Disseminating a warning message to evacuate: A simulation study of the behaviour of neighbours

Large-scale evacuations are a recurring theme on news channels, whether in response to major natural or manmade disasters. The role of warning dissemination is a key part in the success of such large-scale evacuations and its inadequacy in certain cases has been a ‘primary contribution to deaths and injuries’ (Hayden et al., 2007). Along with technology-driven ‘official warning channels’ (e.g. sirens, mass media), the role of unofficial channel (e.g. neighbours, personal contacts, volunteer wardens) has proven to be significant in warning the public of the need to evacuate. Although post-evacuation studies identify the behaviours of evacuees as disseminators of the warning message, there has not been a detailed study that quantifies the effects of such behaviour on the warning message dissemination. This paper develops an Agent-Based Simulation (ABS) model of multiple agents (evacuee households) in a hypothetical community to investigate the impact of behaviour as an unofficial channel on the overall warning dissemination. Parameters studied include the percentage of people who warn their neighbours, the efficiency of different official warning channels, and delay time to warn neighbours. Even with a low proportion of people willing to warn their neighbour, the results showed considerable impact on the overall warning dissemination.     

Design,synthesis, molecular docking,and spectral studies of new class of carbazolyl polyhydroquinoline derivatives as promising antibacterial agents with noncytotoxicity towards human mononuclear cells from peripheral blood

In the present study, we report the design and eco-benign synthesis of new class of carbazolyl-1,4-dihydropyridine (1,4-CDHP) and carbazolyl-1,8-dioxodecahydroacridine (CAD) derivatives via a three-component coupling reaction of substituted carbazole aldehydes, ethyl acetoacetate/dimedone, and ammonium acetate under solvent-free conditions at 112°C to 115°C. We also report an efficient one-pot synthesis of new class of carbazolyl polyhydroquinoline (CPQ) derivatives via a four-component coupling reaction of substituted ethyl acetoacetate, dimedone, ammonium acetate, and carbazole aldehydes in acetonitrile/water medium (3:1) at 73°C to 75°C in moderate yields. All the products were thoroughly characterized by ¹H NMR, ¹³C NMR, Fourier transform infrared (FTIR), mass spectral, and CHN analysis. The synthesized heterocyclic compounds were evaluated for their in vitro antibacterial activity against pathogenic strains of both Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria. Minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) of the active compounds was evaluated by macrodilution method. The CPQ derivative ( 8a ) displayed superior antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Salmonella typhi with the MIC values of 16.0 to 32.0 μg/mL in comparison with the reference drug. The mechanism of antibacterial action of the CPQ derivatives was investigated via scanning electron microscope (SEM) studies. The molecular docking studies indicate that the CPQ derivative ( 8a ) binds to the cell wall protein of E coli and P aeruginosa by formation of hydrogen bonds with amino acid residues (TYR328 and GLU249) of the bacterial cell wall protein. The 1,4-CDHP, CAD, and CPQ derivatives were either noncytotoxic or exhibited minimal cytotoxicity towards human mononuclear cells from peripheral blood. All the products were evaluated for Lipinski rule of five (RO5) and were found to have good oral bioavailability.     

Metal‐based antitumor,cytotoxic and antimicrobial activity: pharmacological evaluation of Knoevenagel condensate β‐diketone Schiff base thiosemicarbazone Cu(II) and Zn(II) complexes

Knoevenagel condensate Schiff base ligands [L = 3‐cinnamalideneacetylacetone‐thiosemicarbazone (CAT)/3‐cinnama‐ lideneacetylacetoneethylthiosemicarbazone (CAET)/3‐cinnamalideneacetylacetonephenylthiosemicarbazone (CAPT)] and their copper/zinc complexes were synthesized. They were characterized by analytical and spectral techniques. From these data it was found that the ligands adopt square‐planar geometry on metalation with Cu²⁺ and Zn²⁺. To evaluate the antitumor and cytotoxic activity of the synthesized complexes in mice and human cancer cell lines, the antitumor activity of the complexes was evaluated against an Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) tumor model. The activity was assessed using survival time and short‐term in vitro cytotoxic activity. Oral administration of complexes (100 mg/kg) increased the survival time. The cytotoxic activity of complexes was evaluated using human breast cancer (MDA‐MB‐231), colon cancer (HCT‐116) and nonsmall lung cancer (NCI‐H‐23) cell lines. Both the complexes possessed significant antitumor and cytotoxic activity on EAC and human cancer cell lines. The in vitro antimicrobial screening effect of the investigated compounds was also tested against the various organisms by well diffusion method. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Certain subclasses of uniformly convex functions of order α and type β with varying arguments

In this paper, we define a new subclass of k-uniformly convex functions order α type β with varying argument of coefficients and obtain coefficient estimates. Further we investigate extreme points, growth and distortion bounds, radii of starlikeness and convexity and modified Hadamard products.     

