Effects of different planting dates on improving yield of Fritillaria imperialis L. and Fritillaria persica L. bulbs damaged by small narcissus fly (Eumerus strigatus Fallen)

Fritillaria imperialis and F. persica were planted during April 2003 and May 2004 growing seasons on the basis of split block design with three replications to investigate the effects of planting dates on various plant parameters and extent of recovery by planting 25% damaged bulbs. The results showed significant effects of planting dates on plant height, number of bulbs per plant and infected bulb ratio. A comparison of the two species showed that F. persica gave more bulblets than F. imperialis. A generalcomparison of the two species also showed that damaged bulbs of F. imperialis produced lesser yield compared to F. persica. Furthermore, both species gave more number of bulblets from early and mid September plantings compared to early and mid October plantings. The most suitable date of planting was determined as September 1st and 15th

Acute nontraumatic torticollis in a patient with right lower quadrant pain: case report

Right lower quadrant pain is one of the most common symptoms of the emergency patients. For accurate diagnosis and treatment; the patients must be questioned and examined very well. Also accompanying conditions due to right lower quadrant pain may be noticed. In this case presantation, we discussed a patient who was presented with right lower quadrant pain and cervical dystonia. By limiting the usage of metoclopramide the patient was followed seamlessly. In this case presentation we want to accentuate that a patient who with abdominal pain may be presented with rare symptoms such of dystonia. In such conditions a detailed anamnesis and physical  examination are the first steps of the evaluation to prevent potential hazardous outcomes. Inparticular, a surgeon must be always carefully while taking history and examining the patient

Pro-Diluvian: Understanding scoped-flooding for content discovery in information-centric networking

Scoped-flooding is a technique for content discovery in a broad networking context. This paper investigates the ef-fects of scoped-flooding on various topologies in information-centric networking. Using the proposed ring model, we show that flooding can be constrained within a very small neigh-bourhood to achieve most of the gains which come from areas where the growth rate is relatively low, i.e., the net-work edge. We also study two flooding strategies and com-pare their behaviours. Given that caching schemes favour more popular items in competition for cache space, popu-lar items are expected to be stored in diverse parts of the network compared to the less popular items. We propose to exploit the resulting divergence in availability along with the routers ’ topological properties to fine tune the flooding radius. Our results shed light on designing ecient con-tent discovery mechanism for future information-centric net-works

Indirect predictive control strategy with fixed switching frequency for a direct matrix converter

The direct matrix converter has a large number of available switching states which implies that the implementation of predictive control techniques in this converter requires high computational cost while an adequate selection of weighting factors in order to control both input and output sides. In this paper, an indirect model predictive current control strategy is proposed in order to simplify the computational cost while avoiding the use of weighting factors. The method is based on the fictitious dc-link concept, which has been used in the past for the classical modulation and control techniques of the direct matrix converter. The proposal is enhanced with a fixed switching predictive strategy in order to improve the performance of the full system. Simulated results confirm the feasibility of the proposal demonstrating that it is an alternative to classical predictive control strategies for the direct matrix converter

Why do some followers remain silent in response to abusive supervision? A system justification perspective

Copyright © 2023 The Authors. This study investigates how the system justification motive manifests in employees’ voice/silence behavior at the workplace. It also explores the moderating effects of system justification on the linkage between abusive supervision and voice/silence behavior for blue- and white-collar employees. The field study generated responses from 905 employees in Turkey. Multi-group analysis reveals that the moderating effect of system justification motives varies by occupational class. In particular, the impact of abusive supervision on silence becomes more salient when white-collar employees endorse higher system justification motives. However, in the blue-collar sample, the absence of a moderating effect could be attributed to the strong main effect of system justification motives. The current study adds to the extant literature by applying a system justification perspective to voice and silence behavior by collar differences at work. It also provides important implications for managers in dealing with workplace mistreatment affecting all occupational groups, mainly when blue-collar employee silence is endemic and regulatory policies are inadequate

A study on wear failure analysis of tungsten carbide hardfacing on carbon steel blade in a digester tank

This paper addresses wear failure analysis of tungsten carbide (WC) hardfacing on a carbon steel blade known as the continuous digester blade (CD blade). The CD blade was placed in a digester tank to mix ilmenite ore with sulphuric acid as part of a production process. Tungsten carbide hardfacing was applied on the CD blade to improve its wear resistance while the CD blade was exposed to an abrasive and acidic environment. Failure analysis was car-ried out on the hardfaced CD blade in order to improve its wear resistance and lifetime. A thickness and hardness comparison study was conducted on worn and unworn specimens from the CD blades. The carbide distribution along with elemental composition analysis of the hardfaced CD blade specimens was examined using scanning electron microscopy and energy-dispersive spectroscopy. The investigation revealed that an inconsistent hardfacing thickness was welded around the CD blade. Minimum coating thickness was found at the edges of the blade surfaces causing failure to the blades as the bare carbon steel blades were exposed to the mixed environment. The wear resistance of the CD blade can be improved by distributing the carbide uniformly on the hardfaced coating. Applying extra coating coverage at the critical edge will prevent the exposure of bare carbon steel blade, thus increasing the CD blade lifetime

