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Sunday, December 2, 2012

How, in the animal world, a daughter avoids mating with her father: Paternal 'voice' recognition

Saturday, December 1, 2012

Paternal recognition ? being able to identify males from your father's line ? is important for the avoidance of inbreeding, and one way that mammals can do this is through recognizing the calls of paternal kin. This was thought to occur only in large-brained animals with complex social groups, but a new study published today in the open access journal BMC Ecology provides evidence in a tiny, solitary primate that challenges this theory.

The study, led by Sharon E Kessler, finds that the grey mouse lemur (Microcebus murinus) ? a small-brained, solitary foraging mammal endemic to Madagascar ? is able to recognize paternal relatives via vocalizations, thus providing evidence that this is not dependent upon having a large brain and a high social complexity, as previously suggested.

Because grey mouse lemurs are nocturnal solitary-foragers living in dense forests, vocal communication is important for regulating social interactions across distances where visibility is poor and communication via smell is limited. Though the mouse lemur shares sleeping sites with other mouse lemurs, it forages alone for fruit and insects. It is a particularly interesting species with which to study vocal paternal recognition because, in the wild, females remain in the same area of birth and cooperatively raise young with other female kin. Males do not co-nest with their mates or young and provide no paternal care, which limits opportunities for familiarity-based social interactions. Thus, vocalizations are likely to be important ? particularly for avoiding inbreeding.

The research team from Arizona State University and the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover in Germany found that two of the most frequent calls of the mouse lemur were the mate advertisement call and the alarm call. Using multi-parametric analyses of the call's acoustic parameters, they could see that both call types contained individual signatures. Through this, they discovered that only male grey mouse lemur advertisement calls, but not alarm calls, contained acoustic paternal signatures. Furthermore, females paid more attention to advertisement calls from unrelated males than from their fathers.

The findings from the study suggest that the discrimination between mate advertisement calls and alarm calls may be an important mechanism for inbreeding avoidance. This is likely to be highly important in the grey mouse lemur species because males are likely to remain in an area for several years and they can expand their ranges to more than twice that of the female's range, making it likely that adult males' ranges will overlap with those of their daughters from previous mating seasons.

The team also proposed that the mouse lemur's ultrasonic calls above the hearing range of owls could be an anti-predator strategy, especially since the species suffers from high predation.

Lead author Kessler commented, "Given that more complex forms of sociality with cohesive foraging groups are thought to have evolved from an ancestral solitary forager much like the mouse lemur, this suggests that the mechanisms for kin recognition like those seen here may be the foundation from which more complex forms of kin-based sociality evolved."

She continued, "Future analyses will determine which acoustic parameters make this kin recognition possible by artificially manipulating acoustic parameters in the calls and then using the modified calls in playback experiments."

###

Paternal kin recognition in the high frequency / ultrasonic range in a solitary foraging mammal
Sharon E Kessler, Marina Scheumann, Leanne T Nash and Elke Zimmermann
BMC Ecology (in press)

BioMed Central: http://www.biomedcentral.com

Thanks to BioMed Central for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/125623/How__in_the_animal_world__a_daughter_avoids_mating_with_her_father__Paternal__voice__recognition

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N. California towns brace for storm, flooding

Daniel Cissney, 52, watches as an overflowing Stillwater Creek nearly floods his home on in Mountain Gate, Calif., on Friday, Nov. 30, 2012. Heavy rains Thursday night drenched the area, leading to some localized flooding. (AP Photo/The Record Searchlight, Jim Schultz)

Motorists navigate Piner Road, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012 in Santa Rosa, Calif. The second in a series of storms slammed Northern California on Friday as heavy rain and strong winds knocked out power, tied up traffic and caused flooding along some stretches. (AP Photo/The Press Democrat, Kent Porter)

A motorist rolls through a flooded intersection at Copeland Creek Apartments, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012 in Santa Rosa, Calif. The second in a series of storms slammed Northern California on Friday as heavy rain and strong winds knocked out power, tied up traffic and caused flooding along some stretches. (AP Photo/The Press Democrat, Kent Porter)

