Growth and yield of the sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) as affected by training system

Modern intensive production of sweet cherry (Prunus avium L.) tends to planting of high quality cultivars on the dwarfing rootstocks in high density orchards. The most productive training system is used, providing an ideal condition for undisturbed growth and yield. The main objective of this study was to determine the best training system of sweet cherry, considering regular and high yields and fruit quality. The three-year study was carried out on a 4-years old sweet cherry orchard with cultivar summit grafted on the dwarfing rootstock Tabel ® Edabriz. Three different training systems (Spanish bush, Spindle bush and "V") were compared. The smaller vegetative growth, expressed as trunk crosssectional area (TCSA) was recorded in Spanish bush (34.68 cm2) when compared to Spindle bush (40.11 cm2) and "V" (40.82 cm2). The largest cumulative yield per hectare was gotten by the training system "V" (41.65 t/ha), followed by Spindle bush (21.12 t/ha) and Spanish bush (11.30 t/ha). Yield efficiency (YE) (kg/cm2) of Spanish bush (0.19 kg/cm2) was significantly lower than that of Spindle bush (0.32 kg/cm2) and "V" (0.28 kg/cm2). Yield per unit land area (YA) (kg/m2) differed in all training systems and the highest was recorded on "V", while the smallest was in Spanish bush. Training system and density did not affect the fruit weight. Results showed that the training system significantly affected the growth and yield of sweet cherry.Key words: Rootstock, trunk cross-sectional area (TCSA), training system

Exploratory Analysis of Highly Heterogeneous Document Collections

We present an effective multifaceted system for exploratory analysis of highly heterogeneous document collections. Our system is based on intelligently tagging individual documents in a purely automated fashion and exploiting these tags in a powerful faceted browsing framework. Tagging strategies employed include both unsupervised and supervised approaches based on machine learning and natural language processing. As one of our key tagging strategies, we introduce the KERA algorithm (Keyword Extraction for Reports and Articles). KERA extracts topic-representative terms from individual documents in a purely unsupervised fashion and is revealed to be significantly more effective than state-of-the-art methods. Finally, we evaluate our system in its ability to help users locate documents pertaining to military critical technologies buried deep in a large heterogeneous sea of information.Comment: 9 pages; KDD 2013: 19th ACM SIGKDD Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Minin

Overview of VideoCLEF 2009: New perspectives on speech-based multimedia content enrichment

VideoCLEF 2009 offered three tasks related to enriching video content for improved multimedia access in a multilingual environment. For each task, video data (Dutch-language television, predominantly documentaries) accompanied by speech recognition transcripts were provided. The Subject Classification Task involved automatic tagging of videos with subject theme labels. The best performance was achieved by approaching subject tagging as an information retrieval task and using both speech recognition transcripts and archival metadata. Alternatively, classifiers were trained using either the training data provided or data collected from Wikipedia or via general Web search. The Affect Task involved detecting narrative peaks, defined as points where viewers perceive heightened dramatic tension. The task was carried out on the “Beeldenstorm” collection containing 45 short-form documentaries on the visual arts. The best runs exploited affective vocabulary and audience directed speech. Other approaches included using topic changes, elevated speaking pitch, increased speaking intensity and radical visual changes. The Linking Task, also called “Finding Related Resources Across Languages,” involved linking video to material on the same subject in a different language. Participants were provided with a list of multimedia anchors (short video segments) in the Dutch-language “Beeldenstorm” collection and were expected to return target pages drawn from English-language Wikipedia. The best performing methods used the transcript of the speech spoken during the multimedia anchor to build a query to search an index of the Dutch language Wikipedia. The Dutch Wikipedia pages returned were used to identify related English pages. Participants also experimented with pseudo-relevance feedback, query translation and methods that targeted proper names

