REQUEST FOR CONTRIBUTING SCIENCE BASEDARTICLES IN ENGLISH

The Secretary, Orissa Bigyan Academy invites articles in English on Basic andApplied
Sciences from scientists, technologists and professionals to be published in the English
magazine "SCIENCE HORIZON". The articles should be lucid and easily understood by
students of Higher Secondary schools, undergraduate students and common readers. They
should focus on scientific topics and should be presented in a popular style covering
information on scientific discoveries/inventions, biography of scientists, eradication of
superstitions, development of scientific temper, story, features, snippets etc. The article
should ordinarily be of two to three printed pages in one side of A-4 size paper with attractive
headings. The authors whose articles are published in the magazine will be paid a token
remuneration for each article. The articles should be sent to the Secretary, Orissa Bigyan
Academy by the following address.
Secretary, Orissa Bigyan Academy, Type-4R/25, Unit-IX(F),
Bhubaneswar-751022, ORISSA, INDIA, Tel: 0674 - 2543468

Science Horizon
1STYEAR

7TH ISSUE

NOVEMBER,2011

Editorial Board

President, Orissa Bigyan Academy

Prof. (Dr) Basudev Kar
Vice President, Orissa Bigyan Academy
Prof. (Dr) Shashi Narayan Mohapatra

Dr Ramesh Chandra Parida

Dr Nityananda Swain

Editor
Prof. (Dr) Surjyo Narayana Behera
Language Expert
Prof. (Dr) D. K. Ray
Managing Editor
Sri Sanatan Rana
Secretary, Orissa Bigyan Academy

Dr Pramod Kumar Mahapatra

Dr Prahallad Chandra Nayak
Dr Bhabendra Kumar Patnaik
Prof. (Er) P.C. Patnaik

CONTENTS
Subject

Author

Page

1.

Alfred Bernhard Nobel - The Inventor

of Dynamite

G. C. Sahoo and
A. Senthil Ganesh

2.

Laughing Gas and Its Applications

B. P. Behera

3.

Protein Which We all Need

Sadashiba Suranjan Mohanta

4.

Electronic Waste

Jagadish Chandra Paul and

Jayanarayan Mishra

10

5.

Medicinal Value and Antimicrobial Properties

of Allium Sativum

Siddhanta Mohanty

14

6.

Fury of Fluorosis

Dwijesh Kumar Panda

20

7.

Agroforestry for Food and Wood

Alok Kumar Patra

24

8.

Discovery of Medicine : A Lengthy and Tedious Process Guru Prasad Mohanta

27

9.

Global Warming and Climate Change

Bijay Ketan Patnaik

31

10.

Search for God Particle

Kamalakanta Jena

40

10.

Quiz : Ecology

Pramoth Kumar Pani

42

11.

The Expansion of the Universe

S. Sahoo and M. Kumar

42

12.

5W's + H :
(Why, Who, What, When, Where and How)
The Wonders of Stem Cells

Nityananda Swain

44

The Cover Page depicts the DNA Molecule, the Fullerene, the IVF Cell division and the Graphene.

EDITORIAL
PLAGIARISM IN SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH
Plagiarism refers to the act of passing off another's writings (articles related to literature published or unpublished, scientific research articles ; thoughts etc.) as one's own. This practice
has been in operation since time immemorial, the act being performed by dishonest people who
ignore the moral principles and ethical values.
Nobel laureate C. V. Raman had set up the Raman Research Institute in 1949 and once
interviewed a number of applicants for the post of a scientific assistant. He had found none suitable
for the post . However, one of the applicants was found sitting in the waiting room. After coming
out of his room, Raman saw the applicant and asked "Why are you sitting here?". The applicant
replied, "I have come back to return the excess travellingallowance paid to me by mistake". Raman
called him to his room and said "You are selected for the post. Your knowledge of physics is poor,
but I can teach you that. You are a man of character. That is important to me".
The purpose of narrating the story is to emphasize the fact that how important is honesty for
scientific research. The ways in which scientific experiments are conducted and whatever actual
results you get, are documented honestly. In all these stages there should be honest expression of
thoughts. The scientists and research guides must imprint these ideas in the minds of young
researchers at the beginningof their career. Otherwise, they are bound to make mistakes and present
manipulated or copied data from other's work. When caught they are likely to be ridiculed publicly
by media and such embarrassments may spoil their future career apart from hurting the mind.
It is not surprisingthat some experienced and established professors and scientists also resort
to plagiarism. As far as I remember in 1970s there was a post of Professor in Zoology at Banaras
Hindu University. There were 4-5 internal candidates One of them in order to indicate his recent
scientific publication fabricated the title of a paper as if published in a recent volume of the
established journal, Nature. Knowing this his peer-group reported the matter to the University
authorities . The candidate could know about this and disappeared from the university campus and
never returned. Some 10 years back one Geology Professor of a particular University of Punjab
planted rocks/stones of a particular Geological era in a definite place. After 2-3 years he chose the
same site for his research work. After excavation he found the desired stones/rocks and on the
basis of research submitted a thesis for his Ph.D degree and even got the degree. When the poor
chap daringly published the result, challenges came from scientific community. Enquiry made by
the University indicated the act of plagiarism. His degree was withdrawn by the University.
Unfortunately, in the absence of strict laws, the appointing authorities are unable to punish
plagiarists suitably. The milder punishments include dismissal from the job with reprimand . But
those not in service escape from such action.
Today a lot of information is available in theNet. Browsing through the articlesand assimilating
the summary is permitted. But publishing the articles as it is, in magazines and journals can be
considered an act of plagiarism by the user.
It is our conscience and moral responsibility which can deter us from being plagiarists.
( Arecent article "Copying can be dangerous for your health, Jubo Sambad Nov.5 by Jeevan Nair
encouraged me to write this editorial).
B. K. Patnaik
(Guest editor for this issue)

NOVEMBER, 2011

ALFRED BERNHARD NOBEL THE INVENTOR OF DYNAMITE

* G.C. Sahoo
**A. Senthil Ganesh

A l f r e d
No be l

and German languages. His primary interests

(2 1

were in English poetry as well as in Chemistry

October 1833-10

and Physics. Alfred went abroad for further

December 1896)

training in chemical engineering. For two years

wa s

in

Alfred Nobel visited Sweden, Germany, France

Sto ck ho lm. Hi s

and united States. In Paris, he worked in a

father Immanuel

private laboratory of Professor T. J. Pelouze,

N ob el w as a n

a famous chemist. There he met the young

bo rn

e ng in ee r

an d

inventor who built

Italian ChemistAscanio Sobrero who invented

Alfred Nobel

Nitroglycerine, a highly explosive liquid.

brid ges and buil din gs in Stockh olm. In Alfred Nobel became very much interested in
con nec tion wit h his con str uct ionwo rk,
Nitroglycerine and he also realised that the
Immanuel Nobel also experimented with safety problems were to be solved by a method
dif fer ent tec hni que s for bla sti ng roc ks. developed for the controlled detonation of
Alfred's mother, Andriette Ahlsell, came from Nitroglycerine.
a wealthy family. Due to misfortunes in his
construction work caused by the loss of some
barges of building material, Immanuel Nobel
was forced to bankruptcy
. The same year
Alfread Nobel was born.Immanuel Nobel
left Stockhomalong withhis family to start a
new career in Finland and in Russia.
He started
a mecha nical works hop whic h provi ded
equipemnt for the Russian army.

After his return to Sweden in 1863,

Alfred Nobel concentrated on developing
Nitroglycerine as an explosive. Several
explosions, including one (1864) in which his
brother Emil and several other persons were
killed , convin ced th e au th orit ie s th at
Nitroglycerine production was exceedingly
dan gero us . No be l fo un d th at whe n
Nitroglycerine was incorporated in an

By the age of 17, Alfred Nobel was absorbent inert substance like kieselguhr
fluent in Swedish, Russian, French, English (diatomaceous earth) it became safer and more
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

equivalent to handle. He patented this mixture

Nobel's letters were locked in the Nobel

in 1867. This was named as 'Dynamite'. Nobel

Institute in Stockholm and became the best-

demonstrated his explosive for the first time,

kept secret of the time. They were released

that year, at a quarry in Redhill, Surrey, England.

only in 1955, to be included with the

In order to re-establish his name and improve

biographical data of Nobel.

the image of his business from the earlier

controversies associated with the dangerous
explosives, Nobel had also considered the
highly powerful substance "Nobel"s Safety

In 1888, Alfred's brother Ludvig died

while visiting Cannes whereas a French
newspaper erroneously published Alfred's
obituary. It condemned him for his invention

power", but settled with Dynamite instead,

of Dynamite and is said to have brought about

referring to the Greek word for 'power'.

his decision to leave a better legacy after his

Though Nobel remained unmarried, his

death. On 27 November 1895, at the Swedish

biographers note that he had at least three

- Norwegian Club in Paris, Nobel signed his

loves. Nobel's first love was in Russia with a

last will and testament and set aside the bulk

girl named Alexandra, who rejected his

of his estate to establish the Nobel prize, to be

proposal. In 1876 Austro-Bohemian countess

awarded annually without distinction of

Bertha Kinsky became Alfred Nobel's

nationality. He died of a stroke on 10

secretary. But after a brief stay she left him to

December 1896 at Sanremo, Italy. After taxes

marry her previous lover, Von Suttner. Though

and bequests to individuals, Nobel gave

her personal contact with Alfred Nobel had

31,225000 Swedish kronor (equivalent to 250

been brief, she corresponded with him until

million US dollars in 2008) to fund the prizes.

his death in 1896 and it is believed that she

The first three of these prizes are

was a major influence in his decision to include

awarded for eminence in physical science, in

a peace prize among those prizes provided in

ch emistr y an d in medi ca l sc ienc e or

his will. Bertha Vin Suttner was awarded the

physiology; the fourth is for literary work "in

1905 Nobel peace prize, 'for her sincere peace

an ideal direction" and the fifth prize is given

activities' Nobel's third and long lasting love

to the person or the society that renders the

was with a flower girl, Sofie Hess from Vienna.

greatest service to the cause of International

This liasion lasted for 18 years and in many of

fraternity, in the suppression or reduction of

the exchanged letters, Nobel addressed his

standing armies, or in the establishemnt or

love as 'Madame Sofie Nobel'. After his death

furtherance of peace.

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

In 2001, Alfred Nobel's great-grand

nephew, Peter Nobel, asked the Bank of
Swe d en to in s ti t u te it s a w ar d t o

LAUGHING GAS AND

ITS APPLICATIONS
B. P. Behera

economists in Alfred Nobel's memory.

This has cause much controversy whether

Laughing gas is Nitrous Oxide, N2O, a

the prize in Economic Sciences in Memory

colourless non-flammable gas with a sweet

of Alfred Nobel is actually a "Nobel Prize"/

odour and taste. It is also known as 'Sweet air'.

"Peace Prize".

It is used in surgery and dentistry for its

Reference :

anaesthetic and analgesic effects. It is known

1.

Carlisle, Rodney (2004). Scientific

American Inventions and Discoveries,
p.256. John Wiley & Songs, Inc., New
Jersey, ISBN 0-471-24410-4.

as laughing gas due to euphonic effects of

inhaling it, a property that has led to its
recretational use as a dissociative anaesthetic.
When mixed with air and inhaled, it produces
a kind of excitement accompanied by laughter.

2.

Brittanica, Alfred Nobel.

3.

Golden, Frederic (16 October 2000).

unconsciousness and insensibility to pain and

"The Worst and the Brightest".

may finally cause death. It is soluble in cold

Fant, Kenne. Alfred Nobel :A Biography,

water, and four times more in alcohol. The

New York : Areade publishing ISBN

solution in water has a sweetish taste. Its

I-55970-328-8, P.327.

density is 1.977g/L. melting point is -90.860C

4.

* Professor and Head, Department of ENT

** Resident, Department of ENT,
Rajah Muthiah Medical College and Hospital,
Annamalai University, Chidambaram.

If the inhalation is long continued, it produces

and Boiling point is -88.480C and solubility in

H 2O is 0.15g/100 ml (15 0C). It was first
synthesized by English chemist Joseph
Priestly in 1772. Humphry Davy coined the
term "Laughing gas". He noted the anaesthetic
effects. "As nitrous oxide in its extensive
operation appears capable of destroying
physical pain, it may probably be used with
advantage during surgical operations in which
no great effusion of blood takes place."

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Preparation
It is most commonly prepared by careful
heating of Ammonium Nitrate, which
decomposes into nitrous Oxide and water
vapour (Fig. 1). The addition to this, various
phosphates favour formation of a pure gas at
slightly lower tempeature.
NH 4 NO 3 (s) 2H 2O(g) + N 2O(g)

The heating temperature range is 1700 to

Fig.1. Laboratory preparation of N2O

240 C. We may take dry Ammonium nitrate in

a flask fitted with a cork and a delivery tube.

Applications

Then the flask is gently heated. Ammonium

nitrate first melts and then decomposes into

1.

rocket motor.

Nitrous oxide and water. As the gas is soluble

in cold water, one can collect it by the

N 2O can be used as an oxidizer in a

2.

In vehicle racing, N2O allows the engine

displacement of hot water. The decomposition

to burn more fuel and air resulting in

is so rapid that at about 2500C, it may explode.

more powerful combustion. So it acts as

To prevent it, heat a mixture of Ammonium

a booster for racing cars.

sulphate and Sodium nitrate solution when the

decomposition proceeds slowly and more

3.

additive, specifically as an aerosol spray

uniformly.

propellant.

