Shoot Types Research Articles

Community, faith, and public violence: A county-level examination of religious institutions and mass public shootings in the United States

ABSTRACT Americans confront public forms of violence on a strikingly regular basis. Shootings within schools, religious institutions or simply crowded spaces have attracted significant media attention. The question remains, then, as to what role, if any, can existing institutions play in mitigating these factors – and, if so, what institutions? I argue that the presence of religious institutions will decrease the likelihood of a mass public shooting occurring. Religious institutions are particularly effective at building social capital. Mass public shootings in particular speak to widespread alienation from parochial environments. I test this theory using county-level data on religious congregations and mass public shootings for the lower 48 states. I find that that over the range of religious congregation presence, the likelihood of a mass public shooting declines from 1 in 40 to effectively zero. This result is robust across multiple definitions of ‘mass public shooting’ but decreases in effectivity as the definition is broadened to other types of mass shootings. This study fills a well-documented void of county-level structural analysis in the existing literature.

Структура та морфогенез пагонів видів роду Viburnum L. у Правобережному Лісостепу України

The research was conducted on the structure and characteristics of the growth of shoots of the genus Viburnum L. There are significant differences in the structure and dynamics of growth within the genus, so the determination of the structural features of the shoots of species of the genus Viburnum is relevant. The research of the dynamics of shoot growth was carried out according to the method of A.A. Molchanov and V.V. Smirnov (1967). The species studied by us belong to three sections of the genus Viburnum; the peculiarities of buds structure generally determine the structure of the shoots in the species of each section. It was found that the type of each of the three sections of the genus is characterized by a special structure of the shoots. It has been studied the rhythm of growth and development of native and introduced species of the genus Viburnum L. The terms of shoots growth of the species of the genus were analyzed, and the length of the annual growth of shoots was determined. Phenological date of the beginning and end of shoot growth was established. It was revealed that the onset of individual phenophases quite clearly correlates with the sum of effective temperatures above 5 ° C. The species of the genus Viburnum are characterized by the following types of shoots: tillering, stem, generative. Intensive growth of shoots of all studied species occurs in May - mid-June. In the species of the section Lantana, there are 2 peaks of shoot growth - May and mid-July. According to the duration of growth of shoots, viburnum can be divided into two groups: 1) with a short period of growth (65 - 75 days): V.opulus L., V.sargentii Koehne, V.prunifolium L., V.rufidulum Raf., V.lentago L; 2) with a long period of growth (100 or more days): V.lantana L., V.carlesii Hemsl., V.veitchii C.H. Wright, V.rhytidophyllum Hemsl., V.buddleifolium C.H. Wright, V.burejaeticum Rgl. et Herd. The data obtained demonstrated that the greatest annual growth of all Viburnum species was recorded at the age of 4-7 years. A decrease in the annual growth of axial shoots states the need for works on preliminary rejuvenation of the bush.

Classification of Tennis Shots with a Neural Network Approach.

Data analysis plays an increasingly valuable role in sports. The better the data that is analysed, the more concise training methods that can be chosen. Several solutions already exist for this purpose in the tennis industry; however, none of them combine data generation with a wristband and classification with a deep convolutional neural network (CNN). In this article, we demonstrate the development of a reliable shot detection trigger and a deep neural network that classifies tennis shots into three and five shot types. We generate a dataset for the training of neural networks with the help of a sensor wristband, which recorded 11 signals, including an inertial measurement unit (IMU). The final dataset included 5682 labelled shots of 16 players of age 13–70 years, predominantly at an amateur level. Two state-of-the-art architectures for time series classification (TSC) are compared, namely a fully convolutional network (FCN) and a residual network (ResNet). Recent advances in the field of machine learning, like the Mish activation function and the Ranger optimizer, are utilized. Training with the rather inhomogeneous dataset led to an F1 score of 96% in classification of the main shots and 94% for the expansion. Consequently, the study yielded a solid base for more complex tennis analysis tools, such as the indication of success rates per shot type.

