Jatropha cultivation in southern India: assessing farmers' experiences

Together with 106 farmers who started growing Jatropha (Jatropha curcas L.) in 20042006, this research sought to increase the knowledge around the real-life experience of Jatropha farming in the southern India states of Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh. Launched as an alternative for diesel in India, Jatropha has been promoted as a non-edible plant that could grow on poor soils, yield oil-rich seeds for production of bio-diesel, and not compete directly with food production. Through interviews with the farmers, information was gathered regarding their socio-economic situation, the implementation and performance of their Jatropha plantations, and their reasons for continuing or discontinuing Jatropha cultivation. Results reveal that 82% of the farmers had substituted former cropland for their Jatropha cultivation. By 2010, 85% (n = 90) of the farmers who cultivated Jatropha in 2004 had stopped. Cultivating the crop did not give the economic returns the farmers anticipated, mainly due to a lack of information about the crop and its maintenance during cultivation and due to water scarcity. A majority of the farmers irrigated and applied fertilizer, and even pesticides. Many problems experienced by the farmers were due to limited knowledge about cultivating Jatropha caused by poor planning and implementation of the national Jatropha program. Extension services, subsidies, and other support were not provided as promised. The farmers who continued cultivation had means of income other than Jatropha and held hopes of a future Jatropha market. The lack of market structures, such as purchase agreements and buyers, as well as a low retail price for the seeds, were frequently stated as barriers to Jatropha cultivation. For Jatropha biodiesel to perform well, efforts are needed to improve yield levels and stability through genetic improvements and drought tolerance, as well as agriculture extension services to support adoption of the crop. Government programs will -probably be more effective if implementing biodiesel production is conjoined with stimulating the demand for Jatropha biodiesel. To avoid food-biofuel competition, additional measures may be needed such as land-use restrictions for Jatropha producers and taxes on biofuels or biofuel feedstocks to improve the competitiveness of the food sector compared to the bioenergy sector. (c) 2012 Society of Chemical Industry and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd

Experiences with a centralized scheduling approach for performance management of IEEE 802.11 wireless LANs

We present a centralized integrated approach for: 1) enhancing the performance of an IEEE 802.11 infrastructure wireless local area network (WLAN), and 2) managing the access link that connects the WLAN to the Internet. Our approach, which is implemented on a standard Linux platform, and which we call ADvanced Wi-fi Internet Service EnhanceR (ADWISER), is an extension of our previous system WLAN Manager (WM). ADWISER addresses several infrastructure WLAN performance anomalies such as mixed-rate inefficiency, unfair medium sharing between simultaneous TCP uploads and downloads, and inefficient utilization of the Internet access bandwidth when Internet transfers compete with LAN-WLAN transfers, etc. The approach is via centralized queueing and scheduling, using a novel, configurable, cascaded packet queueing and scheduling architecture, with an adaptive service rate. In this paper, we describe the design of ADWISER and report results of extensive experimentation conducted on a hybrid testbed consisting of real end-systems and an emulated WLAN on Qualnet. We also present results from a physical testbed consisting of one access point (AP) and a few end-systems.

Economic measurement in public welfare economics : practical experiences on the regional level in Germany

Resumen: ¿Cuál es el precio justo para la asistencia social? Este artículo muestra que la medición económica efectuada en mercados basados en el valor de los servicios prestados podría responder esta pregunta. La medición económica puede hacer lo mismo en distintos campos del trabajo social aplicando diferentes métodos, tales como ofertas públicas o negociaciones calificadas. Después de dar un breve panorama teórico, se presentan y analizan en detalle dos proyectos alemanes. El artículo muestra cómo la introducción de mecanismos de negociación en la asistencia social expresados en términos de resultados pueden traer efectos positivos para las finanzas públicas, así como también para el bien común.

The “Centre for Child Protection” of the Gregorian University/Rome. First experiences, results and reflections in setting up a global e-learning-program for the prevention of sexual abuse of minors

Resumen: El Centro para la Protección Infantil ha sido fundado en cooperación con el Instituto de Psicología de la Universidad Gregoriana (Roma, Italia), el Departamento para la Psiquiatría/Psicoterapia Infantil y Adolescente del Hospital de la Universidad de Ulm (Alemania) y la Arquidiócesis de Múnich (Alemania). Su tarea principal es la creación de un centro global de entrenamiento e-learning para profesiones de pastoral que respondan al abuso sexual de los menores, tomando en consideración asuntos multilingüísticos e interculturales. Dentro de tres años el Centro desarrollado e implementado un programa e-learning en cuatro lenguas. Ocho socios del proyecto internacional asumen un papel en el reclutamiento de participantes y en la evaluación en curso del programa. En esta fase, personas-test son incluidas en el desarrollo y la evaluación del programa, como parte de la formación (en curso) de sacerdotes y de otros coagentes de pastoral

