Bistability in droplet traffic at asymmetric microfluidic junctions

We present the first experimental demonstration of confined microfluidic droplets acting as discrete negative resistors, wherein the effective hydrodynamic resistance to flow in a microchannel is reduced by the presence of a droplet. The implications of this hitherto unexplored regime in the traffic of droplets in microfluidic networks are highlighted by demonstrating bistable filtering into either arm of symmetric and asymmetric microfluidic loops, and programming oscillatory droplet routing therein.     

Design and development of Library and Information Science Gateway: An Indian initiative

Subject gateways are already familiar features of the world information landscape and fulfill a useful role in directing Internet users to quality information. Subject gateways are online services and sites that provide searchable and browsable catalogues of Internet-based resources. The gateways typically focus on a related set of academic subject areas. These sources are online and often linked up with other relevant and related sites for more information on the same area. This paper describes the LISgateway, India's the first gateway in the field of library and information science and is a project of the University Grants Commission (UGC) of New Delhi, India, which was launched in April 2004. The service aims to provide a trusted source of selected, high-quality Internet information and also promote the electronic resources which result from research and teaching in the library profession.     

Framing “Bad News”

This study proposes a dichotomous set of frames, the Blame Frame and the Explain Frame, to examine how the news media cover sudden tragic events. The Blame Frame affixes responsibility on human agents and foregrounds the pursuit of punishment and justice. The Explain Frame takes responsibility away from human agents and describes the tragedy in terms of natural or quasi-natural processes. The study argues that social identities of “prospective” agents predict the difference in framing: “deviants” and “aliens” are held culpable while local elites are deemed innocent, although these identities are themselves social and draw on prevalent cultural beliefs. Ultimately, both frames serve to reproduce social boundaries and reinforce the status quo. Empirical evidence comes from the ideological analysis of the coverage of April 2013’s Boston bombings and the West fertilizer plant blast in local and national newspapers.