Antarctic soils provide an excellent setting to test biogeographical patterns across spatial and environmental scales given their relatively simple communities and the dominance of physical factors that create strong environmental gradients. Additional urgency is given by the fact that their unique terrestrial communities are the subject of conservation efforts in a rapidly changing environment. We investigated relationships of soil community assembly and alpha and beta diversity with climatic and environmental parameters across regional and local scales in Maritime Antarctica. We sampled from a regional gradient of sites that differ in habitat severity, ranging from relatively favourable to harsher physicochemical conditions. At the regional scale, bacterial community characteristics and microarthropod abundance varied along this severity gradient, but most measures of fungal communities did not. Microarthropod and microbial communities differed in which soil and climate parameters were most influential, and the specific parameters that influenced each taxon differed across broad and fine spatial scales. This suggests that conservation efforts will need to focus on a large variety of habitat characteristics to successfully encompass diversity across taxa. Because beta diversity was the result of species turnover, conservation efforts also cannot focus on only the most biodiverse sites to effectively preserve all aspects of biodiversity.

The propagation of dam-break waves on different rough beds was observed to be quasi-steady in the range $11.3 < x/h_{dam} < 18.8$, where $x$ is measured from the dam position. These quasi-steady propagation speeds converge with the steady ideal fluids model of Stoker (Water Waves, 1957, Interscience) when the tailwater depth $h_2$ becomes greater than ${\sim }0.5k_s$, in the range $0.001< k_s/h_{dam}< 0.2$, where $k_s$ is the roughness and $h_{dam}$ the depth behind the dam. Hence, this convergence encourages the use of Stoker's steady, ideal fluid solution to develop more general models, including friction effects due to bed roughness and/or viscosity. The new experimental data support a MacLaurin series for the celerity $c$, in analogy with the series in terms of $\sqrt [4]{{h_2}/{h_{dam}}}$, derived for Stoker's model, $h_2$ being the tailwater depth. Compared with the retarding effect of the tailwater, 1 mm of roughness is found to be equivalent to $\sim$13 mm of tailwater, and 1 $\mathrm {\mu }$m of viscous length (${\nu }/{\sqrt {gh_{dam}}}$, where ${\nu}$ is the kinematic viscosity and g the acceleration due to gravity) is equivalent to $\sim$1700 $\mathrm {\mu }$m of tailwater. While the MacLaurin series quantifies the similar effects of small roughness and small tailwater depths acting separately, the new data illustrate for the first time the complex interplay between tailwater and roughness on ‘wet beds’ with many details yet to be investigated. In particular, it was shown that a small amount of tailwater on a rough bed acts as a lubricant, so that $c(h_2, h_{dam}, k_s)$ is an increasing function of $h_2$ for $h_2 < 0.5k_s$.

Bog bodies are among the best-known archaeological finds worldwide. Much of the work on these often extremely well-preserved human remains has focused on forensics, whereas the environmental setting of the finds has been largely overlooked. This applies to both the ‘physical’ and ‘cultural’ landscape and constitutes a significant problem since the vast spatial and temporal scales over which the practice appeared demonstrate that contextual assessments are of the utmost importance for our explanatory frameworks. In this article we develop best practice guidelines for the contextual analysis of bog bodies, after assessing the current state of research and presenting the results of three recent case studies including the well-known finds of Lindow Man in the United Kingdom, Bjældskovdal (Tollund Man and Elling Woman) in Denmark, and Yde Girl in the Netherlands. Three spatial and chronological scales are distinguished and linked to specific research questions and methods. This provides a basis for further discussion and a starting point for developing approaches to bog body finds and future discoveries, while facilitating and optimizing the re-analysis of previous studies, making it possible to compare deposition sites across time and space.

What factors affect whether ordinary citizens believe that workplace decisions involving African-American employees rise to the level of discrimination? When do observers believe targets of possible race discrimination should consider mobilizing the law? We use a factorial design vignette study administered to a nationally representative sample of 2,087 ordinary people to address these questions. The “vigilance hypothesis” predicts that minorities will be more likely to perceive discrimination than whites. Our analysis partially confirms this: African Americans perceive anti-Black discrimination at higher rates than do whites and Latinos, while Latinos do not show a significant difference from whites. Where respondents believe discrimination occurred, we analyze what influences whether respondents might recommend legal mobilization. The “cynicism hypothesis” suggests that people of color may be less likely to favor using law. We find, however, that African-American and Latino respondents express more confidence in civil litigation, compared to whites. Further, African Americans express the strongest support for legal mobilization (recommending that a “friend” contact an attorney), while whites and Latinos do not differ in mobilization recommendations.

