Anthropogenic Factors Driving Recent Range Expansion of the Malaria Vector Anopheles stephensi

The malaria vector Anopheles stephensi is found in wide tracts of Asia and the Middle East. The discovery of its presence for the first time in the island of Sri Lanka in 2017, poses a threat of malaria resurgence in a country which had eliminated the disease in 2013. Morphological and genetic characterization showed that the efficient Indian urban vector form An. stephensi sensu stricto or type form, has recently expanded its range to Jaffna and Mannar in northern Sri Lanka that are in proximity to Tamil Nadu state in South India. Comparison of the DNA sequences of the cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 gene in An. stephensi in Jaffna and Mannar in Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu and Puducherry states in South India showed that a haplotype that is due to a sequence change from valine to methionine in the cytochrome oxidase subunit 1 present in the Jaffna and Mannar populations has not been documented so far in Tamil Nadu/Puducherry populations. The Jaffna An. stephensi were closer to Tamil Nadu/Puducherry populations and differed significantly from the Mannar populations. The genetic findings cannot differentiate between separate arrivals of the Jaffna and Mannar An. stephensi from Tamil Nadu or a single arrival and dispersion to the two locations accompanied by micro-evolutionary changes. Anopheles stephensi was observed to undergo preimaginal development in fresh and brackish water domestic wells and over ground cement water storage tanks in the coastal urban environment of Jaffna and Mannar. Anopheles stephensi in Jaffna was resistant to the common insecticides deltamethrin, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane and Malathion. Its preimaginal development in wells and water tanks was susceptible to predation by the larvivorous guppy fish Poecilia reticulata. The arrival, establishment, and spread of An. stephensi in northern Sri Lanka are analyzed in relation to anthropogenic factors that favor its range expansion. The implications of the findings for global public health challenges posed by malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases are discussed

Experimental and Molecular Level Analysis of the Tribological and Oxidative Properties of Chaulmoogra Oil

This study introduces chaulmoogra oil as a base stock for lubricant formulation. The tribological properties of chaulmoogra oil are evaluated by quantitative structure-property relation (QSPR) technique using the molecular modelling package Spartan 18. The quantum chemical calculations were performed on a typical molecule of chaulmoogra oil and its constituent fatty acids. The orbital energy gap of the constituent fatty acids in chaulmoogra oil is 7.37 eV and that of chaulmoogra oil molecule is 6.8 eV, which is less than that of the lauric acid, the main constituent of coconut oil (7.78 eV). Orbital energy gap predicts a better tribological performance for chaulmoogra oil, and the four ball test result is in agreement with this prediction. Oxidative property of chaulmoogra oil is tested by isothermal thermogravimetric/differential thermal analysis (TGA/DTA) and compared with different oils. Weight gain in oxygen is only 0.02% for chaulmoogra oil and showed better oxidative stability among all other tested oils

Forecasting of a Short Life Baked Product Using Exponential Smoothing and Markov Method

Abstract The objective of this paper is to develop a demand forecast model for a short life baked product. The initial forecast is obtained by using exponential smoothing and the error corresponding to each day is estimated for this forecast. A control chart is plotted for these errors after determining its upper control limit and lower control limit. A generalized Markov algorithm is applied to these errors and the demand of different states are determined. The demand corresponding to the state with maximum probability is taken as optimal demand. The obtained results can act as a basis for better planning of demand of short life baked products in India. Keywords: Demand; Exponential smoothing; Forecasting; Markov algorithm; Random; State; Planning. Introduction Almost all organizations analyses past sales data and predict the future sales based on this past data. An attempt has been done to predict future sales based on the sales data of two successive months collected from a reputed firm. Various statistical techniques are available for forecasting. Nice properties of a weighted moving average would be one where the weights not only decrease as older and older data are used, but one where the differences between the weights are -smooth‖. Obviously the desire would be for the weight on the most recent data to be the largest. The weights should then get progressively smaller the more periods one considers into the past. The exponentially decreasing weights of the basic exponential smoothing forecast fit this bill nicely. The forecast equation is given by

WTC2005-63893 VEGETABLE OILS AS BASE OIL FOR INDUSTRIAL LUBRICANTS-EVALUATION OXIDATIVE AND LOW TEMPERATURE PROPERTIES USING TGA, DTA AND DSC

ABSTRACT In this paper oxidative degradation of saturated and unsaturated vegetable oils is studied by thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) and their low temperature properties are studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Both non-isothermal and isothermal thermo gravimetric analysis procedures are used for the study. The onset temperatures of oxidative degradation and weight gain in isothermal TGA are taken as measures of oxidative and thermal stabilities. Three vegetable oils namely coconut oil, sesame oil and sunflower oil with varying degree of un-saturation are selected for the study. The results are found to agree with reported results obtained by conventional methods. Several standard methods are currently available for determining the oxidative and low temperature properties of base oils. These methods are extremely time-consuming and data reproducibility between laboratories is poor. TGA, DTA and DSC are excellent tools to evaluate base oils in respect of their oxidative and low temperature behavior in that they produce results quickly, reproducibly and the sample requirement is very low

WTC2005-63893 VEGETABLE OILS AS BASE OIL FOR INDUSTRIAL LUBRICANTS-EVALUATION OXIDATIVE AND LOW TEMPERATURE PROPERTIES USING TGA, DTA AND DSC

ABSTRACT In this paper oxidative degradation of saturated and unsaturated vegetable oils is studied by thermo gravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) and their low temperature properties are studied by differential scanning calorimetry (DSC). Both non-isothermal and isothermal thermo gravimetric analysis procedures are used for the study. The onset temperatures of oxidative degradation and weight gain in isothermal TGA are taken as measures of oxidative and thermal stabilities. Three vegetable oils namely coconut oil, sesame oil and sunflower oil with varying degree of un-saturation are selected for the study. The results are found to agree with reported results obtained by conventional methods. Several standard methods are currently available for determining the oxidative and low temperature properties of base oils. These methods are extremely time-consuming and data reproducibility between laboratories is poor. TGA, DTA and DSC are excellent tools to evaluate base oils in respect of their oxidative and low temperature behavior in that they produce results quickly, reproducibly and the sample requirement is very low