Process Parameter Optimization of a Polymer Derived CeramicCoatings for Producing Ultra-High Gas Barrier

YesSilica is one of the most efficient gas barrier materials, and hence is widely used as anencapsulating material for electronic devices. In general, the processing of silica is carried out at hightemperatures, i.e., around 1000◦C. Recently, processing of silica has been carried out from a polymercalled Perhydropolysilazane (PHPS). The PHPS reacts with environmental moisture or oxygen andyields pure silica. This material has attracted many researchers and has been widely used in manyapplications such as encapsulation of organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) displays, semiconductorindustries, and organic solar cells. In this paper, we have demonstrated the process optimization ofthe conversion of the PHPS into silica in terms of curing methods as well as curing the environment.Various curing methods including exposure to dry heat, damp heat, deep UV, and their combinationunder different environments were used to cure PHPS. FTIR analysis suggested that the quickestconversion method is the irradiation of PHPS with deep UV and simultaneous heating at 100◦C.Curing with this method yields a water permeation rate of 10−3g/(m2·day) and oxygen permeationrate of less than 10−1cm3/(m2·day·bar). Rapid curing at low-temperature processing along withbarrier properties makes PHPS an ideal encapsulating material for organic solar cell devices and avariety of similar applications.King Saud Universit

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

Background Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. Methods The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model—a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates—with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality—which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. Findings The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2–100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1–290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1–211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4–48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3–37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7–9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. Interpretation Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere

Global burden of 288 causes of death and life expectancy decomposition in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations, 1990–2021: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2021

BACKGROUND Regular, detailed reporting on population health by underlying cause of death is fundamental for public health decision making. Cause-specific estimates of mortality and the subsequent effects on life expectancy worldwide are valuable metrics to gauge progress in reducing mortality rates. These estimates are particularly important following large-scale mortality spikes, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. When systematically analysed, mortality rates and life expectancy allow comparisons of the consequences of causes of death globally and over time, providing a nuanced understanding of the effect of these causes on global populations. METHODS The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 cause-of-death analysis estimated mortality and years of life lost (YLLs) from 288 causes of death by age-sex-location-year in 204 countries and territories and 811 subnational locations for each year from 1990 until 2021. The analysis used 56 604 data sources, including data from vital registration and verbal autopsy as well as surveys, censuses, surveillance systems, and cancer registries, among others. As with previous GBD rounds, cause-specific death rates for most causes were estimated using the Cause of Death Ensemble model-a modelling tool developed for GBD to assess the out-of-sample predictive validity of different statistical models and covariate permutations and combine those results to produce cause-specific mortality estimates-with alternative strategies adapted to model causes with insufficient data, substantial changes in reporting over the study period, or unusual epidemiology. YLLs were computed as the product of the number of deaths for each cause-age-sex-location-year and the standard life expectancy at each age. As part of the modelling process, uncertainty intervals (UIs) were generated using the 2·5th and 97·5th percentiles from a 1000-draw distribution for each metric. We decomposed life expectancy by cause of death, location, and year to show cause-specific effects on life expectancy from 1990 to 2021. We also used the coefficient of variation and the fraction of population affected by 90% of deaths to highlight concentrations of mortality. Findings are reported in counts and age-standardised rates. Methodological improvements for cause-of-death estimates in GBD 2021 include the expansion of under-5-years age group to include four new age groups, enhanced methods to account for stochastic variation of sparse data, and the inclusion of COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality-which includes excess mortality associated with the pandemic, excluding COVID-19, lower respiratory infections, measles, malaria, and pertussis. For this analysis, 199 new country-years of vital registration cause-of-death data, 5 country-years of surveillance data, 21 country-years of verbal autopsy data, and 94 country-years of other data types were added to those used in previous GBD rounds. FINDINGS The leading causes of age-standardised deaths globally were the same in 2019 as they were in 1990; in descending order, these were, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and lower respiratory infections. In 2021, however, COVID-19 replaced stroke as the second-leading age-standardised cause of death, with 94·0 deaths (95% UI 89·2-100·0) per 100 000 population. The COVID-19 pandemic shifted the rankings of the leading five causes, lowering stroke to the third-leading and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease to the fourth-leading position. In 2021, the highest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 occurred in sub-Saharan Africa (271·0 deaths [250·1-290·7] per 100 000 population) and Latin America and the Caribbean (195·4 deaths [182·1-211·4] per 100 000 population). The lowest age-standardised death rates from COVID-19 were in the high-income super-region (48·1 deaths [47·4-48·8] per 100 000 population) and southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania (23·2 deaths [16·3-37·2] per 100 000 population). Globally, life expectancy steadily improved between 1990 and 2019 for 18 of the 22 investigated causes. Decomposition of global and regional life expectancy showed the positive effect that reductions in deaths from enteric infections, lower respiratory infections, stroke, and neonatal deaths, among others have contributed to improved survival over the study period. However, a net reduction of 1·6 years occurred in global life expectancy between 2019 and 2021, primarily due to increased death rates from COVID-19 and other pandemic-related mortality. Life expectancy was highly variable between super-regions over the study period, with southeast Asia, east Asia, and Oceania gaining 8·3 years (6·7-9·9) overall, while having the smallest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 (0·4 years). The largest reduction in life expectancy due to COVID-19 occurred in Latin America and the Caribbean (3·6 years). Additionally, 53 of the 288 causes of death were highly concentrated in locations with less than 50% of the global population as of 2021, and these causes of death became progressively more concentrated since 1990, when only 44 causes showed this pattern. The concentration phenomenon is discussed heuristically with respect to enteric and lower respiratory infections, malaria, HIV/AIDS, neonatal disorders, tuberculosis, and measles. INTERPRETATION Long-standing gains in life expectancy and reductions in many of the leading causes of death have been disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the adverse effects of which were spread unevenly among populations. Despite the pandemic, there has been continued progress in combatting several notable causes of death, leading to improved global life expectancy over the study period. Each of the seven GBD super-regions showed an overall improvement from 1990 and 2021, obscuring the negative effect in the years of the pandemic. Additionally, our findings regarding regional variation in causes of death driving increases in life expectancy hold clear policy utility. Analyses of shifting mortality trends reveal that several causes, once widespread globally, are now increasingly concentrated geographically. These changes in mortality concentration, alongside further investigation of changing risks, interventions, and relevant policy, present an important opportunity to deepen our understanding of mortality-reduction strategies. Examining patterns in mortality concentration might reveal areas where successful public health interventions have been implemented. Translating these successes to locations where certain causes of death remain entrenched can inform policies that work to improve life expectancy for people everywhere. FUNDING Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

