This work deals with the issue of swarm intelligence as a subdiscipline of artificial intelligence. It describes biological background of the dilemma briefly and presents the principles of searching paths in ant colonies as well. There is also adduced combinatorial optimization and two selected tasks are defined in detail: Travelling Salesman Problem and Quadratic Assignment Problem. The main part of this work consists of description of swarm intelligence methods for solving mentioned problems and evaluation of experiments that were made on these methods. There were tested Ant System, Ant Colony System, Hybrid Ant System and Max-Min Ant System algorithm. Within the work there were also designed and tested my own method Genetic Ant System which enriches the basic Ant System i.a. with development of unit parameters based on genetical principles. The results of described methods were compared together with the ones of classical artificial intelligence within the frame of both solved problems.

Mutualistic interactions between species are balanced on a delicate scale of net benefits to both interacting partners. The dynamics of such interactions could change depending on the context in which these interactions occur. One of the most well-studied models for interspecies mutualisms are myrmecophytic systems, also known as ant-plant systems, where the host plant (myrmecophyte) provides shelter (domatia), solely or along with food resources, for ant partners, while the domatia-resident ants intensively patrol and protect the host plant from herbivory. In some cases, nutrient flux has also been reported from the ant-derived debris in the domatia to the host plant. Such mutualisms are often vulnerable to exploitation by non-mutualist organisms or interlopers such as non-protective ants and other invertebrates that use the plant rewards without any returns. Since provision of domatia and food imposes costs on the host plants, the trajectory of evolution in such cases where protection is partial or absent needs investigation to understand the evolution of myrmecophytism. In this thesis, we investigate the possibility of evolution of myrmecophytism in the absence of universal protection by partner ants, using the unique semi-myrmecophyte (domatia are not expressed in all individuals of the species) Humboldtia brunonis as the study model. H. brunonis is endemic to the tropical wet evergreen forests of the Western Ghats of India. Being locally abundant in its distribution range, this plant species has also been used in characterising forest types in the Western Ghats. H. brunonis provides domatia (modified stem internodes) and food for ants in the form of extrafloral nectar (EFN) on leaves and bracts of floral buds in all individuals. Each domatium has a self-opening slit, which could have led to the domatia being accessed and inhabited by numerous ants and other non-ant invertebrates throughout its distribution range. Of these, only one ant species, Technomyrmex albipes, has been reported to be significantly protective against herbivores, and the protection received by the plant is reported to be restricted only to one site where T. albipes is most abundant. In the light of the above, the possible explanation for continued expression of rewards (domatia as well as EFN) in the absence of universal protection was investigated. Chapter 1: Introduction This chapter starts with a brief history of the concept of mutualism, evolution and maintenance of mutualism, and trophic mutualism amongst organisms in general. This is followed by a description of ant–plant mutualisms, and the various interactions that drive the interaction in such systems, with a more detailed emphasis on trophic mutualism in ant-plants, and stable isotope analysis as a technique that is used to study trophic mutualism in ant-plants. The study system, Humboldtia brunonis is introduced, and all the studies on this system preceding this current thesis are discussed in the light of findings in other ant-plant systems. Lastly, the objectives of the thesis are briefly introduced as separate chapters. Chapter 2: Context dependency of rewards and services in an Indian ant–plant interaction: southern sites favour the mutualism between plants and ants (published in Journal of Tropical Ecology) Earlier studies on the H. brunonis system have shown that there is geographic variation in the occupancy of the domatia, with domatia in the northern part of the H. brunonis range being dominantly occupied by an arboreal earthworm species, while domatia in the south are mostly occupied by ants, especially the sole protective ant T. albipes. Further, it has been reported that herbivory is significantly reduced in the presence of ants in the south. In the present study, conducted at 5 sites spanning the distribution range of H. brunonis, we observed that there is a geographic variation in various ant-related plant traits such as abundance of domatia-bearing individuals, number of nectaries per leaf, size of nectaries, and volume and composition of the EFN, with a clear north–south increasing gradient. However, strong protection mutualism was observed only at one site in the south where herbivory pressure was highest. By comparing our results with earlier findings, we show that in addition to geographic variation, there is also temporal variation in the strength of protection