Climate sensitivity uncertainty and the need for energy without CO2 emission

The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change calls for "stabilization of greenhouse gas concentrations at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference with the climate system." Even if we could determine a "safe" level of interference in the climate system, the sensitivity of global mean temperature to increasing atmospheric CO2 is known perhaps only to a factor of three or less. Here we show how a factor of three uncertainty in climate sensitivity introduces even greater uncertainty in allowable increases in atmospheric CO2 concentration and allowable CO2 emissions. Nevertheless, unless climate sensitivity is low and acceptable amounts of climate change are high, climate stabilization will require a massive transition to CO2 emission-free energy technologies.     

Performance of eucalyptus in the Indian arid zone

Summary The results of adaptability trials carried out on 43 species ofEucalyptus in two different environments viz., Jodhpur and Pali are discussed. It was observed that the species with wide latitudinal distribution and belonging to summer rainfall regions in their native habitat have done well compared to the species with narrow latitudinal distribution and belonging to winter rainfall areas. In general,Eucalyptus melanaphloia, E. terminalis andE. camaldulensis proved to be the most promising species and are recommended for large-scale species elimination trials in the region. However, for the region like Pali having calcareous soils,E. tessellaris should be preferred over other species as it has shown the best performance. The differential growth and development exhibited by different species in the two habitats suggest a need for studying the correct mycorrhizal fungus in the establishment and growth of the species.with 1 fig.     

Amino acid profiles of some under-utilised seeds

Twenty-three seeds of different botanical families growing in India were analysed for their protein content and amino acid compositions. They showed a wide variation in their total protein (8.0 to 42.7%). Some of them were comparable and some were even better than popular food legumes such as kidney bean and chick-pea in protein levels and amino acid compositions.     

Effect of As on Chlorophyll and Protein Contents and enzymic Activities in Greening Maize Tissues

Arsenic is known to have several phytotoxic effects and one of them is the reduction in chlorophyll content. Determination of chlorophyll content is often accomplished to assess the impact of most environmental stresses, as the pigment content is linked to the visual symptoms and photosynthetic plant productivity. Hence, the present investigation was undertaken to study the effect of As on chlorophyll synthesis with a view to gain some insights into the possible mechanism. Supply of 0.01 to 1.00 mM Na arsenate to the greening maize leaf segments decreased the chlorophyll content as well as chlorophyllase activity, but decline in former was more pronounced than latter at high concentration of As. Supply of arsenate also reduced total RNA, protein and acid soluble thiol content of the tissue. The inhibitory effect of As was less pronounced in the beginning i.e. upto 4 h, but became substantial with increasing time periods. Nitrate reductase activity was inhibited more strongly than chlorophyll formation and was induced only slightly by the supply of inorganic nitrogen in the presence of As. Inclusion of KNO₃ had almost no effect on inhibitory effect of As on chlorophyll formation, while NH₄Cl and NH₄NO₃ substantiated it. Percent decrease in chlorophyll content was reduced by 2-Oxoglutarate, glutamine, glycine and Na succinate, but it was increased by MgCl₂ and remained unaltered by glutamate. Amongst the thio compounds tested, cysteine and 5,5′ dithio bis 2 nitro benzoic acid could overcome the toxic effect of As partially, while mercaptoethanol and dithiothreitol enhanced it and reduced glutathione had no effect. It is suggested that toxic effect of As on chlorophyll biosynthesis involves limited availability of δ-aminolevulinic acid and thiol modulation of proteins.     

Study of fertility restoration and genetic diversity of drought-tolerant breeding lines for hybrid rice (Oryza sativa L.) development

Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology - The identification of fertility restoration and genetic diversity of drought-tolerant breeding lines will be useful for the development of promising...     

Household dependency on forest resources in the Sariska Tiger Reserve (STR), India: Implications for management

ABSTRACT

Sariska Tiger Reserve (STR) is a virtual ecological island influenced by both anthropogenic pressures and a significant cattle population from the villages located there. The government has initiated voluntary relocation of villages, but this action has not yielded desired results as most of the residents depend on the surrounding forest for their livelihood. This study used a logit model to identify the influential factors that predict forest dependency. The results indicate that livestock population and the agricultural land per household as the two major determinants of dependency. Alternative sources of livelihood or vocational training may help in reducing villager’s forest dependency.     

