Effect of fiber substrates on appearance and removal of aged oily soils

Aging of oily soils produces difficult-to-remove yellow stains on fabrics. This study examines the effect of different textile substrates on yellowing and removal of aged oily soils. Model oily, squalene and artificial sebum, were aged at 40°C on cotton, nylon, and polyester fabrics for 8 wk. Radiotracer and spectrophotometric analyses were used to quantify volatilization and color change of soiled fabrics upon aging as well as soil and color removal after laundering. Differences in volatility of oils from three substrates were insignificant, although cotton and nylon fabrics produced significantly more yellowness than polyester fabrics. Aging of oily soil enhanced detergency from all three fabrics. The largest increase in removal upon aging was found with cotton. Difference in removal from the three substrates became very small after aging. The effect of substrate was pronounced on yellowing due to aging with cotton and nylon having higher yellowness indices. Cotton visually appeared to be cleaner than indicated by the actual amount of residual oil present after washing, whereas nylon had less residual oil present even though it visually appeared more yellow than cotton. For polyester, the amount of residual oil correlated well with appearance after washing. We conclude that discoloration mechanisms differ among cotton, polyester, and nylon substrates. For polyester, discoloration is solely discoloration of oily soil that is physically bound in the fibrous structure, whereas for cotton, discoloration is a result of discoloration of oil as well as additional yellowing caused by retention of chromophores chemically bound to the cotton substrate. In the case of nylon, yellowing of nylon itself is an additional factor contributing to yellowness even though, most of the oil is removed upon washing. These results illustrate the importance of the method of detergency evaluation. Measuring color change in yellowness or reflectance is not the same as oil removal based on a quantitative measurement of soil mass. Thus, it may be necessary to measure both color and quantity of residual soil.     

Reflection on reflection in action: a case study of growers conception of irrigation strategies in pot plant production

A case study of growers conception of irrigation strategies indicates that pot plant growers in Scandinavia base their management approaches on experientially based art. The study also indicates that there is a gap between experientially based art and available greenhouse technology. In order to standardize production and produce quality, both the grower’s experience and available technology should be taken into account. In order to achieve this, the present study proposes to arrange reflection on reflection in action with a group of growers by means of the dialogue seminar method. The concept of reflection on reflection in action is novel to horticultural practice. Therefore, we suggest future inter- and multidisciplinary research within this domain.     

Examining the benefits and challenges of using audience response systems: A review of the literature

Audience response systems (ARSs) permit students to answer electronically displayed multiple choice questions using a remote control device. All responses are instantly presented, in chart form, then reviewed and discussed by the instructor and the class. A brief history of ARSs is offered including a discussion of the 26 labels used to identify this technology. Next a detailed review of 67 peer-reviewed papers from 2000 to 2007 is offered presenting the benefits and challenges associated with the use of an ARS. Key benefits for using ARSs include improvements to the classroom environment (increases in attendance, attention levels, participation and engagement), learning (interaction, discussion, contingent teaching, quality of learning, learning performance), and assessment (feedback, formative, normative). The biggest challenges for teachers in using ARSs are time needed to learn and set up the ARS technology, creating effective ARS questions, adequate coverage of course material, and ability to respond to instantaneous student feedback. Student challenges include adjusting to a new method of learning, increased confusion when multiple perspectives are discussed, and negative reactions to being monitored. It is concluded that more systematic, detailed research is needed in a broader range of contexts.     

Long-Term Infusions of Ghrelin and Obestatin in Early Lactation Dairy Cows

Ghrelin is an endogenous ligand of the growth hormone secretagogue receptor and a potential orexigenic agent in monogastrics and ruminants. Obestatin has been reported to have the opposite (anorexigenic) effect. Fifty one multiparous cows were randomly allocated to 1 of 3 groups (n = 17): a control group and 2 groups with cows continuously infused with 0.74 μmol/d of ghrelin (GHR group) or obestatin (OBE group) subcutaneously. Infusions began 21 d in milk, and treatments continued for 8 wk. Generalized linear models were used to determine the treatment effect on average daily and cumulative milk production and composition, and plasma ghrelin, growth hormone, insulin-like growth factor (IGF)-1, leptin, nonesterified fatty acids, and glucose. Mixed models, with cow included as a repeated effect, were used to determine if treatment effects differed by week postcalving for milk production, body weight, and body condition score (BCS; scale 1 to 10). Parity, breed, week of the year at calving, treatment, week postcalving, and the 2 wk preexperimental average of each measure (covariate) were included as fixed effects. Treatment did not affect dry matter intake. Cows infused with GHR lost more BCS (−0.71 units) over the 8-wk study period than the control (−0.23 BCS units) cows, and on average were thinner than cows in either of the other 2 treatments (0.2 BCS units). Consistent with the extra BCS loss in GHR cows, plasma IGF-1, glucose, and leptin concentrations were reduced and plasma nonesterified fatty acid concentrations were greater in GHR cows. Despite a numerical tendency for GHR cows to produce more milk (1,779 kg) than control (1,681 kg) or OBE (1,714 kg) cows during the 8-wk period, milk production differences were not statistically different. However, the timing of the numerical separation of the lactation curves coincided with the significant changes in BCS, IGF-1, and leptin. Results indicate a positive effect of ghrelin infusion on lipolysis. Further research is required to determine if the numerical increase in milk production, which coincides with the increased negative energy balance, is real.     

