Sample records for yield losses due

  1. Yield loss assessment due to Alternaria blight and its management in linseed.

    PubMed

    Singh, R B; Singh, H K; Parmar, Arpita

    2014-04-01

    Field experiments were conducted during 2010-11 and 2011-12 to assess the yield losses due to Alternaria blight disease caused by Alternaria lini and A. linicola in recently released cultivars and their management with the integration of Trichoderma viride, fungicides and plant extract. Disease severity on leaves varied from 41.07% (Parvati) to 65.01% (Chambal) while bud damage per cent ranged between 23.56% (Shekhar) to 46.12% (T-397), respectively in different cultivars. Maximum yield loss of 58.44% was recorded in cultivar Neelum followed by Parvati (55.56%), Meera (55.56%) and Chambal (51.72%), respectively while minimum loss was recorded in Kiran (19.99%) and Jeevan (22.22%). Minimum mean disease severity (19.47%) with maximum disease control (69.74%) was recorded with the treatment: seed treatment (ST) with vitavax power (2 g kg(-1) seed) + 2 foliar sprays (FS) of Saaf (a mixture of carbendazim+mancozeb) 0.2% followed by ST with Trichoderma viride (4g kg(-1) seed) + 2 FS of Saaf (0.2%). Minimum bud damage (13.75%) with maximum control (60.94%) was recorded with treatment of ST with vitavax power+2 FS of propiconazole (0.2%). Maximum mean seed yield (1440 kg ha(-1)) with maximum net return (Rs. 15352/ha) and benefit cost ratio (1:11.04) was obtained with treatment ST with vitavax power + 2 FS of Neem leaf extract followed by treatment ST with vitavax power+2 FS of Saaf (1378 kg ha(-1)).

  2. Soil Water Availability Modulation Over Estimated Relative Yield Losses in Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Due to Ozone Exposure

    PubMed Central

    De la Torre, Daniel; Sierra, Maria Jose

    2007-01-01

    The approach developed by Fuhrer in 1995 to estimate wheat yield losses induced by ozone and modulated by the soil water content (SWC) was applied to the data on Catalonian wheat yields. The aim of our work was to apply this approach and adjust it to Mediterranean environmental conditions by means of the necessary corrections. The main objective pursued was to prove the importance of soil water availability in the estimation of relative wheat yield losses as a factor that modifies the effects of tropospheric ozone on wheat, and to develop the algorithms required for the estimation of relative yield losses, adapted to the Mediterranean environmental conditions. The results show that this is an easy way to estimate relative yield losses just using meteorological data, without using ozone fluxes, which are much more difficult to calculate. Soil water availability is very important as a modulating factor of the effects of ozone on wheat; when soil water availability decreases, almost twice the amount of accumulated exposure to ozone is required to induce the same percentage of yield loss as in years when soil water availability is high. PMID:17619747

  3. Primary and Secondary Yield Losses Caused by Pests and Diseases: Assessment and Modeling in Coffee

    PubMed Central

    Gary, Christian; Tixier, Philippe; Lechevallier, Esther

    2017-01-01

    The assessment of crop yield losses is needed for the improvement of production systems that contribute to the incomes of rural families and food security worldwide. However, efforts to quantify yield losses and identify their causes are still limited, especially for perennial crops. Our objectives were to quantify primary yield losses (incurred in the current year of production) and secondary yield losses (resulting from negative impacts of the previous year) of coffee due to pests and diseases, and to identify the most important predictors of coffee yields and yield losses. We established an experimental coffee parcel with full-sun exposure that consisted of six treatments, which were defined as different sequences of pesticide applications. The trial lasted three years (2013–2015) and yield components, dead productive branches, and foliar pests and diseases were assessed as predictors of yield. First, we calculated yield losses by comparing actual yields of specific treatments with the estimated attainable yield obtained in plots which always had chemical protection. Second, we used structural equation modeling to identify the most important predictors. Results showed that pests and diseases led to high primary yield losses (26%) and even higher secondary yield losses (38%). We identified the fruiting nodes and the dead productive branches as the most important and useful predictors of yields and yield losses. These predictors could be added in existing mechanistic models of coffee, or can be used to develop new linear mixed models to estimate yield losses. Estimated yield losses can then be related to production factors to identify corrective actions that farmers can implement to reduce losses. The experimental and modeling approaches of this study could also be applied in other perennial crops to assess yield losses. PMID:28046054

  4. Primary and Secondary Yield Losses Caused by Pests and Diseases: Assessment and Modeling in Coffee.

    PubMed

    Cerda, Rolando; Avelino, Jacques; Gary, Christian; Tixier, Philippe; Lechevallier, Esther; Allinne, Clémentine

    2017-01-01

    The assessment of crop yield losses is needed for the improvement of production systems that contribute to the incomes of rural families and food security worldwide. However, efforts to quantify yield losses and identify their causes are still limited, especially for perennial crops. Our objectives were to quantify primary yield losses (incurred in the current year of production) and secondary yield losses (resulting from negative impacts of the previous year) of coffee due to pests and diseases, and to identify the most important predictors of coffee yields and yield losses. We established an experimental coffee parcel with full-sun exposure that consisted of six treatments, which were defined as different sequences of pesticide applications. The trial lasted three years (2013-2015) and yield components, dead productive branches, and foliar pests and diseases were assessed as predictors of yield. First, we calculated yield losses by comparing actual yields of specific treatments with the estimated attainable yield obtained in plots which always had chemical protection. Second, we used structural equation modeling to identify the most important predictors. Results showed that pests and diseases led to high primary yield losses (26%) and even higher secondary yield losses (38%). We identified the fruiting nodes and the dead productive branches as the most important and useful predictors of yields and yield losses. These predictors could be added in existing mechanistic models of coffee, or can be used to develop new linear mixed models to estimate yield losses. Estimated yield losses can then be related to production factors to identify corrective actions that farmers can implement to reduce losses. The experimental and modeling approaches of this study could also be applied in other perennial crops to assess yield losses.

  5. Ozone Induced Premature Mortality and Crop Yield Loss in China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lin, Y.; Jiang, F.; Wang, H.

    2017-12-01

    Exposure to ambient ozone is a major risk factor for health impacts such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and cause damage to plant and agricultural crops. But these impacts were usually evaluated separately in earlier studies. We apply Community Multi-scale Air Quality model to simulate the ambient O3 concentration at a resolution of 36 km×36 km across China. Then, we follow Global Burden of Diseases approach and AOT40 (i.e., above a threshold of 40 ppb) metric to estimate the premature mortalities and yield losses of major grain crops (i.e., winter wheat, rice and corn) across China due to surface ozone exposure, respectively. Our results show that ozone exposure leads to nearly 67,700 premature mortalities and 145 billion USD losses in 2014. The ozone induced yield losses of all crop production totaled 78 (49.9-112.6)million metric tons, worth 5.3 (3.4-7.6)billion USD, in China. The relative yield losses ranged from 8.5-14% for winter wheat, 3.9-15% for rice, and 2.2-5.5% for maize. We can see that the top four health affected provinces (Sichuan, Henan, Shandong, Jiangsu) are also ranking on the winter wheat and rice crop yield loss. Our results provide further evidence that surface ozone pollution is becoming urgent air pollution in China, and have important policy implications for China to alleviate the impacts of air pollution.

  6. Crop production and economic loss due to wind erosion in hot arid ecosystem of India

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Santra, Priyabrata; Moharana, P. C.; Kumar, Mahesh; Soni, M. L.; Pandey, C. B.; Chaudhari, S. K.; Sikka, A. K.

    2017-10-01

    Wind erosion is a severe land degradation process in hot arid western India and affects the agricultural production system. It affects crop yield directly by damaging the crops through abrasion, burial, dust deposition etc. and indirectly by reducing soil fertility. In this study, an attempt was made to quantify the indirect impact of wind erosion process on crop production loss and associated economic loss in hot arid ecosystem of India. It has been observed that soil loss due to wind erosion varies from minimum 1.3 t ha-1 to maximum 83.3 t ha-1 as per the severity. Yield loss due to wind erosion was found maximum for groundnut (Arachis hypogea) (5-331 kg ha-1 yr-1), whereas minimum for moth bean (Vigna aconitifolia) (1-93 kg ha-1 yr-1). For pearl millet (Pennisetum glaucum), which covers a major portion of arable lands in western Rajasthan, the yield loss was found 3-195 kg ha-1 yr-1. Economic loss was found higher for groundnut and clusterbean (Cyamopsis tetragonoloba) than rest crops, which are about

  7. An economic assessment of the health effects and crop yield losses caused by air pollution in mainland China.

    PubMed

    Miao, Weijie; Huang, Xin; Song, Yu

    2017-06-01

    Air pollution is severe in China, and pollutants such as PM 2.5 and surface O 3 may cause major damage to human health and crops, respectively. Few studies have considered the health effects of PM 2.5 or the loss of crop yields due to surface O 3 using model-simulated air pollution data in China. We used gridded outputs from the WRF-Chem model, high resolution population data, and crop yield data to evaluate the effects on human health and crop yield in mainland China. Our results showed that outdoor PM 2.5 pollution was responsible for 1.70-1.99 million cases of all-cause mortality in 2006. The economic costs of these health effects were estimated to be 151.1-176.9 billion USD, of which 90% were attributed to mortality. The estimated crop yield losses for wheat, rice, maize, and soybean were approximately 9, 4.6, 0.44, and 0.34 million tons, respectively, resulting in economic losses of 3.4 billion USD. The total economic losses due to ambient air pollution were estimated to be 154.5-180.3 billion USD, accounting for approximately 5.7%-6.6% of the total GDP of China in 2006. Our results show that both population health and staple crop yields in China have been significantly affected by exposure to air pollution. Measures should be taken to reduce emissions, improve air quality, and mitigate the economic loss. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

  8. Quantifying Soiling Loss Directly From PV Yield

    DOE PAGES

    Deceglie, Michael G.; Micheli, Leonardo; Muller, Matthew

    2018-01-23

    Soiling of photovoltaic (PV) panels is typically quantified through the use of specialized sensors. Here, we describe and validate a method for estimating soiling loss experienced by PV systems directly from system yield without the need for precipitation data. The method, termed the stochastic rate and recovery (SRR) method, automatically detects soiling intervals in a dataset, then stochastically generates a sample of possible soiling profiles based on the observed characteristics of each interval. In this paper, we describe the method, validate it against soiling station measurements, and compare it with other PV-yield-based soiling estimation methods. The broader application of themore » SRR method will enable the fleet scale assessment of soiling loss to facilitate mitigation planning and risk assessment.« less

  9. Quantifying Soiling Loss Directly From PV Yield

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Deceglie, Michael G.; Micheli, Leonardo; Muller, Matthew

    Soiling of photovoltaic (PV) panels is typically quantified through the use of specialized sensors. Here, we describe and validate a method for estimating soiling loss experienced by PV systems directly from system yield without the need for precipitation data. The method, termed the stochastic rate and recovery (SRR) method, automatically detects soiling intervals in a dataset, then stochastically generates a sample of possible soiling profiles based on the observed characteristics of each interval. In this paper, we describe the method, validate it against soiling station measurements, and compare it with other PV-yield-based soiling estimation methods. The broader application of themore » SRR method will enable the fleet scale assessment of soiling loss to facilitate mitigation planning and risk assessment.« less

  10. Estimating milk yield and value losses from increased somatic cell count on US dairy farms.

    PubMed

    Hadrich, J C; Wolf, C A; Lombard, J; Dolak, T M

    2018-04-01

    Milk loss due to increased somatic cell counts (SCC) results in economic losses for dairy producers. This research uses 10 mo of consecutive dairy herd improvement data from 2013 and 2014 to estimate milk yield loss using SCC as a proxy for clinical and subclinical mastitis. A fixed effects regression was used to examine factors that affected milk yield while controlling for herd-level management. Breed, milking frequency, days in milk, seasonality, SCC, cumulative months with SCC greater than 100,000 cells/mL, lactation, and herd size were variables included in the regression analysis. The cumulative months with SCC above a threshold was included as a proxy for chronic mastitis. Milk yield loss increased as the number of test days with SCC ≥100,000 cells/mL increased. Results from the regression were used to estimate a monetary value of milk loss related to SCC as a function of cow and operation related explanatory variables for a representative dairy cow. The largest losses occurred from increased cumulative test days with a SCC ≥100,000 cells/mL, with daily losses of $1.20/cow per day in the first month to $2.06/cow per day in mo 10. Results demonstrate the importance of including the duration of months above a threshold SCC when estimating milk yield losses. Cows with chronic mastitis, measured by increased consecutive test days with SCC ≥100,000 cells/mL, resulted in higher milk losses than cows with a new infection. This provides farm managers with a method to evaluate the trade-off between treatment and culling decisions as it relates to mastitis control and early detection. Copyright © 2018 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  11. Impacts of Soil and Water Conservation Practices on Crop Yield, Run-off, Soil Loss and Nutrient Loss in Ethiopia: Review and Synthesis.

    PubMed

    Adimassu, Zenebe; Langan, Simon; Johnston, Robyn; Mekuria, Wolde; Amede, Tilahun

    2017-01-01

    Research results published regarding the impact of soil and water conservation practices in the highland areas of Ethiopia have been inconsistent and scattered. In this paper, a detailed review and synthesis is reported that was conducted to identify the impacts of soil and water conservation practices on crop yield, surface run-off, soil loss, nutrient loss, and the economic viability, as well as to discuss the implications for an integrated approach and ecosystem services. The review and synthesis showed that most physical soil and water conservation practices such as soil bunds and stone bunds were very effective in reducing run-off, soil erosion and nutrient depletion. Despite these positive impacts on these services, the impact of physical soil and water conservation practices on crop yield was negative mainly due to the reduction of effective cultivable area by soil/stone bunds. In contrast, most agronomic soil and water conservation practices increase crop yield and reduce run-off and soil losses. This implies that integrating physical soil and water conservation practices with agronomic soil and water conservation practices are essential to increase both provisioning and regulating ecosystem services. Additionally, effective use of unutilized land (the area occupied by bunds) by planting multipurpose grasses and trees on the bunds may offset the yield lost due to a reduction in planting area. If high value grasses and trees can be grown on this land, farmers can harvest fodder for animals or fuel wood, both in scarce supply in Ethiopia. Growing of these grasses and trees can also help the stability of the bunds and reduce maintenance cost. Economic feasibility analysis also showed that, soil and water conservation practices became economically more viable if physical and agronomic soil and water conservation practices are integrated.

  12. Impacts of Soil and Water Conservation Practices on Crop Yield, Run-off, Soil Loss and Nutrient Loss in Ethiopia: Review and Synthesis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Adimassu, Zenebe; Langan, Simon; Johnston, Robyn; Mekuria, Wolde; Amede, Tilahun

    2017-01-01

    Research results published regarding the impact of soil and water conservation practices in the highland areas of Ethiopia have been inconsistent and scattered. In this paper, a detailed review and synthesis is reported that was conducted to identify the impacts of soil and water conservation practices on crop yield, surface run-off, soil loss, nutrient loss, and the economic viability, as well as to discuss the implications for an integrated approach and ecosystem services. The review and synthesis showed that most physical soil and water conservation practices such as soil bunds and stone bunds were very effective in reducing run-off, soil erosion and nutrient depletion. Despite these positive impacts on these services, the impact of physical soil and water conservation practices on crop yield was negative mainly due to the reduction of effective cultivable area by soil/stone bunds. In contrast, most agronomic soil and water conservation practices increase crop yield and reduce run-off and soil losses. This implies that integrating physical soil and water conservation practices with agronomic soil and water conservation practices are essential to increase both provisioning and regulating ecosystem services. Additionally, effective use of unutilized land (the area occupied by bunds) by planting multipurpose grasses and trees on the bunds may offset the yield lost due to a reduction in planting area. If high value grasses and trees can be grown on this land, farmers can harvest fodder for animals or fuel wood, both in scarce supply in Ethiopia. Growing of these grasses and trees can also help the stability of the bunds and reduce maintenance cost. Economic feasibility analysis also showed that, soil and water conservation practices became economically more viable if physical and agronomic soil and water conservation practices are integrated.

  13. Reductions in India's crop yield due to ozone

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ghude, Sachin D.; Jena, Chinmay; Chate, D. M.; Beig, G.; Pfister, G. G.; Kumar, Rajesh; Ramanathan, V.

    2014-08-01

    This bottom-up modeling study, supported by emission inventories and crop production, simulates ozone on local to regional scales. It quantifies, for the first time, potential impact of ozone on district-wise cotton, soybeans, rice, and wheat crops in India for the first decade of the 21st century. Wheat is the most impacted crop with losses of 3.5 ± 0.8 million tons (Mt), followed by rice at 2.1 ± 0.8 Mt, with the losses concentrated in central and north India. On the national scale, this loss is about 9.2% of the cereals required every year (61.2 Mt) under the provision of the recently implemented National Food Security Bill (in 2013) by the Government of India. The nationally aggregated yield loss is sufficient to feed about 94 million people living below poverty line in India.

  14. Plausible rice yield losses under future climate warming.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Chuang; Piao, Shilong; Wang, Xuhui; Huang, Yao; Ciais, Philippe; Elliott, Joshua; Huang, Mengtian; Janssens, Ivan A; Li, Tao; Lian, Xu; Liu, Yongwen; Müller, Christoph; Peng, Shushi; Wang, Tao; Zeng, Zhenzhong; Peñuelas, Josep

    2016-12-19

    Rice is the staple food for more than 50% of the world's population 1-3 . Reliable prediction of changes in rice yield is thus central for maintaining global food security. This is an extraordinary challenge. Here, we compare the sensitivity of rice yield to temperature increase derived from field warming experiments and three modelling approaches: statistical models, local crop models and global gridded crop models. Field warming experiments produce a substantial rice yield loss under warming, with an average temperature sensitivity of -5.2 ± 1.4% K -1 . Local crop models give a similar sensitivity (-6.3 ± 0.4% K -1 ), but statistical and global gridded crop models both suggest less negative impacts of warming on yields (-0.8 ± 0.3% and -2.4 ± 3.7% K -1 , respectively). Using data from field warming experiments, we further propose a conditional probability approach to constrain the large range of global gridded crop model results for the future yield changes in response to warming by the end of the century (from -1.3% to -9.3% K -1 ). The constraint implies a more negative response to warming (-8.3 ± 1.4% K -1 ) and reduces the spread of the model ensemble by 33%. This yield reduction exceeds that estimated by the International Food Policy Research Institute assessment (-4.2 to -6.4% K -1 ) (ref. 4). Our study suggests that without CO 2 fertilization, effective adaptation and genetic improvement, severe rice yield losses are plausible under intensive climate warming scenarios.

  15. Global assessment of nitrogen losses and trade-offs with yields from major crop cultivations.

    PubMed

    Liu, Wenfeng; Yang, Hong; Liu, Junguo; Azevedo, Ligia B; Wang, Xiuying; Xu, Zongxue; Abbaspour, Karim C; Schulin, Rainer

    2016-12-01

    Agricultural application of reactive nitrogen (N) for fertilization is a cause of massive negative environmental problems on a global scale. However, spatially explicit and crop-specific information on global N losses into the environment and knowledge of trade-offs between N losses and crop yields are largely lacking. We use a crop growth model, Python-based Environmental Policy Integrated Climate (PEPIC), to determine global N losses from three major food crops: maize, rice, and wheat. Simulated total N losses into the environment (including water and atmosphere) are 44TgNyr -1 . Two thirds of these, or 29TgNyr -1 , are losses to water alone. Rice accounts for the highest N losses, followed by wheat and maize. The N loss intensity (NLI), defined as N losses per unit of yield, is used to address trade-offs between N losses and crop yields. The NLI presents high variation among different countries, indicating diverse N losses to produce the same amount of yields. Simulations of mitigation scenarios indicate that redistributing global N inputs and improving N management could significantly abate N losses and at the same time even increase yields without any additional total N inputs. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  16. Maintaining yields and reducing nitrogen loss in rice-wheat rotation system in Taihu Lake region with proper fertilizer management

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Xue, Lihong; Yu, Yingliang; Yang, Linzhang

    2014-11-01

    In the Tailake region of China, heavy nitrogen (N) loss of rice-wheat rotation systems, due to high fertilizer-N input with low N use efficiency (NUE), was widely reported. To alleviate the detrimental impacts caused by N loss, it is necessary to improve the fertilizer management practices. Therefore, a 3 yr field experiments with different N managements including organic combined chemical N treatment (OCN, 390 kg N ha-1 yr-1, 20% organic fertilizer), control-released urea treatment (CRU, 390 kg N ha-1 yr-1, 70% resin-coated urea), reduced chemical N treatment (RCN, 390 kg N ha-1 yr-1, all common chemical fertilizer), and site-specific N management (SSNM, 333 kg N ha-1 yr-1, all common chemical fertilizer) were conducted in the Taihu Lake region with the ‘farmer’s N’ treatment (FN, 510 kg N ha-1 yr-1, all common chemical fertilizer) as a control. Grain yield, plant N uptake (PNU), NUE, and N losses via runoff, leaching, and ammonia volatilization were assessed. In the rice season, the FN treatment had the highest N loss and lowest NUE, which can be attributed to an excessive rate of N application. Treatments of OCN and RCN with a 22% reduced N rate from FN had no significant effect on PNU nor the yield of rice in the 3 yr; however, the NUE was improved and N loss was reduced 20-32%. OCN treatment achieved the highest yield, while SSNM has the lowest N loss and highest NUE due to the lowest N rate. In wheat season, N loss decreased about 28-48% with the continuous reduction of N input, but the yield also declined, with the exception of OCN treatment. N loss through runoff, leaching and ammonia volatilization was positively correlated with the N input rate. When compared with the pure chemical fertilizer treatment of RCN under the same N input, OCN treatment has better NUE, better yield, and lower N loss. 70% of the urea replaced with resin-coated urea had no significant effect on yield and NUE improvement, but decreased the ammonia volatilization loss. Soil

  17. Epidemiological features and financial loss due to clinically diagnosed Haemorrhagic Septicemia in bovines in Karnataka, India.

    PubMed

    Govindaraj, G; Krishnamoorthy, P; Nethrayini, K R; Shalini, R; Rahman, H

    2017-09-01

    The epidemiological features and financial losses due to Haemorrhagic Septicemia (HS) in bovines were studied in Karnataka state using the primary data collected from 133 clinically diagnosed HS affected farms. The various losses due to HS and the Benefit- Cost of the vaccination programme in cattle and water buffaloes were studied using mathematical models. The number of HS outbreaks were higher during the year 2002 and peaked during 2005 and thereafter declined due to targeted vaccination against HS. The morbidity and mortality risks were lower in large farms than medium and small farms, and lower in indigenous cattle compared to high yielding crossbred cattle and water buffaloes. The disease occurrence was more in in-milk animals causing serious economic loss to the farmers. Most outbreaks were observed during monsoon season, though the disease was prevalent throughout the year. The mean milk loss per animal was $2, $11 and $50 in indigenous cattle, water buffaloes and crossbred cattle, respectively. In the case of draught animals, the average effective draught power was unavailable for 1.2days/outbreak resulting in a loss of $5 per affected oxen. The treatment and extra labor expenses incurred per animal were $24 and $7, respectively. The average loss per animal due to mortality loss was $275, $284 and $415 in case of indigenous cattle, water buffaloes and crossbred cattle, respectively. The projected loss for the state of Karnataka were $23.89, $17.92 and $11.95 million under high, medium and low HS incidence scenarios, respectively. The Benefit Cost Analysis (BCA) of the vaccination against HS has been estimated at 5.97:1, 4.48:1 and 2.98:1 under high, medium and low incidence scenarios, respectively. The results highlight the important epidemiological features and financial losses to the affected households and the state of Karnataka. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  18. Causes and implications of the unforeseen 2016 extreme yield loss in the breadbasket of France.

    PubMed

    Ben-Ari, Tamara; Boé, Julien; Ciais, Philippe; Lecerf, Remi; Van der Velde, Marijn; Makowski, David

    2018-04-24

    In 2016, France, one of the leading wheat-producing and wheat-exporting regions in the world suffered its most extreme yield loss in over half a century. Yet, yield forecasting systems failed to anticipate this event. We show that this unprecedented event is a new type of compound extreme with a conjunction of abnormally warm temperatures in late autumn and abnormally wet conditions in the following spring. A binomial logistic regression accounting for fall and spring conditions is able to capture key yield loss events since 1959. Based on climate projections, we show that the conditions that led to the 2016 wheat yield loss are projected to become more frequent in the future. The increased likelihood of such compound extreme events poses a challenge: farming systems and yield forecasting systems, which often support them, must adapt.

  19. African crop yield reductions due to increasingly unbalanced Nitrogen and Phosphorus consumption

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van der Velde, Marijn; Folberth, Christian; Balkovič, Juraj; Ciais, Philippe; Fritz, Steffen; Janssens, Ivan A.; Obersteiner, Michael; See, Linda; Skalský, Rastislav; Xiong, Wei; Peñuealas, Josep

    2014-05-01

    The impact of soil nutrient depletion on crop production has been known for decades, but robust assessments of the impact of increasingly unbalanced nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) application rates on crop production are lacking. Here, we use crop response functions based on 741 FAO maize crop trials and EPIC crop modeling across Africa to examine maize yield deficits resulting from unbalanced N:P applications under low, medium, and high input scenarios, for past (1975), current, and future N:P mass ratios of respectively, 1:0.29, 1:0.15, and 1:0.05. At low N inputs (10 kg/ha), current yield deficits amount to 10% but will increase up to 27% under the assumed future N:P ratio, while at medium N inputs (50 kg N/ha), future yield losses could amount to over 40%. The EPIC crop model was then used to simulate maize yields across Africa. The model results showed relative median future yield reductions at low N inputs of 40%, and 50% at medium and high inputs, albeit with large spatial variability. Dominant low-quality soils such as Ferralsols, which are strongly adsorbing P, and Arenosols with a low nutrient retention capacity, are associated with a strong yield decline, although Arenosols show very variable crop yield losses at low inputs. Optimal N:P ratios, i.e. those where the lowest amount of applied P produces the highest yield (given N input) where calculated with EPIC to be as low as 1:0.5. Finally, we estimated the additional P required given current N inputs, and given N inputs that would allow Africa to close yield gaps (ca. 70%). At current N inputs, P consumption would have to increase 2.3-fold to be optimal, and to increase 11.7-fold to close yield gaps. The P demand to overcome these yield deficits would provide a significant additional pressure on current global extraction of P resources.

  20. Understanding yield loss and pathogen biology to improve disease management: Stagonospora nodorum blotch - a case study in wheat

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The estimated potential yield losses caused by plant pathogens are up to 16% globally, and most research in plant pathology aims to reduce yield loss in crops directly or indirectly. Yield losses caused by a certain disease depend not only on disease severity, but also on weather factors, the pathog...

  1. Exploring the effects of nitrogen fertilization management alternatives on nitrate loss and crop yields in tile-drained fields in Illinois.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Hanseok; Bhattarai, Rabin

    2018-05-01

    It is vital to manage the excessive use of nitrogen (N) fertilizer in corn production, the single largest consumer of N fertilizer in the United States, in order to achieve more sustainable agroecosystems. This study comprehensively explored the effects of N fertilization alternatives on nitrate loss and crop yields using the Root Zone Water Quality Model (RZWQM) in tile-drained fields in central Illinois. The RZWQM was tested for the prediction of tile flow, nitrate loss, and crop yields using eight years (1993-2000) of observed data and showed satisfactory model performances from statistical and graphical evaluations. Our model simulations demonstrated the maximum return to nitrogen (MRTN) rate (193 kgha -1 ), a newly advised N recommendation by the Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy (INLRS), can be further reduced. Nitrate loss was reduced by 10.3% and 29.8%, but corn yields decreased by 0.3% and 1.9% at 156 and 150 kgha -1 of N fertilizer rate in the study sites A and E, respectively. Although adjustment of N fertilization timing presented a further reduction in nitrate loss, there was no optimal timing to ensure nitrate loss reduction and corn productivity. For site A, 100% spring application was the most productive and 40% fall, 10% pre-plant, and 50% side dress application generated the lowest nitrate loss. For site E, the conventional N application timing was verified as the best practice in both corn production and nitrate loss reduction. Compared to surface broadcast placement, injected N fertilizer in spring increased corn yield, but may also escalate nitrate loss. This study presented the need of an adaptive N fertilizer management due to the heterogeneity in agricultural systems, and raised the importance of timing and placement of N fertilizer, as well as further reduction in fertilizer rate to devise a better in-field N management practice. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  2. Agricultural drought risk monitoring and yield loss forecast with remote sensing data

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nagy, Attila; Tamás, János; Fehér, János

    2015-04-01

    The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and Global Water Partnership (GWP) have launched a joint Integrated Drought Management Programme (IDMP) to improve monitoring and prevention of droughts. In the frame of this project this study focuses on identification of agricultural drought characteristics and elaborates a monitoring method (with application of remote sensing data), which could result in appropriate early warning of droughts before irreversible yield loss and/or quality degradation occur. The spatial decision supporting system to be developed will help the farmers in reducing drought risk of the different regions by plant specific calibrated drought indexes. The study area was the Tisza River Basin, which is located in Central Europe within the Carpathian Basin. For the investigations normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was used calculated from 16 day moving average chlorophyll intensity and biomass quantity data. The results offer concrete identification of remote sensing and GIS data tools for agricultural drought monitoring and forecast, which eventually provides information on physical implementation of drought risk levels. In the first step, we statistically normalized the crop yield maps and the MODIS satellite data. Then the drought-induced crop yield loss values were classified. The crop yield loss data were validated against the regional meteorological drought index values (SPI), the water management and soil physical data. The objective of this method was to determine the congruency of data derived from spectral data and from field measurements. As a result, five drought risk levels were developed to identify the effect of drought on yields: Watch, Early Warning, Warning, Alert and Catastrophe. In the frame of this innovation such a data link and integration, missing from decision process of IDMP, are established, which can facilitate the rapid spatial and temporal monitoring of meteorological, agricultural drought phenomena and its

  3. Random regression models to account for the effect of genotype by environment interaction due to heat stress on the milk yield of Holstein cows under tropical conditions.

    PubMed

    Santana, Mário L; Bignardi, Annaiza Braga; Pereira, Rodrigo Junqueira; Menéndez-Buxadera, Alberto; El Faro, Lenira

    2016-02-01

    The present study had the following objectives: to compare random regression models (RRM) considering the time-dependent (days in milk, DIM) and/or temperature × humidity-dependent (THI) covariate for genetic evaluation; to identify the effect of genotype by environment interaction (G×E) due to heat stress on milk yield; and to quantify the loss of milk yield due to heat stress across lactation of cows under tropical conditions. A total of 937,771 test-day records from 3603 first lactations of Brazilian Holstein cows obtained between 2007 and 2013 were analyzed. An important reduction in milk yield due to heat stress was observed for THI values above 66 (-0.23 kg/day/THI). Three phases of milk yield loss were identified during lactation, the most damaging one at the end of lactation (-0.27 kg/day/THI). Using the most complex RRM, the additive genetic variance could be altered simultaneously as a function of both DIM and THI values. This model could be recommended for the genetic evaluation taking into account the effect of G×E. The response to selection in the comfort zone (THI ≤ 66) is expected to be higher than that obtained in the heat stress zone (THI > 66) of the animals. The genetic correlations between milk yield in the comfort and heat stress zones were less than unity at opposite extremes of the environmental gradient. Thus, the best animals for milk yield in the comfort zone are not necessarily the best in the zone of heat stress and, therefore, G×E due to heat stress should not be neglected in the genetic evaluation.

  4. Loss Estimations due to Earthquakes and Secondary Technological Hazards

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Frolova, N.; Larionov, V.; Bonnin, J.

    2009-04-01

    Expected loss and damage assessment due to natural and technological disasters are of primary importance for emergency management just after the disaster, as well as for development and implementation of preventive measures plans. The paper addresses the procedures and simulation models for loss estimations due to strong earthquakes and secondary technological accidents. The mathematical models for shaking intensity distribution, damage to buildings and structures, debris volume, number of fatalities and injuries due to earthquakes and technological accidents at fire and chemical hazardous facilities are considered, which are used in geographical information systems assigned for these purposes. The criteria of technological accidents occurrence are developed on the basis of engineering analysis of past events' consequences. The paper is providing the results of scenario earthquakes consequences estimation and individual seismic risk assessment taking into account the secondary technological hazards at regional and urban levels. The individual risk is understood as the probability of death (or injuries) due to possible hazardous event within one year in a given territory. It is determined through mathematical expectation of social losses taking into account the number of inhabitants in the considered settlement and probability of natural and/or technological disaster.

  5. Blackleg (Leptosphaeria maculans) Severity and Yield Loss in Canola in Alberta, Canada

    PubMed Central

    Hwang, Sheau-Fang; Strelkov, Stephen E.; Peng, Gary; Ahmed, Hafiz; Zhou, Qixing; Turnbull, George

    2016-01-01

    Blackleg, caused by Leptosphaeria maculans, is an important disease of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.) in Canada and throughout the world. Severe epidemics of blackleg can result in significant yield losses. Understanding disease-yield relationships is a prerequisite for measuring the agronomic efficacy and economic benefits of control methods. Field experiments were conducted in 2013, 2014, and 2015 to determine the relationship between blackleg disease severity and yield in a susceptible cultivar and in moderately resistant to resistant canola hybrids. Disease severity was lower, and seed yield was 120%–128% greater, in the moderately resistant to resistant hybrids compared with the susceptible cultivar. Regression analysis showed that pod number and seed yield declined linearly as blackleg severity increased. Seed yield per plant decreased by 1.8 g for each unit increase in disease severity, corresponding to a decline in yield of 17.2% for each unit increase in disease severity. Pyraclostrobin fungicide reduced disease severity in all site-years and increased yield. These results show that the reduction of blackleg in canola crops substantially improves yields. PMID:27447676

  6. Peanut peg strength and associated pod yield and loss by cultivar

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) peg strength and associated pod yield and digging loss were documented for nine cultivars and two breeding genotypes across three harvest dates at two Southwest Georgia locations during 2010 and 2011. Cultivars selected were Georgia Green, Georgia Greener, Georgia-02C, G...

  7. Consequences of waterlogging in cotton and opportunities for mitigation of yield losses

    PubMed Central

    Najeeb, Ullah; Bange, Michael P.; Tan, Daniel K. Y.; Atwell, Brian J.

    2015-01-01

    Climatic variability, typified by erratic heavy-rainfall events, causes waterlogging in intensively irrigated crops and is exacerbated under warm temperature regimes on soils with poor internal drainage. Irrigated cotton is often grown in precisely these conditions, exposing it to waterlogging-induced yield losses after substantial summer rainfall. This calls for a deeper understanding of mechanisms of waterlogging tolerance and its relevance to cotton. Hence this review suggests possible causes of waterlogging-induced yield loss in cotton and approaches to improvement of waterlogging tolerance, drawing upon the slight body of published data in cotton and principles from other species. The yield penalty depends on soil type, phenological stage and cumulative period of root exposure to air-filled porosities below 10 %. Events in the soil include O2 deficiency in the root zone that changes the redox state of nutrients, making them unavailable (e.g. nitrogen) or potentially toxic for plants. Furthermore, root-derived hormones that are transported in the xylem have long been associated with oxygen deficits. These belowground effects (impaired root growth, nutrient uptake and transport, hormonal signalling) affect the shoots, interfering with canopy development, photosynthesis and radiation-use efficiency. Compared with the more waterlogging-tolerant cereals, cotton does not have identified adaptations to waterlogging in the root zone, forming no conspicuous root aerenchyma and having low fermentative activity. We speculate that these factors contribute substantially to the sensitivity of cotton to sustained periods of waterlogging. We discuss the impact of these belowground factors on shoot performance, photosynthesis and yield components. Management practices, i.e. soil aeration, scheduling irrigation and fertilizer application, can reduce waterlogging-induced damage. Limiting ethylene biosynthesis using anti-ethylene agents and down-regulating expression of genes

  8. 7 CFR 610.12 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to water... ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.12 Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion. (a) The equation for predicting soil loss due to erosion for both the USLE and the RUSLE is A = R × K...

  9. 7 CFR 610.12 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to water... ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.12 Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion. (a) The equation for predicting soil loss due to erosion for both the USLE and the RUSLE is A = R × K...

  10. 7 CFR 610.12 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to water... ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.12 Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion. (a) The equation for predicting soil loss due to erosion for both the USLE and the RUSLE is A = R × K...

  11. 7 CFR 610.12 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to water... ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.12 Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion. (a) The equation for predicting soil loss due to erosion for both the USLE and the RUSLE is A = R × K...

  12. 7 CFR 610.12 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to water... ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.12 Equations for predicting soil loss due to water erosion. (a) The equation for predicting soil loss due to erosion for both the USLE and the RUSLE is A = R × K...

  13. Assessing disease stress and modeling yield losses in alfalfa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Guan, Jie

    Alfalfa is the most important forage crop in the U.S. and worldwide. Fungal foliar diseases are believed to cause significant yield losses in alfalfa, yet, little quantitative information exists regarding the amount of crop loss. Different fungicides and application frequencies were used as tools to generate a range of foliar disease intensities in Ames and Nashua, IA. Visual disease assessments (disease incidence, disease severity, and percentage defoliation) were obtained weekly for each alfalfa growth cycle (two to three growing cycles per season). Remote sensing assessments were performed using a hand-held, multispectral radiometer to measure the amount and quality of sunlight reflected from alfalfa canopies. Factors such as incident radiation, sun angle, sensor height, and leaf wetness were all found to significantly affect the percentage reflectance of sunlight reflected from alfalfa canopies. The precision of visual and remote sensing assessment methods was quantified. Precision was defined as the intra-rater repeatability and inter-rater reliability of assessment methods. F-tests, slopes, intercepts, and coefficients of determination (R2) were used to compare assessment methods for precision. Results showed that among the three visual disease assessment methods (disease incidence, disease severity, and percentage defoliation), percentage defoliation had the highest intra-rater repeatability and inter-rater reliability. Remote sensing assessment method had better precision than the percentage defoliation assessment method based upon higher intra-rater repeatability and inter-rater reliability. Significant linear relationships between canopy reflectance (810 nm), percentage defoliation and yield were detected using linear regression and percentage reflectance (810 nm) assessments were found to have a stronger relationship with yield than percentage defoliation assessments. There were also significant linear relationships between percentage defoliation, dry

  14. Spatially Explicit Analysis of Biodiversity Loss Due to Global Agriculture, Pasture and Forest Land Use from a Producer and Consumer Perspective.

    PubMed

    Chaudhary, Abhishek; Pfister, Stephan; Hellweg, Stefanie

    2016-04-05

    Anthropogenic land use to produce commodities for human consumption is the major driver of global biodiversity loss. Synergistic collaboration between producers and consumers in needed to halt this trend. In this study, we calculate species loss on 5 min × 5 min grid level and per country due to global agriculture, pasture and forestry by combining high-resolution land use data with countryside species area relationship for mammals, birds, amphibians, and reptiles. Results show that pasture was the primary driver of biodiversity loss in Madagascar, China and Brazil, while forest land use contributed the most to species loss in DR Congo and Indonesia. Combined with the yield data, we quantified the biodiversity impacts of 1 m(3) of roundwood produced in 139 countries, concluding that tropical countries with low timber yield and a large presence of vulnerable species suffer the highest impact. We also calculated impacts per kg for 160 crops grown in different countries and linked it with FAO food trade data to assess the biodiversity impacts embodied in Swiss food imports. We found that more than 95% of Swiss consumption impacts rest abroad with cocoa, coffee and palm oil imports being responsible for majority of damage.

  15. Assessment of crop yield losses in Punjab and Haryana using two years of continuous in-situ ozone measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sinha, B.; Singh Sangwan, K.; Maurya, Y.; Kumar, V.; Sarkar, C.; Chandra, B. P.; Sinha, V.

    2015-01-01

    In this study we use a high quality dataset of in-situ ozone measurements at a suburban site called Mohali in the state of Punjab to estimate ozone related crop yield losses for wheat, rice, cotton and maize for Punjab and the neighbouring state Haryana for the years 2011-2013. We inter-compare crop yield loss estimates according to different exposure metrics such as AOT40 and M7 for the two major crop growing seasons of Kharif (June-October) and Rabi (November-April) and establish a new crop yield exposure relationship for South Asian wheat and rice cultivars. These are a factor of two more sensitive to ozone induced crop yield losses compared to their European and American counterparts. Relative yield losses based on the AOT40 metrics ranged from 27-41% for wheat, 21-26% for rice, 9-11% for maize and 47-58% for cotton. Crop production losses for wheat amounted to 20.8 million t in fiscal year 2012-2013 and 10.3 million t in fiscal year 2013-2014 for Punjab and Haryana jointly. Crop production losses for rice totalled 5.4 million t in fiscal year 2012-2013 and 3.2 million t year 2013-2014 for Punjab and Haryana jointly. The Indian National Food Security Ordinance entitles ~ 820 million of India's poor to purchase about 60 kg of rice/wheat per person annually at subsidized rates. The scheme requires 27.6 Mt of wheat and 33.6 Mt of rice per year. Mitigation of ozone related crop production losses in Punjab and Haryana alone could provide >50% of the wheat and ~10% of the rice required for the scheme. The total economic cost losses in Punjab and Haryana amounted to USD 6.5 billion in the fiscal year 2012-2013 and USD 3.7 billion in the fiscal year 2013-2014. This economic loss estimate represents a very conservative lower limit based on the minimum support price of the crop, which is lower than the actual production costs. The upper limit for ozone related crop yield losses in entire India currently amounts to 3.5-20% of India's GDP. Mitigation of high surface ozone

  16. Diagnostic Yield of Computed Tomography Scan for Pediatric Hearing Loss: A Systematic Review

    PubMed Central

    Chen, Jenny X.; Kachniarz, Bart; Shin, Jennifer J.

    2015-01-01

    Background Computed tomography (CT) has been used in the assessment of pediatric hearing loss, but concern regarding radiation risk and increased utilization of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have prompted us toward a more quantitative and sophisticated understanding of CT’s potential diagnostic yield. Objective To perform a systematic review to analyze the diagnostic yield of CT for pediatric hearing loss, including subgroup evaluation according to impairment severity and laterality, as well as the specific findings of enlarged vestibular aqueduct and narrow cochlear nerve canal. Data Sources PubMed, EMBASE, and the Cochrane Library were assessed from the date of their inception to December 2013. In addition, manual searches of bibliographies were performed and topic experts were contacted. Review Methods Data from studies describing the use of CT in the diagnostic evaluation of pediatric patients with hearing loss of unknown etiology were evaluated, according to a priori inclusion/exclusion criteria. Two independent evaluators corroborated the extracted data. Heterogeneity was evaluated according to the I2 statistic. Results In 50 criteria-meeting studies, the overall diagnostic yield of CT ranged from 7% to 74%, with the strongest and aggregate data demonstrating a point estimate of 30%. This estimate corresponded to a number needed to image of 4 (range, 2–15). The most commonly identified findings were enlarged vestibular aqueduct and cochlear anomalies. The largest studies showed a 4% to 7% yield for narrow cochlear nerve canal. Conclusion These data, along with similar analyses of radiation risk and risks/benefits of sedated MRI, may be used to help guide the choice of diagnostic imaging. PMID:25186339

  17. Assessment of crop yield losses in Punjab and Haryana using 2 years of continuous in situ ozone measurements

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sinha, B.; Singh Sangwan, K.; Maurya, Y.; Kumar, V.; Sarkar, C.; Chandra, B. P.; Sinha, V.

    2015-08-01

    In this study we use a high-quality data set of in situ ozone measurements at a suburban site called Mohali in the state of Punjab to estimate ozone-related crop yield losses for wheat, rice, cotton and maize for Punjab and the neighbouring state Haryana for the years 2011-2013. We intercompare crop yield loss estimates according to different exposure metrics, such as AOT40 (accumulated ozone exposure over a threshold of 40) and M7 (mean 7-hour ozone mixing ratio from 09:00 to 15:59), for the two major crop growing seasons of kharif (June-October) and rabi (November-April) and establish a new crop-yield-exposure relationship for southern Asian wheat, maize and rice cultivars. These are a factor of 2 more sensitive to ozone-induced crop yield losses compared to their European and American counterparts. Relative yield losses based on the AOT40 metrics ranged from 27 to 41 % for wheat, 21 to 26 % for rice, 3 to 5 % for maize and 47 to 58 % for cotton. Crop production losses for wheat amounted to 20.8 ± 10.4 million t in the fiscal year of 2012-2013 and 10.3 ± 4.7 million t in the fiscal year of 2013-2014 for Punjab and Haryana taken together. Crop production losses for rice totalled 5.4 ± 1.2 million t in the fiscal year of 2012-2013 and 3.2 ± 0.8 million t in the year 2013-2014 for Punjab and Haryana taken together. The Indian National Food Security Ordinance entitles ~ 820 million of India's poor to purchase about 60 kg of rice or wheat per person annually at subsidized rates. The scheme requires 27.6 Mt of wheat and 33.6 Mt of rice per year. The mitigation of ozone-related crop production losses in Punjab and Haryana alone could provide > 50 % of the wheat and ~ 10 % of the rice required for the scheme. The total economic cost losses in Punjab and Haryana amounted to USD 6.5 ± 2.2 billion in the fiscal year of 2012-2013 and USD 3.7 ± 1.2 billion in the fiscal year of 2013-2014. This economic loss estimate represents a very conservative lower limit based on

  18. Interactive effects of pests increase seed yield.

    PubMed

    Gagic, Vesna; Riggi, Laura Ga; Ekbom, Barbara; Malsher, Gerard; Rusch, Adrien; Bommarco, Riccardo

    2016-04-01

    Loss in seed yield and therefore decrease in plant fitness due to simultaneous attacks by multiple herbivores is not necessarily additive, as demonstrated in evolutionary studies on wild plants. However, it is not clear how this transfers to crop plants that grow in very different conditions compared to wild plants. Nevertheless, loss in crop seed yield caused by any single pest is most often studied in isolation although crop plants are attacked by many pests that can cause substantial yield losses. This is especially important for crops able to compensate and even overcompensate for the damage. We investigated the interactive impacts on crop yield of four insect pests attacking different plant parts at different times during the cropping season. In 15 oilseed rape fields in Sweden, we estimated the damage caused by seed and stem weevils, pollen beetles, and pod midges. Pest pressure varied drastically among fields with very low correlation among pests, allowing us to explore interactive impacts on yield from attacks by multiple species. The plant damage caused by each pest species individually had, as expected, either no, or a negative impact on seed yield and the strongest negative effect was caused by pollen beetles. However, seed yield increased when plant damage caused by both seed and stem weevils was high, presumably due to the joint plant compensatory reaction to insect attack leading to overcompensation. Hence, attacks by several pests can change the impact on yield of individual pest species. Economic thresholds based on single species, on which pest management decisions currently rely, may therefore result in economically suboptimal choices being made and unnecessary excessive use of insecticides.

  19. Probabilistic Forecasting of Life and Economic Losses due to Natural Disasters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Barton, C. C.; Tebbens, S. F.

    2014-12-01

    The magnitude of natural hazard events such as hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, and floods are traditionally measured by wind speed, energy release, or discharge. In this study we investigate the scaling of the magnitude of individual events of the 20th and 21stcentury in terms of economic and life losses in the United States and worldwide. Economic losses are subdivided into insured and total losses. Some data sets are inflation or population adjusted. Forecasts associated with these events are of interest to insurance, reinsurance, and emergency management agencies. Plots of cumulative size-frequency distributions of economic and life loss are well-fit by power functions and thus exhibit self-similar scaling. This self-similar scaling property permits use of frequent small events to estimate the rate of occurrence of less frequent larger events. Examining the power scaling behavior of loss data for disasters permits: forecasting the probability of occurrence of a disaster over a wide range of years (1 to 10 to 1,000 years); comparing losses associated with one type of disaster to another; comparing disasters in one region to similar disasters in another region; and, measuring the effectiveness of planning and mitigation strategies. In the United States, life losses due to flood and tornado cumulative-frequency distributions have steeper slopes, indicating that frequent smaller events contribute the majority of losses. In contrast, life losses due to hurricanes and earthquakes have shallower slopes, indicating that the few larger events contribute the majority of losses. Disaster planning and mitigation strategies should incorporate these differences.

  20. Nandrolone slows hindlimb bone loss in a rat model of bone loss due to denervation.

    PubMed

    Cardozo, Christopher P; Qin, Weiping; Peng, Yuanzhen; Liu, Xuan; Wu, Yong; Pan, Jiangping; Bauman, William A; Zaidi, Mone; Sun, Li

    2010-03-01

    Nandrolone is an anabolic steroid that has been demonstrated to reduce the loss of bone and muscle from hindlimb unweighting and to slow muscle atrophy after nerve transection. To determine whether nandrolone has the ability to protect bone against loss due to disuse after denervation, male rats underwent sciatic nerve transaction, followed 28 days later by treatment with nandrolone or vehicle for 28 days. Bone mineral density (BMD) was determined 28 days later or 56 days after nerve transection. Denervation led to reductions in BMD of 7% and 12% for femur and tibia, respectively. Nandrolone preserved 80% and 60% of BMD in femur and tibia, respectively, demonstrating that nandrolone administration significantly reduced loss of BMD from denervation. This study offers a potential novel pharmacological strategy for use of nandrolone to reduce bone loss in severe disuse- and denervation-related bone loss, such as that which occurs after spinal cord injury.

  1. Managing tile drainage, subirrigation, and nitrogen fertilization to enhance crop yields and reduce nitrate loss.

    PubMed

    Drury, C F; Tan, C S; Reynolds, W D; Welacky, T W; Oloya, T O; Gaynor, J D

    2009-01-01

    Improving field-crop use of fertilizer nitrogen is essential for protecting water quality and increasing crop yields. The objective of this study was to determine the effectiveness of controlled tile drainage (CD) and controlled tile drainage with subsurface irrigation (CDS) for mitigating off-field nitrate losses and enhancing crop yields. The CD and CDS systems were compared on a clay loam soil to traditional unrestricted tile drainage (UTD) under a corn (Zea Mays L.)-soybean (Glycine Max. (L.) Merr.) rotation at two nitrogen (N) fertilization rates (N1: 150 kg N ha(-1) applied to corn, no N applied to soybean; N2: 200 kg N ha(-1) applied to corn, 50 kg N ha(-1) applied to soybean). The N concentrations in tile flow events with the UTD treatment exceeded the provisional long-term aquatic life limit (LT-ALL) for freshwater (4.7 mg N L(-1)) 72% of the time at the N1 rate and 78% at the N2 rate, whereas only 24% of tile flow events at N1 and 40% at N2 exceeded the LT-ALL for the CDS treatment. Exceedances in N concentration for surface runoff and tile drainage were greater during the growing season than the non-growing season. At the N1 rate, CD and CDS reduced average annual N losses via tile drainage by 44 and 66%, respectively, relative to UTD. At the N2 rate, the average annual decreases in N loss were 31 and 68%, respectively. Crop yields from CDS were increased by an average of 2.8% relative to UTD at the N2 rate but were reduced by an average of 6.5% at the N1 rate. Hence, CD and CDS were effective for reducing average nitrate losses in tile drainage, but CDS increased average crop yields only when additional N fertilizer was applied.

  2. 7 CFR 610.13 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2014-01-01 2014-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion... RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION OPERATIONS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.13 Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion. (a) The...

  3. 7 CFR 610.13 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion... RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION OPERATIONS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.13 Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion. (a) The...

  4. 7 CFR 610.13 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2012-01-01 2012-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion... RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION OPERATIONS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.13 Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion. (a) The...

  5. 7 CFR 610.13 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2011-01-01 2011-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion... RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION OPERATIONS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.13 Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion. (a) The...

  6. 7 CFR 610.13 - Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 6 2013-01-01 2013-01-01 false Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion... RESOURCES CONSERVATION SERVICE, DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE CONSERVATION OPERATIONS TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE Soil Erosion Prediction Equations § 610.13 Equations for predicting soil loss due to wind erosion. (a) The...

  7. Global assessment of human losses due to earthquakes

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Silva, Vitor; Jaiswal, Kishor; Weatherill, Graeme; Crowley, Helen

    2014-01-01

    Current studies have demonstrated a sharp increase in human losses due to earthquakes. These alarming levels of casualties suggest the need for large-scale investment in seismic risk mitigation, which, in turn, requires an adequate understanding of the extent of the losses, and location of the most affected regions. Recent developments in global and uniform datasets such as instrumental and historical earthquake catalogues, population spatial distribution and country-based vulnerability functions, have opened an unprecedented possibility for a reliable assessment of earthquake consequences at a global scale. In this study, a uniform probabilistic seismic hazard assessment (PSHA) model was employed to derive a set of global seismic hazard curves, using the open-source software OpenQuake for seismic hazard and risk analysis. These results were combined with a collection of empirical fatality vulnerability functions and a population dataset to calculate average annual human losses at the country level. The results from this study highlight the regions/countries in the world with a higher seismic risk, and thus where risk reduction measures should be prioritized.

  8. Ozone-Induced Rice Grain Yield Loss Is Triggered via a Change in Panicle Morphology That Is Controlled by ABERRANT PANICLE ORGANIZATION 1 Gene

    PubMed Central

    Tsukahara, Keita; Sawada, Hiroko; Kohno, Yoshihisa; Matsuura, Takakazu; Mori, Izumi C.; Terao, Tomio; Ioki, Motohide; Tamaoki, Masanori

    2015-01-01

    Rice grain yield is predicted to decrease in the future because of an increase in tropospheric ozone concentration. However, the underlying mechanisms are unclear. Here, we investigated the responses to ozone of two rice (Oryza Sativa L.) cultivars, Sasanishiki and Habataki. Sasanishiki showed ozone-induced leaf injury, but no grain yield loss. By contrast, Habataki showed grain yield loss with minimal leaf injury. A QTL associated with grain yield loss caused by ozone was identified in Sasanishiki/Habataki chromosome segment substitution lines and included the ABERRANT PANICLE ORGANIZATION 1 (APO1) gene. The Habataki allele of the APO1 locus in a near-isogenic line also resulted in grain yield loss upon ozone exposure, suggesting APO1 involvement in ozone-induced yield loss. Only a few differences in the APO1 amino acid sequences were detected between the cultivars, but the APO1 transcript level was oppositely regulated by ozone exposure: i.e., it increased in Sasanishiki and decreased in Habataki. Interestingly, the levels of some phytohormones (jasmonic acid, jasmonoyl-L-isoleucine, and abscisic acid) known to be involved in attenuation of ozone-induced leaf injury tended to decrease in Sasanishiki but to increase in Habataki upon ozone exposure. These data indicate that ozone-induced grain yield loss in Habataki is caused by a reduction in the APO1 transcript level through an increase in the levels of phytohormones that reduce leaf damage. PMID:25923431

  9. The decrease in yield strength in NiAl due to hydrostatic pressure

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Margevicius, R. W.; Lewandowski, J. J.; Locci, I.

    1992-01-01

    The decrease in yield strength in NiAl due to hydrostatic pressure is examined via a comparison of the tensile flow behavior in the low strain regime at 0.1 MPa for NiAl which was cast, extruded, and annealed for 2 hr at 827 C in argon and very slowly cooled to room temperature. Pressurization to 1.4 GPa produces a subsequent reduction at 0.1 MP in proportional limit by 40 percent as well as a 25-percent reduction in the 0.2-percent offset yield strength, while pressurization with lower pressures produces a similar reduction, although smaller in magnitude.

  10. Use of Drought Index and Crop Modelling for Drought Impacts Analysis on Maize (Zea mays L.) Yield Loss in Bandung District

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kurniasih, E.; Impron; Perdinan

    2017-03-01

    Drought impacts on crop yield loss depend on drought magnitude and duration and on plant genotype at every plant growth stages when droughts occur. This research aims to assess the difference calculation results of 2 drought index methods and to study the maize yield loss variability impacted by drought magnitude and duration during maize growth stages in Bandung district, province of West Java, Indonesia. Droughts were quantified by the Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) and the Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) at 1- to 3-month lags for the January1986-December 2015 period data. Maize yield responses to droughts were simulated by AquaCrop for the January 1986-May 2016 period of growing season. The analysis showed that the SPI and SPEI methods provided similar results in quantifying drought event. Droughts during maize reproductive stages caused the highest maize yield loss.

  11. Loss of urinary voiding sensation due to herpes zoster.

    PubMed

    Hiraga, Akiyuki; Nagumo, Kiyomi; Sakakibara, Ryuji; Kojima, Shigeyuki; Fujinawa, Naoto; Hashimoto, Tasuku

    2003-01-01

    A case of sacral herpes zoster infection in a 56-year-old man with the complication of loss of urinary voiding sensation is presented. He had typical herpes zoster eruption on the left S2 dermatome, hypalgesia of the S1-S4 dermatomes, and absence of urinary voiding sensation. There was no other urinary symptom at the first medical examination. Urinary complications associated with herpes zoster are uncommon, but two types, acute cystitis and acute retention, have been recognized. No cases of loss of urinary voiding sensation due to herpes zoster have been reported. In this case, hypalgesia of the sacral dermatomes was mild compared to the marked loss of urethral sensation. This inconsistency is explained by the hypothesis that the number of urethral fibers is very small as compared to that of cutaneous fibers, therefore, urethral sensation would be more severely disturbed than cutaneous sensation. Copyright 2003 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

  12. Brief communication: Loss of life due to Hurricane Harvey

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jonkman, Sebastiaan N.; Godfroy, Maartje; Sebastian, Antonia; Kolen, Bas

    2018-04-01

    An analysis was made of the loss of life caused by Hurricane Harvey. Information was collected for 70 fatalities that occurred due to the event and were recovered within the first 2 weeks after landfall. Most fatalities occurred due to drowning (81 %), particularly in and around vehicles. Males (70 %) and people over 50 years old (56 %) were overrepresented in the dataset. More than half of the fatalities occurred in the greater Houston area (n = 37), where heavy rainfall and dam releases caused unprecedented urban flooding. The majority of fatalities were recovered outside the designated 100- and 500-year flood hazard areas.

  13. Quantitative Analysis Method of Output Loss due to Restriction for Grid-connected PV Systems

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ueda, Yuzuru; Oozeki, Takashi; Kurokawa, Kosuke; Itou, Takamitsu; Kitamura, Kiyoyuki; Miyamoto, Yusuke; Yokota, Masaharu; Sugihara, Hiroyuki

    Voltage of power distribution line will be increased due to reverse power flow from grid-connected PV systems. In the case of high density grid connection, amount of voltage increasing will be higher than the stand-alone grid connection system. To prevent the over voltage of power distribution line, PV system's output will be restricted if the voltage of power distribution line is close to the upper limit of the control range. Because of this interaction, amount of output loss will be larger in high density case. This research developed a quantitative analysis method for PV systems output and losses to clarify the behavior of grid connected PV systems. All the measured data are classified into the loss factors using 1 minute average of 1 second data instead of typical 1 hour average. Operation point on the I-V curve is estimated to quantify the loss due to the output restriction using module temperature, array output voltage, array output current and solar irradiance. As a result, loss due to output restriction is successfully quantified and behavior of output restriction is clarified.

  14. Global earthquake casualties due to secondary effects: A quantitative analysis for improving PAGER losses

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Wald, David J.

    2010-01-01

    This study presents a quantitative and geospatial description of global losses due to earthquake-induced secondary effects, including landslide, liquefaction, tsunami, and fire for events during the past 40 years. These processes are of great importance to the US Geological Survey’s (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, which is currently being developed to deliver rapid earthquake impact and loss assessments following large/significant global earthquakes. An important question is how dominant are losses due to secondary effects (and under what conditions, and in which regions)? Thus, which of these effects should receive higher priority research efforts in order to enhance PAGER’s overall assessment of earthquakes losses and alerting for the likelihood of secondary impacts? We find that while 21.5% of fatal earthquakes have deaths due to secondary (non-shaking) causes, only rarely are secondary effects the main cause of fatalities. The recent 2004 Great Sumatra–Andaman Islands earthquake is a notable exception, with extraordinary losses due to tsunami. The potential for secondary hazards varies greatly, and systematically, due to regional geologic and geomorphic conditions. Based on our findings, we have built country-specific disclaimers for PAGER that address potential for each hazard (Earle et al., Proceedings of the 14th World Conference of the Earthquake Engineering, Beijing, China, 2008). We will now focus on ways to model casualties from secondary effects based on their relative importance as well as their general predictability.

  15. Land loss due to recent hurricanes in coastal Louisiana, U.S.A.

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Monica; Kranenburg, Christine J.; Barras, John A.; Brock, John C.

    2013-01-01

    The aim of this study is to improve estimates of wetland land loss in two study regions of coastal Louisiana, U.S.A., due to the extreme storms that impacted the region between 2004 and 2009. The estimates are based on change-detection-mapping analysis that incorporates pre and postlandfall (Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, Gustav, and Ike) fractional-water classifications using a combination of high-resolution (<5 m) QuickBird, IKONOS, and GeoEye-1, and medium-resolution (30 m) Landsat Thematic Mapper satellite imagery. This process was applied in two study areas: the Hackberry area located in the southwestern part of chenier plain that was impacted by Hurricanes Rita (September 24, 2005) and Ike (September 13, 2008), and the Delacroix area located in the eastern delta plain that was impacted by Hurricanes Katrina (August 29, 2005) and Gustav (September 1, 2008). In both areas, effects of the hurricanes include enlargement of existing bodies of open water and erosion of fringing marsh areas. Surge-removed marsh was easily identified in stable marshes but was difficult to identify in degraded or flooded marshes. Persistent land loss in the Hackberry area due to Hurricane Rita was approximately 5.8% and increased by an additional 7.9% due to Hurricane Ike, although this additional area may yet recover. About 80% of the Hackberry study area remained unchanged since 2003. In the Delacroix area, persistent land loss due to Hurricane Katrina measured approximately 4.9% of the study area, while Hurricane Gustav caused minimal impact of 0.6% land loss by November 2009. Continued recovery in this area may further erase Hurricane Gustav's impact in the absence of new storm events.

  16. Modelling drought-related yield losses in Iberia using remote sensing and multiscalar indices

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ribeiro, Andreia F. S.; Russo, Ana; Gouveia, Célia M.; Páscoa, Patrícia

    2018-04-01

    The response of two rainfed winter cereal yields (wheat and barley) to drought conditions in the Iberian Peninsula (IP) was investigated for a long period (1986-2012). Drought hazard was evaluated based on the multiscalar Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index (SPEI) and three remote sensing indices, namely the Vegetation Condition (VCI), the Temperature Condition (TCI), and the Vegetation Health (VHI) Indices. A correlation analysis between the yield and the drought indicators was conducted, and multiple linear regression (MLR) and artificial neural network (ANN) models were established to estimate yield at the regional level. The correlation values suggested that yield reduces with moisture depletion (low values of VCI) during early-spring and with too high temperatures (low values of TCI) close to the harvest time. Generally, all drought indicators displayed greatest influence during the plant stages in which the crop is photosynthetically more active (spring and summer), rather than the earlier moments of plants life cycle (autumn/winter). Our results suggested that SPEI is more relevant in the southern sector of the IP, while remote sensing indices are rather good in estimating cereal yield in the northern sector of the IP. The strength of the statistical relationships found by MLR and ANN methods is quite similar, with some improvements found by the ANN. A great number of true positives (hits) of occurrence of yield-losses exhibiting hit rate (HR) values higher than 69% was obtained.

  17. Self-amplified Amazon forest loss due to vegetation-atmosphere feedbacks.

    PubMed

    Zemp, Delphine Clara; Schleussner, Carl-Friedrich; Barbosa, Henrique M J; Hirota, Marina; Montade, Vincent; Sampaio, Gilvan; Staal, Arie; Wang-Erlandsson, Lan; Rammig, Anja

    2017-03-13

    Reduced rainfall increases the risk of forest dieback, while in return forest loss might intensify regional droughts. The consequences of this vegetation-atmosphere feedback for the stability of the Amazon forest are still unclear. Here we show that the risk of self-amplified Amazon forest loss increases nonlinearly with dry-season intensification. We apply a novel complex-network approach, in which Amazon forest patches are linked by observation-based atmospheric water fluxes. Our results suggest that the risk of self-amplified forest loss is reduced with increasing heterogeneity in the response of forest patches to reduced rainfall. Under dry-season Amazonian rainfall reductions, comparable to Last Glacial Maximum conditions, additional forest loss due to self-amplified effects occurs in 10-13% of the Amazon basin. Although our findings do not indicate that the projected rainfall changes for the end of the twenty-first century will lead to complete Amazon dieback, they suggest that frequent extreme drought events have the potential to destabilize large parts of the Amazon forest.

  18. Self-amplified Amazon forest loss due to vegetation-atmosphere feedbacks

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zemp, Delphine Clara; Schleussner, Carl-Friedrich; Barbosa, Henrique M. J.; Hirota, Marina; Montade, Vincent; Sampaio, Gilvan; Staal, Arie; Wang-Erlandsson, Lan; Rammig, Anja

    2017-03-01

    Reduced rainfall increases the risk of forest dieback, while in return forest loss might intensify regional droughts. The consequences of this vegetation-atmosphere feedback for the stability of the Amazon forest are still unclear. Here we show that the risk of self-amplified Amazon forest loss increases nonlinearly with dry-season intensification. We apply a novel complex-network approach, in which Amazon forest patches are linked by observation-based atmospheric water fluxes. Our results suggest that the risk of self-amplified forest loss is reduced with increasing heterogeneity in the response of forest patches to reduced rainfall. Under dry-season Amazonian rainfall reductions, comparable to Last Glacial Maximum conditions, additional forest loss due to self-amplified effects occurs in 10-13% of the Amazon basin. Although our findings do not indicate that the projected rainfall changes for the end of the twenty-first century will lead to complete Amazon dieback, they suggest that frequent extreme drought events have the potential to destabilize large parts of the Amazon forest.

  19. Self-amplified Amazon forest loss due to vegetation-atmosphere feedbacks

    PubMed Central

    Zemp, Delphine Clara; Schleussner, Carl-Friedrich; Barbosa, Henrique M. J.; Hirota, Marina; Montade, Vincent; Sampaio, Gilvan; Staal, Arie; Wang-Erlandsson, Lan; Rammig, Anja

    2017-01-01

    Reduced rainfall increases the risk of forest dieback, while in return forest loss might intensify regional droughts. The consequences of this vegetation–atmosphere feedback for the stability of the Amazon forest are still unclear. Here we show that the risk of self-amplified Amazon forest loss increases nonlinearly with dry-season intensification. We apply a novel complex-network approach, in which Amazon forest patches are linked by observation-based atmospheric water fluxes. Our results suggest that the risk of self-amplified forest loss is reduced with increasing heterogeneity in the response of forest patches to reduced rainfall. Under dry-season Amazonian rainfall reductions, comparable to Last Glacial Maximum conditions, additional forest loss due to self-amplified effects occurs in 10–13% of the Amazon basin. Although our findings do not indicate that the projected rainfall changes for the end of the twenty-first century will lead to complete Amazon dieback, they suggest that frequent extreme drought events have the potential to destabilize large parts of the Amazon forest. PMID:28287104

  20. Mediation analysis to estimate direct and indirect milk losses due to clinical mastitis in dairy cattle.

    PubMed

    Detilleux, J; Kastelic, J P; Barkema, H W

    2015-03-01

    Milk losses associated with mastitis can be attributed to either effects of pathogens per se (i.e., direct losses) or effects of the immune response triggered by intramammary infection (indirect losses). The distinction is important in terms of mastitis prevention and treatment. Regardless, the number of pathogens is often unknown (particularly in field studies), making it difficult to estimate direct losses, whereas indirect losses can be approximated by measuring the association between increased somatic cell count (SCC) and milk production. An alternative is to perform a mediation analysis in which changes in milk yield are allocated into their direct and indirect components. We applied this method on data for clinical mastitis, milk and SCC test-day recordings, results of bacteriological cultures (Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus uberis, coagulase-negative staphylococci, Streptococcus dysgalactiae, and streptococci other than Strep. dysgalactiae and Strep. uberis), and cow characteristics. Following a diagnosis of clinical mastitis, the cow was treated and changes (increase or decrease) in milk production before and after a diagnosis were interpreted counterfactually. On a daily basis, indirect changes, mediated by SCC increase, were significantly different from zero for all bacterial species, with a milk yield decrease (ranging among species from 4 to 33g and mediated by an increase of 1000 SCC/mL/day) before and a daily milk increase (ranging among species from 2 to 12g and mediated by a decrease of 1000 SCC/mL/day) after detection. Direct changes, not mediated by SCC, were only different from zero for coagulase-negative staphylococci before diagnosis (72g per day). We concluded that mixed structural equation models were useful to estimate direct and indirect effects of the presence of clinical mastitis on milk yield. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Trade-off between reservoir yield and evaporation losses as a function of lake morphology in semi-arid Brazil.

    PubMed

    Campos, José N B; Lima, Iran E; Studart, Ticiana M C; Nascimento, Luiz S V

    2016-05-31

    This study investigates the relationships between yield and evaporation as a function of lake morphology in semi-arid Brazil. First, a new methodology was proposed to classify the morphology of 40 reservoirs in the Ceará State, with storage capacities ranging from approximately 5 to 4500 hm3. Then, Monte Carlo simulations were conducted to study the effect of reservoir morphology (including real and simplified conical forms) on the water storage process at different reliability levels. The reservoirs were categorized as convex (60.0%), slightly convex (27.5%) or linear (12.5%). When the conical approximation was used instead of the real lake form, a trade-off occurred between reservoir yield and evaporation losses, with different trends for the convex, slightly convex and linear reservoirs. Using the conical approximation, the water yield prediction errors reached approximately 5% of the mean annual inflow, which is negligible for large reservoirs. However, for smaller reservoirs, this error became important. Therefore, this paper presents a new procedure for correcting the yield-evaporation relationships that were obtained by assuming a conical approximation rather than the real reservoir morphology. The combination of this correction with the Regulation Triangle Diagram is useful for rapidly and objectively predicting reservoir yield and evaporation losses in semi-arid environments.

  2. Global earthquake casualties due to secondary effects: A quantitative analysis for improving rapid loss analyses

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Marano, K.D.; Wald, D.J.; Allen, T.I.

    2010-01-01

    This study presents a quantitative and geospatial description of global losses due to earthquake-induced secondary effects, including landslide, liquefaction, tsunami, and fire for events during the past 40 years. These processes are of great importance to the US Geological Survey's (USGS) Prompt Assessment of Global Earthquakes for Response (PAGER) system, which is currently being developed to deliver rapid earthquake impact and loss assessments following large/significant global earthquakes. An important question is how dominant are losses due to secondary effects (and under what conditions, and in which regions)? Thus, which of these effects should receive higher priority research efforts in order to enhance PAGER's overall assessment of earthquakes losses and alerting for the likelihood of secondary impacts? We find that while 21.5% of fatal earthquakes have deaths due to secondary (non-shaking) causes, only rarely are secondary effects the main cause of fatalities. The recent 2004 Great Sumatra-Andaman Islands earthquake is a notable exception, with extraordinary losses due to tsunami. The potential for secondary hazards varies greatly, and systematically, due to regional geologic and geomorphic conditions. Based on our findings, we have built country-specific disclaimers for PAGER that address potential for each hazard (Earle et al., Proceedings of the 14th World Conference of the Earthquake Engineering, Beijing, China, 2008). We will now focus on ways to model casualties from secondary effects based on their relative importance as well as their general predictability. ?? Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2009.

  3. Quantifying Biodiversity Losses Due to Human Consumption: A Global-Scale Footprint Analysis.

    PubMed

    Wilting, Harry C; Schipper, Aafke M; Bakkenes, Michel; Meijer, Johan R; Huijbregts, Mark A J

    2017-03-21

    It is increasingly recognized that human consumption leads to considerable losses of biodiversity. This study is the first to systematically quantify these losses in relation to land use and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with the production and consumption of (inter)nationally traded goods and services by presenting consumption-based biodiversity losses, in short biodiversity footprint, for 45 countries and world regions globally. Our results showed that (i) the biodiversity loss per citizen shows large variations among countries, with higher values when per-capita income increases; (ii) the share of biodiversity losses due to GHG emissions in the biodiversity footprint increases with income; (iii) food consumption is the most important driver of biodiversity loss in most of the countries and regions, with a global average of 40%; (iv) more than 50% of the biodiversity loss associated with consumption in developed economies occurs outside their territorial boundaries; and (v) the biodiversity footprint per dollar consumed is lower for wealthier countries. The insights provided by our analysis might support policymakers in developing adequate responses to avert further losses of biodiversity when population and incomes increase. Both the mitigation of GHG emissions and land use related reduction options in production and consumption should be considered in strategies to protect global biodiversity.

  4. Using Reanalysis Data for the Prediction of Seasonal Wind Turbine Power Losses Due to Icing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Burtch, D.; Mullendore, G. L.; Delene, D. J.; Storm, B.

    2013-12-01

    The Northern Plains region of the United States is home to a significant amount of potential wind energy. However, in winter months capturing this potential power is severely impacted by the meteorological conditions, in the form of icing. Predicting the expected loss in power production due to icing is a valuable parameter that can be used in wind turbine operations, determination of wind turbine site locations and long-term energy estimates which are used for financing purposes. Currently, losses due to icing must be estimated when developing predictions for turbine feasibility and financing studies, while icing maps, a tool commonly used in Europe, are lacking in the United States. This study uses the Modern-Era Retrospective Analysis for Research and Applications (MERRA) dataset in conjunction with turbine production data to investigate various methods of predicting seasonal losses (October-March) due to icing at two wind turbine sites located 121 km apart in North Dakota. The prediction of icing losses is based on temperature and relative humidity thresholds and is accomplished using three methods. For each of the three methods, the required atmospheric variables are determined in one of two ways: using industry-specific software to correlate anemometer data in conjunction with the MERRA dataset and using only the MERRA dataset for all variables. For each season, a percentage of the total expected generated power lost due to icing is determined and compared to observed losses from the production data. An optimization is performed in order to determine the relative humidity threshold that minimizes the difference between the predicted and observed values. Eight seasons of data are used to determine an optimal relative humidity threshold, and a further three seasons of data are used to test this threshold. Preliminary results have shown that the optimized relative humidity threshold for the northern turbine is higher than the southern turbine for all methods

  5. Evaluation of Loss Due to Storm Surge Disasters in China Based on Econometric Model Groups.

    PubMed

    Jin, Xue; Shi, Xiaoxia; Gao, Jintian; Xu, Tongbin; Yin, Kedong

    2018-03-27

    Storm surge has become an important factor restricting the economic and social development of China's coastal regions. In order to improve the scientific judgment of future storm surge damage, a method of model groups is proposed to refine the evaluation of the loss due to storm surges. Due to the relative dispersion and poor regularity of the natural property data (login center air pressure, maximum wind speed, maximum storm water, super warning water level, etc.), storm surge disaster is divided based on eight kinds of storm surge disaster grade division methods combined with storm surge water, hypervigilance tide level, and disaster loss. The storm surge disaster loss measurement model groups consist of eight equations, and six major modules are constructed: storm surge disaster in agricultural loss, fishery loss, human resource loss, engineering facility loss, living facility loss, and direct economic loss. Finally, the support vector machine (SVM) model is used to evaluate the loss and the intra-sample prediction. It is indicated that the equations of the model groups can reflect in detail the relationship between the damage of storm surges and other related variables. Based on a comparison of the original value and the predicted value error, the model groups pass the test, providing scientific support and a decision basis for the early layout of disaster prevention and mitigation.

  6. Evaluation of Loss Due to Storm Surge Disasters in China Based on Econometric Model Groups

    PubMed Central

    Shi, Xiaoxia; Xu, Tongbin; Yin, Kedong

    2018-01-01

    Storm surge has become an important factor restricting the economic and social development of China’s coastal regions. In order to improve the scientific judgment of future storm surge damage, a method of model groups is proposed to refine the evaluation of the loss due to storm surges. Due to the relative dispersion and poor regularity of the natural property data (login center air pressure, maximum wind speed, maximum storm water, super warning water level, etc.), storm surge disaster is divided based on eight kinds of storm surge disaster grade division methods combined with storm surge water, hypervigilance tide level, and disaster loss. The storm surge disaster loss measurement model groups consist of eight equations, and six major modules are constructed: storm surge disaster in agricultural loss, fishery loss, human resource loss, engineering facility loss, living facility loss, and direct economic loss. Finally, the support vector machine (SVM) model is used to evaluate the loss and the intra-sample prediction. It is indicated that the equations of the model groups can reflect in detail the relationship between the damage of storm surges and other related variables. Based on a comparison of the original value and the predicted value error, the model groups pass the test, providing scientific support and a decision basis for the early layout of disaster prevention and mitigation. PMID:29584628

  7. Losses due to weather phenomena in the bituminous concrete construction industry in Wisconsin

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Kuhn, H. A. J.

