Coryphoid palms from the K-Pg boundary of central India and their biogeographical implications:Evidence from megafossil remains

Ten palm leaf impressions are documented from the latest Maastrichtian(late Cretaceous) to early Danian(earliest Paleocene) sediments(K-Pg,c.66-64 Ma) of the Mandla Lobe of the Deccan Intertrappean Beds,Madhya Pradesh,central India.The palmate leaf shape along with a definite wellpreserved costa support their placement in the subfamily Coryphoideae of the family Arecaceae.We place all recovered palm leaf specimens in the fossil genus Sabalites,report seven species of coryphoid palms and describe two new species namely,Sabalities umariaensis sp.nov.and Sabalites ghughuaensis sp.nov.The fossils indicate that coryphoid palms were highly diverse in central India by the latest Cretaceous.These and earlier reported coryphoid palm fossils from the same locality indicate that they experienced a warm and humid tropical environment during the time of deposition.These discoveries confirm the presence of a diversity of Coryphoideae in Gondwana prior to the India-Eurasia collision and provide information about coryphoid biogeographical history over geological time.Based on megafossil remains,we trace coryphoid palm migration pathways from India to mainland Southeast(SE) Asia and other parts of Asia after the docking of the Indian subcontinent with Eurasia early in the Paleogene.

Dynamicity of Land Use/Land Cover(LULC):An analysis from peri-urban and rural neighbourhoods of Durgapur Municipal Corporation(DMC)in India

The availability of better economic possibilities and well-connected transportation networks has attracted people to migrate to peri-urban and rural neighbourhoods,changing the landscape of regions outside the city and fostering the growth of physical infrastructure.Using multi-temporal satellite images,the dynamics of Land Use/Land Cover(LULC)changes,the impact of urban growth on LULC changes,and regional environmental implications were investigated in the peri-urban and rural neighbourhoods of Durgapur Municipal Corporation in India.The study used different case studies to highlight the study area’s heterogeneity,as the phenomenon of change is not consistent.Landsat TM and OLI-TIRS satellite images in 1991,2001,2011,and 2021 were used to analyse the changes in LULC types.We used the relative deviation(RD),annual change intensity(ACI),uniform intensity(UI)to show the dynamicity of LULC types(agriculture land;built-up land;fallow land;vegetated land;mining area;and water bodies)during 1991-2021.This study also applied the Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory(DEMATEL)to measure environmental sensitivity zones and find out the causes of LULC changes.According to LULC statistics,agriculture land,built-up land,and mining area increased by 51.7,95.46,and 24.79 km^(2),respectively,from 1991 to 2021.The results also suggested that built-up land and mining area had the greatest land surface temperature(LST),whereas water bodies and vegetated land showed the lowest LST.Moreover,this study looked at the relationships among LST,spectral indices(Normalized Differenced Built-up Index(NDBI),Normalized Difference Vegetation Index(NDVI),and Normalized Difference Water Index(NDWI)),and environmental sensitivity.The results showed that all of the spectral indices have the strongest association with LST,indicating that built-up land had a far stronger influence on the LST.The spectral indices indicated that the decreasing trends of vegetated land and water bodies were 4.26 and 0.43 km^(2)/a,respectively,during 1991-2021.In summary,this study can help the policy-makers to predict the increasing rate of temperature and the causes for the temperature increase with the rapid expansion of built-up land,thus making effective peri-urban planning decisions.

