Nineteenth-century Ship-based Catches of Gray Whales, Eschrichtius robustus, in the Eastern North Pacific

The 19th century commercial ship-based fishery for gray whales, Eschrichtius robustus, in the eastern North Pacific began in 1846 and continued until the mid 1870’s in southern areas and the 1880’s in the north. Henderson identified three periods in the southern part of the fishery: Initial, 1846–1854; Bonanza, 1855–1865; and Declining, 1866–1874. The largest catches were made by “lagoon whaling” in or immediately outside the whale population’s main wintering areas in Mexico—Magdalena Bay, Scammon’s Lagoon, and San Ignacio Lagoon. Large catches were also made by “coastal” or “alongshore” whaling where the whalers attacked animals as they migrated along the coast. Gray whales were also hunted to a limited extent on their feeding grounds in the Bering and Chukchi Seas in summer. Using all available sources, we identified 657 visits by whaling vessels to the Mexican whaling grounds during the gray whale breeding and calving seasons between 1846 and 1874. We then estimated the total number of such visits in which the whalers engaged in gray whaling. We also read logbooks from a sample of known visits to estimate catch per visit and the rate at which struck animals were lost. This resulted in an overall estimate of 5,269 gray whales (SE = 223.4) landed by the ship-based fleet (including both American and foreign vessels) in the Mexican whaling grounds from 1846 to 1874. Our “best” estimate of the number of gray whales removed from the eastern North Pacific (i.e. catch plus hunting loss) lies somewhere between 6,124 and 8,021, depending on assumptions about survival of struck-but-lost whales. Our estimates can be compared to those by Henderson (1984), who estimated that 5,542–5,507 gray whales were secured and processed by ship-based whalers between 1846 and 1874; Scammon (1874), who believed the total kill over the same period (of eastern gray whales by all whalers in all areas) did not exceed 10,800; and Best (1987), who estimated the total landed catch of gray whales (eastern and western) by American ship-based whalers at 2,665 or 3,013 (method-dependent) from 1850 to 1879. Our new estimates are not high enough to resolve apparent inconsistencies between the catch history and estimates of historical abundance based on genetic variability. We suggest several lines of further research that may help resolve these inconsistencies

Insights From Whaling Logbooks on Whales, Dolphins, and Whaling in the Gulf of Mexico

Whaling voyage logbooks provide a unique window into historical marine animal distribution and relative numbers. The Gulf of Mexico was among the regions visited by American commercial whalers beginning in the late 1700s, and possibly as early as the 1760s. For more than a century, they hunted sperm whales (Physeter macrocephalus) and blackfish (usually probably short-finned pilot whales; Globicephala macrorhynchus) in the Gulf. An ongoing study of global whaling history has allowed us to offer some insights on characteristics and trends of the Gulf fishery and on cetacean populations in the Gulf. We examined 53 voyage logbooks that included some whaling in the Gulf. Using the information from those logbooks and other sources, we identified 204 different voyages that included one or more ‘‘vessel-seasons’’ of whaling in the Gulf (total of 214 vessel-seasons) between 1788 and 1877. More than three-quarters (76%) of the 186 voyages for which the rig type is known were by brigs or schooners; they sailed primarily from the Massachusetts ports of New Bedford and Nantucket initially and Provincetown in later years. The whaling took place mainly in deep portions of the Gulf and in the first 7 mo of the calendar year (i.e., from Jan. through July). The sperm whales hunted in the Gulf tended to be small and were usually taken from schools, suggesting that they were mostly juveniles and females. Observations (and occasionally catches) of other cetaceans besides sperm whales and blackfish are mentioned in the logbooks—mainly ‘‘finbacks’’ (Balaenoptera sp.), killer whales (Orcinus orca), and ‘‘porpoises’’ (various small delphinids)

Protein Ontology: A controlled structured network of protein entities

The Protein Ontology (PRO; http://proconsortium.org) formally defines protein entities and explicitly represents their major forms and interrelations. Protein entities represented in PRO corresponding to single amino acid chains are categorized by level of specificity into family, gene, sequence and modification metaclasses, and there is a separate metaclass for protein complexes. All metaclasses also have organism-specific derivatives. PRO complements established sequence databases such as UniProtKB, and interoperates with other biomedical and biological ontologies such as the Gene Ontology (GO). PRO relates to UniProtKB in that PRO’s organism-specific classes of proteins encoded by a specific gene correspond to entities documented in UniProtKB entries. PRO relates to the GO in that PRO’s representations of organism-specific protein complexes are subclasses of the organism-agnostic protein complex terms in the GO Cellular Component Ontology. The past few years have seen growth and changes to the PRO, as well as new points of access to the data and new applications of PRO in immunology and proteomics. Here we describe some of these developments

