Frequency and time profiles of metric wave isolated Type I solar noise storm bursts at high spectral and temporal resolution

Type I noise storms constitute a sizeable faction of the active-Sun radio emission component. Observations of isolated instances of such bursts, in the swept-frequency-mode at metric wavelengths, have remained sparse, with several unfilled regions in the frequency coverage. Dynamic spectra of the burst radiation, in the 30 - 130 MHz band, obtained from the recently commissioned digital High Resolution Spectrograph (HRS) at the Gauribidanur Radio Observatory, on account of the superior frequency and time resolution, have unravelled in explicit detail the temporal and spectral profiles of isolated bursts. Apart from presenting details on their fundamental emission features, the time and frequency profile symmetry, with reference to custom-specific Gaussian distributions, has been chosen as the nodal criterion to statistically explain the state of the source regions in the vicinity of magnetic reconnections, the latent excitation agent that contributes to plasma wave energetics, and the quenching phenomenon that causes damping of the burst emission.Comment: 9 pages 7 black and white / grey-scale figures (inclusive of 3 composite). MNRAS - accepte

Role and acceptability of traditional birth attendants (DAIs) in a rural community in South India

Dais are the traditional birth attendants, conducting deliveries at home in the majority of villages in India. A study was planned to find out the feasibility of utilising the services of the dais in case-finding in Tuberculosis (TB) and for drug delivery to diagnosed patients. As a preliminary step, a survey was done with a view to find out the role and acceptability of the dais by the community in 5% of households in randomly selected 24 of the 48 villages in Sriperumbudur taluk in Tamil Nadu, where a voluntary organisation. "PREPARE" was delivering primary health care through dais. A total of 466 individuals, either the head of the household or any other responsible person available, were interviewed to find out the role and acceptability of the dais by the community. The salient findings of this study are that 83% mentioned that the dais reside in their respective villages. hence the services of the dais were available at ail times and 82 % had stated that the services were useful to them. This background information is essential for health planners so that this task force could be effectively utilised in health programmmes, in the rural areas in India

Knowledge of tuberculosis in a south Indian rural community initially and after health education

A study was undertaken in a south Indian rural community to assess the initial level of knowledge of tuberculosis (TB) and again after providing health education on TB, to evaluate the effectiveness of health education, after 2 years. A total of 466 respondents from 24 randomly selected villages in Sriperumpudur taluk, Tamilnadu were interviewed. The community was then educated about the important aspects of tuberculosis by means of pamphlets, film shows, exhibitions, role plays and group discussions. After 2 years, the respondents were revisited and interviewed using the same interview schedule. There was an overall increase of knowledge on various aspects of TB, ranging from 18% to 58%

SYNTHESIS, SPECTRAL CHARACTERIZATION, AND ANTIPROLIFERATIVE ACTIVITY OF DISPIROPYRROLIDINES CONTAINING 2-THIOXOTHIAZOLIDIN-4-ONE NUCLEUS

Objective: Spiro compounds are present in nature, endowed with deep biological activities. Heterocyclic compounds with a pyrrolidine scaffold are one of the paradigms of organic chemistry that exhibits a wide variety of properties and biological functions. Based on these, seven dispiropyrrolidines have been accomplished by [3+2] cycloaddition reaction from acenaphthenequinone and sarcosine with several dipolaro files such as substituted 5-benzylidene-2-thioxothiazolidin-4-ones. Methods: Cycloadducts 4a-g were prepared by conventional method and the structures of the compounds 4a-g were completely characterized by infrared, 1H, 13C nuclear magnetic resonance spectral data, and elemental analysis. The cytotoxic activity of the synthesized compounds was carried out by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyl tetrazolium bromide assay. Results: The dispiropyrrolidines 4a-g were showed a moderate-to-good cytotoxic activity against human cervical cancer lines. Among all the synthesized compounds, 4d was found to be more potent with human cervical cancer line with an half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) value of 5.5 μM. Conclusion: The synthesized compound 4d found to be an excellent activity which is nearly closed to reference drug gemcitabine with an IC50 value of 4.6 μM

Noise storm continua: power estimates for electron acceleration

We use a generic stochastic acceleration formalism to examine the power $L_{\rm in}$ (${\rm erg s^{-1}}$) input to nonthermal electrons that cause noise storm continuum emission. The analytical approach includes the derivation of the Green's function for a general second-order Fermi process, and its application to obtain the particular solution for the nonthermal electron distribution resulting from the acceleration of a Maxwellian source in the corona. We compare $L_{\rm in}$ with the power $L_{\rm out}$ observed in noise storm radiation. Using typical values for the various parameters, we find that $L_{\rm in} \sim 10^{23-26}$ ${\rm erg s^{-1}}$, yielding an efficiency estimate $\eta \equiv L_{\rm out}/L_{\rm in}$ in the range 10^{-10} \lsim \eta \lsim 10^{-6} for this nonthermal acceleration/radiation process. These results reflect the efficiency of the overall process, starting from electron acceleration and culminating in the observed noise storm emission.Comment: Accepted for publication in Solar Physic

The effectiveness of myofascial release over stretching on pain and range of motion among female college students with piriformis syndrome

