The Reality of E- Learning at the Mutah University from the Viewpoint of Students

This study aimed to identify the reality of e-learning at Mutah University from the perspective of students. The researchers adopted descriptive and analytical method to highlight the concepts related to the subject of study. Moreover, analysis and  extrapolation of the results have resorted researchers to choose a simple random sample  which are in total  (335) from the number of students of science and humanity college in the fourth year. To achieve the objectives ,the study designed a questionnaire included (22) paragraphs to gather preliminary information from the study sample in order to collect and analyze data and test hypotheses. However, the study found that the arithmetic mean of the estimates of the study sample (students) on the axes of the questionnaire (use; positives, negatives; obstacles) was as high as the study showed in the presence of statistically significant differences between the mean scores of students around the axis of Use and the positives and negatives depending on the variable specialization as results of the study showed a lack of statistically significant differences between the mean scores of students around the axis of obstacles

A Self-Learning MAC Protocol for Energy Harvesting and Spectrum Access in Cognitive Radio Sensor Networks

The fusion of Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs) and Cognitive Radio Networks (CRNs) into Cognitive Radio Sensor Networks (CRSNs) is quite an attractive proposal, because it allows a distributed set of low-powered sensor nodes to opportunistically access spectrum bands that are underutilized by their licensed owners (called primary users (PUs)). In addition, when the PUs are actively transmitting in their own bands, sensor nodes can switch to energy harvesting mode to obtain their energy needs (for free), to achieve almost perpetual life. In this work, we present a novel and fully distributed MAC protocol, called S-LEARN, that allows sensor nodes in a CRSN to entwine their RF energy harvesting and data transmission activities, while intelligently addressing the issue of disproportionate difference between the high power necessary for the node to transmit data packets and the small amount of power it can harvest wirelessly from the environment. The presented MAC protocol can improve both the network throughput and total harvested energy, while being robust to changes in the network configuration. Moreover, S-LEARN can keep the cost of the system low, and it avoids the pitfalls from which centralized systems suffer

P38 Kinase, SGK1 and NF-κB Dependent Up-Regulation of Na+/Ca2+ Exchanger Expression and Activity Following TGFß1 Treatment of Megakaryocytes

Background: TGFβ1, a decisive regulator of megakaryocyte maturation and platelet formation, has previously been shown to up-regulate both, store operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE) and Ca2+ extrusion by Na+/Ca2+ exchange. The growth factor thus augments the increase of cytosolic Ca2+ activity ([Ca2+]i) following release of Ca2+ from intracellular stores and accelerates the subsequent decline of [Ca2+]i. The effect on SOCE is dependent on a signaling cascade including p38 kinase, serum & glucocorticoid inducible kinase SGK1, and nuclear factor NFκB. The specific Na+/Ca2+ exchanger isoforms involved and the signalling regulating the Na+/Ca2+ exchangers remained, however elusive. The present study explored, whether TGFβ1 influences the expression and function of K+ insensitive (NCX) and K+ sensitive (NCKX) Na+/Ca2+ exchangers, and aimed to shed light on the signalling involved. Methods: In human megakaryocytic cells (MEG01) RT-PCR was performed to quantify NCX/NCKX isoform transcript levels, [Ca2+]i was determined by Fura-2 fluorescence, and Na+/Ca2+ exchanger activity was estimated from the increase of [Ca2+]i following switch from an extracellular solution with 130 or 90 mM Na+ and 0 mM Ca2+ to an extracellular solution with 0 Na+ and 2 mM Ca2+. K+ concentration was 0 mM for analysis of NCX and 40 mM for analysis of NCKX. Results: TGFβ1 (60 ng/ml, 24 h) significantly increased the transcript levels of NCX1, NCKX1, NCKX2 and NCKX5. Moreover, TGFβ1 (60 ng/ml, 24 h) significantly increased the activity of both, NCX and NCKX. The effect of TGFβ1 on NCX and NCKX transcript levels and activity was significantly blunted by p38 kinase inhibitor Skepinone-L (1 µM), the effect on NCX and NCKX activity further by SGK1 inhibitor GSK-650394 (10 µM) and NFκB inhibitor Wogonin (100 µM). Conclusions: TGFβ1 markedly up- regulates transcription of NCX1, NCKX1, NCKX2, and NCKX5 and thus Na+/Ca2+ exchanger activity, an effect requiring p38 kinase, SGK1 and NFκB