Promoting the Transition to Non-Lead Hunting Ammunition in the European Union Through Regulation and Policy Options

Regulation (EU) 2021/57, banning the use of lead gunshot in wetland hunting, and adoption of the proposed European Union (EU) restriction on lead ammunition use by civilians in other types of hunting and target shooting, would complete the transition to non-lead ammunition use in the EU and ensure major compliance among hunters and shooters. The transition is possible since non-lead substitutes for all types of shotgun and rifle ammunition are produced already by leading European manufacturers. To ensure ammunition non-toxicity, EU standards are needed for lead substitutes to accompany both existing and potential future lead ammunition restrictions. Meat from wild game birds and mammals is a large and important commodity in the EU. Setting a maximum lead level in all marketed game meats under Regulation (EC) 1881/2006, aided by mandatory food labelling, would add extra health protection to human consumers. This regulatory step would help ensure that all wild game destined for retail markets were taken with non-lead ammunition, would complement existing and proposed European Commission restrictions on lead hunting ammunition and aid monitoring and enforcement. Increased public awareness of the risks posed by lead from ammunition to the health of humans, wildlife, and the environment, and especially their associated externalized costs to society, would promote and facilitate the passage of regulation to protect human and environmental health from toxic lead ammunition.

A Descriptive Analysis of the Characteristics of School Shootings Across Five Decades

Research on understanding school shootings has traditionally focused on the individual level factors surrounding several highly publicized mass shooting events such as those in Parkland, Florida and Santa Fe, Texas. However, researchers have recently begun to examine characteristics among other types of shootings on K-12 school campuses, including non-mass and non-fatal shooting incidents. Correlates such the type of firearms used, the number of firearms, the age of the perpetrator, and school level, have been shown to differentially affect the severity of a school shooting incident. The current study provides a descriptive analysis of shooter, school, and incident level characteristics as they relate to the predicting casualties and fatalities in school shooting incidents from 1970–2020. Results suggest that school and incident characteristics are significantly related to school shooting severity. We discuss the importance of broadening the understanding of school shootings to include these other types of incidents.

Effective methods of shooting training and aiming in an e-sports game Counter Strike: Global Offensive

The article deals with the issue of technical training of players in Counter Strike: Global Offensive. The purpose of this work was determine the most effective ways to train shooting and aiming skills in the e-sports discipline Counter Strike: Global Offensive. The study involved 20 players from Counter Strike: Global Offensive, 17-19 years old. At the time of their participation in the study, they had little experience of training and competition at the amateur level. The main sections of training players in eSports are analyzed. The essence and content of technical training in the cybersport discipline Counter Strike: Global Offensive has been determined. The proposed set of exercises for training various types of shooting and aiming. The effectiveness of this set of exercises for players has been investigated

Effect of scaling basket height for young basketball players during the competition: seeking out positive sport experiences

ABSTRACT Proper scaling of sports equipment is necessary to ensure an optimal teaching-learning process . This study aimed to analyse the effect of reducing basket height on the technical-tactical actions, physical participation, self-efficacy, cooperation and enjoyment of young basketball players in the competition. 51 under-14 male basketball players from four teams were chosen as the sample. The data collection included 2,286 attack phases during 12 matches. All players competed in two tournaments using official basketball rules but different basket heights (official basket height, 3.05 metres, and modified basket height, 2.80 metres). The dependent variables were: a) types of shooting actions, shot efficacy, and shooting conditions; b) the duration, type, number of passes done, and efficacy of the attack phases; c) heart rate values; and d) perception of specific and physical self-efficacy, collective efficacy, cooperation, and enjoyment. The results show that the scaled basket promoted game styles that increased the occurrence of fast-breaks and long positional attack phase. Shot efficacy for all shot types improved (not-significantly) and brought change in players’ specific self-efficacy and enjoyment. These findings show that scaling equipment can help the transition from mini-basket to regular basket (under-14 age group) by generating better conditions for players’ development.

