Multi-wavelength observations of afterglow of GRB 080319B and the modeling constraints

We present observations of the afterglow of GRB 080319B at optical, mm and radio frequencies from a few hours to 67 days after the burst. Present observations along with other published multi-wavelength data have been used to study the light-curves and spectral energy distributions of the burst afterglow. The nature of this brightest cosmic explosion has been explored based on the observed properties and it's comparison with the afterglow models. Our results show that the observed features of the afterglow fits equally good with the Inter Stellar Matter and the Stellar Wind density profiles of the circum-burst medium. In case of both density profiles, location of the maximum synchrotron frequency $\nu_m$ is below optical and the value of cooling break frequency $\nu_c$ is below $X-$rays, $\sim 10^{4}$s after the burst. Also, the derived value of the Lorentz factor at the time of naked eye brightness is $\sim 300$ with the corresponding blast wave size of $\sim 10^{18}$ cm. The numerical fit to the multi-wavelength afterglow data constraints the values of physical parameters and the emission mechanism of the burst.Comment: 8 Pages, 3 Figures, Accepted for publication to Astronomy and Astrophysics on 02/04/200

Religious Values, Practices and Pregnancy Outcomes: A Comparison of the Impact of Sect and Mainstream Christian Affiliation

In this report 6566 women enrolled in the Mater-University of Queensland Study of Pregnancy (MUSP) were separated into three groups; members of religious sects, Christians who attend church frequently and Christians who are infrequent attenders. These three groups, respectively labelled Christian sects, Christian attenders and lukewarm Christians were compared on a number of social background, lifestyle and pregnancy outcome variables. The sect members appeared to have the most favourable health, lifestyles and healthy babies at delivery, though this latter finding appears attributable to specific characteristics of the mother and her lifestyle. On most measures the children of lukewarm Christians appear to manifest the worst health while Christian attenders form a group whose children's health is between that of sect members and lukewarm Christians

Community Inquiry Labs as Effective Community Informatics Tools

Meeting these challenges is crucial as we work to address community aspirations, capabilities, and problems. We are contributing to this effort through our current research and development on Community Inquiry Labs (CILs). A CIL is most importantly a concept, although we are developing webbased tools that are freely available to anyone wishing to support community inquiry online (http://inquiry.uiuc.edu/cil). Our ultimate aim is to empower communities by supporting the development of the next generation of creative ICT ideas, people, tools, and designs.unpublishedis peer reviewe

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Not AvailableBiological synthesis of nanoparticles has emerged as rapidly developing research area in nanotechnology across the globe with various biological entities being employed in production of nanoparticles constantly forming an impute alternative for conventional methods. Simple prokaryotes to complex eukaryotic organisms including higher plants are used for the fabrication of nanoparticles. Techniques such as Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), Electron Microscopy (TEM, SEM), Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM), X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), Powder X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Energy Dispersive X Ray Spectroscopy (EDS) and Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) are used to elucidate the morphology, elemental composition and crystal structure of biosynthesized nanoparticles.Not Availabl

A Case Study on Insulating Main Steam Line (MSL) with Silica Aerogel

In this paper, a case study on replacing the existing insulating material (Mineral wool) by the Silica Aerogel in the main steam line (MSL) of the thermal power plant is presented.A sample length of 3 m in MSL was insulated with various thicknesses of silica aerogel, mineral wool and the combinations of mineral wool and silica aerogel. The heat loss in the sample length with different insulating material was calculated by carrying out field experiments. The results show that the silica aerogel is providing better insulation than the mineral wool. Nonetheless, the use of silica aerogel is expensive. To bring down the cost, hybrid insulation with the optimal thickness of silica aerogel + mineral wool + silica aerogel was suggested. This hybrid combination considerably reduced the heat loss and improved the thermal efficiency. The payback period for this implementation was reported.</jats:p

Current strategies and future perspectives in biological hydrogen production : A review

Biohydrogen is a green and eco-friendly energy carrier with the potential to reduce our dependency on fossil fuels. Renewable biohydrogen production from waste biomass sources is potentially cheap; however, large-scale commercial production has not yet been achieved. Problems that need to be tackled include identifying industrially competent microorganisms, and appropriate bioreactor designs enabling novel hybrid methods such as integration of dark fermentation with electro-fermentation and utilization of microbial organisms doped with semiconducting nanomaterials for enhanced production. This review focuses on the production of hydrogen by biological methods, highlighting various fermentation processes, the role of enzymes, and different pretreatment methods. The waste materials used are briefly summarized, and current strategies in biological hydrogen production, including biomimetic and synthetic biology approaches, are assessed for their economic feasibility and their potential to contribute to net zero carbon emission. The lignocellulosic waste and the dynamic membrane bioreactor are the best suitable biomass and bioreactor, respectively for biohydrogen production. The integrated method of dark fermentation and electro-fermentation yields 41% higher hydrogen compared with dark fermentation alone. Finally, this review points out that significant efforts focusing on the development of hybrid fermentation technologies along with the development of novel engineered strains are needed for the commercial-scale production of biohydrogen in the future.</p

Letter to Editor - Cryptococcal Lymphadenitis Diagnosed by FNAC in a HIV Positive Individual

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