Evaluation of Fractal Dimension and Topographic Surface Roughness (Vertical Dissection) in Astore-Deosai-Skardu Region in GIS Environment Using ASTER GDEM

Fractal investigation is a valuable technique to model and quantify the composite patterns of natural similarobjects. This study investigates Neotectonics using ASTER-GDEM. Fractal technique for extraction of topographicfractal dimension (Dtopo) and vertical dissection (Rtopo-surf) were used to assess the Neotectonics deformation.Geomorphological regions can be demarcated by using above mentioned procedures as they reveal the topographicevolutionary stages as an evaluation of topographic textures. The idea is to recognize the zones that are stronglyinfluenced by Neotectonics. Astore-Deosai-Skardu (ADS) region in Gilgit-Baltistan was selected for this purpose as itlies between MKT and MMT which is experiencing surface topographic deformation (STD) caused by anti-clock-wiseprogression and subduction of Indian plate beneath Eurasia. The results obtained illustrates that Dtopo and Rtopo-surf showanomalies in the ADS region that clearly represent a robust control of nearby MMT, MKT and KkF and highlights theirsignificance to describe regions vulnerable to Neotectonics and related deadly events threatening precious human livesand infrastructure damages

When, What and How Much to Buy? Analyzing Consumer’s Price Perception and Behavioral Intention in ISP industry of Pakistan

In Pakistan’s internet service provider (ISP) industry, the sales promotion does effect in the form of downloading limits, level of discounts and payment methods to the consumer buying behavior. Sales promotion is one of the most effective ways to persuade consumers because it leads to actual physical use of the product. In Pakistan the internet service provider sector has grown since 1992. Each year, the internet service providers improve their services and consumer approach through different sale promotion techniques to stay up with the everyday competition. This paper analysis different marketer’s point of view and serves as an abridging platform between the consumer approach and the market for nourishing and further strengthening sales promotion campaigns in Pakistan’s ISP’s industry

CROSS-SECTIONAL ANALYSIS OF INTER-RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INSULIN RESISTANCE AND HYPERTENSION AMONG PATIENTS AT LIAQUAT UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL

Background: Insulin resistance and hypertension often stem from the same genotypic and phenotypic phenomenon. It is well established that a sedentary lifestyle, and a plentiful diet rich in sodium and energy are the likely culprits that over the years have contributed to the rise of both ailments. However, the inter-relationship too is worthy of exploration. Objective: This research hopes to study the inter-relationship between insulin resistance and hypertension among patients by eyeing the co-presentation of both diseases in patients and by evaluating the time elapsed in diagnosis of each disease to assess which disease preceded the other. Methods: This observational was carried out on patients presenting at the medicine outpatient department of Liaquat University Hospital with a joint complaint of insulin resistance and hypertension from 1st Dec 2015 to 10th February 2016. Data was collected using an interview based structured questionnaire administered to the patients after taking written informed consent. The data was analyzed in SPSS v. 16.0. Results: During the course of the study, a total of 248 patients presented with the complaint of insulin resistance, 356 patients presented with the complaint of hypertension. While 136 patients presented with a joint complaint of insulin resistance and hypertension. Majority (70.588%) of the patients reportedly developed insulin resistance prior to developing hypertension. The chief complaint of 120 (88.24%) of the patients was insulin resistance. 42 (30.88%) of the patients, despite suffering from hypertension, were not taking treatment. Conclusion: The inter-relationship of both diseases is marked. For every 10 patients suffering from insulin resistance, 3.7 suffered from hypertension as well. While for every 10 patients suffering from hypertension, 2.8 suffered from insulin resistance as well. Thus patients suffering from insulin resistance are more likely to be hypertensives. Keywords: Insulin resistance, Hypertension, Cardiac comorbidities, Diabetes and Insulin

COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF ASTHMA SEVERITY & CONTROL AMONG PATIENTS PRESENTING WITH & WITHOUT CO-MORBID RHINITIS

Objective: This study hopes to compare the severity and control of asthma among patients presenting with and without co-morbid rhinitis. Methodology:This retrospective, comparative analysis was conducted upon a total of 377 asthmatic patients, presenting at the medical out-patient department with and without co-morbid rhinitis. The data was collected using a structured interview based questionnaire (after taking written informed consent) which included in-depth inquiries regarding the asthma severity and control for the past 4 week. The data obtained was analyzed using SPSS v. 21. 0. Results: Among the 377 subjects, 200 were males while 177 were females. Mean age of the subjects was 36 years. 172 asthmatic patients in the sample suffered from the co-morbid rhinitis, while the remaining did not have the said comorbidity. Asthmatic patients with co-morbid rhinitis experienced more frequent asthmatic attacks. The incidence of visits to the emergency room and frequency of hospital admissions too was high among asthmatic patients with co-morbid rhinitis. Conclusion: The results reveal that, all attempts to draw a comparison of asthma severity and control among patients with and without comorbid rhinitis yield clear and unidirectional results, leading to a transparent conclusion i.e. the asthma severity and control is considerably poorer in asthmatics with co-morbid rhinitis. Keywords: Asthma, Severity, Control, Rhinitis and Co-morbidity

