The Scientific World Journal

Irrigation development, particularly small-scale irrigation, is one of the most important projects for improving agricultural productivity in a country’s rural communities. The extent to which small-scale irrigation has improved household livelihoods in Ethiopia’s rural areas is not widely recognized. As a result, research on the influence of small-scale irrigation on farmers’ livelihoods in the Legehida district will be sought. The study took a “with” and “without” strategy, comparing farmers who used irrigation against those who did not. For analysis, both quantitative and qualitative data were employed. The survey’s respondents were chosen using a random sample approach from both irrigation users and nonuser households. Quantitative data for the study were collected from randomly selected 241 farm households, of which 113 were users and 128 were nonusers, using a semistructured questionnaire. Accordingly, the propensity score matching model was employed to examine the impacts of small-scale irrigation on farmers’ livelihoods. The logit model result indicates that cultivated land size, off-farm income, education level, family size, dependency ratio, total livestock unit, and distance to the nearest agricultural extension office/FTC are determinant factors in determining whether to practice irrigation when other factors remain constant. The impact of irrigation on a household’s income and food security (in terms of daily calorie intake) was evaluated using a propensity score matching model. The result shows that a positive and significant impact on farmers who use small-scale irrigation has increased the daily calorie intake and annual income of households by 244.162 kilocalories and 5234.258 ETB, respectively, as compared to nonirrigation users. This shows that households that participate in small-scale irrigation activities have a higher annual income and food security status than comparable groups. In general, the study recommends that to reduce food insecurity and the socioeconomic problems of rural households, irrigation farming is one of the viable solutions; therefore, the government and nongovernmental organizations should extensively focus on the enhancement of small-scale irrigation infrastructure, policies, strategies, and extension services to increase productivity, income, and livelihood improvement in rural households.

Carbon nanotube-FETs (CNTFETs) have become a potential challenger because of their exceptional electrical properties and compatibility with conventional CMOS technology. The design and study of digitally tunable transconductance amplifiers (DTTAs) using CNTFETs are the main topics of this work. By utilizing the special characteristics of CNTFETs, the suggested DTTA design makes transconductance tunable, providing a versatile method of adjusting amplifier settings without requiring modifications to the hardware architecture. This study provides a complete description of the CNTFET modeling techniques utilized for realistic circuit simulations, along with a detailed analysis of the DTTA based on CNTFETs. The circuit is implemented using a 32 nm CNTFET model and verified results with HSPICE.

Background and Aim. Down syndrome (DS) is the most common reason for disabilities caused by genetic disorders. Due to the special nature of this disease and the special needs of children with Down syndrome, they are required to receive their families’ support. Therefore, the recognition of their problems and needs and also the alternatives for resolving them and promoting their life quality are very useful. Also, since very limited qualitative studies have been conducted, it seems necessary to design a qualitative study. Method. This qualitative study was conducted by the content analysis method and through purposeful sampling method with the participation of 26 participants including 15 mothers, 6 fathers, 3 sisters, and 2 brothers of DS children in 2022-2023. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Findings. Using the content analysis method of Graneheim and Lundman (2004), the main theme was “Family self-supporting in protecting Down syndrome children.” The subthemes were seven including “trying to find information-support resources,” “Giving importance to child’s health,” “religious beliefs of the family,” “child moral education, helping to child’s relative self-support,” “developing familial support,” and “developing child’s social interactions.” Conclusion and Recommendations. The findings of this study showed that family is the main source of fulfilling the needs of children and their life challenges through using efficient self-support methods. This study introduced family self-support methods in terms of DS children in a way that other families can also manage the problems of their children more efficiently. The present study can be used by trustees of DS to support them and their families. Considering the existence of many problems in children with Down syndrome and the involvement of families, it is suggested that policymakers and community health managers provide the basis for receiving services and social support. For example, it is possible to strengthen the screening systems in the country to diagnose the disease on time and take quick action to solve this problem. Also, by increasing the health insurance coverage and fair distribution of the support resources needed by these people, it promoted the quality of life for them and their families. Also, health policymakers in Iran can take action to increase life expectancy and reduce deaths caused by DS by improving the equitable distribution of health resources and services. Also, public policies should enhance supportive intermediation for prevention and life quality promotion and also decrease health challenges. They are also supposed to lessen the costs of health care. Furthermore, to support social organizations, health service providers and researchers should consider the development of intermediations for the health enhancing and life quality promoting of DS children.