New Mediterranean biodiversity records (October 2015)

The Collective Article “New Mediterranean Biodiversity Records” of the Mediterranean Marine Science journal offers the means to publish biodiversity records in the Mediterranean Sea. The current article has adopted a country-based classification and the countries are listed according to their geographic position, from west to east. New biodiversity data are reported for 7 different countries, although one species reported from Malta is new for the entire Mediterranean basin, and is presumably also present in Israel and Lebanon (see below, under Malta). Italy: the rare native fish Gobius kolombatovici is first reported from the Ionian Sea, whilst the alien jellyfish Rhopilema nomadica and the alien fish Oplegnathus fasciatus are first reported from the entire country. The presence of O. fasciatus from Trieste is concomitantly the first for the entire Adriatic Sea. Finally, the alien bivalve Arcuatula senhousia is reported for the first time from Campania (Tyrrhenian Sea). Tunisia: a bloom of the alien crab ortunus segnis is first reported from the Gulf of Gabes, where it was considered as casual. Malta: the alien flatworm Maritigrella fuscopunctata is recorded in the Mediterranean Sea for the first time, on the basis of 25 specimens. At the same time, web searches include possible unpublished records from Israel and Lebanon. The alien crab P. segnis, already mentioned above, is first formally reported from Malta based on specimens collected in 1972. Concomitantly, the presence of Callinectes sapidus in Maltese waters is excluded since based on misidentifications. Greece: the Atlantic northern brown shrimp Penaeus atzecus, previously known from the Ionian Sea from sporadic records only, is now well established in Greek and international Ionian waters. The alien sea urchin Diadema setosum is reported for the second time from Greece, and its first record from the country is backdated to 2010 in Rhodes Island. The alien lionfish Pterois miles is first reported from Greece and concomitantly from the entire Aegean Sea. Turkey: the alien rhodophyte Antithamnion hubbsii is first reported from Turkey and the entire eastern Mediterranean. New distribution data are also provided for the native fishes Alectis alexandrina and Heptranchias perlo. In particular, the former record consists of a juvenile measuring 21.38 mm total length, whilst the latter by a mature male. Cyprus: the rare native cephalopod Macrotritopus defilippi, and the alien crab Atergatis roseus, sea slug Plocamopherus ocellatus and fish Cheilodipterus novemstriatus are first recorded from the entire country. Lebanon: the alien crabs Actaea savignii and Matuta victor, as well as the alien fish Synanceia verrucosa, are first recorded from the entire country. In addition, the first Mediterranean record of A. savignii is backdated to 2006, whilst the high number of M. victor specimens observed in Lebanon suggest its establishment in the Basin. The Atlantic fishes Paranthias furcifer and Seriola fasciata, and the circumtropical Rachycentron canadum, are also first reported from the country. The P. furcifer record backdates its presence in the Mediterranean to 2007, whilst S. fasciata records backdate its presence in the eastern Mediterranean to 2005. Finally, two of these latter species have been recently ascribed to alien species, but all three species may fit the cryptogenic category, if not a new one, better.peer-reviewe

Optimisation of pH of cadmium chloride post-growth-treatment in processing CDS/CDTE based thin film solar cells

The role of Chlorine-based activation in the production of high quality CdS/CdTe photovoltaic have been well discussed and explored with an overlook of the effect of Cadmium chloride (CdCl2) post-growth treatment acidity on the property of the fabricated devices. This work focuses on the optimisation of CdCl2 post-growth treatment pH as it affects both the material and fabricated device properties of all-electrodeposited multilayer glass/FTO/n-CdS/n-CdTe/p-CdTe configuration. CdCl2 treatments with acidity ranging from pH1 to pH4 were explored. The properties of the ensued CdTe layer were explored using optical, morphological, compositional structural and electrical property analysis, while, the effect on fabricated multilayer glass/FTO/n-CdS/n-CdTe/p-CdTe configuration were also explored using both I-V and C-V measurements. Highest improvements in the optical, morphological, compositional and structural were observed at pH2 CdCl2 post-growth treatment with an improvement in absorption edge, grain size, crystallinity and crystallite size. Conductivity type conversions from n-CdTe to p-CdTe, increase in pin-hole density and collapse of the absorption edge were observed after pH1 CdCl2 treatment. The highest fabricated solar cell efficiency of 13% was achieved using pH2 CdCl2 treatment as compared to other pH values explored