European Union foreign policy towards Egypt during the Arab spring of 2011

With the onset of the Arab Spring, external actors found themselves caught off guard by the democratic uprisings and the implications they hold to their respective national interests in the region. For the EU, the instability in the region presents challenges to the long relationship the European nations culminated with the Middle East, especially with Egypt. The uprising created a situation where the EU had to develop new policies to capitalize on the opportunity for democratic change while maintaining the decades long EU’s interest in Egypt. Accordingly, the main question this study tries to answer is whether and the extent to which the EU was able to adopt the proper policies, particularly whether the EU was able to use the resources at its disposal to facilitate democratic change in Egypt. The following secondary questions would also be answered throughout the study: 1. What is the nature of the EU’s foreign policy in terms of its mechanism, limitations, major premises and factors influencing its effectiveness? 2. What is the history of EU-Egyptian partnership prior to the Arab Spring? 3. Where there any changes to EU-Egyptian relations after the Arab Spring to the present? 4. How does the situation of Tunisia and the EU’s actions in the country differ from the EU’s actions in the Egyptian case

FAIR and bias-free network modules for mechanism-based disease redefinitions

Even though chronic diseases are the cause of 60% of all deaths around the world, the underlying causes for most of them are not fully understood. Hence, diseases are defined based on organs and symptoms, and therapies largely focus on mitigating symptoms rather than cure. This is also reflected in the most commonly used disease classifications. The complex nature of diseases, however, can be better defined in terms of networks of molecular interactions. This research applies the approaches of network medicine – a field that uses network science for identifying and treating diseases – to multiple diseases with highly unmet medical need such as stroke and hypertension. The results show the success of this approach to analyse complex disease networks and predict drug targets for different conditions, which are validated through preclinical experiments and are currently in human clinical trials

Evaluation and Analysis of Cavitation Phenomenon in Rosieres Power Plant, Sudan, 2011-2012

Cavitation is one of the serious problems in hydraulic turbines negatively affects their efficiency and may cause damages. Cavitation is a phenomenon which occurs as a pitting of metallic surfaces of turbine parts because of the formation of cavities. In this paper, cavitation in Kaplan turbine unit 2 in Rosieres power plant was studied and analyzed during flood, water restriction and blackout periods. The general features of cavitation were described and cavitation variables were determined in the plant. Cavitation indexes and critical cavitation factors were calculated and compared during these three periods. The results showed that: the turbines were operated within cavitation limit during these periods. Cavitation index was found to be higher in water restriction, while minimum power and drop of pressure, which also increase the possibility of cavities were found in flood and blackout

New Perspectives on Integrable Hamiltonian Systems via the Algebraic Geometry of Twisted Hitchin Moduli Spaces: A Case Study on the Calogero-Franc¸oise Integrable System

