The mental health of expatriate and Kosovar Albanian humanitarian aid workers

The mental health consequences of exposure to traumatic events and the risk factors for psychological morbidity among expatriate and Kosovar Albanian humanitarian aid workers have not been well studied. In June 2000, we used standardised screening tools to survey 285 (69.5%) of 410 expatriate aid workers and 325 (75.8%) of 429 Kosovar Albanian aid workers from 22 humanitarian organizations that were implementing health programmes in Kosovo. The mean number of trauma events experienced by expatriates was 2.8 (standard deviation: 2.7) and by Kosovar staff 3.2 (standard deviation: 2.8). Although only 1.1% of expatriate and 6.2% of Kosovar aid workers reported symptoms consistent with the diagnosis for post-traumatic stress disorder, 17.2% and 16.9%, respectively, reported symptoms satisfying the definition of depression. Regression analysis demonstrated that the number of trauma events experienced was significantly associated with depression for the two sets of workers. Organisational support services may be an important mediating factor and should be targeted at both groups.     

地下商业街火灾中回燃现象的初步研究

对回燃这一特殊火现象的发生机理及研究现状进行研究分析,结合地下商业街发生火灾时烟气温度高、人员疏散困难等特性,对地下商业街火灾回燃现象进行了初步研究,分析了其发生的可能性及危害,指出可以通过控制送风风量和流速、降低可燃组分和控制点火源的措施来抑制回燃的发生,为进一步研究地下建筑火灾中烟气回燃现象提供参考。     

Repeatability of electromyography normalization of the neck and shoulder muscles in symptomatic office workers

Purpose. The purpose of the study was to examine the repeatability of electromyography (EMG) normalization in office workers with neck and shoulder symptoms. Methods. Fifteen female office workers with neck/shoulder symptoms were recruited to participate in two separate days of testing. Maximum voluntary isometric contraction (MVIC) was used for the normalization of EMG data on the following muscles: cervical erector spinae, upper trapezius, lower trapezius and anterior deltoid. Repeatability was calculated using the intra-class correlation (ICC), relative standard error of measurement (%SEM) and relative coefficient of variation (%CV). Results. Peak root mean square (rms) and median frequency (MF) showed good to high repeatability in the UT, AD and CES (ICC?=?0.87–0.95, %SEM=?2.65–9.48, %CV=?0.2–5.9). The repeatability of peak rms was good (ICC?=?0.87, %SEM?=?12.56, %CV?=?3.3) and the MF of the LT was fair (ICC?=?0.76, %SEM?=?5.71, %CV?=?2.9). Conclusion. Peak rms and MF from the MVIC normalization method can be measured with sufficient repeatability in symptomatic office workers.     

Lower back pain and its association with whole-body vibration and manual materials handling among commercial drivers in Sabah

A cross-sectional study was undertaken to determine the prevalence of lower back pain (LBP) and its association with whole-body vibration (WBV) and manual materials handling (MMH). We studied 110 commercial vehicle drivers using a self-administered questionnaire and the VI-400Pro human vibration monitor. Prevalence of LBP was 66.4%. The percentage of drivers who had frequent manual handling of heavy loads was 45.5% and those who handled heavy loads in awkward postures accounted for 86.4%. Daily vibration A(8) averaged on the z axis was 0.25 (0.06) m·s^?2 and at vector sum was 0.29 (0.07) m·s^?2. Daily vibration exposures on the z axis, frequent manual handling of heavy loads and awkward posture during MMH were significantly associated with LBP. Drivers who are exposed to WBV and frequently handle heavy loads manually and with awkward postures probably have more LBP than drivers who are exposed to only one of these risk factors.     

Sex ratio manipulation in response to maternal condition in pigeons: evidence for pre-ovulatory follicle selection

A number of recent reports have documented offspring sex ratio biases in birds. However, to date the potential mechanisms that have been put forward to explain the proximate basis for these deviations are entirely speculative. Using a captive population of domestic pigeons (Columba livia domestica), I tested the hypothesis that mothers in relatively poor physical condition should overproduce daughters by manipulating maternal body condition around the time of egg laying by continuous egg removal and differing feeding regimes. During treatment, females were fed a controlled quantity of food. This, combined with the high energetic costs of repeated egg production caused a significant reduction in maternal body weight. In contrast, during control when food was available ad libitum, maternal body weight did not decline, despite repeated egg production. No significant deviation from parity was evident in the sex ratio of either the first or second eggs during control, whereas during treatment a significant female bias was evident in not only the first egg, but also in the second egg. The absence of single-egg clutches, the rarity of infertile eggs and the lack of laying delays between eggs strongly suggests that the mechanism of sex ratio adjustment in pigeons occurs prior to ovulation. The highly skewed sex-distribution within the two-egg clutches and the unexpectedly large amount of variation in the yolk weight of eggs produced during treatment (but not control) are consistent with the expectations of pre-ovulatory selective resorption of wrong sex ovarian follicles.     

