Rough Map Research Articles

To Negotiate a Carbon Tax: A Rough Map of Policy Interactions, Tradeoffs, and Risks

This Article assumes that the federal government will assign a price to carbon dioxide emissions via legislation by the early 2020s for one or more of myriad reasons. This Article’s purpose, however, is not to substantiate that assumption, but to explore a particular aspect of the adoption of such legislation. The contents of that legislation will reflect negotiated agreements—built on various political tradeoffs—over a host of policy issues, ranging from taxes to energy efficiency standards. These tradeoffs would implicate not only the tax’s scope and rate, but also the policies with which the tax would interact. This Article describes interactions between a carbon tax and various existing and proposed policies relating to climate change, energy, and environmental protection. It proceeds in five parts: Part II highlights three key points of background; Part III summarizes the universe of policies that can be expected to interact with a carbon tax; Part IV provides a rough typology of interactions among a carbon tax and other policies, labeling them Complementary, Concurrent, or Conflicting; Part V identifies several important potential tradeoffs; and Part VI, which is less descriptive and more prescriptive than the other four, highlights the risks of particular tradeoffs to the effectiveness of a climate change mitigation policy suite that includes a carbon tax. One thing this Article does not address is a discussion of the quantities of greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions that would likely be reduced by a carbon tax alongside or as a net result of combination with other policies—existing or otherwise. Such a discussion would be a useful line of further research but is beyond the scope of this Article. Why consider all of this now, in a political climate decidedly averse to addressing climate change at all? This Article takes as its basic premise that several circumstances create a real possibility that Congress could adopt a price on carbon, in the form of a tax, sometime around (most likely after) the 2020 presidential election: (i) a substantial number of Republican members of Congress and the Senate privately acknowledge the reality of anthropogenic climate change, and would support effective mitigation policy if doing so became less politically poisonous for them; (ii) Republicans’ control of Congress and the White House makes the present an opportune time to dismantle Obama-era regulatory responses to climate change, namely the Clean Power Plan and other regulations based on an interpretation of the Clean Air Act as requiring the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate GHG emissions; (iii) Democrats would bitterly oppose any Republican effort to undo all means of mitigating climate change by regulating GHG emissions and some Republicans would defect to join them; (iv) the Trump campaign promised a large program of infrastructure spending as well as income tax cuts, leaving open the question of how to secure new revenues to cover at least some of the promised spending; (v) Republicans’ complete control of Congress and the White House will not persist, and most Republican politicians recognize this; and thus, (vi) Republicans currently hold the strongest bargaining position they will have for the foreseeable future on the subject of federal climate change mitigation policy.

Application of Structure‐from‐Motion photogrammetry to river restoration

AbstractStructure‐from‐Motion (SfM) photogrammetry is now used widely to study a range of earth surface processes and landforms, and is fast becoming a core tool in fluvial geomorphology. SfM photogrammetry allows extraction of topographic information and orthophotos from aerial imagery. However, one field where it is not yet widely used is that of river restoration. The characterisation of physical habitat conditions pre‐ and post‐restoration is critical for assessing project success, and SfM can be used easily and effectively for this purpose. In this paper we outline a workflow model for the application of SfM photogrammetry to collect topographic data, develop surface models and assess geomorphic change resulting from river restoration actions. We illustrate the application of the model to a river restoration project in the NW of England, to show how SfM techniques have been used to assess whether the project is achieving its geomorphic objectives. We outline the details of each stage of the workflow, which extend from preliminary decision‐making related to the establishment of a ground control network, through fish‐eye lens camera testing and calibration, to final image analysis for the creation of facies maps, the extraction of point clouds, and the development of digital elevation models (DEMs) and channel roughness maps. The workflow enabled us to confidently identify geomorphic changes occurring in the river channel over time, as well as assess spatial variation in erosion and aggradation. Critical to the assessment of change was the high number of ground control points and the application of a minimum level of detection threshold used to assess uncertainties in the topographic models. We suggest that these two things are especially important for river restoration applications. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Seamless texture mapping algorithm for image-based three-dimensional reconstruction

