Search results for: Sara Abdul Majid Azzam

Authors: Bonaventure Naab Dery, Abdul Muntaka Samad

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During the past two decades, huge population growth has been recorded in developing countries. Thisled to an increase in the demand for transport services for human and merchandises. The study sought to examine the effect of freight transport intensity on firm performance. Among others, this study sought to examine the link between freight transport intensity and firm performance; the link between operational capability and firm performance, and the mediating role of operational capability on the relationship between freight transport intensity and firm performance. The study used a descriptive research design and a quantitative research approach. Questionnaireswereusedfor the data collection through snowball sampling and purposive sampling. SPSS and Mplus are being used to analyze the data. It is anticipated that, when the data is analyzed, it would validate the hypotheses that have been proposed by the researchers. Base on the findings, relevant recommendations would be made for managerial implications and future studies.

Keywords: freight transport intensity, freight economy transport intensity, freight efficiency transport intensity, operational capability, firm performance

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Authors: Nurzahidah Haji Jaapar, Anis Husna Abdul Halim, Mohd Faiz Mohamed Yusof, Mohd Dani Muhamad, Sharifah Fadylawaty Syed Abdullah

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The growing size of Muslim is recognised with significant increasing of purchasing power in the market. The realm of trade and business has embedded religious values as the new market segments are emerging in offering food products to meet needs and demands of Muslim consumer. The emergence of new market in food industry, advertising is charged with all sort of negative effects includes promoting controversial unsafety and harmful products, wasteful spending and exploiting women and kids. Therefore, this research attempts to examine between previous examinations of advertising standardisation in ancient era and current practices in the market. This paper is based on content analysis of the literature. The results show that there are a bridge gap between the implementation of practices as the advent in industrial 4.0 in using digital advertising by food industry. Thus, this paper is able to recognize the differences between two era and significant in determining the best practices in advertising by following Islamic principles.

Keywords: Islamic advertising, unethical advertising, ethical advertising, Islamic principles

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Authors: Rashid Farooq, Abdul Razzaq Ghumman, Hashim Nisar Hashmi

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Bridge piers often fail all over the world and the whole structure may be endangered due to scouring phenomena. Scouring has been linked to catastrophic failures that lead into the loss of human lives. Various techniques have been employed to extenuate the scouring process in order to assist the bridge designs. Pier modifications plays vital role to control scouring at the vicinity of the pier. This experimental study aims at monitoring the effectiveness of pier modification and temporal development of scour depth around a bridge pier by providing a collar, a cable or openings under the same flow conditions. Provision of a collar around the octagonal pier reduced more scour depth than that for other two configurations. Providing a collar around the octagonal pier found to be the best in reducing scour. The scour depth in front of pier was found to be 19.5% less than that at the octagonal pier without any modifications. Similarly, the scour depth around the octagonal pier having provision of a cable was less than that at pier with provision of openings. The scour depth around an octagonal pier was also compared with a plain circular pier and found to be 9.1% less.

Keywords: Scour, octagonal pier, collar, cable

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Authors: Abdulrahman M. Alhowikan, Nadra E. Elamin, Sarah S. Aldayel, Sara A. AlSiddiqi, Fai S. Alrowais, Laila Y. Al-Ayadhi

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Background: A growing body of research has suggested that physical activities (PA) have important implications for improving the performance of ASD children. They revealed that the physiological, cognitive, psychological, and behavioral functioning had improved after performing some physical activities. Methods: We compared the sedentary behavior and physical activities between children with autism spectrum disorder (n=21) and age-matched control group (n=30), using the ActiGraph GT3X+ for the assessments. Results: Our results revealed that the total time spent in sedentary activity and the total sedentary activity counts were highly significant in the control group compared to the ASD group (p < 0.001, p=0.001, respectively). ASD spent a significantly longer time than the controls engaging on vigorous physical activity (VPA) (p=0.017). The results also indicated that there were no significant differences between both groups for the total counts and time spent in light physical activity (LPA) and moderate physical activity (MPA). Conclusion: The finding highlights the importance of physical activity intervention for ASD children, using accurate and precise measurement tools to record all activities.

