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Full-Text Articles in Environmental Engineering

Risk Of Injury Analysis In Depth Jump And Squat Jump, Curtis L. Tomasevicz, Jeffrey C. Woldstad, David.Jones@Unl.Edu Nov 2020

Risk Of Injury Analysis In Depth Jump And Squat Jump, Curtis L. Tomasevicz, Jeffrey C. Woldstad, David.Jones@Unl.Edu

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Introduction: The depth jump (DJ) and squat jump (SJ) are accepted ways to assess and train power producing ability but are not without risk of injury. Methods: Sixteen male participants (age = 21.7 ± 1.54 yrs., height = 177.7 ± 11.4 cm, mass = 77.7 ± 13.6 kg) were evaluated for power exertion capabilities while being assessed for risk of injury in the knee and low back through a range of resistances based on a percentage of participants’ heights in the DJ (0% through 50%) and bodyweights for the SJ (0% through 100%). Two variables were used to assess the …


Comparative Analyses Of Variable And Fixed Rate Irrigation And Nitrogen Management For Maize In Different Soil Types: Part I. Impact On Soil-Water Dynamics And Crop Evapotranspiration, Vasudha Sharma, Suat Irmak Nov 2020

Comparative Analyses Of Variable And Fixed Rate Irrigation And Nitrogen Management For Maize In Different Soil Types: Part I. Impact On Soil-Water Dynamics And Crop Evapotranspiration, Vasudha Sharma, Suat Irmak

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Understanding the soil-water dynamics and maize evapotranspiration (ETc) under variable rate irrigation (VRI) and variable rate fertigation (VRF) management with respect to soil spatial variability constitutes the basis for developing effective variable rate water and nitrogen management strategies. This long-term research was designed to quantify and compare the soil-water dynamics, including available water (AW), and ETc during vegetative and reproductive growth periods of VRI, fixed rate irrigation (FRI) and no-irrigation (NI) under fixed rate fertigation (FRF), VRF and pre-plant (PP) nitrogen management in three different soil types [Crete silt loam (S1); Hastings silty clay loam (S2) and Hastings silt loam …


Introduction To Special Issue Of Irrigation Science: Improving Irrigation Management Across The Ogallala Aquifer, Usa, Allan A. Andales, Daran Rudnick, José L. Chávez Oct 2020

Introduction To Special Issue Of Irrigation Science: Improving Irrigation Management Across The Ogallala Aquifer, Usa, Allan A. Andales, Daran Rudnick, José L. Chávez

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Groundwater stored in aquifers is a major source of irrigation water for many agricultural regions that receive insufficient precipitation for crop production. In the U.S.A., the High Plains aquifer (HPA) that underlies parts of Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Texas, and Wyoming supplies irrigation water for agricultural production. The HPA underlies around 450,658 km2 (174,000 mi2) of which the Ogallala aquifer is the principal geologic formation underlying 347,059 km2 (134,000 mi2) (Gutentag et al. 1984). The Ogallala aquifer is primarily a water table (unconfined) aquifer with saturated thickness ranging from 0 …


Engaging Farmers And The Agriculture Industry Through The Testing Agricultural Performance Solutions Program, Charles A. Burr, Daran Rudnick, Matt Stockton, Robert Tigner, Krystle Rhoades Oct 2020

Engaging Farmers And The Agriculture Industry Through The Testing Agricultural Performance Solutions Program, Charles A. Burr, Daran Rudnick, Matt Stockton, Robert Tigner, Krystle Rhoades

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

The University of Nebraska–Lincoln Testing Agricultural Performance Solutions (TAPS) program involves use of farm management competitions to increase engagement across producers, industry, and universities.Participants make several management decisions throughout the growing season in a controlled field trial held at the university research station. Results are analyzed, and awards are presented for most profitable farm, most efficient farm, and farm with the greatest grain yield. The TAPS program involves several techniques for facilitating participatory assistance, including two-way communication and transformational learning. It has resulted in participants' questioning their past management decisions and realizing that they need to improve their marketing skills …


