The Implementation of RSBY in Chhattisgarh, India: A study of the Durg district

The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) scheme is a health insurance model currently being implemented by the Indian government. It is a model, however, still in nascent state, subject to tensions and value testing. Very few studies have hitherto assessed the scheme’s implementation and whether the stated objectives of the government initiative are being fulfilled. This short study undertaken in the Durg district of Chhattisgarh reveals that RSBY fails to cover the population living Below the Poverty Line (BPL). Likewise there is discrepancy in the consistency of information and knowledge regarding the scheme among the beneficiaries who are themselves continuing to incur high out-of-pocket expenses. There are thus severe issues in transparency and accountability within the RSBY scheme. Unless the public health delivery system is strengthened and the private sector regulated and indeed monitored, the scheme will not yield the desired results, and the cost of healthcare will further escalate for the poor. In the absence of regulated health services there needs to be more debate, and indeed greater research, on the implementation and the design of RSBY.

Vertically Aligned CdO-Decked α-Fe2O3 Nanorod Arrays by a Radio Frequency Sputtering Method for Enhanced Photocatalytic Applications.

This is the final version. Available on open access from the American Chemical Society via the DOI in this recordGreen hydrogen production is one of the most desirable sustainable goals of the United Nations. Thus, for that purpose, we developed hematite (α-Fe2O3), an n-type semiconductor, a desirable candidate for photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting, enabling hydrogen evolution. High recombination losses, low efficiency, and large-scale production hinder its potential. To address these issues, we have fabricated optimized bare and cadmium oxide (CdO)-decorated hematite thin film nanorod arrays using a throughput radio frequency (RF) sputtering with efficient water splitting behavior. To the best of our knowledge, no work has been done so far on the synthesis of CdO/α-Fe2O3 via RF sputtering for PEC application. Bare α-Fe2O3 samples, with a morphology of vertically aligned nanorods, were fabricated with optimized parameters such as as-deposited 70 nm of Fe, an angle of deposition of 70°, and an annealing temperature of 600 °C, which showed a photocurrent density of 0.38 mA/cm2 at 1.65 V vs reversible hydrogen electrode (RHE). Characterizations depicted that this unique morphology with high crystallinity directly enhanced the performance of hematite photoanodes. Further, deposition of 30 nm of cadmium (CdO) on the α-Fe2O3 nanorods produced a corn-like morphology with CdO nanoparticles (∼2 nm), resulting in 4-times enhancement of the PEC performance (1.2 mA/cm2 at 1.65 V vs RHE). CdO acted as a co-catalyst, responsible for satisfactory suppression of recombination and facilitating the hole transfer, directly enhancing the overall photocurrent density. This photoanode showed an extremely stable behavior over a period of 26 h when kept under constant illumination. Furthermore, the CdO-modified photoanode showed a better dye degradation (98% in 40 min) than the bare hematite (60% in 40 min), proving to be an efficient photoanode.Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)Saudi Arabia Culture Bureau in the United Kingdo

Outdoor learning spaces: the case of forest school

© 2017 The Author. Area published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers). This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.This paper contributes to the growing body of research concerning use of outdoor spaces by educators, and the increased use of informal and outdoor learning spaces when teaching primary school children. The research takes the example of forest school, a form of regular and repeated outdoor learning increasingly common in primary schools. This research focuses on how the learning space at forest school shapes the experience of children and forest school leaders as they engage in learning outside the classroom. The learning space is considered as a physical space, and also in a more metaphorical way as a space where different behaviours are permitted, and a space set apart from the national curriculum. Through semi-structured interviews with members of the community of practice of forest school leaders, the paper seeks to determine the significance of being outdoors on the forest school experience. How does this learning space differ from the classroom environment? What aspects of the forest school learning space support pupils’ experiences? How does the outdoor learning space affect teaching, and the dynamics of learning while at forest school? The research shows that the outdoor space provides new opportunities for children and teachers to interact and learn, and revealed how forest school leaders and children co-create a learning environment in which the boundaries between classroom and outdoor learning, teacher and pupil, are renegotiated to stimulate teaching and learning. Forest school practitioners see forest school as a separate learning space that is removed from the physical constraints of the classroom and pedagogical constraints of the national curriculum to provide a more flexible and responsive learning environment.Peer reviewe

Comfort analysis of hafnium (Hf) doped ZnO coated self-cleaning glazing for energy-efficient fenestration application.

