THE REFORM OF RICE MILLING AND MARKETING IN THE OFFICE DU NIGER: CATALYST FOR AN AGRICULTURAL SUCCESS STORY IN MALI

This chapter focuses on how changes in the rules regarding who could compete in rice milling in the ON combined with technological change in rice production and new macro-economic policies (particularly the CFA franc devaluation) to lead to a transformation of rice production and marketing in the ON. The chapter also pays particular attention to the synergies between technological changes in rice production, the introduction of new marketing and macroeconomic policies, and the evolution of institutions governing rice production in the ON on the transformation of agriculture in this region of Mali.Crop Production/Industries, Marketing,

Following the World Health Organization's Recommendation of Exclusive Breastfeeding to 6 Months of Age Does Not Impact the Growth of Rural Gambian Infants.

BACKGROUND: The WHO recommends exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) for the first 6 mo of life. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to assess the benefit of EBF to age 6 mo on growth in a large sample of rural Gambian infants at high risk of undernutrition. METHODS: Infants with growth monitoring from birth to 2 y of age (n = 756) from the ENID (Early Nutrition and Immune Development) trial were categorized as exclusively breastfed if only breast milk and no other liquids or foods were given. EBF status was entered into confounder-adjusted multilevel models to test associations with growth trajectories by using >11,000 weight-for-age (WAZ), length-for-age (LAZ), and weight-for-length (WLZ) z score observations. RESULTS: Thirty-two percent of infants were exclusively breastfed to age 6 mo. The mean age of discontinuation of EBF was 5.2 mo, and growth faltering started at ∼3.5 mo of age. Some evidence for a difference in WAZ and WHZ was found between infants who were exclusively breastfed to age 6 mo (EBF-6) and those who were not (nEBF-6), at 6 and 12 mo of age, with EBF-6 children having a higher mean z score. The differences in z scores between the 2 groups were small in magnitude (at 6 mo of age: 0.147 WAZ; 95% CI: -0.001, 0.293 WAZ; 0.189 WHZ; 95% CI: 0.038, 0.341 WHZ). No evidence for a difference between EBF-6 and nEBF-6 infants was observed for LAZ at any time point (6, 12, and 24 mo of age). Furthermore, a higher mean WLZ at 3 mo of age was associated with a subsequent higher mean age at discontinuation of EBF, which implied reverse causality in this setting (coefficient: 0.060; 95% CI: 0.008, 0.120). CONCLUSION: This study suggests that EBF to age 6 mo has limited benefit to the growth of rural Gambian infants. This trial was registered at http://www.isrctn.com as ISRCTN49285450

Plasma lipids and growth faltering: A longitudinal cohort study in rural Gambian children.

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Accuracy of the cutoff value of the third molar maturity index: an Egyptian study

Abstract Background This study aimed to test the sensitivity and specificity of the third molar maturity index (I3M) cutoff value to discriminate between individuals above and below 18 years of age in an Egyptian sample. Material and methods Digital images of 247 orthopantographs (97 boys and 150 girls) were evaluated. The cutoff value of I3M obtained from the results of Cameriere et al. (Int J Legal Med 122:493–497, 2008) was evaluated in both girls and boys. Results Sensitivity (the proportion of individuals being 18 years of age or older) was 95% and 73% in boys and girls, respectively. Meanwhile, specificity (the proportion of individuals younger than 18) was 100% in boys and 97% in girls. The proportion of correctly classified boys was 97% while it was 59% in girls. Conclusion It can be concluded that the third molar maturity index can discriminate between individuals who are 18 years and over and those under 18 with higher accuracy in boys

Antistatic polymer materials

ABSTRACT: Introduction. In connection with the growing demand for living and working conditions in civil and industrial construction, there is an increasing need for high-quality building materials with the required set of performance properties. Polymer reinforced composite materials are promising materials in the construction industry due to their high strength, durability, reliability and economy. Polymers such as polyvinyl chloride, polyurethanes, polyacrylates, epoxy resins, polypropylene are used in construction for the manufacture of decorative elements, self-leveling floors, coatings for appliances and equipment. However, the use of polymeric materials creates risks of electric shock due to the generation of static charge. The use of electrically conductive nanomaterials as fillers makes it possible to reduce the resistivity of polymeric materials and slow down the flow of electric charges. Main part. This review article presents the benefits and drawbacks of antistatic additives for polymer materials used in industry and in the construction industry. Conclusion. An analysis of the literature has shown that over the past seven years, the largest number of relevant papers has been devoted to carbon materials as antistatic additives (8 articles), metal and metal oxide nanoparticles (7 articles), ionic liquids (7 articles), and polyaniline (7 articles). The most studied characteristics of antistatic polymer materials are the specific surface RS and volume RV resistances. According to the reviewed articles, metal and metal oxide nanoparticles are the most suitable antistatic additives to polymeric materials, since they are well dispersed in the polymer matrix. However, further research is needed to eliminate the negative effect of nanoparticles on the mechanical properties of polymeric material