Impact of Spectrum Sharing on the Efficiency of Faster-Than-Nyquist Signaling

Capacity computations are presented for Faster-Than-Nyquist (FTN) signaling in the presence of interference from neighboring frequency bands. It is shown that Shannon's sinc pulses maximize the spectral efficiency for a multi-access channel, where spectral efficiency is defined as the sum rate in bits per second per Hertz. Comparisons using root raised cosine pulses show that the spectral efficiency decreases monotonically with the roll-off factor. At high signal-to-noise ratio, these pulses have an additive gap to capacity that increases monotonically with the roll-off factor.Comment: IEEE copyrights notice applies. This paper is accepted at WCNC 201

Synthesis and Characterization of Nanocomposite Based on Waste Polystyrene and Cellulose Nanowhiskers

A superabsorbent   nanocomposite composed of waste polystyrene chitosan acrylic and cellulose nanowhiskers(CNWs) were synthesized and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscope (SEM).The effect of major factors  on water absorbency were investigated to obtain optimum conditions with high swelling capacity.It was found that the incorporation of CNWs improved the swelling capacity as well as improved the mechanical properties.The composite showed responsive behavior in relation to pH and salt solution which make these smart materials suitable for several technological applications. Finally the use of waste polystyrene provided a new method for converting waste resources into variable products. Keyword: waste polystyrene, cellulose nanowhiskers, chitosan, superabsorbent, hydrogel

Prevalence of Pressure Ulcers with the Study of the Impact of Pressure Ulcer Educational Program on Registered Nurses’ Knowledge and Practice in Prince Miteb Bin Abdulaziz Hospital, Sakaka City, Saudi Arabia

Critically ill patients are at high risk for pressure ulcers. Prevalence differs based on settings but is 25% on the average. Cost of its treatment is two and a half times the cost of preventing them. Its development is an index of poor Nursing care. Nursing remains at the forefront of protecting and safeguarding the patient from pressure ulcers. Successful prevention of pressure ulcers requires that caregivers have adequate knowledge of this complication and preventive practice measures. This study describe the prevalence of pressure ulcers among inpatients of ICU and CCU departments, assess intensive care nurses’ knowledge and practice about pressure ulcers management and the impact of an educational program on knowledge and practice. An experimental research design was adopted to conduct the study on (39) nurses working in Intensive Care Units  of Prince Miteb Bin Abdulaziz  Hospital, Sakaka City, Saudi Arabia. Two tools were used for data collection: Knowledge questionnaire sheet and observation checklist. Completion of the educational program resulted in improved levels of nurses' knowledge  and practice regarding PU management. Findings of the present study suggest continued nursing education for the enrichment of nurses' knowledge and augmenting their practices about identification, prevention and management of pressure ulcer is effective in minimizing pressure ulcer for immobilized patients. Keywords: key words, Nurses’ Knowledge, Nurses’ Practice, Pressure Ulcer Prevention, educational programs

Influence of Sulfonylurea and Insulin on Immunological Profile of Type 2 diabetic Egyptian Patients

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a chronic, inflammatory disease caused by long-term imbalance in immune system, metabolic syndrome, or nutrient excess associated with obesity .Sulfonylurea and exogenous insulin have been used in the treatment of T2DM, and they have hypoglycemic and anti-inflammatory effects .The aim of this study to demonstrate the effect of sulfonylurea and exogenous insulin on some immunological parameters in Egyptian patients with T2DM and determine whether diabetes or the type of treatment would influence the levels of these parameters. Materials Methods: This study was performed on 150 outpatients with type 2 diabetes matched with age and gender with 40 healthy subjects was selected from the outpatient’s clinics of National Institute for Diabetes and Endocrinology. All studied patients and control were subjected to estimate Fasting blood glucose (FBG), Glycosylated heamoglobulin (HBA1c), White blood cells (WBCs), Interleukin-6(IL-6), Immunoglobulin G (IgG) and Immunoglobulin A (IgA). Results: The levels of FBG, HBA1c, WBCs, IL-6, IgG and IgA showed highly significant increase in the diabetic patient groups compared to controls. (P˂0.001).Treatment of T2DM patients with sulfonylurea and insulin caused highly significant decrease in the levels of FBG, HBA1c as compared to corresponding non -treated group (P˂0.001). Also, the level of IL-6 revealed a highly significant decrease in insulin treated patients  as compared to corresponding non -treated group(p0.001).While, non-significant change (p0.05) in the levels of WBCs, IgG and IgA was observed in treated patient groups with sulfonylureas and insulin as compared to corresponding non -treated group.Conclusion: Both sulfonylurea and insulin are immune- safe therapeutic agent in T2DM at dose achieve good glycemic control. 

