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Destination Resilience and Smart Tourism Ecosystem : A Destination Management Framework for Competitiveness
Over the past many decades, the travel and tourism industry has been at the forefront of adapting to new changes and accepting the latest technologies. Today's travelers are sophisticated and knowledgeable, as they have all the information available to them easily, which contributes to fast and quick decision making. The world is gradually changing into a much more intelligent and advanced platform that makes it possible to employ techniques like augmented reality, virtual reality, and artificial intelligence. This has proven to be very successful in a variety of fields, including education, healthcare, marketing, and communication. The current study focuses on incorporating smart tourism strategies to build a sustainable ecosystem at destinations, which enhances the competitiveness of the destination and makes it easier for value co- creation among the different stakeholders. Research suggests that although industry-led and government-initiated projects seem to prioritize the use of smart applications in destinations in theory, practical implementation appears to lag behind. Less research has been done in India on gamification, smart wearable technology at travel destinations, and the practical application of AR and VR tools. The study revolves around the South Indian State of Kerala, which has been a pioneer in tourism promotion in the country. In addition to proposing a framework for destination management and tourism competitiveness with smart tourism applications, this study aims to investigate the practical implications of smart tourism tools and technologies at destinations. To shed more light on the findings, a mixed methodology approach is used to analyze the data using a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods. The study's conclusions have significant ramifications for destination management, strategic planning, and the application of smart technologies at travel locations. -
Road-Traffic Congestion in Bengaluru : Psychological and Social Consequences
The study investigated the commuting experiences of frequent travelers during congestion using a three-phase sequential exploratory design. Using semi-structured interviews, phase-1 explored the experiences of a sample of ten (4 women and 6 men) regular commuters on Bengaluru's congested roads. Thematic analysis revealed that psychological experiences due to travel adversities during congestion generated negative affect that narrowed thought-action repertoire of the commuters into fight or flight responses. Fight responses caused negative road occurrences that intensified travel adversities further, creating a vicious cycle showing a non-linear loop. Social consequences included challenges for personal time and activities, family time, health and health care activities, work, social, community, and recreational activities, increase of virtual socialization, and social Darwinism. In phase 2, a check-list of psychological consequences was developed based on the thematic analysis. Phase 3 statistically validated the vicious cycle in a sample of 190 (87 women and 103 men) commuters using structural equation modelling. The model substantiated the probability of the vicious cycle. Based on the model, a mathematical model was developed that could be used to test the non-linear relationship between the components of the vicious cycle. -
Environmental Sustainability in Tourism : Developing Green Service Transportation Intiatives in Karnataka
Environmental sustainability in transportation aims to decrease carbon emissions and preserve resources, while ensuring that the rise of tourism is in harmony with ecological preservation. Adopting sustainable mobility in ecotourism destinations entails utilizing renewable energy sources and enhancing green transport systems, thereby benefiting both environmental preservation and visitor contentment. This study investigates the dynamics of green transportation practices within the context of ecotourism destinations, focusing on Karnataka, India. Employing a mixed-methods approach, the research combines quantitative surveys with newlinequalitative interviews of tourism logistics service providers. Through exploratory factor analysis, the study identifies key factors influencing green initiatives, drivers, and challenges faced by tourism logistics service providers. Hypothesis testing and path analysis affirm the relationships among internal initiatives, external drivers, challenges, and environmental sustainability newlineperception. The qualitative analysis extracts insights from tourism logistics service providers, tourism stakeholders revealing diverse perspectives on progress, green initiatives, challenges, and government support. The study concludes with a roadmap for sustainable tourism development, emphasizing policy formulation, feasibility assessment, stakeholder collaboration, newlineand tourist education. The implications and recommendations underscore the need for ongoing government intervention, infrastructure development, and community engagement to foster a holistic and sustainable approach to green transportation in ecotourism destinations. -