Robert St. Andre pushes his flooded vehicle out of the water at Rohnert Park Expressway and Stony Point Road, Friday Nov. 30, 2012, in Rohnert Park, Calif. The second in a series of storms slammed Northern California on Friday as heavy rain and strong winds knocked out power, tied up traffic and caused flooding along some stretches. (AP Photo/The Press Democrat, Kent Porter)

A large eucalyptus tree crushed the 1994 Southwind motor home of Scott and Jennifer Miller on Lynch Road, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012 in Sebastopol, Calif. The second in a series of storms slammed Northern California on Friday as heavy rain and strong winds knocked out power, tied up traffic and caused flooding along some stretches. (AP Photo/The Press Democrat, Kent Porter)

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) ? Residents of Northern California braced for flooding as another powerful storm brings heavy rains to a region already soaked by two major weather systems in recent days.

The latest storm came ashore Saturday night and was expected to force several rivers over their banks as it saturates the region Sunday, National Weather Service forecasters said.

With rivers and streams already running high, the weather service issued flood warnings for both the Napa and Russian rivers, two rivers north of San Francisco with a history of flooding.

"Some roads will become inundated and some of the agricultural areas will take on some water," said Mark Strudley, a hydrologist with the weather service.

The Napa River was expected to flood near St. Helena and Napa around noon on Sunday, while the Russian River was expected to flood near Guerneville early Monday morning, Strudley said.

The Napa River overwhelmed downtown Napa in 2005, flooding or destroying about 1,000 homes and forcing thousands of residents to leave the area.

With that in mind, residents worked to fill 700 bags with 10 tons of sand, city official Danny Lerma said.

"When you see it happen, you always remember, and you say, 'I'm going to be better prepared,'" Lerma told KGO-TV. "And that's what they're doing right now."

Farther north, forecasters said the Truckee River near Lake Tahoe was expected to crest above flood level by Sunday morning. The threat of flooding prompted officials in Truckee, a small town of about 16,000, to set up an evacuation center.

A flash flood watch was also in effect for a wide area of Northern California through Sunday evening.

Just across the border in Nevada, a state of emergency was declared in Reno, Sparks and Washoe County due to the expected flooding.

The weather also prompted cancellations of Christmas parades and tree lightings in Sparks and Truckee.

Officials were also warning people to be careful along beaches.

A high surf advisory was issued by the weather service, with swells expected to be 14 to 16 feet along the Northern California coast. In Southern California, high surf was predicted in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties.

In San Diego, the Ocean Beach Municipal Pier was closed because of big waves and high tides.

At the peak of Friday's storm, some flooding was reported and thousands of people in Northern California were without power.

The stormy weather may be behind a crash that involved several cars on Interstate 280 outside of San Francisco on Saturday morning, as well as the death of a Pacific Gas & Electric worker in West Sacramento who was killed after his truck crashed into a traffic signal pole during the stormy weather Friday.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-12-02-California%20Storm/id-54d6d579644f4171b3f8725bbf099f4c

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Saturday, December 1, 2012

Congress looks at doing away with the $1 bill

FILE - This undated file photo provided by the U.S. Mint shows the President John Adams presidential $1 coin. Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely and replacing them with dollar coins could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years. (AP Photo/US Mint, File)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? American consumers have shown about as much appetite for the $1 coin as kids do their spinach. They may not know what's best for them either. Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely and replacing them with dollar coins could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years.

Vending machine operators have long championed the use of $1 coins because they don't jam the machines, cutting down on repair costs and lost sales. But most people don't seem to like carrying them. In the past five years, the U.S. Mint has produced 2.4 billion Presidential $1 coins. Most are stored by the Federal Reserve, and production was suspended about a year ago.