CASUAL COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF INCIDENCE & EXTENT OF ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION AMONG SMOKERS & NON-SMOKERS PRESENTING AT A MALE SEXUAL HEALTH CLINIC IN HYDERABAD

Background: The term ‘‘erectile dysfunction’’ (ED) is defined as the inability to achieve and maintain an erection sufficient for satisfactory sexual performance. ED affects millions of men throughout the world, with a strong negative effect on the quality of life and well-being of men and couples. The etiology of ED once was considered to be mainly psychogenic. However, because of advances in the understanding of the physiology of erection and the development of modern diagnostic techniques, it is now generally agreed that the etiology of ED is often multifactorial, with psychological, neurological, endocrine, vascular, traumatic or iatrogenic causes.Objective: Smoking, among many other causes, is believed to be associated with smoking. This study hopes to compare the incidence and extent of erectile dysfunction (ED) among smokers and non-smokers presenting at a male sexual health clinic in an attempt to further understand the association. Methodology: This casual-comparative analysis was conducted upon a total of 64 male patients presenting with erectile dysfunction at a sexual health clinic. Inquiries regarding the habit of smoking were made using a structured interview based questionnaire and extent of erectile dysfunction was investigated using the “International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) Questionnaire”. The data obtained was analyzed using MS. Excel 2017 and SPSS v. 21.0. Results: Smokers showed a markedly high incidence when compared to non-smokers. The extent of erectile dysfunction too was observed to be significantly high among smokers in comparison to non-smokers. Ex-smokers too showed a more worrisome IIEF-5 score, when compared to non-smokers. Conclusion: The results obtained, make it abundantly clear that, the association between the incidence and extent of erectile dysfunction and smoking is strong. Although, the research does not attempt to control co-founding variables, the results can be regarded as reliable due to the sheer difference in incidence and extent of erectile dysfunction between smokers and non-smokers. Keywords: Erectile Dysfunction, Smoking, The International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) Questionnaire, Sexual Health & Sex Related Quality of Life

A Short History of Evolution of Indigenous Plants and Medicine System

The importance of plants is well known to us. Life and its growth cannot be imagined without plants. Food for our survival is produced by plants and they also create a healthy and eco-friendly environment to live (Sazada et al., 2009).The use of various parts of different medicinal plants to cure specific ailments has been common from ancient times in India. The indigenous system of medicine namely Ayurvedic, Siddha and Unani have been in existence for many centuries. Apart from India, these systems are also prominent in Korea, China, Singapore, West Asia and many other countries. The knowledge of medicinal plants has been inherited traditionally therefore; the utilization of this knowledge has become important for human existence. In the old times, plants were used as remedies for the diseases. The oldest religious book of the World “Rigveda” provides information about the medicinal use of plant “Soma” as a medicinal agent by the Indo-Aryans, which was written between 4000 and 1600 B.C. (Bhattacharjee, 2004).The plant “Soma” is considered to have intoxicating characteristics. This plant is used for sacrificial objectives by Aryans and they also identified its juice as a stimulating beverage (Steiner, 1986). The Aryans also played a vital role in the presentation of therapeutical properties of other medicinal herbs and plants. The knowledge of Aryans about a large number of medicinal plants is demonstrated by the work of Charaka and Sushruta (Kirtikar, 1958).The ancient Indian literature is helpful in driving the current knowledge of using cinchona in malaria, digitalis, strophanthus and physostigma in heart diseases and of quassia as a bitter tonic. The indigenous system of medicine in the Indian sub-continent known as Ayurveda goes back to 700 B.C. and its systematization is attributed mostly to Charaka and Sushruta who have cited about 700 medicinal plants. The book “Sushruta Samhita” compiled in 1000 B.C. includes a comprehensive chapter on herbal therapeutics and contains remarkable information about the use of medicinal plants (Singh and Abrar, 1990)

