Introducing an agricultural app to rice farmers: A pilot study in Can Tho, Vietnam

Plantix is an agricultural app developed by a private company based in Germany which offers a diagnosis and advice for more than 30 crops. It has great potential as a new form of extension service complementing a traditional face-to-face extension service. The CGIAR Plant Health Initiative seeks to introduce the app as part of a package of innovations available for integrated pest and disease management to facilitate behavioral change among farmers. Plantix has been widely used in India but has not yet become very common in Vietnam. The aim of this pilot study was to test the usability of Plantix app for progressive rural rice growers in Vinh Thanh District, Can Tho City, Vietnam. A group of 15 farmers (5 woman and 11 men) participated in the training on use of the app and provided feedback after a two-week trial. The results show that the farmers seem to have some trust issues with the app’s diagnosis, as it reportedly failed to identify or distinguish early signs of certain pests and diseases on young rice. Nevertheless, the farmers showed interest in using Plantix app and considered it a useful tool once its early detection capacity is improved. The participants were experienced large-scaled rice farmers who were already quite familiar with the symptoms of regular pests and diseases. They agreed with the knowledge provided by Plantix. The farmers appeared to be conscious of the recommended dosage of chemical pesticides as written on product labels, however, the current local practice still involves overusing. This suggests that additional measures might be needed along with the introduction and dissemination of Plantix for a stronger impact on farmers’ behaviors. The app can be very useful for farmers when they start growing new crops, when there are new pests and diseases, and when they have difficulties distinguishing one disease from others with similar symptoms. Some of the farmers suggested the need for information about new generation pesticides. They also expressed the need for recommendations of specific “top-ranked” pesticide products, to help them navigate the large number of products and brands currently on the market. Considering the gender division of labor and decision-making, the results show that men are usually responsible for pest and disease management, but women are also involved in decision-making to some extent. It will be interesting to observe how women’s improved knowledge on pest and disease management obtained through Plantix will lead to change in household decisions on pesticide use. The participating farmers use various sources such as TV, Internet, extension workers, input suppliers and peer farmers as means of accessing information and exchanging knowledge. Male farmers tend to learn new agricultural technologies through social networks within their villages and the Internet more often, while the women do that through the Internet and TV. However, both groups trusted their own experience the most. Therefore, introducing the community’s key farmers to new technologies though demonstration and success stories could work as a strategy to ignite behavior change among peer farmers. In addition, communication via the Internet and TV could quickly reach a large number of farmers. Involving input suppliers and extension workers in the introduction of the Plantix app could also be helpful. While this pilot study focused on large-scaled farmers, there are smallholder farmers from poor households in some remote areas in the Mekong Delta. Their needs and knowledge may be significantly different from those of progressive farmers. Introducing the app to different types of farmers can help us understand the diverse needs and priorities of farmers in the process of digitalization

Morphology and Phylogeny of the Ciliate Psilotricha silvicola n. sp. (Alveolata, Ciliophora) from Woodland Soils in the United Kingdom.

The genus Psilotricha was established by Stein in 1859, with P. acuminata as the type species within the family Oxytrichidae. This species lacked a full description until it was re-discovered in 2001, showing that its morphological and morphogenetic characters confirmed the inclusion in the family Oxytrichidae. Since then, the genus Psilotricha has had a convoluted taxonomy despite the morphological evidence available. In this paper, we describe a new Psilotricha species, Psilotricha silvicola n. sp., from woodland soils in Southern England (United Kingdom). The morphology was investigated in live and protargol-impregnated specimens. Our findings show that P. silvicola n. sp. shares morphological characteristics with P. acuminata, including the distinctive cell shape and the long and sparse cirri. Phylogenetic analysis of the 18S rRNA gene places this new species within the family Oxytrichidae, nested apart from the family Psilotrichidae (which includes the genera Urospinula, Psilotrichides and Hemiholosticha), in a clade containing species of the family Oxytrichidae. Furthermore, the morphology of another Psilotricha species, P. viridis, found in a freshwater pond in the same woodland area, is also here described, bringing additional insight into the taxonomy of the genus. Our findings provide further evidence for inclusion of the genus Psilotricha within the oxytrichids

Infection-interactions in Ethiopian village chickens

Chickens raised under village production systems are exposed to a wide variety of pathogens, and current or previous infections may affect their susceptibility to further infections with another parasite, and/or can alter the manifestation of each infection. It is possible that co-infections may be as important as environmental risk factors. However, in cross-sectional studies, where the timing of infection is unknown, apparent associations between infections may be observed due to parasites sharing common risk factors. This study measured antibody titres to 3 viral (Newcastle disease, Marek's disease and infectious bursal disease) and 2 bacterial (Pasteurella multocida and Salmonella) diseases, and the infection prevalence of 3 families of endo- and ecto-parasites (Ascaridida, Eimeria and lice) in 1056 village chickens from two geographically distinct populations in Ethiopia. Samples were collected during 4 cross-sectional surveys, each approximately 6 months apart. Constrained ordination, a technique for analysis of ecological community data, was used to explore this complex dataset and enabled potential relationships to be uncovered and tested despite the different measurements used for the different parasites. It was found that only a small proportion of variation in the data could be explained by the risk factors measured. Very few birds (9/1280) were found to be seropositive to Newcastle disease. Positive relationships were identified between Pasteurella and Salmonella titres; and between Marek's disease and parasitic infections, and these two groups of diseases were correlated with females and males, respectively. This may suggest differences in the way that the immune systems of male and female chickens interact with these parasites. In conclusion, we find that a number of infectious pathogens and their interactions are likely to impact village chicken health and production. Control of these infections is likely to be of importance in future development planning

