DESIGN, FABRICATION AND SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS OF THE RESISTANCE TEMPERATURE DETECTOR THIN FILM SENSORS

Thin film heat transfer sensors are most cost effective resistance temperature detector (RTD) sensors for dynamic temperature measurements mainly because of very fast response time (milliseconds or less). These sensors are prepared by deposited high conducting very sensitive gauge material (platinum/nickel/silver) on the insulating surface (pyrex/macor/quartz). The purpose of this work is to fabricate different types of thin film sensors by using high conducting platinum and nanomaterials. After fabrication all these sensors are statically calibrated by oil bath type methods and the typical value of sensitivity for each sensor are calculated and then compared the results between them

Item and distracter analysis of multiple choice questions (MCQs) from a preliminary examination of undergraduate medical students

Background: Multiple choice questions (MCQs) or Items forms an important part to assess students in different educational streams. It is an objective mode of assessment which requires both the validity and reliability depending on the characteristics of its items i.e. difficulty index, discrimination index and distracter efficiency. To evaluate MCQs or items and build a bank of high-quality test items by assessing with difficulty index, discrimination index and distracter efficiency and also to revise/store or remove errant items based on obtained results.Methods: A preliminary examination of Third MBBS Part-1 was conducted by Department of Community Medicine undertaken for 100 students. Two separate papers with total 30 MCQs or items and 90 distractors each in both papers were analyzed and compared. Descriptive as well as inferential statistics were used to analyze the data.Results: The findings show that most of the items were falling in acceptable range of difficulty level however some items were rejected due to poor discrimination index. Overall paper I was found to be more difficult and more discriminatory, but its distractor efficiency was slightly low as compared to paper II.Conclusions: The analysis helped us in selection of quality MCQs having high discrimination and average difficulty with three functional distractors. This should be incorporated into future evaluations to improve the test score and properly discriminate among the students

Trichoderma asperellum behave as antagonist to control leaf spot and flower blight of Marigold

Alternaria zinniae causes leaf spot and blossom blight in marigolds, resulting in yield losses of 50-60 % in tropical and subtropical climates. Chemical controls can have a negative influence on ecosystems and agronomic control approaches are difficult to execute change to Chemical control are highly toxic, enhance biodegradation and cause environmental pollution after repeated use. Potential adverse effects on the earth and prolonged use have prompted a complete exclusion or limited utilization of most chemicals and an urgent need for eco-friendly and efficient tools. In vitro evidence for the possible use of Trichoderma spp. for biocontrol of marigold leaf spot and flower blight has been reported in previous investiga-tions. In this study, we used a dual culture approach to investigate the antagonistic and myco-parasitic properties of 4 Trichoderma asperellum strains against Alternaria zinniae in vitro

Sonoelectrochemical Synthesis of Metallic Multilayer Nanocomposite and their Characterization

Multilayers have received increasing attention in recent years because of their unique properties. These materials comprised of alternating layers of different metals and/or alloy is expected unusual and enhanced electrical, optical, magnetic and mechanical properties when the sublayer thickness is confined to the nanometer scale. In this work we tried to Cu/Ni multilayer by varying the concentration of the bath with changing potential for alternate deposition of nano multilayer. Our conclusions are the result of combining experimental work with chraterization with XRD, SEM, AFM and and nanoindentation with special concentration of the different growth texture of the multilayers grains and growth mechanism with GMR studies. We argue that this approach is the best avenue to obtain accurate information about the texture and quality of metallic multilayers. The study of physical properties of multilayers (structural, elastic, magnetic, and transport) is one of the most prosperous and rich branches of materials science today

Utilzation of industrial waste as a filling material

Iron and Steel have played an important role in the development of human civilization over the recent years. Steel by itself is one of the most environment friendly products used in our daily life. Steel has been a material of choice for innumerable applications all along in the past, and it is likely to continue to be an important material for use in the foreseeable future. The world steel production has been increasing from year to year and has already crossed the 1 billion tonnes mark for the first time in 2004. During the intervening period, steel production has grown very fast, and in 2010, global steel production has exceeded 1.4 billion tonnes. The rapid increas has been led by China accounting for more than 45% of world steel production. China is not only the largest producer of steel (627 million tonnes), it is also the largest consumer of steel (576 million tonnes) followed by the United States and India. Sponge iron is the intermediate stage of steel production. During the process of production of the sponge iron, large amount of solid waste is produced. So it is necessary to manage/reuse the waste in proper ways. Over the last few years, environmental and economical issues have stimulated interest in the development of alternative materials and reuse of industrial waste/by-products that can fulfil the standard specification. Dolochar is such a type of solid waste generated from sponge iron industries. Safe disposal of dolochar waste is a major problem for the earth. It is produced in large quantities due to rapid industrialisation. Dolochar is a black coal like material having crystalline structure; contain SiO2, Al2O3, Fe2O3, CaO, MgO and FC (Fixed carbon). Its major constituent is SiO2. The objective of this paper is to provide a detailed study on the characteristics and effective utilisation of the industrial waste (dolochar). The waste sample was collected form a local sponge iron industry located at Sambalpur and different geotechnical parameters such as Light compaction test (Cu, Cc), Specific gravity test, Unit weight test, pH test, Sieve analysis, direct shear test (cohesion, angle of internal friction) and Chemical analysis have been evaluated to find out its suitability as a filling material

