Feeding Scheme Research Articles

Horizontally stacked inverted U-shaped dual-band implantable antenna with circularly polarized for biotelemetry application

Abstract A horizontally stacked inverted U-shaped dual-band implantable antenna is proposed for RFID and health care monitoring implantable applications. The designed antenna operates at 0.952 GHz ultrahigh frequency band (UHF; 0.951–0.956 GHz) and 2.4 GHz industrial, scientific, and medical band (ISM; 2.4–2.4835 GHz) in a suitable feeding scheme. The shorting pin is used on the radiation patch to minimize the antenna structure. The final dimension of the designed antenna size is 9 × 9 × 0.635 mm 3 . The defected ground structure (DGS) helped to produce radiation with circular polarization (CP) at 2.4 GHz resonant frequency. The designed antenna achieves an axial ratio (AR) bandwidth of 20% at 2.4 GHz resonant frequency. The antenna is designed on Rogers RT Duroid 6010 substrate and fabricated. The same dielectric material was used as a superstrate. At both the UHF and ISM frequency bands, the experiment was conducted using skin-mimicking gel and minced pork. The horizontally stacked inverted U-shaped antenna has a high peak gain of −27.5 dBi at 0.952 GHz. The computed maximum specific absorption ratio is within allowable bounds and complies with IEEE safety criteria.

The COVID-19 restrictions, child services and the well-being of children in South Africa

Covid-19 posed little danger to children. Nevertheless, the South African government imposed lockdown measures that impeded children’s education, play and food. Schools were closed, feeding schemes were halted and organised sports were banned. In this study of South African children’s experience during the 2020–22 pandemic, we use the capabilities approach, particularly Nussbaum’s ten capabilities, to assess how the lockdown measures affected their development. The one-dimensional nature of the government response was evident in its focus on physical health and safeguarding adults and the health system, at the expense of children’s well-being. Children were masked and their voices were not heard. Despite being far less at risk of illness or death than adults, children and young people were disproportionately affected by government regulations. Children from low-income environments were particularly severely affected.

A budget impact analysis of exclusive human milk diet in very low birth weight infants in United Arab Emirates

Introduction Very low birth weight (VLBW) infants have the highest rate of neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions owing to the higher comorbidities associated with premature birth and long hospital stays. VLBW infants fed a bovine (BOV)-based diet have higher mortality rates, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC), late-onset sepsis (LOS), and other comorbidities than those fed 100% human milk-based products. This study aims to evaluate the budgetary impact of adopting an exclusive human milk diet (EHMD) instead of a BOV-based diet in VLBW infants from Al-Ain Hospital, Sheikh Shakhbout Medical City, and Dubai Health Authority (DHA) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Methods We use a decision tree model to estimate the budget impact of adopting EHMD versus the current local practice (BOV) over five years. Patients enter the tree model and have a probability of transitioning to one of the following mutually exclusive health states: NEC, which may be treated medically or surgically; LOS, NEC, and LOS; or neither NEC nor LOS. Depending on the feeding strategy, infants in the aforementioned health states are likely to develop any of the following complications: retinopathy of prematurity, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, or short bowel syndrome. The model accounts for the costs associated with diet, management of health states and complications, and the follow-up period. Results Al-Ain Hospital saved United Arab Emirates Dirham (AED) 3.3 million ($1.4million) in the first year of the EHMD feeding arm and AED 16.6 million ($7.1million) over the course of five years. In comparison to Sheikh Shabout Medical City and DHA, AED 36.7 million ($15.8million) and AED 24 million ($10.3million) were saved over five years, respectively, with AED 7.3 million ($3.1million) and 4.8 million ($2million) saved in the first year. The estimated pooled results across the three institutions were AED 5.1 million ($2.2million) and AED 25.7 million ($11million) savings in the first year and over five years, respectively. Conclusion Implementing the EHMD feeding scheme in VLBWs that has significant clinical benefits has resulted in substantial budget savings from the payer’s perspective in the UAE owing to fewer comorbidities associated with premature birth and shorter hospital stays. It is highly recommended for the Emirati health care settings to evaluate the real-world neonatal complication rates.

