Estimates of genetic parameters for visual scores and their correlation with production and reproductive traits in Brahman cattle

The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of visual scores of body structure, precocity and muscularity with production (body weight at 18 months and average daily gain) and reproductive (scrotal circumference) traits in Brahman cattle in order to determine the possible use of these scores as selection criteria to improve carcass quality. Covariance components were estimated by the restricted maximum likelihood method using an animal model that included contemporary group as fixed effect. A total of 1,116 observations of body structure, precocity and muscularity were used. Heritability was 0.39, 043 and 0.40 for body structure, precocity and muscularity, respectively. The genetic correlations were 0.79 between body structure and precocity, 0.87 between body structure and muscularity, and 0.91 between precocity and muscularity. The genetic correlations between visual scores and body weight at 18 months were positive (0.77, 0.57 and 0.59 for body structure, precocity and muscularity, respectively). Similar genetic correlations were observed between average daily gain and visual scores (0.60, 0.57 and 0.48, respectively), whereas the genetic correlations between scrotal circumference and these scores were low (0.13, 0.02, and 0.13). The results indicate that visual scores can be used as selection criteria in Brahman breeding programs. Favorable correlated responses should be seen in average daily gain and body weight at 18 months. However, no correlated response is expected for scrotal circumference.

Non-hierarchical cluster analysis for body weight, age at first egg, egg production and egg weight in a laying hen strain.

2016

Production and Nutritive Value of Indigofera zollingeriana and Leucaena leucocephala in Peatland

Abstract. This study was aimed to determine and compare the dry matter yield and nutrient content of Indigofera and Leucaena grown in peatland. This experiment was conducted in peatland type soil (type sapric) in Pekanbaru city, DM yield and nutrient contents data were analyzed by 2x3 factorial design with 3 replication. Two treatments compared were Indigofera zollingeriana (Indigofera) and Leucaena leucocephala (Leucaena). Indigofera was proven significantly higher than Leucaena in all harvest regarding dry matter (DM) of leaf and stem of 29.9% and 25%, respectively, crude protein (CP) of 23.1% and 17.6%, respectively. While neutral detergent fibre (NDF) and acid detergent fibre (ADF) content of Indigofera leaf (35.9% and 25.1%, respectively) was significantly lower than those of Leucaena leaf (40.9% and 29.3%, respectively). It was concluded that the production and nutritive value of Indigofera zollingeriana was superior to Leucaena leucocephala in peatland (type sapric). Key words: Legume tree, Sapric, nutrient content, In vitro digestibiliy              Abstrak.  Penelitian ini bertujuan menentukan dan membandingkan bahan kering dan kandungan nutrisi Indigofera dan Leucaena yang tumbuh di lahan gambut. Percobaan ini dilakukan di lahan gambut di Pekanbaru menggunakan pola faktorial 2x3 dengan ulangan 3 kali. Dua perlakuan yang dibandingkan adalah Indigofera zollingeriana (Indigofera) dan Leucaena leucocephala (Leucaena). Indigofera terbukti secara nyata lebih tinggi daripada Leucana di semua periode panen, berkaitan dengan kandungan BK (bahan kering) daun dan batang berturut-turut 29,9% dan 25%, dan protein kasar (PK) 23,1% dan 17,6%. sedangkan neutral detergent fibre (NDF) dan acid detergent fibre (ADF) daun indigofera berturut-turut 35,9% dan 25,1%, lebih rendah secara nyata daripada daun Leucaena, yaitu 40,9% dan 29,3%. Disimpulkan bahwa produksi dan nilai nutrisi Indigofera zollingeriana lebih tinggi dari Leucaena leucocephala di lahan gambut (jenis saprik) Kata kunci: Pohon legume, Saprik, Kandungan Nutrisi, Kecernaan in vitro

Factors Analyses of Effecting to Milk Production and Economic Efficiency of Dairy Goat Agribisness In Kaligesing District of Purworejo Region

