Treatment with insecticide and fungicide on the physiological quality of lentil seeds

The low Brazilian productive index and the high demand have aroused interest in the cultivation of lentils, however the legume is little known and needs further studies. The objective of this study was to analyze and identify the effects of treatments with insecticides and fungicides on the physiological quality of lentil seeds, CA-1512 strain. The experiments were conducted in the seed laboratory in a completely randomized design with seven treatments and four replicates. Seed treatment with Thiophanate-methyl; Fluazinam® (180 ml) + Pyraclostrobin; Thiophanate-methyl; Fipronil® (150 ml) promoted higher levels of germination under accelerated aging, lower number of abnormal seedlings and longer lengths of shoot and radicle for the emergence in paper. Treatment with Carboxin; Thiram® (250 ml) + Imidacloprid® (150 ml) allowed a higher value in the first count of germination in sand, lower number of dead seeds under accelerated aging and longer root length, in the emergence in sand. Shoot length in the emergence in sand increased after seed treatment with Metalaxyl-M; Fludioxonil® (75 ml) + Pyraclostrobin; Thiophanate-methyl; Fipronil® (150 ml). Treatments with fungicides and insecticides considerably improved the physiological properties of the seeds, thus being able to guarantee greater phytosanitary qualities in the field, generating healthier seedlings and with protection against possible pests and diseases, and consequently guaranteeing greater productivity.

How Do Nepotism and Favouritism Affect Organisational Climate?

This study seeks to determine the effect of nepotism and favouritism on organisational climate. Using the method of random sampling, 269 persons working in Lithuanian organisations were surveyed. The received data was analysed via the application of the methods of correlation and linear regression. It was determined that organisational climate is influenced significantly by variables such as the manager’s behaviour, safety and relationships with employees, values and traditions, communication, sharing of information, behaviour of employees, and interrelationships and tolerance of one another. Meanwhile, nepotism and favouritism are influenced by the lower number of climate variables (fear related to the absence of concreteness and security, such as joining an organisation, union and tolerance of individuals who have shared interests). This work fills the void in the knowledge of connections that nepotism and favouritism have with organisational climate, drawing attention to the mutual interaction between these phenomena. The article presents a discussion and the research limitations, and provides guidelines for further research.

Predictors of Higher Quality of Systematic Reviews Addressing Nutrition and Cancer Prevention

Systematic reviews/meta-analyses (SR/MAs) are considered a reliable source of information in healthcare. We aimed to explore the association of several characteristics of SR/MAs addressing nutrition in cancer prevention and their quality/risk of bias (using assessments from AMSTAR-2 and ROBIS tools). The analysis included 101 SR/MAs identified in a systematic survey. Associations of each specified characteristic (e.g., information about the protocol, publication year, reported use of GRADE, or other methods for assessing overall certainty of evidence) with the number of AMSTAR-2 not met (‘No’ responses) and the number of ROBIS items met (‘Probably Yes’ or “Yes’ responses) were examined. Poisson regression was used to identify predictors of the number of ‘No’ answers (indicating lower quality) for all AMSTAR-2 items and the number of ‘Yes’ or ‘Probably Yes’ answers (indicating higher quality/lower concern for bias) for all ROBIS items. Logistic regression was used to identify variables associated with at least one domain assessed as ‘low concern for bias’ in the ROBIS tool. In multivariable analysis, SR/MAs not reporting use of any quality/risk of bias assessment instrument for primary studies were associated with a higher number of ‘No’ answers for all AMSTAR-2 items (incidence rate ratio (IRR) 1.26, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.09–1.45), and a lower number of ‘Yes’ or ‘Probably Yes’ answers for all ROBIS items (IRR 0.76, 95% CI 0.66–0.87). Providing information about the protocol and search for unpublished studies was associated with a lower number of ‘No’ answers (IRR 0.73, 95% CI 0.56–0.97 and IRR 0.75, 95% CI 0.59–0.95, respectively) and a higher number of ‘Yes’ or ‘Probably Yes’ answers (IRR 1.43, 95% CI 1.17–1.74 and IRR 1.28, 95% CI 1.07–1.52, respectively). Not using at least one quality/risk of bias assessment tool for primary studies within an SR/MA was associated with lower odds that a study would be assessed as ‘low concern for bias’ in at least one ROBIS domain (odds ratio 0.061, 95% CI 0.007–0.527). Adherence to methodological standards in the development of SR/MAs was associated with a higher overall quality of SR/MAs addressing nutrition for cancer prevention.

