Palaeoanatomy and biological affinities of a Cambrian deuterostome (Stylophora)

Stylophora are a peculiar extinct group of asymmetrical deuterostomes whose biological affinity has been fiercely debated. Disarticulated skeletal elements of a ceratocystid stylophoran recovered from the earliest Middle Cambrian of Morocco are not only the oldest stylophorans in the fossil record, but their exceptional preservation provides crucial data on the microstructure of its skeleton. Stylophoran plates are constructed of a three-dimensional mesh, termed 'stereom', identical to that of living echinoderms in which stereom microstructure provides a reliable guide to the nature of the investing soft tissues. Using modern echinoderm anatomy to interpret stereom microstructure of stylophoran elements, here we show that the large proximal lumen of their appendage was filled with muscle and that ligamentary tissues bound distal elements firmly together. We find no evidence for a mouth in the proximal lumen and no evidence that the covering plates of the appendage were articulated. Thus, although skeletal structure suggests that stylophorans are echinoderms, their appendage was not a feeding arm but a muscular locomotory organ.     

Modern optics in exceptionally preserved eyes of Early Cambrian arthropods from Australia

Despite the status of the eye as an "organ of extreme perfection", theory suggests that complex eyes can evolve very rapidly. The fossil record has, until now, been inadequate in providing insight into the early evolution of eyes during the initial radiation of many animal groups known as the Cambrian explosion. This is surprising because Cambrian Burgess-Shale-type deposits are replete with exquisitely preserved animals, especially arthropods, that possess eyes. However, with the exception of biomineralized trilobite eyes, virtually nothing is known about the details of their optical design. Here we report exceptionally preserved fossil eyes from the Early Cambrian (～ 515 million years ago) Emu Bay Shale of South Australia, revealing that some of the earliest arthropods possessed highly advanced compound eyes, each with over 3,000 large ommatidial lenses and a specialized 'bright zone'. These are the oldest non-biomineralized eyes known in such detail, with preservation quality exceeding that found in the Burgess Shale and Chengjiang deposits. Non-biomineralized eyes of similar complexity are otherwise unknown until about 85 million years later. The arrangement and size of the lenses indicate that these eyes belonged to an active predator that was capable of seeing in low light. The eyes are more complex than those known from contemporaneous trilobites and are as advanced as those of many living forms. They provide further evidence that the Cambrian explosion involved rapid innovation in fine-scale anatomy as well as gross morphology, and are consistent with the concept that the development of advanced vision helped to drive this great evolutionary event.     

The internal structure of Early Cambrian fossil embryo Olivooides revealed in the light of Synchrotron X-ray Tomographic Microscopy

Countless fossil embryo Olivooides and the hatched larvae,juveniles and adults(the latter two kinds are Punctatus) are recovered by means of acid maceration from the fine-crystalline to medium-crystalline phosphatic limestone and phosphatic micrite of Early Cambrian Kuanchuanpu Formation at the Shizhonggou section,near Kuanchuanpu Village,Ningqiang County,Shaanxi Province,China.Using the technique of Synchrotron X-ray Tomographic Microscopy,the 3D internal structure of Olivooides and Punctatus is reconstructed.The morphological and statistic analyses are also given to the stellae structure of Olivooides and Punctatus,which indicates that this structure is a result of adaptive evolution to a lifestyle of fast-attaching after hatching,probably with the function of mucilage secretion.The internal structure of Punctatus is described and discussed.The ovum-like structure,a common internal feature of Punctatus,is considered as the taphonomic structure,rather than eggs or other biological structure.This structure is thought to be formed after the burial of the animal and before or during the mineralization.The original internal structure of Punctatus is assumed to be tabulae-filled,with soft body grown on them.     

