An integrated approach to infer the mechanisms of mate choice for size

Size-assortative mating and sexual selection on size are common across species. Since both may be a result of mate choice, mate choice based on size should also be a widespread process. This behaviour is, however, rarely studied directly and thus the biological causes that determine size-based mate choice are poorly understood. To address this, we studied the size-based mate choice in an intertidal snail, Echinolittorina malaccana, that has been used as a model to understand this process. Previous studies, assuming a quantitative Gaussian mating preference function, have inferred that mate choice in this snail is caused by a size similarity mechanism (males prefer to mate with females slightly larger than themselves). To further test and quantify this proposed mechanism, we conducted mate choice experiments with alternative designs (single, male and multiple choice) in the laboratory and compared the results to mate choice data observed in natural populations. This integrated approach allowed us to elucidate the mechanism of mate choice by evaluating alternative mating models that best fitted the observed data of various designs. Results confirmed the similarity-based mechanism but showed deviations at extreme size classes. The single choice design indicated that mate choice was exercised during one-on-one maleefemale interactions, but the strength of mate choice increased with the presence of additional individuals (males in the male choice design, and both males and females in the multiplechoice design). Multiple-choice experiments are, therefore, the most valuable and useful design to infer how males choose mates in the wild, as they best mimic the natural scenario and the results are the most similar to those observed in natural populations. To elucidate the mechanisms causing this male choice for particular female sizes, the next steps are to identify the genetic basis as well as potential physiological benefits associated with choosing slightly larger females.Xunta de Galicia | Ref. ED431C 2020-05Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Competitividad | Ref. CGL2016-75482-

Impact of nonconvergence and various approximations of the partition function on the molecular column densities in the interstellar medium

We emphasize that the completeness of the partition function, that is, the use of a converged partition function at the typical temperature range of the survey, is very important to decrease the uncertainty on this quantity and thus to derive reliable interstellar molecular densities. In that context, we show how the use of different approximations for the rovibrational partition function together with some interpolation and/or extrapolation procedures may affect the estimate of the interstellar molecular column density. For that purpose, we apply the partition function calculations to astronomical observations performed with the IRAM-30m telescope towards the NGC 7538–IRS1 source of two N-bearing molecules: isocyanic acid (HNCO, a quasilinear molecule) and methyl cyanide (CH3CN, a symmetric top molecule). The case of methyl formate (HCOOCH3), which is an asymmetric top O-bearing molecule containing an internal rotor is also discussed. Our analysis shows that the use of different partition function approximations leads to relative differences in the resulting column densities in the range 9–43%. Thus, we expect this work to be relevant for surveys of sources with temperatures higher than 300K and to observations in the infrared.This work is partly supported by CMST COST Action CM1401 Our Astro-Chemical History and CMST COST Action CM1405 MOLIM. The work of C.F. is supported by the French National Research Agency in the framework of the Investissements d’Avenir program (ANR-15- IDEX-02), through the funding of the “Origin of Life” project of the Université Grenoble-Alpes. C.C. and C.F. acknowledge funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme, for the Project “The Dawn of Organic Chemistry” (DOC), grant agreement No 741002. I.K. would like to thank the French programme of Chimie Interstellaire PCMI. C.F. and D.F. acknowledge support from the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research, project SIR (RBSI14ZRHR). E.A.B. acknowledges support from NSF (AST-1514670) and NASA (NNX16AB48G). M.C. acknowledges the financial support from FIS2014-53448-C2-2-P (MINECO, Spain), from the Centro de Estudios Avanzados de Física, Matemáticas y Computación (CEAFMC) of the University of Huelva and from the Consejería de Conocimiento, Investigación y Universidad, Junta de Andalucía and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), ref. SOMM17/6105/UGR

Experimental magnetic form factors in Co3V2O8: A combined study of ab initio calculations, magnetic Compton scattering and polarized neutron diffraction

We present a combination of ab initio calculations, magnetic Compton scattering and polarized neutron experiments, which elucidate the density distribution of unpaired electrons in the kagome staircase system Co3V2O8. Ab initio wave functions were used to calculate the spin densities in real and momentum space, which show good agreement with the respective experiments. It has been found that the spin polarized orbitals are equally distributed between the t2g and the eg levels for the spine (s) Co ions, while the eg orbitals of the cross-tie (c) Co ions only represent 30% of the atomic spin density. Furthermore, the results reveal that the magnetic moments of the cross-tie Co ions, which are significantly smaller than those of the spine Co ions in the zero-field ferromagnetic structure, do not saturate by applying an external magnetic field of 2 T along the easy axis a, but that the increasing bulk magnetization originates from induced magnetic moments on the O and V sites. The refined individual magnetic moments are mu(Co_c)=1.54(4) mu_B, mu(Co_s)=2.87(3) mu_B, mu(V)=0.41(4) mu_B, mu(O1)=0.05(5) mu_B, mu(O2)=0.35(5) mu_B, and; mu(O3)=0.36(5) mu_B combining to the same macroscopic magnetization value, which was previously only attributed to the Co ions

