The Function and Determinants of Reconciliation in <Emphasis Type="BoldItalic">Pan troglodytes</Emphasis>

Reconciliation (the postconflict affiliative reunion between former opponents) may mitigate costs of aggressive conflict by repairing the opponents’ relationship and reducing stress. We showed that postconflict levels of self-directed behavior were lower after reconciliation than when reconciliation did not occur in chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) at Chester Zoo, providing support for a stress-alleviating function for reconciliation. Further, we investigated the effects of multiple factors on the occurrence of reconciliation using generalized linear mixed models. We performed 2 separate analyses, a “traditional” analysis and a “targeted” analysis. The former included variables previously used to assess the occurrence of reconciliation in primates, i.e., conflict characteristics, sex combination, and a simple measure of relationship value. The latter included species-specific variables such as the occurrence of consolation (postconflict affiliation from a bystander to the recipient of aggression); initiation of the conflict with a bluff display; and measures of relationship value, compatibility, and security specific to the study group. Whereas the traditional analysis showed that female-female dyads and valuable partners were most likely to reconcile, the targeted analysis showed that reconciliation was less likely to occur when consolation took place or when aggression was initiated with bluff displays. Further analyses revealed that the effect of sex-combination on reconciliation was due to its intercorrelation with bluff display. This study highlights the importance of considering variables specific to the study species and group when investigating the determinants of reconciliation and warns against premature interpretation of results without due consideration for all other possible determinants.     

Willingness to engage in casual sex

Sexually dimorphic mate selection strategies were examined in 200 university students reporting their willingness to engage in casual sexual encounters with hypothetical individuals of the opposite sex. Using a questionnaire format, the possibility of forming a long-term relationship was manipulated, while risk of disease, pregnancy, and detection was eliminated across all conditions. In addition, potential partners varied in level of attractiveness, and in personality and behavioral characteristics. As expected, men reported a greater anticipated willingness to engage in sexual intercourse across all conditions compared with women. The possibility of forming a long-term relationship elevated women’s, but not men’s, willingness for sexual intercourse. While a potential partner’s attractiveness had a significant positive overall effect on responses, reducing their relative attractiveness had a greater negative impact on men’s responses. Reference to the parental qualities of a potential partner significantly increased women’s, but not men’s, anticipated willingness for sexual intercourse. Describing a hypothetical partner as non-aggressive (safe) marginally increased women’s willingness (p<.09) and did not affect men’s responses. The wording of items relevant to this condition may have resulted in the potential partner sounding "wimpy" rather than nonaggressive, and this may have reduced the expected effect of this manipulation. The possibility that women may trade off personality and behavioral characteristics with attractiveness to a greater degree than men when assessing potential mates is considered.     

Factors influencing conservation attitudes of local people in Western Serengeti,Tanzania

Attitudinal studies are increasingly being adopted as tools for evaluating public understanding, acceptance and the impact of conservation interventions. The findings of these studies have been useful in guiding the policy interventions. Many factors affect conservation attitudes positively or negatively. The factors inspiring positive attitudes are likely to enhance the conservation objectives while those inducing negative attitudes may detrimentally undermine these objectives. The magnitude of the resultant effects of each particular factor is determined by the historical, political, ecological, socio-cultural and economic conditions and this may call for different management interventions. In this study we examined how conservation attitudes in western Serengeti are shaped by the following factors: level of conflicts with protected areas; wildlife imposed constraints (inadequate pasture, water, diseases, loss of livestock during migration, theft and depredation); participation in the community based project; and socio-demographic factors (age, education level, wealth, immigration, gender and household size). The results indicated that the level of conflicts, participation in the community based project, inadequate pasture, lack of water, diseases, wealth and education were important in shaping peoples’ attitudes. However, in a stepwise linear regression analysis, 59% of the variation in peoples’ attitudes was explained by three variables i.e., conflict level with protected areas, lack of water and participation in the community based project. In addition to these variables, level of education also contributed in explaining 51% of the variation in people’s attitude regarding the status of the game reserves. Five variables (lack of water, level of education, inadequate pasture, participation in the community based project and diseases) explained 12% of the variation in people’s attitude towards Serengeti National Park. The paper discusses the implications for conservation of these results and recommends some measures to realise effective conservation of wildlife resources.     

