Paying for Status? - The effect of frequent flier program member status on air fare choice

Frequent flier programs (FFPs) are said to affect airline customer behaviour such that revenue of sponsoring airlines increases. To this end prior research relies on assumptions of competition, lock-in effects and variations in scale and scope of FFPs. Whether a FFP by itself induces a price premium remains unanswered. In an effort to shine some light on this question, we apply discrete choice analysis to a new proprietary data set of actual frequent flier member flight behaviour (fares paid, FFP points received) over a 12-months period. We take advantage of the variations in the structure of FFPs (Gold, Silver and Bronze tier levels), to assess both the existence of a FFP price premium and the price premiums average monetary value in US$ per FFP member. Our findings suggest that FFP members are willing to pay a price premium of up to six percent, which is directly attributable to the FFP.discrete choice analysis, loyalty programs, relationship marketing, price premium, frequent flier program, CRM

Cow-Calf Production Response to Pasture Forage Species

To study cow-calf production on fragile soils, 32 ‘tester’ cow-calf pairs were grazed on fertilized and unfertilized meadow brome (Bromus biebersteinii Roem & Schult.) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.)/meadow brome pastures, to determine the effects of forage type and fertility on pasture yield and botanical composition; and on animal productivity including cow milk production, cow and calf average daily gain and total gain (per head and per hectare). Cow fertility may be depressed on alfalfa-based pastures, therefore, blood urea nitrogen (BUN) levels were also examined. Cow average daily gain (0.15 kg d-1) and milk production (4.82 kg d-1) were not affected by pasture type or fertility level. However, calf average daily gain was 11% higher when calves were grazed on legume- vs.grass-based pastures (1.20 vs. 1.08 kg d-1; P=0.01). Blood urea nitrogen levels were at the top of the normal range for cows grazing alfalfa-based pastures (7.79-8.09 mmol L-1), but were within the normal range (3.53-5.01 mmol L-1) for cows grazing grass-based pastures

Gender, media, and mixed martial arts in Poland: the case of Joanna Jędrzejczyk

Recent growth in the media visibility of female combat sport athletes has offered a compelling site for research on gender and sport media, as women in deeply masculinized sports have been increasingly placed in the public spotlight. While scholars in the Anglophone West have offered analyses of the media framing of this phenomenon, little work has been done outside these cultural contexts. Thus, in this paper we offer a qualitative exploration of how Joanna Jędrzejczyk, a Polish champion of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has been represented in Polish media. Our findings reveal a relatively de-gendered, widely celebratory account, primarily framed by nationalistic discourse–findings we ascribe to both the particularities of the sport of mixed martial arts as well as the historic nature of Jędrzejczyk’s success

The Effect of Convection on a Propagating Front with a Liquid Product: Comparison of Theory and Experiments

This work is devoted to the investigation of propagating polymerization fronts converting a liquid monomer into a liquid polymer. We consider a simplified mathematical model which consists of the heat equation and equation for the depth of conversion for one-step chemical reaction and of the Navier-Stokes equations under the Boussinesq approximation. We fulfill the linear stability analysis of the stationary propagating front and find conditions of convective and thermal instabilities. We show that convection can occur not only for ascending fronts but also for descending fronts. Though in the latter case the exothermic chemical reaction heats the cold monomer from above, the instability appears and can be explained by the interaction of chemical reaction with hydrodynamics. Hydrodynamics changes also conditions of the thermal instability. The front propagating upwards becomes less stable than without convection, the front propagating downwards more stable. The theoretical results are compared with experiments. The experimentally measured stability boundary for polymerization of benzyl acrylate in dimethyl formamide is well approximated by the theoretical stability boundary. (C) 1998 American Institute of Physics

Risk factors for <em>Coxiella burnetii</em> antibodies in bulk tank milk from Danish dairy herds

The aim was to identify risk factors associated with Coxiella burnetii antibody positivity in bulk tank milk (BTM) samples from 100 randomly selected Danish dairy cattle herds. Antibody levels were measured by an enzyme-linked immuno-sorbent assay. Before testing the herds, the farm managers were interviewed about hired labour, biosecurity, housing and herd health during the 12 months prior to the study. Variables considered important for C. burnetii antibody positivity in multivariable logistic regression analysis included the sharing of machines between farms (OR = 3.6), human contacts (OR = 4.2), artificial insemination by other people than artificial insemination technicians (OR = 7.7), routine herd health contract with the veterinarian (OR = 4.3) and hygiene precautions taken by veterinarians (OR = 5). In addition, herd size, hired labour, trading of cattle between farms, quarantine and use of calving and disease pens also showed significant association in univariable analysis. This study demonstrates that strict biosecurity is important for the prevention of infections with C. burnetii

Biology ideology and pastiche hegemony

As knowledge about the biological foundation of the modern patriarchal gender order is increasingly challenged within late-modern social worlds enclaves persist in which men and women can attempt to recreate understandings of the "natural" basis of sex difference. Within "Power Gym," male boxers were able to symbolize their bodies and behaviors in such a manner. The language and logic of popular scientific discourses authored and authorized notions of an "innate" manhood. The ability to instrumentally deploy one's manliness in symbolically legitimate ways could then be represented and emotionally experienced as a man's biological right and obligation. Through scripted performances of "mimetic" violence and self-bullying, the boxers were able to experience this discursive naturalness and carve out a masculinity-validating social enclave. As such, they accessed a "patriarchal dividend" by securing a local pastiche hegemony in which discourses surrounding men's natural place as physically and psychologically dominant remained largely uncontested. Through the reflexive appropriation of "science," within appropriate subcultural codes, these men could negotiate taboos and restrictions that are characteristic of late-modern social worlds. When considered in this way, the power of "scientific" truth claims to explain and justify a certain level of violence, aggression, and behaviors coded as masculine, comes to the fore

