Synthesis, Electrical Conductivity, and Dielectric Behavior of Polyaniline/V 2

Conducting polymer composites of polyaniline/vanadium pentaoxide PANI/V2O5 (with different initial weight percentage of V2O5) has been synthesized by in situ polymerization method. DC conductivity of compressed pellets has been analyzed in the temperature range 300–550 K and was found to increase with V2O5 doping. This increase in conductivity is mainly due to band conduction. It has also been observed that the dielectric constant and dielectric loss increase with the level of doping of V2O5 but remain independent of the frequency (50 KHz–1 MHz). X-ray diffraction pattern shows some order of crystallinity of composites due to interaction of polyaniline with V2O5. UV-visible spectroscopy shows an increase in the optical band gap with doping

Role of soluble, cell wall bound phenolics, tannin and flavonoid contents in maize resistance to pink stem borer Sesamia inferens Walker

The pink stem borer Sesamia inferens Walker is an important pest of winter maize which causes significant yieldlosses. In an attempt to identify the biochemical basis of resistance against S. inferens, total soluble phenolics, boundphenolics, cell wall-bound hydroxycinnamic acids-p-coumaric acid (p-CA), ferulic acid (FA), total tannin contentand total flavonoid contents, were measured in leaf at 10, 20 days after germination (DAG); stem at 20, 40 DAG;pith and rind tissues at 60 DAG (stem differentiated). From the present study, it was found that bound phenolics,p-CA, ferulic acid and total tannin contents contribute to the maize defense mechanism against S. inferens. Totalbound phenolic content showed negative correlation with Leaf Injury Rating (LIR). Highly significant strong positivecorrelation (+0.9750) was observed between LIR and total soluble phenolics in leaf tissue at 20 DAG. Similarlyhighly significant strong positive correlation between LIR and total tannins (+0.9354**) and flavonoids (+0.9582**)in pith at 60 DAG was observed. Further, a strong significant positive correlation was also observed between LIRand p-CA (+0.9199*) in pith at 60 DAG and total ferulic acid (+0.9051*) in rind at 60 DAG. The significant strong negativecorrelation between LIR and p-CA (-0.8441*) in stem at 40 DAG was observed. The total bound phenolicsin rind at 60 DAG (0.756), in leaf at 20 DAG (0.681), and total soluble phenolics in the stem at 20 DAG (0.685) showedhigher loadings with PC1, PC2, and PC3, respectively. Genotype-by-biochemical factor biplot showed that thedata of biochemical parameters measured in different tissues and stages could be able to group the genotypesaccording to their reaction to S. inferens

Biosand Filter for Removal of Chemical Contaminants from Water

Numerous reports by the United Nations and the World Health Organization have indicated a significant worldwide problem with water pollution and inaccessibility to potable drinking water. Due to technological and economical barriers, the problem with water pollution is particularly more serious for under-developed and developing countries. The present study is aimed at designing, constructing and evaluating a cost-effective biosand filter was undertaken. Results indicated the removal of up to 80% total hardness, 86% chlorides, 96% turbidity and 90% colour. Moreover, the filter’s performance was appraised by the absence of E. coli in the filtered sample. The filter describes the proven bioremediation technology and its ability to empower at-risk populations to use naturally occurring biology and readily available materials as a sustainable way to achieve the health benefits of safe drinking water

GCIP water and energy budget synthesis (WEBS)

As part of the World Climate Research Program\u27s (WCRPs) Global Energy and Water-Cycle Experiment (GEWEX) Continental-scale International Project (GCIP), a preliminary water and energy budget synthesis (WEBS) was developed for the period 1996–1999 from the “best available” observations and models. Besides this summary paper, a companion CD-ROM with more extensive discussion, figures, tables, and raw data is available to the interested researcher from the GEWEX project office, the GAPP project office, or the first author. An updated online version of the CD-ROM is also available at http://ecpc.ucsd.edu/gcip/webs.htm/. Observations cannot adequately characterize or “close” budgets since too many fundamental processes are missing. Models that properly represent the many complicated atmospheric and near-surface interactions are also required. This preliminary synthesis therefore included a representative global general circulation model, regional climate model, and a macroscale hydrologic model as well as a global reanalysis and a regional analysis. By the qualitative agreement among the models and available observations, it did appear that we now qualitatively understand water and energy budgets of the Mississippi River Basin. However, there is still much quantitative uncertainty. In that regard, there did appear to be a clear advantage to using a regional analysis over a global analysis or a regional simulation over a global simulation to describe the Mississippi River Basin water and energy budgets. There also appeared to be some advantage to using a macroscale hydrologic model for at least the surface water budgets

Ubiquitous organic molecule-based free-standing nanowires with ultra-high aspect ratios