Isolation, Characterization and Evaluation of Potential Plant Growth-Promoting Bacteria From The Rhizosphere of Coffea arabica L. From Kodagu District, Karnataka
Agriculture is fundamental to food security and economic stability. The utilisation of newlineplant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) an eco-friendly alternative to chemical newlinefertilisers is particularly promising as these microorganisms enhance nutrient newlineavailability, stimulate plant growth, and improve resistance to biotic and abiotic newlinestresses. This study aimed to isolate and characterise PGPR from the rhizosphere of newlineCoffea arabica L. in the Kodagu District of Karnataka, focusing on their potential as newlinebiofertilizers. Soil samples collected from ten different locations within Kamath Coffee newlineEstate led to the isolation of fourteen distinct bacterial colonies, labelled NJ01 to NJ14. These isolates were evaluated for various plant growth-promoting (PGP) traits like indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) siderophore and ammonia production, nitrogen fixation, newlinephosphate, and zinc solubilization and hydrogen cyanide (HCN) production. Further newlinestudies were carried out using 3 isolates with significant PGP traits. Enzyme activity newlineassays indicated that NJ01, NJ04, and NJ14 had positive results for protease, cellulase, newlineamylase, and catalase activity. These strains also displayed varying degrees of newlinehalotolerance, with NJ01, NJ04 and NJ14 tolerating up to 8%, 10% and 11% NaCl, newlinerespectively. Heavy metal tolerance tests revealed that NJ01 tolerated Pb up to 250 newlineg/mL, NJ04 tolerated Pb up to 1500 g/mL and Cd up to 50 g/mL, and NJ14 tolerated Pb up to 1000 g/mL and Hg up to 100 g/mL. Polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA) production was confirmed in all isolates, with NJ01 yielding the highest amount (6.4 g/L). The isolates exhibited significant antifungal and the 16S rRNA sequencing identified NJ01 as Bacillus albus (OP784795), NJ04 as Bacillus licheniformis (OM780221), and NJ14 as Bacillus subtilis (OM780222). A consortium was prepared after confirming the plant growth promoting abilities of these PGPR strains by carrying out an initial plant growth studies. The optimisation of media parameters was by using a two-factor interaction model. -
Educational Achievement of Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Children from Urban Slums of Bengaluru City
In the Indian context, marginalized and oppressed individuals often reside in slums newlineand on the streets, facing poor living conditions and inadequate facilities. While newlineurban areas boast elite lifestyles characterized by high levels of educational newlineattainment, access to the latest technologies, and substantial incomes, marginalized groups experience a significant lack of basic living standards and encounter limited access to essential services such as education, healthcare, and employment newlineopportunities. Education, in particular, poses one of the greatest challenges in slum newlineareas. Various factors, including socio-economic background, family characteristics, newlineand educational opportunities, can influence the academic performance of slum children. Additionally, teachers perceptions and classroom practices play crucial roles. The current study aims to explore how family characteristics, socio-economic background, educational opportunities, and teachers perceptions impact the educational achievements of slum children in Bengaluru city. To investigate educators perspectives on socially and economically disadvantaged children, a questionnaire was administered to teachers. The study utilized a mixed-method newlineresearch design to address its research questions. Quantitative data were collected newlinefrom 100 slum children and 100 non-slum children aged 6 to 14 years. During semistructured interviews, the researcher used an open-ended questionnaire to gather newlineresponses from principals and teachers. Thirty-six teachers working with various newlineschool boards in the Byrasandra and Siddapura areas were included in this study. newlineAdditionally, class observations were conducted to assess classroom interactions, the rapport between teachers and students, and levels of student involvement. A newlinepurposive random sampling technique was employed to select participants from the newlinestudy population. Data were meticulously collected and analyzed. -
Receptivity to Change, Work Motivation, and Teacher Engagement among Secondary School Teachers
