Deparment of English

Even though literature is considered to be a space that promotes freedom, it can be argued that this freedom has a particular cost. In an economically administered world, what matters is the commerciality of literature and its aesthetics. Owing to the establishment of such capitalization of the written mediums, graphic narratives have
always presented a sort of counter-culture against the mainstream. However, further probe and speculation shows how even graphic narratives are increasingly becoming a part of the culture which it retaliates against. Having established the duality present in the creation of graphic narratives, the crux of this paper is to look at a subculture of
graphic narratives – the zine. The etymological background of the word ‘zine’ refers to the informal way of attributing to a piece of work that is somewhat similar to a magazine. However, unlike a magazine, a zine follows the “do-it-yourself” philosophy. The purpose of zine is to practice non-capitalist art that speaks to the masses. To further the argument, this paper takes into consideration the special case of queer zines which
become culturally crucial to trace underground queer movements and queer resilience.
The idea is to go beyond the rainbow-washing of popular mediums to create an alternate accommodative space for art that promotes activism. With reference to Queer Zines in South Asia, especially in India, this paper aims to delve deeper into the multidimensional politics of producing these zines which become methods of archiving queer lives. Additionally, the stress would lie on tracing how a marginalized art form becomes an effective tool for a marginalized community to express themselves.
This paper would apply narrative theories in combination to deciphering dichotomies in archiving queer stories to probe into the possibilities of censorship and therefore the resistance that this art form gives rise to

Mobile Ad-hoc Network (MANET) is the self organizing collection of mobile nodes. The communication in MANET is done via a wireless media. Ad hoc wireless networks have massive commercial and military potential because of their mobility support. Due to demanding real time multimedia applications, Quality of Services (QoS) support in such infrastructure less networks have become essential. QoS routing in mobile Ad-Hoc networks is challenging due to rapid change in network topology. Consequently, the available state information for routing is inherently imprecise. QoS routing may suffer badly due to several factors including radio interference on available bandwidth, and inefficient flooding of information to the adjacent nodes. As a result the performance of the network degrades substantially. This paper aims at the solution for energy efficient QoS routing by best utilization of network resources such as energy and bandwidth. A comparative study shows that despite the overhead due to QoS management, this solution performs better than classical OLSR protocol in terms of QoS and efficient utilization of energy.

The challenges of mobile ad hoc network are to maintain quality of services and performance. Many routing protocols like AODV discover routes whenever required by the source node and the benefit in doing so is that no prior knowledge of the topology is required. The AODV routing protocol is commonly and effectively used for mobile, ad-hoc nodes. So far, many maintenance strategies have been proposed on AODV to provide better QoS services performances. Some has used the radio propagation characteristics of mobile nodes in ad hoc network during route maintenance. Some modification has been done on computation of delay parameter. The other modification was on multi route selection during route discovery considering only delay as QoS parameter. This paper aims towards proposing a new route maintenance strategy with multiple options that will lead to better performance during link failure on a route. During route discovery and route reply procedure two different QoS parameters considered here are delay and bandwidth. The routes should be selected during route discovery process. The route maintenance strategy may be applied to both the routes independently and simultaneously by the internal nodes where the link failure has occurred.

Attempted suicide and suicide are prevalent in individuals with bipolar disorder (BD). Extant evidence indicates that history of suicide attempts, percentage of time spent in a depressed state, and hostility are factors associated with suicide attempts and completed suicide. Childhood adversity (eg, sexual and physical abuse) is emerging as a risk factor for suicide attempts in adults with BD. The pertinacity of medical comorbidity (eg, obesity, metabolic syndrome) in the bipolar population is further underscored by its preliminary association with suicidality. Biomarkers such as cerebrospinal fluid monoamine metabolite levels may be predictive of suicide attempts and lethality in BD. Compelling evidence supports an antisuicide effect of long-term lithium prophylaxis; lithium’s salutary effect is mediated primarily by reduced lethality of suicidal acts. Conventional unimodal antidepressants may engender or exacerbate suicidality in susceptible individuals with BD. A nascent database suggests that adjunctive psychosocial interventions may further reduce suicide risk in bipolar individuals.

