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Phosphatic (possibly secondarily phosphatised) remains of antipatharian coralla, previously unknown in the fossil record, occur abundantly in the early Ordovician Fenxiang Formation in the Hubei Province, southern China. Probably two species (and genera) are represented, which differ in spinosity of branches. The more spinose one, Sinopathes reptans, has its lateral spines bearing regular, longitudinally arranged costellae. The early Floian geological age of this finding, about 470 Ma, supports predictions on the timing of anthozoan phylogeny derived from the molecular phylogenetic evidence. Black corals (Antipatharia) are basal to the scleractinians in the Hexacorallia clade, being more derived than sea anemones and the Zoantharia. Based on calibration of the molecular clock with Mesozoic data, the first split of lineages within the scleractinian hexacorals was proposed to take place approximately 425 million years ago. This implies that the origin of Antipatharia should precede this date. They have not been known in the fossil record because of unmineralised skeleton composed primarily of laminar chitin complexed with a protein. Unlike all recent species, the encrusting basal part of the colony dominated in the Ordovician ones and only occasionally erect branches developed, rather chaotically ramified. This presumably plesiomorphic trait seems consistent with ancient geological age and suggests that some problematic fossils from the Late Cambrian may be their, even less-derived, relatives.

Global pollinator declines have been attributed to habitat destruction, pesticide use, and climate change or some combination of these factors, and managed honey bees, Apis mellifera, are part of worldwide pollinator declines. Here we exposed honey bee colonies during three brood generations to sub-lethal doses of a widely used pesticide, imidacloprid, and then subsequently challenged newly emerged bees with the gut parasite, Nosema spp. The pesticide dosages used were below levels demonstrated to cause effects on longevity or foraging in adult honey bees. Nosema infections increased significantly in the bees from pesticide-treated hives when compared to bees from control hives demonstrating an indirect effect of pesticides on pathogen growth in honey bees. We clearly demonstrate an increase in pathogen growth within individual bees reared in colonies exposed to one of the most widely used pesticides worldwide, imidacloprid, at below levels considered harmful to bees. The finding that individual bees with undetectable levels of the target pesticide, after being reared in a sub-lethal pesticide environment within the colony, had higher Nosema is significant. Interactions between pesticides and pathogens could be a major contributor to increased mortality of honey bee colonies, including colony collapse disorder, and other pollinator declines worldwide.

Cichlids are an excellent model to study explosive speciation and adaptive radiation. Their evolutionary success has been attributed to their ability to undergo rapid morphological changes related to diet, and their particular breeding biology. Relatively minor changes in morphology allow for exploitation of novel food resources. The importance of phenotypic plasticity and genetically based differences for diversification was long recognized, but their relationship and relative magnitude remained unclear. We compared morphology of individuals of four wild populations of the Lake Tanganyika cichlid Tropheus moorii with their pond-raised F1 offspring. The magnitude of morphological change via phenotypic plasticity between wild and pond-bred F1 fish exceeds pairwise population differences by a factor of 2.4 (mean Mahalanobis distances). The genetic and environmental effects responsible for among population differentiation in the wild could still be recognized in the pond-bred F1 fish. All four pond populations showed the same trends in morphological change, mainly in mouth orientation, size and orientation of fins, and thickness of the caudal peduncle. As between population differentiation was lower in the wild than differentiation between pond-raised versus wild fish, we suggest the narrow ecological niche and intense interspecific competition in rock habitats is responsible for consistent shape similarity, even among long-term isolated populations. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00114-010-0751-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Whereas some bird species are heavily affected by blood parasites in the wild, others reportedly are not. Seabirds, in particular, are often free from blood parasites, even in the presence of potential vectors. By means of polymerase chain reaction, we amplified a DNA fragment from the cytochrome b gene to detect parasites of the genera Plasmodium, Leucocytozoon, and Haemoproteus in 14 seabird species, ranging from Antarctica to the tropical Indian Ocean. We did not detect parasites in 11 of these species, including one Antarctic, four subantarctic, two temperate, and four tropical species. On the other hand, two subantarctic species, thin-billed prions Pachyptila belcheri and dolphin gulls Larus scoresbii, were found infected. One of 28 thin-billed prions had a Plasmodium infection whose DNA sequence was identical to lineage P22 of Plasmodium relictum, and one of 20 dolphin gulls was infected with a Haemoproteus lineage which appears phylogenetically clustered with parasites species isolated from passeriform birds such as Haemoproteus lanii, Haemoproteus magnus, Haemoproteus fringillae, Haemoproteus sylvae, Haemoproteus payevskyi, and Haemoproteus belopolskyi. In addition, we found a high parasite prevalence in a single tropical species, the Christmas Island frigatebird Fregata andrewsi, where 56% of sampled adults were infected with Haemoproteus. The latter formed a monophyletic group that includes a Haemoproteus line from Eastern Asian black-tailed gulls Larus crassirostris. Our results are in agreement with those showing that (a) seabirds are poor in hemosporidians and (b) latitude could be a determining factor to predict the presence of hemosporidians in birds. However, further studies should explore the relative importance of extrinsic and intrinsic factors on parasite prevalence, in particular using phylogenetically controlled comparative analyses, systematic sampling and screening of vectors, and within-species comparisons.

