Simultaneous estimation of hunting pressure, harvest and hunter success rates using WinBUGS

The use of hierarchical Bayesian spatial models in the analysis of ecological data is increasingly prevalent. The implementation of these models has been heretofore limited to specifically written software that required extensive programming knowledge to create. The advent of WinBUGS provides access to Bayesian hierarchical models for those without the programming expertise to create their own models and allows for the more rapid implementation of new models and data analysis. This facility is demonstrated here using data collected by the Missouri Department of Conservation for the Missouri Turkey Hunting Survey of 1996. Three models are considered, the first uses the collected data to estimate the success rate for individual hunters at the county level and incorporates a conditional autoregressive (CAR) spatial effect. The second model builds upon the first by simultaneously estimating the success rate and harvest at the county level, while the third estimates the success rate and hunting pressure at the county level. These models are discussed in detail as well as their implementation in WinBUGS and the issues arising therein. Future areas of application for WinBUGS and the latest developments in WinBUGS are discussed as well.

Numerical studies and design of hollow flange channel beams subject to combined bending and shear actions

LiteSteel beam (LSB) is a cold-formed steel hollow flange channel section produced using a patented manufacturing process involving simultaneous cold-forming and dual electric resistance welding. It is commonly used as floor joists and bearers in residential, industrial and commercial buildings. Design of the LSB is governed by the Australian cold-formed steel structures code, AS/NZS 4600. Due to the geometry of the LSB, as well as its unique residual stress characteristics and initial geometric imperfections resultant of manufacturing processes, currently available design equations for common cold-formed sections are not directly applicable to the LSB. Many research studies have been carried out to evaluate the behaviour and design of LSBs subject to pure bending actions and predominant shear actions. To date, however, no investigation has been conducted into the strength of LSB sections under combined bending and shear actions. Hence experimental and numerical studies were conducted to assess the combined bending and shear behaviour of LSBs. Finite element models of LSBs were developed to simulate their combined bending and shear behaviour and strength of LSBs. They were then validated by comparing the results with available experimental test results and used in a detailed parametric study. The results from experimental and finite element analyses were compared with current AS/NZS 4600 and AS 4100 design rules. Both experimental and numerical studies show that the AS/NZS 4600 design rule based on circular interaction equation is conservative in predicting the combined bending and shear capacities of LSBs. This paper presents the details of the numerical studies of LSBs and the results. In response to the inadequacies of current approaches to designing LSBs for combined bending and shear, two lower bound design equations are proposed in this paper.

Simultaneous magnetic resonance imaging and consolidation measurement of articular cartilage

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) offers the opportunity to study biological tissues and processes in a non-disruptive manner. The technique shows promise for the study of the load-bearing performance (consolidation) of articular cartilage and changes in articular cartilage accompanying osteoarthritis. Consolidation of articular cartilage involves the recording of two transient characteristics: the change over time of strain and the hydrostatic excess pore pressure (HEPP). MRI study of cartilage consolidation under mechanical load is limited by difficulties in measuring the HEPP in the presence of the strong magnetic fields associated with the MRI technique. Here we describe the use of MRI to image and characterize bovine articular cartilage deforming under load in an MRI compatible consolidometer while monitoring pressure with a Fabry-Perot interferometer-based fiber-optic pressure transducer.

Simultaneous expression of the bacterial Dictyoglomus thermophilum xynB gene under three different Trichoderma reesei promoters

Multiple copies of expression cassettes driven by the Trichoderma reesei xylanase 2 (xyn2) and cellobiohydrolase 2 (cbh2) promoters were introduced into the recombinant T. reesei EC-21 generated to express a thermostable Dictyoglomus thermophilum xylanase (XynB) under the egl2 promoter for further improvement of the enzyme yield. The transformants were screened based on increased XynB activity only. Multiple promoter transformant MPP-4 expressing the xynB gene under all the three promoters was found to be the highest producer of XynB, giving a 65% increase in yield compared to the parental single-promoter recombinant EC-21. The multiple-promoter transformant strains harboured six to nine copies of the xynB gene. Amongst the three promoters, egl2 seemed to have the strongest effect on XynB expression. The shotgun approach we used proved to be effective for rapid enhancement of protein expression using three promoters active at the near-neutral pH of the cultivation medium.