Redroot pigweed is a major weed worldwide. Increasing emphasis on modeling physiological processes of weeds for use in weed control decision support systems requires a knowledge of the response of weeds to resource levels and environmental conditions. The purpose of this study was to determine functional relationships for carbon exchange rate (CER) and transpiration based on photosynthetic photon flux density (PPFD) and temperature from measurements made on field-grown redroot pigweed. Measurements were made using a portable photosynthesis system on four dates. An equation that had the form of a power function on PPFD and a quadratic polynomial on temperature was fit to the data. The equation fit the measured CER data better than the measured transpiration data. The equations should be useful in modeling the physiological processes of pigweed within crop canopies.

Paraquat was applied at 0.28 and 0.56 kg ai ha-1 to winter wheat at five growth stages at 0800, 1300, and 1600 hr to determine whether growth stage or time of application influenced winter wheat response to paraquat. Paraquat bioactivity was affected by growth stage. Biomass reduction by paraquat was 84% when winter wheat was in the 1 to 3 leaf stage, but only 68% when application was delayed until tillering. Paraquat bioactivity continued to decrease at later growth stages. The time of day when paraquat was applied did not affect its bioactivity on winter wheat.

Several herbicides were evaluated for control of white locoweed (Oxytropis sericea Nutt. T & G # OXRMA) and changes in botanical composition on two sites on high-elevation rangeland. White locoweed was more abundant and its population more stable on the rocky subalpine wind-swept ridge site than on the subalpine loam site. Picloram (4-amino-3,5,6-trichloro-2-pyridinecarboxylic acid) at 0.6 and 1.1 kg ae/ha, and 2,4-D [(2,4-dichlorophenoxy)acetic acid] at 2.2 and 4.5 kg ae/ha eliminated white locoweed on the subalpine loam site, although the population on this site declined naturally. Clopyralid (3,6-dichloro-2-pyridinecarboxylic acid) was the most effective herbicide on the subalpine wind-swept site. Clopyralid at 0.3 and 0.6 kg ae/ha, dicamba (3,6-dichloro-2-methoxybenzoic acid) at 2.2 kg ae/ha, and 2,4-D at 1.1 kg ae/ha plus clopyralid or picloram at 0.3 kg/ha killed all white locoweed plants. Lower rates of clopyralid (0.1 kg/ha), dicamba (0.6 and 1.1 kg/ha), 2,4-D (2.2 and 4.5 kg/ha), and triclopyr {[(3,5,6-trichloro-2~pyridinyl)oxy] acetic aicid)} (0.6, 1.1, and 2.2 kg ae/ha) killed 45 to 84% of white locoweed plants. Grass cover increased on most treated areas where white locoweed, forbs, and sagebrush declined. Cattle consumption of white locoweed declined following application of 2,4-D.

Cogongrass continues to be one of the most invasive weeds in the subhumid savanna. Herbicide application expenses depend on equipment costs, costs of water transport for spraying, and chemical costs. In three on-farm experiments on land heavily infested with cogongrass, the effectiveness of a knapsack sprayer (KS), a very low volume sprayer (VLV), and a rope wick (RW) applicator was tested at Ijaye, Nigeria, from 2000 to 2001. The sprayers differed in application method, price, and carrier volume required. The dose–response curves for the three applicators were identical in all parameters except at very high doses for the RW. Consequently, there were no apparent differences in glyphosate effectiveness, even when it was applied with different equipment and different carrier volumes. However, even at very high doses, the RW was not as efficient as was the KS and VLV. Actual biomass reduction of cogongrass was greater with the KS and VLV. Even though the KS and VLV generally gave better control levels than the RW, the latter is more user-friendly because it does not require protective masks, which are often unavailable in sub-Saharan Africa. In a situation with labor scarcity, weeding with the RW was cheaper than hand weeding with hoes. The VLV was more economical when used on areas larger than 10 ha than was the RW. The KS was more economical than all other methods when used on areas larger than 2 ha.

We analyzed birth order differences in means and variances of height and body mass index (BMI) in monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins from infancy to old age. The data were derived from the international CODATwins database. The total number of height and BMI measures from 0.5 to 79.5 years of age was 397,466. As expected, first-born twins had greater birth weight than second-born twins. With respect to height, first-born twins were slightly taller than second-born twins in childhood. After adjusting the results for birth weight, the birth order differences decreased and were no longer statistically significant. First-born twins had greater BMI than the second-born twins over childhood and adolescence. After adjusting the results for birth weight, birth order was still associated with BMI until 12 years of age. No interaction effect between birth order and zygosity was found. Only limited evidence was found that birth order influenced variances of height or BMI. The results were similar among boys and girls and also in MZ and DZ twins. Overall, the differences in height and BMI between first- and second-born twins were modest even in early childhood, while adjustment for birth weight reduced the birth order differences but did not remove them for BMI.

