Harris–Stowe State University

Two genetically differentiated forms of fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith), use different graminaceous host plants, coexist sympatrically throughout their ranges, yet seem to hybridize. To address the taxonomic status of the two forms, determine extent and directionality of hybridization, and examine host specificity, we compiled multilocus genotypes consisting of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) haplotypes, an esterase locus, and eight amplified fragment-length polymorphism (AFLP) loci in moths collected across a broad geographic range. Multilocus analyses indicated 16% of individuals sampled were potentially hybrids with a minority being F1 in origin. Analysis of host use indicated asymmetries in host specificity with one strain specific to corn, Zea mays L., and the other strain predominating on pasture grasses and rice, but occasionally using corn. Location of hybrids in nature was biased toward cornfields, the habitat used by both strains. To assess genetic divergence of each gene, we calculated their relative strain discriminating ability. Eight AFLP loci collectively had the greatest discriminating power (98%), followed by a single AFLP locus (93%) and mtDNA (91%). Esterase exhibited 89% discrimination. Esterase is X-linked along with an assortative mating trait, suggesting esterase differentiation may be maintained by association with strain-specific fitness genes. Despite strong discrimination of these genes, most of the genome surveyed was not distinct. Cytonuclear comparisons provided evidence for unidirectional matings consistent with mate preference studies. Collectively, these data support introgressive hybridization between recently evolved species that are not completely reproductively isolated. Genetic divergence in the presence of gene flow may be a common phase in the speciation process, especially in taxa whose ranges have been altered dramatically by humans.

Comparative microevolutionary studies of multiple parasites occurring on a single host species can help shed light on the processes underlying parasite diversification. We compared the phylogeographical histories, population genetic structures and population divergence times of three co-distributed and phylogenetically independent ectoparasitic insect species, including an amblyceran and an ischnoceran louse (Insecta: Phthiraptera), a hippoboscid fly (Insecta: Diptera) and their endemic avian host in the Galápagos Islands. The Galápagos hawk (Aves: Falconiformes: Buteo galapagoensis) is a recently arrived endemic lineage in the Galápagos Islands and its island populations are diverging evolutionarily. Each parasite species differed in relative dispersal ability and distribution within the host populations, which allowed us to make predictions about their degree of population genetic structure and whether they tracked host gene flow and colonization history among islands. To control for DNA region in comparisons across these phylogenetically distant taxa, we sequenced ~1 kb of homologous mitochondrial DNA from samples collected from all island populations of the host. Remarkably, the host was invariant across mitochondrial regions that were comparatively variable in each of the parasite species, to degrees consistent with differences in their natural histories. Differences in these natural history traits were predictably correlated with the evolutionary trajectories of each parasite species, including rates of interisland gene flow and tracking of hosts by parasites. Congruence between the population structures of the ischnoceran louse and the host suggests that the ischnoceran may yield insight into the cryptic evolutionary history of its endangered host, potentially aiding in its conservation management.

The transformation of the medical marketplace has major implications for the physician workforce. Findings are reported here from national surveys of physicians, hospitals, health maintenance organizations (HMOs), preferred provider organizations (PPOs), and medical group practices conducted in 1995 to measure the impact of those changes. Physicians in higher HMO penetration states were more likely to report serious problems with several aspects of medical practice and patient care and were more likely to perceived oversupply in their specialty areas and changes in their practice arrangements. Some divergence is noted in views of supply between physicians and those that employ them. The majority of physicians would still recommend medicine and their specialty as a career.

Abstract Phylogenetic relationships of Passiflora subgenus Decaloba were examined using 148 taxa and four molecular markers: nuclear nrITS, ncpGS, cp trnL-F, and ndhF. Relationships of subgenus Decaloba to the other four Passiflora subgenera (Astrophea, Deidamioides, Tetrapathea, and Passiflora) are investigated, as are relationships among the eight supersections within subgenus Decaloba. Results indicate that subgenus Deidamioides is not monophyletic. Subgenus Astrophea + subgenus Deidamioides (section Tryphostemmatoides) together form the most basally branching lineage in the genus, followed by a clade comprised of subgenus Passiflora + subgenus Deidamioides (sections Tetrastylis, Polyanthea, and Deidamioides). Passiflora obovata (subgenus Deidamioides section Mayapathanthus) is resolved as part of subgenus Decaloba. The Old World subgenus Tetrapathea is supported as sister to subgenus Decaloba. Subgenus Decaloba is monophyletic and contains seven major lineages that generally correspond to currently recognized supersections. Within subgenus Decaloba, supersection Pterosperma is most basally branching, followed by supersection Hahniopathanthus + P. obovata. The New World species Passiflora multiflora, the type of supersection Multiflora, is resolved as sister to a monophyletic Old World supersection Disemma. The remainder of the former supersection Multiflora is paraphyletic with respect to supersection Auriculata. Supersections Cieca, Bryonioides, and Decaloba are monophyletic. Within supersection Decaloba, two main clades are resolved: 1) section Xerogona + section Decaloba pro parte and 2) the remainder of section Decaloba. The molecular phylogeny supports a New World origin for Passiflora, with two independent radiations to the Old World. Morphological synapomorphies are discussed for the major clades, documenting a pattern of remarkable evolutionary lability in several notable characters.