The present study investigated the teachers receptivity to change in relation to work motivation and teacher engagement among secondary school teachers in Kerala, India. The study primarily focussed on the newlinedevelopment and validation of the Teachers Receptivity to Change Scale. The way the teachers receive the change is a vital determinant that defines the successful execution of the change. The present study used a mixed-methods sequential explanatory design, which proceeded through three phases. The tool construction, which progressed through five stages namely, item analysis, exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, validity assessment, and test-retest reliability, constituted the newlinefirst phase. The development of the tool started with the generation of a pool of items followed by item analysis. The exploratory factor analysis extracted four factors and the confirmatory factor analysis confirmed the four factors namely individual, organizational, educational, and bridging newlinefactors. The structural equation modelling corroborated that the scale excellently fits in the four-factor correlated model and indexed receptivity to change as the sum of the four factors. The final 28-item Teachers newlineReceptivity to Change Scale showed adequate internal consistency (Cronbach s and#945; = .90) and discriminant validity. The validity assessment indicated a moderate correlation between receptivity to change, work motivation, and teacher engagement. The test re-test reliability analysis (Cronbach s and#945; = .88) confirmed the temporal stability of the scale. In the second phase, a sample of 433 secondary school teachers of Kerala, newlineresponded to the standardised questionnaires namely Teachers Receptivity to Change Scale, Multidimensional Work Motivation Scale, newlineand Engaged Teachers Scale. The study also assessed the influence of demographic characteristics such as gender, type of institution, age, subject taught, and years of experience using the Mann-Whitney U-test, newlineand Kruskal-Wallis test. -
Photocatalytic Degradation of Textile Dyes Using Artemisia stelleriana Besser Mediated Nanoparticles
Artemisia stelleriana is widely used as an ornamental plant and belongs to the family Asteraceae. In the current study, A. stelleriana-mediated Zinc oxide newlinenanoparticles (AS-ZnONPs), Silver nanoparticles (AS-AgNPs) and Silver/Zinc oxide bimetallic nanoparticles (AS-Ag/ZnONPs) were synthesised using one-pot method. The UV-Vis spectral analysis revealed characteristic peaks at 358 nm for AS-ZnONPs, newline425 nm for AS-AgNPs, and 357 nm and 473 nm for AS-Ag/ZnONPs. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis identified phytoconstituents taking part in newlinenanoparticle synthesis, manifesting the presence of alkaloids, phenols, saponins, and newlineflavonoids. The synthesised AS-ZnONPs, AS-AgNPs, and AS-Ag/ZnONPs have a crystalline nature and were confirmed using X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis. The crystallite sizes of the AS-ZnONPs, AS-AgNPs, and AS-Ag/ZnONPs were 22.54 nm, 18.67 nm, and 10.4 nm, respectively. Spherical-shaped Ag nanoparticles and hexagonal, cylindrical, and spherical-shaped ZnO nanoparticles were synthesized from the leaf extract of A. stelleriana. The average size of the synthesised nanoparticles was 37.6 nm and 71.2 nm for AS-ZnONPs and AS-AgNPs, respectively. On the other hand, spherical-shaped AS-Ag/ZnONPs were synthesized with an average size of 35.3 nm. The photocatalytic degradation activity of AS-ZnONPs showed 93.44%, 47%, 94.76%, 99.9%, and 74.82% degradation for Reactive Blue 220 (RB220), Reactive Blue 222A (RB222A), Reactive Red 120 (RR120), Reactive Yellow 145 (RY145) and newlineReactive Yellow 86 (RY86) dyes respectively after 320 min of UV light exposure. ASZnONPs showed positive results for all five dyes and a better percentage of degradation was observed in a 5 ppm concentration of dye treated with 1 mg/mL concentration of newlineAS-ZnONPs. In the case of AS-AgNPs, RB220 and RB222A dyes showed positive results but no degradation was observed in the remaining three dyes. After 320 min of UV light exposure, AS-AgNPs showed 95.98%, and 100% degradation of RB220 and RB222A dyes respectively. -
Photocatalytic Degradation of Textile Dyes Using Quassia india (Gaertn.) Noot. Mediated Nanoparticles
Prognostic research points at the necessity and relevance of revamping polluted newlineenvironments. The toxic effect of textile dyes released into waterbodies can be reduced newlineby the degradation process and alternate methods in nanotechnology are used to lessen newlinethe gravity of the situation. Compared with chemical and physical nanoparticle synthesis, plant extract-based nanoparticle synthesis is an environmentally friendly alternative method. UV-visible spectrum analysis validated the production of nanoparticles (NPs), revealing unique peaks at 430 nm for Quassia indica (QI)- mediated Silver nanoparticles (QI-Ag NPs), 368 nm for QI-mediated Cobalt oxide nanoparticles (QI-Co3O4 NPs), 348 nm for QI-mediated Zinc oxide nanoparticles (QIZnO NPs, 350 nm and 408 nm for QI-mediated Silver/Zinc oxide nanoparticles (QIAg/ZnO NPs), 415 nm and 675 nm for QI-mediated Cobalt oxide/Zinc oxide newlinenanoparticles (QI-Co3O4/ZnO NPs). Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) newlineinvestigation identified phytochemicals involved in nanoparticle synthesis. The X- Ray Diffraction (XRD) examination unveiled the crystalline structures of QI-mediated NPs. Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS) study revealed information on the hydrodynamic newlinediameter and colloidal stability of the NPs, which showed average particle size. Field newlineEmission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FE-SEM) and Energy-Dispersive X-Ray newlineSpectroscopy (EDX) were used to investigate the morphology and elemental composition of NPs. The morphological shapes of QI-Ag NPs were spherical, QI-ZnO NPs showed hexagonal, QI-Co3O4 NPs displayed octahedral, QI-Ag/ZnO NPs exhibited spherical structure, and QI-Co3O4/ZnO NPs unveiled a mixture of octahedral and hexagonal shaped NPs. The High-resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM) validated the NPs size and Selected Area Electron Diffraction (SAED) newlineconfirmed the crystalline characteristics. -
