A Survey of Procedural Techniques for City Generation

The computer game industry requires a skilled workforce and this combined with the complexity of modern games, means that production costs are extremely high. One of the most time consuming aspects is the creation of game geometry, the virtual world which the players inhabit. Procedural techniques have been used within computer graphics to create natural textures, simulate special effects and generate complex natural models including trees and waterfalls. It is these procedural techniques that we intend to harness to generate geometry and textures suitable for a game situated in an urban environment. Procedural techniques can provide many benefits for computer graphics applications when the correct algorithm is used. An overview of several commonly used procedural techniques including fractals, L-systems, Perlin noise, tiling systems and cellular basis is provided. The function of each technique and the resulting output they create are discussed to better understand their characteristics, benefits and relevance to the city generation problem. City generation is the creation of an urban area which necessitates the creation of buildings, situated along streets and arranged in appropriate patterns. Some research has already taken place into recreating road network patterns and generating buildings that can vary in function and architectural style. We will study the main body of existing research into procedural city generation and provide an overview of their implementations and a critique of their functionality and results. Finally we present areas in which further research into the generation of cities is required and outline our research goals for city generation

Influence of Stormwater Management on Oxygen Demand and Organic Matter Cycling in Urbanizing Headwater Catchments

Excessive organic matter (OM) is driving declining dissolved oxygen (DO) concentrations in coastal ecosystems, worldwide. The quantity, source, and composition of OM transported to coastal ecosystems via stormwater runoff has been altered by land use changes associated with urbanization and subsequent headwater alterations that accompany urban stormwater management. To understand the role of stormwater runoff in the decline of coastal DO, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) was determined for samples collected during rain events from the outfalls of a variety of stormwater infrastructure with watersheds spanning a range of development. Measurements of particulate and dissolved carbon and nitrogen and chlorophyll-a concentrations as well as stable carbon isotope (δ13C) values helped explain the drivers of stormwater BOD concentrations. Results suggest stormwater runoff is a significant source of labile OM to receiving waters, however BOD concentrations vary greatly both among and within sites in response to rain events. This variability in BOD was best predicted by concentrations of particulate OM (POM), especially chlorophyll-a concentrations, rather than the larger dissolved fraction of OM. These findings stress the importance of managing episodic stormwater pollutant discharge, especially POM, from urbanized areas to mitigate DO impairment in larger downstream systems

Plane of nutrition affects the phylogenetic diversity and relative abundance of transcriptionally active methanogens in the bovine rumen

peer-reviewedMethane generated during enteric fermentation in ruminant livestock species is a major contributor to global anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions. A period of moderate feed restriction followed by ad libitum access to feed is widely applied in cattle management to exploit the animal’s compensatory growth potential and reduce feed costs. In the present study, we utilised microbial RNA from rumen digesta samples to assess the phylogenetic diversity of transcriptionally active methanogens from feed-restricted and non-restricted animals. To determine the contribution of different rumen methanogens to methanogenesis during dietary restriction of cattle, we conducted high-throughput mcrA cDNA amplicon sequencing on an Illumina MiSeq and analysed both the abundance and phylogenetic origin of different mcrA cDNA sequences. When compared to their unrestricted contemporaries, in feed-restricted animals, the methanogenic activity, based on mcrA transcript abundance, of Methanobrevibacter gottschalkii clade increased while the methanogenic activity of the Methanobrevibacter ruminantium clade and members of the Methanomassiliicoccaceae family decreased. This study shows that the quantity of feed consumed can evoke large effects on the composition of methanogenically active species in the rumen of cattle. These data potentially have major implications for targeted CH4 mitigation approaches such as anti-methanogen vaccines and/or tailored dietary management

Scaffolding and working together: a qualitative exploration of strategies for everyday life with dementia

Background: Living with dementia has been described as a process of continual change and adjustment, with people with dementia and their families adopting informal strategies to help manage everyday life. As dementia progresses, families increasingly rely on help from the wider community and formal support. Methods: This paper reports on a secondary analysis of qualitative data from focus groups and individual interviews with people with dementia and their carers in the North of England. In total 65 people with dementia and 82 carers took part in the research: 26 in interviews and 121 in focus groups. Focus group and interview audio recordings were transcribed verbatim. A qualitative, inductive, thematic approach was taken for data analysis. Findings: The paper applies the metaphor of scaffolding to deepen understanding of the strategies used by families. Processes of scaffolding were evident across the data where families, communities, professionals and services worked together to support everyday life for people with dementia. Within this broad theme of scaffolding were three sub-themes characterising the experiences of families living with dementia: doing things together; evolving strategies; and fragility and fear of the future. Conclusions: Families with dementia are resourceful but do need increasing support (scaffolding) to continue to live as well as possible as dementia progresses. More integrated, proactive work is required from services that recognises existing scaffolds and provides appropriate support before informal strategies become unsustainable; thus enabling people with dementia to live well for longer.sch_nur47pub5036pub