Comparison Of Object Detection And Patch-Based Classification Deep Learning Models On Mid- To Late-Seasonweed Detection In Uav Imagery, Arun Narenthiran Veeranampalayam Sivakumar, Jiating Li, Stephen Scott, Eric T. Psota, Amit J. Jhala, Joe D. Luck, Jiating Li Jul 2020

Comparison Of Object Detection And Patch-Based Classification Deep Learning Models On Mid- To Late-Seasonweed Detection In Uav Imagery, Arun Narenthiran Veeranampalayam Sivakumar, Jiating Li, Stephen Scott, Eric T. Psota, Amit J. Jhala, Joe D. Luck, Jiating Li

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Mid- to late-season weeds that escape from the routine early-season weed management threaten agricultural production by creating a large number of seeds for several future growing seasons. Rapid and accurate detection of weed patches in field is the first step of site-specific weed management. In this study, object detection-based convolutional neural network models were trained and evaluated over low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery for mid- to late-season weed detection in soybean fields. The performance of two object detection models, Faster RCNN and the Single Shot Detector (SSD), were evaluated and compared in terms of weed detection performance using mean …


Past, Present And Future Of Irrigation On The U.S. Great Plains, Steve R. Evett, Paul D. Colaizzi, Freddie R. Lamm, Susan A. O'Shaughnessy, Derek M. Heeren, Thomas J. Trout, William L. Kranz, Xiaomao Lin Jul 2020

Past, Present And Future Of Irrigation On The U.S. Great Plains, Steve R. Evett, Paul D. Colaizzi, Freddie R. Lamm, Susan A. O'Shaughnessy, Derek M. Heeren, Thomas J. Trout, William L. Kranz, Xiaomao Lin

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Motivated by the need for sustainable water management and technology for next-generation crop production, the future of irrigation on the U.S. Great Plains was examined through the lenses of past changes in water supply, historical changes in irrigated area, and innovations in irrigation technology, management, and agronomy. We analyzed the history of irrigated agriculture through the 1900s to the present day. We focused particularly on the efficiency and water productivity of irrigation systems (application efficiency, crop water productivity, and irrigation water use productivity) as a connection between water resource management and agricultural production. Technology innovations have greatly increased the efficiency …


Retention Of Swine Slurry Constituents In Soil And Crop Residue As Affected By Setback Distance, John E. Gilley, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Kent M. Eskridge, Xu Li, Amy M. Schmidt, Daniel D. Snow Jun 2020

Retention Of Swine Slurry Constituents In Soil And Crop Residue As Affected By Setback Distance, John E. Gilley, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Kent M. Eskridge, Xu Li, Amy M. Schmidt, Daniel D. Snow

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Setbacks are prescribed distances from surface waters within which manure application is not allowed. Little information is available concerning the retention of swine slurry constituents in soil and crop residue materials within setback areas. This study was conducted to measure the retention of selected constituents within a setback area following the upslope application of swine slurry and the introduction of simulated rainfall. The no-till cropland site had a slope gradient of 4.9% and a mean winter wheat residue cover of 7.73 Mg ha−1 . Soil and vegetative samples were collected on 3.7 m wide by 23.2 m long plots with …


Economic Comparisons Of Variable Rate Irrigation And Fertigation With Fixed (Uniform) Rate Irrigation And Fertigation And Pre-Plant Fertilizer Management For Maize In Three Soils, Vasudha Sharma, Suat Irmak Jun 2020

Economic Comparisons Of Variable Rate Irrigation And Fertigation With Fixed (Uniform) Rate Irrigation And Fertigation And Pre-Plant Fertilizer Management For Maize In Three Soils, Vasudha Sharma, Suat Irmak

