Ultrasensitive interplay between ferromagnetism and superconductivity in NbGd composite thin films

A model binary hybrid system composed of a randomly distributed rare-earth ferromagnetic (Gd) part embedded in an s-wave superconducting (Nb) matrix is being manufactured to study the interplay between competing superconducting and ferromagnetic order parameters. The normal metallic to superconducting phase transition appears to be very sensitive to the magnetic counterpart and the modulation of the superconducing properties follow closely to the Abrikosov-Gorkov (AG) theory of magnetic impurity induced pair breaking mechanism. A critical concentration of Gd is obtained for the studied NbGd based composite films (CFs) above which superconductivity disappears. Besides, a magnetic ordering resembling the paramagnetic Meissner effect (PME) appears in DC magnetization measurements at temperatures close to the superconducting transition temperature. The positive magnetization related to the PME emerges upon doping Nb with Gd. The temperature dependent resistance measurements evolve in a similar fashion with the concentration of Gd as that with an external magnetic field and in both the cases, the transition curves accompany several intermediate features indicating the traces of magnetism originated either from Gd or from the external field. Finally, the signatures of magnetism appear evidently in the magnetization and transport measurements for the CFs with very low (less than 1 at. %) doping of Gd

Message queue telemetry transport and lightweight machine-to-machine comparison based on performance efficiency under various scenarios

Internet of things (IoT) is been advancing over a long period of time in many aspects. For data transfer between IoT devices in a wireless sensor network, various IoT protocols are proposed. Among them, the most widely used are constrained application protocol (CoAP) and message queue telemetry transport (MQTT). Overcoming the limitations of CoAP, lightweight machine-to-machine (LwM2M) framework was designed above CoAP. Recent statistics show that LwM2M and MQTT are the widely used, but LwM2M is still less used than MQTT. Our paper is aimed at comparing both MQTT and LwM2M on the basis of performance efficiency, which will be achieved by sending same file through both protocols to the server. Performance efficiency will be calculated in two scenarios, i) when the client makes a connection with the server i.e., while initial connection and ii) while sending data file to server i.e., while data transfer. Both the protocols will be tested on the number of packets sent and the variability of packet size throughout the session. Experimental results indicated that LwM2M outperformed MQTT in both above scenarios by almost 69%. Therefore, we concluded by stating that LwM2M is best choice over MQTT, but MQTT can still be used in some situations if necessary

Biochemical response and host-pathogen relation of stalk rot fungi in early stages of maize (Zea mays L.)

Stalk rot is a destructive disease in maize caused by Fusarium and Macrophomina species. A study was carried out to understand the mode of infection, host biochemical response and comparison of inoculation techniques in Fusarium verticillioides and Macrophomina phaseolina in maize. In seed inoculation experiment, high mycelia growth on seed surface lead to rotting in 36.6% of seeds inoculated by F. verticillioides and 10.0% seeds in M. phaseolina. In seedling inoculation experiment, twenty one days old seedlings raised in glasshouse were inoculated with spore suspension of both pathogens, respectively in two sets, resulting in symptoms like tip drying, necrotic lesions, chlorotic bands, pale green leaves and yellowing of margins in varying numbers. Significant result was the appearance of asymptomatic seedlings in F. verticillioides infection which was confirmed by the increase in total soluble phenols (9.39 mg/g) and total sugars (5.33 mg/g) content in comparison to the control (2.84 mg/g total soluble solid (TSS) and 2.18 mg/g total soluble phenols) and symptomatic ones. While in M. phaseolina, total contents of sugar and soluble phenols were on part in asymptomatic and control (uninfected), depicting disease escape to be the possible cause of this phenotypic expression. The study concludes that inoculation techniques for screening of genotypes play a major role. The appearance and non appearance of symptoms in infected host can mislead the identification of resistant genotypes.Key words: Maize, Fusarium verticillioides, Macrophomina phaseolina, total soluble sugar, total soluble phenols

Important Objectives and Important Considerations in Objective Setting for Sport Sponsorship by Indian Companies

We now commonly see that sports sponsorship is used by companies as part of their marketing efforts. The question that comes to mind is: why should the companies be interested in sponsorship? One view is that if sports sponsorship is done properly, it can provide good opportunities for distinct marketing and competitive advantages, and also showing support for the event. It is also considered as one of the communication vehicles available, which is capable of helping to form a long-term relationship with the consumers. Brand building is another objective for using sports sponsorship. It is natural that different companies will not have similar objectives for sports sponsorship. Academic research in a number of countries has tried to understand the various reasons and objectives for sports sponsorship. However, in India, academic research on sports sponsorship is hard to come by. Therefore, for this paper, various objectives for sports sponsorship and related aspects were primarily identified on the basis of review of available literature from other counties. A questionnaire was designed containing Likert-type statements about sport sponsorship management while setting the objectives as well as importance attached to various identified objectives. Responses received from 248 respondents were analyzed and described using means and standard deviation. Statements about ‘strengthening/altering the company image as an objective’ and ‘likely benefits to be derived from sponsorship’ have been found to be more important. The statements on ‘monetary profit due to sponsorship’ and ‘utility of objective setting to measure sponsorship effectiveness’ are surprisingly lower down the order. Sponsorship objectives which turned out to be most important belong to three categories namely, media coverage, objectives related to product/service/brand, and general corporate objectives