The latest projection from the Government Accountability Office on the potential savings from switching to dollar coins entirely comes as lawmakers begin exploring new ways for the government to save money by changing the money itself.

The Mint is preparing a report for Congress showing how changes in the metal content of coins could save money.

The last time the government made major metallurgical changes in U.S. coins was nearly 50 years ago when Congress directed the Mint to remove silver from dimes and quarters and to reduce its content in half dollar coins. Now, Congress is looking at new changes in response to rising prices for copper and nickel.

At a House subcommittee hearing Thursday, the focus was on two approaches:

?Moving to less expensive combinations of metals like steel, aluminum and zinc.

?Gradually taking dollar bills out the economy and replacing them with coins.

The GAO's Lorelei St. James told the House Financial Services panel it would take several years for the benefits of switching from paper bills to dollar coins to catch up with the cost of making the change. Equipment would have to be bought or overhauled and more coins would have to be produced upfront to replace bills as they are taken out of circulation.

But over the years, the savings would begin to accrue, she said, largely because a $1 coin could stay in circulation for 30 years while paper bills have to be replaced every four or five years on average.

"We continue to believe that replacing the note with a coin is likely to provide a financial benefit to the government," said St. James, who added that such a change would work only if the note was completely eliminated and the public educated about the benefits of the switch.

Even the $1 coin's most ardent supporters recognize that they haven't been popular. Philip Diehl, former director of the Mint, said there was a huge demand for the Sacagawea dollar coin when production began in 2001, but as time wore on, people stayed with what they knew best.

"We've never bitten the bullet to remove the $1 bill as every other Western economy has done," Diehl said. "If you did, it would have the same success the Canadians have had."

Beverly Lepine, chief operating officer of the Royal Canadian Mint, said her country loves its "Loonie," the nickname for the $1 coin that includes an image of a loon on the back. The switch went over so well that the country also went to a $2 coin called the "Toonie."

Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., affirmed that Canadians have embraced their dollar coins. "I don't know anyone who would go back to the $1 and $2 bills," he said.

That sentiment was not shared by some of his fellow subcommittee members when it comes to the U.S. version.

Rep. Lacy Clay, D-Mo., said men don't like carrying a bunch of coins around in their pocket or in their suits. And Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said the $1 coins have proved too hard to distinguish from quarters.

"If the people don't want it and they don't want to use it," she said, "why in the world are we even talking about changing it?"

"It's really a matter of just getting used to it," said Diehl, the former Mint director.

Several lawmakers were more intrigued with the idea of using different metal combinations in producing coins.

Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, said a penny costs more than 2 cents to make and a nickel costs more than 11 cents to make. Moving to multiplated steel for coins would save the government nearly $200 million a year, he said.

The Mint's report, which is due in mid-December, will detail the results of nearly 18 months of work exploring a variety of new metal compositions and evaluating test coins for attributes as hardness, resistance to wear, availability of raw materials and costs.

Richard Peterson, the Mint's acting director, declined to give lawmakers a summary of what will be in the report, but he said "several promising alternatives" were found.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-11-30-US-Coins-vs-Dollar-Bills/id-09a642a0089243998c24bb6a06307dc3

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Friday Night Jam: Darwin Deez - Free (The Editorial Me) (Little green footballs)

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Tunisian troops fire tear gas at protesters

SILIANA, Tunisia (Reuters) - Tunisian security forces fired tear gas and live rounds into the air on Saturday to try to disperse thousands of protesters in a town that has seen days of clashes over economic hardship.

National guard forces belonging to the Interior Ministry fired tear gas and rounds from inside armored personnel carriers in the town of Siliana, southwest of Tunis.

"Get out, get out!", "With our blood and soul we sacrifice ourselves for you, Siliana" and "Siliana will be the graveyard of the Ennahda party" the protesters, who numbered about 3,000, chanted while throwing stones at security forces.

Police chased protesters down streets.

The Islamist Ennahda party that won Tunisia's first post-Arab Spring election last year is struggling to revive the economy of the north African state due to lower trade with the crisis-hit euro zone.