Electrochemical Synthesis of Heterocyclic Carbonyls Using Carbon Based Electrocatalysts
Electro-organic synthesis (EOS) is emerging as a powerful and sustainable technique newlinefor synthesizing organic compounds. EOS offers a compelling alternative to newlineconventional synthetic methods, driven by the need for cleaner and more efficient newlineprocesses and a growing focus on environmental impact. This approach minimizes newlineenvironmental impact by reducing dependence on hazardous chemicals and solvents. newlineAdditionally, EOS enables precise control over reaction parameters, leading to selective newlineproduct formation and potentially novel reaction pathways. newlineThis work presents the development of electrocatalysts for the electro-oxidation of newlineselected heterocyclic alcohols, namely piperonyl alcohol (PA), thiophene-2-ylmethanol newline(TM), furfuryl alcohol (FA) and indole-3-carbinol (IC) to their corresponding newlinealdehydes. A Toray carbon fiber paper (TCFP) substrate modified with 2D materials, newlineconducting polymers, metal oxides, and metal oxide nanoparticles are employed in newlinethefabrication of the electrodes. newlineThe efficiency of the developed electrode was studied employing different newlineelectrochemical and physicochemical studies. X-ray Diffraction Spectroscopy (XPS), newlineField Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy (FESEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray newlineSpectrometry (EDS), X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS), and Optical newlineProfilometry (OP) techniques were utilized for the physicochemical studies of the newlinefabricated electrodes. Cyclic voltammetry (CV), Electrochemical Impedance newlineSpectroscopy (EIS), Chronoamperometry (CA) and Bulk Electrolysis (BE) techniques newlinewere employed for the electrochemical studies, including optimization and synthesis of newlineheterocyclic aldehydes. The fabricated electrocatalysts demonstrated remarkable newlinestability, higher electrocatalytic activity, and good conductivity. The electro-oxidation newlinereactions were carried out in a three-electrode system via BE using 4-acetamido- newline2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidine 1-oxyl (4-ACT) mediator. The products obtained were newlinecharacterized by Proton Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (1H NMR) spectroscopy. -
Unveiling The Effects of Heavy Metals : A Comprehensive Study On Physiological, Phytochemical, and Anatomical Responses in Jacobaea Maritima (L.) Pelser and Meijden
Modernization and industrialization have been of great importance in the recent past, yet newlinethere are a few disadvantages including the release of harmful effluents into the environment. The medicinal plants that are found in these heavy metal polluted soils can have positive and negative effects as well. In this study the plant Jacobaea maritima (L.) Pelser and Meijden an important medicinal plant in the field of homeopathy was subjected to three different heavy metalscadmium, chromium and lead at a concentration range of 50, 100, 150, 200 and 250ppm.The morphological parameters, shoot length and root length reduced more than 50% and 25% incase of shoot and root respectively. Phytochemical analysis shows significant variation inchlorophyll. newlineThe highest of protein was found in Cr 100ppm (7.47mg) and the least was found inCd 250ppm newline(0.38mg). Proline was found to be high in Pb 200ppm (1.242mg/ml) and least in Cr50ppm newline(0.368mg/ml). The Total Phenolic Content (TPC) was found to be highest in Cr 250ppm newline(3.229mg/g) and least in control (0.57mg/g) and Total Flavonoid Content (TFC) was found to be highest in Cd 100 ppm and least in Control (0.04mg/g) plant which include root, shoot and leaf. The growth of the plant was observed along with a few parameters like net photosynthetic rate (Pn), transpiration rate (E), leaf stomatal conductance (C), and the photosynthetic active radiation (PAR). It has been found that the chlorophyll values in the Cr 150 (5.470.4) concentration are high. The chlorophyll values in Pb100 (9.40.35) and Pb250 (9.80.26) are in close proximity to newlineeach other. The highest chlorophyll was found in Cd100 concentration. The net photosynthetic rate was less affected in Pb150 (30.980.75), and most in Cr100 (4.050.09). The Cr 50 (0.190.02) showed the least. The Leaf stomatal conductance was drastically reduced in all the treated plants only Cr 100 (2298.251.85) showed minimal variation. In morphology shoot length newlineand root length were reduced more than 50% and 25% in case of shoot and root respectively. -
Nanomaterial - Based Electrochemical Sensor for Monitoring Potential Biomakers of Chronic Disorders
