Fishery and stock assessment of the blood clam Anadara granosa (Linnaeus) from Kakinada Bay

Landing and effort data of Anadara granosa (Linnaeus) from Kakinada Bay were collected for the years 1988 to 1991. The landings during 1988 were 802 tonnes compared to 1600 tonnes in 1991. The effort in 1988 was estimated at 32,458 man-days, which has increased by 1.7 times in 1991. However, catch rates showed a declining trend. There has been some change in the exploitation pattern. Younger size groups (<30 mm) are being exploited more, due to their higher price realization. Stock assessment attempted by Jones’ Cohort analysis and Thomson and Bell analysis showed that the current level of exploitation has already reached MSY level. There is scope to increase the yields by following 1990 pattern of exploitation. However, selective exploitation of A. granosa of > 30 mm, if continued may lead to declining yields over the years

Prospects for developing culture of edible oyster, Crassostrea madrasensis and green mussel, Perna viridis along Kakinada coast, Andhra Pradesh

Around Kakinada in Andhra Pradesh the edible oyster, Crassostrea madrasensis beds are found at Kakinada Fisheries Harbour, Chollangi and Uppada. aquaculture is location specific, in order to test the viability of this technology under the conditions prevailing at Kakinada, experimental study on edible oyster culture was taken up at Kakinada. Ren culture method was adapted.The present work was carried out by giving good publicity at the Kakinada Fisheries Harbour and in the process, considerable awareness was generated among the fishermen resulting in good protection to the rens

Stabilisation of Red Phosphorus to Prevent Moisture Absorptionand Suppression of Phosphine Release

Red phosphorus (RP) is an essential ingredient to generate smoke for multi-spectralobscuration and is receiving wide attention throughout the world for military applications.However, oxidation of phosphorus occurs in moist air resulting in the formation of variousphosphorus acids and subsequently the evolution of the toxic gas, phosphine (PH3), even inthe sealed systems. Entrapped moisture leads to deterioration of the stores. The commercial-RPat ambient temperature and 95 per cent  RH conditions indicates 15 per cent  moisture absorptionand 13 per cent acidity development with the generation of more than 100 ppm of phosphinegas. Efforts were made to overcome this problem by suppressing acid formation. The technologyadopted was: (i) use of stabiliser, and (ii) doping stabiliser-coated particles with polymericsubstance. The aim to use metal oxide as stabiliser was to neutralise the phosphorus acids,which are catalysing the phosphine generation. MgO due to its basic nature seems to be fasterthan amphoteric Al2O3, in removing the acid from site of reaction, thus suppressing the phosphinerelease effectively. Though MgCO3 as stabiliser suppresses moisture absorption and aciditydevelopment, phosphine release is not controlled effectively. Study of RP coated with thesematerials independently and monitoring them at different RH conditions indicated superiorityof MgO in suppressing acidity and phosphine formation

Smoke Composition to Disseminate Capsaicinoids in Atmosphere as Sensory Irritant

Dissemination of sensory irritants in the atmosphere with the help of an evaporating mixtureis adopted. Experiments were carried out to find an alternative sensory irritant which is moreirritating and less toxic than the existing sensory irritating agents and originating from a naturalsource. Extract of red pepper, the oleoresin, is less toxic than the existing sensory irritants andis analysed for its constituents. Thermal studies of capsaicin and the composition indicate thatthe composition ignites at 190 °C whereas capsaicinoids boil at 214 °C. Lactose-KClO3 reactionwas found to release sufficient thermal energy to evaporate capsaicinoids into the atmospherewithout degeneration. The compositions are both friction and impact insensitive. Thedissemination of capsaicinoids into the atmosphere was confirmed using HPLC technique

Radiometric Screening of Red Phosphorus Smoke for its Obscuration Characteristics

Red phosphorus and potassium nitrate-based compositions exhibit favorable smoke screenformation with high obscuration characteristics at low oxidiser content. The rapid vaporisationof excess red phosphorus at higher flame temperature leads to quick aerodispersion. Theobscuration characteristics are due to formation of P2O5 and subsequent reaction with moisture/humidity in the atmosphere. Obscuration increases with increasing humidity. Extinction coefficient,the shadow cast per unit mass of the composition, is higher in visible and comparatively lowerin far infrared

Solar control of Southwest monsoon on centennial timescales

Solar forcing is proposed to be a major governing factor for the southwest monsoon (SWM) strength during the Holocene. The southeastern Arabian Sea is significantly affected by monsoon run-off and is an ideal testing ground. We analysed stable oxygen isotopic composition (δ18O) of three species of planktonic foraminifera (Globigerinoides ruber, Gs. sacculifer and Globarotalia menardii) with high time-resolution (~50 yrs) in a sediment core raised from the region, and documented past variations in SWM precipitation. High-resolution isotopic and spectral analyses show that solar forcing indeed played a major role in governing the past variations in SWM precipitation on centennial timescales

Environmental communication in the Information Age : Institutional barriers and opportunities in the provision of river data to the general public

Acknowledgements The authors thank SEPA, as well as all interviewees for their time, effort and openness. We are also grateful to two reviewers for their constructive comments. The research described here was supported by an award (EP/G066051/1) made by the RCUK Digital Economy programme to the dot.rural Digital Economy Hub at the University of Aberdeen. We also thank the ‘Science without Borders Programme’ funded by CNPq, Brazil (314033/2014-9).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

AMS facility at institute of physics, Bhubaneswar: inter-laboratory comparison of results

Radiocarbon dating has found wide applications in many areas of science like archaeology, geology, oceanography, palaeoseismology and palaeoclimatology. As a tracer, radiocarbon has applications in biology and medicine. Radiocarbon dating using Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) provides several advantages over the conventional decay counting method. The first AMS facility in India for radiocarbon dating has become operational at the Institute of Physics, Bhubaneswar. This note describes the operational features of this facility and inter-laboratory comparison of data