Evidence of the oldest extant vascular plant(horsetails)from the Indian Cenozoic

Equisetum(Equisetaceae)has long been a focus of attention for botanists and palaeontologists because,given its extensive and well-documented fossil record,it is considered the oldest extant vascular plant and a key element in understanding vascular plant evolution.However,to date,no authentic fossil evidence of Equisetum has been found from the Indian Cenozoic.Here,we describe a new fossil species,namely,E.siwalikum sp.nov.,recovered from the middle Siwalik(Late Miocene)sediments of Himachal Pradesh,western Himalaya.We identified fossil specimens based on morphological and epidermal characters.In addition,X-Ray diffraction(XRD)analysis was used to determine the mineral composition of compressed stems of Equisetum.The close affinity of our recovered Siwalik fossils to Equisetum is supported by the presence of both macromorphological and epidermal characters.Because Equisetum generally grows in wet conditions around water reservoirs,our findings indicate that the fossil locality was humid and surrounded by swamp and lowland regions during deposition.Ample fossil evidence indicates that this sphenopsid once existed in the western Himalaya during the Siwalik period.However,at present Equisetum is confined to a particular area of our fossil locality,probably a consequence of severe environmental changes coupled with competition from opportunistic angiosperms.Our discovery of Equisetum fossils in appreciable numbers from the Siwalik sediments of the Himachal Himalayas is unique and constitutes the first reliable recognition of Equisetum from the Indian Cenozoic.

Siwalik plant megafossil diversity in the Eastern Himalayas: A review

The Eastern Himalayas are renowned for their high plant diversity.To understand how this modern botanical richness formed,it is critical to investigate past plant biodiversity preserved as fossils throughout the eastern Himalayan Siwalik succession(middle Miocene-early Pleistocene).Here,we present a summary of plant diversity records that document Neogene floristic and climate changes.We do this by compiling published records of megafossil plant remains,because these offer better spatial and temporal resolution than do palynological records.Analyses of the Siwalik floral assemblages based on the distribution of the nearest living relative taxa suggest that a tropical wet evergreen forest was growing in a warm humid monsoonal climate at the deposition time.This qualitative interpretation is also corroborated by published CLAMP(Climate Leaf Analysis Multivariate Program) analyses.Here,we also reconstruct the climate by applying a new common proxy WorldClim2 calibration.This allows the detection of subtle climate differences between floral assemblages free of artefacts introduced by using different methodologies and climate calibrations.An analysis of the Siwalik floras indicates that there was a gradual change in floral composition.The lower Siwalik assemblages provide evidence of a predominance of evergreen elements.An increase in deciduous elements in the floral composition is noticed towards the close of the middle Siwalik and the beginning of the upper Siwalik formation.This change reflects a climatic difference between Miocene and Plio-Pleistocene times.This review helps us to understand under what paleoenvironmental conditions plant diversity occurred and evolved in the eastern Himalayas throughout the Cenozoic.

Variation and dispersal of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) during COVID-19 lockdown over Kolkata metropolitan city,India investigated through HYSPLIT model

The higher concentration of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) in the lower atmosphere is severely harmful for human health and it also makes visibility diminution along with weather and climate modifications.The main objective is to find out the spatiotemporal variation and dispersal of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) along with COVID-19 infection in the dusty city Kolkata.The consecutive two years PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) data of different stations have been obtained from State Pollution Control Board,Govt.of West Bengal.Forward trajectory analysis has been done through HYSPLIT(Hybrid Single Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory)model to find the path and direction of air particles.The result showed that the various meteorological or environmental factors(such as temperature,relative humidity,wind,wind speed,pressure and gusty wind)and geographical location regulate the spatiotemporal variation of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5).These factors like high temperature with relative humidity and strong wind influence to disperse the particulate matters from north to south direction from city to outside during summer in Kolkata metropolitan city.During summer(both pre and lockdown years),the height of particles is extended up to 1000 m owing to active atmospheric ventilation whereas in winter it is confined within 100 m.The HYSPLIT model clearly specified that the particles dispersed from south,south-west to north and north east direction due to strong wind.The constant magnification of PM_(10) and PM_(2.5) in the lower atmosphere leads to greater frequency of COVID-19 infections and deaths.In Kolkata,the one of the crucial reasons of high infection and deaths(COVID-19)is co-morbidity of people.

