bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sea lice prevention strategies affect cleaner fish delousing efficacy in commercial Atlantic salmon sea cages
Authors: Gentry K , Bui S , Oppedal F , Dempster T
Published: December 2019

Over the last 2 decades, cleaner fishes have been employed to remove external sea lice parasites from Atlantic salmon Salmo salar in sea cages. Norway, Scotland, Ireland, and the Faroe Islands combined now use ~60 million cleaner fish per year. While small-scale experiments demonstrate the efficacy of cleaner fishes, industrial-scale sea cages have multiple structures and conditions that create different environments, which may impact cleaner fish efficacy and welfare. Here, in commercial sea cages, we investigated if 4 different anti-lice strategies impacted the delousing efficacy, physical condition, and behaviour of cleaner fish (corkwing wrasse Symphodus melops). The strategies tested were: (1) cleaner fishes only; (2) cleaner fishes and functional feed; (3) cleaner fishes, functional feed, and deep lights and feeding; and (4) cleaner fishes, functional feed, deep lights and feeding, and lice skirts. Corkwing wrasse were sampled from 3 cage-level replicates of each anti-lice strategy 3 times over 2 mo. Lice levels on salmon were recorded every 3 to 4 wk. Only 11% of corkwing wrasse had salmon lice in their gut, with individual wrasse having up to 72 lice in their stomach. Wrasse in cages encircled by lice skirts consumed one-ninth as many lice as those in other anti-lice treatments and had less overall impact on the number of lice per salmon. Fin, skin, mouth and eye condition, K factor, and observed cleaning behaviours of corkwing wrasse were similar across all anti-lice strategies. Our results demonstrate that different in-cage anti-lice strategies altered the magnitude of lice consumption in corkwing wrasse at this site and for this production period. Moreover, while a small proportion of corkwing wrasse appear to target lice as prey, most individual corkwing wrasse were ineffective biological control agents in a full-scale farm setting.
Inter- and intra-individual variation in the diet of Australasian gannets Morus serrator
Authors: Rodríguez-Malagón MA , Angel LP , Speakman CN , Arnould JPY
Published: December 2019

Animal diets often vary according to age, sex, experience and/or individual preferences, which, when maintained over time, can lead to behavioural consistency and individual specialisations within populations. In addition, behavioural and dietary similarity within breeding pairs confers reproductive benefits in some species. We investigated inter- and intra-individual variation in diet in Australasian gannetsMorus serratorthrough analysis of voluntary regurgitations, blood plasma stable isotopes and reconstructed diets. Samples were collected from nesting adults (mostly partners) over 4 breeding seasons (2012-2015) at 2 colonies (Point Danger, PD; and Pope’s Eye, PE), 215 km apart and with divergent oceanographic conditions. Inter-individual variation in δ13C and δ15N values and reconstructed diets was associated with colony, year, breeding stage and sex. The diet of PD individuals was dominated by pelagic schooling prey species, whereas PE birds consumed a substantial amount of benthic/inshore species. Correspondingly, the proportional similarity in diet of individuals was greater at PD, where individuals foraged within a relatively uniform environment, than at PE, where birds had access to a greater diversity of foraging habitats. Intra-individual variation in isotopic values indicated that trophic consistency was higher over medium timescales (between breeding stages within breeding seasons) than longer timescales (between breeding seasons), in accordance with recently documented temporal patterns of behavioural consistency. Lastly, nest partners consumed prey of similar trophic level (δ15N values), although a high degree of similarity did not confer a reproductive advantage to nest partners, and the mechanisms for such similarity are unknown.
Disparity Between Two-Dimensional Echocardiographic and Electroanatomic Left and Right Atrial Volumes in Patients Undergoing Catheter Ablation for Long-Standing Persistent Atrial Fibrillation
Authors: ŠKŇOUŘIL L. , HAVRÁNEK Š. , BULKOVÁ V. , DORDA M. , PALEČEK T. , ŠIMEK J. , FINGROVÁ Z. , LINHART A. , JANUŠKA J. , WICHTERLE D. , FIALA M.
Published: December 2019

Left atrial (LA) volume (LAV) is used for the selection of patients with atrial fibrillation (AF) to rhythm control strategies. Calculation of LAV from the LA diameters and areas by two-dimensional (2D) echocardiography may result in significant error. Accuracy of atrial volume assessment has never been studied in patients with long-standing persistent AF (LSPAF) and significant atrial remodeling. This study investigated correlation and agreement between 2D echocardiographic (Simpson method) and electroanatomic (CARTO, Biosense Webster) left and right atrial (RA) volumes (LAVECHO vs. LAVCARTO and RAVECHO vs. RAVCARTO) in patients undergoing catheter ablation for LSPAF. The study enrolled 173 consecutive subjects (females: 21 %, age: 59±9 years). There was only modest correlation between LAVECHO (92±31 ml) and LAVCARTO (178±37 ml) (R=0.57), and RAVECHO (71±29 ml) and RAVCARTO (173±34 ml) (R=0.42), respectively. LAVECHO and RAVECHO underestimated LAVCARTO and RAVCARTO with the absolute bias (±1.96 standard deviation) of -85 (-148; -22) ml and -102 (-169; -35) ml, respectively, and with the relative bias of -48 (-75; -21) % and -59 (-88; -30) %, respectively (all P<0.000001 for their mutual difference). Significant confounders of this difference were not identified. In patients with LSPAF, 2D echocardiography significantly underestimated both LA and RA volumes as compared with electroanatomic reference. This disagreement was independent of clinical, echocardiographic and mapping characteristics.
Pathophysiological Mechanisms of Calcineurin Inhibitor-Induced Nephrotoxicity and Arterial Hypertension
Authors: HOŠKOVÁ L. , MÁLEK I. , KOPKAN L. , KAUTZNER J.
Published: December 2019

