Find research datasets worth reusing
Search datasets from major research repositories and use ShareScore to quickly assess how well each record supports discovery, access, and reuse.
10,554
datasets available to search
ShareScore release 0.8.0
Dataset results
10,554 results for “measurements”
Dataset based on survey experiment measuring party selectors' stereotypes about ethnic minority aspirants
<p>This is a restricted dataset based on a survey experiment conducted among local party chairs in Flanders (Belgium) in 2019 (N=597). The objective of the experiment was to test whether party chairs hold stereotypes about ethnic minority aspirants, i.e. whether they evaluate ethnic minority aspirants differently than similar ethnic majority aspirants. </p> <p>During the experiment, each participant was presented one ethnic minority (Moroccan name) and one ethnic majority (Flemish name) aspirant in a randomized order. Two different policy profiles were randomly distributed between the two aspirants and both aspirants were each randomly assigned a low or a high SES (having either a university or lower secondary school degree). After being presented an aspirant, the participants were asked to evaluate him (we only used male first names) in terms of ideological position, competence and trustworthiness. </p> <p>This dataset includes for each participant information about the exact profile of the aspirants who were evaluated (their ethnicity, SES and policy profile), the evaluation scores granted to these aspirants and information about manipulation checks included in the survey experiment. </p> <p>The two profiles which were presented during the survey experiment are the following:</p> <p>Profile 1: <br> The 46 year old [Victor Claes OR Mohammed El Amrani] has a wife and two children. He has a [university degree OR lower secondary degree]. [Victor OR Mohammed] is a member of several local associations and has been a member of your party since two years. <br> [Victor OR Mohammed] wants to increase the citizens’ well-being. When possible, extra cycle routes should be put in place, circulation plans should become more straightforward and traffic safety in school environments should be enhanced. The candidate wants to embellish the streets and is in favour of a more innovate approach against high vacancy rates in the housing market. [Victor OR Mohammed] advocates more efficient spatial planning. More space should be provided for new and growing enterprises whilst preserving sufficient green, open spaces. The supply of public transport should be enhanced throughout the whole municipality. [Victor OR Mohammed] wants to invest in both youngsters and the elderly. Blind spots in child care should be erased and nursing homes should remain affordable. Multi-purpose halls should be accessible to a wide and inclusive supply of activities to connect all citizens. Finally, [Victor OR Mohammed] wants to increase both the capacity of the local schools and the level of education they provide. </p> <p>Profile 2: <br> [Victor Claes OR Mohammed El Amrani] is 43 years old. He has a [university degree OR lower secondary degree]. He became a member of your party in 2016. He and his wife have one daughter. [Victor OR Mohammed] is a member of several local associations.<br> [Victor OR Mohammed] strives towards a more liveable municipality. Investments in the public domain should provide sufficient facilities for young and old. Think about new play grounds, sport fields and pétanque courts. Environments should be given more freedom to develop and innovate. Thereby, expanding firms who contribute to local employment as well as small local entrepreneurs should be given the necessary attention. [Victor OR Mohammed] advocates a cleaner and greener municipality and wants to set up an effective plan against litter. The candidate wants to implement new subsidies for the local leisure industry aimed at providing facilities for disabled people and lower tariffs for people with low incomes. Regarding mobility, [Victor OR Mohammed] wants more and better lighting on cycle routes. Shortcuts through residential areas should be made less accessible and more investments in central connecting roads are desirable. Finally, unemployed people should be actively encouraged to find a new job and guided towards employment.</p> <p> </p> <p> </p>
Supplementary Data for Remote soil moisture measurement from drone-borne reflectance spectroscopy: Applications to hydroperiod measurement in desert playas
<p>This supporting dataset includes:</p> <p>• Ground-based reflectance measurements for the two plume-crossing transects (AHT3 and AHT4). Data show reflectance by wavelength at each scan position.</p> <p>• Reduced data records (RDR) showing GPS position data for the drone and the associated reflectance measurement, by wavelength, averaged over 1 second intervals for the three mapping sorties, AHS4, 5, and 7.</p> <p>• The sample datasheet showing ground-based and lab-base measurements of the sampling transects.</p>
