Distributed European School of Taxonomy (DEST) is organizing a course in Philosophy of Biological Systematics targeted at MSc students, PhD students, early career researchers,  professional systematists/taxonomists and anyone who is interested in the philosophy of Biological Systematics. The course has a duration of one week and will take place between 8-12 September 2014.

Deadline for registration: 16 June 2014, extended until Friday 20 June 2014. To register and to learn more about the course visit the official webpage: http://www.taxonomytraining.eu/content/philosophy-biological-systematics

Approaching the subject from the perspective of the philosophical foundations of scientific inquiry, this course offers critical examinations of the principles required to judge the scientific merits of systematic/taxonomic procedures by way of the following topics:

• The goal of science
• The goal of biological systematics
• Causal relationships in systematics
• The nature of why-questions
• Three forms of reasoning: deduction, induction, abduction
• The uses of deduction, induction, and abduction in science
• Evidence and reasoning
• Fact, theory & hypothesis
• Theory & hypothesis testing
• Systematics involves abductive reasoning
• Inferences of systematics hypotheses, i.e. taxa
• Implications for ‘phylogenetic’ methods
• Causal explanations, not ‘trees’ or cladograms
• Parsimony, likelihood, Bayesianism: are they relevant to abductive reasoning, thus phylogenetic inference?
• The requirement of total evidence
• The errors of cladogram comparisons & character mapping
• Homology, homogeny & homoplasy
• Character coding
• Mechanics of hypothesis testing: implications for cladograms
• Character data cannot test phylogenetic hypotheses
• The nature evidential support
• The proper testing of phylogenetic hypotheses
• The myths of bootstrap, jack-knife & Bremer ‘support’
• Implications for nomenclature
• Defining biodiversity and conservation

Participants will be provided reprints covering the topics in the course, as well as a PDF file with all course slides (>800) and associated notes.

Distributed European School of Taxonomy (DEST) is organizing a Zoological Nomenclature training course targeted at MSc students, PhD students, early career researchers,  professional systematists/taxonomists and anyone who is interested in the philosophy of Biological Systematics. The course has a duration of one 5 days and will take place between 22-26 September 2014 at the Muséum national d'Histoire naturelle, Paris, France.

Deadline for registration: 16 June 2014, extended until Friday 20 June 2014. To register and to learn more about the course visit the official webpage: http://www.taxonomytraining.eu/content/zoological-nomenclature-3

Course description:
Taxonomists need a common language worldwide. This is provided by the international codes of nomenclature. Although several codes exist, according to the organisms at stake, they all follow a similar mode of allocation of names to taxa (through "types") and of establishment of the valid name for a taxon (priority, first-reviser, usage). As biological nomenclature is rarely taught in academic formations, many taxonomists have difficulties mastering it. This training will provide an overview of the history and epistemology of biological nomenclature, and a discussion of the relationships between phylogeny, taxonomy and nomenclature. The zoological code will be presented in detail, the other codes (including the botanical one) more briefly. The recent problems and projects of nomenclature, including alternative systems, will be discussed.

Lecture topics:

• What is taxonomy? What is nomenclature? Name, taxon, nomenclatural rank, taxonomic category. Species and supraspecific taxa. The relationships between phylogeny, taxonomy and nomenclature
• History and epistemology of the international codes of nomenclature
• The international code of zoological nomenclature
• The other international codes (plants and fungi, bacteria, viruses, cultivated plants)
• The alternative nomenclatural systems

Seminar topics:

• Nomenclature of higher taxa in zoology
• The Phylocode and other phylogenetic nomenclatural systems
• Zoobank and electronic publications

Practical experiences will include: exercises in zoological nomenclature and transforming phylogenetic data into a taxonomy and a nomenclature.

Distributed European School of Taxonomy (DEST) is organizing a Botanical Nomenclature training course targeted at MSc students, PhD students, early career researchers,  professional systematists/taxonomists and anyone who is interested in the philosophy of Biological Systematics. The course has a duration of one week and will take place between 26-30 January 2015 at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, UK.

Deadline for registrationis 10 October 2014. Participants will receive notification by 24 October 2014 whether accepted to the course. To register and to learn more about the course visit the official webpage: http://www.taxonomytraining.eu/content/botanical-nomenclature-3

Course description
This in-depth course will teach the principles of plant nomenclature according to the International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi and plants (ICN) so that participants can apply good nomenclatural practice when undertaking taxonomic revisions, compiling checklists etc. This will be achieved by lectures illustrated with examples from the ICN, workshop sessions applying what has been learned to "real life" cases, and by encouraging participants to discuss nomenclatural problems they have encountered.

Participants will have time to pursue their own research interests using the collections at Kew, with the emphasis on identifying and solving nomenclatural problems.
Short seminars will give participants the opportunity to present nomenclatural problems relevant to their own research.

