Hydrologic modeling and climate change study in the Upper Mississippi River Basin using SWAT

This dissertation describes the modeling efforts on the Upper Mississippi River Basin (UMRB) using the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model. The main goal of this study is to apply the SWAT model to the UMRB to evaluate the model as a tool for agricultural policy analysis and climate change impact analysis. A sensitivity analysis using influence coefficient method was conducted for eight selected hydrologic input parameters to identify the most to the least sensitive parameters. Calibration and validation of SWAT were performed for the Maquoketa River Watershed for streamflow on annual and monthly basis. The model was then validated for the entire UMRB streamflow and evaluated for a climate change impact analysis. The results indicate that the UMRB hydrology is very sensitive to potential future climate changes.;The impact of future climate change was then explored for the streamflow by using two 10-year scenario periods (1990s and 2040s) generated by introducing a regional climate model (RegCM2) to dynamically downscale global model (HadCM2) results. The combined GCM-RCM-SWAT model system produced an increase in future scenario climate precipitation of 21% with a resulting 50% increase in total water yield in the UMRB. Furthermore, evaluation of model-introduced uncertainties due to use of SWAT, GCM, and RCM models yielded the highest percentage bias (18%) for the GCM down scaling error.;Building upon the above SWAT validation, a SWAT modeling framework was constructed for the entire UMRB, which incorporates more detailed input data and is designed to assess the effects of land use, climate, and soil conditions on streamflow and water quality. An application of SWAT is presented for the Iowa and Des Moines River watersheds within the modeling framework constructed for the UMRB. A scenario run where conservation tillage adoption increased to 100% found a small sediment reduction of 5.8% for Iowa River Watershed and 5.7% for Des Moines River Watershed. On per-acre basis, sediment reduction for Iowa and Des Moines River Watersheds was found to be 1.86 and 1.18 metric tons respectively. Furthermore an attempt to validate the model for the entire UMRB yielded strong annual results

Effects of Radiative Interactions in Molecular Gases Under Local and Nonlocal Thermodynamic Equilibrium Conditions

Basic formulations, analyses, and numerical procedures are presented to investigate radiative heat interactions in diatomic and polyatomic gases under local and nonlocal thermodynamic equilibrium conditions. Essential governing equations are presented for both gray and nongray gases. Information is provided on absorption models, relaxation times, and transfer equations. Radiative flux equations are developed which are applicable under local and nonlocal thermodynamic equilibrium conditions. The problem is solved for fully developed laminar incompressible flows between two parallel plates under the boundary condition of a uniform surface heat flux. For specific applications, three diatomic and three polyatomic gases are considered. The results are obtained numerically by employing the method of variation of parameters. The results are compared under local and nonlocal thermodynamic equilibrium conditions at different temperature and pressure conditions. Both gray and nongray studies are conducted extensively for all molecular gases considered. The particular gases selected for this investigation are, CO, NO, OH, CO2, H2O, and CH4. The temperature and pressure range considered are 300-2000 K and 0.1-10 atmosphere, respectively. In general, results demonstrate that the gray gas approximation overestimates the effect of radiative interaction for all conditions. The conditions of NLTE, however, result in underestimation of radiative interactions. The method developed for this study can be extended to solve complex problems of radiative heat transfer involving nonequilibrium phenomena

Level of watershed subdivision for water quality modeling

The size and number of subwatersheds can impact a watershed modeling process and subsequent results. The objective of this study was to determine the appropriate level of subwatershed division for simulating flow, sediment, and nutrient. The SWAT model with GIS interface (AVSWAT) was applied to four Iowa watersheds that varied greatly in drainage area. Annual output was analyzed from each simulation, which was executed for 31 years using climatic data representing the period of 1970 to 2000. It was found that the streamflow is not significantly affected by decrease in subwatershed scale, whereas sediment yields were directly related to subwatershed scale. The threshold subwatershed size, i.e. minimum size of a subwatershed at which variation due to different subdivisions tends to stabilize, was found to be around 3 percent of the total drainage area to adequately predict sediment yield. Decreasing the size of subwatersheds beyond this level does not significantly affect the computed sediment yield. Similar analysis on nitrate concentration found 2 percent of the total drainage area as threshold area. This threshold subwatershed size can be used to optimize SWAT input data preparation requirements and simplify the interpretation of results, without compromising simulation accuracy

Femoral head diameters in Nepalese patients undergoing hemiarthroplasty

Background: Sizing of the femoral head is important for determining the appropriate size of implants to be used for a patient undergoing hip arthroplasty. The present study aimed to determine the mean diameter of femoral head in Nepalese population who underwent hemiarthroplasty in our department.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients who underwent hemiarthroplasty from December 2016 till December 2020. We included patients aged more than 50 years who underwent hemiarthroplasty. The diameter of the femoral head was measured intraoperatively using standard fully circular templates. For radiological measurements, X-ray of pelvis with hips anteroposterior view were included.Results: A total of 600 femoral heads were evaluated, 400 of women and 200 of men. Of these cases, the femoral head diameter were evaluated based on x-ray pelvis in 500 cases and rest of the 100 cases were evaluated intraoperatively. The mean age of the patients in our sample was 75.2±9.4 (range 50–90) years. Overall, the mean femoral head diameter (with intact articular cartilage) was 44.9±3.2 (range 39–53 mm) mm. Among the male patients, mean femoral head diameter was 47.7±2.8 mm, which was found to be significantly higher than that of female patients, who had a mean femoral head diameter of 43.7±2.4 mm, p value <0.05.Conclusions: Further studies are needed in other geographical locations, so that reference values could be established for specific regions