Partial purification and biochemical characterization of acid phosphatase from germinated mung bean (Vigna radiata) seeds

Mung bean (Vigna radiata) is one of the important crops of the North Eastern Region of India. In the present study, acid phosphatase enzyme was isolated and partially purified from germinated local mung bean seeds. The sequential partial purification process was performed using ammonium sulphate precipitation method. The crude enzyme having a specific activity of 0.50 U/mg was purified using 30 to 70% ammonium sulphate precipitation method. The acid phosphatase was purified by 2.6 fold with a yield of 58.9% and specific activity of 1.3 U/mg. One prominent band was obtained on sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophresis (SDS-PAGE) which confirmed the purity of the enzyme. Molecular weight of the enzyme was estimated as 34.5 kDa. The enzyme activity was measured at different incubation time, pH, temperature and substrate concentration. The activity increased slowly from 10 to 70 min of incubation. The maximum activity was obtained at 70 min, thereafter the activity decreased gradually. The enzyme was found to be active over a wide range of temperature (30 to 80°C) and maximum activity was observed at 70°C. The optimal pH value of the enzyme activity was found to be 5.2. There was a corresponding increase in the rate of reaction with the increase in the substrate concentration from 0.1 to 0.8 mM and a linear relationship was obtained at 2 to 8 mM. Both Km and Vmax value were calculated as 0.416 mM and 1.33 µmoles/min, respectively.Key words: Acid phosphatase, mung bean, Vigna radiata, enzyme purification, enzyme characterization

Slow amyloid nucleation via α-helix-rich oligomeric intermediates in short polyglutamine-containing huntingtin fragments

The 17-amino-acid N-terminal segment (httNT) that leads into the polyglutamine (polyQ) segment in the Huntington\u27s disease protein huntingtin (htt) dramatically increases aggregation rates and changes the aggregation mechanism, compared to a simple polyQ peptide of similar length. With polyQ segments near or above the pathological repeat length threshold of about 37, aggregation of htt N-terminal fragments is so rapid that it is difficult to tease out mechanistic details. We describe here the use of very short polyQ repeat lengths in htt N-terminal fragments to slow this disease-associated aggregation. Although all of these peptides, in addition to httNT itself, form α-helix-rich oligomeric intermediates, only peptides with QN of eight or longer mature into amyloid-like aggregates, doing so by a slow increase in β-structure. Concentration-dependent circular dichroism and analytical ultracentrifugation suggest that the httNT sequence, with or without added glutamine residues, exists in solution as an equilibrium between disordered monomer and α-helical tetramer. Higher order, α-helix rich oligomers appear to be built up via these tetramers. However, only httNTQN peptides with N=8 or more undergo conversion into polyQ β-sheet aggregates. These final amyloid-like aggregates not only feature the expected high β-sheet content but also retain an element of solvent-exposed α-helix. The α-helix-rich oligomeric intermediates appear to be both on- and off-pathway, with some oligomers serving as the pool from within which nuclei emerge, while those that fail to undergo amyloid nucleation serve as a reservoir for release of monomers to support fibril elongation. Based on a regular pattern of multimers observed in analytical ultracentrifugation, and a concentration dependence of α-helix formation in CD spectroscopy, it is likely that these oligomers assemble via a four-helix assembly unit. PolyQ expansion in these peptides appears to enhance the rates of both oligomer formation and nucleation from within the oligomer population, by structural mechanisms that remain unclear. © 2011 Elsevier Ltd

Contract goat farming: an emerging model for livelihood generation among resource poor farmers of western Odisha

The present study was taken up with the objective to find out the pattern of contract goat farming (CGF) in western Odisha. Data were collected through personal interview from 60 contract goat farmers for pattern and practices in CGF and 20 key informants for understanding the existing models in CGF in the study area. The study showed that there were a number of models of CGF existing in the study area based on provision of input, services and marketing of kids. All of these models revealed that these types of contract goat farming were acting as a source of income and employment for the resource poor farmers and rural youth. The study showed that the traditional goat farming over the years had taken a commercial outlook in the form of contract goat farming. Though it was informal but the services and marketing strategies to be provided were clearly defined in various models of the CGF before entering into contract. The various models revealed an equal distribution of profit among the two parties, which was the basis of a strong bonding and a long term business venture. The CGF operational in western Odisha suggest an excellent model of employment and income generation for resource poor rural people and educated youth. In fact these models if taken up on a large scale in areas with similar agro-climatic zones can definitely boost the livelihood security among the educated unemployed youth and poor farmers