Measurement report: quantifying source contribution of fossil fuels and biomass-burning black carbon aerosol in the southeastern margin of the Tibetan Plateau
<p>Anthropogenic emissions of Black carbon (BC) aerosol are transported from Southeast Asia to the southwestern Tibetan Plateau (TP) during the pre-monsoon; however, the quantities of BC from different anthropogenic sources and the transport mechanisms are still not well constrained because there have been no high-time-resolution BC source apportionments. Intensive measurements were taken in a transport channel for pollutants from Southeast Asia to the southeastern margin of TP during the pre-monsoon to investigate the influences of fossil fuels and biomass burning on BC. A receptor model coupled multi-wavelength absorption with aerosol species concentrations was used to retrieve site-specific Ångström exponents (AAE) and mass absorption cross-sections (MAC) for BC. An ‘aethalometer model’ that used those values showed that biomass burning had a larger contribution to BC mass than fossil fuels (BCbiomass = 57% versus BCfossil = 43%). The potential source contribution function indicated that BCbiomass was transported to the site from northeastern India and northern Burma, The Weather Research and Forecasting model coupled with chemistry (WRF-Chem) model indicated that 40% of BCbiomass originated from Southeast Asia, while the high BCfossil was transported from the southwest of sampling site. A radiative transfer model indicated that the average atmospheric direct radiative effects (DRE) of BC was +4.6 ± 2.4 W m<sup>-2</sup> with +2.5 ± 1.8 W m<sup>-2</sup> from BCbiomass and +2.1 ± 0.9 W m<sup>-2</sup> from BCfossil. The DRE of BCbiomass and BCfossil produced heating rates of 0.07 ± 0.05 and 0.06 ± 0.02 K day<sup>-1</sup>, respectively. This study provides insights into sources of BC over a transport channel to the southeastern TP and the influence of the cross-border transportation of biomass burning emissions from Southeast Asia during the pre-monsoon.</p>
A new merged dataset for analyzing clouds, precipitation and atmospheric parameters based on ERA5 reanalysis data and the measurements of TRMM PR and VIRS
<p>This new merged gridded dataset (M-1B01-2A25-GD) contains precipitation, clouds and atmospheric parameters with 0.25° spatial resolution.</p> <p>It is produced by merging TRMM PR and VIRS measurements with the ERA5 reanalysis dataset at the same spatiotemporal resolution between 40° S and 40° N. The near-surface rain rate, profiles of rain rate and precipitation reflectivity factor, visible and infrared signals and atmospheric parameters (temperature, pressure, geopotential height, specific humidity, divergence, vertical velocity and so on) can be obtained in the dataset. The statistical results indicate that the merging and gridding will not dramatically distort the original data and the new dataset can be used to study the characteristics and distribution of the precipitation and clouds systems.</p>
The High-Latitude Extension of Jupiter's Io Torus: Electron Densities Measured by Juno Waves
<p>This is the supporting data set for the paper by the same title published in AGU JGR Space Physics, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JA029195">10.1029/2021JA029195</a></p> <p><strong>Abstract</strong></p> <p>We present Jovian electron densities measured by the Juno Waves instrument at high-latitudes on magnetic field lines threading the Io torus using the first 29 orbits of the Juno mission. We infer electron densities from characteristic frequency cutoffs and resonances in plasma wave spectra. There are often times when more than one of the characteristic frequency of the plasma can be identified, whose consistency provides more credibility to the plasma density estimates. The majority of density measurements are on magnetic field lines threading the Io torus and intersecting Jupiter's ionosphere between Io's M-shell and the auroral main oval, but there is evidence of density dropouts near and within the auroral oval, which may be important in auroral particle acceleration. Sharp density gradients are found near the inner edge of the Io torus region. These observations demonstrate the extension of elevated Io torus densities along field lines to higher latitudes. </p> <p><strong>Key Points</strong></p> <ul> <li>We present Jovian electron densities at high-latitudes on magnetic field lines connected to the Io torus and plasma sheet</li> <li>Sharp density gradients are found near the inner edge of the Io torus M-shell</li> <li>Our densities are consistent with partial electron densities measured by Juno's Jovian Auroral Distributions Experiment</li> </ul>
Data from: Unmanned aerial systems measure structural habitat features for wildlife across multiple scales
