Crop residue,manure and fertilizer in dryland maize under reduced tillage in northern China: I grain yields and nutrient use efficiencies

The rapidly increasing population and associated quest for food and feed in China has led to increased soil cultivation and nitrogen (N) fertilizer use, and as a consequence to increased wind erosion and unbalanced crop nutrition. In the study presented here, we explored the long-term effects of various combinations of maize stover, cattle manure and nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) fertilizer applications on maize (Zea mays L.) yield and nutrient and water use efficiencies under reduced tillage practices. In a companion paper, we present the effects on nutrient balances and soil fertility characteristics. The ongoing factorial field trial was conducted at Shouyang Dryland Farming Experimental Station in northern China from 1993 onwards. The incomplete, determinant-optimal design comprised 12 treatments, including a control treatment, in duplicate. Grain yields and N, P, and potassium (K) uptakes and N, P and K use efficiencies were greatly influenced by the amount of rain during the growing season (GSR), and by soil water at sowing (SWS). There were highly significant interactions between GSR and added stover and manure, expressed in complex annual variations in grain yield and N, P and K use efficiencies. Annual mean grain yields ranged from 3,000 kg ha⁻¹ to 10,000 kg ha⁻¹ and treatment mean yields from 4,500 kg ha⁻¹ to 7,000 kg ha⁻¹. Balanced combination of stover (3,000–6,000 kg), manure (1,500–6,000 kg) and N fertilizer (105 kg) gave the highest yield. Stover and manure were important for supplying K, but the effects differed greatly between years. Overall mean N recovery efficiency (NRE) ranged from 28% to 54%, depending on N source. NRE in wet years ranged from 50% to 90%. In conclusion, balanced combinations of stover, manure and NP fertilizer gave the highest yield and NRE. Reduced tillage with adding stover and manure in autumn prior to ploughing is effective in minimizing labor requirement and wind erosion. The potentials of split applications of N fertilizer, targeted to the need of the growing crop (response farming), should be explored to further increase the N use efficiency.     

Effects of dietary inclusion of xylooligo‐ saccharides,arabinoxylooligosaccha‐ rides and soluble arabinoxylan on the microbial composition of caecal contents of chickens

BACKGROUND: Arabinoxylan (AX)‐derived preparations have raised particular interest by the suggestion that they exert prebiotic properties. Therefore an in vivo experiment was conducted to study the effects of xylooligosaccharides (XOS), arabinoxylooligosaccharides (AXOS) and soluble AX (S‐AX) on several groups of gut bacteria of chickens. Chickens were fed a control diet or the same diet supplemented with 2.5 g kg^?1 of XOS (average degree of polymerisation (avDP) of 3, average degree of arabinose substitution (avDS) of 0.09), wheat bran‐derived AXOS (avDP 9, avDS 0.34) or wheat endosperm alkali‐solubilised AX (S‐AX, avDP > 6000, avDS 0.5). RESULTS: All treatment groups showed an increase in the number of caecal bifidobacteria after 2 weeks of feeding (P < 0.05), while the treatments did not impact numbers of Enterobacteriaceae and aerobic lactobacilli in the caeca relative to the control. XOS led to a tremendous increase in caecal bifidobacteria counts (10⁸ g^?1 for the XOS treatment versus 10³ g^?1 for the control treatment) after only 1 week of supplementation, while AXOS and S‐AX led to similar strong increases in bifidobacteria counts after 2 weeks of supplementation. Addition of S‐AX to the diet, but not of AXOS or XOS, led to a significantly decreased (P < 0.05) body weight gain after 2 weeks of feeding relative to animals on the control diet, consistent with its known viscosity‐related antinutritive effects in chickens. CONCLUSION: Similar to XOS, AXOS selectively stimulate the presence of bifidobacteria in the caeca of chickens, establishing their bifidogenic effect as a first indicator for prebiotic potential. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry     

Testing of a sodium/nickel chloride (ZEBRA) battery for electric propulsion of ships and vehicles

One of the promising future batteries for electric propulsion of vehicles and ships is the sodium/nickel chloride or ZEBRA (Zero Emission Battery Research Activities) battery. Despite some disadvantages with respect to the high temperature, the advantages with respect to specific energy and energy density are such that, especially in applications where the battery is used on a more or less continuous basis (e.g., in delivery vans and taxies) it is an interesting candidate battery. Another interesting application is on board of ships, like submarines or future electrical surface ships with electric propulsion. In 1995 a 2 year feasibility study, including experimental testing of a 10 kW h battery, was completed. This investigated the naval applicability of the sodium/sulphur battery, which is also a high temperature battery. Here the limited, experimentally proven, life-time of the batteries of about 1.5 years and this made naval application almost impossible. A paper about this study was presented at the 19th International Power Sources Symposium held at Brighton, England, in April 1995 [R.A.A. Schillemans, C.E. Kluiters, Sodium/sulphur batteries for naval applications, in: A. Attewell, T. Keily (Eds.), Power Sources 15, International Power Sources Symposium Committee, Crowborough UK, 1995. p. 421.]. Because of the more or less comparable specifications on specific energy and the more promising results of the life-time and field tests with sodium/nickel chloride batteries, a ZEBRA battery from AEG Anglo Batteries has been tested for naval applications. This was done by simulating the charge and discharge as it occurs in practice for the applications investigated. With respect to the electrical ship application (investigated for the Royal Netherlands Navy) the power versus time taken from the battery was simulated as well as the charge procedures. The same can be done for the vehicle application: in this case typical drive cycles for a van or taxi are translated to power versus time taken from the battery. The results of the tests for application of the battery in naval ships are very promising.     

