The commissioning and operation of apparatus for neutron diffraction at simultaneous high temperatures and pressures is reported. The basic design is based on the Paris-Edinburgh cell using opposed anvils, with internal heating. Temperature is measured using neutron radiography. The apparatus has been shown in both on-line and off-line tests to operate to a pressure of 7 GPa and temperature of 1700°C. The apparatus has been used in a neutron diffraction study of the crystal structure of deuterated brucite, and results for 520°C and 5.15 GPa are presented. The diffraction data that can be obtained from the apparatus are of comparable quality to previous high-pressure studies at ambient temperatures, and are clearly good enough for Rietveld refinement analysis to give structural data of reasonable quality.

High definition video from a towed camera system was used to describe the deep-sea benthic habitats within an elongate depression located at the western margin of Rockall Bank in the Hatton–Rockall Basin. At depths greater than 1190 m, an extensive area (10 km long by 1.5 km wide) of what appeared to be reduced sediments, bacterial mats and flocculent matter indicated possible cold-seep habitat. Plumes of sediment-rich fluid were observed alongside raised elongate features that gave topographic relief to the otherwise flat seafloor. In the deepest section of the depression (1215 m) dense flocculent matter was observed suspended in the water column, in places obscuring the seabed. Away from the bacterial mats, the habitat changed rapidly to sediments dominated by tube-dwelling polychaete worms and then to deep-sea sedimentary habitats more typical for the water depth (sponges and burrowing megafauna in areas of gentle slopes, and coral gardens on steeper slopes).

This report describes the effective public health response to a measles outbreak involving a university campus in Brisbane, Australia. Eleven cases in total were notified, mostly university students. The public health response included targeted measles vaccination clinics which were established on campus and focused on student groups most likely to have been exposed. The size of the university population, social interaction between students on and off campus, as well as limited vaccination records for the university community presented challenges for the control of this extremely infectious illness. We recommend domestic students ensure vaccinations are current prior to matriculation. Immunisation information should be included in university student enrolment packs. Incoming international students should ensure routine vaccinations are up-to-date prior to arrival in Australia, thereby reducing the risk of importation of measles and other infectious diseases.

Crop yield loss–weed density relationships critically influence calculation of economic thresholds and the resulting management recommendations made by a bioeconomic model. To examine site-to-site and year-to-year variation in winter Triticum aestivum L. (winter wheat)–Aegilops cylindrica Host. (jointed goatgrass) interference relationships, the rectangular hyperbolic yield loss function was fit to data sets from multiyear field experiments conducted at Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. The model was fit to three measures of A. cylindrica density: fall seedling, spring seedling, and reproductive tiller densities. Two parameters: i, the slope of the yield loss curve as A. cylindrica density approaches zero, and a, the maximum percentage yield loss as A. cylindrica density becomes very large, were estimated for each data set using nonlinear regression. Fit of the model to the data was better using spring seedling densities than fall seedling densities, but it was similar for spring seedling and reproductive tiller densities based on the residual mean square (RMS) values. Yield loss functions were less variable among years within a site than among sites for all measures of weed density. For the one site where year-to-year variation was observed (Archer, WY), parameter a varied significantly among years, but parameter i did not. Yield loss functions differed significantly among sites for 7 of 10 comparisons. Site-to-site statistical differences were generally due to variation in estimates of parameter i. Site-to-site and year-to-year variation in winter T. aestivum–A. cylindrica yield loss parameter estimates indicated that management recommendations made by a bioeconomic model cannot be based on a single yield loss function with the same parameter values for the winter T. aestivum-producing region. The predictive ability of a bioeconomic model is likely to be improved when yield loss functions incorporating time of emergence and crop density are built into the model's structure.

Crop phenotype is usually expressed in terms of characteristics like plant height, leaf architecture and leaf area index (LAI). In the case of maize, stalk diameter is seldom quantified because its measurement does not readily lend itself to automation. Justification for automating the measurement of stalk diameter and plant spacing is based on the finding that stalk diameter was able to account for about 65% of the variability in maize yield per plant in three irrigated field studies. A high-speed reflectance sensor and simulation apparatus was developed to explore the potential for automating maize stalk diameter assessment. The prototyped system accurately measured both stalk diameter and plant spacing in the laboratory at simulated velocities up to 12 km/h.