Giant honeybees (Apis dorsata) nest in the open and have therefore evolved a variety of defence strategies. Against predatory wasps, they produce highly coordinated Mexican wavelike cascades termed ‘shimmering’, whereby hundreds of bees flip their abdomens upwards. Although it is well known that shimmering commences at distinct spots on the nest surface, it is still unclear how shimmering is generated. In this study, colonies were exposed to living tethered wasps that were moved in front of the experimental nest. Temporal and spatial patterns of shimmering were investigated in and after the presence of the wasp. The numbers and locations of bees that participated in the shimmering were assessed, and those bees that triggered the waves were identified. The findings reveal that the position of identified trigger cohorts did not reflect the experimental path of the tethered wasp. Instead, the trigger centres were primarily arranged in the close periphery of the mouth zone of the nest, around those parts where the main locomotory activity occurs. This favours the ‘special-agents’ hypothesis that suggest that groups of specialized bees initiate the shimmering. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00114-009-0605-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The evolution of winged stick insects (phasmids) from secondarily wingless ancestors was proposed in recent studies. We explored the cuticle of flying phasmids for wind sensors that could be involved in their flight control, comparable to those known for locusts. Surprisingly, wind-sensitive hairs (wsH) occur on the palps of mouthparts and on the antennae of the winged phasmid Sipyloidea sipylus which can fly in tethered position only when air currents blow over the mouthparts. The present study describes the morphology and major functional properties of these “new” wsH with soft and bulging hair bases which are different from the beaker-like hair bases of the wsH on the cerci of phasmids and the wsH described in other insects. The most sensitive wsH of antennae and palps respond with phasic-tonic afferents to air currents exceeding 0.2 ms−1. The fields of wsH on one side of the animal respond mainly to ventral, lateral, and frontal wind on the ipsilateral side of the head. Afferent inputs from the wsH converge but also diverge to a group of specific interneurons at their branches in the suboesophageal ganglion and can send their integrated input from wsH fields of the palps and antennae to the thoracic central nervous system. Response types of individual wsH-interneurons are either phasic or phasic-tonic to air puffs or constant air currents and also, the receptive fields of individual interneurons differ. We conclude that the “new” wsH system and its interneurons mainly serve to maintain flight activity in airborne phasmids and also, the “new” wsH must have emerged together with the integrating interneurons during the evolution from wingless to the recent winged forms of phasmids. peerReviewed

In all higher nonhuman primates, species survival depends upon safe carrying of infants clinging to body hair of adults. In this work, measurements of mechanical properties of ape hair (gibbon, orangutan, and gorilla) are presented, focusing on constraints for safe infant carrying. Results of hair tensile properties are shown to be species-dependent. Analysis of the mechanics of the mounting position, typical of heavier infant carrying among African apes, shows that both clinging and friction are necessary to carry heavy infants. As a consequence, a required relationship between infant weight, hair-hair friction coefficient, and body angle exists. The hair-hair friction coefficient is measured using natural ape skin samples, and dependence on load and humidity is analyzed. Numerical evaluation of the equilibrium constraint is in agreement with the knuckle-walking quadruped position of African apes. Bipedality is clearly incompatible with the usual clinging and mounting pattern of infant carrying, requiring a revision of models of hominization in relation to the divergence between apes and hominins. These results suggest that safe carrying of heavy infants justify the emergence of biped form of locomotion. Ways to test this possibility are foreseen here.

Description des differentes possibilites de substitution du petrole par le charbon ou la biomasse. Conclusions pour les developpements a long terme

Types of asbestos are distinguished not only by structure, chemical compositon, shape of aggregates, and length and quality of fibers, but also by its formation. Though consisting of quite common elements, deposits are formed only under very special conditions. Its unique combination of properties has created over 3000 fields of application (about 70% in asbestos cement). Great efforts have been made to substitute all types of asbestos by harmless, similarly cheap and versatile synthetic fibers, owing to the unquestioned carcinogenic properties of all asbestos dusts. However, development of such fibers has not made any remarkable progress until recently. Consequently risk to workers in mining and manufactoring, consumers, outsiders, and the environment should be kept as low as possible by intensifying precautions and diminishing emissions.

There is a growing interest in mathematical mechanistic modelling as a promising strategy for understanding tumour progression. This approach is accompanied by a methodological change of making research, in which models help to actively generate hypotheses instead of waiting for general principles to become apparent once sufficient data are accumulated. This paper applies recent research from philosophy of science to uncover three important problems of mechanistic modelling which may compromise its mainstream application, namely: the dilemma of formal and informal descriptions, the need to express degrees of confidence and the need of an argumentation framework. We report experience and research on similar problems from software engineering and provide evidence that the solutions adopted there can be transferred to the biological domain. We hope this paper can provoke new opportunities for further and profitable interdisciplinary research in the field.

Tandem running is a recruitment strategy whereby one ant leads a single naïve nest mate to a resource. While tandem running progresses towards the goal, the leader ant and the follower ant maintain contact mainly by tactile signals. In this paper, we investigated whether they also deposit chemical signals on the ground during tandem running. We filmed tandem-running ants and analysed the position of the gasters of leaders and followers. Our results show that leader ants are more likely to press their gasters down to the substrate compared to follower ants, single ants and transporter ants. Forward tandem-run leaders (those moving towards a new nest site) performed such trail-marking procedures three times more often than reverse tandem leaders (those moving towards an old nest site). That leader ants marked the trails more often during forward tandem runs may suggest that it is more important to maintain the bond with the follower ant on forward tandem runs than on reverse tandem runs. Marked trails on the ground may serve as a safety line that improves both the efficiency of tandem runs and their completion rates.

