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The following paper outlines a study conducted on the abundance, distribution, and diversity of butterflies in Mt. Koritnik. located in the Republic of Kosovo, during 2019–2022. This research resulted in a total of 8166 recorded specimens, which belonged to 6 butterfly families, 50 genera and 131 species. The richest family in terms of abundance was Nymphalidae with 4611 specimens (56.47%), followed by Lycaenidae 1924 specimens (23.56%), Pieridae 856 (10.48%), 561 Hesperiidae (6.87%), Papilionidae 179 specimens (2.19%) and Riodinidae with 24 specimens (0.29%). In terms of species richness, Nymphalidae were the richest with 55 species, Lycaenidae 40, followed by 15 Pieridae, 15 Hesperiidae, 5 Papilionidae and 1 Roidinidae. Among 131 registered species, 11 have Near Threatened status in Europe. Our results indicated that species richness and abundance of butterflies were significantly negatively correlated with altitude (p<0.01), whereas they showed a strong positive correlation (p<0.01) with the temperature. The highest abundance and number of species were presented in the lower altitudinal range and the numbers decreased with altitude increasing. Activities such as intensive agriculture, grazing, fires and illegal timber cutting, which were observed during our survey, may be the main threats for butterflies in Mt. Koritnik in the future, therefore, we suggest the data from this research serve as a basic information for authorities to monitor future changes in butterfly diversity.

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To date, Kazakhstan is an underexplored territory regarding the study of leaf miners. This article aims to present new data on the defoliators of silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) in cultivated plants of North-Eastern Kazakhstan (the Pavlodar Region). Occurrence of Fenusa pumila Leach, 1817, as well as additional new data on the previously known leafminer species are presented for the first time for the Pavlodar Region. Groups of birch-defoliating insects were chosen as model objects. The research conducted in the territory of the Pavlodar Region revealed six species of leaf miners belonging to three genera Stigmella Schrank, 1802, Phylloporia Heinemann, 1870, and Fenusa Leach, 1817. All representatives are obligate miners that develop at the larval stage in the mesophyll of birch leaves. This group of insects harmfully affects plants, often causing their death, which in turn proves the importance of studying them.

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Due to the advancement of multimedia technology, it is now very common to use tools and equipment for teaching and learning. Understanding how to best utilize the benefits and functions of multimedia technology has now taken the lead in English teaching and learning. The positive contributions that multimedia technology makes to the teaching and learning of English listening, speaking, reading, and writing are highlighted in this essay. It also focuses on strategies and methods to enhance English comprehensive ability in a multimedia environment and highlights issues that need to be addressed. It is advised to focus more on the natural integration of multimedia technology and English teaching, expand the range of English reading, increase interest in English learning, enhance the comprehensive ability of English application, and establish a resource-sharing environment for teachers.
 

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Agronomic and physiological traits and protein expression were compared between non-Bt glandless upland cotton variety-Zhong5629 and its Bt-transgenic near-isogenic lines differing in cryIAc gene. Results showed that the Bt isogenic line had higher plant height and rate of effective bolls, more internal bolls but lower yield, than the non-Bt line. The Bt isogenic line had lower chlorophyll content and transpiration rate relative to the non-Bt line, but had higher Chl a/b, F0 and Fm. Soluble protein content in the Bt isogenic line was significantly higher at boll setting stage (BSS) but lower at initial flowering stage (IFS) compared with the non-Bt line. The Bt isogenic line had significantly higher concentrations of Ca, Mg, Cu, Zn, Mn and Fe at IFS, and P and Cu at BSS, whereas it had lower in concentrations of P, K and B at IFS, and K, S, Zn and Fe at BSS. The Bt-isogenic line exhibited less malondialdehyde content at BSS and lower superoxide dismutase activity at IFS and BSS. Furthermore, proteomic analysis of the two NILs detected 20 differentially expressed proteins. The 4 up- regulated proteins in Bt vs non-Bt-isogenic line were attributed to signal transduction, photosynthetic carbon assimilation and defense response, whereas the 16 down- regulated proteins were attributed to signal transduction and protein metabolism.

