Health risks assessment diagnosis of toxic chemicals (heavy metals) via food crops consumption irrigated with wastewater

The present study investigated the concentration of metals in commonly grown vegetables (Luffa acutangula L., Zea mays L., Solanum melongena L.) irrigated with waste water in District Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. The pH (5.80) and electrical conductivity (13 dS/m) of waste water indicated the acidic nature that is not suitable for irrigation purposes. Soil and vegetables samples were analyzed for metals concentration through flame atomic absorption spectrometry (Varian FAAS-240). The findings showed that waste water irrigated soil was highly contaminated with Cd (4.62 mg/kg) which was above permissible limits set by European Union Standard (EU 2006, 2002). The concentrations of heavy metals such as Cr and Cd in vegetables were higher than the permissible limits set by World Health Organization/Food and Agriculture Organization U.S.A guidelines 2001. The health hazard quotient (HQ) of waste water irrigated vegetables was observed higher for Ni (0.699-0.1029 mg/kg), (0.0456-0.1040 mg/kg), (0.731-0.0994 mg/kg) in Luffa acutangula, Solanum melongena and Zea mays, respectively. The study concluded that the consumption of commonly grown vegetables in waste water zone of the study area may pose potential health threats in local population

Spontaneous intracranial hypotension; three case reports with similar clinical manifestations, treated successfully using different management techniques.

Spontaneous Intracranial hypotension (SIH) is a rare neurological disorder, characterized by orthostatic headaches. Due to the complicity of its diagnosis and lack of awareness amongst physicians, SIH remains an under-diagnosed disease and its true prevalence remains unknown. It is a reversible condition, if diagnosed early. Delay in diagnosis can result in life threatening complications.Case Reports:We present a case series of three patients who presented with typical symptoms of SIH. But management course of each patient varied. The first patient responded well to the EBP (epidural blood patch) while the second improved with conventional symptomatic treatment. The third patient needed a surgical intervention for complication developed due to SIH. This case series hence covers a variety of treatment options for patients with SIH.Conclusion:SIH is an emerging challenge for neurologists worldwide. Awareness amongst physicians regarding this disease along with a high level of suspicion and good history skills will allow early diagnosis of the disease and prevent delay in treatment and hence complications

Scientific Mapping of Industry 4.0 Research:A Bibliometric Analysis

The fourth industrial revolution is progressing very rapidly. This research aims to investigate the research patterns and trends of industry 4.0 research with a focus on manufacturing. This bibliometric analysis is performed on data of the past five years (2016 to 2020) retrieved from the Scopus database. This research is conducted on 1426 articles in which the top productive countries, authors, institutions, and most cited articles were investigated. Findings demonstrated that Italy, the United States, and China are the most active countries in terms of research publications. South China University of Technology (China) has been identified as the most productive institution.  Wan, J., Li, D., Rauch, E. were found to be the most productive authors. Industry 4.0 is primarily focused on the fields of engineering and computer science and sustainability is the most prolific journal. Co-occurrence analysis of keywords, co-authorship analysis of authors and countries were carried out along with bibliographic coupling of documents using VoS viewer which is the most common information visualisation software. This article summarises the growth of Industry 4.0 in the past five years and gives a short overview of the related works and applications of Industry 4.0.</p

Planting Geometry and Herbicides for Weed Control in Rice: Implications and Challenges

Weeds are one of the major biological threats to higher rice productivity worldwide. Various cultural, biological, physical and chemical practices affect the composition and intensity of weeds in rice fields. Generally, weeds can be controlled through herbicides; nevertheless, chemical weed control is not a sustainable option on a long term. Various agronomic practices such as the use of tolerant cultivars, adjusting sowing time, tillage permutations and plant geometry may reduce the weed pressure in rice. Integrated approaches for weed management, emphasizing on the combination of management practices and scientific knowledge, may reduce the economic costs and improve weed control owing to the complexity of the weed community. The present chapter reveals the role of planting geometry and herbicides as weed management strategies in rice, and discusses the issue of herbicide resistance associated with chemical weed control. Moreover, the research and knowledge gaps in rice weed management through planting geometry and herbicides were also highlighted

Gender Disparity in Economic Returns to Higher Education: Evidence from Private Formal Sector of Bahawalpur (Pakistan)

The focus of the study is to investigate the gender disparity in returns to higher education in formal sector of Bahawalpur Division (Pakistan). A sample of 430 individuals is interviewed using a well structured interview schedule by convenient sampling. We divided it into 215 males and 215 females and apply a decomposition analysis proposed by Blinder (1973) and Oaxaca (1973). Ordinary least square method is applied to examine the gender disparity in wage returns to higher education. Findings reveal that at higher levels of education (i.e. post graduate) in private sector male’s labor market returns are higher than female labour market returns. But at graduation level female’s earning are higher than males. Number of dependents and marital status both have negatively affected the earning of females as compared to males. Females living in rural areas have been found to be more disadvantaged in terms of earnings as compared to males. On the bases of the results we concluded that there exists a gender disparity in wage returns to education in Bahawalpur Division

Gender Disparity in Economic Returns to Higher Education: Evidence from Private Formal Sector of Bahawalpur (Pakistan)

