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Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) remain an important public health concern for people of all age groups, with older age groups experiencing a notable increase in STI burden. Historically, most research into STI risk behaviors has focused on adolescents and young adults, leaving a paucity of research on the ways STI risk factors change over the life course. Additionally, age and cohort trends in STI risk factors can be challenging to investigate with standard statistical tools as they can be collinear and are subject to sociocultural and generational influences. To help address these issues, we used multi-group latent class analysis to identify and compare risk behavior profiles defined by responses to three sexual activity and three substance use variables, across and within four age groups. We identified six behavior profiles in the unstratified dataset and five behavior profiles in each of the four age stratified groups. The five behavior profiles identified in each of the age categories appear to reflect a similar set of five underlying profile "archetypes," with the exact composition of each age category's five profiles varying in the magnitude that specific behaviors are endorsed. Interestingly, despite the similarity of profiles across the four age groups, analyses indicate that the experience of belonging to any one of these five archetypes differs by age group. This variance is likely due group specific age, period, and cohort effects, and may indicate that, when estimating one's STI risk, it is better to compare them to their peers than to the population as a whole. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper uses a narrative lens to locate and analyze stereotypes about intimate partner violence (IPV) used by victim/survivors to describe the ways they made meaning about their relationships. I combine two models used for analyzing narrative: Labov & Waletzky's (1967) and the Social Interactional Approach (SIA) (De Fina & Georgakopoulou, 2008). Stories about what counts as 'real' IPV emerged as the most told story across the 34 participants in the study. I show, victim/survivors of IPV have internalized sociocultural discourses about IPV that only recognize certain forms of physical abuse as IPV. I argue that evaluation clauses (Labov & Waltezky), developed to analyze the micro-context of storytelling, also index macro, sociocultural knowledge, making it a natural connecting point with SIA. • This paper connects critical discourse analysis (CDA) with narrative analysis to interrogate discourses. • I create an analytical model for use in stories about IPV that combines Labovian narrative analysis with SIA. • I locate the meaning-making potential of a story in the micro-details of narrative and the macro-details of social norms. • Interrogate the idea that IPV is only present when one member of a relationship leaves physical marks on the other. • Stereotypes about relationships ultimately function to maintain IPV as a cultural formation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phylogenetic study of Arrhenia peltigerina revealed a complex of seven divergent clades. Type specimens of Agaricus peltigerinus and Omphalina cupulatoides fell into separate clades; the latter was recombined as Arrhenia cupulatoides. Four clades were described as new species: Arr. baltica, Arr. fennoscandica, Arr. mohniensis, and Arr. talpoides; the fifth, with only a single specimen, was left formally undescribed. These cryptic species are uncommon—more so in North America than Scandinavia—and collections are often misidentified. Spore measurements separated Arr. baltica from the others by its narrower spores; average measurements help separate some species a bit better than ranges. So far, Arr. peltigerina was found only in North America, Arr. mohniensis and Arr. talpoides in both Europe and North America, and the remainder only in Europe. The host species of Peltigera was Peltigera hymenina for Arr. cupulatoides, Peltigera rufescens for Arr. baltica, and varied for the others. All but one collection came from soil over calcareous bedrock. Small sample size does not permit assigning high confidence to noted interspecific differences; these await confirmation by greater experience from future study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article considers a particular set of cultural and ideological discourses—police discourse about domestic violence (DV) victim/survivors—in a study about indexicality. Via the processes of indexicality, victim/survivors are consistently described and constructed as frustrations for police officers and police work. We pinpoint two sociosemantic structures that index frustration—the use of the word frustration and statements that initially show understanding for the victim/survivors' situation—and then mitigate that understanding with stories about being frustrated. In the process, we argue, DV victim/survivors become indexical forms that index the social meaning that victim/survivors are frustrating rather than compliant. Further, we show how such constructions are available for reiteration by different speakers in police discourse and different contexts. The linguistic features that signal 'frustration' thus function in police discourse as indexical features that can be accessed and animated by police officers when they describe encounters with victim/survivors and the victim/survivors themselves. (Indexicality, narrative, police discourse, domestic violence) [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Healthcare personnels (HCPs) are at risk of respiratory infectious diseases during patient care activities. HCPs rely primarily on personal protective equipment to prevent pathogen exposures, but there is a need to develop alternative, or complementary control strategies, including engineering controls. The objective of this study was to evaluate the ability of the 3 designs (denoted D 1A, D 1B, and D 2) of the University of Utah Containment Ventilation for Exposure Reduction (U-COVER), a protective barrier enclosure device to contain respirable aerosols when placed over a simulated patient. The 2 primary performance metrics were the percent reduction in: (i) the concentration of respirable aerosols in the simulated breathing zone of an HCP, and (ii) surface contamination outside the device, which were tested using salt aerosols and fluorescein aerosols, respectively. Briefly, salt or fluorescein aerosols were generated as though expelled by a prone patient under 3 conditions: (i) no device (control), (ii) with the device but without exhaust ventilation, and (iii) with the device with exhaust ventilation. Device D 2 was also tested under simulated use conditions, in which cardboard "arms" were placed inside the device ports. All 3 device designs showed the ability to reduce particle concentrations in the simulated HCP breathing zone and on surfaces by >99% with exhaust ventilation compared to the control condition. Without exhaust ventilation, device performance was lower and highly variable. Under simulated use conditions, device D 2 reduced particle concentrations in the simulated HCP breathing zone by ≥91% and on surfaces by >99% relative to control for all combinations of "arms" tested. The U-COVER device demonstrates excellent aerosol containment and warrants further testing with dynamic simulated or actual use conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: Forest dieback is increasing from unfavourable climate conditions. Western redcedar (WRC)—a culturally, ecologically and economically important species—has recently experienced anomalously high mortality rates and partial canopy dieback. We investigated how WRC tree growth and dieback responded to climate variability and drought using tree‐ring methods. Location: Pacific Northwest, USA. Taxon: Western redcedar (Thuja plicata). Methods: We collected tree cores from three tree health status groups (no canopy dieback, partial canopy dieback, and dead trees) at 11 sites in coastal (maritime climate) and interior (continental climate) WRC populations. From growth rates, we computed four growth indices that assessed the resilience to drought and estimated the year of death. Results: Warmer and drier climate conditions in May/June that extended the annual July‐to‐September dry season reduced radial growth in 9 of 11 sites (1975–2020). WRC trees recovered growth to pre‐drought rates within 3 years when post‐drought climate conditions were cooler/wetter than average. However, recovery from drought was slower or absent when warmer/drier conditions occurred during the post‐drought recovery period, possibly leading to the recent and widespread mortality across the coastal population. WRC mortality was portended by 4–5 years of declining growth. Annually‐resolved mortality in coastal populations predominately occurred in 2017–2018 (80% of sampled dead trees), a period that coincided with exceedingly hot temperatures and the longest regionally dry period from May to September (1970–2020). In interior populations, mortality was dispersed among years but associated with warmer and drier conditions from August to September. Main conclusions: Our findings forewarn that a warming climate and more frequent and severe summer droughts, especially in consecutive years, will likely increase the vulnerability of WRC to canopy dieback and mortality and possibly other drought‐sensitive trees in one of the world's largest forest carbon sinks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anti-Asian xenophobia has exploded during the COVID-19 pandemic, after U.S. political leaders promoted anti-Asian rhetoric from its start. Confronting prejudice interrupts future perpetration of such prejudice, but confronting prejudice can only occur to the extent actions are first attributed to prejudice. Bystanders may attribute less prejudice to speech about the "Chinese Virus" than to more blatant stereotype expression, for example, and therefore be less vehement in their confrontations. Across two studies, we examined the impact of anti-Asian prejudice type (blatant, subtle, or no prejudice) and bystander race/ethnicity (White or Asian American/Pacific Islander [AAPI]), on prejudice attribution, willingness to confront, actual confrontation, and confrontation vehemence. In the context of a hiring manager justifying rejection of a Chinese applicant, we predicted that blatant prejudice would be detected and confronted most willingly, and subtle prejudice more willingly than no prejudice, and that prejudice detection would mediate the relationship between prejudice type and willingness to confront. Further, we expected AAPI bystanders to detect anti-Asian prejudice more readily than White bystanders, but to confront at lower rates, with actual confrontations being more vehement following blatant (relative to subtle or no) prejudice. Analyses were conducted using SPSS 27 and the PROCESS v4.1 macro, controlling for potential confounds such as political orientation and individual-level prejudice (expressed or perceived). Results of both studies (n = 142 [Study 1], n = 274 [Study 2]) supported hypotheses, except in Study 1 bystanders exposed to subtle prejudice were no more willing to confront than no-prejudice controls. Results of exploratory analyses indicated that attribution to prejudice was the primary obstacle to