Lectin-like bacteriocins from pseudomonas spp. utilise D-rhamnose containing lipopolysaccharide as a cellular receptor

Lectin-like bacteriocins consist of tandem monocot mannose-binding domains and display a genus-specific killing activity. Here we show that pyocin L1, a novel member of this family from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, targets susceptible strains of this species through recognition of the common polysaccharide antigen (CPA) of P. aeruginosa lipopolysaccharide that is predominantly a homopolymer of d-rhamnose. Structural and biophysical analyses show that recognition of CPA occurs through the C-terminal carbohydrate-binding domain of pyocin L1 and that this interaction is a prerequisite for bactericidal activity. Further to this, we show that the previously described lectin-like bacteriocin putidacin L1 shows a similar carbohydrate-binding specificity, indicating that oligosaccharides containing d-rhamnose and not d-mannose, as was previously thought, are the physiologically relevant ligands for this group of bacteriocins. The widespread inclusion of d-rhamnose in the lipopolysaccharide of members of the genus Pseudomonas explains the unusual genus-specific activity of the lectin-like bacteriocins

Epidemiology of traumatic spinal cord injury in Galicia, Spain: trends over a 20-year period

[Abstract] Study design: Observational study with prospective and retrospective monitoring. Objective: To describe the epidemiological and demographic characteristics of traumatic spinal cord injury (TSCI), and to analyze its epidemiological changes. Setting: Unidad de Lesionados Medulares, Complejo Hospitalario Universitario A Coruña, in Galicia (Spain). Methods: The study included patients with TSCI who had been hospitalized between January 1995 and December 2014. Relevant data were extracted from the admissions registry and electronic health record. Results: A total of 1195 patients with TSCI were admitted over the specified period of time; 76.4% male and 23.6% female. Mean patient age at injury was 50.20 years. Causes of injury were falls (54.2%), traffic accidents (37%), sports/leisure-related accidents (3.5%) and other traumatic causes (5.3%). Mean patient age increased significantly over time (from 46.40 to 56.54 years), and the number of cases of TSCI related to traffic accidents decreased (from 44.5% to 23.7%), whereas those linked to falls increased (from 46.9% to 65.6%). The most commonly affected neurological level was the cervical level (54.9%), increasing in the case of levels C1–C4 over time, and the most frequent ASIA (American Spinal Injury Association) grade was A (44.3%). The crude annual incidence rate was 2.17/100 000 inhabitants, decreasing significantly over time at an annual percentage rate change of −1.4%. Conclusions: The incidence rate of TSCI tends to decline progressively. Mean patient age has increased over time and cervical levels C1–C4 are currently the most commonly affected ones. These epidemiological changes will eventually result in adjustments in the standard model of care for TSCI

Terrestrial biosphere models need better representation of vegetation phenology: results from the North American Carbon Program Site Synthesis

Phenology, by controlling the seasonal activity of vegetation on the land surface, plays a fundamental role in regulating photosynthesis and other ecosystem processes, as well as competitive interactions and feedbacks to the climate system. We conducted an analysis to evaluate the representation of phenology, and the associated seasonality of ecosystem-scale CO2 exchange, in 14 models participating in the North American Carbon Program Site Synthesis. Model predictions were evaluated using long-term measurements (emphasizing the period 2000-2006) from 10 forested sites within the AmeriFlux and Fluxnet-Canada networks. In deciduous forests, almost all models consistently predicted that the growing season started earlier, and ended later, than was actually observed; biases of 2 weeks or more were typical. For these sites, most models were also unable to explain more than a small fraction of the observed interannual variability in phenological transition dates. Finally, for deciduous forests, misrepresentation of the seasonal cycle resulted in over-prediction of gross ecosystem photosynthesis by +160 ± 145 g C m-2 y-1 during the spring transition period, and +75 ± 130 g C m-2 y-1 during the autumn transition period (13% and 8% annual productivity, respectively) compensating for the tendency of most models to under-predict the magnitude of peak summertime photosynthetic rates. Models did a better job of predicting the seasonality of CO2 exchange for evergreen forests. These results highlight the need for improved understanding of the environmental controls on vegetation phenology, and incorporation of this knowledge into better phenological models. Existing models are unlikely to predict future responses of phenology to climate change accurately, and therefore will misrepresent the seasonality and interannual variability of key biosphere-atmosphere feedbacks and interactions in coupled global climate models.Engineering and Applied SciencesOrganismic and Evolutionary Biolog

Plant ecology meets animal cognition: impacts of animal memory on seed dispersal

We propose that an understanding of animal learning and memory is critical to predicting the impacts of animals on plant populations through processes such as seed dispersal, pollination and herbivory. Focussing on endozoochory, we review the evidence that animal memory plays a role in seed dispersal, and present a model which allows us to explore the fundamental consequences of memory for this process. We demonstrate that decision-making by animals based on their previous experiences has the potential to determine which plants are visited, which fruits are selected to be eaten from the plant and where seeds are subsequently deposited, as well as being an important determinant of animal survival. Collectively, these results suggest that the impact of animal learning and memory on seed dispersal is likely to be extremely important, although to date our understanding of these processes suffers from a conspicuous lack of empirical support. This is partly because of the difficulty of conducting appropriate experiments but is also the result of limited interaction between plant ecologists and those who work on animal cognition