Implementation of an Automated Image Processing System for Observing the Activities of Honey Bees

This research designed and implemented an automated system to collect data on honey bees using computer science techniques. This system utilizes image processing techniques to extract data from the videos taken in front or at the top of the hive’s entrance. Several web-based applications are used to obtain temperature and humidity data from National weather Service to supplement the data that are collected at the hive locally. All the weather data and those extracted from the images are stored in a MySQL database for analysis and accessed by an iPhone App that is designed as part of this research

Decision Support System for Urbanization of the Northern Part of the Volga-Akhtuba Floodplain (Russia) on the Basis of Interdisciplinary Computer Modeling

There is a computer decision support system (CDSS) for urbanization of the northern part of the Volga-Akhtuba floodplain. This system includes subsystems of cognitive and game-theoretic analysis, geoinformation and hydrodynamic simulations. The paper presents the cognitive graph, two-level and three-level models of hierarchical games for the cases of uncontrolled and controlled development of the problem situation. We described the quantitative analysis of the effects of different strategies for the spatial distribution of the urbanized territories. For this reason we conducted the territory zoning according to the level of negative consequences of urbanization for various agents. In addition, we found an analytical solution for games with the linear dependence of the average flooded area on the urbanized area. We numerically computed a game equilibrium for dependences derived from the imitational geoinformation and hydrodynamic modeling of flooding. As the result, we showed that the transition to the three-level management system and the implementation of an optimal urbanization strategy minimize its negative consequences.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figures; Conference: Creativity in Intelligent Technologies and Data Science. CIT&DS 201

Persepsi dan Partisipasi Masyarakat dalam Kegiatan Rehabilitasi Hutan dan Lahan di Kabupaten Bogor

Kebun bibit rakyat (KBR) a program of the Ministry of Forestry to provide that is by planting the forest with forest trees and multipurpose trees spcies (MPTS) Corps who held in self management system by society groups, especially in rural areas. Result seeds kebun bibit rakyat used to rehabilitate of forest and land critical and activities greening activities.The purpose of this research is to find out perception, participation and involvement of the community in the rehabilitation of forest and land areas through the creation kebun bibit rakyat to the implementation and sustainable, independently knowing internal and external factors that influence the perception and participation knowing relation characteristic of farmers with perception and public participation in the activities of KBR.The Results of research conducted at the location of KBR in District Pamijahan Regency Bogor average respondent\u27s perception of the four villages of development activities in the category KBR agreed by 53.15%. The level of participation of the majority of participants KBR in program planning activities is high ie 51.84% (63 respondents), the implementation phase has an average score of participants included in the category of participation high at 66.33% (63 respondents). Public Participation in the activities of participants in the District Pamijahan KBR is high at 70.58%, in the three study areas, namely in Cibitung Kulon village by 63.27%, amounting to 93.33% Ciasmara, Cibunian by 100.00%. In areas classified as Medium Pamijahan of 54.29% (25.71% is high only)

Rastrelliger systematics inferred from mitochondrial cytochrome b sequences

The fish genus Rastrelliger is composed of three morphologically recognized species; Rastrelliger kanagurta, Rastrelliger brachysoma and Rastrelliger faughni. In this study, cytochrome b gene sequencing was applied to address the systematics and phylogenetic relationships of these species. In agreement with previous morphological data, the results corroborate monophyletic discrimination between all the species. However, inconsistent bootstrap support (< 50 to 88%) between R. kanagurta and R. brachysoma was observed indicating limited divergence between these two species. R. faughni is recognized as the most basal species for this genus with high statistical support (99 and 100%). Diversification of Rastrelliger might have happen in two epochs, Miocene and early Pleistocene

Perfluorophenyl azide functionalization of electrospun poly(para‐dioxanone)

Strategies to surface‐functionalize scaffolds by covalent binding of biologically active compounds are of fundamental interest to control the interactions between scaffolds and biomolecules or cells. Poly(para‐dioxanone) (PPDO) is a clinically established polymer that has shown potential as temporary implant, eg, for the reconstruction of the inferior vena cava, as a nonwoven fiber mesh. However, PPDO lacks suitable chemical groups for covalent functionalization. Furthermore, PPDO is highly sensitive to hydrolysis, reflected by short in vivo half‐life times and degradation during storage. Establishing a method for covalent functionalization without degradation of this hydrolyzable polymer is therefore important to enable the surface tailoring for tissue engineering applications. It was hypothesized that treatment of PPDO with an N‐hydroxysuccinimide ester group bearing perfluorophenyl azide (PFPA) under UV irradiation would allow efficient surface functionalization of the scaffold. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy and attenuated total reflectance Fourier‐transformed infrared spectroscopy investigation revealed the successful binding, while a gel permeation chromatography study showed that degradation did not occur under these conditions. Coupling of a rhodamine dye to the N‐hydroxysuccinimide esters on the surface of a PFPA‐functionalized scaffold via its amine linker showed a homogenous staining of the PPDO in laser confocal microscopy. The PFPA method is therefore applicable even to the surface functionalization of hydrolytically labile polymers, and it was demonstrated that PFPA chemistry may serve as a versatile tool for the (bio‐)functionalization of PPDO scaffolds

