Unsteady slip flow of amicropolarnanofluid over an impulsively stretched vertical surface

The unsteady mixed convective flow of micropolarnanofluid over an impulsively stretched vertical surface has been examined. A model has been developed to analyze the behavior of nanofluids in presentmicropolar fluids studied numerically for both cases of assisting and opposing flow taking into account the thermal convective boundary condition. A model has been developed to analyze the behavior of nanofluids containing metallic nanoparticles as copper (Cu)and nonmetallic nanoparticles as alumina (A  in water-micropolarnanofluidhave been considered. The governing partial differential equations have been transformed to non-similar differential equations then have been solved numerically by using theRunge-Kutta-Fehlberg method of seventh order (RKF7). The results have been compared with the published results and are found in excellent agreement

Surgical Management of Soft Tissue Sarcoma

Background: To study the management patternof soft tissue sarcomas in a tertiary care settingMethods: In this descriptive study patients whowere operated for soft tissue masses were included.Intra-operative findings, procedure details andpostoperative orders were recorded. Postoperativechemo-radiotherapy records were reviewed andrecorded. Depth of the tumour was grouped asdeeper or superficial than 5 cm. The follow uprecords were accessed from the outpatientdepartment and any surgical complications wererecorded up to three years.Staging was done usingclinical and radiological criteria taking into accountthe histological grade,tumour size , depth, locallymph node invasion and metastasis.Surgicalprocedure for removal of STS are wide local excision(WLE), intralesional excision (IE) or tumordebulking, marginal excision (ME) and radicalexcision (RE).Results: Sixty eight patients with mean age of 43.0± 17.258 SD were diagnosed as cases of soft tissuesarcomas. Male to female ratio was 3.25:1.The mostcommon histopathological variety was malignantfibrous histiocytoma (35.3%) , followed byRhabdomyosarcoma(30%). Most common involvedsite was lower limbs (35.3%).Wide local excision wasperformed in majority (82.4%) . Most commonpostop complication was wound infection (10.3%)Conclusion: Clinicians must be agile about thenature of these tumours and their referral to aspecialist surgeon for further management. Promptdiagnosis, accurate investigations and earlyintervention will benefit the patients and help usunderstand this disease entity

Proliposome powder or tablets for generating inhalable liposomes using a medical nebulizer

Purpose: The aim of this study was to develop and compare proliposome powder and proliposome tablet formulations for drug delivery from a Pari-LC Sprint nebulizer. Methods: Proliposome powders were prepared by the slurry method and sorbitol or mannitol carbohydrate carrier were used in a 1:10 and 1:15 w/w lipid phase to carrier ratio. Beclometasone dipropionate (BDP; 2 mol%) was incorporated in the lipid phase. Proliposome powders were compressed into tablets, and liposomes were generated from proliposome powders or tablets within the nebulizer reservoir for subsequent aerosolization. Results: Comparatively, shorter sputtering times were reported for the tablet formulations (≈ < 2.7±0.45 min), indicating uniform aerosolization. Post-nebulization, liposomes size was larger in the nebulizer reservoir in the range of 7.79±0.48 µm–9.73±1.53 µm for both powder and tablet formulations as compared to freshly prepared liposomes (5.38±0.73 µm–5.85±0.86 µm), suggesting liposome aggregation/fusion in the nebulizer’s reservoir. All formulations exhibited more than 80% mass output regardless of formulation type, but greater BDP proportions (circa 50%) were delivered to the Two-stage Impinger when tablet formulations were used. Moreover, the nebulized droplet median size and size distribution were lower for all tablet formulations in comparison to the powder formulations. Proliposome tablet and powdered formulations demonstrated the ability to generate vesicles that sustained the release of BDP. Conclusion: Overall, this study showed that proliposome tablets could be disintegrated within a Pari-LC Sprint nebulizer to generate inhalable aerosol, with high drug output and hence can be manufactured on large scale to overcome the storage problems associated with powder formulations

A Review and Comparative Study of Firefly Algorithm and its Modified Versions

Firefly algorithm is one of the well-known swarm-based algorithms which gained popularity within a short time and has different applications. It is easy to understand and implement. The existing studies show that it is prone to premature convergence and suggest the relaxation of having constant parameters. To boost the performance of the algorithm, different modifications are done by several researchers. In this chapter, we will review these modifications done on the standard firefly algorithm based on parameter modification, modified search strategy and change the solution space to make the search easy using different probability distributions. The modifications are done for continuous as well as non-continuous problems. Different studies including hybridization of firefly algorithm with other algorithms, extended firefly algorithm for multiobjective as well as multilevel optimization problems, for dynamic problems, constraint handling and convergence study will also be briefly reviewed. A simulation-based comparison will also be provided to analyse the performance of the standard as well as the modified versions of the algorithm

Some well known inequalities for (h1, h2)-convex stochastic process via interval set inclusion relation

This note introduces the concept of (h1, h2)-convex stochastic processes using intervalvalued functions. First we develop Hermite-Hadmard (H.H) type inequalities, then we check the results for the product of two convex stochastic process mappings, and finally we develop Ostrowski and Jensen type inequalities for (h1, h2)-convex stochastic process. Also, we have shown that this is a more generalized and larger class of convex stochastic processes with some remark. Furthermore, we validate our main findings by providing some non-trivial examples.http://www.aimspress.com/journal/MathMathematics and Applied Mathematic

Experimental study on the mean flow characteristics of a supersonic multiple jet configuration

Systems with multiple jets are encountered in many engineering applications, for example, propulsion units in aircraft and rockets. When more than one jet is placed close to each other, the resultant aerodynamics is complicated due to the mutual interaction of the jets. In the present work, mean flowfield and the mixing characteristics of free supersonic jets from twin and triple converging-diverging nozzles placed in close proximity are studied experimentally. The nozzles are designed for Mach numbers 1.5 and 2.0, with an inter-nozzle spacing of twice the nozzle exit diameter. The typical interaction process and the evolution of the triple jet are discussed using cross-sectional contour plots. The influence of introducing additional similar jets on the near flowfield characteristics such as jet-spread, supersonic core, and the shock wave structure is studied using pressure measurements along the jet centerline. As the number of jets increases, the spreading rate decreases due to a decrease in the entrainment. This causes the jets to decay at a slow rate, and the core length increases in the order of an increased number of jets. Schlieren images of single, twin, and triple jets reveal that the supersonic jet core is different in twin and triple when compared with a single jet

Perception Survey of Civil Servants: A Preliminary Report

Despite various attempts at reforming the civil services the common perception seems to be that the system essentially remains similar to that inherited from the colonial past. Worse still, little is known about the perceptions of civil servants on various issues in civil service reforms. Against this backdrop, the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics conducted a perception survey of civil servants seeking their views on recruitment, training, performance evaluation, job satisfaction, and relationship with the private sector. This preliminary report highlights the key findings of the survey. Section 2 sets out the survey methodology. Sections 3 to 7 respectively highlight the survey findings with respect to recruitment, postings and training, performance evaluation, job satisfaction, bureaucracy, private sector, and institutions and reforms