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The Southwest Florida Water Management District has implemented a management approach for unimpounded rivers that limits withdrawals to a percentage of streamflow at the time of withdrawal. The natural flow regime of the contributing river is considered to he the baseline for assessing the effects of withdrawals. Development of the percent-of-flow approach has emphasized the interaction of freshwater inflow with the overlap of stationary and dynamic habitat components in tidal river zones of larger estuarine systems. Since the responses of key estuarine characteristics (e.g.. isohaline locations, residence times) to freshwater inflow are frequently nonlinear, the approach is designed to prevent impacts to estuarine resources during sensitive low-inflow, periods and to allow water supplies to become gradually more available as inflow increases, A high sensitivity to variation at low inflow extends to many invertebrates and fishes that move upstream and downstream in synchrony with inflow. Total numbers of estuarine-resident and estuarine-dependent organisms have hero found to decrease during low-inflow periods. including mysids, grass shrimp, and juveniles of the hay anchovy and sand seatrout. The interaction of freshwater inflow with seasonal processes, such as phytoplankton production and the recruitment of fishes to the tidal-river nursery', indicates that withdrawal percentages during the springtime should be most restrictive. Ongoing efforts are oriented toward refining percentage withdrawal limits among seasons and floss ranges to account fur shifts in the responsiveness of estuarine processes to reductions in freshwater inflow. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The role of the telephone in medical practice is important, but often problematic. Mistakes in telephone diagnosis and triage can have severe consequences. An effective office system can reduce liability risks, and in some cases telephone contact can substitute for office visits. Internists feel unprepared to provide telephone care. Therefore, residency education needs to focus on documentation, consultant availability, and performance feedback. Research should focus on improving outcomes, reimbursement issues, and technologic advances. This article describes internists' telephone interactions with ambulatory patients, preparation for telephone medicine, and aspects of office telephone systems and makes comparisons with other primary care fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Lower Hillsborough River, Florida is a short (16 km) riverine estuary which has a dam located at its upstream end. Salinity below thedam is influenced by freshwater that flows over or through the structure. Depending on location in the estuary, the response of salinity to changes in upstream freshwater inflows is normally not instantaneous, but lags behind the freshwater release. An analytical approach and a laterally averaged two-dimensional hydrodynamic model were used to examine the response time of salinity in the Lower Hillsborough River to changes in freshwater inflows from the upstream reservoir. A series of case studies were conducted using the model to determine how salinity in the river within one kilometer below the dam would respond to changes in freshwater inflows. The model results suggest that the time lag of salinity in the river depends on whether the upstream freshwater inflows are increasing or decreasing, as well as their magnitude. While the time lag for salinity is about six to eight days fordecreasing inflows, it is much shorter for increasing inflows depending on the magnitude of the flow release. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper pursues the lead of Bart K. Holland in utilizing classic literature as a guide to the pharmacologic potentialities of natural products. Instead of focusing on European texts, how ever, American medicinal plants are examined through the work of the influential naturalist Constantine S. Rafinesque (1783--1840). Rafinesque is discussed with special attention to his activities as a medical botanist. In particular, the plant species monographed in the main section of his Medical Flora of the United States (1828--1830) are studied for theirhistorical and current use as medicinal agents. The results are tabulated and presented in a bar graph. The study concludes that Rafinesque was a progressive therapist whose Medical Flora is a promising guide for phytopharmacuetical prospecting with North American plants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]