Minimizing the dependency ratio in a population with below-replacement fertility through immigration

Science.gov (United States)

Simon, C.; Belyakov, A.O.; Feichtinger, G.

2012-01-01

Many industrialized countries face fertility rates below replacement level, combined with declining mortality especially in older ages. Consequently, the populations of these countries have started to age. One important indicator of age structures is the dependency ratio which is the ratio of the nonworking age population to the working age population. In this work we find the age-specific immigration profile that minimizes the dependency ratio in a stationary population with below-replacement fertility. It is assumed that the number of immigrants per age is limited. We consider two alternative policies. In the first one, we fix the total number of people who annually immigrate to a country. In the second one, we prescribe the size of the receiving country’s population. For both cases we provide numerical results for the optimal immigration profile, for the resulting age structure of the population, as well as for the dependency ratio. PMID:22781918

On common noise-induced synchronization in complex networks with state-dependent noise diffusion processes

Science.gov (United States)

Russo, Giovanni; Shorten, Robert

2018-04-01

This paper is concerned with the study of common noise-induced synchronization phenomena in complex networks of diffusively coupled nonlinear systems. We consider the case where common noise propagation depends on the network state and, as a result, the noise diffusion process at the nodes depends on the state of the network. For such networks, we present an algebraic sufficient condition for the onset of synchronization, which depends on the network topology, the dynamics at the nodes, the coupling strength and the noise diffusion. Our result explicitly shows that certain noise diffusion processes can drive an unsynchronized network towards synchronization. In order to illustrate the effectiveness of our result, we consider two applications: collective decision processes and synchronization of chaotic systems. We explicitly show that, in the former application, a sufficiently large noise can drive a population towards a common decision, while, in the latter, we show how common noise can synchronize a network of Lorentz chaotic systems.

Dependence of adiabatic population transfer on pulse profile

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Control of population transfer by rapid adiabatic passage has been an established technique wherein the exact amplitude profile of the shaped pulse is considered to be insignificant. We study the effect of ultrafast shaped pulses for two-level systems, by density-matrix approach. However, we find that adiabaticity depends ...

Density dependence governs when population responses to multiple stressors are magnified or mitigated.

Science.gov (United States)

Hodgson, Emma E; Essington, Timothy E; Halpern, Benjamin S

2017-10-01

Population endangerment typically arises from multiple, potentially interacting anthropogenic stressors. Extensive research has investigated the consequences of multiple stressors on organisms, frequently focusing on individual life stages. Less is known about population-level consequences of exposure to multiple stressors, especially when exposure varies through life. We provide the first theoretical basis for identifying species at risk of magnified effects from multiple stressors across life history. By applying a population modeling framework, we reveal conditions under which population responses from stressors applied to distinct life stages are either magnified (synergistic) or mitigated. We find that magnification or mitigation critically depends on the shape of density dependence, but not the life stage in which it occurs. Stressors are always magnified when density dependence is linear or concave, and magnified or mitigated when it is convex. Using Bayesian numerical methods, we estimated the shape of density dependence for eight species across diverse taxa, finding support for all three shapes. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Response of single bacterial cells to stress gives rise to complex history dependence at the population level

Science.gov (United States)

Mathis, Roland; Ackermann, Martin

2016-01-01

Most bacteria live in ever-changing environments where periods of stress are common. One fundamental question is whether individual bacterial cells have an increased tolerance to stress if they recently have been exposed to lower levels of the same stressor. To address this question, we worked with the bacterium Caulobacter crescentus and asked whether exposure to a moderate concentration of sodium chloride would affect survival during later exposure to a higher concentration. We found that the effects measured at the population level depended in a surprising and complex way on the time interval between the two exposure events: The effect of the first exposure on survival of the second exposure was positive for some time intervals but negative for others. We hypothesized that the complex pattern of history dependence at the population level was a consequence of the responses of individual cells to sodium chloride that we observed: (i) exposure to moderate concentrations of sodium chloride caused delays in cell division and led to cell-cycle synchronization, and (ii) whether a bacterium would survive subsequent exposure to higher concentrations was dependent on the cell-cycle state. Using computational modeling, we demonstrated that indeed the combination of these two effects could explain the complex patterns of history dependence observed at the population level. Our insight into how the behavior of single cells scales up to processes at the population level provides a perspective on how organisms operate in dynamic environments with fluctuating stress exposure. PMID:26960998

Explaining density-dependent regulation in earthworm populations using life-history analysis

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kammenga, J.E.; Spurgeon, D.J.; Svendsen, C.; Weeks, J.M.

2003-01-01

At present there is little knowledge about how density regulates population growth rate and to what extent this is determined by life-history patterns. We compared density dependent population consequences in the Nicholsonian sense based oil experimental observations and life-history modeling for

Methamphetamine use and dependence in vulnerable female populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Kittirattanapaiboon, Phunnapa; Srikosai, Soontaree; Wittayanookulluk, Apisak

2017-07-01

The study reviews recent publications on methamphetamine use and dependence women in term of their epidemic, physical health impact, psychosocial impacts, and also in the identified vulnerable issues. Studies of vulnerable populations of women are wide ranging and include sex workers, sexual minorities, homeless, psychiatric patients, suburban women, and pregnant women, in which amphetamine type stimulants (ATSs) are the most commonly reported illicit drug used among them. The prenatal exposure of ATS demonstrated the small for gestational age and low birth weight; however, more research is needed on long-term studies of methamphetamine-exposed children. Intimate partner violence (IPV) is commonly reported by female methamphetamine users as perpetrators and victims. However, statistics and gendered power dynamics suggest that methamphetamine-related IPV indicates a higher chance of femicide. Methamphetamine-abusing women often have unresolved childhood trauma and are introduced to ATS through families or partners. Vulnerable populations of women at risk of methamphetamine abuse and dependence. Impacts on their physical and mental health, IPV, and pregnancy have been reported continuing, which guide that empowering and holistic substance abuse are necessary for specific group.

Density regulation in Northeast Atlantic fish populations: Density dependence is stronger in recruitment than in somatic growth.

Science.gov (United States)

Zimmermann, Fabian; Ricard, Daniel; Heino, Mikko

2018-05-01

Population regulation is a central concept in ecology, yet in many cases its presence and the underlying mechanisms are difficult to demonstrate. The current paradigm maintains that marine fish populations are predominantly regulated by density-dependent recruitment. While it is known that density-dependent somatic growth can be present too, its general importance remains unknown and most practical applications neglect it. This study aimed to close this gap by for the first time quantifying and comparing density dependence in growth and recruitment over a large set of fish populations. We fitted density-dependent models to time-series data on population size, recruitment and age-specific weight from commercially exploited fish populations in the Northeast Atlantic Ocean and the Baltic Sea. Data were standardized to enable a direct comparison within and among populations, and estimated parameters were used to quantify the impact of density regulation on population biomass. Statistically significant density dependence in recruitment was detected in a large proportion of populations (70%), whereas for density dependence in somatic growth the prevalence of density dependence depended heavily on the method (26% and 69%). Despite age-dependent variability, the density dependence in recruitment was consistently stronger among age groups and between alternative approaches that use weight-at-age or weight increments to assess growth. Estimates of density-dependent reduction in biomass underlined these results: 97% of populations with statistically significant parameters for growth and recruitment showed a larger impact of density-dependent recruitment on population biomass. The results reaffirm the importance of density-dependent recruitment in marine fishes, yet they also show that density dependence in somatic growth is not uncommon. Furthermore, the results are important from an applied perspective because density dependence in somatic growth affects productivity and

Econometric model for age- and population-dependent radiation exposures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sandquist, G.M.; Slaughter, D.M.; Rogers, V.C.

1991-01-01

The economic impact associated with ionizing radiation exposures in a given human population depends on numerous factors including the individual's mean economic status as a function age, the age distribution of the population, the future life expectancy at each age, and the latency period for the occurrence of radiation-induced health effects. A simple mathematical model has been developed that provides an analytical methodology for estimating the societal econometrics associated with radiation effects are to be assessed and compared for economic evaluation

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Chronically Impairs Sleep- and Wake-Dependent Emotional Processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Mantua, Janna; Henry, Owen S; Garskovas, Nolan F; Spencer, Rebecca M C

2017-06-01

A single traumatic brain injury (TBI), even when mild (ie, concussion), can cause lasting consequences. Individuals with a history of chronic (>1-year prior) mild TBI have an increased risk of mood disturbances (eg, depression, suicide). This population also has lingering sleep alterations, including poor sleep quality and changes in sleep stage proportions. Given these sleep deficits, we aimed to test whether sleep-dependent emotional memory consolidation is reduced in this population. We utilized a mild TBI group (3.7 ± 2.9 years post injury) and an uninjured (non-TBI) population. Participants viewed negative and neutral images both before and after a 12-hour period containing sleep ("Sleep" group) or an equivalent period of time spent awake ("Wake" group). Participants rated images for valence/arousal at both sessions, and memory recognition was tested at session two. The TBI group had less rapid eye movement (REM), longer REM latency, and more sleep complaints. Sleep-dependent memory consolidation of nonemotional images was present in all participants. However, consolidation of negative images was only present in the non-TBI group. A lack of differentiation between the TBI Sleep and Wake groups was due to poor performance in the sleep group and, unexpectedly, enhanced performance in the wake group. Additionally, although the non-TBI participants habituated to negative images over a waking period, the TBI participants did not. We propose disrupted sleep- and wake-dependent emotional processing contributes to poor emotional outcomes following chronic, mild TBI. This work has broad implications, as roughly one-third of the US population will sustain a mild TBI during their lifetime. © Sleep Research Society 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Sleep Research Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail journals.permissions@oup.com.

Modeling spatial processes with unknown extremal dependence class

KAUST Repository

Huser, Raphaël G.

2017-03-17

Many environmental processes exhibit weakening spatial dependence as events become more extreme. Well-known limiting models, such as max-stable or generalized Pareto processes, cannot capture this, which can lead to a preference for models that exhibit a property known as asymptotic independence. However, weakening dependence does not automatically imply asymptotic independence, and whether the process is truly asymptotically (in)dependent is usually far from clear. The distinction is key as it can have a large impact upon extrapolation, i.e., the estimated probabilities of events more extreme than those observed. In this work, we present a single spatial model that is able to capture both dependence classes in a parsimonious manner, and with a smooth transition between the two cases. The model covers a wide range of possibilities from asymptotic independence through to complete dependence, and permits weakening dependence of extremes even under asymptotic dependence. Censored likelihood-based inference for the implied copula is feasible in moderate dimensions due to closed-form margins. The model is applied to oceanographic datasets with ambiguous true limiting dependence structure.

Oxygen Dependent Biocatalytic Processes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Asbjørn Toftgaard

Enzyme catalysts have the potential to improve both the process economics and the environ-mental profile of many oxidation reactions especially in the fine- and specialty-chemical industry, due to their exquisite ability to perform stereo-, regio- and chemo-selective oxida-tions at ambient...... to aldehydes and ketones, oxyfunctionalization of C-H bonds, and epoxidation of C-C double bonds. Although oxygen dependent biocatalysis offers many possibilities, there are numerous chal-lenges to be overcome before an enzyme can be implemented in an industrial process. These challenges requires the combined...... far below their potential maximum catalytic rate at industrially relevant oxygen concentrations. Detailed knowledge of the en-zyme kinetics are therefore required in order to determine the best operating conditions and design oxygen supply to minimize processing costs. This is enabled...

Critical Age-Dependent Branching Markov Processes and their ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

This paper studies: (i) the long-time behaviour of the empirical distribution of age and normalized position of an age-dependent critical branching Markov process conditioned on non-extinction; and (ii) the super-process limit of a sequence of age-dependent critical branching Brownian motions.

Ghrelin precursor gene polymorphism and methamphetamine dependence in the Korean population.

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Su-Jung; Pae, Chi-Un; Lee, Heejin; Choi, Bomoon; Kim, Tae-Suk; Lyoo, In Kyoon; Kwon, Do-Hoon; Kim, Dai-Jin

2005-12-01

Ghrelin is a recently isolated brain-gut peptide that has growth hormone-releasing and appetite-inducing activities. Several recent studies have suggested that ghrelin plays a major role in the pathophysiology of drug-seeking behavior and anxiety. Therefore, we assessed the effect of the ghrelin precursor polymorphism on methamphetamine dependence in the Korean population. One hundred and eighteen patients with methamphetamine dependence, according to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-IV (DSM-IV) criteria, and the 144 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. Genotyping for the ghrelin precursor polymorphism was performed by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism-based technique. The genotypic and allelic distributions of the ghrelin precursor polymorphism in the patients with methamphetamine dependence were not significantly different from those of the control subjects. However, the Met72 carriers were associated with the emotional problems of methamphetamine dependence. The patients with the Met72 allele were more depressed and anxious than the homozygous patients with the wild Leu72 allele. The present study suggests that the ghrelin precursor polymorphism may not confer a susceptibility to the development of methamphetamine dependence in the Korean population. However, the Leu72Met polymorphism could have a potential role in the emotional problems that are associated with this disease.

Stabilization process of human population: a descriptive approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Kayani, A K; Krotki, K J

1981-01-01

An attempt is made to inquire into the process of stabilization of a human population. The same age distribution distorted by past variations in fertility is subjected to several fixed schedules of fertility. The schedules are different from each other monotonically over a narrow range. The primary concern is with the process, almost year by year, through which the populations become stable. There is particular interest in the differential impact in the same original age distribution of the narrowly different fixed fertility schedules. The exercise is prepared in 3 stages: general background of the process of stabilization; methodology and data used; and analysis and discussion of the stabilization process. Among the several approaches through which the analysis of stable population is possible, 2 are popular: the integral equation and the projection matrix. In this presentation the interest is in evaluating the effects of fertility on the stabilization process of a population. Therefore, only 1 initial age distribution and only 1 life table but a variety of narrowly different schedules of fertility have been used. Specifically, the U.S. 1963 female population is treated as the initial population. The process of stabilization is viewed in the light of the changes in the slopes between 2 successive age groups of an age distribution. A high fertility schedule with the given initial age distribution and mortality level overcomes the oscillations more quickly than the low fertility schedule. Simulation confirms the intuitively expected positive relationship between the mean of the slope and the level of fertility. The variance of the slope distribution is an indicator of the aging of the distribution.

Identifying influential factors of business process performance using dependency analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Wetzstein, Branimir; Leitner, Philipp; Rosenberg, Florian; Dustdar, Schahram; Leymann, Frank

2011-02-01

We present a comprehensive framework for identifying influential factors of business process performance. In particular, our approach combines monitoring of process events and Quality of Service (QoS) measurements with dependency analysis to effectively identify influential factors. The framework uses data mining techniques to construct tree structures to represent dependencies of a key performance indicator (KPI) on process and QoS metrics. These dependency trees allow business analysts to determine how process KPIs depend on lower-level process metrics and QoS characteristics of the IT infrastructure. The structure of the dependencies enables a drill-down analysis of single factors of influence to gain a deeper knowledge why certain KPI targets are not met.

Linking individual phenotype to density-dependent population growth: the influence of body size on the population dynamics of malaria vectors

Science.gov (United States)

Russell, Tanya L.; Lwetoijera, Dickson W.; Knols, Bart G. J.; Takken, Willem; Killeen, Gerry F.; Ferguson, Heather M.

2011-01-01

Understanding the endogenous factors that drive the population dynamics of malaria mosquitoes will facilitate more accurate predictions about vector control effectiveness and our ability to destabilize the growth of either low- or high-density insect populations. We assessed whether variation in phenotypic traits predict the dynamics of Anopheles gambiae sensu lato mosquitoes, the most important vectors of human malaria. Anopheles gambiae dynamics were monitored over a six-month period of seasonal growth and decline. The population exhibited density-dependent feedback, with the carrying capacity being modified by rainfall (97% wAICc support). The individual phenotypic expression of the maternal (p = 0.0001) and current (p = 0.040) body size positively influenced population growth. Our field-based evidence uniquely demonstrates that individual fitness can have population-level impacts and, furthermore, can mitigate the impact of exogenous drivers (e.g. rainfall) in species whose reproduction depends upon it. Once frontline interventions have suppressed mosquito densities, attempts to eliminate malaria with supplementary vector control tools may be attenuated by increased population growth and individual fitness. PMID:21389034

Figurative language processing in atypical populations: the ASD perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Vulchanova, Mila; Saldaña, David; Chahboun, Sobh; Vulchanov, Valentin

2015-01-01

This paper is intended to provide a critical overview of experimental and clinical research documenting problems in figurative language processing in atypical populations with a focus on the Autistic Spectrum. Research in the comprehension and processing of figurative language in autism invariably documents problems in this area. The greater paradox is that even at the higher end of the spectrum or in the cases of linguistically talented individuals with Asperger syndrome, where structural language competence is intact, problems with extended language persist. If we assume that figurative and extended uses of language essentially depend on the perception and processing of more concrete core concepts and phenomena, the commonly observed failure in atypical populations to understand figurative language remains a puzzle. Various accounts have been offered to explain this issue, ranging from linking potential failure directly to overall structural language competence (Norbury, 2005; Brock et al., 2008) to right-hemispheric involvement (Gold and Faust, 2010). We argue that the dissociation between structural language and figurative language competence in autism should be sought in more general cognitive mechanisms and traits in the autistic phenotype (e.g., in terms of weak central coherence, Vulchanova et al., 2012b), as well as failure at on-line semantic integration with increased complexity and diversity of the stimuli (Coulson and Van Petten, 2002). This perspective is even more compelling in light of similar problems in a number of conditions, including both acquired (e.g., Aphasia) and developmental disorders (Williams Syndrome). This dissociation argues against a simple continuity view of language interpretation. PMID:25741261

Figurative language processing in atypical populations: The ASD perspective

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mila eVulchanova

2015-02-01

Full Text Available This paper is intended to provide a critical overview of experimental and clinical research documenting problems in figurative language processing in atypical populations with a focus on the Autistic Spectrum. Research in the comprehension and processing of figurative language in autism invariably documents problems in this area. The greater paradox is that even at the higher end of the spectrum or in the cases of linguistically talented individuals with Asperger syndrome, where structural language competence is intact, problems with extended language persist. If we assume that figurative and extended uses of language essentially depend on the perception and processing of more concrete core concepts and phenomena, the commonly observed failure in atypical populations to understand figurative language remains a puzzle.Various accounts have been offered to explain this issue, ranging from linking potential failure directly to overall structural language competence (Brock et al., 2008; Norbury, 2005 to right-hemispheric involvement (Gold and Faust, 2010. We argue that the dissociation between structural language and figurative language competence in autism should be sought in more general cognitive mechanisms and traits in the autistic phenotype (e.g., in terms of weak central coherence, Vulchanova et al., 2012b, as well as failure at on-line semantic integration with increased complexity and diversity of the stimuli (Coulson and van Petten, 2002. This perspective is even more compelling in light of similar problems in a number of conditions, including both acquired (e.g., Aphasia and developmental disorders (Williams Syndrome. This dissociation argues against a simple continuity view of language interpretation.

Figurative language processing in atypical populations: the ASD perspective.

Science.gov (United States)

Vulchanova, Mila; Saldaña, David; Chahboun, Sobh; Vulchanov, Valentin

2015-01-01

This paper is intended to provide a critical overview of experimental and clinical research documenting problems in figurative language processing in atypical populations with a focus on the Autistic Spectrum. Research in the comprehension and processing of figurative language in autism invariably documents problems in this area. The greater paradox is that even at the higher end of the spectrum or in the cases of linguistically talented individuals with Asperger syndrome, where structural language competence is intact, problems with extended language persist. If we assume that figurative and extended uses of language essentially depend on the perception and processing of more concrete core concepts and phenomena, the commonly observed failure in atypical populations to understand figurative language remains a puzzle. Various accounts have been offered to explain this issue, ranging from linking potential failure directly to overall structural language competence (Norbury, 2005; Brock et al., 2008) to right-hemispheric involvement (Gold and Faust, 2010). We argue that the dissociation between structural language and figurative language competence in autism should be sought in more general cognitive mechanisms and traits in the autistic phenotype (e.g., in terms of weak central coherence, Vulchanova et al., 2012b), as well as failure at on-line semantic integration with increased complexity and diversity of the stimuli (Coulson and Van Petten, 2002). This perspective is even more compelling in light of similar problems in a number of conditions, including both acquired (e.g., Aphasia) and developmental disorders (Williams Syndrome). This dissociation argues against a simple continuity view of language interpretation.

Dynamics of a recovering Arctic bird population: the importance of climate, density dependence, and site quality

Science.gov (United States)

Bruggeman, Jason E.; Swem, Ted; Andersen, David E.; Kennedy, Patricia L.; Nigro, Debora A.

2015-01-01

Intrinsic and extrinsic factors affect vital rates and population-level processes, and understanding these factors is paramount to devising successful management plans for wildlife species. For example, birds time migration in response, in part, to local and broadscale climate fluctuations to initiate breeding upon arrival to nesting territories, and prolonged inclement weather early in the breeding season can inhibit egg-laying and reduce productivity. Also, density-dependent regulation occurs in raptor populations, as territory size is related to resource availability. Arctic Peregrine Falcons (Falco peregrinus tundrius; hereafter Arctic peregrine) have a limited and northern breeding distribution, including the Colville River Special Area (CRSA) in the National Petroleum Reserve–Alaska, USA. We quantified influences of climate, topography, nest productivity, prey habitat, density dependence, and interspecific competition affecting Arctic peregrines in the CRSA by applying the Dail-Madsen model to estimate abundance and vital rates of adults on nesting cliffs from 1981 through 2002. Arctic peregrine abundance increased throughout the 1980s, which spanned the population's recovery from DDT-induced reproductive failure, until exhibiting a stationary trend in the 1990s. Apparent survival rate (i.e., emigration; death) was negatively correlated with the number of adult Arctic peregrines on the cliff the previous year, suggesting effects of density-dependent population regulation. Apparent survival and arrival rates (i.e., immigration; recruitment) were higher during years with earlier snowmelt and milder winters, and apparent survival was positively correlated with nesting season maximum daily temperature. Arrival rate was positively correlated with average Arctic peregrine productivity along a cliff segment from the previous year and initial abundance was positively correlated with cliff height. Higher cliffs with documented higher productivity (presumably

Anomalous dependence of population growth on the birth rate in the plant-herbivore system

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cui, Xue M.; Han, Seung K.; Chung, Jean S.

2010-01-01

We performed a simulation of the two-species plant-herbivore system by using the agent-based NetLogo program and constructed a dynamic model of populations consistent with the simulation results. The dynamic model is a three-dimensional system including the mean energy of the herbivore in addition to two variables denoting the populations of plants and herbivores. A steady-state analysis of the dynamic model shows that the dependence of the herbivore population on the birth and the death rates observed from the agent model is consistent with the prediction of the dynamic model. Especially, the anomalous dependence of the herbivore population on the birth rate, where the population decreases with the birth rate for small death rate, is consistently explained by a phase plane analysis of the dynamic model.

Global asymptotic stability of density dependent integral population projection models.

Science.gov (United States)

Rebarber, Richard; Tenhumberg, Brigitte; Townley, Stuart

2012-02-01

Many stage-structured density dependent populations with a continuum of stages can be naturally modeled using nonlinear integral projection models. In this paper, we study a trichotomy of global stability result for a class of density dependent systems which include a Platte thistle model. Specifically, we identify those systems parameters for which zero is globally asymptotically stable, parameters for which there is a positive asymptotically stable equilibrium, and parameters for which there is no asymptotically stable equilibrium. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Social deprivation, population dependency ratio and an extended hospital episode - Insights from acute medicine.

Science.gov (United States)

Cournane, Seán; Dalton, Ann; Byrne, Declan; Conway, Richard; O'Riordan, Deirdre; Coveney, Seamus; Silke, Bernard

2015-11-01

Patients from deprived backgrounds have a higher in-patient mortality following an emergency medical admission; this study aimed to investigate the extent to which Deprivation status and the population Dependency Ratio influenced extended hospital episodes. All Emergency Medical admissions (75,018 episodes of 41,728 patients) over 12 years (2002-2013) categorized by quintile of Deprivation Index and Population Dependency Rates (proportion of non-working/working) were evaluated against length of stay (LOS). Patients with an Extended LOS (ELOS), >30 days, were investigated, by Deprivation status, Illness Severity and Co-morbidity status. Univariate and multi-variable risk estimates (Odds Rates or Incidence Rate Ratios) were calculated, using truncated Poisson regression. Hospital episodes with ELOS had a frequency of 11.5%; their median LOS (IQR) was 55.0 (38.8, 97.6) days utilizing 57.6% of all bed days by all 75,018 emergency medical admissions. The Deprivation Index independently predicted the rate of such ELOS admissions; these increased approximately five-fold (rate/1000 population) over the Deprivation Quintiles with model adjusted predicted admission rates of for Q1 0.93 (95% CI: 0.86, 0.99), Q22.63 (95% CI: 2.55, 2.71), Q3 3.84 (95% CI: 3.77, 3.91), Q4 3.42 (95% CI: 3.37, 3.48) and Q5 4.38 (95% CI: 4.22, 4.54). Similarly the Population Dependency Ratio Quintiles (dependent to working structure of the population by small area units) independently predicted extended LOS admissions. The admission of patients with an ELOS is strongly influenced by the Deprivation status and the population Dependency Ratio of the catchment area. These factors interact, with both high deprivation and Dependency cohorts having a major influence on the numbers of emergency medical admission patients with an extended hospital episode. Copyright © 2015 European Federation of Internal Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An experimental field study of delayed density dependence in natural populations of Aedes albopictus.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachael K Walsh

Full Text Available Aedes albopictus, a species known to transmit dengue and chikungunya viruses, is primarily a container-inhabiting mosquito. The potential for pathogen transmission by Ae. albopictus has increased our need to understand its ecology and population dynamics. Two parameters that we know little about are the impact of direct density-dependence and delayed density-dependence in the larval stage. The present study uses a manipulative experimental design, under field conditions, to understand the impact of delayed density dependence in a natural population of Ae. albopictus in Raleigh, North Carolina. Twenty liter buckets, divided in half prior to experimentation, placed in the field accumulated rainwater and detritus, providing oviposition and larval production sites for natural populations of Ae. albopictus. Two treatments, a larvae present and larvae absent treatment, were produced in each bucket. After five weeks all larvae were removed from both treatments and the buckets were covered with fine mesh cloth. Equal numbers of first instars were added to both treatments in every bucket. Pupae were collected daily and adults were frozen as they emerged. We found a significant impact of delayed density-dependence on larval survival, development time and adult body size in containers with high larval densities. Our results indicate that delayed density-dependence will have negative impacts on the mosquito population when larval densities are high enough to deplete accessible nutrients faster than the rate of natural food accumulation.

Founder takes all: density-dependent processes structure biodiversity.

Science.gov (United States)

Waters, Jonathan M; Fraser, Ceridwen I; Hewitt, Godfrey M

2013-02-01

Density-dependent processes play a key role in the spatial structuring of biodiversity. Specifically, interrelated demographic processes, such as gene surfing, high-density blocking, and competitive exclusion, can generate striking geographic contrasts in the distributions of genes and species. Here, we propose that well-studied evolutionary and ecological biogeographic patterns of postglacial recolonization, progressive island colonization, microbial sectoring, and even the 'Out of Africa' pattern of human expansion, are fundamentally similar, underpinned by a 'founder takes all' density-dependent principle. Additionally, we hypothesize that older historic constraints of density-dependent processes are seen today in the dramatic biogeographic shifts that occur in response to human-mediated extinction events, whereby surviving lineages rapidly expand their ranges to replace extinct sister taxa. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sub-national mapping of population pyramids and dependency ratios in Africa and Asia

Science.gov (United States)

Pezzulo, Carla; Hornby, Graeme M.; Sorichetta, Alessandro; Gaughan, Andrea E.; Linard, Catherine; Bird, Tomas J.; Kerr, David; Lloyd, Christopher T.; Tatem, Andrew J.

2017-07-01

The age group composition of populations varies substantially across continents and within countries, and is linked to levels of development, health status and poverty. The subnational variability in the shape of the population pyramid as well as the respective dependency ratio are reflective of the different levels of development of a country and are drivers for a country's economic prospects and health burdens. Whether measured as the ratio between those of working age and those young and old who are dependent upon them, or through separate young and old-age metrics, dependency ratios are often highly heterogeneous between and within countries. Assessments of subnational dependency ratio and age structure patterns have been undertaken for specific countries and across high income regions, but to a lesser extent across the low income regions. In the framework of the WorldPop Project, through the assembly of over 100 million records across 6,389 subnational administrative units, subnational dependency ratio and high resolution gridded age/sex group datasets were produced for 87 countries in Africa and Asia.

Designing dependable process-oriented software - a CSP-based approach

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Jovanovic, D.S.

2006-01-01

This thesis advocates dependability as a crucial aspect of software quality. Process orientation,as it is defined in this thesis, concentrates on the notion of a process as a basic building component of a dataflow-centred software architecture. The dependability approach in the proposed variant of

[Alimentation dependent health disorders among adult population of Bashkortostan Republic and their relation with nutritional traits].

Science.gov (United States)

Takaev, R M; Kondrova, N S; Baĭkina, I M; Larionova, T K

2008-01-01

The authors demonstrated relationship between alimentation dependent diseases among adult population of the Republic and nutritional traits of the population, defined major directions of program to optimize nutrition of the population.

Dependent Neyman type A processes based on common shock Poisson approach

Science.gov (United States)

Kadilar, Gamze Özel; Kadilar, Cem

2016-04-01

The Neyman type A process is used for describing clustered data since the Poisson process is insufficient for clustering of events. In a multivariate setting, there may be dependencies between multivarite Neyman type A processes. In this study, dependent form of the Neyman type A process is considered under common shock approach. Then, the joint probability function are derived for the dependent Neyman type A Poisson processes. Then, an application based on forest fires in Turkey are given. The results show that the joint probability function of the dependent Neyman type A processes, which is obtained in this study, can be a good tool for the probabilistic fitness for the total number of burned trees in Turkey.

Modeling spatial processes with unknown extremal dependence class

KAUST Repository

Huser, Raphaë l G.; Wadsworth, Jennifer L.

2017-01-01

Many environmental processes exhibit weakening spatial dependence as events become more extreme. Well-known limiting models, such as max-stable or generalized Pareto processes, cannot capture this, which can lead to a preference for models

Cigarette smoking, nicotine dependence and anxiety disorders: a systematic review of population-based, epidemiological studies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Moylan Steven

2012-10-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Multiple studies have demonstrated that rates of smoking and nicotine dependence are increased in individuals with anxiety disorders. However, significant variability exists in the epidemiological literature exploring this relationship, including study design (cross-sectional versus prospective, the population assessed (random sample versus clinical population and diagnostic instrument utilized. Methods We undertook a systematic review of population-based observational studies that utilized recognized structured clinical diagnostic criteria (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM or International Classification of Diseases (ICD for anxiety disorder diagnosis to investigate the relationship between cigarette smoking, nicotine dependence and anxiety disorders. Results In total, 47 studies met the predefined inclusion criteria, with 12 studies providing prospective information and 5 studies providing quasiprospective information. The available evidence suggests that some baseline anxiety disorders are a risk factor for initiation of smoking and nicotine dependence, although the evidence is heterogeneous and many studies did not control for the effect of comorbid substance use disorders. The identified evidence however appeared to more consistently support cigarette smoking and nicotine dependence as being a risk factor for development of some anxiety disorders (for example, panic disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, although these findings were not replicated in all studies. A number of inconsistencies in the literature were identified. Conclusions Although many studies have demonstrated increased rates of smoking and nicotine dependence in individuals with anxiety disorders, there is a limited and heterogeneous literature that has prospectively examined this relationship in population studies using validated diagnostic criteria. The most consistent evidence supports smoking and nicotine dependence as

The environmental dependence of inbreeding depression in a wild bird population.

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Marta Szulkin

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Inbreeding depression occurs when the offspring produced as a result of matings between relatives show reduced fitness, and is generally understood as a consequence of the elevated expression of deleterious recessive alleles. How inbreeding depression varies across environments is of importance for the evolution of inbreeding avoidance behaviour, and for understanding extinction risks in small populations. However, inbreeding-by-environment (IxE interactions have rarely been investigated in wild populations.We analysed 41 years of breeding events from a wild great tit (Parus major population and used 11 measures of the environment to categorise environments as relatively good or poor, testing whether these measures influenced inbreeding depression. Although inbreeding always, and environmental quality often, significantly affected reproductive success, there was little evidence for statistically significant I x E interactions at the level of individual analyses. However, point estimates of the effect of the environment on inbreeding depression were sometimes considerable, and we show that variation in the magnitude of the I x E interaction across environments is consistent with the expectation that this interaction is more marked across environmental axes with a closer link to overall fitness, with the environmental dependence of inbreeding depression being elevated under such conditions. Hence, our analyses provide evidence for an environmental dependence of the inbreeding x environment interaction: effectively an I x E x E.Overall, our analyses suggest that I x E interactions may be substantial in wild populations, when measured across relevant environmental contrasts, although their detection for single traits may require very large samples, or high rates of inbreeding.

Timing intervals using population synchrony and spike timing dependent plasticity

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Wei Xu

2016-12-01

Full Text Available We present a computational model by which ensembles of regularly spiking neurons can encode different time intervals through synchronous firing. We show that a neuron responding to a large population of convergent inputs has the potential to learn to produce an appropriately-timed output via spike-time dependent plasticity. We explain why temporal variability of this population synchrony increases with increasing time intervals. We also show that the scalar property of timing and its violation at short intervals can be explained by the spike-wise accumulation of jitter in the inter-spike intervals of timing neurons. We explore how the challenge of encoding longer time intervals can be overcome and conclude that this may involve a switch to a different population of neurons with lower firing rate, with the added effect of producing an earlier bias in response. Experimental data on human timing performance show features in agreement with the model’s output.

Evaluating models of population process in a threatened population of Steller’s eiders: A retrospective approach

Science.gov (United States)

Dunham, Kylee; Grand, James B.

2016-10-11

The Alaskan breeding population of Steller’s eiders (Polysticta stelleri) was listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act in 1997 in response to perceived declines in abundance throughout their breeding and nesting range. Aerial surveys suggest the breeding population is small and highly variable in number, with zero birds counted in 5 of the last 25 years. Research was conducted to evaluate competing population process models of Alaskan-breeding Steller’s eiders through comparison of model projections to aerial survey data. To evaluate model efficacy and estimate demographic parameters, a Bayesian state-space modeling framework was used and each model was fit to counts from the annual aerial surveys, using sequential importance sampling and resampling. The results strongly support that the Alaskan breeding population experiences population level nonbreeding events and is open to exchange with the larger Russian-Pacific breeding population. Current recovery criteria for the Alaskan breeding population rely heavily on the ability to estimate population viability. The results of this investigation provide an informative model of the population process that can be used to examine future population states and assess the population in terms of the current recovery and reclassification criteria.

Modelling Anopheles gambiae s.s. Population Dynamics with Temperature- and Age-Dependent Survival

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Céline Christiansen-Jucht

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Climate change and global warming are emerging as important threats to human health, particularly through the potential increase in vector- and water-borne diseases. Environmental variables are known to affect substantially the population dynamics and abundance of the poikilothermic vectors of disease, but the exact extent of this sensitivity is not well established. Focusing on malaria and its main vector in Africa, Anopheles gambiae sensu stricto, we present a set of novel mathematical models of climate-driven mosquito population dynamics motivated by experimental data suggesting that in An. gambiae, mortality is temperature and age dependent. We compared the performance of these models to that of a “standard” model ignoring age dependence. We used a longitudinal dataset of vector abundance over 36 months in sub-Saharan Africa for comparison between models that incorporate age dependence and one that does not, and observe that age-dependent models consistently fitted the data better than the reference model. This highlights that including age dependence in the vector component of mosquito-borne disease models may be important to predict more reliably disease transmission dynamics. Further data and studies are needed to enable improved fitting, leading to more accurate and informative model predictions for the An. gambiae malaria vector as well as for other disease vectors.

Human Health Risk Assessment Applied to Rural Populations Dependent on Unregulated Drinking Water Sources: A Scoping Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Ford, Lorelei; Bharadwaj, Lalita; McLeod, Lianne; Waldner, Cheryl

2017-07-28

Safe drinking water is a global challenge for rural populations dependent on unregulated water. A scoping review of research on human health risk assessments (HHRA) applied to this vulnerable population may be used to improve assessments applied by government and researchers. This review aims to summarize and describe the characteristics of HHRA methods, publications, and current literature gaps of HHRA studies on rural populations dependent on unregulated or unspecified drinking water. Peer-reviewed literature was systematically searched (January 2000 to May 2014) and identified at least one drinking water source as unregulated (21%) or unspecified (79%) in 100 studies. Only 7% of reviewed studies identified a rural community dependent on unregulated drinking water. Source water and hazards most frequently cited included groundwater (67%) and chemical water hazards (82%). Most HHRAs (86%) applied deterministic methods with 14% reporting probabilistic and stochastic methods. Publications increased over time with 57% set in Asia, and 47% of studies identified at least one literature gap in the areas of research, risk management, and community exposure. HHRAs applied to rural populations dependent on unregulated water are poorly represented in the literature even though almost half of the global population is rural.

Location-Dependent Query Processing Under Soft Real-Time Constraints

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Zoubir Mammeri

2009-01-01

Full Text Available In recent years, mobile devices and applications achieved an increasing development. In database field, this development required methods to consider new query types like location-dependent queries (i.e. the query results depend on the query issuer location. Although several researches addressed problems related to location-dependent query processing, a few works considered timing requirements that may be associated with queries (i.e., the query results must be delivered to mobile clients on time. The main objective of this paper is to propose a solution for location-dependent query processing under soft real-time constraints. Hence, we propose methods to take into account client location-dependency and to maximize the percentage of queries respecting their deadlines. We validate our proposal by implementing a prototype based on Oracle DBMS. Performance evaluation results show that the proposed solution optimizes the percentage of queries meeting their deadlines and the communication cost.

Bayesian inference on the effect of density dependence and weather on a guanaco population from Chile

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zubillaga, Maria; Skewes, Oscar; Soto, Nicolás

2014-01-01

Understanding the mechanisms that drive population dynamics is fundamental for management of wild populations. The guanaco (Lama guanicoe) is one of two wild camelid species in South America. We evaluated the effects of density dependence and weather variables on population regulation based...

A parametric interpretation of Bayesian Nonparametric Inference from Gene Genealogies: Linking ecological, population genetics and evolutionary processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Ponciano, José Miguel

2017-11-22

Using a nonparametric Bayesian approach Palacios and Minin (2013) dramatically improved the accuracy, precision of Bayesian inference of population size trajectories from gene genealogies. These authors proposed an extension of a Gaussian Process (GP) nonparametric inferential method for the intensity function of non-homogeneous Poisson processes. They found that not only the statistical properties of the estimators were improved with their method, but also, that key aspects of the demographic histories were recovered. The authors' work represents the first Bayesian nonparametric solution to this inferential problem because they specify a convenient prior belief without a particular functional form on the population trajectory. Their approach works so well and provides such a profound understanding of the biological process, that the question arises as to how truly "biology-free" their approach really is. Using well-known concepts of stochastic population dynamics, here I demonstrate that in fact, Palacios and Minin's GP model can be cast as a parametric population growth model with density dependence and environmental stochasticity. Making this link between population genetics and stochastic population dynamics modeling provides novel insights into eliciting biologically meaningful priors for the trajectory of the effective population size. The results presented here also bring novel understanding of GP as models for the evolution of a trait. Thus, the ecological principles foundation of Palacios and Minin (2013)'s prior adds to the conceptual and scientific value of these authors' inferential approach. I conclude this note by listing a series of insights brought about by this connection with Ecology. Copyright © 2017 The Author. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Population processes with unbounded extinction rate conditioned to non-extinction

OpenAIRE

Champagnat, Nicolas; Villemonais, Denis

2016-01-01

This article studies the quasi-stationary behaviour of population processes with unbounded absorption rate, including one-dimensional birth and death processes with catastrophes and multi-dimensional birth and death processes, modeling biological populations in interaction. To handle this situation, we develop original non-linear Lyapunov criteria. We obtain the exponential convergence in total variation of the conditional distributions to a unique quasi-stationary distribution, uniformly wit...

Synchronized mammalian cell culture: part II--population ensemble modeling and analysis for development of reproducible processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Jandt, Uwe; Barradas, Oscar Platas; Pörtner, Ralf; Zeng, An-Ping

2015-01-01

The consideration of inherent population inhomogeneities of mammalian cell cultures becomes increasingly important for systems biology study and for developing more stable and efficient processes. However, variations of cellular properties belonging to different sub-populations and their potential effects on cellular physiology and kinetics of culture productivity under bioproduction conditions have not yet been much in the focus of research. Culture heterogeneity is strongly determined by the advance of the cell cycle. The assignment of cell-cycle specific cellular variations to large-scale process conditions can be optimally determined based on the combination of (partially) synchronized cultivation under otherwise physiological conditions and subsequent population-resolved model adaptation. The first step has been achieved using the physical selection method of countercurrent flow centrifugal elutriation, recently established in our group for different mammalian cell lines which is presented in Part I of this paper series. In this second part, we demonstrate the successful adaptation and application of a cell-cycle dependent population balance ensemble model to describe and understand synchronized bioreactor cultivations performed with two model mammalian cell lines, AGE1.HNAAT and CHO-K1. Numerical adaptation of the model to experimental data allows for detection of phase-specific parameters and for determination of significant variations between different phases and different cell lines. It shows that special care must be taken with regard to the sampling frequency in such oscillation cultures to minimize phase shift (jitter) artifacts. Based on predictions of long-term oscillation behavior of a culture depending on its start conditions, optimal elutriation setup trade-offs between high cell yields and high synchronization efficiency are proposed. © 2014 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

Population Consequences of Age-Dependent Maternal Effects in Rockfish (Sebastes spp.)

OpenAIRE

Lucero, Yasmin

2007-01-01

I present a model of the early life history of a rockfish that includes an age-dependent maternal effect. The model is designed to accurately reflect the diverse uncertainties we have about early life history processes. The first portion of this thesis is devoted to an analytical treatment of the deterministic early life history model. I emphasize uncertainty about the functional form of density-dependent processes in the juvenile stage. The remainder of the thesis is devoted to demonstrating...

Critical mutation rate has an exponential dependence on population size in haploid and diploid populations.

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Elizabeth Aston

Full Text Available Understanding the effect of population size on the key parameters of evolution is particularly important for populations nearing extinction. There are evolutionary pressures to evolve sequences that are both fit and robust. At high mutation rates, individuals with greater mutational robustness can outcompete those with higher fitness. This is survival-of-the-flattest, and has been observed in digital organisms, theoretically, in simulated RNA evolution, and in RNA viruses. We introduce an algorithmic method capable of determining the relationship between population size, the critical mutation rate at which individuals with greater robustness to mutation are favoured over individuals with greater fitness, and the error threshold. Verification for this method is provided against analytical models for the error threshold. We show that the critical mutation rate for increasing haploid population sizes can be approximated by an exponential function, with much lower mutation rates tolerated by small populations. This is in contrast to previous studies which identified that critical mutation rate was independent of population size. The algorithm is extended to diploid populations in a system modelled on the biological process of meiosis. The results confirm that the relationship remains exponential, but show that both the critical mutation rate and error threshold are lower for diploids, rather than higher as might have been expected. Analyzing the transition from critical mutation rate to error threshold provides an improved definition of critical mutation rate. Natural populations with their numbers in decline can be expected to lose genetic material in line with the exponential model, accelerating and potentially irreversibly advancing their decline, and this could potentially affect extinction, recovery and population management strategy. The effect of population size is particularly strong in small populations with 100 individuals or less; the

Population density equations for stochastic processes with memory kernels

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Yi Ming; de Kamps, Marc

2017-06-01

We present a method for solving population density equations (PDEs)-a mean-field technique describing homogeneous populations of uncoupled neurons—where the populations can be subject to non-Markov noise for arbitrary distributions of jump sizes. The method combines recent developments in two different disciplines that traditionally have had limited interaction: computational neuroscience and the theory of random networks. The method uses a geometric binning scheme, based on the method of characteristics, to capture the deterministic neurodynamics of the population, separating the deterministic and stochastic process cleanly. We can independently vary the choice of the deterministic model and the model for the stochastic process, leading to a highly modular numerical solution strategy. We demonstrate this by replacing the master equation implicit in many formulations of the PDE formalism by a generalization called the generalized Montroll-Weiss equation—a recent result from random network theory—describing a random walker subject to transitions realized by a non-Markovian process. We demonstrate the method for leaky- and quadratic-integrate and fire neurons subject to spike trains with Poisson and gamma-distributed interspike intervals. We are able to model jump responses for both models accurately to both excitatory and inhibitory input under the assumption that all inputs are generated by one renewal process.

Peculiarities of dermatoglyphic values among the people of Uzbek population dependently on sex

OpenAIRE

Kuziyev, Otabek; ORTIQBOYEV JAKHONGIR ORTIQBOY OGLI; Khakimova, Gulnoz; Aripdjanova, Nigina

2015-01-01

: This article describes a study conducted to determine the basic dermatoglyphic traits, located in relation to gender in persons of Uzbek population. Provides definitions of the differences in rate of dermatoglyphic depending on nationality.

Modelling the PCR amplification process by a size-dependent branching process and estimation of the efficiency

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lalam, N.; Jacob, C.; Jagers, P.

2004-01-01

We propose a stochastic modelling of the PCR amplification process by a size-dependent branching process starting as a supercritical Bienaymé-Galton-Watson transient phase and then having a saturation near-critical size-dependent phase. This model allows us to estimate the probability of replication

Age-dependent branching processes for surveillance of vaccine-preventable diseases with incubation period

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Marusia N Bojkova

2010-10-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this paper is to review the recent results of the authors in the area of infectious disease modelling by means of branching stochastic processes. This is a new approach involving age-dependent branching models, which turned out to be more appropriate and flexible for describing the spread of an infection in a given population, than discrete time ones. Concretely, Bellman-Harris and Sevast’yanov’s branching processes are investigated. It is justified that the proposed models are proper candidates as models of infectious diseases with incubation period like measles, mumps, avian flu, etc. It is worth to notice that in general the developed methodology is applicable to the diseases that follow the so-called SIR (susceptible- infected-removed scheme in terms of epidemiological models. Two policies of extra-vaccination level are proposed and compared on the ground of simulation examples.

Partitioning the sources of demographic variation reveals density-dependent nest predation in an island bird population.

Science.gov (United States)

Sofaer, Helen R; Sillett, T Scott; Langin, Kathryn M; Morrison, Scott A; Ghalambor, Cameron K

2014-07-01

Ecological factors often shape demography through multiple mechanisms, making it difficult to identify the sources of demographic variation. In particular, conspecific density can influence both the strength of competition and the predation rate, but density-dependent competition has received more attention, particularly among terrestrial vertebrates and in island populations. A better understanding of how both competition and predation contribute to density-dependent variation in fecundity can be gained by partitioning the effects of density on offspring number from its effects on reproductive failure, while also evaluating how biotic and abiotic factors jointly shape demography. We examined the effects of population density and precipitation on fecundity, nest survival, and adult survival in an insular population of orange-crowned warblers (Oreothlypis celata) that breeds at high densities and exhibits a suite of traits suggesting strong intraspecific competition. Breeding density had a negative influence on fecundity, but it acted by increasing the probability of reproductive failure through nest predation, rather than through competition, which was predicted to reduce the number of offspring produced by successful individuals. Our results demonstrate that density-dependent nest predation can underlie the relationship between population density and fecundity even in a high-density, insular population where intraspecific competition should be strong.

Population death sequences and Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions

CERN Document Server

Wei Gang; Feng Jian Feng

2002-01-01

We carry out a complete study on the relationship between Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions and death sequences of immigration-emigration linked population networks. It is first proved that the Cox process driven by a Feller diffusion is equivalent to the death sequence of a birth and death process. The conclusion is then generalized to the case of Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions and death sequences of interacting populations.

Population death sequences and Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wei Gang; Clifford, Peter; Feng Jianfeng

2002-01-01

We carry out a complete study on the relationship between Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions and death sequences of immigration-emigration linked population networks. It is first proved that the Cox process driven by a Feller diffusion is equivalent to the death sequence of a birth and death process. The conclusion is then generalized to the case of Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions and death sequences of interacting populations

Population death sequences and Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Wei Gang [Department of Mathematics, Baptist University, Hong Kong (China); Clifford, Peter [Department of Statistics, 1 South Parks Road, Oxford (United Kingdom); Feng Jianfeng [COGS, Sussex University, Brighton (United Kingdom)

2002-11-08

We carry out a complete study on the relationship between Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions and death sequences of immigration-emigration linked population networks. It is first proved that the Cox process driven by a Feller diffusion is equivalent to the death sequence of a birth and death process. The conclusion is then generalized to the case of Cox processes driven by interacting Feller diffusions and death sequences of interacting populations.

Asymptotic theory of weakly dependent random processes

CERN Document Server

Rio, Emmanuel

2017-01-01

Presenting tools to aid understanding of asymptotic theory and weakly dependent processes, this book is devoted to inequalities and limit theorems for sequences of random variables that are strongly mixing in the sense of Rosenblatt, or absolutely regular. The first chapter introduces covariance inequalities under strong mixing or absolute regularity. These covariance inequalities are applied in Chapters 2, 3 and 4 to moment inequalities, rates of convergence in the strong law, and central limit theorems. Chapter 5 concerns coupling. In Chapter 6 new deviation inequalities and new moment inequalities for partial sums via the coupling lemmas of Chapter 5 are derived and applied to the bounded law of the iterated logarithm. Chapters 7 and 8 deal with the theory of empirical processes under weak dependence. Lastly, Chapter 9 describes links between ergodicity, return times and rates of mixing in the case of irreducible Markov chains. Each chapter ends with a set of exercises. The book is an updated and extended ...

Novel synthetic Medea selfish genetic elements drive population replacement in Drosophila; a theoretical exploration of Medea-dependent population suppression.

Science.gov (United States)

Akbari, Omar S; Chen, Chun-Hong; Marshall, John M; Huang, Haixia; Antoshechkin, Igor; Hay, Bruce A

2014-12-19

Insects act as vectors for diseases of plants, animals, and humans. Replacement of wild insect populations with genetically modified individuals unable to transmit disease provides a potentially self-perpetuating method of disease prevention. Population replacement requires a gene drive mechanism in order to spread linked genes mediating disease refractoriness through wild populations. We previously reported the creation of synthetic Medea selfish genetic elements able to drive population replacement in Drosophila. These elements use microRNA-mediated silencing of myd88, a maternally expressed gene required for embryonic dorso-ventral pattern formation, coupled with early zygotic expression of a rescuing transgene, to bring about gene drive. Medea elements that work through additional mechanisms are needed in order to be able to carry out cycles of population replacement and/or remove existing transgenes from the population, using second-generation elements that spread while driving first-generation elements out of the population. Here we report the synthesis and population genetic behavior of two new synthetic Medea elements that drive population replacement through manipulation of signaling pathways involved in cellular blastoderm formation or Notch signaling, demonstrating that in Drosophila Medea elements can be generated through manipulation of diverse signaling pathways. We also describe the mRNA and small RNA changes in ovaries and early embryos associated from Medea-bearing females. Finally, we use modeling to illustrate how Medea elements carrying genes that result in diapause-dependent female lethality could be used to bring about population suppression.

Gaussian process-based Bayesian nonparametric inference of population size trajectories from gene genealogies.

Science.gov (United States)

Palacios, Julia A; Minin, Vladimir N

2013-03-01

Changes in population size influence genetic diversity of the population and, as a result, leave a signature of these changes in individual genomes in the population. We are interested in the inverse problem of reconstructing past population dynamics from genomic data. We start with a standard framework based on the coalescent, a stochastic process that generates genealogies connecting randomly sampled individuals from the population of interest. These genealogies serve as a glue between the population demographic history and genomic sequences. It turns out that only the times of genealogical lineage coalescences contain information about population size dynamics. Viewing these coalescent times as a point process, estimating population size trajectories is equivalent to estimating a conditional intensity of this point process. Therefore, our inverse problem is similar to estimating an inhomogeneous Poisson process intensity function. We demonstrate how recent advances in Gaussian process-based nonparametric inference for Poisson processes can be extended to Bayesian nonparametric estimation of population size dynamics under the coalescent. We compare our Gaussian process (GP) approach to one of the state-of-the-art Gaussian Markov random field (GMRF) methods for estimating population trajectories. Using simulated data, we demonstrate that our method has better accuracy and precision. Next, we analyze two genealogies reconstructed from real sequences of hepatitis C and human Influenza A viruses. In both cases, we recover more believed aspects of the viral demographic histories than the GMRF approach. We also find that our GP method produces more reasonable uncertainty estimates than the GMRF method. Copyright © 2013, The International Biometric Society.

