10 Fascinating Facts about Bess Beetles

10 Fascinating Facts about Bess Beetles The  amiable bess beetles  (family Passalidae)  make great classroom pets, and are fun to watch. Bess beetles are so much more than cute; theyre also some of the most sophisticated bugs on the planet. Dont believe it? Consider these 10 fascinating facts about bess beetles. 1. Bess beetles are important decomposers Passalids live in hardwood logs, munching away on the tough tree fibers and turning them into new soil. They prefer oak, hickory, and maple, but will set up shop in just about any hardwood log that has sufficiently decayed. If youre looking for bess beetles, turn over rotting logs on the forest floor. In the tropics, where bess beetles are more diverse, a single log may house as many as 10 different Passalid species. 2. Bess beetles live in family groups Within their log homes, both bess beetle parents reside with their offspring. With their powerful mandibles, they excavate rooms and passages to house their family. The bess beetle family guards its home against any and all intruders, including other unrelated bess beetles. In some species, a large, extended family of individuals lives together in a colony. This subsocial behavior is quite unusual among beetles. 3. Bess beetles talk Like many other insects – crickets, grasshoppers, and cicadas, for example – bess beetles use sounds to communicate with one another. Whats remarkable, however, is how sophisticated their language seems to be. One North American species, Odontotaenius disjunctis, produces 14 distinct sounds, presumably with different meanings. An adult bess beetle talks by rubbing a hardened part of its hindwings against spines on the dorsal surface of its abdomen, a behavior known as stridulation. Larvae can communicate, too, by rubbing their middle and hind legs against each other. Captive bess beetles will complain loudly when disturbed in any way, and squeak audibly when handled. 4. Bess beetles co-parent their young The vast majority of insect parents simply deposit their eggs and go. A few, like some stink bug mothers, will guard her eggs until they hatch. In fewer still, a parent might stick around long enough to keep her nymphs safe. But rare are the insect parents that remain together as a pair to raise their young to adulthood, and bess beetles are counted among them. Not only do the mother and father bess beetle work together to feed and protect their offspring, but the older larvae stick around to help with rearing their younger siblings. 5. Bess beetles eat poop Like termites and other insects that feed on wood, bess beetles need the help of microorganisms to break down the tough plant fibers. Without these digestive symbionts, they simply couldnt process the cellulose. But bess beetles arent born with these vital fungi and bacteria living in their guts. The solution? They eat their own poop, much like rabbits do, to keep a healthy number of microorganisms in their digestive tracts. Without enough frass in its diet, a bess beetle will die. 6. Bess beetles lay their eggs in nests of poop Baby bess beetles are at an even greater digestive disadvantage, because their mandibles arent strong enough to chew wood and they lack gut microorganisms. So mama and papa bess beetle start their babies out in a cradle made of masticated wood and frass. In fact, when a  bess beetle larva reaches its final instar and is ready to pupate, its parents and siblings work together to construct it a cocoon made of frass. Thats how important poop is to a Passalid. 7. Bess beetles have a lot of nicknames Members of the family Passalidae go by a long list of common names: bessbugs, bessiebugs, betsy beetles, bess beetles, horned passalus beetles, patent leather beetles, peg beetles, and horn beetles.   The many variations on bess seems to derive from the French word baiser, which means to kiss, and is likely a reference to the smooching sound they make when they stridulate. If youve seen one, you already know why some people call them patent leather beetles – theyre quite shiny and black, like patent leather shoes. 8. Bess beetles look menacing, but are surprisingly gentle The first time you see a bess beetle, you might be a bit intimidated. Theyre hefty insects, often well over 3 cm long, with the massive mandibles youd expect from a beetle that eats wood. But rest assured, they dont bite, and dont even grab hold of your fingers with their feet the way scarab beetles do. Because theyre so easygoing and big, they make good first pets for young insect lovers. If youre a teacher interested in keeping insects in your classroom, you wont find one easier to care for and handle than the bess beetle. 9. Most bess beetles live in the tropics The family Passalidae includes roughly 600 described species, and nearly all of them live in tropical habitats. Only four species are known from the U.S. and Canada, and of these, two species havent been seen for decades. Some bess beetle species are endemic, meaning they live only in a certain area, such as on an isolated mountain or a particular island. 10. To date, just a single bess beetle fossil has been found The only prehistoric Passalid known from the fossil record is Passalus indormitus, collected in Oregon. Passalus indormitus dates to the Oligocene epoch, and lived about 25 million years ago. There are no known bess beetles living in the Pacific Northwest today, interestingly. Passalus indormitus is most similar to Passalus punctiger, a living species that inhabits Mexico, Central America, and parts of South America. Sources: Bringing Nature Home: How You Can Sustain Wildlife with Native Plants, by Douglas W. TallamyAmerican Beetles: Polyphaga: Scarabaeoidea through Curculionoidea, Volume 2, edited by Ross H. Arnett, JR, Michael C. Thomas, Paul E. Skelley, J. Howard FrankInsect Behavior, by Robert W. Matthews, Janice R. MatthewsNinety-nine Gnats, Nits, and Nibblers, by May BerenbaumBess Beetles of Kentucky, University of Kentucky Entomology website. Accessed December 10, 2013.Borror and DeLongs Introduction to the Study of Insects, 7th edition, by Charles A. Triplehorn and Norman F. JohnsonEncyclopedia of Entomology, 2nd edition, edited by John L. Capinera.