Texture information plays an important role in rendering true objects, especially with the wide application of image-based three-dimensional (3-D) reconstruction and 3-D laser scanning. This paper proposes a seamless texture mapping algorithm to achieve a high-quality visual effect for 3-D reconstruction. At first, a series of image sets is produced by analyzing the visibility of triangular facets, the image sets are clustered and segmented into a number of optimal reference texture patches. Second, the generated texture patches are sequenced to create a rough texture map, then a weighting process is adopted to reduce the color discrepancies between adjacent patches. Finally, a multiresolution decomposition and fusion technique is used to generate the transition section and eliminate the boundary effect. Experiments show that the proposed algorithm is effective and practical for obtaining high-quality 3-D texture mapping for 3-D reconstruction. Compared with traditional methods, it maintains the texture clarity while eliminating the color seams, in addition, it also supports 3-D texture mapping for big data application.

Single image dehazing via an improved atmospheric scattering model

Under foggy or hazy weather conditions, the visibility and color fidelity of outdoor images are prone to degradation. Hazy images can be the cause of serious errors in many computer vision systems. Consequently, image haze removal has practical significance for real-world applications. In this study, we first analyze the inherent weaknesses of the atmospheric scattering model and propose an improvement to address those weaknesses. Then, we present a fast image haze removal algorithm based on the improved model. In our proposed method, the input image is partitioned into several scenes based on the haze thickness. Next, averaging and erosion operations calculate the rough scene luminance map in a scene-wise manner. We obtain the rough scene transmission map by maximizing the contrast in each scene and then develop a way to gently remove the haze using an adaptive method for adjusting scene transmission based on scene features. In addition, we propose a guided total variation model for edge optimization, so as to prevent from the block effect as well as to eliminate the negative effect from the wrong scene segmentation results. The experimental results demonstrate that our method is effective in solving a series of common problems, including uneven illuminance, overenhanced and oversaturated images, and so forth. Moreover, our method outperforms most current dehazing algorithms in terms of visual effects, universality, and processing speed.

A Universal Framework for Salient Object Detection

In this paper, we propose a novel universal framework for salient object detection, which aims to enhance the performance of any existing saliency detection method. First, rough salient regions are extracted from any existing saliency detection model with distance weighting, adaptive binarization, and morphological closing. With the superpixel segmentation, a Bayesian decision model is adopted to refine the rough saliency map to obtain a more accurate saliency map. An iterative optimization method is designed to obtain better saliency results by exploiting the characteristics of the output saliency map each time. Through the iterative optimization process, the rough saliency map is updated step by step with better and better performance until an optimal saliency map is obtained. Experimental results on the public salient object detection datasets with ground truth demonstrate the promising performance of the proposed universal framework subjectively and objectively.

Modeling Surface Roughness to Estimate Surface Moisture Using Radarsat-2 Quad Polarimetric SAR Data

Microwave backscattering from the earth's surface depends on several parameters such as surface roughness and dielectric constant of surface materials. The two parameters related to water content and porosity are crucial for estimating soil moisture. The soil moisture is an important parameter for ecological study and also a factor to maintain energy balance of land surface and atmosphere. Direct roughness measurements to a large area require extra time and cost. Heterogeneity roughness scale for some applications such as hydrology, climate, and ecology is a problem which could lead to inaccuracies of modeling. In this study, we modeled surface roughness using Radasat-2 quad Polarimetric Synthetic Aperture Radar (PolSAR) data. The statistical approaches to field roughness measurements were used to generate an appropriate roughness model. This modeling uses a physical SAR approach to predicts radar backscattering coefficient in the parameter of radar configuration (wavelength, polarization, and incidence angle) and soil parameters (surface roughness and dielectric constant). Surface roughness value is calculated using a modified Campbell and Shepard model in 1996. The modification was applied by incorporating the backscattering coefficient (σ°) of quad polarization HH, HV and VV. To obtain empirical surface roughness model from SAR backscattering intensity, we used forty-five sample points from field roughness measurements. We selected paddy field in Indramayu district, West Java, Indonesia as the study area. This area was selected due to intensive decreasing of rice productivity in the Northern Coast region of West Java. Third degree polynomial is the most suitable data fitting with coefficient of determination R2 and RMSE are about 0.82 and 1.18 cm, respectively. Therefore, this model is used as basis to generate the map of surface roughness.

