The Piltdown forgery: a re-statement of the case against Hinton

A review of the evidence supports the conclusion reached by Gardiner and Currant in 1996 that the hoaxer was Martin Hinton, who worked in the Geology and Zoology Departments of the Natural History Museum throughout the Piltdown affair. This was based primarily on the discovery in 1978 of a cabin trunk in the loft space immediately above what had been the office of the Keeper of Zoology − which post Hinton occupied between 1936 and 1945. This contained material similarly stained to that discovered at Piltdown, while several of the pieces had also been whittled in an identical fashion to the last find at Piltdown – the notorious 'cricket bat'. Additional proof came from Hinton's executor who discovered eight human teeth varyingly stained in a tobacco tin of Hinton's. These revealed that the forger used two methods for staining his material, one of which involved decalcification, a process which converted apatite into gypsum, the other of which did not. The material in the trunk was stained using the first method, the teeth obtained from his executor, the second. The analyses of the contents of the trunk (carried out in 1995−6) and of the tobacco tin (1997−8) are reported for the first time.  © 2003 The Linnean Society of London, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 2003, 139 , 315−335.     

The impact of pH on interactions among phytoplankton algae, zooplankton and perch (Perca fluviatilis) in a shallow, fertile lake

1. The combined effects of increasing pH (< 9–11) and increasing densities of perch (0, two, four per enclosure) have been investigated in polyethylene enclosures of volume about 1100 1 in a shallow, fertile lake in Cheshire. 2. Increasing pH decreased carbon dioxide concentrations, chlorophyll a concentrations and diatom biomass. It led to increases in the proportions of Cryptophyta (to pH 10) and Chlorophyta (to pH 11). Although ample inocula were present, significant growths of cyanophytes were not recorded, contrary to expectation. 3. Increasing pH led to increases in numbers of Daphnia hyalina particularly at pH 10 but collapse at pH 11. This persistence at pH 10, independent of perch number, is attributed to reduced feeding of the fish, which survived at this pH. Other zooplankters (Ceriodaphnia spp., Bosmina longirostris, Polyphemus pediculus, Cyclops spp.) all declined with increasing pH. 4. Increasing fish density resulted in an increase in chlorophyll a concentration and in the biomass of Chlorophyta but had no effect on cyanophyte or cryptophyte biomass. 5. Increasing fish density led to declines in Daphnia in the untreated lake-water controls (pH < 9) and at pH 9, but had no effect at pH 10 where Daphnia hyalina was very abundant. Numbers of Ceriodaphnia spp. and Bosmina longirostris increased with increasing fish density, whilst numbers of Polyphemus pediculus and Cyclops spp. were independent of it. 6. The results are discussed in the light of contemporary knowledge of the factors resulting in large cyanophyte growths and of the factors controlling the stability of macrophyte-dominated and phytoplankton-dominated states in shallow lakes. The interaction between pH and fish density and consequent non-linear response of Daphnia hyalina is particularly notable because of the significance of zooplankton grazing in shallow lakes.     

Phonetic Ability and Related Anatomy of the Newborn and Adult Human, Neanderthal Man, and the Chimpanzee

The sounds of human speech make human language a rapid medium of communication through a process of speech "encoding." The presence of sounds like the vowels [a], [i], and [u] makes this process possible. The supralaryngeal vocal tracts of newborn Homo sapiens and chimpanzee are similar and resemble the reconstructed vocal tract of the fossil La Chapelle-aux-Saints Neanderthal man. Vocal tract area functions that were directed toward making best possible approximations to the human vowels [a], [i], and [u], as well as certain consonantal configurations, were modeled by means of a computer program. The lack of these vowels in the phonetic repertories of these creatures, who lack a supralaryngeal pharyngeal region like that of adult Homo sapiens, may be concomitant with the absence of speech encoding and a consequently linguistic ability inferior to modern man.     

Microfilaments, Cell Shape Changes, and Morphogenesis of Salivary Epithelium

The evidence supporting the idea that microfilament-mediatedcell shape changes produce morphogenetic movements of the salivaryepithelium is reviewed. The correlations between microfilamentsand morphogenesis and microtubules and morphogenesis, as revealedby experiments with cytochalasin B and colchicine respectively,are compared and contrasted. On the basis of a correlation betweenmicrofilament integrity and epithelial morphogenesis, and anactin-like nature of microfilaments to bind heavy meromyosin,it is proposed that microfilament contraction is required forcleft formation in the epithelium. Several ways in which microfilamentactivity might be regulated during morphogenesis are discussedin the framework of experiments that may comment on such regulation.     

