Reality of the Industrial Sector in Jordan

The study aims to examine Jordan's industrial sector by using descriptive statistical and econometric methods. For the purposes of analysis, we used a time series data for the Jordanian industrial sector (Mining, manufacturing, and electricity) from 1990 to 2017. The study came out of the importance of the Jordanian industrial sector. During the study period, the industrial sector ranked first among the sectors in terms of relative importance in its contribution to GDP at an annual average rate of 16% . Comparing the industry's contribution to Jordan's GDP with other countries, Jordan is still relatively late compared to semi-industrialized developing countries, like Singapore, Indonesia, South Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, and Egypt. In addition, there was a fluctuating rise in labor productivity in the industrial sector, this may be due to the increase in the amount of fixed capital, as expressed by high capital intensity technology, or to the development of labor’s skills and competencies. The study recommended the need to work to improve the output of the educational system in line with the requirements of revitalization of the industrial sector, and work to increase the efficiency of vocational training institutions in order to raise the productive efficiency of local labor because of the impact of the revitalization of the industrial sector. Keywords: industry , manufacturing, Mining, market , Jordan, electricity, Value added DOI: 10.7176/JESD/10-18-11 Publication date:September 30th 201

دراسة الموجات الكهرومغناطيسية في طبقات تحتوي الجرافين ومواد فوق العادة

Graphene material is inherent from carbon, its two-dimensional hexagonal lattice structure (also called honeycomb), which is the thinnest known at all material so far, equivalent to a thickness of one carbon atom only. Although it is considered one of the strongest (stronger) materials known. Developed by Russian Andrei Geim and Konstantin Novoselov in 2004, and both won Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010. The properties of graphene have attracted the attention of many disciplines. Also the results of several studies in the field of thermodynamics for graphene led to the growing interest for the study of graphene in the areas of optics and photonics to be used in a variety of applications. On the other hand, macroscopic systems that can be analyzed using Maxwell's equations, the study of waves guided by the existing structures on the graphene allow them to better understanding to the incorporated into electromagnetic devices. In this study, the dispersion relations for two sheets of parallel graphene in over Gigahertz and Terahertz ranges for two ships of polarization of the electromagnetic field are the magnetic field (TM-Modes), and field electrophoresis (TE -Modes) has been investigated. The behavior of electromagnetic waves in the presence of a layer of the left-handed material between two sheets of parallel graphene has been studied. The total power flow through the structure has been obtained. In addition, this article discusses the use of guides waves as sensor by the existence of two layers parallel of graphene with the installation of variables for remote sensing applications. The sensitivity of the sensing of the variables of electric permittivity and the magnetic permeability of the Left-Handed material has been presented. Moreover, the comparison between the layers that contain the Left-handed materials with layers containing insulating material. It can be concluded that the presence of a layer of left-handed materials between two layers of graphene gives better results for increased the sensitivity, which may be useful in optoelectronics and electromagnetic applications, such as the design of some of optoelectronic devices based on the scope of a private graphene sensors

Domestic Debt and Economic Growth in Jordan An Empirical Analysis

Jordan’s economy is among the smallest in the Middle East, with insufficient supplies of water, oil, and other natural resources underlying the government's heavy reliance on foreign assistance. Other economic challenges for the government include chronic high rates of poverty, unemployment, inflation, and a large budget deficit. The study investigates the impact of debt on economic growth in Jordan applying the OLS technique for the period of 2000 to 2014. The study indicates that the stock of domestic debt affects the economic growth positively and statistically significant. This indicates that loans partially were utilized by the government for investment oriented projects. On the other hand, the increasing figure of the public debt indicates that the rest used for private and public consumption purposes, which do not bring any return. The study also indicates that the domestic debt servicing affects the economic growth negatively in Jordan. This result is due to the fact that huge amount of money goes for non-development expenditures and also the rest goes for unnecessary expenditures. The study suggests some policies which should be taken by the government to decrease both domestic debt and domestic debt servicing. Keywords: Domestic debt, Economic growth , Jordan Economy

Mapping stakeholders of the Palestinian Health Research System: a qualitative study

