Statistical-Based Forecasting of Avalanche Prediction

This paper describes the study carried out to predict few meteorological parameters of the nextday using the observed parameters of previous day through statistical methods. Multiple linear regression model was formulated for a hill station, Patsio, situated between Manali and Leh, for two winter months(December and January) separately. Twelve meteorological parameters were predicted using 18 predictorsob served on the previous day. Ten years data has been used for the computation of regression coefficients. A  comparison of the forecasted parameters with the observations was made through the regressionmodel. The prediction of the developed regression model was reasonably close to the observations.The relevant statistical error associated with the linear model (standard error) was also estimated. Theoutput of this regression model will be useful in developing knowledge-based and statistical-basedavalanche forecasting mode

Identifying Appliances using NIALM with Minimum Features

Government of India has decided to install smart meters in fourteen states. Smart meters are required to identify home appliances to fulfill various tasks in the smart grid environment. Both intrusive and non-intrusive methods have been suggested for identification. However, intrusive method is not suitable for cost and privacy reasons. On the other hand, techniques using non-intrusive appliance load monitoring (NIALM) are yet to result in meaningful practical implementation. Two major challenges in NIALM research are the choice of features (load signatures of appliances), and the appropriate algorithm. Both have a direct impact on the cost of the smart meter. In this paper, we address the two issues and propose a procedure with only four features and a simple algorithm to identify appliances. Our experimental setup, on the recommended specifications of the internal electrical wiring in Indian residences, used common household appliances’ load signatures of active and reactive powers, harmonic components and their magnitudes. We show that these four features are essential and sufficient for implementation of NIALM with a simple algorithm. We have introduced a new approach of ‘multi point sensing’ and ‘group control’ rather than the ‘single point sensing’ and ‘individual control’, used so far in NIALM techniques.DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.11591/ijece.v4i6.671

Teaching clinical empathy to undergraduate medical students of Dehradun: A quasi-experimental study

Background:Empathy, the aptitude to resonate with others’ emotions,influences favourable doctor-patient relationship and treatment outcome. The clinical empathy comes a cropper for medical students as they stride towards the completion of medical course. Empathy is a docile characteristic; hence the lamentable dwindling of clinical empathy is amenable to prevention by specially designed targeted interventions. \ud Objectives:To evaluate any change in empathy level of undergraduate medical students after an interactive audio-visual teaching session on clinical empathy \ud Methodology:It was a pre-post quasi experimental study done on 328 undergraduate medical (MBBS) students of Dehradun by using Jefferson Scale of Empathy- Medical Student Version (JSPE-S) with pre-test and post-test separated by an interval of one month after an interactive audio-visual teaching session on clinical empathy. \ud Results:There was statistically significant improvement in overall mean empathy scores from 99.01(±12.9) to 109.33(±12.8) with a large effect size (Cohen’s d = 1.1). Statistically significant improvement in empathy level was seen irrespective of gender, age, MBBS year and area of interest for future speciality with large effect sizes of >0.8. \ud Conclusion:Clinical empathy can be improved during the years of medical education by specifically designed interventions

Piecing the evidences: Barriers to utilization of Antenatal Care Services by Currently Married Women in Rural Uttarakhand- A community-based study

Background: High maternal mortality has always been an area of concern in developing countries. Availability and availment of adequate antenatal care play a significant role in reduction of maternal deaths. Aim & Objective: To know the extent of antenatal care (ANC) services utilization by the currently married women of rural Uttarakhand during their last pregnancy, to find the barriers for utilization of ANC services and correlate the socio-demographic variables with the non-utilization of ANC services. Methods and Material: This correlational study was conducted in rural areas of 3 randomly selected districts in Uttarakhand. Multistage stratified and simple random samplings were used for area selection and PPS technique was used to recruit the participants. Overall, 637 currently married women (CMW) who delivered in last 5 years prior to survey, were interviewed by trained social workers. Chi-square test was used to ascertain association between variables and regression analysis was done to adjust for confounding associations. Results: Overall 496 (77.9%) women availed one or more ANC services during their last pregnancy, but the complete package was availed by only 210 (33%) of the CMW. Majority of the women who did not avail any ANC services were older, illiterate, labourer, spouse of labourer/ unemployed person and belonged to lower socio-economic status. Unawareness was the most commonly cited reason for not availing ANC services followed by financial issues and unfelt need. Conclusions: Women in Uttarakhand are pliant to ANC services, but there is a need to create demand for it by increasing awareness and improving the quality of ANC services

