Delivering light-weight online geographic information analysis using ArcIMS

As of July 9, 2002, more than 300 websites, which provide automated mapping and facilities management over the internet, are registered in the ESRI Internet Map Server (IMS) user registry [1]. But it won’t be an exaggeration to assume that this is only a tiny fraction of the actual number of IMS sold and used over the world. In fact, realising the potential scope and issues of this new form of geographic information delivery, the International Cartographic Association has formed a Commission dedicated to Maps and the Internet [2]. The IMS software has also kept pace with the growing demand and progress in technology. IMS has evolved from the simple HTML image maps to sophisticated servelet-driven mapping services. During this period, a very significant event happened with the arrival of ArcIMS. With the ArcIMS the use of IMS changed from merely an interactive visualisation and query of the spatial databases to a platform for sharing remote spatial databases. In other words, the ArcIMS made the scale of operation of IMS global. While the accessibility and usability of the IMS have certainly increased in the past 5- 6 years, the functionalities provided by IMS however remained fairly static. A widely felt but unreported criticism of IMS has been that the lack of a broader range of spatial analysis functions (except the usual buffering) in the off-the-shelf IMS installation. Therefore a couple of eyebrows always tend to rise if the word “Internet GIS” is used for IMS. Oddly enough, the ArcIMS 3.x and the older versions carry this limitation as well. Essentially, IMS suffer from the limitation for not being able to allow simultaneous update and dynamic manipulation of the thematic content of the online maps. For example, in the case of ArcIMS while there are provisions for complex scale-dependent rendering, it is not easily possible to manipulate (for example add layers or delete layers) the crucial axl file of a mapping service on the fly. The recent launch of ArcIMS 4 promises to bridge this gap by allowing an enhanced integration with the ArcGIS. The aim of this article is to propose a generic framework, which makes the link between an IMS and a standard GIS, to provide geographic analysis in online maps. We will take the example of such a framework developed for ArcIMS

Forecasting phenology of mustard crop in North-western Himalayas

Field experiments were conducted during rabiseason of 2007-08 and 2008-09 to study the phenology, thermal indices and its subsequent effect on dry matter accumulation of mustard (Brassica juncea L.) varieties viz., RCC-4, Kranti and Varuna grown under varying environmental conditions of Himachal Pradesh. The early sown (10th October) crop varieties took maximum average growing degree days for flower initiation (492±1), 50% flower-ing (682±1), pod initiation (742±1), 90% pod formation (811±4) and maturity (1394±8) which decreased with subse-quent delay in sowing time and recorded lowest under late sown (9th November) crop. The accumulated helio-thermal units and photo-thermal units decreased from 9824 to 7467 oC day hour and 19074 to 15579 oC day hour, respectively. High heat-use efficiency was obtained under late sown condition on 30th October. The heat-use efficiency (HUE) was high at 90% pod formation stage as compared to other stages in all the varieties and sowing dates (except 9th November sowing). The early sown (10th October) crop had maximum calendar days and cumula-tive pan evaporation (158 days and 448.2 mm) followed by normal (20th and 30th October) (153 days and 434 mm) and late (9th November) (138 days and 403.1 mm) sown crop indicating higher water requirement under early sow-ing. The predictive regression models explained 83-85% variation in dry matter yield in three varieties of mustard. The agro climatic indices are important determinants for temperature, radiations and photoperiods behaviors of crop. The accurate predictions of crop phenology are useful inputs for crop simulation modeling and crop management, and used for climate change assessment and simulated adaptations in present scenarios