Profiling of volatile compounds with characteristic odors in Bambusa oldhamii shoots from Taiwan

This study focuses on volatile aromatic constituents extracted using solid-phase microextraction (SPME) from underground and aboveground Bambusa oldhamii shoots. Analysis was conducted using the extracts after heating at various temperatures and for various durations. Results of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) revealed six SPME-extracted volatile aromatic compounds in underground B. oldhamii shoots and eleven in aboveground B. oldhamii shoots. Methyl salicylate with a characteristic mint aroma and methoxy-phenyl oxime that gives a smell of fresh shrimp and crabs are the main volatile compounds found in underground and aboveground shoots of B. oldhamii, respectively. Moreover, the two types of shoots tested also contain volatile compounds including fatty acids: n-hexadecanoic acid (27.94%) and aliphatic aldehyde: trans-2-nonenal (16.31%), respectively. The GC-MS analysis of underground and aboveground B. oldhamii shoots steamed at 100 C for 60 min revealed n-hexadecanoic acid as the main fatty acid compound.

The use of plant ontologies in comparative and evolutionary studies should be flexible

The use of plant ontologies in comparative and evolutionary studies should be flexible

Optimal trajectory planning for cinematography with multiple Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

This paper presents a method for planning optimal trajectories with a team of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) performing autonomous cinematography. The method is able to plan trajectories online and in a distributed manner, providing coordination between the UAVs. We propose a novel non-linear formulation for this challenging problem of computing multi-UAV optimal trajectories for cinematography; integrating UAVs dynamics and collision avoidance constraints, together with cinematographic aspects like smoothness, gimbal mechanical limits and mutual camera visibility. We integrate our method within a hardware and software architecture for UAV cinematography that was previously developed within the framework of the MultiDrone project; and demonstrate its use with different types of shots filming a moving target outdoors. We provide extensive experimental results both in simulation and field experiments. We analyze the performance of the method and prove that it is able to compute online smooth trajectories, reducing jerky movements and complying with cinematography constraints.

Taxonomic relationships and population differentiation of the south-western Eurasian Zelkova species inferred in leaf morphology

The relict tree species Zelkova abelicea and Z. sicula (Ulmaceae) occur in Crete and Sicily, respectively. Zelkova abelicea grows in approximately 40 localities in the mountains of Crete, while Z. sicula has been found in only two stands in Sicily. We compared 25 morphological characters of the leaves of both species and used statistical methods (Tukey’stest, discrimination analysis, principal component analysis, agglomeration) to reveal the differences between these two species, their relation to Z. carpinifolia (the third Zelkova south-west Eurasian species), and between the leaves from different shoot types. Our study represents the first comparative biometric analysis of the three Zelkova species localized in the western edge of the current geographic range of the genus. We found that the species differed from each other both, in terms of leaf form characters and level of leaf variation. Zelkova carpinifolia was clearly different from Z. abelicea, while the two populations of Z. sicula, SIB and SIA, were more similar to Z. carpinifolia and Z. abelicea, respectively. The latter finding supports the results of recent molecular studies suggestingt he hybrid origin of Z. sicula. Zelkova abelicea, Z. sicula and Z. carpinifolia differ each other in the leaf characteristics and level of phenotypic variation.

Hormonal and carbohydrate control of fruit set in avocado ‘Lamb Hass’. A question of the type of inflorescence?

The avocado tree (Persea americana Mill.) has two types of shoots, indeterminate, which maintain vegetative development from an apical bud, and determinate, which do not have vegetative growth. Indeterminate shoots set fewer fruits than determinate ones, and significantly hasten physiological fruitlet abscission. The competition between vegetative and flower development is accepted as the most reasonable hypothesis to explain the differences. However, our results show that from anthesis until fruit set flowers of indeterminate inflorescences, both those remaining on the tree and those abscised, had a higher sucrose and C6 carbohydrate content than flowers of determinate ones and no differences between them were found for C7 carbohydrates, which disagrees with this hypothesis, and indicates that factors other than carbohydrate content are responsible for fruit set in avocado.At anthesis and fruit set stage, gibberellin and cytokinin concentrations (mainly GA1 and tZ, respectively) were significantly higher in flowers of determinate inflorescences than in those of indeterminate ones, indicating their higher ability to set.We conclude that fruit set is hormonally regulated in avocado, irrespective of vegetative growth. The lower fruit set of the indeterminate inflorescences does not depend on the competition for photosynthates due to the apical vegetative growth, since C6 and C7 carbohydrate availability is enough to ensure fruit set, but on their lower content of GA1 and tZ.

