Palmer amaranth (Amaranthus palmeri S. Watson) was first reported in Iowa in 2013 and has continued to spread across the state over the last decade. Amaranthus palmeri is widely recognized as one of the more economically important weeds in production agriculture. The presence of A. palmeri in Iowa is concerning as the species has evolved resistance to ten herbicide sites of action, however, no formal characterization has been conducted on Iowa populations. Therefore, herbicide assays were conducted on an A. palmeri population collected in Harrison County, IA, in 2023 (Southwest Palmer Amaranth [SWPA]) and a known herbicide-susceptible population collected from Nebraska in 2001 (Palmer Amaranth Susceptible [PAS]). The two populations were treated with preemergence and postemergence herbicides commonly used in Iowa. The treatments included preemergence applications of atrazine, metribuzin, and mesotrione and postemergence applications of atrazine, imazethapyr, glyphosate, lactofen, mesotrione, glufosinate, 2,4-D, and dicamba at 1× and 4× the labeled rates. Survival frequency of SWPA was >90% when treated postemergence with 1× rates of imazethapyr, atrazine, glyphosate, and mesotrione compared with ≤6% for PAS. Both SWPA and PAS had 0% survival when treated with lactofen, glufosinate, 2,4-D, and dicamba at the 1× or 4× rates. Plant population density reduction for SWPA was 53% and 40% in response to 1× rates of preemergence-applied mesotrione and atrazine, respectively. Metribuzin applied preemergence reduced SWPA plant population density by >90% at both rates. Dose–response experiments revealed the 50% effective doses (ED50) of mesotrione, glyphosate, imazethapyr, and atrazine for SWPA were 9.5-,8.5-, 71-, and 40-fold greater than for PAS, respectively. The results confirm that SWPA is four-way multiple-herbicide resistant. Amaranthus palmeri infestations are likely to continue to spread within Iowa; therefore, diversified weed management programs that include early detection, rapid response, and effective multi-tactic management strategies will be required for control.

Wortupaite (IMA2022–107) is a new hydrated magnesium nickel tellurite mineral with a zemannite-like structure, described from the Wortupa gold mine, South Australia, Australia. Wortupaite forms needles up to 25 μm in length, generally clustered and sometimes in blocky masses of shorter (10‒15 μm) crystals. Wortupaite is found growing on melonite, from which the component nickel and tellurium are derived, and is associated with calcite. The strongest powder diffraction lines are [dobsÅ(Iobs)(hkl)]: 8.059 (93) (100), 4.034 (92) (200), 2.832 (43) (211 and 121), 2.769 (100) (202) and 1.920 (45) (213 and 123). The empirical formula of wortupaite as determined by electron probe microanalysis is (Mg0.57Ni0.39Mn0.04)Σ1(Ni2+1.87Fe3+0.13)Σ2(Te4+O3)3⋅3H2O, simplified to the ideal formula of MgNi2+2(Te4+O3)3⋅3H2O with H2O content calculated from the crystal structure. The average crystal structure of wortupaite was determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction with synchrotron radiation (R1 = 0.0558 for 100 independent reflections). Wortupaite is hexagonal, crystallising in the space group P63/m, with a = 9.2215(13) Å, c = 7.5150(15) Å, V = 553.43(19) Å3 and Z = 2. Wortupaite has a microporous structure, with the negatively charged zemannite-like framework formed by Te4+O3 trigonal pyramids and Ni2+O6 octahedra. For charge balance, Mg2+ and Ni2+ dominant sites are assumed to be located on central sites in the channels, coordinated by 6 H2O groups. An OW site was refined around the Mg2+ dominant site, but OW position(s) were not locatable around the Ni2+ dominant site. A discussion of the different models for crystallographic arrangement of channel species is provided, taking into account possible Fourier truncation effects. Unlike the other four minerals with zemannite-like structures which have a near 50% split of divalent and trivalent framework cations, wortupaite is the first natural phase to have only divalent cations in the framework sites.