Link to publisher's homepage at http://www.mohejournal.com/index.php/mohePiriformis syndrome is a painful neuromuscular disorder that occurs when the piriformis muscle irritates and/or compresses the proximal sciatic nerve. Prolonged sitting position is the foremost cause of piriformis tightness in sedentary population that may eventually leads to piriformis syndrome. The incidence of piriformis has been reported to be six times more prevalent among females than males. Piriformis tightness will cause reduction in the range of motion, as well as limitations in walking, sitting and even running. Moreover, individuals will also feel pain in their butt muscles, which could be frustrating. Thus, the aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of myofascial release over stretching on pain and range of motion among female college students with piriformis syndrome. Twenty participants aged between 19 to 25 years old with tight piriformis muscle for four weeks participated in the study based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Subjects were randomised and underwent myofascial release and stretching treatment twice in a week for four weeks. Before each session, the pain score and goniometer measurements were recorded. The experimental group and control group benefited through reduced pain and range of motion. Therefore, there are no significant effects of myofascial release found over stretching between the two groups

The effect of muscle energy technique on flexibility of hamstring muscle in futsal players

Link to publisher's homepage at http://www.mohejournal.com/index.php/moheFutsal is an upcoming popular sport. It is an active dynamic sport which requires the players to perform various movements like rapidly accelerating and decelerating, and also requires them to rapidly change their direction of movement. It also involves a lot of sliding and kicking. Compared to other athletic sports played worldwide, futsal is a rather vigorous sport with increased incidence of injuries. Tightness in the hamstring muscles can lead to various injuries. The prevalence of hamstring muscle injuries is very high in futsal players due to muscle tightness. This study aims to determine the effects of Muscle Energy Technique (MET) on hamstring flexibility among futsal players. After being screened as per the inclusion and exclusion criteria, the participants were instructed in MET. The technique was performed for seven to ten seconds with twenty percent of resistive effort synchronized with the breathing pattern of the participant and then stretched to the new muscle length. This was repeated until no further gain was possible. Hamstring length was assessed using the Active Knee Extension Test (AKET) before and after the intervention, the values were then compared. The result of the study show improvements in the hamstring length following the intervention (16.50) to be statistically significant (P <0.01) when compared to the baseline findings (23.67). It has been concluded that MET can increase the hamstring flexibility among futsal players, and thus will be able to reduce the injury rate

3D-Printed Self-Folding Electronics

Self-transforming structures are gaining prominence due to their general ability to adopt programmed shapes each tailored for specific functions. Composites that self-fold have so far relied on using the stimuli-responsive mechanisms focusing on reversible shape change. Integrating additional functions within these composites can rapidly enhance their practical applicability; however, this remains a challenging problem. Here, we demonstrate a method for spontaneous folding of three-dimensional (3D)-printed composites with embedded electronics at room temperature. The composite is printed using a multimaterial 3D-printing process with no external processing steps. Upon peeling from the print platform, the composite self-shapes itself using the residual forces resulting from polymer swelling during the layer-by-layer fabrication process. As a specific example, electrochromic elements are printed within the composite and can be electrically controlled through its folded legs. Our shape-transformation scheme provides a route to transform planar electronics into nonplanar geometries containing the overhangs. Integrating electronics within complex 3D shapes can enable new applications in sensing and robotics

Micrometre and nanometre scale patterning of binary polymer brushes, supported lipid bilayers and proteins

Binary polymer brush patterns were fabricated via photodeprotection of an aminosilane with a photo-cleavable nitrophenyl protecting group. UV exposure of the silane film through a mask yields micrometre-scale amine-terminated regions that can be derivatised to incorporate a bromine initiator to facilitate polymer brush growth via atom transfer radical polymerisation (ATRP). Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and imaging secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) confirm that relatively thick brushes can be grown with high spatial confinement. Nanometre-scale patterns were formed by using a Lloyd's mirror interferometer to expose the nitrophenyl-protected aminosilane film. In exposed regions, protein-resistant poly(oligo(ethylene glycol)methyl ether methacrylate) (POEGMEMA) brushes were grown by ATRP and used to define channels as narrow as 141 nm into which proteins could be adsorbed. The contrast in the pattern can be inverted by (i) a simple blocking reaction after UV exposure, (ii) a second deprotection step to expose previously intact protecting groups, and (iii) subsequent brush growth via surface ATRP. Alternatively, two-component brush patterns can be formed. Exposure of a nitrophenyl-protected aminosilane layer either through a mask or to an interferogram, enables growth of an initial POEGMEMA brush. Subsequent UV exposure of the previously intact regions allows attachment of ATRP initiator sites and growth of a second poly(cysteine methacrylate) (PCysMA) brush within photolithographically-defined micrometre or nanometre scale regions. POEGMEMA brushes resist deposition of liposomes, but fluorescence recovery after photobleaching (FRAP) studies confirm that liposomes readily rupture on PCysMA “corrals” defined within POEGMEMA “walls”. This leads to the formation of highly mobile supported lipid bilayers that exhibit similar diffusion coefficients to lipid bilayers formed on surfaces such as glass