scholarly journals Hormonal correlates of individual quality in a long-lived bird: a test of the ‘corticosterone–fitness hypothesis’

2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 846-849 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frédéric Angelier ◽  
John C. Wingfield ◽  
Henri Weimerskirch ◽  
Olivier Chastel
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Stress Hormones ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Individual Quality ◽  
Baseline Corticosterone ◽  
Energetic Constraints ◽  
The Relationship

Measuring individual quality in vertebrates is difficult. Focusing on allostasis mechanisms may be useful because they are functionally involved in the ability of an individual to survive and reproduce in its environment. Thus, a rise in stress hormones levels (corticosterone) occurs when an organism has to cope with challenging environmental conditions. This has recently led to the proposal of the ‘cort–fitness hypothesis’, which suggests that elevated baseline corticosterone levels should be found in individuals of poor quality that have difficulty coping with their environment. We tested this hypothesis by comparing an integrative measure of individual quality to baseline corticosterone in black-browed albatrosses ( Thalassarche melanophrys ). We found that individual baseline corticosterone levels were related to individual quality and highly repeatable from one breeding season to the next. Importantly, this relationship was found in males, but not in females. Therefore, we suggest that the relationship between quality and baseline corticosterone levels may depend on the environmental and energetic constraints that individuals have to cope with.

ExperimentSubset: an R package to manage subsets of Bioconductor Experiment objects

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irzam Sarfraz ◽  
Muhammad Asif ◽  
Joshua D Campbell
Keyword(s):  
Single Cell ◽  
R Package ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Data Matrix ◽  
Supplementary Information ◽  
Data Provenance ◽  
Rna Seq ◽  
Efficient Management ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Motivation R Experiment objects such as the SummarizedExperiment or SingleCellExperiment are data containers for storing one or more matrix-like assays along with associated row and column data. These objects have been used to facilitate the storage and analysis of high-throughput genomic data generated from technologies such as single-cell RNA sequencing. One common computational task in many genomics analysis workflows is to perform subsetting of the data matrix before applying down-stream analytical methods. For example, one may need to subset the columns of the assay matrix to exclude poor-quality samples or subset the rows of the matrix to select the most variable features. Traditionally, a second object is created that contains the desired subset of assay from the original object. However, this approach is inefficient as it requires the creation of an additional object containing a copy of the original assay and leads to challenges with data provenance. Results To overcome these challenges, we developed an R package called ExperimentSubset, which is a data container that implements classes for efficient storage and streamlined retrieval of assays that have been subsetted by rows and/or columns. These classes are able to inherently provide data provenance by maintaining the relationship between the subsetted and parent assays. We demonstrate the utility of this package on a single-cell RNA-seq dataset by storing and retrieving subsets at different stages of the analysis while maintaining a lower memory footprint. Overall, the ExperimentSubset is a flexible container for the efficient management of subsets. Availability and implementation ExperimentSubset package is available at Bioconductor: https://bioconductor.org/packages/ExperimentSubset/ and Github: https://github.com/campbio/ExperimentSubset. Supplementary information Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.

scholarly journals Individual quality of life and the environment – towards a concept of livable areas for persons with disabilities in Poland