Ian Theodoreson, who was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy in 2019, wrote that he ‘had lived a good life’ in a blog post posthumously published on 27 October

Five projects on which ATAS International products were installed have been selected as winners of the 2024 Metal Construction Association Design Awards. The MCA Design Awards are among the most prestigious awards in the metal construction industry and recognize member-companies involved in the construction of outstanding building projects that use metal in significant and innovative ways.

A report commissioned by the government and Power to Change says there are more than 6,300 such undertakings

Uppsala, Sweden — Losing sleep, even for one night, can negatively impact metabolism and help trigger excess weight gain – possibly explaining a link between sleep deprivation and shift worker health problems – according to the results of a recent study conducted by researchers at Uppsala University.

Bilbao, Spain — Excessive workloads, conflicting demands and a lack of support from management are some of the psychosocial factors that can contribute to the development of musculoskeletal disorders in the workplace, according to a literature review conducted by the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.

Quebec City — Work-related stress may heighten the risk of developing atrial fibrillation later in life, results of a recent study out of Canada indicate.

A coating uniquely embodies all the key traits in a finished food product—texture, appearance, flavor, and even, in most cases, aroma. With the increased demand for clean-label nutritious foods, developers are leveraging food coatings as a way to take those attributes and build healthfulness into texture in products designed to meet such requirements.

Visual Components, developer of 3D simulation software, surveyed more than 300 manufacturing decision-makers in the U.S., UK and Germany.

Freelance 2024 facilitates enhanced connectivity, faster data transfer, more precise control and monitoring of data together with an improved network performance.

Social reformer Katharine Bement Davis, right, wrote that she ‘had a good deal to do in the way of looking after other people’s husbands and children.’

The post ‘Childless cat ladies’ have long contributed to the welfare of American children − and the nation was curated by information for practice.

20 Scotland-based designers reimagined bookends inspired by two pioneering female journalists’ global adventures at this year's Dundee Design Festival 2024.

Casa Emma, by HW Studio, blends light, natural materials, and cultural symbolism to create a deeply contemplative living space in Morelia, Mexico.

According to the research, 38,154 of the 68,593 heat-related deaths in the summer of 2022 would not have occurred without anthropogenic warming.

The post More than half of European heat-related deaths in summer 2022 attributed to anthropogenic warming was curated by information for practice.

Back in 1967, Bobbie Gentry sang a haunting ode to young love and sad endings in the deep South called "Ode to Billie Joe." A year later, Gentry released a country-rock opera, "The Delta Sweete." It hardly sold at all — but has since become a cult classic.

With the development of synchrotron radiation sources and high-frame-rate detectors, the amount of experimental data collected at synchrotron radiation beamlines has increased exponentially. As a result, data processing for synchrotron radiation experiments has entered the era of big data. It is becoming increasingly important for beamlines to have the capability to process large-scale data in parallel to keep up with the rapid growth of data. Currently, there is no set of data processing solutions based on the big data technology framework for beamlines. Apache Hadoop is a widely used distributed system architecture for solving the problem of massive data storage and computation. This paper presents a set of distributed data processing schemes for beamlines with experimental data using Hadoop. The Hadoop Distributed File System is utilized as the distributed file storage system, and Hadoop YARN serves as the resource scheduler for the distributed computing cluster. A distributed data processing pipeline that can carry out massively parallel computation is designed and developed using Hadoop Spark. The entire data processing platform adopts a distributed microservice architecture, which makes the system easy to expand, reduces module coupling and improves reliability.

The development of hard X-ray nanoprobe techniques has given rise to a number of experimental methods, like nano-XAS, nano-XRD, nano-XRF, ptychography and tomography. Each method has its own unique data processing algorithms. With the increase in data acquisition rate, the large amount of generated data is now a big challenge to these algorithms. In this work, an intuitive, user-friendly software system is introduced to integrate and manage these algorithms; by taking advantage of the loosely coupled, component-based design approach of the system, the data processing speed of the imaging algorithm is enhanced through optimization of the parallelism efficiency. This study provides meaningful solutions to tackle complexity challenges faced in synchrotron data processing.

Photo of Marcell Jankovics; Credit: courtesy of cartoonbrew.com

FilmWeek’s animation authority, Charles Solomon, remembers the great Hungarian animator Marcell Jankovics, who died on May 29. He died at the age of 79. Our critics also share some of the things they’ve been busy watching on various streaming platforms and why they recommend listeners check them out.  

Guests:

Amy Nicholson, film critic for KPCC, film writer for The New York Times and host of the podcast ‘Unspooled’ and the podcast miniseries “Zoom”; she tweets @TheAmyNicholson

Wade Major, film critic for KPCC and CineGods.com

Charles Solomon, film critic for KPCC, Animation Scoop and Animation Magazine

This content is from Southern California Public Radio. View the original story at SCPR.org.

Smokers who are exposed to radon appear to be at even greater risk for lung cancer, because the effects of smoking and radon are more powerful when the two factors are combined, says a new report by a committee of the National Research Council.