A low-pass filter with automatic frequency tuning for a bluetooth receiver

A third-order Gm-C Chebyshev low-pass filter with high linearity and automatic frequency programmability has been designed. The filter is intended to be used as a channel-select filter for a zero-IF Bluetooth receiver. The frequency tuning scheme is simpler and has more relaxed specifications than conventional ones. The filter bandwidth is 0.5 MHz and the overall scheme dissipates 1.1 mA from a 1.8-V supply. The third-order intermodulation (IM3) distortion of the filter for a 1Vpp two-tone signal centered at 350 kHz is -67dB.Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología TEC2007-67460-C03-02

Magnetic and electronic Co states in layered cobaltate GdBaCo2O5.5-x

We have performed non-resonant x-ray diffraction, resonant soft and hard x-ray magnetic diffraction, soft x-ray absorption and x-ray magnetic circular dichroism measurements to clarify the electronic and magnetic states of the Co3+ ions in GdBaCo2O5.5. Our data are consistent with a 3+ Py Co HS state at the pyramidal sites and a 3+ Oc Co LS state at the octahedral sites. The structural distortion, with a doubling of the a axis (2ap x 2ap x 2ap cell), shows alternating elongations and contractions of the pyramids and indicates that the metal-insulator transition is associated with orbital order in the t2g orbitals of the 3+ Py Co HS state. This distortion corresponds to an alternating ordering of xz and yz orbitals along the a and c axes for the 3+ Py Co . The orbital ordering and pyramidal distortion lead to deformation of the octahedra, but the 3+ Oc Co LS state does not allow an orbital order to occur for the 3+ Oc Co ions. The soft x-ray magnetic diffraction results indicate that the magnetic moments are aligned in the ab plane but are not parallel to the crystallographic a or b axes. The orbital order and the doubling of the magnetic unit cell along the c axis support a non-collinear magnetic structure. The x-ray magnetic circular dichroism data indicate that there is a large orbital magnetic contribution to the total ordered Co moment

Aplicación de la termografía en el estudio de la ubre de los grandes rumiantes y en sus posibles complicaciones patológicas

Se ha estudiado la aplicación de la termografía en la ubre sana y con mamitis, en ganado vacuno Frisón y de carne ecológica mestizo. Se han valorado distintos factores que influyen en la aplicación de esta técnica, tanto del animal (pelo, pliegue inguinal) como externos a éste (suciedad, ambiente). Se ha establecido la relación entre la temperatura superficial de la ubre y sus patologías, centrando el estudio en mamitis.The application of the thermography has been studied in healthy and mastitic udder, both in dairy Holstein and organic beef mixed-breed cattle. Different factors that may influence the application of this technology have been evaluated, both animal (hair, inguinal fold) and external factors (dirt, environment). The aim of this study was to establish a relation between the superficial temperature of the udder and its pathologies, focusing he study on mastitis

El modelo semi-presencial y virtual a examen en el área de ingeniería

Durante los dos últimos cursos, la educación universitaria se ha visto obligada a cambiar de forma precipitada debido a la pandemia mundial que nos ha afectado. A pesar de los esfuerzos de las instituciones por adaptarse de una forma adecuada a un modelo semi-presencial o virtual a lo largo del curso, la percepción de los estudiantes no siempre corresponde con la que se pretende desde los organismos oficiales. En este estudio se ha realizado una encuesta voluntaria al alumnado de diferentes titulaciones de grado y másteres del área de ingeniería con el objetivo de someter a examen las medidas adoptadas por la Universidad de Granada (UGR) y comprobar si son aceptadas por los estudiantes y si, desde su punto de vista, se podrían mantener a largo plazo

Multiferroic behavior in the new double-perovskite Lu2_2MnCoO6_6

We present a new member of the multiferroic oxides, Lu$_2$MnCoO$_6$, which we have investigated using X-ray diffraction, neutron diffraction, specific heat, magnetization, electric polarization, and dielectric constant measurements. This material possesses an electric polarization strongly coupled to a net magnetization below 35 K, despite the antiferromagnetic ordering of the $S = 3/2$ Mn$^{4+}$ and Co$^{2+}$ spins in an $\uparrow \uparrow \downarrow \downarrow$ configuration along the c-direction. We discuss the magnetic order in terms of a condensation of domain boundaries between $\uparrow \uparrow$ and $\downarrow \downarrow$ ferromagnetic domains, with each domain boundary producing a net electric polarization due to spatial inversion symmetry breaking. In an applied magnetic field the domain boundaries slide, controlling the size of the net magnetization, electric polarization, and magnetoelectric coupling