mutualism, and that protection mutualism in this system is context-dependent. These results provide new perspectives on the evolution of myrmecophytism. Chapter 3: Leaf expansion and foliar extrafloral nectar as defence strategies in a paleotropical ant-plant Humboldtia brunonis (Fabaceae) (a section of this chapter is submitted to Biotropica) Despite the absence of universal protection against herbivory, H. brunonis plants constitutively secrete EFN and domatia. We therefore explored other non-chemical defences in this system, and investigated possible explanations for the continued reward production. We observed rapid rate of leaf expansion during the early and most vulnerable phase of leaf phenology, and propose this as a strategy to escape herbivory. The young leaves are also subject to being infested by phloem-feeding Hemiptera, but there was seldom any case of ants tending Hemiptera for honeydew (sugary material excreted by the Hemiptera) on the plant. We analysed the sugar and amino acids compositions of EFN, honeydew and phloem sap, and found that EFN composition was much richer and more attractive (to ants) than honeydew, thereby suggesting that EFN could possibly function to distract ants from tending Hemiptera on the plant, thereby avoiding further damage to the plant. We also observed that EFN composition was much richer than phloem sap, and thereby confirmed that EFN is not mere phloem exudate; rather, our results suggests that EFN could possibly be synthesized actively in the secretory cells of the extrafloral nectary. Anatomical observations of the foliar nectaries further support the synthesis of EFN in the secretory cells of the nectary. Chapter 4: Nutritional benefits from domatia-inhabitants in an ant–plant interaction: interlopers do pay the rent (published in Functional Ecology) In this chapter, we explore how a myrmecophytic system could evolve in the absence of protection benefits from the partner ants. We investigate non-protective benefits, specifically trophic (nutrient) benefits, from the protective and non-protective ants and other invertebrates to the host plant, using stable isotope techniques. We selected three representative inhabitant species for our analysis, viz., the protective ant T. albipes, a non-protective ant Crematogaster dorhni, and the arboreal earthworm Perionyx pullus. We observed that earthworms contributed approximately 9% while protective or non-protective ants contributed approximately 17% of the nitrogen to the plant tissues nearest to the domatium. We also observed from 15N labelling experiments that that nutrients from the domatia are not restricted solely to the domatia-bearing branch but could travel to distant non-domatia bearing branches as well. This study demonstrated for the first time that non-protective ants and non-ant invertebrates that inhabit the domatia, and hitherto referred to as interlopers, could be in a trophic mutualism with the host plant, thereby proposing the possibility of trophic mutualism as a factor for the evolution and maintenance of the domatia trait in addition to or in the absence of protection mutualism. It is also possible that fitness benefits of bearing domatia, acquired via trophic mutualism, could later facilitate the establishment of a specialised ant–plant protection mutualism. Chapter 5: Structure and development of the caulinary domatia of Humboldtia brunonis In this chapter, we investigate the morphology of domatia at different ontogenetic stages in order to understand the mode of development of the domatia. Our observations show that the domatium of H. brunonis is formed spontaneously near the terminal end of a growing branch, next to the young apical shoot. It appears as a young swollen internode which is soft and fleshy with the pith tissue still present. As the domatia grows and expands, the collective effect of both schizogeny as well as lysogeny, act on on the pith region. We also observed acropetal lignification of the pith cells around the hollow chamber. We investigate micro-scale anatomy of the inner wall of the domatia using scanning electron microscopy, and observed that the inner lining of the domatia cavity have canaliculated, lignified sclerenchyma with numerous plasmodesmata (intercellular pits) that could facilitate the flow of occupant-derived nutrients supporting trophic interaction between the plant and its domatia inhabitants. We also observed fungal mycelia-like structures in ant-occupied domatia that suggests the possibility of a fungus as a third party in the ant–plant trophic mutualism, as is observed in some other myrmecophytic systems. This aspect however needs further investigation. Chapter 6: Conclusion In this chapter, the main findings of the preceding chapters are summarised. A general conclusion of the thesis is provided, and future directions leading from the present thesis are also listed. The present thesis has explored the dynamics of interactions between a unique semi-myrmecophyte and its domatia-inhabitants; while the unprotected host plant resorts to an escape strategy to evade foliar herbivory, the ants (and other invertebrates) seem to have bid “a farewell to arms” and yet maintain a mutualism with its host via nutrient exchange. The results of this thesis contribute to furthering our current understanding of the evolution and stability of inter-species mutualisms.