There is a growing international and regional interest in Health Research Systems (HRSs) in light of a global strategy for HRS stakeholders' (HRSSHs) active involvement. HRSSHs in Palestine have rarely been investigated with regard to uncertainties.; This study aimed to analyse perceptions of HRSSHs in order to understand their roles and involvement, identify gaps, and offer policy solutions for stakeholders' engagement in the Palestinian HRS.; This qualitative study targeted three local Palestinian health sectors, government, academia, and local and international agencies. Data were collected through 52 in-depth interviews (IDIs) and 6 focus group discussions (FGDs) and then analysed using MAXQDA 12 software. Participants and institutions were selected purposively based on a set of criteria and peer review.; The overall HRS stakeholders' roles were unsatisfactory, with low involvement from society, the private sector, local and international sectors. The role of academia and the Ministry of Health is vital but observed moderate in health research while that of international agencies is weak due to conflicting agendas and lack of a guiding body. Most universities have poor representation in public decision-making and scarcity in health research potential and capacity. Interest-power imbalance among stakeholders is reported where political, organizational, and technical shortfalls were indicative of weak roles and low involvement, along with a lack of health research culture, structure, resources, defined roles, and network.; Tackling the inadequate roles, interests' disparity, and poor involvement of HRSSHs is imperative for HRS strengthening. Redefining HRSSHs' roles and involving all stakeholders is key through strategic dialogue, consolidated leadership, and resource mobilization

Expression of homothorax and extradenticle mRNA in the legs of the crustacean Parhyale hawaiensis: evidence for a reversal of gene expression regulation in the pancrustacean lineage

In Drosophila leg development, the extradenticle (exd) gene is expressed ubiquitously and its co-factor homothorax (hth) is restricted to the proximal leg portion. This condition is conserved in other insect species but is reversed in chelicerates and myriapods. As the region of co-expression does not differ in the two groups and transcripts from both are necessary for function, this difference in expression is likely to be functionally neutral. Here, we report the expression patterns of exd and hth in a crustacean, the amphipod shrimp Parhyale hawaiensis. The patterns in P. hawaiensis are similar to the insect patterns, supporting the close relationship between crustaceans and insects in the taxon Tetraconata. However, mRNA expression of exd in P. hawaiensis is weak in the distal leg parts, thus being intermediate between the complete lack of distal exd expression in chelicerates and myriapods and the strong distal exd expression in insects. Our data suggest that the reversal of the gene expression regulation of hth and exd occurred in the pancrustacean lineage

Extent With Modification: Leg Patterning in the Beetle Tribolium castaneum and the Evolution of Serial Homologs

Serial homologs are similar structures that develop at different positions within a body plan. These structures share some, but not all, aspects of developmental patterning, and their evolution is thought to be constrained by shared, pleiotropic gene functions. Here we describe the functions of 17 developmental genes during metamorphic development of the legs in the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum. This study provides informative comparisons between appendage development in Drosophila melanogaster and T. castaneum, between embryonic and adult development in T. castaneum, and between the development of serially homologous appendages. The leg gap genes Distal-less and dachshund are conserved in function. Notch signaling, the zinc-finger transcription factors related to odd-skipped, and bric-à-brac have conserved functions in promoting joint development. homothorax knockdown alters the identity of proximal leg segments but does not reduce growth. Lim1 is required for intermediate leg development but not distal tarsus and pretarsus development as in D. melanogaster. Development of the tarsus requires decapentaplegic, rotund, spineless, abrupt, and bric-à-brac and the EGF ligand encoded by Keren. Metathoracic legs of T. castaneum have four tarsomeres, whereas other legs have five. Patterns of gene activity in the tarsus suggest that patterning in the middle of the tarsal region, not the proximal- or distal-most areas, is responsible for this difference in segment number. Through comparisons with other recent studies of T. castaneum appendage development, we test hypotheses for the modularity or interdependence of development during evolution of serial homologs

Screening and diagnostic testing protocols for HIV and Syphilis infections in health care setting in Qatar: Evaluation and recommendations

