Ecological Opportunity In Adaptive Radiation Of Galapagos Endemic Land Snails

The classic evolutionary hypothesis of ecological opportunity proposes that both heterogeneity of resources and freedom from enemies promote phenotypic divergence as a response to increased niche availability. Although phenotypic divergence and speciation have often been inferred to be the primary consequences of the release from competition or predation that accompanies a shift to a new adaptive zone, increased phenotypic variation within species is expected to represent the first stage resulting from such a shift. Using measures of intraspecific morphological variation of 30 species of Galapagos endemic land snails in a phylogenetically controlled framework, we show that the number of local congeners and the number of local plant species are associated with lower and higher intraspecific phenotypic variation, respectively. In this clade, ecological opportunity thus explicitly links the role of competition from congeners and the heterogeneity of resources to the extent of intraspecific phenotypic divergence as adaptive radiation proceeds.Integrative Biolog

Mental Health Jail Diversion: A Therapeutic Approach to Offending in Twenty-First Century America

This analysis is concerned with understanding the facets of criminal justice diversion programs that successfully improve the mental wellbeing of participants and, as a subsequent effect, reduce offending amongst the mentally ill populous in the United States. An inquiry of pre-program and post-program data from both adult and juvenile mental health specific programs reveals that participation amongst both groups shows a meaningful reduction in new/repeat offending in comparison to non-participants. The data shows that the expansion of law enforcement Crisis Intervention Team’s (CIT’s) has a compounding effect to the positive results. A review of these programs in Australia indicates that an expansion of like-programs would reduce offending in less invested nations such as the United States. A consideration of the aggregated data prompts a discussion about the benefits of further development

Letter from Nasson College with Memo Attachment

Letter from Fred J. Parent of the Maine Sociological Society to Madeleine Giguère confirming her presentation of The French Mother Tongue Population of Maine in 1908 and 1970. Letterhead is from Nasson College, Springvale, Maine.https://digitalcommons.usm.maine.edu/giguere-conferences-and-presentations-1968-1997/1012/thumbnail.jp

Neutrophil swarms require LTB4 and integrins at sites of cell death in vivo

Neutrophil recruitment from blood to extravascular sites of sterile or infectious tissue damage is a hallmark of early innate immune responses, and the molecular events leading to cell exit from the bloodstream have been well defined1,2. Once outside the vessel, individual neutrophils often show extremely coordinated chemotaxis and cluster formation reminiscent of the swarming behaviour of insects3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11. The molecular players that direct this response at the single-cell and population levels within the complexity of an inflamed tissue are unknown. Using two-photon intravital microscopy in mouse models of sterile injury and infection, we show a critical role for intercellular signal relay among neutrophils mediated by the lipid leukotriene B4, which acutely amplifies local cell death signals to enhance the radius of highly directed interstitial neutrophil recruitment. Integrin receptors are dispensable for long-distance migration12, but have a previously unappreciated role in maintaining dense cellular clusters when congregating neutrophils rearrange the collagenous fibre network of the dermis to form a collagen-free zone at the wound centre. In this newly formed environment, integrins, in concert with neutrophil-derived leukotriene B4 and other chemoattractants, promote local neutrophil interaction while forming a tight wound seal. This wound seal has borders that cease to grow in kinetic concert with late recruitment of monocytes and macrophages at the edge of the displaced collagen fibres. Together, these data provide an initial molecular map of the factors that contribute to neutrophil swarming in the extravascular space of a damaged tissue. They reveal how local events are propagated over large-range distances, and how auto-signalling produces coordinated, self-organized neutrophil-swarming behaviour that isolates the wound or infectious site from surrounding viable tissue

USE OF INHALANT ANESTHETICS IN THREE SNAKE SPECIES

Different snake species respond differently to various anesthetic agents. Hence, an anesthetic procedure developed for one species cannot necessarily be safely transferred to another species. The goal of this paper is to summarize our experience using inhalant anesthetics on three snake species, including both procedures that were successful and those we found to be less satisfactory. We found isoflurane delivered with a precision vaporizer to be the best agent to anesthetize black rat snakes (Elaphe o. obsoleta). Sex and mass did not seem to affect induction times in black rat snakes, but larger female rat snakes recovered faster from anesthesia than smaller females. Halothane delivered in the open method provided consistent anesthesia in northern water snakes (Nerodia s. sipedon), although it caused some mortality and should not be used on debilitated patients. Halothane delivered with a precision vaporizer may be used to anesthetize eastern massasauga rattlesnakes (Sistrurus c. catenatus). However, care must be taken to prevent mortality resulting from anesthetic overdose. Sex and mass had no effect on induction and recovery times in the rattlesnakes, but stressed animals require longer induction and recovery times

