Experiments in Niger assessed whether extreme environmental conditions including sunlight exposure affect the performance of triple-layer PICS bags in protecting cowpea grain against bruchids. Sets of PICS bags and woven polypropylene bags as controls containing 50 kg of naturally infested cowpea grain were held in the laboratory or outside with sun exposure for four and one-half months. PICS b...

a three-year field experiment (2004-2007) was conducted on a silty clay loam soil at tajarak research station of hamedan to determine proper grain drill for wheat in hamedan dryland areas. in this study, three grain drills including: hamedani barzegar; sahalan kesht; and kesht gostar with wheat seed broadcasting and disking were used. the experiment was a randomized complete block design with f...

The autonomous repair mechanism of creep cavitation during high-temperature deformation has been investigated in Fe-Au and Fe-Au-B-N alloys. Combined electron-microscopy techniques and atom probe tomography reveal how the improved creep properties result from Au precipitation within the creep cavities, preferentially formed on grain boundaries oriented perpendicular to the applied stress. The s...

Vascular damage and impairment play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Nutraceutical supplements might have a role in reducing vascular damage, provided that their efficacy is proven by controlled studies and is supported by a mechanistic rationale. Therefore, the use of nutraceutical supplements can have some effects also in the prevention of NFLD. ...

The development of grain-boundary cavitation in hot-pressed A1203 both during flexural creep and tress-free annealing in air has been studied. Creep damage accumulation in driven both by the applied stress, and by internal gas pressure in the cavities. The internal pressure results from gas trapped during hot pressing, and from gas-generating chemical reactions active during testing. At machine...

As composites are being used as primary load bearing members, the increased understanding of damage tolerance of the material is becoming important. When load is applied to a structure containing a crack or damage, a small area ahead of the crack undergoes very high stress. These stresses cause further damage in this small zone. Initially this damage is at the microlevel: in isotropic materials...

No-till farming is an important approach to sustainable agriculture because it can conserve soil and water resources. Unfortunately, rodent populations can thrive under no-till conditions because burrow systems are not disrupted by annual plowing and plant residues build-up on the surface, providing cover and insulation. This can result in substantial crop damage. We assessed rodent populations...

Fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith), and corn earworm, Helicoverpa zea (Boddie), perennially cause leaf and ear damage to corn, Zea mays L., in the southeastern United States. Transgenic Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) hybrids with the Bt11, MON810, or 176 events expressing the Cry1Ab insecticidal endotoxin from were evaluated for control fall armyworm and corn earworm at seven locati...

Cavitation damage in flexure bars crept at 1170°C was studied by a density measurement technique. The cavity density within the flexure beams could be approximated by a linear function of position from the tensile surface. A threshold stress for cavitation damage is suggested from the results of this study. Below the threshold tensile stress, cavitation ceases, whereas above the threshold, cavi...