A survey in the agribusiness of dairy goat smallholder had been conducted in Kaligesing district of Purworejo region at 13 rd September up to 7th November 2001. The survey studied the factors effecting the milk yield, in how the factors influence economically. Forty eight respondents (dairy goat smallholders) were used in this study and interview method was applied for collecting data. The variables were observed; lactation goat, man power, garage, and concentrate ration. Cobb-Douglass method was applied for analyzing the data. To know the economic efficiency of the agribusiness was approached by the ratio between the Marginal Product Value an input cost. From the data analysis it could be in formatted that the numbers of lactating goat and the numbers of lactating goat and the numbers of concentrate were significant influence on the milk yield, white the man power and the forage were not significant influence. For the numbers of lactating goat and concentrate, economically the efficiency was not yet reached, so the use of the factors were ought to be increased up to an appoint limited. On the other hand the man power and forage was not efficient, so the use of the factors need to be descreased. (Animal Production 4(1): 27-31 (2002)Key word : Production factors, economics efficiency, dairy goat PE

Essays on irrigation development, farm production and unaccounted costs : theory and empirical evidence

A review of the literature related to issues involved in irrigation induced agricultural development (IIAD) reveals that: (1) the magnitude, sensitivity and distribution of social welfare of IIAD is not fully analysed; (2) the impacts of excessive pesticide use on farmers’ health are not adequately explained; (3) no analysis estimates the relationship between farm level efficiency and overuse of agro-chemical inputs under imperfect markets; and (4) the method of incorporating groundwater extraction costs is misleading. This PhD thesis investigates these issues by using primary data, along with secondary data from Sri Lanka. The overall findings of the thesis can be summarised as follows. First, the thesis demonstrates that Sri Lanka has gained a positive welfare change as a result of introducing new irrigation technology. The change in the consumer surplus is Rs.48,236 million, while the change in the producer surplus is Rs. 14,274 millions between 1970 and 2006. The results also show that the long run benefits and costs of IIAD depend critically on the magnitude of the expansion of the irrigated area, as well as the competition faced by traditional farmers (agricultural crowding out effects). The traditional sector’s ability to compete with the modern sector depends on productivity improvements, reducing production costs and future structural changes (spillover effects). Second, the thesis findings on pesticides used for agriculture show that, on average, a farmer incurs a cost of approximately Rs. 590 to 800 per month during a typical cultivation period due to exposure to pesticides. It is shown that the value of average loss in earnings per farmer for the ‘hospitalised’ sample is Rs. 475 per month, while it is approximately Rs. 345 per month for the ‘general’ farmers group during a typical cultivation season. However, the average willingness to pay (WTP) to avoid exposure to pesticides is approximately Rs. 950 and Rs. 620 for ‘hospitalised’ and ‘general’ farmers’ samples respectively. The estimated percentage contribution for WTP due to health costs, lost earnings, mitigating expenditure, and disutility are 29, 50, 5 and 16 per cent respectively for hospitalised farmers, while they are 32, 55, 8 and 5 per cent respectively for ‘general’ farmers. It is also shown that given market imperfections for most agricultural inputs, farmers are overusing pesticides with the expectation of higher future returns. This has led to an increase in inefficiency in farming practices which is not understood by the farmers. Third, it is found that various groundwater depletion studies in the economics literature have provided misleading optimal water extraction quantity levels. This is due to a failure to incorporate all production costs in the relevant models. It is only by incorporating quality changes to quantity deterioration, that it is possible to derive socially optimal levels. Empirical results clearly show that the benefits per hectare per month considering both the avoidance costs of deepening agro-wells by five feet from the existing average, as well as the avoidance costs of maintaining the water salinity level at 1.8 (mmhos/Cm), is approximately Rs. 4,350 for farmers in the Anuradhapura district and Rs. 5,600 for farmers in the Matale district.

Beef production and the environment : is it really 'hard to be green when you are in the red'?

