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The need to improve both the cost of food production and lower the environmental impact of food production is key to being able to sustainably feed the projected growth of the human population. To attempt to understand how to improve yields under lower nitrogen (N) inputs, a diverse set of UK winter wheats encompassing ~80% of the genetic diversity in current winter wheats in the UK were grown under a range of N levels and their performance measured under various levels of N. This population has parents which encompass all four end-use categories to understand how breeding for differences in NUE may change across different end-use types of wheat. The growth of the eight parents of a MAGIC population showed significant differences in biomass per plant, ear number, yield and protein content of the grain when grown with differing levels of N. No consistent response to N was seen for the lines tested for all of the traits measured. However, the underlying difference in response to N was not due to N uptake or N translocation, as short-term 15N uptake and translocation showed no significant differences in the lines tested. RNASeq was then performed on two different bread-making varieties grown under low-N conditions to identify putative genes controlling the underlying differences seen in biomass production when grown on low N. This led to the identification of the genes involved in growth and C/N signaling and metabolism, which may explain the differences in growth and biomass production seen between the parents of this population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study explored the complex development of identity and lifestyle among the nomadic river gypsies, known as the Bede, in Bangladesh. Methodologically, a comprehensive strategy combining primary and secondary data sources was employed to examine the sociodemographic profile of nomadic fishers. Traditionally, these fishermen depend on water-based enterprises such as fishing, magic shows, and serpent charms, displaying distinctive socio-cultural behaviors and engaging in various economic activities. However, the demands of the contemporary neoliberal economy increasingly conflict with their ancient practices. Their temporal and spatial lives are also undergoing rapid changes due to environmental shifts, institutional neglect, and social stigma associated with being perceived as unclean or as outsiders. This uncertain transition significantly influences their decisions regarding migration. The paper delves into the factors affecting migration decisions among marginalized communities, focusing on the cultural dynamics and adaptability of nomadic fishermen. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research aims to compare Active and Passive Investment Strategies on the Indonesian Stock Exchange for the 2013-2024 Using the Magic Formula Method introduced by Joel Greenblatt (2010), which is then optimized again using the Single Index Model. Magic formula is a simple stock selection strategy by sorting stocks based on Return on Capital (ROC) and Earning Yield (EY). The shares to be selected are included in the Kompas100 Index. The selected shares have also been listed on the stock exchange for a minimum of 18 months. Shares included in financial shares will be eliminated. The next step is to select 20 shares to be formed into a Portfolio based on the top ranking of the ROC and EY scores, these 20 shares will be optimized using the Single Index Model method. For active strategies, rebalancing will be carried out every year, while for passive strategies, buy and hold will be carried out. The results of this active strategy will be compared with passive strategies and IHSG. Portfolio measurement will be carried out in 4 ways, namely: return, Sharpe ratio, Treynor ratio and Jensen Alpha. The return from the optimized Magic Formula shows a value of 217.04%, higher than the original Magic Formula return of 43.43% and the passive strategy of 35.04% and the IHSG return of 47%, but the final research results of the portfolio show measurements based on return, ratio Sharpe, and Treynor ratios were not significantly different, being significantly different only from Jensen Alpha measurements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The London Mechanics' Institution, founded in 1823, sought to foster scientific knowledge among operatives. This article demonstrates how it was part of a new educational and technological landscape whereby there were increasing attempts to 'illustrate' knowledge in order to make it accessible and memorable. New scientific and optical devices were used to produce, disseminate, and democratize knowledge. The operatives attending lectures and classes had to be engaged and their attention fostered. It was believed that the march of knowledge did not succeed if it was dryasdust, and there were many forms of illustrated lectures, from diagrams and transparencies to magic lantern shows to live experiments. This article links the London Mechanics' Institution to the advent of other metropolitan institutions like the Diorama and reflects on broader ideas of progressive education and the nature of learning engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent advances in humanoid robotics have opened up many new directions for humanoid robotics research. Multimedia and arts are applications with significant growth opportunities. In this paper, we introduce magic shows as a benchmark and research problem for humanoid robots and discuss our flexible and versatile system architecture. The goal is to have a humanoid