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Short-beaked common dolphins (Delphinus delphis) and Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis) are both common in the Azores archipelago during summer. Because both species are sympatric, at least in part of their range, they may use acoustic features to recognize conspecifics and maintain school cohesion throughout their different activities. Delphinid whistles were recorded with a 96-kHz sampling rate using towed hydrophone system during surveys held in summer of 2013 and 2014 around São Miguel Island (Azores, Portugal). A total of 256 whistles attributed to either short-beaked common dolphin (n = 133) or Atlantic spotted dolphin (n = 123) were selected and processed with a contour extraction software. Elementary statistical analysis showed that duration, frequency and slope variables were significantly different for both species, although in most cases their range overlapped. We performed a discriminant analysis to test species classification: the dataset was randomly split into one calibration subset (186 whistles) and one validation subset (70 whistles). The discriminant analysis retained four variables (global slope, duration, minimal and final frequencies) as useful for classification. The discriminant function resulted in correct classification rates of 78.5% (calibration subset) and 81.4% (validation subset). Common dolphin whistles were better classified than Atlantic spotted dolphin whistles (83.4% and 74.8%) respectively. This study shows that reliable species identification can be achieved for common and spotted dolphins using their whistle repertoire characteristics. Fundo Regional para a Ciência e Technologia (Azores Government) M3.1.2/F/028/2011. info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion

Explosionsschutz ist ein breites Aufgabengebiet. Dieser Artikel informiert kompakt über die Grundlagen des Explosionsschutzes und die zur Verfügung stehenden Schutzsysteme.

A substantial number of preschool children exhibit psychological symptoms that have an impact on their own and their families' lives. The aim of the current study was to investigate the prevalence, stability and increase/decrease in emotional and behavioral symptoms and the resultant impairment at two assessment points at preschool age. The sample consisted of 1,034 children drawn from the general population with a mean age of 51 months at t1 and 72 months at t2. Parents completed the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire extended version (Goodman, J Child Psychol Psychiatry 38(5):581-586, 1997; Goodman, J Child Psychol Psychiatry 40(5):791-799, 1999). At t1, 6.9 % of the preschoolers had a total difficulties and 6.8 % a total impact score within the abnormal range. At t2, these scores were 5.7 and 6.2 %, respectively. We found moderate stability of symptoms. From t1 to t2, emotional symptoms and prosocial behavior significantly increased, while hyperactivity, conduct problems, peer problems and total difficulties decreased. The mean total impact score did not change. Boys showed higher levels of symptoms (except emotional symptoms) and impact, and lower prosocial behavior, than girls. Moreover, there was a significant time × gender interaction, with girls showing a larger decrease in hyperactivity/inattention and in total difficulties than boys. The stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that the total impact score at baseline, male gender, conduct problems, hyperactivity and peer problems significantly contributed to the explained variance of the total impact score at follow-up. This is one of very few studies to examine the stability and change of psychological symptoms in a large community sample of preschoolers, assessed twice during preschool age.

Background: The threshold for clinical relevance of preschool anxiety has recently come under increasing scrutiny in view of large variations in prevalence estimates. We studied the impact of presence/absence of additional depressive comorbidity (symptoms and/or diagnosis) on preschoolers with anxiety disorders in relation to clinical phenomenology, family, and peer problems compared to healthy controls. Method: A population of 1738 preschoolers were screened and oversampled for internalizing symptoms from community sites, yielding a sample of 236 children. Results: Using a multi-informant approach (mother, father, teacher, child), we found evidence that children with anxiety disorders and depressive comorbidity display a greater internalizing symptom-load, more peer problems and live in families with more psychosocial impairment (poor family functioning, family adversity, maternal mental health problems). The pure anxiety group was merely dissociable from controls with regard to internalizing symptoms and family adversity. Conclusion: The presence of depressive comorbidity in anxiety disorders may mark the transition to a more detrimental and impairing disorder at preschool age. Keywords: Anxiety, depression, comorbidity, preschool children.

