Multichannel Seismic Reflection Data - SCAR - Weddell Sea - 1978, SDLS CD-ROM vol 17

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — These data are stacked multichannel marine seismic reflection data recorded during 1978 in the Weddell Sea and Queen Maud Land, Antarctica, by the Bundesanstalt fur...

Prototyping SOS meta-theory in Maude

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mousavi, M.R.; Reniers, M.A.; Mosses, P.D.; Ulidowski, I.

2006-01-01

We present a prototype implementation of SOS meta-theory in the Maude term rewriting language. The prototype defines the basic concepts of SOS meta-theory (e.g., transition formulae, deduction rules and transition system specifications) in Maude. Besides the basic definitions, we implement methods

Carbon isotope geothermometry of graphite-bearing marbles from Central Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wand, U.; Muehle, K.

1988-01-01

In order to estimate the peak metamorphic temperatures in high-grade regional metamorphic marbles from central Dronning Maud Land (East Antarctica), 13 C/ 12 C isotope ratios have been measured for coexisting carbonate and graphite pairs. The δ 13 C values of carbonates (calcite ± dolomite) and graphite vary from -0.1 to +4.6 permill (PDB) and from -3.3 to +1.7 permill, respectively. The isotopic fractionation between carbonate and graphite ranges from 2.9 to 4.0 permill and is similar to the Δ 13 C (carb-gr) values observed in other East Antarctic and non-Antarctic granulite-facies marbles. The metamorphic temperatures calculated using the equation of VALLEY and O'NEIL (1981) for calcite-graphite pairs are predominantly in the range 700 0 - 800 0 C (x n=5 ± s = 730 0 ± 30 0 C) and agree well with metamorphic temperatures derived from mineral chemical studies in this East Antarctic region. (author)

Laser Induced Fluorescence Imaging: Searching for Organics from the Dry Valleys of Queen Maud Land Antarctica to the Regolith and Ices of Mars

Science.gov (United States)

Storrie-Lombardi, M. C.; Sattler, B.; Muller, J.-P.; Fisk, M.; Cousins, C.; Dartnell, L.

2009-04-01

Laser induced fluorescence imaging using excitation in ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths has been proposed as a nondestructive astrobiological rapid survey tool to search for amino and nucleic acids [1], microbial life [2], and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) deep in the Mars regolith [3, 4]. However, the technique is easily adapted to search for complex biomolecular targets using longer wavelength sources [5]. Of particular interest is the ability of excitation at 532 nm to detect photosynthetic pigments in cyanobacteria-dominated microbial communities populating the ice of alpine, Arctic, and Antarctic lakes, glaciers, and ice sheets [6-8]. During the months of November and December 2008 we tested the technique as part of an extended international, interdisciplinary field campaign in the Dry Valleys of Schirmacher Oasis and Lake Untersee, Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. In this paper we review our recent laboratory experiments on the use of UV excitation for detection of PAHs doped on Mars analogue soils [9] and chasmo- and epilithic lichen communities within basaltic Iceland lavas. We present for the first time the results of our field experiments conducted during the Tawani 2008 International Antarctic Expedition for in situ detection and quantification of photosynthetic biomass in the ice caps of annual and perennially ice-covered Antarctic lakes. We discuss the advantages of using a nondestructive rapid survey photonic tools such as laser induced fluorescence imaging that can be easily implemented from lander, rover, airborne, or orbital platforms. The techniques presented can be utilized to monitor the microbial potential of large, critical ecosystems on Earth, or to facilitate the remote or manned search for organics and photosynthetic life on any terrestrial planet. References 1. Storrie-Lombardi, M.C., Hug, W.F., McDonald, G.D., Tsapin, A.I., and Nealson, K.H. 2001. Hollow cathode ion lasers for deep ultraviolet Raman spectroscopy and fluorescence imaging

Petrography and geochemistry of rocks from the sor-rondane mountains, droning Maude land, eastern Antarctica

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rehman, S.S.; Shah, M.T.; Jan, M.Q.; Majid, M.

1999-01-01

Mamyu rock specimens, were collected from the sor-rondane mountains and Breid Bay area of Drojnning Maud land, eastern Antarctica, during the 2nd Pakistan Antarctic Expedition, 1992-93. Petrography and geochemical studies suggest that the rocks are essentially of igneous origin. The samples dredged from ocean bottom include olivine basalt, amygdaloidal volcanics, dacites and rhyodacites. A majority of these rocks are calc-alkaline and formed by the fraction of olivine, clinopyroxene and plagioclase +- titanomagnetite. Most of these rocks apparently formed in an island arc or continental margin set up. However, volcanics showing ocean floor basalt character are also present. A metamorphosed and deformed basement consisting of amphibolites, calc-silicate rocks and gneisses is intrude by under formed or only slightly deformed granites with a minor arkosic sandstone cover. The granites are chemically distinguished as I-type, originate at deeper crystal level by collisional/subduction related processes during organic environments. (author)

Characteristic Seismic Waves Associated with Cryosphere Dynamics in Eastern Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masaki Kanao

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Several kinds of natural source signals are recorded by seismic exploration stations on the continental ice sheet in Eastern Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica, during 2002 austral summer. They include not only tectonic earthquakes, but also ice-related phenomena possibly involving recent global climate change. The recorded signals are classified into (1 teleseismic events, (2 local ice quakes, and (3 unidentified events (X-phases. The teleseismic waves show the high signal-to-noise ratio in spite of the small magnitude of the event; this indicates that it is highly feasible to study not only the local shallow structure but also the deep structure of the earth by using teleseismic events. Frequency spectra of the all waveforms represent discordances along the observation seismic profile. The abrupt change of topography in the valley along the seismic profile might cause both the anomalous frequency content and travel times. Finally, an origin of the X-phases is speculated as the intraplate earthquakes or possibly large ice-quakes (glacial earthquakes around Antarctica, involving global warming appeared in polar region.

A note on the layered intrusions at Annandagstoppane and Juletoppane, western Dronning Maud Land

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krynauw, J.R.; Hunter, D.R.; Wilson, A.H.

1984-01-01

Aspects of the geology and geochemistry of the layered rocks at Annandagstoppane (72 degrees 33'S, 06 degrees 16'W) and Juletoppane (72 degrees 23'S, 05 degrees 33'W) in the Giaeverryggen, western Dronning Maud Land, are discussed. The mafic rocks in the two areas have been divided into a 'main suite' and a 'younger suite'. The main suite rocks comprise medium-grained gabbros, gabbronorites and anorhositic gabbros. lenticular and discontinuous rhythmic layers are present. The younger suite comprises basaltic dykes at Annandagstoppane, and a dolerite sill and small pods of fine-grained gabbroic bodies at Juletoppane. Petrographic and geochemical aspects of main suite rocks in the two areas show close similarities, and indicate that pyroxene and plagioclase were the primocrysts in the orthocumulate assemblages. The preliminary results suggest that the Annandagstoppane and Juletoppane gabbroic rocks may either constitute a single layered intrusion, or reflect outcrops of intrusions of several ages, their magmas having been derived from compositionally similar mantle sources. The close chemical similarities of the younger suite with the main suite suggest that all the mafic phases in the two areas are genetically related

Report on gravity measurements and replacement of an unmanned magnetometer in the Sor Rondane Mountains, Eastern Dronning Maud Land, 2013 (JARE-55

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yusuke Suganuma

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Gravity measurements, replacement of the unmanned magnetometer, and a reconnaissance flight to the Belgica Mountains were carried out in the Sor Rondane Mountains as a part of the 55 th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE-55. The field party comprised two geodesists, one geomorphologists, and one magnetospheric scientist. The Belgian Antarctic Research Expedition (BELARE and International Polar Foundation (IPF supported this field expedition. Dronning Maud Land Air Network (DROMLAN provided airborne access from Cape Town, South Africa to the Sor Rondane Mountains via Novolazarevskaya Airbase. The survey areas of this field expedition are the central parts of the Sor Rondane Mountains and the Belgica Mountains. This report summarizes the field expedition in terms of operations, logistics, and weather observations.

Antarctic carbonaceous chondrites - New opportunities for research

Science.gov (United States)

McSween, Harry Y., Jr.

An account is given of the types of carbonaceous meteorites available in the Antarctic collections of the U.S. and Japan. In the case of the collection for Victoria Land and Queen Maud Land, all known classes for meteorites except C1 are present; available pairing data, though limited, are indicative of the presence of many different falls. Thus far, attention has been focused on the largest meteorites. Most samples, however, are small.

Oxygen isotope variability in snow from western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica and its relation to temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helsen, M.M.; Wal, R.S.W. van de; Broeke, M.R. van den; As, D. van; Reijmer, C.H.; Meijer, H.A.J.

2005-01-01

This paper presents (delta) 18 O records from snow pits from four locations in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica that contain at least four annual cycles. The aim of the study was to analyse in detail these records as well as the prevailing temperatures during accumulation in order to infer to what extent isotopic composition in this area can be interpreted as temperature information. The original seasonal amplitudes of the isotope records were reconstructed by use of a simple back-diffusion model. Automatic weather station data were used to describe the accumulation history and the near-surface temperatures; the temperatures at the atmospheric level of snow formation were inferred from a regional climate model. The results show that the strongly intermittent nature of the accumulation in this area can result in the exclusion of entire seasons from the isotope records. The temperature records also reveal that the oxygen isotope records in these snow pits are biased towards higher temperatures, since snowfall conditions are associated with higher temperatures. This effect is greatest at low temperatures. A comparison between the seasonal extreme isotopic and temperature values points out that on timescales of seasons to several years, isotopic variability cannot be interpreted with confidence as temperature changes at the accumulation sites

SLIM-MAUD - a computer based technique for human reliability assessment

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Embrey, D.E.

1985-01-01

The Success Likelihood Index Methodology (SLIM) is a widely applicable technique which can be used to assess human error probabilities in both proceduralized and cognitive tasks (i.e. those involving decision making, problem solving, etc.). It assumes that expert assessors are able to evaluate the relative importance (or weights) of different factors called Performance Shaping Factors (PSFs), in determining the likelihood of error for the situations being assessed. Typical PSFs are the extent to which good procedures are available, operators are adequately trained, the man-machine interface is well designed, etc. If numerical ratings are made of the PSFs for the specific tasks being evaluated, these can be combined with the weights to give a numerical index, called the Success Likelihood Index (SLI). The SLI represents, in numerical form, the overall assessment of the experts of the likelihood of task success. The SLI can be subsequently transformed to a corresponding human error probability (HEP) estimate. The latest form of the SLIM technique is implemented using a microcomputer based system called MAUD (Multi-Attribute Utility Decomposition), the resulting technique being called SLIM-MAUD. A detailed description of the SLIM-MAUD technique and case studies of applications are available. An illustrative example of the application of SLIM-MAUD in probabilistic risk assessment is given

Long-term monitoring of persistent organic pollutants (POPs at the Norwegian Troll station in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. Kallenborn

2013-07-01

Full Text Available A first long-term monitoring of selected persistent organic pollutants (POPs in Antarctic air has been conducted at the Norwegian research station Troll (Dronning Maud Land. As target contaminants 32 PCB congeners, α- and γ-hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH, trans- and cis-chlordane, trans- and cis-nonachlor, p,p'- and o,p-DDT, DDD, DDE as well as hexachlorobenzene (HCB were selected. The monitoring program with weekly samples taken during the period 2007–2010 was coordinated with the parallel program at the Norwegian Arctic monitoring site (Zeppelin mountain, Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard in terms of priority compounds, sampling schedule as well as analytical methods. The POP concentration levels found in Antarctica were considerably lower than Arctic atmospheric background concentrations. Similar to observations for Arctic samples, HCB is the predominant POP compound, with levels of around 22 pg m−3 throughout the entire monitoring period. In general, the following concentration distribution was found for the Troll samples analyzed: HCB > Sum HCH > Sum PCB > Sum DDT > Sum chlordanes. Atmospheric long-range transport was identified as a major contamination source for POPs in Antarctic environments. Several long-range transport events with elevated levels of pesticides and/or compounds with industrial sources were identified based on retroplume calculations with a Lagrangian particle dispersion model (FLEXPART.

Long-term monitoring of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) at the Norwegian Troll station in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

Science.gov (United States)

Kallenborn, R.; Breivik, K.; Eckhardt, S.; Lunder, C. R.; Manø, S.; Schlabach, M.; Stohl, A.

2013-07-01

A first long-term monitoring of selected persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Antarctic air has been conducted at the Norwegian research station Troll (Dronning Maud Land). As target contaminants 32 PCB congeners, α- and γ-hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), trans- and cis-chlordane, trans- and cis-nonachlor, p,p'- and o,p-DDT, DDD, DDE as well as hexachlorobenzene (HCB) were selected. The monitoring program with weekly samples taken during the period 2007-2010 was coordinated with the parallel program at the Norwegian Arctic monitoring site (Zeppelin mountain, Ny-Ålesund, Svalbard) in terms of priority compounds, sampling schedule as well as analytical methods. The POP concentration levels found in Antarctica were considerably lower than Arctic atmospheric background concentrations. Similar to observations for Arctic samples, HCB is the predominant POP compound, with levels of around 22 pg m-3 throughout the entire monitoring period. In general, the following concentration distribution was found for the Troll samples analyzed: HCB > Sum HCH > Sum PCB > Sum DDT > Sum chlordanes. Atmospheric long-range transport was identified as a major contamination source for POPs in Antarctic environments. Several long-range transport events with elevated levels of pesticides and/or compounds with industrial sources were identified based on retroplume calculations with a Lagrangian particle dispersion model (FLEXPART).

Royal Ageing: The Queen Mother and Queen Victoria

OpenAIRE

Mike Hepworth

2002-01-01

This paper is a reflection on the contribution of the image of the Queen Mother to the cultural construction of role models of positive ageing. The interest lies in the Queen Mother's performance in public of her roles as woman and royal personage particularly as she grew older. It is suggested that cultural analysis of the icon of the Queen Mother as a blend of gender and power suggests certain significant parallels with the imagery cultivated around the career of Queen Victoria in the later...

Queen pheromones

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

Group-living species produce signals that alter the behavior and even the physiology of their social partners. Social insects possess especially sophisticated chemical communication systems that govern every aspect of colony life, including the defining feature of eusociality: reproductive division of labor. Current evidence hints at the central importance of queen pheromones, but progress has been hindered by the fact that such pheromones have only been isolated in honeybees. In a pair of papers on the ant Lasius niger, we identified and investigated a queen pheromone regulating worker sterility. The cuticular hydrocarbon 3-methylhentriacontane (3-MeC31) is correlated with queen maturity and fecundity and workers are also more likely to execute surplus queens that have low amounts of this chemical. Experiments with synthetic 3-MeC31 found that it inhibits ovarian development in queenless workers and lowers worker aggression towards objects coated with it. Production of 3-MeC31 by queens was depressed by an experimental immune challenge, and the same chemical was abundant on queenlaid eggs, suggesting that the workers' responses to the queen are conditional on her health and fecundity. Together with other studies, these results indicate that queen pheromones are honest signals of quality that simultaneously regulate multiple social behaviors. PMID:21331238

Review of samples of sediment, tailings, and waters adjacent to the Cactus Queen gold mine, Kern County, California

Science.gov (United States)

Rytuba, James J.; Kim, Christopher S.; Goldstein, Daniel N.

2011-01-01

The Cactus Queen Mine is located in the western Mojave Desert in Kern County, California. The Cactus Queen gold-silver (Au-Ag) deposit is similar to other Au-Ag deposits hosted in Miocene volcanic rocks that consist of silicic domes and associated flows, pyroclastic rocks, and subvolcanic intrusions. The volcanic rocks were emplaced onto a basement of Mesozoic silicic intrusive rocks. A part of the Cactus Queen Mine is located on Federal land managed by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Staff from the BLM initially sampled the mine area and documented elevated concentrations of arsenic (As) in tailings and sediment. BLM then requested that the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), in collaboration with Chapman University, measure and characterize As and other geochemical constituents in sediment, tailings, and waters on the part of the mine on Federal lands. This report is made in response to the request by the BLM, the lead agency mandated to conduct a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) - Removal Site Investigation (RSI). The RSI applies to the potential removal of As-contaminated mine waste from the Cactus Queen Mine as a means of reducing As release and exposure to humans and biota. This report summarizes data obtained from field sampling of sediments, mine tailings, and surface waters at the Cactus Queen Mine on January 27, 2008. Our results provide a preliminary assessment of the sources of As and associated chemical constituents that could potentially impact humans and biota.

Honey Bee (Apis mellifera Queen Reproductive Potential Affects Queen Mandibular Gland Pheromone Composition and Worker Retinue Response.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Juliana Rangel

Full Text Available Reproductive division of labor is one of the defining traits of honey bees (Apis mellifera, with non-reproductive tasks being performed by workers while a single queen normally monopolizes reproduction. The decentralized organization of a honey bee colony is maintained in large part by a bouquet of queen-produced pheromones, the distribution of which is facilitated by contact among workers throughout the hive. Previous studies have shown that the developmental fate of honey bee queens is highly plastic, with queens raised from younger worker larvae exhibiting higher measures of reproductive potential compared to queens raised from older worker larvae. We investigated differences in the chemical composition of the mandibular glands and attractiveness to workers of "high-quality" queens (i.e., raised from first instar worker larvae; more queen-like and "low-quality" queens (i.e., raised from third instar worker larvae; more worker-like. We characterized the chemical profiles of the mandibular glands of high-quality queens and low-quality queens using GC-MS and used the worker retinue response as a measure of the attractiveness to workers of high-quality queens vs. low-quality queens. We found that queen quality affected the chemical profiles of mandibular gland contents differently across years, showing significant differences in the production of the queen mandibular pheromone ("QMP" components HVA and 9-HDA in 2010, but no significant differences of any glandular compound in 2012. We also found that workers were significantly more attracted to high-quality queens than to low-quality queens in 2012, possibly because of increased attractiveness of their mandibular gland chemical profiles. Our results indicate that the age at which honey bee larvae enter the "queen-specific" developmental pathway influences the chemical composition of queen mandibular glands and worker behavior. However, these changes are not consistent across years, suggesting

Queen signaling in social wasps

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van Zweden, Jelle Stijn; Bonckaert, Wim; Wenseleers, Tom

2014-01-01

Social Hymenoptera are characterized by a reproductive division of labor, whereby queens perform most of the reproduction and workers help to raise her offspring. A long-lasting debate is whether queens maintain this reproductive dominance by manipulating their daughter workers into remaining...... sterile (queen control), or if instead queens honestly signal their fertility and workers reproduce according to their own evolutionary incentives (queen signaling). Here, we test these competing hypotheses using data from Vespine wasps. We show that in natural colonies of the Saxon wasp, Dolichovespula...

Bee Queen Breeding Methods - Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Silvia Patruica

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The biological potential of a bee family is mainly generated by the biological value of the queen. Whether we grow queens widely or just for our own apiaries, we must consider the acquisition of high-quality biological material, and also the creation of optimal feeding and caring conditions, in order to obtain high genetic value queens. Queen breeding technology starts with the setting of hoeing families, nurse families, drone-breeding families – necessary for the pairing of young queens, and also of the families which will provide the bees used to populate the nuclei where the next queens will hatch. The complex of requirements for the breeding of good, high-production queens is sometimes hard to met, under the application of artificial methods. The selection of breeding method must rely on all these requirements and on the beekeeper’s level of training.

Evidence for the former existence of a thicker ice sheet on the Vestfjella nunataks in western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

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Lintinen, P.

1996-06-01

Full Text Available Vestfjella (73-74°S, 13-16°W is a 130 km long nunatak range in western Dronning Maud Land in East Antarctica, and its northern and southern ends are situated close to the present ice sheet grounding-line. Striations and lodgement till on nunatak Basen indicate that the northernmost Vestfjella nunataks were formerly covered by a thicker Antarctic ice sheet. Striations on the summit ridge of nunatak Plogen indicate that the minimum change in ice thickness has been 700 m at the present ice sheet grounding-line. The relatively uniform oldest striation direction on different nunatak summits and the altitude of Plogen, which is less than 200 m lower than the highest Vestfjella summits, indicates that the whole of Vestfjella may have been covered by an ice sheet. Oxidation of till surface stones and an increased clay fraction in the upper part of the till layer were the only indications of soil formation on Basen. The unweathered nature of the Basen lodgement till indicate a relatively young age for deglaciation. This conclusion is also supported by age determinations and sedimentological data obtained from Weddell Sea sediments by Norwegian researchers, suggesting that a grounded ice sheet extended to the shelf edge at around 21 ka B.P. However the age of the glaciation which covered Basen and Plogen and the subsequent deglaciation is not based on precise dates and therefore the late Wisconsinan/Weichselian age is only a working hypothesis.

Application of SLIM-MAUD: A test of an interactive computer-based method for organizing expert assessment of human performance and reliability: Volume 2, Appendices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Spettell, C.M.; Rosa, E.A.; Humphreys, P.C.; Embrey, D.E.

1986-10-01

The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has been conducting a multiyear research program to investigate different methods for using expert judgments to estimate human error probabilities (HEPs) in nuclear power plants. One of the methods investigated, derived from multi-attribute utility theory, is the Success Likelihood Index Methodolocy implemented through Multi-Attribute Utility Decomposition (SLIM-MAUD). This report describes a systematic test application of the SLIM-MAUD methodology. The test application is evaluated on the basis of three criteria: practicality, acceptability, and usefulness. Volume I of this report represents an overview of SLIM-MAUD, describes the procedures followed in the test application, and provides a summary of the results obtained. Volume II consists of technical appendices to support in detail the materials contained in Volume I, and the users' package of explicit procedures to be followed in implementing SLIM-MAUD. The results obtained in the test application provide support for the application of SLIM-MAUD to a wide variety of applications requiring estimates of human errors

Petrogenesis of peralkaline granite dykes of the Straumsvola complex, western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

Science.gov (United States)

Harris, Chris; Dreyer, Tanya; le Roux, Petrus

2018-01-01

Peralkaline syenite and granite dykes cut the Straumsvola nepheline syenite pluton in Western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. The average peralkalinity index (PI = molecular Al/[Na + K]) of the dykes is 1.20 ( n = 29) and manifests itself in the presence of the Zr silicates eudialyte, dalyite and vlasovite, and the Na-Ti silicate, narsarsukite. The dykes appear to have intruded during slow cooling of the nepheline syenite pluton, and the petrogenetic relationship of the dykes and the pluton cannot be related to closed-system processes at low pressure, given the thermal divide that exists between silica-undersaturated and oversaturated magmas. Major and trace element variations in the dykes are consistent with a combination of fractional crystallization of parental peralkaline magma of quartz trachyte composition, and internal mineral segregation prior to final solidification. The distribution of accessory minerals is consistent with late-stage crystallization of isolated melt pockets. The dykes give an Rb-Sr isochron age of 171 ± 4.4 Ma, with variable initial 87Sr/86Sr ratio (0.7075 ± 0.0032), and have an average ɛ Nd of - 12.0. Quartz phenocrysts have δ18O values of 8.4-9.2‰, which are generally in O-isotope equilibrium with bulk rock. Differences in the δ18O values of quartz and aegirine (average Δquartz-aegirine = 3.5‰) suggest aegirine formation temperatures around 500 °C, lower than expected for a felsic magma, but consistent with poikilitic aegirine that indicates subsolidus growth. The negative ɛ Nd (< - 10) and magma δ18O values averaging 8.6‰ (assuming Δquartz-magma = 0.6‰) are inconsistent with a magma produced by closed-system fractional crystallization of a mantle-derived magma. By contrast, the nepheline syenite magma had mantle-like δ18O values and much less negative ɛ Nd (average - 3.1, n = 3). The country rock has similar δ18O values to the granite dykes (average 8.0‰, n = 108); this means that models for the petrogenesis of

ECONOMIC EFFICIENCY OF VARIOUS QUEEN BEES MAINTENANCE SYSTEMS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A POPESCU

2003-10-01

Full Text Available The modern queens maintenance systems are based on the use of artificial insemination, queens’ maintenance in the so called „queens bank” , in this way assuring an increased economic efficiency in beekeeping. This study aimed to compare the economic efficiency of the implementation of A.I. to various queen bees maintenance systems. Three alternatives have been taken into account: V1-a queen bee in a cage together with her bees, V2- a queen bank system and V3 – a queen bee in a nucleus. For each queen bee maintenance alternative have been evaluated the most important indicators such as: expenses, incomes, profit, number of marketable inseminated and selected queen bees, honey production, cost/queen, revenue/queen, profit/queen, profit rate. The most effective alternative was the queen bank system assuring 2,400 marketable queen bees and 20 kg honey delivered yearly, USD 12,442 incomes, USD 3,400 expenses, USD 9,042 profit, that is USD 3.77/queen bee and 265.72 % profit rate under the condition as A.I. costs are just USD 1,058, representing 31.1 % of total queen bees maintenance costs.

Nimrud: The Queens' Tombs

OpenAIRE

Hussein, M. M.; Altaweel, M.; Gibson, M.

2016-01-01

Muzahim Hussein’s 1989 discovery of tombs of Neo-Assyrian queens in the palace of Ashurnasirpal in Nimrud (Kalhu/Calah) was electrifying news for archaeology. Although much is known of the Assyrian kings (8th/9th century BC), very little was known about the queens, with the exception of semi-mythical Semiramis. Now, for the first time, not only were actual remains and burial objects of Assyrian queens discovered, but also names and attempts through curses to protect the burials. Elaborate gol...

Heterotrophic activity, bacterial types and abundance in different ecosystems of the Queen Maud Land

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Ramaiah, N.; Kodagali, J.; Nair, S.; Sheelu, G.; Chandramohan, D.

Microbiological studies from the marine, limnetic, terrestrial and glacial ecosystems were carried out during the Ninth Indian Expedition (1989-90) to estimate the bacterial numbers, to characterise the generic types and also to estimate the uptake...

Supporting evidence from the EPICA Dronning Maud Land ice core for atmospheric CO2 changes during the past millennium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Siegenthaler, Urs; Monnin, Eric; Kawamura, Kenji; Spahni, Renato; Schwander, Jakob; Stauffer, Bernhard; Stocker, Thomas F.; Fischer, Hubertus

2005-01-01

The most direct method of investigating past variations of the atmospheric CO 2 concentration before 1958, when continuous direct atmospheric CO 2 measurements started, is the analysis of air extracted from suitable ice cores. Here we present a new detailed CO 2 record from the Dronning Maud Land (DML) ice core, drilled in the framework of the European Project for Ice Coring in Antarctica (EPICA) and some new measurements on a previously drilled ice core from the South Pole. The DML CO 2 record shows an increase from about 278 to 282 parts per million by volume (ppmv) between ad 1000 and ad 1200 and a fairly continuous decrease to a mean value of about 277 ppmv around ad 1700. While the new South Pole measurements agree well with DML at the minimum at ad 1700 they are on average about 2 ppmv lower during the period ad 1000-1500. Published measurements from the coastal high-accumulation site Law Dome are considered as very reliable because of the reproducibility of the measurements, high temporal resolution and an accurate time scale. Other Antarctic ice cores could not, or only partly, reproduce the pre-industrial measurements from Law Dome. A comparison of the trends of DML and Law Dome shows a general agreement. However we should be able to rule out co-variations caused by the same artefact. Two possible effects are discussed, first production of CO 2 by chemical reactions and second diffusion of dissolved air through the ice matrix into the bubbles. While the first effect cannot be totally excluded, comparison of the Law Dome and DML record shows that dissolved air diffusing to bubbles cannot be responsible for the pre-industrial variation. Therefore, the new record is not a proof of the Law Dome results but the first very strong support from an ice core of the Antarctic plateau

Patterns of viral infection in honey bee queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Francis, Roy Mathew; Kryger, Per; Nielsen, Steen Lykke

2013-01-01

by two real-time PCRs: one for the presence of deformed wing virus (DWV), and one that would detect sequences of acute bee-paralysis virus, Kashmir bee virus and Israeli acute paralysis virus (AKI complex). Worker bees accompanying the queen were also analysed. The queens could be divided into three......The well-being of a colony and replenishment of the workers depends on a healthy queen. Diseases in queens are seldom reported, and our knowledge on viral infection in queens is limited. In this study, 86 honey bee queens were collected from beekeepers in Denmark. All queens were tested separately...... groups based on the level of infection in their head, thorax, ovary, intestines and spermatheca. Four queens exhibited egg-laying deficiency, but visually all queens appeared healthy. Viral infection was generally at a low level in terms of AKI copy numbers, with 134/430 tissues (31 %) showing...

Queen introduction into the queenright honey bee colony

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Antonín Přidal

2010-01-01

Full Text Available One of the actual elementary biologic principles of the introduction of queen is that the recipient co­lo­ny has to be queenless. We accidentally found that a queen can be accepted also in queenright co­lo­ny with using of the queen excluder. Therefore, we conducted two experiments with the introduction of queen in queenright colony.Under defined conditions of the experiment and with application of the queen excluder as a separator of queens we successfully introduced queen in the queenright colony. This result is discussed in relation to the general principle that a queen should be introduced only in a queenless colony. It is possible that there are some exceptions advert to the existence of some unknown biologic patterns in the honey bee biology and pheromones.

Ground-water resources of Kings and Queens Counties, Long Island, New York

Science.gov (United States)

Buxton, Herbert T.; Shernoff, Peter K.

1995-01-01

The aquifers beneath Kings and Queens Counties supplied an average of more than 120 Mgal/d (million gallons per day) for industrial and public water supply during 1904-47, but this pumping caused saltwater intrusion and a deterioration of water quality that led to the cessation of pumping for public supply in Kings County in 1947 and in western Queens County in 1974. Since the cessation of pumping in Kings and western Queens Counties, ground-water levels have recovered steadily, and the saltwater has partly dispersed and become diluted. In eastern Queens County, where pumpage for public supply averages 60 Mgal/d, all three major aquifers contain a large cone of depression. The saltwater-freshwater interface in the Jameco-Magothy aquifer already extends inland in southeastern Queens County and is moving toward this cone of depression. The pumping centers' proximity to the north shore also warrants monitoring for saltwater intrusion in the Flushing Bay area. Urbanization and development on western Long Island since before the tum of this century have caused significant changes in the ground-water budget (total inflow and outflow) and patterns of movement. Some of the major causes are: ( 1) intensive pumping for industrial and public supply; (2) paving of large land-surface areas; (3) installation of a vast network of combined (stonn and sanitary) sewers; (4) leakage from a water-supply-line network that carries more than 750 Mgal/d; and (5) burial of stream channels and extensive wetland areas near the shore.Elevated nitrate and chloride concentrations throughout the upper glacial (water-table) aquifer indicate widespread contamination from land surface. Localized contamination in the underlying Jameco-Magothy aquifer is attributed to downward migration in areas of hydraulic connection between aquifers where the Gardiners Clay is absent A channel eroded through the Raritan confining unit provides a pathway for migration of surface contaminants to the Lloyd aquifer

Queen promiscuity lowers disease within honeybee colonies

Science.gov (United States)

Seeley, Thomas D; Tarpy, David R

2006-01-01

Most species of social insects have singly mated queens, but in some species each queen mates with numerous males to create a colony with a genetically diverse worker force. The adaptive significance of polyandry by social insect queens remains an evolutionary puzzle. Using the honeybee (Apis mellifera), we tested the hypothesis that polyandry improves a colony's resistance to disease. We established colonies headed by queens that had been artificially inseminated by either one or 10 drones. Later, we inoculated these colonies with spores of Paenibacillus larvae, the bacterium that causes a highly virulent disease of honeybee larvae (American foulbrood). We found that, on average, colonies headed by multiple-drone inseminated queens had markedly lower disease intensity and higher colony strength at the end of the summer relative to colonies headed by single-drone inseminated queens. These findings support the hypothesis that polyandry by social insect queens is an adaptation to counter disease within their colonies. PMID:17015336

75 FR 68397 - DeQueen and Eastern Railroad, LLC-Acquisition and Operation Exemption-DeQueen and Eastern...

Science.gov (United States)

2010-11-05

... Eastern Railroad, LLC--Acquisition and Operation Exemption--DeQueen and Eastern Railroad Company DeQueen and Eastern Railroad, LLC (DQE), a noncarrier, has filed a verified notice of exemption under 49 CFR 1150.31 to acquire from DeQueen and Eastern Railroad Company and to operate approximately 47 miles of...

Dispersal behavior of yellowjacket (Vespula germanica) queens.

Science.gov (United States)

Masciocchi, Maité; Martinez, Andrés S; Pereira, Ana J; Villacide, José M; Corley, Juan C

2018-02-01

Understanding the factors that affect animal dispersal behavior is important from both fundamental and applied perspectives. Dispersal can have clear evolutionary and ecological consequences, but for nonnative insect pests, dispersal capacity can also help to explain invasion success. Vespula germanica is a social wasp that, in the last century, has successfully invaded several regions of the world, showing one of the highest spread rates reported for a nonnative insect. In contrast with nonsocial wasps, in social species, queens are responsible for population redistribution and spread, as workers are sterile. For V. germanica, it has been observed that queen flight is limited to 2 distinct periods: early autumn, when new queens leave the nest to mate and find sheltered places in which to hibernate, and spring when new colonies are founded. Our aim was to study the flight behavior of V. germanica queens by focusing on the different periods in which dispersal occurs, characterizing as well the potential contribution of queen flight (i.e., distance) to the observed geographical spread. Our results suggest that the distances flown by nonoverwintered queens is greater than that flown by overwintered individuals, suggesting that the main queen dispersal events would occur before queens enter hibernation. This could relate to a behavioral trait of the queens to avoid the inbreeding with related drones. Additionally, given the short distances flown and remarkable geographical spread observed, we provide evidence showing that queen dispersal by flight is likely to contribute proportionately less to population spread than human-aided factors. © 2016 Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

SLIM-MAUD: an approach to assessing human error probabilities using structured expert judgment. Volume II. Detailed analysis of the technical issues

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Embrey, D.E.; Humphreys, P.; Rosa, E.A.; Kirwan, B.; Rea, K.

1984-07-01

This two-volume report presents the procedures and analyses performed in developing an approach for structuring expert judgments to estimate human error probabilities. Volume I presents an overview of work performed in developing the approach: SLIM-MAUD (Success Likelihood Index Methodology, implemented through the use of an interactive computer program called MAUD-Multi-Attribute Utility Decomposition). Volume II provides a more detailed analysis of the technical issues underlying the approach

Changes in the cuticular hydrocarbon profile of the slave-maker ant queen, Polyergus breviceps emery, after killing a Formica host queen (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, C A; Vander Meer, R K; Lavine, B

2001-09-01

Queens of the slave-maker ant, Polyergus breviceps, take over nests of their Formica host species by fatally attacking the resident queen. As workers only begin grooming the P. breviceps queen once she has ceased her attack, we investigated whether a change in parasite queen chemistry may account for the change in worker behavior. Cuticular hydrocarbon profiles of newly mated P. breviceps queens and of queens of their two Formica host species were found to be species-specific. Profiles of newly mated P. breviceps queens that had attacked a Formica queen, however, were virtually identical to the queen profile of the species killed. Mass spectral analysis revealed that the hydrocarbons on the cuticles of newly mated P. breviceps changed from primarily normal alkanes to methyl and di-methyl branched alkanes after attacks. The results suggest that cuticular compounds from the host queen were transferred to the parasite queen during their aggressive interaction.

Queen Quality and the Impact of Honey Bee Diseases on Queen Health: Potential for Interactions between Two Major Threats to Colony Health

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Esmaeil Amiri

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Western honey bees, Apis mellifera, live in highly eusocial colonies that are each typically headed by a single queen. The queen is the sole reproductive female in a healthy colony, and because long-term colony survival depends on her ability to produce a large number of offspring, queen health is essential for colony success. Honey bees have recently been experiencing considerable declines in colony health. Among a number of biotic and abiotic factors known to impact colony health, disease and queen failure are repeatedly reported as important factors underlying colony losses. Surprisingly, there are relatively few studies on the relationship and interaction between honey bee diseases and queen quality. It is critical to understand the negative impacts of pests and pathogens on queen health, how queen problems might enable disease, and how both factors influence colony health. Here, we review the current literature on queen reproductive potential and the impacts of honey bee parasites and pathogens on queens. We conclude by highlighting gaps in our knowledge on the combination of disease and queen failure to provide a perspective and prioritize further research to mitigate disease, improve queen quality, and ensure colony health.

Chronic Bee Paralysis Virus in Honeybee Queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Amiri, Esmaeil; Meixner, Marina; Büchler, Ralph

2014-01-01

Chronic bee paralysis virus (CBPV) is known as a disease of worker honey bees. To investigate pathogenesis of the CBPV on the queen, the sole reproductive individual in a colony, we conducted experiments regarding the susceptibility of queens to CBPV. Results from susceptibility experiment showed...... a similar disease progress in the queens compared to worker bees after infection. Infected queens exhibit symptoms by Day 6 post infection and virus levels reach 1011 copies per head. In a transmission experiment we showed that social interactions may affect the disease progression. Queens with forced...... contact to symptomatic worker bees acquired an overt infection with up to 1011 virus copies per head in six days. In contrast, queens in contact with symptomatic worker bees, but with a chance to receive food from healthy bees outside the cage appeared healthy. The virus loads did not exceed 107...

Sperm use economy of honeybee (Apis mellifera) queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Baer, Boris; Collins, Jason; Maalaps, Kristiina

2016-01-01

the fecundity and longevity of queens and therefore colony fitness. We quantified the number of sperm that honeybee (Apis mellifera) queens use to fertilize eggs. We examined sperm use in naturally mated queens of different ages and in queens artificially inseminated with different volumes of semen. We found...

Effects of insemination quantity on honey bee queen physiology.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Freddie-Jeanne Richard

2007-10-01

Full Text Available Mating has profound effects on the physiology and behavior of female insects, and in honey bee (Apis mellifera queens, these changes are permanent. Queens mate with multiple males during a brief period in their early adult lives, and shortly thereafter they initiate egg-laying. Furthermore, the pheromone profiles of mated queens differ from those of virgins, and these pheromones regulate many different aspects of worker behavior and colony organization. While it is clear that mating causes dramatic changes in queens, it is unclear if mating number has more subtle effects on queen physiology or queen-worker interactions; indeed, the effect of multiple matings on female insect physiology has not been broadly addressed. Because it is not possible to control the natural mating behavior of queens, we used instrumental insemination and compared queens inseminated with semen from either a single drone (single-drone inseminated, or SDI or 10 drones (multi-drone inseminated, or MDI. We used observation hives to monitor attraction of workers to SDI or MDI queens in colonies, and cage studies to monitor the attraction of workers to virgin, SDI, and MDI queen mandibular gland extracts (the main source of queen pheromone. The chemical profiles of the mandibular glands of virgin, SDI, and MDI queens were characterized using GC-MS. Finally, we measured brain expression levels in SDI and MDI queens of a gene associated with phototaxis in worker honey bees (Amfor. Here, we demonstrate for the first time that insemination quantity significantly affects mandibular gland chemical profiles, queen-worker interactions, and brain gene expression. Further research will be necessary to elucidate the mechanistic bases for these effects: insemination volume, sperm and seminal protein quantity, and genetic diversity of the sperm may all be important factors contributing to this profound change in honey bee queen physiology, queen behavior, and social interactions in the

Stimulating natural supersedure of honeybee queens, Apis mellifera

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Hendriksma, H.P.; Calis, J.N.M.; Boot, W.J.

2004-01-01

When a honeybee queen starts to fail, she is often superseded by a young queen that takes over reproduction inside the colony. Natural supersedure in winter leads to an unfertilised young queen and colony loss. To reduce these losses we tried to stimulate supersedure of queens earlier in the season.

Queen promiscuity lowers disease within honeybee colonies

OpenAIRE

Seeley, Thomas D; Tarpy, David R

2006-01-01

Most species of social insects have singly mated queens, but in some species each queen mates with numerous males to create a colony with a genetically diverse worker force. The adaptive significance of polyandry by social insect queens remains an evolutionary puzzle. Using the honeybee (Apis mellifera), we tested the hypothesis that polyandry improves a colony's resistance to disease. We established colonies headed by queens that had been artificially inseminated by either one or 10 drones. ...

Bathymetric observations from 60 degrees South to Princess Astrid Kyst in Queens Maud Land, Antarctica

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Pathak, M.C.; Kotnala, K.L.; Prabaharan, N.; Walker, G.A.

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Colony strength and queen replacement in Melipona marginata (Apidae: Meliponini

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. de M. P. Kleinert

Full Text Available Physogastric queens of Melipona marginata were removed from their colonies in order to verify the acceptance of a new queen by workers. Colony strength was evaluated according to queen oviposition rate and comb diameters. Replacement was observed seven times. Its occurrence and speed related positively to colony strength, independently of queen's age. In weak colonies, queen replacement was observed only once, following colony population increase that occurred after introduction of combs from another colony. Worker oviposition after queen removal was observed three times: in a strong colony with virgin queens and males, and in two of the weak colonies. In the first two or three days of new queen oviposition, during which most of the eggs were eaten by the queen, worker oviposition preceded almost all provisioning and oviposition processes (POPs. After this period, worker oviposition decreased until it reached around 25% of the POPs. Daily oviposition rate of young queens decreased or was even interrupted by hatching of their first brood.

Queen Victoria, her physicians, and her cataracts.

Science.gov (United States)

Ravin, J G

1994-01-01

Decreasing vision due to cataracts became a significant problem for Queen Victoria toward the end of the 19th century. Her personal physician, Sir James Reid, obtained consultations with two eminent British ophthalmologists, George Lawson and Edward Nettleship. The Queen was not satisfied, and requested an opinion from the German professor Hermann Pagenstecher. All the doctors agreed on the diagnosis, but the Queen never underwent surgery.

Queen volatiles as a modulator of Tetragonisca angustula drone behavior.

Science.gov (United States)

Fierro, Macario M; Cruz-López, Leopoldo; Sánchez, Daniel; Villanueva-Gutiérrez, Rogel; Vandame, Remy

2011-11-01

Tetragonisca angustula mating occurs during the virgin queen nuptial flight, usually in the presence of a drone congregation area (DCA). The presence of virgin queen pheromone is considered the trigger for DCA establishment, although this has not been demonstrated experimentally. We established meliponaries, in different habitats, with T. angustula virgin queens during the main drone reproduction period. Eight DCAs were observed in urban areas, and all established outside or near colonies containing at least one virgin queen. The accumulation of drones in the DCAs occurred from 08:00 to 18:00 h and over 3-35 days. The number of drones in DCAs ranged from 60 to 2,000. In field trials, drones were attracted to virgin queens and also, unexpectedly, to physogastric queens. Volatiles collected from both virgin and physogastric queens elicited strong electoantennogram (EAG) responses from drones. Virgin and physogastric queen volatiles were qualitatively similar, but quantitatively different, in chemical composition. The queen's abdomen was the principal source of these compounds. Isopropyl hexanoate (IPH), the most abundant compound in virgin queen volatiles and one of the most abundant in physogastric queen volatiles, was identified as one of the compounds that elicited EAG responses and was demonstrated to attract drones in a field test.

Image-making with Jeanne Duval in mind: photoworks by Maud Sulter, 1989−2002

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cherry, D.; Meskimmon, M.; Rowe, D.

2013-01-01

This essay focuses on a major theme in the art of Maud Sulter (1960-2008), her long-standing interests in Jeanne Duval. Best known as the model, muse and companion of the poet Charles Baudelaire, Duval was a performer in the entertainment industry of mid nineteenth-century Paris, and one of several

Variability of sea salts in ice and firn cores from Fimbul Ice Shelf, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

Science.gov (United States)

Paulina Vega, Carmen; Isaksson, Elisabeth; Schlosser, Elisabeth; Divine, Dmitry; Martma, Tõnu; Mulvaney, Robert; Eichler, Anja; Schwikowski-Gigar, Margit

2018-05-01

Major ions were analysed in firn and ice cores located at Fimbul Ice Shelf (FIS), Dronning Maud Land - DML, Antarctica. FIS is the largest ice shelf in the Haakon VII Sea, with an extent of approximately 36 500 km2. Three shallow firn cores (about 20 m deep) were retrieved in different ice rises, Kupol Ciolkovskogo (KC), Kupol Moskovskij (KM), and Blåskimen Island (BI), while a 100 m long core (S100) was drilled near the FIS edge. These sites are distributed over the entire FIS area so that they provide a variety of elevation (50-400 m a.s.l.) and distance (3-42 km) to the sea. Sea-salt species (mainly Na+ and Cl-) generally dominate the precipitation chemistry in the study region. We associate a significant sixfold increase in median sea-salt concentrations, observed in the S100 core after the 1950s, to an enhanced exposure of the S100 site to primary sea-salt aerosol due to a shorter distance from the S100 site to the ice front, and to enhanced sea-salt aerosol production from blowing salty snow over sea ice, most likely related to the calving of Trolltunga occurred during the 1960s. This increase in sea-salt concentrations is synchronous with a shift in non-sea-salt sulfate (nssSO42-) toward negative values, suggesting a possible contribution of fractionated aerosol to the sea-salt load in the S100 core most likely originating from salty snow found on sea ice. In contrast, there is no evidence of a significant contribution of fractionated sea salt to the ice-rises sites, where the signal would be most likely masked by the large inputs of biogenic sulfate estimated for these sites. In summary, these results suggest that the S100 core contains a sea-salt record dominated by the proximity of the site to the ocean, and processes of sea ice formation in the neighbouring waters. In contrast, the ice-rises firn cores register a larger-scale signal of atmospheric flow conditions and a less efficient transport of sea-salt aerosols to these sites. These findings are a

A contribution to queens graphs: A substitution method

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ambrus, G.; Barat, Janos

2006-01-01

A graph G is a queens graph if the vertices of G can be mapped to queens on the chessboard such that two vertices are adjacent if and only if the corresponding queens attack each other, i.e. they are in horizontal, vertical or diagonal position. We prove a conjecture of Beineke, Broere and Hennin...

Viral infections in queen bees (Apis mellifera carnica from rearing apiaries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aleš Gregorc

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Viral infection could have an impact on the success of queen rearing and a potential effect on reduced queen quality. Newly mated honey bee (Apis mellifera carnica queens were collected from mating nuclei in queen rearing operations in Slovenia. Altogether, 81 queens were sampled from 27 rearing apiaries in 2006 and 72 queens from 24 apiaries in 2008. Queens were analysed for the presence of four viruses: acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV, black queen cell virus (BQCV, sacbrood virus (SBV and deformed wing virus (DWV by using reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR. In 2006, 12%, 9% and 1% prevalence was found for ABPV, DWV and SBV, respectively; BQCV was not detected. Two years later, DWV, BQCV, SBV and ABPV were detected in 58%, 24%, 11% and 10% bee queens, respectively. In 2006, fourteen out of twenty-seven apaiaries were virus free, whereas in 2008 only three out of twenty-four apiaries were virus free. This is the first evidence of virus infection occurring in newly mated queens from mating nuclei in rearing apiaries. The possible impacts of queen rearing technology and epidemiological influences on virus infection are discussed in this study.

Population and colony structure and morphometrics in the queen dimorphic little black ant, Monomorium sp. AZ-02, with a review of queen phenotypes in the genus Monomorium.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert A Johnson

Full Text Available The North American little black ant, Monomorium sp. AZ-02 (subfamily Myrmicinae, displays a dimorphism that consists of alate (winged and ergatoid (wingless queens. Surveys at our field site in southcentral Arizona, USA, demonstrated that only one queen phenotype (alate or ergatoid occurred in each colony during the season in which reproductive sexuals were produced. A morphometric analysis demonstrated that ergatoid queens retained all specialized anatomical features of alate queens (except for wings, and that they were significantly smaller and had a lower mass than alate queens. Using eight morphological characters, a discriminant analysis correctly categorized all queens (40 of 40 of both phenotypes. A molecular phylogeny using 420 base pairs of the mitochondrial gene cytochrome oxidase I demonstrated that alate and ergatoid queens are two alternative phenotypes within the species; both phenotypes were intermixed on our phylogeny, and both phenotypes often displayed the same haplotype. A survey of the genus Monomorium (358 species found that wingless queens (ergatoid queens, brachypterous queens occur in 42 of 137 species (30.6% in which the queen has been described. These wingless queen species are geographically and taxonomically widespread as they occur on several continents and in eight species groups, suggesting that winglessness probably arose independently on many occasions in the genus.

Number of queens in founding associations of the ponerine ant Pachycondyla villosa

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

D'Ettorre, Patrizia; Kellner, K.; Delabie, J. H. C.

2005-01-01

In the ant Pachycondyla villosa, new colonies are usually started cooperatively by two or more young queens who establish a dominance order with a division of labour. Co-founding can lead to primary polygyny, where queens stay together after workers have emerged. Here we show that two queens...... these were attacked and sometimes killed in queen associations. The removal of dominant alpha queens from three-queen associations resulted in beta queens obtaining the dominant role and sometimes the destruction of the existing eggs. It appears that two queens suffice for a successful association...

Co-founding ant queens prevent disease by performing prophylactic undertaking behaviour.

Science.gov (United States)

Pull, Christopher D; Cremer, Sylvia

2017-10-13

Social insects form densely crowded societies in environments with high pathogen loads, but have evolved collective defences that mitigate the impact of disease. However, colony-founding queens lack this protection and suffer high rates of mortality. The impact of pathogens may be exacerbated in species where queens found colonies together, as healthy individuals may contract pathogens from infectious co-founders. Therefore, we tested whether ant queens avoid founding colonies with pathogen-exposed conspecifics and how they might limit disease transmission from infectious individuals. Using Lasius niger queens and a naturally infecting fungal pathogen Metarhizium brunneum, we observed that queens were equally likely to found colonies with another pathogen-exposed or sham-treated queen. However, when one queen died, the surviving individual performed biting, burial and removal of the corpse. These undertaking behaviours were performed prophylactically, i.e. targeted equally towards non-infected and infected corpses, as well as carried out before infected corpses became infectious. Biting and burial reduced the risk of the queens contracting and dying from disease from an infectious corpse of a dead co-foundress. We show that co-founding ant queens express undertaking behaviours that, in mature colonies, are performed exclusively by workers. Such infection avoidance behaviours act before the queens can contract the disease and will therefore improve the overall chance of colony founding success in ant queens.

Immunosuppression in Honeybee Queens by the Neonicotinoids Thiacloprid and Clothianidin.

Science.gov (United States)

Brandt, Annely; Grikscheit, Katharina; Siede, Reinhold; Grosse, Robert; Meixner, Marina Doris; Büchler, Ralph

2017-07-05

Queen health is crucial to colony survival of honeybees, since reproduction and colony growth rely solely on the queen. Queen failure is considered a relevant cause of colony losses, yet few data exist concerning effects of environmental stressors on queens. Here we demonstrate for the first time that exposure to field-realistic concentrations of neonicotinoid pesticides can severely affect the immunocompetence of queens of western honeybees (Apis mellifera L.). In young queens exposed to thiacloprid (200 µg/l or 2000 µg/l) or clothianidin (10 µg/l or 50 µg/l), the total hemocyte number and the proportion of active, differentiated hemocytes was significantly reduced. Moreover, functional aspects of the immune defence namely the wound healing/melanisation response, as well as the antimicrobial activity of the hemolymph were impaired. Our results demonstrate that neonicotinoid insecticides can negatively affect the immunocompetence of queens, possibly leading to an impaired disease resistance capacity.

Intraspecific queen parasitism in a highly eusocial bee

Science.gov (United States)

Wenseleers, Tom; Alves, Denise A.; Francoy, Tiago M.; Billen, Johan; Imperatriz-Fonseca, Vera L.

2011-01-01

Insect societies are well-known for their advanced cooperation, but their colonies are also vulnerable to reproductive parasitism. Here, we present a novel example of an intraspecific social parasitism in a highly eusocial bee, the stingless bee Melipona scutellaris. In particular, we provide genetic evidence which shows that, upon loss of the mother queen, many colonies are invaded by unrelated queens that fly in from unrelated hives nearby. The reasons for the occurrence of this surprising form of social parasitism may be linked to the fact that unlike honeybees, Melipona bees produce new queens in great excess of colony needs, and that this exerts much greater selection on queens to seek alternative reproductive options, such as by taking over other nests. Overall, our results are the first to demonstrate that queens in highly eusocial bees can found colonies not only via supersedure or swarming, but also by infiltrating and taking over other unrelated nests. PMID:20961883

Intraspecific queen parasitism in a highly eusocial bee.

Science.gov (United States)

Wenseleers, Tom; Alves, Denise A; Francoy, Tiago M; Billen, Johan; Imperatriz-Fonseca, Vera L

2011-04-23

Insect societies are well-known for their advanced cooperation, but their colonies are also vulnerable to reproductive parasitism. Here, we present a novel example of an intraspecific social parasitism in a highly eusocial bee, the stingless bee Melipona scutellaris. In particular, we provide genetic evidence which shows that, upon loss of the mother queen, many colonies are invaded by unrelated queens that fly in from unrelated hives nearby. The reasons for the occurrence of this surprising form of social parasitism may be linked to the fact that unlike honeybees, Melipona bees produce new queens in great excess of colony needs, and that this exerts much greater selection on queens to seek alternative reproductive options, such as by taking over other nests. Overall, our results are the first to demonstrate that queens in highly eusocial bees can found colonies not only via supersedure or swarming, but also by infiltrating and taking over other unrelated nests.

Long-term memory of individual identity in ant queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dreier, Stéphanie Agnès Jeanine; Van Zweden, Jelle Stijn; D'Ettorre, Patrizia

2007-01-01

of familiar or unfamiliar queens over time. We show that unrelated founding queens of P. villosa and Pachycondyla inversa store information on the individual identity of other queens and can retrieve it from memory after 24h of separation. Thus, we have documented for the first time that long-term memory...

New aeromagnetic data of eastern Dronning Maud Land: implications for the spatial extent of a major Early Neoproterozoic juvenile crustal province

Science.gov (United States)

Ruppel, A. S.; Jacobs, J.; Eagles, G.; Läufer, A.; Jokat, W.

2017-12-01

A long-standing collaboration between Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) and the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) aims to investigate the sub-ice crustal architecture and tectonic evolution of East Antarctica. Its main emphasis is on Dronning Maud Land (DML). During the austral summers 2014 and 2015, ca. 40.000 line kilometre of new magnetic, gravity and ice-penetrating radar data were collected with 10 km line spacing. Here, we report on magnetic anomaly data to the east and south of Sør Rondane (eastern DML), analysed with several filtering techniques. These data are integrated with exposure information from Sør Rondane, the Belgica Mts., and the Yamato Mts.. The study area covers the eastern part of a major, recently revealed Early Neoproterozoic juvenile crustal block, the Tonian Oceanic Arc Super Terrane (TOAST). The western extent of the TOAST is well defined by the Forster Magnetic Anomaly and characterized by a province of subdued SE-striking parallel positive magnetic anomalies in the mostly ice-covered region of south-eastern DML (the SE DML province). Geological investigations showed that this area can be correlated with exposures in Sør Rondane and scattered nunataks west of it. U-Pb ages of ca. 1000-900 Ma, are documented from zircons of gabbro-trondhjemite-tonalite-granodiorite (GTTG) suites in both areas. Further, geochemical analyses prove a juvenile character of the GTTGs, which are interpreted as oceanic arc complexes. Glacial drift from southern Sør Rondane points to an inland continuation of the TOAST, so far of unknown dimensions. The new magnetic data constrain the southern and eastern minimum extent of the TOAST, which we think has a minimum area of 450.000 km2. The spatial extent of this major juvenile crustal province has major significance for the tectonic reconstruction of East Antarctica and its involvement in Rodinia since it is suggested having evolved

Virgin queen attraction toward males in honey bees.

Science.gov (United States)

Bastin, Florian; Cholé, Hanna; Lafon, Grégory; Sandoz, Jean-Christophe

2017-07-24

Although the honeybee is a crucial agricultural agent and a prominent scientific model organism, crucial aspects of its reproductive behaviour are still unknown. During the mating season, honeybee males, the drones, gather in congregations 10-40 m above ground. Converging evidence suggests that drones emit a pheromone that can attract other drones, thereby increasing the size of the congregation. Virgin queens join the vicinity of the congregation after it has formed, and mate with as many as 20 males in mid-air. It is still unclear which sensory cues help virgin queens find drone congregations in the first place. Beside visual cues for long-range orientation, queens may use olfactory cues. We thus tested virgin queens' olfactory orientation on a walking simulator in which they have full control over odour stimulation. We show that sexually-mature virgin queens are attracted to the odour bouquet from a group of living drones. They are not attracted to the bouquet from a group of workers. In addition, non-sexually receptive females (workers) of the same age are not attracted to the drone odour bouquet. Interpreted in the context of mating, these results may suggest that virgin queens use volatile olfactory cues from the drones to find the congregations.

