Archaeology as Radical Care

A guiding frame for much of my activism is contending with the juxtaposition of how the world is and how I believe the world ought to be (i.e. just). I also think deeply about how our research practice can create the conditions to get there (i.e. to a just world). Within this process I have found that justice flourishes within frameworks of care, generosity, and a heart-centered approach.1 These acts of kindness and care are radical within the (settler) colonial frameworks which inform, code, and maintain archaeological practice in most of the world today: a world in which care is coded as unscientific and biased. It is important to recognize that it is precisely in those spaces of care and kindness that transformative practices emerge.2 These gestures have the capacity to become healing balms for the many bodies of difference who experience the violence of the institution and academy

Oviposition behaviour and life-history performance of Epiphyas postvittana (Lepidoptera: Tortricidae) on the leaves of Vitis vinifera (Vitales: Vitaceae) infected with Botrytis cinerea (Helotiales: Sclerotiniaceae)

In three-way interaction systems involving an insect and a plant-pathogenic fungus, both occurring on the same plant, the insects generally gain in terms of their growth and metabolism. In this study we have tested how the infection by Botrytis cinerea on the leaves of Vitis vinifera influences the life-history performance of larvae and the oviposition behaviour of Epiphyas postvittana. We conducted free-choice and two-choice experiments to test the oviposition behaviour of gravid E. postvittana. We also characterized the effects of B. cinerea-infected leaves of V. vinifera on the growth and development of E. postvittana. We found that the oviposition preference of E. postvittana was strongly influenced by the olfactory and tactile cues. Volatiles from B. cinerea-infected plants significantly deterred oviposition and in consequence, adult females laid fewer number of eggs on B. cinerea-infected leaves of V. vinifera compared with uninfected leaves. The mortality rate of larvae fed on B. cinerea-infected leaves were not significantly different from the larvae fed on uninfected leaves of V. vinifera. Whereas, the larvae of E. postvittana fed on B. cinerea-infected leaves had significantly shorter developmental period, attained heavier pupal mass, and on becoming adults they laid more numbers of eggs than the larvae that were enabled to feed on uninfected leaves of V. vinifera. We also reared the larvae of E. postvittana on exclusive-fungus diet but all larvae died before pupation indicating that for a better larval performance and adult reproductive output of E. postvittana, the V. vinifera-B. cinerea interacting system is but imperative

Death, Dying, and End-of-Life Care in the US and the Netherlands: A Scoping Review

Introduction: The aim of End of Life (EOL)-care in any setting is to improve the quality of life of patients and families through medical or non-medical interventions. The study aims at identifying gaps in the literature produced on the topic and informs areas for future research in the field. Objective: To identify articles that discuss death and dying, with the elderly > = 70, living at home, or in nursing homes, in assisted living, or community centres, in hospice or palliative care, in hospitals or emergency care. Methods: A scoping review of studies in the U. S. and in the Netherlands. Using the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the selected studies were analysed and categorized by themes, and then summarized based on positive, negative and ambiguous views on death discussions at all four (4) levels of discussion. Results: From a total of one hundred and fifty-nine studies, twenty-five studies passed the selection criteria. Twenty-one were for the U. S., and four were for the Netherlands. The selected studies were analysed and categorized by themes. Conclusion: The review pointed to a dearth of material that measured the outcome of discussions on the subject of death and dying with the elderly. Future studies could consider discussions on death and dying from the perspective of patients’ anxiety and distress, instead of concerns over financial support, religious and ethnic issues, ethical and legal parameters, and extra medical training.publishedVersio

Structural Reliability of AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors

The GaN devices have significant advantages in terms of power density, characteristics and voltage range based on conventional compound semiconductors or Silicon. The aim of this work is to observe and analyze the results of 3D Structural Reliability of AlGaN/GaN HEMT structure. The work is mostly focused on the coupled behavior of Aluminum Gallium-nitride (AlGaN)/ Gallium-nitride (GaN) high-electron- mobility transistors (HEMTs). The modeling have to be performed considering to the various coupled properties like piezo- electric effect, inverse piezoelectric effect, mechanical stress, Joule heating effect etc. The Structural Reliability with modeling of AlGaN/GaN HEMTs is performed using ANSYS and MATLAB simulation software

Science Fiction, Speculative Feminism, and the Violence of Colonialism: Listening to an Extremely Grainy Photograph

Archaeological narratives are frequently sites of epistemic violence. If we are left with the remnants of violent events wrought by colonialism and heteropatriarchy, how might it be possible to pick them up and piece them together towards speculative feminist ends? In this essay, we propose that science fiction and sonic epistemologies can actively oppose the hegemony of violence embedded within archaeology. The rational is shaped by the visually dominant epistemologies of Eurocentric models of knowledge production (Daston & Galison 2007). Yet “there is always more than one map for a territory, and sound provides a particular path through history” (Sterne 2003: 3). We would like to explore how the sonic can be tasked with opening up the potentials of the extra-rational

Arc discharge synthesis of CNTs in hydrogen environment in presence of magnetic field

In this study the effect of hydrogen ambient environment on the growth of carbon nanotubes by arc discharge plasma in presence of external magnetic field is investigated. The samples collected from cathode deposit are analyzed by field emission scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy. Results show an increase in carbon nanotube growth with increase in hydrogen ambient pressure. The magnetic field considerably enhances the growth of carbon nanotube as observed in FESEM micrographs. In Raman spectrum, high intensity of G peak as compared to D peak indicates the presence of high quality nanotubes. Magnetic effect remarkably decreases ID/IG ratio from 1.55 to 0.31 for ambient pressure 10 mbar

Monitoring of traffic using unmanned aerial vehicle in Malaysia landscape perspective

The theoretical investigation has been performed on the implementation of optical Mobius shape in add-drop microring resonator. The modified add-drop Mobius configuration is used to investigate the optical bistability and the spectral transmission. The optical bright soliton pulse is used as the input source of the resonator system. The pulses propagation of the resonator system is modelled using the iterative programming based on the transfer matrix analysis equations. The enhancement of nonlinear effect of the resonator system is achieved by the add-drop Mobius resonator configuration. The system has been modelled for a variation of coupling coefficient for increase the bistable signal properties. The Add-drop Mobius MRR generated a bistable signal with 6.01 mW hysteresis width, and 9.47 mW output switch power with optimized radius of 5 µm outer and 4.5 m inner ring parts with 50 mW controlled power and input power. Mobius configuration is found as the better shape of resonator cavity that capable of optical switching application