Aerosol Characteristics at a high-altitude station Nainital during the ISRO-GBP Land Campaign-II

During the second land campaign (LC-II) organised by ISRO-GBP, extensive ground-based measurements of aerosol characteristics were carried out over Manora Peak (29.4oN; 79.5oE; 1951 metres above mean sea level), Nainital (a high altitude station located in the Shivalik ranges of Central Himalayas) during the dry, winter season (December) of 2004. These measurements included the spectral aerosol optical depths (AOD), columnar water vapour content (W), Total Columnar Ozone (TCO), total number concentration (NT) of near surface aerosols, mass concentration of black carbon (MB), aerosol mass loading (MT), and Global Solar Radiation. Based on these measured parameters, we present the results on the near-surface and columnar properties of atmospheric aerosols at Nainital.Comment: Published in the Proceedings of the ISRO-GBP Land-Campaign-II meeting, Physical Research Laboratory, Ahmadabad (Inida), March 200

An Algorithm for Generating New Mandelbrot and Julia Sets

The present paper is motivated from the paper of John R. Tippetts (Tippetts 1992) in which he gave an algorithm to generate an interesting Mandelbrot set. We not only generate Julia sets using Tippetts algorithm (Tippetts 1992), but also generate some new Julia and Mandelbrot sets by slightly modifying the Tippetts algorithm. This approach yields a new class of algorithms to produce new and alluring fractals with virtually infinite complexity. Keywords: Mandelbrot set, Julia set, recursion formula, algorith

Tolerância ao calor de caprinos e ovinos sem-lã em Sobral.

Resumo: Caprinos das raças Canindé, Anglo-Nubiana e Bhuj e avinos sem-la Morada Nova e Santa Inês foram comparados quanta às temperaturas retais e taxa respiratoria, antes e imediatamente apos o exercício e durante o período de uma hora de repouso apos o0 exercicio, para avaliaçao da tolerância ao calor ambiental. Resultados mostraram que a temperatura retal inicial nao foi diferente entre as cinco raças; apos exercicio, elevou de 1,25ºC até 1,95ºC nas diferentes raças; nao houve diferença da elevaçao da temperatura corporal entre espécies. Apos exercício, a recuperaçao foi rapida nos caprinos Bhuj e Canindé. A recuperaçao foi mais lenta na Anglo-Nubiana e nos avinos. A variaçao inicial no ritmo respiratorio apresentou-se elevada na Anglo-Nubiana em comparaçao com as outras raças de caprinos e avinos. Depois do exercicio, os avinos apresentaram menoI elevaçao no ritmo respiratorio do que os caprinos. Isto pode explicar o grau de recuperaçao mais rapida da temperatura corporal dos caprinos Bhuj e Canindé, os quais tiveram distintamente os mais elevados ritmos respiratorios após o exercicio. 0 ritmo respiratório da Anglo-Nubiana voltou ao normal dentro de 15 minutas apos o exercicio; somente o da Bhuj continuou elevado após os 15 minutos de descanso. Todas as espécies voltaram ao ritmo respiratório normal, após os trinta minutos de descanso. [Heat tolerance of goats and woolless sheep in Sobral Brazil]

An observational study of fetomaternal outcome in euthyroid women with anti-thyroid peroxidase antibodies at tertiary care hospital

Background: Several changes are observed in maternal thyroid function during pregnancy and failure to adapt to these physiological changes results in thyroid dysfunction, especially if complicated by the presence of thyroid antibodies. The presence of TPO-Ab is associated with increased rate of pregnancy complications such as miscarriage, preterm delivery, placental abruption, pregnancy-induced hypertension, intrauterine death and low birth weight. Objective of this study was to study the effect of anti-TPO Ab positivity on pregnancy outcome and estimate the prevalence of anti-TPO Ab in euthyroid obstetric women.Methods: This observational study enrolled 500 euthyroid pregnant women, age 20-35 years, up to 20 weeks gestation. Venous blood samples collected and analyzed for the anti TPO Ab levels. On the basis of anti TPO Ab positivity they were divided into two groups, anti-TPO Ab positive and Ab negative group. These two groups were followed up till delivery or abortion and compared for maternal and fetal outcomes.Results: Prevalence of anti-TPO antibody positivity was 5.2% in euthyroid obstetric women. Most of anti-TPO Ab positive women were overweight. There were higher numbers of miscarriage (11.54%) in anti-TPO Ab positive euthyroid pregnancies than (2.53%) in antibody negative women. Incidence of low birth weight babies was 4-fold higher in anti-TPO Ab positive women. More than two-fold increase in incidence of placental abruption in anti-TPO Ab positive women. Parity, anaemia, gestational hypertension, preeclampsia, GDM, PROM, PPH, low Apgar scores, NICU admission, IUD and neonatal death were not significantly associated with anti-TPO Ab positivity.Conclusions: Anti TPO Ab positivity significantly associated with pre-pregnancy BMI, miscarriage rates and low birth weight of newborns.

Open fires, dirty air and respiratory diseases : examining health costs from indoor air pollution in Nepal

This policy brief is based on SANDEE working paper no. 34-08, "Estimating health benefits when behaviors are endogenous : a case of indoor air pollution in rural Nepal"A SANDEE report from Nepal looks at an environmental and social problem that has long plagued rural communities in the country – the health impact of indoor air pollution (IAP) caused by cooking fires. The study finds that, although most poor people accept indoor air pollution as a ‘fact of life’, it is, in truth, a very significant health problem, especially for women and children. The study also finds that relatively simple solutions such as improved cooking stoves (ICS) and the use of clean fuels such as biogas can reduce levels of indoor air pollution and significantly improve people’s health. An assessment of the costs and benefits of these solutions show that there is a very strong economic rationale for adopting them in preference to traditional fuels such as wood. Both biogas and improved cooking stoves provide benefits far in excess of their relatively small costs. It is clear that if rural health policy is to be effective, more work needs to be done to highlight the dangers of indoor air pollution and to promote the economic savings and health benefits that ‘clean’ cooking technology can bring