Queen pheromones: The chemical crown governing insect social life.

Science.gov (United States)

Holman, Luke

2010-11-01

Group-living species produce signals that alter the behavior and even the physiology of their social partners. Social insects possess especially sophisticated chemical communication systems that govern every aspect of colony life, including the defining feature of eusociality: reproductive division of labor. Current evidence hints at the central importance of queen pheromones, but progress has been hindered by the fact that such pheromones have only been isolated in honeybees. In a pair of papers on the ant Lasius niger, we identified and investigated a queen pheromone regulating worker sterility. The cuticular hydrocarbon 3-methylhentriacontane (3-MeC(31)) is correlated with queen maturity and fecundity and workers are also more likely to execute surplus queens that have low amounts of this chemical. Experiments with synthetic 3-MeC(31) found that it inhibits ovarian development in queenless workers and lowers worker aggression towards objects coated with it. Production of 3-MeC(31) by queens was depressed by an experimental immune challenge, and the same chemical was abundant on queenlaid eggs, suggesting that the workers' responses to the queen are conditional on her health and fecundity. Together with other studies, these results indicate that queen pheromones are honest signals of quality that simultaneously regulate multiple social behaviors.

Potable Water Supply Feasibility Study for Summit Station, Greenland

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-01

station, Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica. Final comprehensive environmental evaluation report. British Antarctic Survey. 2007. Proposed construction...Troll in Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica to a permanent station. PolarPower.org. 2010. Examples: Princess Elisabeth Antarctica Station

Queen Size Variation in the Ponerine Ant Ponera coarctata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

J. Liebig

1995-01-01

Full Text Available Queens of Ponera coarctata show a pronounced variation in size as measured by ommatidia number and Weber's alitrunk length. Isometric size variation and the normal distribution of size categories indicate that, despite these differences, only one queen morph exists. Queen size varies less within colonies than between colonies, and thus appears to be colony specific. Ovary length apparently varies with queen size. Similar size variations as in queens also occured in males, but not in workers.

Does the queen win it all? Queen-worker conflict over male production in the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris

Science.gov (United States)

Alaux, Cédric; Savarit, Fabrice; Jaisson, Pierre; Hefetz, Abraham

Social insects provide a useful model for studying the evolutionary balance between cooperation and conflict linked to genetic structure. We investigated the outcome of this conflict in the bumblebee, Bombus terrestris, whose annual colony life cycle is characterized by overt competition over male production. We established artificial colonies composed of a queen and unrelated workers by daily exchange of callow workers between colony pairs of distinct genetic make-up. Using microsatellite analysis, this procedure allowed an exact calculation of the proportion of worker-derived males. The development and social behavior of these artificial colonies were similar to those of normal colonies. Despite a high worker reproduction attempt (63.8% of workers had developed ovaries and 38.4% were egg-layers), we found that on average 95% of the males produced during the competition phase (CPh) were queen-derived. However, in four colonies, queen death resulted in a considerable amount of worker-derived male production. The different putative ultimate causes of this efficient control by the queen are discussed, and we suggest a possible scenario of an evolutionary arms race that may occur between these two female castes.

Survey of the Health Status of Some Honey Bee Queens in Italy

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Porporato Marco

2015-12-01

Full Text Available While observing: non-acceptance, frequent replacements, and reduced performance in honey bee (Apis mellifera ligustica queens, we were induced to analyse a certain number of queens to detect the causes. For this purpose, 99 newly mated queens were bought from 20 Italian queen breeders. In addition, 109 older or at-the-end-of-their-career queens, that showed poor productivity, were collected from honey production hives throughout Italy. All the queens were dissected to check the status of their reproductive system and/or the presence of various anomalies and diseases.

Late-life depression and the death of Queen Victoria.

Science.gov (United States)

Abrams, Robert C

2010-12-01

The objective of this study was to evaluate relationships between the death of Queen Victoria and the depressive episode she experienced during the last year of her life. The last volume of Queen Victoria's personal Journal was reviewed from a geriatrician's perspective, tracing the onset and course of depressive symptoms from entries beginning on 17 August 1900 and ending on 13 January 1901, 9 days before her death. The Queen's own words are supplemented with observations from contemporaneous secondary sources. The antecedents of Queen Victoria's late-life depression, including multiple losses, disabilities, and chronic pain, taken together with the presentation of vegetative, affective, and late cognitive symptoms, suggested the presence of a distinctively geriatric major depressive disorder. The absence of any other medical condition to explain the clinical picture seemed probable but not certain. Although historians and biographers have long been aware of Queen Victoria's final depression, the emphasis has mostly been on her earlier and prolonged mourning for her husband Prince Albert. Re-examined now, the Queen's Journal suggests that a severe late-life depressive episode occurring approximately in her last 5 months contributed meaningfully to her death. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Selfish strategies and honest signalling: reproductive conflicts in ant queen associations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holman, Luke; Dreier, Stephanie; d'Ettorre, Patrizia

2010-01-01

Social insects offer unique opportunities to test predictions regarding the evolution of cooperation, life histories and communication. Colony founding by groups of unrelated queens, some of which are later killed, may select for selfish reproductive strategies, honest signalling and punishment....... Here, we use a brood transfer experiment to test whether cofounding queens of the ant Lasius niger 'selfishly' adjust their productivity when sharing the nest with future competitors. We simultaneously analysed queen cuticular hydrocarbon (CHC) profiles to investigate whether queens honestly signal...... correlated with reproductive maturation, and to a lesser extent with productivity; the same hydrocarbons were more abundant on queens that were not killed, suggesting that workers select productive queens using these chemical cues. Our results highlight the role of honest signalling in the evolution...

Can We Efficiently Check Concurrent Programs Under Relaxed Memory Models in Maude?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Arrahman, Yehia Abd; Andric, Marina; Beggiato, Alessandro

2014-01-01

to the state space explosion. Several techniques have been proposed to mitigate those problems so to make verification under relaxed memory models feasible. We discuss how to adopt some of those techniques in a Maude-based approach to language prototyping, and suggest the use of other techniques that have been......Relaxed memory models offer suitable abstractions of the actual optimizations offered by multi-core architectures and by compilers of concurrent programming languages. Using such abstractions for verification purposes is challenging in part due to their inherent non-determinism which contributes...

Gender-bias primes elicit queen-bee responses among senior Policewomen

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Derks, B.; Laar, C. van; Ellemers, N.; Groot, K. de

2011-01-01

Queen bees are senior women in male-dominated organizations who have achieved success by emphasizing how they differ from other women. Although the behavior of queen bees tends to be seen as contributing to gender disparities in career outcomes, we argue that queen-bee behavior is actually a result

First demonstration of olfactory learning and long term memory in honey bee queens.

Science.gov (United States)

Gong, Zhiwen; Tan, Ken; Nieh, James C

2018-05-18

As the primary source of colony reproduction, social insect queens play a vital role. However, the cognitive abilities of queens are not well understood, although queen learning and memory are essential in multiple species such as honey bees, in which virgin queens must leave the nest and then successful learn to navigate back over repeated nuptial flights. Honey bee queen learning has never been previously demonstrated. We therefore tested olfactory learning in queens and workers and examined the role of DNA methylation, which plays a key role in long term memory formation. We provide the first evidence that honey bee queens have excellent learning and memory. The proportion of honey bee queens that exhibited learning was 5-fold higher than workers at every tested age and, for memory, 4-fold higher than workers at a very young age. DNA methylation may play a key role in this queen memory because queens exhibiting remote memory had a more consistent elevation in Dnmt3 gene expression as compared to workers. Both castes also showed excellent remote memory (7 day memory), which was reduced by 14-20% by the DNA methylation inhibitor, zebularine. Given that queens live about 10-fold longer than workers, these results suggest that queens can serve as an excellently long-term reservoir of colony memory. © 2018. Published by The Company of Biologists Ltd.

Asymmetric dispersal and colonization success of Amazonian plant-ants queens.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Emilio M Bruna

Full Text Available The dispersal ability of queens is central to understanding ant life-history evolution, and plays a fundamental role in ant population and community dynamics, the maintenance of genetic diversity, and the spread of invasive ants. In tropical ecosystems, species from over 40 genera of ants establish colonies in the stems, hollow thorns, or leaf pouches of specialized plants. However, little is known about the relative dispersal ability of queens competing for access to the same host plants.We used empirical data and inverse modeling--a technique developed by plant ecologists to model seed dispersal--to quantify and compare the dispersal kernels of queens from three Amazonian ant species that compete for access to host-plants. We found that the modal colonization distance of queens varied 8-fold, with the generalist ant species (Crematogaster laevis having a greater modal distance than two specialists (Pheidole minutula, Azteca sp. that use the same host-plants. However, our results also suggest that queens of Azteca sp. have maximal distances that are four-sixteen times greater than those of its competitors.We found large differences between ant species in both the modal and maximal distance ant queens disperse to find vacant seedlings used to found new colonies. These differences could result from interspecific differences in queen body size, and hence wing musculature, or because queens differ in their ability to identify potential host plants while in flight. Our results provide support for one of the necessary conditions underlying several of the hypothesized mechanisms promoting coexistence in tropical plant-ants. They also suggest that for some ant species limited dispersal capability could pose a significant barrier to the rescue of populations in isolated forest fragments. Finally, we demonstrate that inverse models parameterized with field data are an excellent means of quantifying the dispersal of ant queens.

Questionnaire-based survey of parturition in the queen

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Musters, J.; de Gier, J.; Kooistra, H.S.; Okkens, A.C.

The lack of scientific data concerning whether parturition in the queen proceeds normally or not may prevent veterinarians and cat owners from recognizing parturition problems in time. A questionnaire-based study of parturition in 197 queens was performed to determine several parameters of

Gender-bias primes elicit queen-bee responses among senior policewomen.

Science.gov (United States)

Derks, Belle; Van Laar, Colette; Ellemers, Naomi; de Groot, Kim

2011-10-01

Queen bees are senior women in male-dominated organizations who have achieved success by emphasizing how they differ from other women. Although the behavior of queen bees tends to be seen as contributing to gender disparities in career outcomes, we argue that queen-bee behavior is actually a result of the gender bias and social identity threat that produce gender disparities in career outcomes. In the experiment reported here, we asked separate groups of senior policewomen to recall the presence or absence of gender bias during their careers, and we measured queen-bee responses (i.e., masculine self-descriptions, in-group distancing, and denying of discrimination). Such gender-bias priming increased queen-bee responses among policewomen with low gender identification, but policewomen with high gender identification responded with increased motivation to improve opportunities for other women. These results suggest that gender-biased work environments shape women's behavior by stimulating women with low gender identification to dissociate with other women and to display queen-bee responses as a way to achieve individual mobility.

Cellular energy metabolism maintains young status in old queen honey bees (Apis mellifera).

Science.gov (United States)

Lu, Cheng-Yen; Qiu, Jiantai Timothy; Hsu, Chin-Yuan

2018-05-02

Trophocytes and oenocytes of queen honey bees are used in studies of cellular longevity, but their cellular energy metabolism with age is poorly understood. In this study, the molecules involved in cellular energy metabolism were evaluated in the trophocytes and oenocytes of young and old queen bees. The findings indicated that there were no significant differences between young and old queen bees in β-oxidation, glycolysis, and protein synthesis. These results indicate that the cellular energy metabolism of trophocytes and oenocytes in old queen bees is similar to young queen bees and suggests that maintaining cellular energy metabolism in a young status may be associated with the longevity of queen bees. Fat and glycogen accumulation increased with age indicating that old queen bees are older than young queen bees. © 2018 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Are queen ants inhibited by their own pheromone?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holman, L.; Leroy, C.; Jørgensen, Charlotte

2013-01-01

. Communication in social insects is predominantly chemical, and the mechanisms regulating processes such as reproductive division of labor are becoming increasingly well understood. Recently, a queen cuticular hydrocarbon (3-MeC31) that inhibits worker reproduction and aggression was isolated in the ant Lasius...... niger. Here, we find that this pheromone also has a weak negative effect on queen productivity and oogenesis. Because 3-MeC31 is present on both queens and their brood, we suggest that it is used by ants of both castes to adjust their fecundity to the amount of developing brood and the presence of other...

Prudent sperm use by leaf-cutter ant queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Den Boer, Susanne Petronella A; Baer, Boris; Dreier, Stéphanie Agnès Jeanine

2009-01-01

are able to fertilize close to 100 per cent of the eggs and that the average sperm use per egg is very low, but increases with queen age. The robustness of stored sperm was found to decrease with years of storage, signifying that senescence affects sperm either directly or indirectly via the declining...... glandular secretions or deteriorating sperm-storage organs. We evaluate our findings with a heuristic model, which suggests that the average queen has sperm for almost 9 years of normal colony development. We discuss the extent to which leaf-cutter ant queens have been able to optimize their sperm...

Do sexist organizational cultures create the Queen Bee?

Science.gov (United States)

Derks, Belle; Ellemers, Naomi; van Laar, Colette; de Groot, Kim

2011-09-01

'Queen Bees' are senior women in masculine organizational cultures who have fulfilled their career aspirations by dissociating themselves from their gender while simultaneously contributing to the gender stereotyping of other women. It is often assumed that this phenomenon contributes to gender discrimination in organizations, and is inherent to the personalities of successful career women. We argue for a social identity explanation and examine organizational conditions that foster the Queen Bee phenomenon. Participants were 94 women holding senior positions in diverse companies in The Netherlands who participated in an on-line survey. In line with predictions, indicators of the Queen Bee phenomenon (increased gender stereotyping and masculine self-descriptions) were found mostly among women who indicated they had started their career with low gender identification and who had subsequently experienced a high degree of gender discrimination on their way up. By contrast, the experience of gender discrimination was unrelated to signs of the Queen Bee phenomenon among women who indicated to be highly identified when they started their career. Results are discussed in light of social identity theory, interpreting the Queen Bee phenomenon as an individual mobility response of low gender identified women to the gender discrimination they encounter in their work. ©2010 The British Psychological Society.

Contrasting patterns in lichen diversity in the continental and maritime Antarctic

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Shiv Mohan; Olech, Maria; Cannone, Nicoletta; Convey, Peter

2015-09-01

Systematic surveys of the lichen floras of Schirmacher Oasis (Queen Maud Land, continental Antarctic), Victoria Land (Ross Sector, continental Antarctic) and Admiralty Bay (South Shetland Islands, maritime Antarctic) were compared to help infer the major factors influencing patterns of diversity and biogeography in the three areas. Biogeographic patterns were determined using a variety of multivariate statistical tools. A total of 54 lichen species were documented from Schirmacher Oasis (SO), 48 from Victoria Land (VL) and 244 from Admiralty Bay (AB). Of these, 21 species were common to all areas. Most lichens from the SO and VL areas were microlichens, the dominant genus being Buellia. In AB, in contrast, many macrolichens were also present and the dominant genus was Caloplaca. In SO and VL large areas lacked any visible lichen cover, even where the ground was snow-free in summer. Small-scale diversity patterns were present in AB, where the number of species and genera was greater close to the coast. Most species recorded were rare in the study areas in which they were present and endemic to Antarctica.

Alex McQueen : power

Index Scriptorium Estoniae

1998-01-01

A. McQueeni moevälisest tegevusest. 'American Express' tellis temalt krediitkaardi kujunduse. 1998. a. suvest ajakirja 'Dazed & Confused' abitoimetaja. A. McQueen on lubanud olla Björki (Island) video kunstiline juht.

Rb/Sr dating of rock samples from Antarctica

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahmed, A.; Awan, M.A.; Mehjabeen, A.; Jabeen, N.; Majid, C.A.

1996-01-01

Soon after the discovery of radioactivity in 1896 by Becquerel, the phenomenon was applied to geochronology. From 1902 onwards, rapid advances were made in this field of science. Using radiometric techniques of Rb/Sr the whole rock granitic pegmatite samples from two localities in the North Eastern Antarctica have been dated. The rock samples have yielded Rb/Sr ages around 200 nd 173 million year. The ages around 200 million year have been correlated to the orogenic/epeirogenic activities associated with the breaking up of the Pangaea which led to the dispersion of the continents to form Gondwanaland and Laurasia which subsequently gave rise to the present day configuration of the globe. The younger age of 173 million year corresponds to Jurassic dole rites from Western queens Maud Land and other areas of Antarctica. (author)

A 50-year record of platinum, iridium, and rhodium in Antarctic snow: volcanic and anthropogenic sources.

Science.gov (United States)

Soyol-Erdene, Tseren-Ochir; Huh, Youngsook; Hong, Sungmin; Hur, Soon Do

2011-07-15

Antarctic snow preserves an atmospheric archive that enables the study of global atmospheric changes and anthropogenic disturbances from the past. We report atmospheric deposition rates of platinum group elements (PGEs) in Antarctica during the last ∼ 50 years based on determinations of Pt, Ir, and Rh in snow samples collected from Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica to evaluate changes in the global atmospheric budget of these noble metals. The 50-year average PGE concentrations in Antarctic snow were 17 fg g(-1) (4.7-76 fg g(-1)) for Pt, 0.12 fg g(-1) (pollution for Pt and probably for Rh since the 1980s, which may be attributed to the increasing emissions of these metals from anthropogenic sources such as automobile catalysts and metal production processes.

Factors influencing survival duration and choice of virgin queens in the stingless bee Melipona quadrifasciata

Science.gov (United States)

Kärcher, Martin H.; Menezes, Cristiano; Alves, Denise A.; Beveridge, Oliver S.; Imperatriz-Fonseca, Vera-Lucia; Ratnieks, Francis L. W.

2013-06-01

In Melipona quadrifasciata, about 10 % of the females develop into queens, almost all of which are killed. Occasionally, a new queen replaces or supersedes the mother queen or heads a new colony. We investigated virgin queen fate in queenright and queenless colonies to determine the effects of queen behaviour, body mass, nestmate or non-nestmate status, queenright or queenless colony status, and, when queenless, the effect of the time a colony had been queenless, on survival duration and acceptance. None of 220 virgin queens observed in four observation hives ever attacked another virgin queen nor did any of 88 virgin queens introduced into queenright colonies ever attack the resident queen. A new queen was only accepted in a queenless colony. Factors increasing survival duration and acceptance of virgin queens were to emerge from its cell at 2 h of queenlessness, to hide, and to avoid fights with workers. In this way, a virgin queen was more likely to be available when a colony chooses a new queen, 24-48 h after resident queen removal. Running, walking or resting, antennating or trophallaxis, played little or no role, as did the factors body mass or nestmate. "Queen choice" took about 2 h during which time other virgin queens were still being killed by workers. During this agitated process, the bees congregated around the new queen. She inflated her abdomen and some of the workers deposited a substance on internal nest surfaces including the glass lid of the observation hive.

Non-transferable signals on ant queen eggs

Science.gov (United States)

D'Ettorre, Patrizia; Tofilski, Adam; Heinze, Jürgen; Ratnieks, Francis L. W.

2006-03-01

How biological systems resolve internal conflicts is a major evolutionary question. Social insect workers cooperate but also pursue individual interests, such as laying male eggs. The rewards of this individual selfishness can be reduced by policing, such as by killing worker-laid eggs. However, selfish individuals may evade policing. What factors prevent individuals from being able to evade policing? In the ant Pachycondyla inversa, workers kill (police) worker-laid eggs. Because the colony keeps eggs in piles and worker-laid and queen-laid eggs are chemically distinct, worker-laid eggs might become more acceptable once placed in the egg pile by odour transfer from touching queen-laid eggs. Here, we show that such “cue scrambling” does not occur. Worker-laid eggs that were sandwiched between three queen-laid eggs for 45 min were not more acceptable in a policing bioassay than control worker-laid eggs. Chemical analyses also showed that the surface hydrocarbon profile of these eggs was unchanged. Policing, therefore, is stable against this potential cheating mechanism probably because queen-laid eggs are made chemically distinct using chemicals, that are not easily transferred by physical contact.

Genetic components to caste allocation in a multiple-queen ant species

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Libbrecht, Romain; Schwander, Tanja; Keller, Laurent

2011-01-01

Reproductive division of labor and the coexistence of distinct castes are hallmarks of insect societies. In social insect species with multiple queens per colony, the fitness of nestmate queens directly depends on the process of caste allocation (i.e., the relative investment in queen, sterile

Indicators of Physical and Biological Trends around the McMurdo Station, Antarctica: A Literature Review

Science.gov (United States)

2015-05-01

from +2.0 ERDC/CRREL SR-15-1 13 m/decade in the Queen Maud region to −19.4 m/decade in the Amundsen region. For the Ross Sea region, the change...precipitation in the Ross Sea Region, Antarctica. PhD thesis, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand. Cook, A. J., and D. G. Vaughan. 2010

Design, fabrication and erection of Queen Mall Bridge; Queen mall kyo no sekkei seisaku kasetsu

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Arai, M.; Ishii, A.; Shinohara, T. [Sumitomo Heavy Industries, Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1997-12-20

This paper describes design, fabrication and erection of Queen Mall Bridge, which is a new landmark in Minato-Mirai Yokohama. This bridge is two-span continuous cable stayed pedestrian bridge with a roof, and has a length 72.2 m, a width 18 m and a weight about 1,050 t. This bridge connects between the Queen`s Square and the second floor of Pacifico Yokohama. Achieving harmonious impression of the newly designed bridge in this area, glass roof was employed and all-weld method was applied to the in-site jointing of main girders and main tower in addition to the essential structural design. Since all-weld method was applied to the in-site jointing, highly accurate fabrication was considered during the in-site jointing. Due to the heavy traffic of the road below the bridge, the erection time was shortened under the severe erection conditions at night by large block method. Especially, accuracy control was considered for the whole shape management. Pre-assemble of all members was conducted just near the erection site, only 500 m away from the site, to shorten the construction time. 1 ref., 5 figs.

An illness in the family: Dr. Maude Abbott and her sister, Alice Abbott.

Science.gov (United States)

Brookes, Barbara

2011-01-01

This paper explores Maude Abbott's internationally significant career in medicine and her parallel commitment to caring for her sister, Alice Abbott. An examination of Abbott's life reveals the difficulties faced by an ambitious Canadian woman in medicine from the 1890s to the 1920s; difficulties compounded by caring for a sister with a mental illness. The Abbott archive suggests that it was far more difficult for a woman doctor to make the kind of sharp distinction between public and private life that might be expected of professional men.

Development of slim-maud: a multi-attribute utility approach to human reliability evaluation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Embrey, D.E.

1984-01-01

This paper describes further work on the Success Likelihood Index Methodology (SLIM), a procedure for quantitatively evaluating human reliability in nuclear power plants and other systems. SLIM was originally developed by Human Reliability Associates during an earlier contract with Brookhaven National Laboratory (BNL). A further development of SLIM, SLIM-MAUD (Multi-Attribute Utility Decomposition) is also described. This is an extension of the original approach using an interactive, computer-based system. All of the work described in this report was supported by the Human Factors and Safeguards Branch of the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission

Selection against aerial dispersal in ants: two non-flying queen phenotypes in Pogonomyrmex laticeps.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Christian Peeters

Full Text Available The South American seed-harvester ant Pogonomyrmex laticeps has dimorphic queens: ergatoid (permanently wingless and brachypterous (short, non-functional wings. Surveys in western Argentina indicated that colonies near Chilecito, La Rioja Province, produced only ergatoid queens, while those near Punta Balasto, Catamarca Province (263 km away, produced only brachypterous queens. Brachypterous queens were significantly larger than ergatoid queens for 10 of 11 external characters, but both phenotypes had comparable reproductive potential, i.e., a spermatheca and a similar number of ovarioles. Using normal winged queens of the closely related P. uruguayensis for comparison, we determined that both queen phenotypes in P. laticeps had a full set of dorsal thoracic sclerites, albeit each sclerite was much reduced, whereas workers had a thorax without distinct dorsal sclerites. Sclerites were fused and immobile in ergatoid queens, while they were separable and fully articulated in brachypterous queens. Both phenotypes lacked the big indirect flight muscles, but brachypterous queens retained the tiny direct flight muscles. Overall, this dimorphism across populations indicates that there are alternative solutions to selective pressures against flying queens. We lack field data about colony founding strategy (independent or dependent for either queen phenotype, but colonies at both sites produced numerous gynes, and we infer that all foundresses initiate colonies independently and are obligate foragers.

Unequal subfamily proportions among honey bee queen and worker brood

Science.gov (United States)

Tilley; Oldroyd

1997-12-01

Queens from three colonies of feral honey bees, Apis mellifera were removed and placed in separate nucleus colonies. For each colony, eggs and larvae were taken from the nucleus and placed in the main hive on each of 3-4 consecutive weeks. Workers in the queenless parts selected young larvae to rear as queens. Queen pupae, together with the surrounding worker pupae, were removed from each colony and analysed at two to three microsatellite loci to determine their paternity. In all three colonies, the paternity of larvae chosen by the bees to rear as queens was not a random sample of the paternities in the worker brood, with certain subfamilies being over-represented in queens. These results support an important prediction of kin selection theory: when colonies are queenless, unequal relatedness within colonies could lead to the evolution of reproductive competition, that is some subfamilies achieving greater reproductive success than others. The mechanism by which such dominance is achieved could be through a system of kin recognition and nepotism, but we conclude that genetically based differential attractiveness of larvae for rearing as queens is more likely.Copyright 1997 The Association for the Study of Animal BehaviourCopyright 1997The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour.

How many gamergates is an ant queen worth?

Science.gov (United States)

Monnin, Thibaud; Peeters, Christian

2008-02-01

Ant reproductives exhibit different morphological adaptations linked to dispersal and fertility. By reviewing the literature on taxa where workers can reproduce sexually (i.e. become gamergates) we show that (1) species with a single gamergate generally have lost the winged queen caste, whereas only half of the species with several gamergates have, and (2) single-gamergate species have smaller colonies than multiple-gamergate species. Comparison with “classical” ants without gamergates, where having one vs having several winged queens are two distinct syndromes, suggests that having one vs having several gamergates are not. Gamergate number does not affect the success of colony fission, but retention of the queen caste permits the option of independent foundation.

Natural transmission of feline immunodeficiency virus from infected queen to kitten.

Science.gov (United States)

Medeiros, Sheila de Oliveira; Martins, Angelica Nascimento; Dias, Carlos Gabriel Almeida; Tanuri, Amilcar; Brindeiro, Rodrigo de Moraes

2012-05-25

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) is a naturally occurring lentivirus that infects cats. The primary mode of transmission occurs through bite wounds, and other routes are difficult to observe in nature. The purpose of this study was to evaluate FIV transmission from queen to kitten in a colony of naturally infected stray cats. With this aim, a queen was monitored over a period of three years. A blood sample was taken to amplify and sequence gag, pol and env regions of the virus from the queen, two kittens and other cats from the colony. Phylogenetic analysis showed evidence of queen to kitten transmission.

Non-transferable signals on ant queen eggs

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

D'Ettorre, Patrizia; Tofilski, Adam; Heinze, Jürgen

2006-01-01

How biological systems resolve internal conflicts is a major evolutionary question. Social insect workers cooperate but also pursue individual interests, such as laying male eggs. The rewards of this individual selfishness can be reduced by policing, such as by killing worker-laid eggs. However......, selfish individuals may evade policing. What factors prevent individuals from being able to evade policing? In the ant Pachycondyla inversa, workers kill (police) worker-laid eggs. Because the colony keeps eggs in piles and worker-laid and queen-laid eggs are chemically distinct, worker-laid eggs might...... become more acceptable once placed in the egg pile by odour transfer from touching queen-laid eggs. Here, we show that such "cue scrambling" does not occur. Worker-laid eggs that were sandwiched between three queen-laid eggs for 45 min were not more acceptable in a policing bioassay than control worker...

Impact of Thiamethoxam on Honey Bee Queen (Apis mellifera carnica) Reproductive Morphology and Physiology.

Science.gov (United States)

Gajger, Ivana Tlak; Sakač, Martina; Gregorc, Aleš

2017-09-01

High honey bee losses around the world have been linked in part by the regular use of neonicotinoids in agriculture. In light of the current situation, the aim of this study was to investigate the effects of thiamethoxam on the development of the reproductive system and physiology in the honey bee queen. Two experimental groups of honey bee queen larvae were treated with thiamethoxam during artificial rearing, applied via artificial feed in two cycles. In the first rearing cycle, honey bee larvae received a single treatment dose (4.28 ng thiamethoxam/queen larva on the 4th day after larvae grafting in artificial queen cells), while the second honey bee queen rearing cycle received a double treatment dose (total of 8.56 ng thiamethoxam/queen larva on the 4th and 5th day after larvae grafting in artificial queen cells). After emerging, queens were anesthetized and weighed, and after mating with drones were anesthetized, weighed, and sectioned. Ovary mass and number of stored sperm were determined. Body weight differed between untreated and treated honey bee queens. The results also show a decrease in the number of sperm within honey bee queen spermathecae that received the double thiamethoxam dose.

Chemical Characterization of Young Virgin Queens and Mated Egg-Laying Queens in the Ant Cataglyphis cursor: Random Forest Classification Analysis for Multivariate Datasets.

Science.gov (United States)

Monnin, Thibaud; Helft, Florence; Leroy, Chloé; d'Ettorre, Patrizia; Doums, Claudie

2018-02-01

Social insects are well known for their extremely rich chemical communication, yet their sex pheromones remain poorly studied. In the thermophilic and thelytokous ant, Cataglyphis cursor, we analyzed the cuticular hydrocarbon profiles and Dufour's gland contents of queens of different age and reproductive status (sexually immature gynes, sexually mature gynes, mated and egg-laying queens) and of workers. Random forest classification analyses showed that the four groups of individuals were well separated for both chemical sources, except mature gynes that clustered with queens for cuticular hydrocarbons and with immature gynes for Dufour's gland secretions. Analyses carried out with two groups of females only allowed identification of candidate chemicals for queen signal and for sexual attractant. In particular, gynes produced more undecane in the Dufour's gland. This chemical is both the sex pheromone and the alarm pheromone of the ant Formica lugubris. It may therefore act as sex pheromone in C. cursor, and/or be involved in the restoration of monogyny that occurs rapidly following colony fission. Indeed, new colonies often start with several gynes and all but one are rapidly culled by workers, and this process likely involves chemical signals between gynes and workers. These findings open novel opportunities for experimental studies of inclusive mate choice and queen choice in C. cursor.

Social regulation of maternal traits in nest-founding bumble bee (Bombus terrestris) queens.

Science.gov (United States)

Woodard, S Hollis; Bloch, Guy; Band, Mark R; Robinson, Gene E

2013-09-15

During the nest-founding phase of the bumble bee colony cycle, queens undergo striking changes in maternal care behavior. Early in the founding phase, prior to the emergence of workers in the nest, queens are reproductive and also provision and feed their offspring. However, later in the founding phase, queens reduce their feeding of larvae and become specialized on reproduction. This transition is synchronized with the emergence of workers in the colony, who assume the task of feeding their siblings. Using a social manipulation experiment with the bumble bee Bombus terrestris, we tested the hypothesis that workers regulate the transition from feeding brood to specialization on reproduction in nest-founding bumble bee queens. Consistent with this hypothesis, we found that early-stage nest-founding queens with workers prematurely added to their nests reduce their brood-feeding behavior and increase egg laying, and likewise, late-stage nest-founding queens increase their brood-feeding behavior and decrease egg-laying when workers are removed from their nests. Further, brood-feeding and egg-laying behaviors were negatively correlated. We used Agilent microarrays designed from B. terrestris brain expressed sequenced tags (ESTs) to explore a second hypothesis, that workers alter brain gene expression in nest-founding queens. We found evidence that brain gene expression in nest-founding queens is altered by the presence of workers, with the effect being much stronger in late-stage founding queens. This study provides new insights into how the transition from feeding brood to specialization on reproduction in queen bumble bees is regulated during the nest initiation phase of the colony cycle.

Characteristics of Honey Bee (Apis Mellifera Carnica, Pollman 1879 Queens Reared in Slovenian Commercial Breeding Stations

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Gregorc Aleš

2015-12-01

Full Text Available In this three-year-trial study, we examined the quality of mated queens based on morphological and physiology traits. At each location, sister queen bees were reared each year from one Apis mellifera carnica breeder queen. Queens were also reared and mated in different locations. Altogether, we sampled and analysed 324 queens from 27 apiaries in 2006, 288 queens from 24 apiaries in 2008, and 276 queens from 23 apiaries in 2010. Nine queens from each apiary were sampled and dissected for morphological analyses and Nosema ceranae (N. ceranae spores, if present, were quantified. Three queens from each apiary were prepared and tested for four viruses: acute bee paralysis virus (ABPV, black queen cell virus (BQCV, deformed wing virus (DWV, and sacbrood virus (SBV. The highest average queen weight of 209.49 ± 9.82 mg was detected in 2008. The highest average ovary weight of 78.67 ± 11.86 mg was detected in 2010, and the highest number of ovarioles was 161.59 ± 8.70 in 2006. The average number of spermatozoa in queens ranged from 3.30 x 106 in 2006 to 5.23 x 106 in 2010. Nosema ceranae spores were found in queens sampled in 2008 and 2010. Viruses were discovered sporadically during the queen testing periods from 2006 - 2010. This study importantly demonstrates that queens from rearing stations require regular evaluation for morphological and physiological changes as well as for infection from harmful pathogens. These results could also be used in establishing relevant commercial standards for rearing quality queens.

Natural transmission of feline immunodeficiency virus from infected queen to kitten

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Medeiros Sheila de

2012-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV is a naturally occurring lentivirus that infects cats. The primary mode of transmission occurs through bite wounds, and other routes are difficult to observe in nature. Findings The purpose of this study was to evaluate FIV transmission from queen to kitten in a colony of naturally infected stray cats. With this aim, a queen was monitored over a period of three years. A blood sample was taken to amplify and sequence gag, pol and env regions of the virus from the queen, two kittens and other cats from the colony. Conclusion Phylogenetic analysis showed evidence of queen to kitten transmission.

Emergence of ethnochoreology internationally: The Janković sisters, Maud Karpeles, and Gertrude Kurath

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Dunin Elsie Ivancich

2014-01-01

Full Text Available A fifty-year (1962-2012 period has been shown as a history of ethnochoreology supported by living memories of members of the International Council for Traditional Music (ICTM Study Group on Ethnochoreology. Recently uncovered and juxtapositioned correspondence of three predecessors within earlier years of the International Folk Music Council (IFMC broadens the history. This article reveals the emergence of ethnochoreology during the 1950s with publications of the two Janković sisters in Serbia with that of Gertrude Kurath in the United States, alongside correspondence with Maud Karpeles, the unheralded founder of the IFMC.

The evolution of honest queen pheromones in insect societies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van Zweden, Jelle Stijn

2010-01-01

of their ovaries and by preventing other workers from reproducing (worker policing). However, what maintains the honesty of such queen pheromones is still under discussion. The explanation that an honest queen signal evolves simply because it serves the interest of all colony members does not seem to hold, since...

Queen pheromones: The chemical crown governing insect social life

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Holman, Luke

2010-01-01

Group-living species produce signals that alter the behavior and even the physiology of their social partners. Social insects possess especially sophisticated chemical communication systems that govern every aspect of colony life, including the defining feature of eusociality: reproductive division...... of labor. Current evidence hints at the central importance of queen pheromones, but progress has been hindered by the fact that such pheromones have only been isolated in honeybees. In a pair of papers on the ant Lasius niger, we identified and investigated a queen pheromone regulating worker sterility...... with other studies, these results indicate that queen pheromones are honest signals of quality that simultaneously regulate multiple social behaviors....

Social context predicts recognition systems in ant queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dreier, Stéphanie Agnès Jeanine; d'Ettorre, Patrizia

2009-01-01

Recognition of group-members is a key feature of sociality. Ants use chemical communication to discriminate nestmates from intruders, enhancing kin cooperation and preventing parasitism. The recognition code is embedded in their cuticular chemical profile, which typically varies between colonies....... We predicted that ants might be capable of accurate recognition in unusual situations when few individuals interact repeatedly, as new colonies started by two to three queens. Individual recognition would be favoured by selection when queens establish dominance hierarchies, because repeated fights...... for dominance are costly; but it would not evolve in absence of hierarchies. We previously showed that Pachycondyla co-founding queens, which form dominance hierarchies, have accurate individual recognition based on chemical cues. Here, we used the ant Lasius niger to test the null hypothesis that individual...

Eco-evolutionary Red Queen dynamics regulate biodiversity in a metabolite-driven microbial system.

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Bonachela, Juan A; Wortel, Meike T; Stenseth, Nils Chr

2017-12-15

The Red Queen Hypothesis proposes that perpetual co-evolution among organisms can result from purely biotic drivers. After more than four decades, there is no satisfactory understanding as to which mechanisms trigger Red Queen dynamics or their implications for ecosystem features such as biodiversity. One reason for such a knowledge gap is that typical models are complicated theories where limit cycles represent an idealized Red Queen, and therefore cannot be used to devise experimental setups. Here, we bridge this gap by introducing a simple model for microbial systems able to show Red Queen dynamics. We explore diverse biotic sources that can drive the emergence of the Red Queen and that have the potential to be found in nature or to be replicated in the laboratory. Our model enables an analytical understanding of how Red Queen dynamics emerge in our setup, and the translation of model terms and phenomenology into general underlying mechanisms. We observe, for example, that in our system the Red Queen offers opportunities for the increase of biodiversity by facilitating challenging conditions for intraspecific dominance, whereas stasis tends to homogenize the system. Our results can be used to design and engineer experimental microbial systems showing Red Queen dynamics.

The Red Queen lives: Epistasis between linked resistance loci.

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Metzger, César M J A; Luijckx, Pepijn; Bento, Gilberto; Mariadassou, Mahendra; Ebert, Dieter

2016-02-01

A popular theory explaining the maintenance of genetic recombination (sex) is the Red Queen Theory. This theory revolves around the idea that time-lagged negative frequency-dependent selection by parasites favors rare host genotypes generated through recombination. Although the Red Queen has been studied for decades, one of its key assumptions has remained unsupported. The signature host-parasite specificity underlying the Red Queen, where infection depends on a match between host and parasite genotypes, relies on epistasis between linked resistance loci for which no empirical evidence exists. We performed 13 genetic crosses and tested over 7000 Daphnia magna genotypes for resistance to two strains of the bacterial pathogen Pasteuria ramosa. Results reveal the presence of strong epistasis between three closely linked resistance loci. One locus masks the expression of the other two, while these two interact to produce a single resistance phenotype. Changing a single allele on one of these interacting loci can reverse resistance against the tested parasites. Such a genetic mechanism is consistent with host and parasite specificity assumed by the Red Queen Theory. These results thus provide evidence for a fundamental assumption of this theory and provide a genetic basis for understanding the Red Queen dynamics in the Daphnia-Pasteuria system. © 2016 The Author(s). Evolution © 2016 The Society for the Study of Evolution.

Mating with stressed males increases the fitness of ant queens.

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Alexandra Schrempf

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: According to sexual conflict theory, males can increase their own fitness by transferring substances during copulation that increase the short-term fecundity of their mating partners at the cost of the future life expectancy and re-mating capability of the latter. In contrast, sexual cooperation is expected in social insects. Mating indeed positively affects life span and fecundity of young queens of the male-polymorphic ant Cardiocondyla obscurior, even though males neither provide nuptial gifts nor any other care but leave their mates immediately after copulation and die shortly thereafter. PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Here, we show that mating with winged disperser males has a significantly stronger impact on life span and reproductive success of young queens of C. obscurior than mating with wingless fighter males. CONCLUSIONS: Winged males are reared mostly under stressful environmental conditions, which force young queens to disperse and found their own societies independently. In contrast, queens that mate with wingless males under favourable conditions usually start reproducing in the safety of the established maternal nest. Our study suggests that males of C. obscurior have evolved mechanisms to posthumously assist young queens during colony founding under adverse ecological conditions.

Improved estimates of global sea level change from Ice Sheets, glaciers and land water storage using GRACE

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Velicogna, I.; Hsu, C. W.; Ciraci, E.; Sutterley, T. C.

2015-12-01

We use observations of time variable gravity from GRACE to estimate mass changes for the Antarctic and Greenland Ice Sheets, the Glaciers and Ice Caps (GIC) and land water storage for the time period 2002-2015 and evaluate their total contribution to sea level. We calculate regional sea level changes from these present day mass fluxes using an improved scaling factor for the GRACE data that accounts for the spatial and temporal variability of the observed signal. We calculate a separate scaling factor for the annual and the long-term components of the GRACE signal. To estimate the contribution of the GIC, we use a least square mascon approach and we re-analyze recent inventories to optimize the distribution of mascons and recover the GRACE signal more accurately. We find that overall, Greenland controls 43% of the global trend in eustatic sea level rise, 16% for Antarctica and 29% for the GIC. The contribution from the GIC is dominated by the mass loss of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, followed by Alaska, Patagonia and the High Mountains of Asia. We report a marked increase in mass loss for the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. In Greenland, following the 2012 high summer melt, years 2013 and 2014 have slowed down the increase in mass loss, but our results will be updated with summer 2015 observations at the meeting. In Antarctica, the mass loss is still on the rise with increased contributions from the Amundsen Sea sector and surprisingly from the Wilkes Land sector of East Antarctica, including Victoria Land. Conversely, the Queen Maud Land sector experienced a large snowfall in 2009-2013 and has now resumed to a zero mass gain since 2013. We compare sea level changes from these GRACE derived mass fluxes after including the atmospheric and ocean loading signal with sea level change from satellite radar altimetry (AVISO) corrected for steric signal of the ocean using Argo measurements and find an excellent agreement in amplitude, phase and trend in these estimates

Cellular degradation activity is maintained during aging in long-living queen bees.

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Hsu, Chin-Yuan; Qiu, Jiantai Timothy; Chan, Yu-Pei

2016-11-01

Queen honeybees (Apis mellifera) have a much longer lifespan than worker bees. Whether cellular degradation activity is involved in the longevity of queen bees is unknown. In the present study, cellular degradation activity was evaluated in the trophocytes and oenocytes of young and old queen bees. The results indicated that (i) 20S proteasome activity and the size of autophagic vacuoles decreased with aging, and (ii) there were no significant differences between young and old queen bees with regard to 20S proteasome expression or efficiency, polyubiquitin aggregate expression, microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3-II (LC3-II) expression, 70 kDa heat shock cognate protein (Hsc70) expression, the density of autophagic vacuoles, p62/SQSTM1 expression, the activity or density of lysosomes, or molecular target of rapamycin expression. These results indicate that cellular degradation activity maintains a youthful status in the trophocytes and oenocytes of queen bees during aging and that cellular degradation activity is involved in maintaining the longevity of queen bees.

Individual Recognition in Ant Queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

D'Ettorre, Patrizia; Heinze, Jürgen

2005-01-01

Personal relationships are the cornerstone of vertebrate societies, but insect societies are either too large for individual recognition, or their members were assumed to lack the necessary cognitive abilities 1 and 2 . This paradigm has been challenged by the recent discovery that paper wasps...... recognize each other's unique facial color patterns [3] . Individual recognition is advantageous when dominance hierarchies control the partitioning of work and reproduction 2 and 4 . Here, we show that unrelated founding queens of the ant Pachycondyla villosa use chemical cues to recognize each other...... individually. Aggression was significantly lower in pairs of queens that had previously interacted than in pairs with similar social history but no experience with one another. Moreover, subordinates discriminated familiar and unfamiliar dominants in choice experiments in which physical contact, but not odor...

Evolutionary enhancement of the SLIM-MAUD method of estimating human error rates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zamanali, J.H.; Hubbard, F.R.; Mosleh, A.; Waller, M.A.

1992-01-01

The methodology described in this paper assigns plant-specific dynamic human error rates (HERs) for individual plant examinations based on procedural difficulty, on configuration features, and on the time available to perform the action. This methodology is an evolutionary improvement of the success likelihood index methodology (SLIM-MAUD) for use in systemic scenarios. It is based on the assumption that the HER in a particular situation depends of the combined effects of a comprehensive set of performance-shaping factors (PSFs) that influence the operator's ability to perform the action successfully. The PSFs relate the details of the systemic scenario in which the action must be performed according to the operator's psychological and cognitive condition

The effect of queen and worker adoption on weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina) queen fecundity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Offenberg, Joachim; Peng, Renkang; Nielsen, Mogens Gissel

2012-01-01

Incipient ant colonies are often under fierce competition, making fast growth crucial for survival. To increase production, colonies can adopt multiple queens (pleometrosis), fuse with other colonies or rob brood from neighboring colonies. However, different adoption strategies might have different...

Sexual Cooperation: Mating Increases Longevity in Ant Queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schrempf, Alexandra; Heinze, Jürgen; Cremer, Sylvia

2005-01-01

Divergent reproductive interests of males and females often cause sexual conflict [1] and [2] . Males of many species manipulate females by transferring seminal fluids that boost female short-term fecundity while decreasing their life expectancy and future reproductivity [3] and [4] . The life...... history of ants, however, is expected to reduce sexual conflict; whereas most insect females show repeated phases of mating and reproduction, ant queens mate only during a short period early in life and undergo a lifelong commitment to their mates by storing sperm [5] . Furthermore, sexual offspring can...... sterilized male lived considerably longer and started laying eggs earlier than virgin queens. Only queens that received viable sperm from fertile males showed increased fecundity. The lack of a trade-off between fecundity and longevity is unexpected, given evolutionary theories of aging [6] . Our data...

Modelling information exchange in worker-queen conflict over sex allocation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Pen, I.R.; Taylor, P.D.

2005-01-01

We investigate the conflict between queen and worker over sex allocation, specifically the allocation of the queen's eggs between workers and reproductives and the allocation of the reproductive eggs between male and female. In contrast to previous models, we allow workers to observe and use

Long-Lived Termite Queens Exhibit High Cu/Zn-Superoxide Dismutase Activity

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Eisuke Tasaki

2018-01-01

Full Text Available In most organisms, superoxide dismutases (SODs are among the most effective antioxidant enzymes that regulate the reactive oxygen species (ROS generated by oxidative energy metabolism. ROS are considered main proximate causes of aging. However, it remains unclear if SOD activities are associated with organismal longevity. The queens of eusocial insects, such as termites, ants, and honeybees, exhibit extraordinary longevity in comparison with the nonreproductive castes, such as workers. Therefore, the queens are promising candidates to study the underlying mechanisms of aging. Here, we found that queens have higher Cu/Zn-SOD activity than nonreproductive individuals of the termite Reticulitermes speratus. We identified three Cu/Zn-SOD sequences and one Mn-SOD sequence by RNA sequencing in R. speratus. Although the queens showed higher Cu/Zn-SOD activity than the nonreproductive individuals, there were no differences in their expression levels of the Cu/Zn-SOD genes RsSOD1 and RsSOD3A. Copper (Cu2+ and Cu+ is an essential cofactor for Cu/Zn-SOD enzyme activity, and the queens had higher concentrations of copper than the workers. These results suggest that the high Cu/Zn-SOD activity of termite queens is related to their high levels of the cofactor rather than gene expression. This study highlights that Cu/Zn-SOD activity contributes to extraordinary longevity in termites.

Performance of Africanized honeybee colonies settled by queens selected for different traits

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Tânia Patrícia Schafaschek

2016-01-01

Full Text Available We evaluated varroa infestation and the performance of Africanized honeybee colonies with queens selected for honey and royal jelly production, and also unselected queens, correlating with climatic variables. In Campo Alegre, Santa Catarina State, Brazil, the experiment I used 10 Langstroth hives and in Mafra, Santa Catarina State, Brazil, the experiment II was performed with 15 Schenk hives. A mapping in areas of sealed and unsealed brood, honey and pollen was carried out on days zero, 45 and 90 days after the introduction of the queen. In the experiment I, there was interaction between the type of queen selection and the evaluation period for areas of sealed brood, honey, and total stored food. The group selected for royal jelly production presented larger sealed brood area and smaller honey area at 90 days. Varroa infestation was lower (p < 0.05 at 90 days. The type of queen selection and the evaluation period influenced the sealed brood area, the total brood and the total area occupied in the colony. The high relative humidity caused greater honey storage for the local group. The different groups of queens presented different behavior according to the environment in which they are settled.

Evaluating precipitation in a regional climate model using ground-based radar measurements in Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica

Science.gov (United States)

Gorodetskaya, Irina; Maahn, Maximilan; Gallée, Hubert; Souverijns, Niels; Gossart, Alexandra; Kneifel, Stefan; Crewell, Susanne; Van Lipzig, Nicole

2017-04-01

Occasional very intense snowfall events over Dronning Maud Land (DML) region in East Antarctica, contributed significantly to the entire Antarctic ice sheet surface mass balance (SMB) during the last years. The meteorological-cloud-precipitation observatory running at the Princess Elisabeth station (PE) in the DML escarpment zone since 2009 (HYDRANT/AEROCLOUD projects), provides unique opportunity to estimate contribution of precipitation to the local snow accumulation and new data for evaluating precipitation in climate models. Our previous work using PE measurements showed that occasional intense precipitation events determine the total local yearly SMB and account for its large interannual variability. Here we use radar measurements to evaluate precipitation in a regional climate model with a special focus on intense precipitation events together with the large-scale atmospheric dynamics responsible for these events. The coupled snow-atmosphere regional climate model MAR (Modèle Atmosphérique Régional) is used to simulate climate and SMB in DML at 5-km horizontal resolution during 2012 using initial and boundary conditions from the European Centre for Medium-range Weather Forecasts (ECMWF) Interim re-analysis atmospheric and oceanic fields. Two evaluation approaches are used: observations-to-model and model-to-observations. In the first approach, snowfall rate (S) is derived from the MRR (vertically profiling 24-GHz precipitation radar) effective reflectivity factor (Ze) at 400 m agl using various Ze-S relationships for dry snow. The uncertainty in Ze-S relationships is constrained using snow particle size distribution from Snow Video Imager - Precipitation Imaging Package (SVI/PIP) and information about particle shapes. For the second approach we apply the Passive and Active Microwave radiative TRAnsfer model (PAMTRA), which allows direct comparison of the radar-measured and climate model-based vertical profiles of the radar Ze and Doppler velocity. In MAR

Thelytokous parthenogenesis by queens in the dacetine ant Pyramica membranifera (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)

Science.gov (United States)

Ito, Fuminori; Touyama, Yoshifumi; Gotoh, Ayako; Kitahiro, Shungo; Billen, Johan

2010-08-01

Thelytokous parthenogenesis in which diploid females are produced from unfertilized eggs, was recently reported for some ant species. Here, we document thelytokous reproduction by queens in the polygynous species Pyramica membranifera. Queens that emerged in the laboratory were kept with or without workers under laboratory conditions. Independent colony founding was successful for a few queens if prey was provided. All artificial colonies, which started with a newly emerged queen and workers produced new workers and some of the colonies also produced female sexuals. Some of the female sexuals shed their wings in the laboratory and started formation of new polygynous colonies. Workers had no ovaries and thus, were obligatorily sterile.

The Effects of Pesticides on Queen Rearing and Virus Titers in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera L.)

Science.gov (United States)

DeGrandi-Hoffman, Gloria; Chen, Yanping; Simonds, Roger

2013-01-01

The effects of sublethal pesticide exposure on queen emergence and virus titers were examined. Queen rearing colonies were fed pollen with chlorpyrifos (CPF) alone (pollen-1) and with CPF and the fungicide Pristine® (pollen-2). Fewer queens emerged when larvae from open foraging (i.e., outside) colonies were reared in colonies fed pollen-1 or 2 compared with when those larvae were reared in outside colonies. Larvae grafted from and reared in colonies fed pollen-2 had lower rates of queen emergence than pollen-1 or outside colonies. Deformed wing virus (DWV) and black queen cell virus were found in nurse bees from colonies fed pollen-1 or 2 and in outside colonies. The viruses also were detected in queen larvae. However, we did not detect virus in emerged queens grafted from and reared in outside colonies. In contrast, DWV was found in all emerged queens grafted from colonies fed pollen-1 or 2 either reared in outside hives or those fed pollen-1 or 2. The results suggest that sublethal exposure of CPF alone but especially when Pristine® is added reduces queen emergence possibly due to compromised immunity in developing queens. PMID:26466796

The Effects of Pesticides on Queen Rearing and Virus Titers in Honey Bees (Apis mellifera L.

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Gloria DeGrandi-Hoffman

2013-01-01

Full Text Available The effects of sublethal pesticide exposure on queen emergence and virus titers were examined. Queen rearing colonies were fed pollen with chlorpyrifos (CPF alone (pollen-1 and with CPF and the fungicide Pristine® (pollen-2. Fewer queens emerged when larvae from open foraging (i.e., outside colonies were reared in colonies fed pollen-1 or 2 compared with when those larvae were reared in outside colonies. Larvae grafted from and reared in colonies fed pollen-2 had lower rates of queen emergence than pollen-1 or outside colonies. Deformed wing virus (DWV and black queen cell virus were found in nurse bees from colonies fed pollen-1 or 2 and in outside colonies. The viruses also were detected in queen larvae. However, we did not detect virus in emerged queens grafted from and reared in outside colonies. In contrast, DWV was found in all emerged queens grafted from colonies fed pollen-1 or 2 either reared in outside hives or those fed pollen-1 or 2. The results suggest that sublethal exposure of CPF alone but especially when Pristine® is added reduces queen emergence possibly due to compromised immunity in developing queens.

Sulphur isotope measurements on sulphates from Antarctic atmospheric precipitations, lake waters and salt efflorescences: a contribution to the study of the natural sulphur cycle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wand, U.; Maass, I.; Haendel, D.

1987-01-01

Sulphur isotope analyses are an important tool for the study of the natural sulphur cycle. However, on the northern hemisphere such studies particularly of the atmospheric component of the cycle are seriously hampered and in many regions practically impossible because of the high emission rate of anthropogenic sulphur. Only in remote areas of the world such as the Antarctic 34 S analyses can be used with success to identify the various natural sulphur sources (marine, biogenic and volcanic sources). We report here preliminary results of 34 S isotope measurements on sulphates from recent atmospheric precipitations (snow), lake waters and salt efflorescences sampled in the Schirmacher Oasis and the Wohlthat Massif, central Queen Maud Land, East Antarctica. Except for 4 efflorescence samples the sulphates investigated in this work are enriched in 34 S relative to the meteoritic sulphur standard (CDT). On an average the sulphates of our study area are isotopically lighter than those from the McMurdo region, South Victoria land. The latter region is characterized by the predominance of salts of marine origin. (author)

Dominance and queen succession in captive colonies of the eusocial naked mole-rat, Heterocephalus glaber.

Science.gov (United States)

Clarke, F M; Faulkes, C G

1997-07-22

Naked mole-rat colonies exhibit a high reproductive skew, breeding being typically restricted to one female (the 'queen') and one to three males. Other colony members are reproductively suppressed, although this suppression can be reversed following the removal or death of the queen. We examined dominance and queen succession within captive colonies to investigate the relationship between urinary testosterone and cortisol, dominance rank and reproductive status; and to determine if behavioural and/or physiological parameters can be used as predictors of queen succession. Social structure was characterized by a linear dominance hierarchy before and after queen removal. Prior to queen removal, dominance rank was negatively correlated with body weight and urinary testosterone and cortisol titres in males and females. Queen removal results in social instability and aggression between high ranking individuals. Dominance rank appears to be a good predictor of reproductive status: queens are the highest ranking colony females and are succeeded by the next highest ranking females. The intense dominance-related aggression that accompanies reproductive succession in naked mole-rats provides empirical support for optimal skew theory.

