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Application of Hydrogel in Paddy Field for Soil Moisture Retention and Yield Optimization
Agricultural sustainability is essential to enhance food and water security, particularly in the context of climate change. To ensure food security and to protect water resources, agricultural and irrigation practices need to be amended with innovative technology that conserves water and increases productivity. In the recent past, applications of hydrogels in agriculture have received substantial attention among researchers as well as among farmers. Paddy is the core crop for the vast newlineparts of the world. The present study elaborates on various aspects of hydrogels such as classifications, ideal properties for agricultural application, analysis of soil characteristic changes for pre and post crop newlineseason, irrigation water quality analysis for crop season. BPT 5204 and NDLR 07 varities of paddy had been experimented in this study. newlineVerification of hydrogel degradation was conducted using Fourier transform infrared (ft-ir) spectroscopy. The experimental methods for determining hydrogel properties were given specific attention to properties such as swelling, retention, slow release, and degradation which are vital for agricultural sustainability. Hydrogel experiments have demonstrate significant improvement in water consumption, water use newlineefficiency, crop growth and yield parameters. The reduction in water footprint in major crops such as paddy and wheat through hydrogel might establish a shift towards sustainable irrigation practices if adopted on a large scale. Integrating innovative solutions with environmental-friendly newlinehydrogels in the coming decades will contribute to the pursuit of achieving newlinesustainable development goals. The application of hydrogel as soil conditioners was identified as a possible solution. to increase water use efficiency in irrigation and optimization of crop yield. The study points towards developing a framework for the evaluation of the suitability of hydrogel for agricultural applications when get scaled up to regional level. -
Design and Development of A Generic Framework for Surface Water Delineation and Monitoring Using a Hybrid Level Set Algorithm on Landsat Multi-Spectral Data
Surface water bodies are critical to the existence and sustenance of civilizations. Water bodies in urban cities across the world have undergone drastic decline in quality and quantity. This has been the result of a multitude of reasons like increase in population, urbanization and encroachment. Monitoring changes to water bodies is a newlinenecessary requirement in devising strategies to conserve them. This thesis proposes newlinea generic framework for monitoring and forecasting changes in the surface area of newlinelakes using a hybrid level set algorithm for water body delineation followed by a double exponential smoothing model for forecasting. The proposed hybrid level set algorithm combines the advantages of edge based and region based level sets. An edge detection term is introduced into the formulation which improves the delineation accuracy by forcing the level set evolution to stop at the boundaries of the region of interest. The performance of the algorithm was analyzed using Pearson s Correlation Co-effcient (PCC), Structural Similarity Index (SSIM) and Dice Similarity index and found to have superior performance compared to established methods in the literature. The study uses Landsat multi-spectral data for the last 30 years to build the proposed framework for forecasting the changes in the surface area of water bodies. The experiments were conducted for nine lakes in Bangalore, a fast growing city in India, and a steady decrease in the surface area is observed for most of the lakes that were studied. The city s renovation attempts have also seen that the some of the lakes are sustaining the rapid urbanization. The proposed forecast model has yielded acceptable results with an average error of 0.22% and a correlation coeffcient of 0.94 between the actual surface area and the forecasted surface area. The framework can be customized in the future to study specifc water bodies by plugging in external newlineparameters to improve the forecasting accuracy. -
Multi Parameterized Modified Local Binary Pattern for Lung Cancer Detection by Deep Learning Methods
The research work is focusing on developing a classification model for Lung Cancer detection by integrating the image features with Modified Local Binary Pattern (MLBP), Modified Principal Component Analysis (MPCA), newlinesymptoms and Risk factors using Deep Learning methods and converting the image features into three dimensional (3D) images. The aim of this research is to identify the malignant and normal tumours from the Computer newlineTomography (CT) images with improved accuracy. The 2D CT images of Lung Cancer patients have been preprocessed with Median and Gabor filtering methods and watershed segmentation. The CT images are also newlineprocessed with the Zero Component Analysis (ZCA) whitening and Modified Local Binary Pattern. The processed image is used in the research for classification. The Lung Cancer dataset in the research are collected from newlinevarious medical colleges. The dataset contain CT images with Lung Cancer and without Lung Cancer. The research is conducted by integrating