Micro-econometric Analysis of Impact of Remittances on Household’s Welfare: Empirical Evidence from District Peshawar

The present study has been conducted in the year 2010 in district Peshawar to assess the impact of inflow of remittances on household’s welfare. The concept welfare was measured in terms of consumption expenditures of the household. A sample of 60 household was interviewed using snowball sampling combined with the convenient sampling technique. A regression model which was a mixture of direct elasticity and semi-elasticity was used to quantify the relationships. Apart from inflow of remittances (lnremt), three control variables (i.e. years of schooling of the household’s head – edu, age of household’s head – age & family size – fz) were employed to standardize the impact. Controlling for edu, age & edu, this paper conclude that inflow of remittances enhance household’s welfare. All control variables have theoretically correct positive signs. These results were statistically significant and results showed no major econometric problems that can influence statistical inference derived from the model. So it is highly recommended, in light of the present study, that govt. of Pakistan should take all possible steps to export labors abroad. It has dual positive impacts, one enhancing household’s prosperity (welfare) and other reducing unemployment at local level.

Chelated Nitrogen-Sulphur-Codoped TiO 2

This study presents in detail the physicochemical, photoluminescent, and photocatalytic properties of carboxylic acid chelated nitrogen-sulphur-codoped TiO2. From the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopic study, it was revealed that the formate group formed bidentate bridging linkage while the acetate group coordinated in a bidentate chelating mode with a titanium precursor. In compliance with X-ray diffraction data, the anatase to rutile transformation temperature was extended due to carboxylic acid chelation and NS codoping. Raman analysis indicated four Raman peaks at 146, 392, 512, and 632 cm−1 for the precalcined chelated TiO2; on incorporation with NS dopants, an increase in Raman intensity for these peaks was recorded, indicating the structure stability of the anatase phase. Furthermore, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopic study revealed the presence of anionic doping of nitrogen and cationic doping of sulphur in the lattice of TiO2. When evaluating the UV-visible photodegradation rate of 4-chlorophenol, the modified TiO2 (NS0.06-TFA) showed the highest photocatalytic activity. In connection with the activity tests, several scavenger agents were employed to elucidate the significance of the different reactive oxidizing species during the photocatalytic process. Moreover, the transfer pathways of photogenerated carriers and the photocatalytic reaction mechanism of modified TiO2 were also explained in detail

Medical perspective of cupping therapy (Ḥijama): a review

Traditional and alternative medicine practitioners have used cupping therapy for centuries.Growing data suggests that it may help treat disorders that are associated to pain in recentyears. An overview of the use of cupping therapy is provided in this article. One of themost effective treatments for Ilaj bil Tadbeer is hijama. A vacuum is created to eitherrelease blood from beneath the skin's surface or merely suction the area without allowingany blood out in this unique therapeutic method, which involves positioning cup-shapedveins on the body's surface. However, the effects in certain clinical trials were really strong.It is suggested that medical professionals or researchers in order to ascertain the efficacyof hijama in the treatment of various illnesses

Lipid Profiles and Its Association with Pre-Eclampsia and Eclampsia in Nulliparous Pregnant Women

Objectives: To access the lipid profiles and its association with pre-eclampsia and eclampsia in nulliparous pregnant women. Material and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed on 234 nulliparous pregnant women with gestation period of  > 20 weeks and aged 15-45 years, from March to October 2014, in Institute of Basic Medical Sciences (IBMS), Khyber Medical University (KMU), Peshawar, Pakistan with cooperation from gynecology and obstetrics departments of three tertiary-care hospitals of Peshawar & Khyber Medical College, Peshawar,  Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), Pakistan. Subjects were assigned to three groups i.e., group A, group B and group C. For performing biochemical assays and lipid profiling, through ELISA, blood samples were collected from already subjects both with the disease and the controls. Results: Both subjects having pre-eclampsia and eclampsia showed significant elevated levels (p < 0.001) for low density lipoproteins cholesterols (LDL-c), high density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), total cholesterol (TC)/HDL-c and LDL-c/HDL-c ratio. But TC of pre-eclampsia subjects were found significantly elevated (p < 0.001) in relation to controls. LDL-c/HDL-c and TC/HDL-c also revealed an elevated significant change (p < 0.001) both for pre-eclamptic and eclamptic subjects. On the other hand, only TG/HDL-c in pre-eclamptic patients was found significantly higher (p<0.004) when compared to control group.  Conclusion: Serum lipid levels were observed higher in pre-eclampsia and eclampsia patients hence an early assessment is necessary to prevent complications in such patients

Noise Characterization in Web Cameras using Independent Component Analysis

An image captured by a web camera contains stationary and nonstationary noise patterns. These noise patterns are of three types i.e. Fixed Pattern Noise (FPN), Interactive Nose (IN) and Temporal Noise (TN). TN is an independent noise pattern and needs an algorithm that does exploit its higher-order dependencies. Previously, these noise patterns have been characterized using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). PCA is restricted to second order dependencies. In this paper Independent Component Analysis (ICA) has been investigated for actual TN noise. The experimental results demonstrates the effectiveness of the proposed method