Ant algorithms have been used for a variety of combinatorial optimization problems. One of these problems, where ant algorithms haven't been used, is the design of transition rules for cellular automata (CA). Which is a problem that this master's thesis is focused on. This work begins with an introduction into ant algorithms and a overview of its applications, followed by an introduction into CA. In the next part the author proposes a way how to encode rules of CA into a graph which is used in ant algorithms. The last part of this thesis contains an application of encoded graph on elitist ant system and MAX-MIN ant system. This is followed by experimental results of creating transition rules for CA problems by these algorithms.

In questo lavoro si è avuta la possibilità di studiare e confrontare i reperti ceramici provenienti da tre recenti scavi condotti nella zona della Romagna dall’Università di Bologna: il monastero di San Severo a Classe (RA), il castello di Rontana (Brisighella-RA) e la pieve di S. Reparata a Terra del Sole (FC). Si tratta di scavi ancora inediti differenti tra loro sia per connotazione distrettuale di appartenenza che per tipologia insediativa La cesura cronologica che si è preso in esame va dal XIII a XV secolo. Il XIII secolo corrisponde a un periodo in cui si assiste ad una riapertura dei trasporti a lunga distanza e si diffonde la tendenza al trasferimento dei saperi tecnici da Oriente verso Occidente, fenomeno che include l’introduzione di nuove tecnologie produttive in campo ceramico come l’ingobbio e la maiolica in diversi centri urbani. Si passa poi attraverso il XIV secolo, momento in cui alcune produzioni, come quella della maiolica, raggiungono la loro massima diffusione, con una diversificazione qualitativa dei prodotti, raggiungendo anche l’ambito rurale, e si assiste alla moltiplicazione dei centri di produzione. Si arriva così al XV secolo periodo in cui iniziano ad affermarsi dei veri e propri centri produttivi “industriali”, rappresentativi anche di una specializzazione regionale dei prodotti di qualità medio-alta. La possibilità di confrontare materiali di siti così differenti tra loro ha dato modo di sottolineare analogie e differenze anche tra città e campagna, in un territorio come quello romagnolo che ancora risente del peso della lunga tradizione antiquaria che ha caratterizzato gli studi fino al secolo scorso. / This research has allowed to study and compare the pottery artefacts from three recent excavations carried out by the University of Bologna, in the area Romagna at the sites of: the monastery of San Severo in Classe (Ravenna), the castle of Rontana (Brisighella, Ravenna) and thePieve of S. Reparata a Terra del Sole (Forlì-Cesena). These are yet unpublished works, but they differ in their territory and location, as well as the typology of settlement. The chronological range examined in this work is the period between the 12thand the 15th century. The 13th century corresponds to the reopening of long distance trade and transport that allow exchange of technological knowledge from the Orient into the Western world. This phenomenon includes the introduction of new production techniques, such as slipware and majolica now manufactured in several towns. Later, into the 14th century, some fabrics, like majolica, reach the highest diffusion, with qualitative differentiation of the products that reached also rural areas; during this period, it is possible to witness to multiplication of production centres. It is during the 15th century that well organised “industrial” productions centres did establish for the production of medium-high quality products. The chance of comparing materials that are so dissimilar allowed us to underline analogies and difference also when comparing city and countryside locations in a territory, like that of Romagna, that still suffers of the long antiquarian tradition that characterised the study of this subject until the end of the last century.