the selected Image features, Risk factor and symptoms of Lung Cancer of the newlinesame patients. The Integration using feature selections is carried out with Modified Principal Component Analysis. The Modified Principal Component Analysis is used in the research to reduce the time complexity. The results are evaluated with Gini coefficient, Confusion Matrix parameters and ROC newlinecurve. Two Dimensional (2D) CT images are converted into a Three Dimensional (3D) image for the clarity and the visibility of Lung Cancer nodules. The conversion from 2D to 3D has been using combining two methods, the orthogonality and visualization of 4D rotation. This enabled to find the location of the Lung Cancer from different angle and with different viewpoints. The 3D image shows the location of the Lung Cancer by Four Dimensional (4D) visualization and 3D rotation, thus giving clarity to the newlineexisting 2D images. -
Mapping Cityscapes : Interrogating the Cultural Spaces in the Select Novels of Bapsi Sidhwa
Bapsi Sidhwa (1939) a well-known Pakistani Zoroastrian novelist in English offers the cityscapes of Lahore that provide the settings for her fictional works. The select newlinenovels for the study include The Crow Eaters (1978), The Pakistani Bride (1983), IceCandy Man (1988) and An American Brat (1993). Fascinated by the cityscapes of Lahore, the novelist personalizes the cityscapes and the personalized cityscapes are fictionalized. The novelist is aided by imagination. However, the imagined cityscapes in the select novels become illegible with a growing sense of alienation from the city. The cityscapes are cityspaces that are shape shifting. The metaphorical cityscapes in newlinethe select novels are woven with imagination, memory and nostalgia. The thesis examines the fictional representation of the cityscapes of Lahore and the relationship between the novelist and the imagined cityscapes. The study adopts the method of qualitative textual analysis in an attempt to examine the cityscapes. This illumines the in-between status of the cityscapes connecting the factual and fictional images of the city. The study unveils a layered construction of heterogeneous cityscapes which are selective and subjective. The urban cultural spaces are interrogated through the fictional characters who experience the city like fleurs and contribute to the making of the spatial stories. The acts of walking in the city offer knowledge of the city which enables the fictional characters to attain self-awareness. The awareness helps in achieving autonomy in the movements of the fictional characters. However, only a few fictional characters are perfect fleurs and the others view the city as voyeurs. Since the imagined cityscapes of Lahore are guided by the sense of place, the legibility of the cityscapes declines with the acts of alienation from the city. However, the novelist attempts to recover the palimpsest cityscapes from memory through cognitive mapping. -
Exploring Meaningfullness of Life among Survivors of Sex Trafficking in India
Sex trafficking is a form of human trafficking which is considered a contemporary form of slavery. It is made up of victims (supply), buyers (demand), and traffickers (distributors). Sex trafficking is a billion dollars industry. It generates more profit than any other industry in the world, illicit or otherwise. It is estimated that one woman or child is commercialized to be a sex slave every hour. The present study aimed to explore the meaningfulness of life among survivors of sex trafficking in India. It is a two-phase research design where the researcher has collected quantitative data first, and qualitative data was collected during the second phase. The qualitative phase comprises data from 126 subjects They were divided into two groups. Group 1, survivors rescued within two years (N=63), and group 2, survivors post two years after the rescue (N=63). Group 1 (M=15.58) scored lower on the meaningfulness of life compared to group 2 (M=23.15). Group 1 (M=16.80) is less satisfied with life compared to group 2 (M=22.65). Group 1 (M=61.09) has a lower quality of life compared to group (M=77.49). Group 1 tends to have lesser positive emotions and more negative emotions compared to group 2. There was a moderate positive correlation between the current meaning in life and satisfaction with life, r=.42, n=126, p<.001. There was a negative moderate correlation between the current meaning in life and negative emotions r=-49, n=126, p<.001, and there was a strong, positive vii correlation between current meaning in life and positive emotions, r=.53, n=126, p<.001. Results from the qualitative phase, which comprises data from 20 participants show that survivors' life in slavery was meaningless and marked by torture and rape. The meaningfulness of life for participants in the current study depends on a new identity, acceptance, education, spirituality, and respect. Those who have children found the meaningfulness of life in motherhood. Participants reported not being fully satisfied with their life and they described what they need to increase their life satisfaction. First is livelihood, that is food and shelter over their heads, good health, and dreams/goals fulfillment that for most of them is to get an education and/or professional training. Survivors reported having more negative emotions than positive emotions. Physical health problems found among participants were headache, gastritis, cough, and fever. Psychological health symptoms found among them were depression, anxiety, isolation, crying spells, and fatigue. Survivors have a limited social life because they distrust almost all people. The environment was found to be unsafe for girls and women and they ask for protection for themselves and for all females in the country. -