Multi-Level Inverters Interfacing Electric Vehicle Charging Stations With Microgrid for Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) Applications

Multi-level inverters (MLI) are power electronic converters that convert DC power to AC power with high power-quality of output voltage waveforms. These MLI are the main streamline converters for integrating dc power of EV with microgrids. Thus, the recent interest of researchers is to investigate the MLI with a lower number of active and passive switch counts which could integrate the DC power of EV to the microgrid with the boosting ability. This chapter discusses various topologies of MLI for the integration of the DC power of EV to the grid for vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications. MLI converts DC power to AC power with high quality of output voltage waveform. Thus, the recent interest of researchers is to investigate the MLI with a lower number of active and passive switch counts which could integrate the DC power of EV to the microgrid. Also, MLI must be capable of boosting the voltage level to meet the grid requirements. The aim of this chapter is to discuss the various topologies of MLI for the integration of DC power of EV to the grid for vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications.

Carcass and Pork Quality and Gut Environment of Pigs Fed a Diet Supplemented with the Bokashi Probiotic

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of probiotics on gut microbiota, on carcass and meat quality and on mineral contents in the longissimus lumborum (LL) muscle in pigs. The research was carried out with 120 hybrid pigs deriving from Naïma sows and P-76 boars. Pigs from the experimental group received the EM®Bokashi probiotic (Greendland Technologia EM®, Janowiec n/Wisłą, Poland) in their feed (containing Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Lactobacillus casei and Lactobacillus plantarum). The study showed that EM®Bokashi probiotic supplementation resulted in a significantly higher count of lactic acid bacteria (LAB) and yeasts in the feed, a lower number of Clostridium in the mucosa and colorectal digesta as well as a lower Enterobacteriaceae count in the colorectal digesta. The research showed that carcasses of the pigs who received the EM®Bokashi probiotic had a higher lean percentage and lower fat content than the carcasses of the control fatteners. Diet supplementation with the EM®Bokashi probiotic resulted in a lower pH and technological yield (TY) and a higher drip loss and shear force at a lower protein content in LL muscle. Moreover, the administration of the probiotic to fatteners resulted in higher yellowness (b*) and saturation (C*) and higher concentrations of Na, Mg and Se in meat.

Work and fertility in Taiwan: How women’s and men’s career sequences associate with fertility outcomes?

There has been much debate over the micro-level relationship between employment situations and fertility in Europe and Northern America. However, related research in East Asia is scant, although countries in this region have some of the lowest fertility rates in the world. Moreover, most studies analyze the employment-fertility relationship from a static perspective and only for women, which underemphasizes life-course dynamics and gender heterogeneity of employment careers and their fertility implications. Drawing on retrospective data from the 2017 Taiwan Social Change Survey (TSCS), this study explores women’s and men’s career trajectories between ages 18 and 40 in Taiwan using sequence cluster analyses. It also examines how career variations associate with different timing and quantum of birth. Empirical results show that economically inactive women experience faster motherhood transitions and have more children by age 40 than women with stable full-time careers. For men, having an unstable career associates with slower fatherhood transitions and a lower number of children. For both genders, self-employed people are the earliest in parenthood transitions and have the highest number of children by midlife. Our findings demonstrate sharp gender contrasts in employment careers and their diversified fertility implications in low-fertility Taiwan

Human Performance of Novice Schedulers for Complex Spaceflight Operations Timelines

Objective Investigate the effects of scheduling task complexity on human performance for novice schedulers creating spaceflight timelines. Background Future astronauts will be expected to self-schedule, yet will not be experts in creating timelines that meet the complex constraints inherent to spaceflight operations. Method Conducted a within-subjects experiment to evaluate scheduling task performance in terms of scheduling efficiency, effectiveness, workload, and situation awareness while manipulating scheduling task complexity according to the number of constraints and type of constraints. Results Each participant ( n = 15) completed a set of scheduling problems. Results showed main effects of the number of constraints and type of constraint on efficiency, effectiveness, and workload. Significant interactions were observed in situation awareness and workload for certain types of constraints. Results also suggest that a lower number of constraints may be manageable by novice schedulers when compared to scheduling activities without constraints. Conclusion Results suggest that novice schedulers' performance decreases with a high number of constraints, and future scheduling aids may need to target a specific type of constraint. Application Knowledge on the effect of scheduling task complexity will help design scheduling systems that will enable self-scheduling for future astronauts. It will also inform other domains that conduct complex scheduling, such as nursing and manufacturing.