N-alkanes are ubiquitous in sedimentary samples, often exhibiting distributions with odd carbon-number predominances which are lost during the maturation of the organic matter. Distributions with even carbon-number preferences are also found although less frequently. In this paper the occurrence of striking predominance of even carbon numbered n-alkanes in the C/sub 14/-C/sub 20/ range is extended to some coal samples from seams of Nograd Basin (Northern Hungary), representing the oldest geologic samples in which this type of distribution has been described. Three coal seams of the basin were selected for the study and they had different properties and compositions. The paper describes the study and results and concludes that distribution of n-alkanes in the n-C/sub 15/ - nC/sub 22/ range with strong predominance of the even numbered homologs have been identified in coal, rocky coals and adjacent sediments of two seams formed in a paralic environment (Nograd Basin, lower Miocene). This is consistent with the previous findings in a recent estuarine system and a sound where direct bacterial inputs have been suggested. The preservation of this signature over geological time deserves particular interest from the geochemical standpoint for defining the development of bacterial sources in certain favourable, depositional environments. 17 references.

Priscochelys hegnabrunnensis, a fragmentary piece of armour shell from the Muschelkalk of Germany (Upper Triassic) with few diagnostic morphological features, was recently proposed to represent the oldest known stem turtle. As such, the specimen is of high importance because it shifts the date of the first appearance of turtles back about 20 Ma, which equals about 10% of the total stratigraphic range of the group. In this paper, I present new morphologic, histologic and neutron tomographic (NT) data that relate to the microstructure of the bone of the specimen itself. In opposition to the previous morphologic descriptions, P. hegnabrunnensis was found to share several distinctive features (i.e. bone sutures congruent with scute sulci, absence of a diploe structure with interior cancellous bone, thin vascular canals radiating outwards from distinct centres in each field and rugose ventral bone surface texture consisting of mineralised fibre bundles) with cyamodontoid placodonts (Diapsida: Sauropterygia) and fewer with stem turtles (i.e. depth of sulci). Two aspects that were previously thought to be relevant for the assignment to the turtle stem (conical scutes and presence of foramina) are argued to be of dubious value. P. hegnabrunnensis is proposed to represent a fragmentary piece of cyamodontoid armour consisting of fused conical plates herein. The specimen is not a part of the turtle stem and thus does not represent the oldest turtle. Accordingly, P. hegnabrunnensis does not shorten the ghost lineage to the potential sister group of turtles.

Extreme habitats challenge animals with highly adverse conditions, like extreme temperatures or toxic substances. In this paper, we report of a fish (Poecilia mexicana) inhabiting a limestone cave in Mexico. Several springs inside the cave are rich in toxic H(2)S. We demonstrate that a behavioural adaptation, aquatic surface respiration (ASR), allows for the survival of P. mexicana in this extreme, sulphidic habitat. Without the possibility to perform ASR, the survival rate of P. mexicana was low even at comparatively low H(2)S concentrations. Furthermore, we show that food limitation affects the survival of P. mexicana pointing to energetically costly physiological adaptations to detoxify H(2)S.

Foraging desert ants, Cataglyphis fortis, encounter different sequences of visual landmarks while navigating by path integration. This paper explores the question whether the storage of landmark information depends on the context in which the landmarks are learned during an ant's foraging journey. Two experimental set-ups were designed in which the ants experienced an artificial landmark panorama that was placed either around the nest entrance (nest marks) or along the vector route leading straight towards the feeder (route marks). The two training paradigms resulted in pronounced differences in the storage characteristics of the acquired landmark information: memory traces of nest marks were much more robust against extinction and/or suppression than those of route marks. In functional terms, this result is in accord with the observation that desert ants encounter new route marks during every foraging run but always pass the same landmarks when approaching the nest entrance.

Identifying the metabolically active sites for derived carote-noids that colour avian feathers and determining whether ornot different species may use different mechanisms of colourproduction are crucial for understanding the evolution of theornament. However, the role of liver versus follicles, the twocandidate sites suggested by previous authors, remainscontentious (McGraw 2009;delValetal.2009).The absence of certain carotenoids in the food of somered-coloured birds led to the proposal that the liver, as themost active metabolic site in any vertebrate, was the organwhere those non-dietary carotenoids were metabolised (seedel Val et al. 2009 and references therein). The fact thatseveral studies failed to find traces of metabolically derivedplumage carotenoids in liver and plasma (Stradi 1998;Inouye 1999; McGraw 2004) led to the hypothesis thatsome colourful passerines might convert some red pigmentsdirectly in the skin. However, no conclusive studiesconfirming the occurrence of ketocarotenoid synthesisenzymes in feather follicles have so far been published,and there are no clear evidences to definitively confirm thisproposal. In our recent paper in this journal (del Val et al.2009), we demonstrated that the red derivative 3-hydroxy-echinenone was indeed present in the liver and plasma ofwild moulting crossbills. Although we have been criticisedfor using relatively few individuals for our liver analysis(McGraw 2009), ours is a qualitative evidence irrespectiveof sample size, and killing tens of birds would not hadprovided any additional support to the obvious.It has been established that 3-hydroxy-echinenone has tobe converted from other dietary carotenoids present in smallamounts in all green plants, most probably β-cryptoxanthin(Stradietal.1996, see also McGraw 2004). Femalecrossbills display a yellow-greenish coloration basedmainly on canary xanthophylls A and B (Stradi et al.1996), and no trace of 3-hydroxy-echinenone has ever beenfound in their plumage. The fact that both sexes feed on thesame diet (Cramp and Perrins 1994) strongly supports theidea that 3-hydroxy-echinenone is not of dietary origin andmay be therefore converted from ingested yellow precursors.Furthermore, we also analysed by HPLC extracts of severalpotential food sources of common crossbills from our studyarea, including pine cones, buds, young needles, strobili,pollen, and various fruits. However, we found no trace of3-hydroxy-echinenone in any of our samples (see Table 1).The most parsimonious explanation for our findings isthat 3-hydroxy-echinenone is directly converted fromdietary yellow precursors all at once in the liver and thatit is later transported via the bloodstream to those folliclesspecifically admitting the transformed pigment. The same

