Nestedness of bird assemblages in the karst forest fragments of southwestern Guangxi, China

The limestone region in southwestern Guangxi contains the most typical karst landforms in the world. Due to their destruction, the original forests mainly survive in nature reserves in the form of fragmented areas. From June 2009 to September 2010 we conducted an investigation of 13 relatively isolated habitats or sites, selected from each of the 13 nature reserves in southwestern Guangxi, with the least amount of anthropological activity and the largest presence of the original vegetation, in order to study the distribution of birds on forest fragments. The distribution patterns of the birds and the factors which affect them were analyzed by using the 'BINMATNEST' software and the Spearman’s rank correlation analysis, to determine: 1) whether nested patterns of birds in the karst area of southwestern Guangxi exist or not and 2) which factors are correlated with the nested patterns and the effect of these factors on forming nested patterns. The results show that the birds had statistically significant nested patterns in the karst area and the specificity of the habitat of the birds had a significant effect on the nested patterns. We suggest possible reasons for these results, based on the characteristics of the seasonal tropical rain forests in the study area and on neutral theory. We also urgently recommend that close attention be paid to the protection of the diversity of the environment for birds in all fragmented habitats.

Interpreting Nestedness and Modularity Structures in Affiliation Networks: An Application in Knowledge Networks Formed by Software Project Teams

An understanding of the knowledge creation and diffusion process in the organizational context is extremely relevant. Because from this understanding, organizations can restructure processes, reorient teams and implement methodologies to assist in the construction of an evolutionary process of knowledge creation and diffusion aimed at sustainable growth and innovation. The theory of complex social networks has been applied in several fields to help understand organizational cognitive processes. However, these approaches still insipiently consider the analysis of the nestedness and modularity of the studied networks. In this article, we presented an approach that sought to identify patterns of nestedness and modularity in networks of affiliation of people in projects in the organizational context. The study sought to identify these patterns in affiliation networks in a public organization providing information technology services in the period from 2006 to 2013. The detection of these patterns was performed using the NODF (Nestedness metric based on Overlap and Decreasing Fill) algorithm described by [1]. The nestedness and modularity metrics can influence patterns of knowledge creation and diffusion in formal and informal networks constituted for the execution of projects in organizations. This study showed that the network structures of the organization during the study period presented a high degree of nestedness, and it was possible to identify combined structures of nestedness and modularity.

Comparisons and Contrasts between Asymmetry and Nestedness in Interacting Ecological Networks

We compare and contrast asymmetry and nestedness, two concepts used in the characterisation of the specialist-generalist balance in bipartite ecological interaction networks. Our analysis is relevant to mutualistic networks such as those consisting of flowering plants and pollinators, or fruiting plants and frugivores, or antagonistic networks such as those consisting of plants and herbivores, in an ecological community. We shall refer to the two sets of species in the bipartite network as plants and animals, the usual but not the only ecological situation. By asymmetry we mean either connectivity asymmetry or dependence asymmetry, which are essentially equivalent. Asymmetry expresses two attributes: generalists interact preferentially with specialists, and specialists avoid interacting with each other. Nested patterns, in principle, should express these same two features and one more: the presence of a core of interactions among generalists. We compute the full set of perfectly nested patterns that are possible in an L × L matrix with N interactions representing an ecological network of L plants and L animals, and point out that the number of nested arrangements grows exponentially with N. In addition, we analyse asymmetry for the full set of perfectly nested patterns, and identify extremes of asymmetry inside the universe of nested patterns. The minimal asymmetry is marked by a modular core of interactions between species that are neither specialists nor generalists. On the other hand, the case of maximal asymmetry is formed by a set of few generalists and many specialists with equal connectivity. The stereotypic case of nestedness with a core of interactions among generalists has intermediate asymmetry.

Selective extinction and habitat nestedness are the main drivers of lizard nestedness in the Zhoushan Archipelago

Nested subset pattern(nestedness)is an important part of the theoretical framework of island biogeography and community ecology.However,most previous studies often used nestedness metrics or randomization algorithms that are vulnerable to type I error.In this study,we inves-tigated the nestedness of lizard assemblages on 37 islands in the Zhoushan Archipelago,China.We used the line-transect method to survey species occurrence,abundance,and habitat types of lizards on 37 islands during 2 breeding seasons in 2021 and 2022.We applied the nested metric WNODF and the conservative rc null model to control for type I error and quantify the significance of nestedness.Spearman rank cor relations were used to evaluate the role of 4 habitat variables(island area,2 isolation indices,and habitat diversity)and 4 ecological traits(body size,geographic range size,clutch size,and minimum area requirement)in generating nestedness.The results of WNODF analyses showed that lizard assemblages were significantly nested.The habitat-by-site matrix estimated by the program NODF was also significantly nested,support-ing the habitat nestedness hypothesis.The nestedness of lizard assemblages were significantly correlated with island area,habitat diversity.clutch size,and minimum area requirement.Overall,our results suggest that selective extinction and habitat nestedness were the main drivers of lizard nestedness in our system.In contrast,the nestedness of lizard assemblages was not due to passive sampling or selective colonization.To maximize the number of species preserved,our results indicate that we should protect both large islands with diverse habitats and species with largearea requirement and clutch size.