    1973-01-01

    The losses (costs) due to weather phenomena as they affect the bituminous concrete industry in Wisconsin were studied. The bituminous concrete industry's response to precipitation, in the form of rain, is identified through the use of a model, albeit crude, which identifies a typical industry decision-response mechanism. Using this mechanism, historical weather data and 1969 construction activity, dollar losses resulting from rain occurrences were developed.

  8. Measuring production loss due to health and work environment problems: construct validity and implications.

    PubMed

    Karlsson, Malin Lohela; Bergström, Gunnar; Björklund, Christina; Hagberg, Jan; Jensen, Irene

    2013-12-01

    The aim was to validate two measures of production loss, health-related and work environment-related production loss, concerning their associations with health status and work environment factors. Validity was assessed by evaluating the construct validity. Health problems related and work environment-related problems (or factors) were included in separate analyses and evaluated regarding the significant difference in proportion of explained variation (R) of production loss. health problems production loss was not found to fulfill the criteria for convergent validity in this study; however, the measure of work environment-related production loss did fulfill the criteria that were set up. The measure of work environment-related production loss can be used to screen for production loss due to work environment problems as well as an outcome measure when evaluating the effect of organizational interventions.

  9. North-south differences in Chinese agricultural losses due to climate-change-influenced droughts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Qiang, Zhang; Lanying, Han; Jingjing, Lin; Qingyan, Cheng

    2018-01-01

    One of the effects of global climate change is increase in the frequency and severity of drought, which strongly affects the Chinese agricultural production. In order to cope these changes more effectively, it is important to document and analyze the agricultural losses caused by drought. We collected and analyzed conventional meteorological data and agricultural statistics data, in order to outline trends in drought occurrence and decline in agricultural yield. Data were assembled for the period 1960-2010. The study pays particular attention to regional differences between northern and southern China. Our results show the drought-caused agricultural loss rates (DCALR) in China have increased by approximately 0.5% per decade in the past 50 years. The study area in this paper is for the whole of the People's Republic of China, minus the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau; when we analyzed regional differences, we found that losses increased by approximately 0.6% per decade in northern China, close to twice the increase in southern China. Moreover, drought risks and agricultural losses are rising faster in northern China. Our results also indicate that the agriculture in northern China is more sensitive to changes in precipitation, whereas the agriculture in southern China is more sensitive to temperature changes.

  10. Determining forest carbon stock losses due to wildfire disturbance in the Western United States

    Treesearch

    John M. Zobel; John W. Coulston

    2015-01-01

    Quantifying carbon stock losses after wildfire events is challenging due to the lack of detailed information before and after the disturbance. We propose to use the extensive Western FIA database (including periodic and annual inventories) to recreate pre- and post-fire conditions to better estimate actual carbon losses. Methods include using remeasurement date where...

  11. Degradation Mechanisms in Blue Phosphorescent Organic Light-Emitting Devices by Exciton-Polaron Interactions: Loss in Quantum Yield versus Loss in Charge Balance.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Yingjie; Aziz, Hany

    2017-01-11

    We study the relative importance of deterioration of material quantum yield and charge balance to the electroluminescence stability of PHOLEDs, with a special emphasis on blue devices. Investigations show that the quantum yields of both host and emitter in the emission layer degrade due to exciton-polaron interactions and that the deterioration in material quantum yield plays the primary role in device degradation under operation. On the other hand, the results show that the charge balance factor is also affected by exciton-polaron interactions but only plays a secondary role in determining device stability. Finally, we show that the degradation mechanisms in blue PHOLEDs are fundamentally the same as those in green PHOLEDs. The limited stability of the blue devices is a result of faster deterioration in the quantum yield of the emitter.

  12. Loss of ring current O(+) ions due to interaction with Pc 5 waves

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Xinlin; Hudson, Mary; Chan, Anthony; Roth, Ilan

    1993-01-01

    A test particle code is used here to investigate ring current ion interaction with Pc 5 waves, combined with convection and corotation electric fields, with emphasis on the loss of O(+) ions over the dayside magnetosphere. A new loss mechanism for the O(+) ions due to the combined effects of convection and corotation electric fields and interactions with Pc 5 waves via a magnetic drift-bound resonance is presented. For given fields, whether a particle gains or losses energy depends on its initial kinetic energy, pitch angle at the equatorial plane, and the position of its guiding center with respect to the azimuthal phase of the wave. The ring current O(+) ions show a dispersion in energies and L values with decreasing local time across the dayside, and a bulk shift to lower energies and higher L values. Due to interaction with the Pc 5 waves, the particle's kinetic energy can drop below that required to overcome the convection potential and the particle is lost to the dayside magnetopause by a sunward E x B drift.

  13. Simulating crop yield losses in Switzerland for historical and present Tambora climate scenarios

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Flückiger, Simon; Brönnimann, Stefan; Holzkämper, Annelie; Fuhrer, Jürg; Krämer, Daniel; Pfister, Christian; Rohr, Christian

    2017-07-01

    Severe climatic anomalies in summer 1816, partly due to the eruption of Tambora in April 1815, contributed to delayed growth and poor harvests of important crops in Central Europe. Coinciding with adverse socio-economic conditions, this event triggered the last subsistence crisis in the western World. Here, we model reductions in potential crop yields for 1816 and 1817 and address the question, what impact a similar climatic anomaly would have today. We reconstructed daily weather for Switzerland for 1816/17 on a 2 km grid using historical observations and an analogue resampling method. These data were used to simulate potential crop yields for potato, grain maize, and winter barley using the CropSyst model calibrated for current crop cultivars. We also simulated yields for the same weather anomalies, but referenced to a present-day baseline temperature. Results show that reduced temperature delayed growth and harvest considerably, and in combination with reduced solar irradiance led to a substantial reduction (20%-50%) in the potential yield of potato in 1816. Effects on winter barley were smaller. Significant reductions were also modelled for 1817 and were mainly due to a cold late spring. Relative reductions for the present-day scenario for the two crops were almost indistinguishable from the historical ones. An even stronger response was found for maize, which was not yet common in 1816/17. Waterlogging, which we assessed using a stress-day approach, likely added to the simulated reductions. The documented, strong east-west gradient in malnutrition across Switzerland in 1817/18 could not be explained by biophysical yield limitations (though excess-water limitation might have contributed), but rather by economic, political and social factors. This highlights the importance of these factors for a societies’ ability to cope with extreme climate events. While the adaptive capacity of today’s society in Switzerland is much greater than in the early 19th century

  14. An assessment of yield gains under climate change due to genetic modification of pearl millet.

    PubMed

    Singh, Piara; Boote, K J; Kadiyala, M D M; Nedumaran, S; Gupta, S K; Srinivas, K; Bantilan, M C S

    2017-12-01

    Developing cultivars with traits that can enhance and sustain productivity under climate change will be an important climate smart adaptation option. The modified CSM-CERES-Pearl millet model was used to assess yield gains by modifying plant traits determining crop maturity duration, potential yield and tolerance to drought and heat in pearl millet cultivars grown at six locations in arid (Hisar, Jodhpur, Bikaner) and semi-arid (Jaipur, Aurangabad and Bijapur) tropical India and two locations in semi-arid tropical West Africa (Sadore in Niamey and Cinzana in Mali). In all the study locations the yields decreased when crop maturity duration was decreased by 10% both in current and future climate conditions; however, 10% increase in crop maturity significantly (p<0.05) increased yields at Aurangabad and Bijapur, but not at other locations. Increasing yield potential traits by 10% increased yields under both the climate situations in India and West Africa. Drought tolerance imparted the lowest yield gain at Aurangabad (6%), the highest at Sadore (30%) and intermediate at the other locations under current climate. Under climate change the contribution of drought tolerance to the yield of cultivars either increased or decreased depending upon changes in rainfall of the locations. Yield benefits of heat tolerance substantially increased under climate change at most locations, having the greatest effects at Bikaner (17%) in India and Sadore (13%) in West Africa. Aurangabad and Bijapur locations had no yield advantage from heat tolerance due to their low temperature regimes. Thus drought and heat tolerance in pearl millet increased yields under climate change in both the arid and semi-arid tropical climates with greater benefit in relatively hotter environments. This study will assists the plant breeders in evaluating new promising plant traits of pearl millet for adapting to climate change at the selected locations and other similar environments. Copyright © 2017 The

  15. [Labor productivity losses attributable to premature deaths due to traffic injuries between 2002 and 2012].

    PubMed

    Cubí-Mollá, Patricia; Peña-Longobardo, Luz María; Casal, Bruno; Rivera, Berta; Oliva-Moreno, Juan

    2015-09-01

    To estimate the years of potential life lost, years of potential productive life lost and the labor productivity losses attributable to premature deaths due to traffic injuries between 2002 and 2012 in Spain. Several statistical sources were combined (Spanish Registry of Deaths, Labor Force Survey and Wage Structure Survey) to develop a simulation model based on the human capital approach. This model allowed us to estimate the loss of labor productivity caused by premature deaths following traffic injuries from 2002 to 2012. In addition, mortality tables with life expectancy estimates were used to compute years of potential life lost and years of potential productive life lost. The estimated loss of labour productivity caused by fatal traffic injuries between 2002 and 2012 in Spain amounted to 9,521 million euros (baseline year 2012). The aggregate number of years of potential life lost in the period amounted to 1,433,103, whereas the years of potential productive life lost amounted to 875,729. Throughout the period analyzed, labor productivity losses and years of life lost diminished substantially. Labor productivity losses due to fatal traffic injuries decreased throughout the period analyzed. Nevertheless, the cumulative loss was alarmingly high. Estimation of the economic impact of health problems can complement conventional indicators of distinct dimensions and be used to support public policy making. Copyright © 2014 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  16. Application of wheat yield model to United States and India. [Great Plains

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Feyerherm, A. M. (Principal Investigator)

    1977-01-01

    The author has identified the following significant results. The wheat yield model was applied to the major wheat-growing areas of the US and India. In the US Great Plains, estimates from the winter and spring wheat models agreed closely with USDA-SRS values in years with the lowest yields, but underestimated in years with the highest yields. Application to the Eastern Plains and Northwest indicated the importance of cultural factors, as well as meteorological ones in the model. It also demonstrated that the model could be used, in conjunction with USDA-SRRS estimates, to estimate yield losses due to factors not included in the model, particularly diseases and freezes. A fixed crop calendar for India was built from a limited amount of available plot data from that country. Application of the yield model gave measurable evidence that yield variation from state to state was due to different mixes of levels of meteorological and cultural factors.

  17. No-tillage effects on grain yield, N use efficiency, and nutrient runoff losses in paddy fields.

    PubMed

    Liang, Xinqiang; Zhang, Huifang; He, Miaomiao; Yuan, Junli; Xu, Lixian; Tian, Guangming

    2016-11-01

    The effect of no-tillage (NT) on rice yield and nitrogen (N) behavior often varies considerably from individual studies. A meta-analysis was performed to assess quantitatively the effect of NT on rice yield and N uptake by rice, N use efficiency (NUE, i.e., fertilizer N recovery efficiency), and nutrient runoff losses. We obtained data from 74 rice-field experiments reported during the last three decades (1983-2013). Results showed the NT system brought a reduction of 3.8 % in the rice yield compared with conventional tillage (CT). Soil pH of 6.5-7.5 was favorable for the improvement of rice yield with the NT system, while a significant negative NT effect on rice yield was observed in sandy soils (p < 0.05). N rate, ranging from 120 to 180 kg N ha -1 , for at least 3 years was necessary for NT to enable rice yield comparable with that of CT. Furthermore, the observations indicated NT reduced N uptake and NUE of the rice by 5.4 and 16.9 %, while increased the N and P exports via runoff by 15.4 and 40.1 % compared with CT, respectively. Seedling cast transplantation, N rate within the range 120-180 kg N ha -1 , and employing NT for longer than 3 years should be encouraged to compromise between productivity and environmental effects of NT implementation in rice fields.

  18. Nitrogen rate strategies for reducing yield-scaled nitrous oxide emissions in maize

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhao, Xu; Nafziger, Emerson D.; Pittelkow, Cameron M.

    2017-12-01

    Mitigating nitrogen (N) losses from agriculture without negatively impacting crop productivity is a pressing environmental and economic challenge. Reductions in N fertilizer rate are often highlighted as a solution, yet the degree to which crop yields and economic returns may be impacted at the field-level remains unclear, in part due to limited data availability. Farmers are risk averse and potential yield losses may limit the success of voluntary N loss mitigation protocols, thus understanding field-level yield tradeoffs is critical to inform policy development. Using a case study of soil N2O mitigation in the US Midwest, we conducted an ex-post assessment of two economic and two environmental N rate reduction strategies to identify promising practices for maintaining maize yields and economic returns while reducing N2O emissions per unit yield (i.e. yield-scaled emissions) compared to an assumed baseline N input level. Maize yield response data from 201 on-farm N rate experiments were combined with an empirical equation predicting N2O emissions as a function of N rate. Results indicate that the economic strategy aimed at maximizing returns to N (MRTN) led to moderate but consistent reductions in yield-scaled N2O emissions with small negative impacts on yield and slight increases in median returns. The economic optimum N rate strategy reduced yield-scaled N2O emissions in 75% of cases but increased them otherwise, challenging the assumption that this strategy will automatically reduce environmental impacts per unit production. Both environmental strategies, one designed to increase N recovery efficiency and one to balance N inputs with grain N removal, further reduced yield-scaled N2O emissions but were also associated with negative yield penalties and decreased returns. These results highlight the inherent tension between achieving agronomic and economic goals while reducing environmental impacts which is often overlooked in policy discussions. To enable the

  19. The physiotherapeutic context of loss of dominant arm function due to occupational accidents.

    PubMed

    Kostiukow, Anna; Kaluga, Elżbieta; Samborski, Włodzimierz; Rostkowska, Elżbieta

    2016-12-23

    The study examines the problem of dominant arm function loss in rural adult patients due to work-related accidents. The types of risks involved in farmyard work include falling from a height, manually moving loads, overturning/accident whilst driving an agricultural tractor, noise and vibration, use of pesticides, and the risk of being cut or injured. The study focuses on adaptation of the non-dominant arm. The main aim of the study was evaluation of visual-motor coordination on the basis of performance of the non-dominant hand in patients after the loss of function of the dominant arm. The research sample consisted of 52 patients with a permanent or temporary loss of function or severely limited function of the dominant arm. The subjects were patients with arm amputations due to various occupational injuries sustained while operating agricultural and construction machinery and forestry equipment, following traumas or complicated medical surgeries of the arm, or due to car accidents. The following tests were applied in the analysis: I) Dufour cross-shaped apparatus test for assessing visual motor-coordination; II) paper-and-pencil tests and the Relay Baton motor fitness test; III) anthropometric measurements; IV) Edinburgh Handedness Inventory; and V) a questionnaire survey. The results of the apparatus and motor tests indicate the same tendency: reaction to stimuli measured on the basis of performance of the non-dominant arm is longer in shorter and older patients. Visual-motor coordination, as measured by the performance of the non-dominant arm, is significantly affected by the subject's body height and arm length.

  20. Tooth loss due to periodontal abscess: a retrospective study.

    PubMed

    McLeod, D E; Lainson, P A; Spivey, J D

    1997-10-01

    This retrospective study focused on the frequency of tooth loss due to periodontal abscess among 42 patients who were treated by a single clinician over a 5- to 29-year period. A total of 114 patients were selected from the active periodontal recall schedule of a single periodontist at The University of Iowa College of Dentistry. The criteria for inclusion in the study included having a history of moderate to advanced periodontitis, being on 3 to 6 month recall periodontal maintenance care, and completion of active periodontal therapy prior to October 1987. Other parameters evaluated were age; gender; number of teeth present and missing at the initial, reevaluation, and last periodontal recall visit; initial periodontal prognosis; furcation involvement; non-surgical and surgical periodontal therapy; and reasons for tooth loss. Patients were grouped according to the number of teeth lost following active periodontal treatment into well-maintained (0 to 3), downhill (4 to 9), and extreme downhill (10 to 23) groups. Forty-two of the 114 patients were identified as having one or more periodontal abscesses. A total of 109 teeth were affected by periodontal abscess of which 49 (45%) teeth were lost and 60 (55%) were successfully maintained over an average of 12.5 years (5 to 29 years). More furcated teeth were lost than nonfurcated teeth and teeth given a hopeless prognosis were lost more consistently than those given a questionable prognosis in all groups. The frequency of periodontal abscess and tooth loss per patient was greater in the downhill and extreme downhill response groups than the well-maintained group. This suggests that teeth with a history of periodontal abscess can be treated and maintained for several years.

  1. Broadband Transmission Loss Due to Reverberant Excitation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Barisciano, Lawrence P. Jr.

    1999-01-01

    The noise transmission characteristics of candidate curved aircraft sidewall panel constructions is examined analytically using finite element models of the selected panel geometries. The models are validated by experimental modal analyses and transmission loss testing. The structural and acoustic response of the models are then examined when subjected to random or reverberant excitation, the simulation of which is also discussed. For a candidate curved honeycomb panel, the effect of add-on trim panel treatments is examined. Specifically, two different mounting configurations are discussed and their effect on the transmission loss of the panel is presented. This study finds that the add-on acoustical treatments do improve on the primary structures transmission loss characteristics, however, much more research is necessary to draw any valid conclusions about the optimal configuration for the maximum noise transmission loss. This paper describes several directions for the extension of this work.

  2. 78 FR 35072 - Proposed Revision to Strategies and Guidance to Address Loss of Large Areas of the Plant Due to...

    Federal Register 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014

    2013-06-11

    ... Address Loss of Large Areas of the Plant Due to Explosions and Fires AGENCY: Nuclear Regulatory Commission... Standard Review Plan (SRP), Section 19.4 ``Strategies and Guidance to Address Loss of Large Areas of the... review of the subject of loss-of-large areas of the plant due to explosions and fires. DATES: Submit...

  3. The excess salt appetite of humans is not due to sodium loss in adulthood.

    PubMed

    Leshem, Micah

    2009-09-07

    In seeking the determinants of high salt intake, studies in rat have shown that sodium depletion in utero, neonatally, or in maturity, permanently enhances salt appetite. In humans too, salt appetite is permanently enhanced after perinatal sodium loss, but it is not known if sodium loss in adults also enhances salt intake. If it does, it might contribute to high sodium intake and its associated pathologies. Therefore, using methods that revealed the perinatal determinants of sodium appetite, here we evaluated whether salt appetite is enhanced in adults with a varied history of sodium loss. We find that putative sodium loss due to hyperhidrosis, hemorrhage, dehydration, or breastfeeding, does not increase salt appetite significantly. The findings contrast with the many studies showing enduring enhancement of salt appetite by perinatal sodium loss in humans, and suggest that lifelong salt appetite is established very early in development. In turn this counsels very early intervention to prevent lifelong excess sodium intake.

  4. A systematic worldwide review of the direct monetary losses in cattle due to bovine viral diarrhoea virus infection.

    PubMed

    Richter, Veronika; Lebl, Karin; Baumgartner, Walter; Obritzhauser, Walter; Käsbohrer, Annemarie; Pinior, Beate

    2017-02-01

    Bovine viral diarrhoea virus (BVDV) is an important infectious agent of cattle worldwide that affects herd productivity and reproduction. In this systematic review of the impact of BVDV, studies were analysed with a particular focus on the monetary implications and types of direct losses, the initial infection status of herds, production systems, time periods of assessment, calculation level, study types and whether or not country-specific assessments were published. A linear mixed model was applied to analyse factors that influence the level of monetary direct losses due to BVDV infection. The 44 studies included in this review covered 15 countries and assessed direct monetary losses due to BVDV incurred over the past 30 years. Direct losses between and within countries were largely heterogeneous with respect to the monetary level and types of direct losses, ranging from 0.50 to 687.80 US dollars (USD) per animal. 1 Average direct losses per naïve dairy cow were USD24.85 higher than per beef cow. Country-specific assessments of direct losses due to BVDV were provided in 38/44 (86.4%) studies. Mortality, morbidity, premature culling, stillbirths, abortion, reinfection, country and study type had a significant influence on the monetary level of direct losses (r 2  = 0.69). Countries recording direct losses were more likely to carry out voluntary or compulsory control and eradication programmes (odds ratio = 10.2; 95% confidence interval 1.7-81.9; P = 0.004). Copyright © 2017 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  5. Heat waves imposed during early pod development in soybean (Glycine max) cause significant yield loss despite a rapid recovery from oxidative stress.

    PubMed

    Siebers, Matthew H; Yendrek, Craig R; Drag, David; Locke, Anna M; Rios Acosta, Lorena; Leakey, Andrew D B; Ainsworth, Elizabeth A; Bernacchi, Carl J; Ort, Donald R

    2015-08-01

    Heat waves already have a large impact on crops and are predicted to become more intense and more frequent in the future. In this study, heat waves were imposed on soybean using infrared heating technology in a fully open-air field experiment. Five separate heat waves were applied to field-grown soybean (Glycine max) in central Illinois, three in 2010 and two in 2011. Thirty years of historical weather data from Illinois were analyzed to determine the length and intensity of a regionally realistic heat wave resulting in experimental heat wave treatments during which day and night canopy temperatures were elevated 6 °C above ambient for 3 days. Heat waves were applied during early or late reproductive stages to determine whether and when heat waves had an impact on carbon metabolism and seed yield. By the third day of each heat wave, net photosynthesis (A), specific leaf weight (SLW), and leaf total nonstructural carbohydrate concentration (TNC) were decreased, while leaf oxidative stress was increased. However, A, SLW, TNC, and measures of oxidative stress were no different than the control ca. 12 h after the heat waves ended, indicating rapid physiological recovery from the high-temperature stress. That end of season seed yield was reduced (~10%) only when heat waves were applied during early pod developmental stages indicates the yield loss had more to do with direct impacts of the heat waves on reproductive process than on photosynthesis. Soybean was unable to mitigate yield loss after heat waves given during late reproductive stages. This study shows that short high-temperature stress events that reduce photosynthesis and increase oxidative stress resulted in significant losses to soybean production in the Midwest, U.S. The study also suggests that to mitigate heat wave-induced yield loss, soybean needs improved reproductive and photosynthetic tolerance to high but increasingly common temperatures. Published 2015. This article is a U.S. Government work and is

  6. Optical losses of solar mirrors due to atmospheric contamination at Liberal, Kansas and Oologah, Oklahoma

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Dake, L.S.; Lind, M.A.

    An assessment is presented of the effect of outdoor exposure on mirrors located at two sites selected for potential solar cogeneration/repowering facilities: Liberal, Kansas and Oologah, Oklahoma. Mirror coupons were placed on tracking heliostat simulators located in the proposed heliostat fields and were removed periodically. The spectral hemispherical and diffuse reflectances of these coupons were measured. Representative samples were analyzed for the chemical composition of the dust particulates using SEM/EDX. Other samples were washed with a high pressure spray and recharacterized to determine the effects of the residual dust. Average specular reflectance losses over the entire test period (up tomore » 504 days) were 6 to 12%, with a range of 1 to 30%. Specular reflectance losses varied widely from day to day depending on local weather conditions. The losses due to scattering were 2 to 5 times greater than the losses due to absorptance. The average degradation rate over the first thirty days was an order of magnitude larger than the average degradation rate over the entire sampling period. Specular reflectance loss rates averaged 0.5% per day and greater between periods of natural cleaning. The chemical composition of the dust on the mirrors was characteristic of the indigenous soil, with some samples also showing the presence of sulfur and chlorine, possibly from cooling tower drift.« less

  7. Microwave Energy Increases Fatty Acid Methyl Ester Yield in Human Whole Blood Due to Increased Sphingomyelin Transesterification.

    PubMed

    Metherel, Adam H; Aristizabal Henao, Juan J; Ciobanu, Flaviu; Taha, Ameer Y; Stark, Ken D

    2015-09-01

    Dried blood spots (DBS) by fingertip prick collection for fatty acid profiling are becoming increasingly popular due to ease of collection, minimal invasiveness and its amenability to high-throughput analyses. Herein, we assess a microwave-assisted direct transesterification method for the production of fatty acid methyl esters (FAME) from DBS. Technical replicates of human whole blood were collected and 25-μL aliquots were applied to chromatography strips prior to analysis by a standard 3-h transesterification method or microwave-assisted direct transesterification method under various power (variable vs constant), time (1-5 min) and reagent (1-10% H2SO4 in methanol) conditions. In addition, a standard method was compared to a 5-min, 30-W power microwave in 1% H2SO4 method for FAME yield from whole blood sphingomyelin, and sphingomyelin standards alone and spiked in whole blood. Microwave-assisted direct transesterification yielded no significant differences in both quantitative (nmol/100 µL) and qualitative (mol%) fatty acid assessments after as little as 1.5- and 1-min reaction times, respectively, using the variable power method and 5% H2SO4 in methanol. However, 30-W power for 5 min increased total FAME yield of the technical replicates by 14%. This increase appears largely due to higher sphingomyelin-derived FAME yield of up to 109 and 399% compared to the standard method when determined from whole blood or pure standards, respectively. In conclusion, microwave-assisted direct transesterification of DBS achieved in as little as 1-min, and 5-min reaction times increase total fatty acids primarily by significantly improving sphingomyelin-derived fatty acid yield.

  8. Scenarios for future biodiversity loss due to multiple drivers reveal conflict between mitigating climate change and preserving biodiversity

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Powell, Thomas W. R.; Lenton, Timothy M.

    2013-06-01

    We assess the potential for future biodiversity loss due to three interacting factors: energy withdrawal from ecosystems due to biomass harvest, habitat loss due to land-use change, and climate change. We develop four scenarios to 2050 with different combinations of high or low agricultural efficiency and high or low meat diets, and use species-energy and species-area relationships to estimate their effects on biodiversity. In our scenarios, natural ecosystems are protected except when additional land is necessary to fulfil the increasing dietary demands of the global population. Biomass energy with carbon capture and storage (BECCS) is used as a means of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) from the atmosphere (and offsetting fossil fuel emissions). BECCS is based on waste biomass, with the addition of bio-energy crops only when already managed land is no longer needed for food production. Forecast biodiversity loss from natural biomes increases by more than a factor of five in going from high to low agricultural efficiency scenarios, due to destruction of productive habitats by the expansion of pasture. Biodiversity loss from energy withdrawal on managed land varies by a factor of two across the scenarios. Biodiversity loss due to climate change varies only modestly across the scenarios. Climate change is lowest in the ‘low meat high efficiency’ scenario, in which by 2050 around 660 million hectares of pasture are converted to biomass plantation that is used for BECCS. However, the resulting withdrawal of energy from managed ecosystems has a large negative impact on biodiversity. Although the effects of energy withdrawal and climate change on biodiversity cannot be directly compared, this suggests that using bio-energy to tackle climate change in order to limit biodiversity loss could instead have the opposite effect.

  9. Managing for No Net Loss of Ecological Services: An Approach for Quantifying Loss of Coastal Wetlands due to Sea Level Rise.

    PubMed

    Kassakian, Jennifer; Jones, Ann; Martinich, Jeremy; Hudgens, Daniel

    2017-05-01

    Sea level rise has the potential to substantially alter the extent and nature of coastal wetlands and the critical ecological services they provide. In making choices about how to respond to rising sea level, planners are challenged with weighing easily quantified risks (e.g., loss of property value due to inundation) against those that are more difficult to quantify (e.g., loss of primary production or carbon sequestration services provided by wetlands due to inundation). Our goal was to develop a cost-effective, appropriately-scaled, model-based approach that allows planners to predict, under various sea level rise and response scenarios, the economic cost of wetland loss-with the estimates proxied by the costs of future restoration required to maintain the existing level of wetland habitat services. Our approach applies the Sea Level Affecting Marshes Model to predict changes in wetland habitats over the next century, and then applies Habitat Equivalency Analysis to predict the cost of restoration projects required to maintain ecological services at their present, pre-sea level rise level. We demonstrate the application of this approach in the Delaware Bay estuary and in the Indian River Lagoon (Florida), and discuss how this approach can support future coastal decision-making.

  10. Enhanced efficiency fertilizer’s effect on cotton yield and greenhouse gas emissions

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Interest in the use of enhanced-efficiency nitrogen fertilizer (EENFs) sources has increased in recent years due to the potential of these new EENF sources to increase crop yield, while at the same time decreasing N loss from agricultural fields. Nitrogen is the most essential nutrient needed to op...

  11. Estimating quality-adjusted life-year loss due to noncommunicable diseases in Korean adults through to the year 2040.

    PubMed

    Ock, Minsu; Han, Jung Won; Lee, Jin Yong; Kim, Seon-Ha; Jo, Min-Woo

    2015-01-01

    To estimate the loss in quality-adjusted life-years (QALYs) in Korean adults due to 13 noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) in 2010 and predict changes in QALY loss through to the year 2040. Thirteen NCDs (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, hyperlipidemia, stroke, myocardial infarction, angina, arthritis, osteoporosis, asthma, allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis, cataract, and depression) were selected from the Korean Community Health Survey 2010. The EuroQol five-dimensional questionnaire index from the Korean Community Health Survey 2010 and the Korean valuation set were used to estimate utility weights according to sex, age, and disease. Morbidity data were also obtained from the Korean Community Health Survey 2010. Mortality data according to disease and life expectancy were retrieved from the Korean Statistical Information Service. To predict future QALY loss, future population projection data from the Korean Statistical Information Service were used as substitutes for 2010 population size. Among the assessed 13 NCDs, the largest total QALY loss was for hypertension (513,113 QALYs; units are omitted hereafter), followed by arthritis (509,317) and stroke (431,049). The largest QALY loss due to mortality was stroke (306,733), whereas the largest QALY loss due to morbidity was arthritis (502,513). By applying the middle estimate of future population, the largest increase in total QALY loss between 2010 and 2040 was for hypertension (840,582), followed by stroke (719,076) and diabetes mellitus (474,607). Hypertension, arthritis, and stroke are important in terms of total QALY loss, which will continuous to increase because of aging. These results could be used to develop cost-effective interventions that reduce the burden of NCDs. Copyright © 2015. Published by Elsevier Inc.

  12. Sugar loss and enzyme inhibition due to oligosaccharide accumulation during high solids-loading enzymatic hydrolysis

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Xue, Saisi; Uppugundla, Nirmal; Bowman, Michael J.

    Accumulation of recalcitrant oligosaccharides during high-solids loading enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulosic biomass reduces biofuel yields and increases processing costs for a cellulosic biorefinery. Recalcitrant oligosaccharides in AFEX-pretreated corn stover hydrolysate accumulate to the extent of about 18–25 % of the total soluble sugars in the hydrolysate and 12–18 % of the total polysaccharides in the inlet biomass (untreated), equivalent to a yield loss of about 7–9 kg of monomeric sugars per 100 kg of inlet dry biomass (untreated). These oligosaccharides represent a yield loss and also inhibit commercial hydrolytic enzymes, with both being serious bottlenecks for economical biofuel production frommore » cellulosic biomass. Very little is understood about the nature of these oligomers and why they are recalcitrant to commercial enzymes. This work presents a robust method for separating recalcitrant oligosaccharides from high solid loading hydrolysate in gramme quantities. Composition analysis, recalcitrance study and enzyme inhibition study were performed to understand their chemical nature. Results indicate that, oligosaccharide accumulation occurs during high solid loading enzymatic hydrolysis of corn stover (CS) irrespective of using different pretreated corn stover (dilute acid: DA, ionic liquids: IL, and ammonia fibre expansion: AFEX). The methodology for large-scale separation of recalcitrant oligosaccharides from 25 % solids-loading AFEXcorn stover hydrolysate using charcoal fractionation and size exclusion chromatography is reported for the first time. Oligosaccharides with higher degree of polymerization (DP) were recalcitrant towards commercial enzyme mixtures [Ctec2, Htec2 and Multifect pectinase (MP)] compared to lower DP oligosaccharides. Enzyme inhibition studies using processed substrates (Avicel and xylan) showed that low DP oligosaccharides also inhibit commercial enzymes. Addition of monomeric sugars to oligosaccharides increases the

  13. Sugar loss and enzyme inhibition due to oligosaccharide accumulation during high solids-loading enzymatic hydrolysis

    DOE PAGES

    Xue, Saisi; Uppugundla, Nirmal; Bowman, Michael J.; ...

    2015-11-26

    Accumulation of recalcitrant oligosaccharides during high-solids loading enzymatic hydrolysis of cellulosic biomass reduces biofuel yields and increases processing costs for a cellulosic biorefinery. Recalcitrant oligosaccharides in AFEX-pretreated corn stover hydrolysate accumulate to the extent of about 18–25 % of the total soluble sugars in the hydrolysate and 12–18 % of the total polysaccharides in the inlet biomass (untreated), equivalent to a yield loss of about 7–9 kg of monomeric sugars per 100 kg of inlet dry biomass (untreated). These oligosaccharides represent a yield loss and also inhibit commercial hydrolytic enzymes, with both being serious bottlenecks for economical biofuel production frommore » cellulosic biomass. Very little is understood about the nature of these oligomers and why they are recalcitrant to commercial enzymes. This work presents a robust method for separating recalcitrant oligosaccharides from high solid loading hydrolysate in gramme quantities. Composition analysis, recalcitrance study and enzyme inhibition study were performed to understand their chemical nature. Results indicate that, oligosaccharide accumulation occurs during high solid loading enzymatic hydrolysis of corn stover (CS) irrespective of using different pretreated corn stover (dilute acid: DA, ionic liquids: IL, and ammonia fibre expansion: AFEX). The methodology for large-scale separation of recalcitrant oligosaccharides from 25 % solids-loading AFEXcorn stover hydrolysate using charcoal fractionation and size exclusion chromatography is reported for the first time. Oligosaccharides with higher degree of polymerization (DP) were recalcitrant towards commercial enzyme mixtures [Ctec2, Htec2 and Multifect pectinase (MP)] compared to lower DP oligosaccharides. Enzyme inhibition studies using processed substrates (Avicel and xylan) showed that low DP oligosaccharides also inhibit commercial enzymes. Addition of monomeric sugars to oligosaccharides increases the

  14. Methodological framework for projecting the potential loss of intraspecific genetic diversity due to global climate change

    PubMed Central

    2012-01-01

    Background While research on the impact of global climate change (GCC) on ecosystems and species is flourishing, a fundamental component of biodiversity – molecular variation – has not yet received its due attention in such studies. Here we present a methodological framework for projecting the loss of intraspecific genetic diversity due to GCC. Methods The framework consists of multiple steps that combines 1) hierarchical genetic clustering methods to define comparable units of inference, 2) species accumulation curves (SAC) to infer sampling completeness, and 3) species distribution modelling (SDM) to project the genetic diversity loss under GCC. We suggest procedures for existing data sets as well as specifically designed studies. We illustrate the approach with two worked examples from a land snail (Trochulus villosus) and a caddisfly (Smicridea (S.) mucronata). Results Sampling completeness was diagnosed on the third coarsest haplotype clade level for T. villosus and the second coarsest for S. mucronata. For both species, a substantial species range loss was projected under the chosen climate scenario. However, despite substantial differences in data set quality concerning spatial sampling and sampling depth, no loss of haplotype clades due to GCC was predicted for either species. Conclusions The suggested approach presents a feasible method to tap the rich resources of existing phylogeographic data sets and guide the design and analysis of studies explicitly designed to estimate the impact of GCC on a currently still neglected level of biodiversity. PMID:23176586

  15. [Sensorineural hearing loss due to neonatal hyperbilirubinemia].

    PubMed

    Clarós, P; Turcanu, D; Caballero, M; Costa, C; Clavería, M A; Clarós, A; Clarós, A

    2003-01-01

    In this article, the sensorineural hearing loss is presented as a possible sequelae of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. In our program of early hipoacusia detection, 241 babies were examined from January 1996 until November 1999; 7 cases had a history of hyperbilirubinemia in the neonatal period and 2 of them were diagnosed of sensorineural hearing loss. We discuss how the bilirubin or any other associated factor might have been the cause and this could explain the selective affectation of some children.

  16. Is amplitude loss of sonic waveforms due to intrinsic attenuation or source coupling to the medium?

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lee, Myung W.

    2006-01-01

    Sonic waveforms acquired in gas-hydrate-bearing sediments indicate strong amplitude loss associated with an increase in sonic velocity. Because the gas hydrate increases sonic velocities, the amplitude loss has been interpreted as due to intrinsic attenuation caused by the gas hydrate in the pore space, which apparently contradicts conventional wave propagation theory. For a sonic source in a fluid-filled borehole, the signal amplitude transmitted into the formation depends on the physical properties of the formation, including any pore contents, in the immediate vicinity of the source. A signal in acoustically fast material, such as gas-hydrate-bearing sediments, has a smaller amplitude than a signal in acoustically slower material. Therefore, it is reasonable to interpret the amplitude loss in the gas-hydrate-bearing sediments in terms of source coupling to the surrounding medium as well as intrinsic attenuation. An analysis of sonic waveforms measured at the Mallik 5L-38 well, Northwest Territories, Canada, indicates that a significant part of the sonic waveform's amplitude loss is due to a source-coupling effect. All amplitude analyses of sonic waveforms should include the effect of source coupling in order to accurately characterize the formation's intrinsic attenuation.

  17. Evaluation of Mismatch Losses due to Shunts in industrial Silicon Photovoltaic Modules

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Somasundaran, P.; Shilpi, M.; Gupta, R.

    2017-05-01

    In order to achieve higher efficiencies in photovoltaic module technology, it is important to characterize the shunts and other defects which degrade the performance of cells and modules as well as decrease their efficiency. These shunts also affect the reliability of cells and modules. It is important to understand how much fill factor and power loss is caused by the presence of shunts in the module. Shunts not only reduce the module power output, but also affect the I-V characteristics of the cell and hence the characteristics of the shunted cells are different from those of the shunt-free cells connected in the module leading to the mismatch effect. This is an interesting effect which has been systematically investigated in the present work. Moreover, the flow of increased shunt current will give rise to increased temperature in the region of shunt, which will affect the cell and hence module performance. In the present study, the distributed diode model has been extended to the module level and applied to evaluate the electrical mismatch losses and thermal mismatch losses due to shunts in industrial Silicon PV modules.

  18. Emotion regulation's relationships with depression, anxiety and stress due to imagined smartphone and social media loss.

    PubMed

    Elhai, Jon D; Hall, Brian J; Erwin, Meredith Claycomb

    2018-03-01

    A sample of 359 students participated in a web survey, administered the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire, and Depression Anxiety Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) as a pre-test. We subsequently randomly assigned subjects to either 1) a smart phone loss group or 2) social media accounts loss group. We asked them to imagine losing two days' access to the technology in their respective group, and rate associated symptoms using the DASS-21. Compared to subjects in the smartphone loss group, social media loss subjects evidenced stronger relations between suppressive emotion regulation with depression, anxiety and stress from imagined loss. Controlling for age and gender, social media loss subjects' increased use of suppression, and decreased use of cognitive reappraisal in emotion regulation, were related to depression, stress and (for suppression only) anxiety due to imagined lost social media. Emotion regulation was not related to psychopathology for subjects in the smartphone loss scenario. Results suggest that emotion dysregulation may be associated with psychopathology from social media loss. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  19. Cancer vulnerabilities unveiled by genomic loss

    PubMed Central

    Nijhawan, Deepak; Zack, Travis I.; Ren, Yin; Strickland, Matthew R.; Lamothe, Rebecca; Schumacher, Steven E.; Tsherniak, Aviad; Besche, Henrike C.; Rosenbluh, Joseph; Shehata, Shyemaa; Cowley, Glenn S.; Weir, Barbara A.; Goldberg, Alfred L.; Mesirov, Jill P.; Root, David E.; Bhatia, Sangeeta N.; Beroukhim, Rameen; Hahn, William C.

    2012-01-01

    Summary Due to genome instability, most cancers exhibit loss of regions containing tumor suppressor genes and collateral loss of other genes. To identify cancer-specific vulnerabilities that are the result of copy-number losses, we performed integrated analyses of genome-wide copy-number and RNAi profiles and identified 56 genes for which gene suppression specifically inhibited the proliferation of cells harboring partial copy-number loss of that gene. These CYCLOPS (Copy-number alterations Yielding Cancer Liabilities Owing to Partial losS) genes are enriched for spliceosome, proteasome and ribosome components. One CYCLOPS gene, PSMC2, encodes an essential member of the 19S proteasome. Normal cells express excess PSMC2, which resides in a complex with PSMC1, PSMD2, and PSMD5 and acts as a reservoir protecting cells from PSMC2 suppression. Cells harboring partial PSMC2 copy-number loss lack this complex and die after PSMC2 suppression. These observations define a distinct class of cancer-specific liabilities resulting from genome instability. PMID:22901813

  20. Productivity losses due to premature mortality from cancer in Brazil, Russia, India, China, and South Africa (BRICS): A population-based comparison.

    PubMed

    Pearce, Alison; Sharp, Linda; Hanly, Paul; Barchuk, Anton; Bray, Freddie; de Camargo Cancela, Marianna; Gupta, Prakash; Meheus, Filip; Qiao, You-Lin; Sitas, Freddy; Wang, Shao-Ming; Soerjomataram, Isabelle

    2018-04-01

    Over two-thirds of the world's cancer deaths occur in economically developing countries; however, the societal costs of cancer have rarely been assessed in these settings. Our aim was to estimate the value of productivity lost in 2012 due to cancer-related premature mortality in the major developing economies of Brazil, the Russian Federation, India, China and South Africa (BRICS). We applied an incidence-based method using the human capital approach. We used annual adult cancer deaths from GLOBOCAN2012 to estimate the years of productive life lost between cancer death and pensionable age in each country, valued using national and international data for wages, and workforce statistics. Sensitivity analyses examined various methodological assumptions. The total cost of lost productivity due to premature cancer mortality in the BRICS countries in 2012 was $46·3 billion, representing 0·33% of their combined gross domestic product. The largest total productivity loss was in China ($28 billion), while South Africa had the highest cost per cancer death ($101,000). Total productivity losses were greatest for lung cancer in Brazil, the Russian Federation and South Africa; liver cancer in China; and lip and oral cavity cancers in India. Locally-tailored strategies are required to reduce the economic burden of cancer in developing economies. Focussing on tobacco control, vaccination programs and cancer screening, combined with access to adequate treatment, could yield significant gains for both public health and economic performance of the BRICS countries. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  1. Enhanced Furfural Yields from Xylose Dehydration in the gamma-Valerolactone/Water Solvent System at Elevated Temperatures.

    PubMed

    Sener, Canan; Motagamwala, Ali Hussain; Alonso, David Martin; Dumesic, James

    2018-05-18

    High yields of furfural (>90%) were achieved from xylose dehydration in a sustainable solvent system composed of -valerolactone (GVL), a biomass derived solvent, and water. It is identified that high reaction temperatures (e.g., 498 K) are required to achieve high furfural yield. Additionally, it is shown that the furfural yield at these temperatures is independent of the initial xylose concentration, and high furfural yield is obtained for industrially relevant xylose concentrations (10 wt%). A reaction kinetics model is developed to describe the experimental data obtained with solvent system composed of 80 wt% GVL and 20 wt% water across the range of reaction conditions studied (473 - 523 K, 1-10 mM acid catalyst, 66 - 660 mM xylose concentration). The kinetic model demonstrates that furfural loss due to bimolecular condensation of xylose and furfural is minimized at elevated temperature, whereas carbon loss due to xylose degradation increases with increasing temperature. Accordingly, the optimal temperature range for xylose dehydration to furfural in the GVL/H2O solvent system is identified to be from 480 to 500 K. Under these reaction conditions, furfural yield of 93% is achieved at 97% xylan conversion from lignocellulosic biomass (maple wood). © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

  2. Vibration-response due to thickness loss on steel plate excited by resonance frequency

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kudus, S. A.; Suzuki, Y.; Matsumura, M.; Sugiura, K.

    2018-04-01

    The degradation of steel structure due to corrosion is a common problem found especially in the marine structure due to exposure to the harsh marine environment. In order to ensure safety and reliability of marine structure, the damage assessment is an indispensable prerequisite for plan of remedial action on damaged structure. The main goal of this paper is to discuss simple vibration measurement on plated structure to give image on overview condition of the monitored structure. The changes of vibration response when damage was introduced in the plate structure were investigated. The damage on plate was simulated in finite element method as loss of thickness section. The size of damage and depth of loss of thickness were varied for different damage cases. The plate was excited with lower order of resonance frequency in accordance estimate the average remaining thickness based on displacement response obtain in the dynamic analysis. Significant reduction of natural frequency and increasing amplitude of vibration can be observed in the presence of severe damage. The vibration analysis summarized in this study can serve as benchmark and reference for researcher and design engineer.

  3. Enhanced-efficiency fertilizer effects on cotton yield and quality in the Coastal Plains

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Interest in the use of enhanced-efficiency N fertilizer (EENFs) sources has increased in recent years due to the potential of these new EENF sources to increase crop yield, while at the same time decreasing N loss from agricultural fields. The efficacy of these fertilizer sources on cotton productio...

  4. Economic losses due to cystic echinococcosis in India: Need for urgent action to control the disease.

    PubMed

    Singh, Balbir B; Dhand, Navneet K; Ghatak, Sandeep; Gill, Jatinder P S

    2014-01-01

    Cystic ehinococcosis (CE) caused by Echinococcus granulosus remains a neglected zoonotic disease despite its considerable human and animal health concerns. This is the first systematic analysis of the livestock and human related economic losses due to cystic echinococcosis in India. Data about human cases were obtained from a tertiary hospital. Human hydatidosis cases with and without surgical interventions were extrapolated to be 5647 and 17075 per year assuming a total human population of 1210193422 in India. Data about prevalence of hydatid cysts in important food producing animals were obtained from previously published abattoir based epidemiological surveys that reported a prevalence of 5.39% in cattle, 4.36% in buffaloes, 3.09% in pigs, 2.23% in sheep and 0.41% in goats. Animal population data were sourced from the latest census conducted by the Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying and Fisheries, India. Other input parameters were obtained from published scientific literature. Probability distributions were included for many input values to account for variability and uncertainty. Sensitivity analyses were conducted to evaluate the effect of important parameters on the estimated economic losses. The analysis revealed a total annual median loss of Rs. 11.47 billion (approx. US $ 212.35 million). Cattle and buffalo industry accounted for most of the losses: 93.05% and 88.88% of the animal and total losses, respectively. Human hydatidosis related losses were estimated to be Rs. 472.72 million (approx. US $ 8.75 million) but are likely to be an under-estimate due to under-reporting of the disease in the country. The human losses more than quadrupled to Rs. 1953 million i.e. approx. US $ 36.17 million, when the prevalence of human undiagnosed cases was increased to 0.2% in the sensitivity analyses. The social loss and psychological distress were not taken into account for calculating human loss. The results highlight an urgent need for a science based policy

  5. Amplitude loss of sonic waveform due to source coupling to the medium

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lee, Myung W.; Waite, William F.

    2007-03-01

    In contrast to hydrate-free sediments, sonic waveforms acquired in gas hydrate-bearing sediments indicate strong amplitude attenuation associated with a sonic velocity increase. The amplitude attenuation increase has been used to quantify pore-space hydrate content by attributing observed attenuation to the hydrate-bearing sediment's intrinsic attenuation. A second attenuation mechanism must be considered, however. Theoretically, energy radiation from sources inside fluid-filled boreholes strongly depends on the elastic parameters of materials surrounding the borehole. It is therefore plausible to interpret amplitude loss in terms of source coupling to the surrounding medium as well as to intrinsic attenuation. Analyses of sonic waveforms from the Mallik 5L-38 well, Northwest Territories, Canada, indicate a significant component of sonic waveform amplitude loss is due to source coupling. Accordingly, all sonic waveform amplitude analyses should include the effect of source coupling to accurately characterize a formation's intrinsic attenuation.

  6. Amplitude loss of sonic waveform due to source coupling to the medium

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lee, Myung W.; Waite, William F.

    2007-01-01

    In contrast to hydrate-free sediments, sonic waveforms acquired in gas hydrate-bearing sediments indicate strong amplitude attenuation associated with a sonic velocity increase. The amplitude attenuation increase has been used to quantify pore-space hydrate content by attributing observed attenuation to the hydrate-bearing sediment's intrinsic attenuation. A second attenuation mechanism must be considered, however. Theoretically, energy radiation from sources inside fluid-filled boreholes strongly depends on the elastic parameters of materials surrounding the borehole. It is therefore plausible to interpret amplitude loss in terms of source coupling to the surrounding medium as well as to intrinsic attenuation. Analyses of sonic waveforms from the Mallik 5L-38 well, Northwest Territories, Canada, indicate a significant component of sonic waveform amplitude loss is due to source coupling. Accordingly, all sonic waveform amplitude analyses should include the effect of source coupling to accurately characterize a formation's intrinsic attenuation.

  7. A Tool for Assessing Future Capacity Loss Due to Sedimentation in the United States' Reservoirs

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pinson, A. O.; Baker, B.; White, K. D.

    2017-12-01

    Federal reservoirs are critical components of the United States' water supply, flood risk management, hydropower and navigation infrastructure. These reservoirs included capacity for storage loss due to the deposition of sediment by inflowing streams in their original design. However, the actual rate of capacity loss experienced is controlled in part by climate, topography, soils, and land use/land cover, and may vary from the design. To assess the current and future vulnerability of its reservoirs to sedimentation. USACE has developed an online planning tool to identify USACE reservoirs where sedimentation is currently a problem (e.g., sedimentation rate exceeds design sedimentation rate, or zone losses disproportionately affect authorized purposes), and reservoirs where rates are expected to increase significantly in the future. The goal is to be able to prioritize operation and maintenance actions to minimize the effects of reservoir capacity loss on authorized purposes and help maximize reservoir use life.

  8. Dynamic Predictions of Crop Yield and Irrigation in Sub-Saharan Africa Due to Climate Change Impacts

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Foster-Wittig, T.

    2012-12-01

    -irrigation where less water is lost to evaporative demand. Demand-based irrigation is based on two main parameters; a trigger level, to initiate the irrigation, and a target level to calculate the amount of irrigation [3]. In order to understand the impact of these two parameters on amount of irrigated water and yield, irrigation is added to the model with variations of these two parameters considered. This analysis will provide the information needed to understand whether irrigation is a feasible and sustainable solution to the loss of food production due to climate change. Resources: [1]Kurukulasuriya, P., and Mendelsohn, Robert (2008). "A Ricardian analysis of the impact of climate change on African cropland." African Journal Agriculture and Resource Economics 02(1). [2]Raes, D., Steduto, P., Hsiao, T., and Fereres, E. (2011). Chapter 3: Calculation Procedure. . AquaCrop Reference Manual Version 3.1 Plus. [3]Vico, G. and A. Porporato (2011). "From rainfed agriculture to stress-avoidance irrigation: I. A generalized irrigation scheme with stochastic soil moisture." Advances in Water Resources 34(2): 263-271. [4]Williams, C., and Albertson, J. (2005). "Contrasting Short- and Long-Timescale Effects of Vegetation Dynamics on Water and Carbon Fluxes in Water-Limited Ecosystems." Water Resources Research. 41: 1-13

  9. Schooling and wage income losses due to early-childhood growth faltering in developing countries: national, regional, and global estimates.

    PubMed

    Fink, Günther; Peet, Evan; Danaei, Goodarz; Andrews, Kathryn; McCoy, Dana Charles; Sudfeld, Christopher R; Smith Fawzi, Mary C; Ezzati, Majid; Fawzi, Wafaie W

    2016-07-01

    The growth of >300 million children <5 y old was mildly, moderately, or severely stunted worldwide in 2010. However, national estimates of the human capital and financial losses due to growth faltering in early childhood are not available. We quantified the economic cost of growth faltering in developing countries. We combined the most recent country-level estimates of linear growth delays from the Nutrition Impact Model Study with estimates of returns to education in developing countries to estimate the impact of early-life growth faltering on educational attainment and future incomes. Primary outcomes were total years of educational attainment lost as well as the net present value of future wage earnings lost per child and birth cohort due to growth faltering in 137 developing countries. Bootstrapped standard errors were computed to account for uncertainty in modeling inputs. Our estimates suggest that early-life growth faltering in developing countries caused a total loss of 69.4 million y of educational attainment (95% CI: 41.7 million, 92.6 million y) per birth cohort. Educational attainment losses were largest in South Asia (27.6 million y; 95% CI: 20.0 million, 35.8 million y) as well as in Eastern (10.3 million y; 95% CI: 7.2 million, 12.9 million y) and Western sub-Saharan Africa (8.8 million y; 95% CI: 6.4 million, 11.5 million y). Globally, growth faltering in developing countries caused a total economic cost of $176.8 billion (95% CI: $100.9 billion, $262.6 billion)/birth cohort at nominal exchange rates, and $616.5 billion (95% CI: $365.3 billion, $898.9 billion) at purchasing power parity-adjusted exchange rates. At the regional level, economic costs were largest in South Asia ($46.6 billion; 95% CI: $33.3 billion, $61.1 billion), followed by Latin America ($44.7 billion; 95% CI: $19.2 billion, $74.6 billion) and sub-Saharan Africa ($34.2 billion; 95% CI: $24.4 billion, $45.3 billion). Our results indicate that the annual cost of early

  10. Loss of ring current O+ ions due to interaction with Pc 5 waves

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hudson, Mary; Chan, Anthony; Roth, Ilan

    1993-01-01

    The behavior of ring current ions in low-frequency geomagnetic pulsations is investigated analytically and numerically. We focus primarily on ring current O+ ions, whose flux increases dramatically during geomagnetic storms and decays at a rate which is not fully explained by collisional processes. This paper presents a new loss mechanism for the O+ ions due to the combined effects of convection and corotation electric fields and interaction with Pc 5 waves (wave period: 150-600 s) via a magnetic drift-bounce resonance. A test particle code has been developed to calculate the motion of the ring current O+ ions in a time-independent dipole magnetic field, and convection and corotation electric fields, plus Pc 5 wave fields, for which a simple analytical model has been formulated based on spacecraft observations. For given fields, whether a particle gains or loses energy depends on its initial kinetic energy, pitch angle at the equatorial plane, and the position of its guiding center with respect to the azimuthal phase of the wave. The ring current O+ ions show a dispersion in energies and L values with decreasing local time across the dayside, and a bulk shift to lower energies and higher L values. The former is due to the wave-particle interaction causing the ion to gain or lose energy, while the latter is due to the convection electric field. Our simulations show that, due to the interaction with the Pc 5 waves, the particle's kinetic energy can drop below that required to overcome the convection potential and the particle will be lost to the dayside magnetopause by a sunward E×B drift. This may contribute to the loss of O+ ions at intermediate energies (tens of keV) observed during the recovery phase of geomagnetic storms.

  11. [Comparison of potential yield and resource utilization efficiency of main food crops in three provinces of Northeast China under climate change].

    PubMed

    Wang, Xiao-yu; Yang, Xiao-guang; Sun, Shuang; Xie, Wen-juan

    2015-10-01

    Based on the daily data of 65 meteorological stations from 1961 to 2010 and the crop phenology data in the potential cultivation zones of thermophilic and chimonophilous crops in Northeast China, the crop potential yields were calculated through step-by-step correction method. The spatio-temporal distribution of the crop potential yields at different levels was analyzed. And then we quantified the limitations of temperature and precipitation on the crop potential yields and compared the differences in the climatic resource utilization efficiency. The results showed that the thermal potential yields of six crops (including maize, rice, spring wheat, sorghum, millet and soybean) during the period 1961-2010 deceased from west to east. The climatic potential yields of the five crops (spring wheat not included) were higher in the south than in the north. The potential yield loss rate due to temperature limitations of the six crops presented a spatial distribution pattern and was higher in the east than in the west. Among the six main crops, the yield potential loss rate due to temperature limitation of the soybean was the highest (51%), and those of the other crops fluctuated within the range of 33%-41%. The potential yield loss rate due to water limitation had an obvious regional difference, and was high in Songnen Plain and Changbai Mountains. The potential yield loss rate of spring wheat was the highest (50%), and those of the other four rainfed crops fluctuated within the range of 8%-10%. The solar energy utilization efficiency of the six main crops ranged from 0.9% to 2.7%, in the order of maize> sorghum>rice>millet>spring wheat>soybean. The precipitation utilization efficiency of the maize, sorghum, spring wheat, millet and soybean under rainfed conditions ranged from 8 to 35 kg . hm-2 . mm-1, in the order of maize>sorghum>spring wheat>millet>soybean. In those areas with lower efficiency of solar energy utilization and precipitation utilization, such as Changbai

  12. An assessment of climate change impacts on maize yields in Hebei Province of China.

    PubMed

    Chen, Yongfu; Han, Xinru; Si, Wei; Wu, Zhigang; Chien, Hsiaoping; Okamoto, Katsuo

    2017-03-01

    The climate change impacts on maize yields are quantified in this paper using statistical models with panel data from 3731 farmers' observations across nine sample villages in Hebei Province of China. The marginal impacts of climate change and the simulated impacts on maize yields based on scenarios of Representative Concentration Pathways 2.6, 4.5, 6.0, and 8.5 from the global climate models of Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate version 5 (MIROC5) and Meteorological Research Institute Coupled General Circulation Model version 3 (MRI-CGCM3) were then calculated, analyzed, and explained. The results indicate that, first, the most important finding was that climate change impacts on maize yields were significant and a 1°C warming or a 1mm decrease in precipitation resulted in a 150.255kg or a 1.941kg loss in maize yields per hectare, respectively. Second, villages with latitudes of less than 39.832 and longitudes of more than 114.839 in Hebei province suffered losses due to warm weather. Third, the simulated impacts for the full sample are all negative based on scenarios from MIROC5, and their magnitudes are more than those of MRI-CGCM3 are. Based on scenarios in the 2050s, the biggest loss for maize yields per hectare for the full sample accounts for about one-tenth of the mean maize yield from 2004 to 2010, and all of the villages are impacted. Hence, it is important to help farms adopt an adaptation strategy to tackle the risk of loss for maize yields from climate change, and it is necessary to develop agricultural synthesis services as a public adaptation policy at the village level to interact with the adaptation strategy at the farm level. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  13. On Assessment and Estimation of Potential Losses due to Land Subsidence in Urban Areas of Indonesia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Abidin, Hasanuddin Z.; Andreas, Heri; Gumilar, Irwan; Sidiq, Teguh P.

    2016-04-01

    Land subsidence is natural-anthropogenic hazard affecting several large urban areas in Indonesia, i.e. Jakarta, Bandung and Semarang. Geodetic based results from various techniques (e.g. Leveling, GPS and InSAR) show that land subsidence rates in all three cities generally have spatial and temporal variations, and their magnitude is in average about 5-10 cm/year. The impacts of subsidence in those cities can be seen in the field in various forms such as cracking of permanent constructions and roads, tilting of houses and buildings, 'sinking' of houses and buildings, changes in river canal and drain flow systems, wider expansion of coastal and/or inland flooding areas, and increased inland sea water intrusion. These impacts can be categorized into infrastructure, environmental, economic, and social impacts. The potential losses due to land subsidence in urban areas are actually quite significant. Related infrastructural, social and environmental costs due to direct and indirect impacts of land subsidence are economically quite significant, and can not be underestimated in sustainable urban development. The planning, development and maintenance costs of building and infrastructures in the affected areas are usually much higher than the normal situation. The collateral impact of coastal subsidence in Jakarta and Semarang, in the form of coastal flooding during high tides is also quite damaging. This repeated coastal flooding in several areas along the coast will deteriorate the structure and function of building and infrastructures, badly influences the quality of the living environment and life (e.g. health and sanitation condition), and also disrupts economic and social activities in the affected areas. As in the case of Bandung, inland subsidence also has a quite significant impact on inland flooding phenomena, since it will theoretically lead to expanded coverage and deeper water depth of flooded (inundated) areas. Since the direct and indirect impacts of

  14. Comparative role of neem seed extract, moringa leaf extract and imidacloprid in the management of wheat aphids in relation to yield losses in Pakistan

    PubMed Central

    Shah, Farhan Mahmood; Razaq, Muhammad; Han, Peng; Chen, Julian

    2017-01-01

    Wheat being staple food of Pakistan is constantly attacked by major wheat aphid species, Schizaphis graminum (R.), Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) and Sitobion avenae (F.). Due to concern on synthetic chemical use in wheat, it is imperative to search for alternative environment- and human- friendly control measures such as botanical pesticides. In the present study, we evaluated the comparative role of neem seed extract (NSE), moringa leaf extract (MLE) and imidacloprid (I) in the management of the aphid as well as the yield losses parameters in late planted wheat fields. Imidacloprid reduced significantly aphids infestation compared to the other treatments, hence resulting in higher yield, particularly when applied with MLE. The percentages of yield increase in I+MLE treated plots over the control were 19.15–81.89% for grains per spike, 5.33–37.62% for thousand grain weight and 27.59–61.12% for yield kg/ha. NSE was the second most effective control measure in suppressing aphid population, but the yield protected by NSE treatment over the control was comparable to that by imidacloprid. Population densities of coccinellids and syrphids in the plots treated with NSE-2 were higher than those treated with imidacloprid in two out of three experiments during 2013–14. Low predator density in imidacloprid-treated plots was attributed to the lower availability of prey aphids. The efficacy of NSE against aphids varied depending on degree of synchronization among the application timing, the activity of aphids, crop variety and environmental conditions. Despite that, we suggested NSE to be a promising alternative botanical insecticide compared to the most commonly recommended imidiacloprid. Further studies should consider the side effects of biopesticides on non-target organisms in order to provide better management practices in the field. PMID:28953894

  15. Comparative role of neem seed extract, moringa leaf extract and imidacloprid in the management of wheat aphids in relation to yield losses in Pakistan.

    PubMed

    Shah, Farhan Mahmood; Razaq, Muhammad; Ali, Abid; Han, Peng; Chen, Julian

    2017-01-01

    Wheat being staple food of Pakistan is constantly attacked by major wheat aphid species, Schizaphis graminum (R.), Rhopalosiphum padi (L.) and Sitobion avenae (F.). Due to concern on synthetic chemical use in wheat, it is imperative to search for alternative environment- and human- friendly control measures such as botanical pesticides. In the present study, we evaluated the comparative role of neem seed extract (NSE), moringa leaf extract (MLE) and imidacloprid (I) in the management of the aphid as well as the yield losses parameters in late planted wheat fields. Imidacloprid reduced significantly aphids infestation compared to the other treatments, hence resulting in higher yield, particularly when applied with MLE. The percentages of yield increase in I+MLE treated plots over the control were 19.15-81.89% for grains per spike, 5.33-37.62% for thousand grain weight and 27.59-61.12% for yield kg/ha. NSE was the second most effective control measure in suppressing aphid population, but the yield protected by NSE treatment over the control was comparable to that by imidacloprid. Population densities of coccinellids and syrphids in the plots treated with NSE-2 were higher than those treated with imidacloprid in two out of three experiments during 2013-14. Low predator density in imidacloprid-treated plots was attributed to the lower availability of prey aphids. The efficacy of NSE against aphids varied depending on degree of synchronization among the application timing, the activity of aphids, crop variety and environmental conditions. Despite that, we suggested NSE to be a promising alternative botanical insecticide compared to the most commonly recommended imidiacloprid. Further studies should consider the side effects of biopesticides on non-target organisms in order to provide better management practices in the field.

  16. Consequences of biodiversity loss diverge from expectation due to post-extinction compensatory responses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Thomsen, Matthias S.; Garcia, Clement; Bolam, Stefan G.; Parker, Ruth; Godbold, Jasmin A.; Solan, Martin

    2017-03-01

    Consensus has been reached that global biodiversity loss impairs ecosystem functioning and the sustainability of services beneficial to humanity. However, the ecosystem consequences of extinction in natural communities are moderated by compensatory species dynamics, yet these processes are rarely accounted for in impact assessments and seldom considered in conservation programmes. Here, we use marine invertebrate communities to parameterise numerical models of sediment bioturbation - a key mediator of biogeochemical cycling - to determine whether post-extinction compensatory mechanisms alter biodiversity-ecosystem function relations following non-random extinctions. We find that compensatory dynamics lead to trajectories of sediment mixing that diverge from those without compensation, and that the form, magnitude and variance of each probabilistic distribution is highly influenced by the type of compensation and the functional composition of surviving species. Our findings indicate that the generalized biodiversity-function relation curve, as derived from multiple empirical investigations of random species loss, is unlikely to yield representative predictions for ecosystem properties in natural systems because the influence of post-extinction community dynamics are under-represented. Recognition of this problem is fundamental to management and conservation efforts, and will be necessary to ensure future plans and adaptation strategies minimize the adverse impacts of the biodiversity crisis.

  17. Measuring power loss due to radiation and charge exchange in MST

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Waksman, Jeff; Chapman, Brett; Fiksel, Gennady; Nonn, Paul

    2008-11-01

    An array of photodiode-pyrobolometer pairs will be placed on MST to measure the spatial structure of the radiated power and charge exchange. Photodiodes (XUV detectors) measure photonic radiated power from about 10eV to 10keV, while pyrobolometers (thermal detectors) measure both photonic radiated power and power carried by charge-exchange neutrals. Compared to other thermal detectors, pyrobolometers have very good time resolution. To accurately calibrate the individual detectors, an electron gun producing a modulated square wave output has been set up to carefully calibrate each new pyrobolometer to be placed on MST. When viewing the MST plasma, subtraction of the data from the photodiode-pyrobolometer pairs allows one to determine the net power loss due to charge-exchange neutrals. These measurements are important in the calculation of ion energy balance, and it is potentially important in understanding the difference in the temperatures reached by majority and impurity ions during magnetic-reconnection ion-heating events. Since toroidal and poloidal asymmetries in charge exchange are possible, a distributed array of detector pairs will facilitate a better estimate of global power loss. Work supported by the U.S.D.O.E. .

  18. Climate-driven reduction in soil loss due to the dynamic role of vegetation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Constantine, J. A.; Ciampalini, R.; Walker-Springett, K.; Hales, T. C.; Ormerod, S.; Gabet, E. J.; Hall, I. R.

    2016-12-01

    Simulations of 21st century climate change predict increases in seasonal precipitation that may lead to widespread soil loss and reduced soil carbon stores by increasing the likelihood of surface runoff. Vegetation may counteract this increase through its dynamic response to climate change, possibly mitigating any impact on soil erosion. Here, we document for the first time the potential for vegetation to prevent widespread soil loss by surface-runoff mechanisms (i.e., rill and inter-rill erosion) by implementing a process-based soil erosion model across catchments of Great Britain with varying land-cover, topographic, and soil characteristics. Our model results reveal that, even under a significantly wetter climate, warmer air temperatures can limit soil erosion across areas with permanent vegetation cover because of its role in enhancing primary productivity, which improves leaf interception, soil infiltration-capacity, and the erosive resistance of soil. Consequently, any increase in air temperature associated with climate change will increase the threshold change in rainfall required to accelerate soil loss, and rates of soil erosion could therefore decline by up to 50% from 2070-2099 compared to baseline values under the IPCC-defined medium-emissions scenario SRES A1B. We conclude that enhanced primary productivity due to climate change can introduce a negative-feedback mechanism that limits soil loss by surface runoff as vegetation-induced impacts on soil hydrology and erodibility offset precipitation increases, highlighting the need to expand areas of permanent vegetation cover to reduce the potential for climate-driven soil loss.

  19. Variation of relative intensities between surface and bulk plasmon losses due to crystal orientations for aluminium in low energy electron reflection loss spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ichinokawa, T.; Le Gressus, C.; Mogami, A.; Pellerin, F.; Massignon, D.

    The contrast change of secondary electron images due to the crystal orientations is observed by the ultra high vacuum scanning electron microscope (UHV-SEM) for crystal grains of clean surface of polycrystalline Al in the primary energy Ep of 200 eV to 5 KeV. The low energy electron loss spectra are measured by the cylindrical mirror analyzer. The relative intensity ratio between surface and bulk plasmon loss spectra was dependent on the crystal orientations. The SEM images taken by the surface and bulk plasmon signals at Ep = 230 eV show the inverse contrast depending on the grains. The inversion of the relative intensities between the surface and bulk plasmon losses is explained qualitatively by taking into account of variation of the penetration depth of the incident beam caused by the electron channeling.

  20. Variation of relative intensities between surface and bulk plasmon losses due to crystal orientations for aluminium in low energy electron reflection loss spectroscopy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ichinokawa, T.; Le Gressus, C.; Mogami, A.; Pellerin, F.; Massignon, D.

    1981-10-01

    The contrast change of secondary electron images due to the crystal orientations is observed by the ultra high vacuum scanning electron microscope (UHV-SEM) for crystal grains of clean surface of polycrystalline Al in the primary energy Ep of 200 eV to 5 keV. The low energy electron loss spectra are measured by the cylindrical mirror analyzer. The relative intensity ratio between surface and bulk plasmon loss spectra was dependent on the crystal orientations. The SEM images taken by the surface and bulk plasmon signals at Ep = 230 eV show the inverse contrast depending on the grains. The inversion of the relative intensities between the surface and bulk plasmon losses is explained qualitatively by taking into account of variation of the penetration depth of the incident beam caused by the electron channeling.

  1. Sudden loss of vision due to breast cancer metastasis to the eyeball.

    PubMed

    Antosz, Zbigniew S; Walocha, Jerzy; Poręba, Ryszard; Sioma-Markowska, Urszula

    2014-01-01

    Intraocular choroidal metastasis is a very rare cause of blindness. Carcinoma of breast is the most common primary malignancy the accounts for choroidal metastasis in females. Other primary neoplasms which can uncommonly metastasize to the choroid are gastrointestinal tract, thyroid, pancreas, prostate and testis. Metastatic neoplasm to the eye outnumbers the primary tumors such as retinoblastoma and malignant melanoma. We present a case of sudden loss of vision due to breast cancer metastasis to the eyeball. The interval between the diagnosis of the primary tumor and the choroidal metastasis was 4 years.

  2. Rice yield in response to climate trends and drought index in the Mun River Basin, Thailand.

    PubMed

    Prabnakorn, Saowanit; Maskey, Shreedhar; Suryadi, F X; de Fraiture, Charlotte

    2018-04-15

    Rice yields in Thailand are among the lowest in Asia. In northeast Thailand where about 90% of rice cultivation is rain-fed, climate variability and change affect rice yields. Understanding climate characteristics and their impacts on the rice yield is important for establishing proper adaptation and mitigation measures to enhance productivity. In this paper, we investigate climatic conditions of the past 30years (1984-2013) and assess the impacts of the recent climate trends on rice yields in the Mun River Basin in northeast Thailand. We also analyze the relationship between rice yield and a drought indicator (Standardized Precipitation and Evapotranspiration Index, SPEI), and the impact of SPEI trends on the yield. Our results indicate that the total yield losses due to past climate trends are rather low, in the range of <50kg/ha per decade (3% of actual average yields). In general, increasing trends in minimum and maximum temperatures lead to modest yield losses. In contrast, precipitation and SPEI-1, i.e. SPEI based on one monthly data, show positive correlations with yields in all months, except in the wettest month (September). If increasing trends of temperatures during the growing season persist, a likely climate change scenario, there is high possibility that the yield losses will become more serious in future. In this paper, we show that the drought index SPEI-1 detects soil moisture deficiency and crop stress in rice better than precipitation or precipitation based indicators. Further, our results emphasize the importance of spatial and temporal resolutions in detecting climate trends and impacts on yields. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  3. Post-flowering night respiration and altered sink activity account for high night temperature-induced grain yield and quality loss in rice (Oryza sativa L.).

    PubMed

    Bahuguna, Rajeev N; Solis, Celymar A; Shi, Wanju; Jagadish, Krishna S V

    2017-01-01

    High night temperature (HNT) is a major constraint to sustaining global rice production under future climate. Physiological and biochemical mechanisms were elucidated for HNT-induced grain yield and quality loss in rice. Contrasting rice cultivars (N22, tolerant; Gharib, susceptible; IR64, high yielding with superior grain quality) were tested under control (23°C) and HNT (29°C) using unique field-based tents from panicle initiation till physiological maturity. HNT affected 1000 grain weight, grain yield, grain chalk and amylose content in Gharib and IR64. HNT increased night respiration (Rn) accounted for higher carbon losses during post-flowering phase. Gharib and IR64 recorded 16 and 9% yield reduction with a 63 and 35% increase in average post-flowering Rn under HNT, respectively. HNT altered sugar accumulation in the rachis and spikelets across the cultivars with Gharib and IR64 recording higher sugar accumulation in the rachis. HNT reduced panicle starch content in Gharib (22%) and IR64 (11%) at physiological maturity, but not in the tolerant N22. At the enzymatic level, HNT reduced sink strength with lower cell wall invertase and sucrose synthase activity in Gharib and IR64, which affected starch accumulation in the developing grain, thereby reducing grain weight and quality. Interestingly, N22 recorded lower Rn-mediated carbon losses and minimum impact on sink strength under HNT. Mechanistic responses identified will facilitate crop models to precisely estimate HNT-induced damage under future warming scenarios. © 2016 Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society.

  4. An unusual complication of combined gonioscopy-assisted transluminal trabeculotomy and phacoemulsification: vision loss due to intracapsular hematoma.

    PubMed

    Yalinbas, Duygu; Aktas, Zeynep; Hepsen, İbrahim; Dilekmen, Nilay

    2017-09-23

    To report two cases with an acute vision loss due to intracapsular hemorrhage (hematoma) after an uncomplicated gonioscopy-assisted transluminal trabeculotomy (GATT) combined with phacoemulsification surgery. Case report. Seventy-six-year-old male and 75-year-old female patients with cataract and pseudoexfoliative glaucoma (XFG) uncontrolled with maximum medical therapy both underwent GATT combined with phacoemulsification. Shortly after the surgery, intracapsular hematoma behind the intraocular lens (IOL) were noted in both patients. Hematoma cleared in both of them via IOL extraction-anterior vitrectomy and YAG-laser capsulotomy, respectively. Hematoma cleared in both patients without any surgical complications. Vision loss due to unclearing intracapsular hematoma might be an early complication of combined GATT and phacoemulsification surgery.

  5. Impact of vetch cover crop on runoff, soil loss, soil chemical properties and yield of chickpea in North Gondar, Ethiopia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Demelash, Nigus; Klik, Andreas; Holzmann, Hubert; Ziadat, Feras; Strohmeier, Stefan; Bayu, Wondimu; Zucca, Claudio; Abera, Atikilt

    2016-04-01

    Cover crops improve the sustainability and quality of both natural system and agro ecosystem. In Gumara-Maksegnit watershed which is located in Lake Tana basin, farmers usually use fallow during the rainy season for the preceding chickpea production system. The fallowing period can lead to soil erosion and nutrient losses. A field experiment was conducted during growing seasons 2014 and 2015 to evaluate the effect of cover crops on runoff, soil loss, soil chemical properties and yield of chickpea in North Gondar, Ethiopia. The plot experiment contained four treatments arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications: 1) Control plot (Farmers' practice: fallowing- without cover crop), 2) Chickpea planted with Di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer with 46 k ha-1 P2O5 and 23 k ha-1 nitrogen after harvesting vetch cover crop, 3) Chick pea planted with vetch cover crop incorporated with the soil as green manure without fertilizer, 4) Chick pea planted with vetch cover crop and incorporated with the soil as green manure and with 23 k ha-1 P2O5 and 12.5 k ha-1 nitrogen. Each plot with an area of 36 m² was equipped with a runoff monitoring system. Vetch (Vicia sativa L.) was planted as cover crop at the onset of the rain in June and used as green manure. The results of the experiment showed statistically significant (P < 0.05) differences on the number of pods per plant, above ground biomass and grain yield of chick pea. However, there was no statistically significant difference (P > 0.05) on average plant height, average number of branches and hundred seed weight. Similarly, the results indicated that cover crop has a clear impact on runoff volume and sediment loss. Plots with vetch cover crop reduce the average runoff by 65% and the average soil loss decreased from 15.7 in the bare land plot to 8.6 t ha-1 with plots covered by vetch. In general, this result reveales that the cover crops, especially vetch, can be used to improve chickpea grain yield

  6. Leg loss in Lutzomyia longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae) due to pyrethroid exposure: Toxic effect or defense by autotomy?