Modeling and prediction for 3D surface topography in finish turning with conventional and wiper inserts

Wiper insert have the characteristics of achieving an excellent surface finish and improving the productivity in turning processes. Wiper insert can provide twice feed rate while maintaining the comparable surface roughness compared to that provided by the conventional insert. In the present study, surface topographies in finish turning with conventional and wiper inserts are investigated. The key element of this work is that the cutting edge path equation in the cutting tool coordinate system is transformed into the machine tool and workpiece coordinate system by the use of spatial coordinate transformation. Following that a surface topography simulation algorithm based on the cutting edge path equation and cutting parameters is put forward. The output of this work is that both the simulated surface topography and surface roughness profile are good agreement with the experimental results. Both the simulated and the actual machined surface results show that better surface topography is obtained in finish turning with the wiper insert than that with conventional insert. Burnishing effect of the wiper insert leads to half decrease of the Ra and Rz. The actual surface profiles are no longer regular wave shapes due to ploughing effect and side flow existing in the cutting zone. In addition, a surface roughness map has also been developed to optimize the selection of wiper radius and feed rate to satisfy the requirement of surface finishing with higher productivity. From the viewpoint of cutting tool design, the wiper radius with five times larger than tool nose radius can fully come into its role. This provides a novel insight into the design of wiper insert over conventional techniques. Above all, the proposed model gives a better prediction of surface roughness in finish turning process compared to the previous empirical and regression roughness models. The prediction of surface roughness in finish turning with wiper insert is also realized.

USING MULTI-DIMENSIONAL MICROWAVE REMOTE SENSING INFORMATION FOR THE RETRIEVAL OF SOIL SURFACE ROUGHNESS

In this Paper the potential of multi parametric polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) data for soil surface roughness estimation is investigated and its potential for hydrological modeling is evaluated. The study utilizes microwave backscatter collected from the Demmin testsite in the North-East Germany during AgriSAR 2006 campaign using fully polarimetric L-Band airborne SAR data. For ground truthing extensive soil surface roughness in addition to various other soil physical properties measurements were carried out using photogrammetric image matching techniques. The correlation between ground truth roughness indices and three well established polarimetric roughness estimators showed only good results for Re[ρRRLL] and the RMS Height s. Results in form of multitemporal roughness maps showed only satisfying results due to the fact that the presence and development of particular plants affected the derivation. However roughness derivation for bare soil surfaces showed promising results.

USING MULTI-DIMENSIONAL MICROWAVE REMOTE SENSING INFORMATION FOR THE RETRIEVAL OF SOIL SURFACE ROUGHNESS

Abstract. In this Paper the potential of multi parametric polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) data for soil surface roughness estimation is investigated and its potential for hydrological modeling is evaluated. The study utilizes microwave backscatter collected from the Demmin testsite in the North-East Germany during AgriSAR 2006 campaign using fully polarimetric L-Band airborne SAR data. For ground truthing extensive soil surface roughness in addition to various other soil physical properties measurements were carried out using photogrammetric image matching techniques. The correlation between ground truth roughness indices and three well established polarimetric roughness estimators showed only good results for Re[ρRRLL] and the RMS Height s. Results in form of multitemporal roughness maps showed only satisfying results due to the fact that the presence and development of particular plants affected the derivation. However roughness derivation for bare soil surfaces showed promising results.

The Cell Wall Arabinose-Deficient Arabidopsis thaliana Mutant murus5 Encodes a Defective Allele of REVERSIBLY GLYCOSYLATED POLYPEPTIDE2.

Traditional marker-based mapping and next-generation sequencing was used to determine that the Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) low cell wall arabinose mutant murus5 (mur5) encodes a defective allele of REVERSIBLY GLYCOSYLATED POLYPEPTIDE2 (RGP2). Marker analysis of 13 F2 confirmed mutant progeny from a recombinant mapping population gave a rough map position on the upper arm of chromosome 5, and deep sequencing of DNA from these 13 lines gave five candidate genes with G→A (C→T) transitions predicted to result in amino acid changes. Of these five, only insertional mutant alleles of RGP2, a gene that encodes a UDP-arabinose mutase that interconverts UDP-arabinopyranose and UDP-arabinofuranose, exhibited the low cell wall arabinose phenotype. The identities of mur5 and two SALK insertional alleles were confirmed by allelism tests and overexpression of wild-type RGP2 complementary DNA placed under the control of the 35S promoter in the three alleles. The mur5 mutation results in the conversion of cysteine-257 to tyrosine-257 within a conserved hydrophobic cluster predicted to be distal to the active site and essential for protein stability and possible heterodimerization with other isoforms of RGP.