下寒武统宽背虫(Bathynotus)的灭绝过程——以贵州剑河八郎凯里组的Bathynotus kueichouensis为例

宽背虫(Bathynotus)这一传统早寒武世或寒武纪第2世晚期最重要的三叶虫属,广泛分布于全球寒武纪3个生物大区,为区域地层对比的标准化石.Bathynotus在贵州剑河八郎乌溜-曾家崖剖面凯里组下部极为丰富.该剖面已成为全球寒武系第2统和第3统界线层型候选剖面,表明凯里组是一个穿时的地层单元,其3个三叶虫带最下部一个带为Bathynotus holopygus-Ovatoryctocara granulata.经过逐层大量的化石标本采集统计证实,乌溜-曾家崖剖面宽背虫(Bathynotus)在距凯里组底部51.60 m处骤然绝灭,距寒武系第2统的顶界(距凯里组底52.80 m)只有1.20 m.本文就乌溜-曾家崖剖面凯里组下部宽背虫(Bathynotus)的数量分布变化认为其灭绝过程是逐步的.     

Head and backbone of the Early Cambrian vertebrate Haikouichthys

Agnathan fish hold a key position in vertebrate evolution, especially regarding the origin of the head and neural-crest-derived tissue. In contrast to amphioxus, lampreys and other vertebrates possess a complex brain and placodes that contribute to well-developed eyes, as well as auditory and olfactory systems. These sensory sytems were arguably a trigger to subsequent vertebrate diversifications. However, although they are known from skeletal impressions in younger Palaeozoic agnathans, information about the earliest records of these systems has been largely wanting. Here we report numerous specimens of the Lower Cambrian vertebrate Haikouichthys ercaicunensis, until now only known from the holotype. Haikouichthys shows significant differences from other fossil agnathans: key features include a small lobate extension to the head, with eyes and possible nasal sacs, as well as what may be otic capsules. A notochord with separate vertebral elements is also identifiable. Phylogenetic analysis indicates that this fish lies within the stem-group craniates. Although Haikouichthys somewhat resembles the ammocoete larva of modern lampreys, this is because of shared general craniate characters; adult lampreys and hagfishes (the cyclostomes if monophyletic) are probably derived in many respects.     

城市群港口结构研究--以环长株潭城市群为例

合理确定城市群港口的定位,构建与城市群发展水平相适应的港口结构,可有效促进城市群的发展。以环长株潭城市群为例,采用基尼系数、区位商以及聚类分析法,分别对城市群港口的空间结构、职能结构和层次结构进行定量分析,并论证了港口结构与依托城市的国民生产总值、产业分工以及港口综合基础条件的紧密联系。研究结果表明,环长株潭城市群港口可按综合能力分为两类：一类是作为城市群港口核心的岳阳港和长沙港,应定位为运输大宗散货和集装箱为主的现代化综合性港口;另一类是作为地区重要港口的衡阳港、常德港、株洲港、湘潭港、益阳港和娄底港,定位为运输散货和件杂货为主的综合性港口。     

番荔枝科糠秕鳞杜氏木群及其近缘种的修订(Ⅱ)——种的描述、地理分布及其相互亲缘关系

杜氏木属(Duguetia St.Hilaire)约80种,全产新热带.它的系统修订系由联合国教科文组织资助的《新热带植物志》(Flora Neotropica)中番荔枝科研究的子课题,本文第一作者有幸参加了该项研究.这里报告的是第一作者于1990年2月至1991年3月在荷兰乌德勒支大学系统植物学研究所进修期间,在 P.J.M.Maas教授指导下完成的番荔枝科杜氏木属中糠秕鳞杜氏木群(Duguetia furfuracea group,为非正式分类学等级)及其近缘种(共16种,现修订至12种)系统修订专著连载的第二部分.它给出了隶属糠秕鳞杜氏木群的叉鳞杜氏木(D.dicholepidota)、莫里杜氏木(D.moricandiana)、马格杜氏木(D.marcgraviana)及具刺杜氏木(D.echinophora)四种的详尽描述、地方名、应用价值、地理分布、分类界定和它们间的相互亲缘关系.短梗杜氏木(D.brevipedunculata)被归并为马格杜氏木的新异名;叉鳞杜氏木与莫里杜氏木不象R.E.Fries(1934,1959)认为那样与马格杜氏木直接亲缘而是与糠秕鳞杜氏木亲缘关系非常密切.     

RNA evolution and the origins of life

The evolution of RNA is likely to have played an important role in the very early history of life on Earth but it is doubtful that life began with RNA. Consideration of what came before RNA must take into account relevant information from geochemistry, prebiotic chemistry and nucleic acid biochemistry.     

