Partition Index Research Articles

Exact zero modes in a quantum compass chain under inhomogeneous transverse fields

We study the emergence of exact Majorana zero modes (EMZMs) in a one-dimensional quantum transverse compass model with both the nearest-neighbor interactions and transverse fields varying over space. By transforming the spin system into a quadratic Majorana-fermion model, we derive an exact formula for the number of the emergent EMZMs, which is found to depend on the partition nature of the lattice sites on which the magnetic fields vanish. We also derive explicit expressions for the wavefunctions of these EMZMs and show that they indeed depend on fine features of the foregoing partition of site indices. Based on the above rigorous results about the EMZMs, we provide an interpretation for the interesting dependence of the eigenstate-degeneracy on the transverse fields observed in prior literatures. As a special case, we employ a plane-wave ansatz to exactly solve an open compass chain with alternating nearest-neighbor interactions and staggered magnetic fields. Explicit forms of the canonical Majorana modes diagonalizing the model are given even for finite chains. We show that besides the possibly existing EMZMs, no almost Majorana zero modes exist unless the fields on both the two sublattices are turned off. Our results might shed light on the control of ground-state degeneracies by solely tuning the external fields in related systems.

Nutrient Utilization Indices of NPK and Drought Management in Groundnut under Sandy Soil Conditions

ABSTRACTIn arid zones, farmers are obligated to reduce water amounts used in irrigating their lands. Consequently, reduction in final yields is realized. Thus, dealing with such a case became a decisive act. We tried to investigate the acceptable degree of lowering irrigation water with sustaining the productivity of groundnut as a way for managing drought conditions. Therefore, in summer seasons of 2016 and 2017 at the Experimental Research and Production Station, National Research Centre, Egypt, field trials were conducted with growing groundnut plants under three irrigation levels, i.e., 50%, 75%, and 100% of crop evapotranspiration (ETc), denoted as I50, I75, and I100, respectively. N, P, and K contents in seed and shoot and their yields in addition to harvest and partitioning indices were estimated. In spite of irrigating groundnut plants by normal water amounts, I100, caused the maximum weight of seed biomass yield ha−1 and seed N and P contents, I75 was similar to I100 for producing shoot biomass yield ha−1 and seed K content. Moreover, N and P yields (for shoots and seeds) and k yield (for seeds) showed the maximum values with I100. Differences in all nutrient harvest indices (NHI, PHI, and KHI) between I100 and I75 were not significant. Furthermore, I75 statistically leveled with I100 in nutrient partitioning indices, viz., NPI, PPI, and KPI. In conclusion, groundnut straw residues produced by 25% less water supply than normal may share in managing drought stress by releasing nutrients and saving irrigation water in arid areas.

Horticultural performance of ‘Marinada’ and ‘Vairo’ almond cultivars grown on a genetically diverse set of rootstocks

Evolution of almond planted area and production has been mainly due to the arrival of new cultivars and rootstocks that have contributed to improve agronomic characters such as yield, precocity and efficiency. In recent years, new cultivars that have contributed to provide late blooming time and self-fertility, and with ease to adapt for mechanical harvest and high-density are becoming available. However, there is scarcity of studies where the interaction of these new cultivars with hybrid rootstocks has been tested. The aim of this study was to assess the performance of Cadaman®, Garnem®, INRA GF-677, IRTA-1, IRTA-2, Ishtara®, Adesoto, Rootpac® 20, Rootpac® 40, and Rootpac® R rootstocks with two promising almond cultivars such as ‘Marinada’ and ‘Vairo’. Bloom and nut ripening dates were affected by rootstock genotype. Both ‘Marinada’ and ‘Vairo’ cultivars showed low biennial bearing, with some differences among rootstocks, with IRTA-2 and Adesoto inducing the lowest values. On the other hand, Adesoto had higher number of suckers than the rest of the rootstocks. Garnem® provided the biggest trees, followed by Cadaman®, and then a third group which comprised IRTA-2 and INRA GF-677. Rootpac® 20 was the most dwarfing rootstock, followed by IRTA-1, Adesoto, Ishtara®, Rootpac® R, and Rootpac® 40. In terms of yield efficiency and partitioning index, IRTA-1, INRA GF-677, and Rootpac® R were the ones with higher values. Differences in tree volume and vigor for these rootstocks suggested that INRA GF-677 would be a suitable rootstock for low-medium planting densities with wide spacings; whereas Rootpac® R and IRTA-1 would be suitable rootstocks for medium- and high-density plantings. Findings of this study showed dramatic differences in tree vigor, yield, kernel weight, yield efficiency, and partitioning index, which provide a wide range of options to deem for each cultivar in a particular climate and management.