Colorization of grayscale images: an overview

Abstract: An efficient colorization scheme for images based on prioritized source propagation is proposed in this work. A user first scribbles colors on a set of source pixels in an image. The proposed algorithm then propagates those colors to the other non-source pixels and the subsequent frames. Specifically, the proposed algorithm identifies the non-source pixel with the highest priority, which can be most reliably colorized. Then, its color is interpolated from the neighboring pixels. This is repeated until the whole image or movie is colorized. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm yields more reliable colorization performance than the conventional algorithms

A prospective study of adverse drug reactions in a tertiary care teaching hospital

Background: Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) have become frequent cause for hospitalization and are coming up as an economic burden on health systems. Identification of ADRs and their reporting pattern can provide useful information for their management.Methods: This was an observational and prospective study. ADR reports of 130 patients were collected of the inpatient department of various clinical departments of Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital, Rewa, Madhya Pradesh (M.P.) The ADRs were collected during October 2014-September 2015, with ADR reporting form of Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), New Delhi. ADRs were assessed for their causality, severity, and preventability as per the standard scales. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and expresses in percentages.Results: Overall occurrence of ADRs was slightly more in males (55%). Maximum (26%) suspected ADR reported during study period was skin rash. Skin (44%) was the most commonly affected organ system. Antimicrobials (68%) were the drug group most commonly involved in ADRs. Most of the suspected ADRs were probable in causality assessment, moderate in severity and probably preventable.Conclusions: The study results revealed opportunities for interventions in ADR management to ensure safer drug use

Prospecting high oil in corn (Zea mays L.) germplasm for better quality breeding

The present study was undertaken to assess genetic variability among oil content and agronomic traits in a set of corn inbreds. Oil content and plot yield ranged from 2.41 to 7.34% and 1.53 to 0.33kg, respectively. HKI-Tall-8-1-1, (TemperatexTropical(HO)QPM)-B-B-B-100-B-B, DMHOC4, (TemperatexTropical (HO)QPM)-B-B-B- 57-B-B, HKI Talar, (TemperatexTropical (HO)QPM)-B-B-B-60-B-B and AF-04-b-5796-a-7-1-1 among 108 inbreds recorded above 6 per cent oil. AF-04-b-5796-a-7-1-1 was identified as an elite inbred with high oil and better yield for improvement of high oil corn. Wide range in performance was observed in oil and other phenotypic traits including yield. Principal Component analysis, regression and correlation coefficient facilitated sorting of inbreds and identification of related useful traits

Rehabilitation of long standing ankylosis of temporo-mandibular joint in a 65 year old lady: A management quandary

Temporomandibular joint ankylosis commonly occurs as a result of trauma to the face resulting in fusion of the temporal bone to condyle of the mandible .Immediate and appropriate care of facial fractures can minimise the risk of development of ankylosis. We report a case of TMJ ankylosis in a 65 year old lady with complaint of inability to open the mouth since 44 years . The lack of appropriate treatment at the time of trauma led to TMJ ankylosis and its sequale for 44 years. The ankylosis was surgically managed followed by aggressive physiotherapy. Surgeries in geriatric patient need to outweigh benefit over risk. The article describes challenges posed in rehabilitation of this patient

Impact of social lockdown due to COVID-19 on environmental and health risk indices in India

Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spread across the globe through the human transmission. The World Health Organization suggested social distancing to curb the community spread. After national social lockdown started in India, air quality improved drastically. This further hypothesized to influence the environment and human health, and this study is positively the first to weigh it using multiple indices. The calculated environmental indices are photochemical ozone creation potential (POCP), acidification potential (AP), and eutrophication potential (EP). The cancer risk, chronic health index (CHI), and acute health index (AHI) were considered to calculate the health risk. The spatial trend change in the air pollution reflecting on these indices are calculated for four Indian megacities Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Kolkata. Temporal variation was accounted for monthly (2019 vs 2020), one-week and two-weeks period during the social lockdown. The results showed a significant decrease in environmental and health risk during the lockdown due to a corresponding decrement in air pollution. The decrease in the particulate matter was found to play a vital role in altering the air pollution mediated risks of interest. Delhi showed a maximum difference in POCP and Acute HI by recording a dip of 70.79% and 43.53% respectively in 2020 during lockdown. The maximum reduction in health risk indices was 41%, 31%, 17%, 19% for Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, and Kolkata. Bangalore recorded the maximum decline in EP, Cancer risk, Chronic HI by 66.66%, 58.62%, and 58.76% in 2020 compared to 2019. A maximum fall in AP was seen in Kolkata by 57.23% in 2020 among all cities. The connection between these drop-in indices and the cause of air pollutants were well discussed. This present paper gives more in-depth insights into air pollution's effect on environmental and health parameters by connecting and converging various air pollution aspects into a single scale. This study also enlightens the importance of controlling air pollution to have a better environment and healthy life to attain sustainable development. © 2021 Elsevier Inc