Distance and Similarity Measures for Soft Sets

In [P. Majumdar, S. K. Samanta, Similarity measure of soft sets, New Mathematics and Natural Computation 4(1)(2008) 1-12], the authors use matrix representation based distances of soft sets to introduce matching function and distance based similarity measures. We first give counterexamples to show that their Definition 2.7 and Lemma 3.5(3) contain errors, then improve their Lemma 4.4 making it a corllary of our result. The fundamental assumption of Majumdar et al has been shown to be flawed. This motivates us to introduce set operations based measures. We present a case (Example 28) where Majumdar-Samanta similarity measure produces an erroneous result but the measure proposed herein decides correctly. Several properties of the new measures have been presented and finally the new similarity measures have been applied to the problem of financial diagnosis of firms.Comment: 14 pages, accepted manuscript, to appear in New Mathematics and Natural Computatio

Is BIM Adoption Advantageous for Construction Industry of Pakistan?

Lack of Information technology applications on construction projects lead to complex flow of data during project life cycle. Building Information Modeling (BIM) has gained attention in the Architectural, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry, envisage the use of virtual n-dimensional (n-D) models to identify potential conflicts in design, construction or operational of any facility. A questionnaire has been designed to investigate perceptions regarding BIM advantages. Around 102 valid responses received from diversified stakeholders. Results showed very low BIM adoption with low level of ‘Buzz’. BIM is a faster and more effective method for designing and construction management, it improves quality of the design and construction and reduces rework during construction; which came out as the top thee advantages according to the perception of AEC professionals of Pakistan.BIM has least impact on reduction of cost, time and human resources. This research is a bench mark study to understand adoption and advantageous of BIM in Pakistan Construction Industry

A Novel Features-Based Multivariate Gaussian Distribution Method for the Fraudulent Consumers Detection in the Power Utilities of Developing Countries

According to statistics, developing countries all over the world have suffered significant non-technical losses (NTLs) both in natural gas and electricity distribution. NTLs are thought of as energy that is consumed but not billed e.g., theft, meter tampering, meter reversing, etc. The adaptation of smart metering technology has enabled much of the developed world to significantly reduce their NTLs. Also, the recent advancements in machine learning and data analytics have enabled a further reduction in these losses. However, these solutions are not directly applicable to developing countries because of their infrastructure and manual data collection. This paper proposes a tailored solution based on machine learning to mitigate NTLs in developing countries. The proposed method is based on a multivariate Gaussian distribution framework to identify fraudulent consumers. It integrates novel features like social class stratification and the weather profile of an area. Thus, achieving a significant improvement in fraudulent consumer detection. This study has been done on a real dataset of consumers provided by the local power distribution companies that have been cross-validated by onsite inspection. The obtained results successfully identify fraudulent consumers with a maximum success rate of 75%. 2013 IEEE.This work was supported by the Qatar National Library.Scopus2-s2.0-8510734936

Cleaning Methods for Ultrasound Probes

Objective: To determine the effectiveness of three different methods of ultrasound probe cleaning for the prevention of nosocomial infections. Study Design: Experimental study. Place and Duration of Study: Radiology Department, the Aga Khan University Hospital, Karachi and Microbiology Department, JPMC, Karachi, from December 2006 to April 2007. Patients and Methods: A total of 75 culture swabs from ultrasound probes used for sonographic examinations of different body parts of patients were included in the study. Probes were prospectively randomized into three equal groups with 25 probes in each group. Culture was sent before and after using three different techniques of cleaning ultrasound probe, which included sterilized paper towel, 0.9% saline and swipe over with standard bath soap applied on group A (n=25), group B (n=25) and group C (n=25) respectively. Number of Colony Forming Unit (CFU) of bacteria were calculated on standard agar plate to find out the effectiveness of cleaning methods in reducing bacterial count from the ultrasound probe after the procedures. All samples were tested in single microbiology lab by using same bacterial growth media provided by same manufacturer. Kruskall Wallis, Jonchkheere-Terpstra and Wilcoxon sign rank tests were applied to find out statistical significance. Results: There was a significant reduction in bacterial count after applying either of all three cleaning methods for ultrasound probe compared to count on the probes before cleaning (p Conclusion: Cleaning ultrasound probe after performing each procedure is a cost-effective practice with potential of reducing nosocomial infections. Soap cleaning technique is the most effective method for reducing bacterial count acquired due to patients’ body contact with the ultrasound probes