This part of the paper deals with the neurophysiological background of speech analysis and hearing of music. Single vowel- and consonant-detector cells could be clearly separated at the colliculus and geniculate level (Kallert, Keidel). Musical stimulation is decoded at three levels: hair cells, geniculate, and auditory cortex. Human cortical evoked potentials represent rhythm, consonance, and (as DC-shift) the emotional content of music. Marked harmonics, even of single hair-cell vibrations and in single units of medial geniculate in combination with clock-cell networks, are the physiological basis of "harmony" in music. Dissonant stimuli are detectable at the cortical level in man (Finkenzeller, Keidel).

In this paper a systematic approach to the mathematical modeling of intracellular Ca2+ oscillations is introduced. After a structured analysis a stochastic model of the system is derived which is numerically tractable by means of a stochastic simulation. A critical discussion of theoretical models for Ca2+ oscillations reveals that not all of the proposed mechanisms are consistent with experimental data. In addition, a model for oscillatory calcium waves is presented. Uncovering these mechanisms facilitates the design of anti-mitotic drugs interfering with Ca2+ metabolism.

The Arnold Berliner Award is presented for the first time this year, as part of the 100-year birthday celebration of Naturwissenschaften (Fig. 1, Thatje 2013). It is my great pleasure to announce the first recipient of the award, Dr Mark Young (University of Edinburgh), in this editorial. Mark Young (Fig. 2) was nominated for his work on the iconic Diplodocus, which, as a sauropod dinosaur, belonged to the largest terrestrial herbivores to ever have roamed Earth. Their pure size may have pushed them to the evolutionary limits of vertebrate biomechanics. In his paper published in Naturwissenschaften (Young et al. 2012), Mark and his colleagues presented a compelling multidisciplinary approach demonstrating that the gigantic Diplodocus was unlikely to have employed its bizarre dentition for a previously suggested bark-stripping hypothesis feeding strategy, and that the rather unusual (aberrant) dentition of Diplodocus may have, instead, demonstrated an adaptation for food procurement rather than an adaptation to high mechanical bite force. This would suggest that Diplodocus had a skull which was seemingly over-engineered for muscle-driven biting alone; the reason for which may have been related to other behavioral or ecological traits. This paradigmchanging discovery was only possible by making use of modern technology, the computed tomographic scanning of a fossil specimen of a Diplodocus longus skull from museum collection, and subsequent modeling of its biomechanics of feeding. The Arnold Berliner Award was established in recognition of the founding editor of the journal. The award is sponsored by Springer Science+Business Media and is given annually for the best research article published in NAWI during the previous calendar year (Thatje 2012). Criteria are excellence in science, originality, and in particular interdisciplinarity

The phenomenon called “cold fusion” or “low-energy nuclear reaction” (Storms 2007) has now reached a stage when explanations are attracting attention. The major experimental work was summarized by Storms in 2010 (Storms 2010). Now, Krivit has cited “errors” in this review which he believes might guide an explanation in the wrong direction. He notes that heat, detected using light hydrogen and when transmutation occurred, was frequently overlooked in this review. In addition, in his opinion, the claim for d + d = He being the major source of heat is not supported by the cited evidence. Because the conclusion reached by Krivit (2013) is a direct challenge to what Storms (2010) reviewed in the cited paper, a summary of the evidence is required. Although many studies resulting in heat production using deuterium did not attempt to measure helium, over 16 independent studies using numerous samples found that helium was present when energy production was detected and some measurements found no helium when no extra energywas detected. Three independent studies measured the energy/He ratio, which can be summarized as 25±5 MeV/He. All other known reactions that produce helium result in less energy/helium atom. For example, the proposed reaction of 3Li+2n=2He + e − produces only 13.4 MeV/He. Readers must decide for themselves if this is enough evidence to go forward in search for an explanation based on helium as the major nuclear product before additional studies are made. All isotopes of hydrogen, presumably, are involved in the cold fusion process. Most information comes from the use of deuterium because this isotope is most studied. In addition, many different nuclear reactions, including tritium formation (Storms 2007) and transmutation (Srinivasan et al. 2011) are observed. Although important, these are “side issues” to heat production because they have not been found to occur at a rate sufficient to make detectable power. Recent use of H2 + Ni to generate large power begs the question of how protons might generate energy by fusion or how transmutation of nickel might be the source. Proposed explanations have been published (Storms 2013) but are too complex to discuss here. Although changes in isotopic ratio are occasionally reported and elements not previously detected are found after power is made, none of these observations have a quantitative relationship to power production. In conclusion, numerous efforts to find an explanation are underway and are being tested. The phenomenon has novel features, it is not in conflict with any law of nature, and it is not caused by the well-known mechanism that produces hot fusion. An explanation must at least be consistent with laws known to apply to a chemical system and it must explain all observed behavior. Most explanations fail these two requirements and many others. A new window into understanding nuclear interaction has opened and must be explored using the best information available, which the review under discussion attempted to provide.