Keywords: Autism spectrum disorders, motor skills, physical activity, ActiGraph GT3X+, moderate-to vigorous-intensity physical activity

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Authors: Shima Mahmoudi, Babak Pourakbari, Setareh Mamishi, Mostafa Teymuri, Majid Marjani

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Although cytokine analysis has greatly contributed to the understanding of tuberculosis (TB) pathogenesis, data on cytokine profiles that might distinguish progression from latency of TB infection are scarce. Since PE/PPE proteins are known to induce strong humoral and cellular immune responses, the aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic potential of interleukin-2 (IL-2) as biomarker after specific antigen stimulation with PE35 and PPE68 for the discrimination of active and latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI). The production of IL-2 was measured in the antigen-stimulated whole-blood supernatants following stimulation with recombinant PE35 and PPE68. All the patients with active TB and LTBI had positive QuantiFERON-TB Gold in Tube test. The level of IL-2 following stimulation with recombinant PE35 and PPE68 were significantly higher in LTBI group than in patients with active TB infection or control group. The discrimination performance (assessed by the area under ROC curve) for IL-2 following stimulation with recombinant PE35 and PPE68 between LTBI and patients with active TB were 0.837 (95%CI: 0.72-0.97) and 0.75 (95%CI: 0.63-0.89), respectively. Applying the 12.4 pg/mL cut-off for IL-2 induced by PE35 in the present study population resulted in sensitivity of 78%, specificity of 78%, PPV of 78% and NPV of 100%. In addition, a sensitivity of 81%, specificity of 70%, PPV of 67% and 87% of NPV was reported based on the 4.4 pg/mL cut-off for IL-2 induced by PPE68. In conclusion, peptides of the antigen PE35 and PPE68, absent from commonly used BCG strains, stimulated strong IL-2- positive T cell responses in patients with LTBI. This study confirms IL-2 induced by PE35 and PPE68 as a sensitive and specific biomarker and highlights IL-2 as new promising adjunct markers for discriminating of LTBI and Active TB infection.

Keywords: IL-2, PE35, PPE68, tuberculosis

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Authors: Sara Mahesar, Saleem M. Chandio, Hira Soomro

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Nonlinear system of equations in two variables is a system which contains variables of degree greater or equal to two or that comprises of the transcendental functions. Mathematical modeling of numerous physical problems occurs as a system of nonlinear equations. In applied and pure mathematics it is the main dispute to solve a system of nonlinear equations. Numerical techniques mainly used for finding the solution to problems where analytical methods are failed, which leads to the inexact solutions. To find the exact roots or solutions in case of the system of non-linear equations there does not exist any analytical technique. Various methods have been proposed to solve such systems with an improved rate of convergence and accuracy. In this paper, a new scheme is developed for solving system of non-linear equation in two variables. The iterative scheme proposed here is modified form of the conventional Newton’s Method (CN) whose order of convergence is two whereas the order of convergence of the devised technique is three. Furthermore, the detailed error and convergence analysis of the proposed method is also examined. Additionally, various numerical test problems are compared with the results of its counterpart conventional Newton’s Method (CN) which confirms the theoretic consequences of the proposed method.

Keywords: conventional Newton’s method, modified Newton’s method, order of convergence, system of nonlinear equations

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Authors: Sara Moridpour

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To meet emerging industry needs, engineering students must learn different software packages and enhance their computational skills. Traditionally, face-to-face is selected as the preferred approach to teaching software packages. Face-to-face tutorials and workshops provide an interactive environment for learning software packages where the students can communicate with the teacher and interact with other students, evaluate their skills, and receive feedback. However, COVID-19 significantly limited face-to-face learning and teaching activities at universities. Worldwide lockdowns and the shift to online and remote learning and teaching provided the opportunity to introduce different strategies to enhance the interaction among students and teachers in online and virtual environments and improve the learning and teaching of software packages in online and blended teaching methods. This paper introduces a blended strategy to teach engineering software packages to undergraduate students. This article evaluates the effectiveness of the proposed blended learning and teaching strategy in students’ learning by comparing the impact of face-to-face, online and the proposed blended environments on students’ software skills. The paper evaluates the students’ software skills and their software learning through an authentic assignment. According to the results, the proposed blended teaching strategy successfully improves the software learning experience among undergraduate engineering students.

Keywords: teaching software packages, undergraduate students, blended learning and teaching, authentic assessment

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Authors: Sara Mouffouk, Fatma Belaid, Asma Hechani, Chaima Mouffouk

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Cancer of the cervix caused by HPV (human papillomavirus ) is for many years a real public health problem, it is ranked 2nd deadly female cancer kills more than 270 000 women each year worldwide. In Algeria, the mortality of cervical cancer decreases with the impact, but the prognosis of these cancers remains bleak: The 5-year relative survival is 60 %. The mode of transmission is usually sexuel. Our study was undertaken to show the link between HPV and cervical cancer and the importance of Pap smear screening in this type of pathology. On the total sample, 76.11 % showed abnormal cervical smears of which 13% have mild cases and hormonal reaction Change, and 44% represent inflammatory smears and normal cases 35%, while long seven years from 2005 to 2012. Thus, 43% of abnormal smear results between ASCUS, AGUS, low and high grade carcinoma and adenocarcinoma and 57 % of other cases of unknown origin. The average age of women at risk of developing adenocarcinoma is 45-50 with a 67% to 33% of the same risk in women of age group 41-45 years although the percentage of cases of HPV infected patients was 2% in the past seven years. We found that with increasing age, the risk is argued. Due to several factors such as multiparty can reduced the resistance of the uterine epithelium and even as the multi that promotes contamination HPV causes repeated infections with HPV.

