The quantitative balance between PrP(Sc) types was maintained when variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease was transmitted to wild-type mice and was also found in bovine spongiform encephalopathy cattle brain, indicating that the agent rather than the host specifies their relative representation. These results indicate that PrP(Sc) molecular typing is based on quantitative rather than qualitative phenomena and point to a complex relationship between prion protein biochemistry, disease phenotype and agent strain

Giant deer (Megaloceros giganteus) diet from Mid-Weichselian deposits under the present North Sea inferred from molar-embedded botanical remains

The molar of a giant deer, Megaloceros giganteus (Blumenbach, 1799), was discovered in sandy deposits of the North Sea, about 10 km west of the present shoreline of the Netherlands. Compacted masticated plant remains were preserved in the molar's deep folds. A palaeoecological analysis of these plant remains shows the complete dominance of pollen from Artemisia (sage) and other Asteraceae Tubuliflorae (Compositae), indicating that the animal foraged in a steppe environment, and may have preferred to eat Artemisia, which contain a high level of nutrients such as calcium and phosphorous components, which are important for antler building. Radiocarbon dating indicates that the plant remains are of mid‐Weichselian age [38 570 (+300, −290) 14C a BP, Greenland Interstadial‐11]. This is the first study of the food choice of M. giganteus based on palaeoecological evidence. We hypothesize about links between the extirpation of M. giganteus at the onset of the Holocene in North‐West Europe and the transition from a landscape with highly dynamic geomorphological processes and consequently prevalence of immature and nutrient‐rich soils, to a less dynamic landscape with stable, leached and acidifying soils, and the decline of Artemisia and other calciphilous plants

Search for Millicharged Particles at SLAC

Particles with electric charge q < 10^(-3)e and masses in the range 1--100 MeV/c^2 are not excluded by present experiments. An experiment uniquely suited to the production and detection of such "millicharged" particles has been carried out at SLAC. This experiment is sensitive to the infrequent excitation and ionization of matter expected from the passage of such a particle. Analysis of the data rules out a region of mass and charge, establishing, for example, a 95%-confidence upper limit on electric charge of 4.1X10^(-5)e for millicharged particles of mass 1 MeV/c^2 and 5.8X10^(-4)e for mass 100 MeV/c^2.Comment: 4 pages, REVTeX, multicol, 3 figures. Minor typo corrected. Submitted to Physical Review Letter