Numerical Study of Geosynthetic-Reinforced Soil Wall Subjected to Static Footing Loading

This study intends to examine the behavior of a GRS wall with static footing loading above it, while varying the positions of the footing. For the study of behavior of such complex structure, finite element modeling is handy and enables to look into the various stress/strain developed in the numerical model. In view of the above, a series of finite element (FEM) simulations using a software (Optum G2) is performed for the analysis of the GRS wall. The governing parameters, such as footing width (B), reinforcement length (L), offset distance (D), are evaluated and the effect of these factors on the ultimate bearing capacity (q) and settlement (s) of the footing is presented in this study. The results depict that the settlement of the footing substantially reduced in the range of 36% and its ultimate bearing capacity is increased to 42% more than the conventional retaining walls

Synthesis and study of electrical properties of polyaniline and polyester nanocomposite

In this study, pure polyaniline (PANI) and PANI/polyester nanocomposites (wt % 10, 20 and 30) of thickness 10 mm have been synthesized by co-precipitation method to investigate their electrical properties. Pure PANI and its composites are then characterized using SEM, FTIR, DSC, I-V Hall and dielectric techniques. From SEM, it is observed that the particles are spherical and lying in range of micron order. To find out the nature of chemical bonds, FTIR analysis and thermal characterization (DSC) are performed. From the I-V curve, the calculated values of conductance of prepared pure PANI and PANI/PET (wt % 10, 20 and 30 nanocomposite) are obtained as 3.78×10-7, 9.7933×10-7, 9.584×10-8 and 9.882×10-9 ohm-1 respectively. From Hall measurement, electrical conductivity of pure PANI and PANI/PET (wt % 10, 20 and 30) nanocomposite is found 49.26 ×10-6, 13.82 ×10-6, 40.6 ×10-7 and 18.761 ×10-7 Ω-1cm-1 respectively. Dielectric study of PANI/PET reveals downturn in the dielectric constant value with increased frequency. The electrical resistivity of the PANI/PET nanocomposite shows high anti-static efficiency

Evaluation of in vitro and invivo anti-inflammatory activities of Parthenium camphora

The present investigation was carried out to evaluate the anti-inflammatory potential of solvent extracts of Parthenium camphora (Family: Compositae), a non-useful and waste weed growing through waste sides. The anti-inflammatory activities were assessed through in vitro and in vivo procedures, the results were found to be very surprising and promising. Aqueous and Ethanolic solvent extracts of Parthenium camphora were found to have significant anti-inflammatory activity at doses 100 and 120 mg/Kg during in vitro anti-inflammatory assay. The ethanolic fractions of the plant causes significant reduction in inflammation i.e. 92 % (120 mg/kg) followed by aqueous extract i.e. 85 % (120 mg/kg) compared to standard anti-inflammatory drug, Diclofenac Sodium i.e. 87 % (10 mg/kg). The values of reduction in paw volume, 0.10 ± 0.05, 0.14 ± 0.05 and 0.16 ± 0.05 were found significantly of ethanol extract, aqueous extract and Diclofenac sodium, respectively at 4 h after carrageenan administration. Ethanolic extracts showed potent anti-inflammatory activity in comparison to aqueous extracts. The extracts showed higher anti-inflammatory potential as the dose varies. Thus results showed that extracts showed significant anti-inflammatory activity in dose-dependent manner. The extracts exhibited membrane stabilization effect by inhibiting hypotonicity induced lysis of erythrocyte membrane. The erythrocyte membrane is analogous to the lysosomal membrane, and its stabilization implies that the extract may as well stabilize lysosomal membrane. Stabilization of lysosomal membrane is important in limiting the inflammatory response by preventing the release of lysosomal constituents of activated neutrophils such as bacterial enzymes and proteases which cause further tissue inflammation and damage. From the above study it was concluded that the ethanolic extract of Parthenium camphora has significant membrane stabilization property compared to the aqueous extract of the same plant and it was comparable to the standard drug Diclofenac Sodium

Tourism: A Tool for Crafting Peace Process in Kashmir, J&K, India

Among the positive benefits attri¬buted to the social and cultural aspects of tourism are the promotion of good¬will, understanding and peace among people across cultures. The role of tourism as an ambassador and vehicle of international understand¬ing and peace has even been acknowledged by the Un¬ited Nations. World Tourism Conference in 1960 in Manila has de¬clared that tourism as a vital force for world peace since it brings both “hosts” and “guests” together to learn about peace by understanding and appreciating diverse cultural issues. Kashmir despite of a major tourist destination, the spread of terrorism especially during the last two decades have hindered the smooth growth of tourism industry. Thus following the principle of tourism as a strategic tool to counter terrorism, the present research is conducted to study the tourism’s contribution to the peace building in Kashmir in terms of residents’ and tourists’ perception. The research concludes that tourism has a significant contribution towards peace building in the study area and the study also suggests a strategic model based on developing guest-host relationship

Tourism: A Tool for Crafting Peace Process in Kashmir, J&K, India

Among the positive benefits attri¬buted to the social and cultural aspects of tourism are the promotion of good¬will, understanding and peace among people across cultures. The role of tourism as an ambassador and vehicle of international understand¬ing and peace has even been acknowledged by the Un¬ited Nations. World Tourism Conference in 1960 in Manila has de¬clared that tourism as a vital force for world peace since it brings both “hosts” and “guests” together to learn about peace by understanding and appreciating diverse cultural issues. Kashmir despite of a major tourist destination, the spread of terrorism especially during the last two decades have hindered the smooth growth of tourism industry. Thus following the principle of tourism as a strategic tool to counter terrorism, the present research is conducted to study the tourism’s contribution to the peace building in Kashmir in terms of residents’ and tourists’ perception. The research concludes that tourism has a significant contribution towards peace building in the study area and the study also suggests a strategic model based on developing guest-host relationship

