scholarly journals Cultivar-Specific Performance and Qualitative Descriptors for Butterhead Salanova Lettuce Produced in Closed Soilless Cultivation as a Candidate Salad Crop for Human Life Support in Space

Life ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 61 ◽  
Author(s):  
El-Nakhel ◽  
Giordano ◽  
Pannico ◽  
Carillo ◽  
Fusco ◽  
...  

Plant production is crucial for space journeys self-autonomy by contributing to the dietary intake necessary to sustain the physical and psychological well-being of space colonists, as well as for contributing to atmospheric revitalization, water purification and waste product recycling. Choosing the appropriate cultivar is equally important as the species selection, since cultivar influences the obtained fresh biomass, water use efficiency (WUE), growing cycle duration, qualitative features and postharvest performance. Two differently pigmented butterhead Lactuca sativa L. (red and green Salanova) cultivars were assessed in terms of morphometric, mineral, bioactive and physiological parameters. The experiment was carried out in a controlled environment growth chamber using a closed soilless system (nutrient film technique). Red Salanova registered a biomass of 130 g at harvest, which was 22.1% greater than green Salanova, and a water uptake of 1.42 L during the full growing period corresponding to WUE of 91.9 g L–1, which was 13.8% higher than that of green Salanova. At harvest, green Salanova had accumulated more P, K, Ca, Mg and 37.2% more nitrate than red Salanova, which however had higher relative water content, leaf total and osmotic potential and higher SPAD index. Red Salanova also exhibited at harvest around two-fold higher lipophilic antioxidant activity and total phenols, and around six-fold higher total ascorbic acid levels. These latter characteristics improved the antioxidant capacity of red Salanova enabling it to use light more efficiently and deliver better overall performance and yield than green Salanova. Moreover, the higher phenolics and total ascorbic acid contents of red Salanova constitute natural sources of antioxidants for enriching the human diet and render it an optimal candidate cultivar for near-term missions.

HortScience ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 523b-523 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin James ◽  
Marc van Iersel

The quantity and quality of available water in the Southeastern United States continues to decline as demands on limited resources increase. Growers will soon be forced to comply with legal limitations on water consumption and limits on nutrient runoff from their operations. A lack of information on standard growing practices using alternative irrigation systems such as ebb and flow is hindering their acceptance and implementation. We are currently conducting a series of experiments to establish basic growing guidelines for the use of ebb and flow in the greenhouse in bedding plant production. In the third of these experiments, Petunia × hybrida Hort. Vilm.-Andr. `Blue Frost' and Begonia × hiemalis Fotsch. `Ambassador Scarlet' were grown for 5 weeks on ebb and flow tables with fertigation solutions (225 ppm N) containing three different levels of phosphorus (0, 50, and 100 ppm). Three soilless media were also used, which varied in their percentage content of vermiculite, perlite, pine bark and coconut coir. For both the begonias and petunias dry mass of the shoot was greatest in plants grown with higher levels of phosphorus. In comparison to plants grown with 0 ppm phosphorous, petunias and begonias grown with 50 or 100 ppm P were 44% and 25% greater in mass, respectively. However, begonias had 38% more flowers when fertigated with the higher levels of phosphorous while petunias flowered earlier with 0 ppm P fertigation solution. The electrical conductivity of the media did not change significantly over the course of the growing period, but the pH dropped by an average of 1 over the same time interval.


Author(s):  
Stuti Pant

AbstractAmongst all the traumatic experiences in a human life, death of child is considered the most painful, and has profound and lasting impact on the life of parents. The experience is even more complex when the death occurs within a neonatal intensive care unit, particularly in situations where there have been conflicts associated with decisions regarding the redirection of life-sustaining treatments. In the absence of national guidelines and legal backing, clinicians are faced with a dilemma of whether to prolong life-sustaining therapy even in the most brain-injured infants or allow a discharge against medical advice. Societal customs, vagaries, and lack of bereavement support further complicate the experience for parents belonging to lower socio-economic classes. The present review explores the ethical dilemmas around neonatal death faced by professionals in India, and suggests some ways forward.


