Academic And Professional Skills For Msc

Running head: ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS FOR MSC
ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS FOR MSC
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
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ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS FOR MSC1
Proposal Critique
This essay is about assessing crop management’s effect on the soil physical as well as
biochemical quality in the winter wheat. The proposal aims in analyzing effect on crop
management over biochemical as well as physical quality of soil in the winter. The review
consists of sever elements: title, introduction, objectives, hypothesis, proposed methods such as
data selection, soil testing, statistical data analysis, work schedule and budget.1 Different
standards are used for evaluating every element for showing the strengths as well the weaknesses
along with how these could be improved.
The title of the paper gives information of scope as well as nature of this paper along with
question of this paper. The writer succeeded to explain first point through mentioning the effect
which crop management could have over biochemical as well as physical quality of soil.
The introduction of the paper is dependent mainly on using the relevant literature for
achieving few things. At first, providing significant overview of the importance of this topic.
Then, current knowledge for identifying gap in topic area as well as generating questions for
filing the gap. And finally, using current literature along with correct format of citation. Then
effective use of all the measurements provides a good introduction. The flow of introduction was
clear that made this clear for reader in understanding.2 The writer began with describing the
impact of food demand all over the world. In the introduction it is stated that the conventional
farmers of past few years has provided maximum of the food needs of the world with the
1 Agegnehu, G., Srivastava, A.K. and Bird, M.I., 2017. The role of biochar and biochar-compost in
improving soil quality and crop performance: A review. Applied soil ecology, 119, pp.156-170.
2 Akdemir, E., Anderson, S.H. and Udawatta, R.P., 2016. Influence of agroforestry buffers on soil
hydraulic properties relative to row crop management. Soil Science, 181(8), pp.368-376.

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS FOR MSC2
management practices, which focuses on use of pesticides as well as fertilizer, monocultures and
less diverse rotations of crops. The writer stated that aim of farming practice is at intensification
as well as non-renewable resources’ use has been unsustainable to environment. There was
development of farming method which bans use of pesticides as well as synthetic fertilizers.
Under the introduction part, there is a definition of soil quality is provided also which
says that it is capacity of soil in functioning in ecosystem boundaries for sustaining biological
productivity, maintaining environmental quality as well as promoting health of animal and
plant.3 The writer termed soil quality as essential indicator for land management as well as gives
several functions of ecosystem to store and process water, recycling, waste’s assimilation, food’s
quality and production of fiber and food.
The paper provides relationship among quality of soil and agricultural sustainability by
its environmental quality. The writer wrote in the paper that there are several functions that are
performed by soil, which includes provides base for supporting growth of plant for ensuing
food’s sustainable production as well as enhance quality of soil.4 The writer also stated that there
is challenge for the soil scientists for meeting food demands as well as practices of balance
management and for protecting quality of soil and find optimum way for using resources of soil.
According to this proposal, assessment of soil quality should reflect physical, biological
and chemical properties, their processes along with their interactions. Depending on properties of
3 Bai, Z., Caspari, T., Gonzalez, M.R., Batjes, N.H., Mäder, P., Bünemann, E.K., de Goede, R.,
Brussaard, L., Xu, M., Ferreira, C.S.S. and Reintam, E., 2018. Effects of agricultural management
practices on soil quality: A review of long-term experiments for Europe and China. Agriculture,
ecosystems & environment, 265, pp.1-7.
4 Butler, D.M., Bates, G.E. and Inwood, S.E.E., 2016. Tillage system and cover crop management impacts
on soil quality and vegetable crop performance in organically managed production in
Tennessee. HortScience, 51(8), pp.1038-1044.

ACADEMIC AND PROFESSIONAL SKILLS FOR MSC3
such soil, soil’s quality could be known.5 Ultimate factor which affects quality of soil is land
manager. It is also indicated in the paper that quality of soil is enhanced by decisions of land use
as well as management which consider soil’s multiple functions as well as would be impaired by
the decisions which focus on only singe functions like crop productivity.
In the paper, based on the activities of management, soil quality could be measured by
using the indicators, changes in the indicators could be used for determining if quality of soil
changes in the management. While selecting biological indicators as well as datasets, soil’s
living component is composed by microbial communities which respond to chemical and
physical conditions of the soil making this good indicator.6 This is essential for variety of
microbial and biochemical analysis being used while considering management’s impact on
quality of soil.
It is also highlighted in the paper that no ideal index value is there, however quality
assessments of soil could be based upon framework which prioritizes goals of management,
identifies crucial soil function which are necessary to achieve the goals as well as selecting the
indicators which provide information that is useful with respect to functioning of specific soil.
Crop rotation as action of management improves the soil fertility, aeration and structure as
several root depths while seasons of cultivation affect the structure of soil. Fertility management
within organic farming depends on integrated long term approach instead of targeted short term
5 Çerçioğlu, Melis, Stephen H. Anderson, Ranjith P. Udawatta, and Salah Alagele. "Effect of cover crop
management on soil hydraulic properties." Geoderma 343 (2019): 247-253.
6 Dass, A., Chandra, S., Uphoff, N., Choudhary, A.K., Bhattacharyya, R. and Rana, K.S., 2017.
Agronomic fortification of rice grains with secondary and micronutrients under differing crop
management and soil moisture regimes in the north Indian Plains. Paddy and water environment, 15(4),
pp.745-760.