Faculty at IITGN

Research Interests

• Investigation of groove-modified nucleobases on Y-family DNA polymerase activity
• Construction of metal nanowires based on biomolecular templates
• Structure-function correlations of unorthodox DNA structures
• Aptamer-based sensors and detection strategies for infectious diseases
• Enzymatic remediation of phenolic wastewater

Research Interests

• DNA nanotechnology
• Chemical biology

Research Interests

• Tissue elasticity imaging
• Shear wave imaging
• Quantitative ultrasound techniques
• High-frequency ultrasound imaging
• Tissue characterization

Research Interests

• Sensorimotor control and learning
• Movement disorders after neurological damage
• Brain lateralization

Research Interests

• Protein aggregation and their role in neurodegenerative disorders
• Role of post translational modifications on protein aggregation and toxicity
• Peptides as molecular probes / therapeutics in Alzheimer's disease and related disorders
• Role of proteomics in understanding the effect of disease modifying therapies
• Difficult peptide synthesis and novel scaffolds

Research Interests

• Evolution of mobile genetic elements/ transposons: mechanisms of transposition and control
• Modifications of function in transposase homologs
• Biochemical/biophysical/structural characterization of nucleotide-binding & nucleic acid binding proteins
• Genomic and proteomic analysis of transposases and transposase homologs

Research Interests

• Cytoprotection
• Cellular stress response and gene expression vis-à-vis retrotransposon evolution
• Co-ordination between different cellular processes by multifunctional proteins

Research Interests

• Structural biology of macromolecular complexes
• Chemical crystallography
• Insitu cryo-crystallizations of liquids
• Projects: a) Structural investigation of Alzheimer disease related protein gamma secretase activating protein (GSAP) b) Structural investigation of (Ataxia telangiectasia and Rad3-related protein) ATR and (Ataxia telangiectasia mutated) ATM Kinase protein

Research Interests

• Kinesins and intracellular transport

Research Interests

• Particle Engineering
• Cohesive Powders
• Surface Engineering
• Wetting and Antibacterial Surfaces/ Bacterial Adhesion
• Drug Formulation
• Nano-materials for Drug Delivery/ Controlled Release
• Solid-phase Reactions for Functional Materials, Water Treatment

Research Interests

• Exfoliation of layered metal borides
• Synthesis of boron based nanosheets analogous to graphene
• Fundamental science at the interface of nanosheets
• Designing novel nano composites
• Nanomaterials for energy storage

Research Interests

• Interfacial phenomena at solid-fluid and fluid-fluid interfaces
• Thermodynamics and statistical mechanics
• Molecular simulations

Research Interests

• Protein aggregation
• Chaperone mediated protein folding
• Polymer coacervation
• Molecular simulations

Research Interests

• Process optimization and control
• Multi-objective optimization (MOO)
• Genetic algorithms
• Dynamic optimization
• Model predictive control (MPC)
• MOO based MPC

Research Interests

• Viscoelastic properties of particles in liquid crystals and applications
• Liquid crystal sensors
• Interfacial engineering of soft materials
• Anti infective surface

Research Interests

• Self-oscillating polymer gels
• Structure development in polymer blends and solutions
• Polymer processing

Research Interests

• Engineering stable microbubbles formulations for biomedical applications
• Precipitation and stabilization of nnanoparticles in aqueous suspensions
• Supercritical fluid processing

Research Interests

• Bio-inorganic chemistry
• Alternative energy research

Research Interests

• Investigation of groove-modified nucleobases on Y-family DNA polymerase activity
• Construction of metal nanowires based on biomolecular templates
• Structure-function correlations of unorthodox DNA structures
• Aptamer-based sensors and detection strategies for infectious diseases
• Enzymatic remediation of phenolic wastewater

Research Interests

• Development of novel double-hydrogen bond donor catalysts
• Asymmetric amine catalysis
• Asymmetric synthesis of bio-active molecules
• Study of small molecules for targeted diseases

Research Interests

• Boron based NIR dyes and their conjugates
• Derivatives of corroles and N-confused porphyrins with novel properties
• Metal complexes of dipyrrins

Research Interests

• Carbohydrate-protein interactions
• Novel DNA constructs
• Molecular mechanics force field development

