Reducing pond seepage (1997)

Excessive seepage from farm ponds is a serious problem in several areas of Missouri. Seepage can be caused by many conditions, such as highly permeable soils, continuous sand or gravel seams, highly permeable bedrock and residual rock layer, and in a few areas, sinkhole collapses in the pond pool area. This publication focuses primarily on seepage that results from permeable soils

Access to AgriculturalInputs, Technology and Information, Communicating with Farmers,and the Role of Women in Agriculture: Perceptions of Iraqi Extension Agents

The goal of this study was to gain a more comprehensive understanding ofaccess to inputs,technology and information available toIraqi extension agents,and to ascertain current farmercommunication strategies and gender roles within the diverse Iraq agricultural extension system.The conflicts, government policies, and economic sanctions that have enveloped Iraq over thelast several decades have significantly impacted access to agricultural resources. Iraqi extensionpersonnel participating inthe Iraq AgriculturalExtension Revitalization (IAER)programprovided their perspective on the availability of agricultural supplies, technology and relatedinformation. About two-thirds of the extension agents indicated that the flow and availability ofagricultural supplies has become less restricted and generally felt that there was greater accessto basic agricultural information compared to the previous decade. Despite perceivingnoticeable improvement overall in access to agricultural supplies and technology, over 83% ofthe program attendees agreed that access to agricultural inputs was currently insufficient tosuccessfully promote productive agricultural practices. An overwhelming preference for face-to-face communication by both farmers and extension personnel also limits the extent to whichagricultural information can be disseminated. In addition, several regional and gender-baseddifferences emerged.Notably, it appears that farmers donot approachfemaleextensionpersonnel equally, wherein better educated farmers are more likely to interact with femaleextensionagents.We suggest that an approach based on a horizontal exchange of knowledgebetween extension personnel and local farmers, coupled with a better integration of womenextension personnel, will help a revitalized Iraqi extension system achieve greater agriculturalsustainabilit

Economic evaluation of access to musculoskeletal care: The case of waiting for total knee arthroplasty

BACKGROUND: The projected demand for total knee arthroplasty is staggering. At its root, the solution involves increasing supply or decreasing demand. Other developed nations have used rationing and wait times to distribute this service. However, economic impact and cost-effectiveness of waiting for TKA is unknown. METHODS: A Markov decision model was constructed for a cost-utility analysis of three treatment strategies for end-stage knee osteoarthritis: 1) TKA without delay, 2) a waiting period with no non-operative treatment and 3) a non-operative treatment bridge during that waiting period in a cohort of 60 year-old patients. Outcome probabilities and effectiveness were derived from the literature. Costs were estimated from the societal perspective with national average Medicare reimbursement. Effectiveness was expressed in quality-adjusted life years (QALYs) gained. Principal outcome measures were average incremental costs, effectiveness, and quality-adjusted life years; and net health benefits. RESULTS: In the base case, a 2-year wait-time both with and without a non-operative treatment bridge resulted in a lower number of average QALYs gained (11.57 (no bridge) and 11.95 (bridge) vs. 12.14 (no delay). The average cost was $1,660 higher for TKA without delay than wait-time with no bridge, but$1,810 less than wait-time with non-operative bridge. The incremental cost-effectiveness ratio comparing wait-time with no bridge to TKA without delay was $2,901/QALY. When comparing TKA without delay to waiting with non-operative bridge, TKA without delay produced greater utility at a lower cost to society. CONCLUSIONS: TKA without delay is the preferred cost-effective treatment strategy when compared to a waiting for TKA without non-operative bridge. TKA without delay is cost saving when a non-operative bridge is used during the waiting period. As it is unlikely that patients waiting for TKA would not receive non-operative treatment, TKA without delay may be an overall cost-saving health care delivery strategy. Policies aimed at increasing the supply of TKA should be considered as savings exist that could indirectly fund those strategies

