Shakuntala: As Authored by Kalidas and Painted by Raja Ravi Varma

Mythology has always been an appealing area which has been engrossing readers and listeners since ages. Mythology plays distinctive roles and employs its sacred narratives, art and rituals to keep the values and morals of the society intact. This system of writing texts on mythology was common to the entire subcontinent and produced its own literature written in Sanskrit. One such magnum opus is Abhijnanashakuntalam authored by the great Sanskrit maestro, Kalidas. It is also important to note that mythology in the form of texts was accessible to a very limited class of people which included the elites, literates, scholars etc, and consequently a large section of the society remained unaware of these episodes and virtues. It is where, Raja Ravi Varma, ‘Father of Modern Indian Art’ is credited to bring these episodes in the form of both painting and printing to the commoners. This not only attracted a huge number of people towards mythology, Hindu culture and tradition but also urged to preserve values. The present paper is an attempt to study the contributions of the two maestros, Kalidas- as the author of Abhijnanashakuntalam and Raja Ravi Varma-as the painter of the Shakuntala Series, comparative studies of how both the maestros perceived the character of Shakuntala, portrayal of ‘beauty’, and how the play, painting and printing was appreciated, responses gathered and inspirations shared. Keywords: Kalidas, Raja Ravi Varma, Shakuntala, Mythology and Painting, Oleographs

Structural basis for substrate recognition, ligation and activation by a hyperactive Asn peptide ligase from Viola yedoensis

Peptide asparaginyl ligases (PALs) belong to a limited class of enzymes from cyclotide-producing plants, that perform site-specific ligation reactions after a target peptide Asx (Asn/Asp) binds to the ligase active site. How PALs specifically recognize their polypeptide substrates has remained elusive especially at the prime binding side of the enzyme. Here we captured VyPAL2, a catalytically efficient PAL from Viola yedoensis, in an activated state, with and without a bound substrate. The bound structure shows one ligase with the N-terminal polypeptide tail from another ligase molecule trapped at its active site, revealing how Asx inserts in the enzyme's S1 pocket and why a hydrophobic residue is required at the substrate P2' position. Beside illustrating the role played by P1 and P2' residues as primary anchors for the enzyme reaction, these results provide a mechanistic explanation for the role of the "Gatekeeper" residue at the surface of the S2 pocket, in shifting the non-prime portion of the substrate and, as a result, the activity towards either ligation or hydrolysis. These results detail the molecular events that occur during proenzyme maturation in the plant vacuolar compartment, suggest a mechanism for ligation, and will inform the design of peptide ligases with tailored specificities.

On the Instruction Design of the Course Business English Writing Based on Blended Learning Model

Blended learning based on information technology, emphasizes students’ central position and teachers’ leading role in teaching and learning. In view of this, the author attempts to apply the model to the instruction of the course Business English Writing. In the instructional design, the author navigates students to enhance the input of sample texts on the basis of webbased autonomous learning and organizes cooperative learning so as to increase students’ writing practice, thus improving their research ability and communicative skills. Consequently, the two major problems—deficiency in language input because of limited class hours and lack of interaction owing to the large size of classes can be effectively solved.

Problematika dan Strategi Pembelajaran pada Masa Pandemi di Wilayah Pesisir Kepulauan Buton

This study aims to explain the problems and strategies of schools and teachers in coastal areas of the Buton islands in carrying out learning during the Covid-19 pandemic. This research method is descriptive qualitative. Primary data are collected through online questionnaires, observations, and interviews. Research informants come from the elements of teachers, high school principals, students and parents of participants, especially Muhammadiyah High School. Secondary data is obtained through literature studies. The data are analyzed using qualitative data analysis method consisting of data reduction, data presentation, data interpretation and conclusion drawing. From the results of the study, it is concluded that there are various problems in the implementation of learning in high schools during the pandemic-Covid-19. The problems are strongly related to the unpreparedness of schools, teachers, parents, and students in facing the transformation of learning during the pandemic. In addition, network unpreparedness also greatly affects the transformation of learning from offline to online to ineffective. Therefore, there are various strategies that schools and teachers try to implement to carry out learning, both online and face-to-face through limited class meetings and home visits. The results of this study show that the implementation of learning during the pandemic does not run effectively due to very complex problems. The role of the government is very important in preparing facilities and infrastructure to support the implementation of learning during the pandemic covid-19.

On Linear Instability of Atmospheric Quasi-hydrostatic Equations in Response to Small Shortwave Perturbations

A set of 3-dimensional atmospheric-dynamics equations with quasi-hydrostatic approximation is proposed and justified with the practical goal to optimize atmospheric modelling at scales ranging from meso meteorology to global climate. Sound waves are filtered by applying the quasi-hydrostatic approximation. In the closed system of hydro/thermodynamic equations, the inertial forces are negligibly small compared to gravity forces, and the asymptotically exact equation for vertical velocity is obtained. Investigation of the stability of solutions to this system in response to small shortwave perturbations has shown that solutions have the property of shortwave instability. There are situations when the increment of the perturbation amplitude tends to infinity, corresponding to absolute instability. It means that the Cauchy problem for such equations may be ill-posed. Its formulation can become conditionally correct if solutions are sought in a limited class of sufficiently smooth functions whose Fourier harmonics tend to zero reasonably quickly when the wavelengths of the perturbations approach zero. Thus, the numerical scheme for the quasi-hydrostatic equations using the finite-difference method requires an adequately selected pseudo-viscosity to eliminate the instability caused by perturbations with wavelengths of the order of the grid size. The result is useful for choosing appropriate vertical and horizontal grid sizes for modelling to avoid shortwave instability associated with the property of the system of equations. Implementation of pseudo-viscosities helps to smoothen or suppress the perturbations that occur during modelling.

