On interaction between freely moving bodies and fluid in a channel flow

The interaction between free fast-moving bodies (or particles) and the fluid surrounding them is studied, motivated by applications in different branches of industry, biomedicine, the environment and science such as flying droplets, ice growth, dust, impacts, food grains, sport, complexity and storms. New inviscid-based modelling and results on the behaviour of two interacting bodies inside a channel flow are described. This is followed by discussion of the more-bodies extension with a view to treating arrays of bodies in a rational manner. Significant dependences on initial conditions and on the comparative body masses and moments of inertia are found for the occurrence of body-body impacts as opposed to wall-body impacts and for the associated impact times

Yield and quality response of drip-irrigated pepper under Mediterranean climatic conditions to various water regimes

This study examines the effects of different irrigation regimes on yield and water use of pepper irrigated by a drip system under field conditions during the 2004 growing season at the Soil and Water Resources Research Institute in Tarsus, Turkey under Mediterranean climatic conditions. The field trials consisted of three irrigation intervals (IF1:20±2, IF2:40±2 and IF3:60±2 mm of cumulative pan evaporation) and evaluated by three irrigation levels (DI1=0.50, DI2=0.75 and DI3=1.00). Both the irrigation levels (DI) and intervals (IF) had significantly different effects on pepper yields. The maximum and minimum yields were obtained from the IF1DI3 and IF3DI1 treatment plots as 35920 and 21390 kg ha-1, respectively. The yields and yield components decreased as irrigation levels decreased for each irrigation interval. However, the larger irrigation interval (IF3) resulted in lower yields with all irrigation levels. Pepper seasonal evapotranspiration varied from a low 327 mm in the more stressfull treatment (IF3DI1) to a high 517 mm in the well irrigated control (IF1DI3). Significant linear relations were found between the pepper yield and the total water use for each irrigation interval. Irrigation intervals resulted in similar water use in the treatments with the same irrigation level. Water use efficiency (WUE) and irrigation water use efficiency (IWUE) values were significantly influenced by the irrigation intervals and levels. WUE ranged from 6.0 kg m-3 in IF3DI2 to 7.8 kg m-3 in the IF1DI1. The maximum IWUE was observed in IF1DI1, and the minimum IWUE was in IF3DI3 treatment. Both irrigation levels and frequencies had significantly different effects on quality parameters such as the first and second quality yield, number of fruit, mean fruit weight, pepper length and width, as well as plant height at harvest. In conclusion, the IF1DI3 irrigation regime is recommended for field grown pepper in order to attain higher yields with improved quality. Economic evaluation revealed that full irrigation treatment (IF1DI3) generated the highest net income. However, under water scarcity conditions, IF1DI2 treatment can provide an acceptable net income.Key words: Pepper, deficit irrigation, water use efficiency, yield response factor, economic evaluation

Sustainable use of winter Durum wheat landraces under Mediterranean conditions

This research expected to determine new durum wheat germplasm resistant to biotic and abiotic stress factors. Eighty durum wheat lines selected from eighteen diverse landraces were tested together with eight durum wheat cultivars under reliable yellow rust epidemic during two successive years. Average infection coefficient of populations and cultivars was 32.44 in 2003 and 26.24 in 2004, showing severe epidemic condition which occurred at adult plant stage in 2003. Because of this the number of selected resistant and moderately resistant plant material greatly reduced. According to the yield trial study in which twenty resistant lines selected out of 30 resistant and moderately from sixteen populations were included, only two checks outperformed grand mean (2.48 t ha -1) and two lines selected from landrace population followed these with slightly lower yield difference. On the other hand, there were several lines which performed better than the grand mean of protein content (13.24%), SDS sedimentation (28.40 ml) and semolina color (24.35) and they ranked in the first group including the two checks cultivars. Bi- plot analysis showed that some promising lines with reasonable grain yields, good quality parameters, winter hardiness and drought tolerances among yellow rust resistance durum wheat landraces can be selected for semiarid conditions of Mediterranean countries for sustainable production

Multimodal Feature Integration in the Angular Gyrus during Episodic and Semantic Retrieval.