1.Assessing habitat quality is a primary goal of ecologists. However, evaluating habitat features that relate strongly to habitat quality at fine-scale resolutions across broad-scale extents is challenging. Unmanned aerial systems (UAS) provide an avenue for bridging the gap between relatively high spatial resolution, low spatial extent field-based habitat quality measurements and lower spatial resolution, higher spatial extent satellite-based remote sensing. Our goal in this study was to evaluate the potential for UAS structure from motion (SfM) to estimate several dimensions of habitat quality that provide potential security from predators and forage for pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) in a sagebrush-steppe environment. 2.At the plant and patch scales, we compared UAS-derived estimates of vegetation height, volume (estimate of food availability), and canopy cover to estimates from ground-based terrestrial laser scanning (TLS), and field-based measurements. Then, we mapped habitat features across two sagebrush landscapes in Idaho, USA, using point clouds derived from UAS SfM. 3.At the individual plant scale, the UAS-derived estimates matched those from TLS for height (r2 = 0.85), volume (r2 = 0.94), and canopy cover (r2 = 0.68). However, there was less agreement with field-based measurements of height (r2 = 0.67), volume (r2 = 0.31), and canopy cover (r2 = 0.29). At the patch scale, UAS-derived estimates provided a better fit to field-based measurements (r2 = 0.51-0.78) than at the plant scale. Landscape-scale maps created from UAS were able to distinguish structural heterogeneity between key patch types. 4.Our work demonstrates that UAS was able to accurately estimate habitat heterogeneity for a key terrestrial vertebrate at multiple spatial scales. Given that many of the vegetation metrics we focus on are important for a wide variety of species, our work illustrates a general remote sensing approach for mapping and monitoring fine-resolution habitat quality across broad landscapes for use in studies of animal ecology, conservation, and land management.
Measurement data of the industrial IoT scenario
<p>In these measurements considered in this dataset, 15 measurement points are deployed in the scenario. They are sorted in two groups. Among line 1, all measurement points are LoS scenarios. Among line 2, measurement points 1, 2, 3, 4, 5,and 7 are LoS scenarios, and measurement points 6, 8, 9 are NLoS scenarios. Due to the limitation of the cable length, measurement data of line 2 locations 1-6 is collected at mmwave band. The heights of the Tx antenna and the Rx antenna are 2.05 m and 1.45 m, respectively. The bandwidth of the intermediate frequency filter of the adopted VNA is 2 kHz. Both the Tx and the Rx antennas are omnidirectional antennas. 200 snapshots are collect at each Rx location. In terms of the 3-4 GHz data, the bandwidth is 1 GHz. The number of frequency points swept in each snapshot is 501. In the aspect of 38-39 GHz and 39-40 GHz data, the center frequencies are 38.5 GHz and 39.5 GHz with 1 GHz bandwidth, respectively. The number of frequency points swept in each snapshot is also 501.</p>
Data from: Ion microprobe measured stable isotope evidence for ammonite habitat and life mode during early ontogeny
Ammonites have disparate adult morphologies indicative of diverse ecological niches, but ammonite hatchlings are small (~1 mm diameter), which raises questions about the similarity of egg incubation and hatchling life mode in ammonites. Modern Nautilus is sometimes used as a model organism for understanding ammonites, but despite their outward similarities, the groups are only distantly related. Trends in ammonite diversity and extinction vulnerability in the fossil record contrast starkly with those of nautilids, and embryonic shells from Late Cretaceous ammonites are two orders of magnitude smaller than nautilid embryonic shells. To investigate possible environmental changes experienced by ammonite hatchlings, we used secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) to analyze the oxygen and carbon isotope composition of the embryonic shells and early postembryonic whorls of five juveniles of Hoploscaphites comprimus obtained from a single concretion in the Fox Hills Formation of South Dakota. Co-occurring bivalves and diagenetic calcite were also analyzed to provide a benthic baseline for comparison. The oxygen isotope ratios of embryonic shells are more like those of benthic bivalves, suggesting that ammonite eggs were laid on the bottom. Ammonite shell immediately after hatching has more negative δ18O, suggesting movement to more shallow water that is potentially warmer and/or fresher. After approximately one whorl of postembryonic growth, the values of δ18O become more positive in three of the five individuals, suggesting that these animals transitioned to a more demersal mode of life. Two other individuals transition to even lower δ18O values that could suggest movement to nearshore brackish water. These data suggest that ammonites, like many modern coleoids, may have spawned at different times of the year. Because scaphites were one of the short-term K-Pg survivors, it is possible that this characteristic allowed them to develop a broader geographic range and, consequently, a greater resistance to extinction.