Solid organ transplantation is an established treatment modality in patients with end-stage organ damage in cases where other therapeutic options fail. The long-term outcomes of solid organ transplant recipients have improved considerably since the introduction of the first calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) - cyclosporine. In 1984, the potent immunosuppressive properties of another CNI, tacrolimus, were discovered. The immunosuppressive effects of CNIs result from the inhibition of interleukin-2 synthesis and reduced proliferation of T cells due to calcineurin blockade. The considerable side effects that are associated with CNIs therapy include arterial hypertension and nephrotoxicity. The focus of this article was to review the available literature on the pathophysiological mechanisms of CNIs that induce chronic nephrotoxicity and arterial hypertension. CNIs lead to activation of the major vasoconstriction systems, such as the renin-angiotensin and endothelin systems, and increase sympathetic nerve activity. On the other hand, CNIs are known to inhibit NO synthesis and NO-mediated vasodilation and to increase free radical formation. Altogether, these processes cause endothelial dysfunction and contribute to the impairment of organ function. A better insight into the mechanisms underlying CNI nephrotoxicity could assist in developing more targeted therapies of arterial hypertension or preventing CNI nephrotoxicity in organ transplant recipients, including heart transplantation.
Lipasin/Betatrophin Is Differentially Expressed in Liver and White Adipose Tissue Without Association With Insulin Resistance in Wistar and Goto-Kakizaki Rats
Authors: CAHOVÁ M. , HABART D. , OLEJÁR T. , BERKOVÁ Z. , PAPÁČKOVÁ Z. , DAŇKOVÁ H. , LODEREROVA A. , HECZKOVÁ M. , SAUDEK F.
Published: December 2019

Lipasin is a recently identified lipokine expressed predominantly in liver and in adipose tissue. It was linked to insulin resistance in mice and to type 1 and type 2 diabetes (T1D, T2D) in humans. No metabolic studies concerning lipasin were performed yet in rats. Therefore, we used rat model of T2D and insulin resistance, Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats, to determine changes of lipasin expression in liver and in white adipose tissue (WAT) over 52 weeks in the relation to glucose tolerance, peripheral tissue insulin sensitivity and adiposity. GK rats were grossly glucose intolerant since the age of 6 weeks and developed peripheral insulin resistance at the age of 20 weeks. Expression of lipasin in the liver did not differ between GK and Wistar rats, declining with age, and it was not related to hepatic triacylglycerol content. In WAT, the lipasin expression was significantly higher in Wistar rats where it correlated positively with adiposity. No such correlation was found in GK rats. In conclusion, lipasin expression was associated neither with a mild age-related insulin resistance (Wistar), nor with severe genetically-based insulin resistance (GK).
Acrylamide: a Common Food Toxin Related to Physiological Functions and Health
Authors: SEMLA M. , GOC Z. , MARTINIAKOVÁ M. , OMELKA R. , FORMICKI G.
Published: December 2019

Acrylamide (AA) is a highly reactive organic compound capable of polymerization to form polyacrylamide, which is commonly used throughout a variety of industries. Given its toxic effect on humans and animals, the last 20 years have seen an increased interest in research devoted to the AA. One of the main sources of AA is food. AA appears in heated food following the reaction between amino acids and reduced sugars. Large concentrations of AA can be found in popular staples such as coffee, bread or potato products. An average daily consumption of AA is between 0.3-2.0 µg/kg b.w. Inhalation of acrylamide is related with occupational exposure. AA delivered with food is metabolized in the liver by cytochrome P450. AA biotransformation and elimination result in formation of toxic glycidamide (GA). Both, AA and GA can be involved in the coupling reaction with the reduced glutathione (GSH) forming glutathione conjugates which are excreted with urine. Biotransformation of AA leads to the disturbance in the redox balance. Numerous research proved that AA and GA have significant influence on physiological functions including signal propagation in peripheral nerves, enzymatic and hormonal regulation, functions of muscles, reproduction etc. In addition AA and GA show neurotoxic, genotoxic and cancerogenic properties. In 1994, International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified acrylamide as a potentially carcinogenic substance to human.
The Dilemma of Dual Renin-Angiotensin System Blockade in Chronic Kidney Disease: Why Beneficial in Animal Experiments But Not in the Clinic?
Authors: ČERTÍKOVÁ CHÁBOVÁ V. , ČERVENKA L.
Published: December 2019