(NH 4 ) 2 SO 4 + 2NaNO3 = Na 2SO 4 + 4H 2O + 2N 2O

Like oxygen, Nitrous oxide is not combustible,

The gas is approved for use as a food

4.

N 2O has been used scientifically for

but it facilitates combustion. It rekindles a

anaesthetic use in clinical dentistry and

glowing chip of wood, glowing charcoal, and

medicine. It is used in contemporary

feebly burning Sulphur. Magnesium and

obstetrics for changing painful dressings,

Phosphorous etc. burn brilliantly in the gas,

in post operative physiotheraphy and in

when they are heated giving the peroxides of

emergency ambulances.

the metals. I molecule of Nitrous oxide

contains 2 atoms of Nitrogen and 1 atom of
Oxygen. It is absorbed by alcohol.
4

5.

It can be used for recretaional use. When

inhaled, people laugh and act silly until
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

6.

the effect of this comes to its abrupt

microbial process of nitrification and de-

end, when they stand about in confusion.

nitrification. It gives rise to NO (Nitric Oxide)

It is used in dairy industries.

on reaction with oxygen atoms, and this NO in

turn reacts with ozone. As a result, it is the

Safety hazards
The major safety hazards of nitrous oxide
come from the fact that it is compressed

main na tu ra ll y oc cu ri ng re gu la to r of
stratospheric ozone.

N2O as an anaesthetic

liquefied gas, an asphyxiation risk, and a

dissociative anaesthetic. Exposure to N2O
causes short term decreases in mental
performance, audiovisual ability and manual
dexterity. Long term exposure can cause
vitamin B 12 deficiency, numbness, and
reproductive side effects. N2O is only a weak
an es thet ic compou nd as co mpared to
chloroform and ether. A 50/50 mixture of O2
and N 2O (known as Entonox) is used to induct
analgesia without loss of consciousness. It

It is found to have scientific use as an

anaesthetic in clinical dentistry and medicine
in the early 1840s. It is very safe and popular
agent still used by dentists today. It is much
less toxic than alternatives, such as chloroform
with far less risk of explosion that ether. The
main use of N2O is usally as a mild sedative
and analgesic toward dental treatment, as it
offers some degree of pain killing ability. It
can only be used for short periods of time,

may trigger headache, dizziness, hypotension,

because when there is lack of O2, pure N2O

cardiac arshythonios, anoxic brain damage,

may lead to unconsciouness and even death,

cerebral oedema and long lasting neural

deficits. Chronic exposure to N2O can cause

but it may be safe to use for longer periods of

time, if you mix it with Oxygen. It is called

megaloblastic erythropoiesis, neuron death

N 2O-O2 mix. It may be 70%-30% or 50%-

and damage to spinal cord.

50%. N 2O works very rapidly, reaches brain

in 20 seconds, relaxation and pain killing

Environmental effect

properites develop after 2 or 3 minutes. It

N 2O is a gree n ho use ga s wit h

has very quick result. Similarly, there is no

tremendous global warming potential (GWP).

hang over effect, when the gas supply is

When compared to CO2, N 2O has 310 times

stopped. The gas (N2O-O2 mix) is put into the

the ability to keep heat in the atmosphere. N2O

nasal chambers through tubes fitted with a

is produced naturally in the soil during

mask (Fig.2).

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Conclusion
This gas has a unique application in
medical science. It has greater importance in
chemistry as a green house gas and responsible
for global temperature rise. For recreational
use, people use a mixture of N 2O and O 2.
Breathing gas rushing from a cylinder can
quickly flush all air out of the lungs and cause
suffocation. It is not an ideal gas. N2O
molecules attract each other. The attraction

Fig.2. Anaesthetical use of N2O

requires energy to break, so the expansion

N2O as rocket fuel

absorbs heat and the temperature drops

It is used in rocket fuels and racing cars.

gradually. A rapid expansion of N2O can cool

It is injected to the fuel lines of racing cars to

it enough to cause frostbite. So, while inhaling,

give more power to the engine and to give the

people have actually frozen their lips, tongues,

car exceptional acceleration. N2O supports

vocal cords, and under the anaesthetic

combu stion better than air does. N 2 O

influence, the damage is done before any pain

molecues dissociate well below what is

is felt. So breathing the gas is sometimes

required for combustion delivering an atom of

dangerous. Always use the gas in consultation

oxygen and freely molecular nitrogen. The

with a good medical practitioner.

free oxygen atom quickly reacts with the fuel.

Reference

A huge gain in horse power results, since

1.

more power can be burnt in less time. If the

Text Book of In-Organic Chemistry by

O.P. Tandon.

available N2O will be in excess in the engine,

2.

the fuel will detonate. At the extremely high

Chemistry of Laughing Gas, NCERT

Publication.

temperature produced by the explosion, oxygen

atoms freed by the decomposing N2O will

3.

Wikipedia.

damage the engine severly.

4.

Images, Google.com.

Associate Professor, Dept. of Agricultural Structures,

Civil & Environmental Engineering, CAET, OUAT, Bhubaneswar

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

PROTEIN WHICH WE ALL NEED

Sadashiba Suranjan Mohanta

Proteins are part of every cell, tissue,

Functions of Proteins in our body

and organ in our bodies. The body proteins are

Proteins are very important molecules

constantly being broken down and replaced.

in our cells. They are involved in virtually all

The proteins in the foods we eat is digested

cell functions. In fact, protein within the body

into amino acids that are later used again to

has a specific function. Some proteins are

synthesize new proteins.

involved in structural support, while others

Protein is found in the following foods:

are involved in bodily movement, or in defense

against germs. Proteins vary in structure as

meats, poultry, and fish

legumes (dry beans and peas)

set of 20 amino acids and have distinct three-

tofu

dimensional shapes. Below is a list of several

eggs

nuts and seeds

milk and milk products

grains, some vegetables, and some fruits

(only small amounts of protein relative
to other source are available)

well as function. They are constructed from a

types of proteins and their functions.

Antibodies - are specialized proteins involved
in defending the body from antigens (foreign
invaders). One way antibodies destroy antigens
is by immobilizing them so that they can be
destroyed by white blood cells.
Contractile proteins - are responsible for
movement. Examples include actin and myosin.
These proteins are involved in muscle
contraction and movement.
Enzymes - are proteins that facilitate
biochemical reactions. They are often referred
to as catalysts because they speed up chemical
reactions. For example lactase breaks down
the sugar lactose found in milk. Pepsin is a
digestive enzyme that works in the stomach to

Figure 1 : Fish as source of protein

Science Horizon

break down proteins in food.

7

NOVEMBER, 2011

Hormonal Proteins - are messenger proteins

which help to coordinate certain bodily

Protein requirements change with age

1.

activities. Examples include insulin, oxytocin,

During this period the body length of

and somatotropin. Insulin regulates glucose

children grow by 50 percent and their

metabolism by controlling the blood-sugar

body weight by 300 percent.

concentration. Oxytocin stimulates contraction

of uterus in females during childbirth.

Babies from birth to six months-

2.

Baby of six to 12 months- Due to the

Somatotropin is a growth hormone that

gradual decrease in breast feeding they

stimulates protein production in muscle cells.

need more protein to maintain their iron

Structural Proteins - are fibrous and stringy

and vitamin C and D levels in body.

and provide support. Examples include keratin,

collagen, and elastin. Keratins strengthen

3.

amount of protein during their growth.

protective coverings such as hair, quills,

Protein helps in rapid growth of body.

feathers, horns, and beaks. Collagens and

elastin provide support for connective tissues

Young children- Children need huge

4.

Children entering their teen age -

such as tendons and ligaments. In bone

The growth spurt as children move into

collagen, serves as template for deposition of

adolescence needs plenty of energy

calcium salts.

and nutrients. For girls this generally

occurs around 10 to 11 years of age,

Storage proteins - store amino acids.

while for boys it occurs later at around

Examples include ovalbumin and casein.

12 to 14 years.

Ovalbumin is found in egg whites and casein is

a milk-based protein.

5.

Older teenager and young Adults -

Transport proteins - are carrier proteins

Moving away from home, starting work

which move molecules from one place to

an d th e ch an ging li fe- st yle th at

another around the body. Examples include

accompanies the late teens and early 20s

hemoglobin and cytochromes. Hemoglobin

can cause dietary changes that are not

binds O2 and transports it through the blood.

always conducive to good health. The

Cytochromes operate in the electron transport

need for performance enhancement and

ch ai n as el ec tro n ca rr ier pr ot ei ns in

building over all endurance results in

mitochondria, the power house of cell.

higher protein intake requirement.

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

6.

Older People - Many old people eat

less. Whereas their diet should have
enough variety to include all the proteins
we need. Protein supplementation can
help balance nutrient intake and maintain
muscle mass.

How much protein do I need ?

May be you've wondered how much
protein you need each day. In general, it's

Figure 2 : Nuts and seeds as source of protein

recommended that 10-35% of your daily

more protein than you need, your overall

calories should come from protein. Below is

calorie intake could be greater than your

the Recommended DietaryAllowances (RDA)

calorie needs and this may contribute to weight

for different age groups.

gain. Besides that, animal sources of protein

Our protein needs depend on our age,

can be sources of saturated fat which has been

size and activity level. ICMR recommends the

linked to elevated low-density lipoprotein

following protein intake for different life

(LDL) cholesterol, a risk factor for heart

stages for Indians.

disease. In addition, for people with certain

Adults -

kidney diseases, a lower-protein diet may be

l.0 gm/kg body weight

Children- 1.5 gm/kg body weight

recommended to help prevent impairment in

kidney function.

Pregnant/lactating women - 1.75gm/kg body

weight

Source - ICMR

Source: NIH Medical Encyclopedia

What if I am a vegetarian?

If youare doingexercise or Body building

Because some vegetarians avoid eating

in gym then you need as much as 2.0 gm/kg

all (or most) animal foods, they must rely on

Body weight protein and not more than that.

plant-based sources of protein to meet their

Is there any harm in getting more protein

than I need?

protein needs. Withsome planning, a vegetarian

diet can easily meet the recommended protein
needs of adults and children.

Most people eat more protein than they

need without harmful effects However, protein
contributes to calorie intake, so if you eat
Science Horizon

Freelance Science Writer, Baripada, P.O.-Goudadiha,

Mayurbhanj-757003
E-mail- sadashibamohanta@gmail.com

NOVEMBER, 2011

ELECTRONIC WASTE
Jagadish Chandra Paul and
*Jayanarayan Mishra

Technological advances in electronics

due to inappropriate processing, rather than

have boosted the economy and improved the

inherent toxic content. In many cases it is

general lifestyle of common man. The ever

difficult to segregate the waste from the usable

growing dependence on electronic products

parts. In India, recycling of e-waste is almost

has paved the wayfor an emerging environment

entirely left to the informal sector, which

concern, commonly known as 'e-waste'. In

does not have adequate means to handle the

fact, e-waste is the term used to describe old,

increasing quantities of waste material and

end-of-life electronic appliances such as

cause intolerable risk for human health and

computers, laptops, TVs, DVD players, MP3

the environment.

players and mobile phones etc. which are

Constituents of E-waste

disposed of by their original users. Many of

these products can be reused, refurbished or
recycled. Unfortunately, electronic discards
is one of the fastest growing segments of our

Each electronic item contains the

following 26 common components viz. metal,
motor/compressor, cooling, plastic, insulation,
glass LCD, rubber, wiring/electrical, concrete,

nations' waste stream. E-waste has caused a

transformer, magnetron, textile, circuit board,

crisis because of two reasons. Firstly, e-waste

fluorescent lamp, incandescent lamp, heating

contains a variety of toxic substances. When

eleme nt, thermostat, brominated flame

discarded electronics is dumped at different

retardant (BFR) - containing plastic, batteries,

places or when the waste is incinerated and

CFC/HCHC/HHC/HC, external electric

released to the ground or air the risk of

cables, refractory ceramic fibers, radioactive

pollution of the environment and toxins

substances and electrolyte capacitors (over

entering the food chain becomes astronomical.

L/D 25 mm). These products contain many

Another reason is that e-waste is being

neurotoxic and carcinogenic substances that

generated at an alaraming rate, due to

are leached into the soil and water bodies and

obsolescence along with rapidly evolving

enter the air due to burning as dust. Electronic

technology. Unlike the traditional wastes,

goods are composed of different harmful and

environmental impacts of e-waste mainly arise

harmless materials some of which have high

10

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

value. Valuable materials like, gold, platinum,

Health and Environmental Impacts

silver, copper etc. can be recovered from e-

Recycling of printed circuit boards

waste and this motivates recyclers who process

generates the most serious pollution problem

the waste. Some wastes containing toxic

if these are disposed in water bodies. For

substances have an adverse impact on human

removing 1C chips from the printed circuit

health. Often, these hazards arise due to

board (PCB), it needs to melt the adhered lead

improper recycling and disposal processes

by heating. PCB still contains precious metals

used. Half of the weight of an average desktop

like copper and gold after the 1C chips have

computer contains plastic, iron and aluminium.

been removed. To recover the copper and

The percentage of different precious metals

gold, workers use very strong liquid acid and

in a typical desktop computer is shown in

this process releases very toxic wastewater.

Table 1.

Incineration of e-waste emits highly toxic

Table 1 Composition of a typical desktop

gases. The toxic emissions from processing

computer (weight-27 kg)

of e-waste are presented in table 2.

Sl. Name of
No. material
1. Plastic

Much of the recycling activity is in the

% of
total weight
23

Weight of
material
6.26

nature of backyard operation using rudimentary

technology in an environment where labour is

2.

Lead

6.3

1.72

totally exploited. In India, the recycling units

3.

