Legislature and Governance A Comparative Study between Bangladesh and Japan

This study shades light on the legislative structure and practices of Japan and that of Bangladesh with a view to comparing the state of governance of these two countries. This study has been conducted based on purely qualitative approach with content analysis. As per myriad of study legislative practices of Japan is successful to discharge good governance as the economic growth of Japan is termed as miracle. This study find that the legislative practices of Japan incorporated all the values of governance through its provision of two-house diet where lower house preserve substantial power over upper house, floor crossing, responsiveness of the legislatures, and strong role of parliamentary committees. After comparing the legislative practices of Japan with that of Bangladesh, this study basically found distinctions in structure and practiced value. The parliamentarian of Japan can vote against party decision to preserve the national interest while this is restricted in Bangladesh by the constitution. Japanese parliamentarian even prime minister often stepped down from the government confessing their faults. In Bangladesh we can’t even think of it. Although every parliament in Bangladesh forms myriad of committees to oversight the work of ministers but visible and vibrant role of these committees is rare in both in giving policy input and in discharging oversight activities. Bangladesh, a democratic state wants to uphold the principles of good governance, may imitate some legislative principles both from structure and values of Japanese style of legislature.Keywords: legislature; governance; good governance; Japan; Banglades

Implementing Citizen’s Charter in Urban Local Government in Bangladesh: Do Accountability and Public Awareness Matter?

Abstract: This research looks at the possibilities and challenges of adopting a Citizen’s Charter in Paurashava. In this regard, introducing the Citizen Charter in government offices is a step forward. One Paurashava was selected as the study field to observe the current situation of Citizen’s Charter implementation and to recognize the problems in Citizen’s Charter implementation. This study is primarily qualitative in nature. Both primary and secondary sources of data were used. Besides, official records and other relevant documents were used as secondary sources. According to preliminary observations, the extent of Citizen Charter implementation in Paurashava is extremely poor. All of the services of thePaurashava are not covered by the Citizen’s Charter, and most citizens are unaware of it. A number of other problems also hamper the success of the Paurashava. Therefore, these factors constrain the successful implementation of the Citizens’ Charter at the Paurashava. 

Association of Physical Activity and Screen Time Usage of Adolescents in Rural Areas of Mysore.

Introduction: In these changing times there have been increased usage of screen device due to more accessibility to both device and the internet and a greater number of children are having reduced physical activity. The purpose of the current study was to determine if screen usage among adolescents (11-17yrs) who live in supportive environments is associated with decreased levels of moderate to vigorous physical activity. Methods & materials: A school-based cross-sectional study was conducted in two rural schools of Mysore, Karnataka in February 2023, in 176 students between the age group of 11 – 17yrs. Physical activity and screen time was evaluated using a questionnaire. School sports, Leisure Time Physical Activity (LTPA), and mode of transportation to school was evaluated for their physical activity pattern and the amount of time spent on each type of screen device – TV, Computers, video games, mobile phones, and tablets was measured in hours per day. Results: Prevalence of excessive screen time usage was 36%and physical activity \u3e1hr./day was found to be 57% in study subjects. However, there is no correlation between physical exercise and screen time found in rural adolescents. Conclusion: Prevalence of excessive screen time with 57% of adolescents having physical activity more than 1hr/day. A tighter control of screen usage was also shown by 77% of adolescents, being role models for appropriate screen time, all are factors for an improved lifestyle

Deep Hyperspectral Unmixing using Transformer Network

Currently, this paper is under review in IEEE. Transformers have intrigued the vision research community with their state-of-the-art performance in natural language processing. With their superior performance, transformers have found their way in the field of hyperspectral image classification and achieved promising results. In this article, we harness the power of transformers to conquer the task of hyperspectral unmixing and propose a novel deep unmixing model with transformers. We aim to utilize the ability of transformers to better capture the global feature dependencies in order to enhance the quality of the endmember spectra and the abundance maps. The proposed model is a combination of a convolutional autoencoder and a transformer. The hyperspectral data is encoded by the convolutional encoder. The transformer captures long-range dependencies between the representations derived from the encoder. The data are reconstructed using a convolutional decoder. We applied the proposed unmixing model to three widely used unmixing datasets, i.e., Samson, Apex, and Washington DC mall and compared it with the state-of-the-art in terms of root mean squared error and spectral angle distance. The source code for the proposed model will be made publicly available at \url{https://github.com/preetam22n/DeepTrans-HSU}.Comment: Currently, this paper is under review in IEE

Psychological distress during pandemic Covid-19 among adult general population: Result across 13 countries