Impaired ecosystem process despite little effects on populations: modeling combined effects of warming and toxicants.

Science.gov (United States)

Galic, Nika; Grimm, Volker; Forbes, Valery E

2017-08-01

Freshwater ecosystems are exposed to many stressors, including toxic chemicals and global warming, which can impair, separately or in combination, important processes in organisms and hence higher levels of organization. Investigating combined effects of warming and toxicants has been a topic of little research, but neglecting their combined effects may seriously misguide management efforts. To explore how toxic chemicals and warming, alone and in combination, propagate across levels of biological organization, including a key ecosystem process, we developed an individual-based model (IBM) of a freshwater amphipod detritivore, Gammarus pseudolimnaeus, feeding on leaf litter. In this IBM, life history emerges from the individuals' energy budgets. We quantified, in different warming scenarios (+1-+4 °C), the effects of hypothetical toxicants on suborganismal processes, including feeding, somatic and maturity maintenance, growth, and reproduction. Warming reduced mean adult body sizes and population abundance and biomass, but only in the warmest scenarios. Leaf litter processing, a key contributor to ecosystem functioning and service delivery in streams, was consistently enhanced by warming, through strengthened interaction between the detritivorous consumer and its resource. Toxicant effects on feeding and maintenance resulted in initially small adverse effects on consumers, but ultimately led to population extinction and loss of ecosystem process. Warming in combination with toxicants had little effect at the individual and population levels, but ecosystem process was impaired in the warmer scenarios. Our results suggest that exposure to the same amount of toxicants can disproportionately compromise ecosystem processing depending on global warming scenarios; for example, reducing organismal feeding rates by 50% will reduce resource processing by 50% in current temperature conditions, but by up to 200% with warming of 4 °C. Our study has implications for

Intertime jump statistics of state-dependent Poisson processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Daly, Edoardo; Porporato, Amilcare

2007-01-01

A method to obtain the probability distribution of the interarrival times of jump occurrences in systems driven by state-dependent Poisson noise is proposed. Such a method uses the survivor function obtained by a modified version of the master equation associated to the stochastic process under analysis. A model for the timing of human activities shows the capability of state-dependent Poisson noise to generate power-law distributions. The application of the method to a model for neuron dynamics and to a hydrological model accounting for land-atmosphere interaction elucidates the origin of characteristic recurrence intervals and possible persistence in state-dependent Poisson models.

Image quality dependence on image processing software in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Image quality dependence on image processing software in computed radiography. ... Agfa CR readers use MUSICA software, and an upgrade with significantly different image ... Full Text: EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT

CHRNA3 genotype, nicotine dependence, lung function and disease in the general population

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kaur-Knudsen, Diljit; Nordestgaard, Børge G; Bojesen, Stig E

2012-01-01

The CHRNA3 rs1051730 polymorphism has been associated to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung cancer and nicotine dependence in case-control studies with high smoking exposure; however, its influence on lung function and COPD severity in the general population is largely unknown. We...... genotyped 57,657 adult individuals from the Copenhagen General Population Study, of whom 34,592 were ever-smokers. Information on spirometry, hospital admissions, smoking behaviour and use of nicotinic replacement therapy was recorded. In homozygous (11%), heterozygous (44%) and noncarrier (45%) ever...

Mood disorder, anxiety, and suicide risk among subjects with alcohol abuse and/or dependence: a population-based study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carolina D. Wiener

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of alcohol abuse and/or dependence in a population-based sample of young adults and assess the prevalence of comorbid mood disorders, anxiety, and suicide risk in this population. Methods: This cross-sectional, population-based study enrolled 1,953 young adults aged 18-35 years. The CAGE questionnaire was used to screen for alcohol abuse and/or dependence, with CAGE scores ≥ 2 considered positive. Psychiatric disorders were investigated through the structured Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI. Results: Alcohol abuse and/or dependence was identified in 187 (9.60% individuals (5.10% among women and 15.20% among men. Alcohol abuse and/or dependence were more prevalent among men than women, as well as among those who used tobacco, illicit drugs or presented with anxiety disorder, mood disorder, and suicide risk. Conclusion: These findings suggest that alcohol abuse and/or dependence are consistently associated with a higher prevalence of psychiatric comorbidities, could be considered important predictors of other psychiatric disorders, and deserve greater public heath attention, pointing to the need for alcohol abuse prevention programs.

Mood disorder, anxiety, and suicide risk among subjects with alcohol abuse and/or dependence: a population-based study.

Science.gov (United States)

Wiener, Carolina D; Moreira, Fernanda P; Zago, Alethea; Souza, Luciano M; Branco, Jeronimo C; Oliveira, Jacqueline F de; Silva, Ricardo A da; Portela, Luis V; Lara, Diogo R; Jansen, Karen; Oses, Jean P

2018-01-01

To evaluate the prevalence of alcohol abuse and/or dependence in a population-based sample of young adults and assess the prevalence of comorbid mood disorders, anxiety, and suicide risk in this population. This cross-sectional, population-based study enrolled 1,953 young adults aged 18-35 years. The CAGE questionnaire was used to screen for alcohol abuse and/or dependence, with CAGE scores ≥ 2 considered positive. Psychiatric disorders were investigated through the structured Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI). Alcohol abuse and/or dependence was identified in 187 (9.60%) individuals (5.10% among women and 15.20% among men). Alcohol abuse and/or dependence were more prevalent among men than women, as well as among those who used tobacco, illicit drugs or presented with anxiety disorder, mood disorder, and suicide risk. These findings suggest that alcohol abuse and/or dependence are consistently associated with a higher prevalence of psychiatric comorbidities, could be considered important predictors of other psychiatric disorders, and deserve greater public heath attention, pointing to the need for alcohol abuse prevention programs.

Fire management strategies to maintain species population processes in a fragmented landscape of fire-interval extremes.

Science.gov (United States)

Tulloch, Ayesha I T; Pichancourt, Jean-Baptiste; Gosper, Carl R; Sanders, Angela; Chadès, Iadine

2016-10-01

Changed fire regimes have led to declines of fire-regime-adapted species and loss of biodiversity globally. Fire affects population processes of growth, reproduction, and dispersal in different ways, but there is little guidance about the best fire regime(s) to maintain species population processes in fire-prone ecosystems. We use a process-based approach to determine the best range of fire intervals for keystone plant species in a highly modified Mediterranean ecosystem in southwestern Australia where current fire regimes vary. In highly fragmented areas, fires are few due to limited ignitions and active suppression of wildfire on private land, while in highly connected protected areas fires are frequent and extensive. Using matrix population models, we predict population growth of seven Banksia species under different environmental conditions and patch connectivity, and evaluate the sensitivity of species survival to different fire management strategies and burning intervals. We discover that contrasting, complementary patterns of species life-histories with time since fire result in no single best fire regime. All strategies result in the local patch extinction of at least one species. A small number of burning strategies secure complementary species sets depending on connectivity and post-fire growing conditions. A strategy of no fire always leads to fewer species persisting than prescribed fire or random wildfire, while too-frequent or too-rare burning regimes lead to the possible local extinction of all species. In low landscape connectivity, we find a smaller range of suitable fire intervals, and strategies of prescribed or random burning result in a lower number of species with positive growth rates after 100 years on average compared with burning high connectivity patches. Prescribed fire may reduce or increase extinction risk when applied in combination with wildfire depending on patch connectivity. Poor growing conditions result in a significantly

Prevalence of eating disorder attitudes among men and women with exercise dependence symptoms: a non-athlete population study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elaine Fernanda da Silva

2013-09-01

Full Text Available The present study sought to describe the prevalence of Secondary Exercise Dependence (ScED, i.e. eating disorders attitudes along with exercise dependence symptoms may differ between men and women in a broader exercising population. In this study, 174 regularly exerciser, aged 18-62 years old, who were invited to respond the Exercise Dependence Scale (EDS and the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26. There were more women than men with ScED. However, only men in the sample presented exercise dependence symptoms without eating disorders attitudes. Eating disorders may or may not exist in those who are exercise dependent in the broad exercising population, although there is a higher prevalence of ScED in women than men.

Scale-dependent seasonal pool habitat use by sympatric Wild Brook Trout and Brown Trout populations

Science.gov (United States)

Davis, Lori A.; Wagner, Tyler

2016-01-01

Sympatric populations of native Brook Trout Salvelinus fontinalis and naturalized Brown Trout Salmo truttaexist throughout the eastern USA. An understanding of habitat use by sympatric populations is of importance for fisheries management agencies because of the close association between habitat and population dynamics. Moreover, habitat use by stream-dwelling salmonids may be further complicated by several factors, including the potential for fish to display scale-dependent habitat use. Discrete-choice models were used to (1) evaluate fall and early winter daytime habitat use by sympatric Brook Trout and Brown Trout populations based on available residual pool habitat within a stream network and (2) assess the sensitivity of inferred habitat use to changes in the spatial scale of the assumed available habitat. Trout exhibited an overall preference for pool habitats over nonpool habitats; however, the use of pools was nonlinear over time. Brook Trout displayed a greater preference for deep residual pool habitats than for shallow pool and nonpool habitats, whereas Brown Trout selected for all pool habitat categories similarly. Habitat use by both species was found to be scale dependent. At the smallest spatial scale (50 m), habitat use was primarily related to the time of year and fish weight. However, at larger spatial scales (250 and 450 m), habitat use varied over time according to the study stream in which a fish was located. Scale-dependent relationships in seasonal habitat use by Brook Trout and Brown Trout highlight the importance of considering scale when attempting to make inferences about habitat use; fisheries managers may want to consider identifying the appropriate spatial scale when devising actions to restore and protect Brook Trout populations and their habitats.

Tobacco addiction in the psychiatric population and in the general population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Renata Marques de Oliveira

2017-12-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objective: To estimate the degree of tobacco addiction and identify independently associated factors by comparing the psychiatric population of secondary and tertiary care with the general population of the primary healthcare network. Method: This is a cross-sectional epidemiological study, conducted in a municipality of São Paulo, with 134 smokers of a Mental Health Outpatient Unit (MHOU, a Psychiatric Hospital (PH, and a Primary Healthcare Unit (PHU. Data were collected by means of individual interviews, recorded on a mobile device. Data were statistically processed using Stata/12 Results: Of the 134 participants, 54.5% were women. While 49.1% of the psychiatric population (MHOU/PH had medium/high nicotine addiction, 58.3% of smokers of the general population had very low/low dependency. The Poisson regression model indicated a higher prevalence of smokers with high dependence among men (PR = 1.41, people aged 49 years or less (15 - 29 years, PR = 4.06, 30 - 39 PR = 2.96 years, 40 - 49 years PR = 1.84, with severe mental disorders (PR = 3.05, with anxiety disorders/other (PR = 3.98, and with high suicide risk (PR = 1.55. Conclusion: Nicotine dependence was greater in the psychiatric population than in the general population. The independent factors associated with severe dependence were sex, age group, diagnosis, and current risk of suicide. These results trigger reflection among nurses on the need to focus more attention on a neglected subject in mental health services.

Individualism in plant populations: using stochastic differential equations to model individual neighbourhood-dependent plant growth.

Science.gov (United States)

Lv, Qiming; Schneider, Manuel K; Pitchford, Jonathan W

2008-08-01

We study individual plant growth and size hierarchy formation in an experimental population of Arabidopsis thaliana, within an integrated analysis that explicitly accounts for size-dependent growth, size- and space-dependent competition, and environmental stochasticity. It is shown that a Gompertz-type stochastic differential equation (SDE) model, involving asymmetric competition kernels and a stochastic term which decreases with the logarithm of plant weight, efficiently describes individual plant growth, competition, and variability in the studied population. The model is evaluated within a Bayesian framework and compared to its deterministic counterpart, and to several simplified stochastic models, using distributional validation. We show that stochasticity is an important determinant of size hierarchy and that SDE models outperform the deterministic model if and only if structural components of competition (asymmetry; size- and space-dependence) are accounted for. Implications of these results are discussed in the context of plant ecology and in more general modelling situations.

Stochastic processes and long range dependence

CERN Document Server

Samorodnitsky, Gennady

2016-01-01

This monograph is a gateway for researchers and graduate students to explore the profound, yet subtle, world of long-range dependence (also known as long memory). The text is organized around the probabilistic properties of stationary processes that are important for determining the presence or absence of long memory. The first few chapters serve as an overview of the general theory of stochastic processes which gives the reader sufficient background, language, and models for the subsequent discussion of long memory. The later chapters devoted to long memory begin with an introduction to the subject along with a brief history of its development, followed by a presentation of what is currently the best known approach, applicable to stationary processes with a finite second moment. The book concludes with a chapter devoted to the author’s own, less standard, point of view of long memory as a phase transition, and even includes some novel results. Most of the material in the book has not previously been publis...

Stage-dependent hierarchy of criteria in multiobjective multistage decision processes

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Tadeusz Trzaskalik

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This paper will consider a multiobjective, multistage discrete dynamic process with a changeable, state-dependent hierarchy of stage criteria determined by the decision maker. The goal of this paper is to answer the question of how to control a multistage process while taking into account both the tendency to achieve multiobjective optimization of the entire process and the time-varying hierarchy of stage criteria. We consider in detail possible situations, where the hierarchy of stage criteria changes over time in individual stages and is stage dependent. We present an interactive proposal to solving the problem, where the decision maker actively participates in finding the final realization of the process. The algorithm proposed is illustrated using a numerical example.

Evidential analytic hierarchy process dependence assessment methodology in human reliability analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Lu Yuan; Zhou, Xinyi; Xiao, Fuyuan; Deng, Yong; Mahadevan, Sankaran

2017-01-01

In human reliability analysis, dependence assessment is an important issue in risky large complex systems, such as operation of a nuclear power plant. Many existing methods depend on an expert's judgment, which contributes to the subjectivity and restrictions of results. Recently, a computational method, based on the Dempster-Shafer evidence theory and analytic hierarchy process, has been proposed to handle the dependence in human reliability analysis. The model can deal with uncertainty in an analyst's judgment and reduce the subjectivity in the evaluation process. However, the computation is heavy and complicated to some degree. The most important issue is that the existing method is in a positive aspect, which may cause an underestimation of the risk. In this study, a new evidential analytic hierarchy process dependence assessment methodology, based on the improvement of existing methods, has been proposed, which is expected to be easier and more effective

Evidential Analytic Hierarchy Process Dependence Assessment Methodology in Human Reliability Analysis

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Luyuan Chen

2017-02-01

Full Text Available In human reliability analysis, dependence assessment is an important issue in risky large complex systems, such as operation of a nuclear power plant. Many existing methods depend on an expert's judgment, which contributes to the subjectivity and restrictions of results. Recently, a computational method, based on the Dempster–Shafer evidence theory and analytic hierarchy process, has been proposed to handle the dependence in human reliability analysis. The model can deal with uncertainty in an analyst's judgment and reduce the subjectivity in the evaluation process. However, the computation is heavy and complicated to some degree. The most important issue is that the existing method is in a positive aspect, which may cause an underestimation of the risk. In this study, a new evidential analytic hierarchy process dependence assessment methodology, based on the improvement of existing methods, has been proposed, which is expected to be easier and more effective.

Evidential analytic hierarchy process dependence assessment methodology in human reliability analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Lu Yuan; Zhou, Xinyi; Xiao, Fuyuan; Deng, Yong [School of Computer and Information Science, Southwest University, Chongqing (China); Mahadevan, Sankaran [School of Engineering, Vanderbilt University, Nashville (United States)

2017-02-15

In human reliability analysis, dependence assessment is an important issue in risky large complex systems, such as operation of a nuclear power plant. Many existing methods depend on an expert's judgment, which contributes to the subjectivity and restrictions of results. Recently, a computational method, based on the Dempster-Shafer evidence theory and analytic hierarchy process, has been proposed to handle the dependence in human reliability analysis. The model can deal with uncertainty in an analyst's judgment and reduce the subjectivity in the evaluation process. However, the computation is heavy and complicated to some degree. The most important issue is that the existing method is in a positive aspect, which may cause an underestimation of the risk. In this study, a new evidential analytic hierarchy process dependence assessment methodology, based on the improvement of existing methods, has been proposed, which is expected to be easier and more effective.

Gamma processes and peaks-over-threshold distributions for time-dependent reliability

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Noortwijk, J.M. van; Weide, J.A.M. van der; Kallen, M.J.; Pandey, M.D.

2007-01-01

In the evaluation of structural reliability, a failure is defined as the event in which stress exceeds a resistance that is liable to deterioration. This paper presents a method to combine the two stochastic processes of deteriorating resistance and fluctuating load for computing the time-dependent reliability of a structural component. The deterioration process is modelled as a gamma process, which is a stochastic process with independent non-negative increments having a gamma distribution with identical scale parameter. The stochastic process of loads is generated by a Poisson process. The variability of the random loads is modelled by a peaks-over-threshold distribution (such as the generalised Pareto distribution). These stochastic processes of deterioration and load are combined to evaluate the time-dependent reliability

Integrating temperature-dependent life table data into a matrix projection model for Drosophila suzukii population estimation.

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Nik G Wiman

Full Text Available Temperature-dependent fecundity and survival data was integrated into a matrix population model to describe relative Drosophila suzukii Matsumura (Diptera: Drosophilidae population increase and age structure based on environmental conditions. This novel modification of the classic Leslie matrix population model is presented as a way to examine how insect populations interact with the environment, and has application as a predictor of population density. For D. suzukii, we examined model implications for pest pressure on crops. As case studies, we examined model predictions in three small fruit production regions in the United States (US and one in Italy. These production regions have distinctly different climates. In general, patterns of adult D. suzukii trap activity broadly mimicked seasonal population levels predicted by the model using only temperature data. Age structure of estimated populations suggest that trap and fruit infestation data are of limited value and are insufficient for model validation. Thus, we suggest alternative experiments for validation. The model is advantageous in that it provides stage-specific population estimation, which can potentially guide management strategies and provide unique opportunities to simulate stage-specific management effects such as insecticide applications or the effect of biological control on a specific life-stage. The two factors that drive initiation of the model are suitable temperatures (biofix and availability of a suitable host medium (fruit. Although there are many factors affecting population dynamics of D. suzukii in the field, temperature-dependent survival and reproduction are believed to be the main drivers for D. suzukii populations.

Novel Synthetic Medea selfish genetic elements drive population replacement in Drosophila, and a theoretical exploration of Medea-dependent population suppression

Science.gov (United States)

Akbari, Omar S.; Chen, Chun-Hong; Marshall, John M.; Huang, Haixia; Antoshechkin, Igor; Hay, Bruce A.

2013-01-01

Insects act as vectors for diseases of plants, animals and humans. Replacement of wild insect populations with genetically modified individuals unable to transmit disease provides a potentially self-perpetuating method of disease prevention. Population replacement requires a gene drive mechanism in order to spread linked genes mediating disease refractoriness through wild populations. We previously reported the creation of synthetic Medea selfish genetic elements able to drive population replacement in Drosophila. These elements use microRNA-mediated silencing of myd88, a maternally expressed gene required for embryonic dorso-ventral pattern formation, coupled with early zygotic expression of a rescuing transgene, to bring about gene drive. Medea elements that work through additional mechanisms are needed in order to be able to carry out cycles of population replacement and/or remove existing transgenes from the population, using second-generation elements that spread while driving first-generation elements out of the population. Here we report the synthesis and population genetic behavior of two new synthetic Medea elements that drive population replacement through manipulation of signaling pathways involved in cellular blastoderm formation or Notch signaling, demonstrating that in Drosophila Medea elements can be generated through manipulation of diverse signaling pathways. We also describe the mRNA and small RNA changes in ovaries and early embryos associated from Medea-bearing females. Finally, we use modeling to illustrate how Medea elements carrying genes that result in diapause-dependent female lethality could be used to bring about population suppression. PMID:23654248

A consumer-resource approach to the density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism.

Science.gov (United States)

Holland, J Nathaniel; DeAngelis, Donald L

2010-05-01

Like predation and competition, mutualism is now recognized as a consumer-resource (C-R) interaction, including, in particular, bi-directional (e.g., coral, plant-mycorrhizae) and uni-directional (e.g., ant-plant defense, plant-pollinator) C-R mutualisms. Here, we develop general theory for the density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism based on the C-R mechanism of interspecific interaction. To test the influence of C-R interactions on the dynamics and stability of bi- and uni-directional C-R mutualisms, we developed simple models that link consumer functional response of one mutualistic species with the resources supplied by another. Phase-plane analyses show that the ecological dynamics of C-R mutualisms are stable in general. Most transient behavior leads to an equilibrium of mutualistic coexistence, at which both species densities are greater than in the absence of interactions. However, due to the basic nature of C-R interactions, certain density-dependent conditions can lead to C-R dynamics characteristic of predator-prey interactions, in which one species overexploits and causes the other to go extinct. Consistent with empirical phenomena, these results suggest that the C-R interaction can provide a broad mechanism for understanding density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism. By unifying predation, competition, and mutualism under the common ecological framework of consumer-resource theory, we may also gain a better understanding of the universal features of interspecific interactions in general.

A consumer-resource approach to the density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism

Science.gov (United States)

Holland, J. Nathaniel; DeAngelis, Donald L.

2010-01-01

Like predation and competition, mutualism is now recognized as a consumer resource (C-R) interaction, including, in particular, bi-directional (e.g., coral, plant- mycorrhizae) and uni-directional (e.g., ant-plant defense, plant-pollinator) C-R mutualisms. Here, we develop general theory for the density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism based on the C-R mechanism of interspecific interaction. To test the influence of C-R interactions on the dynamics and stability of bi- and uni-directional C-R mutualisms, we developed simple models that link consumer functional response of one mutualistic species with the resources supplied by another. Phase-plane analyses show that the ecological dynamics of C-R mutualisms are stable in general. Most transient behavior leads to an equilibrium of mutualistic coexistence, at which both species densities are greater than in the absence of interactions. However, due to the basic nature of C-R interactions, certain density-dependent conditions can lead to C-R dynamics characteristic of predator-prey interactions, in which one species overexploits and causes the other to go extinct. Consistent with empirical phenomena, these results suggest that the C-R interaction can provide a broad mechanism for understanding density-dependent population dynamics of mutualism. By unifying predation, competition, and mutualism under the common ecological framework of consumer-resource theory, we may also gain a better understanding of the universal features of interspecific interactions in general.

Alternating event processes during lifetimes: population dynamics and statistical inference.

Science.gov (United States)

Shinohara, Russell T; Sun, Yifei; Wang, Mei-Cheng

2018-01-01

In the literature studying recurrent event data, a large amount of work has been focused on univariate recurrent event processes where the occurrence of each event is treated as a single point in time. There are many applications, however, in which univariate recurrent events are insufficient to characterize the feature of the process because patients experience nontrivial durations associated with each event. This results in an alternating event process where the disease status of a patient alternates between exacerbations and remissions. In this paper, we consider the dynamics of a chronic disease and its associated exacerbation-remission process over two time scales: calendar time and time-since-onset. In particular, over calendar time, we explore population dynamics and the relationship between incidence, prevalence and duration for such alternating event processes. We provide nonparametric estimation techniques for characteristic quantities of the process. In some settings, exacerbation processes are observed from an onset time until death; to account for the relationship between the survival and alternating event processes, nonparametric approaches are developed for estimating exacerbation process over lifetime. By understanding the population dynamics and within-process structure, the paper provide a new and general way to study alternating event processes.

How to design the cost-effectiveness appraisal process of new healthcare technologies to maximise population health: A conceptual framework.

Science.gov (United States)

Johannesen, Kasper M; Claxton, Karl; Sculpher, Mark J; Wailoo, Allan J

2018-02-01

This paper presents a conceptual framework to analyse the design of the cost-effectiveness appraisal process of new healthcare technologies. The framework characterises the appraisal processes as a diagnostic test aimed at identifying cost-effective (true positive) and non-cost-effective (true negative) technologies. Using the framework, factors that influence the value of operating an appraisal process, in terms of net gain to population health, are identified. The framework is used to gain insight into current policy questions including (a) how rigorous the process should be, (b) who should have the burden of proof, and (c) how optimal design changes when allowing for appeals, price reductions, resubmissions, and re-evaluations. The paper demonstrates that there is no one optimal appraisal process and the process should be adapted over time and to the specific technology under assessment. Optimal design depends on country-specific features of (future) technologies, for example, effect, price, and size of the patient population, which might explain the difference in appraisal processes across countries. It is shown that burden of proof should be placed on the producers and that the impact of price reductions and patient access schemes on the producer's price setting should be considered when designing the appraisal process. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The ideal free distribution as an evolutionarily stable state in density-dependent population games

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Cressman, R.; Křivan, Vlastimil

2010-01-01

Roč. 119, č. 8 (2010), s. 1231-1242 ISSN 0030-1299 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA100070601 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z50070508 Keywords : density-dependent population games Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour Impact factor: 3.393, year: 2010

Population dynamics of minimally cognitive individuals. Part 2: Dynamics of time-dependent knowledge

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schmieder, R.W.

1995-07-01

The dynamical principle for a population of interacting individuals with mutual pairwise knowledge, presented by the author in a previous paper for the case of constant knowledge, is extended to include the possibility that the knowledge is time-dependent. Several mechanisms are presented by which the mutual knowledge, represented by a matrix K, can be altered, leading to dynamical equations for K(t). The author presents various examples of the transient and long time asymptotic behavior of K(t) for populations of relatively isolated individuals interacting infrequently in local binary collisions. Among the effects observed in the numerical experiments are knowledge diffusion, learning transients, and fluctuating equilibria. This approach will be most appropriate to small populations of complex individuals such as simple animals, robots, computer networks, agent-mediated traffic, simple ecosystems, and games. Evidence of metastable states and intermittent switching leads them to envision a spectroscopy associated with such transitions that is independent of the specific physical individuals and the population. Such spectra may serve as good lumped descriptors of the collective emergent behavior of large classes of populations in which mutual knowledge is an important part of the dynamics.

Integration of Density Dependence and Concentration Response Models Provides an Ecologically Relevant Assessment of Populations Exposed to Toxicants

Science.gov (United States)

The assessment of toxic exposure on wildlife populations involves the integration of organism level effects measured in toxicity tests (e.g., chronic life cycle) and population models. These modeling exercises typically ignore density dependence, primarily because information on ...

Evidence of population resistance to extreme low flows in a fluvial-dependent fish species

Science.gov (United States)

Katz, Rachel A.; Freeman, Mary C.

2015-01-01

Extreme low streamflows are natural disturbances to aquatic populations. Species in naturally intermittent streams display adaptations that enhance persistence during extreme events; however, the fate of populations in perennial streams during unprecedented low-flow periods is not well-understood. Biota requiring swift-flowing habitats may be especially vulnerable to flow reductions. We estimated the abundance and local survival of a native fluvial-dependent fish species (Etheostoma inscriptum) across 5 years encompassing historic low flows in a sixth-order southeastern USA perennial river. Based on capturemark-recapture data, the study shoal may have acted as a refuge during severe drought, with increased young-of-the-year (YOY) recruitment and occasionally high adult immigration. Contrary to expectations, summer and autumn survival rates (30 days) were not strongly depressed during low-flow periods, despite 25%-80% reductions in monthly discharge. Instead, YOY survival increased with lower minimum discharge and in response to small rain events that increased low-flow variability. Age-1+ fish showed the opposite pattern, with survival decreasing in response to increasing low-flow variability. Results from this population dynamics study of a small fish in a perennial river suggest that fluvial-dependent species can be resistant to extreme flow reductions through enhanced YOY recruitment and high survival

The dynamics of discrete populations and series of events

CERN Document Server

Hopcraft, Keith Iain; Ridley, Kevin D

2014-01-01

IntroductionReferencesStatistical PreliminariesIntroductionProbability DistributionsMoment-Generating FunctionsDiscrete ProcessesSeries of EventsSummaryFurther ReadingMarkovian Population ProcessesIntroductionBirths and DeathsImmigration and the Poisson ProcessThe Effect of MeasurementCorrelation of CountsSummaryFurther ReadingThe Birth-Death-Immigration ProcessIntroductionRate Equations for the ProcessEquation for the Generating FunctionGeneral Time-Dependent SolutionFluctuation Characteristics of a Birth-Death-Immigration PopulationSampling and Measurement ProcessesCorrelation of CountsSumma

On time-dependent diffusion coefficients arising from stochastic processes with memory

Science.gov (United States)

Carpio-Bernido, M. Victoria; Barredo, Wilson I.; Bernido, Christopher C.

2017-08-01

Time-dependent diffusion coefficients arise from anomalous diffusion encountered in many physical systems such as protein transport in cells. We compare these coefficients with those arising from analysis of stochastic processes with memory that go beyond fractional Brownian motion. Facilitated by the Hida white noise functional integral approach, diffusion propagators or probability density functions (pdf) are obtained and shown to be solutions of modified diffusion equations with time-dependent diffusion coefficients. This should be useful in the study of complex transport processes.

Process depending morphology and resulting physical properties of TPU

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Frick, Achim, E-mail: achim.frick@hs-aalen.de; Spadaro, Marcel, E-mail: marcel.spadaro@hs-aalen.de [Institute of Polymer Science and Processing (iPSP), Aalen University (Germany)

2015-12-17

Thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) is a rubber like material with outstanding properties, e.g. for seal applications. TPU basically provides high strength, low frictional behavior and excellent wear resistance. Though, due to segmented structure of TPU, which is composed of hard segments (HSs) and soft segments (SSs), physical properties depend strongly on the morphological arrangement of the phase separated HSs at a certain ratio of HSs to SSs. It is obvious that the TPU deforms differently depending on its bulk morphology. Basically, the morphology can either consist of HSs segregated into small domains, which are well dispersed in the SS matrix or of few strongly phase separated large size HS domains embedded in the SS matrix. The morphology development is hardly ruled by the melt processing conditions of the TPU. Depending on the morphology, TPU provides quite different physical properties with respect to strength, deformation behavior, thermal stability, creep resistance and tribological performance. The paper deals with the influence of important melt processing parameters, such as temperature, pressure and shear conditions, on the resulting physical properties tested by tensile and relaxation experiments. Furthermore the morphology is studied employing differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), transmission light microscopy (TLM), scanning electron beam microscopy (SEM) and transmission electron beam microscopy (TEM) investigations. Correlations between processing conditions and resulting TPU material properties are elaborated. Flow and shear simulations contribute to the understanding of thermal and flow induced morphology development.

Pulse-train control of branching processes: Elimination of background and intruder state population

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Seidl, Markus; Uiberacker, Christoph; Jakubetz, Werner; Etinski, Mihajlo

2008-01-01

The authors introduce and describe pulse train control (PTC) of population branching in strongly coupled processes as a novel control tool for the separation of competing multiphoton processes. Control strategies are presented based on the different responses of processes with different photonicities and/or different frequency detunings to the pulse-to-pulse time delay and the pulse-to-pulse phase shift in pulse trains. The control efficiency is further enhanced by the property of pulse trains that complete population transfer can be obtained over an extended frequency range that replaces the resonance frequency of simple pulses. The possibility to freely tune the frequency assists the separation of the competing processes and reduces the number of subpulses required for full control. As a sample application, PTC of leaking multiphoton resonances is demonstrated by numerical simulations. In model systems exhibiting sizable background (intruder) state population if excited with single pulses, PTC leading to complete accumulation of population in the target state and elimination of background population is readily achieved. The analysis of the results reveals different mechanisms of control and provides clues on the mechanisms of the leaking process itself. In an alternative setup, pulse trains can be used as a phase-sensitive tool for level switching. By changing only the pulse-to-pulse phase shift of a train with otherwise unchanged parameters, population can be transferred to any of two different target states in a near-quantitative manner.

Seasonal dependence of aerosol processing in urban Philadelphia

Science.gov (United States)

Avery, A. M.; Waring, M. S.; DeCarlo, P. F.

2017-12-01

Urban aerosols pose an important threat to human health due to the conflation of emissions and concentrated population exposed. Winter and summer aerosol and trace gas measurements were taken in downtown Philadelphia in 2016. Measurements included aerosol composition and size with an Aerodyne Aerosol Mass Spectrometer (AMS), particle size distributions with an SMPS, and an aethalometer. Trace gas measurements of O3, NO, CH4, CO, and CO2 were taken concurrently. Sampling in seasonal extremes provided contrast in aerosol and trace gas composition, aerosol processing, and emission factors. Inorganic aerosol components contributed approximately 60% of the submicron aerosol mass, while summertime aerosol composition was roughly 70% organic matter. Positive Matrix Factorization (PMF) on the organic aerosol (OA) matrix revealed three factors in common in each season, including an oxygenated organic aerosol (OOA) factor with different temporal behavior in each season. In summertime, OOA varied diurnally with ozone and daytime temperature, but in the wintertime, it was anti-correlated with ozone and temperature, and instead trended with calculated liquid water, indicating a seasonally-dependent processing of organic aerosol in Philadelphia's urban environment. Due to the inorganic dominant winter aerosol, liquid water much higher (2.65 μg/m3) in winter than in summer (1.54 μg/m3). Diurnally varying concentrations of background gas phase species (CH4, CO2) were higher in winter and varied less as a result of boundary layer conditions; ozone was also higher in background in winter than summer. Winter stagnation events with low windspeed showed large buildup of trace gases CH4, CO, CO2, and NO. Traffic related aerosol was also elevated with black carbon and hydrocarbon-like OA (HOA) plumes of each at 3-5 times higher than the winter the average value for each. Winter ratios of HOA to black carbon were significantly higher in the winter than the summer due to lower

Population Structures in Russia: Optimality and Dependence on Parameters of Global Evolution

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Yuri Yegorov

2016-07-01

Full Text Available The paper is devoted to analytical investigation of the division of geographical space into urban and rural areas with application to Russia. Yegorov (2005, 2006, 2009 has suggested the role of population density on economics. A city has an attractive potential based on scale economies. The optimal city size depends on the balance between its attractive potential and the cost of living that can be approximated by equilibrium land rent and commuting cost. For moderate scale effects optimal population of a city depends negatively on transport costs that are related positively with energy price index. The optimal agricultural density of population can also be constructed. The larger is a land slot per peasant, the higher will be the output from one unit of his labour force applied to this slot. But at the same time, larger farm size results in increase of energy costs, related to land development, collecting the crop and bringing it to the market. In the last 10 years we have observed substantial rise of both food and energy prices at the world stock markets. However, the income of farmers did not grow as fast as food price index. This can shift optimal rural population density to lower level, causing migration to cities (and we observe this tendency globally. Any change in those prices results in suboptimality of existing spatial structures. If changes are slow, the optimal infrastructure can be adjusted by simple migration. If the shocks are high, adaptation may be impossible and shock will persist. This took place in early 1990es in the former USSR, where after transition to world price for oil in domestic markets existing spatial infrastructure became suboptimal and resulted in persistent crisis, leading to deterioration of both industry and agriculture. Russia is the largest country but this is also its problem. Having large resource endowment per capita, it is problematic to build sufficient infrastructure. Russia has too low population

Selection processes in a citrus hybrid population using RAPD markers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Oliveira Roberto Pedroso de

2003-01-01

Full Text Available The objective of this work was to evaluate the processes of selection in a citrus hybrid population using segregation analysis of RAPD markers. The segregation of 123 RAPD markers between 'Cravo' mandarin (Citrus reticulata Blanco and 'Pêra' sweet orange (C. sinensis (L. Osbeck was analysed in a F1 progeny of 94 hybrids. Genetic composition, diversity, heterozygosity, differences in chromosomal structure and the presence of deleterious recessive genes are discussed based on the segregation ratios obtained. A high percentage of markers had a skeweness of the 1:1 expected segregation ratio in the F1 population. Many markers showed a 3:1 segregation ratio in both varieties and 1:3 in 'Pêra' sweet orange, probably due to directional selection processes. The distribution analysis of the frequencies of the segregant markers in a hybrid population is a simple method which allows a better understanding of the genetics of citrus group.

Hybrid colored noise process with space-dependent switching rates

Science.gov (United States)

Bressloff, Paul C.; Lawley, Sean D.

2017-07-01

A fundamental issue in the theory of continuous stochastic process is the interpretation of multiplicative white noise, which is often referred to as the Itô-Stratonovich dilemma. From a physical perspective, this reflects the need to introduce additional constraints in order to specify the nature of the noise, whereas from a mathematical perspective it reflects an ambiguity in the formulation of stochastic differential equations (SDEs). Recently, we have identified a mechanism for obtaining an Itô SDE based on a form of temporal disorder. Motivated by switching processes in molecular biology, we considered a Brownian particle that randomly switches between two distinct conformational states with different diffusivities. In each state, the particle undergoes normal diffusion (additive noise) so there is no ambiguity in the interpretation of the noise. However, if the switching rates depend on position, then in the fast switching limit one obtains Brownian motion with a space-dependent diffusivity of the Itô form. In this paper, we extend our theory to include colored additive noise. We show that the nature of the effective multiplicative noise process obtained by taking both the white-noise limit (κ →0 ) and fast switching limit (ɛ →0 ) depends on the order the two limits are taken. If the white-noise limit is taken first, then we obtain Itô, and if the fast switching limit is taken first, then we obtain Stratonovich. Moreover, the form of the effective diffusion coefficient differs in the two cases. The latter result holds even in the case of space-independent transition rates, where one obtains additive noise processes with different diffusion coefficients. Finally, we show that yet another form of multiplicative noise is obtained in the simultaneous limit ɛ ,κ →0 with ɛ /κ2 fixed.

Geometry dependence of the magnetization reversal process in bridged dots

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Escobar, R.A.; Lage, E.; D’Albuquerque e Castro, J.; Altbir, D.; Ross, C.A.

2017-01-01

Based on Monte Carlo numerical simulations: results for the magnetization reversal process in thin circular Ni dots connected by a bridge are presented. The dependence of the process on both the width of the bridge and the orientation of the applied magnetic field has been investigated. It was found that when the applied magnetic field is set parallel to the bridge, the hysteresis curves are weakly dependent on the width of the bridge, being rather close to that of a single dot of the same diameter. On the other hand, when the magnetic field is applied perpendicularly to the bridge, a significant reduction in the coercivity of the system is obtained, even in the case of narrower bridges.

Geometry dependence of the magnetization reversal process in bridged dots

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Escobar, R.A. [Departamento de Física, CEDENNA, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, USACH, Av. Ecuador 3493, Santiago (Chile); Lage, E. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 02139 Cambridge, MA (United States); D’Albuquerque e Castro, J. [Instituto de Física, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Caixa Postal 68528, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21945-970 (Brazil); Altbir, D., E-mail: dora.altbir@usach.cl [Departamento de Física, CEDENNA, Universidad de Santiago de Chile, USACH, Av. Ecuador 3493, Santiago (Chile); Ross, C.A. [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 02139 Cambridge, MA (United States)

2017-06-15

Based on Monte Carlo numerical simulations: results for the magnetization reversal process in thin circular Ni dots connected by a bridge are presented. The dependence of the process on both the width of the bridge and the orientation of the applied magnetic field has been investigated. It was found that when the applied magnetic field is set parallel to the bridge, the hysteresis curves are weakly dependent on the width of the bridge, being rather close to that of a single dot of the same diameter. On the other hand, when the magnetic field is applied perpendicularly to the bridge, a significant reduction in the coercivity of the system is obtained, even in the case of narrower bridges.

Ecological interactions affecting population-level responses to chemical stress in Mesocyclops leuckarti.

Science.gov (United States)

Kulkarni, Devdutt; Hommen, Udo; Schäffer, Andreas; Preuss, Thomas G

2014-10-01

Higher tiers of ecological risk assessment (ERA) consider population and community-level endpoints. At the population level, the phenomenon of density dependence is one of the most important ecological processes that influence population dynamics. In this study, we investigated how different mechanisms of density dependence would influence population-level ERA of the cyclopoid copepod Mesocyclops leuckarti under toxicant exposure. We used a combined approach of laboratory experiments and individual-based modelling. An individual-based model was developed for M. leuckarti to simulate population dynamics under triphenyltin exposure based on individual-level ecological and toxicological data from laboratory experiments. The study primarily aimed to-(1) determine which life-cycle processes, based on feeding strategies, are most significant in determining density dependence (2) explore how these mechanisms of density dependence affect extrapolation from individual-level effects to the population level under toxicant exposure. Model simulations showed that cannibalism of nauplii that were already stressed by TPT exposure contributed to synergistic effects of biotic and abiotic factors and led to a twofold stress being exerted on the nauplii, thereby resulting in a higher population vulnerability compared to the scenario without cannibalism. Our results suggest that in population-level risk assessment, it is easy to underestimate toxicity unless underlying ecological interactions including mechanisms of population-level density regulation are considered. This study is an example of how a combined approach of experiments and mechanistic modelling can lead to a thorough understanding of ecological processes in ecotoxicology and enable a more realistic ERA. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Density dependence and climate effects in Rocky Mountain elk: an application of regression with instrumental variables for population time series with sampling error.

Science.gov (United States)

Creel, Scott; Creel, Michael

2009-11-01

1. Sampling error in annual estimates of population size creates two widely recognized problems for the analysis of population growth. First, if sampling error is mistakenly treated as process error, one obtains inflated estimates of the variation in true population trajectories (Staples, Taper & Dennis 2004). Second, treating sampling error as process error is thought to overestimate the importance of density dependence in population growth (Viljugrein et al. 2005; Dennis et al. 2006). 2. In ecology, state-space models are used to account for sampling error when estimating the effects of density and other variables on population growth (Staples et al. 2004; Dennis et al. 2006). In econometrics, regression with instrumental variables is a well-established method that addresses the problem of correlation between regressors and the error term, but requires fewer assumptions than state-space models (Davidson & MacKinnon 1993; Cameron & Trivedi 2005). 3. We used instrumental variables to account for sampling error and fit a generalized linear model to 472 annual observations of population size for 35 Elk Management Units in Montana, from 1928 to 2004. We compared this model with state-space models fit with the likelihood function of Dennis et al. (2006). We discuss the general advantages and disadvantages of each method. Briefly, regression with instrumental variables is valid with fewer distributional assumptions, but state-space models are more efficient when their distributional assumptions are met. 4. Both methods found that population growth was negatively related to population density and winter snow accumulation. Summer rainfall and wolf (Canis lupus) presence had much weaker effects on elk (Cervus elaphus) dynamics [though limitation by wolves is strong in some elk populations with well-established wolf populations (Creel et al. 2007; Creel & Christianson 2008)]. 5. Coupled with predictions for Montana from global and regional climate models, our results

Environmental vs Demographic Stochasticity in Population Growth

OpenAIRE

Braumann, C. A.

2010-01-01

Compares the effect on population growth of envinonmental stochasticity (random environmental variations described by stochastic differential equations) with demographic stochasticity (random variations in births and deaths described by branching processes and birth-and-death processes), in the density-independent and the density-dependent cases.

Similarity and Difference in Drug Addiction Process Between Heroin- and Methamphetamine-Dependent Users.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Ziyun; Li, Wei-Xiu; Zhi-Min, Liu

2017-03-21

This study aimed to compare the drug addiction process between Chinese heroin- and methamphetamine (MA)-dependent users via a modified 4-stage addiction model (experimentation, occasional use, regular use, and compulsive use). A descriptive study was conducted among 683 eligible participants. In the statistical analysis, we selected 340 heroin- and 295 MA-dependent users without illicit drug use prior to onset of heroin or MA use. The addiction process of heroin-dependent users was shorter than that of MA-dependent users, with shorter transitions from the onset of drug-use to the first drug craving (19.5 vs. 50.0 days), regular use (30.0 vs. 60.0 days), and compulsive use (50.0 vs. 85.0 days). However, no significant differences in the addiction process were observed in frequency of drug administration, except that heroin users reported more administrations of the drug (20.0 vs. 15.0) before progressing to the stage of compulsive drug use. A larger proportion of regular heroin users progressed to use illicit drugs recklessly than did MA users. Most heroin and MA users reported psychological dependence as their primary motivation for compulsive drug use, but more heroin users selected uncomfortable symptoms upon ceasing drug use as further reason to continue. Our results suggest that typical heroin and MA users may experience a similar four-stage addiction process, but MA users might undergo a longer addiction process (in days). More research is necessary to further explore factors influencing the drug addiction process.

Histogram bin width selection for time-dependent Poisson processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koyama, Shinsuke; Shinomoto, Shigeru

2004-01-01

In constructing a time histogram of the event sequences derived from a nonstationary point process, we wish to determine the bin width such that the mean squared error of the histogram from the underlying rate of occurrence is minimized. We find that the optimal bin widths obtained for a doubly stochastic Poisson process and a sinusoidally regulated Poisson process exhibit different scaling relations with respect to the number of sequences, time scale and amplitude of rate modulation, but both diverge under similar parametric conditions. This implies that under these conditions, no determination of the time-dependent rate can be made. We also apply the kernel method to these point processes, and find that the optimal kernels do not exhibit any critical phenomena, unlike the time histogram method

Histogram bin width selection for time-dependent Poisson processes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koyama, Shinsuke; Shinomoto, Shigeru [Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8502 (Japan)

2004-07-23

In constructing a time histogram of the event sequences derived from a nonstationary point process, we wish to determine the bin width such that the mean squared error of the histogram from the underlying rate of occurrence is minimized. We find that the optimal bin widths obtained for a doubly stochastic Poisson process and a sinusoidally regulated Poisson process exhibit different scaling relations with respect to the number of sequences, time scale and amplitude of rate modulation, but both diverge under similar parametric conditions. This implies that under these conditions, no determination of the time-dependent rate can be made. We also apply the kernel method to these point processes, and find that the optimal kernels do not exhibit any critical phenomena, unlike the time histogram method.

Single Machine Scheduling and Due Date Assignment with Past-Sequence-Dependent Setup Time and Position-Dependent Processing Time

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chuan-Li Zhao

2014-01-01

Full Text Available This paper considers single machine scheduling and due date assignment with setup time. The setup time is proportional to the length of the already processed jobs; that is, the setup time is past-sequence-dependent (p-s-d. It is assumed that a job's processing time depends on its position in a sequence. The objective functions include total earliness, the weighted number of tardy jobs, and the cost of due date assignment. We analyze these problems with two different due date assignment methods. We first consider the model with job-dependent position effects. For each case, by converting the problem to a series of assignment problems, we proved that the problems can be solved in On4 time. For the model with job-independent position effects, we proved that the problems can be solved in On3 time by providing a dynamic programming algorithm.

Abnormal thiamine-dependent processes in Alzheimer's Disease. Lessons from diabetes.

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson, Gary E; Hirsch, Joseph A; Cirio, Rosanna T; Jordan, Barry D; Fonzetti, Pasquale; Elder, Jessica

2013-07-01

Reduced glucose metabolism is an invariant feature of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) and an outstanding biomarker of disease progression. Glucose metabolism may be an attractive therapeutic target, whether the decline initiates AD pathophysiology or is a critical component of a cascade. The cause of cerebral regional glucose hypometabolism remains unclear. Thiamine-dependent processes are critical in glucose metabolism and are diminished in brains of AD patients at autopsy. Further, the reductions in thiamine-dependent processes are highly correlated to the decline in clinical dementia rating scales. In animal models, thiamine deficiency exacerbates plaque formation, promotes phosphorylation of tau and impairs memory. In contrast, treatment of mouse models of AD with the thiamine derivative benfotiamine diminishes plaques, decreases phosphorylation of tau and reverses memory deficits. Diabetes predisposes to AD, which suggests they may share some common mechanisms. Benfotiamine diminishes peripheral neuropathy in diabetic humans and animals. In diabetes, benfotiamine induces key thiamine-dependent enzymes of the pentose shunt to reduce accumulation of toxic metabolites including advanced glycation end products (AGE). Related mechanisms may lead to reversal of plaque formation by benfotiamine in animals. If so, the use of benfotiamine could provide a safe intervention to reverse biological and clinical processes of AD progression. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled 'Mitochondrial function and dysfunction in neurodegeneration'. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Diversity of Poissonian populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Eliazar, Iddo I; Sokolov, Igor M

2010-01-01

Populations represented by collections of points scattered randomly on the real line are ubiquitous in science and engineering. The statistical modeling of such populations leads naturally to Poissonian populations-Poisson processes on the real line with a distinguished maximal point. Poissonian populations are infinite objects underlying key issues in statistical physics, probability theory, and random fractals. Due to their infiniteness, measuring the diversity of Poissonian populations depends on the lower-bound cut-off applied. This research characterizes the classes of Poissonian populations whose diversities are invariant with respect to the cut-off level applied and establishes an elemental connection between these classes and extreme-value theory. The measures of diversity considered are variance and dispersion, Simpson's index and inverse participation ratio, Shannon's entropy and Rényi's entropy, and Gini's index.

Properly quantized history-dependent Parrondo games, Markov processes, and multiplexing circuits

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bleiler, Steven A. [Fariborz Maseeh Department of Mathematics and Statistics, Portland State University, PO Box 751, Portland, OR 97207 (United States); Khan, Faisal Shah, E-mail: faisal.khan@kustar.ac.a [Khalifa University of Science, Technology and Research, PO Box 127788, Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates)

2011-05-09

Highlights: History-dependent Parrondo games are viewed as Markov processes. Quantum mechanical analogues of these Markov processes are constructed. These quantum analogues restrict to the original process on measurement. Relationship between these analogues and a quantum circuits is exhibited. - Abstract: In the context of quantum information theory, 'quantization' of various mathematical and computational constructions is said to occur upon the replacement, at various points in the construction, of the classical randomization notion of probability distribution with higher order randomization notions from quantum mechanics such as quantum superposition with measurement. For this to be done 'properly', a faithful copy of the original construction is required to exist within the new quantum one, just as is required when a function is extended to a larger domain. Here procedures for extending history-dependent Parrondo games, Markov processes and multiplexing circuits to their quantum versions are analyzed from a game theoretic viewpoint, and from this viewpoint, proper quantizations developed.

Transcriptional dynamics with time-dependent reaction rates

Science.gov (United States)

Nandi, Shubhendu; Ghosh, Anandamohan

2015-02-01

Transcription is the first step in the process of gene regulation that controls cell response to varying environmental conditions. Transcription is a stochastic process, involving synthesis and degradation of mRNAs, that can be modeled as a birth-death process. We consider a generic stochastic model, where the fluctuating environment is encoded in the time-dependent reaction rates. We obtain an exact analytical expression for the mRNA probability distribution and are able to analyze the response for arbitrary time-dependent protocols. Our analytical results and stochastic simulations confirm that the transcriptional machinery primarily act as a low-pass filter. We also show that depending on the system parameters, the mRNA levels in a cell population can show synchronous/asynchronous fluctuations and can deviate from Poisson statistics.

Transcriptional dynamics with time-dependent reaction rates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nandi, Shubhendu; Ghosh, Anandamohan

2015-01-01

Transcription is the first step in the process of gene regulation that controls cell response to varying environmental conditions. Transcription is a stochastic process, involving synthesis and degradation of mRNAs, that can be modeled as a birth–death process. We consider a generic stochastic model, where the fluctuating environment is encoded in the time-dependent reaction rates. We obtain an exact analytical expression for the mRNA probability distribution and are able to analyze the response for arbitrary time-dependent protocols. Our analytical results and stochastic simulations confirm that the transcriptional machinery primarily act as a low-pass filter. We also show that depending on the system parameters, the mRNA levels in a cell population can show synchronous/asynchronous fluctuations and can deviate from Poisson statistics. (paper)

Experimental evidence for density-dependent reproduction in a cooperatively breeding passerine

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Brouwer, Lyanne; Tinbergen, Joost M.; Both, Christiaan; Bristol, Rachel; Richardson, David S.; Komdeur, Jan; Sauer, J.R.

