Machine vision App for automated cotton insect counting: initial development and first results

Silverleaf whitefly, cotton aphids and spider mites cause cotton yield loss through plant feeding and lint contamination from waste secretions. Agronomists determine if control action is required from weekly monitoring of changes in pest counts. This manual sampling is labour-intensive as hundreds of leaves are sampled at 20-30 leaves per 25 hectares of cotton and examined by eye for the presence and density of each pest. Machine vision has potential to automate the pest counting on each leaf using infield cameras and image analysis software. There is potential to transfer the machine vision algorithms to a mobile device App for agronomist to enable real-time photo capture and analysis for pest counting. This App would standardise pest counting between different observers, improve chemical control decisions, provide a convenient method for logging and viewing data for each field, and inform Area Wide Management from silverleaf whitefly nymph counts. Data collection and software development have been conducted to develop the image analysis algorithms for detecting silverleaf whitefly nymphs. A dataset of training images was captured from glasshouses cultures of whitefly and commercial cotton farms in southern Queensland with three smartphone models. Image analysis algorithms were developed to extract numbers of silverleaf whitefly nymphs (3rd/4th instar) on each leaf. Two image analysis methods were implemented: a segmentation-based approach, and a machine learning approach. The segmentation-based approach and machine learning approach detected silverleaf whitely nymphs with up to 67% and 79% accuracy, respectively. The image analysis algorithms will be refined through parameter optimisation and incorporated into an App that will be evaluated by agronomists in the 2019/20 season. The image analysis algorithms will be extended to cotton aphids and mites as all three insects can occur simultaneously

Child pornography offenders and practical research: an evidenced-based approach to prioritising the investigation

To develop a common tactical approach in the protection of children, law-enforcement agencies are required to strengthen networks and relationships across Europe and the world. What constitutes as a child pornography offence within Europe varies considerably, although there is a common understanding that a combined approach is needed to deal with it. From a European perspective the further question is whether cultural specificity exists? The authors highlight the potential significance of culture and adequate understanding of the diversity of these cultures in regard to this type of crime. Recent studies have begun to explore the specific relationship between possession of the actual child pornography and the likelihood of being a contact offender. These studies were based on a corpus of knowledge which has effectively examined three questions: what are the key features of ‘Indecent Images of Children’ (IIOC) offending? How do offenders use IIOC within their offending? How prevalent are contact sexual abusers within indecent image offender samples? This paper will therefore present an overview of the three questions and then describe the current issues within contemporary studies around the ability to prioritise child pornography offenders

They Treat You Like You Are Worthless: Internal DHS Reports of Abuses by US Border Officials

This report examines allegations of abuse catalogued in internal US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reports received by Human Rights Watch on September 24, 2021 via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).The internal reports include testimony and descriptions of testimony regarding over 160 cases of misconduct and abuse of asylum applicants at the hands of officers within several DHS components, particularly CBP officers and Border Patrol agents. The records, though heavily redacted, demonstrate that asylum officers within US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), another component of DHS, have repeatedly provided internal reports on allegations of assault, sexual abuse, due process violations, denial of medical care, harsh detention conditions, and dehumanizing treatment at the border

Integrating Community-Based Interventions to Reverse the Convergent TB/HIV Epidemics in Rural South Africa.

The WHO recommends integrating interventions to address the devastating TB/HIV co-epidemics in South Africa, yet integration has been poorly implemented and TB/HIV control efforts need strengthening. Identifying infected individuals is particularly difficult in rural settings. We used mathematical modeling to predict the impact of community-based, integrated TB/HIV case finding and additional control strategies on South Africa's TB/HIV epidemics. We developed a model incorporating TB and HIV transmission to evaluate the effectiveness of integrating TB and HIV interventions in rural South Africa over 10 years. We modeled the impact of a novel screening program that integrates case finding for TB and HIV in the community, comparing it to status quo and recommended TB/HIV control strategies, including GeneXpert, MDR-TB treatment decentralization, improved first-line TB treatment cure rate, isoniazid preventive therapy, and expanded ART. Combining recommended interventions averted 27% of expected TB cases (95% CI 18-40%) 18% HIV (95% CI 13-24%), 60% MDR-TB (95% CI 34-83%), 69% XDR-TB (95% CI 34-90%), and 16% TB/HIV deaths (95% CI 12-29). Supplementing these interventions with annual community-based TB/HIV case finding averted a further 17% of TB cases (44% total; 95% CI 31-56%), 5% HIV (23% total; 95% CI 17-29%), 8% MDR-TB (68% total; 95% CI 40-88%), 4% XDR-TB (73% total; 95% CI 38-91%), and 8% TB/HIV deaths (24% total; 95% CI 16-39%). In addition to increasing screening frequency, we found that improving TB symptom questionnaire sensitivity, second-line TB treatment delays, default before initiating TB treatment or ART, and second-line TB drug efficacy were significantly associated with even greater reductions in TB and HIV cases. TB/HIV epidemics in South Africa were most effectively curtailed by simultaneously implementing interventions that integrated community-based TB/HIV control strategies and targeted drug-resistant TB. Strengthening existing TB and HIV treatment programs is needed to further reduce disease incidence

