Human preferences for facial masculinity change with relationship type and environmental harshness

In humans (Homo sapiens), sexual dimorphism in face shape has been proposed to be linked to quality in both men and women. Although preferences for high-quality mates might be expected, previous work has suggested that high quality may be associated with decreased investment in partnerships. In line with a trade-off between partner quality and investment, human females have been found to prefer higher levels of masculinity when judging under conditions where the benefits of quality would be maximised and the costs of low investment would be minimised. In this study, we examined facultative preferences for masculinity/femininity under hypothetical high and low environmental harshness in terms of resource availability in which participants were asked to imagine themselves in harsh/safe environments. We demonstrate that environmental harshness influences preferences for sexual dimorphism differently according to whether the relationship is likely to be short or long term. Women prefer less-masculine male faces and men prefer less-feminine female faces for long-term than short-term relationships under conditions of environmental harshness. Such findings are consistent with the idea that high-quality partners may be low investors and suggest that under harsh ecological conditions, both men and women favour a low-quality/high-investment partner for long-term relationships. For short-term relationships, where investment is not an important variable, preferences for sexual dimorphism were similar for the low and high environmental harshness conditions. These results provide experimental evidence that human preferences may be contingent on the environment an individual finds itself inhabiting.     

Cotinine concentrations in follicular fluid as a measure of secondhand tobacco smoke exposure in women undergoing in vitro fertilization: inter-matrix comparisons with urine and temporal variability

We examined the relationship between cotinine measures in follicular fluid (FF) and urine to inform our exposure assessment strategy for an ongoing epidemiological study of secondhand tobacco smoke (STS) exposure and early pregnancy loss. Among subjects undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF), we compared cotinine levels in paired urine and FF samples from the same women and examined FF cotinine levels over time. We found a weak rank-order relationship (Spearman r < 0.2) and poor agreement for classifying nonsmoking individuals as exposed to STS (sensitivity = 0.29-0.71; specificity = 0.35-0.72) between cotinine concentrations in FF and urine. We observed fair reliability (ICC = 0.42-0.52) in FF cotinine concentrations from women undergoing multiple IVF cycles. If available, FF cotinine concentrations may be desired as a biomarker of low-level tobacco smoke exposure over urinary cotinine in studies of early reproduction. Collection of multiple FF samples for cotinine analysis may be needed to accurately represent long-term STS exposure.     

Bacterial diversity in selenium reduction of agricultural drainage water amended with rice straw

Bacterial reduction of the Se oxyanions selenate [Se(VI)] and selenite [Se(IV)] to elemental selenium [Se0] is an important biological process in removing Se from drainage water. This study was conducted to characterize the molecular diversity of bacterial populations involved in Se reduction of drainage water amended with rice (Oryza sativa L.) straw and also to monitor the bacterial community shifts during the course of the study. Selenate was removed in the drainage water by the bacteria 5 to 6 d after addition of rice straw. Six Se(VI)- and 32 Se(IV)-reducing bacteria were isolated from rice straw containing sterilized drainage water. Three Se(VI)- and two Se(IV)-reducing bacteria were also isolated from the drainage water. Identification of Se(VI)- and Se(IV)-reducing bacteria by 16S rDNA sequence analysis showed a broad phylogenetic diversity in Se-reducing assemblages. Three major phyla (Proteobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Firmicutes) of bacterial domain with numerous classes, orders, and families constituted the Se-reducing bacterial community. We documented changes in the composition of bacterial assemblages in the drainage water amended with rice straw using polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of 16S rDNA. The Shannon-Weaver index (H') revealed higher bacterial diversity at Day 6 in the sterilized and Day 4 in the non-sterilized drainage water amended with rice straw. The results of this study suggest that rice straw, a good source of carbon and energy, harbors a wide range of bacteria useful in Se reduction and may be used in removing Se from drainage water.     

What’s missing from Ostrom? Combining design principles with the theory of sociocultural viability

Since 1990, Elinor Ostrom’s design principles for common property resource (CPR) institutions have been highly influential, offering a counter to pessimistic arguments about resource users’ prospects of cooperating to manage CPRs sustainably. However, the theoretical underpinnings of Ostrom’s theory have been criticised: as unfairly negative towards macro-level interventions; as utilising an overly narrow conceptualisation of rationality; and under appreciative of the role of power. These criticisms are examined using insights drawn from the theory of sociocultural viability (cultural theory, for short), a theory of plural rationality related to context. Utilising the case of Faroese whaling, the research aim is to assess the extent that cultural theory ameliorates criticisms laid at Ostrom’s design principles. It finds that Ostrom’s research trajectory was reaching the limits of methodological individualism’s ability to grasp rational behaviour and suggests the design principles may in effect be integrated with cultural theory.     

Maintaining land use agreements in Papua New Guinea Mining: ‘Business as usual’?

Most large scale resource extraction projects in Papua New Guinea (PNG) require companies to negotiate with customary landowners for access to development sites. In the discussion of process and challenges of development and operation of projects, particularly mines, the paper, basing as a case study of land use arrangements in PNG mining, has several objectives to address. First, it discusses land use arrangements in the mining industry and how they have evolved over the last few decades. Today, most of these arrangements involve pluralistic framework agreements which have been shaped by land tenure debates, civil uprisings, government initiatives and increasingly politically savvy customary landowners. This pluralistic process encourages key stakeholder involvement, particularly customary landowner participation which has been an innovative piece of sustainable mineral policy development in PNG. Second, the paper argues that ‘it is not business as usual’ for mining companies as it would generally be the case in developed and many developing countries because they are increasingly forced to be proactive in addressing landowner and community interests while managing mining projects. A brief overview of land use debates in PNG is summarised at the outset to provide background to mining and development in the country. Third, the significance of the corporate social responsibility (CSR) paradigm and its impact on business, particularly the mining industry is acknowledged intermittently in the discussion to shed light on how it is influencing development of local communities. Finally, the paper argues that the post-Bougainville period has led to a change of the old enclave model of mining development to a broad based community driven form of development around mining. However, it is difficult to predict as to how this model of mining led development in rural PNG will span out in the long run. In the meantime, genuine landowner partnerships with developers and government in the management and operation of mining projects in the country are proving to be a positive outcome for everyone despite some major challenges.     