Aluminium

14.2

3.86

are located in dingy lanes, behind closed doors.

4.

Iron

20.5

5.58

Electronic and electrical equipments seem

5.

Gold

0.0016

<0.1

efficient and environment friendly, but they

6.

Copper

6.9

1.91

are dangerous when they become e-waste. It

7.

Arsenic

0.0013

<0.1

poses a real danger to human health if the

Table 2 Toxic emissions in the processing of e-waste

Sl.
No.
1

Processes
Copper on printed circuit board

Substance
emitted
Sulphuric acid

Release
to
Land

Skin & eye

Open burnt plastic

Zinc oxide

Air

Inhaled toxic

Gold refining

Mercury

Air

Blood toxic

Open burning and incineration

Dioxin, furan

Air

Carcinogenic

Waste water treatment

Toxic sludge

Water, land

Water pollutant

Science Horizon

Health effect

11

NOVEMBER, 2011

abandoned products are not properly processed

rate much higher than that of the developed

prior to disposal. Electronic products contain

countries. The recent culture and attitude of

a lot of toxic substances. Cathode ray tube

the people have increased the inflow of new

(CRT) of computer monitors contains heavy

products by dumping the old one. Due to rapid

metals e.g. lead, beryllium and cadmium, which

upgradation of technology, the discarded

are harmful to health if they enter the water

system. These materials can cause damage to
human nervous and respiratory system.
Brominated flame retardant plastics used in
electronic casings release particles that can
damage human endocrine functions. The lists
of hazardous substances, their source of

peripherals find their way to landfills. The

changing life-style of people, coupled with
the urbanization has led to increase in the
rates of consumption of electronic products.
The probable discard rate of some electronic
items is presented in Table 4, which may

occurrence in the e-waste and toxic effect on

enable us to judge how fast e-waste is generated.

human organs are presented in table 3.

Disposal of E-Waste

Growth in Waste Generation

The e-waste that is generated can be

There is a growth rate of 20 % of software

recycled, reused and disposed off in landfills

industry. Indian IT industries have a growth

or incinerators. The reuse and recycling of

Table 3 Harmful substances in e-waste, their source and toxic effect

SI. No. Name of substance

Occurrence in e-waste

Toxic effect

Polychlorinated biphenyls

Condenser & Transformer

Cancer

Chlorofluorocarbon

Cooling unit

Skin, cancer

Polyvinyl chloride Arsenic

Cable insulation

Respiratory problem

Arsenic

Light emitting diodes

Lung cancer

Cadmium

Printer ink, toner

Fever, headache, chills

Chromium

Floppy disk

DNA damage

Beryllium

Rectifier

Lungs

Mercury

Fluorescent lamp in LCD

Brain and liver damage

Lead

CRT screen

Appetite loss, fatigue

12

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

outdated electronic products minimize the

Conclusion

hazardous effects of electronic waste on the

Electronic wastes are posing a serious

environment. Reuse and recycling also boost

threat to the global environment. The problem

energy and resource conservation. After all

has become acute due to the rapid obsolescence

possibilities for reuse have been exhausted

rate of electronic goods. E-waste contains

and a computer is slated for disposal, is sent

various harmful and hazardous chemicals that

for recycling. However, the costs of recycling

enter the environment due to improper

are still very high due to which most recyclers

recycling. Finding methods to keep electronic

are not very much willing to take computers

waste out of landfills is a challenge now for all

for recycling. If the waste can not be even

th e el ec tron ic pr od uct manufa ct urer s,

recycled then it is either sent to land fills or is

recycling waste management organizations,

burnt in incinerators. Dumping waste into

gover nme nt age ncies and environme nt

lan df il ls con ta mina te s bo th soi l an d

management organizations.

groundwater. Burning electronic products into

References

incinerators leads to the formation of toxic

1.

gases due to presence of various heavy metals.

D. Bagai. Electronic Waste. Everyman's

Science, (Dec. 08-Jan 09) vol. XLIII

Both these processes directly or indirectly

(5): 323-325.

affect the human health and environment.

2.

T. Samanta. E-waste in India:Anew threat

Table 4 Discard rate of electronic items

to the environment. Everyman's Science,

Sl. Electronic item

No.

Discard/
replace rate

(Apr. 10 - May 10) vol. XLV(l): 44-49.

1 to 3 years

Cell phones

Personal Computers Every 3 years

Camera

3 to 5 years

Television

1 0 to 15 years

Refrigerator

10 to 15 years

Washing machine

1 0 to 15 years

IT accessories

Frequent

Science Horizon

3.

www.ewaste.in.

* College of Agricultural Engineering and Technology, OUAT,

Bhubaneswar-751003.
Email: jagadishc_paul@rediffmail. com.

13

NOVEMBER, 2011

MEDICINAL VALUE ANDANTIMICROBIAL PROPERTIES

OF ALLIUM SATIVUM
Siddhanta Mohanty

Allium sativum is commonly known as

Garlic. Its close relatives include onion,
shallot, leek, and chive.The garlic plant's bulb
is the most commonly used part of the plant.
With the exception of the single clove types,
the bulb is divided into numerous fleshy
sections called cloves.The cloves are used for
cloning, consumption or for medicinal
purposes, and have a characteristic pungent,
spicy flavor that mellows and sweetens
considerably with cooking.The leaves and
flowers on its head are also edible.

Fig. 1 : Bulb with cloves

Properties
When crushed, Allium sativum yields
allicin, a powerful antibiotic and antifungal
compound.It has been claimed that it can be
used as a home remedy to help speed recovery
from strep throat or other minor ailments
because of its antibiotic properties. It also
contains the sulphur containing compounds
such as allicin, ajoene diallylsulfide, dithiin
and enzymes, vitamins, proteins, minerals,
saponins, flavonoids.
14

The composition of the bulbs is

approximately 84.09% water, 13.38% organic
matter, and 1.53% inorganic matter, while the
leaves are 87.14% water, 11.27% organic
matter, and 1.59% inorganic matter.

Raw Contents Present in Garlic

Nutritional value per 100 g (3.5 oz)
Energy
Carbohydrates
Sugars
Dietary Fibre
Fat

623 kJ (149 kcal)

33.06 g
1.00g
2.1 g
0.5 g

Protein
Beta-Carotene
Thiamine(vit-B1)
Riboflavin(vit-B2)
Niacin(vit-B3)

6.39 g
5 g (0%)
0.2 mg (15%)
0.11 mg (7%)
0.7 mg (5%)

Pantothenic acid (B5)

Vitamin B6
Folate (vit. B9)
Vitamin C
Calciumss

0.596 mg (12%)
1.235 mg (95%)
3 g (1%)
31.2 mg (52%)
181 mg (18%)

Iron
Magnessium
Phosphorus
Potassium
Sodium

1.7 mg (14%)
25 mg (7%)
153 mg (22%)
401 mg (9%)
17 mg (1%)

Zinc
Manganese

1.16 mg (12%)
1.672 mg

Selenium

14.2 g
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

The phytochemicals are responsible for

the sharp flavor of garlic.
These compounds are believed to have
evolved as a defensive mechanism, deterring
animals like birds, insects, and worms from
eating the plant.
A large number of sulfur compounds
contribute to the smell and taste of Garlic.

Cultivation
Garlic is easy to grow and can be grown
year-round in mild climates.While sexual
propagation of garlic is indeed possible, nearly
all of the garlic in cultivation is done asexually,
by planting individual cloves in the ground.In
cold climates, cloves can be planted in the
ground about six weeks before the soil freezes
and harvested in late spring (Figure 2). Two of
the major pathogen that attack garlic are

Fig. 2

Production Trends
Garlic is grown globally, but China is by
far the largest producer of garlic, with
approximately 10.5 million tones annually,
accounting for over 77% of world output.
India (4.1%) and South Korea (2%) follow,
with Russia (1.6%) in fourth place and the
United States (where garlic is grown primarily
as a cash crop in every state except for Alaska)
in fifth place (1.4%).

nematodes and white rot disease, which remain

in the soil indefinitely once the ground has
become infected.
Garlic also can suffer from pink root, a
typically nonfatal disease that stunts the roots
and turns them pink or red.When selecting
garlic for planting, it is important to pick large
heads to separate cloves from. Large cloves

Storage
Ready peeled garlic cloves are sold in a
plastic containers. Domestically, garlic is
stored in warm (above 18C) and dry condition
to keep it dormant.Commercially, garlic is
stored at 0C, in a dry, low humidity
environment.

spacing in the planting bed.Garlic plants prefer

Antimicrobial, antifungal and antiviral

activities

to grow in a soil with a high organic material

Garlic is an antibiotic and antiseptic. It

content, but it is capable of growing in a wide

is proven to be effective against the following

range of soil conditions and pH levels.

micro-organisms:

will also improve head size, along with proper

Science Horizon

15

NOVEMBER, 2011

Escherichia coli, which causes intestinal

Anticarcinogen

dysbacteriosis and urinary infections.

One of the areas in which garlic seems

Salmonella typhi, which causes typhoid, and

to be most effective is cancer prevention.

other Salmonella genus that cause severe

According to numerous medical journals

intestinal afflictions.

(American Chinese Medicine, Science,

Shigella dysenteriae, which causes bacillus

Journal of Urology) garlic can reduce even

dysentery.

malignant tumours.Garlic raises the immune

system's level of response in defending the

Staphylococcus and streptococcus, which

causes furuncles (infected blemishes) and
other skin infections.
Diverse types of fungi, yeasts, and some
viruses, such as herpes.

body, particularly against certain types of

cancers including breast, stomach, colon and
skin cancers.

Its use is recommended

In diarrhea, gastroenteritis, and colitis.

In salmonellosis (intestinal infections)

The active principles of garlic are

supposed to interact with the nucleic acids of

usually caused by spoiled food.

the virus, thus limiting its proliferation.

The bacteria-killing powers of garlic

In in te st in al ba ct er ial imba lan ce

inside the intestine are vigilant with bad

(alteration of microbial balance of the

bacteria, respecting the normal bacteria. This

intestine) often caused by the use of

makes garlic better than mos t known

antibiotics.

antibiotics, since it regulates good intestinal

bacteria instead of destroying it all.

Modern medicine admits that garlic is a

In fermentative dyspepsia, which cause

flatulence in the colon.

In urinary infections (cystitis and

natural antibiotic which can play an important

py el on ep hr it is ), of te n ca use d by

role in preventive medicine and as a

Esterichia coli.

therapeutic agent.

In diverse bronchial infections (acute

Because of its high allyl sulfide content,

and chronic bronchitis), because when

garlic is increasingly replacing antibiotics in

the dysulphur of allyl is liberated through

veterinary medicine.Garlic, used in an infusion

the breath, it acts directly on the bronchial

to clean wounds, is also used to treat cuts,

mucous membrane. It is also an

burns and minor injuries.

expectorant and antiasthmatic.

16

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

It is also active against ascarides and

oxyuridae (little white worms that
provokes anal itching in children). The
most frequent types of intestinal parasites.

Medicinal use and Health Benefits

Allixin showed an anti-tumor promoting
effect in vivo, inhibiting skin tumor formation
by TPA in DMBA initiated mice.
Analogs of this compound have exhibited
anti tumor promoting effects in in vitro
experimental conditions.

More recently, it has been found from a

clinical trial that a mouthwash containing 2.5%
fresh garlic shows good antimicrobial activity.
Garlic cloves are used as a remedy for
infections digestive disorders, and fungal
infections such as thrush.
Garlic supplementation in rats, along
with a high protein diet, has been shown to
boost testosterone levels.
It detoxifies the liver, boosts digestion
and prevents acidity. Italsohelps toexpel worms.

Allixin and/or its analogs may be expected

useful compounds for cancer prevention or
chemotherapy agents for other diseases.

Garlic lowers blood pressure by slowing

the production of hormones that cause blood
pressure.

In test tube studies garlic has been found

to have antibacterial, antiviral, and antifungal
activity. However, these actions are less clear
in humans.

It also dilates the blood vessels, making

it easier for the heart to pump blood through
the arteries.

Garlic is also claimed to help prevent

heart diseases atherosclerosis, high cholesterol,
and high blood pressure and cancer.
A studyfound that garlic supplementation
reduced accumulation of cholesterol on the
vascular walls of animals.

It contains compounds that stimulate the

release of bile from the gall bladder. This in
turn decreases the production of cholesterol
in the liver, thus reducing LDLand keeping the
heart healthy.
It removes toxins and revitalizes the
blood. It is said that garlic improves memory.

Anotherstudyshowedthat supplementation
with garlic extract inhibited vascular calcification
in human patients with high blood cholesterol.

(N.B-People takinginsulin shouldnot consume

medicinal amounts of garlic without consulting
a physician.)

Garlic (Allium sativum) has been found

toreduce platelet aggregation andhyperlipidemia.

Investigators have recently proven that

garlic contains ajoene which, like aspirin,
prevents blood clots and thus contributes to
better blood flow and protects the body against
cardiovascular problems. It lowers blood

Garlic also regulates blood sugar levels.

Regular and prolonged use of therapeutic
amounts of aged garlic prevents some
complications of diabetes mellitus.
Science Horizon

pressure and cholesterol levels.