Influence of various shapes of nanoparticles on unsteady stagnation-point flow of Cu-H_(2)O nanofluid on a flat surface in a porous medium:A stability analysis

The nanofluid and porous medium together are able to fulfill the requirement of high cooling rate in many engineering problems.So,here the impact of various shapes of nanoparticles on unsteady stagnation-point flow of Cu-H_(2)O nanofluid on a flat surface in a porous medium is examined.Moreover,the thermal radiation and viscous dissipation effects are considered.The problem governing partial differential equations are converted into self-similar coupled ordinary differential equations and those are numerically solved by the shooting method.The computed results can reveal many vital findings of practical importance.Firstly,dual solutions exist for decelerating unsteady flow and for accelerating unsteady and steady flows,the solution is unique.The presence of nanoparticles affects the existence of dual solution in decelerating unsteady flow only when the medium of the flow is a porous medium.But different shapes of nanoparticles are not disturbing the dual solution existence range,though it has a considerable impact on thermal conductivity of the mixture.Different shapes of nanoparticles act differently to enhance the heat transfer characteristics of the base fluid,i.e.,the water here.On the other hand,the existence range of dual solutions becomes wider for a larger permeability parameter related to the porous medium.Regarding the cooling rate of the heated surface,it rises with the permeability parameter,shape factor(related to various shapes of Cu-nanoparticles),and radiation parameter.The surface drag force becomes stronger with the permeability parameter.Also,with growing values of nanoparticle volume fraction,the boundary layer thickness(BLT)increases and the thermal BLT becomes thicker with larger values of shape factor.For decelerating unsteady flow,the nanofluid velocity rises with permeability parameter in the case of upper branch solution and an opposite trend for the lower branch is witnessed.The thermal BLT is thicker with radiation parameter.Due to the existence of dual solutions,a linear stability analysis is made and it is concluded that the upper branch and unique solutions are stable solutions.

Honour, Virtue and Oppression in Ann Radcliffe＇s The Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne

Georgian historiography being an attempt to create a shared and self-congratulatory impression of the past serves as verbal equivalent of a national monument. Ann Radcliffe＇s Castles of Athlin and Dunbayne was written during the acme of popularity of gothified histories. This makes the novel a high drama of murder and revenge, usurpation and restoration, love and abduction, cruelty and virtue upholding common people＇s vow of joining hands to fight for ethical cause of avenging oppression against the backdrop of the Scottish highlands. On the one hand, the novel helps in perpetuating nationalist identity among English citizens by acclaiming virtuous, just, and moral act of the rightful feudal Chief Osbert and declaiming in contrast the avarice, oppression and lust of the usurper Malcolm. On the other hand, the self-devastating pride and calm resignation of the highborn women such as Mary and Louisa portrayed in the novel conform and thereby contribute to the notion of the ＂Angel in the House＂. The paper, thus, will examine the role of prevalent sense of honour and values imbibed in the major characters of the novel in bringing justice to the oppressed characters.

Earliest megafossils of scandent calamoid palms from the Deccan Intertrappean Beds of Central India and their paleobiogeographic implications

Two well-preserved petrified palm stems from the latest Maastrichtian(Late Cretaceous) to earliest Danian(Early Paleocene) sediments of the Deccan Intertrappean Beds of Madhya Pradesh, Central India are described. Their significant anatomical characteristics include a Calamus-type general stem pattern,the presence of well-preserved fibrovascular bundles(fvbs) with two wide metaxylem vessel elements(230 μm-250 μm) and one phloem strand, uniform density of fvbs, lack of continuity between protoxylem and metaxylem vessel elements, and an absence of centrifugal differentiation of sclerenchymatous fibrous parts.These features reveal a close resemblance to those of extant genera of scandent Calamoideae. The permineralized stems are described as a new species namely, Palmoxylon calamoides Kumar, Roy et Khan sp. nov.The fossils represent the oldest reliable fossil records of this family, supporting their Gondwanan origin, their importance in tracing their migration pathways from India to Europe and other continents after the docking of the Indian subcontinent with Eurasia during the Paleocene, and an “Out-of-India” dispersal hypothesis. Today the subfamily Calamoideae is disjunctly occurred in Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and South America, but the poor deep-time fossil record of this subfamily with a small number of Cenozoic fossils makes hypotheses concerning its origin and dispersal difficult to evaluate. The present study has significant implications for the origin and migration of this subfamily and the paleoclimate.