Demand Models With Random Partitions

Many economic models of consumer demand require researchers to partition sets of products or attributes prior to the analysis. These models are common in applied problems when the product space is large or spans multiple categories. While the partition is traditionally fixed a priori, we let the partition be a model parameter and propose a Bayesian method for inference. The challenge is that demand systems are commonly multivariate models that are not conditionally conjugate with respect to partition indices, precluding the use of Gibbs sampling. We solve this problem by constructing a new location-scale partition distribution that can generate random-walk Metropolis–Hastings proposals and also serve as a prior. Our method is illustrated in the context of a store-level category demand model, where we find that allowing for partition uncertainty is important for preserving model flexibility, improving demand forecasts, and learning about the structure of demand. Supplementary materials for this article, including a standardized description of the materials available for reproducing the work, are available as an online supplement.

Evaluation of Rice Straw Yield, Fibre Composition and Collection Under Mediterranean Conditions

Abstract Rice straw remains almost unutilised in the majority of cases and is usually burned. Data on rice residue production under European conditions are extremely limited. A detailed assessment of rice biomass yield, partitioning and straw collection was carried out in Spain. Eleven commercial rice varieties were evaluated in 2015, and two baling trials were performed in 2014 and 2015. The average straw yield was 9.7 t·ha−1. Straw yield, biomass partitioning indices and fibre composition varied significantly according to rice variety. Straw to grain ratio and harvest index were 1.00 and 0.50 on average for rough grain, and 1.25 and 0.41 for husked grain. Biomass partitioning indices significantly correlated with grain yield. Mean content of cellulose, hemicellulose, lignin and ash of rice straw was 32.5%, 19.8%, 6.5% and 13.7%, respectively. Straw amount of less than 3.0 t·ha−1 can be collected during the baling trials. Rice straw could represent an eco-friendly source of lignocellulosic biomass in Europe, however, in order to achieve this, baling machine improvements and special crop management should be carried out.

Comprehensive Characterization of an Open Source Document Search Engine

This work performs a thorough characterization and analysis of the open source Lucene search library. The article describes in detail the architecture, functionality, and micro-architectural behavior of the search engine, and investigates prominent online document search research issues. In particular, we study how intra-server index partitioning affects the response time and throughput, explore the potential use of low power servers for document search, and examine the sources of performance degradation ands the causes of tail latencies. Some of our main conclusions are the following: (a) intra-server index partitioning can reduce tail latencies but with diminishing benefits as incoming query traffic increases, (b) low power servers given enough partitioning can provide same average and tail response times as conventional high performance servers, (c) index search is a CPU-intensive cache-friendly application, and (d) C-states are the main culprits for performance degradation in document search.

The Heavy Metals Pollution Index and Water Quality Monitoring of the Zarrineh River, Iran

ABSTRACT Water pollution is the most important reason to monitor and assess water quality. The chemical, physical, and biological quality of natural waters may be affected by anthropogenic activities such as industrial, urban, and agricultural activities. In the present study, the water quality of the Zarrineh River, one of the main rivers supplying water in the northwest of Iran, was investigated. A total of 21 sites were selected for surface water sampling during spring and winter (dry and wet) seasons. The concentrations of the metals aluminum, iron, barium, chromium, arsenic, copper, manganese, nickel, selenium, lead, and zinc were determined for source partition and heavy metal pollution index (HMPI) assessment during both the spring and winter seasons. Four important dominant factors in the principal component analysis depicted, in toto, 76.22 percent of the variance, with an initial eigenvalue greater than 1. The calculated HMPI for all the seasons and sampling stations was 66, fluctuating between 30 and 170 in single water sampling sites. The results showed that almost all locations fall into the high classes of the HMPI, but below the critical pollution index limit of 100. Apart from the gold mining establishments and industrial factories, the reasons for the increased concentrations of metals in the Zarrineh River may be attributed in particular to anthropogenic and mining activities.