Studies in reverse transcriptase: synthesis of inhibitors, conformational analysis, and integration of drug design

The reverse transcriptase (RT) enzyme of the human immunodeficiency virus is an attractive target for rational drug design as it is an essential and unique enzyme in the viral life cycle. RT can be inhibited by non-nucleoside inhibitors acting at an allosteric binding pocket (NNIBP). The inherent flexibility of the enzyme has made the study of the mechanism(s) of its functions and inhibition by non-nucleoside inhibitors difficult and ambiguous. Furthermore, this flexibility in the NNIBP has made it difficult to characterise the binding pocket for rational drug design

SeVe: Automatic tool for verification of security protocols

10.1007/s11704-012-2903-3Frontiers of Computer Science in China6157-7

Prevalence and characteristics of gastroesophageal reflux disease in pregnant women

Introduction and aims: The prevalence of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) has been reported to be increasing in recent years. However, there have been few reports on the prevalence of GERD during pregnancy in the Asian population. The aim of our study was to evaluate the prevalence and characteristics of GERD in Vietnamese pregnant women. Materials and methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted at the antenatal clinic of the Nhan Dan Gia Dinh Hospital, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. Four hundred females, at various stages of pregnancy, were enrolled. GERD was diagnosed if there was troublesome heartburn and/or acid regurgitation, at least once a week, during the current pregnancy. Results: The overall prevalence of GERD in pregnancy was 38.5% (154/400). The prevalence of GERD in the third trimester was significantly higher than that in the second trimester (46.8% vs. 30.7%, P = 0.008) and tended to be higher than its prevalence in the first trimester (46.8% vs. 35.4%, P = 0.051). In the pregnant women with GERD, the frequency of regurgitation was significantly higher than that of heartburn (92.9% vs. 30.5%, P < 0.001). Those typical symptoms were more prevalent in the daytime, compared with nighttime. Conclusion: Our study showed that GERD was prevalent during pregnancy in Vietnam. In the pregnant women with GERD, regurgitation was much more common than heartburn, and those typical reflux symptoms occurred more frequently in the daytime, compared with nighttime. Resumen: Introducción y objetivos: La prevalencia de la enfermedad por reflujo gastroesofágico (ERGE) ha aumentado en los últimos años. Sin embargo, hay pocos informes sobre el predominio de esta afección durante el embarazo en la población asiática. Nuestro objetivo fue evaluar la prevalencia y las características de la ERGE entre las mujeres embarazadas vietnamitas. Material y métodos: Este estudio transversal se llevó a cabo en el Hospital Nhan Dan Gia Din, en Vietnam. Se incluyó a 400 mujeres embarazadas en distintas fases del embarazo. La manera de diagnosticar la ERGE fue la observación de presencia de pirosis molesta o regurgitación ácida al menos una vez a la semana durante el embarazo. Resultados: La prevalencia de ERGE en el embarazo fue del 38,5% (154/400). Esa prevalencia en el tercer trimestre fue mayor que en el segundo trimestre (46,8 frente a 30,7%; p = 0,008) y tendió a ser mayor que en el primer trimestre (46,8 frente a 35,4%; p = 0,051). La frecuencia de regurgitación fue mayor que la de pirosis (92,9 vs. 30,5%; p < 0,001). Estos síntomas típicos se manifestaron con mayor frecuencia durante el día que durante la noche. Conclusiones: Nuestro estudio demostró que la ERGE era prevalente en el embarazo en Vietnam. Entre las mujeres embarazadas con ERGE, la regurgitación era mucho más común que la pirosis y estos síntomas típicos de reflujo ocurrían con más frecuencia durante el día que durante la noche

Developing the competence of organizing experiential activities for pre-service teachers – The case in Vietnam

Investing on human capital via enhancement of educational quality as one of the important factors to promote economic development all over the world. Basically, it is important to enhance pre-service teachers of primary education with necessary professional competences to implement teaching activities at primary schools. Based on relevant research on experiential activities, professional competence development for pre-service teachers of primary education and the general education curriculum in the case of Vietnam, the article develops a competency framework for organizing experiential learning activities for pre-service teachers of primary education in the context of education curriculum innovation; and simultaneously suggested fundamental solutions to improve pre-service teachers’ competence in organizing experiential activities. To achieve these above-mentioned goals, some research methods are used by the researchers including document analysis, pedagogical observation, and educational experience summarizing method

Synthesis of the first dibenzo-4,12-dithio-8-azacrownophanes containing γ-arylpyridine subunit

[Figure not available: see fulltext.] Dibenzo-4,12-dithio-8-azacrownophanes containing γ-arylpyridine subunit and thiocrown fragment were synthesized in one step from 1,5-bis(2-acetylphenylsulfanyl)-3-oxapentane, aryl aldehydes, and ammonium acetate. © 2020, Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature