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voter-awareness-programme

On the auspicious occasion of advocating for voter awareness and responsibility, a “#NoExcusesDay” event was held at SRM University-AP on May 09, 2024, organised by the Times of India and the Directorate of Communications of the university. The event, graced by Chief Guest, Mr Harendhira Prasad, Additional Chief Electoral Officer, aimed to emphasise the significance of voting in a democracy and to motivate citizens, especially the youth, to exercise their right to vote without fail.

The event commenced with the display of a motivating video message from President Draupadi Murmu, setting the tone for the importance of active participation in the electoral process. Highlighting the statistics of voting percentages in assembly elections from Hyderabad, the video presentation was followed by an address by Mr Rajiv Kumar, the Chief Election Commissioner, who underscored the importance of adding 97 crore voters to the electoral rolls.

The introduction of technology in the electoral process was a key point of discussion, with emphasis placed on the utilisation of advanced methods to ensure smooth and efficient polling. The staggering number of 10.5 lakh polling stations across the nation further underscored the magnitude of the electoral process.

Under the theme “Chunav Ka Parv Desh Ka Garv” (Festival of Elections, Pride of the Nation), the event witnessed active participation from students and faculty members alike. Mr Pankaj Belwariar, Director of Communications, and Mr Anil Nigam, Director of Student Affairs, graced the stage to extend their support and encouragement towards fostering a culture of voting. The event also provided a platform for students to share their first-time voting experiences. M. Kartika, Y. Ramya, V. Suma, and Tamineni Harnan Reddy shared their personal anecdotes, underscoring the sense of responsibility and empowerment that comes with casting a vote.

Mr Pankaj Belwariar’s impassioned speech resonated with the audience as he articulated the significance of treating voting as a non-negotiable duty. His “no-excuse day” message struck a chord, urging individuals to overcome obstacles and prioritise their democratic duty. Mr Anil Nigam elaborated on the disparities between rural and urban voting patterns, highlighting the heightened enthusiasm observed in rural areas. Aditya Challa, a fourth-year student, emphasised the symbiotic relationship between voting and the right to question, asserting, “No vote, no right to question.”

voter-awareness-programme1

The event reached its pinnacle with the chief guest, Mr Harendhira Prasad’s speech, where the imperative nature of May 13th, termed as “D-day” for both assembly and Lok Sabha elections, was underscored. Stressing the importance of carrying approved identification cards for casting votes, the chief guest reiterated that voting is not just a right but a solemn duty that every citizen must fulfil.

The significance of the None of the Above (NOTA) option was elucidated, serving as a powerful tool for citizens to express dissent and demand accountability from political parties. The chief guest, Mr Harendhira Prasad, made a humble request for citizens to fulfil their duty with the same diligence as those involved in organising the elections, resonating deeply with the audience.

In conclusion, the event served as a poignant reminder of the privileges and responsibilities inherent in a democratic society. Through informative sessions, personal anecdotes, and impassioned speeches, attendees were galvanised to embrace their role in shaping the future of the nation through the simple yet profound act of voting. As May 13, 2024 approaches, the call to action reverberates loud and clear: no excuses, only votes.

On April 24-25, 2024, the much-anticipated Film Gala 2024 unfolded by SRM University-AP’s Cinemates Club, under the Directorate of Student Affairs, igniting the creative fervour of budding filmmakers from universities across India. This exhilarating event provided a vibrant platform for these talented individuals, budding to exhibit their cinematic prowess.

Graced by the presence of esteemed Tollywood actor Satya Dev and actress Archana as chief guests, the event was a star-studded affair filled with entertainment and enlightenment. Attendees were treated to mesmerizing dance performances, soulful music, engaging discussions, pulsating DJ sets, and a celebration of artistic brilliance that left everyone inspired.