Mask Projection Microstereolithography of Novel Biocompatible Polymers

Mask Projection Microstereolithography (MPμSL) selectively cures entire layers of photopolymer to create three-dimensional parts with features on the micron scale. The resolution and scale of MPμSL are ideal for fabricating tissue engineering scaffolds with designed mesostructure. While MPμSL have excellent resolution, there are few biocompatible materials that are compatible with the vat photopolymerization processes. A novel diacrylate functionalized Pluronic L-31 block-copolymer and poly(propylene glycol diacrylate) were synthesized and processed with MPμSL. The resulting structures were analyzed for biocompatibility, as well as accuracy and mechanical strength to assess feasibility for use in tissue engineering scaffold fabrication. Preliminary fabricated scaffold geometries are presented to validate experimental results.Mechanical Engineerin

First-Year Engineering Program: Student Instructional Leadership Team - Expanded and Restructured

Since its initial creation, the Student Instructional Leadership Team (SILT) within the First-Year Engineering Program (FEP) at The Ohio State University (OSU) has been responsible for training and supporting students and instructional staff. In recent years, SILT has been expanded and restructured to meet the needs of a growing student body and ever-changing program. SILT currently has 13 members working across all 4 tracks of FEP. This team helps manage over 2,000 students and 200 teaching assistants (TAs). SILT assists with various FEP resources such as its computer lab and laboratories. SILT also provides professional development opportunities for student employees. Furthermore, the leadership team strives to enhance the program’s learning objectives, support curriculum enhancements, and create consistency. Through continued change and improvement, SILT has become a model for involving TAs in the management of a large scale educational unit such as FEP

Differences in the Use and Perceptions of Evidence-Based Practice between Occupational Therapy Students and Practitioners

This study explored differences in perceptions of evidence-based practice (EBP) between occupational therapy (OT) students and practitioners. Researchers aimed to understand student and practitioner perceptions of barriers, knowledge, attitudes, and confidence in EBP. Occupational therapy students (n=61) and practitioners (n=21) completed an online researcher-created survey and the Evidence-Based Practice Confidence (EPIC) Scale survey. Results indicated practitioners were more confident in utilizing EBP than students, particularly when identifying a gap in knowledge related to a patient (p = \u3c.001) deciding on a course of action for a client (p = \u3c.001), and assessing the efficacy of EBP on client outcomes (p = \u3c.001). This finding was inconsistent with previous research, which may be due to more practitioners receiving formal education on EBP. It is critical for OT education to support student learning and application of clinical reasoning throughout the EBP process in order to increase confidence. This study was limited by the use of a homogenous population from a single university

Optimising e-portfolio marking strategies

Portfolios are commonly used in healthcare education; they allow students to showcase their experience and learning journey whilst allowing them to demonstrate reflective practice, ethical principles and self-directed learning. The large volume of information contained within portfolios can, however, make them onerous and difficult to mark and present challenges in marking consistency. This study analysed several marking strategies to ascertain the optimal sampling interval to ensure validity, reliability and fairness whilst ensuring time efficient marking. Progression analysis also identified differences across domains: clinical experience, self-directed study and case study discussion plateaued early after 6 months, whereas higher order skills plateaued later at 8 months. The results found that Sampling a portfolio at regular intervals can maintain acceptable levels of validity & reliability (35% - 40%* of the total portfolio), care however must be taken when assessing higher order and “soft skills” skills with more weight given to the later part of the portfolio