Decouverte d'un brachiopode inarticulé <i>Acrothele</i> cf. <i>Bergeroni</i> Walcott, dans le Revinien inferieur de trois-ponts, Cambrien du Massif de Stavelot, Belgique

The Revinian (Cambrian) of the Ardenne, from which no macrofossils have hitherto been recorded, has yielded two inarticulate brachiopods determined here as Acrothele cf. bergeroni WALCOTT. The specimens were found south of Trois-Ponts in the Stavelot Massif, at a horizon referred to division Rn1a. The stratigraphic age suggested by the brachiopods is compared with that indicated by acritarchs : a Middle Cambrian age seems probable

Charles Darwin's 'Gorgonia' : a palaeontological mystery from the Falkland Islands resolved

During the celebrated voyage of HMS Beagle, Charles Darwin visited the Falkland Islands twice, in March 1833 and March 1834. He thought the islands bleak and inhospitable, but was much excited during his first visit to discover fossils at Port Louis. These he recognised as brachiopods (a type of shellfish) and crinoids (often described descriptively as ‘sea-lilies’ but actually animals related to sea urchins); an example of the kind of fossils that he saw is shown in Figure 1

Comments on the ophiuroid family Protasteridae and description of a new genus from the Lower Devonian of the Fox Bay Formation, Falkland Islands

Asterozoan fossils are comparatively rare in Gondwana compared with Laurentia, especially in the Devonian. We examined the only fossil ophiuroid yet known from the Falkland Islands and assess its significance for the evolution of the clade. This ophiuroid, herein distinguished as a new genus and species, Darwinaster coleenbiggsae, belongs to the same suprageneric group as Protaster, which was established on a series of Middle–Upper Ordovician taxa and persisted into the late Palaeozoic remarkably little changed in morphology. This single example is part of a much wider fauna that includes fossils from the Bokkeveld Group, South Africa and the Precordillera of Argentina. Existing palaeobiogeographic reconstructions confirm that these faunas once existed on contiguous terranes and characterized a distinct suite of similar palaeoenvironments within the Malvinokaffric Realm. This study reviews the existing record of Devonian asterozoans and revises Protasteridae

On the age of the Ballantrae Complex, SW Scotland

The Ballantrae Complex, SW Scotland, is an ophiolitic assemblage of mostly Early and early Middle Ordovician age (Tremadoc–Arenig in terms of the British Ordovician Series). Its varied components were generated and assembled in the Iapetus Ocean, then obducted on to the Laurentian continental margin by the earliest Llanvirn. The timing of obduction is constrained by biostratigraphic and radiometric data. It was most probably a polyphase process initiated at about the beginning of the Arenig, at around 478 Ma. However, parts of the Complex are significantly younger, with some recent evidence taken to suggest an earliest Llanvirn age of about 464 Ma for the emplacement of some of the volcanic and pelagic sedimentary rocks. The oldest strata in the succession that now unconformably overlies the Ballantrae Complex were deposited at about 463 Ma. Hence there may have been as little as one million years available for the final stages of the Complex's tectonic assembly, obduction, uplift, erosion and downfaulting. Obduction of the Complex has been invoked as a factor in the initiation of the Grampian Orogeny and, whilst there is a broad correlation in timing, the detail from Ballantrae militates against a causal relationship

Charles Darwin's discovery of Devonian fossils in the Falkland Islands, 1833, and its controversial consequences

In March 1833 Charles Darwin discovered Devonian fossils in the Falkland Islands. He was excited by his find but could have had little premonition of the long-running geological controversy that he was initiating. Darwin's fossils matched a coeval South African fauna, and as further collections were made the association was apparently strengthened. A particularly important contribution arose around 1910 through collaborations between a local collector, Constance Allardyce, and professional palaeontologists: Ernest Schwarz in South Africa and John Clarke in the USA. The accumulating evidence was seized upon by the early proponents of ‘displacement theory’ - continental drift - notably Alexander Du Toit, who relocated the Falkland Islands northward for his 1927 South Atlantic reconstruction. A more radical, but geologically sounder proposal arose in 1952 when Ray Adie suggested that the Falkland Islands, rotated through 180°, had originated as the eastward culmination of the Cape Fold Belt and Karoo Basin. In effect, Adie had presciently described a rotated microplate, perhaps the first on record. An opposing view saw the Falkland Islands as part of a fixed, South American promontory, and argument around these two contrasting interpretations of South Atlantic geology continues to the present day

Graptolites from Silurian (Llandovery Series) sedimentary deposits attributed to a forearc setting, Co To Formation, Co To archipelago, northeast Vietnam

Newly collected graptolites from the Co To Formation, Co To archipelago, NE Vietnam, comprise assemblages indicative of two biostratigraphical levels within the lower Silurian, Llandovery Series, Telychian Stage: the co-occurrence of Spirograptus turriculatus and Torquigraptus proteus? suggests an interval most likely within the upper part of the Spirograptus turriculatus Biozone or 'Monograptus' crispus Biozone, whilst Oktavites spirally and Monoclimacis cf. suhgeinitzi identify the Oktavites spiralis Biozone. The graptolites provide important biostratigraphical evidence for the age of the upper part of the lower Co To Formation, biostratigraphical ties between the NE Vietnamese succession of the Bac Bo Region and graptolite assemblages of the Long Dai Formation in the Viet-Lao Region of central Vietnam, and include the new species Monograptus hanutlus sp. nov. co-occurring with S. turriculatus, which is perhaps an ancestral form to the later Telychian species Monograptus drepanoformis. We also report the lirst chitinozoans, including Belonechitina, from the Co To Formation

Outcome measures for young people with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis:A qualitative exploration of healthcare professionals’ perceptions and practices

Background: Limited knowledge exists on current use of patient reported outcome measures (PROMs) and performance measures for adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), as well as health care professionals’ (HCPs) perceived barriers and facilitators towards their use. This study’s objectives were: 1) to explore current practice of HCPs when assessing outcomes for AIS 2) to understand perceived barriers and facilitators of HCPs to use PROMs 3) to understand perceived barriers and facilitators of HCPs to use performance measures. Methods: A qualitative study recruited a purposive sample of HCPs from a tertiary hospital in the United Kingdom. Mean years of experience managing individuals with AIS was 11.8 years; and included surgeons, physiotherapists and nurses, educated at Bachelor, Masters and Doctoral level. Consent to participate and demographic information were collected in advance of the interviews. In-depth, virtual semi-structured interviews were informed by a topic guide based on current evidence. Interviews of approximately 45 minutes were audio and video recorded and transcribed verbatim alongside written field notes. Data were coded and analysed using inductive thematic analysis, involving researchers with topic and methodological expertise and input from a patient representative. Results: Two themes emerged regarding current practice of using PROMs routine practice and personal evaluations. Four themes emerged as barriers to using PROMs for individuals with AIS: priority and support (e.g., HCPs focus on providing care), practical challenges (e.g., inadequate PROMs), patient-related challenges (e.g., patient preferences) and knowledge, education, and perceived value. Two themes emerged as facilitators: quality existing measure (e.g., sufficient psychometric properties), and priority and support (e.g., research department/culture). Themes for barriers to use performance measures were practicality (e.g., need physical space) and perceived value and knowledge (e.g., PROMs are more important), while the one theme for facilitators was practical consideration (e.g., acceptability). Conclusions: Although HCPs perceived the value of using outcome measures, current practice indicates limited use for individuals with AIS. The findings revealed different barriers and facilitators to implement PROMs in practice. Adopting performance measure are limited due to lack of knowledge and perceived value alongside the practicality, while considering practical factors can improve the use of these measures in practice