Priming concerns about pathogen threat versus resource scarcity: dissociable effects on women’s perceptions of men’s attractiveness and dominance

Previous experimental work suggests flexibility in women’s mate preferences that appears to reflect the advantages of choosing healthy mates under conditions of pathogen threat and of choosing prosocial mates under conditions of resource scarcity. Following this work, we used an established priming paradigm to examine the effects of priming women’s concerns about pathogen threat versus resource scarcity on their judgments of men’s facial attractiveness and dominance. We found that women reported stronger attraction to masculine men when their concerns about pathogens were activated than when their concerns about resource scarcity were activated. In contrast, we found that women were more likely to ascribe high dominance to masculine men when their concerns about resource scarcity were activated than when their concerns about pathogens were activated. This latter result may reflect the greater importance of identifying men who pose a substantial threat to women’s resources and personal safety when resources are scarce and violence towards women is particularly common. Together, these findings suggest a double dissociation between the effects of pathogen threat and resource scarcity on women’s perceptions of the attractiveness and dominance of masculine men, potentially revealing considerably greater specialization (i.e., context specificity) in the effects of environmental threats on women’s perceptions of men than was apparent in previous research.     

A Microscopic Classification of Settled Particulates in the Vicinity of a Found Coke-Making Operation

The purpose of this study was the specific identification of the components of settleable particulate samples collected near a coke-making operation. The identification technique employed is a new application of reflected-light microscopic examination of polished sections of the material. The inherent optical characteristics of the individual particles are utilized to classify them as coal (high?, medium?, and low-volatile), coke (coke balls, pyrolytic carbon, slot-oven coke, and char), fly ash or mineral matter. The application of this method of analysis is unique in that classification of particles is based on these inherent optical properties and not on shape, color, or other subjective criteria. This microscopic classification technique is based on accepted methods and should be generally applicable by petrographers on the basis of the photomicrographs and the detailed procedures which are included. On the basis of the data obtained during a six-month study near a coke-making operation it is concluded that material handling and stockpiling operations are major contributors to settled particulate deposition, while coke oven charging was not a major source. This study has shown that a broad program of engineering control will be required to significantly reduce settled particulate deposition in the immediate vicinity of a coke-making operation.     

Tissue-specific incorporation and genotoxicity of different forms of tritium in the marine mussel, Mytilus edulis

Marine mussels (Mytilus edulis) were exposed to seawater spiked with tritiated water (HTO) at a dose rate of 122 and 79 μGy h⁻¹ for 7 and 14 days, respectively, and tritiated glycine (T-Gly) at a dose rate of 4.9 μGy h⁻¹ over 7 days. This was followed by depuration in clean seawater for 21 days. Tissues (foot, gills, digestive gland, mantle, adductor muscle and byssus) and DNA extracts from tissues were analysed for their tritium activity concentrations. All tissues demonstrated bio-accumulation of tritium from HTO and T-Gly. Tritium from T-Gly showed increased incorporation into DNA compared to HTO. About 90% of the initial activity from HTO was depurated within one day, whereas T-Gly was depurated relatively slowly, indicating that tritium may be bound with different affinities in tissues. Both forms of tritium caused a significant induction of micronuclei in the haemocytes of mussels. Our findings identify significant differential impacts on Mytilus edulis of the two chemical forms of tritium and emphasise the need for a separate classification and control of releases of tritiated compounds, to adequately protect the marine ecosystem.     

Debromination of polybrominated diphenyl ether-99 (BDE-99) in carp (Cyprinus carpio) microflora and microsomes

Based on previous findings in dietary studies with carp (Cyprinus carpio), we investigated the mechanism of 2,2',4,4',5-pentabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-99) debromination to 2,2',4,4'-tetrabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-47) using liver and intestinal components. In vitro aerobic and anaerobic experiments tested the ability of carp intestinal microflora to debrominate BDE-99. No debromination of BDE-99 to BDE-47 was observed in microfloral samples; therefore, carp enzymatic pathways were assessed for debromination ability. After sixty-min incubation, intestine and liver microsomes exhibited 83+/-34% and 106+/-18% conversions, respectively, of BDE-99 to BDE-47; with no significant (p>0.05) difference between organ debromination capabilities. Microsomal incubations with BDE-99, enzyme cofactors and competing substrates assessed the potential mechanisms of debromination. The presence of NADPH in the microsomal assay did not significantly (p>0.05) affect BDE-99 debromination, which suggest that cytochrome P450 enzymes are not the main debrominating pathway for BDE-99. Co-incubation of BDE-99 spiked microsomes with reverse thyronine (rT3) significantly (p<0.05) decreased the debromination capacity of intestinal microsomes indicating the potential of catalytic mediation via thyroid hormone deiodinases. The significant findings of this study are that intestinal microflora are not responsible for BDE-99 debromination, however, it is an endogenous process which occurs with approximately equal activity in intestine and liver microsomes and it can be inhibited by rT3.