Dispersal in microbes: fungi in indoor air are dominated by outdoor air and show dispersal limitation at short distances.

The indoor microbiome is a complex system that is thought to depend on dispersal from the outdoor biome and the occupants' microbiome combined with selective pressures imposed by the occupants' behaviors and the building itself. We set out to determine the pattern of fungal diversity and composition in indoor air on a local scale and to identify processes behind that pattern. We surveyed airborne fungal assemblages within 1-month time periods at two seasons, with high replication, indoors and outdoors, within and across standardized residences at a university housing facility. Fungal assemblages indoors were diverse and strongly determined by dispersal from outdoors, and no fungal taxa were found as indicators of indoor air. There was a seasonal effect on the fungi found in both indoor and outdoor air, and quantitatively more fungal biomass was detected outdoors than indoors. A strong signal of isolation by distance existed in both outdoor and indoor airborne fungal assemblages, despite the small geographic scale in which this study was undertaken (<500 m). Moreover, room and occupant behavior had no detectable effect on the fungi found in indoor air. These results show that at the local level, outdoor air fungi dominate the patterning of indoor air. More broadly, they provide additional support for the growing evidence that dispersal limitation, even on small geographic scales, is a key process in structuring the often-observed distance-decay biogeographic pattern in microbial communities

Contribution of Vegetation to the Microbial Composition of Nearby Outdoor Air.

UnlabelledGiven that epiphytic microbes are often found in large population sizes on plants, we tested the hypothesis that plants are quantitatively important local sources of airborne microorganisms. The abundance of microbial communities, determined by quantifying bacterial 16S RNA genes and the fungal internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, in air collected directly above vegetation was 2- to 10-fold higher than that in air collected simultaneously in an adjacent nonvegetated area 50 m upwind. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling revealed that the composition of airborne bacteria in upwind air samples grouped separately from that of downwind air samples, while communities on plants and downwind air could not be distinguished. In contrast, fungal taxa in air samples were more similar to each other than to the fungal epiphytes. A source-tracking algorithm revealed that up to 50% of airborne bacteria in downwind air samples were presumably of local plant origin. The difference in the proportional abundances of a given operational taxonomic unit (OTU) between downwind and upwind air when regressed against the proportional representation of this OTU on the plant yielded a positive slope for both bacteria and fungi, indicating that those taxa that were most abundant on plants proportionally contributed more to downwind air. Epiphytic fungi were less of a determinant of the microbiological distinctiveness of downwind air and upwind air than epiphytic bacteria. Emigration of epiphytic bacteria and, to a lesser extent, fungi, from plants can thus influence the microbial composition of nearby air, a finding that has important implications for surrounding ecosystems, including the built environment into which outdoor air can penetrate.ImportanceThis paper addresses the poorly understood role of bacterial and fungal epiphytes, the inhabitants of the aboveground plant parts, in the composition of airborne microbes in outdoor air. It is widely held that epiphytes contribute to atmospheric microbial assemblages, but much of what we know is limited to qualitative assessments. Elucidating the sources of microbes in outdoor air can inform basic biological processes seen in airborne communities (e.g., dispersal and biogeographical patterns). Furthermore, given the considerable contribution of outdoor air to microbial communities found within indoor environments, the understanding of plants as sources of airborne microbes in outdoor air might contribute to our understanding of indoor air quality. With an experimental design developed to minimize the likelihood of other-than-local plant sources contributing to the composition of airborne microbes, we provide direct evidence that plants are quantitatively important local sources of airborne microorganisms, with implications for the surrounding ecosystems

Proactive motor control reduces monetary risk taking in gambling.

This is a postprint of an article published in Psychological Science © 2012 copyright SAGE Publications. Psychological Science is available online at: http://pss.sagepub.com/content/by/yearLess supervision by the executive system after disruption of the right prefrontal cortex leads to increased risk taking in gambling because superficially attractive-but risky-choices are not suppressed. Similarly, people might gamble more in multitask situations than in single-task situations because concurrent executive processes usually interfere with each other. In the study reported here, we used a novel monetary decision-making paradigm to investigate whether multitasking could reduce rather than increase risk taking in gambling. We found that performing a task that induced cautious motor responding reduced gambling in a multitask situation (Experiment 1). We then found that a short period of inhibitory training lessened risk taking in gambling at least 2 hr later (Experiments 2 and 3). Our findings indicate that proactive motor control strongly affects monetary risk taking in gambling. The link between control systems at different cognitive levels might be exploited to develop new methods for rehabilitation of addiction and impulse-control disorders

