There are many different traps available for studying fly populations. The aim of this study was to find the most suitable trap to collect synanthropic fly populations to assess the impact of ...increased latrine coverage in the state of Odisha, India.
Different baits were assessed for use in sticky pot traps (60% sucrose solution, 60 g dry sucrose, half a tomato and an non-baited control), followed by different colours of trap (blue versus yellow) and finally different types of trap (baited sticky pot trap versus sticky card traps). The experiments were undertaken in a semi-urban slum area of Bhubaneswar, the capital of Odisha. The first experiment was conducted in 16 households over 30 nights while experiments 2 and 3 were conducted in 5 households over 30 nights.
The traps predominantly caught adult Musca domestica and M. sorbens (78.4, 62.6, 83.8% combined total in experiments 1-3 respectively). Non-baited traps did not catch more flies (median 7.0, interquartile range, IQR: 0.0-24.0) compared with baited traps (sucrose solution: 6.5, 1.0-27.0; dry sucrose: 5.0, 0.5-14.5; tomato: 5.0, 1.5-17.5). However, there were significantly more flies collected on blue sticky pot traps, which caught nearly three times as many flies as yellow sticky pot traps (Incidence Rate Ratio, IRR = 2.91; 95% CI: 1.77-4.79); P < 0.001). Sticky card traps (27, 8-58) collected significantly more flies than the non-baited sticky pot traps (10, 1.5-30.5).
Blue sticky card traps can be recommended for the capture of synanthropic fly species as they are non-intrusive to residents, easy to use, readily allow for species identification, and collect sufficient quantities of flies over 12 hours for use in monitoring and control programmes.
Surface and groundwater contamination with fecal pathogens is a public health concern especially in low-income settings where these sources are used untreated. We modeled observed Cryptosporidium and ...Giardia contamination in community ponds (n = 94; 79% contaminated), deep tubewells (DTWs) (n = 107; 17%), and shallow tubewells (STWs) (n = 96; 19%) during the 2012 and 2013 monsoon seasons (June–August) in 60 villages in Puri District, India to understand sources and processes of contamination. Detection of Cryptosporidium and/or Giardia in a tubewell was positively associated with damage to the well pad for DTWs, the amount of human loading into pour-flush latrine pits nearby (≤15 m) for STWs, and the village literacy rate (for Giardia in STWs). Pond concentration levels were positively associated with the number of people practicing open defecation within 50 m and the sheep population for Cryptosporidium, and with the village illiteracy rate for Giardia. Recent rainfall increased the risk of Cryptosporidium in STWs (an extreme event) and ponds (any), while increasing seasonal rainfall decreased the risk of Giardia in STWs and ponds. Full latrine coverage in this setting is expected to marginally reduce pond Cryptosporidium contamination (16%) while increasing local groundwater protozoal contamination (87–306%), with the largest increases predicted for Cryptosporidium in STWs.
Androgens, brain, and behavior Rubinow, D R; Schmidt, P J
The American journal of psychiatry,
08/1996, Letnik:
153, Številka:
8
Journal Article
Recenzirano
This article defines androgens (and anabolic steroids), describes their mechanisms of action, and summarizes their behavioral effects and relevance in animals and humans.
A MEDLINE-derived review of ...the literature on androgens and behavior was performed; pivotal earlier publications were also obtained and included in the review.
In animals, the effects of androgens on brain structure and function are well-established and profound, with behavioral implications extending far beyond reproduction. Androgens play a prominent role in the organization or programming of brain circuits, which are subsequently activated by gonadal steroids. In humans, roles for androgens have been described, albeit inconsistently, in the regulation of sexuality, aggression, cognition, emotion, and personality. The relevance of androgens for psychiatry is further suggested by gender-related differences in pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics and in the prevalence, course, and treatment response characteristics of several psychiatric disorders. Direct psychoactive effects of exogenously administered androgens have been described for many years, most recently in reports of the psychotoxic effects of anabolic steroids.
Data from both animals and humans suggest that the biological and behavioral responses to androgens are context-dependent.
