AI chatbots such as ChatGPT and other applications powered by large language models (LLMs) have exploded in popularity, leading a number of companies to explore LLM-driven robots. However, a new study now reveals an automated way to hack into such machines with 100 percent success. By…

The European Union is developing compliance guidance for its new law on AI. As part of that process it’s launched a consultation (here) seeking input in two areas. The first is how the law defines AI systems (as opposed to “simpler traditional” software). It’s asking people in the AI industry, business, academics, and civil society […]

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A unique population of ventral tegmental area (VTA) neurons co-transmits glutamate and GABA. However, the circuit inputs to VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons are unknown, limiting our understanding of their functional capabilities. By coupling monosynaptic rabies tracing with intersectional genetic targeting in male and female mice, we found that VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons received diverse brainwide inputs. The largest numbers of monosynaptic inputs to VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons were from superior colliculus (SC), lateral hypothalamus (LH), midbrain reticular nucleus, and periaqueductal gray, whereas the densest inputs relative to brain region volume were from the dorsal raphe nucleus, lateral habenula, and VTA. Based on these and prior data, we hypothesized that LH and SC inputs were from glutamatergic neurons. Optical activation of glutamatergic LH neurons activated VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons regardless of stimulation frequency and resulted in flee-like ambulatory behavior. In contrast, optical activation of glutamatergic SC neurons activated VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons for a brief period of time at high frequency and resulted in head rotation and arrested ambulatory behavior (freezing). Stimulation of glutamatergic LH neurons, but not glutamatergic SC neurons, was associated with VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ footshock-induced activity and inhibition of LH glutamatergic neurons disrupted VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ tailshock-induced activity. We interpret these results such that inputs to VTA VGluT2+VGaT+ neurons may integrate diverse signals related to the detection and processing of motivationally salient outcomes.

The European Union on Tuesday took the debate about genetically modified crops to the public with a survey asking citizens to share their thoughts on organic farming, reports Phys.org in a recent article titled EU asks citizens to join debate on GM food Image credit: americanoverkill.com The article continues ... The bloc's 500 million consumers are invited to complete an anonymous online questionnaire on the European Commission's Agriculture and Rural Development website (ec.europa.eu/agriculture/consultations/organic/2013_en.htm). The consultation, which ends on April 10, is part of a review of European policy on organic agriculture. The survey is available in all official EU languages. English is the one linked here, but other languages are available from a drop-down menu at the top of the page. The Phys.org article, putting emphasis on the GM angle, goes on to say......

Sencore, a recognized leader in video delivery solutions for the broadcast industry, is pleased to announce the addition of a new 12G-SDI encoder input option to the Sencore AFN platform. This enhancement underscores Sencore’s ongoing commitment to advancing the AFN platform and delivering cutting-edge technology for professional video contribution and remote production applications. Sencore has focused on [PR.com]

Farmscape for November 8, 2024

The Swine Health Information Center is inviting pork sector stakeholders to provide their input into its annual plan or work planning process.
Each year, as part of its mission to protect and enhance the health of the U.S. swine herd by minimising the impact of emerging disease threats, the Swine Health Information Center reevaluates its activities and research priorities.
SHIC Executive Director Dr. Megan Niederwerder says stakeholders are invited to provide their input to help identify the greatest needs, the greatest emerging disease risks and where activities should be focussed in 2025.

Quote-Dr. Megan Niederwerder-Swine Health Information Center:
Our five strategic priorities are to improve swine health information, to monitor and mitigate risk to swine health, to respond to emerging diseases, to conduct surveillance and discovery of emerging diseases and then to prioritise swine disease risk through our disease matrices.
We look at those five strategic priorities, we start to look at allocation of budget and resources then we have a series of stakeholder meetings that occur throughout the fall.
This includes pork producers, veterinary diagnosticians, swine health researchers, pork producer state organizations, swine veterinarians and other industry stakeholders that can help us to identify those emerging disease risks and priorities that should be included on the 2025 plan.
After the conclusion of the stakeholder listening sessions, we take those research priorities and ideas that have been generated to the two Swine Health Information Center working groups.
This working groups assist us in helping to prioritise each of the research topics with regards to how they help us to build a SHIC mission.
We then take those prioritised ideas and research objectives to the SHIC Board of Directors who help review and revise and ultimately approve the plan of work for the upcoming year.