Cost Effective Synthesis of Carbon Nanoparticles and Exploring the Fluorescence and Electrochemical Applications
Graphene-based materials and composites for sensing are a fascinating field in material science research that is experiencing rapid advancement. But the applications of graphene-based materials were often hampered by their high production cost, low yield, expensive and scarce precursors, harmful processing techniques, etc. Coal is made up of islands of nanometer-sized crystalline carbon domains linked by a 3D network of amorphous aliphatic carbon and polymerized aromatic hydrocarbons that can be extracted using mild oxidizing agents. In this context, the present study reports the successful usage of low-grade coal, lignite as an ideal precursor for the production of carbon nanostructures for various sensing applications. This research is divided into three parts where value addition to coal is being done along with finding solutions to three major environmental issues: fluorescence sensing of copper ion; noninvasive glucose fluorescence sensing; simultaneous electrochemical sensing of heavy newlinemetal ions cadmium and lead. In the first study, carbon nanostructures were synthesized from lignite by a simple, scalable, and economical technique and the as-prepared carbon nanostructures, namely LC1, LC2 and LC3, demonstrated excellent fluorescence characteristics. LC3 exhibited remarkable copper ion sensing with a dual linear range with limits of detection (LOD) as low as 1.32 pM and 2.35 pM, with limits of quantification (LOQ) 4 pM and 7.14 pM respectively. The accuracy of the manufactured sensor was shown by the recovery rates of copper ions, which varied from 98.18% to 101.2% with Relative newlineStandard Deviations (RSDs) below 0.4%. The results are captivating, implying that newlinethese lignite derived carbon nanostructures could be employed to efficiently and newlineeconomically detect low concentrations of copper ions in water. In the second study, carbon nanoribbons and nanosheets with superior fluorescence were synthesized from lignite, using a facile chemical oxidation process. -
Efficacy of Art Based Interventions for Emotional Problems among Children Affected by Earthquake in Nepal
The earthquake of April 2015 left Nepal in a vulnerable state. Children represent an estimated 3.2 million of the 8 million people affected by the earthquake. The aim of the study was to examine the role of art in dealing with the long-term impact of earthquake on emotional problems in children in Nepal. A purposive sampling was adopted to select 454 children studying in 4th and 5th standard from four schools in Kathmandu Metropolitan City. Children completed the Level of Exposure Scale while the parents provided information about the emotional and behavioural difficulties of children using the Nepali version of Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ/ 4-17). The influence of gender, severity of exposure, socio-economic status and type of family in relation to emotional problems were also examined in the selected group. The results of Phase 1 show that conduct, hyperactivity-inattention and peer problems were higher in boys while girls had higher pro-social behaviour. Children belonging to lower socio-economic status were found to be at risk for emotional problems. Gender and exposure were also identified as predictors of emotional problems in children. For the second phase of the study, those children with high emotional problems (N=60) were selected for an art-based intervention consisting of nine sessions. Both the treatment (N=30) and control group (N=30) completed the pre- and post- treatment measure of SDQ. The results show that the children in the treatment group reported lower levels of emotional problems, hyperactivity-inattention and peer problems compared to the control group (Cohen's d: 0.50-0.80). In the final phase of the study, 12 children from the treatment group were interviewed to identify the elements of art that contributed to a change in the emotional problems. A thematic vii analysis revealed six global themes: a new schema, an expression space, drawing the trauma, reappraisal of trauma narrative, protective factors and future benefits. The responses of the children show that the inherent properties such as regulation and social connection promoted by an engagement in arts needs to be adopted as an effective mode of trauma care. The findings also point to the possibility of using art-based therapy to overcome stigma which hinder the mental health professionals when implementing evidence-based treatments in the country. -
Web User Access Log Analytics Using Neural Learning, Regression and Logit Boost Clustering Techniques for Accurate User Behavioural Pattern Identification
