Temporal variation in skull size and shape in the southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus (Peramelidae:Marsupialia) in Western Australia

2000 ◽  
Vol 48 (1) ◽  
pp. 47 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie L. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Geographic Variation ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Adaptive Divergence ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Evolutionary Potential ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Skull Morphology ◽  
Size And Shape ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Source Populations

Isoodon obesulus exhibits geographic variation in body size and shape, which appears to be adaptive. The geographic range of this species is declining, so the presence of adaptive divergence is of concern for the conservation of this species, both in the long term (loss of diversity decreasing evolutionary potential) and short term (choice of source populations for translocations). In this study, skulls of I. obesulus, both recent (animals alive within the last 100 years) and fossil (a few thousand years old), were examined and a range of measurements obtained. Comparisons were made between the two data sets to see whether skull morphology has changed over this relatively short period. Such a change may indicate rapid evolution of these characters and therefore the potential for fast regeneration of any lost geographic variation. Fossil skulls were smaller than their recent counterparts, had shorter ‘snouts’ relative to skull width and depth, and displayed no geographic variation in size and shape, whereas recent skulls were geographically differentiated. Because of the apparent rapid evolution in these characters, the implications of adaptive variation in size and shape inI. obesulus with regard to its conservation may be strictly short term, since any geographic variation lost may be quickly recovered if suitable conditions exist.

Geographic variation in size and shape in the southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus (Peramelidae : Marsupialia), in Western Australia

1998 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 145 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marie L. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Geographic Variation ◽  
Western Australia ◽  
Conservation Strategy ◽  
Canonical Variate ◽  
Annual Rainfall ◽  
Adaptive Divergence ◽  
Size And Shape ◽  
Open Forest ◽  
Morphological Variables

Geographic variation in body size and shape was examined among populations of the southern brown bandicoot, Isoodon obesulus, in the south-west of Western Australia, with a view to determining the possible presence of adaptive divergence. Analysis of variance and canonical variate analysis were employed to examine the variation in body weight, head length, pes length and ear length among six locations. Significant sexual dimorphism was detected for these morphological variables, with males being larger than females. Significant geographic variation in overall body size and shape was found for both males and females. Correlations between body size and shape and each of five environmental variables (mean annual rainfall, mean maximum summer temperature, mean minimum winter temperature, relative humidity and latitude) were tested. Neither body size nor shape was correlated with any of the five variables, but both were related to habitat structure, with larger bandicoots being found in open forest habitats, while smaller bandicoots were found among swamp reeds. If the above variation has a genetic basis, these differences between locations may represent adaptive divergence and thus be of importance when formulating a conservation strategy for this species.

Empirical Methods in Short-Term Climate Prediction

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huug van den Dool
Keyword(s):  
Climate Prediction ◽  
Empirical Orthogonal Functions ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Seasonal Forecasts ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Orthogonal Functions ◽  
Ocean Atmosphere Interaction ◽  
Global Coverage ◽  
Atmosphere Interaction ◽  
Global Data

This clear and accessible text describes the methods underlying short-term climate prediction at time scales of 2 weeks to a year. Although a difficult range to forecast accurately, there have been several important advances in the last ten years, most notably in understanding ocean-atmosphere interaction (El Nino for example), the release of global coverage data sets, and in prediction methods themselves. With an emphasis on the empirical approach, the text covers in detail empirical wave propagation, teleconnections, empirical orthogonal functions, and constructed analogue. It also provides a detailed description of nearly all methods used operationally in long-lead seasonal forecasts, with new examples and illustrations. The challenges of making a real time forecast are discussed, including protocol, format, and perceptions about users. Based where possible on global data sets, illustrations are not limited to the Northern Hemisphere, but include several examples from the Southern Hemisphere.

scholarly journals Effects of different returning method combined with decomposer on decomposition of organic components of straw and soil fertility

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiao Wang ◽  
Xuexin Wang ◽  
Peng Geng ◽  
Qian Yang ◽  
Kun Chen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Organic Carbon ◽  
Soil Fertility ◽  
Decomposition Rate ◽  
Microbial Biomass Carbon ◽  
No Tillage ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Straw Decomposition ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Straw Return ◽  
Forms Of Carbon

