Features of generation and propagation of the extremely low frequency waves excited in the ionosphere under the powerful HF radioemission influence

The experimental results of the extremely low frequency emission characteristics excited in the outer ionosphere under the ionospheric plasma heating by high-latitude EISCAT facility are presented. The experiments have been conducted in the period of 20062010 yr. using two main schemes of extremely low frequency generation including the impact of the heating facility amplitude modulated emission and two unmodulated pump waves with the frequency detuning. In-situ measurements of the plasma wave disturbances were performed at the outer ionosphere heights using on-board equipment of DEMETER microsatellite. In work the spatial, amplitude and spectral characteristics of the generated extremely low frequency emissions are determined. It is shown that the characteristic size of the extremely low frequency emission is about 400600 km along the trajectory of the DEMETER microsatellite. The registration area spatial position is determined by both the applied generation scheme and the background plasma density distribution. The extremely low frequency emission electric field strength at the Earths outer ionosphere heights is 50330 V/m.

Transcranial alternating current stimulation does not modulate corticospinal activity in humans

Transcranial alternating current stimulation (TACS) is commonly used to synchronise the output of a cortical area to other parts of the nervous system, but evidence for this based on brain recordings in humans is challenging. The brain transmits beta oscillations (~21Hz) to tonically contracted limb muscles linearly and through the fastest corticospinal pathways. Therefore, muscle activity may be used as a proxy measure for the level of beta entrainment in the corticospinal tract due to TACS over motor cortex. Here, we assessed if TACS is able to modulate the neural inputs to muscles, which would provide an indirect evidence for TACS-driven neural entrainment. In the first part of this study, we ran a series of simulations of motor neuron (MN) pools receiving inputs from corticospinal neurons with different levels of beta entrainment. Results indicated that MNs should be highly sensitive to changes in corticospinal beta activity. Then, we ran experiments on healthy human subjects (N=10) in which TACS (at 1mA) was delivered over the motor cortex at 21Hz (beta stimulation), or at 7Hz or 40Hz (control conditions) while the abductor digiti minimi (ADM) or the tibialis anterior muscle (TA) were tonically contracted. Muscle activity was measured using high-density electromyography, which allowed us to decompose the spiking activity of pools of motor units innervating the studied muscles. By analysing motor unit pool activity, we observed that none of the tested TACS conditions could consistently alter the spectral characteristics of the common neural inputs received by the muscles. These results suggest that 1mA-TACS over motor cortex given at frequencies in the beta band does not affect corticospinal beta entrainment.

Development of an Optical System Based on Spectral Imaging Used for a Slug Control Robot

The state-of-the-art technique to control slug pests in agriculture is the spreading of slug pellets. This method has some downsides, because slug pellets also harm beneficials and often fail because their efficiency depends on the prevailing weather conditions. This study is part of a research project which is developing a pest control robot to monitor the field, detect slugs, and eliminate them. Robots represent a promising alternative to slug pellets. They work independent of weather conditions and can distinguish between pests and beneficials. As a prerequisite, a robot must be able to reliably identify slugs irrespective of the characteristics of the surrounding conditions. In this context, the utilization of computer vision and image analysis methods are challenging, because slugs look very similar to the soil, particularly in color images. Therefore, the goal of this study was to develop an optical filter-based system that distinguishes between slugs and soil. In this context, the spectral characteristics of both slugs and soil in the visible and visible near-infrared (VNIR) wavebands were measured. Conspicuous maxima followed by conspicuous local minima were found for the reflection spectra of slugs in the near infrared range from 850 nm to 990 nm]. Thus, this enabled differentiation between slugs and soils; soils showed a monotonic increase in the intensity of the relative reflection for this wavelength. The extrema determined in the reflection spectra of slugs were used to develop and set up a slug detector device consisting of a monochromatic camera, a filter changer and two narrow bandpass filters with nominal wavelengths of 925 nm and 975 nm. The developed optical system takes two photographs of the target area at night. By subtracting the pixel values of the images, the slugs are highlighted, and the soil is removed in the image due to the properties of the reflection spectra of soils and slugs. In the resulting image, the pixels of slugs were, on average, 12.4 times brighter than pixels of soil. This enabled the detection of slugs by a threshold method.

