Top predators, habitat complexity and the biodiversity of litter-dwelling ants

Trabalho final de mestrado integrado em Medicina (Geriatria), apresentado á Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de CoimbraA hipertensão arterial é o principal fator de risco modificável para a morbimortalidade por doenças cardiovasculares, a principal causa de morte a nível mundial. Dado o aumento da sua prevalência com a idade, a hipertensão arterial no idoso é uma patologia cada vez mais frequente. A rigidez arterial e a disfunção endotelial são a base fisiopatológica da hipertensão arterial no idoso, não devendo contudo ser descurada a maior incidência de causas secundárias. O tratamento farmacológico da hipertensão arterial no idoso é recomendado tendo em consideração o seu efeito na redução da mortalidade e morbilidade cardiovascular. O valor-alvo de tensão arterial recomendado para estes doentes é 150/90 mmHg, pela ausência de benefícios com um controlo tensional mais restrito. Não há evidência que suporte a utilização preferencial de uma classe ou combinação farmacológica, devendo o grande enfoque terapêutico ser a redução tensional e não os agentes utilizados. Doentes com comorbilidades ou pertencentes a populações especiais podem apresentar indicações farmacológicas específicas e valores-alvo diferentes. As reações adversas à terapêutica são mais frequentes no idoso. Assim, os idosos hipertensos devem manter vigilância para identificação precoce de reações adversas e aumentar a adesão terapêutica.The arterial hypertension is the main modifiable risk factor for morbimortality of cardiovascular diseases, the main cause of death worldwide. Given the increase of its prevalence with age, the arterial hypertension in the elderly is becoming increasingly frequent. The arterial stiffness and endothelial dysfunction are the pathophysiological basis of the arterial hypertension in the elderly, although it cannot be neglect the higher incidence of secondary causes. The pharmacological treatment of arterial hypertension in the elderly is recommended considering its effects on the reduction of cardiovascular mortality and morbidity. The blood pressure target recommended for these patients is 150/90 mmHg, due to the lack of benefits in a stricter blood pressure control. There is no evidence supporting the preferential utilization of a pharmacological class or combination. The major focus should be on blood pressure reduction and not on the agent used. Patients with comorbidities or from special populations may have specific pharmacologial indications and different target values. The therapy’s adverse reactions are more frequent in the elderly. Thus, the hypertensive elderly must maintain vigilance to identify early the adverse reactions and increase the therapeutic adherenc

Spurious and functional correlates of the isotopic composition of a generalist across a tropical rainforest landscape

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>The isotopic composition of generalist consumers may be expected to vary in space as a consequence of spatial heterogeneity in isotope ratios, the abundance of resources, and competition. We aim to account for the spatial variation in the carbon and nitrogen isotopic composition of a generalized predatory species across a 500 ha. tropical rain forest landscape. We test competing models to account for relative influence of resources and competitors to the carbon and nitrogen isotopic enrichment of gypsy ants (<it>Aphaenogaster araneoides</it>), taking into account site-specific differences in baseline isotope ratios.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>We found that 75% of the variance in the fraction of ¹⁵N in the tissue of <it>A. araneoides </it>was accounted by one environmental parameter, the concentration of soil phosphorus. After taking into account landscape-scale variation in baseline resources, the most parsimonious model indicated that colony growth and leaf litter biomass accounted for nearly all of the variance in the δ¹⁵N discrimination factor, whereas the δ¹³C discrimination factor was most parsimoniously associated with colony size and the rate of leaf litter decomposition. There was no indication that competitor density or diversity accounted for spatial differences in the isotopic composition of gypsy ants.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Across a 500 ha. landscape, soil phosphorus accounted for spatial variation in baseline nitrogen isotope ratios. The δ¹⁵N discrimination factor of a higher order consumer in this food web was structured by bottom-up influences - the quantity and decomposition rate of leaf litter. Stable isotope studies on the trophic biology of consumers may benefit from explicit spatial design to account for edaphic properties that alter the baseline at fine spatial grains.</p

Emotional design and human-robot interaction

Recent years have shown an increase in the importance of emotions applied to the Design field - Emotional Design. In this sense, the emotional design aims to elicit (e.g., pleasure) or prevent (e.g., displeasure) determined emotions, during human product interaction. That is, the emotional design regulates the emotional interaction between the individual and the product (e.g., robot). Robot design has been a growing area whereby robots are interacting directly with humans in which emotions are essential in the interaction. Therefore, this paper aims, through a non-systematic literature review, to explore the application of emotional design, particularly on Human-Robot Interaction. Robot design features (e.g., appearance, expressing emotions and spatial distance) that affect emotional design are introduced. The chapter ends with a discussion and a conclusion.info:eu-repo/semantics/acceptedVersio

The 13th Southern Hemisphere Conference on the Teaching and Learning of Undergraduate Mathematics and Statistics

