Search

This paper was concerned with the changing nature of adoptive kinship. The analysis was located in the context of current sociological and anthropological theory and parallels were drawn with other alternative family forms i.e. gay and lesbian families, and families formed by new reproductive technologies. Adoption as a family form has largely been neglected in sociological and anthropological literature, yet the changing nature of adoption, particularly in relation to open adoption and gay and lesbian adoption, means that it has an important contribution to make to new discourses of kinship. Adoption is far more likely to feature in psychological and child welfare literature than that on the family and kinship, yet it is a unique addition to the heterogeneous family landscape with a profound impact on cultural definitions of family and kinship. By considering contemporary adoption practice through a social construction and kinship theory lens, the paper argues that new kinship studies are helpful in conceptualizing adoptive kinship. Adoption also has a valuable and significant contribution to make to contemporary kinship theory. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The number and type of Web citations to journal articles in four areas of science are examined: biology, genetics, medicine, and multidisciplinary sciences. For a sample of 5,972 articles published in 114 journals, the median Web citation counts per journal article range from 6.2 in medicine to 10.4 in genetics. About 30% of Web citations in each area indicate intellectual impact (citations from articles or class readings, in contrast to citations from bibliographic services or the author's or journal's home page). Journals receiving more Web citations also have higher percentages of citations indicating intellectual impact. There is significant correlation between the number of citations reported in the databases from the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI, now Thomson Scientific) and the number of citations retrieved using the Google search engine (Web citations). The correlation is much weaker for journals published outside the United Kingdom or United States and for multidisciplinary journals. Web citation numbers are higher than ISI citation counts, suggesting that Web searches might be conducted for an earlier or a more fine-grained assessment of an article's impact. The Web-evident impact of non-UK/USA publications might provide a balance to the geographic or cultural biases observed in ISI's data, although the stability of Web citation counts is debatable. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The predominant filamentous bacteria which are found in bulking activated sludge in the UK have been assessed from a microscopic analysis of samples taken over a three-year period. There were major differences in the floc biology of samples received from plants treating predominantly domestic wastewaters and those of industrial origin. Most samples (84%) of domestic origin were dominated by two filament types: Microthrix parvicella was the dominant filament in 63% of the samples and Type 021N dominated in 21% of the samples. Nostocoida limicola and Sphaerotilus natans dominated in the remaining 16% of samples. The samples of industrial origin showed much greater filament diversity, with eight filament types routinely observed in high numbers. Type 021N was the most prevalent and M. parvicella was not observed in the industrial samples. Many domestic samples from sequencing batch reactors were dominated by M. parvicella. Based upon knowledge of the predominant filament type from microscopic examination, it was possible to identify the likely causes for their proliferation and suggest long-term solutions to achieve their eradication. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information about several conventions of the British Ecological Society in Great Britain. The symposium titled "The Water Relations of Plants," organized by the Society on April 5-8, 1961, was attended by 112 members and overseas visitors. The meeting of the Tropical Ecology Group of the Society on April 6, 1961 in the Department of Botany was attended by 55 members which was arranged by P. W. Richards. The 1961 Summer Meeting was centered on the Departments of Botany and Zoology which was participated by 35 members who joined in the excursions by several local members. Various topics are also mentioned on each of the events.

