Interhalogens as Oxidimetric Titrants: Part VIII* - Semimicro Determination of Some Thiourea Complexes Using Iodine Monochloride

599-60

Thermal Decomposition Studies: Part VII* - Kinetics of Depyridination of Pyridine-thiocyanato Complexes of Mn (II), Ni (II), Cu (II) & Zn (II)

402-40

Perception amongst dental professionals on potentially-malignant lesions and oral cancer

published_or_final_versio

Neuromorphic In-Memory Computing Framework using Memtransistor Cross-bar based Support Vector Machines

This paper presents a novel framework for designing support vector machines (SVMs), which does not impose restriction on the SVM kernel to be positive-definite and allows the user to define memory constraint in terms of fixed template vectors. This makes the framework scalable and enables its implementation for low-power, high-density and memory constrained embedded application. An efficient hardware implementation of the same is also discussed, which utilizes novel low power memtransistor based cross-bar architecture, and is robust to device mismatch and randomness. We used memtransistor measurement data, and showed that the designed SVMs can achieve classification accuracy comparable to traditional SVMs on both synthetic and real-world benchmark datasets. This framework would be beneficial for design of SVM based wake-up systems for internet of things (IoTs) and edge devices where memtransistors can be used to optimize system's energy-efficiency and perform in-memory matrix-vector multiplication (MVM).Comment: 4 pages, 5 figures, MWSCAS 201

Circular dichroism of magneto-phonon resonance in doped graphene

Polarization resolved, Raman scattering response due to E$_{2g}$ phonon in monolayer graphene has been investigated in magnetic fields up to 29 T. The hybridization of the E$_{2g}$ phonon with only the fundamental inter Landau level excitation (involving the n=0 Landau level) is observed and only in one of the two configurations of the circularly crossed polarized excitation and scattered light. This polarization anisotropy of the magneto-phonon resonance is shown to be inherent to relatively strongly doped graphene samples, with carrier concentration typical for graphene deposited on SiO$_2$

A simple paper test for isoniazid in urine

Tests for the presence of chemotherapeutic drugs or their metabolites in urine play an important part in the management of the treatment of tuberculosis (Dixon et al., 1957; Fox, 1958). A previous report from this Centre (Gangadharam et al., 1958) presented a comparison of a number of methods for detecting isoniazid in urine including the direct naphthoquinone-mercuric chloride (N-M) test (Short and Case, 1957), and also a modification of this test which employed alkaline hydrolysis to liberate isoniazid from its conjugated forms. The direct-and hydrolysis N-M tests have been employed in this Centre for the past four years to control the self-administration of isoniazid used in the domiciliary treatment of pulmonary tuberculosis. The effect of irregularity in taking isoniazid as detected by these tests on the response to treatment has been reported elsewhere (Tuberculosis Chemotherapy Centre, 1960). Since this method has the disadvantage that it requires a certain amount of equipment and trained personnel, it is not suitable for routine use in all chest clinics or under field conditions. An attempt was therefore made in this Centre to simplify the direct N-M test by incorporating the reagents in absorbent papers; Though impregnation of the paper with the pHl0 buffer and naphthoquinone reagent was successful, impregnation with the aqueous solution of the mercuric chloride was unsatisfactory. In 1960, Cattaneo, Fantoli and Belasio published details of a paper test modification of the N-M test in which this difficulty was overcome by impregnating absorbent papers with a solution of mercuric chloride in ether. Since then this modification has been adopted for the preparation of the test-paper developed in this Centre. Since a lower concentration of the naphthoquinone reagent and a shorter period of exposure was used in the preparation of the testpaper developed in this Centre than described by Cattaneo et al. (1960), both the paper tests have been compared with the direct and combined N-M tests described previously (Gangadharam et al., 1958). This paper presents the results of the comparison and of an of the specificity of the paper test

Gluon mass generation without seagull divergences

Dynamical gluon mass generation has been traditionally plagued with seagull divergences, and all regularization procedures proposed over the years yield finite but scheme-dependent gluon masses. In this work we show how such divergences can be eliminated completely by virtue of a characteristic identity, valid in dimensional regularization. The ability to trigger the aforementioned identity hinges crucially on the particular Ansatz employed for the three-gluon vertex entering into the Schwinger-Dyson equation governing the gluon propagator. The use of the appropriate three-gluon vertex brings about an additional advantage: one obtains two separate (but coupled) integral equations, one for the effective charge and one for the gluon mass. This system of integral equations has a unique solution, which unambiguously determines these two quantities. Most notably, the effective charge freezes in the infrared, and the gluon mass displays power-law running in the ultraviolet, in agreement with earlier considerations.Comment: 37 pages, 9 figures; minor typos corrected and a few brief explanatory remarks adde

Precise and ultrafast molecular sieving through graphene oxide membranes

There has been intense interest in filtration and separation properties of graphene-based materials that can have well-defined nanometer pores and exhibit low frictional water flow inside them. Here we investigate molecular permeation through graphene oxide laminates. They are vacuum-tight in the dry state but, if immersed in water, act as molecular sieves blocking all solutes with hydrated radii larger than 4.5A. Smaller ions permeate through the membranes with little impedance, many orders of magnitude faster than the diffusion mechanism can account for. We explain this behavior by a network of nanocapillaries that open up in the hydrated state and accept only species that fit in. The ultrafast separation of small salts is attributed to an 'ion sponge' effect that results in highly concentrated salt solutions inside graphene capillaries