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Extensive field research for data collection to conduct economic comparisons of variable rate irrigation (VRI) with fixed (uniform) rate irrigation (FRI) and no irrigation (NI) in combination with three nitrogen application strategies of fixed (uniform) rate fertigation (FRF), variable rate fertigation (VRF) and pre-plant nitrogen (PP) management for maize (Zea mays L.) were conducted. Research was conducted in three soil types [(i) Crete silt loam (S1); (ii) Hastings silty clay loam (S2); and (iii) Hastings silt loam (S3)] for three growing seasons (2015, 2016 and 2017) in Nebraska, USA. For the economic analyses, the average initial investment of the …


Extracellular Matrix Disparities In An Nkx2-5 Mutant Mouse Model Of Congenital Heart Disease, Deanna Bousalis, Christopher S. Lacko, Nora Hlavac, Fariz Alkassis, Rebecca A. Wachs, Sahba Mobini, Christine E. Schmidt, Hideko Kasahara May 2020

Extracellular Matrix Disparities In An Nkx2-5 Mutant Mouse Model Of Congenital Heart Disease, Deanna Bousalis, Christopher S. Lacko, Nora Hlavac, Fariz Alkassis, Rebecca A. Wachs, Sahba Mobini, Christine E. Schmidt, Hideko Kasahara

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Congenital heart disease (CHD) affects almost one percent of all live births. Despite diagnostic and surgical reparative advances, the causes and mechanisms of CHD are still primarily unknown. The extracellular matrix plays a large role in cell communication, function, and differentiation, and therefore likely plays a role in disease development and pathophysiology. Cell adhesion and gap junction proteins, such as integrins and connexins, are also essential to cellular communication and behavior, and could interact directly (integrins) or indirectly (connexins) with the extracellular matrix. In this work, we explore disparities in the expression and spatial patterning of extracellular matrix, adhesion, and …


Development Of An In Vitro Intervertebral Disc Innervation Model To Screen Neuroinhibitory Biomaterials, Sarah M. Romereim, Caleb A. Johnston, Adan L. Redwine,, Rebecca A. Wachs May 2020

Development Of An In Vitro Intervertebral Disc Innervation Model To Screen Neuroinhibitory Biomaterials, Sarah M. Romereim, Caleb A. Johnston, Adan L. Redwine,, Rebecca A. Wachs

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Pain originating from an intervertebral disc (discogenic pain) is a major source of chronic low back pain. Pathological innervation of the disc by pain‐sensing nerve fibers is thought to be a key component of discogenic pain, so treatment with biomaterials that have the ability to inhibit neurite growth will greatly benefit novel disc therapeutics. Currently, disc therapeutic biomaterials are rarely screened for their ability to modulate nerve growth, mainly due to a lack of models to screen neuromodulation. To address this deficit, our lab has engineered a three dimensional in vitro disc innervation model that mimics the interface between primary …


Evaluation Of Low-Cost Depth Cameras For Agricultural Applications, Isabella C.F.S. Condotta, Tami M. Brown-Bandl, Santosh Pitla, John P. Stinn, Késia O. Silva-Miranda Apr 2020

Evaluation Of Low-Cost Depth Cameras For Agricultural Applications, Isabella C.F.S. Condotta, Tami M. Brown-Bandl, Santosh Pitla, John P. Stinn, Késia O. Silva-Miranda

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Low-cost depth-cameras have been used in many agricultural applications with reported advantages of low cost, reliability and speed of measurement. However, some problems were also reported and seem to be technology related, so understanding the limitations of each type of depth camera technology could provide a basis for technology selection and the development of research involving its use. The cameras use one or a combination of two of the three available technologies: structured light, time-of-flight (ToF), and stereoscopy. The objectives were to evaluate these different technologies for depth sensing, including measuring accuracy and repeatability of distance data and measurements at …


Sensitivity Analysis Of Data-Driven Groundwater Forecasts To Hydroclimatic Controls In Irrigated Croplands, Alessandro Amaranto, Francesca Pianosi, Dimitri Solomatine, Gerald Corzo-Perez, Francisco Munoz-Arriola Apr 2020

Sensitivity Analysis Of Data-Driven Groundwater Forecasts To Hydroclimatic Controls In Irrigated Croplands, Alessandro Amaranto, Francesca Pianosi, Dimitri Solomatine, Gerald Corzo-Perez, Francisco Munoz-Arriola

