Effects of Visual Silhouette, Leaf Size and Host Species on Feeding Preference by Adult Emerald Ash Borer, \u3ci\u3eAgrilus Planipennis\u3c/i\u3e Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae)

The emerald ash borer, Agrilus planipennis Fairmaire (Coleoptera: Buprestidae) is an invasive species recently established in North America. In large arena bioassays, when given a choice among live green ash, Fraxinus pennsylvanica Marsh and artificial ash saplings that were hidden or exposed from view, beetles preferred live trees (either visible or hidden) compared to artificial trees that had similar visual silhouettes, confirming that olfactory cues are used to locate hosts. Examination of the effect of leaf size revealed that large leaves attracted more beetles than medium-sized leaves that in turn attracted more beetles than small leaves of the same age. Beetles also consumed more of the large leaves in terms of total leaf area than either medium or small leaves, but the proportion of foliage that beetles consumed relative to total available leaf area, did not differ. When newly emerged adults were fed on green and Manchurian ash, Fraxinus mandshurica Rupr., foliage in a no- choice assay, beetles that were given green ash consumed significantly more foliage compared to those that fed on Manchurian ash, but neither longevity nor beetle body weight differed. Our results suggest that while beetles might use olfactory cues to identify suitable hosts, visual cues also play a role in landing and feeding behavior. Manchurian ash might have greater nutritive value or resistance than green ash, necessitating lower consumption and therefore less damage in nature

PHOTOCATALYTIC DEGRADATION OF AG- TIO2 NANOTUBES BY REDUCTION METHOD

The photocatalytic activity of, Ag NPs loaded TiO2 nanorods and spheres prepared through simple hydrothermal and solvothermal methods towards photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue. It is planned to synthesis TiO2 NRs and TiO2 NSs via hydrothermal and solvothermal method followed by deposition of Ag through chemical reduction method. The structure and morphology of Ag-TiO2 are characterized through X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS) and Transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The photocatalytic activity of TiO2-Ag nanorods and nanospheres is also compar

IMIDAZOLIUM BASED PHYSIOCHEMICAL PROPERTIES OF IONIC LIQUIDES

The prepared complexes [EtMeim]2[NiCl4], [BenzMeim]2[CoCl4] , assigned to (C-H) and (C=N) appeared at aromatic and aliphatic respectively This was supported by the appearance of new medium intensity band in the spectrum of the complexes which assigned to stretching frequency of (C=C) assigned to(M-Cl) for the complexes.These data indicate that the ligands is coordinated with the metal atom . Imidazolium functionalised ionic liquids [EtMeim]2 Cl and metal complexes Ni and Co were found to play a role as a heterogenous catalyst for (C=C) (C=N) and formation

ADDITION –ELIMINATION PROCESS OF 2,4-DICHLOROQUINOLINE SYNTHESIS AND PHARMACOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE

In terms of the diversity of quinolines, 2,4-dichloro compounds can play a role as key intermediates in synthesis of 2,4-disubstituted quinolines by possible stepwise substitution at C4 and C2 positions, where the chance for study of regioselectivity is more. This obvious significance prompted us to study the selectivity referred to 2,4-dichloroquinolines, in which one of the chlorine is selectively replaced under controlled temperature to yield new molecular structures with high pharmacological importance or with interesting properties

FE3O4 DECORATED TIO2 NANO TUBE PHOTO CATALYST SEMICONDUCTOR

Fe 3 O 4 -TiO 2 nanocomposite photocatalyst with different weight percentage (5, 10, and 15 wt %) of Fe 3 O 4 loaded On TiO 2 were successfully synthesized by co-precipitation method for removal of methylene blue dye under direct sunlight. The characterization of the as prepared product was done with scanning electronic microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and Diffuse reflectance spectra (DRS). The photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue was used as modal reaction to evaluate the photocatalytic activity of Fe 3 O 4 @TiO 2 nanoparticles under visible light irradiation . The influence of doping amount of Fe 3 O 4 (5, 10, 15 wt% ) on photocatalytic activity of TiO 2 was investigated. Broadened absorption spectra has describe that the size of Fe 3 O 4 @TiO 2 particle decreased with increased absorption intensity. The doping amount remarkably affects the activity of the catalyst, and the optimum efficiency occurs at about the doping amount of 10 wt%. The catalytic activity of TiO 2 increased for methylene blue (MB)