A Cambrian micro-lobopodian and the evolution of arthropod locomotion and reproduction

The evolutionary success of arthropods, the most abundant and diverse animal group, is mainly based on their segmented body and jointed appendages, features that had evolved most likely already before the Cambrian. The first arthropod-like animals, the lobopodians from the Early Cambrian, were unsclerotized and worm-like, and they had unjointed tubular legs. Here we describe the first three-dimensionally preserved Cambrian lobopodian. The material presented of Orstenotubulus evamuellerae gen. et sp. nov. is the smallest and youngest of a lobopodian known. O. evamuellerae shows strikingly detailed similarities to Recent tardigrades and/or onychophorans in its cellular-structured cuticle and the telescopic spines. It also shows similarities to other, longer known lobopodians, but which are ten times as large as the new form. These similarities include the finely annulated body and legs, which is characteristic also for Recent onychophorans, and paired humps continuing into spines situated dorsally to the leg insertions, a feature lacking in the extant forms. The morphology of O. evamuellerae not only elucidates our knowledge about lobopodians, but also aids in a clearer picture of the early evolution of arthropods. An example is the single ventral gonopore between a limb pair of O. evamuellerae, which indicates that a single gonopore, as developed in onychophorans, tardigrades, pentastomids, myriapods and insects, might represent the plesiomorphic state for Arthropoda, while the paired state in chelicerates and crustaceans was convergently achieved. Concerning life habits, the lateral orientation of the limbs and their anchoring spines of the new lobopodian imply that early arthropods were crawlers rather than walkers.     

The origins and the future of microfluidics

The manipulation of fluids in channels with dimensions of tens of micrometres--microfluidics--has emerged as a distinct new field. Microfluidics has the potential to influence subject areas from chemical synthesis and biological analysis to optics and information technology. But the field is still at an early stage of development. Even as the basic science and technological demonstrations develop, other problems must be addressed: choosing and focusing on initial applications, and developing strategies to complete the cycle of development, including commercialization. The solutions to these problems will require imagination and ingenuity.     

洞庭湖湿地小型节肢土壤动物群落组成及其特征

从2003年11月到2004年10月对洞庭湖湿地平原、丘岗、低山的4种生态系统中的小型节肢土壤动物群落的组成、多样性、相似性进行了比较研究。全年调查共获得小型节肢土壤动物27641个,隶属节肢动物门的6纲、24目。4个土壤动物群落中动物类群数和个体数均以针阔混交林>茶林>竹林>阔叶林;多样性指数(H')由大到小依次是针阔混交林>茶林>阔叶林>竹林,与群落均匀度的变化显著相关,而与群落的丰富度关系不密切;Jaccard系数、Gower系数和Pianka的α指数的分析结果表明,4种群落中共有的类群数极为相似,但群落中各类群的最大个体数和最小个体数的差值相差很大。     

由一个加群构造的一类交换环

由一个加群G=(〈x〉 ,〈y〉) ,此处mx≠ 0 ,my≠ 0 ,对任意非零整数m ,构造出一类交换环Rm,m=1 ,2 ,3,… ,使得Rm 与Rn(m ≠n)不同构 ,且对任何m与n ,Rm 有无穷多个同构于Rn 的子环 .     

核能与常规能源海水淡化的经济竞争性的比较

采用平准化贴现产水成本法和最新的海水淡化经济评价软件 (DEEP1.1) ,对中东、阿拉伯海和北非地区核能海水淡化和常规能源海水淡化大量方案的经济竞争性进行了比较研究。结果表明 ,核能海水淡化具有较强的经济竞争性 ,其竞争性普遍存在于反渗透膜法、多效蒸馏法和多级闪蒸法等 3种淡化技术。淡化水成本由于所采用的淡化技术和水厂规模的不同 ,具有很大的差别 ,变化范围为 0 .5 2～ 1.93美元 .m- 3 ,反渗透膜法最便宜 ,多级闪蒸法最贵。影响其经济竞争性的敏感因素依次为 :贴现率、水厂规模、化石燃料价格、能源厂比投资和海水温度与海水总可溶固体物含量 ,与基准方案相比 ,水成本的变化率最高可达 2 2 .6 %。     

