Partitioning Energy Requirements of Angus, Charolais and Reciprocal Cross Cows

Increasing energy costs have stimulated more interest in efficient use of our natural resources. Utilization of energy in agricultural enterprises needs to be critically evaluated for economic survival of the enterprise. Feed energy required for beef production comes largely from harvested and unharvested forage and grasses constitute a high proportion of the costs of maintaining a cow. These costs have increased along with other production inputs. Beef cattle producers need to know how total feed energy is utilized in order to increase their efficiency. Cow herd efficiency is extremely important, especially the energetic efficiency of various size groups. Knowing the proportions of feed required for maintenance, growth of body tissue and production will assist the progressive producer in evaluating the efficiency of is cattle. Economic pressure on beef producers necessitates critical evaluation of all production costs. The goal of cattlemen is to produce beef for the table by the most profitable method. Feed constitutes the largest variable expense in the beef enterprise. Energy provided by feed can theoretically be divided into parts for maintenance of body weight, growth of body tissue and production of animal products. Optimum performance of a cow is related to the proportion of energy utilized for each partition. Cow herd efficiency is extremely important, especially the energy efficiencies of various cow sizes. Differences in overall efficiency of feed used may be due to differences in maintenance requirements or nutrient utilization. Knowledge of amounts of feed required for each use is needed to predict economic consequences of feeding and management systems. Although cow size has little effect on efficiency, recent interest in larger cows suggests a need for an accurate method of predicting energy requirements for large and small cows during the different stages of production. The objective of this study was to partition the energy intake of Angus, Charolais and reciprocal cross cows into maintenance, weight change and milk production. Equations were developed to predict TDN (total digestible nutrients) requirements for beef cows and replacement heifers over a range of weights and during different stages of production

Longevity of Crossbred VS Straightbred Beef Cows

Cow longevity measured in years of production affects efficiency by altering the proportion of cows in production. Assuming constant cow numbers, removing cows from the herd at younger ages for standard culling criteria results in higher replacement rates and a smaller proportion of the herd in production. This paper compares longevity of Angus, Charolais and reciprocal cross cows under drylot and pasture management systems. Age at removal and reason for removal were evaluated

Economics of Establishing a Beef Cattle Feedlot Using By-Products of Ethanol Production in North Dakota

Production Economics, Resource /Energy Economics and Policy, Agribusiness,

Efficient use of water for irrigation in the upper midwest

The objectives of this multidisciplinary interinstitutional regional study on the efficient use of water for irrigation in the upper Midwest were: (1) to determine parameters needed for existing or improved models of crop response; (2) to relate yield response to costs and revenues by assessing the water demand for irrigation; and (3) to study the demand for irrigation, present and projected, and its availability as related to public allocation decisions. From this series of studies it was concluded that: (1) There are many areas of the Midwest with sufficient groundwater and surface water resources to support the development of irrigation. (2) Soil moisture models indicate that only moderate yield response to irrigation can be expected on high moisture soils; on lighter soils and claypan soils, yield response is significant, even in regions with relatively high precipitation. (3) Irrigation and drainage on claypan soils can dramatically increase corn yields. (4) It appears economically worthwhile for the individual farmer operating on moderate soils or on claypan soils to evaluate capital investments in irrigation along with other capital investments. (5) Increases in yields and persistence of alfalfa due to irrigation appear to be insignificant when compared to conventional management practices; further research is needed. A potential, however, appears to exist for improving adaptation of a1 fa1 fa varieties to soil water deficits.U.S. Geological SurveyU.S. Department of the InteriorOpe

ACC/AHA/SCAI/AMA–Convened PCPI/NCQA 2013 Performance Measures for Adults Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Performance Measures, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, the American Medical Association–Convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement, and the National Committee for Quality Assurance