Classical conditioning of proboscis extension in harnessed Africanized honey bee queens (Apis mellifera L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Aquino, Italo S; Abramson, Charles I; Soares, Ademilson E E; Fernandes, Andrea Cardoso; Benbassat, Danny

2004-06-01

Experiments are reported on learning in virgin Africanized honey bee queens (Apis mellifera L.). Queens restrained in a "Pavlovian harness" received a pairing of hexanal odor with a 1.8-M feeding of sucrose solution. Compared to explicitly unpaired controls, acquisition was rapid in reaching about 90%. Acquisition was also rapid in queens receiving an unconditioned stimulus of "bee candy" or an unconditioned stimulus administered by worker bees. During extinction the conditioned response declines. The steepest decline was observed in queens receiving an unconditioned stimulus of bee candy. These findings extend previous work on learning of Afrianized honey bee workers to a population of queen bees.

Genetic reincarnation of workers as queens in the Eastern honeybee Apis cerana.

Science.gov (United States)

Holmes, M J; Tan, K; Wang, Z; Oldroyd, B P; Beekman, M

2015-01-01

Thelytokous parthenogenesis, or the asexual production of female offspring, is rare in the animal kingdom, but relatively common in social Hymenoptera. However, in honeybees, it is only known to be ubiquitous in one subspecies of Apis mellifera, the Cape honeybee, A. mellifera capensis. Here we report the appearance of queen cells in two colonies of the Eastern honeybee Apis cerana that no longer contained a queen or queen-produced brood to rear queens from. A combination of microsatellite genotyping and the timing of the appearance of these individuals excluded the possibility that they had been laid by the original queen. Based on the genotypes of these individuals, thelytokous production by natal workers is the most parsimonious explanation for their existence. Thus, we present the first example of thelytoky in a honeybee outside A. mellifera. We discuss the evolutionary and ecological consequences of thelytoky in A. cerana, in particular the role thelytoky may play in the recent invasions by populations of this species.

Tolerating an infection: an indirect benefit of co-founding queen associations in the ant Lasius niger

Science.gov (United States)

Pull, Christopher D.; Hughes, William O. H.; Brown, Mark J. F.

2013-12-01

Pathogens exert a strong selection pressure on organisms to evolve effective immune defences. In addition to individual immunity, social organisms can act cooperatively to produce collective defences. In many ant species, queens have the option to found a colony alone or in groups with other, often unrelated, conspecifics. These associations are transient, usually lasting only as long as each queen benefits from the presence of others. In fact, once the first workers emerge, queens fight to the death for dominance. One potential advantage of co-founding may be that queens benefit from collective disease defences, such as mutual grooming, that act against common soil pathogens. We test this hypothesis by exposing single and co-founding queens to a fungal parasite, in order to assess whether queens in co-founding associations have improved survival. Surprisingly, co-foundresses exposed to the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium did not engage in cooperative disease defences, and consequently, we find no direct benefit of multiple queens on survival. However, an indirect benefit was observed, with parasite-exposed queens producing more brood when they co-founded, than when they were alone. We suggest this is due to a trade-off between reproduction and immunity. Additionally, we report an extraordinary ability of the queens to tolerate an infection for long periods after parasite exposure. Our study suggests that there are no social immunity benefits for co-founding ant queens, but that in parasite-rich environments, the presence of additional queens may nevertheless improve the chances of colony founding success.

Colony fusion and worker reproduction after queen loss in army ants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kronauer, Daniel J C; Schöning, Caspar; d'Ettorre, Patrizia

2010-01-01

their reproductive success. We show that worker chemical recognition profiles remain similar after queen loss, but rapidly change into a mixed colony Gestalt odour after fusion, consistent with indiscriminate acceptance of alien workers that are no longer aggressive. We hypothesize that colony fusion after queen...

Depression of brain dopamine and its metabolite after mating in European honeybee (Apis mellifera) queens

Science.gov (United States)

Harano, Ken-Ichi; Sasaki, Ken; Nagao, Takashi

2005-07-01

To explore neuro-endocrinal changes in the brain of European honeybee (Apis mellifera) queens before and after mating, we measured the amount of several biogenic amines, including dopamine and its metabolite in the brain of 6- and 12-day-old virgins and 12-day-old mated queens. Twelve-day-old mated queens showed significantly lower amounts of dopamine and its metabolite (N-acetyldopamine) than both 6- and 12-day-old virgin queens, whereas significant differences in the amounts of these amines were not detected between 6- and 12-day-old virgin queens. These results are explained by down-regulation of both synthesis and secretion of brain dopamine after mating. It is speculated that higher amounts of brain dopamine in virgin queens might be involved in activation of ovarian follicles arrested in previtellogenic stages, as well as regulation of their characteristic behaviors.

Differential antennal proteome comparison of adult honeybee drone, worker and queen (Apis mellifera L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Fang, Yu; Song, Feifei; Zhang, Lan; Aleku, Dereje Woltedji; Han, Bin; Feng, Mao; Li, Jianke

2012-01-04

To understand the olfactory mechanism of honeybee antennae in detecting specific volatile compounds in the atmosphere, antennal proteome differences of drone, worker and queen were compared using 2-DE, mass spectrometry and bioinformatics. Therefore, 107 proteins were altered their expressions in the antennae of drone, worker and queen bees. There were 54, 21 and 32 up-regulated proteins in the antennae of drone, worker and queen, respectively. Proteins upregulated in the drone antennae were involved in fatty acid metabolism, antioxidation, carbohydrate metabolism and energy production, protein folding and cytoskeleton. Proteins upregulated in the antennae of worker and queen bees were related to carbohydrate metabolism and energy production while molecular transporters were upregulated in the queen antennae. Our results explain the role played by the antennae of drone is to aid in perceiving the queen sexual pheromones, in the worker antennae to assist for food search and social communication and in the queen antennae to help pheromone communication with the worker and the drone during the mating flight. This first proteomic study significantly extends our understanding of honeybee olfactory activities and the possible mechanisms played by the antennae in response to various environmental, social, biological and biochemical signals. Crown Copyright © 2011. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Grafický design gramofonových alb hudební skupiny Queen

OpenAIRE

Bílková, Alena

2014-01-01

Bachelor thesis will deal with graphic design of LP covers music group Queen. It will focus on visual studies and LP graphic design in general. The main part will concentrate on music group Queen and graphic design of its LP covers. Powered by TCPDF (www.tcpdf.org)

Deformed wing virus can be transmitted during natural mating in honey bees and infect the queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Amiri, Esmaeil; Meixner, Marina D.; Kryger, Per

2016-01-01

prevalence of deformed wing virus, queens (n = 30) were trapped upon their return from natural mating flights. The last drone’s endophallus (n = 29), if present, was removed from the mated queens for deformed wing virus quantification, leading to the detection of high-level infection in 3 endophalli. After...... oviposition, viral quantification revealed that seven of the 30 queens had high-level deformed wing virus infections, in all tissues, including the semen stored in the spermathecae. Two groups of either unmated queens (n = 8) with induced egg laying, or queens (n = 12) mated in isolation with drones showing...... comparatively low deformed wing virus infections served as control. None of the control queens exhibited high-level viral infections. Our results demonstrate that deformed wing virus infected drones are competitive to mate and able to transmit the virus along with semen, which occasionally leads to queen...

Queen Specific Exocrine Glands in Legionary Ants and Their Possible Function in Sexual Selection.

Science.gov (United States)

Hölldobler, Bert

2016-01-01

The colonies of army ants and some other legionary ant species have single, permanently wingless queens with massive post petioles and large gasters. Such highly modified queens are called dichthadiigynes. This paper presents the unusually rich exocrine gland endowment of dichthadiigynes, which is not found in queens of other ant species. It has been suggested these kinds of glands produce secretions that attract and maintain worker retinues around queens, especially during migration. However, large worker retinues also occur in non-legionary species whose queens do not have such an exuberance of exocrine glands. We argue and present evidence in support of our previously proposed hypothesis that the enormous outfit of exocrine glands found in dichthadiigynes is due to sexual selection mediated by workers as the main selecting agents.

Queen Specific Exocrine Glands in Legionary Ants and Their Possible Function in Sexual Selection.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bert Hölldobler

Full Text Available The colonies of army ants and some other legionary ant species have single, permanently wingless queens with massive post petioles and large gasters. Such highly modified queens are called dichthadiigynes. This paper presents the unusually rich exocrine gland endowment of dichthadiigynes, which is not found in queens of other ant species. It has been suggested these kinds of glands produce secretions that attract and maintain worker retinues around queens, especially during migration. However, large worker retinues also occur in non-legionary species whose queens do not have such an exuberance of exocrine glands. We argue and present evidence in support of our previously proposed hypothesis that the enormous outfit of exocrine glands found in dichthadiigynes is due to sexual selection mediated by workers as the main selecting agents.

Honey bees consider larval nutritional status rather than genetic relatedness when selecting larvae for emergency queen rearing.

Science.gov (United States)

Sagili, Ramesh R; Metz, Bradley N; Lucas, Hannah M; Chakrabarti, Priyadarshini; Breece, Carolyn R

2018-05-16

In honey bees and many other social insects, production of queens is a vital task, as colony fitness is dependent on queens. The factors considered by honey bee workers in selecting larvae to rear new queens during emergency queen rearing are poorly understood. Identifying these parameters is critical, both in an evolutionary and apicultural context. As female caste development in honey bees is dependent on larval diet (i.e. nutrition), we hypothesized that larval nutritional state is meticulously assessed and used by workers in selection of larvae for queen rearing. To test this hypothesis, we conducted a series of experiments manipulating the nutritional status of one day old larvae by depriving them of brood food for a four-hour period, and then allowing workers to choose larvae for rearing queens from nutritionally deprived and non-deprived larvae. We simultaneously investigated the role of genetic relatedness in selection of larvae for queen rearing. In all the experiments, significantly greater numbers of non-deprived larvae than deprived larvae were selected for queen rearing irrespective of genetic relatedness. Our results demonstrate that honey bees perceive the nutritional state of larvae and use that information when selecting larvae for rearing queens in the natural emergency queen replacement process.

Effects of neonicotinoid imidacloprid exposure on bumble bee (Hymenoptera: Apidae) queen survival and nest initiation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu-Smart, Judy; Spivak, Marla

2018-02-08

Neonicotinoids are highly toxic to insects and may systemically translocate to nectar and pollen of plants where foraging bees may become exposed. Exposure to neonicotinoids can induce detrimental sublethal effects on individual and colonies of bees and may have long-term impacts, such as impaired foraging, reduced longevity, and reduced brood care or production. Less well-studied are the potential effects on queen bumble bees that may become exposed while foraging in the spring during colony initiation. This study assessed queen survival and nest founding in caged bumble bees [Bombus impatiens (Cresson) (Hymenoptera: Apidae)] after chronic (18-d) dietary exposure of imidacloprid in syrup (1, 5, 10, and 25 ppb) and pollen (0.3, 1.7, 3.3, and 8.3 ppb), paired respectively. Here we show some mortality in queens exposed at all doses even as low as 1 ppb, and, compared with untreated queens, significantly reduced survival of treated queens at the two highest doses. Queens that survived initial imidacloprid exposure commenced nest initiation; however, they exhibited dose-dependent delay in egg-laying and emergence of worker brood. Furthermore, imidacloprid treatment affected other parameters such as nest and queen weight. This study is the first to show direct impacts of imidacloprid at field-relevant levels on individual B. impatiens queen survival and nest founding, indicating that bumble bee queens are particularly sensitive to neonicotinoids when directly exposed. This study also helps focus pesticide risk mitigation efforts and highlights the importance of reducing exposure rates in the early spring when bumble bee queens, and other wild bees are foraging and initiating nests. © The Author(s) 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Entomological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Potential increase in mating frequency of queens in feral colonies of Bombus terrestris introduced into Japan

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Inoue, Maki N.; Saito, Fuki; Tsuchida, Koji; Goka, Koichi

2012-10-01

With the exception of several species, bumblebees are monandrous. We examined mating frequency in feral colonies of the introduced bumblebee Bombus terrestris in Japan . Using microsatellite markers, genotyping of sperm DNA stored in the spermatheca of nine queens detected multiple insemination paternities in one queen; the others were singly mated. The average effective paternity frequency estimated from the genotypes of queens and workers was 1.23; that estimated from the workers' genotype alone was 2.12. These values were greater than those of laboratory-reared colonies in the native ranges of B. terrestris. The genotypes of one or two workers did not match those of their queens or showed paternities different from those of their nestmates; this may have arisen from either queen takeover or drifting of workers. These alien workers were responsible for the heterogeneous genotype distribution within each B. terrestris colony, resulting in higher estimates of paternity frequency than of insemination frequency. The high mating frequency of introduced B. terrestris may have occurred by artificial selection through mass breeding for commercialization. Moreover, polyandrous queens may be selectively advantageous, because reproduction by such queens is less likely to be disturbed by interspecific mating than that by monandrous queens.

Ant Queen Egg-Marking Signals: Matching Deceptive Laboratory Simplicity with Natural Complexity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

van Zweden, Jelle Stijn; Heinze, Jürgen; Boomsma, Jacobus Jan

2009-01-01

Background Experiments under controlled laboratory conditions can produce decisive evidence for testing biological hypotheses, provided they are representative of the more complex natural conditions. However, whether this requirement is fulfilled is seldom tested explicitly. Here we provide a lab....../field comparison to investigate the identity of an egg-marking signal of ant queens. Our study was based on ant workers resolving conflict over male production by destroying each other's eggs, but leaving queen eggs unharmed. For this, the workers need a proximate cue to discriminate between the two egg types...... that this compound by itself is not the natural queen egg-marking pheromone. We subsequently investigated the overall differences of entire chemical profiles of eggs, and found that queen-laid eggs in field colonies are more distinct from worker-laid eggs than in lab colonies, have more variation in profiles...

Women in History--Queen Liliuokalani

Science.gov (United States)

Koeppe, Tina

2007-01-01

This article profiles Queen Liliuokalani, Hawaii's last monarch. Liliuokalani was born in Hawaii in 1838 into the family of a high chief. She attended the Royal School, run by American missionaries, and received a high quality education and learned to love music, writing and politics. Liliuokalani was given the Christian name "Lydia" as…

Effect of cuticular abrasion and recovery on water loss rates in queens of the desert harvester ant Messor pergandei.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Robert A; Kaiser, Alexander; Quinlan, Michael; Sharp, William

2011-10-15

Factors that affect water loss rates (WLRs) are poorly known for organisms in natural habitats. Seed-harvester ant queens provide an ideal system for examining such factors because WLRs for mated queens excavated from their incipient nests are twofold to threefold higher than those of alate queens. Indirect data suggest that this increase results from soil particles abrading the cuticle during nest excavation. This study provides direct support for the cuticle abrasion hypothesis by measuring total mass-specific WLRs, cuticular abrasion, cuticular transpiration, respiratory water loss and metabolic rate for queens of the ant Messor pergandei at three stages: unmated alate queens, newly mated dealate queens (undug foundresses) and mated queens excavated from their incipient nest (dug foundresses); in addition we examined these processes in artificially abraded alate queens. Alate queens had low WLRs and low levels of cuticle abrasion, whereas dug foundresses had high WLRs and high levels of cuticle abrasion. Total WLR and cuticular transpiration were lowest for alate queens, intermediate for undug foundresses and highest for dug foundresses. Respiratory water loss contributed ~10% of the total WLR and was lower for alate queens and undug foundresses than for dug foundresses. Metabolic rate did not vary across stages. Total WLR and cuticular transpiration of artificially abraded alate queens increased, whereas respiratory water loss and metabolic rate were unaffected. Overall, increased cuticular transpiration accounted for essentially all the increased total water loss in undug and dug foundresses and artificially abraded queens. Artificially abraded queens and dug foundresses showed partial recovery after 14 days.

The Queen Bee Phenomenon: Why Women Leaders Distance Themselves from Junior Women

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Derks, B.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/299622673; Van Laar, C.; Ellemers, Naomi|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/086631276

2016-01-01

This contribution reviews work on the Queen Bee phenomenon whereby women leaders assimilate into masculine organizations, distance themselves from junior women and legitimize gender inequality in their organization. We propose that rather than being a source of gender inequality, the Queen Bee

Effect of a fungicide and spray adjuvant on queen-rearing success in honey bees (Hymenoptera: Apidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Reed M; Percel, Eric G

2013-10-01

Commercial producers of honey bee queens (Apis mellifera L.) have reported unexplained loss of immature queens during the larval or pupal stage. Many affected queen-rearing operations are situated among the almond orchards of California and report these losses in weeks after almond trees bloom. Almond flowers are a rich foraging resource for bees, but are often treated with fungicides, insecticides, and spray adjuvants during bloom. Anecdotal reports by queen producers associate problems in queen development with application of the fungicide Pristine (boscalid and pyraclostrobin) and spray adjuvants that are tank-mixed with it. To test the effect of these compounds on queen development, a new bioassay was developed in which queens are reared in closed swarm boxes for 4 d, until capping, with nurse bees fed exclusively on artificially contaminated pollen. Pollen was treated with four concentrations of formulated Pristine (0.4, 4, 40, and 400 ppm), a spray adjuvant (Break-Thru, 200 ppm), the combination of Pristine and spray adjuvant (400:200 ppm), the insect growth regulator insecticide diflubenzuron (100 ppm) as a positive control, or water as negative control. Chemical analysis revealed that low concentrations of pyraclostrobin (50 ppb), but no boscalid, were detectable in royal jelly secreted by nurse bees feeding on treated pollen. No significant difference in queen development or survival was observed between any of the experimental treatments and the negative control. Only diflubenzuron, the positive control, caused a substantial reduction in survival of immature queens.

Behavioral Differentiation and Ovarian Development of Unmated Gynes, Queens, and Workers of Ectatomma vizottoi Almeida 1987 (Formicidae, Ectatomminae

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Alexsandro Santana Vieira

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Behavioral differentiation and ovarian development of unmated gynes, queens, and workers of Ectatomma vizottoi were investigated in laboratory conditions. Forty-one behavioral acts were identified and quantified for workers, 19 for queens and 24 for unmated gynes, for an overall species repertoire of 42 different behavioral acts. Ovipositing reproductive eggs was an exclusive task of the queen, whereas workers showed 15 caste-specific behaviors. The most important (frequent behaviors for the queens were brood care, immobility, and reproduction, and for workers were immobility, grooming/interaction, brood care, and foraging. Unmated gynes (not winged primarily showed immobility, brood care, grooming/interaction, and foraging. Analysis of ovarian development showed that unmated gynes had little-developed ovarioles, in contrast to queens. Queens and unmated gynes showed a clear behavioral differentiation, in which queens played the role of reproducers and unmated gynes performed activities belonging to the worker repertoire. Despite the presence of several breeding queens in the colony, functional monogyny was the rule.

case of natural queen succession in a captive colony of naked mole ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Naked mole-rats occur in large colonies where usually a single queen monopolizes reproduction. Queen succession occurs from within usually as a result of aggressive encounters with subordinate females that queue for reproductive succession following colony instability, which inevitably results in death of either the ...

Cuticular hydrocarbons correlate with queen reproductive status in native and invasive Argentine ants (Linepithema humile, Mayr)

Science.gov (United States)

Diaz, Mireia; Lenoir, Alain; Ivon Paris, Carolina; Boulay, Raphaël; Gómez, Crisanto

2018-01-01

In insect societies, chemical communication plays an important role in colony reproduction and individual social status. Many studies have indicated that cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) are the main chemical compounds encoding reproductive status. However, these studies have largely focused on queenless or monogynous species whose workers are capable of egg laying and have mainly explored the mechanisms underlying queen-worker or worker-worker reproductive conflicts. Less is known about what occurs in highly polygynous ant species with permanently sterile workers. Here, we used the Argentine ant as a model to examine the role of CHCs in communicating reproductive information in such insect societies. The Argentine ant is unicolonial, highly polygynous, and polydomous. We identified several CHCs whose presence and levels were correlated with queen age, reproductive status, and fertility. Our results also provide new insights into queen executions in the Argentine ant, a distinctive feature displayed by this species in its introduced range. Each spring, just before new sexuals appear, workers eliminate up to 90% of the mated queens in their colonies. We discovered that queens that survived execution had different CHC profiles from queens present before and during execution. More specifically, levels of some CHCs were higher in the survivors, suggesting that workers could eliminate queens based on their chemical profiles. In addition, queen CHC profiles differed based on season and species range (native vs. introduced). Overall, the results of this study provide new evidence that CHCs serve as queen signals and do more than just regulate worker reproduction. PMID:29470506

"Courageous, Zealous, Learned, Wise, and Chaste" - Queen Elizabeth I's Biblical Analogies After Her Death

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Aidan Norrie

2015-11-01

Full Text Available During her reign, Queen Elizabeth I of England was the subject of various biblical analogies. Much of the current historiography, however, does not continue analysis of these literary devices after the Queen's death in 1603. Primary source documents show that their use did not cease with the Queen's death. These analogies appear to have continued for two primary purposes. Analogies legitimised a questionable event that had occurred during Elizabeth's reign, and portrayed these decisions as an example for the current Protestant monarch to imitate. Also, in the years after the Queen's death, analogies reinforced England's Protestantism (and its divine sanction, and gave the Stuart monarchs an example to emulate in religio-political matters.

Comparing alternative methods for holding virgin honey bee queens for one week in mailing cages before mating.

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Gianluigi Bigio

Full Text Available In beekeeping, queen honey bees are often temporarily kept alive in cages. We determined the survival of newly-emerged virgin honey bee queens every day for seven days in an experiment that simultaneously investigated three factors: queen cage type (wooden three-hole or plastic, attendant workers (present or absent and food type (sugar candy, honey, or both. Ten queens were tested in each of the 12 combinations. Queens were reared using standard beekeeping methods (Doolittle/grafting and emerged from their cells into vials held in an incubator at 34C. All 12 combinations gave high survival (90 or 100% for three days but only one method (wooden cage, with attendants, honey gave 100% survival to day seven. Factors affecting queen survival were analysed. Across all combinations, attendant bees significantly increased survival (18% vs. 53%, p<0.001. In addition, there was an interaction between food type and cage type (p<0.001 with the honey and plastic cage combination giving reduced survival. An additional group of queens was reared and held for seven days using the best method, and then directly introduced using smoke into queenless nucleus colonies that had been dequeened five days previously. Acceptance was high (80%, 8/10 showing that this combination is also suitable for preparing queens for introduction into colonies. Having a simple method for keeping newly-emerged virgin queens alive in cages for one week and acceptable for introduction into queenless colonies will be useful in honey bee breeding. In particular, it facilitates the screening of many queens for genetic or phenotypic characteristics when only a small proportion meets the desired criteria. These can then be introduced into queenless hives for natural mating or insemination, both of which take place when queens are one week old.

Queen influence on workers behavior of the leaf-cutting ant Atta sexdens rubropilosa (Forel, 1908

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L. Sousa-Souto

Full Text Available In an ant colony, the queen is the single reproducer and can interact with her workers via pheromones and cuticular compounds. However, in most species queen importance is not restricted to reproduction: in the initial development of the colony, her presence might play a more important role. In this work, we studied the effects of queen absence on workers behavior displayed in the foraging arena. Ant’s mortality and refuse accumulation was also measured daily. The results showed that queen absence did not alter either workers behavior or foraging efficiency. However, we observed increased ant mortality accompanied by a decrease in refuse dumping outside the nest. These results corroborate the hypothesis that environmental factors are more important than intrinsical factors in the allocation of external tasks. Probably, the queen could only influence internal activities of the colony.

History and hydrologic effects of ground water use in Kings, Queens, and western Nassau counties, Long Island, New York, 1800's through 1997

Science.gov (United States)

Cartwright, Richard A.

2002-01-01

Ground-water withdrawals from the aquifers underlying Kings and Queens Counties varied temporally and spatially during the 20th century and caused extreme changes in water levels. The resultant lowering of water levels during periods of heavy pumping caused saltwater intrusion in nearshore areas and the migration of contaminants from land surface into deep aquifers. The recovery of water levels in response to countywide curtailment of pumping has resulted in the flooding of underground structures. Combined withdrawals for public and industrial supply in Kings and Queens Counties were greatest during the 1930's--about 130 million gallons per day. During this period, a large cone of depression developed in the water table in Kings County; within this depression, water levels were about 45 feet lower than in 1903. All pumping for public supply was halted in Kings County in 1947, and in Jamaica (in Queens County) in 1974. Water levels in Kings County had recovered by 1974 and have remained similar to those of 1903 since then, except for minor localized drawdowns due to industrial-supply or dewatering withdrawals. A large cone of depression that had formed in southeastern Queens County before 1974 has now (1997) disappeared. The estimated combined withdrawal for public supply and industrial supply in Kings and Queens Counties in 1996 was only about 50 million gallons per day.The water-level recoveries in the water-table and confined aquifers generally have resulted in the dilution and dispersion of residual salty and nitrate-contaminated ground water. The majority of recently sampled wells indicate stable or decreasing chloride and nitrate concentrations in all aquifers since 1983. Organic contaminants remain in ground water in Kings, Queens, and Nassau Counties, however; the most commonly detected compounds in 1992-96 were tetrachloroethene, trichloroethene, chloroform, and total trihalomethanes. Water samples from monitoring wells in Kings County indicate a greater

A distinct role of the queen in coordinated workload and soil distribution in eusocial naked mole-rats.

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Nobuyuki Kutsukake

Full Text Available We investigated how group members achieve collective decision-making, by considering individual intrinsic behavioural rules and behavioural mechanisms for maintaining social integration. Using a simulated burrow environment, we investigated the behavioural rules of coordinated workload for soil distribution in a eusocial mammal, the naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber. We tested two predictions regarding a distinct role of the queen, a socially dominant individual in the caste system: the presence of a queen would increase the workload of other caste individuals, and the cues by a queen would affect the soil distribution. In experiment 1, we placed four individuals of various castes from the same colony into an experimental burrow. Workers exhibited the highest frequency of workload compared to other castes. The presence of a queen activated the workload by other individuals. Individuals showed a consistent workload in a particular direction so as to bias the soil distribution. These results suggest that individuals have a consensus on soil distribution and that the queen plays a distinct role. In experiment 2, we placed the odour of a queen in one of four cells and observed its effect on other individuals' workload and soil distribution. Relative to other cells, individuals frequently dug in the queen cell so the amount of soil in the queen cell decreased. These results suggest that queen odour is an important cue in coordinated workload and soil distribution in this species.

How Complex, Probable, and Predictable is Genetically Driven Red Queen Chaos?

Science.gov (United States)

Duarte, Jorge; Rodrigues, Carla; Januário, Cristina; Martins, Nuno; Sardanyés, Josep

2015-12-01

Coevolution between two antagonistic species has been widely studied theoretically for both ecologically- and genetically-driven Red Queen dynamics. A typical outcome of these systems is an oscillatory behavior causing an endless series of one species adaptation and others counter-adaptation. More recently, a mathematical model combining a three-species food chain system with an adaptive dynamics approach revealed genetically driven chaotic Red Queen coevolution. In the present article, we analyze this mathematical model mainly focusing on the impact of species rates of evolution (mutation rates) in the dynamics. Firstly, we analytically proof the boundedness of the trajectories of the chaotic attractor. The complexity of the coupling between the dynamical variables is quantified using observability indices. By using symbolic dynamics theory, we quantify the complexity of genetically driven Red Queen chaos computing the topological entropy of existing one-dimensional iterated maps using Markov partitions. Co-dimensional two bifurcation diagrams are also built from the period ordering of the orbits of the maps. Then, we study the predictability of the Red Queen chaos, found in narrow regions of mutation rates. To extend the previous analyses, we also computed the likeliness of finding chaos in a given region of the parameter space varying other model parameters simultaneously. Such analyses allowed us to compute a mean predictability measure for the system in the explored region of the parameter space. We found that genetically driven Red Queen chaos, although being restricted to small regions of the analyzed parameter space, might be highly unpredictable.

Relic excavated in western India is probably of Georgian Queen Ketevan.

Science.gov (United States)

Rai, Niraj; Taher, Nizamuddin; Singh, Manvendra; Chaubey, Gyaneshwer; Jha, Aditya Nath; Singh, Lalji; Thangaraj, Kumarasamy

2014-01-01

History has well documented the execution of Queen Ketevan of Georgia by the Persian Emperor of modern day Iran. Based on historical records, in 1624 two Augustinian friars unearthed the queen's remains and one of them brought the relic to the St. Augustine convent in Goa, India. We carried out ancient DNA analysis on the human bone remains excavated from the St. Augustine convent by sequencing and genotyping of the mitochondrial DNA. The investigations of the remains revealed a unique mtDNA haplogroup U1b, which is absent in India, but present in Georgia and surrounding regions. Since our genetic analysis corroborates archaeological and literary evidence, it is likely that the excavated bone belongs to Queen Ketevan of Georgia. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Epidemiology of a Daphnia-multiparasite system and its implications for the red queen.

Science.gov (United States)

Auld, Stuart K J R; Hall, Spencer R; Duffy, Meghan A

2012-01-01

The Red Queen hypothesis can explain the maintenance of host and parasite diversity. However, the Red Queen requires genetic specificity for infection risk (i.e., that infection depends on the exact combination of host and parasite genotypes) and strongly virulent effects of infection on host fitness. A European crustacean (Daphnia magna)--bacterium (Pasteuria ramosa) system typifies such specificity and high virulence. We studied the North American host Daphnia dentifera and its natural parasite Pasteuria ramosa, and also found strong genetic specificity for infection success and high virulence. These results suggest that Pasteuria could promote Red Queen dynamics with D. dentifera populations as well. However, the Red Queen might be undermined in this system by selection from a more common yeast parasite (Metschnikowia bicuspidata). Resistance to the yeast did not correlate with resistance to Pasteuria among host genotypes, suggesting that selection by Metschnikowia should proceed relatively independently of selection by Pasteuria.

Queen's discovery lauded by top scientific journal

CERN Multimedia

McGrady, S

2002-01-01

A scientific breakthrough at Queen's University's Sudbury Neutrino Observatory has received major international recognition. The journal Science ranked the discovery that cracked the "neutrino problem" second, in the journal's top 10 scientific achievements of 2002 (1/2 page).

Ser e estar drag queen: um estudo sobre a configuração da identidade queer Being a drag queen: a study on the characterization of the queer identity

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Maria Teresa Vargas Chidiac

2004-12-01

Full Text Available O principal objetivo deste estudo foi identificar o processo de formação da identidade queer das drag queens do circuito Balneário Camboriú e Florianópolis. Para atingir este propósito, foi investigado como se processa a relação de identificação das drag queens com o gênero feminino e masculino. Abordou-se também de que modo configura-se a relação entre o sujeito e a personagem drag queen, descrevendo a sua visão sobre a própria sexualidade. Estes dados foram obtidos através de pesquisa exploratória com três sujeitos através de entrevistas, sendo o roteiro semidirigido, além de terem sido realizadas visitas em suas moradias e em casas noturnas onde faziam apresentações artísticas. Os entrevistados relataram que a identidade das drags se diferencia de suas identidades pessoais em diversos aspectos. A drag possui características físicas e psicológicas, além de posturas e atitudes, que são próprias da personagem e que a distinguem do sujeito que a compõe. Mas houve relatos com freqüência que existem situações em que personagem e sujeito que a compõe se confundem. Através dos resultados, pode-se identificar como a configuração da identidade está relacionada com a socialização e com as transformações do corpo. Os sujeitos que interpretam as drag queens manifestam esse jogo de identidades, de ambos os gêneros, configurando o que pode se identificar com uma identidade queer.The main objective of this study was to identify the formation process of queer identity of some drag queens in the cities of Balneário Camboriú and Florianópolis, in the state of Santa Catarina, south of Brazil. In order to achieve this objective, we investigated how the drag queens identify themselves with the female and male genders. In addition, we investigated how the relation between the interviewed subjects and their drag queen character gets established through their description of their own sexuality. The data was collected

Protein content of leaf-cutting ant queens before the nuptial flight and during the post-claustral phase

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Edypo Jacob Silva

2014-12-01

Full Text Available Protein content of leaf-cutting ant queens before the nuptial flight and during the post-claustral phase. This study evaluated the crude protein content of queens of Atta sexdens before the nuptial flight and after the claustral phase in laboratory and field colonies. The hypothesis was that protein is used for survival of the queen and for early colony growth during the claustral phase. Additionally, the nest morphology, live biomass and adult population of field colonies were evaluated. Crude protein was determined by digestion of the organic material with sulfuric acid at high temperatures. The mean crude protein content was 123.23 ± 11.20 mg for females before the nuptial flight and 70.44 ± 12.21 mg for laboratory-reared queens after the claustral phase. The post-claustral crude protein content of field-collected queen was 55.90 ± 9.18 mg. With respect to the loss of crude protein as a function of duration of the claustral phase, laboratory-reared queens lost 52.79 mg and field-collected queens lost 67.33 mg compared to females before the nuptial flight. A positive linear correlation was observed between the weight of field-collected queens (256.4 ± 36.3 mg and colony biomass (13.02 ± 9.12 g, but there was no correlation between biomass and nest depth (13.11 ± 3.82 cm. As expected, the present results support the hypothesis that protein is used for survival of the queen and for early colony growth, as demonstrated by the reduction in crude protein content as a function of duration of the claustral phase. To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide data of the dynamics of protein reserves in leaf-cutting ant queens during the claustral phase.

Ant parasite queens revert to mating singly

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sumner, Seirian; Hughes, William Owen Hamar; Pedersen, Jes Søe

2004-01-01

quantified and they tend to be similar in related species. Here we compare the mating strategies of the leaf-cutting ant Acromyrmex echinatior and its recently derived social parasite Acromyrmex insinuator, which is also its closest relative 2 (see Fig. 1 ). We find that although the host queens mate with up......A parasitic ant has abandoned the multiple mating habit of the queens of its related host. Multiple mating (polyandry) is widespread among animal groups, particularly insects 1 . But the factors that maintain it and underlie its evolution are hard to verify because benefits and costs are not easily...... to a dozen different males, the social parasite mates only singly. This rapid and surprising reversion to single mating in a socially parasitic ant indicates that the costs of polyandry are probably specific to a free-living lifestyle....

Sulimar Queen environmental restoration project closure package Sandia environmental stewardship exemplar.

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tillman, Jack B.

2008-09-01

In March 2008, Sandia National Laboratories (Sandia), in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management, Roswell Field Office, completed its responsibilities to plug and abandon wells and restore the surface conditions for the Sulimar Queens Unit, a 2,500 acre oil field, in Chaves County, Southeast New Mexico. Sandia assumed this liability in an agreement to obtain property to create a field laboratory to perform extensive testing and experimentation on enhanced oil recovery techniques for shallow oil fields. In addition to plugging and abandoning 28 wells, the project included the removal of surface structures and surface reclamation of disturbed lands associated with all plugged and abandoned wells, access roads, and other auxiliary facilities within unit boundaries. A contracting strategy was implemented to mitigate risk and reduce cost. As the unit is an important wildlife habitat for prairie chickens, sand dune lizards, and mule deer, the criteria for the restoration and construction process were designed to protect and enhance the wildlife habitat. Lessons learned from this project include: (1) extreme caution should be exercised when entering agreements that include future liabilities, (2) partnering with the regulator has huge benefits, and (3) working with industry experts, who were familiar with the work, and subcontractors, who provided the network to complete the project cost effectively.

Epidemiology of a Daphnia-multiparasite system and its implications for the red queen.

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Stuart K J R Auld

Full Text Available The Red Queen hypothesis can explain the maintenance of host and parasite diversity. However, the Red Queen requires genetic specificity for infection risk (i.e., that infection depends on the exact combination of host and parasite genotypes and strongly virulent effects of infection on host fitness. A European crustacean (Daphnia magna--bacterium (Pasteuria ramosa system typifies such specificity and high virulence. We studied the North American host Daphnia dentifera and its natural parasite Pasteuria ramosa, and also found strong genetic specificity for infection success and high virulence. These results suggest that Pasteuria could promote Red Queen dynamics with D. dentifera populations as well. However, the Red Queen might be undermined in this system by selection from a more common yeast parasite (Metschnikowia bicuspidata. Resistance to the yeast did not correlate with resistance to Pasteuria among host genotypes, suggesting that selection by Metschnikowia should proceed relatively independently of selection by Pasteuria.

Genomic analysis of post-mating changes in the honey bee queen (Apis mellifera

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Richard Freddie-Jeanne

2008-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background The molecular mechanisms underlying the post-mating behavioral and physiological transitions undergone by females have not been explored in great detail. Honey bees represent an excellent model system in which to address these questions because they exhibit a range of "mating states," with two extremes (virgins and egg-laying, mated queens that differ dramatically in their behavior, pheromone profiles, and physiology. We used an incompletely-mated mating-state to understand the molecular processes that underlie the transition from a virgin to a mated, egg-laying queen. We used same-aged virgins, queens that mated once but did not initiate egg-laying, and queens that mated once and initiated egg-laying. Results Differences in the behavior and physiology among groups correlated with the underlying variance observed in the top 50 predictive genes in the brains and the ovaries. These changes were correlated with either a behaviorally-associated pattern or a physiologically-associated pattern. Overall, these results suggest that the brains and the ovaries of queens are uncoupled or follow different timescales; the initiation of mating triggers immediate changes in the ovaries, while changes in the brain may require additional stimuli or take a longer time to complete. Comparison of our results to previous studies of post-mating changes in Drosophila melanogaster identified common biological processes affected by mating, including stress response and alternative-splicing pathways. Comparison with microarray data sets related to worker behavior revealed no obvious correlation between genes regulated by mating and genes regulated by behavior/physiology in workers. Conclusion Studying the underlying molecular mechanisms of post-mating changes in honey bee queens will not only give us insight into how molecular mechanisms regulate physiological and behavioral changes, but they may also lead to important insights into the evolution of

Functional morphology of the postpharyngeal gland of queens and workers of the ant Monomorium pharaonis (L.)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eelen, Dieter; Børgesen, Lisbeth W.; Billen, Johan

2006-01-01

the PPG morphology varies considerably according to age and mating status. The epithelial thickness increases with age and reaches a maximum at 3 weeks in both virgin and mated queens. A considerable expansion of the lumen diameter occurs in both groups between 4 and 7 days. Virgin queens release...... nurses and foragers. We suggest the PPG serves different purposes in pharaoh's ants: it is likely that the PPG of workers and virgin queens is used to feed larvae. In mated queens the gland probably plays a role in providing the queen with nutritious oils for egg production. The PPG may also function...

INFLUENCE OF HONEYBEE QUEENS ORIGIN TO THE PRODUCTION CHARACTERISTICS OF CARNIOLAN BEES (APIS MELLIFERA CARNICA IN SLOVENIA

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J POKLUKAR

2002-05-01

Full Text Available Total amount of 4.355 records of honeybee colonies production characteristics was estimated on the 251 bee yards in Slovenia from 1993 to 2001. Queens were produced on 29 queen producing yards. The average lsmeans of honey yields increased by 0,41 kg a year. The swarming behaviour and the defensive behaviour of bees increased as well by - 0,091 points, and –0,038 points respectively. According to the last two years records, the honey yields of bee colonies were significantly influenced by the drone gene pool at queen production yards. The swarming behaviour was in contrary more influenced by the queen mothers on queen production yards. The defensive behaviour of bee colonies and the daily varroa mite fall were not significantly influenced by parents.

Red Queen Processes Drive Positive Selection on Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC Genes.

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Maciej Jan Ejsmond

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC genes code for proteins involved in the incitation of the adaptive immune response in vertebrates, which is achieved through binding oligopeptides (antigens of pathogenic origin. Across vertebrate species, substitutions of amino acids at sites responsible for the specificity of antigen binding (ABS are positively selected. This is attributed to pathogen-driven balancing selection, which is also thought to maintain the high polymorphism of MHC genes, and to cause the sharing of allelic lineages between species. However, the nature of this selection remains controversial. We used individual-based computer simulations to investigate the roles of two phenomena capable of maintaining MHC polymorphism: heterozygote advantage and host-pathogen arms race (Red Queen process. Our simulations revealed that levels of MHC polymorphism were high and driven mostly by the Red Queen process at a high pathogen mutation rate, but were low and driven mostly by heterozygote advantage when the pathogen mutation rate was low. We found that novel mutations at ABSs are strongly favored by the Red Queen process, but not by heterozygote advantage, regardless of the pathogen mutation rate. However, while the strong advantage of novel alleles increased the allele turnover rate, under a high pathogen mutation rate, allelic lineages persisted for a comparable length of time under Red Queen and under heterozygote advantage. Thus, when pathogens evolve quickly, the Red Queen is capable of explaining both positive selection and long coalescence times, but the tension between the novel allele advantage and persistence of alleles deserves further investigation.

The origin and evolution of queen and fertility signals in Corbiculate bees.

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Caliari Oliveira, Ricardo; Oi, Cintia Akemi; do Nascimento, Mauricio Meirelles Castro; Vollet-Neto, Ayrton; Alves, Denise Araujo; Campos, Maria Claudia; Nascimento, Fabio; Wenseleers, Tom

2015-11-16

In social Hymenoptera (ants, bees and wasps), various chemical compounds present on the cuticle have been shown to act as fertility signals. In addition, specific queen-characteristic hydrocarbons have been implicated as sterility-inducing queen signals in ants, wasps and bumblebees. In Corbiculate bees, however, the chemical nature of queen-characteristic and fertility-linked compounds appears to be more diverse than in ants and wasps. Moreover, it remains unknown how queen signals evolved across this group and how they might have been co-opted from fertility signals in solitary ancestors. Here, we perform a phylogenetic analysis of fertility-linked compounds across 16 species of solitary and eusocial bee species, comprising both literature data as well as new primary data from a key solitary outgroup species, the oil-collecting bee Centris analis, and the highly eusocial stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis. Our results demonstrate the presence of fertility-linked compounds belonging to 12 different chemical classes. In addition, we find that some classes of compounds (linear and branched alkanes, alkenes, esters and fatty acids) were already present as fertility-linked signals in the solitary ancestors of Corbiculate bees, while others appear to be specific to certain species. Overall, our results suggest that queen signals in Corbiculate bees are likely derived from ancestral fertility-linked compounds present in solitary bees that lacked reproductive castes. These original fertility-linked cues or signals could have been produced either as a by-product of ovarian activation or could have served other communicative purposes, such as in mate recognition or the regulation of egg-laying.

Secondary queens in the parthenogenetic termite Cavitermes tuberosus develop through a transitional helper stage

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hellemans, S.; Fournier, D.; Hanus, Robert; Roisin, Y.

2017-01-01

Roč. 19, č. 6 (2017), s. 253-262 ISSN 1520-541X Institutional support: RVO:61388963 Keywords : facultative parthenogenesis * replacement queens * termites * asexual queen succession * ontogeny * Cavitermes Subject RIV: EG - Zoology OBOR OECD: Developmental biology Impact factor: 2.243, year: 2016

The effect of queen pheromone status on Varroa mite removal from honey bee colonies with different grooming ability.

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Bahreini, Rassol; Currie, Robert W

2015-07-01

The objective of this study was to assess the effects of honey bees (Apis mellifera L.) with different grooming ability and queen pheromone status on mortality rates of Varroa mites (Varroa destructor Anderson and Trueman), mite damage, and mortality rates of honey bees. Twenty-four small queenless colonies containing either stock selected for high rates of mite removal (n = 12) or unselected stock (n = 12) were maintained under constant darkness at 5 °C. Colonies were randomly assigned to be treated with one of three queen pheromone status treatments: (1) caged, mated queen, (2) a synthetic queen mandibular pheromone lure (QMP), or (3) queenless with no queen substitute. The results showed overall mite mortality rate was greater in stock selected for grooming than in unselected stock. There was a short term transitory increase in bee mortality rates in selected stock when compared to unselected stock. The presence of queen pheromone from either caged, mated queens or QMP enhanced mite removal from clusters of bees relative to queenless colonies over short periods of time and increased the variation in mite mortality over time relative to colonies without queen pheromone, but did not affect the proportion of damaged mites. The effects of source of bees on mite damage varied with time but damage to mites was not reliably related to mite mortality. In conclusion, this study showed differential mite removal of different stocks was possible under low temperature. Queen status should be considered when designing experiments using bioassays for grooming response.

Mating with an allopatric male triggers immune response and decreases longevity of ant queens.

Science.gov (United States)

Schrempf, A; von Wyschetzki, K; Klein, A; Schrader, L; Oettler, J; Heinze, J

2015-07-01

In species with lifelong pair bonding, the reproductive interests of the mating partners are aligned, and males and females are expected to jointly maximize their reproductive success. Mating increases both longevity and fecundity of female reproductives (queens) of the ant Cardiocondyla obscurior, indicating a tight co-evolution of mating partners. Here, we show that mating with a male from their own population increases lifespan and reproductive success of queens more than mating with a male from a different population, with whom they could not co-evolve. A comparison of transcriptomes revealed an increased expression of genes involved in immunity processes in queens, which mated with males from a different population. Increased immune response might be proximately associated with decreased lifespan. Our study suggests a synergistic co-evolution between the sexes and sheds light on the proximate mechanisms underlying the decreased fitness of allopatrically mated queens. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Connectivity and genetic structure of the queen conch on the Mesoamerican Reef

Science.gov (United States)

Machkour-M'Rabet, Salima; Cruz-Medina, Jorge; García-De León, Francisco J.; De Jesús-Navarrete, Alberto; Hénaut, Yann

2017-06-01

The queen conch ( Strombus gigas) is a commercially important marine invertebrate that is widely distributed throughout the western Atlantic, from Bermuda to Brazil. Intense exploitation has resulted in a decrease in population numbers of this species, which is listed as protected from commercial exploitation under IUCN and CITES. Previous studies on population genetics have demonstrated contrasting results in terms of the population structure of S. gigas. This research analyzed the genetic connectivity of the queen conch over a wide area of the Mesoamerican Reef System to determine whether S. gigas presents one panmictic population or a more complex structure. Furthermore, we evaluated the risk of local extinction by establishing the genetic diversity of the studied populations. High resolution was obtained for the five ISSR markers used for a total of 190 individuals, from seven localities along the Mesoamerican Reef. Our results reject the panmictic structure hypothesis for the queen conch in the study area and demonstrate genetic patchiness, indicating general homogeneity among localities that present an isolation-by-distance pattern. However, some genetic temporal variation was confirmed for the Cozumel locality. Furthermore, our results reveal self-recruitment for the Alacranes Reef aggregation and suggest sufficient connectivity with localities on the Caribbean coast to maintain high genetic diversity. With regard to genetic diversity, the results demonstrate that the queen conch is not genetically threatened in the study area. This is probably due to high annual recruitment within Caribbean queen conch aggregations, and suggests that S. gigas is a highly resilient organism. We advocate that the appropriate management of S. gigas (fishing quota and/or closed season) must be followed to attain a rapid recovery of queen conch populations. This study represents a fundamental step in the understanding of the dynamic population structure of S. gigas in the

When invasive ants meet: effects of outbreeding on queen performance in the tramp ant Cardiocondyla itsukii.

Science.gov (United States)

Heinze, Jürgen; Frohschammer, Sabine; Bernadou, Abel

2017-08-18

Most disturbed habitats in the tropics and subtropics harbor numerous species of invasive ants, and occasionally the same species has been introduced repeatedly from multiple geographical sources. We examined how experimental crossbreeding between sexuals from different populations affects the fitness of queens of the tramp ant Cardiocondyla itsukii, which is widely distributed in Asia and the Pacific Islands. Eggs laid by queens that mated with nestmate males had a higher hatching rate than eggs laid by queens mated to males from neighboring (Hawaii × Kauai) or distant introduced populations (Hawaii/Kauai × Okinawa). Furthermore, inbreeding queens had a longer lifespan and produced a less female-biased offspring sex ratio than queens from allopatric mating. This suggests that the genetic divergence between different source populations may already be so large that in case of multiple invasions eventual crossbreeding might negatively affect the fitness of tramp ants. © 2017 Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

The Effect of Open Brood and Colony Strength on the Onset of Oviposition by Queen Bees

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Gąbka Jakub

2014-06-01

Full Text Available In bee colonies without open brood, e.g., after swarming, there is no need for royal jelly, and nurse bees thus do not produce it. According to many beekeepers, adding combs with open brood restarts the production of royal jelly by nurse bees, and the virgin queens then are better fed and start earlier oviposition. The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the presence of open brood and the strength of the colonies affect the onset of oviposition by queen bees. Open brood in colonies with virgins before and during mating flights did not accelerate the initiation of oviposition by the queens. In addition, no differences were identified in starting oviposition by queens in strong colonies of more than 30,000 worker bees, or in weak colonies with up to 1,000 workers. Overall, the results showed that neither open brood in the nests, nor the strength of the colonies affects the onset of oviposition by queen bees.

Localization of deformed wing virus infection in queen and drone Apis mellifera L

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Colin Marc

2006-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract The distribution of deformed wing virus infection within the honey bee reproductive castes (queens, drones was investigated by in situ hybridization and immunohistology from paraffin embedded sections. Digoxygenin or CY5.5 fluorochrome end-labelled nucleotide probes hybridizing to the 3' portion of the DWV genome were used to identify DWV RNA, while a monospecific antibody to the DWV-VP1 structural protein was used to identify viral proteins and particles. The histological data were confirmed by quantitative RT-PCR of dissected organs. Results showed that DWV infection is not restricted to the digestive tract of the bee but spread in the whole body, including queen ovaries, queen fat body and drone seminal vesicles.

Localization of deformed wing virus infection in queen and drone Apis mellifera L

Science.gov (United States)

Fievet, Julie; Tentcheva, Diana; Gauthier, Laurent; de Miranda, Joachim; Cousserans, François; Colin, Marc Edouard; Bergoin, Max

2006-01-01

The distribution of deformed wing virus infection within the honey bee reproductive castes (queens, drones) was investigated by in situ hybridization and immunohistology from paraffin embedded sections. Digoxygenin or CY5.5 fluorochrome end-labelled nucleotide probes hybridizing to the 3' portion of the DWV genome were used to identify DWV RNA, while a monospecific antibody to the DWV-VP1 structural protein was used to identify viral proteins and particles. The histological data were confirmed by quantitative RT-PCR of dissected organs. Results showed that DWV infection is not restricted to the digestive tract of the bee but spread in the whole body, including queen ovaries, queen fat body and drone seminal vesicles. PMID:16569216

Ground-water and geohydrologic conditions in Queens County, Long Island, New York

Science.gov (United States)

Soren, Julian

1971-01-01

salty ground water toward the deepest parts of the cone of depression in central Queens County. Contamination of ground water is probably also occurring from leaking sewers and from pollutants leaking downward from the land surface. Thermal pollution of the ground water has occurred locally where ground water pumped for cooling uses is returned, with elevated temperatures, to the source aquifer through recharge wells. The quality of ground water in Queens County in 1967 was generally satisfactory for public-supply and most industrial uses. However, the rate and distribution of ground-water withdrawals in the county are leading to greater decline of the water table and to increasing contamination of the aquifers. No 'safe limit' on pumpage can be set for the county because limits on the effects of pumping have not been established. A safe limit, at the present stage of urbanization, could range from considerably less than the current average 60 mgd to considerably more over a wide-range of pumping effects and acceptable water quality. However, continued removal of fresh water from storage and deterioration of water quality reduces the value of the county's aquifers, not only for current supply, but also for additional supply to the county and other parts of New York City in times of drought or other emergency.

Sex allocation in fungus-growing ants: worker or queen control without symbiont-induced female bias

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dijkstra, Michiel B.; Boomsma, Jacobus Jan

2008-01-01

The fungal cultivars of fungus-growing ants are vertically transmitted by queens but not males. Selection would therefore favor cultivars that bias the ants' sex ratio towards gynes, beyond the gyne bias that is optimal for workers and queens. We measured sex allocation in 190 colonies of six...... sympatric fungus-growing ant species. As predicted from relatedness, female bias was greater in four singly mated Sericomyrmex and Trachymyrmex species than in two multiply mated Acromyrmex species. Colonies tended to raise mainly a single sex, which could be partly explained by variation in queen number......, colony fecundity, and fungal garden volume for Acromyrmex and Sericomyrmex, but not for Trachymyrmex. Year of collection, worker number and mating frequency of Acromyrmex queens did not affect the colony sex ratios. We used a novel sensitivity analysis to compare the population sex allocation ratios...

76 FR 3596 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-20

.... 0907151138-1011-02] RIN 0648-AY03 Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Queen Conch Management Measures AGENCY: National... includes Lang Bank east of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI), when harvest and possession of queen...

Presentation of child sexual abuse cases to Queen Elizabeth ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

presenting to Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH),. Blantyre ... American guidelines recommend HIV PEP for children after ..... reactions, poor social support and traumatic associations ... However animal models of PEP have shown.

Modifications in the oviducts of workers and queens of Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides (Hymenoptera: Apidae) with different ages.

Science.gov (United States)

Serrão, José Eduardo; Naves, Amanda Paula; Zanuncio, José Cola

2011-10-01

The study of morphological features of highly eusocial bees has helped to answer a series of questions concerning their biology. The labor division places the females into two castes, queen with reproductive function and worker with a wide variety of tasks. However, in different species and under different conditions, workers can develop ovaries and lay trophic eggs that are eaten by the queen or used to originate males. In this work, the development of the oviducts was monitored in workers and virgin queens of Melipona quadrifasciata anthidioides specimens of different ages to verify whether there is permanent sterility of these queens and workers due to aging. Lateral and common oviducts of virgin queens aged <7, 10, 15, 20, and 25 days old, physogastric queens, nurse, and forager workers were analyzed for histology and ultrastructure. Although the structural organization of the lateral and common oviducts were very similar, differences in width of the cuticle and the degree of chromatin condensation were observed, indicating differences in the development of this organ of the reproductive system between the castes. It was also demonstrated that electron-lucent vesicles appear to be related to the formation of the cuticle that lines the oviducts. Because no cellular death characteristics were found, it can be inferred that the absence of mating of the queens as old as of 25 days of age does not cause permanent sterility.

78 FR 77772 - Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: “A Royal Passion: Queen...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-12-24

... DEPARTMENT OF STATE [Public Notice 8570] Culturally Significant Objects Imported for Exhibition Determinations: ``A Royal Passion: Queen Victoria and Photography'' SUMMARY: Notice is hereby given of the... that the objects to be included in the exhibition ``A Royal Passion: Queen Victoria and Photography...

Social and genetic structure of a supercolonial weaver ant, Polyrhachis robsoni, with dimorphic queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Van Zweden, Jelle Stijn; Carew, Melissa E.; Henshaw, Michael T.

2007-01-01

We studied a population of the Australian weaver ant Polyrachis robsoni with regard to variation in the morphology of its winged queens using six newlydeveloped microsatellite markers. Morphometrically the queens fell clearly into two groups, macrogynes and microgynes, with the latter an isometri...... also significantly related and there was a weak inverse relationship between pairwise relatedness value between individuals and distance between nests.We conclude that this species is supercolonial and that the two queen morphs are part of the same population....

Red Queen Takes White Knight: The Commercialisation of Accounting Education in Australia

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Graham Bowrey

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This paper investigates the adaptive and maladaptive consequences of changes resulting from the commercialisation of Australian universities, specifically their accounting schools, and aims to identify the organisational changes triggered by competition that affect the growth of universities over time. The paper synthesises organisational learning theory, benchmarking theory, mimetic isomorphism and institutional theories, which are presented as "the Red Queen", itself an evolutionary theory; this synthesis provides the theoretical underpinning. The Red Queen theory posits that competition triggers organisational learning, which in turn intensifies competition in rivals that ultimately triggers an adaptive response. This selfreinforcing process produces results that may be adaptive or maladaptive. There is evidence to support that “running fast” in terms of Red Queen evolution theory has allowed some universities to place competitive pressure on rivals and achieve elite levels of publications, international accreditation and improved international rankings. This search for improvement, driven by commercialisation, provided ways to improve performance, thus improving the university’s competitive strength. There is also evidence to support the belief that “running slow” provides maladaptive consequences that could affect growth rates, quality and staff performance. The use of the Red Queen hypothesis provides an evolutionary approach to the study of strategy, strategic change and organisations. This provides an opportunity to examine competition in universities as a force that continually disturbs equilibrium.

Conserved queen pheromones in bumblebees: a reply to Amsalem et al.