This paper uses the Current Population Survey to study older workers' transitions out of employment and into retirement during the first year of the pandemic. We find that, among workers ages 55 to 79, the likelihood of leaving employment over the course of a year rose by 6.7 percentage points, a 43-percent increase over baseline. Workers without a college degree, Asian–Americans, those whose jobs were not amenable to social distancing, and part-time workers saw disproportionate impacts. In contrast, the likelihood of retiring increased by 1 percentage point, and there was no immediate retirement boom for full-time workers under 70.

Competition between genotypes within a plant population can result in the displacement of the least competitive by more competitive genotypes. Although evolutionary processes in plants may occur over thousands and millions of years, it has been suggested that changes in key fitness traits could occur in as little as decades, with herbicide resistance being a common example. However, the rapid evolution of complex traits has not been proven in weeds. We hypothesized that changes in weed growth and competitive ability can occur in just a few years because of selection in agroecosystems. Seed of multiple generations of a single natural population of the grassy weed giant foxtail (Setaria faberi Herrm.) were collected during 34 yr (i.e., 1983 to 2017). Using a “resurrection” approach, we characterized life-history traits of the different year-lines under noncompetitive and competitive conditions. Replacement-series experiments comparing the growth of the oldest year-line (1983) versus newer year-lines (1991, 1996, 1998, 2009, and 2017) showed that plant competitive ability decreased and then increased progressively in accordance with oscillating selection. The adaptations in competitive ability were reflected in dynamic changes in leaf area and biomass when plants were in competition. The onset of increased competitive ability coincided with the introduction of herbicide-resistant crops in the landscape in 1996. We also conducted a genome-wide association study and identified four loci that were associated with increased competitive ability over time, confirming that this trait changed in response to directional selection. Putative transcription factors and cell wall–associated enzymes were linked to those loci. This is the first study providing direct in situ evidence of rapid directional evolution of competitive ability in a plant species. The results suggest that agricultural systems can exert enough pressure to cause evolutionary adaptations of complex life-history traits, potentially increasing weediness and invasiveness.

The prevention of unnecessary suffering at slaughter is considered to be an imperative and, as such, the majority of animals slaughtered under industrial conditions are stunned prior to slaughter by mechanical, electrical or gas inhalation means. However, many Orthodox Jewish and Muslim communities do not accept pre-slaughter stunning. Those Jewish and Muslim communities that do accept pre-slaughter stunning require that any such stun is fully reversible in order to meet the requirements of their religious laws. Head-only electrical stunning is widely used in sheep, as it is a reversible method of stunning, but in cattle, the stun duration can be so short that the animal may regain consciousness during exsanguination. The concept of using electromagnetic radiation to induce insensibility has been proposed. Early attempts to induce insensibility and death in laboratory species were successful, but the technology to apply the technique to larger animals was not available at that time. More recently, however, technological advances have led to new work in the areas of transcranial magnetic stimulation and microwave irradiation, both of which are potential methods of inducing a recoverable stun in larger species.

Stunning prior to slaughter is commonly used to render the animal insensible to pain. However, for certain markets, stunning is disallowed, unless the animal can fully recover if not slaughtered. There are very few available methods of inducing a fully recoverable stun. This preliminary study investigates the potential for microwave energy application to be used to induce a recoverable stun in sheep. Cadaver heads were used to demonstrate that brain temperature could be raised to a point at which insensibility would be expected to occur (44°C). Trials on four anaesthetised sheep confirmed this finding in a live animal model where brain temperatures between 43 and 48°C were achieved with 20 s of microwave energy application. Although the applicator and process variables require some further development, this technology seems eminently suitable for use as an alternative method of inducing a recoverable stun.

Strong lensing galaxy clusters provide a powerful observational test of Cold Dark Matter (CDM) structure predictions derived from simulation. Specifically, the shape and relative alignments of the dark matter halo, stars, and hot intracluster gas tells us the extent to which theoretical structure predictions hold for clusters in various dynamical states. We measure the position angles, ellipticities, and locations/centroids of the brightest cluster galaxy (BCG), intracluster light (ICL), the hot intracluster medium (ICM), and the core lensing mass for a sample of strong lensing galaxy clusters from the SDSS Giant Arcs Survey (SGAS). We use iterative elliptical isophote fitting methods and GALFIT modeling on HST WFC3/IR imaging data to extract ICL and BCG information and use CIAO’s Sherpa modeling on Chandra ACIS-I X-ray data to make measurements of the ICM. Using this multicomponent approach, we attempt to constrain the physical state of these strong lensing clusters and evaluate the different observable components in terms of their ability to trace out the gravitational potential of the cluster.

