Multimodel Response Assessment for Monthly Rainfall Distribution in Some Selected Indian Cities Using Best Fit Probability as a Tool

We carry out a study of the statistical distribution of rainfall precipitation data for 20 cites in India. We have determined the best-fit probability distribution for these cities from the monthly precipitation data spanning 100 years of observations from 1901 to 2002. To fit the observed data, we considered 10 different distributions. The efficacy of the fits for these distributions was evaluated using four empirical non-parametric goodness-of-fit tests namely Kolmogorov-Smirnov, Anderson-Darling, Chi-Square, Akaike information criterion, and Bayesian Information criterion. Finally, the best-fit distribution using each of these tests were reported, by combining the results from the model comparison tests. We then find that for most of the cities, Generalized Extreme-Value Distribution or Inverse Gaussian Distribution most adequately fits the observed data.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure

Looking for ancillary signals around GW150914

We replicated the procedure in Liu and Jackson (arXiv:1609.08346), who had found evidence for a low amplitude signal in the vicinity of GW150914. This was based upon the large correlation between the time integral of the Pearson cross-correlation coefficient in the off-source region of GW150914, and the Pearson cross-correlation in a narrow window around GW150914, for the same time lag between the two LIGO detectors as the gravitational wave signal. Our results mostly agree with those in arXiv:1609.08346. We find the statistical significance of the observed cross-correlation to be about 2.5 $\sigma$. We also used the cross-correlation method to search for short duration signals at all other physical values of the time lag, within this 4096 second time interval, but do not find evidence for any statistically significant events in the off-source region.Comment: 16 pages, 10 figure

Should conservation of biodiversity involve private land? : a Q methodological study in Poland to assess stakeholders' attitude

Biodiversity conservation is gradually shifting its dependency on public protected areas to take a more holistic ecosystem and landscape approach that includes private lands in addition to public lands. However, effective practice of biodiversity conservation on private land also depends on landowners’ attitude and their willingness to participate and cooperate. This study focuses on Poland where conservation on private land is a relatively new concept but it is slowly gaining recognition, especially after its accession into the European Union. It investigates and classifies the diverse attitudes among stakeholder groups in Poland toward biodiversity conservation on private land that are part of protected areas. Four primary stakeholder groups were considered: conservation and park authorities, local administrative officials, local conservation based NGOs and private landowners. The study was conducted across three sites that represented three different forms of protected areas in Poland: a national park, a landscape park and a Natura 2000 site. Q methodology, a research method from psychology and other social sciences, was used to classify human subjectivity in stakeholders’ attitude in a more systematic manner. The analysis yielded three predominant factors which highlighted the diversity in attitudes among the stakeholder groups based on their knowledge, concerns and experience in the subject. Additionally, it underlined the common recognition among all stakeholder groups for better policy support, stronger collaboration among stakeholder and more financial or compensatory support for landowners to make private land conservation more feasible. Understanding the differences in attitudes will help bridge the gap between conservation priority and conservation opportunity-a current challenge in the field of biodiversity conservation

Quantifying human subjectivity using Q method : when quality meets quantity

Incorporating human subjectivity in applied disciplines of social sciences and other base sciences poses a challenge as the nature of qualitative data is often the point of contention. Q methodology is a tool that addresses this challenge as it helps quantify qualitative data using Q factor analysis. Initially developed for psychology and political sciences, Q methodology now finds its use in many research disciplines of science, especially in interdisciplinary studies that take into account human subjectivity. This article provides a detailed description on the various steps involved in conducting a Q study, with special emphasis on data interpretation. To describe the methodology and demonstrate data interpretation, we used data from our pilot case study of socio-ecological nature that documents attitudes of people towards nature conservation on private land. Additionally, we mention the specific usefulness of this method, highlight the potential challenges at each step of the approach, and provide practical advice to overcome them. In our opinion, Q methodology has been more restricted in its use on the ground of being a more social or psychological tool, and therefore, our aim is to familiarize researchers who could be interested in a mixed approach of joining quantitative data analysis with qualitative, in-depth interpretation with the approach at hand

Challenges and opportunities in biodiversity conservation on private land : an institutional perspective from Central Europe and North America