Moments - Definition of Statistics Terms

Moments - Definition of Statistics Terms Moments in mathematical statistics involve a basic calculation.  These calculations can be used to find a probability distributions mean, variance, and skewness. Suppose that we have a set of data with a total of n discrete points. One important calculation, which is actually several numbers, is called the sth moment. The sth moment of the data set with values x1, x2, x3, ... , xn is given by the formula: (x1s x2s x3s ... xns)/n Using this formula requires us to be careful with our order of operations. We need to do the exponents first, add, then divide this sum by n the total number of data values. A Note on the Term Moment The term moment has been taken from physics. In physics, the moment of a system of point masses is calculated with a formula identical to that above, and this formula is used in finding the center of mass of the points. In statistics, the values are no longer masses, but as we will see, moments in statistics still measure something relative to the center of the values.​ First Moment For the first moment, we set s 1. The formula for the first moment is thus: (x1x2 x3 ... xn)/n This is identical to the formula for the sample mean. The first moment of the values 1, 3, 6, 10 is (1 3 6 10) / 4 20/4 5. Second Moment For the second moment we set s 2. The formula for the second moment is: (x12 x22 x32 ... xn2)/n The second moment of the values 1, 3, 6, 10 is (12 32 62 102) / 4 (1 9 36 100)/4 146/4 36.5. Third Moment For the third moment we set s 3. The formula for the third moment is: (x13 x23 x33 ... xn3)/n The third moment of the values 1, 3, 6, 10 is (13 33 63 103) / 4 (1 27 216 1000)/4 1244/4 311. Higher moments can be calculated in a similar way. Just replace s in the above formula with the number denoting the desired moment. Moments About the Mean A related idea is that of the sth moment about the mean. In this calculation we perform the following steps: First, calculate the mean of the values.Next, subtract this mean from each value.Then raise each of these differences to the sth power.Now add the numbers from step #3 together.Finally, divide this sum by the number of values we started with. The formula for the sth moment about the mean m of the values values x1, x2, x3, ..., xn is given by: ms ((x1 - m)s (x2 - m)s (x3 - m)s ... (xn - m)s)/n First Moment About the Mean The first moment about the mean is always equal to zero, no matter what the data set is that we are working with. This can be seen in the following: m1 ((x1 - m) (x2 - m) (x3 - m) ... (xn - m))/n ((x1 x2 x3 ... xn) - nm)/n m - m 0. Second Moment About the Mean The second moment about the mean is obtained from the above formula by settings 2: m2 ((x1 - m)2 (x2 - m)2 (x3 - m)2 ... (xn - m)2)/n This formula is equivalent to that for the sample variance. For example, consider the set 1, 3, 6, 10. We have already calculated the mean of this set to be 5. Subtract this from each of the data values to obtain differences of: 1 – 5 -43 – 5 -26 – 5 110 – 5 5 We square each of these values and add them together: (-4)2 (-2)2 12 52 16 4 1 25 46. Finally divide this number by the number of data points: 46/4 11.5 Applications of Moments As mentioned above, the first moment is the mean and the second moment about the mean is the sample variance. Karl Pearson introduced the use of the third moment about the mean in calculating skewness and the fourth moment about the mean in the calculation of kurtosis.