Inhibition of Lithium Sensitive Orai1/ STIM1 Expression and Store Operated Ca2+ Entry in Chorea-Acanthocytosis Neurons by NF-κB Inhibitor Wogonin

Background/Aims: The neurodegenerative disease Chorea-Acanthocytosis (ChAc) is caused by loss-of-function-mutations of the chorein-encoding gene VPS13A. In ChAc neurons transcript levels and protein abundance of Ca2+ release activated channel moiety (CRAC) Orai1 as well as its regulator STIM1/2 are decreased, resulting in blunted store operated Ca2+-entry (SOCE) and enhanced suicidal cell death. SOCE is up-regulated and cell death decreased by lithium. The effects of lithium are paralleled by upregulation of serum & glucocorticoid inducible kinase SGK1 and abrogated by pharmacological SGK1 inhibition. In other cell types SGK1 has been shown to be partially effective by upregulation of NFκB, a transcription factor stimulating the expression of Orai1 and STIM. The present study explored whether pharmacological inhibition of NFκB interferes with Orai1/STIM1/2 expression and SOCE and their upregulation by lithium in ChAc neurons. Methods: Cortical neurons were differentiated from induced pluripotent stem cells generated from fibroblasts of ChAc patients and healthy volunteers. Orai1 and STIM1 transcript levels and protein abundance were estimated from qRT-PCR and Western blotting, respectively, cytosolic Ca2+-activity ([Ca2+]i) from Fura-2-fluorescence, SOCE from increase of [Ca2+]i following Ca2+ re-addition after Ca2+-store depletion with sarco-endoplasmatic Ca2+-ATPase inhibitor thapsigargin (1µM), as well as CRAC current utilizing whole cell patch clamp recording. Results: Orai1 and STIM1 transcript levels and protein abundance as well as SOCE and CRAC current were significantly enhanced by lithium treatment (2 mM, 24 hours). These effects were reversed by NFκB inhibitor wogonin (50 µM). Conclusion: The stimulation of expression and function of Orai1/STIM1/2 by lithium in ChAc neurons are disrupted by pharmacological NFκB inhibition

Transition Economies in the Middle East: the Syrian Experience

There have been no in depth studies of post Socialist transition in the Middle East. Syria’s experience is a useful one to explore given its historically important role in the region and its distinctive characteristics. The Syrian economic transition, from the early 1990s to 2011, was in two phases: an incremental liberalisation phase and a transition to Social Market Economy phase. During both phases, Syrian policy makers showed a preference for a gradualist approach to economic transition, rather than a big-bang approach. This was facilitated by oil revenues and subsidies from the Gulf States. The Syrian experience therefore has its own distinct characteristics, as well as elements in common with the transitions in other post Socialist economies

Examining Contextual Factors and Individual Value Dimensions of Healthcare Providers Intention to Adopt Electronic Health Technologies in Developing Countries

Part 5: Research in ProgressInternational audienceDespite substantial research on electronic health (e-Health) adoption, there still exist vast differences between resource-rich and resource-poor populations regarding Information Technology adoption. To help bridge the technological gulf between developed and developing countries, this research-in-progress paper examines healthcare providers’ intention to adopt e-health technologies from two perspectives 1) contextual factors (i.e. specific to developing world settings) and 2) individual value dimensions (i.e. cultural, utilitarian, social and personal). The primary output of this paper is a theoretical model merging both the contextual factors and value dimensions; this forms a strong baseline to examine and help ensure the successful adoption of e-Health technologies within developing countries. Future research will be performed to validate the model developed in this paper, with a specific focus on mobile Health in Malawi, Africa

The application of information systems in the Jordanian banking sector : a study of the acceptance of the internet

