Cloud and rain: perspective of Quran and science

Science and Islam have been proven to be interrelated with each other in many aspects of life. Most of the phenomena that occur in this world has been described in the Quran. As Muslims, Allah has instructed us to study the phenomena that occur in our surroundings. Therefore, it is vital to relate all of our scientific findings with the Quran. This paper will discuss on the process of cloud formation and rain based on the Quran and science. The hydrological cycle which is the major process involved in the formation of cloud and rain will also be described in this paper. The scientific view proposes that the formation of cloud begins with the evaporation of sea water into the sky. After some time, when the cloud is unable to hold water inside it, thus, it results in falling rain. In the Quran, this phenomena is described in Surah Ar-Rum: 48 and Surah An-Nur: 43. Also, there are several verses in the Quran that mention the importance of rain to all living things as stated in Surah Al-A’raf:57 and Surah Qaf:9. In the aspect of science, rain has large effects to certain processes such as the leaching and fertilization of soil. As a conclusion, the scientific explanation on the formation of cloud and rain, has been stated in the Quran in which they are consistent with each other

Synthesis and antioxidant activities of hydroxylated coumarinyl chalcones

Hydroxylated coumarins and chalcones are known to possess potent antioxidant activities. The present study highlights the synthesis of two hydroxycoumarins namely 3-acetyl-7-hydroxycoumarin and 3-acetyl-6- hydroxycoumarin. Both compounds were synthesized using the Knoevenagel condensation method with respective hydroxybenzaldehydes under basic conditions. The synthesized hydroxycoumarins served as an intermediate for the subsequent coupling reaction to produce three new coumarinyl chalcones known as 7-hydroxy-3- [3-(4'-hydroxyphenyl)prop-2-enoyl]-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one, 6-hydroxy-3-[3-(4'- hydroxyphenyl)prop-2-enoyl]-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one and 7-hydroxy-3-[3-(3',4'- dihydroxyphenyl)prop-2-enoyl]-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one respectively. The target products were synthesized via the Claisen-Schmidt condensation reaction utilizing the Lewis acid, boron trifluoride-etherate (BF3-Et2O) in 1,4-dioxane. The structures of the synthetic compounds were confirmed by spectroscopic techniques which includes the Infrared (IR) and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) (1H, 13C and DEPT) Spectroscopies. The antioxidant activities of all synthesized compounds were evaluated using three antioxidant assays known as the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH), 2,2'-azinobis-(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid) (ABTS) and Ferric Reducing Ability of Plasma (FRAP) assays using the Bio-Tek Epoch microplate reader. Among the compounds tested, the coumarinyl chalcones exhibited a better antioxidant activity compared to the hydroxycoumarins. 7-Hydroxy-3-[3-(3',4'- dihydroxyphenyl)prop-2-enoyl]-2H-1-benzopyran-2-one proved to be the best antioxidant in all assays with SC50 values of 0.57 mM and 0.036 mM in the ABTS and DPPH assays respectively. The FRAP value of this compound falls between the range of 0.09 mM to 1.67 mM. The values were comparable with the positive control used in these assays known as butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA)