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No full textInvestigating historical attribution: luminescence dating of bricks from a submerged structure in southeastern India
No full textBy 2019, a long brick platform with some structures was exposed when the Thamirabarani River, the southernmost river in the city of Thirunelveli, dried up. The civic society rejoiced at the discovery of the exposed structure as it was thought to be the palace of the first capital city of the Pandya dynasty, an ancient Tamil dynasty of southern India. Two bricks were removed from the structure to determine their ages using the luminescence dating method, and their geochemical composition was analyzed using the X-ray fluorescence method. The bricks were composed of mud that underwent intermediate silicate weathering. High values of anomalous fading rate were observed from both the fine-grain polymineral (9.5–10.5%.decade−1) and coarse-grain K-feldspar (15.5%.decade−1), and this could be attributed to the significant presence of sanidine phase of K-feldspar. The fading corrected luminescence ages (1430–1530 CE) based on the coarse grain K-feldspar of the bricks placed the structure historically in the period of the Vijayanagar Empire, where the Late Pandyas had some autonomy in the south. These age estimates could resolve the hypothesis that the structure was not made by the Early Pandyas (400 BCE−300 CE). This study also reports discrepant ages for coarse quartz grains samples (1,689 CE; ± 10 years, 1 σ) and two fine polymineral grains samples (1634 CE; ± 90 years and 1699 CE; ± 30 years) compared to the age of the coarse K-feldspar grains samples. This discrepancy requires further investigation
Non-Linear Response of Pile Groups Under Static Lateral Load on Sloping Ground
No full textSingle-pile and pile-group arrangements on stable ground were investigated to assess the pile performance on natural or man-made slopes depending on the requirements. A laboratory study under 1g conditions was carried on a 1V:2H (V: Vertical, H: Horizontal) slope with two shear strengths (30 and 50 kPa) with consideration to three pile positions (crest, 1R, and 2R, where R is the relative stiffness factor), and the results were compared with those obtained on horizontal ground. The maximum capacity reduction for a pile group with spacing equal to three times the diameter on soil with shear strength of 30 kPa was 19.6%, 40%, and 53.2% when the pile group was placed at the crest, 1R, and 2R positions, respectively. When the pile was moved from the embankment to the slope side, the maximum bending moment increased as the passive wedge became smaller. A load ratio equation is proposed to calculate the reduced lateral capacity as the pile group moves toward the slope. The p–y curve provides a broader perspective with regard to the lateral resistance of the pile group under the considered conditions
Hot embossed micropatterned slippery Al 5083 alloys in stagnant and laminar saltwater
No full textSlippery AA 5083 alloy surfaces were fabricated by using ground (mean roughness-Ra = 45±2 µm), polished (Ra = 9±3 µm) and hot embossed micro-patterned specimens, and coating them with silicone oils of varying viscosities (1000−100000 cSt). The surface energy of aluminium alloy (AA) 5083 was estimated to be 850±210 mJ·m−2 using Schultz model. The ground/polished specimens were coated with 12±1 µm and 24±0.3 µm thick oil. They showcased slippery character, wherein apparent water static contact angles (SCAs) of 94±1° to 104±1°, slide-off angles (SAs) of 4±0° to 21±2° and contact angle hysteresis (CAH) of <10° were observed. Also, CAH and SAs revealed an increasing trend with an increase in the oil viscosity, irrespective of the coating thickness or the substrate roughness. In addition, the water droplets bounced-off the oil coated (24 µm thick) surfaces up to Weber no. (We) of 3.91. Furthermore, micro-patterned specimens were fabricated by hot embossing at 300 °C, 17+1 MPa, 5 min and comprise of hexagonally arranged pillars and holes with 6.5−7.1 µm diameter and 9.5−13.6 µm pitch. A key finding is that micro-pillars offered the highest tolerance to shear drainage of oil under saltwater (3.5 wt% NaCl) for up to 7 days, in both stagnant and flowing laminar (Reynolds no.‐Re =247) conditions, as compared to micro-holes and unpatterned surfaces. Interestingly, the slippery properties of oil coated unpatterned AA5083 have retained after 7 days of submersion, showing SCAs ≥ 97±3° and SAs ≤ 14°, despite the negative spreading coefficient of oil on AA5083 under water. Such slippery durable micro-pillared and micro-holed AA5083 surfaces could be highly beneficial for mitigating biological corrosion of ship hulls in marine environments
AMR pollution dynamics determined by the untreated wastewater domination of both the hydrology and point source loads to the Musi River, Hyderabad
No full textAntimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a silent pandemic, which is transmitted and spread through the environment. Throughout the global south, large urban areas interact with, and often exert considerable control on, both the hydrological and pollution dynamics on the rivers they are built around. Despite this, little is known about the prevalence, sources, and transport of AMR through these common, yet complex environments. Here, we quantified taxonomic and resistance genes (ARGs), sensitive and resistant bacteria (ARBs), and environmental conditions in both river water and sediment along the Musi River in Hyderabad, a city renowned for antimicrobial manufacturing and urban dominance of the river environment. We also developed estimates of urban wastewater inputs and a hydraulic model to understand the rapid changes in river flow and pollution concentrations occurring along the river length through the city. This reveals increasing, though variable, concentrations in ARGs along the river through the dry season, and stronger discrete point source and flow dilution dynamics in the wet season. The riverbed sediment stores far higher concentrations than the water column, especially in the dry season, and has more dynamic interaction with the river during the wet season. This study reveals the importance of both flow and removal dynamics in controlling AMR prevalence in the environment, in a context that is both common and expanding throughout the global south
REV-ERBβ Binding Pocket Dynamics With Implications for Rational Design of Small Molecule Modulators
No full textREV-ERBβ is a nuclear receptor (NR) with heme as an endogenous ligand that regulates its transcriptional activity. With a key role in cellular functions such as glucose metabolism, immune response, and dysregulation in pathologies such as Type-2 diabetes mellitus and obesity, small molecule agonists and antagonists targeting REV-ERBs have been discovered. However, due to a lack of crystal structures in complex with these compounds, the structural and dynamical basis of these activities still remains elusive and hinders the rational design of molecules targeting REV-ERB. Using molecular dynamics simulations and docking studies, we have characterized the dynamics of REV-ERBβ ligand-binding domain (LBD) in different conformational states. The presence of heme in the binding pocket within LBD was found to dampen its dynamics as well as nuclear co-repressor (NCoR) peptide binding. We further show that the binding of the antagonist destabilizes the NCoR peptide binding to LBD mediated by loss of interactions with residues at the NCoR-REV-ERBβ interface. These findings could be utilized to design molecular scaffolds with better activity and selectivity against REV-ERBβ
Ecological consciousness and the dynamics of Puru?a-Prak?ti: the Da??vat?ra in Shri Jayad?va's G?tagobinda
No full textGraded components of local cohomology modules supported on C-monomial ideals
No full textLet A be a Dedekind domain of characteristic zero such that its localization at every maximal ideal has mixed characteristic with finite residue field. Let R=A[X1,…,Xn] be a polynomial ring and I=(a1U1,…,acUc)⊆R an ideal, where aj∈A (not necessarily units) and Uj's are monomials in X1,…,Xn. We call such an ideal I as a C-monomial ideal. Consider the standard multigrading on R. We produce a structure theorem for the multigraded components of the local cohomology modules HIi(R) for i≥0. We further analyze the torsion part and the torsion-free part of these components. We show that if A is a PID then each component can be written as a direct sum of its torsion part and torsion-free part. As a consequence, we obtain that their Bass numbers are finite