The focus of the study is to investigate the gender disparity in returns to higher education in formal sector of Bahawalpur Division (Pakistan). A sample of 430 individuals is interviewed using a well structured interview schedule by convenient sampling. We divided it into 215 males and 215 females and apply a decomposition analysis proposed by Blinder (1973) and Oaxaca (1973). Ordinary least square method is applied to examine the gender disparity in wage returns to higher education. Findings reveal that at higher levels of education (i.e. post graduate) in private sector male’s labor market returns are higher than female labour market returns. But at graduation level female’s earning are higher than males. Number of dependents and marital status both have negatively affected the earning of females as compared to males. Females living in rural areas have been found to be more disadvantaged in terms of earnings as compared to males. On the bases of the results we concluded that there exists a gender disparity in wage returns to education in Bahawalpur Division

Potential of biomass for bioenergy in Pakistan based on present case and future perspectives

Authors have no conflict of interest and would like to acknowledge the National University of Sciences&Technology (NUST), Pakistan.Peer reviewedPostprin

Presence and Dispersion of Organic and Inorganic Contaminants in Groundwater

This paper offers an extensive examination of studies published in the recent past and highlights the documented issues surrounding groundwater pollution, its sources, and distribution worldwide. The depletion of groundwater resources and the deteriorating overall quality present a significant cause for concern, particularly as a large human population relies on groundwater as a drinking water source. The review focuses on various factors contributing to groundwater pollution, including anthropogenic activities, hydro climatological influences, and natural processes. Special attention is given to organic contaminants such as pesticides, herbicides, and emerging pollutants, which have been found to have a substantial impact on groundwater quality. Additionally, the review covers pollution caused by inorganic pollutants like arsenic and other heavy metals, with a particular emphasis on regions experiencing a higher incidence of these contaminants in groundwater. Furthermore, the paper includes a compilation of studies that highlight the increased occurrence of waterborne illnesses resulting from fecal and microbial contamination, often caused by inadequate sanitary practices. To provide a comprehensive understanding of the global groundwater pollution problem, the review also encompasses an examination of contaminants like fluoride and nitrate

Factors Determining Pakistani Medical Students\u27 Career Preference for General Practice Residency Training.

Background Few studies have explored factors affecting preference of medical students towards general practice as a career choice. We conducted a survey in Karachi across various public and private sector medical colleges to examine factors associated with students’ general practice career aspirations in Karachi, Pakistan. Methods From January to March 2018, we distributed a 21-item questionnaire to final year medical students in eight medical schools. The survey asked students about their top three career preferences from 19 specialty fields, their demographics and their career priorities. Multivariable logistic regression was used to determine the effect of each item. Results A total of 1400 responses were obtained. The top five specialty fields chosen by students with their numbers were: internal medicine, 898 (64.2%); general practice, 337 (24.1%); pediatrics, 449 (32.1%); surgery, 380 (27.2%); and emergency medicine, 243 (17.4%). The “intent to inherit existing practice” and “other academic or professional experiences prior to medical school” had a positive association with choosing general practice while “having a physician parent’’ had a negative association among the medical students demographics after adjusting for other covariates in the multivariable logistic regression. Medical students who ranked “clinical diagnostic reasoning”, “community-oriented practice”, “involvement in preventive medicine”, and “frequent patient communication” as highly important were more likely to choose general practice, whereas, “access to advanced medical fields”, “mastering advanced procedures”, and “depth rather than breadth of practice” were less likely to be associated with general practice aspiration. Conclusion The study’s results depicted limited interest of family medicine as a career option in graduating students, and pointed out the factors that likely influence the choice of general practice as a career are clinical diagnostic reasoning, community-oriented practice and preventive medicine

NO and SO2 emissions in palm kernel shell catalytic steam gasification with in-situ CO2 adsorption for hydrogen production in a pilot-scale fluidized bed gasification system

The NO and SO2 emissions in enhanced hydrogen production from palm kernel shell (PKS) steam gasification with integrated catalytic adsorption steam gasification is investigated. The influence of steam and adsorbent to biomass ratios (1.5–2.5, 1.0–1.5), temperature (600–750 °C), biomass particle size (0.355–2.0 mm) and fluidization velocity (0.15–26 m/s) was reported. The results inferred that lower temperature (600 °C) contributed to emissions of NO (30 ppm) and SO2 (110 ppm) whereas high steam to biomass ratio (2.5 wt/wt) produced emissions of &lt;30 ppm and &lt;110 ppm, respectively, at experimental conditions of 675 °C, adsorbent to biomass ratio of 1.0 (wt/wt) and catalyst to biomass ratio of 0.1 (wt/wt). The lowest average minimum NO and SO2 concentration of 16 ppm and 46 ppm, respectively, was observed at 675 °C, steam to biomass ratio of 2.0 (wt/wt), adsorbent to biomass ratio of 1.5 (wt/wt) and catalyst to biomass ratio of 0.1(wt/wt). Nevertheless, emissions were prorportional to fluidization velocities and small particle size (0.3–0.5 mm) contributed to high NO and SO2. The comparative studies found that the present study produced similar emission of NO (30 ppm) when compared with commercial indirect heated fluidized bed gasifier using steam as an oxidizing agent. Besides, some other studies operated at high temperature reported high NO and SO2 concentration which might be due to the temperature being the most influential variable in the context