New grayscale hit-miss operator

The morphological binary hit-miss operator has been used extensively to locate features within a binary image. We propose a grayscale hit-miss operator that detects signal shapes and is applicable to scalar-valued functions on one, two, or more dimensions. The hit and miss structuring elements define the lower and upper bounds of the signal: If a signal lies between the hit and miss templates, then the hit-miss operator will produce a one output; otherwise, it will respond with zero. We incorporate a fuzzy logic element to the hit-miss operator to indicate how strongly the signal matches the hit-miss templates

Morphological operations on color images

Morphological image processing has been widely used to process binary and grayscale images, with morphological techniques being applied to noise reduction, image enhancement, and feature detection. Relying on an ordering of the data, morphology modifies the geometrical aspects of an image: object contours in binary images and object surfaces in grayscale images. Extending morphological operators to color image processing has been problematic because it is not easy to define geometry of a vector-valued function and ordering of vectors is not straightforward We propose a new set of color morphological operators based on a combination of reduced ordering and conditional ordering of the underlying data

Decades of Delay: EPA Leadership Still Lacking in Protecting America's Great River

This report demonstrates the continuing failure of EPA's voluntary approach and the continuing and growing threats of unregulated nitrogen and phosphorus pollution. EPA has the power and the duty to act to require reasonable, common-sense regulations to address the growing scourge of nutrient pollution, and it should do so. Once again, MRC calls upon EPA to remedy this state of affairs, specifically recommending that EPA:Develop numeric phosphorus criteria for each of the eight states that have yet to adopt them, and numeric nitrogen criteria for all 10 states.Require states to assess their waters for nitrogen and phosphorus pollution and to prioritize TMDL development and implementation planning accordingly.Increase oversight of the state NPDES programs to ensure that both narrative and numeric nutrient criteria are implemented through limits in permits, including the use of Water Quality Based Effluent Limits (WQBELs) where appropriate.Disapprove TMDLs that lacking reasonable assurance that nonpoint source reductions are likely to occur and lack monitoring and timelines to ensure that planned reductions actually take place. Further, EPA needs to provide oversight to ensure consistency among EPA Regions in TMDL review and approval (especially in Regions 4 and 6.)Ensure that states' Nutrient Reduction Strategies contain implementation plans detailing point and nonpoint source reductions needed, responsible parties, funding mechanisms, milestones, measurement metrics, and reasonable timelines.Require states under Section 319 of the Clean Water Act to identify programs and practices for controlling nonpoint sources of pollution to the maximum extent possible

An Analysis of the Nature and Circumstances of Early Mycenaean Warfare Based on a Study of the Pre LH IIIB Mycenaean Shields

The purpose of this thesis is to produce a definitive study of how the Mycenaean full body shields impacted on Mycenaean warfare and answer the question "is the current understanding of the how the Mycenaean tower shield was historically used accurate?" In the process this thesis will look at how Mycenaean military was organised, the role it played in the society of the time, and how warfare was physically waged – researched through the mediums of documentary evidence and weaponry. As the swords of this period and spears in general have received recent attention in publication, this thesis will focus on that most unique of early Mycenaean defensive armaments, the full body shields of both tower and figure-of-eight design. This thesis is an original contribution to the period being studied, and will make use of all resources at its disposal to arrive at its conclusion

The Neolithic Settlement of Highland SW Iran: New Evidence from the Mamasani District

Since November 2002, the Mamasani Archaeological Project, a collaborative research initiative between the Iranian Centre for Archaeological Research (ICAR) and the University of Sydney, has been conducting fieldwork in highland SW Iran (see Fig. 1). This article takes the opportunity to present a discussion of one facet of our fieldwork, specifically, the evidence for the earliest Neolithic communities in highland Fars.Anthropolog

Effects of Maturation on Physical Fitness Adaptations to Plyometric Drop Jump Training in Male Youth Soccer Players

