Global steel production in the first two decades of the 21st century: a period of economic fluctuations and attempts to control globalisation processes

Based on World Steel Association statistical data, this study brings together changes in the geographical pattern of global steel production in the first two decades of the 21st century and its fluctuations during economic and social crises. The analysis indicates a strong concentration of production in several countries, and among them, China has become the leader in the last two decades. Since 2017, it has produced more than half of all steel globally, and in 2019 its annual production exceeded one billion tonnes. In 2020 the largest Chinese concern, China Baowu Group, ousted ArcelorMittal from its leading position in the ranking of the world’s largest steel concerns. Such an intense concentration of steel production in one country and the strategies of internal consolidation of Chinese steel producers are a clear signal that China is taking control of the global market for this raw material, essential for many economic sectors.

Deep Learning-Based Pest Surveillance System for Sericulture

Every year sericulture farmers lose a sizeable amount of revenue because of pest attacks on silkworms. In 2011 the annual production of silk is fall by about 50% because of pest attacks [1]. To prevent these losses constant monitoring of the environment is required. But this constant surveillance can’t be achievable by manual labour force but it can be achievable by using deep learning techniques. This article presents a deep learning system that is trained and tested for detecting invasive species which can cause harm to silkworms such as Oecophylla smargdina, Vespa orientalis, Sycanus collaris, Hierodulla bipapilla, Canthecona furcellata, Blepharipa zebina and Apanteles glomeratus.

Annual variability in sound acorn production was regulated by a generalist seed predator weevil in Quercus serrata

Highly variable and synchronous seed production within a population (‘masting’) could be from either synchronised high annual variability in floral initiation (‘flower masting’) or synchronised floral abortion until maturity (‘fruit maturation masting’). We investigated the demographic processes of the female organs from flowering to seed maturity, including each type of insect damage identified, in Quercus serrata in six individuals within a stand from 2014 to 2020, western Japan. Although the annual production of sound acorns was significantly correlated with that of female flowers, the annual variability in sound acorn production within an individual was significantly higher and their synchrony increased, compared to those of female flowers. The annual production of female flowers was positively correlated with the temperature difference in April between the previous and flowering years. However, their fluctuation was low, which was neither affected by seed and flower production in the previous year nor contributed to predator starvation. Key-factor analyses revealed that reproductive loss due to oviposition and sap suction by Mechoris ursulus , a generalist seed predator weevil for oak species, was the largest and most important factor that contributed to the annual variation in the total pre-dispersal loss of Q. serrata . The survival rate from female flowers to sound acorns was strongly predicted by the temperature in June, corresponding to the emergence of adult M. ursulus . This study suggests that highly variable and synchronous sound seed production can be proximately regulated by seed predation when the main predator is a generalist.

The Use of Recycled and Secondary Aggregates to Achieve A Circular Economy within Geotechnical Engineering

The construction industry’s current dependence on primary aggregates is unsustainable as these are non-renewable resources and the consumption of these materials has a high environmental impact. The global annual production of primary aggregates is estimated to be 50 billion tonnes. In Europe, where 2 billion tonnes of primary aggregates are produced annually, approximately 90% of aggregates are utilised by the construction industry, whilst over 1Gt of waste are sent to landfill; in the UK, 44% of landfilled waste arises from the construction industry. The drive to adopt a circular economy necessitates changes in resource use (including non-renewable aggregates). Recycling wastes, such as aggregates, could help this situation; whilst this concept is not new, it does not appear to have been widely embraced in geotechnical engineering. The aim of this paper is to highlight the benefits of increasing the use of alternative aggregates as this would enable the reserves of primary aggregates to be better maintained and less material would be landfilled—a win-win situation and a contributing step towards developing a truly circular economy.

Steady agronomic and genetic interventions are essential for sustaining productivity in intensive rice cropping

Intensive systems with two or three rice (Oryza sativa L.) crops per year account for about 50% of the harvested area for irrigated rice in Asia. Any reduction in productivity or sustainability of these systems has serious implications for global food security. Rice yield trends in the world’s longest-running long-term continuous cropping experiment (LTCCE) were evaluated to investigate consequences of intensive cropping and to draw lessons for sustaining production in Asia. Annual production was sustained at a steady level over the 50-y period in the LTCCE through continuous adjustment of management practices and regular cultivar replacement. Within each of the three annual cropping seasons (dry, early wet, and late wet), yield decline was observed during the first phase, from 1968 to 1990. Agronomic improvements in 1991 to 1995 helped to reverse this yield decline, but yield increases did not continue thereafter from 1996 to 2017. Regular genetic and agronomic improvements were sufficient to maintain yields at steady levels in dry and early wet seasons despite a reduction in the yield potential due to changing climate. Yield declines resumed in the late wet season. Slower growth in genetic gain after the first 20 y was associated with slower breeding cycle advancement as indicated by pedigree depth. Our findings demonstrate that through adjustment of management practices and regular cultivar replacement, it is possible to sustain a high level of annual production in irrigated systems under a changing climate. However, the system was unable to achieve further increases in yield required to keep pace with the growing global rice demand.