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

In the last decades, advancements in computational science have greatly expanded the use of artificial neural networks (ANNs) in hydrogeology, including applications on groundwater forecast, variable selection, extended lead-times, and regime-specific analysis. However, ANN-model performance often omits the sensitivity to ob- servational uncertainties in hydroclimate forcings. The goal of this paper is to implement a data-driven modeling framework for assessing the sensitivity of ANN-based groundwater forecasts to the uncertainties in observational inputs across space, time, and hydrological regimes. The objectives are two-folded. The first objective is to couple an ANN model with the PAWN sensitivity analysis (SA). The second objective …


Biological Systems Engineering, Asmaa Abdella, Fernando Segato, Mark R. Wilkins Apr 2020

Biological Systems Engineering, Asmaa Abdella, Fernando Segato, Mark R. Wilkins

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

The present work studied the optimization of aeration rate, agitation rate and oxygen transfer and the use of various batch fermentation strategies for xylanase production from a recombinant Aspergillus nidulans strain in a 3 L stirred tank reactor. Maximum xylanase production of 1250 U/mL with productivity of 313 U/mL/day was obtained under an aeration rate of 2 vvm and an agitation rate of 400 rpm using batch fermentation. The optimum volumetric oxygen transfer coefficient (kLa) for efficient xylanase production was found to be 38.6 h1. Fed batch mode and repeated batch fermentation was also performed with kLa was 38.6 h1. …


Capturing Spatial Variability In Maize And Soybean Using Stationary Sensor Nodes, Jasreman Singh, Derek M. Heeren, Yufeng Ge, Geng Bai Apr 2020

Capturing Spatial Variability In Maize And Soybean Using Stationary Sensor Nodes, Jasreman Singh, Derek M. Heeren, Yufeng Ge, Geng Bai

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

• Irrigation in agriculture maximizes crop yield and improves food security globally • Irrigation scheduling is strongly based on the ability to accurately estimate the appropriate amount and timing of water application • The timing of the irrigation can best be informed through the crop canopy stress, and the amount of irrigation is informed through soil moisture depletion

• Developing upper (non-water stressed) and lower (non-transpiring) baselines for irrigated and non-irrigated maize and soybean • Investigating the relationship between the canopy stress and the soil moisture stress

The canopy temperature stress and soil moisture depletion had stronger correlation for non-irrigated …


Evidence Of Arithmetical Uncertainty In Estimation Of Light And Water Use Efficiency, Meetpal S. Kukal, Suat Irmak Dr. Mar 2020

Evidence Of Arithmetical Uncertainty In Estimation Of Light And Water Use Efficiency, Meetpal S. Kukal, Suat Irmak Dr.

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

It was demonstrated that conventional resource use efficiency (RUE) estimation methodology is largely subject to arithmetic weakness. Extensive field research data on aboveground biomass (AGB), absorbed photosynthetically active radiation (APAR), and crop evapotranspiration (ETc) in maize, soybean, sorghum, and winter wheat confirmed this methodological bias for light use efficiency (LUE) and water use efficiency (WUE) estimation. LUE and WUE were derived using cumulated (data aggregates across samplings) and independent (data increments across samplings) approaches. Use of cumulated data yielded strong-but-false correlation between AGB and APAR or Etc, being a statistical artefact. RUE values from an independent (data increments across samplings) …


Predicting Escherichia Coli Loads In Cascading Dams With Machine Learning: An Integration Of Hydrometeorology, Animal Density And Grazing Pattern, Olufemi P. Abimbola, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Tiffany Messer, Elaine D. Berry, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Samuel Hansen Mar 2020

Predicting Escherichia Coli Loads In Cascading Dams With Machine Learning: An Integration Of Hydrometeorology, Animal Density And Grazing Pattern, Olufemi P. Abimbola, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Tiffany Messer, Elaine D. Berry, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Samuel Hansen