A comparison between the reduced differential transform method and the Adomian decomposition method for the Newell–Whitehead–Segel equation

In this paper, we will carry out a comparative study between the reduced differential transform method and the Adomian decomposition method. This is been achieved by handling the Newell–Whitehead–Segel equation. Two numerical examples have also been carried out to validate and demonstrate efficiency of the two methods. Furthermost, it is shown that the reduced differential transform method has an advantage over the Adomian decomposition method that it takes less time to solve the nonlinear problems without using the Adomian polynomials.     

Modeling the mechanism involved during the sorption of methylene blue onto fly ash

Batch sorption experiments were carried out to remove methylene blue from its aqueous solutions using fly ash as an adsorbent. Operating variables studied were initial dye concentration, fly ash mass, pH, and contact time. Maximum color removal was observed at a basic pH of 8. Equilibrium data were represented well by a Langmuir isotherm equation with a monolayer sorption capacity of 5.718 mg/g. Sorption data were fitted to both Lagergren first-order and pseudo-second-order kinetic models and the data were found to follow pseudo-second-order kinetics. Rate constants at different initial concentrations were estimated. The process mechanism was found to be complex, consisting of both surface adsorption and pore diffusion. The effective diffusion parameter D(i) values were estimated at different initial concentrations and the average value was determined to be 2.063 x 10(-9)cm2/s. Analysis of sorption data using a Boyd plot confirms the particle diffusion as the rate-limiting step for the dye concentration ranges studied in the present investigation (20 to 60 mg/L).     

Quantification of global orientational order in organic solids by magic-angle spinning deuterium NMR with rotor synchronization

A new method for the characterization of orientational order in organic solids based on magic-angle spinning NMR spectroscopy is introduced. The method is related to the rotor-synchronized magic-angle spinning experiment proposed by Harbison and Spiess [Chem. Phys. Lett. 124, 128 (1986)], but exploits the anisotropy of the deuterium quadrupolar coupling instead of the carbon-13 chemical shielding anisotropy. Magic-angle spinning provides a sensitivity advantage over pseudostatic techniques; using the deuterium quadrupolar coupling makes the method applicable to systems that do not exhibit large carbon chemical shift anisotropies, such as aliphatic polymers. Due to the magnitude of the deuterium quadrupolar coupling, a large number of spinning sidebands can be reliably observed, allowing for a precise determination of the orientational distribution function. Experimental data are analyzed in terms of Wigner matrix basis functions as well as the conjugate orthogonal functions framework. Unidirectionally cold-drawn poly(ethylene) is used as an example to demonstrate the method.     

The First Recyclable,Nanocrystalline CdS Thin Film Mediated Eco‐benign Synthesis Of Hantzsch 1, 4 Dihyropyridines, 1, 8‐Dioxodecahydroacridine and Polyhydroquinolines derivatives

In the present study, we report a recyclable, nanocrystalline CdS thin film mediated efficient one‐pot, three component synthesis of Hantzsch 1, 4 Dihydropyridine in good yields. The catalyst is also effective for the efficient synthesis of Polyhydroquinoline and 1, 8‐dioxodecahydroacridine derivatives in good to excellent yields. The CdS thin film catalyst was prepared by chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique. The cadmium sulphide thin film was characterized by powder XRD and FT‐IR studies. The average crystallite size (D) was calculated from powder XRD by using Scherrer formula and SEM analysis. The elemental composition of the CdS thin film was established by EDS analysis. The effect of temperature, substituent's, catalyst loading and mole ratio on the reaction was also studied. All the products were thoroughly characterized by ¹H‐NMR, ¹³C‐NMR, FT‐IR, Mass spectral and CHN analysis. A plausible mechanism for the CdS thin film catalyzed synthesis of 1, 4 DHP's is proposed. The heterogeneous catalyst could be easily recovered from the reaction mixture and successively reused at least five times without loss of activity.