Impact of water saving irrigation systems on water use, growth and yield of irrigated lowland rice

To meet the growing demand for food and other needs from an increasing population, the rice production in Sri Lanka, which was 3.87 million tonnes in 2008, has to be increased to 4.2 million tonnes by the year 2020. This requirement could be achieved by increasing productivity and/or by increasing the cultivated extent. In 2008, about 77 % and 68 % of the total paddy land extent was cultivated with either partial or full irrigation during the maha and yala seasons, respectively. A considerable extent of paddy land was either not cultivated or cultivated for other crops due to the scarcity of water in the dry and intermediate zones. Furthermore, with increased competition for water for domestic and industrial needs and climate change, there will be further reductions in the availability of water for rice cultivation. Conserving irrigation water would increase the cultivated extent of land while reducing the probability of ate season water-stress in the cultivated rice crop. We studied the impact of different soil water regimes on water use, nutrient uptake, growth and grain yield of 3 – 3� age lowland rice at the Rice Research and Development Institute, Batalagoda, Ibbagamuwa. There was no significant difference in the grain yield in rice when grown under either saturated or flooded conditions, but the yield decreased significantly with alternate wetting and drying. However, under saturated conditions, the irrigation water requirement was significantly lower than the flooded condition. The lowest irrigation water requirement was recorded with saturated to dry conditions. The irrigation water requirement under flooded conditions, when compared with the saturated condition, increased by 39 % during the yala season. During the maha season, even though the total irrigation requirement was lower, when compared to saturated conditions, four times more irrigation water was required under flooded conditions. There was a significant increase in plant dry matter production and leaf N (nitrogen) under saturated conditions, when compared with conventional flooded conditions. These findings suggest that when soil water is maintained at a saturated level in lowland rice, a considerable amount of irrigation water could be saved without sacrificing grain yield.Length: pp.57-64RiceIrrigated farmingWater conservationIrrigation systems

Comparison of Delay Distributions of Responses in a Home Area Network using Wi-Fi with and without in-network Data Aggregation

Smart Grid is divided into seven sub domains by NIST. The customer domain refers to the end users of electricity. In addition to the traditional role of consumer, they will also participate in generation as well as storage of energy. They would respond to signals coming from the grid and reduce or increase consumption and/or generation accordingly. For this purpose the customer premise should be equipped with an information network, which is called a Home Area Network. Architecture of a Home Area Network needs to be optimised in terms of time and energy. In this research the behaviour of a HAN in terms of time is studied. Delays of responses from the devices for the requests made by the central controller were measured for two most popular architectures, with and without in-network data aggregation. When the probability mass functions were plotted, it was evident that the delays in the two cases do not differ by much

Tenants’ Perception on Housing Maintenance Culture in Public Housing in Kurunegala District, Sri Lanka

Public housing is one of the facilities for public servants in Sri Lanka. Maintenance of those housing are problematic due to lack of maintenance culture. Lack of studies focused on the issue and significant research gap existed in this area. The aim of this study is to investigate the tenants’ perceptions of the housing maintenance culture in the public housing of Kurunegala district, Sri Lanka. The study data focused on public tenants living in schedule and general service quarters, and officials from 11 institutions' state departments. The study focused on mainly socio-cultural perception, proxemics, and motivation. The results indicated that socio-cultural perception, proxemics, and motivation variables highly influence the enhancement of the housing maintenance culture in public housing. The study suggests that the state should revisit its housing maintenance institutional policies and practises to ensure that bureaucratic aspects are lowered, that the housing maintenance regulatory framework be inspected toconfirm effective housing maintenance, and that acceptable and satisfactory personnel be deployed within the servicing docket. © 2022 The Authors. Published by Department of Estate Management and Valuation, University of SriJayewardenepura Keywords: Housing Maintenance Culture, Public Housing, Tenants Perceptio

A high-resolution mass spectrometry based proteomic dataset of human regulatory T cells

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) play a core role in maintaining immune tolerance, homeostasis, and host health. High-resolution analysis of the Treg proteome is required to identify enriched biological processes and pathways distinct to this important immune cell lineage. We present a comprehensive proteomic dataset of Tregs paired with conventional CD4+ (Conv CD4+) T cells in healthy individuals. Tregs and Conv CD4+ T cells were sorted to high purity using dual magnetic bead-based and flow cytometry-based methodologies. Proteins were trypsin-digested and analysed using label-free data-dependent acquisition mass spectrometry (DDA-MS) followed by label free quantitation (LFQ) proteomics analysis using MaxQuant software. Approximately 4,000 T cell proteins were identified with a 1% false discovery rate, of which approximately 2,800 proteins were consistently identified and quantified in all the samples. Finally, flow cytometry with a monoclonal antibody was used to validate the elevated abundance of the protein phosphatase CD148 in Tregs. This proteomic dataset serves as a reference point for future mechanistic and clinical T cell immunology and identifies receptors, processes, and pathways distinct to Tregs. Collectively, these data will lead to a better understanding of Treg immunophysiology and potentially reveal novel leads for therapeutics seeking Treg regulation