Experiences of Public-Private Collaboration for Stimulating

For over a decade now, work has been ongoing on the professional organization and management of town centre retail spaces in Spain under what is known as the Open Shopping Centre model. Introducing this model has involved a process of public-private collaboration in several different phases, conditioned to a large extent by the specific context of each initiative. With a view to furthering the process of benchmarking developed out of the experiences of recent years, we shall use case analysis to explain trends in initiatives for retail regeneration and stimulation undertaken in the Basque Country (an autonomous community in the north of Spain) since 2000. We analyze the factors that have prompted these initiatives, assessing and comparing the landmarks and conditions that have marked, or are determining, progress in the dynamic of collaboration between municipal authorities and retailers for a competitive improvement both in the retail sector and in the environment in which it operates: the city. Finally we list witch are these key factors.

Emerging trends and experiences in Asia-Pacific aquaculture: 2003

This document provides an overview of topical issues in Asian aquaculture for 2003, including a review of its status, progress in research and development, major issues and experiences, together with suggestions on actions for addressing opportunities and constraints. The document has been prepared by NACA and FAO to facilitate discussions at the 15th NACA Governing Council meeting, hosted by the Government of Sri Lanka on 21st-25th April 2004. The final version will be widely circulated as the editors hope it will prove a useful document for all involved in aquaculture, and related fishery development in the Asia-Pacific region. Pending feedback on this 2003 document, further reviews may be considered by NACA and FAO as a way of bringing together regularly in one publication relevant and key issues facing development of aquaculture in the Asia-Pacific region. (PDF contains 153 pages)

Digital student further education: FE learners' expectations and experiences of technology - synthesis report

A synthesis report based on the final report of the FE digital student study into FE students' expectations and experiences of the digital environment. The report outlines the key challenges, learning provider solutions, sector solutions and commentary on main findings. Appendix 2 includes a list of project outputs.

FE learners' expectations and experiences of technology

This briefing shares the outcomes of our work on further education and skills students' expectations and experiences of the digital environment and makes recommendations for college leaders and managers.

Case study: Developing screen casting as a tool for formative and summative feedback

Case study on Oldham College and Edge Hill University working in partnership on a project to use screencasts as a way of providing feedback to learners.

Somatisation in primary care: experiences of primary care physicians involved in a training program and in a randomised controlled trial

Background: A new intervention aimed at managing patients with medically unexplained symptoms (MUS) based on a specific set of communication techniques was developed, and tested in a cluster randomised clinical trial. Due to the modest results obtained and in order to improve our intervention we need to know the GPs' attitudes towards patients with MUS, their experience, expectations and the utility of the communication techniques we proposed and the feasibility of implementing them. Physicians who took part in 2 different training programs and in a randomised controlled trial (RCT) for patients with MUS were questioned to ascertain the reasons for the doctors' participation in the trial and the attitudes, experiences and expectations of GPs about the intervention. Methods: A qualitative study based on four focus groups with GPs who took part in a RCT. A content analysis was carried out. Results: Following the RCT patients are perceived as true suffering persons, and the relationship with them has improved in GPs of both groups. GPs mostly valued the fact that it is highly structured, that it made possible a more comfortable relationship and that it could be applied to a broad spectrum of patients with psychosocial problems. Nevertheless, all participants consider that change in patients is necessary; GPs in the intervention group remarked that that is extremely difficult to achieve. Conclusion: GPs positively evaluate the communication techniques and the interventions that help in understanding patient suffering, and express the enormous difficulties in handling change in patients. These findings provide information on the direction in which efforts for improving intervention should be directed.

Information Literacy: Experiences at Texas A&M University at Galveston

Texas A&M University at Galveston is initiating a coordinated Information Literacy Program. It is a three-tiered approach with the beginning level pitched to English 104 (entry level English classes), and progressing at the top tier to senior or graduate level "capstone" classes that are writing-intensive. Although I have been doing "library lectures" throughout my career, this is the most organized approach I have been involved with and I am still at the "more questions than answers" stage of figuring out how to best educate our students; and how to measure that success. My presentation will be both illustrative and inquiring. What works in your shop?