Several types of nesting associations, termed quasisocial (females more or less identical, no division of labor), semisocial (females of the same generation, with division of labor) and matrifilial (overlap of generations, with division of labor) are described in many primitively social hymenopteran species. In the latter two types, at least one potentially reproductive female forgoes her own reproduction in favor of that of a dominant female. Quasisociality is generally of a temporary nature, because dominance relations develop. It turns then into semisociality [11. The large carpenter bee Xylocopa sulcatipes in southern Israel has been described as forming both solitary and social nests [2, 3]. This paper shows that in certain associative nests founded by two females an extreme example of reproductive competition, oophagy, occurs. A X. sulcatipes egg measures approximately 11 mm in length and 2.2 mm in diameter; for an adult female of 22 mm body length, egg cannibalism therefore represents a significant loss of investment. X. su/catipes typically nests in twigs o f dead branches where the female excavates a straight tunnel. Females also use pre-existing cavities in stems of Arundo, Ferula and other plants existing naturally in the habitat. The female builds a linear array of cells [4]. Each is provisioned with pollen and nectar, and an egg is deposited upon the loaf-like food mass. Finally the cell is sealed with masticated wood. As part of a study on Xylocopa at Hazeva Field Centre, Arava Valley

This year, Naturwissenschaften celebrates its 100th anniversary. Springer’s flagship multidisciplinary science journal was founded in 1913, and the first print issue of Naturwissenschaften (NAWI) was published on January 3 of that year (Autrum 1988). Since 2009, the sub-title The Science of Nature has been published alongside the journal title; however, the original title in German remains the official name of the journal, recognizing its origins and strong connection to European history of the twentieth century. NAWI covers all aspects of the natural sciences, focusing on articles in biology, chemistry, geology, and physics. Published monthly, the journal is dedicated to the fast publication of high-quality, peer-reviewed research. Reviews, Original Articles, Concepts and Synthesis, Short Communications, and Comments and Replies are published as onlinefirst articles before appearing in print. From 2013, the print of color is for free. The journal was a reflection of the physical and chemical sciences of its time in its first decades; it then gradually developed to include topics of interest to the broader community in the biological sciences. Today, publications contribute mainly to questions of general biological significance and come from the chemical, biological, geological, and physical sciences. The goal for our second century is to promote the exchange of ideas in all topics related to the biological sciences and beyond. Some changes to the structure of the journal including article types have been implemented in support of this strategy (Thatje 2012a). We look forward to publishing papers in fields especially relevant to the science and society of the Twenty-first century, including areas such as global change, genomics, biorobotics, and neurobiology. In order to support this development, a “Special Article Theme” section will be launched later this year. For the 100th anniversary, the Arnold Berliner Award (Thatje 2012b) will be established in recognition of its founder who guided the development of the journal over the exceptionally long period of 22 years. The award will be given annually for the best research article published in Naturwissenschaften during the previous calendar year, and it is my special honor to announce the first awardee later this year. Honoring the efforts of the journal’s founding editor, Dr. Arnold Berliner, on the occasion of his 70th birthday, Albert Einstein wrote, “His journal cannot be thought away from the life of our time.” (Einstein 1932). Eightyyears on, Naturwissenschaften remains one of the primary multidisciplinary science journals. I invite you to celebrate the journal and science, following our birthday activities throughout the year and into the journal’s second century of existence. Happy birthday, Naturwissenschaften!

Distinctive cues are predicted to evolve when the benefits obtained by the recognition process overcome its costs. When individual recognition is particularly beneficial for both senders and receivers, the expression of strongly distinctive signals is predicted to evolve. On the other hand, it could be predicted that each individual should show a very stable individual signature. In the same perspective, a great stability of the individual signatures could be expected. Lemur catta is the first non-human primate in which olfactory individual recognition has been demonstrated on the basis of the specialized brachial gland secretions. In this paper, I performed gas chromatograph analyses of right and left gland samples collected in two different periods (breeding and non-breeding seasons) from seven males. The aim was to verify if a diversification in such cues, already demonstrated at the inter-individual level, also occurs at the intra-individual level between left and right glands. I verified, by discriminant analysis and chemical distance comparisons, that each gland of each lemur has its particular signature that is maintained through time. Moreover, such diversification resulted so marked to make the overall intra-individual chemical differences similar to/as strong as the inter-individual ones. Since in rodents several odors from different glands may be integrated in individual recognition, I suggest that bilateral diversification in L. catta scents may offer an enhanced distinctiveness that could provide benefits in mate choice and social relationships.

This paper is the first part of a trilogy, which comprises a detailed study of a special type of functional organization and demonstrates its relevance with respect to the origin and evolution of life. Self-replicative macromolecules, such as RNA or DNA in a suitable environment exhibit a behavior, which we may call Darwinian and which can be formally represented by the concept of the quasi-species. A quasi-species is defined as a given distribution of macromolecular species with closely interrelated sequences, dominated by one or several (degenerate) master copies. External constraints enforce the selection of the best adapted distribution, commonly referred to as the wild-type. Most important for Darwinian behavior are the criteria for internal stability of the quasi-species. If these criteria are violated, the information stored in the nucleotide sequence of the master copy will disintegrate irreversibly leading to an error catastrophy. As a consequence, selection and evolution of RNA or DNA molecules is limited with respect to the amount of information that can be stored in a single replicative unit. An analysis of experimental data regarding RNA and DNA replication at various levels of organization reveals, that a sufficient amount of information for the build up of a translation machinery can be gained only via integration of several different replicative units (or reproductive cycles) through functional linkages. A stable functional integration then will raise the system to a new level of organization and thereby enlarge its information capacity considerably. The hypercycle appears to be such a form of organization.