Temporal variation in survival, fecundity, and dispersal rates is associated with density-dependent and density-independent processes. Stable natural populations are expected to be regulated by density-dependent factors. However, detecting this by investigating natural variation in density is

Kinetic theory of age-structured stochastic birth-death processes

Science.gov (United States)

Greenman, Chris D.; Chou, Tom

2016-01-01

Classical age-structured mass-action models such as the McKendrick-von Foerster equation have been extensively studied but are unable to describe stochastic fluctuations or population-size-dependent birth and death rates. Stochastic theories that treat semi-Markov age-dependent processes using, e.g., the Bellman-Harris equation do not resolve a population's age structure and are unable to quantify population-size dependencies. Conversely, current theories that include size-dependent population dynamics (e.g., mathematical models that include carrying capacity such as the logistic equation) cannot be easily extended to take into account age-dependent birth and death rates. In this paper, we present a systematic derivation of a new, fully stochastic kinetic theory for interacting age-structured populations. By defining multiparticle probability density functions, we derive a hierarchy of kinetic equations for the stochastic evolution of an aging population undergoing birth and death. We show that the fully stochastic age-dependent birth-death process precludes factorization of the corresponding probability densities, which then must be solved by using a Bogoliubov--Born--Green--Kirkwood--Yvon-like hierarchy. Explicit solutions are derived in three limits: no birth, no death, and steady state. These are then compared with their corresponding mean-field results. Our results generalize both deterministic models and existing master equation approaches by providing an intuitive and efficient way to simultaneously model age- and population-dependent stochastic dynamics applicable to the study of demography, stem cell dynamics, and disease evolution.

Brain Phosphorus Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Imaging of Sleep Homeostasis and Restoration in Drug Dependence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

George H. Trksak

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Numerous reports have documented a high occurrence of sleep difficulties in drug-dependent populations, prompting researchers to characterize sleep profiles and physiology in drug abusing populations. This mini-review examines studies indicating that drug-dependent populations exhibit alterations in sleep homeostatic and restoration processes in response to sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation is a principal sleep research tool that results in marked physiological challenge, which provides a means to examine sleep homeostatic processes in response to extended wakefulness. A report from our laboratory demonstrated that following recovery sleep from sleep deprivation, brain high-energy phosphates particularly beta–nucleoside triphosphate (beta-NTP are markedly increased as measured with phosphorus magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS. A more recent study examined the effects of sleep deprivation in opiate-dependent methadone-maintained (MM subjects. The study demonstrated increases in brain beta-NTP following recovery sleep. Interestingly, these increases were of a markedly greater magnitude in MM subjects compared to control subjects. A similar study examined sleep deprivation in cocaine-dependent subjects demonstrating that cocaine-dependent subjects exhibit greater increases in brain beta-NTP following recovery sleep when compared to control subjects. The studies suggest that sleep deprivation in both MM subjects and cocaine-dependent subjects is characterized by greater changes in brain ATP levels than control subjects. Greater enhancements in brain ATP following recovery sleep may reflect a greater disruption to or impact of sleep deprivation in drug dependent subjects, whereby sleep restoration processes may be unable to properly regulate brain ATP and maintain brain high-energy equilibrium. These studies support the notion of a greater susceptibility to sleep loss in drug dependent populations. Additional sleep studies in drug abusing

Density dependence, density independence, and recruitment in the American shad (Alosa sapidissima) population of the Connecticut River

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leggett, W.C.

1977-01-01

The role of density-dependent and density-independent factors in the regulation of the stock-recruitment relationship of the American shad (Alosa sapidissima) population of the Connecticut River was investigated. Significant reductions in egg-to-adult survival and juvenile growth rates occurred in the Holyoke--Turners Falls region in response to increases in the intensity of spawning in this area. For the Connecticut River population as a whole, egg-to-adult survival was estimated to be 0.00056 percent at replacement levels, and 0.00083 percent at the point of maximum population growth. Density-independent factors result in significant annual deviations from recruitment levels predicted by the density-dependent model. Temperature and flow regimes during spawning and early larval development are involved, but they explain only a small portion (less than 16 percent) of the total variation. In spite of an extensive data base, the accuracy of predictions concerning the potential effects of additional mortality to pre-recruit stages is low. The implications of these findings for environmental impact assessment are discussed

Modeling spiking behavior of neurons with time-dependent Poisson processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Shinomoto, S; Tsubo, Y

2001-10-01

Three kinds of interval statistics, as represented by the coefficient of variation, the skewness coefficient, and the correlation coefficient of consecutive intervals, are evaluated for three kinds of time-dependent Poisson processes: pulse regulated, sinusoidally regulated, and doubly stochastic. Among these three processes, the sinusoidally regulated and doubly stochastic Poisson processes, in the case when the spike rate varies slowly compared with the mean interval between spikes, are found to be consistent with the three statistical coefficients exhibited by data recorded from neurons in the prefrontal cortex of monkeys.

Neural correlates of affect processing and aggression in methamphetamine dependence.

Science.gov (United States)

Payer, Doris E; Lieberman, Matthew D; London, Edythe D

2011-03-01

Methamphetamine abuse is associated with high rates of aggression but few studies have addressed the contributing neurobiological factors. To quantify aggression, investigate function in the amygdala and prefrontal cortex, and assess relationships between brain function and behavior in methamphetamine-dependent individuals. In a case-control study, aggression and brain activation were compared between methamphetamine-dependent and control participants. Participants were recruited from the general community to an academic research center. Thirty-nine methamphetamine-dependent volunteers (16 women) who were abstinent for 7 to 10 days and 37 drug-free control volunteers (18 women) participated in the study; subsets completed self-report and behavioral measures. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was performed on 25 methamphetamine-dependent and 23 control participants. We measured self-reported and perpetrated aggression and self-reported alexithymia. Brain activation was assessed using fMRI during visual processing of facial affect (affect matching) and symbolic processing (affect labeling), the latter representing an incidental form of emotion regulation. Methamphetamine-dependent participants self-reported more aggression and alexithymia than control participants and escalated perpetrated aggression more following provocation. Alexithymia scores correlated with measures of aggression. During affect matching, fMRI showed no differences between groups in amygdala activation but found lower activation in methamphetamine-dependent than control participants in the bilateral ventral inferior frontal gyrus. During affect labeling, participants recruited the dorsal inferior frontal gyrus and exhibited decreased amygdala activity, consistent with successful emotion regulation; there was no group difference in this effect. The magnitude of decrease in amygdala activity during affect labeling correlated inversely with self-reported aggression in control participants

Epistasis can accelerate adaptive diversification in haploid asexual populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Griswold, Cortland K

2015-03-07

A fundamental goal of the biological sciences is to determine processes that facilitate the evolution of diversity. These processes can be separated into ecological, physiological, developmental and genetic. An ecological process that facilitates diversification is frequency-dependent selection caused by competition. Models of frequency-dependent adaptive diversification have generally assumed a genetic basis of phenotype that is non-epistatic. Here, we present a model that indicates diversification is accelerated by an epistatic basis of phenotype in combination with a competition model that invokes frequency-dependent selection. Our model makes use of a genealogical model of epistasis and insights into the effects of balancing selection on the genealogical structure of a population to understand how epistasis can facilitate diversification. The finding that epistasis facilitates diversification may be informative with respect to empirical results that indicate an epistatic basis of phenotype in experimental bacterial populations that experienced adaptive diversification. © 2015 The Author(s) Published by the Royal Society. All rights reserved.

Abnormal Thiamine-Dependent Processes in Alzheimer’s Disease. Lessons from Diabetes

Science.gov (United States)

Gibson, Gary E.; Hirsch, Joseph A.; Cirio, Rosanna T.; Jordan, Barry D.; Fonzetti, Pasquale; Elder, Jessica

2013-01-01

Reduced glucose metabolism is an invariant feature of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and an outstanding biomarker of disease progression. Glucose metabolism may be an attractive therapeutic target, whether the decline initiates AD pathophysiology or is a critical component of a cascade. The cause of cerebral regional glucose hypometabolism remains unclear. Thiamine-dependent processes are critical in glucose metabolism and are diminished in brains of AD patients at autopsy. Further, the reductions in thiamine-dependent processes are highly correlated to the decline in clinical dementia rating scales. In animal models, thiamine deficiency exacerbates plaque formation, promotes phosphorylation of tau and impairs memory. In contrast, treatment of mouse models of AD with the thiamine derivative benfotiamine diminishes plaques, decreases phosphorylation of tau and reverses memory deficits. Diabetes predisposes to AD, which suggests they may share some common mechanisms. Benfotiamine diminishes peripheral neuropathy in diabetic humans and animals. In diabetes, benfotiamine induces key thiamine-dependent enzymes of the pentose shunt to reduce accumulation of toxic metabolites including advanced glycation end products (AGE). Related mechanisms may lead to reversal of plaque formation by benfotiamine in animals. If so, the use of benfotiamine could provide a safe intervention to reverse biological and clinical processes of AD progression. PMID:22982063

Homogenization techniques for population dynamics in strongly heterogeneous landscapes.

Science.gov (United States)

Yurk, Brian P; Cobbold, Christina A

2018-12-01

An important problem in spatial ecology is to understand how population-scale patterns emerge from individual-level birth, death, and movement processes. These processes, which depend on local landscape characteristics, vary spatially and may exhibit sharp transitions through behavioural responses to habitat edges, leading to discontinuous population densities. Such systems can be modelled using reaction-diffusion equations with interface conditions that capture local behaviour at patch boundaries. In this work we develop a novel homogenization technique to approximate the large-scale dynamics of the system. We illustrate our approach, which also generalizes to multiple species, with an example of logistic growth within a periodic environment. We find that population persistence and the large-scale population carrying capacity is influenced by patch residence times that depend on patch preference, as well as movement rates in adjacent patches. The forms of the homogenized coefficients yield key theoretical insights into how large-scale dynamics arise from the small-scale features.

Fast simulation of reconstructed phylogenies under global time-dependent birth-death processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Höhna, Sebastian

2013-06-01

Diversification rates and patterns may be inferred from reconstructed phylogenies. Both the time-dependent and the diversity-dependent birth-death process can produce the same observed patterns of diversity over time. To develop and test new models describing the macro-evolutionary process of diversification, generic and fast algorithms to simulate under these models are necessary. Simulations are not only important for testing and developing models but play an influential role in the assessment of model fit. In the present article, I consider as the model a global time-dependent birth-death process where each species has the same rates but rates may vary over time. For this model, I derive the likelihood of the speciation times from a reconstructed phylogenetic tree and show that each speciation event is independent and identically distributed. This fact can be used to simulate efficiently reconstructed phylogenetic trees when conditioning on the number of species, the time of the process or both. I show the usability of the simulation by approximating the posterior predictive distribution of a birth-death process with decreasing diversification rates applied on a published bird phylogeny (family Cettiidae). The methods described in this manuscript are implemented in the R package TESS, available from the repository CRAN (http://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/TESS/). Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

Inferring individual-level processes from population-level patterns in cultural evolution

Science.gov (United States)

Wilder, Bryan

2017-01-01

Our species is characterized by a great degree of cultural variation, both within and between populations. Understanding how group-level patterns of culture emerge from individual-level behaviour is a long-standing question in the biological and social sciences. We develop a simulation model capturing demographic and cultural dynamics relevant to human cultural evolution, focusing on the interface between population-level patterns and individual-level processes. The model tracks the distribution of variants of cultural traits across individuals in a population over time, conditioned on different pathways for the transmission of information between individuals. From these data, we obtain theoretical expectations for a range of statistics commonly used to capture population-level characteristics (e.g. the degree of cultural diversity). Consistent with previous theoretical work, our results show that the patterns observed at the level of groups are rooted in the interplay between the transmission pathways and the age structure of the population. We also explore whether, and under what conditions, the different pathways can be distinguished based on their group-level signatures, in an effort to establish theoretical limits to inference. Our results show that the temporal dynamic of cultural change over time retains a stronger signature than the cultural composition of the population at a specific point in time. Overall, the results suggest a shift in focus from identifying the one individual-level process that likely produced the observed data to excluding those that likely did not. We conclude by discussing the implications for empirical studies of human cultural evolution. PMID:28989786

Inferring individual-level processes from population-level patterns in cultural evolution.

Science.gov (United States)

Kandler, Anne; Wilder, Bryan; Fortunato, Laura

2017-09-01

Our species is characterized by a great degree of cultural variation, both within and between populations. Understanding how group-level patterns of culture emerge from individual-level behaviour is a long-standing question in the biological and social sciences. We develop a simulation model capturing demographic and cultural dynamics relevant to human cultural evolution, focusing on the interface between population-level patterns and individual-level processes. The model tracks the distribution of variants of cultural traits across individuals in a population over time, conditioned on different pathways for the transmission of information between individuals. From these data, we obtain theoretical expectations for a range of statistics commonly used to capture population-level characteristics (e.g. the degree of cultural diversity). Consistent with previous theoretical work, our results show that the patterns observed at the level of groups are rooted in the interplay between the transmission pathways and the age structure of the population. We also explore whether, and under what conditions, the different pathways can be distinguished based on their group-level signatures, in an effort to establish theoretical limits to inference. Our results show that the temporal dynamic of cultural change over time retains a stronger signature than the cultural composition of the population at a specific point in time. Overall, the results suggest a shift in focus from identifying the one individual-level process that likely produced the observed data to excluding those that likely did not. We conclude by discussing the implications for empirical studies of human cultural evolution.

[Study of defense styles, defenses and coping strategies in alcohol-dependent population].

Science.gov (United States)

Ribadier, A; Varescon, I

2017-05-01

Defense mechanisms have been seen to greatly change over time and across different definitions made by different theoretical currents. Recently with the definition provided by the DSM IV, defense mechanisms have integrated the concept of coping as a defensive factor. These mechanisms are no longer considered just through a psychodynamic approach but also through a cognitive and behavioral one. In recent years, new theories have therefore integrated these two components of the defensive operation. According to Chabrol and Callahan (2013), defense mechanisms precede coping strategies. In individuals with psychopathological disorders, these authors indicate a relative stability of these mechanisms. Also, we asked about the presence of unique characteristics among people with alcohol dependence. Indeed, studies conducted with people with alcohol dependence highlight the presence of a neurotic defense style and some highly immature defenses (projection, acting out, splitting and somatization). In terms of coping strategies, persons with alcohol dependence preferentially use avoidant strategies and strategies focused on emotion. However, although several studies have been conducted to assess coping strategies and defense styles within a population of individuals with an alcohol problem, at the present time none of them has taken into account all these aspects of defense mechanisms. The aim of this study is therefore to study the defenses and defense styles and coping strategies in an alcohol-dependent population. This multicenter study (3 CHU, 1 center of supportive care and prevention in addiction and 1 clinic) received a favorable opinion of an Institutional Review Board (IRB Registration #: 00001072). Eighty alcohol-dependent individuals responded to a questionnaire assessing sociodemographic characteristics and elements related to the course of consumption. Coping strategies were assessed by means of a questionnaire validated in French: the Brief Cope. The Defense

Stress hormones link food availability and population processes in seabirds

Science.gov (United States)

Kitaysky, A.S.; Piatt, John F.; Wingfield, J.C.

2007-01-01

Catastrophic population declines in marine top predators in the northern Pacific have been hypothesized to result from nutritional stress affecting reproduction and survival of individuals. However, empirical evidence for food-related stress in wild animals is frequently lacking or inconclusive. We used a field endocrinology approach to measure stress, identify its causes, and examine a link between stress and population processes in the common murre Uria aalge. We tested the empirical relationship between variations in the stress hormone corticosterone (CORT) and food abundance, reproduction, and persistence of individuals at declining and increasing colonies in Cook Inlet, Alaska, from 1996 to 2001. We found that CORT secretion in murres is independent of colony, reproductive stage effects, and gender of individuals, but is directly negatively correlated with abundance of their food. Baseline CORT reflected current food abundance, whereas acute stress-induced CORT reflected food abundance in the previous month. As food supply diminished, increased CORT secretion predicted a decrease in reproductive performance. At a declining colony, increased baseline levels of CORT during reproduction predicted disappearance of individuals from the population. Persistence of individuals in a growing colony was independent of CORT during reproduction. The obtained results support the hypothesis that nutritional stress during reproduction affects reproduction and survival in seabirds. This study provides the first unequivocal evidence for CORT secretion as a mechanistic link between fluctuations in food abundance and population processes in seabirds. ?? Inter-Research 2007.

Dual-memory processes in crack cocaine dependents: The effects of childhood neglect on recall.

Science.gov (United States)

Tractenberg, Saulo G; Viola, Thiago W; Gomes, Carlos F A; Wearick-Silva, Luis Eduardo; Kristensen, Christian H; Stein, Lilian M; Grassi-Oliveira, Rodrigo

2015-01-01

Exposure to adversities during sensitive periods of neurodevelopment is associated with the subsequent development of substance dependence and exerts harmful, long-lasting effects upon memory functioning. In this study, we investigated the relationship between childhood neglect (CN) and memory using a dual-process model that quantifies recollective and non-recollective retrieval processes in crack cocaine dependents. Eighty-four female crack cocaine-dependent inpatients who did (N = 32) or did not (N = 52) report a history of CN received multiple opportunities to study and recall a short list composed of familiar and concrete words and then received a delayed-recall test. Crack cocaine dependents with a history of CN showed worse performance on free-recall tests than did dependents without a history of CN; this finding was associated with declines in recollective retrieval (direct access) rather than non-recollective retrieval. In addition, we found no evidence of group differences in forgetting rates between immediate- and delayed-recall tests. The results support developmental models of traumatology and suggest that neglect of crack cocaine dependents in early life disrupts the adult memory processes that support the retrieval of detailed representations of events from the past.

Innovations in Play Therapy: Issues, Process, and Special Populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Landreth, Garry L., Ed.

This book is a compilation of discussions on current issues in play therapy. It is designed to help therapists fill in the gaps about working with special populations, which is often not directly addressed in other play therapy resources. The object of the book is to bring together information related to issues and dynamics of the process of this…

Affective reactions and context-dependent processing of negations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Enrico Rubaltelli

2008-12-01

Full Text Available Three experiments demonstrate how the processing of negations is contingent on the evaluation context in which the negative information is presented. In addition, the strategy used to process the negations induced different affective reactions toward the stimuli, leading to inconsistency of preference. Participants were presented with stimuli described by either stating the presence of positive features (explicitly positive alternative or negating the presence of negative features (non-negative alternative. Alternatives were presented for either joint (JE or separate evaluation (SE. Experiment 1 showed that the non-negative stimuli were judged less attractive than the positive ones in JE but not in SE. Experiment 2 revealed that the non-negative stimuli induced a less clear and less positive feeling when they were paired with explicitly positive stimuli rather than evaluated separately. Non-negative options were also found less easy to judge than the positive ones in JE but not in SE. Finally, Experiment 3 showed that people process negations using two different models depending on the evaluation mode. Through a memory task, we found that in JE people process the non-negative attributes as negations of negative features, whereas in SE they directly process the non-negative attributes as positive features.

Backwards and Forwards: Behavioral and Neurophysiological Investigations into Dependency Processing

Science.gov (United States)

Witzel, Jeffrey D.

2010-01-01

This dissertation examines the processing of sentences involving long-distance linguistic dependencies, or sentences containing elements that must be linked across intervening words and phrases. Specifically, both behavioral (self-paced reading and eye tracking) and neurophysiological (electroencephalography) methods were used (a) to evaluate the…

The inverse Gamma process: A family of continuous stochastic models for describing state-dependent deterioration phenomena

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guida, M.; Pulcini, G.

2013-01-01

This paper proposes the family of non-stationary inverse Gamma processes for modeling state-dependent deterioration processes with nonlinear trend. The proposed family of processes, which is based on the assumption that the “inverse” time process is Gamma, is mathematically more tractable than previously proposed state-dependent processes, because, unlike the previous models, the inverse Gamma process is a time-continuous and state-continuous model and does not require discretization of time and state. The conditional distribution of the deterioration growth over a generic time interval, the conditional distribution of the residual life and the residual reliability of the unit, given the current state, are provided. Point and interval estimation of the parameters which index the proposed process, as well as of several quantities of interest, are also discussed. Finally, the proposed model is applied to the wear process of the liners of some Diesel engines which was previously analyzed and proved to be a purely state-dependent process. The comparison of the inferential results obtained under the competitor models shows the ability of the Inverse Gamma process to adequately model the observed state-dependent wear process

The Limit Behavior of a Stochastic Logistic Model with Individual Time-Dependent Rates

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Yilun Shang

2013-01-01

Full Text Available We investigate a variant of the stochastic logistic model that allows individual variation and time-dependent infection and recovery rates. The model is described as a heterogeneous density dependent Markov chain. We show that the process can be approximated by a deterministic process defined by an integral equation as the population size grows.

Mutational jackpot events generate effective frequency-dependent selection in adapting populations

Science.gov (United States)

Hallatschek, Oskar

The site-frequency spectrum is one the most easily measurable quantities that characterize the genetic diversity of a population. While most neutral models predict that site frequency spectra should decay with increasing frequency, a high-frequency uptick has been reported in many populations. Anomalies in the high-frequency tail are particularly unsettling because the highest frequencies can be measured with greatest accuracy. Here, we show that an uptick in the spectrum of neutral mutations generally arises when mutant frequencies are dominated by rare jackpot events, mutational events with large descendant numbers. This leads to an effective pattern of frequency-dependent selection (or unstable internal equilibrium at one half frequency) that causes an accumulation of high-frequency polymorphic sites. We reproduce the known uptick occurring for recurrent hitchhiking (genetic draft) as well as rapid adaptation, and (in the future) generalize the shape of the high-frequency tail to other scenarios that are dominated by jackpot events, such as frequent range expansions. We also tackle (in the future) the inverse approach to use the high-frequency uptick for learning about the tail of the offspring number distribution. Positively selected alleles need to surpass, typically, an u NSF Career Award (PoLS), NIH NIGMS R01, Simons Foundation.

Radiation belt seed population and its association with the relativistic electron dynamics: A statistical study: Radiation Belt Seed Population

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Tang, C. L.; Wang, Y. X.; Ni, B.; Zhang, J.-C.

2017-01-01

Using the Van Allen Probes data, we study the radiation belt seed population and it associated with the relativistic electron dynamics during 74 geomagnetic storm events. Based on the flux changes of 1 MeV electrons before and after the storm peak, these storm events are divided into two groups of “non-preconditioned” and “preconditioned”. The statistical study shows that the storm intensity is of significant importance for the distribution of the seed population (336 keV electrons) in the outer radiation belt. However, substorm intensity can also be important to the evolution of the seed population for some geomagnetic storm events. For non-preconditioned storm events, the correlation between the peak fluxes and their L-shell locations of the seed population and relativistic electrons (592 keV, 1.0 MeV, 1.8 MeV, and 2.1 MeV) is consistent with the energy-dependent dynamic processes in the outer radiation belt. For preconditioned storm events, the correlation between the features of the seed population and relativistic electrons is not fully consistent with the energy-dependent processes. It is suggested that the good correlation between the radiation belt seed population and ≤1.0 MeV electrons contributes to the prediction of the evolution of ≤1.0 MeV electrons in the Earth’s outer radiation belt during periods of geomagnetic storms.

Complete FDTD analysis of microwave heating processes in frequency-dependent and temperature dependent media

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Torres, F.; Jecko, B. [Univ. de Limoges (France). Inst. de Recherche en Communications Optiques et Microondes

1997-01-01

It is well known that the temperature rise in a material modifies its physical properties and, particularly, its dielectric permittivity. The dissipated electromagnetic power involved in microwave heating processes depending on {var_epsilon}({omega}), the electrical characteristics of the heated media must vary with the temperature to achieve realistic simulations. In this paper, the authors present a fast and accurate algorithm allowing, through a combined electromagnetic and thermal procedure, to take into account the influence of the temperature on the electrical properties of materials. First, the temperature dependence of the complex permittivity ruled by a Debye relaxation equation is investigated, and a realistic model is proposed and validated. Then, a frequency-dependent finite-differences time-domain ((FD){sup 2}TD) method is used to assess the instantaneous electromagnetic power lost by dielectric hysteresis. Within the same iteration, a time-scaled form of the heat transfer equation allows one to calculate the temperature distribution in the heated medium and then to correct the dielectric properties of the material using the proposed model. These new characteristics will be taken into account by the EM solver at the next iteration. This combined algorithm allows a significant reduction of computation time. An application to a microwave oven is proposed.

Assessment of psychological dependence among tobacco users: A survey held among the rural population of India to call for attention of tobacco cessation centers

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Kiran Jadhav

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Background: In India most of the tobacco cessation centers are concentrating only on urban population, whereas, literature reveals that it is rural population, which shows high frequency of consumption of tobacco. It is well known that high frequency of tobacco consumption is associated with psychological dependence. This study aimed at identifying, which form of tobacco consumption (smoking or smokeless is associated with psychological dependence and is associated with which particular age group in rural population. Materials and Methods: It was a questionnaire based survey where 200 subjects were enrolled. Revised version of standard Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine dependence (FTND was given to each subject to answer. The collected data was statistically analyzed by using Karl Pearson Correlation (r test and Student′s t-test. Results: Study showed that subjects above 40 years of age are psychologically highly dependent on tobacco smoking as compared to tobacco chewing. Tobacco chewing is more prevalent among the younger population (20-30 years of age and type of habit does not have any influence over psychological dependence below 40 years of age. A positive correlation was observed between duration of habit and psychological dependence in all age groups irrespective of type of the habit of tobacco consumption. Conclusion: This study attempts at creating a new avenue for the tobacco cessation centers where they can target their efforts towards rural population particularly people above 40 years of age with a tobacco smoking habit so that they can actually reduce the burden of a number of people at risk for developing tobacco associated oral cancer.

Assessment of psychological dependence among tobacco users: A survey held among the rural population of India to call for attention of tobacco cessation centers.

Science.gov (United States)

Jadhav, Kiran; Singh, Dhanpal

2013-07-01

In India most of the tobacco cessation centers are concentrating only on urban population, whereas, literature reveals that it is rural population, which shows high frequency of consumption of tobacco. It is well known that high frequency of tobacco consumption is associated with psychological dependence. This study aimed at identifying, which form of tobacco consumption (smoking or smokeless) is associated with psychological dependence and is associated with which particular age group in rural population. It was a questionnaire based survey where 200 subjects were enrolled. Revised version of standard Fagerstrom Test for Nicotine dependence (FTND) was given to each subject to answer. The collected data was statistically analyzed by using Karl Pearson Correlation (r) test and Student's t-test. Study showed that subjects above 40 years of age are psychologically highly dependent on tobacco smoking as compared to tobacco chewing. Tobacco chewing is more prevalent among the younger population (20-30 years of age) and type of habit does not have any influence over psychological dependence below 40 years of age. A positive correlation was observed between duration of habit and psychological dependence in all age groups irrespective of type of the habit of tobacco consumption. This study attempts at creating a new avenue for the tobacco cessation centers where they can target their efforts towards rural population particularly people above 40 years of age with a tobacco smoking habit so that they can actually reduce the burden of a number of people at risk for developing tobacco associated oral cancer.

The right inferior frontal gyrus processes nested non-local dependencies in music.

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Cheung, Vincent K M; Meyer, Lars; Friederici, Angela D; Koelsch, Stefan

2018-02-28

Complex auditory sequences known as music have often been described as hierarchically structured. This permits the existence of non-local dependencies, which relate elements of a sequence beyond their temporal sequential order. Previous studies in music have reported differential activity in the inferior frontal gyrus (IFG) when comparing regular and irregular chord-transitions based on theories in Western tonal harmony. However, it is unclear if the observed activity reflects the interpretation of hierarchical structure as the effects are confounded by local irregularity. Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), we found that violations to non-local dependencies in nested sequences of three-tone musical motifs in musicians elicited increased activity in the right IFG. This is in contrast to similar studies in language which typically report the left IFG in processing grammatical syntax. Effects of increasing auditory working demands are moreover reflected by distributed activity in frontal and parietal regions. Our study therefore demonstrates the role of the right IFG in processing non-local dependencies in music, and suggests that hierarchical processing in different cognitive domains relies on similar mechanisms that are subserved by domain-selective neuronal subpopulations.

Reconstructing Space- and Energy-Dependent Exciton Generation in Solution-Processed Inverted Organic Solar Cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yuheng; Zhang, Yajie; Lu, Guanghao; Feng, Xiaoshan; Xiao, Tong; Xie, Jing; Liu, Xiaoyan; Ji, Jiahui; Wei, Zhixiang; Bu, Laju

2018-04-25

Photon absorption-induced exciton generation plays an important role in determining the photovoltaic properties of donor/acceptor organic solar cells with an inverted architecture. However, the reconstruction of light harvesting and thus exciton generation at different locations within organic inverted device are still not well resolved. Here, we investigate the film depth-dependent light absorption spectra in a small molecule donor/acceptor film. Including depth-dependent spectra into an optical transfer matrix method allows us to reconstruct both film depth- and energy-dependent exciton generation profiles, using which short-circuit current and external quantum efficiency of the inverted device are simulated and compared with the experimental measurements. The film depth-dependent spectroscopy, from which we are able to simultaneously reconstruct light harvesting profile, depth-dependent composition distribution, and vertical energy level variations, provides insights into photovoltaic process. In combination with appropriate material processing methods and device architecture, the method proposed in this work will help optimizing film depth-dependent optical/electronic properties for high-performance solar cells.

Cortical processes of speech illusions in the general population.

Science.gov (United States)

Schepers, E; Bodar, L; van Os, J; Lousberg, R

2016-10-18

There is evidence that experimentally elicited auditory illusions in the general population index risk for psychotic symptoms. As little is known about underlying cortical mechanisms of auditory illusions, an experiment was conducted to analyze processing of auditory illusions in a general population sample. In a follow-up design with two measurement moments (baseline and 6 months), participants (n = 83) underwent the White Noise task under simultaneous recording with a 14-lead EEG. An auditory illusion was defined as hearing any speech in a sound fragment containing white noise. A total number of 256 speech illusions (SI) were observed over the two measurements, with a high degree of stability of SI over time. There were 7 main effects of speech illusion on the EEG alpha band-the most significant indicating a decrease in activity at T3 (t = -4.05). Other EEG frequency bands (slow beta, fast beta, gamma, delta, theta) showed no significant associations with SI. SIs are characterized by reduced alpha activity in non-clinical populations. Given the association of SIs with psychosis, follow-up research is required to examine the possibility of reduced alpha activity mediating SIs in high risk and symptomatic populations.

Living in the branches: population dynamics and ecological processes in dendritic networks

Science.gov (United States)

Grant, E.H.C.; Lowe, W.H.; Fagan, W.F.

2007-01-01

Spatial structure regulates and modifies processes at several levels of ecological organization (e.g. individual/genetic, population and community) and is thus a key component of complex systems, where knowledge at a small scale can be insufficient for understanding system behaviour at a larger scale. Recent syntheses outline potential applications of network theory to ecological systems, but do not address the implications of physical structure for network dynamics. There is a specific need to examine how dendritic habitat structure, such as that found in stream, hedgerow and cave networks, influences ecological processes. Although dendritic networks are one type of ecological network, they are distinguished by two fundamental characteristics: (1) both the branches and the nodes serve as habitat, and (2) the specific spatial arrangement and hierarchical organization of these elements interacts with a species' movement behaviour to alter patterns of population distribution and abundance, and community interactions. Here, we summarize existing theory relating to ecological dynamics in dendritic networks, review empirical studies examining the population- and community-level consequences of these networks, and suggest future research integrating spatial pattern and processes in dendritic systems.

Estimation of the PCR efficiency based on a size-dependent modelling of the amplification process

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lalam, N.; Jacob, C.; Jagers, P.

2005-01-01

We propose a stochastic modelling of the PCR amplification process by a size-dependent branching process starting as a supercritical Bienaymé–Galton–Watson transient phase and then having a saturation near-critical size-dependent phase. This model based on the concept of saturation allows one to

Cigarette craving is associated with blunted reward processing in nicotine-dependent smokers.

Science.gov (United States)

Peechatka, Alyssa L; Whitton, Alexis E; Farmer, Stacey L; Pizzagalli, Diego A; Janes, Amy C

2015-10-01

Dysfunctional reward processing leading to the undervaluation of non-drug rewards is hypothesized to play a crucial role in nicotine dependence. However, it is unclear if blunted reward responsivity and the desire to use nicotine are directly linked after a brief period of abstinence. Such an association would suggest that individuals with reduced reward responsivity may be at increased risk to experience nicotine craving. Reward function was evaluated with a probabilistic reward task (PRT), which measures reward responsivity to monetary incentives. To identify whether smoking status influenced reward function, PRT performance was compared between non-depressed, nicotine-dependent smokers and non-smokers. Within smokers, correlations were conducted to determine if blunted reward responsivity on the PRT was associated with increased nicotine craving. Time since last nicotine exposure was standardized to 4h for all smokers. Smokers and non-smokers did not differ in reward responsivity on the PRT. However, within smokers, a significant negative correlation was found between reward responsivity and intensity of nicotine craving. The current findings show that, among smokers, the intensity of nicotine craving is linked to lower sensitivity to non-drug rewards. This finding is in line with prior theories that suggest reward dysfunction in some clinical populations (e.g., depressive disorders, schizophrenia) may facilitate nicotine use. The current study expands on such theories by indicating that sub-clinical variations in reward function are related to motivation for nicotine use. Identifying smokers who show blunted sensitivity to non-drug rewards may help guide treatments aimed at mitigating the motivation to smoke. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Long-term persistence, density dependence and effects of climate change on rosyside dace (Cyprinidae)

Science.gov (United States)

Gary D. Grossman; Gary Sundin; Robert E. Ratajczak

2016-01-01

SummaryWe used long-term population data for rosyside dace (Clinostomus funduloides), a numerically dominant member of a stochastically organised fish assemblage, to evaluate the relative importance of density-dependent and density-independent processes to population...

Dynamics of genetic processes in chronically irradiated populations of small mammals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryabokon', N.I.; Goncharova, R.I.; Smolich, I.I.; Kapitanova, N.P.; Nikitchenko, N.V.

2000-01-01

The distinctive features of dynamics of mutagenesis in mammalian populations under chronic low-intensive irradiation were first revealed. The main of them is gradual increase in mutability in somatic cells and embryonal lethality during series of irradiated generations of animals (bank vole - Clethrionomys glareolus). The data obtained strongly suggest that there are oppositely directed processes in natural populations after irradiation of more than 20 generations of animals: on the one hand, accumulation of mutations (genetic load of populations) and pre-mutation events which increase genome instability of germ and somatic cells in consecutive generations of animals, and on the other, formation of genetic radio adaptation through better functioning protection systems. In this period of micro evolution in chronically irradiated populations, the frequencies of genetic damages could be higher if the radiation adaptation doesn't form. (authors)

Comparing population patterns to processes: abundance and survival of a forest salamander following habitat degradation.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Clint R V Otto

Full Text Available Habitat degradation resulting from anthropogenic activities poses immediate and prolonged threats to biodiversity, particularly among declining amphibians. Many studies infer amphibian response to habitat degradation by correlating patterns in species occupancy or abundance with environmental effects, often without regard to the demographic processes underlying these patterns. We evaluated how retention of vertical green trees (CANOPY and coarse woody debris (CWD influenced terrestrial salamander abundance and apparent survival in recently clearcut forests. Estimated abundance of unmarked salamanders was positively related to CANOPY (β Canopy  = 0.21 (0.02-1.19; 95% CI, but not CWD (β CWD  = 0.11 (-0.13-0.35 within 3,600 m2 sites, whereas estimated abundance of unmarked salamanders was not related to CANOPY (β Canopy  = -0.01 (-0.21-0.18 or CWD (β CWD  = -0.02 (-0.23-0.19 for 9 m2 enclosures. In contrast, apparent survival of marked salamanders within our enclosures over 1 month was positively influenced by both CANOPY and CWD retention (β Canopy  = 0.73 (0.27-1.19; 95% CI and β CWD  = 1.01 (0.53-1.50. Our results indicate that environmental correlates to abundance are scale dependent reflecting habitat selection processes and organism movements after a habitat disturbance event. Our study also provides a cautionary example of how scientific inference is conditional on the response variable(s, and scale(s of measure chosen by the investigator, which can have important implications for species conservation and management. Our research highlights the need for joint evaluation of population state variables, such as abundance, and population-level process, such as survival, when assessing anthropogenic impacts on forest biodiversity.

Calculating evolutionary dynamics in structured populations.

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Charles G Nathanson

2009-12-01

Full Text Available Evolution is shaping the world around us. At the core of every evolutionary process is a population of reproducing individuals. The outcome of an evolutionary process depends on population structure. Here we provide a general formula for calculating evolutionary dynamics in a wide class of structured populations. This class includes the recently introduced "games in phenotype space" and "evolutionary set theory." There can be local interactions for determining the relative fitness of individuals, but we require global updating, which means all individuals compete uniformly for reproduction. We study the competition of two strategies in the context of an evolutionary game and determine which strategy is favored in the limit of weak selection. We derive an intuitive formula for the structure coefficient, sigma, and provide a method for efficient numerical calculation.

Consumption of processed food dietary patterns in four African populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Holmes, Michelle D; Dalal, Shona; Sewram, Vikash; Diamond, Megan B; Adebamowo, Sally N; Ajayi, Ikeoluwapo O; Adebamowo, Clement; Chiwanga, Faraja S; Njelekela, Marina; Laurence, Carien; Volmink, Jimmy; Bajunirwe, Francis; Nankya-Mutyoba, Joan; Guwatudde, David; Reid, Todd G; Willett, Walter C; Adami, Hans-Olov; Fung, Teresa T

2018-06-01

To identify predominant dietary patterns in four African populations and examine their association with obesity. Cross-sectional study.Setting/SubjectsWe used data from the Africa/Harvard School of Public Health Partnership for Cohort Research and Training (PaCT) pilot study established to investigate the feasibility of a multi-country longitudinal study of non-communicable chronic disease in sub-Saharan Africa. We applied principal component analysis to dietary intake data collected from an FFQ developed for PaCT to ascertain dietary patterns in Tanzania, South Africa, and peri-urban and rural Uganda. The sample consisted of 444 women and 294 men. We identified two dietary patterns: the Mixed Diet pattern characterized by high intakes of unprocessed foods such as vegetables and fresh fish, but also cold cuts and refined grains; and the Processed Diet pattern characterized by high intakes of salad dressing, cold cuts and sweets. Women in the highest tertile of the Processed Diet pattern score were 3·00 times more likely to be overweight (95 % CI 1·66, 5·45; prevalence=74 %) and 4·24 times more likely to be obese (95 % CI 2·23, 8·05; prevalence=44 %) than women in this pattern's lowest tertile (both Pobesity. We identified two major dietary patterns in several African populations, a Mixed Diet pattern and a Processed Diet pattern. The Processed Diet pattern was associated with obesity.

Validity of the EQ-5D as a generic health outcome instrument in a heroin-dependent population

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Zanden, Bart P.; Dijkgraaf, Marcel G. W.; Blanken, Peter; de Borgie, Corianne A. J. M.; van Ree, Jan M.; van den Brink, Wim

2006-01-01

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the validity of the EuroQol (EQ-5D) in a population of chronic, treatment-resistant heroin-dependent patients. METHODS: The EQ-5D is studied relative to the Maudsley Addiction Profile (MAP), the Symptom Checklist (SCL-90) and the European Addiction Severity Index (EuropASI)

Modelling and assessment of dependent performance shaping factors through Analytic Network Process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

De Ambroggi, Massimiliano; Trucco, Paolo

2011-01-01

Despite continuous progresses in research and applications, one of the major weaknesses of current HRA methods dwells in their limited capability of modelling the mutual influences between performance shaping factors (PSFs). Indeed at least two types of dependencies between PSFs can be defined: (i) dependency between the states of the PSFs; (ii) dependency between the influences (impacts) of the PSFs on the human performance. This paper introduces a method, based on Analytic Network Process (ANP), for the quantification of the latter, where the overall contribution of each PSF (weight) to the human error probability (HEP) is eventually returned. The core of the method is the modelling process, articulated into two steps: firstly, a qualitative network of dependencies between PSFs is identified, then, the importance of each PSF is quantitatively assessed using ANP. The model allows to distinguish two components of the PSF influence: direct influence that is the influence that the considered PSF is able to express by itself, notwithstanding the presence of other PSFs and indirect influence that is the incremental influence of the considered PSF through its influence on other PSFs. A case study in Air Traffic Control is presented where the proposed approach is integrated into the cognitive simulator PROCOS. The results demonstrated a significant modification of the influence of PSFs over the operator performance when dependencies are taken into account, underlining the importance of considering not only the possible correlation between the states of PSFs but also their mutual dependency in affecting human performance in complex systems.

Landscape-based population viability models demonstrate importance of strategic conservation planning for birds

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas W. Bonnot; Frank R. Thompson; Joshua J. Millspaugh; D. Todd. Jones-Farland

2013-01-01

Efforts to conserve regional biodiversity in the face of global climate change, habitat loss and fragmentation will depend on approaches that consider population processes at multiple scales. By combining habitat and demographic modeling, landscape-based population viability models effectively relate small-scale habitat and landscape patterns to regional population...

Jump locations of jump-diffusion processes with state-dependent rates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Miles, Christopher E; Keener, James P

2017-01-01

We propose a general framework for studying statistics of jump-diffusion systems driven by both Brownian noise (diffusion) and a jump process with state-dependent intensity. Of particular natural interest in many physical systems are the jump locations: the system evaluated at the jump times. As an example, this could be the voltage at which a neuron fires, or the so-called ‘threshold voltage’. However, the state-dependence of the jump rate provides direct coupling between the diffusion and jump components, making it difficult to disentangle the two to study individually. In this work, we provide an iterative map formulation of the sequence of distributions of jump locations. The distributions computed by this map can be used to elucidate other interesting quantities about the process, including statistics of the interjump times. Ultimately, the limit of the map reveals that knowledge of the stationary distribution of the full process is sufficient to recover (but not necessarily equal to) the distribution of jump locations. We propose two biophysical examples to illustrate the use of this framework to provide insight about a system. We find that a sharp threshold voltage emerges robustly in a simple stochastic integrate-and-fire neuronal model. The interplay between the two sources of noise is also investigated in a stepping model of molecular motor in intracellular transport pulling a diffusive cargo. (paper)

Population ecology and conservation status of the last natural population of English yew Taxus baccata in Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Svenning, Jens-Christian; Magård, Else

1999-01-01

English yew Taxus baccata L. has become extinct or rare in many parts of Europe. Here we investigate the status of the only natural population persisting in Denmark. While many other yew populations are declining, the Danish population increased from 2000 in 1998....... This was most likely due to the thinning of the tree stand at this site, as reproductive activity, strobilus production, and recruitment were enhanced at better lit microsites. The declining status of other populations is probably often caused by succession from open woodland to dense forest. The light...... dependency is consistent with the Quaternary history of yew. The sex ratio of the Danish yew population was female-biased, probably due to chance. Yew invaded forest areas neighbouring source populations at rates of 3 m yr−1, but forest management impeded this process....

Population and development.

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, S V

1992-01-01

A unified approach to development is recommended: one in which the social, economic, and political components are accounted for within a multidimensional process of reorganization and reorientation of structures and attitudes, customs, and beliefs. During the 1970s, development was construed as improvement in employment within a growing economy and elimination of poverty and inequality--a redistribution of growth. Development should increase and widen the distribution of basic life sustaining goods, increase levels of living, and expand economic and social choices and free people from dependence on other people and servitude to ignorance and poverty. Six basic issues linking population growth and development were identified; the interrelationships between economic, social, and demographic variables were explained. The aims of educational development and educational progress as affected by urbanization were discussed. It is inappropriate to isolate economic, social, and demographic concerns as separate entities and as separate from the development process. The population problem of rapid population growth is intertwined with the problem of unmet human needs; problematic are illiteracy, extreme deprivation, insufficient income to purchase essential health services and basic nutrition, and inadequate diets. Improvements have not kept pace with needs. The theories of Malthus are no longer germane, and demographic transition theory is not as effective in achieving or explaining the reduction of birth rates. An approach which attacks poverty and low quality of life would be directed to core motivations. The hidden momentum of population growth and the impact of literacy and age and sex composition are discussed as features of improvement in quality of life and of fertility reduction. Economic and social development are dependent on human resources, not on capital or material resources. The institutional mechanism for developing human potential is the educational system

Kinetic Behaviors of a Competitive Population and Fitness System in Exchange-Driven Growth

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lu Ke; Lin Zhenquan; Sun Yunfei

2008-01-01

We proposed an aggregation model of two species aggregates of fitness and population to study the interaction between the two species in their exchange-driven processes of the same species by introducing the monomer birth of fitness catalyzed by the population, where the fitness aggregates perform self-death process and the population aggregates perform self-birth process. The kinetic behaviors of the aggregate size distributions of the fitness and population were analyzed by the rate equation approach with their exchange rate kernel K 1 (k,j) = K 1 kj and K 2 (k,j) = K 2 kj, the fitness aggregate's self-death rate kernel J 1 (k) = J 1 k, population aggregate's self-birth rate kernel J 2 (k) = J 2 k and population-catalyzed fitness birth rate kernel I(k,j) = Ikj v . The kinetic behavior of the fitness was found depending crucially on the parameter v, which reflects the dependence of the population-catalyzed fitness birth rate on the size of the catalyst (population) aggregate. (i) In the v ≤ 0 case, the effect of catalyzed-birth of fitness is rather weak and the exchange-driven aggregation and self-death of the fitness dominate the process, and the fitness aggregate size distribution a k (t) does not have scale form. (ii) When v > 0, the effect of the population-catalyzed birth of fitness gets strong enough, and the catalyzed-birth and self-death of the fitness aggregates, together with the self-birth of the population aggregates dominate the evolution process of the fitness aggregates. The aggregate size distribution a k (t) approaches a generalized scaling form

Dependent seniors garment design

Science.gov (United States)

Caldas, A. L.; Carvalho, M. A.; Lopes, H. P.

2017-10-01

This paper is part of a PhD research in Textile Engineering at University of Minho and aims to establish an ergonomic pattern design methodology to be used in the construction of garments for elderly women, aged 65 and over, dependent of care. The research was developed with a close contact with four institutions involved in supporting this aged population, located in the cities of Guimarães (Portugal) and Teresina (Brazil). These clothes should be adequate to their anthropometrics and their special needs, in accordance with important functional factors for the dependency of their caregiver, such as: care for the caregiver and comfort for the user. Questions regarding the functional properties of the materials, the pattern design process, trimmings and the assembling process of the garments are specially considered in the desired comfort levels, in order to provide an adequate handling by facilitating the dressing and undressing tasks, but also to assure the user the needed comfort in all its variables.

Study of a tri-trophic prey-dependent food chain model of interacting populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Haque, Mainul; Ali, Nijamuddin; Chakravarty, Santabrata

2013-11-01

The current paper accounts for the influence of intra-specific competition among predators in a prey dependent tri-trophic food chain model of interacting populations. We offer a detailed mathematical analysis of the proposed food chain model to illustrate some of the significant results that has arisen from the interplay of deterministic ecological phenomena and processes. Biologically feasible equilibria of the system are observed and the behaviours of the system around each of them are described. In particular, persistence, stability (local and global) and bifurcation (saddle-node, transcritical, Hopf-Andronov) analysis of this model are obtained. Relevant results from previous well known food chain models are compared with the current findings. Global stability analysis is also carried out by constructing appropriate Lyapunov functions. Numerical simulations show that the present system is capable enough to produce chaotic dynamics when the rate of self-interaction is very low. On the other hand such chaotic behaviour disappears for a certain value of the rate of self interaction. In addition, numerical simulations with experimented parameters values confirm the analytical results and shows that intra-specific competitions bears a potential role in controlling the chaotic dynamics of the system; and thus the role of self interactions in food chain model is illustrated first time. Finally, a discussion of the ecological applications of the analytical and numerical findings concludes the paper. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Assay dependence of Brucella antibody prevalence in a declining Alaskan harbor seal (Phoca vitulina population

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Hueffer Karsten

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Brucella is a group of bacteria that causes brucellosis, which can affect population health and reproductive success in many marine mammals. We investigated the serological prevalence of antibodies against Brucella bacteria in a declining harbor seal population in Glacier Bay National Park, Alaska. Results Prevalence ranged from 16 to 74 percent for those tests detecting antibodies, indicating that harbor seals in Glacier Bay have been exposed to Brucella bacteria. However, the actual level of serological prevalence could not be determined because results were strongly assay-dependent. Conclusions This study reinforces the need to carefully consider assay choice when comparing different studies on the prevalence of anti–Brucella antibodies in pinnipeds and further highlights the need for species- or taxon-specific assay validation for both pathogen and host species.

[Confirmative study of a French version of the Exercise Dependence Scale-revised with a French population].

Science.gov (United States)

Allegre, B; Therme, P

2008-10-01

Since the first writings on excessive exercise, there has been an increased interest in exercise dependence. One of the major consequences of this increased interest has been the development of several definitions and measures of exercise dependence. The work of Veale [Does primary exercise dependence really exist? In: Annet J, Cripps B, Steinberg H, editors. Exercise addiction: Motivation for participation in sport and exercise.Leicester, UK: Br Psychol Soc; 1995. p. 1-5.] provides an advance for the definition and measure of exercise dependence. These studies have adapted the DSM-IV criteria for substance dependence to measure exercise dependence. The Exercise Dependence Scale-Revised is based on these diagnostic criteria, which are: tolerance; withdrawal effects; intention effect; lack of control; time; reductions in other activities; continuance. Confirmatory factor analyses of EDS-R provided support to present a measurement model (21 items loaded in seven factors) of EDS-R (Comparative Fit Index=0.97; Root mean Square Error of Approximation=0.05; Tucker-Lewis Index=0.96). The aim of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of a French version of the EDS-R [Factorial validity and psychometric examination of the exercise dependence scale-revised. Meas Phys Educ Exerc Sci 2004;8(4):183-201.] to test the stability of the seven-factor model of the original version with a French population. A total of 516 half-marathoners ranged in age from 17 to 74 years old (Mean age=39.02 years, ET=10.64), with 402 men (77.9%) and 114 women (22.1%) participated in the study. The principal component analysis results in a six-factor structure, which accounts for 68.60% of the total variance. Because principal component analysis presents a six-factor structure differing from the original seven-factor structure, two models were tested, using confirmatory factor analysis. The first model is the seven-factor model of the original version of the EDS-R and the second is the

Effects of post-processing handling and packaging on microbial populations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zagory, D.

1999-01-01

The type of produce, process conditions, and prior temperature management will all affect the mix of microorganisms found on fresh produce. Normally, fresh produce will be covered by a complex mix of bacteria, fungi and yeasts that are characteristic of that fruit or vegetable. For example, carrots typically have large numbers of Lactobacillus and other lactic acid bacteria while apples may have relatively large numbers of yeasts. Which of these microorganisms will come to dominate the population will be a function of the make-up of the original population on the product in the field, distribution time, distribution temperature and the atmosphere within the package. Another chief determinant of microbial populations will be the physiological condition of the product. Factors that injure or weaken the plant tissues may be expected to encourage microbial growth while conditions that maintain the physiological integrity of the tissues may be expected to discourage microbial growth. Each of these factors can be expected to affect the make-up of the microbial population in characteristic ways but always constrained by the initial condition of original population makeup. This paper describes which microorganisms are favored by given conditions in order to develop a concept of microbial management designed to favor desirable microbes at the expense of undesirable ones. Particular emphasis will be placed on the effects of modified atmospheres on microorganisms, especially human pathogens

Search for entrance-channel dependence in the population of superdeformed bands in {sup 191}Hg

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Soramel, F.; Khoo, T.L.; Janssens, R.V.F. [and others

1995-08-01

The population intensity of some SD bands in the mass 150 region were observed to depend on the mass symmetry of the entrance channel in the fusion reaction. The authors raised the possibility that the population of SD bands had a memory of the entrance channel. To check this interesting possibility, we made measurements of the population intensities of superdeformed (SD) bands in the {sup 160}Gd({sup 36}S,5n){sup 191}Hg and {sup 130}Te({sup 64}Ni,3n){sup 191}Hg reactions. To ensure that any observed effect was not due to a simple angular momentum difference in the entrance channels, we also measured the average entry points and spin distributions of normal and SD states in {sup 191}Hg in the two reactions. The entry points and spin distributions for {sup 191}Hg are the same and, indeed, so are the SD intensities in the two reactions. Hence, no entrance-channel effect is observed in the population of the SD band in {sup 191}Hg, in contrast with data for SD bands in the mass 150 regions. We suggest that the effect observed previously in the mass 150 region is due to an angular momentum effect. A letter reporting our results was submitted for publication.