Detecting various biomarkers in the health industry and the biomedical sector has been newlinesignificant due to their crucial role in diagnosing, assessing, exposing, and treating disorders. This work reports electrochemical sensors for detecting biomarkers using different modifications (2D materials and nanomaterials) on carbon fiber paper electrode-based (CFPE) sensors. Adopting these modifications on the CFPE electrode greatly intensified the oxidation and reduction of peak current values. The physio-chemical characterizations of the designed electrodes were examined employing Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscopy (TEM), Electron Diffraction X-ray (EDX), X-Rayv Photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), and Raman Spectroscopy. Cyclic voltammetry (CV) and differential pulse voltammetry (DPV) newlineassisted in optimizing the electrochemical properties via Nyquist plots, sensing performance, scan rate effect, and pH effect. Both electro-activity studies and Nyquist plots confirmed the enhancement in the electroanalytical performance of the fabricated electrodes. Real sample newlinestudies were successfully analyzed using developed electrodes, producing good recovery newlinepercentages. Overall, all the works conducted have been established to be facile and selective, with novelty in the fabrication of ultrasensitive voltammetric-based sensors to quantify different biomarkers. -
Heat amd Mass Transfer Analyses of Nanofluid in a Multilayer Model
The study offers an in-depth exploration into the dynamics and properties of multilayered nanofluids and hybrid nanofluid flow in newlinedifferent geometries. The in-vestigation ranges from sinusoidal channels with micropolar hybrid nanoliquids to concentric cylinders that exhibit electrokinetic effects and rotating disks. Also, the DarcyForchheimer model is introduced to assess non-Newtonian and Newtonian fluid interplay, emphasizing the role of asymmetric slip conditions which reduces the fluid flow. Moreover, the study on bioconvection obtained newlineby addition of gyrotac-tic microorganisms which enhances mass and heat transfer in multilayer Newtonian fluid channels. Studies explain the importance of interfacial regions in achieving optimal system temperature. The subsequent study examines the two-layer hybrid nanofluid (HNF) with magnetohydrodynamic properties between two newlineidentical ro-tating disks. The governing equations of the mathematical models are explained using PDE and solutions are attained using numerical and semi-analytical methods such as the DTM and Range Kutta method. Further, the obtained results have been explained with the help of tables and graphs. The study reveals that the immisci-bility of the base fluids forms an interfacial layer, revealing that the addition of two different fluids restricts the fluid motion nearer to the interfacial region, maintaining an optimum temperature in the system. Collectively, these findings pave the way for advanced applications in industries like solar, nuclear, biomedical, and electronic cooling, promising enhanced newlineperformance and efficiency. -
Investment Decisions : Behavioral Biases in Selected Less Volatile Asset Classes
This study investigates the behavioral biases in selected less volatile asset classes and their influence on investment decisions(IDs). This study compares and contrasts demographic factors(DF) that influence behavioral biases(BB), examines the relationship between behavioral biases(BB) and risk-taking newlinebehaviors (RTB), determines whether BBs can be used to predict RTB and IDs, and looks at covariance patterns between factors that influence BBs, RTB, and IDs.A comprehensive analysis was conducted, considering various DF such as age, gender, education, annual income, marital status, total annual savings newlinepercentage, and the number of dependents in the family. The findings revealed no statistically significant interaction effects between these demographic variables and the combined dependent variables. Additionally, no significant main effects of age, gender, annual income, education, marital status, or paying tax were observed on the combined dependent variables. The study identified several correlations among the behavioral biases examined, including overconfidence(OC), representativeness(R), anchoring(A), herding(H), mental accounting(MA), and conservatism bias(CB). Positive correlations were found between OC and R, A and OC, A and R, H and OC, H newlineand R, MA and OC, MA and R, CB and OC, CB and R, CB and A, CB and H, CB and MA, risk-taking behaviors and overconfidence, risk-taking behaviors and representativeness, risk-taking behaviors and anchoring, risk-taking newlinebehaviors and herding, risk-taking behaviors and mental accounting, and risktaking behaviors and conservatism bias. Furthermore, herding and conservatism bias was significantly associated with risk-taking behaviors, while anchoring, herding, mental accounting, and conservatism bias were associated considerably with IDs. As part of the assessment techniques utilized in this study, seven characteristics or latent constructs were examined using various observable variables or scale items. -
Antecedents of Behavioural Intention : Study of Indian Consumer Perceptions Towards P2P Lending Using Technology Adoption Model
