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Now a days, social media like Twitter has become a vital source of information so that people can get aware of the information. To spread something important news which will be very useful for people, social media plays a big role. There are some people who spread information just for fun or having their own motive that information can create havoc, that type of news is called fake news. Due to growth in use of social media, fake news can cause serious problems in society. So, many researchers are now getting involved in extracting useful information and removing fake news. We give an outline of investigation into web based life bits of rumours with a definitive objective of building up talk order framework that comprises of four parts: rumour detection, rumour tracking, rumour stance classification, and rumour veracity classification. We dig into the methodologies introduced in the logical writing for the advancement of every one of these four parts.

In this article, investigative study for measuring electric current using temperature sensitivity of fiber Bragg grating (FBG) is discussed. An FBG is kept inside a nichrome coil, which was pre-calibrated with respect to current and temperature by applying known value of current and measuring corresponding temperature. Two types of setups were used for the experiment: with and without housing. We found that the results were quite consistent and stable with the housing setup. The proposed current sensor has shown good response, repeatability, and very low hysteresis.

In the present paper, the effect of counter surface temperature and load on the transition from mild to severe wear of A319/15%SiCp, A336/15%SiCp, and A390/15%SiCp composites have been reported. Composites were produced through stir casting route. Adhesive wear behavior of composites was studied under dry reciprocating conditions using indigenously developed reciprocating friction wear test rig conforming to ASTM standard G133-05. It was found that increase in counter surface temperature increases wear rate and depending upon the load and type of composite mode of wear changes from mild oxidative to severe metallic wear noticed. At 120N load, the critical transition temperature for all the three Al-Si-SiCp composites was found to be 350°C. SEM study of wear surface and wear debris was conducted to analyze the mode of wear and operating wear mechanism. Severe wear was characterized by massive plastic deformation and gross material removal while the mild wear was found to be associated with delamination and scoring as main wear mechanisms responsible for material loss.

Some new 8-hydroxyquinoline derivatives, 1,4-di(bis(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminum-oxy)benzene, abbreviated as Alq(1), and 1,2-di(bis(8-hydroxyquinoline)aluminum-oxy)benzene, abbreviated as Alq(2), have been synthesized for organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) applications. Complexes are thermally evaporable as well as highly soluble in common organic solvents. Bright green photoluminescence (PL) peak appeared in the range of 520–525 nm in solid and solution forms. OLEDs were successfully prepared via both the ways by physical vapor deposition and by spin coating of the complexes. The performance of devices prepared by physical vapor deposition, was compared with that of well-studied Alq3. The device based on Alq(1), showed the brightness of 1400 cd/m2 at 8 V, while only 602 cd/m2 was observed for the device based on Alq3 at the same applied voltage, when the devices were prepared in the identical conditions. Alq(1) device showed the maximum luminous efficiency of 0.94 cd/A at 0.1 A/cm2, while 0.75 cd/A at 0.1 A/cm2, was observed for Alq3 based device. A comparative characteristics study of the new complexes with that of Alq3 revealed that the new complexes are somewhat better than Alq3.

Undoped and manganese ion-doped TiO 2 powders and thin films have been prepared by sol–gel route. The concentration of the manganese in TiO 2 powders and films varied from 2 to 10 mol%. These powders were annealed at different temperatures from 300 to 1000 °C while films were annealed at 450 °C for 1 h. Prepared samples were characterized by XRD, SEM, XPS, spectroscopic and contact angle measurement techniques. Photocatalytic activity, in terms of rate constant measured by degradation of methylene blue dye, under UV exposure was found to increase from 0.27 to 0.36 for 5 mol% doping while very small photo activity has been observed under visible light exposure. Hydrophillicity also shows the same behavior. Optical studies revealed the generation of allowed energy band in the forbidden gap at ∼0.63 eV below the conduction band. It has been concluded that Mn doping increases photocatalytic activity by scavenging the photogenerated electrons, thereby increasing the life time of charge carriers and increasing the exposed surface area by reducing the crystallite size.

