Ii Acknowledgements iii Table of

Why is popular understanding of female–male differences still based on rigid models of development, even though contemporary developmental sciences emphasize plasticity? Is it because the science of sex differences still works from the same rigid models?

This article comprehensively reviews the syntheses of all known sex pheromones of scales and mealybugs, describes how they were identified, and how the synthetic pheromones are used in insect management.

The elongation phase of protein synthesis is promoted by two G proteins, elongation factor Tu (EF-Tu), which delivers aminoacyl tRNAs to the ribosome, and elongation factor G (EF-G), which catalyzes translocation. Crystallographic investigations have revealed that EF-G.GDP resembles the EF-Tu.GTP.(aminoacyl tRNA) complex, and it has been proposed that the translocase function of EF-G is derived...

Populations containing both females and hermaphrodites (dimorphic) are generally found in drier sites than those with only hermaphrodites (monomorphic). The sex-differential plasticity hypothesis (SDP) suggests that this is caused by hermaphrodites reducing allocation to seeds in harsh environments, allowing female establishment. We proposed that a similar process could explain sex distribution...