Arya Vidyapeeth College

Nonlinear scaling laws provide powerful unifying principles across complex systems in physics, chemistry, and biology. Here we identify and formalize a nonlinear quantum scaling law that governs tunneling isotope effects. Using an analytical confinement-inspired wavefunction ansatz and direct numerical solutions of one-and two-dimensional Schodinger equations, we demonstrate that tunneling splittings universally obey ln Delta E proportional to -root mu, (1) where mu is the isotope mass. This exponential suppression upon isotope substitution is robust across potential details, dimensionality, and cooperative multi-proton pathways. Benchmark comparisons with malonaldehyde, the formic acid dimer, and coupled proton transfers confirm the predictive power of this law. Beyond molecular spectroscopy, the result constitutes a general nonlinear principle of quantum transport, with implications for proton dynamics in clusters, enzymatic catalysis, and nucleic acid stability. The work thus extends the reach of nonlinear scaling concepts - traditionally applied in chaos, solitons, and fractals - into the quantum domain, establishing a universal framework for isotope-dependent tunneling phenomena.

Ion acoustic solitary waves (IASWs) have been investigated in an unmagnetized collision free plasma comprising relativistic positive ions, relativistic negative ions, and degenerate electrons and positrons. In order to study the solitary solution, the reductive perturbation method (RPM) is employed to derive the Korteweg de Vries (KdV) equation. The effect of various plasma parameters, like density ratios , mass ratio , relativistic factor , and temperature ratio are examined. Only fast rarefactive solitons are observed to exist within this plasma model. It is found that the plasma parameters significantly modify the phase speed, amplitude and width of the soliton profile. Moreover the soliton's amplitude decreases with the increase of whereas it increases with the increase of relativistic factor . This plasma model holds potential for applications in high-density astrophysical contexts as well as specific laboratory settings dealing with exotic plasmas. In certain astrophysical contexts, particularly those involving high-energy phenomena such as pulsar magnetospheres or jets emanating from active galactic nuclei, electron-positron pair plasmas can play a significant role.

Self-Help Groups (SHGs) play a crucial role in enhancing the livelihoods and economy of rural India. The study is conducted in a fragile watershed of North-East India (NEI) to assess the socio-economic profiles of SHG members by delving into the functioning of SHGs, their engagement in diverse nature-based economic activities, and the income generated, using a mixed-method approach. It is based on extensive field surveys conducted between 2022 and 2024 in conjunction with secondary database. Multistage snowball and simple random sampling methods are employed. The findings reflected a significant positive impact on women’s participation and income, with livestock rearing, agriculture, and horticulture as dominant activities facilitated through access to institutional financial support. Participation of SHG members increased from 7026 in 2017–18 to 19,940 in 2021–22 and total income rose from Rs. 2837 lakhs to Rs. 8312.68 lakhs during the same period, with variations across different scales based on activity type and member participation. The SHG members also face various challenges that need to be addressed for long-term sustainability. The study offers policy-relevant insights to enable both government and non-governmental organizations to frame SHG-based programs incorporating member perspectives, so that SHGs become a viable platform in the near future.

Ethnobotany is an age-old science that shares information about the relationships between human societies and plants. The indigenous knowledge systems in India, such as Ayurveda, Unani, Nidan etc., have been utilizing the medicinal plant resources from time immemorial. In recent times, there has been a growing curiosity and interest in traditional medicines and their potential as a source for biodynamic compounds. This study aims to document the medicinal plant resources and their traditional uses employed by local people inhabiting at Dhulapadung Tea Estate, Rangapara, Sonitpur District, Assam, India. A case study was carried out during January to June 2022 at study area, and the primary data on the plants used, parts utilize and mode of administration were collected. The results obtained indicate that the tribal people are predominantly dependent upon the traditional herbal medicine system for their health care aspects as well as the traditional conservation aspects of the medicinal plant resources. This study mainly emphasizes the steps that should be taken to ex-situ conserve medicinal plant resources and documentation of the valuable traditional knowledge associated with these medicinal plants for the coming generations’ prospects. It provides a unique opportunity for research, particularly because of its rich cultural heritage as well as the medicinal plants diversity.

Amino acids serve as an efficient and environment friendly adsorbent. In the present work, feasibility and extent of interaction of greenhouse gases CO, CO2, NO2 and SO2 with amino acids alanine, arginine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, lysine and serine have been studied by using density functional theory (DFT). Interaction energy calculations and Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) analysis suggest the feasibility of such complexation. Among the gases considered, SO2 exhibits the strongest interaction with all the amino acids studied, within the range - 9.95 to -10.17 kcalmol(-1). Although increasing solvent polarity leads to a reduction in the interaction energy, the complexes remain stable across all the solvent dielectrics. Stability of complexes has further been analyzed through thermochemical parameters and reactivity descriptors. Effective interaction leads to changes in the energy of molecular orbitals and subsequent alterations in global reactivity descriptors. In addition to a detailed study of the effect of different functional and basis sets on interaction energy, MP2 calculation has also been performed for better accuracy of results. The present study predicts that biomolecules such as amino acids may be considered as a potential scavenger of greenhouse gases in near future.