Ngā mihi aroha ki ngā tangata katoa and warm greetings to you all. Welcome to Herenga Delta 2021, the Thirteenth Southern Hemisphere Conference on the Teaching and Learning of Undergraduate Mathematics and Statistics. It has been ten years since the Volcanic Delta Conference in Rotorua, and we are excited to have the Delta community return to Aotearoa New Zealand, if not in person, then by virtual means. Although the limits imposed by the pandemic mean that most of this year’s 2021 participants are unable to set foot in Tāmaki Makaurau Auckland, this has certainly not stopped interest in this event. Participants have been invited to draw on the concept of herenga, in Te Reo Māori usually a mooring place where people from afar come to share their knowledge and experiences. Although many of the participants are still some distance away, the submissions that have been sent in will continue to stimulate discussion on mathematics and statistics undergraduate education in the Delta tradition. The conference invited papers, abstracts and posters, working within the initial themes of Values and Variables. The range of submissions is diverse, and will provide participants with many opportunities to engage, discuss, and network with colleagues across the Delta community. The publications for this thirteenth Delta Conference include publications in the International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, iJMEST, (available at https://www.tandfonline.com/journals/tmes20/collections/Herenga-Delta-2021), the Conference Proceedings, and the Programme (which has created some interesting challenges around time-zones), by the Local Organizing Committee. Papers in the iJMEST issue and the Proceedings were peer reviewed by at least two reviewers per paper. Of the ten submissions to the Proceedings, three were accepted. We are pleased to now be at the business end of the conference and hope that this event will carry on the special atmosphere of the many Deltas which have preceded this one. We hope that you will enjoy this conference, the virtual and social experiences that accompany it, and take the opportunity to contribute to further enhancing mathematics and statistics undergraduate education. Ngā manaakitanga, Phil Kane (The University of Auckland | Waipapa Taumata Rau) on behalf of the Local Organising Committ

Audio recording of Terrence McGlynn, Dick Maney, and Joe Boyle, circa 1975

Professor Terrence McGlynn narrates this episode about the Montana ghost towns of Elkhorn, Granite, and Marysville. Student Dick Maney talks about Elkhorn and the different types of ore people mined for and explains that the town was named Elkhorn because large herds of elk used to roam there. He recalls an epidemic that plagued the town from 1888 to 1891 and describes the architecture. Maney moves on to Granite ghost town and describes the two major booms the settlement experienced. He discusses the location of the town and explains that silver deposits still exist in the Granite mines but that ground water made extraction difficult and has resulted in the abandonment of the town. He also talk about the buildings in Granite. Maney and student Joe Boyle each discuss Marysville and explain that during the time of the recording, it is still home to 50 residents. They talk about Marysville’s history stating that it was Montana’s leading gold producer in the 1880s and 1890s.https://scholarworks.umt.edu/mtghosttowns_audiorecordings/1000/thumbnail.jp

Intraspecific Thievery in the Ant Ectatomma ruidum is Mediated by Food Availability

Animals modify their foraging strategies in response to environmental changes that affect foraging performance. In some species, cleptobiosis represents an alternative strategy for resource access. The environmental factors that favor the incidence or prevalence of cleptobiosis, however, are poorly described. The cleptobiotic Neotropical ant Ectatomma ruidum is characterized by a high frequency of thievery behavior, a specific type of intraspecific cleptobiosis, in which specialized thief workers insinuate themselves into nests of neighboring colonies and intercept food items brought into these nests. Here, we evaluate how colonies adjust thievery behavior in response to food availability. We supplemented food availability and measured how the incidence and intensity of thievery responded to resource availability. We found that the incidence and intensity of thievery decline in response to supplemental food, suggesting that thievery behavior is a response to resource limitation at the population scale. This finding indicates that the phenomenon of intraspecific thievery, although a rare strategy in among colonies of social animals, is a viable alternative foraging tactic in the context of competition and food limitation. © 2013 by The Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation.link_to_subscribed_fulltex

Audio recording of Terrence McGlynn, Leo Maney, and Bill Black, circa 1975

Professor Terrence McGlynn narrates this episode about the Montana ghost towns of Virginia City and Bannack, explaining that these towns were in the state’s richest mining district known as Alder Gulch. Leo Maney discusses Virginia City and the outlaw group called The Innocents, headed by Henry Plummer. He also explains a long-standing disagreement about which town was the first territorial capital. Talking about Bannack, they recall that the town was home to the first electric dredge. Discussing Virginia City, they describe that approximately 100 million dollars worth of gold has been extracted from the area. They talk about the Montana Post, the first newspaper in Montana, and explain that Virginia City is more of a museum than a ghost town. Student Bill Black also discusses the Bearmouth-Garnet area which has very few remains.https://scholarworks.umt.edu/mtghosttowns_audiorecordings/1002/thumbnail.jp

Audio recording of Terrence McGlynn, John Beatty, Dave Edelman, and unknown speaker, circa 1975

Terrence McGlynn, John Beatty, Dave Edelman, and an unknown individuals take turns discussing some of Montana’s lesser-known ghost towns. They talk about the history of Black Pine, which used to be a mining camp about 12 miles outside of Philipsburg, Montana. They explain that this town is no longer in existence but mining activities still occur in the area. Also discussed are the towns of Rumsey and Tower. They explain that Rumsey still has the outline of an old mill and that tower became a ghost town as recently as 1973. They also talk about the town of Emery, which produced one million dollars in ore. They conclude by listing the towns of Blackfoot City, Princeton, Coolidge, Independence, and Mountaineer City giving a brief overview of their history, location, and mining activities.https://scholarworks.umt.edu/mtghosttowns_audiorecordings/1005/thumbnail.jp