AbstractIn view of the problems of low straw decomposition rates and reduced soil fertility in southern Liaoning, China, we investigated the effects of no-tillage mode (NT), deep loosening + deep rotary tillage mode (PT), rotary tillage mode (RT) and the addition of decomposing agent (the next is called a decomposer) (NT + S, PT + S, RT + S) on the decomposition proportion of straw, respectively, by using the nylon net bag method in combination with 365-day field plot experiments. The decomposition rules of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin as well as the dynamics of soil organic carbon (SOC), soil microbial biomass carbon (MBC) and soil dissolved organic carbon (DOC) in straw returned to the field for 15, 35, 55, 75, 95, 145 and 365 days were analyzed. The results showed that in the short term, the decomposition of straw was better in both the rotray tillage and deep loosening + deep rotary modes than in the no-tillage mode, and the addition of decomposer significantly promoted the decomposition of straw and the release of carbon from straw, among them, the RT + S treatment had the highest straw decomposition proportion and carbon release proportion in all sampling periods. After a one year experimental cycle, the RT + S treatment showed the highest proportion of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin decomposition with 35.49%, 84.23% and 85.50%, respectively, and soil SOC, MBC and DOC contents were also higher than the other treatments with an increase of 2.30 g kg−1, 14.22 mg kg−1 and 25.10 mg kg−1, respectively, compared to the pre-experimental soil. Our results show that in the short term, to accelerate the decomposition rate of returned straw and increase the content of various forms of carbon in soil, rotary tillage can be used to return the straw to the field, while also spraying straw decomposer on its surface. This experiment used a new straw decomposer rich in a variety of microorganisms, combined with the comparison of a variety of straw return modes, and in-depth study of straw decomposition effects of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin. Thus, a scheme that can effectively improve the decomposition rate of straw and the content of various forms of organic carbon in soil within a short period of time was explored to provide theoretical support for the southern Liaoning.

scholarly journals A Novel LSTM Model with Interaction Dual Attention for Radar Echo Extrapolation

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 164
Author(s):  
Chuyao Luo ◽  
Xutao Li ◽  
Yongliang Wen ◽  
Yunming Ye ◽  
Xiaofeng Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Short Term Memory ◽  
Weather Forecast ◽  
Vital Role ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Learning Techniques ◽  
Radar Echo ◽  
Hidden States ◽  
Better Than

The task of precipitation nowcasting is significant in the operational weather forecast. The radar echo map extrapolation plays a vital role in this task. Recently, deep learning techniques such as Convolutional Recurrent Neural Network (ConvRNN) models have been designed to solve the task. These models, albeit performing much better than conventional optical flow based approaches, suffer from a common problem of underestimating the high echo value parts. The drawback is fatal to precipitation nowcasting, as the parts often lead to heavy rains that may cause natural disasters. In this paper, we propose a novel interaction dual attention long short-term memory (IDA-LSTM) model to address the drawback. In the method, an interaction framework is developed for the ConvRNN unit to fully exploit the short-term context information by constructing a serial of coupled convolutions on the input and hidden states. Moreover, a dual attention mechanism on channels and positions is developed to recall the forgotten information in the long term. Comprehensive experiments have been conducted on CIKM AnalytiCup 2017 data sets, and the results show the effectiveness of the IDA-LSTM in addressing the underestimation drawback. The extrapolation performance of IDA-LSTM is superior to that of the state-of-the-art methods.

EXPRESS: Short-term upper limb immobilization impairs grasp representation

2020 ◽  
pp. 174702182098552
Author(s):  
Lucette Toussaint ◽  
Aurore Meugnot ◽  
Christel Bidet-Ildei
Keyword(s):  
Response Times ◽  
Motor Program ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Small Sphere ◽  
Large Sphere ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Limb Immobilization ◽  
Laterality Task ◽  
Sensorimotor Processes