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Accurate prediction of Escherichia coli contamination in surface waters is challenging due to considerable uncertainty in the physical, chemical and biological variables that control E. coli occurrence and sources in surface waters. This study proposes a novel approach by integrating hydro-climatic variables as well as animal density and grazing pattern in the feature selection modeling phase to increase E. coli prediction accuracy for two cascading dams at the USMeat Animal Research Center (USMARC), Nebraska. Predictive models were developed using regression techniques and an artificial neural network (ANN). Two adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) structures including subtractive clustering and fuzzy c-means …


Banning Carbon Nanotubes Would Be Scientifically Unjustified And Damaging To Innovation, Daniel A. Heller, Prakrit V. Jena, Matteo Pasquali, Kostas Kostarelos, Lucia G. Delogu, Rachel E. Meidl, Slava V. Rotkin, David A. Scheinberg, Robert E. Schwartz, Mauricio Terrones, Yu Huang Wang, Alberto Bianco, Ardemis A. Boghossian, Sofie Cambré, Laurent Cognet, Simon R. Corrie, Philip Demokritou, Silvia Giordani, Tobias Hertel, Tetyana Ignatova, Mohammad F. Islam, Nicole M. Iverson, Anand Jagota, Dawid Janas, Junichiro Kono, Sebastian Kruss, Markita P. Landry, Yan Li, Richard Martel, Shigeo Maruyama, Anton V. Naumov, Maurizio Prato, Susan J. Quinn, Daniel Roxbury, Michael S. Strano, James M. Tour, R. Bruce Weisman, Wim Wenseleers, Masako Yudasaka Mar 2020

Banning Carbon Nanotubes Would Be Scientifically Unjustified And Damaging To Innovation, Daniel A. Heller, Prakrit V. Jena, Matteo Pasquali, Kostas Kostarelos, Lucia G. Delogu, Rachel E. Meidl, Slava V. Rotkin, David A. Scheinberg, Robert E. Schwartz, Mauricio Terrones, Yu Huang Wang, Alberto Bianco, Ardemis A. Boghossian, Sofie Cambré, Laurent Cognet, Simon R. Corrie, Philip Demokritou, Silvia Giordani, Tobias Hertel, Tetyana Ignatova, Mohammad F. Islam, Nicole M. Iverson, Anand Jagota, Dawid Janas, Junichiro Kono, Sebastian Kruss, Markita P. Landry, Yan Li, Richard Martel, Shigeo Maruyama, Anton V. Naumov, Maurizio Prato, Susan J. Quinn, Daniel Roxbury, Michael S. Strano, James M. Tour, R. Bruce Weisman, Wim Wenseleers, Masako Yudasaka

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

In a recent correspondence, the Swedish non-profit organization ChemSec announced the addition of carbon nanotubes to the SIN (‘Substitute It Now’) list1. Carbon nanotubes were added as an entire material class that “should be restricted or banned in the EU.” We believe that this recommendation confuses researchers and the public as it is based on evidence from a very narrow subset of data. Such a designation will likely hinder innovations that could lead to safe and effective applications of carbon nanotubes. Furthermore, this line of reasoning could damage other fields of science and technology, if applied similarly. We have worked …


Optimal Depth Jump Height Quantified As Percentage Of Athlete Stature, Curtis L. Tomasevicz, Ryan Hasenkamp, Jack W. Ransone, David Jones Jan 2020

Optimal Depth Jump Height Quantified As Percentage Of Athlete Stature, Curtis L. Tomasevicz, Ryan Hasenkamp, Jack W. Ransone, David Jones

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Purpose: An individual’s optimal depth jump platform height provides a resistive force which allows an athlete to rebound with substantial velocity resulting in maximum power exertion. The objective of this investigation was to show that the optimal platform height in a depth jump can be quantified as a percentage of individual body stature which can serve as measurable quantified value. Although athlete height is not highly correlated to power ability nor does a universal height exist, this value can provide a basis for a rehabilitation or strength and conditioning program. The desired intensity of a program can be prescribed as …


