Investigating the Rainforest Canopy Phenology Variation and Productivity Responses to Drought by Using Digital Camera Images

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Among the natural disturbances, drought may cause significant change in forest ecosystems by shifting phenology and productivity. Digital cameras have been used in phenological observations for their high accuracy and the colour index values (digital-number of red, green and blue) derived from long-term continuous digital camera imagery are useful as proxies for investigating a forest canopy’s response to drought. Here, we examine the interaction between colour indices (the strength of red (Sred), the strength of green (Sgreen), green excess index (GEI)), productivity (gross primary productivity (GPP)) and drought (standardised precipitation evapotranspiration index (SPEI)) and climatic factors. We use forest canopy images derived from a digital camera and flux tower-based productivity from 2010 to 2016 to show the rainforest’s responses to drought in phenology and productivity. The SPEI indicated the occurrence of drought condition in 2014. The lowest values of the SPEI (-0.403 mmday-1), and total precipitation (1062 mmyr-1), and the highest values of average air temperature (21.3°C), potential evapotranspiration (3.31 mmday-1) and rain use efficiency (2.26 gCL-1) were found in 2014. Leaf color variation period (CVP) become longer with an advance in foliage green-up after drought. The peak GEI values were found at the end of the CVPs. The GPP and the Sgreen had positive and the Sred had negative relationship with drought index. The GPP dropped during the drought and bounced back after the drought due to a longer leaf CVP. The Sgreen and GEI were significantly (p<0.05) related to GPP during the drought. During the CVP of the drought, the Sgreen and GEI were significantly correlated (p<0.05) with total P, PET and average Ta, meanwhile, there was only a significant relationship (p<0.05) between the GPP with PET and avg Ta. Among the variables, the GPP was more significant (p < 0.001) with avg Ta. There was also a relationship between the colour indices and GPP with climatic factors on a yearly time series. Our results indicate an understanding of the phenology and productivity response of rainforests to drought, which might be useful for ecologists when predicting the effects of future climatic change on rainforest phenology and productivity.

Social Determinants of Health and Health Equity among the Elderly People in Mountain Region of Uttarakhand

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According to World Health Organization (WHO), the Social Determinants of Health (SDH) have an important influence on health inequities – the unfair and avoidable differences in health status seen within and between countries. In countries at all levels of income, health and illness follow a social gradient: the lower the socioeconomic position, the worse the health. The main objective of this paper is to understand these determinants that are prevailing and its relation with the health status of the elderly people in mountain region of Uttarakhand. In order to accomplish the study the data have been collected from 183 households from the three different geographic mountain areas of six administrative regions. The collected data have been further analyzed with SPSS latest version. The findings of study shows that & the self stated very poor health status majority were from the Garhwal mountain region, females those were widows, those were above 81 years, Shudra by caste followed by Khatriya caste, residing in joint family, living in Kuchha houses, civil pensioners, educated above high school & above and average income group followed by high and low income group of the elderly households. However, with respect to the poor health status, occupation, education and income of the household of elderly as the p-values associated with the Ch-square statistics are found to be less than the level of significance. The study concluded with that in built environment of the elderly people like the region, caste, being a female and widow and age above 81 years followed by living amenities like Kuchha house and residing in a joint family system are more significant with respect to the poor health status, while occupation, education and income of the household of elderly as the p-values associated with the Ch-square statistics is found to be less than the level of significance in the mountain region of Uttarakhand.

Information and Communication Technology Integration in Teacher Education Programmes: Assessment of Science Education Lecturer’s Competencies in Rivers State, Nigeria

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The relevance of information and communication technology in developing nations of the world like Nigeria cannot be undermined, considering the indispensable role it plays in nations’ development and provision of basic facilities for improvement in standards of living of citizens. In this context, science education lecturers need to be fully equipped with basic skills in information and communication technology. This study therefore, is an attempt to assess Science Education Lecturers’ competency in information and communication technology in Rivers State. Descriptive survey design was adopted and the sample comprised 85 Science Education Lecturers in Rivers State Tertiary Institutions. The instrument was Competency in Information and Communication Technology Questionnaire validated by two Science Education Lecturers. The instruments’ reliability coefficient of 0.76 was determined by test-retest method using Pearson Product Moment Correlation formula. Mean and standard deviation were used for answering research questions while hypotheses were tested using t-test at .05 level of significance. Findings of the study revealed low level of competency of science education lecturers in information and communication technology with regards to use of presentation tools to support on-line instructions, test, assignments, e-mail, face book, internet and cybercafé, analysis of a course work, results computation, course evaluation, word processor for personal and instructional purpose, spreadsheet for personal and instructional purpose, collection and storage of data and decision making. There was no significant difference in male and female lecturers’ level of competency in information and communication technology as well as university and college of education science education lecturers in Rivers State. It was recommended among others that Government should ensure adequate training of science education lectures on the use of information and communication technology facilities and also assist them acquire laptops and software packages.

The Survival Rates of SMEs in Turkey and the Conceptual Framework of Factors Affecting IT

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SMEs are vitally important enterprises as they are a source of income and employment in both developed and developing economies. However, despite their importance, only a small part of them survive for many years. Therefore, identifying the factors that enable SMEs to survive will play an important role in attracting entrepreneurs’ attention and encouraging them to take steps to ensure the survival of their enterprises. In the literature, these factors are considered independently of each other. In this context, there is a gap in the literature that requires to demonstrate the relationship between these factors. This article aims to contribute to the literature by identifying factors affecting the survival of SMEs in Turkey and providing a conceptual framework that explains their relationships. In the proposed framework, managerial practices, entrepreneurial traits, market adaptation, growth management and finance management were considered as the main constructs. If this conceptual framework, which was revealed as a result of field observations and detailed literature reviews, is empirically supported by further studies, it can create an alternative perspective that will inspire SME owners in Turkey to keep their companies alive for years.

