Integrated Social-sector Macroeconometric Model for Pakistan

While the traditional neoclassical production model postulates that it is the physical inputs such as private capital, labour, land, and technology that are the key determinants of output and economic development, in recent years, however, the social sector variables are also considered to be critical, particularly for the long-run sustainable growth of the economy. If fact, what has been argued in the form of “new growth theories” is that social variables (e.g., education, health, knowledge, etc.) generate “positive externalities” and, thus, may facilitate and foster the process of economic growth and development. Recently, the World Bank, based on a broad cross-country study, found some very interesting results in the above context. According to the World Development Report (1991): about fifty percent of the factor productivity contribution to output growth comes not from traditional physical inputs (capital, labour and land) but is a residual factor.

Fluoride in the drinking water of Pakistan and the possible risk of crippling fluorosis

To explore the possibility of fluoride toxicity, 747 water samples were collected from surface water and groundwater sources of 16 major cities of Pakistan, adopting a uniform sampling design with distribution of samples: Lahore (79), Kasur (46), Faisalabad (30), Khushab (50), Chakwal (51), Mianwali (30), Jhelum (53), Bahawalpur (60), Karachi (60), Mirpur Khas (55), Peshawar (38), Risalpur (35), Quetta (81), Ziarat (21), Loralai (21), and Mastung (37). Comparison of analytical findings with WHO Guidelines of Drinking Water for Fluoride (i.e., 1.5 ppm) has concluded that 16% of the monitored water sources have fluoride concentration beyond the permissible safe limit of 1.5 mg L^−1 falling in the concentration range of 1.6–25 mg L^−1. The highest fluoride contamination (22%) is detected in the Balochistan province followed by 19% in Punjab province. Comparatively higher fluoride levels of > 20% in the groundwater sources like hand pumps supported the possibility of increased groundwater contamination as excessive fluoride concentrations are expected to come from calcium-poor aquifers and in areas where fluoride-bearing minerals are common or where cation exchange of sodium for calcium occurs. Field observations have also indicated the prevalence of fluoride-associated health implications in the study areas with excessive fluoride in water sources. Findings of this study have provided bidirectional vision for the epidemiological investigations as well as to mitigate the issues in the affected vicinities of fluoride-rich areas

M-GEAR: Gateway-Based Energy-Aware Multi-Hop Routing Protocol for WSNs

In this research work, we advise gateway based energy-efficient routing protocol (M-GEAR) for Wireless Sensor Networks (WSNs). We divide the sensor nodes into four logical regions on the basis of their location in the sensing field. We install Base Station (BS) out of the sensing area and a gateway node at the centre of the sensing area. If the distance of a sensor node from BS or gateway is less than predefined distance threshold, the node uses direct communication. We divide the rest of nodes into two equal regions whose distance is beyond the threshold distance. We select cluster heads (CHs)in each region which are independent of the other region. These CHs are selected on the basis of a probability. We compare performance of our protocol with LEACH (Low Energy Adaptive Clustering Hierarchy). Performance analysis and compared statistic results show that our proposed protocol perform well in terms of energy consumption and network lifetime.Comment: IEEE 8th International Conference on Broadband and Wireless Computing, Communication and Applications (BWCCA'13), Compiegne, Franc

What Explains the Current High Rate of Inflation in Pakistan?

One of the most significant developments in the current economic scene in Pakistan has been the sharp increase in the rate of inflation. The annual average rate of increase in the wholesale price index (WPI) during the first seven months (July-January 1994-95) of the current fiscal year has been about 19 percent as opposed to 11.3 percent during the same period last year. A similar increase was also witnessed in the consumer price index (CPI) which accelerated to 13 percent as opposed to 11.1 percent during the previous period. Such a sharp increase in prices in recent months has not only caused alarm in the academic circles but has equally disturbed the country’s chief executive, the Prime Minister. The recent surge of inflation is a matter of serious concern for a variety of reasons. First, Pakistan has been a low-inflation country as it has experienced price stability during the last three decades. The rate of inflation, as measured by an increase in the WPI, averaged 2.6 percent during the 1960s. The components of the WPI, i.e., food, raw materials, manufactures, and fuel and lubricants, also grew by an average rate ranging from 2.0 to 3.4 percent p.a. during then 1960s (see Table 1 for relevant statistics). The rate of inflation crossed the single-digit threshold during the 1970s. The WPI and its components increased at an annual average rate ranging from 12 to 18 percent. The double-digit inflation during the 1970s has been the result of two major oil shocks, a massive devaluation of currency, and devastating floods destroying agricultural crops. Pakistan returned to the fold of the single-digit inflation during the 1980s. The rate of inflation remained at the single-digit level during the first three years of the 1990s with the exception of 1990-91, when the rate of inflation increased to 11.7 percent as a result of the Gulf War. It is only during the outgoing fiscal year and in the current year that the rising inflation is posing a major threat to macroeconomic stability.

