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Doping of suitable metal ions in ferroelectric oxides modifies the physical properties and can induce additional functionalities. Here, we present a detailed study on the effects of Sm concentration on the structural, dielectric, ferroelectric, and piezoelectric properties of ((K0.5Na0.5)1−3xSmx)NbO3 (KNSN) (0.00 ≤ x ≤ 0.02) ceramics. X‐ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic analysis indicate that KNSN ceramics exhibit the single‐phase orthorhombic (Amm2) structure for x = 0.00 and the coexistence of orthorhombic and tetragonal (Amm2 + P4mm) structure for the composition range 0.005 ≤ x ≤ 0.02. The tetragonal phase fraction increases with an increase in Sm concentration. We observed dielectric relaxation behavior in KNSN at orthorhombic to tetragonal (TO–T) phase transition temperature, and its origin can be attributed to the structural heterogeneity at the inter‐ferroelectric phase boundary. Increasing Sm concentration leads to the broadening of the ferroelectric phase transition peaks. Further, the structural heterogeneity of the ceramics was seen from the slope of the dielectric constant versus log frequency and central peak behavior of Raman spectra at room temperature (RT). The study reveals that x = 0.005 shows maximum dielectric constant (Ɛr = 583), remanent polarization (2Pr = 57.02 μC/cm2), and piezoelectric coefficient (d33 = 94 pC/N) at RT and is associated with increased local structural heterogeneity due to Sm doping. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A general formulation is employed to study and quantitatively ascertain the effect of plasma broadening of intrinsic autoionizing (AI) resonances in photoionization cross sections. In particular, R-matrix data for iron ions described in the previous paper in the RMOP series (RMOP-II, hereafter RMOP2) are used to demonstrate underlying physical mechanisms due to electron collisions, ion microfields (Stark), thermal Doppler effects, core excitations, and free–free transitions. Breit–Pauli R-matrix cross sections for a large number of bound levels of Fe ions are considered, 454 levels of Fe XVII, 1184 levels of Fe XVIII and 508 levels of Fe XIX. Following a description of theoretical and computational methods, a sample of results is presented to show significant broadening and shifting of AI resonances due to extrinsic plasma broadening as a function of temperature and density. The redistribution of AI resonance strengths broadly preserves their integrated strengths as well as the naturally intrinsic asymmetric shapes of resonance complexes which are broadened, smeared and flattened, eventually dissolving into the bound-free continua. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An extended version of the R -matrix methodology is presented for calculation of radiative parameters for improved plasma opacities. Contrast and comparisons with existing methods primarily relying on the distorted wave approximation are discussed to verify accuracy and resolve outstanding issues, particularly with reference to the opacity project (OP). Among the improvements incorporated are: (i) large-scale Breit–Pauli R -matrix calculations for complex atomic systems including fine structure, (ii) convergent close coupling wave function expansions for the (e + ion) system to compute oscillator strengths and photoionization cross sections, (iii) open and closed shell iron ions of interest in astrophysics and experiments, (iv) a treatment for plasma broadening of autoionizing resonances as function of energy-temperature-density dependent cross sections, (v) a 'top-up' procedure to compare convergence with R -matrix calculations for highly excited levels, and (vi) spectroscopic identification of resonances and bound (e + ion) levels. The present R -matrix monochromatic opacity spectra are fundamentally different from OP and lead to enhanced Rosseland and Planck mean opacities. An outline of the work reported in other papers in this series and those in progress is presented. Based on the present re-examination of the OP work, opacities of heavy elements might require revisions in high temperature-density plasma sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper adopts the multi-criterion decision-making model of fuzzy-TODIM and genetic algorithm (GA) for optimal portfolio allocation. We applied Markowitz's portfolio parameters as inputs for the fuzzy TODIM model to rank stocks that are constituents of each index from three different markets. Portfolios are then generated dynamically using three weighting techniques and subject to multi-objective criteria and additional constraints. The results indicate a significant variation in performance metrics between the model-generated portfolios and the market indices. Replication of the procedure produces a similar outcome. Moreover, the out-of-sample tests conducted over 3 years validate the results' robustness, indicating that fuzzy TODIM, combined with GA, can achieve superior performance in dynamic portfolio allocation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ferroelectric materials exhibiting switchable and spontaneous polarization have strong potential to be utilized in various novel electronic devices. Solid solutions of different perovskite structures induce the coexistence of various phases and enhance the physical functionalities around the phase coexistence region. The construction of phase diagrams is important as they describe the material properties, which are linked to the underpinning physics determining the system. Here we present the phase diagram of (K0.5Na0.5NbO3)–(Ba0.5Sr0.5TiO3) (KNN-BST) system as a function of composition and their associated physical properties. Lead-free (1 − x)KNN–xBST (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.3) solid solution ceramics were synthesized by conventional solid-state reaction technique. The X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic studies indicate composition-dependent structural phase transitions from an orthorhombic phase for x = 0 to orthorhombic + tetragonal dual-phase (for 0.025 ≤ x ≤ 0.15), then a tetragonal + cubic dual-phase (x = 0.2) and finally a cubic single phase for x ≥ 0.25 at room temperature (RT). Among these, the orthorhombic + tetragonal dual-phase system shows an enhanced value of the dielectric constant at room temperature. The phase transition temperatures, orthorhombic to tetragonal (TO-T) and tetragonal to cubic (TC), decrease with the increase in BST concentrations. The ferroelectric studies show a decrease of both 2Pr and EC values with a rise in BST concentration and x = 0.025 showed a maximum piezoelectric coefficient. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The dependence of the Rosseland Mean Opacity (RMO) on the equation of state and the number of included atomic levels of iron ions prevalent at the solar radiative/convection boundary is investigated. The 'chemical picture' Mihalas–Hummer–Däppen (MHD) equation-of-state (EOS), and its variant QMHD–EOS, are studied at two representative temperature–density sets at the base of the convection zone and the Sandia Z experiment: (2 × 106 K, 1023/cc) and (2.11 × 106 K, 3.16 × 1022/cc), respectively. It is found that whereas the new atomic data sets from accurate R-matrix calculations for opacities (RMOP) are vastly overcomplete, involving hundreds to over a thousand levels of each of the three Fe ions considered – Fe  xvii , Fe  xviii , Fe  xix – the EOS constrains contributions to RMOs by relatively fewer levels. The RMOP iron opacity spectrum is quite different from the Opacity Project distorted wave model and shows considerably more plasma broadening effects. This work points to possible improvements needed in the EOS for opacities in high-energy–density plasma sources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bone metastasis is a frequent and incurable consequence of advanced prostate cancer (PC). An interplay between disseminated tumor cells and heterogeneous bone resident cells in the metastatic niche initiates this process. Melanoma differentiation associated gene-9 (mda-9/Syntenin/syndecan binding protein) is a prometastatic gene expressed in multiple organs, including bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (BM-MSCs), under both physiological and pathological conditions. We demonstrate that PDGF-AA secreted by tumor cells induces CXCL5 expression in BM-MSCs by suppressing MDA-9-dependent YAP/MST signaling. CXCL5-derived tumor cell proliferation and immune suppression are consequences of the MDA-9/CXCL5 signaling axis, promoting PC disease progression. mda-9 knockout tumor cells express less PDGF-AA and do not develop bone metastases. Our data document a previously undefined role of MDA-9/Syntenin in the tumor and microenvironment in regulating PC bone metastasis. This study provides a framework for translational strategies to ameliorate health complications and morbidity associated with advanced PC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To study the acute central serous chorioretinopathy (CSC) management strategies practiced at a tertiary eye care center in eastern India. Methods: In a retrospective chart review study, the clinical outcomes of three different management approaches to treating acute CSC were analyzed. Individuals with follow-ups of fewer than 6 months were excluded. Logistic regression analysis was performed to identify the prognostic markers of CSC resolution. Results: In the 10-year study period (January 2013-July 2022), 206 eyes were included. Placebo treatment was the preferred practice (48.5%; n = 100 eyes). Watchful observation without placebo was the management strategy in 30.6% (n = 63) of the eyes, and 20.9% (n = 43) of eyes received focal lasers. Risk factor modification was attempted in all. There was no significant difference in the resolution rate (P = 0.819), time to resolution (P = 0.331), and disease recurrence (P = 0.067) among the groups. Univariate logistic regression analysis did not favor any of the treatment strategies predicting resolution and recurrence. Conclusion: Alternative treatment modes did not score over the natural history of acute CSC regarding disease resolution, vision gain, and disease recurrence. The study reaffirms observation as the standard of care for acute CSC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the last few years, many experiments have been done on lightweight Al and SiCp MMCs for aerospace and automotive applications. The results have been consistent in the development of structural and super alloys. Present work explores the performance characteristics of powder mix EDM by machining Al, LM-25 alloy with various weight fractions of reinforcement (0%, 5%, and 10% SiC) and variable electrode material. The impact of heat treatment on the microstructure of Al LM-25/10%SiC MMC has also been examined. Experimental investigation has been conducted to examine the machine response by adjusting the process parameters by employing the statistical design of RSM. The machining characteristics have been estimated to assess the machine response, namely metal removal rate (MRR) and tool wear rate (TWR), which are closely related to process variables, discharge current (I p), pulse on time (Ton), servo voltage (V), different tool materials, varying work materials, and differing concentrations of abrasive particles. The ANOVA results show that tool material is the most crucial parameter for MRR, accounting for 11.90% of the total, followed by other process variables, and the pulse on time for TWR, accounting for 5.94% of the total. Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) was used to examine the macrostructure of machined MMCs. A chemical microanalysis technique such as Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to determine the phase composition of the materials and material dispersion. Additionally, the desirability technique was used to identify the optimum machining conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article discusses an advanced method for estimating dc conductivity of oil using parameters evaluated under switching impulse voltage application. Firstly, the effectiveness of switching impulse application for assessing the condition of oil–paper insulation is investigated. Thereafter, the evaluated parameters under switching impulse voltage are fitted by Havriliak and Negami (HN) model for estimating the oil conductivity. The method is applied on oil-impregnated pressboards containing different moistures and a distribution transformer for experimental investigation. Moreover, the limitations of the proposed method are also discussed in this article. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Simple Summary: The rat progression elevated gene-3 (PEG-3) promoter displays cancer-selective expression, whereas the rat growth arrest and DNA damage inducible gene-34 (GADD34) promoter lacks cancer specificity. PEG-3 and GADD34 minimal promoters display strong sequence homology except for two single point mutations. Since mutations are prevalent in many gene promoters resulting in significant alterations in promoter specificity and activity, we have explored the relevance of these two nucleotide alterations in determining cancer-selective gene expression. We demonstrate that these two point mutations are required to transform a non-cancer-specific promoter (pGADD) into a cancer-selective promoter (pGAPE). Additionally, we found GATA2 transcription factor binding sites in the GAPE-Prom, which regulates pGAPE activity selectively in cancer cells. This newly created pGAPE has all the necessary elements making it an appropriate genetic tool to noninvasively deliver imaging agents to follow tumor growth and progression to metastasis and for generating conditionally replicating adenoviruses that can express and deliver their payload exclusively in cancer. Progression-elevated gene-3 (PEG-3) and rat growth arrest and DNA damage-inducible gene-34 (GADD34) display significant sequence homology with regulation predominantly transcriptional. The rat full-length (FL) and minimal (min) PEG-3 promoter display cancer-selective expression in rodent and human tumors, allowing for cancer-directed regulation of transgenes, viral replication and in vivo imaging of tumors and metastases in animals, whereas the FL- and min-GADD34-Prom lack cancer specificity. Min-PEG-Prom and min-GADD34-Prom have identical sequences except for two single-point mutation differences (at −260 bp and +159 bp). Engineering double mutations in the min-GADD34-Prom produce the GAPE-Prom. Changing one base pair (+159) or both point mutations in the min-GADD34-Prom, but not the FL-GADD34-Prom, results in cancer-selective transgene expression in diverse cancer cells (including prostate, breast, pancreatic and neuroblastoma) vs. normal counterparts. Additionally, we identified a GATA2 transcription factor binding site, promoting cancer specificity when both min-PEG-Prom mutations are present in the GAPE-Prom. Taken together, introducing specific point mutations in a rat min-GADD34-Prom converts this non-cancer-specific promoter into a cancer-selective promoter, and the addition of GATA2 with existing AP1 and PEA3 transcription factors enhances further cancer-selective activity of the GAPE-Prom. The GAPE-Prom provides a genetic tool to specifically regulate transgene expression in cancer cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an advanced technique for calculating activation energy of oil-impregnated pressboard through dielectric response current measurement under switching impulse voltage at different temperatures. The proposed technique analyzes the measured impulse voltage and current signals to formulate its equivalent circuit at different temperatures. The equivalent circuit parameters are utilized to determine the shifting of ac conductivity