Appraisal of complementarity of subsurface drip fertigation and conservation agriculture for physiological performance and water economy of maize

C.M. Parihar Hari Sankar Nayak Dipaka Ranjan Sena Renu Pandey Mahesh Gathala ML JAT (2023, [Artículo])

The Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP) in north-west (NW) India are facing a severe decline in ground water due to prevalent rice-based cropping systems. To combat this issue, conservation agriculture (CA) with an alternative crop/s, such as maize, is being promoted. Recently, surface drip fertigation has also been evaluated as a viable option to address low-nutrient use efficiency and water scarcity problems for cereals. While the individual benefits of CA and sub-surface drip (SSD) irrigation on water economy are well-established, information regarding their combined effect in cereal-based systems is lacking. Therefore, we conducted a two-year field experiment in maize, under an ongoing CA-based maize-wheat system, to evaluate the complementarity of CA with SSD irrigation through two technological interventions–– CA+ (residue retained CA + SSD), PCA+ (partial CA without residue + SSD) – at different N rates (0, 120 and 150 kg N ha-1) in comparison to traditional furrow irrigated (FI) CA and conventional tillage (CT) at 120 kg N ha-1. Our results showed that CA+ had the highest grain yield (8.2 t ha-1), followed by PCA+ (8.1 t ha-1). The grain yield under CA+ at 150 kg N ha-1 was 27% and 30% higher than CA and CT, respectively. Even at the same N level (120 kg N ha-1), CA+ outperformed CA and CT by 16% and 18%, respectively. The physiological performance of maize also revealed that CA+ based plots with 120 kg N ha-1 had 12% and 3% higher photosynthesis rate at knee-high and silking, respectively compared to FI-CA and CT. Overall, compared to the FI-CA and CT, SSD-based CA+ and PCA+ saved 54% irrigation water and increased water productivity (WP) by more than twice. Similarly, a greater number of split N application through fertigation in PCA+ and CA+ increased agronomic nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and recover efficiency by 8–19% and 14–25%, respectively. Net returns from PCA+ and CA+ at 150 kg N ha-1 were significantly higher by US$ 491 and 456, respectively than the FI-CA and CT treatments. Therefore, CA coupled with SSD provided tangible benefits in terms of yield, irrigation water saving, WP, NUE and profitability. Efforts should be directed towards increasing farmers’ awareness of the benefits of such promising technology for the cultivating food grains and commercial crops such as maize. Concurrently, government support and strict policies are required to enhance the system adaptability.

Net Returns Subsurface Drip Irrigation Subsurface Drip Fertigation CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA EFFICIENCY GRAIN NITROGEN PHOTOSYNTHESIS PHYSIOLOGY WATER SUPPLY CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE CONVENTIONAL TILLAGE FERTIGATION GROUNDWATER NITROGEN-USE EFFICIENCY WATER PRODUCTIVITY

Érase una vez un jardín

BLANCA MARINA VERA KU WENDY MARISOL TORRES AVILEZ (2022, [Artículo])

En la ciudad, existen “refugios de plantas y fauna”, también conocidos como “montes o terrenos baldíos”. Podría pensarse que se trata de un lugar desagradable y sucio, pero no es así. El monte no es más que un jardín luchando por restaurar el esplendor que tenía antes de ser degradado por los cambios de uso (asentamientos humanos o fenómenos naturales). Hace muchos años, un terreno baldío tuvo la suerte de encontrarse con un grupo de ecólogos que fueron capaces de apreciar su importancia. El jardín pudo sentir el aprecio de sus cuidadores y los recompensó dándoles la frescura de su sombra, sus aromas perfumados, el aire fresco lleno de oxígeno y sus frutos. Además, el jardín empezó a ser refugio de aves y ayuda para las nubes al soltar la lluvia que alivia el calor.

CIRCUITO ETNOBIOLOGICO JARDIN MEDICINAL PRESERVACION DE LA VIDA RESTAURACION DE LA BIODIVERSIDAD BIOLOGÍA Y QUÍMICA CIENCIAS DE LA VIDA BIOLOGÍA VEGETAL (BOTÁNICA) ECOLOGÍA VEGETAL ECOLOGÍA VEGETAL

Deterministic Brownian-like Motion: Electronic Approach

JOSE LUIS ECHENAUSIA MONROY Eric Campos Cantón Rider Jaimes Reátegui JUAN HUGO GARCIA LOPEZ GUILLERMO HUERTA CUELLAR (2022, [Artículo])

