Soil Minerals Serving as Source of Arsenic in Alluvial Aquifers of Holocene: A Case Study from Indus Delta, Sindh, Pakistan

Groundwater arsenic contamination is recently reported in the alluvial aquifers of Indus deltaic plain. Since the source of arsenic is believed to be natural as widely reported in other deltaic aquifers of same age (Holocene), it is imperative to evaluate the soil characteristics for identifying the sources of arsenic and its mobilization mechanism. For this purpose, 49 soil samples were collected from near aquifer sites in all three talukas of Tando Muhammad Khan district. Visual analysis revealed that soil is light grey in color with fine texture ranging from silt to silty-clay. The X-ray diffraction study reveals the occurrence of quartz, mica and clay minerals in all collected soil samples. Plagioclase feldspar is second dominant mineral group in the order of albite (calcian) >albite>albite (disordered) = anorthite > anorthite (sodian) = anorthite (disordered). Calcite is major carbonate mineral which is detected in 40 out of total 49 soil samples. The occurrence of other occasional minerals includes amesite, nitro-calcite, rutile and zinnwaldite. The frequency of micaceous minerals in collected samples is in the order of clinochlore> polylithionite> Biotite > phlogopite> muscovite. Polylithionite is found in about half of the total soil samples, where most of the aquifers contain arsenic >20 μg/L (Khan, 2014). Phlogopite is observed in seven soil samples which are also associated with clinochlore. On the other hand, biotite is found in 14 sediment samples collected from Tando Muhammad Khan and Bhulri Shah Karim talukas and muscovite occurs in three soil samples of Tando Muhammad Khan taluka. It can be concluded from present study that fine-grained Phyllosilicates have strong affinity for arsenic retention. These sediments are important source of arsenic Indus delta and other deltaic plains of the world

Redox-mediated polymerization and removal of benzidine from model wastewater catalyzed by immobilized peroxidase

Peroxidase from Momordica charantia was highly effective, active and stable for the oxidation of benzidine from model wastewater. There was no oxidative polymerization of benzidine without any redox mediator. Various experimental parameters were standardized for the maximum oxidation of benzidine by peroxidase. The maximum oxidation of this pollutant was observed in the presence of 0.05 mM phenol, 0.75 mM H2O2 and 0.2 U mL-1 bitter gourd peroxidase (BGP) in a buffer of pH 5.0 at 40°C. Comparative study was performed by soluble as well as surface immobilized bitter gourd peroxidase on Con A layered calcium alginate-starch beads for the degradation of benzidine from model wastewater. Immobilized bitter gourd peroxidase was used for the successful and effective removal of water polluted with benzidine in batch as well as in continuous reactor. The effect of detergents and some water miscible organic solvent was also reported for the oxidation of benzidine from polluted water. Oxidation of benzidine in batch process by soluble and immobilized peroxidase was highly effective and it could remove 72 and 100% benzidine by soluble and immobilized bitter gourd peroxidase, respectively. The reactor filled with immobilized enzyme retained more than 45% benzidine removal efficiency even after 30 days of its continuous operation. The absorption spectra of the treated benzidine exhibited a marked difference in absorption at its λmax as compared to untreated benzidine polluted water.Keywords: Alginate, bitter gourd peroxidase, concanavalin A, removal, immobilizatio

INCIDENCE OF POST-OPERATIVE DEEP VEIN THROMBOSIS IN PATIENTS WITH LOWER LIMB OPEN FRACTURE

Background: Venous thromboembolic (VTE) disease with i t ' s h i g h morbidity and mo r t a l i t y is currently one of the most serious postoperative complication, (DVT) can lead to fatal pulmonary embolism (PE). or the development of post thrombotic syndrome. Patients and methods: This is a prospective study which was carried on 85 patients had s i n g l e lower l i m b open fracture with no other major i n j u r i e s in other sites of body (with the exception of superficial wounds or b r u i s e s ) .They were d i v i d e d i n t o groups according to age, gender, weight, type of fracture, methods of immobilization, duration of h o s p i t a l i z a t i o n , duration of operation. All the patients including asymptomatic patients were subjected by the fourth postoperative day for duplex untrasonography study. Results: The total number of patients with DVT that documented by Duplex study was 27 patients with in incidence of (31.76%), the incidence of DVT is higher in proximal lower extremity fractures as around hip (45.45%) Versus (12.5%) in lower tibial fractures. the incidence of DVT increased with increasing severity of open fracture; (50% in Gus t i l o type III B. 10% in Gus t i l o type I). Conclusion: Age, weight, female gender, and severe open fracture proximal part of the lower limb, long hospitalization, prolong surgery are risk factors in the development of (DVT)

Scalable coding of HDTV pictures using the MPEG coder

Thesis (M.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, 1994.Includes bibliographical references (leaves 118-121).by Adnan Husain Lawai.M.S

The Bedouin of the Fatimid Empire: Faith vs. Politics in a Medieval Islamic Empire

The Fatimid Empire was initially established in 296/909 in North Africa. The capital was later shifted to Cairo from where the Fatimid imams controlled vast areas of the Islamic world, each with its own unique set of ethnicities. Powerful Arab Bedouin tribes were concentrated on the fringes of the eastern borders of the Empire, and many of these professed Shīʿism. A few Bedouin tribesmen even converted to the Fatimid faith and helped in furthering their cause. On the other hand, in the 4th/10th century, loomed the ominous shadow of the Qarāmitah (Carmathians), heavily supported by Bedouin, who launched a strong movement to depose the Fatimids. In the 4th&5th/11th century, Cairo was attacked by powerful Bedouin, this time from the western parts of the Empire. Arabic texts have recorded, albeit clouded by a Sunnī-Shīʿah prejudice, interactions between the Fatimids and various Bedouin tribes. Conversely, modern Western academia has commenced interpreting some of these historical incidents in light of their proper religious context, such as the rise of the Carmathian movement. Albeit, there is still scope to analyse these incidents in their proper religiosocial contexts, which this study aims to do. The Berbers and the Bedouin were two indigenous peoples, however, no Bedouin tribe could match the success that the Kutāma Berbers had with the Fatimids. This may be understood from Fatimid texts which provide insights into Bedouin identity. Since the Fatimids believed themselves to be the rightful imams and thus the true upholders of Qurʾānic values, Fatimid actions with respect to the Bedouin may be traced back to the treatment of the Qurʾān of the Bedouin

