Differences in mineral concentration among diploid and tetraploid cultivars of rhodesgrass (Chloris gayana)

Mineral composition of a range of rhodesgrass cultivars was measured to assess if levels were suitable for cattle growth. Leafy regrowth of 11 rhodesgrass cultivars and lines was analysed for a range of elements in 2 replicated field experiments near Gympie in southern Queensland. Experiment 1 comprised 2 diploid and 2 tetraploid cultivars, while 7 diploids and 3 tetraploids were compared in experiment 2.Overall, the tetraploids had higher nitrogen (N), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), and magnesium (Mg) concentrations but lower sodium (Na) and boron (B) concentrations than the diploids. Concentrations of potassium (P), copper (Cu) and aluminium (Al) for the 2 groups were similar and showed no significant cultivar differences. Results for sulfur (S), zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe) varied between experiments, either with no significant ploidy and cultivar differences or with higher concentrations in the tetraploids (S in experiment 2, Zn in experiment 1). The tetraploids had significantly higher concentrations of Mn in experiment 2. The Na concentration found in cultivar Boma was lower (0.02%) than the other cultivars in experiment 2. Similarly, cultivar Samford in experiment 1 had a lower Na concentration than the other 3 cultivars. Both Boma and Samford, however, had the highest Mg concentrations in their respective experiments. K/(Ca+ Mg) equivalent ratios in the 2 experiments were in the range 0.40-1.50. This is well below the accepted critical value of 2.2 above which grass tetany in ruminants could become a problem

NOC Liverpool report for the Wirewalker underwater profiler deployment for the RidgeMix research programme

This report provides a review of a ‘wirewalker’ underwater profiler that was used for high resolution water quality and turbulence measurements as part of a mid-Atlantic ocean based scientific survey. The profiler utilised wave energy and buoyancy to generate automated, cyclic underwater vertical measurements. A drifting supporting surface buoy and mooring configuration was used that moved horizontally in response to underwater currents, surface wind and waves, while generating repeated sub-surface vertical scientific measurements. The profiler instrumentation payload included a high-resolution chlorophyll-a fluorimeter, a fast sampling, precision conductivity, temperature and depth sensor (CTD) and a fragile, high resolution oceanic microstructure and turbulence sensor. A bespoke guard was used to help protect the fragile microstructure and turbulence sensors from damage. The mooring surface buoy instrumentation included telemetered GPS at nominally 30 minute intervals, a backup telemetered position indication, a VHF radio beacon based position locator and a solar powered night time light. The experiment was designed to resolve time-variability of upper-ocean mixing and chlorophyll-a fluorescence over the Mid-Atlantic underwater Ridge, an internal wave generation hotspot. Typically more than three wave driven descents to 200 metres and subsequent buoyancy driven ascents to close to the sea surface were achieved per hour during a 22 day deployment, whilst continuously sampling. This represents the first time the UK National Oceanography Centre (NOC) have used this type of underwater profiling system for high resolution oceanic microstructure and turbulence measurements to support a scientific campaign. Information to support a series of developing operational best practices for the use of this delicate and precision sensing arrangement with a wirewalker underwater profiler is provided. Recommendations relating to the future development of this versatile measurement system are also discussed

Direct and indirect orthotic management of medial compartment osteoarthritis of the knee

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a painful condition and affects approximately 80% of individuals by the age of 55 [1], with knee OA occurring two times more frequently than OA of the hand or hip [2].The condition is more prevalent in the medial compartment and restricts the daily lives of individuals due to pain and a lack of functional independence. Patients with medial compartment osteoarthritis often have a varus alignment, with the mechanical axis and load bearing passing through this compartment with a greater adduction moment leading to greater pain and progression of osteoarthritis [3]. Surgery for the condition is possible although in some cases, particularly younger patients or those not yet requiring surgery, clinical management remains a challenge. Before surgery is considered, however, conservative management is advocated, though no one treatment has been shown to be most effective, and there are few quality biomechanical or clinical studies. Of the conservative approaches the principal orthotic treatments are valgus knee braces and laterally wedged foot inlays. Studies of knee valgus bracing have consistently demonstrated an associated decreased pain and improved function [4], and greater confidence [5]. A laterally wedged foot inlay has a thicker lateral border and applies a valgus moment to the heel. It is theorised that by changing the position of the ankle and subtalar joints during weight-bearing [6] the lateral wedges may apply a valgus moment across the knee as well as the rearfoot, with the assumed reduction on load in the medial knee compartment [7]. However, there has been no study to directly compare these orthotic treatments in the same study. The aim of this research is to investigate the efficacy of valgus knee braces and laterally wedged foot inlays in reducing the varus knee moment

On the Initial Conditions for Brane Inflation

String theory gives rise to various mechanisms to generate primordial inflation, of which ``brane inflation'' is one of the most widely considered. In this scenario, inflation takes place while two branes are approaching each other, and the modulus field representing the separation between the branes plays the role of the inflaton field. We study the phase space of initial conditions which can lead to a sufficiently long period of cosmological inflation, and find that taking into account the possibility of nonvanishing initial momentum can significantly change the degree of fine tuning of the required initial conditions.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figure