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Luke Holman

2017-05-01

Full Text Available In a recent study, Amsalem, Orlova & Grozinger (2015 performed experiments with Bombus impatiens bumblebees to test the hypothesis that saturated cuticular hydrocarbons are evolutionarily conserved signals used to regulate reproductive division of labor in many Hymenopteran social insects. They concluded that the cuticular hydrocarbon pentacosane (C25, previously identified as a queen pheromone in a congeneric bumblebee, does not affect worker reproduction in B. impatiens. Here we discuss some shortcomings of Amsalem et al.’s study that make its conclusions unreliable. In particular, several confounding effects may have affected the results of both experimental manipulations in the study. Additionally, the study’s low sample sizes (mean n per treatment = 13.6, range: 4–23 give it low power, not 96–99% power as claimed, such that its conclusions may be false negatives. Inappropriate statistical tests were also used, and our reanalysis found that C25 substantially reduced and delayed worker egg laying in B. impatiens. We review the evidence that cuticular hydrocarbons act as queen pheromones, and offer some recommendations for future queen pheromone experiments.

Honeybee colony marketing and its implications for queen rearing ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Honeybee colony marketing and its implications for queen rearing and beekeeping development in Werieleke ... Thus, colony marketing is an important venture in Werieleke district of Tigray region. ... EMAIL FULL TEXT EMAIL FULL TEXT

Variation in honey yield per hive of Africanized bees depending on the introducing time of young queens

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Vladson Carbonari

2016-05-01

Full Text Available ABSTRACT: The objective of this research was to evaluate the honey production per hive and the egg laying rates of queens produced in 2007, 2008 and 2010. Thirty colonies initiated with a queen per colony at each climatic season were used during the three years. The years, started on January (summer, April (autumn, July (winter and October (spring and ended 12 months later, at the same periods related to each season of the later years. Honey supply were weighed before and after centrifugation to evaluate the quantity of the stored honey. Colonies with queens introduced during autumn and winter in the three years produced 57.2±6.0kg and 60.7±7.5kg of honey, respectively. In the first year of production activity, after the introduction of queens in the initial colonies, values were significantly higher than those obtained in colonies with queens introduced in the summer (39.3±7.6kg and spring (41.8±3.7kg. Egg laying rates of queens were higher in spring (98.2±3.9% and summer (88.4±7%, indicating greater food flow (flowerings in these seasons compared to the averages in autumn (30.3±8.1% and winter (24.5±7.2%. Produce and introduce queens of Africanized Apis mellifera in colonies initiated during autumn and winter was found to be economically feasible. Honey production of colonies initiated in these periods were higher and they had greater population stability in times of scarcity of flowerings.

The Queens' estates: fiscal properties and royal policy ( 9th -10th centuries

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Tiziana Lazzari (a cura di

2012-10-01

Full Text Available The special condition of the queens of italic Kingdom during the 9th and 10th centuries is exemplified by the title of consors regni and by the exceptionally copious dowers bestowed to them when compared to those entrusted to other European queens. Through the accurate reconstruction of these dowries, composed of royal fiscal assets, this anomaly is explained within the context of specific royal governmental strategies.

Merging aeromagnetic data collected at different levels: the GEOMAUD survey

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D. Damaske

1999-06-01

Full Text Available As part of the German GEOMAUD-expedition an aeromagnetic survey was carried out in Central Queen Maud Land. The helicopter-borne survey was designed in a conventional form of a regional survey with a spacing of profile-lines of 4.4 km. Due to terrain considerations - surveying from the coast across the mountain ranges to the high altitudes of the polar plateau - the survey was split into two sections flown at different constant levels. Over the coastal part survey elevation was 570 m (above sea level while for the mountain section 2845 m was chosen. Both survey parts were processed separately. The low level section was upward continued before merging with the high level section. Though this leads to a homogeneous magnetic anomaly map, in some applications it may be more advantageous to present the anomalies of the magnetic field in original survey levels as a simple combined map because small scale features are preserved and can be used in recognizing magnetic units and patterns for geological/geophysical interpretation.

Workers and alate queens of Solenopsis geminata share qualitatively similar but quantitatively different venom alkaloid chemistry

Science.gov (United States)

The cis and trans alkaloids from body extracts of workers and alate queens of the tropical fire ant, Solenopsis geminata (Hymenoptera: Formicidae), were successfully separated by silica gel chromatography, identified, and quantitated by GC-MS analysis. Both workers and alate queens produce primarily...

Queen's researchers make the grade: University boasts two of three finalists for million-dollar grant

CERN Multimedia

Armstrong, F E

2003-01-01

Two Queen's University researchers are among three Canadian finalists in a contest to win $1 million. Art McDonald, director of the Queen's-run Sudbury Neutrino Observatory Institute, and John Smol, Canada Research Chair in Environmental Change, have been nominated for the Gerhard Herzberg Canada Gold Medal for Science and Engineering (1 page).

Founding weaver ant queens (Oecophylla longinoda) increase production and nanitic worker size when adopting non-nestmate pupae.

Science.gov (United States)

Ouagoussounon, Issa; Offenberg, Joachim; Sinzogan, Antonio; Adandonon, Appolinaire; Kossou, Dansou; Vayssières, Jean-François

2015-01-01

Weaver ants (Oecophylla longinoda Latreille) are used commercially to control pest insects and for protein production. In this respect fast colony growth is desirable for managed colonies. Transplantation of non-nestmate pupae to incipient colonies has been shown to boost colony growth. Our objectives were to find the maximum number of pupae a founding queen can handle, and to measure the associated colony growth. Secondly, we tested if transplantation of pupae led to production of larger nanitic workers (defined as unusually small worker ants produced by founding queens in their first batch of offspring). Forty-five fertilized queens were divided into three treatments: 0 (control), 100 or 300 non-nestmate pupae transplanted to each colony. Pupae transplantation resulted in highly increased growth rates, as pupae were readily adopted by the queens and showed high proportions of surviving (mean = 76%). However, survival was significantly higher when 100 pupae were transplanted compared to transplantation of 300 pupae, indicating that queens were unable to handle 300 pupae adequately and that pupae require some amount of nursing. Nevertheless, within the 60-day experiment the transplantation of 300 pupae increased total colony size more than 10-fold whereas 100 pupae increased the size 5.6 fold, compared to control. This increase was due not only to the individuals added in the form of pupae but also to an increased per capita brood production by the resident queen, triggered by the adopted pupae. The size of hatching pupae produced by the resident queen also increased with the number of pupae transplanted, leading to larger nanitic workers in colonies adopting pupae. In conclusion, pupae transplantation may be used to produce larger colonies with larger worker ants and may thus reduce the time to produce weaver ant colonies for commercial purposes. This in turn may facilitate the implementation of the use of weaver ants.

Male scent-marking pheromone of Bombus ardens ardens (Hymenoptera; Apidae) attracts both conspecific queens and males

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Kubo, Ryohei; Harano, Ken-ichi; Ono, Masato

2017-10-01

To explore the role of the volatiles emitted from male labial gland (LG) of the bumblebee Bombus ardens ardens, we investigated the responses of virgin queens and males to volatiles using a gas chromatography-electroantennographic detector (GC-EAD) system and Y-tube olfactometer. GC-EAD analysis revealed that citronellol, the main compound detected in the male LG, caused clear electrophysiological responses in the antennae of B. a. ardens virgin queens and males although two minor compounds elicited antennal responses when applied in a high concentration. Behavioral tests using a Y-tube olfactometer showed that queens and males were significantly attracted to both LG extracts and citronellol more than to the solvent alone. This is the first study to demonstrate that citronellol as a major compound of male scent-marking pheromone in B. a. ardens functions as a sex attractant for queens. The results also suggest that this compound has another function as a trail marker used by males.

The reduced-risk insecticide azadirachtin poses a toxicological hazard to stingless bee Partamona helleri (Friese, 1900) queens.

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Bernardes, Rodrigo Cupertino; Barbosa, Wagner Faria; Martins, Gustavo Ferreira; Lima, Maria Augusta Pereira

2018-06-01

Large-scale pesticide application poses a major threat to bee biodiversity by causing a decline in bee populations that, in turn, compromises ecosystem maintenance and agricultural productivity. Biopesticides are considered an alternative to synthetic pesticides with a focus on reducing potential detrimental effects to beneficial organisms such as bees. The production of healthy queen stingless bees is essential for the survival and reproduction of hives, although it remains unknown whether biopesticides influence stingless bee reproduction. In the present study, we investigated the effects of the biopesticide azadirachtin on the survival, behavior, morphology, development, and reproduction of queens of the stingless bee Partamona helleri (Friese, 1900). The neonicotinoid imidacloprid was used as a toxic reference standard. Queens were orally exposed in vitro to a contaminated diet (containing azadirachtin and imidacloprid) during development. Azadirachtin resulted in reduced survival, similarly to imidacloprid, altered development time, caused deformations, and reduced the size of the queens' reproductive organs. All of these factors could potentially compromise colony survival. Results from the present study showed azadirachtin posed a toxicological hazard to P. helleri queens. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Preliminary report on the study of benthic foraminiferal content in the marine sediment of Queen Maud Land Shelf, Lazarev Sea, Antarctic

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Sinha, R.; Nigam, R.; Khare, N.; Ingole, B.S.; Ghosh, D.N.

study of foraminiferal fauna has revealed a total number of seventeen genera as follows: Reophax Montfort, 1/808 Trochammina Jones and Parker, 1860 Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Station No. P-3 P-5 P-6 P-7 P-8 P- 10 P- 11 P-13 Latitude (N) 12?53'17" 12...-asymmetrical forms are mainly represented by the Reophax, Marsipella, Rhabdammina and Sr. No. 1 2 3 4 5 Suborders Textulariina Lagenina Globigerinina Rotaliina Miliolina Total Super Families 06 01 01 03 01 12 Families 06 01 01 04 01 13 Genera 09 01 02 04 01 17 Fig. 2...

Social chromosome variants differentially affect queen determination and the survival of workers in the fire ant Solenopsis invicta.

Science.gov (United States)

Buechel, Séverine D; Wurm, Yanick; Keller, Laurent

2014-10-01

Intraspecific variation in social organization is common, yet the underlying causes are rarely known. An exception is the fire ant Solenopsis invicta in which the existence of two distinct forms of social colony organization is under the control of the two variants of a pair of social chromosomes, SB and Sb. Colonies containing exclusively SB/SB workers accept only one single queen and she must be SB/SB. By contrast, when colonies contain more than 10% of SB/Sb workers, they accept several queens but only SB/Sb queens. The variants of the social chromosome are associated with several additional important phenotypic differences, including the size, fecundity and dispersal strategies of queens, aggressiveness of workers, and sperm count in males. However, little is known about whether social chromosome variants affect fitness in other life stages. Here, we perform experiments to determine whether differential selection occurs during development and in adult workers. We find evidence that the Sb variant of the social chromosome increases the likelihood of female brood to develop into queens and that adult SB/Sb workers, the workers that cull SB/SB queens, are overrepresented in comparison to SB/SB workers. This demonstrates that supergenes such as the social chromosome can have complex effects on phenotypes at various stages of development. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Recovery of Queen Conch in the U. S. Virgin Islands

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — The queen conch is an important cultural component and an extremely valuable coral reef fishery resource throughout the Caribbean, historically second only to the...

Queens Tri-School Confederation, 1991-92 Evaluation Report.

Science.gov (United States)

Hannah, Susan; Dworkowitz, Barbara

An evaluation was done of the Queens Tri-School Confederation, three high schools in the New York City Public Schools funded by a federal grant from the Magnet Schools Assistance Program. The grant provided Hillcrest, Jamaica, and Thomas A. Edison High Schools with funds to develop or expand emergency technician programs at Hillcrest; a law…

A queen pheromone induces workers to kill sexual larvae in colonies of the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta)

Science.gov (United States)

Klobuchar, Emily; Deslippe, Richard

2002-05-01

We conducted five bioassays to study how queens control the execution of sexual larvae by workers in colonies of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta. In each assay, subset colonies were made from many large polygyne colonies, and the 20 sexual larvae they contained were monitored over time. Sexual larvae mostly survived in queenless colonies, but were mostly killed in colonies with a single dealated queen, regardless of whether or not the queen was fertilized. The larvae were also killed when fresh corpses of queens were added to queenless colonies. Whereas acetone extracts of queens did not produce a significant increase in killings, extracts in buffered saline induced workers to execute most sexual larvae, indicating successful extraction of an execution pheromone. We identified the probable storage location of the chemical as the poison sac, and found both fresh (1 day) and old (21 day) extracts of poison sacs to be equally effective in inducing executions. The pheromone is stable at room temperature, perhaps because venom alkaloids also present in the extracts keep the pheromone from degrading. It is apparently either proteinaceous or associated with a proteinaceous molecule, a novel finding, as no queen pheromone of a proteinaceous nature has been previously demonstrated in ants.

Workers make the queens in melipona bees: identification of geraniol as a caste determining compound from labial glands of nurse bees.

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Jarau, Stefan; van Veen, Johan W; Twele, Robert; Reichle, Christian; Gonzales, Eduardo Herrera; Aguilar, Ingrid; Francke, Wittko; Ayasse, Manfred

2010-06-01

Reproductive division of labor in advanced eusocial honey bees and stingless bees is based on the ability of totipotent female larvae to develop into either workers or queens. In nearly all species, caste is determined by larval nutrition. However, the mechanism that triggers queen development in Melipona bees is still unresolved. Several hypotheses have been proposed, ranging from the proximate (a genetic determination of caste development) to the ultimate (a model in which larvae have complete control over their own caste fate). Here, we showed that the addition of geraniol, the main compound in labial gland secretions of nurse workers, to the larval food significantly increases the number of larvae that develop into queens. Interestingly, the proportion of queens in treated brood exactly matched the value (25%) predicted by the two-locus, two-allele model of genetic queen determination, in which only females that are heterozygous at both loci are capable of developing into queens. We conclude that labial gland secretions, added to the food of some cells by nurse bees, trigger queen development, provided that the larvae are genetically predisposed towards this developmental pathway. In Melipona beecheii, geraniol acts as a primer pheromone representing the first caste determination substance identified to date.

Seasonal Dynamics in the Chemistry and Structure of the Fat Bodies of Bumblebee Queens.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alena Votavová

Full Text Available Insects' fat bodies are responsible for nutrient storage and for a significant part of intermediary metabolism. Thus, it can be expected that the structure and content of the fat body will adaptively change, if an insect is going through different life stages. Bumblebee queens belong to such insects as they dramatically change their physiology several times over their lives in relation to their solitary overwintering, independent colony foundation stage, and during the colony life-cycle ending in the senescent stage. Here, we report on changes in the ultrastructure and lipid composition of the peripheral fat body of Bombus terrestris queens in relation to seasonal changes in the queens' activity. Six life stages are defined and evaluated in particular: pharate, callow, before and after hibernation, egg-laying, and senescence. Transmission electron microscopy revealed that the fat body contained two main cell types-adipocytes and oenocytes. Only adipocytes reveal important changes related to the life phase, and mostly the ration between inclusion and cytoplasm volume varies among particular stages. Both electron microscopy and chemical analyses of lipids highlighted seasonal variability in the quantity of the stored lipids, which peaked prior to hibernation. Triacylglycerols appeared to be the main energy source during hibernation, while the amount of glycogen before and after hibernation remained unchanged. In addition, we observed that the representation of some fatty acids within the triacylglycerols change during the queen's life. Last but not least, we show that fat body cell membranes do not undergo substantial changes concerning phospholipid composition in relation to overwintering. This finding supports the hypothesis that the cold-adaptation strategy of bumblebee queens is more likely to be based on polyol accumulation than on the restructuring of lipid membranes.

Viral diseases in honey bee queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Francis, Roy Mathew

Honey bees are important insects for human welfare, due to pollination as well as honey production. Viral diseases strongly impact honey bee health, especially since the spread of varroa mites. This dissertation deals with the interactions between honey bees, viruses and varroa mites. A new tool...... was developed to diagnose three viruses in honey bees. Quantitative PCR was used to investigate the distribution of two popular viruses in five different tissues of 86 honey bee queens. Seasonal variation of viral infection in honey bee workers and varroa mites were determined by sampling 23 colonies under...

Honey Bee Colonies Headed by Hyperpolyandrous Queens Have Improved Brood Rearing Efficiency and Lower Infestation Rates of Parasitic Varroa Mites.

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Keith S Delaplane

Full Text Available A honey bee queen mates on wing with an average of 12 males and stores their sperm to produce progeny of mixed paternity. The degree of a queen's polyandry is positively associated with measures of her colony's fitness, and observed distributions of mating number are evolutionary optima balancing risks of mating flights against benefits to the colony. Effective mating numbers as high as 40 have been documented, begging the question of the upper bounds of this behavior that can be expected to confer colony benefit. In this study we used instrumental insemination to create three classes of queens with exaggerated range of polyandry--15, 30, or 60 drones. Colonies headed by queens inseminated with 30 or 60 drones produced more brood per bee and had a lower proportion of samples positive for Varroa destructor mites than colonies whose queens were inseminated with 15 drones, suggesting benefits of polyandry at rates higher than those normally obtaining in nature. Our results are consistent with two hypotheses that posit conditions that reward such high expressions of polyandry: (1 a queen may mate with many males in order to promote beneficial non-additive genetic interactions among subfamilies, and (2 a queen may mate with many males in order to capture a large number of rare alleles that regulate resistance to pathogens and parasites in a breeding population. Our results are unique for identifying the highest levels of polyandry yet detected that confer colony-level benefit and for showing a benefit of polyandry in particular toward the parasitic mite V. destructor.

Acute bacterial meningitis in children admitted to the Queen ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

In order to design appropriate interventioos, we collected clinical and demographic data prospectively on all children aged one day to 14 years admitted with a diagnosis of bacterial meningitis (BM) from April 1st 1996 to March 31st 1997 to the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH), Blantyre Malawi. During the study ...

The role of the glucose-sensing transcription factor carbohydrate-responsive element-binding protein pathway in termite queen fertility

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Sillam-Dussès, David; Hanus, Robert; Thomas-Poulsen, Michael

2016-01-01

in eight different termite species. ChREBP is expressed in several tissues, including ovaries and fat bodies, and increases in expression in totipotent workers during their differentiation into neotenic mature queens. We further show that ChREBP is regulated by a carbohydrate diet in termite queens...

Queen Christina’s esoteric interests as a background to her Platonic Academies

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Susanna Åkerman

2008-01-01

Full Text Available In 1681 the blind quietist, Francois Malaval, stated that Queen Christina of Sweden late in life had ‘given up’ [Hermes] Trismegistos and the Platonists, in favour of the Church fathers. The statement does not explain what role the Church fathers were to play in her last years, but it does show that Christina really had been interested in the rather elitist and esoteric doctrine of Hermetic Platonic Christianity. In this article the author looks at her library to show the depth of this Hermetic involvement. Her interest serves as a background to her life as ex-queen in Italy after her famous abdication from the Swedish throne in 1654, when she was 27 years old.

Standard methods for rearing and selection of Apis mellifera queens

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Büchler, Ralph; Andonov, Sreten; Bienefeld, Kaspar

2013-01-01

Here we cover a wide range of methods currently in use and recommended in modern queen rearing, selection and breeding. The recommendations are meant to equally serve as standards for both scientific and practical beekeeping purposes. The basic conditions and different management techniques for q...

76 FR 30554 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-05-26

... DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 622 [Docket No. 0907151138-1235-03] RIN 0648-AY03 Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Queen Conch Management Measures Correction In rule...

Honeybee Venom Proteome Profile of Queens and Winter Bees as Determined by a Mass Spectrometric Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Danneels, Ellen L.; Van Vaerenbergh, Matthias; Debyser, Griet; Devreese, Bart; de Graaf, Dirk C.

2015-01-01

Venoms of invertebrates contain an enormous diversity of proteins, peptides, and other classes of substances. Insect venoms are characterized by a large interspecific variation resulting in extended lists of venom compounds. The venom composition of several hymenopterans also shows different intraspecific variation. For instance, venom from different honeybee castes, more specifically queens and workers, shows quantitative and qualitative variation, while the environment, like seasonal changes, also proves to be an important factor. The present study aimed at an in-depth analysis of the intraspecific variation in the honeybee venom proteome. In summer workers, the recent list of venom proteins resulted from merging combinatorial peptide ligand library sample pretreatment and targeted tandem mass spectrometry realized with a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer (FT-ICR MS/MS). Now, the same technique was used to determine the venom proteome of queens and winter bees, enabling us to compare it with that of summer bees. In total, 34 putative venom toxins were found, of which two were never described in honeybee venoms before. Venom from winter workers did not contain toxins that were not present in queens or summer workers, while winter worker venom lacked the allergen Api m 12, also known as vitellogenin. Venom from queen bees, on the other hand, was lacking six of the 34 venom toxins compared to worker bees, while it contained two new venom toxins, in particularly serine proteinase stubble and antithrombin-III. Although people are hardly stung by honeybees during winter or by queen bees, these newly identified toxins should be taken into account in the characterization of a putative allergic response against Apis mellifera stings. PMID:26529016

Honeybee venom proteome profile of queens and winter bees as determined by a mass spectrometric approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Danneels, Ellen L; Van Vaerenbergh, Matthias; Debyser, Griet; Devreese, Bart; de Graaf, Dirk C

2015-10-30

Venoms of invertebrates contain an enormous diversity of proteins, peptides, and other classes of substances. Insect venoms are characterized by a large interspecific variation resulting in extended lists of venom compounds. The venom composition of several hymenopterans also shows different intraspecific variation. For instance, venom from different honeybee castes, more specifically queens and workers, shows quantitative and qualitative variation, while the environment, like seasonal changes, also proves to be an important factor. The present study aimed at an in-depth analysis of the intraspecific variation in the honeybee venom proteome. In summer workers, the recent list of venom proteins resulted from merging combinatorial peptide ligand library sample pretreatment and targeted tandem mass spectrometry realized with a Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance mass spectrometer (FT-ICR MS/MS). Now, the same technique was used to determine the venom proteome of queens and winter bees, enabling us to compare it with that of summer bees. In total, 34 putative venom toxins were found, of which two were never described in honeybee venoms before. Venom from winter workers did not contain toxins that were not present in queens or summer workers, while winter worker venom lacked the allergen Api m 12, also known as vitellogenin. Venom from queen bees, on the other hand, was lacking six of the 34 venom toxins compared to worker bees, while it contained two new venom toxins, in particularly serine proteinase stubble and antithrombin-III. Although people are hardly stung by honeybees during winter or by queen bees, these newly identified toxins should be taken into account in the characterization of a putative allergic response against Apis mellifera stings.

78 FR 34310 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-06-07

.... 130402313-3499-01] RIN 0648-BD15 Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Regulatory Amendment 2 AGENCY: National Marine... the Fishery Management Plan (FMP) for the Queen Conch Resources of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin...

78 FR 56171 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto...

Science.gov (United States)

2013-09-12

.... 130402313-3748-02] RIN 0648-BD15 Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Regulatory Amendment 2 AGENCY: National Marine... Management Plan (FMP) for the Queen Conch Resources of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI...

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Annual Meetings · Mid Year Meetings · Discussion Meetings · Public ... This paper presents the palynological results from the Barakar Formation of the Upper ... as palynoassemblages from South Victoria Land and Dronning Maud Land, ... Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, 53 University Road, Lucknow 226 007, India.

Chemical profiles of two pheromone glands are differentially regulated by distinct mating factors in honey bee queens (Apis mellifera L..

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Elina L Niño

Full Text Available Pheromones mediate social interactions among individuals in a wide variety of species, from yeast to mammals. In social insects such as honey bees, pheromone communication systems can be extraordinarily complex and serve to coordinate behaviors among many individuals. One of the primary mediators of social behavior and organization in honey bee colonies is queen pheromone, which is produced by multiple glands. The types and quantities of chemicals produced differ significantly between virgin and mated queens, and recent studies have suggested that, in newly mated queens, insemination volume or quantity can affect pheromone production. Here, we examine the long-term impact of different factors involved during queen insemination on the chemical composition of the mandibular and Dufour's glands, two of the major sources of queen pheromone. Our results demonstrate that carbon dioxide (an anesthetic used in instrumental insemination, physical manipulation of genital tract (presumably mimicking the act of copulation, insemination substance (saline vs. semen, and insemination volume (1 vs. 8 µl all have long-term effects on mandibular gland chemical profiles. In contrast, Dufour's gland chemical profiles were changed only upon insemination and were not influenced by exposure to carbon dioxide, manipulation, insemination substance or volume. These results suggest that the chemical contents of these two glands are regulated by different neuro-physiological mechanisms. Furthermore, workers responded differently to the different mandibular gland extracts in a choice assay. Although these studies must be validated in naturally mated queens of varying mating quality, our results suggest that while the chemical composition of Dufour's gland is associated with mating status, that of the mandibular glands is associated with both mating status and insemination success. Thus, the queen appears to be signaling both status and reproductive quality to the workers

Influence of toxic bait type and starvation on worker and queen mortality in laboratory colonies of Argentine ant (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

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Mathieson, Melissa; Toft, Richard; Lester, Philip J

2012-08-01

The efficacy of toxic baits should be judged by their ability to kill entire ant colonies, including the colony queen or queens. We studied the efficacy of four toxic baits to the Argentine ant, Linepithema humile (Mayr) (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). These baits were Xstinguish that has the toxicant fipronil, Exterm-an-Ant that contains both boric acid and sodium borate, and Advion ant gel and Advion ant bait arena that both have indoxacarb. Experimental nests contained 300 workers and 10 queen ants that were starved for either 24 or 48 h before toxic bait exposure. The efficacy of the toxic baits was strongly influenced by starvation. In no treatment with 24-h starvation did we observe 100% worker death. After 24-h starvation three of the baits did not result in any queen deaths, with only Exterm-an-Ant producing an average of 25% mortality. In contrast, 100% queen and worker mortality was observed in colonies starved for 48 h and given Xstinguish or Exterm-an-Ant. The baits Advion ant gel and Advion ant bait arena were not effective against Argentine ants in these trials, resulting in ants are likely to be starved. Our results suggest queen mortality must be assessed in tests for toxic bait efficacy. Our data indicate that of these four baits, Xstinguish and Exterm-an-Ant are the best options for control of Argentine ants in New Zealand.

Morphometric study of newly emerged unmated queens of honey bee Apis mellifera L. in Ismailia Governorate, Egypt

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S.M. Kamel

2013-06-01

Full Text Available Recently, morphometric analysis is being a very good tool for identification of honey bee races and characterization of genetic materials. This fact has motivated the present work to investigate the effects of two grafting methods, three types of artificial queen wax cups and four periods of queen rearing on some morphological characters of newly emerged queens. The developed technique used in the present study depends on the integration between Scanner unit and Photoshop program, called Scan Photo Method (SPM. The measurements of 23 morphological characteristics of reared queens were estimated by using SPM. Results indicated significant differences between periods in the measurements of the studied characteristics on forewing such as cubital index, distance C, distance D, radial field, inner wing length, inner wing width, dumb bell index, distance I, II, III and IV, except cubital A and cubital B. Regarding the effects of cup types and grafting methods, data also revealed significant differences in all measurements of studied characteristics, except tibial length, hind wing length, cubital B, radial field and distance IV. Further works in this area were recommended to find out a relation between some morphometric characters and important of some quantitative characters.

Pan-African reactivation of the Lurio segment of the Kibaran Belt system: a reappraisal from recent age determinations in northern Mozambique

Science.gov (United States)

Sacchi, R.; Cadoppi, P.; Costa, M.

2000-04-01

The role of the Lurio Belt in northern Mozambique, and the geological evolution of its foreland in the Proterozoic are discussed in the light of recent, single zircon age determinations showing Pan-African age for the granulite-facies metamorphism. The following tentative conclusions are reached, and evidence for and against them is reviewed. The Lurio Belt had a two-fold history, as a crust-forming orogen during the Kibaran and as a transpressive suture in Pan-African times. Together with the Zambezi Belt and the Schlesien-Mwembeshi Lineament, it formed a 3000 km discontinuity which underwent an embryonic oceanic development before being sutured during the Pan-African collisional event. The Lurio Belt foreland had a tectonic-metamorphic evolution at ca 1000 Ma, prior to major, Pan-African overprinting and was probably continuous with the basement of Queen Maud Land (Antarctica) and Natal. In Pan-African times, clockwise transpressive movements along the Lurio Belt brought about emplacement of granulite klippen in its foreland. If there is a southward continuation of the Pan-African Mozambique Belt beyond Mozambique, it is probably to be found in Antarctica.

Birth weights and gestational ages of Malawian newborns at Queen ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Objective: To determine the distributions of birth weight (BW) and gestational age (GA) and calculate rates of still birth (SB) of four years delivery in the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital( QECH). Methods: Retrospective analysis was carried out on data of deliveries conducted between January 2000 and December 2003.

The Imperial Style: Rhetorical Depiction and Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee.

Science.gov (United States)

Andrews, James R.

2000-01-01

Contributes to scholarship advancing the understanding of human communication by examining a powerful set of imperialist symbols that have a lingering impact on the British national psyche. Investigates the Queen's Diamond Jubilee speech and the performative rhetoric of the Jubilee celebration itself, to illustrate how rhetorical depiction may…

A comparison of honeybee (Apis mellifera) queen, worker and drone larvae by RNA-Seq.

Science.gov (United States)

He, Xu-Jiang; Jiang, Wu-Jun; Zhou, Mi; Barron, Andrew B; Zeng, Zhi-Jiang

2017-11-06

Honeybees (Apis mellifera) have haplodiploid sex determination: males develop from unfertilized eggs and females develop from fertilized ones. The differences in larval food also determine the development of females. Here we compared the total somatic gene expression profiles of 2-day and 4-day-old drone, queen and worker larvae by RNA-Seq. The results from a co-expression network analysis on all expressed genes showed that 2-day-old drone and worker larvae were closer in gene expression profiles than 2-day-old queen larvae. This indicated that for young larvae (2-day-old) environmental factors such as larval diet have a greater effect on gene expression profiles than ploidy or sex determination. Drones had the most distinct gene expression profiles at the 4-day larval stage, suggesting that haploidy, or sex dramatically affects the gene expression of honeybee larvae. Drone larvae showed fewer differences in gene expression profiles at the 2-day and 4-day time points than the worker and queen larval comparisons (598 against 1190 and 1181), suggesting a different pattern of gene expression regulation during the larval development of haploid males compared to diploid females. This study indicates that early in development the queen caste has the most distinct gene expression profile, perhaps reflecting the very rapid growth and morphological specialization of this caste compared to workers and drones. Later in development the haploid male drones have the most distinct gene expression profile, perhaps reflecting the influence of ploidy or sex determination on gene expression. © 2017 Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Queen-worker caste ratio depends on colony size in the pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis)

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schmidt, Anna Mosegaard; Linksvayer, Timothy Arnold; Boomsma, Jacobus Jan

2011-01-01

The success of an ant colony depends on the simultaneous presence of reproducing queens and nonreproducing workers in a ratio that will maximize colony growth and reproduction. Despite its presumably crucial role, queen–worker caste ratios (the ratio of adult queens to workers) and the factors...... affecting this variable remain scarcely studied. Maintaining polygynous pharaoh ant (Monomorium pharaonis) colonies in the laboratory has provided us with the opportunity to experimentally manipulate colony size, one of the key factors that can be expected to affect colony level queen–worker caste ratios...... species with budding colonies may adaptively adjust caste ratios to ensure rapid growth....

Morphometric Identification of Queens, Workers and Intermediates in In Vitro Reared Honey Bees (Apis mellifera).

Science.gov (United States)

De Souza, Daiana A; Wang, Ying; Kaftanoglu, Osman; De Jong, David; Amdam, Gro V; Gonçalves, Lionel S; Francoy, Tiago M

2015-01-01

In vitro rearing is an important and useful tool for honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) studies. However, it often results in intercastes between queens and workers, which are normally are not seen in hive-reared bees, except when larvae older than three days are grafted for queen rearing. Morphological classification (queen versus worker or intercastes) of bees produced by this method can be subjective and generally depends on size differences. Here, we propose an alternative method for caste classification of female honey bees reared in vitro, based on weight at emergence, ovariole number, spermatheca size and size and shape, and features of the head, mandible and basitarsus. Morphological measurements were made with both traditional morphometric and geometric morphometrics techniques. The classifications were performed by principal component analysis, using naturally developed queens and workers as controls. First, the analysis included all the characters. Subsequently, a new analysis was made without the information about ovariole number and spermatheca size. Geometric morphometrics was less dependent on ovariole number and spermatheca information for caste and intercaste identification. This is useful, since acquiring information concerning these reproductive structures requires time-consuming dissection and they are not accessible when abdomens have been removed for molecular assays or in dried specimens. Additionally, geometric morphometrics divided intercastes into more discrete phenotype subsets. We conclude that morphometric geometrics are superior to traditional morphometrics techniques for identification and classification of honey bee castes and intermediates.

DNA extraction from wings as a suitable approach for queen bees genotyping

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elena Facchini

2018-06-01

Full Text Available In livestock, genomics has been used since a decade in combination with phenotypic information for the estimation of breeding values. In honey bees (Apis mellifera, the advantage for including genomics in selective breeding programmes is represented by the possibility to reduce the generation interval and increase the accuracies of estimated breeding values resulting in higher genetic gain (Brascamp et al., 2018. The limit for this application is DNA extraction. Extraction methods for small animals such as insects often rely upon destructive approaches. The challenge is to develop tissue sampling methods that permit the survival of the animal while providing adequate quality DNA for genotyping. Along with previous reports of DNA extraction from several matrices, this study aims to contribute in developing suitable methodologies for genotyping honey bees queens using DNA extracted from wing cuttings (Chaline et al., 2004; Gregory and Rinderer, 2004; Gould et al., 2011. The clipping of the queen wings in beekeeping is a common practice and it ensures the survival and normal activities of the animal (Forster, 1971. A total of 57 queens with known pedigree were enrolled for this study. Wings from each queen were cut and stored at -20°C until processed (Fig. 1. Extractions were carried out using a modified protocol provided by Qiagen (DNeasy® Blood & Tissue. The modification consists in an initial incubation of the samples with proteinase K for 20 minutes, further steps are carried out following the manufacturer’s instructions. To test the suitability of the extracted DNA for genotyping, PCR was performed on Esterase FE4 like gene. Although quantification with NanoDrop™ resulted in <20 ng/μL of DNA in solution, the extracted material was sufficient for PCR amplification of candidate genes for sequencing and genotyping. Our results show that it is possible to extract DNA from wings’ cuttings permitting to implement genomic approaches in honey

Impact of chronic neonicotinoid exposure on honeybee colony performance and queen supersedure.

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Christoph Sandrock

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Honeybees provide economically and ecologically vital pollination services to crops and wild plants. During the last decade elevated colony losses have been documented in Europe and North America. Despite growing consensus on the involvement of multiple causal factors, the underlying interactions impacting on honeybee health and colony failure are not fully resolved. Parasites and pathogens are among the main candidates, but sublethal exposure to widespread agricultural pesticides may also affect bees. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: To investigate effects of sublethal dietary neonicotinoid exposure on honeybee colony performance, a fully crossed experimental design was implemented using 24 colonies, including sister-queens from two different strains, and experimental in-hive pollen feeding with or without environmentally relevant concentrations of thiamethoxam and clothianidin. Honeybee colonies chronically exposed to both neonicotinoids over two brood cycles exhibited decreased performance in the short-term resulting in declining numbers of adult bees (-28% and brood (-13%, as well as a reduction in honey production (-29% and pollen collections (-19%, but colonies recovered in the medium-term and overwintered successfully. However, significantly decelerated growth of neonicotinoid-exposed colonies during the following spring was associated with queen failure, revealing previously undocumented long-term impacts of neonicotinoids: queen supersedure was observed for 60% of the neonicotinoid-exposed colonies within a one year period, but not for control colonies. Linked to this, neonicotinoid exposure was significantly associated with a reduced propensity to swarm during the next spring. Both short-term and long-term effects of neonicotinoids on colony performance were significantly influenced by the honeybees' genetic background. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Sublethal neonicotinoid exposure did not provoke increased winter losses. Yet

Fantasy under Duress: Connie Scozzaro’s Contrapposto Action Queen

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Edward Luker

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This article explores how Connie Scozzaro’s 'Contrapposto Action Queen (2013' repeatedly takes up two mystifications of femininity from classical mythology, Venus and Lamia, so as to subject them to critique. It takes the images of Venus and Lamia from the writing of two poets, Charles Algernon Swinburne and John Keats. These examples are shown to be epitomes of male poetic fantasy. Within Scozzaro’s collection these fantasies are dissected, undermined, or taken apart through exaggeration, ironization, and the use of tone. The book makes explicit that within patriarchal society, male fantasies are part of a social condition of gendered violence. Contra Brandon Brown’s argument that 'Contrapposto Action Queen' articulates the dialectic of the possible and the actual, this article articulates that for Scozzaro the possible is always conditioned by fantasy. It finishes by looking at Theodor Adorno’s essay ‘Lyric Poetry and Society’. Where Adorno states the lyric subject manifests itself with masculine ‘unrestrained individuation’, this fails to grasp how the lyric poem can utilize strategies of concealment to stress the consequences of the lyric subject’s gendering.

Functional characterisation of semen in honeybee queen (A.m.ligustica S. spermatheca and efficiency of the diluted semen technique in instrumental insemination

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrea Galli

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Differences over time in the quality of semen present in the honey bee (Apis mellifera ligustica queen spermatheca werestudied. An increase in the non-vital spermatozoa was shown to be evident (P>0.05 between the 12th and 24th month.The study of semen viability demonstrated that the passage of the semen to the spermatheca is due to sperm motility.In the queen inseminated with non-viable spermatozoa, no semen was detected in the spermatheca. Queens inseminatedtwice with a Hyes solution/semen mixture (1:1 stored as many spermatozoa in their spermatheca as those inseminatedonce with the classic technique. Queen replacement, oviposition and other functional characteristics were similarto those observed in the classic insemination procedure.

76 FR 82403 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Amendments to the Queen Conch and...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-30

... Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 622 Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Amendments to the Queen Conch and Reef Fish Fishery Management Plans of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin... South Atlantic; Amendments to the Queen Conch and Reef Fish Fishery Management Plans of Puerto Rico and...

Queens and Workers Contribute Differently to Adaptive Evolution in Bumble Bees and Honey Bees.

Science.gov (United States)

Harpur, Brock A; Dey, Alivia; Albert, Jennifer R; Patel, Sani; Hines, Heather M; Hasselmann, Martin; Packer, Laurence; Zayed, Amro

2017-09-01

Eusociality represents a major transition in evolution and is typified by cooperative brood care and reproductive division of labor between generations. In bees, this division of labor allows queens and workers to phenotypically specialize. Worker traits associated with helping are thought to be crucial to the fitness of a eusocial lineage, and recent studies of honey bees (genus Apis) have found that adaptively evolving genes often have worker-biased expression patterns. It is unclear however if worker-biased genes are disproportionately acted on by strong positive selection in all eusocial insects. We undertook a comparative population genomics study of bumble bees (Bombus) and honey bees to quantify natural selection on queen- and worker-biased genes across two levels of social complexity. Despite sharing a common eusocial ancestor, genes, and gene groups with the highest levels of positive selection were often unique within each genus, indicating that life history and the environment, but not sociality per se, drives patterns of adaptive molecular evolution. We uncovered differences in the contribution of queen- and worker-biased genes to adaptive evolution in bumble bees versus honey bees. Unlike honey bees, where worker-biased genes are enriched for signs of adaptive evolution, genes experiencing positive selection in bumble bees were predominately expressed by reproductive foundresses during the initial solitary-founding stage of colonies. Our study suggests that solitary founding is a major selective pressure and that the loss of queen totipotency may cause a change in the architecture of selective pressures upon the social insect genome. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution.

Virgin queen attraction toward males in honey bees

OpenAIRE

Bastin, Florian; Chol?, Hanna; Lafon, Gr?gory; Sandoz, Jean-Christophe

2017-01-01

Although the honeybee is a crucial agricultural agent and a prominent scientific model organism, crucial aspects of its reproductive behaviour are still unknown. During the mating season, honeybee males, the drones, gather in congregations 10?40?m above ground. Converging evidence suggests that drones emit a pheromone that can attract other drones, thereby increasing the size of the congregation. Virgin queens join the vicinity of the congregation after it has formed, and mate with as many as...

The Queen's Two Bodies: Sor Juana and New Spain's Vicereines

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, George Anthony

2009-01-01

The work of Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz contains many examples of positive representations of the Queens of Spain and the Vicereines of New Spain. These poetic portraits serve to counter the primarily misogynistic portrayals of ruling women of the seventeenth century. Most importantly, Sor Juana increased the visibility of the vicereine in colonial…

Queen elizabeth class battleships

CERN Document Server

Brown, Les

2010-01-01

The 'ShipCraft' series provides in-depth information about building and modifying model kits of famous warship types. Lavishly illustrated, each book takes the modeller through a brief history of the subject class, highlighting differences between sister-ships and changes in their appearance over their careers. This includes paint schemes and camouflage, featuring colour profiles and highly detailed line drawings and scale plans. The modelling section reviews the strengths and weaknesses of available kits, lists commercial accessory sets for super-detailing of the ships, and provides hints on modifying and improving the basic kit. This is followed by an extensive photographic survey of selected high-quality models in a variety of scales, and the book concludes with a section on research references - books, monographs, large-scale plans and relevant websites.This volume covers the five ships of the highly successful Queen Elizabeth class, a design of fast battleship that set the benchmark for the last generati...

76 FR 66675 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Amendments to the Queen Conch and...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-10-27

.... 100120037-1626-01] RIN 0648-AY55 Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Amendments to the Queen Conch and Reef Fish Fishery Management Plans of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands... the Fishery Management Plan for Queen Conch Resources of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and...

Effect of Different Substrates on the Acceptance of Grafted Larvae in Commercial Honey Bee (Apis Mellifera Queen Rearing

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Contreras-Martinez Celia A.

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The need for the increased production of honey bee (Apis mellifera queens has led beekeepers to use different substrates in artificial queen cups where larvae destined to become queens are deposited (grafting. However, not enough scientific evidence exists that indicates that this practice is useful and what substance offers the best results. This study was conducted to determine with the Doolittle queen rearing method the acceptance rate of larvae deposited on different substrates during grafting and to determine if the sugar content and pH of the substrates used affect the acceptance of larvae in cell builder colonies. The evaluated substrates were coconut water, apple nectar, royal jelly, cola soda and distilled water, plus control (without substrate. Grafted larvae of the six treatments were introduced into cell builder colonies and their acceptance verified after 72 h. Apple nectar provided the highest rate of larvae acceptance with 81.06%, followed by cola soda with 62.93%, coconut water with 60.90%, royal jelly with 57.82% and distilled water with 58.99%. The larvae acceptance rates of all substrates were significantly higher than the control, which had an acceptance rate of 47.04%. No significant relationship was found between the sugar content of the substrates and larvae acceptance. However, although not significant, a high negative correlation was found between the substrate pH and the number of accepted larvae (Rho = - 0.90, p = 0.07. These results suggest that the use of liquid acidic substrates during larvae grafting, in particular apple nectar, may increase the production of honey bee queens.

Intrinsic worker mortality depends on behavioral caste and the queens' presence in a social insect

Science.gov (United States)

Kohlmeier, Philip; Negroni, Matteo Antoine; Kever, Marion; Emmling, Stefanie; Stypa, Heike; Feldmeyer, Barbara; Foitzik, Susanne

2017-04-01

According to the classic life history theory, selection for longevity depends on age-dependant extrinsic mortality and fecundity. In social insects, the common life history trade-off between fecundity and longevity appears to be reversed, as the most fecund individual, the queen, often exceeds workers in lifespan several fold. But does fecundity directly affect intrinsic mortality also in social insect workers? And what is the effect of task on worker mortality? Here, we studied how social environment and behavioral caste affect intrinsic mortality of ant workers. We compared worker survival between queenless and queenright Temnothorax longispinosus nests and demonstrate that workers survive longer under the queens' absence. Temnothorax ant workers fight over reproduction when the queen is absent and dominant workers lay eggs. Worker fertility might therefore increase lifespan, possibly due to a positive physiological link between fecundity and longevity, or better care for fertile workers. In social insects, division of labor among workers is age-dependant with young workers caring for the brood and old ones going out to forage. We therefore expected nurses to survive longer than foragers, which is what we found. Surprisingly, inactive inside workers showed a lower survival than nurses but comparable to that of foragers. The reduced longevity of inactive workers could be due to them being older than the nurses, or due to a positive effect of activity on lifespan. Overall, our study points to behavioral caste-dependent intrinsic mortality rates and a positive association between fertility and longevity not only in queens but also in ant workers.

Legal syringe purchases by injection drug users, Brooklyn and Queens, New York City, 2000-2001.

Science.gov (United States)

Des Jarlais, Don C; McKnight, Courtney; Friedmann, Patricia

2002-01-01

To assess preliminary results of the Expanded Syringe Access Demonstration Program (ESAP) in New York City. Temporal trends of pharmacy use among injection drug users (IDUs) in Brooklyn and Queens were analyzed from December 2000 through December 2001. Brooklyn and Queens, New York City. PARTIPANTS: IDUs. Attempts to purchase syringes from pharmacies and success in doing so. Of the 1,072 IDUs interviewed from December 2000 through December 2001, the majority were daily heroin injectors, but there was also substantial speedball and cocaine injection. There was a clear increase over time in both the percentage of subjects who attempted to purchase syringes in pharmacies and in the percentage who successfully purchased syringes. Among IDUs interviewed 4 or more months after ESAP began, large majorities of those who attempted to purchase syringes were successful in doing so. No differences in use of ESAP by IDUs were identified in Brooklyn versus Queens: 27% of IDUs interviewed in Queens reported that they had attempted to purchase syringes in pharmacies versus 28% in Brooklyn. Persons who reported injecting on a daily or more frequent basis were more likely to have attempted pharmacy purchases than persons who reported injecting less frequently, 32% versus 21%. The ESAP program has led to an increase in the use of pharmacies as sources of sterile injection equipment among IDUs in New York City. The extent to which pharmacies become an important source of sterile injection equipment and the effect of legal pharmacy sales on risk behaviors for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection remain to be determined.

Cellulolytic Protist Numbers Rise and Fall Dramatically in Termite Queens and Kings during Colony Foundation

Science.gov (United States)

Shimada, Keisuke; Lo, Nathan; Kitade, Osamu; Wakui, Akane

2013-01-01

Among the best-known examples of mutualistic symbioses is that between lower termites and the cellulolytic flagellate protists in their hindguts. Although the symbiosis in worker termites has attracted much attention, there have been only a few studies of protists in other castes. We have performed the first examination of protist population dynamics in queens and kings during termite colony foundation. Protist numbers, as well as measurements of hindgut and reproductive tissue sizes, were undertaken at five time points over 400 days in incipient colonies of Reticulitermes speratus, as well as in other castes of mature colonies of this species. We found that protist numbers increased dramatically in both queens and kings during the first 50 days of colony foundation but began to decrease by day 100, eventually disappearing by day 400. Hindgut width followed a pattern similar to that of protist numbers, while ovary and testis widths increased significantly only at day 400. Kings were found to contain higher numbers of protists than queens in incipient colonies, which may be linked to higher levels of nutrient transfer from kings to queens than vice versa, as is known in some other termite species. Protists were found to be abundant in soldiers from mature colonies but absent in neotenics. This probably reflects feeding of soldiers by workers via proctodeal trophallaxis and of reproductives via stomodeal trophallaxis. The results reveal the dynamic nature of protist numbers during colony foundation and highlight the trade-offs that exist between reproduction and parental care during this critical phase of the termite life cycle. PMID:23376945

The Red Queen model of recombination hot-spot evolution: a theoretical investigation.

Science.gov (United States)

Latrille, Thibault; Duret, Laurent; Lartillot, Nicolas

2017-12-19

In humans and many other species, recombination events cluster in narrow and short-lived hot spots distributed across the genome, whose location is determined by the Zn-finger protein PRDM9. To explain these fast evolutionary dynamics, an intra-genomic Red Queen model has been proposed, based on the interplay between two antagonistic forces: biased gene conversion, mediated by double-strand breaks, resulting in hot-spot extinction, followed by positive selection favouring new PRDM9 alleles recognizing new sequence motifs. Thus far, however, this Red Queen model has not been formalized as a quantitative population-genetic model, fully accounting for the intricate interplay between biased gene conversion, mutation, selection, demography and genetic diversity at the PRDM9 locus. Here, we explore the population genetics of the Red Queen model of recombination. A Wright-Fisher simulator was implemented, allowing exploration of the behaviour of the model (mean equilibrium recombination rate, diversity at the PRDM9 locus or turnover rate) as a function of the parameters (effective population size, mutation and erosion rates). In a second step, analytical results based on self-consistent mean-field approximations were derived, reproducing the scaling relations observed in the simulations. Empirical fit of the model to current data from the mouse suggests both a high mutation rate at PRDM9 and strong biased gene conversion on its targets.This article is part of the themed issue 'Evolutionary causes and consequences of recombination rate variation in sexual organisms'. © 2017 The Authors.

The Macalister archive: records from the Queen's Hospital, Sidcup, 1917-1921.

Science.gov (United States)

Bamji, A N

1993-04-01

The Queen's Hospital opened in 1917 to care for soldiers receiving facial injuries in Western Front trenches, usually as a result of a gunshot wound. Some 8000 patients were treated by the medical teams of the UK, the Dominions and the USA. The wartime records were removed by their respective sections in 1921, but Queen Mary's Hospital has recently reacquired those of the New Zealand section, rescued from imminent destruction by Professor A.D. Macalister, late Dean of the Dental School at Dunedin, and kindly donated by him. There are 282 sets of case-notes containing typescript summaries, clinical photographs and radiographs, drawings, 77 watercolor paintings and a life-size wax model of head and upper torso illustrating some of the surgical techniques. The archive is a fine example of medical illustration 75 years ago, and provides invaluable detail on the plastic surgery and dental reconstructive methods that were developed at Sidcup.

King Harald V and Queen Sonja of Norway visit CERN

CERN Multimedia

Maximilien Brice

2006-01-01

Norway's King Harald V and Queen Sonja take a tour of the ATLAS detector with CERN's Director-General Robert Aymar in April 2006. During their visit the royal party met with members of CERN's Norwegian community. A group of about 40 students greeted the royal motorcade with a belting rendition of 'The King's Song', Norway's royal anthem.

Natural Larval Diet Differently Influences the Pattern of Developmental Changes in DNA 5-Methylcytosine Levels in Apis mellifera Queens as Compared with Workers and Drones.

Science.gov (United States)

Strachecka, A; Olszewski, K; Bajda, M; Demetraki-Paleolog, J

2015-08-01

The principal mechanism of gene activation/silencing is DNA 5-methylcytosine methylation. This study was aimed at determining global DNA methylation levels in larvae, prepupae, pupae, and 1-day-old adults of Apis mellifera queens, workers and drones. The Imprint Methylated DNA Quantification Kit MDQ1 was used. Percentages of DNA 5-methylcytosine were low and relatively similar in the larvae of all the castes until 4th day of larval development (3-5%). However, they were higher in the drone and worker larvae than in the queen larvae. Generally, the developmental patterns of changes in the DNA methylation levels were different in the queens in comparison with the drones and workers. While methylation increased in the queens, it decreased in the drones and workers. Methylated DNA methylcytosine percentages and weights in the queen prepupae (15%, 9.18 ng) and pupae (21%, 10.74 ng) were, respectively, three and four times higher than in the worker/drone brood of the same age (2.5-4%, 0.03-0.07 ng). Only in the queens, after a substantial increase, did DNA methylation decrease almost twice between the pupal stage and queen emergence (from 21% and 10.74 ng to 12% and 6.78 ng). This finding seems very interesting, particularly for experimental gerontology.

Founding weaver ant queens (Oecophylla longinoda) increase production and nanitic worker size when adopting non-nestmate pupae

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ouagoussounon, Issa; Offenberg, Joachim; Sinzogan, Antonio

2015-01-01

Weaver ants (Oecophylla longinoda Latreille) are used commercially to control pest insects and for protein production. In this respect fast colony growth is desirable for managed colonies. Transplantation of non-nestmate pupae to incipient colonies has been shown to boost colony growth. Our...... of 300 pupae increased total colony size more than 10-fold whereas 100 pupae increased the size 5.6 fold, compared to control. This increase was due not only to the individuals added in the form of pupae but also to an increased per capita brood production by the resident queen, triggered by the adopted...... objectives were to find the maximum number of pupae a founding queen can handle, and to measure the associated colony growth. Secondly, we tested if transplantation of pupae led to production of larger nanitic workers (defined as unusually small worker ants produced by founding queens in their first batch...

Mating frequencies of honey bee queens (Apis mellifera L.) in a population of feral colonies in the Northeastern United States.

Science.gov (United States)

Tarpy, David R; Delaney, Deborah A; Seeley, Thomas D

2015-01-01

Across their introduced range in North America, populations of feral honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies have supposedly declined in recent decades as a result of exotic parasites, most notably the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor. Nonetheless, recent studies have documented several wild populations of colonies that have persisted. The extreme polyandry of honey bee queens-and the increased intracolony genetic diversity it confers-has been attributed, in part, to improved disease resistance and may be a factor in the survival of these populations of feral colonies. We estimated the mating frequencies of queens in feral colonies in the Arnot Forest in New York State to determine if the level of polyandry of these queens is especially high and so might contribute to their survival success. We genotyped the worker offspring from 10 feral colonies in the Arnot Forest of upstate New York, as well as those from 20 managed colonies closest to this forest. We found no significant differences in mean mating frequency between the feral and managed queens, suggesting that queens in the remote, low-density population of colonies in the Arnot Forest are neither mate-limited nor adapted to mate at an especially high frequency. These findings support the hypothesis that the hyperpolyandry of honey bees has been shaped on an evolutionary timescale rather than on an ecological one.

Mating frequencies of honey bee queens (Apis mellifera L. in a population of feral colonies in the Northeastern United States.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

David R Tarpy

Full Text Available Across their introduced range in North America, populations of feral honey bee (Apis mellifera L. colonies have supposedly declined in recent decades as a result of exotic parasites, most notably the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor. Nonetheless, recent studies have documented several wild populations of colonies that have persisted. The extreme polyandry of honey bee queens-and the increased intracolony genetic diversity it confers-has been attributed, in part, to improved disease resistance and may be a factor in the survival of these populations of feral colonies. We estimated the mating frequencies of queens in feral colonies in the Arnot Forest in New York State to determine if the level of polyandry of these queens is especially high and so might contribute to their survival success. We genotyped the worker offspring from 10 feral colonies in the Arnot Forest of upstate New York, as well as those from 20 managed colonies closest to this forest. We found no significant differences in mean mating frequency between the feral and managed queens, suggesting that queens in the remote, low-density population of colonies in the Arnot Forest are neither mate-limited nor adapted to mate at an especially high frequency. These findings support the hypothesis that the hyperpolyandry of honey bees has been shaped on an evolutionary timescale rather than on an ecological one.

Workers and alate queens of Solenopsis geminata share qualitatively similar but quantitatively different venom alkaloid chemistry

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Qun-Hui eShi

2015-07-01

Full Text Available Solenopsis geminata group (Hymenoptera: Formicidae encompasses ant species commonly called fire ants because of their painful sting. The many physiological effects of the venom are caused by 2-methyl-6-alkyl and/or alkenylpiperidine alkaloids. The variation in piperidine alkaloid structures has useful taxonomic characters. The most well studied Solenopsis species is S. invicta, which was accidentally imported into the USA in the 1930s from South America. It quickly spread throughout the southern USA and is now a major invasive pest ant in the USA and in other parts of the world. Interestingly, the invasive S. invicta has largely displaced a native USA fire ant, S. geminata, from the southern USA. We explore the possibility that differences in venom chemistry could be correlated with this displacement. The cis and trans alkaloids from body extracts of workers and alate queens of S. geminata were separated by silica gel chromatography, identified, and quantitated by GC-MS analysis. Both workers and alate queens produce primarily cis- and trans-2-methyl-6-n-undecyl-piperidines, as well as other minor alkaloid components. Imported fire ant, S. invicta, alate queens produce the same alkaloids as S. geminata alate queens, but in contrast S. invicta workers produce piperidine alkaloids with longer side chains, which are purported to be physiologically more effective. These results are discussed in relation to the evolutionary progression of fire ant venom alkaloids and displacement of S. geminata by S. invicta in the USA.

Community-led cancer action councils in Queens, New York: process evaluation of an innovative partnership with the Queens library system.