Fintech is a rapidly developing area of the financial services business where tech-focused startups and other new players are upending how the sector has historically operated. One of the emerging fintech areas under digital lending is Peer to Peer lending or (P2P) lending; Consumers and authorities are both showing interest in this alternative lending innovation. Results of a literature review show that India is still in the early stages of P2P lending research. The study examines the association between behavioural intention to use P2P lending in India and technological and personal adoption factors. The study model was developed with the help of a literature review and tested using data from 536 respondents who completed an online survey and was tested using covariance-based structural equation modelling (SEM). The results confirm that personal innovativeness, performance expectancy, hedonic motivation, effort expectancy, social influence, and perceived risk are the antecedents of the adoption of P2P lending, except for facilitating conditions and price value. In addition, gender moderates the relationship between performance expectancy, hedonic motivation, personal innovativeness, and intention to adopt P2P lending. The study also throws light on the perceptions of both users and non users in terms of the antecedents. The study's conclusions significantly impact the P2P lending industry and provide practical insights for developers, platforms and regulators to improve and enhance the service. The study suggests looking at other moderating factors like age, voluntariness, experience, and actual usage behaviour for further research. Overall, the research contributes to the academic literature by confirming the predictive power of the extended unified theory of acceptance and use of technology (UTAUT). It highlights personal innovativeness after performance expectancy and motivation as an important factor in predicting the usage of P2P lending. Finally, the study lists managerial implications in the domains of technological adoption, which will assist in the P2P lending long-term success in India. -
Energy and Environmental Applications of Polymer Based Mixed Metal Oxide Nanocomposites
The dependence of human lives on fossil fuels is very inevitably high for the development of society. This leads to the exploitation of these non-renewable sources, which brings forth society, which is another major issue that has to be tackled. In this study, we have focused on addressing the energy and environmental needs of society using different catalysts. The polymer based mixed metal oxide catalysts are used for the utility towards multiple applications. The energy issues can be mitigated through newlinesupercapacitance studies and water splitting studies. The water splitting studies can newlineproduce hydrogen, an efficient and eco-friendly fuel, and supercapacitors can store newlineenergy effectively. Water pollution is another problem faced by our society, which newlinereduces the availability of freshwater sources. This can be overcome by following newlineeffective and cost-efficient adsorption techniques. Another major threat that prevails in our society is corrosion. Corrosion inhibition studies are followed to tackle this issue and provide a corrosion-free environment. The various polymers used in this study are polyaniline, polypyrrole, poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), and chitosan. These polymers are mixed with different metal oxides, and the synergy between the polymers and metal oxides provides efficiency towards the mentioned applications. The successful formation of composites is confirmed using various characterization techniques. Several electrochemical studies like cyclic voltammetry, galvanostatic charge-discharge studies, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, linear sweep voltammetry, and potentiodynamic techniques are employed to analyze the efficacy of the composites towards supercapacitance, water splitting, and corrosion inhibition studies. The batch adsorption studies are executed for water purification studies. The synthesized multifunctional composites can be used as potential candidates for addressing the energy and environmental needs of our society in a sustainable manner. -
Mechanisms Linking Gratitude to Life Satisfaction among Adults : A Mixed - Methods Study
The study examined the relationship between gratitude and life satisfaction in educated adults in an Indian context and the mediation of affect, schema and coping. The sample comprised 711 males and females (18-45 yrs). The research utilised a sequential explanatory mixed methods design, incorporating a follow-up explanation model (Creswell & Creswell, 2017). The initial quantitative phase addressed research questions concerning how the selected variables mediate the relationship between gratitude and life satisfaction. Mediation analysis revealed that positive affect and positive self/others partially mediated the relationship between gratitude and life satisfaction. There is no influence of gender in the role of gratitude in life satisfaction. The quantitative data held significance as it served as the foundation for subsequent qualitative analysis. The two-phased data collection facilitated a comprehensive exploration of the research questions, and integrating quantitative and qualitative data provided a better understanding of the relationships under investigation. A semi-structured interview was designed in the