Keywords: cervical cancer, human papillomavirus (HPV) screening, prevention, vaccines

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Authors: Sara Vora (Hoxha)

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An essential feature of any international lawsuit is the ability of the parties to pick the law that would apply in the event of a tort claim. This option to choose the law to use in tort cases is based on Article 14 and 4/3 of the Rome II Regulation. The purpose of this article is to examine the boundaries of this freedom, as well as its relevance in international legal disputes. The article opens with a brief introduction to the basics of tort law. After a short introduction, the article demonstrates why Article 14 and 4/3 of the Rome II Regulation are so crucial to the right to select appropriate law in tort cases. The notion of the right to select the law to use in tort cases is examined, along with its breadth and possible restrictions. The article presents case studies to demonstrate how the right to select relevant law in tort might be put into practise. Case results and the judges' rationales for their rulings are examined. The possible influence of the right to select applicable law in tort on the process of harmonisation is also explored in this study. The results are summarised and the primary research question is addressed in the last section of the paper. In conclusion, the parties' ability to pick the law that rules their dispute via the freedom to choose relevant law in tort is a crucial feature of cross-border litigation. Despite certain restrictions, this freedom is nevertheless an important part of the legal structure that governs international conflicts.

Keywords: applicable law, tort, Rome II regulation, freedom to choose, cross-border litigation, harmonization of tort law

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Authors: Nahed Mohamed Ismail, Bayomy Mostafa, Ahmed Abdel Kader, Ahmed Mohamed Azzam

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Effect of lining watercourses on the distribution and abundance of fresh water snails at two Egyptian governorates, Baheria (new reclaimed area) and Giza was studied. Seasonal survey in lined and unlined sites during two successive years was carried out. Samples of snails and water were collected from each examined site and the ecological conditions were recorded. The collected snails from each site were placed in plastic aquaria and transferred to the laboratory, where they were sorted out, identified, counted and examined for natural infection. The size frequency distribution was calculated for each snail species. Results revealed that snails were represented in all examined watercourses (lined and unlined) at the two tested habitats by 14 species. (Biomphalaria alexandrina, B. glabrata, Bulinus truncatus, Physa acuta. Helisoma duryi, Lymnaea natalensis, Planorbis planorbis, Cleopatra bulimoids, Lanistes carinatus, Bellamya unicolor, Melanoides tuberculata, Theodoxus nilotica, Succinia cleopatra and Gabbiella senaarensis). During spring, the percentage of live (45%) and dead (55%) snail species was extremely highly significant lower (p>0.001) in lined water bodies compared to the unlined ones (93.5% and 6.5%, respectively) in the examined sites at Baheria. At Giza, the percentage values of live snail species from all lined watercourses (82.6% and 60.2%, during winter and spring, respectively) was significantly lower (p>0.05 & p>0.01) than those in unlined ones (91.1% and 79%, respectively). Size frequency distribution of snails collected from the lined and unlined water bodies at Baheria and Giza governorates during all seasons revealed that during survey, snail populations were stable and the recruitment of young to adult was continuing for some species, where the recruits were observed with adults. However, there was no sign of small snails occurrence in case of B. glabrata and B. alexandrina during autumn, winter and spring and disappear during summer at Giza. Meanwhile they completely absent during all seasons at Baheria Governorate. Chemical analysis of some heavy metals of water samples collected from lined and unlined sites from Baheria and Giza governorates during autumn, winter and spring were approximately as the same in both lined and unlined water bodies. However, Zn and Fe were higher in lined sites (0.78±0.37and 17.4 ± 4.3, respectively) than that of unlined ones (0.4±0.1 and 10.95 ± 1.93, respectively) and Cu was absent in both lined and unlined sites during summer at Baheria governorate. At Giza, Cu and Pb were absent and Fe were higher in lined sites (4.7± 4.2) than that of unlined ones (2.5 ± 1.4) during summer. Statistical analysis showed that no significant difference in all physico-chemical parameters of water in lined and unlined water bodies at the two tested habitats during all seasons. However, it was found that the water conductivity and TDS showed a lower mean values in lined sites than those of unlined ones. Thus, the present obtained data support the concept of utilizing environmental modification such as lining of water courses to help in minimizing the population density of certain vector snails and consequently reduce the transmission of snails born diseases.