The objective of this study was to compare the effects of maturation on physical fitness adaptations to a twice weekly, 7-week plyometric drop jump training program. Seventy-six young male soccer players (aged 10–16 years) participated in this randomized controlled trial. Before and after the intervention, a physical fitness test battery was applied (countermovement jump; drop jump from 20 to 40 cm; 5 multiple bounds test; 20-m sprint time; change of direction speed; 2.4-km running time-trial; 5 repetition maximum [RM] squat; and maximal kicking distance). Participants were randomly divided into an active soccer-control group (CG) with Tanner stage maturation of 1–3 (CG-early; n = 16) or Tanner stage 4–5 (CG-late; n = 22), and to plyometric drop jump training groups with Tanner stage 1–3 (plyometric jump training [PJT]-early; n = 16) or 4–5 (PJT-late; n = 22). The analysis of variance and effect size (ES) measures revealed that when compared with their age-matched controls, the PJT-early (ES = 0.39–1.58) and PJT-late (ES = 0.21–0.65) groups showed greater improvements (p < 0.05) in sprint time, 2.4-km running time-trial, change of direction speed, 5RM squat, jumping, and kicking distance. The PJT-early exceeded the PJT-late group with greater (p < 0.05) improvements in drop jump from 20 cm (ES = 1.58 vs. 0.51) and 40 cm (ES = 0.71 vs. 0.4) and kicking distance (ES = 0.95 vs. 0.65). Therefore, a 7-week plyometric drop jump training program was effective in improving physical fitness traits in both younger and older male youth soccer players, with greater jumping and kicking adaptations in the less-mature athletes

Assessment of ridden horse behavior

Assessments of the behavior of ridden horses form the basis of performance evaluation. The purpose of any performance being evaluated will determine the factors considered important, those indicative of 'poor' performance and what makes a successful equine athlete. Currently there is no consistent objective means of assessing ridden horse behavior and inevitably, given the different equestrian disciplines, the likelihood of a universal standard of good and bad performance is remote. Nevertheless, in order to protect the welfare of the ridden horse regardless of its specific role, we should strive for consensus on an objective means of identifying behavioral signs indicative of mental state. Current technological developments enable objective evaluation of movement patterns, but many aspects of the assessment of ridden behavior still rely on subjective judgement. The development of a list of behaviors exhibited by ridden horses, a ridden horse ethogram, will facilitate recording of observable behavioral events. However, without objective evidence of the relevance of these behavioral events, such a resource has limited value

Improving quality of care and outcome at very preterm birth: the Preterm Birth research programme, including the Cord pilot RCT

BACKGROUND:Being born very premature (i.e. before 32 weeks’ gestation) has an impact on survival and quality of life. Improving care at birth may improve outcomes and parents’ experiences. OBJECTIVES:To improve the quality of care and outcomes following very preterm birth. DESIGN:We used mixed methods, including a James Lind Alliance prioritisation, a systematic review, a framework synthesis, a comparative review, qualitative studies, development of a questionnaire tool and a medical device (a neonatal resuscitation trolley), a survey of practice, a randomised trial and a protocol for a prospective meta-analysis using individual participant data. SETTING:For the prioritisation, this included people affected by preterm birth and health-care practitioners in the UK relevant to preterm birth. The qualitative work on preterm birth and the development of the questionnaire involved parents of infants born at three maternity hospitals in southern England. The medical device was developed at Liverpool Women’s Hospital. The survey of practice involved UK neonatal units. The randomised trial was conducted at eight UK tertiary maternity hospitals. PARTICIPANTS:For prioritisation, 26 organisations and 386 individuals; for the interviews and questionnaire tool, 32 mothers and seven fathers who had a baby born before 32 weeks’ gestation for interviews evaluating the trolley, 30 people who had experienced it being used at the birth of their baby (19 mothers, 10 partners and 1 grandmother) and 20 clinicians who were present when it was being used; for the trial, 261 women expected to have a live birth before 32 weeks’ gestation, and their 276 babies. INTERVENTIONS:Providing neonatal care at very preterm birth beside the mother, and with the umbilical cord intact; timing of cord clamping at very preterm birth. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES:Research priorities for preterm birth; feasibility and acceptability of the trolley; feasibility of a randomised trial, death and intraventricular haemorrhage. REVIEW METHODS:Systematic review of Cochrane reviews (umbrella review); framework synthesis of ethics aspects of consent, with conceptual framework to inform selection criteria for empirical and analytical studies. The comparative review included studies using a questionnaire to assess satisfaction with care during childbirth, and provided psychometric information. RESULTS:Our prioritisation identified 104 research topics for preterm birth, with the top 30 ranked. An ethnographic analysis of decision-making during this process suggested ways that it might be improved. Qualitative interviews with parents about their experiences of very preterm birth identified two differences with term births: the importance of the staff appearing calm and of staff taking control. Following a comparative review, this led to the development of a questionnaire to assess parents’ views of care during very preterm birth. A systematic overview summarised evidence for delivery room neonatal care and revealed significant evidence gaps. The framework synthesis explored ethics issues in consent for trials involving sick or preterm infants, concluding that no existing process is ideal and identifying three important gaps. This led to the development of a two-stage consent pathway (oral assent followed by written consent), subsequently evaluated in our randomised trial. Our survey of practice for care at the time of birth showed variation in approaches to cord clamping, and that no hospitals were providing neonatal care with the cord intact. We showed that neonatal care could be provided beside the mother using either the mobile neonatal resuscitation trolley we developed or existing equipment. Qualitative interviews suggested that neonatal care beside the mother is valued by parents and acceptable to clinicians. Our pilot randomised trial compared cord clamping after 2 minutes and initial neonatal care, if needed, with the cord intact, with clamping within 20 seconds and initial neonatal care after clamping. This study demonstrated feasibility of a large UK randomised trial. Of 135 infants allocated to cord clamping ≥ 2 minutes, 7 (5.2%) died and, of 135 allocated to cord clamping ≤ 20 seconds, 15 (11.1%) died (risk difference –5.9%, 95% confidence interval –12.4% to 0.6%). Of live births, 43 out of 134 (32%) allocated to cord clamping ≥ 2 minutes had intraventricular haemorrhage compared with 47 out of 132 (36%) allocated to cord clamping ≤ 20 seconds (risk difference –3.5%, 95% CI –14.9% to 7.8%). LIMITATIONS:Small sample for the qualitative interviews about preterm birth, single-centre evaluation of neonatal care beside the mother, and a pilot trial. CONCLUSIONS:Our programme of research has improved understanding of parent experiences of very preterm birth, and informed clinical guidelines and the research agenda. Our two-stage consent pathway is recommended for intrapartum clinical research trials. Our pilot trial will contribute to the individual participant data meta-analysis, results of which will guide design of future trials. FUTURE WORK:Research in preterm birth should take account of the top priorities. Further evaluation of neonatal care beside the mother is merited, and future trial of alternative policies for management of cord clamping should take account of the meta-analysis. STUDY REGISTRATION:This study is registered as PROSPERO CRD42012003038 and CRD42013004405. In addition, Current Controlled Trials ISRCTN21456601. FUNDING:This project was funded by the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Programme Grants for Applied Research programme and will be published in full in Programme Grants for Applied Research; Vol. 7, No. 8. See the NIHR Journals Library website for further project information