qualitative phase, incorporating insights from the survey results. The interview questions explored participants' perceptions and experiences regarding how various factors contribute to connecting gratitude with life satisfaction. A thematic analysis was performed to recognise the themes expressed by the participants, as outlined by Braun and Clarke in 2013. Three broader themes were derived, incorporating the 14 categories identified through coding. The three identified themes from the qualitative analysis are: 1. Life satisfaction through positive emotions; 2. Self-oriented schema promotes a sense of satisfaction, and 3. Positive connections with others enhance happiness. The qualitative data enrich our understanding by illustrating how participants who prioritise others' well-being and maintain meaningful social connections experience enhanced happiness. The quantitative findings are reinforced by the qualitative insights, which highlight that positive emotions serve as an emotional bridge that connects the feelings of gratitude to an overall sense of happiness, enhancing life satisfaction. This integrated approach enhances our understanding of how gratitude influences emotional well-being, ultimately contributing to overall life satisfaction. The identified themes of life satisfaction through positive emotions, self-oriented schema, and positive connections with others yield valuable implications. Implementing gratitude-focused interventions offers actionable steps for individuals, educators, and mental health practitioners to enhance overall well-being. -
Isolation, Screening and Characterisation of Endophytes from Madiwala Lake for Biosurfactant, Bioremediation and Plant-Growth Promotion Properties
The significant surge in population, combined with the degradation of the environment, has imposed substantial stress on worldwide food newlinesecurity. The concerning pace of population growth, along with escalating environmental harm due to heightened industrialization, newlinehas indeed exerted considerable pressure on the global food provision. Considering the existing situation, the sustainable approach to enhance agricultural yield and facilitate environmental bioremediation entails utilizing endophytes that reside within plants. Endophytic microorganisms possessing the capacity to promote plant growth and exert biocontrol can significantly boost plant development amidst fluctuating environmental factors, both biotic and abiotic in nature. The current research aimed to extract bacterial and fungal endophytes from Alternanthera philoxeroides and newlineAlternanthera paranichoides and evaluate their potential for enhancing plant growth and controlling pests. Among the isolated newlineendophytic bacteria, Klebsiella pneumoniae exhibited various characteristics conducive to plant growth, leading to enhanced newlinegermination and vegetative growth in Vigna unguiculata plants. The isolate exhibited good Indoleacetic acid (IAA) production newline(48.752.95 g/mL) and potassium solubilization (2.130.07 ppm). The IAA production by K. pneumoniae was further enhanced by 4- fold using the RSM optimization to 195.662.51 g/mL. The newlineendophytic bacteria Bacillus amyloliquefaciens and Bacillus subtilis newlineshowed good extracellular enzyme production and antimicrobial activity along with plant growth promotion. The endophytic bacterium B. amyloliquefaciens showed good newlinebiosurfactant production and bioremediation efficiency. The strain displayed notable resistance to Cr and Pb concentrations upto 2000 mg/L. It was found to possess maximum metal removal efficiency for Pb, 92.3% at pH 9 and 86.2 at 25 oC. -
Process Development for Mass Production of Cordycepin Using Fermentation Technology
Cordyceps is a rare and exotic medicinal genus that has been utilised for generations in traditional Chinese medicine. China, Bhutan, Nepal, the Tibetan Plateau, and the newlinenortheastern parts of India are the main areas where they may be noticed. Cordycepin newline(C10H13O3N5), an adenosine derivative generated naturally by Cordyceps militaris, has essential pharmacological effects. Cordycepin has been shown to have anti-tumor/antiproliferative, anti-metastatic, apoptosis-inducing, anti-malaria, anti-microbial, antifungal, anti-diabetic/hypoglycemic, and anti-inflammatory qualities, among other things. The scarcity of native Cordyceps spp., as well as illicit commerce and a lack of growing methods in natural habitats, limit the supply of this prized fungus for therapeutic applications. As a result, an attempt was made to standardize the technique for large-scale cordycepin manufacturing in a laboratory setting. To measure the cordycepin, analytical methods by using High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and Ultraviolet Visible spectroscopy (UV Spec.) were established. Furthermore, different methods were optimised and established to successfully extract cordycepin from biomass. Solid state fermentation (SSF) was performed to grow the fruiting bodies of C. militaris in jars. A novel technology was developed using cotton in the SSF which improved the cordycepin content by 138.42 %. Different liquid culture methods (static, submerged, and mix) were also studied; the Static mode was chosen for future media optimization studies. Initially, different parameters like the effect of pH, light, media volume, and inoculum percentage were optimised that affect the cordycepin production. Further, numerous media components, including carbon newlinesources, nitrogen sources, metals, salts and also the impact of vitamins, amino acids, newlineand adenosine that can influence the cordycepin production were optimized employing the One Factor at a time (OFAT) method. -