Introduction The kidney is a primary route of drug elimination; abnormal kidney function is predicted to alter the pharmacokinetics of agents metabolized and/or excreted predominantly through this route. The high prevalence of mental disorders associated with psychotropic drug use in individuals with deteriorating renal function suggests there is a need to investigate the effects of renal failure on psychotropic pharmacokinetics. The aim of this review is to provide a clinically accessible overview of the effect of chronic renal failure on the pharmacokinetics for each of the major classes of prescribed psychotropic agents. Methods All English language articles published between 1977 and 2008 were searched through PubMed, using the following keywords: “renal,” “kidney,” “pharmacokinetics,” “renal impairment,” “renal insufficiency,” and “renal failure.” Each of these search words was cross-referenced with the non-proprietary name of each psychotropic agent. The manufacturer’s product insert was also reviewed for some agents for updated dosing. Owing to the lack of adequately powered studies, an inclusive manner was used. Results Chronic renal failure variably affects the pharmacokinetic parameters of psychotropic drugs. A review of each psychotropic drug is provided, with an emphasis on the individual pharmacokinetic parameters and recommended dosing. Conclusions: The adjudication of safe and effective doses for any psychotropic agent needs to be individualized. Tactics including dosage adjustment, slow titration, and careful monitoring for serious adverse events should be incorporated into practice.

Attempted suicide and suicide are prevalent in individuals with bipolar disorder (BD). Extant evidence indicates that history of suicide attempts, percentage of time spent in a depressed state, and hostility are factors associated with suicide attempts and completed suicide. Childhood adversity (eg, sexual and physical abuse) is emerging as a risk factor for suicide attempts in adults with BD. The pertinacity of medical comorbidity (eg, obesity, metabolic syndrome) in the bipolar population is further underscored by its preliminary association with suicidality. Biomarkers such as cerebrospinal fluid monoamine metabolite levels may be predictive of suicide attempts and lethality in BD. Compelling evidence supports an antisuicide effect of long-term lithium prophylaxis; lithium’s salutary effect is mediated primarily by reduced lethality of suicidal acts. Conventional unimodal antidepressants may engender or exacerbate suicidality in susceptible individuals with BD. A nascent database suggests that adjunctive psychosocial interventions may further reduce suicide risk in bipolar individuals.

Introduction The kidney is a primary route of drug elimination; abnormal kidney function is predicted to alter the pharmacokinetics of agents metabolized and/or excreted predominantly through this route. The high prevalence of mental disorders associated with psychotropic drug use in individuals with deteriorating renal function suggests there is a need to investigate the effects of renal failure on psychotropic pharmacokinetics. The aim of this review is to provide a clinically accessible overview of the effect of chronic renal failure on the pharmacokinetics for each of the major classes of prescribed psychotropic agents. Methods All English language articles published between 1977 and 2008 were searched through PubMed, using the following keywords: “renal,” “kidney,” “pharmacokinetics,” “renal impairment,” “renal insufficiency,” and “renal failure.” Each of these search words was cross-referenced with the non-proprietary name of each psychotropic agent. The manufacturer’s product insert was also reviewed for some agents for updated dosing. Owing to the lack of adequately powered studies, an inclusive manner was used. Results Chronic renal failure variably affects the pharmacokinetic parameters of psychotropic drugs. A review of each psychotropic drug is provided, with an emphasis on the individual pharmacokinetic parameters and recommended dosing. Conclusions: The adjudication of safe and effective doses for any psychotropic agent needs to be individualized. Tactics including dosage adjustment, slow titration, and careful monitoring for serious adverse events should be incorporated into practice.

We study the steady state properties of a phenomenological two-state predator model in presence of correlated Gaussian white noise. Based on the corresponding Fokker-Planck equation for probability distribution function the steady state solution of the probability distribution function and its extrema have been investigated. We show for a typical value of noise correlation there is a giant loss of bistability which in turn prevents the prey population from going into extinction.

Based on a system-reservoir model, where the system is nonlinearly coupled to a heat bath and the heat bath is modulated by an external stationary Gaussian noise, we derive the generalized Langevin equation with space dependent friction and multiplicative noise and construct the corresponding Fokker-Planck equation, valid for short correlation time, with space dependent diffusion coefficient to study the escape rate from a metastable state in the moderate to large damping regime. By considering the dynamics in a model cubic potential we analyze the result numerically which are in good agreement with the theoretical prediction. It has been shown numerically that the enhancement of rate is possible by properly tuning the correlation time of the external noise.

Based on a true phase space probability distribution function and an ensemble averaging procedure we have recently developed [Phys. Rev. E 65, 021109 (2002)] a non-Markovian quantum Kramers' equation to derive the quantum rate coefficient for barrier crossing due to thermal activation and tunneling in the intermediate to strong friction regime. We complement and extend this approach to weak friction regime to derive quantum Kramers' equation in energy space and the rate of decay from a metastable well. The theory is valid for arbitrary temperature and noise correlation. We show that depending on the nature of the potential there may be a net reduction of the total quantum rate below its corresponding classical value which is in conformity with earlier observation. The method is independent of path integral approaches and takes care of quantum effects to all orders.