This thesis reports the findings of a study into issues concerning the acceptance of Internet Banking in Jordan, a country of the Middle East. Although conducted at a particular site on a particular IT application, there is justification for claiming that the findings are relevant to the introduction of the broad spectrum of Internet applications into other countries of the region and into developing countries in general. Thus the study makes significant contributions across all areas of IT adoption and usage research and practice as well as informing the banking sector in Jordan. The research began with an exploratory study involving some preliminary interviews with bank managers in Jordan and a review of some relevant literature. This led to the decision to base the study on the well-known Technology acceptance Model (TAM) with extensions to make it more relevant for a developing country such as Jordan whose environment is significantly different from that of the Western countries where the technology originated. To this end external variables were added to the model consisting of constructs under the heading of culture and trust from the consumer side and technology quality from the banking side. For the main study a mixed method approach was taken. An extensive empirical survey was undertaken to collect and analyse quantitative data from bank customers to test the expanded TAM. At the same time interviews were conducted with bank managers, IT people and academics in the field of social science. This qualitative data was processed using manual inspection and computer-based content analysis techniques to supplement the output of the quantitative study. The results of the quantitative and qualitative studies are discussed in terms of their academic contribution to the understanding of IT acceptance in developing countries and the development of additional constructs to TAM. There is also a major contribution to specific issues of technology acceptance in Jordan which may guide those responsible for decisions on the future economic and societal directions of the country

Etude et recherche des interactions entre le routage dans les réseaux ad hoc et le plan de contrôle des réseaux pair-à-pair