The present experiment aimed to gain more information on the effect of limb nonuse on the cognitive level of actions and, more specifically, on the content of the motor program used for grasping an object. For that purpose, we used a hand-grasping laterality task that is known to contain concrete information on manipulation activity. Two groups participated in the experiment: an immobilized group, including participants whose right hand and arm were fixed with a rigid splint and an immobilization vest for 24 hours, and a control group, including participants who did not undergo the immobilization procedure. The main results confirmed a slowdown of sensorimotor processes, which is highlighted in the literature, with slower response times when the participants identified the laterality of hand images that corresponded to the immobilized hand. Importantly, the grip-precision effect, highlighted by slower response times for hands grasping a small sphere versus a large sphere, is impaired by 24 hours of limb nonuse. Overall, this study provided additional evidence of the disengagement of sensorimotor processes due to a short period of limb immobilization.

scholarly journals Clinical and microbiological evaluation of one-stage full-mouth disinfection: a short-term study

2013 ◽  
Vol 42 (4) ◽  
pp. 298-303
Author(s):  
José Roberto Cortelli ◽  
Marcos Vinicius Moreira de Castro ◽  
Rodrigo Dalla Pria Balejo ◽  
Camila Oliveira de Alencar ◽  
Antonio Carlos Gargioni Filho ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Periodontitis ◽  
Bacterial Load ◽  
Periodontal Treatment ◽  
Periodontal Pocket ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Term Study ◽  
One Stage ◽  
Short Term Study ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Full Mouth Disinfection

INTRODUCTION: Patients seem to adhere better to short-term periodontal treatment schemes. Besides, time-reduced treatments are more cost-effective. However, the degree of benefits related to this type of treatment still requires additional investigations. AIM: The present short-term study evaluated clinical and microbiological outcomes, from baseline to 3-months, of chronic periodontitis subjects treated by the one-stage full-mouth disinfection protocol. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Sixteen chronic periodontitis subjects (mean-age 49.87 ± 8.22) who met inclusion/exclusion criteria were included. A calibrated examiner measured whole-mouth plaque and gingival indices, periodontal pocket depth and clinical attachment level at baseline and at 3-months. Subgingival samples were also collected from the 5 most diseased periodontal sites to determine total bacterial load and levels of P. gingivalis and S. oralis by real time qPCR. Periodontal treatment consisted of full-mouth manual debridement plus wide intraoral use of chlorhexidine in gel and solution. Additionally, after debridement, individuals rinsed 0.12% chlorhexidine at home twice a day for the following 2 months. Data monitored were compared by paired Student-t test (p<0.05). RESULT: Statistical analysis revealed that, in general, one-stage full-mouth disinfection treatment provided significant clinical and microbiological improvements at 3-months. Total bacterial load showed one of the most pronounced reductions from baseline to 3-months (p=0.0001). Also, subgingival levels P. gingivalis and S. oralis reduced overtime. CONCLUSION: After a short period of monitoring, chronic periodontitis subjects showed clinical and microbial improvements following one-stage full-mouth disinfection treatment.

scholarly journals Rapid, ultra-local adaptation facilitated by phenotypic plasticity

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Syuan-Jyun Sun ◽  
Andrew M. Catherall ◽  
Sonia Pascoal ◽  
Benjamin J. M. Jarrett ◽  
Sara E. Miller ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Flow ◽  
Rapid Evolution ◽  
Reaction Norm ◽  
Ancestral Population ◽  
Adaptive Divergence ◽  
Wild Populations ◽  
Rapid Adaptation ◽  
Burying Beetles ◽  
Genetic Accommodation ◽  
Nicrophorus Vespilloides

AbstractModels of ‘plasticity-first’ evolution are attractive because they explain the rapid evolution of new complex adaptations. Nevertheless, it is unclear whether plasticity can still facilitate rapid evolution when diverging populations are connected by gene flow. Here we show how plasticity has generated adaptive divergence in fecundity in wild populations of burying beetlesNicrophorus vespilloides, which are still connected by gene flow, which occupy distinct Cambridgeshire woodlands that are just 2.5km apart and which diverged from a common ancestral population c. 1000-4000 years ago. We show that adaptive divergence is duetothe coupling of an evolved increase in the elevation of the reaction norm linking clutch size to carrion size (i.e. genetic accommodation) with plastic secondary elimination of surplus offspring. Working in combination, these two processes have facilitated rapid adaptation to fine-scale environmental differences, despite ongoing gene flow.

scholarly journals Observations of rapid-fire event tremor at Lascar volcano, Chile

