Predicting stream baseflow using genetic programing

Developing reliable methods to estimate stream baseflow has been a subject of research over the past decades due to its importance in catchment response and sustainable watershed management (e.g. ground water recharge vs. extraction). Limitations and complexities of existing methods have been addressed by a number of researchers. For instance, physically based numerical models are complex, requiring substantial computational time and data which may not be always available. Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools such as Genetic Programming (GP) have been used widely to reduce the challenges associated with complex hydrological systems without losing the physical meanings. However, up to date, in the absence of complex numerical models, baseflow is frequently estimated using statistically derived empirical equations without significant physical insights. This study investigates the capability of GP in estimating baseflow for a small monitored semi-urban catchment (0.021 km2) located in Singapore. A Recursive Digital Filter (RDF) is first adopted to separate the baseflow from observed streamflow. GP is then used to derive an empirical equation to relate the filtered baseflow time series particularly with groundwater table fluctuations which are relatively easy to be measured and are physically related to baseflow generation. The equation is then validated with a longer time series of baseflow data from a groundwater numerical model. These results indicate that GP is an effective tool in determining baseflow.postprin

Optimizing water and nitrogen application for neglected horticultural species in tropical sub-humid climate areas: A case of African eggplant (Solanum aethiopicum L.)

African eggplant, a traditional and important nutrient-dense crop to Tanzania’s nutrition and food security. However, yields remain low as a result of sub-optimal irrigation and fertilizer practices. To reduce the yield gap, a randomized split-plot design set up with irrigation as a main and nitrogen (N) treatments as a sub-factor. The irrigation regimes were 100 % (I100), 80 % (I80) and 60 % (I60) of crop water requirements whilst nitrogen levels were 250 kg N/ha (F100), 187 kg N/ha (F75), 125 kg N/ha (F50) and 0 kgN/ha (F0). The study evaluated the effect of irrigation water and N on crop growth variables and yield, fruit quality, WUE and NUE. The study showed the importance of combining different irrigation performance indicators which responds to different levels of water and nitrogen to evaluate and assess suitable irrigation and fertilizer strategies for African eggplant. The crop growth variables (plant height and LAI) had a good correlation with fruit yield (R2 = 0.6 and 0.8). The fruit quality was best performed by 100 % water in combination with 75 % N treatment. The best WUE and NUE was attained at 80 % and 100 % levels of water in combination with 75 % N. However, minimizing trade-offs between the various indicators, the optimal application for African eggplant would likely be around 80 % of the total irrigation requirement and 75 % of the N requirement in sandy clay loam soils under tropical sub-humid conditions

A 2D/3D image analysis system to track fluorescently labeled structures in rod-shaped cells: application to measure spindle pole asymmetry during mitosis.

BACKGROUND: The yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe is frequently used as a model for studying the cell cycle. The cells are rod-shaped and divide by medial fission. The process of cell division, or cytokinesis, is controlled by a network of signaling proteins called the Septation Initiation Network (SIN); SIN proteins associate with the SPBs during nuclear division (mitosis). Some SIN proteins associate with both SPBs early in mitosis, and then display strongly asymmetric signal intensity at the SPBs in late mitosis, just before cytokinesis. This asymmetry is thought to be important for correct regulation of SIN signaling, and coordination of cytokinesis and mitosis. In order to study the dynamics of organelles or large protein complexes such as the spindle pole body (SPB), which have been labeled with a fluorescent protein tag in living cells, a number of the image analysis problems must be solved; the cell outline must be detected automatically, and the position and signal intensity associated with the structures of interest within the cell must be determined. RESULTS: We present a new 2D and 3D image analysis system that permits versatile and robust analysis of motile, fluorescently labeled structures in rod-shaped cells. We have designed an image analysis system that we have implemented as a user-friendly software package allowing the fast and robust image-analysis of large numbers of rod-shaped cells. We have developed new robust algorithms, which we combined with existing methodologies to facilitate fast and accurate analysis. Our software permits the detection and segmentation of rod-shaped cells in either static or dynamic (i.e. time lapse) multi-channel images. It enables tracking of two structures (for example SPBs) in two different image channels. For 2D or 3D static images, the locations of the structures are identified, and then intensity values are extracted together with several quantitative parameters, such as length, width, cell orientation, background fluorescence and the distance between the structures of interest. Furthermore, two kinds of kymographs of the tracked structures can be established, one representing the migration with respect to their relative position, the other representing their individual trajectories inside the cell. This software package, called "RodCellJ", allowed us to analyze a large number of S. pombe cells to understand the rules that govern SIN protein asymmetry. CONCLUSIONS: "RodCell" is freely available to the community as a package of several ImageJ plugins to simultaneously analyze the behavior of a large number of rod-shaped cells in an extensive manner. The integration of different image-processing techniques in a single package, as well as the development of novel algorithms does not only allow to speed up the analysis with respect to the usage of existing tools, but also accounts for higher accuracy. Its utility was demonstrated on both 2D and 3D static and dynamic images to study the septation initiation network of the yeast Schizosaccharomyces pombe. More generally, it can be used in any kind of biological context where fluorescent-protein labeled structures need to be analyzed in rod-shaped cells. AVAILABILITY: RodCellJ is freely available under http://bigwww.epfl.ch/algorithms.html, (after acceptance of the publication)