On spherical averages of radial basis functions

A radial basis function (RBF) has the general form $$s(x)=\sum_{k=1}^{n}a_{k}\phi(x-b_{k}),\quad x\in\mathbb{R}^{d},$$ where the coefficients a 1,…,a n are real numbers, the points, or centres, b 1,…,b n lie in ℝ d , and φ:ℝ d →ℝ is a radially symmetric function. Such approximants are highly useful and enjoy rich theoretical properties; see, for instance (Buhmann, Radial Basis Functions: Theory and Implementations, [2003]; Fasshauer, Meshfree Approximation Methods with Matlab, [2007]; Light and Cheney, A Course in Approximation Theory, [2000]; or Wendland, Scattered Data Approximation, [2004]). The important special case of polyharmonic splines results when φ is the fundamental solution of the iterated Laplacian operator, and this class includes the Euclidean norm φ(x)=‖x‖ when d is an odd positive integer, the thin plate spline φ(x)=‖x‖2log  ‖x‖ when d is an even positive integer, and univariate splines. Now B-splines generate a compactly supported basis for univariate spline spaces, but an analyticity argument implies that a nontrivial polyharmonic spline generated by (1.1) cannot be compactly supported when d>1. However, a pioneering paper of Jackson (Constr. Approx. 4:243–264, [1988]) established that the spherical average of a radial basis function generated by the Euclidean norm can be compactly supported when the centres and coefficients satisfy certain moment conditions; Jackson then used this compactly supported spherical average to construct approximate identities, with which he was then able to derive some of the earliest uniform convergence results for a class of radial basis functions. Our work extends this earlier analysis, but our technique is entirely novel, and applies to all polyharmonic splines. Furthermore, we observe that the technique provides yet another way to generate compactly supported, radially symmetric, positive definite functions. Specifically, we find that the spherical averaging operator commutes with the Fourier transform operator, and we are then able to identify Fourier transforms of compactly supported functions using the Paley–Wiener theorem. Furthermore, the use of Haar measure on compact Lie groups would not have occurred without frequent exposure to Iserles’s study of geometric integration

Development and validation of an automatic thermal imaging process forassessing plant water status

[EN] Leaf temperature is a physiological trait that can be used for monitoring plant water status. Nowadays, by means of thermography, canopy temperature can be remotely determined. In this sense, it is crucial to automatically process the images. In the present work, a methodology for the automatic analysis of frontal images taken on individual trees was developed. The procedure can be used when cameras take at the same time thermal and visible scenes, so it is not necessary to reference the images. In this way, during the processing in batch, no operator participated. The procedure was developed by means of a non supervised classification of the visible image from which the presence of sky and soil could be detected. In case of existence, a mask was performed for the extraction of intermediate pixels to calculate canopy temperature by means of the thermal image. At the same time, sunlit and shady leaves could be detected and isolated. Thus, the procedure allowed to separately determine canopy temperature either of the more exposed part of the canopy or of the shaded portion. The methodology developed was validated using images taken in several regulated deficit irrigation trials in Persimmon and two citrus cultivars (Clementina de Nules and Navel Lane-Late). Overall, results indicated that similar canopy temperatures were calculated either by means of the automatic process or the manual procedure. The procedure developed allows to drastically reduce the time needed for image analysis also considering that no operator participation was required. This tool will facilitate further investigations in course for assessing the feasibility of thermography for detecting plant water status in woody perennial crops with discontinuous canopies. Preliminary results reported indicate that the type of crop evaluated has an important influence in the results obtained from thermographic imagery. Thus, in Persimmon trees there were good correlations between canopy temperature and plant water status while, in Clementina de Nules and Navel Lane-Late citrus cultivars canopy temperature differences among trees could not be related with tree-to-tree variations in plant water status.This research was supported by funds from the Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Agrarias and the "Denominacion de origen Caqui Ribera del Xuquer" via "Proyecto Integral Caqui". from projects Rideco-Consolider CSD2006-0067 and Interreg IV Sudoe Telerieg. Thanks are also due to J. Castel, E. Badal, I. Buesa and D. Guerra for assistance with field work and to the Servicio de Tecnologia del Riego for providing the meteorological data.Jiménez Bello, MÁ.; Ballester, C.; Castel Sanchez, R.; Intrigliolo Molina, DS. (2011). Development and validation of an automatic thermal imaging process forassessing plant water status. Agricultural Water Management. (98):1497-1504. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2011.05.002S149715049

Acousto-optically induced unidirectional and single frequency operation of a Nd:glass ring laser using the acousto-optic effect in the laser medium

A traveling-wave acousto-optic modulator fabricated from Nd-doped phosphate glass is used both as the laser gain medium and as the unidirectional element in a diode-pumped ring laser. Unidirectional operation can be maintained with applied rf powers as low as 6.7 mW and results in cw single-frequency output powers as high as 200 mW for a pump power of 1.2