The genetic diversity of Bradyrhizobium japonicum in soils of the soybean growing regions of western Canada and the northern United States

117 leaves (some folded) : ill. (some col.), col. map ; 29 cm.Includes abstract and appendix.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 91-104).Introduction of early maturing cultivars of soybean ( Glycine max [L.] Merr.) in western Canada has dramatically increased soybean production in the region. Soybean grows in symbiotic association with rhizobia which carry out biological nitrogen fixation in the plant. Previous studies have shown that rhizobium populations evolve quickly in the soil. In this study, we have examined the genetic diversity of 107 Bradyrhizobium japonicum isolates from the soybean growing areas in western Canada and the northern United States (North Dakota, South Dakota and Minnesota) by rep-PCR genomic fingerprinting techniques--(REP-PCR) and (ERIC-PCR). Results of our study shows that the B. japonicum isolates are genetically diverse. Our results also point towards the influence of agricultural practices and geographical origin of isolates on genetic diversity of B. japonicum populations. Our results also suggest that sandy soil texture could have negative influence on genetic diversity of B. japonicum populations at site Elm Creek in Manitoba

Laws of Consumption - An Economic Construal

Consumption is one of the important variables of macro economics.  It is that part of income of a house hold which is not saved.  It plays a vital role in the economy; this is the reason that, Quran has given special emphasis on it and gives some basic laws in this regard.  Quran has warned the human being that your consumption is under observation of God and on the Day of Judgment questions will be asked about that.  Moreover it is also ordered that, do not waste your wealth in any way and consume it in the optimum manner.  In addition gratitude of wealth is also compulsory.  The way of gratitude is the obedience of laws of God.  Keywords: Quran; Verses, Consumption, Wastage; Obedience

Behavior and Strength Predictions for CFRP Confined Rubberized Concrete under Axial Compression

This paper presents experimental versus theoretical comparison of carbon fiber reinforced polymer (CFRP) confined rubberized concrete (a new structural material). A total of sixty six rubberized concrete cylinders were tested in axial compression. The specimens were cast using 0 to 50% rubber replacement. Twenty seven cylinders were then confined with one, two and three layers of CFRP jackets. Axial compression results of the experimental study were compared with the North American and European design guidelines. The results indicate that the addition of rubber content in the concrete leads to premature micro cracking and lateral expansion in concrete. This increased lateral dilation exploited the potential of FRP jackets. The axial compressive strength and strain values for CFRP confined RuC cylinders reached up to unprecedented 600 and 330 percent of unconfined samples. Furthermore, the current international design guidelines developed for conventional concrete confinement failed to predict the compressive strength of rubberized concrete. There is a strong need to re-evaluate the current design codes and their applicability to investigate fiber reinforced confined rubberized concrete. Moreover, the proposed equations in this research can better predict the axial compressive strength of FRP confined RuC

Al-Zakat: Taxation Model in Public Finance

Al-zakat is a Quranic term, which is considered as a religious financial worship. From traditional point of view a fixed percentage i.e. 2.5% is imposed as a religion tax on the Muslims which have a certain quantity of gold, silver and some animals. The heads on which this amount may be spent and the rate is considered as fixed. But the actual fact is that, Quran has used this term for the taxation system of an Islamic state. Different reasons from Quran can be given to prove this claim, e.g. Quran has separated al-zakat from al-sadaqat and expenditure in the way of Allah and do not consider it as a donation, imposition of al-zakat is associated with getting of power, Quran did not appeal to pay it but the order is given for the same, the heads and rate of al-zakat are not given in Quran. Keywords: Quran; Verse; al-zakat; Donation; Sadaqa

Design and analysis of a novel tri-band flower-shaped planar antenna for GPS and WiMAX applications

This paper presents the design of a tri-band flower-shaped planar monopole antenna operating at three frequencies i.e. 1.576 GHz (GPS), 2.668 GHz and 3.636 GHz (Mobile WiMAX). The radiating element of the antenna is backed by a 1.6 mm thicker FR-4 substrate having a dielectric constant of 4.3. The substrate is backed by a truncated ground plane. The antenna is fed through a 50 Ω microstrip line. The flower shape of the radiating element is derived from the basic circular shape by introducing in it rounded slots of various radii. The upper part of the antenna is flower-shaped while the lower part comprises a microstrip feed line and two branches, each having two ‘leaves’ at the end. The leaves and branches contribute in the impedance matching of the lower (1.576 GHz) and middle (2.668 GHz) frequency bands. The antenna gives an acceptable simulated efficiency >70% in the three frequency bands. Suitable gains of 1.63, 2.59 and 3.23dB are obtained at 1.576 GHz, 2.668 GHz and 3.636 GHz, respectively. The antenna matched with a VSWR<1.2 in the three frequency bands. The prototype of the antenna is fabricated and tested in the laboratory, and good agreement in simulated and measured results is achieved. The proposed design is a visually appealing and may find uses as an external antenna in GPS and WiMAX applications

Comparative analysis of AC and DC distribution system with respect to harmonic distortion considering daily load profile

Electrical energy is the most efficient and the cleanest form of energy at the moment that is being transmitted and distributed amongst end-users. From its earlier days, the AC system was preferred as an economical solution for transmission and distribution. However, the development in the power electronics technology and the evolution of highly efficient power electronic converters have established the resurgence of DC power system. Furthermore, the trend is shifting towards DC loads as various energy efficient appliances, such as DC inverter air conditioners, operate on DC nowadays. This further advocates the shift towards the DC power system. This research works is an effort to perform the comparative analysis of AC Distribution System (ACDS) and DC Distribution System (DCDS), with regards to power quality and harmonic distortion in particular. The comparison is performed considering load profile and load variation on daily basis. Simulations are performed in MATLAB. It has been concluded at the end that ACDS is better than DCDS in terms of power quality as total harmonic distortion of the DCDS under the same loading and same load variation during the whole day was significantly higher than that of ACDS

Wearable artificial intelligence for anxiety and depression: A scoping review

Background: Anxiety and depression are the most common mental disorders worldwide. Owing to the lack of psychiatrists around the world, the incorporation of AI and wearable devices (wearable artificial intelligence (AI)) have been exploited to provide mental health services. Objective: The current review aimed to explore the features of wearable AI used for anxiety and depression to identify application areas and open research issues. Methods: We searched 8 electronic databases (MEDLINE, PsycINFO, EMBASE, CINAHL, IEEE Xplore, ACM Digital Library, Scopus, and Google Scholar). Then, we checked studies that cited the included studies, and screened studies that were cited by the included studies. Study selection and data extraction were carried out by two reviewers independently. The extracted data were aggregated and summarized using the narrative synthesis. Results: Of the 1203 citations identified, 69 studies were included in this review. About two thirds of the studies used wearable AI for depression while the remaining studies used it for anxiety. The most frequent application of wearable AI was diagnosing anxiety and depression while no studies used it for treatment purposes. The majority of studies targeted individuals between the ages of 18 and 65. The most common wearable devices used in the studies were Actiwatch AW4. The wrist-worn devices were most common in the studies. The most commonly used data for model development were physical activity data, sleep data, and heart rate data. The most frequently used dataset from open sources was Depresjon. The most commonly used algorithms were Random Forest (RF) and Support Vector Machine (SVM). Conclusions: Wearable AI can offer great promise in providing mental health services related to anxiety and depression. Wearable AI can be used by individuals as a pre-screening assessment of anxiety and depression. Further reviews are needed to statistically synthesize studies’ results related to the performance and effectiveness of wearable AI. Given its potential, tech companies should invest more in wearable AI for treatment purposes for anxiety and depression