Drugs interfering with the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) improved the prognosis in patients with hypertension, heart failure, diabetes and chronic kidney disease. However, combining different drugs brought no further benefit while increasing the risk of hyperkalemia, hypotension and acute renal failure. This was so with combining angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitors (ACEi) and angiotensin II receptors type 1 antagonists (ARB). Dissimilarly, in animal disease models this dual therapy proved clearly superior to single drug treatment and became the optimal standard regime for comparison with other treatments. This review analyzes the causes of the discrepancy of effects of the dual therapy between animal experiments versus clinical studies, and is focused on the outcomes in chronic kidney disease. Discussed is the role of species differences in RAAS, of the variability of the disease features in humans versus relative stability in animals, of the genetic uniformity in the animals but not in humans, and of the biased publication habits of experimental versus clinical studies. We attempt to understand the causes and reconcile the discordant findings and suggest to what extent dual RAAS inhibition should be continued in animal experiments and why its application in the clinics should be limited to strictly selected groups of patients.
Atherogenic Impact of Lecithin-Cholesterol Acyltransferase and Its Relation to Cholesterol Esterification Rate in HDL (FERHDL) and AIP [log(TG/HDL-C)] Biomarkers: The Butterfly Effect?
Authors: DOBIÁŠOVÁ M.
Published: December 2019

The atherogenic impact and functional capacity of LCAT was studied and discussed over a half century. This review aims to clarify the key points that may affect the final decision on whether LCAT is an anti-atherogenic or atherogenic factor. There are three main processes involving the efflux of free cholesterol from peripheral cells, LCAT action in intravascular pool where cholesterol esterification rate is under the control of HDL, LDL and VLDL subpopulations, and finally the destination of newly produced cholesteryl esters either to the catabolism in liver or to a futile cycle with apoB lipoproteins. The functionality of LCAT substantially depends on its mass together with the composition of the phospholipid bilayer as well as the saturation and the length of fatty acyls and other effectors about which we know yet nothing. Over the years, LCAT puzzle has been significantly supplemented but yet not so satisfactory as to enable how to manipulate LCAT in order to prevent cardiometabolic events. It reminds the butterfly effect when only a moderate change in the process of transformation free cholesterol to cholesteryl esters may cause a crucial turn in the intended target. On the other hand, two biomarkers – FERHDL (fractional esterification rate in HDL) and AIP [log(TG/HDL-C)] can offer a benefit to identify the risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). They both reflect the rate of cholesterol esterification by LCAT and the composition of lipoprotein subpopulations that controls this rate. In clinical practice, AIP can be calculated from the routine lipid profile with help of AIP calculator www.biomed.cas.cz/fgu/aip/calculator.php.
Panteleimon Kulish’s Novel “Commoners’ Council” in Context of ‘Postmodern’ Political Strategies
Authors: Sulyma Mykola
Published: December 2019

The paper covers the pre-election technologies and means of agitation that have been practiced since the 17th century and were described by Panteleimon Kulish in his novel “Commoners’ Council” (“Chorna Rada”). It is noticeable that even in those distant times people, just like now, succeeded in manipulating public opinion and will, directing social movements and trends into the way required by particular leaders or groups, especially during the elections. For this purpose, they disdained neither populist promises nor discrediting their opponents or violently grabbing the attributes of power, etc. The novel depicts the events of 1663 when the waves of public unrest, to a great extent initiated by particular agitators, swept Ukraine, and the calls for a change of hetman were growing louder. It is remarkable that among the wide range of agitation means one may distinguish such recognizable ones as blocking the opponents’ ways, using the color emblems, slandering, cultivating discord and hostility, stoking social contradictions between villagers and cossacks, etc. The novel shows a devious tactic used by Ivan Briukhovetskyi, who demonstrates self-debasement, deceitfully diminishes his status, and shows pretended modesty, at the same time generously treating villagers and common residents in order to buy their votes. As a result, on cossacks’ council of 1663 known as ‘Chorna Rada’ the hetman mace was taken by extremely selﬁ sh and power-hungry Ivan Briukhovetskyi.
Poetics of Narrative in Kazuo Ishiguro’s Novel “A Pale View of Hills”
Authors: Oprisnyk Yaryna
Published: December 2019

The current paper explores the narrative strategies and poetics of intermediality in Kazuo Ishiguro’s ﬁrst novel “A Pale View of Hills” (1982). Particular attention is paid to the notions of narrative unreliability and subjectivity exempliﬁed by the ambiguous ﬁrst-person narrative in the novel. The researcher focuses on the narrative techniques, as well as on the numerous lexical and other literary means that emphasize the unreliability of the narrator, who is also the protagonist. It allows revealing the hidden emotions and tendency to self-deceit. In addition, the paper traces the features of Japanese aesthetics and literature in the novel. The most peculiar among them are concise verbal expression, lack of emotion, and audiovisuality, which is primary concentration of the narrative on the visual and auditory images, rather than on the characters’ internal psychological processes. A range of narrative strategies and special literary effects in “A Pale View of Hills”, being characteristic for the art of cinematography, make the novel a vivid example of the cinematographic (cinematic) literature, which requires a different, more image-oriented perception of the reader. Among such techniques, the most notable are the enhanced symbolism of sensual images; revealing the characters’ actual feelings and thoughts through their non-verbal language and dialogues; fragmented and elliptic nature of the narrative that resembles the technique of montage; and the plasticity of chronotope, which is represented by the active use of ﬂashbacks in the novel.
Generalization of the k coefficient method in relativity to an arbitrary angle between the velocity of an observer (source) and the direction of the light ray from (to) a faraway source (observer) at rest
Authors: Ritus V I
Published: December 2019

