11 research outputs found
Essai sur la contagion. (Cand. Jean-Joachim-François Cattet, et Jean-Baptiste-Joseph Gardet.)
No full textContient une table des matièresAvec mode text
Animal welfare testing for shooting and darting free-ranging wildlife: a review and recommendations
No full textSeveral important techniques for managing wildlife rely on ballistics (the behaviour of projectiles), including
killing techniques (shooting) as well as capture and marking methods (darting). Because all ballistic techniques have the
capacity to harm animals, animal welfare is an important consideration. Standardised testing approaches that have allowed
refinement for other physical killing and capture methods (e.g. traps for mammals) have not been applied broadly to
ballistic methods. At the same time, new technology is becoming available for shooting (e.g. subsonic and lead-free
ammunition) and darting (e.g. dye-marker darts). We present several case studies demonstrating (a) how basic ballistic
testing can be performed for novel firearms and/or projectiles, (b) the benefits of identifying methods producing
undesirable results before operational use, and (c) the welfare risks associated with bypassing testing of a technique before
broad-scale application. Following the approach that has been used internationally to test kill-traps, we suggest the
following four-step testing process: (1) range and field testing to confirm accuracy and precision, the delivery of
appropriate kinetic energy levels and projectile behaviour, (2) post-mortem assessment of ballistic injury in cadavers,
(3) small-scale live animal pilot studies with predetermined threshold pass/fail levels, and (4) broad-scale use with
reporting of the frequency of adverse animal welfare outcomes. We present this as a practical approach for maintaining and
improving animal welfare standards when considering the use of ballistic technology for wildlife management
Reassessing the core of hospitality management education : the continuing importance of training restaurants
No full textThis paper addresses the role of training facilities within higher education hospitality departments. It identifies a range of historical and contemporary problems associated with these areas and reports on case study research undertaken with four UK institutions. The research identifies changes within the educational delivery provided by these institutions and suggests that training restaurants in these institutions still have an important role to play within the higher education experience
Trends in body condition in polar bears (Ursus maritimus) from the Southern Hudson Bay subpopulation in relation to changes in sea ice
No full textSea ice is declining over much of the Arctic. In Hudson Bay the ice melts completely each summer, and advances in break-up have resulted in longer ice-free seasons. Consequently, earlier break-up is implicated in declines in body condition, survival, and abundance of polar bears (Ursus maritimus Phipps, 1774) in the Western Hudson Bay (WH) subpopulation. We hypothesised that similar patterns would be evident in the neighbouring Southern Hudson Bay (SH) subpopulation. We examined trends 1980–2012 in break-up and freeze-up dates within the entire SH management unit and within smaller coastal break-up and freeze-up zones. We examined trends in body condition for 900 bears captured during 1984–1986, 2000–2005, and 2007–2009 and hypothesised that body condition would be correlated with duration of sea ice. The ice-free season in SH increased by about 30 days 1980–2012. Body condition declined in all age and sex classes, but the decline was less for cubs than for other social classes. If trends towards a longer ice-free season continue in the future, further declines in body condition and survival rates are likely, and ultimately declines in abundance will occur in the SH subpopulation.The accepted manuscript in pdf format is listed with the files at the bottom of this page. The presentation of the authors' names and (or) special characters in the title of the manuscript may differ slightly between what is listed on this page and what is listed in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript; that in the pdf file of the accepted manuscript is what was submitted by the author
Environmental, biological and anthropogenic effects on grizzly bear body size : temporal and spatial considerations
No full textBackground: Individual body growth is controlled in large part by the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of, and competition for, resources. Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos L.) are an excellent species for studying the effects of resource heterogeneity and maternal effects (i.e. silver spoon) on life history traits such as body size because their habitats are highly variable in space and time. Here, we evaluated influences on body size of grizzly bears in Alberta, Canada by testing six factors that accounted for spatial and temporal heterogeneity in environments during maternal, natal and 'capture' (recent) environments. After accounting for intrinsic biological factors (age, sex), we examined how body size, measured in mass, length and body condition, was influenced by: (a) population density; (b) regional habitat productivity; (c) inter-annual variability in productivity (including silver spoon effects); (d) local habitat quality; (e) human footprint (disturbances); and (f) landscape change. Results: We found sex and age explained the most variance in body mass, condition and length (R-2 from 0.48-0.64). Inter-annual variability in climate the year before and of birth (silver spoon effects) had detectable effects on the three-body size metrics (R-2 from 0.04-0.07); both maternal (year before birth) and natal (year of birth) effects of precipitation and temperature were related with body size. Local heterogeneity in habitat quality also explained variance in body mass and condition (R-2 from 0.01-0.08), while annual rate of landscape change explained additional variance in body length (R-2 of 0.03). Human footprint and population density had no observed effect on body size. Conclusions: These results illustrated that body size patterns of grizzly bears, while largely affected by basic biological characteristics (age and sex), were also influenced by regional environmental gradients the year before, and of, the individual's birth thus illustrating silver spoon effects. The magnitude of the silver spoon effects was on par with the influence of contemporary regional habitat productivity, which showed that both temporal and spatial influences explain in part body size patterns in grizzly bears. Because smaller bears were found in colder and less-productive environments, we hypothesize that warming global temperatures may positively affect body mass of interior bears
Variable importance metrics for male and female HCC random forest models.
