KNOWLEDGE-BASED NEURAL NETWORK FOR LINE FLOW CONTINGENCY SELECTION AND RANKING

The Line flow Contingency Selection and Ranking (CS & R) is performed to rank the critical contingencies in order of their severity. An Artificial Neural Network based method for MW security assessment corresponding to line outage events have been reported by various authors in the literature. One way to provide an understanding of the behaviour of Neural Networks is to extract rules that can be provided to the user. The domain knowledge (fuzzy rules extracted from Multi-layer Perceptron model trained by Back Propagation algorithm) is integrated into a Neural Network for fast and accurate CS & R in an IEEE 14-bus system, for unknown load patterns and are found to be suitable for on-line applications at Energy Management Centers. The system user is provided with the capability to determine the set of conditions under which a line-outage is critical, and if critical, then how severe it is, thereby providing some degree of transparency of the ANN solution

PLANTAR FASCIITIS TREATMENT WITH PLATELET-RICH PLASMA INJECTION VERSUS STEROID INJECTION

Objective: Plantar fasciitis is characterized by heel pain that worsens when you bear weight after a long period of rest. Injections of steroids are one of the numerous therapeutic techniques that are frequently used to control plantar fasciitis. Numerous studies demonstrate that short-term pain alleviation with steroid injections is not long-lasting. According to recent studies, autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections encourage healing, which improves both short- and long-term pain alleviation. To compare the effects of local PRP injection and corticosteroid in the management of chronic plantar fasciitis, the current study was conducted. Methods: Sixty patients who met the criteria for this prospective double-blind trial were randomly assigned to one of two groups. Patients in Group I received an injection of steroid, whereas those in Group II received an injection of PRPs. The PNS numerical pain score (NPS) and a visual analog scale (VAS) were used to evaluate the patients. An evaluation was conducted before the injection as well as at 6 weeks, 3 months, and 6 months after the injection. Results: The mean VAS in Group I reduced from 7.00 before injection to 2.31 and that in Group II decreased from 7.81 before injection to 1.12. At the 6-month follow-up, the mean NPS score in Group I increased from 7.05 to 1.41 and in Group II from 7.86 to 1.02. The VAS and NPS improvements were statistically significant. In both groups, the plantar fascia thickness had decreased at the conclusion of the 6-month follow-up period (5.88 mm in Group I to 4.03 mm and 5.96 mm to 3.27mm in Group II), and the difference was statistically significant. Conclusion: When compared to steroid injection, local PRP injection is an excellent therapeutic option for persistent plantar fasciitis with long-lasting positive effects

Integrative genome-wide association studies (GWAS) to understand complex genetic architecture of quantitative traits in chickpea

Development of high-yielding stress-tolerant chickpea cultivars is essential to enhance its yield potential and productivity amidst climate change scenario. Unfortunately, superior lines/recombinants producing higher pod and seed yield under stress are not available in world chickpea collection. Therefore, genetic dissection of complex stress tolerance and yield-contributing quantitative traits is the prime objective in current chickpea genomics and breeding research. Our study employed diverse GWAS-assisted integrated genomic strategies involving classical genetic inheritance analysis, QTL mapping, differential transcript profiling, molecular haplotyping and haplotype-based gene domestication/ evolution study for rapid quantitative dissection of complex yield and stress tolerance traits in chickpea. To accomplish this, multi-location/years replicated yield traits-related field phenotyping and high-throughput marker genotyping information generated from numerous natural germplasm accessions (association panel) and multiple intra- and inter-specific mapping populations of chickpea were deployed in the aforesaid combinatorial genomic approaches. These analyses delineated 12 novel alleles and six haplotypes from 10 transcription factor genes and 16 major QTLs/eQTLs governing yield and stress tolerance traits that were mapped on 10 ultra-high density chickpea genetic linkage maps. The superior natural alleles/haplotypes of two major genes (QTLs) regulating seed weight and pod/seed number identified from cultivated and wild Cicer gene pools are being introduced into multiple high-yielding Indian varieties of chickpea for its marker-assisted genetic improvement. The potential molecular signatures delineated using integrated genomics- assisted breeding strategies have functional significance to understand the molecular genetic mechanism and natural allelic diversity-led domestication pattern underlying these complex quantitative traits at a genome-wide scale, leading to fast-paced translational genomics for chickpea genetic enhancement. These essential outcomes will be useful for devising the most efficient strategies to produce high-yielding climate-resilient chickpea cultivars for sustaining global food security

Effect of Supplemented Bacteria (Lactobacillus sporogenes) on Growth of Macrobrachium rosenbergii Postlarvae

A feeding trial was conducted for 75 days to study the effects of dietary Lactobacillus sporogenes on growth and body composition in postlarvae of the giant freshwater prawn, Macrobrachium rosenbergii (de Man). Postlarvae were fed one of five experimental feeds containing 0.0% (control diet), 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.5%, or 1.0% L. sporogenes. Weight gain, specific growth rate, and protein efficiency ratio tended to increase as the postlarvae were fed the probiotic-supplemented feeds in increasing levels up to 0.5%. The best growth performance was obtained in postlarvae fed 0.5% L. sporogenes containing 1.67 x 105 colony forming units/100 g feed. When fed 1.0% L. sporogenes, growth performance dropped. Tissue protein content was highest in animals fed the 0.5% feed while lipid content was significantly highest in postlarvae fed the control

Optimal Placement and Sizing of SVC for Improving Voltage Profile of Power System

In emerging electric power systems, increased transactions often lead to the situations where the system no longer remains in secure operating region. The flexible AC transmission system (FACTS) controllers can play a vital role in the power system security enhancement. However, due to high capital investment, it is necessary to place these controllers optimally in a power system. FACTS devices can regulate the active and reactive power control as well as adaptive to voltage-magnitude control simultaneously because of their flexibility and fast control characteristics. Placement of these devices at optimal location can lead to control in line flow and maintain bus voltages in desired level and so improve voltage profile and stability margins. This paper proposes a systematic method for finding optimal location of SVC to improve voltage profile of a power system. A contingency analysis to determine the critical outages with respect to voltage security is also examined in order to evaluate the effect of SVC on the location analysis. Effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated on IEEE 30-bus test system