Nickel doped and undoped TiO2 films have been coated on cleaned glass substrates by sol–gel dip coating technique. Coated films were characterized by XRD, XPS, AFM and photocatalytic measurements after annealing at 500 °C. XRD studies confirmed the formation of anatase phase in both the films and crystallites size decreased from 10 to 6 nm in doped films with porous structure. From XPS observations, prominent decrease in C/Ti, increase in O/Ti and an enhancement of Ti3+ states at the film surface has been observed after Ni doping. The increase in O/Ti was related to partial replacement of Ti by Ni atoms. The photo degradation studies indicated the pseudo-first-order kinetics and an increase in kinetic constant by factor of two have been obtained in 10 M Ni doped films. The enhancement of photoactivity after doping was attributed to removal of surface carbon and increase in Ti3+ concentration.

Large inflatable structures have been the subject of renewed interest for scientists/engineers in recent years due to their potential space applications such as communication antennas, solar thermal propulsion and space solar power. The major advantages of using inflatable structures in space are their extremely low-weight, on-orbit deployability and inherent low launch volume. An inflated torus is a key component of many inflated space structures such as a thin membrane reflector. In view of their importance, structural static and dynamic behavior of inflated torus need to be investigated. In order to develop a more realistic model, dynamic interaction between the enclosed fluid and the torus has been included in the present work. An appreciable decrease in the modal frequencies is observed when fluid–structure interaction is taken into account. Some additional modes are also obtained. It is concluded that fluid–structure interaction significantly affects the dynamic behavior of inflatable space structures.

For over 40 years the current–voltage ( J – V ) characteristics of an organic diode with exponentially distributed traps have been interpreted using the equation J ∝ V m , where m > 2. This equation is based on the classical work of Helfrich and Mark (W. Helfrich, P. Mark, Z. Phys. 168 (1962) 495). It is based on the assumption that the injection barrier is zero. However, the recent results show that in many cases the Schottky barrier is not zero and modification in this equation is necessary. We present a mathematical simulation, taking into account the effect of non-zero Schottky barrier. The experiments show good agreement with the simulated results.

In this study, usefulness of failure analysis in improving productivity through selection of better materials and heat treatments that delay or prevent the on set of fracture in precision forging of aerospace components is illustrated. Examples have been taken from failed cold working dies, hot forging dies and broaches. Detailed metallographic analysis of the microstructures and fractures has pinpointed the sources and mechanisms of failure. This, in turn, has indicated the means of preventing such failures in service and, in improving die life and performance, by using advanced materials and optimizing heat treatments and surface engineering treatments.

Pure and nickel doped TiO2 thin films on soda glass substrates were prepared by sol–gel dip coating process. The resulting films were annealed at 500 °C for 1 h and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and UV–vis-near IR techniques. AFM reveals that doping of Ni ions suppresses the grain growth of crystal in the TiO2 film. The contact angle with water of these films was measured by sessile drop method. The undoped films could be entirely wetted by water after 1 h UV illuminations, while 0.5 mol% Ni ion-doped films become entirely wetted after 20 min UV illumination. The photo-catalytic activity was characterized by photo-catalytic degradation of aqueous methyl orange under UV radiation. It is found that, with a suitable amount (2–10 mol%), the Ni dopant increases the photo-catalytic activity of TiO2 films. The mechanism can be attributed to these processes: (1) as the anatase grain sizes decrease with Ni doping and the specific surface areas of doped TiO2 films increase, the charge transfer in TiO2 film is promoted; (2) by enhancing the electron–hole pair separation and inhibiting their recombination, the Ni dopant enhances the charge pair separation efficiency for doped TiO2 films.

The structural modification and properties of polymeric materials are of utmost importance in deciding their applications. In the present study, the synthesis of polyaniline (PANI) has been carried out via chemical oxidation in acidic medium by potassium-dichromate and the yield of synthesized polyaniline was found to be 75–80%. The copper per chlorate tetrabenzonitrile salt (CuClO 4 ·4BN) used for chemical doping in synthesized polyaniline is stable in organic solvent like acetonitrile (AN) and benzonitrile (BN). The effect of Cu +1 oxidation state (dopant) in polyaniline has been characterized by FTIR. Electrical and dielectric measurements show the decrease in the intensity of the Cu +1 salt signal and the appearance of a radical signal due to the formation of oxidative coupled in polymeric species. Electrical and dielectric properties of doped polyaniline samples show significant changes due to the effect of dopant (CuClO 4 ·4BN). It is observed that the conductivity is contributing both by formation of ionic complex and particularly dominated by electronic due to the mobility of charge carriers along the polyaniline chain.