Web Usage Mining (WUM), is the process of mining user behaviour patterns from huge log fles. Weblogs provide substantial input to learning the identity of an online user. Analysis of these patterns extracted from the weblog datasets is currently being explored by various researchers. Due to the recent advent of automation, mining patterns from weblogs are automated. These automated mining processes focus on browsing habits and usage patterns. To make this process of gathering better, there are many ways to look at how users act and put them into relevant groups.Identifying, detecting, and classifying features that demarcate specifc traits that are related is an important task. Conventional research is designed to discover web usage mining strategies through clustering and classifcation methods. However, there is a need to focus on and improve the accuracy of the prediction systems that classify acquired features to fgure out the patterns of web users. Deep learning methods are used to mine weblog data to improve accuracy and precision. To improve user behaviour pattern mining, a two-level clustering process is introduced as Ensemble Fuzzy K-Means with Logit Boost Clustering (EFK-LBC) technique to extract the weblog. In this technique, a preprocessing step is included to remove redundant data and choose reliable log fles. The Fuzzy-K means clustering technique is used to identify behavioural patterns exhibited by recurrent users. Finally, the Logit Boost Clustering method is introduced to the data,that help in generating a strong cluster. Clustering of web users frequent behavioural patterns using the Logit Boost ensemble technique helps the proposed EFK-LBC method to improve newlinethe accuracy up to 88% and reduce the clustering time by 20% compared with existing approaches. Though the proposed EFK-LBC technique performs better for user identifcation, the different initialization of clusters provides various fnal clustering results. -
An Investigation of Multifractality and Herd Behaviour in Indian Capital Market During Macro-Political Events : An Empirical Evidence Through Econophysics Approach
The financial markets worldwide exhibit several complex and dynamic features in them. Among them, Multifractality is one of the most significant features of complex systems, and it has been identified and examined in the financial markets in recent years. Besides, studies in the past confirm that there exists a linkage between multifractality and herding behaviour in financial markets during extreme events. The current study attempts to investigate the presence of Multifractality caused by herding behaviour in the segments of the Indian capital market during the macro-political events. For this, the macro- political events were classified into three broad categories pre-scheduled events, intensified geopolitical events and uncertain macro-political events. Further, two major segments of the Indian capital market, namely, the equity and the Forex segment, were examined. The study employed the Multifractal Detrended Fluctuation Analysis approach to examine the Multifractality caused by herding behaviour during macro-political events. In addition, the study also measured the volatility surface and quantified the information uncertainty present in the selected segments of the Indian capital market. The findings suggest that the macro-political events impact the multifractality and herding behaviour in the examined segments of the Indian capital market. However, the degree of the multifractality caused by the herding behaviour traced in the market segments is event-specific. It differs based on the type of macro-political event. The overall analysis suggests that the pre-scheduled macro-political event's impact was higher for both equity and forex segments of the Indian capital market. Further, a high degree of multifractality caused by herding behaviour was traced in the Nifty segments during the intensified geopolitical events. On the other hand, uncertain macro-political events had no impact on the multifractality caused by the herding behaviour in equity and forex segments. The study results provide some significant implications for various market participants for investment decision-making and portfolio risk diversification during the macro-political events in India. -
Growth and Characterization of Sb2Se3 and SnSe2 Crystals for Photovoltaic Applications
Tremendous development in crystal growth technology led to the production of good newlinequality samples for the design and fabrication of optoelectronic devices. As naturally available solids exhibit undesirable characteristics, the present research work deals with the artificial synthesis and characterization of defect free binary layered chalcogenide materials newline(LCMs) for photovoltaic (PV) applications. Antimony selenide (Sb2Se3) and tin diselenide newline(SnSe2) have gained special attention in the PV industry due to their eco-friendly, sustainable, and non-hazardous nature as well as the salient features such as moderate melting temperature, p-type conductivity with direct transition, optimum band gap and high newlineabsorption coefficient. Therefore, cost-effective synthesis was implemented to engineer bulk Sb2Se3 and SnSe2 crystals for the enhancement of optoelectronic parameters. Single crystal growth from melt allows the fabrication of large size samples under controlled environment. It gives rise to complexities in maintaining stable temperature for crystallization and newlineachieving chemical homogeneity, if multiple elements are present in the system. The newlinechallenges associated with Bridgman-Stockbarger and Czochralski