scholarly journals Social forces can impact the circadian clocks of cohabiting hamsters

2014 ◽  
Vol 281 (1779) ◽  
pp. 20132535 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Paul ◽  
Premananda Indic ◽  
William J. Schwartz

A number of field and laboratory studies have shown that the social environment influences daily rhythms in numerous species. However, underlying mechanisms, including the circadian system's role, are not known. Obstacles to this research have been the inability to track and objectively analyse rhythms of individual animals housed together. Here, we employed temperature dataloggers to track individual body temperature rhythms of pairs of cohabiting male Syrian hamsters ( Mesocricetus auratus ) in constant darkness and applied a continuous wavelet transform to determine the phase of rhythm onset before, during, and after cohabitation. Cohabitation altered the predicted trajectory of rhythm onsets in 34% of individuals, representing 58% of pairs, compared to 12% of hamsters single-housed as ‘virtual pair’ controls. Deviation from the predicted trajectory was by a change in circadian period ( τ ), which tended to be asymmetric—affecting one individual of the pair in nine of 11 affected pairs—with hints that dominance might play a role. These data implicate a change in the speed of the circadian clock as one mechanism whereby social factors can alter daily rhythms. Miniature dataloggers coupled with wavelet analyses should provide powerful tools for future studies investigating the principles and mechanisms mediating social influences on daily timing.

2015 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 20150204 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew J. Paul ◽  
Premananda Indic ◽  
William J. Schwartz

Communal animals often engage in group activities that require temporal synchrony among its members, including synchrony on the circadian timescale. The principles and conditions that foster such collective synchronization are not understood, but existing literature hints that the number of interacting individuals may be a critical factor. We tested this by recording individual circadian body temperature rhythms of female house mice housed singly, in twos (pairs), or in groups of five (quintets) in constant darkness; determining the daily phases of the circadian peak for each animal; and then calculating the cycle-to-cycle phase relationship between cohabiting animals over time. Significant temporal coherence was observed in quintets: the proportion of quintets (4/7), but not pairs (2/8), that became synchronized was greater than could be achieved by the complete simulated reassortment of all individuals. We speculate that the social coupling of individual circadian clocks of group members may be adaptive under certain conditions, and we propose that optimal group sizes in nature may depend not only on species-specific energetics, spatial behaviour and natural history but also on the mathematics of synchronizing assemblies of weakly coupled animal oscillators.


2015 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 543-556 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tina W. Wey ◽  
Orr Spiegel ◽  
Pierre-Olivier Montiglio ◽  
Karen E. Mabry

Abstract Natal dispersal, the movement of an organism from its birthplace to the site of first reproduction, is fundamental to many ecological and evolutionary processes. Mechanistically, individual dispersal decisions can depend on both individual phenotype and environmental cues. In particular, many established evolutionary theories of dispersal highlight the importance of the social environment. More recent research in behavioral ecology has focused on the importance of individual behavioral phenotypes. We reviewed the literature on individual behavioral phenotypes and dispersal and suggest that how individual behavioral phenotypes interact with the immediate social environment experienced by individuals in influencing dispersal is still poorly understood, despite growing interest. We found that very few studies had examined the interaction of individual behavioral phenotypes and social factors, and behavioral phenotypes related to social tendencies were less commonly measured than were behavioral phenotypes related to exploration or response to risk. Further, and unsurprisingly, studies on social behavioral phenotypes and dispersal behaviors during the transience stage of dispersal were underrepresented compared to the departure or settlement stages. Future studies in this area should aim to: a) make explicit links between behavioral traits and their proposed effects on dispersal decisions throughout multiple stages of dispersal, b) integrate more continuous dispersal variables, and c) consider the effects of the spatial distribution and phenotypes of conspecifics (i.e., the social landscape) encountered by individual dispersers.


1984 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 255-277 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Harloe ◽  
Maartje Martens

AbstractThe paper reviews major examples of comparative housing research which have been published in the last twenty years and suggests that the dominant approach — grounded in pluralism and convergence theory — which they exhibit is inadequate. Future studies need to be both more detailed and wider in scope, examining the dynamic of the interrelations between the institutions and the social forces involved in the provision of housing. Such a perspective is briefly developed and related to current developments in the housing markets and policies of some advanced capitalist societies. The paper concludes with a discussion of some of the practical problems of cross-national housing research.