How safe is your curry? Food allergy awareness of restaurant staff

Background: Incidents of severe and fatal anaphylaxis to accidentally ingested food allergens are increasing. Individuals are more likely to encounter difficulties when eating away from home. In restaurants, front-of-house and kitchen staff may be called upon to provide information about ingredients or ensure certain food allergens are excluded from dishes. Following a series of reactions related to the accidental ingestion of peanuts in curries we assessed food allergy awareness and allergen avoidance practices amongst the staff of Asian-Indian restaurants. Methods: A questionnaire survey was administered by telephone to one member of staff in each restaurant. Results: Fifty percent (40/80) of restaurants participated. Responders included managers, owners, waiters and chefs. Most (90%) had received food hygiene training, but only 15% food allergy training. 25% could name three common food allergens. 3 in 4 listed nuts, but less than 1in 5 mentioned peanuts. Common misunderstandings included 60% of staff believing an individual experiencing an allergic reaction should drink water to dilute the allergen. A less prevalent, but perhaps more concerning, was the misunderstanding that cooking food would prevent it causing an allergic reaction (25%). Despite poor knowledge, all respondents were comfortable and 65% were “very comfortable” with providing a “safe” meal for a customer with a food allergy. 60% expressed interest in future food allergy training. Conclusions: Despite high confidence in their own understanding of allergy, many staff lacked the knowledge to provide “safe” meals for food allergic customers. Traditionally tree nuts are a common ingredient in Asian-Indian dishes cuisine and there was widespread, but not universal, awareness of tree nuts as a common allergen. Peanuts were less commonly recognised as a common allergen, an observation of extreme concern as peanuts are being substituted for tree nuts as they are cheaper and avoid having to inflate meal prices. Our data highlights the need for greater training of restaurant staff. In parallel, food allergic customers need to exercise vigilance when making meal choices and develop skills to order a safe meal. The management of allergy is multifaceted, and this study indicates the importance of health professionals working beyond the clinical setting to collaborate with colleagues in the hospitality industry, public health and environmental health in coordinated endeavours to improve patient safety

Regulatory T Cell Induction and Retention in the Lungs Drives Suppression of Detrimental Type 2 Th Cells During Pulmonary Cryptococcal Infection

Lethal disease caused by the fungus, Cryptococcus neoformans, is a consequence of the combined failure to control pulmonary fungal replication and immunopathology caused by induced type-2 helper T (Th2) cell responses in animal models. In order to gain incites into immune regulatory networks, we examined the role of regulatory T (Treg) cells in suppression of Th2 cells, using a mouse model of experimental cryptococcosis. Upon pulmonary infection with Cryptococcus, Treg cells accumulated in the lung parenchyma independently of priming in the draining lymph node. Using peptide-MHCII molecules to identify Cryptococcus-specific Treg cells combined with genetic fate-mapping, we noted that a majority of the Treg cells found in the lungs were induced during the infection. Additionally, we found that Treg cells utilized the transcription factor, Interferon Regulatory Factor 4 (IRF4), to dampen harmful Th2 cell responses, as well as mediate chemokine retention of Treg cells in the lungs. Taken together, induction and IRF4-dependent localization of Treg cells in the lungs allow Treg cells to suppress the deleterious effects of Th2 cells during cryptococcal infection

School Counseling Site Supervision: Training Recommendations to Benefit School Counselor Interns and Site Supervisors

The importance of supervision is supported in the research literature. Site supervision in school counseling does not require formal training. The absence of formal training has potential implications for the novice school counselor, the P-12 students they serve, and future school counseling supervisees. The authors compare current training models and explore best practices to improve site supervision for school counseling interns. accreditation, ethics, and current needs in school counseling for the school counselor intern and the site supervisor. Finally, the authors review supervision training and models, accreditation, ethics, and current needs for the school counselor intern and the site supervisor, including a recommendation for a school supervisory endorsement

A “Learning Revolution”? Investigating Pedagogic Practices around Interactive Whiteboards in British Primary Classrooms

Interactive whiteboards have been rapidly introduced into all primary schools under UK Government initiatives. These large, touch-sensitive screens, which control a computer connected to a digital projector, seem to be the first type of educational technology particularly suited for whole-class teaching and learning. Strong claims are made for their value by manufacturers and policy makers, but there has been little research on how, if at all, they influence established pedagogic practices, communicative processes and educational goals. This study has been designed to examine this issue, using observations in primary (elementary) school classrooms. It is funded by the UK Economic and Social Research Council and builds on the authors’ previous research on ICT in educational dialogues and collaborative activities

The Chemical Evolution of the Galactic Bulge

This science white paper addresses the issue of discovering the chemical evolution of the Galactic bulge, from which we may learn the initial mass function at the time of the formation of the bulge, the timescale for the initial burst of star formation, any evidence supporting an extended era of star formation, evidence of very early mergers of massive subcomponents, and the fraction of its mass that was contributed by late mergers. A further immediate problem concerns the composition of dwarfs measured from microlensing events versus the abundance scale measured from giants. A companion White Paper (Clarkson & Rich) addresses a set of bulge science questions that require observations at very high angular resolution

Pseudosarcomatous myofibroblastic proliferations of the genitourinary tract are genetically different from nodular fasciitis and lack USP6, ROS1 and ETV6 gene rearrangements

Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/145266/1/his13526_am.pdfhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/145266/2/his13526.pd