5,174 research outputs found
Effects of combined application of phosphorus and sulfur fertilizers on agronomic traits and protein content of supplementary irrigated haricot bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) varieties in Raya Valley, Northern Ethiopia
Haricot bean is primarily grown in Ethiopia for human consumption and export earnings. A market demand for haricot bean, both in the domestic and export market, has triggered the production of haricot bean in selected areas of Ethiopia though its production is constrained by several factors such as poor soil fertility and erratic rainfall. This study was carried out to investigate the combined effect of phosphorus and sulfur fertilizers on yield, yield related traits and protein content of haricot bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) varieties at the research field of Mekoni Agricultural Research Center during 2016/17 cropping season. The experiment was laid out in split plot design where varieties were assigned to the main plots and fertilizer rates to the sub plots in three replications. Three phosphorus (P) rates (10, 20 and 30 kg ha-1) were combined with four sulfur (S) rates (15, 30, 45 and 60 kg ha-1) and applied in combination to Melka Awash-98 and Nasir varieties. Data on phenological, agronomic and quality traits were collected and determined. Partial budget analysis was carried out to assess the profitability of the applications. P-S fertilizer treatments were significantly affected by varieties. Treatments were significantly affected by varieties and the imposed P and S rates. The interaction effect due to variety by fertilizer the two factors significantly affect days to flowering, plant height, hundred seed weight and protein content. Tallest plants, fewer days to flowering and maturity, many pods/plant, heavier seeds, higher grain yield ha-1 and better protein content were recorded where the fertilizer application rate was 20 kg ha-1P and 30 kg ha-1 S for both varieties. Grain yield ranged from 1520 to 3000 kg ha-1 depending on P-S fertilizer rates and varieties. Nasir variety seems to be superior over Melka Awash-98 for most traits except protein content. However, production of Melka Awash-98 under 20 kg ha-1P and 15 kg ha-1 S fertilization tend to be more economical as it resulted in highest net benefit return. Although not profitable, planting Melka Awash-98 using an application rate of 20 kg ha-1P and 30 kg ha-1 S could be suggested for use in the area to ensure earliness and high grain yield
Assessing Soil Nutrient Additions through Different Composting Techniques in Northern Ethiopia
The use of vermi-compost in northern Ethiopia is not a common practice. It is, therefore, important to understand the possible impediments through studying its chemical and biological properties and its extra contribution compared to other composting techniques. Four compost types (vermi-compost, conventional compost, farmersâ compost and community nursery compost) with three replications were used in this study. The farmersâ and community nursery compost samples were collected from different places in Tigray; whereas, the vermi- and conventional composts were prepared at Mekelle University following a standard composting procedure. Six major composting materials were identified in the visited sites from farmersâ and community nursery foremenâs interview. These composting materials were also used for the vermi- and conventional composting. Twelve composite compost samples were taken for analysis of macro- and micro-nutrients. The results of the experiment showed that for all treatments, despite of having high content of total C (5.04 â 10.67%), the C/N ratio (12.19 â 12.22) was low. This suggests that as the C/N ratio is lower than the threshold (< 30), mineralization is faster, nutrients eventually become available and a large amount of N is lost. Soil pH, exchangeable Magnesium (ex.Mg), exchangeable Potassium (ex.P), available Phosphorus (ava.P), and Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) showed significant differences among the different composting techniques. Among the selected compost types, ex.Mg, ex.Ca and av.P were higher for vermi-compost. The lowest was recorded in community nursery compost. The use of vermi-compost is, therefore, very helpful in terms of providing beneficial soil nutrients as compared to other compost types.Keywords: Conventional compost, Vermi-compost, farmersâ compost, Nursery compost, Macro-nutrients, Micro-nutrients
How to reduce the number of rating scale items without predictability loss?
Rating scales are used to elicit data about qualitative entities (e.g.,
research collaboration). This study presents an innovative method for reducing
the number of rating scale items without the predictability loss. The "area
under the receiver operator curve method" (AUC ROC) is used. The presented
method has reduced the number of rating scale items (variables) to 28.57\%
(from 21 to 6) making over 70\% of collected data unnecessary.