curve along frequency axis with variations in temperatures. Based on the shifted ac conductivity curves at different temperatures, the corresponding activation energy of the insulation is estimated. The effectiveness of the proposed technique is investigated through a few laboratory prepared test samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies report that few journals are adopting unethical citation practices to inflate Impact Factor (IF) artificially. "Clarivate Analytics" has started to blacklist such journals since 2006. As reported in the literature, evaluation of journals individually, to detect anomalies from vast and dynamically changing citation network is not efficient. The primary purpose of this work is to define a diverse feature set that can identify such cases of extreme outliers and reason them. The sample size is narrowed down using an unsupervised clustering algorithm in the absence of a labeled training dataset. Next, time‐series IF data is analyzed to detect point outliers. Furthermore, microscopic features are identified to reason them. Results reflected from the F‐value after ANOVA analysis reveals that geometrical patterns (self‐loop, pairwise and group mutual‐citation) among journals, an abrupt increase in the paper count of donor and corresponding IF inflation of recipient are some of the essential features. Microscopic features include social factor (calculation of revised IF after removing directed self or mutual‐citation), impact of the field of study, impact of publication house and author factor that includes author self and mutual‐citation. The significance of this work is to ensure that the quality of a journal is withheld without compromising research integrity by controlling or auditing individual features periodically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Melanoma differentiation associated gene-9 (MDA-9), Syntenin-1, or syndecan binding protein is a differentially regulated prometastatic gene with elevated expression in advanced stages of melanoma. MDA-9/Syntenin expression positively associates with advanced disease stage in multiple histologically distinct cancers and negatively correlates with patient survival and response to chemotherapy. MDA-9/Syntenin is a highly conserved PDZ-domain scaffold protein, robustly expressed in a spectrum of diverse cancer cell lines and clinical samples. PDZ domains interact with a number of proteins, many of which are critical regulators of signaling cascades in cancer. Knockdown of MDA-9/Syntenin decreases cancer cell metastasis, sensitizing these cells to radiation. Genetic silencing of MDA-9/Syntenin or treatment with a pharmacological inhibitor of the PDZ1 domain, PDZ1i, also activates the immune system to kill cancer cells. Additionally, suppression of MDA-9/Syntenin deregulates myeloidderived suppressor cell differentiation via the STAT3/interleukin (IL)-1β pathway, which concomitantly promotes activation of cytotoxic T lymphocytes. Biologically, PDZ1i treatment decreases metastatic nodule formation in the lungs, resulting in significantly fewer invasive cancer cells. In summary, our observations indicate that MDA-9/Syntenin provides a direct therapeutic target for mitigating aggressive breast cancer and a small-molecule inhibitor, PDZ1i, provides a promising reagent for inhibiting advanced breast cancer pathogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To investigate the completeness of coupled channel (CC) Breit–Pauli R-matrix (BPRM) calculations for opacities we employ the relativistic distorted wave (RDW) method to complement ('top-up') and compare the BPRM photoionization cross sections for high- n ℓ levels of both Fe xvii and Fe xviii. Good agreement is found with background photoionization cross sections using these two methods, which also ensures the correct matching of bound level cross sections for completeness. In order to top-up the CC-BPRM calculations, bound–bound transitions involving additional bound levels, and a large number of doubly-excited quasi-bound levels corresponding to BPRM autoionizing resonances described in the paper RMOPII are calculated using the RDW method. Photoionization cross sections in the high energy region are also computed and compared up to about 500 Ry, and contributions from higher core level excitations than BPRM are considered. The effect of configuration interaction is investigated, which plays a significant role in correctly reproducing some background cross sections. Due to the fact that the additional RDW levels correspond to high- n ℓ bound levels that are negligibly populated according to the Mihalas–Hummer–Däppen equation-of-state (paper I), the effect on opacities is expected to be small. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

With the development of electronic devices towards miniaturization, light weight and integration, dielectric thin film-capacitors for recoverable energy storage applications have attracted ever-growing interests owing to their fast charging and discharging rate. In continuation to our investigations for achieving high energy density, we have grown lead free BaZr0.2Ti0.8O3 (BZT)/Ba0.7Ca0.3TiO3 (BCT) heterostructures and studied the structural, dielectric, ferroelectric and energy density characteristics. The BZT/BCT bilayer epitaxial heterostructures were grown on La0.67Sr0.33MnO3 (LSMO) buffered LaAlO3 (LAO) single crystal substrate by optimized pulsed laser deposition technique. The ferroelectric phase transition has been probed above room temperature with relaxor behavior. These nanostructures show high discharge and charge energy densities of 9.74 and 26.55 J/cm3, respectively. These heterostructures show high dielectric permittivity, large polarization and high energy density characteristics well above room temperature which may be useful for both high power and energy density device applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Varying the substrate temperature changes structural and magnetic properties of spinel ferrite Ni 0.65 Zn 0.35 Fe 2 O 4 (NZFO) thin films. X-ray diffraction of films grown at different temperature display only (004) reflections, without any secondary peaks, showing growth orientation along the c-axis. We find an increase in crystalline quality of these thin films with the rise of substrate temperature. The surface topography of thin films grown at different growth temperatures reveal that these films are smooth with low roughness; however, the thin films grown at 800 °C exhibit lowest average and root mean square (rms) roughness among all thin films. We find iron and nickel to be more oxidized (greater Fe3+ and Ni3+ content) in films grown and annealed at 700 °C and 800 °C, compared to those films grown at lower temperatures. The magnetic moment is observed to increase with an increase of substrate temperature and all thin films possess high saturation magnetization and low coercive field at room temperature. Films grown at 800 °C exhibit a ferrimagnetic–paramagnetic phase transition well above room temperature. The observed large magnetizations with soft magnetic behavior in NZFO thin films above room temperature suggest potential applications in memory, spintronics, and multifunctional devices. Highlights • Highly c-axis oriented NZFO thin films were grown by PLD technique. • Varying the substrate temperature changes structural and magnetic properties. • All thin films exhibit high Ms, low Mr and low Hc at room temperature. • The M s is found to be increased with increase of substrate temperature. • Thin films grown at 800 °C exhibit a ferrimagnetic Tc ∼716 (±10) K. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main driver for National Surveillance Programme for Aquatic Animal Diseases (NSPAAD) in India is the threat of diseases to the growth of aquaculture. Keeping this in consideration, the Department of Fisheries (DoF), Government of India (GoI) is implementing NSPAAD involving 31 collaborating centres in 19 states, and this programme is being coordinated by ICAR-NBFGR, Lucknow. The programme has been successful in developing a network of aquatic animal health laboratories; diagnostic capability for detection of OIE/NACA-listed and emerging pathogens; mechanism for first time confirmation of new diseases; sending alerts/advisories to stakeholders; and providing scientific advice to the farmers. NSPAAD has helped in strengthening passive disease surveillance, which is evident by detection of seven new pathogens. It has enabled DoF in better understanding of disease situation in the country, and meeting international disease reporting obligations. Currently, DoF is contemplating to further strengthen the disease surveillance programme. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Active learning (AL) technique is the classification of remote sensing images, where collecting efficient training data is costly in terms of labour and the time taken. The prime objective of AL technique is to obtain high classification accuracy with the training sample as compact as possible. Most studies on the classification of remote sensing images using AL, focused only on accuracy, with hardly any study on computation time. Keeping reduction of computation time as the objective, here we present, an entropy query by bagging (EQB)-based AL approach in the extreme learning machine (ELM) framework for remote sensing image classification. The performance of this approach is compared with the widely used support vector machine (SVM) AL framework in combination with different query strategies. To verify the efficacy of the study, the approaches were tested on two hyperspectral remote-sensing images, i.e. Kennedy Space Centre (KSC) and Botswana (BOT). The proposed system depicts competitive classification performance while significantly reducing computation time. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: High yielding rice varieties are usually low in grain iron (Fe) and zinc (Zn) content. These two micronutrients are involved in many enzymatic activities, lack of which cause many disorders in human body. Bio-fortification is a cheaper and easier way to improve the content of these nutrients in rice grain. Results: A population panel was prepared representing all the phenotypic classes for grain Fe-Zn content from 485 germplasm lines. The panel was studied for genetic diversity, population structure and association mapping of grain Fe-Zn content in the milled rice. The population showed linkage disequilibrium showing deviation of Hardy-Weinberg's expectation for Fe-Zn content in rice. Population structure at K = 3 categorized the panel population into distinct sub-populations corroborating with their grain Fe-Zn content. STRUCTURE analysis revealed a common primary ancestor for each sub-population. Novel quantitative trait loci (QTLs) namely qFe3.3 and qFe7.3 for grain Fe and qZn2.2, qZn8.3 and qZn12.3 for Zn content were detected using association mapping. Four QTLs, namely qFe3.3, qFe7.3, qFe8.1 and qFe12.2 for grain Fe content were detected to be co-localized with qZn3.1, qZn7, qZn8.3 and qZn12.3 QTLs controlling grain Zn content, respectively. Additionally, some Fe-Zn controlling QTLs were co-localized with the yield component QTLs, qTBGW, OsSPL14 and qPN. The QTLs qFe1.1, qFe3.1, qFe5.1, qFe7.1, qFe8.1, qZn6, qZn7 and gRMm9–1 for grain Fe-Zn content reported in earlier studies were validated in this study. Conclusion: Novel QTLs, qFe3.3 and qFe7.3 for grain Fe and qZn2.2, qZn8.3 and qZn12.3 for Zn content were detected for these two traits. Four Fe-Zn controlling QTLs and few yield component QTLs were detected to be co-localized. The QTLs, qFe1.1, qFe3.1, qFe5.1, qFe7.1, qFe8.1, qFe3.3, qFe7.3, qZn6, qZn7, qZn2.2, qZn8.3 and qZn12.3 will be useful for biofortification of the micronutrients. Simultaneous enhancement of Fe-Zn content may be possible with yield component traits in rice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Doping of nonmagnetic impurities in technologically important ZnO has opened a new window for achieving room temperature ferromagnetism, p -type carrier conduction, and enhancement of ferroelectric properties. Here, we report on the confined optical phonon and bandgap engineering in highly oriented Li implanted ZnO thin films. Using resonance Raman scattering condition, the confined longitudinal optical phonon lineshapes in uniaxial hexagonal wurtzite crystal are analyzed in detail using the phonon confinement model. We have demonstrated that phonon confinement model can yield a meaningful result for the interpretation of resonance Raman lineshapes if one considers the contribution of both the E 1 (LO) and A 1 (LO) modes, particularly while dealing with oriented ZnO thin films. Furthermore, with the increase in Li dose, the bandgap of ZnO is found to show a blue shift, and such blue shift in bandgap is explained using first principles calculation. • Pulsed laser deposited highly oriented ZnO thin films are implanted with low energy Li ions of different dose. • With the increase in Li concentration, the bandgap of ZnO is found to show a blue shift. • The blue shifting of the bandgap is explained using first principles calculation. • The phenomenological Phonon confinement model is used to explain the line shape of the Raman spectra under resonant conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) contents in human urine have been recovered using struvite precipitation and N-stripping techniques. Struvite precipitation technique recovers mainly phosphorus whereas N-stripping technique only recovers nitrogen. In this study, we developed an NPharvest technique which recovered both nitrogen and phosphorus separately in the same process, enabling their use independently. The technique used Ca(OH) 2 to increase the pH of urine converting ammonium into NH 3 gas and simultaneously precipitating P with Ca. The NH 3 gas is passed through a gas permeable hydrophobic membrane (GPHM) and reacts with H 2 SO 4 forming ammonium sulfate. Our result showed that more than 98% (w/w) of N and P can be harvested from urine in 8 h at 30 °C. The harvested ammonium sulfate contained 19% (w/w) N, and the sediment contained 1–2% (w/w) P. The extraction of N and P from 1 m3 of urine could give a profit of 1.5 €. Image 1 • This technique recovered >98% nitrogen and phosphorus from human urine. • The recovered crystallized ammonium sulfate can be used as chemical fertilizer. • Phosphorus is recovered as calcium phosphate in sediment. • Treatment of 1 m3 urine can make a profit of 1.5 euros. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We report the electrothermal properties of AAA trilayer on polyethylene terephthalate substrate which allowed the development of low-cost high-performance transparent thin-film flexible heater (TTFFH) using RF magnetron sputtering. The structural, electrical, and optical properties of the AAA trilayer were investigated at different thickness of the Ag interlayer. The AAA trilayer-based TTFFH yielded saturation temperatures beyond 100 °C at 10 V at optimized Ag interlayer thickness of 5 nm. The time-dependent temperature profile along with its highly stable and reversible thermal behavior was studied. Most importantly, the AAA trilayer-based TTFFH provides a high-performance alternative to the conventional and expensive ITO electrodes at a much lower cost. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Melanoma differentiation-associated gene-7/interleukin-24 (mda-7/IL-24) is a multifunctional cytokine displaying broad-spectrum anticancer activity in vitro or in vivo in preclinical animal cancer models and in a phase 1/2 clinical trial in patients with advanced cancers. mda-7/IL-24 targets specific miRNAs, including miR-221 and miR-320, for downregulation in a cancer-selective manner. We demonstrate that mda-7/IL-24, administered through a replication incompetent type 5 adenovirus (Ad.mda-7) or with His-MDA-7/IL-24 protein, down-regulates DICER, a critical regulator in miRNA processing. This effect is specific for mature miR-221, as it does not affect Pri-miR-221 expression, and the DICER protein, as no changes occur in other miRNA processing cofactors, including DROSHA, PASHA, or Argonaute. DICER is unchanged by Ad.mda-7/IL-24 in normal immortal prostate cells, whereas Ad.mda-7 down-regulates DICER in multiple cancer cells including glioblastoma multiforme and prostate, breast, lung, and liver carcinoma cells. MDA-7/IL-24 protein down-regulates DICER expression through canonical IL-20/IL-22 receptors. Gain- and loss-of-function studies confirm that overexpression of DICER rescues deregulation of miRNAs by mda-7/IL-24, partially rescuing cancer cells from mda-7/IL-24-mediated cell death. Stable overexpression of DICER in cancer cells impedes Ad. mda-7 or His-MDA-7/IL-24 inhibition of cell growth, colony formation, PARP cleavage, and apoptosis. In addition, stable overexpression of DICER renders cancer cells more resistant to Ad.mda-7 inhibition of primary and secondary tumor growth. MDA-7/IL-24-mediated regulation of DICER is reactive oxygen species-dependent and mediated by melanogenesis-associated transcription factor. Our research uncovers a distinct role of mda-7/IL-24 in the regulation of miRNA biogenesis through alteration of the MITF-DICER pathway. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Owing to undulating and complexity of the earth's surface, obtaining the training samples for remote sensing data is time‐consuming and expensive. Therefore, it is highly desirable to design a model that uses as few labelled samples as possible and reducing the computational time. Several active learning (AL) algorithms have been proposed in the literature for the classification of hyperspectral images (HSIs). However, its performance in terms of computational time has not been focused yet. Here, the authors have proposed AL approach based on extreme learning machine (ELM) that effectively decreases the computational time while maintaining the classification accuracy. Further, the effectiveness of the proposed approach has been depicted by comparing its performance with state‐of‐the‐art AL algorithms in terms of classification accuracy and computational time as well. The ELM‐based AL with different query strategies were conducted on two HSI data sets. The proposed approach achieves the classification accuracy up to 90% which is comparable to support vector machine‐based AL approach but effectively reduces the computational time significantly by 1000 times. Thus, the proposed system shows the encouraging results with adequate classification accuracy while reducing the computation time drastically. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aging sensitive parameters like dissipation factor, oil and paper conductivity and paper moisture can be estimated from insulation model parameterized using polarization current to assess the condition of transformer insulation. However, polarization current measurement is a time-consuming offline technique. During measurement, variation of environmental conditions (especially temperature) affects the monotonically decreasing nature of recorded data. Analysis of such affected data lead to incorrect conclusion regarding insulation condition. Power transformer being a crucial equipment, utility prefer to reduce its shut down time to minimum amount. In this paper a technique is discussed through which the polarization current measurement time can be reduced significantly. Several transformer data are used for verification of developed method. Presented results show that measurement data corresponding to only 10 minutes is sufficient to estimate the remaining data through the application of discussed method. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There is a growing need to lower the band gap of the transparent conductive tin oxide (SnO 2 ) in view of its potential application in photo-electronic technology. Here, we systematically investigated the effect of Pb doping on lowering the band gap of SnO 2 . We demonstrate a significant reduction in its band gap to as much as ∼0.8 eV (3.64 eV–2.87 eV) upon 15% Pb doping. The observed band gap tunability with Pb-incorporation provides a direct and efficient approach to effectively tailor the band gap and is expected to open up applications in emerging oxide opto-electronic and energy applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Glioma stem cells (GSCs) comprise a small subpopulation of glioblastoma multiforme cells that contribute to therapy resistance, poor prognosis, and tumor recurrence. Protective autophagy promotes resistance of GSCs to anoikis, a form of programmed cell death occurring when anchorage-dependent cells detach from the extracellular matrix. In nonadherent conditions, GSCs display protective autophagy and anoikis-resistance, which correlates with expression of melanoma differentiation associated gene-9/Syntenin (MDA-9) (syndecan binding protein; SDCBP). When MDA-9 is suppressed, GSCs undergo autophagic death supporting the hypothesis that MDA-9 regulates protective autophagy in GSCs under anoikis conditions. MDA-9 maintains protective autophagy through phosphorylation of BCL2 and by suppressing high levels of autophagy through EGFR signaling. MDA-9 promotes these changes by modifying FAK and PKC signaling. Gain-of-function and loss-of-function genetic approaches demonstrate that MDA-9 regulates pEGFR and pBCL2 expression through FAK and pPKC. EGFR signaling inhibits autophagy markers (ATG5, Lamp1, LC3B), helping to maintain protective autophagy, and along with pBCL2 maintain survival of GSCs. In the absence of MDA-9, this protective mechanism is deregulated; EGFR no longer maintains protective autophagy, leading to highly elevated and sustained levels of autophagy and consequently decreased cell survival. In addition, pBCL2 is down-regulated in the absence of MDA-9, leading to cell death in GSCs under conditions of anoikis. Our studies confirm a functional link between MDA-9 expression and protective autophagy in GSCs and show that inhibition of MDA-9 reverses protective autophagy and induces anoikis and cell death in GSCs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aging sensitive information related to cellulosic insulation can be obtained from the monotonically decaying dielectric relaxation function ?(?). Several circuits comprising of energy storing and dissipating elements are reported for modeling the dielectric relaxation function. Maxwell's ladder structure is one of the most popular approaches for modeling the dielectric response. For better modeling of dielectric response, a modified Maxwell's ladder structure is also reported that considers the effect of the aging due to the presence of a radial temperature gradient. In this paper it is proposed that for more accurate modeling of the dielectric response, the axial temperature gradient present in an operating transformer must also be taken into consideration. A further improved Maxwell two parameter model has been proposed that incorporates the effect of such axial temperature distribution. In the proposed technique each series branch of the two parameter model has been further divided into a number of parallel branches representing the effect of aging due to axial temperature gradient. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