    PubMed

    Santamaría, E; Cabrera, O L; Avendaño, J; Pardo, R H

    2016-01-01

    Phlebotomine sandflies lose their legs after exposure to pyrethroids. In some insects leg loss helps to defend them from intoxication and predation, a phenomenon known as autotomy. A field observation has shown that sandflies that have lost some legs are still able to blood-feed. The aims of the study were to determine whether leg loss in sandflies, after exposure to deltamethrin, is due to autotomy and to establish the effect of the leg loss on blood-feeding. Two experiments were carried out with Lutzomyia longipalpis: (i) Females were individually exposed to a sublethal time of deltamethrin and mortality and the number of leg loss were recorded; and (ii) Groups of females with complete legs or with 1-3 legs lost due to pyrethroid exposure were offered a blood meal and percentages of blood-fed and fully-fed females were recorded. Most females lost a median of 1 leg within 1-48 h post-exposure to deltamethrin. Mortality (after 24 h) was significantly higher for exposed females with lost legs (31.1%), compared to exposed females with complete legs (7.3%), and there were no differences in mortality between females with complete legs and the control (unexposed females). There were no differences between the three treatments in the percentages of blood-fed and fully-fed females. Leg loss in sandflies is a toxic effect of pyrethroids and there was no evidence of autotomy. The loss of up to three legs after exposure to pyrethroids does not affect blood-feeding behaviour in laboratory and probably also in wild conditions.

  7. Energy loss due to eddy current in linear transformer driver cores

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kim, A. A.; Mazarakis, M. G.; Manylov, V. I.; Vizir, V. A.; Stygar, W. A.

    2010-07-01

    In linear transformer drivers [Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 12, 050402 (2009)PRABFM1098-440210.1103/PhysRevSTAB.12.050402; Phys. Rev. ST Accel. Beams 12, 050401 (2009)PRABFM1098-440210.1103/PhysRevSTAB.12.050401] as well as any other linear induction accelerator cavities, ferromagnetic cores are used to prevent the current from flowing along the induction cavity walls which are in parallel with the load. But if the core is made of conductive material, the applied voltage pulse generates the eddy current in the core itself which heats the core and therefore also reduces the overall linear transformer driver (LTD) efficiency. The energy loss due to generation of the eddy current in the cores depends on the specific resistivity of the core material, the design of the core, as well as on the distribution of the eddy current in the core tape during the remagnetizing process. In this paper we investigate how the eddy current is distributed in a core tape with an arbitrary shape hysteresis loop. Our model is based on the textbook knowledge related to the eddy current generation in ferromagnetics with rectangular hysteresis loop, and in usual conductors. For the reader’s convenience, we reproduce some most important details of this knowledge in our paper. The model predicts that the same core would behave differently depending on how fast the applied voltage pulse is: in the high frequency limit, the equivalent resistance of the core reduces during the pulse whereas in the low frequency limit it is constant. An important inference is that the energy loss due to the eddy current generation can be reduced by increasing the cross section of the core over the minimum value which is required to avoid its saturation. The conclusions of the model are confirmed with experimental observations presented at the end of the paper.

  8. The impact of tropospheric ozone pollution on trial plot winter wheat yields in Great Britain - an econometric approach.

    PubMed

    Kaliakatsou, Evridiki; Bell, J Nigel B; Thirtle, Colin; Rose, Daniel; Power, Sally A

    2010-05-01

    Numerous experiments have demonstrated reductions in the yields of cereal crops due to tropospheric O(3), with losses of up to 25%. However, the only British econometric study on O(3) impacts on winter wheat yields, found that a 10% increase in AOT40 would decrease yields by only 0.23%. An attempt is made here to reconcile these observations by developing AOT40 maps for Great Britain and matching levels with a large number of standardised trial plot wheat yields from many sites over a 13-year period. Panel estimates (repeated measures on the same plots with time) show a 0.54% decrease in yields and it is hypothesised that plant breeders may have inadvertently selected for O(3) tolerance in wheat. Some support for this is provided by fumigations of cultivars of differing introduction dates. A case is made for the use of econometric as well as experimental studies in prediction of air pollution induced crop loss. Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Tile Drainage Nitrate Losses and Corn Yield Response to Fall and Spring Nitrogen Management.

    PubMed

    Pittelkow, Cameron M; Clover, Matthew W; Hoeft, Robert G; Nafziger, Emerson D; Warren, Jeffery J; Gonzini, Lisa C; Greer, Kristin D

    2017-09-01

    Nitrogen (N) management strategies that maintain high crop productivity with reduced water quality impacts are needed for tile-drained landscapes of the US Midwest. The objectives of this study were to determine the effect of N application rate, timing, and fall nitrapyrin addition on tile drainage nitrate losses, corn ( L.) yield, N recovery efficiency, and postharvest soil nitrate content over 3 yr in a corn-soybean [ (L.) Merr.] rotation. In addition to an unfertilized control, the following eight N treatments were applied as anhydrous ammonia in a replicated, field-scale experiment with both corn and soybean phases present each year in Illinois: fall and spring applications of 78, 156, and 234 kg N ha, fall application of 156 kg N ha + nitrapyrin, and sidedress (V5-V6) application of 156 kg N ha. Across the 3-yr study period, increases in flow-weighted NO concentrations were found with increasing N rate for fall and spring N applications, whereas N load results were variable. At the same N rate, spring vs. fall N applications reduced flow-weighted NO concentrations only in the corn-soybean-corn rotation. Fall nitrapyrin and sidedress N treatments did not decrease flo8w-weighted NO concentrations in either rotation compared with fall and spring N applications, respectively, or increase corn yield, crop N uptake, or N recovery efficiency in any year. This study indicates that compared with fall N application, spring and sidedress N applications (for corn-soybean-corn) and sidedress N applications (for soybean-corn-soybean) reduced 3-yr mean flow-weighted NO concentrations while maintaining yields. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

  10. Gain loss and noise temperature degradation due to subreflector rotations in a Cassegrain antenna

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Lamb, J. W.; Olver, A. D.

    An evaluation of performance degradation due to subreflector rotations is reported for the 15 m UK/NL Millimetrewave Radio Telescope Cassegrain antenna. The analytical treatment of the phase errors shows that the optimum point for the center of rotation of the subreflector is the primary focus, indicating astigmatic error, and it is shown that a compromise must be made betwen mechanical and electrical performance. Gain deterioration due to spillover is only weakly dependent on zc, and this loss decreases as z(c) moves towards the subreflector vertex. The associated spillover gives rise to a noise temperature which is calculated to be a few degrees K.

  11. Managing for No Net Loss of Ecological Services: An Approach for Quantifying Loss of Coastal Wetlands due to Sea Level Rise

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kassakian, Jennifer; Jones, Ann; Martinich, Jeremy; Hudgens, Daniel

    2017-05-01

    Sea level rise has the potential to substantially alter the extent and nature of coastal wetlands and the critical ecological services they provide. In making choices about how to respond to rising sea level, planners are challenged with weighing easily quantified risks (e.g., loss of property value due to inundation) against those that are more difficult to quantify (e.g., loss of primary production or carbon sequestration services provided by wetlands due to inundation). Our goal was to develop a cost-effective, appropriately-scaled, model-based approach that allows planners to predict, under various sea level rise and response scenarios, the economic cost of wetland loss—with the estimates proxied by the costs of future restoration required to maintain the existing level of wetland habitat services. Our approach applies the Sea Level Affecting Marshes Model to predict changes in wetland habitats over the next century, and then applies Habitat Equivalency Analysis to predict the cost of restoration projects required to maintain ecological services at their present, pre-sea level rise level. We demonstrate the application of this approach in the Delaware Bay estuary and in the Indian River Lagoon (Florida), and discuss how this approach can support future coastal decision-making.

  12. [Yield of starch extraction from plantain (Musa paradisiaca). Pilot plant study].

    PubMed

    Flores-Gorosquera, Emigdia; García-Suárez, Francisco J; Flores-Huicochea, Emmanuel; Núñez-Santiago, María C; González-Soto, Rosalia A; Bello-Pérez, Luis A

    2004-01-01

    In México, the banana (Musa paradisiaca) is cooked (boiling or deep frying) before being eaten, but the consumption is not very popular and a big quantity of the product is lost after harvesting. The unripe plantain has a high level of starch and due to this the use of banana can be diversified as raw material for starch isolation. The objective of this work was to study the starch yield at pilot plant scale. Experiments at laboratory scale were carried out using the pulp with citric acid to 0,3 % (antioxidant), in order to evaluate the different unitary operations of the process. The starch yield, based on starch presence in the pulp that can be isolated, were between 76 and 86 %, and the values at pilot plant scale were between 63 and 71 %, in different lots of banana fruit. Starch yield values were similar among the diverse lots, showing that the process is reproducible. The lower values of starch recovery at pilot plant scale are due to the loss during sieving operations; however, the amount of starch recovery is good.

  13. Factors related to tooth loss due to dental caries among workers in an industrial estates in Thailand.

    PubMed

    Chatrchaiwiwatana, Supaporn; Ratanasiri, Amornrat; Jaidee, Jeeratip; Soontorn, Surasak

    2012-11-01

    The present study aimed to evaluate the prevalence and factors related to tooth loss due to dental caries among workers in industrial estates in Pathumthani and Phranakhorn Si Ayutthaya provinces in central Thailand. The present study utilized quantitative and qualitative methodologies. A quantitative study was done using a cross-sectional analytic method with a sample group of 457 adults (283 males; 174 females) between 19 and 53 years. Data were obtained through an oral examination and oral health behavior questionnaire. Data analyses were done using descriptive, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression statistics. In-depth interviews were used to collect qualitative data from 11 subjects. Most (62.2%) participants had tooth loss due to caries and findings from the final multivariable logistic regression model revealed that such loss was associated with education, residency, use of social security welfare, decayed teeth and filled teeth. Relatedly, the in-depth interview confirmed that tooth loss due to dental caries was related to (1) lack of time to visit a dentist (2) have a negative attitude toward or a phobia regarding dental treatment (3) inability to afford the high cast of dental treatment (4) lack of knowledge in regarding dental caries prevention, root canal treatment and the harmful effects of losing teeth (5) choosing to get an extraction upon having caries exposed pulp and (6) lack of oral health promotion programs provided by either the government or private sectors. The government and non-government organizations should promote oral health in an industrial estates and provide services and welfare for dental health of workers in an industrial estate appropriate to their socio-economic needs.

  14. Primary quantum yields of NO2 photodissociation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Gardner, Edward P.; Sperry, Paul D.; Calvert, Jack G.

    1987-01-01

    The quantum yields of formation of NO, O2, and NO2 loss are measured for NO2 vapor at low pressures (0.13-0.30 torr) irradiated at 334-405 nm wavelengths and temperature in the range 273-370 K in order to study the primary quantum efficiencies of NO2 photodecomposition. The temperature and wavelength dependences of the primary quantum efficiencies are examined. It is observed that the primary quantum efficiencies increase rapidly from near zero at 424 nm to near unity for excitation at wavelengths less than 394 nm. The theory of Pitts et al. (1964) that the energy deficiency for photodissociation of NO2 excited at wavelengths greater than 397.9 nm is due to the rotational and vibrational energy of the NO2 molecules is confirmed by the data. Values for the primary quantum yields of NO2 photodecomposition as a function of wavelength are presented.

  15. Assessment of growth and yield losses in two Zea mays L. cultivars (quality protein maize and nonquality protein maize) under projected levels of ozone.

    PubMed

    Singh, Aditya Abha; Agrawal, S B; Shahi, J P; Agrawal, Madhoolika

    2014-02-01

    Rapid industrialization and economic developments have increased the tropospheric ozone (O3) budget since preindustrial times, and presently, it is supposed to be a major threat to crop productivity. Maize (Zea mays L.), a C4 plant is the third most important staple crop at global level with a great deal of economic importance. The present study was conducted to evaluate the performance of two maize cultivars [HQPM1: quality protein maize (QPM)] and [DHM117: nonquality protein maize (NQPM)] to variable O3 doses. Experimental setup included filtered chambers, nonfiltered chambers (NFC), and two elevated doses of O3 viz. NFC+15 ppb O3 (NFC+15) and NFC+30 ppb O3 (NFC+30). During initial growth period, both QPM and NQPM plants showed hormetic effect that is beneficial due to exposure of low doses of a toxicant (NFC and NFC+15 ppb O3), but at later stages, growth attributes were negatively affected by O3. Growth indices showed the variable pattern of photosynthate translocation under O3 stress. Foliar injury in the form of interveinal chlorosis and reddening of leaves due to increased production of anthocyanin pigments was observed at higher concentrations of O3. One-dimensional gel electrophoresis of leaves taken from NFC+30 showed reductions of major photosynthetic proteins, and differential response was observed between the two test cultivars. Decline in the number of male flowers at elevated O3 doses suggested damaging effect of O3 on reproductive structures which might be a cause of productivity losses. Variable carbon allocation pattern particularly to husk leaves, foliar injury, and damage of photosynthetic proteins led to significant reductions in economic yield at higher O3 doses. PCA showed that both the cultivars responded more or less similarly to O3 stress in their respective groupings of growth and yield parameters, but magnitude of their response was variable. It is further supported by difference in the significance of correlations between variables of

  16. Productivity loss due to premature mortality caused by blood cancer: a study based on patients undergoing stem cell transplantation.

    PubMed

    Ortega-Ortega, Marta; Oliva-Moreno, Juan; Jiménez-Aguilera, Juan de Dios; Romero-Aguilar, Antonio; Espigado-Tocino, Ildefonso

    2015-01-01

    Stem cell transplantation has been used for many years to treat haematological malignancies that could not be cured by other treatments. Despite this medical breakthrough, mortality rates remain high. Our purpose was to evaluate labour productivity losses associated with premature mortality due to blood cancer in recipients of stem cell transplantations. We collected primary data from the clinical histories of blood cancer patients who had undergone stem cell transplantation between 2006 and 2011 in two Spanish hospitals. We carried out a descriptive analysis and calculated the years of potential life lost and years of potential productive life lost. Labour productivity losses due to premature mortality were estimated using the Human Capital method. An alternative approach, the Friction Cost method, was used as part of the sensitivity analysis. Our findings suggest that, in a population of 179 transplanted and deceased patients, males and people who die between the ages of 30 and 49 years generate higher labour productivity losses. The estimated loss amounts to over €31.4 million using the Human Capital method (€480,152 using the Friction Cost method), which means an average of €185,855 per death. The highest labour productivity losses are produced by leukaemia. However, lymphoma generates the highest loss per death. Further efforts are needed to reduce premature mortality in blood cancer patients undergoing transplantations and reduce economic losses. Copyright © 2014 SESPAS. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  17. Study of force loss due to friction comparing two ceramic brackets during sliding tooth movement.

    PubMed

    AlSubaie, Mai; Talic, Nabeel; Khawatmi, Said; Alobeid, Ahmad; Bourauel, Christoph; El-Bialy, Tarek

    2016-09-01

    To compare the percentage of force loss generated during canine sliding movements in newly introduced ceramic brackets with metal brackets. Two types of ceramic brackets, namely polycrystalline alumina (PCA) ceramic brackets (Clarity Advanced) and monocrystalline alumina (MCA) ceramic brackets (Inspire Ice) were compared with stainless steel (SS) brackets (Victory Series). All bracket groups (n = 5 each) were for the maxillary canines and had a 0.018-inch slot size. The brackets were mounted on an Orthodontic Measurement and Simulation System (OMSS) to simulate the canine retraction movement into the first premolar extraction space. Using elastic ligatures, 0.016 × 0.022″ (0.40 × 0.56 mm) stainless steel archwires were ligated onto the brackets. Retraction force was applied via a nickel-titanium coil spring with a nearly constant force of approximately 1 N. The OMSS measured the percentage of force loss over the retraction path by referring to the difference between the applied retraction force and actual force acting on each bracket. Between group comparisons were done with one-way analysis of variance. The metal brackets revealed the lowest percentage of force loss due to friction, followed by the PCA and MCA ceramic bracket groups (67 ± 4, 68 ± 7, and 76 ± 3 %, respectively). There was no significant difference between SS and PCA brackets (p = 0.97), but we did observe significant differences between metal and MCA brackets (p = 0.03) and between PCA and MCA ceramic brackets (p = 0.04). PCA ceramic brackets, whose slot surface is covered with an yttria-stabilized zirconia-based coating exhibited frictional properties similar to those of metal brackets. Frictional resistance resulted in an over 60 % loss of the applied force due to the use of elastic ligatures.

  18. Cacao Cultivation under Diverse Shade Tree Cover Allows High Carbon Storage and Sequestration without Yield Losses

    PubMed Central

    Abou Rajab, Yasmin; Leuschner, Christoph; Barus, Henry; Tjoa, Aiyen; Hertel, Dietrich

    2016-01-01

    One of the main drivers of tropical forest loss is their conversion to oil palm, soy or cacao plantations with low biodiversity and greatly reduced carbon storage. Southeast Asian cacao plantations are often established under shade tree cover, but are later converted to non-shaded monocultures to avoid resource competition. We compared three co-occurring cacao cultivation systems (3 replicate stands each) with different shade intensity (non-shaded monoculture, cacao with the legume Gliricidia sepium shade trees, and cacao with several shade tree species) in Sulawesi (Indonesia) with respect to above- and belowground biomass and productivity, and cacao bean yield. Total biomass C stocks (above- and belowground) increased fivefold from the monoculture to the multi-shade tree system (from 11 to 57 Mg ha-1), total net primary production rose twofold (from 9 to 18 Mg C ha-1 yr-1). This increase was associated with a 6fold increase in aboveground biomass, but only a 3.5fold increase in root biomass, indicating a clear shift in C allocation to aboveground tree organs with increasing shade for both cacao and shade trees. Despite a canopy cover increase from 50 to 93%, cacao bean yield remained invariant across the systems (variation: 1.1–1.2 Mg C ha-1 yr-1). The monocultures had a twice as rapid leaf turnover suggesting that shading reduces the exposure of cacao to atmospheric drought, probably resulting in greater leaf longevity. Thus, contrary to general belief, cacao bean yield does not necessarily decrease under shading which seems to reduce physical stress. If planned properly, cacao plantations under a shade tree cover allow combining high yield with benefits for carbon sequestration and storage, production system stability under stress, and higher levels of animal and plant diversity. PMID:26927428

  19. Cacao Cultivation under Diverse Shade Tree Cover Allows High Carbon Storage and Sequestration without Yield Losses.

    PubMed

    Abou Rajab, Yasmin; Leuschner, Christoph; Barus, Henry; Tjoa, Aiyen; Hertel, Dietrich

    2016-01-01

    One of the main drivers of tropical forest loss is their conversion to oil palm, soy or cacao plantations with low biodiversity and greatly reduced carbon storage. Southeast Asian cacao plantations are often established under shade tree cover, but are later converted to non-shaded monocultures to avoid resource competition. We compared three co-occurring cacao cultivation systems (3 replicate stands each) with different shade intensity (non-shaded monoculture, cacao with the legume Gliricidia sepium shade trees, and cacao with several shade tree species) in Sulawesi (Indonesia) with respect to above- and belowground biomass and productivity, and cacao bean yield. Total biomass C stocks (above- and belowground) increased fivefold from the monoculture to the multi-shade tree system (from 11 to 57 Mg ha-1), total net primary production rose twofold (from 9 to 18 Mg C ha-1 yr-1). This increase was associated with a 6fold increase in aboveground biomass, but only a 3.5fold increase in root biomass, indicating a clear shift in C allocation to aboveground tree organs with increasing shade for both cacao and shade trees. Despite a canopy cover increase from 50 to 93%, cacao bean yield remained invariant across the systems (variation: 1.1-1.2 Mg C ha-1 yr-1). The monocultures had a twice as rapid leaf turnover suggesting that shading reduces the exposure of cacao to atmospheric drought, probably resulting in greater leaf longevity. Thus, contrary to general belief, cacao bean yield does not necessarily decrease under shading which seems to reduce physical stress. If planned properly, cacao plantations under a shade tree cover allow combining high yield with benefits for carbon sequestration and storage, production system stability under stress, and higher levels of animal and plant diversity.

  20. Global climate change increases risk of crop yield losses and food insecurity in the tropical Andes.

    PubMed

    Tito, Richard; Vasconcelos, Heraldo L; Feeley, Kenneth J

    2018-02-01

    One of the greatest current challenges to human society is ensuring adequate food production and security for a rapidly growing population under changing climatic conditions. Climate change, and specifically rising temperatures, will alter the suitability of areas for specific crops and cultivation systems. In order to maintain yields, farmers may be forced to change cultivation practices, the timing of cultivation, or even the type of crops grown. Alternatively, farmers can change the location where crops are cultivated (e.g., to higher elevations) to track suitable climates (in which case the plants will have to grow in different soils), as cultivated plants will otherwise have to tolerate warmer temperatures and possibly face novel enemies. We simulated these two last possible scenarios (for temperature increases of 1.3°C and 2.6°C) in the Peruvian Andes through a field experiment in which several traditionally grown varieties of potato and maize were planted at different elevations (and thus temperatures) using either the local soil or soil translocated from higher elevations. Maize production declined by 21%-29% in response to new soil conditions. The production of maize and potatoes declined by >87% when plants were grown under warmer temperatures, mainly as a result of the greater incidence of novel pests. Crop quality and value also declined under simulated migration and warming scenarios. We estimated that local farmers may experience severe economic losses of up to 2,300 US$ ha -1  yr -1 . These findings reveal that climate change is a real and imminent threat to agriculture and that there is a pressing need to develop effective management strategies to reduce yield losses and prevent food insecurity. Importantly, such strategies should take into account the influences of non-climatic and/or biotic factors (e.g., novel pests) on plant development. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  1. Psychosocial consequences for children experiencing parental loss due to HIV/AIDS in central China.

    PubMed

    Zhao, Guoxiang; Li, Xiaoming; Kaljee, Linda; Zhang, Liying; Fang, Xiaoyi; Zhao, Junfeng; Lin, Danhua; Lin, Xiuyun; Stanton, Bonita

    2009-06-01

    Individual in-depth interviews were conducted with 47 children (ages 8-17 years) experiencing the loss of one or both parents due to HIV/AIDS in two rural counties of central China. Findings in this study reveal that the families of the children orphaned by AIDS had experienced financial burdens because of treatment costs for sick parents and loss of labor in the household. The majority of the participants reported some level of stigmatization because of their parents' HIV status. The participants described feelings of sadness, fear, anxiety, anger, loneliness, low self-esteem, social withdrawal, and sleep problems. Implications for intervention programs include the need for psychological support and special counseling services, more public education with accurate knowledge about HIV/AIDS to decrease stigma and discrimination, and financial programs to decrease economic and caregiving burdens for these children.

  2. Global crop yield response to extreme heat stress under multiple climate change futures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Deryng, D.; Conway, D.; Ramankutty, N.; Price, J.; Warren, R.

    2014-12-01

    Extreme heat stress during the crop reproductive period can be critical for crop productivity. Projected changes in the frequency and severity of extreme climatic events are expected to negatively impact crop yields and global food production. This study applies the global crop model PEGASUS to quantify, for the first time at the global scale, impacts of extreme heat stress on maize, spring wheat and soybean yields resulting from 72 climate change scenarios for the 21st century. Our results project maize to face progressively worse impacts under a range of RCPs but spring wheat and soybean to improve globally through to the 2080s due to CO2 fertilization effects, even though parts of the tropic and sub-tropic regions could face substantial yield declines. We find extreme heat stress at anthesis (HSA) by the 2080s (relative to the 1980s) under RCP 8.5, taking into account CO2 fertilization effects, could double global losses of maize yield (dY = -12.8 ± 6.7% versus -7.0 ± 5.3% without HSA), reduce projected gains in spring wheat yield by half (dY = 34.3 ± 13.5% versus 72.0 ± 10.9% without HSA) and in soybean yield by a quarter (dY = 15.3 ± 26.5% versus 20.4 ± 22.1% without HSA). The range reflects uncertainty due to differences between climate model scenarios; soybean exhibits both positive and negative impacts, maize is generally negative and spring wheat generally positive. Furthermore, when assuming CO2 fertilization effects to be negligible, we observe drastic climate mitigation policy as in RCP 2.6 could avoid more than 80% of the global average yield losses otherwise expected by the 2080s under RCP 8.5. We show large disparities in climate impacts across regions and find extreme heat stress adversely affects major producing regions and lower income countries.

  3. Global crop yield response to extreme heat stress under multiple climate change futures

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Deryng, Delphine; Conway, Declan; Ramankutty, Navin; Price, Jeff; Warren, Rachel

    2014-03-01

    Extreme heat stress during the crop reproductive period can be critical for crop productivity. Projected changes in the frequency and severity of extreme climatic events are expected to negatively impact crop yields and global food production. This study applies the global crop model PEGASUS to quantify, for the first time at the global scale, impacts of extreme heat stress on maize, spring wheat and soybean yields resulting from 72 climate change scenarios for the 21st century. Our results project maize to face progressively worse impacts under a range of RCPs but spring wheat and soybean to improve globally through to the 2080s due to CO2 fertilization effects, even though parts of the tropic and sub-tropic regions could face substantial yield declines. We find extreme heat stress at anthesis (HSA) by the 2080s (relative to the 1980s) under RCP 8.5, taking into account CO2 fertilization effects, could double global losses of maize yield (ΔY = -12.8 ± 6.7% versus - 7.0 ± 5.3% without HSA), reduce projected gains in spring wheat yield by half (ΔY = 34.3 ± 13.5% versus 72.0 ± 10.9% without HSA) and in soybean yield by a quarter (ΔY = 15.3 ± 26.5% versus 20.4 ± 22.1% without HSA). The range reflects uncertainty due to differences between climate model scenarios; soybean exhibits both positive and negative impacts, maize is generally negative and spring wheat generally positive. Furthermore, when assuming CO2 fertilization effects to be negligible, we observe drastic climate mitigation policy as in RCP 2.6 could avoid more than 80% of the global average yield losses otherwise expected by the 2080s under RCP 8.5. We show large disparities in climate impacts across regions and find extreme heat stress adversely affects major producing regions and lower income countries.

  4. Relationships of Initial Population Densities of Meloidogyne incognita and M. hapla to Yield of Tomato

    PubMed Central

    Barker, K. R.; Shoemaker, P. B.; Nelson, L. A.

    1976-01-01

    Microplots 80 × 100 cm, infested with varying initial population densities (Pi) of Meloidogyne incognita or M. hapla, were planted to tomato at two locations. Experiments were conducted in a sandy loam soil at Fletcher, N. C. (mountains) where the mean temperature for May to September is ca 20.7 C, and in a loamy saml at Clayton, N. C. (coastal plain) where the mean temperature for May to Septemher is ca 24.8 C. In these experimentally infested plots, M. incognita and M. hapla caused maximunt yield losses of 20-30%, at lhe mountain site with Pi of 0-12,500 eggs and larvae/500 cm³ of soil. In the coaslal plain, M. incognita suppressed yields up to 85%, and M. hapla suppressed yields up to 50% in comparison with the noninfested control. A part of the high losses at this site apparently was due to M. incognita predisposing tomato to the early blight fungus. In a second experintent, in which a nematicide was used to obtain a range of Pis (with Pi as high as 25,000/50 cm³ of soil) at Fletcher, losses due to M. incognita were as great as 50%, but similar densities of M. hapla suppressed yields by only 10-25%. Approximate threshold densities for both species ranged from 500 to 1,000 larvae and eggs (higher for surviving larvae) for the mountain site, whereas nutnbers as low as 20 larvae/500 cm³ of soil of either species caused signiticant damage in the coastal plain. Chemical soil treatments proved useful in obtaining various initial population densities; however, problems were encountered in measuring effective inoculum after such treatments, especially in the heavier soil. PMID:19308228

  5. Noise Attenuation Loss Due to Wearing APEL Eye Protection with Ear-Muff Style Headset Systems

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2012-02-14

    USAARL Report No. 2012-09 Noise Attenuation Loss Due to Wearing APEL Eye Protection with Ear-Muff Style Headset Systems By Efrem Reeves Elmaree...Cameron Station, Alexandria, Virginia 22314. Orders will be expedited if placed through the librarian or other person designated to request...not be construed as an official Department of the Army position, policy, or decision, unless so designated by other official documentation. Citation

  6. Groundwater subsidies and penalties to corn yield

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zipper, S. C.; Booth, E.; Loheide, S. P.

    2013-12-01

    directly related to year-end yield. During 2012 (a drier-than-normal growing season) corn in parts of the field with shallow groundwater had significantly higher yields than the rest of the field, indicating that groundwater can provide significant yield benefits during drought. In contrast, during 2013 (a wetter-than-normal growing season) areas with the shallowest groundwater experienced total yield losses due to early-season groundwater flooding and oxygen stress. This demonstrates that the optimal DTGW for agricultural production is variable and depends on growing season weather conditions. The presence or absence of shallow groundwater is an important and dynamic feature of many agroecosystems, and should be considered when making both field- and watershed-scale management decisions.

  7. Intrinsic light yield and light loss coefficient of Bi4Ge3O12 single crystals

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yawai, Nattasuda; Chewpraditkul, Weerapong; Wanarak, Chalerm; Nikl, Martin; Ratanatongchai, Wichian

    2014-10-01

    In this paper we present the scintillation properties of polished Bi4Ge3O12 (BGO) crystals grown by the Bridgman method. The light yield (LY) and energy resolution were measured using XP5200B photomultiplier. At 662 keV γ-rays, high LY of 9680 photons/MeV and good energy resolution of 8.6% were obtained for a 5 × 5 × 1 mm3 BGO sample. The intrinsic LY and light loss coefficient were evaluated. The photofraction in pulse height spectrum of 662 keV γ-rays and the mass attenuation coefficient at 59.5 and 662 keV γ-rays were also determined and compared with the theoretical ones calculated using the WinXCom program.

  8. Rain-induced spring wheat harvest losses

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Bauer, A.; Black, A. L. (Principal Investigator)

    1983-01-01

    When rain or a combination of rain and high humidity delay wheat harvest, losses can occur in grain yield and/or grain quality. Yield losses can result from shattering, from reduction in test weight, and in the case of windrowed grain, from rooting of sprouting grain at the soil: windrow contact. Losses in grain quality can result from reduction in test weight and from sprouting. Sprouting causes a degradation of grain proteins and starches, hence flour quality is reduced, and the grain price deteriorates to the value of feed grain. Although losses in grain yield and quality are rain-induced, these losses do not necessarily occur because a standing or windrowed crop is wetted by rain. Spike water concentration in hard red spring wheat must be increased to about 45-49% before sprouting is initiated in grain that has overcome dormancy. The time required to overcome this dormancy after the cultivar has dried to 12 to 14% water concentration differs with hard red spring cultivars. The effect of rain on threshing-ready standing and windrowed hard red spring wheat grain yeild and quality was evaluated. A goal was to develop the capability to forecast the extent of expected loss of grain yield and quality from specific climatic events that delay threshing.

  9. Seasonal temperatures have more influence than nitrogen fertilizer rates on cucumber yield and nitrogen uptake in a double cropping system.

    PubMed

    Guo, Ruiying; Li, Xiaolin; Christie, Peter; Chen, Qing; Zhang, Fusuo

    2008-02-01

    Two-year greenhouse cucumber experiments were conducted to investigate seasonal effects on fruit yield, dry matter allocation, and N uptake in a double-cropping system with different fertilizer management. Seasonal effects were much greater than fertilizer effects, and winter-spring (WS) cucumber attained higher fruit yields and N uptake than autumn-winter (AW) cucumber due to lower cumulative air temperatures during fruit maturation in the AW season. Fertilizer N application and apparent N loss under recommended N management (Nmr) decreased by 40-78% and 33-48% without yield loss compared to conventional N management (Nmt) over four growing seasons. However, there were no seasonal differences in N recommendations, taking into consideration seasonal differences in crop N demand, critical nutrient supply in the root zone and N mineralization rate.

  10. A Rare Complication After Septoplasty: Visual Loss Due to Right Retinal Artery Spasm.

    PubMed

    Günay, Celal; Altin, Gökhan; Kersin, Burak; Odabaşi, Mahmut

    2018-03-01

    Septoplasty is a commonly used procedure for correcting septal cartilage deformities. Hemorrhage, abscesses, scaling, adhesions, and scar tissue are often seen after the operation of the septoplasty, but temporary or permanent visual loss due to local anesthetic use has been reported very rarely in the literature. The authors also aimed to present a female patient with retinal artery spasm in the right eye after septoplasty in this article. A 27-year-old female patient was admitted to the authors' clinic with long-standing nasal obstruction and postnasal drip. There was no feature in her history and also no sign other than nasal septal deviation on physical examination. The patient was informed about the operation and the operation was planned. Emergency eye consultation was requested after the patient said that the right eye of the patient had never seen in the postoperative wake-up hall. Examination by an ophthalmologist; mild exotropia and total loss of vision in the right eye (including loss of light reflex) was detected. The light reaction in the affected eye was negative and indirect reaction was positive. After enlargement of the pupil, fundus examination revealed that the right posterior pole region (inside of the macula and vessel arches) was pale and no central retinal artery pulsation was observed. The patient was diagnosed with central retinal artery occlusion and emergency intervention was performed. The right eye massage, paracentesis, and hyperbaric oxygen therapy returned to the patient's visual function.

  11. Fusion yield rate recovery by escaping hot-spot fast ions in the neighboring fuel layer

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tang, Xian-Zhu; McDevitt, C. J.; Guo, Zehua; Berk, H. L.

    2014-02-01

    Free-streaming loss by fast ions can deplete the tail population in the hot spot of an inertial confinement fusion (ICF) target. Escaping fast ions in the neighboring fuel layer of a cryogenic target can produce a surplus of fast ions locally. In contrast to the Knudsen layer effect that reduces hot-spot fusion reactivity due to tail ion depletion, the inverse Knudsen layer effect increases fusion reactivity in the neighboring fuel layer. In the case of a burning ICF target in the presence of significant hydrodynamic mix which aggravates the Knudsen layer effect, the yield recovery largely compensates for the yield reduction. For mix-dominated sub-ignition targets, the yield reduction is the dominant process.

  12. SU-E-T-385: Evaluation of DVH Change for PTV Due to Patient Weight Loss in Prostate VMAT Using Gaussian Error Function

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Viraganathan, H; Jiang, R; Chow, J

    Purpose: We proposed a method to predict the change of dose-volume histogram (DVH) for PTV due to patient weight loss in prostate volumetric modulated arc therapy (VMAT). This method is based on a pre-calculated patient dataset and DVH curve fitting using the Gaussian error function (GEF). Methods: Pre-calculated dose-volume data from patients having weight loss in prostate VMAT was employed to predict the change of PTV coverage due to reduced depth in external contour. The effect of patient weight loss in treatment was described by a prostate dose-volume factor (PDVF), which was evaluated by the prostate PTV. Along with themore » PDVF, the GEF was used to fit into the DVH curve for the PTV. To predict a new DVH due to weight loss, parameters from the GEF describing the shape of DVH curve were determined. Since the parameters were related to the PDVF as per the specific reduced depth, we could first predict the PDVF at a reduced depth based on the prostate size from the pre-calculated dataset. Then parameters of the GEF could be determined from the PDVF to plot the new DVH for the PTV corresponding to the reduced depth. Results: A MATLAB program was built basing on the patient dataset with different prostate sizes. We input data of the prostate size and reduced depth of the patient into the program. The program then calculated the PDVF and DVH for the PTV considering the patient weight loss. The program was verified by different patient cases with various reduced depths. Conclusion: Our method can estimate the change of DVH for the PTV due to patient weight loss quickly without CT rescan and replan. This would help the radiation staff to predict the change of PTV coverage, when patient’s external contour reduced in prostate VMAT.« less

  13. Modeling stiffness loss in boron/aluminum below the fatigue limit

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Johnson, W. S.

    1982-01-01

    Boron/aluminum can develop significant internal matrix cracking when fatigued. These matrix cracks can result in a 40 percent secant modulus loss in some laminates, even when fatigued below the fatigue limit. It is shown that the same amount of fatigue damage will develop during stress or strain-controlled tests. Stacking sequence has little influence on secant modulus loss. The secant modulus loss in unidirectional composites is small, whereas the losses are substantial in laminates containing off-axis plies. A simple analysis is presented that predicts unnotched laminate secant modulus loss due to fatigue. The analysis is based upon the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio of the fiber and matrix, fiber volume fraction, fiber orientations, and the cyclic-hardened yield stress of the matrix material. Excellent agreement was achieved between model predictions and experimental results. With this model, designers can project the material stiffness loss for design load or strain levels and assess the feasibility of its use in stiffness-critical parts.

  14. Assessing the impacts of current and future concentrations of surface ozone on crop yield with meta-analysis

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feng, Zhaozhong; Kobayashi, Kazuhiko

    Meta-analysis was conducted to quantitatively assess the effects of rising ozone concentrations ([O 3]) on yield and yield components of major food crops: potato, barley, wheat, rice, bean and soybean in 406 experimental observations. Yield loss of the crops under current and future [O 3] was expressed relative to the yield under base [O 3] (≤26 ppb). With potato, current [O 3] (31-50 ppb) reduced the yield by 5.3%, and it reduced the yield of barley, wheat and rice by 8.9%, 9.7% and 17.5%, respectively. In bean and soybean, the yield losses were 19.0% and 7.7%, respectively. Compared with yield loss at current [O 3], future [O 3] (51-75 ppb) drove a further 10% loss in yield of soybean, wheat and rice, and 20% loss in bean. Mass of individual grain, seed, or tuber was often the major cause of the yield loss at current and future [O 3], whereas other yield components also contributed to the yield loss in some cases. No significant difference was found between the responses in crops grown in pots and those in the ground for any yield parameters. The ameliorating effect of elevated [CO 2] was significant in the yields of wheat and potato, and the individual grain weight in wheat exposed to future [O 3]. These findings confirm the rising [O 3] as a threat to food security for the growing global population in this century.

  15. Assessing biodiversity loss due to land use with Life Cycle Assessment: are we there yet?

    PubMed Central

    Souza, Danielle M; Teixeira, Ricardo FM; Ostermann, Ole P

    2015-01-01

    Ecosystems are under increasing pressure from human activities, with land use and land-use change at the forefront of the drivers that provoke global and regional biodiversity loss. The first step in addressing the challenge of how to reverse the negative outlook for the coming years starts with measuring environmental loss rates and assigning responsibilities. Pinpointing the global pressures on biodiversity is a task best addressed using holistic models such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). LCA is the leading method for calculating cradle-to-grave environmental impacts of products and services; it is actively promoted by many public policies, and integrated as part of environmental information systems within private companies. LCA already deals with the potential biodiversity impacts of land use, but there are significant obstacles to overcome before its models grasp the full reach of the phenomena involved. In this review, we discuss some pressing issues that need to be addressed. LCA mainly introduces biodiversity as an endpoint category modeled as a loss in species richness due to the conversion and use of land over time and space. The functional and population effects on biodiversity are mostly absent due to the emphasis on species accumulation with limited geographic and taxonomical reach. Current land-use modeling activities that use biodiversity indicators tend to oversimplify the real dynamics and complexity of the interactions of species among each other and with their habitats. To identify the main areas for improvement, we systematically reviewed LCA studies on land use that had findings related to global change and conservation ecology. We provide suggestion as to how to address some of the issues raised. Our overall objective was to encourage companies to monitor and take concrete steps to address the impacts of land use on biodiversity on a broader geographical scale and along increasingly globalized supply chains. PMID:25143302

  16. Measurements of fusion neutron yields by neutron activation technique: Uncertainty due to the uncertainty on activation cross-sections

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Stankunas, Gediminas; Batistoni, Paola; Sjöstrand, Henrik; Conroy, Sean; JET Contributors

    2015-07-01

    The neutron activation technique is routinely used in fusion experiments to measure the neutron yields. This paper investigates the uncertainty on these measurements as due to the uncertainties on dosimetry and activation reactions. For this purpose, activation cross-sections were taken from the International Reactor Dosimetry and Fusion File (IRDFF-v1.05) in 640 groups ENDF-6 format for several reactions of interest for both 2.5 and 14 MeV neutrons. Activation coefficients (reaction rates) have been calculated using the neutron flux spectra at JET vacuum vessel, both for DD and DT plasmas, calculated by MCNP in the required 640-energy group format. The related uncertainties for the JET neutron spectra are evaluated as well using the covariance data available in the library. These uncertainties are in general small, but not negligible when high accuracy is required in the determination of the fusion neutron yields.

  17. A quantitative method for risk assessment of agriculture due to climate change

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dong, Zhiqiang; Pan, Zhihua; An, Pingli; Zhang, Jingting; Zhang, Jun; Pan, Yuying; Huang, Lei; Zhao, Hui; Han, Guolin; Wu, Dong; Wang, Jialin; Fan, Dongliang; Gao, Lin; Pan, Xuebiao

    2018-01-01

    Climate change has greatly affected agriculture. Agriculture is facing increasing risks as its sensitivity and vulnerability to climate change. Scientific assessment of climate change-induced agricultural risks could help to actively deal with climate change and ensure food security. However, quantitative assessment of risk is a difficult issue. Here, based on the IPCC assessment reports, a quantitative method for risk assessment of agriculture due to climate change is proposed. Risk is described as the product of the degree of loss and its probability of occurrence. The degree of loss can be expressed by the yield change amplitude. The probability of occurrence can be calculated by the new concept of climate change effect-accumulated frequency (CCEAF). Specific steps of this assessment method are suggested. This method is determined feasible and practical by using the spring wheat in Wuchuan County of Inner Mongolia as a test example. The results show that the fluctuation of spring wheat yield increased with the warming and drying climatic trend in Wuchuan County. The maximum yield decrease and its probability were 3.5 and 64.6%, respectively, for the temperature maximum increase 88.3%, and its risk was 2.2%. The maximum yield decrease and its probability were 14.1 and 56.1%, respectively, for the precipitation maximum decrease 35.2%, and its risk was 7.9%. For the comprehensive impacts of temperature and precipitation, the maximum yield decrease and its probability were 17.6 and 53.4%, respectively, and its risk increased to 9.4%. If we do not adopt appropriate adaptation strategies, the degree of loss from the negative impacts of multiclimatic factors and its probability of occurrence will both increase accordingly, and the risk will also grow obviously.

  18. Stratospheric cooling and polar ozone loss due to H2 emissions of a global hydrogen economy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Feck, T.; Grooß, J.-U.; Riese, M.; Vogel, B.

    2009-04-01

    "Green" hydrogen is seen as a major element of the future energy supply to reduce greenhouse gas emissions substantially. However, due to the possible interactions of hydrogen (H2) with other atmospheric constituents there is a need to analyse the implications of additional atmospheric H2 that could result from hydrogen leakage of a global hydrogen infrastructure. Emissions of molecular H2 can occur along the whole hydrogen process chain which increase the tropospheric H2 burden. Across the tropical tropopause H2 reaches the stratosphere where it is oxidised and forms water vapour (H2O). This causes increased IR-emissions into space and hence a cooling of the stratosphere. Both effects, the increase of stratospheric H2O and the cooling, enhances the potential of chlorine activation on liquid sulfate aerosol and polar stratospheric clouds (PSCs), which increase polar ozone destruction. Hence a global hydrogen economy could provoke polar ozone loss and could lead to a substantial delay of the current projected recovery of the stratospheric ozone layer. Our investigations show that even if 90% of the current global fossil primary energy input could be replaced by hydrogen and approximately 9.5% of the product gas would leak to the atmosphere, the ozone loss would be increased between 15 to 26 Dobson Units (DU) if the stratospheric CFC loading would retain unchanged. A consistency check of the used approximation methods with the Chemical Lagrangian Model of the Stratosphere (CLaMS) shows that this additional ozone loss can probably be treated as an upper limit. Towards more realistic future H2 leakage rate assumptions (< 3%) the additional ozone loss would be rather small (? 10 DU). However, in all cases the full damage would only occur if stratospheric CFC-levels would retain unchanged. Due to the CFC-prohibition as a result of the Montreal Protocol the forecasts suggest a decline of the stratospheric CFC loading about 50% until 2050. In this case our calculations

  19. Combining Urease and Nitrification Inhibitors with Incorporation Reduces Ammonia and Nitrous Oxide Emissions and Increases Corn Yields.

    PubMed

    Drury, Craig F; Yang, Xueming; Reynolds, W Dan; Calder, Wayne; Oloya, Tom O; Woodley, Alex L

    2017-09-01

    Less than 50% of applied nitrogen (N) fertilizer is typically recovered by corn ( L.) due to climatic constraints, soil degradation, overapplication, and losses to air and water. Two application methods, two N sources, and two inhibitors were evaluated to reduce N losses and enhance crop uptake. The treatments included broadcast urea (BrUrea), BrUrea with a urease inhibitor (BrUrea+UI), BrUrea with a urease and a nitrification inhibitor (BrUrea+UI+NI), injection of urea ammonium nitrate (InjUAN), and injected with one or both inhibitors (InjUAN+UI, InjUAN+UI+NI), and a control. The BrUrea treatment lost 50% (64.4 kg N ha) of the applied N due to ammonia volatilization, but losses were reduced by 64% with BrUrea+UI+NI (23.0 kg N ha) and by 60% with InjUAN (26.1 kg N ha). Ammonia losses were lower and crop yields were greater in 2014 than 2013 as a result of the more favorable weather when N was applied in 2014. When ammonia volatilization was reduced by adding a urease inhibitor, NO emissions were increased by 30 to 31% with BrUrea+UI and InjUAN+UI compared with BrUrea and InjUAN, respectively. Pollution swapping was avoided when both inhibitors were used (BrUrea+UI+NI, InjUAN+UI+NI) as both ammonia volatilization and NO emissions were reduced, and corn grain yields increased by 5% with BrUrea+UI+NI and by 7% with InjUAN+UI+NI compared with BrUrea and InjUAN, respectively. The combination of two N management strategies (InjUAN+UI+NI) increased yields by 19% (12.9 t ha) compared with BrUrea (10.8 t ha). Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

  20. Atmospheric transmission loss in mirror-to-tower slant ranges due to water vapor

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gueymard, Christian A.; López, Gabriel; Rapp-Arrarás, Igor

    2017-06-01

    Considering CSP systems of the central tower-receiver type, this study investigates the specific effect of water vapor absorption on the total atmospheric transmission losses that impact direct irradiance along the slant path between a distant mirror and the receiver on the tower. Spectral and broadband calculations of total atmospheric attenuation are made for various water vapor conditions (from dry to humid) with both the rigorous MODTRAN code and the simpler and faster SMARTS code. The use of the latter is made indirectly possible through the "fictitious sun" concept. The MODTRAN and SMARTS results compare reasonably well under the present conditions, which closely echo the conditions used in previous studies, thus allowing instructive comparisons that will be reported later. To study the vertical profile of water vapor between surface and a height of 300 m, the columnar precipitable water at ≈5 m resolution has been derived from special high-resolution radiosonde soundings carried out twice daily at two arid sites. This analysis shows that the desired precipitable water at the receiver level can be simply extrapolated from that at the mirror level if the water vapor scale height is known. The latter is shown to significantly vary on a daily basis at the two sounding sites, with a median of 2.74 km. The exact value of this scale height conditions the transmission loss due to water vapor, but in any case this loss is found relatively small in comparison with other sources of attenuation, even when considering long slant paths under humid conditions. This unexpected finding is explained by the saturation effect that characterizes water vapor absorption.

  1. Assessment of the Personal Losses Suffered by Correctional Officers due to Burnout Syndrome.

    PubMed

    Stoyanova, R G; Harizanova, S N

    2016-01-01

    Professional burnout is defined as a state of depletion and loss of motivation accompanied by different mental and physical symptoms. To assess personal losses suffered by correctional officers due to burnout. This cross-sectional study conducted between June and December 2012 included 201 correctional officers in two Bulgarian prisons. The mean age of the whole group was 41.2 (SD 8.0) years. The respondents was mostly male (56.7%), married (72.6%), had a secondary educational level (61.7%), and 76.1% of them had been in current prison work over 5 years. The demographic characteristics had no influence on the occurrence of burnout but there was a correlation between level of burnout and the number of sick-leaves, the need for medical help, and the expenses spent on medications. Officers affected by burnout took more sick-leaves and this affected adversely their remuneration as they lost 3.1% of their annual wages. Their expenses spent on user fees for medical services were 3 times higher. Their monthly expenses spent on medications were 3.14 times higher than those of people without the burnout syndrome. The high level of burnout has a negative personal economic effect on the prison employees.

  2. Associations between smoking and tooth loss according to reason for tooth loss

    PubMed Central

    Mai, Xiaodan; Wactawski-Wende, Jean; Hovey, Kathleen M.; LaMonte, Michael J.; Chen, Chaoru; Tezal, Mine; Genco, Robert J.

    2013-01-01

    Background Smoking is associated with tooth loss. However, smoking's relationship to the specific reason for tooth loss in postmenopausal women is unknown. Methods Postmenopausal women (n = 1,106) who joined a Women's Health Initiative ancillary study (The Buffalo OsteoPerio Study) underwent oral examinations for assessment of the number of missing teeth, as well as the self-reported reasons for tooth loss. The authors obtained information about smoking status via a self-administered questionnaire. The authors calculated odds ratios (ORs) and 95 percent confidence intervals (CIs) by means of logistic regression to assess smoking's association with overall tooth loss, as well as with tooth loss due to periodontal disease (PD) and with tooth loss due to caries. Results After adjusting for age, education, income, body mass index (BMI), history of diabetes diagnosis, calcium supplement use and dental visit frequency, the authors found that heavy smokers (≥ 26 pack-years) were significantly more likely to report having experienced tooth loss compared with never smokers (OR = 1.82; 95 percent CI, 1.10-3.00). Smoking status, packs smoked per day, years of smoking, pack-years and years since quitting smoking were significantly associated with tooth loss due to PD. For pack-years, the association for heavy smokers compared with that for never smokers was OR = 6.83 (95 percent CI, 3.40-13.72). The study results showed no significant associations between smoking and tooth loss due to caries. Conclusions and Practical Implications Smoking may be a major factor in tooth loss due to PD. However, smoking appears to be a less important factor in tooth loss due to caries. Further study is needed to explore the etiologies by which smoking is associated with different types of tooth loss. Dentists should counsel their patients about the impact of smoking on oral health, including the risk of tooth loss due to PD. PMID:23449901

  3. [Assessment on the yield loss risk of longan caused by cold damage in South China].

    PubMed

    Zhao, Jun-fang; Yu, Hui-kang

    2016-02-01

    Using daily climate variables gathered from 64 meteorological stations in South China from 1961 to 2012, recognized hazard indicators about disaster grades of cold damage for longan, and methods on agricultural meteorological disasters risk and simulation technology, the yield loss risks of longan caused by cold damage in South China during different developmental periods were assessed. The results showed that during the period of physiologic differentiation of flower bud, the disasters of longan affected by mild cold damage in South China were the most common, followed by severe cold damage and moderate cold damage. The hazards caused by cold damage under different grades varied. In particular, under mild cold damage, light disaster of longan was found in Fujian, followed by Guangdong and Hainan, and Guangxi was serious. Under moderate cold damage, light disaster of longan was found in Hainan, followed by Guangdong and Guangxi, and Fujian was serious. Under severe cold damage, light disaster of longan was found in Hainan, followed by Guangdong and Guangxi, Fujian was serious. During the period of morphologic differentiation of flower bud, the disasters of longan affected by mild cold damage in South China were the most common, followed by severe cold damage and moderate cold damage, while the disasters of longan under mild, moderate and severe cold damages within this period were similar. Specifically, light disasters of longan were all found in Hainan, followed by Guangdong, Guangxi and Fujian. During the period of dormancy, the disaster of longan affected by mild cold damage in South China was the most common, followed by severe cold damage and moderate cold damage. Under mild and severe cold damage, light disaster of longan was found in Fujian, followed by Guangdong and Hainan, and Guangxi was serious. However, under moderate cold damage, light disaster of longan was found in Hainan and Guangxi, followed by Guangdong, and Fujian was serious. At the same level

  4. [Effects of different nitrogen application rates on 15N-urea absorption, utilization, loss and fruit yield and quality of dwarf apple].

    PubMed

    Chen, Qian; Ding, Ning; Peng, Ling; Ge, Shun Feng; Jiang, Yuan Mao

    2017-07-18

    Seven-year-old 'Yanfu3'/M 26 /M. hupehensis Rehd. seedlings and 15 N trace technique were used to explore the characteristics of 15 N-urea absorption, utilization, loss and fruit yield and quality under different nitrogen application rates (N 100 , N 200 and N 300 ). The main results were as follows: the plant growth, 15 N absorption, utilization and loss differed significantly under different treatments. The plant leaf chlorophyll content (SPAD value), photosynthetic rate (P n ), total N content of leaves and the biomass, as well as the root-shoot ratio of N 200 treatment were obviously higher than the N 100 and N 300 treatments. Significant differences were observed in the 15 N derived from fertilizer (Ndff value) of different organs under different nitrogen application rates. The Ndff of fruits (flowers), leaves, one-year-old branch, and perennial branches in each measurement period was N 100 >N 200 ＞N 300 , while that of the roots at full-bloom and spring shoot growing slowly stage was N 100 >N 200 ＞N 300 , and in a trend of N 200 >N 100 ＞N 300 at autumn shoot growing stage, fruit rapid-swel-ling stage and fruit maturity stage. At fruit maturity stage, plant 15 N nitrogen utilization ratio of N 200 treatment was 23.6%, which was obviously higher than the N 100 (16.3%) and N 300 (14.4%) treatments, with the 15 N loss rate of 56.4%, obviously lower than the N 100 (60.6%) and N 300 (66.1%) treatments. There were significant differences among the treatments in fruit mass, yield per plant, soluble solid, fruit firmness, soluble sugar, titratable acids and sugar-acid ratio of different nitrogen rates, and the N 200 treatment showed the best performance, followed by the N 300 treatment, and then the N 100 treatment.

  5. Impact of unilateral conductive hearing loss due to aural atresia on academic performance in children.

    PubMed

    Kesser, Bradley W; Krook, Kaelyn; Gray, Lincoln C

    2013-09-01

    This study evaluates the effect of unilateral conductive hearing loss secondary to aural atresia on elementary school children's academic performance. Case control survey and review of audiometric data. One hundred thirty-two surveys were mailed to families of children with aural atresia, and 48 surveys were sent to families of children with unilateral sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) to identify rates of grade retention, use of any resource, and behavioral problems. Audiometric data of the cohort were tabulated. Of the 40 atresia patients, none repeated a grade, but 65% needed some resources: 12.5% currently use a hearing aid, 32.5% use(d) a frequency-modulated system in school, 47.5% had an Individualized Education Plan, and 45% utilized speech therapy. Compared to the unilateral SNHL group and a cohort of children with unilateral SNHL in an earlier study, children with unilateral atresia were less likely to repeat a grade. Children in both unilateral atresia and SNHL groups were more likely to utilize some resource in the academic setting compared to the unilateral SNHL children in the prior study. Unilateral conductive hearing loss due to aural atresia has an impact on academic performance in children, although not as profound when compared to children with unilateral SNHL. The majority of these children with unilateral atresia utilize resources in the school setting. Parents, educators, and health care professionals should be aware of the impact of unilateral conductive hearing loss and offer appropriate habilitative services. Copyright © 2013 The American Laryngological, Rhinological and Otological Society, Inc.

  6. Effects of inbreeding on coastal Douglas fir growth and yield in operational plantations: a model-based approach.

    PubMed

    Wang, Tongli; Aitken, Sally N; Woods, Jack H; Polsson, Ken; Magnussen, Steen

    2004-04-01

    In advanced generation seed orchards, tradeoffs exist between genetic gain obtained by selecting the best related individuals for seed orchard populations, and potential losses due to subsequent inbreeding between these individuals. Although inbreeding depression for growth rate is strong in most forest tree species at the individual tree level, the effect of a small proportion of inbreds in seed lots on final stand yield may be less important. The effects of inbreeding on wood production of mature stands cannot be assessed empirically in the short term, thus such effects were simulated for coastal Douglas fir [ Pseudotsuga menziesii var. menziesii (Mirb.) Franco] using an individual-tree growth and yield model TASS (Tree and Stand Simulator). The simulations were based on seed set, nursery culling rates, and 10-year-old field test performance for trees resulting from crosses between unrelated individuals and for inbred trees produced through mating between half-sibs, full-sibs, parents and offspring and self-pollination. Results indicate that inclusion of a small proportion of related clones in seed orchards will have relatively low impacts on stand yields due to low probability of related individuals mating, lower probability of producing acceptable seedlings from related matings than from unrelated matings, and a greater probability of competition-induced mortality for slower growing inbred individuals than for outcrossed trees. Thus, competition reduces the losses expected due to inbreeding depression at harvest, particularly on better sites with higher planting densities and longer rotations. Slightly higher breeding values for related clones than unrelated clones would offset or exceed the effects of inbreeding resulting from related matings. Concerns regarding the maintenance of genetic diversity are more likely to limit inclusion of related clones in orchards than inbreeding depression for final stand yield.

  7. Atomic Oxygen Erosion Yield Prediction for Spacecraft Polymers in Low Earth Orbit

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Banks, Bruce A.; Backus, Jane A.; Manno, Michael V.; Waters, Deborah L.; Cameron, Kevin C.; deGroh, Kim K.

    2009-01-01

    The ability to predict the atomic oxygen erosion yield of polymers based on their chemistry and physical properties has been only partially successful because of a lack of reliable low Earth orbit (LEO) erosion yield data. Unfortunately, many of the early experiments did not utilize dehydrated mass loss measurements for erosion yield determination, and the resulting mass loss due to atomic oxygen exposure may have been compromised because samples were often not in consistent states of dehydration during the pre-flight and post-flight mass measurements. This is a particular problem for short duration mission exposures or low erosion yield materials. However, as a result of the retrieval of the Polymer Erosion and Contamination Experiment (PEACE) flown as part of the Materials International Space Station Experiment 2 (MISSE 2), the erosion yields of 38 polymers and pyrolytic graphite were accurately measured. The experiment was exposed to the LEO environment for 3.95 years from August 16, 2001 to July 30, 2005 and was successfully retrieved during a space walk on July 30, 2005 during Discovery s STS-114 Return to Flight mission. The 40 different materials tested (including Kapton H fluence witness samples) were selected specifically to represent a variety of polymers used in space as well as a wide variety of polymer chemical structures. The MISSE 2 PEACE Polymers experiment used carefully dehydrated mass measurements, as well as accurate density measurements to obtain accurate erosion yield data for high-fluence (8.43 1021 atoms/sq cm). The resulting data was used to develop an erosion yield predictive tool with a correlation coefficient of 0.895 and uncertainty of +/-6.3 10(exp -25)cu cm/atom. The predictive tool utilizes the chemical structures and physical properties of polymers to predict in-space atomic oxygen erosion yields. A predictive tool concept (September 2009 version) is presented which represents an improvement over an earlier (December 2008) version.

  8. Frost trends and their estimated impact on yield in the Australian wheatbelt

    PubMed Central

    Zheng, Bangyou; Chapman, Scott C.; Christopher, Jack T.; Frederiks, Troy M.; Chenu, Karine

    2015-01-01

    Radiant spring frosts occurring during reproductive developmental stages can result in catastrophic yield loss for wheat producers. To better understand the spatial and temporal variability of frost, the occurrence and impact of frost events on rain-fed wheat production was estimated across the Australian wheatbelt for 1957–2013 using a 0.05 ° gridded weather data set. Simulated yield outcomes at 60 key locations were compared with those for virtual genotypes with different levels of frost tolerance. Over the last six decades, more frost events, later last frost day, and a significant increase in frost impact on yield were found in certain regions of the Australian wheatbelt, in particular in the South-East and West. Increasing trends in frost-related yield losses were simulated in regions where no significant trend of frost occurrence was observed, due to higher mean temperatures accelerating crop development and causing sensitive post-heading stages to occur earlier, during the frost risk period. Simulations indicated that with frost-tolerant lines the mean national yield could be improved by up to 20% through (i) reduced frost damage (~10% improvement) and (ii) the ability to use earlier sowing dates (adding a further 10% improvement). In the simulations, genotypes with an improved frost tolerance to temperatures 1 °C lower than the current 0 °C reference provided substantial benefit in most cropping regions, while greater tolerance (to 3 °C lower temperatures) brought further benefits in the East. The results indicate that breeding for improved reproductive frost tolerance should remain a priority for the Australian wheat industry, despite warming climates. PMID:25922479

  9. Frost trends and their estimated impact on yield in the Australian wheatbelt.

    PubMed

    Zheng, Bangyou; Chapman, Scott C; Christopher, Jack T; Frederiks, Troy M; Chenu, Karine

    2015-06-01

    Radiant spring frosts occurring during reproductive developmental stages can result in catastrophic yield loss for wheat producers. To better understand the spatial and temporal variability of frost, the occurrence and impact of frost events on rain-fed wheat production was estimated across the Australian wheatbelt for 1957-2013 using a 0.05 ° gridded weather data set. Simulated yield outcomes at 60 key locations were compared with those for virtual genotypes with different levels of frost tolerance. Over the last six decades, more frost events, later last frost day, and a significant increase in frost impact on yield were found in certain regions of the Australian wheatbelt, in particular in the South-East and West. Increasing trends in frost-related yield losses were simulated in regions where no significant trend of frost occurrence was observed, due to higher mean temperatures accelerating crop development and causing sensitive post-heading stages to occur earlier, during the frost risk period. Simulations indicated that with frost-tolerant lines the mean national yield could be improved by up to 20% through (i) reduced frost damage (~10% improvement) and (ii) the ability to use earlier sowing dates (adding a further 10% improvement). In the simulations, genotypes with an improved frost tolerance to temperatures 1 °C lower than the current 0 °C reference provided substantial benefit in most cropping regions, while greater tolerance (to 3 °C lower temperatures) brought further benefits in the East. The results indicate that breeding for improved reproductive frost tolerance should remain a priority for the Australian wheat industry, despite warming climates. © The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology.

  10. Impacts of 1.5 versus 2.0 °C on cereal yields in the West African Sudan Savanna

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Faye, Babacar; Webber, Heidi; Naab, Jesse B.; MacCarthy, Dilys S.; Adam, Myriam; Ewert, Frank; Lamers, John P. A.; Schleussner, Carl-Friedrich; Ruane, Alex; Gessner, Ursula; Hoogenboom, Gerrit; Boote, Ken; Shelia, Vakhtang; Saeed, Fahad; Wisser, Dominik; Hadir, Sofia; Laux, Patrick; Gaiser, Thomas

    2018-03-01

    To reduce the risks of climate change, governments agreed in the Paris Agreement to limit global temperature rise to less than 2.0 °C above pre-industrial levels, with the ambition to keep warming to 1.5 °C. Charting appropriate mitigation responses requires information on the costs of mitigating versus associated damages for the two levels of warming. In this assessment, a critical consideration is the impact on crop yields and yield variability in regions currently challenged by food insecurity. The current study assessed impacts of 1.5 °C versus 2.0 °C on yields of maize, pearl millet and sorghum in the West African Sudan Savanna using two crop models that were calibrated with common varieties from experiments in the region with management reflecting a range of typical sowing windows. As sustainable intensification is promoted in the region for improving food security, simulations were conducted for both current fertilizer use and for an intensification case (fertility not limiting). With current fertilizer use, results indicated 2% units higher losses for maize and sorghum with 2.0 °C compared to 1.5 °C warming, with no change in millet yields for either scenario. In the intensification case, yield losses due to climate change were larger than with current fertilizer levels. However, despite the larger losses, yields were always two to three times higher with intensification, irrespective of the warming scenario. Though yield variability increased with intensification, there was no interaction with warming scenario. Risk and market analysis are needed to extend these results to understand implications for food security.

  11. 7 CFR 760.611 - Qualifying losses, eligible causes and types of loss.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... final planting date; (4) The cause of loss was due to water contained or released by any governmental... containment or release of the water; (5) The cause of loss was due to conditions or events occurring outside...) Losses caused by a failure of power supply or brownout as defined in § 760.602; (2) Losses caused by the...

  12. Response of barley to grasshopper defoliation in interior Alaska: dry matter and grain yield.

    PubMed

    Begna, Sultan H; Fielding, Dennis J

    2005-12-01

    Barley, Hordeum vulgare L., is well adapted to subarctic Alaska growing conditions, but little is known about its response to grasshopper defoliation. A field experiment was conducted to study dry matter and grain yield in response to a combination of grasshopper defoliation and weeds in 2002 and 2003 near Delta Junction, AK (63 degrees 55' N, 145 degrees 20' W). Barley plants at third to fourth leaf stage were exposed to a combination of two levels of weeds (present or absent) and four densities of grasshoppers (equivalent to 0, 25, 50, and 75 grasshoppers per m2) of third to fourth instars of Melanoplus sanguinipes (F). Dry matter accumulation by the barley plants was determined at three times during the growing seasons: approximately 10 d after introduction of the grasshoppers, shortly after anthesis, and at maturity. Dry matter accumulation and grain yield were much lower in 2003 than in 2002, probably due to very low levels of soil moisture early in the growing season of 2003. Head clipping accounted for a greater portion of yield loss in 2003 than in 2002. The percentage of reduction in harvestable yield due to grasshoppers remained fairly constant between years (1.9 and 1.4 g per grasshopper per m2 in 2002 and 2003, respectively) despite a large difference in overall yield. Examination of the yield components suggest that yields were reduced by the early season drought in 2003 primarily through fewer seeds per head, whereas grasshoppers in both years reduced average seed weight, but not numbers of seeds.

  13. [Postoperative visual loss due to conversion disorder after spine surgery: a case report].

    PubMed

    Bezerra, Dailson Mamede; Bezerra, Eglantine Mamede; Silva Junior, Antonio Jorge; Amorim, Marco Aurélio Soares; Miranda, Denismar Borges de

    Patients undergoing spinal surgeries may develop postoperative visual loss. We present a case of total bilateral visual loss in a patient who, despite having clinical and surgical risk factors for organic lesion, evolved with visual disturbance due to conversion disorder. A male patient, 39 years old, 71kg, 1.72 m, ASA I, admitted to undergo fusion and discectomy at L4-L5 and L5-S1. Venoclysis, cardioscopy, oximetry, NIBP; induction with remifentanil, propofol and rocuronium; intubation with ETT (8.0mm) followed by capnography and urinary catheterization for diuresis. Maintenance with full target-controlled intravenous anesthesia. During fixation and laminectomy, the patient developed severe bleeding and hypovolemic shock. After 30minutes, hemostasis and hemodynamic stability was achieved with infusion of norepinephrine, volume expansion, and blood products. In the ICU, the patient developed mental confusion, weakness in the limbs, and bilateral visual loss. It was not possible to identify clinical, laboratory or image findings of organic lesion. He evolved with episodes of anxiety, emotional lability, and language impairment; the hypothesis of conversion syndrome with visual component was raised after psychiatric evaluation. The patient had complete resolution of symptoms after visual education and introduction of low doses of antipsychotic, antidepressant, and benzodiazepine. Other symptoms also regressed, and the patient was discharged 12 days after surgery. After 60 days, the patient had no more symptoms. Conversion disorders may have different signs and symptoms of non-organic origin, including visual component. It is noteworthy that the occurrence of this type of visual dysfunction in the postoperative period of spinal surgery is a rare event and should be remembered as a differential diagnosis. Copyright © 2015 Sociedade Brasileira de Anestesiologia. Publicado por Elsevier Editora Ltda. All rights reserved.

  14. Assessing biodiversity loss due to land use with Life Cycle Assessment: are we there yet?

    PubMed

    Souza, Danielle M; Teixeira, Ricardo F M; Ostermann, Ole P

    2015-01-01

    Ecosystems are under increasing pressure from human activities, with land use and land-use change at the forefront of the drivers that provoke global and regional biodiversity loss. The first step in addressing the challenge of how to reverse the negative outlook for the coming years starts with measuring environmental loss rates and assigning responsibilities. Pinpointing the global pressures on biodiversity is a task best addressed using holistic models such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA). LCA is the leading method for calculating cradle-to-grave environmental impacts of products and services; it is actively promoted by many public policies, and integrated as part of environmental information systems within private companies. LCA already deals with the potential biodiversity impacts of land use, but there are significant obstacles to overcome before its models grasp the full reach of the phenomena involved. In this review, we discuss some pressing issues that need to be addressed. LCA mainly introduces biodiversity as an endpoint category modeled as a loss in species richness due to the conversion and use of land over time and space. The functional and population effects on biodiversity are mostly absent due to the emphasis on species accumulation with limited geographic and taxonomical reach. Current land-use modeling activities that use biodiversity indicators tend to oversimplify the real dynamics and complexity of the interactions of species among each other and with their habitats. To identify the main areas for improvement, we systematically reviewed LCA studies on land use that had findings related to global change and conservation ecology. We provide suggestion as to how to address some of the issues raised. Our overall objective was to encourage companies to monitor and take concrete steps to address the impacts of land use on biodiversity on a broader geographical scale and along increasingly globalized supply chains. © 2014 The Authors. Global Change

  15. Detecting temporal change in watershed nutrient yields

    Treesearch

    James D. Wickham; Timothy G. Wade; Kurt H. Riitters

    2008-01-01

    Meta-analyses reveal that nutrient yields tend to be higher for watersheds dominated by anthropogenic uses (e.g., urban, agriculture) and lower for watersheds dominated by natural vegetation. One implication of this pattern is that loss of natural vegetation will produce increases in watershed nutrient yields. Yet, the same meta-analyses also reveal that, absent land-...

  16. Detecting Temporal Change in Watershed Nutrient Yields

    Treesearch

    James D. Wickham; Timothy G. Wade; Kurt H. Riitters

    2008-01-01

    Meta-analyses reveal that nutrient yields tend to be higher for watersheds dominated by anthropogenic uses (e.g., urban, agriculture) and lower for watersheds dominated by natural vegetation. One implication of this pattern is that loss of natural vegetation will produce increases in watershed nutrient yields. Yet, the same meta-analyses also reveal that, absent land-...

  17. Case report: Unilateral conduction hearing loss due to central venous occlusion.

    PubMed

    Ribeiro, Phillip; Patel, Swetal; Qazi, Rizwan A

    2016-05-07

    Central venous stenosis is a well-known complication in patients with vascular access for hemodialysis. We report two cases involving patients on hemodialysis with arteriovenous fistulas who developed reversible unilateral conductive hearing loss secondary to critical stenosis of central veins draining the arteriovenous dialysis access. A proposed mechanism for the patients' reversible unilateral hearing loss is pterygoid venous plexus congestion leading to decreased Eustachian tube patency. Endovascular therapy was conducted to treat the stenosis and the hearing loss of both patients was returned to near normal after successful central venous angioplasty.

  18. Climate change and maize yield in southern Africa: what can farm management do?

    PubMed

    Rurinda, Jairos; van Wijk, Mark T; Mapfumo, Paul; Descheemaeker, Katrien; Supit, Iwan; Giller, Ken E

    2015-12-01

    There is concern that food insecurity will increase in southern Africa due to climate change. We quantified the response of maize yield to projected climate change and to three key management options - planting date, fertilizer use and cultivar choice - using the crop simulation model, agricultural production systems simulator (APSIM), at two contrasting sites in Zimbabwe. Three climate periods up to 2100 were selected to cover both near- and long-term climates. Future climate data under two radiative forcing scenarios were generated from five global circulation models. The temperature is projected to increase significantly in Zimbabwe by 2100 with no significant change in mean annual total rainfall. When planting before mid-December with a high fertilizer rate, the simulated average grain yield for all three maize cultivars declined by 13% for the periods 2010-2039 and 2040-2069 and by 20% for 2070-2099 compared with the baseline climate, under low radiative forcing. Larger declines in yield of up to 32% were predicted for 2070-2099 with high radiative forcing. Despite differences in annual rainfall, similar trends in yield changes were observed for the two sites studied, Hwedza and Makoni. The yield response to delay in planting was nonlinear. Fertilizer increased yield significantly under both baseline and future climates. The response of maize to mineral nitrogen decreased with progressing climate change, implying a decrease in the optimal fertilizer rate in the future. Our results suggest that in the near future, improved crop and soil fertility management will remain important for enhanced maize yield. Towards the end of the 21st century, however, none of the farm management options tested in the study can avoid large yield losses in southern Africa due to climate change. There is a need to transform the current cropping systems of southern Africa to offset the negative impacts of climate change. © 2015 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  19. Is Yield Increase Sufficient to Achieve Food Security in China?

    PubMed Central

    Wei, Xing; Zhang, Zhao; Shi, Peijun; Wang, Pin; Chen, Yi; Song, Xiao; Tao, Fulu

    2015-01-01

    Increasing demand for food, driven by unprecedented population growth and increasing consumption, will keep challenging food security in China. Although cereal yields have substantially improved during the last three decades, whether it will keep thriving to meet the increasing demand is not known yet. Thus, an integrated analysis on the trends of crop yield and cultivated area is essential to better understand current state of food security in China, especially on county scale. So far, yield stagnation has extensively dominated the main cereal-growing areas across China. Rice yield is facing the most severe stagnation that 53.9% counties tracked in the study have stagnated significantly, followed by maize (42.4%) and wheat (41.9%). As another important element for production sustainability, but often neglected is the planted area patterns. It has been further demonstrated that the loss in productive arable land for rice and wheat have dramatically increased the pressure on achieving food security. Not only a great deal of the planted areas have stagnated since 1980, but also collapsed. 48.4% and 54.4% of rice- and wheat-growing counties have lost their cropland areas to varying degrees. Besides, 27.6% and 35.8% of them have retrograded below the level of the 1980s. The combined influence (both loss in yield and area) has determined the crop sustainable production in China to be pessimistic for rice and wheat, and consequently no surprise to find that more than half of counties rank a lower level of production sustainability. Therefore, given the potential yield increase in wheat and maize, as well as substantial area loss of rice and wheat, the possible targeted adaptation measures for both yield and cropping area is required at county scale. Moreover, policies on food trade, alongside advocation of low calorie diets, reducing food loss and waste can help to enhance food security. PMID:25680193

  20. Estimating oak growth and yield

    Treesearch

    Martin E. Dale; Donald E. Hilt

    1989-01-01

    Yields from upland oak stands vary widely from stand to stand due to differences in age, site quality, species composition, and stand structure. Cutting history and other past disturbances such as grazing or fire also affect yields.

  1. Decrease in milk yield associated with exposure to bluetongue virus serotype 8 in cattle herds.

    PubMed

    Nusinovici, S; Souty, C; Seegers, H; Beaudeau, F; Fourichon, C

    2013-02-01

    Decreased milk yield and reduced fertility are the primary consequences of infection by bluetongue virus serotype 8 (BTV-8). These effects must be quantified to fully assess the economic benefit of vaccination. This can be estimated by measuring the effect of BTV-8 exposure on milk yield and fertility for all cows belonging to an infected herd. The objectives of this study were (1) to quantify the mean effect of exposure to BTV-8 on milk yield following natural challenge for cows in herds previously naïve, (2) to determine the duration of reduced milk yield before and after the date disease was first detected in the herd to estimate the cumulative loss of milk yield during this period, and (3) to evaluate the influence of the proportion of infected neighboring herds on the reduction in milk yield following exposure to BTV-8. The effects of exposure to BTV-8 during the French outbreak of 2007 were assessed using mixed linear models, which allow adjustment for factors known to influence milk yield. Exposure to BTV-8 was associated with a sharp decrease in milk yield over a period of 6 mo (2 mo before to 4 mo after the reported date of disease detection in the herd). The cumulative loss of milk yield was more than 3% of annual production. The relatively earlier reduction in milk yield in infected herds detected later in the outbreak period suggests that detection of clinical signs was delayed in these herds. Finally, the greatest decrease in milk yield was observed in herds detected early during the outbreak period and located in areas with the highest disease incidence. This may be due to a greater within-herd incidence or to a greater amount of virus injected by midges to individual cows in these herds. Copyright © 2013 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  2. Selective muscle fiber loss and molecular compensation in mitochondrial myopathy due to TK2 deficiency.

    PubMed

    Vilà, Maya R; Villarroya, Joan; García-Arumí, Elena; Castellote, Amparo; Meseguer, Anna; Hirano, Michio; Roig, Manuel

    2008-04-15

    A 12-year-old patient with mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) depletion syndrome due to TK2 gene mutations has been evaluated serially over the last 10 years. We observed progressive muscle atrophy with selective loss of type 2 muscle fibers and, despite severe depletion of mtDNA, normal activities of respiratory chain (RC) complexes and levels of COX II mitochondrial protein in the remaining muscle fibers. These results indicate that compensatory mechanisms account for the slow progression of the disease. Identification of factors that ameliorate mtDNA depletion may reveal new therapeutic targets for these devastating disorders.

  3. [Effects of applying controlled-release fertilizer blended with conventional nitrogen fertilizer on Chinese cabbage yield and quality as well as nitrogen losses].