This is the final version. Available from MDPI via the DOI in this record. Data Availability Statement: Not applicable.To attain a comfortable building interior, building windows play a crucial role. Because of the transparent nature of the window, it allows heat loss and gain and daylight. Thus, they are one of the most crucial parts of the building envelope that have a significant contribution to the overall building energy consumption. The presence of dust particles on a window can change the entering light spectrum and creates viewing issues. Thus, self-cleaning glazing is now one of the most interesting research topics. However, aside from the self-cleaning properties, there are other properties that are nominated as glazing factors and are imperative for considering self-cleaning glazing materials. In this work, for the first time, Hf-doped ZnO was investigated as self-cleaning glazing and its glazing factors were evaluated. These outcomes show that the various percentages of ZnO doping with Hf improved the glazing factors, making it a suitable glazing candidate for the cold-dominated climate.Scientific Research Deanship at the University of Ha’il, Saudi Arabi

A randomized controlled trial of the effects of a prudent diet on cardiovascular risk factors, gene expression, and DNA methylation - the Diet and Genetic Intervention (DIGEST) Pilot study

Background Risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) can be increased by single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the 9p21 region of the genome. However, observational studies have shown that the deleterious effect of 9p21 SNPs on CVD might be offset by consuming a diet rich in fresh fruits and vegetables. This association may be driven by diet-influenced modifications in epigenetic and gene expression profiles. In this pilot study, we aimed to: i. test the feasibility of provision of a ‘Prudent’ and ‘Western’ diet outside of a specialized clinic, ii. assess the impact of each diet on cardiovascular risk factors. Methods A single centre, parallel two-arm, pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) with food provision was conducted in a university teaching hospital outpatient clinic (McMaster university, Hamilton, ON, Canada). The aim was to recruit 80 participants, which allowed for a 10 % dropout. The actual study consisted of 84 apparently healthy participants (69 % women, 18 to 77 years) at low cardiovascular risk. Participants were randomly assigned to follow one of two weight-maintaining diets: ‘Prudent’ or ‘Western’ for 2-weeks. The Prudent diet provided 92 % of provided food consumed). The Prudent diet was 48 % more palatable than the Western diet (P < 0.05). Participants receiving the Prudent diet showed a trend toward reduced systolic (-4 mmHg; P = 0.10) and diastolic (-3 mmHg; P = 0.07) blood pressure, and total cholesterol (-0.24 mmol/L; P = 0.08), compared to individuals receiving the Western diet. Data collection from all randomized participants was completed within 18 months. Conclusions Recruitment, and retention of apparently healthy, normotensive adults into a feeding study for a 2-week duration is feasible outside of specialized dietary clinic, and modest diet-related changes in biomarkers begin to appear after two weeks

Local biases drive, but do not determine, the perception of illusory trajectories

When a dot moves horizontally across a set of tilted lines of alternating orientations, the dot appears to be moving up and down along its trajectory. This perceptual phenomenon, known as the slalom illusion, reveals a mismatch between the veridical motion signals and the subjective percept of the motion trajectory, which has not been comprehensively explained. In the present study, we investigated the empirical boundaries of the slalom illusion using psychophysical methods. The phenomenon was found to occur both under conditions of smooth pursuit eye movements and constant fixation, and to be consistently amplified by intermittently occluding the dot trajectory. When the motion direction of the dot was not constant, however, the stimulus display did not elicit the expected illusory percept. These findings confirm that a local bias towards perpendicularity at the intersection points between the dot trajectory and the tilted lines cause the illusion, but also highlight that higher-level cortical processes are involved in interpreting and amplifying the biased local motion signals into a global illusion of trajectory perception

Local biases drive, but do not determine, the perception of illusory trajectories