The k coefficient method proposed by Bondi is extended to the general case where the angle α between the velocity of a signal from a distant source at rest and the velocity of the observer does not coincide with 0 or π, as considered by Bondi, but takes an arbitrary value in the interval 0 ⩽ α ⩽ π, and to the opposite case where the source is moving and the observer is at rest, while the angle α between the source velocity and the direction of the signal to the observer takes any value between 0 and π. Functions k
*(β, α) and k
+(β, α) of the angle and relative velocity are introduced for the ratio ω / ω′ of proper frequencies of the source and observer. Their explicit expressions are obtained without using Lorentz transformations, from the condition that the coherence of a bunch of rays is preserved in passing from the source frame to the observer frame. Owing to the analyticity of these functions in α, the ratio of frequencies in the cases mentioned is given by the formulas ω / ω′ = k
*(β, α) and ω / ω′ = k
+(β, π – α) ≡ 1 / k
*(β, α), which coincide with those for the Doppler effect, in which the angle α, the velocity β, and one of the frequencies are measured in the rest frame. A ray emitted by the source at an angle α to the observer’s velocity in the source frame is directed at an angle α′ to the same velocity in the observer frame. Owing to light aberration, the angles α and α′ are functionally related through k
*(β, α) = k
+(β, β′). The functions α′(α, β) and α (α′,β) are expressed as antiderivatives of k
*(β, α) and k
*(β, π – α′). The analyticity of the functions k
*(β, z) and k
+(β, z) in z ≡ α in the interval 0 ⩽ z ⩽ π is extended to the entire plane of complex z, where k
* has poles at i ln cos α
1 (see (17)), and k
+ has zeros at the same points shifted by π. The spatiotemporal asymmetry of the Doppler and light aberration effects is explained by the closeness of these singularities to the real axis.
Special Issue of Selected Contributions from the Seventh Swedish Language Technology Conference (SLTC 2018)
Authors: Dalianis Hercules , Östling Robert , Weegar Rebecka , Wirén Mats
Published: December 2019

This Special Issue contains three papers that are extended versions of abstracts presented at the Seventh Swedish Language Technology Conference (SLTC 2018), held at Stockholm University 8-9 November 2018.1 SLTC 2018 received 34 submissions, of which 31 were accepted for presentation. The number of registered participants was 113, including both attendees at SLTC 2018 and two co-located workshops that took place on 7 November. 32 participants were internationally affiliated, of which 14 were from outside the Nordic countries. Overall participation was thus on a par with previous editions of SLTC, but international participation was higher.
The Interplay Between Loss Functions and Structural Constraints in Dependency Parsing
Authors: Kurtz Robin , Kuhlmann Marco
Published: December 2019

Dependency parsing can be cast as a combinatorial optimization problem with the objective to find the highest-scoring graph, where edge scores are learnt from data. Several of the decoding algorithms that have been applied to this task employ structural restrictions on candidate solutions, such as the restriction to projective dependency trees in syntactic parsing, or the restriction to noncrossing graphs in semantic parsing. In this paper we study the interplay between structural restrictions and a common loss function in neural dependency parsing, the structural hingeloss. We show how structural constraints can make networks trained under this loss function diverge and propose a modified loss function that solves this problem. Our experimental evaluation shows that the modified loss function can yield improved parsing accuracy, compared to the unmodified baseline.
A HISTÓRIA DA MATEMÁTICA NOS CURSOS DE LICENCIATURA EM MATEMÁTICA DE UNIVERSIDADES FEDERAIS LOCALIZADAS NO ESTADO DE MINAS GERAIS
Authors: Moraes Silvia Raquel Aparecida de , Cavalari Mariana Feiteiro
Published: December 2019

Esta investigação teve o intuito de analisar a presença das temáticas relativas à História da Matemática (HM) e à HM no ensino nos cursos presenciais de Licenciatura em Matemática oferecidos por Universidades Federais localizadas no estado de Minas Gerais. Para tanto, identificamos essas licenciaturas e analisamos seus Projetos Políticos Pedagógicos, ementas e/ou ementários. Aplicamos também questionários aos coordenadores e aos professores que lecionaram as disciplinas que abordamtais temáticas desses cursos. Os dados obtidos por meio dos documentos e dos questionários foramconfrontados e analisados. Identificamos que a temática relativa à HM é abordada em todos os 14cursos localizados, em disciplinas de “Prática de Ensino”, da área de “Matemática”, de “História daCiência” e, sobretudo, em disciplinas específicas de “História da Matemática”. Já a temática relativa àHM no ensino está presente em ementas de disciplinas de “História da Matemática” ou de “Prática deEnsino” de apenas três cursos. A realização desta investigação evidenciou a importância dasdisciplinas específicas de HM para a manutenção desta temática nos currículos dos cursos delicenciatura e a necessidade de que estes abordem mais as questões relativas à HM no ensino, já quesão temáticas relevantes para a formação de professores de Matemática.
UNA INVITACIÓN A REFLEXIONAR EL CURRÍCULO DE MATEMÁTICAS A PARTIR DE UNA ACTIVIDAD MATEMÁTICA
Authors: Herrera Adriana Lasprilla
Published: December 2019