Prevalence, Awareness and Control of Hypertension in Chennai - The Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES – 52)

Objective : To study the prevalence, awareness and control of hypertension in Chennai representing Urban South India. Methods : The Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES) is one of the largest epidemiological studies on diabetes carried out in India, where 26,001 individuals aged ≥ 20 years were screened using systematic random sampling method. Every tenth subject recruited in Phase 1 of CURES was requested to participate in Phase 3 of CURES and the response rate was 2,350/26,001 or 90.4%. An oral glucose tolerance test was performed in all individuals except self-reported diabetic subjects. Anthropometric measurements and lipid estimations were done in all subjects. Hypertension was diagnosed in all subjects who were on drug treatment for hypertension or if the blood pressure ≥ 140/90 mmHg. Results : Hypertension was present in 20% [men:23.2% vs. women:17.1%, p<0.001] of the study population. Isolated systolic hypertension (Systolic BP ≥ 140 and Diastolic BP<90 mmHg) was present in 6.6% while isolated diastolic hypertension (DBP ≥ 90 and SBP<140 mmHg) was present in 4.2% of the population. Among the elderly population (aged ≥ 60 years), 25.2% had isolated systolic hypertension. Age, body mass index, smoking, serum cholesterol and triglycerides were found to be strongly associated with hypertension. Among the total hypertensive subjects, only 32.8% were aware of their blood pressure, of these, 70.8% were under treatment and 45.9% had their blood pressure under control. Conclusion : Hypertension was present in one-fifth of this urban south Indian population and isolated systolic hypertension was more common among elderly population. Majority of hypertensive subjects still remain undetected and the control of hypertension is also inadequate. This calls for urgent prevention and control measures for hypertensio

The Enrollment Effects of Merit-Based Financial Aid: Evidence from Georgia's HOPE Scholarship

This paper examines the effects of Georgia's merit-based HOPE Scholarship on college enrollment. Introduced in 1993, the HOPE Scholarship covers tuition, fees, and book expenses for students attending Georgia public colleges, and provides a subsidy of comparable value to students attending in-state private colleges, without any income restrictions. Treating HOPE as a natural experiment, we contrast college enrollment in Georgia with those in the other member states of the Southern Regional Educational Board using IPEDS data for the period 1988-97. We estimate that the HOPE increased total freshmen enrollment by 5.9 percent, with the gains concentrated in 4-year schools. For freshmen recently graduated from high school attending 4-year colleges, two-thirds of the program effect is explained by a decrease in students leaving the state. Both white and black enrollments increased because of HOPE, with the state's historically-black institutions playing an important role. Finally, the total HOPE-induced enrollment increase represents only 15 percent freshmen scholarship recipients.Higher Education, Enrollment, HOPE, Merit-based Aid

A simplified Indian diabetes risk score for screening for undiagnosed diabetic subjects

Aim: The aim of this study was to develop and validate a simplified Indian Diabetes Risk Score for detecting undiagnosed diabetes in India. Methods: The risk score was derived from the Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES), an ongoing epidemiological study on a representative population of Chennai. Phase 1 of CURES recruited 26,001 individuals, of whom every tenth subject was requested to participate in Phase 3 for screening for diabetes using World Health Organization (WHO) 2hour venous plasma glucose criteria [i.e. ≥200 mg/dl]. The response rate was 90.4% (2350/2600). The Indian Diabetes Risk Score [IDRS] was developed based on results of multiple logistic regression analysis. Internal validation was performed on the same data. Results: IDRS used four risk factors: age, abdominal obesity, family history of diabetes and physical activity. Beta co-efficients were derived based on a multiple logistic regression analysis using undiagnosed diabetes as the dependent variable. The beta co-efficients were modified so as to obtain a maximum possible score of 100. Receiver Operating Characteristic [ROC] curves were constructed to identify the optimum value of IDRS for detecting diabetes by WHO consulting group criteria. Area under the curve for ROC was 0.698 (95% confidence interval (CI):0.663 .0.733). An IDRS value . 60 had the optimum sensitivity (72.5%) and specificity (60.1%) for determining undiagnosed diabetes with a positive predictive value of 17.0%, negative predictive value of 95.1%, and accuracy of 61.3%. Conclusion: This simplified Indian Diabetes Risk Score is useful for identifying undiagnosed diabetic subjects in India and could make screening programmes more cost effective