Supporting Innovation in Organic Agriculture: A European Perspective Using Experience from the SOLID Project

Organic farming is recognized as one source for innovation helping agriculture to develop sustainably. However, the understanding of innovation in agriculture is characterized by technical optimism, relying mainly on new inputs and technologies originating from research. The paper uses the alternative framework of innovation systems describing innovation as the outcome of stakeholder interaction and examples from the SOLID (Sustainable Organic Low-Input Dairying) project to discuss the role of farmers, researchers and knowledge exchange for innovation. We used a farmer-led participatory approach to identify problems of organic and low-input dairy farming in Europe and develop and evaluate innovative practices. Experience so far shows that improvements of sustainability can be made through better exploitation of knowledge. For example, it is recognized that optimal utilization of good quality forage is vitally important, but farmers showed a lack of confidence in the reliability of forage production both in quantity and quality. We conclude that the systems framework improves the understanding of innovation processes in organic agriculture. Farmer-led research is an effective way to bring together the scientific approach with the farmers’ practical and context knowledge in finding solutions to problems experienced by farmers and to develop sustainability

Can urban coffee consumption help predict US inflation?

Motivated by the importance of coffee to Americans and the significance of the coffee subsector to the US economy, we pursue three notable innovations. First, we augment the traditional Phillips curve model with the coffee price as a predictor, and show that the resulting model outperforms the traditional variant in both in-sample and out-of-sample predictability of US inflation. Second, we demonstrate the need to account for the inherent statistical features of predictors such as persistence, endogeneity, and conditional heteroskedasticity effects when dealing with US inflation. Consequently, we offer robust illustrations to show that the choice of estimator matters for improved US inflation forecasts. Third, the proposed augmented Phillips curve also outperforms time series models such as autoregressive integrated moving average and the fractionally integrated version for both in-sample and out-of-sample forecasts. Our results show that augmenting the traditional Phillips curve with the urban coffee price will produce better forecast results for US inflation only when the statistical effects are captured in the estimation process. Our results are robust to alternative measures of inflation, different data frequencies, higher order moments, multiple data samples and multiple forecast horizons

Significant blunt bowel and mesenteric injury - Comparison of two CT scoring systems in a trauma registry cohort.

This study evaluated and compared two imaging-based scoring systems for the detection of significant blunt bowel and mesenteric injury (sBBMI) by emergency computed tomography (CT). We included all consecutive adult polytrauma patients admitted to our emergency department following a road traffic accident from January 2008 to June 2015, provided that intravenously contrast-enhanced whole-body CT examination was performed immediately after hospital admission. Two radiologists, blinded to patients' outcome, reviewed the CT examinations for distinctive direct intestinal or mesenteric vascular injury and indirect signs of abdominal injury. These findings were correlated with the patients' surgical or interventional radiology findings, autopsy, or clinical follow-up (>24 h). Two previously validated imaging-based bowel-injury scoring systems, the CT-based Faget score and the clinically and radiologically based Mc Nutt score (BIPS), were compared by applying each to our trauma cohort. Student t-test, chi-squared, and logistic regression were used in analyses. Twenty-one of 752 analysed patients (2.8 %) had confirmed sBBMI. Active mesenteric bleeding, mesenteric and free pneumoperitoneum, small haemoperitoneum, non-focal bowel wall thickening, mesenteric/pericolic fat stranding, and anterior abdominal wall injury were significantly correlated with sBBMI, as did the two evaluated scoring systems (p < 0.001). However, multivariate logistic regression revealed the superiority of the Faget score to the McNutt score. The prevalence of sBBMI among polytrauma patients is low. Early diagnosis is necessary to avoid increased mortality. Certain CT features are pathognomic of sBBMI and must not be overlooked. Scoring systems are helpful, especially when they are based on radiological signs

Mobile Game Adoption Model: Integrating TECHNOLOGY Acceptance Model and Game Features