Dr. Niederwerder says the goal is publish the plan by the end of the year to inform stakeholders of upcoming activities and outline research priorities to enable researchers to submit proposals to address those priorities.
To provide feedback visit swinehealth.org.
For more visit Farmscape.Ca.
Bruce Cochrane.

       *Farmscape is produced on behalf of North America’s pork producers

Recent innovations in additive manufacturing (AM) have proven its efficacy for not only the manufacturing industry but also the healthcare industry. Researchers from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, and California State University Long Beach are developing a model that will determine the optimal locations for additive manufacturing hubs that can effectively serve both the manufacturing and healthcare industries. This paper will focus on providing an overview of the healthcare industry's unique needs for an AM hub and summarise the specific inputs for the model. The methods used to gather information include extensive literature research on current practices of AM models in healthcare and an inclusive survey of healthcare practitioners. This includes findings on AM's use for surgical planning and training models, the workflow to generate them, sourcing methods, and the AM techniques and materials used. This paper seeks to utilise the information gathered through literature research and surveys to provide guidance for the initial development of an AM hub location model that locates optimal service locations.

Family firms are often portrayed as an important yet conservative form of organization that is reluctant to invest in innovation; however, at the same time, evidence shows that family firms are still flourishing and that many of the world's most innovative firms are indeed family firms. Our study contributes to disentangling this puzzling effect. We argue that family firms—owing to the family's high level of control over the firm, wealth concentration, and importance of non-financial goals—invest less in innovation but have an increased conversion rate of innovation input into output and, ultimately, a higher innovation output than non-family firms. Empirical evidence from a meta-analysis based on 108 primary studies from 42 countries supports our hypotheses. We further argue and empirically show that the observed effects are even stronger when the CEO of the family firm is a later-generation family member. However, when the CEO of the family firm is the firm's founder, innovation input is higher and, contrary to our initial expectations, innovation output is lower than that in other firms. We further show that the family firm-innovation input/output relationships depend on country-level factors, namely, the level of minority shareholder protection and the education level of the workforce in the country.

Washington — The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration wants input on whether it should require impact guards on the sides of large trucks to prevent vehicles from sliding underneath after crashes.

Washington — OSHA is seeking public comment as it considers a new online delivery model for its Outreach Training Program.

Washington — As the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration considers revising how it determines if truck and bus companies are fit to operate safely, the agency is asking for feedback on research that could impact its decision.

Tumwater, WA — A proposed update to Washington state’s permanent rules on worker heat exposure would set the “temperature action level” at 80° F for most outdoor workers.

To learn more about how safety and health metrics can be used more effectively to prevent workplace injuries and illnesses, OSHA has asked the National Safety Council to conduct a survey.

Washington — NIOSH is gauging the feasibility of a national registry intended to track cases of mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer linked to on-the-job exposure to asbestos.

Washington — OSHA has extended until July 5 the deadline to comment on its proposal to revoke Arizona’s State Plan status.

Washington – The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration is requesting public input on a proposal to enhance the safety and durability of rail tank cars used to transport hazardous materials.

Washington — Developments in automation in the transportation industry have prompted a pair of Requests for Information from the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration and the Federal Railroad Administration.

Washington — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is asking for comment on an advance notice of proposed rulemaking on its hours-of-service regulations for commercial truck drivers.

Washington — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is asking for stakeholder input on how detention – the time a commercial motor vehicle driver spends during loading and unloading – affects roadway safety.

Washington — The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration is asking industry stakeholders for input on “ways to improve the clarity of current regulations on the use of electronic logging devices and address certain concerns about the technical specifications.”

