Predicting the geographic spread of wildlife epidemics requires knowledge about the movement patterns of disease hosts or vectors. The field of landscape genetics provides valuable approaches to study dispersal indirectly, which in turn may be used to understand patterns of disease spread. Here, we applied landscape genetic analyses and spatially explicit models to identify the potential path o...

While most mosquito-borne viruses are associated with a narrow range of vector and reservoir host species, some pathogens have much larger vector and host assemblages. One such group is the Alphaviruses (including chikungunya virus [CHIKV]), with Ross River virus (RRV), endemic to Australia, providing a fascinating example of the complicated relationship between vector and reservoir host specie...

The viral immediate-early transactivator Rta/Orf50 is necessary and sufficient to initiate Kaposi's sarcoma-associated herpesvirus/human herpesvirus 8 (KSHV/HHV-8) reactivation from latently infected cells. Since Rta/Orf50 is conserved among all known gamma-2-herpesviruses, we investigated whether the murine gamma-68-herpesvirus (MHV-68) and rhesus monkey rhadinovirus (RRV) homologs can functio...

Growing concerns over global environmental change, water resources, river restoration, and sustainable river management are focusing attention on the human dimension of fl uvial systems. This GSA Special Paper presents a set of studies and interpretations of river-channel change that refl ect modern viewpoints of river management in the twenty-fi rst century. It seeks to bridge a rich body of l...

We introduce the river wave concept: a simple, holistic model that unifies river ecosystem concepts. The river wave concept proposes that river flow can be conceptualized as a series of waves varying in shape, amplitude, wavelength, and frequency, traveling longitudinally and laterally; the position on the wave determines the source of organic production or inputs and the storage, transformatio...

The 2D numerical simulation of river flow requires a large amount of topographic data to build an accurate Digital Terrain Model which must cover the main river channel and the area likely to be flooded. DTMs for large floodplains are often generated by LiDAR flights. However, it is often impossible to obtain LiDAR data of permanently inundated river beds. These areas are often surveyed and dis...

Planning and implementation of effective restoration projects require appropriate assessment of a river’s hydromorphological status. Two European standards on hydromorphological assessment of rivers and hydromorphological assessment methods used in Poland are reviewed in the context of their applicability for river restoration purposes. River Hydromorphological Quality assessment method is pres...

Vaccines are traditionally tested under the optimal conditions of clinical trials (efficacy). However, their public health impact is better assessed under the real conditions of a clinical practice (effectiveness). The authors aimed to estimate the effectiveness of a rotavirus vaccine (rhesus rotavirus vaccine-tetravalent (RRV-TV)) to prevent rotavirus-related hospitalization among children <or...

Ross River virus (RR) is a mosquito-borne arbovirus responsible for outbreaks of polyarthritic disease throughout Australia. To better understand human and environmental factors driving such events, 57 historical reports on RR outbreaks between 1896 and 1998 were examined collectively. The magnitude, regularity, seasonality, and locality of outbreaks were found to be wide ranging; however, anal...

Xenophobia is on the rise in Europe; and the ten million Muslims living there are often its targets. This paper contends that the fear and anxiety Westerners exhibit toward Muslims stem ultimately from a fear and anxiety regarding ourselves and our beliefs. I argue that the perceived standoff with Muslims causes us to doubt the sincerity and superiority of our own convictions. The latter are pr...