Keywords: lining, fresh water, snails, watercourses

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Authors: Alireza Taghdiri, Sara Ghanbarzade Ghomi

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With gravity load reduction in the structural and non-structural components, the lightweight construction will be achieved as well as the improvement of efficiency and functional specifications. The advantages of lightweight construction can be examined in two levels. The first is the mass reduction of load bearing structure which results in increasing internal useful space and the other one is the mass reduction of building which decreases the effects of seismic load as a result. In order to achieve this goal, the essential building materials specifications and also optimum load bearing geometry of structural systems and elements have to be considered, so lightweight materials selection particularly with lightweight aggregate for building components will be the first step of lightweight construction. In the next step, in addition to selecting the prominent samples of Iran's traditional architecture, the process of these works improvement is analyzed through the viewpoints of structural efficiency and lightweighting and also the practical methods of lightweight construction have been extracted. The optimum design of load bearing geometry of structural system has to be considered not only in the structural system elements, but also in their composition and the selection of dimensions, proportions, forms and optimum orientations, can lead to get a maximum materials efficiency for loads and stresses bearing.

Keywords: gravity load, lightweighting structural system, load bearing geometry, seismic behavior

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Authors: A. W. Zularisam, Sveta Thakur, Lakhveer Singh, Mimi Sakinah Abdul Munaim

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Clostridium sp. LS2 was immobilised by entrapment in polyethylene glycol (PEG) gel beads to improve the biohydrogen production rate from palm oil mill effluent (POME). We sought to explore and optimise the hydrogen production capability of the immobilised cells by studying the conditions for cell immobilisation, including PEG concentration, cell loading and curing times, as well as the effects of temperature and K2HPO4 (500–2000 mg/L), NiCl2 (0.1–5.0 mg/L), FeCl2 (100–400 mg/L) MgSO4 (50–200 mg/L) concentrations on hydrogen production rate. The results showed that by optimising the PEG concentration (10% w/v), initial biomass (2.2 g dry weight), curing time (80 min) and temperature (37 °C), as well as the concentrations of K2HPO4 (2000 mg/L), NiCl2 (1 mg/L), FeCl2 (300 mg/L) and MgSO4 (100 mg/L), a maximum hydrogen production rate of 7.3 L/L-POME/day and a yield of 0.31 L H2/g chemical oxygen demand were obtained during continuous operation. We believe that this process may be potentially expanded for sustained and large-scale hydrogen production.

Keywords: hydrogen, polyethylene glycol, immobilised cell, fermentation, palm oil mill effluent

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Authors: Sara Sousa, Veronique Gomes, Nélio Veiga, Maria José Correia

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Objectives: To assess the presence or absence of Streptococcus mutans, Streptococcus gordonii and Streptococcus salivarius in the oral biofilm of children in an elementary school of Viseu, Portugal, and verify the relationship between Streptococcus gordonii and Streptococcus salivarius and the absence of dental caries. Methods: A cross-sectional study was designed with a final sample of 40 children aged 6-11 years old. Oral examination was accomplished with the identification of their oral health status and oral biofilm collection. Analysis of biological samples by molecular techniques of DNA isolation and identification of three Streptococci bacteria by Polimerase Chain Reaction (PCR) was made. Results: We identified Streptococcus salivarius and Streptococcus gordoni only in the lower interincisal region. These species were also present mainly in the first permanent non-decayed molars. On the contrary, Streptococcus mutans was found mostly in decayed first permanent molars. Conclusion: This preliminary study establishes a possible association between the absence of dental caries and the presence of Streptococcus gordonii and Streptococcus salivarius. Since these two species are described as alkali producers, it is suggested that their presence somehow confers protection against caries. These results support new dental caries prevention strategies based on oral biofilm modulation by enrichment with alkalinogenic species.

Keywords: dental caries, oral biofilm, Streptococcus gordonii, Streptococcus salivarius

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Authors: Rohaya Abdul Wahab, Raja Mohd Fuad Tengku Aziz, Nazaliza Othman, Sharifah Saleh, Nabihah Razali, Rozaimah Baharim, M. Hanif M. Nasir

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This paper will discuss how EDA tools are integrated and automated in an Integrated Circuit Design Environment. Some of the problems face in our current environment is that users need to configure manually on the library paths, start-up files and project directories. Certain manual processes that happen between the users and applications can be automated but they must be transparent to the users. For example, the users can run the applications directly after login without knowing the library paths and start-up files locations. The solution to these problems is to automate the processes using standard configuration files which will benefit the users and EDA support. This paper will discuss how the implementation is done to automate the process using scripting languages such as Perl, Tcl, Scheme and Shell Script. These scripting tools are great assets for design engineers to build a robust and powerful design flow and this technique is widely used to integrate all the tools together.