The geoid is the true physical figure of the Earth, a particular equipotential surface of the Earth's gravity field that accounts for the effect of all subsurface density variations. Its shape approximates best (in the sense of least squares) the mean level of oceans, but the geoid is more difficult to determine over continents. Satellite missions carry out distance measurements and derive the gravity field to provide geoid maps over the entire globe. However, they require calibration and extensive computations including integration, which is a non-unique operation. Here we propose a direct method and a new tool that directly measures geopotential differences on continents using atomic clocks. General relativity theory predicts constant clock rate at sea level, and faster (slower) clock rate above (below) sea level. The technology of atomic clocks is on the doorstep of reaching an accuracy level in clock rate (frequency ratio inaccuracy of 10−18), which is equivalent to 1 cm in determining equipotential surface (including geoid) height. We discuss the value and future applicability of such measurements including direct geoid mapping on continents, and joint gravity-geopotential surveying to invert for subsurface density anomalies. Our synthetic calculations show that the geoid perturbation caused by a 1.5-km radius sphere with 20 per cent density anomaly buried at 2-km depth in the Earth's crust is already detectable by atomic clocks of achievable accuracy. Therefore atomic clock geopotential surveys, used together with relative gravity data to benefit from their different depth sensitivities, can become a useful tool in mapping density anomalies within the Earth.

About a third of patients with cancer report pain, rising to three quarters in the advanced stages of the disease.1 Cancer pain has many dimensions including psychological, physical, social, and spiritual, which must be addressed in order to improve quality of life and functional ability. Surveys show that the effectiveness of pain control in patients with cancer varies, with 12% to 51% of patients reporting unsatisfactory pain control.2 3 This article summarises the most recent recommendations from the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) on the control of pain in adults with cancer.4 SIGN recommendations are based on systematic reviews of best available evidence. The strength of the evidence is graded as A, B, C, or D (fig 1⇓), but the grading does not reflect the clinical importance of the recommendations. Recommended best practice (“good practice points”) based on the clinical experience of the guideline development group is also indicated (as GPP). Fig 1 Explanation of SIGN grades of recommendations ### Factors affecting patients ### Psychosocial factors Psychological factors can profoundly influence the perception of pain and how the patient responds behaviourally and emotionally. The meaning of pain for patients with cancer may differ from that for patients with non-life threatening illness. Some patients with cancer may see increased pain as a sign of disease progression or the failure of strong medication, and this may affect mood and adherence to treatment protocols.

Numerical results from a study of boson stars under nonspherical perturbations using a fully general relativistic 3D code are presented together with the analysis of emitted gravitational radiation. We have constructed a simulation code suitable for the study of scalar fields in space-times of general symmetry by bringing together components for addressing the initial value problem, the full evolution system and the detection and analysis of gravitational waves. Within a series of numerical simulations, we explicitly extract the Zerilli and Newman-Penrose scalar 4 gravitational waveforms when the stars are subjected to different types of perturbations. Boson star systems have rapidly decaying nonradial quasinormal modes and thus the complete gravitational waveform could be extracted for all configurations studied. The gravitational waves emitted from stable, critical and unstable boson star configurations are analysed and the numerically observed quasinormal mode frequencies are compared with known linear perturbation results. The superposition of the high frequency nonspherical modes on the lower frequency spherical modes was observed in the metric oscillations when perturbations with radial and nonradial components were applied. The collapse of unstable boson stars to black holes was simulated. The apparent horizons were observed to be slightly nonspherical when initially detected and became spherical as the system evolved. The application of nonradial perturbations proportional to spherical harmonics is observed not to affect the collapse time. An unstable star subjected to a large perturbation was observed to migrate to a stable configuration.