Rate-Independent Processes with Linear Growth Energies and Time-Dependent Boundary Conditions

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Kružík, Martin; Zimmer, J.

2012-01-01

Roč. 5, č. 3 (2012), s. 591-604 ISSN 1937-1632 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA100750802 Grant - others:GA ČR(CZ) GAP201/10/0357 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z10750506 Keywords : concentrations * oscillations * time - dependent boundary conditions * rate-independent evolution Subject RIV: BA - General Mathematics http://library.utia.cas.cz/separaty/2011/MTR/kruzik-rate-independent processes with linear growth energies and time - dependent boundary conditions.pdf

The Structure of Social Cognition: In(ter)dependence of Sociocognitive Processes.

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Happé, Francesca; Cook, Jennifer L; Bird, Geoffrey

2017-01-03

Social cognition is a topic of enormous interest and much research, but we are far from having an agreed taxonomy or factor structure of relevant processes. The aim of this review is to outline briefly what is known about the structure of social cognition and to suggest how further progress can be made to delineate the in(ter)dependence of core sociocognitive processes. We focus in particular on several processes that have been discussed and tested together in typical and atypical (notably autism spectrum disorder) groups: imitation, biological motion, empathy, and theory of mind. We consider the domain specificity/generality of core processes in social learning, reward, and attention, and we highlight the potential relevance of dual-process theories that distinguish systems for fast/automatic and slow/effortful processing. We conclude with methodological and conceptual suggestions for future progress in uncovering the structure of social cognition.

Testing the multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree-Fock method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zanghellini, Juergen; Kitzler, Markus; Brabec, Thomas; Scrinzi, Armin

2004-01-01

We test the multi-configuration time-dependent Hartree-Fock method as a new approach towards the numerical calculation of dynamical processes in multi-electron systems using the harmonic quantum dot and one-dimensional helium in strong laser pulses as models. We find rapid convergence for quantities such as ground-state population, correlation coefficient and single ionization towards the exact results. The method converges, where the time-dependent Hartree-Fock method fails qualitatively

Density dependence of line intensities and application to plasma diagnostics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Masai, Kuniaki.

1993-02-01

Electron density dependence of spectral lines are discussed in view of application to density diagnostics of plasmas. The dependence arises from competitive level population processes, radiative and collisional transitions from the excited states. Results of the measurement on tokamak plasmas are presented to demonstrate the usefulness of line intensity ratios for density diagnostics. Also general characteristics related to density dependence are discussed with atomic-number scaling for H-like and He-like systems to be helpful for application to higher density plasmas. (author)

Going the distance: Memory and control processes in active dependency construction.

Science.gov (United States)

Wagers, Matthew W; Phillips, Colin

2014-01-01

Filler-gap dependencies make strong demands on working memory in language comprehension because they cannot always be immediately resolved. In a series of three reading-time studies, we test the idea that these demands can be decomposed into active maintenance processes and retrieval events. Results indicate that the fact that a displaced phrase exists and the identity of its basic syntactic category both immediately impact comprehension at potential gap sites. In contrast, specific lexical details of the displaced phrase show an immediate effect only for short dependencies and a much later effect for longer dependencies. We argue that coarse-grained information about the filler is actively maintained and is used to make phrase structure parsing decisions, whereas finer grained information is more quickly released from active maintenance and consequently has to be retrieved at the gap site.

Maintenance of phenotypic variation: repeatibility, heritability, and size-dependent processes in a wild brook trout population

Science.gov (United States)

Benjamin H. Letcher; Jason A Coombs; Keith H. Nislow

2011-01-01

Phenotypic variation in body size can result from within-cohort variation in birth dates, among-individual growth variation and size-selective processes. We explore the relative effects of these processes on the maintenance of wide observed body size variation in stream-dwelling brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). Based on the analyses of multiple...

Alcohol consumption, hazardous drinking, and alcohol dependency among the population of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India.

Science.gov (United States)

Manimunda, Sathya Prakash; Sugunan, Attayuru Purushottaman; Thennarasu, Kandavelu; Pandian, Dhanasekara; Pesala, Kasturi S; Benegal, Vivek

2017-01-01

Harmful use of alcohol is one of the globally recognized causes of health hazards. There are no data on alcohol consumption from Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The objective of the study was to assess the prevalence and pattern of alcohol use among the population of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India. A representative sample of 18,018 individuals aged ≥14 years were chosen by multistage random sampling and administered a structured instrument, a modified version of the Gender, Alcohol, and Culture: An International Study (GENACIS) which included sociodemographic details and Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). The overall prevalence of alcohol consumption was 35% among males and over 6.0% in females, aged 14 and above. Two out of every five alcohol users fit into a category of hazardous drinkers. One-fourth of the total users (23%) are alcohol dependents. Both the hazardous drinking and dependent use are high among males compared to females. Almost 18.0% of male drinkers and 12.0% of female drinkers reported heavy drinking on typical drinking occasions. The predominant beverages consumed were in the category of homebrews such as toddy and handia. The present study highlights the magnitude of hazardous drinking and alcohol dependence in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, India and the complex sociocultural differences in the pattern of alcohol use. Based on the AUDIT data, among the population of Andaman and Nicobar Islands (aged 14 and above), one out of ten requires active interventions to manage the harmful impact of alcohol misuse.

Teaching Population Balances for Chemical Engineering Students: Application to Granulation Processes

Science.gov (United States)

Bucala, Veronica; Pina, Juliana

2007-01-01

The population balance equation (PBE) is a useful tool to predict particle size distributions in granulation processes. When PBE is taught to advanced chemical engineering students, the internal coordinates (particle properties) are particularly hard to understand. In this paper, the flow of particles along different coordinates is carefully…

On the numerical simulation of population dynamics with density-dependent migrations and the Allee effects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sweilam, H N; Khader, M M; Al-Bar, F R

2008-01-01

In this paper, the variational iteration method (VIM) and the Adomian decomposition method (ADM) are presented for the numerical simulation of the population dynamics model with density-dependent migrations and the Allee effects. The convergence of ADM is proved for the model problem. The results obtained by these methods are compared to the exact solution. It is found that these methods are always converges to the right solutions with high accuracy. Furthermore, VIM needs relative less computational work than ADM

Generation and monitoring of discrete stable random processes using multiple immigration population models

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Matthews, J O; Hopcraft, K I; Jakeman, E [Applied Mathematics Division, School of Mathematical Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, NG7 2RD (United Kingdom)

2003-11-21

Some properties of classical population processes that comprise births, deaths and multiple immigrations are investigated. The rates at which the immigrants arrive can be tailored to produce a population whose steady state fluctuations are described by a pre-selected distribution. Attention is focused on the class of distributions with a discrete stable law, which have power-law tails and whose moments and autocorrelation function do not exist. The separate problem of monitoring and characterizing the fluctuations is studied, analysing the statistics of individuals that leave the population. The fluctuations in the size of the population are transferred to the times between emigrants that form an intermittent time series of events. The emigrants are counted with a detector of finite dynamic range and response time. This is modelled through clipping the time series or saturating it at an arbitrary but finite level, whereupon its moments and correlation properties become finite. Distributions for the time to the first counted event and for the time between events exhibit power-law regimes that are characteristic of the fluctuations in population size. The processes provide analytical models with which properties of complex discrete random phenomena can be explored, and in addition provide generic means by which random time series encompassing a wide range of intermittent and other discrete random behaviour may be generated.

Generation and monitoring of discrete stable random processes using multiple immigration population models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Matthews, J O; Hopcraft, K I; Jakeman, E

2003-01-01

Some properties of classical population processes that comprise births, deaths and multiple immigrations are investigated. The rates at which the immigrants arrive can be tailored to produce a population whose steady state fluctuations are described by a pre-selected distribution. Attention is focused on the class of distributions with a discrete stable law, which have power-law tails and whose moments and autocorrelation function do not exist. The separate problem of monitoring and characterizing the fluctuations is studied, analysing the statistics of individuals that leave the population. The fluctuations in the size of the population are transferred to the times between emigrants that form an intermittent time series of events. The emigrants are counted with a detector of finite dynamic range and response time. This is modelled through clipping the time series or saturating it at an arbitrary but finite level, whereupon its moments and correlation properties become finite. Distributions for the time to the first counted event and for the time between events exhibit power-law regimes that are characteristic of the fluctuations in population size. The processes provide analytical models with which properties of complex discrete random phenomena can be explored, and in addition provide generic means by which random time series encompassing a wide range of intermittent and other discrete random behaviour may be generated

The process of adaptation and evolution in irradiated synthetic populations of Arabidopsis thaliana

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dislers, V.J.; Rasals, I.D.

1975-01-01

Irradiation of synthetic populations of A. thaliana caused an intense process of directed natural selection. As a result, six to eight generations after irradiation, the arithmetic mean of a number of parameters (plant height, stem length, number of internodes) exceeded the arithmetic average for plants in a non-irradiated population. The process of directed selection proceeded more intensely after the plants were irradiated repeatedly than after a single irradiation. The intensity of directed selection when the plants were irradiated with a 10 4 rad dose of fast neutrons was definitely greater than for a dose of 10 3 rad. An intermediate intensity of selection was observed when the plants were irradiated with a 3x10 4 rad dose of gamma radiation. When the plants were subjected to single and repeated 10 4 rad doses of fast neutron radiation, the arithmetic mean of certain features of the best component of the initial population (Enkheim) was exceeded in M 8 and R 6 . (author)

Childhood ADHD and Risk for Substance Dependence in Adulthood: A Longitudinal, Population-Based Study

Science.gov (United States)

Levy, Sharon; Katusic, Slavica K.; Colligan, Robert C.; Weaver, Amy L.; Killian, Jill M.; Voigt, Robert G.; Barbaresi, William J.

2014-01-01

Background Adolescents with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are known to be at significantly greater risk for the development of substance use disorders (SUD) compared to peers. Impulsivity, which could lead to higher levels of drug use, is a known symptom of ADHD and likely accounts, in part, for this relationship. Other factors, such as a biologically increased susceptibility to substance dependence (addiction), may also play a role. Objective This report further examines the relationships between childhood ADHD, adolescent- onset SUD, and substance abuse and substance dependence in adulthood. Method Individuals with childhood ADHD and non-ADHD controls from the same population-based birth cohort were invited to participate in a prospective outcome study. Participants completed a structured neuropsychiatric interview with modules for SUD and a psychosocial questionnaire. Information on adolescent SUD was obtained retrospectively, in a previous study, from medical and school records. Associations were summarized using odds ratios (OR) and 95% CIs estimated from logistic regression models adjusted for age and gender. Results A total of 232 ADHD cases and 335 non-ADHD controls participated (mean age, 27.0 and 28.6 years, respectively). ADHD cases were more likely than controls to have a SUD diagnosed in adolescence and were more likely to have alcohol (adjusted OR 14.38, 95% CI 1.49–138.88) and drug (adjusted OR 3.48, 95% CI 1.38–8.79) dependence in adulthood. The subgroup of participating ADHD cases who did not have SUD during adolescence were no more likely than controls to develop new onset alcohol dependence as adults, although they were significantly more likely to develop new onset drug dependence. Conclusions Our study found preliminary evidence that adults with childhood ADHD are more susceptible than peers to developing drug dependence, a disorder associated with neurological changes in the brain. The relationship between ADHD and

Stochastic population dynamics of a montane ground-dwelling squirrel.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeffrey A Hostetler

Full Text Available Understanding the causes and consequences of population fluctuations is a central goal of ecology. We used demographic data from a long-term (1990-2008 study and matrix population models to investigate factors and processes influencing the dynamics and persistence of a golden-mantled ground squirrel (Callospermophilus lateralis population, inhabiting a dynamic subalpine habitat in Colorado, USA. The overall deterministic population growth rate λ was 0.94±SE 0.05 but it varied widely over time, ranging from 0.45±0.09 in 2006 to 1.50±0.12 in 2003, and was below replacement (λ<1 for 9 out of 18 years. The stochastic population growth rate λ(s was 0.92, suggesting a declining population; however, the 95% CI on λ(s included 1.0 (0.52-1.60. Stochastic elasticity analysis showed that survival of adult females, followed by survival of juvenile females and litter size, were potentially the most influential vital rates; analysis of life table response experiments revealed that the same three life history variables made the largest contributions to year-to year changes in λ. Population viability analysis revealed that, when the influences of density dependence and immigration were not considered, the population had a high (close to 1.0 in 50 years probability of extinction. However, probability of extinction declined to as low as zero when density dependence and immigration were considered. Destabilizing effects of stochastic forces were counteracted by regulating effects of density dependence and rescue effects of immigration, which allowed our study population to bounce back from low densities and prevented extinction. These results suggest that dynamics and persistence of our study population are determined synergistically by density-dependence, stochastic forces, and immigration.

Two-Agent Single-Machine Scheduling of Jobs with Time-Dependent Processing Times and Ready Times

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Jan-Yee Kung

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Scheduling involving jobs with time-dependent processing times has recently attracted much research attention. However, multiagent scheduling with simultaneous considerations of jobs with time-dependent processing times and ready times is relatively unexplored. Inspired by this observation, we study a two-agent single-machine scheduling problem in which the jobs have both time-dependent processing times and ready times. We consider the model in which the actual processing time of a job of the first agent is a decreasing function of its scheduled position while the actual processing time of a job of the second agent is an increasing function of its scheduled position. In addition, each job has a different ready time. The objective is to minimize the total completion time of the jobs of the first agent with the restriction that no tardy job is allowed for the second agent. We propose a branch-and-bound and several genetic algorithms to obtain optimal and near-optimal solutions for the problem, respectively. We also conduct extensive computational results to test the proposed algorithms and examine the impacts of different problem parameters on their performance.

Investigation of the Nonlinear Model of the Cellular Population System Development

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M. S. Vinogradova

2014-01-01

Full Text Available An isolated population system is considered which consists of two types of human stem cells: normal cells and cells with chromosomal anomalies (abnormal. In the paper the nonlinear dynamic model which describes dynamics of cell populations developing in vitro is elaborated. The model allows to investigate the processes of the formation of the abnormal cells population from the abnormal cells population of normal cells as well as joint development of these populations. The model takes into account the limited resources.An important feature of the developed model is the use of biological characteristics of processes in the cell population system, such as the proportion of cells, divided over a specified time, the proportion of cells whish are not divided, and which are "lost" and which are passed in the population of abnormal cells from the normal population. This approach allows a more detailed analysis of the impact of various "primary" parameters on the evolution of the population system.Under cultivation of cell populations in vitro a struggle for resources primarily affects the processes of the cell reproduction. This is reflected in the existence of the dividing cells frequency dependence of the total population of normal and abnormal cells. For the account of such dependencies different non-linear functions are typically used. However, the use of such non-linear relationships leads to the difficulties in finding confidence intervals for the estimates of the model parameters at subsequent stages of research. At the same time, the problem of the system parameters estimating and finding of the corresponding confidence intervals for estimates can be solved easy in case when the nonlinear system is linear with respect to the unknown parameters. In the paper it is achieved due to the piecewise linear approximation of nonlinear dependencies.An important feature of the model is a different view of the right part of the differential equations system

A novel quantitative model of cell cycle progression based on cyclin-dependent kinases activity and population balances.

Science.gov (United States)

Pisu, Massimo; Concas, Alessandro; Cao, Giacomo

2015-04-01

Cell cycle regulates proliferative cell capacity under normal or pathologic conditions, and in general it governs all in vivo/in vitro cell growth and proliferation processes. Mathematical simulation by means of reliable and predictive models represents an important tool to interpret experiment results, to facilitate the definition of the optimal operating conditions for in vitro cultivation, or to predict the effect of a specific drug in normal/pathologic mammalian cells. Along these lines, a novel model of cell cycle progression is proposed in this work. Specifically, it is based on a population balance (PB) approach that allows one to quantitatively describe cell cycle progression through the different phases experienced by each cell of the entire population during its own life. The transition between two consecutive cell cycle phases is simulated by taking advantage of the biochemical kinetic model developed by Gérard and Goldbeter (2009) which involves cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs) whose regulation is achieved through a variety of mechanisms that include association with cyclins and protein inhibitors, phosphorylation-dephosphorylation, and cyclin synthesis or degradation. This biochemical model properly describes the entire cell cycle of mammalian cells by maintaining a sufficient level of detail useful to identify check point for transition and to estimate phase duration required by PB. Specific examples are discussed to illustrate the ability of the proposed model to simulate the effect of drugs for in vitro trials of interest in oncology, regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Sub-populations of alcohol-dependent patients: differences in psychological functioning between high- and low-frequency alcohol consumers.

Science.gov (United States)

Hiltunen, A J; Koechling, U M; Voltaire-Carlsson, A; Borg, S

1996-07-01

The purpose of the present study was to examine the processes underlying relapse to drinking using objective biological validation of self-reported recent alcohol consumption, using the ratio of 5-hydroxytryptophol to 5-hydroxyindol-3-ylacetic acid (5-HTOL/5-HIAA), a new biological marker to detect single episodes of drinking, in a sample of 38 male alcohol-dependent patients (DSM-III-R) who were assessed prospectively in terms of their clinical symptomatology over a 6-month treatment period. Results showed that nearly all patients obtained positive 5-HTOL/5-HIAA samples during the course of treatment. However, upon closer inspection, results revealed a bimodal distribution for alcohol intake with high and low frequency of consumption episodes. Results showed that high frequency consumers obtained higher ratings of clinical symptoms as measured by the Comprehensive Psychopathological Rating Scale (CPRS) and by the St Göran's Semi-structured Interview (SGSI) compared to low frequency alcohol consumers on symptoms of inner tension, lack of initiative, risk of relapse (as rated by therapists and as rated by patients themselves), dysphoria, negative craving for alcohol, and positive craving for alcohol. The present results provided evidence for the existence of two sub-populations of alcoholics, those who have frequent lapses and those who have low frequency of sporadic lapses. Further, these two sub-populations were shown to differ with respect to overall psychological functioning, and craving for alcohol. In conclusion, the present findings have important treatment implications in that reliable identification of patients' consumption patterns using biological markers would allow for the design of individually tailored treatment needs.

Late post-irradiation phenomena in mammalain cell populations. Pt. 2. Intraclonal recovery in sublines isolated from X-irradiated L5178Y-S cell populations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beer, J.Z.

1975-01-01

Clonal analysis of L5178Y-S cell populations irradiated with 300 rads of X-rays indicates occurence of cell sublines with considerably prolonged mean doubling times up to 22 h as compared to 10-11 h for control. Subsequent observations of growth of the handicapped sublines derived from single cells showed capability of all more than 100 studied sublines to recover normal proliferative activity. This process of intraclonal recovery required in many cases longer periods of time, corresponding to many tens, sometimes more than 200, generations. Late intraclonal recovery was further analysed by subcloning. It was found that although cytochemically assayed viability of the handicapped sublines was normal, cloning efficiency strongly depended on the stage of the recovery process. The recovery processes occuring in clones isolated from irradiated cell populations were compared with analogous processes occuring in slowly growing sublines isolated from non-irradiated cell cultures. Marked differences in kinetics of these processes show that either they are different in sublines derived from irradiated and non-irradiated cell populations or that the mechanisms of the late intraclonal recovery are affected by radiation. The results presented allow to conclude that gradual post-irradiation recovery of growth depends primarily on formation, in the developing populations, of cells with higher proliferative activities. Possible nature of the recovery processes is discussed in the light of available information on mammalian somatic cell variants with altered drug or temperature sensitivity, or with nutritional requirements. A sequence is proposed of changes leading from radiation-induced disturbance of the normably existing equilibrium between three basic cell subpopulations to ultimate restoration of this equilibrium. (author)

Population ageing and intergenerational conflict: a post-Keynesian view.

Science.gov (United States)

Jackson, W A

1992-01-01

The author reexamines the relationships among demographic aging, the dependency burden, and intergenerational conflict from a post-Keynesian perspective, in which unemployment and excess capacity are normal to the functioning of capitalist economies, and resources are not generally fully utilized. He "argues that the Keynesian process of national income determination precludes any immediate relationship between population ageing and the 'burden' imposed on income recipients. Below full employment, a rising dependency ratio is not guaranteed to reduce the expenditure share of income recipients or raise their tax rates. An exclusive emphasis on intergenerational conflict can give a misleading impression of the consequences of population ageing." The focus is on developed countries. excerpt

The position dependent influence that sensitivity correction processing gives the signal-to-noise ratio measurement in parallel imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Murakami, Koichi; Yoshida, Koji; Yanagimoto, Shinichi

2012-01-01

We studied the position dependent influence that sensitivity correction processing gave the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) measurement of parallel imaging (PI). Sensitivity correction processing that referred to the sensitivity distribution of the body coil improved regional uniformity more than the sensitivity uniformity correction filter with a fixed correction factor. In addition, the position dependent influence to give the SNR measurement in PI was different from the sensitivity correction processing. Therefore, if we divide SNR of the sensitivity correction processing image by SNR of the original image in each pixel and calculate SNR ratio, we can show the position dependent influence that sensitivity correction processing gives the SNR measurement in PI. It is with an index of the sensitivity correction processing precision. (author)

Bicarbonate-dependent secretion and proteolytic processing of recombinant myocilin.

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José-Daniel Aroca-Aguilar

Full Text Available Myocilin is an extracellular glycoprotein of poorly understood function. Mutations of this protein are involved in glaucoma, an optic neuropathy characterized by a progressive and irreversible visual loss and frequently associated with elevated intraocular pressure. We previously showed that recombinant myocilin undergoes an intracellular proteolytic processing by calpain II which cleaves the central region of the protein, releasing one N- and one C-terminal fragment. Myocilin cleavage is reduced by glaucoma mutations and it has been proposed to participate in intraocular pressure modulation. To identify possible factors regulating the proteolytic processing of recombinant myocilin, we used a cellular model in which we analyzed how different culture medium parameters (i.e., culture time, cell density, pH, bicarbonate concentration, etc. affect the presence of the extracellular C-terminal fragment. Extracellular bicarbonate depletion associated with culture medium acidification produced a reversible intracellular accumulation of full-length recombinant myocilin and incremented its intracellular proteolytic processing, raising the extracellular C-terminal fragment percentage. It was also determined that myocilin intracellular accumulation depends on its N-terminal region. These data suggest that aqueous humor bicarbonate variations could also modulate the secretion and cleavage of myocilin present in ocular tissues.

Alcohol abuse and dependence criteria as predictors of a chronic course of alcohol use disorders in the general population

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Bruijn, Carla; van den Brink, Wim; de Graaf, Ron; Vollebergh, Wilma A. M.

2005-01-01

Aims: To investigate whether DSM-IV abuse and dependence criteria and the ICD-10 criterion for craving differentially predict a chronic course of alcohol use disorders (AUD) in the general population. Methods: Data were derived from the Netherlands Mental Health Survey and Incidence Study, a large

Circadian Oscillations within the Hippocampus Support Hippocampus-dependent Memory Processing

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Kristin Lynn Eckel-Mahan

2012-04-01

Full Text Available The ability to sustain memories over long periods of time, sometimes even a lifetime, is one of the most remarkable properties of the brain. Much knowledge has been gained over the past few decades regarding the molecular correlates of memory formation. Once a memory is forged, however, the molecular events that provide permanence are as of yet unclear. Studies in multiple organisms have revealed that circadian rhythmicity is important for the formation, stability, and recall of memories [1]. The neuronal events that provide this link need to be explored further. This article will discuss the findings related to the circadian regulation of memory-dependent processes in the hippocampus. Specifically, the circadian-controlled MAP kinase and cAMP signal transduction pathway plays critical roles in the consolidation of hippocampus-dependent memory. A series of studies have revealed the circadian oscillation of this pathway within the hippocampus, an activity that is absent in memory-deficient, transgenic mice lacking Ca2+-stimulated adenylyl cyclases. Interference with these oscillations proceeding the cellular memory consolidation period impairs the persistence of hippocampus-dependent memory. These data suggest that the persistence of long-term memories may depend upon reactivation of this signal transduction pathway in the hippocampus during the circadian cycle. New data reveals the dependence of hippocampal oscillation in MAPK activity on the SCN, again underscoring the importance of this region in maintaining the circadian physiology of memory. Finally, the downstream ramification of these oscillations in terms of gene expression and epigenetics should be considered, as emerging evidence is pointing strongly to a circadian link between epigenetics and long term synaptic plasticity.

Neural mechanisms of context-dependent processing of CO2 avoidance behavior in fruit flies.

Science.gov (United States)

Siju, K P; Bräcker, Lasse B; Grunwald Kadow, I C

2014-01-01

The fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, innately avoids even low levels of CO2. CO2 is part of the so-called Drosophila stress odor produced by stressed flies, but also a byproduct of fermenting fruit, a main food source, making the strong avoidance behavior somewhat surprising. Therefore, we addressed whether feeding states might influence the fly's behavior and processing of CO2. In a recent report, we showed that this innate behavior is differentially processed and modified according to the feeding state of the fly. Interestingly, we found that hungry flies require the function of the mushroom body, a higher brain center required for olfactory learning and memory, but thought to be dispensable for innate olfactory behaviors. In addition, we anatomically and functionally characterized a novel bilateral projection neuron connecting the CO2 sensory input to the mushroom body. This neuron was essential for processing of CO2 in the starved fly but not in the fed fly. In this Extra View article, we provide evidence for the potential involvement of the neuromodulator dopamine in state-dependent CO2 avoidance behavior. Taken together, our work demonstrates that CO2 avoidance behavior is mediated by alternative neural pathways in a context-dependent manner. Furthermore, it shows that the mushroom body is not only involved in processing of learned olfactory behavior, as previously suggested, but also in context-dependent innate olfaction.

Advertising of ultra-processed foods and beverages: children as a vulnerable population

OpenAIRE

Mallarino,Christina; Gómez,Luis F; González-Zapata,Laura; Cadena,Yazmín; Parra,Diana C

2013-01-01

The rapid nutrition transition occurring in Latin America has resulted in a sharp increase of childhood overweight and obesity. Recent evidence has shown that food and beverage advertising has a great influence on children’s eating behavior. This population has become a key target market for the ultra-processed foods and beverages industry, which is marketing products in an aggressive way. Evidence shows that Latin American countries have poor regulation of ultra-processed foods and bev...

The structuring process of the macroparasite community of an experimental population of cichlasoma urophthalmus through time

Science.gov (United States)

Vidal-Martinez; Kennedy; Aguirre-Macedo

1998-09-01

The structuring process of the macroparasite community of caged Cichlasoma urophthalmus was studied over time using sentinel fish. Three thousand uninfected cichlids were stocked in floating cages introduced into a quarry in which a wild population of the same species was present. Caged and wild cichlids were sampled monthly over 6 and 7 months, respectively. Seventeen macroparasite species were found in the wild C. urophthalmus population, ten of which were detected in the caged population after 6 months. Early infections were by those species that were more frequent and abundant in the wild population, while helminths with a low prevalence and abundance in the wild appeared later in the caged fish population. The results suggested that the structuring process of the macroparasite community of caged C. urophthalmus followed a predictable pattern, in which those species that were most frequent and abundant in the wild were the first to establish in sentinel fish.

Heterogeneity of life histories in a nonhuman primate population

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hernández Pacheco, Raisa; Steiner, Uli

2014-01-01

histories within a primate population is generated by density-dependent dynamics, the demographic data of Cayo Santiago rhesus macaques over 40 years and 7000 individuals was used. A multi-stage model using a first-order Markov process describing reproductive dynamics was constructed and annual entropy...

Spatio-temporal dynamics of a fish predator: Density-dependent and hydrographic effects on Baltic Sea cod population.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Valerio Bartolino

Full Text Available Understanding the mechanisms of spatial population dynamics is crucial for the successful management of exploited species and ecosystems. However, the underlying mechanisms of spatial distribution are generally complex due to the concurrent forcing of both density-dependent species interactions and density-independent environmental factors. Despite the high economic value and central ecological importance of cod in the Baltic Sea, the drivers of its spatio-temporal population dynamics have not been analytically investigated so far. In this paper, we used an extensive trawl survey dataset in combination with environmental data to investigate the spatial dynamics of the distribution of the Eastern Baltic cod during the past three decades using Generalized Additive Models. The results showed that adult cod distribution was mainly affected by cod population size, and to a minor degree by small-scale hydrological factors and the extent of suitable reproductive areas. As population size decreases, the cod population concentrates to the southern part of the Baltic Sea, where the preferred more marine environment conditions are encountered. Using the fitted models, we predicted the Baltic cod distribution back to the 1970s and a temporal index of cod spatial occupation was developed. Our study will contribute to the management and conservation of this important resource and of the ecosystem where it occurs, by showing the forces shaping its spatial distribution and therefore the potential response of the population to future exploitation and environmental changes.

Population extinction under bursty reproduction in a time-modulated environment

Science.gov (United States)

Vilk, Ohad; Assaf, Michael

2018-06-01

In recent years nondemographic variability has been shown to greatly affect dynamics of stochastic populations. For example, nondemographic noise in the form of a bursty reproduction process with an a priori unknown burst size, or environmental variability in the form of time-varying reaction rates, have been separately found to dramatically impact the extinction risk of isolated populations. In this work we investigate the extinction risk of an isolated population under the combined influence of these two types of nondemographic variation. Using the so-called momentum-space Wentzel-Kramers-Brillouin (WKB) approach and accounting for the explicit time dependence in the reaction rates, we arrive at a set of time-dependent Hamilton equations. To this end, we evaluate the population's extinction risk by finding the instanton of the time-perturbed Hamiltonian numerically, whereas analytical expressions are presented in particular limits using various perturbation techniques. We focus on two classes of time-varying environments: periodically varying rates corresponding to seasonal effects and a sudden decrease in the birth rate corresponding to a catastrophe. All our theoretical results are tested against numerical Monte Carlo simulations with time-dependent rates and also against a numerical solution of the corresponding time-dependent Hamilton equations.

pH-Dependent spin state population and 19F NMR chemical shift via remote ligand protonation in an iron(ii) complex.

Science.gov (United States)

Gaudette, Alexandra I; Thorarinsdottir, Agnes E; Harris, T David

2017-11-30

An Fe II complex that features a pH-dependent spin state population, by virtue of a variable ligand protonation state, is described. This behavior leads to a highly pH-dependent 19 F NMR chemical shift with a sensitivity of 13.9(5) ppm per pH unit at 37 °C, thereby demonstrating the potential utility of the complex as a 19 F chemical shift-based pH sensor.

Numerical investigation of the recruitment process in open marine population models

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Angulo, O; López-Marcos, J C; López-Marcos, M A; Martínez-Rodríguez, J

2011-01-01

The changes in the dynamics, produced by the recruitment process in an open marine population model, are investigated from a numerical point of view. The numerical method considered, based on the representation of the solution along the characteristic lines, approximates properly the steady states of the model, and is used to analyze the asymptotic behavior of the solutions of the model

Random migration processes between two stochastic epidemic centers.

Science.gov (United States)

Sazonov, Igor; Kelbert, Mark; Gravenor, Michael B

2016-04-01

We consider the epidemic dynamics in stochastic interacting population centers coupled by random migration. Both the epidemic and the migration processes are modeled by Markov chains. We derive explicit formulae for the probability distribution of the migration process, and explore the dependence of outbreak patterns on initial parameters, population sizes and coupling parameters, using analytical and numerical methods. We show the importance of considering the movement of resident and visitor individuals separately. The mean field approximation for a general migration process is derived and an approximate method that allows the computation of statistical moments for networks with highly populated centers is proposed and tested numerically. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Information processing by neuronal populations

National Research Council Canada - National Science Library

Hölscher, Christian; Munk, Matthias

2009-01-01

... simultaneously recorded spike trains 120 Mark Laubach, Nandakumar S. Narayanan, and Eyal Y. Kimchi Part III Neuronal population information coding and plasticity in specific brain areas 149 7 F...

Transient Properties of Probability Distribution for a Markov Process with Size-dependent Additive Noise

Science.gov (United States)

Yamada, Yuhei; Yamazaki, Yoshihiro

2018-04-01

This study considered a stochastic model for cluster growth in a Markov process with a cluster size dependent additive noise. According to this model, the probability distribution of the cluster size transiently becomes an exponential or a log-normal distribution depending on the initial condition of the growth. In this letter, a master equation is obtained for this model, and derivation of the distributions is discussed.

Salinity- and population-dependent genome regulatory response during osmotic acclimation in the killifish (Fundulus heteroclitus) gill.

Science.gov (United States)

Whitehead, Andrew; Roach, Jennifer L; Zhang, Shujun; Galvez, Fernando

2012-04-15

The killifish Fundulus heteroclitus is abundant in osmotically dynamic estuaries and it can quickly adjust to extremes in environmental salinity. We performed a comparative osmotic challenge experiment to track the transcriptomic and physiological responses to two salinities throughout a time course of acclimation, and to explore the genome regulatory mechanisms that enable extreme osmotic acclimation. One southern and one northern coastal population, known to differ in their tolerance to hypo-osmotic exposure, were used as our comparative model. Both populations could maintain osmotic homeostasis when transferred from 32 to 0.4 p.p.t., but diverged in their compensatory abilities when challenged down to 0.1 p.p.t., in parallel with divergent transformation of gill morphology. Genes involved in cell volume regulation, nucleosome maintenance, ion transport, energetics, mitochondrion function, transcriptional regulation and apoptosis showed population- and salinity-dependent patterns of expression during acclimation. Network analysis confirmed the role of cytokine and kinase signaling pathways in coordinating the genome regulatory response to osmotic challenge, and also posited the importance of signaling coordinated through the transcription factor HNF-4α. These genome responses support hypotheses of which regulatory mechanisms are particularly relevant for enabling extreme physiological flexibility.

Introduction of article-processing charges for Population Health Metrics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Murray Christopher JL

2003-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Population Health Metrics is an open-access online electronic journal published by BioMed Central – it is universally and freely available online to everyone, its authors retain copyright, and it is archived in at least one internationally recognised free repository. To fund this, from November 1 2003, authors of articles accepted for publication will be asked to pay an article-processing charge of US$500. This editorial outlines the reasons for the introduction of article-processing charges and the way in which this policy will work. Waiver requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis, by the Editor-in-Chief. Article-processing charges will not apply to authors whose institutions are 'members' of BioMed Central. Current members include NHS England, the World Health Organization, the US National Institutes of Health, Harvard, Princeton and Yale universities, and all UK universities. No charge is made for articles that are rejected after peer review. Many funding agencies have also realized the importance of open access publishing and have specified that their grants may be used directly to pay APCs.

Simulation of spatially dependent excitation rates and power deposition in RF discharges for plasma processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kushner, M.J.; Anderson, H.M.; Hargis, P.J.

1985-01-01

In low pressure, radio frequency (RF) discharges of the type used in plasma processing of semiconductor materials, the rate of electron impact excitation and energy transfer processes depends upon both the phase of the RF excitation and position in the discharge. Electron impact collisions create radicals that diffuse or drift to the surfaces of interest where they are adsorbed or otherwise react. To the extent that these radicals have a finite lifetime, their transport time from point of creation to surface of interest is an important parameter. The spatial dependence of the rate of the initial electron impact collisions is therefore also an important parameter. The power that sustains the discharge is coupled into the system by two mechanisms: a high energy e-beam component of the electron distribution resulting from electrons falling through or being accelerated by the sheaths, and by joule heating in the body of the plasma. In this paper, the authors discuss the spatial dependence of excitation rates and the method of power deposition iin RF discharges of the type used for plasma processing

Processing Incomplete Query Specifications in a Context-Dependent Reasoning Framework

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Neli P. Zlatareva

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Search is the most prominent web service, which is about to change dramatically with the transition to the Semantic Web. Semantic Web applications are expected to deal with complex conjunctive queries, and not always such queries can be completely and precisely defined. Current Semantic Web reasoners built upon Description Logics have limited processing power in such environments. We discuss some of their limitations, and show how an alternative logical framework utilizing context-dependent rules can be extended to handle incomplete or imprecise query specifications.

False recognition depends on depth of prior word processing: a magnetoencephalographic (MEG) study.

Science.gov (United States)

Walla, P; Hufnagl, B; Lindinger, G; Deecke, L; Imhof, H; Lang, W

2001-04-01

Brain activity was measured with a whole head magnetoencephalograph (MEG) during the test phases of word recognition experiments. Healthy young subjects had to discriminate between previously presented and new words. During prior study phases two different levels of word processing were provided according to two different kinds of instructions (shallow and deep encoding). Event-related fields (ERFs) associated with falsely recognized words (false alarms) were found to depend on the depth of processing during the prior study phase. False alarms elicited higher brain activity (as reflected by dipole strength) in case of prior deep encoding as compared to shallow encoding between 300 and 500 ms after stimulus onset at temporal brain areas. Between 500 and 700 ms we found evidence for differences in the involvement of neural structures related to both conditions of false alarms. Furthermore, the number of false alarms was found to depend on depth of processing. Shallow encoding led to a higher number of false alarms than deep encoding. All data are discussed as strong support for the ideas that a certain level of word processing is performed by a distinct set of neural systems and that the same neural systems which encode information are reactivated during the retrieval.

Using a spatially structured life cycle model to assess the influence of multiple stressors on an exploited coastal-nursery-dependent population

Science.gov (United States)

Archambault, B.; Rivot, E.; Savina, M.; Le Pape, O.

2018-02-01

Exploited coastal-nursery-dependent fish species are subject to various stressors occurring at specific stages of the life cycle: climate-driven variability in hydrography determines the success of the first eggs/larvae stages; coastal nursery habitat suitability controls juvenile growth and survival; and fisheries target mostly adults. A life cycle approach was used to quantify the relative influence of these stressors on the Eastern English Channel (EEC) population of the common sole (Solea solea), a coastal-nursery-dependent flatfish population which sustains important fisheries. The common sole has a complex life cycle: after eggs hatch, larvae spend several weeks drifting in open water. Survivors go on to metamorphose into benthic fish. Juveniles spend the first two years of their life in coastal and estuarine nurseries. Close to maturation, they migrate to deeper areas, where different subpopulations supplied by different nurseries reproduce and are exploited by fisheries. A spatially structured age-and stage-based hierarchical Bayesian model integrating various aspects of ecological knowledge, data sources and expert knowledge was built to quantitatively describe this complex life cycle. The model included the low connectivity among three subpopulations in the EEC, the influence of hydrographic variability, the availability of suitable juvenile habitat and fisheries. Scenarios were designed to quantify the effects of interacting stressors on population renewal. Results emphasized the importance of coastal nursery habitat availability and quality for the population renewal. Realistic restoration scenarios of the highly degraded Seine estuary produced a two-third increase in catch potential for the adjacent subpopulation. Fisheries, however, remained the main source of population depletion. Setting fishing mortality to the maximum sustainable yield led to substantial increases in biomass (+100%) and catch (+33%) at the EEC scale. The approach also showed how

An epidemiological model of viral infections in a Varroa-infested bee colony: the case of a bee-dependent mite population size

OpenAIRE

Bernardi, Sara; Venturino, Ezio

2016-01-01

In recent years the spread of the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor has become the most serious threat to worldwide apiculture. In the model presented here we extend the bee population dynamics with mite viral epidemiology examined in an earlier paper by allowing a bee-dependent mite population size. The results of the analysis match field observations well and give a clear explanation of how Varroa affects the epidemiology of certain naturally occurring bee viruses, causing considerable d...

Dynamics of radioecological and genetic processes in populations of mammalian model species at contamination of ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryabokon', N.I.; Goncharova, R.I.

2008-01-01

A short review of data on the time course of radiobiological and genetic processes in natural populations of mammalian model species inhabiting radiocontaminated ecosystems over many generations is presented here. The described time-courses of biological end-points in these populations do not reflect the time course of the whole-body dose rates, but do the outcome of multiple processes, including the direct response to individual irradiation, the transgeneration transmission and accumulation of induced damages and the development of adaptation. (authors)

Consolidating birth-death and death-birth processes in structured populations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joshua Zukewich

Full Text Available Network models extend evolutionary game theory to settings with spatial or social structure and have provided key insights on the mechanisms underlying the evolution of cooperation. However, network models have also proven sensitive to seemingly small details of the model architecture. Here we investigate two popular biologically motivated models of evolution in finite populations: Death-Birth (DB and Birth-Death (BD processes. In both cases reproduction is proportional to fitness and death is random; the only difference is the order of the two events at each time step. Although superficially similar, under DB cooperation may be favoured in structured populations, while under BD it never is. This is especially troubling as natural populations do not follow a strict one birth then one death regimen (or vice versa; such constraints are introduced to make models more tractable. Whether structure can promote the evolution of cooperation should not hinge on a simplifying assumption. Here, we propose a mixed rule where in each time step DB is used with probability δ and BD is used with probability 1-δ. We derive the conditions for selection favouring cooperation under the mixed rule for all social dilemmas. We find that the only qualitatively different outcome occurs when using just BD (δ = 0. This case admits a natural interpretation in terms of kin competition counterbalancing the effect of kin selection. Finally we show that, for any mixed BD-DB update and under weak selection, cooperation is never inhibited by population structure for any social dilemma, including the Snowdrift Game.

Propagation of Data Dependency through Distributed Cooperating Processes

Science.gov (United States)

1988-09-01

12 The External Data Dependency Analyzer ( EDDA ) .................................................. 12 The new EPL...47 EDDA Patch Files for the Dining Philosophers Example [Figure 23] ................... 49 L im itations...dependencies is evident. The External Data Dependency Analyzer ( EDDA ) The EDDA derives external data dependencies by performing two levels of analysis

The detrimental effects of emotional process dysregulation on decision-making in substance dependence

Science.gov (United States)

Murphy, Anna; Taylor, Eleanor; Elliott, Rebecca

2012-01-01

Substance dependence is complex and multifactorial, with many distinct pathways involved in both the development and subsequent maintenance of addictive behaviors. Various cognitive mechanisms have been implicated, including impulsivity, compulsivity, and impaired decision-making. These mechanisms are modulated by emotional processes, resulting in increased likelihood of initial drug use, sustained substance dependence, and increased relapse during periods of abstinence. Emotional traits, such as sensation-seeking, are risk factors for substance use, and chronic drug use can result in further emotional dysregulation via effects on reward, motivation, and stress systems. We will explore theories of hyper and hypo sensitivity of the brain reward systems that may underpin motivational abnormalities and anhedonia. Disturbances in these systems contribute to the biasing of emotional processing toward cues related to drug use at the expense of natural rewards, which serves to maintain addictive behavior, via enhanced drug craving. We will additionally focus on the sensitization of the brain stress systems that result in negative affect states that continue into protracted abstinence that is may lead to compulsive drug-taking. We will explore how these emotional dysregulations impact upon decision-making controlled by goal-directed and habitual action selections systems, and, in combination with a failure of prefrontal inhibitory control, mediate maladaptive decision-making observed in substance dependent individuals such that they continue drug use in spite of negative consequences. An understanding of the emotional impacts on cognition in substance dependent individuals may guide the development of more effective therapeutic interventions. PMID:23162443

Developing population models with data from marked individuals

Science.gov (United States)

Hae Yeong Ryu,; Kevin T. Shoemaker,; Eva Kneip,; Anna Pidgeon,; Patricia Heglund,; Brooke Bateman,; Thogmartin, Wayne E.; Reşit Akçakaya,

2016-01-01

Population viability analysis (PVA) is a powerful tool for biodiversity assessments, but its use has been limited because of the requirements for fully specified population models such as demographic structure, density-dependence, environmental stochasticity, and specification of uncertainties. Developing a fully specified population model from commonly available data sources – notably, mark–recapture studies – remains complicated due to lack of practical methods for estimating fecundity, true survival (as opposed to apparent survival), natural temporal variability in both survival and fecundity, density-dependence in the demographic parameters, and uncertainty in model parameters. We present a general method that estimates all the key parameters required to specify a stochastic, matrix-based population model, constructed using a long-term mark–recapture dataset. Unlike standard mark–recapture analyses, our approach provides estimates of true survival rates and fecundities, their respective natural temporal variabilities, and density-dependence functions, making it possible to construct a population model for long-term projection of population dynamics. Furthermore, our method includes a formal quantification of parameter uncertainty for global (multivariate) sensitivity analysis. We apply this approach to 9 bird species and demonstrate the feasibility of using data from the Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship (MAPS) program. Bias-correction factors for raw estimates of survival and fecundity derived from mark–recapture data (apparent survival and juvenile:adult ratio, respectively) were non-negligible, and corrected parameters were generally more biologically reasonable than their uncorrected counterparts. Our method allows the development of fully specified stochastic population models using a single, widely available data source, substantially reducing the barriers that have until now limited the widespread application of PVA. This method

Anthropogenically-Mediated Density Dependence in a Declining Farmland Bird.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jenny C Dunn

Full Text Available Land management intrinsically influences the distribution of animals and can consequently alter the potential for density-dependent processes to act within populations. For declining species, high densities of breeding territories are typically considered to represent productive populations. However, as density-dependent effects of food limitation or predator pressure may occur (especially when species are dependent upon separate nesting and foraging habitats, high territory density may limit per-capita productivity. Here, we use a declining but widespread European farmland bird, the yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella L., as a model system to test whether higher territory densities result in lower fledging success, parental provisioning rates or nestling growth rates compared to lower densities. Organic landscapes held higher territory densities, but nests on organic farms fledged fewer nestlings, translating to a 5 times higher rate of population shrinkage on organic farms compared to conventional. In addition, when parental provisioning behaviour was not restricted by predation risk (i.e., at times of low corvid activity, nestling provisioning rates were higher at lower territory densities, resulting in a much greater increase in nestling mass in low density areas, suggesting that food limitation occurred at high densities. These findings in turn suggest an ecological trap, whereby preferred nesting habitat does not provide sufficient food for rearing nestlings at high population density, creating a population sink. Habitat management for farmland birds should focus not simply on creating a high nesting density, but also on ensuring heterogeneous habitats to provide food resources in close proximity to nesting birds, even if this occurs through potentially restricting overall nest density but increasing population-level breeding success.

Stochastic population dynamics of a montane ground-dwelling squirrel.

Science.gov (United States)

Hostetler, Jeffrey A; Kneip, Eva; Van Vuren, Dirk H; Oli, Madan K

2012-01-01

Understanding the causes and consequences of population fluctuations is a central goal of ecology. We used demographic data from a long-term (1990-2008) study and matrix population models to investigate factors and processes influencing the dynamics and persistence of a golden-mantled ground squirrel (Callospermophilus lateralis) population, inhabiting a dynamic subalpine habitat in Colorado, USA. The overall deterministic population growth rate λ was 0.94±SE 0.05 but it varied widely over time, ranging from 0.45±0.09 in 2006 to 1.50±0.12 in 2003, and was below replacement (λbounce back from low densities and prevented extinction. These results suggest that dynamics and persistence of our study population are determined synergistically by density-dependence, stochastic forces, and immigration.

A CASE STUDY ON POINT PROCESS MODELLING IN DISEASE MAPPING

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Viktor Beneš

2011-05-01

Full Text Available We consider a data set of locations where people in Central Bohemia have been infected by tick-borne encephalitis (TBE, and where population census data and covariates concerning vegetation and altitude are available. The aims are to estimate the risk map of the disease and to study the dependence of the risk on the covariates. Instead of using the common area level approaches we base the analysis on a Bayesian approach for a log Gaussian Cox point process with covariates. Posterior characteristics for a discretized version of the log Gaussian Cox process are computed using Markov chain Monte Carlo methods. A particular problem which is thoroughly discussed is to determine a model for the background population density. The risk map shows a clear dependency with the population intensity models and the basic model which is adopted for the population intensity determines what covariates influence the risk of TBE. Model validation is based on the posterior predictive distribution of various summary statistics.

An integrative review of communication between parents and nurses of hospitalized technology-dependent children.

Science.gov (United States)

Giambra, Barbara K; Stiffler, Deborah; Broome, Marion E

2014-12-01

With advances in health care, the population of children who are technology-dependent is increasing and, therefore, the need for nurses to understand how best to engage in communication with the parents of these children is critical. Shared communication between the parents of hospitalized technology-dependent children and their nurses is essential to provide optimal care for the child. The components and behaviors of the parent-nurse communication process that improve mutual understanding of optimal care for the child had not previously been examined. Among parents of hospitalized technology-dependent children and their nurses, what communication behaviors, components, concepts, or processes improve mutual understanding of optimal care for the child? An integrative review of both qualitative and quantitative studies was conducted. Key words including communication, hospitalized, nurse, parent, pediatric, and technology-dependent were used to search databases such as Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health and Medline for years 2000-2014. The data regarding the process of parent-nurse communication were extracted as they related to the mutual understanding of optimal care for the child. The data were grouped into themes and compared across studies, designs, populations, and settings. Six articles were identified that provided information regarding the processes of shared communication among the parents of hospitalized technology-dependent children and their nurses. Providing clear information, involving parents in care decisions, trust and respect for each other's expertise, caring attitudes, advocacy, and role negotiation were all found to be important factors in shared parent-nurse communication. The results of this integrative review inform our understanding of the parent-nurse communication process. The findings provide nurses with an understanding of strategies to better engage in respectful, engaging, and intentional communication with parents of

Wide sense one-dependent processes with embedded Harris chains and their applications in inventory management

NARCIS (Netherlands)

E.M. Bazsa-Oldenkamp; P. den Iseger

2003-01-01

textabstractIn this paper we consider stochastic processes with an embedded Harris chain. The embedded Harris chain describes the dependence structure of the stochastic process. That is, all the relevant information of the past is contained in the state of the embedded Harris chain. For these

On the A dependence in the process of dilepton production by high-energy nucleons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gevorkyan, S.R.; Zhamkochyan, V.M.

1978-01-01

The process of lepton pair production in nucleon-nucleus collisions for high energies is considered. It is shown, that with due regard for the N → π → μ + μ - inelastic transitions the experimentally observed A dependence of the cross section of the NA → μ + μ - X process can be explained in the framework of the multiple scattering theory

Point process analyses of variations in smoking rate by setting, mood, gender, and dependence

Science.gov (United States)

Shiffman, Saul; Rathbun, Stephen L.

2010-01-01

The immediate emotional and situational antecedents of ad libitum smoking are still not well understood. We re-analyzed data from Ecological Momentary Assessment using novel point-process analyses, to assess how craving, mood, and social setting influence smoking rate, as well as assessing the moderating effects of gender and nicotine dependence. 304 smokers recorded craving, mood, and social setting using electronic diaries when smoking and at random nonsmoking times over 16 days of smoking. Point-process analysis, which makes use of the known random sampling scheme for momentary variables, examined main effects of setting and interactions with gender and dependence. Increased craving was associated with higher rates of smoking, particularly among women. Negative affect was not associated with smoking rate, even in interaction with arousal, but restlessness was associated with substantially higher smoking rates. Women's smoking tended to be less affected by negative affect. Nicotine dependence had little moderating effect on situational influences. Smoking rates were higher when smokers were alone or with others smoking, and smoking restrictions reduced smoking rates. However, the presence of others smoking undermined the effects of restrictions. The more sensitive point-process analyses confirmed earlier findings, including the surprising conclusion that negative affect by itself was not related to smoking rates. Contrary to hypothesis, men's and not women's smoking was influenced by negative affect. Both smoking restrictions and the presence of others who are not smoking suppress smoking, but others’ smoking undermines the effects of restrictions. Point-process analyses of EMA data can bring out even small influences on smoking rate. PMID:21480683

Diets of differentially processed wheat alter ruminal fermentation parameters and microbial populations in beef cattle.

