Decoupling aggression and risk-taking: patterns of variation in two species of freshwater fish

An extensive literature has documented the existence of suites of correlated behavioural traits (called behavioural syndromes) in a range of vertebrate species, as well as in some invertebrates. The existence and persistence of such behavioural syndromes is of both fundamental and applied interest and the main aim of the work described in this thesis was to examine sources of individual variation in risk-taking and aggression, as well as the circumstances under which those behaviours could be uncoupled. The study used two species of freshwater fish that have become something of a model to study behaviour: the three spine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) and the rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss). In chapter 1 I give a background on the current research on individual variability in behaviour, behavioural syndromes and coping strategies, with special reference to fish; as well as considering the implications of behavioural syndromes for evolutionary biology and aquaculture. Chapter 2 describes a long-term experiment on boldness, aggression and the relationship between them in sticklebacks that grew at different rates under two different competitive regimes. In one treatment (the low interaction condition) food was dispersed, while in the other (the high interaction condition), food was clumped. Fish were fed to excess in both treatments. Analysis of the relationship between risk-taking and some morphological variables showed that, in general, shy fish were heavier and longer than both bold and behaviourally intermediate fish, independently of their body condition. Fish from the low interaction condition were more aggressive than those from the high interaction feeding regime. Boldness and aggression were positively associated only in the fast growing fish from the high interaction competitive regime. Limited evidence suggests that individual personalities may influence reproductive success and other fitness-related traits in complex and context-specific ways. In the study described in Chapter 3, I used an indirect approach to relate fitness to personalities in sticklebacks. Specifically, I related hatching date of fry (used as an indirect measure of parental fitness) to their personalities (boldness and aggression). Individuals that hatched early were bolder than late hatched fish, whereas most of the shy individuals were found among the late bred fish. There were no detectable differences in aggression between early and late hatched fish, but there was a relationship between boldness and aggression independent of hatching date. In chapters 4 and 5, I describe studies of rainbow trout from two lines selected for breeding for low (LR) or high (HR) post-stress plasma cortisol response that have become something of a model system for studies of coping strategies in fish. In addition to striking differences in cortisol responsiveness, LR and HR fish show patterns of brain biochemistry, risk-taking and aggression that are typical of so-called proactive and reactive animals respectively. The results reported in chapter 5 strengthen this interpretation, by comparing behavioural flexibility and response to novelty in 3rd generation LR and HR rainbow trout. After being trained individually to find food in one arm of a T-maze, HR fish were able to found food strikingly faster than LR trout when the resource was moved to a different position. In contrast, LR fish were much less distracted by the presence of an unfamiliar object. Previous studies have shown that proactive animals develop and follow routines more strictly than do reactive animals, while the latter are more aware of changes in their environment. My results therefore give further support to the characterisation of LR and HR rainbow trout as showing proactive and reactive coping strategies. In chapter 4 however, I complicate this interpretation by showing that the relationship between boldness and aggression is flexible. Following transport from the UK to Norway, HR and LR fish switched behavioural profiles. In contrast to the results of previous studies, HR fish fed sooner in a novel environment and became dominant over LR fish in pairwise aggressive interactions. One year after transport, HR fish still fed sooner than LR fish, but no difference in social dominance was found. Among offspring of transported fish, no differences in feeding rates were observed, but as in pre-transported 3rd generation fish, HR fish lost fights for social dominance against size matched LR opponents. Transported fish and their offspring retained their distinctive physiological profile throughout the study, with HR fish showing consistently higher post-stress cortisol levels at all sampling points. Therefore the striking difference in cortisol responsiveness in these two strains of trout is on its own not sufficient to maintain distinct behavioural phenotypes. The work described in this thesis therefore extends current understanding of individual variability in behaviour and of behavioural syndromes by identifying circumstances under which risk-taking and aggression are uncoupled in two species of freshwater fish. It also suggests some potential consequences for fitness. In chapter 6 these results are discussed on the light of current research on animal personalities, behavioural syndromes, coping strategies and their implications for evolutionary biology. Particular reference is made to the existing literature on fish and the implications of those findings for aquaculture are also discussed

Modelo para la clasificación no destructiva de fruta en grados de firmeza a partir de medidas ópticas y mecánicas. Aplicación a melocotones amarillos de carne dura.

Los melocotones objeto del estudio son amarillo de carne dura tipo pavía. Durante la campaña 1997, se analizaron muestras representativas de un número importante de variedades de melocotón que llegaban a cooperativas en la Región de Murcia y a un hipermercado de Madrid. Las variedades fueron Caterina, BabyGold, Sudanell, Vesubio y Miraflores. El número de frutos, melocotones amarillos de carne dura, fue de 224. Los ensayos que se realizaron fueron: 1-º Ensayo destructivo de estimación de firmeza por penetrometría Magness Taylor, realizado mediante punzón metálico de 8mm de diámetro, a una velocidad de 20 mm por minuto. 2-. Ensayos no destructivos: Impacto, realizado mediante el impactador del Laboratorio de Propiedades Físicas. 2.- Ensayo de deformación mediante el empleo de durómetro tipo Durofel-10. Posee un cilindro metálico que emerge 3 mm de superficie metálica y plana. Dicho cilindro se aplica perpendicularmente a la superficie del fruto; está conectado a un resorte que registra la fuerza correspondiente a la deformación máxima. Medida de reflectancia en el espectro visible desde 400 a 700 nm, mediante el uso del espectrofotómetro Minolta CM-508Í. Se consideraron las reflectancia correspondientes a 450 nm y a 680 nm, por ser las que mejor se correlacionan con la presencia de carotenoides y clorofila respectivamente. Ambos pigmentos están relacionados con el proceso de maduración, en el cual también se reblandecen los frutos

