Mature Tree Transplanting: Science Supports Best Management Practice

Replicated research on transplanting mature trees (trunk diameter >750 mm) is not practical. Instead we must apply the knowledge we have gained from studying smaller trees to maximize success at this larger scale. This paper summarizes our understanding of tree biology and horticulture contributing to the successful transplanting of trees, e.g. root loss and regrowth, water stress, carbohydrate status, root ball size, preparatory root and canopy pruning, timing of operations etc. The specific detail of the transplanting operations undertaken on four mature trees in Hong Kong in the last 15 years, are then evaluated to examine the extent to which the arboricultural factors may have contributed to the outcome of each operation.postprin

Las dimensiones culturales y la interacción entre el desempeño empresarial en las pequeñas y medianas empresas en Zimbabwe

Although culture is generally considered as a determinant of entrepreneurship, consensus is generally lacking on the precise influence of this variable on entrepreneurial performance in emerging economies. Using a quantitative approach, this confirmatory, cross-disciplinary study sought to investigate the effect of cultural dimensions, on entrepreneurial performance of among Small and Medium Enterprises in Zimbabwe. The independent variables were derived primarily from Hofstede's cultural dimensions and a total of 250 questionnaires were distributed to Small and Medium Enterprises in Zimbabwe. The research adopted a multisector approach and respondents were drawn from the ten provinces of Zimbabwe. To confirm the existence of a relationship between cultural dimensions and entrepreneurial performance, structural equation modeling, a confirmatory, multivariate technique, was employed, starting with representing the causal relationships between these variables in a pictorial form. The findings from this research are consistent with the propositions that the dimensions of culture have a significant and positive influence on entrepreneurial performance. The results also affirm the findings of previous studies that have been carried out on the influence of culture on entrepreneurial performance. Over and above the generic dimensions of culture, this study adds the mediating role of the propensity to act and perceived feasibility.Aunque generalmente se considera que la cultura es un factor determinante de la capacidad empresarial, generalmente no se cuenta con el consenso sobre la influencia precisa de esta variable en el desempeño empresarial en las economías emergentes. Utilizando un enfoque cuantitativo, este estudio confirmatorio y multidisciplinario buscó investigar el efecto de las dimensiones culturales sobre el desempeño empresarial de las Pequeñas y Medianas Empresas en Zimbabwe. Las variables independientes se derivaron principalmente de las dimensiones culturales de Hofstede y un total de 250 cuestionarios fueron distribuidos a Pequeñas y Medianas Empresas en Zimbabwe. La investigación adoptó un enfoque multisectorial y los encuestados fueron extraídos de las diez provincias de Zimbabwe. Para confirmar la existencia de una relación entre las dimensiones culturales y el desempeño empresarial, se empleó el modelado de ecuaciones estructurales, una técnica confirmatoria y multivariada, comenzando por representar las relaciones causales entre estas variables en forma pictórica. Los hallazgos de esta investigación son consistentes con las proposiciones de que las dimensiones de la cultura tienen una influencia significativa y positiva en el desempeño empresarial. Los resultados también confirman los hallazgos de estudios previos que se han llevado a cabo sobre la influencia de la cultura en el desempeño empresarial. Más allá de las dimensiones genéricas de la cultura, este estudio agrega el papel mediador de la propensión a actuar y la viabilidad percibida

Analyzing CNN Based Behavioural Malware Detection Techniques on Cloud IaaS

Cloud Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is vulnerable to malware due to its exposure to external adversaries, making it a lucrative attack vector for malicious actors. A datacenter infected with malware can cause data loss and/or major disruptions to service for its users. This paper analyzes and compares various Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs) for online detection of malware in cloud IaaS. The detection is performed based on behavioural data using process level performance metrics including cpu usage, memory usage, disk usage etc. We have used the state of the art DenseNets and ResNets in effectively detecting malware in online cloud system. CNN are designed to extract features from data gathered from a live malware running on a real cloud environment. Experiments are performed on OpenStack (a cloud IaaS software) testbed designed to replicate a typical 3-tier web architecture. Comparative analysis is performed for different metrics for different CNN models used in this research

Reaching the End-Game for GWAS: Machine Learning Approaches for the Prioritization of Complex Disease Loci.

Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed thousands of genetic loci that underpin the complex biology of many human traits. However, the strength of GWAS - the ability to detect genetic association by linkage disequilibrium (LD) - is also its limitation. Whilst the ever-increasing study size and improved design have augmented the power of GWAS to detect effects, differentiation of causal variants or genes from other highly correlated genes associated by LD remains the real challenge. This has severely hindered the biological insights and clinical translation of GWAS findings. Although thousands of disease susceptibility loci have been reported, causal genes at these loci remain elusive. Machine learning (ML) techniques offer an opportunity to dissect the heterogeneity of variant and gene signals in the post-GWAS analysis phase. ML models for GWAS prioritization vary greatly in their complexity, ranging from relatively simple logistic regression approaches to more complex ensemble models such as random forests and gradient boosting, as well as deep learning models, i.e., neural networks. Paired with functional validation, these methods show important promise for clinical translation, providing a strong evidence-based approach to direct post-GWAS research. However, as ML approaches continue to evolve to meet the challenge of causal gene identification, a critical assessment of the underlying methodologies and their applicability to the GWAS prioritization problem is needed. This review investigates the landscape of ML applications in three parts: selected models, input features, and output model performance, with a focus on prioritizations of complex disease associated loci. Overall, we explore the contributions ML has made towards reaching the GWAS end-game with consequent wide-ranging translational impact

Mild cold effects on hunger, food intake, satiety and skin temperature in humans.

BACKGROUND: Mild cold exposure increases energy expenditure and can influence energy balance, but at the same time it does not increase appetite and energy intake. OBJECTIVE: To quantify dermal insulative cold response, we assessed thermal comfort and skin temperatures changes by infrared thermography. METHODS: We exposed healthy volunteers to either a single episode of environmental mild cold or thermoneutrality. We measured hunger sensation and actual free food intake. After a thermoneutral overnight stay, five males and five females were exposed to either 18°C (mild cold) or 24°C (thermoneutrality) for 2.5 h. Metabolic rate, vital signs, skin temperature, blood biochemistry, cold and hunger scores were measured at baseline and for every 30 min during the temperature intervention. This was followed by an ad libitum meal to obtain the actual desired energy intake after cold exposure. RESULTS: We could replicate the cold-induced increase in REE. But no differences were detected in hunger, food intake, or satiety after mild cold exposure compared with thermoneutrality. After long-term cold exposure, high cold sensation scores were reported, which were negatively correlated with thermogenesis. Skin temperature in the sternal area was tightly correlated with the increase in energy expenditure. CONCLUSIONS: It is concluded that short-term mild cold exposure increases energy expenditure without changes in food intake. Mild cold exposure resulted in significant thermal discomfort, which was negatively correlated with the increase in energy expenditure. Moreover, there is a great between-subject variability in cold response. These data provide further insights on cold exposure as an anti-obesity measure.The study was funded by NIHR, BRC Seed Fund, individual grants: ML and MS: Marie Curie Fellowship, CYT: Welcome Trust Fellowship, SV: MRC, BHF and BBSRC, AVP: BBSRC.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from Bioscientifica via https://doi.org/ 10.1530/EC-16-000

