Some analytical quality characteristics for evaluating the utilization and consumption of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) tubers

Potato tubers were widely evaluated as a source of carbohydrates, protein, minerals and vitamins for the human diet. In view of the importance of consumer’s preferred potato types in use and consumption, the purpose of this research was to determine the physical and chemical quality of potato tubers and identify the best forms of use and consumption. The experiment was designed in randomized block design with three replications under field conditions in Ahlat district of Eastern Anatolia region of Turkey, in 2007 and 2008. The physical quality aspects represented by tuber width, tuber length, tuber shape, tuber calibration, specific gravity and water content and the some chemical quality characteristics represented by crude protein, starch content and mineral elements were influenced by cultivar. In this study, the highest starch content and specific gravity obtained from Melody and Lady Olympia, whilst the lowest protein content obtained from Pasinler 92 and Caspar. Tubers of cultivars Melody, Pasinler 92 and Lady Olympia were outstanding with best characteristics for industrial processing. Lady Olympia and Melody were suitable for frying, cooking and roasting. Tubers of Pasinler 92, Caspar, Lady Christl, Granola, Van Gogh and Marfona were appropriate suitable for boiling and more specifically for salads. However, this study demonstrated the wide variability of health-promoting micronutrient levels within the potato cultivars as well as the significant contribution that distinct potato tubers may impart to the intake in dietary iron and zinc.Key words: Potato, cultivar, starch content, minerals, iron, zinc

Performance of phosphate solubilizing bacteria for improving growth and yield of sunflower (Helianthus annuusL.) in the presence of phosphorus fertilizer

The ability of phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB) to convert insoluble forms of phosphorus to an accessible form is an important trait in sustainable farming for increasing plant yields. The beneficial effects of PSB on crop productivity have been widely described, but the use of PSB as biofertilizer is scarcely documented in sunflower. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of application of PSB, Bacillus M-13, with and without varying amounts of phosphorus (P) fertilizer on growth andyield of sunflower under field conditions. The PSB application was able to mobilize P efficiently in the sunflower and improved seed quality and oil yield. It also enhanced the head diameter, 1000 seed weight, kernel ratio and oil content and led to seed and oil yield increases of 15.0 and 24.7% over no application, respectively. However, when PSB was used in conjunction with P fertilizers, a much greater effect was observed. It was found that the highest seed yield of sunflower possible with 100 kgP2O5 ha-1 fertilizer was achieved with about 50 kg P2O5 ha-1 when used in conjunction with PSB. But the important effect of PSB on oil yield was noted at 100 kg P2O5 ha-1, possibly indicating increased PSB activity in the rhizosphere following PSB application and consequently by enhanced P solubilization as evidenced by the higher levels of P content of seed

Accelerated search and design of stretchable graphene kirigami using machine learning

Making kirigami-inspired cuts into a sheet has been shown to be an effective way of designing stretchable materials with metamorphic properties where the 2D shape can transform into complex 3D shapes. However, finding the optimal solutions is not straightforward as the number of possible cutting patterns grows exponentially with system size. Here, we report on how machine learning (ML) can be used to approximate the target properties, such as yield stress and yield strain, as a function of cutting pattern. Our approach enables the rapid discovery of kirigami designs that yield extreme stretchability as verified by molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. We find that convolutional neural networks, commonly used for classification in vision tasks, can be applied for regression to achieve an accuracy close to the precision of the MD simulations. This approach can then be used to search for optimal designs that maximize elastic stretchability with only 1000 training samples in a large design space of ∼4×106 candidate designs. This example demonstrates the power and potential of ML in finding optimal kirigami designs at a fraction of iterations that would be required of a purely MD or experiment-based approach, where no prior knowledge of the governing physics is known or available.P. Z. H. developed the codes, performed the simulations and data analysis, and wrote the manuscript with input from all authors. P. Z. H. and E. D. C. developed the machine learning methods. P. Z. H., D. K. C. and H. S. P. acknowledge the Hariri Institute Research Incubation Grant No. 2018-02-002 and the Boston University High Performance Shared Computing Cluster. P. Z. H. is grateful for the Hariri Graduate Fellowship. P. Z. H. thank Grace Gu and Adrian Yi for helpful discussions. (2018-02-002 - Hariri Graduate Fellowship)Published versio

