The Indian Pulsar Timing Array (InPTA) employs unique features of the upgraded Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (uGMRT) to monitor dozens of the International Pulsar Timing Array (IPTA) millisecond pulsars (MSPs), simultaneously in the 300-500 MHz and the 1260-1460 MHz bands. This dual-band approach ensures that any frequency-dependent delays are accurately characterized, significantly improving the timing precision for pulsar observations, which is crucial for pulsar timing arrays. We present details of InPTA’s second data release that involves 7 yrs of data on 27 IPTA MSPs. This includes sub-banded Times of Arrival (ToAs), Dispersion Measures (DM), and initial timing ephemerides for our MSPs. A part of this dataset, originally released in InPTA’s first data release, is being incorporated into IPTA’s third data release which is expected to detect and characterize nanohertz gravitational waves in the coming years. The entire dataset is reprocessed in this second data release providing some of the highest precision DM estimates so far and interesting solar wind related DM variations in some pulsars. This is likely to characterize the noise introduced by the dynamic inter-stellar ionised medium much better than the previous release thereby increasing sensitivity to any future gravitational wave search.

Geomorphic analysis and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) ages from undated Lake Agassiz beaches and adjacent fluvial sediments on Riding Mountain in Manitoba provide insight into their early history. New OSL ages of 14.5±2.4 and 13.4±0.7 ka on the oldest (Herman to Norcross) beaches of Lake Agassiz near the Canada-U.S. border indicate that the Laurentide Ice Sheet (LIS) retreated from that part of the Agassiz basin by ~14.5 ka. To the north along Riding Mountain, the Herman strandlines are absent, and OSL ages on the oldest beach there average 12.9 ka, which links it to the younger Norcross-Tintah strandlines. In adjacent Riding Mountain, OSL ages and geomorphological relationships of a large abandoned glacial spillway >200 m above the oldest beaches of Lake Agassiz indicate that this channel predates retreat of the LIS and formation of beaches in this part of the Agassiz basin, with ice remaining in this area until after 14.5 ka. OSL ages on the Gimli beach 170 km to the east are >3000 yr older than conventional assignments, suggesting that it formed during the Moorhead low-water phase 12.8–10.6 ka. Luminescence ages support the conclusion that the Campbell beach formed ~10.9 ka near the end of the Moorhead low-water phase.

We surveyed resident physicians at 2 academic medical centers regarding urinary testing and treatment as they progressed through training. Demographics and self-reported confidence were compared to overall knowledge using clinical vignette-based questions. Overall knowledge was 40% in 2011 and increased to 48%, 55%, and 63% in subsequent years (P<.001).

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2018;39:616–618

Influenza A(H1N1) viruses of the 2009 pandemic (A(H1N1)pdm09) continue to cause outbreaks in the post-pandemic period. During January to May 2015, an upsurge of influenza was recorded that resulted in high fatality in central India. Genetic lineage, mutations in the hemagglutinin (HA) gene and infection by quasi-species are reported to affect disease severity. The objective of this study is to present the molecular and epidemiological trends during the 2015 influenza outbreak in central India. All the referred samples were subjected to qRT–PCR for diagnosis. HA gene sequencing (23 survivors and 24 non-survivors) and cloning were performed and analyzed using Molecular Evolutionary Genomic Analyzer (MEGA 5·05). Of the 3625 tested samples, 1607 (44·3%) were positive for influenza A(H1N1)pdm09, of which 228 (14·2%) individuals succumbed to death. A significant trend was observed in positivity (P = 0·003) and mortality (P < 0·0001) with increasing age. The circulating A(H1N1)pdm09 virus was characterized as belonging to clade-6B. Clinically significant mutations were detected. Patients infected with the quasi-species of the virus had a greater risk of death (P = 0·009). This study proposes a robust molecular and clinical surveillance program for the detection and characterization of the virus, along with prompt treatment protocols to prevent outbreaks.

Dengue is regarded as the most important arboviral disease. Although sporadic cases have been reported, serotypes responsible for outbreaks have not been identified from central India over the last 20 years. We investigated two outbreaks of febrile illness, in August and November 2012, from Korea district (Chhattisgarh) and Narsinghpur district (Madhya Pradesh), respectively. Fever and entomological surveys were conducted in the affected regions. Molecular and serological tests were conducted on collected serum samples. Dengue-specific amplicons were sequenced and phylogenetic analyses were performed. In Korea and Narsinghpur districts 37·3% and 59% of cases were positive, respectively, for dengue infection, with adults being the worst affected. RT–PCR confirmed dengue virus serotype 1 genotype III as the aetiology. Ninety-six percent of infections were primary. This is the first time that dengue virus 1 outbreaks have been documented from central India. Introduction of the virus into the population and a conducive mosquitogenic environment favouring increased vector density caused the outbreak. Timely diagnosis and strengthening vector control measures are essential to avoid future outbreaks.