"Brownian motion is a dynamic behavior with random changes over time (stochastic) that occurs in many vital functions related to fluid environments, stock behavior, or even renewable energy generation. In this paper, we present a circuit implementation that reproduces Brownian motion based on a fully deterministic set of differential equations. The dynamics of the electronic circuit are characterized using four well-known metrics of Brownian motion, namely: (i) Detrended Fluctuation Analysis (DFA), (ii) power law in the power spectrum, (iii) normal probability distribution, and (iv) Mean Square Displacement (MSD); where traditional Brownian motion exhibits linear time growth of the MSD, a Gaussian distribution, a −2 power law of the frequency spectrum, and DFA values close to 1.5. The obtained results show that for a certain combination of values in the deterministic model, the dynamics in the electronic circuit are consistent with the expectations for a stochastic Brownian behavior. The presented electronic circuit improves the study of Brownian behavior by eliminating the stochastic component, allowing reproducibility of the results through fully deterministic equations, and enabling the generation of physical signals (analog electronic signals) with Brownian-like properties with potential applications in fields such as medicine, economics, genetics, and communications, to name a few."

Brownian motion Deterministic Brownian motion DFA analysis Statistical analysis Electronic circuit Electronic implementation CIENCIAS FÍSICO MATEMÁTICAS Y CIENCIAS DE LA TIERRA FÍSICA ELECTRÓNICA ELECTRÓNICA

Energy and economic efficiency of climate-smart agriculture practices in a rice–wheat cropping system of India

Manish Kakraliya Deepak Bijarniya Parbodh Chander Sharma ML JAT (2022, [Artículo])

Intensive Tillage Conventional Rice–Wheat Systems Energy Efficiency On-Farm Studies Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CLIMATE-SMART AGRICULTURE RICE WHEAT CROPPING SYSTEMS

Smallholder farmers’ willingness to pay for two-wheel tractor-based mechanisation services in Zambia and Zimbabwe

Hambulo Ngoma Paswel Marenya Adane Tufa Lovemore  Chipindu Md Abdul Matin Christian Thierfelder (2023, [Objeto de congreso])

Two-Wheel Tractors CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA MECHANIZATION WHEELED TRACTORS WILLINGNESS TO PAY ANIMAL POWER

Low nitrogen narrows down phenotypic diversity in durum wheat

Tesfaye Geleta Aga Bekele Abeyo (2023, [Artículo])

Clusters Durum Wheat Nitrogen Efficiency CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA HARD WHEAT GENETIC DIVERGENCE NORMALIZED DIFFERENCE VEGETATION INDEX NITROGEN PRINCIPAL COMPONENT ANALYSIS

Impact of automation on enhancing energy quality in grid-connected photovoltaic systems

Virgilio Alfonso Murillo Rodríguez NOE VILLA VILLASEÑOR José Manuel Robles Solís OA Guirette-Barbosa (2023, [Artículo])

Rapid growth in the integration of new consumers into the electricity sector, particularly in the industrial sector, has necessitated better control of the electricity supply and of the users’ op-erating conditions to guarantee an adequate quality of service as well as the unregulated dis-turbances that have been generated in the electrical network that can cause significant failures, breakdowns and interruptions, causing considerable expenses and economic losses. This research examines the characteristics of electrical variations in equipment within a company in the industrial sector, analyzes the impact generated within the electrical system according to the need for operation in manufacturing systems, and proposes a new solution through automation of the regulation elements to maintain an optimal system quality and prevent damage and equipment failures while offering a cost-effective model. The proposed solution is evaluated through a reliable simulation in ETAP (Energy Systems Modeling, Analysis and Optimization) software, which emulates the interaction of control elements and simulates the design of electric flow equipment operation. The results demonstrate an improvement in system performance in the presence of disturbances when two automation schemes are applied as well as the exclusive operation of the capacitor bank, which improves the total system current fluctuations and improves the power factor from 85.83% to 93.42%. Such a scheme also improves the waveform in the main power system; another improvement result is when simultaneously operating the voltage and current filter together with the PV system, further improving the current fluctuations, improving the power factor from 85.83% to 94.81%, achieving better stability and improving the quality of the waveform in the main power grid.

This article belongs to Special Issue Advances and Optimization of Electric Energy System.

