We investigate the reasons for the opposite climate change signals in precipitation between the regional climate model REMO and its driving earth system model MPI-ESM over the greater Congo region. Three REMO simulations following three RCP scenarios (RCP 2.6, RCP 4.5 and RCP 8.5) are conducted, and it is found that the opposite signals, with REMO showing a decrease and MPI-ESM an increase in t...

It has been reported that daily fluid intake influences urinary dilution, and consequently the risk of urolithiasis in human subjects and dogs. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of dietary moisture on urinary parameters in healthy adult cats by comparing nutritionally standardised diets, varying only in moisture content. A total of six cats were fed a complete dry food (6...

Data assimilation (DA) methods are commonly used for finding a compromise between imperfect observations and uncertain model predictions. The estimation of model states and parameters has been widely recognized, but the convergence of estimated parameters has not been thoroughly investigated. The distribution of model state and parameter values is closely linked to convergence, which in turn im...

An empirical rate equation was developed to predict head rice yield reduction for rough rice exposed to moisture adsorptive conditions. Time of exposure, initial moisture content, and relative humidity were significant to the reductions in head rice yield caused by moisture adsorption. An equation used to predict the number of kernels which fissured upon exposure to various environments was mod...

A key state variable in land surface–atmosphere interactions is soil moisture, which affects surface energy fluxes, runoff and the radiation balance. Soil moisture modelling relies on parameter estimates that are inadequately measured at the necessarily fine model scales. Hence, model soil moisture estimates are imperfect and often drift away from reality through simulation time. Because of its...

Theoretically, progressive drought can force trees into negative carbon (C) balance by reducing stomatal conductance to prevent water loss, which also decreases C assimilation. At higher temperatures, negative C balance should be initiated at higher soil moisture because of increased respiratory demand and earlier stomatal closure. Few data are available on how these theoretical relationships i...

Proven techniques of soil moisture conservation were imposed in two consecutive seasons (2002 and 2003) under a rainfed alfisol ecosystem in order to investigate the physiological response of cowpea as the test crop. The impulsive variations in soil moisture status with reference to these techniques were found to influence the physiological and biochemical parameters of cowpea significantly. Mu...

The main objective of this study was to examine the diversity of meat quality traits among 5 chicken genotypes. The genotypes included 2 Chinese native breeds (Wenchang,WCH, and Xianju), 1 commercial broiler line (Avian, AV), 1 commercial layer line (Hy-Line Brown, HLB), and 1 Chinese commercial broiler line (Lingnanhuang, LNH) synthesized by exotic and native breeds, which were slaughtered at ...

Different heat-moisture levels were applied to native starches from different cultivars of sweet potatoes available in Sri Lanka (Wariyapola red, Wariyapola white, Pallepola variety, Malaysian variety and CARI 273) to study the digestibility level. Samples were treated with 20, 25, and 30% moisture at 85°C and 120°C for 6 h and in vitro starch digestibility was tested with porcine pancreatin en...