Pediatric long bone fractures treated by elastic intramedullary nailing

Background: Pediatric long bone fractures can have a high morbidity and long term disability among the survivors. The present study was aimed to study the clinical outcomes of children with long bone fractures managed by elastic intramedullary nail.Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of children (aged 2 to 15 years) who were admitted and treated for unilateral femoral, tibial or forearm fractures with elastic intramedullary nail from January 2018 till February 2020. All were managed with elastic intramedullary nailing. The union times and complications were noted from the medical records.Results: Femoral, tibial and forearm bones were involved in 15 patients each (33.3%). Road traffic accident was reported by 31%) and physical abuse by one case (2%). The mean time of union was 10 weeks, ranging from 6 to 12 weeks. The mean time for union of the femur and tibia was 11.54 and 11.34 weeks respectively. It was significantly lower for forearm (6.67 weeks, p value <0.05). Two patients reported of bursitis and impingement, which were resolved after nail removal. One case had limb length discrepancy of about 0.5 cm in femur fracture, which was not impairing functional activity. Functional status was assessed based on Flynn criteria was found to be excellent in 36%, good in 44% and fair in 20%.Conclusions: The results of the present study show that titanium elastic nail (TEN) is an effective treatment modality for managing pediatric long bone fractures. We recommend the use of TEN in managing long bone fractures in children

Evaluation of efficacy and safety of oral olmesartan + chlorthalidone combination in the management of hypertension in Indian patients

Background: Hypertension is a major health problem in India. Being a multifactorial condition often requires the administration of multiple drugs. Despite improvements in the management of hypertension and the availability of effective antihypertensive agents, only 50% of these individuals achieve BP control. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the efficacy and safety of, fixed dose combination of olmesartan 40 mg + chlorthalidone 12.5 mg, in the management of hypertension uncontrolled with olmesartan monotherapy.Methods: 110 patients were enrolled in this Post-Marketing Surveillance (PMS) study. Patients were prescribed to take fixed dose combination for 60 days.Results: There was significant decrease (P 60 years and <60 years achieved the Joint National Committee (JNC VIII) recommended goal respectively. (<150/90 for elder patients aged above 60 year and 140/90 for those aged less than 60 years).Conclusion: Thus fixed dose combination therapy of olmesartan & chlorthalidone has been shown to be excellent in efficacy and tolerability & gives another option for the optimal management of hypertension.

The Cloud defense: Building Resilient Security Layers

Cloud computing has revolutionized how businesses operate by providing scalable infrastructure, cost efficiency, and flexibility. However, as organizations increasingly migrate sensitive data and mission-critical applications to the cloud, securing these resources has become more complex. This paper explores the concept of building resilient security layers in the cloud, an essential approach to mitigate cyber threats and safeguard digital assets. We examine the various security challenges in cloud environments, including data breaches, misconfigurations, and insider threats, and offer solutions to address them through a layered security approach. By leveraging technologies such as encryption, identity management, access control, threat intelligence, and security automation, organizations can create robust defenses against emerging cyber risks. The paper also highlights the role of advanced tools, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and blockchain, in enhancing the resilience of cloud security frameworks. Through case studies and best practices, we provide insights into how organizations can implement these security layers effectively, ensuring that their cloud infrastructure remains secure and reliable in the face of evolving threats

Optical and electrochemical dual channel sensing of Cu2 + using functionalized furo[2,3-d]pyrimidines-2,4[1H,3H]-diones

Owing to their easy accessibility and high degree of structural and functional diversity, many multicomponent reactions (MCRs) have been a rich source of conjugate π-systems, functionalised chromophores (or fluorophore) and redox active molecules. Despite their high explorative potential and practical benefits, only a few MCR products have been so far investigated for their metal sensing abilities. In the present report, two furopyrimidinones (FPys) based molecular systems have been synthesized by [4 + 1] cycloaddition based MCR sequence. Designed chemosensors displayed optic (absorption spectra) as well as electroanalytical (ion selective electrode) response toward Cu2 + ion in solution and membrane phase respectively (dual channel sensing). Different aspects of both the sensing phenomena such as selectivity, association constants, detection limit, membrane composition etc. were studied in detail using UV–Vis spectroscopy, NMR titration and cell assembly. Both the compounds showed excellent performance characteristics such as high selectivity, acceptable affinity and low detection limits (10− 7 M) in both sensing assays with potential utility in the area of sample monitoring

Management of Femoral Shaft Fracture in Klippel-Trenaunay Syndrome with External Fixator

Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome (KTS) is a rare complex malformation characterized by the clinical triad of capillary malformations, soft tissue and bone hypertrophy, and venous/lymphatic malformation. Fractures of long bones in such cases are challenging to treat. A 12-year-old female with this syndrome presented with femoral shaft fracture of right thigh. She was initially kept on skeletal traction for two weeks and then she underwent closed reduction and immobilization with external fixator with uneventful intraoperative and postoperative period. Fracture united at four and half months.</jats:p