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The study has been conducted at Agartala Municipal area (AMA) of Tripura, which exhibits rapid population growth and faster land use land cover changes. The major purpose of the study is to understand the dynamics of land use and Land surface temperature (LST) in the city of Agartala. The study incorporated satellite data such as Landsat TM (Thematic Mapper) and OLI (Operational Land Imager)/TIRS (Thermal Infra-Red Sensors) data along with LandScan datasets of the years from 2008 to 2018. The results revealed a drastic change of land use land cover specifically built up land with net change of 15.63 sq km. While during the same epoch, population portrayed a net growth of 250,017 in the city. The population induced change of land use land cover have accelerated the mean LST of the city from 25.71 oC to 26.29 oC in summer and 21.48 oC to 26.05 oC in winter season, respectively. The increasing strength of correlation between NDBI (Normalized Difference Built-up Index) &NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index), NDBI&LST, NDVI&LST and finally Population density and LST with changing ‘r’ value from -0.46 to -0.89, 0.75 to 0.90,-0.76 to -0.81 and 0.34 and 0.67 in summer (2008–2018) whereas -0.34 to -0.83, 0.66 to 0.85, -0.56 to -0.78 and 0.35 to 0.50 in winter, respectively, signify the active role of population growth and built up land development on the intensification of the process of LST in the study area.

PurposeThe main purpose of this paper is to empirically investigate the effect of macroeconomic uncertainty on environmental degradation in India over the period 1971–2016. Additionally, this paper considers the role of financial development, energy consumption intensity and economic growth in explaining the variation of environmental degradation in India.Design/methodology/approachThe authors applied the power generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedasticity model to measure inflation volatility and used it as a proxy for macroeconomic uncertainty. From a methodological perspective, the authors employ the autoregressive distributive lag bound testing model to establish the long-run equilibrium association between the variables. The Toda–Yamamoto causality approach has been used to examine the direction of causality between the variables.FindingsFindings suggest that macroeconomic uncertainty exerts a positive effect on carbon emissions, indicating that higher inflation volatility, as a proxy for macroeconomic uncertainty, hinders India's environmental quality. Financial development, economic growth and energy consumption intensity have also adversely impacted environmental quality.Practical implicationsThe negative association between macroeconomic uncertainty and environmental degradation calls for some stringent policy actions. While formulating policies to promote growth and maintain stability, policymakers and government stakeholders should take into account the environmental effects of macroeconomic policies. There is a need to implement more environmental-friendly technologies in the financial sector that could reduce carbon emission.Originality/valueTo the best of the authors' knowledge, this study is the first that considers the role of macroeconomic uncertainty along with financial development and energy intensity in an emerging economy like India.

Sliding wear behaviour is a very complex procedure where several parameters, including nature of the two abrading bodies and variables related to the conditions under which the actual experiments w...

In the present comparative study, the authors studied the antioxidant and anticancer activity of commercially available polyherbal Indian Ayurvedic products namely Divya Sarvakalp Kwath (DSKK), Divya Sanjivani Vati (DSV), Kanchanar Guggulu (KG) and Shakti Drop (SD). Authors also quantified phenolic and flavonoid contents in the samples. Solid powdered samples (DSKK, DSV, and KG) were extracted in methanol and water (1:1) using cold extraction method. Spectrophotometry technique was used to quantify the phytochemicals present in test samples. DSKK showed comparatively higher content of total phenolics (247.65 ± 0.05 μgPGE/g) and flavonoid (34.66 ± 0.19 µgQE/mg). Radical scavenging, metal ion chelation and reducing potential of test products were studied using nitric oxide scavenging, DPPH, metal ion chelation, reducing power ability, and phosphomolybdate in vitro antioxidant assays at different concentration. Dose-dependent antioxidant activity was observed in all the test samples at 100–500 µg or µl/ml concentration. Anticancer efficacy of the test samples were studied in lung (A549), colon (Colo205), and breast cancer (MCF7) cell lines at different concentrations (10–100 µg or µl/ml) using MTT assay. Confocal microscopy was used to reveal the apoptotic induction, mitochondrial membrane integrity disruption and reactive oxygen species production ability of test products in cancer cells. The present study revealed that DSKK possesses comparatively better antioxidant potential and SD has potent anticancer activity against breast cancer cells.

A Pd(II)-catalyzed oxidative alkenylation of 4-hydroxycoumarins with maleimides for the synthesis of 4-hydroxy-3-maleimidecoumarins has been described. This methodology proceeds via C–H activation and C(sp2)–C(sp2) bond formation providing a series of alkenylated Heck-type products.

The present study describes the antimicrobial activity of methanolic extracts of Mikania micrantha (Bitter vine) and Drymaria cordata (West Indian chick weed) against Staphylococcus aureus and its application on textile material. Agar diffusion method was used to determine the zone of inhibition. Both the methanolic plant extracts exhibited significant zone of inhibition (p

Glass Transition Temperature is one of the most studied fields in material science and measurement of Glass Transition Temperatures for the ever-expanding list of polymers in an accurate and efficient manner has been the scope of many recent works. Glass Transition Temperatures of polymers depend on various physical as well as chemical properties and thus calculation of Glass Transition Temperature using empirical methods require a detailed study of these chemicals. Empirical methods depend on the heating rate and the history of the material and for polymers with a wide range of glass transition temperatures, these experimental methods can pose challenges on the first run. This paper proposes a Long Short- Term Memory (LSTM) model based on Simplified Molecular-Input Line-Entry System (SMILES) structure of polymer molecules to predict the Glass Transition Temperature. The paper goes on to study the results obtained from the model and discuss application of the proposed model in real world.