Mattel Organizational Crisis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Mattel Organizational Crisis - Essay Example Reports from the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC, 2007) indicated that three children had been hospitalized due to ingesting some particles from the toys and all these three were diagnosed with intestinal perforation, hence required surgery. Owing to this recall, the company lost over $30 million and nearly 1.5 million toys it had sold were removed from the shelves. The Wall Street Journal (2007) notes that previous to the recall, Mattel was the biggest toy manufacturer reputed for its strict safety standards. As noted by Mitroff (1989) a positive public image could easily be destroyed in the course of a crisis. Scholar, nonetheless, have established that strategic application of corporate information, proper crisis communication and effective crisis management can assist in wining back public confidence, since communication has the ability to determine how information reaches the public as well as the media (Coombs, 2007). This paper examines Mattel crisis, the paper will specifically examine how the crisis happened, corporate communication of crisis, crisis management and give conclusion. Mattel recalled 19 million toys from August to September in 2007 because of two separate reasons (Media Statement, 2007). This was the biggest recall in the history of the company because both recalls happened at the same time. The first reason for recall of toys was due to faulty magnets used. The toys were designed in such a way that most parts had high-energy magnets. These magnets are of great effect to infants and young children because they can ingest some parts and be affected in their digestive tract. When children shallow several magnetic particles there are high chances of that they will pull together in the stomach and rip by use of stomach tissue. The combination of magnet strength with poor design of Mattel toys made these toys dangerous to the health

Does god really exist Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Does god really exist - Essay Example In this regard, it is difficult to challenge the contents of religious beliefs especially to the believers because they rely heavily on hope and faith to elucidate matters pertaining to God (Hoyle, 1983, p93). However, many events occurring around the world signify the presence of greater force that cannot be adequately explained and be predetermined by man. This paper discusses that irrespective of one’s religion, there is evidence that proves existence of God. From scientific point of view, we as human beings exist freely in nature and we are made of various compounds, such as water and other structural compounds and elements that have been indentified by scientists (Morris, 1967, p 90). By the virtue of our existence, it is clear that we all originated somewhere. The Biblical point of view holds that in the beginning, God created heaven and earth, and man was created thereafter (Morris, 1967, p52). Atheists argue that there was no beginning of life, an assertion supported b y the science proclamation that matter cannot be created or destroyed and therefore is eternal (Andrews, 1978, p57). However, the atheist assertion is wrong because cosmic observations and processes around the world indicate a gradual consumption of energy that affirms that if there was no beginning, our world could have become extinct long time ago (Andrews, 1978, p19). For example driving a vehicle requires energy in form of fuel. When the fuel gets used up, the vehicle stalls and cannot function again. In the planet, the sun is sole source of energy and besides it; there are numerous stars in the atmosphere. Scientists have established that in order for the stars including the sun to emit energy, hydrogen gas is compressed into helium and in the process; vast amounts of energy are released. The sun compresses an approximate 564 million tons of hydrogen to form 560 million tons of helium and 4 tons of energy per second, through the process of nuclear fusion (Hoyle, 1983, p42). Tak ing into consideration that there are numerous stars, the amount of hydrogen used by these cosmic bodies is astronomical and by now, it could have become exhausted. This means the world has a beginning, because if it has been ongoing forever, there could be no hydrogen left. Hoyle (1983, p51) noted that the sun remains with 98% of its initial hydrogen composition and this shows that at some point, there was a beginning and there shall be an end. The earth undergoes numerous chemical and physical processes, which imply that its composition has changed. Therefore, the assertion that matter remains unchanged is scientifically erroneous. There must have a beginning, a force that brought everything to existence, and this could be God, just as the Bible states (Douglas, 1993, p37) In this respect, there was a beginning to the universe, and the question arises on how both the living and non-living creations came into existence. From a religious perspective, a certain force, meaning that it did not occur spontaneously, caused the creation. On the other hand, atheists argue that matter is self-sustaining and cannot be created or be destroyed. Atheists do not show the cause to the creation, suggesting that the matter happened out of undefined or unexplainable process. Logically, if matter had a beginning, there must have been something that came from nothing to give the matter existence. Then how did matter come into existence if there was no force, energy and intelligence? This

