The Tale of two Crises in the Time of Covid-19

We document the challenges faced by a sub-district called Phulbari in Bangladesh during Covid-19 lockdown. We do so using a series of 24 interviews with a wide range of individuals conducted during May 2020. What emerges is a picture of an under-resourced local administra- tion trying their best to cope with the situation. The local administration’s efforts have been complemented by efforts of the civil society. While social distancing policies have potentially helped prevent a Covid-19 outbreak, it has created an economic crisis in its wake. We suggest some specific policy proposals that can help alleviate the economic crisis without risking an outbreak

The Tale of two Crises in the Time of Covid-19

We document the challenges faced by a sub-district called Phulbari in Bangladesh during Covid-19 lockdown. We do so using a series of 24 interviews with a wide range of individuals conducted during May 2020. What emerges is a picture of an under-resourced local administra- tion trying their best to cope with the situation. The local administration’s efforts have been complemented by efforts of the civil society. While social distancing policies have potentially helped prevent a Covid-19 outbreak, it has created an economic crisis in its wake. We suggest some specific policy proposals that can help alleviate the economic crisis without risking an outbreak

Removal of emerging micropollutants from water using hybrid material precursor to natural sericite clay

602-610The occurrence of a wide range of micropollutants in natural aquatic environment has been reported in different parts of the world. These compounds are harmful for the aquatic life and human beings. Diclofenac and clofibric acid are the two common toxic micropollutants due to very large production and high consumption by humans. The present communication addresses the removal of diclofenac and clofibric acid from aqueous solutions using the hybrid material obtained by incorporating 3-aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) onto the activated sericite clay. Initially, sericte clay was treated for activation and further modified with organosilane to obtain hybrid material. The materials were characterized using SEM, BET surface area, XRD, and FT-IR analyses. SEM and BET surface area analyses showed that the textural property of sericite clay was greatly changed after activation and the surface area was immensely increased from 3.65 to 62.92 m2/g. The organosilane was anchored on the activated clay and confirmed with FTIR analysis. Batch adsorption experiments showed that the diclofenac and clofibric acid removal is maximum at pH 6.0 to 7.0 and the adsorption of these two micropollutants were observed to be very fast and the time dependent adsorption data were best fitted to pseudo-second order kinetic model. The maximum adsorption capacity of diclofenac and clofibric acid using APTES-sericite hybrid material was found to be 1.868 and 1.749 mg/g, respectively. Furthermore, the loading capacities of the column packed with APTES-sericite hybrid material were found to be 0.789 and 1.095 mg/g. Therefore, this study indicated that the APTES-sericite hybrid material must be an useful material for the effective removal of diclofenac and clofibric acid from aqueous waste

The genetic architecture of the human cerebral cortex

The cerebral cortex underlies our complex cognitive capabilities, yet little is known about the specific genetic loci that influence human cortical structure. To identify genetic variants that affect cortical structure, we conducted a genome-wide association meta-analysis of brain magnetic resonance imaging data from 51,665 individuals. We analyzed the surface area and average thickness of the whole cortex and 34 regions with known functional specializations. We identified 199 significant loci and found significant enrichment for loci influencing total surface area within regulatory elements that are active during prenatal cortical development, supporting the radial unit hypothesis. Loci that affect regional surface area cluster near genes in Wnt signaling pathways, which influence progenitor expansion and areal identity. Variation in cortical structure is genetically correlated with cognitive function, Parkinson's disease, insomnia, depression, neuroticism, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder

An exploration of biodiesel for application in aviation and automobile sector

In recent times, the greenhouse gas emission became one of the key controlling factor behind environmental pollution and its origin can be traced to the fossil fuel exhausts from the transportation sector. Apart from that, fluctuating economy is prone to destabilise the crude oil price and can directly affect the transportation industry. Therefore in search of alternative, low cost, and renewable resources, the biodiesel comes as the saviour in terms of its cost and emission friendly characteristics. Various automobile and aviation brands have already started the use of biodiesel in their engines. Numerous reports have been published citing the effects of biodiesel in the aviation and automobile sector. But the efficiency of biodiesel as an alternative fuel is attributed to several key factors such as raw material, composition, viscosity, pour point, flash point etc. Although several literature reports on the composition and structure property relationship of biodiesel are available, a comprehensive review accommodating all key factors of biodiesel efficiency is scarce. In this regard, the manuscript represents an effort towards exploring the relation of the properties of biodiesel e.g., density, viscosity etc., towards the engine performance separately for automobile and aviation industry