When a dot moves horizontally across a set of tilted lines of alternating orientations, the dot appears to be moving up and down along its trajectory. This perceptual phenomenon, known as the slalom illusion, reveals a mismatch between the veridical motion signals and the subjective percept of the motion trajectory, which has not been comprehensively explained. In the present study, we investigated the empirical boundaries of the slalom illusion using psychophysical methods. The phenomenon was found to occur both under conditions of smooth pursuit eye movements and constant fixation, and to be consistently amplified by intermittently occluding the dot trajectory. When the motion direction of the dot was not constant, however, the stimulus display did not elicit the expected illusory percept. These findings confirm that a local bias towards perpendicularity at the intersection points between the dot trajectory and the tilted lines cause the illusion, but also highlight that higher-level cortical processes are involved in interpreting and amplifying the biased local motion signals into a global illusion of trajectory perception

Development of Morphologically engineered Flower-like Hafnium-Doped ZnO with Experimental and DFT Validation for Low-Temperature and Ultrasensitive Detection of NOX Gas

This is the final version. Available on open access from the American Chemical Society via the DOI in this recordSubstitutional doping and different nanostructures of ZnO have rendered it an effective sensor for the detection of volatile organic compounds in real-time atmosphere. However, the low selectivity of ZnO sensors limits their applications. Herein, hafnium (Hf)-doped ZnO (Hf-ZnO) nanostructures are developed by the hydrothermal method for high selectivity of hazardous NOX gas in the atmosphere, substantially portraying the role of doping concentration on the enhancement of structural, optical, and sensing behavior. ZnO microspheres with 5% Hf doping showed excellent sensing and detected 22 parts per billion (ppb) NOX gas in the atmosphere, within 24 s, which is much faster than ZnO (90 s), and rendered superior sensing ability (S = 67) at a low temperature (100 °C) compared to ZnO (S = 40). The sensor revealed exceptional stability under humid air (S = 55 at 70% RH), suggesting a potential of 5% Hf-ZnO as a new stable sensing material. Density functional theory (DFT) and other characterization analyses revealed that the high sensing activity of 5% Hf-ZnO is attributed to the accessibility of more adsorption sites arising due to charge distortion, increased oxygen vacancies concentration, Lewis acid base, porous morphology, small particle size (5 nm), and strong bond interaction amidst NO2 molecule with ZnO-Hf-Ovacancy sites, resulting from the substitution of the host cation (Zn2+) with doping cation (Hf4+).Korea government (Ministry of Education)Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC

RF Sputtered Nb-Doped MoS2 Thin Film for Effective Detection of NO2 Gas Molecules: Theoretical and Experimental Studies

This is the final version. Available on open access from the American Chemical Society via the DOI in this recordDoping plays a significant role in affecting the physical and chemical properties of two-dimensional (2D) dichalcogenide materials. Controllable doping is one of the major factors in the modification of the electronic and mechanical properties of 2D materials. MoS2 2D materials have gained significant attention in gas sensing owing to their high surface-to-volume ratio. However, low response and recovery time hinder their application in practical gas sensors. Herein, we report the enhanced gas response and recovery of Nb-doped MoS2 gas sensor synthesized through physical vapor deposition (PVD) toward NO2 at different temperatures. The electronic states of MoS2 and Nb-doped MOS2 monolayers grown by PVD were analyzed based on their work functions. Doping with Nb increases the work function of MoS2 and its electronic properties. The Nb-doped MoS2 showed an ultrafast response and recovery time of t rec = 30/85 s toward 5 ppm of NO2 at their optimal operating temperature (100 °C). The experimental results complement the electron difference density functional theory calculation, showing both physisorption and chemisorption of NO2 gas molecules on niobium substitution doping in MoS2.Japan Society for the Promotion of ScienceJapan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, JapanEngineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC

Deconstructing the financialization of healthcare

Financialization is promoted by alliances of multilateral 'development' organisations, national governments, and owners and institutions of private capital. In the healthcare sector, the leveraging of private sources of finance is widely argued as necessary to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal 3 target of universal health coverage. Employing social science perspectives on financialization, we contend that this is a new phase of capital formation. We trace the antecedents, institutions, instruments and ideas that facilitated the penetration of private capital in this sector, and the emergence of new asset classes that distinguish it. We argue that this deepening of financialization represents a fundamental shift in the organizing principles for healthcare systems, with negative implications for health and equality