Nestedness of snake assemblages on islands of an inundated lake

Abstract Nestedness is a pattern frequently reported for faunal assemblages in fragmented systems. Although nestedness has been documented for a wide range of taxa, it is rarely tested in snake assemblages. To arrive at robust generalizations about processes and mechanisms structuring island biotas, it is important to examine under-represented taxa such as snakes for the insights they may offer. We tested for the existence of nestedness and underlying causal mechanisms using snake data collected on islands in the Thousand Island Lake, China. We used the line-transect method to survey snake occupancy and abundance on 20 islands during two breeding seasons in 2009 and 2010. We used the recently developed metric WNODF to estimate nestedness. We used Spearman rank correlations to examine the associations of nestedness and habitat variables （area, isolation, and habitat diversity） as well as life-history traits （body size, clutch size, geographical range size and area requirement） related to species extinction and immigration tendencies. Snake assemblages were significantly nested and were shaped by extinction processes mediated through area effects and habitat nestedness. The nestedness of snake assemblages was not due to passive sampling or selective colonization. From a conservation viewpoint, our results indicate that we should protect both the largest island with the most species-rich community and habitat-rich islands to maximize the number of species preserved .

考虑健康信念的游客分时预约行为分析

为探索新冠肺炎疫情背景下景区分时预约策略、游客健康信念和风险预防行为之间的关系,需考虑健康信念,分析疫情防控期间游客分时预约行为机理。采用意愿调查法获取旅游信息、健康信念、分时预约行为意向数据,分析各预约时段余票比例和门票预售期等信息对游客分时预约行为的影响。基于Nested Logit(NL)模型,建立考虑健康信念的游客游玩日期-时段预约选择联合模型,并进行敏感性分析。结果表明:预约信息、健康信念对游客预约节假日或非节假日游玩有显著影响;票价、各预约时段余票比例和健康信念对游客游玩时段预约选择行为有显著影响。游客感知新冠的严重性由1上升至5时,选择节假日出行的概率由30.46%下降至12.28%。研究可为景区分时预约策略的制定提供参考依据。

重大节假日出行方式选择模型研究

为优化节假日高速公路免费政策,选取出行者变量、出行方式相关变量和行程特性变量作为效用变量,构建了出行方式位于上层、出行距离位于下层的NL模型。利用弧弹性法分析不同收费标准和收费里程条件下出行者的行为特性,并利用场景仿真评价多种收费组合对出行方式的影响。研究结果表明:提高收费标准,汽车出行比例会显著降低,且高速铁路承担了大部分的转移交通量。随着收费里程的增加,出行者逐渐倾向于出行成本较小的普通铁路。对长距离出行收费可以提升公共交通分担率,缓解节假日高速公路的交通拥堵。

An innovative classification system for ranking the biological effects of marine aromatic hydrocarbons based on fish embryotoxicity

Petroleum hydrocarbon pollution is a global concern,particularly in coastal environments.Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons(PAHs) are regarded as the most toxic components of petroleum hydrocarbons.In this study,the biomonitoring and ranking effects of petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs on the marine fish model Oryzias melastigma embryos were determined in the Jiulong River Estuary(JRE) and its adjacent waters in China.The results showed that the levels of petroleum hydrocarbons from almost all sites met the primary standard for marine seawater quality,and the concentrations of the 16 priority PAHs in the surface seawater were lower compared with those in other coastal areas worldwide.A new fish expert system based on the embryotoxicity of O.melastigma(OME-FES) was developed and applied in the field to evaluate the biological effects of petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs.The selected physiological index and molecular indicators in OME-FES were appropriate biomarkers for indicating the harmful effects of petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs.The outcome of OME-FES revealed that the biological effect levels of the sampling sites ranged from level Ⅰ(no stress) to level Ⅲ(medium stress),which is further corroborated by the findings of nested analysis of variance(ANOVA) models.Our results suggest that the OME-FES is an effective tool for evaluating and ranking the biological effects of marine petroleum hydrocarbons and PAHs.This method may also be applied to evaluate other marine pollutants based on its framework.