Use of equivalence classes and factor sets in the analysis of botanical data

The concept of equivalence classes and factor sets known from set theory is applied to the theory and practice of botanical studies. The properties of taxonomic, typological, and gradient factor sets and their connection with a comparative floristic and phytoindicative analysis are considered. The enlarged groups of regimes are proposed for ten ecological factors of Tsyganov’s phytoindication scales. An integrated botanical information system (IBIS) allowing one to perform a computer processing of botanical data using factor sets is described.     

Identification methods and deterministic factors of owl roadkill hotspot locations in Mediterranean landscapes

Road fatalities are among the major causes of mortality for Strigiformes species and may affect the population’s survival. The use of mitigation strategies must be considered to overcome this problem. However, because mitigation along the total length of all roads is not financially feasible, the locations where Strigiformes roadkills are more frequent (i.e., road fatality hotspots) must be identified. In addition to hotspot identification, factors that influence the occurrence of such fatalities should be recognized to allow mitigation measures to be delineated. We used road fatality data collected from 311 km of southern Portugal roads over a 2-year period to compare the performance of five hotspot identification methods: binary logistic regression (BLR), ecological niche factor analysis (ENFA), Kernel density estimation, nearest neighbor hierarchical clustering (NNHC), and Malo’s method. BLR and ENFA modelling were also used for recognizing roadkill deterministic factors. Our results suggest that Malo’s method should be preferred for hotspot identification. The main factors driving owl roadkillings are those associated with good habitat conditions for species occurrence and specific conditions that promote hunting behavior near roads. Based on these factors, several mitigation measures are recommended.     

Bivariate and multivariate analysis of the skin ridge pattern intensities

Bivariate correlations and multivariate (factor) analysis of pattern intensities on individual fingers and all specified areas of palms and soles were performed in a large sample of 834 individuals from two rural districts of Poland, and in a sample of 383 school children from the city of Warsaw, with males and females considered separately. Eleven factors were extracted in all samples, including two for finger pattern intensities, and the remaining nine for palmar or sole individual areas, or some of their combinations. Patterns of intercorrelation between variables and the factor structure matrices were essentially similar in all subsamples, but several factors differed in the amount of variance they contributed to individual variables, or the factors occupied somewhat different positions when ranked in respect of the contribution to the total variance. Orthogonal and oblique rotation were applied to the data, but only the results of the latter were tabulated and fully discussed. In contrast with finger patterns, separate and independent factors have mainly been extracted for individual pattern intensities on palms or soles. Nevertheless the obtained factor solution on the whole is not incompatible with the concept of developmental induction fields. It is postulated that the factor structure may be susceptible to natural selection acting through functional preferences in man, and that epistatic interaction may account for some common factors.     

Analysis of Determining Factors of the Public's Risk Acceptance Level in China

This work will characterize risk acceptance in China, based on the psychometric paradigm, and explore the determining factors that influence the risk acceptable level to the Chinese public. For this purpose, a survey was conducted including 12 hazards, 10 risk attributes (including risk acceptance), and demographic variables. First, the research attempted to explore Nanjing citizens’ average risk acceptable level for 12 hazards in China. Second, intercorrelation analysis and factor analysis of nine risk attributes were performed to obtain the suitable risk perception factors as independent variables. Three risk perception models of acceptance were constructed, which were named “Environmental risk model,” “Daily risk model,” and “Technical risk model,” that explained 59.0–69.6% of variance separately. In general, the variables of Knowledge, Benefit, and Trust were found to be significant in all models, implying that these variables are the main determining factors. However, in the environmental risk model, the variable of effect was also significant, which means the determining factors would change for different types of hazards. These results could help the Chinese government to improve the communication of risks with the public and make effective mitigation policies to improve people's rational judgment on the acceptability of risks.     