confrontation following subtle prejudice, whereas action taking was the primary obstacle following blatant prejudice. This research underscores the need for interventions to increase detection of all forms of anti-Asian prejudice and to provide would-be confronters with effective confrontation tools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Great African Lakes in Uganda (Lake Albert and Lake Victoria) are known habitats to several sympatric species of Biomphalaria , intermediate snail hosts of the human parasite Schistosoma mansoni. However, accurate identification of snails by morphology alone can be problematic, highlighting a need for robust, on-site identification methods, since only certain species have important roles in parasite transmission. This study investigates the conchological variation within Biomphalaria species collected from these two Great East African Lakes. We compared the shell morphologies of Biomphalaria species using landmark-based morphometric techniques and were able to distinguish Biomphalaria species through canonical variate analysis (CVA) of the apical and apertural shell angles. After identification with molecular methods, three Biomphalaria species (B. pfeifferi , B. stanleyi , and B. sudanica), with heterogenous occurrences along the shoreline, were identified at Lake Albert that could be differentiated from one another using CVA of apical and apertural datasets; by contrast, a single Biomphalaria species was identified at Lake Victoria (B. choanomphala). When snails from both lakes were compared together, CVA was able to differentiate all four species using the apical dataset but not the apertural dataset. Of the Biomphalaria species identified, ecological phenotypic variation was only found in B. choanomphala , which exhibited two distinct ecological morphotypes. Furthermore, these two B. choanomphala morphotypes from Lake Victoria overlapped upon analysis of the apical dataset, yet were clearly separated upon analysis of the apertural dataset. Our study demonstrates that landmark-based morphometrics could play a future role in distinguishing sympatric Biomphalaria species in Uganda. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Andrus, T.M. and Bentley, S.J., 2023. Capture timescale of an uncontrolled Mississippi–Atchafayala bifurcation with future lower river strategy implications. Journal of Coastal Research, 39(6), 1001–1020. Charlotte (North Carolina), ISSN 0749-0208. The most recent and currently active delta lobe of the Mississippi River (MR) is the Atchafalaya–Wax Lake lobe, which was initiated approximately 400 years ago as a result of MR stream capture by the Atchafalaya River (AR). This capture process accelerated in the early to mid-1900s but further development was prevented by construction and operation of the Old River Control Structure (ORCS) complex in 1962. Because the initial research to warrant the construction of the ORCS was undertaken nearly 70 years ago, this study revisits the basis of the resulting predictions and evaluates how both branches could evolve moving forward both with and without ORCS controls. This study uses the Delft3D software suite to retest the capture hypothesis by accounting for complex hydrodynamic interactions from the MR/AR bifurcation to the Gulf of Mexico. A 150-year model duration was used to adequately characterize bifurcation evolution, stream capture life cycle, and long-term river management concerns. Results of modeled flow evolution with the ORCS removed indicate a rapid period of channel adjustment followed by a long and gradual increase in flow ranges and magnitudes in the AR similar to those currently in the MR. In this hypothetical scenario, the AR captures 50% of the MR very quickly (∼17 y) to become the dominant stream and then the capture rate begins to decelerate. One-hundred-fifty-year results with ORCS controls remaining unchanged reveal increased sedimentation, rising stages, and decreased stream power in the MR. Conversely, AR results indicate channel deepening, stage lowering, and increased sediment-transport efficiency. These trends suggest that although the flow split at the MR/AR bifurcation continues to be regulated by the ORCS, the geologic evolution toward capture gradually continues. This study presents a long-term view of an uncontrolled MR/AR avulsion, and capture results reiterate the ORCS's importance to socioeconomic factors such as flood control and navigation. However, results also reveal long-term sustainability concerns for the MR system associated with current ORCS flow regulation. Predictive modeling tools such as those developed in this study could be used to optimize ORCS management strategies and potentially enhance ecosystem restoration plans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intestinal schistosomiasis is hyperendemic in many sub-Saharan African countries. In Uganda, it is endemic at both Lake Albert (LA) and Lake Victoria (LV) and caused by S. mansoni that uses Biomphalaria snails as obligatory intermediate snail hosts. To shed light on local patterns of infection, we utilised two PCR-based methods to detect S. mansoni within Biomphalaria spp. as collected at the Ugandan shorelines of Lake Albert and Lake Victoria from 2009–2010. Overall, at our Lake Albert sites, the mean infection prevalence was 12.5% (15 of 120 snails), while at our Lake Victoria sites the prevalence was 5% (3 of 60 snails). At our Lake Albert sites, the highest infection prevalence of 13.3% (8 of 60 snails) was at Walukuba, while at our Lake Victoria sites, the highest infection prevalence of 10% (2 of 20 snails) was at Lwanika. Three species of Biomphalaria, B. pfeifferi, B. stanleyi and B. sudanica, were identified at our Lake Albert collection sites, while only a single species, B. choanomphala, was identified at our Lake Victoria collection sites. Biomphalaria stanleyi (2 of 20 snails; 15%) had the highest infection prevalence, followed by B. sudanica (5 of 60 snails; 13.3%), B. pfeifferi (4 of 40 snails; 10%) and B. choanomphala (3 of 60 snails; 5%). Of the Biomphalaria species identified, B. choanomphala had the highest haplotype (gene) diversity score, followed by B. stanleyi, B. sudanica and B. pfeifferi. Sites with a higher mean prevalence of S. mansoni infection had higher intra-species haplotype diversity scores than sites with a lower mean prevalence. The wet seasons (LA: 13.3%; LV: 8.7%) had a consistently higher mean infection prevalence of S. mansoni than the dry seasons (LA: 9.5%; LV: 5%) for all species and all sites tested at both Lake Albert (n = 480) and Lake Victoria (n = 320), though the difference was not statistically significant. Author summary: Human schistosomiasis is a parasitic disease caused by the intravascular trematode genus Schistosoma. The disease is contracted through contact with contaminated freshwater sources infested with snails, which serve as the intermediate host for the parasite's larval form. Schistosoma mansoni causes the intestinal form of the disease and utilises Biomphalaria as its intermediate snail host. To better understand the prevalence of S. mansoni infection, molecular detection methods can be used to monitor the levels and patterns of infection within Biomphalaria populations. In this study, the authors examined the prevalence of S. mansoni infection within Biomphalaria snails collected from six sites along the Ugandan shorelines of Lake Albert and Lake Victoria from 2009 to 2010. The study revealed that infection was more prevalent at Lake Albert compared to Lake Victoria. Different species of Biomphalaria snails were found at each lake, with some species having a higher infection prevalence than others. The study also investigated the impact of seasonality on infection prevalence, with the wet seasons having an overall higher prevalence of infection compared to the dry seasons, although the difference was not statistically significant. This research enhances our understanding of S. mansoni infection patterns among African Biomphalaria snails. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Theories of indexicality explain the ways in which linguistic forms are linked to social forms. As such, indexicality deals in part with ideology and cultural discourses. This article demonstrates the ways in which intimate partner violence (IPV), seen as an indexical, discursive formation, facilitates the material and social manifestations and ramifications of IPV. I argue for an expansion of the concept "indexical field" to account not only for phonemic variables, but also lexicosemantic variables. Such lexicosemantic variables are legible in narratives, in particular stories, that are circulated in and around IPV discourse. The indexical field forms a web of potential meanings for IPV. In the indexical field, variables have multiple potential and sometimes conflicting meanings, which can be and indeed are activated and made meaningful differently by different groups of speakers. My data are made up of 57 interviews, 34 with victims/survivors of IPV and 23 with police officers. The differences in indexical meaning surrounding IPV are analyzed from the perspective of critical discourse analysis. In this article, I show how victims/survivors of IPV animate variables in the IPV indexical field with meanings that conflict with the meanings attributed to the same words, phrases, and events by police officers. Because police officers have more institutional power, their indexical meanings often receive preference and coordinate with those of the society at large. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study different types of solitons of a generalized nonlinear Schrödinger equation (GNLSE) that models optical pulses traveling down an optical waveguide with quadratic as well as quartic dispersion. A traveling-wave ansatz transforms this partial differential equation into a fourth-order nonlinear ordinary differential equation (ODE) that is Hamiltonian and has two reversible symmetries. Homoclinic orbits of the ODE that connect the origin to itself represent solitons of the GNLSE, and this allows one to study the existence and organization of solitons with advanced numerical tools for the detection and continuation of connecting orbits. In this paper, we establish the existence of new types of connecting orbits, namely, PtoP connections from one periodic orbit to another. As we show, these global objects provide a general mechanism that generates additional families of two types of solitons in the GNLSE. First, we find generalized solitons with oscillating tails whose amplitude does not decay but reaches a nonzero limit. Second, PtoP connections in the zero energy level can be combined with EtoP connections from the origin to a selected periodic orbit to create multi-oscillation solitons; their characterizing property is to feature several episodes of different oscillations in between decaying tails. As is the case for solitons that were known previously, generalized solitons and multi-oscillation solitons are shown to be an integral part of the phenomenon of truncated homoclinic snaking. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract This article presents the results of oxygen stable isotope analysis on eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) samples (n = 25) from a Mission-Era (ca. AD 1565–1680) site, Pueblo Santa Catalina de Guale, on St. Catherines Island, GA. Stable isotope analysis was used to assess the seasonality of oyster harvesting on St. Catherines Island during the Mission Era to better understand how Spanish colonization and the Catholic mission system may have impacted Guale foodways. Five eastern oyster left valves were sampled from each known neighborhood of Pueblo Santa Catalina de Guale. Existing data regarding the seasonality of pre-colonial mollusk collection on St. Catherines Island and elsewhere in the coastal Southeast are discussed in conversation with the results of this analysis. This work indicates that Guale residents of St. Catherines Island during the Mission Era were harvesting oysters most intensely during cooler months. This pattern is consistent with estimates of pre-colonial shellfishing seasonality across the region and may even represent a modest increase in the seasonal constriction of shellfishing when compared to data from the preceding period. Salinity estimates based on the isotope data also suggest Guale people during the Mission Era were collecting from a comparatively narrower range of estuarine habitats. We argue that these subtle shifts are a consequence of the reorganization of Guale labor associated with missionization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Within the Pacific Northwest region of the United States, there is the unique opportunity to explore alternative energy management solutions of the Columbia River's multi-use hydropower system. As with various European hydropower systems that experience large variability in water runoff, but lack adequate reservoir storage capacity, the Columbia River System is a viable source for renewable hydrogen production. This paper studies the theoretical potential of green hydrogen production from excess hydropower energy from the Columbia River System. The potential surplus hydroelectric energy and hydrogen production potential from surplus energy (during March through July months) are estimated from 11 hydroelectric projects along with the Columbia River System. Results show that the system's total monthly average hydrogen production potential ranges from 2.22 × 106 to 8.96 × 106 kg H 2 with the utilization of surplus energy over a historical 80 water year period (1928–2008). This study concludes that hydrogen production from spilled hydropower energy and its use in the transportation sector is a viable opportunity to lead the country towards a hydrogen economy. [Display omitted] • Hydropower plants are feasible for providing excess and dispatchable electricity to produce green hydrogen. • The scenario for the use of green hydrogen for heavy duty vehicle transportation is presented. • The article supports hydrogen strategies in coordination with renewable energy policies. • The spring through summer runoff period is Ideal for utilizing excess hydropower for hydrogen production. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: In open abdominal surgery, continuous epidural analgesia is commonly used method for postoperative analgesia. However, ultrasound (US)‐guided fascial plane blocks may be a reasonable alternative. Methods: In this randomized controlled trial, we compared posterior quadratus lumborum block (QLB) with epidural analgesia for postoperative pain after open radical cystectomy (ORC). Adult patients aged 18–85 with bladder cancer (BC) scheduled for open RC were randomized in two groups. Exclusion criteria were complicated diabetes mellitus type I, lack of cooperation, and persistent pain for reasons other than BC. In one group, a bilateral US‐guided single injection posterior QLB was performed with 3.75 mg/ml ropivacaine 20 ml/side. In the other group, continuous epidural analgesia with ropivacaine was used. Basic analgesia was oral paracetamol 1000 mg three times daily, and long‐acting opioid twice daily in both groups. All patients had patient‐controlled rescue analgesia with oxycodone. Postoperative cumulative rescue opioid consumption was recorded for the day of surgery, and the following 2 postoperative days (POD 0–2). Secondary outcomes were postoperative pain and nausea and vomiting. Results: In total, 20 patients (QLB), and 19 patients (epidural analgesia) groups, were included in the analyses. Cumulative rescue opioid consumption on POD 0, being of duration 9–12 h, was 14 mg (7.6–33.3) in the QLB group versus 6.1 mg (2.0–16.1) in the epidural analgesia group, p = 0.089, and as doses, 8 doses (3.6–15.7) versus 4 doses (1.3–8.5), p =.057. On POD 1 consumption was 25.3 mg (11.0–52.9) versus 18.0 mg (14.4–43.7), p =.749, and as doses 12 (5.5–23.0) versus 10 (8–20), p >.9, respectively. On POD 2 consumption was 19.1 mg (7.9–31.0) versus 18.0 mg (5.4–27.6) p =.749, and as doses 8.5 (5.2–14.7) versus 11 (3.0–18.0) p >.9, respectively. Conclusion: Opioid consumption did not differ significantly between posterior QLB and an epidural infusion with ropivacaine for the first 2 postoperative days following RC. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov identifier NCT03328988. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amplified by warming temperatures and drought, recent outbreaks of native bark beetles (Curculionidae: Scolytinae) have caused extensive tree mortality throughout Europe and North America. Despite their ubiquitous nature and important effects on ecosystems, forest recovery following such disturbances is poorly understood, particularly across regions with varying abiotic conditions and outbreak effects.To better understand post‐outbreak recovery across a topographically complex region, we synthesized data from 16 field studies spanning subalpine forests in the Southern Rocky Mountains, USA. From 1997 to 2019, these forests were heavily affected by outbreaks of three native bark beetle species (Dendroctonus ponderosae, Dendroctonus rufipennis and Dryocoetes confusus). We compared pre‐ and post‐outbreak forest conditions and developed region‐wide predictive maps of post‐outbreak (1) live basal areas, (2) juvenile densities and (3) height growth rates for the most abundant tree species – aspen (Populus tremuloides), Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii), lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) and subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa).Beetle‐caused tree mortality reduced the average diameter of live trees by 28.4% (5.6 cm), and species dominance was altered on 27.8% of field plots with shifts away from pine and spruce. However, most plots (82.1%) were likely to recover towards pre‐outbreak tree densities without additional regeneration. Region‐wide maps indicated that fir and aspen, non‐host species for bark beetle species with the most severe effects (i.e. Dendroctonus spp.), will benefit from outbreaks through increased compositional dominance. After accounting for individual size, height growth for all conifer species was more rapid in sites with low winter precipitation, high winter temperatures and severe outbreaks.Synthesis. In subalpine forests of the US Rocky Mountains, recent bark beetle outbreaks have reduced tree size and altered species composition. While eventual recovery of the pre‐outbreak forest structure is likely in most places, changes in species composition may persist for decades. Still, forest communities following bark beetle outbreaks are widely variable due to differences in pre‐outbreak conditions, outbreak severity and abiotic gradients. This regional variability has critical implications for ecosystem services and susceptibility to future disturbances. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Boxwork rhodoliths are characterized by a multitaxonomic composition and excessive void spaces, and they are distributed from intertidal to mesophotic depths. Growth rates and patterns in rhodoliths from shallower depths and simpler morphologies have been assessed using incremental and geochemical analyses, but rhodoliths from mesophotic depths have been harder to access and require more studies. Boxwork rhodoliths have proved too structurally complex for age and growth rate assessment techniques such as stable oxygen isotopes profiling or elemental mapping. We therefore utilized sequential radiocarbon analysis for growth characterization of mesophotic boxwork rhodoliths. Rhodoliths were collected from the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary in the northern Gulf of Mexico from one location at 48–72 m and another at 103 m. Specimens were extensively sampled for radiocarbon concentrations from predicted nucleation points and along growth axes. From depths of 48–72 m, nucleation ages ranged from 795 ± 20 to 3270 ± 25 14C yr B·P. From depths of 103 m, nucleation ages ranged from 8960 ± 110 to 13,050 ± 150 14C yr B.P., dating back to the end of the Pleistocene in some cases. Several rhodoliths contained evidence of growth hiatuses, with deeper samples displaying age reversals that complicated the apparent growth history. We define age reversals to be non-sequential ages within a sampling sequence, typically a singular age before the return to normal age sequence. The research presented here includes the oldest known living rhodoliths, with the oldest rhodoliths grown before and after Holocene sea-level stabilization. These results have implications for the use of rhodoliths as paleoenvironmental indicators, and provide better understanding of the range and volume of carbonate production in these habitats. • Radiocarbon dating was conducted on rhodoliths from two mesophotic depth ranges. • From 48 to 72 m, ages ranged from 795 ± 20 to 3270 ± 25 14C ybp. • From 103 m, ages ranged from 8960 ± 110 to 13,050 ± 150 14C ybp. • Oldest recorded rhodoliths. • Slow growth rates indicate low recovery potential. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sequential oxygen (δ18O) and carbon (δ13C) isotope analysis were performed on eight eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) valves excavated from a marine transgressed archaeological site on the southwest coast of Florida, USA. The oysters were attached to Archaic Period human skeletal material and serve as a marker of mid-Holocene sea level rise at this once-inland mortuary pond. Data were analyzed to— (1) determine if a sample of oysters excavated from the site represent one or more inundation episodes, (2) assess past water parameters as the pond was transgressed, and (3) determine how long the oysters grew on exposed human skeletal material. Results of sclerochronological analysis and radiocarbon dating demonstrate there were two distinct environments at the time of oyster growth, each representing separate time periods and water parameters, with the earlier oyster group indicating fresher water parameters. Oysters were between one and three years old, suggesting human skeletal material was exposed for at least that long. This is the first instance in which oysters attached to Archaic Period skeletal material were used to draw wider conclusions about past marine transgression and environmental change, and results show that oysters contain valuable information for investigation at drowned archaeological sites. This research clarified methodologies that could be employed to better understand sea level rise's effects on archaeological sites on drowned portions of continental shelves. • A unique application of oyster sclerochronology in offshore precontact archaeology. • Sclerochronology reveals past environmental conditions during oyster growth. • Oysters captured two incidents of marine transgression at the archaeological site. • Oysters attached to Archaic Period human remains indicate past sea level rise. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Creation of sub-epithelial voids within scarred vocal folds via ultrafast laser ablation may help in localization of injectable therapeutic biomaterials towards an improved treatment for vocal fold scarring. Several ultrafast laser surgery probes have been developed for precise ablation of surface tissues; however, these probes lack the tight beam focusing required for sub-surface ablation in highly scattering tissues such as vocal folds. Here, we present a miniaturized ultrafast laser surgery probe designed to perform sub-epithelial ablation in vocal folds. The requirement of high numerical aperture for sub-surface ablation, in addition to the small form factor and side-firing architecture required for clinical use, made for a challenging optical design. An Inhibited Coupling guiding Kagome hollow core photonic crystal fiber delivered micro-Joule level ultrashort pulses from a high repetition rate fiber laser towards a custom-built miniaturized objective, producing a 1/e2 focal beam radius of 1.12 ± 0.10 μm and covering a 46 × 46 μm2 scan area. The probe could deliver up to 3.8 μJ pulses to the tissue surface at 40% transmission efficiency through the entire system, providing significantly higher fluences at the focal plane than were required for sub-epithelial ablation. To assess surgical performance, we performed ablation studies on freshly excised porcine hemi-larynges and found that large area sub-epithelial voids could be created within vocal folds by mechanically translating the probe tip across the tissue surface using external stages. Finally, injection of a model biomaterial into a 1 × 2 mm2 void created 114 ± 30 μm beneath the vocal fold epithelium surface indicated improved localization when compared to direct injection into the tissue without a void, suggesting that our probe may be useful for pre-clinical evaluation of injectable therapeutic biomaterials for vocal fold scarring therapy. With future developments, the surgical system presented here may enable treatment of vocal fold scarring in a clinical setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Versatile Test Reactor (VTR) is a fast spectrum test reactor currently being developed in the United States under the direction of the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), Office of Nuclear Energy (DOE-NE). The mission of the VTR is to enable accelerated testing of advanced reactor fuels and materials required for advanced reactor technologies. The conceptual design of the 300-MW(thermal), sodium-cooled, metallic-fueled, pool-type fast reactor has been led by U.S. national laboratories in collaboration with General Electric-Hitachi and Bechtel National Inc. To facilitate risk-informed design and authorization activities during the conceptual development phase, a conceptual design probabilistic risk assessment (PRA) was performed for the VTR. This paper provides an overview of the development of the VTR conceptual design PRA, including key DOE and industry standards and the PRA analysis approach and structure. In addition, the results of the VTR conceptual design PRA are provided, which include its use within authorization documentation and design decisions, along with important lessons learned during the process. The work reported in the paper is the result of studies supporting a VTR conceptual design, cost, and schedule estimate for DOE-NE to make a decision on procurement. As such, it is preliminary. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In classical elasticity, when V-notches under tension are modeled with stress-free notch-face conditions and symmetry conditions ahead of notches, stress singularities occur when notch-tip radii are zero. This raises the question of when do notch-tip stresses first start to depart from physical reality as radii go to zero. To address this question here, cohesive stress action is taken into account as radii go to zero. To obtain sufficient resolution of the key notch-tip fields, finite element analysis with highly focused locally structured meshes is employed. Meshes are systematically refined until convergence checks indicate sufficient accuracy is obtained. This finite element analysis is further verified by comparison with a corresponding set of V-notch test problems. Results then show that only for very small notch-tip radii do peak stresses with cohesive stresses active differ significantly from peak stresses with classical boundary conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Lack of tree fecundity data across climatic gradients precludes the analysis of how seed supply contributes to global variation in forest regeneration and biotic interactions responsible for biodiversity. A global synthesis of raw seedproduction data shows a 250‐fold increase in seed abundance from cold‐dry to warm‐wet climates, driven primarily by a 100‐fold increase in seed production for a given tree size. The modest (threefold) increase in forest productivity across the same climate gradient cannot explain the magnitudes of these trends. The increase in seeds per tree can arise from adaptive evolution driven by intense species interactions or from the direct effects of a warm, moist climate on tree fecundity. Either way, the massive differences in seed supply ramify through food webs potentially explaining a disproportionate role for species interactions in the wet tropics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We consider the open two-site Bose–Hubbard dimer, a well-known quantum mechanical model that has been realised recently for photons in two coupled photonic crystal nanocavities. The system is described by a Lindblad master equation which, for large numbers of photons, gives rise to a limiting semiclassical model in the form of a four-dimensional vector field. From the situation where both sites trap the same amount of photons under symmetric pumping, one encounters a transition that involves symmetry breaking, the creation of periodic oscillations and multistability as the pump strength is increased. We show that the associated one-parameter bifurcation diagram of the semiclassical model captures the essence of statistical properties of computed quantum trajectories as the pump strength is increased. Even for small numbers of photons, the fingerprint of the semiclassical bifurcations can be recognised reliably in observables of quantum trajectories. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Tree fecundity and recruitment have not yet been quantified at scales needed to anticipate biogeographic shifts in response to climate change. By separating their responses, this study shows coherence across species and communities, offering the strongest support to date that migration is in progress with regional limitations on rates. The southeastern continent emerges as a fecundity hotspot, but it is situated south of population centers where high seed production could contribute to poleward population spread. By contrast, seedling success is highest in the West and North, serving to partially offset limited seed production near poleward frontiers. The evidence of fecundity and recruitment control on tree migration can inform conservation planning for the expected long-term disequilibrium between climate and forest distribution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Victim/survivors of domestic violence are asked to tell their stories many times, in different contexts, and for different audiences. These stories are contextualized for the new context and audience at the same time that they become texts – entextualization – in that context. This article argues that narrative is produced via the co-processes of entextualization and contextualization (Silverstein & Urban, 1996). The co-processes of entextualization/contextualization in domestic violence narratives about staying and leaving violent relationships produce stories that comport with the status quo, as it is envisioned in the stories of the victim/survivors. Using staying/leaving stories of domestic violence victim/survivors, I show that entextualizations/contextualizations are (1) socioculturally saturated processes and (2) rhetorical arguments. I argue that narratives entextualize/contextualize events of domestic violence in ways that involve and comply with the status quo. Ultimately, these processes create discursive resources that reinforce domestic violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2022, the European Chemicals Agency issued advice on the selection of high dose levels for developmental and reproductive toxicity (DART) studies indicating that the highest dose tested should aim to induce clear evidence of reproductive toxicity without excessive toxicity and severe suffering in parental animals. In addition, a recent publication advocated that a 10% decrease in body weight gain should be replaced with a 10% decrease in bodyweight as a criterion for dose adequacy. Experts from the European Centre for Ecotoxicology and Toxicology of Chemicals evaluated these recent developments and their potential impact on study outcomes and interpretation and identified that the advice was not aligned with OECD test guidelines or with humane endpoints guidance. Furthermore, data analysis from DART studies indicated that a 10% decrease in maternal body weight during gestation equates to a 25% decrease in body weight gain, which differs from the consensus of experts at a 2010 ILSI/HESI workshop. Dose selection should be based on a biological approach that considers a range of other factors. Excessive dose levels that cause frank toxicity and overwhelm homeostasis should be avoided as they can give rise to effects that are not relevant to human health assessments. • ECHA's advice to increase dose levels in reproductive (DART) studies is evaluated. • Recommended high dose criteria contrary to OECD guidelines and DART experts' opinion. • Excessive dose levels may cause irrelevant secondary effects on reproduction. • Dose selection should consider the complexity of the maternal-placental-fetal model. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Warming temperatures and rising moisture deficits are expected to increase the rates of background tree mortality–low amounts of tree mortality (~0.5%–2% year−1), characterizing the forest demographic processes in the absence of abrupt, coarse‐scale disturbance events (e.g. fire). When compounded over multiple decades and large areas, even minor increases in background tree mortality (e.g. <0.5% year−1) can cause changes to forest communities and carbon storage potential that are comparable to or greater than those caused by disturbances.We examine how temporal variability in rates of background tree mortality for four subalpine conifers reflects variability in climate and climate teleconnections using observations of tree mortality from 1982 to 2019 at Niwot Ridge, Colorado, USA. Individually marked trees (initial population 5,043) in 13 permanent plots—located across a range of site conditions, stand ages and species compositions—were censused for new mortality nine times over 37 years.Background tree mortality was primarily attributed to stress from unfavourable climate and competition (71.2%) and bark beetle activity (23.3%), whereas few trees died from wind (5.3%) and wildlife impacts (0.2%). Mean annualized tree mortality attributed to tree stress and bark beetles more than tripled across all stands between initial censuses (0.26% year−1, 1982–1993/1994) and recent censuses (0.82% year−1, 2008–2019). Higher rates of tree mortality were related to warmer maximum summer temperatures, greater summer moisture deficits, and negative anomalies in ENSO (La Niña), with greater effects of drought in some subpopulations (tree size, age and species). For example, in older stands (>250 years), larger and older trees were more likely to die than smaller and younger trees. Differences in tree mortality rates and sensitivity to climate among subpopulations that varied by stand type may lead to unexpected shifts in stand composition and structure.Synthesis. A strong relationship between higher rates of tree mortality and warmer, drier summer climate conditions implies that climate warming will continue to increase background mortality rates in subalpine forests. Combined with increases in disturbances and declining frequency of moist‐cool years suitable for seedling establishment, increasing rates of tree mortality have the potential to drive declines in subalpine tree populations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Mohism has been called the most religious of all Chinese philosophies. Living up to that name, it developed unique proofs for the existence of the spiritual realm within a distinctly Chinese context. The Mozi uses testimonies from China's mythic history to prove the existence of spirits. But beyond these cultural proofs, the Mozi also introduces a logical argument that is very similar to Pascal's wager. Beyond these four explicit arguments, the Mozi also contains a fifth proof based on the existence of a supernatural order that exists in the structure of the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The higher order Haar wavelet method (HOHWM) is used with a nonuniform grid to solve nonlinear partial differential equations numerically. The Burgers' equation, the Korteweg-de Vries equation, the modified Korteweg-de Vries equation and the sine-Gordon equation are used as model equations. Adaptive as well as nonadaptive nonuniform grids are developed and used to solve the model equations numerically. The numerical results are compared to the known analytical solutions as well as to the numerical solutions obtained by application of the HOHWM on a uniform grid. The proposed methods of using nonuniform grid are shown to significantly increase the accuracy of the HOHWM at the same number of grid points. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmonic resonances in DFIG-based wind parks can be investigated by using extensive electromagnetic transient simulations, which is a time-consuming process. This paper shows that not all wind parks need such a detailed analysis. In response, the paper proposes a practical, easy-to-use method for a first-cut assessment of the risk of harmonic resonance of DFIG-based wind parks. First, simple equations are obtained to estimate resonance frequency and amplification in terms of wind park parameters readily available in practice. These equations reveal combinations of wind park parameters that cause problematic resonance. Such combinations are used to trace regions of concern in a chart. If the wind park is out of all regions of concern of the chart, one can directly declare this park is resonance-free, without running any simulation study. In addition to the analytic (model-based) method, a measurement-based method is provided for obtaining the resonance chart without running any simulation. Examples show how the proposed approach can be applied to facilitate resonance assessment during the wind park planning and operation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Understanding how severe disturbances and their interactions affect forests is key to projecting ecological change under a warming climate. Substantial increases in some biotic disturbances, such as bark beetle outbreaks, in temperate forest ecosystemsmay compromise recovery to a forest vegetation type (i.e., physiognomic recovery or resilience), especially if subsequent biotic disturbances (e.g., herbivory) alter recovery mechanisms. From 2005 to 2017, severe outbreaks (>90% mortality) of spruce bark beetles (SB, Dendroctonus rufipennis) affected Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii) across 325,000 ha of spruce and subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa) forest in the southern Rocky Mountains, USA. Concurrently, an outbreak of western balsam bark beetle (WBBB, Dryocoetes confuses) infested subalpine fir across at least 47,000 of these hectares. We explored the capacity of 105 stands affected by one or two bark beetle outbreaks and browsing of juvenile trees by ungulates to return to a forest vegetation type in the context of pre‐outbreak forest conditions and topography. Nine initial forest trajectories (i.e., at least several decades) were identified from four pre‐outbreak forest types affected by three biotic disturbances that occurred at different spatial scales and severities. Most stands (86%) contained surviving nonhost adult trees in the main canopy (fir and aspen [Populus tremuloides]) and many surviving juveniles of all species, implying that they are currently on a trajectory for physiognomic recovery. Stands composed exclusively of large‐diameter spruce were affected by a severe SB outbreak and were most vulnerable to a transition to a low‐density forest, below regional stocking levels (<370 trees/ha). Greater pre‐outbreak stand structural complexity and species diversity were key traits of stands with a higher potential for physiognomic recovery. However, all multispecies stands shifted in relative composition of the main canopy to nonhost species, suggesting low potential for compositional recovery over the next several decades. Most post‐outbreak stands (86%) exceeded regional stocking levels with trees taller than the browse zone (<2 m). As such, ungulate browsing on over half of all juveniles will primarily affect the rate of infilling of the forest canopy and preferential browsing of more palatable species will influence the composition of the future forest canopy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Archaeological evidence plays a key role in longitudinal studies of humans and climate. Climate proxy data from Peruvian archaeological sites provide a case study through insight into the history of the "flavors" or varieties of El Niño (EN) events after ~11 ka: eastern Pacific EN, La Niña, coastal EN (COA), and central Pacific or Modoki EN (CP). Archaeological proxies are important to the coastal Peruvian case because more commonly used paleoclimate proxies are unavailable or equivocal. Previously, multiproxy evidence from the Peruvian coast and elsewhere suggested that EN frequency varied over the Holocene: 1) present in the Early Holocene; 2) absent or very low frequency during the Middle Holocene (~9 to 6 ka); 3) low after ~6 ka; and 4) rapidly increasing frequency after 3 ka. Despite skepticism about the reliability of archaeological proxies, nonarchaeological proxies seemed to confirm this archaeological EN reconstruction. Although there is consensus that EN frequency varied over this period, some nonarchaeological and archaeological proxies call parts of this reconstruction into question. Here we review Holocene EN frequency reconstructions for the Peruvian coast, point to complexities introduced by apparent contradictions in a range of proxy records, consider the impact of CP and COA phenomena, and assess the merits of archaeological proxies in EN reconstructions. Reconciling Peruvian coastal paleoclimate data is critical for testing models of future EN behavior under climate variability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The recently introduced higher order Haar wavelet method is treated for solving evolution equations. The wave equation, the Burgers' equations and the Korteweg-de Vries equation are considered as model problems. The detailed analysis of the accuracy of the Haar wavelet method and the higher order Haar wavelet method is performed. The obtained results are validated against the exact solutions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present the phase diagram of the mean-field driven-dissipative Bose–Hubbard dimer model. For a dimer with repulsive on-site interactions (U > 0) and coherent driving, we prove that -symmetry breaking, via pitchfork bifurcations with sizable extensions of the asymmetric solutions, require a negative tunneling parameter (J < 0). In addition, we show that the model exhibits deterministic dissipative chaos. The chaotic attractor emerges from a Shilnikov mechanism of a periodic orbit born in a Hopf bifurcation and, depending on its symmetry properties, it is either localized or not. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate the link between the consumption of foodstuffs, excavation of a large pit, and disposal of waste at the Tillar Farms site (3DR30), southeast Arkansas, using refit and oxygen isotope analyses of well-preserved freshwater mussel shells from Feature 1. Only 0.13% of 7,408 valves analyzed were unidentifiable to species.The refit analysis produced 460 refits across 23 species and strongly indicates that the shell midden represents a single episode of shellfish gathering, consumption, and discard. Oxygen isotope analysis of five randomly selected shells are used as a test of the refit results. δ18O values from the five archaeological shells are compared to modern control samples of live-collected specimens from Bayou Bartholomew in winter of 2011. Refit analysis suggests the accumulation of mussel shells occurred quickly, likely as a result of one collection, consumption, and discard event. δ18O values suggest this activity took place during a single winter season. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study describes four gray or brown species of Cuphophyllus (Hygrophoraceae, Agaricales), two of them new species, restricted to arctic-alpine and northern boreal zones of North America, and relates them morphologically and phylogenetically using multigene and nuc rDNA internal transcribed spacer ITS1-5.8S-ITS (ITS barcode) analyses to their similar, known counterparts. Cuphophyllus cinerellus, epitypified here, is shown to be a pan-palearctic species with sequence-confirmed collections from Fennoscandia and easternmost Asia. Occupying a similar habitat in the Nearctic is its sister species, the morphologically similar but novel C. esteriae, so far known only from eastern North America, including Greenland. Sister to the C. cinerellus–C. esteriae lineage, and known only from boreal raised Sphagnum bogs in Newfoundland, is a new medium-sized light cinereous brown species, C. lamarum. It has a yellow stipe but is phylogenetically distant from the yellow-stiped European C. flavipes and its North American sister species, Hygrophorus pseudopallidus. As cryptic speciation was discovered within C. flavipes, we lecto- and epitypify the name and transfer H. pseudopallidus to Cuphophyllus based on ITS analysis of the holotype. We also transfer the small European Hygrocybe comosa to Cuphophyllus based on morphology. Cuphophyllus hygrocyboides is reported from North America with the first sequence-confirmed collections from arctic-alpine British Columbia and Greenland. In addition, sequencing the holotype of C. subviolaceus identifies it as the sister species to the putative C. lacmus. Both species seem to have an intercontinental distribution. In total, we add new sequences to GenBank from 37 Cuphophyllus collections, including the holotypes of C. hygrocyboides and C. subviolaceus, the two new epitypes, and the two novel species. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Kudryavtseva, N.; Räämet, A., and Soomere, T., 2020. Coastal flooding: Joint probability of extreme water levels and waves along the Baltic Sea coast. In: Malvárez, G. and Navas, F. (eds.), Global Coastal Issues of 2020. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 95, pp. 1146–1151. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. An accurate assessment of the joint probability of water levels and waves is crucial to establish appropriate mitigation and adaptation strategies for possible flooding and coastal erosion in countries with extensive low-lying nearshore areas. The simultaneous occurrence of large waves and high still water levels can significantly increase the risk of flooding and damage of coastal constructions. In this study, the water level extremes were retrieved from simulated high-resolution 3D NEMO-Nordic water level data along the Baltic Sea coast with a spatial resolution of 2 nautical miles (∼3.7 km) and time resolution of 1 hour. The wave height data were obtained from the numerical simulations using the WAM wave model with adjusted geostrophic wind forcing with 3 nautical miles spatial resolution and the time resolution of 1 hour. Using the Archimedean copula approach, the likelihood of joint occurrence of high water levels and wave heights was evaluated along the whole Baltic Sea coast for 1979–2007. Four distinctive regions in the Baltic Sea were identified following differences in the dependence between the sea level and wave height extremes in terms of their correlation. The Arkona basin and eastern part of the Baltic proper have low dependence (correlation coefficient <0.2), the Gulf of Riga, the Gulf of Finland and north-western part of the Baltic Proper exhibit moderate dependence (0.2–0.5), the Sea of Bothnia has the strongest dependence (0.5–0.7), and the Bay of Bothnia has a dependence in the range of 0.2–0.4, similar to the central Baltic Sea region. The joint probability analysis showed that the highest risk of simultaneous appearance of water level and wave height extremes is observed in the Sea of Bothnia. The study demonstrates that it is crucial to consider the combination of both water levels and wave heights in all regions of the Baltic Sea except for the southern areas. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Pseudoomphalina kalchbrenneri is a Eurasian species. In North America the Pso. kalchbrenneri complex is represented by Pseudoomphalina anticostica sp. nov. and Pso. compressipes in the east and Pso. intermedia in the west. Pseudoomphalina farinacea and Pso. felleoides are later synonyms for Pso. compressipes. The somewhat similar Pseudolaccaria pachyphylla occupies a temperate band through Eurasia, confirmed by sequencing in both eastern and western North America. It differs from species of the Pso. kalchbrenneri complex by smaller size, finely granular pileus, non-decurrent gills, and lack of hymenial cystidia. All species of the Pso. kalchbrenneri complex are uncommon, and macroscopically similar. Pseudoomphalina kalchbrenneri and Pso. intermedia can be identified by their distribution (Europe and western North America, respectively) and lack of cystidia. The cystidiate eastern North American Pso. anticostica and Pso. compressipes can be differentiated by the smaller spores of the latter. Pseudoomphalina cokeri is the most ancestral species on the Pseudoomphalina lineage, while Clitocybe thujana and Agaricus apertus (Clitocybe/Clitocybula aperta) fall outside Pseudoomphalina and Pseudolaccaria. We add 21 new sequences to GenBank, including six types (Agaricus compressipes, Clitocybe felleoides, C. farinacea, C. intermedia, C. thujana, Agaricus apertus), and one new species (Pso. anticostica). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phasmarhabditis hermaphrodita is a parasitic nematode of terrestrial gastropods that has been formulated into a biological control agent for farmers and gardeners to kill slugs and snails. In order to locate slugs it is attracted to mucus, faeces and volatile cues; however, there is no information about whether these nematodes are attracted to snail cues. It is also unknown how wild isolates of P. hermaphrodita or different Phasmarhabditis species behave when exposed to gastropod cues. Therefore, we investigated whether P. hermaphrodita (commercial and wild isolated strains), P. neopapillosa and P. californica were attracted to mucus from several common snail species (Cepaea nemoralis , Cepaea hortensis , Arianta arbustorum and Cornu aspersum). We also examined whether snails (C. aspersum) collected from different locations around the UK differed in their attractiveness to wild isolates of P. hermaphrodita. Furthermore, we also investigated what properties of snail mucus the nematodes were attracted to, including hyaluronic acid and metal salts (FeSO4, ZnSO4, CuSO4 and MgSO4). We found that the commercial strain of P. hermaphrodita responded poorly to snail mucus compared to wild isolated strains, and C. aspersum collected from different parts of the UK differed in their attractiveness to the nematodes. We found that Phasmarhabditis nematodes were weakly attracted to all metals tested but were strongly attracted to hyaluronic acid. In a final experiment we also showed that pharmacological manipulation of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) increased chemoattraction to snail mucus, suggesting that the protein kinase EGL-4 may be responsible for Phasmarhabditis sp. chemoattraction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes narratives about encounters between police officers and domestic violence victim/survivors in the context of domestic violence calls. Narratives are sites in which individuals create relationships between themselves and others, oriented around a set of unfolding events. Narrative is a motivated, engaged retelling of prior or anticipated events produced in interaction with others, in a particular context stocked with constraints and affordances. In the process of telling stories, identities emerge. In order to understand the relationship between narrative and identity, I analyze stories told about police interactions with domestic violence victim/survivors from the perspectives of both the police and the victim/survivors. Working empirically with a data set of 48 interviews, I use critical discourse analysis and discourse analysis to analyze the ways both groups narrate domestic violence and confrontations with police officers, the ways they create story worlds stocked with characters, the ways story characters are formed and deployed, and the ways those characters are positioned against/with/by the storyteller, allowing the storyteller's identity to emerge. This article is an analysis of the relationship between the storyteller and the story world and the storyteller's process of constructing an/other in order to position in relation to that other. Ultimately, I argue that identity emerges for the storyteller in the way she or he constructs characters in a story and then positions in relation to those characters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two Donax obesulus and two Protothaca asperrima shells collected prior to the nuclear testing of the 1950's were micromilled at sub-seasonal resolution to yield new reservoir effect (ΔR) estimates for the coast of Peru. Shells from northern (4°40′S to 8°14′S) and central (13°52′S) Peru produced ΔR values of 123 ± 50 and 110 ± 49 years respectively. We found such values statistically indistinguishable from each other while reporting intra-annual ΔR variability along shells ontogeny in agreement with previously published regional ΔR values. This similarity suggests radiocarbon dating of short-lived (<1.5 years) mollusks shells is a useful tool for comparing marine radiocarbon signals. Additionally, our analysis of ΔR and δ18O changes along shells' ontogeny found a tenuous relationship between them. We are not the first one to report these phenomena in Peruvian upwelling, but we are the first to suggest that fast Lagrangian water mixing as a mechanism behind it. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sclerochronological and sclerochemical analysis of shellfish remains from archaeological sites afford the opportunity to understand environmental change and its impacts on human populations through time. During the Late Holocene in the Gulf of Alaska (GOA), the paleoenvironmental record reflects fluctuating marine conditions throughout the region. In the Kodiak archipelago in the Gulf of Alaska, changing environmental conditions, population growth, technological transitions, and contact with other communities likely promoted the transition from needs-based maritime hunting and gathering to surplus-based, semi-permanent villages. The precise role of climate in this transition is understudied. Few paleoclimate reconstructions are available for the Kodiak archipelago and climate reconstructions for the GOA are often insufficient for archaeological research because they lack sub-annual resolution and cannot produce a detailed understanding of seasonal behaviors in human populations. Analysis of shellfish remains from archaeological sites in the archipelago may provide additional paleoenvironmental information for the Gulf of Alaska. Measuring and comparing the length of seasonal shell growth in select species of bivalves may complement stable oxygen isotope analysis, together providing a more precise paleoclimate reconstruction. This research utilizes the growth of Saxidomus gigantea (also known as S. giganteus), abundant both on modern and ancient coastlines to provide information about the length of its growing seasons. To measure seasonality, a total of 25 modern samples were collected from Alaska and British Columbia and the number of lunar-daily growth increments (LDGI) was counted between annual winter growth bands confirmed by δ18O maxima measured in sinusoidal time series. Clams collected from Alaska grew a total of 143 ± 34 days while British Columbian clams grew 273 ± 14 days. δ18O values and the number of LDGI per year were then compared to previous studies along the Pacific Northwest coast. δ18O values were more positive from annual winter growth bands from Alaskan samples (average value of 1.0‰) than British Columbian samples (average value of −0.2‰). Maximum δ18O values from winter growth generally increased with latitude (R2 = 0.67), as did the number of LDGI per year (R2 = 0.74). Minimum δ18O values did not appear to be significantly related to latitude (R2 = 0.42). This method was then applied to three archaeological samples collected from the Rice Ridge site (KOD-363), the Uyak site (KOD-145), and the Settlement Point site (AFG-105) from the Kodiak archipelago, Alaska, which grew an average of 166 ± 22 days, to confirm that these methods can be applied to archaeological samples through time to detect