We present a comparative evaluation of automatic classification of a sound database containing more than six hundred drum sounds (kick, snare, hihat, toms and cymbals). A preliminary set of fifty descriptors has been refined with the help of different techniques and some final reduced sets including around twenty features have been selected as the most relevant. We have then tested different cl...

A novel approach to retrieving total ozone columns from the ERS2 GOME (Global Ozone Monitoring Experiment) spectral data has been developed. With selected GOME wavelength regions, from clear and cloudy pixels alike plus orbital and instrument data as input, a feed-forward neural network was trained to determine total ozone in a one-step inverse retrieval procedure. To achieve this training, gro...

PURPOSE The aim of this study was to present the results of the 2 year outcome of I-Stop TOMS™ transobturator sling for post-prostatectomy (UIPP) minor to moderate male urinary incontinence treatment. MATERIALS AND METHODS A prospective, single center study, including 26 patients with minor to moderate IUPP and operated on using a suburethral sling (MS) TOMS™ (four arms) was performed. UIPP a...

A retrieval of ice crystal size near the tops of active deep convective clouds (Cb) throughout the Tropics over a 12-year period is presented based on radiances from the 3.7m channel of the AVHRR (Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer). Effective diameters ( ) are 10-20% smaller over land than ocean. Downwind of continents, crystals are smallest when low-level, offshore transport is stronges...

Aggressive encounters and injuries due to head pecking seriously threaten the welfare of domestic turkeys and also result in economic waste within the turkey industry. The aim of this study was to investigate whether domestic turkey toms distinguish group members from non group members and if they preferably attack the latter. Two unfamiliar groups of four domestic turkey toms were brought into...

In this study, satellite-based remote sensing techniques were developed for identifying smoke from forest fires. Both artificial neural networks (NN) and multithreshold techniques were explored for application with imagery from the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) aboard NOAA satellites. The NN was designed such that it does not only classify a scene into smoke, cloud, or clear ...

Atmospheric dust loadings have a significant influence on global climate by affecting air temperatures through the absorption and scattering of solar radiation. Many dryland basins are significant sources of aeolian dust, but our knowledge of how dust emissions from these systems are affected by ephemeral wetting events is either limited or poor. This research uses synergistic data sets (Total ...