Because of the sudden rise in primary-energy costs and the rapid inflation of plants which are used for the conversion of primary to secondary energy, the storage of energy, as well as the avoidance of energy losses, has assumed new importance. This paper deals with the technical and economic aspects of energy storage and discusses some methods of energy transport.

The paper reviews current concepts of toxicological evaluation of new drugs and other chemicals. Instead of completing a predetermined check-list toxicologists now consider the potential adverse effects of the substances under actual conditions of use. They then design experimental models which have a high probability to predict the toxic effects. Moreover, the enhanced susceptibilities of special risk populations is more and more taken into consideration.

This paper reviews recent discoveries from space missions to the Moon, Mercury, Mars, and Venus, and their implications for planetary development. It appears that all these planets have undergone similar sequences of crustal evolution, the chief difference among them being how far each has evolved. All have apparently undergone a first differentiation in which a global crust was formed. This crust was partly disrupted by heavy impact bombardment some 4·109 years ago. A second differentiation, resulting in basalt eruptions, followed. The Moon and Mercury essentially stopped evolving at this point; Mars and Venus continued to a stage of incipient plate tectonics, with crustal fracturing and vulcanism. Terrestrial Precambrian geologic evidence is consistent with a similar but further-advanced evolutionary sequence for the Earth as well, and the theory is proposed that terrestrial continents are the greatly altered and redifferentiated remnants of an originally global igneous crust of intermediate composition. The ocean basins of today are the multi-cyle descendants of mare-like basins localized by a late heavy bombardment about 4·109 years ago analogous to that which formed the lunar mare basins and similar basins on other planets.

The direct conversion of solar energy to electrical energy (photovoltaic effect) by solar cells is receiving increasing attention on a world-wide scale. Photovoltaic energy conversion offers itself to a practical and meaningful implementation in regions without a conventional energy grid. This paper deals with the principles of silicon solar cells for terrestrial applications and new methods for the production of the necessary silicon.

Alfred Wegener's most important work, the theory of continental drift, has a key position in the history of geophysics and has crucially advanced the discussion of this central problem of geodynamics amongst supporters and adversaries. The aim of this paper is to paint a portrait of Wegener's personality, of his stations of life, and of his interests and research work. The conceptions of the origin of continents and oceans prior to Wegener, and the further development of his ideas after his death on the ice cup of Greenland 50 years ago are discussed.

Triboluminescence is the light emitted when mechanical energy is applied to a crystal. Many common substances such as sugar and copper sulfate are triboluminescent. The origin of the light and the mechanical, chemical, and crystallographic requirements of the phenomenon are described in this paper.

The preservation of historical works of artistic and cultural significance that are made of paper, wood, textiles, ivory, amber, and similar organic materials is difficult because of their rapid deterioration due to the action of light, humidity, temperature variation, or attack by fungi and insects. Based on the application of synthetic products, new techniques for the preservation of these materials have been developed in the last few years, which contribute to permanent protection.

The purpose of this paper is to give an idea of modern mathematics and of its contribution to science as a whole. As an example to illustrate this the theory of fixed points of continuous mappings has been chosen, because it allows to explain recent mathematical achievements to non-mathematicians without lengthy preparations and because it has several applications. We shall sketch such applications in biology, numerical computation, economics and hydrodynamics.

This paper is an introduction to the problems of dumping at sea of radioactive wastes. A short survey is given on the dumping actions previously performed, the legal justification by international treaties, and the most important radioecological questions.

New political, economical, and technical developments have changed the character of world fisheries. The exploitation of relatively small marine organisms, mainly pelagic fish, as a source of protein and the large distant-water fishing fleets of some countries operating worldwide make it possible to change marine ecosystems and particularly the upper parts of the food chain rapidly and drastically. The paper discusses recent changes in North Sea fish stocks and the ecological effects of antarctic whaling.

This paper deals with the history of exoelectron emission (EE), as well as with the experimental results and the attempts to explain them. The author concludes that thermally and optically stimulated EE (TSEE, OSEE) are different phenomena and that OSEE is mere photoeffect. The source of the energy causing the emission has been heatedly discussed. The author believes that most of the models can be ruled out by the fact that the activation energies do not depend on the nature of the metal nor on its oxide. He supposes the simplest model—direct thermal emission from surface traps—to be right. The author concludes that none of the excitation processes produces electron traps, as is often assumed. They only fill existing traps with electrons, e.g., radiation, mechanical treatment or a simple dip in water.

The elucidation of the three-dimensional structure of now over 100 proteins provides the basis for describing the nature of interactions stabilizing native protein structure. To understand the forces responsible for maintaining the native structure, it is necessary to analyze the contributions of the specific forces like a hydrogen bond, a salt bridge or a hydrophobic interaction to the overall stability of a protein. Using mutant proteins carrying a single amino acid substitution, specific interactions in a protein can be altered and the effect can be studied. In this paper the results of such studies on stability variants of human haemoglobin and of T4 phage lysozyme are described.

The paper gives a short review of biochemical and genetic analyses of the eukaryotic cell cycle and cell division. Emphasis is placed on the interrelationship of macromolecular syntheses during chromosome replication, the possible involvement of protein phosphorylation in chromosome condensation, the function of contractile proteins in mitosis and cytokinesis and on mechanisms which trigger cell proliferation.

A short historic introduction into the subject and the basics of the generation of a photoacoustic signal with the emphasis upon the particularities of solid samples are given. The set-up of a two-beam photoacoustic spectrometer is described. For a better understanding of the investigations of solid samples the basic theory is presented. Specially treated subjects are: the saturation effect and how to overcome it; depth profiles of thin layers as a nondestructive method used in the investigation of a green leaf and a sheet of color reversal paper; the investigation of solid solutions in a polymer matrix with the determination of the thermic data of the matrix itself, and the fluorescence quantum yield of organic dyes solved therein. Finally a summary of numerous other applications of the PAS is given.