Keywords: EDA tools, Integrated Circuits, scripting, integration, automation

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Authors: Abdul Qader Melhm, Hussein Elrafidi

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This paper is dealing with studying the structural behavior of a steel-composite hollow reinforced concrete (RC) column model under combined eccentric loading. The composite model consists of an inner steel tube surrounded via a concrete core with longitudinal and circular transverse reinforcement. The radius of gyration according to American and Euro specifications be calculated, in order to calculate the thinnest ratio for this type of composite column model, in addition to the flexural rigidity. Formulas for interaction diagram is given for this type of model, which is a general loading conditions in which an element is exposed to an axial load with bending at the same time. The structural capacity of this model, elastic, plastic loads and strains will be computed and compared with experimental results. The total eccentric axial load of the column model is calculated based on the effective length KL available from several relationships provided in the paper. Furthermore, the inner tube experiences buckling failure after reaching its maximum strength will be investigated.

Keywords: column, composite, eccentric, inner tube, interaction, reinforcement

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Authors: Syahira Ibrahim, Herlina Abdul Rahim

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The amylose content is an essential element in determining the texture and taste of rice grains. This paper evaluates the use of VIS-SWNIRS in estimating the amylose content for seven varieties of rice grains available in the Malaysian market. Each type consists of 30 samples and all the samples are scanned using the spectroscopy to obtain a range of values between 680-1000nm. The Savitzky-Golay (SG) smoothing filter is applied to each sample’s data before the Principal Component Regression (PCR) technique is used to examine the data and produce a single value for each sample. This value is then compared with reference values obtained from the standard iodine colorimetric test in terms of its coefficient of determination, R2. Results show that this technique produced low R2 values of less than 0.50. In order to improve the result, the range should include a wavelength range of 1100-2500nm and the number of samples processed should also be increased.

Keywords: amylose content, diffuse reflectance, Malaysia rice grain, principal component regression (PCR), Visible and Shortwave near-infrared spectroscopy (VIS-SWNIRS)

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Authors: Urvah-Til-Vusqa, Unsa Noreen, Ayesha Hussain, Abdul Hafeez, Rafia Asghar, Sidrat Nasir

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Natural dyes offer an alternative better application in textiles than synthetic ones. The present study will be aimed to employ natural dye extracted from Cordyline terminalis plant and its application into viscose under the influence of gamma radiations. The colorant extraction will be done by boiling dracaena leaves powder in aqueous, alkaline and ethyl acetate mediums. Both dye powder and fabric will be treated with different doses (5-20 kGy) of gamma radiations. The antioxidant, antimicrobial and hemolytic activities of the extracts will also be determined. Different tests of fabric characterization (before and after radiations treatment) will be employed. Dyeing variables just as time, temperature and M: L will be applied for optimization. Standard methods for ISO to evaluate color fastness to light, washing and rubbing will be employed for improvement of color strength 1.5-15.5% of Al, Fe, Cr, and Cu as mordants will be employed through pre, post and meta mordanting. Color depth % & L*, a*, b* and L*, C*, h values will be recorded using spectra flash SF650.

Keywords: natural dyes, gamma radiations, Cordyline terminalis, ecofriendly dyes

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Authors: Abdul Manan

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Dielectric Resonators (DRs) have revolutionized the microwave wireless communication industry globally. There are three directions for research in ceramics for application in telecommunication industry Three key properties of ceramic dielectrics that determine their functionality at microwave and millimetrewave frequencies include relative permittivity (εr), unloaded quality factor Qu- the inverse of the dielectric loss (tanδ) and temperature coefficient of resonant frequency (τf). Each direction requires specific properties. These dielectric properties are affected by a number of factors. These includes tolerance factor, onset of structural phase transitions, dark core formation, processing conditions, raw materials and impurities, order/disorder behavior, compositional ordering, porosity, humidity, grain size, orientation of the crystallites, and grain boundaries. The data related to these factors is scattered. The main purpose of this review is to bring these together and present the effects of these factors on the microwave dielectric properties. Control of these factors is important for improvement in the microwave properties. This review would be very helpful to the novice researchers and technologists in the field.

Keywords: order disorder, sintering, defect, porosity, grain boundaries

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Authors: Soheil Zorofchian Moghadamtousi, Habsah Abdul Kadir, Mohammadjavad Paydar, Elham Rouhollahi, Hamed Karimian

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The present study was designed to evaluate the molecular mechanisms of Annona muricata leaves ethyl acetate extract (AMEAE) against lung cancer A549 cells. Cell viability analysis revealed the selective cytotoxic effect of AMEAE towards A549 cells. Treatment of A549 cells with AMEAE significantly elevated the reactive oxygen species formation, followed by attenuation of mitochondrial membrane potential via upregulation of Bax and downregulation of Bcl-2, accompanied by cytochrome c release to the cytosol. The released cytochrome c triggered the activation of caspase-9 followed by caspase-3. In addition, AMEAE-induced apoptosis was accompanied by cell cycle arrest at G1 phase. Our data showed for the first time that AMEAE inhibited the proliferation of A549 cells, leading to cell cycle arrest and programmed cell death through activation of the mitochondrial-mediated signaling pathway.