Science.gov (United States)

Jiang, S Z; Yang, Z B; Yang, W R; Li, Z; Zhang, C Y; Liu, X M; Wan, F C

2015-11-01

The influences of differently processed wheat products on rumen fermentation, microbial populations, and serum biochemistry profiles in beef cattle were studied. Four ruminally cannulated Limousin × Luxi beef cattle (400 ± 10 kg) were used in the experiment with a 4 × 4 Latin square design. The experimental diets contained (on a DM basis) 60% corn silage as a forage source and 40% concentrate with 4 differently processed wheat products (extruded, pulverized, crushed, and rolled wheat). Concentrations of ruminal NH-N and microbial protein (MCP) in cattle fed crushed and rolled wheat were greater ( Ruminal concentrations of total VFA and acetate and the ratio of acetate to propionate decreased ( 0.05). Our findings suggest that the method of wheat processing could have a significant effect on ruminal fermentation parameters and microbial populations in beef cattle and that crushed and rolled processing is better in terms of ruminal NH-N and MCP content, acetate-to-propionate ratio, and relative abundance of rumen microorganisms.

Sensitivity analysis of effective population size to demographic parameters in house sparrow populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Stubberud, Marlene Waege; Myhre, Ane Marlene; Holand, Håkon; Kvalnes, Thomas; Ringsby, Thor Harald; Saether, Bernt-Erik; Jensen, Henrik

2017-05-01

The ratio between the effective and the census population size, Ne/N, is an important measure of the long-term viability and sustainability of a population. Understanding which demographic processes that affect Ne/N most will improve our understanding of how genetic drift and the probability of fixation of alleles is affected by demography. This knowledge may also be of vital importance in management of endangered populations and species. Here, we use data from 13 natural populations of house sparrow (Passer domesticus) in Norway to calculate the demographic parameters that determine Ne/N. Using the global variance-based Sobol' method for the sensitivity analyses, we found that Ne/N was most sensitive to demographic variance, especially among older individuals. Furthermore, the individual reproductive values (that determine the demographic variance) were most sensitive to variation in fecundity. Our results draw attention to the applicability of sensitivity analyses in population management and conservation. For population management aiming to reduce the loss of genetic variation, a sensitivity analysis may indicate the demographic parameters towards which resources should be focused. The result of such an analysis may depend on the life history and mating system of the population or species under consideration, because the vital rates and sex-age classes that Ne/N is most sensitive to may change accordingly. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Intercohort density dependence drives brown trout habitat selection

Science.gov (United States)

Ayllón, Daniel; Nicola, Graciela G.; Parra, Irene; Elvira, Benigno; Almodóvar, Ana

2013-01-01

Habitat selection can be viewed as an emergent property of the quality and availability of habitat but also of the number of individuals and the way they compete for its use. Consequently, habitat selection can change across years due to fluctuating resources or to changes in population numbers. However, habitat selection predictive models often do not account for ecological dynamics, especially density dependent processes. In stage-structured population, the strength of density dependent interactions between individuals of different age classes can exert a profound influence on population trajectories and evolutionary processes. In this study, we aimed to assess the effects of fluctuating densities of both older and younger competing life stages on the habitat selection patterns (described as univariate and multivariate resource selection functions) of young-of-the-year, juvenile and adult brown trout Salmo trutta. We observed all age classes were selective in habitat choice but changed their selection patterns across years consistently with variations in the densities of older but not of younger age classes. Trout of an age increased selectivity for positions highly selected by older individuals when their density decreased, but this pattern did not hold when the density of younger age classes varied. It suggests that younger individuals are dominated by older ones but can expand their range of selected habitats when density of competitors decreases, while older trout do not seem to consider the density of younger individuals when distributing themselves even though they can negatively affect their final performance. Since these results may entail critical implications for conservation and management practices based on habitat selection models, further research should involve a wider range of river typologies and/or longer time frames to fully understand the patterns of and the mechanisms underlying the operation of density dependence on brown trout habitat

Inferences on the population structure and colonization process of the invasive oriental fruit fly, Bactrocera dorsalis (Hendel).

Science.gov (United States)

Aketarawong, N; Bonizzoni, M; Thanaphum, S; Gomulski, L M; Gasperi, G; Malacrida, A R; Gugliemino, C R

2007-09-01

The phytophagous insects of the Tephritidae family offer different case histories of successful invasions. An example is Bactrocera dorsalis sensu stricto, the oriental fruit fly which has been recognized as a key pest of Asia and the Pacific. It is known to have the potential to establish adventive populations in various tropical and subtropical areas. Despite the economic risk associated with a putative stable presence of this fly, the genetic aspects of its invasion process have remained relatively unexplored. Using microsatellite markers we have investigated the population structure and genetic variability in 14 geographical populations across the four areas of the actual species range: Far East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia and the Pacific Area. Results of clustering and admixture, associated with phylogenetic and migration analyses, were used to evaluate the changes in population genetic structure that this species underwent during its invasion process and establishment in the different areas. The colonization process of this fly is associated with a relatively stable population demographic structure, especially in an unfragmented habitat, rich in intensive cultivation such as in Southeast Asia. In this area, the results suggest a lively demographic history, characterized by evolutionary recent demographic expansions and no recent bottlenecks. Cases of genetic isolation attributable to geographical factors, fragmented habitats and/or fruit trade restrictions were observed in Bangladesh, Myanmar and Hawaii. Regarding the pattern of invasion, the overall genetic profile of the considered populations suggests a western orientated migration route from China to the West.

The detrimental effects of emotional process dysregulation on decision making in substance dependence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anna eMurphy

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Substance dependence is complex and multifactorial, with many distinct pathways involved in both the development and subsequent maintenance of addictive behaviours. Various cognitive mechanisms have been implicated, including impulsivity, compulsivity and impaired decision-making. These mechanisms are modulated by emotional processes, resulting in increased likelihood of initial drug use, sustained substance dependence, and increased relapse during periods of abstinence. Emotional traits, such as sensation seeking, are risk factors for substance use, and chronic drug use can result in further emotional dysregulation via effects on reward, motivation and stress systems. We will explore theories of hyper and hypo sensitivity of the brain reward systems that may underpin motivational abnormalities and anhedonia. Disturbances in these systems contribute to the biasing of emotional processing toward cues related to drug use at the expense of natural rewards, which serves to maintain addictive behaviour, via enhanced drug craving. We will additionally focus on the sensitization of the brain stress systems that result in negative affect states that continue into protracted abstinence that is may lead to compulsive drug taking. We will explore how these emotional dysregulations impact upon decision-making controlled by goal-directed and habitual action selections systems, and, in combination with a failure of prefrontal inhibitory control, mediate maladaptive decision-making observed in substance dependent individuals such that they continue drug use in spite of negative consequences. An understanding of the emotional impacts on cognition in substance dependent individuals may guide the development of more effective therapeutic interventions.

Regression Analysis for Multivariate Dependent Count Data Using Convolved Gaussian Processes

OpenAIRE

Sofro, A'yunin; Shi, Jian Qing; Cao, Chunzheng

2017-01-01

Research on Poisson regression analysis for dependent data has been developed rapidly in the last decade. One of difficult problems in a multivariate case is how to construct a cross-correlation structure and at the meantime make sure that the covariance matrix is positive definite. To address the issue, we propose to use convolved Gaussian process (CGP) in this paper. The approach provides a semi-parametric model and offers a natural framework for modeling common mean structure and covarianc...

Combination of the mutation process with the sensitization and repair processes leading to increased frequencies of mutations in algal populations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Necas, J.

1977-01-01

The possibility of combining the mutation process with the induction of the repair processes was studied to increase the mutation frequencies in algal populations after UV treatment. The repair process induced by visible light was found to be much more effective than the dark repair processes in the chlorococcal algae used. In these algae, visible light possibly does not induce only those repair processes which affect their DNA, but probably also certain recovery processes which affect their damaged structures and physiological functions. A suitable combination of the sensitization of algae cells by a DNA-base analogue before UV treatment and the induction of the light repair and recovery processes resulted in a rather high increase of viable mutations in chlorococcal algae. These findings may be useful in breeding chlorococcal algae, which have no possibility of hybridization other than somatic. (author)

Stage-dependent responses to emergent habitat heterogeneity: consequences for a predatory insect population in a coffee agroecosystem.

Science.gov (United States)

Liere, Heidi; Perfecto, Ivette; Vandermeer, John

2014-08-01

Interactions among members of biological communities can create spatial patterns that effectively generate habitat heterogeneity for other members in the community, and this heterogeneity might be crucial for their persistence. For example, stage-dependent vulnerability of a predatory lady beetle to aggression of the ant, Azteca instabilis, creates two habitat types that are utilized differently by the immature and adult life stages of the beetle. Due to a mutualistic association between A. instabilis and the hemipteran Coccus viridis - which is A. orbigera main prey in the area - only plants around ant nests have high C. viridis populations. Here, we report on a series of surveys at three different scales aimed at detecting how the presence and clustered distribution of ant nests affect the distribution of the different life stages of this predatory lady beetle in a coffee farm in Chiapas, Mexico. Both beetle adults and larvae were more abundant in areas with ant nests, but adults were restricted to the peripheries of highest ant activity and outside the reach of coffee bushes containing the highest densities of lady beetle larvae. The abundance of adult beetles located around trees with ants increased with the size of the ant nest clusters but the relationship is not significant for larvae. Thus, we suggest that A. orbigera undergoes an ontogenetic niche shift, not through shifting prey species, but through stage-specific vulnerability differences against a competitor that renders areas of abundant prey populations inaccessible for adults but not for larvae. Together with evidence presented elsewhere, this study shows how an important predator is not only dependent on the existence of two qualitatively distinct habitat types, but also on the spatial distribution of these habitats. We suggest that this dependency arises due to the different responses that the predator's life stages have to this emergent spatial pattern.

Theoretical methodical aspects of forming skills of swimming among the different groups of population in the process of physical education and sport taking into account gender differences

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hanchar А.І.

2012-03-01

Full Text Available Research purpose: to expose theoretical and practical bases of effective methods of forming of skills of swimming at the different groups of population taking into account the gender differences of student in the process of physical education and sport. The dominant aspects of forming skills of swimming for different age-dependent groups are set. The negative phenomena of organizational character, which does not allow in good time and reliably to form for a man vitally important skills of safe movement on water, are selected. 5 basic aspects of forming of skills are recommended swimming which characterize high-quality realization of educational in detail, professionally-applied, health-improvement-hygienical, medical prophylactic and sporting-pedagogical influences of facilities of swimming on a population.

Modeling the influence of polls on elections: a population dynamics approach

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hyman, James M [Los Alamos National Laboratory; Restrepo, Juan M [UNIV OF ARIZONA; Rael, Rosalyn C [UNIV OF ARIZONA

2009-01-01

We propose a population dynamics model for quantifying the effects of polling data on the outcome of multi-party elections decided by a majority-rule voting process. We divide the population into two groups: committed voters impervious to polling data, and susceptible voters whose decision to vote is influenced by data, depending on its reliability. This population-based approach to modeling the process sidesteps the problem of upscaling models based upon the choices made by individuals. We find releasing poll data is not advantageous to leading candidates, but it can be exploited by those closely trailing. The analysis identifies the particular type of voting impetus at play in different stages of an election and could help strategists optimize their influence on susceptible voters.

Demographic models reveal the shape of density dependence for a specialist insect herbivore on variable host plants.

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Miller, Tom E X

2007-07-01

1. It is widely accepted that density-dependent processes play an important role in most natural populations. However, persistent challenges in our understanding of density-dependent population dynamics include evaluating the shape of the relationship between density and demographic rates (linear, concave, convex), and identifying extrinsic factors that can mediate this relationship. 2. I studied the population dynamics of the cactus bug Narnia pallidicornis on host plants (Opuntia imbricata) that varied naturally in relative reproductive effort (RRE, the proportion of meristems allocated to reproduction), an important plant quality trait. I manipulated per-plant cactus bug densities, quantified subsequent dynamics, and fit stage-structured models to the experimental data to ask if and how density influences demographic parameters. 3. In the field experiment, I found that populations with variable starting densities quickly converged upon similar growth trajectories. In the model-fitting analyses, the data strongly supported a model that defined the juvenile cactus bug retention parameter (joint probability of surviving and not dispersing) as a nonlinear decreasing function of density. The estimated shape of this relationship shifted from concave to convex with increasing host-plant RRE. 4. The results demonstrate that host-plant traits are critical sources of variation in the strength and shape of density dependence in insects, and highlight the utility of integrated experimental-theoretical approaches for identifying processes underlying patterns of change in natural populations.

Context-dependent motor skill: perceptual processing in memory-based sequence production.

Science.gov (United States)

Ruitenberg, Marit F L; Abrahamse, Elger L; De Kleine, Elian; Verwey, Willem B

2012-10-01

Previous studies have shown that motor sequencing skill can benefit from the reinstatement of the learning context-even with respect to features that are formally not required for appropriate task performance. The present study explored whether such context-dependence develops when sequence execution is fully memory-based-and thus no longer assisted by stimulus-response translations. Specifically, we aimed to distinguish between preparation and execution processes. Participants performed two keying sequences in a go/no-go version of the discrete sequence production task in which the context consisted of the color in which the target keys of a particular sequence were displayed. In a subsequent test phase, these colors either were the same as during practice, were reversed for the two sequences or were novel. Results showed that, irrespective of the amount of practice, performance across all key presses in the reversed context condition was impaired relative to performance in the same and novel contexts. This suggests that the online preparation and/or execution of single key presses of the sequence is context-dependent. We propose that a cognitive processor is responsible both for these online processes and for advance sequence preparation and that combined findings from the current and previous studies build toward the notion that the cognitive processor is highly sensitive to changes in context across the various roles that it performs.

Demographic population model for American shad: will access to additional habitat upstream of dams increase population sizes?

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Julianne E.; Hightower, Joseph E.

2012-01-01

American shad Alosa sapidissima are in decline in their native range, and modeling possible management scenarios could help guide their restoration. We developed a density-dependent, deterministic, stage-based matrix model to predict the population-level results of transporting American shad to suitable spawning habitat upstream of dams on the Roanoke River, North Carolina and Virginia. We used data on sonic-tagged adult American shad and oxytetracycline-marked American shad fry both above and below dams on the Roanoke River with information from other systems to estimate a starting population size and vital rates. We modeled the adult female population over 30 years under plausible scenarios of adult transport, effective fecundity (egg production), and survival of adults (i.e., to return to spawn the next year) and juveniles (from spawned egg to age 1). We also evaluated the potential effects of increased survival for adults and juveniles. The adult female population size in the Roanoke River was estimated to be 5,224. With no transport, the model predicted a slow population increase over the next 30 years. Predicted population increases were highest when survival was improved during the first year of life. Transport was predicted to benefit the population only if high rates of effective fecundity and juvenile survival could be achieved. Currently, transported adults and young are less likely to successfully out-migrate than individuals below the dams, and the estimated adult population size is much smaller than either of two assumed values of carrying capacity for the lower river; therefore, transport is not predicted to help restore the stock under present conditions. Research on survival rates, density-dependent processes, and the impacts of structures to increase out-migration success would improve evaluation of the potential benefits of access to additional spawning habitat for American shad.

Anatomic Variation in Morphometry of Human Coracoid Process among Asian Population.

Science.gov (United States)

Fathi, Manal; Cheah, Pike-See; Ahmad, Umar; Nasir, M Nizlan; San, Aye Aye; Abdul Rahim, Ezamin; Hussin, Paisal; Mahmud, Rozi; Othman, Fauziah

2017-01-01

Ethnic origin plays an important role in bone morphometry. Studies examining the influence of coracoid process have focused primarily on adults and have not included people from diverse Asian ethnic backgrounds. Our goal was to explore ethnic differences in morphometry of coracoid among Asian population. We performed morphometric measurements of coracoid process on cadaveric shoulders and shoulder CT scans from 118 specimens. The cadaveric sample included Indian (46%), Chinese (27%), and Myanmarese (27%) subjects, while the CT scans sample included Chinese (67%) and Malay (33%) subjects. The morphometric measurements were performed using digital caliper and software developed at Golden Horses Health Sanctuary (GHHS). In the Indian cadaveric shoulders, the coracoid process is better developed than the other groups with the exception of the tip width of coracoid process. There are significant differences in almost all measurements ( P Chinese than Malay subjects when stratified by sex ( P < 0.05). Moreover, in all morphometric measurements, the females had smaller measurements than males ( P < 0.05). Understanding such differences is important in anatomy, forensic and biological identity, and orthopaedic and shoulder surgeries.

Complexity and simplification in understanding recruitment in benthic populations

KAUST Repository

Pineda, Jesús

2008-11-13

Research of complex systems and problems, entities with many dependencies, is often reductionist. The reductionist approach splits systems or problems into different components, and then addresses these components one by one. This approach has been used in the study of recruitment and population dynamics of marine benthic (bottom-dwelling) species. Another approach examines benthic population dynamics by looking at a small set of processes. This approach is statistical or model-oriented. Simplified approaches identify "macroecological" patterns or attempt to identify and model the essential, "first-order" elements of the system. The complexity of the recruitment and population dynamics problems stems from the number of processes that can potentially influence benthic populations, including (1) larval pool dynamics, (2) larval transport, (3) settlement, and (4) post-settlement biotic and abiotic processes, and larval production. Moreover, these processes are non-linear, some interact, and they may operate on disparate scales. This contribution discusses reductionist and simplified approaches to study benthic recruitment and population dynamics of bottom-dwelling marine invertebrates. We first address complexity in two processes known to influence recruitment, larval transport, and post-settlement survival to reproduction, and discuss the difficulty in understanding recruitment by looking at relevant processes individually and in isolation. We then address the simplified approach, which reduces the number of processes and makes the problem manageable. We discuss how simplifications and "broad-brush first-order approaches" may muddle our understanding of recruitment. Lack of empirical determination of the fundamental processes often results in mistaken inferences, and processes and parameters used in some models can bias our view of processes influencing recruitment. We conclude with a discussion on how to reconcile complex and simplified approaches. Although it

Scalable Bayesian nonparametric measures for exploring pairwise dependence via Dirichlet Process Mixtures.

Science.gov (United States)

Filippi, Sarah; Holmes, Chris C; Nieto-Barajas, Luis E

2016-11-16

In this article we propose novel Bayesian nonparametric methods using Dirichlet Process Mixture (DPM) models for detecting pairwise dependence between random variables while accounting for uncertainty in the form of the underlying distributions. A key criteria is that the procedures should scale to large data sets. In this regard we find that the formal calculation of the Bayes factor for a dependent-vs.-independent DPM joint probability measure is not feasible computationally. To address this we present Bayesian diagnostic measures for characterising evidence against a "null model" of pairwise independence. In simulation studies, as well as for a real data analysis, we show that our approach provides a useful tool for the exploratory nonparametric Bayesian analysis of large multivariate data sets.

The influence of wavelength-dependent radiation in simulation of lamp-heated rapid thermal processing systems

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ting, A. [Sandia National Labs., Livermore, CA (United States). Computational Mechanics Dept.

1994-08-01

Understanding the thermal response of lamp-heated rapid thermal processing (RTP) systems requires understanding relatively complex radiation exchange among opaque and partially transmitting surfaces and materials. The objective of this paper is to investigate the influence of wavelength-dependent radiative properties. The examples used for the analysis consider axisymmetric systems of the kind that were developed by Texas Instruments (TI) for the Microelectronics Manufacturing Science and Technology (MMST) Program and illustrate a number of wavelength-dependent (spectral) effects. The models execute quickly on workstation class computing flatforms, and thus permit rapid comparison of alternative reactor designs and physical models. The fast execution may also permit the incorporation of these models into real-time model-based process control algorithms.

Vitamin B12 and folate levels in normal population of northern Pakistan

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madood-ul-mannan; Anwar, M.; Saleem, M.; Waqar, A.; Ahmad, M.

1990-01-01

Diagnosis of vitamin B12 or folate deficiency can not be made unless reference ranges of these vitamins in a given population are known. These serum levels depend upon the dietary intake of these vitamins which in turn depends upon the availability of foods containing these vitamins and the methods of cooking/processing. The latter vary in different populations. Therefore serum level of these vitamins would vary in different populations. Serum levels of vitamin B12 and folate were estimated by radioimmunoassay technique in 30 normal subjects of different age groups. The levels of vitamin B12 were found to be 215.2 pg/ml and that of folate 3.9 ng/ml. These values are much lower than those described for European population. It is therefore concluded that the cut off point of the levels of these vitamins should be different than the European figures. (author)

An efficient and reproducible process for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) of rare cell populations

Science.gov (United States)

Kumar, Sachin; Ciraolo, Georgianne; Hinge, Ashwini; Filippi, Marie-Dominique

2014-01-01

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) provides ultra-structural details of cells at the sub-organelle level. However, details of the cellular ultrastructure, and the cellular organization and content of various organelles in rare populations, particularly in the suspension, like hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) remained elusive. This is mainly due to the requirement of millions of cells for TEM studies. Thus, there is a vital requirement of a method that will allow TEM studies with low cell numbers of such rare populations. We describe an alternative and novel approach for TEM studies for rare cell populations. Here we performed TEM study from 10,000 HSC cells with quite ease. In particular, tiny cell pellets were identified by Evans blue staining after PFA-GA fixation. The cell pellet was pre-embedded in agarose in a small microcentrifuge tube and processed for dehydration, infiltration and embedding. Semi-thin and ultra-thin sections identified clusters of numerous cells per sections with well preserved morphology and ultrastructural details of golgi complex and mitochondria. Together, this method provides an efficient, easy and reproducible process to perform qualitative and quantitative TEM analysis from limited biological samples including cells in suspension. PMID:24291346

Anti-hebbian spike-timing-dependent plasticity and adaptive sensory processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, Patrick D; Leen, Todd K

2010-01-01

Adaptive sensory processing influences the central nervous system's interpretation of incoming sensory information. One of the functions of this adaptive sensory processing is to allow the nervous system to ignore predictable sensory information so that it may focus on important novel information needed to improve performance of specific tasks. The mechanism of spike-timing-dependent plasticity (STDP) has proven to be intriguing in this context because of its dual role in long-term memory and ongoing adaptation to maintain optimal tuning of neural responses. Some of the clearest links between STDP and adaptive sensory processing have come from in vitro, in vivo, and modeling studies of the electrosensory systems of weakly electric fish. Plasticity in these systems is anti-Hebbian, so that presynaptic inputs that repeatedly precede, and possibly could contribute to, a postsynaptic neuron's firing are weakened. The learning dynamics of anti-Hebbian STDP learning rules are stable if the timing relations obey strict constraints. The stability of these learning rules leads to clear predictions of how functional consequences can arise from the detailed structure of the plasticity. Here we review the connection between theoretical predictions and functional consequences of anti-Hebbian STDP, focusing on adaptive processing in the electrosensory system of weakly electric fish. After introducing electrosensory adaptive processing and the dynamics of anti-Hebbian STDP learning rules, we address issues of predictive sensory cancelation and novelty detection, descending control of plasticity, synaptic scaling, and optimal sensory tuning. We conclude with examples in other systems where these principles may apply.

Anti-Hebbian Spike Timing Dependent Plasticity and Adaptive Sensory Processing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrick D Roberts

2010-12-01

Full Text Available Adaptive processing influences the central nervous system's interpretation of incoming sensory information. One of the functions of this adaptative sensory processing is to allow the nervous system to ignore predictable sensory information so that it may focus on important new information needed to improve performance of specific tasks. The mechanism of spike timing-dependent plasticity (STDP has proven to be intriguing in this context because of its dual role in long-term memory and ongoing adaptation to maintain optimal tuning of neural responses. Some of the clearest links between STDP and adaptive sensory processing have come from in vitro, in vivo, and modeling studies of the electrosensory systems of fish. Plasticity in such systems is anti-Hebbian, i.e. presynaptic inputs that repeatedly precede and hence could contribute to a postsynaptic neuron’s firing are weakened. The learning dynamics of anti-Hebbian STDP learning rules are stable if the timing relations obey strict constraints. The stability of these learning rules leads to clear predictions of how functional consequences can arise from the detailed structure of the plasticity. Here we review the connection between theoretical predictions and functional consequences of anti-Hebbian STDP, focusing on adaptive processing in the electrosensory system of weakly electric fish. After introducing electrosensory adaptive processing and the dynamics of anti-Hebbian STDP learning rules, we address issues of predictive sensory cancellation and novelty detection, descending control of plasticity, synaptic scaling, and optimal sensory tuning. We conclude with examples in other systems where these principles may apply.

Demographic responses to weather fluctuations are context dependent in a long-lived amphibian.

Science.gov (United States)

Cayuela, Hugo; Arsovski, Dragan; Thirion, Jean-Marc; Bonnaire, Eric; Pichenot, Julian; Boitaud, Sylvain; Miaud, Claude; Joly, Pierre; Besnard, Aurélien

2016-08-01

Weather fluctuations have been demonstrated to affect demographic traits in many species. In long-lived organisms, their impact on adult survival might be buffered by the evolution of traits that reduce variation in interannual adult survival. For example, skipping breeding is an effective behavioral mechanism that may limit yearly variation in adult survival when harsh weather conditions occur; however, this in turn would likely lead to strong variation in recruitment. Yet, only a few studies to date have examined the impact of weather variation on survival, recruitment and breeding probability simultaneously in different populations of the same species. To fill this gap, we studied the impact of spring temperatures and spring rainfall on survival, on reproductive skipping behavior and on recruitment in five populations of a long-lived amphibian, the yellow-bellied toad (Bombina variegata). Based on capture-recapture data, our findings demonstrate that survival depends on interactions between age, population and weather variation. Varying weather conditions in the spring result in strong variation in the survival of immature toads, whereas they have little effect on adult toads. Breeding probability depends on both the individual's previous reproductive status and on the weather conditions during the current breeding season, leading to high interannual variation in recruitment. Crucially, we found that the impact of weather variation on demographic traits is largely context dependent and may thus differ sharply between populations. Our results suggest that studies predicting the impact of climate change on population dynamics should be taken with caution when the relationship between climate and demographic traits is established using only one population or few populations. We therefore highly recommend further research that includes surveys replicated in a substantial number of populations to account for context-dependent variation in demographic processes. �

Compensatory immigration depends on adjacent population size and habitat quality but not on landscape connectivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Turgeon, Katrine; Kramer, Donald L

2012-11-01

1. Populations experiencing localized mortality can recover in the short term by net movement of individuals from adjacent areas, a process called compensatory immigration or spillover. Little is known about the factors influencing the magnitude of compensatory immigration or its impact on source populations. Such information is important for understanding metapopulation dynamics, the use of protected areas for conservation, management of exploited populations and pest control. 2. Using two small, territorial damselfish species (Stegastes diencaeus and S. adustus) in their naturally fragmented habitat, we quantified compensatory immigration in response to localized mortality, assessed its impact on adjacent source populations and examined the importance of potential immigrants, habitat quality and landscape connectivity as limiting factors. On seven experimental sites, we repeatedly removed 15% of the initial population size until none remained and immigration ceased. 3. Immigrants replaced 16-72% of original residents in S. diencaeus and 0-69% in S. adustus. The proportion of the source population that immigrated into depleted areas varied from 9% to 61% in S. diencaeus and from 3% to 21% in S. adustus. In S. diencaeus, compensatory immigration was strongly affected by habitat quality, to a lesser extent by the abundance of potential immigrants and not by landscape connectivity. In S. adustus, immigration was strongly affected by the density of potential migrants and not by habitat quality and landscape connectivity. On two control sites, immigration in the absence of creation of vacancies was extremely rare. 4. Immigration occurred in response to localized mortality and was therefore compensatory. It was highly variable, sometimes producing substantial impacts on both depleted and source populations. The magnitude of compensatory immigration was influenced primarily by the availability of immigrants and by the potential improvement in territory quality that they

EPR pilot study on the population of Stepnogorsk city living in the vicinity of a uranium processing plant

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhumadilov, Kassym; Akilbekov, Abdirash; Morzabayev, Aidar [L.N. Gumilyov Eurasian National University, Astana (Kazakhstan); Ivannikov, Alexander; Stepanenko, Valeriy [Medical Radiological Research Center, Obninsk (Russian Federation); Abralina, Sholpan; Sadvokasova, Lyazzat; Rakhypbekov, Tolebay [Semey State Medical University, Semey (Kazakhstan); Hoshi, Masaharu [Hiroshima University, Research Institute for Radiation Biology and Medicine, Hiroshima (Japan)

2015-03-15

The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate possible doses in teeth received by workers of a uranium processing plant, in excess to the natural background dose. For this, the electron paramagnetic resonance dosimetry method was applied. Absorbed doses in teeth from the workers were compared with those measured in teeth from the Stepnogorsk city population and a control pool population from Astana city. The measured tooth samples were extracted according to medical indications. In total, 32 tooth enamel samples were analyzed, 5 from Astana city, Kazakhstan (control population), 21 from the residents of Stepnogorsk city (180 km from Astana city), and 6 from the workers of a uranium processing plant. The estimated doses in tooth enamel from the uranium processing plant workers were not significantly different to those measured in enamel from the control population. In teeth from the workers, the maximum dose in excess to background dose was 33 mGy. In two teeth from residents of Stepnogorsk city, however, somewhat larger doses were measured. The results of this pilot study encourage further investigations in an effort to receiving a final conclusion on the exposure situation of the uranium processing plant workers and the residents of Stepnogorsk city. (orig.)

State-dependent sensorimotor processing: gaze and posture stability during simulated flight in birds.

Science.gov (United States)

McArthur, Kimberly L; Dickman, J David

2011-04-01

Vestibular responses play an important role in maintaining gaze and posture stability during rotational motion. Previous studies suggest that these responses are state dependent, their expression varying with the environmental and locomotor conditions of the animal. In this study, we simulated an ethologically relevant state in the laboratory to study state-dependent vestibular responses in birds. We used frontal airflow to simulate gliding flight and measured pigeons' eye, head, and tail responses to rotational motion in darkness, under both head-fixed and head-free conditions. We show that both eye and head response gains are significantly higher during flight, thus enhancing gaze and head-in-space stability. We also characterize state-specific tail responses to pitch and roll rotation that would help to maintain body-in-space orientation during flight. These results demonstrate that vestibular sensorimotor processing is not fixed but depends instead on the animal's behavioral state.

A Continuous Correlated Beta Process Model for Genetic Ancestry in Admixed Populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Gompert, Zachariah

2016-01-01

Admixture and recombination create populations and genomes with genetic ancestry from multiple source populations. Analyses of genetic ancestry in admixed populations are relevant for trait and disease mapping, studies of speciation, and conservation efforts. Consequently, many methods have been developed to infer genome-average ancestry and to deconvolute ancestry into continuous local ancestry blocks or tracts within individuals. Current methods for local ancestry inference perform well when admixture occurred recently or hybridization is ongoing, or when admixture occurred in the distant past such that local ancestry blocks have fixed in the admixed population. However, methods to infer local ancestry frequencies in isolated admixed populations still segregating for ancestry do not exist. In the current paper, I develop and test a continuous correlated beta process model to fill this analytical gap. The method explicitly models autocorrelations in ancestry frequencies at the population-level and uses discriminant analysis of SNP windows to take advantage of ancestry blocks within individuals. Analyses of simulated data sets show that the method is generally accurate such that ancestry frequency estimates exhibited low root-mean-square error and were highly correlated with the true values, particularly when large (±10 or ±20) SNP windows were used. Along these lines, the proposed method outperformed post hoc inference of ancestry frequencies from a traditional hidden Markov model (i.e., the linkage model in structure), particularly when admixture occurred more distantly in the past with little on-going gene flow or was followed by natural selection. The reliability and utility of the method was further assessed by analyzing genetic ancestry in an admixed human population (Uyghur) and three populations from a hybrid zone between Mus domesticus and M. musculus. Considerable variation in ancestry frequencies was detected within and among chromosomes in the Uyghur

The Merkel coefficient and its dependence on the temperature position of the cooling tower process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klenke, W.

1977-01-01

The Merkel coefficient, or evaporation coefficient, is still being used as a characteristic factor for the cooling tower process. Its dependence on the cooling range or on the warm water temperature of the process is often considered a disadvantage of the theory of evaporation cooling. This is also the reason for the suggestion to change the theory in such a way that the Merkel coefficient becomes independent of the temperature. The present investigation, however, leads to the result that the dependence of the Merkel coefficient on the temperature must be considered as a remarkable confirmation for the evidence of the theory of heat and mass transfer, as the experimental statements agree fully with the results of the theoretical considerations. (orig.) [de

Colony Development and Density-Dependent Processes in Breeding Grey Herons

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Takeshi Shirai

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The density-dependent processes that limit the colony size of colonially breeding birds such as herons and egrets remain unclear, because it is difficult to monitor colonies from the first year of their establishment, and the most previous studies have considered mixed-species colonies. In the present study, single-species colonies of the Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea were observed from the first year of their establishment for 16 years in suburban Tokyo. Colony size increased after establishment, illustrating a saturation curve. The breeding duration (days from nest building to fledging by a pair increased, but the number of fledglings per nest decreased, with colony size. The reproductive season in each year began earlier, and there was greater variation in the timing of individual breeding when the colony size was larger. The prolonged duration until nestling feeding by early breeders of the colony suggests that herons at the beginning of the new breeding season exist in an unsteady state with one another, likely owing to interactions with immigrant individuals. Such density-dependent interference may affect reproductive success and limit the colony size of Grey Herons.

The impact of negative emotions on self-concept abstraction depends on accessible information processing styles.

Science.gov (United States)

Isbell, Linda M; Rovenpor, Daniel R; Lair, Elicia C

2016-10-01

Research suggests that anger promotes global, abstract processing whereas sadness and fear promote local, concrete processing (see Schwarz & Clore, 2007 for a review). Contrary to a large and influential body of work suggesting that specific affective experiences are tethered to specific cognitive outcomes, the affect-as-cognitive-feedback account maintains that affective experiences confer positive or negative value on currently dominant processing styles, and thus can lead to either global or local processing (Huntsinger, Isbell, & Clore, 2014). The current work extends this theoretical perspective by investigating the impact of discrete negative emotions on the self-concept. By experimentally manipulating information processing styles and discrete negative emotions that vary in appraisals of certainty, we demonstrate that the impact of discrete negative emotions on the spontaneous self-concept depends on accessible processing styles. When global processing was accessible, individuals in angry (negative, high certainty) states generated more abstract statements about themselves than individuals in either sad (Experiment 1) or fearful (Experiment 2; negative, low certainty) states. When local processing was made accessible, however, the opposite pattern emerged, whereby individuals in angry states generated fewer abstract statements than individuals in sad or fearful states. Together these studies provide new insights into the mechanisms through which discrete emotions influence cognition. In contrast to theories assuming a dedicated link between emotions and processing styles, these results suggest that discrete emotions provide feedback about accessible ways of thinking, and are consistent with recent evidence suggesting that the impact of affect on cognition is highly context-dependent. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved).

[Association of processed meat intake and obesity in a population-based study of Japanese-Brazilians].

Science.gov (United States)

Cristofoletti, Maria F; Gimeno, Suely G A; Ferreira, Sandra R G; Cardoso, Marly A

2013-08-01

The aim of this study was to investigate the association between the consumption of processed meat with overall, abdominal, and overall with abdominal obesity in a Japanese-Brazilian population, which is known to be at cardiometabolic risk. A total of 329 men and 443 women aged ≥ 30 years were evaluated in a cross-sectional population-based survey. Diagnosis of overall obesity and abdominal obesity were based on the World Health Organization (WHO) criteria for Asians. Food intake was assessed by a validated food frequency questionaire. In men, processed meat intake was positively associated with overall with abdominal obesity (OR 2.97; 95%CI 1.13-7.78) after adjustment. In women, only the red meat group was associated with overall with abdominal obesity after adjustment (OR 0.47, 95%CI 0.23-0.96). Our results showed that high intakes of processed meats were associated with overall with abdominal obesity in male Japanese-Brazilians, but not in females.

A Bayesian approach to identifying and compensating for model misspecification in population models.

Science.gov (United States)

Thorson, James T; Ono, Kotaro; Munch, Stephan B

2014-02-01

State-space estimation methods are increasingly used in ecology to estimate productivity and abundance of natural populations while accounting for variability in both population dynamics and measurement processes. However, functional forms for population dynamics and density dependence often will not match the true biological process, and this may degrade the performance of state-space methods. We therefore developed a Bayesian semiparametric state-space model, which uses a Gaussian process (GP) to approximate the population growth function. This offers two benefits for population modeling. First, it allows data to update a specified "prior" on the population growth function, while reverting to this prior when data are uninformative. Second, it allows variability in population dynamics to be decomposed into random errors around the population growth function ("process error") and errors due to the mismatch between the specified prior and estimated growth function ("model error"). We used simulation modeling to illustrate the utility of GP methods in state-space population dynamics models. Results confirmed that the GP model performs similarly to a conventional state-space model when either (1) the prior matches the true process or (2) data are relatively uninformative. However, GP methods improve estimates of the population growth function when the function is misspecified. Results also demonstrated that the estimated magnitude of "model error" can be used to distinguish cases of model misspecification. We conclude with a discussion of the prospects for GP methods in other state-space models, including age and length-structured, meta-analytic, and individual-movement models.

Recombination Processes and Nonlinear Markov Chains.

Science.gov (United States)

Pirogov, Sergey; Rybko, Alexander; Kalinina, Anastasia; Gelfand, Mikhail

2016-09-01

Bacteria are known to exchange genetic information by horizontal gene transfer. Since the frequency of homologous recombination depends on the similarity between the recombining segments, several studies examined whether this could lead to the emergence of subspecies. Most of them simulated fixed-size Wright-Fisher populations, in which the genetic drift should be taken into account. Here, we use nonlinear Markov processes to describe a bacterial population evolving under mutation and recombination. We consider a population structure as a probability measure on the space of genomes. This approach implies the infinite population size limit, and thus, the genetic drift is not assumed. We prove that under these conditions, the emergence of subspecies is impossible.

Generalized Fractional Processes with Long Memory and Time Dependent Volatility Revisited

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Shelton Peiris

2016-09-01

Full Text Available In recent years, fractionally-differenced processes have received a great deal of attention due to their flexibility in financial applications with long-memory. This paper revisits the class of generalized fractionally-differenced processes generated by Gegenbauer polynomials and the ARMA structure (GARMA with both the long-memory and time-dependent innovation variance. We establish the existence and uniqueness of second-order solutions. We also extend this family with innovations to follow GARCH and stochastic volatility (SV. Under certain regularity conditions, we give asymptotic results for the approximate maximum likelihood estimator for the GARMA-GARCH model. We discuss a Monte Carlo likelihood method for the GARMA-SV model and investigate finite sample properties via Monte Carlo experiments. Finally, we illustrate the usefulness of this approach using monthly inflation rates for France, Japan and the United States.

Anatomic Variation in Morphometry of Human Coracoid Process among Asian Population

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Manal Fathi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Ethnic origin plays an important role in bone morphometry. Studies examining the influence of coracoid process have focused primarily on adults and have not included people from diverse Asian ethnic backgrounds. Our goal was to explore ethnic differences in morphometry of coracoid among Asian population. We performed morphometric measurements of coracoid process on cadaveric shoulders and shoulder CT scans from 118 specimens. The cadaveric sample included Indian (46%, Chinese (27%, and Myanmarese (27% subjects, while the CT scans sample included Chinese (67% and Malay (33% subjects. The morphometric measurements were performed using digital caliper and software developed at Golden Horses Health Sanctuary (GHHS. In the Indian cadaveric shoulders, the coracoid process is better developed than the other groups with the exception of the tip width of coracoid process. There are significant differences in almost all measurements (P<0.05 between the ethnic groups. On the other hand, the morphometry of coracoid process from CT scans data is bigger in Chinese than Malay subjects when stratified by sex (P<0.05. Moreover, in all morphometric measurements, the females had smaller measurements than males (P<0.05. Understanding such differences is important in anatomy, forensic and biological identity, and orthopaedic and shoulder surgeries.

Dependent Children and Suicide of Married Parents.

Science.gov (United States)

Kozak, Conrad M.; Gibbs, James O.

1979-01-01

Single suicides and married suicides with dependent children were compared to similar groups in the general population. Married people with dependent children experienced the lowest average suicide rate, but had a larger mean number of children than the population as a whole. (Author)

Bayesian population decoding of spiking neurons.

Science.gov (United States)

Gerwinn, Sebastian; Macke, Jakob; Bethge, Matthias

2009-01-01

The timing of action potentials in spiking neurons depends on the temporal dynamics of their inputs and contains information about temporal fluctuations in the stimulus. Leaky integrate-and-fire neurons constitute a popular class of encoding models, in which spike times depend directly on the temporal structure of the inputs. However, optimal decoding rules for these models have only been studied explicitly in the noiseless case. Here, we study decoding rules for probabilistic inference of a continuous stimulus from the spike times of a population of leaky integrate-and-fire neurons with threshold noise. We derive three algorithms for approximating the posterior distribution over stimuli as a function of the observed spike trains. In addition to a reconstruction of the stimulus we thus obtain an estimate of the uncertainty as well. Furthermore, we derive a 'spike-by-spike' online decoding scheme that recursively updates the posterior with the arrival of each new spike. We use these decoding rules to reconstruct time-varying stimuli represented by a Gaussian process from spike trains of single neurons as well as neural populations.

Bayesian population decoding of spiking neurons

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Sebastian Gerwinn

2009-10-01

Full Text Available The timing of action potentials in spiking neurons depends on the temporal dynamics of their inputs and contains information about temporal fluctuations in the stimulus. Leaky integrate-and-fire neurons constitute a popular class of encoding models, in which spike times depend directly on the temporal structure of the inputs. However, optimal decoding rules for these models have only been studied explicitly in the noiseless case. Here, we study decoding rules for probabilistic inference of a continuous stimulus from the spike times of a population of leaky integrate-and-fire neurons with threshold noise. We derive three algorithms for approximating the posterior distribution over stimuli as a function of the observed spike trains. In addition to a reconstruction of the stimulus we thus obtain an estimate of the uncertainty as well. Furthermore, we derive a `spike-by-spike' online decoding scheme that recursively updates the posterior with the arrival of each new spike. We use these decoding rules to reconstruct time-varying stimuli represented by a Gaussian process from spike trains of single neurons as well as neural populations.

Age-dependent transition from cell-level to population-level control in murine intestinal homeostasis revealed by coalescence analysis.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zheng Hu

Full Text Available In multi-cellular organisms, tissue homeostasis is maintained by an exquisite balance between stem cell proliferation and differentiation. This equilibrium can be achieved either at the single cell level (a.k.a. cell asymmetry, where stem cells follow strict asymmetric divisions, or the population level (a.k.a. population asymmetry, where gains and losses in individual stem cell lineages are randomly distributed, but the net effect is homeostasis. In the mature mouse intestinal crypt, previous evidence has revealed a pattern of population asymmetry through predominantly symmetric divisions of stem cells. In this work, using population genetic theory together with previously published crypt single-cell data obtained at different mouse life stages, we reveal a strikingly dynamic pattern of stem cell homeostatic control. We find that single-cell asymmetric divisions are gradually replaced by stochastic population-level asymmetry as the mouse matures to adulthood. This lifelong process has important developmental and evolutionary implications in understanding how adult tissues maintain their homeostasis integrating the trade-off between intrinsic and extrinsic regulations.

Crossing regimes of temperature dependence in animal movement.

Science.gov (United States)

Gibert, Jean P; Chelini, Marie-Claire; Rosenthal, Malcolm F; DeLong, John P

2016-05-01

A pressing challenge in ecology is to understand the effects of changing global temperatures on food web structure and dynamics. The stability of these complex ecological networks largely depends on how predator-prey interactions may respond to temperature changes. Because predators and prey rely on their velocities to catch food or avoid being eaten, understanding how temperatures may affect animal movement is central to this quest. Despite our efforts, we still lack a mechanistic understanding of how the effect of temperature on metabolic processes scales up to animal movement and beyond. Here, we merge a biomechanical approach, the Metabolic Theory of Ecology and empirical data to show that animal movement displays multiple regimes of temperature dependence. We also show that crossing these regimes has important consequences for population dynamics and stability, which depend on the parameters controlling predator-prey interactions. We argue that this dependence upon interaction parameters may help explain why experimental work on the temperature dependence of interaction strengths has so far yielded conflicting results. More importantly, these changes in the temperature dependence of animal movement can have consequences that go well beyond ecological interactions and affect, for example, animal communication, mating, sensory detection, and any behavioral modality dependent on the movement of limbs. Finally, by not taking into account the changes in temperature dependence reported here we might not be able to properly forecast the impact of global warming on ecological processes and propose appropriate mitigation action when needed. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Using a laboratory-based growth model to estimate mass- and temperature-dependent growth parameters across populations of juvenile Chinook Salmon

Science.gov (United States)

Perry, Russell W.; Plumb, John M.; Huntington, Charles

2015-01-01

To estimate the parameters that govern mass- and temperature-dependent growth, we conducted a meta-analysis of existing growth data from juvenile Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha that were fed an ad libitum ration of a pelleted diet. Although the growth of juvenile Chinook Salmon has been well studied, research has focused on a single population, a narrow range of fish sizes, or a narrow range of temperatures. Therefore, we incorporated the Ratkowsky model for temperature-dependent growth into an allometric growth model; this model was then fitted to growth data from 11 data sources representing nine populations of juvenile Chinook Salmon. The model fit the growth data well, explaining 98% of the variation in final mass. The estimated allometric mass exponent (b) was 0.338 (SE = 0.025), similar to estimates reported for other salmonids. This estimate of b will be particularly useful for estimating mass-standardized growth rates of juvenile Chinook Salmon. In addition, the lower thermal limit, optimal temperature, and upper thermal limit for growth were estimated to be 1.8°C (SE = 0.63°C), 19.0°C (SE = 0.27°C), and 24.9°C (SE = 0.02°C), respectively. By taking a meta-analytical approach, we were able to provide a growth model that is applicable across populations of juvenile Chinook Salmon receiving an ad libitum ration of a pelleted diet.

3rd Workshop on Branching Processes and their Applications

CERN Document Server

González, Miguel; Gutiérrez, Cristina; Martínez, Rodrigo; Minuesa, Carmen; Molina, Manuel; Mota, Manuel; Ramos, Alfonso; WBPA15

2016-01-01

This volume gathers papers originally presented at the 3rd Workshop on Branching Processes and their Applications (WBPA15), which was held from 7 to 10 April 2015 in Badajoz, Spain (http://branching.unex.es/wbpa15/index.htm). The papers address a broad range of theoretical and practical aspects of branching process theory. Further, they amply demonstrate that the theoretical research in this area remains vital and topical, as well as the relevance of branching concepts in the development of theoretical approaches to solving new problems in applied fields such as Epidemiology, Biology, Genetics, and, of course, Population Dynamics. The topics covered can broadly be classified into the following areas: 1. Coalescent Branching Processes 2. Branching Random Walks 3. Population Growth Models in Varying and Random Environments 4. Size/Density/Resource-Dependent Branching Models 5. Age-Dependent Branching Models 6. Special Branching Models 7. Applications in Epidemiology 8. Applications in Biology and Genetics Offer...

Energetic Constraints on H-2-Dependent Terminal Electron Accepting Processes in Anoxic Environments

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Heimann, Axel Colin; Jakobsen, Rasmus; Blodau, C.

2010-01-01

and sulfate reduction are under direct thermodynamic control in soils and sediments and generally approach theoretical minimum energy thresholds. If H-2 concentrations are lowered by thermodynamically more potent TEAPs, these processes are inhibited. This principle is also valid for TEAPS providing more free......Microbially mediated terminal electron accepting processes (TEAPs) to a large extent control the fate of redox reactive elements and associated reactions in anoxic soils, sediments, and aquifers. This review focuses on thermodynamic controls and regulation of H-2-dependent TEAPs, case studies...... illustrating this concept and the quantitative description of thermodynamic controls in modeling. Other electron transfer processes are considered where appropriate. The work reviewed shows that thermodynamics and microbial kinetics are connected near thermodynamic equilibrium. Free energy thresholds...

Stages of physical dependence in New Zealand smokers: Prevalence and correlates.

Science.gov (United States)

Walton, Darren; Newcombe, Rhiannon; Li, Judy; Tu, Danny; DiFranza, Joseph R

2016-12-01

Physically dependent smokers experience symptoms of wanting, craving or needing to smoke when too much time has passed since the last cigarette. There is interest in whether wanting, craving and needing represent variations in the intensity of a single physiological parameter or whether multiple physiological processes may be involved in the developmental progression of physical dependence. Our aim was to determine how a population of cigarette smokers is distributed across the wanting, craving and needing stages of physical dependence. A nationwide survey of 2594 New Zealanders aged 15years and over was conducted in 2014. The stage of physical dependence was assessed using the Levels of Physical Dependence measure. Ordinal logistic regression analysis was used to assess relations between physical dependence and other variables. Among 590 current smokers (weighted 16.2% of the sample), 22.3% had no physical dependence, 23.5% were in the Wanting stage, 14.4% in the Craving stage, and 39.8% in the Needing stage. The stage of physical dependence was predicted by daily cigarette consumption, and the time to first cigarette, but not by age, gender, ethnicity or socioeconomic status. Fewer individuals were in the craving stage than either the wanting or needing stages. The resulting inverted U-shaped curve with concentrations at either extreme is difficult to explain as a variation of a single biological parameter. The data support an interpretation that progression through the stages of wanting, craving and needing may involve more than one physiological process. Physical dependence to tobacco develops through a characteristic sequence of wanting, craving and needing which correspond to changes in addiction pathways in the brain. It is important to neuroscience research to determine if the development of physical dependence involves changes in a single brain process, or multiple processes. Our data suggests that more than one physiologic process is involved in the

Genetic effects at pleiotropic loci are context-dependent with consequences for the maintenance of genetic variation in populations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Heather A Lawson

2011-09-01

Full Text Available Context-dependent genetic effects, including genotype-by-environment and genotype-by-sex interactions, are a potential mechanism by which genetic variation of complex traits is maintained in populations. Pleiotropic genetic effects are also thought to play an important role in evolution, reflecting functional and developmental relationships among traits. We examine context-dependent genetic effects at pleiotropic loci associated with normal variation in multiple metabolic syndrome (MetS components (obesity, dyslipidemia, and diabetes-related traits. MetS prevalence is increasing in Western societies and, while environmental in origin, presents substantial variation in individual response. We identify 23 pleiotropic MetS quantitative trait loci (QTL in an F(16 advanced intercross between the LG/J and SM/J inbred mouse strains (Wustl:LG,SM-G16; n = 1002. Half of each family was fed a high-fat diet and half fed a low-fat diet; and additive, dominance, and parent-of-origin imprinting genotypic effects were examined in animals partitioned into sex, diet, and sex-by-diet cohorts. We examine the context-dependency of the underlying additive, dominance, and imprinting genetic effects of the traits associated with these pleiotropic QTL. Further, we examine sequence polymorphisms (SNPs between LG/J and SM/J as well as differential expression of positional candidate genes in these regions. We show that genetic associations are different in different sex, diet, and sex-by-diet settings. We also show that over- or underdominance and ecological cross-over interactions for single phenotypes may not be common, however multidimensional synthetic phenotypes at loci with pleiotropic effects can produce situations that favor the maintenance of genetic variation in populations. Our findings have important implications for evolution and the notion of personalized medicine.

[Caffeine dependence].

Science.gov (United States)

Ogawa, Naoshi; Ueki, Hirofumi

2010-08-01

Caffeine is the most widely consumed psychoactive substance in the world and is a legal stimulant that is readily available to children. The potential for dependence on caffeine has been debated. Presently, due to a paucity of clinical evidence on caffeine dependence, no such diagnosis is included in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR). Although in recent studies, a subset of the general population was found to demonstrate caffeine dependence. It is valuable for psychiatrists and primary care physicians to recognize caffeine dependence as a clinical syndrome, since some people are distressed by their caffeine use and feel they can not control or stop their problematic use.

The relative importance of intrinsic and extrinsic drivers to population growth vary among local populations of Greater Sage-Grouse: An integrated population modeling approach

Science.gov (United States)

Coates, Peter S.; Prochazka, Brian G.; Ricca, Mark A.; Halstead, Brian J.; Casazza, Michael L.; Blomberg, Erik J.; Brussee, Brianne E.; Wiechman, Lief; Tebbenkamp, Joel; Gardner, Scott C.; Reese, Kerry P.