20,000 years of societal vulnerability and adaptation to climate change in southwest Asia.

The Fertile Crescent, its hilly flanks and surrounding drylands has been a critical region for studying how climate has influenced societal change, and this review focuses on the region over the last 20,000 years. The complex social, economic, and environmental landscapes in the region today are not new phenomena and understanding their interactions requires a nuanced, multidisciplinary understanding of the past. This review builds on a history of collaboration between the social and natural palaeoscience disciplines. We provide a multidisciplinary, multiscalar perspective on the relevance of past climate, environmental, and archaeological research in assessing present day vulnerabilities and risks for the populations of southwest Asia. We discuss the complexity of palaeoclimatic data interpretation, particularly in relation to hydrology, and provide an overview of key time periods of palaeoclimatic interest. We discuss the critical role that vegetation plays in the human-climate-environment nexus and discuss the implications of the available palaeoclimate and archaeological data, and their interpretation, for palaeonarratives of the region, both climatically and socially. We also provide an overview of how modelling can improve our understanding of past climate impacts and associated change in risk to societies. We conclude by looking to future work, and identify themes of "scale" and "seasonality" as still requiring further focus. We suggest that by appreciating a given locale's place in the regional hydroscape, be it an archaeological site or palaeoenvironmental archive, more robust links to climate can be made where appropriate and interpretations drawn will demand the resolution of factors acting across multiple scales. This article is categorized under:Human Water > Water as Imagined and RepresentedScience of Water > Water and Environmental ChangeWater and Life > Nature of Freshwater Ecosystems

The characterisation of microsatellite markers reveals tetraploidy in the Greater Water Parsnip, Sium latifolium (Apiaceae).

BACKGROUND: The Greater Water Parsnip, Sium latifolium (Apiaceae), is a marginal aquatic perennial currently endangered in England and consequently the focus of a number of conservation translocation projects. Microsatellite markers were developed for S. latifolium to facilitate comparison of genetic diversity and composition between natural and introduced populations. RESULTS: We selected 65 S. latifolium microsatellite (MiSeq) sequences and designed primer pairs for these. Primer sets were tested in 32 individuals. We found 15 polymorphic loci that amplified consistently. For the selected 15 loci, the number of alleles per locus ranged from 8 to 17. For all loci, S. latifolium individuals displayed up to four alleles indicating polyploidy in this species. CONCLUSIONS: These are the first microsatellite loci developed for S. latifolium and each individual displayed 1-4 alleles per locus, suggesting polyploidy in this species. These markers provide a valuable resource in evaluating the population genetic composition of this endangered species and thus will be useful for guiding conservation and future translocations of the species