Background HIV and Syphilis are common STIs, which have become a concern and burden on healthcare systems, as many infections go untreated and lead to potentially serious complications. HIV is usually diagnosed with Western blot, PCR, and p24 antigen testing. Whereas, Syphilis is mainly diagnosed through clinical findings and serologic testing. The Medical Commission Department (MC) under MOPH is responsible for screening all newcomers to Qatar, aiming to keep the country free from serious infectious diseases. Objective We aimed to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of the protocols used in the MC for screening HIV and Syphilis infections. Methods We conducted a retrospective study of samples analyzed by 4th Generation ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and Rapid Plasma Reagin (RPR) between January to December 2019. ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo positive samples were confirmed by INNO-LIA™ HIVI/II and RT-PCR. RPR-reactive samples were confirmed by ARCHITECT® Syphilis Treponema pallidium Antibody (Syphilis TPA) assay. Results For HIV, data were collected from 585,587 individuals, of which 595 (0.1%) were positive by the ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo (Analyzer A). When all initially positive sera were retested on newly collected blood samples using different ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo analyzer (analyzer B), 99.8% (594/595) of samples were also positive, suggesting high reproducibility. The positive predictive value (PPV) between ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and the INNO-LIA™ HIVI/II confirmatory assay was 31.8%. The PPV between ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and HIV-PCR assay was 26.8%. Retrospective data for Syphilis were collected from a total of 97,298 individuals who visited the MC, of which 198 (0.20%) were initially positive by RPR. The PPV between RPR and Syphilis TPA confirmatory assay was 36.6%. Conclusion Despite the high rate of false positivity using ARCHITECT® HIV Ag/Ab Combo and RPR screening assays, both assays have proven to be highly effective as screening testing methods

XMeis3 Is Necessary for Mesodermal Hox Gene Expression and Function

Hox transcription factors provide positional information during patterning of the anteroposterior axis. Hox transcription factors can co-operatively bind with PBC-class co-factors, enhancing specificity and affinity for their appropriate binding sites. The nuclear localisation of these co-factors is regulated by the Meis-class of homeodomain proteins. During development of the zebrafish hindbrain, Meis3 has previously been shown to synergise with Hoxb1 in the autoregulation of Hoxb1. In Xenopus XMeis3 posteriorises the embryo upon ectopic expression. Recently, an early temporally collinear expression sequence of Hox genes was detected in Xenopus gastrula mesoderm (see intro. P3). There is evidence that this sequence sets up the embryo's later axial Hox expression pattern by time-space translation. We investigated whether XMeis3 is involved in regulation of this early mesodermal Hox gene expression. Here, we present evidence that XMeis3 is necessary for expression of Hoxd1, Hoxb4 and Hoxc6 in mesoderm during gastrulation. In addition, we show that XMeis3 function is necessary for the progression of gastrulation. Finally, we present evidence for synergy between XMeis3 and Hoxd1 in Hoxd1 autoregulation in mesoderm during gastrulation

Non-Redundant Selector and Growth-Promoting Functions of Two Sister Genes, buttonhead and Sp1, in Drosophila Leg Development

The radically distinct morphologies of arthropod and tetrapod legs argue that these appendages do not share a common evolutionary origin. Yet, despite dramatic differences in morphology, it has been known for some time that transcription factors encoded by the Distalless (Dll)/Dlx gene family play a critical role in the development of both structures. Here we show that a second transcription factor family encoded by the Sp8 gene family, previously implicated in vertebrate limb development, also plays an early and fundamental role in arthropod leg development. By simultaneously removing the function of two Sp8 orthologs, buttonhead (btd) and Sp1, during Drosophila embryogenesis, we find that adult leg development is completely abolished. Remarkably, in the absence of these factors, transformations from ventral to dorsal appendage identities are observed, suggesting that adult dorsal fates become derepressed when ventral fates are eliminated. Further, we show that Sp1 plays a much more important role in ventral appendage specification than btd and that Sp1 lies genetically upstream of Dll. In addition to these selector-like gene functions, Sp1 and btd are also required during larval stages for the growth of the leg. Vertebrate Sp8 can rescue many of the functions of the Drosophila genes, arguing that these activities have been conserved, despite more than 500 million years of independent evolution. These observations suggest that an ancient Sp8/Dlx gene cassette was used in an early metazoan for primitive limb-like outgrowths and that this cassette was co-opted multiple times for appendage formation in multiple animal phyla