Lunar textural analysis based on WAC-derived kilometer-scale roughness and entropy maps

In general, textures are thought to be some complicated repeated patterns formed by elements, or primitives which are sorted in certain rules. Lunar surfaces record the interactions between its outside environment and itself, thus, based on high-resolution DEM model or image data, there are some topographic features which have different roughness and entropy values or signatures on lunar surfaces. Textures of lunar surfaces can help us to concentrate on typical topographic and photometric variations and reveal the relationships between obvious features (craters, impact basins, sinuous rilles (SRs) and ridges) with resurfacing processes on the Moon. In this paper, the term surface roughness is an expression of the variability of a topographic or photometric surface at kilometer scale, and the term entropy can characterize the variability inherent in a geological and topographic unit and evaluate the uncertainty of predictions made by a given geological process. We use the statistical moments of gray-level histograms in different-sized neighborhoods (e.g., 3, 5, 10, 20, 40 and 80 pixels) to compute the kilometer-scale roughness and entropy values, using the mosaic image from 70°N to 70°S obtained by Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) Wide Angle Camera (WAC). Large roughness and entropy signatures were only found in the larger scale maps, while the smallest 3-pixel scale map had more disorderly and unsystematic textures. According to the entropy values in 10-pixel scale entropy map, we made a frequency curve and categorized lunar surfaces into three types, shadow effects, maria and highlands. A 2D scatter plot of entropy versus roughness values was produced and we found that there were two point clusters corresponding to the highlands and maria, respectively. In the last, we compared the topographic and photometric signatures derived from Lunar Orbiter Laser Altimeter (LOLA) data and WAC mosaic image. On the lunar surfaces, the ridges have obvious multilevel topographic textures which are sensitive to the topographic changes, while the ejecta deposits of fresh craters appear obvious photometric textures which are sensitive to the brightness variations.

Robust design optimization method for centrifugal impellers under surface roughness uncertainties due to blade fouling

Blade fouling has been proved to be a great threat to compressor performance in operating stage. The current researches on fouling-induced performance degradations of centrifugal compressors are based mainly on simplified roughness models without taking into account the realistic factors such as spatial non-uniformity and randomness of the fouling-induced surface roughness. Moreover, little attention has been paid to the robust design optimization of centrifugal compressor impellers with considerations of blade fouling. In this paper, a multi-objective robust design optimization method is developed for centrifugal impellers under surface roughness uncertainties due to blade fouling. A three-dimensional surface roughness map is proposed to describe the nonuniformity and randomness of realistic fouling accumulations on blades. To lower computational cost in robust design optimization, the support vector regression (SVR) metamodel is combined with the Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) method to conduct the uncertainty analysis of fouled impeller performance. The analyzed results show that the critical fouled region associated with impeller performance degradations lies at the leading edge of blade tip. The SVR metamodel has been proved to be an efficient and accurate means in the detection of impeller performance variations caused by roughness uncertainties. After design optimization, the robust optimal design is found to be more efficient and less sensitive to fouling uncertainties while maintaining good impeller performance in the clean condition. This research proposes a systematic design optimization method for centrifugal compressors with considerations of blade fouling, providing a practical guidance to the design of advanced centrifugal compressors.

Somatotopic map of the active electrosensory sense in the midbrain of the mormyrid Gnathonemus petersii.

