A Methodology for Engineering Collaborative and ad-hoc Mobile Applications using SyD Middleware

Today’s web applications are more collaborative and utilize standard and ubiquitous Internet protocols. We have earlier developed System on Mobile Devices (SyD) middleware to rapidly develop and deploy collaborative applications over heterogeneous and possibly mobile devices hosting web objects. In this paper, we present the software engineering methodology for developing SyD-enabled web applications and illustrate it through a case study on two representative applications: (i) a calendar of meeting application, which is a collaborative application and (ii) a travel application which is an ad-hoc collaborative application. SyD-enabled web objects allow us to create a collaborative application rapidly with limited coding effort. In this case study, the modular software architecture allowed us to hide the inherent heterogeneity among devices, data stores, and networks by presenting a uniform and persistent object view of mobile objects interacting through XML/SOAP requests and responses. The performance results we obtained show that the application scales well as we increase the group size and adapts well within the constraints of mobile devices

The Need for Effective Early Behavioral Family Interventions for Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

There is a pressing need for the development of effective early family intervention programs for children showing Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) behaviours with Conduct Disorder (CD) or Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD) behaviours. Previous research has indicated that children with ADHD are at risk of developing comorbid CD or ODD behaviours. In addition, it has been shown that ODD or CD behaviours in childhood tend to persist and to have adverse effects on later social adjustment. However, ODD or CD behaviours are not necessary concomitants of ADHD, and it has been demonstrated that behavioural intervention can have both short- and long term beneficial effects for children showing early signs of ODD or CD behaviours. In short term, behavioural family interventions may be able to reduce oppositional behaviour, particularly in the preschool years. In the long term, early intervention has shown to reduce the incidence of later antisocial behaviour in children at risk for this developmental trajectory. In this paper, it will be argued that behavioural family interventions have not been effectively utilised or promulgated in the community for children with ADHD despite the demonstrated efficacy of these types of interventions. A model of a multilevel system of intervention that can be tailored to the individual family’s needs is presented

Diabetes Mellitus as a risk for oral cancer: A Case-Control Study

Introduction: Diabetic patients had an increased risk of cancer at some HNC subsites like oral cancer, while in other studies this risk was decreased. The association of diabetes mellitus (DM) with head and neck cancers (HNC) is still controversial. So, the present study aims to assess the association of diabetes mellitus, and oral cancer and the role of habits in association with DM in the progression of oral cancer. Materials and methods: This study was undertaken at the Karpaga Vinayaga Institute of Dental Sciences, Tamilnadu. The study includes 2 main groups, which are 300 Oral cancer patients and a Control group that includes 300 age and gender-matched patients assessed with habits and Diabetes. Odds ratios (OR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) were estimated using conditional logistic regression. Results: Out of 600 subjects increased risk of diabetes in oral cancer was observed. On comparison between oral cancer, diabetes and habits in study group and control group, an increased risk was observed among males (aOR = 1.00, 95% CI = 1.000 to 1.312), alcoholics (aOR = 2.317, 95% CI = 1.181 to 2.557), smokers (aOR = 2.938, 95% CI = 0.860to 4.374), and chewing (aOR = 2.532, 95% CI = 1.100 to 2.608). Conclusion: The present population-based study results suggest a direct association between diabetes and oral cancer

Analysis of quality of frozen thawed bull sperms treated with bisphenol A

Bisphenol A is a pervasive endocrine disruptor that causes various detrimental health effects on animals and humans. There are several evidences to support that this persistent chemical affects male fertility by interfering with the process of functional maturation of sperms like motility, hyperactivation, capacitation and acrosome reaction in laboratory species. The present study was aimed to evaluate the effect of BPA on the quality of the frozen thawed sperms in higher animal model namely bull. Frozen thawed bull sperms were exposed to four different concentrations of BPA. Aliquots of sperms from each treatment group were examined at three time periods for assessing acrosome integrity, viability and membrane integrity. Exposure of sperms in vitro to BPA revealed that there is a significant influence of BPA on treatment groups when compared to control. The loss of acrosomal integrity and viability was higher even at as low a concentration of 10 μM BPA. The reduction in sperm quality was proportional to the increase in exposure period. Further in vitro investigation is required to elucidate the mechanism of action of BPA that alters the sperm quality.