The atmosphere at the Gala was electric, as aspiring filmmakers seized the opportunity to have their talents acknowledged and applauded. The Film Gala hosted an array of thrilling competitions, each pushing the boundaries of creativity:

  1. Cineverse: Where Stories Unfold: A short film competition that transported audiences through captivating narratives.
  2. Snake and Ladders: A playful twist on storytelling where every move leads to unexpected turns.
  3. Plot Saga: Your Journey With Scripts: A celebration of the art of scriptwriting, where imagination knew no bounds.
  4. Trailer Trek: Filmmakers raced against the clock, crafting gripping trailers that left viewers craving more.
  5. Cinerythm: Western dance took centre stage, with both group and solo performances.
  6. Character Canvas: Participants embodied iconic movie characters, showcasing their versatility.
  7. Galasymphony: The spotlight shifted to melodious voices in a spirited singing competition.
  8. Visual Fable: Every frame held a story, as participants created videos based on a central theme.
  9. Movie Night: A cinematic feast under the stars, where films came alive on the big screen.
  10. Cinematography Workshop: Aspiring cinematographers honed their skills, learning from industry experts.

The Film Gala was more than an event; it was a celebration of artistic brilliance. Aspiring filmmakers seized the opportunity to have their work recognized and appreciated. Their passion and dedication illuminated every corner of the venue, leaving an indelible mark on the cinematic landscape. Congratulations to the organisers, participants, students and everyone who contributed to making the Film Gala 2024 an unforgettable success!

tarnish-resistant-silver-alloys

Yet another groundbreaking achievement for the researchers at SRM University-AP! Prof. Ranjit Thapa, Dean-Research and Professor, Department of Physics, Prof. G S Vinod Kumar, Professor and Head, Department of Mechanical Engineering and Ms Harsha K, PhD scholar, continue to make their mark in the university’s excellent research legacy by having their patent “Tarnish Resistant Silver Composition and a Process for its Preparation” being granted by the Indian Patent Office. This innovative research team has used density functional theory to explain the tarnishing of silver. Their work also focuses on finding alloying elements that protect silver.

Abstract

The research is on the development of tarnish-resistant silver alloys from an experimental and computational perspective. With time, silver atoms on the surface of the metal undergo sulphidation and form Ag2S molecules. These particles will accumulate to form a layer whose thickness goes beyond 10nm, and then the human eye will start to find a discolouration on the surface of silver, which is tarnish. The stain colour changes from light yellow to dark brown. This reduces the lustre of silver and makes them aesthetically non-pleasing. The silver jewellery and articles manufacturing industry suffers from this tarnishing as it leads to the loss of material and money and ruins intricate designs made of silver. The research study attempts the problem by alloying silver with appropriate elements, which are computationally checked and verified. The team works with alloying elements such as Cu, Zn, Ge, Ti, Zr, Mg, Al, and Be. Along with tarnish resistance, the proposed alloys maintain high reflectance, good hardness, and excellent workability when spinning.

silver-alloy

Figure.1 The images of different silver alloys after accelerated tarnish test in as-cast condition (first row) and after undergoing passivation heat treatment at 450°C for 1 hour in the presence of oxygen (second row).

Practical implementation/social implications of the research

  • Stainless silver is in demand as customers want their precious metal articles to be kept for a longer time as heirlooms. So, the product that we could develop out of our composition will be making more demand for silver.
  • It can increase the market potential of silver.
  • It can lead to more innovations in the jewellery industry.

Collaborations

  • Waman Hari Pethe
  • Ashlyn Chemmannur
  • TITAN

The team would continue to work on the scope of research to develop more tarnish-resistant compositions, improve the tensile strength, scratch resistance, surface hardness, and workability of silver alloys and find novel elements which can add to desirable properties of silver.

silver-alloy2

Figure.2 Reflectance of alloys (a) before tarnish test (b) after tarnish test

In an exciting development, Dr Manjula R, Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, along with B.Tech. students Mr Adi Vishnu Avula, Mr Jawad Khan, Mr Chiranjeevi Thota, and Ms Venkata Kavyanjali Munipalle, have authored a book chapter titled “Machine Learning Approach to Determine and Predict the Scattering Coefficients of Myocardium Tissue in the NIR Band for In-Vivo Communications – 6G Network in book name “Edge-Enabled 6G Networking: Foundations, Technologies, and Applications”.