Review—Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes As Optical Sensors For Biological Applications, Eric M. Hofferber, Joseph A. Stapleton, Nicole M. Iverson Jan 2020

Review—Single Walled Carbon Nanotubes As Optical Sensors For Biological Applications, Eric M. Hofferber, Joseph A. Stapleton, Nicole M. Iverson

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Since the discovery of the band gap fluorescence from single walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT) many advancements have been made towards the use of these unique fluorophores as optical biosensors in vitro, ex vivo in vivo. Attention has been given to these pure carbon structures due to their photostability, tunable properties, and bright near infrared emission that falls in the tissue transparency window. This review highlights some of the major advancements in the field of SWNT biosensors over the last two decades with a focus given to recent advances in biological applications.


Robotic Detection And Grasp Of Maize And Sorghum: Stem Measurement With Contact, Abbas Atefi, Yufeng Ge, James C. Schnable Jan 2020

Robotic Detection And Grasp Of Maize And Sorghum: Stem Measurement With Contact, Abbas Atefi, Yufeng Ge, James C. Schnable

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Frequent measurements of the plant phenotypes make it possible to monitor plant status during the growing season. Stem diameter is an important proxy for overall plant biomass and health. However, the manual measurement of stem diameter in plants is time consuming, error prone, and laborious. The use of agricultural robots to automatically collect plant phenotypic data for trait measurements can overcome many of the drawbacks of manual phenotyping. The objective of this research was to develop a robotic system that can automatically detect and grasp the stem, and measure its diameter of maize and sorghum plants. The robotic system comprises …


Comparison Of Object Detection And Patch-Based Classification Deep Learning Models On Mid- To Late-Season Weed Detection In Uav Imagery, Arun Narenthiran Veeranampalayam Sivakumar, Jiating Li, Stephen Scott, Eric T. Psota, Amit J. Jhala, Joe D. Luck, Yeyin Shi Jan 2020

Comparison Of Object Detection And Patch-Based Classification Deep Learning Models On Mid- To Late-Season Weed Detection In Uav Imagery, Arun Narenthiran Veeranampalayam Sivakumar, Jiating Li, Stephen Scott, Eric T. Psota, Amit J. Jhala, Joe D. Luck, Yeyin Shi

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Mid- to late-season weeds that escape from the routine early-season weed management threaten agricultural production by creating a large number of seeds for several future growing seasons. Rapid and accurate detection of weed patches in field is the first step of site-specific weed management. In this study, object detection-based convolutional neural network models were trained and evaluated over low-altitude unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) imagery for mid- to late-season weed detection in soybean fields. The performance of two object detection models, Faster RCNN and the Single Shot Detector (SSD), were evaluated and compared in terms of weed detection performance using mean …


Teacher Level Factors And Student Achievement In A Cyber-Enabled Engineering Education Professional Development Program, Wei Zakharov, Johannes Strobel, Heidi A. Diefes-Dux Jan 2020

Teacher Level Factors And Student Achievement In A Cyber-Enabled Engineering Education Professional Development Program, Wei Zakharov, Johannes Strobel, Heidi A. Diefes-Dux

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

This study investigates the impact of an elementary engineering education teacher professional development program on student learning. The results show a significant increase in students’ knowledge in science from pre- to post-test as well as in engineering design from grade two to grade four. Further, the study uses multilevel modeling to quantitatively analyze the impact of differences among teachers on the engineering design achievement of their students. Different predictive relationships between demographic and social capital factors at the teacher level and student achievement are identified and implications for educational policymaking and practices are discussed.


