Association and path coefficient analysis among yield attributes and berry yield in black pepper (Piper nigrum L.)

Eighty two germplasm accessions of black pepper aggregated from pepper cultivating tracts of Karnataka, Kerala, Goa and Maharashtra were characterized for 17 quantitative traits as per the IPGRI descriptors during 2018-19 at the field gene bank of ICAR-Indian Institute of Spices Research, Experimental Farm, Kozhikode. Wide range and high coefficient of variation (CV) were recorded for dry berry weight, fresh berry weight and number of spikes vine-1 whereas, lower CV was observed for berry size. Fresh berry weight showed significant positive correlation with dry berry weight followed by number of spikes vine-1 whereas, number of immature berries spike-1 and berry size showed significant negative association with setting percentage. High positive direct effect of fresh berry weight on dry berry weight was observed during path analysis. Both fresh rachis weight and number of spike vine-1 had indirect positive effects on dry berry weight through fresh berry weight. Residual effect was meagre suggesting that the 17 quantitative traits explained 99% variability. Traits like number of spikes vine-1 and fresh berry weight are the important traits that need to be augmented during improvement of black pepper for yield

A test of tau neutrino interactions with atmospheric neutrinos and K2K

The presence of a tau component in the flux of atmospheric neutrinos inside the Earth, due to flavor oscillations, makes these neutrinos a valuable probe of interactions of the tau neutrino with matter. We study -- analytically and numerically -- the effects of nonstandard interactions in the nu_e-nu_tau sector on atmospheric neutrino oscillations, and calculate the bounds on the exotic couplings that follow from combining the atmospheric neutrino and K2K data. We find very good agreement between numerical results and analytical predictions derived from the underlying oscillation physics. While improving on existing accelerator bounds, our bounds still allow couplings of the size comparable to the standard weak interaction. The inclusion of new interactions expands the allowed region of the vacuum oscillation parameters towards smaller mixing angles, 0.2 ~< sin^2 theta_{23} ~< 0.7, and slightly larger mass squared splitting, 1.5 * 10^{-3} eV^2 ~< |\Delta m^2_{23}| ~< 4.0 * 10^{-3} eV^2, compared to the standard case. The impact of the K2K data on all these results is significant; further important tests of the nu_e-nu_tau exotic couplings will come from neutrino beams experiments such as MINOS and long baseline projects.Comment: 8 figures, some typos corrected, minor editing in the reference

A Comparative Study of the Mechanical Properties of Single and Double Sided Friction Stir Welded Aluminium Joints

AbstractAluminium alloys have a wide range of application in many key industries like aerospace and defence. It is necessary to have a high strength joint without much distortion in the above applications. In the present investigation, Al 1100 H14 aluminum alloy strips were joined by friction stir welding (FSW) process by single and double sided welding. Also the effect of direction of welding on tensile properties of the joints was investigated. Standard thickness (4mm) aluminium pieces were joined by FSW under various traversing speeds and rotational speeds. The effects on mechanical properties like surface hardness and tensile strength of the welded region were studied. It has been concluded that double sided welds are better in strength compared to single sided ones and same direction welds have substantial improvement in mechanical properties when compared to opposite direction ones

Application of remote sensing techniques for locating pelagic fish concentrations along the Kerala coast (SW coast of India) - work done and future prospects

Intensive validation programme on Potential Fishing Zone forecasts carried out by the MARSIS, Central Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Cochin, at 17 selectedjish landing centres along the Kerala coast between November 1995 and May 1996 revealed a positive relationship betwen PFZ and occurence/abundance of commercially important pelagic fishes. An attempt is made to identify possible reasons for the above, based on results of oceanographic itivestigations undertaken in the area and also taking into consideration fish behaviour in relation to environn-ieni based on past data. Future plans for evolving a suitable prediction system for commercially important pelagic fishes in the coastal waters of the mainland and skipjack fishery in the Lakshadweep islands based on PFZ forecasts are also discussed in view of its importance to the artisanal and small mechanised sector fishermen for reducing the searching time and thereby effecting an overall reduction in the cost of fishing