methods for preparing bulk crystals include irregular heat flow, mechanical movement of furnace or crucible, thermal stress, etc. Moreover, reactivity of the melted material with the ampoule leads to structural irregularities. Hence, horizontal normal freezing (HNF), the facile and inexpensive melt growth technique was employed to explore the suitability of cleaved samples. Most of the vapor phase synthesis methods, especially, the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) deteriorates material quality, which adversely affects the physical properties due to the presence of contamination or foreign elements. But, the physical vapor deposition (PVD) process is favorable as it offers feasible instrumentation and yields stoichiometric specimens with supreme quality and fine-tuned characteristics. -
Characterization and Strength Assessment of Alkali-Activated Iron Ore Tailing Composite Bricks
The current study outlines a process for producing environmentally friendly bricks that can also compete successfully in today's highly competitive market. The use of iron ore tailings (IOT), which are typically disposed of as waste by the mining industry, is the subject of ongoing research for brick production. Bricks were made using IOT, which was obtained from iron ore mines in India's southern region. The study is based on the alkali-activation method of producing IOT bricks, which has been shown to be the most energy-efficient method of production. This is because, in contrast to the traditional method of producing bricks, the alkali-activation method emits fewer greenhouse gases. India has an abundance of iron ore deposits, which has resulted in extensive mining activities, which has resulted in an increase in waste generation, The waste is typically disposed of by being dumped in one of the dumping sites or dams near the mining area. These tailings pose a significant threat to the environment in their immediate vicinity. As a result, the use of IOT in brick manufacturing will reduce the mining industry's waste disposal burden. Furthermore, the use of IOT in the production of bricks will reduce the use of natural raw materials in the production of conventional bricks. Several types of brick composites were developed in this study by combining Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS), Flyash, and IOT with a sodium silicate solution. Each raw material is analysed using particle size analysis (PSA), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM. The newly developed IOT bricks were put through a series of tests to determine their strength and durability in accordance with Indian standards. The developed IOT bricks had a maximum compressive strength of up to 18.45N/mm2 while water absorption was not more that 12.6%. Furthermore, the bricks were subjected to a series of wetting and drying tests to determine their long-term durability in accordance with Brazilian regulations. Each of the results obtained was validated using microstructure analysis of the product that was developed. Furthermore, the study sought to determine the compression strength of alkali-activated IOT brick prisms when combined with mortar of varying strengths. Finally, it was determined that more than 50 percent of the IOT can be used in combination with GGBS, flyash, and sodium silicate solution as an alkali activator to produce high-quality bricks under ambient temperature curing conditions. -
Outward Foreign Direct Investment From India ; A Sectoral Analysis
New opportunities have arisen as the global economy has been more integrated, with globalization and liberalization of government policies. As the world becomes more globalized, businesses boost their investments to keep up with demand. Trade and foreign investments are two notable paths to global integration, with trade being the traditional path. As an FDI pioneer and promoter, the FDI of the upper-middle-income countries became an essential source of integration with the low and middle-income countries. With globalization and liberalization policies India has become the most significant emerging economy. Economic policies urged Indian enterprises to compete internationally to keep up with fierce competitive environment and the adoption of new technology, such as expanding into new markets, acquiring assets and resources, and integrating their overseas operations. Outward FDI (OFDI) has been used by Indian enterprises to meet these strategic needs. India's overseas investments have increased significantly since the 1990s. The majority of empirical research has focused on FDI from upper-middle-income nations. As low- and middle-income nations like India become more important players in the FDI flow, it's necessary to understand the patterns, motivations, and factors that influence the location and impact of OFDI from these countries. Existing Studies focused on Inward FDI (IFDI), but this study focuses on Outward FDI (OFDI) from India. Earlier OFDI research has mostly focused on firm-specific advantages. This study examines India's OFDI trends, as well as changes in host country location determinants, sectoral composition, and their influence on both the home and host countries. In view of the changing direction of OFDI in India, this study compares investment motives and location factors between the upper-middle-income and low and middle-income countries complying with the international