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Due to the complex structure of the pressure-adjusting device used in most sprinklers for variable irrigation, it is not possible to observe the flow behavior of the water passing through the flow field. In this paper, an integral three dimensional (3D) numerical model based on the structural characteristics of the fluidic sprinkler was constructed to simulate the flow field distribution using computational fluid dynamics (CFD). A new type of fluid sprinkler (BPXH) was used in the experiments. The main stream region and the variable velocity regions were clearly distinguished, and the details of the variations in pressure are discussed. The results indicated that the simulation methodology generated sufficient data to analyze the sprinkler pressure and outlet velocity changes. The minimum error of the difference between the simulation and the test pressure values was 0.049, with a maximum of 0.14. The turbulence model could accurately predict the relationship between the outlet velocity and the wetted radius. The outlet velocity ranged from 12.6 to 17.9 m s-1 during the simulation under the variable inlet boundary conditions of the sprinkler. Both the simulation and test values of the wetted radius increased gradually with the sprinkler rotating angle. The absolute error of the simulation and the test ranged from 0.07 to 0.16. Computational fluid dynamics provides a promising tool to help in the design of pressure-adjusting devices using a new type of variable-rate fluidic sprinkler.

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The objective of this research was to study the drying characteristics of powdered agricultural residues. Drying experiments of wheat straw (Triticum aestivum) were conducted at four temperatures of 50, 60, 70, and 80°C by a thermogravimetric analyzer. Drying temperature had a significant effect on the moisture change and drying time. There was no constant drying rate period, but a short rising rate period was evident for all drying process due to increasing temperature of the sample at the beginning of drying. Six mathematical models were selected to describe the drying characteristics of wheat straw. The goodness of fit was evaluated by the coefficient of determination (R2), the reduced chi-square (c2), and the root mean square error (RMSE). Midilli et al. model was found to be the best for modeling the experimental data. The values of effective moisture diffusivity of wheat straw dried at 50, 60, 70, and 80°C were calculated to be 1.13×10-8, 1.48×10-8, 1.66×10-8, and 2.29×10-8 m2 s-1, respectively.

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The nitrogen (N) nutrition, crop yield, and responses of wheat to arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) were tested in an experimental field under free-air ozone concentration [O₃] enrichment (FACE) conditions. The experiment included three treatments: ambient [O₃] (Ambient), elevated [O₃] (FACE, targeted at ambient [O₃]×1.5), and elevated [O₃] inoculated with an AMF consortium consisting of several Glomus species (FACE+AMF). AMF inoculation responsiveness of wheat was estimated by comparing plants grown in unsterilized soil inoculated with the exogenous AMF and in untreated soil containing indigenous AMF. Compared with the Ambient, relatively higher N contents but lower shoot biomasses of wheat plants were observed in the FACE treatment without AMF inoculation from the tillering stage in February and heading stage in April, respectively, which significantly (P< 0.05) decreased grain yield by 28% at harvest in June. Under the FACE condition, compared with the non-inoculated treatment, AMF inoculation significantly (P< 0.05) increased root colonization rates both at the tillering stage and heading stage, and also significantly (P< 0.05) increased shoot biomass at the heading stage and, hence, significantly (P< 0.05) increased grain yield by 40% at harvest. However, AMF inoculation significantly (P< 0.05) decreased total N content in wheat shoots at the tillering stage, suggesting that AMF consortia may enhance plant tolerance to elevated [O₃] by elevating root colonization rate rather than plant total N content at early growing stages.

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A stable Agrobacterium-mediated transformation system was established using bialaphos as the selective agent in soybeans [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]. The cotyledonary node explants of the soybean cultivar ‘NY-1001’ were inoculated with the Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain EHA105, harboring the vector pCAMBIA3301 containing the gus gene as the reporter gene and the bar gene conferring bialaphos resistance. The highest frequency of GUS transient expression (92%) was obtained after inoculation and 4-day co-cultivation with A. tumefaciens strain EHA105. Efficient GUS expression was observed in regenerated shoots from explants after 4-day co-cultivation combined with culturing on shoot induction medium (SIM) without bialaphos for 7 days followed by 4 mg.L^-1 bialaphos for 2 weeks. Bialaphos (4 mg.L^-1 in SIM; 2 mg.L^-1 in shoot elongation medium (SEM)) effectively selected the transformants. The putative transformants and escapes could be exactly distinguished by using a half-leaf GUS assay method to detect GUS expression in the elongated resistant shoots, which resulted in the shortening of culture period for the early detection of transformed shoots. The transformation efficiency of this system was 1.06%. The transgenic plants were verified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), Southern blotting, and herbicide-resistant responses. All four T₀ transgenic plants were fertile and transmitted the phenotypes of both gus and bar in a 3:1 ratio to their progeny. These results indicate that the established system is suitable for further breeding of herbicide-resistant transgenic cultivars, as well as for functional genomics studies of soybeans.