Effects of Migration on Genetic Variability and Parent–Offspring Correlation Coefficients in Anthropometric and Physiometric Phenotypes Among Three Groups of Population in Punjab, India

In the present study, we examined the migration effects on genetic variabilities and heritabilities patterns between three groups of population like parental population in Punjab, migrant from Pakistan, and migrant from other states of India in Punjab using anthropometric and physiometric traits. A total of 500 adult individuals from 300 families were studied. Statistical comparisons were carried out through mean coefficients, Student’s t test, heritability, and regression analysis. The results suggest a significant migration effect on almost all traits. Correlation coefficient for first-degree relatives, the slope factors, and heritabilities for almost all variables have been found significant among the three groups of populations. However, the discrimination is more prominent among migrant from other states of India because of more genetic heterogeneity.     

Assessing extinction risk in the absence of species-level data: quantitative criteria for terrestrial ecosystems

The conservation of individual plant and animal species has been advanced greatly by the World Conservation Union’s (IUCN) development of objective, repeatable, and transparent criteria for assessing extinction risk, which explicitly separate the process of risk assessment from priority-setting. Here we present an analogous procedure for assessing the extinction risk of terrestrial ecosystems, which may complement traditional species-specific risk assessments, or may provide an alternative when only landscape-level data are available. We developed four quantitative risk criteria, derived primarily from remotely sensed spatial data, information on one of which must be available to permit classification. Using a naming system analogous to the present IUCN species-specific system, our four criteria were: (A) reduction of land cover and continuing threat, (B) rapid rate of land cover change, (C) increased fragmentation, and (D) highly restricted geographical distribution. We applied these criteria to five ecosystems covering a range of spatial and temporal scales, regions of the world, and ecosystem types, and found that Indonesian Borneo’s lowland tropical forests and the Brazilian Atlantic rainforest were Critically Endangered, while South Africa’s grasslands and Brazil’s Mato Grosso were Vulnerable. Furthermore, at a finer grain of analysis, one region of Venezuela’s coastal dry forests (Margarita Island) qualified as Vulnerable, while another (the Guasare River watershed) was Critically Endangered. In northern Venezuela, deciduous forests were classified as Endangered, semi-deciduous forests Vulnerable, and evergreen forests of Least Concern. We conclude that adoption of such a standardized system will facilitate globally comparable, repeatable geographic analyses that clearly separate risk assessment (a fundamentally scientific process), from the definition of conservation priorities, which should take into account additional factors, such as ecological distinctiveness, costs, logistics, likelihood of success, and societal preferences. Jon Paul Rodríguez and Jennifer K. Balch are contributed equally to this work     

Genetic diversity of <Emphasis Type="Italic">Pistacia khinjuk</Emphasis> Stocks. using RAPD markers and leaf morphological characters

The aim of this research was to study the genetic diversity of Pistacia khinjuk Stocks. and also to reveal the genetic relationships. Leaf morphological characters of 16 genotypes together with Randomly Amplified Polymorphic DNA (RAPD) marker data were used for this purpose. Leaf morphological characters were used for factor analysis, which determined four main factors. Grouping of genotypes by these factors was performed by Ward’s method. Fifteen primers produced a total of 146 fragments, with an average of 9.73 fragments per primer, of which 129 were polymorphic. The unweighted pair group method based on arithmetic average (UPGMA) analysis was performed on Jaccard’s similarity coefficient matrix. According to RAPD data, genotypes were separated into three groups. The first contained the genotypes with round leaflets. Genotypes with three lanceolate leaflets were located in the second and third groups, respectively. This study revealed that high diversity exists among genotypes of P. khinjuk, like in P. vera. Also it could be postulated that genotypes of P. khinjuk with oblique and lanceolate leaflets are probably descendents of the genotypes with acuminate and roundish leaflets.     