The identification of extended sources of X-ray emission associated with clusters of galaxies has been one of the major achievements of X-ray astronomy. In this paper the present situation regarding the identification of X-ray clusters is reviewed and the relationship between X-ray and optical cluster properties is briefly discussed. Measurements of X-ray extent have been made for a small number of clusters and the status of these observations is described. The nature of the X-ray emission process and the observations which have led to our present understanding of cluster X-ray production are examined in some detail. Observations at other wavelengths that are relevant to this problem are also discussed. The available evidence suggests that the X-ray emission is due to bremsstrahlung from high-temperature (T>2·107 K) gas that is present in the space between cluster galaxies. Current models of the origin of this gas and of its likely heating mechanism are presented.

Conditioning experiments with bees demonstrate surprising similarities between the well studied laboratory mammals and honeybees. These similarities appear both on the behavioral level and the neural organization of memory. The paper speculates on the basis of these similarities, and the idea of common neural elements is favored.

Video recording techniques and highresolution electron microscopes (HREM) with resolution improved to the atomic level have recently made it possible to study the nucleation and growth processes in small crystals, virtually row by row of atoms [1]. Special interest has been assigned to noble metals because of their widespread use as catalysts, and several papers have been devoted to HREM investigations of geometrical shapes and properties of small gold crystals, especially multiply twinned particles [1-5]. Microdiffraction patterns from particles down to 15 A have been obtained by using the very narrow beam of a scanning transmission electron microscope, indicating that the untwinned form is sometimes favoured as particle size is reduced [6]. A 2x 1 reconstruction of {110} surfaces has been observed using the surface profile imaging method [7], supporting the "missing row" model, although other work [8] has indicated the Bonzel-Ferrer model [9]. Circumstantial evidence for column "hopping" on particle surfaces, in the form of two successive micrographs, has been obtained previously [10] but the work reported here represents the first time that video recording has been used to document the kinetics of this process. The present study deals with small gold clusters and gold crystals. The crystals originate from an isolated cluster molecule with the formula Au55[P(C6Hs)3]~2C16. The 55 gold atoms are cubic close-packed (ccp) in a cubeoctahedron with the twelve P(C6Hs)3 groups in each corner and six chlorine atoms on the center of the 3 x 3 square {100} surfaces of the cubeoctahedron [11]. The organic ligands and the chlorine atoms are evaporated from the area irradiated by the electron beam in the microscope and removed by the vacuum system, leaving 55-atom gold crystals, randomly oriented, on the amorphous carbon support. These crystals offer several advantages over evaporated clusters, namely: a known starting point for crystal growth; the cubeoctahedral shape provides a minimum disturbance of the free surface of the cluster; and a reliable way of making particles as small as approximately 10 A. Gold crystals of this size are not stable and start to grow immediately, as shown by earlier series of HREM images [2], and three different mechanisms for the crystal growth can be distinguished: surface diffusion of single atoms into the clusters; migration and coalescence of clusters; and agglomeration of clusters into large spherical balls, typically 3000 ]~ in diameter, which slowly crystallize to a single crystal under the influence of the beam. The microscopy was performed with a JEM-4000EX operated at 350 kV and having an effective resolution of better than 2.0 ~. The microscope is also equipped with a TV system, the Gatan 622, connected by way of optical fibres to the bottom of the microscope viewing chamber. The video tapes recorded were later processed with a Quantex DS-30 digital video processor for noise reduction and contrast enhancement. The dynamics of the gold crystals could be classified under three headings: very rapid rearrangement of all atoms in crystals smaller than about 40A; clouds of atoms outside specific sur.faces of the crystals; and localized atom hopping on the surface of crystals. The growth of crystals, column by column of atoms, was followed as shown in Fig. 1. These four images show the tip of a crystal, about 50 A in diameter, protruding from the support film into the microscope vacuum. The crystal is projected along the (110) direction and black dots (one marked with a small arrow in Fig. 1 a) represent rows of atoms, aligned along the electron beam direction. By considering the geometrical shape of the whole crystal, and if it is assumed that the cubeoctahedral shape is roughly maintained during growth, then the arrowed column should not contain more than three atoms, possibly only two. The distance between the close-packed diagonal {111} planes is 2.35 A, and the shortest Au-Au distance is 2.5 A in this projection, The incomplete corner forms a small {110} surface between the two {111} surfaces. Figure l a shows a 2 x I reconstruction of the {110} surface according to the "missing-row" model. The columns of the left" hill'.' are not fully occupied during the exposure, thus giving less contrast. Three seconds later two more atom columns have been added to give the smooth 1 x 1 surface shown in Fig. 1 b. Note that one of these new columns, marked with an arrow, is slightly out of its lattice position and distances to the closest neighbours are increased by approximately 10%. The next development is shown in Fig. I c, where one column of atoms has been added to give a "hil l" to the right of the {110} surface. In Fig. I d one more column of atoms has been added to give what is essentially a 2 x 1 reconstruction according to the "missing-row" model, with only one atom row missing in a smooth {110} surface. Atom, or column, "hopping" , i.e. the rearrangement of atoms in specific columns within the exposure time of a single TV frame (1/30 s), is frequently oh