A major QTL for gluten strength in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. var. durum)

Gluten strength is an important characteristic, determining the end product quality of durum wheat semolina. To identify the genetic basis of gluten strength in North Dakota durum cultivars, a doubled haploid population was developed from the cross of a weak gluten cultivar ‘Rugby’ and a strong gluten cultivar ‘Maier’. A framework linkage map consisting of 228 markers was constructed and used with phenotypic data on gluten strength (measured by sedimentation volume) to conduct single- and two-locus QTL analyses. Only one consistent QTL (QGs.ndsu-1B) contributing up to 90% of the phenotypic or 93% of the genotypic variation was detected on 1BS. No QTL × QTL or QTL × environment interactions were observed. The QGs.ndsu-1B was flanked by two DArT markers which were converted to STS markers and used along with SSR and EST-SSRs to develop a map of 1BS. QTL analysis delineated QGs.ndsu-1B in a 7.3 cM region flanked by an STS marker (STS-wPt2395) and a SSR marker (wmc85). The adapted background of this material and availability of PCR-based markers closely associated with this locus represent invaluable resources for marker-assisted introgression of gluten strength into other durum wheat varieties. A single QTL segregating in this population also makes it an ideal target for map-based cloning.     

印度中央邦马尔瓦地区利用人工神经网络和回归模型预测蒸腾量的比较（摘选）

蒸发是水循环的一个重要组成部分,对蒸发量的估算是对水资源和灌溉水量有效利用的一个重要手段。该研究旨在利用多元线性回归模型、多层感知器（MLP）和人工神经网络（ANN）模型模拟印度中央邦马尔瓦地区周蒸发量。利用4种不同天气变量组合训练神经网络模型。多元线性回归模型只将最高温和相对湿度作为输入值,但是模拟结果不令人满意。MLP模型采用的数据集包括最高和最低温度、风速和相对湿度,在训练和验证中都取得了比较好的结果。MLP模型可以用来模拟周开放式蒸发皿蒸发量,估算缺失数据,并可以作为替代模型以验证蒸发量测定值。降雨量数据并不能改善模型性能。      

Water soaking and exogenous enzyme treatment of plant-based diets: effect on growth performance, whole-body composition, and digestive enzyme activities of rohu, Labeo rohita (Hamilton), fingerlings

A 2 × 2 × 2 factorial experiment was conducted to delineate the main effect of water soaking of plant ingredients, phytase, cellulase, and their interactions on the growth and digestive enzyme activities of Labeo rohita fingerlings. Two basal diets were prepared using water-soaked (S) or unsoaked (US) plant-based ingredients. Feed of US ingredients was supplemented with phytase (U kg⁻¹) and cellulase (%) at the level of 0, 0 (C_us); 500, 0 (T₁); 0, 0.2 (T₂); 500, 0.2 (T₃), and feed of S ingredients at 0, 0 (C_s); 500, 0 (T₄); 0, 0.2 (T₅), and 500, 0.2 (T₆), respectively. Three hundred and sixty fingerlings were randomly distributed into eight treatments, each with three replicates. Soaking of the ingredients for 24 h significantly reduced the tannin content. However, feeding of S diets did not improve the fish growth. Highest performance was recorded in the T₃ group. A significant interaction between dietary phytase and cellulase was observed for apparent net protein utilization. Tissue crude protein, ether extract, and ash content of the fingerlings were observed highest in the T₃ group. Activities of amylase, protease, and lipase were recorded highest in the T₃ group. Results suggested that soaking of plant-based ingredients reduces tannin content; however, growth and digestive enzyme activities of group fed soaked diet were not improved, possibly due to leaching of soluble nutrients. Probably, a shorter duration soaking may be effective in reducing tannin content and avoiding nutrients leaching.