1996 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
G. Asch ◽  
K. Wylegalla ◽  
M. Hellweg ◽  
D. Seidl ◽  
H. Rademacher
Keyword(s):  
Fractal Structure ◽  
Seismic Station ◽  
Active Volcano ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Fire Event ◽  
Local Seismicity ◽  
Short Period ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Lascar Volcano

During the Proyecto de Investigaciòn Sismològica de la Cordillera Occidental (PISCO '94) in the Atacama desert of Northern Chile, a continuously recording broadband seismic station was installed to the NW of the currently active volcano, Lascar. For the month of April, 1994, an additional network of three, short period, three-component stations was deployed around the volcano to help discriminate its seismic signals from other local seismicity. During the deployment, the volcanic activity at Lascar appeared to be limited mainly to the emission of steam and SO2. Tremor from Lascar is a random, «rapid-fire» series of events with a wide range of amplitudes and a quasi-fractal structure. The tremor is generated by an ensemble of independent elementary sources clustered in the volcanic edifice. In the short-term, the excitation of the sources fluctuates strongly, while the long-term power spectrum is very stationary.

Introduction

2006 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huug van den Dool
Keyword(s):  
Physical System ◽  
Weather Prediction ◽  
Climate Prediction ◽  
Lead Times ◽  
Prediction Methods ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Global Data Sets ◽  
Geophysical System

This is first and foremost a book about short-term climate prediction. The predictions we have in mind are for weather/climate elements, mainly temperature (T) and precipitation (P), at lead times longer than two weeks, beyond the realm of detailed Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP), i.e. predictions for the next month and the next seasons out to at most a few years. call this short-term climate so as to distinguish it from long-term climate change which is not the main subject of this book. A few decades ago “short-term climate prediction” was known as “longrange weather prediction”. In order to understand short-term climate predictions, their skill and what they reveal about the atmosphere, ocean and land, several chapters are devoted to constructing prediction methods. The approach taken is mainly empirical, which means literally that it is based in experience. We will use global data sets to represent the climate and weather humanity experienced (and measured!) in the past several decades. The idea is to use these existing data sets in order to construct prediction methods. In doing so we want to acknowledge that every measurement (with error bars) is a monument about the workings of Nature. We thought about using the word “statistical” instead of “empirical” in the title of the book. These two notions overlap, obviously, but we prefer the word “empirical” because we are driven more by intuition than by a desire to apply existing or developing new statistical theory. While constructing prediction methods we want to discover to the greatest extent possible how the physical system works from observations. While not mentioned in the title, diagnostics of the physical system will thus be an important part of the book as well. We use a variety of classical tools to diagnose the geophysical system. Some of these tools have been developed further and/or old tools are applied in novel ways. We do not intend to cover all diagnostics methods, only those that relate closely to prediction. There will be an emphasis on methods used in operational prediction. It is quite difficult to gain a comprehensive idea from existing literature about methods used in operational short-term climate prediction.

Characterization of HRV by Poincare Plot Analysis among the Female Tea Garden Workers of Northern Hilly Regions of West Bengal

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 49-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Somsirsa Chatterjee ◽  
Ankur Ganguly ◽  
Saugat Bhattacharya
Keyword(s):  
Heart Rate ◽  
Heart Rate Variability ◽  
Standard Deviation ◽  
West Bengal ◽  
Mean Value ◽  
Data Sets ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Poincaré Plot ◽  
Tea Garden

Recent research on Heart Rate Variability (HRV) has proven that Poincare Plot is a powerful tool to mark Short Term and Long Term Heart Rate Variability. This study focuses a comprehensive characterization of HRV among the Tea Garden Workers of the Northern Hilly Regions of West Bengal. The characterization, as available from the data sets, projects the average values of SD1 characteristics, that is, Short Term HRV in females as 58.265ms and SD2 as 149.474. The SDRR shows a mean value of 87.298 with a standard deviation of 119.669 and the S Characterization as 16505.99 ms and Standard deviation of 45882.31 ms. The SDRR shows a mean value of 87.298 with a standard deviation of 119.669 and the S Characterization as 16505.99 ms and Standard deviation of 45882.31 ms. ApEn Characterization showed mean value of 0.961 and standard deviation of 0.274.

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