    PubMed

    Yang, Jun-gang; Xu, Kai; Tong, Er-jian; Cao, Bing; Ni, Xiao-hui; Xu, Jun-xiang

    2010-12-01

    An open field experiment was conducted to study the effects of applying controlled-release fertilizer blended with rapidly available chemical N fertilizer on Chinese cabbage yield and quality as well as nitrogen losses, including ammonia volatilization and NO3- -N accumulation and leaching in Beijing suburb. The results showed that a combined application of 2:1 controlled-release fertilizer and urea fertilizer (total N rate 150 kg x hm(-2)) did not induce the reduction of Chinese cabbage yield, and decreased the leaf nitrate and organic acid contents significantly, compared with conventional urea N application (300 kg x hm(-2)), and had no significant difference in the cabbage yield and leaf nitrate content, compared with applying 150 kg x hm(-2) of urea N. The combined application of 2:1 controlled-release fertilizer and urea fertilizer improved the N use efficiency of Chinese cabbage, and reduced the ammonia volatilization and NO3- -N leaching. At harvest, the NO3- -N concentrations in 20-40, 60-80 and 80-100 cm soil layers were significantly lower in the combined application treatment than in urea N treatment.

  4. Soviet test yields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vergino, Eileen S.

    Soviet seismologists have published descriptions of 96 nuclear explosions conducted from 1961 through 1972 at the Semipalatinsk test site, in Kazakhstan, central Asia [Bocharov et al., 1989]. With the exception of releasing news about some of their peaceful nuclear explosions (PNEs) the Soviets have never before published such a body of information.To estimate the seismic yield of a nuclear explosion it is necessary to obtain a calibrated magnitude-yield relationship based on events with known yields and with a consistent set of seismic magnitudes. U.S. estimation of Soviet test yields has been done through application of relationships to the Soviet sites based on the U.S. experience at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), making some correction for differences due to attenuation and near-source coupling of seismic waves.

  5. Mechanistic modeling of the loss of protein sieving due to internal and external fouling of microfilters.

    PubMed

    Bolton, Glen R; Apostolidis, Alex J

    2017-09-01

    Fed-batch and perfusion cell culture processes used to produce therapeutic proteins can use microfilters for product harvest. In this study, new explicit mathematical models of sieving loss due to internal membrane fouling, external membrane fouling, or a combination of the two were generated. The models accounted for membrane and cake structures and hindered solute transport. Internal membrane fouling was assumed to occur due to the accumulation of foulant on either membrane pore walls (pore-retention model) or membrane fibers (fiber-retention model). External cake fouling was assumed to occur either by the growth of a single incompressible cake layer (cake-growth) or by the accumulation of a number of independent cake layers (cake-series). The pore-retention model was combined with either the cake-series or cake-growth models to obtain models that describe internal and external fouling occurring either simultaneously or sequentially. The models were tested using well-documented sieving decline data available in the literature. The sequential pore-retention followed by cake-growth model provided a good fit of sieving decline data during beer microfiltration. The cake-series and cake-growth models provided good fits of sieving decline data during the microfiltration of a perfusion cell culture. The new models provide insights into the mechanisms of fouling that result in the loss of product sieving. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 33:1323-1333, 2017. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers.

  6. Royal jelly and bee pollen decrease bone loss due to osteoporosis in an oophorectomized rat model.

    PubMed

    Kafadar, Ibrahim Halil; Güney, Ahmet; Türk, Cemil Yildirim; Oner, Mithat; Silici, Sibel

    2012-01-01

    In this study, we aimed to investigate whether royal jelly and bee pollen reduce the bone loss due to osteoporosis in oophorectomized rat model. Thirty-two female Sprague-Dawley mature rats at six-month-old, weighing 180-260 g were used in the study. The rats were divided into four groups: Sham-operation group, only oophorectomy group, oophorectomy in combination with royal jelly group, and oophorectomy and bee pollen group. The rats were sacrified within 12 weeks following surgery. Bone mineral density (BMD) was measured and blood samples were collected for biochemical analysis before sacrification. Following sacrification, uterine weights were measured and tissue samples were taken to determine bone calcium and phosphate level with imaging through scanning electron microscope. The uterine weights of the rats were found higher in Sham-operation group than the other groups. The difference among the groups was statistically significant (p=0.001). Total body BMD results were similar in all groups and there was not statistically significant difference (p=0.19). The lumbar spine and proximal femur BMD results were statistically significantly higher in the royal jelly and bee pollen groups, compared to only oophorectomy group (p=0.001). Bone tissue calcium and phosphate levels were higher in royal jelly and bee pollen groups. Royal jelly and bee pollen decrease the bone loss due to osteoporosis in oophorectomized rat model. These results may contribute to the clinical practice.

  7. Anomalous yield reduction in direct-drive DT implosions due to 3He addition

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Herrmann, Hans W; Langenbrunner, James R; Mack, Joseph M

    2008-01-01

    Glass capsules were imploded in direct drive on the OMEGA laser [T. R. Boehly et aI., Opt. Commun. 133, 495, 1997] to look for anomalous degradation in deuterium/tritium (DT) yield (i.e., beyond what is predicted) and changes in reaction history with {sup 3}He addition. Such anomalies have previously been reported for D/{sup 3}He plasmas, but had not yet been investigated for DT/{sup 3}He. Anomalies such as these provide fertile ground for furthering our physics understanding of ICF implosions and capsule performance. A relatively short laser pulse (600 ps) was used to provide some degree of temporal separation between shock andmore » compression yield components for analysis. Anomalous degradation in the compression component of yield was observed, consistent with the 'factor of two' degradation previously reported by MIT at a 50% {sup 3}He atom fraction in D{sub 2} using plastic capsules [Rygg et aI., Phys. Plasmas 13, 052702 (2006)]. However, clean calculations (i.e., no fuel-shell mixing) predict the shock component of yield quite well, contrary to the result reported by MIT, but consistent with LANL results in D{sub 2}/{sup 3}He [Wilson, et aI., lml Phys: Conf Series 112, 022015 (2008)]. X-ray imaging suggests less-than-predicted compression ofcapsules containing {sup 3}He. Leading candidate explanations are poorly understood Equation-of-State (EOS) for gas mixtures, and unanticipated particle pressure variation with increasing {sup 3}He addition.« less

  8. 7 CFR 1437.105 - Determining payments for low yield.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-01-01

    ... 7 Agriculture 10 2010-01-01 2010-01-01 false Determining payments for low yield. 1437.105 Section 1437.105 Agriculture Regulations of the Department of Agriculture (Continued) COMMODITY CREDIT... for low yield. (a) Except to the extent that the loss calculation provisions of other subparts apply...

  9. Atmospheric Fluorescence Yield

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Adams, James H., Jr.; Christl, M. J.; Fountain, W. F.; Gregory, J. C.; Martens, K.; Sokolsky, P.; Whitaker, Ann F. (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    Several existing and planned experiments estimate the energies of ultra-high energy cosmic rays from air showers using the atmospheric fluorescence from these showers. Accurate knowledge of the conversion from atmospheric fluorescence to energy loss by ionizing particles in the atmosphere is key to this technique. In this paper we discuss a small balloon-borne instrument to make the first in situ measurements versus altitude of the atmospheric fluorescence yield. The instrument can also be used in the lab to investigate the dependence of the fluorescence yield in air on temperature, pressure and the concentrations of other gases that present in the atmosphere. The results can be used to explore environmental effects on and improve the accuracy of cosmic ray energy measurements for existing ground-based experiments and future space-based experiments.

  10. Thyrotoxic hypokalemic periodic paralysis due to dietary weight-loss supplement.

    PubMed

    Akinyemi, Emmanuel; Bercovici, Silvia; Niranjan, Selvanayagam; Paul, Nisha; Hemavathy, Bhakthavatsalam

    2011-05-01

    Herbal and dietary supplements for weight loss and in treatment of obesity are growing in popularity and acceptance in the United States. Most of these supplements can be obtained over the counter and can have serious adverse effects associated with their consumption. We describe 2 patients who developed thyrotoxic hypokalemic periodic paralysis 2-3 weeks after consuming thyroxine-containing weight-loss supplements. This is the first known case of thyrotoxic hypokalemic periodic paralysis secondary to dietary supplements. It is important that patients and physicians are aware of the severe adverse reactions associated with dietary supplements. Physicians should as a routine inquire about herbal and dietary supplement consumption during all patient encounters.

  11. Asymptotically simple spacetimes and mass loss due to gravitational waves

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Saw, Vee-Liem

    The cosmological constant Λ used to be a freedom in Einstein’s theory of general relativity (GR), where one had a proclivity to set it to zero purely for convenience. The signs of Λ or Λ being zero would describe universes with different properties. For instance, the conformal structure of spacetime directly depends on Λ: null infinity ℐ is a spacelike, null, or timelike hypersurface, if Λ > 0, Λ = 0, or Λ < 0, respectively. Recent observations of distant supernovae have taught us that our universe expands at an accelerated rate, and this can be accounted for by choosing Λ > 0 in Einstein’s theory of GR. A quantity that depends on the conformal structure of spacetime, especially on the nature of ℐ, is the Bondi mass which in turn dictates the mass loss of an isolated gravitating system due to energy carried away by gravitational waves. This problem of extending the Bondi mass to a universe with Λ > 0 has spawned intense research activity over the past several years. Some aspects include a closer inspection on the conformal properties, working with linearization, attempts using a Hamiltonian formulation based on “linearized” asymptotic symmetries, as well as obtaining the general asymptotic solutions of de Sitter-like spacetimes. We consolidate on the progress thus far from the various approaches that have been undertaken, as well as discuss the current open problems and possible directions in this area.

  12. Fusion-neutron-yield, activation measurements at the Z accelerator: design, analysis, and sensitivity.

    PubMed

    Hahn, K D; Cooper, G W; Ruiz, C L; Fehl, D L; Chandler, G A; Knapp, P F; Leeper, R J; Nelson, A J; Smelser, R M; Torres, J A

    2014-04-01

    We present a general methodology to determine the diagnostic sensitivity that is directly applicable to neutron-activation diagnostics fielded on a wide variety of neutron-producing experiments, which include inertial-confinement fusion (ICF), dense plasma focus, and ion beam-driven concepts. This approach includes a combination of several effects: (1) non-isotropic neutron emission; (2) the 1/r(2) decrease in neutron fluence in the activation material; (3) the spatially distributed neutron scattering, attenuation, and energy losses due to the fielding environment and activation material itself; and (4) temporally varying neutron emission. As an example, we describe the copper-activation diagnostic used to measure secondary deuterium-tritium fusion-neutron yields on ICF experiments conducted on the pulsed-power Z Accelerator at Sandia National Laboratories. Using this methodology along with results from absolute calibrations and Monte Carlo simulations, we find that for the diagnostic configuration on Z, the diagnostic sensitivity is 0.037% ± 17% counts/neutron per cm(2) and is ∼ 40% less sensitive than it would be in an ideal geometry due to neutron attenuation, scattering, and energy-loss effects.

  13. Productivity loss due to presenteeism among patients with arthritis: estimates from 4 instruments.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Wei; Gignac, Monique A M; Beaton, Dorcas; Tang, Kenneth; Anis, Aslam H

    2010-09-01

    To estimate and compare lost work hours attributable to presenteeism, defined as reduced productivity while working, in individuals with osteoarthritis (OA) or rheumatoid arthritis (RA), according to 4 instruments. In our prospective study, 250 workers with OA (n = 130) or RA (n = 120) were recruited from community and clinical sites. Lost hours due to presenteeism at baseline were estimated using the Health and Labor Questionnaire (HLQ), the Work Limitations Questionnaire (WLQ), the World Health Organization's Health and Work Performance Questionnaire (HPQ), and the Work Productivity and Activity Impairment Questionnaire (WPAI). Only those respondents working over the past 2 weeks were included. Repeated-measures ANOVA was used to compare the lost-time estimates, according to each instrument. Of the 212 respondents included in the analyses, the frequency of missing and "0" values among the instruments was different (17% and 61% for HLQ, 8% and 5% for WLQ, 1% and 16% for HPQ, 0% and 27% for WPAI, respectively). The average numbers of lost hours (SD) per 2 weeks due to presenteeism using HLQ, WLQ, HPQ, and WPAI were 1.6 (3.9), 4.0 (3.9), 13.5 (12.5), and 14.2 (16.7). The corresponding costs for the 2-week period were CAN$30.03, $83.05, $284.07, and $285.10. The differences in the lost-hour estimates according to instruments were significant (p < 0.001). Among individuals with arthritis, estimates of productivity losses while working vary widely according to the instruments chosen. Further research on instrument design and implications for a standardized approach to estimate lost time due to presenteeism is needed.

  14. Acid soil infertility effects on peanut yields and yield components

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Blamey, F.P.C.

    1983-01-01

    The interpretation of soil amelioration experiments with peanuts is made difficult by the unpredictibility of the crop and by the many factors altered when ameliorating acid soils. The present study was conducted to investigate the effects of lime and gypsum applications on peanut kernel yield via the three first order yield components, pods per ha, kernels per pod, and kernel mass. On an acid medium sandy loam soil (typic Plinthustult), liming resulted in a highly significant kernel yield increase of 117% whereas gypsum applications were of no significant benefit. As indicated by path coefficient analysis, an increase in the numbermore » of pods per ha was markedly more important in increasing yield than an increase in either the number of kernels per pod or kernel mass. Furthermore, exch. Al was found to be particularly detrimental to pod number. It was postulated that poor peanut yields resulting from acid soil infertility were mainly due to the depressive effect of exch. Al on pod number. Exch. Ca appeared to play a secondary role by ameliorating the adverse effects of exch. Al.« less

  15. Losses of nutrients and anti-nutrients in red and white sorghum cultivars after decorticating in optimised conditions.

    PubMed

    Galán, María Gimena; Llopart, Emilce Elina; Drago, Silvina Rosa

    2018-05-01

    The aims were to optimise pearling process of red and white sorghum by assessing the effects of pearling time and grain moisture on endosperm yield and flour ash content and to assess nutrient and anti-nutrient losses produced by pearling different cultivars in optimised conditions. Both variables significantly affected both responses. Losses of ashes (58%), proteins (9.5%), lipids (54.5%), Na (37%), Mg (48.5%) and phenolic compounds (43%) were similar among red and white hybrids. However, losses of P (30% vs. 51%), phytic acid (47% vs. 66%), Fe (22% vs. 55%), Zn (32% vs. 62%), Ca (60% vs. 66%), K (46% vs. 61%) and Cu (51% vs. 71%) were lower for red than white sorghum due to different degree of extraction and distribution of components in the grain. Optimised pearling conditions were extrapolated to other hybrids, indicating these criteria could be applied at industrial level to obtain refined flours with proper quality and good endosperm yields.

  16. Emerald ash borer and the urban forest: Changes in landslide potential due to canopy loss scenarios in the City of Pittsburgh, PA.

    PubMed

    Pfeil-McCullough, Erin; Bain, Daniel J; Bergman, Jeffery; Crumrine, Danielle

    2015-12-01

    Emerald ash borer is expected to kill thousands of ash trees in the eastern U.S. This research develops tools to predict the effect of ash tree loss from the urban canopy on landslide susceptibility in Pittsburgh, PA. A spatial model was built using the SINMAP (Stability INdex MAPping) model coupled with spatially explicit scenarios of tree loss (0%, 25%, 50%, and 75% loss of ash trees from the canopy). Ash spatial distributions were estimated via Monte Carlo methods and available vegetation plot data. Ash trees are most prevalent on steeper slopes, likely due to urban development patterns. Therefore, ash loss disproportionately increases hillslope instability. A 75% loss of ash resulted in roughly 800 new potential landslide initiation locations. Sensitivity testing reveals that variations in rainfall rates, and friction angles produce minor changes to model results relative to the magnitude of parameter variation, but reveal high model sensitivity to soil density and root cohesion values. The model predictions demonstrate the importance of large canopy species to urban hillslope stability, particularly on steep slopes and in areas where soils tend to retain water. To improve instability predictions, better characterization of urban soils, particularly spatial patterns of compaction and species specific root cohesion is necessary. The modeling framework developed in this research will enhance assessment of changes in landslide risk due to tree mortality, improving our ability to design economically and ecologically sustainable urban systems. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  17. Slow pyrolysis polygeneration of bamboo (Phyllostachys pubescens): Product yield prediction and biochar formation mechanism.

    PubMed

    Wang, Huihui; Wang, Xin; Cui, Yanshan; Xue, Zhongcai; Ba, Yuxin

    2018-05-11

    Slow pyrolysis of bamboo was conducted at 400-600 °C and pyrolysis products were characterized with FTIR, BET, XRD, SEM, EDS and GC to establish a pyrolysis product yield prediction model and biochar formation mechanism. Pyrolysis biochar yield was predicted based on content of cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin in biomass with their carbonization index of 0.20, 0.35 and 0.45. The formation mechanism of porous structure in pyrolysis biochar was established based on its physicochemical property evolution and emission characteristics of pyrolysis gas. The main components (cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin) had different pyrolysis or chemical reaction pathways to biochar. Lignin had higher aromatic structure, which resulted higher biochar yield. It was the main biochar precursor during biomass pyrolysis. Cellulose was likely to improve porous structure of pyrolysis biochar due to its high mass loss percentage. Higher pyrolysis temperatures (600 °C) promoted inter- and intra-molecular condensation reactions and aromaticity in biochar. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  18. High carbon losses due to recent cropland expansion in the United States

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Spawn, S.; Lark, T.; Gibbs, H.

    2017-12-01

    Land conversion for agriculture in the United States has reached record highs in recent years. From 2008 to 2012 nearly 30,000 square kilometers of previously un-cultivated land were converted to agricultural land use with much of this expansion occurring on grasslands (77%) and shrublands (8%). To understand the effects of this conversion on global C cycling, we created novel, spatially explicit biomass maps for these biomes by combining existing satellite data products with models derived from field measurements. We then estimated changes in existing C stocks by combining our derived data with existing Landsat-scale data on land cover, land conversion, forest biomass and soil organic carbon (C) stocks. We find that conversion results in annual C losses of approximately 25 Tg C from US terrestrial ecosystems. Nationwide, roughly 80% of total emissions result from committed soil organic C losses. While biomass losses from expansion into forests and wetlands are disproportionately high per unit area, the vast majority of C losses occurred in grassland ecosystems, with grassland roots representing close to 70% of total biomass losses across all biomes. C losses are partially offset each year by agricultural abandonment which we estimate could sequester as much as 15 Tg C, annually. Taken together, we find that US agricultural expansion results in net annual emissions of 10 Tg C which is nearly 30% of emissions from existing US croplands. Our estimate is comparable to a recent analogous estimate for conversion of the Brazilian Cerrado and is equivalent to 10% of annual C losses from pantropical deforestation, suggesting that the effects of US cropland expansion could be globally significant.

  19. Productivity loss due to overweight and obesity: a systematic review of indirect costs

    PubMed Central

    Goettler, Andrea; Grosse, Anna

    2017-01-01

    Objective The increasingly high levels of overweight and obesity among the workforce are accompanied by a hidden cost burden due to losses in productivity. This study reviews the extent of indirect cost of overweight and obesity. Methods A systematic search was conducted in eight electronic databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science Core Collection, PsychInfo, Cinahl, EconLit and ClinicalTrial.gov). Additional studies were added from reference lists of original studies and reviews. Studies were eligible if they were published between January 2000 and June 2017 and included monetary estimates of indirect costs of overweight and obesity. The authors reviewed studies independently and assessed their quality. Results Of the 3626 search results, 50 studies met the inclusion criteria. A narrative synthesis of the reviewed studies revealed substantial costs due to lost productivity among workers with obesity. Especially absenteeism and presenteeism contribute to high indirect costs. However, the methodologies and results vary greatly, especially regarding the cost of overweight, which was even associated with lower indirect costs than normal weight in three studies. Conclusion The evidence predominantly confirms substantial short-term and long-term indirect costs of overweight and obesity in the absence of effective customised prevention programmes and thus demonstrates the extent of the burden of obesity beyond the healthcare sector. PMID:28982806

  20. Exponential yield sensitivity to long-wavelength asymmetries in three-dimensional simulations of inertial confinement fusion capsule implosions

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Haines, Brian M., E-mail: bmhaines@lanl.gov

    2015-08-15

    In this paper, we perform a series of high-resolution 3D simulations of an OMEGA-type inertial confinement fusion (ICF) capsule implosion with varying levels of initial long-wavelength asymmetries in order to establish the physical energy loss mechanism for observed yield degradation due to long-wavelength asymmetries in symcap (gas-filled capsule) implosions. These simulations demonstrate that, as the magnitude of the initial asymmetries is increased, shell kinetic energy is increasingly retained in the shell instead of being converted to fuel internal energy. This is caused by the displacement of fuel mass away from and shell material into the center of the implosion duemore » to complex vortical flows seeded by the long-wavelength asymmetries. These flows are not fully turbulent, but demonstrate mode coupling through non-linear instability development during shell stagnation and late-time shock interactions with the shell interface. We quantify this effect by defining a separation lengthscale between the fuel mass and internal energy and show that this is correlated with yield degradation. The yield degradation shows an exponential sensitivity to the RMS magnitude of the long-wavelength asymmetries. This strong dependence may explain the lack of repeatability frequently observed in OMEGA ICF experiments. In contrast to previously reported mechanisms for yield degradation due to turbulent instability growth, yield degradation is not correlated with mixing between shell and fuel material. Indeed, an integrated measure of mixing decreases with increasing initial asymmetry magnitude due to delayed shock interactions caused by growth of the long-wavelength asymmetries without a corresponding delay in disassembly.« less

  1. Fusion product losses due to fishbone instabilities in deuterium JET plasmas

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kiptily, V. G.; Fitzgerald, M.; Goloborodko, V.; Sharapov, S. E.; Challis, C. D.; Frigione, D.; Graves, J.; Mantsinen, M. J.; Beaumont, P.; Garcia-Munoz, M.; Perez von Thun, C.; Rodriguez, J. F. R.; Darrow, D.; Keeling, D.; King, D.; McClements, K. G.; Solano, E. R.; Schmuck, S.; Sips, G.; Szepesi, G.; Contributors, JET

    2018-01-01

    During development of a high-performance hybrid scenario for future deuterium-tritium experiments on the Joint European Torus, an increased level of fast ion losses in the MeV energy range was observed during the instability of high-frequency n  =  1 fishbones. The fishbones are excited during deuterium neutral beam injection combined with ion cyclotron heating. The frequency range of the fishbones, 10-25 kHz, indicates that they are driven by a resonant interaction with the NBI-produced deuterium beam ions in the energy range  ⩽120 keV. The fast particle losses in a much higher energy range are measured with a fast ion loss detector, and the data show an expulsion of deuterium plasma fusion products, 1 MeV tritons and 3 MeV protons, during the fishbone bursts. An MHD mode analysis with the MISHKA code combined with the nonlinear wave-particle interaction code HAGIS shows that the loss of toroidal symmetry caused by the n  =  1 fishbones affects strongly the confinement of non-resonant high energy fusion-born tritons and protons by perturbing their orbits and expelling them. This modelling is in a good agreement with the experimental data.

  2. Fault tree analysis for data-loss in long-term monitoring networks.

    PubMed

    Dirksen, J; ten Veldhuis, J A E; Schilperoort, R P S

    2009-01-01

    Prevention of data-loss is an important aspect in the design as well as the operational phase of monitoring networks since data-loss can seriously limit intended information yield. In the literature limited attention has been paid to the origin of unreliable or doubtful data from monitoring networks. Better understanding of causes of data-loss points out effective solutions to increase data yield. This paper introduces FTA as a diagnostic tool to systematically deduce causes of data-loss in long-term monitoring networks in urban drainage systems. In order to illustrate the effectiveness of FTA, a fault tree is developed for a monitoring network and FTA is applied to analyze the data yield of a UV/VIS submersible spectrophotometer. Although some of the causes of data-loss cannot be recovered because the historical database of metadata has been updated infrequently, the example points out that FTA still is a powerful tool to analyze the causes of data-loss and provides useful information on effective data-loss prevention.

  3. Error in Dasibi flight measurements of atmospheric ozone due to instrument wall-loss

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ainsworth, J. E.; Hagemeyer, J. R.; Reed, E. I.

    1981-01-01

    Theory suggests that in laminar flow the percent loss of a trace constituent to the walls of a measuring instrument varies as P to the -2/3, where P is the total gas pressure. Preliminary laboratory ozone wall-loss measurements confirm this P to the -2/3 dependence. Accurate assessment of wall-loss is thus of particular importance for those balloon-borne instruments utilizing laminar flow at ambient pressure, since the ambient pressure decreases by a factor of 350 during ascent to 40 km. Measurements and extrapolations made for a Dasibi ozone monitor modified for balloon flight indicate that the wall-loss error at 40 km was between 6 and 30 percent and that the wall-loss error in the derived total ozone column-content for the region from the surface to 40 km altitude was between 2 and 10 percent. At 1000 mb, turbulence caused an order of magnitude increase in the Dasibi wall-loss.

  4. The impact of Global Warming on global crop yields due to changes in pest pressure

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Battisti, D. S.; Tewksbury, J. J.; Deutsch, C. A.

    2011-12-01

    A billion people currently lack reliable access to sufficient food and almost half of the calories feeding these people come from just three crops: rice, maize, wheat. Insect pests are among the largest factors affecting the yield of these three crops, but models assessing the effects of global warming on crops rarely consider changes in insect pest pressure on crop yields. We use well-established relationships between temperature and insect physiology to project climate-driven changes in pest pressure, defined as integrated population metabolism, for the three major crops. By the middle of this century, under most scenarios, insect pest pressure is projected to increase by more than 50% in temperate areas, while increases in tropical regions will be more modest. Yield relationships indicate that the largest increases in insect pest pressure are likely to occur in areas where yield is greatest, suggesting increased strain on global food markets.

  5. Death losses due to stillbirth, neonatal death and diseases in cloned cattle derived from somatic cell nuclear transfer and their progeny: a result of nationwide survey in Japan.

    PubMed

    Watanabe, Shinya; Nagai, Takashi

    2009-06-01

    To obtain the data concerning death losses due to stillbirth, neonatal death and diseases in cloned cattle derived from somatic cell nuclear transfer (SCNT) and their progeny produced by Japanese institutions, a nationwide survey was carried out in July-August, 2006. As a result, lifetime data concerning 482 SCNT cattle (97.5% of cattle produced in the country at that time) and 202 progeny of SCNT cattle were accumulated and the death loss of these cattle was analyzed. Although 1/3 of delivered SCNT calves died during the perinatal period due to stillbirth and neonatal death, incidence of death loss due to diseases in SCNT cattle surviving more than 200 days after birth seems to be the same as these in conventionally bred cattle. In contrast, progeny of SCNT cattle showed the same level in death loss as observed in conventionally bred cattle throughout their lifetime. These results suggest that robust health would be expected in SCNT cattle surviving to adulthood and their progeny.

  6. False homozygous HLA genotyping results due to copy number neutral loss of heterozygosity in acquired aplastic anaemia.

    PubMed

    Heyrman, Bert; De Becker, Ann; Verheyden, Sonja; Demanet, Christian

    2017-03-02

    The aim of this case report is to draw attention on possible false human leucocyte antigen (HLA) genotyping in acquired aplastic anaemia prior to allogeneic haematopoietic stem cell transplantation. In acquired aplastic anaemia loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of chromosome 6p is known to occur in around 12%. We report false HLA genotyping results due to LOH and a coinciding steep rise in neutrophils following filgrastim stimulation in a patient with very severe aplastic anaemia. At diagnosis we obtained heterozygous results on peripheral blood. Failing to reach a partial response at 6 months with immune-suppressive therapy we repeated HLA genotyping, obtaining homozygous results. Repeated testing confirmed loss of HLA genotype heterozygosity. HLA genotyping on cells obtained by a buccal swab confirmed the previous HLA heterozygosity. A second course of filgrastim at the time of homozygous HLA genotyping resulted in a steep rise in neutrophils. Stopping filgrastim resulted in an equally steep drop. 2017 BMJ Publishing Group Ltd.

  7. Land-surface initialisation improves seasonal climate prediction skill for maize yield forecast.

    PubMed

    Ceglar, Andrej; Toreti, Andrea; Prodhomme, Chloe; Zampieri, Matteo; Turco, Marco; Doblas-Reyes, Francisco J

    2018-01-22

    Seasonal crop yield forecasting represents an important source of information to maintain market stability, minimise socio-economic impacts of crop losses and guarantee humanitarian food assistance, while it fosters the use of climate information favouring adaptation strategies. As climate variability and extremes have significant influence on agricultural production, the early prediction of severe weather events and unfavourable conditions can contribute to the mitigation of adverse effects. Seasonal climate forecasts provide additional value for agricultural applications in several regions of the world. However, they currently play a very limited role in supporting agricultural decisions in Europe, mainly due to the poor skill of relevant surface variables. Here we show how a combined stress index (CSI), considering both drought and heat stress in summer, can predict maize yield in Europe and how land-surface initialised seasonal climate forecasts can be used to predict it. The CSI explains on average nearly 53% of the inter-annual maize yield variability under observed climate conditions and shows how concurrent heat stress and drought events have influenced recent yield anomalies. Seasonal climate forecast initialised with realistic land-surface achieves better (and marginally useful) skill in predicting the CSI than with climatological land-surface initialisation in south-eastern Europe, part of central Europe, France and Italy.

  8. Estimation of fuel loss due to idling of vehicles at a signalized intersection in Chennai, India

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Vasantha Kumar, S.; Gulati, Himanshu; Arora, Shivam

    2017-11-01

    The vehicles while waiting at signalized intersections are generally found to be in idling condition, i.e., not switching off their vehicles during red times. This phenomenon of idling of vehicles during red times at signalized intersections may lead to huge economic loss as lot of fuel is consumed by vehicles when they are in idling condition. The situation may even be worse in countries like India as different vehicle types consume varying amount of fuel. Only limited studies have been reported on estimation of fuel loss due to idling of vehicles in India. In the present study, one of the busy intersections in Chennai, namely, Tidel Park Junction in Rajiv Gandhi salai was considered. Data collection was carried out in one approach road of the intersection during morning and evening peak hours on a typical working day by manually noting down the red timings of each cycle and the corresponding number of two-wheelers, three-wheelers, passenger cars, light commercial vehicles (LCV) and heavy motorized vehicles (HMV) that were in idling mode. Using the fuel consumption values of various vehicles types suggested by Central Road Research Institute (CRRI), the total fuel loss during the study period was found to be Rs. 4,93,849/-. The installation of red timers, synchronization of signals, use of non-motorized transport for short trips and public awareness are some of the measures which government need to focus to save the fuel wasted at signalized intersections in major cities of India.

  9. Rooting traits of peanut genotypes with different yield responses to terminal drought

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Drought at pod filling can severely reduce yield of peanut. Better root systems can reduce yield loss from drought. However, the relationship of root characters with yield under terminal drought is not well understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the responses of peanut genotyp...

  10. Hardening of particle/oil/water suspensions due to capillary bridges: Experimental yield stress and theoretical interpretation.

    PubMed

    Danov, Krassimir D; Georgiev, Mihail T; Kralchevsky, Peter A; Radulova, Gergana M; Gurkov, Theodor D; Stoyanov, Simeon D; Pelan, Eddie G

    2018-01-01

    Suspensions of colloid particles possess the remarkable property to solidify upon the addition of minimal amount of a second liquid that preferentially wets the particles. The hardening is due to the formation of capillary bridges (pendular rings), which connect the particles. Here, we review works on the mechanical properties of such suspensions and related works on the capillary-bridge force, and present new rheological data for the weakly studied concentration range 30-55 vol% particles. The mechanical strength of the solidified capillary suspensions, characterized by the yield stress Y, is measured at the elastic limit for various volume fractions of the particles and the preferentially wetting liquid. A quantitative theoretical model is developed, which relates Y with the maximum of the capillary-bridge force, projected on the shear plane. A semi-empirical expression for the mean number of capillary bridges per particle is proposed. The model agrees very well with the experimental data and gives a quantitative description of the yield stress, which increases with the rise of interfacial tension and with the volume fractions of particles and capillary bridges, but decreases with the rise of particle radius and contact angle. The quantitative description of capillary force is based on the exact theory and numerical calculation of the capillary bridge profile at various bridge volumes and contact angles. An analytical formula for Y is also derived. The comparison of the theoretical and experimental strain at the elastic limit reveals that the fluidization of the capillary suspension takes place only in a deformation zone of thickness up to several hundred particle diameters, which is adjacent to the rheometer's mobile plate. The reported experimental results refer to water-continuous suspension with hydrophobic particles and oily capillary bridges. The comparison of data for bridges from soybean oil and hexadecane surprisingly indicate that the yield strength is

  11. Productivity loss due to overweight and obesity: a systematic review of indirect costs.

    PubMed

    Goettler, Andrea; Grosse, Anna; Sonntag, Diana

    2017-10-05

    The increasingly high levels of overweight and obesity among the workforce are accompanied by a hidden cost burden due to losses in productivity. This study reviews the extent of indirect cost of overweight and obesity. A systematic search was conducted in eight electronic databases (PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science Core Collection, PsychInfo, Cinahl, EconLit and ClinicalTrial.gov). Additional studies were added from reference lists of original studies and reviews. Studies were eligible if they were published between January 2000 and June 2017 and included monetary estimates of indirect costs of overweight and obesity. The authors reviewed studies independently and assessed their quality. Of the 3626 search results, 50 studies met the inclusion criteria. A narrative synthesis of the reviewed studies revealed substantial costs due to lost productivity among workers with obesity. Especially absenteeism and presenteeism contribute to high indirect costs. However, the methodologies and results vary greatly, especially regarding the cost of overweight, which was even associated with lower indirect costs than normal weight in three studies. The evidence predominantly confirms substantial short-term and long-term indirect costs of overweight and obesity in the absence of effective customised prevention programmes and thus demonstrates the extent of the burden of obesity beyond the healthcare sector. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2017. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  12. Site-Specific Management of Miscanthus Genotypes for Combustion and Anaerobic Digestion: A Comparison of Energy Yields.

    PubMed

    Kiesel, Andreas; Nunn, Christopher; Iqbal, Yasir; Van der Weijde, Tim; Wagner, Moritz; Özgüven, Mensure; Tarakanov, Ivan; Kalinina, Olena; Trindade, Luisa M; Clifton-Brown, John; Lewandowski, Iris

    2017-01-01

    In Europe, the perennial C 4 grass miscanthus is currently mainly cultivated for energy generation via combustion. In recent years, anaerobic digestion has been identified as a promising alternative utilization pathway. Anaerobic digestion produces a higher-value intermediate (biogas), which can be upgraded to biomethane, stored in the existing natural gas infrastructure and further utilized as a transport fuel or in combined heat and power plants. However, the upgrading of the solid biomass into gaseous fuel leads to conversion-related energy losses, the level of which depends on the cultivation parameters genotype, location, and harvest date. Thus, site-specific crop management needs to be adapted to the intended utilization pathway. The objectives of this paper are to quantify (i) the impact of genotype, location and harvest date on energy yields of anaerobic digestion and combustion and (ii) the conversion losses of upgrading solid biomass into biogas. For this purpose, five miscanthus genotypes (OPM 3, 6, 9, 11, 14), three cultivation locations (Adana, Moscow, Stuttgart), and up to six harvest dates (August-March) were assessed. Anaerobic digestion yielded, on average, 35% less energy than combustion. Genotype, location, and harvest date all had significant impacts on the energy yield. For both, this is determined by dry matter yield and ash content and additionally by substrate-specific methane yield for anaerobic digestion and moisture content for combustion. Averaged over all locations and genotypes, an early harvest in August led to 25% and a late harvest to 45% conversion losses. However, each utilization option has its own optimal harvest date, determined by biomass yield, biomass quality, and cutting tolerance. By applying an autumn green harvest for anaerobic digestion and a delayed harvest for combustion, the conversion-related energy loss was reduced to an average of 18%. This clearly shows that the delayed harvest required to maintain biomass

  13. Slope Controls Grain Yield and Climatic Yield in Mountainous Yunnan province, China

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Duan, X.; Rong, L.; Gu, Z.; Feng, D.

    2017-12-01

    Mountainous regions are increasingly vulnerable to food insecurity because of limited arable land, growing population pressure, and climate change. Development of sustainable mountain agriculture will require an increased understanding of the effects of environmental factors on grain and climatic yields. The objective of this study was to explore the relationships between actual grain yield, climatic yield, and environmental factors in a mountainous region in China. We collected data on the average grain yield per unit area in 119 counties in Yunnan province from 1985 to 2012, and chose 17 environmental factors for the same period. Our results showed that actual grain yield ranged from 1.43 to 6.92 t·ha-1, and the climatic yield ranged from -0.15 to -0.01 t·ha-1. Lower climatic yield but higher grain yield was generally found in central areas and at lower slopes and elevations in the western and southwestern counties of Yunnan province. Higher climatic yield but lower grain yield were found in northwestern parts of Yunnan province on steep slopes. Annual precipation and temperature had a weak influence on the climatic yield. Slope explained 44.62 and 26.29% of the variation in grain yield and climatic yield. The effects of topography on grain and climatic yields were greater than climatic factors. Slope was the most important environmental variable for the variability in climatic and grain yields in the mountainous Yunnan province due to the highly heterogeneous topographic conditions. Conversion of slopes to terraces in areas with higher climatic yields is an effective way to maintain grain production in response to climate variability. Additionally, soil amendments and soil and water conservation measures should be considered to maintain soil fertility and aid in sustainable development in central areas, and in counties at lower slopes and elevations in western and southwestern Yunnan province.

  14. Investigating the loss of work productivity due to symptomatic leiomyoma.

    PubMed

    Hasselrot, Klara; Lindeberg, Mia; Konings, Peter; Kopp Kallner, Helena

    2018-01-01

    Leiomyoma affects up to 50% of fertile women, leading to morbidity such as bleeding or pain. The effect of symptomatic leiomyoma on the productivity of employed women is understudied. The present study investigates productivity loss in a Swedish setting in women with symptomatic leiomyoma compared to healthy women. Women seeking care for leiomyoma and heavy menstrual bleeding (HMB) were recruited at nine Swedish sites. Healthy controls with self-perceived mild to normal menstruation were recruited at routine visits. Cases and controls were employed without option to work from home. After recruitment, all women reported the work productivity and activity impairment (WPAI) questionnaire, the pictorial blood assessment chart (PBAC) and pain on the visual analog scale (VAS). Women with symptomatic leiomyoma (n = 88) missed more working time during menses compared to asymptomatic controls (n = 34): 7.6 vs 0.2% p = 0.003. The proportion of impairment while working was also significantly higher in women with symptomatic leiomyoma (43.8 vs 12.1% p<0.001). Moreover, cases reported greater activity impairment outside office hours (43.9 vs 12.1%, p<0.001). Among healthy controls, 69.5% reported symptoms of HMB (PBAC>100). Symptomatic leiomyoma leads to loss of working hours as well as loss of productivity during working hours, and affects women in other daily activities. Increased awareness of the impact of leiomyomas on women's lives is needed, and timely and appropriate management of the symptomatic leiomyomas could improve work productivity and quality of life.

  15. Comparison of carrier multiplication yields in PbS and PbSe nanocrystals: the role of competing energy-loss processes.

    PubMed

    Stewart, John T; Padilha, Lazaro A; Qazilbash, M Mumtaz; Pietryga, Jeffrey M; Midgett, Aaron G; Luther, Joseph M; Beard, Matthew C; Nozik, Arthur J; Klimov, Victor I

    2012-02-08

    Infrared band gap semiconductor nanocrystals are promising materials for exploring generation III photovoltaic concepts that rely on carrier multiplication or multiple exciton generation, the process in which a single high-energy photon generates more than one electron-hole pair. In this work, we present measurements of carrier multiplication yields and biexciton lifetimes for a large selection of PbS nanocrystals and compare these results to the well-studied PbSe nanocrystals. The similar bulk properties of PbS and PbSe make this an important comparison for discerning the pertinent properties that determine efficient carrier multiplication. We observe that PbS and PbSe have very similar biexciton lifetimes as a function of confinement energy. Together with the similar bulk properties, this suggests that the rates of multiexciton generation, which is the inverse of Auger recombination, are also similar. The carrier multiplication yields in PbS nanocrystals, however, are strikingly lower than those observed for PbSe nanocrystals. We suggest that this implies the rate of competing processes, such as phonon emission, is higher in PbS nanocrystals than in PbSe nanocrystals. Indeed, our estimations for phonon emission mediated by the polar Fröhlich-type interaction indicate that the corresponding energy-loss rate is approximately twice as large in PbS than in PbSe. © 2011 American Chemical Society

  16. Yielding in colloidal gels due to nonlinear microstructure bending mechanics.

    PubMed

    Furst, Eric M; Pantina, John P

    2007-05-01

    We report measurements of the nonlinear micromechanics of strongly flocculated model colloidal aggregates. Linear aggregates directly assembled using laser tweezers are subjected to bending loads until a critical bending moment is reached, which is identified by a stictionlike rearrangement of a single colloidal bond. This nanoscale phenomenon provides a quantitative basis for understanding the macroscopic shear yield stresses of strongly flocculated polystyrene latex gels, based on the maximum bending moment exceeding the critical moment of the constituent colloidal bonds of the gel microstructure. These mechanics are consistent with the local bending moment overcoming the static friction force between neighboring adhesive particles. This results in a direct relationship between the rheology of these gels and the boundary friction between Brownian particles.

  17. An adapted yield criterion for the evolution of subsequent yield surfaces

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Küsters, N.; Brosius, A.

    2017-09-01

    In numerical analysis of sheet metal forming processes, the anisotropic material behaviour is often modelled with isotropic work hardening and an average Lankford coefficient. In contrast, experimental observations show an evolution of the Lankford coefficients, which can be associated with a yield surface change due to kinematic and distortional hardening. Commonly, extensive efforts are carried out to describe these phenomena. In this paper an isotropic material model based on the Yld2000-2d criterion is adapted with an evolving yield exponent in order to change the yield surface shape. The yield exponent is linked to the accumulative plastic strain. This change has the effect of a rotating yield surface normal. As the normal is directly related to the Lankford coefficient, the change can be used to model the evolution of the Lankford coefficient during yielding. The paper will focus on the numerical implementation of the adapted material model for the FE-code LS-Dyna, mpi-version R7.1.2-d. A recently introduced identification scheme [1] is used to obtain the parameters for the evolving yield surface and will be briefly described for the proposed model. The suitability for numerical analysis will be discussed for deep drawing processes in general. Efforts for material characterization and modelling will be compared to other common yield surface descriptions. Besides experimental efforts and achieved accuracy, the potential of flexibility in material models and the risk of ambiguity during identification are of major interest in this paper.

  18. Risk factors for adverse outcomes after endovascular therapy for critical limb ischemia with tissue loss due to infrainguinal artery disease.

    PubMed

    Tnishibe, Toshiya; Yamamoto, Kiyohito; Toguchi, Kayo; Seike, Yoshimasa; Ito, Naoki; Nishibe, Masayasu; Koizumi, Jun; Dardik, Alan; Ogino, Hitoshi

    2016-10-01

    The purpose of this study was to analyze the risk factors for an adverse outcome after endovascular therapy (EVT) for critical limb ischemia (CLI) with tissue loss due to infrainguinal artery disease. We retrospectively reviewed the charts of patients with tissue loss (Rutherford class 5 and 6) due to infrainguinal artery disease who were managed with endovascular therapy (EVT) between January 2006 and December 2013. The primary endpoint was amputation-free survival (AFS), while the secondary endpoints were freedom from a major adverse limb event (MALE) plus perioperative (30 days) death (POD), limb salvage, and survival rates at one year. Multivariable perioperative predictors of AFS were identified using the stepwise Cox proportional hazards regression model. A total of 65 patients underwent EVT for infrainguinal artery disease on 72 limbs. The technical success rate was 94% (68/72), while the clinical success was attained in 54 of 72 limbs (72%). The AFS, MALE + POD, limb salvage, and survival rates at one year were 76%, 86%, 91%, and 81%, respectively. The multivariate analysis demonstrated that major tissue loss classified as Rutherford class 6 (HR, 5.68; 95% CI, 2.29-14.13; P<0.05) was negatively associated with decreased AFS, while clinical success (HR, 0.25; 95% CI, 0.11-0.60; P<0.05) was positively associated with increased AFS. EVT resulted in an acceptable rate of AFS, MALE+POD, limb salvage, and survival. However, we must keep in mind that there are significant limitations to be considered for EVT in patients with major tissue loss, and that, even if revascularization could be successfully performed, a significant number of the treated limbs are still in a critical situation, such as major amputation or death.

  19. Unsteady Loss in the Stator Due to the Incoming Rotor Wake in a Highly-Loaded Transonic Compressor

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hah, Chunill

    2015-01-01

    The present paper reports an investigation of unsteady loss generation in the stator due to the incoming rotor wake in an advanced GE transonic compressor design with a high-fidelity numerical method. This advanced compressor with high reaction and high stage loading has been investigated both experimentally and analytically in the past. The measured efficiency in this advanced compressor is significantly lower than the design intention/goal. The general understanding is that the current generation of compressor design/analysis tools miss some important flow physics in this modern compressor design. To pinpoint the source of the efficiency miss, an advanced test with a detailed flow traverse was performed for the front one and a half stage at the NASA Glenn Research Center. Detailed data-match analysis by GE identified an unexpected high loss generation in the pressure side of the stator passage. Higher total temperature and lower total pressure are measured near the pressure side of the stator. Various analyses based on the RANS and URANS of the compressor stage do not calculate the measured higher total temperature and lower total pressure on the pressure side of the stator. In the present paper, a Large Eddy Simulation (LES) is applied to find the fundamental mechanism of this unsteady loss generation in the stator due to the incoming rotor wake. The results from the LES were first compared with the NASA test results and the GE interpretation of the test data. LES calculates lower total pressure and higher total temperature on the pressure side of the stator, as the measured data showed, resulting in large loss generation on the pressure side of the stator. Detailed examination of the unsteady flow field from LES shows that the rotor wake, which has higher total temperature and higher total pressure relative to the free stream, interacts quite differently with the pressure side of the blade compared to the suction side of the blade. The higher temperature in the

  20. Heat treatment of wheat straw by immersion in hot water decreases mushroom yield in Pleurotus ostreatus.

    PubMed

    Jaramillo Mejía, Santiago; Albertó, Edgardo

    2013-01-01

    The oyster mushroom, Pleurotus ostreatus, is cultivated worldwide. It is one of the most appreciated mushrooms due to its high nutritional value. Immersion of the substrate in hot water is one of the most popular and worldwide treatment used for mushroom farmers. It is cheap and easy to implement. To compare the yields obtained during mushroom production of P. ostreatus using different pre-treatments (immersion in hot water, sterilization by steam and the use of fungicide) to determine if they influence mushroom crop. Four different treatments of substrate (wheat straw) were carried out: (i) immersion in hot water (IHW); (ii) steam sterilization; (iii) chemical; and (iv) untreated. The residual water from the IHW treatment was used to evaluate the mycelium growth and the production of P. ostreatus. Carbendazim treatment produced highest yields (BE: 106.93%) while IHW produced the lowest BE with 75.83%. Sugars, N, P, K and Ca were found in residual water of IHW treatment. The residual water increased the mycelium growth but did not increase yields. We have proved that IHW treatment of substrate reduced yields at least 20% when compared with other straw treatments such as steam, chemical or untreated wheat straw. Nutrients like sugars, proteins and minerals were found in the residual water extract which is the resultant water where the immersion treatment is carried out. The loss of these nutrients would be the cause of yield decrease. Alternative methods to the use of IHW as treatment of the substrate should be considered to reduce economical loss. Copyright © 2012 Revista Iberoamericana de Micología. Published by Elsevier Espana. All rights reserved.

  1. Losses Assessment of Crops due to Typhoon Disaster in China Coastal Areas —— A Case Study of Zhanjiang City, Guangdong Province

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mo, W.; Fang, W.

    2015-12-01

    Vulnerability which quantifies the loss ratio under different hazard intensity is an important feature of the natural disaster system and has important significance to natural disaster risk assessment. Agriculture is an outdoor industry with high risk of meteorological disasters. The strong winds, heavy rain and storm surge are main typhoon hazard factors to crops. To provide a quantitative research method for the loss evaluation of crops due to typhoon disaster we first revised two vulnerability curves for crops under comprehensive intensity of typhoon based on the simulated hazard data and loss data related to historical typhoon events landing on China from 1949 to 2014；and then established a storm surge vulnerability matrix of crops regarding Zhanjiang City of Guangdong Province as the study area ; finally, we put forward three storm surge fragility curves for crops representing different states of loss. The results can effectively describe the typhoon vulnerability for crops in China coastal areas so as to provide the input to post-disaster loss assessments and catastrophe modeling applications.

  2. Spatial Durbin model analysis macroeconomic loss due to natural disasters

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kusrini, D. E.; Mukhtasor

    2015-03-01

    Magnitude of the damage and losses caused by natural disasters is huge for Indonesia, therefore this study aimed to analyze the effects of natural disasters for macroeconomic losses that occurred in 115 cities/districts across Java during 2012. Based on the results of previous studies it is suspected that it contains effects of spatial dependencies in this case, so that the completion of this case is performed using a regression approach to the area, namely Analysis of Spatial Durbin Model (SDM). The obtained significant predictor variable is population, and predictor variable with a significant weighting is the number of occurrences of disasters, i.e., disasters in the region which have an impact on other neighboring regions. Moran's I index value using the weighted Queen Contiguity also showed significant results, meaning that the incidence of disasters in the region will decrease the value of GDP in other.

  3. Hippocampus-dependent spatial memory impairment due to molar tooth loss is ameliorated by an enriched environment.

    PubMed

    Kondo, Hiroko; Kurahashi, Minori; Mori, Daisuke; Iinuma, Mitsuo; Tamura, Yasuo; Mizutani, Kenmei; Shimpo, Kan; Sonoda, Shigeru; Azuma, Kagaku; Kubo, Kin-ya

    2016-01-01

    Teeth are crucial, not only for mastication, but for overall nutrition and general health, including cognitive function. Aged mice with chronic stress due to tooth loss exhibit impaired hippocampus-dependent learning and memory. Exposure to an enriched environment restores the reduced hippocampal function. Here, we explored the effects of an enriched environment on learning deficits and hippocampal morphologic changes in aged senescence-accelerated mouse strain P8 (SAMP8) mice with tooth loss. Eight-month-old male aged SAMP8 mice with molar intact or with molars removed were housed in either a standard environment or enriched environment for 3 weeks. The Morris water maze was performed for spatial memory test. The newborn cell proliferation, survival, and differentiation in the hippocampus were analyzed using 5-Bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) immunohistochemical method. The hippocampal brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) levels were also measured. Mice with upper molars removed (molarless) exhibited a significant decline in the proliferation and survival of newborn cells in the dentate gyrus (DG) as well as in hippocampal BDNF levels. In addition, neuronal differentiation of newly generated cells was suppressed and hippocampus-dependent spatial memory was impaired. Exposure of molarless mice to an enriched environment attenuated the reductions in the hippocampal BDNF levels and neuronal differentiation, and partially improved the proliferation and survival of newborn cells, as well as the spatial memory ability. These findings indicated that an enriched environment could ameliorate the hippocampus-dependent spatial memory impairment induced by molar tooth loss. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  4. Massive Bone Loss Due to Orchidectomy and Localized Disuse: Preventive Effects of a Biosphonsphonate

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Libouban, H.; Moreau, M. F.; Chappard, D.

    2008-06-01

    Orchidectomy (ORX) and hindlimb paralysis induced by botulinum neurotoxin (BTX) were combined to see if their effects were cumulative and if bone loss could be prevented by an antiresorptive agent (risedronate) or testosterone. Four groups of mature rats were studied for 1 month: SHAM operated; ORX and right hindlimb immobilization (BTX); ORX+BTX+risedronate or testosterone. Bone loss and microarchitecture deterioration were maximized on the immobilized bone. Risedronate but not testosterone prevented trabecular bone loss but was less effective on cortical bone loss. ORX and BTX had additive effects on bone loss which can be prevented by risedronate but not testosterone.

  5. Argentina soybean yield model

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Callis, S. L.; Sakamoto, C.

    1984-01-01

    A model based on multiple regression was developed to estimate soybean yields for the country of Argentina. A meteorological data set was obtained for the country by averaging data for stations within the soybean growing area. Predictor variables for the model were derived from monthly total precipitation and monthly average temperature. A trend variable was included for the years 1969 to 1978 since an increasing trend in yields due to technology was observed between these years.

  6. DETECTING TEMPORAL CHANGE IN WATERSHED NUTRIENT YIELDS

    EPA Science Inventory

    Meta-analyses reveal that nutrient yields tend to be higher for watersheds dominated by anthropogenic uses (e.g., urban, agriculture) and lower for watersheds dominated by natural vegetation. One implication of this pattern is that loss of natural vegetation will produce increase...

  7. Entanglement loss in molecular quantum-dot qubits due to interaction with the environment.

    PubMed

    Blair, Enrique P; Tóth, Géza; Lent, Craig S

    2018-05-16

    We study quantum entanglement loss due to environmental interaction in a condensed matter system with a complex geometry relevant to recent proposals for computing with single electrons at the nanoscale. We consider a system consisting of two qubits, each realized by an electron in a double quantum dot, which are initially in an entangled Bell state. The qubits are widely separated and each interacts with its own environment. The environment for each is modeled by surrounding double quantum dots placed at random positions with random orientations. We calculate the unitary evolution of the joint system and environment. The global state remains pure throughout. We examine the time dependence of the expectation value of the bipartite Clauser-Horne-Shimony-Holt (CHSH) and Brukner-Paunković-Rudolph-Vedral (BPRV) Bell operators and explore the emergence of correlations consistent with local realism. Though the details of this transition depend on the specific environmental geometry, we show how the results can be mapped on to a universal behavior with appropriate scaling. We determine the relevant disentanglement times based on realistic physical parameters for molecular double-dots.

  8. Entanglement loss in molecular quantum-dot qubits due to interaction with the environment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Blair, Enrique P.; Tóth, Géza; Lent, Craig S.

    2018-05-01

    We study quantum entanglement loss due to environmental interaction in a condensed matter system with a complex geometry relevant to recent proposals for computing with single electrons at the nanoscale. We consider a system consisting of two qubits, each realized by an electron in a double quantum dot, which are initially in an entangled Bell state. The qubits are widely separated and each interacts with its own environment. The environment for each is modeled by surrounding double quantum dots placed at random positions with random orientations. We calculate the unitary evolution of the joint system and environment. The global state remains pure throughout. We examine the time dependence of the expectation value of the bipartite Clauser–Horne–Shimony–Holt (CHSH) and Brukner–Paunković–Rudolph–Vedral (BPRV) Bell operators and explore the emergence of correlations consistent with local realism. Though the details of this transition depend on the specific environmental geometry, we show how the results can be mapped on to a universal behavior with appropriate scaling. We determine the relevant disentanglement times based on realistic physical parameters for molecular double-dots.

  9. Serrated yielding in Al-Li alloys

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Kumar, S.; McShane, H.B.

    1993-05-01

    Serrated yielding (SY) during tensile testing has been observed in Al-Li alloys, both in the binary and the commercial quaternary alloys, in single crystal as well as polycrystalline materials. Serrated yielding is commonly explained by a dynamic strain aging (DSA) model developed by McCormick and van den Beukel. All the solute elements present in Al-Li alloys, viz., Mg, Cu and Li are known to give DSA and SY. Several researchers believe the DSA to be the cause of SY and they attribute the disappearance of SY simply to the removal of solute from the matrix with aging. However, this argumentmore » has serious flaws. The present paper examines this aspect critically. The authors concluded that Al-Li alloys the disappearance of serrated yielding at a certain stage of aging is not due to removal of the solute from the matrix but due to the change in the nature of the metastable [delta][prime] precipitates - from fine coherent shearable precipitates to larger noncoherent nonshearable precipitates - which prevents the formation of the deformation bands. The serrated yielding reappears with extensive over aging due to the dissolution of these precipitates in favor of the equilibrium precipitates. The equilibrium precipitates, being widely spaced, are ineffective in preventing the formation of deformation bands.« less

  10. The spectrum of epilepsy and electroencephalographic abnormalities due to SHANK3 loss-of-function mutations.

    PubMed

    Holder, J Lloyd; Quach, Michael M

    2016-10-01

    The coincidence of autism with epilepsy is 27% in those individuals with intellectual disability. 1 Individuals with loss-of-function mutations in SHANK3 have intellectual disability, autism, and variably, epilepsy. 2-5 The spectrum of seizure semiologies and electroencephalography (EEG) abnormalities has never been investigated in detail. With the recent report that SHANK3 mutations are present in approximately 2% of individuals with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities and 1% of individuals with autism, determining the spectrum of seizure semiologies and electrographic abnormalities will be critical for medical practitioners to appropriately counsel the families of patients with SHANK3 mutations. A retrospective chart review was performed of all individuals treated at the Blue Bird Circle Clinic for Child Neurology who have been identified as having either a chromosome 22q13 microdeletion encompassing SHANK3 or a loss-of-function mutation in SHANK3 identified through whole-exome sequencing. For each subject, the presence or absence of seizures, seizure semiology, frequency, age of onset, and efficacy of therapy were determined. Electroencephalography studies were reviewed by a board certified neurophysiologist. Neuroimaging was reviewed by both a board certified pediatric neuroradiologist and child neurologist. There is a wide spectrum of seizure semiologies, frequencies, and severity in individuals with SHANK3 mutations. There are no specific EEG abnormalities found in our cohort, and EEG abnormalities were present in individuals diagnosed with epilepsy and those without history of a clinical seizure. All individuals with a mutation in SHANK3 should be evaluated for epilepsy due to the high prevalence of seizures in this population. The most common semiology is atypical absence seizure, which can be challenging to identify due to comorbid intellectual disability in individuals with SHANK3 mutations; however, no consistent seizure semiology, neuroimaging

  11. The spectrum of epilepsy and electroencephalographic abnormalities due to SHANK3 loss of function mutations

    PubMed Central

    Holder, J. Lloyd; Quach, Michael M.

    2017-01-01

    Summary Objective The coincidence of autism with epilepsy is 27% in those individuals with intellectual disability1. Individuals with loss of function mutations in SHANK3 have intellectual disability, autism and variably, epilepsy2–5. The spectrum of seizure semiologies and electroencephalographic (EEG) abnormalities has never been investigated in detail. With the recent report that SHANK3 mutations are present in approximately two percent of individuals with moderate to severe intellectual disabilities and one percent of individuals with autism, determining the spectrum of seizure semiologies and electrographic abnormalities will be critical for medical practitioners to appropriately counsel the families of patients with SHANK3 mutations. Methods A retrospective chart review was performed of all individuals treated at the Blue Bird Circle Clinic for Child Neurology who have been identified as having either a chromosome 22q13 microdeletion encompassing SHANK3 or a loss of function mutation in SHANK3 identified through whole exome sequencing. For each subject, the presence or absence of seizures, seizure semiology, frequency, age of onset and efficacy of therapy were determined. Electroencephalograms were reviewed by a board certified neurophysiologist. Neuroimaging was reviewed by both a board certified pediatric neuroradiologist and child neurologist. Results There is a wide spectrum of seizure semiologies, frequencies and severity in individuals with SHANK3 mutations. There are no specific electroencephalographic abnormalities found in our cohort, and EEG abnormalities were present in individuals diagnosed with epilepsy and those without history of a clinical seizure. Significance All individuals with a mutation in SHANK3 should be evaluated for epilepsy due to the high prevalence of seizures in this population. The most common semiology is atypical absence seizure which can be challenging to identify due to comorbid intellectual disability in individuals with

  12. Photosynthesis and yield reductions from wheat stem sawfly (Hymenoptera: Cephidae): interactions with wheat solidness, water stress, and phosphorus deficiency.

    PubMed

    Delaney, Kevin J; Weaver, David K; Peterson, Robert K D

    2010-04-01

    The impact of herbivory on plants is variable and influenced by several factors. The current study examined causes of variation in the impact of larval stem mining by the wheat stem sawfly, Cephus cinctus Norton (Hymenoptera: Cephidae), on spring wheat, Triticum aestivum L. We performed greenhouse experiments over 2 yr to (1) study whether biotic (hollow versus solid stemmed host wheat) and abiotic (water, phosphorus stress) factors interact with C. cinctus stem mining to influence degree of mined stem physiological (photosynthesis) and yield (grain weight) reductions; and (2) determine whether whole plant yield compensatory responses occur to offset stem-mining reductions. Flag leaf photosynthetic reduction was not detected 16-20 d after infestation, but were detected at 40-42 d and doubled from water or phosphorus stresses. Main stem grain weight decreased from 10 to 25% from stem mining, largely due to reductions in grain size, with greater reductions under low phosphorus and/or water levels. Phosphorus-deficient plants without water stress were most susceptible to C. cinctus, more than doubling the grain weight reduction due to larval feeding relative to other water and phosphorus treatments. Two solid stemmed varieties with stem mining had less grain weight loss than a hollow stemmed variety, so greater internal mechanical resistance may reduce larval stem mining and plant yield reductions. Our results emphasize the importance of sufficient water and macronutrients for plants grown in regions impacted by C. cinctus. Also, solid stemmed varieties not only reduce wheat lodging from C. cinctus, they may reduce harvested grain losses from infested stems.

  13. Framework for quantifying flow and sediment yield to diagnose and solve the aggradation problem of an ungauged catchment

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tamang, Sagar Kumar; Song, Wenjun; Fang, Xing; Vasconcelos, Jose; Anderson, J. Brian

    2018-06-01

    Estimating sediment deposition in a stream, a standard procedure for dealing with aggradation problem is complicated in an ungauged catchment due to the absence of necessary flow data. A serious aggradation problem within an ungauged catchment in Alabama, USA, blocked the conveyance of a bridge, reducing the clearance under the bridge from several feet to a couple of inches. A study of historical aerial imageries showed deforestation in the catchment by a significant amount over a period consistent with the first identification of the problem. To further diagnose the aggradation problem, due to the lack of any gauging stations, local rainfall, flow, and sediment measurements were attempted. However, due to the difficulty of installing an area-velocity sensor in an actively aggrading stream, the parameter transfer process for a hydrologic model was adopted to understand/estimate streamflow. Simulated discharge combined with erosion parameters of MUSLE (modified universal soil loss equation) helped in the estimation of sediment yield of the catchment. Sediment yield for the catchment showed a significant increase in recent years. A two-dimensional hydraulic model was developed at the bridge site to examine potential engineering strategies to wash sediments off and mitigate further aggradation. This study is to quantify the increase of sediment yield in an ungauged catchment due to land cover changes and other contributing factors and develop strategies and recommendations for preventing future aggradation in the vicinity of the bridge.

  14. Site-Specific Management of Miscanthus Genotypes for Combustion and Anaerobic Digestion: A Comparison of Energy Yields

    PubMed Central

    Kiesel, Andreas; Nunn, Christopher; Iqbal, Yasir; Van der Weijde, Tim; Wagner, Moritz; Özgüven, Mensure; Tarakanov, Ivan; Kalinina, Olena; Trindade, Luisa M.; Clifton-Brown, John; Lewandowski, Iris

    2017-01-01

    In Europe, the perennial C4 grass miscanthus is currently mainly cultivated for energy generation via combustion. In recent years, anaerobic digestion has been identified as a promising alternative utilization pathway. Anaerobic digestion produces a higher-value intermediate (biogas), which can be upgraded to biomethane, stored in the existing natural gas infrastructure and further utilized as a transport fuel or in combined heat and power plants. However, the upgrading of the solid biomass into gaseous fuel leads to conversion-related energy losses, the level of which depends on the cultivation parameters genotype, location, and harvest date. Thus, site-specific crop management needs to be adapted to the intended utilization pathway. The objectives of this paper are to quantify (i) the impact of genotype, location and harvest date on energy yields of anaerobic digestion and combustion and (ii) the conversion losses of upgrading solid biomass into biogas. For this purpose, five miscanthus genotypes (OPM 3, 6, 9, 11, 14), three cultivation locations (Adana, Moscow, Stuttgart), and up to six harvest dates (August–March) were assessed. Anaerobic digestion yielded, on average, 35% less energy than combustion. Genotype, location, and harvest date all had significant impacts on the energy yield. For both, this is determined by dry matter yield and ash content and additionally by substrate-specific methane yield for anaerobic digestion and moisture content for combustion. Averaged over all locations and genotypes, an early harvest in August led to 25% and a late harvest to 45% conversion losses. However, each utilization option has its own optimal harvest date, determined by biomass yield, biomass quality, and cutting tolerance. By applying an autumn green harvest for anaerobic digestion and a delayed harvest for combustion, the conversion-related energy loss was reduced to an average of 18%. This clearly shows that the delayed harvest required to maintain biomass

  15. Argentina wheat yield model

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Callis, S. L.; Sakamoto, C.

    1984-01-01

    Five models based on multiple regression were developed to estimate wheat yields for the five wheat growing provinces of Argentina. Meteorological data sets were obtained for each province by averaging data for stations within each province. Predictor variables for the models were derived from monthly total precipitation, average monthly mean temperature, and average monthly maximum temperature. Buenos Aires was the only province for which a trend variable was included because of increasing trend in yield due to technology from 1950 to 1963.

  16. Argentina corn yield model

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Callis, S. L.; Sakamoto, C.

    1984-01-01

    A model based on multiple regression was developed to estimate corn yields for the country of Argentina. A meteorological data set was obtained for the country by averaging data for stations within the corn-growing area. Predictor variables for the model were derived from monthly total precipitation, average monthly mean temperature, and average monthly maximum temperature. A trend variable was included for the years 1965 to 1980 since an increasing trend in yields due to technology was observed between these years.

  17. Remote-sensing-based rapid assessment of flood crop loss to support USDA flooding decision-making

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Di, L.; Yu, G.; Yang, Z.; Hipple, J.; Shrestha, R.

    2016-12-01

    Floods often cause significant crop loss in the United States. Timely and objective assessment of flood-related crop loss is very important for crop monitoring and risk management in agricultural and disaster-related decision-making in USDA. Among all flood-related information, crop yield loss is particularly important. Decision on proper mitigation, relief, and monetary compensation relies on it. Currently USDA mostly relies on field surveys to obtain crop loss information and compensate farmers' loss claim. Such methods are expensive, labor intensive, and time consumptive, especially for a large flood that affects a large geographic area. Recent studies have demonstrated that Earth observation (EO) data are useful in post-flood crop loss assessment for a large geographic area objectively, timely, accurately, and cost effectively. There are three stages of flood damage assessment, including rapid assessment, early recovery assessment, and in-depth assessment. EO-based flood assessment methods currently rely on the time-series of vegetation index to assess the yield loss. Such methods are suitable for in-depth assessment but are less suitable for rapid assessment since the after-flood vegetation index time series is not available. This presentation presents a new EO-based method for the rapid assessment of crop yield loss immediately after a flood event to support the USDA flood decision making. The method is based on the historic records of flood severity, flood duration, flood date, crop type, EO-based both before- and immediate-after-flood crop conditions, and corresponding crop yield loss. It hypotheses that a flood of same severity occurring at the same pheonological stage of a crop will cause the similar damage to the crop yield regardless the flood years. With this hypothesis, a regression-based rapid assessment algorithm can be developed by learning from historic records of flood events and corresponding crop yield loss. In this study, historic records of

  18. Decreased alertness due to sleep loss increases pain sensitivity in mice

    PubMed Central

    Alexandre, Chloe; Latremoliere, Alban; Ferreira, Ashley; Miracca, Giulia; Yamamoto, Mihoko; Scammell, Thomas E; Woolf, Clifford J

    2018-01-01

    Extended daytime and nighttime activities are major contributors to the growing sleep deficiency epidemic1,2, as is the high prevalence of sleep disorders like insomnia. The consequences of chronic insufficient sleep for health remain uncertain3. Sleep quality and duration predict presence of pain the next day in healthy subjects4–7, suggesting that sleep disturbances alone may worsen pain, and experimental sleep deprivation in humans supports this claim8,9. We demonstrate that sleep loss, but not sleep fragmentation, in healthy mice increases sensitivity to noxious stimuli (referred to as ‘pain’) without general sensory hyper-responsiveness. Moderate daily repeated sleep loss leads to a progressive accumulation of sleep debt and also to exaggerated pain responses, both of which are rescued after restoration of normal sleep. Caffeine and modafinil, two wake-promoting agents that have no analgesic activity in rested mice, immediately normalize pain sensitivity in sleep-deprived animals, without affecting sleep debt. The reversibility of mild sleep-loss-induced pain by wake-promoting agents reveals an unsuspected role for alertness in setting pain sensitivity. Clinically, insufficient or poor-quality sleep may worsen pain and this enhanced pain may be reduced not by analgesics, whose effectiveness is reduced, but by increasing alertness or providing better sleep. PMID:28481358

  19. The grain drain. Ozone effects on historical maize and soybean yields

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Numerous controlled experiments find that elevated ground-level ozone concentrations ([O3]) damage crops and reduce yield. There have been no estimates of the actual field yield losses in the USA from [O3], even though such estimates would be valuable for projections of future food production and fo...

  20. Nutrient losses and greenhouse gas emissions from dairy production in China: Lessons learned from historical changes and regional differences.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Nannan; Bai, Zhaohai; Luo, Jiafa; Ledgard, Stewart; Wu, Zhiguo; Ma, Lin

    2017-11-15

    The dairy industry in China was rapidly expanded and intensified from 1980 to 2010, engendering potential long-term impacts on the environment and natural resources. However, impacts of dairy intensification on nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) losses and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions were unknown. This study was undertaken to examine these relations using the NUtrient flows in Food chains, Environment and Resources use (NUFER)-dairy model. Results showed that milk yield increased by 64% from 1980 to 2010 on average, and the use of concentrate feeds increased by 57% associated with a shift of production from traditional and grassland systems to collective and industrialized systems. At herd level, the N use efficiency (NUE; conversion of N inputs to products) doubled from 7 to 15%, and the P use efficiency (PUE) increased from 10 to 17%, primarily resulting from increased milk yield per cow. In contrast, at the system level, NUE showed a small increase (from 10 to 15%, associated with reduced gaseous losses) while PUE decreased from 46 to 30% due to a large increase in manure discharges. This is attributed to decoupling of feed and dairy production, as the proportion of manure N and P recycled to cropland decreased by 52% and 54%, respectively. Despite this, the average total N loss decreased from 63 to 48gkg -1 milk, and the average GHG emissions from 1.7 to 1.1kgCO 2 equivalentkg -1 milk associated with increased per-cow productivity. However, average P loss increased from 1.4 to 2.8gPkg -1 milk due to higher discharge rate to wastewater and landfill in collective and industrialized systems. Anyhow, average N and P losses exceeded levels in developed countries. There were large regional variations in nutrient use efficiency, nutrient losses and GHG emissions in China, largely determined by the dairy production structure. Average N losses and GHG emissions per unit of milk showed a negative correlation with production intensification based on the proportion of

  1. Waterlogging effects on growth and yield components in late-planted soybean.

    PubMed

    Linkemer, G; Board, J E; Musgrave, M E

    1998-01-01

    A major agronomic problem in the southeastern USA is low yield of late-planted soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]. This problem is aggravated by the adverse effect of waterlogging on crop growth. Our objectives were to identify soybean growth stages sensitive to waterlogging; identify yield components and physiological parameters explaining yield losses induced by waterlogging; and determine the extent of yield losses induced by waterlogging under natural field conditions. Greenhouse and field studies were conducted during 1993 and 1994 near Baton Rouge, LA, (30 degrees N Lat) on a Commerce silt loam. Waterlogging tolerance was assessed in cultivar Centennial (Maturity Group VI) at three vegetative and five reproductive growth stages by maintaining the water level at the soil surface in a greenhouse study. Using the same cultivar, we evaluated the effect of drainage in the field for late-planted soybean. Rain episodes determined the timing of waterlogging; redox potential and oxygen concentration of the soil were used to quantify the intensity of waterlogging stress. Results of the greenhouse study indicated that the early vegetative period (V2) and the early reproductive stages (R1, R3, and R5) were most sensitive to waterlogging. Three to 5 cm of rain per day falling on poorly drained soil was sufficient to reduce crop growth rate, resulting in a yield decline from 2453 to 1550 kg ha-1. Yield loss in both field and greenhouse studies was induced primarily by decreased pod production resulting from fewer pods per reproductive node. In conclusion, waterlogging was determined to be an important stress for late-planted soybean in high rainfall areas such as the Gulf Coast Region.

  2. Interrelationships of somatic cell count, mastitis, and milk yield in a low somatic cell count herd.

    PubMed

    Deluyker, H A; Gay, J M; Weaver, L D

    1993-11-01

    In a high yielding low SCC herd, changes in milk yield associated with SCC and occurrence of clinical mastitis and differences in SCC with parity, clinical mastitis, and DIM were investigated. Milk yield data were obtained at every milking, and SCC was measured once every 48 h in 117 cows during the first 119 d postpartum. Effects of SCC and clinical mastitis on cumulative milk yield in the first 119 d postpartum were evaluated with least squares linear regression. Repeated measures ANOVA was used to detect changes in SCC. The SCC was highest at lactation onset, and cows with clinical mastitis had significantly higher SCC. During the 10 d prior to onset of clinical mastitis, SCC was higher in affected cows than in matched unaffected controls and surged just prior to diagnosis. During the 10-d period following a mastitis treatment, SCC differences between treated and control cows remained significant but became smaller with time and returned to the premastitis differences. Occurrence of clinical mastitis was associated with 5% milk yield loss. Cows with mean SCC > 245,000 cells/ml over the 119 d showed 6.2% yield loss compared with cows with SCC < or = 90,000 cells/ml. Cows with clinical mastitis had higher SCC prior to and following the end of treatment for mastitis than did controls. Clinical mastitis and SCC were associated with significant yield loss. Milk yield loss attributed to clinical mastitis was greater than that associated with elevated SCC (> 245,000 cells/ml) because a greater percentage of cows (26%) had clinical mastitis than elevated SCC (12.5%).

  3. Stress-induced grey matter loss determined by MRI is primarily due to loss of dendrites and their synapses.

    PubMed

    Kassem, Mustafa S; Lagopoulos, Jim; Stait-Gardner, Tim; Price, William S; Chohan, Tariq W; Arnold, Jonathon C; Hatton, Sean N; Bennett, Maxwell R

    2013-04-01

    Stress, unaccompanied by signs of post-traumatic stress disorder, is known to decrease grey matter volume (GMV) in the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and hippocampus but not the amygdala in humans. We sought to determine if this was the case in stressed mice using high-resolution magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to identify the cellular constituents of the grey matter that quantitatively give rise to such changes. Stressed mice showed grey matter losses of 10 and 15 % in the ACC and hippocampus, respectively but not in the amygdala or the retrosplenial granular area (RSG). Concurrently, no changes in the number or volumes of the somas of neurons, astrocytes or oligodendrocytes were detected. A loss of synaptic spine density of up to 60 % occurred on different-order dendrites in the ACC and hippocampus (CA1) but not in the amygdala or RSG. The loss of spines was accompanied by decreases in cumulative dendritic length of neurons of over 40 % in the ACC and hippocampus (CA1) giving rise to decreases in volume of dendrites of 2.6 mm(3) for the former and 0.6 mm(3) for the latter, with no change in the amygdala or RSG. These values are similar to the MRI-determined loss of GMV following stress of 3.0 and 0.8 mm(3) in ACC and hippocampus, respectively, with no changes in the amygdala or RSG. This quantitative study is the first to relate GMV changes in the cortex measured with MRI to volume changes in cellular constituents of the grey matter.

  4. [Effects of nitrogen application level on soil nitrate accumulation and ammonia volatilization in high-yielding wheat field].

    PubMed

    Wang, Dong; Yu, Zhenwen; Yu, Wenming; Shi, Yu; Zhou, Zhongxin

    2006-09-01

    The study showed that during the period from sowing to pre-wintering, the soil nitrate in high-yielding wheat field moved down to deeper layers, and accumulated in the layers below 140 cm. An application rate of 96-168 kg N x hm(-2) increased the nitrate content in 0-60 cm soil layer and the wheat grain yield and its protein content, and decreased the proportion of apparent N loss to applied N and the ammonia volatilization loss from basal nitrogen. Applying 240 kg N x hm(-2) promoted the downward movement of soil nitrate and its accumulation in deeper layers, increased the proportion of apparent N loss to applied N and the ammonia volatilization loss from basal nitrogen, had no significant effect on the protein content of wheat grain, but decreased the grain yield. The appropriate application rate of nitrogen on high-yielding wheat field was 132-204 kg N x hm(-2).