ROLLING ACTIONS OF SHOULDERS AND HIPS IN FREESTYLE SWIMMING

The purpose of this study was to determine accurately the magnitude of shoulder roll (SR) and hip roll (HR) in freestyle swimming, to assess the significance of the differences between these parameters and to examine whether they are associated with swimming velocity (V). Six male swimmers of national and international level performed a maximum freestyle swim. One non-breathing stroke cycle was selected for analysis. It was shown that swimmers rolled their shoulders significantly more than their hips. Faster swimming velocities were associated with smaller magnitudes of SR, but no significant correlations were found for V and HR. These results indicated that SR and HR need to be examined separately in freestyle swimming, as the measurement of body roll for the whole trunk does not represent with validity the rolling characteristics of the trunk

A Time Series of Water Column Distributions and Sinking Particle Flux of Pseudo-Nitzschia and Domoic Acid in the Santa Barbara Basin, California

Water column bulk Pseudo-nitzschia abundance and the dissolved and particulate domoic acid (DA) concentrations were measured in the Santa Barbara Basin (SBB), California from 2009–2013 and compared to bulk Pseudo-nitzschia cell abundance and DA concentrations and fluxes in sediment traps moored at 147 m and 509 m. Pseudo-nitzschia abundance throughout the study period was spatially and temporally heterogeneous (L−1 to 3.8 × 106 cells L−1 , avg. 2 × 105 ± 5 × 105 cells L−1 ) and did not correspond with upwelling conditions or the total DA (tDA) concentration, which was also spatially and temporally diverse (1000 cells L−1 and tDA = 200 ng L−1 ) measured as deep as 150 m. Our results highlight that dDA should not be ignored when examining bloom toxicity. Although water column abundance and pDA concentrations were poorly correlated with sediment trap Pseudo-nitzschia abundance and fluxes, DA toxicity is likely associated with senescent blooms that rapidly sink to the seafloor, adding another potential source of DA to benthic organisms

Effect of Dietary Restriction and Subsequent Re-Alimentation on the Transcriptional Profile of Bovine Skeletal Muscle

peer-reviewedCompensatory growth (CG), an accelerated growth phenomenon which occurs following a period of dietary restriction is exploited worldwide in animal production systems as a method to lower feed costs. However the molecular mechanisms regulated CG expression remain to be elucidated fully. This study aimed to uncover the underlying biology regulating CG in cattle, through an examination of skeletal muscle transcriptional profiles utilising next generation mRNA sequencing technology. Twenty Holstein Friesian bulls were fed either a restricted diet for 125 days, with a target growth rate of 0.6 kg/day (Period 1), following which they were allowed feed ad libitum for a further 55 days (Period 2) or fed ad libitum for the entirety of the trial. M. longissimus dorsi biopsies were harvested from all bulls on days 120 and 15 of periods 1 and 2 respectively and RNAseq analysis was performed. During realimentation in Period 2, previously restricted animals displayed CG, growing at 1.8 times the rate of the ad libitum control animals. Compensating animals were also more feed efficient during re-alimentation and compensated for 48% of their previous dietary restriction. 1,430 and 940 genes were identified as significantly differentially expressed (Benjamini Hochberg adjusted P < 0.1) in periods 1 and 2 respectively. Additionally, 2,237 genes were differentially expressed in animals undergoing CG relative to dietary restriction. Dietary restriction in Period 1 was associated with altered expression of genes involved in lipid metabolism and energy production. CG expression in Period 2 occurred in association with greater expression of genes involved in cellular function and organisation. This study highlights some of the molecular mechanisms regulating CG in cattle. Differentially expressed genes identified are potential candidate genes for the identification of biomarkers for CG and feed efficiency, which may be incorporated into future breeding programme

Rolling actions of shoulders and hips in freestyle swimming.

The purpose of this study was to determine accurately the magnitude of shoulder roll (SR) and hip roll (HR) in freestyle swimming, to assess the significance of the differences between these parameters and to examine whether they are associated with swimming velocity (V). Six male swimmers of national and international level performed a maximum freestyle swim. One non-breathing stroke cycle was selected for analysis. It was shown that swimmers rolled their shoulders significantly more than their hips. Faster swimming velocities were associated with smaller magnitudes of SR, but no significant correlations were found for V and HR. These results indicated that SR and HR need to be examined separately in freestyle swimming, as the measurement of body roll for the whole trunk does not represent with validity the rolling characteristics of the trunk