2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Izabela Grabowska ◽  
Radosław Antczak ◽  
Jan Zwierzchowski ◽  
Tomasz Panek
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Basic Research ◽  
Research Problem ◽  
Individual Characteristics ◽  
Living Conditions ◽  
Special Focus ◽  
Persons With Disabilities ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Background The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities [1] highlights the need to create proper socioeconomic and political conditions for persons with disabilities, with a special focus on their immediate living conditions. According to the Convention, these conditions should be built to ensure that persons with disabilities have the potential to enjoy a high quality of life (QoL), and this principle is reflected in the notion of livable areas. The crucial aspect of this framework is the relationship between the individual QoL and the environment, broadly understood as the socioeconomic as well as the technical conditions in which persons with disabilities function. Methods The basic research problem was to assess the relationship between individual QoL for the population with disabilities as a dependent variable and livability indicators as independent variables, controlling for individual characteristics. The study used a dataset from the EU-SILC (European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions) survey carried out in 2015 in Poland. The research concept involved several steps. First, we created a variable measuring the QoL for the entire population with disabilities. To measure the multidimensional QoL, we used Sen’s capability approach as a general concept, which was operationalized by the MIMIC (multiple indicators multiple causes) model. In the second step, we identified the livability indicators available in the official statistics, and merged them with survey data. Finally, in the last step, we ran the regression analysis. We also checked the data for the nested structure. Results We confirmed that the general environmental conditions, focused on creating livable areas, played a significant role in shaping the QoL of persons with disabilities; i.e., we found that the higher the level of the local Human Development Index, the higher the quality of life of the individuals living in this area. This relationship held even after controlling for the demographic characteristics of the respondents. Moreover, we found that in addition to the general environmental conditions, the conditions created especially for persons with disabilities (i.e., services for this group and support for their living conditions) affected the QoL of these individuals. Conclusions The results illustrate the need to strengthen policies aimed at promoting the QoL of persons with disabilities by creating access to community assets and services that can contribute to improving the life chances of this population.

scholarly journals The Effects of Extraneous Load on the Relationship Between Self-Regulated Effort and Germane Load Within an E-Learning Environment

2017 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Lange ◽  
Jamie Costley ◽  
Seung-Lock Han
Keyword(s):  
Load Condition ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Online Instructors ◽  
South Korean ◽  
Processing Information ◽  
E Learning ◽  
Effort Regulation ◽  
Extraneous Load ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
The Relationship

<p class="3">Online instructors need to avoid unclear and confusing explanations of content, which can reduce the quality of learning. Extraneous load is reflective of poor instruction, in that it directs student effort towards processing information that does not contribute to learning. However, students may be able to manage poor instruction through effort regulation. Students who show high levels of effort have been shown to overcome poor instruction in some cases. This study analyzed survey responses from South Korean university students studying online (n = 1,575) to examine the relationship between self-regulated effort and germane load within varying extraneous load conditions. The experimental design separated extraneous load responses into three conditions (low, medium, high). Within each extraneous load condition, self-regulated effort responses were also separated (low, medium, high). The results showed that as extraneous load increased, self-regulated effort had a weaker relationship with germane load. It was also found that the use of effort regulation is effective only when dealing with low and mid-level extraneous load situations and that use of such strategies within high extraneous load situations was not effective. These results show the importance of improving instruction to reduce extraneous cognitive load, in that, not even high levels of effort can overcome poor quality instruction.</p>

scholarly journals Trichoptera in Flanders (Belgium): An ecological and phylogenetic characterization of the order

Zoosymposia ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 108-114
Author(s):  
SOPHIE C. GOMBEER ◽  
DRIES KNAPEN ◽  
LIEVEN BERVOETS
Keyword(s):  
Poor Quality ◽  
Biotic Index ◽  
Specific Information ◽  
Phylogenetic Characterization ◽  
Present Distribution ◽  
Original Report ◽  
Populated Region ◽  
Environment Agency ◽  
The Relationship