17

NOVEMBER, 2011

In order to fight off the bacteria that are

found in food and the unpleasant consequences
that result from them, you need only to eat
one or two cloves of garlic before a meal, or
chopped raw garlic sprinkled over the food.
Cooked garlic will not work in this instance.
It purifies the blood.
Garlic has an effect on blood cholesterol
levels, thanks to its allicin content. Allicin is
formed when the amino acid alliin is converted
into allicin by the alliinase enzyme when garlic
is cut, chewed and ingested.
Garlic is recommended to people with
diabetes because of its hypoglycemic
properties: it reduces blood sugar levels when
eaten regularly. But be careful - the flip-side
is that people with low blood sugar levels
should avoid eating garlic regularly.

to the mouth causing bad breath and skin where

it is exuded through skin pores.
Some people suffer from allergies to
garlic and other plants in the Allium family
It thins the blood this had caused very
high quantities of garlic and garlic supplements
to be linked with an increased risk of bleeding,
particularly during pregnancy and after surgery
and childbirth, although culinary quantities are
safe for consumption.
Po ss ib le sid e ef fe ct s in cl ud e
ga st ro in te st ina l di sc omfo rt , sw eat in g,
dizziness, allergic reactions, bleeding, and
menstrual irregularities.
Some breastfeeding mothers have found
their babies slow to feed and have noted a
garlic odour coming from their baby when
they have consumed garlic.

The iodine and silica found in garlic

Precaution to avoid the garlicky odour

dilate the capillaries, which makes respiration

easier and diminishes respiratory problems.

It is possible to avoid garlicky odour by

using following methods.

Adverse Effects and Toxicology

Washing the skin with soap is only a

partial and imperfect solution to the smell.

There are some adverse effects of Garlic,

which may be harm full to human being in
some cases.
Garlic is known for causing halitosis as
well as causing sweat to have a pungent
'gar li ck y' sme ll whi ch is ca us ed by
Allylmethylsulphide (AMS).

Studies have shown that sipping milk at

the same time as consuming garlic can
significantly neutralize bad breath.
Mixing garlic with milk in the mouth
before swallowing reduced the odor better
than drinking milk afterward.

AMS is a gas which is absorbed into the

blood during the metabolism of garlic; from

Plain water, mushrooms and basil may

also reduce the odor, however, the mix of fat

the blood it travels to the lungs and from there

and water found in milk was the most effective.

18

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Conclusion
The contents of garlic endow it with
preventive and curative properties. It has
vitamins and minerals and hence it helps the
body to absorb other vitamins. It is particularly
rich in vitamin B6 and has also high iodine
content. Vitamin C and selenium are
antioxidants and anti-carcinogenic.It contains
sulphur, which is an antiseptic and has healing
and therapeutic properties. Allicin in garlic
has anti-fungal and medicinal properties. Garlic
can kill germs resistant to antibiotics.

Health Benefits of Garlic:

It boosts immunity and wards off colds
and coughs, including whooping cough. It is
used in combination with honey for sore throat
and colds. It is also beneficial in asthma and
respiratory problems. Garlic retards the growth
of tumors and prevents cancer. It also prevents
degenerative conditions related to diabetes
like kidney problems and retinopathy.
Therefore, we should give special attention
to the production of Garlic ( Allium sativum)
and other species for our medicinal use and

health benefits.
References

Balch, P. A. (2000). Prescription for

NutritionalHealing, 3rd ed. New York: Avery.

Block, E. (1985). The chemistry of garlic

and onions. Scientific American 252
(March): 114-9.

Block, E. (1992). The organosulphur

chemistry of the genus Allium - implications
for organic sulphur chemistry. Angewandte
Chemie InternationalEdition 104: 1158-1203.

Science Horizon

Block, E. (2010). Garlic and Other Alliums:

The Lore and the Science. Royal Society of
Chemistry. ISBN 978-0-85404-190-9.
Breithaupt-Grgler K, LingM, Boudoulas H,
Belz GG (October 1997). "Protective effect
of chronic garlic intake on elastic properties of
aorta in theelderly". Circulation 96(8): 264955.
PMI D
9355906.
http://
circ.ahajournals.org/cgi/pmidlookup?
view=long&pmid=9355906.
Efendy JL, Simmons DL, Campbell GR,
Campbell JH (July 1997). "The effect of the
aged garlic ext ract, 'Kyolic', on the
development ofexperimentalatherosclerosis".
Atherosclerosis 132 (1): 37-42. doi:10.1016/
S0021-9150(97)00078-6. PMID 9247357.
http://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/
S0021-9150(97)00078-6.
Gardner, C. D.; Lawson, L. D.; Block, E.;
Chatterjee, L. M.; Kiazand, A.; Balise, R. R.;
Kraemer, H. C. (2007) The effect of raw
garlic vs. garlic supplements on plasma lipids
concentrations in adults with moderate
hypercholesterolemia:Aclinicaltrial. "Archives
of InternalMedicine" 167: 346-353.
Garty BZ (March 1993). "Garlic burns".
Pediatrics 91 (3): 658-9. PMID 8441577.
Hamilton, Andy (2004). Selfsufficientish Garlic. Retrieved 1 May 2005.
Hile, A. G.; Shan, Z.; Zhang, S.-Z.; Block, E.
(2004). Aversion of European starlings
(Sturnus vulgaris)to garlic oil treated granules:
garlic oil as an avian repellent. Garlic oil
analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance
spectroscopy. Journalof Agriculturaland Food
Chemistry 52: 2192-6.
Jain AK, VargasR, GotzkowskyS, McMahon
FG (June 1993). "Can garlic reduce levels of
serumlipids? Acontrolled clinicalstudy". Am.
J. Med. 94 (6): 632-5. doi:10.1016/00029343(93)90216-C. PMID 8506890 and
manymore.

Microbilogist and Chemist (Sambit Aqua, Cuttack)

Nagpal, P.O. - Udala, Mayurbhanj-757041.

19

NOVEMBER, 2011

FURY OF FLUOROSIS
Dwijesh Kumar Panda

What is flurosis ?
Ingestion of excess fluoride, most
commonly in drinking-water, may cause
fluorosis which affects the teeth and bones.

stiffness and pain in the joints. In severe cases,

the bone structure may change and ligaments
may calcify, with resulting impairment of
muscles and pain.

Even moderate amounts of fluride lead to

dental effects, but long-term ingestion of large

causes immediate effects of abdominal pain,

amounts can lead to potentially severe skeletal

problems. Paradoxically, low levels of fluoride

excessive saliva, nausea and vomiting. Seizures

and muscle spasms may also occur.

intake help prevention of dental caries. The

control of drinking-water quality is therefore

The causes of flurosis

critical in preventing fluorosis. Fluorosis is

caused by excessive intake of fluoride. The
dental effects of fluorosis develop much

Acute high-level exposure to fluoride

Acute high-level exposure to fluoride is

rare and usually due to accidental contamination
of drinking-water or due to fires or explosions.

earlier than the skeletal effects in people

exposed to large amounts of fluoride. Clinical

Moderate-level chronic exposure (above 1.5

mg/litre of water - the WHO guideline value

dental fluorosis is characterized by staining

for fluoride in water) is more common. People

and pitting of the teeth. In more severe cases,

all the enamel may be damaged. However,

affected by fluorosis are often exposed to

multiple sources of fluoride, such as in food,

fluoride may not be the only cause of dental

water, air (due to gaseous industrial waste),

enamel defects. Enamel opacities similar to

dental fluorosis are associated with other

and excessive use of toothpaste. However,

drinking water is typically the most significant

conditions , such as malnutri tion with

deficiency of vitamins D andAor a low protein-

source. A person's diet, general state of health

energy diet. Ingestion of fluoride after six

years of age does not cause dental fluorosis.

as well as the body's ability to dispose of

fluoride all these indicate how the exposure to
fluoride manifests itself.

Chronic high-level exposure to fluoride

can lead to skeletal fluorosis. In skeletal

Distribution

fluorosis, fluoride accumulates in the bone

progressively over many years. The early

origin. Waters with high levels of fluoride

symptoms of skeletal fluorosis, include

20

Fluoride in water is mostly of geological

content are mostly found at the foot of high
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

mountains and in areas where the sea has made

str ea ks

geological deposits. Known fluoride belts on

unnoticeable.The spots and stains left by

land include: one that stretches from Syria

through Jordan, Egypt, Libya, Algeria, Sudan

fluorosis are permanent. They may darken

or

sp ec ks

tha t

ar e

of te n

over time (Figure 1 and Figure 2).

and Kenya, and another that stretches from

Turkey through Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, India,
northern Thailand and China. There are similar
belts in theAmericas and Japan. In these areas
fluorosis has been reported.

Scope of the Problem

The prevalence of dental and skeletal
fluorosis is not entirely clear. It is believed

Fig. 1

that fluorosis affects millions of people around

the world, but as regards dental fluorosis the
very mild or mild forms are the most frequent.
Fluorosis may refer to:

Dental fluorosis

Skeletal fluorosis

Fig. 2
In its most severe form, which is also
called mottling of dental enamel, it is

Dental fluorosis

characterized by black and brown stains, as

Classification and external resources

well as cracking and pitting of the teeth.[3]

A mild case of dental fluorosis (the white

streaks on the subject's upper right central

on the amount of fluoride exposure, the age of

incisor) is observed in dental practice.

the child, individual response, as well as other

The severity of dental fluorosis depends

Dental fluorosis is a health condition

factors including nutrition. Although water

caused when a person receives too much

fluoride during tooth development. The critical

fluoridation can cause fluorosis, most of this

period of exposure is between 1 and 4 years

old; although fluorosis can affect people of

Severe cases can be caused by exposure to

any age despite claims that it only affects

above the recommended levels, or by exposure

children.[1][2] In its mild form, which is the

most common, fluorosis appears as tiny white

to other fluoride sources such as brick tea or

Science Horizon

is mild and not usually of aesthetic concern.[4]

water that is naturally fluoridated to levels well

pollution from high fluoride coal.[5]

21

NOVEMBER, 2011

Physiology
Dental fluorosis occurs because of the
excessive intake of fluoride, either through
fluoride in the water supply, naturally occurring
or added to it; or through other sources. The
da mage in to ot h devel op ment oc cu rs

H. T. De an's fl uoro si s in de x wa s
developed in 1942. In fact, currently it is the
most universally accepted classification
system.An individual's fluorosis score is based
on the most severe form of fluorosis found on
two or more teeth.[6]

between the ages of 3 months to 8 years,

Dean's Index

from the overexposure to fluoride. Teeth

Classification

Criteria-description of enamel

are generally composed of hydroxyapatite

Normal

Smooth, glossy, pale creamy-

(Calcium to Phosphorus molar ratio 10:6)

white translucent surface

and carbonated hydroxyapatite; when fluoride

is present, some fluorapatite is generated.
Excessive fluoride can cause white spots,

Questionable

Afewwhiteflecksorwhitespots

Very Mild

Small opaque, paper white

and in severe cases, brown stains or pitting

areas covering less than 25%

or mottling of enamel. Fluorosis cannot

of the tooth surface

occur once the tooth has erupted into the

Mild

Opaque white areas covering

oral cavity. At this point, fluorapatite is

less than 50% of the tooth

beneficial because it is more resistant to

surface

dissolution by acids (demineralization).

Moderate

All tooth surfaces affected;

Although it is usually the permanent teeth

marked wear onbiting surfaces;

which are affected, occasionally the primary

brown stain may be present

teeth may be involved.

Severe

The differential diagnosis for this

discrete or confluent pitting;

condition may include Turner's hypoplasia

(although this is usually more localized), some
mild forms of amelogenesis imperfecta, and

All tooth surfaces affected;

brown stain present

Prevalence

other environmental enamel defects of diffuse

As of 2005 surveys conducted by the National

and demarcated opacities.

Institute of Dental Research in the USA

Dean's Index

between 1986 and 1987[7] and by the Center

of Disease Control between 1999 and 2002[8]

A severe case of dental fluorosis, or "mottled

are the only global sources of data concerning

dental enamel."

the prevalence of dental fluorosis.

22

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Treatment

stages of fluorosis difficult to differentiate

from arthritis.
In the advanced stages of skeletal

Fig. 3
Before and after porcelain laminate veneers
Dental fluorosis can be cosmetically
treated by a dentist. The cost and success can
vary significantly depending on the treatment.

fluorosis, the spine may closely resemble the

appearance of spondylosis/spondylitis and
DI SH

(Di ff us e

Id io pa th ic

Skele ta l

Hyperostosis).

General Info - Arthritis:

Tooth bl ea ch in g, micro ab ra si on , an d

The word arthritis literally means joint

conservative composite restorations or

inflammation, but it is often used to refer to a

po rc ela in venee rs ar e commo nl y us ed

group of more than 100 rheumatic diseases

treatments. Generally speaking, bleaching and

that can cause pain, stiffness, and swelling in

microabrasion are used for superficial staining,

the joints.

whereas the conservative restorations are used

Arthritis and chronic joint symptoms

for more unaesthetic situations.

affect nearly 70 million Americans, or about

Fluoride/Arthritis (Fig. 4):

one of every three adults, making it one of the

most prevalent diseases in the United States.

Excessive exposure to

As the population ages, this number will

fluoride causes an arthritic

increase dramatically.

di seas e call ed skel etal

References

fluorosis.

World Health Organization. Guidelines

Skele tal fl uoro sis,

es peci al ly in it s earl y

Fig. 4

stages, is a difficult disease

for drinking-water quality. Vol. 1. Geneva,

1993 (Second edition)

to diagnose, and can be readily confused with

World Health Organization. Guidelines

va rio us for ms of ar th ri ti s in cl ud in g

for drinking-water quality. Vol. 2. Geneva,

osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.