Science.gov (United States)

Basu Roy, Upal; Michel, Tamara; Carpenter, Alison; Lounsbury, David W; Sabino, Eilleen; Stevenson, Alexis Jurow; Combs, Sarah; Jacobs, Jasmine; Padgett, Deborah; Rapkin, Bruce D

2014-02-06

Community-based participatory research (CBPR) has great potential to address cancer disparities, particularly in racially and ethnically diverse and underserved neighborhoods. The objective of this study was to conduct a process evaluation of an innovative academic-community partnership, Queens Library HealthLink, which aimed to reduce cancer disparities through neighborhood groups (Cancer Action Councils) that convened in public libraries in Queens, New York. We used a mixed-methods approach to conduct 69 telephone survey interviews and 4 focus groups (15 participants) with Cancer Action Council members. We used 4 performance criteria to inform data collection: action or attention to sustainability, library support for the council, social cohesion and group leadership, and activity level. Focus group transcripts were independently coded and cross-checked for consensus until saturation was achieved. Members reported benefits and barriers to participation. Thirty-three original focus group transcript codes were organized into 8 main themes related to member experiences: 1) library as a needed resource, 2) library as a reputable and nondenominational institution, 3) value of library staff, 4) need for a HealthLink specialist, 5) generation of ideas and coordination of tasks, 6) participation challenges, 7) use of community connections, and 8) collaboration for sustainability. In response to the process evaluation, Cancer Action Council members and HealthLink staff incorporated member suggestions to improve council sustainability. The councils merged to increase intercouncil collaboration, and institutional changes were made in funding to sustain a HealthLink specialist beyond the grant period.

Worker laying in the absence of an ergatoid queen in the ponerine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

1987-06-12

Jun 12, 1987 ... berthoudi - an alternative fonn of eusocial organization. Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 18: 28-37. WINTER, U. & BUSCHINGER, A. 1986. Genetically mediated queen polymorphism and caste determination in the slave-making ant, Harpagoxenus sublaevis. (Hymenoptera: Fonnicidae). Entomol. Gener. 11:.

To and From the Queen: Modalities of Epistolography in the Correspondence of Elizabeth I

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Giuliana Iannaccaro

2014-04-01

Full Text Available The article analyses the connection between modalities of letter writing and the relation between writer and addressee. We take into consideration the case of Elizabeth I of England, situated in the overall panorama of early modern European historiography. The English Queen was a prolific and skilful letter writer, endowed with an uncommon talent for foreign languages; but she was also, thanks to her role, the willing or unwilling recipient of thousands of epistles. By selecting two different corpora of letters, from and to the Queen, it is possible to explore how personal relations, degree of acquaintance, respective status and purpose of the letter influence the very structure of the genre.

2006 Maryland Department of Natural Resources Lidar: Caroline, Kent and Queen Anne Counties

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Maryland Department of Natural Resources requested the collection of LIDAR data over Kent, Queen Anne and Caroline Counties, MD. In response, EarthData acquired the...

Simplified Analytical Model for a Queen-Post Covered Timber Bridge

Science.gov (United States)

F Fanous; D. Rammer; T. Wipf

2013-01-01

During the 19th century, the economic material to build bridges was timber due to its abundant availability, cost, and ease of construction. Many of the well-known timber bridge types are the Burr arch, Town lattice, Howe, Queen and King type of trusses. This paper summarizes an investigation that was sponsored by the Federal Highway Administration and the USDA Forest...

Honey bee queens do not count mates to assess their mating success

Science.gov (United States)

The mating system of honey bees (genus Apis) is extremely polyandrous, where reproductive females (queens) typically mate with 12 or more males (drones) during their mating flight(s). The evolutionary implications for hyperpolyandry have been subject to considerable debate and empirical testing beca...

Mitosis and cell death in the optic lobes of workers, queens and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Prakash

of white, pink, brown and black eyes, and the beginning of tegument ... Our purpose was to investigate cell division and death in the optic lobes (OL) of workers, queens and males during ... new ones in each caste and sex. Nevertheless, most ...

Was Queen Victoria depressed? 1. Natural history and differential diagnosis of presenting problem.

Science.gov (United States)

Powles, W E; Alexander, M G

1987-02-01

For some years we have speculated as to whether Queen Victoria suffered a definable psychiatric illness in her notorious and prolonged seclusion after the Prince Consort's death. We here summarize criteria for grief and depression from three authorities. Against these, we examine the natural history of the Queen's bereavement and restitution. We find that her suffering and her portrayal of the role of widow were related to her personal style and were culturally accepted. Her self-esteem, ego functions, and object relatedness were preserved. While some clinicians might favour a diagnosis of Dysthymic Disorder, we find the evidence strongly in favour of an intense, prolonged, normal human grief (Uncomplicated Bereavement of DSM III) coloured by a romantic and histrionic personal style. Intensity and duration do not, in this case, establish a diagnosis of depression.

SUBJECT INDEX

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

presence of different types of clouds. 249. Alkaline ... 19. Antarctica. Influence of climatic teleconnections on the temporal ... coastal Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica. 41 ... On the modeling of electrical boundary layer (elec- trode layer) ...

Holocene Tree Line and Climate Change on the Queen Charlotte Islands, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Pellatt, Marlow G.; Mathewes, Rolf W.

1997-07-01

Palynological study of two subalpine ponds on the Queen Charlotte Islands reveals changes in tree line and climate during the Holocene. The findings agree with previous reconstructions, from nearby Louise Pond on the Queen Charlotte Islands, that suggest a warmer-than-present climate and higher-than-present tree lines in the early Holocene (ca. 9600-6600 14C yr B.P.). Basal ages at SC1 Pond and Shangri-La Bog indicate that the basins did not hold permanent water before 7200 14C yr B.P., consistent with a warmer and drier early Holocene previously inferred from Louise Pond. Pollen and plant macrofossils indicate the initial establishment of subalpine conditions by 6090 ± 90 14C yr B.P., similar to the 5790 ± 130 14C yr B.P. age for cooling inferred from Louise Pond. Conditions similar to present were established at SC1 Pond by 3460 ± 100 14C yr B.P., confirming the previous estimate of 3400 14C yr B.P. at Louise Pond. This 3400 14C yr B.P. vegetation shift on the Queen Charlotte Islands corresponds with the beginning of the Tiedemann glacial advance in the south-coastal mountains of British Columbia (ca. 3300 14C yr B.P.), the Peyto and Robson glacial advances between 3300 and 2800 14C yr B.P. in the Rocky Mountains, and climatic cooling inferred from palynological studies throughout southern British Columbia, northern Washington, and southeast Alaska. These findings confirm that changes in regional climate influenced changes in vegetation in coastal British Columbia.

The turning points in the solution of n-queens problem using ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

We also observed that, using a set of even and odd numbers, the odd number experience a turning point before the even numbers. The algorithm of the standard backtracking method was implemented in C programming language and, we used Microsoft Notepad as our output file to display the arrangement of the queens.

MicroRNA signatures characterizing caste-independent ovarian activity in queen and worker honeybees (Apis mellifera L.).

Science.gov (United States)

Macedo, L M F; Nunes, F M F; Freitas, F C P; Pires, C V; Tanaka, E D; Martins, J R; Piulachs, M-D; Cristino, A S; Pinheiro, D G; Simões, Z L P

2016-06-01

Queen and worker honeybees differ profoundly in reproductive capacity. The queen of this complex society, with 200 highly active ovarioles in each ovary, is the fertile caste, whereas the workers have approximately 20 ovarioles as a result of receiving a different diet during larval development. In a regular queenright colony, the workers have inactive ovaries and do not reproduce. However, if the queen is sensed to be absent, some of the workers activate their ovaries, producing viable haploid eggs that develop into males. Here, a deep-sequenced ovary transcriptome library of reproductive workers was used as supporting data to assess the dynamic expression of the regulatory molecules and microRNAs (miRNAs) of reproductive and nonreproductive honeybee females. In this library, most of the differentially expressed miRNAs are related to ovary physiology or oogenesis. When we quantified the dynamic expression of 19 miRNAs in the active and inactive worker ovaries and compared their expression in the ovaries of virgin and mated queens, we noted that some miRNAs (miR-1, miR-31a, miR-13b, miR-125, let-7 RNA, miR-100, miR-276, miR-12, miR-263a, miR-306, miR-317, miR-92a and miR-9a) could be used to identify reproductive and nonreproductive statuses independent of caste. Furthermore, integrative gene networks suggested that some candidate miRNAs function in the process of ovary activation in worker bees. © 2016 The Royal Entomological Society.

Lower disease infections in honeybee (Apis mellifera) colonies headed by polyandrous vs monandrous queens

Science.gov (United States)

Tarpy, David R.; Seeley, Thomas D.

2006-04-01

We studied the relationship between genetic diversity and disease susceptibility in honeybee colonies living under natural conditions. To do so, we created colonies in which each queen was artificially inseminated with sperm from either one or ten drones. Of the 20 colonies studied, 80% showed at least one brood disease. We found strong differences between the two types of colonies in the infection intensity of chalkbrood and in the total intensity of all brood diseases (chalkbrood, sacbrood, American foulbrood, and European foulbrood) with both variables lower for the colonies with higher genetic diversity. Our findings demonstrate that disease can be an important factor in the ecology of honeybee colonies and they provide strong support for the disease hypothesis for the evolution of polyandry by social insect queens.

Chronic Exposure of Imidacloprid and Clothianidin Reduce Queen Survival, Foraging, and Nectar Storing in Colonies of Bombus impatiens

Science.gov (United States)

Scholer, Jamison; Krischik, Vera

2014-01-01

In an 11-week greenhouse study, caged queenright colonies of Bombus impatiens Cresson, were fed treatments of 0 (0 ppb actual residue I, imidacloprid; C, clothianidin), 10 (14 I, 9 C), 20 (16 I, 17C), 50 (71 I, 39 C) and 100 (127 I, 76 C) ppb imidacloprid or clothianidin in sugar syrup (50%). These treatments overlapped the residue levels found in pollen and nectar of many crops and landscape plants, which have higher residue levels than seed-treated crops (less than 10 ppb, corn, canola and sunflower). At 6 weeks, queen mortality was significantly higher in 50 ppb and 100 ppb and by 11 weeks in 20 ppb–100 ppb neonicotinyl-treated colonies. The largest impact for both neonicotinyls starting at 20 (16 I, 17 C) ppb was the statistically significant reduction in queen survival (37% I, 56% C) ppb, worker movement, colony consumption, and colony weight compared to 0 ppb treatments. Bees at feeders flew back to the nest box so it appears that only a few workers were collecting syrup in the flight box and returning the syrup to the nest. The majority of the workers sat immobilized for weeks on the floor of the flight box without moving to fed at sugar syrup feeders. Neonicotinyl residues were lower in wax pots in the nest than in the sugar syrup that was provided. At 10 (14) ppb I and 50 (39) ppb C, fewer males were produced by the workers, but queens continued to invest in queen production which was similar among treatments. Feeding on imidacloprid and clothianidin can cause changes in behavior (reduced worker movement, consumption, wax pot production, and nectar storage) that result in detrimental effects on colonies (queen survival and colony weight). Wild bumblebees depending on foraging workers can be negatively impacted by chronic neonicotinyl exposure at 20 ppb. PMID:24643057

Chronic exposure of imidacloprid and clothianidin reduce queen survival, foraging, and nectar storing in colonies of Bombus impatiens.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jamison Scholer

Full Text Available In an 11-week greenhouse study, caged queenright colonies of Bombus impatiens Cresson, were fed treatments of 0 (0 ppb actual residue I, imidacloprid; C, clothianidin, 10 (14 I, 9 C, 20 (16 I, 17C, 50 (71 I, 39 C and 100 (127 I, 76 C ppb imidacloprid or clothianidin in sugar syrup (50%. These treatments overlapped the residue levels found in pollen and nectar of many crops and landscape plants, which have higher residue levels than seed-treated crops (less than 10 ppb, corn, canola and sunflower. At 6 weeks, queen mortality was significantly higher in 50 ppb and 100 ppb and by 11 weeks in 20 ppb-100 ppb neonicotinyl-treated colonies. The largest impact for both neonicotinyls starting at 20 (16 I, 17 C ppb was the statistically significant reduction in queen survival (37% I, 56% C ppb, worker movement, colony consumption, and colony weight compared to 0 ppb treatments. Bees at feeders flew back to the nest box so it appears that only a few workers were collecting syrup in the flight box and returning the syrup to the nest. The majority of the workers sat immobilized for weeks on the floor of the flight box without moving to fed at sugar syrup feeders. Neonicotinyl residues were lower in wax pots in the nest than in the sugar syrup that was provided. At 10 (14 ppb I and 50 (39 ppb C, fewer males were produced by the workers, but queens continued to invest in queen production which was similar among treatments. Feeding on imidacloprid and clothianidin can cause changes in behavior (reduced worker movement, consumption, wax pot production, and nectar storage that result in detrimental effects on colonies (queen survival and colony weight. Wild bumblebees depending on foraging workers can be negatively impacted by chronic neonicotinyl exposure at 20 ppb.

Chronic exposure of imidacloprid and clothianidin reduce queen survival, foraging, and nectar storing in colonies of Bombus impatiens.

Science.gov (United States)

Scholer, Jamison; Krischik, Vera

2014-01-01

In an 11-week greenhouse study, caged queenright colonies of Bombus impatiens Cresson, were fed treatments of 0 (0 ppb actual residue I, imidacloprid; C, clothianidin), 10 (14 I, 9 C), 20 (16 I, 17C), 50 (71 I, 39 C) and 100 (127 I, 76 C) ppb imidacloprid or clothianidin in sugar syrup (50%). These treatments overlapped the residue levels found in pollen and nectar of many crops and landscape plants, which have higher residue levels than seed-treated crops (less than 10 ppb, corn, canola and sunflower). At 6 weeks, queen mortality was significantly higher in 50 ppb and 100 ppb and by 11 weeks in 20 ppb-100 ppb neonicotinyl-treated colonies. The largest impact for both neonicotinyls starting at 20 (16 I, 17 C) ppb was the statistically significant reduction in queen survival (37% I, 56% C) ppb, worker movement, colony consumption, and colony weight compared to 0 ppb treatments. Bees at feeders flew back to the nest box so it appears that only a few workers were collecting syrup in the flight box and returning the syrup to the nest. The majority of the workers sat immobilized for weeks on the floor of the flight box without moving to fed at sugar syrup feeders. Neonicotinyl residues were lower in wax pots in the nest than in the sugar syrup that was provided. At 10 (14) ppb I and 50 (39) ppb C, fewer males were produced by the workers, but queens continued to invest in queen production which was similar among treatments. Feeding on imidacloprid and clothianidin can cause changes in behavior (reduced worker movement, consumption, wax pot production, and nectar storage) that result in detrimental effects on colonies (queen survival and colony weight). Wild bumblebees depending on foraging workers can be negatively impacted by chronic neonicotinyl exposure at 20 ppb.

SENSORY CHARACTERISTICS OF NATIVE CHICKEN QUEEN PINEAPPLE-CURED HAM

OpenAIRE

Dr. Lilibeth A. Roxas; Nikko A. Roxas

2015-01-01

The potential of Native Chicken to be processed into palatable ham was conducted making use of Queen Pineapple (QP) crude extract as one of the curing ingredients. Primarily, the main goal is to develop a protocol in the manufacture of processed native chicken ham and determine the organoleptic quality of native chicken ham product. The age of the bird and maturity of the fruit were considered for the best organoleptic quality of chicken ham. In this study, the combine injectio...

An observation study on the effects of queen age on some characteristics of honey bee colonies

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ibrahim Çakmak

2010-01-01

Full Text Available This study was conducted to determine the effects of the queen’s age on performance of the honeybee (A. mellifera anatoliaca colonies at nomad beekeeping conditions. Performances of the colonies, which had 0, 1, 2 and 3 year-old queens, were compared. The number of combs, brood areas, wintering ability survival rate and honey yield were determined as performance criteria. The average number of combs with bees throughout the experiment in Group I, Group II, Group III and Group IV was 10.92±0.78, 14.68±0.55, 10.10±0.60, 7.88±0.45 number combs/colony; the average of brood areas was 3078±372.5 cm2, 3668±460.3 cm2, 2215±294.0 cm2, 1665.38±241.8 cm2; the average of wintering ability was 84.3±2.9%, 88.0±3.7%, 46.6±19.0%, 26.8±16.5%; the survival rate was 100%, 100%, 60%, 40%; and the average of honey yields was 31.4±1.89 kg, 41.5±1.05 kg, 20.4±2.62 kg and 12.0±1.41 kg per colony, respectively. A significant and negative correlation between queen age and brood production (r=-80.2, colony strength (r=-62.5, wintering ability (r=-66 and honey yield (r=-75.6 were calculated (P<0.01. The colonies headed by young queens had more brood areas, longer worker colony population, better wintering ability and greater honey yield in comparison to colonies headed by old queens.

Worker laying in the absence of an ergatoid queen in the ponerine ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Ergatoid queens (without wings and worker-like) occur in Plectroctena mandibularis and P. conjugata. Five nests of these species were incompletely excavated, and an ergatoid was collected in only one of them. The orphaned groups of workers were kept in the laboratory for several months, during which time many eggs ...

The Lacanian Concept of Cut in Light of Lacan's Interactions with Maud Mannoni

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Laure Razon

2017-12-01

Full Text Available This article sets out to shed light on the Lacanian concept of cut (introduced in 1961–1962: it refers to the symbolic (i.e., linguistic operation which produces the object a and thereby enables separation, through which the subject emerges. To that effect, we show how this concept benefitted from Lacan's interactions with Maud Mannoni (1923-1998, who focused on clinical situations where implementing a cut in the subject's environment is the only way to enable a separation between the child and the Other. Lacan first drew on Mannoni's clinical elaborations about the retarded child's alienation to the maternal fantasy: when the mother's unconscious doesn't leave room for the cut, it prevents the separation through which the child could become a subject. Lacan generalized this in the late 1960s: he broadened Mannoni's alienation to the maternal fantasy to characterize a type of child symptom, where children become their mother's non-separated, de-phallicized object a. Then, in the 1970s, Mannoni proposed an original theoretico-clinical setting to address the configurations where the object a isn't separated: in the splintered institution, the team follows on projects of activities (professional, personal, etc. outside the institution voiced by children who haven't previously encountered the symbolic cut, by helping them realize these external projects. By thus acknowledging their attempts at establishing a cut and giving them consistency, the splintered institution helps them psychically elaborate separation.

Variability of {sup 10}Be and {delta}{sup 18}O in snow pits from Greenland and a surface traverse from Antarctica

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berggren, A.-M. [Dept. of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Villav. 16, 752 36 Uppsala (Sweden); Aldahan, A., E-mail: ala.aldahan@geo.uu.se [Dept. of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Villav. 16, 752 36 Uppsala (Sweden); Dept. of Geology, United Arab Emirates University, P.O. Box 17551 Al Ain (United Arab Emirates); Possnert, G. [Tandem Laboratory, Uppsala University, P.O. Box 529, 751 20 Uppsala (Sweden); Hansson, M. [Dept. of Physical Geography and Quaternary Geology, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm (Sweden); Steen-Larsen, H.C. [Centre for Ice and Climate, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, Juliane Maries Vej, 30,2100 Copenhagen (Denmark); Sturevik Storm, A. [Dept. of Earth Sciences, Uppsala University, Villav. 16, 752 36 Uppsala (Sweden); Moerth, C.-M. [Dept. of Geology and Geochemistry, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm (Sweden); Murad, A. [Dept. of Geology, United Arab Emirates University, P.O. Box 17551 Al Ain (United Arab Emirates)

2013-01-15

To examine temporal variability of {sup 10}Be in glacial ice, we sampled snow to a depth of 160 cm at the NEEM (North Greenland Eemian Ice Drilling) drilling site in Greenland. The samples span three years between the summers of 2006 and 2009. At the same time, spatial variability of {sup 10}Be in glacial ice was explored through collection of the upper {approx}5 cm of surface snow in Antarctica during part of the Swedish-Japanese traverse from Svea to Syowa station during the austral summer in 2007-2008. The results of the Greenlandic {sup 10}Be snow suggested variable concentrations that apparently do not clearly reflect the seasonal change as indicated by the {delta}{sup 18}O data. The {sup 10}Be concentration variability most likely reflects also effects of aerosol loading and deposition pathways, possibly in combination with post-depositional processes. The Antarctic traverse data expose a negative correlation between {sup 10}Be and {delta}{sup 18}O, while there are weaker but still significant correlations to altitude and distance to the coast (approximated by the distance to the 70th latitude). These relationships indicate that geographical factors, mainly the proximity to the coast, may strongly affect {sup 10}Be concentrations in snow in Queen Maud Land, Antarctica.

Sir James Reid and the Death of Queen Victoria: An Early Model for End-of-Life Care.

Science.gov (United States)

Abrams, Robert C

2015-12-01

An appraisal of the last ten days of Queen Victoria's life, viewed primarily from the perspective of her personal physician, Sir James Reid, is presented. Sir James' clinical encounters with his patient and the Royal Family are examined to reveal his strategic and medical thinking and gauge his level of success in basic palliative aims. It was found that the lack of effective medical interventions, tensions within the Royal Family, the importance of his post to Sir James' professional career, and the political ramifications unavoidably connected with the illness of a head of state, all presented challenges to Reid's efforts to ease the physical and emotional pain of Queen Victoria's dying. Key features of Sir James' approach included reliance on physician-patient and physician-family relationships, emphasis on emotional support for the patient, and the careful selection of interventions for the family. In the first years of the 20th century, an era when the contemporary concepts of palliative care, hospice, and family dynamics did not exist, Sir James' management of the Queen's final illness suggested an early model for end-of-life care. By the end of Queen Victoria's life, Sir James was seen to have preserved his patient's comfort and dignity, at the same time advancing family and societal acceptance of the death of this matriarchal figure. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of The Gerontological Society of America. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Pollen foraging in colonies of Melipona bicolor (Apidae, Meliponini): effects of season, colony size and queen number.

Science.gov (United States)

Hilário, S D; Imperatriz-Fonseca, V L

2009-01-01

We evaluated the ratio between the number of pollen foragers and the total number of bees entering colonies of Melipona bicolor, a facultative polygynous species of stingless bees. The variables considered in our analysis were: seasonality, colony size and the number of physogastric queens in each colony. The pollen forager ratios varied significantly between seasons; the ratio was higher in winter than in summer. However, colony size and number of queens per colony had no significant effect. We conclude that seasonal differences in pollen harvest are related to the production of sexuals and to the number of individuals and their body size.

Primary sex ratio adjustment by ant queens in response to local mate competition

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

de Menten, Ludivine; Cremer, Sylvia; Heinze, Jürgen

2005-01-01

In the ant Cardiocondyla obscurior, wingless males compete with nestmate males for access to female mating partners, leading to local mate competition (LMC). Queen number varies between colonies, resulting in variation in the strength of LMC. Cremer & Heinze (2002, Proceedings of the Royal Society...

Queen Nefertari, the Royal Spouse of Pharaoh Ramses II: A Multidisciplinary Investigation of the Mummified Remains Found in Her Tomb (QV66)

Science.gov (United States)

Habicht, Michael E.; Bianucci, Raffaella; Buckley, Stephen A.; Fletcher, Joann; Bouwman, Abigail S.; Öhrström, Lena M.; Seiler, Roger; Galassi, Francesco M.; Hajdas, Irka; Vassilika, Eleni; Böni, Thomas; Henneberg, Maciej; Rühli, Frank J.

2016-01-01

Queen Nefertari, the favourite Royal Consort of Pharaoh Ramses II (Ancient Egypt, New Kingdom, 19th Dynasty c. 1250 BC) is famous for her beautifully decorated tomb in the Valley of the Queens. Her burial was plundered in ancient times yet still many objects were found broken in the debris when the tomb was excavated. Amongst the found objects was a pair of mummified legs. They came to the Egyptian Museum in Turin and are henceforth regarded as the remains of this famous Queen, although they were never scientifically investigated. The following multidisciplinary investigation is the first ever performed on those remains. The results (radiocarbon dating, anthropology, paleopathology, genetics, chemistry and Egyptology) all strongly speak in favour of an identification of the remains as Nefertari’s, although different explanations—albeit less likely—are considered and discussed. The legs probably belong to a lady, a fully adult individual, of about 40 years of age. The materials used for embalming are consistent with Ramesside mummification traditions and indeed all objects within the tomb robustly support the burial as of Queen Nefertari. PMID:27902731

The Evolutionary Ecology of Multi-Queen Breeding in Ants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Huszár, Dóra Borbála

on other ant species to better understand the social syndromes and how supercolonies function. Foremost, this would help to manage invasive supercolonies that harm humans and biodiversity, but could also provide contribution to our general understanding on how ecology, especially demography impacts upon......). Multi-queen breeding requires both social and life-history adaptations from individuals to decrease intra-colony conflicts and to ensure that sterile workers receive inclusive fitness benefits despite lowered relatedness. However, it remains unclear exactly what ecological and life-history covariates...

Synthesis of carrier-free tritium-labeled queen bee pheromone

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Webster, F.X.; Prestwich, G.D.

1988-01-01

A short synthesis of [4,5- 3 H 2 ] (E)-9-oxo-2-decenoic acid (ODA), a high-specific-activity tritium-containing isotopomer of the queen bee pheromone, is described. Catalytic tritiation of the ketal of ethyl 9-oxo-4-decenoate introduces tritium into two positions, one of which is completely unactivated. Subsequent transformation by selenation, oxidation, and hydrolysis affords the labeled 9-ODA at >60 Ci/mmol. The material is suitable for biochemical studies of binding and catabolism in ovarian, antennal, and other target tissues

The Red Queen hypothesis and geographical parthenogenesis in the alpine hawkweed Hieracium alpinum (Asteraceae)

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Hartmann, M.; Štefánek, M.; Zdvořák, P.; Heřman, P.; Chrtek, Jindřich; Mráz, P.

2017-01-01

Roč. 122, č. 4 (2017), s. 681-696 ISSN 0024-4066 Institutional support: RVO:67985939 Keywords : apomixis * polyploidy * Red Queen hypothesis Subject RIV: EF - Botanics OBOR OECD: Plant sciences, botany Impact factor: 2.288, year: 2016

Study of the seasonal variation in the exchanges of food labelled with 198Au from a worker bee to a queen (Apis mellifica ligustica S.)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pain, Janine; Roger, Bernard; Douault, Philippe

1975-01-01

Food exchanges from a worker giver to a queen receiver were quantified throughout the year. 4 days old workers distribute great amounts of food to queens, about 74% in average, but variations are low. On the other hand workers of unknown age distribute amounts that are less high and varying in terms of the season. A parallelism exists between percentage variations of food shared by workers of unknown age and the seasonal cycle of the 9-oxodec-2-enoic acid content of queens [fr

Great day: H. M. Queen Elizabeth II at the Calder Hall opening

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

1956-01-01

The opening of the world's first nuclear power station, Calder Hall, was a major event in the history of post-war Britain. This film describes the construction and design of the station and its opening by the Queen. It is also an interesting historical document reflecting the beliefs and aspirations of the time. (author).

Great day: H.M. Queen Elizabeth II at the Calder Hall opening

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1956-01-01

The opening of the world's first nuclear power station, Calder Hall, was a major event in the history of post-war Britain. This film describes the construction and design of the station and its opening by the Queen. It is also an interesting historical document reflecting the beliefs and aspirations of the time. (author)

Did the use of chloroform by Queen Victoria influence its acceptance in obstetric practice?

Science.gov (United States)

Connor, H; Connor, T

1996-10-01

Examination of contemporaneous publications suggests that the use of chloroform by Queen Victoria in 1853 did not result in the major breakthrough in the acceptability of obstetric anaesthesia with which the event has been credited by some later writers.

Lytton Strachey : l’historien intime de deux reines Lytton Strachey’s Intimate Biographies of Two Queens

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jeannine Hayat

2007-01-01

Full Text Available The British writer Lytton Strachey (1880-1932 wrote biographies of the two most eminent Queens of England: Queen Victoria (1921 and Elizabeth and Essex (1928. The two books made him a very famous historian. However, he would personally have preferred to be admired for his poetry or his plays, for he was a very gifted literary author. Nevertheless many of Strachey’s readers have appreciated his conception of biography, as a means of personal confession while studying the destiny of a public figure. Indeed the Stracheyan way of life, free from Victorian moral standards and guided by the rules of the Bloomsbury group, inspired his story of Victoria and Elizabeth. Both Queens at the end of their lives and at the height of their power carried on strange love affairs: Victoria with her Scottish gillie and Elizabeth with the Earl of Essex, thirty years her younger. In fact, both romances subtly reflect Strachey’s own love affairs. He was himself engaged in a kind of common life with Dora Carrington— the painter, thirteen years younger than him, with whom he was not sexually involved— while he engaged in numerous homosexual love affairs.

Atmospheric influence on the deuterium excess signal in polar firn - implications for ice core interpretation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schlosser, Elisabeth; Oerter, H.; Masson-Delmotte, V.; Reijmer, C.H.

2008-01-01

The seasonal deuterium excess signal of fresh snow samples from Neumayer station, coastal Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, was studied to investigate the relationship between deuterium excess and precipitation origin. An isotope model was combined with a trajectory model to determine the relative

Sperm viability and gene expression in honey bee queens (Apis mellifera) following exposure to the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid and the organophosphate acaricide coumaphos.

Science.gov (United States)

Chaimanee, Veeranan; Evans, Jay D; Chen, Yanping; Jackson, Caitlin; Pettis, Jeffery S

2016-06-01

Honey bee population declines are of global concern. Numerous factors appear to cause these declines including parasites, pathogens, malnutrition and pesticides. Residues of the organophosphate acaricide coumaphos and the neonicotinoid insecticide imidacloprid, widely used to combat Varroa mites and for crop protection in agriculture, respectively, have been detected in wax, pollen and comb samples. Here, we assess the effects of these compounds at different doses on the viability of sperm stored in the honey bee queens' spermatheca. Our results demonstrate that sub-lethal doses of imidacloprid (0.02ppm) decreased sperm viability by 50%, 7days after treatment. Sperm viability was a downward trend (about 33%) in queens treated with high doses of coumaphos (100ppm), but there was not significant difference. The expression of genes that are involved in development, immune responses and detoxification in honey bee queens and workers exposed to chemicals was measured by qPCR analysis. The data showed that expression levels of specific genes were triggered 1day after treatment. The expression levels of P450 subfamily genes, CYP306A1, CYP4G11 and CYP6AS14 were decreased in honey bee queens treated with low doses of coumaphos (5ppm) and imidacloprid (0.02ppm). Moreover, these two compounds suppressed the expression of genes related to antioxidation, immunity and development in queens at day 1. Up-regulation of antioxidants by these compounds in worker bees was observed at day 1. Coumaphos also caused a repression of CYP306A1 and CYP4G11 in workers. Antioxidants appear to prevent chemical damage to honey bees. We also found that DWV replication increased in workers treated with imidacloprid. This research clearly demonstrates that chemical exposure can affect sperm viability in queen honey bees. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A new nuclear materials laboratory at Queen's University

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Holt, R.A.; Daymond, M.R.

2015-01-01

The Reactor Materials Testing Laboratory (RMTL) at Queen's University and the results of commissioning tests are described. RMTL uses energetic protons (up to 8MeV) to simulate fast neutron damage in materials for reactor components. The laboratory is also capable of He implantation (up to 12 MeV) to simulate the effects of transmutation He in reactor components. The $17.5M laboratory comprises a new building, a 4MV tandem accelerator, two electron microscopes, mechanical testing and specimen preparation equipment, and a radiation detection laboratory. RMTL focusses on studying dynamic effects of irradiation (irradiation creep, irradiation growth, irradiation induced swelling, fatigue under irradiation) in-situ. (author)

Identifying the Transition between Single and Multiple Mating of Queens in Fungus-Growing Ants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Villesen, Palle; Murakami, Takahiro; Schultz, Ted R.

2002-01-01

Obligate mating of females (queens) with multiple males has evolved only rarely in social Hymenoptera (ants, social bees, social wasps) and for reasons that are fundamentally different from those underlying multiple mating in other animals. The monophyletic tribe of ('attine') fungus-growing ants...

Identifying the transition between single and multiple mating of queens in fungus-growing ants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Villesen, Palle; Murakami, Takahiro; Schultz, Ted R

2002-01-01

Obligate mating of females (queens) with multiple males has evolved only rarely in social Hymenoptera (ants, social bees, social wasps) and for reasons that are fundamentally different from those underlying multiple mating in other animals. The monophyletic tribe of ('attine') fungus-growing ants...

Solving the N-Queens Problem with GROOVE - Towards a Compendium of Best Practices

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Zambon, Eduardo; Rensink, Arend; Hermann, F.; Sauer, S.

We present a detailed solution to the N-queens puzzle using GROOVE, a graph transformation tool especially designed for state space exploration and analysis. While GROOVE has been freely available for more than a decade and has attracted a reasonable number of users, it is safe to say that only a

Co-occurrence of mated workers and a mated queen in a colony of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

arnoldi (Hymenoptera: Formicidae). Martin Villet *. Department of Zoology, University of the Witwatersrand, P.O.. Wits, 2050 Republic of South Africa. Received 23 March 1992; accepted 8 June 1992. A colony of Platythyrea arnold; was found to contain a functional queen and laying workers, both virgin and mated. This form ...

Mating Frequencies of Honey Bee Queens (Apis mellifera L.) in a Population of Feral Colonies in the Northeastern United States

Science.gov (United States)

Tarpy, David R.; Delaney, Deborah A.; Seeley, Thomas D.

2015-01-01

Across their introduced range in North America, populations of feral honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies have supposedly declined in recent decades as a result of exotic parasites, most notably the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor. Nonetheless, recent studies have documented several wild populations of colonies that have persisted. The extreme polyandry of honey bee queens—and the increased intracolony genetic diversity it confers—has been attributed, in part, to improved disease resistance and may be a factor in the survival of these populations of feral colonies. We estimated the mating frequencies of queens in feral colonies in the Arnot Forest in New York State to determine if the level of polyandry of these queens is especially high and so might contribute to their survival success. We genotyped the worker offspring from 10 feral colonies in the Arnot Forest of upstate New York, as well as those from 20 managed colonies closest to this forest. We found no significant differences in mean mating frequency between the feral and managed queens, suggesting that queens in the remote, low-density population of colonies in the Arnot Forest are neither mate-limited nor adapted to mate at an especially high frequency. These findings support the hypothesis that the hyperpolyandry of honey bees has been shaped on an evolutionary timescale rather than on an ecological one. PMID:25775410

Effect of irradiation on queen survivorship and reproduction in the invasive fire ant Solenopsis invicta,(Hymenoptera: Formicidae) and a generic phytosanitary irradiation treatment for ants

Science.gov (United States)

Ants are common hitchhiker pests on traded agricultural commodities that could be controlled by postharvest irradiation treatment. We studied radiation tolerance in queens of the red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta Buren to determine the dose sufficient for its control. Virgin or fertile queens...

Development of a Classification Scheme for Examining Adverse Events Associated with Medical Devices, Specifically the DaVinci Surgical System as Reported in the FDA MAUDE Database.

Science.gov (United States)

Gupta, Priyanka; Schomburg, John; Krishna, Suprita; Adejoro, Oluwakayode; Wang, Qi; Marsh, Benjamin; Nguyen, Andrew; Genere, Juan Reyes; Self, Patrick; Lund, Erik; Konety, Badrinath R

2017-01-01

To examine the Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience Database (MAUDE) database to capture adverse events experienced with the Da Vinci Surgical System. In addition, to design a standardized classification system to categorize the complications and machine failures associated with the device. Overall, 1,057,000 DaVinci procedures were performed in the United States between 2009 and 2012. Currently, no system exists for classifying and comparing device-related errors and complications with which to evaluate adverse events associated with the Da Vinci Surgical System. The MAUDE database was queried for events reports related to the DaVinci Surgical System between the years 2009 and 2012. A classification system was developed and tested among 14 robotic surgeons to associate a level of severity with each event and its relationship to the DaVinci Surgical System. Events were then classified according to this system and examined by using Chi-square analysis. Two thousand eight hundred thirty-seven events were identified, of which 34% were obstetrics and gynecology (Ob/Gyn); 19%, urology; 11%, other; and 36%, not specified. Our classification system had moderate agreement with a Kappa score of 0.52. Using our classification system, we identified 75% of the events as mild, 18% as moderate, 4% as severe, and 3% as life threatening or resulting in death. Seventy-seven percent were classified as definitely related to the device, 15% as possibly related, and 8% as not related. Urology procedures compared with Ob/Gyn were associated with more severe events (38% vs 26%, p tool with moderate inter-rater agreement that can be used to better understand device-related adverse events. The majority of robotic related events were mild but associated with the device.

African Zoology - Vol 31, No 1 (1996)

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Panagrolaimus magnivulvatus Boström, 1995 in nest material, algae and soils from inland nunataks in western Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica · EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT EMAIL FREE FULL TEXT · DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT DOWNLOAD FULL TEXT. A Swart, J.M. Harris, 15-22 ...

Structure of ovarioles in adult queens and workers of the common wasp, Vespula germanica (Hymenoptera: Vespidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Jabłońska, A; Biliński, S M

2001-01-01

The ovaries of the common wasp, Vespula germanica are polytrophic-meroistic and consist of 2-3 (workers) or 7 (queens) ovarioles. The ovarioles are differentiated into three regions: a terminal filament, a germarium, and a vitellarium. The germaria of both castes consist of two zones: an anterior zone of germ-cell cluster formation and a posterior one of germ-cell cluster differentiation. The vitellaria comprise 4-6 (workers) or 7-10 (queens) ovarian follicles (egg chambers). Each chamber consists of an oocyte and about 60 isodiametric nurse cells (trophocytes). The egg chambers have been arbitrarily classified into four developmental categories: early and late previtellogenic, vitellogenic, and choriogenic. The process of oogenesis in workers proceeds only up to the onset of the late previtellogenesis. Neither vitellogenic nor choriogenic egg chambers were observed in this caste. During early and late previtellogenesis the envelope of the oocyte nucleus proliferates and becomes highly folded. This process leads to the formation of characteristic organelles, termed accessory nuclei (AN). Although AN arise in the oocytes of both queens and workers, their number in the latter caste is always considerably lower. At the onset of the late previtellogenesis AN start to migrate towards the periphery of the oocyte where they reside till the end of oogenesis. The physiological state of the worker ovaries is discussed in the light of the presented results.

A genetic component to size in queens of the ant, Formica truncorum

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bargum, Katja; Boomsma, Jacobus Jan; Sundström, L.

2004-01-01

The genetic basis of morphological traits in social insects remains largely unexplored. This is even true for individual body size, a key life-history trait. In the social insects, the size of reproductive individuals affects dispersal decisions, so that small size in queens is often associated w...

School-Parent-Community Partnerships: The Experience of Teachers Who Received the Queen Rania Award for Excellence in Education in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan

Science.gov (United States)

Obeidat, Osamha M.; Al-Hassan, Suha M.

2009-01-01

The purpose of this study is to examine and understand the school-parents-community partnerships created by teachers who received the Queen Rania Award for Excellence in Education. This study analyzes the applications of the 28 teachers who received the Award in 2007 and addresses three questions: How do teachers who received the Queen Rania Award…

Panagrolaimus magnivulvatus Boström, 1995 in nest material, algae ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Panagrolaimus magnivulvatus Boström, 1995 is reported from habitats on inland nunataks in western Dronning Maud Land, continental Antarctica. This species was recorded in lithosols of three of the 11 nunataks (Marsteinen, Lorentzenpiggen and Valterkulten) sampled during the 1992-93 summer. In addition, it was ...

Cross-species correlation between queen mating numbers and worker ovary sizes suggests kin conflict may influence ovary size evolution in honeybees

Science.gov (United States)

Rueppell, Olav; Phaincharoen, Mananya; Kuster, Ryan; Tingek, Salim

2011-09-01

During social evolution, the ovary size of reproductively specialized honey bee queens has dramatically increased while their workers have evolved much smaller ovaries. However, worker division of labor and reproductive competition under queenless conditions are influenced by worker ovary size. Little comparative information on ovary size exists in the different honey bee species. Here, we report ovariole numbers of freshly dissected workers from six Apis species from two locations in Southeast Asia. The average number of worker ovarioles differs significantly among species. It is strongly correlated with the average mating number of queens, irrespective of body size. Apis dorsata, in particular, is characterized by numerous matings and very large worker ovaries. The relation between queen mating number and ovary size across the six species suggests that individual selection via reproductive competition plays a role in worker ovary size evolution. This indicates that genetic diversity, generated by multiple mating, may bear a fitness cost at the colony level.

A review of methods used in some European countries for assessing the quality of honey bee queens through their physical characters and the performance of their colonies

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hatjina, Fani; Bienkowska, Malgorzata; Charistos, Leonidas

2014-01-01

The term “quality” in relation to queens and drones refers to certain quantitative physical and / or behavioural characters. It is generally believed that a high quality queen should have the following physical characteristics: high live weight; high number of ovarioles; large size of spermatheca...

Maude Abbott and the Origin and Mysterious Disappearance of the Canadian Medical War Museum.

Science.gov (United States)

Wright, James R; Alberti, Samuel J M M; Lyons, Christopher; Fraser, Richard S

2018-05-07

- In the early 1900s, it was common practice to retain, prepare, and display instructive pathologic specimens to teach pathology to medical trainees and practitioners; these collections were called medical museums. Maude Abbott established her reputation by developing expertise in all aspects of medical museum work. She was a founder of the International Association of Medical Museums (later renamed the International Academy of Pathology) and became an internationally renowned expert on congenital heart disease. Her involvement in the Canadian Medical War Museum (CMWM) is less well known. - To explore Abbott's role in the development of the CMWM during and after World War I and to trace its history. - Available primary and secondary historical sources were reviewed. - Instructive pathologic specimens derived from Canadian soldiers dying during World War I were shipped to the Royal College of Surgeons in London, which served as a clearinghouse for museum specimens from Dominion forces. The Canadian specimens were repatriated to Canada, prepared by Abbott, and displayed at several medical meetings. Abbott, because she was a woman, could not enlist and so she reported to a series of enlisted physicians with no expertise in museology. Plans for a permanent CMWM building in Ottawa eventually failed and Abbott maintained the collection at McGill (Montreal, Quebec, Canada) until her death in 1940. We trace the CMWM after her death. - Sadly, after Abbott had meticulously prepared these precious teaching specimens so that their previous owners' ultimate sacrifice would continue to help their military brethren, the relics were bureaucratically lost.

Ice core melt features in relation to Antarctic coastal climate

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kaczmarska, M.; Isaksson, E.; Karlöf, L.; Brandt, O.; Winther, J.G.; van de Wal, R.S.W.; van den Broeke, M.R.; Johnsen, S.J.

2006-01-01

Measurement of light intensity transmission was carried out on an ice core S100 from coastal Dronning Maud Land (DML). Ice lenses were observed in digital pictures of the core and recorded as peaks in the light transmittance record. The frequency of ice layer occurrence was compared with climate

Modeling the isotopic composition of Antarctic snow using backward trajectories: simulation of snow pit records

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Helsen, M.M.; van de Wal, R.S.W.; van den Broeke, M.R.; Masson-Delmotte, V.; Meijer, H.A.J.; Scheele, M.P.; Werner, M.

2006-01-01

The quantitative interpretation of isotope records (d18O, dD, and d excess) in ice cores can benefit from a comparison of observed meteorology with associated isotope variability. For this reason we studied four isotope records from snow pits in western Dronning Maud Land (DML), Antarctica, covering

Genomewide analysis indicates that queen larvae have lower methylation levels in the honey bee ( Apis mellifera)

Science.gov (United States)

Shi, Yuan Yuan; Yan, Wei Yu; Huang, Zachary Y.; Wang, Zi Long; Wu, Xiao Bo; Zeng, Zhi Jiang

2013-02-01

The honey bee is a social insect characterized by caste differentiation, by which a young larva can develop into either a queen or a worker. Despite possessing the same genome, queen and workers display marked differences in reproductive capacity, physiology, and behavior. Recent studies have shown that DNA methylation plays important roles in caste differentiation. To further explore the roles of DNA methylation in this process, we analyzed DNA methylome profiles of both queen larvae (QL) and worker larvae (WL) of different ages (2, 4, and 6 day old), by using methylated DNA immunoprecipitation-sequencing (meDIP-seq) technique. The global DNA methylation levels varied between the larvae of two castes. DNA methylation increased from 2-day- to 4-day-old QL and then decreased in 6-day-old larvae. In WL, methylation levels increased with age. The methylcytosines in both larvae were enriched in introns, followed by coding sequence (CDS) regions, CpG islands, 2 kbp downstream and upstream of genes, and 5' and 3' untranslated regions (UTRs). The number of differentially methylated genes (DMGs) in 2-, 4-, and 6-day-old QL and WL was 725, 3,013, and 5,049, respectively. Compared to 4- and 6-day-old WL, a large number of genes in QL were downmethylated, which were involved in many processes including development, reproduction, and metabolic regulation. In addition, some DMGs were concerned with caste differentiation.

Drone exposure to the systemic insecticide Fipronil indirectly impairs queen reproductive potential

Science.gov (United States)

Kairo, Guillaume; Provost, Bertille; Tchamitchian, Sylvie; Ben Abdelkader, Faten; Bonnet, Marc; Cousin, Marianne; Sénéchal, Jacques; Benet, Pauline; Kretzschmar, André; Belzunces, Luc P.; Brunet, Jean-Luc

2016-08-01

A species that requires sexual reproduction but cannot reproduce is doomed to extinction. The important increasing loss of species emphasizes the ecological significance of elucidating the effects of environmental stressors, such as pesticides, on reproduction. Despite its special reproductive behavior, the honey bee was selected as a relevant and integrative environmental model because of its constant and diverse exposure to many stressors due to foraging activity. The widely used insecticide Fipronil, the use of which is controversial because of its adverse effects on honey bees, was chosen to expose captive drones in hives via syrup contaminated at 0.1 μg/L and gathered by foragers. Such environmental exposure led to decreased spermatozoa concentration and sperm viability coupled with an increased sperm metabolic rate, resulting in drone fertility impairment. Subsequently, unexposed queens inseminated with such sperm exhibited fewer spermatozoa with lower viability in their spermatheca, leaving no doubt about the detrimental consequences for the reproductive potential of queens, which are key for colony sustainability. These findings suggest that pesticides could contribute to declining honey bee populations through fertility impairment, as exemplified by Fipronil. More broadly, reproductive disorders should be taken into consideration when investigating the decline of other species.

Drone exposure to the systemic insecticide Fipronil indirectly impairs queen reproductive potential.

Science.gov (United States)

Kairo, Guillaume; Provost, Bertille; Tchamitchian, Sylvie; Ben Abdelkader, Faten; Bonnet, Marc; Cousin, Marianne; Sénéchal, Jacques; Benet, Pauline; Kretzschmar, André; Belzunces, Luc P; Brunet, Jean-Luc

2016-08-23

A species that requires sexual reproduction but cannot reproduce is doomed to extinction. The important increasing loss of species emphasizes the ecological significance of elucidating the effects of environmental stressors, such as pesticides, on reproduction. Despite its special reproductive behavior, the honey bee was selected as a relevant and integrative environmental model because of its constant and diverse exposure to many stressors due to foraging activity. The widely used insecticide Fipronil, the use of which is controversial because of its adverse effects on honey bees, was chosen to expose captive drones in hives via syrup contaminated at 0.1 μg/L and gathered by foragers. Such environmental exposure led to decreased spermatozoa concentration and sperm viability coupled with an increased sperm metabolic rate, resulting in drone fertility impairment. Subsequently, unexposed queens inseminated with such sperm exhibited fewer spermatozoa with lower viability in their spermatheca, leaving no doubt about the detrimental consequences for the reproductive potential of queens, which are key for colony sustainability. These findings suggest that pesticides could contribute to declining honey bee populations through fertility impairment, as exemplified by Fipronil. More broadly, reproductive disorders should be taken into consideration when investigating the decline of other species.

Drone exposure to the systemic insecticide Fipronil indirectly impairs queen reproductive potential

Science.gov (United States)

Kairo, Guillaume; Provost, Bertille; Tchamitchian, Sylvie; Ben Abdelkader, Faten; Bonnet, Marc; Cousin, Marianne; Sénéchal, Jacques; Benet, Pauline; Kretzschmar, André; Belzunces, Luc P.; Brunet, Jean-Luc

2016-01-01

A species that requires sexual reproduction but cannot reproduce is doomed to extinction. The important increasing loss of species emphasizes the ecological significance of elucidating the effects of environmental stressors, such as pesticides, on reproduction. Despite its special reproductive behavior, the honey bee was selected as a relevant and integrative environmental model because of its constant and diverse exposure to many stressors due to foraging activity. The widely used insecticide Fipronil, the use of which is controversial because of its adverse effects on honey bees, was chosen to expose captive drones in hives via syrup contaminated at 0.1 μg/L and gathered by foragers. Such environmental exposure led to decreased spermatozoa concentration and sperm viability coupled with an increased sperm metabolic rate, resulting in drone fertility impairment. Subsequently, unexposed queens inseminated with such sperm exhibited fewer spermatozoa with lower viability in their spermatheca, leaving no doubt about the detrimental consequences for the reproductive potential of queens, which are key for colony sustainability. These findings suggest that pesticides could contribute to declining honey bee populations through fertility impairment, as exemplified by Fipronil. More broadly, reproductive disorders should be taken into consideration when investigating the decline of other species. PMID:27549030

76 FR 13271 - DeQueen and Eastern Railroad, LLC-Corporate Family Transaction Exemption-Texas, Oklahoma...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-03-10

... Eastern Railroad, LLC--Corporate Family Transaction Exemption--Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad, LLC DeQueen and Eastern Railroad, LLC (DQ&E) and Texas, Oklahoma & Eastern Railroad, LLC (TOE), have filed a... the competitive balance with carriers outside the corporate family. Under 49 U.S.C. 10502(g), the...

Ultrastructure of the intramandibular gland of workers and queens of the stingless bee, Melipona quadrifasciata.

Science.gov (United States)

Da Cruz-Landim, Carminda; Gracioli-Vitti, Luciana F; Abdalla, Fábio C

2011-01-01

The intramandibular glands of workers and queens of Melipona quadrifasciata Lepeletier (Hymenoptera: Apidae), at different ages and from different functional groups, were studied using light and transmission electron microscopy. The results demonstrated that these glands are composed of two types of secretory structures: 1.A hypertrophied epidermis on the dorsal side of the mandible that is an epithelial gland. 2. Free secretory cells filling the inner spaces of the appendices that constitute a unicellular gland. The epithelial gland is larger in the young (1-2-day-old workers), and the gland becomes involuted during the nurse worker stage. The unicellular glands of the workers posses some secretion during all of the studied phases, but secretory activity is more intensive in the foraging workers. Vesicles of secretion are absent in the unicellular glands of queens. These results demonstrate that these glands show functional adaptations in different castes corresponding to the functions of each caste.

The History of Neurosurgery at the National Hospital, Queen Square, London, with Some Personal Recollections from 1948 Onwards: The Early Years.

Science.gov (United States)

Powell, Michael P

2017-07-01

The National Hospital, Queen Square, London was founded as a charitable institution in 1860, becoming the first dedicated neuroscience hospital in the world. Sir Victor Horsley, the first neurosurgeon was appointed in 1886, and since that time, Queen Square neurosurgeons have been prominent on the World neurosurgical stage, including Sir Wylie McKissock and Prof Lindsay Symon, inter alia. This article gives the history taken from both published records and personal stories, recorded by a neurosurgeon who has worked at the hospital for thirty five years. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

‘A token of their love’: Queen Victoria Memorials in New Zealand

OpenAIRE

Stocker, Mark

2016-01-01

This article provides an overview of the four metropolitan sculptural memorials to Queen Victoria in late-colonial New Zealand, which all immediately precede the colony’s Dominion status (1907). In chronological order, they were erected in Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington, and Dunedin. While the Auckland memorial was unveiled within the Queen’s lifetime, her death in 1901 catalysed the commission of more ambitious counterparts in Wellington and Dunedin, and a degree of intercity rivalry was...

Very little in situ produced radiocarbon retained in accumulating Antarctic ice

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Kemp, W.J.M. van der; Alderliesten, C.; Borg, K. van der; Holmlund, P.; Jong, A.F.M. de; Karlöf, L.; Lamers, R.A.N.; Oerlemans, J.; Thomassen, M.; Wal, R.S.W. van de

2000-01-01

Ice samples from Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, were analyzed for 14CO2 and 14CO by accelerator mass spectrometry. Only a small amount (~2%) of in situ produced radiocarbon was detected. The calibrated radiocarbon ages, corrected for in situ produced 14C, are in fair agreement with age estimates

When Power Seduces Women: Shakespeare’S Tragic (Mother Queens in Manga

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Şerban Andreea

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Power is seductive, and fantasies of power affect both men and women, who are sometimes willing to do anything in order to achieve or retain it. The paper looks at how such a modern transmediation as manga renders powerful femininity in two of Shakespeare’s great tragedies, namely Hamlet and Macbeth. The paper aims to discuss the ways in which the emotive behaviour of both female protagonists eventually makes them inappropriate for the power roles they assume as wives, queens and mothers.

Transcript levels of ten caste-related genes in adult diploid males of Melipona quadrifasciata (Hymenoptera, Apidae: a comparison with haploid males, queens and workers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andreia A. Borges

2011-01-01

Full Text Available In Hymenoptera, homozygosity at the sex locus results in the production of diploid males. In social species, these pose a double burden by having low fitness and drawing resources normally spent for increasing the work force of a colony. Yet, diploid males are of academic interest as they can elucidate effects of ploidy (normal males are haploid, whereas the female castes, the queens and workers, are diploid on morphology and life history. Herein we investigated expression levels of ten caste-related genes in the stingless bee Melipona quadrifasciata, comparing newly emerged and 5-day-old diploid males with haploid males, queens and workers. In diploid males, transcript levels for dunce and paramyosin were increased during the first five days of adult life, while those for diacylglycerol kinase and the transcriptional co-repressor groucho diminished. Two general trends were apparent, (i gene expression patterns in diploid males were overall more similar to haploid ones and workers than to queens, and (ii in queens and workers, more genes were up-regulated after emergence until day five, whereas in diploid and especially so in haploid males more genes were down-regulated. This difference between the sexes may be related to longevity, which is much longer in females than in males.

Transcript levels of ten caste-related genes in adult diploid males of Melipona quadrifasciata (Hymenoptera, Apidae) - A comparison with haploid males, queens and workers.

Science.gov (United States)

Borges, Andreia A; Humann, Fernanda C; Oliveira Campos, Lucio A; Tavares, Mara G; Hartfelder, Klaus

2011-10-01

In Hymenoptera, homozygosity at the sex locus results in the production of diploid males. In social species, these pose a double burden by having low fitness and drawing resources normally spent for increasing the work force of a colony. Yet, diploid males are of academic interest as they can elucidate effects of ploidy (normal males are haploid, whereas the female castes, the queens and workers, are diploid) on morphology and life history. Herein we investigated expression levels of ten caste-related genes in the stingless bee Melipona quadrifasciata, comparing newly emerged and 5-day-old diploid males with haploid males, queens and workers. In diploid males, transcript levels for dunce and paramyosin were increased during the first five days of adult life, while those for diacylglycerol kinase and the transcriptional co-repressor groucho diminished. Two general trends were apparent, (i) gene expression patterns in diploid males were overall more similar to haploid ones and workers than to queens, and (ii) in queens and workers, more genes were up-regulated after emergence until day five, whereas in diploid and especially so in haploid males more genes were down-regulated. This difference between the sexes may be related to longevity, which is much longer in females than in males.

Teaching geriatric medicine at the Queen's University of Belfast.

Science.gov (United States)

Stout, R W

1983-01-01

Undergraduate teaching at the Queen's University, Belfast, takes place in the fourth year of a five year curriculum. It lasts three weeks and this is divided into two parts. First, held within the university department, is topic-based teaching including seminars, discussions, case histories and visits. The second phase of two weeks consists of attachment of two to four students to geriatric medical units both in and outside Belfast. The whole of this module is situated within a combined course involving community medicine, general practice, geriatric medicine and mental health lasting 12 weeks and involving one-third of the year of 150 students each time. In addition to the three weeks teaching in geriatrics, joint discussion groups are held.