Stopping to food can reduce intake. Effects of stimulus-specificity and individual differences in dietary restraint

types: JOURNAL ARTICLECopyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.Overeating in our food-rich environment is a key contributor to obesity. Computerised response-inhibition training could improve self-control in individuals who overeat. Evidence suggests that training people to inhibit motor responses to specific food pictures can reduce the subsequent choice and consumption of those foods. Here we undertook three experiments using the stop-signal task to examine the effects of food and non-food related stop-training on immediate snack food consumption. The experiments examined whether training effects were stimulus-specific, whether they were influenced by the comparator (control) group, and whether they were moderated by individual differences in dietary restraint. Experiment 1 revealed lower intake of one food following stop- vs. double- (two key-presses) response training to food pictures. Experiment 2 offered two foods, one of which was not associated with stopping, to enable within- and between-subjects comparisons of intake. A second control condition required participants to ignore signals and respond with one key-press to all pictures. There was no overall effect of training on intake in Experiment 2, but there was a marginally significant moderation by dietary restraint: Restrained eaters ate significantly less signal-food following stop- relative to double-response training. Experiment 3 revealed that stop- vs. double-response training to non-food pictures had no effect on food intake. Taken together with previous findings, these results suggest some stimulus-specific effects of stop-training on food intake that may be moderated by individual differences in dietary restraint.Wales Institute of Cognitive NeuroscienceBBSRCESRCERCThe UK Experimental Psychology Societ

On-Demand Labor: Tactics of Flexibility and Control

This poster explores the perspectives of workers in on-demand positions man-aged through online platforms. Our interview-based study considers how Uber drivers perceive their employment status, how they view Uber’s management tactics and how they modify their work practices in order to control their schedules and wages. We found that workers tended to view themselves as independent contractors and had strong understandings of the tactics used by Uber to manage the supply of drivers. However, we also found that they do not view their responses to these tactics as a form of resistance. Instead of seeing their employment status as a problem that calls for collective action, drivers were primarily interested in increasing their own wages

Palatability of teff grass by horses

Most forages commonly used to feed horses have potential detriments including blister beetles or excessive fiber concentrations. Teff grass (T), a warm-season annual forage, has the potential to be a good alternative for horses because of its lack of observed disorders. Our objective was to compare preference by horses for T harvested under different conditions with that of bermudagrass (B) harvested at two maturities. Six different forages were evaluated: T harvested at the late vegetative stage (TLV), at late bloom but that incurred 33 mm of rainfall between mowing and baling (TLBR), with caryopsis visible (TES), or at soft dough (TSD), and B harvested at late vegetative (BLV) and mid-bloom (BMB) growth stages. Five mature horses were used in a balanced incomplete block design where each horse received a different combination of 4 forages each day for 6 d. The 4 different forages were suspended in hay nets in each corner of each stall, and each hay was offered at 50% of the average daily hay consumption measured during a 12-d adaptation period. Forage preference as measured by individual forage dry matter (DM) consumption (kg and % of total DM consumed across the 4 forages) was greatest (P \u3c 0.05) from TLV followed by BLV. Preference (kg and % of total DM consumed) of BMB was greater (P \u3c 0.05) than that of TMBR, TES, and TSD, which did not differ from each other (P ≥ 0.63). Therefore, within a specific growth stage, horses apparently preferred teff grass, but effects of maturity and rainfall had a more dramatic effect on preference by horses than forage species

Treatment for femoroacetabular impingement : a qualitative method for exploring equipoise amongst hip arthroscopy surgeons

R : URGENT The published literature suggests uncertainty about whether operative or nonoperative treatments are best for femoroacetabular impingement (FAI). Without the same level of uncertainty (equipoise) amongst surgeons, a RCT will be challenging. A qualitative study was conducted to explore the level of equipoise amongst arthroscopic FAI surgeons. In phase 1, 14 hip arthroscopy surgeons were interviewed and asked to make treatment decisions based on real life cases that included actively recruiting patients to a theoretical RCT. In phase 2, 9 hip arthroscopy hip surgeons participating in a pilot RCT were interviewed about their experiences so far of taking part in a pilot RCT. Five surgeons took part in both phase 1 and 2. Sixteen (89%) surgeons believed that they were in equipoise and that a RCT was required to generate superior scientific evidence and guidelines for the care. Despite this 5 (36%) surgeons showed a lack of active clinical equipoise when faced with real life case scenarios or discussing involvement with a pilot RCT. Some of the reasons behind surgeons’ lack of equipoise, ranged from lack of belief in the FAI pathology, to personal enthusiasm and gut instinct about the efficacy of surgery on one hand; but conservatism on the other. Although many would like a RCT to guide care, there may be particular challenges amongst this same population when actively recruiting patients to a RCT. Qualitative methodology can be used to help design surgical RCTs and address any subsequent difficulties with recruitment