Viscous fluid cosmology in symmetric teleparallel gravity

In this manuscript, we analyze the viscous fluid cosmological model in the framework of recently proposed $f(Q)$ gravity by assuming three different forms of bulk viscosity coefficients, specifically, $(i)\zeta =\zeta_{0}+\zeta_{1}\left( \frac{\dot{a}}{a}\right) +\zeta_{2}\left( \frac{{\ddot{a}}}{\dot{a}}\right)$, $(ii)\zeta =\zeta_{0}+\zeta_{1}\left( \frac{\dot{a}}{a}\right)$, and $(iii)\zeta =\zeta_{0}$ and a linear $f(Q)$ model, particularly, $f(Q)=\alpha Q$ where $\alpha \neq 0$ is free model parameter. We estimate the bulk viscosity coefficients and the model parameter values using the combined H(z)+Pantheon+BAO data set. We study the asymptotic behavior of our cosmological bulk viscous model by utilizing the phase space method. We find that corresponding to all three cases, our model depicts the evolution of the universe from matter dominated decelerated epoch (a past attractor) to a stable de-sitter accelerated epoch ( a future attractor). Further, we study the physical behavior of effective pressure, effective equation of state (EoS), and the statefinder parameters. We find that the pressure component in the presence of bulk viscosity shows negative behavior and the effective EoS parameter predicts the accelerated expansion phase of the universe for all three cases. Moreover, we obtain that the trajectories of our model lie in the quintessence region and it converges to the $\Lambda$CDM fixed point in the far future. Thus we can conclude that our viscous fluid cosmological model can efficiently describe late time accelerated expansion phase of the universe corresponding to all three cases.Comment: Comments are welcom

Comparison Study and Review on Object-Oriented Metrics

The best elucidations to software development problems are regularly touted as object-oriented processes. The popularity of object-oriented design metrics is essential in software engineering for measuring the software complexity, estimating size, quality and project efforts. There are various approaches through which we can find the software cost estimation and predicates on various kinds of deliverable items. Object-oriented metrics assures to reduce cost and the maintenance effort by serving as early predictors to estimate software faults. Such an early quantification augments the quality of the final software. This paper reviews object-oriented metrics. A comparison table is maintained via which we can analyze the difference between all the object-oriented metrics effectively

A study of faculty development programs in India to improve student engagement

Student engagement refers to the degree of awareness, curiosity and interest that students show in their formal educational environment, which also reflects their motivation for learning and academic achievements. There has been lot of research about how to build a positive climate for learning, improve student curiosity, and enhance classroom association. The research findings are unambiguous. Student learning, persistence, and attainment in educational institutes are strongly associated with student engagement. In India, a project named Mission 10x has been started by an esteemed IT Corporation Wipro as a faculty development programme (FDP) that particularly focus on elements that can lead to improvement in student engagement. This paper presents a study of these FDPs and examines (1) the parameters that affect student engagement (2) the extent to which student engagement is improved after the conduct of Mission 10x FDPs, and (3) whether institutions differ in terms of their ability to convert student engagement into academic performance via these FDPs. The sample consisted of 2,236 students at 6 four-year engineering colleges and universities that completed several FDPs during 2012-2014. Many measures of student engagement were linked positively with such FDPs, although some of the relationships were weak in strength. The results suggest that the lowest-ability students were more benefitted after conducting these FDPs and application of novel approaches in conducting classes. Also, different forms of engagement are converted into academic achievement, and certain institutions convert student engagement into higher performance on critical thinking tests more effectively

Impact of elevated carbon dioxide and temperature on wheat production under sub temperate climate in north western Himalayas, India