Wildfires in chaparral shrublands of southern California are a major hazard and important ecological disturbance agent. Fire managers typically monitor fuel moisture of chaparral shrublands to assess the risk of wildfires, using field-based sampling methods for a few small study areas located sparsely throughout southern California. Remote sensing provides the potential for deriving spatially explicit and temporally frequent data on live fuel moisture (LFM) conditions. The objective of this present study was to explore the potential for monitoring LFM with maps derived from Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) data on the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Terra Earth-observing satellite. A time series of MODIS surface reflectance data (MOD-09_A1) for San Diego County, California from Fall 2000 through 2003 was used to derive normalized difference indices, which were regressed against LFM data. A high degree of temporal co-variability was found, with three MODIS indices providing similar predictability. Regression relationships were inverted and applied to MODIS images to map LFM interval classes for chaparral areas of San Diego County. The spatial–temporal patterns of LFM maps suggest that, at a minimum, the MODIS can provide spatially explicit information that extends the utility of ground-based measurements of LFM data at a few sites.

Why do learners not choose ideal study strategies when learning? Past research suggests that learners frequently misinterpret the effort affiliated with efficient strategies as being indicative of poor learning. Expanding on past findings, we explored the integration of study habits into this model. We conducted two experiments where learners experienced two contrasting strategies-blocked and interleaved schedules-to learn to discriminate between images of bird families. After experiencing each strategy, learners rated each according to its perceived effort, learning, and familiarity. Next, learners were asked to choose which strategy they would use in the future. Mediation analyses revealed, for both experiments, that the more mentally effortful interleaving felt, the less learners felt they learned, and the less likely learners were to use it in future learning. Further, in this study, strategy familiarity predicted strategy choice, also mediated by learners' perceived learning. Additionally, Study 2 verified that, in contrast to learners' judgments, the less familiar interleaving schedule resulted in better learning. Consequently, learners are making ineffective learning judgments based on their perceptions of effort and familiarity and, therefore, do not make use of optimal study strategies in self-regulated learning decisions.

The oil industry in Nazi Germany provides an excellent focus for studying the interplay between economics, politics, and government policy in the Third Reich. In this article, Mr. Stokes brings to this subject a comparative approach, making comparisons both within the oil industry and with the industry's major industrial counterparts. He concludes that a variety of factors—including the degree of shared interest between individual firms and the government, the size and concentration of a firm's production facilities, and the political position of key firm personnel—explain the success as well as the eventual collapse of a given industrial sector.

In contrast to efforts focusing on improving inclusion in STEM classrooms from kindergarten through undergraduate (K-16), efforts to improve inclusion in scientific meetings and conferences, important hubs of STEM culture, are more recent. Markers of inclusion that are sometimes overlooked at these events can include the composition of panels, how workshops are run, the affordability of conferences, and various other mechanisms that maintain pre-existing hierarchies and norms that limit the participation of early-career researchers and individuals of minoritized cultural, linguistic, and economic backgrounds. The Inclusive Environments and Metrics in Biology Education and Research (iEMBER) network coordinates efforts of researchers from many fields interested in diversity and inclusion in biology education. Given the concerns regarding inclusion at professional meetings, iEMBER has developed and implemented several practices in planning and executing our meetings to make them more inclusive. In this report, we share our experiences developing inclusive meetings on biology education research and discuss the outcomes of such efforts. Specifically, we present our approach to planning and executing the iEMBER 2019 conference and the National Association of Biology Teachers iEMBER 2019 workshop. This report adds to the growing body of resources on inclusive meetings, provides readers with an account of how such an attempt at implementation might unfold, and complements existing theories and work relating to the importance and functioning of such meetings in terms of representation in STEM.

A new architecture for photorefractive adaptive filtering is introduced. This architecture is based on the principle of time-integrating correlator with a photorefractive material as the time-integrating photosensor. A compact and rugged system is achieved by using the same Bragg cell as both the delay line for computing correlation values and the delay to which the tap weights are applied. In this way a self-aligning structure is achieved. Semiconductor photorefractive materials are used with 1.2–1.3-μm wavelength injection lasers to achieve fast response, low power, and a compact structure. Tests of an experimental system demonstrated >40-dB rejection of narrow-band interference with a transient response time constant of 70 μs.