El sabor de la fruta se puede "ver"

La UPM ha desarrollado un nuevo método para determinar las propiedades internas de la fruta, como el estado de madurez y la vida útil

Hyperespectral images for the evaluation of the quality of minimally processed vegetables (spinach)

The production of minimally processed vegetables and fruits is an emergent sector, however these processes reduce the useful life of the products. Main preservation techniques such cold storage and modified atmosphere are limited. New treatments are being applied (O3 , UV‐C radiation, biodegradable films…etc.). The sector precise of cheap and fast techniques to evaluate the general quality and the security of the processed products, that constitute a tool of aid to the decision in the implementation of new procedures of packaging and/or treatments. Objectives: To explore hyperspectral imaging for monitoring the evolution of minimally processed leafy vegetables during shelf‐life . To identify and classify deterioration rates of the leaves through Multivariate analysis techniques (PLS‐DA

Gestión en el Área Financiera de la Empresa Transporte Soza, del municipio de Matagalpa, en el I semestre del año 2014

El Presente estudio trata sobre la Gestión en el Área Financiera de las Empresas de Matagalpa y se enfoca en evaluar la gestión en el Área Financiera de la Empresa Transportes Soza del municipio de Matagalpa, en el primer semestre 2014. Esta temática es importante porque brinda información relevante para las empresas de servicios de transporte, para realizar gestiones financieras que les permitan facilitar sus operaciones diarias y alcanzar sus objetivos. Por lo tanto la Empresa Transportes Soza con un buen funcionamiento alcanzará un mejor desempeño en las gestiones Financiera. Obtuvimos como resultado que la empresa Transportes Soza realiza gestiones financieras como son análisis de estados financieros para la toma de decisiones, administración del capital propio, control del uso de la flota vehicular, para alcanzar el logro de sus metas propuestas Por tanto se diseñó una propuesta de alternativas las cuales son: establecer políticas de créditos, definir una estructura organizacional, establecer plan de renovación vehicular para minimizar riesgos, crear política de retención de clientes, para mitigar las dificultades que enfrentan en los procesos de las gestiones financieras que realizan. El gestor financiero con la aplicación en de procesos de organización y planeación presupuestaria, ha logrado obtener la estabilidad económica, para minimizar dificultades imprevistas. En la empresa Transportes Soza, se determinó que no cuenta con un departamento de finanzas estructurado, esto conlleva a que no existe delimitación de funciones en el área financiera y provoqué invasión de funcione

Sensibility and taste alterations after impacted lower third molar extractions. A prospective cohort study

Objectives: To determine the incidence, severity and duration of lingual tactile and gustatory function impairments after lower third molar removal. Study Design: Prospective cohort study with intra-subject measures of 16 patients undergoing lower third molar extractions. Sensibility and gustatory functions were evaluated in each subject preoperatively, one week and one month after the extraction, using Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments and 5 different concentrations of NaCl, respectively. Additionally, all patients filled a questionnaire to assess subjective perceptions. Results: Although patients did not perceive any sensibility impairments, a statistically significant decrease was detected when Semmes-Weinstein monofilaments. This alteration was present at one week after the surgical procedure and fully recovered one month after the extraction. There were no variations regarding the gustatory function. Conclusions: Lower third molar removal under local anesthesia may cause light lingual sensibility impairment. Most of these alterations remain undetected to patients. These lingual nerve injuries are present one week after the extraction and recover one month after surgery. The taste seems to remain unaffected after these procedures

Emotional indicators associated with bullying behaviors victimization

Bullying is a specific expression of violence in the school environment that has become more relevant in recent decades, due to the appearance of new forms of violence. Experiences of bullying are associated with several social interactions, behavioral adjustment, emotional problems, mainly internalized problems such as anxiety, anxiety and anger. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the distress, anxiety, the expression of anger and the use of humor and its association with the roles of bullying and victimization in school situations in secondary school students from Mexico City. 406 high school students from Mexico City participated. The Reynolds RBVSS bullying victimization scales, the anger expression inventory and the humor styles questionnaire were applied to them. The data from this research confirm the association of expression of anger, agony, anxiety, and negative use of humor in bullying behaviors, in different ways in both bullies and victims

Exposición y género: El ejemplo de los museos de arqueología

SIAM. Series Iberoamericanas de Museología. Año 3, Vol.

Cooperación política transnacional para la interoperabilidad de los negocios electrónicos

El actual paradigma tecno-económico de las tecnologías de información y comunicación es reflejo de las transformaciones en la estructura económica y política de la sociedad mundial. El desarrollo de Internet como un espacio económico que rebasa las fronteras geo-políticas de los mercados nacionales tradicionales ha propiciado la cooperación entre organizaciones internacionales de base gubernamental y asociaciones empresariales trasnacionales que tienen por interés asegurar la interoperabilidad de los negocios electrónicos, mediante el desarrollo de un lenguaje universal (Universal Business Language, UBL).The present techno-economic paradigm of information and communication technologies is a reflection of the transformations in the political and economical structures of world society. The development of Internet as an economic place which goes beyond geo-political frontiers of traditional national markets has favored the cooperation between international governmental organizations and transnational business associations whose interest is to guarantee the interoperability of electronic business through the development of a universal language (Universal Business Language, UBL)