1999 (Second edition)

The arthritic symptoms of fluorosis can

occur before the onset of bone changes
detectable by x-ray, thereby making the early
Science Horizon

M.D. Ph.D (Medicine)

Filariologist, Pathlogist & Micro-biologist
M-5, 12, Acharya Vihar, Bhubaneswar.
Contact:+919438470777

23

NOVEMBER, 2011

AGROFORESTRY FOR FOOD AND WOOD

Alok Kumar Patra

The process of human evolution has been

lowest, 0.08 hectares as against an average of

from forests when man learnt the art of

1.07 hectares for developed countries and

domesticating plants and animals after leaving

0.64 hectares for the world as a whole.

huntingand food gathering habits. But increase

Afforestation is very costly and involves a

in human and livestock population growth

long gestation period. There is also scarcity

necessitated acquisition of more and more

of land for creating new forests. Thus, an

forest land for cultivation. Thus, the origin of

individual farmer cannot develop a new forest.

agroforestry practices, i.e. growing trees and

But if both agriculture and forest are integrated

shrubs with food and fruit crops and grasses is

then farmers can very easily adopt it as there

traditional and very old but agroforestry as a

will be no reduction in agricultural output. In

science has come into existence only recently.

addition to this all the utilities of forest will

Agroforestry has been recognized as a

land-use system which is capable of yielding

be available.

Benefits from Agroforestry

both food and wood and at the same time

conserving and rehabilitating the ecosystems.
It has the capability to increase productivity,
maintain the nutrient balance in the soil and
protect the nature. It has two major roles to

The following benefits accrue from the

agroforestry systems.

Reduction of pressure on forest

Efficient recycling of nutrients through

mining by deep- rooted trees

play, the productive role and the service role.

Trees have the dominant role to play in all
agr of or es tr y sy st ems fo r su st ai na bl e

Better protection of ecological systems

Reduction of surface run-off, nutrient

agriculture and environmental protection.

Why Agroforestry?

leaching and soil erosion

Forest area is decreasing alarmingly due

Improvement of microclimate, such

as

to population growth and infrastructural

lo wering

of

soil

su rface

developments causing thereby environmental

temp erature and r eductio n of

evaporation of soil moisture through

pollution, ecological imbalance, global

mulching and shading

warming and climate change. The per capita

availability of forests in India is one of the
24

Increment of soil nutrients through

addition and decomposition of litter-fall
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Improvement of soil structure through

are grown. The major function of this system

constant addition of organic matter from

is production of food, fodder and wood

decomposed litter

products. Major woody species planted in this

Increment in outputs of food, fuel wood,

system are Acacia catechu, Phoenix dactifera,

fodder, fertilizer and timber

Artocarpus spp, Cocos nucifera, Mangifera

indica, Syzygium aromaticum, etc.

Reduction in incidence of total crop

failure, common to single-cropping or
monoculture systems

Increase in levels of farm incomes due

to improved and sustained productivity

Alley cropping
Alley cropping, also known as hedgerow
intercropping, involves managing rows of
closely planted (within row) woody plants
with annual crops planted in alleys in between

Improvement in rural living standards

hedges. The primary purpose is to maintain or

from sustained employment and higher

increase crop yields by improvement of the

incomes

soil and microclimate and weed control. Tree

Improvement in nutrition and health due

products are also obtained from the hedgerows.

to increased quality and diversity of food

Right kind of tree species is to be planted at

outputs

Different Agroforestry Systems

right spacing, with proper management to

reduce competition between trees and
agricultural crops for nutrients, moisture and

Based on the nature of components,

agroforestry systems can be broadly classified
into agrisilvicultural (agricultural crops +
trees), silvipastoral (trees + forage crops),
agrisilvipastoral (agricultural crops + trees +
fora ge crop s) and ot her sy stems like

light. Alley cropping usually includes

leguminous trees to improve soil fertility
through nitrogen fixation. The suitable species
are Cassia siamea, Leucaena leucocephala,
Glyricidia sepium, Calliandra calothyrsus
and Sesbania sesban.

aquaforestry, mushroom in mixed tree species

and apiculture with trees. A few common
agroforestry systems practiced in our country
are given below.

Multispecies tree gardens

In this system of agroforestry, various
kinds of multipurpose tree species (MPTS)
Science Horizon

Multipurpose trees and shrubs on field

bunds
MPTs like Acacia nilotica, Acacia
albida, Casuarina equisetifolia, Azadirachta
indica, Acacia senegal, Cocos nucifera,
Leucaena leucocephala and Acacia mangium
are planted on field boundaries.
25

NOVEMBER, 2011

Agroforestry fuel wood production

In this system, fuel wood species are
planted in or around agricultural lands. Tree
species commonly used as fuel wood are
Acacia nilotica, Albizia lebbeck, Casuarina
equisetifolia, Prosopis juliflora, Cassia

and their spatial and temporal arrangement

should be exercised to reduce competition
among the plants and to increase the
production. Most home gardens also support a
variety of animals (cow, goat, sheep, pig) and
birds (chicken, duck). Fodder and legumes are
widely grown to meet the daily fodder and

siamea, Eucalyptus tereticornis, etc.

feed requirements. Thus, home gardens

Protein Bank

represent land-use systems involving deliberate

In thi s si lv ip as to ra l sy st em of

management of multipurpose trees and shrubs

agroforestry, MPTs (protein-rich trees) are

in intimate association with annual and

planted on or around farmlands and rangelands

perennial agricultural crops, and livestock

for fodder production to meet the feed

within the compounds of individual houses,

requirements of livestock during the fodder-

the whole crop-tree-animal unit being

deficit period in winter.

intensively managed by family labour.

Trees and shrubs on pasture

Apiculture with trees

In thi s si lv ip as to ra l sy st em of

In this system, various honey or nectar

agroforestry, MPTs are scattered irregularly

prod ucin g tr ees freque ntly visite d by

or arranged according to some systematic

honeybees are planted on the boundary of the

pattern, especially to supplement forage

agricultural field. The primary purpose of

production. Perennial woody fruit crops may

this system is to produce honey. Api-

als o be

silviculture with Eucalyptus, Glyricidia,

inc lu de d wh ic h is

cal le d

hortisilvipastoral system.

Grevillea, Gmelina, Leuceana and Albizia

Home gardens

species were more remunerative and a good

This is the oldest agroforestry practice.

Home gardens are characterized by a high
species diversity and usually 3-4 vertical

source of generating additional farm income

in rural areas.

Aquaforestry

canopy strata. Many species of trees, bushes,

In this system, various trees and shrubs

vegetables and other herbaceous plants are

preferred by fish are planted on the boundary

grown in dense and random arrangements. But

and around fish ponds. Leaves of these trees

some rational control over choice of plants,

are used as feed for fish. The primary role of

26

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

this system is fish production and bund

stabilization around fish pond. Ex. Leucaena
leucocephala, Morus alba, etc.

Mushroom in mixed tree species

DISCOVERY OF MEDICINE:
A Lengthy and Tedious Process
Guru Prasad Mohanta

The medicines are part of our life. They

Cultivation of paddy straw mushroom

are perhaps the greatest weapon of mankind to

under the shade under the shade of high density

fight diseases and illness. They save our lives

plantation of mixed multipurpose tree species

and promote good health. For many centuries

is als o re mune ra ti ve. Ex . Aca ci a

auriculiformis, Acacia mangium, Dalbergia

people all over the world have discovered and

sissoo, Casuarina equisetifolia, etc.

to treat illnesses. Most of these medicines are

Agroforestry and the Future

obtained from plants. India has always been

used medicines obtained from natural sources

Agroforestry has now been undertaken

the rich source of medicinal plants. Since the

as the need of the hour. The only weapon that

early 1900s we have learned developing

can be usedin the war against hunger, inadequate

synt hetic versio n of thes e medi cines.

shelter and environmental degradation is the

adoption of agroforestry practices. With the

Synthetic means they are artificially prepared

modern day crisis of shortage of agricultural

The majority of the modern medicines

and forest land, agroforestry is well positioned

available in the market are synthetics.

in the laboratory using chemical processes.

to provide a perfect balance and a solution.

With impr ovemen t in techno logy and

(potent) and they are toxic too at the same

development of agroforestry as a new branch

time. The chemicals that are synthesized in an

of science, a ray of hope has emerged for our

attempt to develop them to become medicines

planet. Agroforestry today has become a

undergo a series of process (experiments) to

sustainable method to manage forest and

assess their effectiveness as well as toxicity.

agriculture together, while being economically

and environmentally viable. The future of

The chemicals that are proved through these

agroforestry thus lies in making massive

successfully emerge as medicines. New

investment in research and development in

medicines are needed to fight the diseases for

this new area of agro-science.

which no cure is available at present, or as an

Associate Professor (Agronomy)

All India Coordinated Research Project on Agroforestry
College of Forestry, OUAT, Bhubaneswar - 751003
Email: alokpatra2000@yahoo.co.in; Mob: 9437313160

Science Horizon

The modern medicines are very effective

experiments to have more benefit risk ratio

alternative to existing medicines with improved

safety and effectiveness. The development of
new medicines is always a prime concern for
27

NOVEMBER, 2011

medical, biomedical, and chemical scientists.

trials. The present article explains the

This is important for pharmaceutical industries

preclinica l testing of the promi sing

too where they employ scientists and invest

compounds and the second part of the article

good amount of money to discover medicines.

explains the process of clinical trials.

Though many of the medicines in current use

The primary aim of the preclinical

were discovered by experimental trial and

(animal testing) is to obtain basic information

observation in animals and human subjects, of

late more rational approach is followed in

on promising compound's effects that may be

used to predict safe and effective use in

drug discovery. In general, the process of drug

humans. The testing is divided basically into

discovery beginningwith a promising chemical

substance till it is available for our use requires

tw o br oa d ca te gori es of ac ti viti es :
pharmacological testing (testing to know its

10-15 years of tireless pursuit. The average

medicinal activity) and toxicological testing.

cost of this development of medicine is

estimated to be around US Dollar 800 million
to 1 Billion (One million = 10 lakh and One
billion = 100 crore).
Ran do m

While the animal testing data are essential

before getting permission to perform clinical
trials, the animal activists and the animal lovers
have been arguing against the use of animals

che mica l

for experimentations.You might have observed

medi ci ne ,

in your class that less and less biological

biotechnology, or other techniques leads to

identifying a promising molecule, often called

experiments using whole animal are carried

lead compound, that could become a medicine.

obtain the clearance from animal ethics

The lead compound has desired biological or

pharmacological properties. When one or

committee before doing these experiments.

modi fi ca ti on

sc re en in g,
of

know n

mo re pr om is in g co mp ou nd s or lea d
compounds are in hand, it becomes necessary
to test them extensively for efficacy and safety
in living cell cultures and animal model. This
phase of evaluation of the compounds is known
as pre-clinical testing. On passing the test of
pre-clinical testing, the compounds are tested
on human beings (healthy persons and
patients) for further ensuring efficacy and
safety. This phase of testing is called clinical
28

out over the years. Now it is obligatory to

Testing of pain relieving activity (analgesic

action): Mice are placed on electrically heated
hot plate maintained at 55-56C. The response
is measured by observing jumping, withdrawals
of paws and licking of paws. Normally the
animals show these responses in 6-8 seconds.
If the medicinal substance has analgesic
property, it would increase this reaction time
(there would be delay in response). Delay in
response indicates the pain relieving property.
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Testing of antibacterial activity: The

The scientists have developed many

bacteria, against which the substance is

expected to be effective, are artificially

alternate techniques to study the promising

molecule for its biological activities. These

cultured (grown) in the laboratory using culture

can techniques use cell, tissue culture, and

media in petri dishes. The petri dishes are

filled to a uniform depth with culture media

computer programmes that simulate human and

animal systems. Cell cultures are being

like nutrient agar which is mixed (inoculated)

increasingly used for toxicity testing before

with suitable organism. When the agar

performing the similarstudies in whole animals.

solidifies, the holes are cut into the medium

Pharmacological (Study of Medicines)

using sterile borer. Solutions of the test

Testing: The promising molecule is tested to

medicinal substance are placed in these holes.

On incubation at suitable temperature (37-

know its effects on biological system like

biochemical and physiological effects and

39C) for 16 hours, the petri dishes are

their mechanisms. This enable us to know

examined to find out the effect of the test

substance. A clear circular zone around the

beneficial effects. The study is also done to

understand how the body handles the molecule.

hole is an indication of activity. The test

The process of evaluatingchemical compounds

substance is effective so far as the organism

for biologic activity and determination of their

concerned.

mechanisms of action is done by scientists

called pharmacologists. The study is conducted

The testing of test substance is always

conducted with a reference control in order to
judge the comparative effectiveness.

in a step by step process through increasing

sophisticated levels of evaluation, based on
test compound's success in prior studies.
Whole animal studies are reserved for testing
compounds that have demonstrated reasonable
potential as a medicinal substance. Most
animal testing is done on small animals, usually
rodents (mouse, rats), because they are easily
available at cheaper rate, and easy to handle.
However, for final testing two or more species
of animals are used. Dog is an useful model
for studying hypertension (blood pressure),
respiratory and diuretic effects. This study is
fo ll ow ed

Science Horizon

by st ud y

on

me tab ol is m
29

NOVEMBER, 2011

(biotransformation) to understand how the

Histopathology study is also done to find out

promising medicinal substance is metabolized

the toxicity in organs. The sub-acute study

in the body. The metabolism is the basic

includes giving the test medicinal substance

process of transforming the substance to more

daily for a minimum period of two weeks to

polar compound for easy removal by the body's

two animal species. The study is aimed at

excretory system. Liver is the main organ of

finding the initial dose for human testing. The

metabolism. Two animal species such as one

chronic toxicity testing involves giving the

rodent and other non rodent (dog) species are

substance two to six months if the substance

used for this metabolism study.

is intended for one week or more in humans.