Android-Based Multimedia Development and Worthiness for Economic Learning in High School

The Covid-19 pandemic has turned face-to-face learning into online learning, thereby minimizing interactions with other people. So that online learning requires preparation, including appropriate learning media. This study used the ADDIE development method to develop android-based multimedia in the tenth grade of high school economic subjects. The steps are taken consist of Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation. The stage consists of learning technical analysis and curriculum analysis. The design stage is the design of android-based media. Media and material expert validation carry out the development stage, the media implementation stage is tested in a limited class, and the evaluation stage is the finalization stage of the media used. The results showed that developing android-based multimedia in tenth high school economics learning met validity, effectiveness, and practice criteria.

Symmetries of $$ \mathcal{N} $$ = (1, 0) supergravity backgrounds in six dimensions

General $$ \mathcal{N} $$ N = (1, 0) supergravity-matter systems in six dimensions may be described using one of the two fully fledged superspace formulations for conformal supergravity: (i) SU(2) superspace; and (ii) conformal superspace. With motivation to develop rigid supersymmetric field theories in curved space, this paper is devoted to the study of the geometric symmetries of supergravity backgrounds. In particular, we introduce the notion of a conformal Killing spinor superfield ϵα, which proves to generate extended superconformal transformations. Among its cousins are the conformal Killing vector ξa and tensor ζa(n) superfields. The former parametrise conformal isometries of supergravity backgrounds, which in turn yield symmetries of every superconformal field theory. Meanwhile, the conformal Killing tensors of a given background are associated with higher symmetries of the hypermultiplet. By studying the higher symmetries of a non-conformal vector multiplet we introduce the concept of a Killing tensor superfield. We also analyse the problem of computing higher symmetries for the conformal d’Alembertian in curved space and demonstrate that, beyond the first-order case, these operators are defined only on a limited class of backgrounds, including all conformally flat ones.

Modul Fisika Berbasis Augmented Reality Sebagai Alternatif Sumber Belajar Siswa

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengembangkan modul pembelajaran terintegrasi Augmented Reality sebagai sumber belajar siswa kelas X SMK Cendekia Madiun. Penelitian ini menggunakan metode ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation). Produk yang dikembangkan adalah modul yang terintegrasi Augmented Reality pada pokok bahasan Getaran dan Gelombang. Modul pembelajaran terintegrasi Augmented Reality ini telah melalui tahap uji validasi dengan melibatkan 5 validator dengan rata-rata persentase capaian sebesar 77,7% menurut ahli materi dengan kategori layak, 72,5% menurut ahli media pembelajaran. Hasil uji coba kelas kecil oleh 6 siswa dilaksanakan di SMK Ma’arif Dolopo menunjukkan respon siswa terhadap modul yang dikembangkan dengan persentase sebesar 78,67% dengan kategori baik dan hasil uji coba kelas terbatas di SMK Cendekia Madiun terhadap 20 siswa menunjukkan respon siswa dengan persentase sebesar 71,60 % dengan kategori baik. Dari hasil penelitian ini dapat disimpulkan bahwa modul pembelajaran terintegrasi Augmented Reality ini memenuhi persyaratan dengan kualitas baik dan layak digunakan sebagai modul penunjang dalam pembelajaran. This study aims to develop an integrated learning module of Augmented Reality as a learning resource for grade X students of SMK Cendekia Madiun. This study uses the ADDIE (Analysis, Design, Development, Implementation, Evaluation) method. The product being developed is a module integrated with Augmented Reality on the subject of Vibrations and Waves. This Augmented Reality integrated learning module has gone through the validation test stage with an average percentage of achievement of 77.7% according to material experts with the feasible category, 72.5% according to instructional media experts. The small class trial results by six students showed an achievement percentage of 51%, and the results of a limited class trial with 20 students showed an achievement percentage of 31%. From the results of this study, this Augmented Reality integrated learning module meets the requirements with good quality and is suitable for use as a supporting module in learning.

The Impact of Online Learning on International Students' Studies Amid the Covid-19 Pandemic During the 2020 Spring Semester: A Case Study of Southwest University.

Toward the end of 2019 and since the beginning of 2020, there has been a worldwide collapse of the pandemic disease called covid-19 that caused a complete shutdown in several countries. As a result, schools, universities and other institutions of higher learning were forced to close. The only way learning could take place was through online learning. Unplanned online learning brought uncertainty among institutions, educators and learners which needs to be examined. The purpose of this case study was, therefore, to explore how online learning during the COVID-19 period influenced SWU international students’ studies, and to understand the attitude of these international students toward online learning during the covid-19 period and finally finding out strategies that SWU international students used to tackle the challenges they encountered through online learning. Semi-structured interviews were conducted among twelve international students offering different online courses. Researchers used content analysis to help them arrive at findings and conclusions. Results from the research showed that poor network connectivity, limited class participation was among the strongest themes to address the first research question. Passion for learning and apathy of online learning were among the themes under students’ attitude. Strategies used to cope up with the challenges faced included prior class preparations and seeking better internet connectivity showed up.