Emotional responses to Hindustani raga music: the role of musical structure

In Indian classical music, ragas constitute specific combinations of tonic intervals potentially capable of evoking distinct emotions. A raga composition is typically presented in two modes, namely, alaap and gat. Alaap is the note by note delineation of a raga bound by a slow tempo, but not bound by a rhythmic cycle. Gat on the other hand is rendered at a faster tempo and follows a rhythmic cycle. Our primary objective was to (1) discriminate the emotions experienced across alaap and gat of ragas, (2) investigate the association of tonic intervals, tempo and rhythmic regularity with emotional response. 122 participants rated their experienced emotion across alaap and gat of 12 ragas. Analysis of the emotional responses revealed that (1) ragas elicit distinct emotions across the two presentation modes, and (2) specific tonic intervals are robust predictors of emotional response. Specifically, our results showed that the ‘minor second’ is a direct predictor of negative valence. (3) Tonality determines the emotion experienced for a raga where as rhythmic regularity and tempo modulate levels of arousal. Our findings provide new insights into the emotional response to Indian ragas and the impact of tempo, rhythmic regularity and tonality on it

Ethereum Blockchain using AES-CMAC

Managing and storing data are crucial tasks for any industry, since they require accurate and secure record-keeping. Using blockchain technology has significantly increased recently due to its capability to address some of the challenges that come with traditional data storage and management systems. In this paper, we will explore the use of Ethereum smart contracts powered by the Solidity programming language using AES-CMAC

Risk factor scenario in an industrial set-up: Need for an effective screening tool to assess the high-risk group

<b>Background:</b> Industrial and technological revolution has resulted in nutrition transition. This calls for analyzing the risk factor scenario in the industrial population. <b>Objective:</b> The objective was to map the prevalence and assess the risk factors of industrial employees. <b>Materials and Methods:</b> The employees of a large petrochemical industry were enrolled (<i>N</i>=269) for the study. Risk factors were elicited through a structured questionnaire. Parameters monitored were fasting blood sugar and lipid profile. Relative risk was calculated to find out significant predictor variables. <b>Results:</b> The employees had high prevalence of overweight (27&#x0025;), obesity (22&#x0025;), central obesity (48.7&#x0025;), prehypertension (43.2&#x0025;), hypertension (36.6&#x0025;), and dyslipidemia (41.4&#x0025;). They had erroneous dietary habits such as low intake of fruits and vegetables and high fat intake. Most of the employees had low physical activity levels. The prevalence of smoking (13.5&#x0025;), tobacco (28.2&#x0025;), and alcohol use (22.2&#x0025;) were also high with 15.1&#x0025; having multiple habits. One-fifth of the employees had metabolic syndrome (MS). Seven predictor variables, namely, family history, BMI, WHR, blood pressure, physical inactivity, TG, and TG/H were identified and used to develop the risk score card to identify people at high risk of CVD and DM. <b>Conclusion</b>: Multiple risk factor scenario among the industrial population studied calls for effective intervention strategies and policy changes to combat the burden of non-communicable diseases. The risk score card can be used to screen the high-risk group in the industrial population

The "Dot in Circle" Sign on MRI in Maduramycosis: A Characteristic Finding

Mycetoma or Maduramycosis is a localized chronic suppurative infection characterized by exuberant granulation tissue, discharging sinuses, and bone involvement later in the course of the disease. Early clinical diagnosis before the appearance of sinuses and grains (aggregates of organism surrounded by granulation tissue, which are discharged from the draining sinuses) is difficult. Delay in diagnosis may lead to amputation of the affected part. Definitive diagnosis is through biopsy and microbiological examination. However, at times diagnosis may still be difficult. The recently described "dot in circle" sign on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is easy to recognize and highly specific. We present a case of mycetoma foot with characteristic MRI features

