An Ephemeral Sexual Population of Phytophthora infestans in the Northeastern United States and Canada

Phytophthora infestans, the causal agent of late blight disease, has been reported in North America since the mid-nineteenth century. In the United States the lack of or very limited sexual reproduction has resulted in largely clonal populations of P. infestans. In 2010 and 2011, but not in 2012 or 2013, 20 rare and diverse genotypes of P. infestans were detected in a region that centered around central New York State. The ratio of A1 to A2 mating types among these genotypes was close to the 50:50 ratio expected for sexual recombination. These genotypes were diverse at the glucose-6-phosphate isomerase locus, differed in their microsatellite profiles, showed different banding patterns in a restriction fragment length polymorphism assay using a moderately repetitive and highly polymorphic probe (RG57), were polymorphic for four different nuclear genes and differed in their sensitivity to the systemic fungicide mefenoxam. The null hypothesis of linkage equilibrium was not rejected, which suggests the population could be sexual. These new genotypes were monomorphic in their mitochondrial haplotype that was the same as US-22. Through parentage exclusion testing using microsatellite data and sequences of four nuclear genes, recent dominant lineages US-8, US-11, US-23, and US-24 were excluded as possible parents for these genotypes. Further analyses indicated that US-22 could not be eliminated as a possible parent for 14 of the 20 genotypes. We conclude that US-22 could be a parent of some, but not all, of the new genotypes found in 2010 and 2011. There were at least two other parents for this population and the genotypic characteristics of the other parents were identified

Heterogeneous Integration for Optical MEMS

In this paper we present different large-scale heterogeneous integration technologies for optical MEMS that enable the integration of optical MEMS with standard CMOS-based ICs. Examples that are presented include various monocrystalline silicon micro-mirror arrays and infrared bolometer arrays.© 2010 IEEE. Personal use of this material is permitted. Permission from IEEE must be obtained for all other uses, in any current or future media, including reprinting/republishing this material for advertising or promotional purposes, creating new collective works, for resale or redistribution to servers or lists, or reuse of any copyrighted component of this work in other works.QC 2011040

The relation between temperament and behavioral issues in children 3 to 5 years of age

Bakalaura darba mērķis ir noskaidrot vai un kāda saistība pastāv starp temperamentu un uzvedības problēmām bērniem vecumā no 3-5 gadu vecuma? Pētījumā piedālījās 50 māmiņas, kurām ir bērni vecumā no 3-5 gadu vecumam (M=3,4), no kuriem: meitenes – 27, zēni – 23. Pētījumā izmantotās metodes bija: 1) Bērnu temperamenta aptauja (ļoti īsā forma), (Very Short Form of the Children’s Behavior Questionnaire /CBQ – VSF/; Rothbart, Ahadi, Hershey & Fisher, 2001). Latvijā aptauju adaptējusi Jana Ozoliņa savā maģistra darbā, zinātniskā darba vadītāja Sandra Sebre, 2010. 2) Bērna uzvedības novērtējuma anketas vecāku un skolotāju formas, (Child Behavior Checklist,(CBCL/1,5-5), Caregiver-Teacher Report Form, (C-TRF), Achenbach & Rescorla, 2000). Latvijā sākotnēji disertācijas ietvaros aptauju adaptējusi Inga Skreitule-Pikše (darba vadītāja Sandra Sebre), 2006-2010. Rezultāti parāda, ka pastāv saistība starp temperamentu un uzvedības problēmām. Visciešākā saistība, gan ar internalizētām, gan eksternalizētām uzvedības problēmām ir temperamenta dimensijai „Negatīvā emocionalitāte”, tāpāt pastāv saistība starp uzvedības problēmām un temperamenta dimensiju „Reaktivitāte”, taču temperamenta dimensija „Reakciju apzināta kontrole” neuzrādīja statistiski nozīmīgu saistību ar uzvedības problēmām. Atslēgas vārdi: mazbērni, pirmsskolas vecuma bērni, temperaments, uzvedība, uzvedības problēmas, temperamenta un uzvedības problēmu saistībaThe goal of the Bachelor Thesis is to find relation between temperament and behaviour issues/problems in childrens of 3-5 years of age. The study included 50 mothers of childrens 3-5 years of age (M=3,4) of which: 27 girls and 23 boys. The methods applied in the research were: 1) Very Short Form of the Children’s Behavior Questionnaire (CBQ – VSF) (Rothbart, Ahadi, Hershey & Fisher, 2001). 2) The Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) for ages 1.5 to 5 years (CBCL/1.5–5; Achenbach & Rescorla, 2000) The results indicate that there are relatien between temperament and behavior issues/problems. The closest relation is between the temperament factor „Negative affectivity” and both internalize and externalised behavior problems, in the same way there is a relation between behavioral problems and the temperament factor "Surgency", but the temperament factor "Effortful control" did not show a statistically significant relation between behavioral problems. Key words: toddler, preschool age children, temperament, behavior, behavioral problems, relation between tempetament and behavioral problem

How to understand species’ niches and range dynamics: a demographic research agenda for biogeography

Range dynamics causes mismatches between a species geographical distribution and the set of suitable environments in which population growth is positive (the Hutchinsonian niche). This is because sourcesink population dynamics cause species to occupy unsuitable environments, and because environmental change creates non-equilibrium situations in which species may be absent from suitable environments (due to migration limitation) or present in unsuitable environments that were previously suitable (due to time-delayed extinction). Because correlative species distribution models do not account for these processes, they are likely to produce biased niche estimates and biased forecasts of future range dynamics. Recently developed dynamic range models (DRMs) overcome this problem: they statistically estimate both range dynamics and the underlying environmental response of demographic rates from species distribution data. This process-based statistical approach qualitatively advances biogeographical analyses. Yet, the application of DRMs to a broad range of species and study systems requires substantial research efforts in statistical modelling, empirical data collection and ecological theory. Here we review current and potential contributions of these fields to a demographic understanding of niches and range dynamics. Our review serves to formulate a demographic research agenda that entails: (1) advances in incorporating process-based models of demographic responses and range dynamics into a statistical framework, (2) systematic collection of data on temporal changes in distribution and abundance and on the response of demographic rates to environmental variation, and (3) improved theoretical understanding of the scaling of demographic rates and the dynamics of spatially coupled populations. This demographic research agenda is challenging but necessary for improved comprehension and quantification of niches and range dynamics. It also forms the basis for understanding how niches and range dynamics are shaped by evolutionary dynamics and biotic interactions. Ultimately, the demographic research agenda should lead to deeper integration of biogeography with empirical and theoretical ecology

Quantitative assessment of structural and compositional colors induced by femtosecond laser:a case study on 301LN stainless steel surface

Abstract The topic of durable coloration and passivation of metal surfaces using state-of-the-art techniques has gained enormous attention and devotion with unremitting efforts of researchers worldwide. Although femtosecond laser marking has been performed on many metals, the related coloration mechanisms are mainly referred to structural colors produced by the interaction of visible light with periodic surface structures. Yet, general quantitative determination of the resulting colors and their origins remain elusive. In this work, we realized quantitative separations of structural colors and compositional pigmentary colors on 301LN austenitic stainless steel surfaces that were treated by femtosecond laser machining. The overall color information was extracted from surface reflectance, with structural color given by numerical simulations, and oxide compositions by chemical state analysis. It was shown that the laser-induced apparent colors of 301LN steel surfaces were combinations of structural and compositional colorations, with the former dominating the angular response and the latter setting up the brownish bases. In addition to the quantification of colors, the analysis method in this work may be useful for the generation and specification of tailored color palettes for practical coloration on metal surfaces by femtosecond laser marking