Power quality Capacitor bank Voltage and current filter Photovoltaic system INGENIERÍA Y TECNOLOGÍA CIENCIAS TECNOLÓGICAS OTRAS ESPECIALIDADES TECNOLÓGICAS OTRAS OTRAS

Emotions and social representations of distance education in university students from Chihuahua during the Covid-19 pandemic

Alejandro Mendoza Abraham Sifuentes (2024, [Artículo, Artículo])

This article analyzes the social representations that university students developed during the period of confinement due to the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly regarding their decision to continue their studies despite the challenges posed by the closure of educational institutions. The study is based on the situation in the northwest region of Chihuahua, encompassing at least 10 municipalities. This study utilized a mixed descriptive research approach, involving a survey comprising 69 items. The survey was conducted in the spring of 2021 among 313 students from five different academic programs within the Multidisciplinary Division of the UACJ in Nuevo Casas Grandes. Findings revealed that students, during the pandemic, had negative experiences with long distance education, primarily due to issues such as emotional management, time management skills, and poor technological access. These challenges resulted in negative emotions, although students did not perceive a decline in academic performance or disruptions in interactions with teachers or peers.

educación superior confinamiento representaciones sociales experiencias HUMANIDADES Y CIENCIAS DE LA CONDUCTA HUMANIDADES Y CIENCIAS DE LA CONDUCTA higher education confinement social representations experiences

Agricultural emissions reduction potential by improving technical efficiency in crop production

Arun Khatri-Chhetri Tek Sapkota sofina maharjan Paresh Shirsath (2023, [Artículo])

CONTEXT: Global and national agricultural development policies normally tend to focus more on enhancing farm productivity through technological changes than on better use of existing technologies. The role of improving technical efficiency in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions reduction from crop production is the least explored area in the agricultural sector. But improving technical efficiency is necessary in the context of the limited availability of existing natural resources (particularly land and water) and the need for GHG emission reduction from the agriculture sector. Technical efficiency gains in the production process are linked with the amount of input used nd the cost of production that determines both economic and environmental gains from the better use of existing technologies. OBJECTIVE: To assess a relationship between technical efficiency and GHG emissions and test the hypothesis that improving technical efficiency reduces GHG emissions from crop production. METHODS: This study used input-output data collected from 10,689 rice farms and 5220 wheat farms across India to estimate technical efficiency, global warming potential, and emission intensity (GHG emissions per unit of crop production) under the existing crop production practices. The GHG emissions from rice and wheat production were estimated using the CCAFS Mitigation Options Tool (CCAFS-MOT) and the technical efficiency of production was estimated through a stochastic production frontier analysis. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest that improving technical efficiency in crop production can reduce emission intensity but not necessarily total emissions. Moreover, our analysis does not support smallholders tend to be technically less efficient and the emissions per unit of food produced by smallholders can be relatively high. Alarge proportion of smallholders have high technical efficiency, less total GHG emissions, and low emissions intensity. This study indicates the levels of technical efficiency and GHG emission are largely influenced by farming typology, i.e. choice and use of existing technologies and management practices in crop cultivation. SIGNIFICANCE: This study will help to promote existing improved technologies targeting GHG emissions reduction from the agriculture production systems.

Technical Efficiency Interventions CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA MITIGATION PRODUCTIVITY CROP PRODUCTION GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS

Estimating lime requirements for tropical soils: Model comparison and development

Fernando Aramburu Merlos João Vasco Silva Frédéric Baudron Robert Hijmans (2023, [Artículo])

Acid tropical soils may become more productive when treated with agricultural lime, but optimal lime rates have yet to be determined in many tropical regions. In these regions, lime rates can be estimated with lime requirement models based on widely available soil data. We reviewed seven of these models and introduced a new model (LiTAS). We evaluated the models’ ability to predict the amount of lime needed to reach a target change in soil chemical properties with data from four soil incubation studies covering 31 soil types. Two foundational models, one targeting acidity saturation and the other targeting base saturation, were more accurate than the five models that were derived from them, while the LiTAS model was the most accurate. The models were used to estimate lime requirements for 303 African soil samples. We found large differences in the estimated lime rates depending on the target soil chemical property of the model. Therefore, an important first step in formulating liming recommendations is to clearly identify the soil property of interest and the target value that needs to be reached. While the LiTAS model can be useful for strategic research, more information on acidity-related problems other than aluminum toxicity is needed to comprehensively assess the benefits of liming.

Exchangeable Acidity Aluminum Saturation Calcium Carbonate Equivalent CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CHEMICOPHYSICAL PROPERTIES LIMES TROPICAL ZONES ACID SOILS ALUMINIUM BASE SATURATION CALCIUM CARBONATE