Application of feature selection for predicting leaf chlorophyll content in oats (Avena sativa L.) from hyperspectral imagery

Feature selection can improve predictions generated by partial least squares models. In the context of hyperspectral imaging, it can also enable the development of affordable devices with specialized applications. The feasibility of feature selection for oat leaf chlorophyll estimation from hyperspectral imagery was assessed using a public domain dataset. A wrapper approach resulted in a simplistic model with poor predictive performance. The number of model inputs decreased from 94 to 3 bands when a filter approach based on the minimum redundancy, maximum relevance criterion was attempted. The filtering led to improved prediction quality, with the root mean square error decreasing from 0.17 to 0.16 g m-2 and R 2 increasing from 0.57 to 0.62. Accurate predictions were obtained especially for low chlorophyll levels. The obtained model estimated leaf chlorophyll concentration from near infra-red reflectance, canopy darkness, and its blueness. The prediction robustness needs to be investigated, which can be done by employing an ensemble methodology and testing the model on a new dataset with improved ground-truth measurements and additional crop species

The legend of Shirin in Syriac sources. A warning against caesaropapism?

The article seeks an answer for several questions, as: Why was Syriac Christianity not an imperial Church? Why did it not enter into a relationship with the authorities? It might be explained by pointing to the political situation of the Syriac Chrstianas community under the reign of the Persian king Chosroes II Parviz.The article seeks an answer for several questions, as: Why was Syriac Christianity not an imperial Church? Why did it not enter into a relationship with the authorities? It might be explained by pointing to the political situation of the Syriac Chrstianas community under the reign of the Persian king Chosroes II Parviz

The tradition of St. Thomas’ mission to India in the light of Patristic sources

The Church tradition calls the followers of Christ in India Saint Thomas Christians. Where does this designation come from and why is it connected with the name of one of the Apostles of Christ? Taking into account the extant records, it seems that the appearance of Christ’s disciples in India was formerly associated with another Apostle, St. Bartholomew. According to Ecclesiastical History written by Eusebius of Caesarea, the hypothetical founder of the Catechetical School of Alexandria, Pantaenus, travelled to India in the middle of the 2nd century.The Church tradition calls the followers of Christ in India Saint Thomas Christians. Where does this designation come from and why is it connected with the name of one of the Apostles of Christ? Taking into account the extant records, it seems that the appearance of Christ’s disciples in India was formerly associated with another Apostle, St. Bartholomew. According to Ecclesiastical History written by Eusebius of Caesarea, the hypothetical founder of the Catechetical School of Alexandria, Pantaenus, travelled to India in the middle of the 2nd century

The mystery in the community. Isaac of Nineveh and his instructions

When in one of the scenes in “The Karamazov Brothers” by F. Dostoevsky, the works of the mystic Isaac appear on the table, only few readers are aware that the history of Christianity has come full circle. The author from the Assyrian Eastern Church, recognised by his contemporary Church in Constantinople as a heretic, a Nestorian, becomes the moral and spiritual authority for the Orthodox clergyman. Is the mystic or a heretic? The history of Isaac’s texts, which made their way to the Orthodox Church through the anchor of orthodoxy – the community of the Mount Athos, is even stranger.When in one of the scenes in “The Karamazov Brothers” by F. Dostoevsky, the works of the mystic Isaac appear on the table, only few readers are aware that the history of Christianity has come full circle. The author from the Assyrian Eastern Church, recognised by his contemporary Church in Constantinople as a heretic, a Nestorian, becomes the moral and spiritual authority for the Orthodox clergyman. Is the mystic or a heretic? The history of Isaac’s texts, which made their way to the Orthodox Church through the anchor of orthodoxy – the community of the Mount Athos, is even stranger

TFP spillover effects via trade and FDI channels

As a consequence of globalisation, economic growth and productivity have become more sensitive to developments beyond national frontiers. This paper explores trade (import and export) and foreign direct investment (FDI) as channels of international total factor productivity (TFP) spillovers. FDI and trade are potentially important sources of productivity growth; however, empirical literature is inconclusive as to the nature and extent of spillovers and does not simultaneously cover all three channels. Our main goal is to examine the transmission of TFP spillover effects jointly through trade and FDI channels in 41 countries (members of the EU and OECD) during the period 1995–2014. We use dynamic panel estimation strategies. The main findings are: 1) Each of the spillover channels of TFP is significant for TFP when studied separately; 2) Joint examination of all channels allows for concluding that the export channel is the dominant one

Determinants of seasonal changes in streamwater chemistry in small catchments with different land use : case study from Poland's Carpathian Foothills

Our paper aims at identifying factors that determine seasonal changes in streamwater chemistry in three catchments with different land use (woodland, agricultural, mixed-use) in the Carpathian Foothills in southern Poland. The study involved weekly and biweekly water sampling in the 2003 and 2004 hydrological years and the analysis of specific conductivity (SC), pH, main ions, and nutrients. R-mode factor analysis was used to identify four factors: (i) streamflow, (ii) climate seasonality, (iii) water circulation, and (iv) nitrification processes. Despite the fact that the same environmental factors were identified in all three catchments, some factors produce a different type of ion response in different types of catchments. The streamflow factor produces the same changes in geologically controlled parameters (SC, main ions) in all catchments but different changes in nutrient concentrations in the woodland and agricultural catchments. In the woodland catchment, nutrients come primarily from diffuse sources (soil flushing), while in the agricultural catchment, nutrients come primarily from point sources (sewage) as result of unregulated wastewater management. The climate factor primarily controls the concentrations of nutrients. High temperatures during the vegetation season usually correlate with increases in nutrient concentrations, especially that of PO^{3-}_{4}. This atypical phenomenon is seldom reported in the literature, especially in relation to woodland catchments. The third factor is associated with water circulation in the catchment under different hydrological conditions – during flood events and during low-flow periods. The fourth factor is most likely associated with nitrification processes

Hypsometric factors for differences in chemical composition of Tatra National Park spring waters

The aim of this study was to verify a hypothesis about the differences in chemical composition of spring waters as determined by hypsometric factors (relief) in the Tatra Mountains. During our research, 1,505 hydrological objects were inventoried, but this research was conducted on 872 selected outflows (swamps and springs). Temperature, conductivity, and pH were measured together with discharge in the field. A 0.5 dm3 water sample was taken from each hydrological object. The chemical composition was determined by ion chromatography. The role of hypsometric factors in the formation of chemical composition of spring waters is reflected throughout the TNP as a systematic reduction of the importance of two major hydrochemical classes of spring waters (HCO3-Ca, HCO3-Ca-Mg) in favor of waters containing a large share of SO4 2-. The lower and ridge parts of the mountains are characterized by low hydrochemical diversity for the entire Tatra range