PERSEPSI DAN PARTISIPASI MASYARAKAT DALAM KEGIATAN REHABILITASI HUTAN DAN LAHAN DI KABUPATEN BOGOR

  Kebun bibit rakyat (KBR) a program of the Ministry of Forestry to provide that is by planting the forest with forest trees and multipurpose trees spcies (MPTS) Corps who held in self management system by society groups, especially in rural areas. Result seeds kebun bibit rakyat used to rehabilitate of forest and land critical and activities greening activities.The purpose of this research is to find out perception, participation and involvement of the community in the rehabilitation of forest and land areas through the creation kebun bibit rakyat to the implementation and sustainable, independently knowing internal and external factors that influence the perception and participation knowing relation characteristic of farmers with perception and public participation in the activities of KBR.The Results of research conducted at the location of KBR in District Pamijahan Regency Bogor average respondent's perception of the four villages of development activities in the category KBR agreed by 53.15%. The level of participation of the majority of participants KBR in program planning activities is high ie 51.84% (63 respondents), the implementation phase has an average score of participants included in the category of participation high at 66.33% (63 respondents). Public Participation in the activities of participants in the District Pamijahan KBR is high at 70.58%, in the three study areas, namely in Cibitung Kulon village by 63.27%, amounting to 93.33% Ciasmara, Cibunian by 100.00%. In areas classified as Medium Pamijahan of 54.29% (25.71% is high only)

Functionalizable coaxial PLLA/PDLA nanofibers with stereocomplexes at the internal interface

Multifunctionality of electrospun polylactic acid (PLA) nonwovens was generated by the morphological design of nanofibers. Coaxial fibers with a lower number average molar mass Mn PLLA core and a higher Mn PDLA shell form PDLA–PLLA stereocrystals at the interface, induced by annealing. In tensile tests under physiological conditions, the core–shell fibers with higher crystallinity (22% compared to 11–14%) had lower Young’s moduli E (9 ± 1 MPa) and lower elongation at break εb (26 ± 3%) than PDLA alone (E = 31 ± 9 MPa, εb = 80 ± 5%), which can be attributed to simultaneous crystallization and relaxation effects. Gelatin incorporated in the PDLA phase was presented on the outer surface providing a biointerface putatively favorable for cell adherence. Gelatin incorporation did not influence the crystallization behavior but slightly lowered Tg (60 → 54 °C). Employing exclusively polymers established in the clinic, multifunctionality was generated by design

The experiences of Black students in high school credit recovery programs

Credit recovery programs utilize an asynchronous online learning platform that is designed for students who are repeating a course they failed in a traditional classroom setting. Although there is a limited body of literature on credit recovery programs, credit recovery is increasingly being used in districts across the country to meet the needs of students who lack the required number of credits to graduate (Viano, 2018). The credit recovery programs researched in this study are designed for students to demonstrate that they have mastered sufficient content in a course in order to earn graduation credit. This instructional approach allowed students to work through course content at their own pace and enabled them to earn course credit in a reduced period of time. In this qualitative study, I capture the experiences of Black students enrolled in credit recovery programs. I sought to answer the following research questions: (a) What are Black students’ experiences in credit recovery programs? (b) To what do participating students attribute their success? (c) What barriers discourage students’ efforts to complete credit recovery courses? The theoretical framework for the study was built on the foundation of Critical Race Theory (CRT) (Delgado & Stefancic, 2012). In conducting this study, I relied on in-depth interviews and lab observations as my primary data collection methods. The reader is afforded the opportunity to view credit recovery through the lens of my study participants, all of whom were Black high school students who were at least 18 years old and enrolled in at least one credit recovery course. My study findings reveal that the participants experienced academic challenges in the past but still want to succeed. I also found that students felt more accountable for their own learning in credit recovery settings. They reported performing better in the focused learning environments that the credit recovery labs provide. However, I also found that lab facilitators played limited rather than active roles in guiding individual student learning. Participants acknowledged that they were motivated by having an opportunity to meet their ultimate goal of graduating. Importantly though, the findings from my study revealed that students may develop computer fatigue and become bored and isolated while in credit recovery programs. These significant barriers can discourage participants’ efforts in completing their credit recovery course. The findings of my study led me to question the instructional strategies that are being utilized in traditional classrooms and whether credit recovery is an effective learning solution for Black students who previously failed in the traditional setting. I concluded that credit recovery is not ideal but is better than not having anything at all. In the end, all stakeholders should collectively work to ensure that the proper support follows this sub-group of students, so they can achieve their highest potential and reduce the drop-out rate of Black students across America

RGD constructs with physical anchor groups as polymer co-electrospinnable cell adhesives

The tissue integration of synthetic polymers can be promoted by displaying RGD peptides at the biointerface with the objective of enhancing colonization of the material by endogenous cells. A firm but flexible attachment of the peptide to the polymer matrix, still allowing interaction with receptors, is therefore of interest. Here, the covalent coupling of flexible physical anchor groups, allowing for temporary immobilization on polymeric surfaces via hydrophobic or dipole–dipole interactions, to a RGD peptide was investigated. For this purpose, a stearate or an oligo(ethylene glycol) (OEG) was attached to GRGDS in 51–69% yield. The obtained RGD linker constructs were characterized by NMR, IR and MALDI-ToF mass spectrometry, revealing that the commercially available OEG and stearate linkers are in fact mixtures of similar compounds. The RGD linker constructs were co-electrospun with poly(p-dioxanone) (PPDO). After electrospinning, nitrogen could be detected on the surface of the PPDO fibers by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The nitrogen content exceeded the calculated value for the homogeneous material mixture suggesting a pronounced presentation of the peptide on the fiber surface. Increasing amounts of RGD linker constructs in the electrospinning solution did not lead to a detection of an increased amount of peptide on the scaffold surface, suggesting inhomogeneous distribution of the peptide on the PPDO fiber surface. Human adipose-derived stem cells cultured on the patches showed similar viability as when cultured on PPDO containing pristine RGD. The fully characterized RGD linker constructs could serve as valuable tools for the further development of tissue-integrating polymeric scaffolds