The effects of volatile induction and maintenance of anesthesia and selective spinal anesthesia on QT interval, QT dispersion, and arrhythmia incidence

OBJECTIVE: The effects of sevoflurane general anesthesia and bupivacaine selective spinal anesthesia on QT dispersion (QTd) and corrected QT (QTc) interval were investigated. METHODS AND MATERIALS: This prospective, randomized, double-blind study was conducted between July and September 2009 in the Urology and General Surgery operating rooms. Forty ASA I-II patients undergoing noncardiac surgery were randomized into two groups: Group R (n=20) and Group V (n=20). In Group R, 5 mg bupivacaine was administered into the spinal space. Anesthesia induction in Group V was established with sevoflurane + 0.1 mg/kg vecuronium using the maximum vital capacity technique. Anesthesia was maintained with 2-3% sevoflurane + 50% N2O/O2 inhalation. All patients were tested with a 24-hour Holter ECG device. QT, QTc, and QTd intervals were measured using 12-lead ECG records at 1 and 3 minutes during preinduction, postinduction, postincision and postextubation periods. Mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate and ECG records were measured simultaneously. RESULTS: None of the patients displayed arrhythmia. There was no significant difference between the groups with regard to QTd values (p>0.05). However, QTc was longer in Group V than in Group R after the induction of anesthesia at 3 minutes, after the intubation at 1 and 3 minutes, and after the incision at 1 and 3 minutes. MAP and heart rate were generally higher in Group V (

Supersolid behavior in confined geometry

We have carried out torsional oscillator (TO) and heat capacity (HC) measurements on solid 4He samples grown within a geometry which restricts the helium to thin (150 um) cylindrical discs. In contrast to previously reported values from Rittner and Reppy of 20% non-classical rotational inertia (NCRI) for similar confining dimensions, 0.9% NCRI (consistent with that found in bulk samples and samples imbedded in porous media) was observed in our TO cell. In this confined geometry the heat capacity peak is consistent with that found in bulk solid samples of high crystalline quality

An environmental assessment of risk in achieving good environmental status to support regional prioritisation of management in Europe

The Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) aims to achieve Good Environmental Status (GES) in Europe's Seas. The requirement for regional sea authorities to identify and prioritise issues for management has meant that standardized methods to assess the current level of departure from GES are needed. The methodology presented here provides a means by which existing information describing the status of ecosystem components of a regional sea can be used to determine the effort required to achieve GES. A risk assessment framework was developed to score departure from GES for 10 out of the 11 GES descriptors, based on proposed definitions of 'good' status, and current knowledge of environmental status in each of the four regional seas (North-East Atlantic, Mediterranean Sea, Baltic Sea and Black Sea). This provides an approach for regional evaluation of environmental issues and national prioritisation of conservation objectives. Departure from GES definitions is described as 'high', 'moderate' or low' and the implications for management options and national policy decisions are discussed. While the criteria used in this study were developed specifically for application toward MSFD objectives, with modification the approach could be applied to evaluate other high-level social, economic or environmental objectives. Crown Copyright (C) 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

A general scaling relation for the critical current density in Nb3Sn

We review the scaling relations for the critical current density (Jc) in Nb3Sn wires and include recent findings on the variation of the upper critical field (Hc2) with temperature (T) and A15 composition. We highlight deficiencies in the Summers/Ekin relations, which are not able to account for the correct Jc(T) dependence. Available Jc(H) results indicate that the magnetic field dependence for all wires can be described with Kramer's flux shear model, if non-linearities in Kramer plots are attributed to A15 inhomogeneities. The strain (eps) dependence is introduced through a temperature and strain dependent Hc2*(T,eps) and Ginzburg- Landau parameter kappa1(T,eps) and a strain dependent critical temperature Tc(eps). This is more consistent than the usual Ekin unification, which uses two separate and different dependencies on Hc2*(T) and Hc2*(eps). Using a correct temperature dependence and accounting for the A15 inhomogeneities leads to a remarkable simple relation for Jc(H,T,eps). Finally, a new relation for s(eps) is proposed, based on the first, second and third strain invariants.Comment: Accepted Topical Review for Superconductor, Science and Technolog

