889 research outputs found
Defending the home(land): gendering Civil Defence from the First World War to the 'War on Terror'
Gravitation with superposed Gauss--Bonnet terms in higher dimensions: Black hole metrics and maximal extensions
Our starting point is an iterative construction suited to combinatorics in
arbitarary dimensions d, of totally anisymmetrised p-Riemann 2p-forms (2p\le d)
generalising the (1-)Riemann curvature 2-forms. Superposition of p-Ricci
scalars obtained from the p-Riemann forms defines the maximally Gauss--Bonnet
extended gravitational Lagrangian. Metrics, spherically symmetric in the (d-1)
space dimensions are constructed for the general case. The problem is directly
reduced to solving polynomial equations. For some black hole type metrics the
horizons are obtained by solving polynomial equations. Corresponding Kruskal
type maximal extensions are obtained explicitly in complete generality, as is
also the periodicity of time for Euclidean signature. We show how to include a
cosmological constant and a point charge. Possible further developments and
applications are indicated.Comment: 13 pages, REVTEX. References and Note Adde
Sex-biased parental care and sexual size dimorphism in a provisioning arthropod
The diverse selection pressures driving the evolution of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) have long been debated. While the balance between fecundity selection and sexual selection has received much attention, explanations based on sex-specific ecology have proven harder to test. In ectotherms, females are typically larger than males, and this is frequently thought to be because size constrains female fecundity more than it constrains male mating success. However, SSD could additionally reflect maternal care strategies. Under this hypothesis, females are relatively larger where reproduction requires greater maximum maternal effort â for example where mothers transport heavy provisions to nests.
To test this hypothesis we focussed on digger wasps (Hymenoptera: Ammophilini), a relatively homogeneous group in which only females provision offspring. In some species, a single large prey item, up to 10 times the motherâs weight, must be carried to each burrow on foot; other species provide many small prey, each flown individually to the nest.
We found more pronounced female-biased SSD in species where females carry single, heavy prey. More generally, SSD was negatively correlated with numbers of prey provided per offspring. Females provisioning multiple small items had longer wings and thoraxes, probably because smaller prey are carried in flight.
Despite much theorising, few empirical studies have tested how sex-biased parental care can affect SSD. Our study reveals that such costs can be associated with the evolution of dimorphism, and this should be investigated in other clades where parental care costs differ between sexes and species
Building Babies - Chapter 16
In contrast to birds, male mammals rarely help to raise the offspring. Of all mammals, only among rodents, carnivores, and primates, males are sometimes intensively engaged in providing infant care (Kleiman and Malcolm 1981). Male caretaking of infants has long been recognized in nonhuman primates (Itani 1959). Given that infant care behavior can have a positive effect on the infantâs development, growth, well-being, or survival, why are male mammals not more frequently involved in âbuilding babiesâ? We begin the chapter defining a few relevant terms and introducing the theory and hypotheses that have historically addressed the evolution of paternal care. We then review empirical findings on male care among primate taxa, before focusing, in the final section, on our own work on paternal care in South American owl monkeys (Aotus spp.). We conclude the chapter with some suggestions for future studies.Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (HU 1746/2-1)
Wenner-Gren Foundation, the L.S.B. Leakey Foundation, the National Geographic Society, the National Science Foundation (BCS-0621020), the University of Pennsylvania Research Foundation, the Zoological Society of San Dieg
Expression of the thymidine phosphorylase gene in epithelial ovarian cancer
Thymidine phosphorylase (TP) is associated with angiogenesis and the progression of solid tumours. High intracellular levels of this enzyme indicate increased chemosensitivity to pyrimidine antimetabolites. TP gene expression in 56 cases of epithelial ovarian cancer (27 of serous, 10 mucinous, 12 endometrioid, five clear cell and two undifferentiated) were analysed by polymerase chain reaction of RNA after reverse transcription. These included eight of low malignant potential. Twenty were stage I, four stage II, 27 stage III and five stage IV. The level of TP gene expression was presented by the relative yield of the TP gene to the β2-microglobulin gene. TP gene expression ranged from 0.19 to 5.38 (median 0.93). The value of TP gene expression in stage IIIâIV was significantly higher than that of TP gene expression in stage IâII (P = 0.0005). Histological grade significantly associated with TP gene expression (P = 0.008), but histological subtype did not (P = 0.166). A follow-up study of 34 cases after complete resection of the primary tumours by surgical operation was performed. TP gene expression of the cases with recurrence showed significantly higher levels compared to cases without recurrence (P = 0.049). Survival data were available for 47 of the 56 patients. The prognosis of the patients with high TP gene expression (equal to, or greater than, median) was to be significantly worse than patients with low TP gene expression (less than median) (P = 0.021). The TP gene expression level may play one of the key roles in the biology of ovarian epithelial cancer and define a more aggressive tumour phenotype. A new therapeutic intervention mediated by TP protein activity is anticipated. Š 1999 Cancer Research Campaig
