µG2-ELM: an upgraded implementation of µ G-ELM

µG-ELM is a multiobjective evolutionary algorithm which looks for the best (in terms of the MSE) and most compact artificial neural network using the ELM methodology. In this work we present the µG2-ELM, an upgraded version of µG-ELM, previously presented by the authors. The upgrading is based on three key elements: a specifically designed approach for the initialization of the weights of the initial artificial neural networks, the introduction of a re-sowing process when selecting the population to be evolved and a change of the process used to modify the weights of the artificial neural networks. To test our proposal we consider several state-of-the-art Extreme Learning Machine (ELM) algorithms and we confront them using a wide and well-known set of continuous, regression and classification problems. From the conducted experiments it is proved that the µG2-ELM shows a better general performance than the previous version and also than other competitors. Therefore, we can guess that the combination of evolutionary algorithms with the ELM methodology is a promising subject of study since both together allow for the design of better training algorithms for artificial neural networks

Dry cured low-fat rabbit sausage: A much healthier disruptive food that enhances rabbit meat consumption

The main objective of this research was to develop a fuet from rabbit meat with reduced fat and salt content to encourage rabbit consumption and to find out consumer preference for this innovative food compared to retail fuet. Two products were designed: F5, containing fat and F4, where fatty tissue was substituted by konjac gum. In both, salt was partially substituted by KCl. These products, in comparison to commercial ones (pork, chicken and turkey), showed a reduction of at least 40% in the total energy value while protein raised on average 57.81% because of the lower fat content of rabbit and konjac gum use. In addition, there was a decrease in the salt content of approximately 19.50%. The above represents a huge competitive advantage for these new products from a nutritional point of view. The rabbit fuets were characterised by a spicy taste, slightly sour smell, and succulence, lower than in commercial fuets. It could be concluded that the rabbit fuet had a higher protein and lower fat and salt content than commercial fuets. However, they were less juicy and less succulent and therefore consumers preferred the commercial ones. The use of konjac gum does not seem to have any effect on this type of cured product

Co-digestion of mixed sewage sludge and fruit and vegetables wastes effect of different mixtures on biogas yield

Disposal of fruit and vegetable wastes (FVWs) in landfill site cause serious environmental issues such as contamination of soil, air and ground water. These wastes contain large quantities of biodegradable organic fractions, with high moisture that facilitates their biological treatment. One of the best alternatives to landfill disposal of these wastes is the anaerobic digestion. Therefore, it is one of the most widespread stabilization processes of the sludge in municipal wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). Introduction of FVW in WWTP and co-digestion with mixed sludge (MS) could enhance biogas production and plant economic feasibility. A lab-scale experiment for the anaerobic co-digestion of FVW and municipal mixed sludge under mesophilic condition and 20 days hydraulic retention time is investigated. Initially the digester was fed with mixed sludge (MS) from wastewater treatment plants with an average organic loading rate (OLR) of 0.63 (g L–1 d–1). The co-digestion of mixed sludge and FVW was performed at various organic loading ratios (OLRs), between 0.63 and 5.5 (g L–1 d–1). The experimental specific biogas and methane productions are 0.656 L g–1 and 0.340 L g–1 respectively. Alkalinity and pH remains relatively constant regardless the introduction of different proportions of FVW in the mixture. Co-digestion, compared with the digestion of MS as single substrate, improves the biogas and methane production.Universidad de Málaga. Campus de Excelencia Internacional Andalucía Tech

The LEPR gene is associated with reproductive seasonality traits in Rasa Aragonesa sheep

The aim of this study was to characterize and identify causative polymorphisms in the leptin receptor (LEPR) gene responsible for the seasonal variation of reproductive traits in sheep. Three reproductive seasonality traits were studied: the total days of anoestrous (TDA), the progesterone cycling months (P4CM) and the oestrous cycling months (OCM). In total, 18 SNPs were detected in 33 ewes with extreme values for TDA and OCM. Six SNPs were non-synonymous substitutions and two of them were predicted in silico as deleterious: rs596133197 and rs403578195. These polymorphisms were then validated in 239 ewes. The SNP rs403578195, located in exon 8 and leading to a change of alanine to glycine (Ala284Gly) in the extracellular domain of the protein, was associated with the OCM trait, being the G allele associated with a decrease of 12 percent of the OCM trait. Haplotype analyses also suggested the involvement of other non-synonymous SNP located in exon 20 (rs405459906). This SNP also produces an amino acid change (Lys1069Glu) in the intracellular domain of the protein and segregates independently of rs403578195. These results confirm for the first time the role of the LEPR gene in sheep reproductive seasonality

A general theorem on angular-momentum changes due to potential vorticity mixing and on potential-energy changes due to buoyancy mixing