1. Recent studies have demonstrated that there is generally no unambiguous relationship between plant species composition and specific environmental conditions in rivers. Nevertheless, indices of environmental pressures based on macrophytes are flourishing, because of the requirements of the Water Framework Directive (WFD). 2. We first reviewed nine such indices against 13 criteria for bioindicators. Then, using data from France and England, we tested whether the IBMR (Macrophyte Biological Index for Rivers) and LEAFPACS (predictions and classification system for macrophytes) methods could reliably indicate nutrient and hydromorphological pressures. Finally, we used an improved bootstrapping method to estimate accuracy. 3. Currently, most indices lack ecological meaning for a variety of reasons, including partial sampling (backwaters are excluded); reliance on list of taxa (there are identification difficulties) rather than structure and functions; correlation rather than causation; application within a limited biogeographical area; reliance on 'expert' judgement; high precision but poor accuracy; poorly defined reference conditions; lack of independent tests; and an inability to discriminate reliably between the target pressures of interest from confounding background variables. 4. IBMR was a far better indicator of pH (or HCO3- pCO2) than it was of soluble reactive phosphorus, SRP (or SRP-NH4). While there was a highly significant correlation between IBMR and SRP after removing the effect of pH, the relationship was weak ( r2 = 0.08, n = 215, P < 0.001). 5. LEAFPACS is a multi-metric method summing up five individual indices, each compliant with the WFD. Its individual metrics were not better correlated with nutrient and hydromorphological pressures (with r2 < 0.1, n = 62, P < 0.05) than was the IBMR. The meaning of the overall metric is questionable. 6. There are problems in determining the precision of the indices, owing to uncertainties in recording, but they are less than the uncertainties in determining accuracy (because species optima and tolerances are sometimes poorly known). 7. Reliable information is needed to improve the state of our rivers. Macrophyte indices are able to detect statistically significant pressures from a large population of sites but cannot be applied at specific sites, as required by the WFD, owing to large uncertainties and low explanatory power. Typically, more than 90% of the variability in macrophyte indices is attributed to factors other than human pressure. The WFD would be better served by a simpler, holistic approach based on our current mechanistic understanding of river processes. These findings are likely to apply also to other taxonomic groups (macroinvertebrates, diatoms, fish) used in the assessment of purported ecological quality and to palaeolimnological measures of reference status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The arrival of a new species of the fungus which causes Dutch elm disease into Great Britain in the 1960s caused widespread elm death and continues to be problematic following elm regeneration. Attempts at managing the disease have been largely unsuccessful. Forty years after the outbreak, however, researchers continue to be interested in both the underlying biology of such a severe and dramatic disease event and in the policy lessons that can be drawn from it. We develop a spatial model at a 1 km resolution. Following parameterization to replay the historical epidemic, the model is used to explore previously proposed counterfactual management strategies. A new introduction date of late 1962 is estimated. We show that, even had there been high intervention at a national level in terms of disease management early in the epidemic, there would have been little long-term effect on elm numbers. In Brighton, a local pocket of elm which survived the peak of the initial epidemic has been successfully managed. However, Brighton and similar locations are subject to repeated waves of the disease at a 15- to 20-year intervals following regeneration and reinfection of the surrounding areas, during which much more intensive management is required. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents a calendar of events in anatomy in Great Britain in 2006 and 2007. The Anatomical Society of Great Britain will hold a joint meeting with the Sociedad Anatómica Española (Spanish Anatomical Society) on September 13 to 1, 2006. A conference titled "The Seventh International Symposium of Clinical Anatomy" is scheduled on October 12 to 15, 2006. A symposium on human evolutionary anatomy is slated on January 3 to 5, 2007.

The article addresses criticisms of the BIODEPTH project, a biodiversity and ecosystem functioning research in Great Britain. It shows that patterns for legume species are not generally consistent with the multispecies sampling effect for legumes proposed by Huston & McBride in 2002. The BIODEPTH results are not also consistent with transient biodiversity effects. Researchers propose that the conflict in the results of biodiversity experiments and observational biodiversity studies arises because they use different approaches to address different questions.

The article highlights the seventh edition of the "Checklist of Birds of Britain," already titled "The British List." This publication is a list of birds recorded in Great Britain and is maintained by the British Ornithologists' Union through its Records Committee (BOURC). New species and subspecies are added, and some are removed following reassessment. The taxonomy and sequence are reviewed as an ongoing process by the Taxonomic Sub-Committee of BOURC. English names are considered when changes in taxonomy occur.

The article highlights a study of the ecology of Hordeum murinum L. in Great Britain. It notes that a punched card technique is described for the analysis of distribution maps. It mentions that the technique allows analysis of complex patterns, the data are amenable to statistical analysis and use is made of negative information. It reports that the distribution of Hordeum murinum and Reseda luteola is shown to be correlated with climate and with the distribution of urban land. It also discusses some of the problems of analysis of distribution patterns using visual comparison and the punched card technique.

The article offers information on the dune system and vegetation in Braunton Burrows, North Devon. The seaward part of the Burrows is a composed of dunes featuring different land types, including sand-hills, crests to landwards, as well slacks between the high dunes. A variety of plant habitat is found within the dune systems. Botanists has been studying the rich flora found in the dunes. Mobile dunes are prominent feature at the Burrows. It is mentioned that the vegetation and topography is directly connected to the opposing winds and of stabilization by plants of the sand surface.

The article presents a memorandum released by the British Ecological Society related to botanical nomenclature and taxonomy. The Council of the British Ecological Society decided that names used, should be in agreement with the International Rules of Botanical Nomenclature. Details related to the nomenclature of biological flora are also presented. Moreover, a definition of terms is provided by the author, which lists intraspecific units in taxonomy. This is to prevent contributors from using the terms, such as ecotype, variety and species, in a different meaning.

The article highlights the 33rd Report of the British Ornithologists' Union Records Committee. This report covers the period October 2005 to April 2006. Changes to the British list include the addition of fea's petrel Pterodroma feae, little tern Sternula albifrons Pallas and the Rufous-tailed robin, Luscinia sibilans. With the addition of Rufous-tailed Robin and Masked Shrike to Category A, and the removal of Moustached Warbler from the list, the British List already stands at 572 species. The addition of yellow bittern Ixobrychus sinensis has also been considered in totaling the list.