A Computational Comparison of Evolutionary Algorithms for Water Resource Planning for Agricultural and Environmental Purposes

The use of water resources for agricultural purposes, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions, is a matter of increasing concern across the world. Optimisation techniques can play an important role in improving the allocation of land to different crops, based on a utility function (such as net revenue) and the water resources needed to support these. Recent work proposed a model formulation for an agricultural region in the Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area of the Murray-Darling River basin in Australia, and found that the well-known NSGA-II technique could produce sensible crop mixes while preserving ground and surface water for environmental purposes. In the present study we apply Differential Evolution using two different solution representations, one of which explores the restricted space in which no land is left fallow. The results improve on those of the prior NSGA-II and demonstrate that a combination of solution representations allows Differential Evolution to more thoroughly explore the multiobjective space of profit versus environment

A COMPARISON OF THE NATIONAL FOOTBALL LEAGUE COACHES STRENGTH AND CONDITIONING PRACTICES 1997-1998 TO 2018

This study describes the results of a survey of the strength and conditioning practices of the National Football League’s strength and conditioning coaches. The survey response rate was 28.1% (9 of 32 NFL teams) agreeing to participate. Subjects test 6.83 ± 3.06 fitness variables using 9.00 ± 3.74 tests; compared to 7.0 fitness variables using 10.0 tests in ‘97-98. Subjects prescribe resistance training 2.33 ± .81 days per week when in-season; compared to 2.8 ± 0.8 days per week in ’97-98. The average in-season training session duration was 37.50 ± 12.54 mins; compared to 48.5 ±13.2 mins in ’97-98. Findings indicate that there were statistically significant results for NFL coaching tenure (p= .005) and off-season resistance training frequency (p= .007). This study serves as a review as well as a source of applied information regarding training program design

Radiotelemetric Evaluation of the Effect of Horticultural Practices on Pine and Meadow Voles in Apple Orchards: I. Rotary Mowing

Pine voles (Microtus pinetorum) and meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus) were studied in three apple orchard plots in the Hudson Valley of New York during June and July 1980. Selected voles from each plot were given miniature radiotransmitters and then tracked before, during, and after rotary mowing. A total of 11 pine voles and 6 meadow voles were tracked. Home range size was much larger for meadow voles than pine voles. During mowing, meadow voles were noticeably affected by the mower; pine voles were not. No change occurred in the area utilized before and after mowing for either species, nor did any significant mortality result from the treatment. Voles of both species showed a slight but significant tendency to remain closer to the tree rows after mowing. We conclude that rotary mowing has a negligible effect on vole movement and survival under the conditions of this study

Observations and asteroseismic analysis of the rapidly pulsating hot B subdwarf PG 0911+456

The principal aim of this project is to determine the structural parameters of the rapidly pulsating subdwarf B star PG 0911+456 from asteroseismology. Our work forms part of an ongoing programme to constrain the internal characteristics of hot B subdwarfs with the long-term goal of differentiating between the various formation scenarios proposed for these objects. First comparisons of asteroseismic values with evolutionary theory look promising, however it is clear that more targets are needed for meaningful statistics to be derived. The observational pulsation periods of PG 0911+456 were extracted from rapid time-series photometry using standard Fourier analysis techniques. Supplemented by spectroscopic estimates of the star's mean atmospheric parameters, they were used as a basis for the "forward modelling" approach in asteroseismology. The latter culminates in the identification of one or more "optimal" models that can accurately reproduce the observed period spectrum. This naturally leads to an identification of the oscillations detected in terms of degree l and radial order k, and infers the structural parameters of the target. From the photometry it was possible to extract 7 independent pulsation periods in the 150-200 s range with amplitudes between 0.05 and 0.8 % of the star's mean brightness. An asteroseismic search of parameter space identified several models that matched the observed properties of PG 0911+456 well, one of which was isolated as the "optimal" model on the basis of spectroscopic and mode identification considerations. All the observed pulsations are identified with low-order acoustic modes with degree indices l=0,1,2 and 4, and match the computed periods with a dispersion of only ~0.26 %.Comment: accepted for publication in A&A, 14 pages, 13 figure

EFFECTS OF STATIC STRETCHING ON MAXIMAL ISOKINETIC TORQUE

The effects of 20 seconds of agonist (AGO), antagonist (ANT) or no (NO) pre-exercise stretch on concentric (CON) and eccentric (ECC) maximal isokinetic torque produced at the knee were examined. Twelve male semi-pro rugby players performed dominant isokinetic knee extension following the specified stretch protocol. One-way Repeated Measures ANOVA revealed AGO to be significantly less (p < 0.05) than the other protocols for both CON (270 28 Nm) and ECC (309 42 Nm) torque. There was no difference between the ANT or NO for either CON (303 35 Nm and 304 38 Nm, respectively) or ECC (341 40 Nm and 33644 Nm). The results support the theory that pre-exercise agonist stretching may lead to performance decrements in maximal concentric torque production

