A simplified spatial Modulation MISO-OFDM scheme

Index modulation is one of the promising techniques for future communications systems due to many improvement over the classical Orthogonal frequency division multiplexing systems such as single RF chain, increased throughput for the same modulation order, achieved tradeoff between the efficiencies of the power and the spectral, and elimination of inter-channel interference. Many forms of index modulation researches exist where symbols are conveyed in antennas, subcarriers, time slots, and the space-time matrix.  Spatial modulation is one member of index modulation family where symbols are conveyed in activating transmit/receive antennas. In this paper, a modification to a standard multiple input single output scheme by integrating spatial modulation using simplified mathematical procedure is achieved. In the transmitter side, data and activation symbols are distributed simultaneously using mathematical module and floor functions. At the receiver, a simplified maximum likelihood detector is used to obtain transmitted pair of symbols. To verify this, MATLAB SIMULINK is used to simulate a downlink system where spatial modulation is applied to a base station. Results for different transmit antenna number and modulation order are obtained in the form of bit error rate versus signal to noise ratio

Exposure to violence and academic achievement in Iraq

Background: Iraqis were exposed to wars, widespread violence and civil war. Post-traumatic stress disorder develops after exposure to trauma and violence. It has a negative effect on academic achievement of the students. Objective: This report was carried out to study the effect of exposure to violence on academic achievement of youths in Iraq. Methods: A total of 319 university students from Baghdad were included in the study. Their age ranged between 18 and 24 years with male to female ratio of 0.6:1. A questionnaire was filled for each participant. Requested data were demographic information, data on school achievement and Harvard Trauma questionnaire (exposure to war trauma, posttraumatic stress disorder “PTSD”). Chi square was used to examine the association between PTSD and poor academic achievement. Student’s t test was used to demonstrate the difference in exposure between students with poor and good academic achievement. P value < 0.5 was considered as significant. Results: Post- traumatic stress disorder was observed in 21.9% of students. Poor academic achievement was noticed in 32.9% of students with post-traumatic stress disorder. Academic achievement was not significantly associated with post-traumatic stress disorder (p=0.8). Significant difference was found in score of exposure to violence between students with poor and good academic achievement (p= 0.001). Conclusion: Exposure to violence had a negative effect on academic achievemen

Seeking Help from Faith Healers among Iraqi Patients with Obsessive – Compulsive Disorder

Background: Faith healing is common in Arab culture. Obsessive-compulsive disorder is linked to religious beliefs and this can affect its management as patients may seek help from faith healers rather than mental health professionals. Patients and methods: Patients who received a diagnosis of OCD according to DSM-IV-TR completed a questionnaire containing questions about age, gender, marital state, residence, income, level of education, and occupation. Also, data was collected on help-seeking from a faith healer and on religiosity. The data was analyzed by using the statistical package of the social sciences (SPSS). Results: 58.5% of OCD patients had sought help from faith healers and this was significantly associated with being religious (p value .003). There was no association with other variables. Conclusion: Iraqi mental health professionals should be aware of patient’s experience of faith healing as this is common among OCD patients. The findings also raise interesting questions regarding the need for a dialogue between health professionals and faith healers in the interest of providing optimal care to OCD patients

The Association of Myasthenia Gravis with HLA class II Antigens in Iraqi Patients

The nature and intensity of the association of myasthenia gravis (MG) with distinct human leukocyte antigen (HLA) haplotypes differ between ethnic populations, so this study determined the association of HLA class II antigens with myasthenia gravis (MG) in Iraq.The study included Iraqi patients diagnosed with MG and two control groups the first of 54 insulin dependent diabetes mellitus patients and the second of 237 subjects as a normal control group. The test used was microlymphocytotoxicity test.The work was done in the Teaching Laboratories/Medical City/Baghdad.Results: positive associations were observed (etiological risk factors) as follows: 1. HLA-DR locus showed one positively associated allele when compared to healthy control and this was HLA-DR3 (RR: 21.05, EF0.73, & P value ? 0.05), While when compared to IDDM control no significant association appeared (since the same allele is positively associated with IDDM). 2. HLA-DQ locus showed only one positively associated allele when compared to healthy control; this was HLA-DQ2 (RR 4.67, EF 0.50, and P value ? 0.05). While no significant association appeared when compared to IDDM control. Other important clinical association were observed; association with age, gender, strong stressful events, thymoma, and other autoimmune disorders. Conclusion: The positively associated antigens which were found as follows HLA-DR3 and HLA-DQ2, while no negative association was detected

Captagon: Use and Trade in the Middle East

This is the peer-reviewed version of the following article: ‘Captagon: Use and Trade in the Middle East’, which has been published in final form at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hup.2548/abstract . This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Self-Archiving.Fenetheylline, a psychostimulant drug, often branded as Captagon, is a combination of amphetamine and theophylline. Since the cessation of its legal production in 1986, counterfeited products have been produced illicitly in south-east Europe and far-east Asia. Its profitable trade has been linked to terrorist organizations, including Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant. This study aims to reach up-to-date data, concerning the Captagon e-commerce and use in the Middle East.Peer reviewe

The crime-conflict nexus and the civil war in Syria

There is a strong relationship between organised crime and civil war. This article contributes to the crime-conflict nexus literature by providing a consideration of the role of organised crime in the Syrian conflict. It provides an overview of pre and post-war organised crime in Syria. The article then builds the argument that war provides opportunities for organised crime through the state’s diminished law enforcement ability; the economic hardship which civilians face during war; and the abundance of armed groups who all need to generate revenue. Secondly, the paper argues that organised crime also affects the intensity and duration of war by enabling militants to reproduce themselves materially and to build institutions in the populations where they are active. The relationships between armed groups and local populations emerge as a central theme in understanding the crime-conflict nexus

Retracted: Performance Analysis of Internet of Things Protocols Based Fog/Cloud over High Traffic

This article was withdrawn and retracted by the Journal of Fundamental and Applied Sciences and has been removed from AJOL at the request of the journal Editor in Chief and the organisers of the conference at which the articles were presented (www.iccmit.net). Please address any queries to [email protected]

Retracted: VNML: Virtualized Network Management Laboratory for Educational Purposes

This article was withdrawn and retracted by the Journal of Fundamental and Applied Sciences and has been removed from AJOL at the request of the journal Editor in Chief and the organisers of the conference at which the articles were presented (www.iccmit.net). Please address any queries to [email protected]