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In this thesis, I explore the phenomena of cheese production in Ontario, Canada. I initiated this project after learning that some cheese producers in Ontario that were struggling to stay in business, in part because of whey management issues, especially as they relate to the Ontario Nutrient Management Act O. Reg 267/03 (OMAFRA 2002). In this thesis, I utilize the Actor-Network Theory (Latour 2005) approach to examine how certain elements of cheese production in Ontario are organized, with an emphasis on whey management and utilization. Of interest are tensions that threaten to destabilize these relations, such as controversies over how whey should be handled, how identities such as “artisan” or “industrial” cheese producers are constructed and maintained, and how smaller producers sustain themselves in a market in which they compete with large- scale industrial cheese production were examined. Interviews took place with seven participants involved in government, agriculture, and cheese production. Participant/observation data were collected in six field sites (cheese factories, farms). I found that humans and nonhumans perform significant work in holding cheese production and whey management together, even in situations commonly understood as under human mastery or control. In particular, I found that the manner by which relations between entities both human and nonhuman are governed, through law or through informal expectations (e.g., "protocol"; Galloway and Thacker 2007), is responsive to, and emergent from, these relations. / Thesis (Master, Sociology) -- Queen's University, 2013-09-20 09:12:33.559

Myrmecophytic plant species form associations where the ant colony inhabits structures in the plant and offers protection against herbivory in exchange for food and shelter. Widely distributed across the tropics, myrmecophytic mutualisms are particularly diverse in the Neotropics, a region characterized by the rapid and recent uplift of the Andean mountain range. It has been suggested that the abrupt change in terrain triggered the emergence of new niches, new barriers to gene ow and speciation. Studying ant-plant associations in the Neotropics not only provides insight into how associations evolve in time but also the impact that external factors, such as geographic changes, have in the evolution of mutualisms. Because of its wide distribution on both sides of the Andes, The Tococa guianensis- Azteca system is useful to explore the effects the Andean uplift had on the evolution of mutualisms. This thesis aims to 1. Identify the ants associating with T. guianensis and the lineages of ants and plants involved in the mutualisms in different populations on both sides of the Andes, 2. generate genomic data for both ants and plants to increase sampling of loci, and 3. estimate and calibrate the species trees to compare patterns of phylogenetics and temporal congruence between ants, plants and the Andean uplift. Most ant-plant studies focus on only one partner or study both partners by using already collected data for one of them. This project is the first study inferring the evolutionary history of both partners associated at that point in time and across a large area. This thesis identifies two main Azteca lineages associated with T. guianensis, each one distributed on different sides of the Andes. It addresses the monophyly of T. guianensis (and related species) and why such monophyly cannot be confirmed. Results show how both plants and ants were geographically structured congruent with timing of a split of populations coinciding with the Andean uplift. Moreover, four plants and fifteen ant genomes were assembled and used to estimate gene and species trees. For Tococa, candidate markers were selected for future resolution of the plant's phylogeny. Different histories but similar divergence times between ants and plants suggest that the mutualism has evolved in response to geographic changes rather than through codiversication, but that the mutualism persists thanks to the availability of the host. The information generated during this study provides the basis to understand the evolution of mutualisms, the genomic features of ants and plants and opens the possibility for Tococa and Azteca to become a model system.

