Evaluating the effectiveness of foreign capital flows in mitigation of gender inequality in Developing countries

Over the decades, foreign capital inflows (FCIs) have been contributing to the economic growth and development of underdeveloped and developing economies. However, it is imperative to inspect the effect of FCIs on gender inequality (GI). The latter includes SDG 5 which addresses the elimination of GI in all its forms. The existing empirical literature on the relationship between FCI-GI nexus shows mixed results. The current study scrutinized the effects of FCIs on GI in a panel of 71 developing economies for the time period 2001-2019. The study used the system generalized methods of moments (GMM) for model estimation. The positive and significant impact of remittances on G I was explored. It was found that official development assistance (ODA) caused an increase in GI in developing economies. The results showed that gross domestic product (GDP) and trade openness (TOP) increased GI. However, good governance was found to reduce GI in developing economies. The outcomes provide a guideline for the role of FCIs in reducing GI in developing economies

THE INFLUENCE OF ARABIC AND PERSIAN LANGUAGES ON MULLA FAZIL'S POETRY

Mulla Fazil is considered to be one of the pioneer poets of the nineteenth century, whose poetry has many linguistic twists and turns.  Arabic and Persian vocabularies dominate his poetry to the extent that Balochi becomes a secondary language. By the way, it is not Fazil alone, Arabic and Persian left drastic imprints on the Balochi poetry composed during the era. These impacts have occurred at both academic and religious levels because most of the poets were studying at seminaries where Persian and Arabic were taught. The Arabic and Persian words and themes appear in a majority of his poems, at the same time, in each of his poems. Some stanzas are entirely in Arabic or Persian language. Most of the poets of the “Balochi Middle Age” were well versed in the Arabic and Persian languages. Consequently, a wide chunk of Arabic and Persian words entered Mulla Fazil's poetry, which has been demonstratively discussed in the following article

Optimal Communication in Bluetooth Piconets

Bluetooth is a low-power, low-cost, short-range wireless communication system operating in the 2.4-GHz industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) band. Bluetooth links use frequency hopping whereby each packet is sent on a single frequency while different packets are sent on different frequencies. Further, there are a limited number of packet sizes. We show that we can exert indirect control over transmission conditions by choosing the packet size transmitted over each frequency as a function of the channel conditions. Our goal then is to provide a packet-size-selection algorithm that can maximize the throughput in a Bluetooth piconet in the presence of lossy wireless channels. We first develop a renewal-theory-based mathematical model of packet transmission in a frequency-hopping system such as a Bluetooth piconet. We use this model to show that a threshold-based algorithm for choosing the packet lengths maximizes the throughput of the system. We provide an algorithm that determines the optimal thresholds efficiently. We show the optimality of this algorithm without using standard optimization techniques, since it is not clear that these techniques would be applicable given the functions involved. Using simulations, we observe that this strategy leads to significantly better throughput as compared to other baseline strategies, even if the assumptions made to prove optimality are relaxed

Stroke care in Pakistan

Increasing incidence of stroke and lack of infrastructure in both urban and rural areas needs immediate attention in Pakistan. There is a high proportion of young stroke with poor stroke outcomes. Acute stroke care is scarce in Pakistan due to the small number of neurologists (1 neurologist per 1 million population), few stroke units, and limited availability of alteplase (recombinant tissue plasminogen activator) in the country

A Framework for Misuse Detection in Ad Hoc Networks—Part I

We consider ad hoc networks with multiple, mobile intruders. We investigate the placement of the intrusion detection modules for misuse-based detection strategy. Our goal is to maximize the detection rate subject to limited availability of communication and computational resources. We mathematically formulate this problem, and show that computing the optimal solution is NP-hard. Thereafter, we propose two approximation algorithms that approximate the optimal solution within a constant factor, and prove that they attain the best possible approximation ratios. The approximation algorithms though require recomputation every time the topology changes. Thereafter, we modify these algorithms to adapt seamlessly to topological changes. We obtain analytical expressions to quantify the resource consumption versus detection rate tradeoffs for different algorithms. Using analysis and simulation, we evaluate these algorithms, and identify the appropriate algorithms for different detection rate and resource consumption tradeoffs

Optimizing Stroke Care In Baluchistan

Stroke is the second leading cause of death after ischemic heart disease.(1) Pakistan, currently the fifth most populous country of the world, has limited data on prevalence of stroke and its risk factors. Only two small-scale population-based studies conducted in Karachi showed stroke prevalence of 4.8% and 19.1%. (1) One study conducted in KP province of Pakistan showed estimated stroke prevalence of 1.2%. (1) The burden of stroke risk factors in Pakistan is enormous. Diabetes and hypertension are the most common risk factors in Pakistan. (2) Other common risk factors in Pakistan are active smoking, obesity, and family history of ischemic heart diseases (2) Pashtuns are reported to have higher prevalence of hypertension as compared to other ethnic groups in Pakistan (2) Unfortunately, no study has been conducted in Baluchistan (Province of Pakistan) to determine the prevalence of stroke and its risk factors in Baluchista