Child-headed Households: Techniques to lessen the detrimental Impacts of Poverty on Secondary School Students from Chimanimani District in Manicaland Province, Zimbabwe

The purpose of this study was to examine strategies to reduce the negative effects of poverty among learners from Child-headed Households. Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory was employed as the theoretical framework. The study used a qualitative research design. Thirty-two participants were purposefully selected. Interviews, focus groups and document analysis were employed as data collection tools. The study established that the Basic Education Assistance Module (BEAM), supplementary feeding schemes, and income-generating projects were the main strategies which were employed to cushion secondary school learners from child-headed households. It is recommended that school administrators prioritise funding income-generating projects to help schools satisfy the psychological requirements of learners from child-headed households. This study adds to the body of knowledge about how adolescents from child-headed households experience academic success. In several sub-sectors of the Zimbabwean education sector, it expands understanding of the lived experiences of a sample of teenage students from low-income homes in Manicaland Province that has never before been investigated. The report makes a clear call to action for the Zimbabwean government to reconsider the BEAM support model in light of the insufficient funds now provided to learners and children ofchild-headed households. Keywords: Academic Success, Child-headed Households, Poverty, Psychological Development,Vulnerable groups

PSIV-16 The role of veterinary services on nutrition schemes, management, and health practices for sheep and goats in rural Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, North West Province of South Africa

Abstract Poverty is a feature of rural households, and as a result rural people usually adopt low-input agriculture to alleviate poverty. Many households in Ngaka Modiri Molema District keep animals, particularly sheep and goats, for a variety of reasons, including as source of income, milk, and meat. However, they lack the management skills that are necessary for their livestock to increase their productivity. Inadequate animal management, including poor feeding and housing standards and poor application of proper animal health procedures are compounded by a lack of agricultural experience and low-input farming methods. In addition, poor animal nutrition, sickness and a high prevalence of parasites, and low animal production output further contribute to low overall productivity. Therefore, support offered by the veterinary services, and the impact these interventions have on sheep and goat farming among rural farmers need to be investigated. The present study will seek to describe the feeding schemes and management practices adopted by sheep and goat owners, as well as the role of veterinary and extension services in the development of such practices. Health care provided to sheep and goat farmers by the veterinary services will also be determined. A survey will be conducted in Ngaka Modiri Molema District Municipality, a rural area in North West Province of South Africa. The study population will consist of all farmers, both female and male, rearing sheep and goats. Animal and farm information level data and general farm management practices will be collected via a questionnaire survey. Using the Statistical Kit for STATA (version 16), data will be examined by computing frequency, percentages, and proportions based on the characteristics of the sample population. This survey will help to provide opportunities for resource-poor farmers in rural areas to develop their flocks.

247 Interaction between colostrum and milk replacer supply on growth, development and fecal consistency of dairy surplus calves

Abstract This study examined the interactions between early life nutrition strategies and their impact on growth, development, and fecal consistency in surplus bull calves. Holstein-Friesian bull calves [n = 120; body weight (BW) = 43.1±3.56 kg] were enrolled. In the first 12 h after birth, calves were fed either 2 L (100 g of IgG) or 6L (300 g of IgG) of colostrum replacer (CR) to obtain either failure (F) or successful (S) transfer of passive immunity, respectively. Upon arrival at the facility, serum IgG concentrations were measured; therefore, F and S calves were identified accordingly and randomly assigned to one of two milk replacer (MR) feeding schemes: Moderate (Mod; ~8 L) or Low (Low; ~4 L). In total, there were 4 treatments resulting from the 2 × 2 factorial design: F-Mod, F-Low, S-Mod, S-Low (n = 30/treatment). Calves were individually housed and fed twice daily until d 42, gradually weaned until d 56, and had free access to straw and water during the study. On d 22, a calf pelleted starter was offered. To evaluate organ and gastroinstetinal tract development, 10 calves/treatment were euthanized at 84 d of age. Other measurements include weekly BW, daily intakes, and daily fecal score until d 21. Data were analyzed by PROC MIXED in SAS accounting for the fixed effects of block, CR, MR, and time, and their interaction. Time entered the model as a repeated statement, and initial BW was used as a covariable when appropriate. Initial BW was not different across treatments, whereas serum IgG was greater in S calves (S = 1,962.9 vs. F = 941.0 mg IgG/dL). During the study, BW was influenced by both CR (P = 0.001) and MR (P < 0.001), where S and Mod calves consistently exhibited greater BW when compared with F and Low calves, respectively. At d 84, Mod calves (F-Mod and S-Mod) were on average 18 kg heavier than Low calves. Similarly, Mod calves exhibited greater fresh tissue weights in the liver, pancreas, spleen, and both the small and large intestines (P < 0.05). Starter intake was influenced by MR (P < 0.001), with Low calves having the greatest intake before and during weaning. However, post-weaning starter intake was greater (P = 0.010) in Mod calves. Fecal consistency was influenced by CR (P = 0.001) and MR (P < 0.001), with S and Low calves having improved fecal consistency. Although no interactions were observed between CR and MR, these findings underscore the importance of considering both colostrum and MR levels in calf nutrition management to optimize growth and improve animal welfare during the early stages of life.