Return emigrants in Kerala : rehabilitation problems and development potential

This research report is aimed at three aspects of return emigrants in Kerala – their occupational mobility, utilisation of their human and material resources in Kerala’s development and their rehabilitation. It describes their demographic, social and economic characteristics before emigration, after emigration and, after return to Kerala. Also included are the financial costs of and benefits from emigration and the problems faced by them in the Gulf countries and in Kerala after return. A few suggestions for their rehabilitation and their possible role in the state’s development effort are made in the concluding part. The study shows that there was indeed considerable difference between the industrial affiliation of the return emigrants in Kerala before emigration and after their return to Kerala. As much as 43 percent of the return emigrants had changed their industrial sector in between emigration and return. However, real transition in the economic sector, in the sense of a systematic movement from primary sector to secondary sector and from secondary sector to tertiary sector was only about 18 percent, less than half of the total movements. Thus, there were movements, but very little meaningful transition. Some workers moved from agriculture and allied sectors to manufacturing or service sectors, but some others moved back from the manufacturing and the service sectors to the primary sector. The Government of Kerala has been looking up to the emigrants and return emigrants for help in the state’s development programmes. How much could the return emigrants actually contribute? This study shows that while emigrants while abroad could play a significant role in this matter, the role that the return emigrants would be able to play is limited. There are about three-quarters of a million return emigrants in Kerala today. However, they are relatively old with an average age of 41.7 years. A few are even too old and/or too sick to work. Some feel that there is no need for them to work at all; with the money they have earned abroad, they would rather enjoy a leisurely life back at home. The majority of them have, however, neither the human nor the material resources to make a real contribution to Kerala’s development. They have relatively poor levels of general education and technical education. Nor do there exist much of entrepreneurial abilities and leadership qualities among them. Most of them have already spent their savings and are looking for assistance to keep up the relatively high levels of living they have been accustomed to, following migration. There is, however, one factor, an important factor in the Kerala context, in their favour: they constitute a much more disciplined and committed work force than the general breed of ‘conscientised’ workers of Kerala. If it is possible to instil entrepreneurial skills and leadership qualities among them and supply them with technical skills and required finance, they might possibly make a real contribution to the development of Kerala. This is however a tall order of demand: the Government could at best act only as a facilitator in this effort. The richer and the more endowed with human resources and entrepreneurial leadership qualities do not seem to have returned to Kerala in considerable numbers. They are still out there in the Gulf and other countries employed in tenured jobs or engaged in secure businmess activities. They are the ones to be roped in to work for the economic resurgence of Kerala. For that effort to succeed, however, an entirely new approach to NRIs is needed. This research report does not pertain to this aspect of the NRIs. While the Government wants assistance from the return emigrants in the state’s development, what the majority of the return emigrants expect the most from the Government is help for their own rehabilitation. In our view, in a large number of cases they do deserve help.When they had been abroad they had made significant contribution to the state’s development. Emigration has been the single-most factor in the otherwise dreary development scenario of Kerala in the last quarter of the last century. An emigrant who returned to Kerala in recent years had, on an average, earned a total of about Rs 750,000 during the 6 years and 3 months period, he was out there. The contribution of emigrants to reduction of unemployment and poverty levels and improving the housing conditions of Kerala is widely acclaimed. But almost all their foreign savings have been used up for subsistence, buying land, constructing houses, paying dowries, paying back debts, etc. What little was left with a few was invested in selfemployment projects which in practice yielded little in terms of income and the majority of which have met with natural death in the course of a few years. Return emigrants are now a disillusioned lot, hoping that the Government would bail them out. Among the return emigrants there exists a small proportion, about one-fifth, whose emigrations were misadventures and had resulted in their loss of wealth, wastage of energy and loss of health. This group finds its survival precarious. There is not much economic justification for any agency to dole out social welfare assistance except perhaps to this small proportion. In general, the Government may not find it justifiable to implement social welfare programmes for all return emigrants. The return emigrants have time and again proved that financial assistance given to them by way of loans for small-scale industries won’t cut much ice. Many of them want pension, but we find little justification for any special treatment for the return emigrants in preference to other deserving segments of the population. We make two suggestions for the rehabilitation of return emigrants, for those who have already come back and for those who would be returning in future: establishment of a welfare scheme and organisation of co-operatives for specific tasks (example, public works, tourism projects etc) in which the work discipline the return emigrants have acquired abroad could be of immense use. The seed money for both should come from the commercial banks of Kerala, the institutions which have received and continue to receive, massive inflows of funds by way of emigrants’ remittances. But the maintenance of the welfare schemes on a continuing basis should be the responsibility of the emigrants still abroad and that of the co-operatives of the returned emigrants themselves. JEL Classification : J10, J18, J22, J31 Key Words: Return migration, remittances, rehabilitation, Keral

Bubbling and bistability in two parameter discrete systems

We present a graphical analysis of the mechanisms underlying the occurrences of bubbling sequences and bistability regions in the bifurcation scenario of a special class of one dimensional two parameter maps. The main result of the analysis is that whether it is bubbling or bistability is decided by the sign of the third derivative at the inflection point of the map function.Comment: LaTeX v2.09, 14 pages with 4 PNG figure