荔枝花雄蕊和雌蕊发育过程中碳氮化合物的动态变化

比较分析了荔枝花性决定中碳氮化合物的动态变化。结果发现：C/N较大有利于雄蕊分化,反之则有利于雌蕊分化;氨基酸含量较高有利于雌蕊分化,雄蕊的氨基酸含量仅为雌蕊的一半。脯氨酸与花粉育性存在着密切相关关系。另外,探讨了雌蕊或雄蕊败育的生理意义,在长期的进化中,败育的雌蕊或雄蕊“废物”重新被利用,为同一花中迅速发育的雌蕊或雄蕊提供能量和物质的需求,表5参13。     

Green leaf volatiles enhance sex attractant pheromone of the tobacco budworm,Heliothis virescens (Lep.: Noctuidae)

Summary Components of the green leaf volatile complex (Z-3-hexenyl acetate andE-2-hexenyl acetate) were shown to enhance responses of tobacco budworm,Heliothis virescens, males to the sex attractant pheromone of conspecific females in the field. The results are discussed with regard to green leaf volatiles which enhance the attractant pheromone of a cohabiting species, and serve as attractants of a parasitoid of conspecific larvae.     

Learning and natal host influence host preference,handling time and sex allocation behaviour in a pupal parasitoid

The host choice and sex allocation decisions of a foraging female parasitoid will have an enormous influence on the life-history characteristics of her offspring. The pteromalid Pachycrepoideus vindemiae is a generalist idiobiont pupal parasitoid of many species of cyclorrhaphous Diptera. Wasps reared in Musca domestica were larger, had higher attack rates and greater male mating success than those reared in Drosophila melanogaster. In no-choice situations, na?ve female P. vindemiae took significantly less time to accept hosts conspecific with their natal host. Parasitoids that emerged from M. domestica pupae spent similar amounts of time ovipositing in both D. melanogaster and M. domestica. Those parasitoids that had emerged from D. melanogaster spent significantly longer attacking M. domestica pupae. The host choice behaviour of female P. vindemiae was influenced by an interaction between natal host and experience. Female P. vindemiae reared in M. domestica only showed a preference among hosts when allowed to gain experience attacking M. domestica, preferentially attacking that species. Similarly, female parasitoids reared on D. melanogaster only showed a preference among hosts when allowed to gain experience attacking D. melanogaster, again preferentially attacking that species. Wasp natal host also influenced sex allocation behaviour. While wasps from both hosts oviposited more females in the larger host, M. domestica, wasps that emerged from M. domestica had significantly more male-biased offspring sex ratios. These results indicate the importance of learning and natal host size in determining P. vindemiae attack rates, mating success, host preference and sex allocation behaviour, all critical components of parasitoid fitness. Electronic Publication     

Tests for a biased sex ratio when the data are clustered

In behavioral ecology the overall sex ratio in a population of birds is often tested to see if it differs from a 50/50 ratio. In recent publications the binomial test or the ² test are carried out although the sexes of chicks within the same nest may not be independent. The lack of independence occurs since female birds can adjust the sex ratio in an adaptive way as demonstrated in recent studies. In order to take dependence into consideration the Wilcoxon signed rank test based on the within-brood differences between the proportions of sons and daughters was performed in a study investigating great tit hatchling sex ratios. We compare this test with a test based on an optimally weighted estimator recently proposed for medical studies with clustered binary data. According to our simulation results, this novel test is more powerful than the Wilcoxon signed rank test and should be used for the analysis of avian sex ratios. The methods are illustrated with real data from the great reed warbler.     

Operational sex ratios and behavioural sex differences in a pipefish population

In the pipefish Syngnathus typhle, only males brood embryos in specially developed brood pouches, supplying oxygen and nutrients. Laboratory studies have shown that this elaborate paternal care has led to sex-role reversal in this species: males limit female reproductive rate, females are the primary competitors for mates and males exercise greater selectivity in accepting mates. In the first field study of this pipefish, we describe mating behaviour in the wild and test the hypothesis that temporal variations in the operational sex ratio (OSR) determine sex differences in mating behaviour. Our study comprised two reproductive seasons of two sequential mating periods each, the latter separated by a lengthy interval of male brooding. During mating periods, females displayed to all males without wandering and males moved about searching for females, without reacting to all females. The OSR was least female-biased (or even male-biased) at the onset of the breeding season, when most pipefish were simultaneously available to mate, but became strikingly female-biased as males' pouches were filled. The OSR remained substantially female-biased during the second mating period, because few males became available to remate at any one time. As hypothesised, female-biased OSRs resulted in more female-female meetings. As well, females were above the eelgrass more often than brooding males, thus exposing themselves to conspecifics and/ or predators. In the second year, males arrived earlier than females on the breeding site and male pregnancies were shorter, because of higher water temperatures, so rematings occurred earlier. Males met more often during that year than the previous one, but male competitive interactions were still not observed. The field results support laboratory studies and demonstrate that behaviours associated with female-female competition are more prominent when the OSR is more female-biased. Correspondence to: A. Vincent