Analyses of Victorian hog deer (axis porcinus) checking station data: demographics, body condition and time of harvest

This report looks into the sustainability and health of deer within Victoria\u27s regional areas. Hog Deer (Axis porcinus) are a popular and highly valued game species in Victoria, with licensed hunters permitted to harvest one male and one female during an annual hunting season during the month of April. All harvested deer must be tagged and presented at a checking station within 24 hours of harvest. A variety of morphological and biological data are recorded for each harvested animal during inspection at the checking stations. The objectives of this study were to (i) summarise biological data collected for all Hog Deer inspected at the four mainland checking stations during 1997–2011 (i.e. excluding Sunday Island, which is owned and managed by the Para Park Co-operative Game Reserve Limited), and (ii) provide recommendations for improving the usefulness of future data collection. A total of 1122 deer were presented at the mainland checking stations (70.4% male; 29.6% female) during 1997–2011, with annual totals ranging from 38 in 1999 to 111 in 2011. There was little evidence that the number or sex ratio of deer harvested annually changed substantially over the course of the study period. The overall percentages of deer harvested on public (52%) and private (48%) land also did not show any discernable trend during the study period. The ages of deer (estimated by molar eruption and tooth wear) ranged from 1 to 12 years for females and males. Although the age structures differed slightly for females and males, there was no evidence that this changed over the study period, although inconsistent recording of ages limited the opportunity for quantitative analyses of these data

SHARING SCIENCE THROUGH FREE AND OPEN ELECTRONIC LABORATORY NOTEBOOKS – A GITHUB CASESTUDY

Electronic laboratory notebooks (ELN) are widely used in industry due to the many advantages offered including version-control, security and shareability. For over five years, through the Breaking Good Initiative (https://www.breakinggoodproject.com), we have been working with high school students and undergraduates across three continents and involving young people in a crowdsourced citizen science project where they make molecules that matter. One of the key challenges for the project has been finding a single appropriate platform that enables students to both share results and data, and talk to members of the open source community. For years we successfully used the open source LabTrove platform for research and crowdsourced projects (Badiola et al., 2014) and have used LabArchives for several years within our teaching and research at the University of Sydney. We now report our experiences using GitHub, a web-based platform originally developed for coders that enables version control (https://github.com). In this talk we will describe the use of GitHub as an open ELN and discussion platform that enables researchers, students and citizen scientists to collaborate in real time, and discuss how this platform can be used as a tool to enhance the learning experience for students in both formal and informal settings. REFERENCES Badiola, K.A., Bird, C., Brocklesby, W.S., Casson, J., Chapman, R.T., Coles, S.J., Cronshaw, J.R., Fisher, A., Grey, J.G., Gloria, D., Grossel, M.C., Hibbert, D.B., Knight, N., Mapp, L.K., Marazzi, L., Matthews, B., Milsted, A., Minns, R.S., Mueller, K.T., Murphey, K., Parkinson, T., Quinnell, R., Robinson, J.S., Robertson, M.N., Robins, M., Springate, E., Tizzard, G., Tood M.H., Williamson, A.E., Willoughby, C., Yang, E., & Yliojia, P.M. (2014). Experiences with a researcher-centric ELN. Chemical Science, 2015(6), 1614-1629

A silicon-labelled amino acid suitable for late-stage fluorination and unexpected oxidative cleavage reactions in the preparation of a key intermediate in the Strecker synthesis

A novel silicon-substituted phenylalanine derivative was prepared using the Strecker amino acid synthesis. An unexpected oxidative cleavage was observed in the preparation of the aldehyde required for the Strecker reaction. In this step, a homobenzylic alcohol intermediate was oxidatively cleaved to the corresponding benzaldehyde using either chromium or palladium based oxidants. This undesired side reaction was overcome through the use of Dess-Martin Periodinane, or through an efficient TEMPO-bleach oxidation. The amino acid prepared in this study was then labelled with fluoride in aqueous solvent using a range of fluoride sources. The efficiency of this labelling motivates future studies in late-stage fluorination of peptide and protein therapeutics for use in positron emission tomography