Nestedness and underlying processes of bird assemblages in Nanjing urban parks

Nestedness is an important pattern frequently reported for species assemblages on islands or fragmented systems.However,to date,there are few studies that comprehensively investigated faunal nestedness and underlying processes in urbanized landscapes.In this study,we examined the nestedness of bird assemblages and its underlying causal mechanisms in 37 urban parks in Nanjing,China.We used the line-transect method to survey birds from April 2019 to January 2020.We used the Weighted Nestedness metric based on Overlap and Decreasing Fill(WNODF)to estimate the nestedness of bird assemblages.We applied spearman partial correlation test to examine the relationships between nestedness ranks of sites and park characteristics(area,isolation,anthropogenic noise,number of habitat types,and building index),as well as between nestedness ranks of species and their ecological traits(body size,geographic range size,clutch size,minimum area requirement,dispersal ratio,and habitat specificity).We found that bird assemblages in urban parks were significantly nested.Park area,habitat diversity,building index,habitat specificity,and minimum area requirement of birds were significantly correlated with nestedness.Therefore,the nestedness of bird assemblages was caused by selective extinction,habitat nestedness,and urbanization.However,the nestedness of bird assemblages did not result from passive sampling,selective colonization,or human disturbance.Overall,to maximize the number of species preserved in our system,conservation priority should be given to parks with large area,rich habitat diversity,and less building index.From a species perspective,we should focus on species with large area requirement and high habitat specificity for their effective conservation.

Nestedness in insular floras:spatiotemporal variation and underlying mechanisms

Aims Nestedness is a characteristic of insular metacommunity structure.Relatively few studies,however,have attempted to evaluate temporal changes in nestedness,or elucidate the mechanisms underlying nestedness.I evaluated both spatial and temporal patterns of nestedness in the insular floras of four archipelagoes of small islands in the Bahamas and the potential underlying environmental gradients.Methods The NODF(a nestedness metric based on overlap and decreasing fill)and the matrix temperature measure,T,were used to quantify nestedness in insular floras on small islands near Abaco,Andros,Great Exuma and the Exuma Cays,Bahamas.Two different null models were employed for each nestedness measure.Six environmental variables were evaluated in relation to nestedness by ordering islands according to gradients and recalculating NODF scores.Important Findings All archipelagoes were significantly nested.Nestedness among sites contributed more to overall nestedness than did nestedness among species.NODF scores varied among archipelagoes,but were surprisingly constant over time.Ordering islands by vegetated area yielded the highest nestedness scores for three archipelagoes;ordering islands by protection from exposure yielded the highest nestedness score for one archipelago.Nestedness scores varied little over time even though species compositions changed,indicating that extinctions occurred in a deterministic manner.The relative importance of area suggests extinction is an important mechanism in producing nestedness.Attempting to determine the relative importance of immigrations or extinctions requires some assumptions,however,and both processes are likely cumulative in most cases.

Iterative Subregion Correction Preconditioners with Adaptive Tolerance for Problems with Geometrically Localized Stiffness

We present a class of preconditioners for the linear systems resulting from a finite element or discontinuous Galerkin discretizations of advection-dominated problems.These preconditioners are designed to treat the case of geometrically localized stiffness,where the convergence rates of iterative methods are degraded in a localized subregion of the mesh.Slower convergence may be caused by a number of factors,including the mesh size,anisotropy,highly variable coefficients,and more challenging physics.The approach taken in this work is to correct well-known preconditioners such as the block Jacobi and the block incomplete LU(ILU)with an adaptive inner subregion iteration.The goal of these preconditioners is to reduce the number of costly global iterations by accelerating the convergence in the stiff region by iterating on the less expensive reduced problem.The tolerance for the inner iteration is adaptively chosen to minimize subregion-local work while guaranteeing global convergence rates.We present analysis showing that the convergence of these preconditioners,even when combined with an adaptively selected tolerance,is independent of discretization parameters(e.g.,the mesh size and diffusion coefficient)in the subregion.We demonstrate significant performance improvements over black-box preconditioners when applied to several model convection-diffusion problems.Finally,we present performance results of several variations of iterative subregion correction preconditioners applied to the Reynolds number 2.25×10^(6)fluid flow over the NACA 0012 airfoil,as well as massively separated flow at 30°angle of attack.