Toxicological Testing (Safety Testing):

Medicines meant for chronic illnesses, animal

No medicine is safe at all doses. All are toxic

studies for one year or longer is required. The

at some dose. Toxicity is the most difficult

prospective medicinal substance is also tested

property to be evaluated because it could be

to know its reproductive performance in

species specific, organ specific and could

mammalian species to assess fertility and

involve multiple host factors often requiring

mating behavior. The animal studies continued

chronic dosing. The toxicity studies are

to assess whether the substance has cancer

undertaken to determine the test medicinal

causing effects and whether they affect the

substances: potential for toxicity with short

stability of genes.

term (acute toxicity) and long term use

The pre-clinical experiments on animals

(chronic toxicity); potential for organ toxicity;

are done to help decide whether the drug can

dose relationship; reproductive or teratogenic

be tested on human beings.Animal experiments

toxicity and potential for carcinogenic and

eliminate some potential drugs as either

genotoxicity.

ineffective or too dangerous for using on

The short term toxicity testing aimed at

human beings. If a drug passes the animal test,

finding out the largest single dose that will not

it is then tested on a small human group before

produce a toxic effect, the dose level at which

large scale clinical trial. The animal toxicity

serious toxicity occurs. During this study, the

data are required in the dossier for seeking

animals are observed and compared with

permission for conducting clinical trials. The

controls (animals to which medicinal substance

preclinical testing results are the foundations

is not given) for eating and drinking habits,

for clinical testing.

weight change, toxic effects etc. over a period

of 30 days after giving the test substance.
30

Department of Pharmacy, Annamalai University,

P.O. : Annamalai Nagar, Tamil Nadu - 608002,
E. mail: gpmohanta@hotmail.com

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

GLOBAL WARMING AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Bijay Ketan Patnaik

Global warming is the observed increase

allow radiated heat from earth to escape back

in the average temperature of Earth's nearsurface air and oceans, in recent years and its
projected continuation. The NationalAcademy

into atmosphere. Therefore, heat is trapped

of Sciences, a leading scientific body in the

U.S., determined that the Earth's surface
temperature has risen by about 1 degree
Fahrenheit or 0.6 degree Celsius in the past

within the earth's atmosphere resulting in rise

of temperature. The problem arises when there
is an overall increase in the concentration of
these gases, which is not adequately nullified

century, with accelerated warming during the

by the heat sinks like ocean water and forests.

Concentration of carbon dioxide, particularly
in the atmosphere, are higher than at any time

past two decades.

for the past 6000 years and the rate of increase

What is Climate?
Climate is the description of the longterm pattern of weather in a particular area.
Some scientists define climate as the average
weather for a particular region and time, period
usually taken over 30 years. Climate is related
to the average of precipitation, temperature,
humidity, sunshine, wind velocity, phenomena
such as fog, frost and hailstorms and other
measures of the weather that occur over along
period in a particular place.

Cause and effect of climate change

Climate change due to global warming is
a global phenomenon. This is caused by release
of green house gases (GHG) like Carbon

is accelerating.
Human activities have altered the
chemical composition of the atmosphere
through the build up of GHGs - primarily
carbon dioxide, methane and nitrous oxide.
Burning fossil fuels like coal, oil and biomass
are some of the activities that increase GHGs
in the atmosphere leading to a possible global
warming and climate change. The heat trapping
property of these Green House Gases is
undisputed. With the world, becoming heavily
dependent on carbon based fossil fuels; the
problems have increased during the last century.
The most dramatic evidence of climate
change is found in the Polar Regions. The
arctic is warming twice as fast as the global

Dioxide, Methane, Nitrous Oxide etc. The

GHG are almost completely transparent to the
incoming solar radiation and allow the heat

average. Ice caps in Greenland andtheAntarctic

radiation from the sun to filter-in but do not

implications of this phenomenon are profound.

Science Horizon

are melting faster than anticipated. For the

people and eco systems of the Arctic, the

31

NOVEMBER, 2011

The changes will affect Arctic indigenous

communities, who depend on the natural world,

increase because of both thermal

not justforfood, but alsofor their culturalidentity.

warmer) and the melting of mountain

glaciers andAntarctic and Greenland ice

expansion of the oceans (which will be

As we are heavily dependent on

consumption of fossil fuel, the earth's
temperature has increased consistently leading
to global warming and climate change. The

caps. Consequences include sea level

rise, loss of coastal wetlands, flooding

maximum impact of global warming will be

Low-lying areas in the coastal region

an d es tuar y ar ea s ar e espe ci al ly

borne by developing countries like India, which

have hardly contributed to the problem if we
compare the per capita CO2 emission with

of coastal areas andsalt-water inundation.

vulnerable.
d.

that of developed countries. Rising global

temperature is expected to raise sea levels,
change precipitation and other local climate
conditions. The changing regional climate

An increase in intensities, frequency and

unpredictability of natural calamities like
droughts and floods.

e.

Probable erratic weather patterns with

higher turbulence and storms.

would alter various cropping patterns and water

bodies. It could also affect both human and
animal and many types of eco systems.

f.

result ing in reduction of sp ecies

diversities as species that cannot adapt

General impacts of Global Warming

to the change or shift will become

Temperature changes due to Global

warming may cause a broad range of
impacts. Whil e scientists are no t yet

A disruption of stabilized eco systems

increasingly endangered and / or extinct.

g.

Damage to the agricultural crops and

higher pest infestations. Possible
increase of the potential geographic

unanimous in their views, some of the major

impacts could be:

range and virulence of diseases like

a.

A possible increase in the average

temperature of the surface of the earth.

malaria, encephalitis, dengue etc. as the

climatic conditions are favourable for a

b.

The rise in global temperature leading to

shift in the vectors distribution, increase

in their reproductive rates and shortening

increase in the melting rate of glaciers

and ice caps and causing early ice thaws
on rivers and lakes.
c.

32

of the incubation period of the pathogens.

h.

More frequent and intense heat waves

A possible increase in the current rate of

possibly resulting in more heat related

sea level rise which are expected to

deaths of plants, animals and humans.

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

In a nu tshe ll, cl imat e chan ge is

magnifying existing disparities between rich
and the poor and aggravating tensions over
fragile or increasingly scarce natural resources
such as productive land and fresh water. It

Concluding remarks
Climate change does not take place
overnight. It is a fallout of long and continuous
pr oc ess of global wa rmin g. Societ y's

increases the potential to create a new class of

displaced people known collectively as
environmental refugees.

dependence on fossil fuels is jeopardizing

Effects on Odisha

and technological options available to avert

social and economic progress and the future

security. Fortunately, there are many policy
the impending crisis. But we need increased

There is no scientific data to suggest

what would be the effect of Global Warming it
in Odisha. Even then it is evident that it will be
the most severely affected State in the country.
The scientific world is yet to attain a stage
where predictions of the possible effects of

political will to use them. Developed countries

in particular can do more to reduce green
house gas emissions and encourage energy
efficiency. They can also support clean
development of fast growing economies such

climate change can be precisely made.

However, the trends suggest an increase in the

as Brazil, China and India. Let at this juncture

intensity and frequency of natural hazards, all

over the world.

environmental catastrophe looming large over

Current global warming trends show that

conditions like El-Nino will be more frequent.

danger, accept the need to slow down the

Odisha's extreme weather, related closely to

temperature rise, is an indicator of that. For

changes, caused due to increased release of

more than a decade, the state has experienced

contrasting extreme weather conditions from
heat wave to cyclones, from droughts to

development and developed life style. On one

floods. The State of Odisha has been declared

disaster affected for 95 years out of last 105
years. It has a 480 kms coastline placed at the

of India had issued a poster, where the earth

head of the Bay of Bengal. So any slight

change in climatic condition brings change in

Earths' environment.

the sea's behaviour and that can have an

immediate impact on the coast.
Science Horizon

the world community recognize the impending

their skyline and in order to avoid this imminent
momentum of the dramatic environmental
Green House Gases, as an offshoot of
occasion of World Environment Day, the MoEF
(Ministry of Environment & Forests), Govt.
was pointed like a football with the subscribing
slogan, "Stop Juggling" - i.e. stop juggling with

Ex-PCCF (WL) & CWLW, Orissa

Plot No.-57, Jagmohan Nagar,
Jagmara, Bhubaneswar-751030

33

NOVEMBER, 2011

THE EXPANSION OF THE UNIVERSE

S. Sahoo1 and M. Kumar

1.

Introduction

The concept of the expansion of the

universe is very essential because it is the
basis of the big bang model which describes
the creation of the universe. According to the
big bang model, the universe was created
sometime between 10 billion and 20 billion
years ago from a cosmic explosion that hurled
matter and radiation in all directions [1]. This
event is usually known as 'big bang'. When the
initial compact, intensely hot fireball of matter

Further, greater is their distance from us,

greater is their speed of recession. If d is the
distance of the galaxy from the earth and v is
the speed with which the galaxy appears to be
moving from us, then v = Hd. This is known as
Hu bb le 's Law. He re, th e co ns ta nt of
proportionality H is known as Hubble constant.
It has the dimensions of inverse time. Its value
is 72 (km/sec)/ Mpc, where Mpc (Mega
parsec) is the unit of distance on the cosmic
scale. The Hubble constant quantifies how fast

and radiation expanded, it cooled and underwent

a series of transitions at specific temperatures

space is stretching - not just around us but

around any observer in the universe. Hubble's

and time. The big bang was not an explosion in

space; it was an explosion of space itself [2,3].
There was no center to this explosion; it

results changed the idea of steady state

universe and they support the concepts of

happened everywhere. The densityand pressure

were the same everywhere, so there was no

time as dynamical objects [6]. Space can

expand, shrink and curve without being

pressure difference to drive a conventional

explosion such as bomb explosion. The

embedded in a higher-dimensional space. If the

expansion rate of the universe is constant, then

formation of all the structures in the universe,

starting from atoms, molecules to galaxies,
has depended on the expansion of the universe.

1/H is the age of the universe. From Hubble's

In 1922, Friedmann had showed that the

Einstein's equations imply an expanding

In 1998, two independent teams of

astronomers and physicists, Supernovae

universe [4]. After seven years, Hubble [5]

discovered that the galaxies are moving away

Cosmology Project (SCP) and the High-z

Supernovae Search Team (HZT), were

from us as well as from one another i.e. 'the

whole universe is expanding' with distances

searching for distant supernovae to measure

the rate at which the expansion of the universe
was slowing down. But surprisingly they found

between the galaxies increasing all the time.

34

general theory of relativity which treats space-

relation, the age of the universe is estimated to

be 14 x 109 years.

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

that the expansion of the universe is

(baryonic) matter, 23 % dark matter and 73 %

accelerating. In fact, the universe started to

dark energy. Dark matter is the matter that

accelerate long ago, some time in the last 10

billion years. The first results from HZT (10

does not interact with the electromagnetic

supernovae) and SCP (42 supernovae) were

published respectively (7,8). Prof. Saul

from gravitational effects on visible matter

Permutter was the team leader of the SCP.

well motivated by several lines of evidence,

Prof. Brian P. Schmidt was the team leader of

the HZT. Prof. A. G. Riess led the analysis of

the exact nature of dark matter is unknown.

the HZT data. Both papers have the same

conclusion that the expansion of the universe

physics candidates for dark matter e.g. massive

is accelerating. The Royal Swedish Academy

(neutralinos) and axions. While no such matter

of Sciences awarded the Nobel Prize in physics

for 2011 to Saul Perlmutter, Lawrence

has been directly observed in the laboratory,

Berke ley National Laboratory and the

University of California, Berkeley; Brian P.

we can say 'dark matter' is still in dark [17].

Schmidt, Australian National University's

force, but whose presence can be inferred

[16]. Although the existence of dark matter is

There are several well-motivated particle

neutrinos, supersymmetric dark mat ter

its existence hasbeen suspected. In otherwords,

We do not know what the underlying theory of
dark matter is, what the detailed particle

Res ea rc h Scho ol of Astr on omy an d

Astrophysics and Adam G. Riess, Johns

properties of it are, nor the particle spectrum

Hopkins University and the Space Telescope

Science Institute, Baltimore "for the discovery

properties [18] are: (i) Dark matter does not

of the accelerating expansion of the universe

through observations of distant supernovae"
[9]. It is claimed that dark energy is responsible
for acceleration of the expanding universe
[7,8,10-14]. Very recently, in September 2011
[15], it was found that this acceleration is not
uniform in all directions. The universe's
expansion seems to be accelerating faster in
the direction of a small part of the northern
galactic hemisphere.

of the dark sector. Some of its possible

interact electromagnetically. (ii) It has no
electrical charge and cannot decay into charged
particle pairs or photons. Such events would
be detectible as some characteristic form of
radiation. (iii) Dark matter is 'collisionless'.
But this can only refer to inelastic or reactive
collisions. (iv) Dark matter particles feel no
other force than gravitation and can exchange
energy or momentum only by elastic
gravitational interaction or by direct collisions.
(v) The dark matter should be stable (at least

According to the standard model of

very long lived), and should be both electrically

cosmology, our universe contains 4 % visible

and colour neutral. Very recently, it is expected

Science Horizon

35

NOVEMBER, 2011

that a neutral dark matter particle may possess

an electric dipole moment or a magnetic dipole

dominate the universe and not only alters its

moment [19]. (v) Dark matter candidates are

of fluctuations in the density of matter [21,22].

generically referred to as weakly interacting

(d) Dark energy is probably related to a vacuum

massive particles (WIMPs) in other words,

they are massive particles that are electrically

energy density. (e) Dark energy is distributed

neutral which do not interact very strongly

cluster like matter. (f) Dark energy is thought

with other matter.

to be drivingtheuniverse's expansion and hence

Dark energy is a hypothetical form of

energy which permeates all of space and has
strong negative pressure [20-24]. According

expansion rate, but also affects the evolution

homogeneously in the universe-it does not

affects the geometry of the universe [26].

