Forecasting the onset of depression with limited baseline data only: A comparison of a person-specific and a multilevel modeling based exponentially weighted moving average approach.

The onset of depressive episodes is preceded by changes in mean levels of affective experiences, which can be detected using the exponentially weighted moving average procedure on experience sampling method (ESM) data. Applying the exponentially weighted moving average procedure requires sufficient baseline data from the person under study in healthy times, which is needed to calculate a control limit for monitoring incoming ESM data. It is, however, not trivial to obtain sufficient baseline data from a single person.

Allantoic Fluid-Based qPCR for Early Onset Sexing.

The day-old male chick culling remains a welfare issue in the poultry industry. Several governments have prohibited this practice, pushing hatcheries to seek alternatives. Although different solutions exist for solving this problem, sex determination during the embryo's incubation ( sexing) is considered the most suitable one among the consumers and industry.

Noninvasive Assessment of Chicken Egg Fertility during Incubation Using HSSE-GC-MS VOC Profiling.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) carry crucial information about chicken egg fertility. Assessing the fertility before incubation holds immense potential for poultry industry efficiency. Our study used headspace sorptive extraction-gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to analyze egg VOCs before and during the initial 12 incubation days.

Non-destructive egg breed separation using advanced VOC analytical techniques HSSE-GC-MS, PTR-TOF-MS, and SIFT-MS: Assessment of performance and systems' complementarity.

Over the past decade, advanced analytical techniques have been utilized to examine volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in eggs. These VOCs offer valuable insights into factors such as freshness, fertility, the presence of cracks, embryo sex, and breed. In our study, we assessed three mass spectrometry-based systems (headspace sorptive extraction gas chromatography-mass spectrometry; HSSE-GC-MS, proton transfer reaction time-of-flight-mass spectrometry; PTR-TOF-MS; and selected ion flow tube mass spectrometry; SIFT-MS) to analyze and identify VOCs present in intact hatching eggs from three distinct breeds (Dekalb white layer, Shaver brown layer, and Ross 308 broiler).

Association between management practices and estimated mastitis incidence and milk losses on robotic dairy farms.

This study aims to describe the relation between farm-level management factors and estimated farm-level mastitis incidence and milk loss traits (MIMLT) at dairy farms with automated milking systems. In this observational study, 43 commercial dairy farms in Belgium and the Netherlands were included and 148 'management and udder health related variables' were obtained during a farm visit through a farm audit and survey. The MIMLT were estimated from milk yield data.

Monitoring cadmium concentrations in cacao: inter-laboratory variation and the effect of sample size on variability among ready-for-sale beans.

Since the implementation of new EU limits on cadmium (Cd) in cacao-derived products, reliable measurements of the Cd concentration in cacao samples have become even more important. This study was set up to analyse the robustness of the measured Cd concentrations in cacao as affected by sampling strategy and by the laboratory receiving these samples. Six different homogenised cacao liquor samples were sent to 25 laboratories, mainly located in Latin America.

Trends in in ovo sexing technologies: insights and interpretation from papers and patents.

Numerous researchers and institutions have been developing in ovo sexing technologies to improve animal welfare by identifying male embryos in an early embryonic stage and disposing of them before pain perception. This review gives a complete overview of the technological approaches reported in papers and patents by performing a thorough search using Web of Science and Patstat/Espacenet databases for papers and patents, respectively. Based on a total of 49 papers and 115 patent families reported until May 2023 worldwide, 11 technology categories were defined: 6 non-optical and 5 optical techniques.

Towards automatic insect monitoring on witloof chicory fields using sticky plate image analysis.

Context: Sticky trap catches of agricultural pests can be employed for early hotspot detection, identification, and estimation of pest presence in greenhouses or in the field. However, manual procedures to produce and analyze catch results require substantial time and effort. As a result, much research has gone into creating efficient techniques for remotely monitoring possible infestations.

Real-time detection of mean and variance changes in experience sampling data: A comparison of existing and novel statistical process control approaches.

Retrospective analyses of experience sampling (ESM) data have shown that changes in mean and variance levels may serve as early warning signs of an imminent depression. Detecting such early warning signs prospectively would pave the way for timely intervention and prevention. The exponentially weighted moving average (EWMA) procedure seems a promising method to scan ESM data for the presence of mean changes in real-time.

Non-Destructive Eggshell Strength Assessment Using Hertz Contact Theory-Part II: Implementation and Validation.

Eggshell strength is a critical quality factor for consumption eggs as it affects the probability of breakage in practice. In this study, a fast and low-cost methodology for the non-destructive determination of eggshell strength is presented. The method utilized a small steel ball to impact the egg and a microphone to analyse the impact characteristics.

Non-Destructive Eggshell Strength Assessment Using Hertz Contact Theory Part I: Theory and Applicability.

In the egg industry, fast and highly reliable quality measurements are crucial. This study presents a novel method based on Hertz contact theory that allows for non-destructive determination of eggshell strength. The goal of the study was to evaluate the material strength (Young's Modulus) and structural strength (stiffness) of eggshells.

Optical Identification of Fruitfly Species Based on Their Wingbeats Using Convolutional Neural Networks.