Groundwater Arsenic Contamination in Semi-Urban Areas of Tando Muhammad Khan District: A Case Study from Deltaic Flood Plain of Sindh, Pakistan

An attempt has been made to assess the arsenic contamination and role of anthropogenic activities on its release in the groundwater of alluvial aquifers occurring on deltaic flood plain of Indus River. Groundwater collected from three semi-urban union councils of Tando Muhammad Khan district revealed that the groundwater has bad quality for drinking which varied in the order of UC-2 > UC-1 > UC-3. Anoxia is prevalent in the aquifers of study area which is indicated by high HCO3 and lowNO3 and Fe contents. However, the natural concentration of sulphate (Mean range: 105-450 mg/L) in the groundwater of study area suggested that anoxia has not reached the stage where sulphate is consumed by SO4 reducing bacteria for organic matter decomposition. On the other hand elevated content of Na and Cl coupled with pathogenic bacteria occurrence indicated that sewage mixing is common in the study area. Elevated arsenic is reported from all there union councils which varied inthe order of UC2 > UC 1 > UC3. Arsenic is mobilized from host sediments (clays/biotite) due to the prevalence of reduced environment caused by organic matter decomposition and triggered by sewagemixing

Outcomes of high risk Patients with febrile neutropenia at a tertiary care center

Creative Commons Attribution LicenseFever during chemotherapy-induced neutropenia continues to be a major cause of morbidity and mortality incancer patients. Mortality depends on the duration and degree of neutropenia, bacteremia, sepsis, performance status,comorbidities and other parameters. The highest mortality rates in cancer patients hospitalized with febrile neutropenia(FN) are observed in those with documented infection. The objectives of the study were to present available tools forrisk assessment, to review pathogens causing infections in adult FN patients and to assess outcomes. Methods: Thiscross sectional study was conducted on adult culture positive FN patients admitted to the Hematology/Oncologyservice at the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi, Pakistan from 1st January 2009 to 31st December 2012. Highriskcriteria were defined as profound neutropenia, short latency from a previous chemotherapy cycle, sepsis orclinically documented infection at presentation, severe co-morbidity and a performance status greater than or equalto 3. All types of organisms in blood culture and the outcomes of the patients were recorded on Proforma. Results:A total of 156 patients with culture-positive febrile neutropenia were identified during the study period. The meanage was 47 years with a slight male predominance of 54%. One hundred and sixteen patients fulfilled the criteria forthe high risk group. Fifty two percent had a single high risk factor and 40 % had two. All patients harbored eithersingle or multiple bacterial organisms including gram positive, gram negative or both types. Some 34% of patientshad gram positive bacteremia, 57 % had gram negative and 9 % were infected with both. Among 73 gram positivecultures 44 % were Staphylococcus species and among 123 gram negative cultures 43 % were E. coli. One hundredand fifteen patients recovered uneventfully and could be discharged. Thirty two patients in the high risk and 9 in thelow risk groups deceased with an overall mortality of 26 %. The mean hospital stays of patients with solid tumors andhematological malignancies were 7.58 and 15.0 days, respectively. Mortality was higher in the latter group, and alsoin high risk patients with both gram positive and negative bacteremia. Conclusion: We emphasize the importance ofrisk stratification and continuous surveillance of the spectrum of locally prevalent pathogens and their susceptibilitypatterns for formulation of therapeutic regimens for febrile neutropenic patients

The Role of Media and Islamic Criminal Legislation in Reducing Crime (From the perspective of students of the University of Jordan)

The study aimed to know the role of the media and its various styles, as well as the role of Islamic criminal legislation in reducing crime and identifying the obstacles that limit the effectiveness of the media in the prevention of crime. A random sample of 600 students was selected at different university levels at the University of Jordan, as well as personal background factors (independent variables): sex, place of residence, specialty, so that eleven different positions were identified, asking the respondents to determine their opinion on their respective trends. Keywords: Role, Media, Islamic Criminal Legislation, Crime DOI: 10.7176/JPCR/44-05 Publication date: September 30th 201

QuantUM: Quantitative Safety Analysis of UML Models

When developing a safety-critical system it is essential to obtain an assessment of different design alternatives. In particular, an early safety assessment of the architectural design of a system is desirable. In spite of the plethora of available formal quantitative analysis methods it is still difficult for software and system architects to integrate these techniques into their every day work. This is mainly due to the lack of methods that can be directly applied to architecture level models, for instance given as UML diagrams. Also, it is necessary that the description methods used do not require a profound knowledge of formal methods. Our approach bridges this gap and improves the integration of quantitative safety analysis methods into the development process. All inputs of the analysis are specified at the level of a UML model. This model is then automatically translated into the analysis model, and the results of the analysis are consequently represented on the level of the UML model. Thus the analysis model and the formal methods used during the analysis are hidden from the user. We illustrate the usefulness of our approach using an industrial strength case study.Comment: In Proceedings QAPL 2011, arXiv:1107.074