No full text<p>Variable importance for the male (A) total model, (B) outside parks and protected areas model, and (C) inside parks and protected areas model, as well as the female (D) total model, (E) outside parks and protected areas model, and (F) inside parks and protected areas model. Variable importance plots on the left of each panel (%IncMSE) represent the accuracy of random forest model predictions based on regression tree splits made using each variable. Plots on the right of each panel (IncNodePurity) indicate how often each variable was used as a split in regression trees aggregated through the random forest. For example, in panels A & D the proportion parks and protected areas was selected often as a tree split in the random forest and had a high predictive HCC value accuracy.</p
LACTATE AS PROGNOSTIC FACTOR AFTER OUT-OF-HOSPITAL CARDIAC ARREST TREATED BY THERAPEUTIC HYPOTHERMIA
No full textPhocine distemper Virus : current knowledge and future directions
No full textPhocine distemper virus (PDV) was first recognized in 1988 following a massive epidemic in harbor and grey seals in north-western Europe. Since then, the epidemiology of infection in North Atlantic and Arctic pinnipeds has been investigated. In the western North Atlantic endemic infection in harp and grey seals predates the European epidemic, with relatively small, localized mortality events occurring primarily in harbor seals. By contrast, PDV seems not to have become established in European harbor seals following the 1988 epidemic and a second event of similar magnitude and extent occurred in 2002. PDV is a distinct species within the Morbillivirus genus with minor sequence variation between outbreaks over time. There is now mounting evidence of PDV-like viruses in the North Pacific/Western Arctic with serological and molecular evidence of infection in pinnipeds and sea otters. However, despite the absence of associated mortality in the region, there is concern that the virus may infect the large Pacific harbor seal and northern elephant seal populations or the endangered Hawaiian monk seals. Here, we review the current state of knowledge on PDV with particular focus on developments in diagnostics, pathogenesis, immune response, vaccine development, phylogenetics and modeling over the past 20 years.Peer reviewe
Human Visual Navigation: Effects of Visual Context, Navigation Mode, and Gender
No full textAbstract
This thesis extends research on human visual path integration using optic flow cues. In three experiments, a large-scale path-completion task was contextualised within highly-textured authentic virtual environments. Real-world navigational experience was further simulated, through the inclusion of a large roundabout on the route. Three semi-surrounding screens provided a wide field of view. Participants were able to perform the task, but directional estimates showed characteristic errors, which can be explained with a model of distance misperception on the outbound roads of the route. Display and route layout parameters had very strong effects on performance. Gender and navigation mode were also influential.
Participants consistently underestimated the final turn angle when simulated self-motion was viewed passively, on large projection screens in a driving simulator. Error increased with increasing size of the internal angle, on route layouts based on equilateral or isosceles triangles. A compressed range of responses was found.
Higher overall accuracy was observed when a display with smaller desktop computer monitors was used; especially when simulated self-motion was actively controlled with a steering wheel and foot pedals, rather than viewed passively. Patterns and levels of error depended on route layout, which included triangles with non-equivalent lengths of the two outbound roads. A powerful effect on performance was exerted by the length of the "approach segment" on the route: that is, the distance travelled on the first outbound road, combined with the distance travelled between the two outbound roads on the roundabout curve. The final turn angle was generally overestimated on routes with a long approach segment (those with a long first road and a 60° or 90° internal angle), and underestimated on routes with a short approach segment (those with a short first road or the 120° internal angle). Accuracy was higher for active participants on routes with longer approach segments and on 90° angle trials, and for passive participants on routes with shorter approach segments and on 120° angle trials. Active participants treated all internal angles as 90° angles.
Participants performed with lower overall accuracy when optic flow information was disrupted, through the intermittent presentation of self-motion on the small-screen display, in a sequence of static snapshots of the route. Performance was particularly impaired on routes with a long approach segment, but quite accurate on those with a short approach segment. Consistent overestimation of the final angle was observed, and error decreased with increasing size of the internal angle. Participants treated all internal angles as 120° angles.
The level of available visual information did not greatly affect estimates, in general. The degree of curvature on the roundabout mainly influenced estimates by female participants in the Passive condition. Compared with males, females performed less accurately in the driving simulator, and with reduced optic flow cues; but more accurately with the small-screen display on layouts with a short approach segment, and when they had active control of the self-motion.
The virtual environments evoked a sense of presence, but this had no effect on task performance, in general. The environments could be used for training navigational skills where high precision is not required