Relationship Between Caregiver Attendance at Wound Clinic Visits and Wound Healing in Patients With Diabetes: A Retrospective Multicenter Evaluation

BACKGROUND: Lower extremity wounds in patients with diabetes are significant and burdensome. PURPOSE: To evaluate retrospectively the correlation between lower limb wound outcomes in patients with diabetes and the presence of a caregiver during clinic visits. METHODS: The study was conducted in 3 outpatient wound centers in North Carolina. Patients (N = 85) were categorized into 2 groups: those who were accompanied by a caregiver at 50% or more of their visits to the wound clinic (n = 30) and those accompanied by a caregiver at fewer than 50% of their visits (n = 55). Data were evaluated using descriptive statistics and 2 sample t-tests. RESULTS: Although significant findings between the 2 groups were seen in age, race, Visit Count, Weeks in Service, Accompanied Count, and percentage of visits accompanied, the strongest meaningful correlation was in the Accompanied group between Percent Accompanied and Visit Count. In this group, the number of accompanied visits was 7.47 (range [standard deviation], 1–23 [5.2]) and the percentage was 87% (range [standard deviation], 52–100 [15]). This was stastically significant and with a moderately negative correlation (P = .04; r = -0.38). CONCLUSION: Despite negative predictors of healing, those who were accompanied by a caregiver at 50% or more of their visits demonstrated a higher healing rate and a lower number of total visits than those who were accompanied by a caregiver at fewer than 50% of their visits.

Depth of the Steroid Core Location Determines the Mode of Na,K-ATPase Inhibition by Cardiotonic Steroids

Cardiotonic steroids (CTSs) are specific inhibitors of Na,K-ATPase (NKA). They induce diverse physiological effects and were investigated as potential drugs in heart diseases, hypertension, neuroinflammation, antiviral and cancer therapy. Here, we compared the inhibition mode and binding of CTSs, such as ouabain, digoxin and marinobufagenin to NKA from pig and rat kidneys, containing CTSs-sensitive (α1S) and -resistant (α1R) α1-subunit, respectively. Marinobufagenin in contrast to ouabain and digoxin interacted with α1S-NKA reversibly, and its binding constant was reduced due to the decrease in the deepening in the CTSs-binding site and a lower number of contacts between the site and the inhibitor. The formation of a hydrogen bond between Arg111 and Asp122 in α1R-NKA induced the reduction in CTSs’ steroid core deepening that led to the reversible inhibition of α1R-NKA by ouabain and digoxin and the absence of marinobufagenin’s effect on α1R-NKA activity. Our results elucidate that the difference in signaling, and cytotoxic effects of CTSs may be due to the distinction in the deepening of CTSs into the binding side that, in turn, is a result of a bent-in inhibitor steroid core (marinobufagenin in α1S-NKA) or the change of the width of CTSs-binding cavity (all CTSs in α1R-NKA).

Implementation Mixed Wireless Network with Lower Number of Wi-Fi Routers for Optimal Coverage

With the development of various wireless communication networks, Wi-Fi Router positioning and deployment systems have become widely popular in recent years to improve coverage in various environments. In this paper, we present an appropriate mechanism for defining the deployment of Wi-Fi Routers to improve coverage in the Oxford Languages Institute (OLI) environment. In addition, the institute's environment was simulated using the Wireless InSite (WI) Package. In this work, two types of Wi-Fi Routers are used. The first is the TP-Link, while the second is the Rocket. These two devices operate at 2.4 and 5 GHz frequencies. There are two objectives in this work. The first aim is to determine the best location to cover the simulated scene environment in a better way. The second aim is to compare Wi-Fi Routers to find out which Wi-Fi Router is better and find out how many Wi-Fi Routers we need to cover the institute's environment. The comparison between Wi-Fi Routers was based on basic parameters to measure the performance of wireless networks, the most important of which are Coverage Rate (CR) Percentage, Signal Quality Rate (SQR), and Received Power Rate (RPR). According to the results that were shown on the Graphical User Interface (GUI) using MATLAB Software. We noticed that the CR, SQR, and RPR of the Rocket are 83.9080%, 97.0082%, and -35.2337 dBm respectively, and these results are better than the results provided by the TP-Link, as it gave the CR, SQR, and RPR are 32.1839%, 77.8690%, and -58.1685 dBm, respectively. Finally, we conclude that CR using the Rocket is good and we need one device to cover the institute’s environment. While CR using the TP-Link is bad and we need five devices to reach the coverage provided by the Rocket because the Rocket has high transmitted power and gain capacity.