Josephson effect in d-wave superconductor junctions in a lattice model

Josephson current between two d-wave superconductors is calculated by using a lattice model. Here we consider two types of junctions, $i.e.$, the parallel junction and the mirror-type junction. The maximum Josephson current $(J_{c})$ shows a wide variety of temperature ($T$) dependence depending on the misorientation angles and the types of junctions. When the misorientation angles are not zero, the Josephson current shows the low-temperature anomaly because of a zero energy state (ZES) at the interfaces. In the case of mirror-type junctions, $J_c$ has a non monotonic temperature dependence. These results are consistent with the previous results based on the quasiclassical theory. [Y. Tanaka and S. Kashiwaya: Phys. Rev. B \textbf{56} (1997) 892.] On the other hand, we find that the ZES disappears in several junctions because of the Freidel oscillations of the wave function, which is peculiar to the lattice model. In such junctions, the temperature dependence of $J_{c}$ is close to the Ambegaokar-Baratoff relation.Comment: 17 pages, 10 figures, using jpsj2.cls and oversite.st

Antimicrobial resistance among migrants in Europe: a systematic review and meta-analysis

BACKGROUND: Rates of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) are rising globally and there is concern that increased migration is contributing to the burden of antibiotic resistance in Europe. However, the effect of migration on the burden of AMR in Europe has not yet been comprehensively examined. Therefore, we did a systematic review and meta-analysis to identify and synthesise data for AMR carriage or infection in migrants to Europe to examine differences in patterns of AMR across migrant groups and in different settings. METHODS: For this systematic review and meta-analysis, we searched MEDLINE, Embase, PubMed, and Scopus with no language restrictions from Jan 1, 2000, to Jan 18, 2017, for primary data from observational studies reporting antibacterial resistance in common bacterial pathogens among migrants to 21 European Union-15 and European Economic Area countries. To be eligible for inclusion, studies had to report data on carriage or infection with laboratory-confirmed antibiotic-resistant organisms in migrant populations. We extracted data from eligible studies and assessed quality using piloted, standardised forms. We did not examine drug resistance in tuberculosis and excluded articles solely reporting on this parameter. We also excluded articles in which migrant status was determined by ethnicity, country of birth of participants' parents, or was not defined, and articles in which data were not disaggregated by migrant status. Outcomes were carriage of or infection with antibiotic-resistant organisms. We used random-effects models to calculate the pooled prevalence of each outcome. The study protocol is registered with PROSPERO, number CRD42016043681. FINDINGS: We identified 2274 articles, of which 23 observational studies reporting on antibiotic resistance in 2319 migrants were included. The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or AMR infection in migrants was 25·4% (95% CI 19·1-31·8; I2 =98%), including meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (7·8%, 4·8-10·7; I2 =92%) and antibiotic-resistant Gram-negative bacteria (27·2%, 17·6-36·8; I2 =94%). The pooled prevalence of any AMR carriage or infection was higher in refugees and asylum seekers (33·0%, 18·3-47·6; I2 =98%) than in other migrant groups (6·6%, 1·8-11·3; I2 =92%). The pooled prevalence of antibiotic-resistant organisms was slightly higher in high-migrant community settings (33·1%, 11·1-55·1; I2 =96%) than in migrants in hospitals (24·3%, 16·1-32·6; I2 =98%). We did not find evidence of high rates of transmission of AMR from migrant to host populations. INTERPRETATION: Migrants are exposed to conditions favouring the emergence of drug resistance during transit and in host countries in Europe. Increased antibiotic resistance among refugees and asylum seekers and in high-migrant community settings (such as refugee camps and detention facilities) highlights the need for improved living conditions, access to health care, and initiatives to facilitate detection of and appropriate high-quality treatment for antibiotic-resistant infections during transit and in host countries. Protocols for the prevention and control of infection and for antibiotic surveillance need to be integrated in all aspects of health care, which should be accessible for all migrant groups, and should target determinants of AMR before, during, and after migration. FUNDING: UK National Institute for Health Research Imperial Biomedical Research Centre, Imperial College Healthcare Charity, the Wellcome Trust, and UK National Institute for Health Research Health Protection Research Unit in Healthcare-associated Infections and Antimictobial Resistance at Imperial College London