Research Interests

• Plasmonics
• Nano-optics

Research Interests

• Drug discovery and cancer chemical biology
• Use of small molecules to study cancer related proteins
• Basic synthetic organic chemistry

Research Interests

• Synthesis of photosensitive π-conjugated materials for a variety of optical and biological applications

Research Interests

• Materials
• Electrochemistry
• Catalysis

Research Interests

• Chemical biology of mitochondria and endoplasmic reticulum (ER)
• Development of self-assembled novel nano-scale materials
• Design and synthesis of small molecules for understanding cancer biology
• Organic synthesis
• Nanobiotechnology

Research Interests

• Liquefaction & cyclic instability
• Dynamic behavior of soils
• Unsaturated cohesive soils
• Special soils: micaceous, soft, laterite, expansive
• Experimental studies on strain localization

Research Interests

• Constitutive modeling for granular materials
• Numerical modeling of geotechnical structures
• Earthquake geotechnical engineering
• Applications of geosynthetics

Research Interests

• Stability and large deformation of structures
• Theoretical stress analysis
• Post-buckling and non-linear response of laminated plates

Research Interests

• Carbon sequestration of coral reefs of Gujarat
• Status of grasslands of Saurashtra and Central Gujarat
• Potential area mapping for mangrove restoration in South Gujarat, Kachchh and Saurashtra

Research Interests

• Ground motion characterization and seismic hazard
• Performance based earthquake engineering
• Complex structures
• Structural health monitoring

Research Interests

• Geotechnical testing and evaluation
• Design of pavements and quality control check

Research Interests

• Uncertainty quantification
• Structural Fire Engineering
• Computational mechanics

Research Interests

• Performance-based earthquake engineering
• Passive structural control
• Seismic isolation
• Characterization of earthquake shaking
• Seismic risk assessment
• Concrete and masonry structures
• Blast-resistant design
• Concrete printing

Research Interests

• Hydraulics and water resources engineering
• Transients in pipe flow
• Transients in open channel flow
• Frequency domain analysis in pipe flow

Research Interests

• Earthquake engineering
• Structural dynamics

Research Interests

• Critical infrastructure resilience
• Network science
• Ecological dynamics
• Machine learning
• Climate variability and change

Research Interests

• Surface water hydrology
• Climate variability and climate change
• Global food and water security
• Water resources management
• Large scale hydrologic modeling

Research Interests

• Hands-on & experiential pedagogy
• STEM education and creative learning
• 3D geometry, polyhedra, geodesics
• Machines & mechanisms
• Recreational math

Research Interests

• Algorithms for large scale data
• Social networks
• Computational social science
• Crowdsourcing
• Machine learning

Research Interests

• Circuit complexity and other low-level computational models

Research Interests

• Computational complexity theory and algorithms
• Algebra and computationy

Research Interests

• Neuroeconomics & neuromarketing
• Computational cognitive science
• Neuroimaging (EEG, fMRI) & brain computer interface
• Machine learning & artificial intelligence

Research Interests

• Dynamic graph algorithms
• Streaming algorithms
• Randomized algorithms
• Data-structures

Research Interests

• Text mining
• Natural language and processing
• Machine learning
• Network science
• Information retrieval

Research Interests

• Design and analysis of algorithms
• Computational social choice
• Extremal combinatorics
• Combinatorial game theory
• Combinatorial and computational Geometry
• Satisfiability and constraint satisfaction

Research Interests

• Sensor networks
• Machine learning
• Computational sustainability

Research Interests

• Network Function Virtualization
• Software Defined Networking
• Cloud Computing
• Power & Performance Optimizations
• Network Security and Data Reliability
• Green Computing
• Virtual Machines & Virtualization
• Embedded and Portable Devices
• Distributed Systems

Research Interests

• Computer Vision
• Deep Learning
• Computational Photography
• Machine Learning
• Computer Graphics

Research Interests

• Pedagogy in design education
• Semiotics and design

Research Interests

• Basic and applied research on medical instrumentation
• Micro and nanotechnology
• Signal processing with focus on neuroengineering

Research Interests

• Signal processing and communication
• Speech and image processing

Research Interests

• Carbon sequestration of coral reefs of Gujarat
• Status of grasslands of Saurashtra and Central Gujarat
• Potential area mapping for mangrove restoration in South Gujarat, Kachchh and Saurashtra

Research Interests

• Pathways of contamination in freshwater system
• Build-up and washoff of micro & emerging pollutants
• Sources of the urban pollution and sustainability of urban water cycle under changing climate regime
• Development of pollution assessment tools, remediation technique and management

Research Interests

• Physical and mathematical modeling of imaging processes
• Satellite photogrammetry
• Remote sensing from near and far
• Spatial data infrastructures

Research Interests

• Geophysical and environmental modeling
• Geodynamics
• Inverse methods
• Mathematical modeling

Research Interests

• Spectral analysis of source, path and site effects
• Regionalization of source and attenuation characteristics of strong ground motion
• Ground Motion Prediction Equations (GMPEs) for seismic hazard analysis
• Host-to-Target Adjustment (HTTA) of GMPEs

Research Interests

• Earth surface processes
• River science
• External forcings and river's future
• Glacio-fluvial coupling
• Geomorphic applications in stream management

Research Interests

• Surface water hydrology
• Climate variability and climate change
• Global food and water security
• Water resources management
• Large scale hydrologic modeling

Research Interests

• Tunable diode laser spectroscopy for gas parameter measurement
• Optical physical and chemical sensing

Research Interests

• Therapeutic ultrasound
• Nonlinear imaging
• Ultrasound contrast agents
• Ultrasound-assisted drug delivery
• Intravascular imaging and therapy
• Medical device development

Research Interests

• Approximate computing
• Low power SRAM
• Radiation hardened systems
• Asynchronous design

Research Interests

• Dynamic systems
• Control systems
• Smart manufacturing
• Laser based manufacturing
• Mechatronics
• Robotics

Research Interests

• Restructured power systems - operation and management
• Smart distribution grid and microgrids
• Grid integration of decentralized energy resources and energy management
• Load demand and electricity price forecasting

Research Interests

• Nano-scale devices physics
• Device and circuit interaction in advanced devices
• Reliability of semiconductor devices
• Compact modeling
• Computational lithography
• Analog IC design

Research Interests

• Active noise control
• Adaptive signal processing
• Hearing aid design
• Soft computing

Research Interests

• Multimedia security: sensor forensics
• Signal processing for healthcare
• Low complexity imaging
• Image and video processing

Research Interests

• Drives for electric vehicles
• Diagnostic testing and condition monitoring of transformers
• Active power filter

Research Interests

• High speed packaging machines - VFFS and HFFS technologies
• Liquid packing machines - high speed applications
• CO2 laser - metal processing applications
• Control strategies for robots moving a very flexible structure

Research Interests

• Computational photonics
• Nanophotonics
• Silicon photonics
• Nanoelectronics
• High performance computing
• Deep learning for science and engineering

Research Interests

• Computer Vision
• Deep Learning
• Computational Photography
• Machine Learning
• Computer Graphics

Research Interests

• Technological progress and human values
• Semiconductor devices
• Transducers and instrumentation
• Noise
• Engineering education

Research Interests

• Virtual Reality based Human Computer Interaction used in affective computing.
• Eye Tracking and Physiology based modeling techniques.
• Human Robot Interaction used in cognitive studies.
• Adaptive Intelligent techniques in cognitive research.
• Robot assisted surgical techniques.

Research Interests

• Aero thermodynamics, rocket propulsion and flight dynamics
• Energy conversion wind, thermoelectrics, biodiesel
• Materials processing float-zones, directional solidification
• Drop & bubble dynamics, encapsulation

Research Interests

• Human-computer interactions
• Computer vision and display technologies

Research Interests

• Identify technologies to enable rural communities in India access global markets
• Engage with key government officials to accelerate innovation and investment in India

Research Interests

• Structural dynamics
• Aeroservoelasticity & aerothermoservoelasticity
• Reentry guidance
• Modelling
• Navigation
• Guidance and control of unmanned aerial systems

Research Interests

• Computer networks
• Protocols
• TCP/IP
• IPv6
• Network security
• Telecom regulation

Research Interests

• Experimental seismic behavior of structures
• Seismic evaluation and strengthening
• Energy dissipation devices
• Masonry and Steel-RC composite members

Research Interests

• Entrepreneurship development

Research Interests

• Quality assurance and regulatory compliance in pharmaceutical and medical device industries
• Good Laboratory Practices (GLP) in research laboratories
• Global quality regulations, US, UK, Europe, Japan and India
• Global quality and regulatory compliance of pharmaceutical and medical device industries

Research Interests

• Distributive justice
• Prosocial behaviour
• Cross-cultural/cultural issues
• Indigenous concepts in Psychology

Research Interests

• Geotechnical and Geosynthetics

Research Interests

Research Interests

• Partial differential equations
• Nonlinear functional analysis
• Optimal control problems

Research Interests

Research Interests

Research Interests

• Fire related problems
• Theoretical foundation for ignition of materials

Research Interests

• Fluid mechanics of multiphase systems
• Non-Newtonian fluid-particle mechanics
• Transport properties of molten salts and metals

Research Interests

• Archaeological research
• Conservation & environmental development of national mMonuments and administration

Research Interests

• Entrepreneurship skill development
• Global business strategies
• Agile product development
• Customer acquisition and retention
• Business plan and model development
• Social media impact assessment
• Challenges in education in developing countries

Research Interests

• Integrating multi-scale simulations and experimental research to design complex microstructures for energy, environment and high temperature applications

Research Interests

• Inter-disciplinary curriculum design and evaluation
• Applications of microprocessor & microcontrollers
• Designing embedded systems

Research Interests

• Optimal control, nonlinear control
• Geometric mechanics
• Application areas - mechanical (robotics), aerospace (launch vehicles, spacecrafts) and electrical power system networks

Research Interests

• Financial reporting
• Information in security markets
• Statistical theory of valuation
• Design of electronic markets

Research Interests

• Sanskrit, Tamil and Telugu literary traditions
• Vijayanagara history
• Indian classical music traditions
• Translation studies

Research Interests

Research Interests

• Literature and languages of North India and Central Asia
• lexicography
• Mughal and early colonial South Asian history
• South Asian Islam, Sufism and epigraphy

Research Interests

• Online media
• Media management
• Investigative reporting
• Media law, media ethics
• Censorship
• International communications
• Comparative media systems
• Mass media and society

Research Interests

• Who owns the past
• Understanding history and origin of the nagas
• History and origin of glass

Research Interests

• Biodiversity conservation
• Human-animal relations
• Natural resources management
• Iindigenous people and livelihoods
• Conservation and development

Research Interests

• Cultural theory
• Embodiment
• Environmental humanities
• Merleau-Ponty
• Phenomenology
• Posthumanism, posthumanist philosophy
• Science and Technology
• Visual culture

Research Interests

• Design and development of biochar for application as cover material in slopes
• Bio-physical processes in green infrastructure

Research Interests

• 20th century literature: modernism and postmodernism
• Modern theatre
• European avant garde fiction
• Continental philosophy and psychoanalysis
• Bengali vernacular literature and transnationalism
• Translation theory
• Modern poetry, affect studies

Research Interests

• Digital humanities
• South-asian literature
• Critical theories
• Bakhtin studies
• Creative writing
• Comparative literature

Research Interests

• Global Economy
• World Affairs
• Geopolitics
• Political Systems & Sustainability

Research Interests

• Curiosity
• Embodied cognition
• Moral decision

Research Interests

• linguistics Syntax and Semantics
• Syntax - Semantics of East and Southeast Asian languages

Research Interests

• Neuroeconomics & neuromarketing
• Computational cognitive science
• Neuroimaging (EEG, fMRI) & brain computer interface
• Machine learning & artificial intelligence

Research Interests

• Neuroscience of Perception
• Touch Perception
• Multi-modal Somatosensory Processing
• Aesthetic Perception & Creativity
• Design Pedagogy & Behavioural Change
• Science Communication

Research Interests

• Modern Indian History with special focus on British Assam
• Colonialism
• Social History
• Religious Traditions
• Politics of Language and Identity movements

Research Interests

• The influence of socioeconomic context (at multiple levels and in multiple domains), neighborhood of residence, as well as macroeconomic factors on under nutrition, obesity, insulin resistance and diabetes.

