Author’s response: Toward inclusive theories of the evolution of musicality

We compare and contrast the 60 commentaries by 109 authors on the pair of target articles by Mehr et al. and ourselves. The commentators largely reject Mehr et al.’s fundamental definition of music and their attempts to refute 1) our social bonding hypothesis, 2) byproduct hypotheses, and 3) sexual selection hypotheses for the evolution of musicality. Instead, the commentators generally support our more inclusive proposal that social bonding and credible signaling mechanisms complement one another in explaining cooperation within and competition between groups in a coevolutionary framework (albeit with some confusion regarding terminology such as “byproduct” and “exaptation”). We discuss proposed criticisms and extensions, with a focus on moving beyond adaptation/byproduct dichotomies and toward testing of cross-species, cross-cultural, and other empirical predictions.

Otoliths as taxonomic tool to identify catfishes of the genus Mystus (Teleostei: Bagridae) from India

To contribute to the clarification of taxonomy of bagrid catfishes belonging to the genus Mystus, the lapillus otoliths of five species (Mystus armatus, M. malabaricus, M. cavasius, M. gulio and M. tengara), using various otolith shape indices such as circularity, ellipticity, rectangularity and form factor were compared. Among the indices studied, rectangularity and form factor bestowed maximum F-ratio of 49.223 and 30.621, respectively, contributing maximum to species discrimination. The F-ratio for circularity, ellipticity, rectangularity, form factor and roundness were found to be 4.154, 28.735, 30.621, 49.223 and 14.58, respectively. The shape indices studied varied significantly among the five species. Cross validation by discriminant analysis of otolith shape data explained 100%variability by the first four functions. The jack-knifed classification matrix identified that the original groups are correctly classified to an extent of 68.6%. The description provided in this article will serve as a baseline database for bagrid otolith of the genus Mystus.

Toward inclusive theories of the evolution of musicality

We compare and contrast the 60 commentaries by 109 authors on the pair of target articles by Mehr et al. and ourselves. The commentators largely reject Mehr et al.'s fundamental definition of music and their attempts to refute (1) our social bonding hypothesis, (2) byproduct hypotheses, and (3) sexual selection hypotheses for the evolution of musicality. Instead, the commentators generally support our more inclusive proposal that social bonding and credible signaling mechanisms complement one another in explaining cooperation within and competition between groups in a coevolutionary framework (albeit with some confusion regarding terminologies such as “byproduct” and “exaptation”). We discuss the proposed criticisms and extensions, with a focus on moving beyond adaptation/byproduct dichotomies and toward testing of cross-species, cross-cultural, and other empirical predictions.

Novel microsatellites for Cypseloides fumigatus, cross-amplifiable in Streptoprocne zonaris

Based on microsatellite prospection, we isolated and characterized 21 microsatellite markers for the Sooty Swift (Cypseloides fumigatus) and tested the cross-amplification in the White-collared Swift (Streptoprocne zonaris). Both species are New World species included in the Apodidae family. From these 21, only 13 loci were polymorphic in the Sooty Swift, and their levels of polymorphism were surprisingly low compared to related species. Cross-amplification in the White-collared Swift was successful for 11 loci of the 13 polymorphic found for the Sooty Swift, but seven were monomorphic and four were biallelic. The microsatellites described here could be useful in future genetic population studies for Sooty Swifts and related species.

In Vitro Susceptibility to Closthioamide among Clinical and Reference Strains of Neisseria gonorrhoeae

ABSTRACT Neisseria gonorrhoeae is one of the leading antimicrobial resistance threats worldwide. This study determined the MICs of closthioamide to be 0.008 to 0.5 mg/liter for clinical N. gonorrhoeae strains and related species. Cross-resistance with existing antimicrobial resistance was not detected, indicating that closthioamide could be used to treat drug-resistant N. gonorrhoeae.