Potential of Endangered Local Donkey Breeds in Meat and Milk Production

The problem of the erosion of animal genetic resources is evident in certain local donkey breeds, and their long-term sustainability can be achieved by economically repositioning them. To develop alternative and sustainable commercial programs, the meat and milk production characteristics of Istrian donkey and Littoral Dinaric donkey breeds were investigated. The meat production characteristics were examined in mature males, whose carcasses were dissected, and meat composition was determined using NIT spectrophotometry and gas chromatography. Milk yield and milk composition were determined in jennies in second or subsequent lactations by measuring milk volume and using infrared spectrometry and gas chromatography. Compared to the Littoral Dinaric donkey, the Istrian donkey has a higher carcass weight and dressing percentage (p < 0.001). The share of boneless meat in relation to live weight was 28.27% in the Istrian donkey and 26.18% in the Littoral Dinaric donkey. The absolute masses of primal cuts of meat in E, I, and II classes were significantly greater in Istrian donkeys than in Littoral Dinaric donkeys (p < 0.01), although the differences in the proportions of primal cuts were not significant. The breed did not have a significant impact on the color, pH, or meat composition. A significant influence of breed on milk yield, lactose, protein, and the fat content of milk was observed (p < 0.01). A significant influence of breed on the ratio of n-6/n-3 PUFA fatty acids in donkey milk was observed (p = 0.002). The values of the atherogenic and thrombogenic indexes were favorable, considering potential beneficial effects of donkey milk and meat on consumer health. The findings of this research suggest that local donkey breeds hold significant potential for meat and milk production, focusing on the uniqueness and quality of their products rather than the quantity of meat and milk they can produce

Application of an Equilibrium Vaporization Model to the Ablation of Chondritic and Achondritic Meteoroids

We modeled equilibrium vaporization of chondritic and achondritic materials using the MAGMA code. We calculated both instantaneous and integrated element abundances of Na, Mg, Ca, Al, Fe, Si, Ti, and K in chondritic and achondritic meteors. Our results are qualitatively consistent with observations of meteor spectra.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figures; in press, Earth, Moon, and Planets, Meteoroids 2004 conference proceeding

GROWING TOBACCO SEEDLINGS ON DIFFERENT FLOAT NUTRIENT SOLUTIONS

Rasad virdžinijskih duhanskih hibrida DH16 i DH17 je uzgojen na tri hranidbene otopine i posađen u poljskom pokusu u Kutjevu i Virovitici 2000. i 2001. godine. Pokus je izveden po randomiziranom potpunom blok rasporedu u 4 ponavljanja i sa 4 reda po 22 biljke na pokusnoj parcelici. Srednja dva reda, bez rubnih biljaka (40 biljaka) su korištena za procjenu prinosa, cijene i vrijednosti duhanskog lista nakon berbe i sušenja. Preporučene koncentracije hranjiva u hranjivoj otopini kod nas u proizvodnji su N:P:K= 150:75:150 ppm. U pokusu su korištene koncentracije N 150 i 170, P2O5 75 i 150, te K2O 150 ppm. Analize za sva svojstva rezultirale su značajnim razlikama u okolinama (lokacija x godina), dok je za cijenu i vrijednost signifikantna bila interakcija hibrid x okolina. Obzirom na sortiment, hibrid DH17 je u prosjeku imao nešto bolja gospodarska svojstva od hibrida DH16. Izvor hranjiva u otopini, kao niti njihova koncentracija nisu značajno utjecali na istraživana svojstva duhana. Stoga rezultati upućuju na mogućnost korištenja izvora hranjiva i njihove koncentracije u hranjivoj otopini korištenoj u pokusu za uzgoj rasada hibrida duhana DH16 i DH17.Seedlings of flue cured tobacco hybrid DH16 and DH17 grown in float system on three nutrient solutions were transplanted in a field experiment at two locations in 2000 and 2001. The experiment was organized as RCBD with four replicates and four 22 plant rows per each experimental plot. Middle two rows (40 plants) were used for analyzing yield, price and value. Recommended nutrient concentration for float system in Croatia is N:P:K = 150:75:150 ppm. In the experiment concentration of N was 150 and 170, of P2O5 75 and 150, and of K2O 150 ppm. The obtained data analyses resulted in significant differences between environments (year x location) for all the traits, while hybrid x environment interaction was significant for price and value. Hybrid DH17 was on the average slightly better than DH16 in all the traits. Source of nutrients and nutrient concentration did not have significant effect on the tobacco traits. The obtained results have indicated that the fertilizers and the nutrient concentration applied in the experiment can be used in the commercial tobacco production of the hybrids DH16 and DH17