This article presents the effect of lead-borosilicate glass (65PbO 20B 2 O 3 15SiO 2 , mol%) (PBS) addition on the structure, microstructure, dielectric, ferroelectric and energy storage properties of Ba 0.9995 La 0.0005 TiO 3 (BLT) ceramics system has been systematically investigated. XRD analysis revealed the tetragonal (T) phase at room temperature. Addition of PBS glass results in decrease in ferroelectricity and improved breakdown properties. High maximum polarization (P s ∼21.53 μC/cm 2 ) and remnant polarization values (2P r ∼8.75 μC/cm 2 ) were obtained from ferroelectric (P-E) hysteresis loops for the BLT ceramics. Two dielectric anomalies at 420 K and 600 K were observed due to the phase transformation. The glass-ceramics heat treated at 900 °C for 3 h was found to possess optimal properties with breakdown strength of >300 kV/cm and energy storage density of 0.564 J/cm 3 , which is a promising glass-ceramic ferroelectric capacitor material for high energy storage density dielectrics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper proposes a method for estimation of tanδ of cellulosic parts in oil-paper insulation from frequency domain spectroscopy based on equivalent circuit model of oil-paper insulation in real-life transformers. Existing literature shows that overall condition of oil-paper insulation in transformer can be assessed by conventional frequency domain spectroscopy. Also, the condition of oil can be separately and easily predicted through analyzing its dielectric properties by taking out the oil samples from transformer. However, it is quite difficult to assess the dielectric properties of cellulosic parts in oil-paper insulation as it cannot be directly accessed from outside for an operating transformer. Considering the aforesaid fact, this paper presents a segregated equivalent circuit model of composite oil-paper insulation that can separately estimate the tanδ profiles for oil as well as cellulosic parts. The tanδ profiles of cellulosic parts obtained from the equivalent circuit model have been validated experimentally. Results show that the tan? profile obtained from experimental result holds good agreement with that of the proposed model. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

When an alternating voltage is applied to a dielectric material, dipoles in the material try to align in the direction of the applied voltages and polarization process starts. For multi-dielectric media especially in which a liquid interface is involved, such as oilpaper insulation, interfacial polarization is predominantly active among all polarization processes. This interfacial polarization is a very slow process and is effective in lower frequency range. This interfacial polarization reflects the inherent condition of the oilpaper insulation. Due to this reason, frequency domain spectroscopy is performed in lower frequency range to assess the condition of oil-paper insulation. So, the time required for frequency response measurement using conventional frequency domain spectroscopy is quite long. Considering the aforesaid facts, a different procedure has been taken here to measure the dielectric response in a significantly lesser time keeping the entire frequency range of conventional frequency domain spectroscopy. Instead of using pure sinusoidal excitation voltages over wide frequency range, dielectric response current has been measured using excitation having time growing frequency sweep (TGFS) signal. For this purpose, test samples that emulate the oil-paper insulation of real-life transformer have been prepared in the laboratory. The moisture contents of the test samples have been kept different to investigate the reliability of the proposed method. A setup has been made in the laboratory to measure dielectric response currents using the both excitations. In order to investigate the applicability of the proposed method, experiment has also been performed on actual transformers. It has been observed that the use of excitation signal having time growing frequency sweep provides almost similar information regarding insulation condition as obtained by the use of conventional sinusoidal excitation voltages. Hence, the proposed method is capable of reduction in time in FDS nearly by an amount of 85%. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Series capacitor protected by metal-oxide varistor and air-gap arrangement imposes problems to line protection and other online decisions. Discrete wavelet transform integrated with a fuzzy logic system is designed for fault classification of a transmission line possessing a series capacitor at the midpoint. The approach uses information obtained from the wavelet decomposition of current signals for faulty phase selection and section identification. Two different FLSs are designed for the two classification objectives in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A control system model was developed to analyze data on in vivo coronary blood flow regulation and to probe how different mechanisms work together to control coronary flow from rest to exercise, and under a variety of experimental conditions, including cardiac pacing and with changes in coronary arterial pressure (autoregulation). In the model coronary flow is determined by the combined action of a feedback pathway signal that is determined by the level of plasma ATP in coronary venous blood, an adrenergic open-loop (feed-forward) signal that increases with exercise, and a contribution of pressure-mediated myogenic control. The model was identified based on data from exercise experiments where myocardial oxygen extraction, coronary flow, cardiac interstitial norepinephrine concentration, and arterial and coronary venous plasma ATP concentrations were measured during control and during adrenergic and purinergic receptor blockade conditions. The identified model was used to quantify the relative contributions of open-loop and feedback pathways and to illustrate the degree of redundancy in the control of coronary flow. The results indicate that the adrenergic open-loop control component is responsible for most of the increase in coronary blood flow that occurs during high levels of exercise. However, the adenine nucleotide-mediated metabolic feedback control component is essential. The model was evaluated by predicting coronary flow in cardiac pacing and autoregulation experiments with reasonable fits to the data. The analysis shows that a model in which coronary venous plasma adenine nucleotides are a signal in local metabolic feedback control of coronary flow is consistent with the available data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a novel technique to determine the optimized slope of triangular excitation in frequency domain spectroscopy that can provide better information about condition of oil-paper insulation. In conventional frequency domain spectroscopy, estimation of frictional losses due to the interactions of oscillating dipoles helps in investigating insulation condition. But, different types of dipoles in insulation cannot have similar dielectric relaxation times. Therefore, excitation having multiple frequencies is necessary for the dipoles to undergo more synchronized oscillations. This synchronized oscillation of dipoles reduces the inter-dipolar interactions and provides better information regarding insulation condition. Hence, in this work, triangular excitation is used for frequency domain spectroscopy since its harmonic contents can be varied by changing the slope. The slope of the triangular excitation is optimized to obtain more accurate information about the insulation condition. The optimized triangular excitation for insulation is determined using the proposed equivalent circuit model. To experimentally determine the effectiveness of the model, three test samples having preset moisture content in paper have been prepared in the laboratory. The optimized triangular excitations are then applied to the test samples to estimate their insulation condition. Experimental results show that the use of optimized triangular excitation provides information regarding the condition of oil-paper insulation with greater accuracy. In order to investigate the applicability of the proposed equivalent circuit model, the experiment has also been performed on real-life transformers. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