Dynamic Offloading Technique for Latency Sensitive Iot Applications Using Fog Computing
The Internet of Things (IoT) has evolved as one of the most popular technological newlineinnovations that offers processing power to different types of entities connected to it. IoT has made traditional applications smarter and easier to use. IoT offers reliable service to different sectors such as healthcare, industrial control, agriculture, autonomous vehicles, traffic management etc. IoT nodes are generally energy-constrained and hence depend on cloud platforms for storage and analytics of generated data. The cloud provides required services for the newlineconnected applications based on pay per use policy. But cloud datacenter being at remote location fails to accommodate the time requirements of delay-sensitive IoT newlineapplications. Edge/fog computing was designed to address the demands of timesensitive IoT applications. The IoT-Fog-Cloud architecture reduces the delay and response time incurred by the IoT-Cloud model. The fog layer in the three-tier architecture is distributed in nature. Hence the latency depends on how well the underlying offloading algorithms distribute the tasks among available fog nodes. Different offloading policies are mentioned in the literature to address this issue. This work initially tries to solve the offloading problem using one of the novel newlineoffloading approaches Flamingo Search Algorithm (FSA). Later, the results obtained from FSA are fine-tuned using another metaheuristic algorithm, the Honey Badger Algorithm (HBA). Finally, both FSA and HBA are hybridized to generate the HB-FS algorithm which effectively solves the task offloading problem. The performance evaluation of the proposed approach is done with different existing metaheuristic algorithms and the evaluations show that the newlineproposed work outperforms the existing algorithms in terms of latency, average newlineresponse time and execution time. The methodology also offers a lesser degree of newlineimbalance and standard deviation than the compared approaches. -
Pharmaceutical Tablet Uniformity Prediction Using Spectroscopy-Based Data Fusion and Machine Learning Approaches
The pharmaceutical industry is highly regulated, and every manufacturer must demonstrate the drug product's quality, safety, and efficacy before market release. Quality control plays a vital role in ensuring drug products' consistency, purity, and potency through rigorous testing of raw materials in the process and the finished stages of manufacturing. Quality risk management and process understanding are critical to maintaining quality throughout manufacturing. Quality by Design (QbD) offers a structured approach, while Process Analytical Technology (PAT) facilitates real-time monitoring to control risk of product quality. Process analyzers, multivariate methods, process control, and continuous improvement tools are part of the PAT framework that enhances process understanding and aids risk mitigation strategies. Near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy is a commonly used analytical technique in PAT environments for both qualitative and quantitative measurements; these are real-time and non-destructive process analyzers. Chemometrics helps extract information from this chemical data using mathematical and statistical methods. With the advent of Industry 4.0, machine learning models have gained popularity in spectroscopy due to their ability to handle complex, high-dimensional data and adapt to various applications. This research introduces a systematic approach to implementing machine learning models as an alternative to traditional chemical testing in predicting the content uniformity of pharmaceutical tablets. The objective is to improve the quality of data analysis and its predictive performance. This study also outlines the importance of using manufacturing information as stratified variables in predictive modeling and spectroscopic data, or sensor fusion data. To demonstrate the effectiveness of this approach, a real-world NIR dataset developed based on various characteristics such as manufacturing scale, tablet strength, dose proportion, and coating is utilized. This real-world application of the research makes the content more relatable and interesting to the reader. This allows the seamless use of the model across different known environments as the model is trained using sensor data fusion. A comparison of Partial Least Squares regression models and machine learning Neural Network models is evaluated for the model predictability. The work also delves into selecting and optimizing appropriate hyperparameters for a chosen optimal model. It explores the impact of model performance to ensure successful implementation in the production environment and discusses various approaches in monitoring during life cycle management.