Research Interests

• Sanskrit and Prakrit grammar
• Jain Kavya and Stotra literature
• Manuscriptology

Research Interests

• Visual attention
• Attention capture
• Visual marking

Research Interests

• Archaeology and history of ancient India
• History of Indian science and technology
• Indian Knowledge Systems
• Indian heritage
• Cultural education

Research Interests

• Democracy
• Urban transformations and neoliberal politics
• Identity politics in India
• Indian middle class politics
• Political thought of M K Gandhi

Research Interests

• Arabic and Islamic studies in India
• Translation : arabic to english, hindi, urdu, and vice versa

Research Interests

• Semiotics
• Linguistic ethnography
• Script and writing systems
• Language and politics
• Aesthetics of language
• Adivasi societies and history
• Gujarat, Jharkhand/West Bengal border regions

Research Interests

• Managerial economics
• Cost benefit analysis
• Applied econometrics and monetary economics
• Research methods in social sciences
• Select topics of engineering economics

Research Interests

• Archaeozoology and taphonomy
• Bioarchaeology
• Application of sciences in archaeology
• Palaeoenvironmental reconstruction
• Human-environment interactions in the past and present

Research Interests

• Indian writing in english
• Postcolonial literature and theory
• Feminist literature and theory
• Multiethnic literature
• Writing and composition

Research Interests

• Population Studies
• Social gerontology
• Family sociology
• Public policy
• Health and quantitative methods

Research Interests

• • Bead manufacturing technologies of the Harappans, ernestite drills and their role in defining the technology of the Dholavira Harappans
• • Disposal of dead and burial practices in the archaeological context
• • Various aspects of Harappan civilization, technology, social organisation
• • Field archaeology and Scientific Applications in Archaeology (material characterization, provenance studies, ceramic technology, stable isotope studies, palaeoclimate and palaeodiet)

Research Interests

• Performance Studies
• Dalit Studies
• Theatres of the Global South
• Anthropology of caste
• Cultures of modernity
• Postcolonial/ decolonial theory
• Global intellectual history

Research Interests

• Analytic number theory
• Sieve methods
• Algebraic number theory

Research Interests

• Arithmetic jet spaces
• Connections of arithmetic jet spaces to p-adic Hodge theory as well as p-adic modular forms
• Diophantine geometry

Research Interests

• Analytic number theory
• Special functions
• Theory of partitions, modular forms and q-series

Research Interests

• Operator algebras
• Noncommutative geometry
• Quantum groups

Research Interests

• Probability theory and stochastic processes
• Dynamical systems

Research Interests

• Analytic number theory
• Probabilistic number theory

Research Interests

• Commutative algebra
• Algebraic geometry

Research Interests

• Nonlinear analysis
• Probabilistic functional analysis
• Mathematical system theory
• Industrial mathematics

Research Interests

• Harmonic Analysis

Research Interests

• Algebraic geometry

Research Interests

• Mathematical modeling and scientific computing
• Transport in porous media
• Asymptotic methods and perturbation techniques
• Nonlinear dynamics

Research Interests

• Ordinary differential equations
• Elliptic partial differential equations

Research Interests

• Quasilinear systems of partial differential equations
• Conservation laws
• Nonlinear gasdynamic and shallow water waves
• Lie group invariance for solutions of PDEs

Research Interests

• Hydrogen production from hydrocarbon reforming
• Fuel cell systems design and simulation
• Heat & mass transfer
• Palladium-based composite membranes for Hydrogen purification in fuel cell system applications
• Control algorithms for fuel cell systems

Research Interests

• Solar power: cell physics, panel production, off-shore installations and solar power economics and finance
• Finance and ​m​anagement for engineers
• Healthcare f​inance and ​e​ngineering m​echanics

Research Interests

• Thermofluid sciences
• Combustion
• Energetic materials

Research Interests

• Computational fluid dynamics
• Wave propagation, reflection and interaction
• Hydraulic and pneumatic controls
• Vibration of beams under moving loads
• Numerical methods for flow problems

Research Interests

• Heat transfer and heat exchangers
• Refrigeration and air conditioning
• Renewable energy sources
• Energy conversion and energy conservation in thermal system

Research Interests

• Systems and control theory
• System identification (data-based modeling)
• Estimation and kalman filtering
• Input reconstruction
• Applications of above areas to mechanical and biomechanical problems

Research Interests

• Thermal sciences
• Water-energy systems
• Industrial reuse and recycling

Research Interests

• Wave propagation in one and two-dimensional granular media
• Elastic wave scattering at discrete nonlinear interfaces
• Wave propagation in microfluidic droplet lattices
• Nonlinear energy channeling in three-dimensional, locally resonant, unit-cell models and lattices

