Estimation of Plant Leaf Area using Java Image Processing Techniques

Leaf area represents the amount of leaf material in ecosystems and controls the links between biosphere and atmosphere through various processes like photosynthesis, respiration, transpiration and rain interception. It is also helpful parameter in evaluating damage caused by leaf diseases and pastes, micronutrient deficiencies, water and environmental stress, need of fertilization for effective management and treatment. Precision agriculture production adapting rapid and accurate methods to measure plant leaf area. At presently, grid counting and Leaf Area Meter (Li3100) are used as conventional methods for leaf area estimation. These methods are simple in principle and highly accurate but tend to be time consuming. The above constraints can be overcome by proposed Leaf Area Meter (LAM); a Java based Image processing software application. The software application has many advantages like User friendly, fast, accurate and reusable. The paper discusses different Leaf Area (LA) estimation methods namely Instrument based Using Li 3100 Machine, Manual Graph based Method and Software based Method. Results show that LAM software gives 99.96% to 95.31% accurate results for different leaves except Jasud. Between two image formats, .jpg format shows comparatively less error than .png format. DOI: 10.17762/ijritcc2321-8169.15029

Statistics of Coulomb blockade peak spacings for a partially open dot

We show that randomness of the electron wave functions in a quantum dot contributes to the fluctuations of the positions of the conductance peaks. This contribution grows with the conductance of the junctions connecting the dot to the leads. It becomes comparable with the fluctuations coming from the randomness of the single particle spectrum in the dot while the Coulomb blockade peaks are still well-defined. In addition, the fluctuations of the peak spacings are correlated with the fluctuations of the conductance peak heights.Comment: 13 pages, 1 figur

Quantum dots in magnetic fields: thermal response of broken symmetry phases

We investigate the thermal properties of circular semiconductor quantum dots in high magnetic fields using finite temperature Hartree-Fock techniques. We demonstrate that for a given magnetic field strength quantum dots undergo various shape phase transitions as a function of temperature, and we outline possible observable consequences.Comment: In Press, Phys. Rev. B (2001

Resonant transmission through an open quantum dot

We have measured the low-temperature transport properties of a quantum dot formed in a one-dimensional channel. In zero magnetic field this device shows quantized ballistic conductance plateaus with resonant tunneling peaks in each transition region between plateaus. Studies of this structure as a function of applied perpendicular magnetic field and source-drain bias indicate that resonant structure deriving from tightly bound states is split by Coulomb charging at zero magnetic field.Comment: To be published in Phys. Rev. B (1997). 8 LaTex pages with 5 figure

Oral tongue carcinoma among young patients: An analysis of risk factors and survival

Introduction: The incidence of oral tongue squamous cell carcinoma (OTSCC) in younger adults has rapidly increased over the past two decades. While tobacco and alcohol use may be less likely to cause these tumors, it remains controversial whether differences also exist in their prognosis. Our aim is to examine the risk factors for cancer among young (<45 years old) OTSCC patients at our institution, and to compare their recurrence and survival with older patients in a matched cohort. Materials and methods: All OTSCC patients seen at our institution between 2000 and 2015 were reviewed. Patients under 45 who with sufficient treatment information were matched 1:1 on race, T-stage, and N-stage with patients 45 and older. Three-year recurrence and survival were determined in stratified and adjusted Cox regression models. Results: Of 397 OTSCC patients were seen at our institution, 117 (29%) were less than 45 years old. Younger patients were significantly more likely to be female, (50% vs. 39%; p = 0.04) and to abstain from tobacco (51% vs. 39%; p < 0.01). Young patients in the matched cohort were significantly more likely to have a recurrence (HR 3.9 95% CI 1.4–10.5). There was no difference in overall survival. Conclusion: Younger OTSCC patients in a matched cohort were more likely to recur within 3 years, although there was no difference in overall mortality. Differences in risk factors and recurrence between older and younger patients suggest that some cancer among younger patients may be distinct from traditional OTSCC

Semiclassical Theory of Coulomb Blockade Peak Heights in Chaotic Quantum Dots

We develop a semiclassical theory of Coulomb blockade peak heights in chaotic quantum dots. Using Berry's conjecture, we calculate the peak height distributions and the correlation functions. We demonstrate that the corrections to the corresponding results of the standard statistical theory are non-universal and can be expressed in terms of the classical periodic orbits of the dot that are well coupled to the leads. The main effect is an oscillatory dependence of the peak heights on any parameter which is varied; it is substantial for both symmetric and asymmetric lead placement. Surprisingly, these dynamical effects do not influence the full distribution of peak heights, but are clearly seen in the correlation function or power spectrum. For non-zero temperature, the correlation function obtained theoretically is in good agreement with that measured experimentally.Comment: 5 color eps figure

Academic Affiliation and Surgical Volume Predict Survival in Head and Neck Cancer Patients Receiving Surgery

Objective: To determine whether the academic affiliation or surgical volume affects the overall survival (OS) of human papillomavirus (HPV)–negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) patients receiving surgery. Methods: A retrospective study of 39 North Carolina Medical Centers was conducted. Treatment centers were classified as academic hospitals, community cancer centers, or community hospitals and were divided into thirds by volume. The primary outcome was 5-year OS. Hazard ratios (HR) were determined using Cox proportional hazard models, adjusting for demographics, tumor site, stage, insurance status, tobacco use, alcohol use, stage, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Patients were also stratified by stage (early stage and advanced stage). Results: Patients treated at community cancer centers had significantly better 5-year OS (HR 0.68, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.48–0.98), and patients treated at academic hospitals trended toward better 5-year OS (HR 0.72, 95% CI = 0.50–1.04) compared to patients treated at community hospitals. The effect for academic affiliation on survival was more pronounced for patients with advanced stage cancer at diagnosis (HR 0.60, 95% CI = 0.37–0.95). There were no significant survival differences among early stage patients by treatment center type. Top-third (HR = 0.64, 95% CI = 0.42–0.96) centers by surgical volume had significantly better 5-year OS, and middle-third (HR = 0.71, 95% CI = 0.51–1.03) centers by volume trended toward better 5-year OS when compared to the bottom-third centers by volume. Conclusion: Patients treated at academic hospitals, community cancer centers, and hospitals in the top third by case volume have favorable survival for HPV-negative HNSCC. The effect for academic hospitals is most pronounced among advanced stage patients. Level of Evidence: 4 Laryngoscope, 131:E479–E488, 2021