Inland Pacific Northwest pasture calendar

The Inland Pacific Northwest (PNW) region, historically referred to as the 'Inland Empire', extends from the Cascade Mountains in the west to former Glacial Lake Missoula in the Rockies in the east and from the Canadian border in the north past the Snake River Canyon in the south. The greatest agricultural enterprises are hay (from various forage species), irrigated and non-irrigated grassland pastures, rangelands, and livestock production. It is also home to numerous wildlife species and flyways for migrating birds. The Inland PNW Pasture Calendar is designed to be a comprehensive guide for improved grassland management in support of forage-livestock systems. Applying the principles described will lead to improved regional economic, ecological, and social sustainability. This publication describes the opportunities and challenges of sustainably raising harvested and grazed forages and developing forage-livestock systems in this incredibly diverse environment. Appendix Chapters provide key information on grass / legume / forb species, how pasture species grow and regrow, soil nutrient management and organic matter, grazing philosophies and systems, matching grazing needs for pasture production, and forage-related animal health issues. Learning these key principles and following best management practices described will lead to improved sustainability of forage-livestock systems

Extensive Liquid Meltwater Storage in Firn Within the Greenland Ice Sheet

The accelerating loss of mass from the Greenland ice sheet is a major contribution to current sea level rise. Increased melt water runoff is responsible for half of Greenlands mass loss increase. Surface melt has been increasing in extent and intensity, setting a record for surface area melt and runoff in 2012. The mechanisms and timescales involved in allowing surface melt water to reach the ocean where it can contribute to sea level rise are poorly understood. The potential capacity to store this water in liquid or frozen form in the firn (multi-year snow layer) is significant, and could delay its sea-level contribution. Here we describe direct observation of water within a perennial firn aquifer persisting throughout the winter in the southern ice sheet,where snow accumulation and melt rates are high. This represents a previously unknown storagemode for water within the ice sheet. Ice cores, groundairborne radar and a regional climatemodel are used to estimate aquifer area (70 plue or minus 10 x 10(exp 3) square kilometers ) and water table depth (5-50 m). The perennial firn aquifer represents a new glacier facies to be considered 29 in future ice sheet mass 30 and energy budget calculations

Exploring the effectiveness of the output-based aid voucher program to increase uptake of gender-based violence recovery services in Kenya: a qualitative evaluation

This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.Background: Few studies in Africa have explored in detail the ability of output-based aid (OBA) voucher programs to increase access to gender-based violence recovery (GBVR) services. Methods: A qualitative study was conducted in 2010 and involved: (i) in-depth interviews (IDIs) with health managers, service providers, voucher management agency (VMA) managers and (ii) focus group discussions (FGDs) with voucher users, voucher non-users, voucher distributors and opinion leaders drawn from five program sites in Kenya. Results: The findings showed promising prospects for the uptake of OBA GBVR services among target population. However, a number of factors affect the uptake of the services. These include lack of general awareness of the GBVR services vouchers, lack of understanding of the benefit package, immediate financial needs of survivors, as well as stigma and cultural beliefs that undermine reporting of cases or seeking essential medical services. Moreover, accreditation of only hospitals to offer GBVR services undermines access to the services in rural areas. Poor responsiveness from law enforcement agencies and fear of reprisal from perpetrators also undermine treatment options and access to medical services. Low provider knowledge on GBVR services and lack of supplies also affect effective provision and management of GBVR services. Conclusions: The above findings suggest that there is a need to build the capacity of health care providers and police officers, strengthen the community strategy component of the OBA program to promote the GBVR services voucher, and conduct widespread community education programs aimed at prevention, ensuring survivors know how and where to access services and addressing stigma and cultural barriers.The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundatio

Fast electron transport and heating in solid-density matter

Two experiments have been performed to investigate heating by high-intensity laser-generated electrons, in the context of studies of the fast ignitor approach to inertial confinement fusion (ICF). A new spectrometer and layered targets have been used to detect Kα emission from aluminum heated by a fast electron beam. Results show that a temperature of about 40 eV is reached in solid density aluminum up to a depth of about 100 μm