Prediction of size distribution of crude oil drops in the permeate using a slotted pore membrane

Permeate size distribution of various crude oil drops with, and without, oscillating the membrane has been predicted using the 'Linear Fit' approach. Drops pass through the membrane due to drag force created by the flow of fluid around the drops. Static force is the force responsible for the rejection of drops through the membrane and is directly proportional to the interfacial tension between dispersed and continuous phases. Without applied shear, 100% cut-off of drops though the membrane is assumed when the drag force and the static force balances each other. With the applied shear, 100% cut-off of drops through the membrane is when drops moves away from the membrane surface due to migration velocities and do not pass the membrane into the permeate. Extrapolating 100% cut-off to the origin of the rejection graphs gives a straight line that is referred as 'Linear Fit' and can be used for predicting rejection below 100% cut-off. Linear fit can be used for predicting drop rejection below 100% cut-off. The portion of oil that would not be rejected by the membrane and would pass through the membrane into the permeate can be calculated using this approach. For a given size of drops in a feed suspension, permeate size distribution can be predicted by multiplying the fraction of oil passing through the membrane and the feed size distribution data. Overall concentration of oil in the permeate can be calculated by knowing size distribution of drops in the permeate, and that provides an idea whether the concentration of oil in the permeate is below the standard set by international regulatory authorities

A Novel Fractional-Order Variational Approach for Image Restoration Based on Fuzzy Membership Degrees

We propose a new fractional-order (space and time) total variation regularized model for multiplicative noise removal in this research article. We use the regularly varying fuzzy membership degrees to characterize the likelihood of a pixel related to edges, texture regions, and flat regions to improve model efficiency. This approach is capable of maintaining edges, textures, and other image information while significantly reducing the blocky effect. We opt for the option of local actions. In order to efficiently find the minimizer of the prescribed energy function, the semi-implicit gradient descent approach is used (which derives the corresponding fractional-order Euler-Lagrange equations). The existence and uniqueness of a solution to the suggested variational model are proved. Experimental results show the efficiency of the suggested model in visual enhancement, preserving details and reducing the blocky effect while extracting noise as well as an increase in the PSNR (dB), SSIM, relative error, and less CPU time(s) comparing to other schemes

A mixed methods study to assess the effectiveness of food-based interventions to prevent stunting among children under-five years in districts Thatta and Sujawal, Sindh province, Pakistan: study protocol

Background: Maternal and child malnutrition is widely prevalent in low and middle income countries. In Pakistan, widespread food insecurity and malnutrition are the main contributors to poor health, low survival rates and the loss of human capital development. The nutritional status trends among children exhibit a continuous deteriorating with rates of malnutrition exceeding the WHO critical threshold. With the high prevalence of maternal and child malnutrition, it is important to identify effective preventative approaches, especially for reducing stunting in children under-five years of age. The primary aim of this study is to assess the effectiveness of food-based interventions to prevent stunting in children under-five years. Methods: A mixed methods study design will be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of food-based interventions to prevent stunting among children under-five years in districts Thatta and Sujawal, Sindh Province, Pakistan. The study will include cross sectional surveys, a community-based cluster randomized controlled trial and a process evaluation. The study participants will be pregnant women, lactating mothers and children under-five years. The cross-sectional surveys will be conducted with 7360 study participants at baseline and endline. For the randomized control trial, 5000 participants will be recruited and followed monthly for compliance of food-based supplements, dietary diversity, pregnancy outcomes, and maternal and child morbidity and mortality. Anthropometric measurements and hemoglobin levels will be measured at baseline, quarterly and at endline. The interventions will consist of locally produced lipid-based nutrient supplement (Wawamum) for children 6–23 months, micronutrient powders for children 24–59 months, and wheat soya blends for pregnant and lactating mothers. Government lady health workers will deliver interventions to participants. The effectiveness of the project will be measured in terms of the impact of the proposed interventions on stunting, nutritional status, micronutrient deficiencies, and other key indicators of the participants. The process evaluation will assess the acceptability, feasibility and potential barriers of project implementation through focus group discussions, key informant interviews and household surveys. Data analysis will be conducted using STATA version 12. Discussion: There is considerable evidence on the effectiveness of food-based interventions in managing stunting in developing countries. However, these studies do not account for the local environmental factors and widespread nutrient deficiencies in Pakistan. These studies are often conducted in controlled environments, where the results cannot be generalized to programs operating under field conditions. The findings of this study will provide sufficient evidence to develop policies and programs aimed to prevent stunting in children 6–59 months and to improve maternal and child health and growth outcomes in poor resource setting