Inventory models for deteriorating items with fixed lifetime, partial backordering and carbon emissions policies

In this study,a sustainable inventory model is devised to obtain the retailer’s optimal pricing and replenishment policies for degrading items having a certain lifetime incorporating partial back order as a shortage and dynamic demand under two different scenarios(a)carbon cap and trade policy(b)carbon tax policy.The primary objective of this study is to maximize the retailer’s annual total profit.The retailer’s profit function has been optimized with the help of convexity/concavity criteria employing classical optimization techniques.Based on a real case study,two different numerical examples and corresponding optimal solutions have been shown for both models with the help of Lingo 17 software.Moreover,the impact of the major inventory parameters and prominent managerial insights are presented for the robustness of the proposed model that can cooperate with industrial managers/decision-makers for the overall improvement of his/her industry to take effective and qualitative decisions.

A simple chemical method for the synthesis of Cu^(2+) engrafted MgAl_(2)O_(4) nanoparticles: Efficient fluoride adsorbents, photocatalyst and latent fingerprint detection

An adaptable, energy efficient chemical process is employed to synthesize Cu^2+engrafted MgAl2O4 nanoparticles(Mg1-xCuxAl2O4, x = 0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5 abbreviated as MCA0, MCA1, MCA3,and MCA5 respectively), using chelating ligand and the calcination temperature was determined by the thermogravimetric analysis of the precursor mass.They acted as good fluoride adsorbent in the presence of co-ions, different pH(2–11) via chemisorption revealed from Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy(FTIR) and photodegraded Methylene Blue(MB).The satisfactory results were for MCA1(specific surface area 25.05 m^2/g) with 97%fluoride removal at pH 7.0 for the 10 mg/L initial fluoride concentration for 1.5 g/L adsorbent dose with 45 min contact time obeying the Langmuir isotherm model with negative thermodynamic parameters and 4 mmol of MCA3 with 98.51% photodegradation for 10-5 mol/L MB solution obeying pseudo-second-order and pseudo-first-order kinetics respectively.The proposed photodegradation mechanism of MB was established by the FTIR and high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) analysis.The nanoparticles are cubic, estimated through X-ray diffraction(XRD) and transmission electron microscopy(TEM) analysis.The band gap energies, grain size, and the effective working pH were estimated by diffuse reflectance spectra(DRS), scanning electron microscope(SEM), and zero-point potential analysis respectively.A soil candle with MCA1 also fabricated for the household purpose and tested with some fluorinated field samples.The MCA3 was able to enhance the latent fingerprint on smooth surfaces.

Multi-item EPQ model with learning effect on imperfect production over fuzzy-random planning horizon

Uncertainty is certain in the world of uncertainty.This study revisits an economic production quantity(EPQ)model with shortages for stock-dependent demand of the items with reworking and disposing of the imperfect ones over a random planning horizon under the joint effect of inflation and time value of money,where the expected time length is imprecise in nature.Transmission of learning effect has been incorporated to reduce the defective production.The total expected profit over the random planning horizon is maximized subject to the imprecise space constraint.The possibility,necessity and credibility measures have been introduced to defuzzify the model.The simulation-based genetic algorithm is used to make decision for the above EPQ model in different measures of uncertainty.The model is illustrated through an example.Sensitivity analysis shows the impacts of different parameters on the objective function in the model.