2018-01-01

Consideration of ecological scale is fundamental to understanding and managing avian population growth and decline. Empirically driven models for population dynamics and demographic processes across multiple spatial scales can be powerful tools to help guide conservation actions. Integrated population models (IPMs) provide a framework for better parameter estimation by unifying multiple sources of data (e.g., count and demographic data). Hierarchical structure within such models that include random effects allow for varying degrees of data sharing across different spatiotemporal scales. We developed an IPM to investigate Greater Sage-Grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) on the border of California and Nevada, known as the Bi-State Distinct Population Segment. Our analysis integrated 13 years of lek count data (n > 2,000) and intensive telemetry (VHF and GPS; n > 350 individuals) data across 6 subpopulations. Specifically, we identified the most parsimonious models among varying random effects and density-dependent terms for each population vital rate (e.g., nest survival). Using a joint likelihood process, we integrated the lek count data with the demographic models to estimate apparent abundance and refine vital rate parameter estimates. To investigate effects of climatic conditions, we extended the model to fit a precipitation covariate for instantaneous rate of change (r). At a metapopulation extent (i.e. Bi-State), annual population rate of change λ (er) did not favor an overall increasing or decreasing trend through the time series. However, annual changes in λ were driven by changes in precipitation (one-year lag effect). At subpopulation extents, we identified substantial variation in λ and demographic rates. One subpopulation clearly decoupled from the trend at the metapopulation extent and exhibited relatively high risk of extinction as a result of low egg fertility. These findings can inform localized, targeted management actions for specific areas

Approximations of time-dependent phenomena in quantum mechanics: adiabatic versus sudden processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Melnichuk, S V; Dijk, W van; Nogami, Y

2005-01-01

By means of a one-dimensional model of a particle in an infinite square-well potential with one wall moving at a constant speed, we examine aspects of time-dependent phenomena in quantum mechanics such as adiabatic and sudden processes. The particle is assumed to be initially in the ground state of the potential with its initial width. The time dependence of the wavefunction of the particle in the well is generally more complicated when the potential well is compressed than when it is expanded. We are particularly interested in the case in which the potential well is suddenly compressed. The so-called sudden approximation is not applicable in this case. We also study the energy of the particle in the changing well as a function of time for expansion and contraction as well as for expansion followed by contraction and vice versa

Age-Sex Structure of the Population and Demographic Processes in Environmentally Challenged Mining Region (on the example of Kemerovo region)

Science.gov (United States)

Leshukov, Timofey; Brel, Olga; Zaytseva, Anna; Kaizer, Philipp; Makarov, Kirill

2017-11-01

The main goal of the article is to show the influence of the age-sex structure of the population on the basic demographic processes in the Kemerovo region. During research the authors have established correlation links between the sex-age structure of the population and the main demographic indicators (birth and mortality rate, morbidity rate, migration and others) based on the analysis of official statistical data. The direct influence of internal and external factors on the age-sex structure of the population is revealed. Conclusions about the impact of demographic processes on the sex-age structure of the population of the Kemerovo region are drawn.

Evidences Dependent Population Distribution Patterns of Tiger and Leopard in Similipal Tiger Reserve, Odisha, India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sandeep Ranjan Mishra

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The Tiger (Panthera tigris is an endangered carnivore with uncertain demographic status spanning 13 Asian countries. Due to its larger body size and carnivorous diet in nature it always occurs at low population densities. Further prey depletion due to overhunting (Karanth & Stith, 1998, poaching, habitat shrinkage (Kenny et al., 1995, Wcs, 1995 and direct killing altogether have also become a major factor for depletion of wild tiger populations tiger. Monitoring the abundance and its alteration is always important for the effective management of endangered species. Tiger is categorized as “Endangered” on the IUCN Red List (IUCN, 2008 and listed under Schedule-I of Wildlife (Protection Act, 1972 in India and Appendix-I of the CITES. Leopard (Panthera pardus is also included in the Schedule- I of the Indian Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 and is placed under “Least Concern” category of 2002 IUCN Red List of threatened animals. Similipal Tiger Reserve is one of the largest Tiger Reserves of India with an area of 2750 km2. Therefore we have to depend mainly on the direct sightings and evidence records of the animals to analysis the status and distribution pattern of these two big cats in the core area of this Tiger Reserve.

Rovibrationally Resolved Time-Dependent Collisional-Radiative Model of Molecular Hydrogen and Its Application to a Fusion Detached Plasma

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Keiji Sawada

2016-12-01

Full Text Available A novel rovibrationally resolved collisional-radiative model of molecular hydrogen that includes 4,133 rovibrational levels for electronic states whose united atom principal quantum number is below six is developed. The rovibrational X 1 Σ g + population distribution in a SlimCS fusion demo detached divertor plasma is investigated by solving the model time dependently with an initial 300 K Boltzmann distribution. The effective reaction rate coefficients of molecular assisted recombination and of other processes in which atomic hydrogen is produced are calculated using the obtained time-dependent population distribution.

Efficient bootstrap with weakly dependent processes

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bravo, Francesco; Crudu, Federico

The efficient bootstrap methodology is developed for overidentified moment conditions models with weakly dependent observation. The resulting bootstrap procedure is shown to be asymptotically valid and can be used to approximate the distributions of t-statistics, the J-statistic for overidentifying

Life-history and spatial determinants of somatic growth dynamics in Komodo dragon populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Laver, Rebecca J; Purwandana, Deni; Ariefiandy, Achmad; Imansyah, Jeri; Forsyth, David; Ciofi, Claudio; Jessop, Tim S

2012-01-01

Somatic growth patterns represent a major component of organismal fitness and may vary among sexes and populations due to genetic and environmental processes leading to profound differences in life-history and demography. This study considered the ontogenic, sex-specific and spatial dynamics of somatic growth patterns in ten populations of the world's largest lizard the Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis). The growth of 400 individual Komodo dragons was measured in a capture-mark-recapture study at ten sites on four islands in eastern Indonesia, from 2002 to 2010. Generalized Additive Mixed Models (GAMMs) and information-theoretic methods were used to examine how growth rates varied with size, age and sex, and across and within islands in relation to site-specific prey availability, lizard population density and inbreeding coefficients. Growth trajectories differed significantly with size and between sexes, indicating different energy allocation tactics and overall costs associated with reproduction. This leads to disparities in maximum body sizes and longevity. Spatial variation in growth was strongly supported by a curvilinear density-dependent growth model with highest growth rates occurring at intermediate population densities. Sex-specific trade-offs in growth underpin key differences in Komodo dragon life-history including evidence for high costs of reproduction in females. Further, inverse density-dependent growth may have profound effects on individual and population level processes that influence the demography of this species.

Life-history and spatial determinants of somatic growth dynamics in Komodo dragon populations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rebecca J Laver

Full Text Available Somatic growth patterns represent a major component of organismal fitness and may vary among sexes and populations due to genetic and environmental processes leading to profound differences in life-history and demography. This study considered the ontogenic, sex-specific and spatial dynamics of somatic growth patterns in ten populations of the world's largest lizard the Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis. The growth of 400 individual Komodo dragons was measured in a capture-mark-recapture study at ten sites on four islands in eastern Indonesia, from 2002 to 2010. Generalized Additive Mixed Models (GAMMs and information-theoretic methods were used to examine how growth rates varied with size, age and sex, and across and within islands in relation to site-specific prey availability, lizard population density and inbreeding coefficients. Growth trajectories differed significantly with size and between sexes, indicating different energy allocation tactics and overall costs associated with reproduction. This leads to disparities in maximum body sizes and longevity. Spatial variation in growth was strongly supported by a curvilinear density-dependent growth model with highest growth rates occurring at intermediate population densities. Sex-specific trade-offs in growth underpin key differences in Komodo dragon life-history including evidence for high costs of reproduction in females. Further, inverse density-dependent growth may have profound effects on individual and population level processes that influence the demography of this species.

Life-History and Spatial Determinants of Somatic Growth Dynamics in Komodo Dragon Populations

Science.gov (United States)

Laver, Rebecca J.; Purwandana, Deni; Ariefiandy, Achmad; Imansyah, Jeri; Forsyth, David; Ciofi, Claudio; Jessop, Tim S.

2012-01-01

Somatic growth patterns represent a major component of organismal fitness and may vary among sexes and populations due to genetic and environmental processes leading to profound differences in life-history and demography. This study considered the ontogenic, sex-specific and spatial dynamics of somatic growth patterns in ten populations of the world’s largest lizard the Komodo dragon (Varanus komodoensis). The growth of 400 individual Komodo dragons was measured in a capture-mark-recapture study at ten sites on four islands in eastern Indonesia, from 2002 to 2010. Generalized Additive Mixed Models (GAMMs) and information-theoretic methods were used to examine how growth rates varied with size, age and sex, and across and within islands in relation to site-specific prey availability, lizard population density and inbreeding coefficients. Growth trajectories differed significantly with size and between sexes, indicating different energy allocation tactics and overall costs associated with reproduction. This leads to disparities in maximum body sizes and longevity. Spatial variation in growth was strongly supported by a curvilinear density-dependent growth model with highest growth rates occurring at intermediate population densities. Sex-specific trade-offs in growth underpin key differences in Komodo dragon life-history including evidence for high costs of reproduction in females. Further, inverse density-dependent growth may have profound effects on individual and population level processes that influence the demography of this species. PMID:23028983

Farm Population of the United States: 1976. Current Population Reports: Farm Population.

Science.gov (United States)

Banks, Vera J.; And Others

Prepared cooperatively by the Bureau of the Census and the Economic Research Service of the U.S. DeparLment of Agriculture, this document presents narrative and tabular data on: demographic and social characteristics of the farm population; economic characteristics of the farm population; revision of farm population processing procedures; and…

A Continuous Correlated Beta Process Model for Genetic Ancestry in Admixed Populations.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zachariah Gompert

Full Text Available Admixture and recombination create populations and genomes with genetic ancestry from multiple source populations. Analyses of genetic ancestry in admixed populations are relevant for trait and disease mapping, studies of speciation, and conservation efforts. Consequently, many methods have been developed to infer genome-average ancestry and to deconvolute ancestry into continuous local ancestry blocks or tracts within individuals. Current methods for local ancestry inference perform well when admixture occurred recently or hybridization is ongoing, or when admixture occurred in the distant past such that local ancestry blocks have fixed in the admixed population. However, methods to infer local ancestry frequencies in isolated admixed populations still segregating for ancestry do not exist. In the current paper, I develop and test a continuous correlated beta process model to fill this analytical gap. The method explicitly models autocorrelations in ancestry frequencies at the population-level and uses discriminant analysis of SNP windows to take advantage of ancestry blocks within individuals. Analyses of simulated data sets show that the method is generally accurate such that ancestry frequency estimates exhibited low root-mean-square error and were highly correlated with the true values, particularly when large (±10 or ±20 SNP windows were used. Along these lines, the proposed method outperformed post hoc inference of ancestry frequencies from a traditional hidden Markov model (i.e., the linkage model in structure, particularly when admixture occurred more distantly in the past with little on-going gene flow or was followed by natural selection. The reliability and utility of the method was further assessed by analyzing genetic ancestry in an admixed human population (Uyghur and three populations from a hybrid zone between Mus domesticus and M. musculus. Considerable variation in ancestry frequencies was detected within and among

Frequency-difference-dependent stochastic resonance in neural systems

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Guo, Daqing; Perc, Matjaž; Zhang, Yangsong; Xu, Peng; Yao, Dezhong

2017-08-01

Biological neurons receive multiple noisy oscillatory signals, and their dynamical response to the superposition of these signals is of fundamental importance for information processing in the brain. Here we study the response of neural systems to the weak envelope modulation signal, which is superimposed by two periodic signals with different frequencies. We show that stochastic resonance occurs at the beat frequency in neural systems at the single-neuron as well as the population level. The performance of this frequency-difference-dependent stochastic resonance is influenced by both the beat frequency and the two forcing frequencies. Compared to a single neuron, a population of neurons is more efficient in detecting the information carried by the weak envelope modulation signal at the beat frequency. Furthermore, an appropriate fine-tuning of the excitation-inhibition balance can further optimize the response of a neural ensemble to the superimposed signal. Our results thus introduce and provide insights into the generation and modulation mechanism of the frequency-difference-dependent stochastic resonance in neural systems.

The Comparison of Maladaptive Schema and Lifestyles in Drug Dependence and Non-Drug Dependence People

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Vahideh Purmohammad

2013-04-01

Full Text Available Objective: The aim of this study was to compare early maladaptive schemas and life styles in drug dependences and normal population to recognize their role in drug dependence. Due to their importance in interpretation of special situations, cognitive schemas and life styles have a significant role in cognitive theories. Methods: The method of this research were post-facto and sectional styles. The population were included of 100 drug dependence adults and 100 non-drug dependence who were selected by at-reach methods. Young early maladaptive schema-short form and Basic Adlerian scales for interpersonal success-adult form questionnaires were used. Findings: the results showed that there were significant differences between early maladaptive schemas and life styles in groups under research. Conclusion: the study showed that drug dependence people suffer from high levels of early maladaptive schemas and their life styles are maladaptive. As a result, in prediction of dependence to drug and in treating it too much attention must be given to cognitive factors.

Radiation adaptation as one of the factors for microevolution processes in animals populations

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V. A. Gaychenko

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Study of the main directions of response populations of individual species and faunistic complexes provides opportunity to address the relationship of adaptations of animals to radiation press by raising the level of epige-netic variability and features of a survival strategy. It is suggested to increase the level of microevolutionary processes in conditions of radioactive contamination biocenosis.

The impact of media type on shared decision processes in third-age populations.

Science.gov (United States)

Reychav, Iris; Najami, Inam; Raban, Daphne Ruth; McHaney, Roger; Azuri, Joseph

2018-04-01

To examine the relationship between the media, through which medical information was made available (e.g. digital versus printed), and the patients' desire to play an active part in a medical decision in an SDM or an ISDM-based process. The goal of this research was to expand knowledge concerning social and personal factors that affect and explain patients' willingness to participate in the process. A questionnaire was distributed in this empirical study of 103 third-age participants. A theoretical model formed the basis for the study and utilized a variety of factors from technology acceptance, as well as personal and environmental influences to investigate the likelihood of subjects preferring a certain decision-making approach. The research population included men and women aged 65 or older who resided in five assisted living facilities in Israel. The sample was split randomly into 2 groups. One group used digital information and the other print. A path analysis was conducted, using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) in AMOS SPSS, to determine the influence of the information mode of presentation on the patient's choice of the SDM or ISDM model. When digital media was accessible, the information's perceived usefulness (PU) led participants to choose an ISDM-based process; this was not true with printed information. When information was available online, higher self-efficacy (SE) led participants to prefer an SDM-based process. When the information was available in print, a direct positive influence was found on the participant's choice of SDM, while a direct negative influence was found on their choice of an ISDM-based process. PU was found to be affected by external peer influences, particularly when resources were made available in print. This meant that digital resources tended to be accepted at face value more readily. Cognitive absorption had a positive effect on the research variables only when the information was available digitally. The findings suggest

Vitamin D Status in Population of Bukovyna and Subcarpathia Depending on Residence above Sea Level

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V.V. Povoroznyuk

2016-04-01

ding on the residence above sea level. Objective: to determine the level of vitamin D in the blood serum of people, who live in different regions of the Subcarpathia and Bukovyna, depending on the location of the settlement above sea le-vel. Material and methods. In the cross-sectional study, we have examined 353 individuals, aged 18 to 86 years, permanently residing in different parts of the Subcarpathia (Kolomyia, Kosiv, Verhovyna districts and Bukovyna (Vyzhny-tsia district. Results. Only in 28 cases (7.9 %, the content of 25(OHD in the blood serum was in the normal range, and in other cases (92.1 %, there was a deficiency and a lack of vitamin D. The severe form of vitamin D deficiency has been detected in 7 (1.9 % patients. When comparing the performance of 25(OHD in the areas of inspection, it was found that the level of vitamin D in the blood serum was significantly higher in residents of Verkhovyna and Kosiv districts (located higher than 450 meters above sea level as compared with residents of Vyzhnytsia and Kolomyia. Conclusion. The average level of vitamin D in the blood serum of the adult population depends on residence and increases with height above sea level.

Population-Based Analysis of Histologically Confirmed Melanocytic Proliferations Using Natural Language Processing.

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Lott, Jason P; Boudreau, Denise M; Barnhill, Ray L; Weinstock, Martin A; Knopp, Eleanor; Piepkorn, Michael W; Elder, David E; Knezevich, Steven R; Baer, Andrew; Tosteson, Anna N A; Elmore, Joann G

2018-01-01

Population-based information on the distribution of histologic diagnoses associated with skin biopsies is unknown. Electronic medical records (EMRs) enable automated extraction of pathology report data to improve our epidemiologic understanding of skin biopsy outcomes, specifically those of melanocytic origin. To determine population-based frequencies and distribution of histologically confirmed melanocytic lesions. A natural language processing (NLP)-based analysis of EMR pathology reports of adult patients who underwent skin biopsies at a large integrated health care delivery system in the US Pacific Northwest from January 1, 2007, through December 31, 2012. Skin biopsy procedure. The primary outcome was histopathologic diagnosis, obtained using an NLP-based system to process EMR pathology reports. We determined the percentage of diagnoses classified as melanocytic vs nonmelanocytic lesions. Diagnoses classified as melanocytic were further subclassified using the Melanocytic Pathology Assessment Tool and Hierarchy for Diagnosis (MPATH-Dx) reporting schema into the following categories: class I (nevi and other benign proliferations such as mildly dysplastic lesions typically requiring no further treatment), class II (moderately dysplastic and other low-risk lesions that may merit narrow reexcision with skin biopsies, performed on 47 529 patients, were examined. Nearly 1 in 4 skin biopsies were of melanocytic lesions (23%; n = 18 715), which were distributed according to MPATH-Dx categories as follows: class I, 83.1% (n = 15 558); class II, 8.3% (n = 1548); class III, 4.5% (n = 842); class IV, 2.2% (n = 405); and class V, 1.9% (n = 362). Approximately one-quarter of skin biopsies resulted in diagnoses of melanocytic proliferations. These data provide the first population-based estimates across the spectrum of melanocytic lesions ranging from benign through dysplastic to malignant. These results may serve as a foundation for future

Relationship Between Emotional Processing, Drinking Severity and Relapse in Adults Treated for Alcohol Dependence in Poland

OpenAIRE

Kopera, Maciej; Jakubczyk, Andrzej; Suszek, Hubert; Glass, Jennifer M.; Klimkiewicz, Anna; Wnorowska, Anna; Brower, Kirk J.; Wojnar, Marcin

2014-01-01

Aims: Growing data reveals deficits in perception, understanding and regulation of emotions in alcohol dependence (AD). The study objective was to explore the relationships between emotional processing, drinking history and relapse in a clinical sample of alcohol-dependent patients. Methods: A group of 80 inpatients entering an alcohol treatment program in Warsaw, Poland was recruited and assessed at baseline and follow-up after 12 months. Baseline information about demographics, psychopathol...

Radiation exposure of the Bulgarian population exceeding the background as a result of mining and processing of uranium ores

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yonchev, L.; Vasilev, G.

1999-01-01

The nearly 50-year-long history of researches, mining and processing and closure of uranium industry of researches, mining and processing and the closure of uranium industry sites in the country as well necessitate reassessment of the radiation exposure of the human population in the regions nearby such projects. Proceeding from the available data from expert examination reports the radiation exposure of the Bulgarian population in excess of the background as a result of mining and processing of uranium ores is analysed. The study covers about 135000 persons. The mean value of exposure above the background, attributable to the technologically increased background amounts to 3.04 mSv/a at effective background dose about 2.3 mSv/a. The collective effective dose is 410 mSv/a and represents about 5 per cent of the overall radiation exposure of the Bulgarian population

Cortical depth dependent population receptive field attraction by spatial attention in human V1.

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Klein, Barrie P; Fracasso, Alessio; van Dijk, Jelle A; Paffen, Chris L E; Te Pas, Susan F; Dumoulin, Serge O

2018-04-27

Visual spatial attention concentrates neural resources at the attended location. Recently, we demonstrated that voluntary spatial attention attracts population receptive fields (pRFs) toward its location throughout the visual hierarchy. Theoretically, both a feed forward or feedback mechanism could underlie pRF attraction in a given cortical area. Here, we use sub-millimeter ultra-high field functional MRI to measure pRF attraction across cortical depth and assess the contribution of feed forward and feedback signals to pRF attraction. In line with previous findings, we find consistent attraction of pRFs with voluntary spatial attention in V1. When assessed as a function of cortical depth, we find pRF attraction in every cortical portion (deep, center and superficial), although the attraction is strongest in deep cortical portions (near the gray-white matter boundary). Following the organization of feed forward and feedback processing across V1, we speculate that a mixture of feed forward and feedback processing underlies pRF attraction in V1. Specifically, we propose that feedback processing contributes to the pRF attraction in deep cortical portions. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier Inc.

RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN TOBACCO DEPENDENCE AND SCHIZOPHRENIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wayan Widhidewi

2014-02-01

Full Text Available Tobacco dependence in schizophrenia patients is a problem that got more concern, withfew treatment options. Peoples with schizophrenia have a prevalence rate of cigarettesmoking two until four times higher than the general population. Consequently, patientsalso have a lower smoking quit rate than the general population. Tobacco dependence inthis population may complicate symptoms and also has adverse physiological effects onpatients. Besides that, patients with schizophrenia tend to smoke more heavily thansmokers in general population. This can increased smoking-related morbidity andmortality and impose a significant financial burden on patients. Recent studiesdemonstrated that patients with schizophrenia smoke before the onset of the illness andalso start smoking earlier than the average population. Patients become psychotic earlierthan patients who do not smoke, and require higher dose of anti-psychotic medications.

The waterfall paradox: How knickpoints disconnect hillslope and channel processes, isolating salmonid populations in ideal habitats

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May, Christine; Roering, Joshua J.; Snow, Kyle; Griswold, Kitty; Gresswell, Robert E.

2017-01-01

Waterfalls create barriers to fish migration, yet hundreds of isolated salmonid populations exist above barriers and have persisted for thousands of years in steep mountainous terrain. Ecological theory indicates that small isolated populations in disturbance-prone landscapes are at greatest risk of extirpation because immigration and recolonization are not possible. On the contrary, many above-barrier populations are currently thriving while their downstream counterparts are dwindling. This quandary led us to explore geomorphic knickpoints as a mechanism for disconnecting hillslope and channel processes by limiting channel incision and decreasing the pace of base-level lowering. Using LiDAR from the Oregon Coast Range, we found gentler channel gradients, wider valleys, lower gradient hillslopes, and less shallow landslide potential in an above-barrier catchment compared to a neighboring catchment devoid of persistent knickpoints. Based on this unique geomorphic template, above-barrier channel networks are less prone to debris flows and other episodic sediment fluxes. These above-barrier catchments also have greater resiliency to flooding, owing to wider valleys with greater floodplain connectivity. Habitat preference models further indicate that salmonid habitat is present in greater quantity and quality in these above-barrier networks. Therefore the paradox of the persistence of small isolated fish populations may be facilitated by a geomorphic mechanism that both limits their connectivity to larger fish populations yet dampens the effect of disturbance by decreasing connections between hillslope and channel processes above geomorphic knickpoints.

Experimental evolution of an RNA virus in wild birds: evidence for host-dependent impacts on population structure and competitive fitness.

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Nathan D Grubaugh

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Within hosts, RNA viruses form populations that are genetically and phenotypically complex. Heterogeneity in RNA virus genomes arises due to error-prone replication and is reduced by stochastic and selective mechanisms that are incompletely understood. Defining how natural selection shapes RNA virus populations is critical because it can inform treatment paradigms and enhance control efforts. We allowed West Nile virus (WNV to replicate in wild-caught American crows, house sparrows and American robins to assess how natural selection shapes RNA virus populations in ecologically relevant hosts that differ in susceptibility to virus-induced mortality. After five sequential passages in each bird species, we examined the phenotype and population diversity of WNV through fitness competition assays and next generation sequencing. We demonstrate that fitness gains occur in a species-specific manner, with the greatest replicative fitness gains in robin-passaged WNV and the least in WNV passaged in crows. Sequencing data revealed that intrahost WNV populations were strongly influenced by purifying selection and the overall complexity of the viral populations was similar among passaged hosts. However, the selective pressures that control WNV populations seem to be bird species-dependent. Specifically, crow-passaged WNV populations contained the most unique mutations (~1.7× more than sparrows, ~3.4× more than robins and defective genomes (~1.4× greater than sparrows, ~2.7× greater than robins, but the lowest average mutation frequency (about equal to sparrows, ~2.6× lower than robins. Therefore, our data suggest that WNV replication in the most disease-susceptible bird species is positively associated with virus mutational tolerance, likely via complementation, and negatively associated with the strength of selection. These differences in genetic composition most likely have distinct phenotypic consequences for the virus populations. Taken together

Real time process algebra with time-dependent conditions

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Baeten, J.C.M.; Middelburg, C.A.

We extend the main real time version of ACP presented in [6] with conditionals in which the condition depends on time. This extension facilitates flexible dependence of proccess behaviour on initialization time. We show that the conditions concerned generalize the conditions introduced earlier

Stochastic Evolution Dynamic of the Rock-Scissors-Paper Game Based on a Quasi Birth and Death Process.

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Yu, Qian; Fang, Debin; Zhang, Xiaoling; Jin, Chen; Ren, Qiyu

2016-06-27

Stochasticity plays an important role in the evolutionary dynamic of cyclic dominance within a finite population. To investigate the stochastic evolution process of the behaviour of bounded rational individuals, we model the Rock-Scissors-Paper (RSP) game as a finite, state dependent Quasi Birth and Death (QBD) process. We assume that bounded rational players can adjust their strategies by imitating the successful strategy according to the payoffs of the last round of the game, and then analyse the limiting distribution of the QBD process for the game stochastic evolutionary dynamic. The numerical experiments results are exhibited as pseudo colour ternary heat maps. Comparisons of these diagrams shows that the convergence property of long run equilibrium of the RSP game in populations depends on population size and the parameter of the payoff matrix and noise factor. The long run equilibrium is asymptotically stable, neutrally stable and unstable respectively according to the normalised parameters in the payoff matrix. Moreover, the results show that the distribution probability becomes more concentrated with a larger population size. This indicates that increasing the population size also increases the convergence speed of the stochastic evolution process while simultaneously reducing the influence of the noise factor.

Density-dependence as a size-independent regulatory mechanism.

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de Vladar, Harold P

2006-01-21

The growth function of populations is central in biomathematics. The main dogma is the existence of density-dependence mechanisms, which can be modelled with distinct functional forms that depend on the size of the population. One important class of regulatory functions is the theta-logistic, which generalizes the logistic equation. Using this model as a motivation, this paper introduces a simple dynamical reformulation that generalizes many growth functions. The reformulation consists of two equations, one for population size, and one for the growth rate. Furthermore, the model shows that although population is density-dependent, the dynamics of the growth rate does not depend either on population size, nor on the carrying capacity. Actually, the growth equation is uncoupled from the population size equation, and the model has only two parameters, a Malthusian parameter rho and a competition coefficient theta. Distinct sign combinations of these parameters reproduce not only the family of theta-logistics, but also the van Bertalanffy, Gompertz and Potential Growth equations, among other possibilities. It is also shown that, except for two critical points, there is a general size-scaling relation that includes those appearing in the most important allometric theories, including the recently proposed Metabolic Theory of Ecology. With this model, several issues of general interest are discussed such as the growth of animal population, extinctions, cell growth and allometry, and the effect of environment over a population.

PRO-Elicere: A Study for Create a New Process of Dependability Analysis of Space Computer Systems

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da Silva, Glauco; Netto Lahoz, Carlos Henrique

2013-09-01

This paper presents the new approach to the computer system dependability analysis, called PRO-ELICERE, which introduces data mining concepts and intelligent mechanisms to decision support to analyze the potential hazards and failures of a critical computer system. Also, are presented some techniques and tools that support the traditional dependability analysis and briefly discusses the concept of knowledge discovery and intelligent databases for critical computer systems. After that, introduces the PRO-ELICERE process, an intelligent approach to automate the ELICERE, a process created to extract non-functional requirements for critical computer systems. The PRO-ELICERE can be used in the V&V activities in the projects of Institute of Aeronautics and Space, such as the Brazilian Satellite Launcher (VLS-1).

Polarization dependent dispersion and its impact on optical parametric process in high nonlinear microstructure fibre

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiao Li; Zhang Wei; Huang Yidong; Peng Jiangde

2008-01-01

High nonlinear microstructure fibre (HNMF) is preferred in nonlinear fibre optics, especially in the applications of optical parametric effects, due to its high optical nonlinear coefficient. However, polarization dependent dispersion will impact the nonlinear optical parametric process in HNMFs. In this paper, modulation instability (MI) method is used to measure the polarization dependent dispersion of a piece of commercial HNMF, including the group velocity dispersion, the dispersion slope, the fourth-order dispersion and group birefringence. It also experimentally demonstrates the impact of the polarization dependent dispersion on the continuous wave supercontinuum (SC) generation. On one axis MI sidebands with symmetric frequency detunings are generated, while on the other axis with larger MI frequency detuning, SC is generated by soliton self-frequency shift

Population Ecology of Caribou Populations without Predators: Southampton and Coats Island Herds

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Jean-Pierre Quellet

1996-01-01

Full Text Available This paper is a review of the ecology of two caribou populations inhabiting predator-free northern islands, Coats and Southampton Island. Findings are analyzed in light of the hypothesis that in absence of prédation or high human harvest, food competition results in delayed puberty, reduced calf production, increased winter starvation of caribou and regulates populations at high densities (>2 km-2. Caribou were hunted to extinction on Southampton Island (Northwest Territories, Canada by mid-century. In 1967, 48 caribou were captured on neighbouring Coats Island and released on Southampton Island. Southampton Island is characterized by a high per capita winter food availability in summer and in winter. The population on Southampton Island has been increasing at a rapid rate of growth since re-introduction (Lamba=1.27. Fast population growth was possible because females invested early in reproduction and over winter survival rate was high. The population on Coats Island is also characterized by high per capita food availability in summer but low food availability in winter. The population size has undergone some marked fluctuations, abrupt declines followed by relatively rapid recovery and, contrary to predictions, densities were always less than 1 km-2. Low population densities on Coats Island result primarily from low food availability. This review suggests that in the absence of prédation or high human harvest competition for food regulates caribou population abundance. However, caribou numbers can fluctuate markedly among years because inter-annual variation of weather conditions affects forage accessibility in winter. This review also emphasizes the importance of distinguishing between factors that determine absolute population density and variation in density among years (in our case probably plant production and winter weather conditions which influence forage accessibility from the regulatory factors, processes that stop population

Cyclic AMP (cAMP)-mediated stimulation of adipocyte differentiation requires the synergistic action of Epac- and cAMP-dependent protein kinase-dependent processes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Petersen, Rasmus Koefoed; Madsen, Lise; Pedersen, Lone Møller

2008-01-01

AMP-dependent stimulation of adipocyte differentiation. Epac, working via Rap, acted synergistically with cAMP-dependent protein kinase (protein kinase A [PKA]) to promote adipogenesis. The major role of PKA was to down-regulate Rho and Rho-kinase activity, rather than to enhance CREB phosphorylation. Suppression of Rho......-kinase impaired proadipogenic insulin/insulin-like growth factor 1 signaling, which was restored by activation of Epac. This interplay between PKA and Epac-mediated processes not only provides novel insight into the initiation and tuning of adipocyte differentiation, but also demonstrates a new mechanism of c......AMP signaling whereby cAMP uses both PKA and Epac to achieve an appropriate cellular response....

Population Dynamics and Temperature-Dependent Development of Chrysomphalus aonidum (L.) to Aid Sustainable Pest Management Decisions.

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Campolo, O; Malacrinò, A; Laudani, F; Maione, V; Zappalà, L; Palmeri, V

2014-10-01

The increasing worldwide trades progressively led to decreased impact of natural barriers on wild species movement. The exotic scale Chrysomphalus aonidum (L.) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae), recently reported on citrus in southern Italy, may represent a new threat to Mediterranean citriculture. We studied C. aonidum population dynamics under field conditions and documented its development under various temperatures. To enable describing temperature-dependent development through the use of linear and non-linear models, low temperature thresholds and thermal constants for each developmental stage were estimated. Chrysomphalus aonidum was able to perform four generations on green parts (leaves, sprouts) of citrus trees and three on fruits. In addition, an overall higher population density was observed on samples collected in the southern part of the tree canopy. Temperature had a significant effect on the developmental rate; female needed 625 degree days (DD) to complete its development, while male needed 833 DD. The low threshold temperatures, together with data from population dynamics, demonstrated that C. aonidum is able to overwinter as second instar and as an adult. The results obtained, validated by those collected in the field, revealed few differences between predicted and observed dates of first occurrence of each C. aonidum instar in citrus orchards. Data on C. aonidum phenology and the definition of the thermal parameters (lower and upper threshold temperatures, optimum temperature, and the thermal constant) by non-linear models could allow the estimation of the occurrence in the field of each life stage and would be helpful in developing effective integrated control strategies.

An ongoing process: a qualitative study of how the alcohol-dependent free themselves of addiction through progressive abstinence.

Science.gov (United States)

Yeh, Mei-Yu; Che, Hui-Lian; Wu, Shu-Mei

2009-11-24

Most people being treated for alcoholism are unable to successfully quit drinking within their treatment programs. In few cases do we know the full picture of how abstinence is achieved in Taiwan. We tracked processes of abstinence in alcohol-dependency disorders, based on study evidence and results. This research explores the process of recovery from the viewpoint of the alcohol-dependent. Semi-structured interviews were conducted in two different settings, using purpose sampling, during 2003-2004. The data were analyzed using content analysis. Participants were 32 adults, purposefully selected from an Alcoholics Anonymous group and a psychiatric hospital in North Taiwan. We found that the abstinence process is an ongoing process, in which the alcohol-dependent free themselves of addiction progressively. This process never ends or resolves in complete recovery. We have identified three stages in the struggle against alcoholism: the Indulgence, Ambivalence and Attempt (IAA) cycle, in which the sufferer is trapped in a cycle of attempting to give up and failing; the Turning Point, in which a Personal Nadir is reached, and the Ongoing Process of abstinence, in which a constant effort is made to remain sober through willpower and with the help of support groups. We also discuss Influencing Factors that can derail abstinence attempts, pushing the sufferer back into the IAA cycle. This study provides important points of reference for alcohol and drug service workers and community healthcare professionals in Taiwan, casting light on the abstinence process and providing a basis for intervention or rehabilitation services.

An ongoing process: A qualitative study of how the alcohol-dependent free themselves of addiction through progressive abstinence

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Che Hui-Lian

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Most people being treated for alcoholism are unable to successfully quit drinking within their treatment programs. In few cases do we know the full picture of how abstinence is achieved in Taiwan. We tracked processes of abstinence in alcohol-dependency disorders, based on study evidence and results. This research explores the process of recovery from the viewpoint of the alcohol-dependent. Methods Semi-structured interviews were conducted in two different settings, using purpose sampling, during 2003-2004. The data were analyzed using content analysis. Participants were 32 adults, purposefully selected from an Alcoholics Anonymous group and a psychiatric hospital in North Taiwan. Results We found that the abstinence process is an ongoing process, in which the alcohol-dependent free themselves of addiction progressively. This process never ends or resolves in complete recovery. We have identified three stages in the struggle against alcoholism: the Indulgence, Ambivalence and Attempt (IAA cycle, in which the sufferer is trapped in a cycle of attempting to give up and failing; the Turning Point, in which a Personal Nadir is reached, and the Ongoing Process of abstinence, in which a constant effort is made to remain sober through willpower and with the help of support groups. We also discuss Influencing Factors that can derail abstinence attempts, pushing the sufferer back into the IAA cycle. Conclusion This study provides important points of reference for alcohol and drug service workers and community healthcare professionals in Taiwan, casting light on the abstinence process and providing a basis for intervention or rehabilitation services.

Is There Dependence Between Process Maturity and Process Performance?

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Joost Spekschoor; Pascal Ravesteijn; Roeland Loggen; dr. Martijn Zoet

2012-01-01

During recent years the world has seen rapid changes such as globalization, the Internet, and the rise of new economies. To survive these changes organizations need to be in control of their processes, and be able to continuously improve the process performance. Therefore many organizations are

Time-dependent view of an isotope effect in electron-nuclear nonequilibrium dynamics with applications to N2.

Science.gov (United States)

Ajay, Jayanth S; Komarova, Ksenia G; Remacle, Francoise; Levine, R D

2018-05-21

Isotopic fractionation in the photodissociation of N 2 could explain the considerable variation in the 14 N/ 15 N ratio in different regions of our galaxy. We previously proposed that such an isotope effect is due to coupling of photoexcited bound valence and Rydberg electronic states in the frequency range where there is strong state mixing. We here identify features of the role of the mass in the dynamics through a time-dependent quantum-mechanical simulation. The photoexcitation of N 2 is by an ultrashort pulse so that the process has a sharply defined origin in time and so that we can monitor the isolated molecule dynamics in time. An ultrafast pulse is necessarily broad in frequency and spans several excited electronic states. Each excited molecule is therefore not in a given electronic state but in a superposition state. A short time after excitation, there is a fairly sharp onset of a mass-dependent large population transfer when wave packets on two different electronic states in the same molecule overlap. This coherent overlap of the wave packets on different electronic states in the region of strong coupling allows an effective transfer of population that is very mass dependent. The extent of the transfer depends on the product of the populations on the two different electronic states and on their relative phase. It is as if two molecules collide but the process occurs within one molecule, a molecule that is simultaneously in both states. An analytical toy model recovers the (strong) mass and energy dependence.

A case study on point process modelling in disease mapping

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Møller, Jesper; Waagepetersen, Rasmus Plenge; Benes, Viktor

2005-01-01

of the risk on the covariates. Instead of using the common areal level approaches we base the analysis on a Bayesian approach for a log Gaussian Cox point process with covariates. Posterior characteristics for a discretized version of the log Gaussian Cox process are computed using Markov chain Monte Carlo...... methods. A particular problem which is thoroughly discussed is to determine a model for the background population density. The risk map shows a clear dependency with the population intensity models and the basic model which is adopted for the population intensity determines what covariates influence...... the risk of TBE. Model validation is based on the posterior predictive distribution of various summary statistics....

Evolution of density-dependent movement during experimental range expansions.

Science.gov (United States)

Fronhofer, E A; Gut, S; Altermatt, F

2017-12-01

Range expansions and biological invasions are prime examples of transient processes that are likely impacted by rapid evolutionary changes. As a spatial process, range expansions are driven by dispersal and movement behaviour. Although it is widely accepted that dispersal and movement may be context-dependent, for instance density-dependent, and best represented by reaction norms, the evolution of density-dependent movement during range expansions has received little experimental attention. We therefore tested current theory predicting the evolution of increased movement at low densities at range margins using highly replicated and controlled range expansion experiments across multiple genotypes of the protist model system Tetrahymena thermophila. Although rare, we found evolutionary changes during range expansions even in the absence of initial standing genetic variation. Range expansions led to the evolution of negatively density-dependent movement at range margins. In addition, we report the evolution of increased intrastrain competitive ability and concurrently decreased population growth rates in range cores. Our findings highlight the importance of understanding movement and dispersal as evolving reaction norms and plastic life-history traits of central relevance for range expansions, biological invasions and the dynamics of spatially structured systems in general. © 2017 European Society For Evolutionary Biology. Journal of Evolutionary Biology © 2017 European Society For Evolutionary Biology.

Reconstructing the population activity of olfactory output neurons that innervate identifiable processing units

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Shigehiro Namiki

2008-06-01

Full Text Available We investigated the functional organization of the moth antennal lobe (AL, the primary olfactory network, using in vivo electrophysiological recordings and anatomical identification. The moth AL contains about 60 processing units called glomeruli that are identifiable from one animal to another. We were able to monitor the output information of the AL by recording the activity of a population of output neurons, each of which innervated a single glomerulus. Using compiled intracellular recordings and staining data from different animals, we mapped the odor-evoked dynamics on a digital atlas of the AL and geometrically reconstructed the population activity. We examined the quantitative relationship between the similarity of olfactory responses and the anatomical distance between glomeruli. Globally, the olfactory response profile was independent of the anatomical distance, although some local features were present.

Competition in size-structured populations: mechanisms inducing cohort formation and population cycles

NARCIS (Netherlands)

de Roos, A.M.; Persson, L.

2003-01-01

In this paper we investigate the consequences of size-dependent competition among the individuals of a consumer population by analyzing the dynamic properties of a physiologically structured population model. Only 2 size-classes of individuals are distinguished: juveniles and adults. Juveniles and

Public goods games in populations with fluctuating size.

Science.gov (United States)

McAvoy, Alex; Fraiman, Nicolas; Hauert, Christoph; Wakeley, John; Nowak, Martin A

2018-05-01

Many mathematical frameworks of evolutionary game dynamics assume that the total population size is constant and that selection affects only the relative frequency of strategies. Here, we consider evolutionary game dynamics in an extended Wright-Fisher process with variable population size. In such a scenario, it is possible that the entire population becomes extinct. Survival of the population may depend on which strategy prevails in the game dynamics. Studying cooperative dilemmas, it is a natural feature of such a model that cooperators enable survival, while defectors drive extinction. Although defectors are favored for any mixed population, random drift could lead to their elimination and the resulting pure-cooperator population could survive. On the other hand, if the defectors remain, then the population will quickly go extinct because the frequency of cooperators steadily declines and defectors alone cannot survive. In a mutation-selection model, we find that (i) a steady supply of cooperators can enable long-term population survival, provided selection is sufficiently strong, and (ii) selection can increase the abundance of cooperators but reduce their relative frequency. Thus, evolutionary game dynamics in populations with variable size generate a multifaceted notion of what constitutes a trait's long-term success. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

INHOMOGENEITY IN SPATIAL COX POINT PROCESSES – LOCATION DEPENDENT THINNING IS NOT THE ONLY OPTION

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Michaela Prokešová

2010-11-01

Full Text Available In the literature on point processes the by far most popular option for introducing inhomogeneity into a point process model is the location dependent thinning (resulting in a second-order intensity-reweighted stationary point process. This produces a very tractable model and there are several fast estimation procedures available. Nevertheless, this model dilutes the interaction (or the geometrical structure of the original homogeneous model in a special way. When concerning the Markov point processes several alternative inhomogeneous models were suggested and investigated in the literature. But it is not so for the Cox point processes, the canonical models for clustered point patterns. In the contribution we discuss several other options how to define inhomogeneous Cox point process models that result in point patterns with different types of geometric structure. We further investigate the possible parameter estimation procedures for such models.

Advertising of ultra-processed foods and beverages: children as a vulnerable population

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christina Mallarino

2013-10-01

Full Text Available The rapid nutrition transition occurring in Latin America has resulted in a sharp increase of childhood overweight and obesity. Recent evidence has shown that food and beverage advertising has a great influence on children’s eating behavior. This population has become a key target market for the ultra-processed foods and beverages industry, which is marketing products in an aggressive way. Evidence shows that Latin American countries have poor regulation of ultra-processed foods and beverages advertising, where the discourse of self-regulation still prevails over statutory regulations. The following commentary explores how advertising might play an important role in developing unhealthy dietary patterns and obesity in Latin American children, as well as the urgent need for government action and the involvement of civil society to tackle this public health issue.

Advertising of ultra-processed foods and beverages: children as a vulnerable population.

Science.gov (United States)

Mallarino, Christina; Gómez, Luis F; González-Zapata, Laura; Cadena, Yazmín; Parra, Diana C

2013-10-01

The rapid nutrition transition occurring in Latin America has resulted in a sharp increase of childhood overweight and obesity. Recent evidence has shown that food and beverage advertising has a great influence on children's eating behavior. This population has become a key target market for the ultra-processed foods and beverages industry, which is marketing products in an aggressive way. Evidence shows that Latin American countries have poor regulation of ultra-processed foods and beverages advertising, where the discourse of self-regulation still prevails over statutory regulations. The following commentary explores how advertising might play an important role in developing unhealthy dietary patterns and obesity in Latin American children, as well as the urgent need for government action and the involvement of civil society to tackle this public health issue.

The Old-Age Healthy Dependency Ratio in Europe.

Science.gov (United States)

Muszyńska, Magdalena M; Rau, Roland

2012-09-01

The aim of this study is to answer the question of whether improvements in the health of the elderly in European countries could compensate for population ageing on the supply side of the labour market. We propose a state-of-health-specific (additive) decomposition of the old-age dependency ratio into an old-age healthy dependency ratio and an old-age unhealthy dependency ratio in order to participate in a discussion of the significance of changes in population health to compensate for the ageing of the labour force. Applying the proposed indicators to the Eurostat's population projection for the years 2010-2050, and assuming there will be equal improvements in life expectancy and healthy life expectancy at birth, we discuss various scenarios concerning future of the European labour force. While improvements in population health are anticipated during the years 2010-2050, the growth in the number of elderly people in Europe may be expected to lead to a rise in both healthy and unhealthy dependency ratios. The healthy dependency ratio is, however, projected to make up the greater part of the old-age dependency ratio. In the European countries in 2006, the value of the old-age dependency ratio was 25. But in the year 2050, with a positive migration balance over the years 2010-2050, there would be 18 elderly people in poor health plus 34 in good health per 100 people in the current working age range of 15-64. In the scenarios developed in this study, we demonstrate that improvements in health and progress in preventing disability will not, by themselves, compensate for the ageing of the workforce. However, coupled with a positive migration balance, at the level and with the age structure assumed in the Eurostat's population projections, these developments could ease the effect of population ageing on the supply side of the European labour market.

Density-dependence as a size-independent regulatory mechanism

NARCIS (Netherlands)

De Vladar, H.P.

2006-01-01

The growth function of populations is central in biomathematics. The main dogma is the existence of density-dependence mechanisms, which can be modelled with distinct functional forms that depend on the size of the Population. One important class of regulatory functions is the theta-logistic, which

Metabotropic glutamate receptor 3 is associated with heroin dependence but not depression or schizophrenia in a Chinese population.

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Wei Jia

Full Text Available Metabotropic glutamate receptor subtype 3 (mGluR3, encoded by GRM3 plays important roles in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia, depression, and drug dependence. GRM3 polymorphisms were reported to be associated with prefrontal activity, cognitive shifting, and memory capability in healthy subjects, as well as susceptibility to schizophrenia and depression. The goal of this study was to replicate the association of GRM3 with schizophrenia and depression and to explore GRM3's potential association with heroin dependence (HD in a Chinese population. Seventeen SNPs throughout the GRM3 gene were genotyped using MALDI-TOF within the MassARRAY system, and the allele and genotype distributions were compared between 619 healthy controls and 433 patients with schizophrenia, 409 patients with major depression, and 584 unrelated addicts. We found that GRM3 polymorphisms modulate the susceptibility to HD but do not significantly influence the risk for schizophrenia or depression. An increased risk of HD was significantly associated with the minor alleles of two GRM3 SNPs, including the T allele of rs274618 (Odds ratio (OR = 1.631, 95% confidence interval (95%CI: 1.317-2.005, the T allele of rs274622 (OR = 1.652, 95% CI: 1.336-2.036, compared with the major alleles. The addicts carrying the minor allele of rs274618 or rs274622 had a shortened duration for transition from first use to dependence (DTFUD in comparison to homozygote for major allele (P<0.0001 for each SNP using log rank test. Additionally, a 6-SNP haplotype within 5' region of the GRM3 including the minor alleles of the two aforementioned SNPs was significantly associated with an increased risk of HD (P = 0.00001, OR = 1.668, 95% CI: 1.335-2.084. Our data indicated that GRM3 polymorphisms do not contribute to genetic susceptibility to schizophrenia and depression, but they confer an increased risk of HD in a Chinese population.

Radio pulsar glitches as a state-dependent Poisson process

Science.gov (United States)

Fulgenzi, W.; Melatos, A.; Hughes, B. D.

2017-10-01

Gross-Pitaevskii simulations of vortex avalanches in a neutron star superfluid are limited computationally to ≲102 vortices and ≲102 avalanches, making it hard to study the long-term statistics of radio pulsar glitches in realistically sized systems. Here, an idealized, mean-field model of the observed Gross-Pitaevskii dynamics is presented, in which vortex unpinning is approximated as a state-dependent, compound Poisson process in a single random variable, the spatially averaged crust-superfluid lag. Both the lag-dependent Poisson rate and the conditional distribution of avalanche-driven lag decrements are inputs into the model, which is solved numerically (via Monte Carlo simulations) and analytically (via a master equation). The output statistics are controlled by two dimensionless free parameters: α, the glitch rate at a reference lag, multiplied by the critical lag for unpinning, divided by the spin-down rate; and β, the minimum fraction of the lag that can be restored by a glitch. The system evolves naturally to a self-regulated stationary state, whose properties are determined by α/αc(β), where αc(β) ≈ β-1/2 is a transition value. In the regime α ≳ αc(β), one recovers qualitatively the power-law size and exponential waiting-time distributions observed in many radio pulsars and Gross-Pitaevskii simulations. For α ≪ αc(β), the size and waiting-time distributions are both power-law-like, and a correlation emerges between size and waiting time until the next glitch, contrary to what is observed in most pulsars. Comparisons with astrophysical data are restricted by the small sample sizes available at present, with ≤35 events observed per pulsar.

Characterization of relaxation processes in interacting vortex matter through a time-dependent correlation length

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pleimling, Michel; Täuber, Uwe C

2015-01-01

Vortex lines in type-II superconductors display complicated relaxation processes due to the intricate competition between their mutual repulsive interactions and pinning to attractive point or extended defects. We perform extensive Monte Carlo simulations for an interacting elastic line model with either point-like or columnar pinning centers. From measurements of the space- and time-dependent height-height correlation function for lateral flux line fluctuations, we extract a characteristic correlation length that we use to investigate different non-equilibrium relaxation regimes. The specific time dependence of this correlation length for different disorder configurations displays characteristic features that provide a novel diagnostic tool to distinguish between point-like pinning centers and extended columnar defects. (paper)

An age-structured population balance model for microbial dynamics

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Duarte M.V.E.

2003-01-01

Full Text Available This work presents an age-structured population balance model (ASPBM for a bioprocess in a continuous stirred-tank fermentor. It relates the macroscopic properties and dynamic behavior of biomass to the operational parameters and microscopic properties of cells. Population dynamics is governed by two time- and age-dependent density functions for living and dead cells, accounting for the influence of substrate and dissolved oxygen concentrations on cell division, aging and death processes. The ASPBM described biomass and substrate oscillations in aerobic continuous cultures as experimentally observed. It is noteworthy that a small data set consisting of nonsegregated measurements was sufficient to adjust a complex segregated mathematical model.

Population regulation in Magellanic penguins: what determines changes in colony size?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Luciana M Pozzi

Full Text Available Seabirds are often studied at individual colonies, but the confounding effects of emigration and mortality processes in open populations may lead to inappropriate conclusions on the mechanisms underlying population changes. Magellanic penguin (Spheniscus magellanicus colonies of variable population sizes are distributed along the Argentine coastline. In recent decades, several population and distributional changes have occurred, with some colonies declining and others newly established or increasing. We integrated data of eight colonies scattered along ∼600 km in Northern Patagonia (from 41°26´S, 65°01´W to 45°11´S, 66°30´W, Rio Negro and Chubut provinces and conducted analysis in terms of their growth rates, production of young and of the dependence of those vital rates on colony age, size, and location. We contrasted population trends estimated from abundance data with those derived from population modeling to understand if observed growth rates were attainable under closed population scenarios. Population trends were inversely related to colony size, suggesting a density dependent growth pattern. All colonies located in the north--which were established during the last decades--increased at high rates, with the smallest, recently established colonies growing at the fastest rate. In central-southern Chubut, where colonies are the oldest, the largest breeding aggregations declined, but smaller colonies remained relatively stable. Results provided strong evidence that dispersal played a major role in driving local trends. Breeding success was higher in northern colonies, likely mediated by favorable oceanographic conditions. However, mean foraging distance and body condition of chicks at fledging were influenced by colony size. Recruitment of penguins in the northern area may have been triggered by a combination of density dependence, likely exacerbated by less favorable oceanographic conditions in the southern sector. Our results

Frequency-Dependent Social Transmission and the Interethnic Transfer of Female Genital Modification in the African Diaspora and Indigenous Populations of Colombia.

