The repeated return of tetrapods to aquatic life provides some of the best-known examples of convergent evolution. One comparison that has received relatively little focus is that of mosasaurids (a group of Late Cretaceous squamates) and archaic cetaceans (the ancestors of modern whales and dolphins), both of which show high levels of craniodental disparity, similar initial trends in locomotory evolution, and global distributions. Here we investigate convergence in skull ecomorphology during the initial aquatic radiations of these groups. A series of functionally informative ratios were calculated from 38 species, with ordination techniques used to reconstruct patterns of functional ecomorphospace occupation. The earliest fully aquatic members of each clade occupied different regions of ecomorphospace, with basilosaurids and early russellosaurines exhibiting marked differences in cranial functional morphology. Subsequent ecomorphological trajectories notably diverge: mosasaurids radiated across ecomorphospace with no clear pattern and numerous reversals, whereas cetaceans notably evolved toward shallower, more elongated snouts, perhaps as an adaptation for capturing smaller prey. Incomplete convergence between the two groups is present among megapredatory and longirostrine forms, suggesting stronger selection on cranial function in these two ecomorphologies. Our study highlights both the similarities and divergences in craniodental evolutionary trajectories between archaic cetaceans and mosasaurids, with convergences transcending their deeply divergent phylogenetic affinities.

Denmark hosted four games during the 2020 UEFA European championships (EC2020). After declining positive SARS-CoV-2 test rates in Denmark, a rise occurred during and after the tournament, concomitant with the replacement of the dominant Alpha lineage (B.1.1.7) by the Delta lineage (B.1.617.2), increasing vaccination rates and cessation of several restrictions. A cohort study including 33 227 cases was conducted from 30 May to 25 July 2021, 14 days before and after the EC2020. Included was a nested cohort with event information from big-screen events and matches at the Danish national stadium, Parken (DNSP) in Copenhagen, held from 12 June to 28 June 2021. Information from whole-genome sequencing, contact tracing and Danish registries was collected. Case–case connections were used to establish transmission trees. Cases infected on match days were compared to cases not infected on match days as a reference. The crude incidence rate ratio (IRR) of transmissions was 1.55, corresponding to 584 (1.76%) cases attributable to EC2020 celebrations. The IRR adjusted for covariates was lower (IRR 1.41) but still significant, and also pointed to a reduced number of transmissions from fully vaccinated cases (IRR 0.59). These data support the hypothesis that the EC2020 celebrations contributed to the rise of cases in Denmark in the early summer of 2021.

Additive manufacturing is a process used for quick prototyping in industries. Geometrical defects are observed on printed parts. The aim of the paper is to propose a design method to implement measurements uncertainties into a Design Space for Additive Manufacturing parameters selection. To do so, two tests have been realized. The first test consists in determining the instrument’s uncertainty by measuring a standard length several times by an operator. The second test aim to determine the uncertainty within operators mesurement of geometric outputs (clad’s height, clad’s width, dilution’s height, dilution’s width and contact angle). Based on the results of our tests, uncertainties have been applied in our Design Space populated with 31 real printed clads. The uncertainties display with error bars on scatterplots allow to capitalize the knowledge for his/her exploration of the Design Space for future prints. The given information provides to ease the engineer to select the optimal solution (laser power, tool speed and wire feed speed) for his/her given Additive Manufacturing problematic among candidate points

During the Early–Late Cretaceous transition, marine ecosystems in Eurasia hosted a diverse set of large predatory reptiles that occupied various niches. However, most of our current knowledge of these animals is restricted to a small number of bonebed-like deposits. Little is known of the geographical and temporal extent of such associations. The middle Albian – middle Cenomanian phosphorite-bearing succession exposed at Annopol, Poland produces numerous ichthyosaurian and plesiosaurian fossils. These are mostly isolated skeletal elements (e.g. teeth, vertebrae), but disarticulated partial skeletons and an articulated, subvertically embedded ichthyosaur skull are also available. The following taxa are identified: ‘Platypterygius’ sp., cf. Ophthalmosaurinae, Ichthyosauria indet., Polyptychodon interruptus, Pliosauridae indet., Elasmosauridae indet. and Plesiosauria indet. The large-sized ichthyosaur ‘Platypterygius’ and the pliosaurid Polyptychodon interruptus predominate within the upper Albian – middle Cenomanian deposits. The Annopol record, combined with data from England, France and western Russia, suggests that ‘Platypterygius’ and Polyptychodon interruptus formed a long-term, stable ecological sympatry in marine ecosystems of the European archipelago, at least during the Albian – middle Cenomanian. In addition, the marine reptile assemblage from Annopol is distinct from other Eurasian ecosystems in containing also elasmosaurids in its Albian portion.