Comparative growth, survival, and feed conversion factor of the F1 generation of two new strains of tilapia Oreochromis niloticus produced by mass selection

Growth, survival, and use of feed of the F1 generation of two new strains of tilapia Oreochromis niloticus (GenBank Strain Y = OK078792 to OK078796 and Strain A = OK078797 to OK078807) produced by mass selection was compared with a known fast-growing commercial strain in Mexico (GenBank Strain Q = OR744820 to OR744838), during a grow-out phase of 165 days. Genetic variability including observed (Ho) and expected (He) heterozygosity, inbreeding coefficient (Fis), and paired comparisons of strain fixation index (Fst) of the three strains were also compared, and an additional analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) was performed. Twelve hapas of 8.2 m3 (four for each strain) were stocked at a density of 25 org m−3 of 4.58 ± 0.67 g, which were fed with 45 to 25% crude protein feed under a dynamic feeding scheme of 8 to 3% live weight. Growth was estimated by growth rates in weight and length, and by the weight-specific growth rate (SGR). The use of feed was estimated by the total feed consumption rate and the feed conversion factor (FCF). Results indicate no significant differences (P > 0.05) in growth parameters of the three strains, except in SGR which was significantly higher in the control strain (Q) (2.75% day−1) as compared with strains Y and A (2.51 and 2.59% day−1 respectively). The average final weight and size of the fish were 314.6 ± 11.8 g and 25.5 ± 0.4 cm respectively. No significant differences (P > 0.05) were found in survival and feed utilisation among strains, with average values of 96.4% survival, feed consumption of 3.91 g day−1, and FCF of 2.08. Results of genetic diversity indicate that there were no significant differences (P > 0.05) in Ho and He of the three strains, with average values of 0.310 and 0.280 respectively. Fis values were negative and similar for the three strains, with a mean value of −0.109 which indicates no consanguinity in their populations. Finally, the paired comparisons of Fst were significantly different (P < 0.001), showing relatively low values but different from 0 (Y vs. A = 0.025, A vs. Q = 0.041 and Y vs. Q = 0.055), indicating slight but significant population differentiation between strains. In conclusion, the performance and genetic variability of the F1 generation of the two new strains suggest that valuable broodstock is now available for mass production of fry, with similar performance as to one of the best strains of tilapia in Mexico.

Evaluación económica de un esquema de alimentación complementaria continua en cabras locales en pastoreo

Objective. To evaluate the economic viability of incorporating a long term-supplementary feeding scheme in grazing local goats from the last third of gestation and throughout lactation. Materials and methods. Twenty-four local goats were utilized: control group (CG, n=12) and supplemented group (SG; n=12). Daily milk production (DMP) was recorded in goats, per lactation (MPLT), and per lactation stage [early (MPEL) middle (MPML), and late lactation (MPLL)], duration of lactation (DL; days), final live weight (FLW), and final body condition (FBC). In kids, birth weight (BW), weight at sale (WS), age at sale (AS), and mortality rate were recorded. The economic analysis considered the costs of daily supplementation, labor for handling and care of the animals, and sale prices of milk and kids. Results. The best productive behavior and the highest incomes were obtained in SG (p&lt;0.05) for all variables, except AS and mortality rate. The highest values in CG (p&lt;0.05) were obtained in AS and economic profit in almost all the considered variables, Except in MPEL. Positive profits were obtained in SG in early and middle lactation, and negative in late lactation for SG, but with higher FBC. Conclusions. A long-term supplementary feeding is economically viable to increase income and profits from kids and milk sales and improves the body condition of the dams, which will benefit the productivity of the herd.

Selective Enrichment of Methylococcaceae versus Methylocystaceae Methanotrophs via Control of Methane Feeding Schemes.