In many vertebrates parallel processing in topographically ordered maps is essential for efficient sensory processing. In the active electrosensory pathway of mormyrids afferent input is processed in two parallel somatotopically ordered hindbrain maps of the electrosensory lateral line lobe (ELL), the dorsolateral zone (DLZ), and the medial zone (MZ). Here phase and amplitude modulations of the self-generated electric field were processed separately. Behavioral data indicates that this information must be merged for the sensory system to categorically distinguish capacitive and resistive properties of objects. While projections between both zones of the ELL have been found, the available physiological data suggests that this merging takes place in the midbrain torus semicircularis (TS). Previous anatomical data indicate that the detailed somatotopic representation present in the ELL is lost in the nucleus lateralis (NL) of the TS, while a rough rostrocaudal mapping is maintained. In our study we investigated the projections from the hindbrain to the midbrain in more detail, using tracer injections. Our data reveals that afferents from both maps of the ELL terminate in a detailed somatotopic manner within the midbrain NL. Furthermore, we provide data indicating that phase and amplitude information may indeed be processed jointly in the NL. J. Comp. Neurol. 524:2479-2491, 2016. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

A stereo-vision hazard-detection algorithm to increase planetary lander autonomy

For future landings on any celestial body, increasing the lander autonomy as well as decreasing risk are primary objectives. Both risk reduction and an increase in autonomy can be achieved by including hazard detection and avoidance in the guidance, navigation, and control loop. One of the main challenges in hazard detection and avoidance is the reconstruction of accurate elevation models, as well as slope and roughness maps. Multiple methods for acquiring the inputs for hazard maps are available. The main distinction can be made between active and passive methods. Passive methods (cameras) have budgetary advantages compared to active sensors (radar, light detection and ranging). However, it is necessary to proof that these methods deliver sufficiently good maps. Therefore, this paper discusses hazard detection using stereo vision. To facilitate a successful landing not more than 1% wrong detections (hazards that are not identified) are allowed. Based on a sensitivity analysis it was found that using a stereo set-up at a baseline of ≤2m is feasible at altitudes of ≤200m defining false positives of less than 1%. It was thus shown that stereo-based hazard detection is an effective means to decrease the landing risk and increase the lander autonomy. In conclusion, the proposed algorithm is a promising candidate for future landers.

Invalid phase values removal method for absolute phase recovery.

A novel approach is presented for more effectively removing invalid phase values in absolute phase recovery. The approach is based on a detailed study involving the types and cases of invalid phase values. Meanwhile, some commonalities of the existing removal algorithms also are thoroughly analyzed. It is well known that rough absolute phase and fringe order maps can very easily be obtained by temporal phase unwrapping techniques. After carefully analyzing the components and fringe order distribution of the rough fringe order map, the proposed method chiefly adopts an entirely new strategy to refine a pure fringe order map. The strategy consists of three parts: (1)the square of an image gradient, (2)subregion areas of the binary image, and (3)image decomposition and composition. In combination with the pure fringe order map and a removal criterion, the invalid phase values can be identified and filtered out from the rough absolute phase map. This new strategy not only gets rid of the limitations of traditional removal methods but also has a two-fold function. The paper also offers different metrics from the experiment to evaluate the quality of the final absolute phase. In contrast with other removal methods, experimental results have verified the feasibility, effectiveness, and superiority of the proposed method.

Interstitial deletion of 5q33.3q35.1 in a boy with severe mental retardation

Constitutional interstitial deletions of the long arm of chromosome 5 (5q) are quite rare, and the corresponding phenotype is not yet clearly delineated. Severe mental retardation has been described in most patients who present 5q deletions. Specifically, the interstitial deletion of chromosome 5q33.3q35.1, an extremely rare chromosomal aberration, is characterized by mental retardation, developmental delay, and facial dysmorphism. Although the severity of mental retardation varies across cases, it is the most common feature described in patients who present the 5q33.3q35.1 deletion. Here, we report a case of a de novo deletion of 5q33.3q35.1, 46,XY,del(5)(q33.3q35.1) in an 11-year-old boy with mental retardation; to the best of our knowledge this is the first case in Korea to be reported. He was diagnosed with severe mental retardation, developmental delay, facial dysmorphisms, dental anomalies, and epilepsy. Chromosomal microarray analysis using the comparative genomic hybridization array method revealed a 16-Mb-long deletion of 5q33. 3q35.1(156,409,412-172,584,708)x1. Understanding this deletion may help draw a rough phenotypic map of 5q and correlate the phenotypes with specific chromosomal regions. The 5q33.3q35.1 deletion is a rare condition; however, accurate diagnosis of the associated mental retardation is important to ensure proper genetic counseling and to guide patients as part of long-term management.