Occurrence of Persea Mill. from the Siwalik Forest of Darjeeling, Eastern Himalaya： Paleoclimatic and Paleogeographic Implications

Fossil leaf remains of two new species of Persea Mill., belonging to the family Lauraceae collected from the lower part of the Siwalik sediments（Gish Clay Formation of Sevok Group, Middle Miocene） of Darjeeling foothills of eastern Himalaya, are described. The new species are Persea miogamblei sp. nov. and Persea neovillosa sp. nov.. On the basis of leaf architecture（size, shape and venation pattern） fossil leaves described in this article closely resemble modern leaves of Persea gamblei（King ex Hook. f.） Kosterm. and Persea villosa（Roxb.） Kosterm.. The geographic distribution of the fossils and their modern counterparts are discussed and on that basis tropical evergreen vegetation with a warm and humid climate at the time of deposition of the Siwalik sediments is suggested in contrast to the present day tropical deciduous vegetation in this area. The present finding also suggests probable migration of these lauraceous taxa to Southeast Asia.

Bidirectional carrier aggregation in next-generation radio-over-fiber heterogeneous network based on FBMC

We have projected and verified a bidirectional intra-/inter-radio-access-technology carrier-aggregation method for a next-generation heterogeneous mobile network supported by filter bank multicarrier(FBMC).Successful transmission of intra/inter-band carrier aggregation between five broadband FBMC signals and three bands 4G long-term-evolution-advanced signal over 50 km single-mode fiber plus 10 m free-space is successfully broadcasted by employing an incoherent light-injection scheme in downlink.In uplink,two intra-bands carrier-aggregated wireless local area network Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 802.11 g signal is carried over the equal distance.High receiver sensitivity,low error vector magnitude,and clear constellation diagrams show successful delivery of different wireless services for different consumers.Therefore,the proposed hybrid system should become a potential solution for a future mobile front-haul network because of its low latency and high capacity.

Decaying items inventory models with partial linked-to-order upstream trade credit and downstream full trade credit

In practice,any member of supply chain may offer full or partial trade credit contract to his downstream level.Full trade credit is the case that the latter is allowed to defer whole payment to the end of credit period.In partial trade credit,however,the downstream supply chain member must pay for a proportion of the purchased goods at first,and can delay paying for the rest until the end of credit period.This paper considers a two-level trade credit,where the supplier offers order-quantity-dependent partial trade credit to a retailer,who suggests full trade credit to his customers.An economic order quantity(EOQ)inventory model of a deteriorating item with expiration dates is formulated here.Theoretical results are developed to obtain the optimal solutions to the problem.Numerical examples and sensitivity analysis are performed to justify the proposed models and theoretical results and managerial insights are provided.

Mapping the multi-hazards risk index for coastal block of Sundarban,India using AHP and machine learning algorithms

Global climate change,climate extremes,and overuse of natural resources are all major contributors to the risk brought on by cyclones.In I West Bengal state of India,the Pathar Pratima Block frequently experiences a variety of risks that result in significant loss of life and livelihood.In order to govern coastal society,it is crucial to measure and map the multi-hazards risk status.To depict the multi-hazards vulnerability and risk status,no cutting-edge models are currently being applied.Predicting distinct physical vulnerabilities is possible using a variety of cutting-edge machine learning techniques.This study set out to precisely describe multi-hazard risk using powerful machine learning methods.This study involved the use of Analytic Hierarchical Analysis and two cutting-edge machine-learning algorithms-Random Forest and Artificial Neural Network,which are yet underutilized in this area.The multi-hazards risk was determined by taking into account six criteria.The southern and eastern regions of the research area are clearly identified by the multi-hazards risk maps as having high to extremely high hazards risk levels.Cyclonic hazards and embankment breaching are the main dominant factors among the multi-hazards.The machine learning approach is the most accurate model for mapping the multi-hazards risk where the ROC result of Random forest and artificial neural network is more than the conventional method AHP.Here RF is the most validated model than the other two.The effectiveness,root mean square error,true skill statistics,Friedman and Wilcoxon rank test,and area under the curve of receiver operating characteristic tests were used to evaluate the prediction capacity of newly constructed models.The RMSE values of 0.24 and 0.26,TSS values of 0.82 and 0.73,and AUC values of 88.20%and 89.10%as produced by RF and ANN models,respectively,were all excellent.