Integration of Canadian and U.S. Cattle Markets

The face of international trade is altering quickly, especially with globalisation as one of the key catalysts for change. It can be argued that freer trade leads to better allocation of resources and increased competitive forces, which reduce production costs and ultimately consumer prices. The opportunity for growth and prosperity are magnified for smaller economies like Canada. This was evidenced in the Canadian cattle industry with the onset of the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (CUSTA) in 1989 and the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1992. CUSTA eliminated tariffs on both live cattle and beef within a few years of its implementation. NAFTA refined the policies outlined in CUSTA and extended them to Mexico. In Canada and the U.S., the cattle and beef industries have a significant impact on the economy and play a major role in the agriculture of both countries. Cash receipts from the sale of cattle and calves in Canada were $6.2 billion in 1999, or 18.5$54.2 billion or 17.0% of all farm receipts (in current Canadian dollars). Alberta has the largest share of cattle production of all the provinces at 50% of cash receipts. In the U.S., The Great Plains account for about half of cash receipts. The importance of cattle production in the farm economy in the U.S. has remained fairly stable over time, whereas in Canada the importance has increased. As integration of the global economies deepens, nations face major opportunities and challenges. To realize the potential benefits of economic integration, businesses need to manage the challenges of intense international competition and the pressures for structural and technological adjustment. In Canada, feeder cattle production expanded in Alberta where feed grain is abundant and relatively inexpensive. The elimination of government subsidies, such as the Crow's Nest Rate in 1995, means that western producers now use more grain to feed cattle and market them to the U.S. In the U.S. there has also been a general shift to the west in cattle production. Trade with the US in live cattle has increased the importance of the Canadian cattle sector as an export industry. Although domestic per capita consumption of beef has remained stable, the cattle and beef industry in Canada has expanded due to population increases and export markets in the U.S. Canada exported $1.2 billion in cattle to the U.S. in 1999, and this value is much higher than$690 million in 1990 (in 1992 dollars). Canada's share of Canadian-U.S. cattle production went from 8.7% in 1990 to 9.8% in 1999. Canada's share of beef production went from 8.0% in 1990 to 9.1% in 1999. In contrast to the Mexican industry, which has a significantly different composition, the structure of the U.S. and Canadian cattle sectors is very similar. The structural similarity, the lack of trade barriers, and relative unimportance of government intervention in the industry have contributed to the integration of the two markets. Trade data (from Statistics Canada and U.S.D.A) for slaughter cattle, feeder cattle and beef is analysed to further assess the impact of integration of Canadian and U.S. cattle markets.Industrial Organization, Livestock Production/Industries,

Characterization of electrode wear morphology via sequential life testing.

Brass layer formation and hardness degradation during the resistance spot welding of hot-dipped galvanized steel was characterized for a number of copper-based electrode materials and electrode geometries as part of an overall program to increase electrode life through the analysis of electrode wear. Metallographic, composition, and hardness examinations were conducted on electrodes subjected to single-current and stepped-current life tests. The electrode wear sequence was documented via sequential life testing, in which electrodes were removed for testing and examination at established intervals during single-current testing. Testing was conduced on truncated-cone and ball-nose electrode geometries. Electrode materials included a Class 2 precipitation-hardened copper-zirconium, as well as two new proprietary electrode materials: one precipitation hardened, and the other second phase strengthened. Characterization included the effect of electrode geometry and composition on alloying and hardness retention. (Abstract shortened by UMI.) Paper copy at Leddy Library: Theses & Major Papers - Basement, West Bldg. / Call Number: Thesis2005 .A845. Source: Masters Abstracts International, Volume: 44-03, page: 1478. Thesis (M.A.Sc.)--University of Windsor (Canada), 2005

A Predictive Approach to On-line Time Warping of Motion

The paper presents a novel approach to real-time temporal alignment of motion sequences, called On-line Predictive Warping (OPW) and considers potential uses in interactive applications. The approach develops on the methods of aligning motions based on least cost, used in dynamic time warping (DTW), with the short term predictions of smoothing algorithms, in an iterative step through approach. The approach allows a recorded motion sequence to be warped to align it with a users motion as it is being captured. The paper demonstrates the potential feasibility of the approach to support applications in MR and VR, allowing virtual characters to perform and interact with users and live actors in a variety of rehearsal, training, visualisation and performance scenarios

Innovation in manufacturing through digital technologies and applications: Thoughts and Reflections on Industry 4.0

