Controlling dietary cation-anion differences in forages by chloride fertilisation

Rations with low to negative dietary cation-anion difference (DCAD) given to dairy cows before calving reduce the risk of hypocalcaemia (milk fever). Different strategies for increasing forage DCAD were investigated in field trials in Central and Western Norway. Fertilisation with 70, 140 or 210 kg Cl per hectare as calcium chloride and low supply rates of K reduced DCAD in forage harvested at late developmental stages in spring growth of timothy and meadow fescue. The ideal negative DCAD was only attained on soils very low in plant available K. Timing (spring versus late spring) and source of Cl (CaCl2 versus MgCl2) were of no importance for the result. When pure stands of seven grasses were fertilised in spring either without chloride or with 140 kg chloride per hectare, the lowest values of DCAD after chloride fertilisation were found in perennial ryegrass and reed canary grass. By comparison, cocksfoot had equally high or higher Cl concentrations in its tissues, but accumulated more K, and seemed to be poorly suited for low DCAD forage production. It was concluded that Cl fertilisation is a more efficient means of controlling DCAD than sward species composition

Mikromineralinnhold i jord og planter - mikromineralforsyning til drøvtyggere i økologisk landbruk

Det var generelt et høgere innhold av de enkelte mikromineralene i andre slått enn i første slått. Flere av planteprøvene viste så lavt innhold av sink at det kan redusere avlingsnivået. Mikromineralinnholdet i kløver var høyere enn i den samlede fraksjonen av gras, kløver og urter, slik at økt kløverinnhold i enga er viktig for å øke innholdet av mikromineraler i fôret Ut fra mineralbehovet hos sau- og storfe viste plante- og blodprøver at flere av besetningene hadde for liten tilførsel av selen og E-vitamin, mens tilførselen av kobolt og kopper stort sett var tilfredsstillende

Organic selenium supplementation increased selenium concentrations in ewe and newborn lamb blood and in slaughter lamb meat compared to inorganic selenium supplementation

Background Selenium is part of the antioxidant defence system in animals and humans. The available selenium concentration in soil is low in many regions of the world. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of organic versus inorganic selenium supplementation on selenium status of ewes, their lambs, and slaughter lambs. Methods Ewes on four organic farms were allocated five or six to 18 pens. The ewes were given either 20 mg/kg inorganic selenium as sodium selenite or organic selenium as selenized nonviable yeast supplementation for the two last months of pregnancy. Stipulated selenium concentrations in the rations were below 0.40 mg/kg dry matter. In addition 20 male lambs were given supplements from November until they were slaughtered in March. Silage, hay, concentrates, and individual ewe blood samples were taken before and after the mineral supplementation period, and blood samples were taken from the newborn lambs. Blood samples from ewes and lambs in the same pens were pooled. Muscle samples were taken from slaughter lambs in March. Selenium concentrations were determined by atomic absorption spectrometry with a hydride generator system. In the ANOVA model, selenium concentration was the continuous response variable, and selenium source and farm were the nominal effect variables. Two-sample t-test was used to compare selenium concentrations in muscle samples from the slaughtered lambs that received either organic or inorganic selenium supplements. Results In all ewe pens the whole blood selenium concentrations increased during the experimental period. In addition, ewe pens that received organic selenium had significantly higher whole blood selenium concentrations (mean 0.28 μg/g) than ewe pens that received inorganic selenium (mean 0.24 μg/g). Most prominent, however, was the difference in their lambs; whole blood mean selenium concentration in lambs from mothers that received organic selenium (mean 0.27 μg/g) was 30% higher than in lambs from mothers that received inorganic selenium (mean 0.21 μg/g). Slaughter lambs that received organic selenium had 50% higher meat selenium concentrations (mean 0.12 mg/kg wet weight) than lambs that received inorganic selenium (mean 0.08 mg/kg wet weight). Conclusion Organic selenium supplementation gave higher selenium concentration in ewe and newborn lamb blood and slaughter lamb meat than inorganic selenium supplementation

Mockup - Context-aware travel assistance at unexpected traffic disruptions in public transport