•Liquid resonances in phononic structures for liquid sensor application.•Semi-transparent phononic crystal reflectors for liquid cavity excitation.•Resonances of cylindrical liquid inclusions ...constituting the phononic crystal.•Control of conventional petroleum products with phononic crystal sensors.
Periodic elastic structures attracted a great attention because of their ability to be designed with artificial acoustic properties. The ability to control the wave propagation and the spectral properties of transmitting or reflecting elastic waves allow to design the sensor structures that are able to exhibit a significant improvement in comparison to currently existing approaches. This contribution is specifically focused on the study of liquid induced resonances of solid-liquid periodic composite arrangements at the frequency range corresponding to the structure bandgap. In this work we bring together several structure designs and study their behavior with specific attention to resonances of liquid constituents. Developed sensor structures are investigated in terms of a frequency spectra variation depending on the speed of sound of a liquid analyte that constitutes the periodic arrangement. From the application side, the work is focused at an in-line analysis of conventional petroleum products and their additives. The sensor measuring circuit is only acoustically coupled to the petroleum under investigation that ensures the safety of proposed approach and allows minimizing the explosion risk in an emergency case. Both, numerical simulations and experimental results clearly disclose the ways and conceptual advantages of the phononic crystal based approach for the specified liquid sensor application.
Background
Plants perform in a specific Eh–pH spectrum and they rely on various processes to ensure their homeostasis, which plays a central role in their defense. The effects of multiple stresses, ...all translated into oxidative stress into the plant, and the capacity of the latter to respond to these stresses results in specific Eh–pH states in plants.
Scope
We reviewed plant-invertebrate pests and plant-pathogens interactions under a Eh–pH homeostasis perspective by extensively analyzing the literature, which converges and supports a set of hypotheses. We report examples showing how the development and attacks of pests are correlated to spatio-temporal variations of Eh–pH in plants. We provide evidence-based discussion on how Eh–pH homeostasis can open a new perspective on plant health, and help unravel and disentangle the many Genotype x Environment x Management x Pest and Pathogen interactions. We propose an original perspective on energy allocation and growth-defense tradeoff by plants based on the Eh–pH homeostasis model. Finally, we show how Eh–pH conditions in the rhizosphere are the results of multiple interactions between the root system and microorganisms. Based on this, we hypothesize that soil suppressiveness is derived from soil structure leading to diverse Eh–pH niches that harbor a diversity of microorganisms.
Conclusions
The Eh–pH homeostasis model proposed herein is central to soil and plant health. An Eh–pH perspective could become a very powerful tool to develop a “one health approach” unifying a large range of bio-physical processes in a very coherent and consistent manner.
Around the margins of Asmara, Eritrea, hundreds of sites dating to the early and mid-first millennium BC have been documented. They range from single family dwellings to small and large hamlets, ...small and large villages, and small towns. We call these Ancient Ona sites, using the Tigrinya term for ruin. Our findings testify to significant subsistence, ritual, and economic variation within a region of 12 by 17 km: (1) different subsistence strategies in the well-watered, open basin to the west of Asmara (emmer wheat, barley; cattle) compared to the uplands north and east of Asmara (lentil, teff; goats/sheep); (2) ritual events, marked by stone bulls' heads and a huge ash deposit at Sembel Kushet, that brought people together in rites of passage and intensification during Meskel-like ceremonies, including ritual exchange; and (3) the exploitation of gold north of Asmara among heterarchically organized communities that exchanged specialized products within this region. /// Aux environs d' Asmara, en Erythrée, des centaines de sites datant du début et milieu du premier millénaire avant notre ère ont été recensés. Ils comprennent des habitations unifamiliales, des hameaux de taille diverse, des villages petits et grands, ainsi que des petites villes. Nous appelons ces vestiges ' sites Ona anciens,' en nous inspirant du terme Tigrinya désignant une ruine. Nos trouvailles démontrent une diversité considérable en matière d'économie, de moyens subsistance, et pratiques rituelles dans une région de 12 par 17 kilomètres: 1) Les stratégies de subsistance employées dans le bassin ouvert et bien arrosé a l'ouest d'Asmara (amidonnier, avoine, bovins) diffèrent de celles en usage dans les hautes terres au nord et à l'est d'Asmara (lentille, teff, chèvres/moutons); 2) Les événements rituels sont représentés par des tètes de taureaux en pierre et par un dépôt énorme de cendres à Sembel Kushet; ils rassemblaient les gens dans des rites de passage et rites d'intensification similaires à ceux des cérémonies de Meskel; 3) Au nord d'Asmara, l'or était exploité par des communautés ' hétérarchiques' impliquées dans des échanges de produits spécialisés dans la région.