Some Questions with Answers

to the general theory of relativity, the effect

In this section, we discuss some queries

of such a negative pressure is similar to a

force acting in opposition to gravity i.e. anti-

related to the expansion of the universe as

gravitation at large scales. Observations of

Q. (i): What do you mean by expansion of the

distant supernovae and fluctuations in the

cosmic mic rowave background (CMB)

universe?

indicate that the expansion of the universe is

Ans.: The expansion of our universe is like the

accelerating under the action of 'dark energy'.

There are strong hints that dark energy may

inflation of a balloon. Suppose some dots are

compose most of the mass of the universe.

increase the volume/size of the balloon by

But it has not been directly observed in the

blowing, then we find that the distance between

laboratory so far. There are several wellmotivated candidates for dark energy. But we

any two dots increases but the size of the dots

still do not know the physical nature of dark

surface of the balloon are effectively at rest

energy and no theoretical model has succeeded

to ex pl ain it co nv in cin gl y. We ha ve

and as the universe expands the distance

considerable knowledge about the properties

galaxies themselves do not increase in size. In

of dark energy [25]: (a) Dark energy acts as a

repulsive force or anti-gravitation. (b) Dark

other words, distant galaxies are 'receding" or

energy has strong negative pressure. It causes

not traveling through space away from us i.e.

the acceleration of the expansion of our

the space between the galaxies and us is

universe. (c) This dark energy appears to

expanding.

36

explained in [2,3].

present on the surface of a balloon. If we

remain constant. Similarly the galaxies on the

between any two galaxies increases. The

"moving away" from us, but the galaxies are

Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

Q. (ii): Where does the universe expand into?

space. But recession velocity is caused by the

Ans.:According to the Einstein's general theory

expansion of space, not a motion through

space. It is a general relativistic effect and is

of relativity space-time are dynamical objects.

The space can expand, shrink and curve without
being embedded in a higher-dimensional space.
In this sense, the universe is self-contained. It

not bound by the special relativistic limit.

Hence, special theory of relativity can not be
applied to recession velocity.

needs neither a center to expand away from

Q. (vi): Can we see galaxies receding faster

nor empty space outside to expand into. In

than light?

other words, when our three-dimensional

Ans: Yes. Because the expansion rate changes

universe expands, it does not require extra

over time. The photon initially is unable to

approach us. But the Hubble distance is not

dimensions to spread into.

Q. (iii): Can galaxies recede faster than light?

constant; it is increasing and can grow to

encompass the photon. Once that happens,

Ans.:Yes. According to Hubble's law, recession

the photon approaches us and eventually

reaches us.

velocity increases as distance increases.

Beyond a certain distance, known as Hubble
distance, it exceeds speed of light. Hubble
distance = 14 billion light-years. This is not a

Q. (vii): Is everything - the sun, the earth, the

brook - expanding?

violation of special theory of relativity because

Ans: No. The sun or the earth or the brook

recession velocity is caused not by motion

does not expand. The expansion manifests

itself at length scales of the size of cluster
of galaxies.

through space but by the expansion of space.

Q. (iv): Does the universe expand at a constant
speed?

The Future of the Universe

Ans.: According to Hubble's law, greater is the

What will happen to the universe in future?

galaxy's distance from us, greater is its speed

Will it go on expanding forever? Or will it

reach a maximum size and then start

of recession. Thus, the universe does not

expand at a constant speed.

contracting? To answer these questions we

need to know the present rate of the expansion

Q. (v): Does special theory of relativity apply

to recession velocity?

of the universe and its present average density.

We can determine the present rate of expansion

Ans: Special theory of relativity may be applied

by measuring the velocities at which galaxies

only to "normal" velocities - motion through

are moving away from us by using the Doppler

Science Horizon

37

NOVEMBER, 2011

effect. This can be done very accurately. So

to form and the existing ones will end up as

far we know that the universe is expanding by

white dwarfs, neutron stars and black holes -

between 5% and 10% every billion years.

an icy death. The universe is said to be 'Open'.

However, the present average density of the

The average temperature of the universe would

universe is not known with perfect accuracy.

asymptotically approach absolute zero - a big

Considering all these into account, there are

freeze.

three possibilities (Fig. 1) [27]:

(iii) If, the expansion will continue at an everdecreasingratebut the universe willnot contract.
In this case, the universe is said to be 'Flat'.

Conclusion
We are liv in g in an ex pa nd in g
homogeneous and isotropic universe. Recently
it is found that the universe is not simply
expanding but is accelerating too. Prof. Saul
Perlmutter, Prof. Brian P. Schmidt and Prof.
(i)

If the average matter density ( ) of the

universe is greater than the critical density

( ) i.e., the gravitational force will be
dominant. The expansion will stop and the
universe will start contracting. During the
contraction period, all the events since the big
bang will occur in the reverse order. Ultimately,
the universe will collapse into a big crunch - a
fiery death and it will be followed by another
big bang. In this way, the universe will be
cyclic, with no beginning and no end. In this
case, the universe is said to be 'Closed'. For
our universe the value of critical density is
about [28].
(ii) If, the expansion of the universe will
never stop. New galaxies and stars will cease
38

Adam G. Riess, received the 2011 Nobel Prize

in ph ys ics "f or th e disc overy of th e
accelerating expansion of the universe through
observations of distant supernovae". It is
claimed that dark energy is responsible for
acceleration of the expanding universe. But
dark energy has not been directly observed in
the laboratory so far. Its existence would be
very important not only for cosmology but
also for particle physics. Understanding of the
origin of dark energy and its nature is one of
the greatest problems of the 21st century.

References
1.

Stephen W. Hawking, A Brief History of

Time - From the Big Bang to Black Holes,
Bantam Press, Great Britain (1989).
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

2.

C. H. Lineweaver and T. M. Davis, Scientific

American, 292(3), 36 (March 2005).

17.

S. Sahoo and M. Goswami, Physics

Education, 22(3), 171 (2005).

3.

T. M. Davis and C. H. Lineweaver,

Publications of the Astronomical Society of
Australia, 21, 97 (2004) [astro-ph/0310808].

18.

E. Fischer, arXiv:1104.2525 v1 [physics.genph] 30 March 2011.

19.

V. Barger, W-Y. Keung and D. Marfatia,

Phys. Lett. B, 696, 74 (2011)
[arXiv:1007.4345 v1 [hep-ph] (2010)].

20.

T. Padmanabhan, astro-ph/ 0510492 (2005);

astro-ph/0503114 (2005).

21.

S. Boughn and R. Crittenden, Nature, 427,

45 (2004).

22.

N. J. Poplawski, gr-qc/0608031 (2006).

4.

A. Friedmann, Z. Phys. 10, 377 (1922)

[English translation in: Gen. Rel. Grav. 31,
1991 (1999)].

5.

E. Hubble, Proceedings of the National

Academy of Sciences of the United States of
America, 15(3), 168 (March 15,1929).

6.

A. Kaya, arXiv:1107.5168 [gr-qc] (2011).

7.

A. G. Riess et al. (High-z Supernovae Search

Team), Astron. J. 116, 1009 (1998).

23.

S. Sahoo, R. K. Agrawalla andM. Goswami,

Physics Education (IAPT), 24(1), 53 (2007).

8.

S. Perlmutter et al. (Supernovae Cosmology

Project), Astrophys. J. 517, 565 (1999).

24.

A. G. Riess, AIP Conf. Proc., 1241, 13

(2010).

9.

www.nobelprize.org

25.

10.

A. G. Riesset al., Astron. J. 117, 707 (1999).

B. Y. Alexeevich and M. I. Fedorovich, J.

Mod. Phys., 1, 17 (2010).

11.

P. M. Garnavich et al., Astrophys. J. 493,

L53 (1998).

26.

A. Heavens, Nature, 468, 511 (2010).

27.

A. Beiser, Concepts of Modern Physics, 6th

Edition, TataMcGraw-Hill CompanyLimited,
New Delhi (2004).

28.

T. Padmanabhan, in the book Astrophysics A Modern Perspective, Edited by K. S.

Krishna Swamy, pp. 287 - 320, New Age
International (P) Limited, Publishers, New

12.

A. G. Riesset al., Astron. J. 607, 665 (2004).

13.

J. L. Tonry et al., Astrophys. J. 594, 1

(2004).

14.

R. C. Gupta and A. Pradhan, arXiv:

1010.3826 [physics.gen-ph] (2010).

15.

R.-G. Cai and Z.-L. Tuc, arXiv: 1109.0941

[astro-ph.CO] (2011).

16.

C. Sivaramand K. Arun, Modern Astronomy

Startling Facts, Ane Books Pvt. Ltd., New
Delhi (2009).

Science Horizon

Delhi (2002).

Department of Physics, National Institute of Technology,

Durgapur - 713209, West Bengal, India.
1
E-mail: sukadevsahoo@yahoo.com

39

NOVEMBER, 2011

SEARCH FOR GOD PARTICLE

Kamalakanta Jena

It was a fine evening in the year 2008.

Around 8 O'clock in the evening, when Rajesh
knocked at the door. Gita rushed to open the
door. With a pat on her head Rajesh came into
the house. No sooner did Rajesh enter the
house, than Gita asked, "Papa, Papa, do you
know ? We all are going to die in September
this year."
Rajesh laughed and said, "Really ? This
September only ? Have you started reading
astrology ? By the way, who told you ?" Gita
felt that the news did not matter much to his
father. She was disappointed. Because, she
was expecting a great reaction from his father.
"Papa, be serious. All are talking of the same
thing." Frightened Gita wanted her father to
feel the fear of sure death. "Right baby. I am
serious. What else were they talking of ?"
Rajesh wanted to know from his daughter.
With enthusiasm Gita answered, "Some
scientists have made a huge 'Big Bang
Machine'. They are going to operate it in
September this year. During their experiment
the temperature will be so high that the whole
earth will simply melt down and we all will
die." Rajesh heardher andpaused fora moment,
and asked, "Ten thousand scientists from over
100 nations are trying to destroy the earth
within a few seconds ! Do you need me to
believe this ?"
Gita said, "No, not at all. But, what are
you asking me this question for ?" Rajesh told,
"Simply to help you realize that what you have
heard is a rumour or hearsay."
Gita was busy understanding what her
father told. She could not grasp 'what is rumour
?' She looked at her father. Rajesh said, "Yes,
the scientists are working since 1984 to build
40

the huge Big Bang Machine at Geneva. The

actual name of the machine is Large Hadron
Collider (LHC). It is contained in a circular
tunnel. The length of the tunnel is 27
kilometres. It is built at a depth ranging from
50 to 175 metres underground. The width of
the tunnel is 3.8 metres. Do you believe this ?
A big truck can easily move inside the tunnel."
Gita was talking of a huge machine. But,
she did hardly think of such a huge machine.
She went overboard with the description of
such a structure. Impatiently she asked, "What
is the need of that giant Big Bang machine ?"
Rajesh told, "You have raised a very
genuine question. Not only you, everyone
wants to know the actual need of such a vast
structure. The scientists are going to do a lot
with LHC. Out of too many ions in the fire,
their primary aim is to search Higgs Boson."
Gita couldn't hold her tongue to let him
finish. She interrupted, "Higgs Boson ! Who is
he ?" Rajesh smiled and said, "No, it is not a
man, but a small and heavy particle. It is named
after the great physicist Peter Higgs of
Edinburgh University. He was the first man to
prop ose in 19 64 that this pa rticle is
responsible for the creation of the whole
universe in which we do live."
After hearing him out, Gita could not
believe this. She asked, "Is it ? A small
particle is responsible for such an endless
universe ?" Rajesh nodded his head and
continued, "And interestingly, the particle
has not been found yet."
Gita's eyes looked bright. She added,
"Really interesting. A particle has created
everything. But it does not exist." Rajesh
wanted to modify Gita's statement. He told,
"You misinterpreted my words. What I want to
say you is that the particle is the creator of
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

everything. But, we have not found that particle

till now. That is why people call this magical
particle as God Particle."
Gita asked, "Yes, I have heard the name.
But, is it necessary to build such a huge
structure to find a small particle ?" Rajesh
replied, "Yes, necessary. Otherwise you cannot
attain a temperature of 1032 Kelvin." Gita
asked, "Is this a very high temperature ?"
Rajesh answered, "Sure, very high. Even
beyond your imagination. The temperature of
our body is around 300 Kelvin. That of boiling
water is 373 Kelvin. One followed by two
zeros makes 100. I am talking of one followed
by 32 zeros."
Gita was excited to hear her father out.
She exclaimed, "Wow ! One followed by 32
zeros! By the way, why do they need such a big
temperature to find God Particle."
"Because, we expect this particle to exist
in that temperature only. It does not exist in
ordinary temperature." Replied Rajesh.
Perhaps, Gita could make out nothing of
his father's brief answer. She looked to her
father with foolish eyes. Rajesh could realize
the situation. He tried to explain, "As you
know, our universe is too big to be described.
It has as many as 7x1022 (7 followed by 22
zeros) or more stars. Our sun is one of them.
But, ab initio, you'll be startled to know, that
the whole universe was extremely compact,
dense, and hot."

temperature was 1032 degree Kelvin after the

Big Bang. "
Gita added over-anxiously, "That's right.
I second you. Now tell me - Is this temperature
not enough to destroy the whole earth ?" Rajesh
paused for a moment. Gita asked, "So, you
agree with me ?"
Rajesh smiled. "No, never," he retorted.
"What is dangerous is not the temperature," he
continued, "Are you scared when I strike a
light from a match-stick ?" Gita said, "No."
Rajesh again asked, "Will you get frightened
to see a house on fire ?" "Sure, it is dangerous."
She replied immediately. Rajesh explained, "If
you compare the temperatures in both the
situations, in fact, there is no much difference
in temperature. But, it is merely the region on
fire that frightens you much."
Gita nodded her head. Rajesh told, "For
your kind information, the high temperature in
the Big Bang Machine will be confined within
a region, even much smaller than a dust
particle. And, that too, for a fraction of a
second and within controlled condition."
Gita breathed a sigh of relief. She said
with relaxed tone, "Thanks Papa. You save my
heart. I was really scared. The rumour had
made my hair stand on end."
Rajesh said, "Don't worry. Now and then,
such cases happen out of ignorance."