Natural Resistance of Sri Lankan Rice (Oryza sativa L.) Varieties to Broad-Spectrum Herbicides (Glyphosate and Glufosinate)

Since studies on herbicide-resistant rice (HRR) are limited in Sri Lanka, the present study conducted to screen the naturally existing glyphosate and glufosinate resistance in traditional and inbred rice varieties. Six traditional varieties and nineteen inbred lines were selected for the study. Complete randomized design with three pots with 10 replicates for each herbicide concentration was employed. Optimal concentrations of glyphosate (0.5 gl−1) and glufosinate (0.05 gl−1) were applied at 3–4 leaf stages. Varieties ≥50% survival percentage was considered as resistant to respective herbicides. Twelve varieties showed resistance (≥50%) at 0.5 gl−1 glyphosate concentration. Survived plants were monitored and agro-morphological and yield characters/parameters were measured. Fifteen varieties were to glufosinate at 0.05 gl−1. Even though no significant differences (p > 0.05) were observed in growth parameters across control and treated plants, there was a yield penalty. Nine varieties (At362, Bg352, Bg359, Bg366, Bg369, Bg379-2, Bg403, Bg454, and Pachchaperumal) indicated moderate resistance to both glyphosate and glufosinate. The emerged HRRs indicated varying responses of agro-morphological and yield characters across the type of herbicide and the variety. Glyphosate reduced the growth parameters and yield penalty compared to glufosinate treated varieties. These HRR varieties have a higher potential in rice breeding programs and in developing HR rice varieties in future

Thermoplastic nanofluidic devices for biomedical applications

This review presents an overview of recent advancements in the fabrication, surface modification and applications of thermoplastic nanofluidic devices

Analyzing the Contribution of Green Buildings Towards Circular Economy in Sri Lanka

The circular economy concept is crucial in moving forward with sustainable development in any country. It has been identified that implementing CE (Circular Economy) in the built environment has various benefits towards the environment, society as well as the economy. Although this approach has various benefits, its implementation in Sri Lanka is still at a premature stage. Green rating systems are used to qualitatively assess the building’s performance regarding sustainability aspects of the built environment. It remains unclear whether green rating systems in Sri Lanka provide an appropriate guide towards implementing the CE concept. Hence, this paper aims to analyze the contribution provided by green ratings in Sri Lanka towards the implementation of CE. Two pilot case studies and semi-structured interviews were carried out among industry experts who have hands-on experience in green rating systems and work experience in green building projects. Findings indicate that Green building projects have implemented various kinds of sustainable features to obtain a rating. Nevertheless, the practice of these features are not adequately reflecting the implementation CE concept due to numerous barriers to implement CE in Sri Lankan context. The study concludes that in Sri Lanka, the green rating system does not adequately contribute towards the implementation of CE

Cluster randomized trial of the impact of an obesity prevention intervention on child care center nutrition and physical activity environment over two years

Objective: The prevalence of obesity among preschool-aged children in the United States remains unacceptably high. Here we examine the impact of Healthy Caregivers-Healthy Children (HC2) Phase 2, a child care center (CCC)-based obesity prevention intervention on changes in the CCC nutrition and physical activity environment over two school years. Design: This was a cluster randomized trial with 12 CCC receiving the HC2 intervention arm and 12 in the control arm. The primary outcome was change in the Environment and Policy Assessment and Observation (EPAO) tool over two school years (Fall-2015, Spring-2016 and Spring-2017). Changes in EPAO physical activity and nutrition score were analyzed via a (1) random effects mixed models and (2) mixed models to determine the effect of HC2 versus control. Setting: The study was conducted in 24 CCCs serving low-income, ethnically diverse families in Miami-Dade County. Participants: Intervention CCCs received (1) teachers/parents/children curriculum; (2) snack, beverage, physical activity, and screen time policies; and (3) menu modifications. Results: Two-year EPAO nutrition score changes in intervention CCCs were almost twice that of control CCCs. The EPAO physical activity environment scores only slightly improved in intervention CCCs versus control CCCs. Intervention CCCs showed higher combined EPAO physical activity and nutrition scores compared to control CCCs over the 2-year study period (β=0.09, P=0.05). Conclusions: Obesity prevention programs can have a positive impact on the CCC nutrition environment and can promote healthy weight in early childhood. CCCs may need consistent support to improve the physical activity environment to ensure the policies remain intact