A large, previously unstudied amber deposit in British Columbia dating from the Early to Middle Eocene (50−55 Ma) provides a noteworthy new source of terrestrial invertebrates and other life forms. This deposit contains what are likely the earliest unequivocal ants (members of the family Formicidae), including extinct representatives of Technomyrmex Mayr 1872, Leptothorax Mayr 1855, and Dolichoderus Lund 1831. Discovering Technomyrmex and a corydiinid cockroach, both of which are currently restricted to tropical regions, confirms earlier evidence of warm paleoclimates and past biogeographic distributions in the early Paleogene. Chemical analysis of the amber indicates that the source tree was an araucarian belonging to or near the genus Agathis Salisbury 1807, and demonstrates that this genus survived into the Tertiary in the Northern Hemisphere, since previous records revealed Agathis as a component only of the Cretaceous forests in North America. Comparing the Hat Creek fossil assemblages in this deposit with those from the well-studied western Canadian Late Cretaceous amber deposits offers a unique opportunity to study extinction and speciation events on both sides of the Cretaceous–Tertiary boundary.

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Within Scotland there has been a significant increase in the prescription of 2,800 ppm and 5,000 ppm fluoride toothpaste. The objective of this paper was to analyse the trends in high concentration fluoride toothpaste (HCFT) in the five Scottish South East and Tayside (SEAT) health boards and consider the options for future national management of this prescribing. A retrospective analysis of routine prescribing data for the years 2006-2012 was carried out in primary care dental practices in Scotland. The cost of HCFT prescribing in the five Scottish health boards has increased from £15,243 (4,147 items) in 2006/07 to £206,529 (24,113 items), in 2011/12. Out of 2,430 dental list numbers, 100 list numbers (4.1%) accounted for 70% of the total prescribing costs (£144,367). The public dental service employs 153 (6%) of dentists working in Scotland, who in turn prescribe 11.6% HCFT. There is a need to ensure that the prescription of HCFT is both encouraged as best practice care but also managed appropriately to ensure that its delivery is targeted at those who are most in need.

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