Data from: Weighting effective number of species measures by abundance weakens detection of diversity responses
1. The effective number of species (ENS) has been proposed as a robust measure of species diversity that overcomes several shortcomings of both diversity indices and species richness measures. However, it is not yet clear if ENS improves interpretation and comparison of biodiversity monitoring data, and ultimately resource management decisions. 2. We used simulations of five stream macroinvertebrate assemblages and spatially extensive field data of stream fishes and mussels to show (1) how different ENS formulations respond to stress and (2) how diversity-environment relationships change with values of q, which weight ENS measures by species abundances. 3. Values of ENS derived from whole simulated assemblages with all species weighted equally (true species richness) steadily decreased as stress increased, and ENS-stress relationships became weaker and more different among assemblages with increased weighting. 4. The amount of variation in ENS across the fish and mussel assemblages that was associated with environmental gradients decreased with increasing q. 5. Synthesis and applications: ENS does not improve interpretability of how diversity responds to stress or natural environmental gradients, and incorporating relative abundance into species diversity measures as implemented in ENS can actually weaken detection of diversity responses. Ecologists need to be cautious about use and interpretation of diversity measures whose values are jointly influenced by richness and evenness, including ENS, and instead separately assess species richness, species evenness, and compositional change in ecological communities.
High-frequency measurements of aeolian saltation flux: time series data
<p>High-frequency (25-50 Hz) coupled observations of wind speed and aeolian saltation flux (i.e, the wind-blown movement of sand) were measured at three field sites: Jericoacoara, Brazil; Rancho Guadalupe, California; and Oceano, California. The dataset provided here contains the full record of raw and processed time series of saltation flux and wind speed measured at multiple heights above the sediment surface.</p>
Quantification of uncertainties introduced by data-processing procedures of sap flow measurements using the cut-tree method on a large mature tree
<p>Motivation: Sap flow sensors are crucial instruments to understand whole-tree water use. The lack of direct calibration of the available methods on large trees and the application of several data-processing procedures may jeopardize our understanding of water uptake dynamics by increasing the uncertainties around sensor-based estimates. We directly compared the heat ratio method (HRM) sap flow measurements to water uptake measured gravimetrically using the cut-tree method on a large mature aspen tree to quantify those uncertainties for ten consecutive days.</p> <p>Dataset: In this dataset, we provide sap flux density (ten-minutes intervals; g.cm-2.hr-1; corrected for wounding and sapwood thermal diffusivity) obtained from four HRM sap flow sensors installed at 2.5 m high on the focus tree (20 m tall, 60 years old trembling aspen in the boreal mixedwood region of Alberta) between July 18th and August 22nd 2017. We present the code and data (weather data from neighboring weather station) used to calculate whole-tree sap flux (L.hr-1) from each of the individual sensors using different methods of radial integration of sap flux density across the sapwood area estimated via different calculations, as well as different zero-flow corrections used. The cut-tree procedure was applied to the focus tree, and gravimetric measurements of water uptake (ten-minutes intervals) were made using a recording scale. We directly compared the different estimates of hourly, daily and cumulative sap flows obtained with gravimetric measurement of water uptake. We present the code providing the statistical analysis and results reported in the associated publication (Merlin, M., Solarik, K.A., Landhäusser, S.M. Quantification of uncertainties introduced by data-processing procedures of sap flow measurements using the cut-tree method on a large mature tree. 2020. Agricultural and Forest Meteorology, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.agrformet.2020.107926)</p>
Consistent measures of oxidative balance predict survival but not reproduction in a long-distance migrant