Keywords: Annona muricata, lung cancer, apoptosis, mitochondria

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Authors: Rehan Waheed, Abdul Shakoor

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Distortion produced during welding of thin metal plates is a problem in many industries. The purpose of this research was to study distortion produced during welding in 2mm Mild Steel plate by simulating the welding process using Finite Element Analysis. Simulation of welding process requires a couple field transient analyses. At first a transient thermal analysis is performed and the temperature obtained from thermal analysis is used as input in structural analysis to find distortion. An actual weld sample is prepared and the weld distortion produced is measured. The simulated and actual results were in quite agreement with each other and it has been found that there is profound deflection at center of plate. Temperature dependent material properties play significant role in prediction of weld distortion. The results of this research can be used for prediction and control of weld distortion in large steel structures by changing different weld parameters.

Keywords: welding simulation, FEA, welding distortion, temperature dependent mechanical properties

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Authors: Kaggwa Abdul, Chi-Chuan Wang

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This research is based on R-1234ze that is considered to substitute R-134a due to its low global warming potential in a microfin tube with outer diameter 9.52 mm, number of fins 70, and fin height 0.17 mm. In comparison, a smooth tube with similar geometries was used to study pressure drop and heat transfer coefficients related to the two fluids. The microfin tube was brazed inside a stainless steel tube and heated electrically. T-type thermocouples used to measure the temperature distribution during the phase change process. The experimental saturation temperatures and refrigerant mass velocities varied from 10 – 20°C and 50 – 300 kg/m2s respectively. The vapor quality from 0.1 to 0.9, and heat flux ranged from 5 – 11kW/m2. The results showed that heat transfer performance of R-134a in both microfin and smooth tube was better than R-1234ze especially at mass velocities above G = 50 kg/m2s. However, at low mass velocities below G = 100 kg/m2s R-1234ze yield better heat transfer coefficients than R-134a. The pressure gradient of R-1234ze was markedly higher than that of R-134a at all mass flow rates.

Keywords: R-1234ze and R-134a, horizontal flow boiling, pressure drop, heat transfer coefficients, micro-fin and smooth tubes

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Authors: Michal Christina Steven, Mohd. Yusof Hj Ibrahim, Haryati Abdul Karim, Prabakaran Dhanaraj, Kelly Alexius Mansin

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After 27 years, Malaysia reported polio cases in 2019 involving the children of the undocumented migrants living in Sabah. These undocumented migrants present a significant challenge in achieving the elimination of vaccine-preventable diseases (VPD). Due to the recent polio outbreak among the undocumented migrant children in Sabah, an in-depth interview was conducted among the caregivers of undocumented migrant children to identify the barriers and drivers towards vaccinating their children. Financial barriers, legal citizenship status, language barrier, the COVID-19 pandemic, and physical barriers have been the barriers to access vaccination services by undocumented migrants. Five significant drivers for undocumented migrants to vaccinate their children are social influence, fear of disease, parental trust in healthcare providers, good support, and vaccine availability. Necessary action should be taken immediately to address the problems of vaccinating the children of undocumented migrants to prevent the re-emergence of VPD.

Keywords: Malaysia, polio, Sabah, undocumented migrants

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Authors: Ahmed Shariful Alam, Abu Hena M. Mustafa Kamal, M. Abdul Rahman, M. Nasmus Sakib Khan Shabbir, Atiqul Islam

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According to the rules of quantum mechanics there is a non-vanishing probability of for an electron to tunnel through a thin insulating barrier or a thin capacitor which is not possible according to the laws of classical physics. Tunneling of electron through a thin insulating barrier or tunnel junction is a random event and the magnitude of current flowing due to the tunneling of electron is very low. As the current flowing through a Single Electron Transistor (SET) is the result of electron tunneling through tunnel junctions of its source and drain the supply voltage requirement is also very low. As a result, the power consumption across a Single Electron Transistor is ultra-low in comparison to that of a MOSFET. In this paper simulations have been done with PSPICE for an inverter built with both SETs and MOSFETs. 35mV supply voltage was used for a SET built inverter circuit and the supply voltage used for a CMOS inverter was 3.5V.

