Microbial fertilizer from PK rocks on lettuce nutrients and soil attributes in consecutive crops

The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of a microbial fertilizer, produced from phosphate and potassic rocks and earthworm compost, as an alternative to conventional fertilizers, on lettuce (Lactuca sativa) nutrients and soil attributes. The experiment was conducted in consecutive cycles (30 and 60 days) in a soil from the Lorca region, in the municipality of Murcia, Spain. The fertilization treatments were: conventional fertilizer, 100% of the recommended rate (RR); microbial fertilizer, 50% of the RR (5 Mg ha-1); microbial fertilizer, 100% of the RR (10 Mg ha-1); microbial fertilizer, 150% of the RR (15 Mg ha-1); and control, without N-P2O5-K2O fertilization. The microbial fertilizers applied at 100 and 150% of the RR showed significant and positive effects, as well as the best results for plant characteristics. The microbial fertilizer increased total N and available P and K compared with the conventional fertilizer. A residual effect was observed in the successive cycle. The effectiveness of the microbial fertilizer shows it is a viable alternative to conventional fertilizers, with positive effects on plant productivity and soil attributes.

Factors Affecting Embryo Recovery Rate, Quality, and Diameter in Andalusian Donkey Jennies

Embryo transfer and the vitrification of embryos could be used for the conservation and recovery of endangered donkey breeds. It is important to develop techniques that optimize recovery rates and the cryotolerance of donkey embryos. This study evaluates factors affecting the recovery rate, quality, and diameter of embryos obtained from donor jennies as a starting point for the use of vitrification and embryo transfer in the conservation of the Andalusian donkey. A total of 100 embryos were recovered out of 124 estrous cycles (80.6%). The donor jenny affected the rates of positive flushings (PFR; p = 0.040) and embryo recovery (ERR; p < 0.05) as well as embryo quality (p = 0.004). ERR was also affected by the number of flushings (p < 0.001), donor age (p < 0.05), successive cycle within donor (p < 0.001), and jacks (p < 0.05). Number of flushings (p < 0.001) and jack (p < 0.05) had a significant effect on PFR, whereas the day of flushing influenced the developmental stage (p < 0.001), embryo quality (p < 0.05), and diameter of embryos (p < 0.001). The number of flushings significantly influenced the diameter (p = 0.038) and embryo developmental stage (p = 0.001), whereas the developmental stage was statistically different between herds (p = 0.020). The factors influencing the success of this assisted reproductive technique were donor jenny, donor age, successive cycle within donor, day of flushing, number of flushings, and jack. The identification of these key points is crucial to achieve a higher efficiency of embryo transfer and vitrification processes, before considering their application in the conservation of endangered donkey breeds.

Ice-shelf fracture due to viscoelastic flexure stress induced by fill/drain cycles of supraglacial lakes

Using a previously derived treatment of viscoelastic flexure of floating ice shelves, we simulated multiple years of evolution of a single, axisymmetric supraglacial lake when it is subjected to annual fill/drain cycles. Our viscoelastic treatment follows the assumptions of the well-known thin-beam and thin-plate analysis but, crucially, also covers power-law creep rheology. As the ice-shelf surface does not completely return to its un-flexed position after a 1-year fill/drain cycle, the lake basin deepens with each successive cycle. This deepening process is significantly amplified when lake-bottom ablation is taken into account. We evaluate the timescale over which a typical lake reaches a sufficient depth such that ice-shelf fracture can occur well beyond the lake itself in response to lake filling/drainage. We show that, although this is unlikely during one fill/drain cycle, fracture is possible after multiple years assuming surface meltwater availability is unlimited. This extended zone of potential fracture implies that flexural stresses in response to a single lake filling/drainage event can cause neighbouring lakes to drain, which, in turn, can cause lakes farther afield to drain. Such self-stimulating behaviour may have accounted for the sudden, widespread appearance of a fracture system that drove the Larsen B Ice Shelf to break-up in 2002.

An Electrochromic Copolymer Based on Pyrrole and 3,4-Ethylenedioxythiophene Electrodeposited in Aqueous Micellar Solution

An electrochromic copolymer based on pyrrole and 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) are electrodeposited on ITO electrode in aqueous micellar solution. The copolymer show blue grey in neutral state (-0.8V) and light blue in oxidized state(0.8V). The λmax of the copolymer in neutral state is 530nm and the onset energy for π-π* transition (Eg) is calculated to be 1.68eV by the onset wavelength. And successive cycle voltammagrams indicate that the incorporation of EDOT units into the Ppy improves the electrochemical stability of the copolymer films, which retains 89% of electroactivity after 500 cycles, the copolymer could be as a promising candidate material for electrochromic devices.

Four bugs on a rectangle

The idealized mathematical problem of four bugs in cyclic pursuit starting from a 2-by-1 rectangle is considered, and asymptotic formulas are derived to describe the motion. In contrast to the famous case of four bugs on a square, here the trajectories quickly freeze to essentially one dimension. After the first rotation about the centre point, the scale of the configuration has shrunk by a factor of 10 427907250 , and this number is then exponentiated four more times with each successive cycle. Relations to Knuth’s double-arrow notation and level-index arithmetic are discussed.

