Canopy Architecture and Performance Modeling in Sorghum bicolor

The global population is increasing in size and economic affluence, and sustainable intensification of agriculture is necessary to meet projected fuel and food demands without increasing input of limited resources like water. One approach to sustainably intensify agriculture is to improve the productivity of food and biofuel crops by increasing photosynthetic efficiency through modulation of canopy features. Sorghum is the world's fifth leading cereal crop and a promising bioenergy crop, and represents a useful target for crop improvement. Genetically engineering sorghum canopy architecture ideotypes for target production environments is facilitated by combining mathematical modeling, in silico simulation, field experimentation, and genetic analyses to determine optimal combinations of traits and the genetic networks regulating those traits, and this dissertation describes work towards this end. First, a model to improve calculations of genetic linkage in plant recombinant inbred line populations was developed so that regions of the genome associated with phenotypic variation can be more accurately defined. Second, functional-structural plant modeling was combined with field experimentation and genetic analyses to quantify the influence of leaf angle, a canopy architecture trait, on plant productivity, as well as to identify genomic loci regulating leaf angle. Third, a bioenergy sorghum crop model was parameterized to predict production of lignocellulosic biomass; this model was extended to explore how different canopy transpiration strategies influenced the end productivity of the crop and identify transpiration strategies yielding optimal water use. Continued progress in this work will provide ways to evaluate germplasm performance in silico and guide field testing for crop improvement

Social Norms, Attitudes and Perceptions of Alcohol and Drinking and Their Relationship with Risky Behavior Among Young Adults: A Comparative Study in Neiva, Colombia and Pittsburgh, USA

Background: Drinking patterns, including behavioral beliefs among young adults may vary from one country to another or be heavily influenced by cultural/regional factors. In order to identify opportunities for targeted interventions to reduce alcohol-related injuries and illnesses, improved understanding of drinking patterns, beliefs and perceptions of the target population are necessary. Methods: Survey questionnaires among young adult patients at two academic, tertiary-care emergency departments (ED) were conducted to determine the similarities and differences in patient characteristics, drinking patterns and behavioral beliefs associated with drinking. Two independent samples, one consisting of Colombian (n=132) and the other of American (n=91) young adult patients, were recruited. Participants’ drinking status was determined using the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT C). Patient demographics and behavioral beliefs about drinking behaviors were obtained through guided self-administered survey questionnaires. Specifically, beliefs about how many drinks it would take to get drunk, intention to drink, feelings about drinking, including perceived drinking norms, control and situational confidence were examined. Results: Comparison analysis indicates that within the studied sample, young adults from Pittsburgh on average drink more frequently per month (7.47 vs. 3.96 days, p-value < 0.001). However, young adults from Neiva are more likely on average to consume a greater volume of alcohol per drinking session (13.3 vs. 5.59 drinks, p-value < 0.001). Further, results indicate that social norms, attitudes and perceptions differ among the samples and may be indicative of drinking behavior. For instance, high-risk drinkers from the Neiva sample reported having positive attitudes and desires towards drinking. They were also more likely to believe that drinking among young adults was the social norm (55.45% vs. 35.5%, p-value = 0.04). These findings are in line with the Theory of Planned Behavior. Conclusions and public health relevance: This study identified important differences in drinking behavior as well as beliefs and attitudes that may contribute to drinking and alcohol abuse among young adults within two very different cultural settings. These findings have potential to inform the development of targeted intervention programs to reduce injury and illness related to alcohol abuse among young adults presenting at ED in similar settings

Bioenergy Sorghum Crop Model Predicts VPD-Limited Transpiration Traits Enhance Biomass Yield in Water-Limited Environments