LANGUAGE IN INDIA Strength for Today and Bright Hope for Tomorrow Scientific Attitude Development at Secondary School Level: A Comparison between Methods of Teaching

ABSTRACT This is a pre-test, post-test, experimental control group design study. It aims at finding out the effects of inquiry method of teaching versus traditional method in scientific attitude development of the students. Science students were the population of the study. 120 science students were selected through purposive sampling and were equally assigned to experimental group and control group on the basis of scores using the observation rating scale. Sample selection was based on matching, homogeneity and randomization. Each group comprised of 60 students. Both groups were given pre Language in India www.languageinindia. treatment of selected Biology topics. The control group was taught by traditional method and experimental group was taught by inquiry method. To observe the scientific attitudes of the students during teaching two observers were appointed. The data were analyzed by using t-test. It was found that inquiry method is more effective for teaching biology in developing scientific attitudes as compared to traditional teaching method. Key Words: Development, Scientific Attitudes, Behaviour, Inquiry Method, Secondary School, Teaching Introduction Teaching is the main part of educational process. Teaching is a set of activities which is designed and performed to achieve certain objectives in terms of changes in behaviour. It is the process of helping others to achieve knowledge, attitudes and skills. Knowledge can be used, i.e., use of scientific knowledge for further constructing the knowledge. Shrivastasva (1983) defined "scientific attitude as "Open-mindedness", a desire for accurate knowledge, confidence in procedures for seeking knowledge and the expectation that the solution of the problem will come through the use of verified knowledge". Involving the students in different activities/inquiries, they gain facts, concepts along with attitudes. The use of knowledge assists in describing various objects, events and systems. The focus of education is to enable children to use and apply their knowledge and experiences to solve their problems at their own. Performing scientific activities, students collect new information and experiences, which result in to construction of new knowledge. Another advantage of using science activities is that these facilitate the teaching learning process. These activities discourage rote memorization instead emphasize understanding. Similarly, Edigar, M. & Baskara, Rao (2003, p.62) therefore, very necessary not only to know how to inculcate these qualities in our school students, but also how to evaluate their existence in the student's thinking and behaviour. If positive attitudes are promoted amongst the students, then they will be able to make adjustment in their practical life better. Otherwise they will fall a lot of problems and difficulties. In Pakistan, the syllabi of science are not updated. The students were taught the history of science and that in a manner, which emphasized factual knowledge with unnecessary details. Students did not grasp concepts 'and process of science and little effort was made to generate spirit of inquiry of independent thinking among students. Biological science is very productive in achieving the scientific attitudes. But conventional teaching methods in Pakistan are not appropriate in this direction. The traditions of conventional ways of science/biology teaching have become out dated and are seldom helpful for the development to scientific attitudes in the students. Teaching of science subjects especially Biology teaching at secondary level is technical task. Inquiry Method Farenga, Joyce and Dowling (2002, p.34) describe inquiry-based learning in terms of identifying a question, designing investigation, developing hypothesis, collecting data, answering and modifying the original question and communicating the results. There is very careless thought here. These are the processes of science as research moves forward. It is important that learners in the science disciplines are introduced to these, illustrating the ways by which science makes its findings. However, this is very different to the suggestion that this is a way to teach. (1) Directed Curiosity The literature and the research conducted in materially advanced countries provide innumerable sign to the present study, out of which, some of the findings like improvement in science achievement scientific attitude may be mentioned. It was proposed to study the inquiry approach on these variables in Pakistani schools to see if their effects would be similar to that of the studies reviewed of advance countries. Objectives of the study The main objectives of the study were to: 1. Measure the effect of inquiry lab teaching method on the development of scientific attitudes among students studying biology in 9 th grade. 