Intrinsic frames of reference in haptic spatial learning

It has been proposed that spatial reference frames with which object locations are specified in memory are intrinsic to a to-be-remembered spatial layout (intrinsic reference theory). Although this theory has been supported by accumulating evidence, it has only been collected from paradigms in which the entire spatial layout was simultaneously visible to observers. The present study was designed to examine the generality of the theory by investigating whether the geometric structure of a spatial layout (bilateral symmetry) influences selection of spatial reference frames when object locations are sequentially learned through haptic exploration. In two experiments, participants learned the spatial layout solely by touch and performed judgments of relative direction among objects using their spatial memories. Results indicated that the geometric structure can provide a spatial cue for establishing reference frames as long as it is accentuated by explicit instructions (Experiment 1) or alignment with an egocentric orientation (Experiment 2). These results are entirely consistent with those from previous studies in which spatial information was encoded through simultaneous viewing of all object locations, suggesting that the intrinsic reference theory is not specific to a type of spatial memory acquired by the particular learning method but instead generalizes to spatial memories learned through a variety of encoding conditions. In particular, the present findings suggest that spatial memories that follow the intrinsic reference theory function equivalently regardless of the modality in which spatial information is encoded.

Sequential versus simultaneous viewing of an environment : effects of focal attention to individual object locations on visual spatial learning

We investigated memories of room-sized spatial layouts learned by sequentially or simultaneously viewing objects from a stationary position. In three experiments, sequential viewing (one or two objects at a time) yielded subsequent memory performance that was equivalent or superior to simultaneous viewing of all objects, even though sequential viewing lacked direct access to the entire layout. This finding was replicated by replacing sequential viewing with directed viewing in which all objects were presented simultaneously and participants’ attention was externally focused on each object sequentially, indicating that the advantage of sequential viewing over simultaneous viewing may have originated from focal attention to individual object locations. These results suggest that memory representation of object-to-object relations can be constructed efficiently by encoding each object location separately, when those locations are defined within a single spatial reference system. These findings highlight the importance of considering object presentation procedures when studying spatial learning mechanisms.

Rapid, simultaneous activation of thin nanowire growth in low-temperature, low-pressure chemically active plasmas

Multiscale numerical modeling of the species balance and transport in the ionized gas phase and on the nanostructured solid surface complemented by the heat exchange model is used to demonstrate the possibility of minimizing the Gibbs-Thompson effect in low-temperature, low-pressure chemically active plasma-assisted growth of uniform arrays of very thin Si nanowires, impossible otherwise. It is shown that plasma-specific effects drastically shorten and decrease the dispersion of the incubation times for the nucleation of nanowires on non-uniform Au catalyst nanoparticle arrays. The fast nucleation makes it possible to avoid a common problem of small catalyst nanoparticle burying by amorphous silicon. These results explain a multitude of experimental observations on chemically active plasma-assisted Si nanowire growth and can be used for the synthesis of a range of inorganic nanowires for environmental, biomedical, energy conversion, and optoelectronic applications.

Plasma/ion-controlled metal catalyst saturation : enabling simultaneous growth of carbon nanotube/nanocone arrays

It is shown that the simultaneous saturation of Ni nanoparticles used as catalyst for vertically aligned carbon nanotube and nanocone arrays can be improved in low-temperature plasma- or ion-assisted processes compared with neutral gas-based routes. The results of hybrid multiscale numerical simulations of the catalyst nanoarrays (particle sizes of 2 and 10 nm) saturation with carbon show the possibility of reducing the difference in catalyst incubation times for smallest and largest catalyst particles by up to a factor of 2. This approach is generic and provides process conditions for simultaneous nucleation and growth of uniform arrays of vertically aligned nanostructures. © 2008 American Institute of Physics.

Simultaneous gene silencing and supressing gene silencing in the same cell

The present invention relates to genetically modified cells that are capable of optimal transgene expression by co-expressing a silencing suppressor whilst at the same time are also capable of silencing a gene, such as a naturally occurring gene of the cell. The present invention also relates to methods of producing the modified cells, as well as relates to processes for obtaining a genetically modified cell with a desired property.