The cost burden of Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis depending on biologic treatment status – a Danish register-based study

Background Patients diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease may be treated with biologics, depending on several medical and non-medical factors. This study investigated healthcare costs and production values of patients treated with biologics. Methods This national register study included patients diagnosed with Crohn’s disease (CD) and ulcerative colitis (UC) between 2003 and 2015, identified in the Danish National Patient Register (DNPR). Average annual healthcare costs and production values were compared for patients receiving biologic treatment or not, and for patients initiating biologic treatment within a year after diagnosis or at a later stage. Cost estimates and production values were based on charges, fees and average gross wages. Results Twenty-six point one percent CD patients and ten point seven percent of UC patients were treated with biologics at some point in the study period. Of these, 46.4 and 45.5 % of patients initiated biologic treatment within the first year after diagnosis. CD and UC patients treated with biologics had higher average annual healthcare costs after diagnosis compared to patients not treated with biologics. CD patients receiving biologics early had lower production values both ten years before and eight years after treatment initiation, compared to patients receiving treatment later. UC patients receiving biologics early had lower average annual production values the first year after treatment initiation compared to UC patients receiving treatment later. Conclusions CD and UC patients receiving biologic treatment had higher average annual healthcare costs and lower average annual production values, compared to patients not receiving biologic treatment. The main healthcare costs drivers were outpatient visit costs and admission costs.

Predicting ewe body condition score using adjusted liveweight for conceptus and fleece weight, height at withers and previous body condition score record

The relationship between ewe body condition score (BCS) and liveweight (LW) has been exploited previously to predict the former from LW, LW-change and previous BCS records. It was hypothesized that if fleece weight- and conceptus- free liveweight and LW-change, and in addition, height at withers were used, the accuracy of current approaches to predicting BCS would be enhanced. Ewes born in 2017 (n = 429) were followed from 8 months to approximately 42 months of age in New Zealand. Individual ewe data were collected on LW and BCS at different stages of the annual production cycle (i.e. pre-breeding, at pregnancy diagnosis, pre-lambing and weaning). Additionally, individual lambing dates, ewe fleece weight and height at withers data were collected. Linear regression models were fitted to predict current BCS at each ewe age and stage of the annual production cycle using two LW-based models namely, unadjusted for conceptus weight and fleece weight (LW alone1) and adjusted (LW alone2) models. Further, another two models based on a combination of LW, LW-change, previous BCS and height at withers (combined models) namely, unadjusted (combined1) and adjusted for conceptus and fleece weight (combined2) were fitted. Combined models gave more accurate (with lower Root Mean Square Error: RMSE) BCS predictions than models based on LW records alone. However, applying adjusted models did not improve BCS prediction accuracy (or reduce RMSE) or improve model goodness of fit (R 2) (P > 0.05). Further, in all models, both LW-alone and combined models, a great proportion of variability in BCS could not be accounted for (0.25 ≥ R 2 ≥ 0.83) and there was substantial prediction error (0.33 BCS ≥ RMSE≥ 0.49 BCS) across age groups and stages of the annual production cycle and over time (years). Therefore, using additional ewe data which allowed for the correction of LW for fleece and conceptus weight and using height at withers as an additional predictor did not improve model accuracy. In fact, the findings suggest that adjusting LW data for conceptus and fleece weight offers no additional value to the BCS prediction models based on LW. Therefore, additional research to identify alternative methodologies to account for individual animal variability is still needed.

Creation of Annual Order Forecast for the Production of Beverage Cans—The Case Study

This article is focused on the creation of a system for forecasting of future orders for a specific beverage cans manufacturer. The problem comes from the irregular ordering of cans from different customers; not only national companies, but also from companies abroad. This causes fluctuations in production and consequently an irregular transport regime. That is why the beverage can producer demanded a forecasting system that would help to create an annual production plan. The aim is to analyze the ordering process for the last two years and on that basis to create a forecast system of the possible ordering process for the following year. This is necessary for the introduction of regularity of production, because the frequent transitions of the line to another assortment range or other surface printing requires long downtimes due to the technological setting, thus creating large losses due to inactivity of the production line. As drinking habits of final customers reflect the sale of cans, it was expected that sale data would have a seasonable character; this was proved after a brief analysis of the former data. After that, the appropriate forecasting methods were chosen. The methodology was created to combine multiple forecast results into one to increase the forecast objectivity. Forecasting is performed at three different levels: forecasting of assortment, forecasting of region sale and total forecasting of all orders. In spite of the change in market behavior in 2020, due to the pandemic situation in the first wave of the COVID-19 crisis, the sale of beverage cans is expected to stabilize and return to pre-crisis level as early as 2021. Then the forecasting system will fully meet the company’s requirements.