In this paper, a mockup application is created to examine how the commuter’s context, with a focus on the train the commuter is on, can be used to suggest individual alternative travel routes to support the commuter in arriving at the requested destination based on minimal delay with consideration of an uncertainty factor. Based on investigations of various travel applications, four different concepts are created that are used in a user survey where commuters can answer questions regarding, alternative travel routes, uncertainty factors and guidance to the requested destination. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how context can be used in a travel application and which information is relevant to the commuter. Based on the context the commuter will receive proposed alternative travel routes in the event of disruptions in public transport to simplify traveling by public transport, which in turn can attract more people to travel by public transport. A concluded user survey consisting of 47 respondents show the user perspective on how a commuter’s context can be used to recommend alternative routes, which contexts are relevant to provide better support for the commuter and which type of information the commuter thinks would best support themI detta arbete skapas en mockup-applikation för att undersöka hur resenärens kontext, medfokus på tåget resenären befinner sig på, kan användas för att föreslå individanpassade alternativa resvägar som stöd till resenären för att ankomma till begärd destination medminimal försening och osäkerhetsfaktor i åtanke. Utifrån undersökningar av olika reseapplikationer skapas fyra olika koncept som används i en enkätundersökning där resenärer får besvara frågor angående bland annat, alternativa resvägar, osäkerhetsfaktorer och vägledning till begärd destination. Syftet med arbetet är att undersöka hur kontext kan användas i en reseapplikation och vilken information som är relevant för resenären. Utifrån detta ska resenären få förslag på alternativa resvägar vid störningar i kollektivtrafiken för att ge känslan av trygghet och kontroll, samt förenkla kollektivt resande vilket i sin tur kan locka till att fler väljer att resa kollektivt. En genomförd enkätundersökning bestående av 47 respondenter visar användarperspektivet på hur resenärens kontext kan användas för att rekommendera alternativa resvägar, vilka kontexter som är relevanta för att bidra med bättre stöd för resenären samt vilken typ av information anses stödja resenären bäst

Mockup - Context-aware travel assistance at unexpected traffic disruptions in public transport

In this paper, a mockup application is created to examine how the commuter’s context, with a focus on the train the commuter is on, can be used to suggest individual alternative travel routes to support the commuter in arriving at the requested destination based on minimal delay with consideration of an uncertainty factor. Based on investigations of various travel applications, four different concepts are created that are used in a user survey where commuters can answer questions regarding, alternative travel routes, uncertainty factors and guidance to the requested destination. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how context can be used in a travel application and which information is relevant to the commuter. Based on the context the commuter will receive proposed alternative travel routes in the event of disruptions in public transport to simplify traveling by public transport, which in turn can attract more people to travel by public transport. A concluded user survey consisting of 47 respondents show the user perspective on how a commuter’s context can be used to recommend alternative routes, which contexts are relevant to provide better support for the commuter and which type of information the commuter thinks would best support themI detta arbete skapas en mockup-applikation för att undersöka hur resenärens kontext, medfokus på tåget resenären befinner sig på, kan användas för att föreslå individanpassade alternativa resvägar som stöd till resenären för att ankomma till begärd destination medminimal försening och osäkerhetsfaktor i åtanke. Utifrån undersökningar av olika reseapplikationer skapas fyra olika koncept som används i en enkätundersökning där resenärer får besvara frågor angående bland annat, alternativa resvägar, osäkerhetsfaktorer och vägledning till begärd destination. Syftet med arbetet är att undersöka hur kontext kan användas i en reseapplikation och vilken information som är relevant för resenären. Utifrån detta ska resenären få förslag på alternativa resvägar vid störningar i kollektivtrafiken för att ge känslan av trygghet och kontroll, samt förenkla kollektivt resande vilket i sin tur kan locka till att fler väljer att resa kollektivt. En genomförd enkätundersökning bestående av 47 respondenter visar användarperspektivet på hur resenärens kontext kan användas för att rekommendera alternativa resvägar, vilka kontexter som är relevanta för att bidra med bättre stöd för resenären samt vilken typ av information anses stödja resenären bäst

Factors affecting the concentration of Zn, Fe and Mn in herbage from organic farms and in relation to dietary requirements of ruminants

