Advertisement calls tend to differ among populations, based on morphological and environmental factors, or simply geographic distance, in many taxa. Invasive cane toads (Rhinella marina) were introduced to Australia in 1935 and their distribution has expanded at increasing rates over time. Rapid evolution occurred in morphological and behavioural characters that accelerate dispersal, but the ef...

Ultrasonic sensors have been widely applied in mobile robots to obtain environmental information and avoid obstacles. In general, a typical domestic environment consists of planes, edges and corners. It is usually difficult to distinguish a plane from a corner directly with a single ultrasonic sensor. To overcome this difficulty, a corner differentiation algorithm for a single ultrasonic sensor...

Introduction In fracture healing mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) infiltrate the wound site, proliferate extensively and differentiate along a cartilaginous or an osteogenic lineage in response to local environmental cues. The mechanical environment within a fracture callus may regulate endochondral ossification during fracture healing in one of two ways. Firstly, the biophysical stimuli, such as ...

The conversion of determined adipoblasts to fully differentiated adipocytes requires appropriate environmental conditions. A strict dependence on cell confluence and a facilitation by glucocorticoid hormones have previously been described. We have found that agents that are capable of activating protein kinase C, such as basic fibroblast growth factor and phorbol esters, inhibit the differentia...

Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been identified in hematopoietic and solid tumors. However, their precursors-namely, precancerous stem cells (pCSCs) -have not been characterized. Here we experimentally define the pCSCs that have the potential for both benign and malignant differentiation, depending on environmental cues. While clonal pCSCs can develop into various types of tissue cells in immunoc...

Uncovering magnitude, trend, and spatial pattern of land cover/land use changes (LCLUC) is crucial for understanding mechanisms of LCLUC and assisting land use planning and conservation. China has been undergoing unprecedented economic growth, massive rural-to-urban migration, and large-scale policy-driven ecological restoration, and therefore encountering enormous LCLUC in recent decades. Howe...

This paper brings the differentiation perspective of human resource management (HRM) to China's context of economic transition, and constructs a hybridism rationale to explain the distinctive characteristics of Chinese HRM. We respectively discuss the effect mechanisms of commitment-based, control-based, collaboration-based, and contract-based HRM archetypes in China. Then, by comparing the pat...

Intelligent agents offer a new and exciting way of understanding the world of work. In this paper we apply agent-based modeling and simulation to investigate a set of problems in a retail context. Specifically, we are working to understand the relationship between human resource management practices and retail productivity. Despite the fact we are working within a relatively novel and complex d...