El presente artículo presenta una reflexión sobre aspectos éticos que pueden ser considerados en el currículo de matemáticas a partir del análisis de una actividad matemática desarrollada en el marco de una tesis de estudios de Doctorado que se desarrolla en el programa de Doctorado Interinstitucional en Educación en la Universidad Distrital Francisco José de Caldas — Bogotá — Colombia-. Para abordar esta reflexión se proponen tres momentos. En primer lugar, se exponen elementos teóricos que sitúan tanto el marco de la investigación como el interés de este escrito. En segundo lugar, se presenta un ejemplo de una sesión de clase y su análisis, en relación con los aspectos éticos y sus implicaciones en el currículo de matemáticas. Finalmente, se presenta una invitación para continuar repensando el aula de matemáticas como un espacio social, en el que seaposible el desarrollo de debates y tomas de conciencias de los profesores y los estudiantes, que posibiliten avanzar en las conceptualizaciones necesarias para construir un mundo más humano
MODELAGEM E O CURRÍCULO PAULISTA: ENTRE IMPOSIÇÕES, COBRANÇAS VELADAS E INSUBORDINAÇÕES CRIATIVAS
Authors: Forner Régis , Malheiros Ana Paula dos Santos
Published: December 2019

Este artigo tem por objetivo discutir as potencialidades da Modelagem frente a um contexto imerso na cultura da performatividade, ou seja, que é permeado por imposições e cobranças veladas aos professores que lecionam nas escolas estaduais paulistas acerca do cumprimento integral e, de forma linear, das diretrizes curriculares. Sob o viés da pesquisa qualitativa, fazemos uso dos dados produzidos em uma pesquisa de doutorado, em um curso para formação de professores. Buscamosapresentar a Modelagem como um ato de insubordinação criativa frente a essas prescrições que se dão de forma oculta e que impedem que o professor, muitas vezes, exerça sua autonomia. Entendemos queesse caminhar pode modificar o caráter opressor que se estabelece entre o currículo e o professor, possibilitando que ele se torne sujeito do processo pedagógico e que almeje oferecer condições para que o estudante exerça sua criticidade.
A FORMAÇÃO INICIAL DE PROFESSORES PROJETADA NO TEXTO DO PROJETO PEDAGÓGICO DE UM CURSO DE LICENCIATURA EM MATEMÁTICA
Authors: Wichnoski Paulo
Published: December 2019

Da postura fenomenológica-hermenêutica, interrogo neste artigo de que modo se revela a Formação Inicial de Professores, projetada no texto do Projeto Pedagógico do curso de Licenciatura em Matemática da Universidade Estadual do Oeste do Paraná - Unioeste, Campus de Cascavel. Articulados em três categorias, os dados explicitam aspectos relativos à estrutura didático-pedagógica, aos eixos de formação e ao perfil profissional do egresso e, permitem afirmar que a formação se revela plural, contemplando a Matemática Pura, a Matemática Aplicada e a Educação Matemática. É construída por meio de conhecimentos matemáticos estritamente vinculados ao tratamento pedagógico, metodológico (formal) e histórico. Seu enfoque principal é a Educação Básica e o currículo se organiza de modo sequencial e seriado, concebendo a formação num processo de crescimento progressivo e em níveis de abstração, do menor para o maior.
Organisational Culture as a Determinant of Business Process Management in the Community Offices in Poland
Authors: Raczyńska Magdalena , Krukowski Krzysztof
Published: December 2019

The application of business process management (BPM) in public organizations is determined by multiple factors and, according to numerous studies, organizational culture is one of them. Therefore, the aim of the study presented in the article was to identify the organizational culture factors which occur in community offices in Poland. Subsequently, the identified factors were assessed in the context of their significance in the introduction and development of BPM in the examined entities. As a result of the conducted study, it was possible to indicate not only the factors, which have the potential to stimulate the implementation and extension of the concept in the community offices, but also the elements recognized as its barriers. Among the factors that can be considered as the mentioned stimulants, these were: the possibility of exchanging opinions with one’s superiors and colleagues, the will to learn and to broaden one’s knowledge, good and friendly interpersonal relations, or an orientation towards service quality. And among the elements that can be perceived as barriers, one can identify a lack of positive attitude to change or the formalization arising from the law.
Carbohydrate and Amino Acid Profiles of Cotton Plant Biomass Products
Authors: He Zhongqi , Olk Dan C. , Tewolde Haile , Zhang Hailin , Shankle Mark
Published: December 2019

To achieve the optimal and diverse utilization of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) plant residues in various agricultural, industrial, and environmental applications, the chemical composition of cotton biomass tissues across different plant parts (e.g., seed, boll, bur, leaves, stalk, stem, and root) is of essential information. Thus, in this work, we collected field-grown whole mature cotton plants and separated them into distinct biomass fractions including main stems, leaf blades, branches, petioles, roots, and reproductive parts (mid-season growth stage) or bur, peduncles/bract, and seed cotton (pre-defoliation stage). The contents of selected carbohydrates and amino acids in these cotton biomass materials were determined. Both essential and nonessential amino acids were enriched in cotton leaf blades and reproductive parts. The distribution pattern of the selected carbohydrates differed from that of amino acids—higher contents of carbohydrate were found in roots, main stems, and branches. Although glucose was the most abundant non-structural carbohydrate in cotton plant parts at mid-season, xylose was the most abundant in most plant parts at the pre-defoliation stage. Nutritional carbohydrates and amino acids were further accumulated in seeds at pre-defoliation. The information reported in this work would be helpful in exploring and optimizing management practices and processing strategies for utilizing cotton crop biomass materials as valuable and renewable natural resources.
Parasites in Horses Kept in A 2.5 Year-Round Grazing System in Nordic Conditions without Supplementary Feeding
Authors: Tydén Eva , Jansson Anna , Ringmark Sara
Published: December 2019