Time course of dreaming and sleep organization

The complexity and mysteriousness of mental processes during sleep rule out thinking only in term of generators. How could we know exactly what mental sleep experience (MSE) is produced and when? To refer to REM versus NREM as separate time windows for MSE seems insufficient. We propose that in each cycle NREM and REM interact to allow mentation to reach a certain degree of complexity and consolidation in memory. Each successive cycle within a sleep episode should contribute to these processes with a different weight according to the time of night and distance from sleep onset. This view would avoid assuming too great a separation between REM and NREM functions and attributing psychological functions only to a single state.[Nielsen]

China's Macroeconomy in Transition

Is macroeconomic stability the Achilles heel of the Chinese economy? Recurrent bouts of inflationary disorder lead some observers to worry that the Chinese government is unable to control the economy. Macroeconomic difficulties show up in a pattern of repeated boom and bust cycles, in which each boom is accompanied by an acute inflationary phase and significant disruption. Moreover, since the reform era began, the peak annual inflation rate of each successive cycle has been higher than that of the preceding one. The most recent attempts to cool off the economy have only led to additional questions. An austerity policy was decreed at the end of June 1993, yet inflation actually accelerated in 1994, and it was not until mid-1995 that it dropped to the levels of mid-1993. The Chinese government was engaged in a quest for an economic “soft landing” for two years without a net reduction in the inflation rate!

FSH AND LH LEVELS IN THE INTACT AND UNILATERALLY OVARIECTOMIZED CYCLING RAT

ABSTRACT Intact 5-day cycling rats were killed between 8–10 a. m. on each day of the oestrous cycle; experimental rats were unilaterally ovariectomized (ULO) at 9 a. m. on day 1 (oestrus) and killed between 8 and 10 a. m. on days 2, 3, 4 or 1 of the subsequent cycle. Pituitary and plasma concentrations of FSH and LH were measured in both groups of rats. Pituitary FSH concentration was measured by the Steelman-Pohley method with slight modification; plasma FSH by the Igarashi-McCann assay and pituitary and plasma LH concentration by the OAAD method. In intact rats, pituitary FSH values remained constant for the first three days of the cycle, increased on day 4 and reverted to early cycle values by day 5. Plasma FSH increased between days 2 and 3 and days 5 and 1. Pituitary LH concentration remained the same for days 1 and 2; increased two-fold on days 3 and 4, and increased further by day 5. Plasma LH increased between days 2 and 3; other differences between successive cycle days were not apparent. Following ULO on day 1, pituitary FSH increased steadily, but not significantly, for the remaining cycle. Plasma FSH did not change from day 2 through day 1 of the subsequent cycle. Pituitary LH remained low on day 2, increased sharply by day 3 and decreased (50 %) by day 4. Plasma LH also increased between days 2 and 3. Other differences between successive days following unilateral ovariectomy on day 1 were not apparent. Correlation of gonadotrophin activity with follicular development suggests that the mechanism of compensatory ovulation in the rat may be one of an increase in time of exposure to a constant gonadotrophic level for the duration of the oestrous cycle rather than to increased levels of the gonadotrophin.

Heart rate variability: Response to graded head up tilt in healthy men

Background: Heart rate variability is actually a misnomer for R to R variability in cardiac cycle. Variation in successive cycle length is called the heart rate variability (HRV). Head-up tilt is a model of studying cardiovascular haemodynamics, which reflects in heart rate variability (HRV). Objectives: To study the effect of 10° and 70° head-up tilt on HRV. Materials and methods: The study was done in the Department of Physiology using graded head up tilt (passive orthostatism). HRV measurement was done at 10° and 70° tilt and compared with supine using standardised methods on 30 consenting healthy males (age 25.37±3.89 years). The HRV variables across postures were compared by ANOVA and Bonferroni test. Results: The heart rate increased at 70° compared to 10° and supine (70.48±8.17 Vs 70.22±8.67 and 88.51±12.84 bpm, p<0.001). The 70° tilt decreased vagal HRV indicators compared to 10° and supine: SDNN (31.13±8.12 Vs 38.07±11.29 and 38.13±10.89 ms, p<0.05), RMSSD (20.06 ±8.47 Vs 34.23±14.22 and 36.16±12.22 ms, p<0.001), NN50 count (13.03±20.58 Vs 45.07±44.44 and 55.27±44.10, p<0.01), pNN50 (3.28±6.08 Vs 14.06±15.65 and 16.65±14.23, p<0.01), HF power (197.20±143.76 Vs 218.17±155.85 and 216.87±150.98 Hz, p<0.05), HFnu unit (24.28±14.16 Vs 45.48±16.34 and 47.67±19.89, p<0.001). The 70° tilt increased LF power% (197.20±143.76 Vs 218.17±155.85 and 216.87±150.98, p<0.001). LFnu unit (75.72±14.76 Vs 54.52±16.34 and 52.32±19.89, p<0.001), LF: HF (4.96±4.08 Vs 1.53±1.138 and 1.69±1.67, p<0.001) compared to 10° and supine. Conclusion: At 70° tilt, HRV measures, reflecting vagal contribution to cardiac-cycle length, decreased with reciprocal increase in sympathetic activity compared to 10° or supine leading to increase in sympathetic predominance. A 10° tilt, which is almost equivalent to lying down with pillow, did not change HRV from supine. Key words: Cardiac cycle; cardiovascular haemodynamics; head-up-tilt; heart rate variability; sympathetic activity; parasympathetic activity DOI: 10.3126/kumj.v7i3.2733 Kathmandu University Medical Journal (2009) Vol.7, No.3 Issue 27, 252-257