The COVID-19 pandemics caused an unprecedented mortality, distress, and globally poses a challenge to mental resilience. To our knowledge, this is the first study that aimed to investigate the psychological distress among the adult general population across 13 countries. This cross-sectional study was conducted through online survey by recruiting 7091 respondents. Psychological distress was evaluated with COVID-19 Peritraumatic Distress Index (CPDI). The crude prevalence of psychological distress due to COVID-19 is highest in Vietnam, followed by Egypt, and Bangladesh. Through Multivariate Logistic Regression Analysis, the respondents from Vietnam holds the highest level of distress, while the respondents from Sri Lanka holds the lowest level of distress with reference to Nepal.Female respondents had higher odds of having reported psychological distress, and those with tertiary education were less likely to report psychological distress compared to those with lower level of education. The findings indicate that psychological distress is varies across different countries. Therefore, different countries should continue the surveillance on psychological consequences through the COVID-19 pandemic to monitor the burden and to prepare for the targeted mental health support interventions according to the need. The coping strategies and social support should be provided especially to the lower educational attainment group

Experimental Investigation on the Effects of Free Stream Turbulence and Fuel Type on Structure and Blowoff Characteristics of Turbulent Premixed Bluff-body Stabilized Flames

An experimental investigation on the effect of different levels of turbulence intensity and properties of the fuel/air mixture on the structure and characteristics of lean flames stabilized on an axisymmetric bluff body is described in this thesis. Simultaneous imaging of hydroxyl (OH) and formaldehyde (CH2O) by planar laser induced fluorescence and particle image velocimetry (PIV) were used to study the interaction between the flame and the flow field. CH2O fluorescence and the pixel-by-pixel multiplication of OH and CH2O fluorescence signals were utilized to mark preheat and heat release regions respectively. In addition, high-speed chemiluminescence imaging was performed to understand the time resolved characteristics of the flame. The first part of the thesis focuses on the characteristics of stably burning lean methane/-, propane/- and ethylene/air flames when subjected to low (4 %), moderate (14 %) and intense (24 and 30%) levels of free stream turbulence. The flame front structure was observed to be strongly dependent on the free stream turbulence level of the incoming fuel/air mixture as well on the properties of the fuel/air mixture. Formation of cusps and unburnt mixture fingers were observed as the turbulence intensity was increased from 4 to 14 % but, the heat release region remained continuous. Under intense turbulence conditions, methane/- and ethylene/air (f = 0.85) flames exhibited localized extinctions along the flame sheet and flamelet merging events which created isolated pockets of reactants in the flame envelope. In addition to these features, propane/- and ethylene/air (f=0.655) flames exhibited the occurrence of flame fragmentation events and the general shape of these flames were observed to intermittently switch from a symmetric (varicose) to asymmetric (sinuous) mode. Several properties were measured to characterize the effects of turbulence – flame interaction which includes the average preheat and reaction zone thicknesses, strain rates and curvature along the flame front, burning fraction, flame brush thickness, flame surface density, area ratio and turbulent flame speed. The next part of the thesis focuses on blowoff dynamics of lean methane/-, propane/- and ethylene/air flames for mean velocities of 5, 10 and 15 m/s and subjected to free stream turbulence levels from 4 to 30%. Apart from the propane/air flames at an apporach velcoity of 5 m/s and turbulence intensity of 30 %, increasing turbulence intensity was found to reduce the flame stability. The blowoff equivalence ratios of propane/air flames was observed to be higher than methane/- and ethylene/air flames. As blowoff was approached, the flame front and shear layer vortices entangled inducing high local strain rates on the flame front that exceed the extinction strain rate resulting in significant breaks along the reaction zone. At conditions near blowoff, significant increase in the frequency of breaks along the reaction zone was observed for low and moderate turbulence conditions. For the higher turbulence conditions, fragmentation of the flame along with the presence of sinuous wakes was observed which aided in the penetration of reactants into the recirculation zone. Velocity vectors near the flame holes indicate the penetration of the reactants into the recirculation zone. Mostly similar sequence of events was observed for methane/-, propane/- and ethylene/air flames near blowoff. Several properties weremeasured to characterize the near blowoff flames which include the strain rate and curvature statistics along the flame front, burning fraction, asymmetric index and the average duration of the blowoff event. Based on the observation from the experiments, turbulent flame speed was attributed to be the primary factor in governing the blowoff equivalence ratio. This point of view was examined by comparing the mean strain rate of methane/- and ethylene/air flames at the equivalence ratio corresponding to near blowoff for propane/air flames

Service quality, satisfaction and intention to use Union Digital Center in Bangladesh: The moderating effect of citizen participation.