Research Interests

• Dynamic systems
• Control systems
• Smart manufacturing
• Laser based manufacturing
• Mechatronics
• Robotics

Research Interests

• Integrated material handling system
• Low cost automation
• CNC technology CAD-CAM / CIM
• Tool design & engg.
• Mechatronics
• Productivity engg. & management
• Factory automation - strategy, technology & management

Research Interests

• Solid mechanics
• Constitutive modeling
• Computational mechanics
• Continuum damage mechanics

Research Interests

• Biomaterials and tissue engineering
• Nanomaterials

Research Interests

• Viscous Flows, Electrohydrodyamics and Electrokinetics
• Flow of Complex Fluids
• Transport in Porous Media
• Energy and Hygrometric Studies of Buildings

Research Interests

• Wearable & Rehabilitation Robotics
• Human-robot Interaction
• Cable-driven Robotics
• Human Movement Adaption

Research Interests

• Flow instabilities and transition to turbulence
• Compressible fluid flow
• Convective heat transfer

Research Interests

• Interface structure and dynamics

Research Interests

• Peptide-lipid interactions
• Design of antimicrobial peptides
• Antibacterial coatings
• Cell-penetrating peptides

Research Interests

• Numerical Modeling of Additive Manufacturing
• Modeling of Joining Processes
• Friction Stir Welding and Processing
• Corrosion Studies of Surface Composites
• Aluminum Metal Matrix Composites

Research Interests

• Transparent conducting oxides
• Thin film solar cells
• Interface thermodynamics

Research Interests

• Structure – property correlation
• Super plastic forming and formability of materials
• Development of aluminum based alloys
• Energy reduction & wastes utilization
• Physical metallurgy
• Materials science
• Basic metal forming

Research Interests

• Mineral processing and process metallurgy
• Transport phenomena
• Mathematical modelling & simulation
• Process design and development
• Process control in mineral processing and extractive metallurgy

Research Interests

• Synthesis of nanocrystalline metals alloys and composites by severe plastic deformation techniques such as high pressure torsion, rolling and rotary swaging
• Microstructure characterization of nanocrystalline materials with SEM, TEM, EBSD, X-ray diffraction techniques
• Characterization of deformation mechanisms in nanocrystalline materials with in-situ synchrotron experiments
• Characterization of thermal and deformation induced instabilities in nanocrystalline materials

Research Interests

• Atomistic/Molecular simulations of structure-property relations (mechanical, thermal and dynamic properties)
• Dynamics of soft matter including polymer blends and nanocomposites
• Viscoelasticity of hard inorganic materials and composites
• Thermodynamics and kinetics of phase transformations in materials
• Modeling reactive processes in materials subjected to extreme conditions

Research Interests

• Wetting and dewetting phenomena
• Soft lithography
• Colloidal processing
• Tribology
• Catalysis for corrosion protection

Research Interests

• Biomaterials and tissue engineering
• Nanomaterials

Research Interests

• Detection of gravitational waves
• Aspects of CMB data analysis

Research Interests

• Quantum entanglement in many-body systems
• Tensor network methods
• Computational complexity
• AdS/CFT correspondence
• Asymptotic symmetries of spacetime (BMS)

Research Interests

• Beyond the standard model – Model builidng and LHC phenomenology of new states

Research Interests

• Experimental (soft) condensed matter physics
• Graphene based nanofluidics/desalination techniques
• Ion/Proton transport through confined structures
• Device functionalities utilizing surface and interface physics
• Two-dimensional heterostructures

Research Interests

• Active matter
• Colloidal dynamics
• Nanotechnology

Research Interests

• Theoretical research in quantum Optics and nanophysics
• Ultracold atomic physics
• Quantum thermodynamics

Research Interests

• Theoretical quantum optics
• Foundations of quantum mechanics
• Quantum information processing

Research Interests

• Nano-science
• Surface physics and material science
• Organic Solar Cells
• Growth and characterization of nanomaterials and organic thin films
• Phase transition and structural re-organization of nanomaterials at surfaces and interfaces

Research Interests

• Gravitation
• Black hole physics
• Thermodynamics and Quasi normal modes
• Field theory in curved space-time

Research Interests

• Theoretical High Energy Physics: Physics of Quark-Gluon-Plasma