The role of citizen science in addressing grand challenges in food and agriculture research

The power of citizen science to contribute to both science and society is gaining increased recognition, particularly in physics and biology. Although there is a long history of public engagement in agriculture and food science, the term ‘citizen science’ has rarely been applied to these efforts. Similarly, in the emerging field of citizen science, most new citizen science projects do not focus on food or agriculture. Here, we convened thought leaders from a broad range of fields related to citizen science, agriculture, and food science to highlight key opportunities for bridging these overlapping yet disconnected communities/fields and identify ways to leverage their respective strengths. Specifically, we show that (i) citizen science projects are addressing many grand challenges facing our food systems, as outlined by the United States National Institute of Food and Agriculture, as well as broader Sustainable Development Goals set by the United Nations Development Programme, (ii) there exist emerging opportunities and unique challenges for citizen science in agriculture/food research, and (iii) the greatest opportunities for the development of citizen science projects in agriculture and food science will be gained by using the existing infrastructure and tools of Extension programmes and through the engagement of urban communities. Further, we argue there is no better time to foster greater collaboration between these fields given the trend of shrinking Extension programmes, the increasing need to apply innovative solutions to address rising demands on agricultural systems, and the exponential growth of the field of citizen science.This working group was partially funded from the NCSU Plant Sciences Initiative, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences ‘Big Ideas’ grant, National Science Foundation grant to R.R.D. (NSF no. 1319293), and a United States Department of Food and Agriculture-National Institute of Food and Agriculture grant to S.F.R., USDA-NIFA Post Doctoral Fellowships grant no. 2017-67012-26999.http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.orghj2018Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI

Model-Centric, Context-Aware Software Adaptation ⋆

Abstract. Software must be constantly adapted to changing requirements. The time scale, abstraction level and granularity of adaptations may vary from short-term, fine-grained adaptation to long-term, coarsegrained evolution. Fine-grained, dynamic and context-dependent adaptations can be particularly difficult to realize in long-lived, large-scale software systems. We argue that, in order to effectively and efficiently deploy such changes, adaptive applications must be built on an infrastructure that is not just model-driven, but is both model-centric and contextaware. Specifically, this means that high-level, causally-connected models of the application and the software infrastructure itself should be available at run-time, and that changes may need to be scoped to the run-time execution context. We first review the dimensions of software adaptation and evolution, and then we show how model-centric design can address the adaptation needs of a variety of applications that span these dimensions. We demonstrate through concrete examples how model-centric and context-aware designs work at the level of application interface, programming language and runtime. We then propose a research agenda for a model-centric development environment that supports dynamic software adaptation and evolution.

Parâmetros eletrocardiográficos de equinos Puro Sangue Árabe submetidos a exercício prolongado de enduro Electrocardiographic parameters of Arabian horses submitted to prolonged exercise of endurance

Foram estabelecidos os parâmetros eletrocardiográficos de 20 equinos Puro Sangue Árabe em repouso e após exercício prolongado de enduro. A frequência cardíaca média foi de 35,85bpm em repouso, com predominância do ritmo sinusal, e de 53,78bpm, com taquicardia sinusal após o exercício. Como variação fisiológica, observou-se marcapasso migratório, e como não fisiológica, complexo ventricular prematuro. No pós-exercício, ocorreu aumento da amplitude das ondas P, R, S e T, com onda P tendendo a se tornar única em 35% dos animais e bífida positiva em 65%, e a onda T monofásica positiva. Houve redução da duração das ondas, dos intervalos e dos segmentos, e alongamento do QTc; porém, o complexo QRS quase não se alterou. O eixo elétrico, no plano frontal, apresentou desvios à direita e à esquerda em repouso sugestivo de aumento de câmara e hipertrofia secundárias ao treinamento, ao passo que, após o exercício, demonstrou desvio extremo para a direita, indicando alterações eletrolíticas. O escore cardíaco médio foi de 128,45ms, o que caracteriza os animais como atletas, sendo reduzido a 118,60ms após o exercício.<br>Electrocardiographic parameters of 20 Thoroughbred Arabian horses were established at rest and after prolonged endurance exercise. The mean heart rate was 35.85bpm at rest with predominant sinus rhythm, and 53.78bpm with sinus tachycardia after exercise. As physiological variation, wandering pacemaker was observed, and as non physiological, premature ventricular complex was noted. At post-exercise there was an increase of the amplitude of waves P, R, S and T, with P wave tending to become single in 35% of the animals and bifid positive in 65%, and with monophase positive T wave. There was a reduction in the duration of the waves, intervals and segments, and elongation of QTc, but the QRS complex hardly changed. The electrical axis in the frontal plane showed deviations to the right and to the left at rest, suggesting chamber enlargement and hypertrophy secondary to training, while after the exercise it showed extreme deviation to the right, indicating electrolyte imbalances. The average heart score was 128.45ms, which features the animals as athletes, being reduced to 118.60ms after exercise