The internet as a research tool in the study of associative learning: an example from overshadowing

The present study aimed to replicate an associative learning effect, overshadowing, both in the traditional laboratory conditions and over the internet. The experimental task required participants to predict an outcome based on the presence of several cues. When a cue that was always trained together with a second cue was presented on isolation at test, the expectancy of the outcome was impaired, which revealed overshadowing. This experimental task was performed by undergraduate students (N=106) in the laboratory and by a different set of anonymous participants over the internet (N=91). Similar levels of overshadowing were obtained in both locations. These similarities show that web-delivered experiments can be used as a complement of traditional experiments.     

以CasX为例简述新型CRISPR-Cas系统的基本属性和研究方法

在细菌与古菌中广泛存在的CRISPR-Cas系统,作为目前发现的原核生物唯一的适应性免疫系统,抵御着病毒和质粒的入侵.自20世纪80年代首次被发现至今,CRISPR-Cas系统的基本情况逐渐清晰,包括名称缩写、分类、进化关系等方面.近年来,由于第二类CRISPR-Cas系统作为一种有潜力的基因编辑工具而逐渐成为应用研究...     

Cryo-electron microscopy as an investigative tool: the ribosome as an example

Cryo-electron microscopy allows the visualization of macromolecules in their native state. Combined with techniques of three-dimensional reconstruction, cryo-EM images of single molecules can be used to study macromolecular interactions. The ribosome, a large RNA-protein complex with multiple binding interactions, is an excellent test case illustrating the power of these new techniques. Conformational changes during the binding of tRNA and protein factors to the ribosome can now be studied without the interference of crystal packing. Now that the first X-ray structures of ribosomal subunits have become available, conformational changes observed by cryo-EM in different functional states can be traced back to internal rearrangements of the underlying structural framework. Electron microscopy, X-ray crystallography, and modeling should be used together in the endeavor to understand the functioning of the translational machinery.     

Community-based knowledge transfer and exchange: Helping community-based organizations link research to action

Background

Community-based organizations (CBOs) are important stakeholders in health systems and are increasingly called upon to use research evidence to inform their advocacy, program planning, and service delivery efforts. CBOs increasingly turn to community-based research (CBR) given its participatory focus and emphasis on linking research to action. In order to further facilitate the use of research evidence by CBOs, we have developed a strategy for community-based knowledge transfer and exchange (KTE) that helps CBOs more effectively link research evidence to action. We developed the strategy by: outlining the primary characteristics of CBOs and why they are important stakeholders in health systems; describing the concepts and methods for CBR and for KTE; comparing the efforts of CBR to link research evidence to action to those discussed in the KTE literature; and using the comparison to develop a framework for community-based KTE that builds on both the strengths of CBR and existing KTE frameworks.

Discussion

We find that CBR is particularly effective at fostering a climate for using research evidence and producing research evidence relevant to CBOs through community participation. However, CBOs are not always as engaged in activities to link research evidence to action on a larger scale or to evaluate these efforts. Therefore, our strategy for community-based KTE focuses on: an expanded model of 'linkage and exchange' (i.e., producers and users of researchers engaging in a process of asking and answering questions together); a greater emphasis on both producing and disseminating systematic reviews that address topics of interest to CBOs; developing a large-scale evidence service consisting of both 'push' efforts and efforts to facilitate 'pull' that highlight actionable messages from community relevant systematic reviews in a user-friendly way; and rigorous evaluations of efforts for linking research evidence to action.

Summary

Through this type of strategy, use of research evidence for CBO advocacy, program planning, and service delivery efforts can be better facilitated and continually refined through ongoing evaluations of its impact.

     

Individual personality and the spatial distribution of groups of grazing animals: An example with sheep

Impacts of individual personality on group distribution were investigated using sheep (Ovis aries) as a model. In an indoor exploration test, individuals who visited <4 (out of 6) objects in a novel environment were classified as ‘shy’ (n = 10), and those who visited 5 or 6 objects were classified as ‘bold’ (n = 10). Nine weeks later, using a series of groups (n = 40) of either 5 shy or 5 bold sheep, we measured distribution at pasture and responses to disturbance and the approach of a human handler. When grazing undisturbed, the mean nearest neighbour distance and spread (minimum convex hull area) of shy groups were less than those of bold groups, with shy individuals moving towards one another more often. Shy groups explored a smaller area than bold groups. When disturbed, shy sheep were more likely to stop grazing and move closer together. Shy sheep kept further away from the handler and moved faster when driven. The results demonstrate a link between personality and group distribution, suggesting that our ‘shy’ and ‘bold’ individuals may occupy different positions on the shy-bold continuum documented for other species. We discuss implications for diet composition and impacts on vegetation grazed by animals with different personalities.     

The buttressing coalition of the PNGIMR: an example of international collaborative research

Good partnerships are based on mutual benefit. This also applies to international partnerships in medical research. The Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research (PNGIMR) has had many successful research collaborations, from which an interactive coalition has been built that is committed to supporting the PNGIMR without jeopardizing its integrity. This coalition also involves policy-makers from the Department of Health, teachers at the Medical School of Papua New Guinea and the Medical Research Advisory Committee of PNG. The PNGIMR's Buttressing Coalition supports research and training, but also assists the process of transferring research results into policy. The concept of "buttressing" is explored and the activities of the Buttressing Coalition are briefly described here. The idea of the Buttressing Coalition is a response from the international medical research community to globalization, and could be applied elsewhere, following the model developed in PNG.     