ごくありふれた有機分子からナノ細線をつくり立たせて埋めつくす --立体電子回路や超高感度センサーへ--. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2021-06-30.The critical dimension of semiconductor devices is approaching the single-nm regime, and a variety of practical devices of this scale are targeted for production. Planar structures of nano-devices are still the center of fabrication techniques, which limit further integration of devices into a chip. Extension into 3D space is a promising strategy for future; however, the surface interaction in 3D nanospace make it hard to integrate nanostructures with ultrahigh aspect ratios. Here we report a unique technique using high-energy charged particles to produce free-standing 1D organic nanostructures with high aspect ratios over 100 and controlled number density. Along the straight trajectory of particles penetrating the films of various sublimable organic molecules, 1D nanowires were formed with approximately 10~15 nm thickness and controlled length. An all-dry process was developed to isolate the nanowires, and planar or coaxial heterojunction structures were built into the nanowires. Electrical and structural functions of the developed standing nanowire arrays were investigated, demonstrating the potential of the present ultrathin organic nanowire systems

Prawn fauna (Crustacea: Decapoda) of India - An annotated checklist of the Penaeoid, Sergestoid, Stenopodid and Caridean prawns

Twenty four species of Pandalid shrimps reported from the Indian waters, of which six genera (Chlorotocella, Chlorotocus, Chlorocurtis, Dorodotes, Heterocarpoides and Stylopandalus) are represented by single species each. The genera, Plesionika and Heterocarpus are represented by eleven and seven species respectively. Plesionika adensameri (Balss, 1914) a deep-sea shrimp hitherto unreported from Indian waters is recorded from west coast of India. Information on some biological aspects of few Pandalid shrimps from Indian waters is also reported in the present paper

Physics Potential of the ICAL detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO)

The upcoming 50 kt magnetized iron calorimeter (ICAL) detector at the India-based Neutrino Observatory (INO) is designed to study the atmospheric neutrinos and antineutrinos separately over a wide range of energies and path lengths. The primary focus of this experiment is to explore the Earth matter effects by observing the energy and zenith angle dependence of the atmospheric neutrinos in the multi-GeV range. This study will be crucial to address some of the outstanding issues in neutrino oscillation physics, including the fundamental issue of neutrino mass hierarchy. In this document, we present the physics potential of the detector as obtained from realistic detector simulations. We describe the simulation framework, the neutrino interactions in the detector, and the expected response of the detector to particles traversing it. The ICAL detector can determine the energy and direction of the muons to a high precision, and in addition, its sensitivity to multi-GeV hadrons increases its physics reach substantially. Its charge identification capability, and hence its ability to distinguish neutrinos from antineutrinos, makes it an efficient detector for determining the neutrino mass hierarchy. In this report, we outline the analyses carried out for the determination of neutrino mass hierarchy and precision measurements of atmospheric neutrino mixing parameters at ICAL, and give the expected physics reach of the detector with 10 years of runtime. We also explore the potential of ICAL for probing new physics scenarios like CPT violation and the presence of magnetic monopoles.Comment: 139 pages, Physics White Paper of the ICAL (INO) Collaboration, Contents identical with the version published in Pramana - J. Physic

An Analysis of Private School Closings

We add to the small literature on private school supply by exploring exits of K-12 private schools. We find that the closure of private schools is not an infrequent event, and use national survey data from the National Center for Education Statistics to study closures of private schools. We assume that the probability of an exit is a function of excess supply of private schools over the demand, as well as the school's characteristics such as age, size, and religious affiliation. Our empirical results generally support the implications of the model. Working Paper 07-0

Balkans' Asteraceae Species as a Source of Biologically Active Compounds for the Pharmaceutical and Food Industry

Herbal drugs are a useful source of different bioactive compounds. Asteraceae species, as the most widespread vascular plants, can be used both as food and as medicine due to the great diversity of recorded chemical components - different phenolic compounds, terpenes, carotenoids, vitamins, alkaloids, etc. The Balkan Peninsula is characterized by great diversity of plants from Asteraceae family, including presence of rare and endemic species. In this review, results of the survey of chemical composition and biological activity, mainly focusing on antioxidant, antimicrobial and anticancer effects of selected Balkans' Asteraceae species were provided. In addition, information on edible plants from Asteraceae family is presented, due to growing interest for the so-called 'healthy diet' and possible application of Balkans' Asteraceae species as food of high nutritional value or as a source of functional food ingredients.This is peer-reviewed version of the following article: Kostić, A.; Janacković, P.; Kolasinac, S. M.; Dajić-Stevanović, Z. Balkans’ Asteraceae Species as a Source of Biologically Active Compounds for the Pharmaceutical and Food Industry. Chemistry & Biodiversity 2020, 17 (6). [https://doi.org/10.1002/cbdv.202000097