All-optical delay line using semiconductor cavity solitons

An all-optical delay line based on the lateral drift of cavity solitons in semiconductor microresonators is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The functionalities of the device proposed as well as its performance is analyzed and compared with recent alternative methods based on the decrease of group velocity in the vicinity of resonances. We show that the current limitations can be overcome using broader devices with tailored material responses

All-optical delay line using semiconductor cavity solitons (vol 92, 011101, 2008)

Correction of Pedaci, F. and Barland, S. and Caboche, E. and Firth, W.J. and Oppo, G.L. and Tredicce, J.R. and Ackemann, T. and Scroggie, A.J. (2008) All-optical delay line using semiconductor cavity solitons. Applied Physics Letters, 92 (1). ISSN 0003-695

Collaboration between researchers and educators enables an authentic and engaging learning experience

The use of authentic learning experiences and real-world problem solving is an effective means to increase student engagement with course content. Providing broader context of the application of chemistry can aid students in relating abstract chemical concepts to their own experiences of the world, and improve students’ willingness to learn and understand deeper concepts (King, 2012). In addition, there is increasing evidence that engaging in citizen science projects, wherein students work with peers and researchers towards a common goal, is a powerful motivator for students (Vitone et al., 2016).  The Breaking Good project is an ongoing citizen science program in which high school and undergraduate students work cooperatively with researchers to synthesise novel drug candidates that are screened against various neglected tropical diseases. We will discuss our experiences implementing this synthetic workshop program in both schools and universities and explore how different educational settings require and enable different levels of immersion and styles of learning. In particular, we examine the balance between providing authentic and immersive experiences while maintaining close alignment with learning outcomes. We suggest that co-creation between educators and researchers facilitates a more cohesive and enriching experience for students. REFERENCES King, D. (2012) New perspectives on context-based chemistry education: using a dialectical sociocultural approach to view teaching and learning. Studies in Science Education, 48(1), 51-87 Vitone, T., Stofer, K., Steininger, M. S., Hulcr, J., Dunn, R. and Lucky, A. (2016). School of Ants goes to college: integrating citizen science into the general education classroom increases engagement with science. Journal of Science Communication, 15(01), A0

LEARNING ABOUT THE COMPLEXITY OF SCIENCE THROUGH CITIZEN SCIENCE

Understanding the complexity and multifaceted nature of science is a key skill for engaging fruitfully in today’s scientifically and technologically enhanced society. Yet, these notions are often not taught in school or university contexts and thus are difficult for students and publics to conceive. One way to increase the understanding about the nature of science is by active participation in scientific research, through citizen science projects. This paper presents a novel approach to citizen science, applied in EENTIAL MEDICINE$ – a Breaking Good citizen science project – for exploring the world's most important medicines (Motion et al., 2020). Through hands-on engagement with the project, participants investigate the life cycles and accessibility of important medicines to people around the world, and learn about the social, political and financial variables which affect access to some medicines. Such learning opportunities provide a holistic understanding of the complexity of science, and will be discussed in this talk alongside the implications and implementation of EENTIAL MEDICINE$ in formal education. REFERENCE Motion, A. et al. “Breaking Good.” Breaking Good. Retrieved June 19, 2020 (https://www.breakinggoodproject.com)

Ocupación del microhábitat y morfología funcional de cuatro especies de lagartos agámidos simpátridas del desierto de Kyzylkum, en Uzbekistán central