Vinylanthracene-Based Compounds as Electron-Rich Sensors for Explosives Recognition

Four new vinylanthracene-based fluorescent molecules were synthesized and characterized. The highly fluorescent vinylanthracene moiety was coupled with the ethynylbenzene group to yield rigid and electron-rich pi systems, which were utilized as selective and sensitive probes for picric acid in both the solution and solid states. In solution, the molecules demonstrated signal amplification by a combined effect of photo-induced electron transfer and resonance energy transfer, whereas in the solid state the enhanced sensitivity was attributed to a collective effect of PET and exciton migration among closely spaced molecules. In direct contact mode experiments, thin films of the molecules demonstrated discernible changes in fluorescent intensity, which shows that the molecules are potential materials for in-the-field applications

Electron-Rich Triphenylamine-Based Sensors for Picric Acid Detection

This paper demonstrates the role of solvent in selectivity and sensitivity of a series of electron-rich compounds for the detection of trace amounts of picric acid. Two new electron-rich fluorescent esters (<b>6</b>, <b>7</b>) containing a triphenylamine backbone as well as their analogous carboxylic acids (<b>8</b>, <b>9</b>) have been synthesized and characterized. Fluorescent triphenylamine coupled with an ethynyl moiety constitutes π-electron-rich selective and sensitive probes for electron-deficient picric acid (PA). In solution, the high sensitivity of all the sensors toward PA can be attributed to a combined effect of the ground-state charge-transfer complex formation and resonance energy transfer between the sensor and analyte. The acids <b>8</b> and <b>9</b> also showed enhanced sensitivity for nitroaromatics in the solid state, and their enhanced sensitivity could be attributed to exciton migration due to close proximity of the neighboring acid molecules, as evident from the X-ray diffraction study. The compounds were found to be quite sensitive for the detection of trace amount of nitroaromatics in solution, solid, and contact mode

Binding of carboxylatopillar5]arene with alkyl and aryl ammonium salts in aqueous medium

The complex formation of alkyl ammonium salts by water-soluble carboxylatopillar5] arene (CP5A) in aqueous medium is reported. p-Xylene diammonium salt and a series of secondary alkyl ammonium salts with various alkyl groups have been prepared and investigated for complex formation. All the ammonium salts exhibit strong host-guest complexation with CP5A under neutral aqueous conditions. H-1 NMR, H-1 DOSY and 2D NOESY NMR experiments have been performed to characterize these inclusion complexes. In this study, the hydrophobic and electrostatic interactions govern the complex formation leading to the formation of pseudorotaxane species. Five pseudo2] rotaxanes and one pseudo3] rotaxane were obtained whose association constant values and stoichiometry were evaluated by an NMR titration method. The results indicate the use of ammonium salts as new complimentary synthons for CP5A in aqueous medium, adding to the repertoire of existing recognition motifs such as paraquat and 1,4-bis(pyridinium) derivatives

Mechano-fluorochromic Pt-II Luminogen and Its Cysteine Recognition

A new triphenylamine-based organometallic Pt-II luminogen (1) and its analogous organic compound (2) are reported. The molecules are decorated with aldehyde functionality to improve their photophysical properties by utilising donor-acceptor interactions. The single crystal X-ray structure analysis of PtII analogue 1 revealed that the neighbouring molecules were loosely organised by weak intermolecular C-H center dot center dot center dot pi interactions. Because of the twisted nature of the triphenylamine backbone the compounds showed aggregation-induced emission enhancement in THF/water mixture. Due to their loose crystal packing, upon application of external stimuli these luminogens exhibited mechano-fluorochromic behaviour. The crystalline forms of the compounds displayed a more superior emission efficiency than the grinded samples. Moreover, the compounds showed crystallization-induced emission enhancement (CIEE) and exhibited chemodosimetric response towards cysteine under physiological condition