When engaged in conversation, both parents and children tend to re-use words that their partner has just said. This study explored whether proportions of maternal and/or child utterances that overlapped in content with what their partner had just said contributed to growth in mean length of utterance (MLU), developmental sentence score, and vocabulary diversity over time. We analyzed the New England longitudinal corpus from the CHILDES database, comprising transcripts of mother–child conversations at 14, 20, and 32 months, using the CHIP command to compute proportions of utterances with overlapping content. Rates of maternal overlap, but not child overlap, at earlier time-points predicted child language outcomes at later time-points, after controlling for earlier child MLU. We suggest that maternal overlap plays a formative role in child language development by providing content that is immediately relevant to what the child has in mind.

Secale cereale is a serious weed problem in winter Triticum aestivum–producing regions. The interference relationships and economic thresholds of S. cereale in winter T. aestivum in Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, and Wyoming were determined over 4 yr. Winter T. aestivum density was held constant at recommended planting densities for each site. Target S. cereale densities were 0, 5, 10, 25, 50, or 100 plants m−2. Secale cereale–winter T. aestivum interference relationships across locations and years were determined using a negative hyperbolic yield loss function. Two parameters—I, which represents the percent yield loss as S. cereale density approaches zero, and A, the maximum percent yield loss as S. cereale density increases—were estimated for each data set using nonlinear regression. Parameter I was more stable among years within locations than among locations within years, whereas maximum percentage yield loss was more stable across locations and years. Environmental conditions appeared to have a role in the stability of these relationships. Parameter estimates for I and A were incorporated into a second model to determine economic thresholds. On average, threshold values were between 4 and 5 S. cereale plants m−2; however, the large variation in these threshold values signifies considerable risk in making economic weed management decisions based upon these values.

A high resolution analysis of benthic foraminifera as well as of aeolian terrigenous proxies extracted from a 37 m-long marine core located off the Mauritanian margin spanning the last ~ 1.2 Ma, documents the possible link between major continental environmental changes with a shift in the isotopic signature of deep waters around 1.0–0.9 Ma, within the so-called Mid-Pleistocene Transition (MPT) time period. The increase in the oxygen isotopic composition of deep waters, as seen through the benthic foraminifera δ18O values, is consistent with the growth of larger ice sheets known to have occurred during this transition. Deep-water mass δ13C changes, also estimated from benthic foraminifera, show a strong depletion for the same time interval. This drastic change in δ13C values is concomitant with a worldwide 0.3‰ decrease observed in the major deep oceanic waters for the MPT time period. The phase relationship between aeolian terrigeneous signal increase and this δ13C decrease in our record, as well as in other paleorecords, supports the hypothesis of a global aridification amongst others processes to explain the deep-water masses isotopic signature changes during the MPT. In any case, the isotopic shifts imply major changes in the end-member δ18O and δ13C values of deep waters.

The paucity of modern pollen-rain data from Amazonia constitutes a significant barrier to understanding the Late Quaternary vegetation history of this globally important tropical forest region. Here, we present the first modern pollen-rain data for tall terra firme moist evergreen Amazon forest, collected between 1999 and 2001 from artificial pollen traps within a 500 × 20 m permanent study plot (14°34′50″S, 60°49′48″W) in Noel Kempff Mercado National Park (NE Bolivia). Spearman's rank correlations were performed to assess the extent of spatial and inter-annual variability in the pollen rain, whilst statistically distinctive taxa were identified using Principal Components Analysis (PCA). Comparisons with the floristic and basal area data of the plot (stems ≥10 cm d.b.h.) enabled the degree to which taxa are over/under-represented in the pollen rain to be assessed (using R-rel values). Moraceae/Urticaceae dominates the pollen rain (64% median abundance) and is also an important constituent of the vegetation, accounting for 16% of stems ≥10 cm d.b.h. and ca. 11% of the total basal area. Other important pollen taxa are Arecaceae (cf. Euterpe), Melastomataceae/Combretaceae, Cecropia, Didymopanax, Celtis, and Alchornea. However, 75% of stems and 67% of the total basal area of the plot ≥10 cm d.b.h. belong to species which are unidentified in the pollen rain, the most important of which are Phenakospermum guianensis (a banana-like herb) and the key canopy-emergent trees, Erisma uncinatum and Qualea paraensis.