UNLABELLED: Much evidence from distinct lines of investigation indicates the involvement of angular gyrus (AnG) in the retrieval of both episodic and semantic information, but the region's precise function and whether that function differs across episodic and semantic retrieval have yet to be determined. We used univariate and multivariate fMRI analysis methods to examine the role of AnG in multimodal feature integration during episodic and semantic retrieval. Human participants completed episodic and semantic memory tasks involving unimodal (auditory or visual) and multimodal (audio-visual) stimuli. Univariate analyses revealed the recruitment of functionally distinct AnG subregions during the retrieval of episodic and semantic information. Consistent with a role in multimodal feature integration during episodic retrieval, significantly greater AnG activity was observed during retrieval of integrated multimodal episodic memories compared with unimodal episodic memories. Multivariate classification analyses revealed that individual multimodal episodic memories could be differentiated in AnG, with classification accuracy tracking the vividness of participants' reported recollections, whereas distinct unimodal memories were represented in sensory association areas only. In contrast to episodic retrieval, AnG was engaged to a statistically equivalent degree during retrieval of unimodal and multimodal semantic memories, suggesting a distinct role for AnG during semantic retrieval. Modality-specific sensory association areas exhibited corresponding activity during both episodic and semantic retrieval, which mirrored the functional specialization of these regions during perception. The results offer new insights into the integrative processes subserved by AnG and its contribution to our subjective experience of remembering. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: Using univariate and multivariate fMRI analyses, we provide evidence that functionally distinct subregions of angular gyrus (AnG) contribute to the retrieval of episodic and semantic memories. Our multivariate pattern classifier could distinguish episodic memory representations in AnG according to whether they were multimodal (audio-visual) or unimodal (auditory or visual) in nature, whereas statistically equivalent AnG activity was observed during retrieval of unimodal and multimodal semantic memories. Classification accuracy during episodic retrieval scaled with the trial-by-trial vividness with which participants experienced their recollections. Therefore, the findings offer new insights into the integrative processes subserved by AnG and how its function may contribute to our subjective experience of remembering.This study was funded by a James S. McDonnell Foundation Scholar Award to JSS, and was carried out within the University of Cambridge Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, funded by a joint award from the Medical Research Council and the Wellcome Trust. We would like to thank the staff of the MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit MRI facility for scanning assistance.This is the final version of the article. It first appeared from the Society for Neuroscience via https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.4310-15.201

Correcting magnification error in foveal avascular zone area measurements of optical coherence tomography angiography images with estimated axial length

Background To generate and validate a method to estimate axial length estimated (ALest) from spherical equivalent (SE) and corneal curvature [keratometry (K)], and to determine if this ALest can replace actual axial length (ALact) for correcting transverse magnification error in optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) images using the Littmann-Bennett formula. Methods Data from 1301 participants of the Raine Study Gen2-20 year follow-up were divided into two datasets to generate (n = 650) and validate (n = 651) a relationship between AL, SE, and K. The developed formula was then applied to a separate dataset of 46 participants with AL, SE, and K measurements and OCTA images to estimate and compare the performance of ALest against ALact in correcting transverse magnification error in OCTA images when measuring the foveal avascular zone area (FAZA). Results The formula for ALest yielded the equation: ALest = 2.102K − 0.4125SE + 7.268, R2 = 0.794. There was good agreement between ALest and ALact for both study cohorts. The mean difference [standard deviation (SD)] between FAZA corrected with ALest and ALact was 0.002 (0.015) mm2 with the 95% limits of agreement (LoA) of − 0.027 to 0.031 mm2. In comparison, mean difference (SD) between FAZA uncorrected and corrected with ALact was − 0.005 (0.030) mm2, with 95% LoA of − 0.064 to 0.054 mm2. Conclusions ALact is more accurate than ALest and hence should be used preferentially in magnification error correction in the clinical setting. FAZA corrected with ALest is comparable to FAZA corrected with ALact, while FAZA measurements using images corrected with ALest have a greater accuracy than measurements on uncorrected images. Hence, in the absence of ALact, clinicians should use ALest to correct for magnification error as this provides for more accurate measurements of fundus parameters than uncorrected images

The relationship between fetal growth and retinal nerve fiber layer thickness in a cohort of young adults

Purpose: To explore relationships between patterns of fetal anthropometric growth, as reflective of fetal wellbeing, and global retinal nerve fiber layer (RNFL) thickness measured in young adulthood. Methods: Participants (n = 481) from within a Western Australian pregnancy cohort study underwent five serial ultrasound scans during gestation, with fetal biometry measured at each scan. Optic disc parameters were measured via spectral-domain optical coherence tomography imaging at a 20-year follow-up eye examination. Generalized estimating equations were used to evaluate differences in global RNFL thickness between groups of participants who had undergone similar growth trajectories based on fetal head circumference (FHC), abdominal circumference (FAC), femur length (FFL), and estimated fetal weight (EFW). Results: Participants with consistently large FHCs throughout gestation had significantly thicker global RNFLs than those with any other pattern of FHC growth (P = 0.023), even after adjustment for potential confounders (P = 0.037). Based on model fit statistics, FHC growth trajectory was a better predictor of global RNFL thickness than birth weight or head circumference at birth. RNFL thickness did not vary significantly between groups of participants with different growth trajectories based on FAC, FFL, or EFW. Conclusions: FHC growth is associated with RNFL thickness in young adulthood and, moreover, is a better predictor than either birth weight or head circumference at birth. Translational Relevance: This research demonstrates an association between intrauterine growth and long-term optic nerve health, providing a basis for further exploring the extent of the influence of fetal wellbeing on clinical conditions linked to RNFL thinning