A New Method for Continuous Monitoring of Black and Odorous Water Body Using Evaluation Parameters: A Case Study in Baoding

Water is an important factor in human survival and development. With the acceleration of urbanization, the problem of black and odorous water bodies has become increasingly prominent. It not only affects the living environment of residents in the city, but also threatens their diet and water quality. Therefore, the accurate monitoring and management of urban black and odorous water bodies is particularly important. At present, when researching water quality issues, the methods of fixed-point sampling and laboratory analysis are relatively mature, but the time and labor costs are relatively high. However, empirical models using spectral characteristics and different water quality parameters often lack universal applicability. In addition, a large number of studies on black and odorous water bodies are qualitative studies of water body types, and there are few spatially continuous quantitative analyses. Quantitative research on black and odorous waters is needed to identify the risk of health and environmental problems, as well as providing more accurate guidance on mitigation and treatment methods. In order to achieve this, a universal continuous black and odorous water index (CBOWI) is proposed that can classify waters based on evaluated parameters as well as quantitatively determine the degree of pollution and trends. The model of CBOWI is obtained by partial least squares machine learning through the parameters of the national black and odorous water classification standard. The fitting accuracy and monitoring accuracy of the model are 0.971 and 0.738, respectively. This method provides a new means to monitor black and odorous waters that can also help to improve decision-making and management.

Quasi-biennial and quasi-triennial oscillations in the growth rates of atmospheric chlorofluorocarbons 11 and 12

The 12-monthly running means of CFC-11 and CFC-12 were examined for 1977-1992. As observed by earlier workers, during 1977-1988, there was a rapid, almost linear increase of these compounds, ~70% in the northern and ~77% in the southern hemisphere. From 1988 up to 1992, growth rates were slower, more so for CFC-11 in the northern hemisphere. Superposed on this pattern were QBO, QTO (Quasi-Biennial and Quasi-Triennial Oscillations). A spectral analysis of the various series indicated the following. The 50 hPa low latitude zonal wind had one prominent QBO peak at 2.58 years and much smaller peaks at 2.00 (QBO) and 5.1 years. The Southern oscillation index represented by (T-D), Tahiti minus Darwin atmospheric pressure, had a prominent peak at 4.1 years and a smaller peak at 2.31 years. CFC-11 had only one significant peak at 3.7 years in the southern hemisphere, roughly similar to the 4.1 year (T-D) peak. CFC-12 had prominent QBO (2.16-2.33 years) in both the hemispheres and a QTO (3.6 years) in the southern hemisphere. For individual locations, CFC-11 showed barely significant QBO in the range (1.95-3.07 years), while CFC 12 showed strong QBO in the range (1.86-2.38 years). The difference in the spectral characteristics of CFC-11 and CFC 12 time series is attributed to differences in their lifetimes (44 and 180 years), source emission rates and transport processes.

Assessing the Spectral Characteristics of Dye- and Pigment-Based Inkjet Prints by VNIR Hyperspectral Imaging

Fine art photography, paper documents, and other parts of printing that aim to keep value are searching for credible techniques and mediums suitable for long-term archiving purposes. In general, long-lasting pigment-based inks are used for archival print creation. However, they are very often replaced or forged by dye-based inks, with lower fade resistance and, therefore, lower archiving potential. Frequently, the difference between the dye- and pigment-based prints is hard to uncover. Finding a simple tool for countrified identification is, therefore, necessary. This paper assesses the spectral characteristics of dye- and pigment-based ink prints using visible near-infrared (VNIR) hyperspectral imaging. The main aim is to show the spectral differences between these ink prints using a hyperspectral camera and subsequent hyperspectral image processing. Two diverse printers were exploited for comparison, a hobby dye-based EPSON L1800 and a professional pigment-based EPSON SC-P9500. The identical prints created via these printers on three different types of photo paper were recaptured by the hyperspectral camera. The acquired pixel values were studied in terms of spectral characteristics and principal component analysis (PCA). In addition, the obtained spectral differences were quantified by the selected spectral metrics. The possible usage for print forgery detection via VNIR hyperspectral imaging is discussed in the results.