Kant on Mind, Action, and Ethics by Julian Wuerth (review)

Reviewed by: Kant on Mind, Action, and Ethics by Julian Wuerth Kelly Sorensen Julian Wuerth. Kant on Mind, Action, and Ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014. Pp. xvi + 349. Cloth, £50.00. This textually well-supported book takes seriously Kant’s corpus as a system, claiming that devoted attention to the whole makes each individual work in turn more intelligible, consistent, and compelling. Wuerth claims that a key to Kant’s system is Kant’s account of the self or soul. For Wuerth, Kant’s self is a simple, noumenal substance that possesses powers (such as reason, judgment, imagination, and sensibility) by which it effects accidents. This is against the familiar interpretation, associated with Patricia Kitcher, Henry Allison, [End Page 175] Robert Pippin, Karl Ameriks, and Béatrice Longuenesse, that Kant in the critical period rejects any and all ontologically significant claims about the self. Wuerth says this familiar interpretation wrongly assumes that Kant, in opposing conceptions of the ontology of the self among his rationalist predecessors, cannot himself be defending an ontologically significant view of the self as a substance. On the familiar interpretation, the self may be a logical ground, but it cannot be an ontologically significant ground; Wuerth argues instead that Kant’s arguments in the first Critique about the self as a substance are only arguments against the rationalists’ inferences that the self is a permanent substance and can be known as such. So for Wuerth to say that Kant held that the self is a simple substance is to make only a comparatively modest claim: the self is a substance in which powers can inhere, a thinking thing that is distinct from its particular mental states. This ontological conclusion is “useless” for the more tantalizing things about oneself that one wants to know—for example, whether one’s existence is permanent and incorruptible, and whether one is an independent self-causing substance. But the self is a substance in an ontologically significant sense, and it has pure and immediate self-consciousness of being a simple substance with powers. This view is compatible with Kant’s critical epistemology, Wuerth claims, because of the singular nature of self-consciousness: it is the one case where one’s epistemic access to something is not colored by one’s receptive powers. The self has an “immediate, pure, and indeterminate consciousness of being something” (5). Wuerth amasses considerable textual evidence to show that this is more or less Kant’s view across the pre-critical, critical, and post-critical periods. A middle chapter offers a rough map of the noumenal soul’s powers under the broad faculties of cognition, desire, and feeling, with higher and lower sets of subfaculties under each of these three. Wuerth argues that even lower, largely passive subfaculties are nevertheless active in some (non-spontaneous) way: for instance, Kant says that we can only passively receive the sound of a trumpet because we are active representers of sound. This activity in the largely passive subfaculties helps pave the way for Wuerth’s challenge to interpretations of Kant by Henry Sidgwick and Christine Korsgaard, who share the view that Kant’s choosing noumenal self is just the cognitive faculty of pure practical reason. Along with Lewis White Beck, Allison, and others, Wuerth responds that the noumenal self’s choosing faculty is instead Willkür, a faculty of desire. And to this classic Beck response Wuerth adds that the distinction between Wille and Willkür is already functioning well before the second Critique, and even present in the Groundwork, where the noumenal self deals in two kinds of “conative currencies”: “motives” from the higher subfaculties and “stimuli” from the lower subfaculties. The noumenal self feels the tug of both. The late chapters oppose Korsgaard’s interpretation using close textual exegesis of the Groundwork and a wide set of other texts. Against Korsgaard’s constructivist and anti-realist interpretation of Kant’s moral philosophy, Wuerth argues that Kant is a moral realist who asserts that humanity has value found not only in our capacity to set ends, but more fundamentally in our capacity for self-consciousness. And against Korsgaard’s intellectualized and hyper-rationalized Kant, Wuerth’s Kant is...