Gender underlies the formation of STEM research groups

Research groups are the cornerstone of scientific research, yet little is known about how these groups are formed and how their organization is influenced by the gender of the research group leader. This represents an important gap in our understanding of the processes shaping gender structure within universities and the academic fields they represent. Here, we report the results of an email survey sent to department chairs and discipline‐specific listservs. We received responses from 275 female and 175 male research group leaders. Most respondents were biologists (n = 328) but psychology (n = 27), chemistry (n = 16), physics (n = 32), and mathematics (n = 30) were also relatively well represented. We found that men were self‐reported as overrepresented in research groups in the physical sciences, particularly at later career stages. Within biology, male and female group leaders reported supervising a disproportionate number of same‐gender trainees (students and postdoctoral fellows), particularly early in their careers. These self‐reported patterns were driven primarily by gender‐based differences in the pool of students applying to their research groups, while gender differences in acceptance rates played a seemingly smaller role. We discuss the implications of our results for women continuing into the professoriate and for the recruitment of young scientists into research groups.     

DNA barcoding will frequently fail in complicated groups: An example in wild potatoes

DNA barcoding ("barcoding") has been proposed as a rapid and practical molecular method to identify species via diagnostic variation in short orthologous DNA sequences from one or a few universal genomic regions. It seeks to address in a rapid and simple way the "taxonomic impediment" of a greater need for taxonomic identifications than can be supplied by taxonomists. Using a complicated plant group, Solanum sect. Petota (wild potatoes), I tested barcoding with the most variable and frequently suggested plant barcoding regions: the internal nontranscribed spacer of nuclear ribosomal DNA (ITS) and the plastid markers trnH-psbA intergenic spacer and matK. These DNA regions fail to provide species-specific markers in sect. Petota because the ITS has too much intraspecific variation and the plastid markers lack sufficient polymorphism. The complications seen in wild potatoes are common in many plant groups, but they have not been assessed with barcoding. Barcoding is a retroactive procedure that relies on well-defined species to function, is based solely on a limited number of DNA sequences that are often inappropriate at the species level, has been poorly tested with geographically well-dispersed replicate samples from difficult taxonomic groups, and discounts substantial practical and theoretical problems in defining species.     

Sustainable design indicators: Roadway project as an example

Environmental sustainability has been more examined in the construction industry in recent years. But it is still difficult for engineering designers to incorporate sustainability into their work without practical methods. The design stage is key in the life cycle to integrating sustainability into construction projects. Assessment of sustainable design performance can be an initiative to pursue sustainability.This paper proposes the ratio of items considered/adopted and man-hour spending to measure project sustainable design performance. The two indicators were tested on six roadway projects to validate their applicability on engineering design.The results show that the ratios of items considered and adopted are from 34% to 87%, meaning the many suggested sustainability items can be incorporated into design. The man-hours spent on sustainability are from 2% to 12%, meaning sustainable design initially takes more time than conventional design.The engineering design itself does not cause environmental impact. But the proposed indicators can examine the effort devoted into sustainability in the design stage. This early step helps predict the future environmental performance of designed products.     

Trophic interactions under climate fluctuations: the Atlantic puffin as an example

Co-occurrence in food requirements of offspring and food availability is a key factor determining breeding success. Prey availability is typically dependent on environmental conditions that are different from those influencing the predator''s decision regarding whether or not to initiate breeding, and is not always optimal at the peak of reproduction requirements. We investigated this relationship to understand better what determines the fledging success of the Atlantic puffin (Fratercula arctica). Colony data from Røst (northern Norway) covering a period of 27 years were analysed with parallel data on sea temperature and the size and abundance of the puffins'' main prey (the Norwegian spring-spawning herring, Clupea harengus). By fitting statistical models to the fledging success, we found that one effect of climate on this population of Atlantic puffins is indirect and mediated by sea temperature affecting the availability of first-year herring. The best model also demonstrates that the breeding success of the Røst puffins may be quantitatively predicted from the size of first-year herring and sea temperature.     

International cooperation on western corn rootworm ecology research: state-of-the-art and future research

1 Invasive pest species are challenging partly because the invasion process may be highly dynamic and because of the lack of knowledge of many researchers, professionals and farmers in the newly-invaded regions. The chrysomelid Diabrotica virgifera virgifera LeConte is such an invasive pest. It has been the main pest of continuous maize in the U.S.A. for more than 60 years and is currently spreading throughout Europe.
2 In the area with a long history of this pest (Central and North America), scientific knowledge concerning the ecology of this pest has accumulated over the last decades. This resource is of great importance to both America and Europe and has to be gathered, shared and adapted to new situations. We therefore examined, both qualitatively and quantitatively, the scientific literature relating to D.   virgifera virgifera ecology.
3 The quantitative analysis suggests that research on D.   virgifera virgifera ecology is still in its infancy in Europe and suffers from geographical barriers (between Europe and North America and between linguistic areas within Europe) and that scientific communication should be strengthened both between North America and Europe and within Europe.
4 As a first solution to this problem, we introduce three companion review articles that constitute a landmark for D.   virgifera virgifera research, enabling European and American scientists and decision-makers to orient themselves and discover new opportunities for research. We also stress that international research cooperation is the most important key to successfully manage invasive species.