Soil fertility in flooded and non-flooded irrigated rice systems

The lowland rice system in Asia makes a major contribution to the global rice supply and is often cited as an example of a sustainable system in which two or three crops of rice are grown in sequence under submerged conditions. However, water shortages are becoming critical in some regions for lowland rice cultivation; and there is high potential in exploring rice cultivation under moisture regimes that save water and also increase productivity. The objective of this article therefore is to analyze the consequences of switching growing of rice from flooded to aerobic conditions on soil fertility and its management. Fertility advantages of submerged rice include amelioration of chemical fertility, preferential accumulation of organic matter and improved availability of major, secondary and selected micronutrients, which contribute to the long-term maintenance of soil fertility and sustainability of the lowland rice system. However, the fertility problems under aerobic rice are better addressed with the crop as a component of a cropping system because continuous growing of aerobic rice in sequence does not seem sustainable due to complex, site-specific chemical and biological constraints

Knowledge and use of emergency contraception among women in the Western Cape province of South Africa: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: Emergency contraception (EC) is widely available free of charge at public sector clinics in South Africa. At the same time, rates of teenage and unintended pregnancy in South Africa remain high, and there are few data on knowledge of EC in the general population in South Africa, as in other resource-limited settings. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional, interviewer-administered survey among 831 sexually active women at 26 randomly selected public sector clinics in the Western Cape province. RESULTS: Overall, 30% of the women had ever heard of EC when asked directly, after the method was described to them. Only 15% mentioned EC by name or description spontaneously. Knowledge of EC was independently associated with higher education, being married, and living in an urban setting. Four percent of women had ever used EC. DISCUSSION: These data suggest that knowledge of EC in this setting is more common among women of higher socioeconomic status living in urban areas. For EC to play a role in decreasing unintended pregnancy in South Africa, specific interventions are necessary to increase knowledge of the method, where to get it, and the appropriate time interval for its use before the need for EC arises. Future health promotion campaigns should target rural and low socioeconomic status communities

ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTIONS - CONTRACEPTIVE PRACTICES AND AWARENESS OF EMERGENCY CONTRACEPTION IN EDUCATED WORKING WOMEN

Background: Regular contraceptive use and emergency contraception are tools to prevent pregnancies. Aims: This study was designed to investigate knowledge and use of contraceptive methods and awareness of emergency contraception among women working in the hospital. Settings: Educated workingwomen in a medical college hospital. Design: Cross-sectional study. Materials and Methods: The study was carried out among women belonging to three categories: staff nurses, ministerial staff and others. Married as well as unmarried employees in the reproductive age group were interviewed. A pretested mixed questionnaire containing open as well as closed ended questions was administered. The women were asked questions concerning knowledge and use of contraceptive methods and awareness of emergency or postcoital contraception. Results: Of the 284 employees 258 women consented for the interview. All the subjects were literate and majority (97.2%) had an urban background. Of the 190 married women, 154 (81.1%) practiced contraception, among them (73.3%) were regular users. Eighty respondents underwent abortions of which 46 had spontaneous and 34 had induced abortions. Among the available contraceptive methods, condom was the most popular method in 89 (57.8%) followed by Copper T in 38 women (24.7%). The use of hormonal contraception was very low 2.6%. Print and electronic media were the common source of public awareness in 149 subjects (57.7%). Twenty-nine women (11.2%) were aware and only three women used emergency contraception. Conclusions: A high percentage of females in this literate workingwomen population used contraception; however, the awareness of emergency contraception was low

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Not AvailableMalachite green method has been evaluated for estimating minute quantities of phosphorus (P) in water, 0.01M calcium chloride (CaCl2), and Olsen [sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3)] extracts often soils of varying properties. The precision and accuracy of the malachite green method was better than that of the ascorbic acid method to estimate P in these three extracts. The recovery of added P ranged from 95.3-99.3% in water, 96-100% in 0.01M CaCl2, and 96.7-100% in Olsen extracts. The ascorbic acid method underestimated the amounts of 0.01M CaCl2-P and its precision was also lower than the malachite green method. It is possible to predict the P concentration in the three extracts equal to malachite green method from the ascorbic acid P values by using regression equations.Not Availabl