This paper examines the service quality, satisfaction and intention to use Union Digital Center (UDC) in Bangladesh: The moderating effect of citizen participation. The study intends to measure the quality of service on the basis of satisfaction by adopting citizen participation as a moderator. Theoretically this study has used DeLone & McLean Information Systems (D&M IS) Success Model. The existing studies of Bangladesh are mostly qualitative and the correlation between the quality of service, satisfaction, and desire for using UDC has not verified. This research has adopted the D&M IS model while measuring and verifying the service quality based on satisfaction and use intention. A structured questionnaire method was used and data collected from 499 respondents from 10 UDC of 10 upazila under 8 divisions in Bangladesh. Partial Least Square (PLS), a statistical method that emerged on the basis of Structure Equation Modeling (SEM), technique has been used while analyzing the data. The result of this study has showed the quality (p<0.05) of information, system and service of UDC affects citizen satisfaction effectively where the moderator of citizen participation is also significant. This paper has constructed on the basis of a model and empirical data to verify the moderating effects of citizen participation. To ensure the improvement of service quality of UDC all of the dimensions related to the quality of service should be modified, develop the administrative system and citizen should be encouraging to participate in all aspects of services

The connection between Hilbert-space return probability and real-space autocorrelations in quantum spin chains

The dynamics of interacting quantum many-body systems has two seemingly disparate but fundamental facets. The first is the dynamics of real-space local observables, and if and how they thermalise. The second is to interpret the dynamics of the many-body state as that of a fictitious particle on the underlying Hilbert-space graph. In this work, we derive an explicit connection between these two aspects of the dynamics. We show that the temporal decay of the autocorrelation in a disordered quantum spin chain is explicitly encoded in how the return probability on Hilbert space approaches its late-time saturation. As such, the latter has the same functional form in time as the decay of autocorrelations but with renormalised parameters. Our analytical treatment is rooted in an understanding of the morphology of the time-evolving state on the Hilbert-space graph, and corroborated by exact numerical results.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figure

Role of C-Terminal Residues in Oligomerization and Stability of λ CII: Implications for Lysis-Lysogeny Decision of the Phage

A crucial element in the lysis-lysogeny decision of the temperate coliphage λ is the phage protein CII, which has several interesting properties. It promotes lysogeny through activation of three phage promoters p E, p I and p aQ, recognizing a direct repeat sequence TTGCN 6TTGC at each. The three-dimensional structure of CII, a homo-tetramer of 97 residue subunits, is unknown. It is an unstable protein in vivo, being rapidly degraded by the host protease HflB (FtsH). This instability is essential for the function of CII in the lysis-lysogeny switch. From NMR and limited proteolysis we show that about 15 C-terminal residues of CII are highly flexible, and may act as a target for proteolysis in vivo. From in vitro transcription, isothermal calorimetry and gel chromatography of CII (1-97) and its truncated fragments CIIA (4-81/82) and CIIB (4-69), we find that residues 70–81/82 are essential for (a) tetramer formation, (b) operator binding and (c) transcription activation. Presumably, tetramerization is necessary for the latter functions. Based on these results, we propose a model for CII structure, in which protein–protein contacts for dimer and tetramer formation are different. The implications of tetrameric organization, essential for CII activity, on the recognition of the direct repeat sequence is discussed

Diurnal cycle of summer season thunderstorm activity in India

The diurnal cycle of tropical convection over the Indian region has been analysed in this study for the period of March to June from the thunderstorm reports of ground-based observatories throughout India during 2016-2020. The analyses indicate that during this period of the year, when the land progressively heats up diurnally, under conditions of deficient moisture, synoptic systems interact with the semi-permanent features of the atmosphere over the region to define areas of moisture and wind convergence, which in turn determine the frequency and diurnal cycle of thunderstorm activity. While the easterly and westerly waves are the major synoptic scale weather systems that affect the Indian region during March to May, the atmospheric changes are associated with the onset of the monsoon season in June. Amongst the semi-permanent features, the gradual intensification and migration of the shallow heat low to northwest India during May and June reinforce the western disturbances over this region, thereby intensifying the thunderstorm activity during the afternoon to evening hours over the western Himalayas and northwest Indian region. The role of the low-level anticyclones over the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal is seen in the east-west-oriented moisture gradient across the Indian subcontinent which makes the east Indian subcontinent generally more prone to thunderstorm activity during this season. The east-west-oriented discontinuity line across north India is particularly intense during the morning hours along the foothills of the Himalayas. Its location directs moisture from the Bay of Bengal into the Himalayas causing early initiation of thunderstorm activity over the Himalayas. The discontinuity line moves southwards to the north Indian plains later in the day, although the western end becomes less marked. The north-south-oriented discontinuity line across the Indian subcontinent between the two anticyclones intensifies during the afternoon hours due to land heating and combines with the east-west wind discontinuity to become a T-shaped maximum convergence zone for thunderstorm activity during the afternoon hours over the Indian region, which intensifies as the months progress. With the onset of the southwest monsoon over the south peninsula and east Indian regions in June, the change in wind pattern from an easterly to a southwesterly flow regime over the south peninsula is reflected in an abrupt shift of the afternoon maximum of thunderstorm activity over the inland regions of the south peninsula to an early morning maximum over the southwest peninsular coast. Simultaneously, with the weakening of the anticyclone over the north Bay of Bengal and gradual strengthening of the southerly moisture flow into east and northeast India, there was in-phase increase in thunderstorm activity during the afternoon hours over the plains of east-central India, east India, and adjoining southern parts of northeast India during June. The diurnal pattern of tropical convection significantly affects human lives over the Indian subcontinent