Results have been verified by two methods of analysis: Graded Response Model
(GRM) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA). GRM revealed that the new method
differentiates observations of high and middle scores. CFA proved that the
reliability of the rating scale has not deteriorated by the scale item
reduction. Both statistical analysis evidenced usefulness of the AUC ROC
reduction method.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure
Reversal of hepatorenal syndrome type 1 with terlipressin plus albumin vs. placebo plus albumin in a pooled analysis of the OT-0401 and REVERSE randomised clinical studies
Background
The goal of hepatorenal syndrome type 1 (HRS-1) treatment is to improve renal function. Terlipressin, a synthetic vasopressin analogue, is a systemic vasoconstrictor used for the treatment of HRS-1, where it is available. Aim
To compare the efficacy of terlipressin plus albumin vs. placebo plus albumin in patients with HRS-1. Methods
Pooled patient-level data from two large phase 3, randomised, placebo-controlled studies were analysed for HRS reversal [serum creatinine (SCr) value â€133 ÎŒmol/L], 90-day survival, need for renal replacement therapy and predictors of HRS reversal. Patients received intravenous terlipressin 1â2 mg every 6 hours plus albumin or placebo plus albumin up to 14 days. Results
The pooled analysis comprised 308 patients (terlipressin: n = 153; placebo: n = 155). HRS reversal was significantly more frequent with terlipressin vs. placebo (27% vs. 14%; P = 0.004). Terlipressin was associated with a more significant improvement in renal function from baseline until end of treatment, with a mean between-group difference in SCr concentration of â53.0 ÎŒmol/L (P \u3c 0.0001). Lower SCr, lower mean arterial pressure and lower total bilirubin and absence of known precipitating factors for HRS were independent predictors of HRS reversal and longer survival in terlipressin-treated patients. Conclusions
Terlipressin plus albumin resulted in a significantly higher rate of HRS reversal vs. albumin alone in patients with HRS-1. Terlipressin treatment is associated with improved renal function
Determination of Local Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Crop Coefficient and Comparative Assessment of Water Productivity for Crops Grown Under the Present Pond Water in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia
An experiment was carried out in 2010 at Mekelle, in northern Ethiopia, to measure the evapotranspiration, to estimate barley crop coefficient (kc), and to evaluate the water productivity taking into account the major crops grown under the present pond irrigation system. Four locally made lysimters were installed in the middle of barley field to measure barley evapotranspiration. The single crop coefficient approach was used to estimate barley crop coefficient. The average seasonal evapotranspiration of barley was 375 mm which is similar to many other cereal crops in the region. The single crop coefficient values for early, vegetative, mid and late crop stages were 0.6 â 0.8, 0.6 â 1.0; 1.0 â 1.05 and 0.3 - 0.4 respectively. The result showed that these crop coefficient values obtained in this experiment were similar to the crop coefficient values obtained in the past except for kc initial. Therefore, the assumption that local barley crop coefficient values differ from that of the documented values was incorrect. Furthermore, the major reason for mismanagement of irrigation water in barley fields was not due to use of wrong crop coefficient values but could be due to inadequate irrigation technical skill and knowledge of the farmer. The average economic water productivity (EWP) of barley for the very wet, wet, normal, dry and very dry seasons scenario were 0.99, 0.7, 0.65, 0.57, and 0.44 USD m-3, respectively, whereas the corresponding crop water productivity (CWP) values for grain were 1.53, 1.08, 1.0, 0.88 and 0.68 kg m-3, respectively. The EWP and CWP of barley were compared with onion and tomato
under pond water irrigation at the five climatic scenarios. The crop water productivity for tomato and onion were 85 â 87% and 76 â 78% higher than that of barley, respectively. The
corresponding economic water productivity for tomato and onion were 87 â 89% and 81 â 82% higher than that of barley, respectively. We concluded that growing tomato and onion would bring more income or yield per m3 of pond water supplied than growing barley. The implication is that as supply and demand determines the price of products, farmers and extension workers need to balance the crop area coverage per irrigation scheme so that undesirable price falls and rises could be avoided. Evaluation of crops based on their water productivity would improve the productivity of irrigation schemes and ultimately improve food security in the arid and semi-arid areas where water scarcity is critical problem and irrigation is a necessity for crop production.
Key Words: Barley, Evapotranspiration, Crop coefficient, Water productivity
Application of quantum-inspired generative models to small molecular datasets
Quantum and quantum-inspired machine learning has emerged as a promising and
challenging research field due to the increased popularity of quantum
computing, especially with near-term devices. Theoretical contributions point
toward generative modeling as a promising direction to realize the first
examples of real-world quantum advantages from these technologies. A few
empirical studies also demonstrate such potential, especially when considering
quantum-inspired models based on tensor networks. In this work, we apply
tensor-network-based generative models to the problem of molecular discovery.
