What’s on the (publication fee) menu, who pays the bill and what should be the venue?

We address the cost of access to knowledge and its ethical implications in ‘true’, ‘pseudo’ and ‘hybrid’ OA journals

Age at maturity of Mediterranean marine fishes

In this review we collected data on the age at maturity (tm) and maximum reported age (tmax) for 235 stocks of Mediterranean marine fishes, belonging to 82 species, 37 families, 12 orders and 2 classes (Actinopterygii and Elasmobranchii). Among Actinopterygii (mean tm ± SD = 2.20 ± 1.43 y, n = 215), tm ranged from 0.3 y, for the common goby Pomatoschistus microps, to 12 y, for dusky grouper Epinephelus marginatus, while among Elasmobranchii (mean tm ± SD = 5.94 ± 2.47 y, n = 20), tm ranged between 2.7 y, for brown ray Raja miraletus, and 12 y for picked dogfish Squalus acanthias. Overall, the tmax ranged between 1 y, for transparent goby Aphia minuta, and 70 y, for wreckfish Polyprion americanus. The mean tmax of Actinopterygii (tmax ± SD = 10.14 ± 9.42 y) was lower than that of Elasmobranchii (tmax ± SD = 14.05 ± 8.47 y). The tm exhibited a strong positive linear relation with tmax for both Actinopterygii (logtm = 0.58 ´ logtmax – 0.25, r2 = 0.51, P < 0.001) and Elasmobranchii (logtm = 0.67 ´ logtmax – 0.006, r2 = 0.51, P = 0.007). The mean tm/tmax did not differ significantly with sex within Actinopterygii (ANOVA: F = 0.27, P = 0.60, n = 90; females: mean ± SD = 0.276 ± 0.143; males: mean ± SD = 0.265 ± 0.138) and Elasmobranchii (ANOVA: F = 1.44, P = 0.25, n = 10; females: mean ± SD = 0.499 ± 0.166; males: mean ± SD = 0.418 ± 0.133). Finally, the dimensionless ratio tm/tmax was significantly lower (ANOVA: F = 31.04, P < 0.001) for Actinopterygii (mean ± SD = 0.270 ± 0.135, n = 180) than for Elasmobranchii, (mean ± SD = 0.458 ± 0.152, n = 20), when stocks with combined sexes were excluded from the analysis

Editorial note on weight–length relations of fishes

Weight-length relations of fishes are useful for estimation of biomass from length observations, e.g., in fisheries or conservation research. Here we provide some guidance to authors of such papers, in order to facilitate the publication and review process

Editorial note on reproductive biology of fishes

Fish reproductive biology (onset and duration of spawning, sex ratio, maturity stages, length and age at maturity, and fecundity) is important in fisheries research, stock assessment, and management. In this editorial note, we provide some criteria and recommendations on issues of fish reproductive biology, which may be useful in research planning, data analysis and presentation, as well as in manuscript preparation

A Bayesian population model to estimate changes in the stock size in data poor cases using Mediterranean bogue (Boops boops) and picarel (Spicara smaris) as an example

The paper presents an effort to build a biologically realistic, age structured Bayesian model for the stock assessment of data poor fisheries where only aggregated catch data is available. The model is built using prior information from other areas and ecologically or taxonomically similar species. The modeling approach is tested with data poor fisheries on the Cyclades islands in Greek archipelago. The two most important species in the area are selected: bogue (Boops boops) and picarel (Spicara smaris). Both are hermaphroditic. The only data available is the total catch from 1950 to 2010. Information was gathered about natural mortality, recruitment, growth, body size, fecundity, and sex ratio. There were significant problems in finding reliable prior information and a uniform prior was used for fishing mortality. The models at their present stage are not used to give management advice. The biological characteristics of the species in that area should be further studied. However, the posteriors of biological parameters reflect the best available knowledge on these species and they could be used in future studies or in simpler biomass dynamics models as priors

Trammel net catch species composition, catch rates and metiers in southern European waters: A multivariate approach

We identified and quantified the effect of season, depth, and inner and outer panel mesh size on the trammel net catch species composition and catch rates in four southern European areas (Northeast Atlantic: Basque Country, Spain; Algarve, Portugal; Gulf of Cadiz, Spain; Mediterranean: Cyclades, Greece), all of which are characterised by important trammel net fisheries. In each area, we conducted, in 1999-2000, seasonal, experimental fishing trials at various depths with trammel nets of six different inner/outer panel mesh combinations (i.e., two large outer panel meshes and three small inner panel meshes). Overall, our study covered some of the most commonly used inner panel mesh sizes, ranging from 40 to 140 mm (stretched). We analysed the species composition and catch rates of the different inner/outer panel combinations with regression, multivariate analysis (cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling) and other 'community' techniques (number of species, dominance curves). All our analyses indicated that the outer panel mesh sizes used in the present study did not significantly affect the catch characteristics in terms of number of species, catch rates and species composition. Multivariate analyses and seasonal dominance plots indicated that in Basque, Algarve and Cyclades waters, where sampling covered wide depth ranges, both season and depth strongly affected catch species compositions. For the Gulf of Cadiz, where sampling was restricted to depths 10-30 m, season was the only factor affecting catch species composition and thus group formation. In contrast, the inner panel mesh size did not generally affect multidimensional group formation in all areas but affected the dominance of the species caught in the Algarve and the Gulf of Cadiz. Multivariate analyses also revealed 11 different metiers (i.e., season-depth-species-inner panel mesh size combinations) in the four areas. This clearly indicated the existence of trammel net 'hot spots', which represent essential habitats (e.g., spawning, nursery or wintering grounds) of the life history of the targeted and associated species. The number of specimens caught declined significantly with inner panel mesh size in all areas. We attributed this to the exponential decline in abundance with size, both within- and between-species. In contrast, the number of species caught in each area was not related to the inner mesh size. This was unexpected and might be a consequence of the wide size-selective range of trammel nets. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V All rights reserved