spatial and temporal changes in seasonality. These results suggest that changes in sea surface conditions and seasonality are detectable both spatially and temporally through detailed sclerochronological and sclerochemical analysis of shellfish remains from archaeological sites and offer the potential to reconstruct marine environmental conditions throughout the Holocene. • Average maximum δ18O shell values show latitudinal trend, with δ18O shell increasing poleward • Clams collected from higher latitudes grew fewer days than those collected from lower latitudes • Sclerochronological and chemical analysis of S. gigantea can answer questions about past environmental and climate change [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Climate-induced increases in tree mortality are reported for many forests worldwide. Understanding the potential effects on carbon pools requires long-term monitoring of changes in forest biomass. We measured aboveground biomass (AGB) of living trees over a 34-year period (1982–2016) in permanent plots with varying stand ages, species compositions, and topographic settings in a subalpine forest in the Colorado Front Range. Stand-level and species-level AGB varied spatially and temporally in relation to stand age, successional processes, and site moisture classification. Young (ca. 122 years) postfire stands composed of lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia Engelm. ex S. Watson) had lower mean AGB than older (>250 years) mixed-species stands. Mesic stands had higher AGB than xeric or hydric stands of similar age. At the level of individual species, significant shifts in AGB among species were primarily explained by successional replacement of shade-intolerant pines by shade-tolerant Engelmann spruce (Picea engelmannii Parry ex Engelm.) and subalpine fir (Abies lasiocarpa (Hook.) Nutt.). The permanent plot network recorded significant shifts in species dominance and tree densities between 1982 and 2016, reflecting successional patterns developing over several centuries and the effects of recent localized windthrow, insects, and pathogens. Despite increases in tree mortality, there was a general pattern of increasing AGB across the forest. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ultrafast laser ablation may provide a treatment for vocal fold (VF) scarring. Optical properties of VFs must be known prior to clinical implementation to select appropriate laser surgery conditions. We present scattering lengths of epithelium ls,ep, superficial lamina propria ls;SLP, and ablation thresholds Fth of human and canine VF tissues. Our experimental approach involves an image-guided, laser-ablation-based method that allows for simultaneous determination of ls and Fth in these multilayered tissues. Studying eight canine samples, we found ls;ep ¼ 75.3± 5.7 μm, ls;SLP ¼ 26.1±1.2 μm, Fth;ep ¼ 1.58±0.06 J/cm2, and Fth;SLP ¼ 1.55±0.17 J/cm2. Studying five human samples, we found ls;ep ¼ 42.8±3.3 μm and Fth;ep ¼ 1.66±0.10 J/cm2. We studied the effects of cumulative pulse overlap on ablation threshold and found no significant variations beyond 12 overlapping pulses. Interestingly, our studies about the effect of sample storage on the scattering properties of porcine VF show a 60% increase in ls;ep for fresh porcine VF when compared to the same sample stored in isotonic solution. These results provide guidelines for clinical implementation by enabling selection of optimal laser surgery parameters for subsurface ablation of VF tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Writing academic texts is an inevitable component of contemporary higher education; writing in a more specific sense is an indispensable method when teaching a particular subject (Blau, 2003). As a species of text, essay-form is an integral piece of writing in which one expresses in depth his/her opinions or feelings on a particular subject. In higher education teaching, essay-form has been used mainly as an individually graded writing task, which enables students to align their own subjective points of view to more general philosophical or scientific perspectives. For this type of academic or English style essay, it is common to have a rather personal discursive overall mood, critical and argumentative perspective, and stylistic comprehension. While the essay, in its traditional form, involves logic, dialectics, and rhetoric, it still enables students to put forward their own personal views as well as to interpret the variety of generic features of the essay-form in a more general manner. Whilst essay writing is indeed a highly popular genre in higher education practises, it has not gained substantial prestige in the hierarchy of scientific texts, probably due to the fact that, as a genre, its limits and inner attributes are often unclear (Wingate, 2012). Writing a good quality essay demands both knowledge and experience, which fledgling writers often lack (Hounsell, 1997). Since students' views and expectations vary considerably from that of their tutors' in regards to the essay genre (Andrews, 2003; McEwan, 2017; Wingate, 2012), the task of academic essay writing should not be considered as obvious or self-explanatory in any university course but, instead, should be integrated to those disciplines, which expect and require academic text writing (Wingate et al., 2011). When enrolling in a new course, young students expect clearly laid out rules and precise tutor guidance (McEwan, 2017), which, as involving and supporting measures, should bring the whole writing process into focus and shape all writing competences integrally. The aim of this article is to focus on the methodological problems arising from academic essay writing as a piece of discursive reasoning from the perspective of teaching writing. The article is based on action research conducted at the Cultural Institute of the University of Tartu. The research involves the BA course of Estonian literature, entitled "Analysing Prose" and its developmental work over the last four years (2015-2018), which was strongly motivated by the Good Teaching grant from the University of Tartu. The main problem that needed addressing with the "Analysing Prose" course had to do with the quality of essay writing as a specimen of academic text. Since the students experienced great methodological and subject driven difficulties in writing their essays, the teacher had to make several changes in the didactics of the subject. In addition, a variety of questions arose concerning teaching writing, to which we sought answers in this action research: 1) what are the main methodological problems in essay writing; 2) what particular subject didactic measures could help to support essay writing; 3) in what ways could we develop academic essay writing skills even further? The aim of the action research was to establish ways in which university teachers could more effectively assist students in their essay writing and improve the quality of their supervision. This is unavoidable if we are determined to improve the academic writing skills and eliminate common shortcomings and mistakes in the writing process. In order to get a more comprehensive overview, we had to cover both students' and tutors' perspectives in analysing the problems of essay writing. At first we examined the tutor's feedback to 78 essays, and it became clear that the main difficulties in academic essay writing concern various text creation skills: a) choosing appropriate levels of analysis and method; b) overall construction of the text, structure and coherence of particular text segments; c) development of themes, finding arguments, building connections between ideas; d) citing and referencing primary sources, connecting them to one's own ideas; e) phrasing ideas clearly; choosing appropriate and correct language skills. After this stage, we gathered information from the students as to how they perceive the requirements of academic essay writing and what difficulties they have personally experienced in the essay writing process. In examining their replies, it became apparent that the students' views on academic essay writing are relatively eclectic. The main gulf or dissonance between the tutors' comments and students' views surrounds the argumentation in the essay format: tutors' feedback emphasises the central role of argumentation in the essay, where as students' perspective does not stress this at all: they do not construe their writing predominantly as argument-based. The difficulties that students have encountered in essay writing are, in their view, mainly to do with, a) creative skills of a writer, b) analysing and interpreting primary sources, c) limiting and developing the subject of the essay, d) choosing appropriate styles of form, expression and language use. In order to achieve a clear and mutually comprehensive view, the differences need to be discussed thoroughly in seminars and the methodological principles and requirements of essay writing repeatedly voiced. In the development process of the course, we applied two didactic intervening methods, which support essay writing: 15 min. individual consultation/tutorial and written feedback to the first drafts of the essays. Both of these methods attempted to give an objective view of certain individual shortcomings and possibilities in order to improve the writing craft. Decisive action from tutors helped to strengthen the educational dialogue between teachers and students and, at the same time, shaped students as self-directed learners. This article directly discusses the positive impact and effectiveness of such intervening methods. The post-questionnaire of student's views showed that both the above mentioned methods did indeed help students to understand the essay assessment criteria and the tutors' expectations of an academic essay. According to students, the verbal tutorials and written feedback to first drafts of the essays helped to form a clearer understanding of the requirements for specialist academic texts and improved writing skills in all areas and competences. These positive changes were also further confirmed in the tutor's feedback to the last version of the essay, which convinced us that all learners had, to a certain degree, taken into account the suggestions and corrections of their tutors and had been made aware of their progress. Students found that these two intervening measures improved the quality of the course and, in turn, had increased the median of their final grades for the course. The action research showed that individual writing should be approached at a more complex level taking into account, among other things, the students' previous writing experiences as well as their understanding of the requirements of the genre. The article suggests several didactic approaches on how to make the academic essay writing process more effective. It is evident that the teaching process could be enhance by dividing the subject into smaller phases, consisting of logically ordered actions. Importantly, the phases of essay writing should be thoroughly discussed with students. It is the tutor's task to support the writing process, and offer a sufficient and clear overview of the attributes and the requirements of the essay form. It goes without saying, that the guidelines of the essays and criteria for assessment must be discussed together in seminars in order to avoid misunderstandings and false