Excited state soliton stars are studied numerically for the first time. The stability of spherically symmetric $S$-branch excited state oscillatons under radial perturbations is investigated using a 1D code. We find that these stars are inherently unstable either migrating to the ground state or collapsing to black holes. Higher excited state configurations are observed to cascade through intermediate excited states during their migration to the ground state. This is similar to excited state boson stars [J. Balakrishna, E. Seidel, and W.-M. Suen, Phys. Rev. D 58, 104004 (1998).]. Ground state oscillatons are then studied in full 3D numerical relativity. Finding the appropriate gauge condition for the dynamic oscillatons is much more challenging than in the case of boson stars. Different slicing conditions are explored, and a customized gauge condition that approximates polar slicing in spherical symmetry is implemented. Comparisons with 1D results and convergence tests are performed. The behavior of these stars under small axisymmetric perturbations is studied and gravitational waveforms are extracted. We find that the gravitational waves damp out on a short time scale, enabling us to obtain the complete waveform. This work is a starting point for the evolution of real scalar field systems with arbitrary symmetries.

The Inclusive Environments and Metrics in Biology Education and Research (iEMBER) network is a newly forming national community of practice that engages diversity, equity, and inclusion stakeholders in interdisciplinary collaborative projects. iEMBER was initiated with incubator funding from the National Science Foundation program for Research Coordination Networks in Undergraduate Biology Education. In June 2017, biology education researchers, social scientists, biologists, and program and policy administrators, all with interests in diversity, equity, and inclusion, met to lay the foundation for the iEMBER network. iEMBER provides a distinct forum to coordinate efforts through networking, professional development, and the initiation of collaborative research. iEMBER advances science, technology, engineering, and mathematics reform focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion through the initiation of research teams at the iEMBER biennial conference and outreach efforts at discipline-specific meetings and conferences. The focus of iEMBER is on understanding how to create inclusive, supportive, and engaging environments to foster the success of all biology students and trainees. This report focuses on the structure of the iEMBER network, two takeaways that emerged from the 2017 conference (interdisciplinary networking/collaboration and intradisciplinary broadening participation strategies), and ways for prospective members to engage in ongoing dialogue and future events. Learn more at http://iember.org .

In subgenus Decaloba (DC.) Rchb. of Passiflora L., the section Xerogona (Raf.) Killip (Passifloraceae) is a group of herbaceous vines found in subtropical and tropical regions of the Americas. Primarily distributed in Central America, with a few also found in the West Indies and South America, the species of Passiflora sect. Xerogona are recognized by their unusual dehiscent capsular fruit, the absence of bracts and laminar nectaries, and their transversely grooved seeds. Passiflora tenella Killip is the only species included in Passiflora sect. Xerogona with a fruit that does not appear to be a capsule, but the shape of the leaves and the absence of floral bracts and laminar nectaries suggest affiliation with this section. Fifteen species, including two subspecies, are recognized within Passiflora sect. Xerogona. Passiflora cobanensis Killip is distinguished as two subspecies, P. cobanensis subsp. cobanensis and P. cobanensis subsp. brevipes (Killip) T. Boza, with the latter subspecies transferred from P. brevipes Killip. From previous species circumscriptions, this section contains two problematic species complexes for P. capsularis L. and P. rubra L. The morphological variation between and within these two species complexes was examined in this study, using Principal Component Analysis and correlation matrices of morphological characters, and this variation was studied throughout their distributional ranges. Passiflora capsularis is recognized as a single variable species. Two species are recognized within the P. rubra complex, based primarily on floral characters, as P. cisnana Harms and P. rubra. Passiflora cisnana is lectotypified.

1 Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, 4940 Audubon Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri. The unstinting cooperation of Mr. Vearl Harris of the St. Louis office of the Missouri State Board of Probation and Parole is gratefully acknowledged. Without his constant help this study could not have been accomplished. This study was supported in part by the following USPHS grants: MH 5938, MH 5804 and MH 7081.

