Analysing agricultural users’ patterns of behaviour: The case of OPTIRas™, a decision support system for starch crop selection

Redesigning IT systems for specific user groups encompasses a lot of effort with respect to analysing and understanding user behaviour. The goal of this paper is to provide insights into patterns of behaviour of agricultural users, during the usage of a decision support system called OPTIRas™. This system aids agricultural users in their cultivar selection activities. We analyse logs resulting from OPTIRas™, and we get insights into user’s navigational patterns. We claim that the results of our analysis can be used to support the redesign of decision support systems in order to address specific agricultural users’ characteristics.     

Genetic analysis of resistance to spot blotch disease in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in Zambia

Understanding the genetics of resistance to spot blotch disease, caused by Bipolaris sorokiniana (Sacc.) Shoem, is important to design an appropriate breeding strategy to improve the trait. The objective of this study was to determine the gene action and mode of inheritance of resistance to spot blotch in wheat. Eight genotypes with varying resistance to the disease were crossed in a full diallel mating design. Parents and their progenies were evaluated for spot blotch resistance. Data were analyzed using Hayman’s diallel analysis. The results suggested the importance of additive gene effects in controlling the resistance to spot blotch in the materials under study. No epistasis, maternal, or reciprocal effects were detected. Resistance to spot blotch exhibited partial dominance. Therefore, exercising selection for resistance in the early segregating generation should be an effective approach because of the predominance of additive gene effects. The Wr/Vr graph showed that the parents 30SAWSN5 (P3) and Coucal (P4) possessed more dominant genes, which makes them particularly suitable for inclusion in breeding for resistance to spot blotch.     

Die Ihierwanderungen in den Jappmarfen und den nördlichen Iheilen von Jinnland in den Jahren 1839 und 1840

Ohne Zusammenfassung (Borgetragen in der Societ?t der Wiffenfchaften zu Helfingfors am 29. April 1850.) Ueberfekt aus Notises ur S?llskapets pro Fauna et Flora Fennica F?rhandlingar; Andra H?ffes, Helsingfors 1852 von dem Dberforftrath von Berg.     

Ingestive behaviour of steers grazing Brachiaria brizantha cultivar Marandu and in feedlot in Brazil

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The objective of this study was to evaluate the ingestive behaviour of steers grazing Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu and in feedlot regimen in Brazil....     

Inclusion of licuri meal in the diet of pasture dairy cows

Tropical Animal Health and Production - The objective of this study was to evaluate the inclusion of increasing levels of licuri meal as a substitute for soybean bran in the diet of pasture-based...     

Association of vegetation and soil mite assemblages with isolated Scots pine trees on a Scottish wet heath

Isolated trees may significantly enhance biodiversity at the landscape level. However, our understanding of their impacts is still poor, particularly in environments with high soil moisture where research on this topic has been comparatively limited. We examined understorey vegetation and soil oribatid mite assemblages under live and dead Scots pine trees and in open treeless areas, all within the same Scottish upland wet heath system, to determine whether isolated live trees affected the understorey and mite components of the ecosystem, and whether these effects occurred in parallel. We also explored whether these responses might result from tree-driven reductions in soil moisture content. Live trees reduced soil moisture (relative to wet heath and beneath dead trees) and appeared to change vegetation from wet heath to dry heath type communities. These effects were strongly related to tree trunk diameter (tree size). No major effects of dead trees on understorey vegetation or soil moisture were apparent. Higher mite species abundance and richness were found under live trees than in treeless open heath. Although mite abundances were lower under dead trees than live trees, richness remained similar, thus different factors seem to be regulating mite abundance and community composition. These findings indicate that landscape-level biodiversity responses to environmental change such as habitat fragmentation cannot be predicted from vegetation patterns alone, and that even in heavily fragmented landscapes comparatively small patches such as isolated individual trees can enhance biodiversity.     

Increasing levels of supplementation for crossbred steers on pasture during the dry period of the year

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of increasing concentrate supplementation levels on the intake, nutrient digestibility, and performance of crossbred steers during the dry period of the year. The experiment was developed on Princesa do Mateiro farm, in the municipality of Ribeirão do Largo, located in the southwest region of Bahia State, Brazil. Forty uncastrated male crossbred (½ Holstein-Zebu) steers with an average body weight (BW) of 232.55?±?24.97 kg were distributed into four treatments in a completely randomized design with ten replicates. The animals were managed in an experimental area formed by Brachiaria brizantha cv. Marandu, in an intermittent grazing system. Treatments consisted of the following supplementation levels: 0.2% BW, with 60% crude protein (CP); 0.3% BW, with 40% CP; 0.4% BW, with 30% CP; and 0.5% BW, with 24% CP. The intakes of forage dry matter in kg/day and %BW and neutral detergent fiber corrected for ash and protein (NDFap) in %BW decreased linearly, whereas the intake of non-fibrous carbohydrates corrected for ash and protein in kg/day and average daily gain increased linearly. Therefore, the use of supplementation at 0.5% BW (24% crude protein) to provide gains of up to 0.500 kg/day is recommended for grazing steers during the post-weaning period in the dry season of the year.