Pelagic Sharks in the Indian Seas their Exploitation, Trade, Management and Conservation

Sharks are generally large, cold blooded, cartilaginous fishes, which are fast swimming, known for their numerous sharp teeth, distinctive dorsal fin and skill in locating underwater prey. They are members of elasmobranchs that live the same way they did more than 200 million years ago. Sharks belong to the class Chondrichthys and the subclass Elasmobranchii. The estimated 375 species are divided into 8 Orders emd 30 families. They range in size from the dwarf dog-fish (Family: Squalidae], (less than 20 cm in length) to the massive whale shark (Family: Rhiniodontidae), which reaches a length of more than 12m. Most sharks inhabit tropical or temperate marine waters, but some species have been found in freshwater lakes and polar seas. Depending on the species, sharks inhabit either shallow or coastal waters or the open ocean and some species, such as slxgill shark (Hexanchus grisens) live at depths of more than 1800 m. Pelagic sharks Eire characterised by the absence of spiracles when compared to the bottom-dwelling sharks, which may posess them to breath easier while in the benthic realms. Sharks are generally large, cold blooded, cartilaginous fishes, which are fast swimming, known for their numerous sharp teeth, distinctive dorsal fin and skill in locating underwater prey. They are members of elasmobranchs that live the same way they did more than 200 million years ago. Sharks belong to the class Chondrichthys and the subclass Elasmobranchii. The estimated 375 species are divided into 8 Orders emd 30 families. They range in size from the dwarf dog-fish (Family: Squalidae], (less than 20 cm in length) to the massive whale shark (Family: Rhiniodontidae), which reaches a length of more than 12m. Most sharks inhabit tropical or temperate marine waters, but some species have been found in freshwater lakes and polar seas. Depending on the species, sharks inhabit either shallow or coastal waters or the open ocean and some species, such as slxgill shark (Hexanchus grisens) live at depths of more than 1800 m. Pelagic sharks Eire characterised by the absence of spiracles when compared to the bottom-dwelling sharks, which may posess them to breath easier while in the benthic realms

Stop Fake News: AI, Algorithms and Mitigation Actions in India

[Purpose] How to prevent fake news without spoiling the freedom of speech is a growing concern among governments across the world. Some countries see legislation as being the best approach to counter fake news. In the legislation proposals, accountability is mostly placed on technology companies, but also individuals seem to have responsibility in the legislation of some countries. Some other governments see non-legislative means to counter fake news. But it’s a fact that countering fake news without compromising free speech is a high priority across governments in the world and a challenging task too. This paper investigates the India scenario and tries to list out other than legislation what other measures are required. [Methodology] This paper takes a survey of mitigation efforts in select countries. This survey is used to testify against similar efforts in India, if any and adopts comparative approach to understand where Indian efforts stand at. [Findings] From using fact-checking tools available online, finding the source, locating how many people viewed a particular story to check grammar and spelling, and developing a critical mindset; plenty of things become a critical means in fighting down fake news. Legislation alone is insufficient. Media literacy, public scrutiny, good citizenship, and education along with sensitive civil society require playing its significant part in India to fight fake news. In India, the policy is vague. It gives the government enormous power to surveillance in the name of fake news.[Purpose] How to prevent fake news without spoiling the freedom of speech is a growing concern among governments across the world. Some countries see legislation as being the best approach to counter fake news. In the legislation proposals, accountability is mostly placed on technology companies, but also individuals seem to have responsibility in the legislation of some countries. Some other governments see non-legislative means to counter fake news. But it’s a fact that countering fake news without compromising free speech is a high priority across governments in the world and a challenging task too. This paper investigates the India scenario and tries to list out other than legislation what other measures are required. [Methodology] This paper takes a survey of mitigation efforts in select countries. This survey is used to testify against similar efforts in India, if any and adopts comparative approach to understand where Indian efforts stand at. [Findings] From using fact-checking tools available online, finding the source, locating how many people viewed a particular story to check grammar and spelling, and developing a critical mindset; plenty of things become a critical means in fighting down fake news. Legislation alone is insufficient. Media literacy, public scrutiny, good citizenship, and education along with sensitive civil society require playing its significant part in India to fight fake news. In India, the policy is vague. It gives the government enormous power to surveillance in the name of fake news.[Purpose] How to prevent fake news without spoiling the freedom of speech is a growing concern among governments across the world. Some countries see legislation as being the best approach to counter fake news. In the legislation proposals, accountability is mostly placed on technology companies, but also individuals seem to have responsibility in the legislation of some countries. Some other governments see non-legislative means to counter fake news. But it’s a fact that countering fake news without compromising free speech is a high priority across governments in the world and a challenging task too. This paper investigates the India scenario and tries to list out other than legislation what other measures are required. [Methodology] This paper takes a survey of mitigation efforts in select countries. This survey is used to testify against similar efforts in India, if any and adopts comparative approach to understand where Indian efforts stand at. [Findings] From using fact-checking tools available online, finding the source, locating how many people viewed a particular story to check grammar and spelling, and developing a critical mindset; plenty of things become a critical means in fighting down fake news. Legislation alone is insufficient. Media literacy, public scrutiny, good citizenship, and education along with sensitive civil society require playing its significant part in India to fight fake news. In India, the policy is vague. It gives the government enormous power to surveillance in the name of fake news.[Purpose] How to prevent fake news without spoiling the freedom of speech is a growing concern among governments across the world. Some countries see legislation as being the best approach to counter fake news. In the legislation proposals, accountability is mostly placed on technology companies, but also individuals seem to have responsibility in the legislation of some countries. Some other governments see non-legislative means to counter fake news. But it’s a fact that countering fake news without compromising free speech is a high priority across governments in the world and a challenging task too. This paper investigates the India scenario and tries to list out other than legislation what other measures are required. [Methodology] This paper takes a survey of mitigation efforts in select countries. This survey is used to testify against similar efforts in India, if any and adopts comparative approach to understand where Indian efforts stand at. [Findings] From using fact-checking tools available online, finding the source, locating how many people viewed a particular story to check grammar and spelling, and developing a critical mindset; plenty of things become a critical means in fighting down fake news. Legislation alone is insufficient. Media literacy, public scrutiny, good citizenship, and education along with sensitive civil society require playing its significant part in India to fight fake news. In India, the policy is vague. It gives the government enormous power to surveillance in the name of fake news