Private land is gradually emerging as a global biodiversity conservation strategy for its potential to complement the existing protected area model in its attempt to halt the global biodiversity loss. However, involving private lands in conserving a public good face continuous challenges. While examining landowners’ motivations for conserving their land is imperative to its success, it is equally important to assess how other stakeholder groups perceive private land conservation. In order to capture the diversity and contrasts in implementing private land conservation, this research focuses on investigating the managerial perspectives on the status of private land conservation in two countries: USA and Poland. The paper presents the results of twenty five in-depth interviews that were conducted in the two countries. The US context, with a longer history and experience, captured complex interactions and factors that influence private land conservation, including role of conservation policies, civic sector organizations, stakeholder collaboration, technical and financial support, and nonmonetary motivations of landowners. The Polish context however, was limited to the regulatory model and as such did not differentiate private land conservation from traditional protected areas. Additionally, the lack of voluntary initiatives along with adequate policies and lack of awareness on private land conservation at a national and local level contributed to limited scope and understanding on the subject. The two case studies highlight the context dependency of such a strategy and bring to focus some of the factors that should be addressed while adopting conservation on private land as a biodiversity conservation strategy

Machine Unlearning for Recommendation Systems: An Insight

This review explores machine unlearning (MUL) in recommendation systems, addressing adaptability, personalization, privacy, and bias challenges. Unlike traditional models, MUL dynamically adjusts system knowledge based on shifts in user preferences and ethical considerations. The paper critically examines MUL's basics, real-world applications, and challenges like algorithmic transparency. It sifts through literature, offering insights into how MUL could transform recommendations, discussing user trust, and suggesting paths for future research in responsible and user-focused artificial intelligence (AI). The document guides researchers through challenges involving the trade-off between personalization and privacy, encouraging contributions to meet practical demands for targeted data removal. Emphasizing MUL's role in secure and adaptive machine learning, the paper proposes ways to push its boundaries. The novelty of this paper lies in its exploration of the limitations of the methods, which highlights exciting prospects for advancing the field.Comment: In Proceedings of 7th INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON INNOVATIVE COMPUTING AND COMMUNICATION 2024 (https://icicc-conf.com/

Effectiveness of Nature Conservation - A Case of Natura 2000 Sites in Poland

This book chapter examines problems emerging due to the designation of protected areas as well as implementation and management of the Natura 2000 in Poland

The Study of the Strength Properties of Galvanized Iron (GI) Fiber Reinforced Concrete

 The use of concrete with randomly distributed metallic or non-metallic fiber is now prominent in concrete engineering and metallic fiber has been reported to have a better contribution to concrete mechanical properties. The utilization of locally available galvanized iron or metallic fiber as a bridging material which is a new technique in Bangladesh has the ability to surprisingly improve concrete physical properties. This research was, therefore, conducted to compare the concrete performance of GI fiber and steel fiber using previous literature as well as the suitability of GI fiber as a supplant to steel fiber in the concrete industry. This was achieved through the evaluation of the compression, tension, and brittleness of concrete with ‘Galvanized Iron’ fiber using several cutting lengths of 20 mm and 40 mm with multiple mix proportions including 1.0%, 1.5%, 2.0%, and 2.5% by volume of the concrete. The results showed the fiber with a large cut length of 40 mm and proportion lesser than 2.5% performed well than 20 mm with proportion 2% in reference to the plain concrete. Moreover, the incorporation of a 2.0% proportion of galvanized iron fiber with 40 mm length was observed to have exhibited crowning increment for both concrete compression and tension by 16.1% and 89.2% correspondingly contrasted to the control specimen. A further increase in the percent of fiber content 2% led to a reduction in the compression and tension for both 20 mm and 40 mm lengths while a significant reduction in brittleness for galvanized iron fiber reinforced concrete was observed in contrast to the control specimen. Furthermore, the inclusion of 1.0%–2.5% GI fiber with a 40 mm length reduced concrete brittleness by 56.9% - 65.5 % in comparison with the control specimen. Therefore, the inclusion of galvanized iron (metallic) to enhance the physical properties of concrete was deduced to be one of the startling stratagem

DETERMINATION OF ALLICIN IN ALLIUM SATIVUM USING HIGH PERFORMANCE LIQUID CHROMATOGRAPHY AND STUDY OF GENOTOXIC EFFECT ON HUMAN LEUKOCYTES

Objectives: Allicin is an organosulfur compound featuring thiosulfinate functional group. The compound is formed in garlic after tissue damage, bythe action of enzyme alliinase on alliin. This study involves extraction of allicin from garlic using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) andstudy of it is the genotoxic effect on human leukocytes.Methods: A simple and rapid reverse phase HPLC was used for the extraction of allicin. Quality allicin, in conjugation with chymosin, was used tostudy its genotoxic effect on leukocytes.Results: Garlic oil and garlic extract showed similar retention time, and we measured the products using genotoxic effects in human leukocyte cultureand it shows statistically not significant.Conclusion: This study suggested that to take a lower concentration of garlic extracts benefits for health and these findings useful for further research.Keywords: Allium sativum, Leukocytes, Chromosome, Genotoxic, High-performance liquid chromatography