The uniting of Europe and the foundation of EU studies: revisiting the neofunctionalism of Ernst B. Haas

This article suggests that the neofunctionalist theoretical legacy left by Ernst B. Haas is somewhat richer and more prescient than many contemporary discussants allow. The article develops an argument for routine and detailed re-reading of the corpus of neofunctionalist work (and that of Haas in particular), not only to disabuse contemporary students and scholars of the normally static and stylized reading that discussion of the theory provokes, but also to suggest that the conceptual repertoire of neofunctionalism is able to speak directly to current EU studies and comparative regionalism. Neofunctionalism is situated in its social scientific context before the theory's supposed erroneous reliance on the concept of 'spillover' is discussed critically. A case is then made for viewing Haas's neofunctionalism as a dynamic theory that not only corresponded to established social scientific norms, but did so in ways that were consistent with disciplinary openness and pluralism

Effects of Dicer and Argonaute down-regulation on mRNA levels in human HEK293 cells

RNA interference and the microRNA (miRNA) pathway can induce sequence-specific mRNA degradation and/or translational repression. The human genome encodes hundreds of miRNAs that can post-transcriptionally repress thousands of genes. Using reporter constructs, we observed that degradation of mRNAs bearing sites imperfectly complementary to the endogenous let-7 miRNA is considerably stronger in human HEK293 than HeLa cells. The degradation did not result from the Ago2-mediated endonucleolytic cleavage but it was Dicer- and Ago2-dependent. We used this feature of HEK293 to address the size of a pool of transcripts regulated by RNA silencing in a single cell type. We generated HEK293 cell lines depleted of Dicer or individual Ago proteins. The cell lines were used for microarray analyses to obtain a comprehensive picture of RNA silencing. The 3'-untranslated region sequences of a few hundred transcripts that were commonly up-regulated upon Ago2 and Dicer knock-downs showed a significant enrichment of putative miRNA-binding sites. The up-regulation upon Ago2 and Dicer knock-downs was moderate and we found no evidence, at the mRNA level, for activation of silenced genes. Taken together, our data suggest that, independent of the effect on translation, miRNAs affect levels of a few hundred mRNAs in HEK293 cells

The changing patterns of group politics in Britain

Two interpretations of ways in which group politics in Britain have presented challenges to democracy are reviewed: neo-corporatism or pluralistic stagnation and the rise of single issue interest groups. The disappearance of the first paradigm created a political space for the second to emerge. A three-phase model of group activity is developed: a phase centred around production interests, followed by the development of broadly based 'other regarding' groups, succeeded by fragmented, inner directed groups focusing on particular interests. Explanations of the decay of corporatism are reviewed. Single issue group activity has increased as party membership has declined and is facilitated by changes in traditional media and the development of the internet. Such groups can overload the policy-making process and frustrate depoliticisation. Debates about the constitution and governance have largely ignored these issues and there is need for a debate

Immigrant integration policy-making in Italy. Regional policies in a multi-level governance perspective

