Controlling weeds is a critically important task in sugarcane production systems. Weeds compete for light, nutrients, and water, and if they are not managed properly can negatively impact sugarcane yields. Accurate detection of weeds versus desired plants was assessed using hyperspectral and pigment analyses. Leaf samples were collected from four commercial Louisiana sugarcane varieties, and nine weed species commonly found in sugarcane fields. Hyperspectral leaf reflectance data (350 to 850 nm) were collected from all samples. Plant pigment (chlorophylls and carotenoids) levels were also determined using high performance liquid chromatography and concentration determined using authentic standards and leaf area. In all cases, leaf reflectance data successfully differentiated sugarcane from weeds using canonical discrimination analysis. Linear discriminant analysis showed that the accuracy of the classification varied from 67 to 100% for individual sugarcane varieties and weed species. In all cases, sugarcane was not misclassified as a weed. Plant pigment levels exhibited marked differences between sugarcane varieties and weed species with differences in chlorophyll and carotenoid explaining much of the observed variation in reflectance. The ratio of chlorophyll a to chlorophyll b showed significant differences between sugarcane and all weed species. The successful implementation of this technology as either an airborne system to scout and map weeds or a tractor-based system to identify and spray weeds in real-time would offer sugarcane growers a valuable tool to manage their crops. By accurately targeting weeds in an emerged, and growing sugarcane field, the total amount of herbicide applied could be decreased, resulting in cost savings for the grower and reduced environmental impacts.

South Africa has embarked on major health policy reform to deliver universal health coverage through the establishment of National Health Insurance (NHI). The aim is to improve access, remove financial barriers to care, and enhance care quality. Health technology assessment (HTA) is explicitly identified in the proposed NHI legislation and will have a prominent role in informing decisions about adoption and access to health interventions and technologies. The specific arrangements and approach to HTA in support of this legislation are yet to be determined. Although there is currently no formal national HTA institution in South Africa, there are several processes in both the public and private healthcare sectors that use elements of HTA to varying extents to inform access and resource allocation decisions. Institutions performing HTAs or related activities in South Africa include the National and Provincial Departments of Health, National Treasury, National Health Laboratory Service, Council for Medical Schemes, medical scheme administrators, managed care organizations, academic or research institutions, clinical societies and associations, pharmaceutical and devices companies, private consultancies, and private sector hospital groups. Existing fragmented HTA processes should coordinate and conform to a standardized, fit-for-purpose process and structure that can usefully inform priority setting under NHI and for other decision makers. This transformation will require comprehensive and inclusive planning with dedicated funding and regulation, and provision of strong oversight mechanisms and leadership.

Conservation scientists are increasingly recognizing the need to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions to improve human–wildlife coexistence across different contexts. Here we assessed the long-term efficacy of the Long Shields Community Guardians programme in Zimbabwe. This community-based programme seeks to protect livestock and prevent depredation by lions Panthera leo through non-lethal means, with the ultimate aim of promoting human–lion coexistence. Using a quasi-experimental approach, we measured temporal trends in livestock depredation by lions and the prevalence of retaliatory killing of lions by farmers and wildlife managers. Farmers that were part of the Long Shields programme experienced a significant reduction in livestock loss to lions, and the annual number of lions subject to retaliatory killing by farmers dropped by 41% since the start of the programme in 2013, compared to 2008–2012, before the programme was initiated. Our findings demonstrate the Long Shields programme can be a potential model for limiting livestock depredation by lions. More broadly, our study demonstrates the effectiveness of community-based interventions to engage community members, improve livestock protection and ameliorate levels of retaliatory killing, thereby reducing human–lion conflict.

Pneumatically activated systems enable myriad types of highly functional inflatables employing a wide range of architectural approaches affecting their form and function, making systematic conceptual design difficult. A new architectural class of pneumatically activated systems, constrained layer inflatable systems, consists of hierarchically architected flat layers of thin airtight bladders that are internally and/or externally constrained to generate a variety of functionalities. The highly hierarchical architectural structure of constrained layer inflatable systems coincides with the hierarchy of produced functions, providing an opportunity for the development of a functional architectural decomposition, capturing the inherent relationship between architectural and functional hierarchies. The basis of the approach is conveyed through the design of an example constrained layer inflatable system. This approach empowers the systematic understanding of the interrelated architectural and functional breakdown of constrained layer inflatable systems, enabling designers to iteratively analyze, synthesize, and re-synthesize the components of the system improving existing designs and exploring new concepts.

Despite its global importance and the recognition of dementia as an international public health priority, interventions to reduce stigma of dementia are a relatively new and emerging field. The purpose of this review was to synthesize the existing literature and identify key components of interventions to reduce stigma of dementia. We followed Arksey and O’Malley’s scoping review process to examine peer-reviewed literature of interventions to reduce dementia-related stigma. A stigma-reduction framework was used for classifying the interventions: education (dispel myths with facts), contact (interact with people with dementia), mixed (education and contact), and protest (challenge negative attitudes). From the initial 732 references, 21 studies were identified for inclusion. We found a variety of education, contact, and mixed interventions ranging from culturally tailored films to intergenerational choirs. Findings from our review can inform the development of interventions to support policies, programs, and practices to reduce stigma and improve the quality of life for people with dementia.