Design and assembly of a nested imaging X-ray telescope for the Hot Universe Baryon Surveyor mission

The Hot Universe Baryon Surveyor (HUBS) mission will carry a nested X-ray telescope capable of observing an energy range from 0.5 keV to 2 keV to study hot baryon evolution. In this paper, we report the latest progress in the design and construction of nested X-ray telescopes which were designed to use a three-stage conic-approximation type assembly to simplify the manufacturing process. The mirror substrate is made using the thermal glass slumping method, with mirrors characterized by a root-mean-square roughness of 0.3 nm, with expected high reflectivity and good thermal stability. We also discuss methods of telescope construction and conduct a deformation analysis of the manufactured mirror. The in situ measurement system program is developed to guide the telescope assembly process.

Detection of Adenovirus in Fresh Fruit, Vegetables, Wastewater and Manure from Irrigated Farms in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Enteric viral pathogens are responsible for numerous epidemics associated with the consumption of fresh fruit and vegetable, whether raw or minimally processed. The aim of the present study was to assess agricultural practices and the presence of adenovirus (AdV) in fruits and vegetables, manure and irrigation wastewater sampled in the urban and peri-urban perimeters of Ouagadougou. A total of 286 samples including 30 lettuces, 42 tomatoes, 30 carrots, 30 strawberries, 74 manures and 80 wastewater samples were collected from four market garden sites in and around Ouagadougou. Nested PCR was performed with specific primers to detect adenoviruses (AdVs). A face-to-face survey was carried out using a questionnaire on market garden production practices. Overall, adenoviruses prevalence was 5.9% [IC95, 3.2% - 8.7%] in all samples analyzed. It was specifically 7.14% (3/42) from tomatoes, 6.7% (2/30) from lettuces, 20% (6/30) on strawberries and 7.5% (6/80) in irrigation water. The survey showed that irrigation water came from untreated sources (dam, well, canal) and then 52% of farms used untreated manure. No farms have implemented measures to limit access by domestic and wild animals. This work shows the presence of human adenoviruses in surface irrigation water and fresh produce, which is of concern when fresh produce is consumed raw. To reduce the public health risks associated with consuming these foods, it is essential to follow good hygiene and cultivation practices.

Using intraspecific variation of functional traits and environmental factors to understand the formation of nestedness patterns of a local forest community

The concept of nestedness originated from the field of biogeography decades ago and has been widely used in metacommunities and biological interaction networks,but there is still a lack of research within local communities.Moreover,studies on nestedness usually rarely incorporate the functional traits of the species and the environmental characteristics of the sites.In this study,we constructed a species presence–absence matrix of a 50-ha forest plot,used the simulated annealing algorithm to reveal the maximum nested structure and further tested the significance of nestedness patterns by constructing null ensembles.The nested ranks were used to represent the orders of species and quadrats in the maximum nestedness matrix.The regression tree analysis was used to reveal the relationships of nested ranks with environmental factors and functional traits.We found that the co-occurrence pattern of local plant communities was significantly nested.The regression tree results showed that the nested ranks of quadrats were determined by soil available phosphorus,soil water content,soil organic carbon and soil pH.Intraspecific variation of functional traits,including leaf C,leaf pH,leaf dry matter content and maximum photosynthetic rate rather than means of functional traits,provided a better explanation for the formation of species’nested ranks.Understanding the causes of species and quadrats nested ranks provides novel lens and useful insights into ecological processes underlying nestedness,and further improves our knowledge of how local plant communities are assembled.

The abundance effect on network nestedness is stronger for parasitic than herbivory interactions

It has been suggested that the importance of network architecture to species diversity and stability should be based on preference networks(comprised of niche differentiations),rather than observational networks,because species abundance may significantly affect interaction frequencies.Considering that resource abundance is usually greater for herbivores than parasites,we hypothesize that the abundance effect is stronger for parasitic than herbivory interactions.To test this hypothesis,we collected 80 quantitative observational networks including 34 herbivorous and 46 parasitic networks from the published literature,and derived preference networks by removing the effects of species abundance.We then determined the network nestedness using both weighted NODF and spectral radius.We also determined species degree distribution,interaction evenness,weighted connectance and robustness for both observational and preference networks.The observational networks(including both herbivory and parasitic networks)were more nested judged by weighted NODF than spectral radius.Preference networks were less nested for parasitic than herbivory networks in terms of both weighted NODF and spectral radius,possibly because removing the abundance effect increased interaction evenness.These trends indicate that the abundance effect on network nestedness is stronger for parasitic than herbivory networks.Weighted connectance and robustness were greater in most preference networks than observational networks,indicating that preference networks may have high network stability and community persistence compared with observational ones.The data indicate that future network analyses should not only address the structural difference between mutualistic and antagonistic interactions,but also between herbivory and parasitic interactions.

