Biomass residential heating: semantic structure and implications for advertising

For a business, knowing current stakeholder product knowledge is essential to infl uencing behaviour. What do consumers think and feel about biomass residential heating? An assessment of consumers’ semantic structure about a biomass residential heating product: pellet stove/furnace, reveals that consumers perceive the product as natural but laborious to maintain, and dirty/smelly. An exploratory analysis of the industry’s marketing communications suggests that the industry is not addressing the ‘ease-of-use’ issue

Corn Response as Affected by Planting Distance from the Center of Strip-Till Fertilized Rows

Citation: Adee, E., Hansel, F. D., Diaz, D. A. R., & Janssen, K. (2016). Corn Response as Affected by Planting Distance from the Center of Strip-Till Fertilized Rows. Frontiers in Plant Science, 7, 9. doi:10.3389/fpfs.2016.01232Strip-till has been used at a large scale in east central Kansas as an alternative to earlier planting dates under a no-till system. To determine the effects of planting corn (Zea mays) under previously established strip-tilled fertilized rows, experiments were conducted on an Osage silty clay loam soil in 2006 and 2008 and on a Woodson silt loam soil in 2009, 2010, and 2011 using three different planting distances from the strip-tilled fertilized rows (0, 10, 20, and 38 cm) with a strip-till operation performed between 1 and 73 days before planting. The depth of the strip-till fertilizer application was 13-15 cm below the soil surface. Corn that was planted 10 cm from the fertilized row showed greater early season growth, higher plant population, and grain yield. Planting 20 and 38 cm from the center of the fertilized rows showed none of the benefits that are typically associated with strip-tillage system. Enough time should be allowed between the strip-till operation and planting to reach satisfactory soil conditions (e.g., moist and firm seedbed). Our results suggest that the best location for planting strip-tilled fertilized corn vary depending on soil and climatic conditions as well as the time between fertilizer application with the strip-till operation and planting. With fewer number of days, planting directly on the center of fertilized strip-till resulted in decreased plant population and lower grain yield. However, the greatest yield benefit across different planting conditions was attained when planting within 10 cm of the strip

Drought-Tolerant Corn Hybrids Yield More in Drought-Stressed Environments with No Penalty in Non-stressed Environments

Citation: Adee, E., Roozeboom, K., Balboa, G. R., Schlegel, A., & Ciampitti, I. A. (2016). Drought-Tolerant Corn Hybrids Yield More in Drought-Stressed Environments with No Penalty in Non-stressed Environments. Frontiers in Plant Science, 7, 9. doi:10.3389/fpls.2016.01534The potential benefit of drought-tolerant (DT) corn (Zea mays L.) hybrids may depend on drought intensity, duration, crop growth stage (timing), and the array of drought tolerance mechanisms present in selected hybrids. We hypothesized that corn hybrids containing DT traits would produce more consistent yields compared to non-DT hybrids in the presence of drought stress. The objective of this study was to define types of production environments where DT hybrids have a yield advantage compared to non-DT hybrids. Drought tolerant and non-DT hybrid pairs of similar maturity were planted in six site-years with different soil types, seasonal evapotranspiration (ET), and vapor pressure deficit (VPD), representing a range of macro-environments. Irrigation regimes and seeding rates were used to create several micro-environments within each macro-environment. Hybrid response to the range of macro and micro-environmental stresses were characterized in terms of water use efficiency, grain yield, and environmental index. Yield advantage of DT hybrids was positively correlated with environment ET and VPD. Drought tolerant hybrids yielded 5 to 7% more than non-DT hybrids in high and medium ET environments (>430 mm ET), corresponding to seasonal VPD greater than 1200 Pa. Environmental index analysis confirmed that DT hybrids were superior in stressful environments. Yield advantage for DT hybrids appeared as yield dropped below 10.8 Mg ha(-1) and averaged as much as 0.6-1 Mg ha(-1) at the low yield range. Hybrids with DT technology can offer a degree of buffering against drought stress by minimizing yield reduction, but also maintaining a comparable yield potential in high yielding environments. Further studies should focus on the physiological mechanisms presented in the commercially available corn drought tolerant hybrids

Place-Based Intercultural Liminality and the Potential of Art Therapy in Cultural Identity Negotitations

This research, in the form of a literature review, offers a broad discussion of the factors of identity formation related to the complex negotiations of place-bound intercultural liminality, a phenomenon resultant of developmentally early experiences of multiple relocations and exposure to a multiplicity of competing cultural frames of reference without the establishment of a secure cultural home. Moreover, it serves to propose art therapy as a fitting therapeutic technique for intervention for this population due to the inherent qualities of this form of psychotherapy. This would ideally be as a proactive approach to realizing the benefits of a highly cross-cultural upbringing and therefore hindering the highly correlated development of identity confusion or even experiences of cultural homelessness. It has been argued that art therapy carries the potential to ease the transition between cultures in the event of relocation, and adolescents in particular are extraordinarily apt for self-expression and individuation through art and the creative process due to their developmental task of identity construction. As such, self-exploratory and self-reflective art therapy approaches may positively encourage strong emotional resiliency and coping, and thereby promote the formation of a cohesive bicultural identity as opposed to a confused cultural interstitiality

