Archives-June 2012

Disease causing pathogens have a strong relationship with the environment wherein the animal as well as the microorganisms lives. The present study was conducted to evaluate the relationship between the meteorological data and the disease prevalence in cattle in Tamilnadu. The data revealed a closer relationship between the climatic factors (temperature, rainfall and relative humidity) and infectious diseases (Anthrax, Black Quarter, Hemorrhagic Septicemia and Foot and Mouth Disease). Hence, the incidence of infectious diseases were found to be significantly (P<0.05) associated with the season and microclimatic factors.

The transfer reactive power from production source to consumption areas during steady-state operating conditions is a major problem of voltage stability. Hence voltage stability enhancement margin is interrelated with Reactive power loss (RPL). In practical, the power system network has 80-90% inductive loads. When the loads are increased, the line currents are increased, reflecting to the increase in Reactive power loss. This will leads to voltage instability that means the power system gets closer to the instability point. Reactive power can be dispatched effectively to maintain acceptable voltage levels. Maintaining viable voltage levels are very important to avoid voltage collapse. The optimal allocation of a VAR compensator is implemented using Genetic Algorithm (GA) and Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). These two algorithms are implemented considering its less memory requirement and inherent simplicity. Simulation is carried out by using MATLAB Software for IEEE 14 bus system and the results are presented and analysed.

In the 1950s, the idea of development and the necessity to pay attention to factors of social welfare as well as reduction of poverty highlighted the intervention of governments in economic activities, but since the 1970s and with the formation of the idea of centrality of humanity in development, it was realized that physical assets are not enough to deal with issues arising from underdevelopment in countries, however social issues and policies, and the formation of human capitals are at least as significant as physical assets. Therefore, social support policies in the framework of welfare states and subsidy policies were placed on the top agenda of development programs in different countries. However, what was ignored with regard to payment of subsidies was proper targeting of such policies in a way that most countries were paying their subsidies to general public. Following the debt crisis and global recession in the 1980s and the comparison of the experiences in countries of East Asia, Latin America, South Asia, and Africa, the focus of development approaches was changed to improvement of economic management and acceptance of a greater role for market forces. In this new approach, most countries embarked on reforming their subsidy plans. The main reason for these countries in implementing reform plans was to avoid public subsidies because of their comprehensiveness, population growth, and the increase in the price of goods and services in the global market. In addition, inefficiency of governmental distribution system and negative effects of controlling the price of products for the producers were among other reasons. This article initially provides a definition of subsidy, and its different forms and costs, and will then review the experience of different countries with regard to subsidies. It will eventually investigate the history, objectives, and consequences of subsidy reform plan in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

This study examined the effects of teachers’ use of analogies on the achievement of Senior School Biology Students in Oro, Kwara State, Nigeria. A total of one hundred and ninety-nine students comprising 110 males and 89 females in senior secondary school two, were purposively sampled from four schools in Oro. The sampled students were assigned into two groups, experimental (97 students) and control (102 students). The reliability of the instrument was determined by administering the test to forty students of another school not participating in the study and the reliability coefficient of 0.73 was obtained using Pearson Product Moment Correlation Coefficient, at 0.05 alpha level of significance. The test scores were analysed using mean scores, t-test and Analysis of Covariance on the hypotheses formulated. Findings from the study showed that there is a significant difference in the achievement of the experimental group exposed to analogies and the control group exposed to the conventional method. The mean score of the experimental group was 18.73 compared to conventional group with the mean score of 15.32. It was hereby recommended, among other things, that biology teachers should incorporate innovative instructional strategies, like analogies into their conventional teaching method for their teaching and their students’ learning of biology

Indian economy has been growing at the rate of 8-9% during the last three years thus placing it in the top ten economies in the world. According to one estimate India will be the third largest economy by 2012. Another indication of growing India’s international visibility is the growing number of Indian multinational companies in the area of software services, Information Technology, ITES, Biotechnology, Pharmacy, Finance, Petroleum, iron and steel, retail and services. It means more and more companies will open their production facilities and offices outside India. Indian companies have to see as to what styles of management are appropriate in their global operations.

In the digital age, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is benefiting billions across the world by bridging certain gaps and multiplying human potential in every walk of life. Digital services provision that is being developed for our society has enormous positive potential. The internet has revolutionized the way businesses approach and conduct work. For consumers, the idea of purchasing online is appealing for several reasons. A well designed and implemented e-commerce system can lower transaction costs, reduce inefficiencies, promote better information flow, and encourage better co-operation between buyers and sellers. With little more than a click of a mouse, business can communicate, engage in commerce, and expand their business opportunities. At the same time, there are certain social, political, and economic implications being observed globally either in the form of ‘spying websites’ like ‘wikileaks’ hacking activities or cybercrimes against women. Along with promoting the use of Information and Communication technologies since their inception, countries have been looking at ways to counteract the negatives simultaneously.

According to traditional financial theory, the world and its participants are, for the most part, rational "wealth maximizers". However, there are many instances where emotion and psychology persuade our decisions, causing us to act in irregular or irrational ways. Behavioral finance is a rather new area that seeks to combine behavioral and cognitive psychological theory with conventional economics and finance to provide explanations for why people make irrational financial decisions. There are some irregularities that conventional financial theories have failed to explain. And what are the original reasons and biases that cause some people to behave irrationally and often in opposition to their top benefits. When using the labels "conventional" or "modern" to describe finance, we are talking about the type of finance that is based on rational and logical theories, such as the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) and the efficient market hypothesis (EMH). These theories assume that people, for the most part, behave rationally and predictable in making decisions.

The research is based on the fact that different courses of Hepatitis B virus infection are predisposed by the variations in the viral genome. The Hepatitis viral genome is unique as it consists of four overlapping genes, and for the purpose of this study, the pre-core gene was selected of the four genes for mutation analysis. Viral DNA was isolated from acute viral Hepatitis B patients and was amplified by polymerase chain reaction and then separated by Agarose gel electrophoresis resulting in isolated bands of 309 bps and the mutation was detected by direct sequencing. Genotyping was carried out with the help of MultAlin software, and the observations resulted in the conclusion of definite mutation in codon 17 of valine to phenylalanine, a stop codon mutation and also in codon 11 of phenylalanine to leucine of less significance (genotypic variation), thus indicating that the gene has undergone mutation at a very early stage in the course of the disease.

The aim of the study was to investigate and compare antibacterial and antifungal activity of leaves extract taken from four different plants Quisqualis indica Linn., Calotropis procera Ait., Achyranthes aspera Linn., and Ocimum sanctum Linn. against ten microorganisms comprising of five bacteria (Bacillus subtilis, Enterobacter aerogenes, Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa) and five fungi (Alternaria porri, Aspergillus flavus, Aspergillus niger, Aspergillus oryzae, Penicillium chrysogenum) using well diffusion method. The in vitro study revealed that methanol extract was more effective than aqueous extract. Leaf extracts of Quisqualis indica Linn. and Achyranthes aspera Linn. was reported to be more effective on fungal species and on contrary leaf extracts of Calotropis procera Ait. and Ocimum sanctum Linn. was found more effective on bacterial species.

This article briefly discusses about Consumer Education which provides the knowledge necessary to develop citizens into intelligent consumers. Formal Education, Non-Formal Education, Advantages, Aims of Consumer Education, Benefits of Consumer Education, Sources for imparting Consumer Education, Consumer Education to Rural Citizens, Approaches and Techniques of Consumer Education, Educational Institutes and Magazines in India and other countries providing Consumer Education, Resolutions of IOCU on Consumer Education and Consumer Guidance and Counselling are discussed.