Travelling Technocratic Rationality: Historical Narratives of China’s Agricultural Development and their Implications for China- Africa Agricultural Cooperation

Contemporary China-Africa agricultural cooperation (CAAC) has been internally dominated by three streams of narrative: promotion of food security for state building in the post-war landscape; productivity enhancement through technocratic modernisation; and promotion of aid sustainability through business engagement in the new era of globalisation. This paper explores the domestic drivers and strategies underpinning these narratives, as well as their respective implications for CAAC, using a historical review approach. The paper summarises three elements entrenched in the narratives of CAAC – state leadership, productivity-centrism and the governmentbusiness nexus – which are examples of travelling technocratic rationality. These differentiate China’s aid, focusing on developmental state building, from the established aid consensus, with its marriage of orthodox neoliberalism and a new institutionalism

Business Borderlands: China's Overseas State Agribusiness

In the context of widespread interests in China's agro?state?owned enterprises (SOEs), this article starts demystifying four narratives prevailing internationally. In this intellectual landscape, the article coins an innovative approach, ‘farm as business borderland’ to investigate an agro?SOE in Tanzania. Based on the ethnographic case study, the article presents the tensions arising between the case farm and its Beijing headquarters on the one hand, and between Chinese managers and local stakeholders on the other. The authors examine the reasons why the travelling business bureaucracy rationalities from Beijing to Tanzania works and how this is adapted locally in the farm's daily practices. The authors also explore why and how Chinese managers' footloose expatriate lifestyle is not as relevant as normally expected in constructing convergence with locals. Finally the article discusses the implications of the new approach on international development inquiry and global governance practices

An Assessment of the Effects of Micron-Particle Aggregation on the Performance of Zinc-Silica Composite Coatings Using Betti Numbers

This paper investigates the assessment of the mixing effect of zinc-silica composite electrolyte using particle image velocimetry (PIV). In particular, we considered the deposition of silica particles using a stirring tank, which provides strong evidence for characterizing the mixing effects of flow field. A method to extract meaningful parameters to evaluate particle distribution from digital images recorded by the PIV technique during the electrodeposition process is applied. The Betti numbers of binary images of silica particles mixing were calculated using the CHomP software, which was used to evaluate mixing homogeneity and nonhomogeneity in flow field. An analysis of the performance of zinc-silica composite coatings is performed in an attempt to test and verify the assessment of the effects of micron-particle aggregation. Good correlations between calculated and experimental testing results illustrate the potential of the Betti numbers method to quantitatively evaluate micron-particle aggregation. This offers new possibilities to monitor the deposition of silica particles and to analyze flow field during the electrodeposition progress

Can agricultural protectionist policies help achieve food security in Nigeria?

This study mapped the dynamic interaction of narratives regarding Nigeria's pursuit of rice self-sufficiency and related trade policies since the 1970s to explore whether agricultural protectionist policies can help achieve food security in Nigeria. Developing agricultural trade policies that simultaneously secure imported food supplies and protect domestic agricultural development is a challenging task. Nigeria's protectionist policies have a controversial agenda. Few studies have investigated the dynamic process of rice production and trade policy from a historical viewpoint; our study fills this gap. Through mapping Nigeria's pursuit of rice self-sufficiency over the past 50 years, we found that seesawed trade policy parallels complex rice development, leaving imported rice dependence unchanged. Regardless of when policies switch to trade protection or liberalization, the procedure does not directly lead to increased rice production. Since much exploration is needed regarding how to achieve food security in Nigeria, we also identify three new dimensions for future food security research based on our findings' optimal recommendations

Increased intestinal permeability with elevated peripheral blood endotoxin and inflammatory indices for e-waste lead exposure in children

Lead (Pb) entering the body through different channels can damage the function of intestinal mucosal barrier and cause the body stressful inflammatory response to enhance. This study conducted a cross-sectional study to investigate the effects of Pb exposure on intestinal permeability in children by measuring the level of bacterial endotoxin and index of inflammatory cell types in peripheral blood. From November to December 2018, we recruited 187 participants aged 3-6 years by stratified randomization, from an electronic-waste-exposed group (n = 82) and a referent group (n = 105). General demographic information, past history of the digestive system in child, and family situation were informed by children's guardians with questionnaires. Children in the exposed group showed lower weight, height, and body mass index while more diarrhea in a month. Blood Pb and plasma endotoxin were elevated in exposed children than referent children and the positive relationship between them was shown in all children [B (95% CI): 0.072 (0.008, 0.137), P = 0.033]. Peripheral monocyte counts and leukotriene B-4 (LTB4) levels were significantly increased in the exposed group. Endotoxin levels were positively correlated with neutrophils, monocytes, and LTB4 [B (95% CI): 0.054 (0.015, 0.093), 0.018 (0.005, 0.031), and 0.049 (0.011, 0.087), respectively, P < 0.05]. To sum up, the exposed children showed lower physical growth levels, poorer gut health, and increased intestinal permeability, which was related to high blood Pb and peripheral inflammatory indices. These results suggest the possible adverse impact of environmental Pb exposure on the intestinal health of children

E-waste polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure leads to child gut-mucosal inflammation and adaptive immune response

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) exposure alters immunological responses. Research concerning PAH exposure on intestinal immunity of children in electronic waste (e-waste) areas is scarce. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) pollutants on intestinal mucosal immunity of children in e-waste areas. Results showed higher hydroxylated PAH (OH-PAH) concentrations in e-waste-exposed children, accompanied with higher sialyl Lewis A (SLA) level, absolute lymphocyte and monocyte counts, decreased of percentage of CD4(+) T cells, and had a higher risk of diarrhea. OH-PAH concentrations were negative with child growth. 1-OHNap mediated through WBCs, along with 1-OHPyr, was correlated with an increase SLA concentration. 2-OHFlu, 1-OHPhe, 2-OHPhe, 1-OHPyr, and 6-OHChr were positively correlated with secretory immunoglobulin A (sIgA) concentration. Our results indicated that PAH pollutants caused inflammation, affected the intestinal epithelium, and led to transformation of microfold cell (M cell). M cells initiating mucosal immune responses and the subsequent increasing sIgA production might be an adaptive immune respond of children in the e-waste areas. To our knowledge, this is the first study of PAH exposure on children intestinal immunity in e-waste area, showing that PAH exposure plays a negative role in child growth and impairs the intestinal immune function

Differentiated Study of Constituents between Organic Milk and Ordinary Milk by Stable Isotope Ratio and UPLC-Q-Orbitrap

Objective: To prevent some illegal companies driven by interests from arbitrarily labeling "organic" to deceive consumers using ways such as counterfeiting, forgery, and shoddy food. Methods: This study investigated differential components between organic and regular milk by stable isotope ratio and UPLC-Q-Orbitrap-based metabolomics. Organic milk with different lactation stages was also analyzed. Results: There was a significant difference between organic and ordinary milk for single factor ANOVA P<0.01. The carbon stable isotope and nitrogen stable isotope ratios could be used to distinguish organic and ordinary milk. Based on the data from UPLC-Q-Orbitrap, differential metabolites were screened by the OPLS-DA method, five different constituents were obtained, and there was a big difference between different lactation stages of organic milk such as histidine etc. Conclusion: Although the data of this study was obtained from limited samples, the different constituents between organic and ordinary milk were confirmed. Organic milk could be preliminarily determined by the data of carbon isotope ratio, nitrogen isotope ratio, and five different constituents screened by the UPLC-Q-Orbitrap method. This study could provide a scientific basis for the identification of organic and ordinary milk