In the present investigation CdSe thin film was deposited on chemically cleaned glass substrate using ‘Thermal evaporation method’ by maintaining vacuum at 10−5 mbar inside the coating unit. Optical properties of the deposited films were studied under different annealing temperature using UV–VIS-Spectrophotometer named Hitachi U-3900. Band gap of the deposited films annealed at different temperature were determined by transmission spectra which showed variation with annealing temperature. Crystal structure of CdSe films were determined by X-Ray diffractogram, which showed high grain size at higher annealing temperature. Surface morphology of the film annealed at higher temperature was investigated using SEM analysis in JSM-6360. Various optical analysis such as absorption co-efficient and extinction co-efficient also have been investigated.

The study analyzed the pattern of building wall temperature (BWT) and road surface temperature (RST) in both urban and suburban area and its relation to traffic volume at Jorhat municipal area. The surface temperature pattern is assessed using the FLIR TG-165 spot thermal imaging camera and HTC MT-4 IR thermometer, while traffic volume is investigated through schedule survey and video recording over the selected urban roads. The study revealed a positive correlation between traffic volumes with BWT and RST, though the correlation is quite stronger with RST. The higher positive relationship between traffic volume and RST has been noticed mostly in the shadowing part of the surface, whereas on the other hand, the relationship pattern of BWT with traffic volume is also found noticeably higher at the shadowed part of the surface. In both analyses, the relationship between traffic with RST and BWT is identified as remarkably stronger at midday and afternoon period. The urban areas with maximum traffic congestion are identified as accountable for the higher BWT and RST.

The nexus of remittances and CO2 emission is very important and gathers a significant place in empirical research. This paper tries to find out the asymmetric relationship between carbon emissions, remittances, and financial development in India for the period 1980-2014. Based on the theoretical linkages, we develop a nonlinear ARDL model with the use of time series data in this study. The results of the NARDL bound test suggest that there is long-run cointegration among the variables. The findings show that positive shock in remittances causes an increase in CO2 emissions, where negative shock reduces it. The coefficient for financial development is positive but becomes statistically insignificant. Empirical results also support the existence of asymmetric long-run relationship among the variables. Based on the findings, the paper recommends the proper channelization of remittances and financial development towards environment-friendly energy sources and projects without compromising economic growth.

The understanding of surface urban heat island pattern above Dibrugarh City has been studied through in situ observation using non-contact infrared thermometer for a period of 4 months by covering 16 selected locations. The chosen locations envelop both urban and suburban sites. The study draws attention to urban hot spots toward the central part of the city all through the different months in addition to the seasons, owing to heat retention supported by the built environment with fewer vegetation cover. Seasonally winter uncovered utmost variability of LST indicated by higher CV value. The core locations/sites witnessed a least amount of variability and continuity of higher LST throughout the learning months. At diurnal pattern, LST designated a sharp decrease from morning to afternoon period through winter months, while contrastingly summer months witnessed a sharp fall of LST from afternoon to night period. Among all the surfaces, asphalt pavement noticed maximum surface temperature with maximum variability in both diurnal and temporal scales. Maximum assimilation with fewer albedo of asphalt surface along with drier soil and grass comes across maximum LST in the internal part of the city. In addition, traffic, pollution and anthropogenic heat emission supported warmer surface temperature of asphalt, grass and bare soil, which on the whole put into the growth of higher surface heat. The stronger affirmative correlation coefficient amid the temperature of different surfaces with air temperature and comparatively weaker unconstructive correlation with relative humidity witnessed the dominant role of air temperature on overall surface urban heat island process.

The intermittent dry spells during growing season of winter or sali rice, cultivated in NBPZ of Assam located in the foothills of Eastern Himalayan region, is a major weather risk causing widespread damage to the crop. Herein, variability of rainfall in Lakhimpur district situated in NBPZ was studied. A significant decreasing trend of annual and seasonal rainfall was observed. Significant decrease in monsoon rainfall and increase in monthly rainfall variability clearly explains the recent rainfall fluctuations with increasing frequency of intermittent dry spells and flash floods. A participatory evaluation trial was conducted in Chamua village of Lakhimpur district having different land situations to identify climate resilient technologies to cope with seasonal drought in sali rice. High-yielding short-duration varieties, viz., Dishang, Luit, Lachit and Kolong, and medium-duration varieties, viz., Basundhara, Mohan, Mulagabhoru and TTB-404 performed consistently better than the long-duration HYV or the traditional varieties under upland and medium land situations, respectively. Though the effect of dry spells on long-duration varieties cultivated on low lands was least, yield of these varieties reduced up to 43.07% when sowing was delayed beyond 23rd of June. Performance of the delayed sown varieties was further declined, when exposed to dry spells at later growth stages. However, adverse impact of dry spells can be managed effectively by replacing farmers’ varieties with short and medium-duration high-yielding varieties in upland and medium lands, respectively, and manipulating sowing time of long-duration varieties for low lands.