categorization established by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in its publication, the World Investment Report (WIR). This study analyzes the determinants and impact of India's OFDI in the home and host country during the period 1991-2020 in the context of Dunning's eclectic paradigm (OLI paradigm) and Investment Development Path (IDP) theory, using OFDI data from 1991 to 2020, which is longer than other studies by India's OFDI. This study employs panel data methodologies to identify crucial aspects and empirically test the nature of India's OFDI, which includes market seeking, resource seeking, technology and strategic asset seeking. The study uses a time series method to empirically test the relationship between India's OFDI, Trade and GDP. The results reveal that India's OFDI is motivated by market seeking, resource seeking, and technology seeking motives in upper-middle-income and low and middle-income countries. The results emphasize strategic assets as a significant motivation for investing in upper-middle-income countries rather than low and middle-income countries. India's OFDI is also actively linked to host country policies such as openness, corruption and market size. OFDI from India affects exports, as OFDI and exports are two means of internationalization. Theoretically, OFDI leads to further exports (positive or complements) or replaces exports with production (negative or substitution). Empirical testing of the OFDI-trade relationship shows a significant long-term positive relationship between the two. The study divided into five chapters. Chapter one comprises the introduction, backdrop of Global Outward FDI, India's FDI inflows and outflows, India's outward FDI, Need and Significance of the study. The second chapter consists of the literature review, theories of FDI, Statement of Problem. The third chapter deals with the methodology, research gap, research question, objectives of the study, and statistical tools used for the study. The fourth chapter focuses on the determinants of India's OFDI towards upper-middle and low and middle-income countries and the impact of India's OFDI on upper-middle and low and middle-income countries are analyzed in chapter three. It followed by a Geographical and sectoral analysis of India's OFDI in upper-middle and low and middle-income countries and a region-wise analysis in chapter five. Chapter six presents the study results, factors affecting India's Outward FDI among upper-middle and low and middle-income countries, followed by practical, theoretical and policy implications of the Study. -
Financial Literacy and Financial Capability among the Urban Street Vendors
Employment in the informal sector has grown rapidly over the years as it requires a limited skill set, limited educational background, and least initial investment. One such vulnerable sector which forms the major portion of the informal workforce is the street vendors. They lack basic facilities to newlinehave a good standard of living. It is observed that they are usually denied newlinevarious opportunities though their contribution to the economic growth and newlinedevelopment is immense. Their unstable income has left them vulnerable to many financial situations and led them into a financial debt trap. This research is carried out entirely from the view of the street vendors. newlineFinancial literacy has gained importance over the years as it enhances and empowers one s financial ability. Financial literacy is promoted through financial inclusion where all the sections of the society come under one roof to avail finance at ease. Basic financial literacy is will aid the users to newlinemake better utilization of financial schemes under financial inclusion. This in turn leads to better financial capability for individuals. It is observed that there is a gap that needs to be bridged between the street vendors and financial accessibility as they lack basic financial knowledge as are from a low educational background in this study. Better financial knowledge will newlinelead to better usage and accessibility of financial inclusion schemes which will result in better financial capability; this concept is being examined in the current study. The identified relationship impact of financial inclusion on financial literacy and financial capability forms an integral part of the study. It is useful in bringing out the gap between the street vendors and their financial distress. The research was designed to develop an instrument. A research instrument to measure variables was built based on previous studies and the expert s newlineconsultation. -
Effect of Various Double-Frequency Modulations on Rayleigh-Benard Convection
