Folk Lore Uses of Some Plants by the Tribes of Madhya Pradesh with Special Reference to Their Conservation

Madhya Pradesh sustains a very rich traditional medicinal plant wealth and inherits unique plant and animal communities. Due to deforestation, loss of biodiversity and indiscriminate exploitation of wild and natural resources, many valuable herbs like Abrus precatorious, Bauhinia variegta, Mucuna prurita, etc., are at the verge of extinction. The present paper enumerates status, conservation strategies and traditional uses of 80 plant species by the tribes of Madhya Pradesh. The claims were gathered by interviewing tribes of the study area. Attempts were made to verify the efficacy of claims with actual beneficiaries, although this was not possible in all cases due to social customs

Photon redshift and the appearance of a naked singularity

In this paper we analyze the redshift as observed by an external observer receiving photons which terminate in the past at the naked singularity formed in a Tolman-Bondi dust collapse. Within the context of models considered here it is shown that photons emitted from a weak curvature naked singularity are always finitely redshifted to an external observer. Certain cases of strong curvature naked singularities, including the self-similar one, where the photons are infinitely redshifted are also pointed out.Comment: Latex file, 14 pages, no figures, one change in the reference. Accepted for publication in Phys. Rev.

Optimization of synchronizability in multiplex networks by rewiring one layer

Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Formulation of design guidelines for automated robotic assembly in outerspace

The approach for arriving at design guidelines for assembly by robots in outerspace is illustrated. The use of robots in a zero gravity environment necessitates that extra factors over and above normal design guidelines be taken into account. Besides, many of the guidelines for assembly by robots on earth do not apply in space. However, considering the axioms for normal design and assembly as one set, guidelines for design and robotic assembly as another, and guidelines for design and assembly in space as the third set, unions and intersections of these sets can generate guidelines for two or more of these conditions taken together - say design and manual assembly in space. Therein lies the potential to develop expert systems in the future, which would use an exhaustive database and similar guidelines to arrive at those required by a superposition of these conditions

Bioremediation of Heavy Metal by Algae: Current and Future Perspective

Instead of using mainly bacteria, it is also possible to use mainly algae to clean wastewater because many of the pollutant sources in wastewater are also food sources for algae. Nitrates and phosphates are common components of plant fertilizers for plants. Like plants, algae need large quantities of nitrates and phosphates to support their fast cell cycles. Certain heavy metals are also important for the normal functioning of algae. These include iron (for photosynthesis), and chromium (for metabolism). Because marine environments are normally scarce in these metals, some marine algae especially have developed efficient mechanisms to gather these heavy metals from the environment and take them up. These natural processes can also be used to remove certain heavy metals from the environment. The use of algae has several advantages over normal bacteria-based bioremediation processes. One major advantage of the removal of pollutants is that this is a process that under light conditions does not need oxygen. Instead, as pollutants are taken up and digested, oxygen is added while carbon dioxide is removed. Hence, phytoremediation could potentially be coupled with carbon sequestration. Additionally, because phytoremediation does not rely on fouling processes, odors are much less a problem. Microalgae, in particular, have been recognized as suitable vectors for detoxification and have emerged as a potential low-cost alternative to physicochemical treatments. Uptake of metals by living microalgae occurs in two steps: one takes place rapidly and is essentially independent of cell metabolism – “adsorption” onto the cell surface. The other one is lengthy and relies on cell metabolism – “absorption” or “intracellular uptake.” Nonviable cells have also been successfully used in metal removal from contaminated sites. Some of the technologies in heavy metal removals, such as High Rate Algal Ponds and Algal Turf Scrubber, have been justified for some practical application in China and abroad and limitations of these methods in large-scale still exist. As an innovative clean-up technology, it mainly depends on the biosorption and bioaccumulation abilities of algae, and the former is dominated in the whole process of bioremediation. Studies suggest that the constituents of algae cell wall such as alginate and fucoidan which have key functional groups are chiefly responsible for biosorption of heavy metal ions

The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute- Perspectives and new dimensions

The Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Cochin, under the ICAR is the premier Institute which engages itself primarily in all aspects of research in marine fisheries and marine life, their ecology and biology. Starting after India's independence in the sprawling sea side campus at Mandapam, Tamilnadu, the CMFRI has now become a major fisheries Institute with about 253 Scientists and a total manpower of 1193 persons