Zusammenfassung In der vorliegenden Studie bestand das Ziel darin, die aktuelle Belastung und Beeintrachtigung von Kindern mit Depressions- und Angststorungen hinsichtlich ihrer Entwicklung und ihres familiaren Umfelds im Vergleich zu Kindern ohne psychische Storungen zu untersuchen. Aus den Ergebnissen sollen Schlussfolgerungen fur den Umgang mit klinischen Storungen im Vorschulalter abgeleitet werden. Internalisierende Symptome/Storungen wurden dimensional mit dem Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; Multi-Informanten-Ansatz) und kategorial mit dem Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment (PAPA) erhoben. Die Stichprobe bestand aus n = 93 Kindern mit reinen Angststorungen, n = 20 Kindern mit Depressions- und Angststorungen und n = 42 Kindern mit subklinischen Depressionssymptomen und Angststorungen sowie n = 76 Kindern ohne psychische Storungen. Zunachst wurde die Stabilitat der Symptome sowie die Ubereinstimmung zwischen den verschiedenen Informanten uberpruft, die sich als hoher zwischen Muttern ...

International audience; Chemosynthetic ecosystems are distributed worldwide in fragmented habitats harbouring seemingly highly specialized communities. Yet, shared taxa have been reported from highly distant chemosynthetic communities. These habitats are distributed in distinct biogeographical regions, one of these being the so-called Atlantic Equatorial Belt (AEB). Here, we combined genetic data (COI) from several taxa to assess the possible existence of cryptic or synonymous species and to detect the possible occurrence of contemporary gene flow among populations of chemosynthetic species located on both sides of the Atlantic. Several Evolutionary Significant Units (ESUs) of Alvinocarididae shrimp and Vesicomyidae bivalves were found to be shared across seeps of the AEB. Some were also common to hydrothermal vent communities of the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR), encompassing taxa morphologically described as distinct species or even genera. The hypothesis of current or very recent large-scale gene flow among seeps and vents was supported by microsatellite analysis of the shrimp species Alvinocaris muricola/Alvinocaris markensis across the AEB and MAR. Two nonmutually exclusive hypotheses may explain these findings. The dispersion of larvae or adults following strong deep-sea currents, possibly combined with biochemical cues influencing the duration of larval development and timing of metamorphosis, may result in large-scale effective migration among distant spots scattered on the oceanic seafloor. Alternatively, these results may arise from the prevailing lack of knowledge on the ocean seabed, apart from emblematic ecosystems (chemosynthetic ecosystems, coral reefs or seamounts), where the widespread classification of endemism associated with many chemosynthetic taxa might hide wider distributions in overlooked parts of the deep sea.

The Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) is an internationally recognized and widely used screening instrument consisting of 25 items that address positive and negative behavioral attributes of children and adolescents. This paper investigates some of the psychometric properties of the German parent-rated SDQ examining preschool-age children. The sample consisted of 1,738 children – 840 girls and 898 boys – between 3 and 5 years of age. Parents completed the SDQ and gave basic demographical information. All subscales were sufficiently homogeneous. Principal component analysis suggested both a five-factor solution (replicating the original five-factor structure) and a three-factor solution. Confirmatory factor analyses showed a better fit for the five-factor model than for the three-factor model. A comparison between the preschool sample and the German normative sample revealed differences in some subscales. Furthermore, there were gender differences in almost all subscales, with boys showing significantly higher problem scores than girls (except for emotional symptoms) and lower scores on the prosocial behavior scale. Parental education proved to be associated with SDQ scores. This study confirmed that the parent-rated SDQ is a reliable and useful instrument for preschoolers and is recommended for screening purposes.

ZusammenfassungTrotz sorgfältiger Untersuchungen lässt sich nicht immer ausreichend somatische Erklä-rung für körperliche Beschwerden und Schmerzen im Kindes- und Jugendalter finden. Man unterscheidet zwischen funktionellen und somatoformen Störungen. Die Prävalenz dieser Störungen im Kindes- und Jugend-alter wird auf 10–30 % geschätzt. Studien zeigten, dass Mädchen häufiger betroffen sind. Mögliche Ursachen für die Entwicklung einer funktionellen/somatoformen Symptomatik werden diskutiert, u. a. biologische und psychosoziale Faktoren. Für beide Geschlechter ist die Tendenz zur Somatisierung mit dem Risiko verbunden, eine komorbide affektive Störung aufzuweisen. In der vorliegenden Stichprobe (91 Kinder, M = 4,7 Jahre) wurde der Zusammenhang zwischen emotionalen Symptomen und körperlichen Beschwerden untersucht. Kinder mit emotionalen Symptomen scheinen signifikant häufiger betroffen zu sein. Es zeigten sich ebenso Zusammenhänge zu körperlichen Schmerzen und Beschwerden der Mütter. Abschließend werden Hinweise zur Gestaltung der Arzt-Patient-Eltern-Interaktion gegeben, der eine bedeutende Rolle in der Behandlung funktioneller und somatoformer Beschwerden zukommt.

