Between Archaeology and Text: The Origins of Rice Consumption and Cultivation in the Middle East and the Mediterranean

Asiatic Rice Oryza sativa L. (Poaceae) is a domesticated grain crop native to the tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, which presently ranks among the most important grains in a global diet. Oryza sativa is comprised of two distinct phylogenetic subspecies, namely japonica and indica, for which genetic evidence indicates at least two centres of domestication: the Lower Yangtze valley for the broad thick-grained japonica (c. 4000 BC) and the Gangetic basin for the thin elongated indica variety (c. 2500 BC) (Fuller et al 2010; idem 2011; Nesbitt et al 2010: 325–7). Modern genetics of landraces from northeast India may indicate a third distinct origin for the so-called aus rice varieties (Londo et al 2006: 9581–2). The genetic history of this taxon is further complicated by post-domestication hybridisation between domesticates and their wild ancestors as well as the presence of rarer forms like the aromatic rice varieties (basmati in South Asia and sadri from Iran) which may be of independent origin (Nesbitt et al 2010: 324–5). In South Asia domesticated rice is attested at various archaeological sites in the Ganges basin from the mid-3rd millennium BC onwards. It subsequently appears at mature and late Harappan levels in north-western India (c. 2000 BC) before arriving at the edge of the eastern Iranian plateau at Pirak on the north Kachi plain in the early 2nd millennium BC (Costantini 1981; Fuller 2006: 36; Sato 2005). The presence of rice at Pirak heralds its gradual westward movement along the Iranian plateau via overland and perhaps even coastal routes into western Iran and Mesopotamia

A KINETIC STUDY OF MOLYBDENUM (VI) CATALYSIS OF PERBORATE OXIDATION OF SUBSTITUTED 5-OXO ACIDS

In aqueous acetic acid medium molybdenum (VI) catalyzes perborate oxidation of 5-oxo acid. The catalyzed oxidation is first order with respect to the oxidant and catalyst, and is zero order with respect to the reductant and acid. In aqueous acetic acid solution perborate generates hydrogen peroxide and the kinetic results reveal Oxodiperoxomolybdenum (VI) is likely to be the oxidizing species; its formation is rate limiting. The rates of molybdenum (VI) catalyzed perborate and hydrogen peroxide oxidations are almost the same. The ionic strength and the dielectric constant of the medium have no influence on the oxidation rate at low and also at high [H+]. The kinetic constant and activation parameters have been calculated. A mechanism consistent with the observed kinetic data has been proposed and discussed. A suitable rate law has been derived based on the mechanism

Windmill Power Generation Using Mult-Generator and Single Rotor (Horizontal and Vertical Blade)

Wind energy is the environmental pollution free, hazardless and one of the best renewable energy for generation of electric power. The main aim of the paper is “to produce current using multi generator and single rotor”. This paper proposes multi-generator to address potential challenges: dimension, cost and reliability. The two electromagnetic induction generators are desired to share the single shaft through straight bevel gears. These poles of the two generators will be changed as alternate to parallel. This paper discussed about the design procedure of gears, gear life and wind turbine rotors. The output current is stored in series of battery to appliances through converter and step up transformer. The Construction, working, parts of windmill, materials are discussed detailed in this paper. Keywords: Electromagnetic Induction Generator, Wind Turbine, Straight Bevel Gear, Poles of Generator

Survey of the Beneficial Flowers Available in Coimbatore District, Tamil Nadu, India

The flora of an area is considered a vital part of the environment, regulating the prosperity of the biosphere and people's health. It is highly suggested that the proper utilization of plant resources in each part of a country has been useful in conserving the availability and productivity of the flora. The present investigation aimed to evaluate the survey of the beneficial flowers available in Coimbatore District, Tamil Nadu, India, from December 2019 to February 2020. The survey studies were divided into four different zones in Coimbatore District: Perur, Ganapathy, Thudiyalur, and Periyanaickenpalayam, respectively. The survey resulted in the collection of 40 plant species belonging to 38 genera, dispersed over 25 families of flowering plants / angiosperms. The dominant families were Apocynaceae and Oleaceae when compared to other families. This study reveals that species such as Calotropis gigantean, Chrysanthemum morifolium, Couroupita guianensis, Nerium oleander, Nyctanthes arbortristis, Nelumbo nucifera, and Tabernaemontana divaricata were used as ritual flowers. The beneficial flowers showed a maximum for ornamental flowers (43 percent), followed by ritual flowers (35 percent), medicinal flowers (15 percent), and cooking flowers (7 percent), respectively. The highest blooming of the flowers (14.89 percent) occurred in March, and the lowest in November and December. Flowers were documented as having economic value, with the highest rate in Rosa sp., and Jasminum sp., which were used as ornamental, medicinal, and cosmetic preparations as valuable resources. Scientific key information on taxonomy and technical approaches to beneficial flowers was analyzed. Flowers play a vital role in human life from birth to death and are used in all auspicious events in India, especially in daily prayers in temples and Indian households