\u3ci\u3eMedicine Meets Virtual Reality 16\u3c/i\u3e

Chapter, Validating Advanced Robot-Assisted Laparoscopic Training Task in Virtual Reality, co-authored by Nicholas Stergiou, UNO faculty member. We humans are tribal, grouping ourselves by a multitude of criteria: physical, intellectual, political, emotional, etc. The Internet and its auxiliary technologies have enabled a novel dimension in tribal behavior during our recent past. This growing connectivity begs the question: will individuals and their communities come together to solve some very urgent global problems? At MMVR, we explore ways to harness information technology to solve healthcare problems – and in the industrialized nations we are making progress. In the developing world however, things are more challenging. Massive urban poverty fuels violence and misery. Will global networking bring a convergence of individual and tribal problem-solving? Recently, a barrel-shaped water carrier that rolls along the ground was presented, improving daily life for many people. Also the One Laptop per Child project is a good example of how the industrialized nations can help the developing countries. They produce durable and simple laptops which are inexpensive to produce. At MMVR, we focus on cutting-edge medical technology, which is generally pretty expensive. While the benefits of innovation trickle downward, from the privileged few to the broader masses, we should expand this trickle into a flood. Can breakthrough applications in stimulation, visualization, robotics, and informatics engender tools as ingeniously as the water carrier or laptop? With some extra creativity, we can design better healthcare for the developing world too.https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/facultybooks/1234/thumbnail.jp

Intelligent dual curve-driven tool path optimization and virtual CMM inspection for sculptured surface CNC machining

This paper investigates the profitability of a dual‐curve driven surface finish tool path under the concept of optimizing crucial machining parameters such as toroidal end‐mill diameter, lead angle and tilt angle. Surface machining error as well as tool path time are treated as optimization objectives under a multi‐criteria sense, whilst a central composite design is conducted to obtain experimental outputs for examination and, finally, fit a full quadratic model considered as the fitness function for process optimization by means of a genetic algorithm. A benchmark sculptured surface given as a second‐order parametric equation was tested and simulated using a cutting‐edge manufacturing modeling software and best parameters recommended by the genetic algorithm were implemented for validation. Further assessment involves the virtual inspection to selected profile sections on the part. It was shown that the approach can produce dual‐curve driven tool trajectories capable of eliminating sharp scallop heights, maximizing machining strip widths as well as maintaining smoothness quality and machining efficiency

\u3ci\u3eMedicine Meets Virtual Reality 17\u3c/i\u3e

Chapter, A Virtual Reality Training Program for Improvement of Robotic Surgical Skills, co-authored by Mukul Mukherjee and Nicholas Stergiou, UNO faculty members. Chapter, Consistency of Performance of Robot-Assisted Surgical Tasks in Virtual Reality, co-authored by Mukul Mukherjee and Nicholas Stergiou, UNO faculty members. The 17th annual Medicine Meets Virtual Reality (MMVR17) was held January 19-22, 2009, in Long Beach, CA, USA. The conference is well established as a forum for emerging data-centered technologies for medical care and education. Each year, it brings together an international community of computer scientists and engineers, physicians and surgeons, medical educators and students, military medicine specialists and biomedical futurists. MMVR emphasizes inter-disciplinary collaboration in the development of more efficient and effective physician training and patient care. The MMVR17 proceedings collect 108 papers by conference lecture and poster presenters. These papers cover recent developments in biomedical simulation and modeling, visualization and data fusion, haptics, robotics, sensors and other related information-based technologies. Key applications include medical education and surgical training, clinical diagnosis and therapy, physical rehabilitation, psychological assessment, telemedicine and more. From initial vision and prototypes, through assessment and validation, to clinical and academic utilization and commercialization - MMVR explores the state-of-the-art and looks toward healthcare’s future. The proceedings volume will interest physicians, surgeons and other medical professionals interested in emerging and future tools for diagnosis and therapy; educators responsible for training the next generation of doctors and scientists; IT and medical device engineers creating state-of-the-art and next-generation simulation, imaging, robotics and communication systems; data technologists creating systems for gathering, processing and distributing medical intelligence; military medicine specialists addressing the challenges of warfare and defense health needs; and biomedical futurists and investors who want to understand where the field is headed.https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/facultybooks/1233/thumbnail.jp