Labour efficiency on-farm

End of project reportImprovements in milking efficiency have a greater influence than any other aspect of the dairy farmers work on overall farm labour inputs (Whipp, 1992). In order to facilitate the examination of milking process labour inputs, the milking process may be divided into the following three components: herding pre and post milking (transfer of cows to and from the milking parlour); milking (milking tasks / work routines within the parlour); and washing (washing of milking machine and yard). Meanwhile, within milking specifically, the number of cows milked per operator per hour is the best measure of both the performance of the operator and the milking installation (Clough, 1978). This is affected by the following three factors: the milking times of the cows, the number and arrangement of the milking units, and the operator’s work routine (Whipp, 1992). The addition of extra milking units will only increase milking performance if the operator has idle time during milking (Hansen, 1999)

Labour Input Associated With Grassland Management on Irish Dairy Farms

The issues of labour and work organisation (working hours, working conditions) must be seriously addressed on Irish dairy farms if dairy farming is to have a viable future. The objective of this study was to quantify the annual labour input per cow on Irish dairy farms, with a specific focus on the task of grassland management, and to establish monthly patterns of labour utilisation over a two-year period for a range of herd sizes

Observing Exoplanets with High-Dispersion Coronagraphy. II. Demonstration of an Active Single-Mode Fiber Injection Unit

High-dispersion coronagraphy (HDC) optimally combines high contrast imaging techniques such as adaptive optics/wavefront control plus coronagraphy to high spectral resolution spectroscopy. HDC is a critical pathway towards fully characterizing exoplanet atmospheres across a broad range of masses from giant gaseous planets down to Earth-like planets. In addition to determining the molecular composition of exoplanet atmospheres, HDC also enables Doppler mapping of atmosphere inhomogeneities (temperature, clouds, wind), as well as precise measurements of exoplanet rotational velocities. Here, we demonstrate an innovative concept for injecting the directly-imaged planet light into a single-mode fiber, linking a high-contrast adaptively-corrected coronagraph to a high-resolution spectrograph (diffraction-limited or not). Our laboratory demonstration includes three key milestones: close-to-theoretical injection efficiency, accurate pointing and tracking, on-fiber coherent modulation and speckle nulling of spurious starlight signal coupling into the fiber. Using the extreme modal selectivity of single-mode fibers, we also demonstrated speckle suppression gains that outperform conventional image-based speckle nulling by at least two orders of magnitude.Comment: 10 pages, 7 figures, accepted by Ap

Phylogenetic analysis of infectious pancreatic necrosis virus in Ireland reveals the spread of a virulent genogroup 5 subtype previously associated with imports

Peer-reviewed. The final publication is available at Springer via DOI: 10.1007/s00705-014-2307-9Infectious pancreatic necrosis is a significant disease of farmed salmonids resulting in direct economic losses due to high mortality and disease-management costs. Significant outbreaks of the disease occurred in farmed Atlantic salmon in Ireland between 2003 and 2007, associated with imported ova and smolts. As the virus was known to occur in the country since the development of aquaculture in the 1980s, this study examined archived samples to determine whether these older isolates were associated with virulent forms. The study showed that two genotypes of IPNV were present in the 1990s, genotype 3 and genotype 5. A more virulent subtype of the virus first appeared in 2003 associated with clinical outbreaks of IPN, and this subtype is now the most prevalent form of IPNV found in the country. The data also indicated that IPNV in Ireland is more closely related to Scottish and continental European isolates than to Norwegian, Chilean and Australasian genogroup 5 isolates

Sociodemographic Background Characteristics of Patients Who Participate in a Lung Cancer Screening Program

Introduction: Despite decreasing lung cancer incidence and mortality rates, disparities in prevalence and outcomes persist between Black and White patients. Secondary analysis of the National Lung Screening Trial found screening with low-dose CT (LDCT) reduced lung cancer mortality more in Blacks than Whites. However, it is unknown if racial disparities exist in screening results, and the involved sociodemographic factors. Objective: The study aims to analyze characteristics that may predict screening outcomes (Lung-RADS category) in patients who received LDCT through the Jefferson Lung Cancer Screening Program (LCSP). Methods: Retrospective data (n=733, May 2015 to July 2017) were merged with prospective data (n=292, January to September 2018). Lung-RADS scores were categorized into a binary variable (negative=1 and 2 vs. positive=3, 4A, 4B, and 4X). Chi-square and multivariate logistic regression were conducted to examine risk factors (race, gender, age, marital status, smoking status, COPD, and BMI). Results: Of 1025 total participants, 688 met eligibility criteria and underwent LDCT. In adjusted analysis, age and marital status were associated with Lung-RADS result. Older patients (aOR=1.04, 95% CI=1.01-1.08) and never-married patients (aOR=1.88, 95% CI=1.09-3.26) had significantly higher odds of a positive screen. An interaction between race and gender was also identified. Compared to White women, White men (aOR=2.13, 95% CI=1.08-4.19) and Black men (aOR=2.10, 95% CI=1.01-4.42) had higher odds of positive screening results. Discussion: Despite no main effect of race on screening results, an interaction existed between race and gender. These findings can be further explored to develop education programs for earlier detection and treatment, increasing screening awareness in vulnerable populations