A Practical Fast Acting Control Scheme For Fuzzy Logic-Based Voltage Stabilization Control

This paper presents a simplified control model for stabilizing a load voltage using a switched reactor in parallel with a fixed capacitor of static VAR compensator. Two IGBT’s are used to control the reactance of the switched reactor. A uniform pulse width modulation is used for controlling the two switches. The compensator has a simple control circuit and structure. A complete modeling and numerical simulation for the proposed systems is presented. A high speed Digital Signal Processor is used for implementing proportional-integral (PI) and fuzzy load voltage controllers. Experimental results indicate the superiority of fuzzy logic control over the conventional proportional-integral control method. Simulation results are reported and proved to be in good agreement with the relevant experimental results

Preparation and Properties of a Novel Eco-friendly Carboxymethylcellulose /K- Carrageenan /Graphene oxide Gel Beads for the Removal of Heavy Metals from Water

A novel environmentally-friendly adsorbents, carboxymethyl cellulose /k-carrageenan /graphene oxide (CMC/KC/GO) gel beads (GBs) was prepared via a simple method. The composition and morphology of these gel beads were characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. The maximum adsorption capacity of (CMC/KC/GO) GBs for Cu (II) and Co (II) was 2.85 and 1.87 mmol/g respectively at 30oC. Factors affecting the adsorption capacity of metal ions such as CMC/KC ratios, GO ratios, pH, initial metal ions concentration, and the temperature were also explored. The kinetics studies showed that the adsorption process followed the pseudo-second-order kinetics.  The analysis of the isotherm indicated that the Langmuir isotherm is in a good agreement with the sorption process. The thermodynamic parameters indicate that the adsorption process was endothermic and spontaneous. The adsorption capacity of the GBs barely declined even after six cycles of regeneration; furthermore, the GBs can be simply separated from the aqueous solution after adsorption by a simple filtration. Keywords:Carboxymethyl cellulose; k-carrageenan ;graphene oxide ; gel beads; isother

Adrenal Hemangioma: Findings at Multidetector CT with Short Review of the Literature

We present the computed tomography (CT) imaging findings of a 44-year-old male with incidentally discovered right adrenal hemangioma displaying imaging pattern of nonadenomatous pattern, associated with multiple hepatic hemangiomata using 64-slice multidetector scanner with reviewing published CT imaging findings with short review of the literature

Value Uncertainty

We examine how time-series volatility of book-to-market (UNC) is priced in equity returns and the relative contributions of its book volatility (variations in earnings and book value) and market volatility components (shocks in required return). UNC captures valuation risk, so stocks with high valuation risk earn higher return. An investment strategy long in high-UNC and short in low-UNC firms generates 8.5% annual risk-adjusted return. UNC valuation risk premium is driven by outperformance of high-UNC firms facing higher information risk and is not explained by established risk factors and firm characteristics

Monoliths Media: Stationary Phases and Nanoparticles

Monoliths media are gaining interest as excellent substitutes to conventional particle-packed columns. Monolithic columns show higher permeability and lower flow resistance than conventional liquid chromatography columns, providing high-throughput performance, resolution and separation in short run times. Monolithic columns with smaller inner diameter and specific selectivity to peptides or enantiomers have been played important role in hyphenated system. Monolithic stationary phases possess great efficiency, resolution, selectivity and sensitivity in the separation of complex biological samples, such as the complex mixtures of peptides for proteome analysis. The separation of complicated biological samples using columns is being revolutionized by new technologies for creating monolithic stationary phases. These techniques using porous monoliths offer several advantages, including miniaturization and on-line coupling with analytical instruments. Moreover, monoliths are the best support media for imprinting template-specific sites, resulting in the so-called molecularly-imprinted monoliths, which have an extremely high selectivity. In this chapter, the origin of the concept, the differences between their characteristics and those of traditional packings, their advantages and drawbacks, theory of separations, the methods for the monoliths preparation of different forms, nanoparticle monoliths and metal-organic framework are discussed. Two application areas of monolithic metal-organic framework and nanoparticle monoliths are provided