Author(s):  
Julien Walzberg ◽  
Alberta Carpenter ◽  
Garvin A. Heath

AbstractBy 2050, the cumulative mass of end-of-life photovoltaic (PV) modules may reach 80 Mt globally. The impacts could be mitigated by module recycling, repair and reuse; however, previous studies of PV circularity omit the consideration of critical social factors. Here we used an agent-based model to integrate social aspects with techno-economic factors, which provides a more realistic assessment of the circularity potential for previously studied interventions that assesses additional interventions that cannot be analysed using techno-economic analysis alone. We also performed a global sensitivity analysis using a machine-learning metamodel. We show that to exclude social factors underestimates the effect of lower recycling prices on PV material circularity, which highlights the relevance of considering social factors in future studies. Interventions aimed at changing customer attitudes about used PV boost the reuse of modules, although used modules can only satisfy one-third of the US demand during 2020–2050, which suggests that reuse should be complemented by recycling.


Crisis ◽  
1999 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 59-63 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antoon A. Leenaars ◽  
David Lester

Canada's rate of suicide varies from province to province. The classical theory of suicide, which attempts to explain the social suicide rate, stems from Durkheim, who argued that low levels of social integration and regulation are associated with high rates of suicide. The present study explored whether social factors (divorce, marriage, and birth rates) do in fact predict suicide rates over time for each province (period studied: 1950-1990). The results showed a positive association between divorce rates and suicide rates, and a negative association between birth rates and suicide rates. Marriage rates showed no consistent association, an anomaly as compared to research from other nations.


Author(s):  
Volodymyr Reznik

The article discusses the conceptual foundations of the development of the general sociological theory of J.G.Turner. These foundations are metatheoretical ideas, basic concepts and an analytical scheme. Turner began to develop a general sociological theory with a synthesis of metatheoretical ideas of social forces and social selection. He formulated a synthetic metatheoretical statement: social forces cause selection pressures on individuals and force them to change the patterns of their social organization and create new types of sociocultural formations to survive under these pressures. Turner systematized the basic concepts of his theorizing with the allocation of micro-, meso- and macro-levels of social reality. On this basis, he substantiated a simple conceptual scheme of social dynamics. According to this scheme, the forces of macrosocial dynamics of the population, production, distribution, regulation and reproduction cause social evolution. These forces force individual and corporate actors to structurally adapt their communities in altered circumstances. Such adaptation helps to overcome or avoid the disintegration consequences of these forces. The initial stage of Turner's general theorizing is a kind of audit, modification, modernization and systematization of the conceptual apparatus of sociology. The initial results obtained became the basis for the development of his conception of the dynamics of functional selection in the social world.


Author(s):  
Sloane Speakman

In examining the strikingly high prevalence rates of HIV in many parts of Africa, reaching as high as 5% in some areas, how does the discourse promoted by the predominant religions across the continent, Islam and Christianity, affect the outlook of their followers on the epidemic? This question becomes even more intriguing after discovering the dramatic difference in rate of HIV prevalence between Muslims and Christians in Africa, confirmed by studies that have found a negative relationship to exist between HIV prevalence and being Muslim in Africa, even in Sub-Saharan African nations. Why does this gap in prevalence rates exist? Does Islam advocate participating in less risky behavior more so than Christianity? By comparing the social construction, epidemiological understanding and public responses among Muslim populations in Africa with Christian ones, it becomes apparent that many similarities exist between the two regarding discourse and that, rather than religious discourse itself, other social factors, such as circumcision practices, contribute more to the disparity in HIV prevalence than originally thought.


2019 ◽  
Vol 118 (9) ◽  
pp. 154-160
Author(s):  
Dr. Kartikey Koti

The essential idea of this assessment is investigate the social factors affecting particular theorists' decisions making limit at Indian Stock Markets. In the examination coordinated standard of direct is Classified subject to two estimations the first is Heuristic (Decision making) and the resulting one is prospect.. For the assessment coordinated the data used is basic natured which is assembled through a sorted out survey from 100 individual money related authorities based out in Hubli and Dharwad city, Karnataka State in India on an accommodating way. The respondents were both sex and overwhelming part male were 68% . These theorists were having a spot with the age bundle between35-45 which is 38%. These respondents have completed their graduation were around 56%. These respondents had work inclusion of 5 to 10 years which is 45% and the majority of which were used in government portion which is 56%. Their compensation was between 4 to 6 Lakh and were fit for placing assets into business areas. The money related experts were widely masterminded placing assets into different portfolios like 32% in Share market and 20 % in Fixed store. These examiners mode to known various endeavor streets were through News, family and allies.  


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