Effect Of Urea Fertilizer Deep Placement Days After Transplanting Using Brri Prilled Urea Applicator On Transplanted Boro Rice Yield, Muhammad Rashed Al Mamun, K. Naher, Md Towfiqur Rahman, Md Anwar Hossen Jan 2020

Effect Of Urea Fertilizer Deep Placement Days After Transplanting Using Brri Prilled Urea Applicator On Transplanted Boro Rice Yield, Muhammad Rashed Al Mamun, K. Naher, Md Towfiqur Rahman, Md Anwar Hossen

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Rice is the most important crop in the developing countries of Asia. In the south and south-east Asia, rain-fed and irrigated transplanted rice occupies nearly two-thirds of the rice-growing area and produces more than 80% of the rough rice. In these areas, prilled urea conventionally applied by farmers is very insufficient in the transplanted rice field, where severe losses occur (up to 60% of applied N) via NH3volatilization, denitrification, leaching, and runoff. Considering loss minimization, an experiment was conducted during the Boro season at Bangladesh Agricultural Development Corporation (BADC) in Sylhet to evaluate the performance of BRRI Prilled …


Effect Of Rotary Blade Modification On Residue Retention Into Conservation Agriculture Practices, Md Talash Mahmud, Md Towfiqur Rahman, Md Mosharraf Hossain, Muhammad Ashik-E-Rabbani Jan 2020

Effect Of Rotary Blade Modification On Residue Retention Into Conservation Agriculture Practices, Md Talash Mahmud, Md Towfiqur Rahman, Md Mosharraf Hossain, Muhammad Ashik-E-Rabbani

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Conservation Agriculture (CA) has been a promising technique for better crop production. Manual seeding with conventional tillage practice is laborious and time consuming. However, Strip tillage (ST) method incorporating seeding machines minimizes human drudgery and optimizes the crop yield. Many problems associated with ST have been rectified e.g. tiny furrow backfill, inaccuracy of seed and fertilizer placement, leading to poor germination and curtailed outcomes. This article focused on the effects of residue retention for the rotary blades design on a versatile multi-crop planter (VMP). Four types of rotary blades of VMP differed by 15o increment of tip angles were …


Irrigation-Yield Production Functions And Irrigation Water Use Effciency Response Of Drought-Tolerant And Non-Drought-Tolerant Maize Hybrids Under Different Irrigation Levels, Population Densities, And Environments, Suat Irmak, Ali T. Mohammed, William Kranz, C. D. Yonts, Simon Van Donk Jan 2020

Irrigation-Yield Production Functions And Irrigation Water Use Effciency Response Of Drought-Tolerant And Non-Drought-Tolerant Maize Hybrids Under Different Irrigation Levels, Population Densities, And Environments, Suat Irmak, Ali T. Mohammed, William Kranz, C. D. Yonts, Simon Van Donk

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Irrigation-yield production functions (IYPFs), irrigation water use effciency (IWUE), and grain production per unit of applied irrigation of non-drought-tolerant (NDT) and drought-tolerant (DT) maize (Zea mays L.) hybrids were quantified in four locations with different climates in Nebraska [Concord (sub-humid), Clay Center (transition zone between sub-humid and semi-arid); North Platte (semi-arid); and, Scottsbluff (semi-arid)] during three growing seasons (2010, 2011, and 2012) at three irrigation levels (fully-irrigated treatment (FIT), early cut-off (ECOT), and rainfed (RFT)) under two plant population densities (PPDs) (low-PPD; 59,300 plants ha-1; and, high-PPD, 84,000 plants ha-1). Overall, DT hybrids’ performance was …


Influence Of Watershed Characteristics On Streambed Hydraulic Conductivity Across Multiple Stream Orders, Olufemi P. Abimbola, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Troy E. Gilmore, Jesse T. Korus Jan 2020

Influence Of Watershed Characteristics On Streambed Hydraulic Conductivity Across Multiple Stream Orders, Olufemi P. Abimbola, Aaron R. Mittelstet, Troy E. Gilmore, Jesse T. Korus

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Streambeds are critical hydrological interfaces: their physical properties regulate the rate, timing, and location of fluxes between aquifers and streams. Streambed vertical hydraulic conductivity (Kv) is a key parameter in watershed models, so understanding its spatial variability and uncertainty is essential to accurately predicting how stresses and environmental signals propagate through the hydrologic system. Most distributed modeling studies use generalized Kv estimates from column experiments or grain-size distribution, but Kv may include a wide range of orders of magnitude for a given particle size group. Thus, precisely predicting Kv spatially has remained conceptual, experimental, …


