Challenges in field monitoring of energy performance of air conditioners

Experimental work could be conducted in either laboratory or at field site. Generally, the laboratory experiments are carried out in an artificial setting and with a highly controlled environment. By contrast, the field experiments often take place in a natural setting, subject to the influences of many uncontrolled factors. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully assess the possible limitations and appropriateness of an experiment before embarking on it. In this paper, a case study of field monitoring of the energy performance of air conditioners is presented. Significant challenges facing the experimental work are described. Lessons learnt from this case study are also discussed. In particular, it was found that on-going analysis of the monitoring data and the correction of abnormal issues are two of the keys for a successful field test program. It was also shown that the installation of monitoring systems could have a significant impact on the accuracy of the data being collected. Before monitoring system was set up to collect monitoring data, it is recommended that an initial analysis of sample monitored data should be conducted to make sure that the monitoring data can achieve the expected precision. In the case where inevitable inherent errors were induced from the installation of field monitoring systems, appropriate remediation may need to be developed and implemented for the improved accuracy of the estimation of results. On-going analysis of monitoring data and correction of any abnormal issues would be the key to a successful field test program.

Green-fluorescent protein facilitates rapid in vivo detection of genetically transformed plant cells

Early detection of plant transformation events is necessary for the rapid establishment and optimization of plant transformation protocols. We have assessed modified versions of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) from Aequorea victoria as early reporters of plant transformation using a dissecting fluorescence microscope with appropriate filters. Gfp-expressing cells from four different plant species (sugarcane, maize, lettuce, and tobacco) were readily distinguished, following either Agrobacterium-mediated or particle bombardment-mediated transformation. The identification of gfp-expressing sugarcane cells allowed for the elimination of a high proportion of non-expressing explants and also enabled visual selection of dividing transgenic cells, an early step in the generation of transgenic organisms. The recovery of transgenic cell clusters was streamlined by the ability to visualize gfp-expressing tissues in vitro.

Issues in obstacle detection for autonomous mining and construction vehicles

This paper discusses a Dumber of key issues for the development of robust, obstacle detection systems for autonomous mining and construction vehicles. A taxonomy of obstacle detection systems is described; An overview of the state-of- the-art in obstacle detection for outdoor autonomous vehicles is presented with their applicability to the mining and construction environments noted. The issue of so-called fail-safe obstacle detection is then discussed. Finally, we describe the development of an obstacle detection system for a mining vehicle.

Effectiveness of in-office blood pressure measurement by eye care practitioners in early detection and management of hypertension

AIM To investigate the number of hypertensive patients, the optometrist is able to identify by routinely taking blood pressure (BP) measurements for patients in "at -risk" groups, and to sample patients' opinions regarding in -office BP measurement. Many of the optometrists in Saudi Arabia practice in optical stores. These stores are wide spread, easily accessible and seldom need appointments. The expanding role of the optometrist as a primary health care provider (PHCP) and the increasing global prevalence of hypertension, highlight the need for an integrated approach towards detecting and monitoring hypertension. METHODS Automated BP measurements were made twice (during the same session) at five selected optometry practices using a validated BP monitor (Omron M6) to assess the number of patients with high BP (HBP) - in at -risk groups -visiting the eye clinic routinely. Prior to data collection, practitioners underwent a two-day training workshop by a cardiologist on hypertension and how to obtain accurate BP readings. A protocol for BP measurement was distributed and retained in all participating clinics. The general attitude towards cardiovascular health of 480 patients aged 37.2 (依12.4)y and their opinion towards in-office BP measurement was assessed using a self -administered questionnaire. RESULTS A response rate of 83.6% was obtained for the survey. Ninety -three of the 443 patients (21.0% ) tested for BP in this study had HBP. Of these, (62 subjects) 67.7% were unaware of their HBP status. Thirty of the 105 subjects (28.6%) who had previously been diagnosed with HBP, still had HBP at the time of this study, and only 22 (73.3%) of these patients were on medication. Also, only 25% of the diagnosed hypertensive patients owned a BP monitor. CONCLUSION Taking BP measurements in optometry practices, we were able to identify one previously undiagnosed patient with HBP for every 8 adults tested. We also identified 30 of 105 previously diagnosed patients whose BP was poorly controlled, twenty-two of whom were on medication. The patients who participated in this study were positively disposed toward the routine measurement of BP by optometrists.

