Identification of Biologically Relevant Compounds in Aboveground and Belowground Induced Volatile Blends

Plants under attack by aboveground herbivores emit complex blends of volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Specific compounds in these blends are used by parasitic wasps to find their hosts. Belowground induction causes shifts in the composition of aboveground induced VOC blends, which affect the preference of parasitic wasps. To identify which of the many volatiles in the complex VOC blends may explain parasitoid preference poses a challenge to ecologists. Here, we present a case study in which we use a novel bioinformatics approach to identify biologically relevant differences between VOC blends of feral cabbage (Brassica oleracea L.). The plants were induced aboveground or belowground with jasmonic acid (JA) and shoot feeding caterpillars (Pieris brassicae or P. rapae). We used Partial Least Squares—Discriminant Analysis (PLSDA) to integrate and visualize the relation between plant-emitted VOCs and the preference of female Cotesia glomerata. Overall, female wasps preferred JA-induced plants over controls, but they strongly preferred aboveground JA-induced plants over belowground JA-induced plants. PLSDA revealed that the emission of several monoterpenes was enhanced similarly in all JA-treated plants, whereas homoterpenes and sesquiterpenes increased exclusively in aboveground JA-induced plants. Wasps may use the ratio between these two classes of terpenes to discriminate between aboveground and belowground induced plants. Additionally, it shows that aboveground applied JA induces different VOC biosynthetic pathways than JA applied to the root. Our bioinformatic approach, thus, successfully identified which VOCs matched the preferences of the wasps in the various choice tests. Additionally, the analysis generated novel hypotheses about the role of JA as a signaling compound in aboveground and belowground induced responses in plants.     

MnS doped mesoporous silica catalysts for the generation of novel carbon nanocages

Novel MnS impregnated mesoporous silica systems have been originated for the generation of carbon nanocages. The procedure involves a simple catalytic vapour deposition (CVD) method. This is the first time that a transition metal sulfide has been used for the synthesis of carbon nanostructures.     

The feasibility of a mixed reality surgical training environment

The Sheffield knee arthroscopy training system (SKATS) was originally a visual-based virtual environment without haptic feedback, but has been further developed as a mixed reality-training environment through the use of tactile augmentation (or passive haptics). The design of the new system is outlined and then tested. In the first experiment described, the effect of tactile augmentation on performance is considered by comparing novice performance using the original and mixed reality system. In the second experiment the mixed reality system is assessed in terms of construct validity by comparing the performance of users with differing levels of surgical expertise. The results are discussed in terms of the validity of a mixed reality environment for training knee arthroscopy.     

Loneliness predicts increased blood pressure: 5-year cross-lagged analyses in middle-aged and older adults.

Loneliness is a prevalent social problem with serious physiological and health implications. However, much of the research to date is based on cross-sectional data, including our own earlier finding that loneliness was associated with elevated blood pressure (Hawkley, Masi, Berry & Cacioppo, 2006). In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the effect of loneliness accumulates to produce greater increases in systolic blood pressure (SBP) over a 4-year period than are observed in less lonely individuals. A population-based sample of 229 50- to 68-year-old White, Black, and Hispanic men and women in the Chicago Health, Aging, and Social Relations Study was tested annually for each of 5 consecutive years. Cross-lagged panel analyses revealed that loneliness at study onset predicted increases in SBP 2, 3, and 4 years later (B = 0.152, SE = 0.091, p     

Generativity and moral development as predictors of value-socialization narratives for young persons across the adult life span: From lessons learned to stories shared.

Little research so far has examined storytelling as a channel of value socialization. In the present study, 129 adults from 3 age groups (18–26, 28–50, 60–75) were asked to tell stories for adolescents about 2 of their past value-learning experiences. Generative concern (D. P. McAdams & E. de St. Aubin, 1992) and moral reasoning stage level were also assessed. Stronger generative concern was predictive of a greater sense of having learned important lessons from these past events, of stronger adult value socialization investment, and of more engaging narratives for adolescents as judged by a panel of uninstructed raters. Higher levels of moral reasoning were positively related to generative concern and to a stronger sense of past lessons learned. Generativity appears important to the project of value socialization across the adult life span. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Teaching reading to poor readers in the intermediate grades: A comparison of text difficulty.

The authors compared the influence of text difficulty--reading-level matched or grade-level matched--on the growth of poor readers' reading ability over 18 weeks of 1-to-1 tutoring. Forty-six 3rd-5th graders, including 25 with disabilities, were assigned randomly to 1 of 2 tutoring approaches or a control condition. Significant differences favored tutored children. Between approaches, the only significant difference was oral reading fluency, which favored students who read material at their reading level. Students who began with lower fluency made stronger gains in text matched to reading level; students with higher fluency profited from both treatments. When the 3 groups were combined, fluency was the strongest contributor to reading comprehension outcomes. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Core neurocognitive functions in children treated for posterior fossa tumors.

Identifying cognitive deficits associated with pediatric brain tumors and their treatment is important in delineating the mechanisms of intellectual decline often associated with these diseases. The authors evaluated sustained attention, information processing speed, working memory, and IQ in 64 patients with posterior fossa tumors, including those treated with either: (a) surgery and cranial radiation (n = 32), and (b) surgery without radiation (n = 32). Ten patients treated for non-CNS solid tumors were included as a comparison group. The authors also examined the impact of relevant demographic and medical variables on neurocognitive outcome. The authors found that neither age at, nor time since, diagnosis predicted cognitive outcome in this sample. Further, sustained attention and working memory were largely intact and there were no differences between groups. Patients treated with cranial radiation demonstrated lowered short-form IQ and slow information processing speed: Patients treated with cranial radiation and who experienced postsurgical complications demonstrated the poorest performance. The authors consider information processing speed to be an excellent candidate mechanism in understanding the impact of cranial radiation on intellectual outcome. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

How to change attitudes and behaviours in the context of energy

It is commonly assumed that attitudes and behaviours need to be modified to secure a sustainable energy future. This paper examines insights from the social sciences in this extensive field. Alongside instruments such as regulation and economic measures, government campaigns have sought to ‘educate’ the public. However, such ‘information deficit’ models have been criticised on theoretical and pragmatic grounds. In the area of energy consumption, there is a need to take account of the physical, social, cultural and institutional contexts that shape and constrain people's choices, and for a richer understanding of opposition to energy facility siting, which has often been (inadequately) characterised as ‘NIMBYism’. Recent work also points to the need for more deliberation and better communication between decision-makers, technical experts, other stakeholders and the public. Predicting future developments in the field is challenging but attention is likely to focus on aspects of policy learning, a more critical examination of the ‘deliberative turn’, and the need for a systemic approach to complex socio-economic and socio-technical systems. The consistency of government objectives across all policy spheres is likely to provide an important avenue for future research.