Return to golf and golf-specific performance after anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty and reverse total shoulder arthroplasty

BackgroundGolf is a common sporting activity that patients continue to participate into older age, including after joint replacement surgery. The influence of shoulder replacement on golf performance remains unclear. We hypothesized that patients undergoing anatomic total shoulder arthroplasty (TSA) would have significantly better return to play rates and better performance metrics, including handicap, driving distance, and 7-iron distance, after shoulder replacement relative to those treated with reverse total shoulder arthroplasty (RTSA). MethodsPatients were retrospectively surveyed after anatomic TSA and RTSA with regards to return to golf and golf performance before and after shoulder replacement. Patients reported if they were able to return to golf after shoulder replacement, timing of return to golf, and driving distance, 7-iron distance, handicap, and difficulty with specific shot types upon returning to golf. Significance was defined as P < .05. ResultsThe survey was completed by 31 patients with a total of 37 replaced shoulders (68.0 ± 8.1 years; 87% male) out of 44 patients who indicated they played golf. The overall return to golf rate was 74%. Patients undergoing anatomic TSA returned at a significantly higher rate relative to patients treated with RTSA (93% [14 of 15] vs. 56% [9 of 16], P= .037). There was no difference between groups with regards to drive distance, 7-iron distance, and handicap. There were also no differences between preoperative and postoperative values for patients who were able to return to golf. Overall, patients played golf less frequently afterward than they did prior to shoulder replacement (P= .013). ConclusionPatients are able to return to golf after shoulder replacement, at an overall rate of 74%, including a rate of 93% for patients with anatomic TSA and 56% for patients with RTSA. Golf performance was similar before and after shoulder replacement surgery for both groups among those who were able to return to play, though overall frequency was decreased after shoulder replacement. Level of EvidenceLevel III; Retrospective Cohort Comparative Study

Shooting habits and habitats- effects of education and legislation on the phasing out of lead shot

Achieving sustainability often requires fostering changes in norms and behaviours through a combination of restrictions and aware-raising activities. The phasing out of lead in ammunition to reduce lead poisoning in waterfowl provides a case in point. Twenty years after the Parties to the African Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA) committed to phase out lead shot in wetlands, such bans have been implemented in a third of Europe only. Furthermore, while evidence is scant, compliance varies widely where bans have been introduced. As a result, waterfowl are still suffering from lead poisoning.Here, I survey the use of different types of shot while practicing and when taking game in different habitats in Sweden, one of the Parties to AEWA. Furthermore, I test the hypotheses that mandatory shooter education, or stakeholder communication, influence compliance with existing restrictions in Sweden, as well as the voluntary phasing out of lead shot where its use still is permitted.More than half of the shooters practiced using lead and a third used lead shot over what they considered as wetlands, in both cases in violation of the current legislation. Furthermore, what constitutes a wetland appears to have been unclear to many shooters, especially in alpine areas. Both mandatory education and stakeholder communication were positively related to compliance.Only 12–15 % used lead free alternatives in shooting over habitats where the use of lead shot is permitted. There was a weak positive relationship between stakeholder communication and the voluntary phasing out of lead shot, but no effect from education.I suggest that the planned and ongoing phasing out of lead in ammunition should rest on a combination of legislation, enforcement, education and stakeholder communication in order to be successful. The findings add to our general understanding of how to turn environmental policy into sustainable management actions in practice.

Modeling canopy photosynthesis and light interception partitioning among shoots in bi-axis and single-axis apple trees (Malus domestica Borkh.)

