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IntroductionEffective monitoring of insect-pests is vital for safeguarding agricultural yields and ensuring food security. Recent advances in computer vision and machine learning have opened up significant possibilities of automated persistent monitoring of insect-pests through reliable detection and counting of insects in setups such as yellow sticky traps. However, this task is fraught with complexities, encompassing challenges such as, laborious dataset annotation, recognizing small insect-pests in low-resolution or distant images, and the intricate variations across insect-pests life stages and species classes. MethodsTo tackle these obstacles, this work investigates combining two solutions, Hierarchical Transfer Learning (HTL) and Slicing-Aided Hyper Inference (SAHI), along with applying a detection model. HTL pioneers a multi-step knowledge transfer paradigm, harnessing intermediary in-domain datasets to facilitate model adaptation. Moreover, slicing-aided hyper inference subdivides images into overlapping patches, conducting independent object detection on each patch before merging outcomes for precise, comprehensive results. ResultsThe outcomes underscore the substantial improvement achievable in detection results by integrating a diverse and expansive in-domain dataset within the HTL method, complemented by the utilization of SAHI. DiscussionWe also present a hardware and software infrastructure for deploying such models for real-life applications. Our results can assist researchers and practitioners looking for solutions for insect-pest detection and quantification on yellow sticky traps. 

To meet the grand challenges of agricultural production including climate change impacts on crop production, a tight integration of social science, technology and agriculture experts including farmers are needed. Rapid advances in information and communication technology, precision agriculture and data analytics, are creating a perfect opportunity for the creation of smart connected farms (SCFs) and networked farmers. A network and coordinated farmer network provides unique advantages to farmers to enhance farm production and profitability, while tackling adverse climate events. The aim of this article is to provide a comprehensive overview of the state of the art in SCF including the advances in engineering, computer sciences, data sciences, social sciences and economics including data privacy, sharing and technology adoption. More specifically, we provide a comprehensive review of key components of SCFs and crucial elements necessary for its success. It includes, high-speed connections, sensors for data collection, and edge, fog and cloud computing along with innovative wireless technologies to enable cyber agricultural system. We also cover the topic of adoption of these technologies that involves important considerations around data analysis, privacy, and the sharing of data on platforms. From a social science and economics perspective, we examine the net-benefits and potential barriers to data-sharing within agricultural communities, and the behavioral factors influencing the adoption of SCF technologies. The focus of this review is to cover the state-of-the-art in smart connected farms with sufficient technological infrastructure; however, the information included herein can be utilized in geographies and farming systems that are witnessing digital technologies and want to develop SCF. Overall, taking a holistic view that spans technical, social and economic dimensions is key to understanding the impacts and future trajectory of Smart and Connected Farms.