Horse grazing can be favorable from a biological diversity perspective. This study documented the occurrence of endo- and ectoparasites and sought to reduce parasite egg excretion with the anthelmintic drug pyrantel in 12 Gotlandsruss stallions maintained in a year-round grazing system for 2.5 years. Feces samples were collected monthly and all horses were treated with pyrantel, the anthelmintic drug of choice in biological diversity preservation, at study population mean cyathostomin eggs per gram (EPG) of >200. The relationship between cyathostomin EPG and body condition was studied, as was horse behavioral response to Bovicola equi (chewing louse) infestation. Eggs of cyathostomins (small strongyles), Parascaris spp. (roundworm), Oxyuris equi (pinworm), Anoplocephala perfoliata (tapeworm), and Gasterophilus spp. (botfly) were detected at least once during the trial. Excretion of cyathostomin eggs was highest during summer–autumn and increased year-on-year. No relationship was found between cyathostomin EPG and body condition. Infestation with B. equi did not affect the number of scratching sessions compared with unaffected horses. Therefore, in this year-round grazing system, pyrantel treatment had to be complemented with moxidectin to reduce excretion of cyathostomin eggs, thus compromising biological diversity.
Effects of Body Condition Score Changes During Peripartum on the Postpartum Health and Production Performance of Primiparous Dairy Cows
Authors: Wang Yujie , Huo Pengju , Sun Yukun , Zhang Yonggen
Published: December 2019

This is a prospective observational study that evaluates the effects of body condition score (BCS) changes in primiparous Holstein cows during peripartum on their NEFA and BHBA concentrations, hormone levels, postpartum health, and production performance. The cows under study (n = 213) were assessed to determine their BCS (5-point scale; 0.25-point increment) once a week during the whole peripartum by the same researchers; backfat was used for corrections. Blood samples were collected 21 and 7 days before calving and 7, 21, and 35 days after calving, and were assayed for NEFA, BHBA, growth hormone (GH), insulin, leptin, and adiponectin concentrations. The incidence of disease and milk yield were recorded until 84 days after calving. Cows were classified according to their BCS changes during peripartum as follows: Those that gained BCS (G; ΔBCS ≥ 0.25), maintained BCS (M; ΔBCS = 0–0.25), or lost BCS (L; ΔBCS ≥ 0.5). The BCS at −21 days and at 7, 14, and 21 days were different (p < 0.01), but trended toward uniformity in all groups at calving. The L group had higher NEFA and BHBA concentrations and hormone levels (p < 0.01) than the M and G groups at 21 and 35 days after calving, and had a higher incidence of uterine and metabolic diseases; however, there were no differences in production performance between the various groups. In conclusion, a lower BCS in primiparous cows during peripartum influences the NEFA and BHBA concentrations, hormone levels, and occurrence of health problems postpartum. The postpartum effects of BCS changes appear prior to calving.
Unification of Opposites between Two Antioxidant Transcription Factors Nrf1 and Nrf2 in Mediating Distinct Cellular Responses to the Endoplasmic Reticulum Stressor Tunicamycin
Authors: Zhu Yu-ping , Zheng Ze , Hu Shaofan , Ru Xufang , Fan Zhuo , Qiu Lu , Zhang Yiguo
Published: December 2019

The water-soluble Nrf2 (nuclear factor, erythroid 2-like 2, also called Nfe2l2) is accepted as a master regulator of antioxidant responses to cellular stress, and it was also identified as a direct target of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER)-anchored PERK (protein kinase RNA-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase). However, the membrane-bound Nrf1 (nuclear factor, erythroid 2-like 1, also called Nfe2l1) response to ER stress remains elusive. Herein, we report a unity of opposites between these two antioxidant transcription factors, Nrf1 and Nrf2, in coordinating distinct cellular responses to the ER stressor tunicamycin (TU). The TU-inducible transcription of Nrf1 and Nrf2, as well as GCLM (glutamate cysteine ligase modifier subunit) and HO-1 (heme oxygenase 1), was accompanied by activation of ER stress signaling networks. Notably, the unfolded protein response (UPR) mediated by ATF6 (activating transcription factor 6), IRE1 (inositol requiring enzyme 1) and PERK was significantly suppressed by Nrf1α-specific knockout, but hyper-expression of Nrf2 and its target genes GCLM and HO-1 has retained in Nrf1α−/− cells. By contrast, Nrf2−/−ΔTA cells with genomic deletion of its transactivation (TA) domain resulted in significant decreases of GCLM, HO-1 and Nrf1; this was accompanied by partial decreases of IRE1 and ATF6, rather than PERK, but with an increase of ATF4 (activating transcription factor 4). Interestingly, Nrf1 glycosylation and its trans-activity to mediate the transcriptional expression of the 26S proteasomal subunits, were repressed by TU. This inhibitory effect was enhanced by Nrf1α−/− and Nrf2−/−ΔTA, but not by a constitutive activator caNrf2ΔN (that increased abundances of the non-glycosylated and processed Nrf1). Furthermore, caNrf2ΔN also enhanced induction of PERK and IRE1 by TU, but reduced expression of ATF4 and HO-1. Thus, it is inferred that such distinct roles of Nrf1 and Nrf2 are unified to maintain cell homeostasis by a series of coordinated ER-to-nuclear signaling responses to TU. Nrf1α (i.e., a full-length form) acts in a cell-autonomous manner to determine the transcription of most of UPR-target genes, albeit Nrf2 is also partially involved in this process. Consistently, transactivation of ARE (antioxidant response element)-driven BIP (binding immunoglobulin protein)-, PERK- and XBP1 (X-box binding protein 1)-Luc reporter genes was mediated directly by Nrf1 and/or Nrf2. Interestingly, Nrf1α is more potent than Nrf2 at mediating the cytoprotective responses against the cytotoxicity of TU alone or plus tBHQ (tert-butylhydroquinone). This is also further supported by the evidence that the intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels are increased in Nrf1α−/− cells, but rather are, to our surprise, decreased in Nrf2−/−ΔTA cells.
Learning Low-Dimensional Embeddings of Audio Shingles for Cross-Version Retrieval of Classical Music
Authors: Zalkow Frank , Müller Meinard
Published: December 2019