Simultaneous localization and planning on multiple map hypotheses

This paper presents a novel method to rank map hypotheses by the quality of localization they afford. The highest ranked hypothesis at any moment becomes the active representation that is used to guide the robot to its goal location. A single static representation is insufficient for navigation in dynamic environments where paths can be blocked periodically, a common scenario which poses significant challenges for typical planners. In our approach we simultaneously rank multiple map hypotheses by the influence that localization in each of them has on locally accurate odometry. This is done online for the current locally accurate window by formulating a factor graph of odometry relaxed by localization constraints. Comparison of the resulting perturbed odometry of each hypothesis with the original odometry yields a score that can be used to rank map hypotheses by their utility. We deploy the proposed approach on a real robot navigating a structurally noisy office environment. The configuration of the environment is physically altered outside the robots sensory horizon during navigation tasks to demonstrate the proposed approach of hypothesis selection.

Mandatory reporting laws

As part of the effort to protect children from significant abuse and neglect, each state and territory in Australia has enacted legislation commonly known as "mandatory reporting laws". There is much confusion about the nature and effects of these laws, both generally and within each jurisdiction. Accordingly, the main aim of this chapter is to review and explain the legislative principles across Australia. In doing so, the chapter will identify differences between the state and territory laws and will situate the laws as part of a system of responses to the whole spectrum of child abuse and neglect. We will also highlight the need for effective reporter training and public awareness, especially given the tension between the widely perceived need for a community response to child abuse and neglect and the simultaneous concern to avoid unnecessary reporting of innocuous events and situations.

Vision-based simultaneous localization and mapping in changing outdoor environments

For robots operating in outdoor environments, a number of factors, including weather, time of day, rough terrain, high speeds, and hardware limitations, make performing vision-based simultaneous localization and mapping with current techniques infeasible due to factors such as image blur and/or underexposure, especially on smaller platforms and low-cost hardware. In this paper, we present novel visual place-recognition and odometry techniques that address the challenges posed by low lighting, perceptual change, and low-cost cameras. Our primary contribution is a novel two-step algorithm that combines fast low-resolution whole image matching with a higher-resolution patch-verification step, as well as image saliency methods that simultaneously improve performance and decrease computing time. The algorithms are demonstrated using consumer cameras mounted on a small vehicle in a mixed urban and vegetated environment and a car traversing highway and suburban streets, at different times of day and night and in various weather conditions. The algorithms achieve reliable mapping over the course of a day, both when incrementally incorporating new visual scenes from different times of day into an existing map, and when using a static map comprising visual scenes captured at only one point in time. Using the two-step place-recognition process, we demonstrate for the first time single-image, error-free place recognition at recall rates above 50% across a day-night dataset without prior training or utilization of image sequences. This place-recognition performance enables topologically correct mapping across day-night cycles.

Experimental studies on web crippling behaviour of hollow flange channel beams under two flange load cases

This paper presents the details of an experimental study of a cold-formed steel hollow flange channel beam known as LiteSteel beam (LSB) subject to web crippling under End Two Flange (ETF) and Interior Two Flange (ITF) load cases. The LSB sections with two rectangular hollow flanges are made using a simultaneous cold-forming and electric resistance welding process. Due to the geometry of the LSB, and its unique residual stress characteristics and initial geometric imperfections, much of the existing research for common cold-formed steel sections is not directly applicable to LSB. Experimental and numerical studies have been carried out to evaluate the behaviour and design of LSBs subject to pure bending, predominant shear and combined actions. To date, however, no investigation has been conducted on the web crippling behaviour and strength of LSB sections. Hence an experimental study was conducted to investigate the web crippling behaviour and capacities of LSBs. Twenty-eight web crippling tests were conducted under ETF and ITF load cases, and the ultimate web crippling capacities were compared with the predictions from the design equations in AS/NZS 4600 and AISI S100. This comparison showed that AS/NZS 4600 and AISI S100 web crippling design equations are unconservative for LSB sections under ETF and ITF load cases. Hence new equations were proposed to determine the web crippling capacities of LSBs based on experimental results. Suitable design rules were also developed under the direct strength method (DSM) format.