Educational Needs of Nurses for Wound Care

The purpose of this study was to conduct a needs assessment of registered nurses’ knowledge base and attitudes toward wound care and to be able to customize a wound assessment tool to meet those needs. The visual assessment is an essential part of wound care and performing accurate assessments can lead to making the correct diagnosis, starting appropriate treatment timely, and discharging patients sooner. There are over five million patients suffering from chronic wounds and more cases are added yearly. The nurses need a tool to assist them in their daily assessments. This study utilized an anonymous survey of 23 acute care registered nurses in a small rural hospital. The author developed a 19 question survey which included demographics, multiple-choice questions, and open ended questions to assess the nurses\u27 knowledge and feelings toward wound care to be analyzed in a mixed method, cross-sectional design to evaluate knowledge but to also hear the voice of the participant. An analysis of the data revealed that the nurses have adequate knowledge of pressure ulcers but lack the confidence to use this information. The nurses requested additional education on wound care and are interested in a wound assessment tool to use as a resource to assist them with documenting on their daily skin assessments

Kansas River Valley Experiment Field

The Kansas River Valley Experiment Field was established to study management and effective use of irrigation resources for crop production in the Kansas River Valley (KRV). The Paramore Unit consists of 80 acres located 3.5 miles east of Silver Lake on U.S. Highway 24, then 1 mile south of Kiro, and 1.5 miles east on 17th street. The Rossville Unit consists of 80 acres located 1 mile east of Rossville or 4 miles west of Silver Lake on U.S. Highway 24

Memorandum From Alvey A. Adee to Francis Mairs Huntington-Wilson, April 13, 1909

The document is a typed memorandum from the Second Assistant Secretary of State to Francis Mairs Huntington-Wilson on the topic of immigrant laborers and the need for regulations and conditions imposed by a special Department of Labor.https://digitalcommons.ursinus.edu/fmhw_immigration/1001/thumbnail.jp

The Understanding of Body and Soul in Matthew 10:28 espoused by Seventh-day Adventist Church

The body/soul contrast has been a hot topic of discussion. Matthew 10:28 is one of those biblical text that talks about body and soul, though not in an extensive manner. From the text, it seemed like Jesus understood that body and soul can be destroyed separately. Does this mean that body and soul are two separate and independent entities? The Seventh-day Adventists believe that there is no immortal and separate entity, called soul, living within the physical human body. It is more fitting to say that a human being is a living soul rather than to say that he has a soul. The purpose of this study is to bring harmony between Jesus’ saying in Matthew 10:28 with the teachings of the Seventh-day Adventists regarding body and soul. A review on the word “body” and “soul” and also a review on the context were conducted to solve the problem of this study. In truth, Matthew chapter 10 is not a discourse on body and soul but rather a record of Jesus’ mission charge to the twelve disciples. Thus, verse 28 should be evaluated from the lenses of mission. The study has shown that the audience of Jesus could be the ones who possess that wrong concept of body and soul, whereas Jesus did not contradict the Seventh-day Adventist belief that states the soul is not an immortal, separate entity living within the body. The result of the study has shown that the Seventh-day Adventist’s belief regarding body and soul is valid. In this particular text, Jesus is using a common concept to point to the truth that God is more powerful than human oppositions

Interaction Between Seed Treatment and Variety on Sudden Death Syndrome Symptoms and Soybean Yield

Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) is a soybean disease that perennially limits yields in the Kansas River Valley (KRV). The presence of soybean cyst nematode (SCN) and saturated soils has been implicated in contributing to the severity of the disease. Selecting varieties with some degree of tolerance to SDS has been the primary cultural practice to reduce yield loss to SDS. Another tool to reduce yield loss to SDS has been made available to growers with the release of ILeVO seed treatment from Bayer CropScience (Research Triangle Park, NC). The potential benefit of ILeVO on varieties with different levels of tolerance to SDS was examined in a study conducted at the Kansas River Valley Experiment Field in 2015. Five different soybean varieties that varied in tolerance to SDS were planted, with and without the ILeVO seed treatment. The study was irrigated as required for production. The SDS severity was less than previous years, with the most severely infested plots at just a little more than 20% of the leaf area expressing symptoms of SDS by the R6 growth stage. Treatments with ILeVO reduced the severity of SDS more and the yield increase was greater, up to 6 bu/a with varieties more susceptible to SDS