Search for biological control agents of Hydrilla verticillata: report on visits to Rwanda, Burundi & Uganda, Feb-March 1983

Following the completion of the fruitless search for Hydrilla the survey is being extended to neighbouring countries in Kenya, and in the CIBC along the lines suggested by Pemberton (1980) Project Proposal. Because of the lack of available information about the diverse waterways or Rwanda and Burundi, and the apparent absence of herbarium records of Hydrilla, a preliminary reconnaissance was felt to necessary. This visit was planned for January 1983 to coincide with the short dry season; unfortunately, it had to be delayed for various administrative reasons, but a two-week visit (8-22 February) has now been completed

Appropriate support for national programs; training, research, administration and funding

The Biological Control Program (BCP)of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture and national biological control programs, established specifically to control exotic cassava pests in Africa, are now evolving to address other pest problems. Formal training syllabuses are therefore to be broadened. Equally important is the need for the BCP and national researchers to collaborate to bring the value of biological control to the attention of decision makers. National programs currently need assistance in assessing the impact of the mealybug control campaign. In due course, they should be supported by the BCP in developing their own research programs aligned with national priorities. Within countries, a flexible administrative structure may be needed in which biological control activities are pursued within various institutions, rather than by a single formal program. Internationally, networks may be formed to tackle specific pest problems under the umbrella of a unifying biological control organization. Sustained funding of both national program development and basic research is now needed .National programs may need assistance in preparing projects for funding, but governments must take more responsibility for supporting programs or soliciting the interest of donors

Geometric Entanglement of Symmetric States and the Majorana Representation

Permutation-symmetric quantum states appear in a variety of physical situations, and they have been proposed for quantum information tasks. This article builds upon the results of [New J. Phys. 12, 073025 (2010)], where the maximally entangled symmetric states of up to twelve qubits were explored, and their amount of geometric entanglement determined by numeric and analytic means. For this the Majorana representation, a generalization of the Bloch sphere representation, can be employed to represent symmetric n qubit states by n points on the surface of a unit sphere. Symmetries of this point distribution simplify the determination of the entanglement, and enable the study of quantum states in novel ways. Here it is shown that the duality relationship of Platonic solids has a counterpart in the Majorana representation, and that in general maximally entangled symmetric states neither correspond to anticoherent spin states nor to spherical designs. The usability of symmetric states as resources for measurement-based quantum computing is also discussed.Comment: 10 pages, 8 figures; submitted to Lecture Notes in Computer Science (LNCS

The american pediatric society and society for pediatric research joint statement against racism and social injustice

Although the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic has served as a flashlight, illuminating and unmasking deep socio-economic and health care divides in our country, the terrible events surrounding the horrific murder of Mr. George Floyd in Minneapolis has spawned even greater outrage. As we all know, Mr. Floyd’s death is not an isolated incident, as there have been a tragic string of such deaths in recent years that further reflect deep issues regarding racism and systemic underlying causes of injustice. Unfortunately, the country’s inability to fully address these systemic foundations of injustice persists

Population simulation model of Sitophilus zeamais (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in grain stores in West Africa

The biology of Sitophilus zeamais Motschulsky, an important pest of stored commodities, is well described in the literature. To integrate current knowledge and to understand better the population dynamics of this species in rural maize, Zea mays L., stores, we developed a distributed-delay, demographic simulation model. Published equations describing the effects of temperature, humidity, and density effects on fecundity, juvenile survivorship and development and emigration were used or equations were estimated from published data and from laboratory experiments. Simulation model output was compared with S. zeamais density observed in field experiments before and after the introduction of Prostephanus truncatus (Horn) to West Africa. The overall phenology of the simulated beetle dynamics reflected that of field data, although the model output tended to overestimate beetle population growth early in the season. The model was modified using published data to simulate dynamics of populations developing on resistant and susceptible maize cultivars. The model is intended as part of a cost-effective tool for evaluating factors influencing population dynamics of stored-product pests and their natural enemies and to provide a framework for assessing different control strategies in an integrated control context