Impulsive understanding: a new composition for task-free, self-paced understanding. Cover crops play a critical role on conservation and sustainable agriculture due to their well-documented benefits on both soil and crop productivity. Inclusion of legumes (e.g., hairy vetch, Vicia villosa Roth) in the farming system can reduce the nitrogen (N) fertilizer needs for cereals such as maize (Zea mays L.) crop while maintaining or increasing its productivity. The aims of this research study were to quantify the effect of hairy vetch as a cover crop on i) successor maize yield under varying yield environments (YEs) and fertilizer N rates, and ii) maize N status [N uptake, N nutritional index (NNI), and N fertilizer replacement value (NFRV)] at flowering time. Two field studies were carried out in Southern Brazil under varying YEs. The factors investigated were YE (low, medium, and high), hairy vetch cover crop (with and without), and fertilizer N rate (0, 60, 120, 180, and 240 kg N ha-1). Under the combination of low YE and low fertilizer N rates (0-60 kg ha-1) with previous vetch, maize displayed the largest yield response and an improvement in its N status. The NNI determined at maize flowering was an efficient index of the vetch effect, increasing delta maize yield response (yield with- minus without-vetch) as the NNI reduced, with more than 10% delta yield response with NNI below 0.85. The NFRV of the hairy vetch represents potential N savings of 151 kg N ha-1 for the LYE, 95 kg N ha-1 for the MYE and from 59 to 45 kg N ha-1 for the HYE depending on the tested fertilizer N rate. The N coming from the legume cover crop in addition to the N fertilization was critical for supplying N to maize and boosting productivity across all YEs.Accelerated urban expansion has contributed to the urban-rural contrast regarding atmospheric humidity. However, the effect of urban expansion on atmospheric humidity is not understood well in the Beijing-Tianjin-Hebei urban agglomeration (BTHUA). In this study, observations from 133 meteorological stations were used to analyze the long-term trend of atmospheric humidity and the urban expansion effect in the BTHUA during the period 1961-2014. The urban expansion effect on atmospheric humidity was evaluated by calculating the differences in atmospheric humidity trends between urban and rural series based on the dynamic classification method using secular urban impervious data. The results revealed that a drying trend of annual and seasonal average atmospheric humidity was observed in the urban areas of the BTHUA during the period 1961-2014, characterized by decreasing relative humidity (RH), water vapor pressure (Ea), specific humidity (Q) and increasing vapor pressure deficit (VPD). A more prominent drying trend (p less then 0.05) appeared in spring and autumn, whereas a relatively weaker trend occurred in summer and winter. The trend of atmospheric humidity was significantly correlated (Spearman correlation coefficients -0.45, 0.48, -0.29 and -0.32 for RH, VPD, Ea and Q, respectively; p less then 0.01) with the urban expansion rate. The effect of urban expansion on the trend of VPD, Ea and Q was the strongest in spring at 0.138 hpa, -0.237 hpa and -0.151 hpa per decade, respectively, while the urban expansion effect on RH was the strongest in winter, reaching -1.159% per decade. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/XAV-939.html This study provides a better understanding of the relationship between variations in atmospheric humidity and urban expansion, as well as scientific support for urban planning.Because of the current state of global resource shortages and environmental degradation, energy-saving and environmentally friendly national policies and low-carbon concepts have attracted both individual and societal attention, especially for rail transit. The rapid development of high-speed railways and urban rail transit in China has presented increasing transport energy demands and environmental pressures. This paper conducts an energy consumption comparative analysis of high-speed trains with different marshaled forms, including 3, 5, 8, 10, 12, 16, 17 and 18 cars, using the delayed detached eddy simulation method. A wind tunnel test with a 3.6% difference is applied to verify the obtained numerical results. A multiple-criteria evaluation methodology is presented to select the optimal alternatives for the marshaled forms of high-speed trains, which considers economic, social and environmental factors. https://www.selleckchem.com/products/XAV-939.html The 1318-km (820-mile) Beijing-Shanghai line and a 350-kph high-speed train are employed in this research. The results can effectively guide the engineering design of high-speed trains and provide an evaluation tool in the decision-making process for designers.Boundaries between industrial and urban areas in developing countries are not clearly defined, but pollution effect assessment of industrial activities on potentially toxic metal (PTM) distribution in these areas has rarely been investigated. Fifteen villages and eight communities surrounding the industrial areas from Anyang, China, were chosen as research objects in this study. A total of 78 windowsill dust and 78 surface soil samples were collected to determine the pollution levels, spatial distribution and risk indices of nine PTMs. PTM concentrations (expect Cr, Mn and Ni in surface soil) in the surveyed region were higher than the local soil background values. Amongst these PTMs, serious Cd and As pollution was discovered, and Cd and As in windowsill dust and surface soil exceeded the background value by 73.00 and 9.59, 9.74 and 10.92 times, respectively. Compared with the Igeo in surface soil, a large degree of variation in Igeo for the different PTMs was found in windowsill dust. The interpolated spatial distribution of dust Cr, Zn, Pb, Cd and soil Mn, Ni and Cu had a gradually decreasing pollution trend from the south to the north due to the prevailing wind directions in winter in the study area. Results of multivariate statistics reflected that industrial production and traffic emission affected the concentration of PTMs in windowsill dust and surface soil. The non-carcinogenic risks for children (soil 12.4; dust 19.2) were larger than those for adults (soil 1.02; dust 1.51). This finding suggested that industrial activities caused serious harm to the residents around industrial areas.