An energetic nitrogen plasma stream of a pulsed plasma accelerator was used to study plasma matter interaction with stainless steel 304 samples. The high velocity plasma stream was allowed ...

Artículo escrito por un elevado número de autores, solo se referencian el que aparece en primer lugar, el nombre del grupo de colaboración, si le hubiere, y los autores pertenecientes a la UAM, The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search low ionization threshold experiment (CDMSlite) achieved efficient detection of very small recoil energies in its germanium target, resulting in sensitivity to lightly ionizing particles (LIPs) in a previously unexplored region of charge, mass, and velocity parameter space. We report first direct-detection limits calculated using the optimum interval method on the vertical intensity of cosmogenically produced LIPs with an electric charge smaller than e / (3 × 105), as well as the strongest limits for charge ≤ e / 160, with a minimum vertical intensity of 1.36 × 10−7 cm−2 s−1 sr−1 at charge e /160. These results apply over a wide range of LIP masses (5 MeV / c2 to 100 TeV / c2) and cover a wide range of βγ values (0.1–106), thus excluding nonrelativistic LIPs with βγ as small as 0.1 for the first time

Large mass single-electron-resolution solid state detectors are desirable to search for low mass dark matter candidates and to measure coherent elastic neutrino nucleus scattering (CE$\nu$NS). Here, we present results from a novel 100 g phonon-mediated Si detector with a new interface architecture. This detector gives a baseline resolution of $\sim 1 e^{-}/h^{+}$ pair and a leakage current on the order of $10^{-16}$ A. This was achieved by removing the direct electrical contact between the Si crystal and the metallic electrode, and by increasing the phonon absorption efficiency of the sensors. The phonon signal amplification in the detector shows a linear increase while the signal to noise ratio improves with bias voltage, up to 240 V. This feature enables the detector to operate at a low energy threshold which is beneficial for dark matter and CE$\nu$NS like searches., Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures

This article presents an analysis and the resulting limits on light dark matter inelastically scattering off of electrons, and on dark photon and axion-like particle absorption, using a second-generation SuperCDMS high-voltage eV-resolution detector. The 0.93 gram Si detector achieved a 3 eV phonon energy resolution; for a detector bias of 100 V, this corresponds to a charge resolution of 3% of a single electron-hole pair. The energy spectrum is reported from a blind analysis with 1.2 gram-days of exposure acquired in an above-ground laboratory. With charge carrier trapping and impact ionization effects incorporated into the dark matter signal models, the dark matter-electron cross section $\bar{\sigma}_{e}$ is constrained for dark matter masses from 0.5--$10^{4} $MeV$/c^{2}$; in the mass range from 1.2--50 eV$/c^{2}$ the dark photon kinetic mixing parameter $\varepsilon$ and the axioelectric coupling constant $g_{ae}$ are constrained. The minimum 90% confidence-level upper limits within the above mentioned mass ranges are $\bar{\sigma}_{e}\,=\,8.7\times10^{-34}$ cm$^{2}$, $\varepsilon\,=\,3.3\times10^{-14}$, and $g_{ae}\,=\,1.0\times10^{-9}$., Comment: 5 pages + title and references, 3 figures and 1 table

A novel transition-metal free synthetic strategy has been developed for the direct synthesis of quaternary phosphonium triflates via insertion of aryne into phosphine oxide. This methodology provides good yields of quaternary phosphonium salts and one of the synthesized phosphonium salts has been unambiguously established by single crystal XRD study. Preliminary mechanistic studies suggest that the reaction proceeds via a sequential [2 + 2] cycloaddition followed by the o-arylation and protonation pathway.

We present an analysis of electron recoils in cryogenic germanium detectors operated during the SuperCDMS Soudan experiment. The data are used to set new constraints on the axioelectric coupling of axionlike particles and the kinetic mixing parameter of dark photons, assuming the respective species constitutes all of the galactic dark matter. This study covers the mass range from 40 eV/c2 to 500 keV/c2 for both candidates, excluding previously untested parameter space for masses below ∼1 keV/c2. For the kinetic mixing of dark photons, values below 10−15 are reached for particle masses around 100 eV/c2; for the axioelectric coupling of axionlike particles, values below 10−12 are reached for particles with masses in the range of a few-hundred eV/c2.

Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection causes 1.8 million deaths worldwide, of which half a million has been diagnosed with resistant tuberculosis (TB). Emergence of multi drug resistant and extensive drug resistant strains has made all the existing anti-TB therapy futile. The major involvement of efflux pump in drug resistance has made it a direct approach for therapeutic exploration against resistant M. tuberculosis. This study demarcates the role of 11H-pyrido[2,1-b]quinazolin-11-one (quinazolinone) analogues as efflux pump inhibitor in Mycobacterium smegmatis. Sixteen quinazolinone analogues were synthesized by treating 2-aminopyridine and 2-fluorobenzonitrile with KtOBu. Analogues were tested, and 3a, 3b, 3c, 3g, 3j, 3l, 3m, and 3p were found to modulate EtBr MIC by >4 whereas 3a, 3g, 3i and 3o showed >4 modulation on norfloxacin MIC. 3l and 3o in addition to their very low toxicity they showed high EtBr and norfloxacin accumulation respectively. Time kill curve showed effective log reduction in colony forming unit in presence of these analogues, thus confirming their role as efflux pump inhibitor. Through docking and alignment studies, we have also shown that the LfrA amino acid residues that the analogues are interacting with are present in Rv2333c and Rv2846c of M. tuberculosis. This study have shown for the first time the possibility of developing the 11H-pyrido[2,1-b]quinazolin-11-one analogues as efflux pump inhibitors for M. smegmatis and hence unbolts the scope to advance this study against resistant M. tuberculosis as well.

