Herbicides for Trefoil Seedings?

Birdsfoot trefoil is an important legume in many parts of Iowa for improving permanent pastures. No other pasture legume now available compares with birdsfoot trefoil in its ability to withstand continuous grazing. Once established, stands may be expected to furnish high-quality pasture for many years

A Killer for Weeds in Soybeans

Timely use of the rotary hoe is an effective killer for weeds in soybeams. In this article, three Iowa State College scientists report directly to you on their tests comparing different weed-control methods

Weed Control in Corn

Weeds are tough competitors with all crops. And the corn years of your rotation provide as good an opportunity as you\u27ll get to really kill weeds

Dephasing dynamics across different local vibrational modes and crystalline environments

The perturbed free induction decay (PFID) observed in ultrafast infrared spectroscopy was used to unveil the rates at which different vibrational modes of the same atomic-scale defect can interact with their environment. The N3VH0 defect in diamond provided a model system, allowing a comparison of stretch and bend vibrational modes within different crystal lattice environments. The observed bend mode (first overtone) exhibited dephasing times T2=2.8(1)  ps, while the fundamental stretch mode had surprisingly faster dynamics T2<1.7 ps driven by its more direct perturbation of the crystal lattice, with increased phonon coupling. Further, at high defect concentrations the stretch mode’s dephasing rate was enhanced. The ability to reliably measure T2 via PFID provides vital insights into how vibrational systems interact with their local environment

Fear of crime on the rail networks: Perceptions of the UK public and British Transport Police

Counter-terrorism on the rail network is vital to the security of the United Kingdom. The British Transport Police (BTP) employ covert and overt security measures to prevent crime, which includes: closed circuit television, armed police, unarmed polisce, police community support officers, police dogs, stops and searches and awareness campaigns. All security measures aim to deter crime while importantly reassuring the public. We surveyed both members of the public and BTP officers about the perceived effectiveness of current security measures, specifically with regards to fear of terrorism. Feelings of reassurance and the perceived effectiveness of security measures were positively related. The most effective and reassuring security measure was the use of armed police; whereas the least effective and reassuring was the use of awareness campaigns. However, interestingly, qualitative analyses suggested that an increase in armed police without informed awareness campaigns would have a negative impact on public reassurance by increasing fear

Does dietary calcium interact with dietary fiber against colorectal cancer? : a case-control study in Central Europe

BACKGROUND: An unfavorable trend of increasing rates of colorectal cancer has been observed across modern societies. In general, dietary factors are understood to be responsible for up to 70% of the disease’s incidence, though there are still many inconsistencies regarding the impact of specific dietary items. Among the dietary minerals, calcium intake may play a crucial role in the prevention. The purpose of this study was to assess the effect of intake of higher levels of dietary calcium on the risk of developing of colorectal cancer, and to evaluate dose dependent effect and to investigate possible effect modification. METHODS: A hospital based case–control study of 1556 patients (703 histologically confirmed colon and rectal incident cases and 853 hospital-based controls) was performed between 2000–2012 in Krakow, Poland. The 148-item semi-quantitative Food Frequency Questionnaire to assess dietary habits and level of nutrients intake was used. Data regarding possible covariates was also collected. RESULTS: After adjustment for age, gender, education, consumption of fruits, raw and cooked vegetables, fish, and alcohol, as well as for intake of fiber, vitamin C, dietary iron, lifetime recreational physical activity, BMI, smoking status, and taking mineral supplements, an increase in the consumption of calcium was associated with the decrease of colon cancer risk (OR = 0.93, 95% CI: 0.89-0.98 for every 100 mg Ca/day increase). Subjects consumed >1000 mg/day showed 46% decrease of colon cancer risk (OR = 0.54, 95% CI: 0.35-0.83). The effect of dietary calcium was modified by dietary fiber (p for interaction =0.015). Finally, consistent decrease of colon cancer risk was observed across increasing levels of dietary calcium and fiber intake. These relationships were not proved for rectal cancer. CONCLUSIONS: The study confirmed the effect of high doses of dietary calcium against the risk of colon cancer development. This relationship was observed across different levels of dietary fiber, and the beneficial effect of dietary calcium depended on the level of dietary fiber suggesting modification effect of calcium and fiber. Further efforts are needed to confirm this association, and also across higher levels of dietary fiber intake