Partitioning index and non-structural carbohydrate dynamics among contrasting cassava genotypes under early terminal water stress

Cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz.) is a storage root crop of importance in tropical regions where periodic dry season and drought affect performance. Cassava genotypes that differ in performance in ecosystems with various water regimes were subjected to water stress during storage-root initiation and early development. Plants were grown in 50 kg pots in a screen house environment under well-watered and water stress conditions for a 120-day period. Water stress had a significant effect on most traits analyzed. However, relative water content, partitioning index and non-structural carbohydrates were unaffected. Tolerant genotypes had a higher partitioning index than susceptible genotypes during water stress, associated with a larger number of storage roots initiated and larger storage root biomass, while they were shorter and had less fibrous root biomass. Tolerant lines were indistinguishable from susceptible lines in above ground biomass under stress. These findings suggest that early evaluation of storage root number, partitioning index, and associated traits at an early stage of cassava storage-root development could be an effective approach by which cassava genotypes are screened for favorable drought tolerance response.

Study of copper, lead, and zinc speciation in the Haplic Chernozem surrounding coal-fired power plant

The speciation of Cu, Pb, and Zn compounds in Haplic Chernozem under the anthropogenic impact of a power plant mainly operating on coal was studied. General tendencies in the distributions of Cu, Pb, and Zn among the compound forms were revealed using selective sequential extractions (Miller method modified by Berti and Jacobs (1996)), which is based on the nature of metals and the participation of soil components. In an uncontaminated soil occurring far from the emission source, 55–85% of total Cu, Zn, and Pb fractions are concentrated in the residual fraction characterizing the metal bond with silicates. In uncontaminated soils, the contents of Cu, Pb, and Zn in crystallized Fe compounds are largely higher than in its amorphous forms. Metals accumulate in the soil occurring near the power plant, which increases the total contents of Cu, Pb, and Zn in 1.3–2.5 times and their mobile (water-soluble, exchangeable, and carbonate-bound) compounds in 2–12 times. The largest contributions to the adsorption and retention of metals are made by silicates, as well as soil organic matter for Cu and Pb and nonsilicate Fe compounds for Zn. A significant increase in the exchangeable Zn fraction is observed in studied soils. The estimation of the degree of metal fixation in the soil was calculated Partition index of element, which reflects the degree of metal-soil bonding. It showed that the highest parameter value for the studied metals was found for the soils located at 15 km from the NPP, where the Index values approach 1; the lowest Index value is noted for contaminated soils nearby from the enterprise. Thus, sequential extraction is an effective tool to check the affinity of the soil components for Cu, Pb and Zn.

Genotypic differences in phosphorus acquisition efficiency and root performance of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum) under low-phosphorus stress

Low availability of phosphorus (P) is a major constraint to production of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.). The extent to which genotypic variation in root traits exists or contributes to P-acquisition efficiency (PAE) in cotton is unknown. To assess genetic variation in PAE, the biomass and P-acquisition characteristics of 32 cotton genotypes were evaluated in a hydroponic experiment. Significant genotypic variation in biomass and P content was detected among the cotton genotypes in two seasons. We then conducted a 2-year pot experiment to compare P-efficiency traits between three P-efficient and two P-inefficient genotypes under P-deficient and P-sufficient conditions (0 and 75 mg P2O5 kg–1 soil, respectively). We detected significant differences in biomass accumulation and allocation, P accumulation and allocation, root traits and PAE among the five cotton genotypes under P-sufficient and P-deficient conditions. Compared with P-inefficient genotypes, P-efficient genotypes had longer surface fine roots, and greater total root surface area, total root length, surface root length, and P concentration (partitioning index) in bolls. Root morphology, especially surface fine root length and middle root length, played an important role in P uptake under P-deficient conditions.

Nearest Neighbor Search Based on Bit String Partition and Multiple Index

Nearest Neighbor Search Based on Bit String Partition and Multiple Index

Research on medical image segmentation based on fuzzy clustering algorithm

Objectives: The aim of the study is to apply the fuzzy clustering algorithm to medical image segmentation technology and analyze the application effect of the algorithm. Methods: In this study, the application of bacterial fuzzy clustering algorithm and bacterial foraging optimization algorithm in tooth image segmentation is analyzed. Among them, bacteria fuzzy clustering algorithm is a research group, whereas bacteria foraging optimization algorithm is a conventional group. Relevant researchers need to compare the separation index, partition coefficient, and partition index of the two algorithms. Results: Compared with the conventional group, the separation index and the partition coefficient of the experimental group were relatively high, and the two groups in the separation index and partition coefficients have a statistically significant difference (P < 0.05); compared with the experimental group, the index value was higher in the conventional group, and there was significant difference between the two groups in the zoning index (P < 0.05). Conclusions: Compared with the traditional bacterial optimization algorithm, the application of the bacterial fuzzy clustering algorithm in tooth image segmentation is more remarkable.