Cross-version music retrieval aims at identifying all versions of a given piece of music using a short query audio fragment. One previous approach, which is particularly suited for Western classical music, is based on a nearest neighbor search using short sequences of chroma features, also referred to as audio shingles. From the viewpoint of efficiency, indexing and dimensionality reduction are important aspects. In this paper, we extend previous work by adapting two embedding techniques; one is based on classical principle component analysis, and the other is based on neural networks with triplet loss. Furthermore, we report on systematically conducted experiments with Western classical music recordings and discuss the trade-off between retrieval quality and embedding dimensionality. As one main result, we show that, using neural networks, one can reduce the audio shingles from 240 to fewer than 8 dimensions with only a moderate loss in retrieval accuracy. In addition, we present extended experiments with databases of different sizes and different query lengths to test the scalability and generalizability of the dimensionality reduction methods. We also provide a more detailed view into the retrieval problem by analyzing the distances that appear in the nearest neighbor search.
Dimension Measurement and Key Point Detection of Boxes through Laser-Triangulation and Deep Learning-Based Techniques
Authors: Peng Tao , Zhang Zhijiang , Chen Fansheng , Zeng Dan
Published: December 2019

Dimension measurement is of utmost importance in the logistics industry. This work studies a hand-held structured light vision system for boxes. This system measures dimension information through laser triangulation and deep learning using only two laser-box images from a camera and a cross-line laser projector. The structured edge maps of the boxes are detected by a novel end-to-end deep learning model based on a trimmed-holistically nested edge detection network. The precise geometry of the box is calculated by the 3D coordinates of the key points in the laser-box image through laser triangulation. An optimization method for effectively calibrating the system through the maximum likelihood estimation is then proposed. Results show that the proposed key point detection algorithm and the designed laser-vision-based visual system can locate and perform dimension measurement of measured boxes with high accuracy and reliability. The experimental outcomes show that the system is suitable for portable automatic box dimension online measurement.
A Random Factorial Design of Experiments Study on the Influence of Key Factors and Their Interactions on the Measurement Uncertainty: A Case Study Using the ZEISS CenterMax
Authors: Kritikos Michaela , Concepción Maure Lissette , Leyva Céspedes Alfredo Alejandro , Delgado Sobrino Daynier Rolando , Hrušecký Róbert
Published: December 2019

This paper addresses the uncertainty analysis in the case of a coordinate measuring machine. The main goal was analyzing, quantifying, and drawing conclusions on the influence of key factors and their interactions on the measurements’ uncertainty of the variable’s parallelism, angularity, roundness, diameter, and distance. In order to achieve this goal, a Random Factorial Design of Experiments was designed and implemented. It focused on the factors Stylus diameter, Step width, and Speed using three random levels each. For the solution of the experiment, an analysis of variance was used. The study was carried out on the coordinate measuring machine (CMM) ZEISS CenterMax. It was concluded that the interaction effects among Stylus diameter, Step width, and Speed were active at a confidence level of 95%. Besides, it was possible to estimate random factors‘ variance and their contribution to the total variation. Among the main effects, the Stylus diameter showed to be the one with the biggest influence. The paper also quantifies the influence in the measurement uncertainty, where the highest value of standard uncertainty belonged to the Stylus diameter in the evaluation of the variable’s angularity and diameter. Besides, the Speed factor was proved to have the biggest influence on the roundness’ measurement and evaluation.
Progressive Full Data Convolutional Neural Networks for Line Extraction from Anime-Style Illustrations
Authors: Xin Yuchen , Wong Hon-Cheng , Lo Sio-Long , Li Junliang
Published: December 2019

Anime-style comics are popular world-wide and an important industry in Asia. However, the output quantity and quality control of art workers have become the biggest obstacle to industrialization, and it is time consuming to produce new manga without the help of an intelligence assisted tool. As deep learning techniques have achieved great successes in different areas, it is worth exploring them to develop algorithms and systems for computational manga. Extracting line drawings from finished illustrations is one of the main tasks in drawing a manuscript and also a crucial task in the common painting process. However, traditional filters such as Sobel, Laplace, and Canny cannot output good results and require manual adjustments of the parameters. In order to address these problems, in this paper, we propose progressive full data convolutional neural networks for extracting lines from anime-style illustrations. Experimental results show that our progressive full data convolutional neural networks not only can learn as much as processing methods for the detailed regions, but also can accomplish the target extraction work with only a small training dataset.
Machine Learning in Football Betting: Prediction of Match Results Based on Player Characteristics
Authors: Stübinger Johannes , Mangold Benedikt , Knoll Julian
Published: December 2019