robot perform as a magician in front of an audience. Note that we focus on magic performances that require complex manipulation and interaction of the robot instead of tricks where the robot is passive and used mainly as a prop. So in our tricks, the magic is critically dependent on the skills of the humanoid robot. Furthermore, a successful magic show requires that the robot interacts meaningfully and goal directed with the audience. We describe the technical details of a pen and drawing magic trick, the human-robot collaboration, hardware architecture, and software architecture of our system. One interesting aspect of our system is the inclusion of various personalities for the robot magician. Overall, the robot performed the magic tricks well in the competition and won third place at the IEEE IROS Humanoid Application Challenge(HAC) 2019 in Macau. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Artery of Percheron (AOP) as main feeder artery of arteriovenous malformation (AVM) is extremely rare. Two cases of thalamic AVM fed by AOP have been reported to date and only one AVM been removed by microsurgery when attempt of intervention embolization failed. Midbrain AVM fed by AOP has not been reported yet. Case presentation: Here, we presented the first successful embolized case of midbrain AVM supplied by the AOP in a 10-year-old boy, who suffered dual oculomotor nerve palsy and secondary hemorrhage before embolization. During endovascular embolization, selective angiography by 1.2 Fr. Magic microcatheter showed an intranidal aneurysm located on the distal AOP. Two injections of a 1:4 ratio mixture of NBCA-MS completely occlude the nidus and intranidal aneurysm with no complications occurred. The child recovered well and the oculomotor deficits improved. Conclusion: This case highlighted that AOP is a clinically significant branch associated with AVM in midbrain and thalamus. Moreover, intervention embolization of midbrain AVM fed by AOP is a considerable therapeutic strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Robert Heller, a virtually unknown figure in music-historical accounts, trained in the 1840s at the Royal Academy of Music in London and gavethe American premieres of Beethoven’s Fourth and Fifth Piano Concertos with the Germania Musical Society. But he also pursued a parallel career in theatrical magic, using his musical virtuosity to elevate his social and artistic stature as a conjurer. Between 1852 and 1878, his magic act was seen by millions in Europe, East Asia, and the United States, including states and territories in the American West never visited by contemporary piano virtuosos like Thalberg and De Meyer. While magicians routinely incorporated music in their acts, Heller’s virtuosity set him apart from his conjuring peers, including those who were themselves musicians. Using his musical expertise, he blended the magic show with other popular forms of spectacle, including minstrelsy, burlesque, and the piano recital, framing the latter as an extraordinary attraction. Advertisements and accounts of his performances reveal the marketing strategies Heller employed to negotiate the crowded landscape of consumer culture and American popular entertainment, especially during the tumultuous years of the Civil War. These strategies included co-branding, altering the titles and descriptions of musical compositions (particularly “Dixie”), and joining forces with “Blind Tom” (Thomas Greene) Wiggins, the Black, enslaved musical prodigy whom Heller had briefly tutored; they performed together in Louisville during one of the magician’s last appearances in the South. Throughout the 1860s, Heller was influenced by gendered musical practices and regional attitudes toward race and politics, leading him to market his act specifically toward middle-class women, music lovers, Unionists, and those seeking postwar reconciliation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Anthocyanin is a kind of natural pigments widely found in plants. It is colorful and has many physiologic functions. In this science popularization experiment, we have extracted anthocyanin from red cabbage both at home and in the lab. By mixing the extracted anthocyanin with aqueous solutions of different pH and iodophor, we have designed three schemes including “The Change of Four Seasons”, “Belt and Road” and “Write with Anthocyanin” respectively, to introduce the structure of anthocyanin, the colour changes of anthocyanin at different pH, and the principle of oxidation resistance. We have also designed a drawing activity called “Freestyle”, in which the audience at different levels can take part in person. From the above mentioned, not only are the beauty and magic of chemistry shown, but also ideological education is concluded. In addition, we have created lovely purple cabbage images and animation to show the functions and applications of anthocyanin in a vivid and interesting way. We have also indicated some common misunderstandings about anthocyanin in daily life and tried to help people use anthocyanin in the proper way. In a word, this science popularization experiment combines science and art, knowledge and education ingeniously. It is also easy and safe enough to be performed at home. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this letter, we propose and fabricate a waveguide Magic Tee with waveguide filter for Ka-band system. The proposed Magic Tee has a reduced z -axis arm, which must typically be long for impedance matching at the input port. A bridge iris is inserted at port 4 for signal application. The z -axis arm at port 4 is significantly shortened by the impedance matching tuning through the iris that is normally uses to connect the adaptor. Thus, the dimension of the proposed Magic Tee is reduced to 7.12 × 10 × 3.6 m m 3 , and the insertion loss shows good performance of 0.9 dB by applying the impedance matching tuning. The proposed Magic Tee also contains a 7th waveguide filter, which is used to verify the signal division performance. The results of excitation at each port of the Magic Tee show insertion loss less than 4.5 dB and return loss of over 18 dB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years Polish literature and popular culture have been increasingly populated by witches. Many authors use the historical, folk image of an ambivalent pagan witch as basis for creating their characters. Other notable sources are fairy tales, feminism (after all the myth of the witch was popularized by second-wave feminism) and neo-paganism (women as priestesses of nature). As a result of these various inspirations depictions of the witch are quite diverse, while the plot patterns presented in terms of stages of initiation are characterized by high constancy. A young girl, entering adulthood, not knowing who she is — such is the protagonist of many a novel. Her fictional biography begins with ‘borderline events’: an important birthday, a graduation, inheriting a farmhouse (usually from her grandmother). After crossing this narrative threshold, the protagonist is imbued with the powers of a witch, which she initially rejects. An elderly woman — her guide — persuades her to accept them. She teaches her the how to notice the manifestations of femininity that have been suppressed in our culture, and were represented as witches, fortune-tellers and madwomen. The use of magic is shown as a rediscovery of these rejected abilities, wrongly labeled as insane. It seems that the most important values related to the witch’s initiation motive are: restoring the relationship with the creative female element (intuition, nature, imagination), repairing generational ties between women (an older kinswoman as the master of initiation) and putting emphasis on female spirituality. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cross-examination is detrimental to the consistency and accuracy of children's reports and a re-direct interview may rehabilitate accuracy. We compared the effects of cross-examination on reports provided by single-event and repeated-event children. Children participated in one or five magic shows. One week later they were interviewed in a supportive manner (Interview 1). Next, a different interviewer cross-examined half the children or asked the other children all questions again (Interview 2). Finally, the initial interviewer re-directed the children by re-asking questions in a supportive manner (Interview 3). When defined narrowly (the instance children were asked to describe), cross-examination was more detrimental to single-event children and the re-direct interview rehabilitated correct responses for all children. When defined broadly (experienced details), cross-examination was more detrimental to repeated-event children and the re-direct did not rehabilitate correct responses for repeated-event children. Therefore when performance was off the floor, cross-examination was more detrimental to repeated-event children. The changes that repeated-event children make under cross-examination are explained by cognitive factors and social influences Ost et al., [2016]. Recall, verbatim memory and remembered narratives. In G. Oxburgh (Ed.), Communication in investigative and legal contexts: Integrated approaches from forensic psychology, linguistics and law enforcement (pp. 39–54). Wiley Blackwell). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magic shows were one of many illusory spectacles popular in nineteenth-century Europe and North America, co-existing with melodrama, pantomime, and magic lantern displays. Yet there is little scholarship in any field documenting the function and significance of music in theatrical conjuring. This essay introduces a new field of research by surveying common practices in historical and modern magic shows. Historical evidence, drawn from broadsides, handbills, programmes, memoirs, reviews, and instructional guides to magic, supports three themes: (1) the relationship between conjuring, musical institutions, and related theatrical entertainments; (2) the phenomenon of magicians doubling as musical performers; and (3) the link between music, magic, and imperialist projects. Filmed performances of magic and empirical studies on illusion, cross-modal perception, and entrainment suggest a continuity of practice between nineteenth-century conjurers and modern magicians. A scene from the 2006 film The Illusionist links modern film-scoring techniques to musical conventions in nineteenth-century stage magic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Queen Victoria was enthusiastically taken up by the shows, exhibitions, and lectures that blossomed in the nineteenth century. This collaborative article demonstrates the way Victoria's life and reign was embraced by the moving-image and projected-image formats that proliferated during the period, particularly touring panoramas, magic lantern shows, and early film. Victoria and Albert were themselves intermittent visitors to these new pictorial shows in London, while, across both nation and empire, local communities were able to participate in key royal events thanks to their replaying and broadcasting by media such as the magic lantern and early film. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]