Transverse Beam Spin Asymmetries at Backward Angles in Elastic Electron-Proton and Quasi-elastic Electron-Deuteron Scattering

We have measured the beam-normal single-spin asymmetries in elastic scattering of transversely polarized electrons from the proton, and performed the first measurement in quasi-elastic scattering on the deuteron, at backward angles (lab scattering angle of 108 degrees) for Q2 = 0.22 GeV^2/c^2 and 0.63 GeV^2/c^2 at beam energies of 362 MeV and 687 MeV, respectively. The asymmetry arises due to the imaginary part of the interference of the two-photon exchange amplitude with that of single photon exchange. Results for the proton are consistent with a model calculation which includes inelastic intermediate hadronic (piN) states. An estimate of the beam-normal single-spin asymmetry for the scattering from the neutron is made using a quasi-static deuterium approximation, and is also in agreement with theory

Fostering appropriate behaviour in rehabilitant orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus)

Rehabilitation centres in Indonesia and Malaysia accommodate displaced orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus and P. abelii) and aim to facilitate their release into the wild by developing in them the skills that are necessary for survival. Regular forest excursions are provided but their efficacy in improving learning of appropriate behaviours is unknown. We observed forty rehabilitating orangutans from the Orangutan Care and Quarantine Centre during three forest excursions each to determine whether their behaviour fostered the development of survival skills. In total 38% of their time was spent in locomotion, particularly quadrupedal arboreal travel (13%), walking (8%), climbing (7%) and vine-swinging (4%). 26.5% of their time was spent 5 m or more from the ground, at heights up to 25 m. Arboreal activities were more 2 common early in the excursions and interaction with c are-givers more common later (hour 1: 0.3% of time; hour 5: 0.9% of time). Animals of lower body weight were significantly more likely to engage in arboreal movement, locomotion in general, eating of bark and leaves, and social play, and less likely to eat insects. Those that had been at the Centre the longest were less likely to perform arboreal activities and significantly more likely to be found standing and at ground level, than those that were there for a shorter time. During this study, many forest food items were consumed, particularly leaves and fruit, but also invertebrates and bark. Little time was spent in sexual behaviour, tool use, nest building or socially-mediated learning, but social play occupied almost 6% of their time. We conclude that regular excursions into the forest are likely to assist in the development of locomotion and feeding skills for survival in rehabilitating orangutans, but special attention is needed to encourage nest building, social activities and arboreal activity. Animals least likely to benefit are heavy animals and those that have been captive for a long time

Toward Male Individualization with Rapidly Mutating Y-Chromosomal Short Tandem Repeats

Relevant for various areas of human genetics, Y-chromosomal short tandem repeats (Y-STRs) are com- monly used for testing close paternal relationships among individuals and populations, and for male lineage iden- tification. However, even the widely used 17-loci Yfiler set cannot resolve individuals and populations completely. Here, 52 centers generated quality-controlled data of 13 rapidly mutating (RM) Y-STRs in 14,644 related and unrelated males from 111 worldwide populations. Strik- ingly, >99% of the 12,272 unrelated males were com- pletely individualized. Haplotype diversity was extremely high (global: 0.9999985, regional: 0.99836\u20130.9999988). Haplotype sharing between populations was almost ab- sent except for six (0.05%) of the 12,156 haplotypes. Haplotype sharing within populations was generally rare (0.8% nonunique haplotypes), significantly lower in ur- ban (0.9%) than rural (2.1%) and highest in endogamous groups (14.3%). Analysis of molecular variance revealed 99.98% of variation within populations, 0.018% among populations within groups, and 0.002% among groups. Of the 2,372 newly and 156 previously typed male relative pairs,29% were differentiated including 27% of the 2,378 father\u2013son pairs. Relative to Yfiler, haplotype diversity was increased in 86% of the populations tested and over- all male relative differentiation was raised by 23.5%. Our study demonstrates the value of RM Y-STRs in identifying and separating unrelated and related males and provides a reference database