A Data Mining Based Approach for Determining the Potential Fishing Zones

 Abstract—The aim of this paper is to analyze the determination of the potential fishing zones based on data mining approach. The algorithm utilized in this study is AGRID+, a grid density based clustering for high dimensional data. The case study area is in eastern Indian Ocean located at 16.56 - 2 S and 100.49 - 140 E. The algorithm is implemented in 7 phases, partitioning, computing distance threshold, calculating densities, compensating densities, calculating density threshold, clustering and removing noise. The clustering result is evaluated by the Silhouette index. The results of the study show that the best cluster formed at daily aggregate temporal with number of cell (m) = 14 and the number of cluster formed was 50 clusters. The constant execution time is in line with the increasing the value of m. From three different temporal aggregate, the daily aggregate is running relatively constant for various m value. To determine the potential fishing zones for different temporal aggregate can be achieved by applying the thresholding technique to the cluster result. Utilizing the data mining approach yielded a prominent 22 daily clusters identified as potential fishing zone. remote sensing data and fishery data (3). The latest study on determining the potential fishing zone utilizing a clustering technique to set a rough map of potential fishing zone based on fishing data (4). In this study, we need a clustering algorithm that can treat spatio-temporal data used to determine the potential fishing zone by grouping the fishing areas based on location and time. The grid-density based clustering method is used to cluster fishing area. This method is called AGRID+ proposed by Zhao et al. (5). Referring to the clustering result, we can determine whether the area is potential area or not based on the criteria from expert. The contribution of our paper is to propose an alternative approach to determine the potential fishing zone utilizing data mining technique.

Characterization of a Triticum aestivum–Dasypyrum villosum T2VS·2DL translocation line expressing a longer spike and more kernels traits

By using 2V-specific EST-PCR markers and sequential GISH/FISH analysis, we identified four homozygous CS-2V translocation lines, including a novel compensating T2VS·2DL translocation line NAU422. This translocation line has longer spikes and produces more grains per spike than its recurrent parent CS and three other translocation lines, which could be a valuable resource in wheat yield improvement. Dasypyrum villosum (2n=14, VV), the wild relative of wheat, possesses novel and superior alleles at many important loci and should be utilized to improve the genetic diversity of cultivated wheat and may be very helpful for the improvement of wheat yield. In this study, four homozygous Chinese Spring (CS)-D. villosum translocation lines containing different fragments of chromosome 2V were characterized from a pool, including 76 translocations that occur in chromosomes 1V through 7V of D. villosum by both molecular markers and cytogenetic analysis. A rough physical map of 2V was developed which included nine markers in three segments of the short arm and ten markers in the long arm. The photoperiod response gene of D. villosum (Ppd-V1) was physically mapped to the FL 0.33-0.53 region of 2VS, while the gene controlling bristles on the glume ridges (Bgr-V1) was mapped to 2VS FL 0.00-0.33. A novel compensating Triticum aestivum-D. villosum Robertsonian translocation line T2VS·2DL (NAU422) with good plant vigor and full fertility was further characterized by sequential genomic in situ hybridization and fluorescent in situ hybridization and the use of molecular markers. Compared to its recurrent parent CS and three other translocation lines, the T2VS·2DL translocation line has longer spikes, more spikelets and more grains per spike in two season years, which suggested that the alien segment may carry yield-related genes of D. villosum. The developed T2VS·2DL translocation line with its morphological and co-dominant molecular markers could be utilized as a novel germplasm for high-yield wheat breeding.

Wind Resource Mapping Using Landscape Roughness and Spatial Interpolation Methods

Energy saving, reduction of greenhouse gasses and increased use of renewables are key policies to achieve the European 2020 targets. In particular, distributed renewable energy sources, integrated with spatial planning, require novel methods to optimise supply and demand. In contrast with large scale wind turbines, small and medium wind turbines (SMWTs) have a less extensive impact on the use of space and the power system, nevertheless, a significant spatial footprint is still present and the need for good spatial planning is a necessity. To optimise the location of SMWTs, detailed knowledge of the spatial distribution of the average wind speed is essential, hence, in this article, wind measurements and roughness maps were used to create a reliable annual mean wind speed map of Flanders at 10 m above the Earth’s surface. Via roughness transformation, the surface wind speed measurements were converted into meso- and macroscale wind data. The data were further processed by using seven different spatial interpolation methods in order to develop regional wind resource maps. Based on statistical analysis, it was found that the transformation into mesoscale wind, in combination with Simple Kriging, was the most adequate method to create reliable maps for decision-making on optimal production sites for SMWTs in Flanders (Belgium).