The 2011 outburst of the recurrent novaT Pyx. Evidence for a face-on bipolar ejection
We report on near-IR interferometric observations of the outburst of the
recurrent nova T Pyx. We obtained near-IR observations of T Pyx at dates
ranging from t=2.37d to t=48.2d after the outburst, with the CLASSIC
recombiner, located at the CHARA array, and with the PIONIER and AMBER
recombiners, located at the VLTI array. These data are supplemented with
near-IR photometry and spectra obtained at Mount Abu, India. Slow expansion
velocities were measured (<300km/s) before t=20d (assuming D=3.5kpc). From
t=28d on, the AMBER and PIONIER continuum visibilities (K and H band,
respectively) are best simulated with a two component model consisting of an
unresolved source plus an extended source whose expansion velocity onto the sky
plane is lower than 700km/s. The expansion of the Brgamma line forming region,
as inferred at t=28d and t=35d is slightly larger, implying velocities in the
range 500-800km/s, still strikingly lower than the velocities of 1300-1600km/s
inferred from the Doppler width of the line. Moreover, a remarkable pattern was
observed in the Brgamma differential phases. A semi-quantitative model using a
bipolar flow with a contrast of 2 between the pole and equator velocities, an
inclination of i=15^{\circ} and a position angle P.A.=110^{\circ} provides a
good match to the AMBER observables (spectra, differential visibilities and
phases). At t=48d, a PIONIER dataset confirms the two component nature of the H
band emission, consisting of an unresolved stellar source and an extended
region whose appearance is circular and symmetric within error bars.These
observations are most simply interpreted within the frame of a bipolar model,
oriented nearly face-on. This finding has profound implications for the
interpretation of past, current and future observations of the expanding
nebula.Comment: Accepted Astronomy and Astrophysics (2011
Prediction of Cellular Burden with Host--Circuit Models
Heterologous gene expression draws resources from host cells. These resources
include vital components to sustain growth and replication, and the resulting
cellular burden is a widely recognised bottleneck in the design of robust
circuits. In this tutorial we discuss the use of computational models that
integrate gene circuits and the physiology of host cells. Through various use
cases, we illustrate the power of host-circuit models to predict the impact of
design parameters on both burden and circuit functionality. Our approach relies
on a new generation of computational models for microbial growth that can
flexibly accommodate resource bottlenecks encountered in gene circuit design.
Adoption of this modelling paradigm can facilitate fast and robust design
cycles in synthetic biology
Cue Reactivity in Active Pathological, Abstinent Pathological, and Regular Gamblers
Twenty-one treatment-seeking pathological gamblers, 21 pathological gamblers in recovery, and 21 recreational gamblers watched two video-taped exciting gambling scenarios and an exciting roller-coaster control scenario while their arousal (heart rate and subjective excitement) and urge to gamble were being measured. The gamblers did not differ significantly in cue-elicited heart rate elevations or excitement. However, the active pathological gamblers reported significantly greater urges to gamble across all cues compared to the abstinent pathological gamblers and, with marginal significance (p = 0.06), also compared to the social gamblers. Further exploration of these findings revealed that active pathological gamblers experience urges to gamble in response to exciting situations, whether or not they are gambling related, whereas abstinent and social gamblers only report urges to an exciting gambling-related cue. This suggests that for pathological gamblers excitement itself, irrespective of its source, may become a conditioned stimulus capable of triggering gambling behavior. Implications for treatment and future research are discussed
Childrenâs Gender Identity in Lesbian and Heterosexual Two-Parent Families
This study compared gender identity, anticipated future heterosexual romantic involvement, and psychosocial adjustment of children in lesbian and heterosexual families; it was furthermore assessed whether associations between these aspects differed between family types. Data were obtained in the Netherlands from children in 63 lesbian families and 68 heterosexual families. All children were between 8 and 12Â years old. Children in lesbian families felt less parental pressure to conform to gender stereotypes, were less likely to experience their own gender as superior and were more likely to be uncertain about future heterosexual romantic involvement. No differences were found on psychosocial adjustment. Gender typicality, gender contentedness and anticipated future heterosexual romantic involvement were significant predictors of psychosocial adjustment in both family types
Search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu channel in pp collisions at sqrt(s) = 7 TeV
A search for the standard model Higgs boson in the H to ZZ to 2l 2nu decay
channel, where l = e or mu, in pp collisions at a center-of-mass energy of 7
TeV is presented. The data were collected at the LHC, with the CMS detector,
and correspond to an integrated luminosity of 4.6 inverse femtobarns. No
significant excess is observed above the background expectation, and upper
limits are set on the Higgs boson production cross section. The presence of the
standard model Higgs boson with a mass in the 270-440 GeV range is excluded at
95% confidence level.Comment: Submitted to JHE
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