A knowledge-based scheduling system for Emergency Departments

A knowledge-based reactive scheduling system is proposed to answer the requirements of Emergency Departments (EDs). The algorithm includes detailed patient priority, arrival time, flow time and doctor load. The main aim is to determine the patients who have higher priorities initially, and then minimize their waiting times. To achieve this aim, physicians and the other related workers can use an interactive system. In this study, we evaluated the existing system by comparing the proposed system. Also, reactive scheduling cases were evaluated for some items such as decreasing the number of doctors, changing durations and entering of an urgent patient to the system. All experiments were performed with proposed algorithm and right shift rescheduling approach.     

In vitro bioaccessibility of coenzyme Q10 in enriched yoghurts

In this study, the aim was to determine the bioaccessibilities of coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) in yoghurt samples produced using enriched skim milk with different coenzyme Q10 preparations. First, emulsified coenzyme Q10, γ‐cyclodextrin/coenzyme Q10 complex and nanoparticle coenzyme Q10 were prepared with the reference coenzyme Q10 standard. These coenzyme Q10 preparations were added into the milk to produce coenzyme Q10 enriched yoghurt samples. Nanoparticle coenzyme Q10 was obtained as in spherical shape with 176.00 ± 50.62 nm diameter. Coenzyme Q10 bioaccessibility was found as 50.59 ± 1.88% in control yoghurt. The yoghurt enriched nanoparticle coenzyme Q10 had the highest coenzyme Q10 bioaccessibility (73.81 ± 1.61%) among the produced yoghurts (P < 0.01). Coenzyme Q10 bioaccessibilities were also found as 63.75 ± 0.91% and 46.83 ± 1.27% in yoghurts enriched with emulsified coenzyme Q10, and γ‐cyclodextrin/coenzyme Q10 complex, respectively.     

Least‐squares‐based adaptive target localization by mobile distance measurement sensors

A least‐squares‐based adaptive algorithm with forgetting factor is proposed for localization of a target by a mobile distance measurement sensor. This problem, in its most general form, was tackled in a recent paper using a gradient adaptive algorithm, assuming distance measurements are directly available. We establish that the proposed algorithm bears the same stability and convergence properties as the gradient algorithm previously studied. It is demonstrated via simulations that the proposed algorithm converges significantly faster to the location estimates than the gradient algorithm for high forgetting factor values and significantly reduces the noise effects for small values of the forgetting factor. Furthermore, a more challenging form of the original problem is considered, where distance information is required to be deduced from time of flight measurements, considering a time of flight‐based active distance measurement sensor and an environment with unknown signal permittivity/speed; the proposed algorithm is redesigned to solve this problem. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Influences of sex and seasons on levels of heavy metals in tissues of green tiger shrimp (Penaeus semisulcatus de Hann, 1844)

Seasonal changes in heavy metal (Ag, Cr, Ni, Pb, Cu, Fe, Zn) concentrations in muscle, gill, hepatopancreas and gonad tissues of both male and female green tiger shrimp (Penaeus semisulcatus) from Iskenderun Bay (Northern East Mediterranean Sea, Turkey) were measured for a year period by using ICP-AES. The relationships in various heavy metal concentrations in organs were compared according to sex and seasons. Heavy metal content varied with type of metals, seasons and sex. Accumulations also differed significantly in certain organs. Metal concentrations (as μg g⁻¹ w.w.) were highest in male gonads whereas lowest in the muscle of all shrimp species. From the human consumption point of view, heavy metal concentrations except for copper in male and female green tiger shrimp’s muscle were below the admissible limits. Thus, precautions should be taken on account of higher content of heavy metals as well as in other organs that could be affected by industrial pollution.