Summary Gene activation in metazoans is accompanied by the presence of histone variants H2AZ and H3.3 within promoters and enhancers. It is not known, however, what protein deposits H3.3 into chromatin or whether variant chromatin plays a direct role in gene activation. Here we show that chromatin containing acetylated H2AZ and H3.3 stimulates transcription in vitro. Analysis of the Pol II pre-initiation complex on immobilized chromatin templates revealed that the E1A binding protein p400 (EP400) was bound preferentially to and required for transcription stimulation by acetylated double-variant chromatin. EP400 also stimulated H2AZ/H3.3 deposition into promoters and enhancers and influenced transcription in vivo at a step downstream of the Mediator complex. EP400 efficiently exchanged recombinant histones H2A and H3.1 with H2AZ and H3.3, respectively, in a chromatin- and ATP-stimulated manner in vitro. Our data reveal that EP400 deposits H3.3 into chromatin alongside H2AZ and contributes to gene regulation after PIC assembly. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study considers the problem of designing a multi-input and multi-output (MIMO) proportional-integralderivative (PID) controller via direct optimal or suboptimal linear quadratic regulator (LQR) approach. To design the controller, first the MIMO PID design problem is transformed into a state feedback control and then the gains of the state feedback controller are chosen through an optimal or suboptimal LQR design. Given a minimal state space representation (A,B,C) of the plant, a necessary and sufficient condition (based on matrices A,C) for which the optimal problem (i.e. PID design via optimal LQR) is solvable is obtained. When this optimal problem is not solvable, a suboptimal solution (i.e. PID design via suboptimal LQR), if exists, is obtained by converting the problem into trace minimisation one, which is solved using linear matrix inequality-based method. Suitable examples are considered to illustrate the approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study considers the problem of designing a multi‐input and multi‐output (MIMO) proportional‐integral‐derivative (PID) controller via direct optimal or suboptimal linear quadratic regulator (LQR) approach. To design the controller, first the MIMO PID design problem is transformed into a state feedback control and then the gains of the state feedback controller are chosen through an optimal or suboptimal LQR design. Given a minimal state space representation (A, B, C) of the plant, a necessary and sufficient condition (based on matrices A, C) for which the optimal problem (i.e. PID design via optimal LQR) is solvable is obtained. When this optimal problem is not solvable, a suboptimal solution (i.e. PID design via suboptimal LQR), if exists, is obtained by converting the problem into trace minimisation one, which is solved using linear matrix inequality‐based method. Suitable examples are considered to illustrate the approaches. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Being the backbone element of deoxyribonucleic acid, phosphorus is a key component in the search for life in the Universe. To aid in its detection, we present line emissivity ratios for the five lowest-lying forbidden [P  ii ] transitions, namely those among the levels 3s23p2(3P0, 3P1, 3P2, 1D2, and 1S0). The wavelengths range between 0.44 and 70 µm, and several lie within the spectroscopic domain observable with the JWST. These line ratios have been calculated using a new collisional-radiative-cascade (CRR) model combining calculated collision strengths and level-specific recombination rate coefficients, with both data sets computed using the accurate Breit–Pauli R-matrix method. The CRR model includes a new scheme for (e + ion) recombination to emission-line formation. We compare its effect to models incorporating only electron-impact excitation and spontaneous radiative decay. We find that (e + ion) recombination has a significant impact on all line ratios, and represents a major improvement in physical accuracy of emission-line models. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aims: The study was done to analyze the epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment aspect of patients with ectopic pregnancy at Kathmandu Model Hospital. Methods: This was a retrospective study of patients with ectopic pregnancy who received treatment at Kathmandu Model Hospital from January 2008 to September 2015. Data were analyzed from patient records and discharge summary. Delivery number was obtained from maternity record. Results: There were 61 cases of ectopic pregnancy with the hospital incidence of 1.46%. Highest number of patients 20 (32.79%) were in the age range of 28-32 years. Most of the patients were nullipara 22 (36.06%) or with parity two 20 (32.79%). Some risk factors were found in 29 (47.54%) cases. The commonest risk factor was pelvic inflammatory disease in 12 (19.67%). All presented with pain abdomen, 48 (78.68%) had per vaginal bleeding, 17 (27.87%) presented in shock. Cervical excitation was present in 38 (62.29%). Urine for pregnancy test was positive in all and 37 (60.66%) had ultrasonography. Ten (16.39%) patients underwent emergency laparoscopic surgery and 40 (65.57%) had emergency laparotomy. Salpingectomy was required in 53 (86.89%) cases. The average hospital stay was 5 days. Conclusions: The study showed that ectopic pregnancy could occur at any reproductive age without obvious risk factors. Although not all patients gave history of amenorrhoea, pain abdomen was present in all. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasmonic materials (PMs), featuring large static or dynamic tunability, have significant impact on the optical properties due to their potential for applications in transformation optics, telecommunications, energy, and biomedical areas. Among PMs, the carrier concentration and mobility are two tunable parameters, which control the plasma frequency of a metal. Here, we report on large static and dynamic tunability in wavelengths up to 640 nm in Al-doped ZnO based transparent conducting degenerate semiconductors by controlling both thickness and applied voltages. This extreme tunability is ascribed to an increase in carrier concentration with increasing thickness as well as voltage-induced thermal effects that eventually diminish the carrier concentration and mobility due to complex chemical transformations in the multilayer growth process. These observations could pave the way for optical manipulation of this class of materials for potential transformative applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epizootic ulcerative syndrome (EUS), a disease listed by World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) has been reported in 26 countries across 4 continents. Till date, 94 fish species have been found to be naturally infected with EUS and its host range is gradually expanding. In the year 2010-11, outbreaks resulting in heavy fish mortality were recorded in wetland districts of Uttar Pradesh, India, and EUS was confirmed as the cause of mortality on the basis of histopathology, isolation of Aphanomyces invadans, bioassay and PCR. A prevalence of ~ 69% (371/540) was recorded and 13 fish species were found to be infected. Interestingly, EUS was observed in seven new species (Aristichthys nobilis, Channa punctatus, Wallago attu, Mastacembelus armatus, Mystus cavasius, Anabas testudineus and Puntius conchonius) for the first time in natural outbreaks. Furthermore, the disease was observed even in the month of May when the mean water temperature was 31.6 ± 0.65°C. This suggests that the disease can result in severe losses even after two decades of its emergence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Highlights: [•] We have synthesized calcium substituted BaTiO3 ceramics by solid state route. [•] We have studied P–E loops with ferroelectric and antiferroelectric like double hysteresis behavior for naturally aged BCT. [•] Moderate energy densities with good energy