Washington — Responding to a petition for reconsideration of a final rule on its Risk Reduction Program, the Federal Railroad Administration is seeking comment on whether to keep or remove a provision clarifying that certain contractors are considered a railroad’s directly affected employees.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a public meeting for June 12 to discuss proposals ahead of the 35th session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a virtual public meeting for June 23 in advance of the 40th session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled an informal public hearing for Sept. 21 on proposed updates to the agency’s regulations on hazard communication.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a virtual public meeting for June 15 in advance of the 42nd session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a virtual public meeting for Nov. 16 in advance of the 43rd session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is seeking feedback on updated occupational exposure assessments for three seed treatment pesticides to which exposure may cause negative health effects.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a public meeting in advance of the 44th session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Los Angeles — OSHA administrator Doug Parker is urging workers to provide feedback on the agency’s proposed rule aimed at protecting them from heat-related illnesses both indoors and outdoors.

Washington – Prompted by the 2013 fire and explosion that killed 12 firefighters at a Texas fertilizer facility, as well as other recent incidents, OSHA is considering the development of a standard on emergency response and preparedness.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency is seeking comment on problem formulation documents for the first 10 chemicals slated for evaluation for potential health and environmental risks under the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, as well as a systematic review approach document and a proposed significant new use rule for asbestos.

Washington — OSHA is requesting feedback as it considers developing a possible standard aimed at preventing workplace violence in the health care and social assistance industries.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a public meeting for Nov. 15 in advance of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Washington — OSHA has scheduled a public meeting in advance of the 46th session of the United Nations Sub-Committee of Experts on the Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals.

Washington — The Environmental Protection Agency, in accordance with the Frank R. Lautenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act, is seeking comment on proposed significant new use rules for six chemical substances that are subject to agency premanufacture notices.

Without sensor data, you can’t control a process—much less begin a digital transformation at your facility. KPIs (Key performance indicators) are a way to measure how your process, packaging or even your palletizing areas are performing, but to get these KPIs requires sensor data.

The post Healthy People 2030 Seeks Public Input on Proposed New Objectives (Due by Oct 31) was curated by information for practice.

Xcel Energy wants to build the roughly 170-mile power line from Garvin in Lyon County to Becker in central Minnesota. It would connect solar and wind energy from southwest Minnesota to the electrical grid.

Nearly 85 percent of the 29 million gallons of petroleum that enter North American ocean waters each year as a result of human activities comes from land-based runoff, polluted rivers, airplanes, and small boats and jet skis, while less than 8 percent comes from tanker or pipeline spills.

Together with a Biden-Harris administration interagency effort, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking for Heat Injury and Illness Prevention in Outdoor and Indoor Work Settings on Oct. 27, 2021.

Calling the Plymouth Housing project an inside job, the community is demanding Redmond City Council rescind the public land transfer decision, start an open RFP, engage the community, and allow public input.

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation posted an online survey seeking input on legislative recommendations to include in the upcoming 2024 biennial report to the state Legislature. The division said it…

The Texas Division of Workers’ Compensation is accepting comments on the 2025 Medical Quality Review Annual Audit Plan through Nov. 22. The annual plan establishes priorities for the Medical Quality Review…

How much does take-up timing for agricultural inputs depend on price? Evidence from an experiment in Nigeria

Insights into buying behavior.

The post How much does take-up timing for agricultural inputs depend on price? Evidence from an experiment in Nigeria appeared first on IFPRI.

Does conflict-driven internal displacement influence demand for agricultural inputs? Evidence from Nigeria

Examining the effectiveness of vouchers and marketing information.

The post Does conflict-driven internal displacement influence demand for agricultural inputs? Evidence from Nigeria appeared first on IFPRI.

Deadline extended to invite further submissionsToronto, ON – The University of Toronto is inviting members of its community to make submissions to an advisory committee studying a recent call for divestment from fossil fuel companies. The request for submissions is the latest step in the work of the committee examining the divestment issue.  The committee may […]

The U.S. government recently released four rulemakings on space export control designed to strengthen private sector space activity and improve international collaboration. The Department of Commerce and Department of State released four space export control […]

Electrical safety and lightning protection of medium voltage input and up to ±400 VDC output power system in ICT data centres and telecommunication centres

Impact on ICT equipment architecture of multiple AC, -48VDC or up to 400 VDC power inputs

SPRI plans to seek re-approval of the ANSI/SPRI RD-1 standard for retrofit roof drains as an American National Standard and is asking professionals for feedback; contact SPRI to participate.