IoT and Neural Network-Based Water Pumping Control System For Smart Irrigation

This article aims at saving the wasted water in the process of irrigation using the Internet of Things (IoT) based on a set of sensors and Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP) neural network. The developed system handles the sensor data using the Arduino board to control the water pump automatically. The sensors measure the environmental factors; namely temperature, humidity, and soil moisture to estimate the required time for the operation of water irrigation. The water pump control system consists of software and hardware tools such as Arduino Remote XY interface and electronic sensors in the framework of IoT technology. The machine learning algorithm such as the MLP neural network plays an important role to support the decision of automatic control of IoT-based irrigation system, managing the water consumption effectively.Comment: 6 pages, 5 figures, 1 tabl

The Impact of Cognitive Training Program for Children (CTPC) to Development the Mathematical Conceptual and Achievement

This study aimed to investigate the impact of the Cognitive Training Program of Children (CTPC) on development the of mathematical concepts and achievement in mathematics among third-grade students. The study sample consisted of (113) students distributed randomly into three groups: the first experimental group (39) students who taught through CTPC individually, the second experimental group (36) students who taught through CTPC in small groups, and the control group (38) taught in the traditional method. A mathematical conceptual development test, mathematical achievement test, and qualitative scoring rubric were prepared as instruments to collect the data. The results showed that there were statistically significant differences between the three groups, in favor of the two experimental groups, and statistically significant differences between the two experimental groups in favor of the second experimental group, which was trained on CTPC in small groups, compared to the first experimental group, which was trained on CTPC individually. The study recommended paying attention to CTPC, inviting teachers to use it in teaching mathematics, and providing guides for teachers to plan lessons using CTPC

Investigating visibility affordance, knowledge transfer and employee agility performance. A study of enterprise social media

The research analyzes the associations between enterprise social media (ESM) visibility affordance (i.e., message transparency and network translucence) and employee agility performance through knowledge transfer (knowledge acquisition and knowledge provision) in organizations that have applied ESM. Utilizing the communication visibility theory, this study further examines the moderating role of task interdependence in strengthening the interactions between knowledge transfer and employee agility performance. We conducted two studies, one in China (347 samples) and the other in the United States (335 samples) to cross-culturally test our research model. Our results indicate that message transparency and network translucence have significant positive associations with employee agility performance in both studies. The findings also show that knowledge provision mediates the relationships between ESM visibility affordance and employee agility performance in both samples, while knowledge acquisition mediates the association between ESM visibility affordance and employee agility performance in the Chinese sample but not in the U.S. sample. Further, task interdependence moderates the link between knowledge acquisition and employee agility performance in China and the United States. However, task interdependence moderates the relationship between knowledge provision and employee agility performance in China but not in the United States. The implications for theory and management are also discussed

Pulmonary prophylactic impact of melatonin and/or quercetin: A novel therapy for inflammatory hypoxic stress in rats

The study aims to compare, through histological and biochemical studies, the effects of quercetin, melatonin and their combination in regulation of immuno-inflammatory mediators and heat shock protein expressions in sodium nitrite induced hypoxia in rat lungs. The results revealed that NaNO2 injection caused a significant decrease in Hb in rats, while serum levels of TNF-α, IL-6 and CRP, VEGF and HSP70 were elevated compared to the control group. Administration of melatonin, quercetin or their combination before NaNO2 injection markedly reduced these parameters. Histopathological examination of the lung tissue supported these biochemical findings. The study suggests that melatonin and/or quercetin are responsible for lung tissue protection in hypoxia by downregulation of immuno-inflammatory mediators and heat shock protein expressions. Pre-treatment of hypoxic animals with a combination of melatonin and quercetin was effective in modulating most of the studied parameters to near-normal levels

Aqueous Date Flesh or Pits Extract Attenuates Liver Fibrosis via Suppression of Hepatic Stellate Cell Activation and Reduction of Inflammatory Cytokines, Transforming Growth Factor- β

Previous data indicated the protective effect of date fruit extract on oxidative damage in rat liver. However, the hepatoprotective effects via other mechanisms have not been investigated. This study was performed to evaluate the antifibrotic effect of date flesh extract (DFE) or date pits extract (DPE) via inactivation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), reducing the levels of inflammatory, fibrotic and angiogenic markers. Coffee was used as reference hepatoprotective agent. Liver fibrosis was induced by injection of CCl4 (0.4 mL/kg) three times weekly for 8 weeks. DFE, DPE (6 mL/kg), coffee (300 mg/kg), and combination of coffee + DFE and coffee + DPE were given to CCl4-intoxicated rats daily for 8 weeks. DFE, DPE, and their combination with coffee attenuated the elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines including tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin-6, and interleukin-1β. The increased levels of transforming growth factor-β1 and collagen deposition in injured liver were alleviated by both extracts. CCl4-induced expression of α-smooth muscle actin was suppressed indicating HSCs inactivation. Increased angiogenesis was ameliorated as revealed by reduced levels and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor and CD31. We concluded that DFE or DPE could protect liver via different mechanisms. The combination of coffee with DFE or DPE may enhance its antifibrotic effects