Using Passive Infrared Detectors to Record Group Activity and Activity in Certain Focus Areas in Fattening Pigs

Animal behavior is an important aspect in the assessment of animal welfare. Passive infrared detectors (PID), detecting thermal changes to measure activity, have already been used to record data on the behavior of groups of animals. Within this study, the suitability of these detectors for the collection of activity profiles for focused areas is further investigated. The aim was to record the activity of a group of eleven fattening pigs in a pen, as well as the activity in the five functional areas for resting, feeding, drinking, exploration, and elimination. In order to evaluate the data obtained, the behavior was video recorded for visual assessment. In addition, relevant indoor environment parameters were recorded (ammonia, air temperature, and relative humidity). For the measurement of activity by PID, strong correlations from up to r = 0.87 (p < 0.01) could be found compared to visual assessment. The results indicate that activity changes during the day and activity in defined functional areas can be recorded using PIDs. These data combined with data of climate-related sensors could serve the farmer as a monitoring tool for early detection of behavioral changes or serve as partial aspect within a Weak Point Analysis within external on-farm consulting.

Das Vadanya" To the Multilateral Force: The Societ Union's Role in the Johnson Administration's Decision to Abandon the MLF

The Multilateral Force (MLF) was a proposed nuclear sharing arrangement between the United States and a number of its NATO partners. Proposed in 1958, the MLF was debated until about 1965 or 1966 and was often distinguished by its controversial nature and failure to gain traction. This paper examines documents from the Digital National Security Archive (DNSA), Foreign Relations of the United States (FRUS), Record Group 59: General Records of the Department of State, and various secondary sources to evaluate the extent to which the Soviet Union contributed to the MLF’s failure as an initiative. The Force is often treated as a narrow and highly technical policy debate by existing literature. However, examination of these documents highlighted the necessity of viewing the Force as a topic of distinct political import in American-Soviet nuclear negotiations. While technical disputes over the MLF’s constitution was an immediate cause of its demise, U.S. policymakers also faced strategic incentives not to pursue the treaty. In particular, the documents reflect growing belief within the Johnson administration that exiting the agreement could improve broader bilateral relations with the Soviet Union and ensure that the international community could continue to make progress on the creation of a nuclear non-proliferation agreement.

A Comparative Study of Condylar Guidance Setting Obtained From Interocclusal Records and Panoramic Radiographs in Both Dentulous and Edentulous Subjects

To compare the condylar guidance values obtained from interocclusal records and the panoramic radiographs in both dentulous and edentulous subjects. Materials & methods: 20 dentulous and 20 edentulous subjects having specific criteria were selected for the cross-sectional descriptive in-vivo study. In the first method, the sagittal condylar guidance values for both the groups were recorded after obtaining protrusive records using HANAU articulator model Wide-Vue, U.S.A. In the second method panoramic radiographs were made of all the edentulous and dentulous subjects in the natural head position and tracings were done of the outline of glenoid fossa and the articular eminence. The angles formed by the lines drawn were measured and the values obtained were compared with those from the inter-occlusal record method. The condylar guidance readings of both dentulous and edentulous subjects obtained from the interocclusal records and those by tracing panoramic radiographic images were compared by Mann Whitney U test and Karl Pearson’s coefficient of correlation test. Results: The condylar guidance values obtained from the interocclusal records were less when compared to the values obtained from tracing the panoramic radiographs. Significant correlation (r=0.9) between the condylar guidance values obtained for left and right sides in interocclusal record group and a moderate correlation (r=0.65) between the condylar guidance values obtained for left and right sides from panoramic radiographs. Conclusion: The results from this study showed that measurement of condylar inclination angles using panoramic radiographs gave higher values, as compared to the inter-occlusal record method. Also, panoramic radiographic method revealed less difference between the condylar guidance values obtained for left and right sides as compared to the articulator method. Although, significant amount of correlation was found between the two methods, variations due to different operators and better radiographic techniques should be further investigated.

Foraging patterns of capybaras in a seasonally flooded savanna of Venezuela

The foraging behaviour of capybaras (Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris) was assessed in relation to habitat and season in a flooded savanna of Venezuela from February (dry season) 1993 to June (rainy season) 1994. Direct observations were carried out to record group movements and foraging activities of individual capybaras when feeding on specific plant species. The time devoted to feeding upon some species was recorded in relation to total foraging time (feeding + searching). Capybaras spent similar times feeding on reed (Eleocharis interstincta; Cyperaceae) and Paratheria prostrata (Poaceae) patches during the dry season though plant quality was different. During the rainy season, reeds were almost ignored by the animals which fed mainly on Hymenachne amplexicaulis, a grass with a significantly higher content of energy and protein. Capybaras fed for longer time during the dry season but more selectively during the rainy season. Capybaras were the dominant grazers in this flood savanna as inferred from the comparative effects they produced in the height, biomass and quality of the pasture in relation to those effects produced by other vertebrate herbivores, namely, cattle, feral horses and asses.