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A survey assessed the motivations of Chinese adults learning (N=512), living in Canada, English as a Second Language. Results revealed such motives as linguistic needs, basic skills, cultural awareness, social interaction, and resume-writing but found no differences in perceived motivation according to age, education level, or length of stay in Canada. (Author/CB)

Vertical connections, constructed using inquiry, give students the skills to reach new heights in both their academic and local communities. In this article, the authors present inquiry projects, developed by middle level teachers, to ensure that students use higher-level thinking skills to improve the community. Each project is connected to the previous year's to give students a deeper understanding of how research can help citizens build a sustainable community. Teachers work together to plan field studies and guide students in presenting their findings to others in the community using models, PowerPoint presentations, a web accessible database, and reports from field investigations. The projects are as follows: (1) healthy marine ecosystems--sixth grade; (2) interdisciplinary science: biodiversity and development--seventh grade; and (3) collaborating to create a better biosphere--eighth grade. (Contains 1 figure and 4 online resources.)

In epidemiological studies, dairy food consumption has been associated with minimal effect or decreased risk of some cardiometabolic diseases (CMD). However, current methods of dietary assessment do not provide objective and accurate measures of food intakes. Thus, the identification of valid and reliable biomarkers of dairy product intake is an important challenge to best determine the relationship between dairy consumption and health status. This review investigated potential biomarkers of dairy fat consumption, such as odd-chain, trans- and branched-chain fatty acids (FA), which may improve the assessment of full-fat dairy product consumption. Overall, the current use of serum/plasma FA as biomarkers of dairy fat consumption is mostly based on observational evidence, with a lack of well-controlled, dose–response intervention studies to accurately assess the strength of the relationship. Circulating odd-chain SFA and trans-palmitoleic acid are increasingly studied in relation to CMD risk and seem to be consistently associated with a reduced risk of type 2 diabetes in prospective cohort studies. However, associations with CVD are less clear. Overall, adding less studied FA such as vaccenic and phytanic acids to the current available evidence may provide a more complete assessment of dairy fat intake and minimise potential confounding from endogenous synthesis. Finally, the current evidence base on the direct effect of dairy fatty acids on established biomarkers of CMD risk (e.g. fasting lipid profiles and markers of glycaemic control) mostly derives from cross-sectional, animal and in vitro studies and should be strengthened by well-controlled human intervention studies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Salvinia minima Baker (Salviniaceae) has been recorded for the first time in Africa. This South American native macrophyte is highly invasive and damaging, costing millions of dollars to control in the USA, and has the potential to invade many of southern Africa's waterbodies. Field surveys have confirmed the presence of S. minima from four sites in South Africa, with the largest invasion occurring on the highly polluted Hartbeespoort Dam, north east of the country's capital. Salvinia minima has been targeted for biological control in South Africa, using the weevil, Cyrtobagous salviniae, which is undergoing host specificity testing under quarantine conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cholera epidemic in Haiti will be a year old in October and is far from under control. As cases spiked across the country during the summer rainy season, the [...]

Nanoarchaeum equitans and lgnicoccus hospitalis represent a unique, intimate association of two archaea. Both form a stable coculture which is mandatory for N. equitans but not for the host L hospitalis. Here, we investigated interactions and mutual influence between these microorganisms. Fermentation studies revealed that during exponential growth only about 25% of L hospitalis cells are occupied by N. equitans cells (one to three cells). The latter strongly proliferate in the stationary phase of L hospitalis, until 80 to 90% of the L hospitalis cells carry around 10 N. equitans cells. Furthermore, the expulsion of [H.sub.2]S, the major metabolic end product of I. hospitalis, by strong gas stripping yields huge amounts of free N. equitans cells. N. equitans had no influence on the doubling times, final cell concentrations, and growth temperature, pH, or salt concentration ranges or optima of I. hospitalis. However, isolation studies using optical tweezers revealed that infection with N. equitans inhibited the proliferation of individual L hospitalis cells. This inhibition might be caused by deprivation of the host of cell components like amino acids, as demonstrated by [.sup.13]C-labeling studies. The strong dependence of N. equitans on L hospitalis was affirmed by live-dead staining and electron microscopic analyses, which indicated a tight physiological and structural connection between the two microorganisms. No alternative hosts, including other Ignicoccus species, were accepted by N. equitans. In summary, the data show a highly specialized association of N. equitans and L hospitalis which so far cannot be assigned to a classical symbiosis, commensalism, or parasitism.

ABSTRACT In this paper, we model business workflows using Harel's statecharts. Mapping to statecharts allows us to systematically identify potential workflow problems. It also allows us to investigate specific properties […]