The statement. 'it is hard to be green when you are in the red' is commonly used by primary producers to explain the necessity of placing a greater emphasis on financial survival rather than longer term environmental sustainability. The subject of environmental sustainability on pastoral properties was explored during face-to:face interviews with cattle grazers in the Fitzroy Basin area of Central Queensland. Findings from the study suggest that while economic factors are important, they are not the only determinant in whether a landholder priorities environmental sustainability, Rather. social factors such as knowledge claims. beliefs, attitudes. values, peer pressure and social sanctioning, constructed and enacted within the productivist paradigm of primary production. play a crucial role in how landholders manage their natural assets. This suggests that the edict that 'It is hard to be green when you are in the red' is inaccurate and does not explain why conservation-focused pastoral management is not yet occurring on a large scale.

Global outsourcing, production and logistics

Supply chains are the core of most industrial networks in which your business operates. They provide the pipeline through which the products and services flow from supplier to customer across each element within the business activity system. Global supply chain relationships have become the basis for many industries with an international network of firms engaged in the supply of goods and services that must be produced to quality standards in one country and delivered just-in-time for assembly or integration into further production processes in another country, frequently many thousands of miles apart. This topic examines the nature of supply chain management and their role in strategic networking. The previous learning tasks have focused on having the correct internal mechanism to effectively manage the inputs and outputs of the organisation by implementing an effective and transparent management system. This learning task takes a look at how management intent strategy and innovation are used to measure the external factors that influence the overall performance of the organisation and develop new strategies by understanding the business cycle and the people within your market environment.

Rice flower integrating production and marketing

This book contains guidelines on market-driven production for export markets, with information on how the marketing chain operates and what risks are involved. Using rice flower as an example, the book gives growers strategies to enhance their market performance and improve the profitability of their enterprises. It outlines some practical suggestions for marketing rice flower in Japan, the United States, Taiwan and Hong Kong as well as in Australia, and also provides a draft standard for rice flower for export markets.

Using fire in spotted gum - ironbark forests for production and biodiversity outcomes. Guidelines for landholders

This guide applies to spotted gum - ironbark forests and woodlands. Topics covered in the guide include: *The spotted gum - ironbark ecosystem; *General effects of burning practices; *Understandinng the effects of fire management; *Timber production; *Livestock grazing production; *Balancing production and biodiversity; *Fire management planning for the property; *Recommendtaions for landholders. These guidelines have been prepared for spotted gum - ironbark forests and woodlands and are not necessarily applicable to other forest and woodland ecosystems. The recommendations provided in these guidelines should be used as a guide only.

Preparation of Industrially Important Hydroxy Acids and Diacids from 2,2-Disubstituted Propane-1,3-Diols and Linear Primary Diols by Green Chemistry Methods

Environmentally benign and economical methods for the preparation of industrially important hydroxy acids and diacids were developed. The carboxylic acids, used in polyesters, alkyd resins, and polyamides, were obtained by the oxidation of the corresponding alcohols with hydrogen peroxide or air catalyzed by sodium tungstate or supported noble metals. These oxidations were carried out using water as a solvent. The alcohols are also a useful alternative to the conventional reactants, hydroxyaldehydes and cycloalkanes. The oxidation of 2,2-disubstituted propane-1,3-diols with hydrogen peroxide catalyzed by sodium tungstate afforded 2,2-disubstituted 3-hydroxypropanoic acids and 1,1-disubstituted ethane-1,2-diols as products. A computational study of the Baeyer-Villiger rearrangement of the intermediate 2,2-disubstituted 3-hydroxypropanals gave in-depth data of the mechanism of the reaction. Linear primary diols having chain length of at least six carbons were easily oxidized with hydrogen peroxide to linear dicarboxylic acids catalyzed by sodium tungstate. The Pt/C catalyzed air oxidation of 2,2-disubstituted propane-1,3-diols and linear primary diols afforded the highest yield of the corresponding hydroxy acids, while the Pt, Bi/C catalyzed oxidation of the diols afforded the highest yield of the corresponding diacids. The mechanism of the promoted oxidation was best described by the ensemble effect, and by the formation of a complex of the hydroxy and the carboxy groups of the hydroxy acids with bismuth atoms. The Pt, Bi/C catalyzed air oxidation of 2-substituted 2-hydroxymethylpropane-1,3-diols gave 2-substituted malonic acids by the decarboxylation of the corresponding triacids. Activated carbon was the best support and bismuth the most efficient promoter in the air oxidation of 2,2-dialkylpropane-1,3-diols to diacids. In oxidations carried out in organic solvents barium sulfate could be a valuable alternative to activated carbon as a non-flammable support. In the Pt/C catalyzed air oxidation of 2,2-disubstituted propane-1,3-diols to 2,2-disubstituted 3-hydroxypropanoic acids the small size of the 2-substituents enhanced the rate of the oxidation. When the potential of platinum of the catalyst was not controlled, the highest yield of the diacids in the Pt, Bi/C catalyzed air oxidation of 2,2-dialkylpropane-1,3-diols was obtained in the regime of mass transfer. The most favorable pH of the reaction mixture of the promoted oxidation was 10. The reaction temperature of 40°C prevented the decarboxylation of the diacids.