A cascade synthetic strategy for the direct synthesis of 2-aroyl benzofurans from aryne precursors has been developed. This reaction proceeds via C-O and C-C bond cleavage as well as C-O and C-C bond formation in a single reaction vessel. The methodology provides good yields of 2-aroyl benzofurans and tolerates a variety of functional groups. The synthesized 2-aroyl benzofurans were further benzoylated at 3-positions and one of the synthesized 2,3-diaroyl benzofuran structures was confirmed unambiguously by X-ray crystallography.

In smallholdings and market gardens in India and other Asian countries, walk-behind hand-controlled tractors are the major source of farm power. Conventional manual transplanting of bare root vegetable seedlings is labor intensive and time consuming, and there exists a need for mechanical transplanting using a hand-controlled tractor as the source of power. A two-row vegetable transplanter for transplanting soil block seedlings was developed as matching equipment for a walk-behind hand tractor. Field performance, quality of work, cost of operation, and yield were compared with conventional manual transplanting of bare root seedlings using a row marker and hand hoe. Soil block seedlings were placed on a metering conveyor of the transplanter by two laborers who also maneuvered the hand tractor. Seedlings were carried by the horizontal chain conveyor to a hopper-type planting device that planted seedlings in an upright orientation. The planting rate of the transplanter was 31 plants·min−1 with a maxi...

Rhizomes of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) are widely used for their medicinal as well as flavoring properties and in order to concentrate on biological means of promoting turmeric cultivation in Assam, North East India, a greenhouse study was carried out to investigate the effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi association in modulating soil phosphatase activity and phosphorus uptake by plants. The effect of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi alone and in combination with phosphate solubilizing and nitrogen fixing bacteria was assessed on turmeric rhizosphere and treated plants exhibited an enhanced phosphatase activity of 18.11–21.19 µg p-nitrophenol g−1 h−1 at 90 days and 18.33–21.39 µg p-nitrophenol g−1 h−1 at 150 days after planting and then reduced to 13.89–16.60 µg p-nitrophenol g−1 h−1 at the time of harvest i.e. at 210 days after planting as compared to control. Phosphatase activity showed a rapid increase in dual and consortium inoculation in comparison to mono inoculation. A significantly higher available phosphorus concentration (7.10–8.50 mg kg−1 soil) in rhizospheric soil was observed at 90 days after planting in all the treated plants over control. Total phosphorus uptake by plants inoculated with all the treatment types were significantly higher (21.40–26.32 mg plant−1) compared with the control. This study suggests a synergistic interaction between arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi and plant growth promoting rhizobacteria on phosphorus dynamics in the rhizosphere of turmeric plants.

A pulsed plasma accelerator with quasi-steady type behaviour is of great interest to investigate fusion induced material damages which are expected inside an ITER like tokamak. The interaction of powerful plasma and particle fluxes with plasma-facing components during tokamak operation produces plasma instabilities such as hard disruptions, Edge Localised Modes etc. which causes significant damages to exposed surfaces and nearby components. In order to create a realistic environment for simulating these effects, a plasma accelerator with a specific amount of energy for certain time duration has long been considered as an appropriate test bed. This article discusses the basic design considerations taken into account while developing a quasi-steady type coaxial plasma accelerator that can produce plasma with energy density of ∼1 MJ/m 2 for 0.5 ms. The energy is achieved by a plasma stream of velocity ∼20 km/s produced using a 100 kA current pulse. The objectives and deliverables of the plasma system were considered based on the requirements of tokamak such as ITER. Some important plasma parameters were then estimated and used in the designing and installation of the system which is discussed in detail in this article along with some preliminary experimental results.

Worldwide leather industry is known to cause high degree of pollution such as soil and water contamination. Dyed trimming, a leather industry waste, is often dumped near the industrial site and is used for land filling. Recycling of such industrial wastes for making useful products by substituting leather has been investigated and reported here. Flexible composite sheets were made from dyed trimmings only and also in combination with natural fibres in various blend ratios. Wastes from jute and cotton were used as sources of natural fibres. The composite sheets showed maximum tensile strength and breaking loads at 50:50 blend ratios of dyed trimmings and natural fibres. The ultimate tensile strength, elongation, double fold, bursting strength, density and water and oil absorption characteristics of the composite sheets were determined as per American Society for Testing and Materials and Indian Standard methods. The products, i.e. the composite sheets, and the starting materials, i.e. the dyed trimmings and jute and cotton fibres, were also characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis and scanning electron microscopy. Energy-dispersive X-ray analysis of both untreated and treated dyed trimmings was carried out and the presence of chromium 2.54% in untreated samples was recorded but the sample treated with NaOH did not show the presence of chromium. The natural fibre significantly improves the mechanical strength and thermal properties of the blended composite sheets with the increase in flexibility. These flexible sheets possess higher physical strength as compared to leather and may be used as leather substitute for making apparels and goods.