Spatial Distribution, Diversity Mapping, and Gap Analysis of Wild <i>Vigna</i> Species Conserved in India’s National Genebank

The genus Vigna has several crop species that could be used to feasibly address nutritional security challenges in the subtropical and tropical regions of the world, particularly in climate-changing scenarios. Wild taxa of Vigna are a source of economically important traits and need to be studied. Out of the 34 wild Vigna species reported in India, 928 indigenous accessions belonging to 19 wild Vigna are conserved in India’s National Genebank (INGB) housed at the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, New Delhi. Geospatial mapping has identified diversity-rich areas and the Western Ghats region exhibits the highest Shannon diversity values (H = 1.65–3.0). Using the complementarity procedure, six diversity hotspots were identified for the 34 wild Vigna, and these require utmost priority for exploration and germplasm collection. Due to the meagre amount of information available for wild Vigna, the BioClim model was used to successfully predict the Idukki district of Kerala as a suitable site for germplasm-collecting expeditions. Coastal areas identified as rich in twelve wild taxa, V. bourneae, V. dalzelliana, V. marina, V. sublobata, V. subramaniana, V. vexillata, V. stipulacea, V. trilobata, and V. trinervia, require immediate attention to protect hotspots as well as to collect accessions from these areas for ex situ conservation. A hotspot in the protected forest of Anshi National Park and Bhagwan Mahavira Wildlife Sanctuary was identified as an ideal spot for possible in situ conservation of V. konkanensis, V silvestris, and V. sublobata. The 15 wild Vigna species do not have representation in the INGB, and 11 Vigna species have been identified as endemic species to India. Priority needs to be given to these species for focussed exploration and germplasm collection. This paper discusses the future focus on explorations to be carried out for the collection of the germplasm of wild Vigna species

<span style="font-size: 22.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">Preparation, characterization and dielectric studies of K_{<span style="font-size:17.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">1-</span>}_{<span style="font-size:22.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">x</span>}<span style="font-size:22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:15.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-bidi-font-weight: bold">Na_xNbO_{<span style="font-size:17.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size: 10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif";mso-bidi-font-weight:bold">3</span>}<span style="font-size:17.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:10.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"; mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"> </span></span></span>

305-309<span style="font-size: 15.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:8.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif""="">Ceramic pellets of <span style="font-size:22.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:15.0pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif";mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"="">K1-<span style="font-size:22.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:15.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif";mso-bidi-font-weight:="" bold"="">x<span style="font-size:22.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:15.0pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif";mso-bidi-font-weight:bold"="">NaxNbO3<span style="font-size:12.5pt; mso-bidi-font-size:5.5pt;font-family:" arial","sans-serif""=""> system (for <span style="font-size:15.5pt;mso-bidi-font-size:8.5pt; font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif""="">x <span style="font-size: 19.5pt;mso-bidi-font-size:12.5pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif""="">= 0, 0.1, 0.2. 0.3. 0.4, 0.5, 0.7) have been prepared by solid-state reaction method and sintering process. The prepared samples were characterized by XRD technique. All prepared samples show orthorhombic structure at room temperature. Frequency variations of dielectric constant, loss tangent, and electrical <span style="font-size: 15.0pt;mso-bidi-font-size:8.0pt;font-family:" times="" new="" roman","serif""="">conductivity have been investigated, at room temperature, in the frequency range 1-40 MHz. It is observed that, dielectric constant decreases as sodium is mixed by a step of 10 % in potassium niobate. </span

Diagnostic delays in breast cancer among young women: An emphasis on healthcare providers

Despite advances in breast cancer care, breast cancer in young women (BCYW) faces unique challenges, diagnostic delays, and limited awareness in many countries. Here, we discuss the challenges and consequences associated with the delayed diagnosis of BCYW. The consequences of delayed diagnosis in young women - which generally varies among developed, developing, or underdeveloped countries - are severe due to a faster breast tumor growth rate than tumors in older women, also contributing to advanced cancer stages and poorer outcomes. Though there are many underlying reasons for diagnostic delays due to age, the article delves explicitly deep into the diagnostic delay of BCYW, focusing on healthcare providers, potential contributing factors, its consequences, and the urgent need to start minimizing such incidences. The article suggests several strategies to address these issues, including increasing awareness, developing educational programs for healthcare providers to identify signs and symptoms in young women, developing clear diagnostic guidelines, and improving screening strategies