The rapid pace of developments in digital technologies offers many opportunities to increase the efficiency, flexibility and sophistication of manufacturing processes; including the potential for easier customisation, lower volumes and rapid changeover of products within the same manufacturing cell or line. A number of initiatives on this theme have been proposed around the world to support national industries under names such as Industry 4.0 (Industrie 4.0 in Germany, Made-in-China in China and Made Smarter in the UK). This book presents an overview of the state of art and upcoming developments in digital technologies pertaining to manufacturing. The starting point is an introduction on Industry 4.0 and its potential for enhancing the manufacturing process. Later on moving to the design of smart (that is digitally driven) business processes which are going to rely on sensing of all relevant parameters, gathering, storing and processing the data from these sensors, using computing power and intelligence at the most appropriate points in the digital workflow including application of edge computing and parallel processing. A key component of this workflow is the application of Artificial Intelligence and particularly techniques in Machine Learning to derive actionable information from this data; be it real-time automated responses such as actuating transducers or informing human operators to follow specified standard operating procedures or providing management data for operational and strategic planning. Further consideration also needs to be given to the properties and behaviours of particular machines that are controlled and materials that are transformed during the manufacturing process and this is sometimes referred to as Operational Technology (OT) as opposed to IT. The digital capture of these properties and behaviours can then be used to define so-called Cyber Physical Systems. Given the power of these digital technologies it is of paramount importance that they operate safely and are not vulnerable to malicious interference. Industry 4.0 brings unprecedented cybersecurity challenges to manufacturing and the overall industrial sector and the case is made here that new codes of practice are needed for the combined Information Technology and Operational Technology worlds, but with a framework that should be native to Industry 4.0. Current computing technologies are also able to go in other directions than supporting the digital ‘sense to action’ process described above. One of these is to use digital technologies to enhance the ability of the human operators who are still essential within the manufacturing process. One such technology, that has recently become accessible for widespread adoption, is Augmented Reality, providing operators with real-time additional information in situ with the machines that they interact with in their workspace in a hands-free mode. Finally, two linked chapters discuss the specific application of digital technologies to High Pressure Die Casting (HDPC) of Magnesium components. Optimizing the HPDC process is a key task for increasing productivity and reducing defective parts and the first chapter provides an overview of the HPDC process with attention to the most common defects and their sources. It does this by first looking at real-time process control mechanisms, understanding the various process variables and assessing their impact on the end product quality. This understanding drives the choice of sensing methods and the associated smart digital workflow to allow real-time control and mitigation of variation in the identified variables. Also, data from this workflow can be captured and used for the design of optimised dies and associated processes

The effectiveness of surgical vs conservative interventions on pain and function in patients with shoulder impingement syndrome. A systematic review and meta-analysis

Objective To assess the effectiveness of surgical vs conservative interventions on pain and function in patients with subacromial impingement syndrome. Design Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Setting Clinical setting. Participants Patients 18 years and older with subacromial impingement syndrome. Intervention/Comparison Surgical intervention plus postoperative physiotherapy / placebo surgery plus physiotherapy or physiotherapy only. Main outcome measures Pain and function. Results 11 RCTs (n = 919) were included. The pooled results displayed no statistically or clinically different between surgery plus physiotherapy vs physiotherapy alone on pain levels at 3-, 6-months, 5- and 10 years follow up (moderate quality, 3 RCTs, 300 patients, WMD -0.39, 95% CI: -1.02 to 0.23, p = 0.22; moderate quality, 3 RCTs, 310 patients, WMD -0.36, 95% CI: -1.02 to 0.29, p = 0.27; low quality, 1 RCT, 109 patients, WMD -0.30, 95% CI: -1.54 to 0.94, p = 0.64; low quality, 1 RCT, 90 patients, WMD -1.00, 95% CI: -0.24 to 2.24, p = 0.11) respectively. Similarly, the pooled results were not statistically or clinically different between groups for function at 3-, 6-month and 1-year follow ups (very low quality, 2 RCTs, 184 patients, SMD 0.11, 95% CI: -0.57 to 0.79, p = 0.75; moderate quality, 3 RCTs, 310 patients, SMD 0.15, 95% CI: -0.14 to 0.43, p = 0.31; very low quality, 2 RCTs, 197 patients, SMD 0.11, 95% CI: -0.46 to 0.69, p = 0.70) respectively. Conclusion The effects of surgery plus physiotherapy compared to physiotherapy alone on improving pain and function are too small to be clinically important at 3-, 6-months, 1-, 2-, 5- and \u3e= 10-years follow up

Use of letrozole versus clomiphene citrate combined with gonadotropins for ovulation induction in infertile women with polycystic ovary syndrome: a pilot study

