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Successful precision agriculture decision making requires characterizing soil heterogeneity at high spatiotemporal resolution in real-time in order to optimize input (such as water and nutrient) amounts and location. In order to achieve this goal, a printed soil moisture sensor fabricated from biodegradable materials is demonstrated. These devices are intended to function during the growing season and then harmlessly degrade afterward, enabling high-density deployment, eliminating the need for sensor retrieval, and enabling the use of simple device structures and low-cost materials and fabrication techniques. A capacitive structure is used with a water-soluble zinc electrode printed onto a biodegradable substrate. Rapidly degrading substrate and electrode are encapsulated in a slowly degrading wax blend that protects the device, reduces drift, and controls degradation time. A linear capacitance response is observed for soil samples with a volumetric water content from 0 to 72%. Accelerated degradation testing demonstrates that the sensor responds predictably and stably until the encapsulation is breached, at which point the sensor fails rapidly, providing a clear distinction between the functional and nonfunctional lifetimes of the sensor. These results demonstrate the potential of biodegradable sensors to allow maintenance-free, affordable, and real-time soil moisture measurement at high spatial density for precision irrigation control.

This research focuses on the adoption and acceptance of social assistive technologies (ATs) in the aged care context where carers provide care services to older adults. This research develops and v...

IntroductionThese Asian Working Group guidelines on diet in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) present a multidisciplinary focus on clinical nutrition in IBD in Asian countries.MethodologyThe guidelines are based on evidence from existing published literature; however, if objective data were lacking or inconclusive, expert opinion was considered. The conclusions and 38 recommendations have been subject to full peer review and a Delphi process in which uniformly positive responses (agree or strongly agree) were required.ResultsDiet has an important role in IBD pathogenesis, and an increase in the incidence of IBD in Asian countries has paralleled changes in the dietary patterns. The present consensus endeavors to address the following topics in relation to IBD: (i) role of diet in the pathogenesis; (ii) diet as a therapy; (iii) malnutrition and nutritional assessment of the patients; (iv) dietary recommendations; (v) nutritional rehabilitation; and (vi) nutrition in special situations like surgery, pregnancy, and lactation.ConclusionsAvailable objective data to guide nutritional support and primary nutritional therapy in IBD are presented as 38 recommendations.

Social isolation is one of the most common consequences of older people with dementia, especially for those who live at their own dwellings alone due to limited access to social activities. Research relating to the use of social robots in aged care has increasing attention to facilitating the support to care services for older people with dementia. Particularly less attention has focused on the applicability of social robots in home care services. This paper aims to study the engagement and robot experience of older people with dementia while interacting with a social robot named Betty in the context of home-based care. This paper contributes to the research relating to care service embedded robots by expanding the knowledge regarding longitudinal research in home based care, while there is limited long-term study in this context. The results show that social robots are evident to be able to engage with older people with dementia at home. Consequently, designing social robots in a social context is desirable. While the robots enabled service for the human partner within the social context is possible, there is a need to underpin the concept of personhood to realize personalization of services and its contents to suit individual preferences.

Cadmium (Cd) has an inhibitory effect on the morphology, vegetative growth, and biochemical accumulation of plants including mungbean. The polyphenolic metabolites of the phenylpropanoid pathway, especially flavonoids, are known to promote Cd stress tolerance in plants. However, the potential of flavonoid precursor, naringenin for Cd tolerance has not been reported in mungbean. The present study documents the significant role of naringenin towards mungbean protein bioavailability and solubility. The protein accumulation, bioavailability, and solubility of Cd-stressed mungbean was increased by 20, 94, and 12 % respectively, on naringenin exposure. Exogenous naringenin alleviated the Cd toxicity-induced morphological and biochemical alterations of mungbean. The naringenin-mediated enhancement in chlorophyll was found to increase fresh biomass and carbohydrate accumulation of Cd-stressed mungbean by 53 and 0.9- 2.1 %. Furthermore, naringenin rescued the Cd reduced non-enzymatic antioxidant potential in terms of 30 and 32 % increment in the polyphenolics and flavonoids accumulation. However, naringenin reduced enzymatic antioxidants and enhanced the lipid peroxidation of mungbean. Therefore, in the prevailing condition of multiple and concomitant stresses induced by global climate change, seed treatment with phytochemicals like naringenin can be a novel strategy for heavy metal stress tolerance in legumes including mungbean.