Methanotrophs are crucial in keeping environmental CH4 emissions in check. However, the contributions of different groups of methanotrophs at terrestrial CH4-oxidation hotspots, such as the oxic-anoxic interface of rice paddies, have shown considerable inconsistency across observations. To address the knowledge gap regarding this inconsistency, methanotrophic microbiomes were enriched from paddy soils in well-mixed CH4-fed batch reactors under six different incubation conditions, prepared as combinations of two CH4 mixing ratios (0.5 and 10%) and three supplemented Cu2+ concentrations (0, 2, and 10 μM). Monitoring of temporal community shifts in these cultures revealed a dominance of Methylocystis spp. in all 0.5%-CH4 cultures, while methanotrophs affiliated to Gammaproteobacteria dominated the 10%-CH4 cultures that were less consistent both temporally and across conditions. The shotgun metagenome analyses of the 0.5%-CH4 cultures corroborated the Methylocystis dominance and, interestingly, showed that copper deficiency did not select for mmoXYZ-possessing methanotrophs. Instead, a mbn cluster, accounting for approximately 5% of the Methylocystis population, was identified, suggesting the ecological significance of methanobactin in Cu-deficient methanotrophy. These findings underscore the important role of Methylocystis spp. in mitigating emissions from terrestrial CH4 hotspots and suggest the feasibility of directed enrichment and/or isolation of Methylocystis spp. for utilization in, for example, methanobactin and polyhydroxybutyrate production.

Hybrid and boosted structures of multi-effect mechanical vapor compression for enhanced water production

Retrofitting the multi-effect mechanical vapor compression (MEMVC) process for water desalination through hybridization with membrane distillation (MD) and/or employing vapor boosting mechanism is investigated in this work. The impact of using more than one mechanical compression, their respective locations and flow rates is investigated. Integration of parallel feed scheme of MEMVC with MD owned the maximum MD water production compared to the hybrid forward feed and parallel cross feed arrangements that can reach up to 54 % enhancement. However, the contribution of the MD production to the total production of the hybrid system does not exceed 17 %. Recycling the vapor of the last three effects to boost the first effect indicated a positive impact. The MEMVC with parallel feed can achieve 134 % water production enhancement with 26 % increase in the specific energy consumption over the nominal condition, i.e., when only the steam of the last effect is recycled to the first effect. Recycling the vapor of the penultimate effect to boost the second effect illustrated superior performance compared to that of boosting the first effect. It is found that the MEMVC with forward feed can attain 61 % improvement in water production with 14 % reduction in the specific energy consumption.

Intra-cohort cannibalism and aggressive behavior in tropical gar (Atractosteus tropicus) larvae: Effects of stocking density and starvation

Cannibalism in early fish developmental stages is a biological phenomenon affecting aquaculture, so seeding density and feeding schemes play a fundamental role in its optimal control. The objective of this research was to evaluate two initial stocking densities, 0.7 larvae/L (D7) and 1.4 larvae/L (D14), which were fed (F) and not fed (NF) in tropical gar (Atractosteus tropicus) larvae on growth, attacks, survival, and digestive enzyme activity, digestive morphology, and oxidative enzymes and aggressiveness gene expression. A total of 420 larvae (0.022 ± 0.003 g; 1.52 ± 0.10 cm) were placed in 70 L tanks connected to a recirculation system. Treatment F larvae were fed a formulated food. D14F larvae had the highest final weight, total length, and specific growth rate (SGR) (p < 0.05). The highest survival percentage was in D7F larvae (46.19 ± 2.74) (p < 0.05). The highest frequency of attacks occurred in D14F larvae (26.66 ± 0.82) (p < 0.05). The coefficient of variation (CV) and size heterogeneity (SH) were higher in D7F larvae (13.56 ± 1.80; 0.81 ± 0.10) (p < 0.05). The F larvae started attacks at 8 days after hatching (DAH), while the NF larvae showed it at 10 DAH. The difference in weight between the attacker and the attacked was 16.44 ± 9.75% and in total length 12.28 ± 4.57% (p < 0.05). Acid and alkaline protease, trypsin, and lipase activities presented differences between both factors, as well as the interaction between them. D14F larvae presented the highest Glutathione peroxidase (GPX) activity (p < 0.05), while D7-NF larvae registered the highest catalase (CAT) activity (p < 0.05). Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities only showed differences between F and NF larvae (p < 0.05). The liver presented the highest percentage of area with melanomacrophage centers (MMC) in D7-NF larvae, and hepatocytes with the highest area were recorded in D14F larvae (p < 0.05). In gut, the highest enterocytes were recorded in D14F larvae (p < 0.05). cat, cck, and gpx expression did not show difference between feeding regimes. The expression of sod1 and sod2 in D7F and D14F treatments presented the highest expressions (p < 0.05). D7F larvae presented higher expression of avp1, crh, htr1, sstr1, th and tph1 genes (p < 0.05). Our results show that A. tropicus larvae D14F presented the highest growth and morphometric parameters and decreased CV and SH, which shows a more homogeneous growth. Regarding cannibalism, fed larvae (D7F, D14F) presented cannibalism in a greater proportion than unfed larvae regardless of density, however, it is necessary to analyze other physiological and social factors that could be related to the aggressiveness and cannibalism of the species.