A 200 kJ pulsed power system (PPS) has been built up to drive pulsed plasma devices. This PPS consists of two 100 kJ capacitor bank modules, each comprising of five capacitors of each $178~\mu \text{F}$ , a discharge switch, and a pulse-shaping unit. When both the banks are charged simultaneously to −15 kV using full charging technique, it delivers a peak current 100 kA at the load (damping resistor and pulse-shaping inductor). Later on, a plasma system will be attached at the load which will also have an inductive and resistive effect. A fiber-optic triggering unit controls both the modules and there exists a flexibility of sometimes operating a single module only, besides there are provisions for further up gradation of the PPS to a targeted 600 kJ. Prior to this development, PSpice simulation was carried out to estimate the parameters of the circuit components to achieve the required wave pulse with precision. Using these parameters, a design of the PPS was made keeping into account about the critical issues involved and the ratings of the components, some of which were fabricated in house. This paper basically includes the criticality surrounding the operation of a high-energy long-pulse PPS under negative operating voltage.

Establishing vegetables in the field using mechanical transplanters with only plant metering devices requires transplants with heavy soil blocks around the roots. An investigation was conducted to study the effects of amount of vermicompost in a soil-based potting mix and initial compaction of the mix on growth of seedlings and soil block strength for mechanical transplanting. Seedlings of Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), Eggplant (S. melongena L.), and Chili pepper (Capsicum frutenscens L.) were produced in two seasons in plastic plug trays with a potting medium in which vermicompost made up 20%–50% by volume in 60 and 100 cc tray cells. Potting mix with 20% vermicompost by volume in soil in 100 cc cells produced good growth of tomato and chili pepper transplants in season 1. Potting mix containing 20%–30% and 20%–40% vermicompost in soil in 100 cc cells produced good growth of tomato and chili pepper transplants, respectively, in season 2. Potting mix with 30%–40% and 30% vermicompost by volume...

We present limits on spin-independent dark matter-nucleon interactions using a $10.6$ $\mathrm{g}$ Si athermal phonon detector with a baseline energy resolution of $\sigma_E=3.86 \pm 0.04$ $(\mathrm{stat.})^{+0.19}_{-0.00}$ $(\mathrm{syst.})$ $\mathrm{eV}$. This exclusion analysis sets the most stringent dark matter-nucleon scattering cross-section limits achieved by a cryogenic detector for dark matter particle masses from $93$ to $140$ $\mathrm{MeV}/c^2$, with a raw exposure of $9.9$ $\mathrm{g}\cdot\mathrm{d}$ acquired at an above-ground facility. This work illustrates the scientific potential of detectors with athermal phonon sensors with eV-scale energy resolution for future dark matter searches., Comment: 7 pages, 4 figures, this version includes ancillary files from official data release

A Pd(II)-catalyzed oxidative annulation reaction of 4-hydroxycoumarin and arylcarboxylic acid via double C-H bond activations has been accomplished for the synthesis of bis-coumarins. This synthetic strategy provides a wide range of structurally diversified bis-coumarins in moderate to good yields with a variety of functional group compatibility. Moreover, photophysical properties of synthesized bis-coumarins have been evaluated, which reveals their interesting fluorescent properties.

An atypical electrical behavior of WS2 nanosheets deposited on Cu electrodes is reported here. The characteristic Raman peaks at 355cm-1 and 421.8cm-1 confirm the few-layer structure of WS2. The addition of heavy metal ions of ~30 micro Liter on this platform results in non-ohmic behavior in I-V characteristics, accompanied by a dramatic rise of current from nA to micro Ampere Additionally, this atypical behavior is found to be reversible. Subsequent to removal of these ions from the nanosheets, it again exhibits normal ohmic I-V characteristics. It is envisioned that this unusual characteristic will pave way for more research in the sensing direction as well as relevant fields., 10 pages, 5 figures

Herein, we report the synthesis of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) by a green route using the aqueous leaf extract of Morus indica L. V1. The synthesized AgNPs exhibited maximum UV-Vis absorbance at 460 nm due to surface plasmon resonance. The average diameter (~54 nm) of AgNPs was measured from HR-TEM analysis. EDX spectra also supported the formation of AgNPs, and negative zeta potential value (−14 mV) suggested its stability. Moreover, a shift in the carbonyl stretching (from 1639 cm−1 to 1630 cm−1) was noted in the FT-IR spectra of leaf extract after AgNPs synthesis which confirm the role of natural products present in leaves for the conversion of silver ions to AgNPs. The four bright circular rings (111), (200), (220) and (311) observed in the selected area electron diffraction pattern are the characteristic reflections of face centered cubic crystalline silver. LC-MS/MS study revealed the presence of phytochemicals in the leaf extract which is responsible for the reduction of silver ions. MTT assay was performed to investigate the cytotoxicity of AgNPs against two human cell lines, namely HepG2 and WRL-68. The antibacterial study revealed that MIC value of the synthesized AgNPs was 80 µg/ml against Escherichia coli K12 and Staphylococcus aureus (MTCC 96). Finally, the synthesized AgNPs at 10 µg/ml dosages showed beneficial effects on the survivability, body weights of the Bombyx mori L. larvae, pupae, cocoons and shells weights via enhancing the feed efficacy.

