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AbstractThe present study deals with the affected behaviour of SH-wave propagation through a viscoelastic layer sandwiched between an anisotropic porous layer of finite thickness and an isotropic half space. The sandwiched viscoelastic layer is considered as heterogeneous medium of finite thickness and isotropic half-space is considered as initially stressed medium. The method of separation of variables has been applied to obtain the dispersion equation of SH-wave in their respective media. The obtained complex dispersion relation has been separated into real and imaginary parts. Moreover, the dispersion relation has been satisfied with the classical condition of Love waves. The effects of heterogeneity, attenuation constant, dissipation factor of viscoelasticity, initial stress (compressive), thickness ratio of two layers and porosity on the propagation of SH-waves have been shown by number of graphs. Graphs have been plotted for the dimensionless phase and damping velocity on the propagation of SH-waves with respect to the dimensionless real wave number. The results may be useful to explore the nature and peculiarity of SH-wave propagation in the viscoelastic structure.

Spot blotch is an important disease of wheat (Triticum aestivumL.) in South Asia. Division of test sites for this disease into homogenous subregions is expected to contribute to more efficient evaluation and better differentiation of cultivars. Data from a collaborative regional program of South Asia conducted by CIMMYT were analyzed to group testing sites into relatively homogenous subregions for spot blotch area under the disease progress curve (AUDPC). Five‐year data of eight locations from Eastern Gangetic Plains Nursery (EGPSN) and five locations of the Eastern Gangetic Plains Yield Trial (EGPYT) conducted in three countries (India, Nepal, and Bangladesh) of South Asia were used. A hierarchical cluster analysis was used to group locations on the basis of genotype × location interaction effects for spot blotch AUDPC. Cluster analysis divided South Asia into two broad regions and four subregions. This classification was not entirely consistent with the geographic distribution of locations, but clusters mostly followed general geographic‐climatic locations. The locations Varanasi (India) and Bhairahawa (Nepal) were identified as the most suitable sites for evaluation of spot blotch, followed by Rampur (Nepal). The major determinant for the clustering was mean temperature. The results suggest that the major wheat region of South Asia can be divided into subregions, which may reduce the cost of resistance evaluation and aid in developing wheat with resistance to this disease.

Lack of suitable technical criteria to find out the optimal design of on-farm channels leads to poor efficiencies of many irrigation schemes. It is desirable to design a channel network which is economical and the seepage loss is minimum. In this paper three network models viz. Minimal Spanning Tree, Shortest Path and out-of-kilter algorithms are used to find an optimal layout. In addition to the continuous supply, the results of the models are checked for their usefulness in a rotational irrigation system. All the three models were applied to three different areas of the Mae Klong Irrigation Project, in Thailand.