Science.gov (United States)

Ross, Cody T; Campiño, Patricia Joyas; Winterhalder, Bruce

2015-12-01

We present a quantitative account based on ethnographic and documentary research of the prevalence of female genital modification (FGMo) in the African diaspora and indigenous populations of Colombia. We use these data to test hypotheses concerning the cultural evolutionary drivers of costly trait persistence, attenuation, and intergroup transmission. The uptake of FGMo by indigenous populations in Colombia is consistent with frequency-dependent hypotheses for the social transmission of the FGMo trait from the African diaspora population in the period following the era of slavery in Colombia. The prevalence and severity of practices related to FGMo decline with level of sociocultural integration into mainstream Colombian culture. Our results provide empirical support for the cultural evolutionary models proposed by Ross et al. (2015) to describe the transmission dynamics of FGMo and other costly traits. Analysis of costly trait dynamics contributes knowledge useful to applied anthropology and may be of interest in policy design and human rights monitoring in Colombia and elsewhere.

Psychosocial Status and Economic Dependence for Healthcare and Nonhealthcare among Elderly Population in Rural Coastal Karnataka.

Science.gov (United States)

Rent, Priyanka Dsouza; Kumar, Sudeep; Dmello, Mackwin Kenwood; Purushotham, Jagannath

2017-01-01

The elderly who will constitute 10% of the Indian population by 2021 face problems such as deteriorating healthcare status, loneliness, and economic constraints among others. All these factors together may affect the psychosocial status of the elderly and their health-seeking behavior. With this background, the current study tried to evaluate the psychosocial status, economic dependence for health and nonhealth expenses and awareness regarding geriatric welfare services (GWS) among elderly patients. The study was carried out among 599 men and women aged above 60 who visited rural healthcare centers in two districts of Karnataka during September-December 2016. A semi-structured interview schedule was administered by a trained medical professional after taking informed consent. Majority of the respondents said that they had company at home, interacted with people outside home and that their advice was honored. About 75.8% of the respondents reported that they were either partially or completely financially dependent on someone else. The mean cost of hospitalization was reported to be Rs. 11,086. Majority of those hospitalized depended on their children to pay for healthcare (66.9%), whereas 16.9% had availed government insurance schemes and 14.6% paid out of pocket. Nearly 64.9% of the respondents were aware of the GWS while 32.6% had used them. The absence of financial risk pooling mechanisms and social support may cause elderly to forego treatment because of the need to pay for healthcare and further deteriorate their psychosocial status. Government initiatives to improve healthcare and social services to the elderly maybe advocated.

Assessment of variability in the hydrological cycle of the Loess Plateau, China: examining dependence structures of hydrological processes

Science.gov (United States)

Guo, A.; Wang, Y.

2017-12-01

Investigating variability in dependence structures of hydrological processes is of critical importance for developing an understanding of mechanisms of hydrological cycles in changing environments. In focusing on this topic, present work involves the following: (1) identifying and eliminating serial correlation and conditional heteroscedasticity in monthly streamflow (Q), precipitation (P) and potential evapotranspiration (PE) series using the ARMA-GARCH model (ARMA: autoregressive moving average; GARCH: generalized autoregressive conditional heteroscedasticity); (2) describing dependence structures of hydrological processes using partial copula coupled with the ARMA-GARCH model and identifying their variability via copula-based likelihood-ratio test method; and (3) determining conditional probability of annual Q under different climate scenarios on account of above results. This framework enables us to depict hydrological variables in the presence of conditional heteroscedasticity and to examine dependence structures of hydrological processes while excluding the influence of covariates by using partial copula-based ARMA-GARCH model. Eight major catchments across the Loess Plateau (LP) are used as study regions. Results indicate that (1) The occurrence of change points in dependence structures of Q and P (PE) varies across the LP. Change points of P-PE dependence structures in all regions almost fully correspond to the initiation of global warming, i.e., the early 1980s. (3) Conditional probabilities of annual Q under various P and PE scenarios are estimated from the 3-dimensional joint distribution of (Q, P and PE) based on the above change points. These findings shed light on mechanisms of the hydrological cycle and can guide water supply planning and management, particularly in changing environments.

Rare gas dependence of vibration--vibration energy transfer processes: A diagnostic technique. Applications to CH2D2 and CH3F

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Apkarian, V.A.; Weitz, E.

1979-01-01

The rare gas dependence of V--V rates can be used as a diagnostic technique to identify different mechanisms of vibrational energy transfer and determine the rate constants for individual kinetic steps. The method is especially useful for the identification and measurement of rates of resonant vibrational energy transfer processes. Analytical and numerical solutions of pertinent model equations are presented and their range of applicability is discussed. The technique is applied to CH 2 D 2 and CH 3 F. In CH 2 D 2 results of studies on ν 9 , [ν 1 , ν 6 ] and states in the 2000 cm -1 region are presented where the application of the technique has made it possible to identify the pathways leading to population of these states and to assign rate constants to some of the steps involved. In CH 3 F, by studying the Ar dependence of the V--V rates of the [ν 2 , ν 5 ] and [ν 1 , ν 4 ] states it has been possible to construct a complete map of energy transfer pathways which can explain all experimental observations for this system, to date. The general applicability of the technique and its potential application to other systems is also considered

Discrete bivariate population balance modelling of heteroaggregation processes.

Science.gov (United States)

Rollié, Sascha; Briesen, Heiko; Sundmacher, Kai

2009-08-15

Heteroaggregation in binary particle mixtures was simulated with a discrete population balance model in terms of two internal coordinates describing the particle properties. The considered particle species are of different size and zeta-potential. Property space is reduced with a semi-heuristic approach to enable an efficient solution. Aggregation rates are based on deterministic models for Brownian motion and stability, under consideration of DLVO interaction potentials. A charge-balance kernel is presented, relating the electrostatic surface potential to the property space by a simple charge balance. Parameter sensitivity with respect to the fractal dimension, aggregate size, hydrodynamic correction, ionic strength and absolute particle concentration was assessed. Results were compared to simulations with the literature kernel based on geometric coverage effects for clusters with heterogeneous surface properties. In both cases electrostatic phenomena, which dominate the aggregation process, show identical trends: impeded cluster-cluster aggregation at low particle mixing ratio (1:1), restabilisation at high mixing ratios (100:1) and formation of complex clusters for intermediate ratios (10:1). The particle mixing ratio controls the surface coverage extent of the larger particle species. Simulation results are compared to experimental flow cytometric data and show very satisfactory agreement.

What makes a species common? No evidence of density-dependent recruitment or mortality of the sea urchin Diadema antillarum after the 1983-1984 mass mortality.

Science.gov (United States)

Levitan, Don R; Edmunds, Peter J; Levitan, Keeha E

2014-05-01

A potential consequence of individuals compensating for density-dependent processes is that rare or infrequent events can produce profound and long-term shifts in species abundance. In 1983-1984 a mass mortality event reduced the numbers of the abundant sea urchin Diadema antillarum by 95-99% throughout the Caribbean and western Atlantic. Following this event, the abundance of macroalgae increased and the few surviving D. antillarum responded by increasing in body size and fecundity. These initial observations suggested that populations of D. antillarum could recover rapidly following release from food limitation. In contrast, published studies of field manipulations indicate that this species had traits making it resistant to density-dependent effects on offspring production and adult mortality; this evidence raises the possibility that density-independent processes might keep populations at a diminished level. Decadal-scale (1983-2011) monitoring of recruitment, mortality, population density and size structure of D. antillarum from St John, US Virgin Islands, indicates that population density has remained relatively stable and more than an order of magnitude lower than that before the mortality event of 1983-1984. We detected no evidence of density-dependent mortality or recruitment since this mortality event. In this location, model estimates of equilibrium population density, assuming density-independent processes and based on parameters generated over the first decade following the mortality event, accurately predict the low population density 20 years later (2011). We find no evidence to support the notion that this historically dominant species will rebound from this temporally brief, but spatially widespread, perturbation.

Inter-dependence not Over-dependence: Reducing Urban Transport Energy Dependence

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Saunders, Michael James; Rodrigues da Silva, Antonio Nelson

2007-07-01

A major issue of concern in today's world is urban transport energy dependence and energy supply security. In an energy inter-dependent world, energy over-dependence brings risks to urban transport systems. Many urban areas are over-dependent on finite petroleum resources for transport. New technology and the development and integration of renewable resources into transport energy systems may reduce some of the current transport energy dependence of urban areas. However, the most effective means of reducing energy dependence is to first design urban areas for this condition. An urban policy framework is proposed that requires transport energy dependence to be measured and controlled in the urban development process. A new tool has been created for this purpose, the Transport Energy Specification (TES), which measures transport energy dependence of urban areas. This creates the possibility for cities to regulate urban development with respect to energy dependence. Trial assessments were performed in Germany, New Zealand and Brazil; initial analysis by transport and government professionals shows promise of this tool being included into urban policy. The TES combined with a regulatory framework has the potential to significantly reduce transport energy consumption and dependence in urban areas in the future. (auth)

The role of inelastic processes in the temperature dependence of hall induced resistance oscillations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kunold, Alejandro; Torres, Manuel

2013-01-01

We develop a model of magnetoresistance oscillations induced by the Hall field in order to study the temperature dependence observed in recent experiments in two dimensional electron systems. The model is based on the solution of the von Neumann equation incorporating the exact dynamics of two-dimensional damped electrons in the presence of arbitrarily strong magnetic and dc electric fields, while the effects of randomly distributed neutral and charged impurities are perturbatively added. Both the effects of elastic impurity scattering as well as those related to inelastic processes play an important role. The theoretical predictions correctly reproduce the experimentally observed oscillations amplitude, provided that the quantum inelastic scattering rate obeys a T 2 temperature dependence, consistent with electron–electron interaction effects

[Incidence of dependence-related lesions in a population of critical patients].

Science.gov (United States)

Roca-Biosca, Alba; Rubio-Rico, Lourdes; de Molina-Fernández, María Inmaculada; Tuset-Garijo, Gemma; Colodrero-Díaz, Encarnación; García-Fernández, Francisco Pedro

2016-01-01

To determine the incidence of various types of dependence-related lesions (DRL) on a population of critically ill patients. Descriptive, longitudinal and prospective study in an Intensive Care Unit from January 2014 to January 2015. Adult patients who did not present DRL at the moment of admission were included. Those with brain death and/or stay at the unit for more than two days were excluded. Patients were studied till they developed DRL, were exitus, discharged or stayed for more than 14 days. Each patient was evaluated daily till DRL did develop or was excluded from the study. If DRL did develop it was photographed and related data were recorded. The comparison between quantitative variables of normal distribution was done with the t de Student. The Mann-Whitney U was used to compare the other variables. Qualitative variables were compared through Pearson's chi square. In both cases p≤.05 was considered significant. 295 patients were included, 27.45% of them developed DRL. The density of incidence was 41 DRL/1,000 days at risk. 50.62% of DRL were categorized as PU. 17.28% were moisture injuries, 13.58% were due to friction and the rest were combined injuries. The risk according to EMINA and Braden scale was significantly different in the group of patients with lesions compared to the group without them. Not all injuries were caused by pressure. Specific prevention strategies based on different causal mechanisms are required. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier España, S.L.U. All rights reserved.

Temperature dependence of frequency dispersion in III–V metal-oxide-semiconductor C-V and the capture/emission process of border traps

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vais, Abhitosh, E-mail: Abhitosh.Vais@imec.be; Martens, Koen; DeMeyer, Kristin [Department of Electrical Engineering, KU Leuven, B-3000 Leuven (Belgium); IMEC, Kapeldreef 75, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium); Lin, Han-Chung; Ivanov, Tsvetan; Collaert, Nadine; Thean, Aaron [IMEC, Kapeldreef 75, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium); Dou, Chunmeng [Frontier Research Center, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Yokohama 226-8502 (Japan); Xie, Qi; Maes, Jan [ASM International, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium); Tang, Fu; Givens, Michael [ASM International, Phoenix, Arizona 85034-7200 (United States); Raskin, Jean-Pierre [Institute of Information and Communication Technologies, Electronics and Applied Mathematics, Universiteé Catholique de Louvain, B-1348 Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium)

2015-08-03

This paper presents a detailed investigation of the temperature dependence of frequency dispersion observed in capacitance-voltage (C-V) measurements of III-V metal-oxide-semiconductor (MOS) devices. The dispersion in the accumulation region of the capacitance data is found to change from 4%–9% (per decade frequency) to ∼0% when the temperature is reduced from 300 K to 4 K in a wide range of MOS capacitors with different gate dielectrics and III-V substrates. We show that such significant temperature dependence of C-V frequency dispersion cannot be due to the temperature dependence of channel electrostatics, i.e., carrier density and surface potential. We also show that the temperature dependence of frequency dispersion, and hence, the capture/emission process of border traps can be modeled by a combination of tunneling and a “temperature-activated” process described by a non-radiative multi-phonon model, instead of a widely believed single-step elastic tunneling process.

Time evolution of cascade processes of muonic atoms in hydrogen-helium mixtures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bystritskij, V.; Czaplinski, W.; Filipowicz, M.; Gula, E.; Popov, N.

1999-01-01

Time dependence of population of muonic hydrogen states in hydrogen-helium mixtures is calculated for principal quantum number n. Number of muons transferred to helium nuclei is also determined. Dependence of population of the ground state of muonic hydrogen q ls He on time and target density and helium concentration is also considered. The results are in agreement with recent experimental data. The comparison of the calculated yield of K lines of x-ray in pure hydrogen and deuterium with experimental data indicates on essential role of Coulomb de-excitation process. Possible Stark mixing is also analyzed

Do we have to choose between feeding the human population and conserving nature? Modelling the global dependence of people on ecosystem services.

Science.gov (United States)

Cazalis, Victor; Loreau, Michel; Henderson, Kirsten

2018-09-01

The ability of the human population to continue growing depends strongly on the ecosystem services provided by nature. Nature, however, is becoming more and more degraded as the number of individuals increases, which could potentially threaten the future well-being of the human population. We use a dynamic model to conceptualise links between the global proportion of natural habitats and human demography, through four categories of ecosystem services (provisioning, regulating, cultural recreational and informational) to investigate the common future of nature and humanity in terms of size and well-being. Our model shows that there is generally a trade-off between the quality of life and human population size and identifies four short-term scenarios, corresponding to three long-term steady states of the model. First, human population could experience declines if nature becomes too degraded and regulating services diminish; second the majority of the population could be in a famine state, where the population continues to grow with minimal food provision. Between these scenarios, a desirable future scenario emerges from the model. It occurs if humans convert enough land to feed all the population, while maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services. Finally, we find a fourth scenario, which combines famine and a decline in the population because of an overexploitation of land leading to a decrease in food production. Human demography is embedded in natural dynamics; the two factors should be considered together if we are to identify a desirable future for both nature and humans. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Cytogenetic variability in pinus sylvestris L. populations experiencing anthropogenic influence

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oudalova, A.; Geras'kin, S.; Vasiliev, D.; Dikarev, V.

2004-01-01

Techno-genic pollution has become one of the most significant ecological factors determining biosphere existence and development. An analysis of genetic consequences of the radiation accidents in the South Urals and Chernobyl has shown that mutation and recombination processes are considerably accelerated in plant and animal's populations experiencing techno-genic influence. This implies that there are complicated adaptation processes leading to changes in genetic structure of populations and increasing genetic load. Pinus sylvestris L. populations growing at the territory of the 'radon' Leningrad regional radioactive waste reprocessing enterprise and Sosnovy Bor town were monitored 6 years (1997-2002) by a set of cyto-genetical and morphological tests. Cytogenetic damage levels within intercalary meristem of needle as well as in root meristem of seedlings were found to significantly exceed corresponding controls. A higher radioresistance of the Scots pine seeds analyzed was demonstrated with an acute γ-radiation that also revealed a selection process directed at an enhancement of repair efficiency and resulting in a shift of mean values of radioresistance in populations towards higher values. An enlargement of variance of studied cytogenetic parameters was found in the populations experiencing techno-genic influence. This indicates, with an account of phenomenon of the enhanced radioresistance, that there are processes of cyto-genetical adaptation in the investigated regions. An analysis of the structure of ecological-genetical variability was carried out with the purpose of separating two components in the inter-population variability - the first is engaged to the genetically determined variability of biological characteristics intrinsic for this species, and the second is responsible for the variability originating from anthropogenic contamination of the natural habitat. Changes of these two types of variability were studied in dependence on time and techno

Cytogenetic variability in pinus sylvestris L. populations experiencing anthropogenic influence

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Oudalova, A.; Geras' kin, S.; Vasiliev, D.; Dikarev, V. [Russian Institute of Agricultural Radiology and Agroecology, Obninsk (Russian Federation)

2004-07-01

Techno-genic pollution has become one of the most significant ecological factors determining biosphere existence and development. An analysis of genetic consequences of the radiation accidents in the South Urals and Chernobyl has shown that mutation and recombination processes are considerably accelerated in plant and animal's populations experiencing techno-genic influence. This implies that there are complicated adaptation processes leading to changes in genetic structure of populations and increasing genetic load. Pinus sylvestris L. populations growing at the territory of the 'radon' Leningrad regional radioactive waste reprocessing enterprise and Sosnovy Bor town were monitored 6 years (1997-2002) by a set of cyto-genetical and morphological tests. Cytogenetic damage levels within intercalary meristem of needle as well as in root meristem of seedlings were found to significantly exceed corresponding controls. A higher radioresistance of the Scots pine seeds analyzed was demonstrated with an acute {gamma}-radiation that also revealed a selection process directed at an enhancement of repair efficiency and resulting in a shift of mean values of radioresistance in populations towards higher values. An enlargement of variance of studied cytogenetic parameters was found in the populations experiencing techno-genic influence. This indicates, with an account of phenomenon of the enhanced radioresistance, that there are processes of cyto-genetical adaptation in the investigated regions. An analysis of the structure of ecological-genetical variability was carried out with the purpose of separating two components in the inter-population variability - the first is engaged to the genetically determined variability of biological characteristics intrinsic for this species, and the second is responsible for the variability originating from anthropogenic contamination of the natural habitat. Changes of these two types of variability were studied in dependence on

Cooperation Dilemma in Finite Populations under Fluctuating Environments

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Assaf, Michael; Mobilia, Mauro; Roberts, Elijah

2013-12-01

We present a novel approach allowing the study of rare events like fixation under fluctuating environments, modeled as extrinsic noise, in evolutionary processes characterized by the dominance of one species. Our treatment consists of mapping the system onto an auxiliary model, exhibiting metastable species coexistence, that can be analyzed semiclassically. This approach enables us to study the interplay between extrinsic and demographic noise on the statistics of interest. We illustrate our theory by considering the paradigmatic prisoner’s dilemma game, whose evolution is described by the probability that cooperators fixate the population and replace all defectors. We analytically and numerically demonstrate that extrinsic noise may drastically enhance the cooperation fixation probability and even change its functional dependence on the population size. These results, which generalize earlier works in population genetics, indicate that extrinsic noise may help sustain and promote a much higher level of cooperation than static settings.

Perturbation analysis of nonlinear matrix population models

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Hal Caswell

2008-03-01

Full Text Available Perturbation analysis examines the response of a model to changes in its parameters. It is commonly applied to population growth rates calculated from linear models, but there has been no general approach to the analysis of nonlinear models. Nonlinearities in demographic models may arise due to density-dependence, frequency-dependence (in 2-sex models, feedback through the environment or the economy, and recruitment subsidy due to immigration, or from the scaling inherent in calculations of proportional population structure. This paper uses matrix calculus to derive the sensitivity and elasticity of equilibria, cycles, ratios (e.g. dependency ratios, age averages and variances, temporal averages and variances, life expectancies, and population growth rates, for both age-classified and stage-classified models. Examples are presented, applying the results to both human and non-human populations.

Genetic determinants of PAM-dependent DNA targeting and pre-crRNA processing in Sulfolobus islandicus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Peng, Wenfang; Li, Huan; Hallstrøm, Søren

2013-01-01

-adjacent motif (PAM)-dependent DNA targeting activity and mature CRISPR RNA (crRNA) production in this organism, mutants deleting individual genes of the type IA system or removing each of other Cas modules were constructed. Characterization of these mutants revealed that Cas7, Cas5, Cas6, Cas3' and Cas3......" are essential for PAM-dependent DNA targeting activity, whereas Csa5, along with all other Cas modules, is dispensable for the targeting in the crenarchaeon. Cas6 is implicated as the only enzyme for pre-crRNA processing and the crRNA maturation is independent of the DNA targeting activity. Importantly, we show...

Childhood trajectories of inattention, hyperactivity and oppositional behaviors and prediction of substance abuse/dependence: a 15-year longitudinal population-based study.

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Pingault, J-B; Côté, S M; Galéra, C; Genolini, C; Falissard, B; Vitaro, F; Tremblay, R E

2013-07-01

Numerous prospective studies have shown that children diagnosed with attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are at higher risk of long-term substance abuse/dependence. However, there are three important limits to these studies: (a) most did not differentiate the role of hyperactivity and inattention; (b) most did not control for associated behavioral problems; and (c) most did not consider females. Our aim was to clarify the unique and interactive contributions of childhood inattention and hyperactivity symptoms to early adulthood substance abuse/dependence. Behavioral problems of 1803 participants (814 males) in a population-based longitudinal study were assessed yearly between 6 and 12 years by mothers and teachers. The prevalence of substance abuse/dependence at age 21 years was 30.7% for nicotine, 13.4% for alcohol, 9.1% for cannabis and 2.0% for cocaine. The significant predictors of nicotine dependence were inattention (odds ratio (OR): 2.25; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.63-3.11) and opposition (OR: 1.65; 95%: 1.20-2.28). Only opposition contributed to the prediction of cannabis dependence (OR: 2.33; 95% CI: 1.40-3.87) and cocaine dependence (OR: 2.97; 95% CI: 1.06-8.57). The best behavioral predictor of alcohol abuse/dependence (opposition) was only marginally significant (OR: 1.38; 95% CI: 0.98-1.95). Frequent oppositional behaviors during elementary school were clearly the most pervasive predictors of substance abuse/dependence in early adulthood. The association of childhood ADHD with substance abuse/dependence is largely attributable to its association with opposition problems during childhood. However, inattention remained an important predictor of nicotine dependence, in line with genetic and molecular commonalities between the two phenotypes suggested in the literature.

GIS-Based Population Model Applied to Nevada Transportation Routes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mills, G.S.; Neuhauser, K.S.

1999-01-01

Recently, a model based on geographic information system (GIS) processing of US Census Block data has made high-resolution population analysis for transportation risk analysis technically and economically feasible. Population density bordering each kilometer of a route may be tabulated with specific route sections falling into each of three categories (Rural, Suburban or Urban) identified for separate risk analysis. In addition to the improvement in resolution of Urban areas along a route, the model provides a statistically-based correction to population densities in Rural and Suburban areas where Census Block dimensions may greatly exceed the 800-meter scale of interest. A semi-automated application of the GIS model to a subset of routes in Nevada (related to the Yucca Mountain project) are presented, and the results compared to previous models including a model based on published Census and other data. These comparisons demonstrate that meaningful improvement in accuracy and specificity of transportation risk analyses is dependent on correspondingly accurate and geographically-specific population density data

Comparing of the Reaction Time in Substance-Dependent and Non-Dependent Individuals

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Mohammad Narimani

2012-11-01

Full Text Available Aim: The aim of this study was to compare the simple, selective, and discrimination reaction time in substance-dependent and non-dependent individuals. Method: In this causal-comparative study, the population included of 425 males (opium and crystal dependents who were referred to addiction rehabilitation centers in Tabriz. By random sampling, 16 opium dependents, 16 crystal dependents, and 16 non-dependent individuals with no history of dependency as the compare group were selected. All groups peered in age, and marital status. For gathering data, “Addicts Admit Questionnaire” and laboratory device known as the "Reaction Time Assay" have been used. Results: The results of this study showed that there are significant differences among all groups in simple reaction time, choice reaction time and reaction time to auditory stimuli, but no significant difference in discrimination reaction time and reaction time to visual stimulus observed. Conclusion: The reaction time of substance-dependent groups is slower than non-dependent groups.

Psychosocial status and economic dependence for healthcare and nonhealthcare among elderly population in rural coastal Karnataka

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Priyanka Dsouza Rent

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction: The elderly who will constitute 10% of the Indian population by 2021 face problems such as deteriorating healthcare status, loneliness, and economic constraints among others. All these factors together may affect the psychosocial status of the elderly and their health-seeking behavior. With this background, the current study tried to evaluate the psychosocial status, economic dependence for health and nonhealth expenses and awareness regarding geriatric welfare services (GWS among elderly patients. Materials and Methods: The study was carried out among 599 men and women aged above 60 who visited rural healthcare centers in two districts of Karnataka during September–December 2016. A semi-structured interview schedule was administered by a trained medical professional after taking informed consent. Results: Majority of the respondents said that they had company at home, interacted with people outside home and that their advice was honored. About 75.8% of the respondents reported that they were either partially or completely financially dependent on someone else. The mean cost of hospitalization was reported to be Rs. 11,086. Majority of those hospitalized depended on their children to pay for healthcare (66.9%, whereas 16.9% had availed government insurance schemes and 14.6% paid out of pocket. Nearly 64.9% of the respondents were aware of the GWS while 32.6% had used them. Conclusion: The absence of financial risk pooling mechanisms and social support may cause elderly to forego treatment because of the need to pay for healthcare and further deteriorate their psychosocial status. Government initiatives to improve healthcare and social services to the elderly maybe advocated.

Voltage-Dependent Rhythmogenic Property of Respiratory Pre-Bötzinger Complex Glutamatergic, Dbx1-Derived, and Somatostatin-Expressing Neuron Populations Revealed by Graded Optogenetic Inhibition.

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Koizumi, Hidehiko; Mosher, Bryan; Tariq, Mohammad F; Zhang, Ruli; Koshiya, Naohiro; Smith, Jeffrey C

2016-01-01

The rhythm of breathing in mammals, originating within the brainstem pre-Bötzinger complex (pre-BötC), is presumed to be generated by glutamatergic neurons, but this has not been directly demonstrated. Additionally, developmental expression of the transcription factor Dbx1 or expression of the neuropeptide somatostatin (Sst), has been proposed as a marker for the rhythmogenic pre-BötC glutamatergic neurons, but it is unknown whether these other two phenotypically defined neuronal populations are functionally equivalent to glutamatergic neurons with regard to rhythm generation. To address these problems, we comparatively investigated, by optogenetic approaches, the roles of pre-BötC glutamatergic, Dbx1-derived, and Sst-expressing neurons in respiratory rhythm generation in neonatal transgenic mouse medullary slices in vitro and also more intact adult perfused brainstem-spinal cord preparations in situ. We established three different triple-transgenic mouse lines with Cre-driven Archaerhodopsin-3 (Arch) expression selectively in glutamatergic, Dbx1-derived, or Sst-expressing neurons for targeted photoinhibition. In each line, we identified subpopulations of rhythmically active, Arch-expressing pre-BötC inspiratory neurons by whole-cell recordings in medullary slice preparations in vitro, and established that Arch-mediated hyperpolarization of these inspiratory neurons was laser power dependent with equal efficacy. By site- and population-specific graded photoinhibition, we then demonstrated that inspiratory frequency was reduced by each population with the same neuronal voltage-dependent frequency control mechanism in each state of the respiratory network examined. We infer that enough of the rhythmogenic pre-BötC glutamatergic neurons also have the Dbx1 and Sst expression phenotypes, and thus all three phenotypes share the same voltage-dependent frequency control property.

Intensity-dependent point spread image processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cornsweet, T.N.; Yellott, J.I.

1984-01-01

There is ample anatomical, physiological and psychophysical evidence that the mammilian retina contains networks that mediate interactions among neighboring receptors, resulting in intersecting transformations between input images and their corresponding neural output patterns. The almost universally accepted view is that the principal form of interaction involves lateral inhibition, resulting in an output pattern that is the convolution of the input with a ''Mexican hat'' or difference-of-Gaussians spread function, having a positive center and a negative surround. A closely related process is widely applied in digital image processing, and in photography as ''unsharp masking''. The authors show that a simple and fundamentally different process, involving no inhibitory or subtractive terms can also account for the physiological and psychophysical findings that have been attributed to lateral inhibition. This process also results in a number of fundamental effects that occur in mammalian vision and that would be of considerable significance in robotic vision, but which cannot be explained by lateral inhibitory interaction

A common reference population from four European Holstein populations increases reliability of genomic predictions

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lund, Mogens Sandø; de Ross, Sander PW; de Vries, Alfred G

2011-01-01

Background Size of the reference population and reliability of phenotypes are crucial factors influencing the reliability of genomic predictions. It is therefore useful to combine closely related populations. Increased accuracies of genomic predictions depend on the number of individuals added to...

Phylodynamics with Migration: A Computational Framework to Quantify Population Structure from Genomic Data.

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Kühnert, Denise; Stadler, Tanja; Vaughan, Timothy G; Drummond, Alexei J

2016-08-01

When viruses spread, outbreaks can be spawned in previously unaffected regions. Depending on the time and mode of introduction, each regional outbreak can have its own epidemic dynamics. The migration and phylodynamic processes are often intertwined and need to be taken into account when analyzing temporally and spatially structured virus data. In this article, we present a fully probabilistic approach for the joint reconstruction of phylodynamic history in structured populations (such as geographic structure) based on a multitype birth-death process. This approach can be used to quantify the spread of a pathogen in a structured population. Changes in epidemic dynamics through time within subpopulations are incorporated through piecewise constant changes in transmission parameters.We analyze a global human influenza H3N2 virus data set from a geographically structured host population to demonstrate how seasonal dynamics can be inferred simultaneously with the phylogeny and migration process. Our results suggest that the main migration path among the northern, tropical, and southern region represented in the sample analyzed here is the one leading from the tropics to the northern region. Furthermore, the time-dependent transmission dynamics between and within two HIV risk groups, heterosexuals and injecting drug users, in the Latvian HIV epidemic are investigated. Our analyses confirm that the Latvian HIV epidemic peaking around 2001 was mainly driven by the injecting drug user risk group. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

A condition-based maintenance of a dependent degradation-threshold-shock model in a system with multiple degradation processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caballé, N.C.; Castro, I.T.; Pérez, C.J.; Lanza-Gutiérrez, J.M.

2015-01-01

This paper proposes a condition-based maintenance strategy for a system subject to two dependent causes of failure: degradation and sudden shocks. The internal degradation is reflected by the presence of multiple degradation processes in the system. Degradation processes start at random times following a Non-homogeneous Poisson process and their growths are modelled by using a gamma process. When the deterioration level of a degradation process exceeds a predetermined value, we assume that a degradation failure occurs. Furthermore, the system is subject to sudden shocks that arrive at the system following a Doubly Stochastic Poisson Process. A sudden shock provokes the total breakdown of the system. Thus, the state of the system is evaluated at inspection times and different maintenance tasks can be carried out. If the system is still working at an inspection time, a preventive maintenance task is performed if the deterioration level of a degradation process exceeds a certain threshold. A corrective maintenance task is performed if the system is down at an inspection time. A preventive (corrective) maintenance task implies the replacement of the system by a new one. Under this maintenance strategy, the expected cost rate function is obtained. A numerical example illustrates the analytical results. - Highlights: • A condition-based maintenance model is proposed. • Two dependent causes of failure are considered: deterioration and external shocks. • Deterioration is given by multiple degradation processes growing by a gamma process. • The initiation of degradation processes follows a Non-homogeneous Poisson process. • External shocks arrive at the system by using a Doubly Stochastic Poisson Process

Demographics of an ornate box turtle population experiencing minimal human-induced disturbances

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Converse, S.J.; Iverson, J.B.; Savidge, J.A.

2005-01-01

Human-induced disturbances may threaten the viability of many turtle populations, including populations of North American box turtles. Evaluation of the potential impacts of these disturbances can be aided by long-term studies of populations subject to minimal human activity. In such a population of ornate box turtles (Terrapene ornata ornata) in western Nebraska, we examined survival rates and population growth rates from 1981-2000 based on mark-recapture data. The average annual apparent survival rate of adult males was 0.883 (SE = 0.021) and of adult females was 0.932 (SE = 0.014). Minimum winter temperature was the best of five climate variables as a predictor of adult survival. Survival rates were highest in years with low minimum winter temperatures, suggesting that global warming may result in declining survival. We estimated an average adult population growth rate (????) of 1.006 (SE = 0.065), with an estimated temporal process variance (????2) of 0.029 (95% CI = 0.005-0.176). Stochastic simulations suggest that this mean and temporal process variance would result in a 58% probability of a population decrease over a 20-year period. This research provides evidence that, unless unknown density-dependent mechanisms are operating in the adult age class, significant human disturbances, such as commercial harvest or turtle mortality on roads, represent a potential risk to box turtle populations. ?? 2005 by the Ecological Society of America.

Population dynamics of Hawaiian seabird colonies vulnerable to sea-level rise

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Hatfield, Jeff S.; Reynolds, Michelle H.; Seavy, Nathaniel E.; Krause, Crystal M.

2012-01-01

Globally, seabirds are vulnerable to anthropogenic threats both at sea and on land. Seabirds typically nest colonially and show strong fidelity to natal colonies, and such colonies on low-lying islands may be threatened by sea-level rise. We used French Frigate Shoals, the largest atoll in the Hawaiian Archipelago, as a case study to explore the population dynamics of seabird colonies and the potential effects sea-level rise may have on these rookeries. We compiled historic observations, a 30-year time series of seabird population abundance, lidar-derived elevations, and aerial imagery of all the islands of French Frigate Shoals. To estimate the population dynamics of 8 species of breeding seabirds on Tern Island from 1980 to 2009, we used a Gompertz model with a Bayesian approach to infer population growth rates, density dependence, process variation, and observation error. All species increased in abundance, in a pattern that provided evidence of density dependence. Great Frigatebirds (Fregata minor), Masked Boobies (Sula dactylatra), Red-tailed Tropicbirds (Phaethon rubricauda), Spectacled Terns (Onychoprion lunatus), and White Terns (Gygis alba) are likely at carrying capacity. Density dependence may exacerbate the effects of sea-level rise on seabirds because populations near carrying capacity on an island will be more negatively affected than populations with room for growth. We projected 12% of French Frigate Shoals will be inundated if sea level rises 1 m and 28% if sea level rises 2 m. Spectacled Terns and shrub-nesting species are especially vulnerable to sea-level rise, but seawalls and habitat restoration may mitigate the effects of sea-level rise. Losses of seabird nesting habitat may be substantial in the Hawaiian Islands by 2100 if sea levels rise 2 m. Restoration of higher-elevation seabird colonies represent a more enduring conservation solution for Pacific seabirds.

Presence and changes in populations of yeasts on raw and processed poultry products stored at refrigeration temperature.

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Ismail, S A; Deak, T; El-Rahman, H A; Yassien, M A; Beuchat, L R

2000-12-05

A study was undertaken to determine populations and profiles of yeast species on fresh and processed poultry products upon purchase from retail supermarkets and after storage at 5 degrees C until shelf life expiration, and to assess the potential role of these yeasts in product spoilage. Fifty samples representing 15 commercial raw, marinated, smoked, or roasted chicken and turkey products were analyzed. Yeast populations were determined by plating on dichloran rose bengal chloramphenicol (DRBC) agar and tryptone glucose yeast extract (TGY) agar. Proteolytic activity was determined using caseinate and gelatin agars and lipolytic activity was determined on plate count agar supplemented with tributyrin. Populations of aerobic microorganisms were also determined. Initial populations of yeasts (log10 cfu/g) ranged from less than 1 (detection limit) to 2.89, and increased by the expiration date to 0.37-5.06, indicating the presence of psychrotrophic species. Highest initial populations were detected in raw chicken breast, wings, and ground chicken, as well as in turkey necks and legs, whereas roasted chicken and turkey products contained less than 1 log10 cfu/g. During storage, yeast populations increased significantly (P chicken, ground chicken, liver, heart and gizzard, and in ground turkey and turkey sausage. Isolates (152 strains) of yeasts from poultry products consisted of 12 species. Yarrowia lipolytica and Candida zeylanoides were predominant, making up 39 and 26% of the isolates, respectively. Six different species of basidiomycetous yeasts representing 24% of the isolates were identified. Most Y. lipolytica strains showed strong proteolytic and lipolytic activities, whereas C. zeylanoides was weakly lipolytic. Results suggest that yeasts, particularly Y. lipolytica, may play a more prominent role than previously recognized in the spoilage of fresh and processed poultry stored at 5 degrees C.

Detection of density-dependent effects on caribou numbers from a series of census data

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Francois Messier

1991-10-01

Full Text Available The main objective of this paper is to review and discuss the applicability of statistical procedures for the detection of density dependence based on a series of annual or multi-annual censuses. Regression models for which the statistic value under the null hypothesis of density independence is set a priori (slope = 0 or 1, generate spurious indications of density dependence. These tests are inappropriate because low sample sizes, high variance, and sampling error consistently bias the slope when applied to a finite number of population estimates. Two distribution-free tests are reviewed for which the rejection region for the hypothesis of density independence is derived intrinsically from the data through a computer-assisted permutation process. The "randomization test" gives the best results as the presence of a pronounced trend in the sequence of population estimates does not affect test results. The other non-parametric test, the "permutation test", gives reliable results only if the population fluctuates around a long-term equilibrium density. Both procedures are applied to three sets of data (Pukaskwa herd, Avalon herd, and a hypothetical example that represent quite divergent population trajectories over time.

Probabilistic population aging

Science.gov (United States)

2017-01-01

We merge two methodologies, prospective measures of population aging and probabilistic population forecasts. We compare the speed of change and variability in forecasts of the old age dependency ratio and the prospective old age dependency ratio as well as the same comparison for the median age and the prospective median age. While conventional measures of population aging are computed on the basis of the number of years people have already lived, prospective measures are computed also taking account of the expected number of years they have left to live. Those remaining life expectancies change over time and differ from place to place. We compare the probabilistic distributions of the conventional and prospective measures using examples from China, Germany, Iran, and the United States. The changes over time and the variability of the prospective indicators are smaller than those that are observed in the conventional ones. A wide variety of new results emerge from the combination of methodologies. For example, for Germany, Iran, and the United States the likelihood that the prospective median age of the population in 2098 will be lower than it is today is close to 100 percent. PMID:28636675

Ecological dynamics of age selective harvesting of fish population: Maximum sustainable yield and its control strategy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jana, Debaldev; Agrawal, Rashmi; Upadhyay, Ranjit Kumar; Samanta, G.P.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Age-selective harvesting of prey and predator are considered by multi-delayed prey-predator system. • System experiences stable coexistence to oscillatory mode and vice versa via Hopf-bifurcation depending upon the parametric restrictions. • MSY, bionomic equilibrium and optimal harvesting policy are also depending upon the age-selection of prey and predator. • All the analytic results are delay dependent. • Numerical examples support the analytical findings. - Abstract: Life history of ecological resource management and empirical studies are increasingly documenting the impact of selective harvesting process on the evolutionary stable strategy of both aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. In the present study, the interaction between population and their independent and combined selective harvesting are framed by a multi-delayed prey-predator system. Depending upon the age selection strategy, system experiences stable coexistence to oscillatory mode and vice versa via Hopf-bifurcation. Economic evolution of the system which is mainly featured by maximum sustainable yield (MSY), bionomic equilibrium and optimal harvesting vary largely with the commensurate age selections of both population because equilibrium population abundance becomes age-selection dependent. Our study indicates that balance between harvesting delays and harvesting intensities should be maintained for better ecosystem management. Numerical examples support the analytical findings.

Coevolution of patch-type dependent emigration and patch-type dependent immigration.

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Weigang, Helene C

2017-08-07

The three phases of dispersal - emigration, transfer and immigration - are affecting each other and the former and latter decisions may depend on patch types. Despite the inevitable fact of the complexity of the dispersal process, patch-type dependencies of dispersal decisions modelled as emigration and immigration are usually missing in theoretical dispersal models. Here, I investigate the coevolution of patch-type dependent emigration and patch-type dependent immigration in an extended Hamilton-May model. The dispersing population inhabits a landscape structured into many patches of two types and disperses during a continuous-time season. The trait under consideration is a four dimensional vector consisting of two values for emigration probability from the patches and two values for immigration probability into the patches of each type. Using the adaptive dynamics approach I show that four qualitatively different dispersal strategies may evolve in different parameter regions, including a counterintuitive strategy, where patches of one type are fully dispersed from (emigration probability is one) but individuals nevertheless always immigrate into them during the dispersal season (immigration probability is one). I present examples of evolutionary branching in a wide parameter range, when the patches with high local death rate during the dispersal season guarantee a high expected disperser output. I find that two dispersal strategies can coexist after evolutionary branching: a strategy with full immigration only into the patches with high expected disperser output coexists with a strategy that immigrates into any patch. Stochastic simulations agree with the numerical predictions. Since evolutionary branching is also found when immigration evolves alone, the present study is adding coevolutionary constraints on the emigration traits and hence finds that the coevolution of a higher dimensional trait sometimes hinders evolutionary diversification. Copyright © 2017

Species invasion shifts the importance of predator dependence.

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Griffen, Blaine D; Delaney, David G

2007-12-01

The strength of interference between foraging individuals can influence per capita consumption rates, with important consequences for predator and prey populations and system stability. Here we demonstrate how the replacement of a previously established invader, the predatory crab Carcinus maenas, by the recently invading predatory crab Hemigrapsus sanguineus shifts predation from a species that experiences strong predator interference (strong predator dependence) to one that experiences weak predator interference (weak predator dependence). We demonstrate using field experiments that differences in the strength of predator dependence persist for these species both when they forage on a single focal prey species only (the mussel Mytilus edulis) and when they forage more broadly across the entire prey community. This shift in predator dependence with species replacement may be altering the biomass across trophic levels, consistent with theoretical predictions, as we show that H. sanguineus populations are much larger than C. maenas populations throughout their invaded ranges. Our study highlights that predator dependence may differ among predator species and demonstrates that different predatory impacts of two conspicuous invasive predators may be explained at least in part by different strengths of predator dependence.

How can we model selectively neutral density dependence in evolutionary games.

Science.gov (United States)

Argasinski, Krzysztof; Kozłowski, Jan

2008-03-01

The problem of density dependence appears in all approaches to the modelling of population dynamics. It is pertinent to classic models (i.e., Lotka-Volterra's), and also population genetics and game theoretical models related to the replicator dynamics. There is no density dependence in the classic formulation of replicator dynamics, which means that population size may grow to infinity. Therefore the question arises: How is unlimited population growth suppressed in frequency-dependent models? Two categories of solutions can be found in the literature. In the first, replicator dynamics is independent of background fitness. In the second type of solution, a multiplicative suppression coefficient is used, as in a logistic equation. Both approaches have disadvantages. The first one is incompatible with the methods of life history theory and basic probabilistic intuitions. The logistic type of suppression of per capita growth rate stops trajectories of selection when population size reaches the maximal value (carrying capacity); hence this method does not satisfy selective neutrality. To overcome these difficulties, we must explicitly consider turn-over of individuals dependent on mortality rate. This new approach leads to two interesting predictions. First, the equilibrium value of population size is lower than carrying capacity and depends on the mortality rate. Second, although the phase portrait of selection trajectories is the same as in density-independent replicator dynamics, pace of selection slows down when population size approaches equilibrium, and then remains constant and dependent on the rate of turn-over of individuals.

On discrete stochastic processes with long-lasting time dependence in the variance

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Queirós, S. M. D.

2008-11-01

In this manuscript, we analytically and numerically study statistical properties of an heteroskedastic process based on the celebrated ARCH generator of random variables whose variance is defined by a memory of qm-exponencial, form (eqm=1 x=ex). Specifically, we inspect the self-correlation function of squared random variables as well as the kurtosis. In addition, by numerical procedures, we infer the stationary probability density function of both of the heteroskedastic random variables and the variance, the multiscaling properties, the first-passage times distribution, and the dependence degree. Finally, we introduce an asymmetric variance version of the model that enables us to reproduce the so-called leverage effect in financial markets.

Conservation of disturbance-dependent birds in eastern North America

Science.gov (United States)

William C. Hunter; David A. Buehler; Ronald A. Canterbury; John L. Confer; Paul B. Hamel

2001-01-01

Populations of most bird species associated with grassland, shrub-scrub habitats, and disturbed areas in forested habitats (hereafter all referred to as disturbance-dependent species) have declined steeply. However, a widespread perception exists that disturbance-dependent species are merely returning to population levels likely found by the first European explorers...

Flat Milling Process Simulation Taking into Consideration a Dependence of Dynamic Characteristics of the Machine

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D. A. Zavarzin

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The milling process inherently is on/off, and therefore inevitably there is vibration excitation in the Machine/Fixture/Tool/Part (MFTP system, which results in a different quality of the treated surface, depending on the machining conditions. The objective is to identify effective operation conditions to cut a part on the 3-way easy class machines when there is no unwanted regenerative self-oscillation, leading to a significant deterioration in the quality of the surface machined. The paper describes vibrations arising during a milling process and their effect on the surface shape and the working tool. To solve this problem we apply a numerical simulation method of cutting dynamics, which consist of 4 modules. The main module is an algorithm of the geometric simulation. The second module is a phenomenological model of the cutting forces. Two remaining modules are responsible for dynamics simulation of the part machined and the cutting tool under time-varying cutting forces. The calculated values are transferred back to the geometric modelling algorithm at each step in time. Thus, the model is closed and allows us to take into account an effect of delay in a dynamic system. A finite element machine model to perform calculation in 3DCUT software has been a selected and compiled. The paper presents geometrical mapping of the machining process and natural frequencies and shapes found for the finite element model. Conducting multivariate calculations allowed us to analyse the dependences of a dynamic behaviour of the system on changing spindle speed. The multivariate modelling results are presented as the Poincare maps for a moving free end of the tool. These Poincare maps allow us to select the operation conditions domains coming both with forced vibration and with self-excited oscillations. On the Poincaré map for two operation conditions of different domains there are graphics of the cutting forces, a thickness of the cutting layer, tool

Low Variance Couplings for Stochastic Models of Intracellular Processes with Time-Dependent Rate Functions.

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Anderson, David F; Yuan, Chaojie

2018-04-18

A number of coupling strategies are presented for stochastically modeled biochemical processes with time-dependent parameters. In particular, the stacked coupling is introduced and is shown via a number of examples to provide an exceptionally low variance between the generated paths. This coupling will be useful in the numerical computation of parametric sensitivities and the fast estimation of expectations via multilevel Monte Carlo methods. We provide the requisite estimators in both cases.

Dependency, self-criticism and negative affective responses following imaginary rejection and failure threats: meaning-making processes as moderators or mediators.

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Besser, Avi; Priel, Beatriz

2011-01-01

This study evaluated the intervening role of meaning-making processes in emotional responses to negative life events based on Blatt's (1974, 2004) formulations concerning the role of personality predispositions in depression. In a pre/post within-subject study design, a community sample of 233 participants reacted to imaginary scenarios of interpersonal rejection and achievement failure. Meaning-making processes relating to threats to self-definition and interpersonal relatedness were examined following the exposure to the scenarios. The results indicated that the personality predisposition of Dependency, but not Self-Criticism predicted higher levels of negative affect following the interpersonal rejection event, independent of baseline levels of negative affect. This effect was mediated by higher levels of negative meaning-making processes related to the effect of the interpersonal rejection scenario on Dependent individuals' senses of interpersonal relatedness and self-worth. In addition, both Self-Criticism and Dependency predicted higher levels of negative affect following the achievement failure event, independent of baseline levels of negative affect. Finally, the effect of Self-Criticism was mediated by higher levels of negative meaning-making processes related to the effect of the achievement failure scenario on self-critical individuals' senses of self-definition.

Demographic processes in a local population: seasonal dynamics of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

... differences in daily recruitment and within-patch survival rates. Males were most abundant relative to females early in the season, indicating protandry. Total adult population size was small and showed dramatic variation between the two years, indicating how vulnerable the local population is to demographic extinction.

Assessing local population vulnerability to wind energy development with branching process models: an application to wind energy development

Science.gov (United States)

Erickson, Richard A.; Eager, Eric A.; Stanton, Jessica C.; Beston, Julie A.; Diffendorfer, James E.; Thogmartin, Wayne E.

2015-01-01

Quantifying the impact of anthropogenic development on local populations is important for conservation biology and wildlife management. However, these local populations are often subject to demographic stochasticity because of their small population size. Traditional modeling efforts such as population projection matrices do not consider this source of variation whereas individual-based models, which include demographic stochasticity, are computationally intense and lack analytical tractability. One compromise between approaches is branching process models because they accommodate demographic stochasticity and are easily calculated. These models are known within some sub-fields of probability and mathematical ecology but are not often applied in conservation biology and applied ecology. We applied branching process models to quantitatively compare and prioritize species locally vulnerable to the development of wind energy facilities. Specifically, we examined species vulnerability using branching process models for four representative species: A cave bat (a long-lived, low fecundity species), a tree bat (short-lived, moderate fecundity species), a grassland songbird (a short-lived, high fecundity species), and an eagle (a long-lived, slow maturation species). Wind turbine-induced mortality has been observed for all of these species types, raising conservation concerns. We simulated different mortality rates from wind farms while calculating local extinction probabilities. The longer-lived species types (e.g., cave bats and eagles) had much more pronounced transitions from low extinction risk to high extinction risk than short-lived species types (e.g., tree bats and grassland songbirds). High-offspring-producing species types had a much greater variability in baseline risk of extinction than the lower-offspring-producing species types. Long-lived species types may appear stable until a critical level of incidental mortality occurs. After this threshold, the risk of

A class-based link prediction using Distance Dependent Chinese Restaurant Process

Science.gov (United States)

Andalib, Azam; Babamir, Seyed Morteza

2016-08-01

One of the important tasks in relational data analysis is link prediction which has been successfully applied on many applications such as bioinformatics, information retrieval, etc. The link prediction is defined as predicting the existence or absence of edges between nodes of a network. In this paper, we propose a novel method for link prediction based on Distance Dependent Chinese Restaurant Process (DDCRP) model which enables us to utilize the information of the topological structure of the network such as shortest path and connectivity of the nodes. We also propose a new Gibbs sampling algorithm for computing the posterior distribution of the hidden variables based on the training data. Experimental results on three real-world datasets show the superiority of the proposed method over other probabilistic models for link prediction problem.

Momentum-dependent excitation processes in crystalline and amorphous films of conjugated oligomers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zojer, E.; Knupfer, M.; Shuai, Z.; Fink, J.; Bredas, J.L.; Hoerhold, H.-H.; Grimme, J.; Scherf, U.; Benincori, T.; Leising, G.

2000-01-01

The electronic structure of periodic materials is usually described on the basis of band-structure models, in which each state is not only characterized by its energy but also by the corresponding electron momentum. In this paper we present investigations of momentum-dependent excitation processes in a number of molecular crystals and amorphous thin films. For our studies we have chosen ladder-type quinquephenyl (5LP), distyrylbenzene (3PV), a substituted quinquephenylenevinylene (5PV), and a bridged quarterthienyl (4TB). These substances are representative for several classes of conjugated organic materials. Their physical properties are dominated by the molecular building blocks. The investigated films, however, also allow us to study differences in the characteristics of crystalline (3PV and 4TB), partly amorphous (5LP) and fully amorphous (5PV) systems. Momentum-dependent excitations are induced by inelastic electron scattering in electron-energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS) experiments. The experimental data are compared to molecule based post-Hartree-Fock quantum-chemical simulations performed with the intermediate neglect of differential overlap (INDO) approach coupled to a configuration interaction (CI) technique applying the proper momentum-dependent transition matrix elements. Our results show that even in relatively small systems the molecular electronic states can be characterized by an associated range in momentum space. In addition, differences between inelastic electron scattering spectra for low values of momentum transfer and the optical data obtained for the crystalline samples underline the strong impact of light propagation on the absorption characteristics of highly anisotropic crystalline materials

Sum rules for collisional processes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Oreg, J.; Goldstein, W.H.; Bar-Shalom, A.; Klapisch, M.