“What are they really doing?” An exploration of student learning activities in field placement

Social work students consistently identify their field placement as having the most impact on their learning. Despite this, research on learning activities used during placement and the impact on practice competency and social work identity is limited. This is the second paper from a research study exploring student experiences of learning on placement. Data were gathered from 263 social work students about 14 key learning activities they experienced during placement. The more regularly students engaged in learning activities with their social work supervisor, the more likely they were to report a sense of social work identity and feelings of practice competence. However, the regular use of learning activities varied widely between placements. Surprisingly, approximately half the students did not regularly have the opportunity to observe social work practice, have their practice observed, or to link social work theory and the Code of Ethics to their practice with their social work supervisor.

Minimising mortality in field and pot experiments using Heteronyx piceus Blanchard (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae) eggs and larvae

The establishment of experimental populations of scarab larvae using eggs and early instar larvae has proven to be difficult for many researchers. Despite this, little work has been published examining ways to optimise establishment under artificial conditions. In this experiment, we examined the effect of shade and irrigation on the establishment of Heteronyx piceus Blanchard larvae introduced into pots as eggs and first-, second- and third-instar larvae to optimise artificial infestation techniques. The most important factor affecting larval establishment was the life stage introduced. Establishment of eggs and first instars was very low, with only 21% of eggs and 11% of first-instar larvae establishing. In contrast, 82% of second-instar larvae and 84% of third-instar larvae established successfully. The addition of shade marginally improved overall survival from 45% in the unshaded pots to 53% in the shaded pots. However, most of this increase was in the eggs and first instars. Irrigation did not improve survival. These results suggest that when introducing scarab larvae to field or pot experiments, second- or thirdinstar larvae should be used to maximise establishment. The provision of shade and supplementary irrigation is optional.

Review of Nezara viridula (L.) management strategies and potential for IPM in field crops with emphasis on Australia

Nezara viridula (L.) is a cosmopolitan, polyphagous heteropteran that causes economic damage to many crop species. At present, control of N. viridula in Australia and other countries relies heavily upon insecticides, most of which are disruptive to beneficial insects, constituting a constraint on integrated pest management (IPM). Much research has been conducted into non-chemical control methods for N. viridula. This paper reviews the potential for and limitations of sterile insect technique, classical, inundative and conservation biological control, and trap cropping. None of these techniques appear to be adequate for control of N. viridula when used alone but there is scope for these non-chemical approaches to be adopted for use in integrated management of this pest. A proposal is given for one such integrated approach for future development. It includes biopesticides, trap crops and carefully targeted habitat manipulation to enhance arthropod natural enemies as well as area-wide management and grower education.

Teledermatology: Its use in the detection and management of actinic keratosis

Teledermatology can profoundly improve access to medical services for those who may have limited access to dermatology due to workforce shortages, distance to providers, or limitations in their mobility. Two common ways of teledermatology are differentiated: life synchronous, where patient and doctor communicate directly, or store and forward asynchronous methods, where the patient and doctor provide and assess the medical information independently. Teledermatology has been tested for its safety, feasibility and accuracy for a number of dermatological conditions, including the early detection of skin cancer and is usually safe, feasible and accurate. Studies reported somewhat better results for synchronous than asynchronous methods, possibly because of loss of information if no direct patient doctor contact is feasible. However asynchronous methods are easier to organize, require less sophisticated technology and are more widely accessible, and are more convenient for both patients and doctors. No study to date focused solely on teledermatology of actinic keratosis, but such lesions are typically found during teledermatology examinations for other main target lesions. In studies where such results were reported, actinic keratoses seemed to be readily identifiable for teledermatologists and adequate management and treatment can be suggested within remote consultations.

In vitro detection and primary cultivation of bacteria producing materials inhibitory to ruminal methanogens.

A novel method for screening bacterial isolates for their potential to inhibit the growth of ruminal methanogenic Archaea was developed using a modification of the soft agar overlay technique, formally used for the isolation of lytic bacteriophages. This method may be used in the specific, hydrogen-rich conditions required for the growth of ruminal methanogenic Archaea.

Challenges to Capturing Expertise in Field Settings

This chapter proposes that to capture expertise in field settings sport scientists should base experimental designs on an inter-disciplinary theoretical foundation and utilise coach and athlete expertise to identify the key variables upon which to focus. We propose that an ecological dynamics framework may allow motor learning and performance to be examined in a more representative manner. After initially considering the problem from the view of a “new” skill acquisition scientist, we provide an overview of previous approaches, before providing theoretical and practically driven ideas to guide sport scientists’ practice going forward.