Spironolactone and colitis: Increased mortality in rodents and in humans

Background: Crohn's disease causes intestinal inflammation leading to intestinal fibrosis. Spironolactone is an antifibrotic medication commonly used in heart failure to reduce mortality. We examined whether spironolactone is antifibrotic in the context of intestinal inflammation. Methods: In vitro, spironolactone repressed fibrogenesis in transforming growth factor beta (TGF‐β)‐stimulated human colonic myofibroblasts. However, spironolactone therapy significantly increased mortality in two rodent models of inflammation‐induced intestinal fibrosis, suggesting spironolactone could be harmful during intestinal inflammation. Since inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) patients rarely receive spironolactone therapy, we examined whether spironolactone use was associated with mortality in a common cause of inflammatory colitis, Clostridium difficile infection (CDI). Results: Spironolactone use during CDI infection was associated with increased mortality in a retrospective cohort of 4008 inpatients (15.9% vs. 9.1%, n = 390 deaths, P < 0.0001). In patients without liver disease, the adjusted odds ratio (OR) for inpatient mortality associated with 80 mg spironolactone was 1.99 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.51–2.63) In contrast to the main effect of spironolactone mortality, multivariate modeling revealed a protective interaction between liver disease and spironolactone dose. The adjusted OR for mortality after CDI was 1.96 (95% CI: 1.50–2.55) for patients without liver disease on spironolactone vs. 1.28 (95% CI: 0.82–2.00) for patients with liver disease on spironolactone when compared to a reference group without liver disease or spironolactone use. Conclusions: We propose that discontinuation of spironolactone in patients without liver disease during CDI could reduce hospital mortality by 2‐fold, potentially reducing mortality from CDI by 35,000 patients annually across Europe and the U.S. (Inflamm Bowel Dis 2011;)Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/92045/1/21929_ftp.pd

A Solvable Regime of Disorder and Interactions in Ballistic Nanostructures, Part I: Consequences for Coulomb Blockade

We provide a framework for analyzing the problem of interacting electrons in a ballistic quantum dot with chaotic boundary conditions within an energy $E_T$ (the Thouless energy) of the Fermi energy. Within this window we show that the interactions can be characterized by Landau Fermi liquid parameters. When $g$, the dimensionless conductance of the dot, is large, we find that the disordered interacting problem can be solved in a saddle-point approximation which becomes exact as $g\to\infty$ (as in a large-N theory). The infinite $g$ theory shows a transition to a strong-coupling phase characterized by the same order parameter as in the Pomeranchuk transition in clean systems (a spontaneous interaction-induced Fermi surface distortion), but smeared and pinned by disorder. At finite $g$, the two phases and critical point evolve into three regimes in the $u_m-1/g$ plane -- weak- and strong-coupling regimes separated by crossover lines from a quantum-critical regime controlled by the quantum critical point. In the strong-coupling and quantum-critical regions, the quasiparticle acquires a width of the same order as the level spacing $\Delta$ within a few $\Delta$'s of the Fermi energy due to coupling to collective excitations. In the strong coupling regime if $m$ is odd, the dot will (if isolated) cross over from the orthogonal to unitary ensemble for an exponentially small external flux, or will (if strongly coupled to leads) break time-reversal symmetry spontaneously.Comment: 33 pages, 14 figures. Very minor changes. We have clarified that we are treating charge-channel instabilities in spinful systems, leaving spin-channel instabilities for future work. No substantive results are change

Prognostic impact of socioeconomic status compared to overall stage for HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Objective: To estimate the relative prognostic ability of socioeconomic status (SES) compared to overall stage for HPV-negative head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) Materials and methods: Data were obtained from the Carolina Head and Neck Cancer Epidemiology Study (CHANCE). An empirical 4-category SES classification system was created. Cox proportional hazards models, survival gradients, Bayesian information criterion (BIC), and Harrell's C index were used to estimate the prognostic ability of SES compared to stage on overall survival (OS). Results: The sample consisted of 1229 patients with HPV-negative HNSCC. Patients with low SES had significantly increased risk of mortality at 5 years compared to patients with high SES (HR 3.11, 95% CI 2.07–4.67; p < 0.001), and the magnitude of effect was similar to overall stage (HR 3.01, 95% CI 2.35–3.86; p < 0.001 for stage IV versus I). Compared to overall stage, the SES classification system had a larger total survival gradient (35.8% vs. 29.1%), similar model fit (BIC statistic of 7412 and 7388, respectively), and similar model discriminatory ability (Harrell's C index of 0.61 and 0.64, respectively). The association between low SES and OS persisted after adjusting for age, sex, race, alcohol, smoking, overall stage, tumor site, and treatment in a multivariable model (HR 2.96, 95% CI 1.92–4.56; p < 0.001). Conclusion: SES may have a similar prognostic ability to overall stage for patients with HPV-negative HNSCC. Future research is warranted to validate these findings and identify evidence-based interventions for addressing barriers to care for patients with HNSCC