Un estudio observacional sobre infecciones bacterianas en pacientes con coronavirus hospitalizados en un centro de tercer nivel de atención

Introduction: The latest global pandemic is caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. 6% of patients are admitted to the hospital, with 20% of those admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) due to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).Aim: to characterise the bacterial infections in patients with coronavirus at an ICU of North Indian Hospital.Method: After receiving ethical approval from the institutional review board, a retrospective study was done on coronavirus subjects admitted to GMC Srinagar's ICUs between January and June 2021. Data on demographics, comorbidities, and microbiology were obtained retrospectively.Results: Overall, “394 COVID-19 patients were admitted to ICU. Median age was 58 years (IQR 51–69) and sex ratio (M/F) was 3. At admission the median SAPS II was 33 (IQR 24–49). Among patients, 232 had at least one co-morbidity and 162 were overweight (body mass index (BMI) = 27.8 kg/m2). In all, 358 patients received antibiotics (244/358 introduced before ICU and 114/358 during ICU stay)”.Conclusion: The current study is the first of its kind in our hospital setting to describe the bacterial persistence in the lungs despite adequate therapy, as well as frequent bloodstream infections possibly associated with bacterial translocations originating from the digestive or oropharyngeal microbiota, in COVID-19 ICU patients.Introducción: La última pandemia mundial está provocada por el coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. El 6 % de los pacientes ingresan en el hospital, con un 20% de los ingresados en la unidad de cuidados intensivos (UCI) debido al síndrome de dificultad respiratoria aguda (SDRA).Objetivo: caracterizar las infecciones bacterianas en pacientes con coronavirus en una UCI del North Indian Hospital.Método: Después de recibir la aprobación ética de la junta de revisión institucional, se realizó un estudio retrospectivo en sujetos con coronavirus admitidos en las UCI de GMC Srinagar entre enero y junio de 2021. Los datos sobre demografía, comorbilidades y microbiología se obtuvieron retrospectivamente.Resultados: en general, “394 pacientes con COVID-19 fueron admitidos en la UCI. La mediana de edad fue de 58 años (RIC 51-69) y la proporción de sexos (M/F) de 3. Al ingreso, la mediana de SAPS II fue de 33 (RIC 24-49). Entre los pacientes, 232 tenían al menos una comorbilidad y 162 tenían sobrepeso (índice de masa corporal (IMC) = 27,8 kg/m2). En total, 358 pacientes recibieron antibióticos (244/358 introducidos antes de la UCI y 114/358 durante la estancia en la UCI)”.Conclusión: El presente estudio es el primero de su tipo en nuestro medio hospitalario en describir la persistencia bacteriana en los pulmones a pesar de una terapia adecuada, así como infecciones frecuentes del torrente sanguíneo posiblemente asociadas con translocaciones bacterianas originadas en la microbiota digestiva u orofaríngea, en COVID-19 pacientes de la UCI

Un estudio observacional sobre infecciones bacterianas en pacientes con coronavirus hospitalizados en un centro de tercer nivel de atención

Introduction: The latest global pandemic is caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. 6% of patients are admitted to the hospital, with 20% of those admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) due to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).Aim: to characterise the bacterial infections in patients with coronavirus at an ICU of North Indian Hospital.Method: After receiving ethical approval from the institutional review board, a retrospective study was done on coronavirus subjects admitted to GMC Srinagar's ICUs between January and June 2021. Data on demographics, comorbidities, and microbiology were obtained retrospectively.Results: Overall, “394 COVID-19 patients were admitted to ICU. Median age was 58 years (IQR 51–69) and sex ratio (M/F) was 3. At admission the median SAPS II was 33 (IQR 24–49). Among patients, 232 had at least one co-morbidity and 162 were overweight (body mass index (BMI) = 27.8 kg/m2). In all, 358 patients received antibiotics (244/358 introduced before ICU and 114/358 during ICU stay)”.Conclusion: The current study is the first of its kind in our hospital setting to describe the bacterial persistence in the lungs despite adequate therapy, as well as frequent bloodstream infections possibly associated with bacterial translocations originating from the digestive or oropharyngeal microbiota, in COVID-19 ICU patients.Introducción: La última pandemia mundial está provocada por el coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. El 6 % de los pacientes ingresan en el hospital, con un 20% de los ingresados en la unidad de cuidados intensivos (UCI) debido al síndrome de dificultad respiratoria aguda (SDRA).Objetivo: caracterizar las infecciones bacterianas en pacientes con coronavirus en una UCI del North Indian Hospital.Método: Después de recibir la aprobación ética de la junta de revisión institucional, se realizó un estudio retrospectivo en sujetos con coronavirus admitidos en las UCI de GMC Srinagar entre enero y junio de 2021. Los datos sobre demografía, comorbilidades y microbiología se obtuvieron retrospectivamente.Resultados: en general, “394 pacientes con COVID-19 fueron admitidos en la UCI. La mediana de edad fue de 58 años (RIC 51-69) y la proporción de sexos (M/F) de 3. Al ingreso, la mediana de SAPS II fue de 33 (RIC 24-49). Entre los pacientes, 232 tenían al menos una comorbilidad y 162 tenían sobrepeso (índice de masa corporal (IMC) = 27,8 kg/m2). En total, 358 pacientes recibieron antibióticos (244/358 introducidos antes de la UCI y 114/358 durante la estancia en la UCI)”.Conclusión: El presente estudio es el primero de su tipo en nuestro medio hospitalario en describir la persistencia bacteriana en los pulmones a pesar de una terapia adecuada, así como infecciones frecuentes del torrente sanguíneo posiblemente asociadas con translocaciones bacterianas originadas en la microbiota digestiva u orofaríngea, en COVID-19 pacientes de la UCI

