In a replicated experiment, nonbreeding winter populations of Microtus montanus were given supplements of rolled oats coated with 6-methoxybenzoxazolinone, a naturally occurring plant derivative. After 3 weeks of this feeding regime, samples from the populations demonstrated a high incidence of pregnancy in females and testicular hypertrophy in males. Control populations receiving rolled oats c...

A phytochrome radioimmunoassay with a detection limit of about 2 nanograms has been developed. The radioimmunoassay does not suffer from the potential drawbacks of the commonly used spectral assay and requires less than 1 microliter of crude extract from dark-grown plants for quantitation of phytochrome. Measurement of phytochrome in crude extracts by radioimmunoassay gives values about 25% gre...

Small robot helicopters are becoming a popular research platform due to the availability of off-the-shelf components and their suitability for useful applications. We describe the Oxford Aerial Tracking System (OATS) that we are commissioning which takes a commercial airframe and low-level flight controller, and adapts these for use in applications requiring the visual tracking of ground target...

In just over 2 years since the First Workshop, Argo has matured enormously. There are now over 2400 fl oats, 80% of the Argo target. More than half of these fl oats are in the Southern Hemisphere, and global coverage has been achieved. The Global Ocean has never before been observed as it is at the present time. While 10 years are needed to fully demonstrate the value of Argo, now is the time t...

Plant-nematode populations associated with uncultivated vegetation, adjacent strawberry plants, and alternate crop sites were studied at three locations in Minnesota. At one site (Forest Lake), Paratylenchus projectus, Meloidogyne hapla, and Pratylenchus tenuis were frequently associated with the roots of native vegetation. These nematode species were also present in adjacent strawberry beds. A...

There is a much-quoted saying, attributed to the epidemiologist Geoffrey Rose: “A large number of people exposed to a small risk may generate many more cases than a small number exposed to a very high risk.” This is true for many individual risk factors such as salt intake (linked to high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease) and speeding on the highway (linked to injuries and accidents). ...