Technology Forecasting - An Important Tool for Marketing in R&D

Technology Forecasting is an important aspect of every R&D Organisation At is Technology Forecasting that can improve the quality of technical decision-making . One of the major challenges in the management of innovation is a practical and useful implementation of Technology Forecasting . The pace of technological progress is a practical construct that has evolved from technological change theories.This article discusses the role of Technology Forecasting in R&D Organisations

FORMULATION DEVELOPMENT AND EVALUATION OF CHRONOMODULATED DRUG DELIVERY SYSTEM BY ZAFIRLUKAST

Objective: The main objective of the present study was to formulate and evaluate a time-controlled single-unit oral pulsatile drug delivery system containing Zafirlukast for the prevention of nocturnal asthma attacks. To provide time-scheduled drug release for Asthma disease. It is used for preventing asthmatic attacks at early morning. Pulsatile release dosage form is increasing patient compliance by reducing the dosing frequency, especially in the early morning. Methods: Core tablets were prepared by incorporating different concentrations of natural and synthetic super disintegrants. Drug-containing core tablets (ZC1-ZC15) with different compositions of natural super disintegrants (Plantago ovata seed powder, Locust bean gum) synthetic super disintegrants (Sodium starch glycolate (SSG), Cross carmellose sodium (CCS), Crospovidone (CP)) were prepared by direct compression technique. The core tablets were subjected to pre-formulation, physicochemical and In vitro drug release studies. The fast disintegrating core tablet formulation was selected and press-coated tablets (P1-P11) were prepared with different compositions of hydrophobic polymers Eudragit RS100, Eudragit RL 100, Ethylcellulose and hydrophilic polymers Hydroxypropyl methylcellulose K4M, K100M. The optimized formulation was selected and quantified based on in vitro drug release profile in simulated gastric and intestinal fluids. Results: The pre and post-compression parameters of tablets were also found to be within limits. Formulation ZC5 with 16 mg of Locust bean gum showed the least disintegrating time, i.e., 22.13 sec, and was selected as the best immediate release core tablet. The press-coated tablet formulation P8 having 62.5 mg Eudragit RS100 and 62.5 mg of HPMC K4M in ratio 1:1 over the core tablet ZC5 showed rapid and drug release nearly after 4 h lag time and 98.86 % up to 12 h. Accelerated stability studies of the optimized formulation P8 indicated no significant difference in release profile after 3 mo. Conclusion: The in vitro dissolution study showed that lag time before drug release was highly affected by the coating amount level and nature of coating polymer used. Time-controlled pulsatile release tablets can be prepared using press-coating techniques

Constant Approximation for kk-Median and kk-Means with Outliers via Iterative Rounding

In this paper, we present a new iterative rounding framework for many clustering problems. Using this, we obtain an $(\alpha_1 + \epsilon \leq 7.081 + \epsilon)$-approximation algorithm for $k$-median with outliers, greatly improving upon the large implicit constant approximation ratio of Chen [Chen, SODA 2018]. For $k$-means with outliers, we give an $(\alpha_2+\epsilon \leq 53.002 + \epsilon)$-approximation, which is the first $O(1)$-approximation for this problem. The iterative algorithm framework is very versatile; we show how it can be used to give $\alpha_1$- and $(\alpha_1 + \epsilon)$-approximation algorithms for matroid and knapsack median problems respectively, improving upon the previous best approximations ratios of $8$ [Swamy, ACM Trans. Algorithms] and $17.46$ [Byrka et al, ESA 2015]. The natural LP relaxation for the $k$-median/$k$-means with outliers problem has an unbounded integrality gap. In spite of this negative result, our iterative rounding framework shows that we can round an LP solution to an almost-integral solution of small cost, in which we have at most two fractionally open facilities. Thus, the LP integrality gap arises due to the gap between almost-integral and fully-integral solutions. Then, using a pre-processing procedure, we show how to convert an almost-integral solution to a fully-integral solution losing only a constant-factor in the approximation ratio. By further using a sparsification technique, the additive factor loss incurred by the conversion can be reduced to any $\epsilon > 0$

Fish Stupefying Plants Used by the Tribes of Nandurbar District.