We examined microhabitat occupation and functional morphology of four sympatric agamid lizards(Phrynocephalus helioscopus helioscopus, P. interscapularis, P. mystaceus galli and Trapelus sanguinolentus) at three sites in the arid zone of central Uzbekistan. At two sites located in sand dunes, substrate attributes played a key role in habitat selection by three syntopic species. At a third flat, stony site, P. helioscopus selected habitat non-randomly, tending to occur close to sparse, low vegetation. Syntopic taxa were separated in morphospace, and there was a trend for taxa with proportionally longer limbs to have faster field escape speeds. Field escape distances and predator avoidance tactics differed between species, with two main escape strategies (crypsis or sand-diving following an escape sprint). We caution that broad–scale threatening processes such as over-grazing and salinity may be having a detrimental effect on microhabitat features important to terrestrial reptiles in Uzbekistan. Key words: Agamidae, Central Asia, Microhabitat occupation, Functional morphology.We examined microhabitat occupation and functional morphology of four sympatric agamid lizards(Phrynocephalus helioscopus helioscopus, P. interscapularis, P. mystaceus galli and Trapelus sanguinolentus) at three sites in the arid zone of central Uzbekistan. At two sites located in sand dunes, substrate attributes played a key role in habitat selection by three syntopic species. At a third flat, stony site, P. helioscopus selected habitat non-randomly, tending to occur close to sparse, low vegetation. Syntopic taxa were separated in morphospace, and there was a trend for taxa with proportionally longer limbs to have faster field escape speeds. Field escape distances and predator avoidance tactics differed between species, with two main escape strategies (crypsis or sand-diving following an escape sprint). We caution that broad–scale threatening processes such as over-grazing and salinity may be having a detrimental effect on microhabitat features important to terrestrial reptiles in Uzbekistan. Key words: Agamidae, Central Asia, Microhabitat occupation, Functional morphology.Examinamos la ocupación del microhábitat y la morfología funcional decuatro lagartos agámidos simpátridas (Phrynocephalus helioscopus helioscopus, P. interscapularis, P. mystaceus galli y Trapelus sanguinolentus) en tres localizaciones de la zona árida del Uzbekistán central. En dos localizaciones, situadas en una zona de dunas de arena, las características del sustrato tuvieron un papel clave en la selección del hábitat por parte de tres especies sintópicas. En una tercera zona, una llanura pedregosa, P. helioscopus no seleccionaba su hábitat al azar, con una clara tendencia a situarse cerca de vegetación baja y dispersa. Los taxa sintópicos estaban separados en el morfoespacio, y existía la tendencia entre los taxa con las extremidades proporcionalmente más largas a tener una mayor velocidad de huida. Las distancias de huida de campo y las tácticas de evitación de los depredadores diferían según las especies, con dos estrategias de huida principales (cripsis o enterramiento en la arena, seguidos de una carrera de escape). Hemos de advertir que los procesos amenazadores a gran escala, tales como el sobrepastoreo y la salinización pueden tener un efecto perjudicial sobre las características del microhábitat que son importantes para los reptiles terrestres de Uzbekistán. Palabras clave: Agamidae, Asia central, Ocupación del microhábitat, Morfología funcional

Understanding stage of innovation of invasive procedures and devices:Protocol for a systematic review and thematic analysis

INTRODUCTION: Surgical innovation has generally occurred in an unstandardised manner. This has led to unnecessary exposure of patients to harm, research waste and inadequate evidence. The IDEAL (Idea, Development, Exploration, Assessment, Long-term follow-up) Collaboration provided a set of recommendations for evaluating surgical innovations based on their stage of innovation. Despite further refinements and guidance, adoption of the IDEAL recommendations has been slow; an important reason may be that determining the stage of innovation is often difficult. To facilitate evaluation of surgical innovations, there is a need for a detailed insight into what stage of innovation means, and how it can be determined. The aim of this study is to understand the concept of stage of innovation as reported in the literature. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A systematic review is being conducted. Ovid MEDLINE and Embase databases were searched from their inception until July 2021 using an iteratively developed strategy based on the concepts of stage of innovation, invasive procedures or devices and guidance. Articles were included if they described an approach to evaluating surgical innovations in stages, described a method for determining stage of innovation, described indicators of stage of innovation, defined stages or described potential sources of stage-related information. Conference abstracts and non-English language articles were excluded. Other articles were detected from citations within included articles and suggestions from experts in surgical innovation. Data will be extracted regarding approaches to evaluating surgical innovations, methods for determining stage of innovation, indicators of stage of innovation, definitions of stages and potential sources of stage-related information. A thematic analysis will be conducted, and findings summarised in a narrative report. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval will not be required. This systematic review will be published in a peer-reviewed journal and presented at appropriate conferences. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42021270812

Hexagon patterns in optical bistability

The mean-field model of optical bistability in a ring cavity is extended to include diffraction in two transverse dimensions. Nonlinear analysis in the neighborhood of the instability of the homogeneous solution indicates the formation of stable hexagonal patterns, and this is confirmed by numerical simulation, with reasonable quantitative agreement. Simulations with higher excitation show defect structures and complex dynamical patterns