Keywords: ITRS, enhancement type MOSFET, island, DC analysis, transient analysis, power consumption, background charge co-tunneling

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Authors: Alimshan Faizulayev, Eralp Bektas, Abdul Ghafar Ismail, Bezhan Rustamov

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This paper performs empirical analysis on determinants of profitability in Islamic and Conventional Banks. The main focus of this study is to evaluate and measure of financial performance of Islamic banking firms operating in Egypt, Iran, Malaysia, Pakistan, Turkey, UAE in contrast to Conventional ones in those countries. To evaluate empirically performance of the banks, various financial ratios are employed. We measure performance in terms of liquidity, profitability, solvency, and efficiency. In this work, t-test, F-test, and OLS analysis are used to make hypothesis tests. Our findings reveal that there are similarities and differences in profitability determinants of Islamic and Conventional banking firms. The cost to revenue ratio has inverse relationship with profitability indicators in both banking systems. However, there are differences in financial performances between Conventional Banks and Islamic banks which are found in overall picture of all banks in terms of net income margin.

Keywords: Islamic banking, conventional banking, GDP growth, emerging market economies

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Authors: Juliana da Silva Cardoso, Cláudia Correia, Rita Gomes, Carolina Fraga, Inês Cascais, Sara Monteiro, Beatriz Teixeira, Sandra Ribeiro, Carolina Andrade, Cláudia Oliveira, Diana Gonzaga, Catarina Prior, Inês Vaz Matos

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The average daily screen time (ST) has been increasing in children, even at young ages. This seems to be associated with a higher incidence of neurodevelopmental disorders, and as the time of exposure increases, the greater is the functional impact. This study aims to compare the daily ST of toddlers and preschoolers previously and during the COVID-19 pandemic. A questionnaire was applied by telephone to parents/caregivers of children between 1 and 5 years old, followed up at 4 primary care units belonging to the Group of Primary Health Care Centers of Western Porto, Portugal. 520 children were included: 52.9% male, mean age 39.4 ± 13.9 months. The mean age of first exposure to screens was 13.9 ± 8.0 months, and most of the children were exposed to more than one screen daily. Considering the WHO recommendations, before the COVID-19 pandemic, 385 (74.0%) and 408 (78.5%) children had excessive ST during the week and the weekend, respectively; during the lockdown, these values increased to 495 (95.2%) and 482 (92.7%). Maternal education and both the child's median age and the median age of first exposure to screens had a statistically significant association with excessive ST, with OR 0.2 (p = 0.03, CI 95% 0.07-0.86), OR 1.1 (p = 0.01, 95% CI 1.05-1.14) and OR 0.9 (p = 0.05, 95% CI 0. 87-0.98), respectively. Most children in this sample had a higher than recommended ST, which increased with the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. These results are worrisome and point to the need for urgent intervention.

Keywords: COVID-19 pandemic, preschoolers, screen time, toddlers

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Authors: Hadi Mousavi, Majid Davoudi Nasr

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Executives can maximize profits by recognizing the factors that affect investment and using them to obtain the optimal level of investment. Inefficient markets have shortcomings that can impact the optimal level of investment, leading to the process of over-investment or under-investment. In the present study, the relationship between the overconfidence of senior managers and abnormal cash fluctuations with respect to financial flexibility in companies listed in the Tehran stock exchange from 2009 to 2013 were evaluated. In this study, the sample consists of 84 companies selected by a systematic elimination method and 420 year-companies in total. In this research, EVIEWS software was used to test the research hypotheses by linear regression and correlation coefficient and after designing and testing the research hypothesis. After designing and testing research hypotheses that have been used to each hypothesis, it was concluded that there was a significant relationship between the overconfidence of senior managers and abnormal cash fluctuations, and this relationship was not significant at any level of financial flexibility. Moreover, the findings of the research showed that there was a significant relationship between senior manager’s overconfidence and positive abnormal cash flow fluctuations in firms, and this relationship is significant only at the level of companies with high financial flexibility. Finally, the results indicate that there is no significant relationship between senior managers 'overconfidence and negative cash flow abnormalities, and the relationship between senior managers' overconfidence and negative cash flow fluctuations at the level of companies with high financial flexibility was confirmed.

Keywords: abnormal cash fluctuations, overconfidence of senior managers, financial flexibility, accounting

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Authors: Majid Javanmard

Abstract:

Edible mushrooms are those agricultural products which contain high quantity of protein and can have special role in human diet. So search for methods to increase their shelf life is important. One of these strategies can be use of active packaging for absorb the ethylene which has been studied in present study. In this study, initially, production of impregnating zeolite with potassium permanganate has been studied with zeolite clinoptiolite available in iran. After that, these ethylene scavengers were placed in the package of edible mushrooms and then transferred to the refrigerator with temperature 4c for a period of 20 days. Each 5 days, several experiments accomplished on edible mushrooms such as weight loss, moisture content, color, texture, bacterial experiments and sensory evaluation. After production of impregnating zeolite with potassium permanganate (with a concentration of %2.5, %5, %7.5, %10 and %12.5) by zeolite type clinoptiolite (with mesh 35 and 60), samples have been analyzed with gas chromatography and titration with sodium oxalate. The results showed that zeolite by concentration of %5, %7.5 and %10 potassium permanganate and mesh 60 have a higher efficiency. Results from the experiments on edible mushrooms proved that impregnated zeolite with potassium permanganate have a meaningful influence in prevent the weight loss, decrease of moisture content and L-value, increase of a-value and overall color change (ΔE) and decrease of firmness texture of mushrooms. In addition, these absorbents can influence on decrease microbial load (mesophilic bacteria) rather than control. Generally, concluded that the impregnated zeolite with 10% permanganate potassium has a high efficiency on increase the shelf life of fresh edible mushrooms.