The study has been conducted using IR (infrared) thermometer over 16 sites at Jorhat town for a period of 5 months. The study area constitutes urban, suburban, and peripheral rural locations. The study focuses on depicting the diurnal, monthly, and seasonal dynamics of ST condition of Jorhat town. The diurnal pattern revealed the peak ST at midday for all months, while the lowest ST is in the morning during July, September, and October, and conversely in the afternoon period during the months of November to December. The month of October displayed a maximum ST at 38.30 °C. Though, the maximum range of ST has been identified in the month of November (9.48 °C). Seasonally, the overall monsoon depicts a higher ST than post-monsoon and winter. But remarkably, the maximum intensity of ST was investigated in the post-monsoonal period. Interestingly, the RST and BWT displayed a dissimilar pattern showing the peak ST in the month of July and October while the lowest is during in the month of December respectively. The concentration of built environment with less vegetation cover is considered as a causative factor for the development of the peak ST all throughout the study period in the central part of the town.

Author(s): Agnese, R; Aralis, T; Aramaki, T; Arnquist, IJ; Azadbakht, E; Baker, W; Banik, S; Barker, D; Bauer, DA; Binder, T; Bowles, MA; Brink, PL; Bunker, R; Cabrera, B; Calkins, R; Cameron, RA; Cartaro, C; Cerdeno, DG; Chang, YY; Cooley, J; Cornell, B; Cushman, P; De Brienne, F; Doughty, T; Fascione, E; Figueroa-Feliciano, E; Fink, CW; Fritts, M; Gerbier, G; Germond, R; Ghaith, M; Golwala, SR; Harris, HR; Herbert, N; Hong, Z; Hoppe, EW; Hsu, L; Huber, ME; Iyer, V; Jardin, D; Jastram, A; Jena, C; Kelsey, MH; Kennedy, A; Kubik, A; Kurinsky, NA; Lawrence, RE; Loer, B; Lopez Asamar, E; Lukens, P; Macdonell, D; Mahapatra, R; Mandic, V; Mast, N; Miller, E; Mirabolfathi, N; Mohanty, B; Morales Mendoza, JD; Nelson, J; Neog, H; Orrell, JL; Oser, SM; Page, WA; Partridge, R; Pepin, M; Ponce, F; Poudel, S; Pyle, M; Qiu, H; Rau, W; Reisetter, A; Ren, R; Reynolds, T; Roberts, A; Robinson, AE; Rogers, HE; Saab, T; Sadoulet, B; Sander, J; Scarff, A; Schnee, RW; Scorza, S; Senapati, K; Serfass, B; Speller, D | Abstract: The Cryogenic Dark Matter Search low ionization threshold experiment (CDMSlite) searches for interactions between dark matter particles and germanium nuclei in cryogenic detectors. The experiment has achieved a low energy threshold with improved sensitivity to low-mass (l10 GeV/c2) dark matter particles. We present an analysis of the final CDMSlite dataset, taken with a different detector than was used for the two previous CDMSlite datasets. This analysis includes a data "salting" method to protect against bias, improved noise discrimination, background modeling, and the use of profile likelihood methods to search for a dark matter signal in the presence of backgrounds. We achieve an energy threshold of 70 eV and significantly improve the sensitivity for dark matter particles with masses between 2.5 and 10 GeV/c2 compared to previous analyses. We set an upper limit on the dark matter-nucleon scattering cross section in germanium of 5.4×10-42 cm2 at 5 GeV/c2, a factor of ∼2.5 improvement over the previous CDMSlite result.

The effect of gas injection on the plasma in a pulsed plasma accelerator is important to determine the plasma stream velocity. Thereafter, the Plasma Surface Interaction and related issues during transient heat loading to a substrate depends on the mass flow rate and subsequent plasma stream velocity. In this work, the dependence of plasma stream velocity with the gas injection are analysed numerically in different gases such as Argon, Nitrogen, Helium and Hydrogen. The mass flow rates of the gases and their Alfven velocities with respect to the plasma-inherent magnetic field are determined. The quantity of gas inserted determines the working pressure of the system which, is dynamic in nature due to the prolonged insertion of gas throughout the discharge. The gas distribution profile of the injected gas obtained experimentally, using a piezo-resistive pressure probe, has been used in this analysis to obtain a plasma stream profile. Finally, the plasma stream energy density is calculated to relate the plasma parameters with that of Type-I Edge Localised Modes of ITER (International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor) like tokamak.