Influence of Kinanthopometric Profile of National Level Male Judo Players of Tamil Nadu on Performance

Introduction: Anthropometric Aspects and Body composition are the crucial factors in explaining human physical status. Anthropometric advantage, a non-modifiable factor, significantly contributed to athletes' success in sports. The present study was studied to find out the relationship between the Kinanthopometric profiles and performance level of National-level male Judo players from Tamil Nadu, India. Method: 30 male Judo players were measured for their anthropometric parameters. Height, weight, circumferences, and skinfold thickness at various sites were measured. Body density was calculated, and body fat % was determined using Siri's Equation. A special Judo fitness test involved throwing partners using the ippon-seoi-nage technique in three periods with heart rate checks, and an index was calculated based on total throws and heart rate values. Results: An average height of 158.1 (± 8.5) cm was observed in the present study whereas that of weight was 63.7 (± 7.3) kg. Judo players were categorized into   Endomorphic (30%), Mesomorphic (36.7 %) and Ectomorphic (33.4 %) body type. Mesomorphic players showed good performance, Ectomorphic players showed average performance, and Endomorphic players displayed poor performance when performances were analyzed using the Special Judo Fitness Test. This underscored a potential link between body type and Judo performance. Conclusion:  The study concluded that body composition has a high impact on physical fitness and sports performance.Introducción: Los aspectos antropométricos y la composición corporal son factores cruciales para explicar el estado físico humano. La ventaja antropométrica, un factor no modificable, contribuyó significativamente al éxito de los atletas en los deportes. Cada persona tiene unas características morfológicas que la definen, lo que podría resultar beneficioso para la práctica de determinado deporte. El presente estudio se estudió para descubrir la relación entre los perfiles cineantométricos y el nivel de rendimiento de jugadores masculinos de judo a nivel nacional de Tamil Nadu, India. Métodos: Se midieron los parámetros antropométricos de 30 jugadores masculinos de Judo. Se midieron la altura, el peso, las circunferencias y el espesor de los pliegues cutáneos en varios sitios. Se calculó la densidad corporal y se determinó el porcentaje de grasa corporal utilizando la ecuación de Siri. Una prueba especial de condición física de Judo involucró a los compañeros de lanzamiento utilizando la técnica ippon-seoi-nage en tres períodos con controles de frecuencia cardíaca, y se calculó un índice basado en los lanzamientos totales y los valores de frecuencia cardíaca. Resultados: En el presente estudio se observó una altura promedio de 158.1 (± 8.5) cm mientras que el peso fue de 63,7 (± 7.3) kg. Los jugadores de judo se clasificaron en tipos de cuerpo endomórficos (30%), mesomórficos (36.7%) y ectomórficos (33.4%). Los jugadores mesomorfos mostraron un buen rendimiento, los jugadores ectomorfos mostraron un rendimiento medio y los jugadores endomórficos mostraron un rendimiento pobre cuando el rendimiento se analizó mediante la prueba especial de aptitud física de judo. Esto subrayó un vínculo potencial entre el tipo de cuerpo y el rendimiento en Judo. Conclusión: El estudio concluyó que la composición corporal tiene un alto impacto en la condición física y el rendimiento deportivo. Los tipos de cuerpo de los jugadores de judo variaban según el tipo de actividades deportivas que practicaban. Junto con las habilidades deportivas, el entrenamiento, el tipo de cuerpo y el nivel de condición física tienen una correlación positiva con el rendimiento deportivo

Modeling Volume Loss of Heat Treated Al 6061 Composites Using an Artificial Neural Network