expectations. In addition to the guidelines, some of the core principles and stages of essay writing should be assisted by summarising figures and schema, which is particularly suitable for students prone to a more visual learning style. Poster presentation is also beneficial to this approach in which visual presentation is preferred to a verbal description. In order to avoid certain anticipated problems, it is recommended to draw up and discuss together with students some methodological test questions, which help to bring attention to needed areas. Also, a list of common mistakes would be helpful for students, where each type of mistake is given a full description. In addition, different stages of essay writing could be, of course, practised with students by giving them smaller writing tasks. It also pays off to read and figuratively assess fellow students' essays in order to understand genre traditions and notice common mistakes. A written reflection task, i.e. an intermediary report to the tutor could also be incorporated into the essay writing process, which should give students an opportunity to reflect their experiences of writing while still in the process of writing their essays. Since writing is a social act requiring dialogue with an estranging thought and a relation to the expected reader, it may well be worthwhile attempting to prepare essay writing in pairs. To sum up, it should be said that the necessary didactic changes in the course work, as well as tutor's more hands-on approach to guiding students, did indeed help to improve the academic essay writing skills of the students of Estonian literature and hopefully contributed to the overall prestige of the essay genre in higher education settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Writing academic texts is an inevitable component of contemporary higher education; writing in a more specific sense is an indispensable method when teaching a particular subject (Blau, 2003). As a species of text, essay-form is an integral piece of writing in which one expresses in depth his/her opinions or feelings on a particular subject. In higher education teaching, essay-form has been used mainly as an individually graded writing task, which enables students to align their own subjective points of view to more general philosophical or scientific perspectives. For this type of academic or English style essay, it is common to have a rather personal discursive overall mood, critical and argumentative perspective, and stylistic comprehension. While the essay, in its traditional form, involves logic, dialectics, and rhetoric, it still enables students to put forward their own personal views as well as to interpret the variety of generic features of the essay-form in a more general manner. Whilst essay writing is indeed a highly popular genre in higher education practises, it has not gained substantial prestige in the hierarchy of scientific texts, probably due to the fact that, as a genre, its limits and inner attributes are often unclear (Wingate, 2012). Writing a good quality essay demands both knowledge and experience, which fledgling writers often lack (Hounsell, 1997). Since students' views and expectations vary considerably from that of their tutors' in regards to the essay genre (Andrews, 2003; McEwan, 2017; Wingate, 2012), the task of academic essay writing should not be considered as obvious or self-explanatory in any university course but, instead, should be integrated to those disciplines, which expect and require academic text writing (Wingate et al., 2011). When enrolling in a new course, young students expect clearly laid out rules and precise tutor guidance (McEwan, 2017), which, as involving and supporting measures, should bring the whole writing process into focus and shape all writing competences integrally. The aim of this article is to focus on the methodological problems arising from academic essay writing as a piece of discursive reasoning from the perspective of teaching writing. The article is based on action research conducted at the Cultural Institute of the University of Tartu. The research involves the BA course of Estonian literature, entitled "Analysing Prose" and its developmental work over the last four years (2015-2018), which was strongly motivated by the Good Teaching grant from the University of Tartu. The main problem that needed addressing with the "Analysing Prose" course had to do with the quality of essay writing as a specimen of academic text. Since the students experienced great methodological and subject driven difficulties in writing their essays, the teacher had to make several changes in the didactics of the subject. In addition, a variety of questions arose concerning teaching writing, to which we sought answers in this action research: 1) what are the main methodological problems in essay writing; 2) what particular subject didactic measures could help to support essay writing; 3) in what ways could we develop academic essay writing skills even further? The aim of the action research was to establish ways in which university teachers could more effectively assist students in their essay writing and improve the quality of their supervision. This is unavoidable if we are determined to improve the academic writing skills and eliminate common shortcomings and mistakes in the writing process. In order to get a more comprehensive overview, we had to cover both students' and tutors' perspectives in analysing the problems of essay writing. At first we examined the tutor's feedback to 78 essays, and it became clear that the main difficulties in academic essay writing concern various text creation skills: a) choosing appropriate levels of analysis and method; b) overall construction of the text, structure and coherence of particular text segments; c) development of themes, finding arguments, building connections between ideas; d) citing and referencing primary sources, connecting them to one's own ideas; e) phrasing ideas clearly; choosing appropriate and correct language skills. After this stage, we gathered information from the students as to how they perceive the requirements of academic essay writing and what difficulties they have personally experienced in the essay writing process. In examining their replies, it became apparent that the students' views on academic essay writing are relatively eclectic. The main gulf or dissonance between the tutors' comments and students' views surrounds the argumentation in the essay format: tutors' feedback emphasises the central role of argumentation in the essay, where as students' perspective does not stress this at all: they do not construe their writing predominantly as argument-based. The difficulties that students have encountered in essay writing are, in their view, mainly to do with, a) creative skills of a writer, b) analysing and interpreting primary sources, c) limiting and developing the subject of the essay, d) choosing appropriate styles of form, expression and language use. In order to achieve a clear and mutually comprehensive view, the differences need to be discussed thoroughly in seminars and the methodological principles and requirements of essay writing repeatedly voiced. In the development process of the course, we applied two didactic intervening methods, which support essay writing: 15 min. individual consultation/tutorial and written feedback to the first drafts of the essays. Both of these methods attempted to give an objective view of certain individual shortcomings and possibilities in order to improve the writing craft. Decisive action from tutors helped to strengthen the educational dialogue between teachers and students and, at the same time, shaped students as self-directed learners. This article directly discusses the positive impact and effectiveness of such intervening methods. The post-questionnaire of student's views showed that both the above mentioned methods did indeed help students to understand the essay assessment criteria and the tutors' expectations of an academic essay. According to students, the verbal tutorials and written feedback to first drafts of the essays helped to form a clearer understanding of the requirements for specialist academic texts and improved writing skills in all areas and competences. These positive changes were also further confirmed in the tutor's feedback to the last version of the essay, which convinced us that all learners had, to a certain degree, taken into account the suggestions and corrections of their tutors and had been made aware of their progress. Students found that these two intervening measures improved the quality of the course and, in turn, had increased the median of their final grades for the course. The action research showed that individual writing should be approached at a more complex level taking into account, among other things, the students' previous writing experiences as well as their understanding of the requirements of the genre. The article suggests several didactic approaches on how to make the academic essay writing process more effective. It is evident that the teaching process could be enhance by dividing the subject into smaller phases, consisting of logically ordered actions. Importantly, the phases of essay writing should be thoroughly discussed with students. It is the tutor's task to support the writing process, and offer a sufficient and clear overview of the attributes and the requirements of the essay form. It goes without saying, that the guidelines of the essays and criteria for assessment must be discussed together in seminars in order to avoid misunderstandings and false expectations. In addition to the guidelines, some of the core principles and stages of essay writing should be assisted by summarising figures and schema, which is particularly suitable for students prone to a more visual learning style. Poster presentation is also beneficial to this approach in which visual presentation is preferred to a verbal description. In order to avoid certain anticipated problems, it is recommended to draw up and discuss together with students some methodological test questions, which help to bring attention to needed areas. Also, a list of common mistakes would be helpful for students, where each type of mistake is given a full description. In addition, different stages of essay writing could be, of course, practised with students by giving them smaller writing tasks. It also pays off to read and figuratively assess fellow students' essays in order to understand genre traditions and notice common mistakes. A written reflection task, i.e. an intermediary report to the tutor could also be incorporated into the essay writing process, which should give students an opportunity to reflect their experiences of writing while still in the process of writing their essays. Since writing is a social act requiring dialogue with an estranging thought and a relation to the expected reader, it may well be worthwhile attempting to prepare essay writing in pairs. To sum up, it should be said that the necessary didactic changes in the course work, as well as tutor's more hands-on approach to guiding students, did indeed help to improve the academic essay writing skills of the students of Estonian literature and hopefully contributed to the overall prestige of the essay genre in higher education settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]