Natural groundwater recharge is estimated using the injected tracer technique in the Bairasagara watershed of Kolar district, Karnataka (India) comprising of medium grained granite and granitic gneiss with weathering/fracturing up to 46 m depth. On a macroscopic scale, it is estimated that the weathered granites act as a uniform body having a recharge capacity of about 6–200 mm per annum for an average value of rainfall of 968 mm. Marked differences of infiltration rates (nil to 130 cm/year) were observed under cultivated and dry areas. The water level fluctuation and recharge are found to be minimum in the ayacut area as compared to the catchment area. Studies helped in demarcating recharge and discharge areas. Qualitative correlation studies of estimated natural groundwater recharge have been carried out with depth to basement, resistivity of subsurface layers, and water level fluctuations. An attempt has been made to get empirical relationships between recharge vs. depth to basement, and recharge vs. water level fluctuations. The paper discusses the studies carried out, the result obtained, and the importance of such studies in the evaluation of groundwater resources.

Nickel-base hardfacing alloys have been chosen to replace cobalt-base alloys as hardfacing material for components of the Indian Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor, for minimising the dose rate to personnel during maintenance and decommissioning, and to reduce the shielding thickness required for component handling. Induced activity, dose rate and shielding computations showed that replacing cobalt-base alloys with nickel-base alloys for hardfacing of components would result in a marked reduction in both the dose rate from the components and the thickness of lead handling flasks. Long-term ageing studies on the nickel-base hardface deposits on austenitic stainless steel showed that the hardface deposit would retain adequate hardness at the end of the components' design service-life of 40 years of exposure at 823 K.

Optical sensing techniques are well known for precise and non-intrusive measurements. With the availability of optical fibers and fiber optic components in recent years, fiber optics based sensing has emerged as a rapidly growing field with several potential benefits over the conventional electrical and electronic sensors. Intensity modulation based fiber optic sensors are conceptually simple, ruggedised and cost-effective as they can be implemented using less expensive multimode fibers and their assemblies and other components. Experimental investigations have been carried out and a reflectance modulation based fiber optic technique developed for on-line monitoring the quality of polish/whiteness of rice. The paper discusses the aspects of design, implementation & characteristic investigations of the said technique for monitoring the quality of polish of rice and highlights its salient technical features

In the on-demand usage of wireless sensor networks over the internet, fault tolerance is an exigent task to improve the overall performance of service computing. In the proposed research work, an attempt has been made to make use of an artificial bee colony approach to find data aggregation for providing fault tolerance in wireless sensor networks (WSNs) and to make effective utilisation of the existing resources over the internet. In this paper, it is tried to apply quadratic minimum spanning tree (Q-MST) which is an artificial intelligence technique to provide fault tolerance along with data aggregation in WSN. Q-MST is used to improve the fault tolerance in WSN to transmit data packets from the source node to sink node. Ant colony, PRIMS and Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO) algorithms are used for generating minimum spanning tree (MST) which can be used for data aggregation. The Q-MST is an improved version of minimum spanning tree where an ordered pair of distinct edges would be considered for implementing an alternative edge for the existing edge failure in MST.

The phytochemical investigation of Heliotropium subulatum, guided by bioassay, led to the isolation of heliotrine, 7-angeloyl heliotrine, retronecine, subulacine and subulacine- N -oxide. It has been reported that 7-angeloyl heliotrine was the major alkaloid both in vivo (0.42%) and in vitro (0.25%) cell cultures. Antineoplastic, cytotoxic and antiviral activities of ethanol, hexane, dichloromethane crude extracts and isolated pyrrolizidine alkaloids have been screened by packed cell volume and plaque inhibition methods. The 7-angeloyl heliotrine and retronecine showed activity at 5µg/kg/day of 41.7 and 38.6% inhibition against Sarcoma 180. The hexane extract (3µg/ml) and 7-angeloyl heliotrine (10 and 5µg/ml) showed selective cytotoxicity against Chinese hamster V 79 cells. The ethanol and hexane crude extract showed significant antiviral activity to Coxsackie, Poliomyelitis and Measles at 500 and 100µg/ml concentrations, while heliotrine and 7-angeloyl heliotrine possess activity against Poliomyelitis an...