  5. Radiation Losses Due to Tapering of a Double-Core Optical Waveguide

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Lyons, Donald R.; Khet, Myat; Pencil, Eric (Technical Monitor)

    2001-01-01

    The theoretical model we designed parameterizes the power losses as a function of .the profile shape for a tapered, single mode, optical dielectric coupler. The focus of this project is to produce a working model that determines the power losses experienced by the fibers when light crosses a taper region. This phenomenon can be examined using coupled mode theory. The optical directional coupler consists of a parallel, dual-channel, waveguide with minimal spacing between the channels to permit energy exchange. Thus, power transfer is essentially a function of the taper profile. To find the fields in the fibers, the approach used was that of solving the Helmholtz equation in cylindrical coordinates involving Bessel and modified Bessel functions depending on the location.

  6. Balancing Immunity and Yield in Crop Plants.

    PubMed

    Ning, Yuese; Liu, Wende; Wang, Guo-Liang

    2017-12-01

    Crop diseases cause enormous yield losses and threaten global food[ED1] security. The use of highly resistant cultivars can effectively control plant diseases, but in crops, genetic immunity to disease often comes with an unintended reduction in growth and yield. Here, we review recent advances in understanding how nucleotide-binding domain, leucine-rich repeat (NLR) receptors and cell wall-associated kinase (WAK) proteins function in balancing immunity and yield. We also discuss the role of plant hormones and transcription factors in regulating the trade-offs between plant growth and immunity. Finally, we describe how a novel mechanism of translational control of defense proteins can enhance immunity without the reduction in fitness. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  7. Modelling Pasture-based Automatic Milking System Herds: The Impact of Large Herd on Milk Yield and Economics.

    PubMed

    Islam, M R; Clark, C E F; Garcia, S C; Kerrisk, K L

    2015-07-01

    The aim of this modelling study was to investigate the effect of large herd size (and land areas) on walking distances and milking interval (MI), and their impact on milk yield and economic penalties when 50% of the total diets were provided from home grown feed either as pasture or grazeable complementary forage rotation (CFR) in an automatic milking system (AMS). Twelve scenarios consisting of 3 AMS herds (400, 600, 800 cows), 2 levels of pasture utilisation (current AMS utilisation of 15.0 t dry matter [DM]/ha, termed as 'moderate'; optimum pasture utilisation of 19.7 t DM/ha, termed as 'high') and 2 rates of incorporation of grazeable complementary forage system (CFS: 0, 30%; CFS = 65% farm is CFR and 35% of farm is pasture) were investigated. Walking distances, energy loss due to walking, MI, reduction in milk yield and income loss were calculated for each treatment based on information available in the literature. With moderate pasture utilisation and 0% CFR, increasing the herd size from 400 to 800 cows resulted in an increase in total walking distances between the parlour and the paddock from 3.5 to 6.3 km. Consequently, MI increased from 15.2 to 16.4 h with increased herd size from 400 to 800 cows. High pasture utilisation (allowing for an increased stocking density) reduced the total walking distances up to 1 km, thus reduced the MI by up to 0.5 h compared to the moderate pasture, 800 cow herd combination. The high pasture utilisation combined with 30% of the farm in CFR in the farm reduced the total walking distances by up to 1.7 km and MI by up to 0.8 h compared to the moderate pasture and 800 cow herd combination. For moderate pasture utilisation, increasing the herd size from 400 to 800 cows resulted in more dramatic milk yield penalty as yield increasing from c.f. 2.6 and 5.1 kg/cow/d respectively, which incurred a loss of up to $AU 1.9/cow/d. Milk yield losses of 0.61 kg and 0.25 kg for every km increase in total walking distance (voluntary return

  8. Observations of beam losses due to bound-free pair production in a heavy-ion collider.

    PubMed

    Bruce, R; Jowett, J M; Gilardoni, S; Drees, A; Fischer, W; Tepikian, S; Klein, S R

    2007-10-05

    We report the first observations of beam losses due to bound-free pair production at the interaction point of a heavy-ion collider. This process is expected to be a major luminosity limit for the CERN Large Hadron Collider when it operates with (208)Pb(82+) ions because the localized energy deposition by the lost ions may quench superconducting magnet coils. Measurements were performed at the BNL Relativistic Heavy Ion Collider (RHIC) during operation with 100 GeV/nucleon (63)Cu(29+) ions. At RHIC, the rate, energy and magnetic field are low enough so that magnet quenching is not an issue. The hadronic showers produced when the single-electron ions struck the RHIC beam pipe were observed using an array of photodiodes. The measurement confirms the order of magnitude of the theoretical cross section previously calculated by others.

  9. Impact of inward turbulence spreading on energy loss of edge-localized modes

    DOE PAGES

    Ma, C. H.; Xu, X. Q.; Xi, P. W.; ...

    2015-05-18

    Nonlinear two-fluid and gyrofluid simulations show that an edge localized modes(ELM) crash has two phases: fast initial crash of ion temperature perturbation on the Alfvén time scale and slow turbulence spreading. The turbulencetransport phase is a slow encroachment of electron temperature perturbation due to the ELM event into pedestal region. Because of the inward turbulence spreading effect, the energy loss of an ELM decreases when density pedestal height increases. The Landau resonance yields the different cross phase-shift of ions and electrons. A 3 + 1 gyro-Landau-fluid model is implemented in BOUT++ framework. As a result, the gyrofluid simulations show thatmore » the kinetic effects have stabilizing effects on the ideal ballooning mode and the energy loss increases with the pedestal height.« less

  10. Anomalous yield reduction in direct-drive deuterium/tritium implosions due to 3He addition

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Herrmann, H. W.; Langenbrunner, J. R.; Mack, J. M.; Cooley, J. H.; Wilson, D. C.; Evans, S. C.; Sedillo, T. J.; Kyrala, G. A.; Caldwell, S. E.; Young, C. S.; Nobile, A.; Wermer, J.; Paglieri, S.; McEvoy, A. M.; Kim, Y.; Batha, S. H.; Horsfield, C. J.; Drew, D.; Garbett, W.; Rubery, M.; Glebov, V. Yu.; Roberts, S.; Frenje, J. A.

    2009-05-01

    Glass capsules were imploded in direct drive on the OMEGA laser [Boehly et al., Opt. Commun. 133, 495 (1997)] to look for anomalous degradation in deuterium/tritium (DT) yield and changes in reaction history with H3e addition. Such anomalies have previously been reported for D/H3e plasmas but had not yet been investigated for DT/H3e. Anomalies such as these provide fertile ground for furthering our physics understanding of inertial confinement fusion implosions and capsule performance. Anomalous degradation in the compression component of yield was observed, consistent with the "factor of 2" degradation previously reported by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) at a 50% H3e atom fraction in D2 using plastic capsules [Rygg, Phys. Plasmas 13, 052702 (2006)]. However, clean calculations (i.e., no fuel-shell mixing) predict the shock component of yield quite well, contrary to the result reported by MIT but consistent with Los Alamos National Laboratory results in D2/H3e [Wilson et al., J. Phys.: Conf. Ser. 112, 022015 (2008)]. X-ray imaging suggests less-than-predicted compression of capsules containing H3e. Leading candidate explanations are poorly understood equation of state for gas mixtures and unanticipated particle pressure variation with increasing H3e addition.

  11. Modelling crop yield in Iberia under drought conditions

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Ribeiro, Andreia; Páscoa, Patrícia; Russo, Ana; Gouveia, Célia

    2017-04-01

    The improved assessment of the cereal yield and crop loss under drought conditions are essential to meet the increasing economy demands. The growing frequency and severity of the extreme drought conditions in the Iberian Peninsula (IP) has been likely responsible for negative impacts on agriculture, namely on crop yield losses. Therefore, a continuous monitoring of vegetation activity and a reliable estimation of drought impacts is crucial to contribute for the agricultural drought management and development of suitable information tools. This works aims to assess the influence of drought conditions in agricultural yields over the IP, considering cereal yields from mainly rainfed agriculture for the provinces with higher productivity. The main target is to develop a strategy to model drought risk on agriculture for wheat yield at a province level. In order to achieve this goal a combined assessment was made using a drought indicator (Standardized Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index, SPEI) to evaluate drought conditions together with a widely used vegetation index (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, NDVI) to monitor vegetation activity. A correlation analysis between detrended wheat yield and SPEI was performed in order to assess the vegetation response to each time scale of drought occurrence and also identify the moment of the vegetative cycle when the crop yields are more vulnerable to drought conditions. The time scales and months of SPEI, together with the months of NDVI, better related with wheat yield were chosen to perform a multivariate regression analysis to simulate crop yield. Model results are satisfactory and highlighted the usefulness of such analysis in the framework of developing a drought risk model for crop yields. In terms of an operational point of view, the results aim to contribute to an improved understanding of crop yield management under dry conditions, particularly adding substantial information on the advantages of combining

  12. Genotypic diversity in the responses of yield and yield components to elevated ozone of diverse inbred and hybrid maize

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Current tropospheric ozone concentrations ([O3]), an important air pollutant, are phytotoxic and detrimental to crop yield causing significant losses of ~14-26 billion in 4 of the world’s major crops. Until recent years, it was believed that agricultural and economically important C4 plants, such as...

  13. Influence of vapor wall loss in laboratory chambers on yields of secondary organic aerosol

    PubMed Central

    Zhang, Xuan; Cappa, Christopher D.; Jathar, Shantanu H.; McVay, Renee C.; Ensberg, Joseph J.; Kleeman, Michael J.; Seinfeld, John H.

    2014-01-01

    Secondary organic aerosol (SOA) constitutes a major fraction of submicrometer atmospheric particulate matter. Quantitative simulation of SOA within air-quality and climate models—and its resulting impacts—depends on the translation of SOA formation observed in laboratory chambers into robust parameterizations. Worldwide data have been accumulating indicating that model predictions of SOA are substantially lower than ambient observations. Although possible explanations for this mismatch have been advanced, none has addressed the laboratory chamber data themselves. Losses of particles to the walls of chambers are routinely accounted for, but there has been little evaluation of the effects on SOA formation of losses of semivolatile vapors to chamber walls. Here, we experimentally demonstrate that such vapor losses can lead to substantially underestimated SOA formation, by factors as much as 4. Accounting for such losses has the clear potential to bring model predictions and observations of organic aerosol levels into much closer agreement. PMID:24711404

  14. Weight loss versus muscle loss: re-evaluating inclusion criteria for future cancer cachexia interventional trials.

    PubMed

    Roeland, Eric J; Ma, Joseph D; Nelson, Sandahl H; Seibert, Tyler; Heavey, Sean; Revta, Carolyn; Gallivan, Andrea; Baracos, Vickie E

    2017-02-01

    Participation in cancer cachexia clinical trials requires a defined weight loss (WL) over time. A loss in skeletal muscle mass, measured by cross-sectional computed tomography (CT) image analysis, represents a possible alternative. Our aim was to compare WL versus muscle loss in patients who were screened to participate in a cancer cachexia clinical trial. This was a single-center, retrospective analysis in metastatic colorectal cancer patients screened for an interventional cancer cachexia trial requiring a ≥5 % WL over the preceding 6 months. Concurrent CT images obtained as part of standard oncology care were analyzed for changes in total muscle and fat (visceral, subcutaneous, and total). Of patients screened (n = 36), 3 (8 %) enrolled in the trial, 17 (47 %) were excluded due to insufficient WL (<5 %), 3 (8 %) were excluded due to excessive WL (>20 %), and 16 (44 %) met inclusion criteria for WL. Patients who met screening criteria for WL (5-20 %) had a mean ± SD of 7.7 ± 8.7 % muscle loss, 24.4 ± 37.5 % visceral adipose loss, 21.6 ± 22.3 % subcutaneous adipose loss, and 22.1 ± 24.7 % total adipose loss. Patients excluded due to insufficient WL had 2 ± 6.4 % muscle loss, but a gain of 8.5 ± 39.8 % visceral adipose, and 4.2 ± 28.2 % subcutaneous adipose loss and 0.8 ± 28.4 % total adipose loss. Of the patients excluded due to WL <5 % (n = 17), 7 (41 %) had a skeletal muscle loss >5 %. Defining cancer cachexia by WL over time may be limited as it does not capture skeletal muscle loss. Cross-sectional CT body composition analysis may improve early detection of muscle loss and patient participation in future cancer cachexia clinical trials.

  15. ROI on yield data analysis systems through a business process management strategy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Rehani, Manu; Strader, Nathan; Hanson, Jeff

    2005-05-01

    The overriding motivation for yield engineering is profitability. This is achieved through application of yield management. The first application is to continually reduce waste in the form of yield loss. New products, new technologies and the dynamic state of the process and equipment keep introducing new ways to cause yield loss. In response, the yield management efforts have to continually come up with new solutions to minimize it. The second application of yield engineering is to aid in accurate product pricing. This is achieved through predicting future results of the yield engineering effort. The more accurate the yield prediction, the more accurate the wafer start volume, the more accurate the wafer pricing. Another aspect of yield prediction pertains to gauging the impact of a yield problem and predicting how long that will last. The ability to predict such impacts again feeds into wafer start calculations and wafer pricing. The question then is that if the stakes on yield management are so high why is it that most yield management efforts are run like science and engineering projects and less like manufacturing? In the eighties manufacturing put the theory of constraints1 into practice and put a premium on stability and predictability in manufacturing activities, why can't the same be done for yield management activities? This line of introspection led us to define and implement a business process to manage the yield engineering activities. We analyzed the best known methods (BKM) and deployed a workflow tool to make them the standard operating procedure (SOP) for yield managment. We present a case study in deploying a Business Process Management solution for Semiconductor Yield Engineering in a high-mix ASIC environment. We will present a description of the situation prior to deployment, a window into the development process and a valuation of the benefits.

  16. Gypsum's influence on corn yield and p loss from an eroded southern piedmont soil

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Gypsum (CaSO4) has been shown to reduce dissolved P in surface water runoff from pastures fertilized with poultry litter (PL). However, limited research has evaluated gypsum’s influence on P loss under row crops. Moreover, can gypsum effectively reduce P loss when applied only to grass buffer strips...

  17. Loss of soil (macro)fauna due to the expansion of Brazilian sugarcane acreage.

    PubMed

    Franco, André L C; Bartz, Marie L C; Cherubin, Maurício R; Baretta, Dilmar; Cerri, Carlos E P; Feigl, Brigitte J; Wall, Diana H; Davies, Christian A; Cerri, Carlos C

    2016-09-01

    Land use changes (LUC) from pasture to sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) crop are expected to add 6.4Mha of new sugarcane land by 2021 in the Brazilian Cerrado and Atlantic Forest biomes. We assessed the effects of these LUC on the abundance and community structure of animals that inhabit soils belowground through a field survey using chronosequences of land uses comprising native vegetation, pasture, and sugarcane along a 1000-km-long transect across these two major tropical biomes in Brazil. Macrofauna community composition differed among land uses. While most groups were associated with samples taken in native vegetation, high abundance of termites and earthworms appeared associated with pasture soils. Linear mixed effects analysis showed that LUC affected total abundance (X(2)(1)=6.79, p=0.03) and taxa richness (X(2)(1)=6.08, p=0.04) of soil macrofauna. Abundance increased from 411±70individualsm(-2) in native vegetation to 1111±202individualsm(-2) in pasture, but decreased sharply to 106±24individualsm(-2) in sugarcane soils. Diversity decreased 24% from native vegetation to pasture, and 39% from pasture to sugarcane. Thus, a reduction of ~90% in soil macrofauna abundance, besides a loss of ~40% in the diversity of macrofauna groups, can be expected when sugarcane crops replace pasture in Brazilian tropical soils. In general, higher abundances of major macrofauna groups (ants, coleopterans, earthworms, and termites) were associated with higher acidity and low contents of macronutrients and organic matter in soil. This study draws attention for a significant biodiversity loss belowground due to tropical LUC in sugarcane expansion areas. Given that many groups of soil macrofauna are recognized as key mediators of ecosystem processes such as soil aggregation, nutrients cycling and soil carbon storage, our results warrant further efforts to understand the impacts of altering belowground biodiversity and composition on soil functioning and agriculture performance

  18. A Growth and Yield Model for Thinned Stands of Yellow-Poplar

    Treesearch

    Bruce R. Knoebel; Harold E. Burkhart; Donald E. Beck

    1986-01-01

    Simultaneous growth and yield equations were developed for predicting basal area growth and cubic-foot volume growth and yield in thinned stands of yellow-poplar. A joint loss function involving both volume and basal area was used to estimate the coefficients in the system of equations. The estimates obtained were analytically compatible, invariant for projection...

  19. Supporting Crop Loss Insurance Policy of Indonesia through Rice Yield Modelling and Forecasting

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    van Verseveld, Willem; Weerts, Albrecht; Trambauer, Patricia; de Vries, Sander; Conijn, Sjaak; van Valkengoed, Eric; Hoekman, Dirk; Grondard, Nicolas; Hengsdijk, Huib; Schrevel, Aart; Vlasbloem, Pieter; Klauser, Dominik

    2017-04-01

    The Government of Indonesia has decided on a crop insurance policy to assist Indonesia's farmers and to boost food security. To support the Indonesian government, the G4INDO project (www.g4indo.org) is developing/constructing an integrated platform implemented in the Delft-FEWS forecasting system (Werner et al., 2013). The integrated platform brings together remote sensed data (both visible and radar) and hydrologic, crop and reservoir modelling and forecasting to improve the modelling and forecasting of rice yield. The hydrological model (wflow_sbm), crop model (wflow_lintul) and reservoir models (RTC-Tools) are coupled on time stepping basis in the OpenStreams framework (see https://github.com/openstreams/wflow) and deployed in the integrated platform to support seasonal forecasting of water availability and crop yield. First we will show the general idea about the G4INDO project, the integrated platform (including Sentinel 1 & 2 data) followed by first (reforecast) results of the coupled models for predicting water availability and crop yield in the Brantas catchment in Java, Indonesia. Werner, M., Schellekens, J., Gijsbers, P., Van Dijk, M., Van den Akker, O. and Heynert K, 2013. The Delft-FEWS flow forecasting system, Environmental Modelling & Software; 40:65-77. DOI: 10.1016/j.envsoft.2012.07.010.

  20. Incidence and factors associated with early pregnancy losses in Simmental dairy cows.

    PubMed

    Zobel, R; Tkalčić, S; Pipal, I; Buić, V

    2011-09-01

    It has been suggested that management system, milk yield, parity, body condition score and ambient temperature can significantly influence the rate of early pregnancy loss in dairy cattle. The objectives of this study were to establish the extent and patterns of early pregnancy loss from days 32 to 86 of gestation, and to check relationships between management system, milk yield, ambient temperature (quartile), body condition score, bull and parity on the early pregnancy loss rate for Simmental dairy cattle in Croatia. Animals were housed in two dairy farms with two different management systems (pasture based-group A, n=435 and intensive-group B, n=425) with a total of 151 heifers and 709 cows. Overall pregnancy losses were recorded in 67 (7.79%) animals, with late embryonic losses in 30 (44.77%) and early fetal losses in 37 (55.23%) animals (P>0.05). Early pregnancy losses were twofold higher in group B when compared to the group A (P<0.05). More than the half of pregnancy losses were recorded during the III quartile (P<0.05). There was no significant relationship between the paternal bull and pregnancy loss rate. Low body condition score (BCS 2-3) was associated with the highest, while BCS 3.25-4 showed the lowest pregnancy loss rate (P<0.05). The pregnancy loss rate increased in parallel with parity and milk yield increase. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

  1. Atomic Oxygen Erosion Yield Dependence Upon Texture Development in Polymers

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Banks, Bruce A.; Loftus, Ryan J.; Miller, Sharon K.

    2016-01-01

    The atomic oxygen erosion yield (volume of a polymer that is lost due to oxidation per incident atom) of polymers is typically assumed to be reasonably constant with increasing fluence. However polymers containing ash or inorganic pigments, tend to have erosion yields that decrease with fluence due to an increasing presence of protective particles on the polymer surface. This paper investigates two additional possible causes for erosion yields of polymers that are dependent upon atomic oxygen. These are the development of surface texture which can cause the erosion yield to change with fluence due to changes in the aspect ratio of the surface texture that develops and polymer specific atomic oxygen interaction parameters. The surface texture development under directed hyperthermal attack produces higher aspect ratio surface texture than isotropic thermal energy atomic oxygen attack. The fluence dependence of erosion yields is documented for low Kapton H (DuPont, Wilmington, DE) effective fluences for a variety of polymers under directed hyperthermal and isotropic thermal energy attack.

  2. Involvement of Atm and Trp53 in neural cell loss due to Terf2 inactivation during mouse brain development.

    PubMed

    Kim, Jusik; Choi, Inseo; Lee, Youngsoo

    2017-11-01

    Maintenance of genomic integrity is one of the critical features for proper neurodevelopment and inhibition of neurological diseases. The signals from both ATM and ATR to TP53 are well-known mechanisms to remove neural cells with DNA damage during neurogenesis. Here we examined the involvement of Atm and Atr in genomic instability due to Terf2 inactivation during mouse brain development. Selective inactivation of Terf2 in neural progenitors induced apoptosis, resulting in a complete loss of the brain structure. This neural loss was rescued partially in both Atm and Trp53 deficiency, but not in an Atr-deficient background in the mouse. Atm inactivation resulted in incomplete brain structures, whereas p53 deficiency led to the formation of multinucleated giant neural cells and the disruption of the brain structure. These giant neural cells disappeared in Lig4 deficiency. These data demonstrate ATM and TP53 are important for the maintenance of telomere homeostasis and the surveillance of telomere dysfunction during neurogenesis.

  3. Loss of Water to Space from Mars: Processes and Implications

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kass, D. M.

    2001-12-01

    most of the water on Mars is likely to be in the form of ice, it is presumably further fractionated by ~ 0.8 due to ice/water vapor interactions. This yields an effective D/H enrichment of ~ 7 for reservoirs in equilibrium with the atmosphere. From a loss to space point of view, Martian water can be divided into three reservoirs. The first is the thin, 10 pr-\\micron, atmospheric water. The second is a global exchangeable reservoir in long term isotopic equilibrium with the atmosphere. This probably encompasses the polar caps, ice in polar layered deposits and any other near surface ice or adsorbed water. The third, more speculative, reservoir is a non-exchanging reservoir (a deep sub-surface cryosphere). In addition, due to the small size of the atmospheric reservoir, difficulty in isotopically equilibrating it with the entire exchangeable reservoir, and the relatively rapid H2 loss rate, there is also an intermediate exchangeable reservoir of ~ 4~mm. This is probably either a surface layer on the polar caps or near surface ice deposits. By assuming an initial terrestrial D/H ratio for Martian water (based on condritic meteorites) and a loss to space of ~ 50~m (based on the total O loss), the size of the exchangeable reservoir can be estimated. Two conceptual models are possible, depending on whether or not the non-exchangeable reservoir replenishes the exchangeable one. Quantitatively, the two models yield almost identical reservoir sizes, ~ 9~m (about the size of the northern polar cap). If, due to slow rate of isotopic diffusion in ice, the exchangeable reservoir actually has the same isotopic enrichment as the atmosphere, it would contain ~ 12~m of water.

  4. Optical and adhesive properties of dust deposits on solar mirrors and their effects on specular reflectivity and electrodynamic cleaning for mitigating energy-yield loss

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Mazumder, Malay; Yellowhair, Julius; Stark, Jeremy; Heiling, Calvin; Hudelson, John; Hao, Fang; Gibson, Hannah; Horenstein, Mark

    2014-10-01

    Large-scale solar plants are mostly installed in semi-arid and desert areas. In those areas, dust layer buildup on solar collectors becomes a major cause for energy yield loss. Development of transparent electrodynamic screens (EDS) and their applications for self-cleaning operation of solar mirrors are presented with a primary focus on the removal dust particles smaller than 30 µm in diameter while maintaining specular reflection efficiency < 90%. An EDS consists of thin rectangular array of parallel transparent conducting electrodes deposited on a transparent dielectric surface. The electrodes are insulated from each other and are embedded within a thin transparent dielectric film. The electrodes are activated using three-phase high-voltage pulses at low current (< 1 mA/m2 ). The three-phase electric field charges the deposited particles, lifts them form the substrate by electrostatic forces and propels the dust layer off of the collector's surface by a traveling wave. The cleaning process takes less than 2 minutes; needs energy less than 1 Wh/m2 without requiring any water or manual labor. The reflection efficiency can be restored > 95% of the original clean-mirror efficiency. We briefly present (1) loss of specular reflection efficiency as a function of particle size distribution of deposited dust, and (2) the effects of the electrode design and materials used for minimizing initial loss of specular reflectivity in producing EDS-integrated solar mirrors. Optimization of EDS by using a figure of merit defined by the ratio of dust removal efficiency to the initial loss of specular reflection efficiency is discussed.

  5. Quantification and Patterns of Endothelial Cell Loss Due to Eye Bank Preparation and Injector Method in Descemet Membrane Endothelial Keratoplasty Tissues.

    PubMed

    Schallhorn, Julie M; Holiman, Jeffrey D; Stoeger, Christopher G; Chamberlain, Winston

    2016-03-01

    To evaluate endothelial cell damage after eye bank preparation and passage through 1 of 2 different injectors for Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty grafts. Eighteen Descemet membrane endothelial keratoplasty grafts were prepared by Lions VisionGift with the standard partial prepeel technique and placement of an S-stamp for orientation. The grafts were randomly assigned to injection with either a glass-modified Jones tube injector (Gunther Weiss Scientific Glass) or a closed-system intraocular lens injector (Viscoject 2.2; Medicel). After injection, the grafts were stained with the vital fluorescent dye Calcein AM and digitally imaged. The percentage of cell loss was calculated by measuring the area of nonfluorescent pixels and dividing it by the total graft area pixels. Grafts injected using the modified Jones tube injector had an overall cell loss of 27% ± 5% [95% confidence interval, 21%-35%]. Grafts injected using the closed-system intraocular lens injector had a cell loss of 32% ± 8% (95% confidence interval, 21%-45%). This difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.3). Several damage patterns including damage due to S-stamp placement were observed, but they did not correlate with injector type. In this in vitro study, there was no difference in the cell loss associated with the injector method. Grafts in both groups sustained significant cell loss and displayed evidence of graft preparation and S-stamp placement. Improvement in graft preparation and injection methods may improve cell retention.

  6. Propeller noise minimization without thrust loss due to asymmetric blade distribution

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dobrzynski, Werner

    1990-11-01

    Measures which can be taken to minimize propeller noise caused by asymmetric blade distribution, without loss of thrust, are discussed. The theoretical optimization of angular separation and its relation to the minimization of noise is reviewed. Experimental results on various propellers are discussed.

  7. Estimated crop loss due to coconut mite and financial analysis of controlling the pest using the acaricide abamectin.

    PubMed

    Rezende, Daniela; Melo, José W S; Oliveira, José E M; Gondim, Manoel G C

    2016-07-01

    Reducing the losses caused by Aceria guerreronis Keifer has been an arduous task for farmers. However, there are no detailed studies on losses that simultaneously analyse correlated parameters, and very few studies that address the economic viability of chemical control, the main strategy for managing this pest. In this study the objectives were (1) to estimate the crop loss due to coconut mite and (2) to perform a financial analysis of acaricide application to control the pest. For this, the following parameters were evaluated: number and weight of fruits, liquid albumen volume, and market destination of plants with and without monthly abamectin spraying (three harvests). The costs involved in the chemical control of A. guerreronis were also quantified. Higher A. guerreronis incidence on plants resulted in a 60 % decrease in the mean number of fruits harvested per bunch and a 28 % decrease in liquid albumen volume. Mean fruit weight remained unaffected. The market destination of the harvested fruit was also affected by higher A. guerreronis incidence. Untreated plants, with higher A. guerreronis infestation intensity, produced a lower proportion of fruit intended for fresh market and higher proportions of non-marketable fruit and fruit intended for industrial processing. Despite the costs involved in controlling A. guerreronis, the difference between the profit from the treated site and the untreated site was 18,123.50 Brazilian Real; this value represents 69.1 % higher profit at the treated site.

  8. Anomalous effects in the aluminum oxide sputtering yield

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schelfhout, R.; Strijckmans, K.; Depla, D.

    2018-04-01

    The sputtering yield of aluminum oxide during reactive magnetron sputtering has been quantified by a new and fast method. The method is based on the meticulous determination of the reactive gas consumption during reactive DC magnetron sputtering and has been deployed to determine the sputtering yield of aluminum oxide. The accuracy of the proposed method is demonstrated by comparing its results to the common weight loss method excluding secondary effects such as redeposition. Both methods exhibit a decrease in sputtering yield with increasing discharge current. This feature of the aluminum oxide sputtering yield is described for the first time. It resembles the discrepancy between published high sputtering yield values determined by low current ion beams and the low deposition rate in the poisoned mode during reactive magnetron sputtering. Moreover, the usefulness of the new method arises from its time-resolved capabilities. The evolution of the alumina sputtering yield can now be measured up to a resolution of seconds. This reveals the complex dynamical behavior of the sputtering yield. A plausible explanation of the observed anomalies seems to originate from the balance between retention and out-diffusion of implanted gas atoms, while other possible causes are commented.

  9. 7 CFR 1437.10 - Notice of loss, appraisal requirements, and application for payment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... the final planting date, (2) For low yield claims and allowable value loss, the earlier of: (i) 15 calendar days after the damaging weather or adverse natural occurrence, or date loss of the crop or commodity becomes apparent for low yield claims; and (ii) 15 calendar days after the normal harvest date. (b...

  10. 7 CFR 1437.10 - Notice of loss, appraisal requirements, and application for payment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... the final planting date, (2) For low yield claims and allowable value loss, the earlier of: (i) 15 calendar days after the damaging weather or adverse natural occurrence, or date loss of the crop or commodity becomes apparent for low yield claims; and (ii) 15 calendar days after the normal harvest date. (b...

  11. 7 CFR 1437.10 - Notice of loss, appraisal requirements, and application for payment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... the final planting date, (2) For low yield claims and allowable value loss, the earlier of: (i) 15 calendar days after the damaging weather or adverse natural occurrence, or date loss of the crop or commodity becomes apparent for low yield claims; and (ii) 15 calendar days after the normal harvest date. (b...

  12. 7 CFR 1437.10 - Notice of loss, appraisal requirements, and application for payment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... the final planting date, (2) For low yield claims and allowable value loss, the earlier of: (i) 15 calendar days after the damaging weather or adverse natural occurrence, or date loss of the crop or commodity becomes apparent for low yield claims; and (ii) 15 calendar days after the normal harvest date. (b...

  13. Rooting traits of peanut genotypes with different yield response to terminal drought

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Drought at pod filling and maturity stages can severely reduce yield of peanut. Better root systems can reduce yield loss from drought. The goal of this study was to investigate the responses to terminal drought of peanut genotypes for root dry weight and root length density. A field experiment was ...

  14. Estimating earnings losses due to mental illness: a quantile regression approach.

    PubMed

    Marcotte, Dave E; Wilcox-Gök, Virginia

    2003-09-01

    The ability of workers to remain productive and sustain earnings when afflicted with mental illness depends importantly on access to appropriate treatment and on flexibility and support from employers. In the United States there is substantial variation in access to health care and sick leave and other employment flexibilities across the earnings distribution. Consequently, a worker's ability to work and how much his/her earnings are impeded likely depend upon his/her position in the earnings distribution. Because of this, focusing on average earnings losses may provide insufficient information on the impact of mental illness in the labor market. In this paper, we examine the effects of mental illness on earnings by recognizing that effects could vary across the distribution of earnings. Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey, we employ a quantile regression estimator to identify the effects at key points in the earnings distribution. We find that earnings effects vary importantly across the distribution. While average effects are often not large, mental illness more commonly imposes earnings losses at the lower tail of the distribution, especially for women. In only one case do we find an illness to have negative effects across the distribution. Mental illness can have larger negative impacts on economic outcomes than previously estimated, even if those effects are not uniform. Consequently, researchers and policy makers alike should not be placated by findings that mean earnings effects are relatively small. Such estimates miss important features of how and where mental illness is associated with real economic losses for the ill.

  15. Heat tolerance around flowering in wheat identified as a key trait for increased yield potential in Europe under climate change

    PubMed Central

    Stratonovitch, Pierre; Semenov, Mikhail A.

    2015-01-01

    To deliver food security for the 9 billon population in 2050, a 70% increase in world food supply will be required. Projected climatic and environmental changes emphasize the need for breeding strategies that delivers both a substantial increase in yield potential and resilience to extreme weather events such as heat waves, late frost, and drought. Heat stress around sensitive stages of wheat development has been identified as a possible threat to wheat production in Europe. However, no estimates have been made to assess yield losses due to increased frequency and magnitude of heat stress under climate change. Using existing experimental data, the Sirius wheat model was refined by incorporating the effects of extreme temperature during flowering and grain filling on accelerated leaf senescence, grain number, and grain weight. This allowed us, for the first time, to quantify yield losses resulting from heat stress under climate change. The model was used to optimize wheat ideotypes for CMIP5-based climate scenarios for 2050 at six sites in Europe with diverse climates. The yield potential for heat-tolerant ideotypes can be substantially increased in the future (e.g. by 80% at Seville, 100% at Debrecen) compared with the current cultivars by selecting an optimal combination of wheat traits, e.g. optimal phenology and extended duration of grain filling. However, at two sites, Seville and Debrecen, the grain yields of heat-sensitive ideotypes were substantially lower (by 54% and 16%) and more variable compared with heat-tolerant ideotypes, because the extended grain filling required for the increased yield potential was in conflict with episodes of high temperature during flowering and grain filling. Despite much earlier flowering at these sites, the risk of heat stress affecting yields of heat-sensitive ideotypes remained high. Therefore, heat tolerance in wheat is likely to become a key trait for increased yield potential and yield stability in southern Europe in the

  16. 27 CFR 24.266 - Inventory losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... losses due to spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking... spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking and filtering. In...

  17. 27 CFR 24.266 - Inventory losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... losses due to spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking... spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking and filtering. In...

  18. 27 CFR 24.266 - Inventory losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... losses due to spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking... spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking and filtering. In...

  19. 27 CFR 24.266 - Inventory losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... losses due to spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking... spillage, leakage, soakage, evaporation, and other losses normally occurring from racking and filtering. In...

  20. Tinnitus in patients with hearing loss due to mitochondrial DNA pathogenic variants.

    PubMed

    Lechowicz, Urszula; Pollak, Agnieszka; Raj-Koziak, Danuta; Dziendziel, Beata; Skarżyński, Piotr Henryk; Skarżyński, Henryk; Ołdak, Monika

    2018-06-23

    Tinnitus described as individual perception of phantom sound constitutes a significant medical problem and has become an essential subject of many studies conducted worldwide. In the study, we aimed to examine the prevalence of tinnitus among Polish hearing loss (HL) patients with identified mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) variants. Among the selected group of unrelated HL patients with known mtDNA pathogenic variants, two questionnaires were conducted, i.e. Tinnitus Handicap Inventory translated into Polish (THI-POL) and Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for measuring subjectively perceived tinnitus loudness, distress, annoyance and possibility of coping with this condition (VASs). Pathogenic mtDNA variants were detected with real-time PCR and sequencing of the whole mtDNA. This is the first extensive tinnitus characterization using THI-POL and VASs questionnaires in HL patients due to mtDNA variants. We have established the prevalence of tinnitus among the studied group at 23.5%. We found that there are no statistically significant differences in the prevalence of tinnitus and its characteristic features between HL patients with known HL mtDNA variants and the general Polish population. In Polish HL patients with tinnitus, m.7511T>C was significantly more frequent than in patients without tinnitus. We observed that the prevalence of tinnitus is lower in Polish patients with m.1555A>G as compared to other available data. Our data suggest that the mtDNA variants causative of HL may affect tinnitus development but this effect seems to be ethnic-specific.

  1. Modelling of labour productivity loss due to climate change: HEAT-SHIELD

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kjellstrom, Tord; Daanen, Hein

    2016-04-01

    Climate change will bring higher heat levels (temperature and humidity combined) to large parts of the world. When these levels reach above thresholds well defined by human physiology, the ability to maintain physical activity levels decrease and labour productivity is reduced. This impact is of particular importance in work situations in areas with long high intensity hot seasons, but also affects cooler areas during heat waves. Our modelling of labour productivity loss includes climate model data of the Inter-Sectoral Impact Model Inter-comparison Project (ISI-MIP), calculations of heat stress indexes during different months, estimations of work capacity loss and its annual impacts in different parts of the world. Different climate models will be compared for the Representative Concentration Pathways (RCPs) and the outcomes of the 2015 Paris Climate Conference (COP21) agreements. The validation includes comparisons of modelling outputs with actual field studies using historical heat data. These modelling approaches are a first stage contribution to the European Commission funded HEAT-SHIELD project.

  2. Housing arrangement and location determine the likelihood of housing loss due to wildfire

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Syphard, Alexandra D.; Keeley, Jon E.; Massada, Avi Bar; Brennan, Teresa J.; Radeloff, Volker C.

    2012-01-01

    Surging wildfires across the globe are contributing to escalating residential losses and have major social, economic, and ecological consequences. The highest losses in the U.S. occur in southern California, where nearly 1000 homes per year have been destroyed by wildfires since 2000. Wildfire risk reduction efforts focus primarily on fuel reduction and, to a lesser degree, on house characteristics and homeowner responsibility. However, the extent to which land use planning could alleviate wildfire risk has been largely missing from the debate despite large numbers of homes being placed in the most hazardous parts of the landscape. Our goal was to examine how housing location and arrangement affects the likelihood that a home will be lost when a wildfire occurs. We developed an extensive geographic dataset of structure locations, including more than 5500 structures that were destroyed or damaged by wildfire since 2001, and identified the main contributors to property loss in two extensive, fire-prone regions in southern California. The arrangement and location of structures strongly affected their susceptibility to wildfire, with property loss most likely at low to intermediate structure densities and in areas with a history of frequent fire. Rates of structure loss were higher when structures were surrounded by wildland vegetation, but were generally higher in herbaceous fuel types than in higher fuel-volume woody types. Empirically based maps developed using housing pattern and location performed better in distinguishing hazardous from non-hazardous areas than maps based on fuel distribution. The strong importance of housing arrangement and location indicate that land use planning may be a critical tool for reducing fire risk, but it will require reliable delineations of the most hazardous locations.

  3. Future Warming Increases Global Maize Yield Variability with Implications for Food Markets

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tigchelaar, M.; Battisti, D. S.; Naylor, R. L.; Ray, D. K.

    2017-12-01

    If current trends in population growth and dietary shifts continue, the world will need to produce about 70% more food by 2050, while earth's climate is rapidly changing. Rising temperatures in particular are projected to negatively impact agricultural production, as the world's staple crops perform poorly in extreme heat. Theoretical models suggest that as temperatures rise above plants' optimal temperature for performance, not only will mean yields decline rapidly, but the variability of yields will increase, even as interannual variations in climate remain unchanged. Here we use global datasets of maize production and climate variability combined with CMIP5 temperature projections to quantify how yield variability will change in major maize producing countries under 2°C and 4°C of global warming. Maize is the world's most produced crop, and is linked to other staple crops through substitution in consumption and production. We find that in warmer climates - absent any breeding gains in heat tolerance - the Coefficient of Variation (CV) of maize yields increases almost everywhere, to values much larger than present-day. This increase in CV is due both to an increase in the standard deviation of yields, and a decrease in mean yields. In locations where crop failures become the norm under high (4°C) warming (mostly in tropical, low-yield environments), the standard deviation of yields ultimately decreases. The probability that in any given year the most productive areas in the top three maize producing countries (United States, China, Brazil) have simultaneous production losses greater than 10% is virtually zero under present-day climate conditions, but increases to 12% under 2°C warming, and 89% under 4°C warming. This has major implications for global food markets and staple crop prices, affecting especially the 2.5 billion people that comprise the world's poor, who already spend the majority of their disposable income on food and are particularly vulnerable

  4. Enhanced O2 Loss at Mars Due to an Ambipolar Electric Field from Electron Heating

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ergun, R. E.; Andersson, L. A.; Fowler, C. M.; Woodson, A. K.; Weber, T. D.; Delory, G. T.; Andrews, D. J.; Eriksson, A. I.; Mcenulty, T.; Morooka, M. W.; hide

    2016-01-01

    Recent results from the MAVEN Langmuir Probe and Waves (LPW) instrument suggest higher than predicted electron temperatures (T sub e) in Mars dayside ionosphere above approx. 180 km in altitude. Correspondingly, measurements from Neutral Gas and Ion Mass Spectrometer (NGIMS) indicate significant abundances of O2+ up to approx. 500 km in altitude, suggesting that O2+ may be a principal ion loss mechanism of oxygen. In this article, we investigate the effects of the higher T(sub e) (which results from electron heating) and ion heating on ion outflow and loss. Numerical solutions show that plasma processes including ion heating and higher T(sub e) may greatly increase O2+ loss at Mars. In particular, enhanced T(sub e) in Mars ionosphere just above the exobase creates a substantial ambipolar electric field with a potential (e) of several k(sub b)T(sub e), which draws ions out of the region allowing for enhanced escape. With active solar wind, electron and ion heating, direct O2+ loss could match or exceed loss via dissociative recombination of O2+. These results suggest that direct loss of O2+ may have played a significant role in the loss of oxygen at Mars over time.

  5. Integrated remote sensing imagery and two-dimensional hydraulic modeling approach for impact evaluation of flood on crop yields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Chen, Huili; Liang, Zhongyao; Liu, Yong; Liang, Qiuhua; Xie, Shuguang

    2017-10-01

    The projected frequent occurrences of extreme flood events will cause significant losses to crops and will threaten food security. To reduce the potential risk and provide support for agricultural flood management, prevention, and mitigation, it is important to account for flood damage to crop production and to understand the relationship between flood characteristics and crop losses. A quantitative and effective evaluation tool is therefore essential to explore what and how flood characteristics will affect the associated crop loss, based on accurately understanding the spatiotemporal dynamics of flood evolution and crop growth. Current evaluation methods are generally integrally or qualitatively based on statistic data or ex-post survey with less diagnosis into the process and dynamics of historical flood events. Therefore, a quantitative and spatial evaluation framework is presented in this study that integrates remote sensing imagery and hydraulic model simulation to facilitate the identification of historical flood characteristics that influence crop losses. Remote sensing imagery can capture the spatial variation of crop yields and yield losses from floods on a grid scale over large areas; however, it is incapable of providing spatial information regarding flood progress. Two-dimensional hydraulic model can simulate the dynamics of surface runoff and accomplish spatial and temporal quantification of flood characteristics on a grid scale over watersheds, i.e., flow velocity and flood duration. The methodological framework developed herein includes the following: (a) Vegetation indices for the critical period of crop growth from mid-high temporal and spatial remote sensing imagery in association with agricultural statistics data were used to develop empirical models to monitor the crop yield and evaluate yield losses from flood; (b) The two-dimensional hydraulic model coupled with the SCS-CN hydrologic model was employed to simulate the flood evolution process

  6. Thresholds, injury, and loss relationships for thrips in Phleum pratense (Poales: Poaceae).

    PubMed

    Reisig, Dominic D; Godfrey, Larry D; Marcum, Daniel B

    2009-12-01

    Timothy (Phleum pratense L.) is an important forage crop in many Western U.S. states. Marketing of timothy hay is primarily based on esthetics, and green color is an important attribute. The objective of these studies was to determine a relationship between arthropod populations, yield, and esthetic injury in timothy. Economic injury levels (EILs) and economic thresholds were calculated based on these relationships. Thrips (Thripidae) numbers were manipulated with insecticides in small plot studies in 2006, 2007, and 2008, although tetranychid mite levels were incidentally flared by cyfluthrin in some experiments. Arthropod population densities were determined weekly, and yield and esthetic injury were measured at each harvest. Effects of arthropods on timothy were assessed using multilinear regression. Producers were also surveyed to relate economic loss from leaf color to the injury ratings for use in establishing EILs. Thrips population levels were significantly related to yield loss in only one of nine experiments. Thrips population levels were significantly related to injury once before the first annual harvest and twice before the second. Thrips were the most important pest in these experiments, and they were more often related to esthetic injury rather than yield loss. EILs and economic thresholds for thrips population levels were established using esthetic injury data. These results document the first example of a significant relationship between arthropod pest population levels and economic yield and quality losses in timothy.

  7. The Z {yields} cc-bar {yields} {gamma}{gamma}*, Z {yields} bb-bar {yields} {gamma}{gamma}* triangle diagrams and the Z {yields} {gamma}{psi}, Z {yields} {gamma}Y decays

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Achasov, N. N., E-mail: achasov@math.nsc.ru

    2011-03-15

    The approach to the Z {yields} {gamma}{psi} and Z {yields} {gamma}Y decay study is presented in detail, based on the sum rules for the Z {yields} cc-bar {yields} {gamma}{gamma}* and Z {yields} bb-bar {yields} {gamma}{gamma}* amplitudes and their derivatives. The branching ratios of the Z {yields} {gamma}{psi} and Z {yields} {gamma}Y decays are calculated for different hypotheses on saturation of the sum rules. The lower bounds of {Sigma}{sub {psi}} BR(Z {yields} {gamma}{psi}) = 1.95 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -7} and {Sigma}{sub {upsilon}} BR(Z {yields} {gamma}Y) = 7.23 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -7} are found. Deviations from the lower bounds are discussed, including the possibilitymore » of BR(Z {yields} {gamma}J/{psi}(1S)) {approx} BR(Z {yields} {gamma}Y(1S)) {approx} 10{sup -6}, that could be probably measured in LHC. The angular distributions in the Z {yields} {gamma}{psi} and Z {yields} {gamma}Y decays are also calculated.« less

  8. Interactions of viruses in Cowpea: effects on growth and yield parameters

    PubMed Central

    Kareem, KT; Taiwo, MA

    2007-01-01

    The study was carried out to investigate the effects of inoculating three cowpea cultivars: "OLO II", "OLOYIN" and IT86D-719 with three unrelated viruses: Cowpea aphid-borne mosaic virus (CABMV), genus Potyvirus, Cowpea mottle virus (CMeV), genus Carmovirus and Southern bean mosaic virus (SBMV), genus Sobemovirus singly and in mixture on growth and yield of cultivars at 10 and 30 days after planting (DAP). Generally, the growth and yield of the buffer inoculated control plants were significantly higher than those of the virus inoculated plants. Inoculation of plants at an early age of 10 DAP resulted in more severe effect than inoculations at a later stage of 30 DAP. The average values of plant height and number of leaves produced by plants inoculated 30 DAP were higher than those produced by plants inoculated 10 DAP. Most of the plants inoculated 10 DAP died and did not produce seeds. However, " OLOYIN" cultivar was most tolerant and produced reasonable yields when infected 30 DAP. The effect of single viruses on growth and yield of cultivars showed that CABMV caused more severe effects in IT86D-719, SBMV had the greatest effect on "OLO II" while CMeV induced the greatest effect on "OLOYIN". Yield was greatly reduced in double infections involving CABMV in combination with either CMeV or SBMV in "OLOYIN" and "OLO II", however, there was complete loss in yield of IT86D-719. Triple infection led to complete yield loss in all the three cultivars. PMID:17286870

  9. Cystic echinococcosis in marketed offal of sheep in Basrah, Iraq: Abattoir-based survey and a probabilistic model estimation of the direct economic losses due to hydatid cyst.

    PubMed

    Abdulhameed, Mohanad F; Habib, Ihab; Al-Azizz, Suzan A; Robertson, Ian

    2018-02-01

    Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a highly endemic parasitic zoonosis in Iraq with substantial impacts on livestock productivity and human health. The objectives of this study were to study the abattoir-based occurrence of CE in marketed offal of sheep in Basrah province, Iraq, and to estimate, using a probabilistic modelling approach, the direct economic losses due to hydatid cysts. Based on detailed visual meat inspection, results from an active abattoir survey in this study revealed detection of hydatid cysts in 7.3% (95% CI: 5.4; 9.6) of 631 examined sheep carcasses. Post-mortem lesions of hydatid cyst were concurrently present in livers and lungs of more than half (54.3% (25/46)) of the positive sheep. Direct economic losses due to hydatid cysts in marketed offal were estimated using data from government reports, the one abattoir survey completed in this study, and expert opinions of local veterinarians and butchers. A Monte-Carlo simulation model was developed in a spreadsheet utilizing Latin Hypercube sampling to account for uncertainty in the input parameters. The model estimated that the average annual economic losses associated with hydatid cysts in the liver and lungs of sheep marketed for human consumption in Basrah to be US$72,470 (90% Confidence Interval (CI); ±11,302). The mean proportion of annual losses in meat products value (carcasses and offal) due to hydatid cysts in the liver and lungs of sheep marketed in Basrah province was estimated as 0.42% (90% CI; ±0.21). These estimates suggest that CE is responsible for considerable livestock-associated monetary losses in the south of Iraq. These findings can be used to inform different regional CE control program options in Iraq.

  10. Unsteady Loss in the Stator Due to the Incoming Rotor Wake in a Highly-Loaded Transonic Compressor

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Hah, Chunill

    2015-01-01

    The present paper reports an investigation of unsteady loss generation in the stator due to the incoming rotor wake in an advanced GE transonic compressor design with a high-fidelity numerical method. This advanced compressor with high reaction and high stage loading has been investigated both experimentally and analytically in the past. The measured efficiency in this advanced compressor is significantly lower than the design intention goal. The general understanding is that the current generation of compressor design analysis tools miss some important flow physics in this modern compressor design. To pinpoint the source of the efficiency miss, an advanced test with a detailed flow traverse was performed for the front one and a half stage at the NASA Glenn Research Center.

  11. Effects of geoengineering on crop yields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pongratz, J.; Lobell, D. B.; Cao, L.; Caldeira, K.

    2011-12-01

    The potential of "solar radiation management" (SRM) to reduce future climate change and associated risks has been receiving significant attention in scientific and policy circles. SRM schemes aim to reduce global warming despite increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations by diminishing the amount of solar insolation absorbed by the Earth, for example, by injecting scattering aerosols into the atmosphere. Climate models predict that SRM could fully compensate warming at the global mean in a high-CO2 world. While reduction of global warming may offset a part of the predicted negative effects of future climate change on crop yields, SRM schemes are expected to alter regional climate and to have substantial effects on climate variables other than temperature, such as precipitation. It has therefore been warned that, overall, SRM may pose a risk to food security. Assessments of benefits and risks of geoengineering are imperative, yet such assessments are only beginning to emerge; in particular, effects on global food security have not previously been assessed. Here, for the first time, we combine climate model simulations with models of crop yield responses to climate to assess large-scale changes in yields and food production under SRM. In most crop-growing regions, we find that yield losses caused by climate changes are substantially reduced under SRM as compared with a non-geoengineered doubling of atmospheric CO2. Substantial yield losses with SRM are only found for rice in high latitudes, where the limits of low temperatures are no longer alleviated. At the same time, the beneficial effect of CO2-fertilization on plant productivity remains active. Overall therefore, SRM in our models causes global crop yields to increase. We estimate the direct effects of climate and CO2 changes on crop production, and do not quantify effects of market dynamics and management changes. We note, however, that an SRM deployment would be unlikely to maintain the economic status quo, as

  12. MEASUREMENT OF RF LOSSES DUE TO TRAPPED FLUX IN A LARGE-GRAIN NIOBIUM CAVITY

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gianluigi Ciovati; Alex Gurevich

    Trapped magnetic field in superconducting niobium is a well known cause of radio-frequency (RF) residual losses. In this contribution, we present the results of RF tests on a single-cell cavity made of high-purity large grain niobium before and after allowing a fraction of the Earth’s magnetic field to be trapped in the cavity during the cooldown below the critical temperature Tc. This experiment has been done on the cavity before and after a low temperature baking. Temperature mapping allowed us to determine the location of hot-spots with high losses and to measure their field dependence. The results show not onlymore » an increase of the low-field residual resistance, but also a larger increase of the surface resistance for intermediate RF field (higher "medium field Qslope"), which depends on the amount of the trapped flux. These additional field-dependent losses can be described as losses of pinned vortices oscillating under the applied RF magnetic field.« less

  13. The 9-MilCA method as a rapid, partly automated protocol for simultaneously recording milk coagulation, curd firming, syneresis, cheese yield, and curd nutrients recovery or whey loss.

    PubMed

    Cipolat-Gotet, C; Cecchinato, A; Stocco, G; Bittante, G

    2016-02-01

    The aim of this study was to propose and test a new laboratory cheesemaking procedure [9-mL milk cheesemaking assessment (9-MilCA)], which records 15 traits related to milk coagulation, curd firming, syneresis, cheese yield, and curd nutrients recovery or whey loss. This procedure involves instruments found in many laboratories (i.e., heaters and lacto-dynamographs), with an easy modification of the sample rack for the insertion of 10-mL glass tubes. Four trials were carried out to test the 9-MilCA procedure. The first trial compared 8 coagulation and curd firming traits obtained using regular or modified sample racks to process milk samples from 60 cows belonging to 5 breeds and 3 farms (480 tests). The obtained patterns exhibited significant but irrelevant between-procedure differences, with better repeatability seen for 9-MilCA. The second trial tested the reproducibility and repeatability of the 7 cheesemaking traits obtained using the 9-MilCA procedure on individual samples from 60 cows tested in duplicate in 2 instruments (232 tests). The method yielded very repeatable outcomes for all 7 tested cheese yield and nutrient recovery traits (repeatability >98%), with the exception of the fresh cheese yield (84%), which was affected by the lower repeatability (67%) of the water retained in the curd. In the third trial (96 tests), we found that using centrifugation in place of curd cooking and draining (as adopted in several published studies) reduced the efficiency of whey separation, overestimated all traits, and worsened the repeatability. The fourth trial compared 9-MilCA with a more complex model cheese-manufacturing process that mimics industry practices, using 1,500-mL milk samples (72 cows, 216 tests). The average results obtained from 9-MilCA were similar to those obtained from the model cheeses, with between-method correlations ranging from 78 to 99%, except for the water retained in the curd (r=54%). Our results indicate that new 9-MilCA method is a

  14. Aircraft Loss of Control Study

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jacobson, Steven R.

    2010-01-01

    Loss of control has become the leading cause of jet fatalities worldwide. Aside from their frequency of occurrence, accidents resulting from loss of aircraft control seize the public s attention by yielding large numbers of fatalities in a single event. In response to the rising threat to aviation safety, NASA's Aviation Safety Program has conducted a study of the loss of control problem. This study gathered four types of information pertaining to loss of control accidents: (1) statistical data; (2) individual accident reports that cite loss of control as a contributing factor; (3) previous meta-analyses of loss of control accidents; and (4) inputs solicited from aircraft manufacturers, air carriers, researchers, and other industry stakeholders. Using these information resources, the study team identified causal factors that were cited in the greatest number of loss of control accidents, and which were emphasized most by industry stakeholders. For each causal factor that was linked to loss of control, the team solicited ideas about what solutions are required and future research efforts that could potentially help avoid their occurrence or mitigate their consequences when they occurred in flight.

  15. Implantable miniature telescope (IMT) for vision loss due to end-stage age-related macular degeneration.

    PubMed

    Gupta, Amisha; Lam, Jessica; Custis, Peter; Munz, Stephen; Fong, Donald; Koster, Marguerite

    2018-05-30

    Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) causes progressive and irreversible damage to the retina, resulting in loss of central vision. AMD is the third leading cause of irreversible visual impairment worldwide and the leading cause of blindness in industrialized countries. Since AMD is more common in older individuals, the number of affected individuals will increase significantly as the population ages. The implantable miniature telescope (IMT) is an ophthalmic device developed to improve vision in individuals who have lost vision due to AMD. Once implanted, the IMT is used to enlarge objects in the central visual field and focus them onto healthy areas of the retina not affected by AMD, allowing individuals to recognize objects that they otherwise could not see. It is unclear whether and how much the IMT can improve vision in individuals with end-stage AMD. To assess the effectiveness and safety of the IMT in improving visual acuity and quality of life in people with late or advanced AMD. We searched the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) (which contains the Cochrane Eyes and Vision Trials Register) (2017, Issue 11); Ovid MEDLINE; Embase.com; PubMed; LILACS; AMED; Web of Science Conference Proceedings Citation Index-Science; OpenSIGLE; the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (mRCT) (last searched 27 June 2014); ClinicalTrials.gov; the ICTRP and the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Medical Devices database. The date of the search was 2 November 2017, with the exception of mRCT which is no longer in service. We planned to include randomized controlled trials (RCTs) and quasi-randomized trials that compared the IMT versus no IMT. Two review authors independently assessed all studies for inclusion, using standard methodological procedures expected by Cochrane. Our search yielded 1042 unique records. We removed irrelevant studies after screening titles and abstracts, and evaluated five full-text reports from four studies; three were non

  16. Core Characteristics Deterioration due to Plastic Deformation

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kaido, Chikara; Arai, Satoshi

    This paper discusses the effect of plastic deformation at core manufacturing on the characteristics of cores where non-oriented electrical steel sheets are used as core material. Exciting field and iron loss increase proportionally to plastic deformation in the case of rP<10, where rP is a ratio of plastic deformation to that at yield point. In this region, anomalous eddy currents increase because plastic deformations of crystalline grains are distributed and then the flux distribution is induced. In the case of rP>20, the deterioration tend to saturate, and the increases in magnetic field and iron loss are 1000 to 1500A/m and 2 to 4W/kg. They are related to grain size, and high grade with larger grain may have lager field increase and smaller iron loss increase. Anomalous eddy current losses scarcely increase in this region. In actual motors, the plastic deformation affects iron loss increase although exciting current increases a little.

  17. Relationships between Soil and Levels of Meloidogyne incognita and Tobacco Yield and Quality.

    PubMed

    Barker, K R; Weeks, W W

    1991-01-01

    A 2-year study with six soils and four levels of Meloidogyne incognita in microplots was designed to determine the effects of these parameters on nematode activity and tobacco yield and quality. Key components under study were affected by soil, nematode level, and season (year-cultivar). In 1980, low initial nematode numbers (1,250) enhanced tobacco yield in Cecil clay loam, but caused slight to moderate yield losses in the other soils. Yield losses to M. incognita were generally greatest in sandy and muck soils. In 1980, regression analyses of the independent parameters Pi - clay-sand vs. yield gave an R(2) of 0.40. Examples of other coefficients of determination for yield vs. selected factors were root-necrosis index, 0.40; root-gall index, 0.18; root-gall index-cation exchange capacity (CEC), 0.34; root-necrosis index-CEC, 0.56; and root-necrosis index-sand-soil acidity-calcium, 0.62. In contrast, the R(2) for Pi alone versus yield in 1981 was 0.84. Soil also affected nematode reproduction with the greatest increases occurring in the sandy soils. In both years, low nematode numbers enhanced the synthesis of sugar in tobacco, whereas leaves from all other nematode treatments had low sugar levels. A low nicotine content was associated with nematode infection. Tobacco from sandy soils had a higher nicotine content than tobacco from clay soils.

  18. Decline of the performance of a portable axial-flow fan due to the friction and duct bending loss of a connected flexible duct.

    PubMed

    Ojima, Jun

    2017-03-28

    In a job site, a portable fan is often used to ventilate a confined space. When a portable fan is applied to such a space, the actual ventilation flow rate must be accurately estimated in advance because the safety level of contaminant and oxygen concentrations in the space will determine the ventilation requirements. When a portable fan is used with a flexible duct, the actual flow rate of the fan decreases due to the friction and duct bending loss of the duct. Intending to show the decline of a fan performance, the author conducted laboratory experiments and reported the quantitative effect of the friction and duct bending loss of a flexible duct to the flow rate of a portable fan. Four commercial portable fans of different specifications were procured for the experiments, and the decline of the performance of each portable fan due to the friction loss etc. of a connected flexible duct was investigated by measuring actual flow rate. The flow rate showed an obvious decrease from the rated flow rate when a flexible duct was connected. Connection of a straight polyester flexible duct and a straight aluminum flexible duct reduced the flow rates to 81.2 - 52.9% and less than 50%, respectively. The flow rate decreased with an increase of the bend angle of the flexible duct. It is recommended that flow rate check of a portable fan should be diligently carried out in every job site.

  19. Transforming information from silicon testing and design characterization into numerical data sets for yield learning

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Thomas; Shen, Yang; Zhang, Yifan; Sweis, Jason; Lai, Ya-Chieh

    2017-03-01

    Silicon testing results are regularly collected for a particular lot of wafers to study yield loss from test result diagnostics. Product engineers will analyze the diagnostic results and perform a number of physical failure analyses to detect systematic defects which cause yield loss for these sets of wafers in order to feedback the information to process engineers for process improvements. Most of time, the systematic defects that are detected are major issues or just one of the causes for the overall yield loss. This paper will present a working flow for using design analysis techniques combined with diagnostic methods to systematically transform silicon testing information into physical layout information. A new set of the testing results are received from a new lot of wafers for the same product. We can then correlate all the diagnostic results from different periods of time to check which blocks or nets have been highlighted or stop occurring on the failure reports in order to monitor process changes which impact the yield. The design characteristic analysis flow is also implemented to find 1) the block connections on a design that have failed electrical test or 2) frequently used cells that been highlighted multiple times.

  20. The economic impact of loss of performance due to absenteeism and presenteeism caused by depressive symptoms and comorbid health conditions among Japanese workers.

    PubMed

    Wada, Koji; Arakida, Mikako; Watanabe, Rika; Negishi, Motomi; Sato, Jun; Tsutsumi, Akizumi

    2013-01-01

    We aimed to determine the economic impact of absenteeism and presenteeism from five conditions potentially comorbid with depressive symptoms-back or neck disorders, depression, anxiety, or emotional disorders, chronic headaches, stomach or bowel disorders, and insomnia-among Japanese workers aged 18-59 yr. Participants from 19 workplaces anonymously completed Stanford Presenteeism Scale questionnaires. Participants identified one primary health condition and determined the resultant performance loss (0-100%) over the previous 4-wk period. We estimated the wage loss by gender, using 10-yr age bands. A total of 6,777 participants undertook the study. Of these, we extracted the data for those in the 18-59 yr age band who chose targeted primary health conditions (males, 2,535; females 2,465). The primary health condition identified was back or neck disorders. We found that wage loss due to presenteeism and absenteeism per 100 workers across all 10-yr age bands was high for back or neck disorders. Wage loss per person was relatively high among those identifying depression, anxiety, or emotional disorders. These findings offer insight into developing strategies for workplace interventions on increasing work performance.

  1. The Economic Impact of Loss of Performance Due to Absenteeism and Presenteeism Caused by Depressive Symptoms and Comorbid Health Conditions among Japanese Workers

    PubMed Central

    WADA, Koji; ARAKIDA, Mikako; WATANABE, Rika; NEGISHI, Motomi; SATO, Jun; TSUTSUMI, Akizumi

    2013-01-01

    We aimed to determine the economic impact of absenteeism and presenteeism from five conditions potentially comorbid with depressive symptoms—back or neck disorders, depression, anxiety, or emotional disorders, chronic headaches, stomach or bowel disorders, and insomnia—among Japanese workers aged 18–59 yr. Participants from 19 workplaces anonymously completed Stanford Presenteeism Scale questionnaires. Participants identified one primary health condition and determined the resultant performance loss (0–100%) over the previous 4-wk period. We estimated the wage loss by gender, using 10-yr age bands. A total of 6,777 participants undertook the study. Of these, we extracted the data for those in the 18–59 yr age band who chose targeted primary health conditions (males, 2,535; females 2,465). The primary health condition identified was back or neck disorders. We found that wage loss due to presenteeism and absenteeism per 100 workers across all 10-yr age bands was high for back or neck disorders. Wage loss per person was relatively high among those identifying depression, anxiety, or emotional disorders. These findings offer insight into developing strategies for workplace interventions on increasing work performance. PMID:23892900

  2. Control of the external photoluminescent quantum yield of emitters coupled to nanoantenna phased arrays

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Guo, Ke; Verschuuren, Marc A.; Lozano, Gabriel

    2015-08-21

    Optical losses in metals represent the largest limitation to the external quantum yield of emitters coupled to plasmonic antennas. These losses can be at the emission wavelength, but they can be more important at shorter wavelengths, i.e., at the excitation wavelength of the emitters, where the conductivity of metals is usually lower. We present accurate measurements of the absolute external photoluminescent quantum yield of a thin layer of emitting material deposited over a periodic nanoantenna phased array. Emission and absorptance measurements of the sample are performed using a custom-made setup including an integrating sphere and variable angle excitation. The measurementsmore » reveal a strong dependence of the external quantum yield on the angle at which the optical field excites the sample. Such behavior is attributed to the coupling between far-field illumination and near-field excitation mediated by the collective resonances supported by the array. Numerical simulations confirm that the inherent losses associated with the metal can be greatly reduced by selecting an optimum angle of illumination, which boosts the light conversion efficiency in the emitting layer. This combined experimental and numerical characterization of the emission from plasmonic arrays reveals the need to carefully design the illumination to achieve the maximum external quantum yield.« less

  3. Criteria for Yielding of Dispersion-Strengthened Alloys

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Ansell, G. S.; Lenel, F. V.

    1960-01-01

    A dislocation model is presented in order to account for the yield behavior of alloys with a finely dispersed second-phase. The criteria for yielding used in the model, is that appreciable yielding occurs in these alloys when the shear stress due to piled-up groups of dislocations is sufficient to fracture or plastically deform the dispersed second-phase particles, relieving the back stress on the dislocation sources. Equations derived on the basis of this model, predict that the yield stress of the alloys varies as the reciprocal square root of the mean free path between dispersed particles. Experimental data is presented for several SAP-Type alloys, precipitation-hardened alloys and steels which are in good agreement with the yield strength variation as a function of dispersion spacing predicted by this theoretical treatment.

  4. 38 CFR 4.40 - Functional loss.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-07-01

    ... 38 Pensions, Bonuses, and Veterans' Relief 1 2010-07-01 2010-07-01 false Functional loss. 4.40... DISABILITIES Disability Ratings The Musculoskeletal System § 4.40 Functional loss. Disability of the... damage, and the functional loss, with respect to all these elements. The functional loss may be due to...

  5. Coupling loss characteristics of runoff-sediment-adsorbed and dissolved nitrogen and phosphorus on bare loess slope.

    PubMed

    Wu, Lei; Qiao, Shanshan; Peng, Mengling; Ma, Xiaoyi

    2018-05-01

    Soil and nutrient loss is a common natural phenomenon but it exhibits unclear understanding especially on bare loess soil with variable rainfall intensity and slope gradient, which makes it difficult to design control measures for agricultural diffuse pollution. We employ 30 artificial simulated rainfalls (six rainfall intensities and five slope gradients) to quantify the coupling loss correlation of runoff-sediment-adsorbed and dissolved nitrogen and phosphorus on bare loess slope. Here, we show that effects of rainfall intensity on runoff yield was stronger than slope gradient with prolongation of rainfall duration, and the effect of slope gradient on runoff yield reduced gradually with increased rainfall intensity. But the magnitude of initial sediment yield increased significantly from an average value of 6.98 g at 5° to 36.08 g at 25° with increased slope gradient. The main factor of sediment yield would be changed alternately with the dual increase of slope gradient and rainfall intensity. Dissolved total nitrogen (TN) and dissolved total phosphorus (TP) concentrations both showed significant fluctuations with rainfall intensity and slope gradient, and dissolved TP concentration was far less than dissolved TN. Under the double influences of rainfall intensity and slope gradient, adsorbed TN concentration accounted for 7-82% of TN loss concentration with an average of 58.6% which was the main loss form of soil nitrogen, adsorbed TP concentration accounted for 91.8-98.7% of TP loss concentration with an average of 96.6% which was also the predominant loss pathway of soil phosphorus. Nitrate nitrogen (NO 3 - -N) accounted for 14.59-73.92% of dissolved TN loss, and ammonia nitrogen (NH 4 + -N) accounted for 1.48-18.03%. NO 3 - -N was the main loss pattern of TN in runoff. Correlation between dissolved TN, runoff yield, and rainfall intensity was obvious, and a significant correlation was also found between adsorbed TP, sediment yield, and slope gradient. Our

  6. Strategy For Yield Control And Enhancement In VLSI Wafer Manufacturing

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Neilson, B.; Rickey, D.; Bane, R. P.

    1988-01-01

    In most fully utilized integrated circuit (IC) production facilities, profit is very closely linked with yield. In even the most controlled manufacturing environments, defects due to foreign material are a still major contributor to yield loss. Ideally, an IC manufacturer will have ample engineering resources to address any problem that arises. In the real world, staffing limitations require that some tasks must be left undone and potential benefits left unrealized. Therefore, it is important to prioritize problems in a manner that will give the maximum benefit to the manufacturer. When offered a smorgasbord of problems to solve, most people (engineers included) will start with what is most interesting or the most comfortable to work on. By providing a system that accurately predicts the impact of a wide variety of defect types, a rational method of prioritizing engineering effort can be made. To that effect, a program was developed to determine and rank the major yield detractors in a mixed analog/digital FET manufacturing line. The two classical methods of determining yield detractors are chip failure analysis and defect monitoring on drop in test die. Both of these methods have short comings: 1) Chip failure analysis is painstaking and very time consuming. As a result, the sample size is very small. 2) Drop in test die are usually designed for device parametric analysis rather than defect analysis. To provide enough wafer real estate to do meaningful defect analysis would render the wafer worthless for production. To avoid these problems, a defect monitor was designed that provided enough area to detect defects at the same rate or better than the NMOS product die whose yield was to be optimized. The defect monitor was comprehensive and electrically testable using such equipment as the Prometrix LM25 and other digital testers. This enabled the quick accumulation of data which could be handled statistically and mapped individually. By scaling the defect densities

  7. Assessing Sediment Yield and the Effect of Best Management Practices on Sediment Yield Reduction for Tutuila Island, American Samoa

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Leta, O. T.; Dulai, H.; El-Kadi, A. I.

    2017-12-01

    Upland soil erosion and sedimentation are the main threats for riparian and coastal reef ecosystems in Pacific islands. Here, due to small size of the watersheds and steep slope, the residence time of rainfall runoff and its suspended load is short. Fagaalu bay, located on the island of Tutuila (American Samoa) has been identified as a priority watershed, due to degraded coral reef condition and reduction of stream water quality from heavy anthropogenic activity yielding high nutrients and sediment loads to the receiving water bodies. This study aimed to estimate the sediment yield to the Fagaalu stream and assess the impact of Best Management Practices (BMP) on sediment yield reduction. For this, the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was applied, calibrated, and validated for both daily streamflow and sediment load simulation. The model also estimated the sediment yield contributions from existing land use types of Fagaalu and identified soil erosion prone areas for introducing BMP scenarios in the watershed. Then, three BMP scenarios, such as stone bund, retention pond, and filter strip were treated on bare (quarry area), agricultural, and shrub land use types. It was found that the bare land with quarry activity yielded the highest annual average sediment yield of 133 ton per hectare (t ha-1) followed by agriculture (26.1 t ha-1) while the lowest sediment yield of 0.2 t ha-1 was estimated for the forested part of the watershed. Additionally, the bare land area (2 ha) contributed approximately 65% (207 ha) of the watershed's sediment yield, which is 4.0 t ha-1. The latter signifies the high impact as well as contribution of anthropogenic activity on sediment yield. The use of different BMP scenarios generally reduced the sediment yield to the coastal reef of Fagaalu watershed. However, treating the quarry activity area with stone bund showed the highest sediment yield reduction as compared to the other two BMP scenarios. This study provides an estimate

  8. Loss of ecosystem services due to chronic pollution of forests and surface waters in the Adirondack region (USA)

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Beier, Colin M.; Caputo, Jesse; Lawrence, Gregory B.; Sullivan, Timothy J.

    2017-01-01

    Sustaining recent progress in mitigating acid pollution could require lower emissions caps that will give rise to real or perceived tradeoffs between healthy ecosystems and inexpensive energy. Because most impacts of acid rain affect ecosystem functions that are poorly understood by policy-makers and the public, an ecosystem services (ES) framework can help to measure how pollution affects human well-being. Focused on the Adirondack region (USA), a global ‘hot-spot’ of acid pollution, we measured how the chronic acidification of the region's forests, lakes, and streams has affected the potential economic and cultural benefits they provide to society. We estimated that acid-impaired hardwood forests provide roughly half of the potential benefits of forests on moderate to well-buffered soils – an estimated loss of ∼ $10,000 ha−1 in net present value of wood products, maple syrup, carbon sequestration, and visual quality. Acidic deposition has had only nominal impact – relative to the effects of surficial geology and till depth – on the capacity of Adirondack lakes and streams to provide water suitable for drinking. However, as pH declines in lakes, the estimated value of recreational fishing decreases significantly due to loss of desirable fish such as trout. Hatchery stocking programs have partially offset the pollution-mediated losses of fishery value, most effectively in the pH range 4.8–5.5, but are costly and limited in scope. Although any estimates of the monetary ‘damages’ of acid rain have significant uncertainties, our findings highlight some of the more tangible economic and cultural benefits of pollution mitigation efforts, which continue to face litigation and political opposition.

  9. A photorespiratory bypass increases plant growth and seed yield in biofuel crop Camelina sativa

    DOE PAGES

    Dalal, Jyoti; Lopez, Harry; Vasani, Naresh B.; ...

    2015-10-29

    Camelina sativa is an oilseed crop with great potential for biofuel production on marginal land. The seed oil from camelina has been converted to jet fuel and improved fuel efficiency in commercial and military test flights. Hydrogenation-derived renewable diesel from camelina is environmentally superior to that from canola due to lower agricultural inputs, and the seed meal is FDA approved for animal consumption. However, relatively low yield makes its farming less profitable. Our study is aimed at increasing camelina seed yield by reducing carbon loss from photorespiration via a photorespiratory bypass. Genes encoding three enzymes of the Escherichia coli glycolatemore » catabolic pathway were introduced: glycolate dehydrogenase (GDH), glyoxylate carboxyligase (GCL) and tartronic semialdehyde reductase (TSR). These enzymes compete for the photorespiratory substrate, glycolate, convert it to glycerate within the chloroplasts, and reduce photorespiration. As a by-product of the reaction, CO 2 is released in the chloroplast, which increases photosynthesis. Camelina plants were transformed with either partial bypass (GDH), or full bypass (GDH, GCL and TSR) genes. Furthermore, transgenic plants were evaluated for physiological and metabolic traits.« less

  10. A photorespiratory bypass increases plant growth and seed yield in biofuel crop Camelina sativa

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Dalal, Jyoti; Lopez, Harry; Vasani, Naresh B.

    Camelina sativa is an oilseed crop with great potential for biofuel production on marginal land. The seed oil from camelina has been converted to jet fuel and improved fuel efficiency in commercial and military test flights. Hydrogenation-derived renewable diesel from camelina is environmentally superior to that from canola due to lower agricultural inputs, and the seed meal is FDA approved for animal consumption. However, relatively low yield makes its farming less profitable. Our study is aimed at increasing camelina seed yield by reducing carbon loss from photorespiration via a photorespiratory bypass. Genes encoding three enzymes of the Escherichia coli glycolatemore » catabolic pathway were introduced: glycolate dehydrogenase (GDH), glyoxylate carboxyligase (GCL) and tartronic semialdehyde reductase (TSR). These enzymes compete for the photorespiratory substrate, glycolate, convert it to glycerate within the chloroplasts, and reduce photorespiration. As a by-product of the reaction, CO 2 is released in the chloroplast, which increases photosynthesis. Camelina plants were transformed with either partial bypass (GDH), or full bypass (GDH, GCL and TSR) genes. Furthermore, transgenic plants were evaluated for physiological and metabolic traits.« less

  11. Dust emission and soil loss due to anthropogenic activities by wind erosion simulations

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Katra, Itzhak; Swet, Nitzan; Tanner, Smadar

    2017-04-01

    Wind erosion is major process of soil loss and air pollution by dust emission of clays, nutrients, and microorganisms. Many soils throughout the world are currently or potentially associated with dust emissions, especially in dryland zones. The research focuses on wind erosion in semi-arid soils (Northern Negev, Israel) that are subjected to increased human activities of urban development and agriculture. A boundary-layer wind tunnel has been used to study dust emission and soil loss by simulation and quantification of high-resolution wind processes. Field experiments were conducted in various surface types of dry loess soils. The experimental plots represent soils with long-term and short term influences of land uses such as agriculture (conventional and organic practices), grazing, and natural preserves. The wind tunnel was operated under various wind velocities that are above the threshold velocity of aeolian erosion. Total soil sediment and particulate matter (PM) fluxes were calculated. Topsoil samples from the experimental plots were analysed in the laboratory for physical and chemical characteristics including aggregation, organic matter, and high-resolution particle size distribution. The results showed variations in dust emission in response to surface types and winds to provide quantitative estimates of soil loss over time. Substantial loss of particulate matter that is < 10 micrometer in diameter, including clays and nutrients, was recorded in most experimental conditions. Integrative analyses of the topsoil properties and dust experiment highlight the significant implications for soil nutrient resources and management strategies as well as for PM loading to the atmosphere and air pollution.