Rayleigh-Bard convection in Newtonian fluid under different types of modulations are studied in this thesis by replacing the single frequency modulations with two frequency modulations with different amplitude and frequency. Linear and non-linear analysis of Rayleigh-Benard convection is considered under two-frequency gravity, rotation, temperature, magnetic field and internal heat generation modulation. The sixteen combinations of sinusoidal (trigonometric sine) and non-sinusoidal (square, triangular, sawtooth) wave forms of different modulations are considered to study the impact of modulations on the onset of convection and heat transport. The expressions for unmodulated Rayleigh number and correction Rayleigh number in the linear case are obtained from linearized Lorentz model using Venezian approach. To study the impact of different types of modulations and wave forms on the heat transport, the expression for the Nusselt number is obtained by solving the non-linear Lorentz model numerically. From the study it is found that the two-frequency modulations make the system more stable compare to no-modulation and single-frequency modulations. The mixing angle of the two frequency plays major role in deciding the stability of the system. The results pertaining to no-modulation and single frequency are obtained as the limiting cases. Onset of Rayleigh-Bard Convection and Heat Transfer under Two-frequency newlineRotation Modulation The study investigates the effect of sixteen sinusoidal (sine) and non-sinusoidal combinations (square, triangular, sawtooth) of time-periodic Coriolis force (rotation modulation) on Rayleigh-Bard convection (RBC) in a Newtonian liquid. The consideration captures the potential effects of two-frequency rotation modulation on stability, newlinespecifically the onset of convection and the amount of heat transfer in the system simultaneously. -
Study on Graphs Associated with Groups
In this dissertation, the notions of non-inverse graphs, order sum graphs and coset newlinecomponent graphs associated with groups are introduced. These graphs are simple graphs whose vertices are the elements of the group and the adjacency between the vertices depends on certain properties of the group concerned. Vertices belonging to non-inverse graphs are adjacent if they are not inverses of each other in the group. The vertices in order sum graphs are adjacent if the sum of their orders is strictly greater than the order of the group. The vertices belonging to the coset component graphs are adjacent if their left cosets or right cosets of the subgroups of groups are equal. These algebraic graphs are studied in detail in terms of their structural characteristics, parametric properties and spectral properties. Various characterisations of these graphs are obtained in the study concerned. These notions are further extended to the concept of signed graphs and domination. Properties of signed graphs such as balance, clusterability, consistency, sign-compatibility and so on are investigated for these algebraic signed graphs. The relations between various types of domination are obtained for non-inverse graphs, order sum graphs, complement and line graphs of order sum graphs. -
Design and Development of Dual Fuzzy Technique to Optimize Job Scheduling and Execution Time in Cloud Environment
Cloud computing is a type of computing that relies on sharing a pool of computing resources, rather than deploying local or personal hardware and software. It enables convenient, on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computing re- sources (e.g., applications, storage, networks, services, and servers) that can be swiftly provisioned and released with minimal management control or through the interaction of the cloud service provider. The increasing demand for computing resources in the cloud has made elasticity an important issue in the cloud. The availability of extending the resources pool for the user provides an effective alternative to deploying applications with high scalability and processing requirements. Providing a satisfactory Quality of Service (QoS) is an important objective in cloud data centers. The QoS is measured in terms of response time, job completion time and reliability. If the user jobs cannot be executed in high load and the job is crashed, it will enormously increase the response time and also push up the job completion time. Also due to load, the jobs may be still in the waiting queue and could not find a resource to execute. In such a situation, the user notices a big response delay and it will affect the QoS. Towards ensuring QoS, this research proposes the following solution - Dual Fuzzy Load Balancing for jobs. Dual Fuzzy Load Balancing balances the load in the data center with an overall goal of reduction of response and execution time for tasks. The proposed solutions were simulated in the Cloudsim simulator and performance metrics in terms of job response time, job completion time, resource utilization, a number of SLA violations, and along with the cost comparison to the existing algorithms of Load Balancing. The proposed solutions are also implemented in a real cloud environment and the effectiveness of the solution is evaluated. -
Investigations on Affective Computing to Improve Classroom Engagement Analysis in Higher Education by Deep Learning