In a large scale sensor network, minimum spanning tree is evaluated to route data to a sink node in a hop by hop manner. But in this route any node can be compromised or a compromised node can be included and it can inject false data or it can alter the existing data. Therefore, to provide a security we use a COmpromised nOde Locator protocol (COOL) by which we can remove compromised node from the network. When a compromised node is detected then this protocol prevents further damages from misbehaved node and forms a reliable and energy saving sensor network. Thus in our proposed algorithm, we make a path using minimum spanning tree and maintains security (COOL protocol) in wireless sensor networks. Thus, by combining both (MST and COOL protocol) we creates a secure and energy conserving environment in which sensor nodes can communicate through the sink node which is the node whom all nodes send the data through routing. Also we can check the node consistency using the hash values.

During the last few years the developments in the field of III–nitrides have been spectacular. High quality epitaxial layers can now be grown by MOVPE. Recently good quality epilayers have also been grown by MBE. Considerable work has been done on dislocations, strain, and critical thickness of GaN grown on different substrates. Splitting of valence band by crystal field and by spin-orbit interaction has been calculated and measured. The measured values agree with the calculated values. Effects of strain on the splitting of the valence band and on the optical properties have been studied in detail. Values of band offsets at the heterointerface between several pairs of different nitrides have been determined. Extensive work has been done on the optical and electrical properties. Near band-edge spectra have been measured over a wide range of temperatures. Free and bound exciton peaks have been resolved. Valence band structure has been determined using the PL spectra and compared with the theoretically calcu...

We report the case of a 43-year-old female who presented to us with trismus. She was found to have unilateral tonsillar enlargement on examination. A computerised tomography scan revealed an enhancing mass lesion involving the infratemporal fossa and the parapharyngeal space. A fine needle aspiration cytology of the enlarged tonsil revealed actinomycosis. The patient responded well to tonsillectomy followed by medical management and is asymptomatic 6 months following the completion of treatment.

The dosimetry of internally administered radiopharmaceuticals in nuclear medicine procedures using MIRD formalisms and dosimetry in the case of intakes of radionuclides and ICRP methodology for the purpose of radiological protection are well established working practices. It should, however, be remembered that dose or dose coefficients calculated refer to a reference individual, defined in terms of a mathematical phantom established on the basis of certain biokinetic reference parameters. The reference individual represents a typical caucasian adult of West Europe or North American origin. Recently, some attempts have been made to define a Reference Asian and a Reference Indian individual and to assess the effects of anatomical differences and changes in the biokinetics of radiopharmaceuticals and other radionuclides in these different reference individuals on the estimation of dose and dose coefficients in relation to the intake of internal radionuclides. The assessment of doses to the embryo/fetus due to intake of radionuclides by pregnant women, local dose estimates, microdosimetry, radiobiology and radiation protection aspects relating to Auger electron emitters represent other areas of active research in the area of dosimetry of internal emitters. The present review summarises these different aspects of work.

The availability of the required information input for embryo/fetus dosimetry due to internal emitters is far from satisfactory. A variety of anthropometric standards for reference both for national and international agencies have been proposed for assessing healthy in utero growth of the embryo/fetus. Numerous attempts have been made to define computational models of the pregnant woman, embryo/fetus and the placenta for obtaining S factors and SEE values. Human biokinetic information that enables estimation of the time integral of radioactivity in the embryo/fetus is rather scanty and available only for a few radionuclides. However, a number of organisations are working intensively to arrive at doses or dose coefficients due to internal emitters for formulating recommendations that could be adopted by national and international regulatory agencies. The present paper is an attempt to review the different approaches used in embryo/fetus dosimetry. The review includes a comparison of different national standards of anthropometric measurements of the embryo/fetus as a function of gestational period; the modelling of pregnant women, embryo/fetus and the placenta; use of this information for computation of photon-specific absorbed fractions, S factors and SEE values; a brief description of processes involved at placental level that allow or disallow placental transfer of specific materials such as nutrients, micronutrients, trace elements and their subsequent transfer to the embryo/fetus; biokinetic information on either stable or radionuclides and its applicability for computation of radioactivity in the embryo/fetus as well as in its associated component structures or for estimating fetal to maternal activity concentration ratios. A case of an inadvertent administration of therapeutic radioiodine to a pregnant woman is also presented.