Quality of Type 2 Diabetes Management in the States of The Co-Operation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf: A Systematic Review

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a growing, worldwide public health concern. Recent growth has been particularly dramatic in the states of The Co-operation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC), and these and other developing economies are at particular risk. We aimed to systematically review the quality of control of type 2 diabetes in the GCC, and the nature and efficacy of interventions. We identified 27 published studies for review. Studies were identified by systematic database searches. Medline and Embase were searched separately (via Dialog and Ovid, respectively; 1950 to July 2010 (Medline), and 1947 to July 2010 (Embase)) on 15/07/2009. The search was updated on 08/07/2010. Terms such as diabetes mellitus, non-insulin-dependent, hyperglycemia, hypertension, hyperlipidemia and Gulf States were used. Our search also included scanning reference lists, contacting experts and hand-searching key journals. Studies were judged against pre-determined inclusion/exclusion criteria, and where suitable for inclusion, data extraction/quality assessment was achieved using a specifically-designed tool. All studies wherein glycaemic-, blood pressure- and/or lipid- control were investigated (clinical and/or process outcomes) were eligible for inclusion. No limitations on publication type, publication status, study design or language of publication were imposed. We found the extent of control to be sub-optimal and relatively poor. Assessment of the efficacy of interventions was difficult due to lack of data, but suggestive that more widespread and controlled trial of secondary prevention strategies may have beneficial outcomes. We found no record of audited implementation of primary preventative strategies and anticipate that controlled trial of such strategies would also be useful

Abstract Number ‐ 161: Comparing Stroke Thrombectomy Outcomes In Younger V/S Older Population

Introduction Large vessel occlusion (LVO) is estimated to account for up to 39% of all ischemic strokes with 62% of them resulting in post‐ischemic stroke dependency and 96% of all post‐ischemic stroke mortality. Advanced imaging modalities and efficient stroke systems of care have resulted in faster reperfusion times. There is however limited data on the outcomes of thrombectomy as a function of age. We present a retrospective analysis on thrombectomy in younger (age 18–49 years) versus older (age >50 years) patients. Methods Retrospective single center study with population being identified using our procedural database and “SlicerDicer” tool on EPIC from 2017–2021. Patients who underwent mechanical thrombectomy were divided into 2 groups based on age. Younger group consists of patients between the ages 18–49 while older group is 50 and over. Primary outcome of the study was to identify good clinical outcome as defined by mRS of 0–2 in both groups. Secondary outcomes included rate of favorable reperfusion defined by TICI 2b‐3, symptomatic ICH and mortality rate. Results > We have identified 48 patients between the age of 18–49 and 436 over the age of 50. > We found that median groin puncture to repercussion time was lower in younger population (32 v/s 69 mins; p = 0.0044) > The median groin puncture to first pass time was lower in younger population (22 v/s 43; p = 0.056), but it failed to show statistical significance. > Younger compared to older patients had better clinical outcomes (mRS 0–2) at 77.1% v/s 32.3% (p The older group required more passes to achieve recanalization (4 or more passes: 4.3% v/s 16.2%; p = 0.035) > Mortality rate was significantly less in the younger population (8.3% v/s 22.1%; p = 0.026) Conclusions Younger patients had better clinical outcomes than their older counterparts after mechanical thrombectomy in our analysis. Other than younger age, higher rates of favorable repercussion, earlier recanalization, and less passes to recanalization were seen in association with better observed outcomes

Churia forests of Nepal 2010-2012

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