The beauty and the beast: reflections about the socio-historical and subcultural context of drag queens and "Tunten" in Berlin.

Science.gov (United States)

Balzer, Carsten

2004-01-01

In this article, I focus on two different faces found in Berlin's gay subculture: the Tunten and the drag queens. Both are commonly seen as "male homosexual transvestites," although many such individuals today prefer to identify themselves somewhere within a diverse transgender spectrum rather than as transvestites. Tunten and drag queens differ in their gender performativity, their self-image and their chosen role models as well as in the niches in which they have been able to establish themselves in German mainstream society. Based on ethnographic data, I argue against the widespread reductionist view that the differences between Tunten and drag queens lie primarily in style, behavior, talent and success. Nor can these differences be easily explained away as a result of subculture globalization. Instead, I show that there is a simultaneous coexistence of both a subculturally established, "traditional" local transgender culture and a more recently adopted and partly imported, new local transgender culture. The coexistence of these two urban transgender cultures also indicates the paradigm shift in German gay and youth cultures of the last decades. Thus, I will emphasize the importance of the socio-historical and subcultural processes in studying transgender cultures in Western societies.

Asexual queen succession mediates an accelerated colony life cycle in the termite Silvestritermes minutus

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Fougeyrollas, R.; Křivánek, Jan; Roy, V.; Dolejšová, Klára; Frechault, S.; Roisin, Y.; Hanus, Robert; Sillam-Dusses, D.

2017-01-01

Roč. 26, č. 12 (2017), s. 3295-3308 ISSN 0962-1083 R&D Projects: GA ČR(CZ) GA14-12774S Institutional support: RVO:61388963 Keywords : asexual queen succession * breeding system * life history * parthenogenesis * Silvestritermes minutus * termites Subject RIV: EB - Genetics ; Molecular Biology OBOR OECD: Genetics and heredity (medical genetics to be 3) Impact factor: 6.086, year: 2016

Postava krále Artuše jako prostředek legitimizace moci. Edmund Spenser a John Dee // The character of King Arthur as a medium of legitimization of Queen Elizabeth’s policy

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zdeňka Špiclová

2016-11-01

Full Text Available The article deals with two essential aspects of the policy of Queen Elizabeth I. — the enforcement of Protestantism as the state religion and the claim of the British Empire to the New World — and its justification in two famous works: the Faerie Queene by Edmund Spenser and Brytanici Imperii Limites by John Dee. They both used the character of King Arthur to support Queen Elizabeth’s policy.

Non-Detriment Finding Regarding the Export of Queen conch (Lobatus gigas) from St Eustatius (Caribbean Netherlands)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Graaf, de M.; Meijer zu Schlochteren, M.; Boman, E.

2014-01-01

Queen conch (Lobatus gigas (Strombidae; Gastropoda) is a large, long-lived marine gastropod that is widely distributed throughout the coastal zones of the Wider Caribbean region. Because of concern for its future the species was listed in Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in

‘All Touched my Hand’: Queenly Sentiment and Royal Prerogative

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rachel Bates

2015-05-01

Full Text Available The Crimean War occurred during a formative period of ‘civic publicness’, a term used by John Plunkett to describe the press-mediated public duties undertaken by Victoria and Albert to affirm the monarchy’s popular constitution. The war triggered significant royal intervention into the condition of the army, one of the few sites of royal prerogative. At a time when aristocratic governance was being attacked and the privations of soldiers exposed to an unprecedented extent, the monarchy was keen both to legitimize its role as head of the army and to demonstrate its sensitivity to popular concern for the suffering of ordinary soldiers. This manifested in a highly publicized leaked letter from the Queen expressing her regard for ‘her troops’, the royal family’s visits to wounded soldiers, and the distribution of the Crimean Medal at a special ceremony, which portrayed the accessibility of the Queen through the use of touch. This article explores the symbolism and impetus of these occurrences and assesses the reception of royal intervention in the press. The few assessments of royal influence during the Crimean War have focused largely on Victoria’s personal fascination with the progress of the war and her soldiers. This article explores instead the wider, political significance of the army as extension of the royal family. The Liberal press and artists responded favourably to demonstrations of the Queen’s maternal sympathy for the troops, but my article will point to a hidden struggle to assert the Crown’s authority. Normal 0 false false false EN-GB X-NONE X-NONE

Identification, expression, and immuno-reactivity of Sol i 2 & Sol i 4 venom proteins of queen red imported fire ants, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera: Formicidae).

Science.gov (United States)

Lockwood, Stephanie A; Haghipour-Peasley, Jilla; Hoffman, Donald R; Deslippe, Richard J

2012-10-01

We report on two low-molecular weight proteins that are stored in the venom of queen red imported fire ants (Solenopsis invicta). Translated amino acid sequences identified one protein to have 74.8% identity with the Sol i 2w worker allergen, and the other protein was found to have 96/97% identity with Sol i 4.01w/4.02w worker allergens. Both Sol i 2 and Sol i 4 queen and worker proteins were expressed using pEXP1-DEST vector in SHuffle™ T7 Express lysY Escherichia coli. Proteins were expressed at significant concentrations, as opposed to the μg/ml amounts by our previous expression methods, enabling further study of these proteins. Sol i 2q protein bound weakly to human IgE, sera pooled from allergic patients, whereas Sol i 2w, Sol i 4.01w, and Sol i 4q proteins bound strongly. Despite Sol i 2w and Sol i 2q proteins having 74.8% identity, the queen protein is less immuno-reactive than the worker allergen. This finding is consistent with allergic individuals being less sensitive to queen than worker venom. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

A new nuclear materials laboratory at Queen's University

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Holt, R.A.; Daymond, M.R., E-mail: holt@queensu.ca, E-mail: daymond@queensu.ca [Queen' s University, Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Kingston, ON (Canada)

2015-07-01

The Reactor Materials Testing Laboratory (RMTL) at Queen's University and the results of commissioning tests are described. RMTL uses energetic protons (up to 8MeV) to simulate fast neutron damage in materials for reactor components. The laboratory is also capable of He implantation (up to 12 MeV) to simulate the effects of transmutation He in reactor components. The $17.5M laboratory comprises a new building, a 4MV tandem accelerator, two electron microscopes, mechanical testing and specimen preparation equipment, and a radiation detection laboratory. RMTL focusses on studying dynamic effects of irradiation (irradiation creep, irradiation growth, irradiation induced swelling, fatigue under irradiation) in-situ. (author)

The queen is not a pacemaker in the small-colony wasps Polistes instabilis and P. dominulus

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jha, Shalene; Casey-Ford, Rowan G.; Pedersen, Jes Søe

2006-01-01

How work is organized varies in social insect colonies. Some investigators have argued that the queen plays an active role in regulating worker activity in species with small, simple colonies, but that work is self-organized in species with large, complex colonies. Here, we present data that sugg...

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Influence of climatic teleconnections on the temporal isotopic variability as recorded in a firn core from the coastal Dronning Maud Land, East Antarctica · Sushant S Naik Meloth Thamban A Rajakumar Witty D'Souza C M Laluraj Arun Chaturvedi · More Details Abstract Fulltext PDF. Ice and firn core studies provide one of the ...

The Black Queen Hypothesis: evolution of dependencies through adaptive gene loss.

Science.gov (United States)

Morris, J Jeffrey; Lenski, Richard E; Zinser, Erik R

2012-01-01

Reductive genomic evolution, driven by genetic drift, is common in endosymbiotic bacteria. Genome reduction is less common in free-living organisms, but it has occurred in the numerically dominant open-ocean bacterioplankton Prochlorococcus and "Candidatus Pelagibacter," and in these cases the reduction appears to be driven by natural selection rather than drift. Gene loss in free-living organisms may leave them dependent on cooccurring microbes for lost metabolic functions. We present the Black Queen Hypothesis (BQH), a novel theory of reductive evolution that explains how selection leads to such dependencies; its name refers to the queen of spades in the game Hearts, where the usual strategy is to avoid taking this card. Gene loss can provide a selective advantage by conserving an organism's limiting resources, provided the gene's function is dispensable. Many vital genetic functions are leaky, thereby unavoidably producing public goods that are available to the entire community. Such leaky functions are thus dispensable for individuals, provided they are not lost entirely from the community. The BQH predicts that the loss of a costly, leaky function is selectively favored at the individual level and will proceed until the production of public goods is just sufficient to support the equilibrium community; at that point, the benefit of any further loss would be offset by the cost. Evolution in accordance with the BQH thus generates "beneficiaries" of reduced genomic content that are dependent on leaky "helpers," and it may explain the observed nonuniversality of prototrophy, stress resistance, and other cellular functions in the microbial world.

Sex Attractant Pheromones of Virgin Queens of Sympatric Slave-Making Ant Species in the Genus Polyergus, and their Possible Roles in Reproductive Isolation.

Science.gov (United States)

Greenberg, Les; Johnson, Christine A; Trager, James C; McElfresh, J Steven; Rodstein, Joshua; Millar, Jocelyn G

2018-06-01

Species of the ant genus Polyergus are social parasites that steal brood from colonies of their hosts in the closely related genus Formica. Upon emergence as adults in a mixed population, host Formica workers carry out all the normal worker functions within the Polyergus colony, including foraging, feeding, grooming, and rearing brood of the parasitic Polyergus ants. Some unmated Polyergus gynes (queens) run in the raiding columns of their colonies and attract males by releasing a pheromone from their mandibular glands. There are two Polyergus species groups in North America: an eastern P. lucidus group and a western P. breviceps group. One species of each of these groups, P. lucidus Mayr and P. mexicanus Emery, are sympatric in Missouri. In this study, we characterized the sex pheromones of virgin queens of two species of the P. lucidus group (P. lucidus sensu stricto and P. sanwaldi) and one species of the P. breviceps group (P. mexicanus), and compared these with the previously identified sex pheromone of P. topoffi of the P. breviceps group. We then used sex pheromone blends reconstructed from synthesized components of the two groups to test their efficacy at reproductively isolating these species. We found that methyl 6-methylsalicylate is conserved as the major component of the pheromone blends for both Polyergus species groups; however, methyl (R)-3-ethyl-4-methylpentanoate is the species-specific minor component produced by P. lucidus group queens, and (R)-3-ethyl-4-methylpentan-1-ol is the crucial minor component for P. breviceps group queens. The optimal ratio of the major and minor components for P. lucidus group queens was about 100:1 salicylate to ester. In concurrent field trials in Missouri, males of P. lucidus sensu stricto and P. mexicanus (a member of the P. breviceps group) were attracted almost exclusively to their particular blends of sex pheromone components. To our knowledge, this is the first example of a possible sex

Extreme queen-mating frequency and colony fission in African army ants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kronauer, Daniel J C; Schoning, Caspar; Pedersen, Jes S

2004-01-01

, which have so far been regarded as odd exceptions within the social Hymenoptera. Army ants and honeybees are fundamentally different in morphology and life history, but are the only social insects known that combine obligate multiple mating with reproduction by colony fission and extremely male......-biased sex ratios. This implies that the very high numbers of matings in both groups may be due partly to the relatively low costs of additional matings. Second, we were able to trace recent events of colony fission in four of the investigated colonies, where the genotypes of the two queens were only...

Not the Honey Bee (Apis mellifera L. Queen, but the Drone Determines the Termination of the Nuptial Flight and the Onset of Oviposition - The Polemics, Abnegations, Corrections and Supplements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Woyke Jerzy

2016-12-01

Full Text Available This paper emphasizes the topics concerning honey bee (Apis mellifera L. mating biology, which have not been described in the recently published book of Koeniger et al. (2014. At the beginning of natural mating, the drone becomes paralyzed. However, the muscles in the abdomen continuously contract shrinking the abdomen till mating has ended and the pair have separated. It is not the queen that ends the nuptial flight. The termination of the nuptial flight is determined by the drone, which fails to remove the mating sign of the previous drone from the sting chamber of the queen. The mating sign originates from two or more drones. The queen also does not determine the age at which she starts oviposition. It is the last drone, which tried to mate, but failed to remove the mating sign of the predecessor, that determines the age that the queen starts oviposition. The book of Koeniger et al. (2014, together with this paper, present the current knowledge of the mating biology of honey bees.

Journal of Earth System Science | Indian Academy of Sciences

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Home; Journals; Journal of Earth System Science; Volume 111; Issue 1. Records of climatic changes and volcanic events in an ice core from Central Dronning Maud Land (East Antarctica) during the past century. V N Nijampurkar D K Rao H B Clausen M K Kaul A Chaturvedi. Volume 111 Issue 1 March 2002 pp 39-49 ...

The reduction of the intrapartum still birth rate at the Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, I; Chang, A; Renou, P; Wood, C

1977-06-18

A significant reduction in intrapartum anoxic fetal deaths has occurred at the Queen Victoria Memorial Hospital over the last ten years. The possible explanations for this include a variety of factors, which may either improve the health of the population presenting to the hospital, or improve obstetric care. Epidemiological evidence suggests that the use of fetal diagnostic techniques has contributed to the reduction of intrapartum anoxic still births.

Neonicotinoid pesticide reduces bumble bee colony growth and queen production.

Science.gov (United States)

Whitehorn, Penelope R; O'Connor, Stephanie; Wackers, Felix L; Goulson, Dave

2012-04-20

Growing evidence for declines in bee populations has caused great concern because of the valuable ecosystem services they provide. Neonicotinoid insecticides have been implicated in these declines because they occur at trace levels in the nectar and pollen of crop plants. We exposed colonies of the bumble bee Bombus terrestris in the laboratory to field-realistic levels of the neonicotinoid imidacloprid, then allowed them to develop naturally under field conditions. Treated colonies had a significantly reduced growth rate and suffered an 85% reduction in production of new queens compared with control colonies. Given the scale of use of neonicotinoids, we suggest that they may be having a considerable negative impact on wild bumble bee populations across the developed world.

Birth centre confinement at the Queen Victoria Medical Centre: four years' experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Morris, N; Campbell, J; Biro, M A; Lumley, J; Rao, J; Spensley, J

1986-06-09

A review of the first four years of the functioning of the birth centre at the Queen Victoria Medical Centre is presented. In that time, 1040 pregnant women were accepted for confinement there. Of these, 52 withdrew for non-obstetric reasons, while 470 were transferred to alternative obstetrical care--274 because of antepartum complications and 196 because of intrapartum problems. Therefore, 518 women were delivered in the birth centre. The care of the women is entrusted almost entirely to a team of midwives and this review demonstrates an enviable safety record.

Tapping Teen Talent in Queens: A Library-Based, LSCA-Funded Youth Development Success Story from New York.

Science.gov (United States)

Williams, Barbara Osborne

1996-01-01

Describes a program developed by the Youth Services Division at the Queens Borough Public Library's Central Library to help teenagers maximize growth opportunities, build self-esteem, and see the library as a life resource. Highlights include securing funding through LSCA (Library Services and Construction Act), recruiting participants, and…

The tragic 1824 journey of the Hawaiian king and queen to London: history of measles in Hawaii.

Science.gov (United States)

Shulman, Stanford T; Shulman, Deborah L; Sims, Ronald H

2009-08-01

The susceptibility of isolated island-based populations to acute infections like measles is well documented, most clearly in Fiji and the Faröe Islands. We review the remarkably tragic 1824 journey of King Kamehameha II and Queen Kamamalu of Hawaii to London and the later enormous impact of measles on Hawaii on first arrival in 1848. The young royalty came to seek an audience with King George IV to negotiate an alliance with England. Virtually the entire royal party developed measles within weeks of arrival, 7 to 10 days after visiting the Royal Military Asylum housing hundreds of soldiers' children. Within the month the king (27) and queen (22) succumbed to measles complications. Their bodies were transported to Hawaii by Right Honorable Lord Byron (Captain George Anson, the poet's cousin). Before 1848 measles was unknown in Hawaii. Several epidemics struck Hawaii in late 1848, beginning with measles and pertussis, then diarrhea and influenza. Measles arrived at this time from California, spreading from Hilo, Hawaii, through all the islands; 10% to 33% of the population died. Subsequent measles epidemics occurred in 1861, 1889 to 1890, 1898, and 1936 to 1937, the latter with 205 deaths. The imported epidemics of infections including measles diminished Hawaii's population from approximately 300,000 at Captain Cook's arrival in 1778 to 135,000 in 1820 and 53,900 in 1876. The measles deaths of the king and queen in London in 1824, likely acquired visiting a large children's home, was a harbinger of the devastating impact of measles upon Hawaiians 24 years later with its first arrival to the Sandwich (Hawaiian) Islands.

Techniques for the In Vitro Production of Queens in Stingless Bees (Apidae, Meliponini)

OpenAIRE

Baptistella, Ana Rita; Souza, Camila C. M.; Santana, Weyder Cristiano; Egea Soares, Ademilson Espencer

2012-01-01

Considering the ecological importance of stingless bees as caretakers and pollinators of a variety of native plants makes it necessary to improve techniques which increase of colonies' number in order to preserve these species and the biodiversity associated with them. Thus, our aim was to develop a methodology of in vitro production of stingless bee queens by offering a large quantity of food to the larvae. Our methodology consisted of determining the amount of larval food needed for the dev...

The queen is dead--long live the workers: intraspecific parasitism by workers in the stingless bee Melipona scutellaris.

Science.gov (United States)

Alves, D A; Imperatriz-Fonseca, V L; Francoy, T M; Santos-Filho, P S; Nogueira-Neto, P; Billen, J; Wenseleers, T

2009-10-01

Insect societies are well known for their high degree of cooperation, but their colonies can potentially be exploited by reproductive workers who lay unfertilized, male eggs, rather than work for the good of the colony. Recently, it has also been discovered that workers in bumblebees and Asian honeybees can succeed in entering and parasitizing unrelated colonies to produce their own male offspring. The aim of this study was to investigate whether such intraspecific worker parasitism might also occur in stingless bees, another group of highly social bees. Based on a large-scale genetic study of the species Melipona scutellaris, and the genotyping of nearly 600 males from 45 colonies, we show that approximately 20% of all males are workers' sons, but that around 80% of these had genotypes that were incompatible with them being the sons of workers of the resident queen. By tracking colonies over multiple generations, we show that these males were not produced by drifted workers, but rather by workers that were the offspring of a previous, superseded queen. This means that uniquely, workers reproductively parasitize the next-generation workforce. Our results are surprising given that most colonies were sampled many months after the previous queen had died and that workers normally only have a life expectancy of approximately 30 days. It also implies that reproductive workers greatly outlive all other workers. We explain our results in the context of kin selection theory, and the fact that it pays workers more from exploiting the colony if costs are carried by less related individuals.

Report from the 2nd Summer School in Computational Biology organized by the Queen's University of Belfast

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank Emmert-Streib

2014-12-01

Full Text Available In this paper, we present a meeting report for the 2nd Summer School in Computational Biology organized by the Queen's University of Belfast. We describe the organization of the summer school, its underlying concept and student feedback we received after the completion of the summer school.

Eddies off the Queen Charlotte Islands

Science.gov (United States)

2002-01-01

The bright red, green, and turquoise patches to the west of British Columbia's Queen Charlotte Islands and Alaska's Alexander Archipelago highlight the presence of biological activity in the ocean. These colors indicate high concentrations of chlorophyll, the primary pigment found in phytoplankton. Notice that there are a number of eddies visible in the Pacific Ocean in this pseudo-color scene. The eddies are formed by strong outflow currents from rivers along North America's west coast that are rich in nutrients from the springtime snowmelt running off the mountains. This nutrient-rich water helps stimulate the phytoplankton blooms within the eddies. (For more details, read Tracking Eddies that Feed the Sea.) To the west of the eddies in the water, another type of eddy-this one in the atmosphere-forms the clouds into the counterclockwise spiral characteristic of a low pressure system in the Northern Hemisphere. (Click on the image above to see it at full resolution; or click to see the scene in true-color.) The snow-covered mountains of British Columbia are visible in the upper righthand corner of the image. This scene was constructed using SeaWiFS data collected on June 13, 2002. SeaWiFS image courtesy the SeaWiFS Project, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, and ORBIMAGE

Antarctic snow and global climate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Granberg, H.B.

2001-01-01

Global circulation models (GCM) indicate that global warming will be most pronounced at polar regions and high latitudes, causing concern about the stability of the Antarctic ice cap. A project entitled the Seasonal Snow in Antarctica examined the properties of the near surface snow to determine the current conditions that influence snow cover development. The goal was to assess the response of the snow cover in Queen Maud Land (QML) to an increased atmospheric carbon dioxide content. The Antarctic snow cover in QML was examined as part of the FINNARP expeditions in 1999 and 2000 which examined the processes that influence the snow cover. Its energy and mass balance were also assessed by examining the near surface snow strata in shallow (1-2 m) pits and by taking measurements of environmental variables. This made it possible to determine if the glacier is in danger of melting at this northerly location in the Antarctic. The study also made it possible to determine which variables need to change and by how much, for significant melting to occur. It was shown that the Antarctic anticyclone creates particular conditions that protect the snow cover from melting. The anticyclone brings dry air from the stratosphere during most of the year and is exempt from the water vapour feedback. It was concluded that even a doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide will not produce major snow melt runoff. 8 refs

Induced chlorophyll variation in pineapple c v. 'queen' by gamma irradiation (60Cobalt)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Valencia, Lolita DC.

2012-01-01

Irradiation using gamma rays ( 60 Cobalt) coupled with in vitro culture techniques was undertaken to induce variation or mutation in pineapple. Calli from crown meristem tips of pineapple cv 'Queen' [Ananas comosus (L.) Merr.] were initiated using Murashiege and Skoog's basal meduim supplemented with 10mg/liter 4-amino-3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyrodinecarboxylic acid (Picloram). High percentage of growth and shoot proliferation was observed in basal medium supplemented with 50 μM benzene adenine purine (BAP) and 10 μM gibberrelic acid (GA) after 8 weeks in vitro. Regenerants derived from shoots using different doses of gamma rays (0, 5, 10, 15, 20, 25 and 30 Gy) were evaluated under laboratory conditions. Of the different doses, 15 Gy produced the most variegation in young shoots (chlorophyll variants) maintained in vitro. The variants appeared to have yellow and green color combinations of the young leaves of pineapple 'Queen' variety. When transplanted inside the greenhouse, high percentage of plantlets survival was observed, ranging from 90-95%. Of the different irradiation doses, variegation in young leaves was observed at 15, 20, 25 and 30 Gy. Further assessment on the effect of irradiation is currently being unertaken under screen house conditions. The variants produced could serve a basis for selection of ornamental-type pineapple. In addition, protocols developed on the use of in vitro culture techniques could be utilized as a tool for induced mutation breeding in pineapple. (author)

Differences in mushroom bodies morphogenesis in workers, queens and drones of Apis mellifera: neuroblasts proliferation and death.

Science.gov (United States)

Roat, Thaisa Cristina; da Cruz Landim, Carminda

2010-06-01

Apis mellifera is an interesting model to neurobiological studies. It has a relatively small brain that commands the complex learning and memory tasks demanded by the social organization. An A. mellifera colony is made up of a queen, thousands of workers and a varying number of drones. The latter are males, whereas the former are the two female castes. These three phenotypes differ in morphology, physiology and behavior, correlated with their respective functions in the society. Such differences include the morphology and architecture of their brains. To understand the processes generating such polymorphic brains we characterized the cell division and cell death dynamics which underlie the morphogenesis of the mushroom bodies, through several methods suitable for evidence the time and place of occurrence. Cell death was detected in mushroom bodies of last larval instar and mainly in black-eyed pupae. Cell division was observed in mushroom bodies, primarily at the start of metamorphosis, exhibiting temporal differences among workers, queens and males. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The recipe: the queen of pragmatics. An Italian case study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Leopoldina FORTUNATI

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to investigate the communicative status and the daily practices of use of the recipe in the broader context of cooking and eating inside the home. My thesis is that the recipe should be regarded as the queen of pragmatics of communication, as recipes are to be found in homes all over the world. I draw on two different research projects: the first study reports upon semi-structured interviews with 137 respondents living in the North East of Italy. The second study presents and discusses the most important categories of meaning that emerged from a content analysis of 398 messages posted on the online cooking forum of the site of Donna Moderna [Modern Woman], the most widely read women’s weekly magazine in Italy.

Insights into the dynamics of hind leg development in honey bee (Apis mellifera L. queen and worker larvae - A morphology/differential gene expression analysis

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carolina Gonçalves Santos

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Phenotypic plasticity is a hallmark of the caste systems of social insects, expressed in their life history and morphological traits. These are best studied in bees. In their co-evolution with angiosperm plants, the females of corbiculate bees have acquired a specialized structure on their hind legs for collecting pollen. In the highly eusocial bees (Apini and Meliponini, this structure is however only present in workers and absent in queens. By means of histological sections and cell proliferation analysis we followed the developmental dynamics of the hind legs of queens and workers in the fourth and fifth larval instars. In parallel, we generated subtractive cDNA libraries for hind leg discs of queen and worker larvae by means of a Representational Difference Analysis (RDA. From the total of 135 unique sequences we selected 19 for RT-qPCR analysis, where six of these were confirmed as differing significantly in their expression between the two castes in the larval spinning stage. The development of complex structures such as the bees’ hind legs, requires diverse patterning mechanisms and signaling modules, as indicated by the set of differentially expressed genes related with cell adhesion and signaling pathways.

Insights into the dynamics of hind leg development in honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) queen and worker larvae - A morphology/differential gene expression analysis

Science.gov (United States)

Santos, Carolina Gonçalves; Hartfelder, Klaus

2015-01-01

Phenotypic plasticity is a hallmark of the caste systems of social insects, expressed in their life history and morphological traits. These are best studied in bees. In their co-evolution with angiosperm plants, the females of corbiculate bees have acquired a specialized structure on their hind legs for collecting pollen. In the highly eusocial bees (Apini and Meliponini), this structure is however only present in workers and absent in queens. By means of histological sections and cell proliferation analysis we followed the developmental dynamics of the hind legs of queens and workers in the fourth and fifth larval instars. In parallel, we generated subtractive cDNA libraries for hind leg discs of queen and worker larvae by means of a Representational Difference Analysis (RDA). From the total of 135 unique sequences we selected 19 for RT-qPCR analysis, where six of these were confirmed as differing significantly in their expression between the two castes in the larval spinning stage. The development of complex structures such as the bees’ hind legs, requires diverse patterning mechanisms and signaling modules, as indicated by the set of differentially expressed genes related with cell adhesion and signaling pathways. PMID:26500430

Swan Queen, shipping, and boundary regulation in fandom

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Victoria M. Gonzalez

2016-09-01

Full Text Available There are a number of fan activities and practices that are subject to regulation. The mechanisms of regulation in shipping, however, are not always clear. Shipping, the fan activity of romantically pairing two fictional characters, has become a popular and contentious facet of fan interaction. The case that will be examined in this article is that of the Swan Queen ship, which pairs two female characters from Once Upon a Time (2011–. The lengths that fans have gone to support and promote this ship led to rather intense discussion and infighting among members of the Once Upon a Time fandom. I utilize comments and posts made on Tumblr to examine the mechanisms that dictate inclusion and exclusion in shipper communities. In doing so, I hope to identify the kinds of shipper activities that are subject to regulation and the kinds of boundaries that this regulation establishes. Shipping is dictated not only by fans' imaginations but also by boundaries that are performed and regulated on digital forums.

How the clinical customization of an EMR means good business: a case study of Queen City Physicians.

Science.gov (United States)

Coyle-Toerner, Pam; Collins, Louise

2003-01-01

This article describes a case study of Queen City Physicians, a 38-provider internal medicine and pediatrics practice spread over eight locations in the Cincinnati, OH area. The authors share steps taken and lessons learned that can ensure success for any small to medium practice, from vendor/system selection to go-live. The financial feasibility of EMR systems is also discussed.

Workers select mates for queens: a possible mechanism of gene flow restriction between supercolonies of the invasive Argentine ant

Science.gov (United States)

Sunamura, Eiriki; Hoshizaki, Sugihiko; Sakamoto, Hironori; Fujii, Takeshi; Nishisue, Koji; Suzuki, Shun; Terayama, Mamoru; Ishikawa, Yukio; Tatsuki, Sadahiro

2011-05-01

Some invasive ants form large networks of mutually non-aggressive nests, i.e., supercolonies. The Argentine ant Linepithema humile forms much larger supercolonies in introduced ranges than in its native range. In both cases, it has been shown that little gene flow occurs between supercolonies of this species, though the mechanism of gene flow restriction is unknown. In this species, queens do not undertake nuptial flight, and males have to travel to foreign nests and cope with workers before gaining access to alien queens. In this study, we hypothesized that male Argentine ants receive interference from workers of alien supercolonies. To test this hypothesis, we conducted behavioral and chemical experiments using ants from two supercolonies in Japan. Workers attacked males from alien supercolonies but not those from their own supercolonies. The level of aggression against alien males was similar to that against alien workers. The frequency of severe aggression against alien males increased as the number of recipient workers increased. Cuticular hydrocarbon profiles, which serve as cues for nestmate recognition, of workers and males from the same supercolony were very similar. Workers are likely to distinguish alien males from males of their own supercolony using the profiles. It is predicted that males are subject to considerable aggression from workers when they intrude into the nests of alien supercolonies. This may be a mechanism underlying the restricted gene flow between supercolonies of Argentine ants. The Argentine ant may possess a distinctive reproductive system, where workers participate in selecting mates for their queens. We argue that the aggression of workers against alien males is a novel form of reproductive interference.

Salt-water encroachment in southern Nassau and southeastern Queens Counties, Long Island, New York

Science.gov (United States)

Lusczynski, N.J.; Swarzenski, Wolfgang V.

1966-01-01

Test drilling, extraction of water from cores, electric logging, water sampling, and water-level measurements from 1958 to 1961 provided a suitable basis for a substantial refinement in the definition of the positions, chloride concentrations, and rates of movement of salty water in the intermediate and deep deposits of southern Nassau County and southeastern Queens County. Filter-press, centrifugal, and dilution methods were used to extract water from cores for chloride analysis at the test-drilling sites. Chloride analysis of water extracted by these methods, chloride analyses of water from wells, and the interpretation of electric logs helped to define the chloride content of the salty water. New concepts of environmental-water head and zerovels, developed during the investigation, proved useful for defining hydraulic gradients and ratee of flow in ground water of variable density in a vertical direction and in horizontal and inclined planes, respectively. Hydraulic gradients in and between fresh and salty water were determined from water levels from data at individual and multiple-observation wells. Salty ground water occurs in southern Nassau and southeastern Queens Counties as three wedgelike extensions that project landward in unconsolidated deposits from a main body of salty water that lies seaward of the barrier beaches in Nassau County and of Jamaica Bay in Queens County. Salty water occurs not only in permeable deposits but also in the shallow and deep clay deposits. The highest chloride content of the salty ground water in the main body and the wedges is about 16,000 ppm, which is about 1,000 to 2,000 ppm less than the chloride content of ocean water. The shallow salty water in the Pleistocene and Recent deposits is connected freely with the bays, tidal estuaries, and ocean. The intermediate wedge is found only in the southwestern part of Nassau County in the upper part of the Magothy (?) Formation, in the Jamneco Gravel, and in the overlying clay

ARSENIC REMOVAL FROM DRINKING WATER BY ADSORPTIVE MEDIA. EPA DEMONSTRATION PROJECT AT QUEEN ANNES COUNTY, MARYLAND SIX-MONTH EVALUATION REPORT

Science.gov (United States)

This report documents the activities performed and the results obtained from the first six months of the arsenic removal treatment technology demonstration project at the community of Prospect Bay at Grasonville in Queen Anne’s County, MD. The objectives of the project were to ev...

W3C director Tim Berners-Lee to be Knighted by Queen Elizabeth web inventor recognized for contributions to internet development

CERN Document Server

2003-01-01

"Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web and director of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), will be made a Knight Commander, Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth" (1/2 page).

76 FR 23907 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Queen Conch Fishery of Puerto...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-04-29

... Fishery of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands; Queen Conch Management Measures AGENCY: National... zone (EEZ) east of 64[deg]34' W. longitude, which includes Lang Bank east of St. Croix, U.S. Virgin... Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996 states that, for each rule or group of related rules for which an agency is...

Birth centre confinement at the Queen Victoria Medical Centre. I. Obstetric and neonatal outcome.

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, J; Hudson, H; Lumley, J; Morris, N; Rao, J; Spensley, J

1981-10-03

A review of hte first 175 confinements at the Queen Victoria Medical Centre Birth Centre is presented. The design, structure and function of hte Birth Centre is described and the safety of the programme demonstrated. Seventy-four pregnancies (42%) accepted for Birth Centre confinement required transfer because of antepartum or intrapartum complications. There were satisfactory obstetric and neonatal outcomes in all pregnancies. The first year's experience has allowed a reassessment of the risk factors, which will permit greater use of the Birth Centre without any increases risk to mothers or babies.

Queen conch (Strombus gigas testis regresses during the reproductive season at nearshore sites in the Florida Keys.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniel J Spade

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Queen conch (Strombus gigas reproduction is inhibited in nearshore areas of the Florida Keys, relative to the offshore environment where conchs reproduce successfully. Nearshore reproductive failure is possibly a result of exposure to environmental factors, including heavy metals, which are likely to accumulate close to shore. Metals such as Cu and Zn are detrimental to reproduction in many mollusks. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Histology shows gonadal atrophy in nearshore conchs as compared to reproductively healthy offshore conchs. In order to determine molecular mechanisms leading to tissue changes and reproductive failure, a microarray was developed. A normalized cDNA library for queen conch was constructed and sequenced using the 454 Life Sciences GS-FLX pyrosequencer, producing 27,723 assembled contigs and 7,740 annotated transcript sequences. The resulting sequences were used to design the microarray. Microarray analysis of conch testis indicated differential regulation of 255 genes (p<0.01 in nearshore conch, relative to offshore. Changes in expression for three of four transcripts of interest were confirmed using real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Gene Ontology enrichment analysis indicated changes in biological processes: respiratory chain (GO:0015992, spermatogenesis (GO:0007283, small GTPase-mediated signal transduction (GO:0007264, and others. Inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry analysis indicated that Zn and possibly Cu were elevated in some nearshore conch tissues. CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Congruence between testis histology and microarray data suggests that nearshore conch testes regress during the reproductive season, while offshore conch testes develop normally. Possible mechanisms underlying the testis regression observed in queen conch in the nearshore Florida Keys include a disruption of small GTPase (Ras-mediated signaling in testis development. Additionally, elevated tissue

UTERINE PROLAPSE IN QUEEN AND UTERINE PROLAPSO UTERINO EM GATA E RETROFLEXÃO UTERINA EM CADELA

OpenAIRE

Giuliano Queiroz Mostachio; Wilter Ricardo Russiano Vicente; Diogo José Cardilli; Tathiana Ferguson Motheo; Gilson Hélio Toniollo

2008-01-01

Obstetrical emergencies are problem in veterinary clinics and hospital. So, the aim of this report is to describe the clinical-surgical aspect of one of them, the uterine prolapse. Complete protrusion and retroflexion of uterus had been diagnosed in a queen and female dog, respectively. After the stabilization of the animals and reduction of the prolapses followed by ovary-hysterectomy, one of the animals came to death due to septicemia and hypovolemic sho...

Queen survival and oxalic acid residues in sugar stores after summer application against Varroa destructor in honey bees (Apis mellifera)

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Cornelissen, B.; Donders, J.N.L.C.; Stratum, van P.; Blacquière, T.; Dooremalen, van C.

2012-01-01

Methods using oxalic acid (OA) to control Varroa destructor in honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies are widely applied. In this study, the effects of an OA spray application in early summer on the survival of young and old queens, and on OA residues in sugar stores were investigated. A questionnaire

The relationship between Christianity and homosexuality from the perspective of The Queen James Bible: Ideological or scientific correctly?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zekavica Radomir G.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The paper discusses the relationship between Christianity and homosexuality through the analysis of the interpretation of the first 'gay Bible' -The Queen James Bible. The editors of The Queen James Bible offer their interpretation of biblical texts that are commonly used as an argument towards condemnation of homosexuality, and their main goal is to prevent homophobic interpretation of the Bible. However, such an aim is self-defeating and leads to a circular argument. The purpose of interpretation is to determine, as objective as possible, the original meaning and the purpose of texts intended by the authors, not to put interpretation in the service of contemporary, culturally biased agendas. In the end, such interpretation quite naturally achieves the anticipated meanings. Notwithstanding the fact that the resulting interpretation serves good purposes (in this case the purpose of preventing homophobic interpretations of the Bible, the methodology of this kind of approach can be categorized as ideological rather than objective and scientific. It seems that the interpretations of biblical texts that are offered in The Queen James Bible are ideologically motivated and have no support in sound biblical hermeneutics. The analysis of hermeneutical methodology suggests that the major concern of The Queen James Bible editors was not to offer an objective translation. For instance, some words were given different meanings and some parts of the original biblical text were not taken into a consideration and therefore are not appearing in the final product. The resulting translation of the Bible promotes a non-offending and rather auspicious attitude towards homosexuality which fits, or better say reflects, contemporary LGBT activist sentiments. In order to achieve this ideologically motivated translation, it seems that the implemented method must be free of the original intention of the authors these ancient texts, their original content and their

Metal distribution in urban soil around steel industry beside Queen Alia Airport, Jordan.

Science.gov (United States)

Al-Khashman, Omar A; Shawabkeh, Reyad A

2009-12-01

The objective of this study was to assess the extent and severity of metal contamination in urban soil around Queen Alia Airport, Jordan. Thirty-two soil samples were collected around steel manufacturing plants located in the Al-Jiza area, south Jordan, around the Queen Alia Airport. The samples were obtained at two depths, 0-10 and 10-20 cm, and were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry for lead (Pb), zinc (Zn), cadmium (Cd), iron (Fe), copper (Cu) and chromium (Cr) levels. The physicochemical factors believed to affect the mobility of metals in the soil of the study area were also examined, including pH, electrical conductivity, total organic matter, calcium carbonate (CaCO(3)) content and cation exchange capacity. The high concentrations of Pb, Zn and Cd in the soil samples were found to be related to anthropogenic sources, such as the steel manufacturing plants, agriculture and traffic emissions, with the highest concentrations of these metals close to the site of the steel plants; in contrast the concentration of Cr was low in the soil sampled close to the steel plants. The metals were concentrated in the surface soil, and concentrations decreased with increasing depth, reflecting the physical properties of the soil and its alkaline pH. The mineralogical composition of the topsoil, identified by X-ray diffraction, was predominantly quartz, calcite, dolomite and minor minerals, such as gypsum and clay minerals. Metal concentrations were compared using one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) to compute the statistical significance of the mean. The results of the ANOVA showed significant differences between sites for Pb, Cd and Cu, but no significant differences for the remaining metals tested. Factor analysis revealed that polluted soil occurs predominantly at sites around the steel plants and that there is no significant variation in the characteristics of the unpolluted soil, which are uniform in the study area.

Very little in situ produced radiocarbon retained in accumulating Antarctic ice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kemp, W.J.M. van der; Alderliesten, C.; Borg, K. van der; Holmlund, P.; Jong, A.F.M. de; Karloef, L.; Lamers, R.A.N.; Oerlemans, J.; Thomassen, M.; Wal, R.S.W. van de

2000-01-01

Ice samples from Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica, were analyzed for 14 CO 2 and 14 CO by accelerator mass spectrometry. Only a small amount (∼2%) of in situ produced radiocarbon was detected. The calibrated radiocarbon ages, corrected for in situ produced 14 C, are in fair agreement with age estimates obtained from stratigraphical methods added to a gas inclusion model. The ages of the entrapped air range from recent to ca. 1200 AD

Brood removal or queen caging combined with oxalic acid treatment to control varroa mites (Varroa destructor) in honey bee colonies (Apis mellifera)

Science.gov (United States)

Few studies of honey bee colonies exist where varroa mite control is achieved by integrating broodless conditions, through either total brood removal or queen caging, in combination with oxalic acid (OA) applications. We observed significant varroa mortality after applications of OA in obtaining bro...

Testing the effect of paraquat exposure on genomic recombination rates in queens of the western honey bee, Apis mellifera.

Science.gov (United States)

Langberg, Kurt; Phillips, Matthew; Rueppell, Olav

2018-04-01

The rate of genomic recombination displays evolutionary plasticity and can even vary in response to environmental factors. The western honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) has an extremely high genomic recombination rate but the mechanistic basis for this genome-wide upregulation is not understood. Based on the hypothesis that meiotic recombination and DNA damage repair share common mechanisms in honey bees as in other organisms, we predicted that oxidative stress leads to an increase in recombination rate in honey bees. To test this prediction, we subjected honey bee queens to oxidative stress by paraquat injection and measured the rates of genomic recombination in select genome intervals of offspring produced before and after injection. The evaluation of 26 genome intervals in a total of over 1750 offspring of 11 queens by microsatellite genotyping revealed several significant effects but no overall evidence for a mechanistic link between oxidative stress and increased recombination was found. The results weaken the notion that DNA repair enzymes have a regulatory function in the high rate of meiotic recombination of honey bees, but they do not provide evidence against functional overlap between meiotic recombination and DNA damage repair in honey bees and more mechanistic studies are needed.

Groundwater availability in the Crouch Branch and McQueen Branch aquifers, Chesterfield County, South Carolina, 1900-2012

Science.gov (United States)

Campbell, Bruce G.; Landmeyer, James E.

2014-01-01

Chesterfield County is located in the northeastern part of South Carolina along the southern border of North Carolina and is primarily underlain by unconsolidated sediments of Late Cretaceous age and younger of the Atlantic Coastal Plain. Approximately 20 percent of Chesterfield County is in the Piedmont Physiographic Province, and this area of the county is not included in this study. These Atlantic Coastal Plain sediments compose two productive aquifers: the Crouch Branch aquifer that is present at land surface across most of the county and the deeper, semi-confined McQueen Branch aquifer. Most of the potable water supplied to residents of Chesterfield County is produced from the Crouch Branch and McQueen Branch aquifers by a well field located near McBee, South Carolina, in the southwestern part of the county. Overall, groundwater availability is good to very good in most of Chesterfield County, especially the area around and to the south of McBee, South Carolina. The eastern part of Chesterfield County does not have as abundant groundwater resources but resources are generally adequate for domestic purposes. The primary purpose of this study was to determine groundwater-flow rates, flow directions, and changes in water budgets over time for the Crouch Branch and McQueen Branch aquifers in the Chesterfield County area. This goal was accomplished by using the U.S. Geological Survey finite-difference MODFLOW groundwater-flow code to construct and calibrate a groundwater-flow model of the Atlantic Coastal Plain of Chesterfield County. The model was created with a uniform grid size of 300 by 300 feet to facilitate a more accurate simulation of groundwater-surface-water interactions. The model consists of 617 rows from north to south extending about 35 miles and 884 columns from west to east extending about 50 miles, yielding a total area of about 1,750 square miles. However, the active part of the modeled area, or the part where groundwater flow is simulated

Nan Goldin: da Fotografia do Cotidiano à Visibilidade Drag Queen

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vivian Castro de Miranda

2017-09-01

Full Text Available Este trabalho tem como objetivo apresentar a biografia da fotógrafa americana Nan Goldin, a partir do recorte de sua produção datada entre as décadas de 1970 e 1990, em que ela fotografou a comunidade drag queen. A partir do cruzamento de informações vigentes em documentário (Série, 2004 e fontes relevantes (Guggenheim Museum, EUA; The Guardian, UK a quem a fotógrafa concedeu entrevistas ou foi notícia, procura-se explorar nesse texto a importância de uma produção que se insere no âmbito de questões caras ao contexto contemporâneo, que é a temática de gênero. Com a perspectiva teórica adotada, baseada principalmente nos apontamentos de Barthes (1984, é possível compreender o corpus analisado como resultante de um olhar sensível para o aspecto humano, com impacto para a discussão e aceitação do grupo social.

Cyber against punk: Greg Bear’s Queen of Angels as metamorphosed cyberpunk

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. F. Blatchford

1994-05-01

Full Text Available Recent American science fiction (which commercially dominates world science fiction incorporates two schools of thought, ‘cyberpunk' and ‘hard SF’. which may be read to embody, respectively, radical/liberal and patriotic/ conservative propaganda. This article, after attempting to define aspects of these schools, examines Queen of Angels by Greg Bear (who before producing that text had been a proponent of hard SF. This text is shown to have strong elements of cyberpunk (possibly, to judge by one critical review, appealing to a cyberpunk audience but to have transformed and inverted the radical and liberal themes of cyberpunk into conservative themes. The text thus illuminates philosophical and technical differences between the schools. It is suggested that the imagery of cyberpunk, and perhaps that of science fiction in general, is liable to such reversals of ideological significance.

Volunteering as Red Queen Mechanism for Cooperation in Public Goods Games

Science.gov (United States)

Hauert, Christoph; De Monte, Silvia; Hofbauer, Josef; Sigmund, Karl

2002-05-01

The evolution of cooperation among nonrelated individuals is one of the fundamental problems in biology and social sciences. Reciprocal altruism fails to provide a solution if interactions are not repeated often enough or groups are too large. Punishment and reward can be very effective but require that defectors can be traced and identified. Here we present a simple but effective mechanism operating under full anonymity. Optional participation can foil exploiters and overcome the social dilemma. In voluntary public goods interactions, cooperators and defectors will coexist. We show that this result holds under very diverse assumptions on population structure and adaptation mechanisms, leading usually not to an equilibrium but to an unending cycle of adjustments (a Red Queen type of evolution). Thus, voluntary participation offers an escape hatch out of some social traps. Cooperation can subsist in sizable groups even if interactions are not repeated, defectors remain anonymous, players have no memory, and assortment is purely random.

Theology: Still a queen of science in the post-modern era

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Erna Oliver

2016-08-01

Full Text Available Theology is just as relevant today as it was in the time of Aquinas who called theology ‘the queen of science’ although the knowledge-driven network society does not seem to be in agreement. By using the tools provided by the fourth revolution in the development of society, theology can, as part of the academic world of higher education that is supposed to lead society, strengthen ties with the past, seek explanations and solutions to current problems and produce guidelines for future investigation through multi- and interdisciplinary discourse. Theology can and should influence people to become positive change agents, re-shape the way in which the message of salvation is brought to the world in order to stay relevant in changing circumstances and be on the forefront of progressive transformation in society. This should be achieved through constant dialogue with other academic disciplines, the Church as institution and with society in general.

Recreations in the theory of numbers the queen of mathematics entertains

CERN Document Server

Beiler, Albert H

1966-01-01

Number theory, the Queen of Mathematics, is an almost purely theoretical science. Yet it can be the source of endlessly intriguing puzzle problems, as this remarkable book demonstrates. This is the first book to deal exclusively with the recreational aspects of the subject and it is certain to be a delightful surprise to all devotees of the mathematical puzzle, from the rawest beginner to the most practiced expert. Almost every aspect of the theory of numbers that could conceivably be of interest to the layman is dealt with, all from the recreational point of view. Readers will become acquainted with divisors, perfect numbers, the ingenious invention of congruences by Gauss, scales of notation, endless decimals, Pythagorean triangles (there is a list of the first 100 with consecutive legs; the 100th has a leg of 77 digits), oddities about squares, methods of factoring, mysteries of prime numbers, Gauss's Golden Theorem, polygonal and pyramidal numbers, the Pell Equation, the unsolved Last Theorem of Fermat, a...

”Din frihet är nära kopplad till min egen”: En feministisk psykoanalytisk läsning av emancipations- och modersmotiv i Maud Reuterswärds Elisabet-trilogi

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vuorio, Pia

2016-12-01

Full Text Available One of the most complex forms of relationship in fiction for young adults seems to be the one between mothers and daughters. The Swedish author Maud Reuterswärd (1920−1980 has written several books for young adults in which a relational crisis between a mother and her daughter is the central theme. Throughout Reuterswärd’s trilogy about Elisabet Hof, the mother plays a key role. The trilogy features an emotionally instable and mentally absent mother whose depression eventually leads to her attempting to commit suicide. Through a psychoanalytical lens, this paper highlights and discusses how the mother-daughter relationship in Reuterswärd’s trilogy is mediated through dialogue, point of view and tone. The mother’s voice and the verbal communication between mother and daughter is focused by using Luce Irigaray’s theoretical approach of the maternal function in psychoanalysis and culture. In addition the paper attempts to widen the critical perspectives and provide alternative ways of understanding the mother in Reuterswärd’s trilogy.

Haida Gwaii / Queen Charlotte Islands demonstration tidal power plant feasibility study : summary results

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tu, A. [BC Hydro, Burnaby, BC (Canada)

2008-07-01

Remote communities may benefit from using tidal energy in terms of reduced diesel fuel consumption and the associated greenhouse gas emissions. A study was conducted to assess the feasibility for a tidal demonstration project on the Haida Gwaii, Queen Charlotte Islands. Candidate communities were scanned for resource potential, load profile, infrastructure distribution and community interest. This presentation focused on choosing an appropriate site for a given tidal power technology. Three hotspots in Masset Sound were identified as well as one hotspot at Juskatla Narrows. Technology providers were solicited for information on unit performance, cost, and trials to date. The presentation noted that demonstration or future commercial deployment is limited by resource and by the ability of the grid to accommodate tidal power. The presentation concluded with next steps which include publishing the study. tabs., figs.

Queen rearing and selection practices and their impact on the genetic diversity and fitness of honey bee colonies

OpenAIRE

Bouga, Maria; Arnold, Gerard; Bienkowska, Malgorzata; Büchler, Ralph; Garnery, Lionel; Ivanova, Evgeniya; De Jong, David; De la Rúa, Pilar; Kence, Meral; Kezic, Nikola; Kryger, Per; Murilhas, António; Oldroyd, Benjamin; Oliver, Randy; Palacio, María

2011-01-01

The Apimondia working group on honey bee diversity and fitness (AWG 7) was created on October 25, 2010 as a Scientific Working Group of Apimondia. The aim of this AWG is to collect information on honey bee queen rearing practices, and examine their impact on the genetic variability and general health of honey bee colonies. The AWG consists of 23 members from 16 different countries. The world wide survey being conducted by this AWG is focused on gathering information on how selection methods, ...

Resisting majesty: Apis cerana, has lower antennal sensitivity and decreased attraction to queen mandibular pheromone than Apis mellifera

OpenAIRE

Shihao Dong; Ping Wen; Qi Zhang; Xinyu Li; Ken Tan; James Nieh

2017-01-01

In highly social bees, queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) is vital for colony life. Both Apis cerana (Ac) and Apis mellifera (Am) share an evolutionarily conserved set of QMP compounds: (E)-9-oxodec-2-enoic acid (9-ODA), (E)-9-hydroxydec-2-enoic acid (9-HDA), (E)-10-hydroxy-dec-2-enoic acid (10-HDA), 10-hydroxy-decanoic acid (10-HDAA), and methyl p?hydroxybenzoate (HOB) found at similar levels. However, evidence suggests there may be species-specific sensitivity differences to QMP compounds bec...

‘A token of their love’: Queen Victoria Memorials in New Zealand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mark Stocker

2016-06-01

Full Text Available This article provides an overview of the four metropolitan sculptural memorials to Queen Victoria in late-colonial New Zealand, which all immediately precede the colony’s Dominion status (1907. In chronological order, they were erected in Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington, and Dunedin. While the Auckland memorial was unveiled within the Queen’s lifetime, her death in 1901 catalysed the commission of more ambitious counterparts in Wellington and Dunedin, and a degree of intercity rivalry was consciously articulated in advocacy for them. The memorials reflect a Pākeha (European New Zealand sense of identity as a loyal, pro-monarchical, and imperial colony, but also as a ‘Better Britain’, with a proud sense of prosperity and achievement. Local content features prominently in two of them, notably the signing with Māori of the Treaty of Waitangi (1840 in one of the reliefs for the capital city memorial (Wellington, and an ambitious celebration of fifty years of provincial achievement in the pedestal sculpture for the Christchurch counterpart. Due to a dearth of home-grown talent, together with the belief in the artistic superiority of Britain (often known at the time as ‘Home’, British sculptors were invariably commissioned for these memorials. Cost-effectiveness, prestige, and the ability to render a realistic likeness were all criteria behind the choice of artists, with Francis John Williamson commissioned for two of them (Auckland and Christchurch. In researching this article, extensive use has been made of primary newspaper sources to document the political context of the memorials. In all of them, particularly that of Christchurch, New Zealand’s loyalty to Britain in the South African War (1899–1902 was a leading issue. Artistic and aesthetic issues and analysis were less prominent, although there was a widespread belief that the Queen should be honoured for purely symbolic and not utilitarian causes. While emphasis is given

Laser induced fluorescence emission (L.I.F.E.): in situ and remote detection of life in Antarctic and Alaskan ice

Science.gov (United States)

Storrie-Lombardi, Michael C.; Sattler, Birgit

2009-08-01

Once thought to be a barren desert devoid of life, it now appears that Earth's cryosphere is an ice ecosystem harbouring a rich community of metabolically active microorganisms inhabiting ice, snow, water, and lithic environments. The ability to rapidly survey this ecosystem during in situ and orbital missions is of considerable interest for monitoring Earth's carbon budget and for efficiently searching for life on Mars or any exoplanet with an analogous cryosphere. Laser induced fluorescence emission (L.I.F.E.) imaging and spectroscopy using excitation in ultraviolet (UV) wavelengths have been proposed as non-destructive astrobiological survey tools to search for amino acids, nucleic acids, microbial life, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) deep in the Mars regolith. However, the technique is easily adapted to search for larger, more complex biomolecular targets using longer wavelength sources. Of particular interest is the ability for excitation at blue, green, and red wavelengths to produce visible and near infrared fluorescence of photosynthetic pigments in cyanobacteria-dominated microbial communities populating the ice of alpine, Arctic, and Antarctic lakes, glaciers, ice sheets, and even the supercooled water-ice droplets of clouds. During the Tawani 2008 International Antarctic Expedition we tested the in situ use of the technique as part of a field campaign in the Dry Valleys of Schirmacher Oasis and Lake Untersee, Queen Maud Land, Antarctica. In the spring of 2009, we performed airborne remote sensing tests of the technology in Alaska. In this paper we review our in situ laser detection experiments and present for the first time preliminary results on our efforts to detect cryosphere L.I.F.E. from an airborne platform.

Identifying the transition between single and multiple mating of queens in fungus-growing ants

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Villesen, Palle; Murakami, Takahiro; Schultz, Ted R

2002-01-01

Obligate mating of females (queens) with multiple males has evolved only rarely in social Hymenoptera (ants, social bees, social wasps) and for reasons that are fundamentally different from those underlying multiple mating in other animals. The monophyletic tribe of ('attine') fungus-growing ants...... is known to include evolutionarily derived genera with obligate multiple mating (the Acromyrmex and Atta leafcutter ants) as well as phylogenetically basal genera with exclusively single mating (e.g. Apterostigma, Cyphomyrmex, Myrmicocrypta). All attine genera share the unique characteristic of obligate...... dependence on symbiotic fungus gardens for food, but the sophistication of this symbiosis differs considerably across genera. The lower attine genera generally have small, short-lived colonies and relatively non-specialized fungal symbionts (capable of living independently of their ant hosts), whereas...

The overlooked knowledge: exploring knowledge circulation in the scaling up of Local Innovation: the case of beehive construction and queen replacement in Enebsie District, Ethiopia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Getnet, A.

2008-01-01

The study here is set out to explore the facilitating and restraining factors for knowledge circulation in the scaling up of local innovation taking beehive and queen replacement innovation as case of the study in Enebsie district, Amhara region, Ethiopia. Appreciating farmers’ innovations and

Using pleometrosis (multiple queens) and pupae transplantation to boost weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina) colony growth in ant nurseries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Offenberg, Hans Joachim; Nielsen, Mogens Gissel; Peng, Renkang

2011-01-01

Weaver ants (Oecophylla spp.) are increasingly being used for biocontrol and are targeted for future production of insect protein in ant farms. An efficient production of live ant colonies may facilitate the utilization of these ants but the production of mature colonies is hampered by the long...... and no transplantation. Thus, in ant nurseries the use of multiple queens during nest founding as well as transplantation of pupae from foreign colonies may be utilised to decrease the time it takes to produce a colony ready for implementation....