This article contributes to the debate on the local governance turn' by considering a recent immigration context: the Italian case. We analyse integration policies and governance processes in three regions: Lombardy, Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna. The aim is to shed new light on the multi-level governance relations that shape immigrant integration policies, taking into account the interdependencies of the vertical and horizontal dimensions of multi-level governance. The analysis points out the emergence of different multi-level governance arrangements and highlights the relevance of institutional and organisational factors in accounting for local differentiation. General traditions and established public-non-governmental organisation relations in the social policy field, the internal organisation of the regional administration (specialised staff versus general bureaucratic apparatus), and the role of ideology appear to make a difference. The implications of this analysis for multi-level governance scholarship are discussed, emphasising the need for a middle-range theory approach. Points for practitioners Multi-level governance is considered by policy scholars as a promising approach to make sense of increasingly complex policymaking processes, implying the interaction between different levels of government and between public and non-public actors. By considering the politically sensitive immigrant integration issue, this article attempts to point out how multi-level governance relations concretely take shape at the regional level in Italy, and which factors account for regional differentiation. Our study suggests that contextual and organisational factors are particularly relevant, that is, social policy traditions, the regions' internal organisation and the individual civil servants' attitudes. Nevertheless, politics should also be carefully taken into account

Analysis of S. pombe SIN protein association to the SPB reveals two genetically separable states of the SIN.

The Schizosaccharomyces pombe septation initiation network (SIN) regulates cytokinesis, and asymmetric association of SIN proteins with the mitotic spindle pole bodies (SPBs) is important for its regulation. Here, we have used semi-automated image analysis to study SIN proteins in large numbers of wild-type and mutant cells. Our principal conclusions are: first, that the association of Cdc7p with the SPBs in early mitosis is frequently asymmetric, with a bias in favour of the new SPB; second, that the early association of Cdc7p-GFP to the SPB depends on Plo1p but not Spg1p, and is unaffected by mutations that influence its asymmetry in anaphase; third, that Cdc7p asymmetry in anaphase B is delayed by Pom1p and by activation of the spindle assembly checkpoint, and is promoted by Rad24p; and fourth, that the length of the spindle, expressed as a fraction of the length of the cell, at which Cdc7p becomes asymmetric is similar in cells dividing at different sizes. These data reveal that multiple regulatory mechanisms control the SIN in mitosis and lead us to propose a two-state model to describe the SIN

Constraints of small-scale irrigated fodder production and nutrition assessment for livestock feed, a case study in Ethiopia

Livestock is an integral part of the agricultural system in sub-Saharan Africa, serving as a food source, income, fertilizer, and power for farming and transportation. However, the productivity of the livestock system has been hampered due to a lack of sufficient quantity and quality feed. This study evaluates the gaps and constraints of fodder and nutritional potential for livestock feed using small-scale irrigation (SSI). The study comprised of 30 randomly selected farmers from two different ecological zones in Ethiopia. Half of the farmers cultivated Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) in the Robit watershed in northern Ethiopia, and the other half cultivated mixed vetch (Lathyrus cicera) and oats (Avena sativa) in Lemo watershed in southern Ethiopia. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) and Agricultural Policy Environmental eXtender (APEX) were applied in an integrated manner to assess the impacts of SSI at the watershed and field-scale levels, respectively. The watershed-scale analysis showed that there is a substantial amount of surface runoff and shallow groundwater recharge that could be used for dry season fodder production using irrigation. Field data calibrated APEX model indicated that Napier yield could be maximized with 550 mm of water in Robit watershed. While in the Lemo watershed, maximum vetch and oats yield may be achieved with 250 mm of water. The major constraints for Napier and oats production in the study sites were soil fertility, especially nitrogen and phosphorus, and vetch production was limited by high temperature. Fodder samples were collected at the time of harvest to evaluate feed quality. The nutritional analysis indicated that Napier grass has a higher dry matter and ash (mineral) content compared to oats and vetch. However, vetch has higher crude protein content (18%) compared to Napier (10%) and oats (6%). Overall the study indicated that cultivating vetch provided superior performance in terms of providing quality feed and environmental services