Bandwidth and Energy Efficient Image Sharing for Situation Awareness in Disasters

In order to save human lives and reduce injury and property loss, Situation Awareness (SA) information is essential and important for rescue workers to perform the effective and timely disaster relief. The information is generally derived from the shared images via widely used smartphones. However, conventional smartphone-based image sharing schemes fail to efficiently meet the needs of SA applications due to two main reasons, i.e., real-time transmission requirement and application-level image redundancy, which is exacerbated by limited bandwidth and energy availability. In order to provide efficient image sharing in disasters, we propose a bandwidth- and energy- efficient image sharing system, called BEES. The salient feature behind BEES is to propose the concept of Approximate Image Sharing (AIS), which explores and exploits approximate feature extraction, redundancy detection, and image uploading to trade the slightly low quality of computation results in content-based redundancy elimination for higher bandwidth and energy efficiency. Nevertheless, the boundaries of the tradeoffs between the quality of computation results and efficiency are generally subjective and qualitative. We hence propose the energy-aware adaptive schemes in AIS to leverage the physical energy availability to objectively and quantitatively determine the tradeoffs between the quality of computation results and efficiency. Moreover, unlike existing work only for cross-batch similar images, BEES further eliminates in-batch ones via a similarity-aware submodular maximization model. The response time of querying similar images is reduced via leveraging a geographic coordinate based index partitioning scheme. We have implemented the BEES prototype which is evaluated via three real-world image datasets. Extensive experimental results demonstrate the efficacy and efficiency of BEES. We have released the source codes of BEES at GitHub.

Maturity, Biomass Partitioning and Growth Response Indices in Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.) under Water Stress

Maturity, Biomass Partitioning and Growth Response Indices in Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L.) under Water Stress

Application of Fuzzy Clustering Technique for Analysis of North Indian Ocean Tropical Cyclone Tracks

ABSTRACT A fuzzy, c-means (FCM) clustering technique is explored to investigate the track of tropical cyclones over the North Indian Ocean (NIO) for the period (1976-2014). A total of five clusters is objectively identified based on partition index, partition coefficient, Dunn Index and separation index. The results obtained during analysis emphasized that each cluster has the unique features in terms of their genesis location, landfall, travel duration, trajectory, seasonality, accumulated cyclone energy and Intensity. Analysis of large scale environmental parameters, constructed preceding day of genesis show some of these parameters to be potential precursors to TC formation for almost all the clusters, most prominently, mid-tropospheric humidity, zonal wind, vorticity and outgoing long wave radiation of the main developing regions. The individual clusters have the several distinct features in their seasonal cycles. The cluster C5 shows distinct bimodal distributions where as other clusters are formed throughout the year. ENSO influenced the cyclone frequency in two of the five clusters. The MJO is found to play an important role in the genesis of the cyclone. The post monsoon season cyclone frequency is more in MJO phase 2, 3 and 4. The technique (FCM) can be used as a guideline in terms of the probable affected zone of TC Tracks by the operational forecasters.

Effect of intermittent drought on phenotypic traits of F5 RIL Andean intra-gene cross population (BRB 191 X SEQ 1027) of common bean

Drought is a major constraint to common bean ( Phaseolus vulgaris L.) production in East Africa, where irrigation for the crop is very uncommon. The objective of this study was to identify drought tolerant lines and phenotypic traits underlying drought tolerance among 128 F5 recombinant inbred lines (RILs), derived from intra gene pool population, between drought tolerant BRB 191 (source of bc-3) and SEQ 1027. The population was evaluated with eight experimental checks that included BAT 477, CAL 96, DAB 441, DAB 494, and Diacol Calima, NABE 4, SCR 9 and SEQ 1003. A total of 20 phenological, morphological and physiological shoot traits were evaluated, under drought and non-stress conditions, in the field for 2 years (2014 and 2015) at Kawanda in Uganda. New sources of drought tolerance, and previously identified sources of drought tolerance in common bean (BAT 477, DAB 441 and DAB 494), were confirmed based on their superior geometric means and low drought susceptibility. Drought stress in the field significantly affected all measured traits, except harvest index and stem dry weight reduction (P<0.001). Drought significantly reduced yield, yield components and pod harvest index (P<0.01). However, chlorophyll content, canopy temperature, stem dry mass reduction, and 100 seed weight remained stable under season by genotype by water regime treatment interactions (S x G x T). The stability of these traits highlighted their usefulness in selecting for drought tolerance across different environments. Furthermore, pod partitioning index (PPI), harvest index (HI), chlorophyll content and stem dry weight reduction also remained stable under G x T effects. Significant correlations (P<0.001) were maintained between HI and PPI with seed yield under drought stress in field conditions, indicating that photosynthate remobilisation increases yield under drought stress conditions. Key words: Phaseolus vulgaris , photosynthate remobilisation