Integrable systems are dynamical systems that exhibit very special properties. These systems are exactly solvable, have deep connections with algebraic geometry, and give rise to a maximal set of conserved quantities. Integrable systems have proven to be essential as they arise naturally in various branches of mathematics and physics such as differential and algebraic geometry, partial differential equations, statistical mechanics, quantum field theories, string theory and even more. One of the unique features of integrable systems is that all known integrable systems seem to be inherently related in some sense. This special feature has inspired many mathematicians to attempt and find a single origin of all known integrable systems. One of the most prominent approaches towards this unification process is through realizing different integrable systems as symmetry reductions of the self-dual-Yang-Mills (SDYM) equations. In fact, most known integrable systems (at least in lower dimensions) fit in this paradigm and this thesis is a further step towards this unification. Four integrable systems are in the central attention of this thesis. Namely, these are Euler’s equations for the motion of a rigid body, Nahm’s equations, the Hitchin system, and the the Calogero-Fran¸coise integrable system. Euler’s equations are the most classical example of an integrable system. Moreover, Nahm’s equations are obtained as a dimensional reduction of the SDYM equations to one dimension. Furthermore, the Hitchin system is an algebraically completely integrable system that arises as the space of solutions to Hitchin’s equations. Hitchin’s equations are a coupled system of non-linear partial differential equations that arise as a dimensional reduction of the SDYM equations to two dimensions. Finally, the Calogero-Fran¸coise (CF) integrable system is a finite-dimensional Hamiltonian system that arises as a generalization of the Camassa Holm (CH) dynamics. In this thesis, we show that the dynamics of Euler’s equations and the CF system can be perceived by realizing both systems as twisted Hitchin systems. More specifically, we obtain an explicit solution to Euler’s equations by transforming them to Nahm’s equations and then studying the evolution of the Higgs field of Nahm’s equations. The solution method is different from the classical ones since we used a different formulation than the one usually presented in the literature. More specifically, we formulated the problem on the Lie algebra su(2) rather than formulating it on so(3) as usually done. Furthermore, we study the dynamics of the Calogero-Fran¸coise (CF) integrable system while focusing on the special case of peakon anti-peakon interactions (d = 2). We show explicitly by embedding the CF system into a (twisted) Hitchin system that the CF dynamics is completely governed by the evolution of the corresponding Higgs field. In particular, we show that different singularities in the CF system correspond to very special Higgs fields in the underlying Hitchin system. Furthermore, we show that a periodization (compactification) of the CF dynamics corresponds to a compactification of the underlying Hitchin system. This result is then a direct manifestation of the correspondence between the CF dynamics and the dynamics of the associated Higgs field in the underlying Hitchin system

NUMERICAL PREDICTION OF SOLITARY WAVE FORMATION OF A PLANING HULL IN SHALLOW WATER CHANNELS

This paper uses a CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) analysis to investigate the shallow water effects on prismatic planing hull. The turbulence flow around the hull was described by Reynolds Navier Stokes equations RANSE using the k-ɛ turbulence model. The free surface was modelled by the volume of fluid (VOF) method. The analysis was steady for all the range of speeds except those close to the critical speed range due to the propagation of the planing hull solitary waves at this range. In this study, the planing hull lift force, total resistance, and wave pattern for the range of subcritical speeds, critical speeds, and supercritical speeds have been calculated using CFD. The numerical results have been compared with experimental results. The pressure distribution on the planing hull and its wave pattern at critical speed in shallow water were compared with those in deep water

Prophylactic use of carvedilol to prevent ventricular dysfunction in patients with cancer treated with doxorubicin

Objective: Deterioration in ventricular function is often observed in patients treated with anthracyclines for cancer. There is a paucity of evidence on interventions that might provide cardio-protection. We investigated whether prophylactic use of carvedilol can prevent doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity and whether any observed effect is dose related. Methods: A prospective, randomized, double-blind study in patients treated with doxorubicin, comparing placebo (n = 38) with different doses of carvedilol [6.25 mg/day (n = 41), 12.5 mg/day (n = 38) or 25 mg/day (n = 37)]. The primary endpoint was the measured change in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) from baseline to 6 months. Results: LVEF decreased from 62 ± 5% at baseline to 58 ± 7% at 6-months (p = 0.002) in patients assigned to placebo but no statistically significant changes were observed in any of the 3 carvedilol groups. At 6 months, only one of 116 patients (1%) assigned to carvedilol had an LVEF < 50% compared to four of the 38 assigned to placebo (11%), (p = 0.013). No significant differences were noted between carvedilol and placebo in terms of the development of diastolic dysfunction, clinically overt heart failure or death. Conclusions: Carvedilol might prevent deterioration in LVEF in cancer patients treated with doxorubicin. This effect may not be dose related within the studied range

Analysis of Factors and Medical Errors Involved in Patient Complaints in a European Emergency Department