Disputes also continue between secularists and hardline Salafi Islamists over the future direction of the country.

Tunisian President Moncef Marzouki asked the Islamist Prime Minister Hamadi Jebali in an address on state television on Friday to appoint a new cabinet in response to the protests.

On Saturday, Jebali seemed poised to remove the controversial Siliana governor to ease tensions. A statement on state news agency TAP said a deputy had been put in charge of the governorate's affairs pending a "final decision".

The protests are the fiercest since Salafis attacked the U.S. embassy in Tunis in September over an anti-Islam film made in California. Four people were killed in that violence.

The state news agency said the government had decided to offer a job to all those who were injured or families who lost members in the Tunisian uprising that began two years ago, in an apparent effort to placate discontent.

In Tunis, hundreds of secularists protested in front of the Interior Ministry, demanding the resignation of the minister, and called on authorities to stop the violence in Siliana.

CONTROVERSIAL TACTICS

Navi Pillay, U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, said on Friday authorities must stop using firearms against demonstrators, in some of her harshest criticisms of the government elected after veteran ruler Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali fled was overthrown in January last year.

The tactics used to put down the protests have stirred anger among secular politicians in Tunisia, who say the new government is adopting the kind of harsh policing employed by Ben Ali.

At least 252 people have been wounded by birdshot, according to state news agency TAP. Medical sources say 17 have been blinded. A Reuters witness did not see police using birdshot on Saturday.

"Authorities must respect the right to peaceful assembly and ensure that the police adhere to international standards on use of force and firearms," Amnesty International said in a statement on Friday.

The government has formed an independent commission to investigate the latest unrest, TAP said. It also reported clashes in the town of Barqo near Siliana on Saturday, saying youths attacked three police vehicles.

It was in another provincial Tunisian town, Sidi Bouzid, that a street seller set himself alight in 2010 in despair at the confiscation of his fruit cart.

Mohamed Bouazizi's suicide ignited simmering anger about poverty, joblessness, corruption and repression, triggering the Arab Spring uprisings.

(Writing by Andrew Hammond; Editing by Andrew Roche)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tunisian-troops-fire-tear-gas-protesters-185000527--business.html

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Self Love Heals Difficult Love Relationships | Your Happiness is Within

Sporting the Right Attitude Love Relationship Series

When you are dealing with difficult people, it?s hard to love them. However, that?s the very thing that can help you overcome the challenge.

"Love" by Dynamite Imagery

We?re told many of the great spiritual masters and men through-out the ages used love when they were up against an enemy, but sometimes we just want to strike back at those who are giving us a hard time.

Oftentimes it?s easier to deal with those difficult people at work who we don?t care about, than in a love relationship. It?s harder because we care about those closest to us, and they may live under the same roof.

So what is the answer?

When someone you love is in a bad mood or arguing with you, that?s a signal, a doorbell ringing. It?s reminding you to surround yourself with love. Previously, you may have surrounded yourself with an armor of resistance.

However, the other person feels that resistance and fights back even harder. When you surround yourself with love, there is nothing for anyone to push up against.

That armor of love is like a magical shield that not only repels negative energy, but transforms opposition into peace.

Suddenly, you find that you don?t want to argue, and the other person has backed down. Maybe not immediately, but there is a noticeable shift, and you find you are not rattled like before.

The love you have for yourself is an energy that automatically affects an opposing person. Why? Because we are all energy with sending and receiving signals.

We?re talking about a love relationship here, but it works with anyone.

So how do you give yourself love? You don?t. You tap into the love that has always been inside of you, but covered by fears and doubts.

You can do this with awareness.

Here is a way that works for me in my marriage:

We have been given the great gift of visualization, but we don?t use it.? We usually use our imagination thinking about the worse things that could happen to us. However, love is the greatest power on the planet.

Take the time to sit in the quiet and place your attention on your heart.

Close your eyes and watch your breath inhaling and exhaling.