番荔枝科糠秕鳞杜氏木群及其近缘种的修订(Ⅲ)——种的描述、分类定界及亲缘关系(英文)

本文是第一作者在荷兰鸟支大学系统植物学研究所进修期间完成的番茄枝科杜氏木属(Duguetia)中糠秕鳞杜氏木群及近缘种专著修订的第三部分.文中给出了属于糠秕鳞杜氏木群的下列四种:鳞斑杜氏木(D.lepidota)、芳香杜氏木(D.odorata)、光叶杜氏木(D.glabriuscula)、及披针叶杜氏木(D.lanceolata)的详尽形态描述、分类定界、地理分布、地方名、应用价值及相互亲缘关系.小叶披针叶杜氏木(D.lanceolata)var.parvifolia)被认为是披针叶杜氏木的极端变异,其分类等级不能被承认,芳香杜氏木不象R.E.Fries(1934.1959)认为那样与糠秕鳞杜氏木有直接亲缘,而是与鳞斑杜氏木亲缘关系极近.     

Molecular phylogenetics and the origins of placental mammals

The precise hierarchy of ancient divergence events that led to the present assemblage of modern placental mammals has been an area of controversy among morphologists, palaeontologists and molecular evolutionists. Here we address the potential weaknesses of limited character and taxon sampling in a comprehensive molecular phylogenetic analysis of 64 species sampled across all extant orders of placental mammals. We examined sequence variation in 18 homologous gene segments (including nearly 10,000 base pairs) that were selected for maximal phylogenetic informativeness in resolving the hierarchy of early mammalian divergence. Phylogenetic analyses identify four primary superordinal clades: (I) Afrotheria (elephants, manatees, hyraxes, tenrecs, aardvark and elephant shrews); (II) Xenarthra (sloths, anteaters and armadillos); (III) Glires (rodents and lagomorphs), as a sister taxon to primates, flying lemurs and tree shrews; and (IV) the remaining orders of placental mammals (cetaceans, artiodactyls, perissodactyls, carnivores, pangolins, bats and core insectivores). Our results provide new insight into the pattern of the early placental mammal radiation.     

基于CANBUS的电梯群控系统的算法与实现

为了满足高层建筑和智能化建筑的需要,在研究电梯群控系统运行特点的基础上,提出了多目标的电梯群控系统算法.采用最优化理论的分析方法,分析电梯群控模型及调度策略,以及最大限度地降低系统能耗的群控系统,并基于CAN总线的技术特点,给出了群控系统的实现方案,对电梯群控理论的研究有一定的促进作用.     

关于由群与幂等元生成半群的若干组合结果

全变换半群是由它自身的对称群和任意一个秩为n-1的幂等元生成的。特别地,在一个有限集合X上,由置换群和秩为n-1的幂等元生成的半群都是正则的。考虑了Hamilton四元数群的所有子群与幂等元生成纯正半群和逆半群的组合结果。同时,也考虑循环群与二面体群的所有子群与幂等元生成纯正半群与逆半群的情形。     

Neural crest origins of the neck and shoulder

The neck and shoulder region of vertebrates has undergone a complex evolutionary history. To identify its underlying mechanisms we map the destinations of embryonic neural crest and mesodermal stem cells using Cre-recombinase-mediated transgenesis. The single-cell resolution of this genetic labelling reveals cryptic cell boundaries traversing the seemingly homogeneous skeleton of the neck and shoulders. Within this assembly of bones and muscles we discern a precise code of connectivity that mesenchymal stem cells of both neural crest and mesodermal origin obey as they form muscle scaffolds. The neural crest anchors the head onto the anterior lining of the shoulder girdle, while a Hox-gene-controlled mesoderm links trunk muscles to the posterior neck and shoulder skeleton. The skeleton that we identify as neural crest-derived is specifically affected in human Klippel-Feil syndrome, Sprengel's deformity and Arnold-Chiari I/II malformation, providing insights into their likely aetiology. We identify genes involved in the cellular modularity of the neck and shoulder skeleton and propose a new method for determining skeletal homologies that is based on muscle attachments. This has allowed us to trace the whereabouts of the cleithrum, the major shoulder bone of extinct land vertebrate ancestors, which seems to survive as the scapular spine in living mammals.