A PATH-ANALYTIC MODEL FOR THE MEASUREMENT OF SELECTION ON MORPHOLOGY

This paper describes a path model for the analysis of phenotypic selection upon continuous morphological characters. The path-analysis model assumes that selection occurs on unmeasured general size and shape allometry factors that summarize linear relations among sets of ontogenetically, phylogenetically, or functionally related traits. An unmeasured factor for general size is considered the only aspect of morphometric covariance matrices for which there is an a priori biological explanation. Consequently, selection coefficients are derived for each measured character by holding constant only a general size factor, rather than by using multiple regression to adjust for the full covariance matrix. Fitness is treated as an unmeasured factor with loadings, representing directional selection coefficients, computed as the covariances of the size-adjusted characters with the measured fitness indicator. The magnitudes and signs of the selection coefficients, combined with biological insight, may suggest hypotheses of selection on one or more shape allometry factors. Hypotheses of selection on general size and shape allometry factors are evaluated through cycles of measurement, analysis, and experimentation, designed to refine the path diagram depicting the covariances among the measured characters, the measured indicator of fitness, and unmeasured factors for morphology and fitness. The path-analysis and multiple-regression models were applied to data from remeasurement of Lande and Arnold's (1983) pentatomid bugs and to Bumpus's (1899) data on house sparrows. The path analysis suggested the hypothesis that variation in bug survivorship was an expression of directional selection on wing loading. Bumpus's data are consistent with a hypothesis of stabilizing selection on general size in females and directional selection for small wing size relative to body size in males.     

Formulation Variables Influencing Drug Release from Layered Matrix System Comprising Chitosan and Xanthan Gum

The purpose of this study was to investigate the formulation variables influencing the drug release from the layered tablets containing chitosan and xanthan gum as matrix component. Increasing the amount of lactose could diminish pH sensitive release behavior of these matrix tablets. Effect of formulation variables on drug release from the prepared three-layered matrix tablets was investigated. The amount of drug loading did not affect the drug release which was influenced by the hydrodynamic force and the matrix composition. An increase in stirring rate correspondingly increased the release rate. Moreover, incorporation of soluble diluents in core or barrier could enhance the drug release. Least square fitting the experimental dissolution data to the mathematical expressions (power law, first order, Higuchi’s and zero order) was carried out to study the drug release mechanism. Most dissolution profiles of the prepared three-layered tablets provided a better fit to zero order kinetic than to first order kinetic and Higuchi’s equation.     

Origin and resolution of the aluminum controversy concerning Alzheimer’s neurofibrillary degeneration

Elevated concentrations of aluminum are found in regions of neurofibrillary change in brains with senile or presenile dementia of Alzheimer’s type. The concentrations of aluminum found in the human disease are comparable to those found in experimental animals with aluminum-induced neurofibrillary degeneration (NFD). Although there are a number of reports confirming these observations, two laboratories have been unable to detect elevated levels in Alzheimer’s disease. We conducted an interlaboratory study to resolve this discrepancy and traced the discrepancy to difficulties in analytical procedures. We concluded that failure to detect elevated aluminum levels associated with NFD is the result of (a) lack of strict adherence to the criteria for sample selection; (b) selection of too large a sample for analysis; and (c) use of analytical methodology that has potential matrix interference for the measured signal.     