Next, focus on your breath going into your heart and breath coming out. This is opening your heart.

Imagine a loving light coming out of your heart and surrounding you. It can be a midst with colors. I imagine a pink cloud, other times a golden light. Throughout the day, tune into your heart breath. The more you focus on your love breath, the stronger it becomes.

You have to find what works for you. Remember, you are not trying to make love happen, or manipulate someone else. You are simply opening to the love that is already inside of you.

You don?t have to visualize, it?s just a tool of awareness.

This exercise has worked when I was in conflict with my husband and with my children. It worked when I was dealing with difficult people working for the television networks. Today I use it in my volunteer work teaching creative writing to incarcerated angry teen girls. The results are magical.

Don?t take my word. Try a heart opener for yourself.? Tap into your internal powers of love.

What have you got to lose but anger and continuous suffering?

Love, light and blessings,
Janet Alston Jackson
?

Source: http://yourhappinessiswithin.com/?p=603

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Lo and behold! It's winter! Home Improvement Ideas for Your Home

Are you feeling trapped indoors during the cold, long winter months? Flicking through old magazines, watching re-runs of old sitcoms on the TV and being a couch potato while munching on bag after bag of potato chips? Why not get constructive and do something to brighten up your living space (AND your mood) this cold season? These home improvement projects are easy and sure to cozy up your home in a jiffy.

Repaint your house

Do you find the existing paint in your house rather drab? Mix things up with a brand new paint job! Always think of the mood and feel you?d like to create in the room before deciding on a new color. You might want a bedroom to be soothing and relaxing or intimate and restful. The rule of thumb is to go with soft, cool colors for a soothing ambiance and stronger, brighter colors to add drama.

Re-carpet your home

There?s really so much you can do with carpeting- your choice of fabrics, colors, designs, patterns, shapes and sizes are endless; giving you ample room to go out all out with your home improvement plans. If you?re yearning for change, consider bold patterns and block colors to add life to the room. Conversely, if you already have bright and vibrant furniture, you could tone it down by adding a neutral or pastel shaded carpet. And for all the cold mornings when you want to avoid slipping out of your warm bed and onto the cold floor, you could add a rug or a carpet under a bed!

Decorate your mantel!

The cold season happens to coincide with the festive season of Christmas! This is a perfect opportunity to change things up a bit when it comes to decorating your mantel. Bring out old family albums and frame some of your favorites. You could use large, wrought-iron frames or simple and elegant wooden frames depending on your choice. Bring out the candles (and candle-stands to go with them!) and arrange them on your mantel. Large vases with season?s flowers (poinsettias! Mmm-hmm) could adorn the top of these surfaces. Come Christmas, you could string some lights and satin ribbons around them. Families with young kids could pin up their Christmas stockings too!

Get your windows replaced!

The cold season is a perfect time for window replacement. Think about cozying up in a window seat with a warm cup of coffee and your favorite book. Beautiful bay windows could make a fabulous addition to your home and think of all the warm sunlight you?re letting in! Opt for energy efficient windows and save on the energy and heating bills associated with the winter by keeping the heat in!

Add insulation to your home

In the winter you want to save energy and increase your comfort. After all, you DO spend most of your time indoors! So start with insulating the attic and upper basement walls. Seal up all the places from where cold air can flow into the warm space of your home.

The cold season is a perfect time for home improvement projects. Not only do you get to pretty up your home, but you also get to add to its value. Now that you know this, don?t wait to start on your home improvement project!

About the author: Althea Crowe has worked for 6 years as a real estate agent.? Her interest in interior decoration and home improvement led her to pick up practical tips on home repairs and renovations. From replacement windows and doors to siding, roofing, landscaping, re-modeling patio rooms and sun rooms, Althea shares her knowledge through articles that she hopes will provide her readers with the information they?re looking for.

Source: http://www.homezweethome.info/2012/12/lo-and-behold-its-winter-home.html

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