Bi-axis training increased vegetative shoot light interception and modeled photosynthetic rate, and reduced fruiting shoot mutual shading and vegetative growth by optimizing canopy structure compared to single-axis in young apple trees. Improving light interception and distribution within canopy are constant objectives of training through manipulating tree architecture. A bi-axis training system with two primary scaffolds has been proposed to improve flowering and dry matter production in apple trees. In this study, ‘Fuji’ apple trees trained using a bi-axis or single-axis training system were compared. Twelve three-dimensional (3D) virtual apple trees were reconstructed by combining 3D digitizing and allometric relationships for three shoot types (vegetative long shoot, VL; fruiting shoot, FS; vegetative short shoot, VS), to evaluate canopy structure impacts on light interception. Light interception efficiency was evaluated by silhouette to total area ratio (STAR). The potential canopy photosynthetic rate was evaluated by the eco-physiological RATP model. The leaf area of VL in bi-axis trained trees was approximately 40% lower than that in single-axis trees. Lower leaf area and more uniform spatial distribution were noted in VL in bi-axis than in single-axis trees. This led to more even spatial light distribution and more shoots having higher STAR in bi-axis than in single-axis trees, regardless of the whole tree or shoot type. In the virtual orchard, bi-axis trees had a 25% and 10% STAR increase in VS and VL, respectively, but a similar STAR for FS compared to single-axis trees. Mutual shading between neighboring trees in the virtual orchard made of bi-axis trees was significantly lower than that with single-axis trees for FS. The modeled canopy net photosynthetic rate was 26% higher in bi-axis than in single-axis trees. With the increase in tree age, the projected leaf area increased, but the porosity of the canopy decreased, and mutual shading increased for the whole canopy and all shoot types, irrespective of training systems. These results indicated that manipulating scaffolds in apple trees can regulate canopy structure, light interception, and vegetative growth during the early developmental stages.

Picturing Presidents in Conflict Times: A Content Analysis of Photographs in CNN

This study analyzes the depiction of the presidents of the great nations during the conflict times in CNN (Cable News Network) website. The present study will depend on a great extent on the visual framing theory in order to be able to identify the frames that appeared in the visual coverage of those presidents, according to the presumption of veracity that readers ascribe to the role of photographs in producing the meaning. Therefore, this study will be considered very timely. The analysis is meant to focus on explaining how the international website presented the pictures of those presidents and how they are visually framed (involved or not, interacting or not… etc.). Also, the analysis will be based on (position of presidents focused or unfocused “foreground, background”, camera angle, types of shots… etc.). The study will depend on the Survey method which is considered one of the most important basic research methods in Social Sciences, the study will analyze a period of three months. A website is analyzed, which is CNN (Cable News Network). In general, CNN did not try to provide a balanced visual coverage of the president bias or preferential treatment, which can be evaluated in a number of ways. Some studies focus on the amount of space allocated for president, others consider We predicted that President Trump's photos would be more favorable than other presidents in terms of behavior, context, and perspective. By comparing the results, it was not as predicted.

Successive applications of gibberellic acid to reduce flowering of 'Montenegrina' mandarin in alternate bearing

Abstract: The objective of this work was to evaluate the number of successive applications of gibberellic acid (GA3), during the autumn-winter period, for its effect on the reduction of flowering, in the subsequent spring after periods of low fruit load (off-year), in 'Montenegrina' mandarin trees (Citrus deliciosa). Sequential applications at 40 mg L-1 GA3 were tested from one to four times, at 21-day intervals, beginning in the end of May. The experiment was carried out in a randomized complete block design, with four treatments and a control, four replicates, and one plant per experimental unit. Flowering, sprouting, types of shoots, fruit set, and fruit diameter were evaluated. The fruit set increases exponentially with the reduction of flowering intensity. The use of GA3 in two, three, or four sequential applications, from May to June, May to July, and from May to August, at 21-day intervals, reduces the intensity of flowering and sprouting of alternate bearing plants in the subsequent spring, increasing mixed shoots and reducing floral shoots. The use of four sequential applications of 40 mg L-1 GA3 promotes a great increase in the frequency of single flower terminal leafy shoots and favors the increase of fruit fixation and size.