A method is described to calculate the Raman spectrum from a nonuniformly strained sample taking into account the effects that arise due to finite depth of penetration and diameter of the laser beam. Both the parallel and the focused beams are considered. The case of stress in a Si substrate decaying monotonically with depth z (rapidly near the interface and slowly at larger depths) is considered in detail. The predicted Raman shifts are found to be sensitive to both the distribution of stress and to the absorption coefficient α for the laser light wavelength used. It is found that light scattered from distances much larger than 1/α still contribute significantly to the observed Raman spectrum. The observed shift in the peak of the spectrum does not correspond to the stress close to the interface. If the stress decays more rapidly than the light intensity, the Raman line that originates from the unstrained lower part of the substrate dominates. For transparent material (α=0) and unfocused beam the Raman spectrum consists of only the unstrained Si line; the contribution to Raman line from the strained interface region is completely masked. For measurements of stresses near the interface short wavelength light with an absorption depth of 5–10 nm is recommended. The calculated and observed Raman shifts in a local oxidation of silicon (a processing technique for isolation) with polysilicon buffer between the nitride stripe and the Si substrate are compared. The agreement between the calculated and the observed Raman shifts is very good. The salient points of our approach which enabled us to obtain this agreement are: We took into account the effects of laser beam width, penetration depth, and focusing; we included the stresses in the polysilicon layer and near the polysilicon/silicon interface, and we included contributions from large depths.

We discuss recent advances made in the theory and measurements of stresses and strains in Si‐based heterostructures containing submicron‐ and micron‐size features. Several reports on theoretical as well as experimental studies of stresses in the substrates with local oxidation of silicon structures on the surface have been published recently. With the advent of GeXSi1−X strained layers and stripes extensive studies of both the stripe and the substrate stresses have also been made. Unlike the previous calculations and analytical models, recent finite element (FE) calculations take into account the coupling between the film–substrate stresses without making the approximation that the interface is rigid or that there is no variation of stresses in the stripes in a direction perpendicular to the interface. The results of these calculations have been compared with the analytical models and limitations of the analytical models have been pointed out. Micro‐Raman measurements of the stresses in the stripes, quant...

Triterpenes of A. hispidissima (Lehm.) DC. were investigated and found to be active against selected bacteria and fungi. s-Amyrin (0.29%) demonstrated the maximum activity against E. coli (IZ 16).

A simple, analytical, expression for the emitter-coupled logic (ECL) propagation delay is useful not only in predicting the performance of ECL circuits, but as a figure of merit for use in the design and “optimisation” of bipolar transistors used in nonsaturating logic applications. A simple expression for the propagation delay time of a differential pair with an ideal, non-inverting output buffer is obtained from an analysis, in the s -domain, of its large-signal non-quasi-static equivalent circuit, and its predictions are compared with circuit simulation results for buffered differential pairs and Active Pulldown ECL (APD-ECL) inverters.

A review of the literature on the GeSi-oxide system is given from the point of view of its interest to field effect device application. To this end the thermal oxidation of Si and of Ge and the properties of the resulting semiconductor-oxide systems are dealt with first. Next, there is a discussion of the oxidation of GeSi-alloys and a comparison with that of Si. The properties of the resulting alloy-oxide system and the characteristics of metal-oxide-semiconductor field effect transistor (MOSFET) devices based on it are reviewed. Finally, recent publications on MOSFET devices utilizing a thin Si-cap layer separating the gate insulator from the GeSi-alloy are discussed.

Theoretical and experimental evidence is presented to show that the effective mass of holes is reduced due to strain in the Ge/sub x/Si/sub 1-x/ layers grown on Si

Seven sterols and triterpenoids have been isolated from H. ellipticum and tested for their antimicrobial activity.