An initial zonally symmetric quasigeostrophic potential-vorticity (PV) distribution q_i(y) is subjected to complete or partial mixing within some finite zone |y| < L, where y is latitude. The change in M, the total absolute angular momentum, between the initial and any later time is considered. For standard quasigeostrophic shallow-water beta-channel dynamics it is proved that, for any q_i(y) such that dq_i/dy > 0 throughout |y| < L, the change in M is always negative. This theorem holds even when "mixing" is understood in the most general possible sense. Arbitrary stirring or advective rearrangement is included, combined to an arbitrary extent with spatially inhomogeneous diffusion. The theorem holds whether or not the PV distribution is zonally symmetric at the later time. The same theorem governs Boussinesq potential-energy changes due to buoyancy mixing in the vertical. For the standard quasigeostrophic beta-channel dynamics to be valid the Rossby deformation length L_D >> \epsilon L where \epsilon is the Rossby number; when L_D = \infty the theorem applies not only to the beta-channel, but also to a single barotropic layer on the full sphere, as considered in the recent work of Dunkerton and Scott on "PV staircases". It follows that the M-conserving PV reconfigurations studied by those authors must involve processes describable as PV unmixing, or anti-diffusion, in the sense of time-reversed diffusion. Ordinary jet self-sharpening and jet-core acceleration do not, by contrast, require unmixing, as is shown here by detailed analysis. Mixing in the jet flanks suffices. The theorem extends to multiple layers and continuous stratification. A corollary is a new nonlinear stability theorem for shear flows.Comment: 14 pages, 4 figures; Final version, accepted by J. Atmos. Sci, in pres

SNP rs403212791 in exon 2 of the MTNR1A gene is associated with reproductive seasonality in the Rasa aragonesa sheep breed

The aim of this study was to characterize and identify causative SNPs in the MTNR1A gene responsible for the reproductive seasonality traits in the Rasa aragonesa sheep breed. A total of 290 ewes (155, 84 and 51 mature, young and ewe lambs, respectively) from one flock were controlled from January to August. The following three reproductive seasonality traits were considered: the total days of anoestrus (TDA) and the progesterone cycling months (P4CM); both ovarian function seasonality traits based on blood progesterone levels; and the oestrus cycling months (OCM) based on oestrous detection, which indicate behavioural signs of oestrous. We have sequenced the total coding region plus 733 and 251 bp from the promoter and 3'-UTR regions, respectively, from the gene in 268 ewes. We found 9 and 4 SNPs associated with seasonality traits in the promoter (for TDA and P4CM) and exon 2 (for the three traits), respectively. The SNPs located in the gene promoter modify the putative binding sites for various trans-acting factors. In exon 2, two synonymous SNPs affect RFLP sites, rs406779174/RsaI (for the three traits) and rs430181568/MnlI (for OCM), and they have been related with seasonal reproductive activity in previous association studies with other breeds. SNP rs400830807, which is located in the 3'-UTR, was associated with the three traits, but this did not modify the putative target sites for ovine miRNAs according to in silico predictions. Finally, the SNP rs403212791 (NW_014639035.1: g.15099004G > A), which is also associated with the three seasonality phenotypes, was the most significant SNP detected in this study and was a non-synonymous polymorphism, leading a change from an Arginine to a Cysteine (R336C). Haplotype analyses confirmed the association results and showed that the effects found for the seasonality traits were caused by the SNPs located in exon 2. We have demonstrated that the T allele in the SNP rs403212791 in the MNTR1A gene is associated with a lower TDA and higher P4CM and OCM values in the Rasa Aragonesa breed

Regio- and stereo-selectivity in the intramolecular quenching of the excited benzoylthiophene chromophore by tryptophan

Laser flash photolysis studies on the photobehaviour of a series of bichromophoric derivatives bearing benzoylthiophene and tryptophan groups have shown that the efficiency of the intramolecular quenching process depends on both the stereochemistry of the chiral centers and the relative ketone versus tryptophan orientation.Perez Prieto, Julia, [email protected]

Mixed-Valence Tetrametallic Iridium Chains

Neutral [X−{Ir2}−{Ir2}−X] (X=Cl, Br, SCN, I) and dicationic [L−{Ir2}−{Ir2}−L]2+ (L=MeCN, Me2CO) tetrametallic iridium chains made by connecting two dinuclear {Ir2} units ({Ir2}=[Ir2(μ‐OPy)2(CO)4], OPy=2‐pyridonate) by an iridium–iridium bond are described. The complexes exhibit fractional averaged oxidation states of +1.5 and electronic delocalization along the metallic chain. While the axial ligands do not significantly affect the metal–metal bond lengths, the metallic chain has a significant impact on the iridium–L/X bond distances. The complexes show free rotation around the unsupported iridium‐iridium bond in solution, with a low‐energy transition state for the chloride chain. The absorption spectra of these complexes show characteristic bands at 438–504 nm, which can be fine‐tuned by varying the terminal capping ligands