ECONOMIC IMPACT OF INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES FOR COTTON PRODUCTION IN THE COASTAL BEND REGION OF TEXAS

Crop Production/Industries,

Analysis of radiation effect on the threshold voltage of flash memory device

Flash memory experiences adverse effects due to radiation. These effects can be raised in terms of doping, feature size, supply voltages, layout, shielding. The the operating point shift of the device forced to enter the logically-undefined region and cause upset and data errors under radiation exposure. In this letter, the threshold voltage shift of the floating gate transistor (FGT) is analyzed by a mathematical model

Critical analysis of tobacco taxation policies in Pakistan after two decades of FCTC: Policy gaps and lessons for low- and middle-income countries.

INTRODUCTION: Tobacco taxation remains a poorly used intervention to control tobacco use in many low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) including Pakistan even after two decades of FCTC adoption. This study identifies gaps and implementation challenges in the current Tobacco Taxation and Pricing Policies (TTPP) in Pakistan, and highlights key policy implications and lessons for LMICs to strengthen tobacco control measures. METHODS: We used qualitative document analysis to examine the policy documents to assess the TTPP against the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) guidelines for the implementation of Article 6 of the FCTC. In addition, we used secondary data on tobacco tax and prices to assess the impact of TTPP on tobacco affordability in the country. RESULTS: Although Pakistan taxes raw tobacco, cigarettes and other tobacco products (cigarillos, cigars, cheroots), the existing TTPP falls below the WHO FCTC requirements of: uniform tax level, simple tax structure and 70% share of excise tax in the price of a product's pack; among others. There are also multiple issues in tobacco tax administration such as lack of monitoring. This is leading to the availability of highly affordable tobacco products in the country. CONCLUSIONS: Pakistan does not have a clear strategy on using tobacco taxation and prices as a public health tool in the country. Existing TTPP face dual issues of flawed structure and poor administration translating into highly affordable tobacco products and low revenues in the country. There is a need to introduce multisectoral tobacco control policies in countries like Pakistan in the context of the tobacco sector political economy

Performance study of Hybrid Wireless Mesh Protocol(HWMP) for IEEE 802.11s WLAN Mesh Networks

Wireless Mesh Network (WMN) have been envisioned as an important solution to the next generation wireless networking which can be used in wireless community networks, wireless enterprise networks, transportation systems, home networking and last-mile wireless internet access. Many proprietary mesh solutions were developed by individual vendor but in order to interoperability; IEEE forms a task group called IEEE 802.11s to develop an integrated mesh networking solution. Hybrid Wireless Mesh protocol (HWMP) and airtime metrics as default routing protocol and routing metrics set by the task group. There is few test bed and many simulation studies have been done to evaluate the performance of the HWMP protocol with the assumption of unique type of flow with fixed packet size and packet rate. However, real networks carry a diverse application (video, voice, FTP, Email etc) with different characteristics (packet size, data rate). In this paper, we are investigated and analyzed the performance of HWMP protocol under such heterogeneous application characteristics

Multilayer Layer Graphene Nanoribbon Flash Memory: Analysis of Programming and Erasing Operation

Flash memory based on floating gate transistor is the most widely used memory technology in modern microelectronic applications. We recently proposed a new concept of multilayer graphene nanoribbon (MLGNR) and carbon nanotube (CNT) based floating gate transistor design for future nanoscale flash memory technology. In this paper, we analyze the tunneling current mechanism in the proposed graphene-CNT floating gate transistor. We anticipate that the proposed floating gate transistor would adopt Fowler-Nordheim (FN) tunneling during its programming and erase operations. In this paper, we have investigated the mechanism of tunneling current and the factors that would influence this current and the behavior of the proposed floating gate transistor. The analysis reveals that FN tunneling is a strong function of the high field induced by the control gate, and the thicknesses of the control oxide and the tunnel oxide.Comment: in IEEE SOCC, Las Vegas, USA, 201

Manual and Electronic Detection of Subgingival Calculus: Reliability and Accuracy

Calculus consists of mineralised dental biofilm on the surfaces of teeth and dental prosthesis, the location of which can be detected by using a periodontal or an electronic probe. Detection of subgingival calculus is critical for successful treatment outcome in the management of periodontal patients. The aim of this study was to detect subgingival calculus using manual and electronic probe and to compare the reliability and the accuracy of both methods. The study was carried out in vitro on thirty-two extracted teeth with calculus mounted in frasaco model. A total of 192 sites on six surfaces of the teeth bucally and lingually were recorded for the presence of subgingival calculus. Manual probing of calculus depended on tactile sensation and experience; where as electronic probing gave sound and light signal. The results showed that at the depth of 1-3mm, manual probing could detect 62.7% of calculus and electronic probing could detect more at 77.1%. At the deeper sites of 4-6mm, the ability for detection using electronic probing reduced to 14.1% with failure for detection at ≥ 7mm depth. However manual probing recorded more at 25% for 4-6mm calculus and 4.7% at ≥7mm. Manual and electronic probing has different sensitivity in detecting subgingival calculus with electronic probing being more sensitive at shallow sites and failed to detect calculus at deeper sites. It also has difficulty to differentiate between calculus and other roughness on tooth surfaces. These findings highlighted the accuracy and reliability of manual detection for deeper calculus. Redesigning calibration and length of electronic probe can improve its usage. Further study on clinical application to assess the impact of both probing may benefit clinical teaching of subgingival calculus detection and the outcome of periodontal patient’s management