CoordenaÃÃo de AperfeiÃoamento de Pessoal de NÃvel Superior / In last years, considerable efforts have been made to identify neuroactive and neuroprotective peptides derived from the venom of different natural species. In this work, were studied the activity of Dinoponera quadriceps native (DqV) and denatured (DqDV) venom on chemically induced seizures models in vivo and on in vitro cortical astrocytes viability. Male Swiss mice (28- 33g) were pretreated with DqV (0.1 or 0.5 mg/kg, e.v., n = 6-8), DqDV (0.5 or 2.0 mg/kg, i.p., n = 6-8) or DqDV (0.1 or 0.5 mg/kg, e.v., n = 6-8). 30 minutes after the intraperitoneal pretreatment or ten minutes after intravenous pretreatment with the venom was induced seizures in all animals by the administration of pentylenetetrazole (80 mg/kg) pilocarpine (400 mg/kg) or strychnine (3.0 mg/kg). In behavioral analysis, we recorded the time to the first seizure and to death and the percentage of survival. To determine the parameters of oxidative stress was dissected three brain areas (prefrontal cortex, hippocampus and striatum) of animals used in behavioral analysis, in order to determine the degree of lipid peroxidation, by measuring the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), and the content of nitrite. In in vitro assay, cell viability of cortical astrocytes was determined after treatment with different concentrations of DqV, PTZ and DqV + PTZ. The data were analyzed by ANOVA followed by a Student Newman-Keuls (for in vivo tests) or Bonferroni (for in vitro experiments) as post hoc tests. It was observed that the DqV had effect only on the PTZ model, both in behavioral analysis as for the determination of the oxidative parameters. Pretreatment with DqV significantly reduced the time until the occurrence of first seizure (0.1 mg/kg: 77.83 Â 5.27 compared to the 101.0 Â 3.31 seconds in the control group; 0.5 mg/kg: 74.43 Â 3.94 compared to the 101.0 Â 3.31 seconds in the control group), while DqDV caused an increase in the percentage of survival when pretreated by i.p. (0.5 mg/kg: 25% of survival compared with 0% in the control group, 2.0 mg/kg: 62.5% of survival compared with 0% in control group) and e.v (0.5 mg/kg: 28.57% of survival compared with 0% in control group). routes. In relation to the oxidative stress parameters, both pretreatments with DqV and with DqDV caused increases of MDA levels in all three brain areas analyzed. The nitrite content also increased after pretreatment with DqV in the three areas of the brain and after pretreatment with DqDV via e.v., only in the hippocampus. About cell viability assays, were observed that DqV was not able to change this parameter. The PTZ reduced the cell viability of astrocytes in a dose-dependent way, with an IC 50 (cytotoxicity index to 50% of the cell population under study) corresponding to 33.12 mM. The combined treatment of DqV (100 Âg/mL) and PTZ (IC 50) also caused a reduction in cell viability. The results suggest that the DqV, probably, has both neurotoxic and neuroprotective components, and that the astrocytes should be the cells involved in the venomâs neurotoxicity. / Nos Ãltimos anos, esforÃos considerÃveis tÃm sido feitos no sentido de identificar peptÃdeos naturais neuroativos e neuroprotetores derivados do veneno de diferentes espÃcies animais. Nesse trabalho foi estudada a atividade do veneno de Dinoponera quadriceps nativo (vDq) e desnaturado (vdDq) em modelos animais de convulsÃo quimicamente induzidos in vivo e sobre a viabilidade de astrÃcitos corticais in vitro. Camundongos Swiss machos (28-33g) foram prÃ-tratados com o vDq (0,1 ou 0,5 mg/kg, e.v, n= 6-8), vdDq (0,5 ou 2,0 mg/kg, i.p., n= 6-8) ou com vdDq (0,1 ou 0,5 mg/kg, e.v., n= 6-8). Meia hora apÃs o prÃ-tratamento intraperitoneal ou dez minutos apÃs o prÃ-tratamento endovenoso com o veneno foi induzida a convulsÃo em todos os animais atravÃs da administraÃÃo de pentilenotetrazol (80 mg/kg), pilocarpina (400 mg/kg,) ou estricnina (3,0 mg/kg). Na anÃlise comportamental, foram registrados os tempos para ocorrÃncia da primeira convulsÃo e morte e o percentual de sobrevida. Para determinaÃÃo dos parÃmetros de stress oxidativo foram utilizadas trÃs Ãreas cerebrais (cÃrtex prÃ-frontal, hipocampo e corpo estriado) de animais utilizados na anÃlise comportamental, a fim de se determinar o