2021 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2020-002820
Author(s):  
Kathleen Kane ◽  
Fiona Kennedy ◽  
Kate L Absolom ◽  
Clare Harley ◽  
Galina Velikova

BackgroundAs treatments continue to progress, patients with advanced cancer are living longer. However, ongoing physical side-effects and psychosocial concerns can compromise quality of life (QoL). Patients and physicians increasingly look to the internet and other technologies to address diverse supportive needs encountered across this evolving cancer trajectory.Objectives1. To examine the features and delivery of web and technological interventions supporting patients with advanced cancer. 2. To explore their efficacy relating to QoL and psychosocial well-being.MethodsRelevant studies were identified through electronic database searches (MEDLINE, PsychINFO, Embase, CINAHL, CENTRAL, Web of Science and ProQuest) and handsearching. Findings were collated and explored through narrative synthesis.ResultsOf 5274 identified records, 37 articles were included. Interventions were evaluated within studies targeting advanced cancer (13) or encompassing all stages (24). Five subtypes emerged: Interactive Health Communication Applications (n=12), virtual programmes of support (n=11), symptom monitoring tools (n=8), communication conduits (n=3) and information websites (n=3). Modes of delivery ranged from self-management to clinically integrated. Support largely targeted psychosocial well-being, alongside symptom management and healthy living. Most studies (78%) evidenced varying degrees of efficacy through QoL and psychosocial measures. Intervention complexity made it challenging to distinguish the most effective components. Incomplete reporting limited risk of bias assessment.ConclusionWhile complex and varied in their content, features and delivery, most interventions led to improvements in QoL or psychosocial well-being across the cancer trajectory. Ongoing development and evaluation of such innovations should specifically target patients requiring longer-term support for later-stage cancer.PROSPERO registration numberCRD42018089153.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 1867
Author(s):  
Emilie Sophie Le Caous ◽  
Fenghueih Huarng

Living in a world where we can expand our economic wealth and the richness of human life is the core of the human development concept. Greater well-being for all can be achieved by improving people’s capabilities and more importantly, by giving individuals the ability to use their knowledge and skills. The economic complexity index (i.e., ECI) is a new indicator that defines a country’s complexity. Through a vast network, citizens can transfer an enormous quantity of relevant knowledge, leading to the creation of diversified and complex products. However, the relationship between economic complexity and human development is not that simple. Thus, this paper aimed to understand it deeper—international migration and logistics performance are used as moderators. Hierarchical linear modeling was the statistical tool used to analyze two groups of countries from 1990 to 2017. For robustness and to deal with possible endogeneity issues, different year lags were also included. The results show that international migration and logistics performance are decisive moderators as they change the relationship between economic complexity and human development.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 3439
Author(s):  
Diana Turrión ◽  
Luna Morcillo ◽  
José Antonio Alloza ◽  
Alberto Vilagrosa

Open-pit mining results in profound modifications at different environmental scales that may persist for very long time periods, or even indefinitely. Considerable research efforts in mine reclamation strategies have been made, although reclamation failures are still common. In dry climates, such as in the Mediterranean Basin, successful actions may depend on features related to proper species selection and restoration techniques, which may substantially contribute to provide substrate stability and facilitate the regeneration of the main ecological processes. In this context, we developed the TECMINE case-study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and suitability of innovative restoration practices applied to clay-mine reclamation under Mediterranean conditions. The restoration strategy was designed at the landscape level with two main approaches: the recovery of natural geomorphology shapes and ecological restoration, including vegetation recovery and soil quality, based on proper reference ecosystems. After the geomorphological land remodeling, a combination of several innovative restoration techniques was implemented to reclaim plant communities and ecosystem functioning. These techniques involved: (i) accurate species selection according to microhabitat characteristics; (ii) high-quality plant production; (iii) surface remodeling to improve substrate stabilization; and (iv) implementing rainfall collection to enhance resources availability, soil fertility improvement and the amelioration of abiotic conditions for seedlings. Finally, we developed a monitoring program to assess the success of the implemented restoration techniques over time. The application of these innovative techniques has reported interesting results and represents a step forward in the improvement of mine restoration under Mediterranean climate.