Biochemical changes during larval development in the short neck clam, Paphia malabarica Chemnitz

Biochemical compositions were determined for eggs, D-shaped larvae, umbo larvae and pediveliger of the short neck clam Paphia malabarica Chemnitz. Spawned eggs were composed of 63.2% protein, 25.4% lipid and 11.4% carbohydrate. After 48 h of embryogenesis, 2.6% of the protein, 11.8% of the lipid and 3.2% of carbohydrate mass had been lost, providing 20.5%,75.4% and 4.1% of the total energy expenditure of 0.2147mJ embryo�1. During 48h of metamorphosis, lipid was utilized ¢rst, followed by a heavy consumption of protein; protein, lipid and carbohydrate lost 23.8%, 50.2% and 32.5% of their mass respectively. Protein and lipid supplied a comparable amount of energy for metamorphosis,34.2% and 55.2%, respectively, whereas, carbohydrate contributed only10.6% to the 2.733mJ larva�l metamorphic energy expenditure

Isachne veldkampii var. malabarica (Poaceae) - a new wetland variety from Northern Kerala, India

Isachne veldkampii var. malabarica, a new variety is described from the wetlands of Kasaragod, Kerala. It can be distinguished from Isachne veldkampii Bhat & Nagendran by the presence of two types of leaves - ligulate and non-ligulate,1–4 spikelets in each panicle branch and 2 florets which are either both pistillate, both bisexual or upper pistillate and lower bisexual. Description along with figures, illustrations and distribution map are provided

Reconstructing the Earthquake Recurrence Pattern in the Central Himalaya: Evidence from the Himalayan Frontal Thrust

Abstract HKT-ISTP 2013 A

Nymphoides krishnakesara var. bispinosa (Menyanthaceae), a new taxon from the lateritc plateau of Northern Kerala, India

The new taxon Nymphoides krishnakesara var. bispinosa, collected from the ponds in the lateritic plateau of northern Kerala, India is described and illustrated. It shows close similarity with Nymphoides krishnakesara var. krishnakesara but can easily be identified by its pinkish tinged veins on the floating leaves and two long stout spines on the seeds

Theoretical Study on the Formation of 1-neutron and 2-neutron Halo Nuclei via Decay of Elements in Super-Heavy Region

The possibility for the existence of 1-neutron and 2-neutron halo nuclei through the decay of even-even nuclei 270-316116, 272-318118 and 278-320120 in the super-heavy region is studied within the frame work of the Coulomb and Proximity Potential Model (CPPM). Halo structure in neutron rich nuclei with Z<=20  is identified by calculating the neutron separation energies and on the basis of potential energy considerations. The 1n + core configuration of proposed 1-neutron halo nuclei between z=10  and Z=20 is found shifted to 2n + core configuration in higher angular momentum states. The calculation of half-life of decay is performed by considering the proposed halo nuclei as spherical cluster and as deformed nuclei with a rms radius. Except for 15C, the half-life of decay is found decreased when the rms radius is considered. Only the 1-neutron halo nuclei 26F and 55Ca showed half-lives of decay which are less than the experimental limit. None of the proposed 2-neutron halo nuclei have shown a half-life of decay lower than the experimental limit. Also, the probability for the emission of neutron halo nuclei is found to be less in super-heavy region when compared with the clusters of same isotope family. Further, neutron shell closure at neutron numbers 150, 164 and 184 is identified form the plot of  log10 T1/2 verses the neutron number of parents. The plots of Q-1/2 verses log10 T1/2 and -ln P verses log10 T1/2 for various halo nuclei emitted from the super-heavy elements are found to be linear showing that Geiger-Nuttall law is applicable to the emission of neutron halo also

A Systematic Study on the Existence of 7-9B, 16-19Ne, 8-11C, 23-30P and 26-32S Nuclei via Cluster Decay in the Super Heavy Region

Based on the Coulomb and Proximity Potential Model, we have studied the decay probabilities of various exotic nuclei from even-even nuclei in the super heavy region. The half-lives and barrier penetrability for the decay of exotic nuclei such as 7-9B, 16-19 Ne, 8-11 C, 23-30 P and 26-32 S from the isotopes 274-332116,274-334 118 and 288-334120 are determined by considering them as spherical as well as deformed nuclei. The effect of ground state quadrupole (β2), Octupole (β3) and hexadecapole (β4) deformation of parent, daughter and cluster nuclei on half- lives and barrier penetrability were studied. Calculations have done for the spherical nuclei and deformed nuclei in order to present the effects of the deformations on half-lives. It is found that height and shape of the barrier reduces by the inclusion of deformation and hence half-life for the emission of different clusters decreases and barrierpenetrability increases. Changes in the half-lives with and without the inclusion of deformation effects are compared in the graph of half -life and barrier penetrability against neutron number of parents. It is evident from the computed half lives that many of the exotic nuclei emissions are probable. Moreover shell structure effects on the half-lives of decay are evident from these plots. Peak in the plot of halflife and dip in the plot of barrier penetrability against neutron number of parent show shell closure at or near to N=184, N=200 and N=212