Whistles from five delphinid species in the western Mediterranean Sea ( Stenella coeruleoalba , Grampus griseus , Delphinus delphis, Tursiops truncatus, Globicephala melas ) were taken from GREC sound archives. FFT contours (window size 512, Hanning, sampling frequency 44.1 kHz) were extracted with custom developed Matlab software: 277 samples of striped dolphins (Sc), 158 whistles of Risso’s dolphins (Gg), 120 of common dolphins (Dd), 76 of bottlenose dolphins (Tt), and 66 of pilot whales (Gm) were selected. Seafox software extracted 15 variables from the digitized contours, including: duration, initial, final, maximal and minimal frequency slopes, frequency range, number of frequency extrema, beginning, ending, maximal and minimal frequencies, presence of harmonics. Four of five species were significantly different (Mann–Whitney test) for average durations (respectively 0.73, 0.65, 0.47 and 0.89 s for Sc, Gg, Dd, Gm) while the average duration of bottlenose dolphins was 0.71 s. Frequency ranges (respectively 7.3, 6.3, 4.6, 3.2 and 6.3 kHz) were significantly different for all species pairs, with the exception of bottlenose and Risso’s dolphins. From a global point of view, pilot whale calls were the most distinct, with 43 significant pair-wise tests out of a total of 52, followed by the common dolphins. Risso’s dolphins were closest to other species whistles. A CART classification method achieved a global classification rate of 62.9%.

00001 WOS:000361755600012; International audience; Despite the fragmented nature of hydrothermal vent (HV) fields, nascent vent sites are rapidly colonized by a pool of regional species. While succession of large animals at vents is relatively well established, we lack information on the associated meiofauna, in particular, on nematodes. The aim of the present study is to investigate the process of colonisation after 9 months of organic (wood and bone) and inorganic (slate) substrata by nematode assemblages deployed at the Eiffel Tower hydrothermal edifice on the Lucky Strike vent field on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR), at varying distances from visible hydrothermal activity. Abundance, biomass and diversity of colonising nematodes were compared with the results from an earlier similar two-year experiment. Near the vents, nematodes preferred inorganic substrata while in areas not influenced by vent activity, organic substrata were preferred. Nematode females dominated at almost all sites while numerous females at the ovigerous stage and juveniles were reported near the vent emissions, suggesting that nematode populations reproduce well after just 9 months. Our nine-month experiment on the MAR showed that the type of substratum influenced significantly the composition of colonising nematodes, while after two years, the community structure was instead influenced by hydrothermal activity.

Dieser Beitrag geht der Frage nach, welche Kompetenzanforderungen an Lehrende und an pädagogisches Personal -die diese auswählen - gestellt werden, um aktuellen Herausforderungen der Weiterbildungspraxis gerecht zu werden und damit Qualität sicherzustellen.

The aim of the present study was to examine the current strain and impairment of children with depressive and anxiety disorders in terms of their development and family environment compared to children without mental disorders. Conclusions for dealing with clinical disorders in preschool are to be derived. Internalizing symptoms/disorders were measured dimensionally with the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ; multi-informant approach) and categorially with the Preschool Age Psychiatric Assessment (PAPA). The sample consisted of n = 93 children with pure anxiety disorders, n = 20 children with depressive and anxiety disorders, n = 42 children with subclinical symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders, and n = 76 children without mental disorders. We assessed stability of symptoms, as well as agreement between mothers, fathers and kindergarten teachers regarding internalizing symptoms which was higher between mothers and fathers than between parents and kindergarten teachers. In comparison to kindergarten teachers parents reported more internalizing symptoms. Regarding the overall impairment, family adversity, family environment and maternal psychopathology children with depression and additional anxiety disorders showed the highest scores. There were no differences in overall impairment between children with pure anxiety disorders and without mental disorders. Finally, implications for practice are discussed.