2. Measure the effect of traditional lab teaching method on the development of scientific attitudes among students studying biology in 9 th grade. 3. Find out comparative effectiveness of both traditional lab teaching and inquiry lab teaching method regarding the development of scientific attitudes among secondary schools students. Hypotheses Ho1: There is no significant difference between the mean scores of scientific attitudes of the students of control group on pre and post observation rating scales. Ho2: There is no significant difference between the mean scores of scientific attitudes of students of experimental group on pre and post observation rating scales. Delimitations of the study The study was delimited to: 1. The methods, i.e., inquiry teaching method and traditional teaching method for lab activities. 2. 12 topics of the biology course for class 9 th from the scheme of study. 3. Only boy students of 9 th class were included in the study. Procedure As the study was experimental, it was aimed at exploring the effect of teaching biology through inquiry method (independent variable) and developing scientific attitudes (dependent variables) through this method. Pre-test and post test equivalent groups design was used in this study. In this design, subjects were randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. Population This study focused upon the development of scientific attitudes in secondary school biology teaching through inquiry method. Therefore science students studying biology subject at the secondary level in Rawalpindi constituted the population of the study. SAMPLE Purposive sampling technique was used for the selection of the sample. One hundred and twenty students of the 9 th class of Govt. Comprehensive High school, Dhoke Kashmirian, Rawalpindi were selected as sample of the study. The participants were selected from that school which represents population of typical government schools in Pakistan, i.e., large classes, spacious rooms, learners from families with low to medium socio-economic and educational backgrounds. The experimental group included 60 participants who studied according to the dynamics of inquiry method. Meanwhile, 60 participants in the control group the same material with traditional method. All students from all three sections of science group of 9 th class of the school. These students were separated into two groups of experimental and control group on the basis of result of pre-test (observation rating scale) score. The score of the pre-test was used to equate the groups i.e. each student of experimental group was equated with the corresponding student in the control group. Students were allotted randomly to control and experimental groups. Equal environment for the both groups was maintained. All facilities i.e. the time of day, treatment length in time, physical facilities etc. was equally provided to both the groups. The study was continued for the period of fifty six days. The material of both the groups was same only difference that experimental group was taught by using inquiry method and control group was taught by using traditional cook book method. Same science teacher was selected to teach both the groups to avoid the potential factor. The teacher who agreed to participate in the study was trained to apply the elements of inquiry method. For the observations two teachers were also trained to observe the students on observation rating sheet with the help of class teachers to execute the programme smoothly. The duty of these observers was to observe the students according to the criteria as given in the observation sheet. Half the students were allocated to each observer from each group. This was done facilitate the observation procedures. The observers were given having of how to use observation-rating scale. They had to assess the students' performance on scientific attitudes on observation sheets. Each observer had an observation record sheet, he assessed the work and performance related to scientific attitudes of the particular students when he was involved in different assigned activities. They were also advised to note date and time of observation, when the experiment was completed, the researcher collected all observation record sheets from the observers and then compiled the behavior-based cumulative / assessment record of each student. Instrumen