This achievement highlights the innovative research and collaboration showcase the dedication and expertise of both faculty and students in the field of computer science and engineering. The book chapter explores the cutting-edge advancements in 6G networking and its potential applications, shedding light on the future of communication technologies.

We congratulate Dr Manjula R and the team of talented students on this significant accomplishment and look forward to seeing more groundbreaking research from them in the future. Stay tuned for more updates on their work and achievements.

Abstract

The accurate calculation of the scattering coefficient of biological tissues (myocardium) is critical for estimating the path losses in prospective 6-G in-vivo Wireless Nano sensor networks (i-WNSN). This research explores machine learning’s potential to promote non-invasive procedures and improve in-vivo diagnostic system’s accuracy while determining myocardium’s scattering properties in the Near Infrared (NIR) frequency. We begin by presenting the theoretical model used to estimate and calculate scattering coefficients in the NIR region of the EM spectrum. We then provide numerical simulation results using the scattering coefficient model, followed by machine learning models such as Linear Regression, Polynomial Regression, Gradient Boost and ANN (Artificial Neural Network) to estimate the scattering coefficients in the wavelength range 600-900 nm.

We next contrast the values provided by the analytical model with those predicted via machine learning models. In addition, we also investigate the potential of machine learning models in producing new data sets using data expansion techniques to forecast the scattering coefficient values of the unavailable data sets. Our inference is that machine learning models are able to estimate the scattering coefficients with very high accuracy with gradient boosting performing better than other three models. However, when it comes to the prediction of the extrapolated data, ANN is performing better than other three models.

Keywords: 6G, In-vivo, Dielectric Constant, Nano Networks, Scattering Coefficient, Machine Learning.

Significance of Book Chapter

The human heart is a vital organ of the cardiovascular system and is very crucial for any living being. However, this organ is prone to several diseases—Cardiovascular Disease (CVD)—an umbrella term. CVDs are the set of the heart diseases that comprises heart attack, cardiac arrest, arrhythmias, cardiomyopathy, atherosclerosis to name a few. CVD alone account for most of the deaths across the globe and is estimated reach 23.3 million deaths due to CVD by 2030. Early detection and diagnosis of CVD is the ultimate solution to mitigate these death rates. Current diagnostic tests include, however not the exhaustive list, ECG, blood test, cardiac x-ray, angiogram.

The limitations of these techniques include bulkiness of the equipment, cost, tests are suggested only when things are in critical stage. To alleviate these issues, we are now blessed with on-body or wearable devices such as smart watches that collect timely information about the cardiac health parameters and notify the user in a real-time. However, these smart watches do not have the capability to directly detect the presence of plaque in the arteries that leads to atherosclerosis. These devices have the capability to track certain health parameters such as heart rate, blood pressure, other activity levels, any deviation in the measured values of these parameters from the normal values might give an indication of cardiac health issues. This requires a formal diagnostics test such as cardiac catheterization or cardiac x-ray leading to the original problem.

Therefore, in this work we aim to mitigate these issues by proposing the usage of prospective medical grade nanorobots—called nanosurgeons, that can provide real-time live information on the health condition of the internal body. Particularly, our work assumes that these tiny nanobots are injected into the cardiovascular system that keep circulating along with the blood to gather health information. Such nanosized robots are typically expected to work in the terahertz band owing to their size. At such high frequency, the terahertz signals are prone to high path losses due to spreading, absorption and scattering of the signal during propagation. Our work aims at understanding these losses, especially the scattering losses, of the terahertz signal in the NIR band (600-900 nm) using the existing models, analytically. Further, to understand the strength of machine learning in predicting these scattering losses, we also carryout simulation work to estimate and predict the scattering losses using Linear Regression, Polynomial Regression, Gradient Boost and Artificial Neural Network (ANN) models.

Our preliminary investigation suggests scattering losses are minimal in NIR band and machine learning can be seen as a potential candidate for perdiction of scattering losses using the available experimental data as well as using data augmentation techniques to predict the scattering losses at those frequencies for which either experimental data is not available or can prevent the use of costly equipment to determine these parameters.

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