The purpose of this paper is to clarify a long standing controversy as to whether or not band tail effects are important in minority carrier transport. It is shown that minority carrier transport in heavily-doped quasi-neutral regions can be well-modelled by two coupled differential equations of the first order including the effects of density of states distortion. The energy-dependent mobility and lifetime are incorporated into the transport equations for the first time. A simple empirical exponential tail model is proposed based on quantum mechanical theories of band tails. This simple tail model is verified by comparing the measured and calculated photoluminescence spectra. At room temperature, the presence of band tails in both bands increases the equilbrium minority carrier concentration by a factor of two. 30% of the minority carriers are located in the tails, which do not contribute to the d.c. current because of low mobility. However, the transient or a.c. transport is expected to be modified due to band tail effects.

A simple theoretical expression which has been very successful in interpreting experiments on bandgap narrowing (BGN) in n- and p-type Si, n-type Ge and p-type GaAs is modified to fit recent optical and transistor BGN data for n-type GaAs. The impurity scattering part of the BGN in this expression is replaced by an expression obtained by a numerical fit with the results of multiple scattering theory. The modified expression is simple and describes all available luminescence and transistor data extremely well. The Fermi energy is evaluated by analyzing available luminescence data in n-type GaAs. It is found that for dopant concentrations larger than 2 × 1019 cm−3, the observed Fermi level starts becoming smaller than the calculated using the accepted value of conduction band density of states.

Advanced integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power generation systems require the development of high-temperature, regenerable, desulfurization sorbents capable of removing hydrogen sulfide from coal gasifier gas to very low levels. Fluidized-bed desulfurization reactors offer significant potential advantages in IGCC systems compared to fixed- and moving-bed reactors because of their ability to control the highly exothermic regeneration involved. However, a durable, attrition-resistant sorbent in the 100- to 300-μm-size range is needed. Thus, the objective of this investigation was to identify and demonstrate methods for enhancing the long-term chemical reactivity and mechanical strength of zinc ferrite, a leading regenerable sorbent, for fluidized-bed applications

Summary The whole plant of Arnebia hispidissima DC. (Boraginaceae) is used for the treatment of tongue and throat ailments in Indian traditional medicine. The present paper deals with the plants phytochemical constituents, the arnebins, and antimicrobial activities of its root extract. The antimicrobial activities were tested against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria and fungi. The crude hexane extract demonstrated a potent antimicrobial effect against bacteria and a mild effect against fungi. Likewise, the hexane extract of cell cultures of A. hispidissima also showed mild bioefficacy against the select microorganisms.

We have calculated inter-dislocation spacing and stain relaxation in stable and metastable strained Ge x Si 1-x epilayers using an improved theory. Epilayers with graded Ge compositions are also considered. Strain relaxation on annealing MBE grown layers is measured and is found to agree with the calculated values.

This paper presents simple but accurate closed form equations for Band Gap Narrowing (BGN) for n and p type, Si, Ge, GaAs and GexSi1−x alloys and strained layers. The equations are derived by identifying the four components of BGN: exchange energy shift of the majority band edge, correlation energy shift of the minority band edge and impurity interaction shifts of the two band edges. In the simple parabolic band approximation, the BGN is determined by the effective masses of the carriers and the relative permittivity of the semiconductor. For real semiconductors, known corrections due to anisotropy of the bands, due to multi-valleys in a band and due to interactions between sub-bands are used. The values of BGN for n Si, n Ge and n and p GaAs calculated using this simple formulation agree closely with the theoretical values calculated by other authors using advanced but complex many body methods and the Random Phase Approximation for screening effects. For p Si and p Ge ours appear to be the first calculations taking all interactions into account. Experimental values of BGN for all semiconductors except for p Ge for which no data could be found, are also in very good agreement with our theory. The Fermi level for n and p Si and p GaAs is determined using the published luminescence data. In heavily doped p type semiconductors, the values are found to be considerably smaller than those calculated using the known values of the effective density of states. The values of apparent BGN for n and p Si and p GaAs calculated using experimentally determined Fermi levels are in remarkably good agreement with the experimental values derived from device measurements. All results are presented in a form which lends itself to numerical computer simulation studies.