The dried stigmas of Crocus sativus L. produce saffron, a precious spice used for its culinary and medicinal properties since ancient times, while its petals are considered the main by-product of saffron production. The present study aimed to comparatively evaluate the phenolic content, antioxidant capacity, and antibacterial activity of methanolic extracts of stigmas and petals of Crocus sativus L. from Taliouine. The polyphenol content was measured using the Folin–Ciocalteu method, the antioxidant activity was determined using the DPPH free radical scavenging method, and the well-diffusion method was used to assess antibacterial activity against seven pathogenic bacterial strains (Bacillus subtilis, Escherichia coli, Listeria monocytogenes, Proteus vulgaris, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella enterica, and Staphylococcus aureus). Furthermore, the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the extracts was determined using the microdilution broth test. Our findings revealed that stigmas and petals contained phenolic compounds at the rate of 56.11 ± 4.70 and 64.73 ± 3.42 mg GAE/g, as well as DPPH radical scavenging capacity with IC₅₀ of 1700 µg/ml and 430 µg/ml, respectively. Petal extract showed more effective antibacterial activity, with inhibition diameters ranging from 10.66 ± 0.57 to 22.00 ± 1.00 mm and MIC values ranging from 2.81 to 5.62 mg/ml, compared to the stigma extract, which displayed inhibition diameters from 10.00 ± 0.00 to 18.67 ± 0.76 mm and MIC from 2.81 to 11.25 mg/ml, against five of the seven bacterial strains tested, including S. aureus, E. coli, P. vulgaris, P. aeruginosa, and S. enterica. Statistical analyses were performed to determine the significance of these results. Thus, stigmas and petals of Crocus sativus L. might serve as a suitable source of natural antioxidant and antimicrobial agents for application in the food and pharmaceutical industries.

Objectives. This study aims to compare HRV variables across three cohorts: normotensive (NT), prehypertensive (pre-HT), and hypertensive (HT) and to assess the relationship between the blood pressure (BP) and HRV parameters. Methods. Employing a cross-sectional design, 64 older participants were categorized based on the Joint National Committee’s criteria into NT (n = 10), pre-HT (n = 33), and HT (n = 21) groups. Anthropometric data, lipid profiles, and HRV indices were evaluated. HRV data were obtained from the Polar V800 chest strap device using HRV Kubios software for data analysis of short-term recordings lasting 10 minutes. This analysis encompasses both time and frequency domain assessments. The time domain includes the standard deviation of NN intervals (SDNN), the root mean square of successive RR interval differences (RMSSD), and the percentage of successive RR intervals differing by over 50 ms (pNN50). The frequency domain includes low frequency (LF), high frequency (HF), and the ratio of LF-to-HF power (LF/HF). Data were statistically analyzed via one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Pearson correlation. Results. The HT group exhibited significantly lower values in SDNN, pNN50, LF power, and HF power in comparison to the NT group (). Moreover, the HT group had a significantly lower SDNN value compared to the pre-HT group (). Inverse associations were uncovered between systolic and diastolic blood pressure and SDNN, pNN50, and HF power (). Multiple regression further highlighted the significance of systolic and pulse pressure concerning HF power (). Conclusions. HRV indices are reduced in Thai older adults with HT compared with those with NT. Monitoring HRV in older adults can provide valuable insights into autonomic function and cardiovascular disease risk.

Background. In most settings, patients receive phase 1 cardiac rehabilitation in CTVS ICU at the hospital, but there are several barriers to follow-up after patients are discharged from the hospital. Physiotherapists play an important role in the enrolment and continuation of cardiac rehabilitation. Thus, we aim to study the knowledge, attitude, and practice of physiotherapists about CR program adherence among patients discharged from the hospital after cardiac surgery. Objectives. (i) To study the knowledge of physiotherapists about the importance of cardiac rehabilitation after discharge; (ii) to know the attitude of physiotherapists towards cardiac surgery patients after discharge; and (iii) to know what approach various centres are applying for patients after discharge to ensure adherence to cardiac rehabilitation. Methods. A questionnaire was developed with reference to the objectives of the study, which was answered by a total of 127 physiotherapists. Results. The overall response rate was 42.3%; nearly 35.4% of the participants indicated that they knew a lot about CR, while 5.5% said they knew very little. Regarding the program’s content, 36.2% of participants reported having a medium degree of awareness of the diverse CR components, while 8.6% reported having very little knowledge of them. Only about one-third, 35.7% stated that CR in India is effective and 95% believed that CR will have an added value for the country. Approximately 80% of respondents thought that it would be challenging for a physiotherapist to recommend patients to a CR in the nation. Nearly 35% of respondents believed that they, “themselves as physios,” needed to commence CR, and slightly less than 70% thought that doctors were required to choose and refer the patients when asked who should take the initiative to start this kind of programme in the country. A little over 40% of respondents said that insurance firms are also involved in starting a CR programme. Conclusion. Physiotherapists have good knowledge of cardiac rehabilitation. However, their attitude and practice towards adherence to exercise protocols are confounded by various clinician- and patient-level factors.