1. Physiological processes, including those that disrupt oxidative balance, have been proposed as key to understanding fundamental life history trade-offs. Yet examination of changes in oxidative balance within wild animals across time, space and major life history challenges remain uncommon. For example, migration presents substantial physiological challenges for individuals, and data on migratory individuals would provide crucial context for exposing the importance of relationships between oxidative balance and fitness outcomes. 2. Here we examined the consistency of commonly used measures of oxidative balance in longitudinally sampled free-living individuals of a long-lived, long-distance migrant, the Brent goose Branta bernicla hrota over periods of months to years. 3. Although inter-individual and temporal variation in measures of oxidative balance were substantial, we found high consistency in measures of lipid peroxidation and circulating non-enzymatic antioxidants in longitudinally sampled individuals. This suggests the potential for the existence of individual oxidative phenotypes. 4. Given intra-individual consistency, we then examined how these physiological measures relate to survival and reproductive success across all sampled individuals. Surprisingly, lower survival was predicted for individuals with lower levels of damage, with no measured physiological metric associated with reproductive success. 5. Our results demonstrate that snapshot measurements of a consistent measure of oxidative balance can inform our understanding of differences in a key demographic trait. However, the positive relationship between oxidative damage and survival emphasises the need to investigate relationships between the oxidative system and fitness outcomes in other species undergoing similar physiologically challenging lifecycles. This would highlight the extent to which variation in such traits and resource allocation trade-offs is a result of adaptation to different life history strategies. 30-Mar-2020
Geolocators lead to better measures of timing and renesting in Black-tailed Godwits and reveal the bias of traditional observational methods
<p>Long‐term population studies can identify changes in population dynamics over time. However, to realize meaningful conclusions, these studies rely on accurate measurements of individual traits and population characteristics. Here, we evaluate the accuracy of the observational methods used to measure reproductive traits in individually marked black‐tailed godwits (<i>Limosa limosa limosa</i>). By comparing estimates from traditional methods with data obtained from light‐level geolocators, we provide an accurate estimate of the likelihood of renesting in godwits and the repeatability of the lay dates of first clutches. From 2012 – 2018, we used periods of shading recorded on the light‐level geolocators carried by 68 individual godwits to document their nesting behaviour. We then compared these estimates to those simultaneously obtained by our long‐term observational study. We found that among recaptured geolocator‐carrying godwits, all birds renested after a failed first clutch, regardless of the date of nest loss or the number of days already spent incubating. We also found that 43% of these godwits laid a second replacement clutch after a failed first replacement, and that 21% of these godwits renested after a hatched first clutch. However, the observational study correctly identified only 3% of the replacement clutches produced by geolocator‐carrying individuals and designated as first clutches a number of nests that were actually replacement clutches. Additionally, on the basis of the observational study, the repeatability of lay date was 0.24 (95% CI 0.17 – 0.31), whereas it was 0.54 (95% CI 0.28 – 0.75) using geolocator‐carrying individuals. We use examples from our own and other godwit studies to illustrate how the biases in our observational study discovered here may have affected the outcome of demographic estimates, individual‐level comparisons, and the design, implementation, and evaluation of conservation practices. These examples emphasize the importance of improving and validating field methodologies and show how the addition of new tools can be transformational.</p>
Data from: Non-invasive biophysical measurement of travelling waves in the insect inner ear
Frequency analysis in the mammalian cochlea depends on the propagation of frequency information in the form of a travelling wave (TW) across tonotopically arranged auditory sensilla. TWs have been directly observed in the basilar papilla of birds and the ears of bush-crickets (Insecta: Orthoptera) and have also been indirectly inferred in the hearing organs of some reptiles and frogs. Existing experimental approaches to measure TW function in tetrapods and bush-crickets are inherently invasive, compromising the fine-scale mechanics of each system. Located in the forelegs, the bush-cricket ear exhibits outer, middle and inner components; the inner ear containing tonotopically arranged auditory sensilla within a fluid-filled cavity, and externally protected by the leg cuticle. Here, we report bush-crickets with transparent ear cuticles as potential model species for direct, non-invasive measuring of TWs and tonotopy. Using laser Doppler vibrometry and spectroscopy, we show that increased transmittance of light through the ear cuticle allows for effective non-invasive measurements of TWs and frequency mapping. More transparent cuticles allow several properties of TWs to be precisely recovered and measured in vivo from intact specimens. Our approach provides an innovative, non-invasive alternative to measure the natural motion of the sensilla-bearing surface embedded in the intact inner ear fluid.
