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Mountain communities are often defined by their distinctive flora and fauna, and the way local people utilize these natural resources. Our study aims to document the indigenous knowledge of wild flora among the local people of three valleys in Northern Pakistan. The ethnobotanical study was conducted in July and August of 2019 and 2020 in 21 hill villages across Shamshal, Hopper, and Phandar valleys in Gilgit-Baltistan, Northern Pakistan. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 90 key informants. We collected data on traditional knowledge of wild food plants (WFPs), wild medicinal plants (WMPs), and wild veterinary plants (WVPs) among three selected linguistic and religious groups scattered in different villages of the valleys. We documented 79 wild plant taxa belonging to 68 genera and 33 families utilized in the study area, among which, 50% were used as food, 43% were used for veterinary purposes, and 24% for medicinal applications. The data analysis revealed significant differences among the studied valleys and communities. The highest overlap was recorded between the Wakhi and Burushaski communities with a Jaccard Similarity Index (JI) value of 0.265, while the lowest was between the Burushaski and Khowar communities with a JI value of 0.238. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective was to identify acceptable volume and delivery rates of SC saline, as assessed by visual analogue scale (VAS) pain scores, a tolerability and acceptability questionnaire, and infusion leakage. Results: Infusions that met the acceptability criteria were 1 mL in 10s, 4 mL in 58s, and 3 mL in 2 mins. Higher delivery volumes and rates were associated with higher VAS pain scores but remained within the VAS acceptability criteria. Conclusion: These findings may support the development of larger-volume injectors for self-administration of future medicines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates the decentralized formation tracking problem for complex multiagent systems in finite settling time, subjected to output constraints and external disturbances. The barrier Lyapunov function is used to constrain the output of each agent. Therefore, starting inside a closed boundary, the agents are guaranteed to remain inside it for all future time. Under directed communication topology, decentralized time-varying formation tracking is achieved in finite time. Furthermore, in the proposed work, the linear sliding manifold is employed to mitigate the singularity problem that occurs in the conventional robust finite-time methods, i.e., terminal sliding mode-based control schemes. The stability properties of the proposed framework are established through the Lyapunov method which not only ensures the finite-time formation tracking of nonlinear multiagent systems under directed communication but also guarantees that for all time the agents remain inside a closed boundary if they are initially inside it. Consequently, the uniqueness of this article is that it presents a novel formation tracking control framework for multiagent systems that simultaneously considers three performance metrics of robustness, finite-time convergence, and output constraints while mitigating the singularity problem. The proposed topology is validated by implementing the numerical examples in MATLAB/SIMULINK. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, we propose a methodology for implementing an output feedback control (OFC) strategy for a two-time-scale nonlinear system. A permanent-magnet DC motor model is utilized. We estimated the states using a high-gain observer for a two-time-scale nonlinear system. The results demonstrate the robustness and efficacy of the suggested OFC technique. Furthermore, the output feedback control approach exhibits robustness to parametric uncertainties, thereby making it feasible for practical implementation in a two-time-scale nonlinear system. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study aimed to evaluate the ability of some terrestrial and aquatic plants for wastewater purification. Aquatic plants can remove pollutants from wastewater by consuming and accumulating various contaminants in different parts of plants. Different aquatic and terrestrial plants (Rosa sinensis, Typha latifolia, Ocimm bacilicum, Azolla pinnata, and Salvinia molesta) which have the ability to decrease water pollution were utilized in this study. The capability of five different species of plants was investigated by measuring chemical oxygen demand (COD), biological oxygen demand (BOD), electrical conductivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), and pH of the medium. In this research, some aquatic and terrestrial plants were transplanted in wastewater plastic pots containing domestic wastewater with different ratios of 50% and 100%. Then, after 30 days, the physiological and biochemical parameters of plants were calculated to observe the effect of wastewater on plants. Results revealed higher chlorophyll and carotenoids in typha plants treated with 100% wastewater. The highest percentage of elimination in BOD (65%), COD (27%), TDS (72%), EC (83%), and pH (6.8%) was noted with the use of typha and azolla. Intriguingly, total soluble sugars, total free amino acids, and total proteins were found maximum in the hibiscus plant as compared to the other plants under 100% and 50% domestic wastewater treatment, while typha and ocimum showed lower values of these parameters irrespective of wastewater treatments. Moreover, the COD, BOD, TDS, EC, and pH trend was higher in 100% wastewater as compared to 50% wastewater. Taking into account the accumulation capacity of the tested plants especially typha can be efficiently used for the treatment of domestic wastewater. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]