Music and Emotion—A Case for North Indian Classical Music

The ragas of North Indian Classical Music (NICM) have been historically known to elicit emotions. Recently, Mathur et al. (2015) provided empirical support for these historical assumptions, that distinct ragas elicit distinct emotional responses. In this review, we discuss the findings of Mathur et al. (2015) in the context of the structure of NICM. Using, Mathur et al. (2015) as a demonstrative case-in-point, we argue that ragas of NICM can be viewed as uniquely designed stimulus tools for investigating the tonal and rhythmic influences on musical emotion

A Comparative Evaluation of Anti-Inflammatory and Antiplaque Efficacy of Citrus Sinesis Mouthwash and Chlorhexidine Mouthwash

Background: Citrus sinesis belongs to Rutaceae family is an enriched source of vitamin C, flavonoid compounds and antioxidants are helpful in reducing inflammation. Few in-vitro studies the ethanolic extract of orange peels has successfully reduced periodontal pathogens which has influenced us to prepare a mouth wash with ethanolic extract of orange peel.&#x0D; Aim: To evaluate and compare the effect of indigenously prepared 4% ethanolic extract of Citrus sinseis (Orange peel) mouthwash to commercially available 0.2% Chlorhexidine mouthwash as an anti-plaque agent.&#x0D; Materials and Methods: Twenty subjects in the age group of 18-60 years with moderate to severe gingivitis were divided into two equal groups. Clinical parameters like Plaque Index, Sulcus Bleeding Index and Gingival Index were recorded at baseline, 7th and 14th day respectively. Following oral prophylaxis Group-I (n= 10) subjects were instructed to rinse twice daily with 10ml of 0.2% chlorhexidine mouthwash and Group-II (n= 10) subjects were instructed to rinse twice daily with 10ml of 4% ethanolic extract of Citrus sinesis mouthwash for 14 days. All the subjects were recalled on the 7th and 14th day for follow up to record the clinical parameters.&#x0D; Results: Citrus sinesis 4% mouthwash was seen to be as efficient as 0.2% Chlorhexidine in reducing Plaque Index and more effectively reducing gingival inflammation and gingival bleeding index.&#x0D; Conclusion: Citrus sinesis 4% mouthwash can be used for short term purpose without any potential side effects as an alternative to 0.2% Chlorhexidine mouthwash in reducing plaque and gingival inflammation.</jats:p

Cultural differences in the use of acoustic cues for musical emotion experience.

Does music penetrate cultural differences with its ability to evoke emotion? The ragas of Hindustani music are specific sequences of notes that elicit various emotions: happy, romantic, devotion, calm, angry, longing, tension and sad. They can be presented in two modes, alaap and gat, which differ in rhythm, but match in tonality. Participants from Indian and Non-Indian cultures (N = 144 and 112, respectively) rated twenty-four pieces of Hindustani ragas on eight dimensions of emotion, in a free response task. Of the 192 between-group comparisons, ratings differed in only 9% of the instances, showing universality across multiple musical emotions. Robust regression analyses and machine learning methods revealed tonality best explained emotion ratings for Indian participants whereas rhythm was the primary predictor in Non-Indian listeners. Our results provide compelling evidence for universality in emotions in the auditory domain in the realm of musical emotion, driven by distinct acoustic features that depend on listeners' cultural backgrounds

Cultural differences in the use of acoustic cues for musical emotion experience - Fig 1

Mean emotion rating comparisons, by Mode (Top: Alaap, Bottom: Gat), Raga, and Group (Enculturated/Non-Enculturated). The different ragas (by name) are ordered on the x-axis while the y-axis represents the eight emotional labels. The grey background represents the ratings of enculturated group while the white background represents the rating of the non-enculturated group. The intensity of response is color coded as indicated by the color bar on the right. Ragas are ordered from lowest to highest tonal ratio (m/M) shows high degree of similarity in both label and intensity of emotion response across the cultural groups. Of the 192 comparisons, there were differences in just 18 cases as indicated in the figure. Adjusted p-values: *<0.05, ** < 0.01, *** < 0.001.</p