Biofuel production and implications for land use, food production and environment in India

There is a large interest in biofuels in India as a substitute to petroleum-based fuels, with a purpose of enhancing energy security and promoting rural development. India has announced an ambitious target of substituting 20% of fossil fuel consumption by biodiesel and bioethanol by 2017. India has announced a national biofuel policy and launched a large program to promote biofuel production, particularly on wastelands: its implications need to be studied intensively considering the fact that India is a large developing country with high population density and large rural population depending upon land for their livelihood. Another factor is that Indian economy is experiencing high growth rate, which may lead to enhanced demand for food, livestock products, timber, paper, etc., with implications for land use. Studies have shown that area under agriculture and forest has nearly stabilized over the past 2-3 decades. This paper presents an assessment of the implications of projected large-scale biofuel production on land available for food production, water, biodiversity, rural development and GHG emissions. The assessment will be largely focused on first generation biofuel crops, since the Indian program is currently dominated by these crops. Technological and policy options required for promoting sustainable biofuel production will be discussed. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Algal biofuel production and mitigation potential in India

Energy and energy services are the backbone of growth and development in India and is increasingly dependent upon the use of fossil based fuels that lead to greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions and related concerns. Algal biofuels are being evolved as carbon (C)-neutral alternative biofuels. Algae are photosynthetic microorganisms that convert sunlight, water and carbon dioxide (CO2) to various sugars and lipids Tri-Acyl-Glycols (TAG) and show promise as an alternative, renewable and green fuel source for India. Compared to land based oilseed crops algae have potentially higher yields (5-12 g/m(2)/d) and can use locations and water resources not suited for agriculture. Within India, there is little additional land area for algal cultivation and therefore needs to be carried out in places that are already used for agriculture, e.g. flooded paddy lands (20 Mha) with village level technologies and on saline wastelands (3 Mha). Cultivating algae under such conditions requires novel multi-tier, multi-cyclic approaches of sharing land area without causing threats to food and water security as well as demand for additional fertilizer resources by adopting multi-tier cropping (algae-paddy) in decentralized open pond systems. A large part of the algal biofuel production is possible in flooded paddy crop land before the crop reaches dense canopies, in wastewaters (40 billion litres per day), in salt affected lands and in nutrient/diversity impoverished shallow coastline fishery. Mitigation will be achieved through avoidance of GHG, C-capture options and substitution of fossil fuels. Estimates made in this paper suggest that nearly half of the current transportation petro-fuels could be produced at such locations without disruption of food security, water security or overall sustainability. This shift can also provide significant mitigation avenues. The major adaptation needs are related to socio-technical acceptance for reuse of various wastelands, wastewaters and waste-derived energy and by-products through policy and attitude change efforts.