Background: The aim of the study was to evaluate the efficacy of letrozole and clomiphene citrate (CC) in gonadotropin-combined for ovulation stimulation in women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). It was a prospective pilot study.Methods: This prospective trial included 124 patients of infertile women with PCOS. Letrozole dose of 5 mg/day (n = 65) or a CC dose of 100 mg/day (n = 59) was given on day 3 to day 7 of the menstrual cycle, combined with gonadotropin i.e. follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) at a dose 75 IU every day starting on day 7 and continued to day 9. Main outcome measures were occurrence of ovulation, number of mature follicles, serum estradiol (E2) and endometrial thicknesses on the day of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), and pregnancy rates.Results: The clinical profile including mean age, duration of infertility, BMI, baseline FSH, LH and E2 of patients belonging to both groups were comparable. The numbers of mature follicles (4.3±0.3 vs. 2.9±0.7) were significantly higher in letrozole+FSH group. Serum E2 levels on the day of hCG (301.78±85.7 vs. 464.7±72.9 pg/mL) were significantly lower in the letrozole+FSH group. Significant differences were found in endometrial thickness measured on the day of hCG in letrozole+FSH group (p=<0.0001). The rate of ovulation was higher in letrozole+FSH group and it was marginally statistically significant (p=0.040). The rate of pregnancy was slightly greater in the letrozole+FSH group (17.85% versus 13.33%), although not statistically significant.Conclusions: Letrozole in combination with FSH appears to be a suitable ovulation inducing agent versus CC with FSH in PCOS. This combination may be more appropriate in patients who are particularly sensitive to gonadotropin

Unique myological changes associated with ossified fabellae: a femorofabellar ligament and systematic review of the double-headed popliteus

The fabella is a sesamoid bone embedded in the tendon of the lateral head of the gastrocnemius. It is the only bone in the human body to increase in prevalence in the last 100 years. As the fabella can serve as an origin/insertion for muscles, tendons, and/or ligaments (e.g., the oblique popliteal and fabellofibular ligaments), temporal changes in fabella prevalence could lead to temporal changes in “standard” knee anatomy. The aim of this study was to investigate unique myological changes to the posterolateral corner knee associated with ossified fabella presence and perform a systematic review to contextualize our results. Methods Thirty-three fresh frozen cadaveric knees were considered. As the knees were all used for previous experimentation, the knees were in variable levels of preservation. Those with adequate preservation were used to determine ossified fabella presence/absence. When ossified fabellae were present, unique myologies associated with the fabella were recorded. A systematic review was performed on the double-headed popliteus to investigate possible correlations between this anatomical variant and the fabella. Results Of the 33 knees, 30 preserved enough soft tissue to determine fabella presence/absence: 16/30 knees had fabellae (five cartilaginous and 11 ossified). Eight of the eleven knees with ossified fabellae retained enough soft tissue to investigate the posterolateral knee anatomy. Of these, 4/8 exhibited unique myological changes. One knee had a double-headed popliteus muscle where one head originated from the medial side of a large, bulbous fabella. A systematic review revealed double-headed popliteus muscles are rare, but individuals are 3.7 times more likely to have a fabella if they have a double-headed popliteus. Another knee had a large, thick ligament stretching from the lateral edge of the fabella to the inferoposterior edge of the lateral femoral epicondyle, deep to the lateral collateral ligament (LCL) and near the popliteal sulcus. We found no mention of such a ligament in the literature and refer to it here as the “femorofabellar ligament”. In all four knees, the plantaris and lateral gastrocnemius appeared to share a common tendinous origin, and the fabella was located at/near the junction of these muscles. In the case of the double-headed popliteus, the fabella clearly served as an origin for the plantaris. Conclusions Despite being found in an average of 36.80% of human knees, most standard anatomical models fail to account for the fabella and/or the unique myological changes associated with fabella presence. Although our sample is small, these data highlight aspects of human biological variability generally not considered when creating generalized anatomical models. Further work is needed to identify additional changes associated with ossified fabellae and the functional consequences of omitting these changes from models

Improving Accessibility of Cancer Research (Canadian Cancer Society - Research Information Outreach Team)

Cancer is one of the largest human health problems faced globally. Therefore, it is an important focus of research for many disciplines. Cancer research has made significant advancements as clinicians and researchers have expanded their knowledge to better understand this complex disease. Throughout this semester we completed a community engagement learning (CEL) project with the Research Information Outreach Team (RIOT) team from the Canadian Cancer Society (CCS) to promote cancer research amongst adolescents and the general public. We completed blog posts for their website, along with promotional material for their Let’s Talk Cancer (LTC) event and infographics for their social media channels. Blogs were designed to engage adolescents in cancer research and related careers. Promotional material was generated to attract high school students to the event, where they can engage in cancer-related workshops and learn about the emerging fields of cancer research. Lastly, infographics were created for a general audience to summarize research on common cancers