Compatibility of Glyphosate with Galerucella calmariensis; a Biological Control Agent for Purple Loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria)

By integrating Galerucella calmariensis with glyphosate there is potential to achieve both immediate and sustained control of purple loosestrife (Lythrum salicaria). The objective of this study was to determine the compatibility of glyphosate on the oviposition and survival of adult G. Calmariensis and on the ability of G. calmariensis third instar larvae to pupate to teneral adults. Our results revealed glyphosate (formulated as Roundup) at a concentration of 2% (2.43L/acre) and 4% solution (4.86 L/acre) had no impact on the ability of G. calmariensis third instar larvae to pupate to new generation adults. To examine the effect of a 2% solution of glyphosate on adult G. calmariensis oviposition and survival, adults were randomly divided between a direct contact group (adults sprayed directly), an indirect contact group (host plants with adults were sprayed), and a control group. Our results revealed that glyphosate does not impact G. calmariensis oviposition or adult survival. The results of this study indicate that G. calmariensis is compatible with glyphosate indicating that further field studies examining integrated control strategies for purple loosestrife are warranted

The Infectious Disease Ontology in the Age of COVID-19

The Infectious Disease Ontology (IDO) is a suite of interoperable ontology modules that aims to provide coverage of all aspects of the infectious disease domain, including biomedical research, clinical care, and public health. IDO Core is designed to be a disease and pathogen neutral ontology, covering just those types of entities and relations that are relevant to infectious diseases generally. IDO Core is then extended by a collection of ontology modules focusing on specific diseases and pathogens. In this paper we present applications of IDO Core within various areas of infectious disease research, together with an overview of all IDO extension ontologies and the methodology on the basis of which they are built. We also survey recent developments involving IDO, including the creation of IDO Virus; the Coronaviruses Infectious Disease Ontology (CIDO); and an extension of CIDO focused on COVID-19 (IDO-CovID-19).We also discuss how these ontologies might assist in information-driven efforts to deal with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, to accelerate data discovery in the early stages of future pandemics, and to promote reproducibility of infectious disease research

Preliminary Investigation of the Incidence and Impact of Disability on Irish Farms

Farming is identified as being a hazardous occupation, resulting in disability and numerous fatalities each year. While occupational health and safety issues among farm households have been studied recently in Ireland, there has been no research directed at identifying the incidence and impact of disability within farm households. The aim of the research outlined in this paper was to identify the cause, extent, and nature of disability among farm household members. The impact of disability on the farm business was examined also. Questions relating to disability were attached to the Teagasc National Farm Survey, and circulated to a representative sample of 119.5k households in 2001. The results revealed that 19.5% of farm households reported one or more persons with disability, with the farm operator (39.5%) reporting the highest incidence among household members. Physical disabilities accounted for 80.1% of all reported disability, with its principle source being health- related. Disability in affected households had a “major” or “some” impact on the farm business in 22.4% and 52.9% of cases respectively. Family farm income was €24/ha less on farms where the farm operator reported disability compared to non-disability farms. When the farm operator reported disability, participation in off-farm employment was reduced for the farm operator and spouse when compared to non-disability farms. The results generated raise awareness of issues among farm households reporting disability. Further research should be directed toward agricultural disability to facilitate agricultural and extension educators in designing prevention programmes that minimise the occurrence and impact of disability among farm households

Challenging the Norm: A Hybrid Philosophy Based on Praxial and Aesthetic Philosophies for Elementary Music Classrooms

Despite significant studies on the effectiveness of the primary music education philosophies, aesthetic and praxial, there is little research on the pragmatic application of a hybrid philosophy comprising elements of both philosophies. While both aesthetic and praxial philosophies demonstrate effective methods for fostering development and interest in music education, the exclusive application of one philosophy is not sufficient to develop the overall musician and foster future participation in music education. This study addressed the gap between the music education philosophies and offered effective exercises for elementary music education. A convergent mixed-methods study with a focus on ear training and composition was conducted to determine the effectiveness of a hybrid philosophy. The six-week study was conducted in the third- and fifth-grade music classrooms of four elementary schools in Lowndes and Tift counties in South Georgia. Music educators administered pre- and post-assessments and pre-defined aesthetic, praxial, and hybrid exercises to record specific data points on student achievement. At the end of the study, participating music educators completed a questionnaire to provide qualitative evidence of student engagement and interest in each philosophy. Through this study, the effectiveness of a hybrid philosophy in fostering student achievement and development, along with engagement and musical interest, became clear. This study served as a probe for music educators to examine their current philosophies and teaching practices to further reach and influence students in music education. It also serves as a platform for possible reform in music education philosophical teaching, especially in elementary music education

Stochastic Search in Data-Based Modelling of Dynamic Systems

This paper examines the application of stochastic search techniques for the solution of two typical problems in mod- elling nonlinear systems using a multi-modelling approach: interpolation function determination and linear model structure determination. Two candidate stochastic search techniques are employed, genetic algorithms and swarm intelligence, which show dierent advantages for each of the problems considered

