Taste flashes: reaction times, intensity, and quality

Human simple reaction times and magnitude estimates of taste intensity increased as the duration of 500-millimolar sodium chloride or 2-millimolar saccharin sodium pulses lengthened from 100 to 1000 milliseconds. Responses to "What was the taste?" ranged from 94 to 100 percent "sweet" for saccharin and 68 to 83 percent "salty" for salt across all pulse durations when both substances were randomized with water pulses.     

A global map of human impact on marine ecosystems

The management and conservation of the world's oceans require synthesis of spatial data on the distribution and intensity of human activities and the overlap of their impacts on marine ecosystems. We developed an ecosystem-specific, multiscale spatial model to synthesize 17 global data sets of anthropogenic drivers of ecological change for 20 marine ecosystems. Our analysis indicates that no area is unaffected by human influence and that a large fraction (41%) is strongly affected by multiple drivers. However, large areas of relatively little human impact remain, particularly near the poles. The analytical process and resulting maps provide flexible tools for regional and global efforts to allocate conservation resources; to implement ecosystem-based management; and to inform marine spatial planning, education, and basic research.     

Bacillus piliformis infection (tyzzer's disease) in two Virginia foals

Two foals from different farms in Virginia were examined for dullness and inappetence in June and October, 1984. They were febrile, icteric and responded initially to treatment with intravenous glucose, and trimethoprim-sulfa but became comatose and died approximately 24 hours after the onset of clinical signs. Each foal was diagnosed as having necrotic hepatitis caused by Bacillus piliformis.     

Procedure for Maximizing Oocyte Harvest for In Vitro Embryo Production in Small Ruminants

Possible effects of repeated hormonal treatments and laparoscopic ovum pick-up (LOPU) on the efficiency of oocyte recovery rate and quality were determined in sheep and goats. In six adult Merino sheep and five Criolla goats, ovarian status was synchronized by a prostaglandin F(2 alpha) analogue and the insertion of an intravaginal sponge 48 h later. Follicle development was stimulated by a single dose of FSH (60 mg NIH-FSH-P1) plus a single dose of equine chorionic gonadotrophin (eCG; 300 UI). The first FSH/eCG doses were administered 48 h after the sponge insertion, being repeated every 4 days to complete a total of four treatments in sheep and three in goats. Follicles in both ovaries were categorized according to their diameter and follicular fluid was aspirated under laparoscopic observation without a vacuum pump. In sheep, during a 12-day-period, a total of 347 follicles were aspirated with a recovery rate of 46.9%. In goats, during an 8-day-period, 219 follicles were aspirated with a recovery rate of 45.6%. In both species, there were no significant differences in the number of aspirated follicles, oocyte recovery rate and good quality oocyte recovery rate. However, in sheep the oocyte recovery rate was higher for large follicles, whereas in goats no such effect was detected. In summary, current results indicate that retrieval of oocytes can be maximized, without affecting oocyte quality, by repeating 'oneshot' FSH/eCG regimes and LOPUs at intervals as short as 4 days.     

A new ornithological record,Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi Swinhoe,1863,from Xinjiang

On 15 September,2010,a Pechora Pipit Anthus gustavi Swinhoe was found in the Hami prefecture(41°13’N and 93°29’E,1,143 m a.s.l.),Xinjiang,during the period of a comprehensive scientific survey in Lop Nur region.The bird,which was photographed,is a new avian record for Xinjiang.The pipit reproduces in northern Eurasia,mainly in wide meadows and low hills,and can be found in open forests and nearby residential areas in the process of on migration.The species is an insectivore and is a rare migrant or vagrant in Xinjiang.The geographical distribution,character,habitat,ecological habit and subspecies of the Pechora Pipit were discussed in this paper.     

Mapping species richness and human impact drivers to inform global pelagic conservation prioritisation

Given the widely recognized need to better protect the oceans but limited resources to do so, methods for prioritizing potential protected area sites are important. This is particularly true for the open oceans, where few protected areas currently exist and data availability is limited. Here, we examine the relationship between the distributions of tuna and billfish species richness (an indicator of pelagic biodiversity), the human impact drivers of fishing pressure (quantified as cumulative removals) and sea surface temperature increase (quantified as the increase in large positive anomalies) in tropical to temperate oceans at the scale of a 5° × 5° grid. We investigate relationships using Generalised Additive Models and Regression Tree analysis, and identify the top 50 “hotspot” cells for species richness and each of the two impact drivers. We find that both impact drivers significantly overlap with high species richness, but relationships are complex, non-linear and ocean-basin specific. Higher fishing pressure is associated with higher species richness in the Indian and Pacific Oceans, and this overlap is particularly prominent in the central Pacific, and in the Indian Ocean around Sri Lanka. In the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, species richness is generally higher in areas that have seen lower levels of change in sea surface temperature and only one cell, near Easter Island, is a hotspot for species richness and sea surface temperature increase. While species richness and impact drivers overlap in some areas, there are many areas with high species richness and limited apparent impact. This suggests that area-based conservation strategies that aim to protect areas of high pelagic biodiversity may be achievable with limited displacement of fishing effort.     

The dog genome: survey sequencing and comparative analysis

A survey of the dog genome sequence (6.22 million sequence reads; 1.5x coverage) demonstrates the power of sample sequencing for comparative analysis of mammalian genomes and the generation of species-specific resources. More than 650 million base pairs (>25%) of dog sequence align uniquely to the human genome, including fragments of putative orthologs for 18,473 of 24,567 annotated human genes. Mutation rates, conserved synteny, repeat content, and phylogeny can be compared among human, mouse, and dog. A variety of polymorphic elements are identified that will be valuable for mapping the genetic basis of diseases and traits in the dog.     

Rubidium-strontium date of possibly 3 billion years for a granitic rock from antarctica

A single total rock sample of biotite granite from Jule Peaks, Antarctica, has been dated by the rubidium-strontium method at about 3 billion years. The juxtaposition of this sector of Antarctica with Africa in the Dietz and Sproll continental drift reconstruction results in a possible geochronologic fit of the Princess Martha Coast of Antarctica with a covered possible notheastern extension of the African Swaziland Shield, which contains granitic rocks that are also 3 billion years old.     

Killer whale predation on sea otters linking oceanic and nearshore ecosystems

After nearly a century of recovery from overhunting, sea otter populations are in abrupt decline over large areas of western Alaska. Increased killer whale predation is the likely cause of these declines. Elevated sea urchin density and the consequent deforestation of kelp beds in the nearshore community demonstrate that the otter's keystone role has been reduced or eliminated. This chain of interactions was probably initiated by anthropogenic changes in the offshore oceanic ecosystem.