High fluoride (F−) concentration was detected in groundwater samples collected from three districts of the Brahmaputra valley of Assam, Nagaon, Kamrup Metropolitan (M) and West Karbi Anglong. The maximum F− value of 9 mgL−1 was found in southern Nagaon. About 38% of the total groundwater samples exceeded the WHO permissible limit of 1.5 mgL−1. Petrographic analyses revealed that micaceous minerals such as biotite and muscovite are the dominant contributors of F− in Nagaon and West Karbi Anglong; in Kamrup (M), it is biotite. The alkaline groundwater played a significant role in governing the dissolution and mobilization of F− from its sources. Silicate weathering was more prominent in Nagaon and West Karbi Anglong, while carbonate weathering was dominant in samples collected from Kamrup (M). Both cationic (Ca2+/Na+) and anionic (F−/OH−) exchange processes occurred extensively across the studied hydrogeochemical regime. PHREEQC simulations revealed that fluorite and calcite undersaturation govern the F− values in groundwater. This finding is well supported by the results of the dissolution experiment of rock samples, where powered samples (

The time-integrated spectroscopic measurements of argon plasma are carried out to characterize the transient plasma stream produced in a coaxial pulsed plasma accelerator. Transient plasmas produced in these types of devices have a temporal change in density and temperature. The temporal evolution of the plasma stream and its characteristic variation are studied from a time of 50–300 μs in steps of 50 μs. Analysis of different spectral lines shows the existence of some metastable states of Ar+ having a long lifetime. The evolution of different Ar+ transitions to metastable and non-metastable lower levels is observed for different time frames. From the Stark broadening and Boltzmann plot method assuming the partial local thermodynamic equilibrium model, the plasma densities and excitation temperatures are estimated. The temporal evolution study shows a decrease in plasma densities from 1.96 × 1021 m−3 at 50 μs to 1.23 × 1020 m−3 at 300 μs after the initiation of plasma formation. A reduction in excitation temperature is observed from 0.86 to 0.77 eV. Based on the density profile, the estimated energy density of the plasma stream shows a time-dependent decreasing trend from 0.06 to 0.004 MJ/m2 during the observed period. The results may be useful for optimization of the plasma stream in pulsed plasma accelerators concerning its different parameters.

CeO2 has been used as heterogeneous catalyst for carbon-carbon bond formation via cross-dehydrogenative coupling (CDC). It works efficiently for oxidative C−C bond formation between N-aryltetrahydroisoquinoline derivatives and a carbon nucleophile nitroalkane and acetone under aerobic conditions. This is the first report of CeO2 as a low temperature catalyst for the carbon-carbon bond formation reaction between two sp3 C−H bonds.

The present study was aimed at investigating the therapeutic potential of methanol crude extract of turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) rhizome co-inoculated with native arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (Glomus, Gigaspora and Acaulospora sp.), phosphate solubilizer Bacillus megaterium and diazotrophic bacteria, Azospirillum amazonense and Azotobacter sp. To achieve the goals, parameters like free-radical (DPPH, ABTS) scavenging capacity, total phenolic contents, total flavonoids contents and percentage of curcumin content were examined. A significant increase of these secondary metabolites were observed in inoculated plants compared to non-inoculated controls revealing strong antioxidant activities of turmeric against DPPH and ABTS radicals in the range of 80–97%. The high amount of flavonoids (179.07–493.15 mg RE g−1), phenolic contents (83.07–151.54 mg GAE g−1) and percentage of curcumin (4.81–6.09%) present in all the methanolic extracts of dried rhizomes might be responsible for the observed antioxidant activity.

Soil pH is a measure of soil alkalinity or acidity. It is a significant indicator of soil health. The acidic soil (low pH value) constitutes much of the areas of Jorhat district with proportionally small areas of neutral soil. The ‘r’ value of -0.538 with ‘P’value of 0.0365 express the existence of almost a strong negative as well as significant relationship between fertilizers consumption and pH value of soil. The dominance of highly acidic soil in the southern and central part of the Jorhat district portrays normally limited suitability (Low productivity) of soil for the cultivation of paddy (rice). Though most the areas in the northern part of Brahmaputra river (i.e. Majuli island) constitutes highly productive (production per ha) soil for paddy cultivation.

The solutions for many real life problems may be obtained by interpreting the given problem mathematically in the form f ( x ) = x . One such example is that of the famous Borsuk&ndash, Ulam theorem in which, using some fixed point argument, it can be guaranteed that at any given time we can find two diametrically opposite places in a planet with same temperature. Thus, the correlation of symmetry is inherent in the study of fixed point theory. In this article, some new results concerning coincidence and a common fixed point for an A &phi, contraction and a generalized ϕ -type weak contraction are established. We prove our results for set valued maps without using continuity of the corresponding maps and completeness of the relevant space. Our results generalize and extend several existing results. Some new examples are given to demonstrate the generality and non-triviality of our results.

Production of Xylanase from a potential bacterial strain Bacillus australimaris P5 and its characterization have been studied. The different parameters of enzyme production were optimized and a xylanase titre of 104 U/ml was obtained. The extracted xylanase was applied on unbleached bamboo pulp @ 10 U/g, maintaining temp at 60 °C, pH at 8, time 2 h and the pulp consistency at 10% which was found suitable for pre bleaching of bamboo unbleached pulp. Xylanase prebleaching decreased the pulp kappa no by 29.5% and improved ISO brightness by 11.4%. Pre-treatment also improved the physical properties of pulps and reduced the requirement of bleaching chemicals in subsequent bleaching steps. Variations in pulp cellulose crystallinity were measured by X-ray diffraction analysis. Scanning Electron Micrographs of cellulose fibre revealed the changes in the morphology and surface property in enzyme treated pulp fibers.