We study the stationary descendant Gromov–Witten theory of toric surfaces by combining and extending a range of techniques – tropical curves, floor diagrams and Fock spaces. A correspondence theorem is established between tropical curves and descendant invariants on toric surfaces using maximal toric degenerations. An intermediate degeneration is then shown to give rise to floor diagrams, giving a geometric interpretation of this well-known bookkeeping tool in tropical geometry. In the process, we extend floor diagram techniques to include descendants in arbitrary genus. These floor diagrams are then used to connect tropical curve counting to the algebra of operators on the bosonic Fock space, and are showno coincide with the Feynman diagrams of appropriate operators. This extends work of a number of researchers, including Block–Göttsche, Cooper–Pandharipande and Block–Gathmann–Markwig.

The goal of this study was to assess the utility of participatory needs assessment processes for continuous improvement of developing clinical and translational research (CTR) networks. Our approach expanded on evaluation strategies for CTR networks, centers, and institutes, which often survey stakeholders to identify infrastructure or resource needs, using the case example of the Great Plains IDeA-CTR Network. Our 4-stage approach (i.e., pre-assessment, data collection, implementation of needs assessment derived actions, monitoring of action plan) included a member survey (n = 357) and five subsequent small group sessions (n = 75 participants) to better characterize needs identified in the survey and to provide actionable recommendations. This participatory, mixed-methods needs assessment and strategic action planning process yielded 11 inter-related recommendations. These recommendations were presented to the CTR steering committee as inputs to develop detailed, prioritized action plans. Preliminary evaluation shows progress towards improved program capacity and effectiveness of the network to respond to member needs. The participatory, mixed-methods needs assessment and strategic planning process allowed a wide range of stakeholders to contribute to the development of actionable recommendations for network improvement, in line with the principles of team science.

This article documents relationships, strategies, and activities involved in developing and carrying out collaborative community-engaged research for reconciliation, based on Indigenous methodologies and research-creation. It documents an example of Indigenous/non-Indigenous collaboration in Unama’ki (also known as Cape Breton, Canada), providing data towards the refinement of models of research designed to foster reconciliation, and contributing to a literature on Indigenous/non-Indigenous collaborations in ethnomusicology and related fields. While revealing some challenges in the process with respect to addressing local needs, it also describes transformations that can be achieved through effective collaboration, including ways in which universities can be involved.

Background: A prolonged outbreak of carbapenemase-producing Serratia marcescens (CPSM) was identified in our quaternary healthcare center over a 2-year period from 2015 through 2017. A reservoir of IMP-4–producing S. marcescens in sink drains of clinical hand basins (CHB) was implicated in propagating transmission, supported by evidence from whole-genome sequencing (WGS). We assessed the impact of manual bioburden reduction intervention on further transmission of CPSM. Methods: Environmental sampling of frequently touched wet and dry areas around CPSM clinical cases was undertaken to identify potential reservoirs and transmission pathways. After identifying CHB as a source of CPSM, a widespread annual CHB cleaning intervention involving manual scrubbing of sink drains and the proximal pipes was implemented. Pre- and postintervention point prevalence surveys (PPS) of CHB drains performed to assess for CPSM colonization. Surveillance for subsequent transmission was conducted through weekly screening of patients and annual screening of CHB in transmission areas, and 6-monthly whole-hospital PPS of patients. All CPSM isolates were assessed by WGS. Results: In total, 6 patients were newly identified with CPSM from 2015 to 2017 (4.3 transmission events per 100,000 surveillance bed days [SBD]; 95% CI, 1.6–9.4). All clinical CPSM isolates were linked to CHB isolates by WGS. The CHB cleaning intervention resulted in a reduction in CHB colonization with CPSM in transmission areas from 72% colonization to 28% (ARR, 0.44; 95% CI, 0.25–0.63). A single further clinical case of CPSM linked to the CHB isolates was detected over 2 years of surveillance from 2017 to 2019 following the implementation of the annual CHB cleaning program (0.7 transmissions per 100,000 SBD; 95% CI, 0.0–3.9). No transmissions were linked to undertaking the cleaning intervention. Conclusions: A simple intervention targeted at reducing the biological burden of CPSM in CHB drains at regular intervals was effective in preventing transmission of carbapenemase-producing Enterobacterales from the hospital environment to patients over a prolonged period of intensive surveillance. These findings highlight the importance of detailed cleaning for controlling the spread of multidrug-resistant organisms from healthcare environments.

Funding: None

Disclosures: Jason Kwong, Austin Health