Bioenergy sorghum is targeted for production in water-limited annual cropland therefore traits that improve plant water capture, water use efficiency, and resilience to water deficit are necessary to maximize productivity. A crop modeling framework, APSIM, was adapted to predict the growth and biomass yield of energy sorghum and to identify potentially useful traits for crop improvement. APSIM simulations of energy sorghum development and biomass accumulation replicated results from field experiments across multiple years, patterns of rainfall, and irrigation schemes. Modeling showed that energy sorghum's long duration of vegetative growth increased water capture and biomass yield by ~30% compared to short season crops in a water-limited production region. Additionally, APSIM was extended to enable modeling of VPD-limited transpiration traits that reduce crop water use under high vapor pressure deficits (VPDs). The response of transpiration rate to increasing VPD was modeled as a linear response until a VPD threshold was reached, at which the slope of the response decreases, representing a range of responses to VPD observed in sorghum germplasm. Simulation results indicated that the VPD-limited transpiration trait is most beneficial in hot and dry regions of production where crops are exposed to extended periods without rainfall during the season or to a terminal drought. In these environments, slower but more efficient transpiration increases biomass yield and prevents or delays the exhaustion of soil water and onset of leaf senescence. The VPD-limited transpiration responses observed in sorghum germplasm increased biomass accumulation by 20% in years with lower summer rainfall, and the ability to drastically reduce transpiration under high VPD conditions could increase biomass by 6% on average across all years. This work indicates that the productivity and resilience of bioenergy sorghum grown in water-limited environments could be further enhanced by development of genotypes with optimized VPD-limited transpiration traits and deployment of these crops in water limited growing environments. The energy sorghum model and VPD-limited transpiration trait implementation are made available to simulate performance in other target environments

Physiotherapy and related management for childhood obesity: A systematic scoping review

IntroductionDespite targeted efforts globally to address childhood overweight/obesity, it remains poorly understood and challenging to manage. Physiotherapists have the potential to manage children with obesity as they are experts in movement and physical activity. However, their role remains unclear due to a lack of physiotherapy-specific guidelines. This scoping review aims to explore existing literature, critically appraising and synthesising findings to guide physiotherapists in the evidence-based management of childhood overweight/obesity.MethodA scoping review was conducted, including literature up to May 2020. A review protocol exists on Open Science Framework at https://osf.io/fap8g/. Four databases were accessed including PubMed, Embase, CINAHL, Medline via OVID, with grey literature searched through google via "file:pdf". A descriptive synthesis was undertaken to explore the impact of existing interventions and their efficacy.ResultsFrom the initial capture of 1871 articles, 263 intervention-based articles were included. Interventions included qualitative focused physical activity, quantitative focused physical activity and multicomponent interventions. Various outcome measures were utilised including health-, performance- and behaviour-related outcomes. The general trend for physiotherapy involvement with children who are obese appears to favour: 1) multicomponent interventions, implementing more than one component with environmental modification and parental involvement and 2) quantitative physical activity interventions, focusing on the quantity of bodily movement. These approaches most consistently demonstrated desirable changes across behavioural and health-related outcome measures for multicomponent and quantitative physical activity interventions respectively.ConclusionWhen managing children with obesity, physiotherapists should consider multicomponent approaches and increasing the quantity of physical activity, given consistent improvements in various obesity-related outcomes. Such approaches are well suited to the scope of physiotherapists and their expertise in physical activity prescription for the management of childhood obesity. Future research should examine the effect of motor skill interventions and consider the role of environmental modification/parental involvement as factors contributing to intervention success

Reverberation Chamber Uniformity Validation and Radiated Susceptibility Test Procedures for the NASA High Intensity Radiated Fields Laboratory

The NASA Langley Research Center's High Intensity Radiated Fields Laboratory has developed a capability based on the RTCA/DO-160F Section 20 guidelines for radiated electromagnetic susceptibility testing in reverberation chambers. Phase 1 of the test procedure utilizes mode-tuned stirrer techniques and E-field probe measurements to validate chamber uniformity, determines chamber loading effects, and defines a radiated susceptibility test process. The test procedure is segmented into numbered operations that are largely software controlled. This document is intended as a laboratory test reference and includes diagrams of test setups, equipment lists, as well as test results and analysis. Phase 2 of development is discussed

RFID Transponders' RF Emissions in Aircraft Communication and Navigation Radio Bands

Radiated emission data in aircraft communication and navigation bands are presented for several active radio frequency identification (RFID) tags. The individual tags are different in design, operation and transmitting frequencies. The process for measuring the tags emissions in a reverberation chamber is discussed. Measurement issues dealing with tag interrogation, low level measurement in the presence of strong transmissions, and tags low duty factors are discussed. The results show strong emissions, far exceeding aircraft emission limits and can be of potential interference risks

Using social marketing to promote cold and flu prevention behaviors on an Australian university campus