Data from: Quartet-based computations of internode certainty provide robust measures of phylogenetic incongruence
Incongruence, or topological conflict, is prevalent in genome-scale data sets. Internode Certainty (IC) and related measures were recently introduced to explicitly quantify the level of incongruence of a given internal branch among a set of phylogenetic trees and complement regular branch support measures (e.g., bootstrap, posterior probability) that instead assess the statistical confidence of inference. Since most phylogenomic studies contain data partitions (e.g., genes) with missing taxa and IC scores stem from the frequencies of bipartitions (or splits) on a set of trees, IC score calculation typically requires adjusting the frequencies of bipartitions from these partial gene trees. However, when the proportion of missing taxa is high, the scores yielded by current approaches that adjust bipartition frequencies in partial gene trees differ substantially from each other and tend to be overestimates. To overcome these issues, we developed three new IC measures based on the frequencies of quartets, which naturally apply to both complete and partial trees. Comparison of our new quartet-based measures to previous bipartition-based measures on simulated data shows that: 1) on complete data sets, both quartet-based and bipartition-based measures yield very similar IC scores; 2) IC scores of quartet-based measures on a given data set with and without missing taxa are more similar than the scores of bipartition-based measures; and 3) quartet-based measures are more robust to the absence of phylogenetic signal and errors in phylogenetic inference than bipartition-based measures. Additionally, the analysis of an empirical mammalian phylogenomic data set using our quartet-based measures reveals the presence of substantial levels of incongruence for numerous internal branches. An efficient open-source implementation of these quartet-based measures is freely available in the program QuartetScores (https://github.com/lutteropp/QuartetScores).
Data from: The Chord-Normalized Expected Species Shared (CNESS)-distance represents a superior measure of species turnover patterns
<p>1. Measures of β-diversity characterizing the difference in species composition between samples are commonly used in ecological studies. Nonetheless, commonly used dissimilarity measures require high sample completeness, or at least similar sample sizes between samples. In contrast, the Chord-Normalized Expected Species Shared (CNESS) dissimilarity measure calculates the probability of collecting the same set of species in random samples of a standardized size, and hence is not sensitive to completeness or size of compared samples. To date, this index has enjoyed limited use due to difficulties in its calculation and scarcity of studies systematically comparing it with other measures.</p> <p>2. Here, we developed a novel R function that enables users to calculate ESS (Expected Species Shared)-associated measures. We evaluate the performance of the CNESS index based on simulated datasets of known species distribution structure, and compared CNESS with more widespread dissimilarity measures (Bray-Curtis index, Chao-Sørensen index, and proportionality based Euclidean distances) for varying sample completeness and sample sizes.</p> <p>3. Simulation results indicated that for small sample size (m) values, CNESS chiefly reflects similarities in dominant species, while selecting large m values emphasizes differences in the overall species assemblages. Permutation tests revealed that CNESS has a consistently low CV (coefficient of variation) even where sample completeness varies, while the Chao-Sørensen index has a high CV particularly for low sampling completeness. CNESS distances are also more robust than other indices with regards to undersampling, particularly when chiefly rare species are shared between two assemblages.</p> <p>4. Our results emphasize the superiority of CNESS for comparisons of samples diverging in sample completeness and size, which is particularly important in studies of highly mobile and species-rich taxa where sample completeness is often low. Via changes in the sample size parameter m, CNESS furthermore cannot only provide insights into the similarity of the overall distribution structure of shared species, but also into the differences in dominant and rare species, hence allowing additional, valuable insights beyond the capability of more widespread measures.<br> </p>
A Test of the Repeatability of Measurements of Relative Fitness in the Long-Term Evolution Experiment with Escherichia coli
<p>Experimental studies of evolution using microbes have a long tradition, and these studies have increased greatly in number and scope in recent decades. Most such experiments have been short in duration, typically running for weeks or months. A venerable exception, the long-term evolution experiment (LTEE) with <i>Escherichia coli</i> has continued for 30 years and 70,000 bacterial generations. The LTEE has become one of the cornerstones of the field of experimental evolution, in general, and the BEACON Center for the Study of Evolution in Action, in particular. Science laboratories and experiments usually have finite lifespans, but we hope that the LTEE can continue far into the future. There are practical issues associated with maintaining such a long-term experiment. One issue, which we address here, is whether key measurements made at one time and place are reproducible, within reasonable limits, at other times and places. This issue comes to the forefront when one considers moving an experiment like the LTEE from one lab to another. To that end, the Barrick lab at the University of Texas at Austin, measured the fitness values of samples from the 12 LTEE populations at 2,000, 10,000, and 50,000 generations and compared the new data to data previously obtained at Michigan State University. On balance, the datasets agree very well. More generally, this finding shows the value of simplicity in experimental design, such as using a chemically defined growth medium and appropriately storing samples from microbiological experiments. Even so, one must be vigilant in checking assumptions and procedures given the potential for uncontrolled factors (e.g., water quality) to affect outcomes. This vigilance is perhaps especially important for a trait like fitness, which integrates all aspects of organismal performance and may therefore be sensitive to any number of subtle environmental influences.</p>
Data from: Artificial refuges to combat habitat loss for an endangered marsupial predator: how do they measure up?