storage efficiency (∼61%) were observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim: The study was done to review the demography of urogenital fistulae including obstetric fistula (OF) and its surgical outcome in the early phase of fistula surgery and to create awareness about OF. Methods: This was a retrospective study of 47 patients who underwent fistula surgery during the period of January 2012 to May 2014 in Kathmandu Model Hospital, Helping Hand Community Hospital, Camp in Mid-wetern Regional Hospital Surkhet and Hamlin Hospital, Ethiopia. The primary outcome was in terms of urinary continence after 14 days of repair. Results: In the study 70% (n=33) of fistula were due to obstructed labour and 30% (n=14) were due to hysterectomy for gynecological indications. Ninety six percent (n=45) had successful closure of fistula. Seventy seven percent (n=36) were continent after surgery, and 17% (n=8) had some stress incontinence. Conclusions: The study showed obstructed labour was the major cause of OF, however iatrogenic fistula was also becoming common. The success of repair depended on the type, site, size of fistula and urethral length. Majority of our cases had successful closure of fistula with some degree of stress in some patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elman Networks is a one of the dynamic recurrent neural networks. In this research it is used for the prediction of surface roughness in Electrical Discharge Machining (EDM). Training of the models was performed with data from series of EDM experiments on SKD 11 (AISI D2) Tool steel; in the development of predictive models, machining parameters of discharge current, pulse duration and duty cycle were considered as model variables with a constant voltage 50 volt. For this reason, extensive experiments were carried out in order to collect surface roughness dataset. The developed model is validated with a new set of experimental data, and predictive behavior of models is analyzed. The reported results indicate that the proposed model can satisfactorily predict the surface roughness in EDM. And can be considered as valuable tools for the process planning for EDMachining. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the ways to mitigate the world energy crisis is to harvest clean and green energy from waste-heat, which is abundant, ubiquitous, and free. Energy harvesting of this waste-heat is one of the most encouraging methods to capture freely accessible electrical energy. Ferroelectric materials can be used to harvest energy for low power electronic devices, as they exhibit switchable polarization, excellent piezoelectric and pyroelectric properties. The most important characteristic of ferroelectric materials, in the context of energy harvesting, is their ability to generate electric power from a time-dependent temperature change. In this work, we grew highly c-axis oriented heterostructures of BaZr0.2Ti0.8O3 (barium zirconium titanate, BZT)/Ba0.7Ca0.3TiO3 (barium calcium titanate, BCT) on SrRuO3 (strontium ruthenate, SRO) and deposited on SrTiO3 (strontium titanate, STO) single crystalline substrate using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. We investigated the structural, electrical, dielectric, and pyroelectric properties of the above-mentioned fabricated heterostructures. The wide range of θ–2θ X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns only shows (00l) reflection peaks of heterostructures and the substrate which confirmed that the films are highly c-axis oriented. We are also capable to convert the low-grade waste-heat into electrical energy by measuring various temperature-dependent ferroelectric hysteresis loops of our nanostructure films via pyroelectric Ericsson cycles and the structures show an energy conversion density ~ 10,970 kJ/m3 per cycle. These devices exhibit a large pyroelectric current density of ~ 25 mA/m2 with 11.8 °C of temperature fluctuation and the corresponding pyroelectric coefficient of 3425 μC/m2K. Our research findings suggest that these lead-free relaxor-ferroelectric heterostructures might be the potential candidates to harvest electrical energy from waste low-grade thermal energy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potential of food-borne pathogens to survive and grow during refrigerated and frozen storage has raised serious concerns over the safety of stored poultry products. In this study, the effect of refrigeration and freezing temperatures (-20, -12, 0, 4, and 8°C) on growth and survival of Liste'ria innocua and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium in raw chicken breasts for storage times of 3, 7, 10, 14, and 21 d were investigated. A modified Weibull model was also developed to analyze the microbial behavior of both microorganisms in raw chicken breasts under different refrigerated storage conditions over time. The results showed that the bacterial loads of L. innocua at 4 and 8°C and Salmonella Typhimurium at 8°C were significantly different (P < 0.05) from those at other refrigerated and frozen storage temperatures over storage times. The loads of both bacteria at frozen storage temperatures did not change significantly over time. At a storage time of 7 d, the increase in bacterial loads of L. innocua at 4 and 8°C was 2.1 log cfu/g and 3.7 log cfu/g, respectively, and that of Salmonella Typhimurium at 8°C was 1.2 log cfu/g. The root mean square errors, median relative error, mean absolute relative error, and the plot of predicted versus observed bacterial loads showed a good performance of the model. The results from this study provided useful information regarding the behavior of Listeria and Salmonella in raw chicken breast meat during refrigerated and frozen storage, which would be helpful in giving insight over the safety of poultry products storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background:A Population-Based Cancer Registry (PBCR) was set up in Sikkim (a state in the North Eastern India) in 2003. We examined incidence rates by ethnic groups from 2003-2008.Methods:Age-adjusted incidence rates (AARs) per 100 000 person-years were calculated by direct method using the world standard population, and analysed by ethnic group (Bhutia, Rai and other).Result:There were a total of 1148 male and 1063 female cases of cancer between 2003 and 2008 on the Sikkim PBCR. The overall AARs were 89.4 and 99.4 per 100 000 person-years in males and females, respectively. Incidence rates were highest amongst the Bhutia group (AAR=172.4 and 147.4 per 100 000 person-years in males and females, respectively), and the largest difference in rates were observed for stomach cancers with AARs being 12.6 and 4.7 times higher in the Bhutia group compared with other ethnic groups in males and females, respectively.Conclusion:These observations call for further epidemiological investigations and the introduction of screening programmes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ductile fracture occurs mainly in three stages i.e. void nucleation, void growth and the void coalescence. The present work focuses on the study the coalescence of existing micro void in a ductile material, mild steel. The specimen with holes in square array at various angle to load axis have been tested. The holes were machined in the specimen and assuming those hole as the voids. The growth and coalescence behaviours during tensile straining were observed both in macro and micro levels. Since the existing facility is not adequate to make hole size in micron, this work has been carried out by making hole up to 500 micron. The results are compared with other specimen with bigger size hole and without any hole. Also the effects of micro voids (present in the material) on the progress of crack have been studied. It is found that with same amount of voids, present in different positions, the mechanical properties of the material are altered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]