Background: Cold and influenza transmission is a serious public health issue for universities. This case study describes a coordinated social marketing campaign that incorporated health messages and products. It was designed to motivate behavior change to prevent the spread of colds and influenza on a university campus. Methods: The aims of this multi-component intervention were to raise awareness of the importance of individual behavior in preventing the spread of colds and flu and to encourage staff and students to adopt three simple habits: hand washing, cough or sneeze in sleeve, and stay at home if sick. A repeated, cross-sectional survey design assessed the following pre- and post-campaign: salience of colds and flu; perceived severity of, and susceptibility to, colds and flu; beliefs about effective prevention strategies; and engagement in preventative behaviors. Campaign message and product recall were assessed post-campaign. Results: Campaign message recall was high (over 80% of staff and 70% of students); fewer staff (one-third) or students (one-quarter) recalled campaign products. Few pretest-posttest differences were observed in perceived susceptibility or severity. Recognition of cough or sneeze into your sleeve as an effective prevention strategy increased pre- to post-campaign (a percentage increase of 39.6% for staff and 25.1% for students); campaign exposed respondents were significantly more likely than unexposed to rate this strategy as effective post-campaign. Substantial pretest-posttest percentage increases in the top ranked prevention strategies were found for the three core messages: hand washing (51% for students); cough in sleeve (59.2%, staff; 71.1%, students); and stay at home if sick (120%, staff). Conclusions: This setting-based intervention clearly reached staff and students with the primary messages. Success can be attributed to using consumer insight to develop multiple marketing messages and strategies, rather than a single- strategy communication campaign

Electrical Characterizations of Lightning Strike Protection Techniques for Composite Materials

The growing application of composite materials in commercial aircraft manufacturing has significantly increased the risk of aircraft damage from lightning strikes. Composite aircraft designs require new mitigation strategies and engineering practices to maintain the same level of safety and protection as achieved by conductive aluminum skinned aircraft. Researchers working under the NASA Aviation Safety Program s Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) Project are investigating lightning damage on composite materials to support the development of new mitigation, diagnosis & prognosis techniques to overcome the increased challenges associated with lightning protection on composite aircraft. This paper provides an overview of the electrical characterizations being performed to support IVHM lightning damage diagnosis research on composite materials at the NASA Langley Research Center

The Sorghum bicolor reference genome: improved assembly, gene annotations, a transcriptome atlas, and signatures of genome organization.

Sorghum bicolor is a drought tolerant C4 grass used for the production of grain, forage, sugar, and lignocellulosic biomass and a genetic model for C4 grasses due to its relatively small genome (approximately 800&nbsp;Mbp), diploid genetics, diverse germplasm, and colinearity with other C4 grass genomes. In this study, deep sequencing, genetic linkage analysis, and transcriptome data were used to produce and annotate a high-quality reference genome sequence. Reference genome sequence order was improved, 29.6&nbsp;Mbp of additional sequence was incorporated, the number of genes annotated increased 24% to 34&nbsp;211, average gene length and N50 increased, and error frequency was reduced 10-fold to 1 per 100&nbsp;kbp. Subtelomeric repeats with characteristics of Tandem Repeats in Miniature (TRIM) elements were identified at the termini of most chromosomes. Nucleosome occupancy predictions identified nucleosomes positioned immediately downstream of transcription start sites and at different densities across chromosomes. Alignment of more than 50 resequenced genomes from diverse sorghum genotypes to the reference genome identified approximately 7.4&nbsp;M single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and 1.9&nbsp;M indels. Large-scale variant features in euchromatin were identified with periodicities of approximately 25&nbsp;kbp. A transcriptome atlas of gene expression was constructed from 47 RNA-seq profiles of growing and developed tissues of the major plant organs (roots, leaves, stems, panicles, and seed) collected during the juvenile, vegetative and reproductive phases. Analysis of the transcriptome data indicated that tissue type and protein kinase expression had large influences on transcriptional profile clustering. The updated assembly, annotation, and transcriptome data represent a resource for C4 grass research and crop improvement

Effects of Lightning Injection on Power-MOSFETs

Lightning induced damage is one of the major concerns in aircraft health monitoring. Such short-duration high voltages can cause significant damage to electronic devices. This paper presents a study on the effects of lightning injection on power metal-oxide semiconductor field effect transistors (MOSFETs). This approach consisted of pin-injecting lightning waveforms into the gate, drain and/or source of MOSFET devices while they were in the OFF-state. Analysis of the characteristic curves of the devices showed that for certain injection modes the devices can accumulate considerable damage rendering them inoperable. Early results demonstrate that a power MOSFET, even in its off-state, can incur considerable damage due to lightning pin injection, leading to significant deviation in its behavior and performance, and to possibly early device failures