Three dimensional couette flow and heat transfer through a porous medium with variable permeability

This paper reports research on the effects of variations in injection velocity and permeability on the heat transfer and flow through a highly porous medium between two horizontal parallel plates situated at constant distance with constant suction by the upper plate. Due to this type of variation in injection velocity and in permeability the flow becomes three dimensional. The governing equations are solved by adopting complex variable notations to obtain the expressions for the velocity and temperature field. The skin-friction along the main flow direction and rate of heat transfer are discussed with the help of graphs.     

Giant magnetoresistance

The 2007 Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded to Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg for the discovery of giant magnetoresistance (GMR). GMR is achieved in metallic multilayers, where the resistance of the multilayer changes considerably by the application of a magnetic field. This has paved the way for high density data storage in magnetic media. (left) Debakanata Samal is a research scholar at the Deaprtment of Physics at IISc, Bangalore. His research interests are in magnetotransport in oxide multilayers, spintronics. (right) P S Anil Kumar is an Asst. Professor at the Department of Physics, IISc Bangalore. His research interests are in spintronics, magnetic nano-structures, surface-and thin-film magnetism, magnetotransport in metallic multilayers and oxides, and spin-polarized electron scattering.     

A cloud computing adoption in Indian SMEs: Scale development and validation approach

The purpose of this research article is to identify the critical success criteria/factors that affect the cloud computing adoption and examine structure, reliability and validity of the criteria in the SMEs industry. This study considers nine types of criteria/factors with fifty-one sub-criteria, which have somewhat previously been used, and creates a ranking model that offers decision makers to measure the prior implementation of cloud computing adoption. A questionnaire-based survey research was used to collect data from 110 firms belonging to the SMEs industry in India. In this paper, the data collected was analysed by an integrated approach. Firstly, an Analytic Hierarchy Process approach was applied to find the significant fact of each criterion as the assessable indices of the cloud computing adoption. Secondly, an Exploratory Factor Analysis and Confirmatory Factor Analysis were used to examine structure, reliability and validity of the criteria. The data was tabulated in a Microsoft Excel sheet and then imported in SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 20) for analysis. The findings discovered that ‘Security and Privacy’, ‘Organizational Risk’, ‘Sharing and Collaboration’, ‘Confidentiality’, and ‘Integrity’ have a major effect on the adoption of cloud computing. The research was conducted in the SMEs industry in India, which may limit the generalizability of the findings. The findings and recommendations offer cloud computing service providers as well as users with a better understanding of what affects the cloud computing adoption feature, with a relevant understanding of the current scenario. The research aided in the application of the new technology of cloud computing adoption in the SMEs industry in India through the use of a wide range of criteria. The findings also help organizations study their information technology investments when applying cloud computing.     

Evaluation of Oxidative Stress and Antioxidant Status in Pregnant Anemic Women

The present study was conducted to investigate the oxidant–antioxidant status in iron deficient pregnant anemic women. One hundred thirty pregnant women with iron deficiency anemia (IDA) were divided into three groups, namely mild (50), moderate (50) and severe (30) anemic along with pregnant healthy women as controls (50). The complete blood count, plasma lipid peroxidation products, enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants were measured according to respective protocols. The levels of complete blood count, iron, ferritin along with antioxidant enzymes namely catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase and reduced glutathione were significantly reduced in all IDA groups. However, the level of oxidized glutathione, lipid peroxides, protein carbonyls, conjugated dienes were found significantly increased in all anemic patients. Antioxidant vitamins, namely C, E and A were also found significantly decreased in IDA patients. On the basis of our results, it may be concluded that IDA tends to increase the pro-oxidant components, which may result in various complications including peroxidation of vital body molecules resulting in increased risk for pregnant women as well as fetus.     

Collection development and access to serials in the Central Library of IITs in India

The vital task of the libraries attached to the educational institutions of higher learning is the collection development of information resources as per the requirements of the users. The Central Library of IITs have long been recognized their responsibility to support the study and research of their parent institutions with the rich collection development of information resources both in print as well as electronic format to cater the needs of the academic communities as per the multi-disciplinary and diverse academic program of the respective institutions where greater emphasis on collection of serials, the essential and integral component of updated scholarly communication. The study provides a vivid picture about the current status of serials collection in the libraries attached to the Premier Institutions of India in the field of science and technology to boost up the academic performances.