2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jana Brandt ◽  
Kyra Selina Hagge

Abstract Education and having access to social support play a vital role in the human life. Integrated and better-educated people demonstrate an increased personal health and well-being. Social isolation, on the contrary, can affect not only the personal development, but also pertains to society. These topics are especially relevant in the current migration debate. Our paper examines the link between schooling and the individuals’ probability to receive different types of social support, in particular emotional, instrumental, informational, and appraisal support. Using logit and ordinal logit regressions on cross-sectional micro-data provided by the SOEP, we distinguish between two subgroups, the native population and people who migrated to Germany. Our findings confirm that higher levels of education increase the probability to access social support as well as the number of support providers in the network. Migrants are disadvantaged when it comes to the access of social support. However, our results suggest no significant negative returns to education for people with migration experiences.


2008 ◽  
Vol 63 (7-10) ◽  
pp. 1031-1036 ◽  
Author(s):  
V.I. Polonskiy ◽  
I.V. Gribovskaya

Author(s):  
Ieva Ančevska

The article examines the depiction of gratitude and related events in Latvian folklore through comparative evaluation. Gratitude is considered in a psychological context, comparing the attitude expressed in folklore with the findings of modern scientific research. Gratitude is a concept that is usually associated with a relationship or a benefit, it is most often aimed outwards, dedicated to someone else, but at the same time, it creates a pleasant feeling within the person. In modern psychology, gratitude is receiving more and more attention from researchers because its manifestations stimulate the formation of positive emotions and contribute to the improvement of the person’s overall well-being. Research and clinical studies in psychotherapy confirm that gratitude plays an important role in improving mental health and reducing depressive, destructive feelings. In turn, neuroscience research shows the potential of a grateful and positive attitude in strengthening psycho-emotional health and well-being in general. In Latvian folklore, gratitude is depicted as an important part of ritual events, which helps to ensure a positive, balanced connection with the forces of nature, gods, and society. In folklore, the importance of gratitude is emphasised more when building family relationships or accepting various situations and occurrences in life. In both psychological research and the practice of systemic therapy, as well as in folklore, gratitude appears as one of the most important values of interpersonal connection, which promotes the formation of harmonious relationships. Similar to the opinions of psychology, the folk world views emphasise the motivational role of gratitude in improving the quality of human life and health in general.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sławomira Kołsut

The action-task approach is a modern approach to language learning and teaching, offering more opportunities for active participation in the class and greater engagement in the learning process than traditional approaches, which include for example the communicative approach. The aim of this publication is to show the action-task approach from multiple perspectives: pedagogical, glottodidactic and neurobiological. In the pedagogical dimension, it refers to the issues of the new culture of learning and teaching and to the constructivist model of learning. In practice, this means that learners acquire knowledge and skills actively through their own actions. This method implies that classes are oriented towards shaping learners‘ independence and their gradual acquisition of autonomy. In the modern school, the learner acquires, apart from knowledge, which is no longer the priority of teaching, the competences needed for future work. In the modern knowledge society, these competences are becoming increasingly important, as they are more difficult to acquire than generally available knowledge. Therefore, during the modern learning process the student is provided with conditions for the development of social, methodological as well as personal competences, which play a very important role in achieving individual well-being. The action-task approach is not only a constructivist way of learning and teaching languages, but also a philosophy, referring to considerations of learning, teaching, perception of reality, communication and interaction with fellow learners, and formation of attitudes and values needed in human life.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document