  12. Establishment of a Charge Reversal Derivatization Strategy to Improve the Ionization Efficiency of Limaprost and Investigation of the Fragmentation Patterns of Limaprost Derivatives Via Exclusive Neutral Loss and Survival Yield Method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Sun, Dong; Meng, Xiangjun; Ren, Tianming; Fawcett, John Paul; Wang, Hualu; Gu, Jingkai

    2018-04-01

    Sensitivity is generally an issue in bioassays of prostaglandins and their synthetic analogs due to their extremely low concentration in vivo. To improve the ionization efficiency of limaprost, an oral prostaglandin E1 (PGE1) synthetic analog, we investigated a charge reversal derivatization strategy in electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). We established that the cholamine derivative exhibits much greater signal intensity in the positive-ion mode compared with limaprost in the negative ion mode. Collision-induced dissociation (CID) involved exclusive neutral mass loss and positive charge migration to form stable cationic product ions with the positive charge on the limaprost residue rather than on the modifying group. This has the effect of maintaining the efficiency and specificity of multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) and avoiding cross talk. CID fragmentation patterns of other limaprost derivatives allowed us to relate the dissociation tendency of different neutral leaving groups to an internal energy distribution scale based on the survival yield method. Knowledge of the energy involved in the production of stabilized positive ions will potentially assist the selection of suitable derivatization reagents for the analysis of a wide variety of lipid acids. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

  13. Cancer Survival Estimates Due to Non-Uniform Loss to Follow-Up and Non-Proportional Hazards

    PubMed

    K M, Jagathnath Krishna; Mathew, Aleyamma; Sara George, Preethi

    2017-06-25

    Background: Cancer survival depends on loss to follow-up (LFU) and non-proportional hazards (non-PH). If LFU is high, survival will be over-estimated. If hazard is non-PH, rank tests will provide biased inference and Cox-model will provide biased hazard-ratio. We assessed the bias due to LFU and non-PH factor in cancer survival and provided alternate methods for unbiased inference and hazard-ratio. Materials and Methods: Kaplan-Meier survival were plotted using a realistic breast cancer (BC) data-set, with >40%, 5-year LFU and compared it using another BC data-set with <15%, 5-year LFU to assess the bias in survival due to high LFU. Age at diagnosis of the latter data set was used to illustrate the bias due to a non-PH factor. Log-rank test was employed to assess the bias in p-value and Cox-model was used to assess the bias in hazard-ratio for the non-PH factor. Schoenfeld statistic was used to test the non-PH of age. For the non-PH factor, we employed Renyi statistic for inference and time dependent Cox-model for hazard-ratio. Results: Five-year BC survival was 69% (SE: 1.1%) vs. 90% (SE: 0.7%) for data with low vs. high LFU respectively. Age (<45, 46-54 & >54 years) was a non-PH factor (p-value: 0.036). However, survival by age was significant (log-rank p-value: 0.026), but not significant using Renyi statistic (p=0.067). Hazard ratio (HR) for age using Cox-model was 1.012 (95%CI: 1.004 -1.019) and the same using time-dependent Cox-model was in the other direction (HR: 0.997; 95% CI: 0.997- 0.998). Conclusion: Over-estimated survival was observed for cancer with high LFU. Log-rank statistic and Cox-model provided biased results for non-PH factor. For data with non-PH factors, Renyi statistic and time dependent Cox-model can be used as alternate methods to obtain unbiased inference and estimates. Creative Commons Attribution License

  14. Sensory Neuropathy Due to Loss of Bcl-w

    PubMed Central

    Courchesne, Stephanie L.; Karch, Christoph; Pazyra-Murphy, Maria F.; Segal, Rosalind A.

    2010-01-01

    Small fiber sensory neuropathy is a common disorder in which progressive degeneration of small diameter nociceptors causes decreased sensitivity to thermal stimuli and painful sensations in the extremities. In the majority of patients, the cause of small fiber sensory neuropathy is unknown, and treatment options are limited. Here, we show that Bcl-w (Bcl-2l2) is required for the viability of small fiber nociceptive sensory neurons. Bcl-w −/− mice demonstrate an adult-onset progressive decline in thermosensation and a decrease in nociceptor innervation of the epidermis. This denervation occurs without cell body loss, indicating that lack of Bcl-w results in a primary axonopathy. Consistent with this phenotype, we show that Bcl-w, in contrast to the closely related Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL, is enriched in axons of sensory neurons and that Bcl-w prevents the dying back of axons. Bcl-w −/− sensory neurons exhibit mitochondrial abnormalities, including alterations in axonal mitochondrial size, axonal mitochondrial membrane potential, and cellular ATP levels. Collectively, these data establish bcl-w −/− mice as an animal model of small fiber sensory neuropathy, and provide new insight regarding the role of bcl-w and of mitochondria in preventing axonal degeneration. PMID:21289171

  15. Effect of warming temperatures on US wheat yields.

    PubMed

    Tack, Jesse; Barkley, Andrew; Nalley, Lawton Lanier

    2015-06-02

    Climate change is expected to increase future temperatures, potentially resulting in reduced crop production in many key production regions. Research quantifying the complex relationship between weather variables and wheat yields is rapidly growing, and recent advances have used a variety of model specifications that differ in how temperature data are included in the statistical yield equation. A unique data set that combines Kansas wheat variety field trial outcomes for 1985-2013 with location-specific weather data is used to analyze the effect of weather on wheat yield using regression analysis. Our results indicate that the effect of temperature exposure varies across the September-May growing season. The largest drivers of yield loss are freezing temperatures in the Fall and extreme heat events in the Spring. We also find that the overall effect of warming on yields is negative, even after accounting for the benefits of reduced exposure to freezing temperatures. Our analysis indicates that there exists a tradeoff between average (mean) yield and ability to resist extreme heat across varieties. More-recently released varieties are less able to resist heat than older lines. Our results also indicate that warming effects would be partially offset by increased rainfall in the Spring. Finally, we find that the method used to construct measures of temperature exposure matters for both the predictive performance of the regression model and the forecasted warming impacts on yields.

  16. Random Forests for Global and Regional Crop Yield Predictions.

    PubMed

    Jeong, Jig Han; Resop, Jonathan P; Mueller, Nathaniel D; Fleisher, David H; Yun, Kyungdahm; Butler, Ethan E; Timlin, Dennis J; Shim, Kyo-Moon; Gerber, James S; Reddy, Vangimalla R; Kim, Soo-Hyung

    2016-01-01

    Accurate predictions of crop yield are critical for developing effective agricultural and food policies at the regional and global scales. We evaluated a machine-learning method, Random Forests (RF), for its ability to predict crop yield responses to climate and biophysical variables at global and regional scales in wheat, maize, and potato in comparison with multiple linear regressions (MLR) serving as a benchmark. We used crop yield data from various sources and regions for model training and testing: 1) gridded global wheat grain yield, 2) maize grain yield from US counties over thirty years, and 3) potato tuber and maize silage yield from the northeastern seaboard region. RF was found highly capable of predicting crop yields and outperformed MLR benchmarks in all performance statistics that were compared. For example, the root mean square errors (RMSE) ranged between 6 and 14% of the average observed yield with RF models in all test cases whereas these values ranged from 14% to 49% for MLR models. Our results show that RF is an effective and versatile machine-learning method for crop yield predictions at regional and global scales for its high accuracy and precision, ease of use, and utility in data analysis. RF may result in a loss of accuracy when predicting the extreme ends or responses beyond the boundaries of the training data.

  17. Integration of internet of things to reduce various losses of jatropha seed supply chain

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Srinivasan, S. P.; Anitha, J.; Vijayakumar, R.

    2017-06-01

    The evolution of bio fuel supply chain has revolutionized the organization by restructuring the practices of the traditional management. A flexible distribution system is becoming the need of our society. The main focus of this paper is to integrate IoT technologies into a cultivation, extraction and management of Jatropha seed. It was noticed that major set-back of farmers due to poor supply chain integration. The various losses like information about the Jatropha seed availability, the location of esterification plants and distribution details are identified through this IoT. This enables the farmers to reorganize the land resources, yield estimation and distribution functions. The wastage and the scarcity of energy can be tackled by using the smart phone technologies. This paper is proposes a conceptual frame work on various losses involved in the supply chain of Jatropha seed.

  18. Pleiotropic effects of herbicide-resistance genes on crop yield: a review.

    PubMed

    Darmency, Henri

    2013-08-01

    The rapid adoption of genetically engineered herbicide-resistant crop varieties (HRCVs)-encompassing 83% of all GM crops and nearly 8% of the worldwide arable area-is due to technical efficiency and higher returns. Other herbicide-resistant varieties obtained from genetic resources and mutagenesis have also been successfully released. Although the benefit for weed control is the main criteria for choosing HRCVs, the pleiotropic costs of genes endowing resistance have rarely been investigated in crops. Here the available data of comparisons between isogenic resistant and susceptible varieties are reviewed. Pleiotropic harmful effects on yield are reported in half of the cases, mostly with resistance mechanisms that originate from genetic resources and mutagenesis (atrazine in oilseed rape and millet, trifluralin in millet, imazamox in cotton) rather than genetic engineering (chlorsulfuron and glufosinate in some oilseed rape varieties, glyphosate in soybean). No effect was found for sethoxydim and bromoxynil resistance. Variable minor effects were found for imazamox, chlorsulfuron, glufosinate and glyphosate resistance. The importance of the breeding plan and the genetic background on the emergence of these effects is pointed out. Breeders' efforts to produce better varieties could compensate for the yield loss, which eliminates any possibility of formulating generic conclusions on pleiotropic effects that can be applied to all resistant crops. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry.

  19. Modeling water yield response to forest cover changes in northern Minnesota

    Treesearch

    S.C. Bernath; E.S. Verry; K.N. Brooks; P.F. Ffolliott

    1982-01-01

    A water yield model (TIMWAT) has been developed to predict changes in water yield following changes in forest cover in northern Minnesota. Two versions of the model exist; one predicts changes in water yield as a function of gross precipitation and time after clearcutting. The second version predicts changes in water yield due to changes in above-ground biomass...

  20. Soil Moisture as an Estimator for Crop Yield in Germany

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Peichl, Michael; Meyer, Volker; Samaniego, Luis; Thober, Stephan

    2015-04-01

    Annual crop yield depends on various factors such as soil properties, management decisions, and meteorological conditions. Unfavorable weather conditions, e.g. droughts, have the potential to drastically diminish crop yield in rain-fed agriculture. For example, the drought in 2003 caused direct losses of 1.5 billion EUR only in Germany. Predicting crop yields allows to mitigate negative effects of weather extremes which are assumed to occur more often in the future due to climate change. A standard approach in economics is to predict the impact of climate change on agriculture as a function of temperature and precipitation. This approach has been developed further using concepts like growing degree days. Other econometric models use nonlinear functions of heat or vapor pressure deficit. However, none of these approaches uses soil moisture to predict crop yield. We hypothesize that soil moisture is a better indicator to explain stress on plant growth than estimations based on precipitation and temperature. This is the case because the latter variables do not explicitly account for the available water content in the root zone, which is the primary source of water supply for plant growth. In this study, a reduced form panel approach is applied to estimate a multivariate econometric production function for the years 1999 to 2010. Annual crop yield data of various crops on the administrative district level serve as depending variables. The explanatory variable of major interest is the Soil Moisture Index (SMI), which quantifies anomalies in root zone soil moisture. The SMI is computed by the mesoscale Hydrological Model (mHM, www.ufz.de/mhm). The index represents the monthly soil water quantile at a 4 km2 grid resolution covering entire Germany. A reduced model approach is suitable because the SMI is the result of a stochastic weather process and therefore can be considered exogenous. For the ease of interpretation a linear functionality is preferred. Meteorological

  1. Climatic and technological ceilings for Chinese rice stagnation based on yield gaps and yield trend pattern analysis.

    PubMed

    Zhang, Tianyi; Yang, Xiaoguang; Wang, Hesong; Li, Yong; Ye, Qing

    2014-04-01

    Climatic or technological ceilings could cause yield stagnation. Thus, identifying the principal reasons for yield stagnation within the context of the local climate and socio-economic conditions are essential for informing regional agricultural policies. In this study, we identified the climatic and technological ceilings for seven rice-production regions in China based on yield gaps and on a yield trend pattern analysis for the period 1980-2010. The results indicate that 54.9% of the counties sampled experienced yield stagnation since the 1980. The potential yield ceilings in northern and eastern China decreased to a greater extent than in other regions due to the accompanying climate effects of increases in temperature and decreases in radiation. This may be associated with yield stagnation and halt occurring in approximately 49.8-57.0% of the sampled counties in these areas. South-western China exhibited a promising scope for yield improvement, showing the greatest yield gap (30.6%), whereas the yields were stagnant in 58.4% of the sampled counties. This finding suggests that efforts to overcome the technological ceiling must be given priority so that the available exploitable yield gap can be achieved. North-eastern China, however, represents a noteworthy exception. In the north-central area of this region, climate change has increased the yield potential ceiling, and this increase has been accompanied by the most rapid increase in actual yield: 1.02 ton ha(-1) per decade. Therefore, north-eastern China shows a great potential for rice production, which is favoured by the current climate conditions and available technology level. Additional environmentally friendly economic incentives might be considered in this region. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  2. Theory and experimental verifications of the resonator Q and equivalent electrical parameters due to viscoelastic and mounting supports losses.

    PubMed

    Yong, Yook-Kong; Patel, Mihir S; Tanaka, Masako

    2010-08-01

    A novel analytical/numerical method for calculating the resonator Q and its equivalent electrical parameters due to viscoelastic, conductivity, and mounting supports losses is presented. The method presented will be quite useful for designing new resonators and reducing the time and costs of prototyping. There was also a necessity for better and more realistic modeling of the resonators because of miniaturization and the rapid advances in the frequency ranges of telecommunication. We present new 3-D finite elements models of quartz resonators with viscoelasticity, conductivity, and mounting support losses. The losses at the mounting supports were modeled by perfectly matched layers (PMLs). A previously published theory for dissipative anisotropic piezoelectric solids was formulated in a weak form for finite element (FE) applications. PMLs were placed at the base of the mounting supports to simulate the energy losses to a semi-infinite base substrate. FE simulations were carried out for free vibrations and forced vibrations of quartz tuning fork and AT-cut resonators. Results for quartz tuning fork and thickness shear AT-cut resonators were presented and compared with experimental data. Results for the resonator Q and the equivalent electrical parameters were compared with their measured values. Good equivalences were found. Results for both low- and high-Q AT-cut quartz resonators compared well with their experimental values. A method for estimating the Q directly from the frequency spectrum obtained for free vibrations was also presented. An important determinant of the quality factor Q of a quartz resonator is the loss of energy from the electrode area to the base via the mountings. The acoustical characteristics of the plate resonator are changed when the plate is mounted onto a base substrate. The base affects the frequency spectra of the plate resonator. A resonator with a high Q may not have a similarly high Q when mounted on a base. Hence, the base is an

  3. Planting data and wheat yield models. [Kansas, South Dakota, and U.S.S.R.

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Feyerherm, A. M. (Principal Investigator)

    1977-01-01

    The author has identified the following significant results. A variable date starter model for spring wheat depending on temperature was more precise than a fixed date model. The same conclusions for fall-planted wheat were not reached. If the largest and smallest of eight temperatures were used to estimate daily maximum and minimum temperatures; respectively, a 1-4 F bias would be introduced into these extremes. For Kansas, a reduction of 0.5 bushels/acre in the root-mean-square-error between model and SRS yields was achieved by a six fold increase (7 to 42) in the density of weather stations. An additional reduction of 0.3 b/A was achieved by incorporating losses due to rusts in the model.

  4. Estimation of rice yield affected by drought and relation between rice yield and TVDI

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hongo, C.; Tamura, E.; Sigit, G.

    2016-12-01

    Impact of climate change is not only seen on food production but also on food security and sustainable development of society. Adaptation to climate change is a pressing issue throughout the world to reduce the risks along with the plans and strategies for food security and sustainable development. As a key adaptation to the climate change, agricultural insurance is expected to play an important role in stabilizing agricultural production through compensating the losses caused by the climate change. As the adaptation, the Government of Indonesia has launched agricultural insurance program for damage of rice by drought, flood and pest and disease. The Government started a pilot project in 2013 and this year the pilot project has been extended to 22 provinces. Having the above as background, we conducted research on development of new damage assessment method for rice using remote sensing data which could be used for evaluation of damage ratio caused by drought in West Java, Indonesia. For assessment of the damage ratio, estimation of rice yield is a key. As the result of our study, rice yield affected by drought in dry season could be estimated at level of 1 % significance using SPOT 7 data taken in 2015, and the validation result was 0.8t/ha. Then, the decrease ratio in rice yield about each individual paddy field was calculated using data of the estimated result and the average yield of the past 10 years. In addition, TVDI (Temperature Vegetation Dryness Index) which was calculated from Landsat8 data in heading season indicated the dryness in low yield area. The result suggests that rice yield was affected by irrigation water shortage around heading season as a result of the decreased precipitation by El Nino. Through our study, it becomes clear that the utilization of remote sensing data can be promising for assessment of the damage ratio of rice production precisely, quickly and quantitatively, and also it can be incorporated into the insurance procedures.

  5. Value loss of hardwood lumber during air-drying

    Treesearch

    Leland F. Hanks; Margaret K. Peirsol

    1975-01-01

    Dry lumber prices were applied to green and air-dried lumber that was measured with a dry board rule. Values were summed by species, lumber grade, and thickness class. Differences between green and air-dried lumber value have been termed value losses and are given in dollars and in percentages. The percentages have been separated into loss due to shrinkage and loss due...

  6. Ocular complications and loss of vision due to herpes zoster ophthalmicus in patients with HIV infection and a comparison with HIV-negative patients.

    PubMed

    Nithyanandam, S; Joseph, M; Stephen, J

    2013-02-01

    The aim of the work is to describe the occurrence of ocular complications and loss of vision due to herpes zoster ophthalmicus (HZO) in HIV-positive patients who received early antiviral therapy for HZO.This is a post hoc analysis of prospectively collected data.Twenty-four HIV-positive patients with HZO were included in this report; male to female ratio was 3.8:1; mean age was 33.5 (±14.9) years. The visual outcome was good, with 14/24 patients having 6/6 vision; severe vision loss (≤6/60) occurred in only 2/24. There was no statistical difference in the visual outcome between the HIV-positive and -negative patients (P = 0.69), although severe vision loss was more likely in HIV-infected patients. The ocular complications of HZO in HIV-infected patients were: reduced corneal sensation (17/24), corneal epithelial lesions (14/24), uveitis (12/24), elevated intraocular pressure (10/24) and extra-ocular muscle palsy (3/24). The severity of rash was similar in the two groups but multidermatomal rash occurred only in HIV-infected patients (4/24). There was no difference in the occurrence of ocular complications of HZO between HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients. HZO associated ocular complications and visual loss is low in HIV-infected patients if treated with HZO antiviral therapy and was comparable with HIV-negative patients. Early institution of HZO antiviral therapy is recommended to reduce ocular complication and vision loss.

  7. Thermodynamic wetness loss calculation in nozzle and turbine cascade: nucleating steam flow

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Joseph, Joby; Subramanian, Sathyanarayanan; Vigney, K.; Prasad, B. V. S. S. S.; Biswas, D.

    2017-11-01

    Rapid expansion of steam in turbines and nozzles cause condensation. The formation of liquid droplets due to condensation results in wetness losses, which include aerodynamic losses (due to friction between liquid droplets and the vapour), thermodynamic losses (due to irreversible latent heat addition), and braking losses (due to the impact of liquid droplets on the turbine blade). In this study, a numerical investigation of the thermodynamic loss in a nucleating steam flow is performed. The thermodynamic loss is calculated using the change in entropy due to condensation. The effect of different operating conditions on the thermodynamic loss is estimated for a nozzle and turbine cascade in a nucleating flow. The non-equilibrium condensation in high-speed steam flows is modelled using Eulerian-Eulerian approach.

  8. An attempt to estimate the economic value of the loss of human life due to landslide and flood events in Italy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Salvati, Paola; Bianchi, Cinzia; Hussin, Haydar; Guzzetti, Fausto

    2013-04-01

    Landslide and flood events in Italy cause wide and severe damage to buildings and infrastructure, and are frequently involved in the loss of human life. The cost estimates of past natural disasters generally refer to the amount of public money used for the restoration of the direct damage, and most commonly do not account for all disaster impacts. Other cost components, including indirect losses, are difficult to quantify and, among these, the cost of human lives. The value of specific human life can be identified with the value of a statistical life (VLS), defined as the value that an individual places on a marginal change in their likelihood of death This is different from the value of an actual life. Based on information of fatal car accidents in Italy, we evaluate the cost that society suffers for the loss of life due to landslide and flood events. Using a catalogue of fatal landslide and flood events, for which information about gender and age of the fatalities is known, we determine the cost that society suffers for the loss of their life. For the purpose, we calculate the economic value in terms of the total income that the working-age population involved in the fatal events would have earned over the course of their life. For the computation, we use the pro-capita income calculated as the ratio between the GDP and the population value in Italy for each year, since 1980. Problems occur for children and retired people that we decided not to include in our estimates.

  9. Loss of ecosystem services due to chronic pollution of forests and surface waters in the Adirondack region (USA).

    PubMed

    Beier, Colin M; Caputo, Jesse; Lawrence, Gregory B; Sullivan, Timothy J

    2017-04-15

    Sustaining recent progress in mitigating acid pollution could require lower emissions caps that will give rise to real or perceived tradeoffs between healthy ecosystems and inexpensive energy. Because most impacts of acid rain affect ecosystem functions that are poorly understood by policy-makers and the public, an ecosystem services (ES) framework can help to measure how pollution affects human well-being. Focused on the Adirondack region (USA), a global 'hot-spot' of acid pollution, we measured how the chronic acidification of the region's forests, lakes, and streams has affected the potential economic and cultural benefits they provide to society. We estimated that acid-impaired hardwood forests provide roughly half of the potential benefits of forests on moderate to well-buffered soils - an estimated loss of ∼ $10,000 ha -1 in net present value of wood products, maple syrup, carbon sequestration, and visual quality. Acidic deposition has had only nominal impact - relative to the effects of surficial geology and till depth - on the capacity of Adirondack lakes and streams to provide water suitable for drinking. However, as pH declines in lakes, the estimated value of recreational fishing decreases significantly due to loss of desirable fish such as trout. Hatchery stocking programs have partially offset the pollution-mediated losses of fishery value, most effectively in the pH range 4.8-5.5, but are costly and limited in scope. Although any estimates of the monetary 'damages' of acid rain have significant uncertainties, our findings highlight some of the more tangible economic and cultural benefits of pollution mitigation efforts, which continue to face litigation and political opposition. Copyright © 2017 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

  10. Impact of low concentration factor microfiltration on milk component recovery and Cheddar cheese yield.

    PubMed

    Neocleous, M; Barbano, D M; Rudan, M A

    2002-10-01

    The effect of microfiltration (MF) on the composition of Cheddar cheese, fat, crude protein (CP), calcium, total solids recovery, and Cheddar cheese yield efficiency (i.e., composition adjusted yield divided by theoretical yield) was determined. Raw skim milk was microfiltered twofold using a 0.1-microm ceramic membrane at 50 degrees C. Four vats of cheese were made in one day using milk at lx, 1.26x, 1.51x, and 1.82x concentration factor (CF). An appropriate amount of cream was added to achieve a constant casein (CN)-to-fat ratio across treatments. Cheese manufacture was repeated on four different days using a randomized complete block design. The composition of the cheese was affected by MF. Moisture content of the cheese decreased with increasing MF CF. Standardization of milk to a constant CN-to-fat ratio did not eliminate the effect of MF on cheese moisture content. Fat recovery in cheese was not changed by MF. Separation of cream prior to MF, followed by the recombination of skim or MF retentate with cream resulted in lower fat recovery in cheese for control and all treatments and higher fat loss in whey when compared to previous yield experiments, when control Cheddar cheese was made from unseparated milk. Crude protein, calcium, and total solids recovery in cheese increased with increasing MF CF, due to partial removal of these components prior to cheese making. Calcium and calcium as a percentage of protein increased in the cheese, suggesting an increase in calcium retention in the cheese with increasing CF. While the actual and composition adjusted cheese yields increased with increasing MF CF, as expected, there was no effect of MF CF on cheese yield efficiency.

  11. Understanding Loss Deductions For Yard Trees

    Treesearch

    John Greene

    1998-01-01

    The sudden destruction of trees or other yard plants due to a fire, storm, or massive insect attack qualifies for a casualty loss deduction. Unfortnately, the casualty loss rules for personal use property allow deductions only for large losses. To calculate your deduction, start with the lesser of the decrease in fair market value of your property caused by the loss of...

  12. Reaction of atomic bromine with acetylene and loss rate of atmospheric acetylene due to reaction with OH, Cl, O, and Br

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Payne, W. A.; Nava, D. F.; Brunning, J.; Stief, L. J.

    1986-01-01

    The first-order, diffusion, and bimolecular rate constants for the reaction Br + C2H2 yields C2H3Br are evaluated. The rate constants are measured at 210, 248, 298, and 393 K and at pressures between 15-100 torr Ar using flash photolysis combined with time-resolved detection of atomic bromine via Br resonance radiation. It is observed that the reaction is not affected by pressure or temperature and the bimolecular constant = (4.0 + or - 0.8) x 10 to the -15th cu cm/sec with an error of two standard deviations. The C2H2 + Br reaction rates are compared with reactions of C2H2 with Cl, OH, NH2, and H. The loss rates for atmospheric C2H2 for reactions with OH, Cl, O, and Br are calculated as a function of altitude.

  13. Genetic Causes of Recurrent Pregnancy Loss.

    PubMed

    Page, Jessica M; Silver, Robert M

    2016-09-01

    Pregnancy loss is one of the most common obstetric complications, affecting over 30% of conceptions. A considerable proportion of losses are due to genetic abnormalities. Indeed, over 50% of early pregnancy losses have been associated with chromosomal abnormalities. Most are due to de novo nondisjunctional events but balanced parental translocations are responsible for a small but important percentage of genetic abnormalities in couples with recurrent pregnancy loss. In the past, assessment of genetic abnormalities was limited to karyotype performed on placental or fetal tissue. However, advances in molecular genetic technology now provide rich genetic information about additional genetic causes of and risk factors for pregnancy loss. In addition, the use of preimplantation genetic testing in couples undergoing in vitro fertilization has the potential to decrease the risk of pregnancy loss from genetic abnormalities. To date, efficacy is uncertain but considerable potential remains. This chapter will review what is known about genetic causes of recurrent pregnancy loss with a focus on novel causes and potential treatments. Remaining knowledge gaps will be highlighted.

  14. Nut crop yield records show that budbreak-based chilling requirements may not reflect yield decline chill thresholds

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pope, Katherine S.; Dose, Volker; Da Silva, David; Brown, Patrick H.; DeJong, Theodore M.

    2015-06-01

    Warming winters due to climate change may critically affect temperate tree species. Insufficiently cold winters are thought to result in fewer viable flower buds and the subsequent development of fewer fruits or nuts, decreasing the yield of an orchard or fecundity of a species. The best existing approximation for a threshold of sufficient cold accumulation, the "chilling requirement" of a species or variety, has been quantified by manipulating or modeling the conditions that result in dormant bud breaking. However, the physiological processes that affect budbreak are not the same as those that determine yield. This study sought to test whether budbreak-based chilling thresholds can reasonably approximate the thresholds that affect yield, particularly regarding the potential impacts of climate change on temperate tree crop yields. County-wide yield records for almond ( Prunus dulcis), pistachio ( Pistacia vera), and walnut ( Juglans regia) in the Central Valley of California were compared with 50 years of weather records. Bayesian nonparametric function estimation was used to model yield potentials at varying amounts of chill accumulation. In almonds, average yields occurred when chill accumulation was close to the budbreak-based chilling requirement. However, in the other two crops, pistachios and walnuts, the best previous estimate of the budbreak-based chilling requirements was 19-32 % higher than the chilling accumulations associated with average or above average yields. This research indicates that physiological processes beyond requirements for budbreak should be considered when estimating chill accumulation thresholds of yield decline and potential impacts of climate change.

  15. Ozone's suffocating effect on soybean physiology, growth and yield

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Tropospheric ozone (O3) is damaging air pollutant that is currently costing U.S. farmers hundreds of millions of dollars in yield losses each year. The detrimental effect of O3 on soybean production has been recognized over the past 30 to 40 years, yet there has been little effort to improve soybean...

  16. Efficiency, error and yield in light-directed maskless synthesis of DNA microarrays

    PubMed Central

    2011-01-01

    Background Light-directed in situ synthesis of DNA microarrays using computer-controlled projection from a digital micromirror device--maskless array synthesis (MAS)--has proved to be successful at both commercial and laboratory scales. The chemical synthetic cycle in MAS is quite similar to that of conventional solid-phase synthesis of oligonucleotides, but the complexity of microarrays and unique synthesis kinetics on the glass substrate require a careful tuning of parameters and unique modifications to the synthesis cycle to obtain optimal deprotection and phosphoramidite coupling. In addition, unintended deprotection due to scattering and diffraction introduce insertion errors that contribute significantly to the overall error rate. Results Stepwise phosphoramidite coupling yields have been greatly improved and are now comparable to those obtained in solid phase synthesis of oligonucleotides. Extended chemical exposure in the synthesis of complex, long oligonucleotide arrays result in lower--but still high--final average yields which approach 99%. The new synthesis chemistry includes elimination of the standard oxidation until the final step, and improved coupling and light deprotection. Coupling Insertions due to stray light are the limiting factor in sequence quality for oligonucleotide synthesis for gene assembly. Diffraction and local flare are by far the largest contributors to loss of optical contrast. Conclusions Maskless array synthesis is an efficient and versatile method for synthesizing high density arrays of long oligonucleotides for hybridization- and other molecular binding-based experiments. For applications requiring high sequence purity, such as gene assembly, diffraction and flare remain significant obstacles, but can be significantly reduced with straightforward experimental strategies. PMID:22152062

  17. Hyperspectral sensing to detect the impact of herbicide drift on cotton growth and yield

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Suarez, L. A.; Apan, A.; Werth, J.

    2016-10-01

    Yield loss in crops is often associated with plant disease or external factors such as environment, water supply and nutrient availability. Improper agricultural practices can also introduce risks into the equation. Herbicide drift can be a combination of improper practices and environmental conditions which can create a potential yield loss. As traditional assessment of plant damage is often imprecise and time consuming, the ability of remote and proximal sensing techniques to monitor various bio-chemical alterations in the plant may offer a faster, non-destructive and reliable approach to predict yield loss caused by herbicide drift. This paper examines the prediction capabilities of partial least squares regression (PLS-R) models for estimating yield. Models were constructed with hyperspectral data of a cotton crop sprayed with three simulated doses of the phenoxy herbicide 2,4-D at three different growth stages. Fibre quality, photosynthesis, conductance, and two main hormones, indole acetic acid (IAA) and abscisic acid (ABA) were also analysed. Except for fibre quality and ABA, Spearman correlations have shown that these variables were highly affected by the chemical. Four PLS-R models for predicting yield were developed according to four timings of data collection: 2, 7, 14 and 28 days after the exposure (DAE). As indicated by the model performance, the analysis revealed that 7 DAE was the best time for data collection purposes (RMSEP = 2.6 and R2 = 0.88), followed by 28 DAE (RMSEP = 3.2 and R2 = 0.84). In summary, the results of this study show that it is possible to accurately predict yield after a simulated herbicide drift of 2,4-D on a cotton crop, through the analysis of hyperspectral data, thereby providing a reliable, effective and non-destructive alternative based on the internal response of the cotton leaves.

  18. Globalization to amplify economic climate losses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Otto, C.; Wenz, L.; Levermann, A.

    2015-12-01

    Economic welfare under enhanced anthropogenic carbon emissions and associated future warming poses a major challenge for a society with an evolving globally connected economy. Unabated climate change will impact economic output for example through heat-stress-related reductions in productivity. Since meteorologically-induced production reductions can propagate along supply chains, structural changes in the economic network may influence climate-related losses. The role of the economic network evolution for climate impacts has been neither quantified nor qualitatively understood. Here we show that since the beginning of the 21st century the structural change of the global supply network has been such that an increase of spillover losses due to unanticipated climatic events has to be expected. We quantify primary, secondary and higher-order losses from reduced labor productivity under past and present economic and climatic conditions and find that indirect losses are significant and increase with rising temperatures. The connectivity of the economic network has increased in such a way as to foster the propagation of production loss. This supply chain connectivity robustly exhibits the characteristic distribution of self-organized criticality which has been shifted towards higher values since 2001. Losses due to this structural evolution dominated over the effect of comparably weak climatic changes during this decade. Our finding suggests that the current form of globalization may amplify losses due to climatic extremes and thus necessitate structural adaptation that requires more foresight than presently prevalent.

  19. 47 CFR 80.769 - Shadow loss.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2010 CFR

    2010-10-01

    ... 47 Telecommunication 5 2010-10-01 2010-10-01 false Shadow loss. 80.769 Section 80.769... MARITIME SERVICES Standards for Computing Public Coast Station VHF Coverage § 80.769 Shadow loss. Where the transmission path is obstructed the received signal must be adjusted to include shadow loss. Attenuation due to...

  20. Separating heat stress from moisture stress: analyzing yield response to high temperature in irrigated maize

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Carter, Elizabeth K.; Melkonian, Jeff; Riha, Susan J.; Shaw, Stephen B.

    2016-09-01

    Several recent studies have indicated that high air temperatures are limiting maize (Zea mays L.) yields in the US Corn Belt and project significant yield losses with expected increases in growing season temperatures. Further work has suggested that high air temperatures are indicative of high evaporative demand, and that decreases in maize yields which correlate to high temperatures and vapor pressure deficits (VPD) likely reflect underlying soil moisture limitations. It remains unclear whether direct high temperature impacts on yields, independent of moisture stress, can be observed under current temperature regimes. Given that projected high temperature and moisture may not co-vary the same way as they have historically, quantitative analyzes of direct temperature impacts are critical for accurate yield projections and targeted mitigation strategies under shifting temperature regimes. To evaluate yield response to above optimum temperatures independent of soil moisture stress, we analyzed climate impacts on irrigated maize yields obtained from the National Corn Growers Association (NCGA) corn yield contests for Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri. In irrigated maize, we found no evidence of a direct negative impact on yield by daytime air temperature, calculated canopy temperature, or VPD when analyzed seasonally. Solar radiation was the primary yield-limiting climate variable. Our analyses suggested that elevated night temperature impacted yield by increasing rates of phenological development. High temperatures during grain-fill significantly interacted with yields, but this effect was often beneficial and included evidence of acquired thermo-tolerance. Furthermore, genetics and management—information uniquely available in the NCGA contest data—explained more yield variability than climate, and significantly modified crop response to climate. Thermo-acclimation, improved genetics and changes to management practices have the potential to partially or completely

  1. Adjusting slash pine growth and yield for silvicultural treatments

    Treesearch

    Stephen R. Logan; Barry D. Shiver

    2006-01-01

    With intensive silvicultural treatments such as fertilization and competition control now commonplace in today's slash pine (Pinus elliottii Engelm.) plantations, a method to adjust current growth and yield models is required to accurately account for yield increases due to these practices. Some commonly used ad-hoc methods, such as raising site...

  2. Technologies for Decreasing Mining Losses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Valgma, Ingo; Väizene, Vivika; Kolats, Margit; Saarnak, Martin

    2013-12-01

    In case of stratified deposits like oil shale deposit in Estonia, mining losses depend on mining technologies. Current research focuses on extraction and separation possibilities of mineral resources. Selective mining, selective crushing and separation tests have been performed, showing possibilities of decreasing mining losses. Rock crushing and screening process simulations were used for optimizing rock fractions. In addition mine backfilling, fine separation, and optimized drilling and blasting have been analyzed. All tested methods show potential and depend on mineral usage. Usage in addition depends on the utilization technology. The questions like stability of the material flow and influences of the quality fluctuations to the final yield are raised.

  3. Quantifying array losses due to spacing and staggering in offshore wind farms (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Archer, C. L.; Mirzaeisefat, S.; Lee, S.; Xie, S.

    2013-12-01

    the farm constant, we design several new Lillgrund farm layouts with and without staggering, with increased spacing in each direction individually and in both directions together, and with various wind directions and atmospheric stabilities. We found that the average wind power generated per turbine is increased by ~32% (from 696 kW to 922 kW) if both staggering and doubling of the across-spacing are implemented simultaneously in a neutral stability case. Wake losses are quantified in terms of average power in the first (upwind) row of wind turbines in the control case, representative of the power that could be generated if there were no wakes, over the average power of all the wind turbines in the farm. Wake losses at Lillgrund are relatively high due to the tight packing, of the order of 35%, but smart combinations of staggering and doubling of turbine spacing can reduce them to 15%-26%. In summary, we provide estimates of the losses/gains associated with individual and combined changes in two design variables, spacing and staggering, under various atmospheric stabilities, wind directions, and wind speeds. These estimates will be useful to the wind industry to optimize a wind project because the effects of alternative layouts can be quantified quickly with respect to total power, capacity factor, and number of wind turbines, all of which can ultimately be converted to actual costs or savings.

  4. Quantifying array losses due to spacing and staggering in offshore wind farms (Invited)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Archer, C. L.; Mirzaeisefat, S.; Lee, S.; Xie, S.

    2011-12-01

    the farm constant, we design several new Lillgrund farm layouts with and without staggering, with increased spacing in each direction individually and in both directions together, and with various wind directions and atmospheric stabilities. We found that the average wind power generated per turbine is increased by ~32% (from 696 kW to 922 kW) if both staggering and doubling of the across-spacing are implemented simultaneously in a neutral stability case. Wake losses are quantified in terms of average power in the first (upwind) row of wind turbines in the control case, representative of the power that could be generated if there were no wakes, over the average power of all the wind turbines in the farm. Wake losses at Lillgrund are relatively high due to the tight packing, of the order of 35%, but smart combinations of staggering and doubling of turbine spacing can reduce them to 15%-26%. In summary, we provide estimates of the losses/gains associated with individual and combined changes in two design variables, spacing and staggering, under various atmospheric stabilities, wind directions, and wind speeds. These estimates will be useful to the wind industry to optimize a wind project because the effects of alternative layouts can be quantified quickly with respect to total power, capacity factor, and number of wind turbines, all of which can ultimately be converted to actual costs or savings.

  5. Stocking and yield of Virginia pine stands in Prince Georges County, Maryland

    Treesearch

    Thomas W., Jr. Church

    1955-01-01

    Development of yield tables is prerequisite to designing forest-management plans. Yield tables have been prepared for Virginia pine in Maryland, North Carolina, and Pennsylvania. But the differences among yields in these three states are great. These differences are probably due chiefly to site. Therefore it would be desirable to have yield tables based on fairly local...

  6. Reducing phosphorus loss in tile water with managed drainage in a claypan soil.

    PubMed

    Nash, Patrick R; Nelson, Kelly A; Motavalli, Peter P; Nathan, Manjula; Dudenhoeffer, Chris

    2015-03-01

    Installing subsurface tile drain systems in poorly drained claypan soils to improve corn ( L.) yields could potentially increase environmental phosphorus (P) loss through the tile drainage system. The objectives of the study were to quantify the average concentration and loss of ortho-P in tile drain water from a claypan soil and to determine whether managed subsurface drainage (MD) could reduce ortho-P loss in tile water compared with free subsurface drainage (FD). Flow-weighted ortho-P concentration in the tile water was significantly lower with MD (0.09 mg L) compared with that of FD (0.15 mg L). Ortho-P loss in the tile water of this study was reduced with MD (36 g ha) by 80% compared with FD (180 g ha). Contrary to previous research, reduced ortho-P loss observed over the 4-yr study was not solely due to the reduced amount of water drained annually (63%) with MD compared with FD. During the spring period, when flow was similar between MD and FD, the concentration of ortho-P in the tile water generally was lower with MD compared with FD, which resulted in significantly less ortho-P loss with MD. We speculate that MD's ability to conserve water during the dry summer months increased corn's uptake of water and P, which reduced the amount of P available for leaching loss in the subsequent springs. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

  7. Quantifying and Adjusting for Disease Misclassification Due to Loss to Follow-Up in Historical Cohort Mortality Studies.

    PubMed

    Scott, Laura L F; Maldonado, George

    2015-10-15

    The purpose of this analysis was to quantify and adjust for disease misclassification from loss to follow-up in a historical cohort mortality study of workers where exposure was categorized as a multi-level variable. Disease classification parameters were defined using 2008 mortality data for the New Zealand population and the proportions of known deaths observed for the cohort. The probability distributions for each classification parameter were constructed to account for potential differences in mortality due to exposure status, gender, and ethnicity. Probabilistic uncertainty analysis (bias analysis), which uses Monte Carlo techniques, was then used to sample each parameter distribution 50,000 times, calculating adjusted odds ratios (ORDM-LTF) that compared the mortality of workers with the highest cumulative exposure to those that were considered never-exposed. The geometric mean ORDM-LTF ranged between 1.65 (certainty interval (CI): 0.50-3.88) and 3.33 (CI: 1.21-10.48), and the geometric mean of the disease-misclassification error factor (εDM-LTF), which is the ratio of the observed odds ratio to the adjusted odds ratio, had a range of 0.91 (CI: 0.29-2.52) to 1.85 (CI: 0.78-6.07). Only when workers in the highest exposure category were more likely than those never-exposed to be misclassified as non-cases did the ORDM-LTF frequency distributions shift further away from the null. The application of uncertainty analysis to historical cohort mortality studies with multi-level exposures can provide valuable insight into the magnitude and direction of study error resulting from losses to follow-up.

  8. Yield degradation in inertial-confinement-fusion implosions due to shock-driven kinetic fuel-species stratification and viscous heating

    DOE PAGES

    Taitano, William T.; Simakov, Andrei N.; Chacon, Luis; ...

    2018-04-09

    Anomalous thermonuclear yield degradation (i.e., that not describable by single-fluid radiation hydrodynamics) in Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) implosions is ubiquitously observed in both Omega and National Ignition experiments. Multiple experimental and theoretical studies have been carried out to investigate the origin of such a degradation. Relative concentration changes of fuel-ion species, as well as kinetically enhanced viscous heating, have been among possible explanations proposed for certain classes of ICF experiments. In this study, we investigate the role of such kinetic plasma effects in detail. To this end, we use the iFP code to perform multi-species ion Vlasov-Fokker-Planck simulations of ICFmore » capsule implosions with the fuel comprising various hydrodynamically equivalent mixtures of deuterium (D) and helium-3 (3He), as in the original. We employ the same computational setup as in O. Larroche, which was the first to simulate the experiments kinetically. However, unlike the Larroche study, and in partial agreement with experimental data, we find a systematic yield degradation in multi-species simulations versus averaged-ion simulations when the D-fuel fraction is decreased. This yield degradation originates in the fuel-ion species stratification induced by plasma shocks, which imprints the imploding system and results in the relocation of the D ions from the core of the capsule to its periphery, thereby reducing the yield relative to a non-separable averaged-ion case. By comparing yields from the averaged-ion kinetic simulations and from the hydrodynamic scaling, we also observe yield variations associated with ion kinetic effects other than fuel-ion stratification, such as ion viscous heating, which is typically neglected in hydrodynamic implosions' simulations. Since our kinetic simulations are driven by hydrodynamic boundary conditions at the fuel-ablator interface, they cannot capture the effects of ion viscosity on the capsule

  9. Yield degradation in inertial-confinement-fusion implosions due to shock-driven kinetic fuel-species stratification and viscous heating

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Taitano, William T.; Simakov, Andrei N.; Chacon, Luis

    Anomalous thermonuclear yield degradation (i.e., that not describable by single-fluid radiation hydrodynamics) in Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) implosions is ubiquitously observed in both Omega and National Ignition experiments. Multiple experimental and theoretical studies have been carried out to investigate the origin of such a degradation. Relative concentration changes of fuel-ion species, as well as kinetically enhanced viscous heating, have been among possible explanations proposed for certain classes of ICF experiments. In this study, we investigate the role of such kinetic plasma effects in detail. To this end, we use the iFP code to perform multi-species ion Vlasov-Fokker-Planck simulations of ICFmore » capsule implosions with the fuel comprising various hydrodynamically equivalent mixtures of deuterium (D) and helium-3 (3He), as in the original. We employ the same computational setup as in O. Larroche, which was the first to simulate the experiments kinetically. However, unlike the Larroche study, and in partial agreement with experimental data, we find a systematic yield degradation in multi-species simulations versus averaged-ion simulations when the D-fuel fraction is decreased. This yield degradation originates in the fuel-ion species stratification induced by plasma shocks, which imprints the imploding system and results in the relocation of the D ions from the core of the capsule to its periphery, thereby reducing the yield relative to a non-separable averaged-ion case. By comparing yields from the averaged-ion kinetic simulations and from the hydrodynamic scaling, we also observe yield variations associated with ion kinetic effects other than fuel-ion stratification, such as ion viscous heating, which is typically neglected in hydrodynamic implosions' simulations. Since our kinetic simulations are driven by hydrodynamic boundary conditions at the fuel-ablator interface, they cannot capture the effects of ion viscosity on the capsule

  10. Yield degradation in inertial-confinement-fusion implosions due to shock-driven kinetic fuel-species stratification and viscous heating

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Taitano, W. T.; Simakov, A. N.; Chacón, L.; Keenan, B.

    2018-05-01

    Anomalous thermonuclear yield degradation (i.e., that not describable by single-fluid radiation hydrodynamics) in Inertial Confinement Fusion (ICF) implosions is ubiquitously observed in both Omega and National Ignition experiments. Multiple experimental and theoretical studies have been carried out to investigate the origin of such a degradation. Relative concentration changes of fuel-ion species, as well as kinetically enhanced viscous heating, have been among possible explanations proposed for certain classes of ICF experiments. In this study, we investigate the role of such kinetic plasma effects in detail. To this end, we use the iFP code to perform multi-species ion Vlasov-Fokker-Planck simulations of ICF capsule implosions with the fuel comprising various hydrodynamically equivalent mixtures of deuterium (D) and helium-3 (3He), as in the original Rygg experiments [J. R. Rygg et al., Phys. Plasmas 13, 052702 (2006)]. We employ the same computational setup as in O. Larroche [Phys. Plasmas 19, 122706 (2012)], which was the first to simulate the experiments kinetically. However, unlike the Larroche study, and in partial agreement with experimental data, we find a systematic yield degradation in multi-species simulations versus averaged-ion simulations when the D-fuel fraction is decreased. This yield degradation originates in the fuel-ion species stratification induced by plasma shocks, which imprints the imploding system and results in the relocation of the D ions from the core of the capsule to its periphery, thereby reducing the yield relative to a non-separable averaged-ion case. By comparing yields from the averaged-ion kinetic simulations and from the hydrodynamic scaling, we also observe yield variations associated with ion kinetic effects other than fuel-ion stratification, such as ion viscous heating, which is typically neglected in hydrodynamic implosions' simulations. Since our kinetic simulations are driven by hydrodynamic boundary conditions at the

  11. Comparison of bone density in amenorrheic women due to athletics, weight loss, and premature menopause.

    PubMed

    Jones, K P; Ravnikar, V A; Tulchinsky, D; Schiff, I

    1985-07-01

    Studied was the peripheral bone density of 39 women (ages 18 to 43) with the diagnosis of secondary amenorrhea in an effort to define the population of amenorrheic women at risk for osteoporosis. Eight women had exercise-induced amenorrhea (athletes), 20 women had amenorrhea associated with weight loss, and 11 women had premature menopause. These diagnoses were made on the basis of history, physical examination, and luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH), and prolactin levels, and failure to have withdrawal bleeding after the administration of progestin. Twenty-five nonathletic, normally menstruating women served as control subjects. The peripheral bone density of the amenorrheic athletes (0.738 g/cm2 +/- 0.047) was not significantly different from that of the controls (0.726 g/cm2 +/- 0.044). The average bone density of the group with weight loss-associated amenorrhea (0.672 g/cm2 +/- 0.066) was significantly less than controls (P less than .005) as was that of the women with premature menopause (0.616 g/cm2 +/- 0.048, P less than .001). There was a significant correlation between months of amenorrhea and decrease in bone density (r = 0.506, P less than .001). From this study it was concluded that women with exercise-associated amenorrhea are not at significant risk for cortical bone loss as measured by direct photon absorptiometry. Women with weight loss-associated amenorrhea and women with premature menopause are at significant risk for bone loss when compared with normal controls.

  12. Power Scaling of the Size Distribution of Economic Loss and Fatalities due to Hurricanes, Earthquakes, Tornadoes, and Floods in the USA

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Tebbens, S. F.; Barton, C. C.; Scott, B. E.

    2016-12-01

    Traditionally, the size of natural disaster events such as hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, and floods is measured in terms of wind speed (m/sec), energy released (ergs), or discharge (m3/sec) rather than by economic loss or fatalities. Economic loss and fatalities from natural disasters result from the intersection of the human infrastructure and population with the size of the natural event. This study investigates the size versus cumulative number distribution of individual natural disaster events for several disaster types in the United States. Economic losses are adjusted for inflation to 2014 USD. The cumulative number divided by the time over which the data ranges for each disaster type is the basis for making probabilistic forecasts in terms of the number of events greater than a given size per year and, its inverse, return time. Such forecasts are of interest to insurers/re-insurers, meteorologists, seismologists, government planners, and response agencies. Plots of size versus cumulative number distributions per year for economic loss and fatalities are well fit by power scaling functions of the form p(x) = Cx-β; where, p(x) is the cumulative number of events with size equal to and greater than size x, C is a constant, the activity level, x is the event size, and β is the scaling exponent. Economic loss and fatalities due to hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, and floods are well fit by power functions over one to five orders of magnitude in size. Economic losses for hurricanes and tornadoes have greater scaling exponents, β = 1.1 and 0.9 respectively, whereas earthquakes and floods have smaller scaling exponents, β = 0.4 and 0.6 respectively. Fatalities for tornadoes and floods have greater scaling exponents, β = 1.5 and 1.7 respectively, whereas hurricanes and earthquakes have smaller scaling exponents, β = 0.4 and 0.7 respectively. The scaling exponents can be used to make probabilistic forecasts for time windows ranging from 1 to 1000 years

  13. Climate-Driven Crop Yield and Yield Variability and Climate Change Impacts on the U.S. Great Plains Agricultural Production.

    PubMed

    Kukal, Meetpal S; Irmak, Suat

    2018-02-22

    Climate variability and trends affect global crop yields and are characterized as highly dependent on location, crop type, and irrigation. U.S. Great Plains, due to its significance in national food production, evident climate variability, and extensive irrigation is an ideal region of investigation for climate impacts on food production. This paper evaluates climate impacts on maize, sorghum, and soybean yields and effect of irrigation for individual counties in this region by employing extensive crop yield and climate datasets from 1968-2013. Variability in crop yields was a quarter of the regional average yields, with a quarter of this variability explained by climate variability, and temperature and precipitation explained these in singularity or combination at different locations. Observed temperature trend was beneficial for maize yields, but detrimental for sorghum and soybean yields, whereas observed precipitation trend was beneficial for all three crops. Irrigated yields demonstrated increased robustness and an effective mitigation strategy against climate impacts than their non-irrigated counterparts by a considerable fraction. The information, data, and maps provided can serve as an assessment guide for planners, managers, and policy- and decision makers to prioritize agricultural resilience efforts and resource allocation or re-allocation in the regions that exhibit risk from climate variability.

  14. Adapting the CROPGRO cotton model to simulate cotton biomass and yield under southern root-knot nematode parasitism

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) yield losses by southern root-knot nematode [Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid & White) Chitwood] (RKN) are usually estimated after significant damage has been caused. However, estimation of potential yield reduction before planting is possible by using crop simulation mod...

  15. Hair Loss (Alopecia)

    MedlinePlus

    ... Pediatrician Health Issues Conditions Abdominal ADHD Allergies & Asthma Autism Cancer Chest & Lungs Chronic Conditions Cleft & Craniofacial Developmental ... with certain abnormalities of the nails and the teeth. Later in childhood, hair loss may be due ...

  16. Cover Crops and Fertilization Alter Nitrogen Loss in Organic and Conventional Conservation Agriculture Systems

    PubMed Central

    Shelton, Rebecca E.; Jacobsen, Krista L.; McCulley, Rebecca L.

    2018-01-01

    Agroecosystem nitrogen (N) loss produces greenhouse gases, induces eutrophication, and is costly for farmers; therefore, conservation agricultural management practices aimed at reducing N loss are increasingly adopted. However, the ecosystem consequences of these practices have not been well-studied. We quantified N loss via leaching, NH3 volatilization, N2O emissions, and N retention in plant and soil pools of corn conservation agroecosystems in Kentucky, USA. Three systems were evaluated: (1) an unfertilized, organic system with cover crops hairy vetch (Vicia villosa), winter wheat (Triticum aestivum), or a mix of the two (bi-culture); (2) an organic system with a hairy vetch cover crop employing three fertilization schemes (0 N, organic N, or a fertilizer N-credit approach); and (3) a conventional system with a winter wheat cover crop and three fertilization schemes (0 N, urea N, or organic N). In the unfertilized organic system, cover crop species affected NO3-N leaching (vetch > bi-culture > wheat) and N2O-N emissions and yield during corn growth (vetch, bi-culture > wheat). Fertilization increased soil inorganic N, gaseous N loss, N leaching, and yield in the organic vetch and conventional wheat systems. Fertilizer scheme affected the magnitude of growing season N2O-N loss in the organic vetch system (organic N > fertilizer N-credit) and the timing of loss (organic N delayed N2O-N loss vs. urea) and NO3-N leaching (urea >> organic N) in the conventional wheat system, but had no effect on yield. Cover crop selection and N fertilization techniques can reduce N leaching and greenhouse gas emissions without sacrificing yield, thereby enhancing N conservation in both organic and conventional conservation agriculture systems. PMID:29403512

  17. 7 CFR 760.206 - Notice of loss and application process.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ...) Chattel inspections. (d) For the loss of honeybee colonies due to colony collapse disorder, the... was due to colony collapse disorder. Except for 2008 and 2009 honeybee colony losses, acceptable... Application; (ii) For honeybee feed, honeybee colony, honeybee hive, or farm-raised fish feed or death losses...

  18. 7 CFR 760.206 - Notice of loss and application process.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ...) Chattel inspections. (d) For the loss of honeybee colonies due to colony collapse disorder, the... was due to colony collapse disorder. Except for 2008 and 2009 honeybee colony losses, acceptable... Application; (ii) For honeybee feed, honeybee colony, honeybee hive, or farm-raised fish feed or death losses...

  19. 7 CFR 760.206 - Notice of loss and application process.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ...) Chattel inspections. (d) For the loss of honeybee colonies due to colony collapse disorder, the... was due to colony collapse disorder. Except for 2008 and 2009 honeybee colony losses, acceptable... Application; (ii) For honeybee feed, honeybee colony, honeybee hive, or farm-raised fish feed or death losses...

  20. Long-term carbon loss in fragmented Neotropical forests.

    PubMed

    Pütz, Sandro; Groeneveld, Jürgen; Henle, Klaus; Knogge, Christoph; Martensen, Alexandre Camargo; Metz, Markus; Metzger, Jean Paul; Ribeiro, Milton Cezar; de Paula, Mateus Dantas; Huth, Andreas

    2014-10-07

    Tropical forests play an important role in the global carbon cycle, as they store a large amount of carbon (C). Tropical forest deforestation has been identified as a major source of CO2 emissions, though biomass loss due to fragmentation--the creation of additional forest edges--has been largely overlooked as an additional CO2 source. Here, through the combination of remote sensing and knowledge on ecological processes, we present long-term carbon loss estimates due to fragmentation of Neotropical forests: within 10 years the Brazilian Atlantic Forest has lost 69 (±14) Tg C, and the Amazon 599 (±120) Tg C due to fragmentation alone. For all tropical forests, we estimate emissions up to 0.2 Pg C y(-1) or 9 to 24% of the annual global C loss due to deforestation. In conclusion, tropical forest fragmentation increases carbon loss and should be accounted for when attempting to understand the role of vegetation in the global carbon balance.

  1. Impacts of multiple global environmental changes on African crop yield and water use efficiency: Implications to food and water security

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Pan, S.; Yang, J.; Zhang, J.; Xu, R.; Dangal, S. R. S.; Zhang, B.; Tian, H.

    2016-12-01

    Africa is one of the most vulnerable regions in the world to climate change and climate variability. Much concern has been raised about the impacts of climate and other environmental factors on water resource and food security through the climate-water-food nexus. Understanding the responses of crop yield and water use efficiency to environmental changes is particularly important because Africa is well known for widespread poverty, slow economic growth and agricultural systems particularly sensitive to frequent and persistent droughts. However, the lack of integrated understanding has limited our ability to quantify and predict the potential of Africa's agricultural sustainability and freshwater supply, and to better manage the system for meeting an increasing food demand in a way that is socially and environmentally or ecologically sustainable. By using the Dynamic Land Ecosystem Model (DLEM-AG2) driven by spatially-explicit information on land use, climate and other environmental changes, we have assessed the spatial and temporal patterns of crop yield, evapotranspiration (ET) and water use efficiency across entire Africa in the past 35 years (1980-2015) and the rest of the 21st century (2016-2099). Our preliminary results indicate that African crop yield in the past three decades shows an increasing trend primarily due to cropland expansion (about 50%), elevated atmospheric CO2 concentration, and nitrogen deposition. However, crop yield shows substantially spatial and temporal variation due to inter-annual and inter-decadal climate variability and spatial heterogeneity of environmental drivers. Climate extremes especially droughts and heat wave have largely reduced crop yield in the most vulnerable regions. Our results indicate that N fertilizer could be a major driver to improve food security in Africa. Future climate warming could reduce crop yield and shift cropland distribution. Our study further suggests that improving water use efficiency through land

  2. Predicting Great Lakes fish yields: tools and constraints

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Lewis, C.A.; Schupp, D.H.; Taylor, W.W.; Collins, J.J.; Hatch, Richard W.

    1987-01-01

    Prediction of yield is a critical component of fisheries management. The development of sound yield prediction methodology and the application of the results of yield prediction are central to the evolution of strategies to achieve stated goals for Great Lakes fisheries and to the measurement of progress toward those goals. Despite general availability of species yield models, yield prediction for many Great Lakes fisheries has been poor due to the instability of the fish communities and the inadequacy of available data. A host of biological, institutional, and societal factors constrain both the development of sound predictions and their application to management. Improved predictive capability requires increased stability of Great Lakes fisheries through rehabilitation of well-integrated communities, improvement of data collection, data standardization and information-sharing mechanisms, and further development of the methodology for yield prediction. Most important is the creation of a better-informed public that will in turn establish the political will to do what is required.

  3. Modelling predicts that tolerance to drought during reproductive development will be required for high yield potential and stability of wheat in Europe

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Semenov, Mikhail A.; Stratonovitch, Pierre; Paul, Matthew J.

    2017-04-01

    Short periods of extreme weather, such as a spell of high temperature or drought during a sensitive stage of development, could result in substantial yield losses due to reduction in grain number and grain size. In a modelling study (Stratonovitch & Semenov 2015), heat tolerance around flowering in wheat was identified as a key trait for increased yield potential in Europe under climate change. Ji et all (Ji et al. 2010) demonstrated cultivar specific responses of yield to drought stress around flowering in wheat. They hypothesised that carbohydrate supply to anthers may be the key in maintaining pollen fertility and grain number in wheat. It was shown in (Nuccio et al. 2015) that genetically modified varieties of maize that increase the concentration of sucrose in ear spikelets, performed better under non-drought and drought conditions in field experiments. The objective of this modelling study was to assess potential benefits of tolerance to drought during reproductive development for wheat yield potential and yield stability across Europe. We used the Sirius wheat model to optimise wheat ideotypes for 2050 (HadGEM2, RCP8.5) climate scenarios at selected European sites. Eight cultivar parameters were optimised to maximise mean yields, including parameters controlling phenology, canopy growth and water limitation. At those sites where water could be limited, ideotypes sensitive to drought produced substantially lower mean yields and higher yield variability compare with tolerant ideotypes. Therefore, tolerance to drought during reproductive development is likely to be required for wheat cultivars optimised for the future climate in Europe in order to achieve high yield potential and yield stability.

  4. Phosphorus-Assisted Biomass Thermal Conversion: Reducing Carbon Loss and Improving Biochar Stability

    PubMed Central

    Zhao, Ling; Cao, Xinde; Zheng, Wei; Kan, Yue

    2014-01-01

    There is often over 50% carbon loss during the thermal conversion of biomass into biochar, leading to it controversy for the biochar formation as a carbon sequestration strategy. Sometimes the biochar also seems not to be stable enough due to physical, chemical, and biological reactions in soils. In this study, three phosphorus-bearing materials, H3PO4, phosphate rock tailing (PRT), and triple superphosphate (TSP), were used as additives to wheat straw with a ratio of 1: 0.4–0.8 for biochar production at 500°C, aiming to alleviate carbon loss during pyrolysis and to increase biochar-C stabilization. All these additives remarkably increased the biochar yield from 31.7% (unmodified biochar) to 46.9%–56.9% (modified biochars). Carbon loss during pyrolysis was reduced from 51.7% to 35.5%–47.7%. Thermogravimetric analysis curves showed that the additives had no effect on thermal stability of biochar but did enhance its oxidative stability. Microbial mineralization was obviously reduced in the modified biochar, especially in the TSP-BC, in which the total CO2 emission during 60-d incubation was reduced by 67.8%, compared to the unmodified biochar. Enhancement of carbon retention and biochar stability was probably due to the formation of meta-phosphate or C-O-PO3, which could either form a physical layer to hinder the contact of C with O2 and bacteria, or occupy the active sites of the C band. Our results indicate that pre-treating biomass with phosphors-bearing materials is effective for reducing carbon loss during pyrolysis and for increasing biochar stabilization, which provides a novel method by which biochar can be designed to improve the carbon sequestration capacity. PMID:25531111

  5. The loss of ecosystem services due to land degradation. Integration of mechanistic and probabilistic models in an Ethiopian case study

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Cerretelli, Stefania; Poggio, Laura; Gimona, Alessandro; Peressotti, Alessandro; Black, Helaina

    2017-04-01

    Land and soil degradation are widespread especially in dry and developing countries such as Ethiopia. Land degradation leads to ecosystems services (ESS) degradation, because it causes the depletion and loss of several soil functions. Ethiopia's farmland faces intense degradation due to deforestation, agricultural land expansion, land overexploitation and overgrazing. In this study we modelled the impact of physical factors on ESS degradation, in particular soil erodibility, carbon storage and nutrient retention, in the Ethiopian Great Rift Valley, northwestern of Hawassa. We used models of the Sediment retention/loss, the Nutrient Retention/loss (from the software suite InVEST) and Carbon Storage. To run the models we coupled soil local data (such as soil organic carbon, soil texture) with remote sensing data as input in the parametrization phase, e.g. to derive a land use map, to calculate the aboveground and belowground carbon, the evapotraspiration coefficient and the capacity of vegetation to retain nutrient. We then used spatialised Bayesian Belief Networks (sBBNs) predicting ecosystem services degradation on the basis of the results of the three mechanistic models. The results show i) the importance of mapping of ESS degradation taking into consideration the spatial heterogeneity and the cross-correlations between impacts ii) the fundamental role of remote sensing data in monitoring and modelling in remote, data-poor areas and iii) the important role of spatial BBNs in providing spatially explicit measures of risk and uncertainty. This approach could help decision makers to identify priority areas for intervention in order to reduce land and ecosystem services degradation.

  6. Osteoporosis affects both post-yield microdamage accumulation and plasticity degradation in vertebra of ovariectomized rats

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Li, Siwei; Niu, Guodong; Dong, Neil X.; Wang, Xiaodu; Liu, Zhongjun; Song, Chunli; Leng, Huijie

    2017-04-01

    Estrogen withdrawal in postmenopausal women increases bone loss and bone fragility in the vertebra. Bone loss with osteoporosis not only reduces bone mineral density (BMD), but actually alters bone quality, which can be comprehensively represented by bone post-yield behaviors. This study aimed to provide some information as to how osteoporosis induced by estrogen depletion could influence the evolution of post-yield microdamage accumulation and plastic deformation in vertebral bodies. This study also tried to reveal the part of the mechanisms of how estrogen deficiency-induced osteoporosis would increase the bone fracture risk. A rat bilateral ovariectomy (OVX) model was used to induce osteoporosis. Progressive cyclic compression loading was developed for vertebra testing to elucidate the post-yield behaviors. BMD, bone volume fraction, stiffness degradation, and plastic deformation evolution were compared among rats raised for 5 weeks (ovx5w and sham5w groups) and 35 weeks (ovx35w and sham35w groups) after sham surgery and OVX. The results showed that a higher bone loss in vertebral bodies corresponded to lower stiffness and higher plastic deformation. Thus, osteoporosis could increase the vertebral fracture risk probably through microdamage accumulation and plastic deforming degradation.

  7. Lumber value loss associated with tapping sugar maples for sap production

    Treesearch

    Paul E. Sendak; Neil K. Huyler; Lawrence D. Garrett

    1982-01-01

    Tapping sugar maples for sap production yields an annual income, but there is a loss in timber quality if the tree is cut for factory lumber products. We estimate an average loss per tree of $2.87 based on a sample of 90 trees in Vermont that were formerly tapped.

  8. Hearing loss in space

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Buckey, J. C. Jr; Musiek, F. E.; Kline-Schoder, R.; Clark, J. C.; Hart, S.; Havelka, J.

    2001-01-01

    BACKGROUND: Temporary and, in some cases, permanent hearing loss has been documented after long-duration spaceflights. METHODS: We examined all existing published data on hearing loss after space missions to characterize the losses. RESULTS: Data from Russian missions suggest that the hearing loss, when it occurs, affects mainly mid to high frequencies and that using hearing protection often might prevent the loss. Several significant questions remain about hearing loss in space. While the hearing loss has been presumed to be noise-induced, no clear link has been established between noise exposure and hearing loss during spaceflight. In one documented case of temporary hearing loss from the Shuttle-Mir program, the pattern of loss was atypical for a noise-induced loss. Continuous noise levels that have been measured on the Mir and previous space stations, while above engineering standards, are not at levels usually associated with hearing loss in ground-based studies (which have usually been limited to 8-10 h exposure periods). Attempts to measure hearing in space using threshold-based audiograms have been unsuccessful in both the American and Russian programs due to noise interference with the measurements. CONCLUSIONS: The existing data highlight the need for reliable monitoring of both hearing and noise in long-duration spaceflight.

  9. Activation of Aspen Wood with Carbon Dioxide and Phosphoric Acid for Removal of Total Organic Carbon from Oil Sands Produced Water: Increasing the Yield with Bio-Oil Recycling

    PubMed Central

    Veksha, Andrei; Bhuiyan, Tazul I.; Hill, Josephine M.

    2016-01-01

    Several samples of activated carbon were prepared by physical (CO2) and chemical (H3PO4) activation of aspen wood and tested for the adsorption of organic compounds from water generated during the recovery of bitumen using steam assisted gravity drainage. Total organic carbon removal by the carbon samples increased proportionally with total pore volume as determined from N2 adsorption isotherms at −196 °C. The activated carbon produced by CO2 activation had similar removal levels for total organic carbon from the water (up to 70%) to those samples activated with H3PO4, but lower yields, due to losses during pyrolysis and activation. A method to increase the yield when using CO2 activation was proposed and consisted of recycling bio-oil produced from previous runs to the aspen wood feed, followed by either KOH addition (0.48%) or air pretreatment (220 °C for 3 h) before pyrolysis and activation. By recycling the bio-oil, the yield of CO2 activated carbon (after air pretreatment of the mixture) was increased by a factor of 1.3. Due to the higher carbon yield, the corresponding total organic carbon removal, per mass of wood feed, increased by a factor of 1.2 thus improving the overall process efficiency. PMID:28787817

  10. Energy loss of fast quarks in nuclei.

    PubMed

    Johnson, M B; Kopeliovich, B Z; Potashnikova, I K; McGaughey, P L; Moss, J M; Peng, J C; Garvey, G T; Leitch, M J; Adams, M R; Alde, D M; Baer, H W; Barlett, M L; Brown, C N; Cooper, W E; Carey, T A; Danner, G; Hoffmann, G W; Hsiung, Y B; Kaplan, D M; Klein, A; Lee, C; Lillberg, J W; McCarthy, R L; Mishra, C S; Wang, M J

    2001-05-14

    We report an analysis of the nuclear dependence of the yield of Drell-Yan dimuons from the 800 GeV/c proton bombardment of 2H, C, Ca, Fe, and W targets. Employing a new formulation of the Drell-Yan process in the rest frame of the nucleus, this analysis examines the effect of initial-state energy loss and shadowing on the nuclear-dependence ratios versus the incident proton's momentum fraction and dimuon effective mass. The resulting energy loss per unit path length is -dE/dz = 2.32+/-0.52+/-0.5 GeV/fm. This is the first observation of a nonzero energy loss of partons traveling in a nuclear environment.

  11. Company reference estimates for productivity loss due to migraine and productivity gains using rizatriptan 10 mg in Germany.

    PubMed

    Yoon, M-S; Katsarava, Z; Liedert, B; Krobot, K J; Diener, H C; Limmroth, V

    2006-03-01

    The prevalence of migraine in Germany is up to 14% in the female and up to 8% in the male population and peaks between the age of 35 and 45. Few studies have investigated the productivity loss and resulting costs attributable to migraine in Germany or addressed the question whether these costs can be reduced by optimal treatment. In recent years, 5-HT(1B/D) agonists (so-called triptans), a generation of drugs highly specific for migraine treatment, have been introduced. Seven 5-HT(1B/D) agonists have been approved in Germany with more than 20 dosage forms. We present a model that enables employers to estimate the annual cost of migraine and the annual cost that could be saved by treatment of migraine with rizatriptan compared with the use of non-specific antimigraine medication. A representative German company with 10,000 employees is used for the reference case analysis. This company is predicted to have 580 female and 284 male employees with migraine. These employees are estimated to lose 6992 workdays or 31.8 person years of productive effort annually due to migraine, valued approximately 1,431,719 euros. The value of work loss that could be avoided by treating migraine with rizatriptan is estimated at 619,094 euros annually. These data indicate that costs arising from lost productivity can be reduced by treating migraine headaches with a triptan.

  12. Simulating the effects of climate and agricultural management practices on global crop yield

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Deryng, D.; Sacks, W. J.; Barford, C. C.; Ramankutty, N.

    2011-06-01

    Climate change is expected to significantly impact global food production, and it is important to understand the potential geographic distribution of yield losses and the means to alleviate them. This study presents a new global crop model, PEGASUS 1.0 (Predicting Ecosystem Goods And Services Using Scenarios) that integrates, in addition to climate, the effect of planting dates and cultivar choices, irrigation, and fertilizer application on crop yield for maize, soybean, and spring wheat. PEGASUS combines carbon dynamics for crops with a surface energy and soil water balance model. It also benefits from the recent development of a suite of global data sets and analyses that serve as model inputs or as calibration data. These include data on crop planting and harvesting dates, crop-specific irrigated areas, a global analysis of yield gaps, and harvested area and yield of major crops. Model results for present-day climate and farm management compare reasonably well with global data. Simulated planting and harvesting dates are within the range of crop calendar observations in more than 75% of the total crop-harvested areas. Correlation of simulated and observed crop yields indicates a weighted coefficient of determination, with the weighting based on crop-harvested area, of 0.81 for maize, 0.66 for soybean, and 0.45 for spring wheat. We found that changes in temperature and precipitation as predicted by global climate models for the 2050s lead to a global yield reduction if planting and harvesting dates remain unchanged. However, adapting planting dates and cultivar choices increases yield in temperate regions and avoids 7-18% of global losses.

  13. Anchorage loss due to Herbst mechanics-preventable through miniscrews?

    PubMed

    Bremen, Julia von; Ludwig, Björn; Ruf, Sabine

    2015-10-01

    To assess if mandibular incisor proclination and protrusion during treatment with the Herbst/multibracket appliance can be prevented through simple screws (MIs) anchorage. After a statistical power analysis, 12 Herbst patients with MIs (100% MIs survival) ligated to the Herbst/multibracket appliance to reinforce anchorage were investigated. A control group matched for gender and skeletal maturity treated without MIs anchorage was selected. Pre- and posttreatment cephalograms were analysed for overjet reduction, mandibular incisor proclination (IL/ML), protrusion (Ii-MLp) and intrusion (Ii-ML), as well as occlusal plane inclination (OP/ML) by a single-blinded examiner. No statistically significant differences between the two groups were found concerning overjet reduction, incisor protrusion- and intrusion or occlusal plane tilt. Although the MIs group generally showed less lower incisor proclination (4.8°) than the group without skeletal anchorage (6.5°), a large interindividual variation was observed. Interradicular MIs anchorage cannot prevent anchorage loss during Herbst treatment. For the individual patient, the amount of incisor proclination and protrusion remains unpredictable. © The Author 2014. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the European Orthodontic Society. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

  14. Wildlife-friendly farming increases crop yield: evidence for ecological intensification.

    PubMed

    Pywell, Richard F; Heard, Matthew S; Woodcock, Ben A; Hinsley, Shelley; Ridding, Lucy; Nowakowski, Marek; Bullock, James M

    2015-10-07

    Ecological intensification has been promoted as a means to achieve environmentally sustainable increases in crop yields by enhancing ecosystem functions that regulate and support production. There is, however, little direct evidence of yield benefits from ecological intensification on commercial farms growing globally important foodstuffs (grains, oilseeds and pulses). We replicated two treatments removing 3 or 8% of land at the field edge from production to create wildlife habitat in 50-60 ha patches over a 900 ha commercial arable farm in central England, and compared these to a business as usual control (no land removed). In the control fields, crop yields were reduced by as much as 38% at the field edge. Habitat creation in these lower yielding areas led to increased yield in the cropped areas of the fields, and this positive effect became more pronounced over 6 years. As a consequence, yields at the field scale were maintained--and, indeed, enhanced for some crops--despite the loss of cropland for habitat creation. These results suggested that over a 5-year crop rotation, there would be no adverse impact on overall yield in terms of monetary value or nutritional energy. This study provides a clear demonstration that wildlife-friendly management which supports ecosystem services is compatible with, and can even increase, crop yields. © 2015 The Authors.

  15. Wildlife-friendly farming increases crop yield: evidence for ecological intensification

    PubMed Central

    Pywell, Richard F.; Heard, Matthew S.; Woodcock, Ben A.; Hinsley, Shelley; Ridding, Lucy; Nowakowski, Marek; Bullock, James M.