grau de peroxidaÃÃo lipÃdica, pela mensuraÃÃo dos nÃveis de malondialdeÃdo (MDA), e o conteÃdo de nitrito. No ensaio in vitro, foi determinada a viabilidade celular de astrÃcitos corticais apÃs o tratamento com diferentes concentraÃÃes de vDq, PTZ e vDq + PTZ. Os dados foram analisados por ANOVA e Student-Newman-Keuls como pÃs-teste, para os ensaios in vivo, e ANOVA seguido pelo pÃs-teste de Bonferroni, para as experimentaÃÃes in vitro. Foi observado que o vDq apresentou efeito apenas no modelo de PTZ, tanto na anÃlise comportamental quanto na determinaÃÃo dos parÃmetros oxidativos. O prÃ-tratamento com vDq reduziu significativamente o tempo para ocorrÃncia da primeira convulsÃo (0,1 mg/kg: 77,83 Â 5,27 comparado com 101,0 Â 3,31 segundos no grupo controle; 0,5 mg/kg: 74,43 Â 3,94 comparado com 101,0 Â 3,31 segundos no grupo controle), enquanto que o vdDq causou aumento do percentual de sobrevida quando prÃ-tratado por via i.p. (0,5 mg/kg: 25% de sobrevida comparado com 0% no grupo controle; 2,0 mg/kg: 62,5% de sobrevida comparado com 0% no grupo controle) e e.v (0,5 mg/kg: 28,57% de sobrevida comparado com 0% no grupo controle). Em relaÃÃo aos parÃmetros de estresse oxidativo, tanto o prÃ-tratamento com o vDq quanto com o vdDq causaram aumentos dos nÃveis de MDA nas trÃs Ãreas cerebrais analisadas. O conteÃdo de nitrito tambÃm sofreu elevaÃÃo apÃs prÃ-tratamento com vDq, nas trÃs Ãreas cerebrais, e apÃs o prÃ-tratamento com vdDq, via e.v., apenas no hipocampo. Quanto aos ensaios de viabilidade celular, foi observado que o vDq, isoladamente, nÃo foi capaz de alterar esse parÃmetro. O PTZ causou reduÃÃo da viabilidade de astrÃcitos de modo dose-dependente e com uma IC 50 (Ãndice de citotoxicidade para 50% da populaÃÃo celular em estudo) correspondente a 33,12 mM. O tratamento combinado entre vDq (100 Âg/mL) e PTZ (IC 50) tambÃm causou reduÃÃo da viabilidade das cÃlulas. Os resultados sugerem que o vDq possivelmente apresenta ambos componentes neurotÃxicos e neuroprotetores, e os astrÃcitos devem ser uma das cÃlulas envolvidas na neurotoxicidade do veneno.

This thesis is prepared in three parts; the first part is a study of the ant species of the southern Carnarvon Basin, which was undertaken in order to determine the patterns of ant species distribution in this arid zone area. The distribution patterns were looked at in terms of biogeographical regions and they demonstrated the transitional nature of this particular area. Recommendations to alter the border between the South-west Province and the Eremaean Province were supported. The next chapter of this thesis analysed ant species from long unburnt and burnt areas of three main vegetation types (two Triodia species grasslands and Acacia aneura woodlands) in the Gibson Desert Nature Reserve. This study was carried out to observe the recovery of ant populations after fire. The results provided further evidence that invertebrates are measurably impacted by fire in the arid zone. The final chapter is a comparison of these two arid zone studies with six other ant community studies from throughout Western Australia. It demonstrated the uniqueness of some arid zone sites as well as related each study to each other according to their ant communities.

Thelohania solenopsae Knell, Allen and Hazard, is a microsporidian pathogen that infects the red imported fire ant Solenopsis invicta Buren. This four part study examined the effects that T. solenopsae had on fire ant queens as they matured for their mating flights. For the first study, a total of 878 alates were collected at two timed intervals during a nuptial flight and after to determine if T. solenopsae affected their ability to initiate a mating flight. Infection rates in alates that left the colony early during a flight were 23.75% while alates that did not leave the colony were 66.16%. Two other studies examined whether T. solenopsae affected protein and lipid stores in future queens. Protein stores were not significantly different in infected and uninfected ants, while lipid stores were significantly less in alates that were infected with T. solenopsae (10.69% in infected versus 13.98% in uninfected). The final analysis was done with all of the combined data, which showed that alates infected with T. solenopsae were significantly smaller than uninfected alates.