Scrub typhus and spotted fever group rickettsioses are thought to be common causes of febrile illness in India, whereas they rarely test for murine typhus. This cross-sectional study explored the ...risk factors associated with scrub typhus, tick-borne spotted fever, and murine typhus seropositivity in three different geographical settings, urban, rural, and hill villages in Tamil Nadu, South India. We enrolled 1,353 participants living in 48 clusters. The study included a questionnaire survey and blood sampling. Blood was tested for
(scrub typhus),
(murine typhus), and spotted fever group
IgG using ELISA. The seroprevalence of scrub typhus, spotted fever, and murine typhus were 20.4%, 10.4%, and 5.4%, respectively. Scrub typhus had the highest prevalence in rural areas (28.1%), and spotted fever was most common in peri-forested areas (14.9%). Murine typhus was more common in rural (8.7%) than urban areas (5.4%) and absent in peri-forested hill areas. Agricultural workers had a higher relative risk for scrub typhus, especially in urban areas. For murine typhus, proximity to a waterbody and owning a dog were found to be major risk factors. The main risk factors for spotted fever were agricultural work and living in proximity to a forest. Urban, rural plains, and hill settings display distinct epidemiological pattern of
and rickettsial infections. Although scrub typhus and spotted fever were associated with known risk factors in this study, the findings suggest a different ecology of murine typhus transmission compared with other studies conducted in Asia.
The phrase bêt ’ābîkā “your father’s house” in Num 18.1 is often translated as referring to the Levites or the Kohathites. I suggest the reference is, rather, to Aaron’s own family and descendants. ...That is, the whole of v. 1 refers to the priests only. The possessive suffix -kā “your” does not refer to ’āb “father,” but to the compound noun bêt ’āb “father’s house,” an expression that means “family.” The two lines in v. 1 should be read as synonymous lines, not as contrasting ones. In both lines Aaron’s family stands in contrast to the whole tribe of Levi, which is not mentioned until v. 2. This understanding is confirmed by a chiastic structure that underlies the passage. Translating the phrase with “your family” (i.e., Aaron’s own family, not his family of origin) is recommended. Further translation issues in the passage are addressed.
Burning the Breadboard Schmidt, Peter
Eudora Welty review,
04/2020, Letnik:
12, Številka:
1
Journal Article, Magazine Article
Odprti dostop
Yet, burning other possessions dear to Laurel's mother and father (Judge McKelva) is shown to be a necessary act of release and forgiveness for Welty's protagonist, as she learns that the past-her ...parents' possessions and best selves-cannot be defended or honored by using the methods she first tries, which involve blockage, denial, and a self-satisfied sense of her own superiority. Becky McKelva's impassioned recitation on her deathbed of Robert Southey's poem "The Cataract of Lodore" was her plea to be released from death's trial and imprisonment, and from what she took to be her family's willful misunderstanding of her crisis: "With her voice Becky was saying that the more she could call back of 'The Cataract of Lodore,' the better she could defend her case in some trial that seemed to be going on against her life" (OD 973). Hunt's painting and Tennyson's poem are useful lenses through which readers may see how Welty's portrait of Laurel Hand departs from influential nineteenth-century criticisms of women's creativity. In the process, such an approach demonstrates how Welty radically interprets the Perseus and Medusa story (which also involves mirrors) and, by extension, her different understanding of the meaning of mimesis in art and literature.
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