Pigs, planners, and potato peels: the Soviet Scheme to feed pigs with urban food waste as a waste regime under Stalin, Khrushchev, and Brezhnev

ABSTRACT In this article, I study why and how Soviet planners organized a scheme to collect food waste from Soviet residential buildings and food service establishments in Moscow and other cities and utilize it as a feedstock for pork production. By relying on sociologist Zsuzsa Gille’s “waste regime” concept and a great variety of primary sources, I analyze the Soviet “garbage feeding scheme” as a social institution that patterned the social behavior of actors who engaged with food waste in the USSR from the early 1930s until the beginning of the 1980s. I argue that Soviet planners, informed by zootechnics, perceived garbage feeding as a way to reconcile their goal to increase meat production with the reality of continuous grain shortages. As such, they imparted food waste with the economic meaning that it could be turned into other commodities – wheat and meat. I demonstrate that the Soviet garbage feeding scheme never became a success, as the collection of food waste that laid dispersed across many locations in cities posed too big of an organizational challenge for the USSR’s centralized bureaucracy, and because planners did not succeed at integrating Soviet citizens into its scheme.

Application of fed-batch strategy to fully eliminate the negative effect of lignocellulose-derived inhibitors in ABE fermentation

BackgroundInhibitors that are released from lignocellulose biomass during its treatment represent one of the major bottlenecks hindering its massive utilization in the biotechnological production of chemicals. This study demonstrates that negative effect of inhibitors can be mitigated by proper feeding strategy. Both, crude undetoxified lignocellulose hydrolysate and complex medium supplemented with corresponding inhibitors were tested in acetone–butanol–ethanol (ABE) fermentation using Clostridium beijerinckii NRRL B-598 as the producer strain.ResultsFirst, it was found that the sensitivity of C. beijerinckii to inhibitors varied with different growth stages, being the most significant during the early acidogenic phase and less pronounced during late acidogenesis and early solventogenesis. Thus, a fed-batch regime with three feeding schemes was tested for toxic hydrolysate (no growth in batch mode was observed). The best results were obtained when the feeding of an otherwise toxic hydrolysate was initiated close to the metabolic switch, resulting in stable and high ABE production. Complete utilization of glucose, and up to 88% of xylose, were obtained. The most abundant inhibitors present in the alkaline wheat straw hydrolysate were ferulic and coumaric acids; both phenolic acids were efficiently detoxified by the intrinsic metabolic activity of clostridia during the early stages of cultivation as well as during the feeding period, thus preventing their accumulation. Finally, the best feeding strategy was verified using a TYA culture medium supplemented with both inhibitors, resulting in 500% increase in butanol titer over control batch cultivation in which inhibitors were added prior to inoculation.ConclusionProperly timed sequential feeding effectively prevented acid-crash and enabled utilization of otherwise toxic substrate. This study unequivocally demonstrates that an appropriate biotechnological process control strategy can fully eliminate the negative effects of lignocellulose-derived inhibitors.Graphical

Challenges of Inclusion of Almagirai in Nigerian School Feeding Scheme

Almagirci has recently become an ideological battlefield debate about the roles of government to support them, which sometimes often focuses on feeding. It is expected that all children should equally attain the highest standard of education and nutrition through a school feeding scheme, but in the context of Nigeria, the commitment is different, especially for Almajirai. This study aims to examine the likely challenges in including Almagirai in Nigerian school feeding schemes with an emphasis on people's perceptions. The use of a survey research method through a questionnaire was adopted by the researchers, administered in Mubi North and South local government area of Adamawa State, Nigeria. The survey area represents only two out of hundreds of local governments in the country where Almajirai are sited. The findings revealed that out of 220 respondents, 166 (75.45%) and 174 (79.09%) strongly disagree with the current situation of Almajirai in terms of their feeding and the government commitments toward Almagiranci respectively. It was also revealed that 188 (85.45%) of respondents strongly agreed and in support of governments to include Almajirai in the school feeding scheme, simultaneously, 198 (90.00%) respondents responded that the inclusion will have a positive impact on their learning. In response to these challenges, It is expected that governments should move urgently to bring Almagirai under their oversight and regulation to enable her to take care of nutrition and the standard of their education.