To obtain a general picture of the herbage zinc, iron and manganese concentrations and their relation to dietary requirements of ruminants on organic farms, we analysed soil and herbage samples from four regions in Norway. The soil median Zn, Fe and Mn concentrations were 0.18, 13 and 0.84 mg/L, respectively. The herbage median (10th-90th percentile) Zn, Fe and Mn concentrations (mg/kg) in herbage in the first cut were 19 (14-34), 50 (36-88), 34 (22-86) and in the second cut 21 (16-37), 84 (52-171) and 66 (36-205), respectively. The results of mixed model analysis of herbage Zn, Fe and Mn indicate that soil pH, soil texture, soil mineral concentration and botanical composition are the most influencing factors. We conclude that Zn, Fe and Mn did not limit plant growth, and that the herbage concentrations except for Zn, were sufficient to meet the dietary needs of ruminants on organic dairy farms

Status of selenium and vitamin E on Norwegian organic sheep and dairy cattle farms

Herbage selenium (Se) concentration is generally low in Norway. It is unknown, if feeding practises on Norwegian organic farms fulfil the dietary need of Se and vitamin E to sheep and dairy cattle. Therefore, we analysed Se in soil and herbage, and Se and vitamin E in animal blood in the indoor feeding season at 14 organic dairy and 14 organic sheep farms. The herbage Se concentration was low. Approximately 50 and 35 % of all samples in the first and second cut, respectively, had Se concentrations below the detection limit of 0.01 mg/kg dry matter (DM). The median (10th, 90th percentile) Se concentrations were <0.01 (<0.01, 0.03) and 0.02 (<0.01, 0.06) mg/kg DM in the first and second cuts, respectively. Whole blood Se concentrations were 0.10 (0.04, 0.15) µg/g in dairy cattle and 0.14 (0.03, 0.26) µg/g in sheep. Vitamin E concentrations were 4.2 (2.7, 8.4) mg/L in dairy cattle and 1.3 (0.9, 2.4) mg/L in sheep. None of the soil or plant variables explained the variation in herbage Se concentration, although Se in soil and plant tended to be correlated. Herbage Se concentration was inadequate to meet the dietary Se requirements. Vitamin E requirement was only met in dairy herds. We recommend Se and vitamin E supplementation to ruminants on organic farms

Copper, molybdenum and cobalt in herbage and ruminants from organic farms in Norway

To evaluate the animal nutritional status of copper, molybdenum and cobalt on Norwegian organic farms, soil, herbage and animal blood samples were collected from 27 dairy and sheep farms and analysed for Cu, Mo and Co. The herbage median (10th-90th percentile) Cu, Mo, and Co concentrations (mg/kg DM) and the Cu:Mo ratio in the first cut were 5.3 (3.9-6.8), 1.5 (0.6-4.8), <0.05 (<0.05-0.08) and 3.8 (1.1-8.3) and in the second cut 7.0 (5.7-9.3), 3.3 (1.6-10.1), 0.06 (<0.05-0.15) and 2.0 (0.8-5.2), respectively. The results of mixed model analyses of herbage Cu and Mo indicated that soil pH, soil organic matter content, herbage botanical composition, yield and phenological stage of timothy at harvest mostly influenced the herbage micronutrient concentration. We conclude that plant growth was not limited by the supply of Cu, Mo or Co, but the herbage mineral nutrient concentration alone was not balanced to meet the dietary needs of ruminants. Supplements of mineral nutrient mixtures and/or concentrates fortified with Cu and Co are required to ensure sufficient supply for ruminants

Communicating with patients through pictograms and pictures – a scoping review

Background Communication between patients and healthcare workers (HCWs) may on occasion be challenged by disparities in cultural background, age and educational level. Written educational material is commonly used to reduce the risk of miscommunication. However, literacy among patients may also differ and it is, therefore, speculated that the use of pictograms may improve patients’ understanding and adherence. Objective To evaluate the scientific literature and investigate the effect and practical utility of pictograms in medical settings with focus on dermatological patients. Materials and methods Pubmed, EMBASE, and Cochrane Library were searched July 2021 for studies regarding use of pictograms in medical settings and dermatology. Results The use of pictograms in dermatology is not well characterized, but studies in other fields of medicine report a positive effect of using pictograms in communication. Pictograms have a significant positive effect when presented alongside verbal or written explanations. Conclusions The quality of the development process is important to ensure the utility of any pictogram. Involving the target population in the design and validation of the pictograms may be critical. In the validation process, testing of transparency and translucency may benefit from international recommendations