Introduction: Patients’ complaints from Emergency Departments (ED) are frequent and can be used as a quality assurance indicator. Objective: Factors contributing to patients’ complaints (PCs) in the emergency department were analyzed.  Methods: It was a retrospective cohort study, the qualitative variables of patients’ complaints visiting ED of a university hospital were compared with Chi-Square and t test tests. Results: Eighty-five PC were analyzed. The factors contributing to PC were: communication (n=26), length of stay (LOS) (n=24), diagnostic errors (n=21), comfort and privacy issues (n=7), pain management (n=6), inappropriate treatment (n=6), delay of care and billing issues (n=3). PCs were more frequent when patients were managed by residents, during night shifts, weekends, Saturdays, Mondays, January and June. Moreover, the factors contributing to diagnostic errors were due to poor communication, non-adherence to guidelines and lack of systematic proofreading of X-rays. In 98% of cases, disputes were resolved by apology and explanation and three cases resulted in financial compensation. Conclusion: Poor communication, LOS and medical errors are factors contributing to PCs. Improving communication, resolving issues leading to slow health care provision, adequate staffing and supervision of trainees may reduce PCs

Analysis of Factors and Medical Errors Involved in Patient Complaints in a European Emergency Department

Introduction: Patients’ complaints from Emergency Departments (ED) are frequent and can be used as a quality assurance indicator. Objective: Factors contributing to patients’ complaints (PCs) in the emergency department were analyzed.  Methods: It was a retrospective cohort study, the qualitative variables of patients’ complaints visiting ED of a university hospital were compared with Chi-Square and t test tests. Results: Eighty-five PC were analyzed. The factors contributing to PC were: communication (n=26), length of stay (LOS) (n=24), diagnostic errors (n=21), comfort and privacy issues (n=7), pain management (n=6), inappropriate treatment (n=6), delay of care and billing issues (n=3). PCs were more frequent when patients were managed by residents, during night shifts, weekends, Saturdays, Mondays, January and June. Moreover, the factors contributing to diagnostic errors were due to poor communication, non-adherence to guidelines and lack of systematic proofreading of X-rays. In 98% of cases, disputes were resolved by apology and explanation and three cases resulted in financial compensation. Conclusion: Poor communication, LOS and medical errors are factors contributing to PCs. Improving communication, resolving issues leading to slow health care provision, adequate staffing and supervision of trainees may reduce PCs

Role of Elastic Stable Intramedullary Nailing in Diaphyseal Fractures in Children

Background: All femoral or tibial fractures regardless of associated injuries, intramedullary nailing (IMN) has its more advantages in rapid rehabilitation, good effects on the child and his family and strong fixation. Objective: To assess the role of elastic stable IMN in union of diaphyseal fractures of long bones in children. Patients and Methods: A prospective and retrospective analytical study on ten children with isolated femoral or tibial fractures who were admitted to Orthopedic Department, Zagazig University Hospitals. They were divided equally into group I that included 5 patients with femoral shaft fracture managed with IMN and group II, which included 5 patients with tibial shaft fracture managed with IMN. Their mean age was 4.7 years old. Results: When the groups compared, the spica cast group was found to have a shorter duration of hospital stay compared to elastic nail group. The knee range of motion of the spica cast group was found to be better compared to the elastic nailing group. The elastic nailing group was found to have started walking earlier both with and without support. Patients with intramedullary nailing started to walk with aid after one month and  independently after 2 weeks. Patients with spica cast started to walk with aid after 2 months and independently after 12 weeks. Conclusion: None of the available treatment tools to fix diaphyseal long bones fractures in preschool children is perfect because each method has its own set of complications. However, constitute the motive for developing new techniques or changing the design of currently available devices

Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage

Aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a devastating neurological syndrome, which occurs at a rate of 3–25 per 100,000 population. Smoking and hypertension are the most important risk factors of subarachnoid hemorrhage. Rupture of cerebral aneurysm leads to rapid spread of blood into cerebrospinal fluid and subsequently leads to sudden increase of intracranial pressure and severe headache. Subarachnoid hemorrhage is associated with neurological (such as re‐bleeding and vasospasm) and systemic (such as myocardial injury and hyponatremia) complications that are causes of high mortality and morbidity. Although patients with poor‐grade subarachnoid hemorrhage are at higher risk of neurological and systemic complications, the early and aggressive management of this group of patient has decreased overall mortality by 17% in last 40 years. Early aneurysm repair, close monitoring in dedicated neurological intensive care unit, prevention, and aggressive management of medical and neurological complications are the most important strategies to improve outcome