The present paper deals with the identification of those plants which are used as natural toxins for capturing fishes from Nandurbar district of Maharashtra. Nandurbar district is tribal district, is rich in ethno biological diversity, its different tahasils have their own toxicant plants which can be used for capturing fishes. So this ethno biological survey was conducted in different tahasils of Nandurbar district viz Akkalkuwa, Dhadgaon, Shahada, Taloda, Nandurbar and Navapur. As fishes are the important source of protein for poor people living near the banks of rivers, they use few plants which are natural toxicants for fishes and capture the fishes. During this study, a number of toxicant plants are identified with the help of the people living near the river and dams. The general information related to vernacular name of the plant in different tahasil and plant parts used, have been identified by elders and knowledgeable people. Plants are identified taxonomically with the help of Botanist of Jijamata Education Society’s, Department of Botany For UG, PG and Research, Arts, Science and Commerce College, Nandurbar, Maharashtra. Extensive literature was also consulted for identification

2,4-Bis[(3-allyl­imidazolium-1-yl)meth­yl]mesitylene bis­(hexa­fluoridophosphate)

In the title mol­ecular salt, C23H30N4 2+·2PF6 −, the central benzene ring of the cation makes dihedral angles of 89.80 (8) and 85.23 (7)° with the pendant imidazole rings. In the crystal, the cations and anions are linked by numerous C—H⋯F hydrogen bonds, thereby forming a three-dimensional network

1-[(E)-(3,4-Dimethyl­isoxazol-5-yl)imino­meth­yl]-2-naphthol

The title Schiff base compound, C16H14N2O2, has been synthesized by the reaction of 5-amino-3,4-dimethyl­isoxazole and 2-hydr­oxy-1-naphthaldehyde. The dihedral angle between the isoxazole ring and the napthyl ring system is 3.29 (7)°. The mol­ecule adopts an E configuration about the central C=N double bond. Intra­molecular O—H⋯N hydrogen bonding generates an S(6) ring motif. In the crystal structure, π–π inter­actions are observed involving the isoxazole ring and the substituted benzene ring of the naphthyl unit, with centroid–centroid distances of 3.5200 (10) Å

Security Protocols With Isotropic Channels

We investigate the security properties of isotropic channels, broadcast media in which a receiver cannot reliably determine whether a message originated from any particular sender and a sender cannot reliably direct a message away from any particular receiver. We show that perfect isotropism implies perfect (information-theoretic) secrecy, and that asymptotically close to perfect secrecy can be achieved on any channel that provides some (bounded) uncertainty as to sender identity. We give isotropic security protocols under both passive and active adversary models, and discuss the practicality of realizing isotropic channels over various media

Study of Hematological Parameters in Patients of Different Subtypes of Panduroga

Introduction: Diagnosis in Ayurveda depends on history and clinical examination of the patient. Application of technological advancements and diagnostics tin Ayurveda may increase its acceptability globally and add objectivity to it. This research is advancement in the same direction to observe and analyze the haematological profile in patients of Panduroga (anemia) after categorizing them into Pandu roga subtypes and report the findings.Material and Methods: A prospective non – interventional observational exploratory study was conducted for a period of 18 months on hundred newly diagnosed adult and pediatric cases of anemia presenting to department of pediatrics and general medicine. Patients were categorized into Panduroga subtypes after examining them in detail with history, physical examination, hematological and other relevant investigations and with their due written informed consent. The data was then put to statistical analysis.Results: Differences were observed in the values of hematological parameters for the different subtypes of Panduroga which were statistically significant for Hemoglobin, Total Red blood cell count (TRBC), Hematocrit (HCT), Mean corpuscular volume (MCV), Mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH), Mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) and Red cell distribution width (RDW).Conclusion: The differences in the objective profile as uncovered in the study reveals that the subtypes of Panduroga correlate to some extent to the different stages and pathology of anemia. However, the application of this study to the management of different types of anemia will require further confirmatory study with larger sample size in each subgroup

3,3′-Di-n-propyl-1,1′-[p-phenyl­enebis(methyl­ene)]diimidazolium dibromide

The asymmetric unit of the title compound, C20H28N4 2+·2Br−, consists of half a 3,3′-di-n-propyl-1,1′-[p-phenyl­enenis(methyl­ene)]diimidazolium cation and a bromide anion. The cation is located on an inversion center and adopts an ⋯AAA⋯ trans conformation. In the crystal, the cation is linked to the anions via weak C—H⋯Br hydrogen bonds

Properties of cellulose/Thespesia Lampas short fibers bio-composite films

Abstract: Cellulose was dissolved in pre cooled environment friendly solvent (aq.7% sodium hydroxide+12% urea) and regenerated with 5%H2SO4 as coagulation bath. Using cellulose as matrix and alkali treated short natural fibers extracted from the newly identified Thespesia Lampas plant as reinforcement, the green composite films were prepared. The effect of fiber loading on the tensile properties and thermal stability was studied. The fractographs indicated better interfacial bonding between the fibers and cellulose. The crystallinity of the composite films was found to be lower than the matrix and decreased with increasing fiber content. In spite of better interfacial bonding, the tensile properties of the composites were found to be lower than those of the matrix and decreased with increasing fiber content and this behavior was attributed to the random orientation of the fibers in the composites. The thermal stability of the composite films was higher than the matrix and increased with fiber content