Protecting Privacy in Indian Schools: Regulating AI-based Technologies' Design, Development and Deployment

Education is one of the priority areas for the Indian government, where Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies are touted to bring digital transformation. Several Indian states have also started deploying facial recognition-enabled CCTV cameras, emotion recognition technologies, fingerprint scanners, and Radio frequency identification tags in their schools to provide personalised recommendations, ensure student security, and predict the drop-out rate of students but also provide 360-degree information of a student. Further, Integrating Aadhaar (digital identity card that works on biometric data) across AI technologies and learning and management systems (LMS) renders schools a ‘panopticon’. Certain technologies or systems like Aadhaar, CCTV cameras, GPS Systems, RFID tags, and learning management systems are used primarily for continuous data collection, storage, and retention purposes. Though they cannot be termed AI technologies per se, they are fundamental for designing and developing AI systems like facial, fingerprint, and emotion recognition technologies. The large amount of student data collected speedily through the former technologies is used to create an algorithm for the latter-stated AI systems. Once algorithms are processed using machine learning (ML) techniques, they learn correlations between multiple datasets predicting each student’s identity, decisions, grades, learning growth, tendency to drop out, and other behavioural characteristics. Such autonomous and repetitive collection, processing, storage, and retention of student data without effective data protection legislation endangers student privacy. The algorithmic predictions by AI technologies are an avatar of the data fed into the system. An AI technology is as good as the person collecting the data, processing it for a relevant and valuable output, and regularly evaluating the inputs going inside an AI model. An AI model can produce inaccurate predictions if the person overlooks any relevant data. However, the state, school administrations and parents’ belief in AI technologies as a panacea to student security and educational development overlooks the context in which ‘data practices’ are conducted. A right to privacy in an AI age is inextricably connected to data practices where data gets ‘cooked’. Thus, data protection legislation operating without understanding and regulating such data practices will remain ineffective in safeguarding privacy. The thesis undergoes interdisciplinary research that enables a better understanding of the interplay of data practices of AI technologies with social practices of an Indian school, which the present Indian data protection legislation overlooks, endangering students’ privacy from designing and developing to deploying stages of an AI model. The thesis recommends the Indian legislature frame better legislation equipped for the AI/ML age and the Indian judiciary on evaluating the legality and reasonability of designing, developing, and deploying such technologies in schools

ermectin – A Potent Weapon in the AntiCOVID-19 Armamentarium

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has become an earth-shattering menace afflicting the entire globe. With no effective antiviral drugs in sight, the repurposing of many currently available drugs has been considered the mainstay of treatment. One such drug is ivermectin (IVM), a Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved antiparasitic agent that has been shown to exhibit antiviral activity against a broad range of viruses. Ivermectin proposes many potential effects to treat a range of diseases, with its antimicrobial, antiviral and anticancer properties as a wonder drug. Several studies have reported antiviral effects of IVM on RNA viruses such as Zika, dengue, yellow fever, West Nile, Hendra, Newcastle, Venezuelan equine encephalitis, chikungunya, Semliki Forest, Sindbis, Avian influenza A, porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome, human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Recent studies have suggested that IVM inhibits the replication of (SARS-CoV-2) in vitro, thus suggesting its potential for use against COVID-19. In this review, we describe the mechanism of action, rationale, dosing protocols of IVM in the management and prophylaxis of COVID-19 infection

Recent Advances in the Green Synthesis of Lanthanide-Based Organic Compounds For Broad Application Spectrum in Different Sectors: A Review

The present review highlights the various green method of synthesis and discrete applications of inner transition compounds. Green chemistry’s strategies are developing, producing, and using effective, reliable, and eco-friendly chemical products and processes to manage pollution. In this review, the greener or environmentally sound route for synthesizing lanthanide compounds is discussed briefly. The initial section briefs the fundamental principles of greener chemistry. It further emphasizes in-depth studies of synthesis of the different lanthanide-based complexes and their applications in different dimensions. It includes Green Synthesis of (a) lanthanide-doped nanophosphors, (b) rare-earth zirconates, (c) metal oxide nanoparticles, (d) rare-earth ions-doped nanocrystals-based photoluminescent materials, (e) self-assembled nanospherical dysprosium MOFs, and (f) nucleotide-based lanthanide coordination polymers. The last section dedicatedly reports the scope for the future perspective and recommendation in the novel area of research

Advanced X-ray shielding and antibacterial smart multipurpose fabric impregnated with polygonal shaped bismuth oxide nanoparticles in carbon nanotubes via green synthesis

Synthesis of multifunctional hybrid materials for X-rays’ attenuation is attracting more recognition recently because of several superiorities over the conventional radiation shielding materials made using toxic lead-based compounds. For the first time*, the present study investigates the microwave irradiation based green synthesis and in-situ stabilization of bismuth oxide (Bi2O3) nanoparticles on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT) by a novel approach for making advanced material. TEM and XRD studies have shown that nanoparticles have a uniform size with polygonal morphology and are impregnated on MWCNT. The developed hybrid nanocomposite's physical appearance is gel-like. It was then applied on a cotton fabric piece to create a multifunctional material and valuable for the fabrications of aprons, bandages, and X-ray shielding caskets. The porous nature of cotton fabric has facilitated the adhesion and stabilization of the nanocomposite. The elemental composition and topology of the hybrid material were further analyzed by XPS, EDX and AFM studies, respectively. The higher attenuation characteristics and shielding efficiency of the developed material are due to the dual shielding effect of polygonal nanoparticles and MWCNT. Availability of metal atoms with higher valency allowed the higher photoelectric effect followed by the Compton effect during X-ray shielding