This study aims to analyze the factors in mobile game adoption that are influenced by game features and technology acceptance models. Partial least square is used to analyze the relationship between game features, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, attitude, and intention to play mobile games. This study uses a sample of 408 respondents who have played mobile games in the past month. The results showed that game features are a determinant of intention to play mobile games. Game features also affect players' intentions and attitudes to play mobile games if the game features are easy to play and useful when played. Increasing mobile adoption requires features that are easy to play and useful if played. It will affect the player's attitude and intention to play. Game developers, game designers and game companies must create game features that create a pleasant experience for gamers. This study bridges the gap in the literature on mobile game adoption by explaining the relationship between game features and technology adoption

Pengembangan Stirling Engine Tipe Piston Bebas Untuk Aplikasi Concentrated Solar Power (Csp)

Mesin stirling merupakan mesin kalor yang mempunyai cara kerja mengkompresi dan mengekspansi fluida pada suhu yang berbeda yang umumnya menyebabkan terjadinya Perubahan energi panas menjadi energi mekanik. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui nilai efisiensi thermal pada mesin stirling, efektivitas pada regenerator, laju perpindahan panas pada heater, kerugian panas yang terjadi pada regenerator, desain rancangan alat mesin stirling serta simulasi dari heater dan regenerator mesin stirling tipe beta yang menggunakan piston bebas. Simulasi dilakukan menggunakan software Ansys pada heater dan regenerator yang terkena paparan fluida cair (Therminol VP-1) dan gas (Helium). Didapatkan nilai dari perhitungan simulasi untuk laju perpindahan panasnya pada heater yakni 216,22 Watt, kerugian panas pada regeneratornya yakni 131,83 Joule, efektivitas dan efisiensinya yaitu 6,1% dan 40%. Metode yang digunakan untuk perancangan mesin stirling tipe free piston ini yaitu metode Pahl & Beitz, dimana metode perancangan ini dapat melihat kebutuhan industri saat ini, dengan perancangan yang dilakukan secara efektif dapat meningkatkan kreatifitas dan metode ini banyak digunakan pada skala industri

Green Coffea robusta (Coffea canephora) from Lampung province effect towards free radicals in chickens infected with Salmonella enteritidis bacteria

Background: Foodborne diseases are caused by acquired pathogenic bacteria such as Salmonella enteritidis (S. enteritidis). It causes an intestinal imbalance, and the microbial toxins found in the gastrointestinal tract induces symptoms such as diarrhea. Coffee contains active ingredients such as antioxidants and is used as an anti-inflammatory agent by reducing pro-inflammatory cytokine levels in the body. Aim: The purpose of this study was to determine the interaction between Lampung robusta coffee and tissue damage in chickens infected by S. enteritidis. Methods: This study used first-day-old Isa brown layer chickens (n=60) divided into five treatment groups. The negative control group consists of healthy and normal chickens, whereas the positive control group consists of chickens infected with S. enteritidis bacteria at a concentration of 108 CFU/ml. Groups T1, T2, and T3 were given coffee extract with doses of 500 mg/kg BW (low dose), 1000 mg/kg BW (moderate dose), and 1500 mg/kg BW (high dose), respectively, then infected with S. enteritidis bacteria at a concentration of 108 CFU/ml. The coffee extract and bacteria were given orally via a feeding tube at a volume of 0.5 ml per chicks. The extract was given for 14 days (from day-3 to 16), and the bacteria were given on day-16 and 17. On day-18, the chickens were necropsied. Malondialdehyde (MDA) level was analyzed using One Way ANOVA test with GLM procedure (<0.05), while the tissue histopath was analyzed using descriptive qualitative to examine the ileal damage Results: The results showed that MDA levels (nmol/L) decreased in treatment groups T1, T2, and T3 compared to the positive control. In contrast, we found improvements in the ileum histopathology of group T1 and T2 in the form of normal and regular intestinal epithelium arrangement of the ileum, long intestinal villi, and decreased total leukocytes. Conclusion: Green coffee robusta has the potential to increase antioxidants and reduce inflammation in the small intestine of chickens infected with S. enteritidis