Three models that empirically predict crop yield from crop and weed density were evaluated for their fit to 30 data sets from multistate, multiyear winter wheat–jointed goatgrass interference experiments. The purpose of the evaluation was to identify which model would generally perform best for the prediction of yield (damage function) in a bioeconomic model and which model would best fulfill criteria for hypothesis testing with limited amounts of data. Seven criteria were used to assess the fit of the models to the data. Overall, Model 2 provided the best statistical description of the data. Model 2 regressions were most often statistically significant, as indicated by approximate F tests, explained the largest proportion of total variation about the mean, gave the smallest residual sum of squares, and returned residuals with random distribution more often than Models 1 and 3. Model 2 performed less well based on the remaining criteria. Model 3 outperformed Models 1 and 2 in the number of parameters estimated that were statistically significant. Model 1 outperformed Models 2 and 3 in the proportion of regressions that converged on a solution and more readily exhibited an asymptotic relationship between winter wheat yield and both winter wheat and jointed goatgrass density under the constraint of limited data. In contrast, Model 2 exhibited a relatively linear relationship between yield and crop density and little effect of increasing jointed goatgrass density on yield, thus overpredicting yield at high weed densities when data were scarce. Model 2 had statistical properties that made it superior for hypothesis testing; however, Model 1's properties were determined superior for the damage function in the winter wheat–jointed goatgrass bioeconomic model because it was less likely to cause bias in yield predictions based on data sets of minimum size.

The Antarctic Roadmap Challenges (ARC) project identified critical requirements to deliver high priority Antarctic research in the 21st century. The ARC project addressed the challenges of enabling technologies, facilitating access, providing logistics and infrastructure, and capitalizing on international co-operation. Technological requirements include: i) innovative automated in situ observing systems, sensors and interoperable platforms (including power demands), ii) realistic and holistic numerical models, iii) enhanced remote sensing and sensors, iv) expanded sample collection and retrieval technologies, and v) greater cyber-infrastructure to process ‘big data’ collection, transmission and analyses while promoting data accessibility. These technologies must be widely available, performance and reliability must be improved and technologies used elsewhere must be applied to the Antarctic. Considerable Antarctic research is field-based, making access to vital geographical targets essential. Future research will require continent- and ocean-wide environmentally responsible access to coastal and interior Antarctica and the Southern Ocean. Year-round access is indispensable. The cost of future Antarctic science is great but there are opportunities for all to participate commensurate with national resources, expertise and interests. The scope of future Antarctic research will necessitate enhanced and inventive interdisciplinary and international collaborations. The full promise of Antarctic science will only be realized if nations act together.

Over 300 cases of acute toxoplasmosis are confirmed by reference testing in England and Wales annually. We conducted a case-control study to identify risk factors for Toxoplasma gondii infection to inform prevention strategies. Twenty-eight cases and 27 seronegative controls participated. We compared their food history and environmental exposures using logistic regression to calculate odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals in a model controlling for age and sex. Univariable analysis showed that the odds of eating beef (OR 10·7, P < 0·001), poultry (OR 6·4, P = 0·01) or lamb/mutton (OR 4·9, P = 0·01) was higher for cases than controls. After adjustment for potential confounders a strong association between beef and infection remained (OR 5·6, P = 0·01). The small sample size was a significant limitation and larger studies are needed to fully investigate potential risk factors. The study findings emphasize the need to ensure food is thoroughly cooked and handled hygienically, especially for those in vulnerable groups.

Perforated Plates have been used at large angles of incidence to produce drag forces and evidence on their properties has been published by de Bray. Less appears to be known about the drag forces on such surfaces at zero incidence, although they are usually considered to be aerodynamically rough. This has been confirmed by Ambrose, who carried out pipe flow experiments using perforated liners which fitted tightly in the bore of a pipe. Perforated plates used in this way do not allow flow completely through them and give “pitted” surfaces. If a perforated plate is mounted so that it is possible for cross flows to occur between the main flows on both sides of the plate the drag forces on it may be affected, and in this case the perforations will be referred to as “holes.”

Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies provide mechanistic understanding of nanoscale processes, whereas advanced synchrotron XRD (SXRD) enables precise measurements on volumes that are more representative of bulk materials. Therefore, the combined strengths of these techniques can provide new insight into irradiation-induced mechanistic processes. In the present study, their application to Zircaloy-2, proton-irradiated to 2.3, 4.7, and 7.0 dpa at 2 MeV and 350 °C and neutron-irradiated to 9.5 and 13.1 × 1025 n m−2 are exemplified. The application of correlative spectral imaging and structural TEM investigations to the phase transformation of Zr(Fe,Nb)2 precipitates in Low-Sn ZIRLO™, neutron-irradiated to 8.9–9 × 1025 n m−2, demonstrates the possibility of a Cr core nucleation site. Anomalous broadening is observed in SXRD profiles, which is believed to be caused by defect clusters and precursors to dislocation loop nucleation. The challenges to quantitative analysis of dislocations by SXRD are highlighted with reference to the segregation of Fe and Ni to basal planes and dislocation cores, observed by spectral imaging in the TEM.