Wetting forces and meniscus pinning at geometrical edges

It is shown that complications in currently used optical measurements for wetting and flow resistance over edges can be circumvented by surface tension force measurements. These forces are measured by employing a modified Wilhelmy plate testing technique in which a plate with rectangular holes is immersed. The forces measured during immersion and emersion are subdivided into mass, buoyancy, and surface tension related parts, where the flow resistance when the meniscus passes horizontal faces and edges of the plate receives particular attention. Combining this experimental method with wetting theory, we show that we can predict and measure the full force curve for meniscus shape transitions over edge geometries under quasi‐static conditions. Moreover, wetting effects directly linked to surface defects can be detected qualitatively. We also point to the speed‐dependent rupture of metastable films formed during emersion. The measurement method designed is most relevant in cases where optical methods cannot be used. © 2016 The Authors AIChE Journal published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 62: 4453–4465, 2016     

Repair of Protein Radicals by Antioxidants

In vivo, proteins are the main targets for radicals and other reactive species. Their reactions result in formation of amino acid radicals on the protein surface that often yield tryptophan and tyrosyl radicals or, in the presence of O₂, protein peroxyl radicals and hydroperoxides. All these species may propagate damage to biomolecules. Low molecular weight antioxidants, such as ascorbate, urate, and glutathione, are part of the defense system and function by repairing damaged proteins. We briefly review the existing knowledge about protein and amino acid radicals and their repair by antioxidants, including results of our investigations. The main question addressed is whether the antioxidants ascorbate, urate, and glutathione are able to repair amino acid radicals in model compounds and in proteins in vitro by pulse radiolysis. We show that ascorbate and urate repair tryptophan and tyrosyl radicals efficiently and inhibit proton-coupled electron transfer from tyrosine residues to tryptophan radicals in a number of proteins. In contrast, repair by glutathione is much slower. Ascorbate also rapidly reduces the peroxyl radicals of the N-acetylamide derivatives of glycine, alanine, and proline, whereas glutathione reduces peroxyl radicals in lysozyme. In vivo urate, ascorbate, and glutathione may prevent biological damage or, at least, reduce its rate, because they: (a) repair tryptophan and tyrosyl radicals in proteins and (b) reduce protein peroxyl radicals to the corresponding protein hydroperoxides. Most likely, in vivo, ascorbate and glutathione do not inhibit the reaction of C-centered amino acid radicals with O₂. Glutathione is less efficient that urate and ascorbate in repairing protein radicals; furthermore, the resulting glutathiyl radical is harmful. Ascorbate may be the more important repair agent in cells and tissues characterized by high ascorbate concentrations, such as the lens and brain; urate may be mainly responsible for repair in tissue compartments with higher urate concentrations, such as in plasma and saliva.     

Functional recovery of respiratory behavior during axonal regeneration in snails (Lymnaea stagnalis) is experience dependent.

This study investigated the role of experience in recovery of pulmonary respiration during axonal regeneration in Lymnaea stagnalis. Pulmonary respiration occurs when snails break the water surface and open the lung orifice, the pneumostome. It was shown that axotomy of all the axons innervating the pneumostome and surrounding area prevents the occurrence of lung respiration in 69% of snails. In the remaining 31%, lung respiration persisted, indicating that peripheral components alone are capable of initiating pneumostome openings and closures. Five weeks postsurgery, all snails with previous nerve crushes showed opening of the pneumostome with normal latency after breaking the water surface. However, prevention of pulmonary respiration during the recovery period dramatically changed the recovered behavior. Thus, experience in pulmonary respiration during axonal regeneration plays a role in the recovery of this behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Display of profiled sweep objects

A class of free-form solids called profiled sweep objects is defined by four parametric curves: a 2D contour (cross-section), a 3D trajectory (spine), and two profile curves, which control the scaling of the contour as it moves along the trajectory. Subclasses of this are profiled prisms, which have a linear trajectory, and profiled generalized cylinders, which have an arbitrary 3D trajectory. First an exact definition of profiled sweep object, is presented and their relation with common sweep objects is described. Then a method is given for the construction of planar approximations of these objects that can be used for fast display generation. Finally, ray-tracing algorithms are given that directly use the exact definition for high-quality display.     

Semantic and syntactic forces in noun phrase production.

Three experiments investigated semantic and syntactic effects in the production of phrases in Dutch. Bilingual participants were presented with English nouns and were asked to produce an adjective + noun phrase in Dutch including the translation of the noun. In 2 experiments, the authors blocked items by either semantic category or grammatical gender. Participants performed the task slower when the target nouns were of the same semantic category than when they were from different categories and faster when the target nouns had the same gender than when they had different genders. In a final experiment, both manipulations were crossed. The authors replicated the results of the first 2 experiments, and no interaction was found. These findings suggest a feedforward flow of activation between lexico-semantic and lexico-syntactic information. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)