A [formula omitted]45°dual-polarized co-channel patch antenna array for in-band full-duplex applications

A broadband stacked patch antenna array with high port isolation is presented for in-band full-duplex (IBFD) applications in this article. A co-channel feeding scheme is proposed to simultaneously excite two ports of the patch antenna to achieve ±45°dual polarization. An antenna system is then designed using a 2 × 2 stacked patch array, a parallel feeding network, and a hybrid coupler. The coupling between the Tx and Rx ports due to mismatch and coupling between the antenna elements is analysed in detail and shown to be eliminated completely. A demonstrator is fabricated and measured to endorse the accuracy of the proposed feeding scheme. The measured results show that the developed prototype can operate from 3.15 GHz to 4.0 GHz. The isolation level between Tx and Rx ports is higher than 45 dB within the operating band. The realized gains of two ports are higher than 10.5 dBi throughout the band of interest with the maximum gain of 13.9 dBi, which are congruent with the simulated ones.

The spatiotemporal properties of artificial feeding schemes influence the post-fledging movement of Egyptian Vultures

Abstract Many vulture populations have severely declined in the past decades, showing high juvenile mortality. To support these populations, feeding stations are used to increase food availability and to supply food without antibiotics and toxic compounds. Yet, supplying food at feeding stations may affect vulture behavior. We present a large-scale field experiment testing how different food provision schemes affected the movement of Egyptian Vultures (Neophron percnopterus). We used GPS transmitters harnessed to 18 vulture chicks and described their movements post-fledging. We categorized the vultures into 3 groups according to the feeding scheme used at feeding stations near their nests: frequent and spatially dispersed food supply (FD); non-frequent and spatially dispersed food supply (NFD); and frequent food supply, concentrated in one location (FC). We found that birds from all three groups increased their roosting distances from the nest with fledgling age, with the NFD and FC groups showing a greater increase than the FD group. Additionally, all 3 groups increased their daily flight distances, with the NFD group presenting the largest increase and the FD group presenting the smallest increase. Our findings offer new insights into the relevance of spatiotemporal differences in the management of feeding stations and show its effect on movement during birds’ early life stages, creating 2 main movement patterns: local and regional. Our findings can help decide upon the preferable feeding scheme in a way that will either encourage or reduce the early dispersal distances of fledglings, according to long- and short-term conservation objectives. For example, local movements during the post fledging period to known and stable food resources may reduce the risk of anthropogenic-induced mortality, while it may negatively affect long-term survival by hindering foraging, flight, and exploring skills and affect dispersion to future breeding sites.

Generation of OAM beams with quasi omnidirectional pattern using simple slotted waveguide array

Theory and design aspects of the Slotted Waveguide Antenna (SWA) array for the simultaneous generation of Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) modes are proposed in this paper. The proposed method is a novel approach to OAM generation that uses a simple feeding scheme and has better performance, especially in terms of mode purity. Due to its all-metallic structure, the high-power OAM beams with first-order modes (+1&-1\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$ +1 \\, \\& \\,-1$$\\end{document}) can be generated simultaneously along the propagation axis but in opposite directions, which improves the coverage and makes the proposed SWA be used in applications like radar target detection by mounting it on a mechanically rotating platform. The proposed theory is verified by the electromagnetic (EM) simulations, followed by the experimental verification done on the laboratory prototype. The near-field characteristics of the proposed antenna confirm the generation of first-order OAM beams with high mode purity. The far-field characteristics show the high gain and quasi-omnidirectional radiation pattern. Transmission of high-power OAM beams with good far-field characteristics makes the proposed antenna mitigate the issues of long-range OAM communication to a certain extent. However, the proposed antenna can be served well in strategic applications where the mostly high-power microwave is involved.