In recent times, football (soccer) has aroused an increasing amount of attention across continents and entered unexpected dimensions. In this course, the number of bookmakers, who offer the opportunity to bet on the outcome of football games, expanded enormously, which was further strengthened by the development of the world wide web. In this context, one could generate positive returns over time by betting based on a strategy which successfully identifies overvalued betting odds. Due to the large number of matches around the globe, football matches in particular have great potential for such a betting strategy. This paper utilizes machine learning to forecast the outcome of football games based on match and player attributes. A simulation study which includes all matches of the five greatest European football leagues and the corresponding second leagues between 2006 and 2018 revealed that an ensemble strategy achieves statistically and economically significant returns of 1.58% per match. Furthermore, the combination of different machine learning algorithms could neither be outperformed by the individual machine learning approaches nor by a linear regression model or naive betting strategies, such as always betting on the victory of the home team.
Special Issue on ‘Novel Ideas for Infrared Thermography and Its Application to Integrated Approaches’
Authors: Sfarra Stefano , Ambrosini Dario
Published: December 2019

This issue revolves around keywords (i [...]
An Efficient Single-Anchor Localization Method Using Ultra-Wide Bandwidth Systems
Authors: Wang Tianyu , Zhao Hanying , Shen Yuan
Published: December 2019

Ultra-wideband technology has the merits of high temporal resolution and stability, and it has been widely used for high-accuracy localization and tracking. However, most ultra-wideband localization systems need multiple anchors for trilateration, which results in high system cost, large messages overhead, and insufficient extraction of information. In this paper, we propose a single-anchor localization (SAL) mehtod that achieves high-accuracy multi-agent localization with high efficiency. In the proposed method, the anchor broadcasts the first two messages and then each agent responds one message to the anchor (quasi-)simultaneously. Based on the received message with superpositioned agent responses, the time-of-flight and angle-of-arrival information from all agents to the anchor can be extracted altogether. We implement the localization system in two indoor environments, and show that the proposed method can achieve decimeter-level accuracy for multiple agents using three messages. Our method provides design guidelines for high-accuracy and high-efficiency multi-agent localization systems.
Advances in Mechanical Systems Dynamics
Authors: Doria Alberto , Boschetti Giovanni , Massaro Matteo
Published: December 2019

Modern dynamics was established many centuries ago by Galileo and Newton before the beginning of the industrial era [...]
A Novel Application of League Championship Optimization (LCA): Hybridizing Fuzzy Logic for Soil Compression Coefficient Analysis
Authors: Moayedi Hossein , Tien Bui Dieu , Dounis Anastasios , Ngo Phuong Thao Thi
Published: December 2019

Employing league championship optimization (LCA) technique for adjusting the membership function parameters of the adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) is the focal objective of the present study. The mentioned optimization is carried out for better estimation of the soil compression coefficient (SCC) using twelve key factors of soil, namely depth of sample, percentage of sand, percentage of loam, percentage of clay, percentage of moisture content, wet density, dry density, void ratio, liquid limit, plastic limit, plastic Index, and liquidity index. This information is widely useable in designing high-rise buildings located in smart cities. Notably, the used data is collocated from a real-world construction project in Vietnam. The hybrid ensemble of LCA-ANFIS is developed, and the best structure is determined by a three-step sensitivity analysis process. The prediction accuracy of the proposed hybrid model is compared with typical ANFIS to examine the efficiency of the combined LCA. Based on the results, applying the LCA algorithm lead to a 4.88% and 6.19% decrease in prediction error, in terms of root mean square error and mean absolute error, respectively. Moreover, the correlation index rose from 0.7351 to 0.7539, which indicates the higher consistency of the hybrid model results. Due to the acceptable accuracy of the proposed LCA-ANFIS model, it can be a promising alternative to common empirical and laboratory methods.
Stacked Ensemble of Recurrent Neural Networks for Predicting Turbocharger Remaining Useful Life
Authors: Mashhadi Peyman Sheikholharam , Nowaczyk Sławomir , Pashami Sepideh
Published: December 2019

Predictive Maintenance (PM) is a proactive maintenance strategy that tries to minimize a system’s downtime by predicting failures before they happen. It uses data from sensors to measure the component’s state of health and make forecasts about its future degradation. However, existing PM methods typically focus on individual measurements. While it is natural to assume that a history of measurements carries more information than a single one. This paper aims at incorporating such information into PM models. In practice, especially in the automotive domain, diagnostic models have low performance, due to a large amount of noise in the data and limited sensing capability. To address this issue, this paper proposes to use a specific type of ensemble learning known as Stacked Ensemble. The idea is to aggregate predictions of multiple models—consisting of Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) and Convolutional-LSTM—via a meta model, in order to boost performance. Stacked Ensemble model performs well when its base models are as diverse as possible. To this end, each such model is trained using a specific combination of the following three aspects: feature subsets, past dependency horizon, and model architectures. Experimental results demonstrate benefits of the proposed approach on a case study of heavy-duty truck turbochargers.