Comparison of maternal outcome in COVID-19 positive and negative antenatal women: a comparative study

Background: Coronavirus is an RNA virus causing respiratory and gastrointestinal infections. It caused SARS and MERS epidemics. In late 2019, a mutation called SARS-CoV-2 caused COVID-19, a severe respiratory illness. Pregnant women are at risk, but information is limited. The second wave affected pregnant women more. Maternal COVID-19 can lead to preterm births and caesarean sections. Vertical transmission to neonates is possible. Ongoing research is crucial to understand COVID-19's impact on mothers. Methods: A comparative prospective hospital-based study was conducted, including antenatal women with COVID-19 symptoms in the case group. The control group consisted of antenatal women who tested negative for COVID-19. The study analyzed 150 COVID-19-positive antenatal women and 350 COVID-19-negative antenatal women, excluding those who left the study prematurely or tested positive during the study period. Results: In the case group, no abortions were reported (0%), while in the control group, there was 1 abortion (0.29%). PROM occurred in 5.78% of cases and 1.43% of controls, with a significant difference. PPROM occurred in 2.31% of cases and 2.57% of controls, showing no significant difference. Preterm labor was observed in 11.53% of cases and 3.71% of controls, with a significant difference. Conclusions: Pregnant women with COVID-19 experience diverse symptoms, highlighting the importance of vigilant monitoring. Adverse maternal outcomes, including preterm labor and ICU admission, are more common in infected individuals. Managing comorbidities, such as diabetes, is crucial

Glycoslated Haemoglobin as a Diagnostic Marker of Diabetes Mellitus in Acute Myocardial Infarction and Correlation with Dietary Pattern

Abstrac

Expanding the Angle of Incidence Tolerance of Unclonable Anticounterfeiting Labels Based on Microlens Arrays and Luminescent Microparticles

Unclonable anticounterfeiting labels can be based on micrometer-scale randomness created by stochastic processes like the distribution of luminescent microparticles in a transparent layer. Adding a microlens array to the layer can simplify the hardware needed for authentication in that magnification is no longer required. The bright point-pattern generated under light-emitting diode illumination can be captured by a standard digital camera. Shifting the angle of incidence (AOI) relocates the microlens foci changing the bright point-pattern. This provides unclonability, as several distinct bright point patterns at different AOI can be required for authentication. However, it also imposes technical requirements for the authentication setup in terms of the tolerance with which the AOI must be controlled. Herein, the AOI tolerance, the deviation of angle between reference and test image for which sufficiently similar bright point patterns are recorded that they are considered matching by the authentication algorithm, is investigated. Using microlens arrays with a focal length of 550 μm, the average size of the phosphor particle was varied from 9 ± 1 to 32.5 ± 2 μm, resulting in a relaxation of tolerance from 0.8° to 3.6°. Methods to further increase the AOI tolerance and facilitate the practical implementation of these labels are discussed

Unclonable Anti-Counterfeiting Labels Based on Microlens Arrays and Luminescent Microparticles

Micron-scale randomness during manufacturing can create unique and unclonable anti-counterfeiting labels. The security of such labels typically comes at the expense of complex hardware being required for authentication. This work demonstrates unclonable labels that can be authenticated using simple hardware such as a standard light-emitting diode and smartphone camera. These labels consist of a microlens array laminated to a luminescent-microparticle-doped polymer film, and thereby present a new method of making microscopic particle distributions visible on the macroscopic scale. The current novel design offers two significant practical advantages: 1) use of an incoherent source; and 2) authentication independent of the detector position. A comparison of 100 test images against 100 different reference images (total of 10,000 comparisons out of which 100 should authenticate and 9900 should not), demonstrates that authentication is robust with an estimated probability of a false positive on the order of 10$^{-15}$. Finally, a proof-of-concept is demonstrated through successful authentication of a label by a single smartphone, simultaneously providing both excitation and detection on the front side of the label

Comprehensive characterization of irradiation induced defects in ceria: Impact of point defects on vibrational and optical properties

Validation of multiscale microstructure evolution models can be improved when standard microstructure characterization tools are coupled with methods sensitive to individual point defects. We demonstrate how electronic and vibrational properties of defects revealed by optical absorption and Raman spectroscopies can be used to compliment transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and x-ray diffraction (XRD) in the characterization of microstructure evolution in ceria under non-equilibrium conditions. Experimental manifestation of non-equilibrium conditions was realized by exposing cerium dioxide (CeO2) to energetic protons at elevated temperature. Two sintered polycrystalline CeO2 samples were bombarded with protons accelerated to a few MeVs. These irradiation conditions produced a microstructure with resolvable extended defects and a significant concentration of point defects. A rate theory (RT) model was parametrized using the results of TEM, XRD, and thermal conductivity measurements to infer point defect concentrations. An abundance of cerium sublattice defects suggested by the RT model is supported by Raman spectroscopy measurements, which show peak shift and broadening of the intrinsic T2g peak and emergence of new defect peaks. Additionally, spectroscopic ellipsometry measurements performed in lieu of optical absorption reveals the presence of Ce3+ ions associated with oxygen vacancies. This work lays the foundation for a coupled approach that considers a multimodal characterization of microstructures to guide and validate complex defect evolution models