Flanders is a very densely populated region in the economic heart of Europe. To monitor the anthropological impact on the biological integrity of the freshwater courses, the Flemish Environment Agency (VMM) uses the Multimetric Macroinvertebrate Index for Flanders (Gabriels et al. 2006) which was recently developed under the influence of the European Water Framework Directive (WFD, EU 2000). This multimetric tool replaces the Belgian Biotic Index (BBI: range 0=dramatically poor quality to 10=very good quality), a monitoring system based on the sensitivities to pollution of the different macroinvertebrate taxa (De Pauw & Vanhooren 1983, De Pauw et al. 1986). Although recently replaced, the BBI has been used for the past 20 years and this extensive monitoring campaign produced a considerable amount of information on the distribution of macroinvertebrate taxa in Flemish freshwater courses. The Trichoptera (caddisflies) constitute one of these taxa. Unfortunately, determinations of caddisflies as part of the BBI monitoring, are accomplished only at the family level. Specific information on the occurrence and ecological preferences at the species level is scarce and outdated. The only comprehensive report documenting the occurrence of Trichoptera in Belgium dates back to 1984 (Stroot 1984) and since then only minor revisions and additions to the original report have been published (Stroot 1985, 1987; Stroot & Neven 1989). Therefore, the objectives of our research are to update the old species records and to elaborate and improve the ecological and phylogenetic knowledge of the Flemish Trichoptera by (a) identifying the caddisfly species that occur in Flanders; (b) determining their present distribution; (c) detecting which environmental variables influence this distribution; (d) studying whether the relationship among these variables and the species assemblages can be used to distinguish among the ecoregions in Flanders, which are based on similarities in climate, geology, geomorphology, (geo)hydrology and soil characteristics (Sevenant et al. 2002) and (e) investigating the phylogenetic relationships among the Flemish Trichoptera and evaluating their accordance with the current taxonomic classification.

scholarly journals MINORS ON TRIAL FOR CRIME: VIEW OF THE CHILD PSYCHIATRIST IN JUDICIAL ENVIRONMENT IN BENIN

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
pp. 213-220
Author(s):  
L Anagonou ◽  
Houinou Ebo B ◽  
F Adeossi ◽  
E Klikpo ◽  
S Salifou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Juvenile Court ◽  
Descriptive Study ◽  
Poor Quality ◽  
Child Psychiatrist ◽  
Court Ruling ◽  
Prison Sentence ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Opposite Sex ◽  
Criminal Matters ◽  
The Relationship

The developmental path of the minor may be marked by particular situations such as conflicts with the law, various crimes. The situations, contexts and processes that lead to crime are multiple. Thus, the aim of our research was to study the characteristics of minors judged for crime, seen in a judicial space. This was a retrospective, cross-sectional, descriptive study carried out at the Cotonou First Instance Court. Data were collected from the judicial files of minors tried for crime by the juvenile court ruling on criminal matters from 1 January 2011 to 31 December 2015; 34 files were taken into account. The respondents were all adolescents aged between 10 and 18 years. The majority of them were tried for homicide (61.7%) and rape (32.4%). For 35.3% of the minors tried for crime, the relationship with opposite sex parent had poor quality. These minors received a firm prison sentence (88.2%), and 11.8% of them were placed in a foster centre without receiving a prison sentence. Crimes committed by minors calls into question our ability to supervise and provide a safe and appropriate framework for the psychological construction of children and adolescents in our society. Measures should be taken in terms of prevention at various levels to reduce the risk of children developing criminal behaviour.

scholarly journals Sistem Informasi Mobile Kosan Berbasis Android

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 17
Author(s):  
Amirudin Wibowo
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Mutual Cooperation ◽  
Permanent Housing ◽  
Facilities Location ◽  
Boarding House ◽  
Local Residents ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Modern Era ◽  
Increased Activity ◽  
Selection Of

The increasing number of residents coming from outside Jabodetabek has resulted in increased activity in the Jabodetabek area. Generally newcomers are reluctant to have permanent housing but prefer semi-permanent buildings such as boarding houses, so that newcomers make boarding houses a flexible place to live. What must be considered in the selection of boarding houses in addition to the available prices and facilities is also because if newcomers want to find a boarding house must see the distance so they can estimate how much time the boarding house goes to the intended place such as campus or office harmed as well as environmental conditions so as to create a comfortable and peaceful atmosphere. Newcomers must be able to socialize with local residents so that harmony can be maintained, for example following a mutual cooperation activity held once a month to strengthen the relationship. One that makes it easier for newcomers to find a boarding house is to make a mobile android based application considering that it is quite fast in this modern era, the access can easily be done anywhere and whenever needed. The information needed is the name of the owner of the boarding house, room data. facilities, location and price..

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