Modeling the transmission and thermal emission in a pupil image behind the Keck II adaptive optics system

The design and performance of astronomical instruments depend critically on the total system throughput as well as the background emission from the sky and instrumental sources. In designing a pupil stop for background- limited imaging, one seeks to balance throughput and background rejection to optimize measurement signal-to-noise ratios. Many sources affect transmission and emission in infrared imaging behind the Keck Observatory’s adaptive optics systems, such as telescope segments, segment gaps, secondary support structure, and AO bench optics. Here we describe an experiment, using the pupil-viewing mode of NIRC2, to image the pupil plane as a function of wavelength. We are developing an empirical model of throughput and background emission as a function of position in the pupil plane. This model will be used in part to inform the optimal design of cold pupils in future instruments, such as the new imaging camera for OSIRIS

Enhanced Cognition and Hypoglutamatergic Signaling in a Growth Hormone Receptor Knockout Mouse Model of Successful Aging.

Growth hormone receptor knockout (GHR-KO) mice are long lived with improved health span, making this an excellent model system for understanding biochemical mechanisms important to cognitive reserve. The purpose of the present study was to elucidate differences in cognition and glutamatergic dynamics between aged (20- to 24-month-old) GHR-KO and littermate controls. Glutamate plays a critical role in hippocampal learning and memory and is implicated in several neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer\u27s disease. Spatial learning and memory were assessed using the Morris water maze (MWM), whereas independent dentate gyrus (DG), CA3, and CA1 basal glutamate, release, and uptake measurements were conducted in isoflurane anesthetized mice utilizing an enzyme-based microelectrode array (MEA) coupled with constant potential amperometry. These MEAs have high temporal and low spatial resolution while causing minimal damage to the surrounding parenchyma. Littermate controls performed worse on the memory portion of the MWM behavioral task and had elevated DG, CA3, and CA1 basal glutamate and stimulus-evoked release compared with age-matched GHR-KO mice. CA3 basal glutamate negatively correlated with MWM performance. These results support glutamatergic regulation in learning and memory and may have implications for therapeutic targets to delay the onset of, or reduce cognitive decline, in Alzheimer\u27s disease

Modeling instrumental field-dependent aberrations in the NIRC2 instrument on the Keck II telescope

We present a model of field-dependent aberrations arising in the NIRC2 instrument on the W. M. Keck II telescope. We use high signal-to-noise phase diversity data employing a source in the Nasmyth focal plane to construct a model of the optical path difference as a function of field position and wavelength. With a differential wavefront error of up to 190 nm, this effect is one of the main sources of astrometric and photometric measurement uncertainties. Our tests of temporal stability show sufficient reliability for our measurements over a 20-month period at the field extrema. Additionally, while chromaticity exists, applying a correction for field-dependent aberrations provides overall improvement compared to the existing aberrations present across the field of view

Impacts of elevated atmospheric CO₂ on nutrient content of important food crops.

One of the many ways that climate change may affect human health is by altering the nutrient content of food crops. However, previous attempts to study the effects of increased atmospheric CO2 on crop nutrition have been limited by small sample sizes and/or artificial growing conditions. Here we present data from a meta-analysis of the nutritional contents of the edible portions of 41 cultivars of six major crop species grown using free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) technology to expose crops to ambient and elevated CO2 concentrations in otherwise normal field cultivation conditions. This data, collected across three continents, represents over ten times more data on the nutrient content of crops grown in FACE experiments than was previously available. We expect it to be deeply useful to future studies, such as efforts to understand the impacts of elevated atmospheric CO2 on crop macro- and micronutrient concentrations, or attempts to alleviate harmful effects of these changes for the billions of people who depend on these crops for essential nutrients

The Vehicle, Fall 1990

Table of Contents Poetry Loss of the SpokenMatt Mansfieldpage 6-7 A Wyeth ReproductionLynn A. Rafoolpage 8 CornerSuzanna Portpage 9 FatherSuzanna Portpage 10 Past two,Victoria Bennettpage 11 VertigoVictoria Bennettpage 12 HeatVictoria Bennettpage 13 Pre-HistoryLuiz da Silveirapage 14 BloomsLuiz da Silveirapage 15 Hashimoto\u27s Thyrotoxicosis at Key WestAnthony Smithpage 16 Davy by the Pawn ShopAnthony Smithpage 17 Art UntitledMark Randallpage 19 UntitledMark Randallpage 20 UntitledSteve Reyespage 21 UntitledSteve Reyespage 22 Photographs UntitledSteve Beamerpage 24-25 UntitledSteve Beamerpage 26 UntitledSteve Beamerpage 27 Prose YikesMichael Brownpage 29 Thirty Minutes or LessSteve Fitzgeraldpage 30-35 Telling StoriesMatt Mansfieldpage 36-40 Interview Poet Donald HallMatt Mansfieldpage 42-44 Authors Biographiespage 46-47https://thekeep.eiu.edu/vehicle/1054/thumbnail.jp