In our approach, we utilize two small molecular datasets: a subset of
molecules from the QM9 dataset and a small in-house dataset of validated
antioxidants from TotalEnergies. We compare several tensor network models
against a generative adversarial network using different sample-based metrics,
which reflect their learning performances on each task, and multiobjective
performances using relevant molecular metrics per task. We also combined
the output of the models and demonstrate empirically that such a combination
can be beneficial, advocating for the unification of classical and
quantum(-inspired) generative learning.Comment: First versio
Study of the accreting pulsar 4U 0115+634 with a bulk and thermal Comptonization model
Highly magnetized pulsars accreting matter in a binary system are bright
sources in the X-ray band (0.1-100 keV). Despite the early comprehension of the
basic emission mechanism, their spectral energy distribution is generally
described by phenomenological or simplified models. We propose a study of the
spectral emission from the high mass X-ray binary pulsar 4U 0115+634 by means
of thermal and bulk Comptonization models based on the physical properties of
such objects. For this purpose, we analyze the BeppoSAX data in the energy
range 0.7-100 keV of the 1999 giant outburst, 12 days after the maximum. We
model the spectral energy distribution of the system using a two-component
continuum. At higher energy, above ~7 keV, the emission is due to thermal and
bulk Comptonization of the seed photons produced by cyclotron cooling of the
accretion column, and at lower energy, the emission is due to thermal
Comptonization of a blackbody source in a diffuse halo close to the stellar
surface. From the best fit parameters, we argue that the cyclotron emission is
produced ~1.7 km above the stellar surface, and escapes from the column near
its base, where the absorption features are generated by the interaction with
the magnetic field in a surrounding halo. We find that in 4U 0115+634, the
observed spectrum is dominated by reprocessed cyclotron radiation, whereas in
other bright sources with stronger magnetic fields such as Her X-1, the
spectrum is dominated by reprocessed bremsstrahlung.Comment: 12 pages, accepted for publication on Astronomy and Astrophysic
Validez de la prueba de histerectomĂa vaginal en pacientes con indicaciĂłn de vĂa abdominal mandatoria
IndexaciĂłn: ScieloObjetivo: Evaluar la histerectomĂa vaginal en la resoluciĂłn de patologĂa uterina benigna, en casos que habitualmente se resuelven por histerectomĂa abdominal. MĂ©todo: Estudio prospectivo en 68 pacientes sometidas a histerectomĂa vaginal en el Servicio de GinecologĂa del Hospital Claudio Vicuña, de San Antonio, entre junio de 2003 a junio de 2009. Son pacientes sin partos vaginales, algunas nuligestas, la mayorĂa con cicatrices de cesĂĄrea o historia de cirugĂa pĂ©lvica previa. Se separan en dos grupos, uno de dificultad moderada (DM) (Ăștero mĂłvil, vagina >2 dedos de diĂĄmetro, fondos de saco bien conformados) y otro de dificultad severa (DS) (Ăștero fjo, vagina 2 fingers diameter, well conserved cul de sac, and severe difficulty (SD): composed by patients with none uterine motility, vagina <2 fingers diameter or fat cul de sac. Results: We did not observed statistically significant differences in age, number of prior cesarean sections or pelvic surgeries, estimated uterine size, bladder injury, nor abdominal conversion, but there was significant differences in operative time and need of morcelation, being greater in SD patients. It is important to notice the absent of major and minor complications in 93% of the patients. Conclusion: Our results are meant to demystify the objections for vaginal route, including the patients with extreme difficulty.http://www.scielo.cl/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0717-75262010000500008&nrm=is
Distorted cyclotron line profile in Cep X-4 as observed by NuSTAR
We present spectral analysis of NuSTAR and Swift observations of Cep X-4
during its outburst in 2014. We observed the source once during the peak of the
outburst and once during the decay, finding good agreement in the spectral
shape between the observations. We describe the continuum using a powerlaw with
a Fermi-Dirac cutoff at high energies. Cep X-4 has a very strong cyclotron
resonant scattering feature (CRSF) around 30 keV. A simple absorption-like line
with a Gaussian optical depth or a pseudo-Lorentzian profile both fail to
describe the shape of the CRSF accurately, leaving significant deviations at
the red side of the line. We characterize this asymmetry with a second
absorption feature around 19 keV. The line energy of the CRSF, which is not
influenced by the addition of this feature, shows a small but significant
positive luminosity dependence. With luminosities between (1-6)e36 erg/s, Cep
X-4 is below the theoretical limit where such a correlation is expected. This
behavior is similar to Vela X-1 and we discuss parallels between the two
systems.Comment: 6 pages, 4 figure, accepted for publication in ApJ letter
Energy-Dependent Harmonic Ratios of the Cyclotron Features of X0331+53 in the 2004-2005 Outburst
We report on changes of the cyclotron resonance energies of the recurrent
transient pulsar, X0331+53 (V0332+53). The whole RXTE data acquired in the
2004-2005 outburst were utilized. The 3-80 keV source luminosity varied between
1.7x10^36 and 3.5x10^38 ers/s, assuming a distance of 7 kpc. We confirmed that
the fundamental cyclotron resonance energy changed from ~22 to ~27 keV in a
clear anti-correlation to the source luminosity, and without any hysteresis
effects between the rising and declining phases of the outburst. In contrast,
the second harmonic energy changed from ~49 to ~54 keV, implying a weaker
fractional change as a function of the luminosity. As a result, the observed
resonance energy ratio between the second harmonic and the fundamental was ~2.2
when the source was most luminous, whereas the ratio decreased to the nominal
value of 2.0 at the least luminous state. Although the significance of this
effect is model dependent, these results suggest that the fundamental and
second harmonic resonances represent different heights in the accretion column,
depending on the mass accretion rate.Comment: 39 pages, 15 figures, 4 tables. Accepted for publication in
Astrophysical Journa
- âŠ