A NOTE ON THE NESTEDNESS PROPERTY FOR ORDERED MEDIAN PROBLEMS IN TREE NETWORKS

The nestedness property has become an increasingly important means for devising efficient algorithms for network location problems.There have been attempts to explore the nestedness property of network location problems with some special cases of the convex ordered median objectives.However,there is little research on the nestedness property for those problems with the concave ordered median objectives.This paper constructs a tree network T and shows that the nestedness property cannot hold for the concave ordered median problem,which fills a gap in the research on the nestedness property.Finally,the authors pose an open problem on identifying the nestedness property for the continuous strategic ordered median problem.

Nested Levels of Hybrid Cryptographical Technique for Secure Information Exchange

Data security is a very important part of data transmission over insecure channels connected through high-speed networks. Due to COVID-19, the use of data transmission over insecure channels has increased in an exponential manner. Hybrid cryptography provides a better solution than a single type of cryptographical technique. In this paper, nested levels of hybrid cryptographical techniques are investigated with the help of Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) and Paillier cryptographical techniques. In the first level, information will be encrypted by DNA and at the second level, the ciphertext of DNA will be encrypted by Paillier cryptography. At the decryption time, firstly Paillier cryptography will be processed, and then DAN cryptography will be processed to get the original text. The proposed algorithm follows the concept of Last Encryption First Decryption (LEFD) at the time of decryption. The computed results are depicted in terms of tables and graphs.

Teaching Reform of “Probability Theory and Mathematical Statistics” Under the Background of New Engineering

Probability theory and mathematical statistics are fundamental courses for various majors in science and engineering.In response to the current teaching situation,we should integrate theory with practice,implement teaching reform,and carry out teaching innovation.The article carries out blended teaching with deep integration of online and offline modes and within and outside of class,constructing innovative measures of“four integrations and four reshaping.”The article conducts diversified evaluations to stimulate learning motivation and help achieve talent cultivation goals.Through the close integration of probability theory and mathematical statistics course teaching with professional education and practical application,the“three-in-one”teaching goal of value shaping,ability cultivation,and knowledge exploration is achieved.The fundamental task of“cultivating morality and talents”is implemented.

Nestedness of waterbird assemblages in the subsidence wetlands recently created by underground coal mining

Nestedness has been a research focus in fields of island biogeography and community ecology in recent decades. Although nestedness of faunal assemblages has been investigated in natural wetlands, it remains largely unknown whether and why waterbird communities in artificial wetlands follow n ested patter ns. We exami ned the existence of n ested ness and un derlyi ng drivers in waterbird comm un ities in subside nee wetlands that are recently created by large-scale un derground coal mining in the North China Plain. Twelve point-count surveys for waterbirds were undertaken approximately every 2 weeks in 55 subside nee wetla nds from September 2016 to April 2017. We used the metric WNODF to estimate nestedness of the assemblages. Partial Spearman rank correlations were performed to examine the association between the nestedness and habitat variables (wetland area, landscape connectivity, wetland age, and habitat diversity) as well as life-history traits (body size, clutch size, dispersal ratio, geographical range size, and migrant status) related to species exti notion risk and colon izati on rate. Waterbird assemblages in the subside nee wetla nds were significantly nested. After controlling for other independent variables, the magnitude of nestedness was significantly and negatively correlated with wetland area and species trait linked to extinction risk (i.e., geographical range size). Our results indicate that selective extinction may be the main driver of the nestedness of waterbird assemblages in our study system. However, the nestedness was not due to passive sampling, selective colonization, or habitat diversity. From a conservation viewpoint, both large wetlands and waterbirds with a small geographic range should be protected to maximize the preserved species richness.

城市轨道交通运营中断条件下乘客路径选择模型

为研究城市轨道交通运营中断条件下乘客的路径选择行为,首先依据运营中断事件对乘客的不同影响对乘客进行分类,并给出对应的路径选择策略。其次基于出行时间和出行费用2个因素确定了广义时间费用的计算方法。然后分析中断时长对乘客的影响,构建了中断下的乘客参考点的取值原则。最后利用累积前景理论和Nested Logit模型构造了乘客路径选择模型。算例结果表明:模型计算的乘客路径选择概率结果与实际统计结果相对误差不超过10%,具有良好适用性;乘客路径选择行为随中断时长的改变呈现动态变化,短时间中断下乘客路径选择行为变化剧烈,长时间中断下乘客路径选择行为相对稳定;乘客对出行费用的接受度越高,越倾向选择出行时间短的路径;乘客对中断忍耐程度越低,对路径综合价值越敏感。