The learning and teaching experience can be improved by using approaches that are not obtrusive to perform a comprehensive student engagement analysis throughout the classroom. In these modern times, when courses are conducted online, it is vital to accurately measure the levels of participation that each individual student has. It is crucial and essential to provide assistance to educators so that they may annotate and comprehend the signifcant learning rate of the students. A system that can perceive data and transpire it into information automates the learning and teaching experience in a classroom. In this study, videos are collected from online and ofand#64258;ine classes that have one single student per frame or many students per frame and are analysed for emotions and behavioural engagement through a multimodal system. newlineLarge amounts of video data processing call for an increase in the hardware resources newlineas well as the time required for processing images. This is particularly true in a newlineclassroom setting, where there are a large number of frames to analyse each and every minute in order to handle classroom involvement detection. Hierarchical Video newlineSummarization is used as a preliminary step on the videos to detect important frames newlinethat have the sum of all the information in the local neighborhood. These key frames newlineserve as important information units that provide details of facial emotions and behavioural aspects. The local maxima estimation based on the frst derivative provides summative information about the local neighborhood. The key frames serve newlineas an input for face detection and emotional analysis. In this research, the method newlinecan perform video summarization on a varied category of videos and with different newlineresolutions. Face detection in a temporal environment have not been trivial. Though there are methods that can identify multiple faces with varied sizes in a frame, it is still a current research topic to address false localization of faces in a frame. -
Studies on the Fresh Water Algal Floria in Chimmony Wildlife Sanctuary
Algae is a crucial organism in the environment. They help in maintaining the balance among different ecosystems. According to the geography and climatic conditions, newlineKerala has a suitable environment for algal growth. However, the algal biodiversity newlinestudies conducted in Kerala are significantly less. The wildlife sanctuary comprises a newlineconsiderable scope for algal biodiversity. The Chimmony wildlife sanctuary is situated in Mukundapuram taluk of Thrissur district. It spreads over 85.067 km2 with a water spread area of 10.1 km2. Ten different sampling stations were selected across newlinethe wildlife sanctuary, and extensive field visits were conducted to identify and newlinedocument the algae with respect to three seasons (pre-monsoon, monsoon, and post- newlinemonsoon). The physicochemical parameters of water like dissolved oxygen, temperature, pH, alkalinity, total dissolved solids, light intensity, and rainfall amount were estimated seasonally. In this present study, a total of 121 taxa belonging to 60 genera, 38 families, 24 orders, and 5 classes, namely Chlorophyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Euglenineae, Rhodophyceae, and Cyanophyceae, were identified from 10 different stations. The Bacillariophyceae and Chlorophyceae were the most dominant class in the study area. The algal multiplication will be more in the pre monsoon season and it was observed that the Chlorophyceaen members were dominant, while the Bacillariophyceae were dominant during the post-monsoon season. Cyanophyceae was dominant only during the monsoon season because of its sensitivity toward light. The ANOVA (Two-way) analysis showed no significant difference between stations, and there is a considerable difference between seasons for dissolved oxygen, alkalinity, temperature, and total dissolved solids. While pH, showed no significant difference between seasons and stations, light intensity showed a substantial difference between stations and seasons. The temperature and dissolved oxygen showed a negative correlation. -
Rights based approaches to poverty reduction and development reality versus rhetoric
Over the past two decades erudite understanding of poverty has generated an overlapping consensus on what poverty entails. It is now almost universally accepted that poverty is multi-dimensional, and is a human rights violation that arises mainly from structural inequalities. The search for a holy grail of its reduction has seen widespread deployment of Rights-based newlineapproaches (RBAs), fronted by NGOs, since the turn of the century. In spite of this, coupled with a marked increase in development resources, poverty is proving to be robustly sustainable. The study determined the appropriateness and effectiveness of RBAs newlineas a guiding framework for sustainable poverty reduction and development. This entailed an assessment of the practical impact of RBAs and implementation of RBA strategies as well as identification of key variables necessary for successful rights-based development. As a descriptive survey, the study was underpinned by the pragmatism research philosophy, and employed a mixed methods approach with a concurrent embedded strategy that was largely qualitative but embedding a quantitative strand. Data were collected through interviews, observations and focus group discussions. In all 98 newlineparticipants from 25 villages and 9 organisations were directly studied newline(excluding observations) and were selected using probability and nonprobability sampling methods. Data were analysed using the thematic approach and SPSS. The results of the study highlighted that poverty which had increased during the period covered by the study, is still largely defined from the basic needs and income perspectives, and attributed to individual deficiencies. newlineUnderstanding of RBAs is weak and orientation on RBAs to staff and partners was inadequate. While the quality of development programs improved under RBAs, the quantity and distribution of development outputs and outcomes did not improve.