Mechanisms sustaining displacements of quantitative trait dominance in spring wheat of various geographical regions

The mechanisms of displacements of quantitative trait dominance in spring wheat are discussed in terms of the theory of the ecological genetic organization of quantitative traits. A conventional interpretation of displacements of genotype points on Hayman’s graphs in terms of classical diallelic crosses does not require that limiting environmental factors be monitored during the ontogenetic development of quantitative traits or that changes in the set of trait-determining genes upon a change of the limiting factor be considered. Analysis of the experimental data of the DIAS program in terms of the new theory of the ecological genetic organization of quantitative traits revealed two mechanisms that determine displacements of genotype points along the regression line on Hayman’s graphs. One is a metric scale effect, which arises as a result of a correlation of mean values and variances of a trait in rows of the parents and F₁ hybrids in the diallelic matrix. The other is an environment-depending change arising in the set and number of genes that underlie a multicomponent trait and determine their final value in a multiplicative manner.     

Pursuit-evasion wave trains in prey-predator systems with diffusionally coupled delays

The Lotka-Volterra system of prey-predator equations is considered with a special type of continuous time delay. In the case of equal diffusion coefficients Hopf’s bifurcation technique is used to show the existence of travelling wave train solutions for the prey-predator system.     

Seasonal and sexual variation in vigilance behavior of goitered gazelle (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Gazella subgutturosa</Emphasis>) in western China

Animals receive benefits from social behavior. As part of a group, individuals spend less time having to be vigilant. This phenomenon, called the “group size effect,” is considered the most dominant factor in an animal’s demonstrated level of vigilance. However, in addition to group size, many other social and environmental factors also influence the degree of vigilance, including the season of the year and the sex of the individual. In our study, we examined the vigilant behavior of goitered gazelles in the Xinjiang Province in western China to test whether and how seasons, the yearly breeding cycle, and group size affect vigilance. According to our results, we found that seasonal factors were not a substantial influence on a gazelle’s level of vigilance, while group size had a tangible effect. In comparison, the yearly breeding cycle (a natural phenomenon) was the most powerful factor: it significantly changed the degree of vigilance in females during birthing and males during rut. Anthropogenic factors (unnatural phenomena) were also potential causes of increased vigilance in both sexes during winter.     

Morphometric and allozyme variation in central and southern Greek populations ofMicrotus (Terricola) thomasi

The endemic Balkan vole taxonMicrotus (Terricola) thomasi (Barrett-Hamilton, 1903) exhibits great karyological variability in Greece. In this study, populations belonging to two different karyotypic forms (‘atticus’ and ‘thomasi’) are examined both morphometrically and electrophoretically. A total of 140 individuals ofM. (T.) thomasi were collected from 6 localities of south and central Greece. For the morphometric analysis, 27 variables (external body and cranial characters) were examined and evaluated according to multivariate analyses (PCA, MANOVA, CVA and CLUS). For the electrophoretic analysis, 18 putative genetic loci were examined and the allozymic data were treated by the biostatistical package BIOSYS-1. According to the results obtained, all the populations studied show little overall morphometric variability, whereas they are characterized by high electrophoretic variability. The populations studied are not grouped according to the karyotypic form. In almost all the cases, in the two UPGMA-dendrograms plotted according to morphometric and electrophoretic distances (Mahalanobis’ and Nei’s distances, respectively), the populations branching together belong to different karyotypic forms. Conclusively, the morphometric and electrophoretic results of this study revealed that the two karyotypic forms should not be considered separate species or subspecies, as it has been proposed by some authors in the past, and the populations studied can be considered only as different local populations of the rather variable vole speciesM. (T.) thomasi.     

The matrix method of metabolic control analysis: its validity for complex pathway structures

The sensitivities of the variables of a metabolic system (such as fluxes and concentrations) to variations in enzyme concentration are expressed in metabolic control analysis as control coefficients. The matrix method is a system of writing matrix equations that generate expressions for the control coefficients in terms of the characteristics of the components (principally the enzymes). Previously, the matrix method has been considered in terms of simple pathway structures; here we justify its applicability to complex pathways, such as those with multiple branches. It is shown that this requires modification of the branch point relationship to take account of changes of flux along the limbs of the branch and of stoichiometric factors. The method of deriving the flux control coefficients with respect to different fluxes in the system is extended to cope with these circumstances.