1991-01-01

We derive level-to-configuration sum rules for dielectronic capture and for collisional excitation and ionization. These sum rules give the total transition rate from a detailed atomic level to an atomic configuration. For each process, we show that it is possible to factor out the dependence on continuum-electron wave functions. The remaining explicit level dependence of each rate is then obtained from the matrix element of an effective operator acting on the bound orbitals only. In a large class of cases, the effective operator reduces to a one-electron monopole whose matrix element is proportional to the statistical weight of the level. We show that even in these cases, nonstatistical level dependence enters through the dependence of radial integrals on continuum orbitals. For each process, explicit analytic expressions for the level-to-configuration sum rules are given for all possible cases. Together with the well-known J-file sum rule for radiative rates [E. U. Condon and G. H. Shortley, The Theory of Atomic Spectra (University Press, Cambridge, 1935)], the sum rules offer a systematic and efficient procedure for collapsing high-multiplicity configurations into ''effective'' levels for the purpose of modeling the population kinetics of ionized heavy atoms in plasma

General birth-death processes: probabilities, inference, and applications

OpenAIRE

Crawford, Forrest Wrenn

2012-01-01

A birth-death process is a continuous-time Markov chain that counts the number of particles in a system over time. Each particle can give birth to another particle or die, and the rate of births and deaths at any given time depends on how many extant particles there are. Birth-death processes are popular modeling tools in evolution, population biology, genetics, epidemiology, and ecology. Despite the widespread interest in birth-death models, no efficient method exists to evaluate the fini...

Population-Level Density Dependence Influences the Origin and Maintenance of Parental Care.

Science.gov (United States)

Reyes, Elijah; Thrasher, Patsy; Bonsall, Michael B; Klug, Hope

2016-01-01

Parental care is a defining feature of animal breeding systems. We now know that both basic life-history characteristics and ecological factors influence the evolution of care. However, relatively little is known about how these factors interact to influence the origin and maintenance of care. Here, we expand upon previous work and explore the relationship between basic life-history characteristics (stage-specific rates of mortality and maturation) and the fitness benefits associated with the origin and the maintenance of parental care for two broad ecological scenarios: the scenario in which egg survival is density dependent and the case in which adult survival is density dependent. Our findings suggest that high offspring need is likely critical in driving the origin, but not the maintenance, of parental care regardless of whether density dependence acts on egg or adult survival. In general, parental care is more likely to result in greater fitness benefits when baseline adult mortality is low if 1) egg survival is density dependent or 2) adult mortality is density dependent and mutant density is relatively high. When density dependence acts on egg mortality, low rates of egg maturation and high egg densities are less likely to lead to strong fitness benefits of care. However, when density dependence acts on adult mortality, high levels of egg maturation and increasing adult densities are less likely to maintain care. Juvenile survival has relatively little, if any, effect on the origin and maintenance of egg-only care. More generally, our results suggest that the evolution of parental care will be influenced by an organism's entire life history characteristics, the stage at which density dependence acts, and whether care is originating or being maintained.

Scale-Dependence of Processes Structuring Dung Beetle Metacommunities Using Functional Diversity and Community Deconstruction Approaches

Science.gov (United States)

da Silva, Pedro Giovâni; Hernández, Malva Isabel Medina

2015-01-01

Community structure is driven by mechanisms linked to environmental, spatial and temporal processes, which have been successfully addressed using metacommunity framework. The relative importance of processes shaping community structure can be identified using several different approaches. Two approaches that are increasingly being used are functional diversity and community deconstruction. Functional diversity is measured using various indices that incorporate distinct community attributes. Community deconstruction is a way to disentangle species responses to ecological processes by grouping species with similar traits. We used these two approaches to determine whether they are improvements over traditional measures (e.g., species composition, abundance, biomass) for identification of the main processes driving dung beetle (Scarabaeinae) community structure in a fragmented mainland-island landscape in southern Brazilian Atlantic Forest. We sampled five sites in each of four large forest areas, two on the mainland and two on the island. Sampling was performed in 2012 and 2013. We collected abundance and biomass data from 100 sampling points distributed over 20 sampling sites. We studied environmental, spatial and temporal effects on dung beetle community across three spatial scales, i.e., between sites, between areas and mainland-island. The γ-diversity based on species abundance was mainly attributed to β-diversity as a consequence of the increase in mean α- and β-diversity between areas. Variation partitioning on abundance, biomass and functional diversity showed scale-dependence of processes structuring dung beetle metacommunities. We identified two major groups of responses among 17 functional groups. In general, environmental filters were important at both local and regional scales. Spatial factors were important at the intermediate scale. Our study supports the notion of scale-dependence of environmental, spatial and temporal processes in the distribution

Innovation and the growth of human population.

Science.gov (United States)

Weinberger, V P; Quiñinao, C; Marquet, P A

2017-12-05

Biodiversity is sustained by and is essential to the services that ecosystems provide. Different species would use these services in different ways, or adaptive strategies, which are sustained in time by continuous innovations. Using this framework, we postulate a model for a biological species ( Homo sapiens ) in a finite world where innovations, aimed at increasing the flux of ecosystem services (a measure of habitat quality), increase with population size, and have positive effects on the generation of new innovations (positive feedback) as well as costs in terms of negatively affecting the provision of ecosystem services. We applied this model to human populations, where technological innovations are driven by cumulative cultural evolution. Our model shows that depending on the net impact of a technology on the provision of ecosystem services ( θ ), and the strength of technological feedback ( ξ ), different regimes can result. Among them, the human population can fill the entire planet while maximizing their well-being, but not exhaust ecosystem services. However, this outcome requires positive or green technologies that increase the provision of ecosystem services with few negative externalities or environmental costs, and that have a strong positive feedback in generating new technologies of the same kind. If the feedback is small, then the technological stock can collapse together with the human population. Scenarios where technological innovations generate net negative impacts may be associated with a limited technological stock as well as a limited human population at equilibrium and the potential for collapse. The only way to fill the planet with humans under this scenario of negative technologies is by reducing the technological stock to a minimum. Otherwise, the only feasible equilibrium is associated with population collapse. Our model points out that technological innovations per se may not help humans to grow and dominate the planet. Instead

Depth-resolved detection and process dependence of traps at ultrathin plasma-oxidized and deposited SiO2/Si interfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Brillson, L. J.; Young, A. P.; White, B. D.; Schaefer, J.; Niimi, H.; Lee, Y. M.; Lucovsky, G.

2000-01-01

Low-energy electron-excited nanoluminescence spectroscopy reveals depth-resolved optical emission associated with traps near the interface between ultrathin SiO 2 deposited by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition on plasma-oxidized crystalline Si. These near-interface states exhibit a strong dependence on local chemical bonding changes introduced by thermal/gas processing, layer-specific nitridation, or depth-dependent radiation exposure. The depth-dependent results provide a means to test chemical and structural bond models used to develop advanced dielectric-semiconductor junctions. (c) 2000 American Vacuum Society

Application of Gaussian cubature to model two-dimensional population balances

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bałdyga Jerzy

2017-09-01

Full Text Available In many systems of engineering interest the moment transformation of population balance is applied. One of the methods to solve the transformed population balance equations is the quadrature method of moments. It is based on the approximation of the density function in the source term by the Gaussian quadrature so that it preserves the moments of the original distribution. In this work we propose another method to be applied to the multivariate population problem in chemical engineering, namely a Gaussian cubature (GC technique that applies linear programming for the approximation of the multivariate distribution. Examples of the application of the Gaussian cubature (GC are presented for four processes typical for chemical engineering applications. The first and second ones are devoted to crystallization modeling with direction-dependent two-dimensional and three-dimensional growth rates, the third one represents drop dispersion accompanied by mass transfer in liquid-liquid dispersions and finally the fourth case regards the aggregation and sintering of particle populations.

Population-Level Density Dependence Influences the Origin and Maintenance of Parental Care.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elijah Reyes

Full Text Available Parental care is a defining feature of animal breeding systems. We now know that both basic life-history characteristics and ecological factors influence the evolution of care. However, relatively little is known about how these factors interact to influence the origin and maintenance of care. Here, we expand upon previous work and explore the relationship between basic life-history characteristics (stage-specific rates of mortality and maturation and the fitness benefits associated with the origin and the maintenance of parental care for two broad ecological scenarios: the scenario in which egg survival is density dependent and the case in which adult survival is density dependent. Our findings suggest that high offspring need is likely critical in driving the origin, but not the maintenance, of parental care regardless of whether density dependence acts on egg or adult survival. In general, parental care is more likely to result in greater fitness benefits when baseline adult mortality is low if 1 egg survival is density dependent or 2 adult mortality is density dependent and mutant density is relatively high. When density dependence acts on egg mortality, low rates of egg maturation and high egg densities are less likely to lead to strong fitness benefits of care. However, when density dependence acts on adult mortality, high levels of egg maturation and increasing adult densities are less likely to maintain care. Juvenile survival has relatively little, if any, effect on the origin and maintenance of egg-only care. More generally, our results suggest that the evolution of parental care will be influenced by an organism's entire life history characteristics, the stage at which density dependence acts, and whether care is originating or being maintained.

Relationship Between Emotional Processing, Drinking Severity and Relapse in Adults Treated for Alcohol Dependence in Poland

Science.gov (United States)

Kopera, Maciej; Jakubczyk, Andrzej; Suszek, Hubert; Glass, Jennifer M.; Klimkiewicz, Anna; Wnorowska, Anna; Brower, Kirk J.; Wojnar, Marcin

2015-01-01

Aims: Growing data reveals deficits in perception, understanding and regulation of emotions in alcohol dependence (AD). The study objective was to explore the relationships between emotional processing, drinking history and relapse in a clinical sample of alcohol-dependent patients. Methods: A group of 80 inpatients entering an alcohol treatment program in Warsaw, Poland was recruited and assessed at baseline and follow-up after 12 months. Baseline information about demographics, psychopathological symptoms, personality and severity of alcohol problems was obtained. The Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence (EI) Test and Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS) were utilized for emotional processing assessment. Follow-up information contained data on drinking alcohol during the last month. Results: At baseline assessment, the duration of alcohol drinking was associated with lower ability to utilize emotions. Patients reporting more difficulties with describing feelings drank more during their last episode of heavy drinking, and had a longer duration of intensive alcohol use. A longer duration of the last episode of heavy drinking was associated with more problems identifying and regulating emotions. Poor utilization of emotions and high severity of depressive symptoms contributed to higher rates of drinking at follow-up. Conclusions: These results underline the importance of systematic identification of discrete emotional problems and dynamics related to AD. This knowledge has implications for treatment. Psychotherapeutic interventions to improve emotional skills could be utilized in treatment of alcohol-dependent patients. PMID:25543129

HIV-1 Adaptation to Antigen Processing Results in Population-Level Immune Evasion and Affects Subtype Diversification

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Tenzer, Stefan; Crawford, Hayley; Pymm, Phillip

2014-01-01

these regions encode epitopes presented by ~30 more common HLA variants. By combining epitope processing and computational analyses of the two HIV subtypes responsible for ~60% of worldwide infections, we identified a hitherto unrecognized adaptation to the antigen-processing machinery through substitutions...... of intrapatient adaptations, is predictable, facilitates viral subtype diversification, and increases global HIV diversity. Because low epitope abundance is associated with infrequent and weak T cell responses, this most likely results in both population-level immune evasion and inadequate responses in most...

Variance in population firing rate as a measure of slow time-scale correlation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Adam C. Snyder

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Correlated variability in the spiking responses of pairs of neurons, also known as spike count correlation, is a key indicator of functional connectivity and a critical factor in population coding. Underscoring the importance of correlation as a measure for cognitive neuroscience research is the observation that spike count correlations are not fixed, but are rather modulated by perceptual and cognitive context. Yet while this context fluctuates from moment to moment, correlation must be calculated over multiple trials. This property undermines its utility as a dependent measure for investigations of cognitive processes which fluctuate on a trial-to-trial basis, such as selective attention. A measure of functional connectivity that can be assayed on a moment-to-moment basis is needed to investigate the single-trial dynamics of populations of spiking neurons. Here, we introduce the measure of population variance in normalized firing rate for this goal. We show using mathematical analysis, computer simulations and in vivo data how population variance in normalized firing rate is inversely related to the latent correlation in the population, and how this measure can be used to reliably classify trials from different typical correlation conditions, even when firing rate is held constant. We discuss the potential advantages for using population variance in normalized firing rate as a dependent measure for both basic and applied neuroscience research.

Systematic review of ERP and fMRI studies investigating inhibitory control and error processing in people with substance dependence and behavioural addictions

Science.gov (United States)

Luijten, Maartje; Machielsen, Marise W.J.; Veltman, Dick J.; Hester, Robert; de Haan, Lieuwe; Franken, Ingmar H.A.

2014-01-01

Background Several current theories emphasize the role of cognitive control in addiction. The present review evaluates neural deficits in the domains of inhibitory control and error processing in individuals with substance dependence and in those showing excessive addiction-like behaviours. The combined evaluation of event-related potential (ERP) and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) findings in the present review offers unique information on neural deficits in addicted individuals. Methods We selected 19 ERP and 22 fMRI studies using stop-signal, go/no-go or Flanker paradigms based on a search of PubMed and Embase. Results The most consistent findings in addicted individuals relative to healthy controls were lower N2, error-related negativity and error positivity amplitudes as well as hypoactivation in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), inferior frontal gyrus and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. These neural deficits, however, were not always associated with impaired task performance. With regard to behavioural addictions, some evidence has been found for similar neural deficits; however, studies are scarce and results are not yet conclusive. Differences among the major classes of substances of abuse were identified and involve stronger neural responses to errors in individuals with alcohol dependence versus weaker neural responses to errors in other substance-dependent populations. Limitations Task design and analysis techniques vary across studies, thereby reducing comparability among studies and the potential of clinical use of these measures. Conclusion Current addiction theories were supported by identifying consistent abnormalities in prefrontal brain function in individuals with addiction. An integrative model is proposed, suggesting that neural deficits in the dorsal ACC may constitute a hallmark neurocognitive deficit underlying addictive behaviours, such as loss of control. PMID:24359877

Time-dependent motor properties of multipedal molecular spiders.

Science.gov (United States)

Samii, Laleh; Blab, Gerhard A; Bromley, Elizabeth H C; Linke, Heiner; Curmi, Paul M G; Zuckermann, Martin J; Forde, Nancy R

2011-09-01

Molecular spiders are synthetic biomolecular walkers that use the asymmetry resulting from cleavage of their tracks to bias the direction of their stepping motion. Using Monte Carlo simulations that implement the Gillespie algorithm, we investigate the dependence of the biased motion of molecular spiders, along with binding time and processivity, on tunable experimental parameters, such as number of legs, span between the legs, and unbinding rate of a leg from a substrate site. We find that an increase in the number of legs increases the spiders' processivity and binding time but not their mean velocity. However, we can increase the mean velocity of spiders with simultaneous tuning of the span and the unbinding rate of a spider leg from a substrate site. To study the efficiency of molecular spiders, we introduce a time-dependent expression for the thermodynamic efficiency of a molecular motor, allowing us to account for the behavior of spider populations as a function of time. Based on this definition, we find that spiders exhibit transient motor function over time scales of many hours and have a maximum efficiency on the order of 1%, weak compared to other types of molecular motors.

Process optimization by decoupled control of key microbial populations: distribution of activity and abundance of polyphosphate-accumulating organisms and nitrifying populations in a full-scale IFAS-EBPR plant

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Onnis-Hayden, Annalisa; Majed, Nehreen; Schramm, Andreas

2011-01-01

This study investigated the abundance and distribution of key functional microbial populations and their activities in a full-scale integrated fixed film activated sludgeeenhanced biological phosphorus removal (IFAS-EBPR) process. Polyphosphate accumulating organisms (PAOs) including Accumulibacter...

Ergodicity breaking, ageing, and confinement in generalized diffusion processes with position and time dependent diffusivity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cherstvy, Andrey G; Metzler, Ralf

2015-01-01

We study generalized anomalous diffusion processes whose diffusion coefficient D(x, t) ∼ D 0 |x| α t β depends on both the position x of the test particle and the process time t. This process thus combines the features of scaled Brownian motion and heterogeneous diffusion parent processes. We compute the ensemble and time averaged mean squared displacements of this generalized diffusion process. The scaling exponent of the ensemble averaged mean squared displacement is shown to be the product of the critical exponents of the parent processes, and describes both subdiffusive and superdiffusive systems. We quantify the amplitude fluctuations of the time averaged mean squared displacement as function of the length of the time series and the lag time. In particular, we observe a weak ergodicity breaking of this generalized diffusion process: even in the long time limit the ensemble and time averaged mean squared displacements are strictly disparate. When we start to observe this process some time after its initiation we observe distinct features of ageing. We derive a universal ageing factor for the time averaged mean squared displacement containing all information on the ageing time and the measurement time. External confinement is shown to alter the magnitudes and statistics of the ensemble and time averaged mean squared displacements. (paper)

Dependency Grammar in Lithuanian Language Processing

OpenAIRE

Grigonytė, Gintarė

2006-01-01

Lithuanian language is quite in an early stage of language processing. And therefore has a high demand on automated tools like taggers, parsers, word sense disambiguators etc. During the last 10 years only a few researchers were attempting to create a parser for Lithuanian language. However none of them are used in practices nowadays. The process of designing and implementing rule based parser for Lithuanian language is presented in this paper. Rules and constraints of the formal grammar foll...

Understanding the time dependence of atomic level populations in evolving plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Judge, Philip G.

2005-01-01

The time dependence of atomic level populations in evolving plasmas is studied using an eigenfunction expansion of the non-LTE rate equations. The work aims to develop understanding without the need for, and as an aid to, numerical solutions. The discussion is mostly limited to linear systems, especially those for optically thin plasmas, but the implicitly non-linear case of non-LTE radiative transfer is briefly discussed. Eigenvalue spectra for typical atomic systems are examined using results compiled by Hearon. Diagonal dominance and sign symmetry of rate matrices show that just one eigenvalue is zero (corresponding to the equilibrium state), that the remaining eigenvalues have negative real parts, and that oscillations, if any, are necessarily damped. Gershgorin's theorems are used to show that many eigenvalues are determined by the radiative lifetimes of certain levels, because of diagonal dominance. With other properties, this demonstrates the existence of both 'slow' and 'fast' time-scales, where the 'slow' evolution is controlled by properties of meta-stable levels. It is shown that, when collisions are present, Rydberg states contribute only 'fast' eigenvalues. This justifies use of the quasi-static approximation, in which atoms containing just meta-stable levels can suffice to determine the atomic evolution on time-scales long compared with typical radiative lifetimes. Analytic solutions for two- and three-level atoms are used to examine the basis of earlier intuitive ideas, such as the 'ionizing plasma' approximation. The power and limitations of Gershgorin's theorems are examined through examples taken from the solar atmosphere. The methods should help in the planning and interpretation of both experimental and numerical experiments in which atomic evolution is important. While the examples are astrophysical, the methods and results are applicable to plasmas in general

Economic development and population policy in Bangladesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Khan, M R

1984-09-01

This paper deals with Bangladesh's growth rate and the policy implications for its economy. Despite its obvious influence on the economy, population has never been integrated as an endogenous variable in any planning model. Development planning is mostly supported by donor agencies, involving little micro-level planning and practically no trickle-down effect. This paper examines the interaction of population and other development variables in the country's planning process. Much of the rural population consists of landless farmers share croppers, so that the land ownership pattern contributes to low productivity. Population increase is making the rural masses even poorer. This process is further compounded by increasing foreign aid dependence, adverse terms of trade in the international market, low savings and investments, and the rural sector's worsening terms of trade. During 1950-1970 real per capita gross domestic product (GDP) increased only at a rate of 1% per annum and during 1950-1970 real growth of GDP fell behind the population growth rate. A cost benefit analysis of fertility reduction is needed. The cost benefit ratio of most countries varies between 1:10 to 1:30; for Bangladesh it is 1:16. Macro-model studies indicate that the higher the fertility reduction and shorter the period of required decline, the higher will be the benefits in terms of gains in per capita income. There is, however, a contradiction between national and household interests. The latter's decision to have more children has a negative spillover effect, which nullifies the gains of the community. The national family planning program suffered a serious setback during and after the liberation of Bangladesh, mainly due to lack of administrative leadership and support. In order for the population growth rate to be checked and to increase the quality of life for the entire population, the family planning program must be revitalized by mobilizing the entire government machinery and

Generalization of fear inhibition by disrupting hippocampal protein synthesis-dependent reconsolidation process.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Chih-Hao; Huang, Chiung-Chun; Hsu, Kuei-Sen

2011-09-01

Repetitive replay of fear memories may precipitate the occurrence of post-traumatic stress disorder and other anxiety disorders. Hence, the suppression of fear memory retrieval may help prevent and treat these disorders. The formation of fear memories is often linked to multiple environmental cues and these interconnected cues may act as reminders for the recall of traumatic experiences. However, as a convenience, a simple paradigm of one cue pairing with the aversive stimulus is usually used in studies of fear conditioning in animals. Here, we built a more complex fear conditioning model by presenting several environmental stimuli during fear conditioning and characterize the effectiveness of extinction training and the disruption of reconsolidation process on the expression of learned fear responses. We demonstrate that extinction training with a single-paired cue resulted in cue-specific attenuation of fear responses but responses to other cures were unchanged. The cue-specific nature of the extinction persisted despite training sessions combined with D-cycloserine treatment reveals a significant weakness in extinction-based treatment. In contrast, the inhibition of the dorsal hippocampus (DH) but not the basolateral amygdala (BLA)-dependent memory reconsolidation process using either protein synthesis inhibitors or genetic disruption of cAMP-response-element-binding protein-mediated transcription comprehensively disrupted the learned connections between fear responses and all paired environmental cues. These findings emphasize the distinct role of the DH and the BLA in the reconsolidation process of fear memories and further indicate that the disruption of memory reconsolidation process in the DH may result in generalization of fear inhibition.

Dependency Parsing

CERN Document Server

Kubler, Sandra; Nivre, Joakim

2009-01-01

Dependency-based methods for syntactic parsing have become increasingly popular in natural language processing in recent years. This book gives a thorough introduction to the methods that are most widely used today. After an introduction to dependency grammar and dependency parsing, followed by a formal characterization of the dependency parsing problem, the book surveys the three major classes of parsing models that are in current use: transition-based, graph-based, and grammar-based models. It continues with a chapter on evaluation and one on the comparison of different methods, and it close

Statistical Processing Algorithms for Human Population Databases

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Camelia COLESCU

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The article is describing some algoritms for statistic functions aplied to a human population database. The samples are specific for the most interesting periods, when the evolution of statistical datas has spectacolous value. The article describes the most usefull form of grafical prezentation of the results

Detection of a novel, integrative aging process suggests complex physiological integration.

Science.gov (United States)

Cohen, Alan A; Milot, Emmanuel; Li, Qing; Bergeron, Patrick; Poirier, Roxane; Dusseault-Bélanger, Francis; Fülöp, Tamàs; Leroux, Maxime; Legault, Véronique; Metter, E Jeffrey; Fried, Linda P; Ferrucci, Luigi

2015-01-01

Many studies of aging examine biomarkers one at a time, but complex systems theory and network theory suggest that interpretations of individual markers may be context-dependent. Here, we attempted to detect underlying processes governing the levels of many biomarkers simultaneously by applying principal components analysis to 43 common clinical biomarkers measured longitudinally in 3694 humans from three longitudinal cohort studies on two continents (Women's Health and Aging I & II, InCHIANTI, and the Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging). The first axis was associated with anemia, inflammation, and low levels of calcium and albumin. The axis structure was precisely reproduced in all three populations and in all demographic sub-populations (by sex, race, etc.); we call the process represented by the axis "integrated albunemia." Integrated albunemia increases and accelerates with age in all populations, and predicts mortality and frailty--but not chronic disease--even after controlling for age. This suggests a role in the aging process, though causality is not yet clear. Integrated albunemia behaves more stably across populations than its component biomarkers, and thus appears to represent a higher-order physiological process emerging from the structure of underlying regulatory networks. If this is correct, detection of this process has substantial implications for physiological organization more generally.

Detection of a novel, integrative aging process suggests complex physiological integration.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan A Cohen

Full Text Available Many studies of aging examine biomarkers one at a time, but complex systems theory and network theory suggest that interpretations of individual markers may be context-dependent. Here, we attempted to detect underlying processes governing the levels of many biomarkers simultaneously by applying principal components analysis to 43 common clinical biomarkers measured longitudinally in 3694 humans from three longitudinal cohort studies on two continents (Women's Health and Aging I & II, InCHIANTI, and the Baltimore Longitudinal Study on Aging. The first axis was associated with anemia, inflammation, and low levels of calcium and albumin. The axis structure was precisely reproduced in all three populations and in all demographic sub-populations (by sex, race, etc.; we call the process represented by the axis "integrated albunemia." Integrated albunemia increases and accelerates with age in all populations, and predicts mortality and frailty--but not chronic disease--even after controlling for age. This suggests a role in the aging process, though causality is not yet clear. Integrated albunemia behaves more stably across populations than its component biomarkers, and thus appears to represent a higher-order physiological process emerging from the structure of underlying regulatory networks. If this is correct, detection of this process has substantial implications for physiological organization more generally.

Decay of autoionizing states in time-dependent density functional and reduced density matrix functional theory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kapoor, Varun; Brics, Martins; Bauer, Dieter [Institut fuer Physik, Universitaet Rostock, 18051 Rostock (Germany)

2013-07-01

Autoionizing states are inaccessible to time-dependent density functional theory (TDDFT) using known, adiabatic Kohn-Sham (KS) potentials. We determine the exact KS potential for a numerically exactly solvable model Helium atom interacting with a laser field that is populating an autoionizing state. The exact single-particle density of the population in the autoionizing state corresponds to that of the energetically lowest quasi-stationary state in the exact KS potential. We describe how this exact potential controls the decay by a barrier whose height and width allows for the density to tunnel out and decay with the same rate as in the ab initio time-dependent Schroedinger calculation. However, devising a useful exchange-correlation potential that is capable of governing such a scenario in general and in more complex systems is hopeless. As an improvement over TDDFT, time-dependent reduced density matrix functional theory has been proposed. We are able to obtain for the above described autoionization process the exact time-dependent natural orbitals (i.e., the eigenfunctions of the exact, time-dependent one-body reduced density matrix) and study the potentials that appear in the equations of motion for the natural orbitals and the structure of the two-body density matrix expanded in them.

Characteristic Changes in the Aroma Profile of Patchouli Depending on Manufacturing Process.

Science.gov (United States)

Hasegawa, Toshio; Yoshitome, Kazuma; Fujihara, Takashi; Santoso, Mardi; Aziz, Muhammad Abdul

2017-08-01

Patchouli is used as an incense material and essential oil. The characteristic odor of patchouli leaves results from the drying process used in their production; however, there have to date been no reports on the changes in the odor of patchouli leaves during the drying process. We investigated the aroma profile of dried patchouli leaves using the hexane extracts of fresh and dried patchouli leaves. We focused on the presence or absence of the constituents of the fresh and dried extracts, and the differences in the content of the common constituents. Fourteen constituents were identified as characteristic of dried patchouli extract odor by gas chromatography-olfactometry analysis. The structures of seven of the 14 constituents were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (α-patchoulene, seychellene, humulene, α-bulnesene, isoaromadendrene epoxide, caryophyllene oxide, and patchouli alcohol). The aroma profile of the essential oil obtained from the dried patchouli leaves was clearly different from that of dried patchouli. The aroma profile of the essential oil was investigated by a similar method. We identified 12 compounds as important odor constituents. The structures of nine of the 12 constituents were determined by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (cis-thujopsene, caryophyllene, α-guaiene, α-patchoulene, seychellene, α-bulnesene, isoaromadendrene epoxide, patchouli alcohol, and corymbolone). Comparing the odors and constituents demonstrated that the aroma profile of patchouli depends on the manufacturing process.

Unveiling the fungal mycobiota present throughout the cork stopper manufacturing process

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Barreto, M.C.; Houbraken, J.; Samson, R.A.; Brito, D.; Gadanho, M.; San Romão, M.V.

2012-01-01

A particular fungal population is present in the main stages of the manufacturing process of cork discs. Its diversity was studied using both dependent (isolation) and independent culture methods (denaturing gel gradient electrophoresis and cloning of the ITS1-5.8S-ITS2 region). The mycobiota in the

Population and prehistory II: space-limited human populations in constant environments.

Science.gov (United States)

Puleston, Cedric O; Tuljapurkar, Shripad

2008-09-01

We present a population model to examine the forces that determined the quality and quantity of human life in early agricultural societies where cultivable area is limited. The model is driven by the non-linear and interdependent relationships between the age distribution of a population, its behavior and technology, and the nature of its environment. The common currency in the model is the production of food, on which age-specific rates of birth and death depend. There is a single non-trivial equilibrium population at which productivity balances caloric needs. One of the most powerful controls on equilibrium hunger level is fertility control. Gains against hunger are accompanied by decreases in population size. Increasing worker productivity does increase equilibrium population size but does not improve welfare at equilibrium. As a case study we apply the model to the population of a Polynesian valley before European contact.

Causes and consequences of complex population dynamics in an annual plant, Cardamine pensylvanica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Crone, E.E.

1995-11-08

The relative importance of density-dependent and density-independent factors in determining the population dynamics of plants has been widely debated with little resolution. In this thesis, the author explores the effects of density-dependent population regulation on population dynamics in Cardamine pensylvanica, an annual plant. In the first chapter, she shows that experimental populations of C. pensylvanica cycled from high to low density in controlled constant-environment conditions. These cycles could not be explained by external environmental changes or simple models of direct density dependence (N{sub t+1} = f[N{sub t}]), but they could be explained by delayed density dependence (N{sub t+1} = f[N{sub t}, N{sub t+1}]). In the second chapter, she shows that the difference in the stability properties of population growth models with and without delayed density dependence is due to the presence of Hopf as well as slip bifurcations from stable to chaotic population dynamics. She also measures delayed density dependence due to effects of parental density on offspring quality in C. pensylvanica and shows that this is large enough to be the cause of the population dynamics observed in C. pensylvanica. In the third chapter, the author extends her analyses of density-dependent population growth models to include interactions between competing species. In the final chapter, she compares the effects of fixed spatial environmental variation and variation in population size on the evolutionary response of C. pensylvanica populations.

Mood-dependent integration in discourse comprehension: happy and sad moods affect consistency processing via different brain networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Egidi, Giovanna; Caramazza, Alfonso

2014-12-01

According to recent research on language comprehension, the semantic features of a text are not the only determinants of whether incoming information is understood as consistent. Listeners' pre-existing affective states play a crucial role as well. The current fMRI experiment examines the effects of happy and sad moods during comprehension of consistent and inconsistent story endings, focusing on brain regions previously linked to two integration processes: inconsistency detection, evident in stronger responses to inconsistent endings, and fluent processing (accumulation), evident in stronger responses to consistent endings. The analysis evaluated whether differences in the BOLD response for consistent and inconsistent story endings correlated with self-reported mood scores after a mood induction procedure. Mood strongly affected regions previously associated with inconsistency detection. Happy mood increased sensitivity to inconsistency in regions specific for inconsistency detection (e.g., left IFG, left STS), whereas sad mood increased sensitivity to inconsistency in regions less specific for language processing (e.g., right med FG, right SFG). Mood affected more weakly regions involved in accumulation of information. These results show that mood can influence activity in areas mediating well-defined language processes, and highlight that integration is the result of context-dependent mechanisms. The finding that language comprehension can involve different networks depending on people's mood highlights the brain's ability to reorganize its functions. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Linking individual phenotype to density-dependent population growth: the influence of body size on the population dynamics of malaria vectors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Russell, T.L.; Lwetoijera, D.W.; Knols, B.G.J.; Takken, W.; Killeen, G.F.; Ferguson, H.M.

2011-01-01

Understanding the endogenous factors that drive the population dynamics of malaria mosquitoes will facilitate more accurate predictions about vector control effectiveness and our ability to destabilize the growth of either low- or high-density insect populations. We assessed whether variation in

Linking individual phenotype to density-dependent population growth: the influence of body size on the population dynamics of malaria vectors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Russell, T.L.; Lwetoijera, D.W.; Knols, B.G.J.; Takken, W.; Killeen, G.F.; Ferguson, H.M.

2011-01-01

Understanding the endogenous factors that drive the population dynamics of malaria mosquitoes will facilitate more accurate predictions about vector control effectiveness and our ability to destabilize the growth of either low-or high-density insect populations. We assessed whether variation in

Population viability analysis for endangered Roanoke logperch

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Roberts, James H.; Angermeier, Paul; Anderson, Gregory B.

2016-01-01

A common strategy for recovering endangered species is ensuring that populations exceed the minimum viable population size (MVP), a demographic benchmark that theoretically ensures low long-term extinction risk. One method of establishing MVP is population viability analysis, a modeling technique that simulates population trajectories and forecasts extinction risk based on a series of biological, environmental, and management assumptions. Such models also help identify key uncertainties that have a large influence on extinction risk. We used stochastic count-based simulation models to explore extinction risk, MVP, and the possible benefits of alternative management strategies in populations of Roanoke logperch Percina rex, an endangered stream fish. Estimates of extinction risk were sensitive to the assumed population growth rate and model type, carrying capacity, and catastrophe regime (frequency and severity of anthropogenic fish kills), whereas demographic augmentation did little to reduce extinction risk. Under density-dependent growth, the estimated MVP for Roanoke logperch ranged from 200 to 4200 individuals, depending on the assumed severity of catastrophes. Thus, depending on the MVP threshold, anywhere from two to all five of the logperch populations we assessed were projected to be viable. Despite this uncertainty, these results help identify populations with the greatest relative extinction risk, as well as management strategies that might reduce this risk the most, such as increasing carrying capacity and reducing fish kills. Better estimates of population growth parameters and catastrophe regimes would facilitate the refinement of MVP and extinction-risk estimates, and they should be a high priority for future research on Roanoke logperch and other imperiled stream-fish species.

Prohormone convertase 1/3 is essential for processing of the glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide precursor

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ugleholdt, Randi; Poulsen, Marie-Louise H; Holst, Peter J

2006-01-01

The physiology of the incretin hormones, glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), and their role in type 2 diabetes currently attract great interest. Recently we reported an essential role for prohormone convertase (PC) 1/3 in the cleavage of intesti......The physiology of the incretin hormones, glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) and glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), and their role in type 2 diabetes currently attract great interest. Recently we reported an essential role for prohormone convertase (PC) 1/3 in the cleavage....../3 is essential and sufficient for the production of the intestinal incretin hormone GIP, whereas PC2, although capable of cleaving proGIP, does not participate in intestinal proGIP processing and is not found in intestinal GIP-expressing cells....

Incorporating parametric uncertainty into population viability analysis models

Science.gov (United States)

McGowan, Conor P.; Runge, Michael C.; Larson, Michael A.

2011-01-01

Uncertainty in parameter estimates from sampling variation or expert judgment can introduce substantial uncertainty into ecological predictions based on those estimates. However, in standard population viability analyses, one of the most widely used tools for managing plant, fish and wildlife populations, parametric uncertainty is often ignored in or discarded from model projections. We present a method for explicitly incorporating this source of uncertainty into population models to fully account for risk in management and decision contexts. Our method involves a two-step simulation process where parametric uncertainty is incorporated into the replication loop of the model and temporal variance is incorporated into the loop for time steps in the model. Using the piping plover, a federally threatened shorebird in the USA and Canada, as an example, we compare abundance projections and extinction probabilities from simulations that exclude and include parametric uncertainty. Although final abundance was very low for all sets of simulations, estimated extinction risk was much greater for the simulation that incorporated parametric uncertainty in the replication loop. Decisions about species conservation (e.g., listing, delisting, and jeopardy) might differ greatly depending on the treatment of parametric uncertainty in population models.

Voltage-Dependent Rhythmogenic Property of Respiratory Pre-Bötzinger Complex Glutamatergic, Dbx1-Derived, and Somatostatin-Expressing Neuron Populations Revealed by Graded Optogenetic Inhibition123

Science.gov (United States)

Koizumi, Hidehiko; Mosher, Bryan; Tariq, Mohammad F.; Zhang, Ruli

2016-01-01

Abstract The rhythm of breathing in mammals, originating within the brainstem pre-Bötzinger complex (pre-BötC), is presumed to be generated by glutamatergic neurons, but this has not been directly demonstrated. Additionally, developmental expression of the transcription factor Dbx1 or expression of the neuropeptide somatostatin (Sst), has been proposed as a marker for the rhythmogenic pre-BötC glutamatergic neurons, but it is unknown whether these other two phenotypically defined neuronal populations are functionally equivalent to glutamatergic neurons with regard to rhythm generation. To address these problems, we comparatively investigated, by optogenetic approaches, the roles of pre-BötC glutamatergic, Dbx1-derived, and Sst-expressing neurons in respiratory rhythm generation in neonatal transgenic mouse medullary slices in vitro and also more intact adult perfused brainstem-spinal cord preparations in situ. We established three different triple-transgenic mouse lines with Cre-driven Archaerhodopsin-3 (Arch) expression selectively in glutamatergic, Dbx1-derived, or Sst-expressing neurons for targeted photoinhibition. In each line, we identified subpopulations of rhythmically active, Arch-expressing pre-BötC inspiratory neurons by whole-cell recordings in medullary slice preparations in vitro, and established that Arch-mediated hyperpolarization of these inspiratory neurons was laser power dependent with equal efficacy. By site- and population-specific graded photoinhibition, we then demonstrated that inspiratory frequency was reduced by each population with the same neuronal voltage-dependent frequency control mechanism in each state of the respiratory network examined. We infer that enough of the rhythmogenic pre-BötC glutamatergic neurons also have the Dbx1 and Sst expression phenotypes, and thus all three phenotypes share the same voltage-dependent frequency control property. PMID:27275007

Gender effects in alcohol dependence: an fMRI pilot study examining affective processing.

Science.gov (United States)

Padula, Claudia B; Anthenelli, Robert M; Eliassen, James C; Nelson, Erik; Lisdahl, Krista M

2015-02-01

Alcohol dependence (AD) has global effects on brain structure and function, including frontolimbic regions regulating affective processing. Preliminary evidence suggests alcohol blunts limbic response to negative affective stimuli and increases activation to positive affective stimuli. Subtle gender differences are also evident during affective processing. Fourteen abstinent AD individuals (8 F, 6 M) and 14 healthy controls (9 F, 5 M), ages 23 to 60, were included in this facial affective processing functional magnetic resonance imaging pilot study. Whole-brain linear regression analyses were performed, and follow-up analyses examined whether AD status significantly predicted depressive symptoms and/or coping. Fearful Condition-The AD group demonstrated reduced activation in the right medial frontal gyrus, compared with controls. Gender moderated the effects of AD in bilateral inferior frontal gyri. Happy Condition-AD individuals had increased activation in the right thalamus. Gender moderated the effects of AD in the left caudate, right middle frontal gyrus, left paracentral lobule, and right lingual gyrus. Interactive AD and gender effects for fearful and happy faces were such that AD men activated more than control men, but AD women activated less than control women. Enhanced coping was associated with greater activation in right medial frontal gyrus during fearful condition in AD individuals. Abnormal affective processing in AD may be a marker of alcoholism risk or a consequence of chronic alcoholism. Subtle gender differences were observed, and gender moderated the effects of AD on neural substrates of affective processing. AD individuals with enhanced coping had brain activation patterns more similar to controls. Results help elucidate the effects of alcohol, gender, and their interaction on affective processing. Copyright © 2015 by the Research Society on Alcoholism.

Gene Flow of a Forest-Dependent Bird across a Fragmented Landscape.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachael V Adams

Full Text Available Habitat loss and fragmentation can affect the persistence of populations by reducing connectivity and restricting the ability of individuals to disperse across landscapes. Dispersal corridors promote population connectivity and therefore play important roles in maintaining gene flow in natural populations inhabiting fragmented landscapes. In the prairies, forests are restricted to riparian areas along river systems which act as important dispersal corridors for forest dependent species across large expanses of unsuitable grassland habitat. However, natural and anthropogenic barriers within riparian systems have fragmented these forested habitats. In this study, we used microsatellite markers to assess the fine-scale genetic structure of a forest-dependent species, the black-capped chickadee (Poecile atricapillus, along 10 different river systems in Southern Alberta. Using a landscape genetic approach, landscape features (e.g., land cover were found to have a significant effect on patterns of genetic differentiation. Populations are genetically structured as a result of natural breaks in continuous habitat at small spatial scales, but the artificial barriers we tested do not appear to restrict gene flow. Dispersal between rivers is impeded by grasslands, evident from isolation of nearby populations (~ 50 km apart, but also within river systems by large treeless canyons (>100 km. Significant population genetic differentiation within some rivers corresponded with zones of different cottonwood (riparian poplar tree species and their hybrids. This study illustrates the importance of considering the impacts of habitat fragmentation at small spatial scales as well as other ecological processes to gain a better understanding of how organisms respond to their environmental connectivity. Here, even in a common and widespread songbird with high dispersal potential, small breaks in continuous habitats strongly influenced the spatial patterns of genetic

Relationship between emotional processing, drinking severity and relapse in adults treated for alcohol dependence in Poland.

Science.gov (United States)

Kopera, Maciej; Jakubczyk, Andrzej; Suszek, Hubert; Glass, Jennifer M; Klimkiewicz, Anna; Wnorowska, Anna; Brower, Kirk J; Wojnar, Marcin

2015-03-01

Growing data reveals deficits in perception, understanding and regulation of emotions in alcohol dependence (AD). The study objective was to explore the relationships between emotional processing, drinking history and relapse in a clinical sample of alcohol-dependent patients. A group of 80 inpatients entering an alcohol treatment program in Warsaw, Poland was recruited and assessed at baseline and follow-up after 12 months. Baseline information about demographics, psychopathological symptoms, personality and severity of alcohol problems was obtained. The Schutte Self-Report Emotional Intelligence (EI) Test and Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS) were utilized for emotional processing assessment. Follow-up information contained data on drinking alcohol during the last month. At baseline assessment, the duration of alcohol drinking was associated with lower ability to utilize emotions. Patients reporting more difficulties with describing feelings drank more during their last episode of heavy drinking, and had a longer duration of intensive alcohol use. A longer duration of the last episode of heavy drinking was associated with more problems identifying and regulating emotions. Poor utilization of emotions and high severity of depressive symptoms contributed to higher rates of drinking at follow-up. These results underline the importance of systematic identification of discrete emotional problems and dynamics related to AD. This knowledge has implications for treatment. Psychotherapeutic interventions to improve emotional skills could be utilized in treatment of alcohol-dependent patients. © The Author 2014. Medical Council on Alcohol and Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.

Decision Making Strategy and the Simultaneous Processing of Syntactic Dependencies in Language and Music.

Science.gov (United States)

Roncaglia-Denissen, M P; Bouwer, Fleur L; Honing, Henkjan

2018-01-01

Despite differences in their function and domain-specific elements, syntactic processing in music and language is believed to share cognitive resources. This study aims to investigate whether the simultaneous processing of language and music share the use of a common syntactic processor or more general attentional resources. To investigate this matter we tested musicians and non-musicians using visually presented sentences and aurally presented melodies containing syntactic local and long-distance dependencies. Accuracy rates and reaction times of participants' responses were collected. In both sentences and melodies, unexpected syntactic anomalies were introduced. This is the first study to address the processing of local and long-distance dependencies in language and music combined while reducing the effect of sensory memory. Participants were instructed to focus on language (language session), music (music session), or both (dual session). In the language session, musicians and non-musicians performed comparably in terms of accuracy rates and reaction times. As expected, groups' differences appeared in the music session, with musicians being more accurate in their responses than non-musicians and only the latter showing an interaction between the accuracy rates for music and language syntax. In the dual session musicians were overall more accurate than non-musicians. However, both groups showed comparable behavior, by displaying an interaction between the accuracy rates for language and music syntax responses. In our study, accuracy rates seem to better capture the interaction between language and music syntax; and this interaction seems to indicate the use of distinct, however, interacting mechanisms as part of decision making strategy. This interaction seems to be subject of an increase of attentional load and domain proficiency. Our study contributes to the long-lasting debate about the commonalities between language and music by providing evidence for their

Decision Making Strategy and the Simultaneous Processing of Syntactic Dependencies in Language and Music

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. P. Roncaglia-Denissen

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Despite differences in their function and domain-specific elements, syntactic processing in music and language is believed to share cognitive resources. This study aims to investigate whether the simultaneous processing of language and music share the use of a common syntactic processor or more general attentional resources. To investigate this matter we tested musicians and non-musicians using visually presented sentences and aurally presented melodies containing syntactic local and long-distance dependencies. Accuracy rates and reaction times of participants’ responses were collected. In both sentences and melodies, unexpected syntactic anomalies were introduced. This is the first study to address the processing of local and long-distance dependencies in language and music combined while reducing the effect of sensory memory. Participants were instructed to focus on language (language session, music (music session, or both (dual session. In the language session, musicians and non-musicians performed comparably in terms of accuracy rates and reaction times. As expected, groups’ differences appeared in the music session, with musicians being more accurate in their responses than non-musicians and only the latter showing an interaction between the accuracy rates for music and language syntax. In the dual session musicians were overall more accurate than non-musicians. However, both groups showed comparable behavior, by displaying an interaction between the accuracy rates for language and music syntax responses. In our study, accuracy rates seem to better capture the interaction between language and music syntax; and this interaction seems to indicate the use of distinct, however, interacting mechanisms as part of decision making strategy. This interaction seems to be subject of an increase of attentional load and domain proficiency. Our study contributes to the long-lasting debate about the commonalities between language and music by

Does density-dependent diversification mirror ecological competitive exclusion?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Melanie J Monroe

Full Text Available Density-dependence is a term used in ecology to describe processes such as birth and death rates that are regulated by the number of individuals in a population. Evolutionary biologists have borrowed the term to describe decreasing rates of species accumulation, suggesting that speciation and extinction rates depend on the total number of species in a clade. If this analogy with ecological density-dependence holds, diversification of clades is restricted because species compete for limited resources. We hypothesize that such competition should not only affect numbers of species, but also prevent species from being phenotypically similar. Here, we present a method to detect whether competitive interactions between species have ordered phenotypic traits on a phylogeny, assuming that competition prevents related species from having identical trait values. We use the method to analyze clades of birds and mammals, with body size as the phenotypic trait. We find no sign that competition has prevented species from having the same body size. Thus, since body size is a key ecological trait and competition does not seem to be responsible for differences in body size between species, we conclude that the diversification slowdown that is prevalent in these clades is unlikely due to the ecological interference implied by the term density dependence.

[An integrated theory of natural control of animal populations].

Science.gov (United States)

Schwerdtfeger, F

1968-11-01

: they may find 2 suitable trees this year, 100 the next after heavy winter storms and 10 the year after next. In this case, the change of determination was a change of environment, specifically of the supply of a requisite; it can as well be a change in the constitution of the population characterized by its demands and efficiencies: in the final effect it makes no difference wether more breeding space is offered or less is demanded. The variability of the amplitude in the case of the bark beetles is caused by chance; it can also be governed or self-induced. It is governed e.g. by the seasonal rhythm of climate: the average level of density in tsetse flies is higher during the rain season than during the dry season. It is self-induced in the case of an entomophagous parasite changing the density of its host insect and by this varying the supply of a requisite.Fertility permanently tends to raise the density of populations. Processes of limitation (Limitation) work against this tendency. With increasing abundance, density dependent factors become more effective as general regulators. In simple feed-back control systems (einfacher Regelkreis), regulation is solely performed by perfectly density dependent factors. An example is the cyclically fluctuating Field Vole: increasing mutual interference causes a crash of the abundance which thereafter rises again. In complex feed-back control systems (komplexer Regelkreis) density is kept on a low level for a shorter or longer period by random influences and delayed density dependent factors; now and then a real regulating factor has to interfere as an emergency brake to prevent the transgression of the upper density limit. That applies to many insect populations. The effect of the limiting factors as regulating variables consists in lowering fertility and immigration and raising mortality and emigration.The processes causing fluctuations result in an equilibrium density (Gleichgewichtsdichte): increase and decrease are

Spike-timing dependent plasticity in the striatum

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elodie Fino

2010-06-01

Full Text Available The striatum is the major input nucleus of basal ganglia, an ensemble of interconnected sub-cortical nuclei associated with fundamental processes of action-selection and procedural learning and memory. The striatum receives afferents from the cerebral cortex and the thalamus. In turn, it relays the integrated information towards the basal ganglia output nuclei through which it operates a selected activation of behavioral effectors. The striatal output neurons, the GABAergic medium-sized spiny neurons (MSNs, are in charge of the detection and integration of behaviorally relevant information. This property confers to the striatum the ability to extract relevant information from the background noise and select cognitive-motor sequences adapted to environmental stimuli. As long-term synaptic efficacy changes are believed to underlie learning and memory, the corticostriatal long-term plasticity provides a fundamental mechanism for the function of the basal ganglia in procedural learning. Here, we reviewed the different forms of spike-timing dependent plasticity (STDP occurring at corticostriatal synapses. Most of the studies have focused on MSNs and their ability to develop long-term plasticity. Nevertheless, the striatal interneurons (the fast-spiking GABAergic, the NO synthase and cholinergic interneurons also receive monosynaptic afferents from the cortex and tightly regulated corticostriatal information processing. Therefore, it is important to take into account the variety of striatal neurons to fully understand the ability of striatum to develop long-term plasticity. Corticostriatal STDP with various spike-timing dependence have been observed depending on the neuronal sub-populations and experimental conditions. This complexity highlights the extraordinary potentiality in term of plasticity of the corticostriatal pathway.

Population dynamics of Hawaiian seabird colonies vulnerable to sea-level rise.

Science.gov (United States)

Hatfield, Jeff S; Reynolds, Michelle H; Seavy, Nathaniel E; Krause, Crystal M

2012-08-01

Globally, seabirds are vulnerable to anthropogenic threats both at sea and on land. Seabirds typically nest colonially and show strong fidelity to natal colonies, and such colonies on low-lying islands may be threatened by sea-level rise. We used French Frigate Shoals, the largest atoll in the Hawaiian Archipelago, as a case study to explore the population dynamics of seabird colonies and the potential effects sea-level rise may have on these rookeries. We compiled historic observations, a 30-year time series of seabird population abundance, lidar-derived elevations, and aerial imagery of all the islands of French Frigate Shoals. To estimate the population dynamics of 8 species of breeding seabirds on Tern Island from 1980 to 2009, we used a Gompertz model with a Bayesian approach to infer population growth rates, density dependence, process variation, and observation error. All species increased in abundance, in a pattern that provided evidence of density dependence. Great Frigatebirds (Fregata minor), Masked Boobies (Sula dactylatra), Red-tailed Tropicbirds (Phaethon rubricauda), Spectacled Terns (Onychoprion lunatus), and White Terns (Gygis alba) are likely at carrying capacity. Density dependence may exacerbate the effects of sea-level rise on seabirds because populations near carrying capacity on an island will be more negatively affected than populations with room for growth. We projected 12% of French Frigate Shoals will be inundated if sea level rises 1 m and 28% if sea level rises 2 m. Spectacled Terns and shrub-nesting species are especially vulnerable to sea-level rise, but seawalls and habitat restoration may mitigate the effects of sea-level rise. Losses of seabird nesting habitat may be substantial in the Hawaiian Islands by 2100 if sea levels rise 2 m. Restoration of higher-elevation seabird colonies represent a more enduring conservation solution for Pacific seabirds. Conservation Biology ©2012 Society for Conservation Biology. No claim to original

Collision velocity dependence of double capture processes in N7+ and Ne8+ + He systems (v = 0.18 to 0.61 au)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moretto-Capelle, P.; Benoit-Cattin, P.; Bordenave-Montesquieu, A.; Gleizes, A.

1991-01-01

Double capture processes depend on the collision velocity in the complicated way which is different for N 7+ and Ne 8+ + He collisional systems. Some examples of energy dependence for differential and total cross sections are given. (orig.)

Ultrafast population transfer in a Λ-configuration level system driven by few-cycle laser pulses