The spotted wing Drosophila (SWD), , is a significant invasive pest of berries and soft-skinned fruits that causes major economic losses in fruit production worldwide. Automatic identification and monitoring strategies would allow to detect the emergence of this pest in an early stage and minimize its impact. The small size of and similar flying insects makes it difficult to identify them using camera systems.

In ovo sexing of eggs from brown breeds with a gender-specific color using visible-near-infrared spectroscopy: effect of incubation day and measurement configuration.

The culling of day-old male chicks is an animal welfare issue within the laying hen industry that raises substantial ethical concern. Alternative methods are sought to pre-select males during embryonic development. This method is called in ovo sexing and allows more humane male culling.

Detecting mean changes in experience sampling data in real time: A comparison of univariate and multivariate statistical process control methods.

Detecting early warning signals of developing mood disorders in continuously collected affective experience sampling (ESM) data would pave the way for timely intervention and prevention of a mood disorder from occurring or to mitigate its severity. However, there is an urgent need for online statistical methods tailored to the specifics of ESM data. Statistical process control (SPC) procedures, originally developed for monitoring industrial processes, seem promising tools.

Validation of a novel milk progesterone-based tool to monitor luteolysis in dairy cows: Timing of the alerts and robustness against missing values.

Automated monitoring of fertility in dairy cows using milk progesterone is based on the accurate and timely identification of luteolysis. In this way, well-adapted insemination advice can be provided to the farmer to further optimize fertility management. To properly evaluate and compare the performance of new and existing data-processing algorithms, a test data set of progesterone time-series that fully covers the desired variability in progesterone profiles is needed.

Short communication: Validation of a novel milk progesterone-based tool to monitor luteolysis in dairy cows using cost-effective, on-farm measured data.

The progesterone (P4) monitoring algorithm using synergistic control (PMASC) uses luteal dynamics to identify fertility events in dairy cows. This algorithm employs a combination of mathematical functions describing the increasing and decreasing P4 concentrations during the development and regression of the corpus luteum and a statistical control chart that allows identification of luteolysis. The mathematical model combines sigmoidal functions from which the cycle characteristics can be calculated.

Short communication: Sensitivity of estrus alerts and relationship with timing of the luteinizing hormone surge.

Both the sensitivity of an estrus detection system and the consistency of alarms relative to ovulation determine its value for a farmer. The objective of this study was to compare an activity-based system and a milk progesterone-based system for their ability to detect estrus reliably, and to investigate how their alerts are linked to the time of the LH surge preceding ovulation. The study was conducted on an experimental research farm in Flanders, Belgium.

Method for short-term prediction of milk yield at the quarter level to improve udder health monitoring.

Udder health problems are often associated with milk losses. These losses are different between quarters, as infected quarters are affected both by systemic and pathogen-specific local effects, whereas noninfected quarters are only subject to systemic effects. To gain insight in these losses and the milk yield dynamics during disease, it is essential to have a reliable reference for quarter-level milk yield in an unperturbed state, mimicking its potential yield.

A novel system for on-farm fertility monitoring based on milk progesterone.

Timely identification of a cow's reproduction status is essential to minimize fertility-related losses on dairy farms. This includes optimal estrus detection, pregnancy diagnosis, and the timely recognition of early embryonic death and ovarian problems. On-farm milk progesterone (P4) analysis can indicate all of these fertility events simultaneously.

Mathematical characterization of the milk progesterone profile as a leg up to individualized monitoring of reproduction status in dairy cows.

Reproductive performance is an important factor affecting the profitability of dairy farms. Optimal fertility results are often confined by the time-consuming nature of classical heat detection, the fact that high-producing dairy cows show estrous symptoms shorter and less clearly, and the occurrence of ovarian problems. Today's commercially available solutions for automatic estrus detection include monitoring of activity, temperature and progesterone.

Augmented design and analysis of computer experiments: a novel tolerance embedded global optimization approach applied to SWIR hyperspectral illumination design.

A novel meta-heuristic approach for minimizing nonlinear constrained problems is proposed, which offers tolerance information during the search for the global optimum. The method is based on the concept of design and analysis of computer experiments combined with a novel two phase design augmentation (DACEDA), which models the entire merit space using a Gaussian process, with iteratively increased resolution around the optimum. The algorithm is introduced through a series of cases studies with increasing complexity for optimizing uniformity of a short-wave infrared (SWIR) hyperspectral imaging (HSI) illumination system (IS).

Prediction of heat-induced polymerization of different globular food proteins in mixtures with wheat gluten.

Egg, soy or whey protein co-exists with wheat gluten in different food products. Different protein types impact each other during heat treatment. A positive co-protein effect occurs when heat-induced polymerization of a mixture of proteins is more intense than that of the isolated proteins.

Environmental and cow-related factors affect cow locomotion and can cause misclassification in lameness detection systems.

To tackle the high prevalence of lameness, techniques to monitor cow locomotion are being developed in order to detect changes in cows' locomotion due to lameness. Obviously, in such lameness detection systems, alerts should only respond to locomotion changes that are related to lameness. However, other environmental or cow factors can contribute to locomotion changes not related to lameness and hence, might cause false alerts.