Remotely-sensed identification of ozone stress in crops can allow for selection of ozone resistant genotypes, improving yields. This is critical as population, food demand, and background tropospheric ozone are projected to increase over the next several decades. Visual scores of common ozone damage have been used to identify ozone-stress in bio-indicator plants. This paper evaluates the use of a visual scoring metric of ozone damage applied to soybeans. The scoring of the leaves is then combined with hyperspectral data to identify spectral indices specific to ozone damage. Two genotypes of soybean, Dwight and Pana, that have shown different sensitivities to ozone, were grown and visually scored for ozone-specific damage on multiple dates throughout the growing season. Leaf reflectance, foliar biophysical properties, and yield data were collected. Additionally, ozone bio-indicator plants, snap beans, and common milkweed, were investigated with visual scores and hyperspectral leaf data for comparison. The normalized difference spectral index (NDSI) was used to identify the significant bands in the visible (VIS), near infrared (NIR), and shortwave infrared (SWIR) that best correlated with visual damage score when used in the index. Results were then compared to multiple well-established indices. Indices were also evaluated for correlation with seed and pod weight. The ozone damage scoring metric for soybeans evaluated in August had a coefficient of determination of 0.60 with end-of-season pod weight and a Pearson correlation coefficient greater than 0.6 for photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, and transpiration. NDSI [R558, R563] correlated best with visual scores of ozone damage in soybeans when evaluating data from all observation dates. These wavelengths were similar to those identified as most sensitive to visual damage in August when used in NDSI (560 nm, 563 nm). NDSI [R560, R563] in August had the highest coefficient of determination for individual pod weight (R2 = 0.64) and seed weight (R2 = 0.54) when compared against 21 well-established indices used for identification of pigment or photosynthetic stress in plants. When evaluating use of spectral bands in NDSI, longer wavelengths in SWIR were identified as more sensitive to ozone visual damage. Trends in the bands and biophysical properties of the soybeans combined with evaluation of ozone data indicate likely timing of significant ozone damage as after late-July for this season. This work has implications for better spectral detection of ozone stress in crops and could help with efforts to identify ozone tolerant varieties to increase future yield.

The addition of ATP in the light and dark and ADP in the light to bathing solutions containing K+ can stimulate stomatal opening in tobacco leaf epidermal strips. UTP or AMP do not stimulate opening in the light or dark. The presence of ouabain prevents ATP or ADP stimulating stomatal opening. The additions of Ca2+ and Mg2+, though they reduce stomatal aperture, do not prevent ATP stimulating stomatal opening. Increasing the concentration of ATP presented to the stomata in the dark increases the aperture. The rate of stomatal opening in the presence of ATP is increased in the light. In bathing solutions which contain Na+ as the only cation ATP neither initiates nor maintains stomatal opening. The results are discussed in relation to a postulated light-stimulated, ATPase-mediated accumulation ofK+ in the guard cells which is followed by an influx of water, osmotic swelling, and stomatal opening

A new species of passion flower from the Cordillera Central of the Colombian Andes is here described; Passiflora kumandayi M.A. Buitrago A. & Coca (subgenus Decaloba, supersection Auriculata). This species, along with five other closely related Andean species, comprise a monophyletic group characterized by paired branched inflorescences and small flowers with short or absent androgynophores. A provisional key to the species in the newly described section Apodae is presented. Passiflora kumandayi is here illustrated and its affinities with related species are discussed based on morphology and phylogenetic binning analysis using molecular site weight calibration.

Large-scale vaccination against the spread and mutation of COVID-19 is being implemented in many countries. We aimed to assess the effectiveness of certain vaccines (87.35% inactivated), mainly Sinovac - CoronaVac and Sinopharm (Beijing) - BBIBP-CorV, during the Omicron BA.2 pandemic by cross-sectional study. The study was conducted in a cabin hospital of Shanghai, China. A total of 1194 Covid-19 patients infected with Omicron BA.2 were enrolled and epidemiological survey information was collected from the subjects through electronic medical records and questionnaires, from March 23th to April 1st in 2022. Vaccine effectiveness was reflected by the occurrence of multi-dimensional symptoms while adjusting for confounding variables. In the unstandardized vaccinated group, the Covid-19 vaccine effectiveness of Omicron BA.2 in the male group was higher than in the female group (P = .0171). In the standardized vaccinated group, vaccine effectiveness in [20, 40) age group was higher than in other age groups (P = .0002). Adjusting for gender and age, Covid-19 vaccine effectiveness of Omicron BA.2 at the specific level was 87.42% (95% confidence interval [CI], 72.35-94.28, P < .0001), and 62.65% (95% CI, 1.47-85.84, P = .047) in the unstandardized vaccinated and the standardized vaccinated group, respectively. Covid-19 vaccine effectiveness of Omicron BA.2 was not apparent at the general level but remained effective for the specific symptom. Further development for the Covid-19 vaccine is necessary.