Evaluation of three way cross hybrids and single cross hybrids in sunflower Helianthus annuus

Thirty-two sunflower, Helianthus annuus three way cross hybrids along with five popular single cross hybrids evaluated for yield and component traits during Kharif-2013. Out of 32 three way cross sunflower hybrids tested, none were significantly superior over single cross best check. However, two three way cross hybrids (CMS-207A X IB-104)X DOR-R3 (2066 kg/ha) and (CMS-148A X IB-101)XDOR-R3 (20132 kg/ha) recorded on-par seed yield compared to commercial single cross hybrid check RSFH-130. The three-way-cross hybrids were early for 50% flowering compared to single cross hybrids and were on-par for other quantitative characters viz., plant height, head diameter, volume weight and 100 seed weight. Looking into the advantage of reduced seed production cost and on par yield performance, identified two three-way cross hybrids needs to be tested over years and for different locations to find their suitability for commercial cultivation

Development and prototyping of an innovative design for automatic paper bag making machine

The Plastic Waste Management Amendment Rules, 2021, already prohibit the manufacture, import, stocking, distribution, sale, and use of plastic carry bags having a thickness of less than 75 microns. They also provide for a ban on plastic carry bags with a thickness of less than 120 microns as of December 31, 2022. So, there is an increasing demand for paper bags. The already existing paper bag-making machines are expensive and consume 25-50 square meters for their operation. A machine whose initial cost is less, which does not require large space consumption and operates with simple technologies, can be used for small-scale production. This will help the manufacturer earn money through the small-scale production of paper bags. The demand for paper bags is continuously increasing, so this project aims to develop an economical and easily fabricable machine with simple methods that promote the use of paper bags instead of plastic carry bags and helps reduce the impact on the environment

Solar Photovoltaic Power with Control Strategies and Applications: A Review

Growing concerns about environment issues, photovoltaic (PV) power is widely gaining importance all over the world. Use of this solar electric power is increasing day by day in many countries. This paper presents a review on applications of solar photovoltaic power for domestic purposes, irrigation purposes as well as for the grid purposes. Solar photovoltaic (PV) system works under variable solar irradiations and thus various control strategies to utilize this solar power in an efficient manner are also reviewed in this paper

Infertility analysis by hysterolaparoscopy

Background: Hysteroscopy provides a means of direct observation of intra-uterine defects, which can eventually interfere with fertility and as a therapy for intra-uterine lesions, for which hysteroscopy is the method of choice. To study the various etiological factors responsible for infertility in females by using hystero-laparoscopy.Methods: Prospective study of patients admitted with diagnosis of infertility in Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in S N Medical College, Bagalkot from October 2013-April 2015.Results: Of the 50 cases of infertility, 35 cases (70%) were of primary infertility and 15 cases (30%) were of secondary infertility. Most of the patients (74%) had duration of Infertility of 1–5 years. Various etiological factors detected during study are uterine factors in 12%, tubal factors in 34%, ovarian factors in 18%. Unexplained in 16% of cases.Conclusions: In present study, hysterolaparoscopy helped in diagnosis of certain factors causing infertility which can’t be diagnosed by any other method short of hysterolaparoscopy. Tubal factors were found to be major cause of infertility

Energy Efficient Photovoltaic Systems using Thermoelectric Cooling System

Dual thermoelectric-photovoltaic (TE-PV) systems are a type of solar energy technology that combines two different technologies to generate electricity by concentrating solar radiation. These systems use a solar concentrator to focus sunlight onto a photovoltaic cell and a thermoelectric generator. The aim of this paper is to develop a dual thermoelectric-photovoltaic system with a water-cooled heat sink to generate electricity from concentrated solar radiation through Fresnel lenses.In addition, the detailed design for the components that will be integrated into an experimental prototype of the dual system on a laboratory scale is carried out and its functionality is determined. Finally, its functionality is evaluated and achieved an estimated maximum power of 1.5 Watts

Utilization of CT scanning associated with complex spine surgery.

BackgroundDue to the risk associated with exposure to ionizing radiation, there is an urgent need to identify areas of CT scanning overutilization. While increased use of diagnostic spinal imaging has been documented, no previous research has estimated the magnitude of follow-up imaging used to evaluate the postoperative spine.MethodsThis retrospective cohort study quantifies the association between spinal surgery and CT utilization. An insurance database (Humana, Inc.) with ≈ 19 million enrollees was employed, representing 8 consecutive years (2007-2014). Surgical and imaging procedures were captured by anatomic-specific CPT codes. Complex surgeries included all cervical, thoracic and lumbar instrumented spine fusions. Simple surgeries included discectomy and laminectomy. Imaging was restricted to CT and MRI. Postoperative imaging frequency extended to 5-years post-surgery.ResultsThere were 140,660 complex spinal procedures and 39,943 discectomies and 49,889 laminectomies. MRI was the predominate preoperative imaging modality for all surgical procedures (median: 80%; range: 73-82%). Postoperatively, CT prevalence following complex procedures increased more than two-fold from 6 months (18%) to 5 years (≥40%), and patients having a postoperative CT averaged two scans. For simple procedures, the prevalence of postoperative CT scanning never exceeded 30%.ConclusionsCT scanning is used frequently for follow-up imaging evaluation following complex spine surgery. There is emerging evidence of an increased cancer risk due to ionizing radiation exposure with CT. In the setting of complex spine surgery, actions to mitigate this risk should be considered and include reducing nonessential scans, using the lowest possible radiation dose protocols, exerting greater selectivity in monitoring the developing fusion construct, and adopting non-ferromagnetic implant biomaterials that facilitate MRI postoperatively

Stability analysis for yield and its attributing traits in advanced breeding lines of rabi sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench)

An experiment was carried out involving twenty three advanced breeding lines along with two checks M 35-1 and Muguthi during rabi season 2012-13 at four locations. Observations were recorded on 10 different characters viz., plant height (cm), stem diameter (cm), ear head length (cm), ear head diameter (cm), days to 50 per cent flowering, days to maturity, 100 seed weight (g), fodder yield per plot (kg), seed yield per plot (kg), and lodging percentage. The pooled analysis of variance revealed that mean sum of squares due to genotypes was significant for ear head diameter, days to 50 per cent flowering, days to maturity and fodder yield, indicating presence of considerable amount of variability in the genotypes. The mean sum of square due to environment + (genotypes x environment) was significant for plant height, ear head length (cm), ear head diameter (cm), days to 50 per cent flowering, fodder yield per plot (kg), seed yield per plot (kg), and lodging percentage characters except stem diameter, days to maturity and 100 seed yield. On the basis of stability parameters a four genotypes viz., GS-6 (2364 kg/ha), GS-16 (2454 kg/ha), GS-22(2775 kg/ha) and GS-23(2978 kg/ha) were found most stable over Gulbarga, Raichur, Bellary and Malnoor environments of Hyderabad Karnataka region

Barriers to expansion of mass literacy and primary schooling in West Bengal : a study based on primary data from selected villages

This paper examines factors affecting literacy and access to school education in West Bengal, India, and reports the results of a binomial probit model estimated with primary data from ten villages of West Bengal. In the analysis of adult literacy, the significant variables were sex, caste and occupational status and village location. In the probit results for educational achievements of children of ages 6 to 16 years in the same villages, however, occupational status was not statistically significant. In contemporary West Bengal, we argue, class barriers to school attendance have become less significant; other features of educational deprivation persist. Key words: Education, literacy, India, West Bengal JEL Classification: I