Impacts des rejets urbains de temps de pluie (RUTP) sur les milieux aquatiques : État des connaissances

En milieu urbain, les flux générés par la pluie peuvent transporter vers les hydrosystèmes une partie des éléments polluants accumulés par temps sec et issus des diverses activités humaines. Ces flux polluants sont qualifiés de « rejets urbains par temps de pluie » (RUTP). Les études menées depuis les années 1960 ont permis d’identifier le problème en évaluant l’origine des polluants, les ordres de grandeur des concentrations et les flux émis. Les RUTP présentent un caractère épisodique, mais peuvent avoir des effets de nature chronique, liés à la répétition des phénomènes. Ils peuvent altérer les différentes composantes des milieux récepteurs : composantes physiques (e.g. modification des écoulements, de la morphodynamique), chimiques (e.g. apports de matières en suspension, fertilisants, micropolluants), biologiques (e.g. sélection des espèces, toxicité, bio-accumulation) et l’hydrosystème dans sa globalité (e.g. eutrophisation). L’intégration d’une caractérisation biologique dans l’évaluation des impacts est reconnue depuis peu, et il existe relativement peu de travaux prenant en compte cette composante. La complexité des rejets (e.g. caractère intermittent, variabilité spatio-temporelle) et la diversité des milieux récepteurs font qu’il est difficile de dresser un bilan exact des impacts. Une approche intégrée, ou holistique, est aujourd’hui préconisée prenant en compte : des descripteurs physico-chimiques, des critères de qualité du milieu (eau et sédiments), de l’habitat, du régime hydraulique, des communautés biologiques autochtones, et des données toxicologiques. Toutefois, une telle approche est difficile à mettre en oeuvre et les travaux s’appuient généralement sur des approches plus simples : études de laboratoire ou de terrain ou combinant les deux.Urbanization greatly disturbs different ecosystems and particularly affects aquatic ecosystems during wet weather. Runoff can transport some of the pollutants accumulated during dry weather towards aquatic ecosystems along with the waste produced by numerous human activities (transport, industry, etc.). These flows of pollution, commonly called «urban wet weather flows», not only affect the physical, chemical and biological properties of receiving aquatic systems, but also modify the intended use of the water. The need to provide a solution to this problem explains the current increase in the number of studies devoted to the environmental impact of urban storm water.Urban wet weather flow studies began in the 1960’s and have permitted the assessment of the sources of pollutants, the order of magnitude of their concentrations and their loads produced. Urban storm-water pollutants are numerous and are of various origins: sewer system cleansing (scoured particles deposited during dry weather); rain wash-out of atmospheric gases and dusts (nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, sulphur dioxide, hydrocarbon vapours, trace metals, aerosols, etc.); rainfall on roofs (copper, zinc, lead); and rain runoff from urban areas and waterproofed surfaces, which are covered with particles accumulated during dry weather. These particles have several sources: cars (hydrocarbons, nitrogen oxides, lead, rubber, zinc, cadmium, copper, titanium, chromium, aluminium, etc.); roads (cement and tar, paint used for road markings, sand and chemical de-icers, detergents, surfactants, etc.); industry (organic matter and organic micro-pollutants); animals (manure as a source of organic matter and bacterial and viral contaminations); solid wastes (plastic, various metals, papers, etc.); and plants (more or less easily biodegradable organic matter, nitrogen, phosphate and pesticide discharges). It is very difficult to define the composition of a standard urban wet weather flow, since the concentrations and loads of pollutants vary considerably according to the type of sewer network (combined, storm-water, etc.), the origin of the water (rainfall, road runoff, settling and infiltration tanks, sewer overflows, etc.), and, of course, the characteristics of the watershed (land use, etc.) and the prevailing weather

Trump holds more positive views toward Vladimir Putin than both his predecessor and his own foreign policy team

Content analysis of public statements by Stephen Benedict Dyson and Matthew J. Parent shows that President Trump has described a more positive approach to Russia than that of President Obama, and President Putin has responded in kind. Data shows that foreign policy officials of the Trump administration hold significantly more hostile views toward Russia than the president, providing further insight into the nature of the Putin-Trump relationship

The Impact of Employee Engagement and a Positive Organizational Culture on an Individual’s Ability to Adapt to Organization Change

The purpose of this paper is to explore the connections between employee engagement, positive organizational psychology and an individual’s ability to adapt to ongoing organizational change. We review the literature on individual adaptability, positive organizational psychology, and employee engagement and propose a model that suggests that a positive work culture enhances employee engagement and in specific cases leads to increased adaptability. Suggestions for future research are provided with the intent to further the academic research in this area