Individual differences in sensitivity to visuomotor discrepancies

This study explored whether sensitivity to visuomotor discrepancies, specifically the ability to detect and respond to loss of control over a moving object, is associated with other psychological traits and abilities. College-aged adults performed a computerized tracking task which involved keeping a cursor centered on a moving target using keyboard controls. On some trials, the cursor became unresponsive to participants’ keypresses. Participants were instructed to immediately press the space bar if they noticed a loss of control. Response times (RTs) were measured. Additionally, participants completed a battery of behavioral and questionnaire-based tests with hypothesized relationships to the phenomenology of control, including measures of constructs such as locus of control, impulsiveness, need for cognition (NFC), and non-clinical schizotypy. Bivariate correlations between RTs to loss of control and high order cognitive and personality traits were not significant. However, a step-wise regression showed that better performance on the pursuit rotor task predicted faster RTs to loss of control while controlling for age, signal detection, and NFC. Results are discussed in relation to multifactorial models of the sense of agency

Applying the concept of ‘PE-for-sport-literacy’: Exploring pre-service teacher identities with a new way of teaching sport

We explored how a physical education teacher education (PETE) programme at an Australian university influenced physical education pre-service teacher (PEPST) sport teaching identities. Our methodology utilised Elias’s [2012a [1970, 1978]. What is sociology? Collected works (Vol. 5). University College Dublin Press] personal pronouns as a figurational model which shows how social group (‘we’) identity relates to outsiders (‘they’) as well as individual members (‘I’) within communities. We also drew upon the concepts of figuration [Elias, N. (2012b [1939]). On the process of civilisation, collected works (Vol. 3). University College Dublin Press], habitus [Elias, N. (2010 [1987]). The society of individuals, collected works (Vol. 10). University College Dublin Press] and established and outsider theory [Elias, N., & Scotson, J. L. (2008 [1965]). The established and the outsiders. Collected works (Vol. 4). University College Dublin Press]. By examining if and how the ‘I’ pronoun was used in a written assessment task, we sought to ascertain the extent PEPSTs might apply the concept of ‘PE-for-sport-literacy’ (PE4SL) in their future careers. Just over half the participants wrote ‘I’ statements about how they would enact sport teaching in convincing and believable ways, the remaining PEPSTs provided descriptive narratives, suggesting a limited engagement with PE4SL, using writing styles more akin to academic writing, with little or no use of the ‘I’ pronoun. Our findings are important because, there have been limited studies about the process of teacher identity formation in teacher education [Beauchamp, C., & Thomas, L. (2009). Understanding teacher identity: An overview of issues in the literature and implications for teacher education. Cambridge Journal of Education, 39(2), 175–189] and fewer studies about the construction of PEPST identity [Liu, J., & Keating, X. D. (2022). Development of the Pre-service Physical Education Teachers’ Teacher Identity Scale. European Physical Education Review, 28(1), 186–204] and PE teacher identity [Virta, J., Hökkä, P., Eteläpelto, A., & Rasku-Puttonen, H. (2019). Professional identity among student teachers of physical education: The role of physicality. European Journal of Teacher Education, 42(2), 192–210]. Our findings then, add to the finite stock of knowledge concerning PEPST teacher identity development, by drawing attention to the varied ways our participants engaged with PE4SL. This study reinforces previous research that highlighted that as teacher educators, the knowledge we teach does not automatically translate into beginning teacher practices [Brown, D. (2005). An economy of gendered practices? Learning to teach physical education from the perspective of Pierre Bourdieu's embodied sociology. Sport, Education and Society, 10(1), 3–23; Fernández-Balboa, J.-M. (2009). Bio-pedagogical self-reflection in PETE: Reawakening the ethical conscience and purpose in pedagogy and research. Sport, Education and Society, 14(2), 147–163]

Particle Filters for Remaining Useful Life Estimation of Abatement Equipment used in Semiconductor Manufacturing

Prognostics is the ability to predict the remaining useful life of a specific system, or component, and represents a key enabler of any effective condition-based-maintenance strategy. Among methods for performing prognostics such as regression and artificial neural networks, particle filters are emerging as a technique with considerable potential. Particle filters employ both a state dynamic model and a measurement model, which are used together to predict the evolution of the state probability distribution function. The approach has similarities to Kalman filtering, however, particle filters make no assumptions that the state dynamic model be linear or that Gaussian noise assumptions must hold true. The technique is applied in predicting the degradation of thermal processing units used in the treatment of waste gases from semiconductor processing chambers. The performance of the technique demonstrates the potential of particle filters as a robust method for accurately predicting system failure. In addition to the use of particle filters, Gaussian Mixture Models (GMM) are employed to extract signals associated with the different operating modes from a multi-modal signal generated by the operating characteristics of the thermal processing unit

The National Extension Web-mapping Tool: From Data Exploration and Discovery to Decision Making

The University of New Hampshire (UNH), Virginia Tech (VT), and Texas A&M University collaborated to envision and plan (all) and then create (UNH and VT) the National Extension Web-mapping Tool (NEWT) to increase the use of spatial data in planning and programming decision making throughout Extension. With NEWT, Extension professionals can access and use national Extension-relevant spatial data sets available at varied scales (county, Extension district, state) and in varied formats (maps, tables), without needing mapping experience or associated technical skills. NEWT encourages users to look past state borders and traditional administrative boundaries to discover opportunities for collaboration