Sex differences in search and gathering skills

The hunter–gatherer theory of sex differences states that female cognition has evolutionarily adapted to gathering and male cognition to hunting. Existing studies corroborate that men excel in hunting-related skills, but there is only indirect support for women excelling in gathering tasks. This study tested if women would outperform men in laboratory-based computer tests of search and gathering skills. In Experiment 1, men found target objects faster and made fewer mistakes than women in a classic visual search study. In Experiment 2, participants gathered items (fruits or letters presented on screen), and again, men performed significantly better. In Experiment 3, participants' incidental learning of object locations in a search experiment was studied, but no statistically significant sex differences were observed. These findings found the opposite of what was expected based on the hypothesis that female cognition has adapted to gathering. Alternative interpretations of the role of object location memory, female gathering roles and the division of labor between the sexes are discussed.     

蛋白质亚细胞定位的识别

根据蛋白质的亚细胞定位,将蛋白质分为12类,用离散量的数学理论,以蛋白质中400个氨基酸二联体数目构成离散源,通过计算离散增量预测蛋白质的亚细胞定位,用Self-consistency和Jackknife两种方法测试均获得较高的预测成功率。结果表明：Self-consistency方法预测成功率为84．5％,Jackknife方法预测成功率为81．1％。     

Using Fault Tree Analysis to Assess Bioterrorist Risks to the U.S. Food Supply

Concerns about terrorist use of biological agents have increased at state and federal levels and in the popular press. Vulnerability of U.S. agricultural assets to bioterrorism has received less attention. A bioterrorist could use the U.S. food supply system to deliver a bioagent to a human target or use a bioagent to destroy it's inputs or infrastructure. Establishing effective agriculture security programs requires condensing generalizations about such bioterrorist threats into specific attack scenarios. This paper suggests a two-stage process to achieve this: problem formulation to define and rank scenarios, then quantitative risk assessment of selected, more highly ranked, scenarios. The quantitative component is illustrated for two specific scenarios: the actual 1984 Rajneeshee incident in Oregon and a hypothetical release of oral anthrax into the food supply system. The fault tree analysis of these scenarios suggests that the food supply system may be a less than optimal bioagent delivery mechanism, particularly if the objective is a mass casualty attack, as a number of events must occur simultaneously with reasonable probability if a bioagent is likely to be deployed effectively. In addition, an environmentally stable bioagent would be required if only the food system were used to deliver it to human consumers, but early detection of an intentional release common bioagent may be difficult absent specific intelligence or “unusual” epidemiological circumstances.     

Strategies and Decision-Support Tools for Optimizing Long-Term Groundwater Monitoring Plans—MAROS 2.0

Existing long-term groundwater monitoring programs can be optimized to increase their effectiveness/efficiency with the potential to generate considerable cost savings. The optimization can be achieved through an overall evaluation of conditions of the contaminant plume and the monitoring network, focused spatial and temporal sampling analyses, and automated and efficient management of data, analyses, and reporting. Version 2.0 of the Monitoring and Remediation Optimization System (MAROS) software, by integrating long-term monitoring analysis strategies and innovative optimization methods with a data management, processing, and reporting system, allows site managers to quickly and readily develop cost-effective long-term groundwater monitoring plans. The MAROS optimization strategy consists of a hierarchical combination of analysis methods essential to the decision-making process. Analyses are performed in three phases: 1) evaluating site information and historical monitoring data to obtain local concentration trends and an overview of the plume status; 2) developing optimal sampling plans for future monitoring at the site with innovative optimization methods; and 3) assessing the statistical sufficiency of the sampling plans to provide insights into the future performance of the monitoring program. Two case studies are presented to demonstrate the usefulness of the developed techniques and the rigor of the software.     

Host Location of a Pupal Parasitoid in a Tritrophic System Compared to a Model Offering Mechanosensory Cues Only

Several species of hymenopteran parasitoids are able to locate concealed pupal hosts by vibrational sounding. However, the specific role of this technique of mechanosensory host location has not yet been investigated in a natural, tritrophic system with multiple cues. Here we compared the host location of the pupal parasitoid Xanthopimpla stemmator in a tritrophic system with corn borer pupae in maize stem to the behavior on a paper model offering mechanosensory cues only. In general, the behavioral pattern and the behavioral states exhibited by host-searching female parasitoid were identical in the model and in the tritrophic system, while quantitative aspects differed. Our results demonstrate that vibrational sounding maintains its significance for host location in an environment with multiple cues, and that additional cues may increase responsiveness of females.     

Differential expression of dehydrin genes in wild barley, Hordeum spontaneum, associated with resistance to water deficit

Dehydrin gene (Dhn) expression is associated with plant response to dehydration. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association of differential expression of Dhn genes (Dhn 1, 3, 5, 6, and 9) with drought tolerance found in wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum). Tolerant and sensitive genotypes were identified from Israeli (Tabigha microsite) and Jordanian (Jarash and Waddi Hassa) populations (based on scoring of water loss rate of 390 genotypes). The five Dhn genes were up‐regulated by dehydration in resistant and sensitive wild barley genotypes. Notably, differences between resistant and sensitive genotypes were detected, mainly in the expression of Dhn1 and Dhn6 genes, depending on the duration of dehydration stress. Dhn1 tended to react earlier (after 3 h) and higher (12 h and 24 h) in resistant compared to sensitive genotypes. The level of expression of Dhn6 was significantly higher in the resistant genotypes at the earlier stages after stress. However, after 12 and 24 h Dhn6 expression was relatively higher in sensitive genotypes. The present results may indicate that these genes have some functional role in the dehydration tolerance in wild barley. The authors suggest that the observed differences of Dhn expression in wild barley, originating from different micro‐ and macro ecogeographic locations, may be the result of adaptive edaphic and climatic selective pressures.     

基于GIS与多目标区位配置模型的沈阳市公园选址

结合地理信息系统(GIS)与多目标区位配置模型(LA),综合考虑4个相对独立的目标因子(人口密度等级、空气污染等级、城市热岛效应等级、土地利用格局)对沈阳市三环内城市公园进行优化选址,并将优化结果与公园现状空间分布进行比较,以评价城市公园空间布局的合理性.结果表明： 与其他因子相比,空气污染因子对研究区城市绿地的选址具有重要影响.与单目标因子相比,多目标综合加权分析的结果能够合理地为城市绿地提供优化的空间选址.GIS与LA相结合的方法为城市绿地的空间优化提供了新思路.     

结合SSR标记和STS标记对家蚕无鳞毛翅基因的定位

家蚕突变表型无鳞毛翅(non-lepis wing, nlw)由隐性基因nlw控制。由于家蚕雌性不发生交换, 文章采用有鳞毛翅品系P50和无鳞毛翅品系U06两个品系组配F1代及BC₁回交群体, (U06×P50)×U06和U06×(U06×P50)分别记作BC₁F和BC₁M, 根据已经构建的家蚕SSR分子标记连锁图谱及已经发表的有关序列对nlw基因进行了连锁及定位分析。得到8个与nlw基因连锁的SSR(Simple sequence repeat)标记和1个STS(Sequence-tagged sites)标记。BC₁F群中的所有正常翅个体均表现出与(U06×P50)F₁相同的杂合带型; 而所有无鳞毛个体带型与亲本U06一致, 为纯合型。利用BC₁M群体构建了关于nlw基因的遗传连锁图, 连锁图的遗传距离为125.7 cM, 与nlw基因最近的引物为STS标记cash2p, 图距为11.4 cM。