Journal of the American College of Cardiology Ó 2014 by the American College of Cardiology Foundation, American Heart Association, Inc., American Medical Association, and National Committee for Quality Assurance Published by Elsevier Inc. Vol. 63, No. 7, 2014 ISSN 0735-1097/$36.00 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2013.12.003 PERFORMANCE MEASURES ACC/AHA/SCAI/AMA–Convened PCPI/NCQA 2013 Performance Measures for Adults Undergoing Percutaneous Coronary Intervention A Report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Performance Measures, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, the American Medical Association–Convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement, and the National Committee for Quality Assurance Developed in Collaboration With the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation and Mended Hearts Endorsed by the American Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation and Mended Hearts WRITING COMMITTEE MEMBERS Brahmajee K. Nallamothu, MD, MPH, FACC, FAHA, Co-Chair*; Carl L. Tommaso, MD, FACC, FAHA, FSCAI, Co-Chairy; H. Vernon Anderson, MD, FACC, FAHA, FSCAI*; Jeffrey L. Anderson, MD, FACC, FAHA, MACP*; Joseph C. Cleveland, J R , MDz; R. Adams Dudley, MD, MBA; Peter Louis Duffy, MD, MMM, FACC, FSCAIy; David P. Faxon, MD, FACC, FAHA*; Hitinder S. Gurm, MD, FACC; Lawrence A. Hamilton, Neil C. Jensen, MHA, MBA; Richard A. Josephson, MD, MS, FACC, FAHA, FAACVPRx; David J. Malenka, MD, FACC, FAHA*; Calin V. Maniu, MD, FACC, FAHA, FSCAIy; Kevin W. McCabe, MD; James D. Mortimer, Manesh R. Patel, MD, FACC*; Stephen D. Persell, MD, MPH; John S. Rumsfeld, MD, PhD, FACC, FAHAjj; Kendrick A. Shunk, MD, PhD, FACC, FAHA, FSCAI*; Sidney C. Smith, J R , MD, FACC, FAHA, FACP{; Stephen J. Stanko, MBA, BA, AA#; Brook Watts, MD, MS *ACC/AHA Representative. ySociety of Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions Representative. zSociety of Thoracic Surgeons Representative. xAmerican Association of Cardiovascular and Pulmonary Rehabilitation Representative. kACC/AHA Task Force on Performance Measures Liaison. {National Heart Lung and Blood Institute Representative. #Mended Hearts Representative. The measure specifications were approved by the American College of Cardiology Board of Trustees, American Heart Association Science Advisory and Coordinating Committee, in January 2013 and the American Medical Association–Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement in February 2013. This document was approved by the American College of Cardiology Board of Trustees and the American Heart Association Science Advisory and Coordinating Committee in October 2013, and the Society of Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions in December 2013. The American College of Cardiology requests that this document be cited as follows: Nallamothu BK, Tommaso CL, Anderson HV, Anderson JL, Cleveland JC, Dudley RA, Duffy PL, Faxon DP, Gurm HS, Hamilton LA, Jensen NC, Josephson RA, Malenka DJ, Maniu CV, McCabe KW, Mortimer JD, Patel MR, Persell SD, Rumsfeld JS, Shunk KA, Smith SC, Stanko SJ, Watts B. ACC/AHA/SCAI/AMA–Convened PCPI/NCQA 2013 perfor- mance measures for adults undergoing percutaneous coronary intervention: a report of the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on Performance Measures, the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions, the American Medical Association–Convened Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement, and the National Committee for Quality Assurance. J Am Coll Cardiol 2014;63:722–45. This article has been copublished in Circulation. Copies: This document is available on the World Wide Web sites of the American College of Cardiology (www.cardiosource.org) and the American Heart Asso- ciation (http://my.americanheart.org). For copies of this document, please contact Elsevier Inc. Reprint Department, fax (212) 633-3820, e-mail [email protected]. Permissions: Multiple copies, modification, alteration, enhancement, and/or distribution of this document are not permitted without the express permission of the American College of Cardiology. Requests may be completed online via the Elsevier site (http://www.elsevier.com/authors/obtaining- permission-to-re-use-elsevier-material). This Physician Performance Measurement Set (PPMS) and related data specifications were developed by the Physician Consortium for Performance Improvement (the Consortium), including the American College of Cardiology (ACC), the American Heart Association (AHA), and the American Medical Association (AMA), to facilitate quality-improvement activities by physicians. The performance measures contained in this PPMS are not clinical guidelines, do not establish a standard of medical care, and have not been tested for all potential applications. Although copyrighted, they can be reproduced and distributed, without modification, for noncommercial purposesdfor example, use by health care pro

Dynamical Patterns of Cattle Trade Movements

Despite their importance for the spread of zoonotic diseases, our understanding of the dynamical aspects characterizing the movements of farmed animal populations remains limited as these systems are traditionally studied as static objects and through simplified approximations. By leveraging on the network science approach, here we are able for the first time to fully analyze the longitudinal dataset of Italian cattle movements that reports the mobility of individual animals among farms on a daily basis. The complexity and inter-relations between topology, function and dynamical nature of the system are characterized at different spatial and time resolutions, in order to uncover patterns and vulnerabilities fundamental for the definition of targeted prevention and control measures for zoonotic diseases. Results show how the stationarity of statistical distributions coexists with a strong and non-trivial evolutionary dynamics at the node and link levels, on all timescales. Traditional static views of the displacement network hide important patterns of structural changes affecting nodes' centrality and farms' spreading potential, thus limiting the efficiency of interventions based on partial longitudinal information. By fully taking into account the longitudinal dimension, we propose a novel definition of dynamical motifs that is able to uncover the presence of a temporal arrow describing the evolution of the system and the causality patterns of its displacements, shedding light on mechanisms that may play a crucial role in the definition of preventive actions