G.A. Wagner and E. Pernicka Max-Planck-Institut ftir Kernphysik, D-6900 Heidelberg G. Gialoglou Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration, Limenaria, Thasos, Greece M. Vavelidis Mineralogisch-Petrographisches Institut der Universit/it, D-6900 Heidelberg In a previous contribution [1] we have re- ported for the first time on the re-discovery of one of the ancient gold mines on Thasos mentioned by Herodotus [2]: a gallery (TG 80A) situated on the southern slope of the Klisidi ridge above Palaiochori near Kinyra. However, the existence of one sin- gle gallery only did not fully comply with Herodotus' text that "a whole mountain has been turned upside-down in the search for gold" [2]. Stimulated by this historical source we re-visited the Kinyra area during our 1980 campaign in order to check on the possibility of a more extended mining operation in antiquity. Just below the Phanos-Klisidi ridge in 520 m altitude we found a narrow, overgrown shaft entrance, which might be identical with one of the ancient shafts mentioned for this area about fifty years ago [3]. The sloped shaft of approximately 40 m length leads into a big collapsed cavern of about 40 m across and 8 to 10 m high. From this cav- ern several addits extend into various di- rections. The shape of the galleries, the piles of rock waste produced by hammer- and-sledge work, tool marks on the walls and remnants of charcoal leave no doubt that this gallery system (TG 80E) is part of an ancient mining activity. Also the dump of rock waste extending down-hill from the shaft entrance provides evidence for ancient working. The mine will be stud- ied in more detail jointly with the archae- ologists from the Ecole Franqaise d'Athdnes. The purpose of the present paper is to re- port on chemical and mineralogical inves- tigations of the collected ore samples and on mining aspects. The samples were taken from red argillaceous fillings within marble (din) fissures. From the appearance of the galleries it is obvious that these fillings were searched by the ancient miners. For chemical analysis the samples were ground to less than 200 lam grain size and homoge- nized. An aliquot of 10 g was leached cen- trifuged and the supernatant solution sepa- rated by decanting. Gold was determined by neutron activiation, and silver and cop- per by atomic absorption (Table l). Miner- alogically the samples consist of magnetite, limonite, hematite, manganese oxides, py- rite, and chalcopyrite. To a minor degree also quartz, epidote, hornblende, sphene, and zircon occur. Ore-microscopic studies revealed gold grains (

Eddy Current Model of Ball Lightning Calculations show that high-energy ball lightning may consist of a ball of plasma containing a large circular electric current arising as an eddy current generated by lightning. Synthetic ball lightning might serve as a method of plasma confinement for purposes of nuclear fusion. In this paper, three articles concerning ball lightning and the related phenomenon of large ball lightning are combined to provide insight into this rarely glimpsed occurrence.

cases apparently typical structures developed at the interface, d) To test the possibility of mass-transfer within the solution, a 0.5 mW helium-neon laser illuminated a small area just below the surface, and the solution mixed with different types of dusts, e.g. aluminum dust and fumed silica (Aerosil). Similarly, hydrophobic reverse-phased fumed silica (Aerosil R972) was sprinkled on the surface. Laser illumination very clearly showed individual red speckles of the dust particles [14], however no bulk or surface movements were apparent during UV illumination. e) Kafri recently developed a sensitive deflectometry-type method [15] which utilizes laser light and Ronchi rulings. Hydrodynamic movements are easily detected by this technique, yet again no such movements were seen in our case. It seems to us that the phenomenon is purely due to diffusion processes or, at the most, to microscopic movements which we have not yet been able to detect. In our forthcoming paper we have expanded the phenomenon to purely thermal systems, suggesting that symmetry breaking is due to the buildup of concentration instabilities at the interface, as postulated theoretically by several authors [16].

The isomorphous replacement of one kind of cation in a melilite structure by another cation with the same charge, given that the corresponding melilite cannot be crystallized directly after exceeding its stability field, induces in nature an isostructural phase, where other minerals coexist with melilite. It is the aim of this paper to indicate a new significance for the crystallo-chemical evolution of minerals due to cationic substitution. Experiments at atmospheric pressure indicate that melilite forms a complete solid solution along the gehlenite (CazA12SiOT) - ~tkermanite (CazMgSi207) boundary [1]. The structural formula of melilite may be given as follows: X 2. Y. Z2.O 7, where X refers to eight-coordinated cations, Y to tetrahedrally coordinated cations, Z to tetrahedrally coordinated cations of a smaller size than Y, and 0 to oxygens which are coordinated by four cations [2]. The cations occupying these sites outline the approximate limitation of the end-member formation. When a cation exceeds the crystallographic limitation of end members with melilite structure, the compositional range of the melilite type yields the phase with a different structure, which was examined in synthesis by substitution of cations with different ionic radii. The starting material consists of the powder mixture, which is both the carbonate of the cation expected at the X site and the oxides of cations to the Y and Z sites. After heating for 24 h, at 1600 ~ in air, the results were obtained at 1300 ~ at a cooling rate of 20 ~ Identification of the phases was made by both a powder X-ray diffractometer and the precession camera. The main phases synthesized from the cationic substitution of melilite are shown in Figs. I and 2. They are selected as those phases capable of explaining most of the diffraction lines. All crystal structures of their phases are consistent with those of the minerals coexisting with the melilite. In the crystal structure of the substance, there are three crystallo-chemical regulations: the electrostatic valence, the ionic radius, and the chemical bonding, beyond which it transforms into the other compound under certain temperature and pressure conditions. This dynamic field of mineral formation can be regarded as compatible with the crystal-growth field from the melt organized by the isomorphous ionic substitution, because replacement of a larger cation represents a parallel to thermal expan