Lesion Detection on Leaves using Class Activation Maps

Lesion detection on plant leaves is a critical task in plant pathology and agricultural research. Identifying lesions enables assessing the severity of plant diseases and making informed decisions regarding disease control measures and treatment strategies. To detect lesions, there are studies that propose well-known object detectors. However, training object detectors to detect small objects such as lesions can be problematic. In this study, we propose a method for lesion detection on plant leaves utilizing class activation maps generated by a ResNet-18 classifier. In the test set, we achieved a 0.45 success rate in predicting the locations of lesions in leaves. Our study presents a novel approach for lesion detection on plant leaves by utilizing CAMs generated by a ResNet classifier while eliminating the need for a lesion annotation process.Comment: 6 pages, 1 figur

Reliability and validity of psychological general well-being index in Turkish population

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the reliability and validity of the Turkish version of the Psychological General Well-Being Index (PGWBI) in healthy and patient population. Materials and Methods: Fifty healthy individuals (Group 1) and 194 patients (Group 2) were included in the study. Group 2 comprised patients with low back pain and neck pain (n=50, Group 2a), osteoarthritis (n=50, Group 2b), fibromyalgia syndrome (n=50, Group 2c) and stroke (n=44, group 2d). The PGWBI was translated into Turkish according to standard adaptation procedure. This index consisted of 6 subscales (anxiety, depressed mood, positive well-being, self-control, general health and vitality) and 22 items. The PGWBI was administered to subjects twice a week for testing reliability. Validity was based on correlating the PGWBI scores with that of the Nottingham Health Profile (NHP). Results: The internal consistency and test-retest reliability were found to be good in healthy individuals and patient groups separately (Cronbach's alpha range: 0.93-0.92; intraclass correlation coefficient range: 0.88-0.99). The total scores of the PGWBI in healthy individuals showed significant correlations with all subareas of the NHP (r range:-0.38-0.70, p0.05). The total PGWBI scores had significant correlations with all subscores of the NHP in patient groups (range from r:-0.29-0.64, p<0.05). Conclusion: The Turkish version of the PGWBI is a reliable and valid instrument for evaluating quality of life in healthy and patient population. Turk J Phys Med Rehab 2010;56:161-

What is natural?: The scale of cryptogenesis in the North Atlantic Ocean

Aim Cryptogenic species may include those taxa that were historically introduced and are now falsely viewed as native. Investigated here is the scale of cryptogenesis in the North Atlantic Ocean by examining disjunct distributions, defined as temperate species occurring only on both sides of the North Atlantic. Disjunct distributions can be explained by four scenarios: glacial relicts, taxonomic artefacts, natural trans-oceanic dispersal and human-mediated introduction. Location North Atlantic Ocean. Methods Model taxa included ascidians, bivalves and hydrozoans. Biogeographic status (native, introduced or cryptogenic) was assigned to all species exhibiting a disjunct distribution, based upon multiple criteria. Results Of 1030 species, 60 have a strictly disjunct distribution. Of these disjunct species, for five species there is no reason to doubt their native status, and 55 species are cryptogenic or introduced. Groups with high relative dispersal capacities do not have disjunct distributions more often. Infaunal bivalves have the lowest relative number of disjunct species; none are cryptogenic or naturally disjunct. This supports the concept that glaciations are unlikely to cause disjunct distributions: there are no studies that provide conclusive evidence for the glacial relict model. Hydrozoa have the highest relative number of disjunct species, which, while historically explained by undocumented rafting, may more likely be the result of dispersal by ships, which travel relatively fast, are independent of currents and provide greater surface area. Main conclusions This reanalysis of the historical biogeography of the North Atlantic marine biota reveals that far more species may have been introduced than previously recognized, potentially significantly altering our fundamental understanding of community evolution and ecology. Species that have been present for centuries and can be important ecological engineers who have shaped contemporary communities are possibly falsely viewed as native: they may in fact be the unrecognized introductions of historical times

Predicting invasion patterns in coastal ecosystems:relationship between vector strength and vector tempo

Oyster transports are among the leading anthropogenic vectors of coastwise introduction of non-indigenous species. Using the oyster industry of the Netherlands as a model system, we investigated the relationship between vector strength (number of invasions) and vector tempo (magnitude and frequency of transport) in analyzing and predicting invasion patterns. We reviewed literature on oyster-associated species introductions, analyzed the scale of commercial oyster imports, and collected and identified epiflora from Pacific oyster shells. A total of 35 protist, algal, and invertebrate species have been introduced to the Netherlands with oysters, and we found 41 species of macroalgae on transported oysters. However, the number of introductions and quantity of oysters imported are not necessarily positively correlated, particularly in the past 20 yr, when oyster imports decreased but the rate of introductions increased. The discrepancy between vector tempo and strength can be explained by unreported imports and vector characteristics: a single oyster may harbor a large number of species which are introduced with their substrate, thus facilitating establishment. Further, the recently developed extensive Pacific oyster reefs in Dutch waters provide a suitable substrate, enabling establishment even after low propagule pressure introduction events. Assumptions that are made about crucial parameters need to be reconsidered: reported propagule pressure is not the same as actual propagule pressure; per-episode diversity of potential inoculants is not at a fixed level without episodic unpredictable spikes, and the recipient environment is not static. With increasing interest in predicting invasion patterns, caution must be taken in assuming that reduced propagule pressure will lead to reduced invasions

COMPARISON OF THE PERFORMANCES OF DIFFERENTIAL EVOLUTION, PARTICLE SWARM OPTIMIZATION AND HARMONY SEARCH ALGORITHMS ON BENCHMARK FUNCTIONS

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