The flow of food in colonies of the fire ant, Solenopsis invicta: a multifactorial study

ABSTRACT. A study was conducted to determine the interaction of several factors in the trophallactic distribution of food in colonies of Solenopsis invicta Buren. Radioactive iodine (¹²⁵I) was used to quantify both the ingestion of test foods by foragers and the distribution of this food to nestmates. A multifactorial design tested the simultaneous effects of: (1) food-type (sugar water, casein hydrolysate, or oil), (2) temperature during foraging and food-sharing (25, 30 or 35°C), and (3) starvation period (colonies deprived for 0, 3, 7 or 14 days). The amount of food consumed by foragers was influenced by the interaction of food-type and starvation. Foragers from severely starved colonies ingested more aqueous foods than did those from slightly starved colonies, but oil was always taken in smaller quantities and its ingestion was least affected by starvation. Ingestion was generally lowest at 35°C, probably because of mutual interference of workers while feeding. Within the colony, food sharing varied with food type and increased with starvation. The sugar solution was utilized primarily by workers. Amino acids were shared throughout the colony, but were directed preferentially to the growing larvae. Soy oil was equally shared among workers and larvae and reached more colony members per initial unit volume than did the other foods. The test factors also interacted in their influence on trophallaxis. Starvation stimulated the dispersal of labelled foods, but at different intensities for different foods. The probability of the queen's receiving food increased when the labelled food was widely exchanged among her nestmates. Casein hydrolysate reached the queen in more cases than did the other tested foods.     

Regional growth patterns in the hypocotyls of etiolated and green cress seedlings in light and darkness

Abstract. A system is described whereby seedling development can be analysed in terms of growth rates of specific 1 mm regions of the hypocotyl. The technique involves time-lapse photography of marked hypocotyls in a specially designed chamber which accommodates seedlings in various orientations with respect to gravity, and under irradiation regimes differing in light quality, quantity and direction. The results of a preliminary study of the upward growth of etiolated or green cress seedlings in darkness or overhead while light are reported. Highest growth rates in etiolated seedlings were observed in zones in the upper one-third of ihe hypocotyl. In green seedlings, growth was more prominent within the subapical zones. Light further restricted growth of the median and basal zones in both types of seedling. However, in their immediate responses to the onset of irradiation, green and etiolated seedlings differed markedly. In etiolated seedlings, recovery of growth at the apex was accompanied by the development of inhibition in the median-basal regions; green seedlings showed a transient inhibition of growth in the apical zone together with a strong immediate inhibition in the median-basal regions.     

ASSESSMENT OF POTENTIAL BIAS WITH SNOWSHOE HARE FECAL PELLET-PLOT COUNTS

Abstract: The fecal pellet-plot method has been used extensively for snowshoe hare (Lepus americanus) population studies across the species' range, but potential biases associated with the technique have not been addressed adequately. We studied hare pellet-plots in northern Idaho to quantify pellet decomposition rates across environmental gradients, and conducted feeding trials on captive hares to assess the role of diet on pellet production rates. We found that across our study area pellet numbers tended to be higher on plots with high vegetative cover, which likely was a reflection of hare habitat choice rather than lesser pellet decomposition in such habitat. A pellet decomposition experiment indicated that pellet persistence was negatively related to moisture level, and that pellets produced by hares during summer decomposed more quickly than those from winter. We found that only 19% of fecal pellets collected from plots located across northern Idaho were produced by hares during winter. There was a correlation between pellet numbers from plots that were pre-cleared 1 year earlier and estimated numbers of hares on 6 study areas. A similar correlation was lacking for pellet counts from uncleared plots, implying that hare population estimation via pellet-plot counts should involve plot pre-clearing. In captive studies, juvenile hares produced slightly fewer pellets per day per gram of food ingested than adults, but pellet production was similar across diets comprised of 10 different browse species. We conclude that for our study area the fecal pellet-plot method may be subject to notable pellet decomposition bias, and therefore recommend that use of the method elsewhere across the species' range be preceded by assessment of both the pellet-hare density relationship and pellet decomposition rates across habitats.