Anopheles culicifacies giles: Adult ecological parameters measured in rural punjab province, pakistan using capture-mark-release-recapture and dissection methods, with comparative observations onAn. stephensi liston andAn. subpictus grassi

Summary Dispersal, immigration and emigration rates, horizontal and vertical survivorship and absolute population size were estimated for micropopulations ofAn. culicifacies, An. stephensi andAn. subpictus at a series of cattle sheds in rural Punjab Province, Pakistan, during November 1979 and May 1980 using capture-mark-release-recapture and dissection methods. Dispersal was temperature-related, with populations more vagile during May. Mean dispersal distance per individual was low for all species. More than 70% of all recaptures were taken at the point of release and the longest detected flight was 1250 meters. Horizontal survivorship was greater during November and was always less than vertical survivorship calculated from dissection agegrading data. Survivorship during the nulliparous period was greater than survivorship throughout total life, indicating the survivorship curve may be slightly sigmoid. Daily population sizes of endemic and immigrating females and males were calculated usingBailey's (1952) modification of the Lincoln Index, with the daily captures adjusted for immigration which was highest in May. Daily additions to the indoor resting population exclusive of immigrants were estimated using the method ofManly andParr (1968). The relationship of the present findings to malaria transmission and genetic control were discussed.     

Real-time epidemiology

Fitting transmission models to outbreak data allows key epidemiological parameters to be estimated and the impact of control measures to be evaluated. Christl Donnelly and Azra Ghani describe the use of such models in the 2003 SARS epidemic in Hong Kong.     

Impact of demographic variables on women’s economic empowerment: An ordered probit model

The present study aimed to empirically examine the demographic variables that determine women’s economic empowerment. A sample of 500 married women between 21 and 49 years old (M_age = 35.49, SD = 7.66) was conveniently selected from district Multan (Pakistan). Control over economic resources was used as a proxy for women’s economic empowerment. Ordered probit regression was run to assess the demographic determinants (i.e., age, education, paid job, income, and property) of economic empowerment of the least empowered, moderately empowered, and highly empowered women. Paid job, age, income, and property appeared as positive and significant predictors of women’s economic empowerment. Implications of the study were also discussed.     

Does municipal ownership affect audit fees?

This study analyses whether municipal ownership affects and determines audit fees. Our model of the determinants of audit fees was tested on data from 249 Swedish municipal and 240 private corporations within the real estate industry, thus extending the study of audit fees to hybrid organizations. The statistical analysis was followed up with interviews of five partners from five different audit firms. The result of the study shows that municipal corporations are paying significantly lower audit fees than equivalent private corporations. This finding is primarily explained by lower perceived business risk and by the fact that municipalities are able to push prices by coordinating procurements of audit services.

     

Infant Manual Exploration of Objects,Surfaces, and Their Interrelations

Although a considerable amount is known about the development of object manipulation during the 1st year, less is known about how infants manually explore surfaces and relate objects to surfaces. To address these issues, 60 infants (20 each at 6, 8, and 10 months of age) were presented hard and soft objects on tabletop surfaces, which varied in terms of their material properties. Tabletop surfaces were either liquid, discontinuous, flexible, or rigid. Results indicated that infants explored the objects, surfaces, and their interactions selectively, tailoring their manual actions to the material properties of the objects or surfaces. In some instances, selectivity increased with age. The implications of these findings for understanding the origins of problem solving and tool use are considered.