Pests and Diseases in Field Crops

Insect pest diagnostics.

Improvement in Intrusion Detection With Advances in Sensor Fusion

Various intrusion detection systems (IDSs) reported in the literature have shown distinct preferences for detecting a certain class of attack with improved accuracy, while performing moderately on the other classes. In view of the enormous computing power available in the present-day processors, deploying multiple IDSs in the same network to obtain best-of-breed solutions has been attempted earlier. The paper presented here addresses the problem of optimizing the performance of IDSs using sensor fusion with multiple sensors. The trade-off between the detection rate and false alarms with multiple sensors is highlighted. It is illustrated that the performance of the detector is better when the fusion threshold is determined according to the Chebyshev inequality. In the proposed data-dependent decision ( DD) fusion method, the performance optimization of ndividual IDSs is first addressed. A neural network supervised learner has been designed to determine the weights of individual IDSs depending on their reliability in detecting a certain attack. The final stage of this DD fusion architecture is a sensor fusion unit which does the weighted aggregation in order to make an appropriate decision. This paper theoretically models the fusion of IDSs for the purpose of demonstrating the improvement in performance, supplemented with the empirical evaluation.

Increasing anthocyanin content in Queen Garnet plum and correlations with in-field measures

While plums are traditionally bred for fresh fruit traits such as size, sweetness, yield and disease resistance the Queensland Government breeding program for Japanese plum ( Prunus salicina Lindl.) also selected for anthocyanin content to develop a new plum selection named 'Queen Garnet'. When ripe or overripe, it has a near black skin and deep red flesh colour, which when combined, result in exceptionally high anthocyanin content, reaching up to 277 mg/100 g fruit. The skin fraction contributes 36-66% of the total anthocyanin content of fruit. The plum is now being commercially grown to be processed into a range of functional products from food colourants to premium health products. These are sold on the basis of anthocyanin and antioxidant content. Protocols for increasing anthocyanin content have therefore been researched to maximise the total anthocyanin yield rather than fresh fruit weight and taste. The principal approach is through selective harvest of overripe plums high in colour, although post-harvest storage at 21°C results in further anthocyanin synthesis. Modified processing is also required to ensure recovery of anthocyanins from the skin fraction. The plum products have entered testing for assessing health properties beginning with an initial proof of in vivo bioavailability of the anthocyanins.

Semantic Classes in Topic Detection and Tracking

Topic detection and tracking (TDT) is an area of information retrieval research the focus of which revolves around news events. The problems TDT deals with relate to segmenting news text into cohesive stories, detecting something new, previously unreported, tracking the development of a previously reported event, and grouping together news that discuss the same event. The performance of the traditional information retrieval techniques based on full-text similarity has remained inadequate for online production systems. It has been difficult to make the distinction between same and similar events. In this work, we explore ways of representing and comparing news documents in order to detect new events and track their development. First, however, we put forward a conceptual analysis of the notions of topic and event. The purpose is to clarify the terminology and align it with the process of news-making and the tradition of story-telling. Second, we present a framework for document similarity that is based on semantic classes, i.e., groups of words with similar meaning. We adopt people, organizations, and locations as semantic classes in addition to general terms. As each semantic class can be assigned its own similarity measure, document similarity can make use of ontologies, e.g., geographical taxonomies. The documents are compared class-wise, and the outcome is a weighted combination of class-wise similarities. Third, we incorporate temporal information into document similarity. We formalize the natural language temporal expressions occurring in the text, and use them to anchor the rest of the terms onto the time-line. Upon comparing documents for event-based similarity, we look not only at matching terms, but also how near their anchors are on the time-line. Fourth, we experiment with an adaptive variant of the semantic class similarity system. The news reflect changes in the real world, and in order to keep up, the system has to change its behavior based on the contents of the news stream. We put forward two strategies for rebuilding the topic representations and report experiment results. We run experiments with three annotated TDT corpora. The use of semantic classes increased the effectiveness of topic tracking by 10-30\% depending on the experimental setup. The gain in spotting new events remained lower, around 3-4\%. The anchoring the text to a time-line based on the temporal expressions gave a further 10\% increase the effectiveness of topic tracking. The gains in detecting new events, again, remained smaller. The adaptive systems did not improve the tracking results.