North eastern (NE) India harbours a precious germplasm repository of Capsicum in the form of various landraces. The present study was undertaken to characterise the extent of genetic variation present in different Capsicum landraces from north eastern India. A set of 171 Capsicum accessions were characterised using three-endonuclease amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) markers. Out of 416 bands obtained from six primer combinations, 254 (61 %) were polymorphic. The pairwise genetic dissimilarity among accessions ranged from 0.03 to 0.97. Cluster analysis based on neighbour joining showed two major clusters. Cluster I contained most of the bhut jolokia accessions whereas cluster II contained all of the Capsicum annuum genotypes. Similar grouping was observed with population STRUCTURE analysis as well as principle coordinate analysis. Analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed 45 and 54 % variation among and within populations, respectively. This information on population structure analysis and molecular characterisation will be helpful for effective utilisation of this germplasm in Capsicum improvement programs.

Summary A gregarious larval parasitoid, Cotesia dictyoplocae (Watanabe) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae: Microgastrinae), is reported for the first time from the host Antheraea assamensis Helfer (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae) from Assam, India. This wasp is a gregarious larval parasitoid and produces on an average 30 cocoons per host larva. Parasitized larvae are easily identified by the aggregation of exposed yellowish white cocoons on the body. Larval parasitism in natural conditions was low. Removal of parasitized larvae by hand is suggested.

A metal-free cascade reaction strategy has been developed for the synthesis of novel polycyclic 2-formylthiophenes from β-halo-α,β-unsaturated aldehydes and 1,4-dithiane-2,5-diols. A recyclable polymer supported organic base was used to perform the reaction process. This synthetic protocol was applied to synthesize several novel polycyclic thiophenes including steroidal D-ring annelated thiophene. Our synthetic strategy provides a high yield of thiophenes, avoids a tedious work-up procedure and minimizes the formation of waste.

In the present article, we introduce the new concept of start point in a directed graph and provide the characterizations required for a directed graph to have a start point. We also define the notion of a self path set valued map and establish its relation with start point in the setting of a metric space endowed with a directed graph. Further, some fixed point theorems for set valued maps have been proven in this context. A version of the Knaster–Tarski theorem has also been established using our results.

We provide some new fixed point results which are inspired by the works of Suzuki and Kannan. The results are proved using the properties of sequentially convergent mappings and $A$-contractions. Existence and uniqueness of fixed points of self maps satisfying certain conditions are investigated in a complete metric space.

Tea clones and seed varieties released from Tocklai Tea Research Institutes are suitable primarily for manufacturing black tea (CTC/orthodox) while green tea manufactured from these clones are poor in quality. This led to identifying germplasm suitable for manufacturing green tea of high quality. Physiological parameters on net photosynthesis, transpiration, stomatal conductance, water-use efficiency, leaf temperature, and carboxylation efficiency of six selected germplasm (DH 1 and 2, DH 3 and 4, DH 5 and 6, DL 13, DL 25, and DL 39) were measured in first flush, second flush, rain flush, and autumn flush. Seasonal Yield, biochemical (L-theanine to total polyphenol ratio), and taster&rsquo, s score were compared among seasons. Two protocols were used for green tea manufacturing, i.e., roasting and steaming. Significant differences in net photosynthesis (pn), stomatal conductance (gs), carboxylation efficiency (ci/ca), and yield were observed between flushes. Among the six test clones, the L-theanine to total polyphenol ratio found was highest in DH 5 and 6 in the roasting method. Structural and cluster analysis revealed that the DH clones genotypically occupied the same position as that of the popular green tea clone Longjing 43 of China and Yabukita of Japan, indicating suitability of these germplasm to develop new green tea clones. Clones DH 5 and 6 are suitable for green tea manufacturing and they can be released to the industry as new green tea clones. As far as manufacturing protocol is concerned, the roasting method of tea manufacturing was found superior over steaming.

The measurement of plasma stream velocity in a coaxial pulsed plasma accelerator using two pairs of double plate probe (DPP) is reported in this article. The device produces a quasisteady type high velocity and high energy plasma stream for a duration of a few hundreds of microseconds. A simple arrangement of DPP with capacitor based biasing circuits was developed in-house which detected two different instances of plasma stream reaching the probe plates. This time interval gave the measure of plasma stream velocity using the known distance of separation between the probes. A spectroscopic study of the stream velocity was also performed to validate the findings of DPP. In this experiment, nitrogen and argon gases were considered as the operating medium. The velocities of Argon and Nitrogen were found to be (25 ± 1.5) km/s and (28.5 ± 0.5) km/s, respectively. The energy density of the plasma stream is calculated from the measured velocity, and it is found to be (0.8 ± 0.05) MJ/m2 for argon plasma and (0.3 ± 0.02) MJ/m2 for nitrogen plasma. The value of energy density is significant for studying fusion relevant plasma matter interaction.

A novel transition-metal-free direct synthesis of 3-substituted isocoumarin from 4-hydroxycoumarin and a benzyne precursor is developed. This synthetic strategy proceeds via C–O and C–C bond cleavage as well as C–O and C–C bond formations in a single reaction vessel by simple treatment with CsF in the absence of catalyst. This methodology affords moderate to good yields of 3-substituted isocoumarins and is tolerant of a variety of functional groups including halide.