Modeling and design of fed-batch strategies for achieving 255 g/L sugar concentration from high-solid enzymatic hydrolysis of pretreated corn stover

Achieving high sugar concentrations through enzymatic hydrolysis of pretreated lignocellulose with low enzyme loadings is crucial for reducing the costs of lignocellulosic biorefineries. However, the adverse effects of the “solid effect” pose essential challenges in this regard. In this study, the objective is to improve the sugar concentrations through enzymatic hydrolysis of Densifying Lignocellulose with Ca(OH)2 or H2SO4 followed by Autoclave pretreated corn stover (DLCA(ch)-CS or DLCA (sa)-CS) at 40 % w/w solid loading through kinetic analysis and a statistically designed fed-batch feeding strategy. Initially, the hydrolysis kinetics of different pretreated biomass were analyzed using fractal kinetic modeling, aiming to elucidate the reasons for the observed differences in hydrolysis. Furthermore, leveraging the kinetic differences, the optimal initial solid loading was determined, and statistical models were employed to optimize feeding modes for enzymatic hydrolysis. The result revealed that compared with H2SO4, Ca(OH)2 serves as an better catalyst for improving the hydrolysability of biomass, enhancing cellulose accessibility to cellulases and reduce the mass transfer rate during enzymatic hydrolysis. Interestingly, the optimal feeding mode for less digestible substrate (DLCA(sa)-CS) is different from the more digestible substrate (DLCA(ch)-CS). Notably, by using the optimized fed-batch feeding mode, the sugar concentration can reach a maximum of 255 g/L, with glucan conversion of 89.8 %, at low enzyme loading (10 mg protein/g glucan). This is the highest total sugar concentration achieved through 72 h enzymatic hydrolysis with low enzyme loadings using a fed-batch strategy. This approach proves highly effective in designing fed-batch strategies for pretreated biomass and has great potential to serve as a universal tool for designing suitable feeding schemes for various bionconversion process.

Probiotic supplementation as an alternative to antibiotics in broiler chickens.

The broiler chicken digestive tract microbiome maintains the bird's immunity. Its composition has been shown to be important not only for the immune system but also for the gastrointestinal function and productivity of broiler chickens. If the microbiome is populated by supplementation with Lactobacillus, Pediococcus and Saccharomyces spp. - microorganisms with probiotic properties and alternatives to antibiotics - the immune system is stimulated. The use of probiotic supplements in the broiler production cycle can boost bird immunity and prevent adenovirus infection. The resilience of broiler chickens in different feeding schemes including supplementation with these microorganisms was assessed. Four groups of Ross 308 chickens vaccinated on the standard scheme were investigated over 42 days. Group P received probiotics, prebiotics and vitamins; group AO received antibiotics; group P&AO received probiotics, prebiotics, vitamins and antibiotics; and the control group C received none of these. The birds' immunocompetence against common viral poultry pathogens and their immune response to an experimental challenge with a field strain of infectious bronchitis was evaluated by ELISA and production parameters were recorded. Mortality was only observed in the control group and was 10%. All birds from the P, P&AO and AO groups responded to the challenge as would be expected of appropriately immunised chickens. The obtained results indicated that supplementation with synbiotic products and vitamins can enhance broiler chicken immunity and result in better production parameters.

Automatic Recognition and Quantification Feeding Behaviors of Nursery Pigs Using Improved YOLOV5 and Feeding Functional Area Proposals.

A novel method is proposed based on the improved YOLOV5 and feeding functional area proposals to identify the feeding behaviors of nursery piglets in a complex light and different posture environment. The method consists of three steps: first, the corner coordinates of the feeding functional area were set up by using the shape characteristics of the trough proposals and the ratio of the corner point to the image width and height to separate the irregular feeding area; second, a transformer module model was introduced based on YOLOV5 for highly accurate head detection; and third, the feeding behavior was recognized and counted by calculating the proportion of the head in the located feeding area. The pig head dataset was constructed, including 5040 training sets with 54,670 piglet head boxes, and 1200 test sets, and 25,330 piglet head boxes. The improved model achieves a 5.8% increase in the mAP and a 4.7% increase in the F1 score compared with the YOLOV5s model. The model is also applied to analyze the feeding pattern of group-housed nursery pigs in 24 h continuous monitoring and finds that nursing pigs have different feeding rhythms for the day and night, with peak feeding periods at 7:00-9:00 and 15:00-17:00 and decreased feeding periods at 12:00-14:00 and 0:00-6:00. The model provides a solution for identifying and quantifying pig feeding behaviors and offers a data basis for adjusting the farm feeding scheme.