This article offers insights into the character and composition of world order. It does so by focusing on how world order is made and revealed through seemingly disorderly events. We examine how societies struggle to interpret and respond to disorderly events through three modes of treatment: tragedy, crisis, and scandal. These, we argue, are the dominant modes of treatment in world politics, through which an account of disorder is articulated and particular political responses are mobilised. Specifically, we argue that each mode provides a particular way of problematising disorder, locating responsibility, and generating political responses. As we will demonstrate, these modes instigate the ordering of disorder, but they also agitate and reveal the contours of order itself. We argue, therefore, that an attentiveness to how we make sense of and respond to disorder offers the discipline new opportunities for interrogating the underlying forces, dynamics, and structures that define contemporary world politics.

The metabolic syndrome is common in older adults and may be modified by the diet. The aim of this study was to examine associations between a posteriori dietary patterns and the metabolic syndrome in an older New Zealand population. The REACH study (Researching Eating, Activity, and Cognitive Health) included 366 participants (aged 65–74 years, 36 % male) living independently in Auckland, New Zealand. Dietary data were collected using a 109-item FFQ with demonstrated validity and reproducibility for assessing dietary patterns using principal component analysis. The metabolic syndrome was defined by the National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III. Associations between dietary patterns and the metabolic syndrome, adjusted for age, sex, index of multiple deprivation, physical activity, and energy intake were analysed using logistic regression analysis. Three dietary patterns explained 18 % of dietary intake variation – ‘Mediterranean style’ (salad/leafy cruciferous/other vegetables, avocados/olives, alliums, nuts/seeds, shellfish and white/oily fish, berries), ‘prudent’ (dried/fresh/frozen legumes, soya-based foods, whole grains and carrots) and ‘Western’ (processed meat/fish, sauces/condiments, cakes/biscuits/puddings and meat pies/hot chips). No associations were seen between ‘Mediterranean style’ (OR = 0·75 (95 % CI 0·53, 1·06), P = 0·11) or ‘prudent’ (OR = 1·17 (95 % CI 0·83, 1·59), P = 0·35) patterns and the metabolic syndrome after co-variate adjustment. The ‘Western’ pattern was positively associated with the metabolic syndrome (OR = 1·67 (95 % CI 1·08, 2·63), P = 0·02). There was also a small association between an index of multiple deprivation (OR = 1·04 (95 % CI 1·02, 1·06), P < 0·001) and the metabolic syndrome. This cross-sectional study provides further support for a Western dietary pattern being a risk factor for the metabolic syndrome in an older population.

Insect crop pests are a major threat to food security in sub-Saharan Africa. Configuration of semi-natural habitat within agricultural landscapes has the potential to enhance biological pest control, helping to maintain yields whilst minimising the negative effects of pesticide use. Fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, J. E. Smith) is an increasingly important pest of maize in sub-Saharan Africa, with reports of yield loss between 12 and 45%. We investigated the patterns of fall armyworm leaf damage in maize crops in Ghana, and used pitfall traps and dummy caterpillars to assess the spatial distribution of potential fall armyworm predators. Crop damage from fall armyworm at our study sites increased significantly with distance from the field edge, by up to 4% per m. We found evidence that Araneae activity, richness and diversity correspondingly decreased with distance from semi-natural habitat, although Hymenoptera richness and diversity increased. Our preliminary findings suggest that modifying field configuration to increase the proximity of maize to semi-natural habitat may reduce fall armyworm damage and increase natural enemy activity within crops. Further research is required to determine the level of fall armyworm suppression achievable through natural enemies, and how effectively this could safeguard yields.