Impact of the Sun on Remote Sensing of Sea Surface Salinity from Space

The sun is a sufficiently strong source of radiation at L-band to be an important source of interference for radiometers on future satellite missions such as SMOS, Aquarius, and Hydros designed to monitor soil moisture and sea surface salinity. Radiation from the sun can impact passive remote sensing systems in several ways, including line-of-sight radiation that comes directly from the sun and enters through antenna side lobes and radiation that is reflected from the surface to the radiometer. Examples are presented in the case of Aquarius, a pushbroom radiometer with three beams designed to monitor sea surface salinity. Near solar minimum, solar contamination is not a problem unless the sun enters near the main beam. But near solar maximum, contamination from the sun equivalent to a change of salinity on the order of 0.1 psu can occur even when the signal enters in sidelobes far from the main beam

Stabilization of Black Cotton Soil using Lime, Coir Fiber & Rice Husk

Because of their low bearing capacity, the expansive black cotton soils' high swelling and shrinking characteristics have posed numerous challenges to construction projects. When subjected to varying levels of moisture, black cotton soil expands and contracts rapidly. As a result, stabilising the soil is necessary to address these issues. Rice Husk Ash (RHA), Cori Fiber, and Lime are being tested in this study to see if they can act as a stabilising material in the expansive black cotton soil. The impact of RHA, CF, and LIME on the expansive soil's index and engineering properties was studied in the lab. Coir fibre concentration is 1.5 percent, lime is 5 percent by weight of dry soil, and RHA is mixed in at a ratio of 20 percent. The virgin soil sample is first tested for specific gravity and grain size distribution. With and without these admixtures soil's index properties like its plastic limit, liquid limit and shrinkage limit and its strength properties like its California Bearing Ratio, Unconfined Compressive Strength tests are discovered. According to the test results, a combination of 5 percent lime and 1.5 percent coir fibre yielded the strongest soil and best index properties

Raster-image-correlation spectroscopy of paxillin-GFP-expressing breast cancer cell in vitro and in vivo

Abstract Raster-image-correlation spectroscopy (RICS) is a noninvasive technique to detect and quantify events in the living cell, including concentrations of molecules and their diffusion coefficients. Any cell containing a fluorophore that can be imaged with a laser scanning microscope can be analyzed with RICS. We obtained RICS images with an Olympus FluoView FV1000 confocal microscope using Olympus FluoView software to acquire data and SimFCS software to perform RICS analysis. Paxillin is involved in the assembly of focal adhesions, which was linked to green fluorescent protein (GFP) for the current study. In this study, we describe RICS of paxillin-GFP expression in breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231) in vitro and in vivo. Slow-moving membrane-bound paxillin proteins were measured in live breast cancer cells in vitro. Paxillin-GFP-expressing breast cancer cells (1×106) were injected in the epigastric cranials vein of the nude mouse. Paxillin-GFP-expressing breast cancer cells became attached to the inner vessel wall within 3 hours after injection. Rapidly-moving cytosolic paxillin-GFP molecules were imaged with RICS. With the ability to measure the molecular dynamics of paxillin in cancer cells in vitro and in vivo by RICS, we are now capable of studying the role of both slow-moving paxillin in the cell membrane and rapidly-moving cytosolic paxillin in cancer-cell behavior. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2012 Mar 31-Apr 4; Chicago, IL. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 5183. doi:1538-7445.AM2012-518

Rare observation of scar-bearing cuttlebone in a wild-caught Sepia pharaonis (Cephalopoda: Sepiidae) from southeastern Arabian Sea

A rare observation of the severely fractured cum healing cuttlebone of wild-caught Sepia pharaonis is reported and discussed here. The observation showed that cuttlebone of one specimen was severely affected by scars. Scars were interpreted as oval-shaped teeth marks on the dorsal side having a diameter of 23 mm. Several other teeth marks (3-4 numbers) were also observed at the anterodorsal region. Fracture was completely healed at the dorsal side while fracture (19 mm length) was notable in posteroventral region. Inverted ‘V’shaped blackline was also observed on the posteroventral region. However, scar-bearing cuttlebones was more or less symmetrical with respect to the sagittal plane

Rare occurrence of Reinhardt’s cranch squid Liocranchia reinhardti (Cephalopod: Cranchiidae) from southeastern Arabian Sea

Single individual of the rare cranchiid squid Liocranchia reinhardti belonging to the Cranchiidae family was caught in a bottom trawl operated at 80 m in southeastern Arabian Sea. The morphometric measurements and indices of the specimen are provided. Statolith microstructure analysis revealed that the L. reinhardti with 118 mm dorsal mantle length (DML) had an age of 71 days with growth rate of 1.66 mm DML/day