Assessment of heavy metal contamination in vegetables collected from selected localities of Okara, Pakistan

Background: Human health is prone to heavy metals especially which become part of food chain by any means. Previously, no extensive nutritional studies are conducted on local food products and grains. The research work was carried out to observe level of heavy metals in vegetables sold or consumed in different localities of Okara city, Pakistan.Methods: The concentration of heavy metals Nickel, Cadmium, Cobalt, Copper and Chromium in ten different types of vegetables collected from selected sites survey were analyzed using tri-acid method for atomic absorption spectrometer.Results: The results showed that concentrations of all analyzed heavy metals were significantly (P≤ 0.05) different, except values of copper in collected vegetable samples. The average concentration ranged from 5.4 – 44.06 ppm of Cobalt, 5.7 – 9.63 ppm of Copper, 4.49 – 11.13 ppm of Cadmium, 4.59 – 33.77 ppm of Chromium and 8.58 – 13.68 ppm of Nickel. Mean concentrations of metals were found in following sequence Copper < Cadmium < Nickel < Chromium < Cobalt.Conclusion: It was concluded that vegetables can accumulate high concentrations of Cobalt and Chromium while Nickel,  Cadmium and Copper concentrates in low amount,  from which level of chromium and cadmium surpasses the permissible limits by FAO/WHO especially in underground vegetables (Onion and Radish), which could be the cause of serious health issues. Hence, monitoring and assessment of contaminants in vegetables are periodically needed and public safety measures should be imposed.Keywords: Heavy metal; Bio-concentration; Vegetables; Pakista

Un estudio observacional sobre infecciones bacterianas en pacientes con coronavirus hospitalizados en un centro de tercer nivel de atención

Introduction: The latest global pandemic is caused by SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. 6% of patients are admitted to the hospital, with 20% of those admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) due to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS).Aim: to characterise the bacterial infections in patients with coronavirus at an ICU of North Indian Hospital.Method: After receiving ethical approval from the institutional review board, a retrospective study was done on coronavirus subjects admitted to GMC Srinagar's ICUs between January and June 2021. Data on demographics, comorbidities, and microbiology were obtained retrospectively.Results: Overall, “394 COVID-19 patients were admitted to ICU. Median age was 58 years (IQR 51–69) and sex ratio (M/F) was 3. At admission the median SAPS II was 33 (IQR 24–49). Among patients, 232 had at least one co-morbidity and 162 were overweight (body mass index (BMI) = 27.8 kg/m2). In all, 358 patients received antibiotics (244/358 introduced before ICU and 114/358 during ICU stay)”.Conclusion: The current study is the first of its kind in our hospital setting to describe the bacterial persistence in the lungs despite adequate therapy, as well as frequent bloodstream infections possibly associated with bacterial translocations originating from the digestive or oropharyngeal microbiota, in COVID-19 ICU patients.Introducción: La última pandemia mundial está provocada por el coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. El 6 % de los pacientes ingresan en el hospital, con un 20% de los ingresados en la unidad de cuidados intensivos (UCI) debido al síndrome de dificultad respiratoria aguda (SDRA).Objetivo: caracterizar las infecciones bacterianas en pacientes con coronavirus en una UCI del North Indian Hospital.Método: Después de recibir la aprobación ética de la junta de revisión institucional, se realizó un estudio retrospectivo en sujetos con coronavirus admitidos en las UCI de GMC Srinagar entre enero y junio de 2021. Los datos sobre demografía, comorbilidades y microbiología se obtuvieron retrospectivamente.Resultados: en general, “394 pacientes con COVID-19 fueron admitidos en la UCI. La mediana de edad fue de 58 años (RIC 51-69) y la proporción de sexos (M/F) de 3. Al ingreso, la mediana de SAPS II fue de 33 (RIC 24-49). Entre los pacientes, 232 tenían al menos una comorbilidad y 162 tenían sobrepeso (índice de masa corporal (IMC) = 27,8 kg/m2). En total, 358 pacientes recibieron antibióticos (244/358 introducidos antes de la UCI y 114/358 durante la estancia en la UCI)”.Conclusión: El presente estudio es el primero de su tipo en nuestro medio hospitalario en describir la persistencia bacteriana en los pulmones a pesar de una terapia adecuada, así como infecciones frecuentes del torrente sanguíneo posiblemente asociadas con translocaciones bacterianas originadas en la microbiota digestiva u orofaríngea, en COVID-19 pacientes de la UCI