Bacteria that resist antibiotics can be passed from food animals to humans, but not enough is known to determine the public health risks posed by such transmission, says a new report by a committee of the National Research Council.

The Gulf Research Program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine was an active contributor at the first in-person Gulf of Mexico Conference (GoMCon) held in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, from April 25-28. The four-day conference gathered more than 800 researchers, resource managers, and interested stakeholders, and highlighted the intersection of scientific research and the management of human and natural systems in the Gulf of Mexico region.

No longer relegated to taco night, tortillas are playing a major role in Americans' meal plans, both at home and when dining out.

The Minnetonka, Minn.-based food solutions and potassium chloride supplier strikes a deal with Barentz Europe B.V., which is present in 26 countries in Europe, to distribute its Advanced Formula potassium chloride to food manufacturers in Europe. Nu-Tek says that governments in the U.K. and the Netherlands are close to making mandatory rules regarding sodium levels in food products with the aim to reduce high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease.

A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reveals that nearly half of children’s sodium intake comes from 10 foods, including bread and rolls.

Beckhoff Automation will demonstrate its new AMP8000 distributed servo drive system alongside a complete lineup of automation hardware, software and networking solutions at Pack Expo 2018 in Chicago.

How many times in workplaces are new employees rushed into jobs to fill vacancies or meet high demands or deadlines?

How is power distributed in an organization and how does it affect safety?

With no shortage of contributing factors for Americans’ rising stress levels, ingredient suppliers are turning to holistic ingredients that promote relaxation and stress relief to help beverage-makers meet consumers’ growing need states.

Piper-Heidsieck, Reims, France, announces the launch of its Twist the Script campaign, a tribute to the brand’s creativity and history, it says.

In celebration, use promo code "AAC200" to get 20% off on www.americanartcollector.com

FreeCast and Antennas Direct enter into a distribution agreement to pair OTT and OTA products.

This online marketing agreement will promote FreeCast's pay channel package via major online publishers.

Future Electronics is contributing to reforestation efforts in Quebec by matching all employee donations to One Tree Planted.

Stephanie and Forrest Conner joined in the clean-up, hoping to provide not just physical help but comfort in showing how much complete strangers cared.

Event will honor pets and people lost in the fires

Featuring Robert Glasper, Shemekia Copeland, The Average White Band Farewell Tour, Maysa, Sean Jones, Orrin Evans & The Captain Black Big Band, Emmet Cohen Trio, Endea Owens & The Cookout, Cimafunk, Luedji Luna, Dan Wilson & More

10 Incredible Women, 10 Heartfelt stories each sharing their personal journey of love, grief and navigating life after loss of their mothers.

The system semiconductor technology is at the core of the application of AI technology in various electric devices.

PeerGFS improves productivity and availability while minimizing recovery time in disaster scenarios

BOSTON, Massachusetts, USA -- Monday, December 4, 2023 -- The Free Software Foundation, today, highlighted its participation as a charity in the 2023 Combined Federal Campaign, which is focused on human rights this week.

The rise of distributed software teams has fundamentally transformed how we approach software development. With technology evolving, so does our ability to connect and collaborate across borders, time zones, and cultural barriers. The article will venture into the fascinating world of distributed software development and provide you with the most effective strategies and best practices […]

The post Making Distributed Software Development Work: Strategies and Best Practices for Managing Remote Teams appeared first on 404 Tech Support.

New ETSI White Paper on Enhanced DNS Support in Distributed MEC Environments

Sophia Antipolis, 8 September 2020

Today ETSI announces the publication of its White Paper on DNS Support in Distributed MEC Environments. DNS (Domain Name System) is a key infrastructure element in any distributed edge cloud as it is used to ensure that modern (i.e. URL/URI-based) services requests are resolved to the properly located service instances. The best instance may often be decided based on properties other than location, e.g., service latency, resource availability as well as the device identifier.

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ETSI publishes a white paper introducing Permissioned Distributed Ledger (PDL)

Sophia Antipolis, 24 January 2022

After the release of the first specification on smart contracts on 18 January, members from the ETSI PDL group published a White Paper entitled “An Introduction of Permissioned Distributed Ledger (PDL)”.

Distributed ledgers have consolidated as one of the most disruptive applications of information technology that have appeared in recent years. Their ability to store any kind of data as a consensus of replicated, shared, and synchronized digital records distributed across multiple sites, without depending on any central administrator, together with their properties regarding immutability (and therefore non-repudiation) and multi-party verifiability opens a wide range of applications.

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TORONTO, ON – Many plants are self-fertilizing, meaning they act as both mother and father to their own seeds. This strategy – known as selfing – guarantees reproduction but, over time, leads to reduced diversity and the accumulation of harmful mutations. A new study published in the scientific journal Nature Genetics shows that these negative […]

Paul Hudson, head of one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, says leaders need to sit back and listen more often.