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Isotopes and radiation in agricultural sciences
Agricultural Systems 21 (1986) 311-315
Book Reviews
L'Annunziata, M. F. and Legg, J. O. Isotopes and Radiation in Agricultural Sciences. Two volumes. Academic Press, London. 1984. 292 pp and 356 pp. Price: £39.50 and £49.00. These two volumes cover a wide range of topics, from the detection and measurement o f radionuclides to food preservation. No one will have experience across all the topics, nor is it likely that any one will need to think about all the topics covered here. Any unity to the two volumes has therefore to come either from the study of techniques or from the re-occurrence of problems, topics, experimental or mathematical techniques and biology. In fact, no uniformity of topics or of treatment exists. Instead, there are a series of review articles covering, in volume I, the relationships between soils and plants and, in volume 2, the relationships between plants, animals and the environment. These reviews are often of a high quality. For example, that by Coombs on Crop Physiology manages, within about 50 pages, to cover all relevant aspects. Others, like that of L'Annunziata on agricultural biochemistry, are more specialised but are exact and useful. In general, the book appears to be aimed at the level of a research student anxious to place the use of radioactive or stable isotopes into some sort of a perspective, rather than to set new ideas, new uses of techniques and new techniques in front of the experimental investigator. The book is well illustrated, easy to read and ought to be available on 311
Agricultural Systems (21) (1986)--~ Elsevier Applied Science Publishers Ltd. England, 1986. Printed in Great Britain
312
Book reviews
library bookshelves. The book complements, but does not replace, L'Annunziata's Radiotracers in agricultural chemisto' which is a useful introduction to the techniques and problems which occur in the use of radioactive isotopes, and Vose's Introduction to nuclear techniques in agronomy and plant biology. J. Elston
Kategile, J. A. (Editor). Pasture Improvement Research in Eastern and Southern Africa, Proceedings of a Workshop held in Harare, Zimbabwe, 17-2I September I984. International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada, 1985. No price given. The recent famine in Ethiopia and elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa vividly demonstrated how the increasing population in Africa is stretching land resources and the pressing need to increase agricultural output in small farming communities. There are about 300 million ruminant animals in sub-Saharan Africa, they are an important part of the agricultural systems and the majority of them are undernourished and unproductive. They subsist mainly on communal grazing, which has deteriorated through overgrazing, and crop residues. The existing infrastructure and system of land tenure discourage the use of improved pastures. The workshop had three objectives; to review the state of pasture research in Eastern and Southern Africa, to discuss research methodologies and forage networks and to make recommendations on research priorities. The stage is set by a lucid keynote address by P. R. N. Chigaru. There is a series of papers on the state of research in Zimbabwe, Malawi. Ethiopia, Burundi, Madagascar. Botswana, Mozambique, Lesotho. Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania and subhumid Nigeria. These illustrate the diversity of agro-ecological conditions and variation between countries in their activities and approach. Pasture workers are too obsessional about species introduction and testing, there is too little appreciation in many of the papers of the role and potential of legumes, and very little information on the exploitation of pastures by ruminants. Some of the current work is a repetition of work carried out in colonial days and not always fully reported.
Book Reviews
L'Annunziata, M. F. and Legg, J. O. Isotopes and Radiation in Agricultural Sciences. Two volumes. Academic Press, London. 1984. 292 pp and 356 pp. Price: £39.50 and £49.00. These two volumes cover a wide range of topics, from the detection and measurement o f radionuclides to food preservation. No one will have experience across all the topics, nor is it likely that any one will need to think about all the topics covered here. Any unity to the two volumes has therefore to come either from the study of techniques or from the re-occurrence of problems, topics, experimental or mathematical techniques and biology. In fact, no uniformity of topics or of treatment exists. Instead, there are a series of review articles covering, in volume I, the relationships between soils and plants and, in volume 2, the relationships between plants, animals and the environment. These reviews are often of a high quality. For example, that by Coombs on Crop Physiology manages, within about 50 pages, to cover all relevant aspects. Others, like that of L'Annunziata on agricultural biochemistry, are more specialised but are exact and useful. In general, the book appears to be aimed at the level of a research student anxious to place the use of radioactive or stable isotopes into some sort of a perspective, rather than to set new ideas, new uses of techniques and new techniques in front of the experimental investigator. The book is well illustrated, easy to read and ought to be available on 311
Agricultural Systems (21) (1986)--~ Elsevier Applied Science Publishers Ltd. England, 1986. Printed in Great Britain
312
Book reviews
library bookshelves. The book complements, but does not replace, L'Annunziata's Radiotracers in agricultural chemisto' which is a useful introduction to the techniques and problems which occur in the use of radioactive isotopes, and Vose's Introduction to nuclear techniques in agronomy and plant biology. J. Elston
Kategile, J. A. (Editor). Pasture Improvement Research in Eastern and Southern Africa, Proceedings of a Workshop held in Harare, Zimbabwe, 17-2I September I984. International Development Research Centre, Ottawa, Canada, 1985. No price given. The recent famine in Ethiopia and elsewhere in sub-Saharan Africa vividly demonstrated how the increasing population in Africa is stretching land resources and the pressing need to increase agricultural output in small farming communities. There are about 300 million ruminant animals in sub-Saharan Africa, they are an important part of the agricultural systems and the majority of them are undernourished and unproductive. They subsist mainly on communal grazing, which has deteriorated through overgrazing, and crop residues. The existing infrastructure and system of land tenure discourage the use of improved pastures. The workshop had three objectives; to review the state of pasture research in Eastern and Southern Africa, to discuss research methodologies and forage networks and to make recommendations on research priorities. The stage is set by a lucid keynote address by P. R. N. Chigaru. There is a series of papers on the state of research in Zimbabwe, Malawi. Ethiopia, Burundi, Madagascar. Botswana, Mozambique, Lesotho. Zambia, Kenya, Tanzania and subhumid Nigeria. These illustrate the diversity of agro-ecological conditions and variation between countries in their activities and approach. Pasture workers are too obsessional about species introduction and testing, there is too little appreciation in many of the papers of the role and potential of legumes, and very little information on the exploitation of pastures by ruminants. Some of the current work is a repetition of work carried out in colonial days and not always fully reported.