Wheat is the second most important cereal crop and plays a key role in food and nutritional security. The study examines the impact of elevated carbon dioxide and temperature under limited irrigations on wheat crop using crop growth simulation models under sub temperate climate. The Info Crop model was validated using the historical data generated by the research trials of All India Coordinated Research Improvement Project at Palampur, Himachal Pradesh. The model was run for 20 years from 1991 to 2010 for Palampur weather station. The results revealed 3.6 to 4.0 percent and 1.7 to 7.5 percent increase in simulated crop yield with 420 and 470 ppm CO2 respectively. The elevated maximum and minimum temperature by 1 and 20C with 370 ppm carbon dioxide reduced the anthesis period by 5-7 and 9-11 days respectively over the sowing window of November 15th to December 30th. Similarly, days to maturity also reduced by 4-5 and 7-8 days with 1 and 20C rise in temperature respectively. The simulated crop yield showed increase by 17.9 to 63.0 and 33.2 to 133.4 percent with 1 and 20C rise in temperature at 370 ppm CO2 under limited irrigations. The simulated grain yield at 420 ppm CO2 showed an increase of 23 to 69.7 percent with 10C and 39.5 to 123.5 percent with 20C whereas at 470 ppm CO2 level the increase was 27.9 to 76.1 at 10C and 46.4 to 133.0 percent with 20C rise in maximum and minimum temperatures respectively. Hence, simulated results of elevated temperature and CO2 levels proved to be beneficial in rabi wheat with adaptations strategy of limited irrigations under sub temperate climate of North Western Himalaya

Validity of bioeffect dose response models for normal tissue early and late complications of the skin

SummaryBackgroundThe bioeffect of a physical dose depends on the nature of the tissue, fractionation scheme, dose rate and treatment time. Certainly, experienced radiotherapists are convinced of the existence of patient-to-patient variability in normal tissue response to radiotherapy for malignant tumours. The absorbed dose needs to be translated into a bioeffect dose, which takes into account treatment variables and the radiobiological characteristics of the relevant tissue. Various bioeffect models such as NSD, CRE, TDF and BED have been proposed to predict the biological effect of radiotherapy treatments.AimThis study was aimed at deriving tolerance bioeffect dose values for normal tissue complication rate.Materials/MethodsCompiled clinical data of time dose fractionation schedules and incidence of erythema, desquamation and telangiectasia were used for the present analysis.ResultsFor erythema and desquamation the radiation dose varied from 23.9 to 55.1Gy in 04 to 50 fractions (dose per fraction 1.1 to 7.3Gy) in 11 to 40 days. For telangiectasia (score ≥1 at 3 years) the radiation dose varied from 25.8 to 55.1Gy in 04 to 50 fractions (dose per fraction 1.1 to 7.3Gy) in 11 to 40 days. For telangiectasia (score ≥2 at 5 years) the radiation dose varied from 25.8 to 63.0Gy in 04 to 50 fractions (dose per fraction 1.1 to 7.3Gy) in 11 to 68 days. For telangiectasia (score ≥1, ≥2, ≥3, ≥4 at 10 years) the radiation dose varied from 25.8 to 63.0Gy in 04 to 35 fractions (dose per fraction 1.7 to 7.3Gy) in 22 to 68 days. TDF and LQF values for erythema, desquamation and telangiectasia were evaluated with α/β values of 7.5Gy, 11.2Gy and 2.8Gy respectively. TDF and LQF had a statistically significant correlation with probability of erythema, desquamation and telangiectasia (p<0.001).ConclusionsTDF and LQF values should be limited to 60 and 86Gy in order to limit the probability of telangiectasia

Expression and Characterization of Chandipura Virus Proteins

Chandipura virus (CHPV) has recently emerged as an extremely lethal human pathogen in the family Rhabdoviridae and is linked to significant encephalitis outbreaks in different parts of India. The biology of CHPV remains less studied to date and the availability of reagents such as purified proteins can enhance research in this direction. In this study, we have overexpressed four of the CHPV proteins namely Nucleoprotein (N), Phosphoprotein (P), Matrix protein (M) and Glycoprotein (G) using three  distinct tags in bacterial system and with changes in inducer concentration, growth and solubilisation conditions successfully purified M and G proteins for the first time along with N and P. Furthermore, the interactions of CHPV M protein with other viral proteins (G, N and P) was investigated using ELISA and GST pull down assays to show the utility of olubilised proteins. The results of both the assays demonstrated that M protein interacts with both G and N proteins, while it does not interact with P protein, in a similar  manner as reported for Vesicular Stomatitis Virus