Rev. Bras. Ciênc. Solo.2016;40:e0160058.
Some questions about Yang et al. “Quantitative assessment of soil physical quality in northern China based on S-theory” [Rev Bras Cienc Solo. 2015;39:1311-21]
22/Jul/2016
DOI: 10.1590/18069657rbcs20160058
Almost two years have passed since the publication in RBCS of my critical review about the S-index and its use in Brazil (De ). Two main conclusions were drawn from the analysis presented in that paper. First, as a relative indicator of soil physical quality, the S-index () has no additional values over bulk density or total porosity. Second, as an absolute indicator, S has shown not to be capable of predicting soil physical quality, and a threshold value (like the frequently used S = 0.035) does not hold up under several boundary conditions described in the literature.
I was happy to see that since then the number of publications on the subject decreased. However, in one of the latest editions of RBCS (v.39, n.5), the title of a publication by Yang et al. (p. 1311-21) caught my attention: “Quantitative assessment of soil physical quality in northern China based on S-theory”. The title is in utter conflict with the main conclusions of De , and I would expect that authors cite and question these conclusions, which may lead to an interesting discussion.
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