The Scarlet Letter :: essays research papers

If one is to read Nathaniel Hawthorne's novel The Scarlet Letter, they will forever remember the remarkable tale of a woman who succeeds against all odds. It extraordinarily describes the life and times of early Puritan colonists in America and the sin of adultery. The question of morality and its positive and negative effects is at the very core of this story. Is one night of sin worth a lifetime of hardships? I. Summary Hester Prynne, a member of a once affluent and prosperous family, was arranged to marry a physician by the name of Roger Chillingworth. Although not out of love, they are married and live successful lives in Amsterdam. When they eventually decide to settle in America, Hester is set on ahead of Roger so that he may finish his business in Amsterdam. Hester does not hear from her husband for two years, and many people conceive of his being lost at sea. Hester then falls in love with another man and they have a child together. She is found guilty of committing adultery and is sentenced to stand holding her child before Boston on a scaffold for three hours. She is interrogated as to who her fellow sinner is, but she remains strong. Many women of the town believe that Hester's penalty is not harsh enough and therefore, she is marked with the letter A upon her chest. She is returned to her prison cell and a doctor is summoned to help calm her. The doctor turns out to be her lost husband, Chillingworth, and he makes Hester promise to never reveal that he is her husband. She does so in return for the secrecy of the name of the man who is the father of her daughter, Pearl. Eventually, Hester settles down with Pearl in a small cottage and leads a basically normal life as a seamstress. Pearl turns out to be a very peculiar child with a disobedient attitude towards life. She is 'imp-like'; in appearance and many people believe that she could be a bad influence on their comfortable Puritan town. With hearing talk that Pearl may be taken away from her, she goes to the Governor Bellingham's office in order to talk him into letting her keep the child. Bellingham is displeased with Pearl's attitude of the church and Puritanism, and therefore decides to take her away. Just before he does, Reverend Arthur Dimmesdale steps in and talks Bellingham out of it.