A DNA Based Colour Image Encryption Scheme Using A Convolutional Autoencoder

With the advancement in technology, digital images can easily be transmitted and stored over the Internet. Encryption is used to avoid illegal interception of digital images. Encrypting large-sized colour images in their original dimension generally results in low encryption/decryption speed along with exerting a burden on the limited bandwidth of the transmission channel. To address the aforementioned issues, a new encryption scheme for colour images employing convolutional autoencoder, DNA and chaos is presented in this paper. The proposed scheme has two main modules, the dimensionality conversion module using the proposed convolutional autoencoder, and the encryption/decryption module using DNA and chaos. The dimension of the input colour image is first reduced from N $\times$ M $\times$ 3 to P $\times$ Q gray-scale image using the encoder. Encryption and decryption are then performed in the reduced dimension space. The decrypted gray-scale image is upsampled to obtain the original colour image having dimension N $\times$ M $\times$ 3. The training and validation accuracy of the proposed autoencoder is 97% and 95%, respectively. Once the autoencoder is trained, it can be used to reduce and subsequently increase the dimension of any arbitrary input colour image. The efficacy of the designed autoencoder has been demonstrated by the successful reconstruction of the compressed image into the original colour image with negligible perceptual distortion. The second major contribution presented in this paper is an image encryption scheme using DNA along with multiple chaotic sequences and substitution boxes. The security of the proposed image encryption algorithm has been gauged using several evaluation parameters, such as histogram of the cipher image, entropy, NPCR, UACI, key sensitivity, contrast, etc. encryption

Impact of peer review in the radiation treatment planning process: Experience of a tertiary care university hospital in Pakistan

Purpose: To evaluate and report the frequency of changes in radiation therapy treatment plans after peer review in a simulation review meeting once a week.Materials and Methods: Between July 1 and August 31, 2016, the radiation plans of 116 patients were discussed in departmental simulation review meetings. All plans were finalized by the primary radiation oncologist before presenting them in the meeting. A team of radiation oncologists reviewed each plan, and their suggestions were documented as no change, major change, minor change, or missing contour. Changes were further classified as changes in clinical target volume, treatment field, or dose. All recommendations were stratified on the basis of treatment intent, site, and technique. Data were analyzed by Statistical Package for the Social Sciences and are presented descriptively.Results: Out of 116 plans, 26 (22.4%) were recommended for changes. Minor changes were suggested in 15 treatment plans (12.9%) and a major change in 10 (8.6%), and only one plan was suggested for missing contour. The frequency of change recommendations was greater in radical radiation plans than in palliative plans (92.3% v 7.7%). The head and neck was the most common treatment site recommended for any changes (42.3%). Most of the changes were recommended in the technique planned with three-dimensional conformal radiation therapy (50%). Clinical target volume (73.1%) was identified as the most frequent parameter suggested for any change, followed by treatment field (19.2%) and dose (0.08%).Conclusion: Peer review is an important tool that can be used to overcome deficiencies in radiation treatment plans, with a goal of improved and individualized patient care. Our study reports changes in up to a quarter of radiotherapy plans

Genotoxic and cytotoxic potential of whole plant extracts of Kalanchoe laciniata by Ames and MTT assay

Lack of data on safety of herbal medicines have endangered human health and life. The present study evaluated the genotoxic and mutagenic effect of Kalanchoe laciniata to access the safety and usefulness of the medicinal plant. Aqua-methanolic and n-hexane extracts of K. laciniata were evaluated for the genotoxic potential using Ames assay and cytotoxicity was evaluated using MTT assay. Ames assay was conducted using two strains of Salmonella typhimurium TA-100 and TA-102 whereas MTT assay was performed on baby hamster kidney cell line BHK-21. Aqua-methanolic extract of K. laciniata exhibited significant mutagenicity when exposed to TA- 102 strain with a mutagenic index of 50.66 and 54.74 at maximum dose 150 mg/plate. The extract was also muta- genic to TA-100 strain but to a lesser extent. M.I of n-hexane extract was 12.15 and 15.51 for TA-100 and TA- 102 respectively. n-hexane extract was mutagenic but little difference was observed between results of two strains. Both extracts were found to be cytotoxic with an IC50 of 321.9 and 638.5 µg/mL for aqua-methanolic and n-hexane extracts respectively. On the basis of results it was concluded that aqua-methanolic and n-hexane extracts of K. mutagenic and cytotoxic potential. It is suggested to explore the plant further to evaluate its safety in rodents and other species

Dynamic Hand Gesture Recognition Using 3D-CNN and LSTM Networks

Recognition of dynamic hand gestures in real-time is a difficult task because the system can never know when or from where the gesture starts and ends in a video stream. Many researchers have been working on vision-based gesture recognition due to its various applications. This paper proposes a deep learning architecture based on the combination of a 3D Convolutional Neural Network (3D-CNN) and a Long Short-Term Memory (LSTM) network. The proposed architecture extracts spatial-temporal information from video sequences input while avoiding extensive computation. The 3D-CNN is used for the extraction of spectral and spatial features which are then given to the LSTM network through which classification is carried out. The proposed model is a light-weight architecture with only 3.7 million training parameters. The model has been evaluated on 15 classes from the 20BN-jester dataset available publicly. The model was trained on 2000 video-clips per class which were separated into 80% training and 20% validation sets. An accuracy of 99% and 97% was achieved on training and testing data, respectively. We further show that the combination of 3D-CNN with LSTM gives superior results as compared to MobileNetv2 + LSTM