Meu nome é “Híbrida”: Corpo, gênero e sexualidade na experiência drag queen

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joseylson Fagner Santos

2012-07-01

Full Text Available Homem e mulher, feminino e masculino: o comportamento social dos indivíduos é norteado por dicotomias que encontramos em corpos aprendidos e disciplinados. Nesse sentido, os papéis sociais de gênero vêm a ser fatores de diferenciação sexual, de forma a orientar a inteligibilidade dos corpos, através construções sociais de códigos estéticos, funcionais e comportamentais. A drag queen – representada como um corpo onde os papéis sociais de gênero encontram-se justapostos – apresenta, através da performance, a possibilidade de ressignificar as relações fixas entre gênero, corpo e sexo. Enquanto indivíduo que opera na transformação estética e comportamental de seus papéis de gênero, a drag permite pensar numa desnaturalização dos laços que envolvem esses conceitos. Diferente do travesti e do transexual, a drag queen questiona a fixidez de questões “hetero-normativas” através de um ato performativo, onde o corpo adquire signos específicos do sexo feminino e aplica a um corpo masculino, tornando-se “queer”. A experiência do corpo drag representa uma possibilidade de verificar o momento em que a normatividade da relação entre corpo, sexo e gênero entra em desconstrução, resultando num corpo híbrido. O artigo se propõe à reflexão sobre a formação da dicotomia masculino/feminino e a produção performativa de corpos drag.

75 FR 27981 - Southwest Montana Resource Advisory Committee Meeting

Science.gov (United States)

2010-05-19

... and Grade Realignments, Yellow Star Thistle and Knapweed, Invasive Species Education and Awareness... Creek Weed Treatment, Maud-S Canyon Trail Reconstruction, Maverick Mountain Hazard Tree Removal, and...

Mating Frequencies of Honey Bee Queens (Apis mellifera L.) in a Population of Feral Colonies in the Northeastern United States

OpenAIRE

Tarpy, David R.; Delaney, Deborah A.; Seeley, Thomas D.

2015-01-01

Across their introduced range in North America, populations of feral honey bee (Apis mellifera L.) colonies have supposedly declined in recent decades as a result of exotic parasites, most notably the ectoparasitic mite Varroa destructor. Nonetheless, recent studies have documented several wild populations of colonies that have persisted. The extreme polyandry of honey bee queens-and the increased intracolony genetic diversity it confers-has been attributed, in part, to improved disease resis...

Nectar Attracts Foraging Honey Bees with Components of Their Queen Pheromones.

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Fanglin; Gao, Jie; Di, Nayan; Adler, Lynn S

2015-11-01

Floral nectar often contains chemicals that are deterrent to pollinators, presenting potential challenges to outcrossing plant species. Plants may be able to co-opt pollinator chemical signals to mitigate the negative effects of nectar deterrent compounds on pollination services. We found that buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum) and Mexican sunflower (Tithonia diversifolia) produce nectar with abundant phenolics, including three components of the Apis honeybee queen mandibular pheromone (QMP). In addition, these nectars contain a non-pheromonal phenolic, chlorogenic acid (CA), which was toxic to honeybees, and T. diversifolia nectar also contained isochlorogenic acid (IA). Fresh nectar or solutions containing nectar phenolics reduced Apis individual feeding compared to sucrose solutions. However, freely foraging bees preferred solutions with QMP components to control solutions, and QMP components over-rode or reversed avoidance of CA and IA. Furthermore, prior exposure to the presence or just the odor of QMP components removed the deterrent effects of CA and IA. By mimicking the honey bee pheromone blend, nectar may maintain pollinator attraction in spite of deterrent nectar compounds.

Cloning of the queen variety pineapple (Ananas comosus (L.) merr) through the callus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lapade, A.G.; Veluz, A.M.S.; Santos, I.S.

1988-01-01

Crown sections of pineapple were inoculated aseptically in Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium with varying levels of benzyl adenine (BA) in combination with napthalene acetic acid (NAA). Callus was induced from crown sections that was grown in MS with 0 ppm BA + 2 ppm NAA, 2 ppm BA + 6 ppm NAA. These calli when grown continuously in the same medium developed profusely into shoots. Callus and shoots developed profusely at medium containing 2 ppm BA + 2 ppm NAA. Calli that were further sub-cultured in MS with 2 ppm BA + 2 ppm NAA produced multiple shoots. Calli and shoots that were further sub-cultured in 0 to 4 ppm BA to 4 to 6 ppm NAA formed roots. Results showed that complete plantlets were produced from crown sections of pineapple variety Queen in MS medium supplemented with the different treatment combinations of BA and NAA. (Author). 9 refs.; 1 fig

7 CFR 322.1 - Definitions.

Science.gov (United States)

2010-01-01

... other facilities, and land that comprise a proprietor's beekeeping business. Brood. The larvae, pupae... tube or cage. Queen. The actively reproducing adult female in a colony of bees. Slumgum. Residue...

Society News: Queen honours Fellows; The Society and legacies; Thesis prizes; Lectures on laptops; Stonehenge story

Science.gov (United States)

2007-08-01

The Queen's Birthday Honours list announced on 16 June contained some familiar names from astronomy. Prof. Mark Bailey (1) of Armagh Observatory, currently a Vice-President of the RAS, was awarded an MBE and Dr Heather Couper (2), former President of the British Astronomical Association, a CBE. Prof. Nigel Mason (3) of the Open University and inaugural Director of the Milton Keynes Science Festival received an OBE. Prof. Jocelyn Bell-Burnell (4), President of the RAS from 2002-2004, was awarded a DBE - and an Honorary Doctorate from Harvard University. In addition, Prof. Lord Rees (5), Astronomer Royal, president of the Royal Society and President of the RAS from 1992-1994, was appointed to the Order of Merit.

Canadian Naval Fire Support for Land Operations Conceptual Overview

Science.gov (United States)

2014-09-08

Current shore infrastructure is sized to accommodate the Iroquois, Halifax, and Victoria class. The CSC Project will undertake an infrastructure gap...Canadian Armed Forces (CAF), Department of National Defence (DND), or the Government of Canada. © Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada, as

Immunolocalization of the short neuropeptide F receptor in queen brains and ovaries of the red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta Buren

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pietrantonio Patricia V

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Insect neuropeptides are involved in diverse physiological functions and can be released as neurotransmitters or neuromodulators acting within the central nervous system, and as circulating neurohormones in insect hemolymph. The insect short neuropeptide F (sNPF peptides, related to the vertebrate neuropeptide Y (NPY peptides, have been implicated in the regulation of food intake and body size, and play a gonadotropic role in the ovaries of some insect species. Recently the sNPF peptides were localized in the brain of larval and adult Drosophila. However, the location of the sNPF receptor, a G protein-coupled receptor (GPCR, has not yet been investigated in brains of any adult insect. To elucidate the sites of action of the sNPF peptide(s, the sNPF receptor tissue expression and cellular localization were analyzed in queens of the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta Buren (Hymenoptera, an invasive social insect. Results In the queen brains and subesophageal ganglion about 164 cells distributed in distinctive cell clusters (C1-C9 and C12 or as individual cells (C10, C11 were immuno-positive for the sNPF receptor. Most of these neurons are located in or near important sensory neuropils including the mushroom bodies, the antennal lobes, the central complex, and in different parts of the protocerebrum, as well as in the subesophageal ganglion. The localization of the sNPF receptor broadly links the receptor signaling pathway with circuits regulating learning and feeding behaviors. In ovaries from mated queens, the detection of sNPF receptor signal at the posterior end of oocytes in mid-oogenesis stage suggests that the sNPF signaling pathway may regulate processes at the oocyte pole. Conclusions The analysis of sNPF receptor immunolocalization shows that the sNPF signaling cascade may be involved in diverse functions, and the sNPF peptide(s may act in the brain as neurotransmitter(s or neuromodulator(s, and in the ovaries

Tectonic development of Graben over the Astrid ridge off Dronning Maud Land, Antarctica

Digital Repository Service at National Institute of Oceanography (India)

Rao, D.G.; Ramana, M.V; Sarma

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Deuterium and 18O variations in lakes of the Schirmacher Oasis (East Antarctica)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Richter, W.; Strauch, G.

1983-01-01

As a snow and icefree rock area the Schirmacher Oasis (Dronning Maud Land) is situated on the coast of the Antartic continent between inland and shelf ice. In the area of the oasis different exogenic conditions have produced multiform types of lake basins. In the present report first results about isotope hydrological relations in the lakes of the Schirmacher Oasis are discussed. The lakes can be classified by isotope hydrological parameters into different groups. The classification depends on in- and outflow, evaporation processes, nature of inflow and location. (author)

Geochronology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elworthy, T.P.

1982-01-01

As part of the multi-disciplinary research programme to unravel the geological history of the area, radiometric age determinations and isotopic analyses were carried out on intrusive and extrusive rocks from the Ahlmannryggen and Borgmassivet. The intention of the article is to review the radiometric age data so far reported for western Dronning Maud Land, and to construct a preliminary time frame for the geological evolution of this area. Isotope ratios that were determined includes Rb 87 , Sr 86 , Sr 87 , Sr 88 , Ar 39 , Ar 40 and potassium isotopes

Deuterium and /sup 18/O variations in lakes of the Schirmacher Oasis (East Antarctica)

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Richter, W.; Strauch, G. (Akademie der Wissenschaften der DDR, Leipzig. Zentralinstitut fuer Isotopen- und Strahlenforschung)

1983-05-01

As a snow and icefree rock area the Schirmacher Oasis (Dronning Maud Land) is situated on the coast of the Antartic continent between inland and shelf ice. In the area of the oasis different exogenic conditions have produced multiform types of lake basins. In the present report first results about isotope hydrological relations in the lakes of the Schirmacher Oasis are discussed. The lakes can be classified by isotope hydrological parameters into different groups. The classification depends on in- and outflow, evaporation processes, nature of inflow and location.

Late Miocene mollusks from the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia, Canada

Science.gov (United States)

Addicott, Warren O.

1978-01-01

A fauna of bivalve mollusks, scattered gastropods, and an echinoid from exposures of the Skonun Formation in the northeastern part of Graham Island is indicative of an early late Miocene age and correlation with the provincial Wishkahan Stage. The molluscan assemblages are from the upper 600 of the 1800-m-thick marine and nonmarine formation, which appears to be entirely of late Miocene age. The Skonun Formation is the strandline fa.cies of marginal marine and nonmarine deposits of the northwestern part of the Queen Charlotte basin, a Nieogene embayment paralleling the modern mainland coast. The molluscan fauna and associated lignite beds are known from a few widely scattered outcrops; they are indicative of alternating marine and nonmarine to brackish-water environments in the upper part of the formation. The Skonun fauna occurs near the northern boundary of the Pacific Northwest Neogene molluscan province. It is the only marine Neogene molluscan fauna known from the British Columbia coast. The fauna has strong taxonomic ties with the fauna of the Empire Formation of southwestern Oregon and has several species in common with the upper Miocene of the Lituya district, southeastern Alaska, implying that these three faunas are coeval.

Land use/land cover and land capability data for evaluating land utilization and official land use planning in Indramayu Regency, West Java, Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Ambarwulan, W.; Widiatmaka; Nahib, I.

2018-05-01

Land utilization in Indonesia is regulated in an official spatial land use planning (OSLUP), stipulated by government regulations. However in fact, land utilizations are often develops inconsistent with regulations. OSLUP itself is also not usually compatible with sustainable land utilizations. This study aims to evaluate current land utilizations and OSLUP in Indramayu Regency, West Java. The methodology used is the integrated analysis using land use and land cover (LU/LC) data, land capability data and spatial pattern in OSLUP. Actual LU/LC are interpreted using SPOT-6 imagery of 2014. The spatial data of land capabilities are derived from land capability classification using field data and laboratory analysis. The confrontation between these spatial data is interpreted in terms of future direction for sustainable land use planning. The results shows that Indramayu regency consists of 8 types of LU/LC. Land capability in research area range from class II to VIII. Only a small portion of the land in Indramayu has been used in accordance with land capability, but most of the land is used exceeding its land capability.

Five egg-laying queens in a single colony of brazilian stingless bees (Melipona scutellaris Latreille Presença de cinco rainhas fisogástricas em colônia de abelha sem ferrão (Melipona scutellaris Latreille

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Carlos Alfredo Lopes de Carvalho

2011-03-01

Full Text Available Polygyny, characterized by the presence of several egg-laying queens, is considered as a temporary colony status. In stingless bees it is rarely observed. This paper reports the first case of natural polygyny in Melipona scutellaris colony, with five egg-laying queens.Poliginia, caracterizada pela presença de mais de uma rainha poedeira, é considerada como uma condição temporária em colônias. Em abelhas sem ferrão isso é raramente observado. Este artigo registra o primeiro caso de poliginia natural em colônia de Melipona scutellaris, com cinco rainhas poedeiras.

Leukaemia at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi.

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Mukiibi, J M; Nyirenda, C M; Adewuyi, J O; Mzula, E L; Magombo, E D; Mbvundula, E M

2001-07-01

To determine the patterns of leukaemias seen in Malawians at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH) and to compare the findings with those from elsewhere. An overview of the problems encountered in the management of leukaemia in developing countries especially those in sub-Saharan Africa are highlighted. Retrospective descriptive analysis of consecutive leukaemia cases seen from January 1994 through December 1998. Of the 95 leukaemia patients diagnosed during the study period, childhood (0-15 years) leukaemia occurred in 27 (28.4%) patients while adulthood (above 15 years) leukaemia accounted for 68 (71.6%) patients. The main leukaemia types were: acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) 14 (14.7%), acute myeloblastic leukaemia (AML) 25 (26.3%), chronic myeloid (granulocytic) leukaemia (CML) 32 (33.7%), chronic lymphocytic (lymphatic) leukaemia (CLL) 22 (23.2%) and hairy cell leukaemia (HCL) two (2.1%) patients. Most of the acute leukaemia (AL) cases occurred in the six to 15 year age bracket with a male preponderance. In ALL, lymphadenopathy was the commonest presenting feature followed by pallor (92.9%) while in the AML group, pallor occurred in 80% of cases. Abdominal swelling (87.5%) due to splenomegaly (81.3%) were the main clinical features in the CML group whereas lymphadenopathy (63.6%) followed by splenomegaly (59.1%) were the dominant presenting features in CLL. Haematologically, although leucocytosis characterised both acute and chronic leukaemias, most cases of acute leukaemia presented with more severe anaemia (Hb charitable organisations.

Irony in Tennyson's "Little Hamlet".

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Harrison, Antony H.

1981-01-01

Points out similarities between the events and characters of Tennyson's "Maud" and Shakespeare's "Hamlet." Identifies traits which "Maud" shares with Spasmodic poetry. Argues that Tennyson consciously employed these similarities to expose the deficiencies of the Spasmodic school. (DMM)

Re-framing the prostitute identity in Zimbabwe: An approach to Virginia Phiri’s novel Highway queen (2010

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Oliver Nyambi

2015-06-01

Full Text Available In Zimbabwe, as in most traditionally conservative, patriarchal and Christian dominated countries, female sex work is abhorred on moral grounds as an unbecoming means of livelihood which takes away the practising woman’s social respectability. In such societies, then, the moral threat and stigma associated with female sex work affect women’s decisions on whether or not to take up sex work as a permanent means of livelihood. One can, however, ask how sustainable and stable these patriarchally constructed notions of morality and female identity are, especially in the face of crises? This article uses Virginia Phiri’s novel Highway queen, which is set in one of Zimbabwe’s economically tumultuous eras, to demonstrate how cultural texts grapple with the discourse of female sex work in contemporary Zimbabwe. The gist of my argument is that dominant prostitute identity constructs shaped by Zimbabwe’s patriarchal social and economic system are unstable. I find that the novel Highway queen manipulates such instability not only to re-inscribe sex work as a product of patriarchal impairment of female agency but, perhaps more importantly, to reflect on how women who are forced by circumstances to become sex workers can rise above their passive victimhood to achieve personal goals despite the social odds charted by patriarchy. Zooming in on the representation of the daily experiences of the female sex worker and protagonist, Sophie, the article explores the various ways in which the novel deconstructs stereotypical perceptions of female sex work and sex workers. The analysis ends with the argument that, whilst Sophie’s situation is fundamentally tragic, it affectively appeals to our sense of morality in a way which destabilises dominant (patriarchal constructs of sex work.

Clinical abnormalities, early intervention program of Down syndrome children: Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health experience.

Science.gov (United States)

Fuengfoo, Adidsuda; Sakulnoom, Kim

2014-06-01

Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health is a tertiary institute of children in Thailand, where early intervention programs have been provided since 1990 by multidisciplinary approach especially in Down syndrome children. This aim of the present study is to follow the impact of early intervention on the outcome of Down syndrome children. The school attendance number of Down syndrome children was compared between regular early intervention and non-regular early intervention. The present study group consists of 210 Down syndrome children who attended early intervention programs at Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health between June 2008 and January 2012. Data include clinical features, school attendance developmental quotient (DQ) at 3 years of age using Capute Scales Cognitive Adaptive Test/Scale (CAT/CLAMS). Developmental milestones have been recorded as to the time of appearance of gross motor, fine motor, language, personal-social development compared to those non-regular intervention patients. Of 210 Down syndrome children, 117 were boys and 93 were girls. About 87% received regular intervention, 68% attended speech training. Mean DQ at 3 years of age was 65. Of the 184 children who still did follow-up at developmental department, 124 children (59%) attended school: mainstream school children 78 (63%) and special school children 46 (37%). The mean age at entrance to school was 5.8 ± 1.4 years. The school attendance was correlated with maternal education and regular early intervention attendance. Regular early intervention starts have proven to have a positive effect on development. The school attendance number of Down syndrome children receiving regular early intervention was statistically and significantly higher than the number of Down syndrome children receiving non-regular early intervention was. School attendance correlated with maternal education and attended regularly early intervention. Regular early intervention together with maternal

Human Activity and Pollution in Antarctica

Science.gov (United States)

Graf, H.-F.; Shirsat, S. V.; Podzun, R.

2009-04-01

A regional climate chemistry model is used to determine the level of pollution of the Antarctic continent due to anthropogenic and natural emission of sulphur species. Based on an emission inventory for the year 2004/2005 including emissions from energy use and ground traffic at and between Antarctic research stations, flight activity, tourist and scientific ship operations, and emissions from the Mt. Erebus volcano, atmospheric concentration and deposition rates of sulphur species and black carbon were simulated at 0.5 degree resolution for the whole Antarctic continent. The biggest anthropogenic source of pollution is ship operations. These concentrate near the Antarctic Peninsula and close to the big scientific stations at Queen Maud Land and in the Ross sea area. The prevailing winds guarantee that most of the anthropogenic emissions from sources near the coast will be blown to lower latitudes and do not affect the continent. While atmospheric concentrations over vast areas remain extremely low, in some places locally concentrations and deposition rates are reached that may be detectable by in-situ measurements and give rise to concern. Especially at the Peninsula atmospheric concentrations and surface deposition of sulphur and soot are dominated by ship emissions. The largest part of shipping activity in this region is from tourist ships, a strongly increasing business. The by far biggest source of sulphur species in Antarctica is the Mt. Erebus volcano. It is also the only source that remains equally strong in polar winter. However, due to its high altitude and the long life time of SO2, especially in winter resulting in long range transport and dilution, Erebus emissions contribute relatively little to deposition of sulphur in the most anthropogenic polluted areas while they dominate the sulphur deposition in central Antarctica.

Image and Role of the Queen Mother of the West in Han Grave Art

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Nataša VAMPELJ SUHADOLNIK

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The present article is a detailed study of the image of an ancient Chinese goddess, The Queen Mother of the West, called Xiwangmu 西王母 in Chinese. In the mythological tradition, Xiwangmu is a goddess who possesses the elixir of immortality and dwells in the western paradise, on the magic mountain Kunlun 崑崙. While her image can be found in mural paintings, and on lacquered objects and bronze mirrors, it appears primarily in the form of relief images on the stones and bricks of grave chambers and temples in the Han (206 BCE–220 CE grave complexes. The literary tradition reveals a multifunctional role of the mother, with her many attributes developing in accordance with the changing values of social and mythological concepts. The article concludes with a detailed discussion of her image and role within the wider cosmological context of Han grave art.

Gene expression profiling in the ovary of Queen conch (Strombus gigas) exposed to environments with high tributyltin in the British Virgin Islands

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Titley-O'Neal, Cassander P.; Spade, Daniel J.; Zhang, Yanping; Kan, Rosalinda; Martyniuk, Christopher J.; Denslow, Nancy D.; MacDonald, Bruce A.

2013-01-01

Queen conch (Strombus gigas) are listed in CITES Appendix II. Populations may be declining due to anthropogenic inputs that include pollutants from boating activity. In the British Virgin Islands (BVI), some conch exhibit imposex, a condition in which male external genitalia are present in female conch. Previous studies suggest that tributyltin (TBT), an antifouling chemical used in boat paint, is correlated to increased incidence of imposex although the mechanisms leading to imposex are not known. The present study utilized a Queen conch microarray to measure the response of the ovarian transcriptome in conch inhabiting polluted environments with high TBT levels in the BVI. The polluted sites, Road Harbour (RH) and Trellis Bay (TB), are areas with high boating activity while the reference sites, Guana Island (GI) and Anegada (AN), are areas with low boating activity. There were 754 and 898 probes differentially expressed in the ovary of conch collected at RH and TB respectively compared to conch collected at GI. Of the genes that were differentially expressed at both sites, > 10% were shared suggesting that these sites have additional environmental factors influencing gene expression patterns. Functional enrichment analysis showed that the biological processes of cell proliferation, translation, and oxidative stress were over-represented in the polluted sites. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed that transcripts involved in the biological processes of general metabolism, immune, lipid metabolism, and stress were affected in conch from polluted environments. Interestingly, altered stress genes appeared to be more prevalent in conch collected from RH than TB, corresponding to the higher TBT load at RH compared to TB. Our study shows that stress pathways are affected in conch ovary in environments that experience heavy boating activity in the BVIs, although we are unable to directly link changes at the transcriptomics level to high TBT levels. Highlights: �

Gene expression profiling in the ovary of Queen conch (Strombus gigas) exposed to environments with high tributyltin in the British Virgin Islands

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Titley-O' Neal, Cassander P. [Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada E2L 4L5 (Canada); Spade, Daniel J. [Department of Physiological Sciences and Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Zhang, Yanping [Interdisciplinary Center for Biotechnology Research, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); Kan, Rosalinda; Martyniuk, Christopher J. [Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada E2L 4L5 (Canada); Denslow, Nancy D. [Department of Physiological Sciences and Center for Environmental and Human Toxicology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611 (United States); MacDonald, Bruce A., E-mail: bmacdon@unbsj.ca [Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada E2L 4L5 (Canada)

2013-04-01

Queen conch (Strombus gigas) are listed in CITES Appendix II. Populations may be declining due to anthropogenic inputs that include pollutants from boating activity. In the British Virgin Islands (BVI), some conch exhibit imposex, a condition in which male external genitalia are present in female conch. Previous studies suggest that tributyltin (TBT), an antifouling chemical used in boat paint, is correlated to increased incidence of imposex although the mechanisms leading to imposex are not known. The present study utilized a Queen conch microarray to measure the response of the ovarian transcriptome in conch inhabiting polluted environments with high TBT levels in the BVI. The polluted sites, Road Harbour (RH) and Trellis Bay (TB), are areas with high boating activity while the reference sites, Guana Island (GI) and Anegada (AN), are areas with low boating activity. There were 754 and 898 probes differentially expressed in the ovary of conch collected at RH and TB respectively compared to conch collected at GI. Of the genes that were differentially expressed at both sites, > 10% were shared suggesting that these sites have additional environmental factors influencing gene expression patterns. Functional enrichment analysis showed that the biological processes of cell proliferation, translation, and oxidative stress were over-represented in the polluted sites. Gene set enrichment analysis revealed that transcripts involved in the biological processes of general metabolism, immune, lipid metabolism, and stress were affected in conch from polluted environments. Interestingly, altered stress genes appeared to be more prevalent in conch collected from RH than TB, corresponding to the higher TBT load at RH compared to TB. Our study shows that stress pathways are affected in conch ovary in environments that experience heavy boating activity in the BVIs, although we are unable to directly link changes at the transcriptomics level to high TBT levels. Highlights: �

Quantitative determination of juvenile hormone III and 20-hydroxyecdysone in queen larvae and drone pupae of Apis mellifera by ultrasonic-assisted extraction and liquid chromatography with electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Jinhui; Qi, Yitao; Hou, Yali; Zhao, Jing; Li, Yi; Xue, Xiaofeng; Wu, Liming; Zhang, Jinzhen; Chen, Fang

2011-09-01

In this paper, a method for the rapid and sensitive analysis of juvenile hormone III (JH III) and 20-hydroxyecdysone (20E) in queen larvae and drone pupae samples was presented. Ultrasound-assisted extraction provided a significant shortening of the leaching time for the extraction of JH III and 20E and satisfactory sensitivity as compared to the conventional shake extraction procedure. After extraction, determination was carried out by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) operating in electrospray ionization positive ion mode via multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) without any clean-up step prior to analysis. A linear gradient consisting of (A) water containing 0.1% formic acid and (B) acetonitrile containing 0.1% formic acid, and a ZORBAX SB-Aq column (100 mm × 2.1 mm, 3.5 μm) were employed to obtain the best resolution of the target analytes. The method was validated for linearity, limit of quantification, recovery, matrix effects, precision and stability. Drone pupae samples were found to contain 20E at concentrations of 18.0 ± 0.1 ng/g (mean ± SD) and JH III was detected at concentrations of 0.20 ± 0.06 ng/g (mean ± SD) in queen larvae samples. This validated method provided some practical information for the actual content of JH III and 20E in queen larvae and drone pupae samples. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Synthesis of (E)-9-Oxo-2-decenoic acid (the queen substance of honeybee) from methyl 3-formylpropionate; 3-horumiruporopion san mechiru wo mochiita (E)-9-okiso-2-desen san (Mitsubachi joo busshitsu) no gosei

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tsukasa, H. [Toyotama Koryo Co. Ltd., Tokyo (Japan)

1997-05-20

The queen substance, (E)-9-oxo-2-decenoic acid (1) is a pheromone secreted by queen honeybee (Apis mellifera) and inhibits reproductive ability of worker bees. Several synthesese have been reported. It was synthesized starting from methyl-3-formylpropionate this time. Methyl 7,7-ethylenedioxy-4-oxooctanoate was prepared by radical addition reaction from (2) and 2-methyl-2-vinyl-1,3-dioxolane and reduced to an ethyelenedioxy carboxylic acid with hydrazine and KOH. This compound was converted to an alcohol by reduction with sodium bis(2-methoxyethoxy)aluminum hydride, followed by oxidation with pyridinium chlorochromate to an acetal aldehyde, which was condensed with malonic acid and (1) was obtained after the hydrolysis with hydrochloric acid. 7 refs., 1 tab.

Diagenesis of arc-derived sandstones of Cretaceous formations in the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia, Canada(MEMORIAL VOLUME TO THE LATE PROFESSOR TERUHIKO SAMESHIMA)

OpenAIRE

Yagishita, Koji

1994-01-01

Diagenesis of sediments derived from a magmatic arc provenance may greatly differ from that of sediments derived from an intracratonic- or foreland-type provenance. Sediments from the magmatic arc are compositionally immature and rich in volcanic and sedimentary rock fragments. Sandstone samples of mid- to Upper Cretaceous formations in the Queen Charlotte Islands, British Columbia, Canada, contain either large amounts of pseudomatrix or authigenic cements. An inverse relationship between the...

Comparative Study on Quality Parameters of Royal Jelly, Apilarnil and Queen Bee Larvae Triturate

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Rodica MARGAOAN

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Given their beneficial effects in terms of health, the natural products, especially beehive products, have drawn the attention of consumers since long time ago. In order to guarantee the quality of these products on the market, their chemical composition needs to be analyzed. Thus, this current research had as objective the establishment of quality parameters for beehive brood food derived products: apilarnil and queen bee larvae triturate. These two products were compared with royal jelly which is the basis of brood food in the first 3 days of larval stage. The carbohydrates were determined by HPLC-IR and allowed the identification of seven carbohydrate compounds, predominantly glucose, fructose and sucrose. The lipid profile was analyzed by the Soxhlet method. The total protein content was determined by the Kjeldahl method. Free amino acids were analyzed by LC-MS. A total of 31 amino acids were identified of which nine are essential amino acids for humans.Â

Surface and snowdrift sublimation at Princess Elisabeth station, East Antarctica

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W. Thiery

2012-08-01

Full Text Available In the near-coastal regions of Antarctica, a significant fraction of the snow precipitating onto the surface is removed again through sublimation – either directly from the surface or from drifting snow particles. Meteorological observations from an Automatic Weather Station (AWS near the Belgian research station Princess Elisabeth in Dronning Maud Land, East-Antarctica, are used to study surface and snowdrift sublimation and to assess their impacts on both the surface mass balance and the surface energy balance during 2009 and 2010. Comparison to three other AWSs in Dronning Maud Land with 11 to 13 yr of observations shows that sublimation has a significant influence on the surface mass balance at katabatic locations by removing 10–23% of their total precipitation, but at the same time reveals anomalously low surface and snowdrift sublimation rates at Princess Elisabeth (17 mm w.e. yr⁻¹ compared to 42 mm w.e. yr⁻¹ at Svea Cross and 52 mm w.e. yr⁻¹ at Wasa/Aboa. This anomaly is attributed to local topography, which shields the station from strong katabatic influence, and, therefore, on the one hand allows for a strong surface inversion to persist throughout most of the year and on the other hand causes a lower probability of occurrence of intermediately strong winds. This wind speed class turns out to contribute most to the total snowdrift sublimation mass flux, given its ability to lift a high number of particles while still allowing for considerable undersaturation.

METHODOLOGICAL BASIS IMPOSING RESTRICTIONS IN LAND USE, BURDENED LAND RIGHTS DURING LAND TENURE

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Dorosh J.

2016-05-01

Full Text Available The question of balanced consolidation of social legislation in a reasonable ratio of land rights and the interests of society as a whole, as well as local communities, citizens and legal entities established by them are general in nature and require specificity it is. Proved that one way of solving this problem is the establishment of restoictions of land rights, restrictions in land use. However, the mechanism of regulation establishment, implementation and termination of restrictions on the rights to land are not very functional and needs improvement. Current legislation in Ukraine does not contain a balanced set of regulations that would determine the nature and objectives of the restrictions, including encumbrances of land rights, their types, the reasons establishing and implementing restrictions of ownership and other rights to land and so on. Based on our analysis, we provide scientifically grounded suggestions on improving the legal framework, particularly, in terms of restrictions on land use and registration in the land management process, as an important means of influence on those rights in order to ensure rational land use and protection it is. Proved that the efficiency of administrative decisions during setting restrictions on land use purpose and usage of land is possible on the basis of land zoning, thus, it is necessary to adopt the Law of Ukraine "On land zoning." In addition, the current classification of land use restrictions, which was proposed by prominent scientists in Ukraine AM Tretyak (classification of restrictions in land use by functional features, and D.S. Dobryak and D.I. Babmindra (classification of restrictions on land use based on their placement by owners and land users, is complemented by types, namely: legal, environmental, ecological, technological, sanitation, urban and special. In the result of scientific studies,we have proposed a model of methodological process of land management actions on formation

Misoprostol en la inducción del parto. Experiencias en el Queen Elizabeth II Hospital de Maseru, Lesotho Misoprostol (Cytotec for artificial delivery. Experiences at Queen Elizabeth II Hospital from Maseru, Lesotho*

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Viviana Pascual López

2011-04-01

Full Text Available La inducción del parto con misoprostol es un procedimiento médico reconocido por la Organización Mundial de la Salud como práctica clínica beneficiosa para la madre y el perinato y, por ello, los autores de este trabajo se propusieron sistematizar su aplicación por vía vaginal, en dosis de 50 µg (máxima de 200 µg e intervalos de 4 horas, en gestantes seleccionadas (n= 468 con criterio de interrupción médica del embarazo, ingresadas y tratadas en el Hospital Queen Elizabeth II -- institución de referencia nacional -- de Maseru, capital de Lesotho. Se considera que las experiencias y resultados obtenidos pueden ser de apreciable utilidad para los colegas que en circunstancias y condiciones similares, brinden atención médica internacionalista, puesto que la inducción del parto con ese producto fue altamente efectiva, por cuanto disminuyó el índice de cesáreas; mostró muy buen pronóstico de vida y salud, según puntaje de Apgar al quinto minuto, morbilidad y mortalidad del peripato, así como también garantizó que la morbilidad materna se correspondiera con el patrón de la población obstétrica en general y que no se produjeran defunciones.Artificial abortion using Misoprostol is a medical procedure recognized by the World Health Organization as a clinical practice that benefits both the mother and the neonate. That is why the authors of the present work proposed to systematize its vaginal application using doses of 50 µg (200 µg as maximum and time periods of 4 hours in pregnant women (n= 468 who were chosen under the criterion of medical pregnancy interruption and hospitalized and treated at Queen Elizabeth II Hospital -- a national reference institution -- from Maseru, capital of Lesotho. Experiences and results obtained are considered of high usefulness for colleagues who, under similar conditions and circumstances, provide international medical care. Artificial abortion using this product was highly effective; thus

Navigable windows of the Northwest Passage

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Xing-he; Ma, Long; Wang, Jia-yue; Wang, Ye; Wang, Li-na

2017-09-01

Artic sea ice loss trends support a greater potential for Arctic shipping. The information of sea ice conditions is important for utilizing Arctic passages. Based on the shipping routes given by ;Arctic Marine Shipping Assessment 2009 Report;, the navigable windows of these routes and the constituent legs were calculated by using sea ice concentration product data from 2006 to 2015, by which a comprehensive knowledge of the sea ice condition of the Northwest Passage was achieved. The results showed that Route 4 (Lancaster Sound - Barrow Strait - Prince Regent Inlet and Bellot Strait - Franklin Strait - Larsen Sound - Victoria Strait - Queen Maud Gulf - Dease Strait - Coronation Gulf - Dolphin and Union Strait - Amundsen Gulf) had the best navigable expectation, Route 2 (Parry Channel - M'Clure Strait) had the worst, and the critical legs affecting the navigation of Northwest Passage were Viscount Melville Sound, Franklin Strait, Victoria Strait, Bellot Strait, M'Clure Strait and Prince of Wales Strait. The shortest navigable period of the routes of Northwest Passage was up to 69 days. The methods used and the results of the study can help the selection and evaluation of Arctic commercial routes.

Uso da tela excluidora de rainha no alvado e seus efeitos na atividade de coleta e no desenvolvimento de colônias de Apis mellifera Hoarding activity and hive development of Apis mellifera with queen excluder at the entrance

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Leoman Almeida Couto

1998-10-01

Full Text Available Este trabalho teve o objetivo de avaliar os efeitos da tela excluidora de rainhas colocada no alvado sobre a atividade de coleta das operárias de Apis mellifera, peso da carga de pólen transportada e desenvolvimento das colônias. Foram utilizadas seis colônias, três com tela e três sem tela. Em média, 51,4%, 37,0% e 11,6% das operárias que entravam nas colméias transportavam pólen nas corbículas das 8-11, 11-14 e 14-17 horas, respectivamente. Somente 0,0175% das operárias perderam sua carga de pólen ao passar pela tela excluidora, o que representou 0,06% do total de pólen coletado/dia/colméia. A presença da tela excluidora reduziu em 15,2% e 19,4% a entrada das operárias com e sem pólen, respectivamente. Em média, o peso da carga de pólen representou 13,88 ± 8,4% do peso corporal da operária que a transportava. A tela excluidora no alvado reduziu a atividade de coleta de operárias.The aim of this article was to investigate the effect of the use of queen excluder at the hive entrance on Apis mellifera hoarding activity, pollen load and hive development in six hives, three of which provided with queen excluders. An average of 51.4%, 37.0% and 11.6% of the Apis mellifera workers which entered the hives from 8 to 11 a.m., 11 to 2 p.m. and 2 to 5 p.m., respectively, were pollen-loaded. Only 0.0175% of them lost their pollen load when passing the queen excluder, which amounted to 0.06% of total pollen collected/day/hive. The queen excluder caused the reduction of 15.2% to the entrance of pollen-loaded bees and 19.4% to the entrance of non-pollen-loaded bees. On average, the weight of the pollen load represented 13.88% ± 8.4% of the bee body weight. The results also indicated that the hoarding activity was reduced by the queen excluder.

Wisdom and love as path to sanctity. St Jadwiga the Queen in the liturgy and teachings of John Paul II

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jan Józef Janicki

2006-12-01

Full Text Available In the 600th year after the birth of Jadwiga Queen of Poland, "the most beloved female character in our history", Krakow metropolitan bishop cardinal Karol Wojtyła announced in his pastoral letter issued on this occasion that "Jadwiga, her life and work exerted a huge impact on Polish history both in historical and spiritual dimension". His statement was made pending an approval by the Holy See of her worship and its extension to the entire church (i.e. the introduction of a liturgical feast, a mass and an officium venerating Blessed Jadwiga.

Proxies and measurement techinques for mineral dust in antarctic ice cores

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ruth..[], Urs; Bigler, Matthias

2008-01-01

analysis), elemental analysis (inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy at pH 1 and after full acid digestion), and water-insoluble elemental analysis (proton induced X-ray emission). Antarctic ice core samples covering the last deglaciation from the EPICA Dome C (EDC) and the EPICA Dronning Maud Land......-MS measurements depends on the digestion method and is different for different elements and during different climatic periods. EDC and EDML samples have similar dust composition, which suggests a common dust source or a common mixture of sources for the two sites. The analyzed samples further reveal a change...

Change in Brooklyn and Queens: How New York?s Reforming the Energy Vision Program and Con Edison Are Reshaping Electric Distribution Planning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Coddington, Michael; Sciano, Damian; Fuller, Jason

2017-03-01

The New York City boroughs of Brooklyn and Queens are undergoing a period of gentrification, infrastructure rebuilding, new construction, and load growth not experienced in decades. Significant numbers of residents are moving in, and structures that had been abandoned or were in disrepair are being refurbished and modernized to accommodate the burgeoning population. Homes, businesses, and industries are reviving areas long in decline, and Brooklyn's growth has made it the nation's fourth most populous city, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Land values and planning: a common interest of land policy and land taxation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lichfield, N

1979-06-01

This paper focuses on a relatively neglected area of land policy: the relation between land use and land value as influenced by land-use planning. It discusses the need for and nature of land-use planning, the relationship of planning and land value, the compensation-betterment problem, and some particular issues of current relevance. It concludes that there is a need to ensure that valuation officers and planners complement each other in their respective tasks rather than undermine each other as happens when they do not understand the interaction of land values and planning.

Adherence to hand hygiene protocol by clinicians and medical students at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre-Malawi.

Science.gov (United States)

Kalata, N L; Kamange, L; Muula, A S

2013-06-01

While communicable diseases are the leading causes of morbidity and mortality in Malawi, the contribution of nosocomial or hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) is unknown but could be substantial. The single most important method of preventing nosocomial infections is hand hygiene. We report a study which was conducted in 2011 to investigate adherence to hand hygiene protocols by clinicians and medical students working at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital in Blantyre, Malawi. There were two parts to the study: a single blinded arm in which participants were observed without their knowledge by trained nurses; and a second arm which included self-completion of questionnaire after participant consent was obtained. The 2009 World Health Organization hand hygiene technique and recommendations which were adopted by Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital were used to define an opportunity for hand washing and effectiveness of hand washing. Hand hygiene effectiveness was defined as adherence to at least 6 out of 7 steps (80%) of the hand hygiene technique when using alcohol-based formulation or at least 8 out of 10 steps (80%) of the hand hygiene technique when using water and soap formulation before and after having direct contact with patients or their immediate surroundings. Clinicians were found to have disinfected their hands more than medical students (phand sanitizer and hand hygiene practice (p=0.3). Adherence to hand hygiene was found to be 23%. Most of the participants mentioned infection transmission prevention as a reason for disinfecting their hands. Other reasons mentioned included: a routine personal hand hygiene behaviour and discomfort if not washing hands. The top three reasons why they did not disinfect hands were forgetfulness, unavailability of sanitizers and negligence. Adherence to hand hygiene practice was found to be low, with forgetfulness and negligence being the major contributing factors. A hospital-wide multifaceted program aiming at clinicians and

Superfund at work: Hazardous waste cleanup efforts nationwide, spring 1993 (Radium Chemical Site profile, Queens, New York)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1993-01-01

The Radium Chemical hazardous waste site in Queens, New York was contaminated with radium, posing a grave potential threat to the community. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) used the Superfund program to design a long-term cleanup for the site using input from citizens and the business community. Superfund staff: Mobilized a quick cleanup action to remove 10,000 small containers of radium; Developed a streamlined approach to long-term cleanup; Secured the site to reduce the possibility of radiation exposure to the local residents; Cooperated with the community to design a well-organized emergency response plan; and Educated local citizens about site hazards, incorporating community concerns into the cleanup process. The Radium Chemical site is a clear example of EPA's effective management and problem-solving strategies at Superfund sites

Declining densities and reproductive activities of the queen conch Strombus gigas (Mesogastropoda: Strombidae in Banco Chinchorro, Eastern Caribbean, Mexico

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alberto De Jesús Navarrete

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Queen conch is a gastropod inhabiting the Caribbean Sea, it represents the second largest fishery after the spiny lobster, but it has been extensively captured in the area. In order to know its population status in Chinchorro Bank, we determined conch density changes and its effects on reproductive activities, between July and November 2009. For this, data on conch density, morphology and reproductive activities were obtained from 15 sites within three fishing zones, and compared with previously collected data (1990, 1992, 1994, and 1997. Data showed that adult density decreased with time, from 10 700ind./ha in 1990, to 198ind./h in 2009. Neither egg masses nor spawns were found and mating was only observed once in July 2009. In July, adult (lip>4mm density in the Southern zone was 23ind./ha whereas in the Northern zone and Central zone densities were 15 and 9ind./ha respectively. In November, density was somewhat higher: Southern zone 96ind./ha; Central zone 39ind./ha and Northern zone had 38ind./ha. In July, mean shell length was 170.80±46.28mm, with a higher median abundance at 180-189mm. In November, higher frequency was 187.63±45.14mm, maximum at 210-219mm interval. For the last 10 years period, mean adult conch densities have diminished in each zone, which might be the main cause of decreased reproductive activities of the conch at Banco Chinchorro. It is therefore an immediate need to analyse the management plan for this species in this Reserve and perhaps to promote a re-population of queen conch and culture activities. Rev. Biol. Trop. 61 (4: 1671-1679. Epub 2013 December 01.

A Sinner or a Saint: the image of Mary, Queen of Scots in the works of Friedrich Schiller, Juliusz Słowacki and Stefan Zweig

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Melkov Andrey Sergeevich

2017-04-01

Full Text Available The artistic image of Mary, Queen of Scots in the works of F. Schiller, J. Słowacki and S. Zweig are researched in the article. The Queen’s life, character, inner world and psychological portrait appear on the pages of the classicists’ works in the context of the era she lived. The turbulent historical processes that took place in England and Scotland at the end of the Middle Ages and the beginning of the Early Modern Period led to the phenomenon of Mary Stuart’s personality. Obviously the creativity of the authors whose works were dedicated to Mary I of Scotland was influenced by the experience learned from the lessons of their time. It was reflected in the classicists’ analyses and description of the past. Romanticistsof the 19th century, F. Schiller and J. Słowacki, interpreted the personality of Mary Stuart in the sinner/saint dichotomy, but S. Zweig at the historic break in the 30s of the 20th century departed from the unilateralism of such an approach. In his romanced biography of Mary, Queen of Scots he tells about the rises and falls of his heroine. S. Zweig presents Mary I of Scotland as a wonderful, passionate and suffering woman, who even 400 years after her death inspires and excites peoples’ minds and hearts.

Adopting a blended approach to learning: Experiences from Radiography at Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cockbain, M.M.; Blyth, C.M.; Bovill, C.; Morss, K.

2009-01-01

The perspective of the radiography teaching team at Queen Margaret University (QMU) was that a transmission mode of programme delivery was sub-optimal in helping students to learn and make links between theory and practice. Programme redesign adopted a blended learning approach with both face-to-face and online learning aimed at enhancing the students' control over their own learning. Online tasks within Web Classroom Tools (WebCT) were used as an integral part of careful programme design, which resulted in a programme enabling synthesis of the skills, knowledge and competencies acquired in the academic and clinical environments. With the move towards a more learner-centred, blended educational experience for the students the lecturers' role shifted to that of facilitator with WebCT providing the tutor with a more transparent view of student learning. Lecturers plan learning activities that build upon the skills students have developed through learning in groups, online and in class. The explicit connections that now exist between the academic programme and the opportunities for applying knowledge in practice allow students to engage more deeply in their learning.

Newborn transport in South Australia, 1978-80: experience of the Queen Victoria Hospital, Adelaide.

Science.gov (United States)

Davies, A G; Fitzgerald, A M; Dahlenburg, G W

1982-01-23

389 infants were transported to the Queen Victoria Hospital, Adelaide between 1978 and 1980. Twenty-three percent (99) of the infants were ventilated, and 49% (189) received intravenous or intra-arterial therapy. Fifty-six percent (217) of the infants required transport because of prematurity; 11% (46) because of perinatal asphyxia in babies weighing more than 2,500 g. Only one baby died during transport, while 14% of the babies died subsequently. A core temperature of less than 36 degrees C in either hospital is important; a cold baby is 3.5 times more likely to die (X2=25.46, P less than 0.001). The transport of babies over distances greater than 300 kilometres is peculiar to Australia. Significantly more of these babies were cold than those retrieved from hospitals near Adelaide (X2=4.7, P less than 0.05), and significantly more died. Difficulty in transferring mothers in preterm labour may be another reason these babies did relatively badly. Better education and facilities will be important if we are to improve their survival chances.

A study on the isolation of protoplasts from mesophyll cells of Dendrobium Queen Pink

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aqeel, R.; Zehra, M.; Kazmi, S. K.; Khan, S.

2016-01-01

Protoplasts were successfully isolated from one month old In vitro grown plantlets of Dendrobium cultivar Queen pink. The enzyme solution used was composed of 1 percent Cellulase Onozuka R-10, 0.5 percent Macerozyme R-10, 0.1 percent Pectinase, 0.3 M mannitol, 10 mM CaCl/sub 2/.2H/sub 2/O and 10 mM 2 (N-morpholino)-ethanesulfonic acid (MES) at pH 5.8. Protoplast highest yield with 15.7x104 protoplasts per 1.5 gm freshly chopped leaves were obtained when digested in enzyme solution for 4 hrs on a rotary shaker with an agitation speed of 45 rpm in dark conditions. Protoplasts were filtered with 45 micro m nylon sieve and washed with 0.3 M mannitol solution supplemented with 10 mM CaCl/sub 2/.2H/sub 2/O and 10 mM MES, and purified with 0.3 M sucrose solution gradient. Purification of protoplasts on a sucrose mannitol gradient yielded clean protoplasts that were free from debris. (author)

Land Competition and Land-Use Change:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vongvisouk, Thoumthone

Land competition and land-use changes are taking place in many developing countries as the demand for land increases. These changes are leading to changes in the livelihood conditions of rural people. The Government of Laos (GoL), on the one hand, aims to increase forest protection. On the other...... hand, the government is also working to increase national economic growth by promoting private-sector investment in both agriculture and forest resources – two sectors that compete for the same areas intended for protection. This thesis explores how these contradictory drivers of land-use changes...... software. Quantitative data was compiled in a Microsoft Access database and analyzed in Excel. Land-use and livelihood changes are taking place rapidly in the study sites. Overall, land-use change underwent transformation away from subsistence shifting cultivation to cash crops, intensive agriculture...

Climate change, land use and land surveyors

OpenAIRE

van der Molen, P.; Mitchell, D.

2016-01-01

Research reveals that the land sector is a major emitter of greenhouse gases. But the land sector has also potential to reduce emissions. Different from other emission sectors like energy and transport, the land sector (in particular the rural area including forests) has the potential to also remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere through sequestration and storage. This requires land use, land use change and forestry to be managed with respect to climate change goals. Carbon storage has ...

Insights into the role of age and social interactions on the sexual attractiveness of queens in an eusocial bee, Melipona flavolineata (Apidae, Meliponini)

Science.gov (United States)

Veiga, Jamille Costa; Menezes, Cristiano; Contrera, Felipe Andrés León

2017-04-01

The attraction of sexual partners is a vital necessity among insects, and it involves conflict of interests and complex communication systems among male and female. In this study, we investigated the developing of sexual attractiveness in virgin queens (i.e., gynes) of Melipona flavolineata, an eusocial stingless bee. We followed the development of sexual attractiveness in 64 gynes, belonging to seven age classes (0, 3, 6, 9, 15, 18 days post-emergence), and we also evaluated the effect of different social interactions (such as competition between queens and interactions with workers) on the development of attractiveness in other 60 gynes. We used the number of males that tried to mate with a focal gyne as a representative variable of its sexual attractiveness. During the essays, each gyne was individually presented to 10 sexually mature males, and during 3 min, we counted the number of males that everted their genitalia in response to the presence of a gyne. Here, we show that M. flavolineata gynes are capable to (i) maintain their sexual attractiveness for long periods through adult life, (ii) they need a minimum social interaction to trigger the development of sexual attractiveness, and (iii) that gynes express this trait only within a social context. We conclude that the effective occurrence of matings is conditional on potential social interactions that gynes experienced before taking the nuptial flight, when they are still in the nest. These findings bring insights into the factors determining reproductive success in social insects.

Rewriting Logic Semantics of a Plan Execution Language

Science.gov (United States)

Dowek, Gilles; Munoz, Cesar A.; Rocha, Camilo

2009-01-01

The Plan Execution Interchange Language (PLEXIL) is a synchronous language developed by NASA to support autonomous spacecraft operations. In this paper, we propose a rewriting logic semantics of PLEXIL in Maude, a high-performance logical engine. The rewriting logic semantics is by itself a formal interpreter of the language and can be used as a semantic benchmark for the implementation of PLEXIL executives. The implementation in Maude has the additional benefit of making available to PLEXIL designers and developers all the formal analysis and verification tools provided by Maude. The formalization of the PLEXIL semantics in rewriting logic poses an interesting challenge due to the synchronous nature of the language and the prioritized rules defining its semantics. To overcome this difficulty, we propose a general procedure for simulating synchronous set relations in rewriting logic that is sound and, for deterministic relations, complete. We also report on the finding of two issues at the design level of the original PLEXIL semantics that were identified with the help of the executable specification in Maude.

Myth and memory in the “queen of dreams”

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Gloria Montero

2009-06-01

Full Text Available Aristotle said that where the historian tells us what took place, the poet tells us how it came about. More recently, Gore Vidal defined ‘memoir’ as how one remembers one’s own life as distinct from an autobiography which is history, requiring research into dates and facts which must be double-checked. Memory and Myth play an important role in memoir, allowing the writer to incorporate the real underpinnings of a story that has been lived through rather than simply the account of a sequence of actual events. It might also be argued that the patina of memory that coats the ‘memoir’, as distinct from autobiography, might indeed add its own dimension, taking the account of something very real into a more surreal space. What I call my Rora stories published in Spanish under the title Todas Esas Guerras-- All Those Wars – have never appeared as a collection in English but have been published separately in literary journals. These stories, the very closest I think I will ever come to writing autobiography, grew out of a need to explore my own background – so fragmented in terms of geography, history and culture – at a time when, as a writer, I felt the desperate need to find out exactly who this multicultural person with her mixed baggage might be. The Queen of Dreams, one of the stories in the collection, uses the memory of the child Rora as she attempts to understand the drama and magic of sexuality and love in a grown-up, intolerant world at war. While the story explores the child’s personal history, it also reflects the psyche of Australia at that particular moment.

Temperature profile data collected using XBTs from the QUEENS WAY BRIDGE from the Pacific Ocean during the Thermal Structure Monitoring Program in the Pacific (TRANSPAC) project, 1977-07-02 to 1977-07-09 (NODC Accession 8100225)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Temperature profile data were collected using bathythermograph (BT/XBT) casts from QUEENS WAY BRIDGE in the Pacific Ocean from July 2, 1977 to July 9, 1977. Data...

Oceanic magmatic evolution during ocean opening under influence of mantle plume

Science.gov (United States)

Sushchevskaya, Nadezhda; Melanholina, Elena; Belyatsky, Boris; Krymsky, Robert; Migdisova, Natalya

2015-04-01

Petrology, geochemistry and geophysics as well as numerical simulation of spreading processes in plume impact environments on examples of Atlantic Ocean Iceland and the Central Atlantic plumes and Kerguelen plume in the Indian Ocean reveal: - under interaction of large plume and continental landmass the plume can contribute to splitting off individual lithosphere blocks, and their subsequent movement into the emergent ocean. At the same time enriched plume components often have geochemical characteristics of the intact continental lithosphere by early plume exposure. This is typical for trap magmatism in Antarctica, and for magmatism of North and Central Atlantic margins; - in the course of the geodynamic reconstruction under the whole region of the South Atlantic was formed (not in one step) metasomatized enriched sub-oceanic mantle with pyroxenite mantle geochemical characteristics and isotopic composition of enriched HIMU and EM-2 sources. That is typical for most of the islands in the West Antarctic. This mantle through spreading axes jumping involved in different proportions in the melting under the influence of higher-temperature rising asthenospheric lherzolite mantle; - CAP activity was brief enough (200 ± 2 Ma), but Karoo-Maud plume worked for a longer time and continued from 180 to 170 Ma ago in the main phase. Plume impact within Antarctica distributed to the South and to the East, leading to the formation of extended igneous provinces along the Transantarctic Mountains and along the east coast (Queen Maud Land province and Schirmacher Oasis). Moreover, this plume activity may be continued later on, after about 40 million years cessation, as Kerguelen plume within the newly-formed Indian Ocean, significantly affects the nature of the rift magmatism; - a large extended uplift in the eastern part of the Indian Ocean - Southeastern Indian Ridge (SEIR) was formed on the ancient spreading Wharton ridge near active Kerguelen plume. The strongest plume

Mapping Forest Inventory and Analysis forest land use: timberland, reserved forest land, and other forest land

Science.gov (United States)

Mark D. Nelson; John Vissage

2007-01-01

The Forest Inventory and Analysis (FIA) program produces area estimates of forest land use within three subcategories: timberland, reserved forest land, and other forest land. Mapping these subcategories of forest land requires the ability to spatially distinguish productive from unproductive land, and reserved from nonreserved land. FIA field data were spatially...

Dona Amélia Queen Reformatory: A sanatorium for weak children

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

do Nascimento, Dilene Raimundo

2008-12-01

Full Text Available This article intends to examine the conditions of the city of Rio de Janeiro, regarding the city's health safety or the living and housing conditions of its workers, which helped bringing about the spread of tuberculosis in the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century. Evidencing the high incidence of tuberculosis at this time, it intends to verify the reasons for creating the Brazilian League Against Tuberculosis and its purpose, analyzing its project of assistance to children's health and its intervention to discipline, which resulted in the creation of the Dona Amélia Queen Reformatory.

Este artigo pretende examinar as condições da cidade do Rio de Janeiro, seja no que diz respeito à insalubridade da cidade seja em relação às condições de vida e moradia dos seus trabalhadores, que propiciavam a disseminação da tuberculose no final do século XIX e início do XX. Constatando-se a alta incidência da tuberculose nessa época, pretende-se verificar a motivação de criação e o propósito da Liga Brasileira contra a Tuberculose e analisar o seu projeto de assistência à saúde das crianças e sua intervenção disciplinar, que resultou na criação do Preventório Rainha Dona Amélia.

From land cover change to land function dynamics: A major challenge to improve land characterization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Verburg, P.H.; Steeg, van de J.; Veldkamp, A.; Willemen, L.