Modeling strong discontinuities in the material point method using a single velocity field

We propose a new way to include strong velocity discontinuities in the material point method (MPM). We use the recent idea of damage gradient partitioning to dynamically determine whether or not deformed locations of material points are on the same side of a discontinuity as each node of a finite element discretization of the Eulerian velocity field. Velocity basis functions associated with the finite element nodes are then altered to ensure that their contributions to discontinuous components of the velocity are supported only at points assigned to the same side of the discontinuity. The partitioning of material points relative to each finite element node eliminates the need for indexing partitions, and accommodates discontinuities that do not partition material into disjoint bodies (e.g., propagating cracks). By building velocity discontinuities directly into the approximation space, sliding contact, separation, and multi-body interaction are possible within a single velocity field. The methodology avoids the need to track contact surfaces, construct and evolve explicit cracks, or use multiple velocity fields. Several numerical examples are computed to support these claims. The examples are also compared to the conventional MPM, demonstrating the method’s superiority in dealing with sliding contact and separation.

Ecological risk assessment of sewage sludge from municipal wastewater treatment plants: a case study

The aim of this study was to characterize sewage sludge from mechanical-biological wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) in terms of total concentrations of heavy metals (HMs) and their distribution. Moreover, HM mobility, stability and ecological risk were assessed by calculating the mobility factor (MF), the reduced partition index (Ir) and the ecological risk index (ERI). Hierarchical cluster analysis (CA) was used to group the HMs in the sludges on the basis of their MF, Ir and ERI. The concentration of HMs decreased in the following order: Zn > Cu > Ni > Pb > Cd. HM mobility, as indicated by the MF values, was as follows: 18.7%–30.6% (Zn), 8.1%–36.4% (Ni), 6.8%–11.1% (Cu), 3.2%–32.2% (Pb) and 0% (Cd). Based on the average Ir values, the stability of the metals in the sludge increased in this order: Zn (0.23)=Pb (0.23)<Cd (0.45)=Cu (0.45)<Ni (0.69). Despite the high mobility of some metals, each sewage sludge had low environmental risk, as indicated by the ERI (ERI ≪ 150). The HMs were more similar in terms of their mobility (two clusters) than in terms of their ecological risk (three clusters).

Microgrid Topology Planning for Enhancing the Reliability of Active Distribution Networks

Loop-based microgrids are signified by their high reliability in islanded and grid-connected operations. This paper proposes an iterative procedure for the optimal design of a microgrid topology in active distribution networks, which applies graph partitioning, integer programming, and performance index for the optimal design. The proposed approach avoids infeasible and non-optimal designs of microgrid structures and provides remedial solutions for enhancing our previous topology design method. The numerical results for a microgrid test system show that the proposed designated steps can optimize a loop-based microgrid structure in an active distribution network.

Sewage sludge can provide a washing agent for remediation of soil from a metallurgical area

The search for washing agents recovered from waste is a new trend in the washing of soils contaminated with heavy metals (HMs). In the present study, dissolved organic matter (DOM) recovered from sewage sludge was used to remediate soil that originated from a metallurgical area and was contaminated with Cu (8109 mg kg−1), Pb (1473 mg kg−1) and Zn (531 mg kg−1). At pH 4 and a washing agent concentration of 4 g TOC dm−3, HMs removal proceeded according to pseudo-second-order kinetics with a relatively short equilibrium time (120 min). DOM was especially effective for removing Cu; in double washing, Cu removal was 5854 mg kg−1 (process effectiveness 72%), Zn removal was 258 mg kg−1 (process effectiveness 50.5%), but Pb removal was low (131 mg kg−1; 8.7%). DOM effectively removed metals from the exchangeable and acid soluble fraction. Based on the reduced partition index (IR), the intensity of Cu and Zn bonding in soil washed with DOM was twice as high as that in unwashed soil. Thus, DOM can serve as an effective washing agent for remediating soils contaminated with Cu and Zn, but it is not useful for removing Pb.