Keywords: active packaging, ethylene scavenger, zeolite clinoptiolite, permanganate potassium, shelf life

Procedia PDF Downloads 390

Authors: Rajagopal Kavitha, Van Lun Low, Mohd Sofian-Azirun, Chee Dhang Chen, Mohd Yusof Farida Zuraina, Mohd Salleh Ahmad Firdaus, Navaratnam Shanti, Abdul Haiyee Zaibunnisa

Abstract:

This study investigated the hidden genetic lineages in the oriental latrine fly Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) across four states (i.e., Johore, Pahang, Perak and Selangor) and a federal territory (i.e., Kuala Lumpur) in Malaysia using Cytochrome b (Cyt b) genetic marker. The Cyt b phylogenetic tree and haplotype network revealed three distinct genetic lineages of Ch. megacephala. Lineage A, the basal clade was restricted to flies that originated from Kuala Lumpur and Selangor, while Lineages B and C, comprised of flies from all studied populations. An overlap of the three genetically divergent groups of Ch. megacephala was observed. However, the flies from both Kuala Lumpur and Selangor populations consisted of three different lineages, indicating that they are genetically diverse compared to those from Pahang, Perak and Johore.

Keywords: forensic entomology, calliphoridae, mitochondrial DNA, cryptic lineage

Procedia PDF Downloads 483

Authors: Alya Al Ghufli, Kelaithim Al Tunaiji, Sara Al Ali, Khalid Samara

Abstract:

It is well known that health care systems encompass a variety of key knowledge sources that need to be integrated and shared amongst all types of users to attain higher-levels of motivation and productivity. The development of Health Integrated Systems (HIS) is often seen as a crucial step in strengthening the integration of knowledge to help serve the information needs of health care users. As an emergent economy, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is regarded as a new arrival in the area of health information systems. As a new nation, there may be several challenges in terms of organisational climate and the sufficient skills and knowledge activities for effective use of HIS. In this regard, the lack of coordination, attitudes and practice of health-related systems can eventually result in unnecessary data and generally poor use of the system. This paper includes results from a qualitative preliminary study carried out from a case study investigation in a single large primary health care organisation in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) comprising various health care users. The study explored health care user’s perceptions about health integration and the impact it has on their practice. The main sources of information were semi-structured interviews and non-obtrusive observations. The authors conclude by presenting various recommendations for the development of HIS and knowledge activities and areas for further study.

Keywords: health integrated systems, knowledge sharing, knowledge activities, health information systems

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Authors: Seyed Majid Alavi Shooshtari

Abstract:

As a multi-layered prose piece of artistry and craftsmanship Charles de Secondat, baron de Montesquieu’s Persian Letters (1721) is a satirical work which records the experiences of two Persian noblemen, Usbek and Rica, traveling through France in the early eighteenth century. Montesquieu creates Persian Letters as a critique of the French society, a critical explanation of what was considered to be 'the Orient' in the period, and an invaluable historical document which illustrates the ways Europe and the East understood each other in the first half of the eighteenth century. However, Persian Letters is considered today, in part, an Orientalist text because of it presenting the culture of the East using stereotypical images. Although, when Montesquieu published Persian Letters, the term Orientalist was a harmless word for people who studied or took an interest in it, the ways in which this Western intellectual author exerts his critique of French social and political life through the eyes of Persian protagonists by placing the example of the Orient (the Other) at the service of an ongoing Eighteen century discourse does raise some Eastern eyebrows. The fact that Persian side of the novel is considered by some critics as a fanciful decor, and the letters sent home are seen as literary props, yet these Eastern men intelligently question the rationality of religious, state, military and cultural practices and uncover much of the absurdity, irrationality or frivolity of European life. By drawing on the insight that Montesquieu’s text problematizes the assumption that orientalism monolithically constructs the Orient as the Other, the present paper aims to examine how the innocent gaze of two Eastern travelers mirrors the ways Europe’s identity defines its-Self.

Keywords: montesquieu, persian letters, ‘the orint’, identity politics, self, the other

Procedia PDF Downloads 89