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Historical Coastal Maps: Importance and Challenges in their use in Studying Coastal Geomorphology
No full textHistorical maritime maps such as navigation charts, bird’s-eye view maps and plan maps preserve useful coastal information ofthe time. Through the archival survey of such documents, a large number of charts and maps (particularly of large and mediumscale) have been found that were published from sixteenth-century CE onwards. These maps– depict manmade structures such asforts and other buildings visible to sailors approaching the coast; and mark geomorphic features such as spit, bar, shoal, delta;with appropriate shape, relative position and size. Understanding the geomorphic features present in these maps and analyzingthem using remote sensing imagery, historical text and recent studies can immensely enhance knowledge of coastal geomorphicchanges in the interim period. However, there are challenges in analyzing these maps, such as scale variability within or across themaps, date of publication versus survey, originality of map content (copied versus original), the importance of the place to thecartographer, the purpose of making the map, cartographic skills, style and methods, etc. The present study discusses theuntapped potential of historical maritime maps and charts to understand coastal geomorphology along with the challenges one can confront while studying them and suggests ways to overcome them
Riverfront Gardens and City Walls of Mughal Agra: A Study of Their Locations, Extent and Subsequent Transformations Using Remote Sensing and GIS
No full textAnalysing old maps and correlating patterns with remote sensing (RS) images have been a useful technique for identifying features of cultural heritage. The present work has conducted a geospatial analysis of Mughal Agra by comparing historical maps and satellite imagery. This paper make two distinct contributions: (1) it expands existing findings on the riverfront Mughal city by identifying the position and footprint of all the riverfront complexes (by complex we mean property that have or had Mughal mansions, gardens or tombs) marked in a Mughal map of 1720, and (2) it makes original contribution by delineating the two-tiers of city walls and further attempts to comprehend the spatial transformations of the city since the Mughal period. This exploration resulted in recognizing traces of many lost historical built forms like city walls, gateways and riverfront complexes those of which have transformed, integrated, camouflaged or sometimes lost within the urban fabric of the present city of Agra
Challenges in Geospatial Documentation of Unprotected Built Heritage Sites in India
Get PDFIndia is generally accepted as a treasure trove of many thousands of built heritage sites. If one looks for a list of such sites with its geographical location and some basic identificatory description, unfortunately there is none, except for the ones protected by the Government authorities. Today with most geospatial databases being on digital platform, it is extremely important to recognize and also include the unprotected built heritage sites. Doing this is the need for the hour, in light of dramatic changes to the landscape caused by developmental activities that are insensitive to cultural heritage. This article looks in detail at the extent of digital information available on the location of Indian monuments (both protected and unprotected), the challenges in extracting and bringing it into a geospatial platform with the case study of Arasibidi in north Karnataka, India
Plurality of Wave–Particle Duality
Get PDFWave–particle duality has been one of the guiding concepts in the development of modern physics. Even though duality has been extensively studied, the concept possessing multiple definitions has not received due attention. The article, to begin with, establishes the plurality associated with duality by highlighting the presence of multiple interpretations in the history of quantum mechanics and also demonstrates how prominent scientific pedagogic texts, drawing from these different threads of development, differ in the depiction of duality. This plurality has not been recognized for several reasons. Among these, the article criticizes the simplistic historical depiction of duality by showing how the narration of this concept undergoing linear development glosses over crucial historical details. Following that, the nature of the concerned plurality is analysed by comparing it with other kinds of plurality found in science. The article concludes by emphasising the relevance of this discussion for the current scientific research and for the pedagogy of quantum mechanic
Using Conditioned Taste Aversion to Reduce Human-nonhuman Primate Conflict: A Comparison of Four Potentially Illness-inducing Drugs
Get PDFHuman-wildlife conflict in the form of crop- and livestock depredation is escalating worldwide and many species of nonhuman primates are considered serious crop pests throughout areas within their ranges that humans inhabit. Animals become habituated to many non-lethal mitigation strategies, which then become ineffective at reducing crop-foraging intensities by nonhuman primates, so people have turned to culling to reduce crop losses. An example of this problem is primate crop depredation in northern India, where rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) have been declared vermin. Conditioned Taste Aversion (CTA) develops when humans and nonhuman animals associate the taste and odor of food with post-consumption illness and results in subsequent refusal to consume the food associated with illness. The length of time that the food is avoided indicates the aversion’s strength. CTA can be induced deliberately when food is paired with a drug that causes nausea. Thus, exploiting CTA could be a non-lethal and effective method to control crop damage caused by vertebrate pests. We tested four drugs on 88 rhesus macaques to assess their ability to induce a CTA and determine safe and effective doses. Our results suggest that fenbendazole, an anthelminthic drug with a high margin of safety, is ineffective. A similar drug, levamisole also was ineffective, as the monkeys detected it during the acquisition phase. However, we were able to create aversions using thiabendazole, another anthelminthic, and 17 alpha-ethynyl estradiol (EE). Once a dose appropriate to induce a CTA was determined, EE demonstrated a success rate of 86 %, and thiabendazole 46 %. Both drugs have strengths and weaknesses. Only a small dose of EE (25 mg/kg of body weight) was required to induce a CTA, which can be concealed in a small amount of food. However, it is a synthetic hormone, so access to the drug should be limited, and its distribution in the environment controlled. Thiabendazole required a considerably higher dose (160 mg/kg of body weight) to establish a CTA and may be a greater challenge to conceal. Nonetheless, both drugs appeared to go undetected in these tests and could be used with mild baits, e.g., wheat and corn/maize. We urge continued conditioned taste aversion studies across species to reduce crop damage