A trend toward greater body size in dizygotic (DZ) than in monozygotic (MZ) twins has been suggested by some but not all studies, and this difference may also vary by age. We analyzed zygosity differences in mean values and variances of height and body mass index (BMI) among male and female twins from infancy to old age. Data were derived from an international database of 54 twin cohorts participating in the COllaborative project of Development of Anthropometrical measures in Twins (CODATwins), and included 842,951 height and BMI measurements from twins aged 1 to 102 years. The results showed that DZ twins were consistently taller than MZ twins, with differences of up to 2.0 cm in childhood and adolescence and up to 0.9 cm in adulthood. Similarly, a greater mean BMI of up to 0.3 kg/m2 in childhood and adolescence and up to 0.2 kg/m2 in adulthood was observed in DZ twins, although the pattern was less consistent. DZ twins presented up to 1.7% greater height and 1.9% greater BMI than MZ twins; these percentage differences were largest in middle and late childhood and decreased with age in both sexes. The variance of height was similar in MZ and DZ twins at most ages. In contrast, the variance of BMI was significantly higher in DZ than in MZ twins, particularly in childhood. In conclusion, DZ twins were generally taller and had greater BMI than MZ twins, but the differences decreased with age in both sexes.

For over 100 years, the genetics of human anthropometric traits has attracted scientific interest. In particular, height and body mass index (BMI, calculated as kg/m2) have been under intensive genetic research. However, it is still largely unknown whether and how heritability estimates vary between human populations. Opportunities to address this question have increased recently because of the establishment of many new twin cohorts and the increasing accumulation of data in established twin cohorts. We started a new research project to analyze systematically (1) the variation of heritability estimates of height, BMI and their trajectories over the life course between birth cohorts, ethnicities and countries, and (2) to study the effects of birth-related factors, education and smoking on these anthropometric traits and whether these effects vary between twin cohorts. We identified 67 twin projects, including both monozygotic (MZ) and dizygotic (DZ) twins, using various sources. We asked for individual level data on height and weight including repeated measurements, birth related traits, background variables, education and smoking. By the end of 2014, 48 projects participated. Together, we have 893,458 height and weight measures (52% females) from 434,723 twin individuals, including 201,192 complete twin pairs (40% monozygotic, 40% same-sex dizygotic and 20% opposite-sex dizygotic) representing 22 countries. This project demonstrates that large-scale international twin studies are feasible and can promote the use of existing data for novel research purposes.

A current issue in architectural scholarship is the rethinking of the origins of Modernism. As a formative exemplar of early architectural Modernism, Bruno Taut's seminal exhibition pavilion, the Glashaus (1914) [1] is understandably part of this debate. In 1959, Reyner Banham in his article, ‘The Glass Paradise’ suggested that it would be appropriate to investigate the origins of the Glashaus, as it was both vastly dissimilar to and exceeded any of Taut's previous designs. In an effort to answer this question, Banham subsequently introduced the unique role played by the Bohemian poet Paul Scheerbart in the design of the Glashaus. As a result of Banham's inference, Rosemarie Haag Bletter systematically explored the Taut/Scheerbart relationship in ‘Bruno Taut and Paul Scheerbart's Vision: Utopian Aspects of German Expressionist Architecture’ in 1973.

Balancing of macronutrient intake has only recently been demonstrated in predators. In particular, the ability to regulate carbohydrate intake is little studied in obligate carnivores, as carbohydrate is present at very low concentrations in prey animal tissue. In the present study, we determined whether American mink (Neovison vison) would compensate for dietary nutritional imbalances by foraging for complementary macronutrients (protein, lipid and carbohydrate) when subsequently given a dietary choice. We used three food pairings, within which two macronutrients differed relative to each other (high v. low concentration), while the third was kept at a constant level. The mink were first restricted to a single nutritionally imbalanced food for 7 d and then given a free choice to feed from the same food or a nutritionally complementary food for three consecutive days. When restricted to nutritionally imbalanced foods, the mink were willing to overingest protein only to a certain level (‘ceiling’). When subsequently given a choice, the mink compensated for the period of nutritional imbalance by selecting the nutritionally complementary food in the food choice pairing. Notably, this rebalancing occurred for all the three macronutrients, including carbohydrate, which is particularly interesting as carbohydrate is not a major macronutrient for obligate carnivores in nature. However, there was also a ceiling to carbohydrate intake, as has been demonstrated previously in domestic cats. The results of the present study show that mink regulate their intake of all the three macronutrients within limits imposed by ceilings on protein and carbohydrate intake and that they will compensate for a period of nutritional imbalance by subsequently selecting nutritionally complementary foods.