Deep Learning Predicts Microbial Interactions From Self-Organized Spatiotemporal Patterns, Joon-Yong Lee, Natalie C. Sadler, Robert G. Egbert, Christopher R. Anderton, Kirsten S. Hofmockel, Janet K. Jansson, Hyun-Seob Song Jan 2020

Deep Learning Predicts Microbial Interactions From Self-Organized Spatiotemporal Patterns, Joon-Yong Lee, Natalie C. Sadler, Robert G. Egbert, Christopher R. Anderton, Kirsten S. Hofmockel, Janet K. Jansson, Hyun-Seob Song

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Microbial communities organize into spatial patterns that are largely governed by interspecies interactions. This phenomenon is an important metric for understanding community functional dynamics, yet the use of spatial patterns for predicting microbial interactions is currently lacking. Here we propose supervised deep learning as a new tool for network inference. An agent-based model was used to simulate the spatiotemporal evolution of two interacting organisms under diverse growth and interaction scenarios, the data of which was subsequently used to train deep neural networks. For small-size domains (100 mm x 100 mm) over which interaction coefficients are assumed to be invariant, we …


Classification Of Tactile And Motor Velocity-Evoked Hemodynamic Response In Primary Somatosensory And Motor Cortices As Measured By Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Jan 2020

Classification Of Tactile And Motor Velocity-Evoked Hemodynamic Response In Primary Somatosensory And Motor Cortices As Measured By Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is an emerging technique in studying cerebral hemodynamics; however, consensus on the analysis methods and the clinical applications has yet to be established. In this study, we demonstrate the results of a pilot fNIRS study of cerebral hemodynamic response (HR) evoked by pneumotactile and sensorimotor stimuli on the dominant hand. Our goal is to find the optimal stimulus parameters to maximally evoke HR in the primary somatosensory and motor cortices. We use a pulsatile pneumatic array of 14 tactile cells that were attached to the glabrous surface of the dominant hand, with a patterned stimulus that …


Interrelationships Between Water Use Efficiency And Light Use Efficiency In Four Row Crop Canopies, Meetpal S. Kukal, Suat Irmak Dr. Jan 2020

Interrelationships Between Water Use Efficiency And Light Use Efficiency In Four Row Crop Canopies, Meetpal S. Kukal, Suat Irmak Dr.

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Quantitative evidence of light use efficiency (LUE) controls on water use effi- ciency (WUE) is lacking, especially comparatively across row crops. Field research experiments (2016–2018) were set up for maize (Zea mays L.), soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], sorghum [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench], and winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), under optimal growth conditions in dry sub-humid conditions. Overall, LUE was able to explain 52% of variance in WUE, and were related as WUE = 1.73 LUE, although crop-specific variation was observed. High- est sensitivity of WUE to changes in LUE was found in sorghum, followed by soybean, winter wheat, and …


Swine Slurry Characteristics As Affected By Selected Additives And Disinfectants, Jon Duerschner, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Kent Eskridge, John E. Gilley, Xu Li, Amy M. Schmidt, Daniel D. Snow Jan 2020

Swine Slurry Characteristics As Affected By Selected Additives And Disinfectants, Jon Duerschner, Shannon L. Bartelt-Hunt, Kent Eskridge, John E. Gilley, Xu Li, Amy M. Schmidt, Daniel D. Snow

Biological Systems Engineering: Papers and Publications

Current swine industry practice is to house animals in confinement facilities which capture and store feces and urine as slurry in pits below the production area. Additives and disinfectants may be introduced into the manure pits. This study was conducted to measure the effects of additives and disinfectants on temporal changes in swine slurry characteristics. Slurry from a commercial swine production facility in southeast Nebraska, USA was collected and transferred to 57 L reactors located within a greenhouse. Selected additives and disinfectants were added to the reactors and physical properties, chemical characteristics, and antibiotic concentrations were monitored for 40 days. …