GROWING TOBACCO SEEDLINGS ON DIFFERENT FLOAT NUTRIENT SOLUTIONS

Rasad virdžinijskih duhanskih hibrida DH16 i DH17 je uzgojen na tri hranidbene otopine i posađen u poljskom pokusu u Kutjevu i Virovitici 2000. i 2001. godine. Pokus je izveden po randomiziranom potpunom blok rasporedu u 4 ponavljanja i sa 4 reda po 22 biljke na pokusnoj parcelici. Srednja dva reda, bez rubnih biljaka (40 biljaka) su korištena za procjenu prinosa, cijene i vrijednosti duhanskog lista nakon berbe i sušenja. Preporučene koncentracije hranjiva u hranjivoj otopini kod nas u proizvodnji su N:P:K= 150:75:150 ppm. U pokusu su korištene koncentracije N 150 i 170, P2O5 75 i 150, te K2O 150 ppm. Analize za sva svojstva rezultirale su značajnim razlikama u okolinama (lokacija x godina), dok je za cijenu i vrijednost signifikantna bila interakcija hibrid x okolina. Obzirom na sortiment, hibrid DH17 je u prosjeku imao nešto bolja gospodarska svojstva od hibrida DH16. Izvor hranjiva u otopini, kao niti njihova koncentracija nisu značajno utjecali na istraživana svojstva duhana. Stoga rezultati upućuju na mogućnost korištenja izvora hranjiva i njihove koncentracije u hranjivoj otopini korištenoj u pokusu za uzgoj rasada hibrida duhana DH16 i DH17.Seedlings of flue cured tobacco hybrid DH16 and DH17 grown in float system on three nutrient solutions were transplanted in a field experiment at two locations in 2000 and 2001. The experiment was organized as RCBD with four replicates and four 22 plant rows per each experimental plot. Middle two rows (40 plants) were used for analyzing yield, price and value. Recommended nutrient concentration for float system in Croatia is N:P:K = 150:75:150 ppm. In the experiment concentration of N was 150 and 170, of P2O5 75 and 150, and of K2O 150 ppm. The obtained data analyses resulted in significant differences between environments (year x location) for all the traits, while hybrid x environment interaction was significant for price and value. Hybrid DH17 was on the average slightly better than DH16 in all the traits. Source of nutrients and nutrient concentration did not have significant effect on the tobacco traits. The obtained results have indicated that the fertilizers and the nutrient concentration applied in the experiment can be used in the commercial tobacco production of the hybrids DH16 and DH17

Successful outcome of phytostabilization in Cr(VI) contaminated soils amended with alkalizing additives

This study analysed the effect of three alkalizing soil amendments (limestone, dolomite chalcedonite) on aided phytostabilization with Festuca rubra L. depending on the hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) level in contaminated soil. Four different levels of Cr(VI) were added to the soil (0, 50, 100 and 150 mg/kg). The Cr contents in the plant roots and above-ground parts and the soil (total and extracted Cr by 0.01 M CaCl2) were determined with flame atomic absorption spectrometry. The phytotoxicity of the soil was also determined. Soil amended with chalcedonite significantly increased F. rubra biomass. Chalcedonite and limestone favored a considerable accumulation of Cr in the roots. The application of dolomite and limestone to soil contaminated with Cr(VI) contributed to a significant increase in pH values and was found to be the most effective in reducing total Cr and CaCl2-extracted Cr contents from the soil. F. rubra in combination with a chalcedonite amendment appears to be a promising solution for phytostabilization of Cr(VI)-contaminated areas. The use of this model can contribute to reducing human exposure to Cr(VI) and its associated health risks. © 2020 by the authors.Ministerstwo Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyższego: MNiS

Anatomical, Clinical and Electrical Observations in Piriformis Syndrome

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>We provided clinical and electrical descriptions of the piriformis syndrome, contributing to better understanding of the pathogenesis and further diagnostic criteria.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>Between 3550 patients complaining of sciatica, we concluded 26 cases of piriformis syndrome, 15 females, 11 males, mean age 35.37 year-old. We operated 9 patients, 2 to 19 years after the onset of symptoms, 5 had piriformis steroids injection. A dorsolumbar MRI were performed in all cases and a pelvic MRI in 7 patients. The electro-diagnostic test was performed in 13 cases, between them the H reflex of the peroneal nerve was tested 7 times.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>After a followup 1 to 11 years, for the 17 non operated patients, 3 patients responded to conservative treatment. 6 of the operated had an excellent result, 2 residual minor pain and one failed. 3 new anatomical observations were described with atypical compression of the sciatic nerve by the piriformis muscle.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>While the H reflex test of the tibial nerve did not give common satisfaction in the literature for diagnosis, the H reflex of the peroneal nerve should be given more importance, because it demonstrated in our study more specific sign, with six clinical criteria it contributed to improve the method of diagnosis. The cause of this particular syndrome does not only depend on the relation sciatic nerve-piriformis muscle, but the environmental conditions should be considered with the series of the anatomical anomalies to explain the real cause of this pain.</p