Chromium isotope variations (delta Cr-53/52) in mantle-derived sources and their weathering products: Implications for environmental studies and the evolution of delta Cr-53/52 in the Earth's mantle over geologic time

Here we report chromium isotope compositions, expressed as delta Cr-53/ 52 in per mil (&) relative to NIST 979, measured in selected Cr-rich minerals and rocks formed by the primary magmatic as well as the secondary metamorphic and weathering processes. The main objectives of this study were: (i) to further constrain the isotope composition of the Earth's mantle Cr inventory and its possible variation during geological history, based on the analysis of globally distributed and stratigraphically constrained mantle-derived chromites; and (ii) to investigate the magnitude and systematics of Cr isotope fractionation during oxidative weathering and secondary alteration (i. e., hydration, serpentinization) of the magmatic Cr sources. Specifically, we analyzed delta Cr-53/ 52 in a set of globally distributed mantle-derived chromites (FeMgCr2O4, n = 30) collected from various locations in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America, and our results confirm that a chromite-hosted Earth's mantle Cr inventory is uniform at - 0.079 +/- 0.129& (2SD), which we named here as a ` canonical' mantle d 53/ 52 Cr signature. Furthermore our dataset of stratigraphically constrained chromites, whose crystallization ages cover most of the Earth's geological history, indicate that the bulk Cr isotope composition of the chromite-hosted mantle inventory has remained uniform, within about +/- 0.100&, since at least the Early Archean times (similar to 3500 million years ago, Ma). To investigate the systematics of Cr isotope fractionation associated with alteration processes we analyzed a number of secondary Cr-rich minerals and variably altered ultramafic rocks (i. e., serpentinized harzburgites, lherzolites) that revealed large positive delta Cr-53/ 52 anomalies that are systematically shifted to higher values with an increasing degree of alteration and serpentinization. The degree of aqueous alteration and serpentinization was quantified by the abundances of fluid-mobile (Rb, K) elements, and by the Loss On Ignition (LOI) parameter, which determines the amount of structurally bound water (OH/ H2O) present in secondary hydrated minerals like serpentine. Overall, we observed that altered ultramafic rocks that yielded the highest LOI values, and the lowest amounts of fluid mobile elements, also yielded the heaviest delta Cr-53/ 52 signatures. Therefore, we conclude that secondary alteration (i.e., hydration, serpentinization) of ultramafic rocks in near-surface oxidative environments tend to shift the bulk Cr isotope composition of the weathered products to isotopically heavier values, pointing to a dynamic redox cycling of Cr in the Earth's crustal and near-surface environments. Hence, if validated by future

Production and quality assessment of fish pickles from mola (Amblypharyngodon mola) fish

Fish pickles (with olive and tamarind) were prepared from mola fish (Amblypharyngodon mola) and their nutritional and food quality were assessed. The quality of the pickle prepared with olive was excellent and the pickle prepared with tamarind was found good. Moisture content of the two pickle products were 43.85% (with tamarind) and 50.89% (with olive). The protein and lipid contents of tamarind added pickle were 19.13 and 35.64% respectively; pickle with olive contained less protein (13.16%) compared to tamarind added mola pickle. Lipid contents were almost same in both cases. Ash content of two pickles was also found similar (1.00%). The quality of mola pickles stored either in cool condition (4°C) with vinegar or at room temperature with Na-benzoate were found good for consumption up to 90 days of storage. All of the fish pickles preserved under different condition were found in acceptable condition up to 240 days storage and pickle with vinegar stored at 4°C was found good for consumption at the end of 240 days.

Analysis of audiovisual production and music scene in Extremadura through YouTube channels

A study on Extremenian music and audiovisual production has been carried out through YouTube media. The purpose of this study is to analyze all audiovisual products and also assessing what broadcasting processes are conducted by creators to publicize their musical and audiovisual works. A quantitative and qualitative study of audiovisual materials of Extremadura bands was done to find out which processes are most suitable to increase the number of viewers for videos.