AbstractIn the present study, artificial neural network (ANN) approach was used to predict the volume loss of heat treated Al 6061 metal matrix composites reinforced with 10% SiC particles and 2% graphite particles. Composite was produced using stir casting process. Volume loss of composite was measured during wear testing in a pin on disc apparatus. Microstructure examination at wear surface was investigated by Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). In Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Multi Layer Perceptron (MLP) architecture with back-propagation neural network that uses gradient descent learning algorithm is utilized. The results clearly revealed that the developed ANN model is reliable and accurate

Design of an Intelligent Controller for Armature Controlled DC Motor using Fuzzy Logic Technique

This paper presents a fuzzy control approach to the speed control of DC shunt motor using armature control. This paper presents concept of development of conventional controller and the design of a fuzzy logic controller applicable to DC Motor Speed Control System (MSCS) with high performance of the FL controller. Since armature voltage supply has a major influence in controlling speed, therefore one of the inputs to the proposed FL Controller will be actual armature voltage supply (Va) while another input will be error (e) in speed. The transfer function model of the DC shunt motor has been obtained via experimentation and calculations and simulated and then as per requirement and specification, the proposed fuzzy logic controller has been designed and simulated using Fuzzy Logic and Simulink Toolboxes of MATLAB 7. Results show robustness against changing loading conditions

Center Stir Zone Investigations of Dissimilar AA6082, AA2014 and AA7075 Welds

The study compares the mechanical and metallurgical properties of AA6082, AA2014, and AA7075 dissimilar friction stir welded aluminum 6 mm plates. The alloys AA2014 and AA7075 are aerospace grade, whereas AA6082 is structural grade. The AA6082/AA7075, AA6082/AA2014, and AA2014/AA7075 joints were formed with optimized parameters of 2° tilt angle, 900 rpm rotational speed, and 80 mm/min feed rate with a constant axial force of 20 kN. Then, to investigate the stir zone properties of the joints, the tensile strength, microstructural, and hardness variations across the weld were revealed. Despite the fact that the strength of each joint was varied, the fine grain in the stir zone across the weld and advancing side weld/HAZ failure in tensile failure were studied for all welds. Further EBSD analysis revealed fine grains for the formation of its center stir zone due to dynamic recovery recrystallization during welding

In silico and in vitro investigations on the protein–protein interactions of glutathione S-transferases with mitogen-activated protein kinase 8 and apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1

Cytosolic glutathione S-transferase (GST) enzymes participate in several cellular processes in addition to facilitating glutathione conjugation reactions that eliminate endogenous and exogenous toxic compounds, especially electrophiles. GSTs are thought to interact with various kinases, resulting in the modulation of apoptotic processes and cellular proliferation. The present research used a combination of in silico and in vitro studies to investigate protein–protein interactions between the seven most abundant cytosolic GSTs—GST alpha-1 (GST-A1), GST alpha-2 (GST-A2), GST mu-1 (GST-M1), GST mu-2 (GST-M2), GST mu-5 (GST-M5), GST theta-1 (GST-T1) and GST pi-1 (GST-P1)—and Mitogen-activated protein kinase 8 (MAPK8) and Apoptosis signal-regulating kinase 1 (ASK1). MAPK8 and ASK1 were chosen as this study’s protein interaction partners because of their predominant role in electrophile or cytokine-induced stress-mediated apoptosis, inflammation and fibrosis. The highest degree of sequence homology or sequence similarity was observed in two GST subgroups: the GST-A1, GST-A2 and GST-P1 isoforms constituted subgroup1; the GST-M1, GST-M2 and GST-M5 isoforms constituted subgroup 2. The GST-T1 isoform diverged from these isoforms. In silico investigations revealed that GST-M1 showed a significantly higher binding affinity to MAPK8, and its complex was more structurally stable than the other isoforms, in the order GST-M1 > GST-M5 > GST-P1 > GST-A2 > GST-A1 > GST-M2 > GST-T1. Similarly, GST-A1, GST-P1 and GST-T1 actively interacted with ASK1, and their structural stability was also better, in the order GST-T1 > GST-A1 > GST-P1 > GST-A2 > GST-M5 > GST-M1 > GST-M2. To validate in silico results, we performed in vitro crosslinking and mass spectroscopy experiments. Results indicated that GST-M1 interacted with GST-T1 to form heterodimers and confirmed the predicted interaction between GST-M1 and MAPK8. Communicated by Ramaswamy H. Sarma.publishersversioninpres