The properties of strained epitaxial layers of semiconductors are briefly reviwed with emphasis on the effects of interactions between interfacial misfit dislocations. Consideration of the equilibrium configuration of interfacial dislocations shows that interactions are predicted to have a considerable effect on the critical thickness for the introduction of dislocations, the relaxation of strain as the thickness increases and the rate of strain relaxation. Implications for the detection of relaxation by X-ray diffraction and the growth of virtual substrates are discussed. The strain also modifies the optical and electron transport properties of the layers.

TiO2 has been used for gas sensing devices (Mohammadi et al., 2007) photo catalytic devices (Litter and Navio, 1996) and photoelectric devices (Levy, 1997). Recently the dielectric properties of TiO2 have been of great interest for applications in the telecommunications industry due to its unusual high dielectric constant and low dielectric loss. The use of layers of high dielectric constant materials in small scale metal insulator semiconductor devices has been considered in numerous recent publications these materials unable to maintain the same capacitance density as SiO2 films but provide a smaller leakage current density. Examples of such materials include tantalum and yttrium oxides (Moon et al., 1999) and titanium dioxide which has the largest dielectric constant value varying in the range of 25-100 (Tang et al, 1997).

The characteristics of the surface of polyvinyl-4-methoxy cinnamate (PVMC) photopolymer film which promotes the uniform alignment in adjacent liquid crystals upon photopolymerization by linear polarized UV light have been investigated. We have found that under photopolymerization the surface morphology of the polymer film changes and the polymer orients normal to the polarization direction of the UV light. Our results confirm the microscopic model of the linear photo polymerized induced unidirectional order as reported by Schadt et al. (M. Schadt, K. Schmitt, V. Koznikov, V. Chignirov, Jpn. J. Appl. Phys. 31 (1992) 2155).

It is shown that micro-Raman spectroscopy offers a unique tool for the validation of stress models for microelectronics devices. Starting from an analytical or numerical model that describes the variation of local stress in a device, the corresponding Raman shift is calculated and compared with the data. In this way feed-back is given to the model. This technique is demonstrated for stripes (Si/sub 3/N/sub 4/, CoSi/sub 2/, W) on a Si substrate, but can be applied to any device where Raman data can be obtained.

High resolution images of individual molecules of the liquid crystalline material adsorbed on a photopolymer treated transparent conducting (indium oxide coated) glass plate have been obtained with a scanning tunneling microscope (STM). The ultrathin layer of the photopolymer poly‐vinyl‐4‐methoxy‐cinnamate (PVMC) on the conducting glass plate was deposited by the bulk induced alignment technique reported earlier [S. C. Jain and H.‐S. Kitzerow, Appl. Phys. Lett. 64, 2946 (1994)]. The liquid crystal molecules exhibit a positional order, in addition to a high degree of orientational order of the bulk nematic. This surface ordering of the nematic liquid crystal at the polymer interface is quite different from the ordering observed on graphite and molybdenum disulphide substrates. A small ensemble of molecules show antiparallel ordering of the cyano‐phenyl‐cyclo‐hexane molecules in agreement with the calculations of Schadt et al. [Liq. Cryst. 5, 293 (1989)].

During the last annual meeting, the proposal for an optional waterproofing test in code 1 and 2 was discussed. There was general support to continue to develop the test. According to the resolution of the annual meeting, the working group of Korea(Kim), Japan(Takahashi), India(Jain), China(Li)and Italy(Pessina and Cavallo) has been organized and developed this proposal. The below results of discussion in the working group meeting on updating OECD codes in Austria, in July 2002 were considered in this proposal. -It remains an optional test for codes 1 and 2. -That the test was completely agreed between all rice-product OECD countries. -It was entirely a laboratory test and not a field test.

Because of their shared cultural and political heritage, countries in South Asia also share a common tradition and history of research in health. Despite notable achievements and many failures, the health systems in the region have not benefited adequately from empirical research. Factors responsible include a deep-rooted scholarly tradition of deductive reasoning, little importance given to research and publication by academics, a high emphasis on hierarchical status and intuition in decision-making, and a lack of research funds. Donors have played an important role, but their contributions have been mixed.