GFI Executive Report

Gracie Fay International (GIF) has an art to understand their abilities to record, classify, and summarize their financial, but they are lacking the understanding of their cost accounting systems, product costs for production of took balls, specific job order cost for special order products, and their cost information on the two models of pitching machines, which all of these areas are not being Justify on how Important cost accounting is too growing company Like GIF.These four areas will be explored In more detail in order to shed light on each activity, which will ensure that GIF Is asking a profit, correct decisions, and recognizes any corrections that need to me made. GIF must understand that cost accounting Is an Important function In their corporate strategy. Cost accounting Is known as managerial, or management accounting, which It provides economic, and financial Information In making decision for the company. Its mall objective is to provide information In ladling management to plan, direct, and control operations.It also improves these controls by supplying data on the cost incurred to each manufacturing department. The skill sets that I have will enhance GIF on many levels, and they include; full knowledge of purchasing policies, processes, and procedures, balance and reconcile records, able to research and resolve unbalance issues, have strong technical skills, solid decision making skills, and the ability to exercise independent Judgment, prioritize and plan, work activities efficiently to meet deadlines, work as a team or independently, detailed oriented, excellent oral and written communication skills, and strong mathematical skills.Cost management is used to plan, and control the company's decision process, in which reduce cost would be lower, and product value would increase for customers. It provides information that ensures management makes short, and long term decisions no matter what kinds of materials are being used, changes in plant proce ss, or in product design. Management would make these kind of decision to increase short term profits, and Improve the long term position of the company. There are three cost system that are used for manufacturing operations; Job order cost system, Process cost systems, and Activity based (BBC).Job order Is used to reduce products for specific orders, and It estimates the costs with producing the goods for different Jobs (Atkinson et. Al. 2005 p. 79) Process costing Is often used by companies that operate using continuous processing. This type of system applies the costs of production, labor and support actively as the goods pass through the different process stages. (Atkinson et al, 2005, p. 92-94) BBC has a two stages, the first stage Is cost Is allocated to pools, and the second stage Is the cost pools are allocated to products, or services. (Edmonds et al, 2006, p. 33). These septets include understanding the difference between manufacturing, and non manufacturing costs, computi ng the cost of manufacturing a product, indemnifying cost behavior when it comes to utilizing cost volume profit relationships, setting prices, budgeting, controls, and capital when it comes to the company's strategies. Transform raw materials into finished product, and the cost consist of basic materials, and components, labor, and factory overhead in order to complete a finished product. The material, and labor is classified as direct, or indirect to the finished product.To explain direct material, it is taking major components, which can be traced to the finished product. It counts these components carefully, because of the significance to the product, for example take a lawn mower its major components are the engine, wheels, and handle, but the indirect materials is those minor items like screws, nuts, bolts, washers, and lubricants, which is accounted for as factory overhead. Cost accounting also includes direct labor costs, which is all labor costs for specific work performed on products that can be conveniently and economically raced too product unit.Factory overhead is all factory costs that are indirectly related with the finished inventory. When it comes to cost behavior, the costs do not change in total, even when the product numbers increase, or decrease, and is considers to be fixed cost, an example would be rent. Other cost that a factory may incur would be known as non manufacturing cost, which includes selling, administrative, and financing costs that are deducted as expenses from the sales revenues. The manufacturing production process includes, Job shops, batch flows, etc. Which help determine the type of product cost system the company may utilize.It is understood that when making a decision its best to use estimation of costs, but management must have a good idea on how costs behave. There are several methods that management could use; the high low method, or the least square regression. When a company is setting prices there is one approac h to think about, that would be the cost plus pricing. Then the company can apply the proper markup given the competitive market conditions, and other factors, like target selling price. In equines a budget aids in planning, and controlling of the company. Master budgets consist of operating, and financial budgets.The operating budget forecast sales, while financial budget is based on data from income statement. Let not forget that budgetary control is needed, this process compares actual operating results, and to identify problem areas in order to correct the issues. In conclusion cost accounting provides products, or services that greatly benefit Gaffs management team in many areas such as, competition, downsizing, or expanding globally, therefore GIF must understand that without cost accounting in their business plan the company may not be able to expand their activities, remain profitable or improve its competitive standing. Art 2 Product Cost Variable Fixed Direct Electricity x Real Estate Taxes x Indirect Leather to tie wood together Manufacturing Labor Water x Lubricants for Machinery Equipment depreciation Electricity, and Water- is manufacturing, variable cost, because the business depends on electricity, and when sales have increased it creates more demand for more product. Real Estate Taxes, and Equipment depreciation- is fixed, because it remains instant within a relevant range of volume, or activity.

Nineteen Things I Hate About You And The Taming Of The Shrew

It is undeniable that that texts are polysemic makings, intertextual reproductions, and that many modern texts borrow from earlier texts. This can distinctly be seen in the comparison of the 1999 teen comedy film â€Å"Ten Things I Hate About You†, directed by Jil Gunger and its relative counterpart, Shakespeare’s play, â€Å"The Taming Of The Shrew†. The comparing and contrast of the two texts has given me a deeper understanding on issues of stereotypical gender roles, notions of love and marriage, and how society’s values and attitudes have changed over time. The film is a modern remaking of Shakespeare’s play, changing many aspects such as context and characterisation to present something its audience can relate to, something that is more†¦show more content†¦and both present very contrasting views about relationships, mirroring society’s views on the topics during the period in which they were made. The setting in â€Å"Ten Thi ngs I Hate About You† is important and is effective in portraying what their intended audience, teenagers are focused on; dating, which is proved when Bianca exasperatedly complains, â€Å"I’m the only girl in school that doesn’t date†. The film shows teenage dating in its truth, something that is more focused on short term attraction and sex rather than long term relationships, an important part in a teenagers life and something many feel pressured to do. The short term attraction side of it is shown through Joey and his friends’ repetitive use of the word and phrase â€Å"virign alert†, when referring to Bianca, connoting to the audience that he only wanted her for sex, as well as when Kat reveals what happened between Joey and her, â€Å"I told him I didn’t want to do it anymore, and he got pissed at dumped me†, further showing the audience that Joey only wanted girls for his sexual pleasure. However, these ideas of relations hips that we are accustomed to, differ very much to ideas of marriage in the â€Å"Taming Of The Shrew† play. The 1500’s play focuses more on marriage, as like teenage dating in this modern era, for the play’s intended audience, it was marriage that the Elizabethan era society was preoccupied on, and was something they felt they â€Å"had to do†. The difference between relationships and marriage is shown