    2015-01-01

    Ecological intensification has been promoted as a means to achieve environmentally sustainable increases in crop yields by enhancing ecosystem functions that regulate and support production. There is, however, little direct evidence of yield benefits from ecological intensification on commercial farms growing globally important foodstuffs (grains, oilseeds and pulses). We replicated two treatments removing 3 or 8% of land at the field edge from production to create wildlife habitat in 50–60 ha patches over a 900 ha commercial arable farm in central England, and compared these to a business as usual control (no land removed). In the control fields, crop yields were reduced by as much as 38% at the field edge. Habitat creation in these lower yielding areas led to increased yield in the cropped areas of the fields, and this positive effect became more pronounced over 6 years. As a consequence, yields at the field scale were maintained—and, indeed, enhanced for some crops—despite the loss of cropland for habitat creation. These results suggested that over a 5-year crop rotation, there would be no adverse impact on overall yield in terms of monetary value or nutritional energy. This study provides a clear demonstration that wildlife-friendly management which supports ecosystem services is compatible with, and can even increase, crop yields. PMID:26423846

  16. Sources of nitrate yields in the Mississippi River Basin.

    PubMed

    David, Mark B; Drinkwater, Laurie E; McIsaac, Gregory F

    2010-01-01

    Riverine nitrate N in the Mississippi River leads to hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico. Several recent modeling studies estimated major N inputs and suggested source areas that could be targeted for conservation programs. We conducted a similar analysis with more recent and extensive data that demonstrates the importance of hydrology in controlling the percentage of net N inputs (NNI) exported by rivers. The average fraction of annual riverine nitrate N export/NNI ranged from 0.05 for the lower Mississippi subbasin to 0.3 for the upper Mississippi River basin and as high as 1.4 (4.2 in a wet year) for the Embarras River watershed, a mostly tile-drained basin. Intensive corn (Zea mays L.) and soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] watersheds on Mollisols had low NNI values and when combined with riverine N losses suggest a net depletion of soil organic N. We used county-level data to develop a nonlinear model ofN inputs and landscape factors that were related to winter-spring riverine nitrate yields for 153 watersheds within the basin. We found that river runoff times fertilizer N input was the major predictive term, explaining 76% of the variation in the model. Fertilizer inputs were highly correlated with fraction of land area in row crops. Tile drainage explained 17% of the spatial variation in winter-spring nitrate yield, whereas human consumption of N (i.e., sewage effluent) accounted for 7%. Net N inputs were not a good predictor of riverine nitrate N yields, nor were other N balances. We used this model to predict the expected nitrate N yield from each county in the Mississippi River basin; the greatest nitrate N yields corresponded to the highly productive, tile-drained cornbelt from southwest Minnesota across Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio. This analysis can be used to guide decisions about where efforts to reduce nitrate N losses can be most effectively targeted to improve local water quality and reduce export to the Gulf of Mexico.

  17. Examining the roles that changing harvested areas, closing yield-gaps, and increasing yield ceilings have had on crop production

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Johnston, M.; Ray, D. K.; Mueller, N. D.; Foley, J. A.

    2011-12-01

    With an increasing and increasingly affluent population, there has been tremendous effort to examine strategies for sustainably increasing agricultural production to meet this surging global demand. Before developing new solutions from scratch, though, we believe it is important to consult our recent agricultural history to see where and how agricultural production changes have already taken place. By utilizing the newly created temporal M3 cropland datasets, we can for the first time examine gridded agricultural yields and area, both spatially and temporally. This research explores the historical drivers of agricultural production changes, from 1965-2005. The results will be presented spatially at the global-level (5-min resolution), as well as at the individual country-level. The primary research components of this study are presented below, including the general methodology utilized in each phase and preliminary results for soybean where available. The complete assessment will cover maize, wheat, rice, soybean, and sugarcane, and will include country-specific analysis for over 200 countries, states, territories and protectorates. Phase 1: The first component of our research isolates changes in agricultural production due to variation in planting decisions (harvested area) from changes in production due to intensification efforts (yield). We examine area/yield changes at the pixel-level over 5-year time-steps to determine how much each component has contributed to overall changes in production. Our results include both spatial patterns of changes in production, as well as spatial maps illustrating to what degree the production change is attributed to area and/or yield. Together, these maps illustrate where, why, and by how much agricultural production has changed over time. Phase 2: In the second phase of our research we attempt to determine the impact that area and yield changes have had on agricultural production at the country-level. We calculate a production

  18. Biosecurity and Yield Improvement Technologies Are Strategic Complements in the Fight against Food Insecurity

    PubMed Central

    Cook, David C.; Fraser, Rob W.; Paini, Dean R.; Warden, Andrew C.; Lonsdale, W. Mark; De Barro, Paul J.

    2011-01-01

    The delivery of food security via continued crop yield improvement alone is not an effective food security strategy, and must be supported by pre- and post-border biosecurity policies to guard against perverse outcomes. In the wake of the green revolution, yield gains have been in steady decline, while post-harvest crop losses have increased as a result of insufficiently resourced and uncoordinated efforts to control spoilage throughout global transport and storage networks. This paper focuses on the role that biosecurity is set to play in future food security by preventing both pre- and post-harvest losses, thereby protecting crop yield. We model biosecurity as a food security technology that may complement conventional yield improvement policies if the gains in global farm profits are sufficient to offset the costs of implementation and maintenance. Using phytosanitary measures that slow global spread of the Ug99 strain of wheat stem rust as an example of pre-border biosecurity risk mitigation and combining it with post-border surveillance and invasive alien species control efforts, we estimate global farm profitability may be improved by over US$4.5 billion per annum. PMID:22022517

  19. Yield stress materials in soft condensed matter

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Bonn, Daniel; Denn, Morton M.; Berthier, Ludovic; Divoux, Thibaut; Manneville, Sébastien

    2017-07-01

    A comprehensive review is presented of the physical behavior of yield stress materials in soft condensed matter, which encompasses a broad range of materials from colloidal assemblies and gels to emulsions and non-Brownian suspensions. All these disordered materials display a nonlinear flow behavior in response to external mechanical forces due to the existence of a finite force threshold for flow to occur: the yield stress. Both the physical origin and rheological consequences associated with this nonlinear behavior are discussed and an overview is given of experimental techniques available to measure the yield stress. Recent progress is discussed concerning a microscopic theoretical description of the flow dynamics of yield stress materials, emphasizing, in particular, the role played by relaxation time scales, the interplay between shear flow and aging behavior, the existence of inhomogeneous shear flows and shear bands, wall slip, and nonlocal effects in confined geometries.

  20. Combining high biodiversity with high yields in tropical agroforests.

    PubMed

    Clough, Yann; Barkmann, Jan; Juhrbandt, Jana; Kessler, Michael; Wanger, Thomas Cherico; Anshary, Alam; Buchori, Damayanti; Cicuzza, Daniele; Darras, Kevin; Putra, Dadang Dwi; Erasmi, Stefan; Pitopang, Ramadhanil; Schmidt, Carsten; Schulze, Christian H; Seidel, Dominik; Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf; Stenchly, Kathrin; Vidal, Stefan; Weist, Maria; Wielgoss, Arno Christian; Tscharntke, Teja

    2011-05-17

    Local and landscape-scale agricultural intensification is a major driver of global biodiversity loss. Controversially discussed solutions include wildlife-friendly farming or combining high-intensity farming with land-sparing for nature. Here, we integrate biodiversity and crop productivity data for smallholder cacao in Indonesia to exemplify for tropical agroforests that there is little relationship between yield and biodiversity under current management, opening substantial opportunities for wildlife-friendly management. Species richness of trees, fungi, invertebrates, and vertebrates did not decrease with yield. Moderate shade, adequate labor, and input level can be combined with a complex habitat structure to provide high biodiversity as well as high yields. Although livelihood impacts are held up as a major obstacle for wildlife-friendly farming in the tropics, our results suggest that in some situations, agroforests can be designed to optimize both biodiversity and crop production benefits without adding pressure to convert natural habitat to farmland.

  1. The impact exploration of agricultural drought on winter wheat yield in the North China Plain

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Yang, Jianhua; Wu, Jianjun; Han, Xinyi; Zhou, Hongkui

    2017-04-01

    Drought is one of the most serious agro-climatic disasters in the North China Plain, which has a great influence on winter wheat yield. Global warming exacerbates the drought trend of this region, so it is important to study the effect of drought on winter wheat yield. In order to assess the drought-induced winter wheat yield losses, SPEI (standardized precipitation evapotranspiration index), the widely used drought index, was selected to quantify the drought from 1981 to 2013. Additionally, the EPIC (Environmental Policy Integrated Climate) crop model was used to simulate winter wheat yield at 47 stations in this region from 1981 to 2013. We analyzed the relationship between winter wheat yield and the SPEI at different time scales in each month during the growing season. The trends of the SPEI and the trends of winter wheat yield at 47 stations over the past 32 years were compared with each other. To further quantify the effect of drought on winter wheat yield, we defined the year that SPEI varied from -0.5 to 0.5 as the normal year, and calculated the average winter wheat yield of the normal years as a reference yield, then calculated the reduction ratios of winter wheat based on the yields mentioned above in severe drought years. As a reference, we compared the results with the reduction ratios calculated from the statistical yield data. The results showed that the 9 to 12-month scales' SPEI in April, May and June had a high correlation with winter wheat yield. The trends of the SPEI and the trends of winter wheat yield over the past 32 years showed a positive correlation (p<0.01) and have similar spatial distributions. The proportion of the stations with the same change trend between the SPEI and winter wheat yield was 70%, indicating that drought was the main factor leading to a decline in winter wheat yield in this region. The reduction ratios based on the simulated yield and the reduction ratios calculated from the statistical yield data have a high positive

  2. PROPOSED MEASURES OF CONTROL MANAGEMENT OF THE GRAPE MOTH, LOBESIA BOTRANA DEN AND SCHIFF (LEPIDOPTERA: TORTRICIDAE), IN REFERENCE TO INFESTATION PERCENTAGES, YIELD LOSS AND ECONOMICS OF CONTROL IN EGYPT.

    PubMed

    Kordy, A M; Zaghloul, O A; Mourad, A K

    2014-01-01

    This study aims to evaluate the efficacy of five measures; including the release of two strains of Trichogramma, Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.). Sweetened B.t. and the environmentally friend insecticide (Tracer®), to manage the grape moth, Lobesia botrana that infested the grape vines c.v. "Thompson seedless " in Egypt severely during the two successive years of 2011 and 2012. In concern to the release of the worldwide, Trichogramma evanescens Westwood., the mean total grape yield ranged from 8.00 to 14.00 ton/fed and from 6.90 to 11.9, in respect to the two seasons and the mean infestation percentages fluctuated between 50.00 and 16.14; 43.48 and 21.01 in sequence for the same years. The corresponding grape bunches loss percentages averaged from 21.43 to 6.91; 18.63 to 9.00,respectively for the same periods of this study. Whereas, it was noticed that in releasing the indigenous T. bourarchae was more effective than T. evanescens in reducing all the above mentioned grape yield particularly. Applying Bacillus thuringiensis (B.t.) and/or adding sugar as a stimulant to improve yields reduced the infestation and the crop loss percentage. However, Bacillus thuringiensis mixed with sugar which overweighed the use of Bacillus thuringiensis alone. Although Tracer® provided good harvest in both years, but unfortunately it affected the grape berries components rather than the other treatments. Control plots indicated 48 and 50% infestation, with very low yield compared with the other five trials to manage the assigned insect pest. For the first time worldwide economics and profits were computed taking into account the whole market sale, the total control costs and the gross income to decide the most profitable treatment for the table grape growers under the Egyptian conditions. It was found that the mean (L.E.) profits/fed were arranged in a descending order as follows: 470.95, 513.28, 504.78, 500.82, 397.25 and 0.00 for Bacillus thuringiensis + sugar, Trichogramma

  3. Ensiling and hydrothermal pretreatment of grass: consequences for enzymatic biomass conversion and total monosaccharide yields

    PubMed Central

    2014-01-01

    Background Ensiling may act as a pretreatment of fresh grass biomass and increase the enzymatic conversion of structural carbohydrates to fermentable sugars. However, ensiling does not provide sufficient severity to be a standalone pretreatment method. Here, ensiling of grass is combined with hydrothermal treatment (HTT) with the aim of improving the enzymatic biomass convertibility and decrease the required temperature of the HTT. Results Grass silage (Festulolium Hykor) was hydrothermally treated at temperatures of 170, 180, and 190°C for 10 minutes. Relative to HTT treated dry grass, ensiling increased the solubilization of dry matter (DM) during HTT and gave increased glucan content, but lower lignin in the insoluble fiber fraction. Ensiling improved glucose yields in the enzymatic hydrolysis of the washed solid fiber fraction at the lower HTT temperatures. At 170°C glucose yield improved from 17 to 24 (w/w)% (45 to 57% cellulose convertibility), and at 180°C glucose yield improved from 22 to 29 (w/w)% (54 to 69% cellulose convertibility). Direct HTT of grass at 190°C gave the same high glucose yield as for grass silage (35 (w/w)% (77% cellulose convertibility)) and improved xylan yields (27% xylan convertibility). The effect of ensiling of grass prior to HTT improved the enzymatic conversion of cellulose for HTT at 170 and 180°C, but the increased glucose release did not make up for the loss of water soluble carbohydrates (WSC) during ensiling. Overall, sugar yields (C6 + C5) were similar for HTT of grass and grass silage at both 170 and 180°C, but at 190°C the overall sugar yield was better for HTT of dry grass. Conclusions This study unequivocally establishes that ensiling of grass as a biomass pretreatment method comes with a loss of WSC. The loss of WSC by ensiling is not necessarily compensated for by providing a lower temperature requirement for HTT for high enzymatic monosaccharide release. However, ensiling can be an advantageous storage

  4. Economic losses to buildings due to tsunami impact: the case of Rhodes city, Greece

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Triantafyllou, Ioanna; Novikova, Tatyana; Papadopoulos, Gerassimos

    2017-04-01

    The expected economic losses to buildings due to the tsunami impact is of particular importance for the tsunami risk management. However, only few efforts can be found in this direction. In this study we approached this issue selecting the city of Rhodes Isl., Greece, as a test-site. The methodological steps followed include (a) selection of worst case scenario in the study area based on the tsunami history of the area which includes several powerful events, e.g. 142 AD, 1303, 1481, 1609, 1741, (b) numerical simulation of the tsunami and determination of the inundation zone, (c) application of the DAMASCHE empirical tool, produced by the SCHEMA EU-FP6 project, for the calculation of the damage level expected at each one of the buildings as a function of the water depth in the inundation area, (d) calculation of the buildings that would need reparation after partial damage and of those that would need reconstruction after total destruction, (e) calculation of the cost implied for both reparation and reconstruction. The several data sets which are needed for the execution of these steps, are susceptible to uncertainties and, therefore, the final results are quite sensitive to changes of the data sets. Alternative costs were calculated by taking into account the several uncertainties involved. This research is a contribution to the EU-FP7 tsunami research project ASTARTE (Assessment, Strategy And Risk Reduction for Tsunamis in Europe), grant agreement no: 603839, 2013-10-30.

  5. Loss of Productivity Due to Neck/Shoulder Symptoms and Hand/Arm Symptoms: Results from the PROMO-Study

    PubMed Central

    IJmker, Stefan; Blatter, Birgitte M.; de Korte, Elsbeth M.

    2007-01-01

    Introduction The objective of the present study is to describe the extent of productivity loss among computer workers with neck/shoulder symptoms and hand/arm symptoms, and to examine associations between pain intensity, various physical and psychosocial factors and productivity loss in computer workers with neck/shoulder and hand/arm symptoms. Methods A cross-sectional design was used. The study population consisted of 654 computer workers with neck/shoulder or hand/arm symptoms from five different companies. Descriptive statistics were used to describe the occurrence of self-reported productivity loss. Logistic regression analyses were used to examine the associations. Results In 26% of all the cases reporting symptoms, productivity loss was involved, the most often in cases reporting both symptoms (36%). Productivity loss involved sickness absence in 11% of the arm/hand cases, 32% of the neck/shoulder cases and 43% of the cases reporting both symptoms. The multivariate analyses showed statistically significant odds ratios for pain intensity (OR: 1.26; CI: 1.12–1.41), for high effort/no low reward (OR: 2.26; CI: 1.24–4.12), for high effort/low reward (OR: 1.95; CI: 1.09–3.50), and for low job satisfaction (OR: 3.10; CI: 1.44–6.67). Physical activity in leisure time, full-time work and overcommitment were not associated with productivity loss. Conclusion In most computer workers with neck/shoulder symptoms or hand/arm symptoms productivity loss derives from a decreased performance at work and not from sickness absence. Favorable psychosocial work characteristics might prevent productivity loss in symptomatic workers. PMID:17636455

  6. Analysis of climate signals in the crop yield record of sub-Saharan Africa.

    PubMed

    Hoffman, Alexis L; Kemanian, Armen R; Forest, Chris E

    2018-01-01

    Food security and agriculture productivity assessments in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) require a better understanding of how climate and other drivers influence regional crop yields. In this paper, our objective was to identify the climate signal in the realized yields of maize, sorghum, and groundnut in SSA. We explored the relation between crop yields and scale-compatible climate data for the 1962-2014 period using Random Forest, a diagnostic machine learning technique. We found that improved agricultural technology and country fixed effects are three times more important than climate variables for explaining changes in crop yields in SSA. We also found that increasing temperatures reduced yields for all three crops in the temperature range observed in SSA, while precipitation increased yields up to a level roughly matching crop evapotranspiration. Crop yields exhibited both linear and nonlinear responses to temperature and precipitation, respectively. For maize, technology steadily increased yields by about 1% (13 kg/ha) per year while increasing temperatures decreased yields by 0.8% (10 kg/ha) per °C. This study demonstrates that although we should expect increases in future crop yields due to improving technology, the potential yields could be progressively reduced due to warmer and drier climates. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. Understanding the weather signal in national crop-yield variability

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Frieler, Katja; Schauberger, Bernhard; Arneth, Almut; Balkovič, Juraj; Chryssanthacopoulos, James; Deryng, Delphine; Elliott, Joshua; Folberth, Christian; Khabarov, Nikolay; Müller, Christoph; Olin, Stefan; Pugh, Thomas A. M.; Schaphoff, Sibyll; Schewe, Jacob; Schmid, Erwin; Warszawski, Lila; Levermann, Anders

    2017-06-01

    Year-to-year variations in crop yields can have major impacts on the livelihoods of subsistence farmers and may trigger significant global price fluctuations, with severe consequences for people in developing countries. Fluctuations can be induced by weather conditions, management decisions, weeds, diseases, and pests. Although an explicit quantification and deeper understanding of weather-induced crop-yield variability is essential for adaptation strategies, so far it has only been addressed by empirical models. Here, we provide conservative estimates of the fraction of reported national yield variabilities that can be attributed to weather by state-of-the-art, process-based crop model simulations. We find that observed weather variations can explain more than 50% of the variability in wheat yields in Australia, Canada, Spain, Hungary, and Romania. For maize, weather sensitivities exceed 50% in seven countries, including the United States. The explained variance exceeds 50% for rice in Japan and South Korea and for soy in Argentina. Avoiding water stress by simulating yields assuming full irrigation shows that water limitation is a major driver of the observed variations in most of these countries. Identifying the mechanisms leading to crop-yield fluctuations is not only fundamental for dampening fluctuations, but is also important in the context of the debate on the attribution of loss and damage to climate change. Since process-based crop models not only account for weather influences on crop yields, but also provide options to represent human-management measures, they could become essential tools for differentiating these drivers, and for exploring options to reduce future yield fluctuations.

  8. Modeling an alkaline electrolysis cell through reduced-order and loss-estimate approaches

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Milewski, Jaroslaw; Guandalini, Giulio; Campanari, Stefano

    2014-12-01

    The paper presents two approaches to the mathematical modeling of an Alkaline Electrolyzer Cell. The presented models were compared and validated against available experimental results taken from a laboratory test and against literature data. The first modeling approach is based on the analysis of estimated losses due to the different phenomena occurring inside the electrolytic cell, and requires careful calibration of several specific parameters (e.g. those related to the electrochemical behavior of the electrodes) some of which could be hard to define. An alternative approach is based on a reduced-order equivalent circuit, resulting in only two fitting parameters (electrodes specific resistance and parasitic losses) and calculation of the internal electric resistance of the electrolyte. Both models yield satisfactory results with an average error limited below 3% vs. the considered experimental data and show the capability to describe with sufficient accuracy the different operating conditions of the electrolyzer; the reduced-order model could be preferred thanks to its simplicity for implementation within plant simulation tools dealing with complex systems, such as electrolyzers coupled with storage facilities and intermittent renewable energy sources.

  9. Catch crops as universal and effective method for reducing nitrogen leaching loss in spring cereal production: A meta-analysis.

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Valkama, Elena; Lemola, Riitta; Känkänen, Hannu; Turtola, Eila

    2016-04-01

    Sustainable farms produce adequate amounts of a high-quality product, protect their resources and are both environmentally friendly and economically profitable. Nitrogen (N) fertilization decisively influences the cereal yields as well as increases soil N balance (N input in fertilizer - N output in harvested yield), thereby leading to N losses to the environment. However, while N input reduction affects soil N balance, such approach would markedly reduce N leaching loss only in case of abnormally high N balances. As an alternative approach, the growing of catch crops aims to prevent nutrient leaching in autumn after harvest and during the following winter, but due to competition, catch crops may also reduce yields of the main crop. Although studies have explored the environmental effects of catch crops in cereal production in the Nordic countries (Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway) during the past 40 years, none has yet carried out a meta-analysis. We quantitatively summarized 35 studies on the effect of catch crops (non-legume and legume) undersown in spring cereals on N leaching loss or its risk as estimated by the content of soil nitrate N or its sum with ammonium in late autumn. The meta-analysis also included the grain yield and N content of spring cereals. To identify sources of variation, we studied the effects of soil texture and management (ploughing time, the amount of N applied, fertilizer type), as well as climatic (annual precipitation) and experimental conditions (duration of experiments, lysimeter vs. field experiments). Finally, we examined whether the results differed between the countries or over the decades. Compared to control groups with no catch crops, non-legume catch crops, mainly ryegrass species, reduced N leaching loss by 50% on average, and soil nitrate N or inorganic N by 35% in autumn. Italian ryegrass depleted soil N more effectively (by 60%) than did perennial ryegrass or Westerwolds ryegrass (by 25%). In contrast, legumes (white

  10. Seeing is believing I: The use of thermal sensing from satellite imagery to predict crop yield

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    B, Potgieter A.; D, Rodriguez; B, Power; J, Mclean; P, Davis

    2014-02-01

    Volatility in crop production has been part of the Australian environment since cropping began with the arrival of the first European settlers. Climate variability is the main factor affecting crop production at national, state and local scales. At field level spatial patterns on yield production are also determined by spatially changing soil properties in interaction with seasonal climate conditions and weather patterns at critical stages in the crop development. Here we used a combination of field level weather records, canopy characteristics, and satellite information to determine the spatial performance of a large field of wheat. The main objective of this research is to determine the ability of remote sensing technologies to capture yield losses due to water stress at the canopy level. The yield, canopy characteristics (i.e. canopy temperature and ground cover) and seasonal conditions of a field of wheat (~1400ha) (-29.402° South and 149.508°, New South Wales, Australia) were continuously monitored during the winter of 2011. Weather and crop variables were continuously monitored by installing three automatic weather stations in a transect covering different positions and soils in the landscape. Weather variables included rainfall, minimum and maximum temperatures and relative humidity, and crop characteristics included ground cover and canopy temperature. Satellite imagery Landsat TM 5 and 7 was collected at five different stages in the crop cycle. Weather variables and crop characteristics were used to calculate a crop stress index (CSI) at point and field scale (39 fields). Field data was used to validate a spatial satellite image derived index. Spatial yield data was downloaded from the harvester at the different locations in the field. We used the thermal band (land surface temperature, LST) and enhanced vegetation index (EVI) bands from the MODIS (250 m for visible bands and 1km for thermal band) and a derived EVI from Landsat TM 7 (25 m for visible and

  11. Evaluation of a commercially available organic acid product on body weight loss, carcass yield, and meat quality during preslaughter feed withdrawal in broiler chickens: a poultry welfare and economic perspective.

    PubMed

    Menconi, A; Kuttappan, V A; Hernandez-Velasco, X; Urbano, T; Matté, F; Layton, S; Kallapura, G; Latorre, J; Morales, B E; Prado, O; Vicente, J L; Barton, J; Andreatti Filho, R L; Lovato, M; Hargis, B M; Tellez, G

    2014-02-01

    The effect of a commercial organic acid (OA) product on BW loss (BWL) during feed withdrawal and transportation, carcass yield, and meat quality was evaluated in broiler chickens. Two experiments were conducted in Brazil. Commercial houses were paired as control groups receiving regular water and treated groups receiving OA in the water. Treated birds had a reduction in BWL of 37 g in experiment 1 and 32.2 g in experiment 2. In experiment 2, no differences were observed in carcass yield between groups. Estimation of the cost benefit suggested a 1:16 ratio by using the OA. In experiment 3, conducted in Mexico, significant differences on water consumption, BWL, and meat quality characteristics were observed in chickens that were treated with the OA (P < 0.05). These data suggest this OA product may improve animal welfare and economic concerns in the poultry industry by reducing BWL and improving meat quality attributes.

  12. Effect of reflection losses on stationary dielectric-filled nonimaging concentrators

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Madala, Srikanth; Boehm, Robert F.

    2016-10-01

    The effect of Fresnel reflection and total internal reflection (TIR) losses on the performance parameters in refractive solar concentrators has often been downplayed because most refractive solar concentrators are traditionally the imaging type, yielding a line or point image on the absorber surface when solely interacted with paraxial etendue ensured by solar tracking. Whereas, with refractive-type nonimaging solar concentrators that achieve two-dimensional (rectangular strip) focus or three-dimensional (circular or elliptical) focus through interaction with both paraxial and nonparaxial etendue within the acceptance angle, the Fresnel reflection and TIR losses are significant as they will affect the performance parameters and, thereby, energy collection. A raytracing analysis has been carried out to illustrate the effects of Fresnel reflection and TIR losses on four different types of stationary dielectric-filled nonimaging concentrators, namely V-trough, compound parabolic concentrator, compound elliptical concentrator, and compound hyperbolic concentrator. The refractive index (RI) of a dielectric fill material determines the acceptance angle of a solid nonimaging collector. Larger refractive indices yield larger acceptance angles and, thereby, larger energy collection. However, they also increase the Fresnel reflection losses. This paper also assesses the relative benefit of increasing RI from an energy collection standpoint.

  13. Soil erosion and sediment yield, a double barrel problem in South Africa's only large river network without a dam

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Le Roux, Jay

    2016-04-01

    Soil erosion not only involves the loss of fertile topsoil but is also coupled with sedimentation of dams, a double barrel problem in semi-arid regions where water scarcity is frequent. Due to increasing water requirements in South Africa, the Department of Water and Sanitation is planning water resource development in the Mzimvubu River Catchment, which is the only large river network in the country without a dam. Two dams are planned including a large irrigation dam and a hydropower dam. However, previous soil erosion studies indicate that large parts of the catchment is severely eroded. Previous studies, nonetheless, used mapping and modelling techniques that represent only a selection of erosion processes and provide insufficient information about the sediment yield. This study maps and models the sediment yield comprehensively by means of two approaches over a five-year timeframe between 2007 and 2012. Sediment yield contribution from sheet-rill erosion was modelled with ArcSWAT (a graphical user interface for SWAT in a GIS), whereas gully erosion contributions were estimated using time-series mapping with SPOT 5 imagery followed by gully-derived sediment yield modelling in a GIS. Integration of the sheet-rill and gully results produced a total sediment yield map, with an average of 5 300 t km-2 y-1. Importantly, the annual average sediment yield of the areas where the irrigation dam and hydropower dam will be built is around 20 000 t km-2 y-1. Without catchment rehabilitation, the life expectancy of the irrigation dam and hydropower dam could be 50 and 40 years respectively.

  14. Loss of water transport capacity due to xylem cavitation in roots of two CAM succulents.

    PubMed

    Linton, M J; Nobel, P S

    1999-11-01

    Loss of axial hydraulic conductance as a result of xylem cavitation was examined for roots of the Crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) succulents Agave deserti and Opuntia ficus-indica. Vulnerability to cavitation was not correlated with either root size or vessel diameter. Agave deserti had a mean cavitation pressure of -0.93 ± 0.08 MPa by both an air-injection and a centrifugal method compared to -0.70 ± 0.02 MPa by the centrifugal method for O. ficus-indica, reflecting the greater tolerance of the former species to low water potentials in its native habitat. Substantial xylem cavitation would occur at a soil water potential of -0.25 MPa, resulting in a predicted 22% loss of conductance for A. deserti and 32% for O. ficus-indica. For an extended drought of 3 mo, further cavitation could cause a 69% loss of conductance for A. deserti and 62% for O. ficus-indica. A model of axial hydraulic flow based upon the cavitation response of these species predicted that water uptake rates are far below the maximum possible, owing to the high root water potentials of these desert succulents. Despite various shoot adaptations to aridity, roots of A. deserti and O. ficus-indica are highly vulnerable to cavitation, which partially limits water uptake in a wet soil but helps reduce water loss to a drying soil.

  15. Change, Loss, Grief and Communication.

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Geddes, LaDonna McMurray

    Change may be personal, professional, social, or spiritual; or, all aspects of life may be affected simultaneously. Coping with change requires directing and controlling individual resources. Change reactions can be described as: (1) a sense of loss as the transition is experienced; (2) a need to grieve due to the loss experienced; and (3) a need…

  16. Genetic counseling for men with recurrent pregnancy loss or recurrent implantation failure due to abnormal sperm chromosomal aneuploidy.

    PubMed

    Kohn, Taylor P; Kohn, Jaden R; Darilek, Sandra; Ramasamy, Ranjith; Lipshultz, Larry

    2016-05-01

    The purpose of this study is to review recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) due to sperm chromosomal abnormalities and discuss the genetic counseling that is required for men with sperm chromosomal abnormalities. The literature was reviewed, and a genetic counselor lends her expertise as to how couples with RPL and sperm chromosomal abnormalities ought to be counseled. The review of the literature was performed using MEDLINE. Sperm fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) can be used to determine if disomy or unbalanced chromosomal translocations are present. In men with aneuploidy in sperm or who carry a chromosomal translocation, pre-implantation genetic screening (PGS) combined with in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) can increase chances of live birth. In men with abnormal sperm FISH results, the degree of increased risk of abnormal pregnancy remains unclear. Genetic counselors can provide information to couples about the risk for potential trisomies and sex chromosome aneuploidies and discuss their reproductive and testing options such as PGS, use of donor sperm, and adoption. The provision of genetic counseling also allows a couple to be educated about recommended prenatal testing since pregnancies conceived with a partner who has had abnormal sperm FISH are considered to be at increased risk for aneuploidy. We review the literature and discuss genetic counseling for couples with RPL or recurrent implantation failure due to increased sperm aneuploidy.

  17. Compound Heterozygosity for Y Box Proteins Causes Sterility Due to Loss of Translational Repression

    PubMed Central

    Sharma, Manju; Dearth, Andrea; Smith, Benjamin; Braun, Robert E.

    2015-01-01

    The Y-box proteins YBX2 and YBX3 bind RNA and DNA and are required for metazoan development and fertility. However, possible functional redundancy between YBX2 and YBX3 has prevented elucidation of their molecular function as RNA masking proteins and identification of their target RNAs. To investigate possible functional redundancy between YBX2 and YBX3, we attempted to construct Ybx2 -/- ;Ybx3 -/- double mutants using a previously reported Ybx2 -/- model and a newly generated global Ybx3 -/- model. Loss of YBX3 resulted in reduced male fertility and defects in spermatid differentiation. However, homozygous double mutants could not be generated as haploinsufficiency of both Ybx2 and Ybx3 caused sterility characterized by extensive defects in spermatid differentiation. RNA sequence analysis of mRNP and polysome occupancy in single and compound Ybx2/3 heterozygotes revealed loss of translational repression almost exclusively in the compound Ybx2/3 heterozygotes. RNAseq analysis also demonstrated that Y-box protein dose-dependent loss of translational regulation was inversely correlated with the presence of a Y box recognition target sequence, suggesting that Y box proteins bind RNA hierarchically to modulate translation in a range of targets. PMID:26646932

  18. Peanut peg strength and post harvest pod scavenging for full phenotypic yield over digging date and variety

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    New peanut cultivars are available with very high yield potential and high levels of disease resistance. With rising input costs and shrinking return margins, all efforts must be made to harvest the full yield produced. Peanut crops are susceptible to high levels of pod loss during digging from a ...

  19. Microdebrider tonsillectomy associated with more intraoperative blood loss than electrocautery.

    PubMed

    Stansifer, Kyle J; Szramowski, Molly G; Barazsu, Lindsay; Buchinsky, Farrel J

    2012-10-01

    To describe and compare the intraoperative blood loss in children who underwent tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy during a transition from using electrocautery to a microdebrider. Retrospective case series of a single pediatric otolaryngologist at an urban general hospital. Patients aged 2-20 years who had tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy, or adenotonsillectomy over a 12 month period were included. Tonsillectomy was performed by microdebrider or electrocautery and adenoidectomy was performed by microdebrider, curette, or suction electrocautery. Total intraoperative blood loss was measured and compared between surgical techniques. Of the 148 patients, 109 had tonsillectomy with or without adenoidectomy and 39 had adenoidectomy alone. The mean blood loss was 47 ml or 1.8 ± 1.6 ml/kg and the maximum blood loss was 11 ml/kg. Adenoid curette and adenoid microdebrider yielded similar blood loss but were associated with more bleeding than suction electrocautery (P<0.05). Microdebrider tonsillectomy yielded more blood loss than electrocautery tonsillectomy (mean of 2.6 ± 2.2 ml/kg versus 1.2 ± 1.2 ml/kg, P=0.0002). Eighteen percent of adenotonsillectomy patients lost greater than 5% of calculated circulating blood volume (95% CI, 9.8-26). Linear regression models did not show an association between the amount of blood loss and patient age, clinical indication, or the surgeon's experience with the microdebrider (P>0.05). Microdebrider tonsillectomy is associated with more intraoperative bleeding than electrocautery tonsillectomy. Approximately twice as much blood was lost with the microdebrider, but the absolute increase was insignificant from a hemodynamic perspective. Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

  20. Antarctic ozone loss in 1989-2010: evidence for ozone recovery?

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Kuttippurath, J.; Lefèvre, F.; Pommereau, J.-P.; Roscoe, H. K.; Goutail, F.; Pazmiño, A.; Shanklin, J. D.

    2012-04-01

    We present a detailed estimation of chemical ozone loss in the Antarctic polar vortex from 1989 to 2010. The analyses include ozone loss estimates for 12 Antarctic ground-based (GB) stations. All GB observations show minimum ozone in the late September-early October period. Among the stations, the lowest minimum ozone values are observed at South Pole and the highest at Dumont d'Urville. The ozone loss starts by mid-June at the vortex edge and then progresses towards the vortex core with time. The loss intensifies in August-September, peaks by the end of September-early October, and recovers thereafter. The average ozone loss in the Antarctic is revealed to be about 33-50% in 1989-1992 in agreement with the increase in halogens during this period, and then stayed at around 48% due to saturation of the loss. The ozone loss in the warmer winters (e.g. 2002, and 2004) is lower (37-46%) and in the colder winters (e.g. 2003, and 2006) is higher (52-55%). Because of small inter-annual variability, the correlation between ozone loss and the volume of polar stratospheric clouds yields ~0.51. The GB ozone and ozone loss values are in good agreement with those found from the space-based observations of the Total Ozone Mapping Spectrometer/Ozone Monitoring Instrument (TOMS/OMI), the Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment (GOME), the Scanning Imaging Absorption Spectrometer for Atmospheric Chartography (SCIAMACHY), and the Aura Microwave Limb Sounder (MLS), where the differences are within ±5% and are mostly within the error bars of the measurements. The piece-wise linear trends computed from the September-November vortex average GB and TOMS/OMI ozone show about -4 to -5.6 DU (Dobson Unit) yr-1 in 1989-1996 and about +1 DU yr-1 in 1997-2010. The trend during the former period is significant at 95% confidence intervals, but the trend in 1997-2010 is significant only at 85% confidence intervals. Our analyses suggest a period of about 9-10 yr to get the first detectable ozone

  1. Combining high biodiversity with high yields in tropical agroforests

    PubMed Central

    Clough, Yann; Barkmann, Jan; Juhrbandt, Jana; Kessler, Michael; Wanger, Thomas Cherico; Anshary, Alam; Buchori, Damayanti; Cicuzza, Daniele; Darras, Kevin; Putra, Dadang Dwi; Erasmi, Stefan; Pitopang, Ramadhanil; Schmidt, Carsten; Schulze, Christian H.; Seidel, Dominik; Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf; Stenchly, Kathrin; Vidal, Stefan; Weist, Maria; Wielgoss, Arno Christian; Tscharntke, Teja

    2011-01-01

    Local and landscape-scale agricultural intensification is a major driver of global biodiversity loss. Controversially discussed solutions include wildlife-friendly farming or combining high-intensity farming with land-sparing for nature. Here, we integrate biodiversity and crop productivity data for smallholder cacao in Indonesia to exemplify for tropical agroforests that there is little relationship between yield and biodiversity under current management, opening substantial opportunities for wildlife-friendly management. Species richness of trees, fungi, invertebrates, and vertebrates did not decrease with yield. Moderate shade, adequate labor, and input level can be combined with a complex habitat structure to provide high biodiversity as well as high yields. Although livelihood impacts are held up as a major obstacle for wildlife-friendly farming in the tropics, our results suggest that in some situations, agroforests can be designed to optimize both biodiversity and crop production benefits without adding pressure to convert natural habitat to farmland. PMID:21536873

  2. Differential growth and yield by canola (Brassica napus L.) and wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) arising from alterations in chemical properties of sandy soils due to additions of fly ash.

    PubMed

    Yunusa, Isa A M; Manoharan, Veeragathipillai; Harris, Rob; Lawrie, Roy; Pal, Yash; Quiton, Jonathan T; Bell, Richard; Eamus, Derek

    2013-03-30

    There is a need for field trials on testing agronomic potential of coal fly ash to engender routine use of this technology. Two field trials were undertaken with alkaline and acidic fly ashes supplied at between 3 and 6 Mg ha⁻¹ to acidic soils and sown to wheat and canola at Richmond (Eastern Australia) and to wheat only at Merredin (Western Australia). Ash addition marginally (P< 0.10) raised the pH in the top soil layers at both sites. The exceptionally dry season at both sites constrained yields and thwarted any likelihood of gaining yield benefits from ash-induced improvements in soil conditions. Yield improvements due to ash addition were absent at Merredin and only marginal at Richmond, where no elevated accumulation of B, Mo, Se, P or S in either the straw or seeds of wheat was observed; canola increased accumulation of Mo and Se in its shoot with acidic fly ash, but it was well below phyto toxic levels. Simulations of wheat using APSIM at Richmond over a 100-year period (1909-2008) predicted yield increases in 52% of years with addition of ash at 3.0 Mg ha⁻¹ compared with 24% of years with addition of ash at 6.0 Mg ha⁻¹. The simulated yield increases did not exceed 40% over the control with addition of 6 Mg ha⁻¹ ash, but was between 40% and 50% with an addition rate of 3 Mg ha⁻¹. We found no evidence of phytotoxicity in either crop in this unusually dry year and there is still a need for further field assessment in years with favourable rainfall to enable development of clear recommendations on fly ash rates for optimum yield benefits. © 2012 Society of Chemical Industry.

  3. Spatio-temporal dynamics of maize yield water constraints under climate change in Spain.

    PubMed

    Ferrero, Rosana; Lima, Mauricio; Gonzalez-Andujar, Jose Luis

    2014-01-01

    Many studies have analyzed the impact of climate change on crop productivity, but comparing the performance of water management systems has rarely been explored. Because water supply and crop demand in agro-systems may be affected by global climate change in shaping the spatial patterns of agricultural production, we should evaluate how and where irrigation practices are effective in mitigating climate change effects. Here we have constructed simple, general models, based on biological mechanisms and a theoretical framework, which could be useful in explaining and predicting crop productivity dynamics. We have studied maize in irrigated and rain-fed systems at a provincial scale, from 1996 to 2009 in Spain, one of the most prominent "hot-spots" in future climate change projections. Our new approach allowed us to: (1) evaluate new structural properties such as the stability of crop yield dynamics, (2) detect nonlinear responses to climate change (thresholds and discontinuities), challenging the usual linear way of thinking, and (3) examine spatial patterns of yield losses due to water constraints and identify clusters of provinces that have been negatively affected by warming. We have reduced the uncertainty associated with climate change impacts on maize productivity by improving the understanding of the relative contributions of individual factors and providing a better spatial comprehension of the key processes. We have identified water stress and water management systems as being key causes of the yield gap, and detected vulnerable regions where efforts in research and policy should be prioritized in order to increase maize productivity.

  4. Spatio-Temporal Dynamics of Maize Yield Water Constraints under Climate Change in Spain

    PubMed Central

    Ferrero, Rosana; Lima, Mauricio; Gonzalez-Andujar, Jose Luis

    2014-01-01

    Many studies have analyzed the impact of climate change on crop productivity, but comparing the performance of water management systems has rarely been explored. Because water supply and crop demand in agro-systems may be affected by global climate change in shaping the spatial patterns of agricultural production, we should evaluate how and where irrigation practices are effective in mitigating climate change effects. Here we have constructed simple, general models, based on biological mechanisms and a theoretical framework, which could be useful in explaining and predicting crop productivity dynamics. We have studied maize in irrigated and rain-fed systems at a provincial scale, from 1996 to 2009 in Spain, one of the most prominent “hot-spots” in future climate change projections. Our new approach allowed us to: (1) evaluate new structural properties such as the stability of crop yield dynamics, (2) detect nonlinear responses to climate change (thresholds and discontinuities), challenging the usual linear way of thinking, and (3) examine spatial patterns of yield losses due to water constraints and identify clusters of provinces that have been negatively affected by warming. We have reduced the uncertainty associated with climate change impacts on maize productivity by improving the understanding of the relative contributions of individual factors and providing a better spatial comprehension of the key processes. We have identified water stress and water management systems as being key causes of the yield gap, and detected vulnerable regions where efforts in research and policy should be prioritized in order to increase maize productivity. PMID:24878747

  5. Has the use of talc an effect on yield and extra virgin olive oil quality?

    PubMed

    Caponio, Francesco; Squeo, Giacomo; Difonzo, Graziana; Pasqualone, Antonella; Summo, Carmine; Paradiso, Vito Michele

    2016-08-01

    The maximization of both extraction yield and extra virgin olive oil quality during olive processing are the main objectives of the olive oil industry. As regards extraction yield, it can be improved by both acting on time/temperature of malaxation and using physical coadjuvants. It is well known that, generally, increasing temperature of malaxation gives an increase in oil extraction yield due to a reduction in oily phase viscosity; however, high malaxation temperature can compromise the nutritional and health values of extra virgin olive oil, leading to undesirable effects such as accelerated oxidative process and loss of volatile compounds responsible for oil flavor and fragrance. The addition of physical coadjuvants in olive oil processing during the malaxation phase, not excluded by EC regulations owing to its exclusively physical action, is well known to promote the breakdown of oil/water emulsions and consequently make oil extraction easier, thus increasing the yield. Among physical coadjuvants, micronized natural talc is used for olive oil processing above all for Spanish and Italian olive cultivars. The quality of extra virgin olive oil depends on numerous variables such as olive cultivar, ripeness degree and quality, machines utilized for processing, oil storage conditions, etc. However, the coadjuvants utilized in olive processing can also influence virgin olive oil characteristics. The literature highlights an increase in oil yield by micronized natural talc addition during olive processing, whereas no clear trend was observed as regards the chemical, nutritional and sensory characteristics of extra virgin olive oil. Although an increase in oil stability was reported, no effect of talc was found on the evolution of virgin olive oil quality indices during storage. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

  6. Laboratory study of nitrate photolysis in Antarctic snow. I. Observed quantum yield, domain of photolysis, and secondary chemistry

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Meusinger, Carl; Johnson, Matthew S.; Berhanu, Tesfaye A.

    2014-06-28

    Post-depositional processes alter nitrate concentration and nitrate isotopic composition in the top layers of snow at sites with low snow accumulation rates, such as Dome C, Antarctica. Available nitrate ice core records can provide input for studying past atmospheres and climate if such processes are understood. It has been shown that photolysis of nitrate in the snowpack plays a major role in nitrate loss and that the photolysis products have a significant influence on the local troposphere as well as on other species in the snow. Reported quantum yields for the main reaction spans orders of magnitude – apparently amore » result of whether nitrate is located at the air-ice interface or in the ice matrix – constituting the largest uncertainty in models of snowpack NO{sub x} emissions. Here, a laboratory study is presented that uses snow from Dome C and minimizes effects of desorption and recombination by flushing the snow during irradiation with UV light. A selection of UV filters allowed examination of the effects of the 200 and 305 nm absorption bands of nitrate. Nitrate concentration and photon flux were measured in the snow. The quantum yield for loss of nitrate was observed to decrease from 0.44 to 0.003 within what corresponds to days of UV exposure in Antarctica. The superposition of photolysis in two photochemical domains of nitrate in snow is proposed: one of photolabile nitrate, and one of buried nitrate. The difference lies in the ability of reaction products to escape the snow crystal, versus undergoing secondary (recombination) chemistry. Modeled NO{sub x} emissions may increase significantly above measured values due to the observed quantum yield in this study. The apparent quantum yield in the 200 nm band was found to be ∼1%, much lower than reported for aqueous chemistry. A companion paper presents an analysis of the change in isotopic composition of snowpack nitrate based on the same samples as in this study.« less

  7. Losses in radial inflow turbines

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Khalil, I. M.; Tabakoff, W.; Hamed, A.

    1976-01-01

    A study was conducted to determine experimentally and theoretically the losses in radial inflow turbine nozzles. Extensive experimental data was obtained to investigate the flow behavior in a full-scale radial turbine stator annulus. A theoretical model to predict the losses in both the vaned and vaneless regions of the nozzle was developed. In this analysis, the interaction effects between the stator and the rotor are not considered. It was found that the losses incurred due to the end wall boundary layers can be significant, especially if they are characterized by a strong crossflow. The losses estimated using the analytical study are compared with the experimentally determined values.

  8. Brazilian Soybean Yields and Yield Gaps Vary with Farm Size

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Jeffries, G. R.; Cohn, A.; Griffin, T. S.; Bragança, A.

    2017-12-01

    Understanding the farm size-specific characteristics of crop yields and yield gaps may help to improve yields by enabling better targeting of technical assistance and agricultural development programs. Linking remote sensing-based yield estimates with property boundaries provides a novel view of the relationship between farm size and yield structure (yield magnitude, gaps, and stability over time). A growing literature documents variations in yield gaps, but largely ignores the role of farm size as a factor shaping yield structure. Research on the inverse farm size-productivity relationship (IR) theory - that small farms are more productive than large ones all else equal - has documented that yield magnitude may vary by farm size, but has not considered other yield structure characteristics. We examined farm size - yield structure relationships for soybeans in Brazil for years 2001-2015. Using out-of-sample soybean yield predictions from a statistical model, we documented 1) gaps between the 95th percentile of attained yields and mean yields within counties and individual fields, and 2) yield stability defined as the standard deviation of time-detrended yields at given locations. We found a direct relationship between soy yields and farm size at the national level, while the strength and the sign of the relationship varied by region. Soybean yield gaps were found to be inversely related to farm size metrics, even when yields were only compared to farms of similar size. The relationship between farm size and yield stability was nonlinear, with mid-sized farms having the most stable yields. The work suggests that farm size is an important factor in understanding yield structure and that opportunities for improving soy yields in Brazil are greatest among smaller farms.

  9. Absolute quantum yield measurement of powder samples.

    PubMed

    Moreno, Luis A

    2012-05-12

    Measurement of fluorescence quantum yield has become an important tool in the search for new solutions in the development, evaluation, quality control and research of illumination, AV equipment, organic EL material, films, filters and fluorescent probes for bio-industry. Quantum yield is calculated as the ratio of the number of photons absorbed, to the number of photons emitted by a material. The higher the quantum yield, the better the efficiency of the fluorescent material. For the measurements featured in this video, we will use the Hitachi F-7000 fluorescence spectrophotometer equipped with the Quantum Yield measuring accessory and Report Generator program. All the information provided applies to this system. Measurement of quantum yield in powder samples is performed following these steps: 1. Generation of instrument correction factors for the excitation and emission monochromators. This is an important requirement for the correct measurement of quantum yield. It has been performed in advance for the full measurement range of the instrument and will not be shown in this video due to time limitations. 2. Measurement of integrating sphere correction factors. The purpose of this step is to take into consideration reflectivity characteristics of the integrating sphere used for the measurements. 3. Reference and Sample measurement using direct excitation and indirect excitation. 4. Quantum Yield calculation using Direct and Indirect excitation. Direct excitation is when the sample is facing directly the excitation beam, which would be the normal measurement setup. However, because we use an integrating sphere, a portion of the emitted photons resulting from the sample fluorescence are reflected by the integrating sphere and will re-excite the sample, so we need to take into consideration indirect excitation. This is accomplished by measuring the sample placed in the port facing the emission monochromator, calculating indirect quantum yield and correcting the direct

  10. Crop yield changes induced by emissions of individual climate-altering pollutants

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shindell, Drew T.

    2016-08-01

    Climate change damages agriculture, causing deteriorating food security and increased malnutrition. Many studies have examined the role of distinct physical processes, but impacts have not been previously attributed to individual pollutants. Using a simple model incorporating process-level results from detailed models, here I show that although carbon dioxide (CO2) is the largest driver of climate change, other drivers appear to dominate agricultural yield changes. I calculate that anthropogenic emissions to date have decreased global agricultural yields by 9.5 ± 3.0%, with roughly 93% stemming from non-CO2 emissions, including methane (-5.2 ± 1.7%) and halocarbons (-1.4 ± 0.4%). The differing impacts stem from atmospheric composition responses: CO2 fertilizes crops, offsetting much of the loss induced by warming; halocarbons do not fertilize; methane leads to minimal fertilization but increases surface ozone which augments warming-induced losses. By the end of the century, strong CO2 mitigation improves agricultural yields by ˜3 ± 5%. In contrast, strong methane and hydrofluorocarbon mitigation improve yields by ˜16 ± 5% and ˜5 ± 4%, respectively. These are the first quantitative analyses to include climate, CO2 and ozone simultaneously, and hence, additional studies would be valuable. Nonetheless, as policy makers have leverage over pollutant emissions rather than isolated processes, the perspective presented here may be more useful for decision making than that in the prior work upon which this study builds. The results suggest that policies should target a broad portfolio of pollutant emissions in order to optimize mitigation of societal damages.

  11. Quality of white cabbage yield and potential risk of ground water nitrogen pollution, as affected by nitrogen fertilisation and irrigation practices.

    PubMed

    Maršić, Nina Kacjan; Sturm, Martina; Zupanc, Vesna; Lojen, Sonja; Pintar, Marina

    2012-01-15

    The effect of different fertilisation (broadcast solid NPK application and fertigation with water-soluble fertiliser) and irrigation practices (sprinkler and drip irrigation) on yield, the nitrate content in cabbage (Brassica oleracea var. capitata L.) and the cabbage N uptake was detected, in order to assess the potential risk for N losses, by cultivation on sandy-loam soil. The N rate applied on the plots was 200 kg N ha(-1). The highest yield (93 t ha(-1)) and nitrate content (1256 mg kg(-1) DW) were found with treatments using broadcast fertilisation and sprinkler irrigation. On those plots the negative N balance (-30 kg N ha(-1)) was recorded, which comes mainly from the highest crop N uptake (234 kg N ha(-1)) indicating the lowest potential for N losses. In terms of yield quality and the potential risk for N losses, broadcast fertilisation combined with sprinkler irrigation proved to be the most effective combination among the tested practices under the given experimental conditions. The importance of adequate irrigation is also evident, namely in plots on which 50% drip irrigation was applied, the lowest yield was detected and according to the positive N balance, a higher potential for N losses is expected. Copyright © 2011 Society of Chemical Industry.

  12. Climatically driven yield variability of major crops in Khakassia (South Siberia)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Babushkina, Elena A.; Belokopytova, Liliana V.; Zhirnova, Dina F.; Shah, Santosh K.; Kostyakova, Tatiana V.

    2018-06-01

    We investigated the variability of yield of the three main crop cultures in the Khakassia Republic: spring wheat, spring barley, and oats. In terms of yield values, variability characteristics, and climatic response, the agricultural territory of Khakassia can be divided into three zones: (1) the Northern Zone, where crops yield has a high positive response to the amount of precipitation, May-July, and a moderately negative one to the temperatures of the same period; (2) the Central Zone, where crops yield depends mainly on temperatures; and (3) the Southern Zone, where climate has the least expressed impact on yield. The dominant pattern in the crops yield is caused by water stress during periods of high temperatures and low moisture supply with heat stress as additional reason. Differences between zones are due to combinations of temperature latitudinal gradient, precipitation altitudinal gradient, and the presence of a well-developed hydrological network and the irrigational system as moisture sources in the Central Zone. More detailed analysis shows differences in the climatic sensitivity of crops during phases of their vegetative growth and grain development and, to a lesser extent, during harvesting period. Multifactor linear regression models were constructed to estimate climate- and autocorrelation-induced variability of the crops yield. These models allowed prediction of the possibility of yield decreasing by at least 2-11% in the next decade due to increasing of the regional summer temperatures.

  13. Climatically driven yield variability of major crops in Khakassia (South Siberia)

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Babushkina, Elena A.; Belokopytova, Liliana V.; Zhirnova, Dina F.; Shah, Santosh K.; Kostyakova, Tatiana V.

    2017-12-01

    We investigated the variability of yield of the three main crop cultures in the Khakassia Republic: spring wheat, spring barley, and oats. In terms of yield values, variability characteristics, and climatic response, the agricultural territory of Khakassia can be divided into three zones: (1) the Northern Zone, where crops yield has a high positive response to the amount of precipitation, May-July, and a moderately negative one to the temperatures of the same period; (2) the Central Zone, where crops yield depends mainly on temperatures; and (3) the Southern Zone, where climate has the least expressed impact on yield. The dominant pattern in the crops yield is caused by water stress during periods of high temperatures and low moisture supply with heat stress as additional reason. Differences between zones are due to combinations of temperature latitudinal gradient, precipitation altitudinal gradient, and the presence of a well-developed hydrological network and the irrigational system as moisture sources in the Central Zone. More detailed analysis shows differences in the climatic sensitivity of crops during phases of their vegetative growth and grain development and, to a lesser extent, during harvesting period. Multifactor linear regression models were constructed to estimate climate- and autocorrelation-induced variability of the crops yield. These models allowed prediction of the possibility of yield decreasing by at least 2-11% in the next decade due to increasing of the regional summer temperatures.

  14. 7 CFR 760.305 - Eligible grazing losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-01-01

    ... grazing losses. (a) A grazing loss due to drought is eligible for LFP only if the grazing loss for the... of grazing land or pastureland for the county, rated by the U.S. Drought Monitor as having a: (i) D2 (severe drought) intensity in any area of the county for at least 8 consecutive weeks during the normal...

  15. 7 CFR 760.305 - Eligible grazing losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-01-01

    ... grazing losses. (a) A grazing loss due to drought is eligible for LFP only if the grazing loss for the... of grazing land or pastureland for the county, rated by the U.S. Drought Monitor as having a: (i) D2 (severe drought) intensity in any area of the county for at least 8 consecutive weeks during the normal...

  16. 7 CFR 760.305 - Eligible grazing losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ... grazing losses. (a) A grazing loss due to drought is eligible for LFP only if the grazing loss for the... of grazing land or pastureland for the county, rated by the U.S. Drought Monitor as having a: (i) D2 (severe drought) intensity in any area of the county for at least 8 consecutive weeks during the normal...

  17. 7 CFR 760.305 - Eligible grazing losses.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-01-01

    ... grazing losses. (a) A grazing loss due to drought is eligible for LFP only if the grazing loss for the... of grazing land or pastureland for the county, rated by the U.S. Drought Monitor as having a: (i) D2 (severe drought) intensity in any area of the county for at least 8 consecutive weeks during the normal...

  18. Combining Costs and Benefits of Animal Activities to Assess Net Yield Outcomes in Apple Orchards

    PubMed Central

    Luck, Gary W.

    2016-01-01

    Diverse animal communities influence ecosystem function in agroecosystems through positive and negative plant-animal interactions. Yet, past research has largely failed to examine multiple interactions that can have opposing impacts on agricultural production in a given context. We collected data on arthropod communities and yield quality and quantity parameters (fruit set, yield loss and net outcomes) in three major apple-growing regions in south-eastern Australia. We quantified the net yield outcome (accounting for positive and negative interactions) of multiple animal activities (pollination, fruit damage, biological control) across the entire growing season on netted branches, which excluded vertebrate predators of arthropods, and open branches. Net outcome was calculated as the number of undamaged fruit at harvest as a proportion of the number of blossoms (i.e., potential fruit yield). Vertebrate exclusion resulted in lower levels of fruit set and higher levels of arthropod damage to apples, but did not affect net outcomes. Yield quality and quantity parameters (fruit set, yield loss, net outcomes) were not directly associated with arthropod functional groups. Model variance and significant differences between the ratio of pest to beneficial arthropods between regions indicated that complex relationships between environmental factors and multiple animal interactions have a combined effect on yield. Our results show that focusing on a single crop stage, species group or ecosystem function/service can overlook important complexity in ecological processes within the system. Accounting for this complexity and quantifying the net outcome of ecological interactions within the system, is more informative for research and management of biodiversity and ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes. PMID:27391022

  19. Combining Costs and Benefits of Animal Activities to Assess Net Yield Outcomes in Apple Orchards.

    PubMed

    Saunders, Manu E; Luck, Gary W

    2016-01-01

    Diverse animal communities influence ecosystem function in agroecosystems through positive and negative plant-animal interactions. Yet, past research has largely failed to examine multiple interactions that can have opposing impacts on agricultural production in a given context. We collected data on arthropod communities and yield quality and quantity parameters (fruit set, yield loss and net outcomes) in three major apple-growing regions in south-eastern Australia. We quantified the net yield outcome (accounting for positive and negative interactions) of multiple animal activities (pollination, fruit damage, biological control) across the entire growing season on netted branches, which excluded vertebrate predators of arthropods, and open branches. Net outcome was calculated as the number of undamaged fruit at harvest as a proportion of the number of blossoms (i.e., potential fruit yield). Vertebrate exclusion resulted in lower levels of fruit set and higher levels of arthropod damage to apples, but did not affect net outcomes. Yield quality and quantity parameters (fruit set, yield loss, net outcomes) were not directly associated with arthropod functional groups. Model variance and significant differences between the ratio of pest to beneficial arthropods between regions indicated that complex relationships between environmental factors and multiple animal interactions have a combined effect on yield. Our results show that focusing on a single crop stage, species group or ecosystem function/service can overlook important complexity in ecological processes within the system. Accounting for this complexity and quantifying the net outcome of ecological interactions within the system, is more informative for research and management of biodiversity and ecosystem services in agricultural landscapes.

  20. Wheat yield loss attributable to heat waves, drought and water excess at the global, national and subnational scales

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zampieri, M.; Ceglar, A.; Dentener, F.; Toreti, A.

    2017-06-01

    Heat waves and drought are often considered the most damaging climatic stressors for wheat. In this study, we characterize and attribute the effects of these climate extremes on wheat yield anomalies (at global and national scales) from 1980 to 2010. Using a combination of up-to-date heat wave and drought indexes (the latter capturing both excessively dry and wet conditions), we have developed a composite indicator that is able to capture the spatio-temporal characteristics of the underlying physical processes in the different agro-climatic regions of the world. At the global level, our diagnostic explains a significant portion (more than 40%) of the inter-annual production variability. By quantifying the contribution of national yield anomalies to global fluctuations, we have found that just two concurrent yield anomalies affecting the larger producers of the world could be responsible for more than half of the global annual fluctuations. The relative importance of heat stress and drought in determining the yield anomalies depends on the region. Moreover, in contrast to common perception, water excess affects wheat production more than drought in several countries. We have also performed the same analysis at the subnational level for France, which is the largest wheat producer of the European Union, and home to a range of climatic zones. Large subnational variability of inter-annual wheat yield is mostly captured by the heat and water stress indicators, consistently with the country-level result.

  1. Approach for gait analysis in persons with limb loss including residuum and prosthesis socket dynamics.

    PubMed

    LaPrè, A K; Price, M A; Wedge, R D; Umberger, B R; Sup, Frank C

    2018-04-01

    Musculoskeletal modeling and marker-based motion capture techniques are commonly used to quantify the motions of body segments, and the forces acting on them during human gait. However, when these techniques are applied to analyze the gait of people with lower limb loss, the clinically relevant interaction between the residual limb and prosthesis socket is typically overlooked. It is known that there is considerable motion and loading at the residuum-socket interface, yet traditional gait analysis techniques do not account for these factors due to the inability to place tracking markers on the residual limb inside of the socket. In the present work, we used a global optimization technique and anatomical constraints to estimate the motion and loading at the residuum-socket interface as part of standard gait analysis procedures. We systematically evaluated a range of parameters related to the residuum-socket interface, such as the number of degrees of freedom, and determined the configuration that yields the best compromise between faithfully tracking experimental marker positions while yielding anatomically realistic residuum-socket kinematics and loads that agree with data from the literature. Application of the present model to gait analysis for people with lower limb loss will deepen our understanding of the biomechanics of walking with a prosthesis, which should facilitate the development of enhanced rehabilitation protocols and improved assistive devices. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

  2. Risk factors for islet loss during culture prior to transplantation.

    PubMed

    Kin, Tatsuya; Senior, Peter; O'Gorman, Doug; Richer, Brad; Salam, Abdul; Shapiro, Andrew Mark James

    2008-11-01

    Culturing islets can add great flexibility to a clinical islet transplant program. However, a reduction in the islet mass has been frequently observed during culture and its degree varies. The aim of this study was to identify the risk factors associated with a significant islet loss during culture. One-hundred and four islet preparations cultured in an attempt to use for transplantation constituted this study. After culture for 20 h (median), islet yield significantly decreased from 363 309 +/- 12 647 to 313 035 +/- 10 862 islet equivalent yield (IE) (mean +/- SE), accompanied by a reduction in packed tissue volume from 3.9 +/- 0.1 to 3.0 +/- 0.1 ml and islet index (IE/islet particle count) from 1.20 +/- 0.04 to 1.05 +/- 0.04. Culture did not markedly alter islet purity or percent of trapped islet. Morphology score and viability were significantly improved after culture. Of 104 islet preparations, 37 suffered a substantial islet loss (> 20%) over culture. Factors significantly associated with risk of islet loss identified by univariate analysis were longer cold ischemia time, two-layer method (TLM) preservation, lower islet purity, and higher islet index. Multivariate analysis revealed that independent predictors of islet loss were higher islet index and the use of TLM. This study provides novel information on the link between donor- isolation factors and islet loss during culture.

  3. Recent wetland land loss due to hurricanes: improved estimates based upon multiple source images

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Kranenburg, Christine J.; Palaseanu-Lovejoy, Monica; Barras, John A.; Brock, John C.; Wang, Ping; Rosati, Julie D.; Roberts, Tiffany M.

    2011-01-01

    The objective of this study was to provide a moderate resolution 30-m fractional water map of the Chenier Plain for 2003, 2006 and 2009 by using information contained in high-resolution satellite imagery of a subset of the study area. Indices and transforms pertaining to vegetation and water were created using the high-resolution imagery, and a threshold was applied to obtain a categorical land/water map. The high-resolution data was used to train a decision-tree classifier to estimate percent water in a lower resolution (Landsat) image. Two new water indices based on the tasseled cap transformation were proposed for IKONOS imagery in wetland environments and more than 700 input parameter combinations were considered for each Landsat image classified. Final selection and thresholding of the resulting percent water maps involved over 5,000 unambiguous classified random points using corresponding 1-m resolution aerial photographs, and a statistical optimization procedure to determine the threshold at which the maximum Kappa coefficient occurs. Each selected dataset has a Kappa coefficient, percent correctly classified (PCC) water, land and total greater than 90%. An accuracy assessment using 1,000 independent random points was performed. Using the validation points, the PCC values decreased to around 90%. The time series change analysis indicated that due to Hurricane Rita, the study area lost 6.5% of marsh area, and transient changes were less than 3% for either land or water. Hurricane Ike resulted in an additional 8% land loss, although not enough time has passed to discriminate between persistent and transient changes.

  4. Loss of Cbl-PI3K interaction in mice prevents significant bone loss following ovariectomy

    PubMed Central

    Adapala, Naga Suresh; Holland, Danielle; Piccuillo, Vanessa; Barbe, Mary F.; Langdon, Wallace Y.; Tsygankov, Alexander Y.; Lorenzo, Joseph A.; Sanjay, Archana

    2014-01-01

    Cbl and Cbl-b are E3 ubiquitin ligases and adaptor proteins, which perform regulatory roles in bone remodeling. Cbl−/− mice have delayed bone development due to decreased osteoclast migration. Cbl-b−/− mice are osteopenic due to increased bone resorbing activity of osteoclasts. Unique to Cbl, but not present in Cbl-b, is tyrosine 737 in the YEAM motif, which upon phosphorylation provides a binding site for the regulatory p85 subunit of PI3K. Substitution of tyrosine 737 with phenylalanine (Y737F, CblYF/YF mice) prevents Y737 phosphorylation and abrogates the Cbl-PI3K interaction. We have previously reported that CblYF/YF mice had increased bone volume due to defective bone resorption and increased bone formation. Here we show that the lumbar vertebra from CblYF/YF mice did not have significant bone loss following ovariectomy. Our data also suggests that abrogation of Cbl-PI3K interaction in mice results in the loss of coupling between bone resorption and formation, since ovariectomized CblYF/YF mice did not show significant changes in serum levels of c-terminal telopeptide (CTX), whereas the serum levels of pro-collagen type-1 amino-terminal pro-peptide (P1NP) were decreased. In contrast, following ovariectomy, Cbl−/− and Cbl-b−/− mice showed significant bone loss in tibiae and L2 vertebrae, concomitant with increased serum CTX and P1NP levels. These data indicate that while lack of Cbl or Cbl-b distinctly affects bone remodeling, only the loss of Cbl-PI3K interaction protects mice from significant bone loss following ovariectomy. PMID:24994594

  5. Loss of Cbl-PI3K interaction in mice prevents significant bone loss following ovariectomy.

    PubMed

    Adapala, Naga Suresh; Holland, Danielle; Scanlon, Vanessa; Barbe, Mary F; Langdon, Wallace Y; Tsygankov, Alexander Y; Lorenzo, Joseph A; Sanjay, Archana

    2014-10-01

    Cbl and Cbl-b are E3 ubiquitin ligases and adaptor proteins, which perform regulatory roles in bone remodeling. Cbl-/- mice have delayed bone development due to decreased osteoclast migration. Cbl-b-/- mice are osteopenic due to increased bone resorbing activity of osteoclasts. Unique to Cbl, but not present in Cbl-b, is tyrosine 737 in the YEAM motif, which upon phosphorylation provides a binding site for the regulatory p85 subunit of PI3K. Substitution of tyrosine 737 with phenylalanine (Y737F, CblYF/YF mice) prevents Y737 phosphorylation and abrogates the Cbl-PI3K interaction. We have previously reported that CblYF/YF mice had increased bone volume due to defective bone resorption and increased bone formation. Here we show that the lumbar vertebra from CblYF/YF mice did not have significant bone loss following ovariectomy. Our data also suggests that abrogation of Cbl-PI3K interaction in mice results in the loss of coupling between bone resorption and formation, since ovariectomized CblYF/YF mice did not show significant changes in serum levels of c-terminal telopeptide (CTX), whereas the serum levels of pro-collagen type-1 amino-terminal pro-peptide (P1NP) were decreased. In contrast, following ovariectomy, Cbl-/- and Cbl-b-/- mice showed significant bone loss in the tibiae and L2 vertebrae, concomitant with increased serum CTX and P1NP levels. These data indicate that while lack of Cbl or Cbl-b distinctly affects bone remodeling, only the loss of Cbl-PI3K interaction protects mice from significant bone loss following ovariectomy. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  6. The effect of subclinical mastitis on milk yield in dairy goats.

    PubMed

    Koop, G; van Werven, T; Schuiling, H J; Nielen, M

    2010-12-01

    The aims of this study were to estimate milk yield (MY) losses associated with subclinical intramammary infection (IMI) in dairy goats and to assess if somatic cell count (SCC) can be used to estimate such MY losses. We used 2 data sets to study these questions. The first data set consisted of 5 herds. Milk production and SCC were recorded during 1 lactation. From approximately 100 does in each herd, milk samples were collected on 3 occasions during lactation for bacteriological culture. Linear mixed regression was used to estimate the effect of IMI on MY. The second data set consisted of 6 large herds, in which some of the goats had an extended lactation (≥2 yr). Milk yield and SCC data were recorded without bacteriological culture. The data showed that bacterial infection was related to an increase in SCC. Infections with major pathogens were rare and associated with a decreased MY; infection with coagulase-negative staphylococci did not affect MY, whereas infection with Corynebacterium bovis was associated with increased MY. A negative correlation was observed between SCC and MY, but the data suggested that this negative correlation was attenuated rather than caused by IMI. Furthermore, SCC seemed to be affected by MY via a dilution effect. Hypotheses about biological mechanisms behind these observations are discussed. This paper shows that MY losses caused by subclinical udder infections are limited in goats, and that SCC cannot be used to estimate the magnitude of these losses. Copyright © 2010 American Dairy Science Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

  7. Transient Hearing Loss in Adults Associated With Zika Virus Infection.

    PubMed

    Vinhaes, Eriko S; Santos, Luciane A; Dias, Lislane; Andrade, Nilvano A; Bezerra, Victor H; de Carvalho, Anderson T; de Moraes, Laise; Henriques, Daniele F; Azar, Sasha R; Vasilakis, Nikos; Ko, Albert I; Andrade, Bruno B; Siqueira, Isadora C; Khouri, Ricardo; Boaventura, Viviane S

    2017-03-01

    In 2015, during the outbreak of Zika virus (ZIKV) in Brazil, we identified 3 cases of acute hearing loss after exanthematous illness. Serology yielded finding compatible with ZIKV as the cause of a confirmed (n = 1) and a probable (n = 2) flavivirus infection, indicating an association between ZIKV infection and transient hearing loss. © The Author 2016. Published by Oxford University Press for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.

  8. Reducing sugar loss in enzymatic hydrolysis of ethylenediamine pretreated corn stover.

    PubMed

    Li, Wen-Chao; Li, Xia; Qin, Lei; Zhu, Jia-Qing; Han, Xiao; Li, Bing-Zhi; Yuan, Ying-Jin

    2017-01-01

    In this study, the effect of ethylenediamine (EDA) on enzymatic hydrolysis with different cellulosic substrates and the approaches to reduce sugar loss in enzymatic hydrolysis were investigated. During enzymatic hydrolysis, xylose yield reduced 21.2%, 18.1% and 13.0% with 7.5mL/L EDA for AFEX pretreated corn stover (CS), washed EDA pretreated CS and CS cellulose. FTIR and GPC analysis demonstrated EDA reacted with sugar and produced high molecular weight (MW) compounds. EDA was prone to react with xylose other than glucose. H 2 O 2 and Na 2 SO 3 cannot prevent sugar loss in glucose/xylose-EDA mixture, although they inhibited the browning and high MW compounds formation. By decreasing temperature to 30°C, the loss of xylose yield reduced to only 3.8%, 3.6% and 4.2% with 7.5mL/L EDA in the enzymatic hydrolysis of AFEX pretreated CS, washed EDA pretreated CS and CS cellulose. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

  9. Evaluation of a commercially available organic acid product on body weight loss, carcass yield, and meat quality during preslaughter feed withdrawal in broiler chickens: A poultry welfare and economic perspective1

    PubMed Central

    Menconi, A.; Kuttappan, V. A.; Hernandez-Velasco, X.; Urbano, T.; Matté, F.; Layton, S.; Kallapura, G.; Latorre, J.; Morales, B. E.; Prado, O.; Vicente, J. L.; Barton, J.; Filho, R. L. Andreatti; Lovato, M.; Hargis, B. M.; Tellez, G.

    2014-01-01

    The effect of a commercial organic acid (OA) product on BW loss (BWL) during feed withdrawal and transportation, carcass yield, and meat quality was evaluated in broiler chickens. Two experiments were conducted in Brazil. Commercial houses were paired as control groups receiving regular water and treated groups receiving OA in the water. Treated birds had a reduction in BWL of 37 g in experiment 1 and 32.2 g in experiment 2. In experiment 2, no differences were observed in carcass yield between groups. Estimation of the cost benefit suggested a 1:16 ratio by using the OA. In experiment 3, conducted in Mexico, significant differences on water consumption, BWL, and meat quality characteristics were observed in chickens that were treated with the OA (P < 0.05). These data suggest this OA product may improve animal welfare and economic concerns in the poultry industry by reducing BWL and improving meat quality attributes. PMID:24570468

  10. Energy Loss of Solar p Modes due to the Excitation of Magnetic Sausage Tube Waves: Importance of Coupling the Upper Atmosphere

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Gascoyne, A.; Jain, R.; Hindman, B. W.

    2014-07-01

    We consider damping and absorption of solar p modes due to their energy loss to magnetic tube waves that can freely carry energy out of the acoustic cavity. The coupling of p modes and sausage tube waves is studied in a model atmosphere composed of a polytropic interior above which lies an isothermal upper atmosphere. The sausage tube waves, excited by p modes, propagate along a magnetic fibril which is assumed to be a vertically aligned, stratified, thin magnetic flux tube. The deficit of p-mode energy is quantified through the damping rate, Γ, and absorption coefficient, α. The variation of Γ and α as a function of frequency and the tube's plasma properties is studied in detail. Previous similar studies have considered only a subphotospheric layer, modeled as a polytrope that has been truncated at the photosphere. Such studies have found that the resulting energy loss by the p modes is very sensitive to the upper boundary condition, which, due to the lack of an upper atmosphere, have been imposed in a somewhat ad hoc manner. The model presented here avoids such problems by using an isothermal layer to model the overlying atmosphere (chromosphere, and, consequently, allows us to analyze the propagation of p-mode-driven sausage waves above the photosphere. In this paper, we restrict our attention to frequencies below the acoustic cut off frequency. We demonstrate the importance of coupling all waves (acoustic, magnetic) in the subsurface solar atmosphere with the overlying atmosphere in order to accurately model the interaction of solar f and p modes with sausage tube waves. In calculating the absorption and damping of p modes, we find that for low frequencies, below ≈3.5 mHz, the isothermal atmosphere, for the two-region model, behaves like a stress-free boundary condition applied at the interface (z = -z 0).

  11. 7 CFR 3015.170 - Damage, loss, or theft of equipment.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-01-01

    ..., and (ii) The damage, loss, or theft is not due to an act of God. (2) Equipment replaced. If the... § 3015.169(c) or (ii) The damage, loss, or theft is due to an act of God. (2) Recipient not compensated...

  12. Satellite-based assessment of grassland yields

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Grant, K.; Siegmund, R.; Wagner, M.; Hartmann, S.

    2015-04-01

    Cutting date and frequency are important parameters determining grassland yields in addition to the effects of weather, soil conditions, plant composition and fertilisation. Because accurate and area-wide data of grassland yields are currently not available, cutting frequency can be used to estimate yields. In this project, a method to detect cutting dates via surface changes in radar images is developed. The combination of this method with a grassland yield model will result in more reliable and regional-wide numbers of grassland yields. For the test-phase of the monitoring project, a study area situated southeast of Munich, Germany, was chosen due to its high density of managed grassland. For determining grassland cutting robust amplitude change detection techniques are used evaluating radar amplitude or backscatter statistics before and after the cutting event. CosmoSkyMed and Sentinel-1A data were analysed. All detected cuts were verified according to in-situ measurements recorded in a GIS database. Although the SAR systems had various acquisition geometries, the amount of detected grassland cut was quite similar. Of 154 tested grassland plots, covering in total 436 ha, 116 and 111 cuts were detected using CosmoSkyMed and Sentinel-1A radar data, respectively. Further improvement of radar data processes as well as additional analyses with higher sample number and wider land surface coverage will follow for optimisation of the method and for validation and generalisation of the results of this feasibility study. The automation of this method will than allow for an area-wide and cost efficient cutting date detection service improving grassland yield models.

  13. Detecting crop yield reduction due to irrigation-induced soil salinization in South-West Russia

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Argaman, E.; Beets, W.; Croes, J.; Keesstra, S.; Verzandvoort, S.; Zeiliguer, A.