Naringenin exposure altered auxin redistribution via VrPIN1 leading to morphological alterations and significantly reduced the protein precipitable tannins that further enhanced the protein accumulation and bioavailability. Flavonoid exposure is known to affect the antioxidant profile of legumes. However, a detailed study evaluating the effect of flavonoid naringenin on morphology and biochemical profile of legume is lacking. The present study is a novel report of improved in planta protein bioavailability and antioxidant potential of legume mungbean on naringenin exposure. The quantitative evaluation revealed significant protein accumulation (64–122 μg/g FW) on naringenin exposure. Further, an increase in protein solubility and digestibility compared to control was evident. Naringenin mediated altered α-amylase activity improved the mungbean seed germination rate. Naringenin induced auxin redistribution and altered PIN formed transcript expression reduced lateral root density and increased stem length that was subsequently reverted on exogenous indole acetic acid application. Naringenin enhanced polyphenolic accumulation and improved the antioxidant potential of mungbean. Additionally, the responsiveness of the early gene of the flavonoid biosynthetic pathway, Chalcone isomerase to naringenin concentration was revealed indicating a probable feedback regulation. Further, the presence of alternate liquiritigenin biosynthesis was also evident. The present study, thus reveals the probable potential of phytochemical naringenin towards agricultural sustainability in the changing environmental conditions.

Socially assistive robots have successfully been trialed in residential care facilities (RCFs) for older adults. These robots may have potential for younger adults (i.e. under 65 years old) who also live in RCFs. However, it is important to investigate staff acceptability and ease-of-use of these robots. This pilot study used the Technology Acceptance Model to investigate how staff working in a specialized RCF for younger adults accept Betty, a socially assistive robot who was introduced in the facility for 12 weeks. Twenty-four staff completed pre-questionnaires, reporting that they thought Betty would have the ability to engage and entertain the residents they cared for. While there were only eight staff who completed the post-questionnaires, there were significant improvements compared to the pre-questionnaire results in areas such as residents enjoying the contact and activities. Impacting on ease-of use were technical difficulties. Although this study had limitations and could be improved by a better response rate and investigating the residents’ acceptability of Betty, this study is one of the first to report that this novel technology may have much potential for engaging adults in RCFs.

Purpose By developing a conceptual model, the purpose of this paper is to improve the understanding of the role of social assistive technologies in facilitating the process of service innovation in care providing organisations to adopt the principles of the consumer-directed care strategy and reduce perceived consumer vulnerability. Design/methodology/approach Using a cross-sectional survey method, the authors collected data through a survey questionnaire distributed among 335 aged caregivers and specialists. The conceptual model and its 11 research hypotheses were examined using confirmatory factor analysis in structural equation modelling. The rival and mediation models were also estimated. Findings The conceptual model was validated and eight of eleven hypotheses were supported. It was found that dynamic capabilities are crucial to developing service innovation concept in care providing organisations. In this way, social assistive technologies play a facilitating role to promote the consumer-directed care strategy throughout care providing organisations and allow care providers to enhance wellbeing of vulnerable older people based on their socio-economic status. From the lens of aged care providers, it was also found that the consumer-directed care strategy implemented in aged care facilities may help reduce consumer vulnerability among older people especially when they use social assistive technologies in their service settings. Practical implications This study suggests aged care service providers should boost dynamic service innovation capabilities to improve the need for social assistive technologies in aged care facilities with respect to the importance of the consumer-directed care strategy. Originality/value This study contributes to the development and validation of a conceptual model for the use of social assistive technologies to sustain service innovation in aged care business models and enhance the consumer-directed care strategy’s performance to better understand consumer vulnerability among older people.

The recommendations 31 which recommend "VSL#3®", refer only to the product used in the cited literature and equivalent products independent from the present product labelings. This product is now known by the generic name "De Simone Formulation".