"Whole universe ?" Interrupted Gita.

"Yes, whole universe." Rajesh emphasized
and continued, "You may assume the state as
an indescribable point. An explosion occurred
about 1370 crore years ago, and the universe
has since been expanding and cooling. That
explosion is known as 'Big Bang'. The
Science Horizon

(Two quarks each emit a W or Z boson,

Bosons combine to make a neutral Higgs)

Government Women's Junior College, Sundargarh - 770001

Email : kkjena@in.com, Mob : 9439501651

41

NOVEMBER, 2011

QUIZ:ECOLOGY
Pramoth KumarPani

1.

In which of the atmospheric zone, most

of the gases are ionized?

a.

troposphere

b. stratosphere

c.

mesosphere

d. thermosphere

2.

Which radiation is largely absorbed by

the ozone layer in the stratosphere?

6.

Animals maintaining constant body

temperature irrespective of change in

environmental temperature.
a.

endotherms

b. homeotherms

c.

both a and b

d. none of these

7.

Animals unable to maintain constant

body temperature with respect to change of

a.

infra red

b. visible light

environmental temperature.

c.

ultra violet

d. x-ray

a.

poikilotherms

b. homeotherms

3.

Which is the most abundant metal on

c.

both a and b

d. none of these.

8.

Organisms able to tolerate a wide range

of

fluctuations

earths crust?
a.

iron

b. aluminium

c.

titanium

d. chromium

4.

Organisms ability to maintain a suitable

of

envi ronme ntal

temperature.
a.

stenothermic

b. eurythermic

c.

heterothermic

d. homeothermic

internal environment is .

9.

The egg laying mammals exhibit features

a.

homeothermic

between conformers and regulatores.

b.

homeostasis

a.

homeotherms

b. heterotherms

c.

both a and b

c.

stenotherms

d. eurytherms

d.

none of the above

10. Organisms able to tolerate a narrow range

5.

A certain range of environmental factors

are conducive for a particular species. The

zone where an organism is able to survive.
a.

zone of capacity adaptation

b.

zone of tolerance

c.

zone of compatibility

d.

all the above

42

of fluctuation of salinity in the habitat.

a.

stenophagic

b. stenobathic

c.

stenoecious

d. stenohaline

11. No two species with identical niche

requirement can coexist. This competitive
exclusion

principle is proposed by.

a.

Gause

b. Allen

c.

Bergman

d. Gloger
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

12. Races of species having larger body size

17. Which can be considered as the basic

are generally founding cooler parts of the range

unit of land scape ecology?

while those having a smaller size are found in

a.

ecads

b. ecotones

warmer parts. This rule is known as .

c.

biome

d. ecotype

a.

Allens rule

b. Glogers rule

c.

Bergmanns rule

d. Blckmans rule.

18. Geneticlly different population of a

species but inter fertile .

13. Environmental factors having limiting

a.

ecotypes

b. ecad

effect on the life of organisms in their

c.

ecoline

d. ecophene

minimum and maximum values known as law

of tolerance. This law was proposed by .
a.

Allen

b. Bergman

c.

Gloger

d. Shelford

19. Production of cold light by living

organisms .
a.

biophosphoroscence

b.

biofluoroscence

14. When several factors control the

c.

bioluminescence

functioning of an organism and the rate of

d.

none of these

function is ultimately controlled by the slowest

factor known as limiting factor. This law was
proposed by .
a.

Allen

b. Gloger

c.

Gause

d. Blackman.

20. Pyramid of energy is .

a.

upright

b. inverted

c.

sometimes upright and sometimes

inverted

d.

cannot be predicted

15. Natural ecological groupings of biota

based on regional climate and soil type

ANSWERS

interaction and producing a characteristic land

1. d 2. c 3. a 4. b 5. d 6. c 7. a 8. b 9. b

community .
a.

biosphere

b. biome

c.

ecosystem

d. ecad.

16. Organisms occupying the same or similar

ecological niches in different geographical

10. d 11. a 12. c 13. d 14. d 15. b 16. a 17.

d 18. a 19. c 20. a

Lecturer in Botany,
Anchalika Mohavidyalaya, Bhadrak

regions .
a.

ecological equivalents b. ecads

c.

ecotones
Science Horizon

d. ecophenes
43

NOVEMBER, 2011

5W'S + H :
(Why, Who, What, When, Where and How)

THE WONDERS OF STEM CELLS

Nityananda Swain

What are stem cells and what is its scope ?

i.

Totipotent stem cells

St em Cel ls the ms el ve s ar e no t

ii.

Pluripotent stem cells and

specialised. But they give rise to cells with

iii.

Miltipotent stem cells or Adult stem

specialised functions. An ovum from a female

and a spermatozoon from a male unite to form

cells.
The totipotent and pluripotent stem cells

a zygote. The zygote is a single cell. From this

come under the category of Embryonic Stem

single cell arises a new baby. How does such

Cells (ESC).

a wonder happen ? It is because this single cell

contains within it all necessary information to
form all the organs present in the newborn. As
th e zy gote , pr oc eeds on th e pa th of
development, stem cells are produced. These

The zygote begins to divide to produce

totipotent stem cells meaning, its potential to
total. The cells produced immediately after
the cleavage of zygote is totipotential. Each
such cell gives rise to all the different types of

cells are capable of renewing themselves and

cells present in the human body. It can also

their progenitors. They do create more than

develop into a complete individual.

200 different types of cells and tissues of the

human body.

On the 5th day after fertilisation, the

zygote yields a ball-like hollow structure called

There are certain special features in the

'blastocyst'. On the inside of blastocyst there

stem cells. Those features are i) They cannot

are more than 100 cells, out of which 8 are

be terminally differentiated, but differentiated

Embytonic Stem Cells (ESC). These eight

partially, ii) they are immortal, hence can

cells are the pluripotent stem cells which can

divide without limit and iii) when they divide,

give rise to any type of cell in the body except

the daughter cells either remain as stem cells

turning into an embryo.

or are differentiated.
What are different types of stem cells?
Stem cells are of three different types :
44

Stem cells that produce multiple cell

types are termed multipotent. They are also
known as Adult stem cells (ASC). ASCs are
Science Horizon

NOVEMBER, 2011

present in mature tissues. They typically

teratocarcinoma. In this disease, there is a

generate cell types of the tissue in which they

specific type of tissue teratocarcinoma. In

reside. For example, ASCs present in bone

this disease, a specific type of tissue may

marrow generate all types blood cells like red

reside in a different organ. For example,

blood cells, white blood cells and platelets.

muscle tissue may be found in brain and gut

Similarly, ASCs present in brain produce all

tissue in the heart.

the different types of cells present in the

There are different sources from which stem

brain. However, stem cells from one tissue

cells are obtained. They can be obtained from-

may give rise to a cell type of a completely

different tissue like bone marrow stem cells

i.

Left over embryos created through

invitro fertilisation technology in

may give rise to nerve cells.

fertility clinics.
There are certain basic differences

ii.

Aborted foetuses

iii.

Bone marrow and peripheral blood

all cell types, whereas.ASC is generally limited

iv.

Umbilical cord blood

to differentiating into different cell types of

v.

Adult tissues or organs

between the ESC and ASC.

The ESC being pluripotent, can produce

their tissue of origin as it has to replace the

The ASCs may be of various types like-

cells that are lost from the organ through wear

a.

and tear, injury or disease.

Haematopoietic stem cells present in

the bone marrow which give rise to RBCs,

ESC is grown in large numbers in culture.

WBCs and platelets of blood.

Yield of ASC is poor.

b.

ESC products are more susceptible to

Neural stem cells in brain give rise to

nerve cells and supportive cells of the

immune reactions. ASC can be harvested from

brain.

the individual, cultured in the lab and

reintroduced to its donor without being

c.

Stem cells obtained from the linings of

digestive tract give rise to different cell

rejected by his immune system.

types of the gut.

ESC instead of getting degenerated, if
continues to thrive in the body it may lead to

d.

and hair follicles.

development of a rare but very serious

can ce ro us

con di ti on

Science Horizon

kn own

as

Skin stem cells give rise to skin layers

e.

Dental pulp cells etc.

45

NOVEMBER, 2011

In fact, there are enough indications that

vi.

Cardiac muscle cell production will help

stem cell therapy has a better future. It can be

to treat myocardial infarction or heart

successfully used in therapy for restoring lost

attack and other heart diseases.

and damaged cells. Even it can replace the

Thus, a host of diseases are the potential

aging cells.
A few of the therapeutic applications of
stem cells are i.

Stem cells will be waxed to generate

cells, tissues and possibly organs for
transplantation in needy patients.

candidates for stem cell therapy. But stem cell

therapy is a challenging issue. The acquisition,
manipulation and purification of these cells
are not that easy. The chances of tumour
formation and adverse immune reactions are
major challenges too. There are ethical
problems also.

Presently there exists a wide disparity

between the demand and supply of body
organs and tissues for transplantation,
which is likely to be solved in the years
ahead.

It is, of course, theoretically possible to

develop different types of tissue cells from
the stem cells. But the exact mechanisms as to
how the genes of these cells are activated and
inactivated are not satisfactorily elucidated.

ii.

Various blood diseases are being treated

by Bone Marrow Transplantation (BMT),
whose scope will be further widened in

But scientists are hopeful that they will

be successful in addressing the problems
associated with stem cell therapy.

the future.
The Indian scientists are not lagging
iii.

The skin cells developed from stem cells

will be used for surgical grafts for
treating burn victims.

iv.

v.

in our country are busy in studying its various

aspects. A few of those developed centres are

Neu ra l st em cel ls wil l he lp in

AIIMS, New Delhi, CMC, Vellore, IISc,

ameliorating the limitations of patients

Bangalgore, National Centre for Cell Sciences,

with Parkinson's andAlzheimer's disease

Pune, National Institut e of Nutrition,

as well as stroke.

Hyderabad, NIMHANS, Bangalgore, PGI,

Insulin-secreting cells developed from

Chandigarh and SGPIMS, Lucknow.

stem cells will benefit patients of

diabetes.
46

behind in stem cell research. Nearly 50 centres

ABHIPSA, Sector - 6, Plot No. - 1131, Abhinab Bidanasi,

Cuttack - 753 014

Science Horizon

GUIDELINES FOR CONTRIBUTING ARTICLES FOR THE MAGAZINE

1.

"SCIENCE HORIZON" aims at developing the scientific outlook of students as well as the general
people and seeks togivethem informationonscientific developments. Itis published as a monthly magazine.

2.

The authors desirous of writing and contributing articles to the magazine should first assimilate the ideas
of the theme and present it in simple language and popular style.

3.

The authors are requested to write clearly on one side ofA/4 size paper. The relevant pictures in 4cm X
6 cm size are welcome. Photo copies of manuscripts are not accepted for consideration.

4.

Each article will be ordinarily of two to three printed pages inA/4 size papers.

5.

The article shall be profusely illustrated with pictures.

6.

At the end of the article the author should give the references and suggestions for further reading.

7.

The reference of books, journals, sources, ideas and essential points collected by the writer should be
mentioned in the bibliography. This will enhance the quality and fidelity of the writing and give the reader
an opportunity for making further studies.

8.

Matter translated from other languages and illustrations should indicate the original sources otherwise
those would not be accepted. The articles which are not selected are not returned to the authors. However,
if the author wants, such articles may be collected from our office.

9.

As far as practicable the articles should be based on contemporary science and must be easily
comprehensible to students at the secondary level.

10.

The writers should present difficult concepts of science through stories of everydaylife, heart-rendering
songs, pictures, satirical cartoons or attractive dramas.

11.

Allunits in the articles should be given in the metric system.

12.

The title of the article should be brief and attractive. Moreover, subtitles maybe given in long articles. The
writings should be coherent and cohesive.

13.

There should not be repetition of specific words. While ensuring the contemporary spirit of the writing, it
should reflect some valuable lesson for the society. It is also necessary to avoid mistakes in spelling,
language use and factual details.

14.

The Editor & the Editorial Board of "Science Horizon", Secretary of the Academy or Orissa Bigyan
Academy shall not be responsible for the views of the authors.

Address for sending the articles

The Secretary,
Orissa BigyanAcademy
Qr. No.- 25/4R (Flat)
Unit - IX, Bhubaneswar - 751 022
Telephone - 0674-2543468
Fax - 0674-2547256
E-Mail - secretaryoba@yahoo.com
Price : Rs 10.00

Car
bonNanot
ube