In the last ten years, 14 species of cetaceans and five species of pinnipeds stranded along the Atlantic coast of Brittany in the North West of France. All species included, an average of 150 animals strand each year in this area. Based on reports from the stranding network operating along this coast, the most common stranding events comprise six cetacean species (Delphinus delphis, Tursiops truncatus, Stenella coeruleoalba, Globicephala melas, Grampus griseus, Phocoena phocoena) and one pinniped species (Halichoerus grypus). Rare stranding events include deep-diving or exotic species, such as arctic seals. In this study, our aim was to determine the potential contribution of DNA barcoding to the monitoring of marine mammal biodiversity as performed by the stranding network.We sequenced more than 500 bp of the 5’ end of the mitochondrial cox1 gene of 89 animals of 15 different species (12 cetaceans, and three pinnipeds). Except for members of the Delphininae, all species were unambiguously discriminated on the basis of their cox1 sequences. We then applied DNA barcoding to identify some “undetermined” samples. With again the exception of the Delphininae, this was successful using the BOLD identification engine. For samples of the Delphininae, we sequenced a portion of the mitochondrial control region (MCR), and using a non-metric multidimentional scaling plot and posterior probability calculations we were able to determine putatively each species. We then showed, in the case of the harbour porpoise, that cox1 polymorphisms, although being lower than MCR ones, could also be used to assess intraspecific variability. All these results show that the use of DNA barcoding in conjunction with a stranding network could clearly increase the accuracy of the monitoring of marine mammal biodiversity.

Unbestritten ist, dass wir als „lebenslang Lernende […] [bereits] von den ersten Geh- und Sprechversuchen bis zur Eingewohnung im Altersheim“ (Alheit/Dausien 2009, S. 713) in unterschiedlichen Kontexten Kenntnisse, Fahigkeiten und Fertigkeiten erwerben. Das Lernen entlang der Lebensspanne bezieht sich dabei einerseits auf Prozesse in klassischen Bildungsinstitutionen (formales Lernen), und andererseits auch auf nicht-formale und informelle Settings (vgl. Commission of the European Communities 2000). Neben der zeitlich ausgeweiteten Dimension des Lernbegriffs (lifelong learning) ist damit auch die Ausdehnung auf alle Lernumwelten (lifewide learning) gemeint (vgl. Commission oft the European Communities 2000).

Multiple objects in a visual scene compete for neuronal representation. We investigated competitive neuronal dynamics in cortical networks of early visual processing in the human brain. Coloured picture streams flickered at 7.42 Hz, evoking the steady-state visual evoked potential (SSVEP), an electrophysiological response of neuronal populations in early visual areas synchronised by the external pacemaker. While these picture streams were at a fixed location in the upper left and right quadrant, respectively, additional competing picture streams flickering at a different frequency were continuously changing the distance to the stationary streams by slow motion. Analysis of the 7.42 Hz SSVEP amplitude revealed significant amplitude decreases when the competing stimulus was closer than about 4.5 degrees of visual angle. Sources of the SSVEP suppression effect were found in early visual areas of the ventral and dorsal processing streams. Attending the stationary stimulus resulted in no difference in 7.42 Hz SSVEP amplitude regardless of spatial separation to the competing stimulus. Contrary to the predictions of the model, we found co-amplification of the competing stimulus at close spatial proximity accompanied by an increase of an intermodulation frequency, suggesting integrated neuronal processing of target and competing stimuli when both streams are close together.

Attending to a location in space significantly improves stimulus perception at that location. Everyday experience requires the deployment of attention to multiple objects at different locations. Recent empirical evidence suggests that the "beam" of attention can be divided between non-contiguous areas of the visual field. Whether this is only possible when stimuli are presented in different hemifields and harder, if not impossible, when stimuli are in the same hemifield is an ongoing debate. Here we use an electrophysiological measure of sustained attentional resource allocation (the steady-state visual evoked potential, SSVEP) to address this question. In combination with behavioural data we demonstrate that splitting the attentional "beam" is in principle possible within one hemifield. However, results showed that task performance was in general lower for same-hemifield presentation as opposed to our previous study with different-hemifield presentation [M.M. Muller, P. Malinowski, T. Gruber, S.A. Hillyard, Sustained division of the attentional spotlight, Nature 424 (2003) 309-312]. SSVEP amplitude showed a mixed pattern of results for stimuli presented in the upper versus lower quadrant of the left visual hemifield under conditions of attending to two separated locations. Results are discussed in the light of the bilateral distribution advantage hypothesis and differences in stimulus salience between the upper and lower visual field.