Experimental comparison of model-free and model-based dark hole algorithms for future space telescopes

Coronagraphic instruments provide a great chance of enabling high contrast spectroscopy for the pursuit of finding a habitable world. Future space telescope coronagraph instruments require high performing focal plane masks in combination with precise wavefront sensing and control techniques to achieve dark holes for planet detection. Several wavefront control algorithms have been developed in recent years that might vary in performance depending on the coronagraph they are paired with. This study compares 3 model-free and model-based algorithms when coupled with either a Vector (VVC) or a Scalar (SVC) Vortex Coronagraph mask in the same laboratory conditions: Pairwise Probing with Electric Field Conjugation, the Self-Coherent Camera with Electric Field Conjugation, and Implicit Electric Field Conjugation. We present experimental results from the In-Air Coronagraph Testbed (IACT) at JPL in narrowband and broadband light, comparing the pros and cons of each of these wavefront sensing and control algorithms with respect to their potential for future space telescopes.Comment: Conference Proceedings of SPIE: Techniques and Instrumentation for Detection of Exoplanets XI, vol. 12680 (2023

National Survey of Sea Lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis Krøyer and Caligus elongatus Nordmann) on Fish Farms in Ireland – 2019

Farmed stocks of Atlantic salmon in Ireland are inspected on 14 occasions throughout the year to monitor sea lice levels as part of a national programme. Sea lice are a naturally occurring parasite found on marine fish, including salmonids. They are small ecto-parasitic copepod crustaceans and there are approximately 559 species. The objectives of the National Sea Lice Monitoring Programme are: To provide an objective measurement of infestation levels on farms. To investigate the nature of infestations. To provide management information to drive the implementation of control and management strategies. To facilitate further development and refinement of this strategy. The sea lice control and management strategy has five principal components: Separation of generations. Annual fallowing of sites. Early harvest of two-sea-winter fish. Targeted treatment regimes, including synchronous treatments. Agreed husbandry practices

Dilatation in the femoral vascular bed does not cause retrograde relaxation of the iliac artery in the anaesthetized pig

Aim:  We tested the hypothesis that dilatation of a feeding artery may be elicited by transmission of a signal through the tissue of the arterial wall from a vasodilated peripheral vascular bed. Methods:  In eight pentobarbital anaesthetized pigs, acetylcholine (ACh, an endothelium-dependent vasodilator) was injected intra-arterially above (upstream) and below (downstream) a test segment of the left iliac artery, the diameter of which was measured continuously by sonomicrometry. Results:  Under control conditions, ACh injections upstream and downstream of the test segment caused dilatation. Downstream injection dilated the peripheral arterioles, resulting in increased blood flow and proximal dilatation. This is a shear stress, nitric oxide (NO)-dependent response. The experiment was then repeated after applying a stenosis to prevent the increased flow caused by downstream injection of ACh; the stenosis was placed either above the site of diameter measurement to allow retrograde conduction, or below that site to prevent distally injected ACh reaching the measurement site. Under these conditions, downstream injection of ACh had a minimal effect on the shear stress of the test segment with no increase in test segment diameter. This was not due to endothelial damage or dysfunction as injection of ACh upstream still caused a large increase in test segment diameter. Conclusions:  Our results indicate that dilatation of the feeding artery of a vasodilated bed is caused by increased shear stress within the feeding artery and not via a signal transmitted through the arterial wall from below

Broadband Vector Vortex Coronagraph Testing at NASA's High Contrast Imaging Testbed Facility

The unparalleled theoretical performance of an ideal vector vortex coronagraph makes it one of the most promising technologies for directly imaging exoplanets with a future, off-axis space telescope. However, the image contrast required for observing the light reflected from Earth-sized planets ($\sim10^{-10}$) has yet to be demonstrated in a laboratory setting. With recent advances in the manufacturing of liquid crystal vector vortex waveplates as well as system-level performance improvements on our testbeds, we have achieved raw contrast of 1.6$\times10^{-9}$ and 5.9$\times10^{-9}$ in 10% and 20% optical bandwidths, respectively, averaged over 3-10$\lambda/D$ separations on one side of the pseudo-star. The former represents a factor of 10 improvement over the previously reported performance. We show experimental comparisons of the contrast achieved as a function of spectral bandwidth. We provide estimates of the limiting error terms and discuss the improvements needed to close the gap in contrast performance required for future exoplanet imaging space telescopes.Comment: To appear in the Proceedings of the SPI