Yield maximization of direct sown rice (Oryza sativa l.) under water constraint situation

More efficient water management practices need to be adopted for better sustainable rice production grown under traditional areas due to increased water scarcity. Among the different water management practices, efficient new generation water-saving chemicals and organic products were used to conserve water under field condition.  An experiment was conducted to evaluate the yield maximization in direct sown CO51 rice (Oryza sativa L.) under water constraint situation.  The main plot treatments comprised of three levels of irrigation viz., Conventional irrigation (M1), Tensiometer based irrigation (M2) and Deficit irrigation (M3), respectively and were tested with four different water conservation practices in sub-plots viz., soil application of water-saving crystals (WSC) @ 5 kg ha-1 (S1), foliar application of drought shield @ 3 litres ha-1 (S2 ), soil application of humic granules @ 2.5 kg ha-1 (S3) and soil application of FYM @ 12.5 t ha-1 (S4). Experimental results indicated that Tensiometer based irrigation with soil application humic granules @ 2.5 kg ha-1 M2S3) recorded higher number of panicles m-2  (411) and number of filled grains panicle-1 (108.16) in direct-sown rice.  However, M2S3 recorded significantly maximum grain yield (6352 kg ha-1) and minimum (3940 kg ha-1) in (M3S4) deficit irrigation applied with FYM @12.5 t ha-1 in the year 2018 Sornavari season, respectively. Thus the Tensiometer based irrigation with soil application of humic granules @ 2.5 kg ha-1 can be a feasible approach for increasing grain yield and conserve water in north eastern region of Tamil Nadu, by promoting water use efficiency method in direct rice cultivation areas.

Geospatial assessment of groundwater quality in the Noyyal basin, Tamil Nadu, India using GIS and geostatistics

Water is crucial in agriculture, domestic use and industrial development. In recent years, the demand for groundwater has significantly risen due to industrialization, urbanization, population growth and increased agricultural activities. This study focuses on the groundwater quality spatial distribution and utilizes geostatistical analysis to predict groundwater chemical parameters within the Noyyal sub-basin, employing Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. Data transformation methods were applied to reduce skewness in several chemical parameters to improve the precision of the spatial representation of groundwater chemistry. Comparing the calculated concentrations to the established permissible limits showed that calcium, bicarbonate and sodium absorption ratio concentrations were within acceptable levels. In contrast, parameters such as magnesium, sodium, potassium, chlorine, sulfate, fluoride, pH, total hardness, electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids exceeded the permissible thresholds. The study also identified the most appropriate semi-variogram model for each water quality parameter based on the Root Mean Square Error (RMSE). The Exponential model with log-transformed data was the best fit for Ca, Na, K, HCO3, pH, HAR and EC, providing physically meaningful results. For TDS, Mg, SO4, F and SAR, the Spherical model with log-transformed data yielded the most reliable RMSE values. The Gaussian model produced satisfactory results for Cl and Na %

Not your average job: Measuring farm labor in Tanzania

Understanding the constraints to agricultural growth in Africa relies on the accurate measurement of smallholder labor. Yet, serious weaknesses in these statistics persist. The extent of bias in smallholder labor data is examined by conducting a randomized survey experiment among farming households in rural Tanzania. Agricultural labor estimates obtained through weekly surveys are compared with the results of reporting in a single end-of-season recall survey. The findings show strong evidence of recall bias: people in traditional recall-style modules reported working up to four times as many hours per person-plot as those reporting labor on a weekly basis. Recall bias manifests both in the intensive and extensive margins of labor reporting: while hours are over-reported in recall, the number of people and plots active in agricultural work are under-reported. The evidence suggests that this recall bias is driven not only by failures in memory, but also by the mental burdens of reporting on highly variable agricultural work patterns to provide a typical estimate. All things equal, studies suffering from this bias would understate agricultural labor productivity

Size-controlled synthesis of monodispersed gold nanoparticles via carbon monoxide gas reduction

An in depth analysis of gold nanoparticle (AuNP) synthesis and size tuning, utilizing carbon monoxide (CO) gas as a reducing agent, is presented for the first time. The sizes of the AuNPs are tunable from ~4 to 100 nm by altering the concentration of HAuCl4 and inlet CO gas-injection flow rate. It is also found that speciation of aqueous HAuCl4, prior to reduction, influences the size, morphology, and properties of AuNPs when reduced with CO gas. Ensemble extinction spectra and TEM images provide clear evidence that CO reduction offers a high level of monodispersity with standard deviations as low as 3%. Upon synthesis, no excess reducing agent remains in solution eliminating the need for purification. The time necessary to synthesize AuNPs, using CO, is less than 2 min