The real nature of marine reptile fossils found in England between the 1700s and the beginning of the 1900s remained enigmatic until Mary Anning's incredible fossil discoveries and their subsequent study by eminent English and French scientists. In 1820, Georges Cuvier acquired several ichthyosaur specimens found by Mary Anning, now kept or displayed in the Palaeontology Gallery of the Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle (MNHN) in Paris. Four years later, Cuvier obtained a plesiosaur specimen from Mary Anning, only the second ever discovered. Cuvier was fascinated by these fossils and their study allowed him to apply his comparative anatomical method and to support his catastrophist theory. We have re-examined these important specimens from a historical point of view, and describe them here taxonomically for the first time since Cuvier's works. The Paris specimens belong to two different ichthyosaur genera (Ichthyosaurus and Leptonectes) and one plesiosaur genus (Plesiosaurus).

A previously undocumented marine vertebrate fauna comprising ichthyosaur, plesiosaur, marine crocodilian and fish remains from the Toarcian–Aalenian succession at Lafarge quarry, southern Beaujolais (Rhône, France) is described on the basis of both historical collections and new discoveries. The taxonomic composition of the Lafarge quarry marine vertebrate assemblage highlights its cosmopolitan nature and strong relationships with taxa known from elsewhere in Europe. Several groups are recorded for the first time in the Toarcian–Aalenian succession of France, implying new palaeobiogeographic interpretations and prompting discussion of marine amniote diversity during this interval.

Ophthalmosaurinae is a recently recognized clade of derived ichthyosaurs (marine reptiles) ranging from the Bajocian (Middle Jurassic) to the late Albian (late Early Cretaceous). Whereas the Middle–Late Jurassic ophthalmosaurine Ophthalmosaurus is often regarded as a hyperspecialized deep diver, very little is known about the anatomy, evolutionary history and ecology of Cretaceous ophthalmosaurines because of the scarcity of the fossils and the lack of well-preserved skull material. Here, we describe the skull of a new basal ophthalmosaurine ichthyosaur, Leninia stellans gen. et sp. nov., from the lower Aptian of western Russia, and compare the ocular characteristics of ophthalmosaurids. Leninia is recovered as a basal ophthalmosaurine; it possesses unique traits such as a star-shaped frontal–parietal suture as well as features previously thought to be unique to Ophthalmosaurus such as a supratemporal–stapes contact. A large sclerotic aperture – significantly larger than in platypterygiine ophthalmosaurids and similar to that of the largest-eyed modern animals (giant and colossal squids) – and reduced dentition appear widespread within ophthalmosaurines. This conservatism suggests ophthalmosaurine ophthalmosaurids occupied similar ecological niche(s) throughout their long evolutionary history.

The bchI gene (synonym: chlI), whose product is involved in magnesium chelatase activity, is located in the small single-copy region of the plastid genome of Heterosigma carterae (heterokont alga, Raphidophyceae; formerly named Olisthodiscus luteus). As a unique feature, bchI in H. carterae overlaps an upstream open reading frame (ORF97) of unknown function by 23 base-pairs. Cells contain mRNAs for the full (1.6 kb) cotranscript as well as transcripts for bchI (1.2 kb) and ORF97 (0.4 kb). Transcription initiation in a plastid run on assay of the ORF97/bchI gene cluster is approximately 5-fold higher in cultures sampled in the light versus the dark. In contrast, Northern analysis shows that all three transcripts are in equal abundance at both light and dark sampling times. An antibody raised against a BchI fragment expressed in Escherichia coli recognized a protein of the expected size in the plastid fraction of H. carterae on a Western blot. Analysis of BchI amino acid sequences suggests that the protein may be membrane translocated and could bind ATP. Phylogenetic analysis of bchI sequences documents a deep evolutionary branching between chlorophyll a/b and non-chlorophyll b plastids.