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It is extremely challenging to measure first-order rate coefficients for soil nitrate transformation processes directly, either in the laboratory or in the field. In this study, an improved inverse method was proposed to optimize the first-order rate coefficients by considering the intermediate changing processes of the integrated functions. A numerical experiment was designed to test the accuracy of the method in optimizing the coefficients. Comparisons between the optimized and theoretical results indicated that all the relative errors were within 10%. Data collected from a field experiment were used to validate the optimization procedure and to demonstrate its applications in practice. Using the established model and the estimated values by the inverse method, the simulated source-sink term (SST) distributions of September 2-12, 2007, were in good agreement, with the root mean squared error (RMSE) between them being as low as 0.00021 mg cm^-3 d^-1. Based on the established nitrate transformation model, the distributions of soil water content and nitrate concentration during September 2-12, 2007, were simulated, and compared well with the measured profiles, with the RMSE of 0.023 cm³ cm^-3 and 0.017 mg cm^-3, respectively. The improved inverse method should be useful for optimizing the first-order rate coefficients for nitrate transformation, establishing the nitrate transformation model, and simulating the nitrate transport in the soil-plant system.

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Welsh onion (Allium fistulosum L.) is one of the important vegetable crops in China. However, the seeds of this crop are short-lived and their vitality tends to be easily lost in the course of storage. The present study was conducted to elucidate the effects of welsh onion seed priming with potassium nitrate (KNO₃) on seed vigor and on other such related mechanisms during twelve months of storage. The priming treatment improved the germination rate and vigor index of welsh onion. Membrane deterioration of welsh onion seeds was significantly alleviated by the priming treatments, as assayed by using soluble sugar content and electrical conductivity of the seed leachates. The accumulation of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and malondialdehyde (MDA) in primed seeds was reduced compared with non-primed seeds. The increased activities of antioxidant enzymes, such as dehydrogenase, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) in primed seeds correlated with seed vigor and lipid peroxidation. This study provided the theoretical basis for improving the initial quality of welsh onion seeds using KNO₃ priming.

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Low phosphorous (P) availability in soils limits production of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] around the world. This study was conducted to determine whether exogenous expression of the rice (Oryza sativa L.) phosphates transporter gene OsPT2 would increase inorganic phosphates (Pi) acquisition and improve yield in transgenic soybean. Cotyledonary-node explants of the soybean were inoculated with the Agrobacterium tumefaciens strain EHA105 harboring the vector pCAMBIA3301-OsPT2, which contained OsPT2, gus and bar genes. Ten fertile T₀ transgenic plants were obtained and semi-quantitative RT-PCR of progenies demonstrated that OsPT2 gene was overexpressing in the T₂ generation. Three T₂ transgenic lines overexpressing OsPT2 were selected and subjected to testing for tolerance to low concentrations of Pi (low-Pi; 20 μM Pi) by hydroponic culture using modified Hoagland’s nutrient solution. The total P contents in the leaves, stems, roots, and seeds of the transgenic plants significantly increased under the concentrations of low-Pi and 1,000 μM Pi of standard Hoagland’s nutrient solution. Under low-Pi stress, the yields of the transgenic lines were significantly higher than those of the wild type. Taken together, our data suggest that the overexpression of OsPT2 in transgenic soybean lines improves Pi acquisition and seed yield, and OsPT2 may serve as one of the promising target genes that can be manipulated in crop improvement for minor use of Pi fertilizers.

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A four-year field experiment was conducted to understand the characters of nutrient accumulation and distribution in maize under different yield levels, so as to provide scientific guidance for effective utilization of mineral fertilizers, and eventually for high yield of spring maize. The grain yield, nutrient (nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium) accumulation and uptake efficiency were evaluated under different agronomic managements and nitrogen application treatments. The data showed that the two-year average grain yield under high Yield Management (HY) was significantly increased by 35.3% as compared with Traditional Farming management (FP). Interestingly, the increased range of grain yield may be associated with harvest ear numbers, indicating that high planting density could lead to high maize production. Moreover, the total amounts of nitrogen, phosphorous and potassium in maize significantly increased and the ratio of accumulation after flowering was also improved under HY management. Our results suggested that the high grain yield and nutrient use efficiency would ultimately be achieved through integrating and optimizing high yield cultivation techniques, which not only improve biomass and harvest index, but also promote the growth and nutrient accumulation of maize.