A relativistically hot electron, positron and ion (e–p–i) plasma relaxes to a triple curl Beltrami (TCB) field. The TCB field being the superposition of three Beltrami fields is characterized by three scale parameters and hence there exist multiscale structures in the system. It is shown that temperatures of the plasma constituents strongly affect the scale parameters. Generally, the scale parameters associated with the TCB field may be a combination of real and complex roots. The numerical results show that for given Beltrami parameters, an increase in the thermal energy of plasma particles could transform the real eigenvalues to complex ones. It is also observed that one component is more strongly affected relative to other components on increasing temperatures of plasma species. Two different vortices become the same at higher thermal energies. This suggests that it is possible to create high β (kinetic to magnetic pressure ratio) and fully diamagnetic plasma configurations. The study has a potential relevance to space, astrophysics and laboratory plasmas.

Solitary waves are investigated in a charge-varying dusty plasma involving dust trapping. A potentially useful neuronal method that may handle a wide variety of non-analytic pseudo-potentials is used. This method could be advantageously exploited in rendering a cumbersome pseudo-potential analytically more tractable. Making use of the approximate Sagdeev pseudo-potential, our results show the possibility of development of localized dust structures in a dusty plasma with variable charge trapped dust grains.

Properties of the coupled dust ion-acoustic drift wave instability in a radially bounded dusty magnetoplasma with an equilibrium sheared parallel ion (SPI) flow are investigated. By using the two-fluid model for the electrons and ions, a wave equation for the low-frequency coupled dust ion-acoustic drift waves in a bounded plasma with stationary charged dust grains is derived. The wave equation admits a linear dispersion relation, which exhibits that the radial boundary affects the growth rate of the coupled ion-acoustic drift wave instability which is excited by the SPI flow. The results should be relevant to dusty magnetoplasma experiments with an SPI flow.

A possibility of relaxation of relativistically hot electron and positron (e − p) plasma with a small fraction of hot or cold ions has been investigated analytically. It is observed that a strong interaction of plasma flow and field leads to a non-force-free relaxed magnetic field configuration governed by the triple curl Beltrami (TCB) equation. The triple curl Beltrami (TCB) field composed of three different Beltrami fields gives rise to three multiscale relaxed structures. The results may have the strong relevance to some astrophysical and laboratory plasmas.

The effect of radial boundaries on the ion-dust streaming instability is investigated. Possible applications of our work to certain low-temperature dusty plasma experiments are discussed.

This paper focuses on the progress in understanding the shielding around a test charge in the presence of ion-acoustic waves in multispecies plasmas, whose constituents are positive ions, two negative ions, and Boltzmann distributed electrons. By solving the linearized Vlasov equation with Poisson equation, the Debye–Hückel screening potential and wakefield (oscillatory) potential distribution around a test charge particle are derived. It is analytically found that both the Debye–Hückel potential and the wakefield potential are significantly modified due to the presence of two negative ions. The present results might be helpful to understand and to form new materials from plasmas containing two negative ions such as Xe+ − F− − SF−6 and Ar+ − F− − SF−6 plasmas, as well as to tackle extension of the test charge problem in multinegative ions' coagulation/agglomeration.

The influence of the intrinsic spin of electrons on the propagation of circularly polarized waves in a magnetized plasma is considered. New eigenmodes are identified, one of which propagates below the electron cyclotron frequency, one above the spin-precession frequency, and another close to the spin-precession frequency. The latter corresponds to the spin modes in ferromagnets under certain conditions. In the non-relativistic motion of electrons, the spin effects become noticeable even when the external magnetic field B0 is below the quantum critical magnetic field strength, i.e. B0 < BQ = 4.4138 × 109T and the electron density satisfies n0 ≫ nc ≃ 1032m−3. The importance of electron spin (paramagnetic) resonance (ESR) for plasma diagnostics is discussed.

Nonlinear wave-driven processes in plasmas are normally described by either a monochromatic pump wave that couples to other monochromatic waves, or as a random phase wave coupling to other random phase waves. An alternative approach involves a random or broadband pump coupling to monochromatic and/or coherent structures in the plasma. This approach can be implemented through the wave-kinetic model. In this model, the incoming pump wave is described by either a bunch (for coherent waves) or a sea (for random phase waves) of quasi-particles. This approach has been applied to both photon acceleration in laser wakefields and drift wave turbulence in magnetized plasma edge configurations. Numerical simulations have been compared to experiments, varying from photon acceleration to drift mode-zonal flow turbulence, and good qualitative correspondences have been found in all cases.

Healthcare-associated hepatitis B virus (HBV) outbreaks have been reported in the USA and from several countries in Europe. Patient-to-patient transmission of HBV in these settings has been linked to several different types of exposure but one of the most common exposures implicated is the use of ‘finger-stick’ lancet devices for blood glucose testing. This article is an account of the investigations into a series of HBV outbreaks linked to the use of lancing devices in community healthcare settings in the UK. Between February 2004 and December 2006, nine individuals with acute HBV infection were reported to five local units of the Health Protection Agency. Investigations identified a further 12 individuals with HBV infection in residents in these settings. The epidemiological and environmental evidence suggests that HBV transmission occurred mostly from a significant breakdown in infection control measures in blood glucose testing. The occurrence of these outbreaks has highlighted the confusion that exists and the need for clear recommendations regarding the use of such devices in the UK.