Predicting human brain activity associated with the meanings of nouns

The question of how the human brain represents conceptual knowledge has been debated in many scientific fields. Brain imaging studies have shown that different spatial patterns of neural activation are associated with thinking about different semantic categories of pictures and words (for example, tools, buildings, and animals). We present a computational model that predicts the functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) neural activation associated with words for which fMRI data are not yet available. This model is trained with a combination of data from a trillion-word text corpus and observed fMRI data associated with viewing several dozen concrete nouns. Once trained, the model predicts fMRI activation for thousands of other concrete nouns in the text corpus, with highly significant accuracies over the 60 nouns for which we currently have fMRI data.     

Influence of pheromone emission on the attraction of California red scale males in citrus orchards

Attraction of California red scale males, Aonidiella aurantii (Maskell), to different release rates of the sex pheromone compound 3-methyl-6-isopropenyl-9-decen-1-yl acetate was evaluated in field trials. This study was aimed to study pheromone emission-response correlations and the existence of an optimum release rate that maximizes trapping efficacy. Release profiles of the pheromone dispensers deployed were determined by gas chromatography to estimate the various emission rates tested. The results reveal that the mean number of A. aurantii males caught correlates with the daily pheromone release rates by means of a quadratic model. The obtained model indicates the existence of a relative maximum of the captures corresponding to an optimum release rate of ca. 300 μg/day. Higher emission rates (up to 1 g/day) resulted in lower captures. Implications for the mating disruption technique are discussed.     

Root development in agronomically distinct six‐rowed barley (Hordeum vulgare) cultivars inoculated with Azospirillum brasilense Sp7

The growth‐promoting rhizobacteria Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 positively affects many crops, but its influence on barley remains to be fully investigated. The aim of this study was to track early root growth of four barley cultivars that are widely used in Spanish breeding programmes under different growing scenarios. Different growth conditions are hypothesized to affect the response of young plants to A. brasilense Sp7, so seeds were inoculated with A. brasilense Sp7 and directly sown in the growth chamber, or planted in vitro. Plant height was measured and root structure analysed with the WinRHIZO program. Azospirillum brasilense Sp7 inoculation increased the length, surface area and number of root tips in both systems and in most cultivars in a similar way. Cultivars ‘Barberousse’ and ‘Plaisant’ were the most responsive to A. brasilense Sp7 treatment, while ‘Albacete’ was especially interesting in terms of its physiological interaction with A. brasilense Sp7 under abiotic stress imposed by the in vitro system. The utility of the in vitro system is criticized.