Aujourd'hui, l'évolution rapide dans la plupart des technologies, telles que WiFi, WiMax, Bluetooth, etc., favorise l'usage fréquent des communications sans fil. Les réseaux cellulaires ont fourni l accès sans fil aux données et aux communications phoniques, à travers, leur première et deuxième génération. Ils n ont cependant pas fourni des applications sans couture aux utilisateurs mobiles exceptés pour la voix et le bas débit. Avec la croissance rapide de l'Internet, un nombre important d'applications exigent des débits élevés tels que la vidéo, le DVBH, la voix sur IP. Les réseaux sans fil se limitent généralement à un raccordement sur l accès, reliant un mobile ou une borne nomade à un câble. La transition de tels réseaux (à un seul saut) à des réseaux aux sauts multiples présente des problèmes intéressants à résoudre. Les réseaux sans fil à sauts multiples joueront un rôle important des les systèmes de communication futures. Déjà, des applications non-militaire semblent s orienter vers des réseaux futurs tels que: les réseaux ad hoc, les réseaux maillés, les réseaux de capteurs, et les réseaux véhiculaires. Toutefois, ces réseaux présentent encore un certain nombre de problématiques, dont plusieurs sont traitées dans la littérature; une des plus importantes est la conception des protocoles de routage où des difficultés subsistent faisant de cette conception une tâche ardue. Parallèlement, l'augmentation de la demande sur les services d'internet impose l'apparition d'un nouveau type de services évitant la dépendance à un nœud central. Ces services ont besoin de former un réseau overlay construit au-dessus de l'actuel réseau IP appelé réseau peer-to-peer overlay (P2P Overlay). Ces services sont devenus populaires en tant que mécanisme permettant aux utilisateurs de partager des fichiers sans avoir besoin de serveurs centralisés. Un réseau P2P est un système qui offre une scalabilité et une tolérance aux fautes permettant de localiser les nœuds n'importe où dans le réseau sans le maintien d'une grande quantité d'informations sur le routage. Ceci permet une variété d'applications au-delà du simple partage de fichiers, qui comprennent des systèmes de multidiffusion (multicast), les systèmes de communications anonymes, caches Web, P2P et les nouveaux systèmes de téléphonie IP tels que Skype et SIP P2P. Notre but est de fournir un moyen pour découvrir la synergie entre la superposition de réseaux P2P et de réseaux sans fil à sauts multiples. Nous voulons concevoir des protocoles de routage innovatifs pour ces types de réseaux, et optimiser l utilisation des applications P2P dans ce contexte. Par conséquent, dans cette thèse, nous présentons plusieurs concepts qui ont pour but d arriver à cette évolutivité et au passage à l échelle. Ce mécanisme crée une couche réseau à part entière qui facilite l'interaction avec les applications P2P de façon à minimiser le nombre de messages échangés et la taille des entêtes des paquets. Dans les solutions classiques, cet overhead découle de la nécessité d'implémenter et maintenir deux tables de routage, une pour le réseau P2P, et une deuxième pour la couche réseau. Dans la première partie de cette thèse, nous introduisons le protocole PARTY qui est destiné à être appliqué dans les réseaux mobiles adhoc contenant un grand nombre de nœuds avec une haute densité, où le degré de scalabilité du protocole de routage joue un rôle déterminant dans l évaluation de ses performances. Nous avons aussi introduit des éléments de sécurité dans la solution afin de prévenir des attaques malveillantes. Dans la deuxième partie, nous proposons MeshPARTY comme une solution de gestion de la mobilité dans les réseaux maillés. Finalement, nous proposons SenPARTY comme un mécanisme efficace pour le stockage de données centralisées (data-centric storage) dans les réseaux de capteurs. La fiabilité et l'efficacité de chacune des trois solutions ont été démontrées par des études analytiques et des simulations où nous les avons comparés avec les protocoles existants conventionnels. En résumé, cette thèse apporte des solutions au routage, à l adressage et à la mobilité dans une optique combinant les concepts du routage adhoc à celui de pair à pair.Nowadays the rapid developments in most technologies, such as WiFi, WiMax, Bluetooth, etc. promote the use of wireless communications in every daily life. Though cellular networks have been considered as the main wireless media for data and voice communications during the last few decays, through, their first and second generations, they have failed to provide seamless applications to mobile users except for voice and low data rate services. On the other hand, with the rapid growth of the Internet, a huge number of applications require high data rates such as audio and video streaming, voice over IP, video conferencing services, etc. Current use of wireless networking is generally limited to a single-hop wireless connection, or access link, connecting a mobile or nomadic terminal to a wired gateway. The transition from such single-hop networks to multi-hop wireless networks introduces an abundance of interesting and challenging problems. Multi-hop wireless networks are expected to play an important role in future communications, already, non-military technologies and applications seem to point towards future networks such as: Ad hoc networks, Mesh Networks, Sensor Networks, and Vehicular Networks. However, such networks are associated with a number of challenging problems, several of which are addressed in the literature; one of the most important is the design of routing protocols. There are some barriers that make the design of such routing protocols a tough task. On the other side, the increased demand on traditional internet services imposes the appearance a new type of services which try to avoid any central point of dependence, these services need to form an overlay network built on top of the existing IP network called Peer-to-Peer overlay network (P2P overlay). Such services have gained popularity as a mechanism for users to share files without the need for centralized servers. A P2P network provides a scalable and fault-tolerant mechanism to locate nodes anywhere on a network without maintaining a large amount of routing state. This allows for a variety of applications beyond simple file sharing, which include multicast systems, anonymous communications systems, web caches, and new P2P IP Telephony systems such as Skype and P2P SIP. Our aim is to provide a way to discover the synergy between P2P overlay networks and Multi-hop wireless networks in order to be able to design better routing protocols for these kinds of networks, and apply P2P applications on top of these networks in an optimized way. Therefore, in this thesis we propose an addressing and routing mechanism that address part of the challenges faced by Multi-hop wireless networks, this mechanism acts as a standalone network layer that facilitate the interaction with the P2P applications in a way that minimizes the overall overhead, which in the typical solutions result from the need to implement and maintain two separate routing tables, one serve the P2P abstraction, while the other is the one implemented at the network layer. In the first part of this dissertation we introduce PARTY protocol which is intended to be applied in environments with large number of MANET nodes with high density, where the scalability of the routing protocol plays an important role. We also study the security issues in this protocol in order to prevent malicious attacks. In the second part, we propose MeshPARTY as a mobility management solution in Mesh networks. Finally, we propose SenPARTY as an efficient mechanism for data-centric storage in Sensor networks. The reliability and the efficiency of each of the three solutions have been demonstrated by both analytical and simulation studies where we compared them to the legacy protocols.EVRY-INT (912282302) / SudocEVRY-BU (912282101) / SudocSudocFranceF