Naringenin exposure altered auxin redistribution via VrPIN1 leading to morphological alterations and significantly reduced the protein precipitable tannins that further enhanced the protein accumulation and bioavailability. Flavonoid exposure is known to affect the antioxidant profile of legumes. However, a detailed study evaluating the effect of flavonoid naringenin on morphology and biochemical profile of legume is lacking. The present study is a novel report of improved in planta protein bioavailability and antioxidant potential of legume mungbean on naringenin exposure. The quantitative evaluation revealed significant protein accumulation (64–122 μg/g FW) on naringenin exposure. Further, an increase in protein solubility and digestibility compared to control was evident. Naringenin mediated altered α-amylase activity improved the mungbean seed germination rate. Naringenin induced auxin redistribution and altered PIN formed transcript expression reduced lateral root density and increased stem length that was subsequently reverted on exogenous indole acetic acid application. Naringenin enhanced polyphenolic accumulation and improved the antioxidant potential of mungbean. Additionally, the responsiveness of the early gene of the flavonoid biosynthetic pathway, Chalcone isomerase to naringenin concentration was revealed indicating a probable feedback regulation. Further, the presence of alternate liquiritigenin biosynthesis was also evident. The present study, thus reveals the probable potential of phytochemical naringenin towards agricultural sustainability in the changing environmental conditions. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1007/s13205-020-02428-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the potential of using Multiplex 3, a hand-held canopy fluorescence sensor, to determine rice nitrogen (N) status at different growth stages. In 2013, a paddy rice field experiment with five N fertilizer treatments and two varieties was conducted in Northeast China. Field samples and fluorescence data were collected simultaneously at the panicle initiation (PI), stem elongation (SE), and heading (HE) stages. Four N status indicators, leaf N concentration (LNC), plant N concentration (PNC), plant N uptake (PNU) and N nutrition index (NNI), were determined. The preliminary results indicated that different N application rates significantly affected most of the fluorescence variables, especially the simple fluorescence ratios (SFR_G, SFR_R), flavonoid (FLAV), and N balance indices (NBI_G, NBI_R). These variables were highly correlated with N status indicators. More studies are needed to further evaluate the accuracy of rice N status diagnosis using fluorescence sensing at different growth stages.

This paper aims to explore the main factors of social vulnerability among older people and the improvements in social life after engaging with social robots. This paper also examines the influence of these factors on each other. Study 1 helped develop a conceptual model and research hypotheses by interviewing 17 specialists in both aged care and social robotics, using grounded theory methodology (GTM). To validate the conceptual model in general and its constructs and hypotheses in particular, Study 2 employed a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) based on the survey distributed among 335 aged care specialists in Australia. The results of study 2 support the indirect effects of social robot enablement and robot mediation on reduction of social vulnerability (socioeconomic accessibility and community ties) through aged care service innovation. It also supports direct impact of robot mediation on augmentation of community ties among older people. Both qualitative and quantitative results measuring the research constructs and hypotheses provide valuable information to managers of aged care facilities and social robotics scholars to improve the quality of life for older people. The implementation of meaningful advances in merging people oriented robotic technology and social vulnerability in older people has demonstrated effective initiatives, including bridging the gap by synthesizing multi-disciplinary interventions to ease social vulnerability.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to propose a new approach that enables service innovation models to incorporate a holographic perspective into their innovation-centric business models. The essence of the holographic approach to service innovation might provide us with an innovative organization that is enclosed in its components; a knowledge-centric approach that adapts each person as a vital component of a whole; and the ability of value co-creation by each part of the organization in ways that benefit the organization as a whole. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses a narrative synthesis framework combining existing literature (by textual narrative technique) with expert opinion, based on search of Science-Direct and ProQuest academic databases. Findings A total of 114 top-cited and high relevant references were deeply reviewed. Nine principle dimensions were evolved from the final review to construct a comprehensive definition of service innovation. Then, the narrative synthesis helped us to bring forward a new approach to service innovation and applied it in the form of a conceptual model, as the literature was previously established on certain approaches. In the final stage, a comprehensive model of service innovation was designed to introduce the holographic approach to the existing literature. Research limitations/implications This paper reviewed top-cited and high relevant references published in English that were indexed in Science-Direct and ProQuest. The authors did not search any grey literature and other language publications, and hand-search any journals. Practical implications This research highlights how managers must consider service innovation as a whole. Originality/value This is the first critical review published in the peer-reviewed literature that explores the principle dimensions of service innovation and provide a new approach to the literature.

Assistive technologies, such as robots, have proven to be useful in a social context and to improve the quality of life for people with dementia (PwD). This study aims to show how the engagement between two social robots and PwD in Australian residential care facilities can improve care quality. An observational method is adopted in the research methodology to discover behavioural patterns during interactions between the robots and PwD. This observational study has undertaken to explore the improvement arising from: (1) approaching social baby-face robots (AR), (2) experiencing pleasure engaging with the robots (P), (3) interacting with the robots (IR), and (4) interacting with others (IO). The findings show that social robots can improve diversion therapy service value to PwD through sensory enrichment, positive social engagement, and entertainment. More than 11,635 behavioral reactions, such as facial expressions and gestures, from 139 PwD over 5 years were coded, in order to identify the engagement effectiveness between PwD and two social robots named Sophie and Jack. The results suggest that these innovative social robots can improve the quality of care for people suffering from dementia.