Disease severity adversely affects delivery of dialysis in acute renal failure

Background/Aims: Methods of intermittent hemodialysis (IHD) dose quantification in acute renal failure (ARF) are not well defined. This observational study was designed to evaluate the impact of disease activity on delivered single pool Kt/V-urea in ARF patients. Methods: 100 patients with severe ARF (acute intrinsic renal disease in 18 patients, nephrotoxic acute tubular necrosis in 38 patients, and septic ARF in 44 patients) were analyzed during four consecutive sessions of IHD, performed for 3.5-5 h every other day or daily. Target IHD dose was a single pool Kt/V-urea of 1.2 or more per dialysis session for all patients. Prescribed Kt/V-urea was calculated from desired dialyzer clearance (K), desired treatment time (t) and anthropometric estimates for urea distribution volume (V). The desired clearance (K) was estimated from prescribed blood flow rate and manufacturer's charts of in vivo data obtained in maintenance dialysis patients. Delivered single pool Kt/V-urea was calculated using the Daugirdas equation. Results: None of the patients had prescription failure of the target dose. The delivered IHD doses were substantially lower than the prescribed Kt/V values, particularly in ARF patients with sepsis/septic shock. Stratification according to disease severity revealed that all patients with isolated ARF, but none with 3 or more organ failures and none who needed vasopressive support received the target dose. Conclusion: Prescription of target IHD dose by single pool Kt/V-urea resulted in suboptimal dialysis dose delivery in critically ill patients. Numerous patient-related and treatment-immanent factors acting in concert reduced the delivered dose. Copyright (C) 2007 S. Karger AG, Basel

TET3-Mediated Demethylation in Tomato Activates Expression of a CETS Gene that Stimulates Vegetative Growth

Expression of the mammalian DNA demethylase enzyme TET3 in plants can be used to induce hypomethylation of DNA. In tomato lines that express a TET3 transgene, we observed distinct phenotypes including an increase in the length and number of leaves of primary shoots. As these changes resemble phenotypes observed in plants with strong expression of SELF PRUNING (SP), a member of the PEBP/CETS family, we investigated in TET3 lines the expression levels of members of the PEBP/CETS gene family, which affect shoot architecture and growth of sympodial units in tomato. We did not detect any changes in SP expression in TET3 lines, but for CEN1.1, a putative family member that has not been functionally characterized, we identified changes in gene expression that corresponded to hypomethylation in the upstream region. In tomato wild type, CEN1.1 is expressed in roots, petals, and shoot apices but not in mature leaves. In contrast, in TET3 transformants, the CEN1.1 gene became hypomethylated and activated in leaves. Ectopic expression of CEN1.1 in tomato caused similar phenotypes to those seen in TET3 transformants. Vegetative growth was increased, resulting both in a delay in inflorescence development and in an instability of the inflorescences, which frequently reverted to a vegetative state. Ectopic expression of CEN1.1 in Arabidopsis thaliana also caused floral repression. Our data suggest that the phenotypes observed in TET3 lines are a consequence of ectopic activation of CEN1.1, which promotes vegetative growth, and that CEN1.1 expression is sensitive to DNA methylation changes

Measuring vertebrate telomeres: applications and limitations

Telomeres are short tandem repeated sequences of DNA found at the ends of eukaryotic chromosomes that function in stabilizing chromosomal end integrity. In vivo studies of somatic tissue of mammals and birds have shown a correlation between telomere length and organismal age within species, and correlations between telomere shortening rate and lifespan among species. This result presents the tantalizing possibility that telomere length could be used to provide much needed information on age, ageing and survival in natural populations where longitudinal studies are lacking. Here we review methods available for measuring telomere length and discuss the potential uses and limitations of telomeres as age and ageing estimators in the fields of vertebrate ecology, evolution and conservation

Terrestrial exposure of a fresh Martian meteorite causes rapid changes in hydrogen isotopes and water concentrations

Determining the hydrogen isotopic compositions and H2O contents of meteorites and their components is important for addressing key cosmochemical questions about the abundance and source(s) of water in planetary bodies. However, deconvolving the effects of terrestrial contamination from the indigenous hydrogen isotopic compositions of these extraterrestrial materials is not trivial, because chondrites and some achondrites show only small deviations from terrestrial values such that even minor contamination can mask the indigenous values. Here we assess the effects of terrestrial weathering and contamination on the hydrogen isotope ratios and H2O contents of meteoritic minerals through monitored terrestrial weathering of Tissint, a recent Martian fall. Our findings reveal the rapidity with which this weathering affects nominally anhydrous phases in extraterrestrial materials, which illustrates the necessity of sampling the interiors of even relatively fresh meteorite falls and underlines the importance of sample return missions