Effects of Surfactants on the Thermal and Fire Properties of Poly(Methyl Methacrylate)/Clay Nanocomposites

Nanocomposites of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) with layered silicates and with polyhedral oligosilsesquioxanes (POSS) were prepared by bulk polymerization. The thermal and fire stabilities of the various organically-modified clay and POSS nanocomposites were evaluated using both thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and cone calorimetry. Thermogravimetric analysis is not a good criteria for evaluating nanocomposite formation but cone calorimetry can be. For montmorillonite systems, when more than 4% clay is present, the expected reduction in peak heat release rate is observed. For hectorite, a minimum of 6% clay concentration is required to achieve the same reduction in peak heat release rate. POSS has the potential to reduce the peak heat release rate but one must be careful in selecting the POSS material to be evaluated

India Versus China: Why They Are Not Friends (Book Review)

Taking the Eastern Ladakh crisis as the backdrop, Kanti Bajpai, a renowned scholar of international affairs with a special interest in India-China relations, in his book India Versus China: Why They Are Not Friends contextualises the antagonism in the India-China ties by drawing from the past and assessing the implications of it in the present and future. As Bajpai emphatically posits: "Why did these two societies become locked into a conflict that has stubbornly refused to go away?" (p. 1). To which, Bajpai suggests the need for a deeper introspection as proved by the Ladakh crisis, the relations between the two countries "are darker and more complex than most observers appreciate or acknowledge" (ibid.). To be specific, as Bajpai asks in the very title: Why India and China are not Friends

Fight and Win Without Waging a War: How China Fights Hybrid Warfare

The Chinese perception of the increasing security challenges has prompted a shift from having “fixed mindsets of mechanized warfare” to “establishing the ideological concept of information warfare”.  In this framework of understanding, ‘hybrid warfare' acts as a significant component of China's way of fighting a modern war, as witnessed in its growing interest in waging an asymmetrical form of warfare in areas that constitute its ‘core interests'. Wherein, Sun Tzu's recommendation of deception and intelligence, the use of regular and irregular methods with an emphasis on defeating the enemy's will to fight, act as key components of the current Chinese understanding of such warfare

The 'Xi' Factor in Driving China's 19th Party Congress

The approaching 19th Party Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) scheduled in October/November is the most watched out event both within as well as outside China. What makes this a momentous political event is that it serves a test case of Xi Jinping’s power consolidation- promoting his loyalists and cadres up on the political agenda. Most importantly, the 19th Party Congress is the road map to China’s leadership transition

The Emerging Role of BRICS in the Changing World Order

The rapid economic and political rise of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS) as an informal co-operative group as well as their individual emergence on the international stage as influential actors have shifted the power dynamics of the international world order. Most importantly, the emergence of BRICS after the financial crisis has changed the structural dynamics of the West-dominated financial system by providing an alternative bypassing the normative structure. Of which, what provided the institutional framework to the BRICS is the New Development Bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement- key milestones of cooperation among emerging economies and developing countries. Thereby, this makes it imperative to understand the role of BRICS as an important platform in the international order and how it is shaping the international order

China’s Military Space Capabilities and Its Implications for India

China’s rapid advancements in space-based capabilities from surveillance and communications to navigation and earth observation, are just not competing against but are also challenging the American supremacy in outer space. With a strong military dimension to its space programme, China aims to make itself combat-ready in fighting an informationised and intelligentised warfare’ as China sees space as a critical domain in international strategic competition. This makes it imperative to understand the nature of China’s space programme, the use of space for Chinese military operations and its implications for other countries

China's active role in global governance

On December 1, at the opening ceremony of China's first ever event "CPC in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-Level Meeting" held in Beijing, Chinese President Xi Jinping promulgated the proactive interest of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in solving the difficulties faced by the international community. Themed under "Working together towards a community with a shared future for mankind and a better world: the responsibility of political parties", Xi in his speech addressed to above 300 representatives of overseas political parties, stated: "[China] will proactively push forward the construction of a global network of partners and will proactively push for political solutions for international hot issues and difficult problems". And further pointed that "We [China] do not import foreign models, and we do not export the China model, either", "We will not require other countries to copy what we do"

Media transmission in virtual meetings under poor network connectivity

This disclosure describes the transmission of recorded media such as audio and/or video in a virtual meeting when a participant device experiences conditions of poor network connectivity. Per techniques of this disclosure, the quality of service (QoS) of the network is monitored. If poor QoS is detected at a device, the meeting is switched to a receive-only mode for the device. The participant is provided with an option, e.g., similar to “tap-to-record” in messaging applications, to record and transmit their message(s) to other meeting participants. Other participants in the meeting are notified that the participant with poor network connectivity is recording a message. The recorded message can be transmitted by the user using a lossless network protocol. The lossless nature of the protocol enables the successful transmission of the message, even under poor network conditions. The recorded message relayed to all participants in the meeting and is played as soon as it is received, such that the participant with poor network connectivity can be active in the meeting

India’s China Challenge: A Journey Through China’s Rise and What It Means for India Ananth Krishnan: HarperCollins Publishers, Noida, 2020, ISBN 9789390327683, 435 pp, Rs 599

In rhetorics, India-China relations are largely perceived to be pivoted in the bedrock principle of Panchsheel—the vision of “Peaceful coexistence”. With the 1962 War resulting in the departure from the sloganeering of “Hindi-Chini Bhai Bhai”, the 70 years of the India-China ties have staggered over time and have increasingly become volatile as witnessed with the 2020 military stand-off in Eastern Ladakh. With the ties reaching their lowest, the unsettled border dispute holds a greater bearing on the ties-difficult to delink from the overall bilateral ties. With new differences added to the old dispute, the bilateral ties have become fragile with time despite the relative peace. Most precisely, what provides the context to the book are the three key situational factors: First, 2020, marked the seventh anniversary of the India-China diplomatic ties; second, the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic from the Wuhan epidemic; and finally, the violent scuffle in Galwan Valley in Eastern Ladakh. &nbsp

Arunachal Pradesh: China Claims, But India Administers

India's north-easternmost state of Arunachal Pradesh has a border with Tibet and is one of the most extensive territories claimed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The watchword here is the "McMahon Line," as Beijing disagrees with New Delhi's position on acknowledging it as the boundary between China and India. China rejects the McMahon Line, which it calls "illegal" and "unacceptable," for the following reasons: first, the Sino-Indian boundary has never been adequately demarcated; no treaty or agreement has been made between the Chinese Central Government and the government of India. Second, Beijing rejected the McMahon Line under the pretext of "imperialist legacy" and disregarded the 1914 Simla Convention between Britain, China, and Tibet because Tibet was not a sovereign state and, therefore, had no power to conclude treaties. Thus, India and China are stuck in the quagmire of an unresolved boundary dispute due to the absence of an internationally accepted boundary between the two countries, the lack of an agreement over the de facto 'Line of Actual Control,' and the border not being demarcated on the ground or delineated on maps. The outcome of being India-China boundary dispute is divided into three sectors: the western sector, the middle sector, and the eastern sector, of which Arunachal Pradesh is a part