Upper Pleistocene Stratigraphy, Paleoecology, and Archaeology of the Northern Yukon Interior, Eastern Beringia. I. Bonnet Plume Basin

New stratigraphic and chronometric data show that Bonnet Plume Basin, in northeastern Yukon Territory, was glaciated in late Wisconsinan time rather than during an earlier advance of Laurentide ice. This conclusion has important ramifications not only for the interpretation of all-time glacial limits farther north along the Richardson Mountains but also for non-glaciated basins in the Porcupine drainage to the northwest. The late Wisconsinan glacial episode in Bonnet Plume Basin is here named the Hungry Creek advance after the principal Quaternary section in the basin. Sediments beneath the till at Hungry Creek have produced well-produced pollen, plant macrofossils, insects, and a few vertebrate remains. The plant and invertebrate fossils provide a detailed, if temporally restricted, record of a portion of the mid-Wisconsinan interstadial, while the vertebrate fossils include the oldest Yukon specimen of the Yukon wild ass. Some of the mid-Wisconsinan sediments have also yielded distinctive chert flakes that represent either a previously unreported product of natural fracturing or a by-product of stone tool manufacture by human residents of Bonnet Plume Basin. In addition to presenting new data on these diverse but interrelated topics, this paper serves as an introduction to a series of reports that will treat in turn the Upper Pleistocene record of Bluefish, Old Crow, and Bell basins, respectively.&nbsp

Atypical processing of voice sounds in infants at risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder

Adults diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show a reduced sensitivity (degree of selective response) to social stimuli such as human voices. In order to determine whether this reduced sensitivity is a consequence of years of poor social interaction and communication or is present prior to significant experience, we used functional MRI to examine cortical sensitivity to auditory stimuli in infants at high familial risk for later emerging ASD (HR group, N = 15), and compared this to infants with no family history of ASD (LR group, N = 18). The infants (aged between 4 and 7 months) were presented with voice and environmental sounds while asleep in the scanner and their behaviour was also examined in the context of observed parent-infant interaction. Whereas LR infants showed early specialisation for human voice processing in right temporal and medial frontal regions, the HR infants did not. Similarly, LR infants showed stronger sensitivity than HR infants to sad vocalisations in the right fusiform gyrus and left hippocampus. Also, in the HR group only, there was an association between each infant's degree of engagement during social interaction and the degree of voice sensitivity in key cortical regions. These results suggest that at least some infants at high-risk for ASD have atypical neural responses to human voice with and without emotional valence. Further exploration of the relationship between behaviour during social interaction and voice processing may help better understand the mechanisms that lead to different outcomes in at risk populations

Outcome and medical management in dogs with lower motor neuron disease undergoing mechanical ventilation: 14 cases (2003-2009)

Objective To describe the application of intermittent positive pressure ventilation (IIPV) in dogs with lower motor neuron disease (LMND). Design Multi‐institutional, retrospective study (2003–2009). Setting Intensive care units at multiple university teaching hospitals. Animals Fourteen dogs with LMND that underwent IIPV. Interventions None. Measurements and Main Results The ventilatory logs of 4 teaching hospitals were searched for dogs undergoing IIPV in association with a diagnosis of acute LMND. The medical records were evaluated for signalment, specific LMND, ventilatory management and duration, complications associated with ventilation, duration of hospitalization, and outcome. Descriptive statistics were used as indicated. Fifteen records were evaluated, 1 dog was excluded since it experienced cardiopulmonary arrest (CPA) before commencement of IIPV. The median age was 7.0 years (range 10 mo to 12 y). There were 5 Labrador retrievers, 4 mixed breeds, and 5 other breeds were each represented once. Five dogs were diagnosed with myasthenia gravis, 4 dogs with polyradiculoneuritis, and 5 dogs had an undetermined LMND. Clinical signs of weakness before ventilation were present for a median of 36 hours (range 6 h to 14 d). Dogs were ventilated for a median of 109 hours (range 5–261 h). Nine dogs had temporary tracheostomies performed, and 8 dogs received nutritional support. Five dogs developed ventilator associated pneumonia. Six dogs were successfully weaned from the ventilator with a median ventilatory time of 49 hours (range 25–192 h). Three dogs survived to discharge. No single LMND was associated with a better outcome. Conclusions High euthanasia rates and iatrogenic complications limit the ability to accurately prognosticate for affected dogs in this retrospective study, but in dogs with LMND that is severe enough to require IIPV, support may be required days to weeks

An early warning system for groundwater flooding in the Chalk

An early warning system has been developed for groundwater flooding and trialled in the Patcham area of Brighton. It provides a fit-for-purpose approach for forecasting groundwater flood events in the Chalk and is capable of operating across longer time scales than had previously been possible. The method involves a set of nested steps or tasks. Initially, the catchment’s response to recharge is determined and, using a representative hydrograph, a simple regression model that relates annual groundwater level minima and autumn and winter rainfall to subsequent annual maxima is developed. The regression model is then applied at the end of each summer recession using the observed annual minimum and estimates of winter rainfall to predict the following groundwater level maximum. Based on the results of this prediction a variety of steps may then be appropriate. Where the model predicts potentially high groundwater levels the frequency of groundwater level monitoring observations can be increased. A novel element of the method developed is the monitoring of changes in the matric potential of the unsaturated zone. Specific trigger levels to initiate either the next step of the method or promulgation of warnings of varying severity will be developed through experience of use of the system