    2012-04-01

    The South-European part of the Russian Federation has experienced serious land degradation in the form of soil salinization since the 1960s. This land degradation was caused by intensive, large-scale irrigation on reclaimed land in combination with the salt-rich nature of the substrate. Alkaline soil salinity is believed to be an important factor decreasing crop yield in this area. A large research effort has been directed to the effects of soil salinity on crops, there is a need for simple, easily determinable indicators of crop health and soil salinity in irrigated systems, that can help to detect crop water stress in an early stage. The objectives of this research were to study the effects of soil salinity and vegetation water stress on the performance of alfalfa crop yield and physiological crop properties, and to study the possibility to measure soil salinity and alkalinity and the crop water stress index at plot level using a thermal gun and a regular digital camera. The study area was located in Saratov District, in the South-West part of Russia. Variables on the surface energy balance, crop properties, soil properties and visible reflectance were measured on plots with alfalfa cultures in two fields with and without signs of alkaline soil salinity, and with and without irrigation in July 2009. The research showed no clear adverse effects of soil salinity and soil alkalinity on crop yield and physiological crop properties. Soil salinity, as reflected by the electric conductivity, positively affected the root biomass of alfalfa in the range of 0.15 to 1.52 dS/m . This was a result of EC levels being below the documented threshold to negatively affect Alfalfa, as would be the case in truly saline soils. The soil pH also showed a positive correlation with root biomass within the range of pH 6.2 and 8.5 . From the literature these pH values are generally believed to be too high to exhibit a positive relationship with root biomass. No relationship was found

  14. No-tillage and fertilization management on crop yields and nitrate leaching in North China Plain

    PubMed Central

    Huang, Manxiang; Liang, Tao; Wang, Lingqing; Zhou, Chenghu

    2015-01-01

    A field experiment was performed from 2003 to 2008 to evaluate the effects of tillage system and nitrogen management regimes on crop yields and nitrate leaching from the fluvo-aquic soil with a winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)–maize (Zea mays L.) double-cropping system. The tillage systems consisted of conventional tillage (CT) and no-tillage (NT). Three nitrogen management regimes were included: 270 kg N ha−1 of urea for wheat and 225 kg N ha−1 of urea for maize (U), 180 kg N ha−1 of urea and 90 kg N ha−1 of straw for wheat and 180 kg N of urea and 45 kg N ha−1 of straw for maize (S), 180 kg N ha−1 of urea and 90 kg N ha−1 of manure for wheat and 180 kg N ha−1 of urea and 45 kg N ha−1 of manure for maize (M). An array of tension-free pan lysimeters (50 cm × 75 cm) were installed (1.2 m deep) to measure water flow and -N movement. No significant effect of the N management regime on yields of winter wheat and maize grain was found in the 5-year rotation. Tillage systems had significant influences on -N leaching from the second year and thereafter interacted with N management regimes on -N loads during all maize seasons. The average yield-scaled -N leaching losses were in order of CTS < NTS< CTU < NTU yield-scaled -N leaching losses while sustaining crop grain yields. Considering the lower costs, NTS could be a potential alternative to decrease yield-scaled -N leaching losses and improve soil fertility while maintaining crop yield for the winter wheat–maize double-cropping systems in the North China Plain. PMID:25859321

  15. Study of performance loss of Lyman alpha filters due to chemical contamination

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Faye, Delphine; Zhang, Xueyan; Etcheto, Pierre; Auchère, Frédéric

    2017-05-01

    Observations in the UV and EUV allow many diagnostics of the outer layers of the stars and the Sun so that more and more space telescopes are developed to operate in this fundamental spectral range. However, absorption by residual contaminants coming from polymers outgassing causes critical effects such as loss of signal, spectral shifts, stray light… Thus, a cleanliness and contamination control plan has to be defined to mitigate the risk of damage of sensitive surfaces. In order to specify acceptable cleanliness levels, it is paramount to improve our knowledge and understanding of contamination effects, especially in the UV/EUV range. Therefore, an experimental study has been carried out in collaboration between CNES and IAS, in the frame of the development of the Extreme UV Imager suite for the ESA Solar Orbiter mission; this instrument consists of two High Resolution Imagers and one Full Sun Imager designed for narrow pass-band EUV imaging of the solar corona, and thus very sensitive to contamination. Here, we describe recent results of performance loss measured on representative optical samples. Six narrow pass-band filters, with a multilayer coating designed to select the solar Lyman Alpha emission ray, were contaminated with different amounts of typical chemical species. The transmittance spectra were measured between 100 and 200 nm under high vacuum on the SOLEIL synchrotron beam line. They were compared before and after contamination, and also after a long exposure of the contaminated area to EUV-visible radiations.

  16. Size effects on elasticity, yielding, and fracture of silver nanowires: In situ experiments

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Zhu, Yong; Qin, Qingquan; Xu, Feng; Fan, Fengru; Ding, Yong; Zhang, Tim; Wiley, Benjamin J.; Wang, Zhong Lin

    2012-01-01

    This paper reports the quantitative measurement of a full spectrum of mechanical properties of fivefold twinned silver (Ag) nanowires (NWs), including Young's modulus, yield strength, and ultimate tensile strength. In-situ tensile testing of Ag NWs with diameters between 34 and 130 nm was carried out inside a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Young's modulus, yield strength, and ultimate tensile strength all increased as the NW diameter decreased. The maximum yield strength in our tests was found to be 2.64 GPa, which is about 50 times the bulk value and close to the theoretical value of Ag in the 110 orientation. The size effect in the yield strength is mainly due to the stiffening size effect in the Young's modulus. Yield strain scales reasonably well with the NW surface area, which reveals that yielding of Ag NWs is due to dislocation nucleation from surface sources. Pronounced strain hardening was observed for most NWs in our study. The strain hardening, which has not previously been reported for NWs, is mainly attributed to the presence of internal twin boundaries.

  17. Can We Predict Cognitive Performance Decrements Due to Sleep Loss and the Recuperative Effects of Caffeine

    DTIC Science & Technology

    2015-10-14

    such as timely short naps and caffeine, are often used to mitigate the effects of sleep loss on performance. However, the timing, duration, and dosage...loss and the restorative effects of different dosages of caffeine on a specific individual’s performance. When used as a decision-aid tool, this model...provides the means to maximize Warfighter cognitive performance, resulting in peak alertness and prolonged alertness at the desired times

  18. [Modelling of the costs of productivity losses due to smoking in Germany for the year 2005].

    PubMed

    Prenzler, A; Mittendorf, T; von der Schulenburg, J M

    2007-11-01

    The aim of this study was to estimate disease-related productivity costs attributable to smoking in the year 2005 in Germany. The calculation was based on the updated relative smoking-related disease risk found in the US Cancer Prevention Study II combined with data on smoking prevalence for Germany. With this, smoking-attributable cases resulting in premature mortality, invalidity, and temporal disability to work could be estimated. Neoplasms, diseases of the circulatory and the respiratory systems as well as health problems in children younger than one year were considered in the analysis. The human capital approach was applied to calculate years of potential work loss and productivity costs as a result of smoking. Various sensitivity analyses were conducted to test for robustness of the underlying model. Based on the assumptions within the model, 107,389 deaths, 14,112 invalidity cases, and 1.19 million cases of temporary disability to work were found to be due to smoking in 2005 in Germany, respectively. As a result, productivity costs of 9.6 billion were caused by smoking. The model showed that smoking has a high financial effect. Even so, further analyses are necessary to estimate an overall impact of smoking on the German society.

  19. Responses of Nitrogen Utilization and Apparent Nitrogen Loss to Different Control Measures in the Wheat and Maize Rotation System

    PubMed Central

    Peng, Zhengping; Liu, Yanan; Li, Yingchun; Abawi, Yahya; Wang, Yanqun; Men, Mingxin; An-Vo, Duc-Anh

    2017-01-01

    Nitrogen (N) is an essential macronutrient for plant growth and excessive application rates can decrease crop yield and increase N loss into the environment. Field experiments were carried out to understand the effects of N fertilizers on N utilization, crop yield and net income in wheat and maize rotation system of the North China Plain (NCP). Compared to farmers’ N rate (FN), the yield of wheat and maize in reduction N rate by 21–24% based on FN (RN) was improved by 451 kg ha-1, N uptakes improved by 17 kg ha-1 and net income increased by 1671 CNY ha-1, while apparent N loss was reduced by 156 kg ha-1. The controlled-release fertilizer with a 20% reduction of RN (CRF80%), a 20% reduction of RN together with dicyandiamide (RN80%+DCD) and a 20% reduction of RN added with nano-carbon (RN80%+NC) all resulted in an improvement in crop yield and decreased the apparent N losses compared to RN. Contrasted with RN80%+NC, the total crop yield in RN80%+DCD improved by 1185 kg ha-1, N uptake enhanced by 9 kg ha-1 and net income increased by 3929 CNY ha-1, while apparent N loss was similar. Therefore, a 37–39% overall decrease in N rate compared to farmers plus the nitrification inhibitor, DCD, was effective N control measure that increased crop yields, enhanced N efficiencies, and improved economic benefits, while mitigating apparent N loss. There is considerable scope for improved N use effieincy in the intensive wheat -maize rotation of the NCP. PMID:28228772

  20. NATIONAL CROP LOSS ASSESSMENT NETWORK (NCLAN) 1982 ANNUAL REPORT

    EPA Science Inventory

    The National Crop Loss Assessment Network (NCLAN) is a group of organizations cooperating in research to assess the short- and long-term economic impact of air pollution on crop production. The primary objectives are (1) to define relationships between yield of major agricultural...

  1. Effect of N fertilization and tillage on nitrous oxide (N2O) loss from soil under wheat production

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Bansal, Sheel; Aberle, Ezra; Teboh, Jasper; Yuja, Szilvia; Liebig, Mark; Meier, Jacob; Boyd, Alec

    2017-01-01

    Nitrous oxide (N2O-N) is one of the most important gases in the atmosphere because it is 300 times more powerful than carbon dioxide in its ability to trap heat, and is a key chemical agent of ozone depletion. The amount of N2O-N emitted from agricultural fields can be quite high, depending on the complex interplay between N fertility and residue management, plant N uptake, microbial processes, environmental conditions, and wet-up and dry-down events. High N fertilizer rates generally increase yields, but may disproportionately increase N2O-N losses due to prolonged residence time in soil when not used by the crop, and incomplete decomposition of excess N-compounds by microbes. Tillage could also affect N2O-N losses through changes in soil moisture content. Though nitrogen monoxide (NO) is one form of N lost from the soil, especially under conventional tillage, this study objective was to quantify N2O loss in wheat fields from applied urea on soil under no-till (NT) versus incorporated urea under conventional till (CT).

  2. Lattice Strain Due to an Atomic Vacancy

    PubMed Central

    Li, Shidong; Sellers, Michael S.; Basaran, Cemal; Schultz, Andrew J.; Kofke, David A.

    2009-01-01

    Volumetric strain can be divided into two parts: strain due to bond distance change and strain due to vacancy sources and sinks. In this paper, efforts are focused on studying the atomic lattice strain due to a vacancy in an FCC metal lattice with molecular dynamics simulation (MDS). The result has been compared with that from a continuum mechanics method. It is shown that using a continuum mechanics approach yields constitutive results similar to the ones obtained based purely on molecular dynamics considerations. PMID:19582230

  3. Evaluation of Hearing Loss in Pilots

    PubMed Central

    Atalay, Hayriye; Babakurban, Seda Türkoğlu; Aydın, Erdinç

    2015-01-01

    Objective High-intensity noise sources with an increase in air traffic and sudden changes in atmospheric pressure can cause hearing loss in pilots. The main goal of this research is to examine hearing loss due to age, the total flight hours and aircraft types and to evaluate the effects of personal conditions that can influence the hearing level. Methods We examined the data of 234 Turkish pilots aged between 25 and 54 years who were examined due to the aviation Law for annual control from January 2005 to January 2014 at Başkent University Medical Faculty, Ankara Hospital. The audiometric results of the pilots were used. While 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 KHz were used for the airway threshold, 1, 2, and 4 KHz were used for the bone conduction threshold. Results According to the data of the 234 pilots, there was a significant correlation between high-frequency hearing loss and the total flight hours and pilots’ ages. The average hearing loss was higher, particularly in the left ear, in pilots using helicopters than in those using other aircraft types. There was no statistically significant correlation between hearing loss and diabetes, hypercholesterolemia, high blood pressure, anemia, obesity, and smoking. Conclusion A significant correlation was observed between high frequency hearing loss and the total flight hours, pilots’ age, and aircraft types in our study. PMID:29392000

  4. Aircraft Loss of Control Causal Factors and Mitigation Challenges

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Jacobson, Steven R.

    2010-01-01

    Loss of control is the leading cause of jet fatalities worldwide. Aside from their frequency of occurrence, accidents resulting from loss of aircraft control seize the public s attention by yielding a large number of fatalities in a single event. In response to the rising threat to aviation safety, the NASA Aviation Safety Program has conducted a study of the loss of control problem. This study gathered four types of information pertaining to loss of control accidents: (1) statistical data; (2) individual accident reports that cite loss of control as a contributing factor; (3) previous meta-analyses of loss of control accidents; and (4) inputs solicited from aircraft manufacturers, air carriers, researchers, and other industry stakeholders. Using these information resources, the study team identified the causal factors that were cited in the greatest number of loss of control accidents, and which were emphasized most by industry stakeholders. This report describes the study approach, the key causal factors for aircraft loss of control, and recommended mitigation strategies to make near-term impacts, mid-term impacts, and Next Generation Air Transportation System impacts on the loss of control accident statistics

  5. Understanding sugar yield loss and enzyme inhibition due to oligosaccharides accumulation during high solids-loading enzymatic hydrolisis.

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    During enzymatic hydrolysis of biomass, polysaccharides are cleaved by glycosyl hydrolases to soluble oligosaccharides and further hydrolyzed by ß-glucosidase, ß-xylosidase and other enzymes to monomeric sugars. However, not all oligosaccharides can be fully hydrolyzed and they may accumulate to 18-...

  6. Regional crop yield forecasting: a probabilistic approach

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    de Wit, A.; van Diepen, K.; Boogaard, H.

    2009-04-01

    Information on the outlook on yield and production of crops over large regions is essential for government services dealing with import and export of food crops, for agencies with a role in food relief, for international organizations with a mandate in monitoring the world food production and trade, and for commodity traders. Process-based mechanistic crop models are an important tool for providing such information, because they can integrate the effect of crop management, weather and soil on crop growth. When properly integrated in a yield forecasting system, the aggregated model output can be used to predict crop yield and production at regional, national and continental scales. Nevertheless, given the scales at which these models operate, the results are subject to large uncertainties due to poorly known weather conditions and crop management. Current yield forecasting systems are generally deterministic in nature and provide no information about the uncertainty bounds on their output. To improve on this situation we present an ensemble-based approach where uncertainty bounds can be derived from the dispersion of results in the ensemble. The probabilistic information provided by this ensemble-based system can be used to quantify uncertainties (risk) on regional crop yield forecasts and can therefore be an important support to quantitative risk analysis in a decision making process.

  7. A Remote Sensing-Derived Corn Yield Assessment Model

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Shrestha, Ranjay Man

    Agricultural studies and food security have become critical research topics due to continuous growth in human population and simultaneous shrinkage in agricultural land. In spite of modern technological advancements to improve agricultural productivity, more studies on crop yield assessments and food productivities are still necessary to fulfill the constantly increasing food demands. Besides human activities, natural disasters such as flood and drought, along with rapid climate changes, also inflect an adverse effect on food productivities. Understanding the impact of these disasters on crop yield and making early impact estimations could help planning for any national or international food crisis. Similarly, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Risk Management Agency (RMA) insurance management utilizes appropriately estimated crop yield and damage assessment information to sustain farmers' practice through timely and proper compensations. Through County Agricultural Production Survey (CAPS), the USDA National Agricultural Statistical Service (NASS) uses traditional methods of field interviews and farmer-reported survey data to perform annual crop condition monitoring and production estimations at the regional and state levels. As these manual approaches of yield estimations are highly inefficient and produce very limited samples to represent the entire area, NASS requires supplemental spatial data that provides continuous and timely information on crop production and annual yield. Compared to traditional methods, remote sensing data and products offer wider spatial extent, more accurate location information, higher temporal resolution and data distribution, and lower data cost--thus providing a complementary option for estimation of crop yield information. Remote sensing derived vegetation indices such as Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) provide measurable statistics of potential crop growth based on the spectral reflectance and could

  8. Habitat loss and modification due to gas development in the Fayetteville shale.

    PubMed

    Moran, Matthew D; Cox, A Brandon; Wells, Rachel L; Benichou, Chloe C; McClung, Maureen R

    2015-06-01

    Hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling have become major methods to extract new oil and gas deposits, many of which exist in shale formations in the temperate deciduous biome of the eastern United States. While these technologies have increased natural gas production to new highs, they can have substantial environmental effects. We measured the changes in land use within the maturing Fayetteville Shale gas development region in Arkansas between 2001/2002 and 2012. Our goal was to estimate the land use impact of these new technologies in natural gas drilling and predict future consequences for habitat loss and fragmentation. Loss of natural forest in the gas field was significantly higher compared to areas outside the gas field. The creation of edge habitat, roads, and developed areas was also greater in the gas field. The Fayetteville Shale gas field fully developed about 2% of the natural habitat within the region and increased edge habitat by 1,067 linear km. Our data indicate that without shale gas activities, forest cover would have increased slightly and edge habitat would have decreased slightly, similar to patterns seen recently in many areas of the southern U.S. On average, individual gas wells fully developed about 2.5 ha of land and modified an additional 0.5 ha of natural forest. Considering the large number of wells drilled in other parts of the eastern U.S. and projections for new wells in the future, shale gas development will likely have substantial negative effects on forested habitats and the organisms that depend upon them.

  9. Severe Hypothyroidism due to the Loss of Therapeutic Efficacy of l-Thyroxine in a Patient with Esophageal Complication Associated with Systemic Sclerosis.

    PubMed

    Lobasso, Antonio; Nappi, Liliana; Barbieri, Letizia; Peirce, Carmela; Ippolito, Serena; Arpaia, Debora; Rossi, Francesca Wanda; de Paulis, Amato; Biondi, Bernadette

    2017-01-01

    Thyroid function abnormalities and thyroid autoantibodies have been frequently described in patients with systemic autoimmune diseases as systemic sclerosis (SSc). Serum TSH levels are higher in SSc patients with more severe skin diseases and a worse modified Rodnan skin score. Asymptomatic esophageal involvement due to SSc has never been described as a cause of severe hypothyroidism due to l-thyroxine (l-T4) malabsorption in patients with Hashimoto's thyroiditis (HT) and SSc. Here, we report a case of a 56-year-old female affected by both SSc and HT who developed severe hypothyroidism due to the loss of therapeutic efficacy of l-T4. Therapeutic failure resulted from the altered l-T4 absorption because of SSc esophageal complications. Clinical findings improved after the administration of oral liquid l-T4. Thyroid function completely normalized with a full clinical recovery, the disappearance of the pericardial effusion and the improvement of the pulmonary pressure. A recognition of a poor absorption is crucial in patients with hypothyroidism and SSc to reduce the risk of the subsequent adverse events. This case suggests the importance of clinical and laboratory surveillance in patients with SSc and HT because the systemic complications of these dysfunctions may worsen the prognosis of hypothyroid SSc/HT patients.

  10. Respiratory weight losses during exercise.

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Mitchell, J. W.; Nadel, E. R.; Stolwijk, J. A. J.

    1972-01-01

    Evaporative water loss from the respiratory tract was determined over a wide range of exercise. The absolute humidity of the expired air was the same at all levels of exercise and equal to that measured at rest. The rate of respiratory water loss during exercise was found to be 0.019 of the oxygen uptake times (44 minus water vapor pressure). The rate of weight loss during exercise due to CO2-O2 exchange was calculated. For exercise at oxygen consumption rates exceeding 1.5 L/min in a dry environment with a water vapor pressure of 10 mm Hg, the total rate of weight loss via the respiratory tract is on the order of 2-5 g/min.

  11. Two-dimensional isobutyl acetate production pathways to improve carbon yield

    PubMed Central

    Tashiro, Yohei; Desai, Shuchi H.; Atsumi, Shota

    2015-01-01

    For an economically competitive biological process, achieving high carbon yield of a target chemical is crucial. In biochemical production, pyruvate and acetyl-CoA are primary building blocks. When sugar is used as the sole biosynthetic substrate, acetyl-CoA is commonly generated by pyruvate decarboxylation. However, pyruvate decarboxylation during acetyl-CoA formation limits the theoretical maximum carbon yield (TMCY) by releasing carbon, and in some cases also leads to redox imbalance. To avoid these problems, we describe here the construction of a metabolic pathway that simultaneously utilizes glucose and acetate. Acetate is utilized to produce acetyl-CoA without carbon loss or redox imbalance. We demonstrate the utility of this approach for isobutyl acetate (IBA) production, wherein IBA production with glucose and acetate achieves a higher carbon yield than with either sole carbon source. These results highlight the potential for this multiple carbon source approach to improve the TMCY and balance redox in biosynthetic pathways. PMID:26108471

  12. Yield gaps and yield relationships in US soybean production systems

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The magnitude of yield gaps (YG) (potential yield – farmer yield) provides some indication of the prospects for increasing crop yield to meet the food demands of future populations. Quantile regression analysis was applied to county soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] yields (1971 – 2011) from Kentuc...

  13. Contribution of insect pollinators to crop yield and quality varies with agricultural intensification

    PubMed Central

    Potts, Simon G.; Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf; Vaissière, Bernard E.; Woyciechowski, Michal; Krewenka, Kristin M.; Tscheulin, Thomas; Roberts, Stuart P.M.; Szentgyörgyi, Hajnalka; Westphal, Catrin; Bommarco, Riccardo

    2014-01-01

    Background. Up to 75% of crop species benefit at least to some degree from animal pollination for fruit or seed set and yield. However, basic information on the level of pollinator dependence and pollinator contribution to yield is lacking for many crops. Even less is known about how insect pollination affects crop quality. Given that habitat loss and agricultural intensification are known to decrease pollinator richness and abundance, there is a need to assess the consequences for different components of crop production. Methods. We used pollination exclusion on flowers or inflorescences on a whole plant basis to assess the contribution of insect pollination to crop yield and quality in four flowering crops (spring oilseed rape, field bean, strawberry, and buckwheat) located in four regions of Europe. For each crop, we recorded abundance and species richness of flower visiting insects in ten fields located along a gradient from simple to heterogeneous landscapes. Results. Insect pollination enhanced average crop yield between 18 and 71% depending on the crop. Yield quality was also enhanced in most crops. For instance, oilseed rape had higher oil and lower chlorophyll contents when adequately pollinated, the proportion of empty seeds decreased in buckwheat, and strawberries’ commercial grade improved; however, we did not find higher nitrogen content in open pollinated field beans. Complex landscapes had a higher overall species richness of wild pollinators across crops, but visitation rates were only higher in complex landscapes for some crops. On the contrary, the overall yield was consistently enhanced by higher visitation rates, but not by higher pollinator richness. Discussion. For the four crops in this study, there is clear benefit delivered by pollinators on yield quantity and/or quality, but it is not maximized under current agricultural intensification. Honeybees, the most abundant pollinator, might partially compensate the loss of wild pollinators in

  14. Contribution of insect pollinators to crop yield and quality varies with agricultural intensification.

    PubMed

    Bartomeus, Ignasi; Potts, Simon G; Steffan-Dewenter, Ingolf; Vaissière, Bernard E; Woyciechowski, Michal; Krewenka, Kristin M; Tscheulin, Thomas; Roberts, Stuart P M; Szentgyörgyi, Hajnalka; Westphal, Catrin; Bommarco, Riccardo

    2014-01-01

    Background. Up to 75% of crop species benefit at least to some degree from animal pollination for fruit or seed set and yield. However, basic information on the level of pollinator dependence and pollinator contribution to yield is lacking for many crops. Even less is known about how insect pollination affects crop quality. Given that habitat loss and agricultural intensification are known to decrease pollinator richness and abundance, there is a need to assess the consequences for different components of crop production. Methods. We used pollination exclusion on flowers or inflorescences on a whole plant basis to assess the contribution of insect pollination to crop yield and quality in four flowering crops (spring oilseed rape, field bean, strawberry, and buckwheat) located in four regions of Europe. For each crop, we recorded abundance and species richness of flower visiting insects in ten fields located along a gradient from simple to heterogeneous landscapes. Results. Insect pollination enhanced average crop yield between 18 and 71% depending on the crop. Yield quality was also enhanced in most crops. For instance, oilseed rape had higher oil and lower chlorophyll contents when adequately pollinated, the proportion of empty seeds decreased in buckwheat, and strawberries' commercial grade improved; however, we did not find higher nitrogen content in open pollinated field beans. Complex landscapes had a higher overall species richness of wild pollinators across crops, but visitation rates were only higher in complex landscapes for some crops. On the contrary, the overall yield was consistently enhanced by higher visitation rates, but not by higher pollinator richness. Discussion. For the four crops in this study, there is clear benefit delivered by pollinators on yield quantity and/or quality, but it is not maximized under current agricultural intensification. Honeybees, the most abundant pollinator, might partially compensate the loss of wild pollinators in

  15. Dissolved organic matter (DOM) in microalgal photobioreactors: a potential loss in solar energy conversion?

    PubMed

    Hulatt, Chris J; Thomas, David N

    2010-11-01

    Microalgae are considered to be a potential alternative to terrestrial crops for bio-energy production due to their relatively high productivity per unit area of land. In this work we examined the amount of dissolved organic matter exuded by algal cells cultured in photobioreactors, to examine whether a significant fraction of the photoassimilated biomass could potentially be lost from the harvestable biomass. We found that the mean maximum amount of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) released measured 6.4% and 17.3% of the total organic carbon in cultures of Chlorellavulgaris and Dunaliella tertiolecta, respectively. This DOM in turn supported a significant growth of bacterial biomass, representing a further loss of the algal assimilated carbon. The release of these levels of DOC indicates that a significant fraction of the photosynthetically fixed organic matter could be lost into the surrounding water, suggesting that the actual biomass yield per hectare for industrial purposes could be somewhat less than expected. A simple and inexpensive optical technique, based on chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) measurements, to monitor such losses in commercial PBRs is discussed.

  16. Reduced voltage losses yield 10% efficient fullerene free organic solar cells with >1 V open circuit voltages.

    PubMed

    Baran, D; Kirchartz, T; Wheeler, S; Dimitrov, S; Abdelsamie, M; Gorman, J; Ashraf, R S; Holliday, S; Wadsworth, A; Gasparini, N; Kaienburg, P; Yan, H; Amassian, A; Brabec, C J; Durrant, J R; McCulloch, I

    2016-12-01

    Optimization of the energy levels at the donor-acceptor interface of organic solar cells has driven their efficiencies to above 10%. However, further improvements towards efficiencies comparable with inorganic solar cells remain challenging because of high recombination losses, which empirically limit the open-circuit voltage ( V oc ) to typically less than 1 V. Here we show that this empirical limit can be overcome using non-fullerene acceptors blended with the low band gap polymer PffBT4T-2DT leading to efficiencies approaching 10% (9.95%). We achieve V oc up to 1.12 V, which corresponds to a loss of only E g / q - V oc = 0.5 ± 0.01 V between the optical bandgap E g of the polymer and V oc . This high V oc is shown to be associated with the achievement of remarkably low non-geminate and non-radiative recombination losses in these devices. Suppression of non-radiative recombination implies high external electroluminescence quantum efficiencies which are orders of magnitude higher than those of equivalent devices employing fullerene acceptors. Using the balance between reduced recombination losses and good photocurrent generation efficiencies achieved experimentally as a baseline for simulations of the efficiency potential of organic solar cells, we estimate that efficiencies of up to 20% are achievable if band gaps and fill factors are further optimized.

  17. Auger losses in dilute InAsBi

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Hader, J.; Badescu, S. C.; Bannow, L. C.; Moloney, J. V.; Johnson, S. R.; Koch, S. W.

    2018-05-01

    Density functional theory is used to determine the electronic band structure and eigenstates of dilute InAsBi bulk materials. The results serve as input for fully microscopic many-body models calculating the composition and carrier density dependent losses due to Auger recombination. At low to intermediate carrier concentrations, the Auger loss coefficients are found to be in the range of 10-27cm6/s for a low Bi content and around 10-25cm6/s for compositions suitable for long wavelength emission. It is shown that due to the fact that in InAsBi, the spin-orbit splitting is larger than the bandgap for all Bi contents, the Bi-dependent increase in the spin-orbit splitting does not lead to a significant suppression of the losses. Instead, unlike in GaAsBi, a mostly exponential increase in the losses with the decreasing bandgap is found for all compositions.

  18. Rice Research to Break Yield Barriers

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Verma, Vivek; Ramamoorthy, Rengasamy; Kohli, Ajay; Kumar, Prakash P.

    2015-10-01

    The world’s population continues to expand and it is expected to cross 9 billion by 2050. This would significantly amplify the demand for food, which will pose serious threats to global food security. Additional challenges are being imposed due to a gradual decrease in the total arable land and global environmental changes. Hence, it is of utmost importance to review and revise the existing food production strategies by incorporating novel biotechnological approaches that can help to break the crop yield barriers in the near future. In this review, we highlight some of the concerns hampering crop yield enhancements. The review also focuses on modern breeding techniques based on genomics as well as proven biotechnological approaches that enable identification and utilization of candidate genes. Another aspect of discussion is the important area of research, namely hormonal regulation of plant development, which is likely to yield valuable regulatory genes for such crop improvement efforts in the future. These strategies can serve as potential tools for developing elite crop varieties for feeding the growing billions.

  19. Relationship of soil properties and sugarcane yields to red stripe in Louisiana

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Red stripe of sugarcane caused by Acidovorax avenae subsp. avenae consists of two forms: leaf stripe and top rot. Symptoms of red stripe in Louisiana observed by the authors between 1985 and 2010 were limited to the leaf stripe form which caused no apparent yield loss. During 2010, the more severe t...

  20. Fission yield covariances for JEFF: A Bayesian Monte Carlo method

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Leray, Olivier; Rochman, Dimitri; Fleming, Michael; Sublet, Jean-Christophe; Koning, Arjan; Vasiliev, Alexander; Ferroukhi, Hakim

    2017-09-01

    The JEFF library does not contain fission yield covariances, but simply best estimates and uncertainties. This situation is not unique as all libraries are facing this deficiency, firstly due to the lack of a defined format. An alternative approach is to provide a set of random fission yields, themselves reflecting covariance information. In this work, these random files are obtained combining the information from the JEFF library (fission yields and uncertainties) and the theoretical knowledge from the GEF code. Examples of this method are presented for the main actinides together with their impacts on simple burn-up and decay heat calculations.

  1. Agriculture and Bioactives: Achieving Both Crop Yield and Phytochemicals

    PubMed Central

    García-Mier, Lina; Guevara-González, Ramón G.; Mondragón-Olguín, Víctor M.; Verduzco-Cuellar, Beatriz del Rocío; Torres-Pacheco, Irineo

    2013-01-01

    Plants are fundamental elements of the human diet, either as direct sources of nutrients or indirectly as feed for animals. During the past few years, the main goal of agriculture has been to increase yield in order to provide the food that is needed by a growing world population. As important as yield, but commonly forgotten in conventional agriculture, is to keep and, if it is possible, to increase the phytochemical content due to their health implications. Nowadays, it is necessary to go beyond this, reconciling yield and phytochemicals that, at first glance, might seem in conflict. This can be accomplished through reviewing food requirements, plant consumption with health implications, and farming methods. The aim of this work is to show how both yield and phytochemicals converge into a new vision of agricultural management in a framework of integrated agricultural practices. PMID:23429238

  2. Zinc and volatile element loss during planetary magma ocean phases

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Dhaliwal, Jasmeet K.; Day, James M. D.; Moynier, Frédéric

    2016-10-01

    Zinc is a moderately volatile element and a key tracer of volatile depletion on planetary bodies due to lack of significant isotopic fractionation under high-temperature processes. Terrestrial basalts have δ66Zn values similar to some chondrites (+ 0.15 to 0.3‰ where [{66Zn/64Znsample/66Zn/64ZnJMC-Lyon-1} × 1000]) and elevated Zn concentrations (100 ppm). Lunar mare basalts yield a mean δ66Zn value of +1.4 ± 0.5‰ and have low Zn concentrations (~2 ppm). Late-stage lunar magmatic products, such as ferroan anorthosite, Mg-suite and Alkali suite rocks exhibit heavier δ66Zn values (+3 to +6‰). The heavy δ66Zn lunar signature is thought to reflect evaporative loss and fractionation of zinc, either during a giant impact or in a magma ocean phase.We explore conditions of volatile element loss within a lunar magma ocean (LMO) using models of Zn isotopic fractionation that are widely applicable to planetary magma oceans. For the Moon, our objective was to identify conditions that would yield a δ66Zn signature of ~ +1.4‰ within the mantle, assuming a terrestrial mantle zinc starting composition.We examine two cases of zinc evaporative fractionation: (1) lunar surface zinc fractionation that was completed prior to LMO crystallization and (2) lunar surface zinc fractionation that was concurrent with LMO crystallization. The first case resulted in a homogeneous lunar mantle and the second case yielded a stratified lunar mantle, with the greatest zinc isotopic enrichment in late-stage crystallization products. This latter case reproduces the distribution of zinc isotope compositions in lunar materials quite well.We find that hydrodynamic escape was not a dominant process in losing Zn, but that erosion of a nascent lunar atmosphere, or separation of condensates into a proto-lunar crust are possible. While lunar volatile depletion is still possible as a consequence of the giant impact, this process cannot reproduce the variable δ66Zn found in the Moon. Outgassing

  3. Assessing the Habitability of TRAPPIST-1e: MHD Simulations of Atmospheric Loss Due to CMEs and Stellar Wind

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Harbach, Laura Marshall; Drake, Jeremy J.; Garraffo, Cecilia; Alvarado-Gomez, Julian D.; Moschou, Sofia P.; Cohen, Ofer

    2018-01-01

    Recently, three rocky planets were discovered in the habitable zone of the nearby planetary system TRAPPIST-1. The increasing number of exoplanet detections has led to further research into the planetary requirements for sustaining life. Habitable zone occupants have, in principle, the capacity to retain liquid water, whereas actual habitability might depend on atmospheric retention. However, stellar winds and photon radiation interactions with the planet can lead to severe atmospheric depletion and have a catastrophic impact on a planet’s habitability. While the implications of photoevaporation on atmospheric erosion have been researched to some degree, the influence of stellar winds and Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) has yet to be analyzed in detail. Here, we model the effect of the stellar wind and CMEs on the atmospheric envelope of a planet situated in the orbit of TRAPPIST-1e using 3D magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations. In particular, we discuss the atmospheric loss due to the effect of a CME, and the relevance of the stellar and planetary magnetic fields on the sustainability of M-dwarf exoplanetary atmospheres.

  4. Measurement of Scintillation and Ionization Yield and Scintillation Pulse Shape from Nuclear Recoils in Liquid Argon

    DOE PAGES

    Cao, H.

    2015-05-26

    We have measured the scintillation and ionization yield of recoiling nuclei in liquid argon as a function of applied electric field by exposing a dual-phase liquid argon time projection chamber (LAr-TPC) to a low energy pulsed narrow band neutron beam produced at the Notre Dame Institute for Structure and Nuclear Astrophysics. Liquid scintillation counters were arranged to detect and identify neutrons scattered in the TPC and to select the energy of the recoiling nuclei. We also report measurements of the scintillation yields for nuclear recoils with energies from 10.3 to 57.3 keV and for median applied electric fields from 0more » to 970 V/cm. For the ionization yields, we report measurements from 16.9 to 57.3 keV and for electric fields from 96.4 to 486 V/cm. Furthermore, we report the observation of an anticorrelation between scintillation and ionization from nuclear recoils, which is similar to the anticorrelation between scintillation and ionization from electron recoils. Assuming that the energy loss partitions into excitons and ion pairs from 83mKr internal conversion electrons is comparable to that from 207Bi conversion electrons, we obtained the numbers of excitons (N ex) and ion pairs (N i) and their ratio (N ex/N i) produced by nuclear recoils from 16.9 to 57.3 keV. Motivated by arguments suggesting direction sensitivity in LAr-TPC signals due to columnar recombination, a comparison of the light and charge yield of recoils parallel and perpendicular to the applied electric field is presented for the first time.« less

  5. Predicting successful long-term weight loss from short-term weight-loss outcomes: new insights from a dynamic energy balance model (the POUNDS Lost study)123

    PubMed Central

    Ivanescu, Andrada E; Martin, Corby K; Heymsfield, Steven B; Marshall, Kaitlyn; Bodrato, Victoria E; Williamson, Donald A; Anton, Stephen D; Sacks, Frank M; Ryan, Donna; Bray, George A

    2015-01-01

    Background: Currently, early weight-loss predictions of long-term weight-loss success rely on fixed percent-weight-loss thresholds. Objective: The objective was to develop thresholds during the first 3 mo of intervention that include the influence of age, sex, baseline weight, percent weight loss, and deviations from expected weight to predict whether a participant is likely to lose 5% or more body weight by year 1. Design: Data consisting of month 1, 2, 3, and 12 treatment weights were obtained from the 2-y Preventing Obesity Using Novel Dietary Strategies (POUNDS Lost) intervention. Logistic regression models that included covariates of age, height, sex, baseline weight, target energy intake, percent weight loss, and deviation of actual weight from expected were developed for months 1, 2, and 3 that predicted the probability of losing <5% of body weight in 1 y. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, area under the curve (AUC), and thresholds were calculated for each model. The AUC statistic quantified the ROC curve’s capacity to classify participants likely to lose <5% of their body weight at the end of 1 y. The models yielding the highest AUC were retained as optimal. For comparison with current practice, ROC curves relying solely on percent weight loss were also calculated. Results: Optimal models for months 1, 2, and 3 yielded ROC curves with AUCs of 0.68 (95% CI: 0.63, 0.74), 0.75 (95% CI: 0.71, 0.81), and 0.79 (95% CI: 0.74, 0.84), respectively. Percent weight loss alone was not better at identifying true positives than random chance (AUC ≤0.50). Conclusions: The newly derived models provide a personalized prediction of long-term success from early weight-loss variables. The predictions improve on existing fixed percent-weight-loss thresholds. Future research is needed to explore model application for informing treatment approaches during early intervention. The POUNDS Lost study was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT00072995. PMID:25733628

  6. Optimizing rice yields while minimizing yield-scaled global warming potential.

    PubMed

    Pittelkow, Cameron M; Adviento-Borbe, Maria A; van Kessel, Chris; Hill, James E; Linquist, Bruce A

    2014-05-01

    To meet growing global food demand with limited land and reduced environmental impact, agricultural greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are increasingly evaluated with respect to crop productivity, i.e., on a yield-scaled as opposed to area basis. Here, we compiled available field data on CH4 and N2 O emissions from rice production systems to test the hypothesis that in response to fertilizer nitrogen (N) addition, yield-scaled global warming potential (GWP) will be minimized at N rates that maximize yields. Within each study, yield N surplus was calculated to estimate deficit or excess N application rates with respect to the optimal N rate (defined as the N rate at which maximum yield was achieved). Relationships between yield N surplus and GHG emissions were assessed using linear and nonlinear mixed-effects models. Results indicate that yields increased in response to increasing N surplus when moving from deficit to optimal N rates. At N rates contributing to a yield N surplus, N2 O and yield-scaled N2 O emissions increased exponentially. In contrast, CH4 emissions were not impacted by N inputs. Accordingly, yield-scaled CH4 emissions decreased with N addition. Overall, yield-scaled GWP was minimized at optimal N rates, decreasing by 21% compared to treatments without N addition. These results are unique compared to aerobic cropping systems in which N2 O emissions are the primary contributor to GWP, meaning yield-scaled GWP may not necessarily decrease for aerobic crops when yields are optimized by N fertilizer addition. Balancing gains in agricultural productivity with climate change concerns, this work supports the concept that high rice yields can be achieved with minimal yield-scaled GWP through optimal N application rates. Moreover, additional improvements in N use efficiency may further reduce yield-scaled GWP, thereby strengthening the economic and environmental sustainability of rice systems. © 2013 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  7. 24 CFR 203.605 - Loss mitigation performance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2012 CFR

    2012-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2012-04-01 2012-04-01 false Loss mitigation performance. 203....605 Loss mitigation performance. (a) Duty to mitigate. Before four full monthly installments due on... mitigation techniques provided at § 203.501 to determine which is appropriate. Based upon such evaluations...

  8. 24 CFR 203.605 - Loss mitigation performance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2014 CFR

    2014-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2014-04-01 2014-04-01 false Loss mitigation performance. 203....605 Loss mitigation performance. (a) Duty to mitigate. Before four full monthly installments due on... mitigation techniques provided at § 203.501 to determine which is appropriate. Based upon such evaluations...

  9. 24 CFR 203.605 - Loss mitigation performance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2011 CFR

    2011-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2011-04-01 2011-04-01 false Loss mitigation performance. 203....605 Loss mitigation performance. (a) Duty to mitigate. Before four full monthly installments due on... mitigation techniques provided at § 203.501 to determine which is appropriate. Based upon such evaluations...

  10. 24 CFR 203.605 - Loss mitigation performance.

    Code of Federal Regulations, 2013 CFR

    2013-04-01

    ... 24 Housing and Urban Development 2 2013-04-01 2013-04-01 false Loss mitigation performance. 203....605 Loss mitigation performance. (a) Duty to mitigate. Before four full monthly installments due on... mitigation techniques provided at § 203.501 to determine which is appropriate. Based upon such evaluations...

  11. Subplots facilitate assessment of corn yield losses from weed competition in a long-term systems experiment

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Weeds can potentially limit crop yield, particularly in organic systems where herbicide technologies are unavailable. Weedy and weed-free subplots were established within full plots of a long-term cropping systems experiment, the Farming Systems Project, at Beltsville, Maryland, USA, to determine t...

  12. Economic analysis of revenue losses and control costs associated with the spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura), in the California raspberry industry.

    PubMed

    Farnsworth, Derek; Hamby, Kelly A; Bolda, Mark; Goodhue, Rachael E; Williams, Jeffrey C; Zalom, Frank G

    2017-06-01

    The spotted wing drosophila (SWD), Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura), is an invasive vinegar fly with a preference for infesting commercially viable berries and stone fruits. SWD infestations can reduce yields significantly, necessitating additional management activities. This analysis estimates economic losses in the California raspberry industry that have resulted from the SWD invasion. California raspberry producers experienced considerable revenue losses and management costs in the first years following SWD's invasion of North America. Conventional producers have since developed effective chemical management programs, virtually eliminating revenue losses due to SWD and reducing the cost of management to that of purchasing and applying insecticides more often. Organic raspberry producers, who do not have access to the same chemical controls, continue to confront substantial SWD-related revenue losses. These losses can be mitigated only by applying expensive insecticides registered for organic use and by performing labor-intensive field sanitation. SWD's invasion into North America has caused extensive crop losses to berry and cherry crops in California and elsewhere. Agricultural producers and researchers have responded quickly to this pest by developing management programs that significantly reduce revenue losses. Economic losses are expected to continue to fall as producers learn to manage SWD more efficiently and as new control tactics become available. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry. © 2016 Society of Chemical Industry.

  13. Decadal changes and delayed avian species losses due to deforestation in the northern Neotropics.

    PubMed

    Shaw, David W; Escalante, Patricia; Rappole, John H; Ramos, Mario A; Oehlenschlager, Richard J; Warner, Dwain W; Winker, Kevin

    2013-01-01

    How avifauna respond to the long-term loss and fragmentation of tropical forests is a critical issue in biodiversity management. We use data from over 30 years to gain insights into such changes in the northernmost Neotropical rainforest in the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas of southern Veracruz, Mexico. This region has been extensively deforested over the past half-century. The Estación de Biología Tropical Los Tuxtlas, of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), protects a 640 ha tract of lowland forest. It became relatively isolated from other forested tracts between 1975 and 1985, but it retains a corridor of forest to more extensive forests at higher elevations on Volcán San Martín. Most deforestation in this area occurred during the 1970s and early 1980s. Forest birds were sampled on the station and surrounding areas using mist nets during eight non-breeding seasons from 1973 to 2004 (though in some seasons netting extended into the local breeding season for some species). Our data suggested extirpations or declines in 12 species of birds subject to capture in mist nets. Six of the eight species no longer present were captured in 1992-95, but not in 2003-2004. Presence/absence data from netting and observational data suggested that another four low-density species also disappeared since sampling began. This indicates a substantial time lag between the loss of habitat and the apparent extirpation of these species. Delayed species loss and the heterogeneous nature of the species affected will be important factors in tropical forest management and conservation.

  14. Decadal changes and delayed avian species losses due to deforestation in the northern Neotropics

    PubMed Central

    Shaw, David W.; Escalante, Patricia; Rappole, John H.; Oehlenschlager, Richard J.

    2013-01-01

    How avifauna respond to the long-term loss and fragmentation of tropical forests is a critical issue in biodiversity management. We use data from over 30 years to gain insights into such changes in the northernmost Neotropical rainforest in the Sierra de Los Tuxtlas of southern Veracruz, Mexico. This region has been extensively deforested over the past half-century. The Estación de Biología Tropical Los Tuxtlas, of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), protects a 640 ha tract of lowland forest. It became relatively isolated from other forested tracts between 1975 and 1985, but it retains a corridor of forest to more extensive forests at higher elevations on Volcán San Martín. Most deforestation in this area occurred during the 1970s and early 1980s. Forest birds were sampled on the station and surrounding areas using mist nets during eight non-breeding seasons from 1973 to 2004 (though in some seasons netting extended into the local breeding season for some species). Our data suggested extirpations or declines in 12 species of birds subject to capture in mist nets. Six of the eight species no longer present were captured in 1992–95, but not in 2003–2004. Presence/absence data from netting and observational data suggested that another four low-density species also disappeared since sampling began. This indicates a substantial time lag between the loss of habitat and the apparent extirpation of these species. Delayed species loss and the heterogeneous nature of the species affected will be important factors in tropical forest management and conservation. PMID:24133637

  15. Hot spots of wheat yield decline with rising temperatures.

    PubMed

    Asseng, Senthold; Cammarano, Davide; Basso, Bruno; Chung, Uran; Alderman, Phillip D; Sonder, Kai; Reynolds, Matthew; Lobell, David B

    2017-06-01

    Many of the irrigated spring wheat regions in the world are also regions with high poverty. The impacts of temperature increase on wheat yield in regions of high poverty are uncertain. A grain yield-temperature response function combined with a quantification of model uncertainty was constructed using a multimodel ensemble from two key irrigated spring wheat areas (India and Sudan) and applied to all irrigated spring wheat regions in the world. Southern Indian and southern Pakistani wheat-growing regions with large yield reductions from increasing temperatures coincided with high poverty headcounts, indicating these areas as future food security 'hot spots'. The multimodel simulations produced a linear absolute decline of yields with increasing temperature, with uncertainty varying with reference temperature at a location. As a consequence of the linear absolute yield decline, the relative yield reductions are larger in low-yielding environments (e.g., high reference temperature areas in southern India, southern Pakistan and all Sudan wheat-growing regions) and farmers in these regions will be hit hardest by increasing temperatures. However, as absolute yield declines are about the same in low- and high-yielding regions, the contributed deficit to national production caused by increasing temperatures is higher in high-yielding environments (e.g., northern India) because these environments contribute more to national wheat production. Although Sudan could potentially grow more wheat if irrigation is available, grain yields would be low due to high reference temperatures, with future increases in temperature further limiting production. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

  16. An abattoir-based study on the prevalence and economic losses due to cystic echinococcosis in slaughtered herbivores in Ahwaz, south-western Iran.

    PubMed

    Ahmadi, N A; Meshkehkar, M

    2011-03-01

    A 10-year (1998-2008) retrospective study was carried out to investigate the prevalence and long-term trend of hydatid disease in slaughtered herbivores in the large complex abattoir of Ahwaz (the capital of Khuzestan province, south-western Iran). A total of 3,583,417 animals including 2,815,982 sheep, 427,790 goats and 339,645 cattle were inspected macroscopically for hydatid cysts in the 10-year period, and overall 155,555 (4.24%) livers and 228,172 (6.37%) lungs were condemned. Cystic echinococcosis (CE) was responsible for 36.08% and 48.04% of total liver and lung condemnations, respectively. The prevalence of pulmonary hydatid disease in sheep, goats and cattle was 2.22, 5.43 and 6.99%, respectively; on the other hand, the prevalence of hepatic hydatid disease for those animals was 1.26, 2.57 and 2.80%, respectively. Data showed an overall downward long-term trend for CE in all livestock slaughtered during the study period (P < 0.01). Lung condemnation due to CE was significantly more common than liver condemnation for each animal separately (P < 0.001). The prevalence of liver and lung hydatidosis in sheep was significantly lower than that in other livestock (P < 0.001). The prevalence of hydatid disease recovered from the sheep, cattle and goats varied in different seasons, but there was no statistical difference between various seasons. The odds ratio of lung and liver condemnations due to hydatidosis showed a slightly different pattern in some years; however, the overall declining trend was still observed. The total annual economic loss incurred due to hydatidosis in all ruminants slaughtered at Ahwaz municipal abattoir was estimated to be US$459,659.6, based on the market prices in the year 2008. This number corresponds to a loss of US$300,620.4 for cattle, US$123,490.0 for sheep and US$35,549.2 for goats. The current results provide baseline data for the future monitoring of this potentially important disease in the region, and also suggest that a

  17. Poor health as a potential risk factor for job loss due to automation: the case of Norway.

    PubMed

    Hessel, Philipp; Christiansen, Solveig; Skirbekk, Vegard

    2018-03-01

    This study aimed to quantify the extent to which health characteristics of workers are related to the potential risk of experiencing job displacement due to automation. Linking the 2015 Norwegian Statistics on Income and Living Conditions survey (n=6393) with predicted probabilities of automation by occupation, we used Kruskal-Wallis tests and multivariate generalised linear models to assess the association between long-standing illnesses and risk of job automation. Individuals with long-standing illnesses face substantially greater risks of losing their job due to automation. Whereas the average risk of job automation is 57% for men and 49% for women with long-standing illnesses, the risk is only 50% for men and 44% for women with limitations (p<0.001). Controlling for age, having a long-standing illness significantly increases the relative risk of facing job automation among men (risk ratio (RR) 1.13, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.19), as well as women (RR 1.11, 95% CI 1.05 to 1.17). While, among men, the association between long-standing illness and risk of job automation remains significant when controlling for education and income, it becomes insignificant among women. Individuals with poor health are likely to carry the highest burden of technological change in terms of worsening employment prospects because of working in occupations disproportionally more likely to be automated. Although the extent of technology-related job displacement will depend on several factors, given the far-reaching negative consequences of job loss on health and well-being, this process represents a significant challenge for public health and social equity. © Article author(s) (or their employer(s) unless otherwise stated in the text of the article) 2018. All rights reserved. No commercial use is permitted unless otherwise expressly granted.

  18. Fiber-optic photoelastic pressure sensor with fiber-loss compensation

    NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

    Beheim, G.; Anthan, D. J.

    1987-01-01

    A new fiber-optic pressure sensor is described that has high immunity to the effects of fiber-loss variations. This device uses the photoelastic effect to modulate the proportion of the light from each of two input fibers that is coupled into each of two output fibers. This four-fiber link permits two detectors to be used to measure the sensor's responses to the light from each of two independently controlled sources. These four detector outputs are processed to yield a loss-compensated signal that is a stable and sensitive pressure indicator.

  19. Full orbit computations of ripple-induced fusion {alpha}-particle losses from burning tokamak plasmas

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    McClements, K.G.

    A full orbit code is used to compute collisionless losses of fusion {alpha} particles from three proposed burning plasma tokamaks: the International Tokamak Experimental Reactor (ITER); a spherical tokamak power plant (STPP) [T. C. Hender, A. Bond, J. Edwards, P. J. Karditsas, K. G. McClements, J. Mustoe, D. V. Sherwood, G. M. Voss, and H. R. Wilson, Fusion Eng. Des. 48, 255 (2000)]; and a spherical tokamak components test facility (CTF) [H. R. Wilson, G. M. Voss, R. J. Akers, L. Appel, A. Dnestrovskij, O. Keating, T. C. Hender, M. J. Hole, G. Huysmans, A. Kirk, P. J. Knight, M.more » Loughlin, K. G. McClements, M. R. O'Brien, and D. Yu. Sychugov, Proceedings of the 20th IAEA Fusion Energy Conference, Invited Paper FT/3-1Ra]. It has been suggested that {alpha} particle transport could be enhanced due to cyclotron resonance with the toroidal magnetic field ripple. However, calculations for inductive operation in ITER yield a loss rate that appears to be broadly consistent with the predictions of guiding center theory, falling monotonically as the number of toroidal field coils N is increased (and hence the ripple amplitude is decreased). For STPP and CTF the loss rate does not decrease monotonically with N, but collisionless losses are generally low in absolute terms. As in the case of ITER, there is no evidence that finite Larmor radius effects would seriously degrade fusion {alpha}-particle confinement.« less

  20. Nitrate loss in subsurface drainage and corn yield as affected by timing of sidedress nitrogen

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    Using chlorophyll meters, crop sensors, or aerial photography to fine-tune sidedress N application rates have been proposed for optimizing and perhaps reducing overall N fertilizer use on corn (Zea mays L.) and thereby improving water quality by reducing NO3 losses to surface and ground waters. Howe...

  1. Sputtering yields of carbon based materials under high particle flux with low energy

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Nakamura, K.; Nagase, A.; Dairaku, M.; Akiba, M.; Araki, M.; Okumura, Y.

    1995-04-01

    A new ion source which can produce high particle flux beams at low energies has been developed. This paper presents preliminary results on the sputtering yield of the carbon fiber reinforced composites (CFCs) measured with the new ion source. The sputtering yields of 1D and 2D CFCs, which are candidate materials for the divertor armour tiles, have been measured by the weight loss method under the hydrogen and deuterium particle fluxes of 2 ˜ 7 × 10 20/m 2 s at 50 ˜ 150 eV. Preferential sputtering of the matrix was observed on CFCs which included the matrix of 40 ˜ 60 w%. The energy dependence of the sputtering yields was weak. The sputtering yields of CFCs normally irradiated with deuterium beam were from 0.073 to 0.095, and were around three times larger than those with hydrogen beam.

  2. Pathogen-specific effects on milk yield in repeated clinical mastitis episodes in Holstein dairy cows.

    PubMed

    Hertl, J A; Schukken, Y H; Welcome, F L; Tauer, L W; Gröhn, Y T

    2014-03-01

    The objective of this study was to estimate the effects of clinical mastitis (CM) cases due to different pathogens on milk yield in Holstein cows. The first 3 CM cases in a cow's lactation were modeled. Eight categories of pathogens were included: Streptococcus spp.; Staphylococcus aureus; coagulase-negative staphylococci (CNS); Escherichia coli; Klebsiella spp.; cases with CM signs but no bacterial growth (above the level detectable by our microbiological procedures) observed in the culture sample, and cases with contamination (≥ 3 pathogens in the sample); other pathogens that may be treated with antibiotics (included Citrobacter, Corynebacterium bovis, Enterobacter, Enterococcus, Pasteurella, Pseudomonas; "other treatable"); and other pathogens not successfully treated with antibiotics (Trueperella pyogenes, Mycoplasma, Prototheca, yeasts; "other not treatable"). Data from 38,276 lactations in cows from 5 New York State dairy herds, collected from 2003-2004 until 2011, were analyzed. Mixed models with an autoregressive correlation structure (to account for correlation among the repeated measures of milk yield within a lactation) were estimated. Primiparous (lactation 1) and multiparous (lactations 2 and 3) cows were analyzed separately, as the shapes of their lactation curves differed. Primiparas were followed for up to 48 wk of lactation and multiparas for up to 44 wk. Fixed effects included parity, calving season, week of lactation, CM (type, case number, and timing of CM in relation to milk production cycle), and other diseases (milk fever, retained placenta, metritis, ketosis, displaced abomasum). Herd was modeled as a random effect. Clinical mastitis was more common in multiparas than in primiparas. In primiparas, Streptococcus spp. occurred most frequently as the first case. In multiparas, E. coli was most common as the first case. In subsequent cases, CM cases with no specific growth or contamination were most common in both parity groups. The hazard of

  3. Yield Potential of Sugar Beet – Have We Hit the Ceiling?

    PubMed Central

    Hoffmann, Christa M.; Kenter, Christine

    2018-01-01

    The yield of sugar beet has continuously increased in the past decades. The question arises, whether this progress will continue in the future. A key factor for increasing yield potential of the crop is breeding progress. It was related to a shift in assimilate partitioning in the plant toward more storage carbohydrates (sucrose), whereas structural carbohydrates (leaves, cell wall compounds) unintendedly declined. The yield potential of sugar beet was estimated at 24 t sugar ha-1. For maximum yield, sufficient growth factors have to be available and the crop has to be able to fully utilize them. In sugar beet, limitations result from the lacking coincidence of maximum irradiation rates and full canopy cover, sink strength for carbon assimilation and high water demand, which cannot be met by rainfall alone. After harvest, sugar losses during storage occur. The paper discusses options for a further increase in yield potential, like autumn sowing of sugar beet, increasing sink strength and related constraints. It is prospected that yield increase by further widening the ratio of storage and structural carbohydrates will come to its natural limit as a certain cell wall stability is necessary. New challenges caused by climate change and by prolonged processing campaigns will occur. Thus breeding for improved pathogen resistance and storage properties will be even more important for successful sugar beet production than a further increase in yield potential itself. PMID:29599787

  4. Tribology behavior on scratch tests: Effects of yield strength

    DOE PAGES

    Feng, Biao

    2017-03-07

    In this paper, a three-dimensional (3D) scratch model is proposed to investigate the effects of yield strength of both coatings and substrates. With the help of combined Coulomb and plastic friction, the obtained results comprehensively interpret the experimental phenomena in most metals that with the growth of hardness after heat treatment the scratch friction coefficient (SFC) increases. This interpretation could not be done before. Scratch tests on the surface with or without the coating are discussed. Without the coating the SFC increases due to the decrease of the area with plastic slippage and/or the increase of friction stress during themore » increase of the yield strength in the material. With a softer substrate the friction stress decreases but the SFC increases, which is caused by the growth of the entire contact area and surface deformation. Conversely, with a stronger substrate the SFC decreases due to an intensified plastic slippage In conclusion, the obtained results pave a new way to understanding the effects of yield strength on scratch tests, interpret experimental phenomena, and should be helpful for an optimum design in experiments.« less

  5. Tribology behavior on scratch tests: Effects of yield strength

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Feng, Biao

    In this paper, a three-dimensional (3D) scratch model is proposed to investigate the effects of yield strength of both coatings and substrates. With the help of combined Coulomb and plastic friction, the obtained results comprehensively interpret the experimental phenomena in most metals that with the growth of hardness after heat treatment the scratch friction coefficient (SFC) increases. This interpretation could not be done before. Scratch tests on the surface with or without the coating are discussed. Without the coating the SFC increases due to the decrease of the area with plastic slippage and/or the increase of friction stress during themore » increase of the yield strength in the material. With a softer substrate the friction stress decreases but the SFC increases, which is caused by the growth of the entire contact area and surface deformation. Conversely, with a stronger substrate the SFC decreases due to an intensified plastic slippage In conclusion, the obtained results pave a new way to understanding the effects of yield strength on scratch tests, interpret experimental phenomena, and should be helpful for an optimum design in experiments.« less

  6. Soil Moisture Anomaly as Predictor of Crop Yield Deviation in Germany

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Peichl, Michael; Thober, Stephan; Schwarze, Reimund; Meyer, Volker; Samaniego, Luis

    2016-04-01

    Natural hazards, such as droughts, have the potential to drastically diminish crop yield in rain-fed agriculture. For example, the drought in 2003 caused direct losses of 1.5 billion EUR only in Germany (COPA-COGECA 2003). Predicting crop yields allows to economize the mitigation of risks of weather extremes. Economic approaches for quantifying agricultural impacts of natural hazards mainly rely on temperature and related concepts. For instance extreme heat over the growing season is considered as best predictor of corn yield (Auffhammer and Schlenker 2014). However, those measures are only able to provide a proxy for the available water content in the root zone that ultimately determines plant growth and eventually crop yield. The aim of this paper is to analyse whether soil moisture has a causal effect on crop yield that can be exploited in improving adaptation measures. For this purpose, reduced form fixed effect panel models are developed with yield as dependent variable for both winter wheat and silo maize crops. The explanatory variables used are soil moisture anomalies, precipitation and temperature. The latter two are included to estimate the current state of the water balance. On the contrary, soil moisture provides an integrated signal over several months. It is also the primary source of water supply for plant growth. For each crop a single model is estimated for every month within the growing period to study the variation of the effects over time. Yield data is available for Germany as a whole on the level of administrative districts from 1990 to 2010. Station data by the German Weather Service are obtained for precipitation and temperature and are aggregated to the same spatial units. Simulated soil moisture computed by the mesoscale Hydrologic Model (mHM, www.ufz.de/mhm) is transformed into Soil Moisture Index (SMI), which represents the monthly soil water quantile and hence accounts directly for the water content available to plants. The results

  7. Prevention of Adolescents' Music-Induced Hearing Loss due to Discotheque Attendance: A Delphi Study

    ERIC Educational Resources Information Center

    Vogel, I.; Brug, J.; Van der Ploeg, C. P. B.; Raat, H.

    2009-01-01

    Noise-induced hearing loss is a significant social and public health problem, which is found in increasing numbers of adolescents. Young people are particularly likely to expose themselves to potentially damaging loud sounds during leisure activities. Visiting discotheques is one of the most popular leisure activities of young people. Only a few…

  8. Estimation of soil loss by water erosion in the Chinese Loess Plateau using Universal Soil Loss Equation and GRACE

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schnitzer, S.; Seitz, F.; Eicker, A.; Güntner, A.; Wattenbach, M.; Menzel, A.

    2013-06-01

    For the estimation of soil loss by erosion in the strongly affected Chinese Loess Plateau we applied the Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE) using a number of input data sets (monthly precipitation, soil types, digital elevation model, land cover and soil conservation measures). Calculations were performed in ArcGIS and SAGA. The large-scale soil erosion in the Loess Plateau results in a strong non-hydrological mass change. In order to investigate whether the resulting mass change from USLE may be validated by the gravity field satellite mission GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment), we processed different GRACE level-2 products (ITG, GFZ and CSR). The mass variations estimated in the GRACE trend were relatively close to the observed sediment yield data of the Yellow River. However, the soil losses resulting from two USLE parameterizations were comparatively high since USLE does not consider the sediment delivery ratio. Most eroded soil stays in the study area and only a fraction is exported by the Yellow River. Thus, the resultant mass loss appears to be too small to be resolved by GRACE.

  9. Energy loss of solar p modes due to the excitation of magnetic sausage tube waves: Importance of coupling the upper atmosphere

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Gascoyne, A.; Jain, R.; Hindman, B. W., E-mail: a.d.gascoyne@sheffield.ac.uk, E-mail: r.jain@sheffield.ac.uk

    2014-07-10

    We consider damping and absorption of solar p modes due to their energy loss to magnetic tube waves that can freely carry energy out of the acoustic cavity. The coupling of p modes and sausage tube waves is studied in a model atmosphere composed of a polytropic interior above which lies an isothermal upper atmosphere. The sausage tube waves, excited by p modes, propagate along a magnetic fibril which is assumed to be a vertically aligned, stratified, thin magnetic flux tube. The deficit of p-mode energy is quantified through the damping rate, Γ, and absorption coefficient, α. The variation ofmore » Γ and α as a function of frequency and the tube's plasma properties is studied in detail. Previous similar studies have considered only a subphotospheric layer, modeled as a polytrope that has been truncated at the photosphere. Such studies have found that the resulting energy loss by the p modes is very sensitive to the upper boundary condition, which, due to the lack of an upper atmosphere, have been imposed in a somewhat ad hoc manner. The model presented here avoids such problems by using an isothermal layer to model the overlying atmosphere (chromosphere, and, consequently, allows us to analyze the propagation of p-mode-driven sausage waves above the photosphere. In this paper, we restrict our attention to frequencies below the acoustic cut off frequency. We demonstrate the importance of coupling all waves (acoustic, magnetic) in the subsurface solar atmosphere with the overlying atmosphere in order to accurately model the interaction of solar f and p modes with sausage tube waves. In calculating the absorption and damping of p modes, we find that for low frequencies, below ≈3.5 mHz, the isothermal atmosphere, for the two-region model, behaves like a stress-free boundary condition applied at the interface (z = –z{sub 0}).« less

  10. Ultra-low-loss optical fiber nanotapers.

    PubMed

    Brambilla, Gilberto; Finazzi, Vittoria; Richardson, David

    2004-05-17

    Optical fiber tapers with a waist size larger than 1microm are commonplace in telecommunications and sensor applications. However the fabrication of low-loss optical fiber tapers with subwavelength diameters was previously thought to be impractical due to difficulties associated with control of the surface roughness and diameter uniformity. In this paper we show that very-long ultra-low-loss tapers can in fact be produced using a conventional fiber taper rig incorporating a simple burner configuration. For single-mode operation, the optical losses we achieve at 1.55microm are one order of magnitude lower than losses previously reported in the literature for tapers of a similar size. SEM images confirm excellent taper uniformity. We believe that these low-loss structures should pave the way to a whole range of fiber nanodevices.

  11. Atmosphere Impact Losses

    NASA Astrophysics Data System (ADS)

    Schlichting, Hilke E.; Mukhopadhyay, Sujoy

    2018-02-01

    Determining the origin of volatiles on terrestrial planets and quantifying atmospheric loss during planet formation is crucial for understanding the history and evolution of planetary atmospheres. Using geochemical observations of noble gases and major volatiles we determine what the present day inventory of volatiles tells us about the sources, the accretion process and the early differentiation of the Earth. We further quantify the key volatile loss mechanisms and the atmospheric loss history during Earth's formation. Volatiles were accreted throughout the Earth's formation, but Earth's early accretion history was volatile poor. Although nebular Ne and possible H in the deep mantle might be a fingerprint of this early accretion, most of the mantle does not remember this signature implying that volatile loss occurred during accretion. Present day geochemistry of volatiles shows no evidence of hydrodynamic escape as the isotopic compositions of most volatiles are chondritic. This suggests that atmospheric loss generated by impacts played a major role during Earth's formation. While many of the volatiles have chondritic isotopic ratios, their relative abundances are certainly not chondritic again suggesting volatile loss tied to impacts. Geochemical evidence of atmospheric loss comes from the {}3He/{}^{22}Ne, halogen ratios (e.g., F/Cl) and low H/N ratios. In addition, the geochemical ratios indicate that most of the water could have been delivered prior to the Moon forming impact and that the Moon forming impact did not drive off the ocean. Given the importance of impacts in determining the volatile budget of the Earth we examine the contributions to atmospheric loss from both small and large impacts. We find that atmospheric mass loss due to impacts can be characterized into three different regimes: 1) Giant Impacts, that create a strong shock transversing the whole planet and that can lead to atmospheric loss globally. 2) Large enough impactors (m_{cap} ≳ √{2

  12. Identification of saline soils with multi-year remote sensing of crop yields

    DOE Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI.GOV)

    Lobell, D; Ortiz-Monasterio, I; Gurrola, F C

    2006-10-17

    Soil salinity is an important constraint to agricultural sustainability, but accurate information on its variation across agricultural regions or its impact on regional crop productivity remains sparse. We evaluated the relationships between remotely sensed wheat yields and salinity in an irrigation district in the Colorado River Delta Region. The goals of this study were to (1) document the relative importance of salinity as a constraint to regional wheat production and (2) develop techniques to accurately identify saline fields. Estimates of wheat yield from six years of Landsat data agreed well with ground-based records on individual fields (R{sup 2} = 0.65).more » Salinity measurements on 122 randomly selected fields revealed that average 0-60 cm salinity levels > 4 dS m{sup -1} reduced wheat yields, but the relative scarcity of such fields resulted in less than 1% regional yield loss attributable to salinity. Moreover, low yield was not a reliable indicator of high salinity, because many other factors contributed to yield variability in individual years. However, temporal analysis of yield images showed a significant fraction of fields exhibited consistently low yields over the six year period. A subsequent survey of 60 additional fields, half of which were consistently low yielding, revealed that this targeted subset had significantly higher salinity at 30-60 cm depth than the control group (p = 0.02). These results suggest that high subsurface salinity is associated with consistently low yields in this region, and that multi-year yield maps derived from remote sensing therefore provide an opportunity to map salinity across agricultural regions.« less

  13. Postpartum body condition score and results from the first test day milk as predictors of disease, fertility, yield, and culling in commercial dairy herds.

    PubMed

    Heuer, C; Schukken, Y H; Dobbelaar, P

    1999-02-01

    The study used field data from a regular herd health service to investigate the relationships between body condition scores or first test day milk data and disease incidence, milk yield, fertility, and culling. Path model analysis with adjustment for time at risk was applied to delineate the time sequence of events. Milk fever occurred more often in fat cows, and endometritis occurred between calving and 20 d of lactation more often in thin cows. Fat cows were less likely to conceive at first service than were cows in normal condition. Fat body condition postpartum, higher first test day milk yield, and a fat to protein ratio of > 1.5 increased body condition loss. Fat or thin condition or condition loss was not related to other lactation diseases, fertility parameters, milk yield, or culling. First test day milk yield was 1.3 kg higher after milk fever and was 7.1 kg lower after displaced abomasum. Higher first test day milk yield directly increased the risk of ovarian cyst and lameness, increased 100-d milk yield, and reduced the risk of culling and indirectly decreased reproductive performance. Cows with a fat to protein ratio of > 1.5 had higher risks for ketosis, displaced abomasum, ovarian cyst, lameness, and mastitis. Those cows produced more milk but showed poor reproductive performance. Given this type of herd health data, we concluded that the first test day milk yield and the fat to protein ratio were more reliable indicators of disease, fertility, and milk yield than was body condition score or loss of body condition score.

  14. Estimating the GIS-based soil loss and sediment delivery ratio to the sea for four major basins in South Korea.

    PubMed

    Lee, S E; Kang, S H

    2013-01-01

    This paper describes a sediment delivery ratio (SDR) using the Geographic Information System (GIS)-based Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation (RUSLE), to calculate the soil loss and sediment rating curve (SRC) basis of measured data in the six basins of Four Rivers, South Korea. The data set for calculating SDR was prepared during 3 years from 2008 to 2010. Mean soil loss in the six basins of Four Rivers was 515-869 t km(-2) yr(-1) and mean specific sediment yield (SSY) was 20-208 t km(-2) yr(-1) with basin size. The SDR ranged from 0.03 to 0.33 in the six rivers. Most sediment flows in the monsoon period from June to September (mean Max.: >97%; mean Min.: >84%), but SDR is lower than those of similar continental river basins. This is due to environmental factors, for example rainfall characteristics and associated run-off, soil characteristics and cultivated patterns with increasing basin size. This research provides the first application of SDR based on the observed field data in South Korea.

  15. Production loss among employees perceiving work environment problems.

    PubMed

    Lohela-Karlsson, Malin; Hagberg, Jan; Bergström, Gunnar

    2015-08-01

    The overall aim of this explorative study was to investigate the relationship between factors in the psychosocial work environment and work environment-related production loss. Employees at a Swedish university were invited to answer a workplace questionnaire and were selected for this study if they reported having experienced work environment-related problems in the past 7 days (n = 302). A stepwise logistic regression and a modified Poisson regression were used to identify psychosocial work factors associated with work environment-related production loss as well as to identify at what level those factors are associated with production loss. Employees who reported having experienced work environment problems but also fair leadership, good social climate, role clarity and control of decision had significantly lower levels of production loss, whereas employees who reported inequality and high decision demands reported significantly higher levels of production loss. Never or seldom experiencing fair leadership, role clarity, equality, decision demands and good social climate increase the risk of production loss due to work environment problems, compared to those who experience these circumstances frequently, always or most of the time. Several psychosocial work factors are identified as factors associated with a reduced risk of production losses among employees despite the nature of the work environment problem. Knowledge of these factors may be important not only to reduce employee ill-health and the corresponding health-related production loss, but also reduce immediate production loss due to work environment-related problems.

  16. Economic weights for genetic improvement of lactation persistency and milk yield.

    PubMed

    Togashi, K; Lin, C Y

    2009-06-01

    This study aimed to establish a criterion for measuring the relative weight of lactation persistency (the ratio of yield at 280 d in milk to peak yield) in restricted selection index for the improvement of net merit comprising 3-parity total yield and total lactation persistency. The restricted selection index was compared with selection based on first-lactation total milk yield (I(1)), the first-two-lactation total yield (I(2)), and first-three-lactation total yield (I(3)). Results show that genetic response in net merit due to selection on restricted selection index could be greater than, equal to, or less than that due to the unrestricted index depending upon the relative weight of lactation persistency and the restriction level imposed. When the relative weight of total lactation persistency is equal to the criterion, the restricted selection index is equal to the selection method compared (I(1), I(2), or I(3)). The restricted selection index yielded a greater response when the relative weight of total lactation persistency was above the criterion, but a lower response when it was below the criterion. The criterion varied depending upon the restriction level (c) imposed and the selection criteria compared. A curvilinear relationship (concave curve) exists between the criterion and the restricted level. The criterion increases as the restriction level deviates in either direction from 1.5. Without prior information of the economic weight of lactation persistency, the imposition of the restriction level of 1.5 on lactation persistency would maximize change in net merit. The procedure presented allows for simultaneous modification of multi-parity lactation curves.

  17. Specific yield: compilation of specific yields for various materials

    USGS Publications Warehouse

    Johnson, A.I.

    1967-01-01

    Specific yield is defined as the ratio of (1) the volume of water that a saturated rock or soil will yield by gravity to (2) the total volume of the rock or soft. Specific yield is usually expressed as a percentage. The value is not definitive, because the quantity of water that will drain by gravity depends on variables such as duration of drainage, temperature, mineral composition of the water, and various physical characteristics of the rock or soil under consideration. Values of specific yields nevertheless offer a convenient means by which hydrologists can estimate the water-yielding capacities of earth materials and, as such, are very useful in hydrologic studies. The present report consists mostly of direct or modified quotations from many selected reports that present and evaluate methods for determining specific yield, limitations of those methods, and results of the determinations made on a wide variety of rock and soil materials. Although no particular values are recommended in this report, a table summarizes values of specific yield, and their averages, determined for 10 rock textures. The following is an abstract of the table. [Table

  18. Adsorptive loss of secreted recombinant proteins in transgenic rice cell suspension cultures.

    PubMed

    Kwon, Jun-Young; Lee, Kyoung-Hoon; Cheon, Su-Hwan; Ryu, Hyun-Nam; Kim, Sun Jin; Kim, Dong-Il

    2012-03-01

    Adsorptive loss of human cytotoxic T-lymphocyte antigen 4-immunoglobulin (hCTLA4Ig) in transgenic rice cell suspension cultures was investigated using glass flasks, plastic flasks, disposable vessels, and stainless steel vessels. When hCTLA4Ig was added to the glass flasks containing sterile AA medium, a rapid decrease in the concentration of hCTLA4Ig, independent on pH, was observed resulting in more than 90% of the protein loss within 1 h due to the surface adsorption. When the same experiments were performed on four different types of culture equipments mentioned above, the lowest adsorption level was observed in the plastic flasks and the highest level was observed in the glass flasks. The use of the plastic flasks retarded the adsorptive loss of hCTLA4Ig at the early stage of the protein production. There was a significant increase in the production of hCTLA4Ig when the flasks were coated with bovine serum albumin. However, the spike test of purified hCTLA4Ig at two different concentrations of 15 and 100 mg L(-1) in 500-mL spinner flasks confirmed that the amount of hCTLA4Ig adsorbed was dependent on the surface area of the flasks but not on the concentrations. In conclusion, although the protein adsorption affected the total amount of the protein yielded to some extent, it could be regarded as a minor factor in transgenic plant cell cultures with higher titer.

  19. The Safe Yield and Climatic Variability: Implications for Groundwater Management.

    PubMed

    Loáiciga, Hugo A

    2017-05-01

    Methods for calculating the safe yield are evaluated in this paper using a high-quality and long historical data set of groundwater recharge, discharge, extraction, and precipitation in a karst aquifer. Consideration is given to the role that climatic variability has on the determination of a climatically representative period with which to evaluate the safe yield. The methods employed to estimate the safe yield are consistent with its definition as a long-term average extraction rate that avoids adverse impacts on groundwater. The safe yield is a useful baseline for groundwater planning; yet, it is herein shown that it is not an operational rule that works well under all climatic conditions. This paper shows that due to the nature of dynamic groundwater processes it may be most appropriate to use an adaptive groundwater management strategy that links groundwater extraction rates to groundwater discharge rates, thus achieving a safe yield that represents an estimated long-term sustainable yield. An example of the calculation of the safe yield of the Edwards Aquifer (Texas) demonstrates that it is about one-half of the average annual recharge. © 2016, National Ground Water Association.

  20. Yield and yield gaps in central U.S. corn production systems

    USDA-ARS?s Scientific Manuscript database

    The magnitude of yield gaps (YG) (potential yield – farmer yield) provides some indication of the prospects for increasing crop yield. Quantile regression analysis was applied to county maize (Zea mays L.) yields (1972 – 2011) from Kentucky, Iowa and Nebraska (irrigated) (total of 115 counties) to e...

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