Phase Wise Variation of Criteria Pollutants across India during COVID-19 Lockdown

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The COVID-19 epidemic forced many countries around the world to lockdown completely. This occlusion influenced the atmospheric composition positively due to reduced anthropogenic activities. Recently, many studies across India have shown how the COVID-19 lockdown has affected air quality in different cities. However, these studies did not examine the phased percentage variation in air pollutant concentrations across different states of India. In this study, percentage variation in the concentration of five criteria pollutant, PM10, PM2.5, NO2, CO and Ozone were studied for 13 states across India during four phases of COVID-19 lockdown. A significant decrease in air pollutant levels was observed in all four phases, with phase 1 and phase 2 reporting a maximum decrease. PM10 and PM2.5, CO and NO2 showed a decrease in concentration in all states. Ozone showed a mixed response, with both increase and decrease recorded across states. During the COVID-19 lockdown period in India, AOD levels were reduced by 10.25%. This study will certainly help regulators set the guidelines and mitigation measures for appropriate control of air pollutants in different states in future.

Instructional Leadership Practices in School: A Literature Review

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The importance of instructional leadership practice at school attracts the researcher to conduct a research. This article is used to analyze how the instructional leadership practices in schools. The review begins with internet that is google scholar searching for articles of instructional leadership as the keywords. There are several literature reviews of instructional leadership practices especially. Based on the literature reviews of various countries in Asia, we found that strong instructional leadership practices can build the teachers works by strengthening the system of organizational belief. These factors also can encourage students learning.

Consumer Acceptance of Contactless Payments in India: Extension to TAM

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Contactless payment is arguably the fastest growing payment methods across the globe. The purpose of this article is to do a study of the consumer acceptance of contactless payments in India using a survey sample of 165 respondents from Chennai. While technology acceptance model (TAM) has been normally used, the proposed model make use of seven variables (perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, perceived risk, engagement, compatibility, trust and hedonic motivation) taking into consideration the customer, service provider and the technology eco system. Findings of the study indicates that perceived ease of use, compatibility and perceived usefulness were the main factors influencing contactless payment acceptance. This study extends the knowledge of consumer’s payment-decision making and provides insights into how to promote contactless payments.

The Effect of Liquidity, Leverage, and Profitability on Financial Distress with Audit Committee as a Moderating Variable

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This study examines the effect of liquidity, leverage, and profitability on financial distress with the audit committee as a moderating variable. This study used secondary data from the annual reports of manufacturing companies listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) from 2016 to 2019. The research sample was selected using purposive sampling, and 33 companies were obtained as the study samples. The data were then analyzed using the logistic linear regression method with SPSS ver 26 software. The study results found that liquidity and profitability had a negative effect on financial distress, whereas leverage had a positive effect on financial distress. In addition, the study also found that the audit committee enhanced the effect of liquidity and profitability on financial distress. In contrast, the audit committee reduced the effect of leverage on financial distress.

Effect of Yoga Pranayama (Breathing Techniques) on the Vagus Nerve in Countering Major Depression and Related Ailments; A Literature Review

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Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a major psychiatric condition associated with functional impairment and high levels of morbidity and mortality (M. Li, 2015) (Lohoff, 2010). It is characterized by mode alterations, diminished interests, impaired cognitive function and vegetative symptoms such as disturbed sleep and appetite changes (Christian Otte, 2016) are common patients suffering from MDD. Our nervous system is built around the balance and harmony of two opposing activities (Laurie Kelly McCorry, 2007).
1. The sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is associated with the fight or flight response.
2. The parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) is associated with relaxation, digestion, and regeneration.
These two systems are meant to work in rhythmic alternation, a process that supports healthy rhythms of alertness and restfulness that facilitate physical and mental health (Shah, 2018). In order to treat ailments such as MDD, many techniques are used to stimulate the vagus nerve for better functioning (Bruno Bonaz, 2018). Different forms of pranayama tends to activate different branches of the autonomic nervous system, this causes positive changes to the oxygen consumption, metabolism and skin resistance. The literature evidence gathered states that the mechanisms of the vagul nerve stimulation helps in the parasympathetic activation in an event of stress depression and major depression. When the pranayam is mixed with certain yogic asana’s while controlling the breath, it seems to have a better countering of MDD and related disorders.

The Effects, Distribution and Management Options for Major Banana Diseases in Tanzania

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Emergences of Fusarium wilt, Bacterial wilt and Black Sigatoka diseases have caused banana yield loss of up 100% in Tanzania. Though there have been accumulated empirical data on yield decline due to diseases, lack of disease knowledge and selection of appropriate control methods has been a limiting factor in improving banana production. Therefore, this review focused on identifying different management options for major banana diseases, for purpose of providing reference and decision making tools to farmers, extension officers, researchers and decision makers. Using online resources, we identified several methods which are affordable, applicable and reliable for disease management in the country. These includes sanitation, intercropping, crop rotation, prevention, irrigation, drainage improvement, quarantine, use of silicon/calcium and awareness campaigns. Other method was biological control, which need further research on its applicability and impact on the environment. Moreover the use of resistant cultivars though being important, there is little achievement which have been made on breeding for resistance, because banana are polyploidy, parthenocarpic, have long generation time, loss of resistance and poor acceptability of new cultivars. We also found that, no single method is perfect for management of diseases; this is due to the fact that, in agricultural system, disease challenges rarely occur singly. So the approach to disease management should be pragmatic and geared towards integration of several appropriate methods. We hereby conclude that, researches should focus on identifying the best and feasible combination of control methods that can be used by Smallholder farmers.