Dynamical Patterns of Cattle Trade Movements

Despite their importance for the spread of zoonotic diseases, our understanding of the dynamical aspects characterizing the movements of farmed animal populations remains limited as these systems are traditionally studied as static objects and through simplified approximations. By leveraging on the network science approach, here we are able for the first time to fully analyze the longitudinal dataset of Italian cattle movements that reports the mobility of individual animals among farms on a daily basis. The complexity and inter-relations between topology, function and dynamical nature of the system are characterized at different spatial and time resolutions, in order to uncover patterns and vulnerabilities fundamental for the definition of targeted prevention and control measures for zoonotic diseases. Results show how the stationarity of statistical distributions coexists with a strong and non-trivial evolutionary dynamics at the node and link levels, on all timescales. Traditional static views of the displacement network hide important patterns of structural changes affecting nodes' centrality and farms' spreading potential, thus limiting the efficiency of interventions based on partial longitudinal information. By fully taking into account the longitudinal dimension, we propose a novel definition of dynamical motifs that is able to uncover the presence of a temporal arrow describing the evolution of the system and the causality patterns of its displacements, shedding light on mechanisms that may play a crucial role in the definition of preventive actions

A survey of individual preference for colorectal cancer screening technique

BACKGROUND: Due to the low participation in colorectal cancer screening, public preference for colorectal cancer screening modality was determined. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was performed of healthy ambulatory adults in a pediatrics primary care office and neighboring church. Overall preference was ranked for each of four colorectal cancer screening modalities: Faecal Occult Blood, Fiberoptic Sigmoidoscopy, Barium Enema and Colonoscopy. Four additional domains of preference also were ranked: suspected discomfort, embarrassment, inconvenience and danger of each exam. RESULTS: 80 surveys were analyzed, 57 of which were received from participants who had experienced none of the screening tests. Fecal Occult Blood Testing is significantly preferred over each other screening modality in overall preference and every domain of preference, among all subjects and those who had experienced none of the tests. CONCLUSIONS: Efforts to increase public participation in colorectal cancer screening may be more effective if undertaken in the context of public perceptions of screening choices

Architektury kognitywne, czyli jak zbudować sztuczny umysł

Architektury kognitywne (AK) są próbą stworzenia modeli komputerowych integrujących wiedzę o działaniu umysłu. Ich zadaniem jest implementacja konkretnych schematów działania funkcji poznawczych umożliwiająca testowanie tych funkcji na szerokiej gamie zagadnień. Wiele architektur kognitywnych opracowano w celu symulacji procesu komunikacji pomiędzy człowiekiem i złożonymi maszynami (HCI, Human-Computer Interfaces), symulowania czasów reakcji oraz różnych psychofizycznych zależności. Można to do pewnego stopnia osiągnąć budując modele układu poznawczego na poziomie symbolicznym, z wiedzą w postaci reguł logicznych. Istnieją też projekty, które próbują powiązać procesy poznawcze z aktywacją modułów reprezentujących konkretne obszary mózgu, zgodnie z obserwacjami w eksperymentach z funkcjonalnym rezonansem magnetycznym (fMRI). Dużą grupę stanowią architektury oparte na podejściu logicznym, które mają na celu symulację wyższych czynności poznawczych, przede wszystkim procesów myślenia i rozumowania. Niektóre z projektów rozwoju architektur poznawczych skupiają większe grupy badawcze działające od wielu dziesięcioleci. Ogólnie architektury kognitywne podzielić można na 3 duże grupy: architektury symboliczne (oparte na funkcjonalnym rozumieniu procesów poznawczych); architektury emergentne, oparte na modelach koneksjonistycznych; oraz architektury hybrydowe, wykorzystujące zarówno modele neuronowe jak i reguły symboliczne. W ostatnich latach znacznie wzrosło zainteresowanie architekturami inspirowanymi przez neurobiologię (BICA, Brain Inspired Cognitive Architectures). Jak sklasyfikować różne architektury, jakie wyzwania należy przed nimi postawić, jak oceniać postępy w ich rozwoju, czego nam brakuje do stworzenia pełnego modelu umysłu? Krytyczny przegląd istniejących architektur kognitywnych, ich ograniczeń i możliwości pozwala na sformułowanie ogólnych wniosków dotyczących kierunków ich rozwoju czego nam brakuje do stworzenia pełnego modelu umysłu? Krytyczny przegląd istniejących architektur kognitywnych, ich ograniczeń i możliwości pozwala na sformułowanie ogólnych wniosków dotyczących kierunków ich rozwoju oraz wysunięcie własnych propozycji budowy nowej architektury

An Experimental Study of Cryptocurrency Market Dynamics

As cryptocurrencies gain popularity and credibility, marketplaces for cryptocurrencies are growing in importance. Understanding the dynamics of these markets can help to assess how viable the cryptocurrnency ecosystem is and how design choices affect market behavior. One existential threat to cryptocurrencies is dramatic fluctuations in traders' willingness to buy or sell. Using a novel experimental methodology, we conducted an online experiment to study how susceptible traders in these markets are to peer influence from trading behavior. We created bots that executed over one hundred thousand trades costing less than a penny each in 217 cryptocurrencies over the course of six months. We find that individual "buy" actions led to short-term increases in subsequent buy-side activity hundreds of times the size of our interventions. From a design perspective, we note that the design choices of the exchange we study may have promoted this and other peer influence effects, which highlights the potential social and economic impact of HCI in the design of digital institutions.Comment: CHI 201