META-R:A software to analyze data from multi-environment plant breeding trials

META-R(multi-environment trial analysis in R)is a suite of R scripts linked by a graphical user interface(GUI)designed in Java language.The objective of META-R is to accurately analyze multi-environment plant breeding trials(METs)by fitting mixed and fixed linear models from experimental designs such as the randomized complete block design(RCBD)and the alpha-lattice/lattice designs.META-R simultaneously estimates the best linear and unbiased estimators(BLUEs)and the best linear and unbiased predictors(BLUPs).Additionally,it computes the variance-covariance parameters,as well as some statistical and genetic parameters such as the least significant difference(LSD)at 5%significance,the coefficient of variation in percentage(CV),the genetic variance,and the broad-sense heritability.These parameters are very important in the selection of top performing genotypes in plant breeding.META-R also computes the phenotypic and genetic correlations among environments and between traits,as well as their statistical significance.The genetic correlations between environments or traits can be visualized in a biplot graph or a tree diagram(dendrogram).Genetic correlations are very important for identifying environments with similar behavior or making indirect selection and identifying the most highly associated traits.META-R performs multi-environment analyses by using the residual maximum likelihood(REML)method;these analyses can be done by environment,across environments by grouping factors(stress conditions,nitrogen content,etc.)and across environments;the analyses across environments can be done with a pre-defined degree of heritability.

Near shore seismic movements induced by seaquakes using the boundary element method

This study quantifies seismic amplifications in near-shore arising from seaquakes. Within the Boundary Element Method, boundary elements are used to irradiate waves and force densities obtained for each element. Huygens′ Principle is implemented since the diffracted waves are constructed at the boundary from which they are radiated, which is equivalent to Somigliana′s theorem. Application of boundary conditions leads to a system of integral equations of the Fredholm type of second kind and zero order. Several numerical configurations are analyzed： The first is used to verify the present formulation with ideal sea floor configurations to estimate seismic amplifications. With the formulation verified, simple slope configurations are studied to estimate spectra of seismic motions. It is found that P-waves can produce seismic amplifications from 1.2 to 3.9 times the amplitude of the incident wave. SV-waves can generate seismic amplifications up to 4.5 times the incident wave. Another relevant finding is that the highest amplifications are at the shore compared to the ones at the sea floor.