2009-01-01

Land cover change has always had a central role in land change science. This central role is largely the result of the possibilities to map and characterize land cover based on observations and remote sensing. This paper argues that more attention should be given to land use and land functions and

Evidence of shallow gas in the Queen Charlotte Basin from waveform tomography of seismic reflection data

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Takam Takougang, Eric M.; Calvert, Andrew J. [Simon Fraser University (Canada)], email: eta9@sfu.ca

2011-07-01

The Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) collected eight seismic reflection lines in 1988 across the Queen Charlotte sedimentary basin of western Canada, which is the largest tertiary basin on the west coast. This work furthers the study of the upper part of the basin by using quantitative imaging of its structure through application of 2-D waveform tomography to the limited offset seismic reflection data. With the help of waveform tomography, seismic reflection data has allowed the identification of pockmark structures and pipe-like gas chimney in the recovered velocity and attenuation models. Overall, there is an excellent match between field data and predicted data. and a good match between the sonic log and a 1-D velocity function derived from the 2-D velocity model. This shows that specific preconditioning of the data and a good inversion strategy make it possible to use waveform tomography of relatively short offset reflection data for the imaging of shallow geological features.

Growth and population assessment of the queen conch Strombus gigas (Mesogastropoda: Strombidae by capture mark-recapture sampling in a natural protected area of the Mexican Caribbean

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Joanne Rebecca Peel

2012-03-01

Full Text Available The Inlet of Xel-Ha is used as a park for ecotourism, representing a sanctuary for the conservation of Pink Queen Conch. Increasing fishing pressure has led to the inclusion of the species in CITES. Most knowledge about the growth of the queen conch was generated through aquaculture, ocean enclosures or obtained using estimates derived from population dynamics. In this study we estimated the growth rate of juvenile S. gigas in a natural protected area by direct methods, during the period of April 2009 to January 2011. Data was obtained by capture-mark-recapture sampling. 1418 individuals were tagged and growth of 714 conchs was analyzed. Population size and density was estimated using Schnabel’s method. The average density was estimated at 0.1694 ± 0.0996ind. m-2, while the highest density was estimated for September 2010 (0.3074ind. m-2. The highest growth rate (0.27 ± 0.10mm day-1 was detected in juveniles with an initial size between 100-149mm, followed by conch 200mm (0.08 ± 0.07mm day-1. Variability in growth rate was high in conch 100-149mm and showed seasonal differences, with the highest growth rate in May 2010. Recruitment of juveniles was highest in October 2009 and February 2010. The population of Xel-Ha has grown in size and more large and juvenile conch could be found than in previous studies, indicating that Xel-ha park is working as a sanctuary for the conservation of the queen conch in Mexico’s Riviera Maya. The growth rate of juvenile conch in Xel-Ha is high and exhibits large variations in individuals, reflecting the natural conditions of foraging and aggregation. Seasonal differences in growth rate may be associated with water quality and availability of nutrients for primary production. We conclude that the direct method is useful for the assessment of growth in juvenile S. gigas and that growth in natural conditions may be higher than in aquaculture systems. This information may be applied to fishery management as

The impact of land use/land cover changes on land degradation dynamics: a Mediterranean case study.

Science.gov (United States)

Bajocco, S; De Angelis, A; Perini, L; Ferrara, A; Salvati, L

2012-05-01

In the last decades, due to climate changes, soil deterioration, and Land Use/Land Cover Changes (LULCCs), land degradation risk has become one of the most important ecological issues at the global level. Land degradation involves two interlocking systems: the natural ecosystem and the socio-economic system. The complexity of land degradation processes should be addressed using a multidisciplinary approach. Therefore, the aim of this work is to assess diachronically land degradation dynamics under changing land covers. This paper analyzes LULCCs and the parallel increase in the level of land sensitivity to degradation along the coastal belt of Sardinia (Italy), a typical Mediterranean region where human pressure affects the landscape characteristics through fires, intensive agricultural practices, land abandonment, urban sprawl, and tourism concentration. Results reveal that two factors mainly affect the level of land sensitivity to degradation in the study area: (i) land abandonment and (ii) unsustainable use of rural and peri-urban areas. Taken together, these factors represent the primary cause of the LULCCs observed in coastal Sardinia. By linking the structural features of the Mediterranean landscape with its functional land degradation dynamics over time, these results contribute to orienting policies for sustainable land management in Mediterranean coastal areas.

The Impact of Land Use/Land Cover Changes on Land Degradation Dynamics: A Mediterranean Case Study

Science.gov (United States)

Bajocco, S.; De Angelis, A.; Perini, L.; Ferrara, A.; Salvati, L.

2012-05-01

In the last decades, due to climate changes, soil deterioration, and Land Use/Land Cover Changes (LULCCs), land degradation risk has become one of the most important ecological issues at the global level. Land degradation involves two interlocking systems: the natural ecosystem and the socio-economic system. The complexity of land degradation processes should be addressed using a multidisciplinary approach. Therefore, the aim of this work is to assess diachronically land degradation dynamics under changing land covers. This paper analyzes LULCCs and the parallel increase in the level of land sensitivity to degradation along the coastal belt of Sardinia (Italy), a typical Mediterranean region where human pressure affects the landscape characteristics through fires, intensive agricultural practices, land abandonment, urban sprawl, and tourism concentration. Results reveal that two factors mainly affect the level of land sensitivity to degradation in the study area: (i) land abandonment and (ii) unsustainable use of rural and peri-urban areas. Taken together, these factors represent the primary cause of the LULCCs observed in coastal Sardinia. By linking the structural features of the Mediterranean landscape with its functional land degradation dynamics over time, these results contribute to orienting policies for sustainable land management in Mediterranean coastal areas.

Land cover change or land use intensification: simulating land system change with a global-scale land change model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Asselen, S.; Verburg, P.H.

2013-01-01

Land-use change is both a cause and consequence of many biophysical and socioeconomic changes. The CLUMondo model provides an innovative approach for global land-use change modeling to support integrated assessments. Demands for goods and services are, in the model, supplied by a variety of land

Land reform and land fragmentation in Central and Eastern Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartvigsen, Morten B.

2014-01-01

It has often been stated that land fragmentation and farm structures characterized by small agricultural holdings and farms divided in a large number of parcels have been the side-effect of land reform in Central and Eastern Europe. This article reports the findings of a study of land reform in 25...... countries in the region from 1989 and onwards and provides an overview of applied land reform approaches. With a basis in theory on land fragmentation, the linkage between land reform approaches and land fragmentation is explored. It is discussed in which situations land fragmentation is a barrier...... for the development of the agricultural and rural sector. The main finding is that land fragmentation is often hampering agricultural and rural development when both land ownership and land use is highly fragmented....

The Big Rust and the Red Queen: Long-Term Perspectives on Coffee Rust Research.

Science.gov (United States)

McCook, Stuart; Vandermeer, John

2015-09-01

Since 2008, there has been a cluster of outbreaks of the coffee rust (Hemileia vastatrix) across the coffee-growing regions of the Americas, which have been collectively described as the Big Rust. These outbreaks have caused significant hardship to coffee producers and laborers. This essay situates the Big Rust in a broader historical context. Over the past two centuries, coffee farmers have had to deal with the "curse of the Red Queen"-the need to constantly innovate in the face of an increasing range of threats, which includes the rust. Over the 20th century, particularly after World War II, national governments and international organizations developed a network of national, regional, and international coffee research institutions. These public institutions played a vital role in helping coffee farmers manage the rust. Coffee farmers have pursued four major strategies for managing the rust: bioprospecting for resistant coffee plants, breeding resistant coffee plants, chemical control, and agroecological control. Currently, the main challenge for researchers is to develop rust control strategies that are both ecologically and economically viable for coffee farmers, in the context of a volatile, deregulated coffee industry and the emergent challenges of climate change.

Land Mobility in a Central and Eastern European Land Consolidation Context

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartvigsen, Morten B.

2014-01-01

in a Central and Eastern European land consolidation context. The term land mobility is defined and the limited theory available is reviewed. Case studies of land mobility in land consolidation pilot projects in Moldova, Albania and Bosnia-Herzegovina show the correlation between land mobility and the success......In most of the Central and Eastern European countries, land reforms after 1989 have resulted in extensive land fragmentation. The majority of the countries have during the two recent decades introduced land consolidation instruments to address the structural problems with land fragmentation...... or failure of voluntary land consolidation projects. In situations with low land mobility, land consolidation instruments need in order to be successful to be supported by other land policy tools such as land banks. The use of existing state agricultural land is an obvious foundation for establishing a state...

Climate change, land use and land surveyors

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Molen, P.; Mitchell, D.

2016-01-01

Research reveals that the land sector is a major emitter of greenhouse gases. But the land sector has also potential to reduce emissions. Different from other emission sectors like energy and transport, the land sector (in particular the rural area including forests) has the potential to also remove

Bees and Honey

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

TOM; HANCOCK

2011-01-01

The first bee landed on Dalin Wang at around one in the afternoon.Surrounded by3,000 onlookers,he wore a pair of trousers,black boots and two small cloth bags,each containing a queen bee.Wang watched the bees cover his chest,legs and arms,until every

76 FR 78879 - Fisheries of the Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, and South Atlantic; Snapper-Grouper Fishery Off the...

Science.gov (United States)

2011-12-20

..., recent analysis of landings data (June 1, 2011, SERO-LAPP- 2011-06 Report) indicate that speckled hind... shelf break. Blueline tilefish, which is targeted for harvest by the deep-water component of the snapper.... Even though yellowedge grouper, misty grouper, queen snapper, and silk snapper primarily share the same...

National Land Cover Database (NLCD) Land Cover Collection

Data.gov (United States)

U.S. Geological Survey, Department of the Interior — The National Land Cover Database (NLCD) Land Cover Collection is produced through a cooperative project conducted by the Multi-Resolution Land Characteristics (MRLC)...

Validation of land use / land cover changes for Denmark

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Levin, Gregor; Johannsen, Vivian Kvist; Caspersen, Ole Hjort

2018-01-01

This report presents applied methods and results for a validation of land use and land cover changes for 1990 and 2014-2016. Results indicate that generally, accuracies of land use and land cover. However, afforestation and particularly deforestation are significantly overestimated....

Agent-based land markets: Heterogeneous agents, land proces and urban land use change

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Filatova, Tatiana; Parker, Dawn C.; van der Veen, A.; Amblard, F.

2007-01-01

We construct a spatially explicit agent-based model of a bilateral land market. Heterogeneous agents form their bid and ask prices for land based on the utility that they obtain from a certain location (houte/land) and base on the state of the market (an excess of demand or supply). We underline the

Land Politics under Market Socialism: The State, Land Policies, and Rural–Urban Land Conversion in China and Vietnam

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hoang Linh Nguyen

2018-04-01

Full Text Available This paper undertakes a comparative analysis of rural–urban land conversion policies in China and Vietnam, and examines the ideology of the state in land policymaking under a market socialism environment. It argues that land policies in both countries include ambiguous boundaries, which allow the socialist state to legitimize its politico-administrative power in land management and retain strong intervention capacity in the land market. In addition to similarities, land policies in China and Vietnam show significant differences in terms of the ownership of rural land and related legislation on land expropriation and transactions. Together, these distinctions cause divergent impacts on the interests and motivations of multiple stakeholders in rural land conversion. It is further observed that the state in both countries is characterized by dynamic, complex, and self-coordinated institutional systems, in which multiple levels of government have different driving forces and strategies in land development. The internal structure of authority in rural–urban land conversion between the multiple levels of government is readjusted by the regulatory land control of the central government.

Water Resources and Related Land Management, Buffalo Metropolitan Area, New York

Science.gov (United States)

1991-04-01

nettle , Queen Ann’s lace, aster (New England, bushy), beggarstick, cocklebur, chickory, tickseed-sunflower, timothy, teasel, and grasses (quake, orchard...in leaf litter and falling insects off such overhanging trees, that contribute to the fish food chain in the creek. Channelization would disrupt and...alder and eastern cottonwood. Goldenrod, stinging nettle and various grasses are abundant to common. Aquatic vegetation is limited, although spikerush

Land Use and Land Cover Change Analysis along the Coastal ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Agribotix GCS 077

are carried out on the land usually effect changes in its cover. ... The FAO document on land cover classification systems, (2000) partly answers this ... over the surface land, including water, vegetation, bare soils and or artificial structures. ... diseases may occur more readily in areas exposed by Land Use and Land Cover ...

Carbon dioxide emissions from forestry and peat land using land-use/land-cover changes in North Sumatra, Indonesia

Science.gov (United States)

Basyuni, M.; Sulistyono, N.; Slamet, B.; Wati, R.

2018-03-01

Forestry and peat land including land-based is one of the critical sectors in the inventory of CO2 emissions and mitigation efforts of climate change. The present study analyzed the land-use and land-cover changes between 2006 and 2012 in North Sumatra, Indonesia with emphasis to CO2 emissions. The land-use/land-cover consists of twenty-one classes. Redd Abacus software version 1.1.7 was used to measure carbon emission source as well as the predicted 2carbon dioxide emissions from 2006-2024. Results showed that historical emission (2006-2012) in this province, significant increases in the intensive land use namely dry land agriculture (109.65%), paddy field (16.23%) and estate plantation (15.11%). On the other hand, land-cover for forest decreased significantly: secondary dry land forest (7.60%), secondary mangrove forest (9.03%), secondary swamp forest (33.98%), and the largest one in the mixed dry land agriculture (79.96%). The results indicated that North Sumatra province is still a CO2 emitter, and the most important driver of emissions mostly derived from agricultural lands that contributed 2carbon dioxide emissions by 48.8%, changing from forest areas into degraded lands (classified as barren land and shrub) shared 30.6% and estate plantation of 22.4%. Mitigation actions to reduce carbon emissions was proposed such as strengthening the forest land, rehabilitation of degraded area, development and plantation forest, forest protection and forest fire control, and reforestation and conservation activity. These mitigation actions have been simulated to reduce 15% for forestry and 18% for peat land, respectively. This data is likely to contribute to the low emission development in North Sumatra.

Review of Land Use and Land Cover Change research progress

Science.gov (United States)

Chang, Yue; Hou, Kang; Li, Xuxiang; Zhang, Yunwei; Chen, Pei

2018-02-01

Land Use and Land Cover Change (LUCC) can reflect the pattern of human land use in a region, and plays an important role in space soil and water conservation. The study on the change of land use patterns in the world is of great significance to cope with global climate change and sustainable development. This paper reviews the main research progress of LUCC at home and abroad, and suggests that land use change has been shifted from land use planning and management to land use change impact and driving factors. The development of remote sensing technology provides the basis and data for LUCC with dynamic monitoring and quantitative analysis. However, there is no uniform standard for land use classification at present, which brings a lot of inconvenience to the collection and analysis of land cover data. Globeland30 is an important milestone contribution to the study of international LUCC system. More attention should be paid to the accuracy and results contrasting test of land use classification obtained by remote sensing technology.

lands

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A.T. O'Geen

2015-04-01

Full Text Available Groundwater pumping chronically exceeds natural recharge in many agricultural regions in California. A common method of recharging groundwater — when surface water is available — is to deliberately flood an open area, allowing water to percolate into an aquifer. However, open land suitable for this type of recharge is scarce. Flooding agricultural land during fallow or dormant periods has the potential to increase groundwater recharge substantially, but this approach has not been well studied. Using data on soils, topography and crop type, we developed a spatially explicit index of the suitability for groundwater recharge of land in all agricultural regions in California. We identified 3.6 million acres of agricultural land statewide as having Excellent or Good potential for groundwater recharge. The index provides preliminary guidance about the locations where groundwater recharge on agricultural land is likely to be feasible. A variety of institutional, infrastructure and other issues must also be addressed before this practice can be implemented widely.

Earth land landing alternatives: Lunar transportation system

Science.gov (United States)

Meyerson, Robert

1992-01-01

The objectives of this study are as follows: (1) develop a landing option such that it is a viable trade option for future NASA missions; (2) provide NASA programs with solid technical support in the landing systems area; (3) develop the technical staff; and (4) advance the state of landing systems technology to apply to future NASA missions. All results are presented in viewgraph format.

Changes in the structure and pigmentation of the eyes of honeybee (Apis mellifera L. queens with the "limão" mutation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Chaud-Netto

2000-03-01

Full Text Available This study describes the ultrastructural differences between the compound eyes of ch li/ch li and Ch/ch li honeybee queens. Heterozygous "limão" bees had an almost normal ultrastructural organization of the ommatidia, but there were some alterations, including small vacuoles in the crystalline cones and a loss of pigment by primary pigmentary cells. In homozygous bees many ommatidia had very deformed crystalline cones and there were some bipartite rhabdoma. There was a reduction in the amount of pigment in the primary and secondary pigmentary cells and receptor cells (retinulae of mutant eyes. However, the eyes of both heterozygous and homozygous queens had the same type of pigment granules. Certain membrane-limited structures containing pigment granules and electron-dense material appeared to be of lysosomal nature. Since these structures occurred in the retinular cells of mutant eyes, they were considered to be multivesicular bodies responsible for the reduction in rhabdom volume in the presence of light, as a type of adaptation to brightness. The reduction of pigment in the pigmentary and retinular cells and the morphological changes seen in the rhabdom of the ommatidia may originate visual deficiencies, which could explain the behavioral modifications reported for Apis mellifera queens with mutant eye color.Este estudo descreve as diferenças ultra-estruturais entre os olhos compostos de rainhas de abelhas de genótipo ch li/ch li e Ch/ch li. Foram registradas diferenças na organização do omatídeo e na pigmentação geral dos dois tipos de olhos. As abelhas heterozigotas apresentaram organização ultra-estrutural dos omatídeos praticamente normal. Contudo, foram observadas algumas alterações nos cones cristalinos, particularmente a presença de pequenos vacúolos nas células dos cones e perda de pigmento pelas células pigmentares primárias. Nas abelhas homozigotas foram encontrados vários omatídeos com cones cristalinos muito

Land change monitoring, assessment, and projection (LCMAP) revolutionizes land cover and land change research

Science.gov (United States)

Young, Steven

2017-05-02

When nature and humanity change Earth’s landscapes - through flood or fire, public policy, natural resources management, or economic development - the results are often dramatic and lasting.Wildfires can reshape ecosystems. Hurricanes with names like Sandy or Katrina will howl for days while altering the landscape for years. One growing season in the evolution of drought-resistant genetics can transform semiarid landscapes into farm fields.In the past, valuable land cover maps created for understanding the effects of those events - whether changes in wildlife habitat, water-quality impacts, or the role land use and land cover play in affecting weather and climate - came out at best every 5 to 7 years. Those high quality, high resolution maps were good, but users always craved more: even higher quality data, additional land cover and land change variables, more detailed legends, and most importantly, more frequent land change information.Now a bold new initiative called Land Change Monitoring, Assessment, and Projection (LCMAP) promises to fulfill that demand.Developed at the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, LCMAP provides definitive, timely information on how, why, and where the planet is changing. LCMAP’s continuous monitoring process can detect changes as they happen every day that Landsat satellites acquire clear observations. The result will be to place near real-time information in the hands of land and resource managers who need to understand the effects these changes have on landscapes.

How counterfactuals of Red-Queen theory shed light on science and its historiography.

Science.gov (United States)

Dagg, Joachim L

2017-08-01

A historical episode of evolutionary theory, which has lead to the Red Queen theory of the evolutionary maintenance of sex, includes two striking contingencies. These are used to explore alternative what-if scenarios, in order to test some common opinions about such counterfactuals. This sheds new light on the nature of science and its historiography. One counterfactual leads to an unexpected convergence of its result to that of the actual science but, nevertheless, differs in its causal structure. The other diverges towards an incompatible alternative, but this requires further contingent choices that also diverge from actual science. The convergence in the first counterfactual is due to a horizontal transfer of knowledge. Similar transfers of knowledge are typical for innovations of actual science. This suggests that contingent choices can merge as well as fork research traditions both in actual research and counterfactual history. Neither the paths of the actual history of science nor those of its counterfactual alternatives will form a tree of exclusively diverging bifurcations, but a network instead. Convergencies in counterfactuals may, therefore, be due to the web-structure of science as much as to the aims of the historians in question. Furthermore, the difference in causal structure between the actual science and its convergent counterfactual might become diagnostic for external factors rather than internal aims forcing a historian towards convergence. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

LandSense: A Citizen Observatory and Innovation Marketplace for Land Use and Land Cover Monitoring

Science.gov (United States)

Moorthy, Inian; Fritz, Steffen; See, Linda; McCallum, Ian

2017-04-01

Currently within the EU's Earth Observation (EO) monitoring framework, there is a need for low-cost methods for acquiring high quality in-situ data to create accurate and well-validated environmental monitoring products. To help address this need, a new four year Horizon 2020 project entitled LandSense will link remote sensing data with modern participatory data collection methods that involve citizen scientists. This paper will describe the citizen science activities within the LandSense Observatory that aim to deliver concrete, measurable and quality-assured ground-based data that will complement existing satellite monitoring systems. LandSense will deploy advanced tools, services and resources to mobilize and engage citizens to collect in-situ observations (i.e. ground-based data and visual interpretations of EO imagery). Integrating these citizen-driven in-situ data collections with established authoritative and open access data sources will help reduce costs, extend GEOSS and Copernicus capacities, and support comprehensive environmental monitoring systems. Policy-relevant campaigns will be implemented in close collaboration with multiple stakeholders to ensure that citizen observations address user requirements and contribute to EU-wide environmental governance and decision-making. Campaigns for addressing local and regional Land Use and Land Cover (LULC) issues are planned for select areas in Austria, France, Germany, Spain, Slovenia and Serbia. Novel LandSense services (LandSense Campaigner, FarmLand Support, Change Detector and Quality Assurance & Control) will be deployed and tested in these areas to address critical LULC issues (i.e. urbanization, agricultural land use and forest/habitat monitoring). For example, local residents in the cities of Vienna, Tulln, and Heidelberg will help cooperatively detect and map changes in land cover and green space to address key issues of urban sprawl, land take and flooding. Such campaigns are facilitated through

Land Use and Land Cover - Volusia County Future Land Use (FLU) 2010

Data.gov (United States)

NSGIC Local Govt | GIS Inventory — Volusia County Future Land Use 2010. This is the original land use map for 2010. It was drafted for the comprehensive plan in 1990 and contains adopted amendments.

Mulighedernes land?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Munck Petersen, Rikke

2001-01-01

Kommentar om arbejde med det åbne land i forlængelse af konfencen "Mulighedernes land" og vigtigheden af at landskabsarkitekter går aktivt ind i debatten og arbejdet med landskabets forandring i Danmark.......Kommentar om arbejde med det åbne land i forlængelse af konfencen "Mulighedernes land" og vigtigheden af at landskabsarkitekter går aktivt ind i debatten og arbejdet med landskabets forandring i Danmark....

A histochemical and X-ray microanalysis study of calcium changes in insect flight muscle degeneration in Solenopsis, the queen fire ant

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jones, R.G.; Davis, W.L.; Vinson, S.B.

1982-01-01

Potassium pyroantimonate histochemistry, coupled with ethyleneglycoltetraacetic acid (EGTA)-chelation and X-ray microprobe analysis, was employed to localize intracellular calcium binding sites in the normal and degenerating flight musculature in queens of Solenopsis, the fire ant. In normal animals, calcium distribution was light to moderate within myofibrils and mitochondria. In the early contracture stages of the insemination-induced degeneration, both myofilament and mitochondrial calcium loading was markedly increased. In the terminal stages of myofibril breakdown, only Z-lines (isolated or in clusters) with an associated filamentous residue persisted. These complexes were also intensely calcium positive. This study further documents the presence of increased sarcoplasmic calcium during muscle necrosis. Surface membrane defects, mitochondrial calcium overload, and calcium-activated proteases may all be involved in this ''normal'' breakdown process

LANDING QUALITY IN ARTISTIC GYMNASTICS IS RELATED TO LANDING SYMMETRY

Science.gov (United States)

Marinšek, M.

2013-01-01

In gymnastics every exercise finishes with a landing. The quality of landing depends on subjective (e.g. biomechanical) and objective (e.g. mechanical characteristics of landing area) factors. The aim of our research was to determine which biomechanical (temporal, kinematic and dynamic) characteristics of landing best predict the quality of landing. Twelve male gymnasts performed a stretched forward and backward salto; also with 1/2, 1/1 and 3/2 turns. Stepwise multiple regression extracted five predictors which explained 51.5% of landing quality variance. All predictors were defining asymmetries between legs (velocities, angles). To avoid asymmetric landings, gymnasts need to develop enough height; they need higher angular momentum around the transverse and longitudinal axis and they need to better control angular velocity in the longitudinal axis. PMID:24744462

Between 'Land Grabs' and Agricultural Investment: Land Rent ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The article suggests the need to rectify the gaps in the land transfer contracts and most importantly, the need to render the government a custodian (and not owner) of land in conformity with the FDRE Constitution and to ensure that the termination of land use rights is decided by courts so that executive offices would not ...

Land Cover - Minnesota Land Cover Classification System

Data.gov (United States)

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — Land cover data set based on the Minnesota Land Cover Classification System (MLCCS) coding scheme. This data was produced using a combination of aerial photograph...

Landing quality in artistics gymnastics is related to landing symmetry

OpenAIRE

Čuk, Ivan; Marinšek, Miha

2017-01-01

In gymnastics every exercise finishes with a landing. The quality of landing depends on subjective (e.g. biomechanical) and objective (e.g. mechanical characteristics of landing area) factors. The aim of our research was to determine which biomechanical (temporal, kinematic and dynamic) characteristics of landing best predict the quality of landing. Twelve male gymnasts performed a stretched forward and backward salto; also with 1/2, 1/1 and 3/2 turns. Stepwise multiple regression extracted f...

Land Administration Systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Enemark, Stig

2014-01-01

Land administration systems are the operational tool for conceptualizing rights, restrictions and responsibilities (RRRs) in land. Each of the rights, restrictions and responsibilities encompasses a human rights dimension that relates to the overall national land policies and should be unfolded...... as more than just rhetoric. This paper attempts to analyse the aspects of human rights in relation to land administration systems with a special focus on developing countries struggling to build adequate systems for governing the rights, restrictions and responsibilities in land. Human rights....... This relates to national political arrangements and standards for good governance and land administration systems are highly instrumental in this regard. This paper introduces the relation between land administration and human rights. It is argued that human rights and land administration are closely linked...

Impacts of historic and projected land-cover, land-use, and land-management change on carbon and water fluxes: The Land Use Model Intercomparison Project (LUMIP)

Science.gov (United States)

Lawrence, D. M.; Lombardozzi, D. L.; Lawrence, P.; Hurtt, G. C.

2017-12-01

Human land-use activities have resulted in large changes to the Earth surface, with resulting implications for climate. In the future, land-use activities are likely to intensify to meet growing demands for food, fiber, and energy. The Land Use Model Intercomparison Project (LUMIP) aims to further advance understanding of the broad question of impacts of land-use and land-cover change (LULCC) as well as more detailed science questions to get at process-level attribution, uncertainty, and data requirements in more depth and sophistication than possible in a multi-model context to date. LUMIP is multi-faceted and aims to advance our understanding of land-use change from several perspectives. In particular, LUMIP includes a factorial set of land-only simulations that differ from each other with respect to the specific treatment of land use or land management (e.g., irrigation active or not, crop fertilization active or not, wood harvest on or not), or in terms of prescribed climate. This factorial series of experiments serves several purposes and is designed to provide a detailed assessment of how the specification of land-cover change and land management affects the carbon, water, and energy cycle response to land-use change. The potential analyses that are possible through this set of experiments are vast. For example, comparing a control experiment with all land management active to an experiment with no irrigation allows a multi-model assessment of whether or not the increasing use of irrigation during the 20th century is likely to have significantly altered trends of regional water and energy fluxes (and therefore climate) and/or crop yield and carbon fluxes in agricultural regions. Here, we will present preliminary results from the factorial set of experiments utilizing the Community Land Model (CLM5). The analyses presented here will help guide multi-model analyses once the full set of LUMIP simulations are available.

Land Reform and Land Consolidation in Central and Eastern Europe after 1989

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hartvigsen, Morten B.

instruments are well on the way in the region, land banking instruments have largely failed in the region, at least as tools for supporting land consolidation programs. Based on the limited theory available, the analysis has revealed how limited land mobility is often hampering the outcome of land...... are not competitive in the globalized economy. Drawing on the classical theory on land fragmentation, this PhD study explores the coherence between the land reform approaches applied in 25 study countries and the outcome in form of farm structures and land fragmentation. Most of the Central and Eastern European...... countries have introduced land consolidation instruments to address the structural problems in agriculture. The PhD study analyses the experiences from introduction of land consolidation and land banking instruments and provides the first full overview of the experiences achieved. While land consolidation...

Theoretical concepts "land management process", "land management procedure" and their relationships

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tretiak A.M.

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The state significance of land management activities is manifested in those legal consequences that arise after the issuance of land management documentation and are conditioned by the need to secure unsupported land rights and the use and protection of land in a state-guaranteed manner. The procedural activity of land surveyors and other persons authorized by the state to commit land management operations must be carried out in a certain order established by the state and obey the rights and obligations of the persons specified by the legislation at each stage of the development of such relations.The main goal of applying to land management organizations and land surveyors is landuse documentation, which is made in accordance with the requirements of the law and with which the relevant legal properties of the land management procedure are associated. First of all, let's dwell on such basic concepts as "land management process" and "land management procedure". Consideration of the term "land management process" implies a preliminary analysis of the category "process". At the same time, it must be admitted that the development of the procedural form of this category has not been paid attention. Considering the concept of "land management process", its place and role in the system of social relations, emphasis will be placed on the concept of a broad understanding of the legal process, the problem of which exists for decades.Thus, the legal process is a regulated by the procedural rules procedure for the activities of competent state bodies, consisting of the preparation, adoption and documentary consolidation of legal decisions of a general and individual nature. In the land law, the category "process" is specific and serves to designate relationships that provide regulatory and security land-property relationships. Particularly difficult today is the question of the delimitation of the concepts of "process" and "procedure" in general. Regarding

The Urban Land Question, Land Reform and the Spectre of ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The country's urban land reform mechanism, that is, land restitution, has so far been very marginal in making urban land or property available to the landless and/or homeless people. As a result, since 2014, the country is facing new aggressive extrajudicial land occupations in urban areas spearheaded by the ultra-left ...

Land management and development

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Enemark, Stig

2006-01-01

Land management is the process by which the resources of land are put into good effect. Land management encompasses all activities associated with the management of land that are required to achieve sustainable development. The concept of land includes properties and natural resources and thereby...... land related data. It is argued that development of such a model is important or even necessary for facilitating a holistic approach to the management of land as the key asset of any nation or jurisdiction.......Land management is the process by which the resources of land are put into good effect. Land management encompasses all activities associated with the management of land that are required to achieve sustainable development. The concept of land includes properties and natural resources and thereby...... encompasses the total natural and built environment. Land Administration Systems (LAS) are institutional frameworks complicated by the tasks they must perform, by national cultural, political and judicial settings, and by technology. This paper facilitates an overall understanding of the land management...

Land-based approach to evaluate sustainable land management and adaptive capacity of ecosystems/lands

Science.gov (United States)

Kust, German; Andreeva, Olga

2015-04-01

A number of new concepts and paradigms appeared during last decades, such as sustainable land management (SLM), climate change (CC) adaptation, environmental services, ecosystem health, and others. All of these initiatives still not having the common scientific platform although some agreements in terminology were reached, schemes of links and feedback loops created, and some models developed. Nevertheless, in spite of all these scientific achievements, the land related issues are still not in the focus of CC adaptation and mitigation. The last did not grow much beyond the "greenhouse gases" (GHG) concept, which makes land degradation as the "forgotten side of climate change" The possible decision to integrate concepts of climate and desertification/land degradation could be consideration of the "GHG" approach providing global solution, and "land" approach providing local solution covering other "locally manifesting" issues of global importance (biodiversity conservation, food security, disasters and risks, etc.) to serve as a central concept among those. SLM concept is a land-based approach, which includes the concepts of both ecosystem-based approach (EbA) and community-based approach (CbA). SLM can serve as in integral CC adaptation strategy, being based on the statement "the more healthy and resilient the system is, the less vulnerable and more adaptive it will be to any external changes and forces, including climate" The biggest scientific issue is the methods to evaluate the SLM and results of the SLM investments. We suggest using the approach based on the understanding of the balance or equilibrium of the land and nature components as the major sign of the sustainable system. Prom this point of view it is easier to understand the state of the ecosystem stress, size of the "health", range of adaptive capacity, drivers of degradation and SLM nature, as well as the extended land use, and the concept of environmental land management as the improved SLM approach

Participatory Land Administration on Customary Lands: A Practical VGI Experiment in Nanton, Ghana

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kwabena Asiama

2017-06-01

Full Text Available Land information is one of the basic requirements for land management activities such as land consolidation. However, the dearth of land information on customary lands limits the development and application of land consolidation. This paper presents and discusses the results of an experiment carried out to test the potential of participatory land administration applied on customary lands in support of land consolidation. A brief overview of the evolution of crowdsourced, voluntary, and participatory approaches is provided alongside newly related insights into neogeography and neo-cadastre, and fit-for-purpose and pro-poor land administration. The concept of participatory land administration is then developed in this context. The area of the experiment is in Northern Ghana where the process was developed together with the local farming community. The study involved collecting land information relating to farms over a two-week period, using a mobile app and a satellite image, based on participatory land administration. The results show that Participatory Land Administration can potentially support land consolidation, though further investigation is needed on how it can be integrated into the formal land registration system, into an actual land consolidation project.

Land

NARCIS (Netherlands)

C.A. Hunsberger (Carol); Tom P. Evans

2012-01-01

textabstractPressure on land resources has increased during recent years despite international goals to improve their management. The fourth Global Environment Outlook (UNEP 2007) highlighted the unprecedented land-use changes created by a burgeoning population, economic development and

Land Use and Land-use Changes in Life Cycle Assessment

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

De Rosa, Michele

2017-01-01

The assessment of Land Uses and Land-use Changes (LULUC) impacts has become increasingly complex. Sophisticated modelling tools such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) are employed to capture both direct and indirect damages. However, quantitative assessments are often incomplete, dominated...... by environmental aspects. Land uses are a multidisciplinary matter and environmental and sustainable development policies intertwine. Yet, LCAs mostly focus on environmental impacts excluding socioeconomic implications of land occupation. This paper investigates the limitations of current LULUC modelling practices....... Consequently, results informing land policies may be biased towards determined development strategies or hide indirect effects and socioeconomic damages caused by large-scale land acquisitions, such as violation of tenure rights, speculation and displacement. Quantitative assessments of LULUC impacts...

Reframing the land-sparing/land-sharing debate for biodiversity conservation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kremen, Claire

2015-10-01

Conservation biologists are devoting an increasing amount of energy to debating whether land sparing (high-yielding agriculture on a small land footprint) or land sharing (low-yielding, wildlife-friendly agriculture on a larger land footprint) will promote better outcomes for local and global biodiversity. In turn, concerns are mounting about how to feed the world, given increasing demands for food. In this review, I evaluate the land-sparing/land-sharing framework--does the framework stimulate research and policy that can reconcile agricultural land use with biodiversity conservation, or is a revised framing needed? I review (1) the ecological evidence in favor of sparing versus sharing; (2) the evidence from land-use change studies that assesses whether a relationship exists between agricultural intensification and land sparing; and (3) how that relationship may be affected by socioeconomic and political factors. To address the trade-off between biodiversity conservation and food production, I then ask which forms of agricultural intensification can best feed the world now and in the future. On the basis of my review, I suggest that the dichotomy of the land-sparing/land-sharing framework limits the realm of future possibilities to two, largely undesirable, options for conservation. Both large, protected regions and favorable surrounding matrices are needed to promote biodiversity conservation; they work synergistically and are not mutually exclusive. A "both-and" framing of large protected areas surrounded by a wildlife-friendly matrix suggests different research priorities from the "either-or" framing of sparing versus sharing. Furthermore, wildlife-friendly farming methods such as agroecology may be best adapted to provide food for the world's hungry people. © 2015 New York Academy of Sciences.

Spatio-temporal Characteristics of Land Use Land Cover Change Driven by Large Scale Land Transactions in Cambodia

Science.gov (United States)

Ghosh, A.; Smith, J. C.; Hijmans, R. J.

2017-12-01

Since mid-1990s, the Cambodian government granted nearly 300 `Economic Land Concessions' (ELCs), occupying approximately 2.3 million ha to foreign and domestic organizations (primarily agribusinesses). The majority of Cambodian ELC deals have been issued in areas of both relatively low population density and low agricultural productivity, dominated by smallholder production. These regions often contain highly biodiverse areas, thereby increasing the ecological cost associated with land clearing for extractive purposes. These large-scale land transactions have also resulted in substantial and rapid changes in land-use patterns and agriculture practices by smallholder farmers. In this study, we investigated the spatio-temporal characteristics of land use change associated with large-scale land transactions across Cambodia using multi-temporal multi-reolution remote sensing data. We identified major regions of deforestation during the last two decades using Landsat archive, global forest change data (2000-2014) and georeferenced database of ELC deals. We then mapped the deforestation and land clearing within ELC boundaries as well as areas bordering or near ELCs to quantify the impact of ELCs on local communities. Using time-series from MODIS Vegetation Indices products for the study period, we also estimated the time period over which any particular ELC deal initiated its proposed activity. We found evidence of similar patterns of land use change outside the boundaries of ELC deals which may be associated with i) illegal land encroachments by ELCs and/or ii) new agricultural practices adopted by local farmers near ELC boundaries. We also detected significant time gaps between ELC deal granting dates and initiation of land clearing for ELC purposes. Interestingly, we also found that not all designated areas for ELCs were put into effect indicating the possible proliferation of speculative land deals. This study demonstrates the potential of remote sensing techniques

Genetic evidence for landscape effects on dispersal in the army ant Eciton burchellii.

Science.gov (United States)

Soare, Thomas W; Kumar, Anjali; Naish, Kerry A; O'Donnell, Sean

2014-01-01

Inhibited dispersal, leading to reduced gene flow, threatens populations with inbreeding depression and local extinction. Fragmentation may be especially detrimental to social insects because inhibited gene flow has important consequences for cooperation and competition within and among colonies. Army ants have winged males and permanently wingless queens; these traits imply male-biased dispersal. However, army ant colonies are obligately nomadic and have the potential to traverse landscapes. Eciton burchellii, the most regularly nomadic army ant, is a forest interior species: colony raiding activities are limited in the absence of forest cover. To examine whether nomadism and landscape (forest clearing and elevation) affect population genetic structure in a montane E. burchellii population, we reconstructed queen and male genotypes from 25 colonies at seven polymorphic microsatellite loci. Pairwise genetic distances among individuals were compared to pairwise geographical and resistance distances using regressions with permutations, partial Mantel tests and random forests analyses. Although there was no significant spatial genetic structure in queens or males in montane forest, dispersal may be male-biased. We found significant isolation by landscape resistance for queens based on land cover (forest clearing), but not on elevation. Summed colony emigrations over the lifetime of the queen may contribute to gene flow in this species and forest clearing impedes these movements and subsequent gene dispersal. Further forest cover removal may increasingly inhibit Eciton burchellii colony dispersal. We recommend maintaining habitat connectivity in tropical forests to promote population persistence for this keystone species. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

ISLSCP II Historical Land Cover and Land Use, 1700-1990

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — ABSTRACT: The Historical Land Cover and Land Use data set was developed to provide the global change community with historical land use estimates. The data set...

Estimating land use / land cover changes in Denmark from 1990 - 2012

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Levin, Gregor; Kastrup Blemmer, Morten; Gyldenkærne, Steen

According to the article 3(4) of the Kyoto Protocol, Denmark is obliged to document sequestration and emission of carbon dioxide from land use and land cover and changes in these. This report documents and describes applied data end developed methods aiming at estimating amounts and changes in land...... use and land cover for Denmark for since 1990. Estimation of land use and land cover categories and changes in these is predominantly based on existing categorical (i.e. pre-classified) geographical information. Estimations are elaborated for the period from 1990 to 2005, from 2005 to 2011 and from...... 2011 to 2012. Due to limited availability of historical spatially explicit information, estimations of change in land use and land cover from 1990 up to 2011 do, to some degree, involve decisions based on expert knowledge. Due to a significant increase in the availability of detailed spatially specific...

Land cover and topography affect the land transformation caused by wind facilities.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jay E Diffendorfer

Full Text Available Land transformation (ha of surface disturbance/MW associated with wind facilities shows wide variation in its reported values. In addition, no studies have attempted to explain the variation across facilities. We digitized land transformation at 39 wind facilities using high resolution aerial imagery. We then modeled the effects of turbine size, configuration, land cover, and topography on the levels of land transformation at three spatial scales. The scales included strings (turbines with intervening roads only, sites (strings with roads connecting them, buried cables and other infrastructure, and entire facilities (sites and the roads or transmission lines connecting them to existing infrastructure. An information theoretic modeling approach indicated land cover and topography were well-supported variables affecting land transformation, but not turbine size or configuration. Tilled landscapes, despite larger distances between turbines, had lower average land transformation, while facilities in forested landscapes generally had the highest land transformation. At site and string scales, flat topographies had the lowest land transformation, while facilities on mesas had the largest. The results indicate the landscape in which the facilities are placed affects the levels of land transformation associated with wind energy. This creates opportunities for optimizing wind energy production while minimizing land cover change. In addition, the results indicate forecasting the impacts of wind energy on land transformation should include the geographic variables affecting land transformation reported here.

Promotion of inclusive land governance to improve women's land ...

International Development Research Centre (IDRC) Digital Library (Canada)

The general objective of this action research project is to help increase women's access to and control over land and their involvement in decision-making for responsible, sustainable land governance, in the context of large-scale land acquisition in Senegal. Its objectives are to establish the conditions to improve women's ...

The Experience of Overseas Land Readjustment for China’s Construction Land Consolidation

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Yujia; SHAN; Fangzhou; XIA

2015-01-01

At present,China is facing rapid economic and social development as well as the shortage of land for construction. In fact,various countries and regions are faced with similar problems in the process of urbanization and industrialization,and the land readjustment is often adopted for construction land consolidation to promote economical and intensive land use and solve the supply and demand conflict of construction land. Based on the land readjustment experience of Germany,Japan,China Taiwan and South Korea,we perform a comparative analysis on the implementation background,concept,purpose,procedures and core principles,and borrow ideas from their experience,in order to provide a reference for China to adopt suitable land readjustment tools during construction land consolidation.

Classification of Land Cover and Land Use Based on Convolutional Neural Networks

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Chun; Rottensteiner, Franz; Heipke, Christian

2018-04-01

Land cover describes the physical material of the earth's surface, whereas land use describes the socio-economic function of a piece of land. Land use information is typically collected in geospatial databases. As such databases become outdated quickly, an automatic update process is required. This paper presents a new approach to determine land cover and to classify land use objects based on convolutional neural networks (CNN). The input data are aerial images and derived data such as digital surface models. Firstly, we apply a CNN to determine the land cover for each pixel of the input image. We compare different CNN structures, all of them based on an encoder-decoder structure for obtaining dense class predictions. Secondly, we propose a new CNN-based methodology for the prediction of the land use label of objects from a geospatial database. In this context, we present a strategy for generating image patches of identical size from the input data, which are classified by a CNN. Again, we compare different CNN architectures. Our experiments show that an overall accuracy of up to 85.7 % and 77.4 % can be achieved for land cover and land use, respectively. The classification of land cover has a positive contribution to the classification of the land use classification.

Temporal change detection of land use/land cover using GIS and ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Satellite images for the years 1972, 1989, 1999 and 2016 were used for LULC ... built-up areas, pastures and bare land, agricultural land and water bodies. For the accuracy of assessment classifications, matrix error and KAPPA ... Keywords: land use/land cover change; change detection; classification; remote sensing; GIS ...

Land-use change arising from rural land exchange : an agent-based simulation model

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bakker, Martha M.; Alam, Shah Jamal; van Dijk, Jerry|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/29612642X; Rounsevell, Mark D. A.

Land exchange can be a major factor driving land-use change in regions with high pressure on land, but is generally not incorporated in land-use change models. Here we present an agent-based model to simulate land-use change arising from land exchange between multiple agent types representing

Towards monitoring land-cover and land-use changes at a global scale: the global land survey 2005

Science.gov (United States)

Gutman, G.; Byrnes, Raymond A.; Masek, J.; Covington, S.; Justice, C.; Franks, S.; Headley, Rachel

2008-01-01

Land cover is a critical component of the Earth system, infl uencing land-atmosphere interactions, greenhouse gas fl uxes, ecosystem health, and availability of food, fi ber, and energy for human populations. The recent Integrated Global Observations of Land (IGOL) report calls for the generation of maps documenting global land cover at resolutions between 10m and 30m at least every fi ve years (Townshend et al., in press). Moreover, despite 35 years of Landsat observations, there has not been a unifi ed global analysis of land-cover trends nor has there been a global assessment of land-cover change at Landsat-like resolution. Since the 1990s, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) have supported development of data sets based on global Landsat observations (Tucker et al., 2004). These land survey data sets, usually referred to as GeoCover ™, provide global, orthorectifi ed, typically cloud-free Landsat imagery centered on the years 1975, 1990, and 2000, with a preference for leaf-on conditions. Collectively, these data sets provided a consistent set of observations to assess land-cover changes at a decadal scale. These data are freely available via the Internet from the USGS Center for Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) (see http://earthexplorer.usgs.gov or http://glovis.usgs.gov). This has resulted in unprecedented downloads of data, which are widely used in scientifi c studies of land-cover change (e.g., Boone et al., 2007; Harris et al., 2005; Hilbert, 2006; Huang et al. 2007; Jantz et al., 2005, Kim et al., 2007; Leimgruber, 2005; Masek et al., 2006). NASA and USGS are continuing to support land-cover change research through the development of GLS2005 - an additional global Landsat assessment circa 20051 . Going beyond the earlier initiatives, this data set will establish a baseline for monitoring changes on a 5-year interval and will pave the way toward continuous global land

Geovisualization of land use and land cover using bivariate maps and Sankey flow diagrams

Science.gov (United States)

Strode, Georgianna; Mesev, Victor; Thornton, Benjamin; Jerez, Marjorie; Tricarico, Thomas; McAlear, Tyler

2018-05-01

The terms `land use' and `land cover' typically describe categories that convey information about the landscape. Despite the major difference of land use implying some degree of anthropogenic disturbance, the two terms are commonly used interchangeably, especially when anthropogenic disturbance is ambiguous, say managed forestland or abandoned agricultural fields. Cartographically, land use and land cover are also sometimes represented interchangeably within common legends, giving with the impression that the landscape is a seamless continuum of land use parcels spatially adjacent to land cover tracts. We believe this is misleading, and feel we need to reiterate the well-established symbiosis of land uses as amalgams of land covers; in other words land covers are subsets of land use. Our paper addresses this spatially complex, and frequently ambiguous relationship, and posits that bivariate cartographic techniques are an ideal vehicle for representing both land use and land cover simultaneously. In more specific terms, we explore the use of nested symbology as ways to represent graphically land use and land cover, where land cover are circles nested with land use squares. We also investigate bivariate legends for representing statistical covariance as a means for visualizing the combinations of land use and cover. Lastly, we apply Sankey flow diagrams to further illustrate the complex, multifaceted relationships between land use and land cover. Our work is demonstrated on data representing land use and cover data for the US state of Florida.

Influence of land development on stormwater runoff from a mixed land use and land cover catchment.

Science.gov (United States)

Paule-Mercado, M A; Lee, B Y; Memon, S A; Umer, S R; Salim, I; Lee, C-H

2017-12-01

Mitigating for the negative impacts of stormwater runoff is becoming a concern due to increased land development. Understanding how land development influences stormwater runoff is essential for sustainably managing water resources. In recent years, aggregate low impact development-best management practices (LID-BMPs) have been implemented to reduce the negative impacts of stormwater runoff on receiving water bodies. This study used an integrated approach to determine the influence of land development and assess the ecological benefits of four aggregate LID-BMPs in stormwater runoff from a mixed land use and land cover (LULC) catchment with ongoing land development. It used data from 2011 to 2015 that monitored 41 storm events and monthly LULC, and a Personalized Computer Storm Water Management Model (PCSWMM). The four aggregate LID-BMPs are: ecological (S1), utilizing pervious covers (S2), and multi-control (S3) and (S4). These LID-BMPs were designed and distributed in the study area based on catchment characteristics, cost, and effectiveness. PCSWMM was used to simulate the monitored storm events from 2014 (calibration: R 2 and NSE>0.5; RMSE 0.5; RMSE runoff data and LULC change patterns (only 2015 for LID-BMPs) were used. Results show that the expansion of bare land and impervious cover, soil alteration, and high amount of precipitation influenced the stormwater runoff variability during different phases of land development. The four aggregate LID-BMPs reduced runoff volume (34%-61%), peak flow (6%-19%), and pollutant concentrations (53%-83%). The results of this study, in addition to supporting local LULC planning and land development activities, also could be applied to input data for empirical modeling, and designing sustainable stormwater management guidelines and monitoring strategies. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

An evaluation of the Manufacturer And User Facility Device Experience database that inspired the United States Food and Drug Administration's Reclassification of transvaginal mesh.

Science.gov (United States)

Sandberg, Jason M; Gray, Ian; Pearlman, Amy; Terlecki, Ryan P

2018-03-01

To assess the utility of the Manufacturer And User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database in objectively capturing adverse events for transvaginal mesh in the United States. We reviewed 1,103 individual medical device reports submitted to the MAUDE database that inspired the United States (US) Food and Drug Administration's 2008 Public Health Notification. Entries were compiled into a categorical database that reported manufacturer, brand, reporter type, report source, and type of adverse event. There were numerous examples of missing, duplicated, and non-standardized entries. Analysis revealed 64 reports with duplicated information, and six reports representing multiple patients. Forty-seven percent of medical device reports did not identify a reporter source. At least 28% of reported devices are no longer on the US market. There was wide variability in the quality and completeness of submitted reports and true adverse event rates could not be accurately calculated because the number of total cases was unknown. The MAUDE database was limited in its ability to collect, quantify, and standardize real-life adverse events related to transvaginal mesh. While it functions to collect information related to isolated adverse events, systematic limitations of the MAUDE database, that no doubt extend to other medical devices, necessitate the development of new reporting systems. Alternatives are under development, which may allow regulators to more accurately scrutinize the safety profiles of specific medical devices.

Land Grabbing and the Commodification of Agricultural Land in Africa

Science.gov (United States)

D'Odorico, P.; Rulli, M. C.

2014-12-01

The increasing global demand for farmland products is placing unprecedented pressure on the global agricultural system. The increasing demand can be met through either the intensification or the expansion of agricultural production at the expenses of other ecosystems. The ongoing escalation of large scale land acquisitions in the developing world may contribute to both of these two processes. Investments in agriculture have become a priority for a number of governments and corporations that are trying to expand their agricultural production while securing good profits. It is unclear however to what extent these investments are driving the intensification or the expansion of agriculture. In the last decade large scale land acquisitions by external investors have increased at unprecedented rates. This global land rush was likely enhanced by recent food crises, when prices skyrocketed in response to crop failure, new bioenergy policies, and the increasing demand for agricultural products by a growing and increasingly affluent human population. Corporations recognized the potential for high return investments in agricultural land, while governments started to enhance their food security by purchasing large tracts of land in foreign countries. It has been estimated that, to date, about 35.6 million ha of cropland - more than twice the agricultural land of Germany - have been acquired by foreign investors worldwide. As an effect of these land deals the local communities lose legal access to the land and its products. Here we investigate the effect of large scale land acquisition on agricultural intensification or expansion in African countries. We discuss the extent to which these investments in agriculture may increase crop production and stress how this phenomenon can greatly affect the local communities, their food security, economic stability and the long term resilience of their livelihoods, regardless of whether the transfer of property rights is the result of an

Influence of obliquely subducting slab on Pacific-North America shear motion inferred from seismic anisotropy along the Queen Charlotte margin

Science.gov (United States)

Cao, L.; Kao, H.; Wang, K.; Wang, Z.

2016-12-01

Haida Gwaii is located along the transpressive Queen Charlotte margin between the Pacific (PA) and North America (NA) plates. The highly oblique relative plate motion is partitioned, with the strike-slip component accommodated by the Queen Charlotte Fault (QCF) and the convergent component by a thrust fault offshore. To understand how the presence of a obliquely subducting slab influences shear deformation of the plate boundary, we investigate mantle anisotropy by analyzing shear-wave splitting of teleseismic SKS phases recorded at 17 seismic stations in and around Haida Gwaii. We used the MFAST program to determine the polarization direction of the fast wave (φ) and the delay time (δt) between the fast and slow phases. The fast directions derived from stations on Haida Gwaii and two stations to the north on the Alaska Panhandle are predominantly margin-parallel (NNW). However, away from the plate boundary, the fast direction transitions to WSW-trending, very oblique or perpendicular to the plate boundary. Because the average delay time of 0.6-2.45 s is much larger than values based on an associated local S phase splitting analysis in the same study area, it is reasonable to infer that most of the anisotropy from our SKS analysis originates from the upper mantle and is associated with lattice-preferred orientation of anisotropic minerals. The margin-parallel fast direction within about 100 km of the QCF (average φ = -40º and δt = 1.2 s) is likely induced by the PA-NA shear motion. The roughly margin-normal fast directions farther away, although more scatterd, are consistent with that previously observed in the NA continent and are attributed to the absolute motion of the NA plate. However, the transition between the two regimes based on our SKS analysis appears to be gradual, suggesting that the plate boundary shear influences a much broader region at mantle depths than would be inferred from the surface trace of the QCF. We think this is due to the presence

Trade-Offs in Multi-Purpose Land Use under Land Degradation

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Paul L. G. Vlek

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Land provides a host of ecosystem services, of which the provisioning services are often considered paramount. As the demand for agricultural products multiplies, other ecosystem services are being degraded or lost entirely. Finding a sustainable trade-off between food production and one or more of other ecosystem services, given the variety of stakeholders, is a matter of optimizing land use in a dynamic and complex socio-ecological system. Land degradation reduces our options to meet both food demands and environmental needs. In order to illustrate this trade-off dilemma, four representative services, carbon sinks, water storage, biodiversity, and space for urbanization, are discussed here based on a review of contemporary literature that cuts across the domain of ecosystem services that are provided by land. Agricultural research will have to expand its focus from the field to the landscape level and in the process examine the cost of production that internalizes environmental costs. In some situations, the public cost of agriculture in marginal environments outweighs the private gains, even with the best technologies in place. Land use and city planners will increasingly have to address the cost of occupying productive agricultural land or the conversion of natural habitats. Landscape designs and urban planning should aim for the preservation of agricultural land and the integrated management of land resources by closing water and nutrient cycles, and by restoring biodiversity.

Understanding land administration systems

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

P. Williamson, Ian; Enemark, Stig; Wallace, Judy

2008-01-01

This paper introduces basic land administration theory and highlights four key concepts that are fundamental to understanding modern land administration systems - firstly the land management paradigm and its influence on the land administration framework, secondly the role that the cadastre plays...... in contributing to sustainable development, thirdly the changing nature of ownership and the role of land markets, and lastly a land management vision that promotes land administration in support of sustainable development and spatial enablement of society. We present here the first part of the paper. The second...

Evaluation of historical land cover, land use, and land-use change emissions in the GCAM integrated assessment model

Science.gov (United States)

Calvin, K. V.; Wise, M.; Kyle, P.; Janetos, A. C.; Zhou, Y.

2012-12-01

Integrated Assessment Models (IAMs) are often used as science-based decision-support tools for evaluating the consequences of climate and energy policies, and their use in this framework is likely to increase in the future. However, quantitative evaluation of these models has been somewhat limited for a variety of reasons, including data availability, data quality, and the inherent challenges in projections of societal values and decision-making. In this analysis, we identify and confront methodological challenges involved in evaluating the agriculture and land use component of the Global Change Assessment Model (GCAM). GCAM is a global integrated assessment model, linking submodules of the regionally disaggregated global economy, energy system, agriculture and land-use, terrestrial carbon cycle, oceans and climate. GCAM simulates supply, demand, and prices for energy and agricultural goods from 2005 to 2100 in 5-year increments. In each time period, the model computes the allocation of land across a variety of land cover types in 151 different regions, assuming that farmers maximize profits and that food demand is relatively inelastic. GCAM then calculates both emissions from land-use practices, and long-term changes in carbon stocks in different land uses, thus providing simulation information that can be compared to observed historical data. In this work, we compare GCAM results, both in recent historic and future time periods, to historical data sets. We focus on land use, land cover, land-use change emissions, and albedo.

Land use in the karstic lands in the Mediterranean region.