<p>One technique used to combat the growing global species extinction crisis has been to create artificial refuges—human-made replacements for natural refuges destroyed during habitat modification. However, there is limited knowledge of how closely artificial refuges replicate the natural refuges they seek to replace. Mining threatens many species worldwide through large-scale habitat modification, and artificial refuges have been proposed as a method to offset the resulting habitat loss. Here, we examined the microclimatic, physical, and biotic characteristics of natural dens occupied by the northern quoll (<i>Dasyurus hallucatus</i>)—an endangered marsupial threatened by habitat loss—and compared these to 1) superficially similar unoccupied crevices, and 2) artificial dens created by mining companies for northern quolls. Northern quolls occupied natural dens that were cooer and deeper than unoccupied crevices, likely to avoid lethal air temperatures as well as predators. Artificial dens provided similar thermal properties to occupied dens, but lacked key characteristics in having shallower den cavities, less complex surrounding habitat, increased feral cat visitation, and less small mammal prey compared to occupied dens. This study highlights the need to consider multiple facets when constructing artificial refuges, in order to avoid perverse outcomes, such as inadequate shelter, increased predation and food shortages.</p>
A blinded, controlled trial of objective measurement in Parkinson's disease
<p>Medical conditions with effective therapies are usually managed with objective measurement and therapeutic targets. Parkinson's disease has effective therapies, but continuous objective measurement has only recently become available. This blinded, controlled study examined whether management of Parkinson's disease was improved when clinical assessment and therapeutic decisions were aided by objective measurement. The primary endpoint was improvement in the Movement Disorder Society-United Parkinson's Disease Rating Scale's (MDS-UPDRS) Total Score. In one arm, objective measurement assisted doctors to alter therapy over successive visits until objective measurement scores were in target. Patients in the other arm were conventionally assessed and therapies were changed until judged optimal. There were 75 subjects in the objective measurement arm and 79 in the arm with conventional assessment and treatment. There were statistically significant improvements in the moderate clinically meaningful range in the MDS-UPDRS Total, III, IV scales in the arm using objective measurement, but not in the conventionally treated arm. These findings show that global motor and non-motor disability is improved when the management of Parkinson's disease is assisted by objective measurement.</p>
Bridging the flux gap: sap flow measurements reveal species-specific patterns of water-use in a tallgrass prairie
<p>Predicting the hydrological consequences following changes in grassland vegetation type (i.e., woody encroachment) requires an understanding of water flux dynamics at high spatiotemporal resolution for predominant species within grassland communities. However, grassland fluxes are typically measured at the leaf or landscape scale, which inhibits our ability to predict how individual species contribute to changing ecosystem fluxes. We used external heat balance sap flow sensors and a hierarchical Bayesian state-space modeling approach to bridge this "flux-gap" and estimate continuous species-level water flux in common tallgrass prairie species. Specifically, we asked: 1) How do diurnal and nocturnal water fluxes differ among woody and herbaceous plants? (2) How sensitive are woody and herbaceous species to environmental drivers of diurnal and nocturnal water flux? We highlight three results: (1) <i>Cornus drummondii</i>, the primary woody encroacher in this grassland, exhibited the greatest canopy-level water loss, (2) nocturnal transpiration was a large component of the water lost in this ecosystem and was driven primarily by C<sub>4</sub> grasses and <i>C. drummondii</i>, and (3) the sensitivity of canopy transpiration to environmental drivers varies among plant functional types and throughout a 24-hour period. Our data reveal important insights regarding the water-use strategies of woody versus herbaceous species in tallgrass prairies, and about the potential hydrological consequences of ongoing woody encroachment. We suggest that the high, static flux rates observed in woody species will likely deplete deep water stores over time, potentially creating hydrological deficits in grasslands experiencing woody encroachment and concomitantly increasing the vulnerability of these ecosystems to drought.</p>
ScienceDex guides
Understand access before you commit
These curated guides explain access requirements, typical timelines, costs, and reuse considerations for widely used research datasets.
Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.