Learning to Visualize Music Through Shot Sequence for Automatic Concert Video Mashup

An experienced director usually switches among different types of shots to make visual storytelling more touching. When filming a musical performance, appropriate switching shots can produce some special effects, such as enhancing the expression of emotion or heating up the atmosphere. However, while the visual storytelling technique is often used in making professional recordings of a live concert, amateur recordings of audiences often lack such storytelling concepts and skills when filming the same event. Thus a versatile system that can perform video mashup to create a refined high-quality video from such amateur clips is desirable. To this end, we aim at translating the music into an attractive shot (type) sequence by learning the relation between music and visual storytelling of shots. The resulting shot sequence can then be used to better portray the visual storytelling of a song and guide the concert video mashup process. To achieve the task, we first introduces a novel probabilistic-based fusion approach, named as multi-resolution fused recurrent neural networks (MF-RNNs) with film-language, which integrates multi-resolution fused RNNs and a film-language model for boosting the translation performance. We then distill the knowledge in MF-RNNs with film-language into a lightweight RNN, which is more efficient and easier to deploy. The results from objective and subjective experiments demonstrate that both MF-RNNs with film-language and lightweight RNN can generate attractive shot sequences for music, thereby enhancing the viewing and listening experience.

Early Shoot Development Affects Carbohydrate Supply and Fruit Quality of Red-Fleshed Actinidia chinensis var. chinensis ‘Zes008’

Fruit quality characteristics are highly variable across kiwifruit vines due to complex source-sink interactions. We investigated how variation in fruit quality of Actinidia chinensis (Planch.) var. chinensis ‘Zes008’ was influenced by different shoot types (short, medium or long) and rootstocks types (Actinidia chinensis (Planch.) var. deliciosa (A. Chev.) ‘Bruno’ or Actinidia macrosperma C.F. Liang). Short shoots had smaller leaves (−30 to −50%) and lower photosynthesis rates (−0.70 to −3.34 µmol m−2 s−1) in the first cluster of nine leaves (Zone 1) compared with leaves on medium or long shoots. Later in the season, photosynthesis rates in Zone 1 declined with leaf age, but photosynthesis rates were higher (+0.5 to +6.1 µmol m−2 s−1) in later developing leaves on medium or long shoots. Fruit from short shoots had lower dry matter (−0.3 percent units) and lower outer pericarp flesh red pigment scores than fruit from medium or long shoots. At harvest, fruit from vines on ‘Bruno’ rootstocks were larger (+3.7 g), had higher dry matter (+1.3 percent units), soluble solids concentration (+1.7° Brix) and firmness (+0.4 kgf) than fruit from vines on A. macrosperma rootstocks. Factors that prioritised early development of source leaves had a direct impact on the carbohydrate supply from photosynthesis to support flower and fruit development.

Біоморфологічна структура флори городищ Нижнього Придніпров’я

The biomorphological analysis of the flora of eighteen ancient settlements of the Lower Dnipro as a potential "islands" of steppe biodiversity has been introducing. Based on the most commonly used linear systems of life forms by K. Ranquier and by V.M Golubev there have been presented the results of the analysis of biomorphs. In addition to the main biomorph, the following characteristics were taken into account: multiplicity of fruiting, main types of vegetation, type of underground shoots, type of aboveground shoots, type of root system. Domination in the general spectrum of life forms of the studied flora of herbaceous plants was determined (455 species or 86.8 % of the total number), among which perennials made up the majority (259 species or 49.4 %). The second and third groups are occupied by annuals (148 species or 28.2 % of the total) and biannuals (48 species or 9.2 % of the total), respectively. According to the multiplicity of fruiting, the participation of polycarpics (328 species; 62.6 %) is significant. However, it should be noted, that the high share of herbaceous monocarpics (196 species; 37.4 %) can be explained by the invasion of adventitious species from neighboring agricultural fields and existing settlements. By type of vegetation, summer-green species represent almost half of the total list of flora (231 species), while that of the group of summer and winter green plants was represented by 168 species or 32 %. By type of aboveground shoots, the predominance is given to semi-rosette species (276 species; 52.7 %), and by type of underground shoots - to caudex (201 species; 38.4 %) and plants without rhizomes (196; 37.4 %). Our study confirmed that biomorphological structure of the flora of ancient settlements are quite typical for the flora of the steppe zone and the flora of the Holarctic in general, as evidenced by the predominance in the respective spectra of perennial grasses, hemicryptophytes, polycarpics, plants with caudex type of underground shoots and rod type. Transformation of the zonal spectrum as a result of anthropogenic impact is manifested in a significant percentage of trees, annuals, monocarpics and species of rhizome structure.