Editorial: the March 2022 cover paper

Journal of Materials Science -     

Predicting Forest Age Classes from High Spatial Resolution Remotely Sensed Imagery Using Voronoi Polygon Aggregation

Efficient identification of forest age is useful for forest management and ecological applications. Here we propose a user-assisted method for determining forest age using high spatial resolution remotely sensed imagery. This method requires individual trees to be extracted from imagery and represented as points. We use a local maximum filter to generate points that are converted to Voronoi polygons. Properties of the Voronoi polygons are correlated with forest age and used to aggregate points (trees) into areas (stands) based on three forest age classes. Accuracy of the aggregation ranges from approximately 68% to 78% and identification of the mature class is more consistent and accurate than the younger classes.     

The ultrasound appearances of neonatal renal vein thrombosis

Renal vein thrombosis (RVT) is the most frequently occurring vascular condition in the new-born kidney. The predisposing factors include dehydration, sepsis, birth asphyxia, maternal diabetes, polycythaemia and the presence of an indwelling umbilical venous catheter. (RVT) may present clinically with a flank mass, haematuria, hypertension or renal failure. Many imaging modalities have been employed, but ultrasound is the technique most commonly used in the evaluation of neonates with suspected RVT. Thrombosis commences in the small renal veins and subsequently propagates via larger interlobar veins to the main renal vein and inferior vena cava (IVC). The ultrasound appearances depend upon the stage at which the examination is performed and extent of the thrombus. Initially, the interlobular and interlobar thrombus appears as highly echogenic streaks. These streaks commence in a peripheral, focal segment of the involved kidney and only persist for a few days. In the first week the affected kidney swells and becomes echogenic with prominent echopoor medullary pyramids. Later, the swelling increases and the kidney becomes heterogenous with loss of corticomedullary differentiation. Grey scale ultrasound readily demonstrates thrombus within the renal vein and IVC. Adrenal haemorrhage is a recognized association and may be identified ultrasonically. Colour Doppler scanning provides additional information. In the early stages of RVT, colour Doppler may demonstrate absent intrarenal and renal venous flow. Ultimately, the kidney may recover, show focal scarring or become atrophic. Thus, ultrasound provides an accessible and reliable tool in the assessment of suspected neonatal RVT.     

Effects of hydrolysis on the physical properties of short glass-fibre reinforced poly(ethylene terephthalate)

The mechanical fracture strength and toughness of short-fibre composites, injection moulded from compounds of poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) containing 10 and 30% (by weight) (w/o) glass, have been investigated and the dependence upon matrix hydrolytic stability determined. Mouldings have been characterised by several physical techniques to evaluate molecular weight, degradation rates, crystallinity and morphology, whilst time-dependent gravimetric data were derived to quantify sorption kinetics and allow comparisons with theoretical reaction rates to be made. During melt processing, PET is hydrolysed extremely rapidly by traces of moisture (<0.02w/o). yet the inherent strength of moulded composites declines significantly only below an apparently critical molecular weight. However, on long-term humid ageing in hot water, impact behaviour especially is rendered more complex by simultaneous crystallisation, molecular reorder and losses of interfacial bond strength.     

Study of impurity induced modifications in amorphous N-type (GeSe3·5)100−x Bi x using high pressure technique

The technique of high pressure is utilized to study the carrier transport behaviour in doped and undoped bulk amorphous (GeSe_3·5)_100−x Bi _x (x=0, 2, 4, 10) down to liquid nitrogen temperature to observe impurity induced modifications in amorphous semiconductors. It is observed that pressure induced effects in lightly doped (2 at % Bi) and heavily doped (x=4, 10) semiconductors are markedly different. Results are discussed in view of the incorporation behaviour of the bismuth impurity.     

Maximum Cardinality Search for Computing Minimal Triangulations of Graphs

We present a new algorithm, called MCS-M, for computing minimal triangulations of graphs. Lex-BFS, a seminal algorithm for recognizing chordal graphs, was the genesis for two other classical algorithms: LEX M and MCS. LEX M extends the fundamental concept used in Lex-BFS, resulting in an algorithm that not only recognizes chordality, but also computes a minimal triangulation of an arbitrary graph. MCS simplifies the fundamental concept used in Lex-BFS, resulting in a simpler algorithm for recognizing chordal graphs. The new algorithm MCS-M combines the extension of LEX M with the simplification of MCS, achieving all the results of LEX M in the same time complexity.     

Formaldehyde content of milk in goats fed formaldehyde-treated soybean oil-meal

Formaldehyde is used in ruminant feeding for different purposes including the protection of dietary proteins from ruminal degradation. The formaldehyde content of milk of goats fed various levels of formaldehyde-treated soybean oil-meal has been determined by using a sensitive HPLC method. Results showed a significant linear correlation between ingested formaldehyde and formaldehyde concentration in milk. About 0.02% of ingested formaldehyde was excreted in milk, as free formaldehyde.     

A role for Edman degradation in proteome studies

Advances in protein database design and the software used to access the sequence data has led to progress in using protein attributes such as amino acid composition and peptide masses to identify proteins separated by two-dimensional electrophoresis. However, Edman degradation remains the principal technique for protein identification and it presents a significant bottleneck in the progress towards rapid protein identification. Simple modifications to the sequencing hardware, which automate the delivery of protein spots into the sequencer, and parallel sequencing of the protein spots represent a significant advance in the use of Edman degradation to rapidly generate the powerful protein attribute, an N-terminal sequence tag.