The source term in a reaction-diffusion system, in general, does not involve explicit time dependence. A class of self-limiting growth models dealing with animal and tumor growth and bacterial population in a culture, on the other hand are described by kinetics with explicit functions of time. We analyze a reaction-diffusion system to study the propagation of spatial front for these models.

We have presented a simple approach to quantum theory of Brownian motion and barrier crossing dynamics. Based on an initial coherent state representation of bath oscillators and an equilibrium canonical distribution of quantum mechanical mean values of their co-ordinates and momenta we have derived a $c$-number generalized quantum Langevin equation. The approach allows us to implement the method of classical non-Markovian Brownian motion to realize an exact generalized non-Markovian quantum Kramers' equation. The equation is valid for arbitrary temperature and friction. We have solved this equation in the spatial diffusion-limited regime to derive quantum Kramers' rate of barrier crossing and analyze its variation as a function of temperature and friction. While almost all the earlier theories rest on quasi-probability distribution functions (like Wigner function) and path integral methods, the present work is based on {\it true probability distribution functions} and is independent of path integral techniques. The theory is a natural extension of the classical theory to quantum domain and provides a unified description of thermal activated processes and tunneling.

We study the fluctuation dynamics of localized denaturation bubbles in heteropolymer DNA with a master equation and complementary stochastic simulation based on novel DNA stability data. A significant dependence of opening probability and waiting time between bubble events on the local DNA sequence is revealed and quantified for a biological sequence of the T7 bacteriophage. Quantitative agreement with data from fluorescence correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is demonstrated.

A system reservoir model, where the associated reservoir is modulated by an external colored random force, is proposed to study the transport of an overdamped Brownian particle in a periodic potential. We then derive the analytical expression for the average velocity, mobility, and diffusion rate. The bistable kinetics and escape rate from a metastable state in the overdamped region are studied consequently. By numerical simulation we then demonstrate that our analytical escape rate is in good agreement with that of numerical result.

Traditionally, the quantum Brownian motion is described by Fokker-Planck or diffusion equations in terms of quasi-probability distribution functions, e.g., Wigner functions. These often become singular or negative in the full quantum regime. In this paper a simple approach to non-Markovian theory of quantum Brownian motion using {\it true probability distribution functions} is presented. Based on an initial coherent state representation of the bath oscillators and an equilibrium canonical distribution of the quantum mechanical mean values of their co-ordinates and momenta we derive a generalized quantum Langevin equation in $c$-numbers and show that the latter is amenable to a theoretical analysis in terms of the classical theory of non-Markovian dynamics. The corresponding Fokker-Planck, diffusion and the Smoluchowski equations are the {\it exact} quantum analogues of their classical counterparts. The present work is {\it independent} of path integral techniques. The theory as developed here is a natural extension of its classical version and is valid for arbitrary temperature and friction (Smoluchowski equation being considered in the overdamped limit).

Memory as a narrative is a vindicated thesis in academia. In the article, the author focuses on the nature and the function of ‘memory’ in the poetry of Joy Harjo, an indigenous American poet with tribal affiliations. Instead of using only Eurocentric discourses of performance studies and theoretical studies on
memory, the author attempts to assess the distillation of Harjo’s independent ideas on memory in her creative oeuvre – written and performed poetry. Further, the author probes how Harjo’s ‘theory’ of memory connects the past, the present and the future.

[Keywords: Joy Harjo, American indigenous poetry, memory.]

This paper analyzes the mechanisms of religious, hegemonic appropriation of the female body for the purpose of deification. Taking biographical instances from the life of Saradamani Chattopadhyay, wife of colonial Bengal's foremost mystic Sri Ramakrishna, this reading puts primary emphasis on the thematic use of the body as a tool and site of sanctification politics. Religious rites and rituals are not monolithically transcendental. They can be read as cultural performances where the gender question is inseparable. Using Judith Butler's theory of gender as a performance, this paper locates such performativity from Saradamani's ritualistic performances and examines the crucial role the body played in their enactment. Also, among the operations of such hegemonic, patriarchal, Hindu religious ideology that shaped and controlled Saradamani's identity, attempt is made to re-represent certain hagiographic accounts as acts of resistance on her part.